Opinion
Opinion By: Jack Conway, Attorney General; Amye L. Bensenhaver, Assistant Attorney General
Open Records Decision
This matter having been presented to the Office of the Attorney General in an open records appeal, and the Attorney General being sufficiently advised, we find that Kentucky State Penitentiary did not violate the Open Records Act by conditioning inmate Anthony Sadler's right to obtain copies of all records relating to Administrative Control Unit 90 day reviews, beginning in March 2010 to the present, on his ability to pay for copies of those records. It is the decision of this office that Friend v. Rees, 696 S.W.2d 325 (Ky. App. 1985) and 99-ORD-30 are dispositive of the issue on appeal. Pages 2 and 3 of the latter open records decision are particularly instructive in this regard. The Open Records Act contains no provision for waiver of the prepayment requirements found at KRS 61.872(3)(b) and KRS 61.874(1) for indigent inmates, and KSP did not violate the Act in denying Mr. Sadler's request on the basis that he has insufficient funds in his inmate account to defray the cost of copies. The facility's actions may work a hardship on Mr. Sadler but are consistent with the Open Records Act and the rule announced in Friend v. Rees, above.
A party aggrieved by this decision may appeal it by initiating 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.
Distributed to:
Anthony Sadler, # 15198Amy V. Barker