SECOND NOTICE OF OPEN RECORDS REQUEST FOR FIRST FIVE MINUTES OF DPS VIDEO

FROM SEPTEMBER 29, 2007

Shirley Pigott MD
301 Woodway
Victoria, Texas 77904
February 25, 2010

Jennifer C. Cohen
Assistant General Counsel
Texas Dept. of Public Safety
(512) 424-2890

Ms Cohen,

Thank you for your timely first response to my earlier inquiry made February 20th. If you meant it as some
sort of explanation for your refusal to comply, however, I don't consider it adequate.

Kindly address me as a physician in any future correspondence. I am uncomfortable with your familiarity.

Please consider this letter as a second notice of formal request for information under the Freedom of
Information Act and the Texas Open Records Act, the Public Information Act, chapter 552 of the
Government Code. I consider your deliberate delay to be obstruction of justice.

I am not prepared to provide you with any legal opinion about the applicability of a direct order from
Federal Judge Keith Ellison to DPS to provide an individual with requested information under open
government laws. I believe you are prohibited by law from providing me with a legal opinion either, as
only the Office of the Texas Attorney can fulfill that public role formally. So rather than you and I discuss
whether or not DPS is obligated by state or federal law to comply with state or federal law, let's defer to
an opinion from his office. No doubt you would take the position that you don't have to do anything I ask,
because your doing so might implicate DPS in criminal coverup. You can argue that with Attorney
General Abbott, but please don't bother me with it.

I am concerned that you are attempting to mislead me as to confidentiality laws. Since you have not
disclosed anything to me which is not public information, it is my decision whether or not I may disclose it
to third parties. We apparently disagree on this as well, so kindly and promptly please seek an opinion
from the Office of the Attorney General. Until you have the opinion in hand, I ask that you remove your
threatening footnotes.

My understanding of the role of a General Counsel for a government agency is to keep your agency from
violating applicable laws. Please inform me if you do not consider that to be your role with DPS.

This is a resubmission of the same request I made earlier with my emphasis that your time to comply is
running out. Considering the conduct of the officers involved, it is urgent that we remind this department
of its duty with respect to investigations.

Sincerely,
Shirley Pigott MD
www.texasmedicalboardwatch.com
www.texasphoenix007.blogspot.com
http://www.scribd.com/Shirley%20Pigott%20MD

On Mon, Feb 22, 2010 at 11:44 AM, OGC Webmaster <OGC.Webmaster@txdps.state.tx.us> wrote:

Ms. Pigott,

The Department of Public Safety General Counsel is Stuart Platt; however, I will be coordinating the
response to your below request. Initially, please note that the federal Freedom of Information Act (5
U.S.C. Ch. 552) applies to federal agencies, not to state agencies. The Texas Public Information Act
(PIA) (Gov't Code Ch. 552) applies to governmental bodies in this state, and your request will be
considered under this act.

Further, the Department does not have a single custodian of all records. Rather, the section which
originally generates the requested records is generally the custodian of such records. As a matter of
clarification, please be advised that the Department does not certify documents, nor do we provide
business records affidavits. If you wish to authenticate documents for admission in court, please
submit a subpoena to the custodian of the requested records.

Additionally, the injunction attached to your request was issued in the case of Keith Wayne Schmidt
v. DPS. It does not appear to be related in any way to the incident for which you are seeking
information. Please clarify how this injunction is related to your request.

Jennifer C. Cohen
Assistant General Counsel
Texas Dept. of Public Safety
(512) 424-2890

This e-mail, including any attached files, may contain confidential and privileged information for the
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prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient (or authorized to receive information for the intended
recipient), please contact the sender by reply e-mail and delete all copies of this message.

From: Shirley Pigott MD [mailto:shirleypigottmd@gmail.com]

Sent: Monday, February 22, 2010 11:10 AM
To: PIO - Texas DPS; Bonnie Kaderka Texas Medical Board Open Records

Subject: Re: Freedom of information requests concerning DPS Officers Alfred Ochoa and Daniel
Terronez, and the events of September 29, 2007

Dear Ms Block,

Please consider this letter as a formal request for information under the Freedom of Information Act
and the Texas Open Records Act, the Public Information Act, chapter 552 of the Government Code.

Kindly identify the individual who is DPS custodian of open records and who is the DPS General
Counsel that will review my request.

TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE. Thank you for your immediate time and attention in this matter.

Sincerely,

Shirley Pigott MD

On Mon, Feb 22, 2010 at 10:30 AM, PIO - Texas DPS <pio@txdps.state.tx.us> wrote:

Thank you for your open records request. I have forwarded it to the DPS General Counsel’s office,
and they will send a response within 10 business days. For more information on the Public
Information Act, please see Chapter 552 of the Texas Government Code, available
at http://www.statutes.legis.state.tx.us/Docs/GV/pdf/GV.552.pdf.

