Editor’s Note: Sunshine Request makes no claim as to the veracity of any statements or information contained in any of the requests, or public records, we receive.
Other (indicate in message) Submitted: November 4, 2022 | Updated: July 6, 2023
(November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.
Hello City of Northwest, NC Government (Records Officer),
I'd like to make a public records request for the following information under NC Public Records Law.
Ref: https://www.ncleg.net/enactedlegislation/statutes/html/bychapter/chapter_132.html
Please provide all emails Sent by any individual holding the title of Chief of Police [no matter if they were interim, acting, appointed, or hired as Chief] of the Northwest, NC Police Department. During the specific time period of January 01, 2022 through present day (date the query is performed). This request is not subject specific -- I'd like "ALL Emails Sent" during the specified time period.
I am not requesting to come in person to inspect, nor to obtain printed copies of, electronic records. In accordance with NC Public Records Law, I’m requesting explicitly that all responsive records be provided via an electronic medium / format (in which the records should already exist), such as an email, file share, google drive folder, mailed flash drive if necessary, etc.
**I do not have any additional or further clarifying info to provide other than what you see in the message above. If you are unable to fulfill any or all parts of this request, please specifically cite where a reason for denial is justified under NC Public Records Law.**
—----------
[ Editor's Note to City of Northwest: This request has been sent solely from the email address [email protected] . If anyone other than that email address contacts you to pursue a similar request, it did not come from our Team. Please do not commingle or treat that as an alteration or cancellation of our request – We intend to continue to pursue our request.
Please note that we cannot commit to sign any forms or pay any potential fees / associated costs related to any request. If it is not possible to process the request without incurring fees, then please let us know the itemized potential cost. ]
Thank you for your assistance!
Status: Completed
Documents:
Activity:
-
July 6, 2023 1:42 pm
9 months ago
from: City Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: Jul 6, 2023, 1:42 PM
subject: RE: Chief Rockenbach EmailsI will follow up on this.
Thank you,
Donna Strickland, CMC, NCCMC, NCCTC
City Clerk
910-470-4488 Cell
910-655-3110 ext. 1
Status: Completed -
July 3, 2023 10:32 am
9 months ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
cc: James Knox <[email protected]>
date: Jul 3, 2023, 10:32 AM
subject: Re: Chief Rockenbach EmailsHi Donna,
My request asked for ALL “… emails SENT BY any individual holding the title of Chief of Police [no matter if they were interim, acting, appointed, or hired as Chief] of the Northwest, NC Police Department. During the specific time period of January 01, 2022 through present day (date the query is performed). This request is not subject specific — I’d like ‘ALL Emails Sent’ during the specified time period.”
I did not ask to receive any emails that were “Sent To” anyone holding that title. Which is what I received instead. So, the time that your IT Company spent on extracting and sending the files was essentially pointless, since all they’ve sent me is emails that were “Sent TO” someone’s address.
As I just explained — Yes, you are correct that there are more than the initial 100 emails I first thought I’d received. After much additional effort, I was able to figure out (and successfully download) a total of 169 emails. Of those 619 emails, however, there are literally only 2 that I can find that are responsive to my request. (emails Sent By someone).
It is unfortunate that after all this time the request has not been fulfilled. However, our Team does not have the capacity to further pursue this request. If you or your IT Company receive future messages about this request, or a similar request, please address any discussions with that person directly (whomever in the public that might be). If you are contacted by anyone other than the email address [email protected] , then it did not come from me or my team.
Thank you.
Status: Completed -
July 3, 2023 10:21 am
9 months ago
from: City Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: Jul 3, 2023, 10:21 AM
subject: RE: Chief Rockenbach EmailsI have cc’d this email to my IT firm and all Council members. Providing the requested emails was not as simple as it sounds, We spent hours making sure none of the emails contained anything dealing with an open case, as it could have compromised a case. Everything else was sent to you. I am positive it was more than 100 emails. I’m not sure what the problem was on your end as our IT firm said it was simple to open in outlook. We are also a small team, (I am the only full-time administration employee)but strive to be transparent in all things we do. I will raise your concerns with Council at our August Regular Meeting.
Sincerely,
Donna Strickland, CMC, NCCMC, NCCTC
City Clerk
910-470-4488 Cell
910-655-3110 ext. 1
Status: Response Received from Government -
June 29, 2023 4:58 pm
9 months ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
cc: James Knox <[email protected]>
date: Jun 29, 2023, 4:58 PM
subject: Re: Chief Rockenbach EmailsHi Donna and Mayor CCed,
Related to the following November 2022 public records request:
I confirmed to Donna via email on June 6th that I was finally able to convert / download / publish the flashdrive files I received, and that I had marked the request as ‘Completed’ on our website at that time. I received Donna’s email on June 15th explaining about your “IT Company” and future updates to your website, as well as her email on June 16th which just said, “FYI”.
After June 6th it was brought to my attention that not only had I not correctly downloaded ALL of the files from the flashdrive, but also that the files I did receive are not even responsive to my request. Our small team has spent a couple weeks working to resolve this issue to make sure we’ve uploaded the correct files. This is why I haven’t been able to reply to Donna again until now.
Unfortunately, given the amount of time that’s already been spent to this point, I do not have the capacity to reopen the request and I do not wish to pursue it any further. However, I do want to make sure it’s brought to your attention (and that you also bring it to your IT Company’s attention), that the request has not actually been fulfilled. Please pass along the following information:
———————————————— This records request was submitted to the City on November 04, 2022. It asked for ALL “… emails Sent by any individual holding the title of Chief of Police [no matter if they were interim, acting, appointed, or hired as Chief] of the Northwest, NC Police Department. During the specific time period of January 01, 2022 through present day (date the query is performed). This request is not subject specific — I’d like ‘ALL Emails Sent’ during the specified time period.”
In late May 2023 I received a mailed flashdrive from the City, containing email files in their “native format”. When I initially downloaded / converted the files, it appeared as though I’d only received 100 emails (all of which were only sent “To”, not “From”, an individual). I did not ask to receive any emails that were sent “To” anyone. Therefore, the files I received are not responsive to my original request.
Recently, it has also come to my attention that the conversion process I typically use to export .MBOX files to .PDFs should have actually included a total of 619 emails pulled off the flashdrive. It is complicated / technical to explain, but essentially I wasn’t aware there’s a 100 file limit on the amount of files Apple Mail allows me to export as .PDFs at one time. That’s why it initially appeared as though I’d only received 100 files. It has taken quite a bit of time to further investigate this issue – but I was ultimately able to resolve it by exporting all the files in separate batches of 100 at a time, instead of a bulk export of all 619. I’ve created a public Google Drive folder, which contains a zipped file of all 619 converted .PDF emails.
