Request By:
Tommy Southard, # 159170
Emily M. Perkins
Opinion
Opinion By: Jack Conway, Attorney General; Amye L. Bensenhaver, Assistant Attorney General
Open Records Decision
This matter having been presented to the Attorney General in an open records appeal, and the Attorney General being sufficiently advised, we find that the Kentucky State Police did not violate the Open Records Act in denying Tommy Southard's August 14, 2013, request for copies of "any arrest reports, uniform offense reports, or uniform citations made by KSP against Breanna Nicole Renfro, aka Breanna Nicole Russell . . . ." 1 Because Mr. Southard failed to precisely describe the record(s) to which he sought access by receipt of copies, and those records were not readily available within the agency, KSP properly declined Mr. Southard's request on the basis of KRS 61.872(3)(b).
KRS 61.872(3)(a) and (b) establish alternative modes for accessing public records: onsite inspection and receipt of copies by mail. The statute provides:
(3) A person may inspect the public records:
KRS 61.872(3)(a), relating to onsite inspection of public records in suitable facilities provided by the agency, requires a request containing a "description" of the records to be inspected that is "adequate for a reasonable person to ascertain [its] nature and scope." Commonwealth v. Chestnut, 250 S.W.3d 655, 661 (Ky. 2008). This provision is devoid of "any sort of particularity requirement." Id. Conversely, KRS 61.872(3)(b), relating to requests to inspect public records by receipt of copies through the mail, requires a request containing a "precise[] descri[ption] of public records which are readily available within the public agency. " Thus, KRS 61.872(3)(b) "places an additional burden on requesters who wish to access public records by receipt of copies through the mail. " 97-ORD-46. Mr. Southard's request does not satisfy this burden or meet the KRS 61.872(3)(b) standard.
At first glance, the description in Mr. Southard's request appears adequate. He identifies three types of records relating to an individual identified by birth name, alias, Social Security Number, and date of birth. However, in response to this office's KRS 61.880(2)(c) 2 inquiries, KSP explains that it:
does not have the ability to search for records using personal identifying information. The storage location for the records is largely based upon the date and location of the incident. The KSP does not utilize the NCIC/LINK 3 system to locate records responsive to any open records request. In fact, the KSP is prohibited from utilizing the system to respond to public records requests as set forth in user agreements for the LINK system and CJIS security policy issued under authority of 28 C.F.R. 20.
Mr. Southard provides neither the date nor the location of any incident involving Ms. Renfro. To this extent, his request was imprecise and failed to identify records that were readily available within KSP. Accordingly, we affirm KSP's denial of his request for copies of records on the basis of KRS 61.872(3)(b).
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.
Footnotes
Footnotes
1 Mr. Southard identified Ms. Renfro by Social Security Number and date of birth. This information is omitted in deference to her privacy interests.
2 KRS 61.880(2)(c) provides:
On the day that the Attorney General renders his decision, he shall mail a copy to the agency and a copy to the person who requested the record in question. The burden of proof in sustaining the action shall rest with the agency, and the Attorney General may request additional documentation from the agency for substantiation . The Attorney General may also request a copy of the records involved but they shall not be disclosed.
(Emphasis added.)
3 National Crime Information Center.