Opinion Letter Summary

Opinion Letter No. 05-10
April 25, 2005
University of Hawaii Campus Security Records

The University of Hawaii asked the OIP for an opinion regarding whether the University’s Campus Security is required under the UIPA to disclose a report of a possible sexual assault that includes the written report of a Campus Security officer with an attached photograph of the person alleged to have committed the assault and three statements prepared by witnesses (collectively the “report”). The person who is the alleged victim of the assault requested access to the report.

The OIP found generally that the report should be disclosed to the requester, who is the alleged victim, under part III of the UIPA because the report is the personal record of the requester and none of the exemptions to disclosure provided under part III apply. The OIP further found, however, that the report is a joint personal record, i.e., it is also a personal record of the alleged assailant and of each of the witnesses, and that certain personal information in the report is only “about” these individuals and not “about” the requester. This personal information that is not “about” the requester is not subject to disclosure as a personal record of the requester under part III of the UIPA. Instead, disclosure of this information must be analyzed as a general record request under part II of the UIPA.

Because the OIP found under part II that disclosure would result in a clearly unwarranted invasion of the personal privacy of the other parties to the report, the OIP concluded that this personal information may be redacted from the copy of the report made available to the requester.

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