Of the 619 email files I received, it appears that only 2 of them are sent “From” [email protected] . I find it unlikely that “… any individual holding the title of Chief of Police [no matter if they were interim, acting, appointed, or hired as Chief] of the Northwest, NC Police Department…” would have sent only 2 emails during the requested time period. In addition to that issue, the 617 other emails were not what was requested. I did not ask for emails sent “To” anyone.
** NOTE: The results of all completed requests are published on our website, and have been provided to the Sunshine Request Team directly by the disclosing government agency [government entity]. We make no claim as to the veracity of any records or responses we receive from Entities. If anyone in the public has reason to believe that the City has improperly disclosed (or is not disclosing) all available public records in accordance with NC Public Records Law, then Sunshine Request’s policy is to refer you to the disclosing agency [government entity] directly. If you feel that an alleged improper disclosure has taken place, please contact the disclosing agency [government entity] directly for any further assistance. **
Donna —
I personally do not intend to further pursue the November request. If you or your IT Company happen to receive future messages about this request, or a similar request, please address any discussions with that person directly (whomever that may be). If you are contacted by anyone other than the email address [email protected] , then it did not come from me or my team.
Thank you.
~ Lauren (and the Sunshine Request Team)
Status: Completed -
June 29, 2023 4:45 pm
9 months ago
Editor’s Note to Sender 06/29/23:
Our records request was first submitted to the City of Northwest on November 04, 2022. The request asked for all “… emails Sent by any individual holding the title of Chief of Police [no matter if they were interim, acting, appointed, or hired as Chief] of the Northwest, NC Police Department. During the specific time period of January 01, 2022 through present day (date the query is performed). This request is not subject specific — I’d like ‘ALL Emails Sent’ during the specified time period.”
After much follow up we received a mailed flashdrive from the City in late May 2023, containing email files in their “native format”. When we initially downloaded / converted the files, it appeared as though we’d only received 100 emails (all of which were only sent “To”, not “From”, an individual. We did not ask to receive any emails that were sent “To” anyone).
Recently, it has also come to our attention that the conversion process we typically use to export the .MBOX files to .PDFs should have actually included a total of 619 emails. It’s a bit complicated / technical to explain, but essentially there’s a 100 file limit (we weren’t aware of) for the amount of files Apple Mail allows us to export as .PDFs at one time. That’s why it initially appeared as though we’d only received 100 files.
It has taken quite a bit of time to further investigate this issue – but we were ultimately able to resolve it by exporting all emails in separate batches of 100 at a time, instead of a bulk export of all 619. We have now created a new Google Drive folder (which contains a zipped file of all 619 converted .PDF emails). You can view this at the following URL:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/10yTNCVfK7fp1xFlNJWUr9t847_dD3beb/view?usp=sharing
[Redownloaded 06/27/23] Final Northwest PDFs.zip
You will need to download the zip file in order to open it and view all the files.
Of the 619 email files, it appears that only 2 of them are actually sent “From” [email protected] . We find it unlikely that “… any individual holding the title of Chief of Police [no matter if they were interim, acting, appointed, or hired as Chief] of the Northwest, NC Police Department” would have sent only 2 emails during the requested time period. However, given the extraordinary amount of time already spent on the request to this point, we do not have the capacity to reopen the request or to further follow up with Donna about it.
It is very clear from our many other experiences sending requests to the City over the past year, that their organization’s process for fulfilling requests needs a major overhaul. Also, given the recent updates we’ve received from Donna, it seems that the City may now be revisiting how their website works in general, and how they fulfill records requests moving forward.
We have brought these issues to Donna / the Mayor’s attention.
☀️ ** NOTE: The results of all completed requests are published on our website, and have been provided to the Sunshine Request Team directly by the disclosing government agency [government entity]. We make no claim as to the veracity of any records or responses we receive from Entities. If anyone in the public has reason to believe that the City has improperly disclosed (or is not disclosing) all available public records in accordance with NC Public Records Law, then Sunshine Request’s policy is to refer you to the disclosing agency [government entity] directly. If you feel that an alleged improper disclosure has taken place, please contact the disclosing agency [government entity] directly for any further assistance. ** ☀️
Status: Completed -
June 16, 2023 4:49 pm
10 months ago
from: City Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: Jun 16, 2023, 4:49 PM
subject: RE: Chief Rockenbach EmailsFYI
Donna Strickland, CMC, NCCMC, NCCTC
City Clerk
910-470-4488 Cell
910-655-3110 ext. 1
Status: Response Received from Government -
June 15, 2023 12:20 pm
10 months ago
from: City Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: Jun 15, 2023, 12:20 PM
subject: RE: Chief Rockenbach EmailsThank you. We do not have an onsite IT Department. We had to pay to have the emails put into a file that was recommended by our IT Company for mailing. I do not know how to send them electronically the way you listed below. However, I now have them if they are requested again. We are putting plans in place to address these types of requests. I truly apologize for the delay.
We will be updating our website in the upcoming weeks. I have your suggestions and hope to incorporate them in the update. Please express to all the staff my apologizes and hopes to provide information much quicker in the future.
Please contact me on my cell phone number below if you have any questions.
With deepest apologies,
Donna Strickland, CMC, NCCMC, NCCTC
City Clerk
910-470-4488 Cell
910-655-3110 ext. 1
Status: Response Received from Government -
June 6, 2023 5:25 pm
10 months ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
cc: James Knox <[email protected]>
date: Jun 6, 2023, 5:25 PM
subject: Re: Chief Rockenbach EmailsHi Donna and Mayor,
On June 02, 2023 I was finally able to convert, download, and open the files I recently received via flash drive — this is specifically related to the following November 2022 public records request:
This request asked for “… emails Sent by any individual holding the title of Chief of Police [no matter if they were interim, acting, appointed, or hired as Chief] of the Northwest, NC Police Department. During the specific time period of January 01, 2022 through present day (date the query is performed). This request is not subject specific — I’d like “ALL Emails Sent” during the specified time period. “
——–I have finished reviewing the files and I will now mark this request as “Completed” on our website.
However —
I’d like to note that it took an extraordinary amount of time and effort for me and my team to receive responses to this request since November 04, 2022, as well as to figure out how to even open the responsive files. More time and effort was spent than should ever be reasonable for any member of the general public to have to expend in order to view only 100 emails.These records could have easily been sent to me via an email, or multiple emails, or a Google folder etc. from your IT department. And it should have been very easy to provide these records in one month or less. Certainly not the 6.50 months it took to physically mail me 100 emails.
