Joshua Miller v. Office of the Attorney General - Environmental Protection Division (SPR 20160426)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Shawn A. Williams Supervisor ofR ecords June 30, 2016 SPR16/426 Ms. Lorraine A. G. Tarrow, Esq. Assistant Attorney General Office of the Attorney General One Ashburton Place Boston, MA 2016 Dear Assistant Attorney General Tarrow: I have received the petition of Joshua Miller of the Boston Globe, appealing the response of the Office of the Attorney General (AGO) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66 § 1 O(b ); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(2). Specifically, Mr. Miller requested access to and copies of digital photographs taken and received by the Attorney General between May 25 and June 1, 2016. In response you informed Mr. Miller that any photographs taken by the Attorney General during the requested time period "were taken in her personal capacity for personal purposes and therefore, are not subject to the public records law." You further indicated that "publically available photographs" from the period are available online. Mr. Miller appealed. Access to a record requested pursuant to the Public Records Law rests on the content of the record. "Public records" is broadly defined to include all documentary materials or data, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made or received by any officer or employee of the Commonwealth to serve a public purpose, unless falling within a statutory exemption. G. L. c. 4, § 7(26). A records custodian is obliged to furnish copies of"public records" unless otherwise provided by law. I find that any photographs taken during the requested time by the Attorney General were taken for personal use, and not created or received to serve a public purpose by the Attorney General in her capacity as such. Accordingly, I find the photographs do not fall within the definition of public record. Further, I find the Office of the Attorney eneral did not err by not citing an exemption, as no public records were withheld from disclo re. cc: Mr. Joshua Miller OneAshburton Place, Room 1719, Boston, Massachusetts 02108 · (617) 727-2832 ·Fax (617) 727-5914 www.sec.state.ma.us/pre