A Butler County judge has granted the county’s appeal of a state Office of Open Records determination that instructed the county to release inmates names to a faith-based Mercer County drug and alcohol recovery center.

Common Pleas Court Judge Kelley Streib reversed the June 2 final determination from the Open Records office.

Hope Center Ministries and Director Justin Reynolds filed a Right-to-Know Law request in February seeking the names of inmates held in Butler County Prison and their commitment and release dates.

The county denied the request in March and the center appealed the decision to the Office of Open Records.

The office issued its final determination June 2 saying the commitment and release dates are protected under the Criminal History Record Information Act, but inmates’ names are not.

The county filed a petition for review June 25. Oral arguments were presented at an Aug. 4 hearing.

Streib issued her order Oct. 21, saying the list sought by the center does not exist and the Right-to-Know Law does not require an agency to create a record that does not exist.

The decision cites testimony from the hearing about the jail’s Jail Tracker System that can produce an aggregate list of inmate names, including inmates from other counties, federal inmates and “inmate swaps.” Inmate swaps are done to provide additional security to another jurisdiction's inmate. There is no system capable of generating a report that would provide only the names of Butler County inmates.

“Under the RTKL, the Butler County jail is not required to create a record which does not exist,” Streib wrote in her order.

In addition, Streib ruled inmate names are identifiable descriptions under the state Criminal History Record Information Act (CHRIA) and thus are prohibited from being released.

She said the county challenged an Open Records office finding that inmate names are not identifiable descriptions and not protected under CHRIA.

Constitutional privacy rights also was a factor in the case.

Streib’s order “finds no public interest in disclosing the names of inmates at the Butler County Prison that outweighs the inmates' constitutional privacy rights.”

She said providing drug and alcohol programs to inmates is an admirable endeavor, but the prison already provides those services through the Human Services Department.

Reynolds could not be reached for comment Monday.