Dear Caril Ratke,

Thank you for registering with Rutgers, The State University of New
Jersey Open Public Records Center, an online, public portal. Below you
will find your portal login and password information .

Login:  [OPRA #65565 email]
 
If you have never used this system or cannot remember your password, you
may request a [1]Temporary Password
 

If you are a first time user and did not submit your request through the
public portal but are receiving this e-mail, an account has been created
for you with the login and password listed above. At this account you can
access, track and receive any documents in response to your request.

Please log in to the [2]Rutgers University Open Public Records Center and
then "My Request Center" to update any contact or password information on
your account and to view your request.

The University Custodian of Records will contact you if there are
questions regarding your request or provide you a response. If you have
questions, you may contact the OPRA Administrator at 973.972.1887.
Thank you again for registering with the Rutgers University Open Public
Records Center.
 
 
This is an auto-generated email and has originated from an [3]GovQA
unmonitored email account. Please DO NOT REPLY. logo

References

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Dear Ratke:

Thank you for submitting your request for government records of Rutgers,
The State University of New Jersey. Your request has been received and is
being processed in accordance with the New Jersey Open Public Records Act
(OPRA), NJSA 47:1 et seq. Your request was received through the online,
public portal [1]Rutgers University Open Public Records Center of this
office on 8/26/2024 and given the reference number R009132-082624.  

Your request will be forwarded to the Office of the Custodian of
Records for review and processing, including determining the volume of
responsive documents and any potential costs associated with satisfying
your request. Please note, the N.J. Open Public Records Act does not
require the University to create new documents, to conduct research, or to
answer questions for information.

Records Requested: I am writing to request access to and copies of records
under the Freedom of Information Act. Specifically, I am seeking
information related to: Arrest Date :- 7/5/2024 Incident Number :-
24RN00917 Please provide the following documents: Arrest report Incident
report Mugshot If there are any fees associated with this request, please
inform me in advance. However, I respectfully request a waiver of all
fees, as the disclosure of this information is in the public interest and
will contribute significantly to the public's understanding of law
enforcement operations. If you deny any part of this request, please cite
each specific exemption you believe justifies the refusal and notify me of
the appeal procedures available under the law. I look forward to receiving
your response within the statutory time period. Thank you for your
assistance in this matter.

The Office of the Custodian of Records uses the [2]Rutgers University Open
Public Records Center to communicate with you, respond to and track all
open public records requests.  If you have submitted your request
electronically through Rutgers Open Public Records Center portal, you have
already been required to create an account.

Notice to First Time Portal Users:

If you are a first time user and did not submit your request through the
public portal, you are receiving this request because the Rutgers Office
of the Custodian has created an account for you at the [3]Rutgers
University Open Public Records Center . 

To access your account and view your request:

1.Go to: [4]Rutgers University Open Public Records Center.

2. Select/open  "My Records Center"
3. Enter your email and password as provided in your previously received
Welcome Letter.

You can monitor your request through the [5]Rutgers University Open Public
Records Center at "My Request Center."

Thank you and if you have questions, you  may contact the OPRA
Administrator at (973) 972-1981.

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

University Custodian of Records

Office of Enterprise Risk Management, Ethics and Compliance

65 Bergen Street, Ste. 1346 

Newark, New Jersey 07101-1709

Phone: (973) 972-1981

Fax: (973) 972-2396

References

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3. https://u8387795.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/clic...
4. https://u8387795.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/clic...
5. https://u8387795.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/clic...

Attachments:
[1]R009132_-_FieldArrestAffidavit_Redacted.pdf

--- Please respond above this line ---

Reference: Rutgers Open Public Records Request, # R009132-082624

 Dear Ratke,

Please accept this letter as the University Custodian of Records response
to your request for records pursuant to the Open Public Records Act
(“OPRA”). On August 26, 2024, this office received your request for the
following:

“I am writing to request access to and copies of records under the Freedom
of Information Act.
Specifically, I am seeking information related to:

Arrest Date :- 7/5/2024
Incident Number :- 24RN00917

Please provide the following documents:
Arrest report
Incident report
Mugshot

If there are any fees associated with this request, please inform me in
advance. However, I respectfully request a waiver of all fees, as the
disclosure of this information is in the public interest and will
contribute significantly to the public's understanding of law enforcement
operations.

