Dispute over crime info to be aired

Monday night discussion on newspapers' requests for details of reported crimes in Petaluma

June 14, 2006

By COREY YOUNG
ARGUS-COURIER STAFF

A long-running dispute over access to crime information between the Petaluma Argus-Courier and City Hall will be aired in an open City Council session Monday night.

The council is expected to hear from its city attorney and staff on how details of local crimes are released to the public and the press.

The newspaper, which says the city is not complying with the California Public Records Act in that process, will also present its case, publisher John Burns said.

"We're asking for the council to help resolve this longstanding problem," Burns said. "It's been years since we have received the full information that we're looking for and we'd like to be able to obtain that information for the public who wants it and needs it."

The newspaper said the city is unnecessarily reviewing requests for crime information through its attorney's office, which the city says is a costly and time-consuming process.

In a statement published in this week's issue of the Argus-Courier, City Manager Mike Bierman said there has been no change in the city's policy for disclosing police records.

The city attorney's office is involved to make sure records are properly released and that confidential information isn't disclosed in cases such as child or elder abuse, which could leave the city and its employees open to liability, Bierman wrote.

"Given the potential liability for unauthorized disclosure, on the one hand, and inadequate disclosure, on the other, it should be no surprise that the city attorney assists with such requests," the statement said.

The cost of the city's legal fees for reviewing the newspaper's requests (and similar requests from sister papers the Press Democrat and the New York Times) came to light at a May 18 meeting on the police budget.

Police Chief Steve Hood said it costs the city $8,000 a month in legal fees and $2,300 a month in records supervisor's time to review the newspapers' requests. That equals the cost of hiring another police officer, he said.

But last week, City Attorney Eric Danly provided figures showing that from February to May 25, the city paid his firm a total of $9,824 for approximately 61 hours of work reviewing such requests -- an average of $2,456 each month.

The costs increased to $2,992 in April and $5,664 in May due to "multiple, ongoing requests submitted by the Argus-Courier, and requests submitted by the Press Democrat and the New York Times, for multiple police department records involving very sensitive matters such as cases involving allegations of child abuse, elder abuse, sex crimes and cases involving psychiatric detentions," Danly said.

Bierman and Hood did not return calls for comment on the apparent discrepancy between figures. The city finance department said all legal fees for city departments funded through the general fund, including police, are charged to the general fund's "master account" for legal services that aren't itemized by department.

City Council members have not yet received a formal report on the dispute in advance of the hearing, Councilmember Mike Healy said Monday.

He said again, as other council members have, that he hopes a solution can be found.

"I'm looking for a resolution that satisfies the needs of the public, the needs of the newspapers and the needs of the city -- and we're obviously not there yet," Healy said.

Monday night's City Council meeting begins at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 11 English St.

(Contact Corey Young at cyoung@arguscourier.com)