January 24, 2012

Mr. Peter Scott

Assistant City Attorney

City of Wichita Falls

P.O. Box 1431

Wichita Falls, Texas 76307

OR2012-01133

Dear Mr. Scott:

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# 447841 (City ID# 1).

The Wichita Falls Police Department (the "department") received a request for information related to a specified case number. You claim some of the requested information is excepted from disclosure under section 552.108 of the Government Code. We have considered the exception you claim and reviewed the information you submitted.

We first note the information at issue includes the results of an analysis of a blood specimen. Section 724.018 of the Transportation Code provides that on 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. In this instance, the requestor is the person who provided the blood specimen at the request of a peace officer. Therefore, the department must release the submitted results of the analysis of the blood specimen to this requestor pursuant to section 724.018 of the Transportation Code.

Section 552.108 of the Government Code excepts from disclosure "[i]nformation held by a law enforcement agency or prosecutor that deals with the detection, investigation, or prosecution of crime . . . if . . . it is information that deals with the detection, investigation, or prosecution of crime only in relation to an investigation that did not result in conviction or deferred adjudication[.]" Gov't Code § 552.108(a)(2). A governmental body must reasonably explain how and why section 552.108 is applicable to the information at issue. See id. § 552.301(e)(1)(A); Ex parte Pruitt, 551 S.W.2d 706 (Tex. 1977). You indicate, and have provided a letter from the department stating, the remaining information at issue is related to a concluded case that did not result in a conviction or a deferred adjudication. Based on your representation and the letter, we conclude section 552.108(a)(2) is applicable in this instance.

We note 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). Section 552.108(c) refers to the basic front-page offense and arrest information held to be public in Houston Chronicle Publishing Co. v. City of Houston, 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 531 S.W.2d at 186-88. The department must release basic offense and arrest information, including a detailed description of the offense, even if the information does not literally appear on the front page of an offense or arrest report. See Open Records Decision No. 127 at 3-4 (1976) (summarizing types of information deemed public by Houston Chronicle). The department may withhold the remaining information at issue under section 552.108(a)(2).

In summary, the department (1) must release the submitted results of the analysis of the blood specimen to this requestor pursuant to section 724.018 of the Transportation Code; and (2) may withhold the remaining information at issue under section 552.108(a)(2) of the Government Code, except for basic information under section 552.108(c).

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,

James W. Morris, III

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

JWM/em

Ref: ID# 447841

Enc: Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

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