I. Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to provide guidelines to assure full compliance with the Pennsylvania Right

to Know Act, Act 100 of 2002, 64 P.S. - 66.1 et seq., as amended (The Act 3 of 2008), to provide access

to and/or copies of public records of the West Shore Regional Police Department, to preserve the integrity

of the public records of the Department, and to minimize the financial impact to residents of the Boroughs

of Lemoyne and Wormleysburg regarding resources utilized in the receipt and processing of public record

requests and the retrieval and copying of public records (12/2014)

II. Policy

The West Shore Regional Police Department recognizes the right of individuals and/or organizations to

obtain public records, as well as the Department's requirement to comply with the Pennsylvania Right to

Know Act. Therefore, it is the policy of the West Shore Regional Police Department and its Personnel to

follow the provisions set forth herein. The Chief of Police may designate certain Departmental Personnel

to process public record requests

III. Non-Public Police Department Records and Information

A. Investigative Reports and related data and information are not considered as public records.

Requests for same shall be denied

B. Criminal History Information is not accessible under the provisions of the Right to Know Act

C. Unless a charge of Juvenile Delinquency is transferred for criminal prosecution under the

provisions of the Juvenile Act, or the court otherwise orders, information related to a juvenile shall

not be open for public inspection or dissemination

IV. Police Department Records - Disclosure / Inspection

A. There shall be no requirement of the requestor to disclose a purpose or motive when making a

request for access of records or information considered to be public record

B. There shall be no limitation regarding the number of public records inspected or, with payment of

the applicable fees, provided and/or copied

V. Police Department Public Records - Availability

A. All requests for public records of the West Shore Regional Police Department shall be in writing,

utilizing the appropriate form provided by the Department. Requests shall be specific in identifying

and describing each public record requested.

B. In no case shall the Department be required to create a public record which does not exist or to

compile, maintain, format or organize a public record

C. Requests for the release of public information must be addressed to the attention of the following:

Office of the Chief of Police
West Shore Regional Police Department
510 Herman Avenue
Lemoyne, Pennsylvania 17043-1822

D. The Chief of Police / Anthony Minium shall be designated as the “Right to Know Officer” for the

Department (12/2014)

E. Authorized Departmental Personnel shall make a good faith effort to determine whether each

record requested is a public record

F. The Chief of Police or his designee shall facilitate a reasonable response to a request for public

records. In no case shall the Chief of Police be expected to provide extraordinary staff to respond

to the request. Said response shall be in a manner that is consistent with the requirements of the

Pennsylvania Right to Know Act

G. The Chief of Police or his designee shall respond to the requestor within five (5) business days

from the receipt of the written request. Said response shall consist of one of the following:

1. Approval for access to the public record

2. Partial denial of the access to the records requested

3. Denial of access to the record requested

4. When applicable, advising the requestor that a review of the request is taking place (Refer

to Section VII – Review and Appeals)

H. Public records that have been requested and approved for release shall be made available

between 8:00 A.M. and 2:00 P.M. on a Monday through Friday basis, excluding holidays or

extenuating circumstances

I. With relation to this policy and the procedures set forth herein, Departmental Personnel shall

cooperate fully with the requestor, while taking reasonable measures to protect all public records

from the possibility of theft and/or modification. The presence of a designated Departmental

Employee is required when public records are examined or inspected

VI. Police Department Public Records - Fee Schedule

A. The fee schedule for copies of West Shore Regional Police Department records that are

considered to be public record shall be as follows:

1. Motor Vehicle Accident/Crash reports - $15.00

2. Dispatch Reports - $15.00 up to 15 pages / $1.00 each additional page

3. Photocopying - $1.00 per page

4. Specialized Documents – Actual Cost

5. Certified Copies - $1.50 per page

6. Postage - Actual cost to the Department

B. In the event the estimated cost of fulfilling a request submitted under this policy is expected to

exceed $100.00, the Chief of Police or his designee shall obtain fifty percent (50%) of the

expected cost in advance of fulfilling said request

C. The Department does have discretion to waive fees

VII. Review

A. If a request for a record is being reviewed, the notice by the Department shall be in writing and

shall include the reason for the review and the expected response date, which shall be within

thirty (30) days of the notice of review. If the Department does not respond within thirty (30) days

thereof the request is deemed denied. Review of a request is limited to situations where:

1. The record requested contains information which is subject to access, as well as

information which is not subject to access that must be redacted prior to a grant of access.

The redacted information is considered a denial to that information

2. The record requires retrieval from a remote location

3. A timely response cannot be accomplished due to staffing limitations

4. A legal review is necessary to determine whether the record requested is in fact a public

record

5. The requestor has failed to comply with the Department's Policy and Procedure

requirements

6. The requestor refuses to pay the applicable fees

B. If access to the record requested is denied, the notification of the denial shall be signed by the

Chief of Police

C. If the request is denied or deemed denied, the requestor may file an appeal with the Office of

Open Records or, where applicable, the Cumberland County District Attorney’s Office within

fifteen (15) days from the mailing of the Chief of Police’s notice of denial (12/2014)

Office of the District Attorney
Attn: Sean McCormack / District Attorney
1 Courthouse Square
Carlisle, PA 17013
Fax: (717) 240-6164
 

Office of Open Records
Commonwealth Keystone Building
400 North Street, 4th Floor
Harrisburg, PA 17120-0225
Fax: (717) 425-5343 E-mail: openrecords@pa.gov

D. The Police Commission’s Solicitor may be consulted and shall have authority to take those actions

that are deemed necessary to lawfully process requests for information and other matters related

to this policy

VIII. POSTING

A. A copy of this Departmental policy shall be conspicuously posted in the Main Entrance Lobby of

the Police Department Facility

B. An electronic version of this Departmental policy shall be available on the Department’s website