Lisa Attardo v. Boston, City of - Public Records (SPR 20220115)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records January 27, 2022 SPR22/0115 Shawn A. Williams, Esq. Director of Public Records City of Boston 1 City Hall Square, Room 615 Boston, MA 02201 Dear Attorney Williams: I have received the petition of Lisa Attardo 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). On January 16, 2022, Ms. Attardo requested a police report for a specified address concerning an incident that occurred on January 13, 2022. The City responded on January 16, 2022. Unsatisfied with the City’s response, Ms. Attardo appealed, and this case 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 agency or municipality 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, § 10(b)(iv); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(3); see also Dist. Att’y 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. If there are any fees associated with a response, a written good faith estimate must be provided. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(viii); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.07(2). Once fees are paid, a records custodian must provide the responsive records. 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. SPR22/0115 Page 2 January 27, 2022 Current Appeal In her appeal petition, Ms. Attardo states that she “made a public records request and was advised . . . to send a copy of [her] ID.” She goes on to state that she “used the online portal to request records from BPD and was told to email someone else in the BPD.” The City’s January 18th Response In its January 18, 2022 response, the City advises Ms. Attardo that “to obtain a copy of a police report or accident report please contact: POLICEREPORT@PD.BOSTON.GOV.” In its response, the City also states the following: Please send a copy of your identification. This is needed in the event you have a special right of access to a record that is not available to the average person. If this identification is not needed it will be discarded. Under the Public Records Law and the Access Regulations (Regulations) all requests for public records must be met with a response within 10 business days of receipt of the request. G. L. c. 66, § 10(a)-(b). The response may contain, among other things, an offer to provide records, a fee estimate for provision of the records, or a denial. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b). All records custodians must comply with both the Public Records Law and the Regulations when responding to requests. In this case, the City has not met its burden in responding to Ms. Attardo. Conclusion Accordingly, the City is ordered to provide Ms. Attardo with a response to her request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law, and its Regulations within ten business days. A copy of any such response must be provided to this office. It is preferable to send an electronic copy of the response to this office at pre@sec.state.ma.us. Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Lisa Attardo