Todd Wallack v. Brookline, Town of - Police Department (SPR 20211743)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records July 20, 2021 SPR21/1743 Amanda Williams Records Clerk Brookline Police Department 350 Washington Street Brookline, MA 02445 Dear Ms. Williams: I have received your petition on behalf of the Brookline Police Department (Department) seeking an extension of time to produce records. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). As required by law, it is my understanding that the Department furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor, Todd Wallack of WBUR. Id. In a letter dated July 6, 2021, Mr. Wallack requested an “[e]lectronic log of internal affairs complaints/investigations against sworn officers of the Brookline Police Department” as far back as the Department maintains the log in its current computer system. Petition for an Extension of Time Under the Public Records Law, upon a showing of good cause, the Supervisor of Records (Supervisor) may grant a single extension to an agency not to exceed 20 business days and a single extension to a municipality not to exceed 30 business days. In determining whether there has been a showing of good cause, the Supervisor shall consider, but shall not be limited to considering: (i) the need to search for, collect, segregate or examine records; (ii) the scope of redaction required to prevent unlawful disclosure; (iii) the capacity or the normal business hours of operation of the agency or municipality to produce the request without the extension; (iv) efforts undertaken by the agency or municipality in fulfilling the current request and previous requests; (v) whether the request, either individually or as part of a series of requests from the same requestor, is frivolous or intended to harass or intimidate the agency or municipality; and (vi) the public interest served by expeditious disclosure. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). 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

Amanda Williams SPR21/1743 Page 2 July 20, 2021 Current Petition The July 6th petition states, “[t]he Department is looking for a 30-day extension, as we feel we cannot adequately respond to the PRR without the IAD officer who has full access and clearance to these records.” The Department explains, “[a]t this time, the keeper of the requested records is currently unavailable due to medical reasons and is unable to fill this request within the 10-day period. The files that are requested are maintained on the Department’s secured server. Accesses to these files are only accessible by the Department’s IAD Officer.” Conclusion I find that in light of the above, the Department has established good cause to permit an extension of time. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c)(i)-(iv). I hereby grant the Department an extension of 30 business days to furnish copies of records responsive to Mr. Wallack’s request. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). Please note, Mr. Wallack has the right to seek judicial review of this decision by commencing a civil action in the appropriate superior court. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv)(4),10A(c). Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Todd Wallack