Emails are a common public record, and every public entity needs a mechanism to produce them easily in response to a public records request. If the City of Northwest chooses to house these types of records in a system that requires specialized software for people to open, then I’d highly recommend that you consider alternatives moving forward. It is more transparent, and is in the public interest to do so.
Thank you for your help.
~ The Sunshine Request Team
06/08/23. Editor’s Note to Sender: Please note this info from our FAQs page:
Who should I contact if I think there are results of requests that have been improperly disclosed or should be redacted?
The results of all Completed requests are published on our site, and have been provided to Sunshine Request directly by the disclosing government agency (government entity).
Sunshine Request’s policy in situations involving an alleged improper disclosure is to refer you to the disclosing agency (government entity). If any party feels that an alleged improper disclosure has taken place, please contact the disclosing agency (government entity) directly.
If the disclosing agency, after a review of your case, determines that confidential information was improperly disclosed, and notifies us of such disclosure, we will then be able to review your case.
Similarly — Sunshine Request has reviewed any info given to us from City of Northwest to determine if it satisfies the initial request. We make no claim as to the veracity of records / responses we receive from Entities. If you have reason to believe that the City has improperly disclosed (or is not disclosing) all available public records in accordance with NC Public Records Law, we encourage you to reach out to them directly.
Thank you for using Sunshine Request!
Status: Completed -
June 2, 2023 3:37 pm
10 months ago
**06/02/23 Editor’s Note: We were finally able to successfully open and convert the .PST file the City of Northwest sent. Our conversion process started by turning the original .PST file into MBOX files, which we then converted to PDF for easy access.
At the top left of this webpage, under our “Documents” section above, you’ll find two files: (“Converted-MBOX-Files.zip”) and (“Converted-PDF-Files.zip”).
You can also access those same files, via a public Google Drive link we’ve set up. This folder contains both the Original .PST file (“PBEmailExport.pst”) as it was received via flash drive, and the converted files:
https://drive.google.com/drive/u/2/folders/1F71fdEbzfjiRT-kouUIsOTKM5BO-Vykm
For transparency’s sake, we’ve included all of the files as we originally received them, as well as how they came out after we converted them to .MBOX and .PDF and put them on Google Drive. If you choose to view the files via Google, you’ll need to phyically, download the Zipped files and open them.
However we recommend that you ignore these folders, and only view the converted .PDF files (“Converted PST to PDF emails”) via our website in our “Documents” section. This is simplest, least confusing way to look at the information 🙂 . There are a total of 100 emails to view.
We will continue to review these records as soon as possible, and will follow up with Donna early next week — once we’ve determined if the request has been fully satisfied.
Thank you for using Sunshine Request!
Status: Follow up -
May 30, 2023 1:29 pm
10 months ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
cc: James Knox <[email protected]>
date: May 30, 2023, 1:29 PM
subject: Re: Chief Rockenbach EmailsHi Donna,
Happy Tuesday!
I’m referring specifically to the November 2022 public records request at the following URL:
(November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.” Please provide all emails Sent by any individual holding the title of Chief of Police [no matter if they were interim, acting, appointed, or hired as Chief] of the Northwest, NC Police Department. During the specific time period of January 01, 2022 through present day (date the query is performed). This request is not subject specific — I’d like “ALL Emails Sent” during the specified time period. “
————————I was finally able to obtain the flashdrive from the Post Office on May 22. Unfortunately, the file on the flashdrive is a .PST file , and unfortunately I’m unable to open it. So — I can’t review the file until that is resolved.
I’ve encountered this issue with other entities before. However, my usual methods to convert the file are not working in this case. I will need to work further to figure out how to convert the file to a .PDF or some other format so it can be viewed.
At whatever point I figure this out, and I have reviewed the file, then it will be uploaded to our site. Once I determine whether the request has been fully satisfied, then I’ll email you to let you know.
Thank you.
~ The Sunshine Request Team
Status: Follow up -
May 26, 2023 4:45 pm
10 months ago
**05/26/23 Editor’s Note. Update: The file on the flash drive we received is a .PST file . We are unable to open the file. We’ve encountered the issue with other entities before. However, our usual tools to convert the file, is not working in this case.
Next week, we will need to work further to figure out how to convert the file to a .PDF or other format.
At whatever point we figure this out, and have reviewed the files, they will be uploaded to our site. Thank you for using Sunshine Request!
Status: Response Received from Government -
May 22, 2023 3:00 pm
10 months ago
**05/22/23 Editor’s Note: This afternoon we were able to pick up the flash drive that was recently mailed by the City of Northwest, NC. We will need some time to upload and review the files to ensure the request has been completely fulfilled. The files will be posted to our website as soon as we complete our review and write to Donna to let her know.
Thank you for using Sunshine Request!
Status: Response Received from Government -
May 12, 2023 10:43 am
11 months ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
date: May 12, 2023, 10:43 AM
subject: Re: Chief Rockenbach EmailsHi Donna,
Thanks for letting me know.
Yes, that is the correct mailing address.
To clarify for users on our site — you are referring specifically to the November 2022 records request I sent, found at the following URL:
(November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Fortunately, I haven’t gone to the PO Box yet this week to check for the flashdrive you already said was mailed.
——–I will go to the PO Box in 1 week from today to check whether it has arrived.
It would be helpful, however, if you can please share tracking information with me once it is available. This way I do not have to make multiple trips to the box to see if it arrived.
I’ve mentioned before that it is not convenient for me to travel and pick up the files at USPS, and the post office will return the flashdrive to your office if I do not collect it in a timely manner.
Thank you.
~ The Sunshine Request Team
Status: Government Processing Request -
May 12, 2023 9:03 am
11 months ago
from: City Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: May 12, 2023, 9:03 AM
subject: Chief Rockenbach EmailsHi,
I have a flash drive I will be sending out to you today. It is with sincere apology that I tell you the flash drive was not mailed. It was located Wednesday in my office by the postage machine. This is the address I will be sending it to:
Sunshine Request
PO Box 17391
Asheville, NC 28816Thank you,
Donna Strickland, CMC, NCCMC, NCCTC
City Clerk
910-470-4488 Cell
910-655-3110 ext. 1
Status: Government Processing Request -
May 12, 2023 8:58 am
11 months ago
**05/12/23 Editor’s Note: The below message that relates to a November 2022 request were sent to Sunshine via an email thread Donna is using related to a different records request… from March 2023. “(March 2023) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.” Found here: https://www.sunshinerequest.com/records_request/march-2023-request-for-city-of-northwest-nc-government-money-spent-on-computers-laptops-tractors-vehicles-01-01-2022-03-10-2023/
from: City Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: May 12, 2023, 8:58 AM
subject: RE: [New Records Request] (March 2023) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.Ok.
