January 14, 2011

Mr. Ronald J. Bounds

Assistant City Attorney

City of Corpus Christi

P.O. Box 9277

Corpus Christi, Texas 78469-9277

OR2011-00763

Dear Mr. Bounds:

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# 406304.

The Corpus Christi Police Department (the "department") received a request for information pertaining to two named individuals during a specified time period. We understand the department is providing the requestor with some responsive information with redactions pursuant to Open Records Decision No. 684 (2009) and section 552.147(b) of the Government Code. ⁽¹⁾ We note you have redacted Texas driver's license and license plate numbers under section 552.130 of the Government Code pursuant to Open Records Decision No. 684 and social security numbers under section 552.147(b) of the Government Code from the submitted information. You claim portions of the submitted information are excepted from disclosure under section 552.101 of the Government Code. We have considered the exception 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 the doctrine of common-law privacy, which protects information if (1) it 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. See Indus. Found. v. Tex. Indus. Accident Bd., 540 S.W.2d 668, 685 (Tex. 1976). To demonstrate the applicability of common-law privacy, both elements of the 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. United States 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 courthouse 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 requestor seeks access to unspecified law enforcement records involving the named individuals. Thus, this request requires the department to compile the individuals' criminal histories and thereby implicates their privacy interests. Therefore, to the extent the department maintains any information that depicts either of the named individuals as a suspect, arrested person, or criminal defendant, the department must withhold any such information under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with common-law privacy. We note the department has submitted information that does not depict either of the named individuals as a suspect, arrested person, or criminal defendant. Thus, that information does not constitute a compilation of the individuals' criminal histories and may not be withheld as such under section 552.101 and common-law privacy.

Section 552.101 of the Government Code also encompasses section 550.065 of the Transportation Code. Section 550.065(b) states that except as provided by subsection (c) or subsection (e), accident reports are privileged and confidential. See Transp. Code § 550.065(b). Section 550.065(c)(4) provides for the release of an accident report to a person who provides two of the following three items of information: (1) the date of the accident; (2) the name of any person involved in the accident; and (3) the specific location of the accident. See id. § 550.065(c)(4). Under this provision, the Texas Department of Transportation or another governmental entity is required to release a copy of an accident report to a person who provides the agency with two or more of the items of information specified by the statute. Id. We agree the information you marked constitutes crash reports that were completed pursuant to chapter 550 of the Transportation Code. See id. § 550.064 (officer's accident report). In this instance, the requestor has not provided the department with two of the three items of information specified by section 550.065(c)(4). Therefore, the department must withhold the marked information under section 550.065(b).

Section 552.101 of the Government Code also encompasses federal and state laws that make criminal history record information ("CHRI") confidential. CHRI means "information collected about a person by a criminal justice agency that consists of identifiable descriptions and notations of arrests, detentions, indictments, informations, and other formal criminal charges and their dispositions." Gov't Code § 411.082(2). Federal law governs the dissemination of CHRI obtained from the National Crime Information Center or by the Texas Crime Information Center. Title 28, part 20 of the Code of Federal Regulations governs the release of CHRI that state agencies obtain from the federal government or other states. See Open Records Decision No. 565 (1990). The federal regulations allow each state to follow its individual law with respect to CHRI it generates. See id. Section 411.083 of the Government Code deems confidential CHRI that the Department of Public Safety ("DPS") maintains, except that DPS may disseminate this information in accordance with chapter 411, subchapter F of the Government Code. See Gov't Code § 411.083. Sections 411.083(b)(1) and 411.089(a) authorize a criminal justice agency to obtain CHRI; however, a criminal justice agency may only release CHRI to another criminal justice agency for a criminal justice purpose. See id. § 411.089(b)(1). Other entities specified in chapter 411 of the Government Code are entitled to obtain CHRI from DPS or another criminal justice agency; however, those entities may not release CHRI except as provided by chapter 411. See generally id. §§ 411.090-.127. Furthermore, any CHRI obtained from DPS or any other criminal justice agency must be withheld under section 552.101 in conjunction with Government Code chapter 411, subchapter F. Upon review, we agree the department must withhold the information you marked under section 552.101 in conjunction with chapter 411 of the Government Code and federal law.

In summary, any information maintained by the department that depicts either of the named individuals as a suspect, arrested person, or criminal defendant must be withheld under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with common-law privacy. The department must withhold the information you marked under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 550.065(b) of the Transportation Code. The department must also withhold the information you marked under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with chapter 411 of the Government Code and federal law. 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,

Ana Carolina Vieira

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

ACV/eeg

Ref: ID# 406304

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. We note this office issued Open Records Decision No. 684, a previous determination to all governmental bodies authorizing them to withhold ten categories of information, including: Texas driver's license and license plate numbers under section 552.130 of the Government Code; credit card, debit card, charge card, insurance policy, bank account, and bank routing numbers under section 552.136 of the Government Code; and an e-mail address of a member of the public under section 552.137, without the necessity of requesting an attorney general decision. 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. Gov't Code § 552.147.

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