The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security (TDOSHS) is slow walking two Open Records Requests, filed by The Tennessee Star last week, which seek documents and video related to Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the citizen of El Salvador who was stopped by Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) in 2022, and deported by the Trump administration last month.
As the TDOSHS oversees the state law enforcement agency which first confirmed the 2022 stop to The Star, Editor-in-Chief Michael Patrick Leahy filed a request on April 17, seeking all records held related to the stop of Abrego Garcia.
This request especially sought copies of dispatch reports, citations, field notes, as well as for the still images THP was reportedly instructed to capture, which show the driver and his passengers. It also sought video from dashboard and body-worn cameras present at the scene.
Leahy and The Star filed a second request on April 18, after a THP spokesman confirmed key details of Abrego Garcia’s time in Tennessee, which specifically sought copies of any Computer-Aided Dispatch Reports, Computer-Assisted Dispatch Reports, or Computerized Dispatch Reports, which may include new details about Abrego Garcia, his eight passengers, and the federal agencies involved in the stop.
THP told The Star that the “Biden-era FBI” had jurisdiction over the investigation, and that officers released Abrego Garcia and his associates at the request of the agency, despite the alleged gang member being suspected of human trafficking during the stop. It has also been reported that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) communicated with THP before Abrego Garcia was released.
While the Tennessee Public Records Act (TPRA) mandates agencies respond to requests within seven business days, the TCA 10-7-503(a)(2)(B) specifically requires, “a records custodian shall promptly respond to a public record request for copies in the most economic and efficient manner practicable.”
After The Star contacted the TDOSHS Open Records Division and Associate Counsel Casey Goggin of the Legal Division on Monday to ask for an update on the request, and noting the requirement under TCA 10-7-503(a)(2)(B), Goggin seemed to indicate she was not aware of either public records request.
Instead, for the second time, the April 16 press inquiry sent by The Star was conflated with a public records request, despite this original inquiry only seeking confirmation that THP stopped Abrego Garcia in late 2022.
Potentially indicating Goggin was unaware of either Open Records Request, she stated, “So please let me know, are you making a press inquiry or a records request? If it’s the latter, you’ve received instructions on how to proceed forward.”
The Star then provided Goggin and the TDOSHS Open Records Division with copies of the two requests, as well as the dates they were sent, prompting the attorney to reveal she had not begun to gather some of the materials sought under the TPRA.
Goggin replied on Monday that the requests will be “handled as efficiently, and economically as is reasonably possible,” but then stated, “I can tell you, however, that Mr. Leahy’s request for video footage cannot be produced by the end of business hours today.”
The attorney then stated that the video requested by The Star will likely take longer for the agency to compile, and require The Star to pay “a fee” in order to be released.
Goggin then confirmed, “I have been tending to other pressing matters and requests received prior to yours, I have not had a moment to evaluate that cost estimate yet.”
The responses provided by Goggin were sent days after TDOSHS cited the TPRA to The Star as an explanation for why it could not confirm whether Abrego Garcia was stopped by law enforcement in Tennessee. THP only provided confirmation that Abrego Garcia was stopped in Tennessee after The Star reported TDOSHS was dodging questions about the citizen of El Salvador.
Abrego Garcia reportedly admitted to immigrating illegally from El Salvador to the United States in 2012, and seven years later had been deemed likely to be a member of Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13). He and his family have denied this claim, which led an immigration judge to issue a “withholding of removal” order in 2019, preventing Abrego Garcia from being deported to his homeland, but not to another country.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Assessment of Costs and Attorney’s Fees: If a court finds that a governmental entity “knowingly and willfully” refused to disclose a public record, the court has the discretion to assess all reasonable costs incurred in obtaining the record, including attorney’s fees, against the governmental entity. The court may consider any guidance provided by the Office of Open Records Counsel when determining if the refusal was willful.