Sebastian County Public Records Division delays FOIA response for the second time in two weeks

Today in Fort Smith received a second delay noticetoday from Sebastian County Public Records on an Arkansas Freedom of Information Act request filed August 2.

The request sought records concerning the July 23 2026 Booneville Lake incident in which a car carrying teenagers was found in a lake near Booneville along with any related personnel records.

Part of our request also asked for body cam footage, interaction information from respondong officers and other personnel issues and records involving a former deputy.

Arkansas FOIA law requires public records to be made available immediately upon request. The only explicit statutory exception applies when a record is in active use or storage. In that case the custodian must certify the fact in writing and set a specific date and hour within three working days when the record will be available.

There is no formal provision in the statute allowing automatic multi-week extensions simply for volume of records. Courts and Attorney General opinions have recognized that a reasonable amount of additional time may be needed in truly complex or voluminous cases but the three-day rule remains the baseline and any delay must be justified by the specific circumstances.

On August 7, the county first replied that it could not meet the request promptly., It did so without prior contact seeking clarification or narrowing of the request and without issuing a formal denial.

The latest message regarding request number 26-329 states that due to the volume of records requested additional time is necessary to conduct the required searches identify responsive records and review the records for any applicable exemptions and required redactions.

-"With respect to records pertaining to the vehicle accident any responsive records if they exist, are part of an ongoing and active investigation and are therefore exempt from disclosure at this time. "

The county advised that a new request for those records may be submitted once the investigation has concluded.

All other records requested including those pertaining to personnel matters are being processed.

Officials anticipate providing an initial production of responsive records or a substantive status response by close of business on Friday, August 14, 2026.

If records can be produced sooner, they said they will do so.

We will keep you posted.