Opinion
Opinion By: Gregory D. Stumbo,Attorney General;Michelle D. Harrison,Assistant Attorney General
Open Records Decision
At issue in this appeal is whether the Kentucky Correctional Psychiatric Center violated the Kentucky Open Records Act in denying the request of Fred Lukins for a copy of his court ordered evaluation conducted by KCPC for the purpose of determining his competency to stand trial. As correctly observed by Sharon W. Proctor, Director, Health Information Management:
KRS 26A.200 provides, in part, that all records which are made by or generated for or received by any agency of the Court of Justice, or by any other court, agency, or officer responsible to the Court, are the property of the Court, and are subject to the control of the Supreme Court. Thus, court records enjoy a special status, and are placed under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Court.
The record at issue in this request was created at the direction of the court and placed under an order limiting distribution. Although it is a "public record" within the meaning of KRS 61.870(2) , because it is a record which is prepared and retained by a public agency, the court's order removes it from the application of the Act. As the Attorney General has observed on more than one occasion, "[t]he Open Records Act in no way supercedes an order entered by a court of competent jurisdiction . . . "
Attached to Ms. Proctor's response is a copy of the distribution list.
By letter dated March 1, 2005, Mr. Lukins initiated this appeal from the KCPC's denial of his request. Upon receiving notification of Mr. Lukins' appeal from this office, John H. Walker, Assistant General Counsel, Cabinet for Health and Family Services, elaborated upon the position of KCPC. According to Mr. Walker, KCPC has denied Mr. Lukins access to the requested records "because the order of the Fayette Circuit Court controls who receives access to these records." In relevant part, Mr. Walker further observes:
Those at the facility responsible for distribution of any report of an inmate subject to evaluation are required to follow the dictates of the court order referring the inmate for evaluation. Failure to adhere to the distribution directives of the court would bring those responsible before the court for contempt.
The Office of the Attorney General has reviewed the distribution process followed by KCPC in response to court orders in the past, and has upheld the authority of the courts to direct to whom the reports may be distributed. In at least one other open records appeal, it has also upheld the actions of the facility [in] denial of access to court ordered evaluations. In [] 04-ORD-021, the Office of the Attorney General relied on precedent dating back to 1980 to hold that these documents, generated by court order, are in the nature of court records and are not subject to disclosure under the Kentucky Open Records Act. See also 99-ORD-109. It is worthy to note that Mr. Lukins has defense counsel who will receive a copy of his evaluation. Mr. Lukins may wish to communicate with his counsel relating to this matter.
In our view, the reasoning of 04-ORD-021, a copy of which is attached hereto and incorporated by reference, is equally applicable here. Accordingly, the same outcome follows. Because the requested report is properly characterized as a "court record," Fayette Circuit Court has limited its distribution, and Mr. Lukins is not among those entitled to receive a copy, the KCPC did not violate the Open Records Act in denying Mr. Lukins access to the report.
A party aggrieved by this decision may appeal it by initiating an action in the appropriate circuit court pursuant to KRS 61.880(5) and KRS 61.882. Pursuant to KRS 61.880(3), the Attorney General should be notified of any action in circuit court, but should not be named as a party in that action or in any subsequent proceeding.
Fred Lukins, # 139337Kentucky State Reformatory3001 West Highway 146LaGrange, KY 40032
Sharon W. Proctor, RHIADirector, Health Information ManagementKentucky Correctional Psychiatric Center1612 Dawkins Road, P.O. Box 67LaGrange, KY 40031
John WalkerAssistant General CounselCabinet for Health and Family Services275 East Main Street, 5W-AFrankfort, KY 40621