PORT ANGELES — Although a public records request for information on more than 2,000 pet owners and their animals has been rescinded, Clallam County Sheriff Bill Benedict has indefinitely suspended the county’s mandatory pet licensing program while privacy issues are addressed.
Benedict said Friday that Adam Chamberlin of Port Angeles has dropped the June 30 request for “a CD containing all of the licensed pets in Clallam County, including license numbers, owner information, and all other pertinent information,” according to the request.
Chamberlin, who administered the now-defunct “Clallam County Criminal Watch 2” Facebook page, rescinded the request after Benedict announced the suspension of the licensing program late Thursday afternoon in a news release that also was posted on the Sheriff’s Office Facebook page.
Undersheriff Ron Cameron issued a news release late Friday saying the person who had requested the information had withdrawn it in a formal communication to the Sheriff’s Office and that the sheriff “is honoring the request, thereby preserving the personal information of many citizens and saving taxpayers many dollars in costs.”
The post had generated 188 comments as of noon Friday, many of which were both critical of Chamberlin for seeking the information and of the Sheriff’s Office for making Chamberlin’s request public.
Chamberlin canceled the request after seeing the “uproar” online after the Sheriff’s Office release was posted.
Chamberlin said Saturday he wanted the information to help him start a free pet-retrieval service because he disagrees with how the Port Angeles Pet Posse operates.
He said having breed and contact information would help him reach pet owners who aren’t on social media.
“Since the over-70 crowd often don’t use Facebook, it would make it a lot easier to reconnect them with their lost pets,” he said.
Chamberlin called the Sheriff’s Office’s handling of the request unprofessional and questioned whether the request would have been made public if anyone else had submitted the records request.
“I had good intentions and the post was …. pretty unprofessional,” he said. “Even if [Benedict] had contacted me personally and told me he was going to inform the public, that would have been good.”
Chamberlin said the public needs to be aware that much of what is often considered private information is readily available through records requests.
Benedict said the information Chamberlin was seeking included personal information such as the addresses and phone numbers of all 2,222 dog and cat owners and the breeds of their pets that he would be forced, under state law, to release.
“Why should you need to know that?” Benedict said. “What is the public interest?”
Benedict said Friday he had planned to spend about $1,500 to notify pet owners by mail that the records will be released unless they successfully petitioned county Superior Court to prevent disclosure.
He had said in the release that all pet owners would have received the letters by this coming Friday.
“We recommend seeking legal assistance/counsel to file a petition with the court,” the release said.
Benedict said Friday he suspended the licensing program in consultation with county Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Brian Wendt.
“I can suspend the program because it’s my program,” Benedict said.
In his news release, Benedict prefaced his announcement by stating his belief that the records should not be released.
“Washington citizens are learning that most personal information they provide to state and local governments to enhance public safety, or to comply with regulations, can be released to anyone and for any purpose thereby invading their right to privacy as well as potentially compromising their own safety,” he said.
He said Saturday that he hopes in the end to help make pet licensing information exempt from public records requests.
“Until this matter is fully settled, I have suspended our pet licensing program and will consult both the county commissioners and legal representatives to chart a way forward.”
Benedict said what needs to be settled is whether pet owners who register their animals for licenses have an expectation of privacy that the information they submit for licenses will not be released.
“What is next to determine is if there is a way forward to protect that data,” he said.
Benedict said he has discussed the issue with 24th District state Rep. Mike Chapman as part of a possible fix to state public records laws.
Chamberlin said he doesn’t see anything wrong with Benedict asking lawmakers to bar pet licensing information from records request.
“I’m a privacy advocate,” Chamberlain said.
Benedict also will discuss the disclosure requirements with county commissioners “probably in another week or two,” he said.
The licensing program helps match lost pets with the animals’ owners.
Licensing is $10 a year for neutered-spayed dogs and cats and $55 a year for non-neutered-spayed pets.
Failing to license a pet is a civil infraction with a $250 fine.
Benedict said license proceeds generate about $5,000 to $10,000 a year and go to the Olympic Peninsula Humane Society.
“It has a very, very low participation rate,” he said.
“Why is that?
“It’s because people don’t trust government anymore.”
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Senior Staff Writer Paul Gottlieb can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 55650, or at pgottlieb@peninsuladailynews.com.
Reporter Jesse Major contributed to this report.
