Betty I. Ussach v. Bristol County Sheriff's Office (SPR 20220436)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records March 3, 2022 SPR22/0436 Lorraine J. Rousseau, Esq. Bristol County Sheriff’s Office 400 Faunce Corner Road North Dartmouth, MA 02747 Dear Attorney Rousseau: I have received the petition of Betty I. Ussach, Esq. appealing the response of the Bristol County Sheriff’s Office (Office) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On February 3, 2022, Attorney Ussach requested to inspect or receive a copy of: “any and all records that indicate the annual payments to Attorney Bruce Assad, from the commencement of his representation of [the Office] or of the Sherriff’s Office of the Bristol County House of Corrections, until the present date; [and] …any other payments made to attorneys who have represented the Sheriff or [his Office] from the commencement of the Sheriff’s tenure until the present date.” On February 8th, the Office provided a response indicating that it received the request and that the Office would provide a further response and/or estimate within a week. As a result of Attorney Ussach not receiving any further response or records, she petitioned the Supervisor of Records (Supervisor), and this appeal was opened. Subsequent to the opening of this appeal, the Office provided a March 2, 2022 response to Attorney Ussach. It is my understanding that the records responsive to part one of Attorney Ussach’s request have been compiled and will be provided by Friday, March 4, 2022. As to the request pertaining to part two of Attorney Ussah’s request, the Office is in the process of compiling those records. This office understands that the Office will update Attorney Ussach if more time is required to provide all the responsive records. An attorney in the Public Records Division advised the Office to provide the remaining records on a rolling basis if possible. 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

Lorraine J. Rousseau, Esq. SPR22/0436 Page 2 March 3, 2022 Conclusion Accordingly, the Office is ordered to provide Attorney Ussach with a response to her request in a manner consistent with the Public Records Law and its Access Regulations within 10 business days. It is preferable to send an electronic copy of this response to this office at pre@sec.state.ma.us. Attorney Ussach may appeal the substantive nature of the response within 90 calendar days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Betty I. Ussach, Esq.