legal / procedural guidance re: border deployments (Department of Law Enforcement)

Thank you for contacting the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Office of General Counsel. This message is being provided as confirmation your message was received. You should receive a response to your inquiry as soon as possible.

If you need criminal history records, please visit our website, http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/Criminal-History-Records/Obtaining-Criminal-History-Information.aspx , and/or contact our Criminal History Services at BackgroundChecks@fdle.state.fl.us, or (850) 410-8161.

Public records requests are processed in the order that they are received. Processing time may be lengthened due to the nature and extent of the request. Searches may be negative and FDLE may not have records responsive to your public records request. You may also receive an invoice for your request depending on the nature and extent of your public records request. Please feel free to contact us at (850) 410-7676, or publicrecords@fdle.state.fl.us, if you have additional specific information relating to the records you are requesting, as this may help expedite your request and/or reduce costs that may be associated with the request.

Additional information regarding how to obtain public records including what costs may be applicable is contained from the hyperlink below. We are committed to our fundamental values of Service, Integrity, Respect, and Quality.

For Additional Information click http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/OGC/Public-Records.aspx<https://www.fdle.state.fl.us/OGC/Public-Records.aspx>

Thank you for contacting the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Office of General Counsel. This message is being provided as confirmation your message was received. You should receive a response to your inquiry as soon as possible.

If you need criminal history records, please visit our website, http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/Criminal-History-Records/Obtaining-Criminal-History-Information.aspx , and/or contact our Criminal History Services at BackgroundChecks@fdle.state.fl.us, or (850) 410-8161.

Public records requests are processed in the order that they are received. Processing time may be lengthened due to the nature and extent of the request. Searches may be negative and FDLE may not have records responsive to your public records request. You may also receive an invoice for your request depending on the nature and extent of your public records request. Please feel free to contact us at (850) 410-7676, or publicrecords@fdle.state.fl.us, if you have additional specific information relating to the records you are requesting, as this may help expedite your request and/or reduce costs that may be associated with the request.

Additional information regarding how to obtain public records including what costs may be applicable is contained from the hyperlink below. We are committed to our fundamental values of Service, Integrity, Respect, and Quality.

For Additional Information click http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/OGC/Public-Records.aspx<https://www.fdle.state.fl.us/OGC/Public-Records.aspx>

Thank you for contacting the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Office of General Counsel. This message is being provided as confirmation your message was received. You should receive a response to your inquiry as soon as possible.

If you need criminal history records, please visit our website, http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/Criminal-History-Records/Obtaining-Criminal-History-Information.aspx , and/or contact our Criminal History Services at BackgroundChecks@fdle.state.fl.us, or (850) 410-8161.

Public records requests are processed in the order that they are received. Processing time may be lengthened due to the nature and extent of the request. Searches may be negative and FDLE may not have records responsive to your public records request. You may also receive an invoice for your request depending on the nature and extent of your public records request. Please feel free to contact us at (850) 410-7676, or publicrecords@fdle.state.fl.us, if you have additional specific information relating to the records you are requesting, as this may help expedite your request and/or reduce costs that may be associated with the request.

Additional information regarding how to obtain public records including what costs may be applicable is contained from the hyperlink below. We are committed to our fundamental values of Service, Integrity, Respect, and Quality.

For Additional Information click http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/OGC/Public-Records.aspx<https://www.fdle.state.fl.us/OGC/Public-Records.aspx>

RE: Public Records Request Status Update for FDLE Docket No. PRR-2021-1672

Thank you for your message. Your public records request has been received and it is in the queue to be processed. Each request is unique and important to each requesting party, and response times are unique to each request. A response date for your request is not yet available. You may receive a good-faith deposit invoice once the nature and volume of records that may be responsive to your public records request is ascertained.

Sincerely,

Office of General Counsel
Florida Department of Law Enforcement
Post Office Box 1489
Tallahassee, FL 32302-1489
(850) 410-7676
PublicRecords@fdle.state.fl.us<mailto:PublicRecords@fdle.state.fl.us>

CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE - The information contained in this e-mail transmission from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement is PRIVILEGED and CONFIDENTIAL. It is intended for the sole use of the person (s) or entity named. If you are not the intended recipient of this transmission, the dissemination, distribution, copying, or other use of this information may constitute a violation of §119, F. S. and is strictly prohibited. If you have received this email in error, please contact the sender immediately.

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Dear Mr. De La Hoz:

RE: Response to Public Records Request, FDLE Docket No. PRR-2020-1672
Requesting legal and operational guidance, presentations, training materials, and other documents providing guidance specifically related to authorities, protocols, and procedures for law enforcement personnel and equipment deployments to the U.S. southern border region to assist immigration enforcement authorities with law enforcement and border protection/interdiction objectives and issued between May 1, 2021 to most recent available date.

Thank you for your inquiry. Searches were conducted through FDLE's files for records based on the information you provided. After conducting our searches, FDLE was unable to find public records responsive to your request.

