Dominick Cristino v. Upton, Town of - Police Department (SPR 20222062)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records September 8, 2022 SPR22/2062 Chief Michael J. Bradley, Jr. Upton Police Department 30 School Street Upton, MA 01568 Dear Chief Bradley: On August 31, 2022, this office received your petition on behalf of the Upton 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 August 15, 2022, Dominick Cristino requested: [1] 21-309-0F: All body worn camera video from 8/15/22 between yourself and Detective Bergstrom [2] 22-229-0F: Report and body worn camera video from Gasco incident (see attached letter dated Dec. 3, 2021 citing exemption and redactions. 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. 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

Chief Michael J. Bradley, Jr. SPR22/2062 Page 2 September 8, 2022 G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). 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 31st petition, the Department seeks an extension of 25 business days to produce records. The Department states the following: On 8/31/22, we provided the requester with a written response, wherein we: (a) confirmed receipt of the request; (b) identified the records or portions of records that the department intends to withhold, and provided the specific reasons for such withholding, including the specific exemptions upon which the withholding or redaction would be based. There is good cause to grant this single extension based upon the following: a) the scope of redaction required; b) efforts undertaken by the department to fulfill request Therefore, based upon the foregoing, we respectfully request that you grant us a single extension of up to 25 business days.” Although the Department states, “[t]here is good cause to grant this single extension,” it is unclear why this request requires additional time beyond the statutory allotment. Conclusion I find that in light of the lack of explanation in the Department’s petition, the Department has not established good cause to warrant an extension of additional time to respond to this request. Therefore, I am unable to grant additional time. Accordingly, the Department is ordered to provide Mr. Cristino with a response to the request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law, and its Regulations without delay. 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.

Chief Michael J. Bradley, Jr. SPR22/2062 Page 3 September 8, 2022 Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Dominick Cristino