HILLARD v. CLARK III ERIE (1998)

Petitioners commenced these CPLR article 78 proceedings pursuant to the Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) (Public Officers Law art. 6) to compel respondent, the Erie County District Attorney, to disclose documents relating to their prosecution.   In his answers, respondent denied the FOIL requests on the ground that the rights of petitioners to obtain records pursuant to FOIL were suspended while they were in prison, relying on Civil Rights Law § 79 and § 79-a.   Supreme Court properly granted the petitions.

Contrary to respondent's contention, the Civil Rights Law does not preclude petitioners from making FOIL requests for government records.   Furthermore, since the inception of FOIL, prisoners have made FOIL requests and litigated the denial of those requests (see, e.g., Matter of Gould v. New York City Police Dept., 89 N.Y.2d 267, 653 N.Y.S.2d 54, 675 N.E.2d 808;  Matter of Konigsberg v. Coughlin, 68 N.Y.2d 245, 508 N.Y.S.2d 393, 501 N.E.2d 1;   Matter of Graziano v. Coughlin, 221 A.D.2d 684, 633 N.Y.S.2d 232;  Matter of Guerrier v. Hernandez-Cuebas, 165 A.D.2d 218, 566 N.Y.S.2d 406, lv. denied 78 N.Y.2d 853, 573 N.Y.S.2d 466, 577 N.E.2d 1058).

Civil Rights Law § 79(2), as amended in 1973, specifies that a sentence of imprisonment “shall not be deemed to suspend the right or capacity of any person so sentenced to commence and prosecute an action or proceeding in any court within this state or before a body or officer exercising judicial, quasi-judicial or administrative functions within this state”.   Civil Rights Law § 79-a(2) was similarly amended in 1973.   Those statutes formerly were construed to deprive prisoners of the right to bring civil lawsuits and therefore violated the due process and equal protection clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution (see, Matter of Bilello v. A.J. Eckert Co., 42 A.D.2d 243, 245-246, 346 N.Y.S.2d 2).   Because FOIL explicitly provides that requests made pursuant to FOIL are enforceable in administrative appeals and court proceedings (see, Public Officers Law § 89 [4][a], [b] ), the Civil Rights Law does not bar inmates from making and seeking to enforce FOIL requests (see, Civil Rights Law § 79[2];  § 79-a [2] ).

Judgment unanimously affirmed without costs.

MEMORANDUM: