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Electronically Filed
Supreme Court
SCAP-14-0000889
09-JUN-2016
08:35 AM
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF HAWAI#I
---o0o---
PEER NEWS LLC dba CIVIL BEAT,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
vs.
CITY & COUNTY OF HONOLULU and HONOLULU POLICE DEPARTMENT,
Defendants-Appellees,
and
STATE OF HAWAI#I ORGANIZATION OF POLICE OFFICERS,
Intervenor-Defendant-Appellant.
SCAP-14-0000889
APPEAL FROM THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIRST CIRCUIT
(CAAP-14-0000889; CIV. NO. 13-1-2981-11)
JUNE 9, 2016
RECKTENWALD, C.J., NAKAYAMA, AND WILSON, JJ.,
CIRCUIT JUDGE CRABTREE, IN PLACE OF McKENNA, J., RECUSED,
WITH POLLACK, J., CONCURRING SEPARATELY
OPINION OF THE COURT BY RECKTENWALD, C.J.
This case arises out of Civil Beat’s request for the
disciplinary records of twelve Honolulu Police Department (HPD)
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officers who were suspended for at least twenty days for various
types of misconduct. HPD denied the request, and Civil Beat
filed suit. The State of Hawai#i Organization of Police Officers
(SHOPO) intervened as a defendant. The circuit court1 found in
favor of Civil Beat, ordering HPD to disclose the records, and
SHOPO appealed.
The circuit court based its conclusion on this court’s
1996 decision, State of Hawai#i Organization of Police Officers
v. Soc’y of Professional Journalists - University of Hawai#i
Chapter, 83 Hawai#i 378, 927 P.2d 386 (1996) (hereinafter SHOPO
v. SPJ), and on Office of Information Practices (OIP) Opinion
Letter No. 97-01 (Feb. 21, 1997). In SHOPO v. SPJ, this court
held that under a prior version of Hawaii’s Uniform Information
Practices Act (UIPA), police officers had no privacy interest in
their disciplinary suspension records, and thus HPD must disclose
the records upon request. The OIP, in Opinion Letter No. 97-01,
ruled that even though the legislature amended the UIPA in Act
242 to recognize a “significant privacy interest” in police
officers’ disciplinary suspension records, SHOPO v. SPJ still
mandated disclosure of such records. Thus, the circuit court
concluded that police officers have a “non-existent” privacy
interest in their disciplinary suspension records.
1
The Honorable Karl K. Sakamoto presided.
2
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We hold that SHOPO v. SPJ is not controlling. The
legislature’s amendments to the UIPA in Act 242, the plain
language of the UIPA, and its legislative history demonstrate
that police officers have a significant privacy interest in their
disciplinary suspension records. Disclosure of the records is
appropriate only when the public interest in access to the
records outweighs this privacy interest.
The records requested by Civil Beat here involve cases
of serious misconduct that reasonably could call into question
the police officers’ trustworthiness or fitness to perform their
public duties. However, we cannot determine whether disclosure
is appropriate given the limited factual record in this case. We
therefore vacate the circuit court’s judgment and remand to that
court so it can review the records to determine whether the
public interest outweighs the officers’ significant privacy
interests.
I. Background
A. Civil Beat’s request for information
On October 4, 2013, Civil Beat sent a letter to the HPD
Custodian of Records requesting records of disciplinary actions
of twelve different police officers who were suspended for
misconduct between 2003 and 2012. All of these disciplinary
actions resulted in employee suspensions of at least twenty days.
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The suspensions involved the following types of misconduct:
1. Violation of HPD’s electric gun policy and utilized
malicious force (twenty day suspension);
2. Was untruthful during an investigation. Failed to
maintain the confidentiality of the investigation
(twenty day suspension);
3. Falsified a police report and was untruthful during the
investigation (seventy-seven day suspension);
4. Hindered a federal investigation (six hundred twenty-
six day suspension);
5. Pled guilty to criminal charges (twenty day
suspension);
6. Fled the scene of a motor vehicle collision, failed to
report the collision, and provided false information on
the police report (twenty day suspension);
7. Falsified information in a motor vehicle collision.
Failed to remain impartial during a motor vehicle
collision investigation. Was untruthful during an
administrative investigation (twenty day suspension);
8. Submitted a falsified report and fabricated the facts
regarding the probable cause to conduct a traffic stop
(twenty day suspension);
9. Willfully used physical force against another employee
causing injury (twenty day suspension);
10. Involved in a motor vehicle collision while under the
influence of alcohol. Fled the scene and falsely
reported the vehicle stolen. Failed to update personal
information (twenty day suspension);
11. Falsified police reports and expense vouchers.
Misappropriated expense funds. Failed to submit
evidence. Participated in illegal gambling. Was
untruthful (thirty day suspension);
12. Assaulted another person and harassed the officer who
was investigating the incident (twenty day
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suspension).2
2
The information regarding the incidents of misconduct Civil Beat
listed in the letter was taken from “HPD’s annual disclosure of misconduct to
the State legislature in accordance with HRS § 52D-3.5.” This information is
available to the public but includes no more detail than the brief summary of
the misconduct listed here.
HRS § 52D-3.5 (2014) provides, in relevant part:
(a) The chief of each county police department shall
submit to the legislature no later than January 31 of
each year an annual report of misconduct incidents
that resulted in suspension or discharge of a police
officer.
. . . .
(b) The report shall:
(1) Summarize the facts and the nature of the
misconduct for each incident;
(2) Specify the disciplinary action imposed for
each incident;
(3) Identify any other incident in the annual
report committed by the same police officer; and
(4) State whether the highest nonjudicial
grievance adjustment procedure timely invoked by
the police officer or the police officer's
representative has concluded:
(A) If the highest nonjudicial grievance
adjustment procedure has concluded, the
report shall state:
(i) Whether the incident concerns
conduct punishable as a crime, and
if so, describe the county police
department’s findings of fact and
conclusions of law concerning the
criminal conduct; and
(ii) Whether the county police
department notified the respective
county prosecuting attorney of the
incident; or
(B) If the highest nonjudicial grievance
adjustment procedure has not concluded,
the report shall state the current stage
of the nonjudicial grievance adjustment
procedure as of the end of the reporting
period.
. . . .
(e) For any misconduct incident reported pursuant to
(continued...)
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Civil Beat requested the following information for each
instance of misconduct resulting in a suspension:
For each incident, if the highest non-judicial
grievance adjustment procedure timely invoked by the
employee or the employee’s representative has
concluded and thirty days has elapsed following a
written decision sustaining the suspension after that
procedure, [Civil Beat] specifically requests a
document or documents sufficient to provide the
following information:
• The employee’s name;
• The nature of the employment-related misconduct;
• HPD’s summary of the allegations of misconduct;
• Findings of fact and conclusions of law; and
• The disciplinary action taken by the agency.
For all other incidents, [Civil Beat] specifically
requests a document or documents sufficient to show
the date(s) that the employee or the employee’s
representative invoked each step in the non-judicial
grievance adjustment procedure. In addition, if
the non-judicial adjustment procedure terminated for a
reason other than a decision sustaining the
suspension, [Civil Beat] specifically requests a
document or documents sufficient to summarize the
reason that the procedure concluded and to show the
date that the procedure concluded. For documents
responsive to this paragraph, [Civil Beat] agrees that
HPD may redact the employee’s name and other
information that would disclose the employee’s
identity.
2
(...continued)
this section and subject to subsection (b)(4)(B), the
chief of each county police department shall provide
updated information in each successive annual report,
until the highest nonjudicial grievance adjustment
procedure timely invoked by the police officer has
concluded. In each successive annual report, the
updated information shall reference where the incident
appeared in the prior annual report. For any incident
resolved without disciplinary action after the
conclusion of the nonjudicial grievance adjustment
procedure, the chief of each county police department
shall summarize the basis for not imposing
disciplinary action.
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Thus, for cases where the highest grievance procedure
timely invoked by the employee has concluded, and thirty days has
passed following a written decision sustaining the employees’
suspensions, Civil Beat requested information that included the
employees’ names. For all other cases, Civil Beat did not
request the employees’ names.
HPD denied Civil Beat’s request in its entirety. To
justify its denial, HPD cited to HRS § 92F-13(1)3 and HRS § 92F-
14,4 and stated that Civil Beat’s request was an “[u]nwarranted
3
HRS § 92F-13 provides: “This part shall not require disclosure
of: (1) Government records which, if disclosed, would constitute a clearly
unwarranted invasion of personal privacy[.]”
4
The version of HRS § 92F-14 as amended by Act 242, which was in
effect at the time Civil Beat made its request provided, in pertinent part:
(a) Disclosure of a government record shall not
constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal
privacy if the public interest in disclosure outweighs
the privacy interest of the individual.
(b) The following are examples of information in which
the individual has a significant privacy interest:
. . . .
(4) Information in an agency’s personnel file, or
applications, nominations, recommendations, or
proposals for public employment or appointment to a
governmental position, except:
. . .
(B) The following information related to
employment misconduct that results in an
employee’s suspension or discharge:
(i) The name of the employee;
(ii) The nature of the employment related
(continued...)
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invasion of privacy,” and that the “[i]ncidents did not result in
discharge.”
