April 4, 2012

Ms. Lillian Guillen Graham

Assistant City Attorney

City of Mesquite

P.O. Box 850137

Mesquite, Texas 75185-0137

OR2012-04893

Dear Ms. Graham:

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# 453985.

The Mesquite Police Department (the "department") received a request for a specified arrest report and arraignment sheet. You state the department will release some of the requested information. ⁽¹⁾ You claim portions of the submitted information are 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. Criminal history record information ("CHRI") generated by the National Crime Information Center or by the Texas Crime Information Center is confidential under federal and state law. Title 28, part 20 of the Code of Federal Regulations governs the release of CHRI that states obtain from the federal government or other states. Open Records Decision No. 565 at 7 (1990). The federal regulations allow each state to follow its individual law with respect to CHRI it generates. Id. Section 411.083 of the Government Code deems confidential CHRI the Texas Department of Public Safety ("DPS") maintains, except DPS may disseminate this information as provided in chapter 411, subchapter F of the Government Code. See Gov't Code § 411.083. Sections 411.083(b)(1) and 411.089(a) authorize a criminal justice agency to obtain CHRI; however, a criminal justice agency may not release CHRI except to another criminal justice agency for a criminal justice purpose. Id. § 411.089(b)(1). Other entities specified in chapter 411 of the Government Code are entitled to obtain CHRI from DPS or another criminal justice agency; however, those entities may not release CHRI except as provided by chapter 411. See generally id. §§ 411.090-.127. Similarly, any CHRI obtained from DPS or any other criminal justice agency must be withheld under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with Government Code chapter 411, subchapter F. Upon review, we find the department must withhold the information you have marked under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction section 411.083 of the Government Code and federal law. ⁽²⁾

You ask this office to issue a previous determination that would permit the department to withhold CHRI under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with federal law and chapter 411 of the Government Code, without the necessity of requesting a decision from this office. We decline to issue such a previous determination at this time. Accordingly, 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 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,

Tamara H. Holland

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

THH/ag

Ref: ID# 453985

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. We note the requestor in this instance has a right of access to his own fingerprint and Texas license plate number, information that would otherwise be excepted from release under the Act. See Gov't Code § 552.023(b) (governmental body may not deny access to person to whom information relates or person's agent on grounds that information is considered confidential by privacy principles); see also Open Records Decision No. 481 at 4 (1987) (privacy theories not implicated when person or person's agent asks governmental body for information concerning the person). If the department receives another request for this same information from a person who would not have a right of access to this information, Open Records Decision No. 684 (2009) is previous determination to all governmental bodies authorizing them to withhold ten categories of information, including fingerprints under section 552.101 in conjunction with section 560.003 of the Government Code and Texas license plate numbers under section 552.130 of the Government Code, without the necessity of requesting an attorney general decision.

2. We note that an individual may obtain his own CHRI from DPS. See Gov't Code § 411.083(b)(3).

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