August 21, 2012

Ms. Michelle M. Kretz

Assistant City Attorney

City of Fort Worth

1000 Throckmorton Street, Third Floor

Fort Worth, Texas 76102

OR2012-13192

Dear Ms. Kretz:

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# 462592 (PIR# W017593).

The City of Fort Worth (the "city") received a request for information concerning calls made from a specified address relating to domestic threats and bodily injury, during a certain period. You state the city has released some of the requested information. You state you have redacted information in accordance with sections 552.130 and 552.147 of the Government Code. ⁽¹⁾ You also indicate you have redacted the originating telephone number of a 9-1-1 caller in accordance with the previous determination issued to the city in Open Records Letter No. 2011-15641 (2011). ⁽²⁾ You claim the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under sections 552.101, 552.102, and 552.108 of the Government Code. We have considered the exceptions you claim and reviewed the submitted information.

Initially, we note a portion of the submitted information relates to an address other than the one specified by the requestor. Thus, this information is not responsive to the request. This ruling does not address the public availability of information that is not responsive to a request, and the city is not required to release non-responsive information.

Section 552.108(a)(1) 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 . . . release of the information would interfere with the detection, investigation, or prosecution of crime[.]" Gov't Code § 552.108(a)(1). A governmental body claiming section 552.108 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 submitted information relates to a pending criminal investigation and release of the information would interfere with that investigation and any future prosecution. 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 n.r.e. per curiam, 536 S.W.2d 559 (Tex. 1976). Based on these representations and our review, we conclude section 552.108(a)(1) of the Government Code is applicable.

However, section 552.108 does not except from disclosure basic information about a crime. Gov't Code § 552.108(c). Basic information refers to the information held to be public in Houston Chronicle. 531 S.W.2d at 186-87. This information includes, but is not limited to, a sufficient portion of the narrative to include a detailed description of the offense. See Open Records Decision No. 127 (1976) (summarizing types of information deemed public by Houston Chronicle). Thus, with the exception of basic information, the city may withhold the responsive information under section 552.108(a)(1) of the Government Code. ⁽³⁾

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,

Neal Falgoust

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

NF/ag

Ref: ID# 462592

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. Section 552.130 of the Government Code permits a governmental body to redact information subject to subsections 552.130(a)(1) and 552.130(a)(3) without the necessity of requesting a decision from this office. See Gov't Code § 552.130(c)-(e). Section 552.147 of the Government Code permits a governmental body to redact the social security number of a living person without requesting a decision from this office. See id. § 552.147(b).

2. Open Records Letter No. 2011-15641 serves as a previous determination permitting the city to withhold the originating telephone number of a 9-1-1 caller, furnished by a service supplier under chapter 772 of the Health and Safety Code, under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 772.218 of the Health and Safety Code without the necessity of requesting a decision from this office.

3. As our ruling is dispositive, we do not address your remaining claimed exceptions.

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