Donna Strickland, CMC, NCCMC, NCCTC
City Clerk
910-470-4488 Cell
910-655-3110 ext. 1
Status: Response Received from Government -
May 5, 2023 1:40 pm
11 months ago
**05/05/23 Editor’s Note: The flash drive Donna is referring to is actually related to the November 2022 request we submitted to the City of Northwest, NC. Found here: https://www.sunshinerequest.com/records_request/november-2022-request-for-city-of-northwest-nc-government-all-emails-sent-by-any-interim-appointed-acting-or-hired-police-chief-01-01-2022-present-day/
However, the email thread Donna is now using to email us about the November request is actually related to a different request called “(March 2023) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.” https://www.sunshinerequest.com/records_request/march-2023-request-for-city-of-northwest-nc-government-money-spent-on-computers-laptops-tractors-vehicles-01-01-2022-03-10-2023/
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
date: May 5, 2023, 1:40 PM
subject: Re: [New Records Request] (March 2023) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.Hi Donna,
I have tried to be as explicit as possible about what request I’m talking about, every time I’ve been following up with you.
You can see all communications about the November 2022 request at the following URL:
You can see all communications about the March 2023 request (that’s the email thread we’re on now) at the following URL:
The main issue with these requests has not been just that you’re using the “wrong threads” to reply to me, which does make things more complicated than necessary. It’s that I’ve been getting no replies at all to any of my records requests or emails when I’ve been following up. And therefore, I have no other choice than to contact other people to try to get a response. There is no other contact info for anyone else at the City of Northwest on your website, besides yours and the Mayor’s email address and a general phone #. If you are not the appropriate person to send records requests to in the future, and they should be sent instead to the City Lawyer or someone else who processes these requests — please let know.
I sent the March 2023 request on March 10, and I did not receive any reply at all. I’ve spent almost 2 months following up to get a reply, and I’m just now learning that you’ve received the request and are going to process it. Moving forward, if my Team or I sends in a new records request in the future, please confirm receipt as soon as possible to acknowledge that it has been received. As a member of a very small team myself, I fully understand that you may have other work responsibilities in addition to processing records requests. However, Under NC Public Records Law, the City is required to process all records requests “promptly”. Requesters should not have to follow up numerous times or call your office just to get a response.
When a public records request is submitted, at the very least there needs to be some acknowledgement that it was received, and some indication provided of when it might be completed. As a practice I follow up on records requests once every 1 – 2 weeks, until I have either received a response, or there is a clear update about when the request will be completed.
I will try to go to the PO Box today or on Monday to look for the flashdrive related to the November 2022 request. I will not be able to review / process it until next week, however. But when I do, if I have any questions, or if I’m able to mark that request as “Completed” — I will email you about that on the email thread for the November 2022 request. I’ll let you know.
Thank you for your help.
~ The Sunshine Request Team
Status: Follow up -
May 4, 2023 4:14 pm
11 months ago
**05/04/23 Editor’s Note: The below messages that relate to a November 2022 request were sent to Sunshine via an email thread Donna is using related to a different records request… from March 2023. “(March 2023) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.” Found here: https://www.sunshinerequest.com/records_request/march-2023-request-for-city-of-northwest-nc-government-money-spent-on-computers-laptops-tractors-vehicles-01-01-2022-03-10-2023/
from: City Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: May 4, 2023, 4:14 PM
subject: RE: [New Records Request] (March 2023) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.Please let me know when you get the flash drive.
Moving forward I will most definitely make sure to post on the correct “thread”.
Since you mentioned you posted everything on your webpage, are you able to share that?
I see that in the subject line this is the ref to March 2023 new records request. I will send that to you as soon as I can.
Sincerely,
Donna Strickland, CMC, NCCMC, NCCTC
City Clerk
910-470-4488 Cell
910-655-3110 ext. 1
Status: Clarification Provided -
May 4, 2023 1:54 pm
11 months ago
**05/04/23 Editor’s Note: The below messages that relate to the November request were sent to Sunshine via an email thread Donna is using related to a different records request from March 2023. “(March 2023) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.” Found here: https://www.sunshinerequest.com/records_request/march-2023-request-for-city-of-northwest-nc-government-money-spent-on-computers-laptops-tractors-vehicles-01-01-2022-03-10-2023/
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
date: May 4, 2023, 1:54 PM
subject: Re: [New Records Request] (March 2023) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.Hi Donna,
I agree this process has been more complicated than it should be, and I hope the process for submitting future requests to your office will be streamlined. I will revisit any “recommendations” I have for how this process can be improved later, once I get some resolution to the two open requests.
Since there are now two completely different requests we’re talking about, and they were sent to you months apart, they should not be “combined”. I’m sure you can see that it becomes time consuming / confusing to spend weeks following up to get a reply to both requests, and then also having to use different email threads to talk about multiple requests at the same time. So I am asking you to please keep our future discussions about those two different requests separate. I post everything you say to me on our website, and our communications are specific to a particular request.
I sent you a records request in November. You’re still working on that I guess, and are saying there is a flash drive that perhaps has been mailed. I’ll go check on that this week. Hopefully it did not get returned to your office.
If you have any questions or additional information you need to share with me about that request specifically, please do so on the email thread in your inbox that has the subject line:
Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Unrelated to that — on March 10, 2023 I sent you an entirely new and different records request. One person can send more than one records request to your office at a time, so it’s always important that you acknowledge you’ve received the request and provide some timeline for its completion. This way I do not have to continuously follow up. This is now the request we’re talking about — the email thread is called:
[New Records Request] (March 2023) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.For simplicity I’m going to re-paste the original message for the March 10 request I sent you here:
——————–Hi Donna or City of Northwest, NC (Records Officer),
I’d like to make a public records request for information that may be available in your office. If you’re not the appropriate party to contact about the request, please provide the correct name and email address of whom I should send it to.
Please confirm receipt to let me know the request will begin processing, and if possible, please provide a rough estimate of when the request may be completed. I will plan on following up again at the end of the month if I have not heard back before then.
