Stevan Johnson v. Boston, City of - Police Department (SPR 20212765)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records October 29, 2021 SPR21/2765 Shawn A. Williams, Esq. Records Access Officer Boston Police Department One Schroeder Plaza Boston, MA 02120 Dear Attorney Williams: I have received the petition of Stevan Johnson appealing the response of the Boston Police Department (Department) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Specifically, Mr. Johnson requested the following records: Please kindly provide, within the time prescribed by M.G.L. c. 66, § 10, a written response to this October 6, 2021 Public Records Request, and[:] [1] A copy of at least one document demonstrating the first day the Police Department of the City of Boston (“BPD”) began operation of ‘The Official Website of the Boston Police Department’ (“BPD”) --- i.e.: bpd.news.com or bpdnews.com. [2] A copy of the first public notice posted on bpd.news.com or bpdnews.com. On October 21, 2021, the Department provided a response. On October 22, 2021, unsatisfied with the Department’s response, Mr. Johnson petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR21/2765, was opened as a result. 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

Shawn A. Williams, Esq. SPR21/2765 Page 2 October 29, 2021 order to withhold a requested record. G. L. c. 66, § 10(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. The Department’s October 21st Response In its October 21, 2021 response, the Department asserted “attached is a document that, based on our search, I believe is the first official BPD news document. Please confirm you are able to open the attachment. The department has changed formats from a blog to Squarespace. Thank you for your patience.” Current Appeal In his October 22nd appeal, Mr. Johnson stated, “[o]n October 21, 2021 the BPD Legal Advisor provided a record responsive to the October 6, 2021 Public Records Request, but otherwise the City of Boston, BPD and BPD Legal Advisor Fredette have all failed to provide a proper written response to that October 6, 2021 Public Records Request or other records responsive to the October 6, 2021 Public Records Request.” Where the Department provided a responsive record pertaining to the first public notice on its website but no records regarding the first day the Department began operations on its website, it is unclear if the Department possesses additional records responsive to Mr. Johnson’s request. The duty to comply with requests for records extends to those records that exist and are in the possession, custody, or control of the custodian of records at the time of the request. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(a)(ii). Custodians are expected to use their superior knowledge of the records in their custody to assist requestors in obtaining the desired information. See 950 C.M.R. 32.04(5). Consequently, the Department must clarify whether additional records responsive to Mr. Johnson’s request exist. Conclusion Accordingly, the Department is ordered to provide Mr. Johnson with a response to his 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.

Shawn A. Williams, Esq. SPR21/2765 Page 3 October 29, 2021 Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Stevan Johnson