Elizabeth Mone v. Boston, City of - Public Records (SPR 20201854)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records October 14, 2020 SPR20/1854 Michaela Grenham Records Department City of Boston Police Department 1 Schroeder Plaza Boston, MA 02120 Dear Ms. Grenham: I have received the petition of Elizabeth Mone, Esq., of Mone Law, appealing the response of the City of Boston Police Department (Department) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Attorney Mone requested records pertaining to a motor vehicle stop on Friday, August 21, 2020 at approximately 01:40 hours on Massachusetts Avenue in Boston, in the area of Melnea Cass Boulevard, specifically: “1. All calls for service, police reports, incident reports, supplemental reports, Computer- aided Dispatch (CAD) sheets and Field Interrogation and Observation reports (FIO); and 2. the names of all [Department] officers involved in or present at the motor vehicle stop and/or resulting arrest.” The Department provided Attorney Mone with records responsive to her request number one; however, the Department did not provide or claim an exemption to withhold her request number two for the names of the Department officers involved in or present at the motor vehicle stop and/or resulting arrest. As a result, Attorney Mone petitioned the Supervisor of Records (Supervisor) and this appeal was opened. 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, § 10A(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 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

Michaela Grenham SPR20/1854 Page 2 October 14, 2020 order to withhold a requested record. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(iv) (written response must “identify any records, categories of records or portions of records that the agency or municipality intends to withhold, and provide the specific reasons for such withholding, including the specific exemption or exemptions upon which the withholding is based…”); 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). In her petition, Attorney Mone indicates that she did not receive any records pertaining to her second request for: “[t]he names of all Department officers involved in or present at the motor vehicle stop and/or resulting arrest.” Burden of specificity; identification of responsive records If withholding a record or information, pursuant to the Public Records Law, the burden shall be upon the records custodian to establish the applicability of an exemption. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(iv); see also Globe NewspaperCo. v. Police Comm'r, 419 Mass. 852, 857 (1995); Flatley, - - - - - 419 Mass. at 511. The Department must clarify whether it possesses additional responsive records. Please note, to deny access to a record or information 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, § 10(b)(iv); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(3)(c)(4). Conclusion Accordingly, the Department is ordered to provide Attorney Mone with a response to the request, in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law and its Regulations within 10 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. Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Elizabeth Mone, Esq., Mone Law Shawn A. Williams, Esq., City of Boston, Director of Public Records