Open Records Request

All requests to the Kenton County Sheriff’s Office (“Sheriff’s Office”)for open records under KRS 61.870 to 61.884 (the "Open Records Act") shall adhere to this Policy and the Open Records Act. This Policy is adopted pursuant to KRS 61.876.  

Definitions:

• Sheriff’s Office - means Sheriff’s Office and any committee, created and controlled by Sheriff’s Office.
• Applicant - means any person who requests to inspect any public record of Sheriff’s Office.
• Official Custodian - means the person hereinafter designated, who by reason of such designation shall be responsible for the maintenance, care and keeping of the public records of the Sheriff’s Office, regardless of whether such records are in his actual personal custody and control.
• Principal Office - 1840 Simon Kenton Way, Suite 1200 Covington, KY 41011.
• Public Record - shall have the meaning as set forth under KRS 61.870(2).     

Procedure to Request Public Records

The procedure to be followed in requesting for inspection public records of the Sheriff’s Office shall be as follows:

Any Applicant shall direct his or her request to inspect the public records of the Sheriff’s Office to the Official Custodian.  Upon any such request, the Official Custodian may, in his discretion, require the Applicant to submit in writing an application describing the public records of the Sheriff’s Office requested for inspection.   The application shall include the Applicant's name printed legibly thereon, and shall be signed by the Applicant.   The application shall be hand-delivered, mailed, sent via facsimile or via email to the Official Custodian. 

After the receipt of any such request, the Sheriff’s Office shall within five (5) days (excepting Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays) determine whether to comply with the request and within said five (5) day period the Official Custodian shall notify in writing the Applicant of the determination.  If Sheriff’s Office's shall determine that a public record of the Sheriff’s Office requested for inspection shall be made available for inspection, and if that public record is in active use, in storage or for some other reason shall not be made available for inspection within five (5) days from the receipt of the request to inspect, the Official Custodian shall in his notification to the Applicant state a detailed explanation of the cause for the delay and shall notify the Applicant of the place, time and the date on which that public record will be made available for inspection.

 Whenever the Sheriff’s Office shall determine that a public record of the Sheriff’s Office requested for inspection is to be made available for inspection that public record of the Sheriff’s Office shall be made available to the Applicant of that public record of the Sheriff’s Office for inspection and suitable facilities shall be made available by the Sheriff’s Office for the exercise of this right.  Any and all inspections of the public records of the Sheriff’s Office may be made by either of the two following methods:  1) an Applicant may inspect the public records during the regular office hours of the Sheriff’s Office and shall take place in the facilities provided at the Principal Office of the Sheriff’s Office; or 2) by receiving copies of the public records from the Sheriff’s Office through the mail.  The Sheriff’s Office shall mail copies of the public records to an Applicant whose residence or principal place of business is outside the county in which the public records are located after he or she precisely describes the public records which are readily available within the Sheriff’s Office.  No person shall remove any original copy of any public record of the Sheriff’s Office from the offices of the Sheriff’s Office without the written permission of the Official Custodian.

Upon inspection, the Applicant shall have the right to make abstracts of any memoranda from the public records which he shall be inspecting, and to obtain copies of all written public records.  The Official Custodian shall upon the request of the Applicant make copies of any public records of the Sheriff’s Office that the Applicant is inspecting, provided that, the Applicant shall make this request in writing to the Official Custodian and shall pay the fee, including postage where appropriate, in advance.  If an Applicant requests copies of public records of the Sheriff’s Office other than written records of the Sheriff’s Office, the Official Custodian shall permit the Applicant to duplicate such records, provided that, such duplication shall to the satisfaction of the Official Custodian not damage or alter the public records of the Sheriff’s Office that shall be so duplicated.

Whenever the Sheriff’s Office shall determine that any public record of the Sheriff’s Office is a public record and that the Sheriff’s Office by reason of K.R.S. 61.878 is prohibited to disclose, in whole or in part, except by an order of a court of competent jurisdiction, the Official Custodian shall within five (5) days, (excepting Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays) after the receipt of the request of inspection, notify in writing the Applicant of the determination of the Sheriff’s Office.  The Official Custodian shall include in such notification a statement of the specific exception that authorized the withholding of the public records requested for inspection and a brief explanation of how the exception applies to the public record of the Sheriff’s Office that is to be withheld.  The response shall be issued by the Official Custodian or under his or her authority, and it shall constitute final Sheriff’s Office action.

Fees:

 The Sheriff’s Office sets the following rates of reimbursement of copying expenses under the Open Records Act for noncommercial purposes:

• Regular photocopies of documents or photographs ……..…………………$0.10 per page
• Color photocopies of documents or photographs……………………………actual cost 
• Compact Disc………………………………………………………………...actual cost
• Cost of mailing……………………………………………………………….actual cost

Submitting the Standardized Open Records Request Form

Once the requestor has completed the Standardized Open Records Request Form, it can be submitted the following ways:

1. Emailed to Jerome D. Knochelmann
2. Mailed or Hand Delivered:
   Jerome D. Knochelmann
   1840 Simon Kenton Way,
   Suite 1200,
   Covington, KY 41011
3. Faxed: C/O Jerome D. Knochelmann
   (859) 392-1829