February 25, 20 09

Ms. Cherl K. Byles

Assistant City Attorney

City of Fort Worth

1000 Throckmorton Street, 3^rd Floor

Fort Worth, Texas 76102

OR2009-02472

Dear Ms. Byles:

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# 335715.

The Fort Worth Police Department (the "department") received a request for any records pertaining to a named individual and a specified address from January 2008 to the date of the request. You state you have released some information to the requestor. ⁽¹⁾ You claim that the remaining requested information is excepted from disclosure under sections 552.101 and 552.108 of the Government Code. We have considered the exceptions you claim.

We first address your claim under common-law privacy, as this is potentially the most encompassing exception you claim. Section 552.101 of the Government Code excepts from disclosure "information considered to be confidential by law, either constitutional, statutory, or by judicial decision." Gov't Code § 552.101. Section 552.101 encompasses the doctrine of common-law privacy, which protects information if (1) the information contains highly intimate or embarrassing facts the publication of which would be highly objectionable to a reasonable person, and (2) the information is not of legitimate concern to the public. Indus. Found. v. Tex. Indus. Accident Bd., 540 S.W.2d 668, 685 (Tex. 1976). To demonstrate the applicability of common-law privacy, both prongs of this test must be satisfied. Id. at 681-82. A compilation of an individual's criminal history is highly embarrassing information, the publication of which would be highly objectionable to a reasonable person. Cf. United States Dep't of Justice v. Reporters Comm. for Freedom of the Press, 489 U.S. 749, 764 (1989) (when considering prong regarding individual's privacy interest, court recognized distinction between public records found in courthouse files and local police stations and compiled summary of information and noted that individual has significant privacy interest in compilation of one's criminal history). Furthermore, we find that a compilation of a private citizen's criminal history is generally not of legitimate concern to the public.

The requestor seeks, among other things, all information involving a named individual. We find that this part of the request requires the department to compile unspecified law enforcement records concerning the named individual. Such a request implicates the named individual's privacy rights. Thus, to the extent the department maintains law enforcement records depicting the named individual as either a suspect, arrestee, or criminal defendant, the department must withhold any such information under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with common-law privacy.

We note you have submitted police report No. 08-90594, which does not list the named individual as a suspect, arrestee, or criminal defendant. You assert this report and its accompanying 9-1-1 call sheet are subject to section 552.108(a)(1) of the Government Code. 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 must reasonably explain how and why section 552.108 is applicable to the information at issue. See id. § 552.301(e)(1)(A); Ex parte Pruitt, 551 S.W.2d 706 (Tex. 1977). You state, and provide a representation showing, that report No. 08-90594 and its accompanying 9-1-1 call sheet are related to a pending criminal prosecution being conducted by the Tarrant County District Attorney's Office. Based upon this representation, we conclude that the release this information 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).

We note that basic information about an arrested person, an arrest, or a crime is not excepted from disclosure under section 552.108. See Gov't Code § 552.108(c). Such basic information refers to the information held to be public in Houston Chronicle. See 531 S.W.2d at 186-8; see also Open Records Decision No. 127 (1976) (summarizing types of information deemed public by Houston Chronicle). Therefore, with the exception of basic information, the department may withhold report No. 08-90594 and its accompanying 9-1-1 call sheet under section 552.108(a)(1) of the Government Code. ⁽²⁾

You assert the remaining 9-1-1 call sheet contains information subject to section 772.218 of the Health and Safety Code, which is also encompassed by section 552.101 of the Government Code. Chapter 772 of the Health and Safety Code authorizes the development of local emergency communications districts. Sections 772.118, 772.218, and 772.318 of the Health and Safety Code are applicable to emergency 9-1-1 districts established in accordance with chapter 772. See Open Records Decision No. 649 (1996). These sections make the originating telephone numbers and addresses of 9-1-1 callers that are furnished by a service supplier confidential. Id. at 2. Section 772.218 applies to an emergency communication district for a county with a population of more than 860,000. You inform us the City of Fort Worth is part of an emergency communication district established under section 772.218 of the Health and Safety Code. You also indicate the telephone number you have marked in the remaining 9-1-1 call sheet was provided by a 9-1-1 service supplier. Based on your representations, we conclude the department must withhold the telephone number you have marked under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 772.218 of the Health and Safety Code.

In summary, to the extent the department maintains law enforcement records depicting the named individual as either a suspect, arrestee, or criminal defendant, the department must withhold any such information under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with common-law privacy. Except for basic information, the department may withhold report No. 08-90594 and its accompanying 9-1-1 call sheet under section 552.108(a)(1) of the Government Code. From the remaining 9-1-1 call sheet, the department must withhold the telephone number you have marked under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 772.218 of the Health and Safety Code. The remaining information must be released to the requestor.

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,

Reg Hargrove

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

RJH/eeg

Ref: ID# 335715

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. You state that you have redacted Texas motor vehicle record information under section 552.130 of the Government Code pursuant to previous determinations issued to the City of Fort Worth in Open Records Letter Nos. 2006-14726 (2006) and 2007-00198 (2007). See Gov't Code § 552.301(a); Open Records Decision No. 673 at 7-8 (2001). You also state that you are withholding social security numbers pursuant to section 552.147 of the Government Code. See id. § 552.147(b) (authorizing a governmental body to redact a living person's social security number from public release without the necessity of requesting a decision from this office under the Act).

2. As our ruling is dispositive, we need not address your remaining argument against disclosure of this information.

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