B. Prior proceedings
On November 7, 2013, Civil Beat filed a complaint in
the circuit court seeking an order directing HPD to disclose all
of the information Civil Beat sought in its October 4, 2013
letter. Civil Beat filed a motion for summary judgment (MSJ),
arguing that after this court’s decision in SHOPO v. SPJ, police
officers have no constitutional privacy interest in their
disciplinary records where the officers were suspended but not
discharged. Civil Beat further argued that UIPA permits
(...continued)
misconduct;
(iii) The agency’s summary of the
allegations of misconduct;
(iv) Findings of fact and conclusions of
law; and
(v) The disciplinary action taken by the
agency;
when the following has occurred: the highest
nonjudicial grievance adjustment procedure
timely invoked by the employee or the employee’s
representative has concluded; a written decision
sustaining the suspension or discharge has been
issued after this procedure; and thirty calendar
days have elapsed following the issuance of the
decision; provided that this subparagraph shall
not apply to a county police department officer
except in a case which results in the discharge
of the officer[.]
HRS § 92F-14 (Supp. 1996).
HRS § 92F-14 was amended in 2004 and 2014, but these subsequent
amendments are not relevant to this appeal. See 2004 Haw Sess. Laws Act 92, §
4 at 368; 2014 Haw. Sess. Laws Act 121, § 2 at 334-35.
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withholding government records on the grounds of personal privacy
only if the individual has a constitutionally protected right of
privacy. Thus, according to Civil Beat, HPD police officers have
no privacy interest in their records of disciplinary suspensions.
Civil Beat also relied on a formal opinion of the OIP,
Opinion Letter No. 97-01. In OIP Opinion Letter No. 97-01, the
OIP first concluded that when the legislature amended the UIPA by
enacting Act 242 in 1995, it intended “to balance the competing
privacy and public interests in favor of keeping confidential
information about suspended officers.” Id. at 6. The OIP went
on, however, to conclude that this court’s decision in SHOPO v.
SPJ “erodes the significant weight assigned by the Legislature to
the suspended officer’s privacy interest, as set out in Act 242”
such that “only a ‘scintilla’ of public interest is enough to
overcome this privacy interest in the balancing test.” Id. at 8.
The OIP also noted that arguably, the legislature was free to
create a significant privacy interest in police officers’ records
of disciplinary suspensions, even if no constitutional privacy
right existed, but that even if this were true, the interests
still need to be weighed, and this court’s ruling in SHOPO v. SPJ
“tips the balance heavily toward finding that the public has a
strong countervailing interest about suspended police officers.”
Id. at 8-9. The OIP therefore concluded:
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Whether one finds that SHOPO eliminates the
Legislature’s finding of a significant privacy
interest or whether the Legislature has the power to
create the right, the result is the same-–disclosure
of information about suspended police officers cannot
be found to constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion
of personal privacy under the UIPA.
Id. at 9.
In its MSJ, Civil Beat argued that OIP’s analysis was
correct based on a plain reading of the UIPA, and that even if
the UIPA is ambiguous, OIP’s conclusion is entitled to deference.
In the alternative, Civil Beat argued that even if the
UIPA does recognize a broader right of privacy than the
constitution, the public interest in disclosure nevertheless
outweighs the individual privacy interest. Civil Beat argued
that the public has an overwhelming interest in the disclosure of
disciplinary records regarding egregious misconduct by police
officers because:
Instances of misconduct of a police officer while on
the job are not private, intimate, personal details of
the officer’s life . . . . They are matters with
which the public has a right to concern
itself. . . . If the off duty acts of a police
officer bear upon his or her fitness to perform public
duty or if the activities reported in the records
involve the performance of a public duty, then the
interest of the individual in “personal privacy” is to
be given slight weight in the balancing test and the
appropriate concern of the public as to the proper
performance of public duty is to be given great
weight. In such situations privacy considerations are
overwhelmed by public accountability.
(Quoting Cowles Publ’g v. State Patrol, 748 P.2d 597, 605 (Wash.
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1988)).5
Thus, according to Civil Beat, even if police officers
have a “significant privacy interest” in their disciplinary
suspension records, this interest must nonetheless be weighed
against the public interest in disclosure, and in this case, this
public interest outweighs the officers’ privacy interest.
On January 9, 2014, the circuit court granted SHOPO’s
motion to intervene as a defendant. HPD and SHOPO each filed a
memorandum in opposition to Civil Beat’s MSJ.
HPD argued that the plain language of HRS § 92F-14(b),
as amended by Act 242, indicated that an HPD officer has a
significant privacy interest in records related to employment
misconduct where the officer was suspended, but not discharged.
HPD asserted that the “legislative history of Act 242 shows that
the legislature intended to conduct the balancing itself and
conclude “as a matter of public policy that the privacy of the
individual outweighs the public interest in disclosure with
respect to the information sought by [Civil Beat] in this case.”
In SHOPO’s memorandum in opposition to Civil Beat’s
MSJ, SHOPO made similar arguments to HPD’s. SHOPO argued that
because HRS § 92F-14 recognizes a “significant privacy interest”
5
This same language was also quoted approvingly by this court in
SHOPO. 83 Hawai#i at 399, 927 P.2d at 407.
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in information related to police officer misconduct not resulting
in discharge, it “plainly and unambiguously exempts from
disclosure the disciplinary records of county police officers who
have not been discharged.”
The circuit court granted Civil Beat’s MSJ, finding as
follows:
Article I, Section 6 of the Hawai#i Constitution
does not recognize a protected privacy interest in
police misconduct resulting in suspension or
discharge. The court interpreted Article I, Section 6
in light of the Supreme Court of Hawaii’s decision [in
SHOPO]. The Supreme Court of Hawai#i determined that
police officers do not have a protected privacy
interest in records of police misconduct that lead to
suspension or discharge.
. . . .
The supreme court also stated that “information
regarding charges of misconduct by police officers, in
their capacities as such, that have been sustained
after investigation and that have resulted in
suspension or discharge is not ‘highly personal and
intimate information’ and, therefore, is not within
the protection of Hawai#i’s constitutional right of
privacy.” The court also went on to state: “The
information that must be disclosed pursuant [to] HRS
§ 92F-14(b)(4)(B) regarding a public employee’s
employment-related misconduct and resulting
discipline, is not ‘highly personal and intimate
information’ and is, therefore, not within the scope
of Hawai#i’s constitutional right of privacy.”
The UIPA cannot recognize a protected privacy
interest in police officer misconduct because to do so
would be to directly contravene the provision it
implements, which is Article I, Section 6. Under
Article I, Section 6, police officers have no
protected privacy interest regarding on-duty
misconduct that results in suspension or discharge,
and the UIPA implements Article I, Section 6, as given
in the SHOPO decision, which states “[t]he UIPA, and
the challenged amendment by Act 191, implements
article I, section 6 of the Hawai#i
Constitution . . . .” Thus, reading that language,
the court concludes under SHOPO as [sic] there is no
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protected privacy interests regarding on-duty
misconduct by police officers, therefore, public
access interest would outweigh non-existent privacy
interests in on-duty police misconduct.
The court believes that this is supported in
part on three grounds:
1. Looking at the purpose of the UIPA, which is
geared towards disclosure;
2. That the Hawai#i Supreme Court certainly
recognized that Act 242 would require only
limited disclosure to those police officers that
were discharged;
3. That the court finds that the State of Hawai#i
[OIP] decision, Opinion Letter No. 97-1, was not
erroneous.
. . . .
[L]ooking at the SHOPO decision, it again
appears to recognize that, there, Act 242 was about to
limit disclosure of records just to discharged
officers. The SHOPO court did begin its analysis
centered specifically at Act 191, but then the supreme
court went further in the analysis to consider,
moreover, the history of Article I, Section 6 of the
Hawai#i Constitution and went in-depth in a
constitutional analysis of police misconduct.
Accordingly, the Supreme Court of Hawai#i recognized
the impact of Act 242 and chose to additionally and
separately address its shortcomings under Article I,
Section 6.
. . . .
Based on the record and the analysis set forth
above, Plaintiff’s [MSJ] is GRANTED. Defendants are
hereby ORDERED to open public inspection and copying
by Plaintiff the requested records of twelve police
officers identified in the October 4, 2013 letter.
(Internal citation omitted).
SHOPO filed a notice of appeal, and on February 10,
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2015, this court granted Civil Beat’s application for transfer.6
In its opening brief, SHOPO presents three points of
error:
1. Whether the Circuit Court erred when it granted
Plaintiff-Appellee Civil Beat’s [MSJ] by ruling
that Defendant-Appellee City was required to
disclose the disciplinary information of the 12
police officers who were not discharged.
2. Whether the Circuit Court erred when it found
that police officers that had not been
discharged from their employment had no privacy
interests in their disciplinary records in
reliance of SHOPO v. SPJ, 83 Haw. 378, 927 P.2d
386 (1996).
3. Whether the Circuit Court erred when it found
that OIP Op. 97-1 was not palpably erroneous.
II. Standards of Review
A. Summary judgment
“On appeal, the grant or denial of summary judgment is
reviewed de novo.” Lales v. Wholesale Motors Co., 133 Hawai#i
332, 343, 328 P.3d 341, 352 (2014) (citing First Ins. Co. of Haw.
v. A & B Props., Inc., 126 Hawai#i 406, 413, 271 P.3d 1165, 1172
(2012)). Furthermore,
summary judgment is appropriate if the pleadings,
depositions, answers to interrogatories and admissions
on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show
that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact
and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a
matter of law. A fact is material if proof of that
fact would have the effect of establishing or refuting
one of the essential elements of a cause of action or
defense asserted by the parties. The evidence must be
6
The City and County of Honolulu and HPD filed a notice stating
that neither party was taking a position in the appeal.
