 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS GREG ABBOTT | |
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January 20, 2012 Ms. Paula M. Rosales Assistant District Attorney Dallas County District Attorney's Office 133 North Riverfront Boulevard, LB-19 Dallas, Texas 75207-4399 OR2012-00986 Dear Ms. Rosales: 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# 442853. The Dallas County District Attorney's Office (the "district attorney") received a request for any and all records regarding the arrest and incarceration of a named individual. You claim the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under sections 552.101, 552.108, 552.119, 552.130, and 552.147 of the Government Code. We have considered the exceptions you claim and reviewed the submitted information. We first note that the submitted information includes intoxilyzer results. Section 724.018 of the Transportation Code provides that upon the request of the person who has given a specimen at the request of a peace officer, full information concerning the analysis of the specimen must be made available to that person or the person's attorney. Although you seek to withhold this information under section 552.108 of the Government Code, the general exceptions to disclosure found in the Act do not apply to information that other statutes make public. See Open Records Decision Nos. 623 at 3 (1994), 525 at 3 (1989). In this instance, the requestor is the attorney of the person who gave the breath specimen at the request of a peace officer. Therefore, the submitted intoxilyzer results must be released to this requestor pursuant to section 724.018 of the Transportation Code. Section 552.108 of the Government Code provides in part: (a) Information held by a law enforcement agency or prosecutor that deals with the detection, investigation, or prosecution of crime is excepted from [required public disclosure] if: . . . (4) it is information that: (A) is prepared by an attorney representing the state in anticipation of or in the course of preparing for criminal litigation; or (B) reflects the mental impressions or legal reasoning of an attorney representing the state. Gov't Code § 552.108(a)(4). A governmental body must reasonably explain how and why section 552.108 is applicable to the information at issue. See id. §§ 552.108, .301(e)(1)(A); see also Ex parte Pruitt, 551 S.W.2d 706 (Tex. 1977). In Curry v. Walker, 873 S.W.2d 379 (Tex. 1994), the Texas Supreme Court held a request for a district attorney's "entire litigation file" was "too broad" and, quoting National Union Fire Insurance Co. v. Valdez, 863 S.W.2d 458 (Tex. 1993, orig. proceeding), held "the decision as to what to include in [the file] necessarily reveals the attorney's thought processes concerning the prosecution or defense of the case." Curry, 873 S.W.2d at 380. You state the instant request for information encompasses the district attorney's entire prosecution file. Thus, you argue release of the remaining information would reveal the mental impressions or legal reasoning of prosecutors. Based on your representations and our review of the remaining information, we agree section 552.108(a)(4) is applicable to the remaining information. We note, however, section 552.108 does not except from disclosure basic information about an arrested person, an arrest, or a crime. Gov't Code § 552.108(c). Basic information refers to the information held to be public in Houston Chronicle Publishing Co. v. City of Houston. See 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 also Open Records Decision No. 127 (1976) (summarizing types of information made public by Houston Chronicle). Thus, with the exception of basic information, which must be released, the district attorney may withhold the remaining information under section 552.108(a)(4) of the Government Code. (1) In summary, the submitted intoxilyzer results must be released to this requestor pursuant to section 724.018 of the Transportation Code. With the exception of basic information, which must be released, the district attorney may withhold the remaining information under section 552.108(a)(4) of the Government Code. 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, Sean Nottingham Assistant Attorney General Open Records Division SN/agn Ref: ID# 442853 Enc. Submitted documents c: Requestor (w/o enclosures) Footnotes1. As our ruling is dispositive, we need not address your remaining arguments against disclosure. We note basic information includes the arrestee's social security number. 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. We note, however, the requestor has a right of access to his client's own social security number. See generally Gov't Code § 552.023(a) (governmental body may not deny access to person to whom information relates, or that person's representative, solely on grounds that information is considered confidential by privacy principles).
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