16-ORD-053 | KOGC

Opinion

Opinion By: Andy Beshear,Attorney General;James M. Herrick,Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Decision

This matter having been presented to the Attorney General in an open records appeal, and the Attorney General being sufficiently advised, we find that inmate Christopher Brown is not entitled to a decision on the merits of whether the Kentucky State Penitentiary (KSP) violated the Open Records Act in its disposition of his February 18, 2016, request for photographs and descriptions of his tattoos. The descriptions of the tattoos have, subsequent to the appeal, been provided to Mr. Brown, and accordingly that portion of the appeal is moot. See 40 KAR 1:030, Section 6 ("If the requested documents are made available to the complaining party after a complaint is made, the Attorney General shall decline to issue a decision in the matter.") The only other records at issue are the photographs of Mr. Brown's tattoos.

This remaining portion of the present appeal is not only duplicative of a prior appeal, but also untimely. In 16-ORD-023, we affirmed KSP's denial of Mr. Brown's access to the photographs of his tattoos because they were deemed to pose a security threat pursuant to KRS 197.025(1). The request at issue in that appeal had been denied by KSP on January 11, 2016. Under KRS 197.025(3), an inmate must bring an open records appeal within twenty days of the denial. A second request for the same records does not extend the time for appeal. 14-ORD-010. The present appeal was received on February 29, 2016, well outside the twenty-day period provided by law. 1 Therefore, we find no basis on which Mr. Brown may prosecute this appeal.

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.

Footnotes

Footnotes

LLM Summary

The decision finds that Christopher Brown's appeal regarding his request for photographs and descriptions of his tattoos is partially moot and untimely. The descriptions were provided after the appeal, making that issue moot. The request for photographs was denied based on security concerns, and this decision was affirmed in a previous order (16-ORD-023). Additionally, the appeal was found to be untimely as it was filed outside the twenty-day period required by law, and a second request does not extend this period (14-ORD-010). Therefore, there is no basis for Mr. Brown to prosecute this appeal.

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