Open Records & Release Of Information

Policy: Open Records & Release Of Information

Author: Chief Joseph M. Hallman

WILEAG Standard: 10.2.1

Issue Date: January 16, 2012

Reviewed Date: April 3, 2026

Revised Date: April 3, 2026

 

Purpose:

It is the purpose of this policy to establish uniform procedures for the handling of all requests for public records in accordance with Federal Statutes, Wisconsin State Statutes, current court cases, and Wisconsin Attorney General Opinions.

Policy:

Consistent with applicable laws and good police practices in protecting investigations and prosecutions of alleged offenders, the UW-Platteville Police Department will make available to the public all possible information, pursuant to Wis. Stat. §19.34. This information will be made available in accordance with Wisconsin State Statutes and subject to statutory and common law exceptions and/or restrictions thereon. 

Wisconsin legislative policy favors the broadest practical access to government.  An essential function of a representative government and an integral part of the routine duties of officers and employees whose responsibility it is to provide such information. To that end, Wis. Stats. §19.32 to §19.37 shall be construed in every instance with a presumption of complete public access, consistent with the conduct of governmental business. The denial of public access generally is contrary to the public interest, and only in an exceptional case may access be denied.  For further information please review the Wisconsin Public Records Law Compliance Guide.

Definitions:

  1. Records- any material on which written, drawn, printed, spoken, visual or electromagnetic information is recorded or preserved, regardless of physical form or characteristic, which has been created or is being kept by the UW-Platteville Police Department. (Wis Stat. §19.23(2))
    1. Record includes, but is not limited to, handwritten, typed or printed pages, maps, charts, photographs, film, recordings, tapes (including computer tapes), computer printouts, optical disks and material that are maintained by the department in a digital format.
    2. Record does not include drafts, notes, and preliminary computations and like materials prepared for the originator’s personal use.

Procedures:

