Kansas City police violated a state public records law when they overcharged a woman seeking body and dashboard camera footage, a Jackson County judge has ruled.
The Missouri Sunshine Law provides public access to certain documents held by government agencies.
In February 2022, Jannet Morales filed a request for video recordings of officers responding to a fatal crash, according to court documents.
Police quoted her a price of $361.
When Morales asked about the fee, the department said it charges staff $64 an hour to review and redact sensitive information.
Citing the law, Morales said compensation “shall not exceed the average hourly wage for public government agency personnel” and that investigation or review times will not be charged for documents such as videos maintained on computers.
After some back and forth, the police removed her request.
Morales filed a lawsuit in December 2022 claiming the department tried to charge a fee that was “arbitrary and capricious.”
In a ruling earlier this month, Jackson County Circuit Judge John Torrence found that police violated two parts of the Sunshine Law. Torrence concluded that the $64 rate “was incorrectly calculated because it included the wage rates of higher compensated individuals who are not ‘necessary for copy making and programming’.” The department also attempted to charge for time spent reviewing and redacting documents, which is not allowed under the Open Records Law.
Sergeant Phil DiMartino, a spokesman for the Kansas City Police Department, said other aspects of the case are still pending.
“As such, we will refrain from commenting to ensure fairness for all parties in this matter,” he said.
Torrence will then have to determine whether the police actions were “targeted and/or conscious,” according to court documents. A hearing on that part of the case is scheduled for July 29.
