January 7, 2011

Ms. Katie Lentz

Open Records

Williamson County Sheriff's Office

508 South Rock Street

Georgetown, Texas 78626

OR2011-00383

Dear Ms. Lentz:

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# 405309.

The Williamson County Sheriff's Office (the "sheriff") received a request for any and all records relating to four named individuals. You claim the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under sections 552.101, 552.130, and 552.147 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. Section 552.101 encompasses the doctrine of common-law privacy, which protects information if it (1) contains highly intimate or embarrassing facts the publication of which would be highly objectionable to a reasonable person, and (2) is not of legitimate concern to the public. Indus. Found. v. Tex. Indus. Accident Bd., 540 S.W.2d 668, 685 (Tex 1976). To demonstrate the applicability of common-law privacy, both prongs of this test must be established. Id. at 681-82. A compilation of an individual's criminal history is highly embarrassing information, the publication of which would be highly objectionable to a reasonable person. Cf. U.S. Dep't of Justice v. Reporters Comm. for Freedom of the Press, 489 U.S. 749, 764 (1989) (when considering prong regarding individual's privacy interest, court recognized distinction between public records found in courthouses files and local police stations and compiled summary of information and noted that individual has significant privacy interest in compilation of one's criminal history). Furthermore, we find a compilation of a private citizen's criminal history is generally not of legitimate concern to the public. In this instance, the request is for any and all records involving the four named individuals. Thus, this request requires the sheriff to compile unspecified criminal history records concerning the individuals named in the request, and thus, implicates the named individuals' right to privacy. Therefore, to the extent the sheriff maintains law enforcement records depicting the named individuals as suspects, arrestees, or criminal defendants, the sheriff must withhold any such information under section 552.101 in conjunction with common-law privacy. ⁽²⁾

You have submitted information pertaining to case number 07-05-00147 that does not list any of the named individuals as a suspect, arrestee, or criminal defendant. You claim sections 552.130 and 552.147 for portions of this information.

Section 552.130 of the Government Code excepts from disclosure "information [that] relates to . . . a motor vehicle operator's or driver's license or permit issued by an agency of this state [or] a motor vehicle title or registration issued by an agency of this state." Gov't Code § 552.130(a). Accordingly, the sheriff must withhold the Texas driver's license numbers we have marked under section 552.130 of the Government Code. ⁽³⁾

Section 552.147 of the Government Code provides, "[t]he social security number of a living person is excepted from" required public disclosure under the Act. Gov't Code § 552.147. The sheriff may withhold the social security numbers we have marked under section 552.147. ⁽⁴⁾

In summary, to the extent the sheriff maintains records that depict the named individuals as suspects, arrestees, or criminal defendants, the sheriff must withhold these records under section 552.101 in conjunction with common-law privacy. The sheriff must withhold the information we have marked in case number 07-05-00147 under section 552.130 of the Government Code. The sheriff may withhold the information we have marked in case number 07-05-00147 under section 552.147 of the Government Code. The remainder of case number 07-05-00147 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,

Neal Falgoust

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

NF/dls

Ref: ID# 405309

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. We assume 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 those records contain substantially different types of information than that submitted to this office.

2. As our ruling is dispositive, we do not address your remaining arguments against disclosure.

3. We 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 Texas driver's license numbers under section 552.130 of the Government Code, without the necessity of requesting an attorney general opinion.

4. We note section 552.147(b) of the Government Code authorizes a governmental body to redact a living person's social security number from public release without the necessity of requesting a decision from this office under the Act.

POST OFFICE BOX 12548, AUSTIN, TEXAS 78711-2548 TEL: (512) 463-2100 WEB: WWW.OAG.STATE.TX.US
An Equal Employment Opportunity Employer