Search Warrant Data (Vermont State Police) • MuckRock

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Communications

From: LPL

11/01/2019

Subject: Vermont Public Records Act Request: Search Warrant Data (Vermont State Police)

To Whom It May Concern:

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

For all search warrants, applications for search warrants, cancellations, and authorization for search warrants between 2012 to the date of processing this request, please provide the following points of record for each:

Full Name of requester
If arrest, arrest ID (eg some cities/states use, "Incident Report")
Reason(s) for search warrant (typically either hand-written, or checkboxes)
Badge ID (or similar) of requester
District/Unit
Name of Judge
Name of approving officer
Whether an Arrest happened
Requested location of search warrant
Location of search warrant execution
Type of search warrant
Statements used to justify search warrant
Time and date when search warrant was submitted for approval
Time and date when search warrant was executed
Whether anything was seized
Whether anything was found
License plate of vehicle (if relevant)
Race of person for search warrant
Age of person for search warrant
State of person for search warrant
Whether an informant was involved
Method of contact with informant leading to search warrant (eg, phone call, mail, fax, email, etc)
Description of person search warrant executed on
Legal code of violation
Description of violation
Date of violation
If search warrant related to debt: name of company debt is owed to, amount owed
Whether FBI involved
ID associated with FBI document (eg, IR #)
Whether search warrant was cancelled
Whether contraband found
Whether narcotics found

The records responsive to this request are likely available in a database, or in some query-able format. If your department or agency does not have direct access to the records, please raise to the respective department that can run queries directly (eg, through SQL).

Should your agency not have all of the requested records within a single record or document, please provide me the relevant documents that do, even if that requires more than one class of document. Should some of the records be unavailable, please let me know ahead of time so that we can narrow the request accordingly.

As the records responsive to this request are imperative for understanding how search warrants are executed, I ask that the public interest of these records be evaluated to the extent that the public's interest outweighs this request's burden. To add, this request is being sent to the largest city of every state and will be collated together to create a comprehensive map of search warrants throughout the US. As such, the records are not only important for understanding search warrants at a local level, but also at a national and state-wide level.

Please ensure that provided documents comply with Section 508, as these records will be shared with members of the public who are covered under the ADA. This guide should be helpful: https://www.hhs.gov/web/section-508/making-files-accessible/checklist/pdf/index.html

If this request was sent to the wrong department or agency, please let me know so that I can send to the correct place.

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 3 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Lucy Parsons Labs

From: Vermont State Police

11/05/2019

Subject: Public Records Request

Lucy Parsons Labs
Via Email: requests@muckrock.com<mailto:requests@muckrock.com>

To whom it may concern:

I am writing regarding your public records request, received November 1, 2019 and addressed to the Vermont State Police PRA Office, for "all search warrants, applications for search warrants, cancellations, and authorization for search warrants between 2012 to the date of processing this request." You specified that you are searching for the following data points for all records that fall within the scope of your request:

Because of "the need to search for, collect, and appropriately examine a voluminous amount of separate and distinct records that are demanded in a single request," and "the need for consultation, which shall be conducted with all practicable speed, with another agency having a substantial interest in the determination of the request," the ten business day extension is invoked to process your request. See 1 V.S.A. § 318(b)(5)(B), and (C).

Depending on the amount of records requiring review, we may need additional time beyond the ten days. If this circumstance arises, we will notify you as soon as possible.

Sincerely,

Ms. Grier D. Martin
Public Records Request Specialist
Vermont Department of Public Safety
45 State Drive
Waterbury, VT 05671
Phone: (802) 241-5378
Email: Grier.Martin@vermont.gov<mailto:Grier.Martin@vermont.gov>

The information transmitted by the following e-mail is intended only for the addressee and may contain confidential and/or privileged material. If you are not the intended recipient, you are notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this email message is strictly prohibited. If you received this communication in error, please contact us immediately at 802-244-8727 and delete this email from your computer or network system. Thank you.

From: Vermont State Police

11/19/2019

Subject: Public Records Request

Lucy Parsons Labs
Via Email: requests@muckrock.com<mailto:requests@muckrock.com>

To whom it may concern:

I am writing regarding your public records request, received November 1, 2019 and addressed to the Vermont State Police PRA Office, for "all search warrants, applications for search warrants, cancellations, and authorization for search warrants between 2012 to the date of processing this request." You further specified that you are searching for the following data points for all records that fall within the scope of your request:

Full Name of requester
If arrest, arrest ID (e.g. some cities/states use, "Incident Report")
Reason(s) for search warrant (typically either hand-written, or checkboxes)
Badge ID (or similar) of requester
District/Unit
Name of Judge
Name of approving officer
Whether an Arrest happened
Requested location of search warrant
Location of search warrant execution
Type of search warrant
Statements used to justify search warrant
Time and date when search warrant was submitted for approval
Time and date when search warrant was executed
Whether anything was seized
Whether anything was found
License plate of vehicle (if relevant)
Race of person for search warrant
Age of person for search warrant
State of person for search warrant
Whether an informant was involved
Method of contact with informant leading to search warrant (e.g., phone call, mail, fax, email, etc.)
Description of person search warrant executed on
Legal code of violation
Description of violation
Date of violation
If search warrant related to debt: name of company debt is owed to, amount owed
Whether FBI involved
ID associated with FBI document (e.g., IR #)
Whether search warrant was cancelled
Whether contraband found
Whether narcotics found

Please note that the most efficient way to obtain the records you seek would be to contact the Vermont Judiciary. Information on how to obtain public records from the Judiciary may be found at the following website:

https://www.vermontjudiciary.org/about-vermont-judiciary/records-requests

The Judiciary would have records of warrants applied for by all law enforcement agencies within the State of Vermont, whereas the Vermont Department of Public Safety ("DPS") only has records of warrants applied for by the Vermont State Police.

The Judiciary would also be able to identify which records that fall within the scope of your request are sealed by court order, whereas DPS would need to consult with the Judiciary to obtain this information.

In order for DPS to properly respond to your request, DPS would be required to redact personally identifying information and other information exempt from release under Vermont's Public Records Act ("PRA"). The Judiciary may not need to go through this process to the same extent, as many court records are already public.

Additionally, it is likely that the time it would take for DPS to search for, review, and properly redact the requested records would be substantially longer than the time it would take the Judiciary to go through the same process, given different filing and storing systems. According to the PRA, "an agency may ...charge and collect the cost of staff time associated with complying with a request for a copy of a public record...the time directly involved in complying with the request [that] exceeds 30 minutes." See 1 V.S.A. § 316(c). The Uniform Fee Schedule for calculating costs, found on the Vermont Secretary of State's website, establishes that after the first 30 minutes involved in physically duplicating a public record, $.33 per minute may be charged for staff time to provide such records. See 1 V.S.A. § 316(d) and the Uniform Fee Schedule at:

https://www.sec.state.vt.us/archives-records/certifications-fees/uniform-fee-schedule.aspx

It is the policy of DPS to charge for staff time involved in responding to a public records request after the first two hours. Therefore, not only would it likely take DPS substantially longer to respond to your request, it would also likely entail a substantially higher charge for staff time under the PRA.

DPS is providing you with this information so that you may obtain the records you seek in the most efficient way possible. If you would prefer to proceed with your request to DPS, rather than to contact the Judiciary, please let me know. Otherwise, DPS will consider your request closed.

Sincerely,

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Submitted	Nov. 1, 2019
Est. Completion	None