Todd Wallack v. Bristol County District Attorney's Office (SPR 20231115)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records May 31, 2023 SPR23/1115 Courtney Almeida, Esq. Assistant District Attorney Records Access Officer Bristol County District Attorney’s Office 888 Purchase Street New Bedford, MA 02740 Dear Attorney Almeida: I have received the petition of Todd Wallack, of WBUR, appealing the response of the Bristol County District Attorney’s Office (Office) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On January 24, 2023, Mr. Wallack requested “[a]n electronic list of cases the district attorney’s office has prosecuted since Jan. 1, 2022, including all publicly available columns/fields.” On April 18, 2023, Mr. Wallack modified his request to “an electronic list of all the cases the district attorney's office has prosecuted since Jan. 1, 2010, including all publicly available columns/fields (not just cases since 2022).” Prior Appeal The requested records were the subject of a prior appeal. See SPR23/0400 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (March 15, 2023). In my March 15th determination I found that the Office needed to clarify its fee estimate. On May 2, 2023, the Office responded and provided a further response on May 26, 2023. Unsatisfied with the Office’s response, Mr. Wallack petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR23/1115, was opened as a result. The Office’s May 2nd and May 26th responses In its May 2, 2023, response, the Office provided Mr. Wallack with responsive records. In its further response on May 26, 2023, the Office stated, “[o]ur office has previously provided you with the records you are requesting. Furthermore, on May 2, 2023, this office provided you with your requested update. Our office has complied with your request.” 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

Courtney Almeida, Esq. SPR23/1115 Page 2 May 31, 2023 Current Appeal In his current appeal, Mr. Wallack indicated that the Office has not provided all responsive records. Mr. Wallack stated the following: Last year, your office sent me data showing it has prosecuted more than 500,000 charges since 2010. The latest data contains under 73,000 charges. The file your office provided last year was 82.5 MB. The latest file should be larger since it covers a larger time period, but instead is just 9.1 MB. Based on the Office’s response, in conjunction with Mr. Wallack’s claim, it is unclear if the Office possesses additional records responsive to the above request. The duty to comply with requests for records extends to those records that exist and are in the possession, custody, or control of the custodian of records at the time of the request. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(a)(ii). The Office must clarify this matter. Conclusion Accordingly, the Office is ordered to provide Mr. Wallack with a response to his request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law, and its Regulations within ten business days. A copy of any such response must be provided to this office. It is preferable to send an electronic copy of the response to this office at pre@sec.state.ma.us. Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Todd Wallack