Mack v. District Attorney for the Bristol District
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The case revolves around a public records request made by Eric Mack, whose brother, Anthony Harden, was fatally shot by police. Mack sought records related to the shooting under Massachusetts public records law. The district attorney's office, which had investigated the shooting, argued that the requested records were exempt from disclosure under three exemptions: the privacy exemption, the policy deliberation exemption, and the investigatory exemption. The Superior Court granted Mack's motion for summary judgment, ordering the disclosure of the requested documents with minor exceptions. The district attorney's office appealed.
The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded the case. The court held that the privacy exemption did not apply to the requested records because they related to a law enforcement misconduct investigation. The court also held that the policy deliberation exemption did not apply to the draft of the preliminary district attorney's office report, except for the "Applicable Laws" and "Conclusion" sections, which could be redacted. The court remanded the case to the Superior Court to determine whether the investigatory exemption applied to the videotaped public employee interviews and the investigator's interview questions. The court rejected the district attorney's office's argument that the Massachusetts Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission had exclusive authority to release officers' names.
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