January 5, 2011

Ms. J. Middlebrooks

Assistant City Attorney

Criminal Law and Police Section

City of Dallas

1400 South Lamar

Dallas, Texas 75215

OR2011-00259

Dear Ms. Middlebrooks:

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# 409766 (DPD Request Number 2010-11214).

The Dallas Police Department (the "department") received a request for information pertaining to a specified incident. You claim some of the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under sections 552.101, 552.108, and 552.130 of the Government Code. We have considered the exceptions you claim and reviewed the submitted representative sample of information. ⁽¹⁾

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. This section encompasses information protected by other statutes such as chapter 772 of the Health and Safety Code, which authorizes the development of local emergency communication districts. Sections 772.118, 772.218, and 772.318 of the Health and Safety Code are applicable to emergency 911 districts established in accordance with chapter 772. See Open Records Decision No. 649 (1996). These sections make the originating telephone numbers and addresses of 911 callers furnished by a service supplier confidential. Id. at 2. Section 772.118 applies to an emergency communication district for a county with a population of more than two million. Section 772.218 applies to an emergency communication district for a county with a population of more than 860,000. Section 772.318 applies to an emergency communication district for a county with a population of more than 20,000.

We understand the City of Dallas is part of an emergency communication district established under section 772.318. You have marked the telephone number of a 9-1-1 caller that the department seeks to withhold. We conclude the department must withhold the information you have marked under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 772.318 of the Health and Safety Code to the extent it was furnished by a 9-1-1 service supplier. If the marked telephone number was not provided by a 9-1-1 service supplier, the marked information may not be withheld under section 552.101 in conjunction with section 772.318.

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 must reasonably explain how and why the release of the requested information would interfere with law enforcement. See Gov't Code §§ 552.108(a)(1), .301(e)(1)(A); see also Ex parte Pruitt, 551 S.W.2d 706 (Tex. 1977). You state that the department objects to the release of the information you have marked because it pertains to an ongoing criminal investigation. 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)), writ ref'd n.r.e., 536 S.W.2d 559 (Tex. 1976) court delineates law enforcement interests that are present in active cases. Thus, the department may withhold the information you have marked pursuant to section 552.108(a)(1).

You claim that portions of the remaining information are subject to section 552.130 of the Government Code. Section 552.130 provides information relating to a motor vehicle operator's license, driver's license, motor vehicle title, or registration issued by a Texas agency is excepted from public release. Gov't Code § 552.130(a)(1), (2). Therefore, the department must withhold the Texas motor vehicle record information you have marked in the remaining information under section 552.130 of the Government Code.

In summary, provided that the information you have marked consists of the originating telephone number furnished by a 9-1-1 service supplier, the department must withhold that information under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 772.318 of the Health and Safety Code. The department may withhold the information you have marked under section 552.108(a)(1) of the Government Code. The department must withhold the Texas motor vehicle record information you have marked under section 552.130 of the Government Code. ⁽²⁾ The remaining information must be released.

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,

Amy L.S. Shipp

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

ALS/tf

Ref: ID# 409766

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

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.

2. We note Open Records Decision No. 684 (2009) is a previous determination to all governmental bodies which authorizes withholding of ten categories of information, including Texas license plate numbers under section 552.130 of the Government Code, without the necessity of requesting an attorney general decision.

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