Here are the details of the request:
Subject:
(March 2023) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.Message:
“Hello again Donna or City of Northwest, NC Government (Records Officer),I’d like to make a public records request for the following information under NC Public Records Law. Ref: https://www.ncleg.net/enactedlegislation/statutes/html/bychapter/chapter_132.html
If such a record exists – Please provide the total amount of money spent by the City of Northwest, NC on each of the following types of purchases, during the specific time period of 01/01/2022 through 03/10/2023:
– City Computers and Laptops
– Purchase of Tractor(s)
– Purchase of Vehicle(s). This should also include the purchase of a new Ford SUV.If possible, please break down each of these expense types by total amount per year (2022, and 2023).
If any / all of this info is already publicly available online, please provide a link to where it can be accessed.
** Please Note: I am simply requesting an electronic copy of an electronic record, if one exists. I am NOT asking to come in person to inspect, nor to obtain a printed copy of, this electronic record. I’m requesting explicitly that any responsive info be provided to me via an electronic medium / format (in which the copy of this record should already exist). If you are unable to fulfill any or all parts of this request, please specifically cite where a reason for denial is justified under NC Public Records Law.**
——————By Law I am not required to provide a name or address to associate with a public records request, but in order to move things along I’d like to clarify that this request is being made by:
Sunshine Request
PO Box 17391
Asheville, NC 28816The request has been sent solely from the email address [email protected] . If anyone other than that email address contacts you to pursue a similar request, it did not come from our Team. Please do not commingle or treat that as an alteration or cancellation of our request – We intend to continue to pursue our request.
Please note that by submitting this request, I am NOT agreeing to pay any potential fees or associated costs related to my request. If it is not possible to process the request without incurring fees, then please let me know the itemized potential cost and explanations for those charges upfront, and DO NOT proceed until I can respond.
Thank you for your assistance!”
Thank you!
** Sunshine Request (www.sunshinerequest.com) makes no claim as to the veracity of any statements or information contained in any of the requests, or public records, we receive.
Status: Follow up -
May 4, 2023 10:53 am
11 months ago
from: City Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: May 4, 2023, 10:53 AM
subject: RE: [New Records Request] (March 2023) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.This has become way to complicated. Whatever has made you feel like we are not working on your request, I apologize. I did not try to cause you any problems by not sending you a response on the wrong “thread”. I am the only full-time person in the administration of City Hall. I’m doing the best that I can.
I saw that you did not find our webpage helpful. What type of information would you like to see on our website. This would be helpful to us making our website useful.
I will send the March 2023 information as soon as I get a few minutes.
Hopefully, I sent you the right information on the correct thread. If not please let me know and I will copy and then paste the information to the other thread.
Sincerely,
Donna Strickland, CMC, NCCMC, NCCTC
City Clerk
910-470-4488 Cell
910-655-3110 ext. 1
Status: Clarification Provided -
May 3, 2023 5:26 pm
11 months ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
date: May 3, 2023, 5:26 PM
subject: Re: [New Records Request] (March 2023) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.Hi Donna,
As far as a flash drive is concerned — can you please clarify what specific records request you’re referring to?
Right now we are communicating on an email thread about a new March 2023 records request for “Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.”
——–
The “flash drive” you’re referring to should be related to a November 2022 request I sent you for “All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day”. That is an entirely different request than the March 2023 request above.
There is a separate email thread for the November 2022 records request specifically. At no point have I ever been told that a flash drive was mailed. You said you were checking with IT, and I asked you repeatedly to let me know when it would be mailed so that it did not sit at the PO Box and get returned to your office. I did not receive a response, and you never told me that it was sent. If you’re now saying that it has finally been mailed (when was that?) I’ll go and check it out at the PO Box this week.
If you are talking about the November 2022 request specifically, then I’d ask that you please move any future conversations about this over to that request’s email thread — since, I have been following up with you there and it is an entirely different records request from the email thread above.
All information about where to mail flash drive etc. can be found there. I want to avoid any further confusion talking about two different records requests like they are the same thing. They are not.
——–
Related to the request above in March 2023. Can you please confirm that you’ve received this records request, and if it has begun being processed? I have never received any reply at all to confirm its receipt.
Thank you.
Status: -
May 3, 2023 4:49 pm
11 months ago
from: City Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: May 3, 2023, 4:49 PM
subject: RE: [New Records Request] (March 2023) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.You should have already received the flash drive. If you would like I can see if our IT can send it by email. He did not recommend that, but I can double check. If not I can mail another one to you certified with signature if that will help. Please send me the address so I can make sure I have the correct one.
I believe I saw where Connie sent you the contact numbers to Council. I can send you their email addresses if you want that as well. Sheila Grady, our Mayor Pro Tem is good at responding quickly.
Thank you,
Donna Strickland, CMC, NCCMC, NCCTC
City Clerk
910-470-4488 Cell
910-655-3110 ext. 1
Status: Clarification Provided -
April 28, 2023 2:23 pm
11 months ago
**04/28/23 Editor’s Note: The flash drive Donna is referring to is actually related to the November 2022 request we submitted to the City of Northwest, NC. Found here: https://www.sunshinerequest.com/records_request/november-2022-request-for-city-of-northwest-nc-government-all-emails-sent-by-any-interim-appointed-acting-or-hired-police-chief-01-01-2022-present-day/
However, the email thread Donna is now using to email us about the November request is actually related to a different request called “(March 2023) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.” https://www.sunshinerequest.com/records_request/march-2023-request-for-city-of-northwest-nc-government-money-spent-on-computers-laptops-tractors-vehicles-01-01-2022-03-10-2023/
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
cc: Connie Marlowe <[email protected]>,
James Knox <[email protected]>
date: Apr 28, 2023, 2:34 PM
subject: Re: [New Records Request] (March 2023) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.Hi Donna,
To clarify —
You are referring to the wrong request. The email chain you’re replying to right now, is one for is a different March 2023 request.The “flash drive” you’re referring to is related to a November 2022 request, and it is different than the one above.
There is a separate email thread for that November records request specifically. Please communicate about that request, on the appropriate email thread, and do not confuse these requests further.
At no point have I ever been told that a flash drive was mailed. I asked you repeatedly to let me know when it would be mailed. I did not receive a response.
Thank you.
from: City Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Connie Marlowe <[email protected]>,
Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
cc: James Knox <[email protected]>
date: Apr 28, 2023, 2:23 PM
subject: RE: [New Records Request] (March 2023) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: Money spent on Computers, Laptops, Tractor(s), Vehicle(s). 01/01/2022 – 03/10/2023.As you have been told, the City has responded to your request. A flash drive has been mailed. You may call me at either number below. You only need to contact the City of Northwest if you are requesting information from the City. You contact the County for anything to do with the County.
