Opinion
Opinion By: Andy Beshear,Attorney General;Sarah Ellen Eads Adkins,Assistant Attorney General
Open Records Decision
The issue presented in this appeal is whether Louisville Metro Department of Corrections (LMDC) violated the Open Records Act when it refused to provide a copy of a jail inspection report upon request of inmate James Lang. For the reasons stated below, this office finds that LMDC properly refused to provide the requested records pursuant to KRS 197.025(2).
On December 3, 2018, Appellant requested that LMDC provide him with "the most recent jail inspection report conducted by Mr. Thorpe and the corrective action plan submitted in response to the inspection report. " On December 3, 2018, LMDC denied his request and stated, "[y]ou would need to have your lawyer do an open records request." However, in LMDC's response to this appeal, it acknowledged this was an improper response and corrected its mistake. LMDC stated that, pursuant to KRS 197.025(2), it would not provide the requested records to Appellant because they contained no specific reference to him.
KRS 197.025(2) provides, in part, that DOC "shall not be required to comply with a request for any record from an inmate confined in a jail or any facility or any individual on active supervision under the jurisdiction of [DOC], unless the request is for a record which contains a specific reference to that individual ." (emphasis added). KRS 197.025(2) is incorporated into the Open Records Act by operation of KRS 61.878(1).
In its response to this appeal, LMDC confirmed that "the inspection reviews the administration, management, physical facility, and policies and procedures. The report did not specifically reference Inmate Lang." LMDC is not required to provide Appellant with copies of records which contain no inmate-specific information pursuant to KRS 197.025(2). Accordingly, LMDC did not violate the Open Records Act in denying Appellant's request.
A party aggrieved by this decision shall 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 shall be notified of any action in circuit court, but shall not be named as a party in that action or in any subsequent proceeding.