If you deny any part of this request, please cite each specific exemption
you believe justifies the refusal and notify me of the appeal procedures
available under the law.

I look forward to receiving your response within the statutory time
period. Thank you for your assistance in this matter.”

The University has reviewed your request. The responsive document(s) is
now available to you through the Rutgers University Open Records Center.
Please log in to the [2]Records Center and "My Records Center" to retrieve
the appropriate responsive document(s). The document(s) is also attached
to this email for your convenience. 

We have reviewed your request pursuant to OPRA and determined that the
document responsive thereto is a criminal investigatory record and is thus
exempt from disclosure. A “criminal investigatory record” is defined by
the statute as “a record which is not required by law to be made,
maintained or kept on file that is held by a law enforcement agency which
pertains to any criminal investigation or related civil enforcement
proceeding.” N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1.1. The Government Records Council (“GRC”)
has held that this definition “includes commonly made police records such
as incident reports, supplemental reports and operations reports.” Blue v.
Wall Township Police Department, GRC Complaint 2002-47 (August 22, 2003).
The GRC has consistently held that investigation reports are not required
to be made, maintained or kept by law and are exempt from OPRA. See
Williams v. Union County Prosecutor’s Office, GRC Complaint No. 2019-21
(July 28, 2020); Briggs v. City of Trenton, GRC Complaint No. 2007-58
(March 28, 2007); McCrone v. Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office, GRC
Complaint 2005-146 (November 22, 2005). Accordingly, your request is
denied because criminal investigative reports are exempt from OPRA as
criminal investigatory records. 
 
Moreover, as the Court in North Jersey Media Group, Inc. v. Township of
Lyndhurst recently held, “Treating internal agency directives on record
creation or retention as ‘required by law’ would also create an anomaly
under the law…. Thus, an agency may, through formally promulgated
regulations, both require the making of a document, and exempt it from
access.” 441 N.J. Super. 70, 103 (App. Div. 2015), aff’d in part, rev’d on
other grounds, 229 N.J. 541 (2017). In that case, the Court ruled that
police reports, incident reports, operation reports, investigation reports
and offense reports are not required by law to be created and are thus
exempt under OPRA. Id at 106. Accordingly, because the investigation
report responsive to your above request is a criminal investigatory
record, your request is denied.

If your request has been denied, you may take your appeal to the New
Jersey Government Records Council (NJGRC), which has mediation and dispute
resolution procedures, or you may file a lawsuit with the New Jersey
Superior Court, as provided by N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1, et seq. Your rights of
appeal is provided with this letter at [3]Public Facing Pages of the
Rutgers University Open Public Records Request Center. You may also review
the brochure at the [4]Rutgers Custodian of Records page or visit the
[5]NJGRC page.

If you have any questions, please contact my office at 973.972.1981.

Sincerely,

Mary Ann Keys

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

 
 
If your request has been denied, you may take your appeal to the New
Jersey Government Records Council (NJGRC), which has mediation and dispute
resolution procedures, or you may file a lawsuit with the New Jersey
Superior Court, as provided by N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1, et seq. Your rights of
appeal is provided with this letter at [6]Public Facing Pages of the
Rutgers University Open Public Records Request Center. You may also review
the brochure at the [7]Rutgers Custodian of Records page or visit the
[8]NJGRC page.
 

If you have any questions, or wish to discuss this further, you may
contact my office at 973.972.1887.

Sincerely,

Mary Ann Keys

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

To monitor the progress or update this request please log into the [9]Open
Public Records Center.

References

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