November 8, 2011

Mr. Ronald J. Bounds

Assistant City Attorney

City of Corpus Christi

P.O. Box 9277

Corpus Christi, Texas 78469-9277

OR2011-16448

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# 435602.

The Corpus Christi Police Department (the "department") received a request for the investigation report and video for a specified case. You state you have released some of the requested information. You claim that portions of the submitted information are excepted from disclosure under sections 552.130 and 552.147 of the Government Code. We have considered the exceptions you claim and reviewed the submitted information.

Initially, we note one of the submitted video recordings, number 20110625012021, contains information that is subject to common-law privacy. Section 552.101 of the Government Code excepts from disclosure "information considered to be confidential by law, either constitutional, statutory, or by judicial decision." ⁽¹⁾ Gov't Code § 552.101. Section 552.101 encompasses the common-law right of privacy, which protects information if it (1) 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. Indus. Found. v. Tex. Indus. Accident Bd., 540 S.W.2d 668, 685 (Tex. 1976). To demonstrate the applicability of common-law privacy, both prongs of this test must be established. Id. at 681-82. The type of information considered intimate or embarrassing by the Texas Supreme Court in Industrial Foundation included information relating to sexual assault, pregnancy, mental or physical abuse in the workplace, illegitimate children, psychiatric treatment of mental disorders, attempted suicide, and injuries to sexual organs. Id. at 683. This office has found that some kinds of medical information or information indicating disabilities or specific illnesses are excepted from required public disclosure under common-law privacy. See Open Records Decision No. 455 (1987) (prescription drugs, illnesses, operations, and physical handicaps). Upon review, we find that video recording 20110625012021 contains information that is highly intimate or embarrassing and not of legitimate public concern. You state the department does not have the technological capability to redact information from the submitted video recordings. As such, the department must withhold video recording 20110625012021 in its entirety pursuant to section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with common-law privacy.

Section 552.130 of the Government Code provides information relating to a motor vehicle operator's or driver's license or permit, motor vehicle title, or registration issued by an agency of Texas, another state, or another country is excepted from public release. Act of May 24, 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., S.B. 1638, § 4 (to be codified as an amendment to Gov't Code § 552.130(a)). Upon review, we find that the remaining submitted video recordings contain information subject to section 552.130. Because you state the department does not have the technological capability to redact the Texas motor vehicle record information from the submitted videos, we determine the department must withhold the remaining video recordings in their entirety under section 552.130 of the Government Code.

In summary, the department must withhold video recording 20110625012021 in its entirety pursuant to section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with common-law privacy. The department must withhold the remaining video recordings in their entirety under section 552.130 of the Government Code. ⁽²⁾

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,

Lindsay E. Hale

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

LEH/ag

Ref: ID# 435602

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. The Office of the Attorney General will raise a mandatory exception on behalf of a governmental body, but ordinarily will not raise other exceptions. See Open Records Decision Nos. 481 (1987), 480 (1987), 470 (1987).

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

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