Philip G. Cormier v. Department of State Police (SPR 20241716)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records June 13, 2024 SPR24/1716 Allison Mondello Public Records Manager Massachusetts Department of State Police 470 Worcester Road Framingham, MA 01702 Dear Ms. Mondello: On June 7, 2024, this office received the petition of Alexandra E. Orn, on behalf of the Department of State Police (Department), seeking an extension of time to produce records. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c); G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4). As required by law, it is my understanding that the Department furnished a copy of the petition to the requestor, Philip G. Cormier, Esq., of Good Schneider Cormier & Fried. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c); G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv)(2). On May 27, 2024, Attorney Cormier requested the following records: [1] Any records concerning any internal affairs investigations conducted by the Massachusetts State Police of the following Massachusetts State Police officers…[;] [2] Any records concerning any notices of claims made against any of the following named members of the Massachusetts State Police for violations of civil rights under the Massachusetts Civil Rights Act (M.G.L. c. 12, § 11H), or for violation of federal civil rights under 42 U.S.C. § 1983…[;] [3] Any records concerning any other investigations (non-internal affairs investigations) of the following Massachusetts State Police officers, including but not limited to criminal investigations conducted by the Massachusetts State Police, any Massachusetts District Attorney’s Office, the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office, the United States Department of Justice, the United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts, or the Federal Bureau of Investigation…[;] [4] Any records concerning any adverse credibility determinations made by any court or other public entity concerning the credibility of any of the following 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

Allison Mondello SPR24/1716 Page 2 June 13, 2024 Massachusetts State Police officers, including but not limited to any determinations that the officer’s testimony or written statement (e.g., affidavit) was not credible, was untruthful, was false, or that the officer engaged in perjury…[.] 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). 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 petition, the Department requests “additional time, five (5) days, to respond to this request” and provides the following information in support of its request: [T]he Department of State Police received the attached public record request on May 28, 2024, looking to request internal affairs files of 5 troopers. This request also included any and all email communications between the Massachusetts State Police and other government entities relating to the 5 troopers’ internal affairs

Allison Mondello SPR24/1716 Page 3 June 13, 2024 files. … [D]ue to the scope of this request, high volume of potentially responsive records, and the time required to gather all potentially responsive records, [we] are seeking additional time to respond to this request. . . In light of the need to collect, segregate and examine the records, as well as the capacity of the Department to produce the records without an extension, the Department has established good cause to permit an extension of time. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c)(i)-(iii). The Department is granted an extension of 5 business days. Conclusion As described above, I find that the Department has established good cause for a time extension of 5 business days. Please note, Attorney Cormier 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(c), 10(d)(iv)(4), 10A(c). Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Philip G. Cormier, Esq.