March 24, 2011

Ms. LeAnn M. Quinn

City Secretary

City of Cedar Park

600 North Bell Boulevard

Cedar Park, Texas 78613

OR2011-04072

Dear Ms. Quinn:

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# 416758.

The City of Cedar Park (the "city") received a request for all information pertaining to a specified report number. You state the city will release some of the requested information, including basic information. See Gov't Code § 552.108(c) (basic information about an arrested person, an arrest, or a crime is not excepted under section 552.108); see also Open Records Decision No. 127 (1976) (summarizing types of information considered to be basic information). You claim some of the remaining information is excepted from disclosure under sections 552.101, 552.108, 552.1175, 552.130, and 552.147 of the Government Code. We have considered the exceptions you claim and reviewed the submitted information.

You raise section 552.101of the Government Code in conjunction with the common-law informer's privilege for some of the information you have marked in Exhibit B. Section 552.101 excepts from disclosure "information that is considered to be confidential by law, either constitutional, statutory, or by judicial decision." Gov't Code § 552.101. Section 552.101 encompasses the common-law informer's privilege, which Texas courts have long recognized. See Aguilar v. State, 444 S.W.2d 935, 937 (Tex. Crim. App. 1969); Hawthorne v. State, 10 S.W.2d 724, 725 (Tex. Crim. App. 1928). The informer's privilege protects the identities of persons who report activities over which the governmental body has criminal or quasi-criminal law-enforcement authority, provided that the subject of the information does not already know the informer's identity. See Open Records Decision Nos. 515 at 3 (1988), 208 at 1-2 (1978). The privilege protects the identities of individuals who report violations of statutes to the police or similar law-enforcement agencies, as well as those who report violations of statutes with civil or criminal penalties to "administrative officials having a duty of inspection or of law enforcement within their particular spheres." See Open Records Decision No. 279 at 2 (1981) (citing 8 John H. Wigmore, Evidence in Trials at Common Law, § 2374, at 767 (J. McNaughton rev. ed. 1961)). The report must be of a violation of a criminal or civil statute. See Open Records Decision Nos. 582 at 2 (1990), 515 at 4-5. You state that the complainant reported a possible violation of the law to the city's police department. Based on your representations, we conclude that the informer's name, which we have marked, may be withheld under section 552.101 in conjunction with the common-law informer's privilege. However, you have failed to demonstrate the remaining information you have marked identifies or tends to identify an individual who reported a violation to the city and it may not be withheld on this basis.

You claim that Exhibit C is excepted under section 552.108(a)(2) of the Government Code, which excepts from disclosure information concerning an investigation that did not result in conviction or deferred adjudication. See 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)(1)(A) (governmental body must provide comments explaining why exceptions raised should apply to information requested). You state Exhibit C relates to a criminal investigation by the city's police department that did not result in conviction or deferred adjudication. Based on your representation and our review, we conclude that Exhibit C may be withheld under section 552.108(a)(2) of the Government Code. ⁽¹⁾

In summary, the information we have marked may be withheld under section 552.101 in conjunction with the common-law informer's privilege. The city may withhold Exhibit C may be withheld under section 552.108(a)(2) of the Government Code. 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,

Paige Lay

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

PL/eeg

Ref: ID# 416758

Enc. Submitted documents

cc: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. As our ruling is dispositive, we need not address your remaining arguments against disclosure of this information.

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