July 14, 2010

Ms. Ashley D. Fourt

Assistant District Attorney

Tarrant County District Attorney's Office

401 West Belknap

Fort Worth, Texas 76196-0201

OR2010-10435

Dear Ms. Fourt:

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# 386754.

The Tarrant County District Attorney's Office (the "district attorney") received a request for "the entire contents of the prosecution's file" for two specified cause numbers. You claim the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under sections 552.101, 552.107, 552.108, 552.132, and 552.1325 of the Government Code. We have considered the exceptions you claim and reviewed the submitted information.

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 section 261.201 of the Family Code, which provides in part:

(a) [T]he following information is confidential, is not subject to public release under [the Act] and may be disclosed only for purposes consistent with this code and applicable federal or state law or under rules adopted by an investigating agency:

(1) a report of alleged or suspected abuse or neglect made under this chapter and the identity of the person making the report; and

(2) except as otherwise provided in this section, the files, reports, records, communications, audiotapes, videotapes, and working papers used or developed in an investigation under this chapter or in providing services as a result of an investigation.

Fam. Code § 261.201(a). Upon review, we agree the submitted information was used or developed in an investigation under chapter 261. See id. § 261.001(1)(E) (definition of child abuse includes sexual assault or aggravated sexual assault under Penal Code sections 22.011 and 22.021); see also Penal Code § 22.011(c)(1) (defining "child" for purposes of Penal Code sections 22.011 and 22.021 as a person younger than 17 years of age). We, therefore, conclude the submitted information is confidential under section 261.201. You have not indicated the Fort Worth Police Department, which conducted the investigation, has adopted a rule that governs the release of this type of information; therefore, we assume that no such regulation exists. Given that assumption, we conclude the submitted information is confidential pursuant to section 261.201 of the Family Code. See Open Records Decision No. 440 at 2 (1986) (predecessor statute). Accordingly, the district attorney must withhold the submitted information in its entirety under section 552.101 of the Government Code. As our ruling is dispositive, we need not address your remaining arguments against disclosure.

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,

Mack T. Harrison

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

MTH/tp

Ref: ID# 386754

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

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