Manuel Soares v. Dartmouth, Town of - Police Department (SPR 20252560)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records September 4, 2025 SPR25/2560 Nicole Perullo Police Clerk Dartmouth Police Department 1390 Tucker Road Dartmouth, MA 02747 Dear Ms. Perullo: On August 28, 2025, this office received your petition on behalf of the Dartmouth Police Department (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, Manuel Soares. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c); G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv)(2). On August 1, 2025, Mr. Soares requested, “[c]all Log print out 1985 to August 1, 2025 involving [an identified individual].” 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. 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

Nicole Perullo SPR25/2560 Page 2 September 4, 2025 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) 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 petition, the Department requests to an extension of 15 business days and provides the following in support of its request: With respect to [the] request, the Dartmouth Police Department has the following responsive records in its possession, custody, or control: 44 (forty four) call logs involving [an identified individual] from 1/1/1995-8/1/2025 in electronic format, along with approximately 40 (forty) non-electronic, paper call log books containing approximately 18,000 (eighteen thousand) pages of logs from 1985 – 1995 that could be responsive to the request[.] . . . This request requires an extensive amount of time to search, collect, segregate and examine the requested records. Please be advised that only a select number of employees within our department are able to fulfil this type of request. Those employees are the only ones that can search and compile these types of requested records. I am respectfully requesting the extended time to search for, compile and redact if applicable by following the guidelines of Public Record Law M.G.L. c. 66, § 10. Our department is diligently working on this request and may complete it well within the requested 15 business days extension. In light of the need to collect, segregate and examine the records, the capacity of the Department to produce the records without an extension, as well as the efforts undertaken by the Department in fulfilling the current request, the Department has established good cause to permit an extension of time. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c)(i)-(iv). The Department is granted an extension of 15 business days. Conclusion As described above, I find that the Department has established good cause for a time extension of 15 business days.

Nicole Perullo SPR25/2560 Page 3 September 4, 2025 Please note, Mr. Soares 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: Manuel Soares