Andrew Quemere v. Lynn, City of - Police Department (SPR 20221301)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records June 17, 2022 SPR22/1301 James Flynn Captain of Administration Lynn Police Department 300 Washington St Lynn, MA 01902 Dear Captain Flynn: I have received the petition of Andrew Quemere appealing the response of the Lynn Police Department (Department) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On April 21, 2022, Mr. Quemere requested, “all police department internal affairs data submitted to the Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission; please provide the data as a spreadsheet, preferably in Excel format.” Previous Appeal This request was the subject of a previous appeal. See SPR22/1124 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (May 19, 2022). In my May 19th determination, I ordered the Department to provide a supplemental response. Subsequently, the Department responded on May 16, 2022. Unsatisfied with the Department’s response, Mr. Quemere 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 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

James Flynn SPR22/1301 Page 2 June 17, 2022 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. Quemere contends that “the city refuses to provide the original word documents” and that “the police department is withholding an unspecified number of records under exemption F.” Further, he argues that “the department refuses to identify the records it is withholding or provide a specific basis.” Pending Litigation 950 C.M.R. 32.08(2)(b) provides in pertinent part: the Supervisor may deny an appeal for, among other reasons if, in the opinion of the Supervisor: 1. the public records in question are the subjects of disputes in active litigation, administrative hearings or mediation. Please be advised that this office has reviewed the trial court’s docket and verified that the civil litigation relating to the records at issue in this appeal is active and ongoing in the Worcester Superior Court. See New England Police Benevolent Assoc., Inc., and Daniel Gilbert v. Massachusetts Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission (Superior Court Docket No. 2285 CV 00555C). Conclusion In light of the pending litigation, I decline to opine on this matter at this time. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(2)(b). It should be noted that a change in the status of this litigation could impact the applicability of 950 C.M.R. 32.08(2)(b). Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Andrew Quemere