{"id":898,"date":"2019-08-21T14:31:40","date_gmt":"2019-08-21T20:31:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/?page_id=898"},"modified":"2025-07-16T07:26:52","modified_gmt":"2025-07-16T13:26:52","slug":"legal-advisor","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/legal-advisor\/","title":{"rendered":"Legal Advisor"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-s1uuy-9f09f910c145f37b224e775fc4a0a56d\">\n.flex_column.av-s1uuy-9f09f910c145f37b224e775fc4a0a56d{\n-webkit-border-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n-moz-border-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\nborder-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\npadding:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='flex_column av-s1uuy-9f09f910c145f37b224e775fc4a0a56d av_one_third  avia-builder-el-0  el_before_av_two_third  avia-builder-el-first  first flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding  '     ><div  class='avia-builder-widget-area clearfix  avia-builder-el-1  avia-builder-el-no-sibling '><div id=\"nav_menu-4\" class=\"widget clearfix widget_nav_menu\"><h3 class=\"widgettitle\">Quick Links<\/h3><div class=\"menu-community-left-container\"><ul id=\"menu-community-left\" class=\"menu\"><li id=\"menu-item-3751\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-3751\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/dallas-county-sheriffs-office-2024-annual-report\/\">Dallas County Sheriff\u2019s Office 2023 Annual Report<\/a><\/li>\n<li id=\"menu-item-3843\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-3843\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/citizens-academy\/\">Citizens Academy<\/a><\/li>\n<li id=\"menu-item-4057\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-custom menu-item-object-custom menu-item-4057\"><a href=\"https:\/\/forms.office.com\/Pages\/ResponsePage.aspx?id=rc-tUfFynEeyj1JBLgQBS_9WMQAR3nBIqwZJanqrOXdUODYzQTc4UkFONk5WRzFGM1c1WllYQkFMOC4u\">Employee Appreciation<\/a><\/li>\n<li id=\"menu-item-4074\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-4074\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/internal-affairs\/\">Internal Affairs<\/a><\/li>\n<li id=\"menu-item-3844\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-3844\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/courtesy-patrol\/\">Courtesy Patrol<\/a><\/li>\n<li id=\"menu-item-3845\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-3845\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/public-information-officer\/\">Public Information Officer<\/a><\/li>\n<li id=\"menu-item-3752\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-3752\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/community\/\">Registered Sex Offenders<\/a><\/li>\n<li id=\"menu-item-3849\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-3849\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/legal-advisor\/\">Legal Advisor<\/a><\/li>\n<li id=\"menu-item-3842\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-3842\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/bail-bond-investigator\/\">Bail Bond Investigator<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-hgzfu-1d2c4b8a236d4a22799a155038fc904e\">\n.flex_column.av-hgzfu-1d2c4b8a236d4a22799a155038fc904e{\n-webkit-border-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n-moz-border-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\nborder-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\npadding:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='flex_column av-hgzfu-1d2c4b8a236d4a22799a155038fc904e av_two_third  avia-builder-el-2  el_after_av_one_third  avia-builder-el-last  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding  '     ><p><section  class='av_textblock_section av-lu09n0ej-41a09bc9e08c5dfcbef3a297460e7774 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/CreativeWork\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>Welcome to the Dallas County Sheriff\u2019s Legal Department webpage.\u00a0 Our goal is to provide citizens and visitors with quick and easy access to information.<\/p>\n<p>The Legal Department provides legal advice and guidance to the Sheriff, the Sheriff\u2019s executive team, and the Sheriff\u2019s departmental staff.\u00a0 We do not provide legal advice to citizens or other Dallas County departments. Additionally, the Legal Department assists with subpoenas, Dallas County Sheriff\u2019s Office Civil Service, and Dallas County Sheriff\u2019s Office public information requests.<\/p>\n<p>We have provided helpful links to help you find what you are looking for.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n<div  class='togglecontainer av-md5zwecx-3e242d634ecd29eebf30710432bc3ca9  avia-builder-el-4  el_after_av_textblock  avia-builder-el-last  toggle_close_all' >\n<section class='av_toggle_section av-av_toggle-4ea5375e2b52689d4a22043c31d7bf05'  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/CreativeWork\" ><div role=\"tablist\" class=\"single_toggle\" data-tags=\"{All} \"  ><h4 data-fake-id='#toggle-id-1' class='toggler   '  itemprop=\"headline\"  role='tab' tabindex='0' aria-controls='toggle-id-1'>Public Information Act<span class=\"toggle_icon\"><span class=\"vert_icon\"><\/span><span class=\"hor_icon\"><\/span><\/span><\/h4><div id='toggle-id-1' class='toggle_wrap  '  ><div class='toggle_content invers-color '  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>Texas Government Code, Chapter 552, gives you the right to access government records. All government information is presumed to be available to the public.