25-ORD-137
May 27, 2025
In re: Kurt Wallace/Bullitt County Detention Center
Summary: The Bullitt County Detention Center (“the Jail”) violated the
Open Records Act (“the Act”) when it failed to respond to a request that
complied with KRS 61.880(1) within five business days of receiving it.
The Jail also violated the Act when it failed to display its rules and
regulations pertaining to public records or contact information for its
records custodian on its website, as required by KRS 61.876(2).
Open Records Decision
On April 15, 2025, Kurt Wallace (“Appellant”) submitted a request via
electronic mail to the Jail for 22 separate types of records.1 The Appellant submitted
the same request via U.S. mail on April 17, 2025. In the request, the Appellant also
complained that the Jail has not identified its records custodian or provided its
records custodian’s contact information on its website. After submitting his email
request, the Appellant received a “system-generated message” stating that his email
“could not be delivered.” On April 16, 2025, the Appellant emailed a Jail employee to
ask if the Jail was aware that the email address to which he submitted his request
was a “bad email.” That same date, the Jail responded and said it would “look into
it.” On April 24, 2025, the Appellant again told the Jail that its website does not
contain its open records policy or identify its records custodian. On April 26, 2025,
having received no further response from the Jail, the Appellant initiated this appeal.
Upon receiving a request for records under the Act, a public agency “shall
determine within five (5) [business] days . . . after the receipt of any such request
whether to comply with the request and shall notify in writing the person making the
request, within the five (5) day period, of its decision.” KRS 61.880(1). Here, the
1
The email address to which the Appellant transmitted his request was bullitt@kyjailer.com.Appellant claims he sent two copies of his request to the Jail, on April 15 and 17,
2025, and has not receive a response. On appeal, the Jail does not assert that it timely
responded to the Appellant’s request. Rather, it states that it “thought this request
[had already] been fulfilled.” Thus, the Jail violated the Act when it failed to respond
to a request within five business days of receiving it.
The Appellant also claims the Jail violated the Act by failing to display certain
information on its website relating to open records. Under KRS 61.876(2), “[e]ach
public agency” is required to “display in a prominent location accessible to the public,
including on its Web site,” information including a “copy of its rules and regulations
pertaining to public records” and the “mailing address, e-mail address, and phone
number of the official custodian of the records or his or her designee to which all
requests for public records shall be made.” According to the Appellant, the Jail’s
website2 displays neither the applicable rules and regulations nor the required
information about its records custodian. The Jail, on appeal, does not dispute the
Appellant’s assertion. Because the Jail’s website does not display its rules and
regulations pertaining to public records, as required by KRS 61.876(2)(a), or the
contact information for its records custodian, as required by KRS 61.876(2)(b), the
Jail violated the Act.
A party aggrieved by this decision may appeal it by initiating an action in the
appropriate circuit court under KRS 61.880(5) and KRS 61.882 within 30 days from
the date of this decision. Under 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 proceedings. The Attorney General will accept notice of the complaint
emailed to OAGAppeals@ky.gov.
Russell Coleman
Attorney General
/s/ Matthew Ray
Matthew Ray
Assistant Attorney General
2
See http://www.bullittdetention.com (last accessed May 27, 2025).#181
Distributed to:
Kurt Wallace
Bryan Whittaker
Dinarte Pimentel
Tammy Baker