Steven A. James v. Office of the District Attorney - Plymouth District (SPR 20170662)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor ofR ecords May 12, 2017 SPR17/662 Keith A. Garland, Esq. Records Access Officer Office of the District Attorney-Plymouth District 166 Main Street Brockton, MA 02301 Dear Attorney Garland: I have received the petition of Steven James appealing the response of the Office of the District Attorney - Plymouth District (DAO) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66 § 1O A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Specifically, Mr. James requested "a copy of the Murder Book or file kept by the District Attorney and Police Department encompassing all of the witness statements, investigation, notes pictures, video's [sic.] and audio tapes, descriptions, and material related to the case" in reference to a specific docketed case. On May 5, 2017, the DAO issued a response regarding the applicability Criminal Offender Record Information Act (CORI). Purpose of request Please note that the reason for which a requestor seeks access to or a copy of a public record does not afford any greater right of access to the requested information than other persons in the general public. The Public Records Law does not distinguish between requestors. Access to a record pursuant to the Public Records Law rests on the content of the record and not the circumstances of the requester. See Bougas v. Chief of Police of Lexington, 371 Mass. 59, 64 (1976). Accordingly, Mr. Thompson's purpose in making the request has no bearing on the public status of any existing responsive records. It should be noted that the discovery process and the Public Records Law are two distinct and independent avenues for gaining access to records. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has held that while a party's access to records may be limited by the Public Records Law, this may not preclude obtaining the records through discovery. Commonwealth v. Wanis, 426 Mass. 639 (1998). See also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(l)(a) (the administrative appeal process "shall not apply to records in which an individual, or a representative of the individual, has a unique right of access to the record through statutory, regulatory, judicial or other applicable means"). As 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

Steven A. James SPRl 7/662 Page 2 May 12, 2016 such, Mr. James may wish to consider another means of seeking to obtain any existing responsive records. The Department's response In the Department's May 5th response, you explain it is the DAO's position that "[t]he majority of the records pertaining to your case are protected under CORI and all records pertaining to other individuals are protected under CORI." Please be advised that questions, interpretations and opinions concerning the CORI Act and its Regulations are within the authority of the Department of Criminal Justice Information Services (DCIJS) and should be directed to DCJIS. Conclusion Mr. James is encouraged to contact DCIJS if he continues to seek copies of the aforementioned records. DCIJS can be reached at: Department of Criminal Justice Information Services 200 Arlington Street, Suite 2200 Chelsea, MA 02150 Sincerely, ~~ Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Keith A. Garland, Esq.