Andrew McIsaac v. Bridgewater, Town of - Police Department (SPR 20170307)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor ofR ecords March 16, 2017 SPR17/307 Ann Marie Gill Bridgewater Police Department 220 Pleasant Street Bridgewater, MA 02324 Dear Ms. Gill: I have received the petition of Andrew McI saac appealing the response of the Bridgewater Police Department (Department) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66 § lOA; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Specifically, Mr. Mclsaac requested "all Massachusetts Uniform Citations issued by Bridgewater Police Officers on January 1, 2017." The Public Records Law The Public Records Law strongly favors disclosure by creating a presumption that all governmental records are public records. G. L. c. 66, § lO(c); 950 C.M.R. 32.08(4). "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 any town of the Commonwealth, unless falling within a statutory exemption. G. L. c. 4, § 7(26). It is the burden of the records custodian to demonstrate the application of an exemption in order to withhold a requested record. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c ); see also District Attorney for the Norfolk Dist. v. Flatley, 419 Mass. 507, 511 (1995) (custodian has the burden of establishing the applicability of an exemption). To meet the specificity requirement, a custodian must not only cite an exemption, but must also state why the exemption applies to the withheld or redacted portion of the responsive record. If there are any fees associated with a response a written, good faith estimate must be provided. G. L. c. 66, § lO(b)(viii); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.07(2). Once fees are paid, a records custodian must provide the responsive records. To assist in requesting and responding to requests for public records please refer to our publication, A Guide to the Massachusetts Public Records Law. This document is available on the Internet, free of charge, at http://www.sec.state.ma.us/pre/prepdf/guide.pdf. Attorneys on the One Ashburton Place, Room 1719, Boston, Massachusetts 02108 • (617) 727-2832• Fax: (617) 727-5914 sec.state.ma.us/pre• pre@sec.state.ma.us

Ann Marie Gill SPRl 7/307 Page 2 March 16, 2017 Public Records Division staff are available during regular business hours to answer general questions regarding the Public Records Law. In addition, members of the Public Records Division staff will visit a records custodian in person to conduct training workshops on the Public Records Law upon request. Please contact the Public Records Division directly at the telephone number provided in this determination for further information. Conclusion Subsequent to an intervention by a member of the Public Records Division staff, I understand you agree to review Mr. Mclsaac's request and provide another response regarding this matter. Accordingly, I will now consider this administrative appeal closed with the proviso that the Department provide a revised response to Mr. Mclsaac prepared in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law, and its Regulations. Mr. Mclsaac may appeal the substantive nature of the Department's response within ninety (90) days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1 ). A copy of any such response must be provided to this office. It is preferable to send an electronic copy of this response to this office at pre@sec.state.ma.us Sincerely, ~urr~ Supervisor of Records cc: Andrew Mclsaac