Stevan Johnson v. Boston, City of - Public Records (SPR 20220307)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records February 18, 2022 SPR21/0307 Shawn A. Williams, Esq. Records Access Officer City of Boston 1 City Hall Plaza Boston, MA 02201 Dear Attorney Williams: I have received the petition of Stevan Johnson appealing the response of the City of Boston (City) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On January 25, 2022, Mr. Johnson requested, “…[a] copy of [two identified incident report numbers,].” On February 7, 2022, the City responded. Unsatisfied with the City’s response, Mr. Johnson petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR22/0307, 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 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. Current Appeal In his appeal petition, Mr. Johnson indicated the City had possession of the requested records and was withholding them. 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. SPR22/0307 Page 2 February 18, 2022 The City’s February 7th response In its February 7, 2022, response, the City advises Mr. Johnson 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). It is unclear whether responsive records exist. The City must clarify this. Conclusion Accordingly, the City is ordered to provide Mr. Johnson with a response to the request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law and its Regulations within ten (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: Stevan Johnson