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Larry Vickers

Wed, Jul 21, 2021 11:31 PM

Group:

I have a small town wherein an individual is making an open records request. One of the requests is asking for all licenses and certificates held by town employees. Is that info accessible? Seems as though that would be something in an employees personnel file and maybe not an open record.

Also asking for reports and body cams on an incident with police that does not involve him. Is that fair game for him to request?

Thanks,

Larry Vickers, Jr.
Attorney At Law, P.L.L.C.

600 Emporia Street, Suite B

Muskogee, Oklahoma 74401

Phone: 918-682-5900

&

303 South Thornton

Vian, Oklahoma 74962

Phone: 918-773-4004

http://www.lvickerslaw.com http://www.lvickerslaw.com/

E-mails from this firm normally contain confidential and privileged material, and are for the sole use of the intended recipient. Use or distribution by an unintended recipient is prohibited, and may be a violation of law. If you believe that you received this e-mail in error, please do not read this e-mail or any attached items. Please delete the e-mail and all attachments, including any copies thereof, and inform the sender that you have deleted the e-mail, all attachments and any copies thereof. Thank you.

Group: I have a small town wherein an individual is making an open records request. One of the requests is asking for all licenses and certificates held by town employees. Is that info accessible? Seems as though that would be something in an employees personnel file and maybe not an open record. Also asking for reports and body cams on an incident with police that does not involve him. Is that fair game for him to request? Thanks, Larry Vickers, Jr. Attorney At Law, P.L.L.C. 600 Emporia Street, Suite B Muskogee, Oklahoma 74401 Phone: 918-682-5900 & 303 South Thornton Vian, Oklahoma 74962 Phone: 918-773-4004 http://www.lvickerslaw.com<http://www.lvickerslaw.com/> E-mails from this firm normally contain confidential and privileged material, and are for the sole use of the intended recipient. Use or distribution by an unintended recipient is prohibited, and may be a violation of law. If you believe that you received this e-mail in error, please do not read this e-mail or any attached items. Please delete the e-mail and all attachments, including any copies thereof, and inform the sender that you have deleted the e-mail, all attachments and any copies thereof. Thank you.

ML

Matt Love

Wed, Jul 21, 2021 11:37 PM

Larry,

On licenses and certificates held by employees, those would assuredly
qualify as personnel records under 51 O.S. 24A.7. That statute outlines
what must be provided (24A.7(B)), what cannot be provided (24A.7(D)), and
what "may" be provided (24A.7(A)). This would fall under (A)(2), which
allows us to withhold a record if it's release would constitute a clearly
unwarranted invasion of the employee's personal privacy. There is a
non-exhaustive list of examples which this would not fall under. As such,
City would bear the burden of proving that a withheld record met the
criteria of constituting an invasion of privacy. Okla. Public Employees
Assn. v. State ex rel. Okla. Office of Personnel Management, 2011 OK 68,
267 P.3d 838. If the certificates and licenses are all professional in
nature, then I don't know that you'd have a leg to stand on. If they have
private information on them (e.g. address, home phone, DOB, SSN, etc.),
that part could be redacted.

On the body cam video, that will be 51 O.S. 24A.8, specifically
24A.8(A)(10). Under (A)(10)(a), a body cam is subject to release if it
shows certain things, but look at (A)(10)(a)(7), (9) and (10) and I think
it would be hard to withhold almost any body cam video. But the video can
be redacted if it depicts certain things listed in (A)(10)(b).

Matt

On Wed, Jul 21, 2021 at 6:31 PM Larry Vickers larry@lvickerslaw.com wrote:

Group:

I have a small town wherein an individual is making an open records
request. One of the requests is asking for all licenses and certificates
held by town employees. Is that info accessible? Seems as though that would
be something in an employees personnel file and maybe not an open record.

Also asking for reports and body cams on an incident with police that does
not involve him. Is that fair game for him to request?

Thanks,

Larry Vickers, Jr.
Attorney At Law, P.L.L.C.

600 Emporia Street, Suite B

*Muskogee, Oklahoma 74401 *

Phone: 918-682-5900

&

303 South Thornton

Vian, Oklahoma 74962

Phone: 918-773-4004

http://www.lvickerslaw.com http://www.lvickerslaw.com/

E-mails from this firm normally contain confidential and privileged
material, and are for the sole use of the intended recipient. Use or
distribution by an unintended recipient is prohibited, and may be a
violation of law. If you believe that you received this e-mail in error,
please do not read this e-mail or any attached items. Please delete the
e-mail and all attachments, including any copies thereof, and inform the
sender that you have deleted the e-mail, all attachments and any copies
thereof. Thank you.