  1. The Public Information Officer is the Legal Custodian for all University records and all records will be approved by him/her before they are disseminated. 
  2. The Chief of Police has been identified as the designee of the Public Information Officer as the Legal Custodian of Police Department records and has primary responsibility for receiving, reviewing, responding to, and fulfilling (as appropriate) requests for records maintained by the UW-Platteville Police Department.
  3. The Chief may designate a member of the department to act on his/her behalf to receive, review, respond to, and fulfill requests for records maintained by the UW-Platteville Police Department.
  4. Records Availability
    1. Generally, the UW-Platteville Police Department will accept release of information requests between the hours of 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, excluding holidays.
    2. Any form of communication for the request is acceptable, but it is preferred that Requests be submitted online using our online “Open Records Request” form.
  5. Request for records
  1. Requester identification: The requester generally does not have to identify him or herself. (Wis. Stat. §19.35(1)(i))
    1. Certain substantive statutes, such as those concerning student records and health records, may restrict record access to specified persons. When records of that nature are the subject of a public records request, the records custodian should confirm before releasing the records that the requester is someone statutorily authorized to obtain the requested records. Reference Wis. Stat. §19.35(1)(i) for other limited circumstances in which a requester may be required to show identification.
    1. The requester does not need to state the purpose of the request. (Wis. Stat. §19.35(1)(h) and (i)) 
    2. The request must be reasonably specific as to the subject matter and length of time involved.
    3. The Chief, or his/her designee, shall be responsible for responding to open records requests and shall consult with the District Attorney as may be required to ensure compliance with all applicable state and federal laws.
    4. A requestor can obtain records and/or information from the University Police Department by any of the following options:
      1. The preferred method, is to submit requests online using our online “Open Records Request” form.
      2. Contacting the office by telephone or stopping at the University Police Department, during business hours listed above.
      3. Mail and/or email requests will be responded to on the next available business day.
  1.  Cost associated with obtaining records
  1. Fees associated with obtaining records can be found on the University Police SharePoint website.
  2. It will be the responsibility of the requestor to find a third party to transcribe any audio/video files.  The UW-Platteville Police Department does not transcribe information provided in this type of media.
  3. Mailing fees will be consistent with the current USPS rates.
  4. Information that can be transmitted electronically will be free of charge
  5. If the total charge for a record request is over $5.00, The UW-Platteville Police Department may request prepayment for the information and may refuse to make copies until payment is received. Hill, 196Wis. 2d at 429-30, 538 N.W.2d at 613
  1. Copies of the information requested
  1. A requester is entitled to a copy of a record, including copies of audiotapes and videotapes. (Wis. Stat. §19.35(1))  The records custodian must provide a copy if requested.
    1. If the UW-Platteville Police Department receives a request to inspect or copy a handwritten record or a voice recording that the UW-Platteville Police Department is required to protect because the handwriting or recorded voice would identify an informant, the UW-Platteville Police Department must provide—upon request by the requester—a transcript of the record or the information contained in the record if the record or information is otherwise subject to copying or inspection under the public records law. (Wis. Stat. §19.35(1) (em))
    2.  Except as otherwise provided by law, a requester has a right to inspect records, the form of which does not permit copying (other than written record, audio tapes, video tapes, and records not in readily comprehensible form). (Wis. Stat. §19.35(1)(f))
      1. The UW-Platteville Police Department may permit the requester to photograph the record.
      2. The UW-Platteville Police Department must provide a good quality photograph of a record, the form of which does not permit copying, if the requester asks that a photograph be provided.
    3. The requester has a right to a copy of the original record, i.e., “source” material.
      1. A request for a copy of a 911 call in its original digital form was not met by providing an analog copy. Jones, 2000 WI App 146, ¶¶ 10-19, 237Wis. 2d 840, ¶¶ 10-19, 615 N.W.2d 190, ¶¶ 10-19. See Section X.C.3.
      2. A request for an “electronic/digital” copy was satisfied by provision of a PDF document containing the requested information, even though the PDF did not have all of the characteristics the requester might have wished. WIRE data II, 2008 WI 69, ¶ 96, 310 Wis. 2d 397, ¶ 96, 751 N.W.2d 736, ¶ 96.
    4.  A requester requesting a copy of a record containing land information from an office or officer of a political subdivision has a right to receive a copy of the record in the same format in which the record is maintained by the custodian, unless the requester requests that a copy be provided in a different format that is authorized by law. (Wis. Stat. §66.1102(4))
    5. The requester does not have a right to make requested copies. If the requester appears in person to request a copy of a record that permits photocopying, the records custodian may decide whether to make copies for the requester or let the requester make them, and how the records will be copied. (Wis. Stat. §19.35(1)(b))
  1. The response to the request
    1. The records custodian must respond to a public records request.
    2. Response must be provided “as soon as practicable and without delay.
      1. The public records law does not require response within any specific time, such as “two weeks” or “48 hours.”
      2. DOJ policy is that ten working days generally is a reasonable time for responding to a simple request for a limited number of easily identifiable records. For requests that are broader in scope or that require location, review or redaction of many documents, a reasonable time for responding may be longer. However, if a response cannot be provided within ten working days, it is DOJ’s practice to send a communication indicating that a response is being prepared.
      3. The UW-Platteville Police Department is not obligated to respond within a timeframe unilaterally identified by a requester, such as: “I will consider my request denied if no response is received by Friday and will seek all available legal relief.” To avoid later misunderstandings, it may be prudent for the UW-Platteville Police Department receiving such a request to send a brief acknowledgment indicating when a response reasonably might be anticipated.
      4. What constitutes a reasonable time for a response to any specific request depends on the nature of the request, the staff and other resources available to the UW-Platteville Police Department to process the request, the extent of the request, and related considerations. Whether the UW-Platteville Police Department is acting with reasonable diligence in responding to a particular request will depend on the totality of circumstances surrounding that request. WIREdata II, 2008 WI 69, ¶ 56, 310 Wis. 2d 397, ¶ 56, 751 N.W.2d 736, ¶ 56.
      5. Requests for public records should be given high priority.
      6. Compliance at some unspecified future time is not authorized by the public records law. The records custodian has two choices: comply or deny.
