Joseph Viglione v. Medford, City of - Public Schools (SPR 20200046)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Ftancis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supen•isor of Records January 23, 2020 SPR20/0046 Emily Lazzaro Medford Public Schools 489 Winthrop St. Medford, MA 02155 Dear Ms. Lazzaro: I have received the petition of Joseph Viglione appealing the response of the City of Medford Public Schools (School) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § lOA; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1).Specifically, Mr. Viglione requested identified documents relating to the high school and school committee. The School provided a response on December 20, 2020. Unsatisfied with the School's response, Mr. Viglione petitioned this office and SPR20/0046 was opened as a result. Current Appeal In its December 20th response the School indicated they had enclosed responsive records to the request. They also indicated the "request for documents regarding a CORI request are exempt from disclosure as a public record by statute" as well as "Executive Session minutes are also exempt from disclosure until released to the public by the School Committee." Mr. Viglione's appeal, he indicates although the School claims they attached responsive records he has "received no documents from the Retirement Board or the City Clerk." Further, Mr. Viglione states "I was not looking for the individual's CORI information I gave very specific requests for documents. There certainly must be memos, notes, texts, that can clarify who the individual is, what his job was, and if he is no longer there." · In light of Mr. Viglione's appeal, it is unclear if the School provided the responsive records noted in their December 20th response. The School must clarify whether these records have been provided. 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

Emily Lazzaro SPR20/0046 Page2 January 23, 2020 Burden of specificity; duty to segregate Under the Public Records Law, the burden shall be upon the custodian to prove with specificity the exemption which applies. G. L. c. 66, § lO(b)(iv); see also Globe Newspaper Co. v. Police Comm'r, 419 Mass. 852,857 (1995); Flatley, 419 Mass. at 511. The School did not meet its burden of demonstrating how the responsive records, in their entirety, are exempt from disclosure. See Reinstein v. Police Comm'r of Boston, 378 Mass. 281, 289-90 (1979) (the statutory exemptions are narrowly construed and are not blanket in nature). The School must produce any non-exempt, segregable portions of public records. G. L. c. 66, § 1O (a). Furthermore, the School did not identify the records, categories of records or portions of records in its possession, custody or control that it is withholding. To deny access to a record under the Public Records Law, a records access officer must identify the record, categories of records, or portions of the record it intends to withhold. G. L. c. 66, § lO(b)(iv); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(3)(c)(4). Here, the School withheld responsive records without identifying what records it possesses that may be responsive to Mr. Viglione's request. The School must identify any records it intends to withhold and provide the specific reasons for such withholding. Conclusion Accordingly, the School is ordered to provide a response to the request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law and its Regulations without delay. It is preferable to send an electronic copy of this response to this office at pre@sec.state.ma.us. Sincerely, ~ IJ'H11M1JtM ---d- Rebecca S. Mur:~y-... - . Supervisor of Records cc: Joseph Viglione