Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1944 )

37
OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
GXOVERSELLERS
ATYCRNEI GENERAL
Homer aWPi8OU, Jr., Director
iioaOrabl.id
DepartmeQt of Public Safety
‘I’cxar , At
Cxnp Mabry
.::uatln, Texrr I\
: ttentlon: Honorable J. B. Draper, Cksia-2, 0
Drlverms LlceMe Dlvirlori’~ ?\
--.-
:ser 31r: oploion no. 0-6&k I.*..
86: Rðer Department* of
/ A~Pu~J~c aarety ls+‘author-
1 f *t9& to rtmirh photo-
-t i
Ctstbc copier of accident
‘\ \~;~‘+h~rt3 and char($efee8
‘, i+ereiOr, and related
/-- 1%. ~yestlono.
,/ -A
We hevs’fyd-r.$&ft fo’ky&Qx~ readlag aa followr~
‘h 9
*3lncr the recent court declmloa regarding
the admlerihility of txigld8at report8 we have had
a dedded Increase in octqurstr Sor photomtatic
copies ‘of patro&meQ!s repmtr.
’ ~%‘iouldl>ke t&ou whether or not the De-
pnrtment has .therightto Diake a charge tor those
phafostatfc ooples of reporta and if so what fund
the vaoney should be deposlted lo, sad could the
mouey be spen& for the purpose of suppliem end
help,for do- the photostatlo copies?”
W&q&e the pertinent provlaions OS Article 668m,
Vernon's pnaotated Civil Ytatuter:
“3ec. 39. bccldents to be reported by persons
involved.
“zvery person involved in EIQaccident rosult-
ing in death, lajury, or aPpEWent FKWWtY d-age
iionor8ble Homer Qarrlaoa, SF., page 2
of Fifty DO~~UW ($50) or 80~6 vherr one or aore
isotor vehlcle8 are involved and who 18 the holder
of an operator’8, coaccrolal operator~r, or ohauf-
feurls llCen88, under the povlrlona of thl8 Act,
shall make a report of 8uch aocldent to the Depart-
ment of Pub110 Y&ety vlthln forty-eight (48) hours.
Refural to make rwh report mhall reader the holder
of 8uch ll.aeare liable to rumpension or revocation
of suoh llcenme. Report8 reqnlred by thlr Section
shall be deemed plrlleged ao~unlcatlolu.
“Sec. 40. Accident rtatlstlcs and reportr.
“The Department rhall prepare and shall sup--
ply to police and sherifrr’ ofiloer and other auit-
able agencies, forms for accident reporta, and
such report8 ahall be made within a rearonable
time fronthe date of 8uoh accident by 8uch ot-
fleers or agencies to the DepartlPsnt at Austin,
Texan, euftialently detailing all the iact ulth
reference to any hi&way acaldent, and the persons
and vehicles involved.
‘Sea. 41. Report or death8 resulting iron
accident8 .
“Every coroner, justice of the peace, or
other ofrlclal perrormlng like funotlonr rhall on
or before the tenth (10th) dag of each month ie-
port in vrltlng to the Department the death of any
person *IthIn hIr jurisdiction during the preced-
ing calendar month a8 the result of EUI~ acoldent
i.n which a motor vehicle va8 involved and the cir-
cuastsnoes or uuoh accident.
‘so. 42. kccident reportm confidential.
“~11 required accident report8 and UUPPlemNit-
~1 repopts shell be without prejudice to the indl-
vldual 30 reporting pd shall be for the eonfldea-
tial ume of the Department except that the Depart-
ment my disclose the identity of 8 Person involved
zonorable Romer 0arrlsoa, Jr., page 3
in an la c fdea t ruoh ldontity Is not othervise
rhea
known 01)Who0 8uoh person dealer his grereaae at
such lcoldent . Ro ruoh report ah11 k wed as
evldenoe la any trl& civil or eririlul, wiring
out of lwh looldeat, exee# that the Department
Still iUrEi8h Up00 r6qMSt Oi @6y p0PSOE UhO bu,
or claiu to hAv6, 8ade rush a report 00~upon de-
SIU3d Of w QOUPt, @ Oe?0iflO&te 8h o ltir Pthat
g l
speoltled report ha8 or ha8 not been received by
the Department, sole17 to prow a oompllaaao or
failWe to conply with the repulrcwnt that such
report be -de to tha Department."