The number to our Mayor is 910-655-3110 ext. 3. Please contact him if you have any questions or complaints. His new email address is [email protected]
Donna Strickland, CMC, NCCMC, NCCTC
City Clerk
910-470-4488 Cell
910-655-3110 ext. 1
Status: Follow up -
April 27, 2023 2:25 pm
11 months ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
cc: [email protected], Connie Marlowe <[email protected]>
date: Apr 27, 2023, 2:25 PM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Good Afternoon Donna, Mayor, (and Connie Marlowe with Brunswick County, NC now CCed again),
The City of Northwest’s website has no email contact info available for any person at all, besides Donna and the Mayor. Therefore, in order to follow up, the only additional email address I can find with a search online for the “City of Northwest, NC” is for Connie Marlowe.
I am continuing to receive public records requests that I need to send in to your office. However, since I still haven’t been receiving any responses from either Donna or the Mayor, I’ve had to hold off on sending in new requests until I finally hear back from someone.
At this point, my request is almost 6 months old. I haven’t received a response to my most recent email (and all follow ups) since 04/07/23 regarding the following records request:
(November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.I would appreciate it if Donna or someone else can please reply to this [and all other] emails she has been sent regarding specific records requests.
Donna — Can you please clarify whether or not the flash drive you mentioned on March 07 has been mailed yet?
———
Additionally, given all my previous experiences trying to make requests to your office, I remain concerned that the City of Northwest may be intentionally delaying fulfillment of requests by allowing them to “sit” until staff has availability or feels like addressing. Under NC Public Records Law, the City is required to “promptly” process all valid public records requests. Requesters should not be required to send numerous emails / follow ups in order to get a reply, or even no reply at all.
With this in mind, I want to highlight the court case referenced in item #6 of the following article, posted on the NC Press Association website. In this instance: “The trial court held that an unjustified one-month delay in production of records was tantamount to a denial”. http://www.ncpress.com/stories/a-bakers-dozen-for-2022nc-public-records-law,2390
I respectfully ask that legal staff take immediate action to resolve this issue and ensure that ALL public records requests are being fulfilled by the City as required under NC Public Records Law.
This is my final attempt to follow up on this request. Having made all reasonable efforts to follow up since November 2022 — if I do not receive a response in a week then I will mark this request as having been “Denied”, again, by your organization. And at that point I will consider how this issue can be raised to your City Council so they are made aware of how records requests are being processed.
FYI. In just a moment I will also follow up with you separately, about a different records request I sent to you in March.
Thank you.
~ The Sunshine Request Team
Status: Follow up -
April 18, 2023 4:41 pm
11 months ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
cc: [email protected]
date: Apr 18, 2023, 4:41 PM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Good Afternoon Donna (and Mayor),
I’m following up again regarding my public records request. First sent to your offices on November 04, 2022:
(November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.I have not received a response to my most recent email on 04/07/23. I’d like to ask again if you can please provide an anticipated date for the completion of this request?
Can you please clarify whether the flash drive you mentioned on March 07 has been mailed yet? I do not go to check my PO Box regularly, and am really hoping to avoid a situation where USPS sends the flash drive back to your office.Alternatively — You could also email the files to me, set up a public Google Drive folder, dropbox, etc. to deliver the files, if they haven’t already been mailed.
I’ll call your office in a week to follow up, if I do not hear anything else before then.
Thank you!
~ The Sunshine Request Team
Status: Follow up -
April 7, 2023 1:14 pm
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
cc: [email protected]
date: Apr 7, 2023, 1:14 PM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Hi Donna,
Happy Friday!
Checking in again regarding the following public records request. First sent to your offices on 11/04/2022:
(November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.I’d like to ask again if you can please provide an anticipated date for completion of the request, and/or whether the flash drive you mentioned has been mailed yet?
As soon as it is mailed, please let me know. I want to avoid having it sent back to your office by USPS, if I do not pick it up quickly.
Thank you!
~ The Sunshine Request Team
Status: Follow up -
March 24, 2023 11:02 am
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
date: Mar 24, 2023, 11:02 AM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Hi Donna,
Excellent. Thank you for the update!
I’ll check on this again in a couple weeks if I don’t hear anything else.
——-FYI. In just a moment I will also follow up with you separately about a different records request I sent to you in March.
I’d like to keep those communications separate from this email thread.
Thank you!
Status: Government Processing Request -
March 24, 2023 10:57 am
1 year ago
from: City Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: Mar 24, 2023, 10:57 AM
subject: RE: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.My IT guy said he will get the information from our system next week. I will keep you updated.
Sincerely,
Donna Strickland, CMC, NCCMC, NCCTC
City Clerk
910-470-4488 Cell
910-655-3110 ext. 1
Status: Government Processing Request -
March 21, 2023 11:03 am
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
date: Mar 21, 2023, 11:03 AM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Excellent. Thank you Donna!
~ The Sunshine Request Team
Status: Government Processing Request -
March 21, 2023 10:57 am
1 year ago
from: City Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: Mar 21, 2023, 10:57 AM
subject: RE: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.I have received it and I hope the IT company can get to it by the end of next week. I will let you know as soon as I mail it.
Donna Strickland, CMC, NCCMC, NCCTC
City Clerk
910-470-4488 Cell
910-655-3110 ext. 1
Status: Government Processing Request -
March 20, 2023 1:00 pm
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
date: Mar 20, 2023, 1:00 PM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Hi Donna,
I’m just following up to ask if the flash drive has been mailed yet? As soon as it is, please let me know.
I want to avoid having it sent back to your office by USPS, if I do not pick it up quickly.
Thank you for your help!
~The Sunshine Request Team
Status: Follow up -
March 8, 2023 11:49 am
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
date: Mar 8, 2023, 11:49 AM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Thank you Donna.
That will be great! Do let me know.
I want to avoid having the flashdrive sent back to your office by USPS if I do not pick it up quickly.
Have a great afternoon!
Status: Government Processing Request -
March 7, 2023 3:04 pm
1 year ago
from: City Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: Mar 7, 2023, 3:04 PM
subject: RE: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.I asked our IT department, and they told me that the best way to get you the information is to mail it. I can email you when I mail it.
Donna Strickland, CMC, NCCMC, NCCTC
City Clerk
910-470-4488 Cell
910-655-3110 ext. 1
Status: Government Processing Request -
March 7, 2023 2:33 pm
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: Connie Marlowe <[email protected]>
date: Mar 7, 2023, 2:33 PM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Thank you Connie! I really appreciate your help.
I am in contact with Donna again now.
Have a great afternoon!
~ Lauren (and the Sunshine Request Team)
Status: Government Processing Request -
March 7, 2023 2:31 pm
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: City Clerk <[email protected]>
date: Mar 7, 2023, 2:31 PM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Good Afternoon Donna,
Thank you for your reply!