<\/p>\n<p>Certain exceptions may apply to the disclosure of the information. Governmental bodies shall promptly release requested information that is not confidential by law, either constitutional, statutory, judicial decision, or information for which an exception to disclosure has not been sought.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Rights of Requestors<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>You have the right to:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Prompt access to information that\u00a0is not confidential or otherwise protected;<\/li>\n<li>Receive treatment\u00a0<strong>equal\u00a0<\/strong>to all other requestors, including accommodation in accordance with the\u00a0<em>Americans with Disabilities Act\u00a0<\/em>(ADA) requirements;<\/li>\n<li>Receive certain kinds of\u00a0<strong>information without exceptions<\/strong>, like the voting record of public officials and other information;<\/li>\n<li>Receive a\u00a0<strong>written statement of estimated charges<\/strong>, when charges will exceed $40, in advance of work being started and the opportunity to modify the request in response to the itemized statement;<\/li>\n<li>Choose whether to inspect the requested information (most often at no charge), receive copies of the information or both;<\/li>\n<li>A\u00a0<strong>waiver\u00a0<\/strong>or reduction of charges if the governmental body determines that access to the information primarily benefits the general public;<\/li>\n<li>Receive a copy of\u00a0the communication from the governmental body asking the Office of the Attorney General for a ruling on whether the information can be withheld under one of the accepted exceptions, or if the communication discloses the requested information, a redacted copy;<\/li>\n<li>Lodge a written complaint about\u00a0overcharges for public information with the Texas Building and Procurement Commission. Complaints of other possible violations may be filed with the county or district attorney of the county where the governmental body, other than a state agency, is located. If the complaint is against the county or district attorney, the complaint must be filed with the Office of the Attorney General.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Responsibilities of Governmental Bodies<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>All governmental bodies responding to information requests have the responsibility to:<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Establish reasonable procedures for inspecting or copying public information and inform requestors of these procedures;<\/li>\n<li>Treat all requestors uniformly and shall give to the requestor all reasonable comfort and facility, including accommodation in accordance with ADA requirements;<\/li>\n<li>Be informed about open records laws and educate employees on the requirements of those laws;<\/li>\n<li>Inform requestors of the estimated charges greater than $40 and any changes in the estimates above 20 percent of the original estimate, and confirm that the requestor accepts the charges, has amended the request, or has sent a complaint of overcharges to the Texas Building and Procurement Commission, in writing before finalizing the request;<\/li>\n<li>Inform the requestor if the information cannot be provided promptly and set a date and time to provide it within a reasonable time;<\/li>\n<li>Request a ruling from the Office of the Attorney General regarding any information the governmental body wishes to withhold, and send a copy of the request for ruling, or a redacted copy, to the requestor;<\/li>\n<li>Segregate public information from information that may be withheld and provide that public information promptly;<\/li>\n<li>Make a good faith attempt to inform third parties when their proprietary information is being requested from the governmental body;<\/li>\n<li>Respond in writing to all written communications from the Texas Building and Procurement Commission regarding charges for the information. Respond to the Office of the Attorney General regarding complaints about violations of the Act.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Procedures to Obtain Information<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Submit a written request by mail, fax, email, or in person according to a governmental body&#8217;s reasonable procedures.<\/li>\n<li>Include enough description and detail about the information requested to enable the governmental body to accurately identify and locate the information requested.<\/li>\n<li>Cooperate with the governmental body&#8217;s reasonable efforts to clarify the type or amount of information requested.