Jamie Truman v. Easthampton, City of - Police Department (SPR 20200417)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records March 2, 2020 SPR20/0417 Sergeant Chad Alexander Public Records Officer Easthampton Police Department 32 Payson A venue Easthampton, MA 01027 Dear Sgt. Alexander: I have received the petition of Jamie Truman appealing the nonresponse of the Town of Easthampton Police Department (Department) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § lOA; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Specifically, on January 14, 2020, the requester sought a "[l]ist of all accounts blocked by any official Easthampton Police Department social media page." 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, § IOA(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). 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. Conclusion Subsequent to the intervention by a staff member of the Public Records Division, I learned that the Department provided records responsive to this request. In an email dated February 28, 2020, you state, "[t]hanks for your request. I have never received any request in the past regarding the request you m8;de, but I'm happy to share the info you're looking for." 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

SPR20/0417 Sgt. Chad Alexander Page 2 March 2, 2020 In light of Sgt. Alexander's February 28111 email, I will now consider this administrative appeal closed. The requester may appeal the substantive nature of the Department's response within ninety days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, ~ Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Jamie Truman