OPRA request
Dear Fort Lee Borough,
Please accept this electronic request for public records made under OPRA and the common law right of access. I am not required to fill out an official form or use a particular software platform to submit my request per NJSA 47:1A-6(f), which states that an email from a requestor including all of the information required on the adopted form shall suffice in place of a completed form as a valid government record request.
I HAVE NOT been convicted of any indictable offense under the laws of New Jersey, any other state, or the United States.
I WILL NOT use the requested government records for a commercial purpose.
I AM NOT seeking records in connection with a legal proceeding.
Records requested:
All traffic stop footage, body camera, dash camera, paperwork, and any other items relating to a traffic stop on a tinted car by I-95 on Wednesday, February 5, 2025 at around 21:00-21:40 .
I will not submit this via a report/form. You can submit the materials to my email or reply here : [email address]
My preferred delivery method for response(s) to this request is by E-mail as attachments. Please confirm you have received this request. If you are not the custodian of records, please forward my request to that person and provide their email address to me for future reference.
Yours faithfully,
TS
Dear Fort Lee Borough,
I'd like to follow up on the status of my request.
Yours faithfully,
TS
Dear TS:
You will receive a response or update no later than Monday, February 24.
Sincerely,
Evelyn Rosario, RMC, CMC, MMC
Municipal Clerk
Borough of Fort Lee
309 Main Street
Fort Lee, New Jersey 07024
Telephone No. 201-592-3500 Ext. 1040
Fax No. 201-585-9012
Visit [1]www.fortleenj.org
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From: TS <[OPRA #71904 email]>
Sent: Thursday, February 20, 2025 2:06 PM
To: Evelyn Rosario <[email address]>
Subject: Re: OPRA request - OPRA request
This is an External Email
Dear Fort Lee Borough,
I'd like to follow up on the status of my request.
Yours faithfully,
TS
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this UNIQUE email address for all replies to this request and
no other:
[OPRA #71904 email]
Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on
the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
[2]https://opramachine.com/help/officers
View this OPRA request & responses online:
[3]https://opramachine.com/request/opra_req...
Please note that in some cases publication of requests and responses will
be delayed.
If you find this service useful as an OPRA custodian, please ask your web
manager to link to us from your organisation's website.
Dear TS:
Please be advised that OPRA allows the records custodian to seek
extensions of time pursuant to N.J.S.A. 47:1A-5i. The Borough requires an
additional 3 weeks (until March 17, 2025) to compile, review, and produce
the potentially responsive records in accordance with New Jersey law. The
Borough also reserves the right to request an additional extension of time
if necessary. See Scheeler v. New Jersey Department of Educ., GRC
Complaint No. 2014-123 (2016).
Thank you for your anticipated cooperation.
Sincerely,
Nadine
Nadine Drumgoole, RMC, CMC
Deputy Municipal Clerk
309 Main Street
Fort Lee, NJ 07024
201-592-3500 Ext. 1041
══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
From: Evelyn Rosario <[email address]>
Sent: Thursday, February 20, 2025 5:04 PM
To: TS <[OPRA #71904 email]>
Cc: Nadine Drumgoole <[email address]>; Constantina Roditis
<[email address]>; Rosa Tropea <[email address]>
Subject: OPRA No. 158-2025
Dear TS:
You will receive a response or update no later than Monday, February 24.
Sincerely,
Evelyn Rosario, RMC, CMC, MMC
Municipal Clerk
Borough of Fort Lee
309 Main Street
Fort Lee, New Jersey 07024
Telephone No. 201-592-3500 Ext. 1040
Fax No. 201-585-9012
Visit [1]www.fortleenj.org
══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
From: TS <[OPRA #71904 email]>
Sent: Thursday, February 20, 2025 2:06 PM
To: Evelyn Rosario <[email address]>
Subject: Re: OPRA request - OPRA request
This is an External Email
Dear Fort Lee Borough,
I'd like to follow up on the status of my request.
Yours faithfully,
TS
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this UNIQUE email address for all replies to this request and
no other:
[OPRA #71904 email]
Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on
the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
[2]https://opramachine.com/help/officers
View this OPRA request & responses online:
[3]https://opramachine.com/request/opra_req...