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Larry, On licenses and certificates held by employees, those would assuredly qualify as personnel records under 51 O.S. 24A.7. That statute outlines what must be provided (24A.7(B)), what cannot be provided (24A.7(D)), and what "may" be provided (24A.7(A)). This would fall under (A)(2), which allows us to withhold a record if it's release would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of the employee's personal privacy. There is a non-exhaustive list of examples which this would not fall under. As such, City would bear the burden of proving that a withheld record met the criteria of constituting an invasion of privacy. *Okla. Public Employees Assn. v. State ex rel. Okla. Office of Personnel Management*, 2011 OK 68, 267 P.3d 838. If the certificates and licenses are all professional in nature, then I don't know that you'd have a leg to stand on. If they have private information on them (e.g. address, home phone, DOB, SSN, etc.), that part could be redacted. On the body cam video, that will be 51 O.S. 24A.8, specifically 24A.8(A)(10). Under (A)(10)(a), a body cam is subject to release if it shows certain things, but look at (A)(10)(a)(7), (9) and (10) and I think it would be hard to withhold almost any body cam video. But the video can be redacted if it depicts certain things listed in (A)(10)(b). Matt On Wed, Jul 21, 2021 at 6:31 PM Larry Vickers <larry@lvickerslaw.com> wrote: > Group: > > > I have a small town wherein an individual is making an open records > request. One of the requests is asking for all licenses and certificates > held by town employees. Is that info accessible? Seems as though that would > be something in an employees personnel file and maybe not an open record. > > > Also asking for reports and body cams on an incident with police that does > not involve him. Is that fair game for him to request? > > > Thanks, > > > *Larry Vickers, Jr.* > *Attorney At Law, P.L.L.C.* > > *600 Emporia Street, Suite B* > > *Muskogee, Oklahoma 74401 * > > *Phone: 918-682-5900* > > *&* > > *303 South Thornton* > > *Vian, Oklahoma 74962* > > *Phone: 918-773-4004* > > *http://www.lvickerslaw.com <http://www.lvickerslaw.com/>* > > E-mails from this firm normally contain confidential and privileged > material, and are for the sole use of the intended recipient. Use or > distribution by an unintended recipient is prohibited, and may be a > violation of law. If you believe that you received this e-mail in error, > please do not read this e-mail or any attached items. Please delete the > e-mail and all attachments, including any copies thereof, and inform the > sender that you have deleted the e-mail, all attachments and any copies > thereof. Thank you. > > -- > Oama mailing list -- oama@lists.imla.org > To unsubscribe send an email to oama-leave@lists.imla.org >

MR

Mark Ramsey

Thu, Jul 22, 2021 12:02 AM

Generally, personnel files are confidential. Generally, you are not required to create a record in order to produce it. If you have a list of all employees with a CDL, that is probably producible, but you don't have to create it. The police reports and body camera recordings issues seem pretty fluid right now. I don't think the person requesting has to be involved in order to make a request. Whether you have to produce it may be tricky. I haven't had to do it in several years and we reached an accommodation in that case so it wasn't really contested. Sorry. Good Luck!

From: Larry Vickers larry@lvickerslaw.com
Sent: Wednesday, July 21, 2021 6:31 PM
To: oama@lists.imla.org
Subject: [Oama] Open Records Requests

Notice: This email is from an external source. Do not open attachments or click on links from unknown senders or unexpected e-mail.

Group:

I have a small town wherein an individual is making an open records request. One of the requests is asking for all licenses and certificates held by town employees. Is that info accessible? Seems as though that would be something in an employees personnel file and maybe not an open record.

Also asking for reports and body cams on an incident with police that does not involve him. Is that fair game for him to request?

Thanks,

Larry Vickers, Jr.
Attorney At Law, P.L.L.C.

600 Emporia Street, Suite B

Muskogee, Oklahoma 74401

Phone: 918-682-5900

&

303 South Thornton

Vian, Oklahoma 74962

Phone: 918-773-4004

http://www.lvickerslaw.com https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flinkprotect.cudasvc.com%2Furl%3Fa%3Dhttp%253a%252f%252fwww.lvickerslaw.com%252f%26c%3DE%2C1%2C3moTImOy3ua_FVldZgfJiRnkm3ggrs4okgHedrXJKeSFM3JMkdqLSLhKYRAkkF9tGOoT5ZtucQBfn7lc-ownGzEeZw6qMcHnMSkEmxcIra_3%26typo%3D1&data=04%7C01%7Cmramsey%40soonerlaw.com%7Cafa729705acb43f295ed08d94c9fa38f%7Ccd3766af25f04fe2829ce96eb13be37c%7C0%7C0%7C637625070814079878%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=jJdV81k4jEMBC1DVi90quHyuO1LvJt9ZIEop1kdDWbU%3D&reserved=0

E-mails from this firm normally contain confidential and privileged material, and are for the sole use of the intended recipient. Use or distribution by an unintended recipient is prohibited, and may be a violation of law. If you believe that you received this e-mail in error, please do not read this e-mail or any attached items. Please delete the e-mail and all attachments, including any copies thereof, and inform the sender that you have deleted the e-mail, all attachments and any copies thereof. Thank you.