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viewed in the light most favorable to the non-moving
party. In other words, we must view all of the
evidence and inferences drawn therefrom in the light
most favorable to the party opposing the motion.
Id. (citing First Ins. Co. of Haw., 126 Hawai#i at 413-14, 271
P.3d at 1172-73).
B. Statutory interpretation
The interpretation of a statute is a question of
law reviewable de novo. When construing a statute,
this court’s foremost obligation is to be obtained
primarily from the language contained in the statute
itself. Where the statutory language is plain and
unambiguous, this court’s sole duty is to give effect
to its plain and obvious meaning.
Implicit in the task of statutory construction
is our foremost obligation to ascertain and give
effect to the intention of the legislature, which is
to be obtained primarily from the language contained
in the statute itself; however, when there is doubt,
doubleness of meaning, or indistinctiveness or
uncertainty of an expression used in a statute, an
ambiguity exists.
McLaren v. Paradise Inn Hawai#i LLC, 132 Hawai#i 320, 327-28, 321
P.3d 671, 678-79 (2014) (citations omitted).
Further, this court has stated that an appellate court
generally reviews questions of statutory
interpretation de novo, but, in the case of . . .
ambiguous statutory language, the applicable standard
of review regarding an agency’s interpretation of its
own governing statute requires this court to defer to
the agency’s expertise and to follow the agency’s
construction of the statute unless that construction
is palpably erroneous[.]
Gillan v. Gov’t Emps. Ins. Co., 119 Hawai#i 109, 114, 194 P.3d
1071, 1076 (2008) (citing Vail v. Employees’ Ret. Sys., 75 Haw.
42, 66, 856 P.2d 1227, 1240 (1993)) (citation, quotation marks,
and brackets omitted).
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III. Discussion
As explained below, the circuit court incorrectly
concluded that police officers have a “non-existent” privacy
interest in their disciplinary suspension records. SHOPO is
correct that SHOPO v. SPJ is not dispositive because in Act 242,
the legislature recognized a privacy interest in police officers’
disciplinary records that was not applicable in SHOPO v. SPJ.
Thus, Civil Beat cannot rely on the balancing conducted by this
court in SHOPO v. SPJ. However, the language and legislative
history of Act 242 indicate that even after a significant privacy
interest is found, that interest must be weighed against the
public interest in disclosure. Therefore, this case must be
remanded to the circuit court to balance the public and privacy
interests at stake to determine whether disclosure is
appropriate.
A. Act 242 created a “significant” personal privacy interest in
records of disciplinary suspension, which is broader than
the right of privacy recognized in SHOPO v. SPJ
SHOPO first argues that the circuit court erred in
finding that police officers had a “‘non-existent privacy
interest’ in their disciplinary records,” because this finding is
contrary to the language of Act 242. Specifically, SHOPO asserts
that HRS § 92F-14(b)(4)(B)(v) explicitly provides that police
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officers have a “‘significant privacy interest’ in their
disciplinary records that do not involve a discharge from their
employment.”
SHOPO further argues that SHOPO v. SPJ is not
controlling in this case because this court’s analysis in SHOPO
v. SPJ was limited to an analysis of a prior version of the UIPA,
before Act 242 became effective. SHOPO also maintains that the
SHOPO v. SPJ court recognized that, under article I, section 6 of
the Hawai#i Constitution, the legislature has the authority to
define the scope of the protected right of privacy, and that when
the legislature enacted Act 242, it broadened the protections of
the right of privacy to encompass police officers’ disciplinary
suspension records.
Civil Beat does not dispute that UIPA recognizes a
significant privacy interest in disciplinary information in
police officers’ personnel files unless the officer is
discharged, but argues that this “does not mean police officers
have a right to insist that HPD withhold all such files.”
According to Civil Beat, even these “significant privacy
interests” must be balanced against the public interest in
disclosure.
Civil Beat further argues that this court and the OIP
have already weighed those interests and determined that the
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public interest in disclosure outweighs the police officers’
privacy concerns. Essentially, Civil Beat argues that because
the UIPA implements the constitutional right of privacy, the
privacy interest in disciplinary suspension records recognized by
UIPA is equivalent to the constitutional right of privacy under
article I, section 6. Thus, according to Civil Beat, even though
this court in SHOPO v. SPJ was applying a prior version of the
UIPA, when the court balanced the constitutional privacy interest
in disciplinary suspension records against the public interest in
disclosure, this balancing also applies to the current version of
the UIPA.
On this point, SHOPO is correct. Although UIPA does,
as Civil Beat contends, implement article I, section 6, the plain
language of Act 242 clearly indicates that the legislature
recognized a “significant privacy interest” in police officers’
disciplinary suspension records in HRS § 92F-14(b). Because this
court in SHOPO v. SPJ stated that there was no privacy interest
in disciplinary suspension records protected by article I,
section 6, the “significant privacy interest” recognized in Act
242 is clearly broader than the non-existent right of privacy
recognized by this court in SHOPO v. SPJ.
This court’s analysis in SHOPO v. SPJ was based on a
prior version of the UIPA, before the legislature recognized a
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significant privacy interest in police officers’ disciplinary
suspension records. Furthermore, Civil Beat has not provided any
authority to show that the legislature is without power to
broaden the definition of the right of privacy to recognize a
significant privacy interest in police officers’ disciplinary
suspension records, as it did in Act 242. The circuit court thus
erred in finding that police officers have a “non-existent
privacy interest” in their disciplinary suspension records.
1. Article I, section 6, UIPA, and Act 242
Article I, section 6 of the Hawai#i Constitution
provides: “The right of the people to privacy is recognized and
shall not be infringed without the showing of a compelling state
interest. The legislature shall take affirmative steps to
implement this right.” Thus, article I, section 6 recognizes a
general right of privacy and tasks the Hawai#i Legislature with
implementing that right.
The Hawai#i Legislature has implemented this right to
privacy in the UIPA. See HRS § 92F-2 (“The policy of conducting
government business as openly as possible must be tempered by a
recognition of the right of the people to privacy, as embodied in
section 6 and section 7 of article I of the constitution of the
state of Hawai#i.”). Codified in HRS chapter 92F, UIPA was
enacted in 1988 for the following purposes:
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(1) Promot[ing] the public interest in disclosure;
(2) Provid[ing] for accurate, relevant, timely, and
complete government records;
(3) Enhanc[ing] governmental accountability through a
general policy of access to government records;
(4) Mak[ing] government accountable to individuals in
the collection, use, and dissemination of information
relating to them; and
(5) Balanc[ing] the individual privacy interest and
the public access interest, allowing access unless it
would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of
personal privacy.
HRS § 92F-2 (2012).
The UIPA establishes the general rule of disclosure
that “[e]xcept as provided in section 92F-13, each agency upon
request by any person shall make government records available for
inspection and copying during regular business hours.” HRS
§ 92F-11(b) (Supp. 2014); see also SHOPO, 83 Hawai#i at 383, 927
P.2d at 391. The UIPA also provides for certain types of
government records that must be disclosed (HRS § 92F-12), and
certain types of records that are exempted from the general
disclosure requirement (HRS § 92F-13). The current version of
HRS § 92F-13, which excludes certain records from disclosure
requirements, is substantively identical to the original version
enacted in 1988, and provides:
This part shall not require disclosure of:
(1) Government records which, if disclosed, would
constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal
privacy;
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(2) Government records pertaining to the prosecution
or defense of any judicial or quasi-judicial action to
which the State or any county is or may be a party, to
the extent that such records would not be
discoverable;
(3) Government records that, by their nature, must be
confidential in order for the government to avoid the
frustration of a legitimate government function;
(4) Government records which, pursuant to state or
federal law including an order of any state or federal
court, are protected from disclosure; and
(5) Inchoate and draft working papers of legislative
committees including budget worksheets and unfiled
committee reports; work product; records or
transcripts of an investigating committee of the
legislature which are closed by rules adopted pursuant
to section 21-4 and the personal files of members of
the legislature.
HRS § 92F-13 (2012) (emphasis added).
Thus, although the general rule is that government
agencies must disclose records upon request, section 92F-13
exempts from disclosure any record that, if disclosed, would
constitute a “clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.”
HRS § 92F-14 currently states, as it did in 1988, that
“[d]isclosure of a government record shall not constitute a
clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy if the public
interest in disclosure outweighs the privacy interest of the
individual.” HRS § 92F-14(a). Section 92F-14 then goes on, in
subsection (b), to list a number of examples of the types of
information in which an individual has a “significant privacy
interest.” Relevant to the present appeal, the legislature has
made significant changes to section 92F-14(b) on two occasions
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since 1988. As originally enacted, UIPA recognized that
individual employees had a significant privacy interest in the
following relevant information:
(b) The following are examples of information in
which the individual has a significant privacy
interest:
. . . .
(4) Information in an agency’s personnel file, or
applications, nominations, recommendations, or
proposals for public employment or appointment
to a governmental position, except information
relating to the status of any formal charges
against the employee and disciplinary action
taken or information disclosed under section
92F-12(a)(14).[7]
HRS § 92F-14 (Supp. 1991) (emphasis added).