Respectfully,

Texas Department of Public Safety

Public Information Office

From: Shirley Pigott MD [mailto:shirleypigottmd@gmail.com]

Sent: Saturday, February 20, 2010 1:41 AM
To: PIO - Texas DPS
Cc: Shirley Pigott MD Texas USA

Subject: Freedom of information requests concerning DPS Officers Alfred Ochoa and Daniel
Terronez, and the events of September 29, 2007

Dear Ms Block:

Please consider this letter as a formal request for information under the Freedom of Information Act
and the Texas Open Records Act, the Public Information Act, chapter 552 of the Government Code.

On the night of September 29, 2007, I was stopped by DPS Officer Alfred Ochoa, ostensibly for
speeding 9 mph over the posted speed limit. Unbelievably, events ensued which led to felony
indictments against me being issued on January 8, 2008. The evening of January 7, 2008, my
husband of 39 years, a professor of organic chemistry at Victoria College, who, I believe, had been
warned in advance of the outcome, committed suicide.

Judge Randy Clapp granted me a motion to compel the production of a certified true, correct, and
complete copy of the video, but the Wharton County DA gave me an uncertified copy which lacked the
first few seconds or minutes.

DPS is required both by federal and state law to provide me with the evidence I have requested. I
have attached an order issued by Federal Judge Keith Ellison which makes it clear that DPS must
comply with the law in this situation.

DPS videos, as you know, are triggered to begin when an officer turns on his lights and siren. The
video I received begins with dispatch citing my name, which was their response to Officer Ochoa
'running my plates'. The first critical exculpatory moments, which would show Officer Ochoa turning
on his lights and siren while tailgating me at 74 mph, are missing.

Under the Freedom of Information Act and the Texas Open Records Act and Government Code
Section 522, please provide me with a certified true and correct copy of the first five minutes of the
official DPS video, beginning at the beginning, ie, when it was triggered by Officer Ochoa turning on
his lights and siren.

Under the Freedom of Information Act and the Texas Open Records Act and Government Code
Section 522, please provide me with any and all documents, field notes, transcripts, emails, telephone
records, dispatch records, memoranda, dispatch tapes, audio tapes, video tapes, CDs or DVDs,
written or recorded statements, or any other evidence concerning the incident with Officer Ochoa on
September 29, 2007, that have come into your possession, including but not limited to any and all files
you have in your possession or in the possession of any employee of the Texas DPS.

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act and the Texas Open Records Act and Government
Code Section 522, please provide me with any and all written policies and procedures or guidelines
concerning, guiding, directing, or controlling the Texas DPS Officers which may dictate or suggest the
mode and manner of carrying out their duties and expected behavior in dealing with or addressing the
public during a traffic stop. This request is for the written policies and procedures or guidelines that
were applicable and in effect on September 29, 2007.

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act and the Texas Open Records Act and Government Code
Section 522, please provide me with the complete personnel file concerning or pertaining to Officers
Ochoa and Daniel Terronez.

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act and the Texas Open Records Act and Government Code
Section 522, please provide me with the complete employment and disciplinary file concerning or
pertaining to Officer Ochoa and Officer Daniel Terronez.

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act and the Texas Open Records Act and Government Code
Section 522, please provide me with copies of any and all documents, photographs, images, emails,
memoranda, letters, written communications, videotapes, audio recordings, or digital recordings of
any kind showing, reflecting, or evidencing the scene, activities, or events in or surrounding any
concern, inquiry, report, or complaint filed against Officer Ochoa or Terronez or any of the other
officers, supervisors, deputies, or other employees of the Texas DPS who came in contact with me on
September 29, 2007.

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act and the Texas Open Records Act and Government Code
Section 522, please provide me with a list all traffic stops, including warnings or citations made by
Officers Ochoa or Terronez in the history of their employment at DPS where the alleged speed was
less than 10 mph in excess of the posted speed limit.

This request is for any documents or tangible evidence that you may have or that you may have the
ability to secure in performing your duty to investigate the conduct and actions of Officers Ochoa and
Terronez. I must remind you that it is a crime to destroy or hide any of the exculpatory evidence
requested herein or to advise, assist, or coach any other person to destroy or secret exculpatory
evidence. Your proper role as an investigator, consistent with your legal obligation to afford the
accused the presumption of innocence, is to secure, protect, and preserve all of the evidence,
including any and all exculpatory evidence. Considering the conduct of the officers involved, it is
urgent that we remind this department of its duty with respect to investigations.

If you refuse to comply with this request, then immediately explain your refusal to do so.

TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE. Thank you for your immediate time and attention in this matter.

Very truly yours,

Shirley Pigott MD
Texas Medical Board Watch
Texas Phoenix 007
361-894-6464 home
361-652-9474 cell