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ORANGE COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE GENERAL ORDER Effective Date: December 8, 2021  Amends - GO 15.1.8 ( January 29, 2021 ) Number: 15.1.8 Distribution: All Personnel Review Month: March Reviewing Authority: SSD / Records Management Subject : Releasin g Public Records This order consists of the following: 1. Purpose 2. Policy 3. Definitions 4. Procedures 1. Purpose The purpose of this order is to establish guidelines for agency employees to follow when releasing public records. 2. Policy It is the p olicy of the agency to release public records in accordance with FS 119 “Public Records,” and Section 24, Article I, of the Flo rida Constit ution. 3. Definitions A. Confidential Records – a public record is confidential when a statutory provision expressly identifies it as confidential. B. Criminal Intelligence Information –information concerning an identifiable person or group of persons collected by a criminal justice agency in an effort to anticipate, prevent or monitor possible criminal activity. Criminal intelligence information is considered “active” as long “as it is related to intelligence gathering conducted with a reasonable good faith belief that it will lead to detection of ongoing or reasonably anticipated criminal activities” or “is directly related to pending prosecutions or appeals.” “Active criminal intelligence information” is exempt from public disclosure. “Criminal i ntelligence information excludes the following, which may be disclosed: 1. Time, date, location and nature of a reported crime. 2. Name, sex, age and address of arrestee (unless a qualified juvenile). 3. Name, sex, age and address of the crime victim (unle ss a victim of child abuse or a sex offense). 4. Time, date and location of the incident and arrest. 5. The crime charged. 6. Documents given or required to be given to the arrestee (unless an exemption applies, such as the identity of the victim of a sex offense, or unless the court orders otherwise). It also does not include information in cases that are barred from prosecution by the statute of limitations. 15.1.8, Page 2 of 8 C. Criminal Investigative Information - information relating to an identifiable pers on or group of persons compiled by a criminal justice agency in the course of conducting a criminal investigation of a specific act or omission, including but not limited to, information derived from laboratory tests, reports of investigators or informants, or any type of surveillance. Criminal investigative information is considered “active” as long “as it is related to an ongoing investigation which is continuing with a reasonable, good faith anticipation of securing an arrest or prosecution in the fores eeable futur e” or “is directly related to pending prosecutions or appeals.” “Active criminal investigative information” is “exempt” from public disclosure. “Criminal investigative information” excludes the following, which may be disclosed: 1. Time, date, location, and nature of a reported crime. 2. Name, sex, age, and address of arrestee (unless a qualified juvenile). 3. Name, sex, age, and address of the crime victim (unless a victim of child abuse or a sex offense). 4. Time, date, and location of the incident or arrest. 5. The crime charged. 6. Documents given or required to be given to the arrestee (unless an exemption applies, such as the identity of the victim of a sex offense, or unless the court orders otherwise). D. Extensive Research – when the nature or volume of the public records requested requires extensive use of information technology resources, or extensive clerical or supervisory assistance, and agency personnel spend at least thirty (30) minutes processing the request. E. Public Infor mation Reque st System (PIRS) – an electronic logging system which records PIRS creates the required estimate and invoice for public records requests. F. Public Record – all documents, papers, letters, maps, books , tapes, photographs, films, sound recordings, data pro cessing software, or other material , regardless of the physical form , characteristics, or means of transmission, made or received pursuant to law or ordinance or in connection with the transaction of official business by any agency. Certain pu blic records must be disclosed to the public while others are exempt from disclosure or confidential. The fact that a particular item is designated a public record does not mean that it is open to public inspection, but rather that it belongs to a public agency. G. Public Records Exemption – a statutory provision identifying a specific record, or portion thereof, as not subject to disclosure . If a record is “exempt” per state law, the agency has discretion about disclosure (it may or may not be released), but a “conf idential” record may not be disclosed. H. Records Custodian – the Sheriff, or designee, is the agency custodian of records and is charged with the responsibility of maintaining or producing public records. The Sheriff has delegated this function to a de signated agency employee within the Records Management Section. This designee shall have the title of Records Custodian. Some public records requests will be handled by the Records Custodian and others may be handled by authorized agency personnel. 15.1.8, Page 3 of 8 I. Vulnerable A dults – a person 18 years of age or older whose ability to perform the normal activities of daily living or to provide