Andrew Quemere v. Springfield, City of - Office of the City Clerk (SPR 20220210)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records February 14, 2022 SPR22/0210 Stephen G. Roche, Esq. Third Associate City Solicitor City of Springfield 36 Court Street, Room 210 Springfield, MA 01103 Dear Attorney Roche: I have received the petition of Andrew Quemere appealing the response of the City of Springfield 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 29, 2022, Mr. Quemere requested internal affair records and transcripts from the trial of an identified individual. The Department responded on January 31, 2022. Unsatisfied with the Department’s response, Mr. Quemere petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR22/0210, was opened as a result. The Department’s January 31th Response In its January 31, 2022 response, the Department stated, “[a]ll Public Information requests go through the city so that they can be tracked and handled accordingly. [Mr. Quemere] can find the link below.” Pursuant to 950 C.M.R. 32.06, “requests for public records may be made orally in person to a records access officer or custodian or may be written. . . . [W]ritten requests may be delivered by a requester to the business address or designated website or email address of a records access officer or custodian: 1. by hand; 2. by mail; 3. by electronic mail; or 4. by facsimile, if custodian has facsimile access.” See 950 C.M.R. 32.06(a), (c). Consequently, where Mr. Quemere submitted its request via electronic mail, it is unclear why the Department requires that requests be submitted through the online portal before producing responsive records. Based on the foregoing, I find that the Department has not met its burden in responding to this request under the Public Records Law. 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

Stephen G. Roche, Esq. SPR22/0210 Page 2 February 14, 2022 Conclusion Accordingly, the Department is ordered to provide Mr. Quemere 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: Andrew Quemere Sgt. Mark E. Kenney