February 2, 2012

Ms. Delietrice Henry

Open Records Assistant

Plano Police Department

P.O. Box 860358

Plano, Texas 75086-0358

OR2012-01690

Dear Ms. Henry:

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# 444289 (ORR# MENR111111).

The Plano Police Department (the "department") received a request for reports made by a named individual. ⁽¹⁾ You state the department has released some of the responsive information. You claim the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under section 552.101 of the Government Code. We have considered the exception 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 information made confidential by other statutes, such as section 261.201(a) of the Family Code. Section 261.201(a) provides as follows:

(a) [T]he following information is confidential, is not subject to public release under [the Act] and may be disclosed only for purposes consistent with this code and applicable federal or state law or under rules adopted by an investigating agency:

(1) a report of alleged or suspected abuse or neglect made under this chapter and the identity of the person making the report; and

(2) except as otherwise provided in this section, the files, reports, records, communications, audiotapes, videotapes, and working papers used or developed in an investigation under this chapter or in providing services as a result of an investigation.

Fam. Code § 261.201(a). You represent the submitted information was used or developed in the department's investigations of alleged or suspected child abuse or neglect. See id. § 261.001(1)(E) (definition of child abuse includes sexual assault under Penal Code section 22.011); see also Penal Code § 22.011(c)(1) (defining "child" for purposes of Penal Code section 22.011 as person under 17 years of age). Upon review, we conclude that most of the submitted information is subject to section 261.201 of the Family Code. You do not indicate the department has adopted a rule that governs the release of the type of information at issue; therefore, we assume no such regulation exists. Given that assumption, we find the submitted information we have marked is confidential pursuant to section 261.201(a) of the Family Code and must be withheld in conjunction with section 552.101 of the Government Code. See Open Records Decision No. 440 at 2 (1986) (predecessor statute). However, the remaining information either concerns the department's investigation of an alleged child runaway or does not pertain to any alleged crime. Thus, upon review, we find you have not demonstrated that any of this information consists of a report of alleged or suspected child abuse or neglect made under chapter 261, or was used or developed in an investigation under chapter 261. Thus, the department may not withhold any of the remaining information under section 552.101 in conjunction with section 261.201(a).

Section 552.101 of the Government Code also encompasses information protected by section 58.007(c) of the Family Code. Section 58.007(c) provides as follows:

(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 data 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.

Fam. Code § 58.007(c). As noted above, some of the remaining information involves an alleged child runaway. See id. § 51.02(2) (for purposes of section 58.007, "child" means person who is ten years of age or older and under seventeen years of age). Thus, this information involves a child allegedly engaged in conduct indicating a need for supervision and is subject to section 58.007. See id. § 51.03(b) (defining "conduct indicating a need for supervision" to include "the voluntary absence of a child from the child's home without the consent of the child's parent or guardian for a substantial length of time or without intent to return"). You do not indicate, nor does it appear, that any of the exceptions in section 58.007 apply to the information at issue. Accordingly, we find the remaining information we have marked is confidential pursuant to section 58.007(c) of the Family Code, and the department must withhold this information under section 552.101 of the Government Code. However, as you raise no other exceptions to disclosure of the remaining information, the department must release it.

In summary, the department must withhold the information we marked under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 58.007(c) and section 261.201(a) of the Family Code. The department must release the remaining information.

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,

Kenneth Leland Conyer

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

KLC/agn

Ref: ID# 444289

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. You inform us that the department received clarification from the requestor regarding the request. See Gov't Code § 552.222(b) (providing that if request for information is unclear, governmental body may ask requestor to clarify request); see also City of Dallas v. Abbott, 304 S.W.3d 380, 387 (Tex. 2010) (holding that when governmental entity, acting in good faith, requests clarification or narrowing of unclear or overbroad request for public information, ten-day period to request attorney general ruling is measured from date request is clarified or narrowed).

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