Releasing some of the most intimate and explosive Columbine materials was debated in the Colorado Supreme Court on Tuesday as attorneys split over issues of personal privacy and the public's right to know about government actions.

The various materials include the lengthy "basement tapes" made by high school killers Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold that detailed their arsenal and philosophies, along with a diary written by Eric Harris' father, Wayne Harris.

Wayne Harris made a rare public appearance in court Tuesday but declined comment after the oral arguments.

Also in court was the father of slain student Daniel Rohrbough, who supported the release of the documents to better illustrate the actions of the killers' parents and the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, which has been investigated for allegedly covering up information.

"They shine a glaring light," Brian Rohrbough said of the materials.

The parents of Klebold and Harris brought the case to the Supreme Court arguing that the records from their homes, while obtained via search warrants, constitute their personal property and should not be released to the public. The parents were joined by the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, which executed the search warrants and is holding the materials.

Attorneys for the parents and sheriff noted hypothetical examples of police taking the diary of a Supreme Court justice or someone handing a document to police. That does not make those items open to the public.

"Just because they're keeping it, does that make it an open record?" Assistant Jefferson County Attorney Lily Oeffler said.

Attorney Steven Zansberg spoke on behalf of The Denver Post, which first requested the materials in 2002.

Zansberg argued, in part, that the materials were used to conduct a criminal investigation and the public therefore has a right to scrutinize the materials and determine whether the sheriff acted properly and thoroughly.

Zansberg noted, for example, that days after the shootings, then-Sheriff John Stone said the killers' parents must have known what their sons were up to and that the killers had accomplices.

Stone later said no one else knew of the plans, and the parents were never prosecuted.

"How is the public able to understand the difference . . . if they don't have access to the records themselves?" Zansberg asked.

Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold killed 12 students and a teacher at Columbine High School before taking their own lives on April 20, 1999.

Zansberg noted Tuesday that the Supreme Court was not being asked to release the materials in question.

Rather, the Post was arguing that the Harris and Klebold items fall under the Colorado Criminal Justice Records Act. That designation would at least allow the public to request the items. Law enforcement agencies, members of the public, media and the courts might then debate the merits of releasing such information, but the door would not automatically be shut by declaring the items private.

A twist that was not lost on the court is that many of the items under question have been released in various forms. The basement tapes have been shown to victims' families and the media, and news accounts have detailed their contents. Some writings of Klebold's, along with Eric and Wayne Harris', also have been excerpted and summarized, including in the sheriff's official report.