FREEDOM OF INFORMATION COMMISSION
OF THE STATE OF CONNECTICUT

In the Matter of a Complaint by			FINAL DECISION
Nancy B. Alisberg and State of Connecticut, Office of Protection and Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities,
		Complainants
	against		Docket #FIC 2001-202
Commissioner, State of Connecticut, Department of Correction; and State of Connecticut, Department of Correction,
		Respondents	July 25, 2001

The above-captioned matter was heard as a contested case on May 21, 2001, at which time the complainants and the respondents appeared, stipulated to certain facts and presented testimony, exhibits and argument on the complaint.

After consideration of the entire record, the following facts are found and conclusions of law are reached:

1.      The respondents are public agencies within the meaning of §1-200(1), G.S.

 

2.      By letter dated March 19, 2001 to the respondents, the complainants made a request for the following information:

 

a.       the number of inmate deaths for each calendar year from 1995 through 2000;

b.      the location of the inmate and the cause of death; and

c.       for each inmate, their name, race, sex and mental health status.

 

3.      By letter dated April 10, 2001 to the complainants, the respondents informed the complainants that their request was being reviewed and a response would be forwarded accordingly.

 

4.      By letter dated April 19, 2001 and filed on April 24, 2001, the complainants appealed to this Commission alleging that the respondents violated the Freedom of Information (“FOI”) Act by failing to comply with their request.

 

 

5.      It is found that by letter dated May 16, 2001, the respondents provided the information the complainants requested excluding the names of the inmates.

 

6.      Section 1-210(a), G.S., provides in relevant part that:

 

[e]xcept as otherwise provided by any federal law or state statute, all records maintained or kept on file by any public agency, whether or not such records are required by any law or by any rule or regulation, shall be public records and every person shall have the right . . . to receive a copy of such records in accordance with the provisions of section 1-212.  Any agency rule or regulation, or part thereof, that conflicts with the provisions of this subsection or diminishes or curtails in any way the rights granted by this subsection shall be void.

 

7.      Section 1-212(a), G.S., provides in relevant part that “[a]ny person applying in writing shall receive, promptly upon request, a plain or certified copy of any public record . . . .”

 

8.      It is found that the requested records, to the extent such records exist, are public records within the meaning of §1-210(a), G.S.

 

9.      At the hearing on this matter, the complainants withdrew their complaint with respect to the names of the inmates but maintained that the respondents’ failure to provide a breakdown of the mental status of the inmates who committed suicide, a definition of the term “natural causes,” and an indication as to whether “natural causes” includes HIV or AIDS related causes, constitutes a denial of their March 19, 2001 request and a violation of the FOI Act.

 

10.  At the hearing on this matter, the complainants contended that they did not request to inspect or receive copies of individual prisoner records.

 

11.  It is found that the complainants’ March 19, 2001 request was not a request for records, but rather a request for information and that the complainants wanted the respondents to create a record containing the information they requested.

 

12.  It is found that the FOI Act does not require the respondents to create a document in order to comply with a records request or a request for information.

 

13.  It is found that the respondents do not maintain any single record containing the information the complainants requested.

 

14.  Nonetheless, it is found that the respondents conducted research on behalf of the complainants by searching through their records, cross referencing records with other related records, created records and provided those records to the complainants.

 

15.  It is found therefore that the respondents provided the complainants with all of the information requested even though they were under no obligation under the FOI Act to do so.

 

16.  It is also found that the complainants’ request for a breakdown of the mental status of the inmates who committed suicide, a definition of the term “natural causes,” and an indication as to whether “natural causes” includes HIV or AIDS related causes is outside of the scope of their March 19, 2001 request.

 

The following order by the Commission is hereby recommended on the basis of the record concerning the above-captioned complaint.

 

            1.  The complaint is hereby dismissed.

           

 

Approved by Order of the Freedom of Information Commission at its regular meeting of July 25, 2001.

 

 

_________________________________________

Petrea A. Jones

Acting Clerk of the Commission

PURSUANT TO SECTION 4-180(c), G.S., THE FOLLOWING ARE THE NAMES OF EACH PARTY AND THE MOST RECENT MAILING ADDRESS, PROVIDED TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION COMMISSION, OF THE PARTIES OR THEIR AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE.

 

THE PARTIES TO THIS CONTESTED CASE ARE:

 

Nancy B. Alisberg and State of

Connecticut, Office of Protection

and Advocacy for Persons with

Disabilities

60B Weston Street

Hartford, CT 06120-1551

 

Commissioner, State of Connecticut,

Department of Correction; and State

of Connecticut, Department of Correction

c/o Matthew B. Beizer, Esq.

Assistant Attorney General

110 Sherman Street

Hartford, CT 06105

 

 

 

________________________________

Petrea A. Jones

Acting Clerk of the Commission

 

 

FIC/2001-202/FD/paj/07/31/2001