The 1988 version of UIPA thus provided that although
individuals had significant privacy interests in their personnel
file generally, there was no significant privacy interest in any
7
In 1988, HRS § 92F-12(a)(14) provided that agencies were required
to make the following information available for public inspection:
The name, compensation (but only the salary range for
employees covered by chapters 76, 77, 297 or 304), job
title, business address, business telephone number,
job description, education and training background,
previous work experience, dates of first and last
employment, position number, type of appointment,
service computation date, occupational group or class
code, bargaining unit code, employee agency name and
code, department, division, branch, office, section,
unit, and island of employment, of present or former
officers or employees of the same agency, provided
that this provision shall not require the creation of
a roster of employees; except that this provision
shall not apply to information regarding present or
former employees involved in an undercover capacity in
a law enforcement agency.
HRS § 92F-12(a)(14) (Supp. 1991).
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disciplinary action taken against the employee.
In 1993, the legislature enacted Act 191, which amended
HRS § 92F-14(b) to read as follows:
(b) The following are examples of information in
which the individual has a significant privacy
interest:
. . . .
(4) Information in an agency’s personnel file,
or applications, nominations,
recommendations, or proposals for public
employment or appointment to a
governmental position, except:
(A) Information disclosed under section
92F-12(a)(14); and
(B) The following information related to
employment misconduct that results
in an employee’s suspension or
discharge:
(i) The name of the employee;
(ii) The nature of the employment-
related misconduct;
(iii) The agency’s summary of the
allegations of misconduct;
(iv) Findings of fact and
conclusions of law; and
(v) The disciplinary action taken
by the agency;
when the following has occurred:
the highest non-judicial grievance
adjustment procedure timely invoked
by the employee or the employee’s
representative has concluded; a
written decision sustaining the
suspension or discharge has been
issued after this procedure; and
thirty calender days have elapsed
following the issuance of the
decision; provided that this
subparagraph shall not apply to a
county police department officer
with respect to misconduct that
occurs while the police officer is
not acting in the capacity of a
police officer[.]
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HRS § 92F-14 (1993) (emphases added).
Thus, Act 191 amended section 92F-14 such that UIPA
recognized no significant privacy interest in information
relating to police officer misconduct if the misconduct occurred
while the police officer was acting in the capacity of a police
officer, thirty days had passed since the highest timely invoked
grievance procedure, and the suspension or discharge was
sustained in writing.
In 1995, the legislature again amended section 92F-14,
when it enacted Act 242. Act 242 amended section 92F-14 to read
as follows:
(b) The following are examples of information in
which the individual has a significant privacy
interest:
. . . .
(4) Information in an agency’s personnel file, or
applications, nominations, recommendations, or
proposals for public employment or appointment
to a governmental position, except:
(A) Information disclosed under section
92F-12(a)(14); and
(B) The following information related to
employment misconduct that results
in an employee’s suspension or
discharge:
(i) The name of the employee;
(ii) The nature of the employment-
related misconduct;
(iii) The agency’s summary of the
allegations of misconduct;
(iv) Findings of fact and
conclusions of law; and
(v) The disciplinary action taken
by the agency;
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when the following has occurred:
the highest non-judicial grievance
adjustment procedure timely invoked
by the employee or the employee’s
representative has concluded; a
written decision sustaining the
suspension or discharge has been
issued after this procedure; and
thirty calender days have elapsed
following the issuance of the
decision; provided that this
subparagraph shall not apply to a
county police department officer
except in a case which results in
the discharge of the officer.
HRS § 92F-14 (2012) (emphases added).
Thus, under Act 242, the UIPA recognizes a significant
privacy interest in information in employees’ personnel files,
creates an exception from this significant privacy interest for
information relating to employee misconduct that results in
suspension or discharge, and then creates another exception to
this exception for police officers, unless the misconduct
resulted in the discharge of the officer. In other words, HRS
§ 92F-14 now recognizes a significant privacy interest in all
information relating to police officer misconduct unless that
misconduct resulted in the officer’s discharge (in which case,
there is no privacy interest).8
Based on the plain language of HRS § 92F-14(b), there
8
The relevant portion of HRS § 92F-14 was amended again in 2014,
when the legislature clarified that “this subparagraph” referred to
subparagraph (B) and increased the number of days that must elapse following
the written decision from thirty to ninety. See 2014 Haw. Sess. Laws Act 121,
§ 2 at 334-35.
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is thus no question that the UIPA, as modified by Act 242,
recognizes a “significant privacy interest” in personnel
information relating to disciplinary action for police officer
misconduct where that discipline resulted in the suspension of
the police officer.
2. SHOPO v. SPJ
Although this court decided SHOPO v. SPJ on
November 15, 1996--after the July 6, 1995 effective date of Act
242--SHOPO v. SPJ interpreted the prior version of UIPA, as
amended by Act 191, because the proceedings in that case began
before Act 242’s effective date. See SHOPO v. SPJ, 83 Hawai#i at
391, 927 P.2d at 399 (“The instant proceedings were begun well
before the July 6, 1995 effective date and are, therefore, not
affected by Act 242. Accordingly, we hold that Act 242 does not
moot this litigation.”).
In SHOPO v. SPJ, the Society of Professional
Journalists, University of Hawai#i Chapter (SPJ), requested from
HPD the names and titles of all HPD employees “who, from
January 1, 1998 to [August 30, 1993], were either suspended or
discharged as a result of disciplinary action against them.”
SHOPO v. SPJ, 83 Hawai#i at 384, 927 P.2d at 392. SPJ also
requested “information that explains the nature of the
employment-related misconduct, any findings of fact and
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conclusions of law, and the type of disciplinary action taken by
your department.” Id. Although HPD did not outright deny SPJ
access to these records, a dispute arose regarding SPJ’s
obligation to pay for the records. Id. at 384-86, 927 P.2d at
392-94.
Before this dispute was resolved, SHOPO filed a lawsuit
against HPD, seeking a declaratory judgment that, inter alia,
“HRS Chapter 92F is unconstitutional and, therefore, void;
and . . . HPD may not release the type of information sought by
SPJ under Chapter 92F.” Id. at 386, 927 P.2d at 394. The
circuit court granted SHOPO’s request for a temporary restraining
order (TRO), enjoining HPD from disclosing the information
pending the outcome of the lawsuit. Id.
SPJ also filed suit, and requested that the circuit
court order HPD to produce all the relevant records in response
to its request. Id. SPJ and OIP both intervened as defendants
in the lawsuit filed by SHOPO. Id. at 387, 927 P.2d at 395. The
circuit court granted SPJ’s MSJ and ordered HPD to disclose the
relevant records. Id. at 387-88, 927 P.2d at 395-96.
On appeal, this court noted that “[a]t the heart of the
City’s appeal is its contention that disclosure of police
disciplinary records, pursuant to HRS § 92F-14(b)(4)(B),
constitutes an unconstitutional invasion of police officers’
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right of privacy in violation of article I, section 6 of the
Hawai#i Constitution . . . .” Id. at 396, 927 P.2d at 404. In
response to the City’s argument, this court held:
[I]n adopting Act 191, the Legislature balanced the
competing interests of individual privacy and public
access and concluded, as a matter of public policy,
that after a public employee has exhausted any
nonjudicial grievance procedures available to him or
her and charges of employment-related misconduct have
been sustained, resulting in suspension or discharge,
the public interest in disclosure of that person’s
name and information regarding the misconduct
outweighs the employee’s privacy interest. The City
has failed to overcome the presumption that the
Legislature has achieved this balance in accordance
with the mandate of article I, section 6 of the
Hawai#i Constitution.
Moreover, considering the history of article 1,
section 6 of the Hawai#i Constitution, our prior
interpretation of that section, and the great weight
of authority from other jurisdictions, we hold that
information regarding a police officer’s misconduct in
the course of his or her duties as a police officer is
not within the protection of Hawai#i’s constitutional
right to privacy.
Id. at 396-97, 927 P.2d at 404-05.
Thus, this court held that the UIPA, as amended by Act
191, did not violate article I, section 6 of the Hawai#i
Constitution by requiring disclosure of police disciplinary
suspension records. In undertaking this constitutional analysis,
this court stated that:
Under the holding in Painting Industry, the privacy
right protected by the “informational privacy” prong
of article I, section 6 is the right to keep
confidential information which is “highly personal and
intimate.” The issue, therefore, is whether the
identities and disciplinary records of police officers
who have engaged in such misconduct in the course of
their public duties . . . is “highly personal and
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intimate information.” The legislature, having
determined as a matter of public policy that public
employees who have been suspended or discharged for
employment-related misconduct do not have a
significant privacy interest in information about that
misconduct, obviously answered in the negative. So
too have those jurisdictions that have considered the
issue.
Id. at 398, 927 P.2d at 406 (emphasis added).
This court ultimately held that:
HRS § 92F-14(b)(4)(B) does not implicate the right of
privacy protected by article I, section 6 of the
Hawai#i Constitution. The information that must be
disclosed pursuant to HRS § 92F-14(b)(4)(B) regarding
a public employee’s employment-related misconduct and
resulting discipline, is not “highly personal and
intimate information” and is, therefore, not within
the scope of Hawai#i’s constitutional right to
privacy.
Id. at 400, 927 P.2d at 408.
This court in SHOPO v. SPJ therefore limited its
analysis to whether application of the UIPA, as amended by Act
191, violated the right to privacy in article I, section 6 of the
Hawai#i Constitution. This court did not, however, determine
whether disclosure of the police officers’ disciplinary
suspension records violated UIPA as amended by Act 242 because,
even though Act 242 had already become effective, Act 242 was not
applicable to the request for records in that case.
