January 3, 2011

Ms. M. Ann Montgomery

Assistant County & District Attorney

Ellis County

109 South Jackson

Waxahachie, Texas 75165-7832

OR2011-00058

Dear Ms. Montgomery:

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# 404738.

The Ellis County Department of Development (the "department") received a request for all complaint records pertaining to a specified address. You indicate you will release some of the requested information to the requestor. You claim that portions of the submitted information are excepted from disclosure under sections 552.103 and 552.108 of the Government Code. We have considered the exceptions you claim and reviewed the submitted information.

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 . . . 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)(1) 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); see also Ex parte Pruitt, 551 S.W.2d 706 (Tex. 1977). You state the submitted information relates to a pending criminal prosecution with the Ellis County and District Attorney's Office. Based on your representation and our review, we conclude that the release of the information you have marked would interfere with the detection, investigation, or prosecution of crime. See Houston Chronicle Publ'g Co. v. City of Houston, 531 S.W.2d 177 (Tex. Civ. App.--Houston [14th Dist.] 1975) (court delineates law enforcement interests that are present in active cases), writ ref'd n.r.e. per curiam, 536 S.W.2d 559 (Tex. 1976). Accordingly, the department may withhold the information you have marked under section 552.108(a)(1) of the Government Code. ⁽¹⁾ 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,

Sarah Casterline

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

SEC/eeg

Ref: ID# 404738

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. As our ruling is dispositive, we need not address your remaining arguments against disclosure, except to note basic information may generally not be withheld from public disclosure under section 552.103 of the Government Code. See Open Records Decision No. 597 (1991).

2. We note that the 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. We further note this office issued Open Records Decision No. 684 (2009), a previous determination to all governmental bodies authorizing them to withhold ten categories of information including a Texas driver's license number under section 552.130 of the Government Code and an e-mail address of a member of the public under section 552.137 of the Government Code, without the necessity of requesting an attorney general decision. Accordingly, if the department receives another request for this information from an individual other than one with a right of access, the department is authorized to withhold the requestor's Texas driver's license number under section 552.130 and e-mail address under section 552.137, without the necessity of requesting an attorney general decision.

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