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Information to be released<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ul>\n<li>You may review it promptly, and if it cannot be produced within ten working days, the public information officer will notify you in writing of the reasonable date and time when it will be available.<\/li>\n<li>Keep all appointments to inspect records and to pick up copies. Failure to keep appointments may result in losing the opportunity to inspect the information at the time requested.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Cost of Records<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>You must respond to any written estimate of charges within 10 business days of the date the governmental body sent it, or the request is considered automatically withdrawn.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>If estimated costs exceed $100, the governmental body may require a bond, prepayment, or deposit.<\/li>\n<li>You may ask the governmental body to determine whether providing the information primarily benefits the general public, resulting in a waiver or reduction of charges.<\/li>\n<li>Make a timely payment for all mutually agreed charges. A governmental body can demand payment of overdue balances exceeding $100 or obtain a security deposit before processing additional requests from you.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ol start=\"2\">\n<li><strong>Information that may be withheld due to an exception<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ul>\n<li>By the 10th business day after a governmental body receives your written request, a governmental body must:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ol>\n<li>Request an Attorney General opinion and state which exceptions apply;<\/li>\n<li>Notify the requestor of the referral to the Attorney General, and<\/li>\n<li>Notify third parties if the request involves their proprietary information.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ul>\n<li>Failure to request an Attorney General opinion and notify the requestor within ten business days will result in a presumption that the information is open unless there is a compelling reason to withhold it.<\/li>\n<li>Requestors may send a letter to the Attorney General arguing for release and may review arguments made by the governmental body. If the arguments disclose the requested information, the requestor may obtain a redacted copy.<\/li>\n<li>The Attorney General must issue a decision no later than the 45th working day from the day after the Attorney General receives the request for a decision. The attorney general may request an additional ten working day extension.<\/li>\n<li>Governmental bodies may not ask the Attorney General to &#8220;reconsider&#8221; an opinion.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Please Note: You may send your written request to:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>By mail to:<br \/>\n<\/strong>Dallas County Sheriff\u2019s Office<br \/>\nAttention: Legal<br \/>\n133 N. Riverfront Blvd, LB-31<br \/>\nDallas, TX 75207-4313<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>By electronic form:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/dallascountytx.govqa.us\/WEBAPP\/_rs\">https:\/\/dallascountytx.govqa.us\/WEBAPP\/_rs<\/a><\/li>\n<li><strong>In person at:<br \/>\n<\/strong>Dallas County Sheriff\u2019s Office<br \/>\nFrank Crowley Courts Bldg., 1st Floor<br \/>\n133 N. Riverfront Blvd, LB-31<br \/>\nDallas, TX 75207-4313<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><em>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p>For complaints regarding failure to release public information, please contact your local County or District Attorney.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>You may also contact the <strong>Office of the Attorney General<\/strong>, Open Government Hotline at (512) 478-6736 or toll-free at 1 (877) 673-6839.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>For complaints regarding overcharges, please contact the\u00a0<strong>Texas Building and Procurement Commission<\/strong>\u00a0at (512) 475-2497.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<section class='av_toggle_section av-av_toggle-668971a1c8b33d79f95b9a6a8a54f8c4'  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/CreativeWork\" ><div role=\"tablist\" class=\"single_toggle\" data-tags=\"{All} \"  ><h4 data-fake-id='#toggle-id-2' class='toggler   '  itemprop=\"headline\"  role='tab' tabindex='0' aria-controls='toggle-id-2'>Public Information\/ Open Records Tips<span class=\"toggle_icon\"><span class=\"vert_icon\"><\/span><span class=\"hor_icon\"><\/span><\/span><\/h4><div id='toggle-id-2' class='toggle_wrap  '  ><div class='toggle_content invers-color '  itemprop=\"text\" ><ul>\n<li>Include any and all pertinent information when requesting records, i.e., contact information (email, phone number, mailing address), date of birth for individual records requested, date of incident, type of records, and any other identifying information to add in search for records.