February 5, 2009

Mr. Daniel Bradford

Assistant County Attorney

Travis County

P.O. Box 1748

Austin, Texas 78701

OR2009-01517

Dear Mr. Bradford:

You ask whether certain information is subject to required public disclosure under the Public Information Act (the "Act"), chapter 552 of the Government Code. Your request was assigned ID# 334112.

The Travis County Sheriff's Office (the "sheriff") received a request for the booking photographs and booking information of all individuals arrested during a specified time period, and this type of information on a weekly recurring basis. You claim the requested information is excepted from disclosure under section 552.108 of the Government Code. We have considered the exception you claim and reviewed the submitted representative sample of information. ⁽¹⁾

Initially, we note the present request for information is, in part, a standing request. It is implicit in several provisions of the Act that the Act applies only to information already in existence. See Gov't Code §§ 552.002, .021, .227, .351. Consequently, a governmental body is not required to comply with a standing request to supply information on a periodic basis as such information is prepared in the future. See Attorney General Opinion JM-48 at 2 (1983); see also Open Records Decision Nos. 476 at 1 (1987), 465 at 1 (1987). Thus, the only information encompassed by this request consists of documents the sheriff maintained or had a right of access to on the date it received the present request.

Next, we note you have not submitted the requested booking information, nor have you submitted booking photographs for cases that aren't pending. To the extent information responsive to these aspects of the request existed on the date the sheriff received this request, we assume you have released it. If you have not released any such records, you must do so at this time. See Gov't Code §§ 552.301(a), .302; see also Open Records Decision No. 664 (2000) (if governmental body concludes that no exceptions apply to requested information, it must release information as soon as possible).

Section 552.108(a)(1) excepts from disclosure "[i]nformation held by a law enforcement agency or prosecutor that deals with the detection, investigation, or prosecution of crime . . . if . . . release of the information would interfere with the detection, investigation, or prosecution of crime[.]" Gov't Code § 552.108(a)(1). A governmental body claiming section 552.108 must reasonably explain how and why the release of the requested information would interfere with law enforcement. See id. §§ 552.108(a)(1), .301(e)(1)(A); see also Ex parte Pruitt, 551 S.W.2d 706 (Tex. 1977). We understand you to state the submitted photograph is a representative sample of the requested booking photographs that pertain to pending criminal investigations. Based upon this representation, we conclude the release of the responsive booking photographs related to pending criminal investigations would interfere with the detection, investigation, or prosecution of crime. See Houston Chronicle Publ'g Co. v. City of Houston, 531 S.W.2d 177 (Tex. Civ. App.--Houston[14th Dist.] 1975), writ ref'd n.r.e. per curiam, 536 S.W.2d 559 (Tex. 1976) (court delineates law enforcement interests that are present in active cases). Accordingly, the responsive booking photographs related to pending criminal investigations may be withheld pursuant to section 552.108(a)(1) of the Government Code.

This letter ruling is limited to the particular information at issue in this request and limited to the facts as presented to us; therefore, this ruling must not be relied upon as a previous determination regarding any other information or any other circumstances.

This ruling triggers important deadlines regarding the rights and responsibilities of the governmental body and of the requestor. For more information concerning those rights and responsibilities, please visit our website at http://www.oag.state.tx.us/open/index_orl.php, or call the Office of the Attorney General's Open Government Hotline, toll free, at (877) 673-6839. Questions concerning the allowable charges for providing public information under the Act must be directed to the Cost Rules Administrator of the Office of the Attorney General at (512) 475-2497.

Sincerely,

Leah B. Wingerson

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

LBW/cc

Ref: ID# 334112

Enc. Submitted documents

cc: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. We assume the "representative sample" photograph submitted to this office is truly representative of the requested booking photographs in pending criminal cases. See Open Records Decision Nos. 499 (1988), 497 (1988). This open records letter does not reach, and, therefore, does not authorize the withholding of, any other requested records to the extent those records contain substantially different types of information than that submitted to this office.

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