JOEL MICHAEL_TN_STATE POLICE
| Submitted | Jan. 18, 2024 |
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Communications
From: Karen Rodriguez
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Tennessee Public Records Act, I hereby request the following records:
All records and documents held by the Tennessee Highway Patrol regarding a Tesla crash that occurred in 2017.
According to media reports the crash happened on off Interstate 840 near Columbia Pike, TN at around 2am.
“The first crash happened around 2 a.m. in Williamson County. The Tennessee Highway Patrol says Joel Michael, 30, of Murfreesboro was killed when his car went off Interstate 840 near Columbia Pike. The THP report states the car was speeding when it veered off the road, traveled through a ditch, over a rock embankment and went airborne before rolling multiple times.”
The records requested include but is not limited to:
Incident report
Investigative records (interview transcripts, scene models)
CAD report
All video and audio recordings (dash cam, body cam, mobile video, interviews, video of the scene)
All photos
Radio dispatch recordings
911 calls
After action reports
The following links may help find the records:
https://www.wkrn.com/news/5-dead-in-3-crashes-during-deadly-morning-in-middle-tennessee/
I request that the records I seek be provided in electronic format.
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 7 business days, as the statute requires.
Sincerely,
Kent Hoover, a citizen of Tennessee, in coordination with Karen Rodriguez.
From: Tennessee Highway Patrol
Mr. Hoover,
As previously requested, please provide proof of Tennessee residency with each request.
Pursuant to Tennessee law and Departmental rules, our Office requires proof of Tennessee citizenship prior to providing copies or inspection of public records. Proof can be furnished by one of the following:
1. Presentation of a valid Tennessee driver's license, or other state issued photographic ID that includes the/ your Tennessee address at the time of the request;
2. Submission of a request on business letterhead with the business' address in Tennessee. Records will be sent to the Tennessee address on the letterhead and not to any other address; or
3. Presentation of a valid Tennessee driver license or other state issued photographic ID that includes your Tennessee address prior to the inspection of records or you obtaining the records in person.
If you do not wish to provide proof in one of the methods mentioned above, you can also allow our office to verify your Tennessee citizenship in our driver license system. You will need to provide your driver license number to do this.
[cid:image001.png@01DA4AC4.E8C65B50]
Tennessee Tower, 25th Floor
312 Rosa L. Parks Avenue, Nashville, TN 37243
Safety.OpenRecords@tn.gov<mailto:Safety.OpenRecords@tn.gov>
tn.gov/safety
This e-mail message and any attachment contain information that may be legally privileged and confidential from the Legal Office of the Department of Safety. If you are not the intended recipient, you must not review, transmit, convert to hard copy, use or disseminate this e-mail or any attachments to it. If you have received this email in error, please immediately notify me by return e-mail or by telephone at 615-251-5296 and delete this message. Receipt by anyone other than the intended recipient is not a waiver of the attorney- client or work product privilege.
From: Tennessee Highway Patrol
Good morning,
To date, we have not received proof of TN citizenship to accompany this request.
Tennessee Code Annotated § 10-7-503(a)(2)(A) provides the following:
"All state, county and municipal records shall, at all times during business hours, for public hospitals shall be during the business hours of their administrative offices, be open for personal inspection by any citizen of this state, and those in charge of the records shall not refuse such right of inspection to any citizen, unless otherwise provided by state law."
[emphasis added]. See also McBurney v. Young, 133 S. Ct. 1709, 81 USLW 4276 (U.S. Supreme Court April 29, 2013). As such, your request is denied.
Please feel free to resubmit your request with TN proof.
Regards,
[cid:image002.png@01DA541E.B435D5B0]
Ms. Mary Petersen | Associate Counsel
Legal Division
Tennessee Tower, 25th Floor
312 Rosa L. Parks Ave.
Nashville, TN 37243
c. 615-917-5370
Mary.Petersen@tn.gov<mailto:Mary.Petersen@tn.gov>
This e-mail message and any attachment contain information that may be legally privileged and confidential from the Legal Office of the Department of Safety. If you are not the intended recipient, you must not review, transmit, convert to hard copy, use or disseminate this e-mail or any attachments to it. If you have received this email in error, please immediately notify us by return e-mail or by telephone at 615-917-5370 and delete this message. Receipt by anyone other than the intended recipient is not a waiver of the attorney- client or work product privilege.
From: Muckrock Staff
Hello Mary,
Thank you for your continued partnership on this request. Please see the attached ID verification [REDACTED] and let me know if you need anything else.
Sincerely,
MuckRock Staff
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Tennessee Public Records Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Jan. 18, 2024. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Tennessee Highway Patrol
Good morning,
Please see the attached letter regarding your public record request.
Regards,
[cid:image001.png@01DA5FF8.26500F00]
Ms. Mary Petersen | Associate Counsel
Legal Division
Tennessee Tower, 25th Floor
312 Rosa L. Parks Ave.
Nashville, TN 37243
c. 615-917-5370
Mary.Petersen@tn.gov<mailto:Mary.Petersen@tn.gov>
This e-mail message and any attachment contain information that may be legally privileged and confidential from the Legal Office of the Department of Safety. If you are not the intended recipient, you must not review, transmit, convert to hard copy, use or disseminate this e-mail or any attachments to it. If you have received this email in error, please immediately notify us by return e-mail or by telephone at 615-917-5370 and delete this message. Receipt by anyone other than the intended recipient is not a waiver of the attorney- client or work product privilege.
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