 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS GREG ABBOTT | |
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February 21, 2012 Ms. J. Middlebrooks Assistant City Attorney Criminal Law and Police Section City of Dallas 1400 South Lamar Dallas, Texas 75215 OR2012-02651 Dear Ms. Middlebrooks: 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# 446072 (DPD PIR No. 2011-11058). The Dallas Police Department (the "department") received a request for information pertaining to a specified investigation. You claim that the requested information is excepted from disclosure under section 552.101 of the Government Code. We have considered the exception you claim and reviewed the submitted representative sample of information. (1) 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. This exception encompasses information protected by other statutes, such as section 261.201 of the Family Code, which provides in relevant part: (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. . . . (k) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), an investigating agency . . . on request, shall provide to the parent, managing conservator, or other legal representative of a child who is the subject of reported abuse or neglect, or to the child if the child is at least 18 years of age, information concerning the reported abuse or neglect that would otherwise be confidential under this section. The investigating agency shall withhold information under this subsection if the parent, managing conservator, or other legal representative of the child requesting the information is alleged to have committed the abuse or neglect. (l) Before a child or a parent, managing conservator, or other legal representative of a child may inspect or copy a record or file concerning the child under Subsection (k), the custodian of the record or file must redact: . . . (3) the identity of the person who made the report. Fam. Code § 261.201(a), (k), (l)(3). Upon review, we agree the submitted information was used or developed in an investigation of alleged neglect of a child. See id. § 261.001(4) (defining "neglect" for purposes of chapter 261 of the Family Code). Accordingly, we find the submitted information is generally confidential under section 261.201(a) of the Family Code. However, we note the submitted information reveals that the requestor may be the legal guardian of the child victim listed in the report, and the requestor is not alleged to have committed the abuse. As such, this requestor may have a right of access to the submitted information pursuant to section 261.201(k). As we are unable to determine whether the requestor is the guardian of the child victim, we will rule conditionally. If the requestor is not the guardian of the child victim listed in the submitted information, the department must withhold the submitted information in its entirety under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 261.201(a) of the Family Code. If the requestor is the guardian of the child victim, pursuant to section 261.201(k), the department may not withhold the submitted information from the requestor under section 261.201(a). Id. § 261.201(k). However, we note that section 261.201(l) also provides that before a guardian can copy and inspect a record of a child under section 261.201(k), the identity of the party who made the report must be redacted. Id. § 261.201(l)(3). Thus, if the requestor is the guardian of the child victim, then the department must redact the identity of the reporting party under section 552.101 of the Government Code pursuant to section 261.201(l)(3) of the Family Code, but release the remaining submitted information to the requestor pursuant to section 261.201(k). 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, Jonathan Miles Assistant Attorney General Open Records Division JM/em Ref: ID# 446072 Enc. Submitted documents c: Requestor (w/o enclosures) Footnotes1. We assume the "representative sample" of records submitted to this office is truly representative of the requested records as a whole. See Open Records Decision Nos. 499 (1988), 497 (1988). This open records letter does not reach, and therefore does not authorize the withholding of, any other requested records to the extent those records contain substantially different types of information than that submitted to this office.
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