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<section class='av_toggle_section av-md5zwdii-944527039f8aefeb086edae65b29b263'  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/CreativeWork\" ><div role=\"tablist\" class=\"single_toggle\" data-tags=\"{All} \"  ><h4 data-fake-id='#toggle-id-3' class='toggler   '  itemprop=\"headline\"  role='tab' tabindex='0' aria-controls='toggle-id-3'>Police Reports<span class=\"toggle_icon\"><span class=\"vert_icon\"><\/span><span class=\"hor_icon\"><\/span><\/span><\/h4><div id='toggle-id-3' class='toggle_wrap  '  ><div class='toggle_content invers-color '  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>Police reports and records must be requested from the law enforcement agency that generated the report. For example, reports by Dallas County\u2019s Sheriff&#8217;s Deputies should be requested by one of the following methods:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>By mail to:<\/strong><br \/>\nDallas County Sheriff\u2019s Office<br \/>\nAttention: Legal<br \/>\n133 N. Riverfront Blvd, LB-31<br \/>\nDallas, TX 75207-4313<\/li>\n<li><strong>By electronic form:<\/strong> https:\/\/dallascountytx.govqa.us\/WEBAPP\/_rs<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>In person at:<\/strong><br \/>\nDallas County Sheriff\u2019s Office<br \/>\nFrank Crowley Courts Bldg., 1st Floor<br \/>\n133 N. Riverfront Blvd, LB-31<br \/>\nDallas, TX 75207-4313<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The same goes for records and reports created by local law enforcement agencies (like Dallas, Irving, etc.), or the Texas Department of Public Safety (Highway Patrol).<\/p>\n<p><strong>For crash reports from the Dallas County Sheriff\u2019s Office<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>To obtain a copy of an accident report, please select from the below options:<\/p>\n<p>1. If the crash occurred on <strong>June 30, 2018, or before,<\/strong> please click here: <a href=\"https:\/\/dcso.dallascounty.org\">https:\/\/dcso.dallascounty.org<\/a> to purchase a copy of the report.<\/p>\n<p>2. If the crash occurred on <strong>July 1, 2018, or after,<\/strong> please click here: <a href=\"https:\/\/cris.txdot.gov\">https:\/\/cris.txdot.gov<\/a> to purchase a copy of the report. If you experience any issues with the <a href=\"https:\/\/cris.txdot.gov\">https:\/\/cris.txdot.gov<\/a> site, please contact them for support: Email: <a href=\"mailto:support@crishlp.com\">support@crishlp.com<\/a> Phone: 844-CRISHLP (844-274-7457)<\/p>\n<p>3. <strong>In-person:<br \/>\n<\/strong>Frank Crowley Courts Building<br \/>\nFiscal Department<br \/>\n133 North Riverfront Boulevard, 1st Floor<br \/>\nDallas, TX 75207-4313<br \/>\n9 A.M. \u2013 4 P.M., Monday through Friday, excluding holidays.<\/p>\n<p>4. <strong>By mail:<\/strong><br \/>\nSend a money order in the amount of $6.00 (no personal checks) payable to the Dallas County Sheriff\u2019s Office along with a self-addressed &amp; stamped return envelope to:<\/p>\n<p>Dallas County Sheriff\u2019s Office<br \/>\nAttention: Fiscal<br \/>\n133 North Riverfront Boulevard, LB-31<br \/>\nDallas, TX 75207-4313<\/p>\n<p><strong>For crash reports filed by local law enforcement,<\/strong> the Texas Department of Transportation(TXDOT) has an online system for retrieving this information: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.txdot.gov\/data-maps\/crash-reports-records.html\">Crash Report Online Purchase System.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<section class='av_toggle_section av-av_toggle-fa726a9f199c454212d6bb3b51b8a8d2'  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/CreativeWork\" ><div role=\"tablist\" class=\"single_toggle\" data-tags=\"{All} \"  ><h4 data-fake-id='#toggle-id-4' class='toggler   '  itemprop=\"headline\"  role='tab' tabindex='0' aria-controls='toggle-id-4'>Subpoenas<span class=\"toggle_icon\"><span class=\"vert_icon\"><\/span><span class=\"hor_icon\"><\/span><\/span><\/h4><div id='toggle-id-4' class='toggle_wrap  '  ><div class='toggle_content invers-color '  itemprop=\"text\" ><ul>\n<li>All subpoenas must be delivered by personal service. Subpoenas will not be accepted electronically or via any portal service.<\/li>\n<li>Inmate subpoenas &#8211; Please work with the Dallas County Constable&#8217;s Office to serve an inmate in jail (private process servers\/ process servers will need to work with the constable&#8217;s office to serve inmates).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/div><\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-898","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/898","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=898"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/898\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4499,"href":"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/898\/revisions\/4499"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dallascounty.org\/departments\/sheriff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=898"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}