December 2, 2010

Ms. Linda Hight

Records Coordinator

City of Cleburne

P.O. Box 677

Cleburne, Texas 76033

OR2010-18041

Dear Ms. Hight:

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# 402413.

The City of Cleburne (the "city") received a request for a specified offense report. We understand you to claim the requested information is excepted from disclosure under section 552.101 of the Government Code. We have considered your arguments 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." Section 552.101 encompasses information made confidential by other statutes, including section 261.201 of the Family Code, which provides in relevant part the following:

(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.

. . .

(k) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), an investigating agency, other than the [Texas Department of Family and Protective Services] or the Texas Youth Commission, on request, shall provide to the parent, managing conservator, or other legal representative of a child who is the subject of reported abuse or neglect, or to the child if the child is at least 18 years of age, information concerning the reported abuse or neglect that would otherwise be confidential under this section. The investigating agency shall withhold information under this subsection if the parent, managing conservator, or other legal representative of the child requesting the information is alleged to have committed the abuse or neglect.

(l) Before a child or a parent, managing conservator, or other legal representative of a child may inspect or copy a record or file concerning the child under Subsection (k), the custodian of the record or file must redact:

(1) any personally identifiable information about a victim or witness under 18 years of age unless that victim or witness is:

(A) the child who is the subject of the report; or

(B) another child of the parent, managing conservator, or other legal representative requesting the information; [and]

. . .

(3) the identity of the person who made the report.

Fam. Code § 261.201(a), (k), (l)(1), (3). Upon review, we agree the submitted information was used or developed in an investigation of alleged or suspected child abuse or neglect. See id. § 261.001(1), (4) (defining "abuse" and "neglect" for purposes of chapter 261.201 of Family Code). Therefore, the submitted information is generally confidential under section 261.201 of the Family Code. We note, however, that the requestor is a parent of the child victim. Further, this individual is not alleged to have committed the suspected abuse. Thus, the city may not withhold the submitted information from this requestor on the basis of section 261.201(a). See id. § 261.201(k). Section 261.201(l) provides that before a guardian can copy and inspect a record of a child under section 261.201(k), any personally identifiable information about a victim or witness under 18 years of age who is not the parent's child and the identity of the party who made the report must be redacted. Id. § 261.201(l)(1), (3). The submitted documents contain personally identifiable information of a juvenile witness, which we have marked. Because we are unable to determine whether the requestor is a parent of the juvenile witness, we must rule conditionally. Accordingly, if the requestor is not a parent of the juvenile witness, then the city must withhold the information identifying this juvenile witness we have marked under section 552.101 in conjunction with section 261.201(l)(1). If the requestor is a parent of the juvenile witness, then the city may not withhold this information pursuant to section 261.201(l)(1), but instead must release it to the requestor. The city must withhold the information revealing the identity of the reporting party we have marked under section 552.101 in conjunction with section 261.201(l)(3). The city must release the remaining information to the requestor pursuant to section 261.201(k) of the Government Code. ⁽¹⁾

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,

James L. Coggeshall

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

JLC/bs

Ref: ID# 402413

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. Because the requestor has a special right of access to the information being released, the city must again seek a decision from this office if it receives another request for the same information from another requestor.

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