June 29, 2011

Mr. Jose Hernandez

Interim Records Supervisor

Edinburg Police Department

1702 South Closner Boulevard

Edinburg, Texas 78539

OR2011-09310

Dear Mr. Hernandez:

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# 426777 ( Edinburg Reference No. 22727).

The Edinburg Police Department (the "department") received a request for the full police report for a specified incident. 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 section 58.007 of the Family Code. Section 58.007 makes confidential juvenile law enforcement records relating to conduct by a child that occurred on or after September 1, 1997. Fam. Code § 58.007(c). For purposes of section 58.007(c), "child" means a person who is ten years of age or older and under seventeen years of age. See Fam. Code § 51.02(2). The relevant portion of section 58.007 states:

(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 date 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.

Id. § 58.007(c). The submitted report involves delinquent conduct by a child that occurred after September 1, 1997; therefore, the submitted report is subject to section 58.007. See id. § 51.03 (defining "delinquent conduct" for purposes of section 58.007). Further, it does not appear that any of the exceptions in section 58.007 apply. Accordingly, the department must withhold the report in its entirety under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 58.007 of the Family 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,

Cynthia G. Tynan

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

CGT/sdk

Ref: ID# 426777

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. As this ruling is dispositive, we need not address your section 552.108 argument against disclosure.

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