State Records Committee Decision 2016-14

BEFORE THE STATE RECORDS COMMITTEE OF THE STATE OF UTAH

NATE CARLISLE, SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, Petitioner, v.

UTAH ATTORNEY GENERAL’S OFFICE. Respondent.

DECISION AND ORDER

Case No. 16-14

By this appeal, Petitioner, Nate Carlisle, reporter for the Salt Lake Tribune, seeks access to records allegedly held by Respondent, the Utah Attorney General’s Office

FACTS

On or about December 16, 2015, Mr. Carlisle, on behalf of the Salt Lake Tribune, made a records request to the Utah Attorney General’s Office ("Respondent"), pursuant to the Government Records Access and Management Act (“GRAMA”) requesting:

[A]ll documents related to any criminal investigations of Beaver County Sheriff Cameron Noel conducted in 2014 or 2015, including, but not necessarily limited to, police reports, witness statements, forensic reports, search warrant applications and returns, subpoenas and similar documents you may have received from other law enforcement agencies.

On or about December 30, 2015, Respondent denied Mr. Carlisle access to any records, citing Utah Code §§ 63G-2-305(10)(a), -10(b), and -10(c), as well as Utah Code §§ 63G-2-302(2)(d) and -302(1)(b). Mr. Carlisle appealed the decision, and after reviewing Mr. Carlisle’s records request, Parker Douglas, Chief of Staff and Federal Solicitor, upheld the denial to the records.

Mr. Carlisle filed an appeal with the State Records Committee (“Committee”). On April 14, 2016, the Committee held a hearing and heard oral arguments from the parties. During the deliberation phase of the hearing, a motion was made to review the disputed records in camera. When it was determined that the records were too numerous to review in their entirety during the hearing on this matter, the Committee voted unanimously to continue the hearing to a later date in order to allow sufficient time for Committee members to review the disputed records. Neither party objected to the continuance. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED THAT:

ORDER

The hearing is CONTINUED to a later date. The records provided by Respondent to the Executive Secretary for the Committee, shall be secured at the State Archives Building in order to allow an in camera review by the Committee.

Entered this 25th day of April 2016.

BY THE STATE RECORDS COMMITTEE

_____________________________________
PATRICIA SMITH-MANSFIELD, Chairperson
State Records Committee