January 11, 2011

Ms. Kathleen Weisskopf

Assistant City Attorney

Arlington Police Department

P. O. Box 1065

Arlington, Texas 76004-1065

OR2011-00567

Dear Ms. Weisskopf:

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# 405703 (Arlington Police Department Reference No. 2308-102210).

The Arlington Police Department (the "department") received a request for reports and 9-1-1 calls, including a specified type of report, pertaining to the requestor's business during a specified period of time. You claim that the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under sections 552.101 and 552.108 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 information protected by other statutes, such as section 58.007 of the Family Code. Juvenile law enforcement records relating to conduct that occurred on or after September 1, 1997 are confidential under section 58.007(c). The relevant language of section 58.007 reads:

(c) Except as provided by Subsection (d), law enforcement records and files concerning a child and information stored, by electronic means or otherwise, concerning the child from which a record or file could be generated may not be disclosed to the public and shall be:

(1) if maintained on paper or microfilm, kept separate from adult files and records;

(2) if maintained electronically in the same computer system as records or files relating to adults, be accessible under controls that are separate and distinct from controls to access electronic data concerning adults; and

(3) maintained on a local basis only and not sent to a central state or federal depository, except as provided by Subchapters B, D, and E.

Fam. Code § 58.007(c). For purposes of section 58.007, "child" means a person who is ten years of age or older and under seventeen years of age at the time of the reported conduct. See id. § 51.02(2). Upon review of the submitted information, we agree that the reports in Exhibit B involve juvenile delinquent conduct that occurred after September 1, 1997. See id. § 51.03(a) (defining juvenile "delinquent conduct" for the purposes of section 58.007). You do not indicate, nor does it appear, that any of the exceptions in section 58.007 apply to these reports. Therefore, the reports in Exhibit B are confidential pursuant to section 58.007(c) of the Family Code and must be withheld in their entirety under section 552.101 of the Government Code. ⁽¹⁾

Next, you contend the remaining information is excepted under section 552.108 of the Government Code. Section 552.108(a)(1) 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 id. §§ 552.108(a)(1), .301(e)(1)(A); see also Ex parte Pruitt, 551 S.W.2d 706 (Tex. 1977). You state the reports in Exhibit C pertain to open and pending criminal cases. Based upon this representation, we conclude the release of the reports in Exhibit C 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).

Section 552.108, however, does not except from disclosure "basic information about an arrested person, an arrest, or a crime." Gov't Code § 552.108(c). Section 552.108(c) refers to the basic information held to be public in Houston Chronicle, and includes a detailed description of the offense. See 531 S.W.2d at 186-88. Thus, with the exception of basic information, the department may withhold the reports in Exhibit C pursuant to section 552.108(a)(1) of the Government Code.

In summary, the department must withhold the reports in Exhibit B under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 58.007 of the Family Code. With the exception of basic information, the department may withhold the reports in Exhibit C under section 552.108(a)(1) of the Government Code.

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/vb

Ref: ID# 405703

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. As our ruling is dispositive for this information, we need not address your remaining argument against its disclosure.

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