JIM MAllOX 

Attomoy Qolle7al 

4824Abula*va..sunela 

uR8e,m.7mb27s2 

*1- 

ml Tun. Ml@ 70s 

l4Wslm. TX. ms2.2r11 

71- 

ass Dloadww. aella 2l2 

~vwoclc DL miws 

2w7474222 

UON.lUllh.(uu~ 

MIAsen, TX. 7sml.le4w 

Slm22447 

The Attorney General of Texas 

Demmber 21. 1984 

-r&lo Ifike Driacoll 

lIarria County Attormy 

1001 ?reetm, Suits 634 

sourt00, Texas 77~302 

Deer lb. Driacoll: 

Opinion No. ~~-260 

Rer Availability of inforutioa 

froo mental health recordr 

You have requcated our opinioo regarding the availability to the 

public of inartrumaatr filed in l mentally ill docket in the office of 

thm county clerk. 

The Opy Recorda Act. article 6252-17a, eection 3(a)(l). 

V.TX.8. .’ provider that: 

(a) All informetion collected, assembled. or 

rintained by governmental bodice purauant to lav 

.or ordinance or in connection'vith the traneactiom 

of offic:M buoineea ia public informetion ind 

available to the public during normnl buoineaa 

hoorm of my governmental body, uith the follarfnl 

acnptionr only: 

(1) information deemed confidential by lav, 

either Corutitutional, etatutory, or by judictil 

decision. : . . 

Art&lee 5547-11 end 5547-12, V.T.C.S., provide: 

All qplicationa, petition., certifiutea. and 

l ll~her'papera permitted or required to be filed 

in the county court by thir code &all be filed 

uith’thi county clerk of the proper county who 

l ball fil,e the ~mame and l adorae .oo each paper the 

dete filtid and the~docket number and hir offichl 

rQputur4. 

Each emd> every atatemeot of factm. together 

with r~et: and every other writing which dieeloaee 

intiuto d.etaila of the personal and privite, life 

of the l lxueed or the patient or vhich diecloaea 

intiute detaila of the pereooal life of any and 

p. 1158 
Honorable Mike Drlscoll - Page 2 (JM-260) 

all membera of the family of the accused or the 

patient, in a mentally ill docket in the office of 

the county clerk are hereby declared to be public 

records of a private nature which may be used, 

inepected. or copied- only by a written order of 

the county judge, r-probate judge, a court of 

domestic relations j;dge, or a district judge of 

the county in which &e docket la located, and no 

such order ehall isac;;! until the issulng judge has 

determined fnformall,y to his satiafactioo that 

aaid use. inepection, or copying is juetified and 

in the public intererlt:. (Emphaaia added). 

Section 3(a)(l) excepts :Irom disclosure under the Open Record8 

Act all informetioo made confi,dential by law. Article 5547-12 makes 

confidential certain records filed in connection with any proceedings 

under the Mental Health Code. The cltatemeot of facts io every such 

proceeding is clearly excepted from dieclosure. Other material ia 

excepted only if it “disclosejs intimate details of the personal and 

private life of the accused” or of a member of his family. 10 our 

opioion. the county clerk. in consultation with the county attorney, 

muat make the initial detJ!l-mination as to whether particular 

informetioo satisfies these cr:iteria. 

The test imposed by arti’::le 5547-12 is similar to that used by 

tbe Texas Supreme Court in detwmininn whether Information is exceoted 

from disclosure by e co-n Iav. r<ght of privacy. 10 Indu&isl 

Foundation’of the South v. Tems Industrial Accident Board, 540 S.W.Zd 

668, 603 (Tex. 1976), the cori:t said that material ia protected by 

c-n law privacy if it coot,tios “highly intimate or -embarrassing 

facto” whose disclosure would be “highly objectionable to a person of 

ordinary seoslbilitles.” Lo Open Recorda Decision No. 262 (1980). 

thie office said that medical ioformetloo ordinarily satisfiee this 

teat if it relates to 

a ‘drug overdose,’ ‘.acute alcohol intoxication.’ 

‘obstetrical/gyoecol~~gical’ illness. ‘convulsions/ 

sciruree.’ or ‘emotional/mental distress.’ 

Furthermore. l oy ioformation “‘created or maiotaioed” by a physician 

under section 5.08 o,f article 4495b. V.T.C.S., or by e “professional” 

as defined lo article 5561h. V.T.C.S., may not be released except aa 

iodicated in those etatutee. 

Thlo standard vi11 providsr some guidelines for the county clerk’n 

‘decieioo lo determining uhct:her to withhold ioformation in a 

particular iostaoce. We note, however, the likelihood that much or 

all material relating to a pewon Buffering from mental or emotional 

illoese may be excepted uncle:r this standard. If the clerk is 

. . 

( 

3 

‘2. 1159 
Honorable hike Driecoll - Psgc! 3 (JM-260) 

uncertaio about whether particular information "discloses intimate 

detail0 of the peraonal and private life of the accused,u or of a 

member of his family, the material in question should be submitted to 

this office as a request uodel: the Open Records Act. 

ii’] M I4 A R Y 

A county clerk may disclose to the public 

ioformation filed :ln connection with a mentally 

ill docket only if such loformatioo does not 

"disclose intimate bdetaila of the personal and 

private life of thl? accused," or of a member of 

his family, pursuan: to article 5547-12. V.T.C.S. 

J~I Fl UATTOX 

Attorney Genera1 of Texas 

TOM GREEN 

First Assistant Attorney General 

DAVID R. RICBARDS 

Executive Assistant Attorney 'General 

RICE GILPIN 

Chairman, Opinion Conauittee 

Prepared by Rick Gilpin 

Assiataot Attorney General 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COPBIITTEE 

.Rick Cilpio. Chairman 

Jon Bible 

Co110 Carl 

Susan Gerrieoo 

'Tony Guillory 

Jim Noellioger 

Jennifer Riggs 

Nancy Sutton 

0. 1160