Opinion
Opinion By: Gregory D. Stumbo,Attorney General;Michelle D. Harrison,Assistant Attorney General
Open Records Decision
At issue in this appeal is whether the Christian Circuit Court Clerk violated the Kentucky Open Records Act in the disposition of requests submitted by Shawn T. Fox (September 12, 2006, September 24, 2006, November 2, 2006, and November 14, 2006) for specified videotape recordings of hearings relative to Indictment No. 05-CR-00162. Although representatives of the Clerk responded to Mr. Fox's first three requests, asking him to include the dates and times of the events in question and specifying the total cost for the videotape and shipping, neither of which can properly be characterized as denials, Mr. Fox initiated this appeal on December 27, 2006, noting that he still has received "no positive response" to his requests, nor has Mr. Fox received his money back.
Because records in the custody of circuit court clerks are court records, which are not governed by the Open Records Act, rather than public records within the meaning of KRS 61.870(2), the Attorney General has consistently recognized that circuit court clerks are not subject to the provisions of the Open Records Act. Accordingly, the Christian Circuit Court Clerk cannot be said to have violated the Act in failing to provide Mr. Fox with a copy of the requested videotape recording (s). In our view, 98-ORD-6 and 04-ORD-051 are controlling on the facts presented; a copy of each decision is attached hereto and incorporated by reference. 1
A party aggrieved by this decision may appeal it by initiating action in the appropriate circuit court pursuant to KRS 61.880(5) and KRS 61.882. Pursuant to KRS 61.880(3), the Attorney General should be notified of any action in circuit court, but should not be named as a party in that action or in any subsequent proceeding.
Shawn T. Fox, # 194895
Gary Haddock, Clerk Christian Circuit CourtJustice Center100 Justice WayHopkinsville, KY 42240
Footnotes
Footnotes
1 Although the Clerk, to his credit, has indicated a willingness to honor the requests, despite having no statutory obligation to respond, this office encourages the Clerk to either provide Mr. Fox with a copy of the record(s) (assuming that he clarifies the scope of his request) or, at a minimum, return his money.