If it is not possible to email me the files, or to add them to a public google drive linke, etc. and if mailing them via flash drive is the only way to send, then please mail to:
Sunshine Request
PO Box 17391
Asheville, NC 28816It’s very important, however, that you please let me know as soon as the package has been mailed. USPS recently rejected / sent back a flash drive from another entity, because we did not know that it had been sitting at the Post Office since December.
We very rarely ever have to use the PO Box for requests (since things ilke emails are usually available electronically), and so we do not regularly go and inspect the box unless we know to look out for a package.
Thank you for your help!
I’ll follow up with you separately about any other open records requests, later today.
~ Lauren (and the Sunshine Request Team)
Status: Government Processing Request -
March 7, 2023 2:07 pm
1 year ago
from: City Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: Mar 7, 2023, 2:07 PM
subject: RE: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Hi,
I have the emails restored. I have ordered a flash drive to save the emails on. I need the address you want it mailed to.
Have a great day!
Donna Strickland, CMC, NCCMC, NCCTC
City Clerk
910-470-4488 Cell
910-655-3110 ext. 1
Status: Response Received from Government -
March 7, 2023 1:38 pm
1 year ago
from: Connie Marlowe <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>, Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
cc: “[email protected]” <[email protected]>
date: Mar 7, 2023, 1:38 PM
subject: RE: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.I spoke with Donna Strickland, City Clerk/Finance Officer at the City of Northwest, and she stated that she will be handling this records request.
Respectfully,
Status: Clarification Provided -
March 6, 2023 6:28 pm
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
cc: [email protected], [email protected]
date: Mar 6, 2023, 6:28 PM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Good evening Donna, Mayor, (and Connie Marlowe with Brunswick County, NC now CCed),
The City of Northwest’s website has no email contact info listed for any person at all. Therefore, in order to follow up, the only additional email address I can find with a search online related to the “City of Northwest, NC” is for Connie Marlowe.
I am continuing to receive public records requests that I need to send in to your office. However, since I haven’t been receiving any responses from either Donna or the Mayor, I’ve had to hold off on sending in new requests until I finally hear back from someone.
This is my 9th (and final) attempt overall to follow up with you regarding this public records request, first sent to the City on 11/04/2022:
(November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.I do understand that Donna had been out of office / ill at some point last year. However, the last I’ve heard about the request was on January 18th ( “I am catching up. I’ll send as soon as I can.” )
I have followed up 4 times since then. Having made all reasonable attempts to follow up, and having received no response — I am now marking the request as having been “Denied” by the City of Northwest. If at some point you wish to respond, I will be happy to reopen the request on my website.
Similarly — I also submitted a different public records request on February 21, which has received no response as of this writing. I will follow up with Donna again about that separately, on the appropriate email thread.
———I acknowledge that I could try to call Donna’s office, again, to follow up about this request. But, from my previous experience submitting requests and following up with the City, I find it’s unreasonable to expect the public to make additional efforts like this just to receive a late reply to emails about a public records request. Therefore, I want to express my concern regarding the management of this and all other requests, as I worry that the City is not processing public records requests in compliance with the Law:
https://www.ncleg.net/enactedlegislation/statutes/html/bychapter/chapter_132.htmlI would highly recommend that the City revisits their current public records request fulfillment process to ensure you’re in compliance with the Law, and that you fulfill all requests in a timely manner.
Thank you for your help!
~ Lauren (and The Sunshine Request Team)
Status: Follow up -
February 21, 2023 3:29 pm
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
cc: [email protected]
date: Feb 21, 2023, 3:29 PM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Good afternoon Donna,
I hope that you’ve been well, and are having a good month so far!
This is my 8th attempt to follow up on the following public records request, since it was first sent to your offices on 11/04/2022:
(November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.The last I heard from you was on January 18 ( “I am catching up. I’ll send as soon as I can.” )
I’d like to ask again if you can please provide an update on the status of this request and any associated files. Can you please provide an anticipated date for completion of the request?
I will make one more attempt to follow up / call your office at the end of the month, if I have not heard anything else before then.
Thank you!
~ The Sunshine Request Team
Status: Follow up -
February 8, 2023 6:19 pm
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
cc: [email protected]
date: Feb 8, 2023, 6:19 PM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Good afternoon Donna,
Following up again to see if you have any update on the files? I will mark this request as completed as soon as we review and post them to our site.
I will plan on following up again at the end of the month if I don’t hear back before then.
Thank you!
Status: Follow up -
February 1, 2023 4:02 pm
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
date: Feb 1, 2023, 4:02 PM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Good afternoon Donna,
Any update on the files? I will mark this request as completed as soon as we review and post them to our site.
I will plan on following up again at the end of the month if I don’t hear back before then.
Thank you!
Status: Follow up -
January 18, 2023 3:23 pm
1 year ago
from: Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: Jan 18, 2023, 3:23 PM
subject: RE: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.I am catching up. I’ll send as soon as I can.
Thanks,
Donna Strickland, NCTC, NCMC, CMC
City Clerk/Finance Officer
910-655-3110 Office
910-470-4488 Cell
Status: Government Processing Request -
January 18, 2023 2:58 pm
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
date: Jan 18, 2023, 2:58 PM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Good afternoon Donna,
Hope you’re feeling better.
I am checking in on this request to see if you can get those files sent over? I will mark as completed as soon as we review and post them to our site.
I will plan on following up again in early February if I don’t hear back before then.
Thank you!
Status: Follow up -
January 3, 2023 5:43 pm
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
date: Jan 3, 2023, 5:43 PM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Good afternoon Donna,
Oh no! Just saw your last email. Hope you’re feeling better.
Send over the files whenever you’re back in the office.
I will plan on checking in again on this before the end of the month if I don’t hear back before then.
Thank you!
Status: Follow up -
January 3, 2023 2:41 pm
1 year ago
from: Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: Dec 30, 2022, 2:41 PM
subject: RE: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.I know this will be hard to believe but I have COVID. The day after Christmas I talked to my co worker, and she said she tested positive. I tested and was posted. We had to close City Hall for the entire last week of December. This is the first time that happened since COVID started. We are very careful in the office. We plan to open back up on Tuesday. I have the emails available from our IT person. I will send as quick as possible. Thanks,
Donna Strickland, NCTC, NCMC, CMC
City Clerk/Finance Officer
910-655-3110 Office
910-470-4488 Cell
Status: Government Processing Request -
December 29, 2022 2:01 pm
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
date: Dec 29, 2022, 2:01 PM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Good afternoon Donna,
Thank you for the update. We will check back in next month.
