January 22, 2010

Mr. Jose Hernandez

Records Clerk

Edinburg Police Department

1702 South Closner Boulevard

Edinburg, Texas 78540

OR2010-01039

Dear Mr. Hernandez:

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# 373010.

The Edinburg Police Department (the "department") received a request for offense report number 09-56459. You state you will release some information to the requestor. You claim the remaining requested information is 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 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 that claims an exception to disclosure under section 552.108 must reasonably explain how and why this exception 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 have marked the information that the department seeks to withhold under section 552.108. You state that the marked information pertains to an open criminal investigation. Based on your representation, we conclude that section 552.108(a)(1) is generally applicable to the marked information. 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. per curiam, 536 S.W.2d 559 (Tex. 1976) (court delineates law enforcement interests that are present in active cases).

We note that section 552.108 does not except from disclosure "basic information about an arrested person, an arrest, or a crime." Gov't Code § 552.108(c). Section 552.108(c) refers to the basic front-page information held to be public in Houston Chronicle. See 531 S.W.2d at 186-88. The department must release basic information, including a detailed description of the offense, even if the information does not literally appear on the front page of an offense or arrest report. See Open Records Decision No. 127 at 3-4 (1976) (summarizing types of information deemed public by Houston Chronicle). The department may withhold the rest of the marked information under section 552.108(a)(1). ⁽¹⁾

Next, you assert portions of the remaining information are excepted from disclosure under section 552.130 of the Government Code. Section 552.130 provides that information relating to a motor vehicle operator's license, driver's license, motor vehicle title, or registration issued by a Texas agency is excepted from public release. Gov't Code § 552.130(a)(1), (2). We note that section 552.130 protects personal privacy. In this instance, the information at issue belongs to the requestor, and thus, the requestor has a right of access to the information at issue. See id. § 552.023; Open Records Decision No. 481 at 4. Accordingly, the department may not withhold any of the information you have marked in the remaining information under section 552.130 of the Government Code.

In summary, with the exception of basic information, the department may withhold the marked information under section 552.108(a)(1) of the Government Code. The remaining information must be released. ⁽²⁾

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,

Amy L.S. Shipp

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

ALS/rl

Ref: ID# 373010

Enc. Submitted documents

cc: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

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

2. We note that this requestor has a special right of access to some of the information being released that would otherwise be confidential with regard to the general public. See Gov't Code § 552.023(a). Therefore, if the department receives another request for this information from a person who does not have a special right of access to this information, the department should resubmit this same information and request another decision from this office. See Gov't Code §§ 552.301(a), .302; Open Records Decision No. 673 (2001).

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