A careful 0r the statute di8UlOSe8 that
examiaatioa
a distinction 18 mnde between m
aooident report made by a
Serson involved la the accident aad oae made by a patrolme+Q
representing the Dewtmeat. U6 quote fro8 the oplaloa lo the
case of Brown (I Root vS* Enddad, 180 9. Y. (2d) 339:
“We approve the judgment OS the court or
Civil Appeals reversing the judgment or the trial
court and remanding the cause, beaaure the trial
court erred la ad8lttlag the entire report made by
patrolman Roensfhto the Departseat of Pub110 Safe-
tr. 175 S. v. 26 269. EoveveE, that report 18
not a prlvlleged oomunlaatloo under Sea. 42, of
Art. 6687b, Veraon~8 AERO. Cit. Stat. tbi8 18 rode
cleer b7 a ooa8lQratlon of Sets. 39 and 40, OS
th6 8-e SFtiOlO. 960. 39 requlre8 reports 0r ao-
aldents by ‘every person involved,' that 18, by
every party to the aooldeat, aad provides that
such reprts be deemed prlvlleged CommalO-
“shall
atlonm. Roea8ch~8 report vim called ror by 300.
40 as the rlndlngs or en orfleer invertlgatlugthe
accident, and it says nothing about a4 such re-
port belag prlvlleged.. Clearly, then, the PurPo*e
of Sec. 42 18 to qualify the blanket prlvllese ex-
tending to reports made by Ryer80n8 Involved by
30~. 39, lo tvo particulars, namely (1) t0 9erdt
the Department of FubllC SatstY t0 dl*Oloee the
identity OS say person involved la an accident,
when such 18 not known or when such person deaie*
3norable Boawr Gerrlson, Jr., peg4 4
his prereoce et the eccldant; and (2) to parnit
the Dapertment of Pub110 SaSety to oartlfy that
suoh report vea m&s, to prove that say param
claiming-to h4r4 made t&a report hae or &a not
made It,
•~ObvIoual~,Roenaoh~r raport, ea auoh, la
a haeraey atatsawlrt and should bo excluded at
another trial, ii objeotsd to ou that ground, cr-
cept auoh parts thareor only aa may trnd to im-
peach any dlraot cvldaaca 'glvan bv Roenaoh. . . .*I
The court m&es It clear that tha patrolmao~a ra-
port ia not ~ivllegad but is hearsay and vould oaly b4 ed-
mlsalble for iPlpaechlag any canillctlng tsatlmony such patrol-
man might glva in a judlclel prooeedla It V48 this point
ve had In mind In ow Oplnlon 100. O-6 Gt 1. U4 dld aot say In
that ?pi.nlonthet there vea eny duty imposed upon the Depert-
Rent to certify or furnish n photoatetlc copy of tha patrol-
man’s accident report. Us said maraly, end nov so rule, that
aiacs a petrolawila aooident report is heeraey it can only
k-e ured for tha purpose of lmp4eohIng the ultnaaa and thea
xly, of ooura4, la e judlolel prooaedlng Involvlag the acol-
c;cnt. The only statutory duty lmpoaed upoa tha Department Is
to furnish the partlnent Informetioa oontelned In Its files
vhan such lnformetlon Is required lo a judicial procesdlng.
The Supram Court ~lkevfae a&es it clear that the
report of the person involved in en ecoldent la privileged.
Tt la In raapsot to this report only that tha statute uses
the vord “certlflcate.’ As tha oourt points out, there are
only tvo..olroumatencaa under vhIoh the prlvllegad chareater
of such e report may be violated. Firat, to permit tha De-
pertment to certify the Identity of a person involved in the
eeoldent vhaa such fact Is aot knovn or when the peraoa
deaiea hls involvement. Seoond, to certify that aa involved
y;son has or has not meda the accident report required by
.
It saema clear from the opinion of the Supreme
Court and vhat ve have said that the Depertawnt la under no
duty tl furnish photostatic or other cop144 Of a patrolman’s
379
iiormrable Homer Garrlaon, Jr., page 5
accident report Eemly upon requert of sow latemated per-
soa but only la rasponae to the propar order of l a o u r t in
a proceedlw Involvlag th elooldeat. This, for 4x4~914,
vould Include, umng othea things, rubpoerur duoaa tuoum or
depositloas tekea oc Issued ln peading 8otlona. Ia the 0484
of sa involved IndlvIdual oaly he or l aowt oould demand by
subpoem OF other proper ordar 8 orrtlSlo8ta sha~lrrg vhathar
the Individual VU la tM lly hwolv4d in ro 4coldentor vheth-
cr he had rudo tha rrqulrhd loaldaat rapcart.
We have mamined the rt4tuta8 aad flnd no author-
ity for your Depwtment to make any clmrga ior. furolahiag
the Inf’ormatlon above reterred to, and it I8 our advlca thet
70~ cannot mrk4 4ny ohnrgr thareror.
Very truly yours
ATTORRBX OElyWUL OF TEXAS
Eibert Edoper
AaaIat8nt