Joshua Carrier v. Old Colony Correctional Center (SPR 20171659)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor ofR ecords December 13, 2017 SPR17/1659 Gayle Tickel Old Colony Correctional Center One Administration Road Bridgewater, MA 02324 Dear Ms. Tickel: I have received the petition of J.D. Carrier appealing the response of Old Colony Correctional Center (OCCC) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 1O A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Specifically, Mr. Carrier requested: " The house movie schedule created by DOC staff for Nov - Dec 2017. - The list of movies that was received from the outside vendor (packing slip) for the movie playing month of Nov-Dec 2017. - Any other institutional movie document either created by or received by Old Colony Correctional Center or the DOC which is ment [sic] for Old Colony Correctional Center medium or minimum correctional centers which shall include but not limited to, List of movies for the week, e-mails concerning movies shown or to be shown, internal memos about the movie program, letters or internal writtings [sic] about the movie program, and all other items that would fit into this category for the month of November 2017." The OCCC responded to his request, indicating the OCCC would "require more than ten (10) days" to respond to the request" and "anticipated that the production of the requested records will be completed within eight (8) weeks." 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, § lOA(d); 950 C.M.R. 32.03(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). 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

Gayle Tickel SPRl 7/1659 Page 2 December 13, 201 7 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, § 1O (b )(iv); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(3); see also Dist. 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, § 1 O(b )(viii); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.07(2). Once fees are paid, a records custodian must provide the responsive records. Response to a request/or records; provision of records The OCCC's response indicates that: "For the following reasons, the response to your request for records will require more than ten (10) days: Record Not Yet Obtained by Treatment Department It is anticipated that the production of the requested records will be completed within eight (8) weeks. If the records are not produced within that time you will be contacted in writing to advise you about the status of your request. Please contact me and identify the tracking number identified above if you wish to adjust your request in any manner, narrow the scope of your request or discuss an alternative production plan." The Public Records Law and its Regulations provide that a records access officer shall permit inspection or provide or furnish a copy of all public records within the custody and control of the custodian at reasonable times and without unreasonable delay. See G. L. c. 66, § lO(a); 950 CMR 32.06(2)(a). If a records access officer intends to provide records, access to such records must be provided no later than the tenth business day following the receipt of a request. G. L. c. 66, § lO(a); see G. L. c. 66, § lO(b) (if the magnitude or difficulty of the request, or of multiple requests from the same requestor, unduly burdens the other responsibilities of the agency or municipality such that the agency or municipality is unable to do so within the timeframe established in subsection (a), the agency or municipality shall inform the requestor in writing not later than 10 business days after the initial receipt of the request for public records). An extension of time may be permitted if either the requester voluntarily agrees to a response date beyond these timeframes or the records access office has filed a petition with the Supervisor of Records (Supervisor) for an extension of time and received approval. 950 C.M.R. 32.06(2)(i); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4)(d). Petitions for an extension of time must be made by a

Gayle Tickel SPR17/1659 Page 3 December 13, 2017 records access officer within 20 business days after receipt of the request. 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4)(d). To the best of my knowledge, this office has not received a petition seeking an extension of time from the OCCC. Whereas the OCCC has not filed a petition with the Supervisor and received permission to an extension of time to provide records, nor has the requester, Mr. Carrier, agreed to the extension of time, the OCCC is hereby ordered to provide records without further delay. I understand a Public Records Division staff member attempted to contact you about this matter, but was unsuccessful. Order Accordingly, the OCCC is hereby ordered to provide Mr. Carrier with a response to the request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law and its Regulations within ten business days. 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. Mr. Carrier may appeal the substantive nature of the OCCC's response within ninety days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, ~~ Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: J.D. Carrier