Daralyn Heywood v. Mashpee, Town of - Public Schools (SPR 20232509)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records November 6, 2023 SPR23/2509 Patricia M. DeBoer Superintendent Mashpee Public Schools 150A Old Barnstable Road Mashpee, MA 02649 Dear Superintendent DeBoer: I have received the petition of Daralyn Heywood appealing the response of the Mashpee Public Schools (School) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On June 12, 2023, Ms. Heywood requested the following records: 1) Exterior Surveillance video from the Mashpee High School May 23, 2023, from 0700 to 1500. 2) Mashpee High School Sign-in Sheet for the Building for May 23, 2023. Previous Appeal This request was the subject of a previous appeal. See SPR23/1931 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (August 31, 2023). In my August 31st determination, I ordered the School to clarify whether it possesses additional video footage responsive to Part 1 of Ms. Heywood’s request. Subsequently, the School responded on September 8, 2023. Unsatisfied with the School’s response, Ms. Heywood further 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 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

Superintendent Patricia M. DeBoer SPR23/2509 Page 2 November 6, 2023 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 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. The School’s September 8th Response With its September 8, 2023 response, the School provides a flash drive and states that “the records [Ms. Heywood] requested – specifically, ‘exterior surveillance video from the Mashpee High School May 23, 2023 from 0700 to 1500’ – is provided via a flash drive, the content of which was downloaded directly from the system’s server.” The School goes on to explain that the footage “contained on this flash drive is the same footage that was previously provided to [Ms. Heywood] via an online YouTube link. No other responsive records have been located.” 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). Additionally, in accordance with the Public Records Law, custodians are expected to use their superior knowledge of the records in their custody to assist requestors in obtaining the desired information. See 950 C.M.R. 32.04(5). Further, public records must be maintained and kept in a manner that allows access by the general public, as they are subject to mandatory disclosure upon request. G. L. c. 66, § 10(a); see also Reinstein v. Police Comm’r of Boston, 378 Mass. 281, 289-90 (1979). Based on the School’s September 8th and previous response, it remains unclear whether additional video footage never existed, or whether additional footage existed and was deleted. The School must clarify this. Conclusion Accordingly, the School is ordered to provide Ms. Heywood with a response to her 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: Daralyn Heywood