Happy New Year!
Status: Government Processing Request -
December 15, 2022 12:27 pm
1 year ago
from: Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: Dec 15, 2022, 12:27 PM
subject: RE: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.I want to let you know that I have sent this request to our IT Department. I will send you the requested information or an update as soon as I can.
Thanks,
Donna Strickland, NCTC, NCMC, CMC
City Clerk/Finance Officer
910-655-3110 Office
910-470-4488 Cell
Status: Government Processing Request -
December 9, 2022 11:48 am
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
date: Dec 9, 2022, 11:48 AM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Hi Donna,
I’m sorry to hear you have been ill.
Thanks for your reply!
I will leave the request open, and we will plan to follow up with you again at the end of the month, if we have not heard anything else before then.
Thank you for your help!
~ The Sunshine Request Team
Status: Government Processing Request -
December 9, 2022 8:38 am
1 year ago
from: Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
to: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
date: Dec 9, 2022, 8:38 AM
subject: RE: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Hi,
I have just returned to work. I know you were told I was sick and out of the office. I was out a little over three weeks. I am behind but hopefully will be caught up by the end of next week. If you need to mark the request as denied, that’s ok I’ll still send the information as soon as I can. We take request seriously but again; this has been a unique situation as I am never out of work. If you sent the request prior to me being out I apologize as it was overlooked. Please not my cell number below and always feel free to contact me at that number.
Donna Strickland, NCTC, NCMC, CMC
City Clerk/Finance Officer
910-655-3110 Office
910-470-4488 Cell
Status: Government Processing Request -
December 8, 2022 12:24 pm
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
cc: [email protected]
date: Dec 8, 2022, 12:24 PM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Good Afternoon City of Northwest, NC Government / Donna (Mayor cc’ed),
This is my 4th attempt to follow up regarding my public records request above. Sent to Donna on 11/04/2022:
(November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.I have not received any response.
I also called the City at (910) 655-3110 during the afternoon on 11/29/22, and spoke with someone in Donna’s office. I told them I was following up on our emails that have not been answered, and wanted to make sure the request has been received and check there isn’t another email address where we should be sending them. We provided additional context about the request subject / dates, etc. Donna was out of office, but hopefully received our message.
I’d like to ask again that you please confirm the request has been received on your end, and if / when it will begin being processed. Please provide an anticipated date for completion, and I will follow up around the time you specify.
If I do not hear back from you in a week, I will mark the request as “Denied” on our website.
Thank you!
~ The Sunshine Request Team
Status: Follow up -
November 29, 2022 4:12 pm
1 year ago
Editor’s Note 11/29/22: We called the City of Northwest, NC just now [910-655-3110] and spoke with someone in Donna’s office. We told them we’re following up on our emails that have not been answered, and wanted to make sure that the request has been received and check there isn’t another email address where we should be sending them. We provided additional context about the request subject / dates, etc.
Donna is out of office, but should hopefully receive our message and follow up with us via email soon. If we do not hear back, we’ll follow up again in another week or so.
Status: Follow up -
November 21, 2022 1:10 pm
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
cc: [email protected]
date: Nov 21, 2022, 1:10 PM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Good Afternoon City of Northwest, NC Government / Donna (Mayor cc’ed),
This is my second attempt to follow up regarding my public records request above. Sent to Donna on 11/04/2022:
(November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.I have not received any response.
Please confirm the request has been received on your end, and if / when it will begin being processed. Please provide an anticipated date for completion, and I will follow up around the time you specify.
Thank you!
~ The Sunshine Request Team
Status: Follow up -
November 11, 2022 5:19 pm
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
cc: [email protected]
date: Nov 11, 2022, 5:19 PM
subject: Re: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Good Afternoon City of Northwest, NC Government,
I’m following up on this public records request that I sent in on 11/4: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.
Please confirm that the request has been received on your end, and if / when it will begin being processed. Please provide a timeline or rough estimate as to when the request will be completed, and I will follow up around the time you specify.
In any case, I’ll plan to follow up again at the end of the month if I have not heard back before then.
Thank you for your assistance!
Status: Follow up -
November 4, 2022 6:38 pm
1 year ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: Finance Clerk <[email protected]>
date: Nov 4, 2022, 6:38 PM
subject: Records Request: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.Good afternoon Northwest, NC Government (Records Officer),
I’d like to make a public records request for information that may be available in your office.
If you’re not the appropriate party to contact about the request, please provide the correct name and email address of whom I should send it to.
Please confirm receipt to let me know the request will begin processing, and if possible, please provide a rough estimate of when the request may be completed. I will plan on following up again around the end of the month if I have not heard back before then.
Here are the details of the request:
Subject: (November 2022) Request for City of Northwest, NC Government: All emails Sent by any interim, appointed, acting, or hired Police Chief. 01/01/2022 – present day.
Message: “Hello City of Northwest, NC Government (Records Officer),
I’d like to make a public records request for the following information under NC Public Records Law.
Ref: https://www.ncleg.net/enactedlegislation/statutes/html/bychapter/chapter_132.htmlPlease provide all emails Sent by any individual holding the title of Chief of Police [no matter if they were interim, acting, appointed, or hired as Chief] of the Northwest, NC Police Department. During the specific time period of January 01, 2022 through present day (date the query is performed). This request is not subject specific — I’d like “ALL Emails Sent” during the specified time period.
I am not requesting to come in person to inspect, nor to obtain printed copies of, electronic records. In accordance with NC Public Records Law, I’m requesting explicitly that all responsive records be provided via an electronic medium / format (in which the records should already exist), such as an email, file share, google drive folder, mailed flash drive if necessary, etc.
**I do not have any additional or further clarifying info to provide other than what you see in the message above. If you are unable to fulfill any or all parts of this request, please specifically cite where a reason for denial is justified under NC Public Records Law.**
————-[ Editor’s Note to City of Northwest: This request has been sent solely from the email address [email protected] . If anyone other than that email address contacts you to pursue a similar request, it did not come from our Team. Please do not commingle or treat that as an alteration or cancellation of our request – We intend to continue to pursue our request.
Please note that we cannot commit to sign any forms or pay any potential fees / associated costs related to any request. If it is not possible to process the request without incurring fees, then please let us know the itemized potential cost. ]
Thank you for your assistance!”
Thank you!
** Sunshine Request (www.sunshinerequest.com) makes no claim as to the veracity of any statements or information contained in any of the requests, or public records, we receive.
Status: Sent to Government -
November 4, 2022 11:57 am
1 year ago
Submitted to Sunshine Request
Status: Pending