January 13, 2011

Mr. Adam C. Falco

Senior Assistant City Attorney

City of College Station

P.O. Box 9960

College Station, Texas 77842

OR2011-00712

Dear Mr. Falco:

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# 405873.

The College Station Police Department (the "department") received a request for a specified incident report. You claim that the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under section 552.108 of the Government Code. We have considered the exception you claim and reviewed the submitted information.

Section 552.108(a)(2) of the Government Code excepts from disclosure information concerning an investigation that concluded in a result other than conviction or deferred adjudication. Gov't Code § 552.108(a)(2). A governmental body claiming section 552.108(a)(2) must demonstrate that the requested information relates to a criminal investigation that has concluded in a final result other than a conviction or deferred adjudication. See id. § 552.301(e) (governmental body must provide comments explaining why exceptions raised should apply to information requested). You state that the submitted information pertains to a closed investigation that did not result in conviction or deferred adjudication. Thus, we conclude section 552.108(a)(2) is applicable to the submitted information.

However, section 552.108 does not except from disclosure basic information about an arrested person, an arrest, or a crime. Id. § 552.108(c). Basic information refers to the information held to be public in Houston Chronicle Publishing Co. v. City of Houston, 531 S.W.2d 177 (Tex. Civ. App.--Houston [14th Dist.] 1975), writ ref'd n.r.e. per curiam, 536 S.W.2d 559 (Tex. 1976). See Open Records Decision No. 127 at 3-4 (1976) (summarizing types of information deemed public by Houston Chronicle).

We note that the requestor identifies herself as an employee of the Mental Health Mental Retardation Authority of Brazos Valley. We understand that the requestor seeks the submitted information pursuant to subchapter K of chapter 405 of the Texas Administrative Code, which relates to the death of persons served by Texas Mental Health and Mental Retardation facilities or community mental health and mental retardation centers. See 25 T.A.C §§ 405.261-.269. However, the requestor has not cited to any specific provision, nor are we aware of any such law, that provides her with a right of access to the submitted information. Therefore, we find the requestor has failed to demonstrate any such release provisions are applicable in this instance. Accordingly, with the exception of basic information, the department may withhold the submitted information under section 552.108 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,

Kate Hartfield

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

KH/em

Ref: ID# 405873

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

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

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