Idaho Dispatch to Appeal Fremont County Cell Phone Records Request Denial

By Greg Pruett • October 11, 2024

Idaho Dispatch will be appealing a portion of our public records request that was denied by the Fremont County Prosecutor’s Office.

The records request is based on an exclusive story Idaho Dispatch broke about Fremont County Sheriff’s Office phones that were disposed of in a public landfill. Some of those phones eventually ended up in public hands and were not wiped clean or destroyed.

Idaho Dispatch, in its record request asked for the make, model, and serial numbers of all the phones. We asked for the disposal process of the phones and where they were disposed. Finally, we asked for the written policy that existed in 2022 for the sheriff’s office, if any, for cell phone destruction.

In a letter sent to Idaho Dispatch dated August 30, 20204, the Fremont County Prosecutor, Lindsey Blake, responded to our request by saying,

“Pursuant to Idaho Code 74-124(1)(a) & 74-105, any responsive records are exempt from disclosure. Since the requested records have not been produced, you have the right pursuant to Idaho Code 74-115 to appeal our office’s decision with the district court within 180 days.”

Idaho Dispatch has contacted the Fremont County Prosecutor’s Office via phone and email to try and ask for the specific part of the code that applies to the written policy portion of our request. We have received no response to our request for additional clarification.

Idaho Dispatch has spoken with other prosecutor’s offices and high-ranking law enforcement individuals who tell us that denying the written policy request would not fall under the exemptions for public records requests.

Given the sensitive public information that was left on these phones, Idaho Dispatch has made the decision to appeal to the district court over the denial.