      7. The UW-Platteville Police Department should not be subjected to the burden and expense of a premature public records lawsuit while it is attempting in good faith to respond, or to determine how to respond, to a public records request. WIREdata II, 2008 WI 69, ¶ 56, 310 Wis. 2d 397, ¶ 56, 751 N.W.2d 736, ¶ 56.A
      8. An arbitrary and capricious delay or denial exposes the records custodian to punitive damages and $1,000.00 forfeiture.
  2. Format of request
    1. If the request is in writing, a denial or partial denial of access also must be in writing. (Wis. Stat. §19.35(4)(b))
  3. Denial of a Request
    1. Reasons for denial must be specific and sufficient.
      1. A records custodian need not provide facts supporting the reasons it identifies for denying a public records request, but must provide specific reasons for the denial.
      2. Just stating a conclusion without explaining specific reasons for denial does not satisfy the requirement of specificity.
        1. If confidentiality of requested records is guaranteed by statute, citation to that statute is sufficient.
          1. If further discussion is needed, a records custodian’s denial of access to a public record must be accompanied by a statement of the specific public policy reasons for refusal.
          2. The records custodian must give a public policy reason why the record warrants confidentiality, but need not provide a detailed analysis of the record and why public policy directs that it be withheld.
          3. The specificity requirement is not met by mere citation to the open meetings exemption statute, or bald assertion that release is not in the public interest.
      3. Need to restrict access still must exist at the time the request is made for the record. Reason to close a meeting under Wis. Stat. §19.85 is not sufficient reason alone to subsequently deny access to a record of the meeting. (Wis. Stat. §19.35(1)(a))
      4. The purpose of the specificity requirement is to give adequate notice of the basis for denial, and to ensure that the records custodian has exercised judgment.
      5. The specificity requirement provides a means of preventing records custodians from arbitrarily denying access to public records without weighing the relative harm of non-disclosure against the public interest in disclosure.
      6. The sufficiency requirement provides the requester with sufficient notice of the reasons for denial to enable him or her to prepare a challenge, and provides a basis for review in the event of a court action.
      7. An offer of compliance, but conditioned on unauthorized costs and terms, constitutes a denial.
      8. If no responsive records exist, the UW-Platteville Police Department should say so in its response. The UW-Platteville Police Department also should indicate in its response if responsive records exist but are not being provided due to a statutory exception, a case law exception, or the balancing test. Records or portions of records not being provided should be identified with sufficient detail for the requester to understand what is being withheld, such as “social security numbers” or “purely personal e-mails sent or received by employees that evince no violation of law or policy.”
      9. Denial of a written request must inform the requester that the denial is subject to review in an action for mandamus under Wis. Stat. §19.37(1), or by application to the local district attorney or Attorney General. (Wis. Stat. §19.35(4)(b))
      1. The adequacy of a custodian’s asserted reasons for withholding requested records, or redacting portions of the records before release, may be challenged by filing a court action called a petition for writ of mandamus.
      2. If denial of a public records request is challenged in a mandamus proceeding, the court will examine the sufficiency of the reasons stated for denying the request.
        1. On review, it is not the court’s role to hypothesize or consider reasons not asserted by the records custodian’s response. If the custodian fails to state sufficient reasons for denying the request, the court will issue a writ of mandamus compelling disclosure of the requested records.
        2. The reviewing court is free to evaluate the strength of the records custodian’s reasoning, in the absence of facts. But factual support for the records custodian’s reasoning in the statement of denial likely will strengthen the custodian’s case before the reviewing court.
  4. Redactions
    1. If part of the record is disclosable, that part must be disclosed. (Wis. Stat. §19.36(6))
      1. The UW-Platteville Police Department is not relieved of the duty to redact non-disclosable portions just because the authority believes that redacting confidential information is burdensome.
      2. However, an authority does not have to extract information from existing records and compile it in a new format.
      3. By Wisconsin law there no fees associated with the redaction process.
  5. Considerations with Respect to Granting the Request
    1. Whenever inspection of any public records or documents is requested by a member of the public, the Chief of Police or designee shall first determine whether the requested record is of the type which release is prohibited by law.
      1. A list of records exempt from the open records law can be found in the Document Wisconsin Public Records Law Compliance Outline.
      2. Please review Wisconsin Stat. §19.36(2)-(13) which lists records specifically exempt from disclosure pursuant to the public records statute itself. Other state and federal statutes, and court decisions, also require that certain types of records remain confidential.
      3. Pupil records. (Wis. Stat. §118.125(1)(d))
      4. Patient health care records. (Wis. Stat. §146.82)
      5. Mental health registration and treatment records. (Wis. Stat.§51.30(1)(am), (1)(b), and (4))
      6. Law enforcement, court, and agency records involving children and juveniles.
        1. Law enforcement officers’ records of children and juveniles. (Wis. Stats. §48.396(1)-1d), (5)-(6), and §938.396(1), (1j), and (10))
        2. Exceptions include news reporters who wish to obtain information for the purpose of reporting news without revealing the identity of the child or juvenile. (Wis. Stats. §48.396(1) and §938.396(1)(b))
        3. Certain exceptions also apply to motor vehicle operation records and operating privilege records. (Wis. Stat. §938.396(3)-(4))   
      1. Records of courts exercising jurisdiction over children and juveniles pursuant to Wis. Stat. §48.396(2), (6), and §938.396(2), (2g), (2m), and (10).
        1. Exception for review of Chapter 48 court records by a court of criminal jurisdiction for purpose of conducting or preparing for a proceeding in that court, and for review by a district attorney for the purpose of performing official duties in a court of criminal jurisdiction. (Wis. Stat. §48.396(2)(e))
        2. Exception for information contained in the electronic records of a Chapter 48 court that may be made available to any other court exercising jurisdiction under Wis. Stat. §938.17(2); a court of criminal jurisdiction; a person representing the interests of the public under Wis. Stat. §48.09 or §938.09; an attorney or guardian ad litem for a parent or child who is a party to a proceeding in a court assigned to exercise jurisdiction or a municipal court; a district attorney prosecuting a criminal case; or the Department of Children and Families. (Wis. Stat.§48.396(3)(b)) 
          1.   Exception excludes information relating to the physical or mental health of an individual or that deals with any other sensitive personal matter of an individual. (Wis. Stat. §938.396(2m)(b))
  6. Visit the Wisconsin Public Records Law Compliance Guide for further reference and information.
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