May 9, 2012

Ms. J. Middlebrooks

Assistant City Attorney

City of Dallas

1400 South Lamar

Dallas, Texas 75215

OR2012-06844

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# 453889 (DPD #2012-02480).

The Dallas Police Department (the "department") received a request for a specified offense report. You claim portions of the submitted information are excepted from disclosure under sections 552.108 and 552.130 of the Government Code. We note you have also marked a social security number for redaction. ⁽¹⁾ We have considered the exceptions you claim and reviewed the submitted representative sample of information. ⁽²⁾

Section 552.108(a)(1) excepts from disclosure "[i]nformation held by a law enforcement agency or prosecutor that deals with the detection, investigation, or prosecution of crime . . . if: (1) release of the information would interfere with the detection, investigation, or prosecution of crime." Gov't Code § 552.108(a)(1). Generally, a governmental body claiming section 552.108(a)(1) must reasonably explain how and why the release of the requested information would interfere with law enforcement. See Id. §§ 552.108(a)(1), .301(e)(1)(A); see also Ex parte Pruitt, 551 S.W.2d 706 (Tex. 1977). You state the information you have marked pertains to a pending criminal prosecution. You state release of the marked information would interfere with the criminal case. Based on these representations and our review, we conclude release of the information at issue would interfere with the detection, investigation, or prosecution of a crime. See Houston Chronicle Publ'g Co. v. City of Houston, 531 S.W.2d 177 (Tex. Civ. App.--Houston [14th Dist.] 1975) (court delineates law enforcement interests that are present in active cases), writ ref'd per curiam, 536 S.W.2d 559 (Tex. 1976). Accordingly, the department may withhold the information you have marked under section 552.108(a)(1) of the Government Code.

Section 552.130 of the Government Code provides that information related to a motor vehicle operator's license or driver's license, title, or registration issued by a Texas agency, or an agency of another state or country, is excepted from public release. Gov't Code § 552.130(a)(1), (2). We find the department must withhold the motor vehicle record information you have marked under section 552.130 of the Government Code.

In summary, the department may withhold the information you have marked under section 552.108(a)(1) of the Government Code. The department must withhold the motor vehicle record information you have marked under section 552.130 of the Government Code. The remaining information must be released.

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,

Jessica Marsh

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

JM/em

Ref: ID# 453899

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. Section 552.147(b) authorizes a governmental body to redact the social security number of a living person without the necessity of requesting a decision from this office. See Gov't Code § 552.147(b).

2. We assume that 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 that those records contain substantially different types of information than that submitted to this office.

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