Woods v. Office of Open Records
Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania
No. 1802, C.D. 2009
June 10, 2010
The Commonwealth Court determined that disclosure of the “Supervision Strategies” section of the chapter on Sex Offender Supervision Protocol in the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole’s manual could threaten public safety. Therefore, that section is exempt from disclosure under the public safety exception of the Right to Know Law.
Background
Barry Woods submitted a Right to Know Law request to the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole for the chapter of the board’s manual entitled “Sex Offender Supervision Protocol.”
The board granted his request, but redacted two sections entitled “Polygraph” and “Supervision Strategies,” citing the public safety exception of the RTKL.
Woods appealed the denial of the “Supervision Strategies” section to the Office of Open Records.
The OOR ruled that the board properly denied Woods’ request, and he then appealed to the Commonwealth Court.
Commonwealth Court Decision
The court explained that the “Supervision Strategies” section is a “strategic guide for board members to employ when monitoring and supervising sex offender parolees.”
The court reasoned that providing that information “to those who are the subject of supervision or to any member of the public would impair the effectiveness of that supervision, and thus threaten public safety.” Thus, that section of the board manual’s chapter on sex offenders is exempt under the law’s public safety exception because its release “would be reasonably likely to jeopardize or threaten public safety or preparedness or public protection activity.”
The court also explained that the board’s denial of Woods’ request did not treat him unequally because of his status as a sex offender, as he contended.
Rather, as the court stated, “the point of the exemption is that the record is not public to anyone not authorized to have access, be that person a sex offender or general member of the public.”