Thus, contrary to the circuit court’s finding in the
present case, this court in SHOPO v. SPJ did not choose to
“additionally and separately address [Act 242’s] shortcomings”;
instead, the SHOPO v. SPJ court’s analysis of Act 242 was limited
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to a determination that Act 242 was not applicable to the facts
of the case, and that as a result, Act 242 did not render the
case moot. In this case, unlike in SHOPO v. SPJ, SHOPO does not
ask us to determine whether disclosure of the police officers’
disciplinary suspension records would violate article I, section
6, but asks us to determine whether such disclosure would violate
the police officers’ privacy interests under the UIPA, as amended
by Act 242. The court in SHOPO v. SPJ did not answer this
question, so SHOPO v. SPJ is not controlling in this regard.
Similarly, Civil Beat’s reliance on Painting Industry
is also misplaced. Civil Beat relies on a single statement in
Painting Industry that, because the UIPA implements the
constitutional right of privacy, “the scope of information
protected must be consistent with that right.” (Quoting Painting
Industry, 69 Haw. at 453, 746 P.2d at 81-82). Civil Beat argues
that this means that the scope of the privacy interest in the
UIPA, as amended by Act 242, is identical to the constitutional
right discussed in SHOPO v. SPJ.
First, the court’s conclusion in Painting Industry is
not dispositive because it was interpreting the statutory right
of privacy as it stood before the UIPA was enacted. Second,
although the court in Painting Industry looked to the scope of
the privacy protection in article I, section 6 of the Hawai#i
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Constitution to help determine the scope of the statutory right
of privacy, the court’s statement that the statutory right “must
be consistent with” the constitutional right means simply that
the legislature may not limit the scope of privacy protected so
as to allow disclosure of records that are protected by the
constitution. Put another way, article I, section 6 establishes
a floor for protection of privacy rights, but does not preclude
the legislature from providing greater protection. Thus,
contrary to Civil Beat’s argument, Painting Industry does not
stand for the proposition that the legislature is powerless to
amend the statutory right to privacy to provide protections
beyond what was discussed in SHOPO v. SPJ.
SHOPO also asserts that part of the SHOPO v. SPJ
court’s analysis was that the legislature, in the applicable
version of the UIPA, had unambiguously determined “as a matter of
public policy” that police officers do not have a significant
privacy interest in information about their disciplinary
suspensions. SHOPO contends that this means that this court
acknowledged that it is the Hawai#i Legislature’s responsibility
to “define constitutional protected privacy rights.”9 Although
9
In support of this argument, SHOPO also cites to the Proceedings
of the Constitutional Convention of Hawai#i, which states that the Convention,
when drafting article I, section 6, felt that:
(continued...)
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we do not agree that it is the Legislature’s exclusive role to
“define” the constitutional privacy right, nevertheless, as set
forth above, the legislature is not precluded from providing
privacy protections greater than those provided by the
constitution.
Civil Beat also relies on OIP Opinion Letter No. 97-01,
which concludes that “Act 242 recognized that suspended police
officers . . . have a significant privacy interest in information
relating to their employment misconduct.” Id. at 5. The OIP
went on to analyze the effect of the SHOPO v. SPJ decision on Act
242, and determined that:
The SHOPO ruling eliminates the primary intent of Act
242 . . . of recognizing that suspended police
officers have significant privacy interests in
employment-related misconduct information. Because
the SHOPO decision erodes the significant weight
assigned by the Legislature to the suspended officer’s
privacy interest, as set out in Act 242, then only a
“scintilla” of public interest is enough to overcome
this privacy interest in the balancing test.
(...continued)
We in the bill of rights committee could have gone
through the process of listing all the different ways
in which the right to privacy should be protected, but
we felt that this was not our job as constitutional
delegates, that we should merely state broad
principles and then let the legislature balance all
the different kinds of rights--the Freedom of
Information Act, the right of the people to know
(though not put in our Constitution, it still exists),
the right of attorneys to discover information, the
freedom of the press. The legislature should balance
all of these different competing rights and then have
something which would implement the right of privacy.
1 Proceedings of the Constitutional Convention of Hawai#i 1978, at 639 (1980).
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Id. at 8.
As explained supra, SHOPO v. SPJ does not “eliminate[]
the primary intent of Act 242” because SHOPO v. SPJ applied the
prior version of the UIPA only, and because the legislature
possesses the authority to enact a broader privacy protection
than that articulated by this court in SHOPO v. SPJ in its
analysis of article I, section 6. Under the OIP’s analysis,
which Civil Beat argues we should adopt, the legislature’s
amendments to the UIPA in Act 242 would be a nullity, and the
legislature would be powerless to change the scope of the privacy
protection for disciplined police officers, despite article I,
section 6’s mandate that “[t]he legislature shall take
affirmative steps to implement this right [of privacy].” Haw.
Const. art. I, § 6. Thus, the OIP’s analysis in Opinion Letter
No. 97-01 is palpably erroneous and does not inform our
interpretation of SHOPO v. SPJ or Act 242.10
In sum, the legislature recognized a significant
privacy interest in police officers’ disciplinary suspension
records in Act 242. However, as discussed below, this privacy
interest does not absolutely preclude disclosure, and must still
10
This court has held that OIP’s interpretations of its governing
statutes are entitled to deference unless found to be “palpably erroneous.”
Kanahele v. Maui Cnty. Council, 130 Hawai#i 228, 245-46, 307 P.3d 1174, 1191-
92 (2013). An OIP opinion is “palpably erroneous” when “inconsistent with
underlying legislative intent.” Id. at 246, 307 P.3d at 1192.
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be weighed against the public’s interest in the information.
B. HRS § 92F-14, as amended by Act 242, requires a weighing of
the individual’s “significant privacy interest” against the
public interest in disclosure
SHOPO argues that when the Hawai#i Legislature enacted
Act 242, it balanced the competing interests and intended to
preclude police officers’ disciplinary suspension records from
public disclosure without any further weighing required by the
courts. Although SHOPO acknowledges that “‘once a significant
privacy interest is found’ the second step is to balance that
interest ‘against the public interest in disclosure,’” (citing
SHOPO v. SPJ, 83 Haw. at 383, 927 P.2d at 391) it argues that the
Hawai#i Legislature performed this balancing in Act 242.
According to SHOPO, the legislative history of Act 242
demonstrates this intent.
Civil Beat argues that even though the legislature
recognized a significant privacy interest in police officers’
disciplinary suspension records in Act 242, the legislature did
not provide “absolute confidentiality” for these records, and the
privacy interest must still be weighed against the public
interest in disclosure before disclosure is precluded. Civil
Beat contends that interpreting the UIPA to create absolute
confidentiality in these types of records despite the
legislature’s silence on the matter would be contrary to the
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UIPA’s underlying purpose.
When construing a statute, “our foremost obligation is
to ascertain and give effect to the intention of the
legislature.” Kauai Springs, Inc. v. Planning Comm’n of Cnty. of
Kauai, 133 Hawai#i 141, 163, 324 P.3d 951, 973 (2014). A statute
must be read in context and construed in a manner consistent with
its purpose and “each part or section of a statute should be
considered in connection with every other part or section.” Id.
If a statute is ambiguous, we may take into account the statute’s
legislative history. Id.
HRS § 92F-13 exempts from disclosure any record that,
if disclosed, would constitute a “clearly unwarranted invasion of
personal privacy.” HRS § 92F-14(a) provides that “[d]isclosure
of a government record shall not constitute a clearly unwarranted
invasion of personal privacy if the public interest in disclosure
outweighs the privacy interest of the individual.” HRS § 92F-
14(b) then unambiguously includes police officers’ disciplinary
suspension records as an example of the type of record in which
the individual has a “significant privacy interest.” Nowhere in
the UIPA does the legislature state that disclosure of police
officers’ disciplinary records constitutes a “clearly unwarranted
invasion of personal privacy.”
The terms “significant privacy interest” and “clearly
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unwarranted invasion of personal privacy” are not the same, and
where the legislature uses different terms in different parts of
a statute, we must presume this was intentional, and that the
legislature means two different things. Agustin v. Dan Ostrow
Constr. Co., 64 Haw. 80, 83, 636 P.2d 1348, 1351 (1981). Indeed,
HRS § 92F-14(a) indicates that for a “significant privacy
interest” to constitute a “clearly unwarranted invasion of
personal privacy,” the privacy interest at stake must be balanced
against the public interest in disclosure of the information.
Thus, the structure and language of HRS § 92F-14 indicate that
once a “significant privacy interest” is recognized, it must be
balanced against the public interest in disclosure to determine
whether disclosure of the information would constitute a “clearly
unwarranted invasion of privacy.”
This interpretation is supported by the UIPA’s
legislative history. When the UIPA was enacted in 1988, the
House Judiciary Committee explained that “described in [section
92F-14(b)] are examples of those records in which the individual
has a significant privacy interest. Your Committee intends that
these records are available following application of the
‘balancing test’ to determine whether the public interest in
disclosure outweighs the individual privacy interest.” H. Stand.
