Kansas Open Records Act
Nemaha County Sheriff’s Office
Sheriff Richard D. Vernon
212 N. 6th St.
Seneca, KS 66538
(785) 336-2311
Business Hours
8:00 am – 4 pm
(Weekdays, excluding County Holidays)
COMMON EXCEPTIONS TO THE KANSAS OPEN RECORDS ACT
Generally speaking the following types of records – among others – are protected from disclosure pursuant to the KORA:
- Criminal investigation records
- Criminal intelligence information
- Laboratory reports and files
- Information that would reveal the identity of any undercover agent or informant
- Records that would reveal the identity of the victim of any sexual offense
- Records protected by the attorney – client privilege
- Most personnel records
- Records closed by the rules of evidence
- Notes and preliminary drafts
- Medical records
- Records containing information of a personal nature
- Standard arrest reports (SARs) and standard offense reports (SORs) – SARs are not subject to disclosure and only the first page of a SOR may be obtained through the local law enforcement agency that filed the report
IT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE NEMAHA COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE TO:
- Appoint a Freedom of Information Officer (FOIO) to assist in resolving issues related to KORA requests.
- Act on record requests within three business days following their receipt and to provide the requestor notice if additional time will be required to locate or compile requested records.
- Estimate the charge for providing requested records and obtain advance payment prior to fulfilling the request.
- Redact personal information from an otherwise public record before releasing it, and/or protect from disclosure records covered by KORA exceptions.
- Determine the format (paper, electronic or other media) in which a record will be produced if the record is maintained in an electronic database and/or contains some information that may need to be redacted prior to release.
- Refuse a record request if it places an unreasonable burden on the agency.
IT IS YOUR RIGHT TO:
- Inspect or request copies of public records retained by the KBI, which are not exempt from disclosure by a specific law, during the KBI’s regular business hours.
- Be provided an estimate or statement of the reasonable costs NMSO will charge to provide requested records, prior to charges being incurred.
- Receive the records you request, or at least a response to your request, within three business days after it is received by NMSO.
- File a complaint with the Kansas Attorney General’s Office if you feel you are wrongly denied records.
PROHIBITED USES:
- K.S.A. 45-230 prohibits the use of names and addresses derived from public records for certain commercial purposes. Violation of this law can result in a civil penalty of as much as $500 per incident.
HOW TO OBTAIN OPEN RECORDS:
- Record requests must be in writing and may be delivered in person or by mail to NMSO.
- You should identify the record(s) you seek with as much specificity as possible. NMSO has no obligation to create a record that does not already exist. Also, pursuant to our record retention schedule, a record that previously existed may have since been destroyed, and NMSO is not required by law to recreate it.
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
- A complete copy of the KORA may be found at http://www.kslegislature.org, then click Statutes. The KORA begins at K.S.A. 45-215.
- The Kansas Attorney General’s Office maintains an outline regarding KORA, as well as frequently asked questions on the Act, on its website, at www.ksag.org.
A NOTE REGARDING CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORD INFORMATION
By law, criminal history record information (CHRI) is not subject to KORA. Kansas CHRI checks are fee -based and may be performed by contacting the KBI Records Management Section:
Internet:
www.kansas.gov/kbi/criminalhistory/
Mail:
Kansas Bureau of Investigation Attn: Records Management Section
1620 SW Tyler
Topeka, KS 66612 -1837
Phone: (785) 296 -2454
Email: record_check@kbi.state.ks.us