Please note that in some cases publication of requests and responses will
be delayed.
If you find this service useful as an OPRA custodian, please ask your web
manager to link to us from your organisation's website.
Dear Sir/Madam:
Please see attached letter and documents regarding your Open Public
Records Act (OPRA) request for:
All traffic stop footage, body camera, dash camera, paperwork, and any
other items relating to a traffic stop on a tinted car by I-95 on
Wednesday, February 5, 2025 at around 21:00-21:40 .
Very truly yours,
Evelyn Rosario, RMC, CMC, MMC
Municipal Clerk
Borough of Fort Lee
309 Main Street
Fort Lee, New Jersey 07024
Telephone No. 201-592-3500 Ext. 1040
Fax No. 201-585-9012
Visit [1]www.fortleenj.org
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NOTICE: This email message, together with any attachment(s), is for the
sole use of the intended recipient and may contain confidential and
privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or
distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please
contact the sender by reply email and destroy all copies of the original
message. This e-mail, all responses to this e-mail and all e-mail sent to
the e-mail address above, including all attachments, will constitute
“public records” obtainable by any person filing a request under the Open
Public Records Act (OPRA). There should be no expectation that the content
of e-mails exchanged with municipal officials and employees will remain
private.
References
Visible links
1. http://www.fortleenj.org/
2. http://www.fortleenj.org/
3. https://www.facebook.com/fortleetoday/
4. https://twitter.com/FortLeeToday
5. https://www.instagram.com/fortleetodaynj/
6. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChQ5P-k...
Dear Evelyn Rosario,
To avoid such an extensive amount of time and resources required, please just provide me the arresting officer's body worn camera & dash camera if this will be at no charge.
Thank you.
Dear Sir/Madam:
Please be advised that the potentially responsive body worn camera (“BWC”)
footage is legally exempt from public access under OPRA. N.J.S.A. 47:1A-9
provides that OPRA “shall not abrogate any exemption of a public record or
government record from public access heretofore made pursuant to any other
statute.” N.J.S.A. 40A:14-118.5 (the "Body Worn Camera Law" hereinafter
“BWCL”) provides in pertinent part, “[n]otwithstanding that a criminal
investigatory record does not constitute a government record under [OPRA],
only the following body worn camera recordings shall be exempt from public
inspection: body worn camera recordings subject to a minimum three-year
retention period solely and exclusively pursuant to subparagraph (a), (b),
(c), or (d) of paragraph (2) of subsection j. of this section. N.J.S.A.
40A:14-118.5(l)(3).” A BWC video recording in which the law enforcement
officer whose body worn camera made the video recording reasonably asserts
the recording has evidentiary or exculpatory value must be retained for a
minimum of three years. N.J.S.A. 40A:14-l 18.5j(2)(a) and (c). As the
potentially responsive footage at issue is subject to the minimum
three-year statutory retention period on that basis, the Borough is
legally precluded from releasing same.
With respect to your request for dash camera footage, please note that the
Borough is denying access to these videos as “criminal investigatory
records” within the meaning of N.J.S.A. § 47:1A-1.1. These records are not
required by law to be made, maintained, or kept on file, pertain to a
criminal investigation, and are being held by a law enforcement
agency. Dash camera videos relating to an investigation of a crime clearly
fall within the criminal investigatory exemption. Please note that the
exemption continues to survive the conclusion of the investigation. As
such, the Borough is legally precluded from releasing these records under
OPRA.
Very truly yours,
Evelyn Rosario, RMC, CMC, MMC
Municipal Clerk
Borough of Fort Lee
309 Main Street
Fort Lee, New Jersey 07024
Telephone No. 201-592-3500 Ext. 1040
Fax No. 201-585-9012
Visit [1]www.fortleenj.org
══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
From: TS
Sent: Tuesday, March 25, 2025 3:26 PM
To: Evelyn Rosario
Subject: Re: OPRA No. 158-2025
This is an External Email
Dear Evelyn Rosario,
To avoid such an extensive amount of time and resources required, please
just provide me the arresting officer's body worn camera & dash camera if
this will be at no charge.
Thank you.