Little Rock City Attorney Tom Carpenter said Tuesday during a city board meeting that he wants to seek an attorney general's opinion regarding potential Arkansas Freedom of Information Act disclosures related to a Dec. 31 police shooting involving the police chief.
"I think that y'all are at risk, personally and as the city, because we are withholding things that ... seem to be clearly subject to release under FOI" while relying on an exemption about ongoing criminal investigations, Carpenter said at the agenda meeting.
Discussion at the meeting concerned whether Carpenter needed to seek formal authorization from board members in public in order to ask for an attorney general's opinion, as well as whether he should have raised the issue with them at all prior to requesting the opinion.
In an email to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and others Tuesday evening, Carpenter wrote, "As a result of a discussion at the [Board of Directors] Agenda meeting today, I am sending the request for an Attorney General opinion on."
While on patrol New Year's Eve, Police Chief Keith Humphrey fired his gun at an armed suspect, apparently missing her, according to the authorities' account of the incident.
The suspect, who was later arrested, wounded another individual during the shooting outside an Asher Avenue gas station.
Humphrey has been placed on administrative leave.
Arkansas State Police agents are examining Humphrey's use of force so prosecutors can determine if the chief complied with the law. The incident is also the subject of an internal Police Department investigation.
Since Jan. 1, the Democrat-Gazette has requested records that include audiovisual material from the Dec. 31 shooting, correspondence of city officials on the subject and training records of the police chief related to firearms or the use of deadly force.
As of Tuesday evening, the city has declined to release any of the requested records.
Carpenter told the Democrat-Gazette via email Monday that with Arkansas State Police and the Pulaski County prosecuting attorney's office handling the investigation, "We have been notified that many requests for information pursuant to the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act should be deemed exempt at this time because the criminal investigation is not complete."
He cited Rule 3.8 of the Arkansas Rules of Professional Conduct and its requirement that prosecutors refrain from making certain extrajudicial comments.
"The City has decided at this time to honor the request of the criminal investigators," Carpenter wrote.