 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS GREG ABBOTT | |
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March 4, 2010 Ms. Michelle T. Rangel Assistant County Attorney Fort Bend County 301 Jackson Street, Suite 728 Richmond, Texas 77469 OR2010-03196 Dear Ms. Rangel: 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#375441. The Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office (the "sheriff") received a request for incident reports at a specified address pertaining to two individuals from May 2007 to May 2009. You claim that the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under sections 552.108, 552.130, and 552.147 of the Government Code. We have considered the exceptions you claim and reviewed the submitted representative sample of information. (1) Section 552.108(a)(1) 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: (1) 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(a) 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) (governmental body must provide comments explaining why exceptions raised should apply to information requested); see also Ex parte Pruitt, 551 S.W.2d 706 (Tex. 1977). You state that report #09-2609 and the related documents relate to a pending criminal investigation. Based on your representation and our review, we conclude that section 552.108(a)(1) is applicable to report #09-2609. Section 552.108(a)(2) 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: (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)(2). A governmental body claiming section 552.108(a)(2) must demonstrate that the requested information relates to a criminal investigation that has concluded in a final result other than conviction or deferred adjudication. See id. §§ 552.108(a)(2), .301(e)(1)(A); Ex parte Pruitt, 551 S.W.2d 706 (Tex. 1977). You state that reports #07-11807 and #09-6529 relate to concluded investigations that did not result in conviction or deferred adjudication. Accordingly, we agree that section 552.108(a)(2) is applicable to reports #07-11807 and #09-6529. As you acknowledge, section 552.108 does not except from required public disclosure "basic information about an arrested person, an arrest, or a crime." Gov't Code § 552.108(c). Thus, the sheriff must release the types of basic information listed in Houston Chronicle Publishing Company 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). With the exception of basic information, the sheriff may withhold reports #09-2609, #07-11807, and #09-6529 pursuant to section 552.108. (2) Section 552.130 of the Government Code excepts from disclosure "information [that] relates to . . . a motor vehicle operator's or driver's license or permit issued by an agency of this state [or] a motor vehicle title or registration issued by an agency of this state." Gov't Code § 552.130(a). You note call slips A083140255 and A090290026 contain Texas motor vehicle record information. Accordingly, the sheriff must withhold the information we have marked under section 552.130 of the Government Code. (3) In summary: (1) with the exception of basic information, you may withhold incident report #09-2609 pursuant to section 552.108(a)(1); (2) with the exception of basic information, you may withhold reports #07-11807 and #09-6529 pursuant to section 552.108(a)(2); (3) you must withhold the Texas motor vehicle record information we have marked in call slips A083140255 and A090290026 pursuant to section 552.130 of the Government Code. You must release the remaining information. (4) 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, Vanessa Burgess Assistant Attorney General Open Records Division VB/jb Ref: ID#375441 Enc. Submitted documents c: Requestor (w/o enclosures)
1. We assume that the "representative sample" of records submitted to this office is truly representative
of the requested records as a whole. 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 that those records contain substantially different types of information than that submitted to this
office.
As our ruling is dispositive, we need not address your remaining argument against disclosure in regard
to reports #09-2609, #07-11807, and #09-6529.
We note this office recently issued Open Records Decision No. 684 (2009), a previous determination
to all governmental bodies authorizing them to withhold ten categories of information, including Texas driver's
license numbers under section 552.130 of the Government Code, without the necessity of requesting an attorney
general decision. See ORD 684 (2009).
We note that the information being released contains the requestor's Texas driver's license
information. Ordinarily, this information would be withheld under section 552.130 of the Government Code.
However, because this information belongs to the requestor, it may not be withheld in this instance. See Gov't
Code § 552.023(a) (person or person's authorized representative has special right of access, beyond right of
general public, to information held by governmental body that relates to person and is protected from public
disclosure by laws intended to protect person's privacy interests); Open Records Decision No. 481 at 4 (1987)
(privacy theories not implicated when individual asks governmental body to provide him with information
concerning himself). If the sheriff receives another request for this particular information from a different
requestor, then the sheriff should again seek a decision from this office. POST OFFICE BOX 12548, AUSTIN, TEXAS 78711-2548 TEL: (512) 463-2100 WEB: WWW.OAG.STATE.TX.US |