Please be advised that our agency does not have any presentations or training created by FDLE. Any presentations or material would be the property of the Texas Department of Public Safety. The Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC) would provide the authority and guidance on LEO powers, which has been provided pursuant to Florida's Public Records Law, Chapter 119, Florida Statutes. Portions exempt from public disclosure pursuant to the following have been removed.

s. 119.071(2)(d), F.S. Any information revealing surveillance techniques or procedures or personnel is exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. Any comprehensive inventory of state and local law enforcement resources compiled pursuant to part I, chapter 23, and any comprehensive policies or plans compiled by a criminal justice agency pertaining to the mobilization, deployment, or tactical operations involved in responding to an emergency, as defined in s. 252.34, are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution and unavailable for inspection, except by personnel authorized by a state or local law enforcement agency, the office of the Governor, the Department of Legal Affairs, the Department of Law Enforcement, or the Division of Emergency Management as having an official need for access to the inventory or comprehensive policies or plans.

s. 119.071(3)(a), F.S. "Security or firesafety system plan" records held by an agency is confidential and exempt from s. 119.07<http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=0100-0199/0119/Sections/0119.07.html>(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. This exemption is remedial in nature, and it is the intent of the Legislature that this exemption apply to security or firesafety system plans held by an agency before, on, or after the effective date of this paragraph.
See also, 2021 Sunshine Manual, Part II, section C.10.b., Emergency evacuation plans and disaster recovery assistance; Part II, section C.15.n., Resource inventories and emergency response plans; and Part II, section C.15.o., Surveillance techniques, procedures, or personnel (http://myfloridalegal.com/webfiles.nsf/WF/MNOS-B9QQ79/$file/SunshineManual.pdf)

2021 Sunshine Manual portions for reference/research, http://myfloridalegal.com/webfiles.nsf/WF/MNOS-B9QQ79/$file/SunshineManual.pdf :

Part II, section C.10.b., Emergency evacuation plans and disaster recovery assistance
Section 119.071(3)(a), F.S., provides an exemption from disclosure for a security or firesafety system plan of a private or public entity that is held by an agency. The term "security or firesafety system plan" includes emergency evacuation plans and sheltering arrangements. And see s. 119.071(2)(d), F.S., providing an exemption from disclosure for "[a]ny comprehensive inventory of state and local law enforcement resources compiled pursuant to Part I, chapter 23 [Florida Mutual Aid Act], and any comprehensive policies or plans compiled by a criminal justice agency pertaining to the mobilization, deployment, or tactical operations involved in responding to emergencies as defined in s. 252.34, F.S.; and s. 395.1056, F.S., providing an exemption for those portions of a comprehensive emergency management plan that address the response of a public or private hospital to an act of terrorism.

Part II, section C.15.n., Resource inventories and emergency response plans
Section 119.071(2)(d), F.S., exempts "[a]ny comprehensive inventory of state and local law enforcement resources compiled pursuant to part I, chapter 23, and any comprehensive policies or plans compiled by a criminal justice agency pertaining to the mobilization, deployment, or tactical operations involved in responding to emergencies, as defined in s. 252.34 . . . ." See Timoney v. City of Miami Civilian Investigative Panel, 917 So. 2d 885 (Fla. 3d DCA 2005), in which the court held that a city police department's Operational Plan prepared in response to intelligence reports warning of possible violence surrounding an economic summit remained exempt from disclosure after the summit ended. The court found that the city planned to use portions of the Plan for future events and the "language of [the exemption] leads us to believe that the legislature intended to keep such security information exempt after an immediate emergency passes." Id. at 887. And see s. 119.071(3)(a)1., F.S., which includes "emergency evacuation plans" and "sheltering arrangements" within the definition of a "security or firesafety system plan" that is confidential and exempt from public disclosure.

Part II, section C.15.o., Surveillance techniques, procedures, or personnel
Information revealing surveillance techniques, procedures or personnel is exempt from public inspection pursuant to s. 119.071(2)(d), F.S. See Rameses, Inc. v. Demings, 29 So. 3d 418 (Fla. 5th DCA 2010) (disclosure to criminal defendant of unredacted undercover police surveillance recordings does not destroy exemption in s. 119.071[2][d], F.S.; therefore, sheriff is only required to provide redacted recording in response to a public records request); and State v. Bee Line Entertainment Partners Ltd., No. CIO 00-5358, 28 Med.L.Rptr. 2592 (Fla. 9th Cir. Ct. October 25, 2000) (videotapes created with hidden camera by law enforcement investigation showing result of investigative activity but that do not reveal confidential surveillance methods must be released once investigation is no longer active). And see Althouse v. Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, 92 So. 3d 899 (Fla. 4th DCA 2012), disapproved on other grounds, Board of Trustees, Jacksonville Police & Fire Pension Fund v. Lee, 189 So. 3d 120 (Fla. 2016) noting that the agency had conceded that its initial response denying Althouse's request for "rules, regulations, operating procedures and policies regarding the recruitment and use of confidential informants" was "incorrect" and that the agency had subsequently produced the records after redacting portions pursuant to s. 119.071(2)(d), F.S. Cf. State v. Wooten, 260 So. 3d 1060, 1070 (Fla. 4th DCA 2018), in which the court noted that surveillance techniques are "exempt, not confidential and exempt." [Emphasis supplied by the Court]

The detailed schedule and travel plans of the Governor, including drive times and the time and location of the Governor's arrival and departure, were encompassed within the s. 119.071(2) (d), F.S., exemption where the Florida Department of Law Enforcement special agent submitted an undisputed affidavit attesting that premature disclosure of this information would reveal "surveillance techniques, procedures, or personnel," and would jeopardize the security of the Governor and the officers assigned to protect him. Executive Office of the Governor v. AHF MCO of Florida, Inc., 257 So. 3d 612 (Fla. 1st DCA 2018).

Your public records request; PRR-2021-1672 is now closed. If you have questions concerning your request, please contact us at (850) 410-7676 or PublicRecords@fdle.state.fl.us<mailto:PublicRecords@fdle.state.fl.us>

Sincerely,

Office of General Counsel
Florida Department of Law Enforcement
Post Office Box 1489
Tallahassee, FL 32302-1489

CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE - The information contained in this e-mail transmission from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement is privileged and CONFIDENTIAL. It is intended for the sole use of the person (s) or entity named. If you are not the intended recipient of this transmission, the dissemination, distribution, copying, or other use of this information may constitute a violation of §119, F. S. and is strictly prohibited. If you have received this email in error, please contact the sender immediately.