Request By:
Roberta Scruggs
City Editor
Messenger-Inquirer
P.O. Box 1480
Owensboro, Kentucky 42302
Opinion
Opinion By: Steven L. Beshear, Attorney General; By: Cicely D. Jaracz, Assistant Attorney General
You have requested the Attorney General to issue an opinion as to whether the back side of the Uniform Offense Report used by the Ownersboro Police Department is open to public inspection under Open Records law. Specifically, the back side is for supplementary notes usually taken by the investigating officer.
OPINION OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
It is the opinion of the Attorney General that the back side of the Uniform Offense Report containing supplementary notes is exempted from public inspection (except upon court order) under the Open Records law pursuant to KRS 61.878(1)(f), (g) and (h).
KRS 61.878(1)(f) exempts from public inspection:
(f) Records of law enforcement agencies or agencies involved in administrative adjudication that were compiled in the process of detecting and investigating statutory or regulatory violations if the disclosure of the information would harm the agency by revealing the identity of informants not otherwise known or by premature release of information to be used in a prospective law enforcement action or administrative adjudication. Unless exempted by other provisions of KRS 61.870 to 61.884, public records exempted under this provision shall be open after enforcement action is completed or a decision is made to take no action. Provided, however that the exemptions provided by this subsection shall not be used by the custodian of the records to delay or impede the exercise of rights granted by KRS 61.870 to 61.884.
The investigating officer's supplementary notes are compiled during the investigation of the offense reported on the front side of the Uniform Offense Report. It is entirely possible that these notes refer to informants or contain information to be used prospectively by the police. Allowing public inspection of these notes might inhibit the investigating officer from noting items that are helpful to the case but harmful if publicly revealed.
Additionally, the supplementary notes are exempted from public inspection pursuant to KRS 61.878(1)(g) and (h) which exempt
(g) Preliminary drafts, notes, correspondence with private individuals, other than correspondence which is intended to give notice of final action of a public agency.
(h) Preliminary recommendations, and preliminary memoranda in which opinions are expressed or policies formulated or recommended.
The investigating officer's supplementary notes are a preliminary investigatory tool concerning the primary offense. The notes do not give notice of a final action by the police. Also, the supplementary notes, being inherently preliminary, could contain the investigating officer's recommendations and opinions. Opening these notes to public inspection could inhibit the officer's investigation and therefore hamper the disposition of the case by the police.
Therefore it is the opinion of this office that the back side of the Uniform Offense Report containing the supplementary notes of the investigating officer are exempt from public inspection under the Open Records law.