Stefanacci Disciplinary Records
Dear Denville Township,
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: Former buildings department personnel Walter Stefanacci’s disciplinary file. Specifically, disciplinary records regarding the use of a township vehicle for personal use.
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,
Brightstone Legal Group
Dear Sir or Madam:
The Township of Denville (“Township”) records custodian is in receipt of your Open Public Records Act (“OPRA”) and common law right of access request (“Request”) submitted on March 3, 2025. The seven business day deadline to respond to your Request is March 12, 2025. As such, the Township is timely responding to your Request in accordance with New Jersey law.
Your Request seeks, “[f]ormer buildings department personnel Walter Stefanacci’s disciplinary file. Specifically, disciplinary records regarding the use of a [T]ownship vehicle for personal use.”
Please note that your Request is overly broad under OPRA, as it fails to identify with reasonable clarity any particular records sought. OPRA operates to make identifiable government records “readily accessible for inspection, copying, or examination.” N.J.S.A. § 47:1A-1. See New Jersey Builders Ass’n v. New Jersey Council on Affordable Housing, 390 N.J. Super. 166, 178 (App. Div.), certif. denied, 190 N.J. 394 (2007). New Jersey courts have consistently held that “OPRA does not countenance open-ended searches of an agency’s files.” See MAG Entertainment, LLC v. Div. of Alcoholic Beverage Control, 275 N.J. Super. 534, 549 (App. Div. 2005); New Jersey Builders Ass’n v. New Jersey Council on Affordable Housing, 390 N.J. Super. 166, 178 (App. Div.), certif. denied, 190 N.J. 394 (2007) (holding that it is the requestor’s obligation to specifically describe the document sought). Consequently, a proper request under OPRA must identify with reasonable clarity those documents that are desired, and a party cannot satisfy this requirement by simply requesting all of an agency’s documents. See Bent v. Twp. of Stafford Police Dep’t, 381 N.J. Super. 30, 37 (App. Div. 2005). Here, your Request is clearly deficient as it constitutes a blanket request for all of Mr. Stefanacci’s disciplinary records within the possession of the Township, and purports to require the Township’s records custodian to conduct research with respect to same. See Parreott v. Asbury Park School District, GRC Complaint Nos. 2016-20 & 2016-39 (2017) (holding that the portion of the request seeking “all relevant documents” was invalid because it sought a class of various records and would have required the records custodian to conduct research in order to locate responsive records); see also Burke v. Ocean Cty., 2013 WL 6169154 (App. Div. 2013) (holding that an OPRA request is not the equivalent of law suit discovery). Please be advised that the New Jersey Government Records Council has specifically held that OPRA requests for employee personnel files are invalid. See Boslet v. Greenwich Twp., GRC Complaint No. 2012-29 (2013); Kelley v. Rockaway Twp., GRC Complaint No. 2009-19 (2009). Lastly, please note that employee disciplinary files are exempt from public access pursuant to N.J.S.A. § 47:1A-10. See Vaughn v. City of Trenton, GRC Complaint No. 2021-174 (2022). Accordingly, the Township is legally precluded from releasing the contents of Mr. Stefanacci’s disciplinary file under OPRA.
To the extent that your Request seeks Mr. Stefanacci’s disciplinary file pursuant to the common law right of access, your Request is similarly deficient for the reasons stated above. Furthermore, in O’Boyle v. Borough of Longport, 218 N.J. 168, 196 (2014), the Supreme Court of New Jersey held that the party requesting documents under the common law right of access must explain why he seeks access to the requested documents. See also Gannett Satellite Information Network, LLC v. Twp. of Neptune, 254 N.J. 242 (2023) (holding that the person seeking access must establish an interest in the subject matter of the material). Here, your Request lacks any explanation with respect to your purported interest in accessing any potentially responsive materials, and thus your Request is invalid.
Your Request is now deemed answered and closed.
Very truly yours,
Matthew Bansch, RMC, QPA, CMR
Municipal Clerk
Township of Denville
1 St. Mary’s Place
Denville, NJ 07834
Ph: (973)625-8300 Ext. 232
Fax: (973) 627-2709