State ex rel. Chatfield v. Flautt

2012 Ohio 1294, 131 Ohio St. 3d 383

• Court: Ohio Supreme Court
• Decided: March 28, 2012
• Docket: 2011-1687
• Status: Published

Opinion

Per Curiam.

{¶ 1} We affirm the judgment of the court of appeals denying the request of appellant, inmate James L. Chatfield, for a writ of mandamus ordering appellee, Perry County Prosecuting Attorney Joseph A. Flautt, to turn over certain records to him. R.C. 149.43(B)(8) required a finding by Chatfield’s sentencing judge or the judge’s successor that the requested information was necessary to support what appeared to be a justiciable claim. State ex rel. Barb v. Cuyahoga Cty. Jury Commr., 124 Ohio St.3d 238, 2010-Ohio-120, 921 N.E.2d 236. Chatfield obtained the requisite judicial finding from the Perry County Court of Common Pleas, but that court specified that the Columbus Police Department, not the Perry County prosecuting attorney, would provide the records. Because Chat-field’s sentencing judge did not determine that the Perry County prosecuting attorney was the person responsible for the requested public records, Chatfield was not entitled to the requested extraordinary relief.

James L. Chatfield, pro se. Joseph A. Flautt, Perry County Prosecuting Attorney, pro se.

Judgment affirmed.

O’Connor, C.J., and Pfeifer, Lundberg Stratton, O’Donnell, Lanzinger, Cupp, and McGee Brown, JJ., concur.