December 11, 2012

Mr. Ronald J. Bounds

Assistant City Attorney

City of Corpus Christi

P.O. Box 9277

Corpus Christi, Texas 78469-9277

OR2012-19923

Dear Mr. Bounds:

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# 477915 (CCPD File No. CCol1).

The Corpus Christi Police Department (the "department") received a request for photographs related to a specified case number. You state some of the requested information is being released. 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 information you submitted.

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 made confidential by other statutes, including section 143.090 of the Local Government Code, which provides as follows:

A department, [the Fire Fighters' and Police Officers' Civil Service Commission], or municipality may not release a photograph that depicts a police officer unless:

(1) the officer has been charged with an offense by indictment or by information;

(2) the officer is a party in a civil service hearing or a case before a hearing examiner or in arbitration;

(3) the photograph is introduced as evidence in a judicial proceeding; or

(4) the officer gives written consent to the release of the photograph.

Local Gov't Code § 143.090. You inform us the City of Corpus Christi is a civil service city under chapter 143 of the Local Government Code. You state the submitted photographs depict police officers employed by the department who have not provided the department with written consent to the release of the photographs. You also state none of the remaining exceptions under section 143.090 apply in this instance. Based on your representations and our review, we conclude the department must withhold the submitted photographs under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 143.090 of the Local Government Code.

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,

James W. Morris, III

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

JWM/bhf

Ref: ID# 477915

Enc: Submitted information

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

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