Comm. Rep. No. 342-88, in 1988 House Journal, at 969 (emphases
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added). Commenting on the same provision, the Conference
Committee also stated that “[o]nce a significant privacy interest
is found, the privacy interest will be balanced against the
public interest in disclosure.” Conf. Comm. Rep. No. 112-88, in
1988 House Journal, at 818. These statements in the committee
reports, made in reference to versions of the provision identical
to the final version (which is also identical the current
version), indicate that there may be instances in which an
individual has a significant privacy interest in certain
information, but the public interest in disclosure is great
enough that it outweighs the individual’s privacy interest.
Furthermore, this court in SHOPO v. SPJ came to the
same conclusion. The SHOPO v. SPJ court stated that:
The instant case requires application of HRS
§ 92F–13(1), excepting from the general disclosure
requirement “[g]overnment records which, if disclosed,
would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of
personal privacy[.]” The conference committee’s
explanation of this provision, which it “intended to
serve as a clear legislative expression of intent
should any dispute arise as to the meaning of these
provisions[,]” is that, “[o]nce a significant privacy
interest is found, the privacy interest will be
balanced against the public interest in disclosure.
If the privacy interest is not ‘significant,’ a
scintilla of public interest in disclosure will
preclude a finding of a clearly unwarranted invasion
of personal privacy.” Conf. Comm. Rep. No. 112–88, in
1988 House Journal, at 817–18.
SHOPO v. SPJ, 83 Hawai#i at 383-84, 927 P.2d at 391-92.
This court thus found that:
HRS § 92F–14(b)(4) expressly confirms that an
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individual has a “significant privacy interest” in
information in an agency's personnel file, with the
exception of the specified information relating to
misconduct. This information unrelated to misconduct,
therefore, is exempt from the general disclosure
requirement unless “the public interest in disclosure
outweighs the privacy interests of the individual.”
Id. at 399-400, 927 P.2d at 407-08 (emphasis added).
The SHOPO v. SPJ court therefore held that information
in which an individual has a “significant privacy interest,” such
as “information unrelated to misconduct,” may nonetheless be
subject to disclosure if the public interest in disclosure
outweighs the individual’s privacy interest.
Although, as noted above, the SHOPO v. SPJ court was
applying a prior version of the UIPA, nothing in Act 242’s
amendments to the UIPA purports to change this analysis. Act 242
amended section 92F-14 so that the provision required disclosure
for police disciplinary actions resulting in discharge,11 but
left all other types of disciplinary action in the “significant
privacy interest” category, for which additional weighing is
required. In fact, the textual amendments in Act 242 support
11
Pursuant to SHOPO v. SPJ, if a police officer is discharged rather
than suspended as a result of a disciplinary action, disclosure would be
required upon showing a mere “scintilla” of public interest in disclosure.
Shopo v. SPJ, 83 Hawai#i at 383-84, 927 P.d at 391-92 (“If the privacy
interest is not ‘significant,’ a scintilla of public interest in disclosure
will preclude a finding of a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal
privacy.”) (quoting Conf. Comm. Rep. No. 112-88, in 1988 House Journal at 817-
18). We note that because Act 242 recognizes a significant privacy interest
in suspension records, and all of the records at issue in the present case
involve disciplinary suspensions rather than discharges, the “scintilla” test
is not applicable here.
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this analysis because in addition to including police officers’
disciplinary suspension records as a “significant privacy
interest,” Act 242 changed the title of HRS § 92F-14 from
“Clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy” to
“Significant privacy interest; examples.” 1995 Haw. Sess. Laws,
Act 242 § 1, at 641. This amendment further clarifies that the
listed examples are not “clearly unwarranted invasions of
personal privacy,” but are instead “significant privacy
interests.”
Further, although SHOPO v. SPJ was decided after the
legislature enacted Act 242, the OIP had also come to the same
conclusion before Act 242 was enacted. See OIP Op. Ltr.
No. 90-12, February 26, 1990, at 8, available at
http://files.hawaii.gov/oip/opinionletters/opinion 90-12.PDF
(stating that although an agency employee has a “significant
privacy interest” in information relating to disciplinary action
that is not in response to a “formal charge,” there are
circumstances where “the public interest in disclosure may
outweigh the employee’s privacy interest in the fact that
disciplinary action was taken and the circumstances surrounding
that action”) (emphasis added).
The legislature is presumed to know the law when it
enacts statutes, including this court’s decisions, and agency
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interpretations. See Agustin, 64 Haw. at 83, 636 P.2d at 1351
(“[T]he legislature is presumed to know the law when enacting
statutes, and we must presume that the legislature knew of the
definition we assigned to the word ‘accrued’ in Yoshizaki v. Hilo
Hospital, 50 Haw. 150, 433 P.2d 220 (1967), at the time it
amended § 657-8 in 1972.”); Keliipuleole v. Wilson, 85 Hawai#i
217, 225-26, 941 P.2d 300, 308-09 (1997) (“Presumably the
legislature was aware of the status of the law and the policies
of the [Board of Land and Natural Resources], yet declined to
amend the statute.”). Thus, we must presume that the legislature
was aware of the OIP’s interpretation of HRS § 92F-14 when it
enacted Act 242. The legislature nonetheless chose to place
police officer disciplinary suspension records in the provision
that recognized a “significant privacy interest,” instead of
creating an explicit exclusion from the UIPA’s disclosure
requirements.
SHOPO cites to remarks in the legislative history of
Act 242 to support its argument that the legislature intended, in
Act 242, to conclusively weigh the interests and find that police
officers’ disciplinary suspension records are precluded from
disclosure.
However, SHOPO’s argument is without merit. First, as
explained supra, the language of the UIPA, as amended by Act 242,
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unambiguously requires us to balance the interests upon finding a
significant privacy interest, and as such, we need not resort to
the legislative history in order to interpret it. See Seki ex
rel. Louie, 133 Hawai#i at 406-07, 328 P.3d at 415-16. Second,
an analysis of Act 242’s legislative history reveals no clear
statement of intent that would warrant overriding what appears to
be clear from the plain language of the statute–-that we must
weigh the police officers’ significant privacy interest against
the public interest in disclosure of their disciplinary
suspension records.
To support its argument, SHOPO points to two committee
reports accompanying S.B. No. 171 (the bill that proposed Act
242) which, SHOPO argues, indicate that the legislature intended
to preclude disclosure of disciplinary suspension records.
First, the joint Senate Standing Committee report of the
Judiciary, Agriculture, Labor, and Employment Committees, which
referred to the original proposed version of S.B. No. 171,
stated: “The purpose of the bill, as originally received, is to
exclude from required disclosure under the government records
law, information pertaining to police department personnel
misconduct.” S. Stand. Comm. Rep. No. 627, in 1995 Senate
Journal, at 1064. The joint committees went on to amend the bill
as follows:
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To address some of the concerns expressed in
testimony, your Committees have amended this bill by
extending the applicability of the disclosure
requirement to acts of police misconduct which result
in the discharge of an officer. Your Committees have
further amended this bill by directing the chief of
each county police department to submit an annual
report to the legislature containing information on
the number of police officers suspended or discharged
by the department over the year. Your Committees find
that this bill, as amended, balances the concern over
the public’s right to know with the considerations
involved in ensuring and maintaining an effective
system of law enforcement in the State.
S. Stand. Comm. Rep. No. 627, in 1995 House Journal, at 1064.
However, contrary to SHOPO’s argument, this purpose
statement merely shows that the committees read the bill as
proposing to exclude disciplinary suspensions from required
disclosure; that is, the type of disclosure that disciplinary
discharge records are subject to (where a “scintilla” of public
interest in disclosure is sufficient to require disclosure). The
report, however, is silent as to the whether other records (e.g.,
those for which disclosure is not “required,” but in which there
is a “significant privacy interest”) are subject to balancing
against the public interest in disclosure.
SHOPO also argues that the joint committees’ addition
of a legislative reporting requirement to HRS § 52D-3.512
12
This proposal was ultimately enacted as HRS § 52D-3.5, which
provides, in relevant part:
(a) The chief of each county police department shall
submit to the legislature no later than January 31 of
each year an annual report of misconduct incidents
(continued...)
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constituted the legislature’s solution after it had balanced the
privacy interests of the officers against the public interest in
disclosure. However, there is no indication that HRS § 52D-3.5
was the product of such balancing. The committee stated that the
bill would “balance[] the concern over the public’s right to know
with the consideration involved in ensuring and maintaining an
effective system of law enforcement in the State.” Id. (emphasis
added). This, however, is not the same balancing that must be
performed under HRS § 92F-14(a) because there is no mention of
the “privacy interest of the individual.” HRS § 92F-14(a).
SHOPO next points to a standing committee report of the
House Judiciary Committee, which states that “[t]he purpose of
[S.B. No. 171] is to prevent the disclosure of the names of
administratively disciplined police officers, unless they have
been discharged from the force.” H. Stand. Comm. Rep. No. 1584,
in 1995 House Journal, at 1627.
Although the purpose statement in this report also
seems to support SHOPO’s argument, the House draft bill
accompanying the report, S.B. 171, S.D.1, H.D.1, 18th Leg., Reg.
Sess. (1995), contained a statement that the purpose of the bill
(...continued)
that resulted in suspension or discharge of a police
officer.
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was to “provid[e] that the names of the administratively
disciplined officers are not subject to the disclosure
requirements of [section 92F-14(b)(4)] unless the discipline
imposed is discharge from the force.” Again, this statement
suggests that the intent was merely to prevent mandatory
disclosure of disciplinary suspension records, but is silent as
to whether further weighing against the public interest in
disclosure is required.
