Jeff Raymond v. Ludlow, Town of - Police Department (SPR 20231595)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records July 17, 2022 SPR23/1595 Lieutenant Michael N. Brennan Administrative Lieutenant Ludlow Police Department 612 Chapin Street Ludlow, MA 01056 Dear Lieutenant Brennan: On July 11, 2023, this office received your petition on behalf of the Ludlow Police Department (Department) seeking an extension of time to produce records. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c); G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv). As required by law, the Department furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). On April 15, 2023, Jeff Raymond, of the Bramanville Tribune, requested “any responsive documents and/or communications concerning your municipality’s police department and its compliance with the Massachusetts Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) Commission’s duties under Chapter 253 of the Acts of 2020 to create a ‘database listing complaints against police officers,’ as detailed below.” Specifically, Mr. Raymond requested: [1.] A copy of the document your police department sent to the POST Commission, likely sent between November 2021 and June of 2022, providing the information requested by the POST Commission for its “database listing complaints against police officers” planned for May of 2022…. [2.] Copies of any relevant responsive communications between a) your police department and/or your town officials and b) the POST Commission in regard to the database planned for May of 2022 as detailed above and/or compliance with the reporting for said database between the dates of July 1, 2021 and December 31, 2022, broadly construed…. [3.] Copies of any relevant responsive communications within or between a) your police department and b) your municipal administration in regard to this database and/or compliance with this mandate between the dates of July 1, 2021 and December 31, 2022, broadly construed…. 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

Lieutenant Michael N. Brennan SPR23/1595 Page 2 July 17, 2023 [4.] Information concerning “complaints against police officers” issued in the calendar year 2022 and through March 31, 2023, preferably in the same format used for the information sent to POST between November 2021 and June of 2022 for the earlier-mentioned database…. [5.] A copy of the document your police department sent to the POST Commission as sent to the POST Commission, likely sent between December 1, 2022 and April 9, 2023, to comply with the “2023 POST Commission Disciplinary Records Resubmission.”... [6.] Copies of any relevant responsive communications within or between a) your police department and b) your municipal administration in regard to this database and/or compliance with the “2023 POST Commission Disciplinary Records Resubmission” described above. Previous Appeal This request was the subject of a previous appeal. See SPR23/1252 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (June 26, 2023). In my June 26th determination, I ordered the Department to provide a further response to Mr. Raymond. Subsequently, the Department submitted the petition which is the subject of this determination. Petitions 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). 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

Lieutenant Michael N. Brennan SPR23/1595 Page 3 July 17, 2023 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) shall 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 July 11, 2023 petition, the Department requests an extension of 30 business days and provides the following information in support of its request: First, it is important to note that the Ludlow Police Department has already provided… records (specifically items#1 and #5) to the POST Commission concerning the disciplinary records resubmission as was required by law. It has also come to the attention of the Department that such records are maintained by the POST Commission as an overseeing repository for these records as is required by M.G.L. c. 6E, and 555 CMR. To our knowledge, the POST Commission has NOT released these responsive records concerning police officer disciplinary records that they possess. Secondly, the Ludlow Police Department reserves the right to consult with our municipalities’ legal counsel, which shall include reviewing each and every active police officer record that may require their redactions and/or withholding in entirety in accordance with all applicable Public Records Laws. Simply put, if the POST Commission cannot release these police officer records due to ongoing litigation and privacy concerns, it is not clear how these records should or even can be released by the Ludlow Police Department. We await our legal counsel’s review and consult. Please note that in an email to this office and the Department on July 11, 2023, Mr. Raymond objected to the Department’s request for an extension of time. I find that the Department has not met its burden to establish good cause to permit an extension of time. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c)(i)-(iv). Therefore, I am unable to grant additional time. Accordingly, the Department is ordered to provide Mr. Raymond with a response to his request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law, and its Regulations within 10 business days. 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.

Lieutenant Michael N. Brennan SPR23/1595 Page 4 July 17, 2023 Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Jeff Raymond