City of San Jose v. Superior Court

I. Introduction

This original proceeding concerns an issue of first impression under the California Public Records Act, Government Code section 6250 et seq. (the Act): whether a city may refuse to disclose the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of persons who have made complaints to the city about municipal airport noise. The City of San Jose (City) petitions for a writ of mandate directing respondent court to vacate its amended order and judgment, which (1) granted the petition of real party in interest, the San Jose Mercury News, Inc. (Mercury News), for a writ of mandate; and (2) directed issuance of a writ compelling City to disclose the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of all persons who made airport noise complaints in January 1998, with redaction only of the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of complainants where that information is protected by statute.

City contends that respondent court erred, because the public interest in disclosure of the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of persons who have made airport noise complaints is clearly outweighed by the public interest in protecting the complainants’ privacy and in preventing a chilling…