Local level SAEC policies/data (Anchorage Police Department) • MuckRock

11 Communications
1 File

Communications

From: Beryl Lipton

04/21/2017

Subject: Alaska Public Records Act Request: Local level SAEC polices/data (Anchorage Police Department)

To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Alaska Public Records Act, I hereby request the following records:

Any and all statistics, data, reports, audits, policies, and procedures pertaining to the following items regarding sexual assault evidence collection (SAEC) kits (also known as "rape kits") and processing:

• all standard operating procedures regarding the SAEC process

• any written policies or procedures regarding department practices on the acquisition of or handling of rape kit evidence, including protocols for its collection, testing, and delegation and transfer to all other possibly relevant locations, laboratories, or agencies

• the number of kits collected and booked into evidence from the period of January 1, 2000 through the date this request is processed

• the number of kits that have been processed by a public or private crime or forensic laboratory or equivalent processing location from the period of January 1, 2000 through the date this request is processed

• the number of unprocessed kits in any storage facilities currently under the department’s jurisdiction and control, including those held by medical personnel or at external laboratory locations

• any materials regarding the status or ultimate disposition of cases in which a kit was collected. Please include all available segregable data.

• all audits involving this agency regarding the collection or backlog of SAEC kits

• all proposed alterations or yet-to-be-implemented changes to the policies and procedures regarding the collection, testing, and use of SAEC kits

If there any questions about this request, please feel free to call us at the MuckRock office at 617-299-1832.

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 10 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Beryl Lipton

From: MuckRock.com

05/05/2017

Subject: RE: Alaska Public Records Act Request: Local level SAEC polices/data (Anchorage Police Department)

To Whom It May Concern:

I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information request, copied below, and originally submitted on April 21, 2017. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response, or if further clarification is needed.

Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.

From: MuckRock.com

05/15/2017

Subject: RE: Alaska Public Records Act Request: Local level SAEC polices/data (Anchorage Police Department)

To Whom It May Concern:

Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.

From: MuckRock.com

05/25/2017

Subject: RE: Alaska Public Records Act Request: Local level SAEC polices/data (Anchorage Police Department)

To Whom It May Concern:

Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.

From: MuckRock.com

06/05/2017

Subject: RE: Alaska Public Records Act Request: Local level SAEC polices/data (Anchorage Police Department)

To Whom It May Concern:

Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.

From: MuckRock.com

06/15/2017

Subject: RE: Alaska Public Records Act Request: Local level SAEC polices/data (Anchorage Police Department)

To Whom It May Concern:

Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.

From: MuckRock.com

06/26/2017

Subject: RE: Alaska Public Records Act Request: Local level SAEC polices/data (Anchorage Police Department)

To Whom It May Concern:

Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.

From: Miller, Pamela

07/03/2017

Subject: FW: Alaska Public Records Act Request: Local level SAEC polices/data (Anchorage Police Department)

Beryl Lipton,
Your request was received & forwarded to our Property & Evidence section on 4/29/17. At that time “mailto:requests@muckrock.com” was informed that they will be contacted by the P & E section if your request can be fulfilled. Please note that additional request for identical information impede an already lengthy process. Please do not send additional duplicate requests.
Also, for future reference, requests for police reports or other records should be sent to APD_Records@muni.org<mailto:APD_Records@muni.org>.
Sending these requests to the wwAskAPD (as done below) adds addition layers of administrative processing that can be bypassed if requests are sent directly to APD_Records@muni.org<mailto:APD_Records@muni.org>.

Thank you

Pamela Miller
APD Records Clerk III
786-8600

~WRD000
- Download

From: MuckRock.com

08/29/2017

Subject: RE: Alaska Public Records Act Request: Local level SAEC polices/data (Anchorage Police Department)

To Whom It May Concern:

I'm following up on the following Alaska Public Records Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on April 21, 2017. You previously indicated that it would be completed on Aug. 31, 2017. I wanted to let you know that I am still interested in the following documents, and to see if that date was still accurate.

Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.

From: MuckRock.com

08/31/2017

Subject: RE: Alaska Public Records Act Request: Local level SAEC polices/data (Anchorage Police Department)

To Whom It May Concern:

I'm following up on the following Alaska Public Records Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on April 21, 2017. You had previously indicated that it would be completed on Aug. 31, 2017. I wanted to check on the status of my request, and to see if there was a new estimated completion date.

Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.

From: Miller, Bill (APD Captain)

08/31/2017

Subject: RE: Alaska Public Records Act Request: Local level SAEC polices/data (Anchorage Police Department)

To Whom it May Concern,
We are in receipt of your letter requesting records relating to the following:

“Any and all statistics, data, reports, audits, policies, and procedures pertaining to the following items regarding sexual assault evidence collection (SAEC) kits (also known as "rape kits") and processing:
• all standard operating procedures regarding the SAEC process
• any written policies or procedures regarding department practices on the acquisition of or handling of rape kit evidence, including protocols for its collection, testing, and delegation and transfer to all other possibly relevant locations, laboratories, or agencies
• the number of kits collected and booked into evidence from the period of January 1, 2000 through the date this request is processed
• the number of kits that have been processed by a public or private crime or forensic laboratory or equivalent processing location from the period of January 1, 2000 through the date this request is processed
• the number of unprocessed kits in any storage facilities currently under the department’s jurisdiction and control, including those held by medical personnel or at external laboratory locations
• any materials regarding the status or ultimate disposition of cases in which a kit was collected. Please include all available segregable data.
• all audits involving this agency regarding the collection or backlog of SAEC kits
• all proposed alterations or yet-to-be-implemented changes to the policies and procedures regarding the collection, testing, and use of SAEC kits”

Under the Anchorage Municipal Code (AMC) we are to provide you with the requested documents within two days of a request. If we are unable to do so we are to make further inquiry of you as to whether you still wish to have the documents. If so then, assuming the documents exist, we are to provide them within a reasonable amount of time, consistent with the orderly conduct of municipal business:

3.90.060 Response to requests for public records.
All municipal officers and employees shall, consistent with the orderly conduct of municipal business, make a good faith and diligent effort to provide a rapid and intelligible response to requests for inspection of records made pursuant to this chapter.

AMC 3.90.060 C. All requests for records and information made pursuant to this chapter shall be responded to within a reasonable time period. If the records and information cannot be located in time to make a response within two working days of the request, the requesting party shall be promptly advised, and, if the requesting party still desires the information or records, a reasonable and diligent search shall be made for it.

This is to advise you that we cannot provide the requested documents within two days, but we will provide the documents – assuming no exceptions apply - in a reasonable amount of time provided:

1) you advise us that you still want them;
2) they exist; and
3) that you are willing to pay in advance for the search and retrieval of the records and any associated costs such as photocopies or CDs based upon the estimate we send you. Under our code we can charge up to $40 per hour for search and retrieval. Additionally, photocopies are .30 per page.

AMC 3.90.050 Departmental regulation of time, place and manner of inspection of records.
The mayor shall, pursuant to Chapter 3.40, adopt municipal regulations for each municipal department as to the time, place and manner of inspection of public records held by the municipality. Such regulations may also provide:

That a fee may be required. The fee shall not exceed the actual cost to the agency. No fee shall be charged when a person simply requests access to the information, however employee time may be charged when the nature of the information requires custodial observation of the access. If the person is unable to pay any requested fee, and signs an affidavit to the effect he is indigent, there will be no cost to such person.
AMCR 3.90.005 Record retrieval charges.

In addition to the fee for copying a record, a municipal agency may charge a fee for employee time to search for, retrieve, and redact as necessary, the record at a rate not exceeding $40.00 per hour.

As noted above, we cannot provide with the documents in two days. As such, at this point I just need to know, whether you are willing to pay the costs associated with the search, retrieval and redaction of the documents. At this time the cost is estimated to be $3,200. Please keep in mind that even if the cost exceeds the estimate you would need to pay the full amount once the records search is complete. Likewise, if the estimate proves to be high, a refund would be provided to you after the process is complete. If you are willing to pay the amount indicated please advise by return letter or email. Your requested waiver will not be granted. Payment will be required prior to our beginning the “search, retrieval and redaction” process.

Please be aware that should you decide to pay for the “search, retrieval and redaction” of documents based on the estimate provided, you may not receive copies of all of the documents we find that are relevant to your request. Some of the documents may be legally exempt from production under our public records ordinance. Until we have performed the search and examined the documents we will not know if any exemptions apply.

I am your point of contact for this request. If you have any questions feel free to contact me.

Bill Miller
Detective Captain
Anchorage Police Department

---

On April 21, 2017:
To Whom It May Concern: