Jeannette Hinkle v. Barnstable, Town of - Police Department (SPR 20221877)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records August 19, 2022 SPR22/1877 Danielle L. Paradis Records/Property Supervisor Barnstable Police Department 1200 Phinneys Lane Hyannis, MA 02601 Dear Ms. Paradis: On August 15, 2022, this office received your petition on behalf of the Barnstable Police Department (Department) seeking an extension of time to produce records. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). As required by law, it is my understanding that the Department furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor. Id. In a letter dated July 19, 2022, Jeannette Hinkle, of the Cape Cod Times, requested six categories of records concerning the Department’s staff, policies, and internal investigations. Petition for an Extension of Time Under the Public Records Law, upon a showing of good cause, the Supervisor of Records (Supervisor) may grant a single extension to an agency not to exceed 20 business days and a single extension to a municipality not to exceed 30 business days. In determining whether there has been a showing of good cause, the Supervisor shall consider, but shall not be limited to considering: (i) the need to search for, collect, segregate or examine records; (ii) the scope of redaction required to prevent unlawful disclosure; (iii) the capacity or the normal business hours of operation of the agency or municipality to produce the request without the extension; (iv) efforts undertaken by the agency or municipality in fulfilling the current request and previous requests; (v) whether the request, either individually or as part of a series of requests from the same requestor, is frivolous or intended to harass or intimidate the agency or municipality; and (vi) the public interest served by expeditious disclosure. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). 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

Danielle L. Paradis SPR22/1877 Page 2 August 19, 2022 If the Supervisor determines that the request is part of a series of contemporaneous requests that are frivolous or designed to intimidate or harass, and the requests are not intended for the broad dissemination of information to the public about actual or alleged government activity, the Supervisor may grant a longer extension or relieve the agency or municipality of its obligation to provide copies of the records sought. Id. The filing of a petition does not affect the requirement that a Records Access Officer (RAO) must provide an initial response to a requestor within ten business days after receipt of a request for public records. 950 C.M.R. 36.06(4)(b). Current Petition In its August 15th petition, the Department states, “…the request unduly burdens the other responsibilities of our department due to the magnitude of the request as well as the receipt of multiple requests from the same requester. The Barnstable Police Department has one hundred and thirty-seven policies and procedures on nine hundred and eleven pages. Each page must be reviewed by a sworn member of the Barnstable Police Department for any possible redaction. The policies must be reviewed to ensure that public safety is not jeopardized by the release of policies that relate to the emergency preparedness, security measure or threat or vulnerability assessments. In addition, the requestor Jeannette Hinkle, has submitted multiple public records requests since the date of July 19, 2022.” The Department contends that “…there is good cause to grant this single extension based on the need to examine each of the nine hundred and eleven pages for possible redaction as well as the efforts undertaken by the Barnstable Police Department to fulfill this particular request as well as the multiple requests from Jeannette Hinkle. Wherefore, based upon the foregoing, we respectfully request that you grant us a single extension of up to 30 business day.” Conclusion I find in light of the need to collect and segregate the request, as well as the capacity of the Department to produce the request without an extension, the Department has established good cause to permit an extension of time. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c)(i)-(ii). The Department is granted an extension of 30 business days. Please note, the requestor has the right to seek judicial review of this decision by commencing a civil action in the appropriate superior court. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv)(4),10A(c).

Danielle L. Paradis SPR22/1877 Page 3 August 19, 2022 Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Jeannette Hinkle