Police Department FOIA Officer

Apparently the city/police department is getting quite a bit of heat over the recent shooting with the gun stolen from Chief O'Guinn as it has appointed a representative to handle FOIA requests directed to the police department:

In the interests of streamlining the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process and expediting the requests for information, City Manager Allen Gill has appointed Assistant City Attorney Lenoard “Jamie” Snyder as FOIA Officer for the Police Department.  All future requests for Police Department reports and records are to be directed to Mr. Snyder’s office. As City Prosecutor, Mr. Snyder is very familiar with Police Department record keeping procedures and the critical nature of confidentiality in ongoing criminal investigations. As an attorney, he is also very familiar with FOIA requirements and exemptions. This shift of responsibilities will also help ease the growing workload on the Clerk’s office, so that other FOIA requests can be processed in a timely manner. The City Clerk will continue to be the FOIA Officer for all other requests.

Based on analysis of recent experience with providing adequate response to FOIA requests, City Manager Allen Gill has identified an area where service can be improved.  Most of the perceived delays and lack of response come in regard to requests for Police Department records and reports.  The Open Records Act provides numerous exemptions for police-related documents. Each of these exemptions for police-related records provides specific procedures and requirements for meeting the exemption.  On numerous occasions there have been differences of interpretation between the City Clerk’s office and the Police Department. When these differences come to the City Manager’s attention, Mr. Gill asks the City Attorney to rule on the request and each department is expected to abide by the City Attorney’s ruling.  The City Attorney’s opinion of these rulings must be final, as he is the one who must defend the City if the City is accused of violating FOIA regulations. This is the procedure agreed upon after the new FOIA rules were announced a year ago. Since that time, there has been a dramatic increase in FOIA requests, and this has also contributed to some of the delays.

State law allows for organizations to have more than one FOIA officer. The City had elected until now to have one FOIA officer for the entire organization, so as to centralize record keeping.  Increasing workloads and increasing complexity of requests have caused the City Manager  to reconsider this option. This recommendation has been discussed with Mayor Fritzler and he is in agreement with this proposed change.