C. Turner v. Cambria County Probation & Parole (Records Dept.) (Majority Opinion)

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IN THE COMMONWEALTH COURT OF PENNSYLVANIA Charles Turner, Appellant v. Cambria County Probation & Parole (Records Dept.) BEFORE: : : : : : : : No. 870 C.D. 2007 Submitted: December 7, 2007 HONORABLE BONNIE BRIGANCE LEADBETTER, President Judge HONORABLE ROBERT SIMPSON, Judge HONORABLE JAMES R. KELLEY, Senior Judge OPINION NOT REPORTED MEMORANDUM OPINION BY JUDGE SIMPSON FILED: February 11, 2008 Charles Turner (Turner), representing himself, appeals an order of the Court of Common Pleas of Cambria County (trial court) that denied his request for certain records from the Cambria County Probation and Parole Office (Office), relating to a former inmate. Turner requested the documents under the statute commonly known as the Right to Know Law, 1 and the Criminal History Record Information Act, 18 Pa. C.S. §§9101-9183 (Criminal Records Act). Upon review, we affirm. In January 2007, Turner directed a written request to the Office seeking documents pursuant to the Right to Know Law relating to a former inmate 1 Act of June 21, 1957, P.L. 390, as amended, 65 P.S. §§66.1-66.9. of Cambria County Prison, Elliot West,2 based on his belief that a review of West s records would aid him in overturning his criminal convictions.3 Through his request, Turner sought information from the Office relating to several of West s criminal cases. Turner requested copies of: various petitions filed by the Office seeking hearings for alleged probation violations committed by West; court orders relating to those petitions; all transcripts of the hearings; all evidence that formed the basis for the petitions; information concerning the identity of defense counsel, the district attorney, the court reporter and the presiding judge at each of the hearings related to the petitions; bench warrants issued as a result of some of the hearings; and, information concerning the sentence West served between May 1996 and August 1997.4 The Office denied Turner s request based on its determination that the Office was not an agency under the Right to Know Law and the records sought 2 Turner first sought access to the requested records through the Cambria County Clerk of Courts; however, the Clerk of Courts Office informed Turner that it could not locate certain records. 3 Apparently, Turner believes the records will enable him to establish that West, who testified against him, committed perjury. 4 Notably, in April 2006, Turner sought access to various records of the Cambria County Prison relating to West. Among other things, he sought: all records relating to West leaving the Prison for any reason such as a court hearing date or any other reason for West to be released or returned to prison from January 1, 1996, through October 1, 1997; all records relating to the reasons why West was incarcerated from January 1, 1996, through October 1, 1997; and, all records or receipts of West s files in the Prison s possession from January 1, 1996, through October 1, 1997. The trial court denied this request on the grounds the records sought were not public records as defined by the Right to Know Law. This Court affirmed in an unreported opinion. Turner v. Cambria County Prison (Records Dep t) (No. 1354 C.D. 2006, filed December 28, 2006). 2 were not public records within the meaning of the Right to Know Law. Turner filed a petition for review from this determination with the trial court. After a hearing, the trial court issued an opinion and order in which it denied Turner s petition and affirmed the determination of the Office. In its opinion, the trial court first rejected Turner s assertion that access to the records sought was permissible under the Criminal Records Act. Specifically, the trial court determined the Criminal Records Act provides an individual with access only to his or her own criminal record information and not with access to the criminal record information of any other individual. Because Turner sought records related to another individual, the trial court determined, the Criminal Records Act did not provide a proper remedy for Turner. The trial court further determined Turner was not entitled to the documents under the Right to Know Law because they did not constitute public records under that statute. Turner appealed to this Court.5 On appeal, Turner again argues he is entitled to the documents sought under the Criminal Records Act and/or the Right to Know Law.6 5 Our review in a Right to Know Law case is whether an error of law was committed, constitutional rights were violated, or whether necessary findings of fact were supported by substantial evidence. See Section 4 of the Right to Know Law, as amended, 65 P.S. §66.4. Notably, the General Assembly amended Section 4 of the Right to Know Law through its enactment of the Act of June 29, 2002, P.L. 663. In so doing, it deleted the earlier language of Section 4 which provided that the Court s scope of review was whether the denial was just and proper. See also Martella v. Dep t of Transp., 841 A.2d 633 (Pa. Cmwlth. 2004). 6 At the outset, Turner asserts the certified record transmitted to this Court is incomplete in that it does not contain a copy of the transcript of the trial court s hearing in this matter. Contrary to Turner s assertion, the certified record does, in fact, contain a copy of the hearing transcript. 3 After reviewing the record, the parties briefs, and the law in this area, we see no need to elaborate on the trial court s well-written opinion. The issues presented in Turner s appeal were ably resolved in the comprehensive opinion of the Honorable Norman A. Krumenacker, III. Therefore, we affirm on the basis of the trial court s opinion in the matter of Charles Turner v. Cambria County Probation & Parole (Records Dept.) (Civil Dkt. No. 2007-0905, filed April 6, 2007) (C.P. Cambria). ROBERT SIMPSON, Judge 4 IN THE COMMONWEALTH COURT OF PENNSYLVANIA Charles Turner, Appellant v. Cambria County Probation & Parole (Records Dept.) : : : : : : : No. 870 C.D. 2007 ORDER AND NOW, this 11th day of February, 2008, the order of the Court of Common Pleas of Cambria County is AFFIRMED upon the opinion of the Honorable Norman A. Krumenacker, III, in the matter of Charles Turner v. Cambria County Probation & Parole (Records Dept.) (Civil Dkt. No. 2007-0905, filed April 6, 2007) (C.P. Cambria). ROBERT SIMPSON, Judge

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