Generally, personnel files are confidential. Generally, you are not required to create a record in order to produce it. If you have a list of all employees with a CDL, that is probably producible, but you don't have to create it. The police reports and body camera recordings issues seem pretty fluid right now. I don't think the person requesting has to be involved in order to make a request. Whether you have to produce it may be tricky. I haven't had to do it in several years and we reached an accommodation in that case so it wasn't really contested. Sorry. Good Luck! From: Larry Vickers <larry@lvickerslaw.com> Sent: Wednesday, July 21, 2021 6:31 PM To: oama@lists.imla.org Subject: [Oama] Open Records Requests Notice: This email is from an external source. Do not open attachments or click on links from unknown senders or unexpected e-mail. ________________________________ Group: I have a small town wherein an individual is making an open records request. One of the requests is asking for all licenses and certificates held by town employees. Is that info accessible? Seems as though that would be something in an employees personnel file and maybe not an open record. Also asking for reports and body cams on an incident with police that does not involve him. Is that fair game for him to request? Thanks, Larry Vickers, Jr. Attorney At Law, P.L.L.C. 600 Emporia Street, Suite B Muskogee, Oklahoma 74401 Phone: 918-682-5900 & 303 South Thornton Vian, Oklahoma 74962 Phone: 918-773-4004 http://www.lvickerslaw.com<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flinkprotect.cudasvc.com%2Furl%3Fa%3Dhttp%253a%252f%252fwww.lvickerslaw.com%252f%26c%3DE%2C1%2C3moTImOy3ua_FVldZgfJiRnkm3ggrs4okgHedrXJKeSFM3JMkdqLSLhKYRAkkF9tGOoT5ZtucQBfn7lc-ownGzEeZw6qMcHnMSkEmxcIra_3%26typo%3D1&data=04%7C01%7Cmramsey%40soonerlaw.com%7Cafa729705acb43f295ed08d94c9fa38f%7Ccd3766af25f04fe2829ce96eb13be37c%7C0%7C0%7C637625070814079878%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=jJdV81k4jEMBC1DVi90quHyuO1LvJt9ZIEop1kdDWbU%3D&reserved=0> E-mails from this firm normally contain confidential and privileged material, and are for the sole use of the intended recipient. Use or distribution by an unintended recipient is prohibited, and may be a violation of law. If you believe that you received this e-mail in error, please do not read this e-mail or any attached items. Please delete the e-mail and all attachments, including any copies thereof, and inform the sender that you have deleted the e-mail, all attachments and any copies thereof. Thank you.

RV

Ray Vincent

Thu, Jul 22, 2021 5:21 PM

Test

Sent from my Sprint Samsung Galaxy Note9.

-------- Original message --------
From: Larry Vickers larry@lvickerslaw.com
Date: 7/21/21 6:31 PM (GMT-06:00)
To: oama@lists.imla.org
Subject: [Oama] Open Records Requests

Group:

I have a small town wherein an individual is making an open records request. One of the requests is asking for all licenses and certificates held by town employees. Is that info accessible? Seems as though that would be something in an employees personnel file and maybe not an open record.

Also asking for reports and body cams on an incident with police that does not involve him. Is that fair game for him to request?

Thanks,

Larry Vickers, Jr.
Attorney At Law, P.L.L.C.

600 Emporia Street, Suite B

Muskogee, Oklahoma 74401

Phone: 918-682-5900

&

303 South Thornton

Vian, Oklahoma 74962

Phone: 918-773-4004

http://www.lvickerslaw.com http://www.lvickerslaw.com/

E-mails from this firm normally contain confidential and privileged material, and are for the sole use of the intended recipient. Use or distribution by an unintended recipient is prohibited, and may be a violation of law. If you believe that you received this e-mail in error, please do not read this e-mail or any attached items. Please delete the e-mail and all attachments, including any copies thereof, and inform the sender that you have deleted the e-mail, all attachments and any copies thereof. Thank you.

Test Sent from my Sprint Samsung Galaxy Note9. -------- Original message -------- From: Larry Vickers <larry@lvickerslaw.com> Date: 7/21/21 6:31 PM (GMT-06:00) To: oama@lists.imla.org Subject: [Oama] Open Records Requests Group: I have a small town wherein an individual is making an open records request. One of the requests is asking for all licenses and certificates held by town employees. Is that info accessible? Seems as though that would be something in an employees personnel file and maybe not an open record. Also asking for reports and body cams on an incident with police that does not involve him. Is that fair game for him to request? Thanks, Larry Vickers, Jr. Attorney At Law, P.L.L.C. 600 Emporia Street, Suite B Muskogee, Oklahoma 74401 Phone: 918-682-5900 & 303 South Thornton Vian, Oklahoma 74962 Phone: 918-773-4004 http://www.lvickerslaw.com<http://www.lvickerslaw.com/> E-mails from this firm normally contain confidential and privileged material, and are for the sole use of the intended recipient. Use or distribution by an unintended recipient is prohibited, and may be a violation of law. If you believe that you received this e-mail in error, please do not read this e-mail or any attached items. Please delete the e-mail and all attachments, including any copies thereof, and inform the sender that you have deleted the e-mail, all attachments and any copies thereof. Thank you.