Request By:
Mr. Joe Conn, Sheriff
Wayne County
Courthouse
Monticello, Kentucky 42633
Opinion
Opinion By: Steven L. Beshear, Attorney General; Carl T. Miller, Jr., Assistant Attorney General
Ms. Kimberly K. Greene, attorney for the Courier Journal and Louisville Times Company has appealed to the Attorney General under KRS 61.880 your denial of inspection of a public record in your custody. We have been sent a copy of a letter addressed to you dated December 27, 1982 from Carol Cropper, a reporter for the Courier Journal in which Ms. Cropper requested a copy of an accident report made by your office concerning a school bus accident on September 1, 1982 in which Eva Jewel Blevins died and in which Donna Shephard and Clay Hicks were drivers of the two vehicles involved. It is also alleged in the letter of appeal that you had previously verbally denied Carol Cropper's access to the requested document.
Ms. Greene complains that you failed to comply with the provisions of the Kentucky Open Records Law, KRS 61.870 to 61.884, not only by denying access to the requested document but also by failing to respond in writing to the written request as required by KRS 61.880(1).
OPINION OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
It is the opinion of the Attorney General that you did not act in accordance with the open records law in denying access to the requested accident report. KRS 189.635 provides for accident reports to be made by law enforcement officers and by persons involved in accidents. The report made by a person involved in an accident is made confidential by KRS 189.635 (4). Accident reports made by law enforcement officers are not confidential and are open records under the Open Records Law. OAG 80-210.
Also, you did not act in accordance with the Open Records Law by failing to make a written response to the written request for a copy of the record. You should have either mailed Ms. Cropper a copy of the report in the self-addressed stamped envelope she furnished or written her that the report would be made available for her inspection in your office.
Under KRS 61.880(5) you may challenge this opinion by instituting proceedings within thirty (30) days in the circuit court.
As directed by KRS 61.880(2), a copy of this opinion is being sent to Ms. Greene, attorney for the requester.