Constitutional Law

Texas official faces felony charges after releasing jail record

By By The Associated Press

AUSTIN, Texas — The executive director of the Texas Commission on Jail Standards is facing felony charges after angering a south Texas sheriff by releasing information about an inmate who committed suicide, a newspaper reported yesterday.

Adan Munoz Jr. released a jail screening form — designed to identify potentially suicidal prisoners — while an investigation into the death of Samuel Salazar was still open. Nueces County Sheriff Jim Kaelin says the release was a violation of his department?s policy.

The Austin American-Statesman reported that Kaelin complained to the jail standards agency?s board. After Munoz was cleared, Kaelin sought to have him charged with two felony counts of misuse of official information, a crime that typically pertains to public servants who use insider government information to benefit themselves, friends or supporters.

Nueces County District Attorney Anna Jimenez presented the case to a grand jury, which returned the indictment on Aug. 20.

Munoz, 62, declined to comment. His attorney said the sheriff was retaliating against Munoz after a commission inspector found problems at the Nueces County Jail.

?He?s taking personal umbrage to, essentially, someone giving him an F as a grade,? said Munoz?s attorney, Rene Rodriguez.

Rodriguez has asked a state district court to throw out the charges and, in a separate pleading seeking to keep Munoz out of jail, accused Kaelin of unethical behavior by acting as both the victim in the case and the investigator pursuing charges against Munoz.

Kaelin?s ?actions and false accusations leading to an indictment in this matter border on mental instability, irrational behavior and unmitigated vindictiveness,? Rodriguez told the court.

Kaelin didn?t return phone calls seeking comment. The sheriff previously told the Corpus Christi Caller-Times that the inmate?s document was improperly publicized because it contained sensitive medical information and pertained to an ongoing criminal investigation.

?That form wasn?t theirs to release. It was ours,? Kaelin told the newspaper.

The Texas Public Information Act says officials who improperly disclose exempt records can be charged with a misdemeanor with a maximum penalty of six months in jail and a $1,000 fine. But the charge against Munoz is a felony punishable by two to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.

?Our lawyers can?t find a clear legal violation that would have resulted in these indictments,? said Keith Elkins, executive director of the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas. ?It just doesn?t smell right.?

Salazar committed suicide in February.

Full post as published by First Amendment Center on August 29, 2010 (boomark / email).