Furthermore, the remainder of the committee report does
not support SHOPO’s argument. The committee concluded that “the
release of police officers’ names simply because they have been
suspended is not appropriate since they are subject to more
stringent standards and tougher discipline than most other
government employees[.]” H. Stand. Comm. Rep. No. 1584, in 1995
House Journal, at 1627 (emphasis added). The committee also
expressed concern that police officers, “unlike most government
and private employees, are subject to para-military discipline
which manifests itself in the form of frequently applied
suspensions from duty for misconduct or violation of departmental
rules.” Id.
Thus, the clear concern of the House committee was that
requiring disclosure of disciplinary suspension records in all
cases would lead to the disclosure of officers’ names for rule
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violations which, in other professions, would not be as serious
and may not result in suspension. The corollary to this concern
is the committee’s apparent recognition that in more serious
circumstances, disclosure of disciplinary suspension records is
appropriate. The committee’s concern is thus consistent with
interpreting Act 242 as requiring a balancing of the individual
officers’s privacy interests against the public interest in
disclosure. Instances of less serious police officer misconduct,
even those resulting in suspension, would likely not be subject
to disclosure because the officers’ significant privacy interests
would outweigh the public’s interest in knowing about the
misconduct. The more egregious the misconduct, the more likely
the public interest would outweigh the individual privacy
interest.
SHOPO also relies on floor remarks by legislators who
voted on Act 242 to support its argument that the legislature
conclusively weighed the competing factors and determined that
disciplinary suspension records should not be disclosed. For
example, SHOPO cites to remarks made by Representative Amaral:
[P]olice Officers are held to high standards, are held
to strict rules, are monitored and chastised in ways
that I have never seen other people chastised or
punished.
And now I hear that the public is fearful of what
police officers may be doing and, therefore, it needs
to have the names of those police officers that have
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been disciplined administratively. I hear that police
officers need to be trusted and so the way that police
officers can be trusted is if they will disclose the
names of those officers that they have disciplined.
The trust is a two-way street. I think you’ve got to
trust that there are systems and places for monitoring
the behavior of these officers, for correcting their
behavior, for punishing them appropriately.
(Quoting 1995 House Journal, at 681 (remarks of rep. Amaral)).
SHOPO also refers to remarks made by Senator Graulty,
who quoted the testimony of HPD Chief Michael Nakamura:
I also want to instill in the public the trust and
confidence that if an officer commits a criminal act,
that officer is prosecuted to the fullest extent of
the law and the name of the officer is disclosed
publicly. Similarly, if an officer is sued civilly,
that officer’s name becomes part of the public record.
However, it is not fair to punish police officers in
the media, nor is it fair to expose and subject their
friends and families to scorn, retaliation and threats
by disclosing the police officers’ names.
(Quoting 1995 Senate Journal, at 287 (remarks of Senator
Graulty)).
SHOPO’s reliance on these floor remarks is misplaced.
First, remarks by individual legislators are not attributable to
the full legislature that voted for the bill, and as such are
less reliable indicators of legislative intent. See Wright v.
Home Depot U.S.A., Inc., 111 Hawai#i 401, 411 n.8, 142 P.3d 265,
275 n.8 (2006) (“To the extent that legislative history may be
considered, it is the official committee reports that provide the
authoritative expression of legislative intent. . . . Stray
comments by individual legislators, not otherwise supported by
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statutory language or committee reports, cannot be attributed to
the full body that voted on the bill.”) (quoting Bennett v.
Yoshina, 98 F. Supp. 2d 1139, 1150 (D. Haw. 2000)).
Second, even if we were to consider individual
legislators’ remarks as evidence of legislative intent, these
remarks, like the committee reports, do not support SHOPO’s
argument because they do not expressly state any intent to
preclude disclosure of disciplinary suspension records without
first weighing the individual officers’ privacy interests against
the public interest in disclosure. Further, the remarks indicate
the same concern noted by the committees, that requiring
disclosure of suspension records could result in disclosure of
officers’ identities when they have been disciplined for
relatively non-serious misconduct. For example, in remarks not
cited by SHOPO, Representative Alcon stated, in support of S.B.
No. 171:
[T]his bill is a good bill because the police officers
have a way of handling their internal problems. You
mean to say, just because the policeman did not shine
his shoes that we will have to publish his name in the
paper? You mean to say that if a policeman is late
reporting to work, we have to publish his name in the
paper? You mean to say if a policeman did not make
his report, do we have to publish his name in the
paper?
1995 House Journal, at 682 (remarks of Rep. Alcon).
Again, recognition of these concerns is consistent with
a reading of the UIPA that requires us to weigh the police
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officers’ privacy interest in disciplinary suspension records
against the public interest in disclosure of the records.
Civil Beat, in further support of its position, argues
that the legislative history of subsequent amendments to HRS
§§ 92F-14 and 52D-3.5 in 2014 demonstrates that the legislature
intended for the courts to weigh individual officers’ privacy
interests against the public interest in disclosure even after a
significant privacy interest has been shown.
In Act 121, signed into law in 2014, the legislature
specified with greater detail the information that police chiefs
must report to the legislature in their annual reports regarding
police discipline. Act 121 also changed the number of days that
must elapse following a written decision affirming an employee’s
discharge or suspension before records may be disclosed from
thirty to ninety in HRS § 92F-14(b)(4)(B)(v). See 2014 Haw.
Sess. Laws, Act 121, §§ 1-2, at 333-35.
In arguing that the 2014 legislative history supports
its position, Civil Beat notes that the Conference Committee
“rejected the House’s effort to address police suspensions by
statute.” The House had proposed amending the exception provided
in HRS § 92F-14(b)(4)(B) to read, in relevant part: “provided
that this subparagraph shall [not] apply to a county police
department officer [except] only in a case which results in the
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suspension of one year or more for one incident or the discharge
of the officer[.]” S.B. 2591, S.D.1, H.D.1 § 2, 27th Leg., Reg.
Sess. 2014 (brackets and emphasis in original).13 The Conference
Committee deleted this proposed language and stated that its
version of the bill “creates a more informed public dialogue
about misconduct by police officers while recognizing that the
balance of privacy and public interest is not easily defined and
is a task better suited to common law.” Conf. Comm. Rep. No. 32-
14, in 2014 House Journal, at 1481-82. Thus, according to Civil
Beat, “[t]he Legislature . . . refused to amend the misconduct
exception to address police suspensions because it interpreted
the existing plain language of the UIPA as leaving the balance of
interests to the courts[.]”
In addition, Civil Beat explains that when the House
Judiciary Committee proposed its amendment to HRS § 92F-
14(b)(4)(B), it cited SHOPO v. SPJ and acknowledged that the
decision may result in disclosure of such records:
Your Committee respectfully notes that consistent with
[SHOPO v. SPJ], allowing the disclosure of suspension
information instead of just discharge information does
not violate the privacy rights of individual police
officers. The Hawai#i Supreme Court held in SHOPO v.
SPJ that, “The information that must be disclosed
pursuant HRS § 92F-14(b)(4)(B) [sic] regarding a
public employee’s employment-related misconduct and
13
The brackets in the text indicate language that the draft bill
proposed deleting from the existing statute, and the underlined text indicates
language that the draft bill proposed adding to the statute.
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resulting discipline, is not “highly personal and
intimate information” and is, therefore, not within
the scope of Hawaii’s constitutional right to
privacy.” Nonetheless, your Committee has determined
to limit required disclosures of police misconduct to
suspensions of one year or more per incident and
discharges.
H. Stand. Comm. Rep. No. 1360-14, in 2014 House Journal, at 1364.
Civil Beat argues that the Legislature therefore “knew that
failure to amend the misconduct exception or enact a
confidentiality statute may result in disclosure under SHOPO v.
SPJ.”
SHOPO is correct that we should be wary of
“bootstrap[ping] the 2014 legislature’s intent to the 1995
legislature’s intent in enacting Act 242.” The legislative
history for Act 121 cited by Civil Beat is indicative of the 2014
legislature’s intent when enacting Act 121. It is not
dispositive of the 1995 legislature’s intent when it enacted Act
242. Further, the 2014 House Judiciary Committee’s reference to
SHOPO v. SPH is not relevant to the issue here because SHOPO v.
SPJ did not interpret Act 242. Thus, the 2014 legislature’s
rejection of the proposed amendment to HRS § 92F-14(b)(4)(B) does
not inform our understanding of Act 242.
Ultimately, although the relevant legislative history
of Act 242 contains some evidence of an intent to preclude
disclosure of police disciplinary suspension records, the
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legislative history of Act 242 as a whole lacks any clear
statement of such intent, which would be contrary to the plain
language of the statute. At best, the legislative history shows
an intent to preclude disclosure of disciplinary suspension
records in certain circumstances--i.e., where the police
officers’ misconduct is not egregious. This is consistent with
our reading of the plain language of HRS § 92F-14, which
requires, after finding a significant privacy interest in the
records sought, balancing that privacy interest against the
public interest in disclosure of the records.
C. Given the limited factual record in this case, we must
remand to the circuit court to weigh the public and privacy
interests
The circuit court, relying on SHOPO v. SPJ, reasoned
that police officers have no protected privacy interest in their
disciplinary records and concluded that “public access interest
would outweigh non-existent privacy interests in on-duty police
misconduct.” By not considering police officers’ “significant
privacy interest” in their records, the court did not engage in
the balancing required by HRS § 92F-14. Given the limited
factual record developed in this case, this court cannot now
properly weigh the interests in each instance of misconduct.
Thus, we must remand this case to the circuit court to determine
whether the public interest in disclosure outweighs the privacy
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interests at stake. As contemplated by HRS § 92F-15, the court
should conduct an in camera14 review of the records and determine
on a case-by-case basis whether disclosure is warranted. See HRS
§ 92F-15(b) (In actions to compel disclosure of government
records, “[t]he circuit court may examine the government record
at issue, in camera, to assist in determining whether it, or any
part of it, may be withheld”).
If the interests weigh in favor of disclosure of a
record, the court should also determine whether any redaction is
necessary, such as to remove identifying information of the
victim of a crime. Moreover, there is no compelling public
interest in the disclosure of police officers’ confidential
personal information such as home addresses, dates of birth,
social security numbers, driver’s license numbers, and bank
account information. Such information, if present in relevant
records, must be redacted.
We further note that this court, as well as many
others, has emphasized the weight of the public interest in cases
involving police officer misconduct. In SHOPO v. SPJ, this court
recognized that “the appropriate concern of the public as to the
proper performance of public duty is to be given great weight”
14
An in camera review is a judge’s private consideration of
evidence. See Black’s Law Dictionary 878 (10th ed. 2014) (defining “in
camera” as “[i]n the judge’s private chambers”).
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when balanced against competing privacy interests. 83 Hawai#i at
399, 927 P.2d at 407 (quoting Cowles Publ’g Co. v. State Patrol,
748 P.2d 597, 605 (Wash. 1988)). This is true when “the off duty
acts of a police officer bear upon his or her fitness to perform
public duty or if the activities reported in the records involve
the performance of a public duty.” Id.
Similarly, in Rutland Herald v. City of Rutland, the
Supreme Court of Vermont explained that substantial weight should
be given to the public interest in disclosure because “there is a
significant public interest in knowing how the police department
supervises its employees and responds to allegations of
misconduct.” 84 A.3d 821, 825 (Vt. 2013). The court highlighted
the importance of the public’s ability to “gauge the police
department’s responsiveness to specific instances of misconduct
[and] assess whether the agency is accountable to itself
internally[.]” Id. (internal quotation marks and citation
omitted).
In Tompkins v. Freedom of Information Commission, the
Connecticut Appellate Court reviewed records regarding the
disciplinary investigation of a discharged police officer and
emphasized the need to “facilitate the public’s understanding and
evaluation of the [department’s] investigative process,
decision-making and overall handling of an important matter
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involving a fellow police officer.” 46 A.3d 291, 299 (Conn. App.
Ct. 2012). The court further noted that “the more egregious the
specific behavior, the more a finding of legitimate public
concern is warranted.” Id.
Lastly, in City of Baton Rouge/Parish of East Baton
Rouge v. Capital City Press, L.L.C., the Louisiana First Circuit
Court of Appeal found that “the public has a strong, legitimate
interest in disclosure” of records of investigations into police
misconduct. 4 So.3d 807, 821 (La. Ct. App. 2008). The court
reasoned that “[t]he public should be ensured that both the
activity of public employees suspected of wrongdoing and the
conduct of those public employees who investigate the suspects is
open to public scrutiny.” Id. (internal quotation marks and
citation omitted).
These cases recognize the compelling public interest in
instances of police misconduct given the importance of public
oversight of law enforcement. Police officers are entrusted with
the right to use force--even deadly force in some circumstances--
and this right can be subject to abuse. Public oversight
minimizes the possibility of abuse by ensuring that police
departments and officers are held accountable for their actions.
The press’s access to records such as those at issue here is one
of the primary channels through which such public oversight can
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operate. See Gentile v. State Bar of Nevada, 501 U.S. 1030, 1035
(1991) (“[T]he press . . . guards against the miscarriage of
justice by subjecting the police, prosecutors, and judicial
processes to extensive public scrutiny and criticism.”) (quoting
Sheppard v. Maxwell, 384 U.S. 333, 350 (1966)). The more
egregious the misconduct, and the more closely connected to the
officer’s performance of his or her duties as an officer, the
more compelling this public interest.
Here, though the descriptions of the records requested
by Civil Beat are brief (recounted in full, supra, part I.A), it
is clear that the records involve serious misconduct. These
records include falsifying police reports, use of malicious
force, wilfully injuring another employee, fabricating facts
regarding probable cause, hindering investigations, and
misappropriating police funds. Further, two of the records––(1)
the seventy-seven day suspension for falsifying a police report
and being untruthful during an investigation and (2) the six
hundred twenty-six day suspension for hindering a federal
investigation–-appear to involve particularly egregious conduct,
as demonstrated by the length of the suspension imposed.
With these considerations in mind, during its in camera
review of the records, the circuit court should review the
misconduct at issue in each case and determine whether the public
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interest in disclosure of such conduct outweighs the privacy
interests of a particular officer.
D. SHOPO may not invoke the “frustration of a legitimate
government function” exception on HPD’s behalf
SHOPO also argues that “[t]he disclosure of a police
officer’s disciplinary records would frustrate a legitimate
government function” pursuant to HRS § 92F-13(3).15 In response,
Civil Beat argues that SHOPO may not invoke the legitimate
government function exception because only the agency from which
the records have been requested may invoke the exception.
We conclude that Civil Beat is correct that only the
relevant government agency--in this case HPD--may invoke this
exception.
In OIP Opinion Letter No. 98-02, the OIP addressed
arguments made by Hawai#i Management Alliance Association (HMAA)
that the disclosure of eligible charges listed in HMAA’s contract
with Kona Community Hospital (KCH) would frustrate a legitimate
government purpose. OIP Op. Ltr. No. 98-02, at 1, 9, available
at http://files.hawaii.gov/oip/opinionletters/opinion 98-02.pdf.
HMAA argued that disclosure of the charges would mean other
healthcare benefits companies would discover KCH’s lowest
15
HRS § 92F-13 provides, in pertinent part: “This part shall not
require disclosure of: . . . (3) Government records that, by their nature,
must be confidential in order for the government to avoid the frustration of a
legitimate government function[.]”
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acceptable price, which would mean they could negotiate lower
payments to KCH, which in turn would result in higher copayments
for patients. Id. at 9. The OIP stated that:
Although HMAA raises these frustration arguments on
behalf of KCH and [Hawai#i Health Systems
Corporation], the federal courts have refused to allow
a submitter to make such an argument on a government
agency’s behalf, particularly where the agency
declines to make the argument itself. Hercules, Inc.
v. Marsh, 839 F.2d 1027, 1030 (4th Cir. 1988) (where
an agency declines to argue that disclosure of
information would impair the agency’s ability to
obtain similar information in the future, the court
will not allow the submitter to raise the issue on the
agency’s behalf). And in Comdisco, Inc. v. GSA, 864
F.Supp. 510 (E.D. Va. 1994), the court deferred to the
agency’s determination that disclosure of the
requested information would not impair the agency’s
ability to obtain such information in the future. The
Comdisco court observed that the agency is in the best
situation to determine if disclosure would inhibit
future submissions. Id. at 515.
Id. at 9-10 (footnote omitted).
The OIP thus concluded that “[a]s the agency does not
claim that disclosure of the eligible charges from the HMSA and
HMAA Contracts frustrates any legitimate government function of
KCH or HHSC, the OIP finds that there is no frustration.” Id. at
10 (emphasis added). SHOPO has not argued that the OIP’s
interpretation of HRS § 92F-13(3) is erroneous.
As Civil Beat notes, HPD did not claim in the circuit
court that disclosure of the suspension records would frustrate
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any government purpose.16 Moreover, HPD filed a notice of no
position regarding SHOPO’s appeal. Thus, HPD has not claimed at
any point in this litigation that disclosure of the records at
issue would frustrate any legitimate government purpose, and
SHOPO, as a third-party intervenor, cannot make that argument on
HPD’s behalf.
IV. Conclusion
HRS § 92F-14 recognizes a significant privacy interest
in police officers’ disciplinary suspension records, and this
interest must be balanced against the public interest in
disclosure of the requested records. Given the limited factual
record in this case, we cannot definitively determine whether
disclosure of the requested records is appropriate. The circuit
court must engage in an in camera review of the requested records
and determine whether the public interest outweighs the officers’
significant privacy interest in each instance. Thus, we vacate
16
In its opposition to Civil Beat’s MSJ, HPD argued only the issue
of whether disclosure would constitute an unwarranted invasion of the police
officers’ personal privacy. Moreover, at the hearing on Civil Beat’s MSJ, the
only argument HPD made was that, when Civil Beat made its request for the
records in this case, HPD was precluded from releasing the records pursuant to
a 2001 circuit court order.
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the circuit court’s June 10, 2014 final judgment and remand for
proceedings consistent with this opinion.
Keani Alapa and /s/ Mark E. Recktenwald
Vladimir Devens
for intervenor-defendant- /s/ Paula A. Nakayama
appellant
/s/ Michael D. Wilson
Donna Y.L. Leong, Paul S.
Aoki, Duane W.H. Pang and /s/ Jeffrey P. Crabtree
Nicolette Winter for
defendants-appellees City
and County of Honolulu and
Honolulu Police Department
Robert Brian Black
for plaintiff-appellee
Peer News LLC
Jeffrey S. Portnoy
and John P. Duchemin
for amicus curiae
The Reporters Committee
for Freedom of the Press
59