March 29, 2010

Ms. Yvette Auilar

Assistant City Attorney

City of Corpus Christi

P. O. Box 9277

Corpus Christi, Texas 78469-9277

OR2010-04351

Dear Ms. Aguilar:

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# 374021.

The Corpus Christi Police Department (the "department") received two requests from the same requestor for a specified incident report. You indicate you have released some of the requested information. You also indicate you will redact Texas license plate numbers under section 552.130 of the Government Code pursuant to Open Records Decision No. 684 (2009). ⁽¹⁾ You claim that portions of the submitted information are excepted from disclosure under sections 552.108 and 552.130 of the Government Code. We have considered the exceptions you claim and reviewed the submitted information.

Section 552.108 of the Government Code provides in part:

(a) Information held by a law enforcement agency or prosecutor that deals with the detection, investigation, or prosecution of crime is excepted from [required public disclosure] if:

(1) release of the information would interfere with the detection, investigation or prosecution of crime; [or]

(2) it is information that deals with the detection, investigation, or prosecution of crime only in relation to an investigation that did not result in conviction or deferred adjudication[.]

Gov't Code § 552.108(a)(1)-(2). Section 552.108(a)(1) is applicable to information whose release would interfere with a pending criminal investigation or prosecution. Section 552.108(a)(2) is applicable only to information relating to a concluded criminal investigation that did not result in a conviction or a deferred adjudication. 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 that the charges of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, unlawful carrying of a weapon, and possession of a controlled substance in the submitted report relate to an active criminal case. Based on your representation and our review of the submitted information, we conclude that section 552.108(a)(1) is applicable to the information you have marked relating to those three charges. 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). You further state that the charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in the submitted report relates to a closed criminal case that the Nueces County District Attorney's Office declined to prosecute. Based on your representation and our review of the submitted information, we conclude that section 552.108(a)(2) is applicable to the information you have marked relating to the aggravated assault charge. Therefore, the department may withhold the information you have marked relating to the charges of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, unlawful carrying of a weapon, and possession of a controlled substance under section 552.108(a)(1) and the information you have marked relating to the charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon under section 552.108(a)(2) of the Government Code.

Section 552.130 of the Government Code excepts from disclosure "information [that] relates to . . . a motor vehicle title or registration issued by an agency of this state[.]" Gov't Code § 552.130(a)(2). Therefore, the department must withhold the information you have marked under section 552.130 of the Government Code.

In summary, (1) the department may withhold the information you have marked under section 552.108 of the Government Code; and (2) the department must withhold the information you have marked under section 552.130 of the Government 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, toll free, at (888) 672-6787.

Sincerely,

Christopher D. Sterner

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

CDSA/eeg

Ref: ID# 374021

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. This office recently issued Open Records Decision No. 684, a previous determination to all governmental bodies, which authorizes withholding of ten categories of information, including a Texas license plate number under section 552.130 of the Government Code, without the necessity of requesting an attorney general decision.

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