April 6, 2010

Ms. Michelle L. Villarreal

Assistant City Attorney

City of Waco

P.O. Box 2570

Waco, Texas 76702-2570

OR2010-04815

Dear Ms. Villarreal:

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# 375167 (City of Waco Reference # LGL-10-69).

The Waco Police Department (the "department") received a request for police report number 0928564. You state you have released basic information to the requestor. ⁽¹⁾ You claim that the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under section 552.108 of the Government Code. We have considered the exception you claim and reviewed the submitted information.

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 that the submitted information is related to a pending criminal case. Based on your representations and our review, we conclude that section 552.108(a)(1) is applicable to the remaining 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 n.r.e. per curiam, 536 S.W.2d 559 (Tex. 1976) (court delineates law enforcement interests that are present in active cases). Thus, with the exception of basic information, which you state you have released, the department may withhold the submitted information under 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, toll free, at (888) 672-6787.

Sincerely,

Nneka Kanu

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

NK/jb

Ref: ID# 375167

Enc. Submitted documents

cc: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. We assume that the "basic information" you have released is the basic information referred to under section 552.108(c) of the Government Code. See Gov't Code § 552.108(c) (requiring the release of basic information about an arrested person, and arrest, or a crime); see also Open Records Decision No. 127 (1976) (summarizing types of information considered to be basic information).

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