State ex rel. Griffin v. Doe (Slip Opinion), 2021 Ohio 3626

Relator Mark Griffin Sr. filed a mandamus action seeking public records under Ohio’s Public Records Act, alleging he mailed a records request to the Ohio Adult Parole Authority (APA) on or about November 12, 2020.
Griffin said the request sought personnel-file information for six parole-board members who sat on his October 15, 2020 parole panel (full names, criminal-justice history, five years of criminal-justice experience, prior employment, and criminal-justice schooling/certifications).
Griffin alleged the APA failed to respond and sought production of the records plus statutory damages; he submitted an affidavit and unsworn statements but did not produce a copy of the mailed request or proof of delivery.
The APA and the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction investigated and reported no record of receiving Griffin’s request.
The Supreme Court granted an alternative writ, took evidence and briefs, and denied relief because Griffin failed to prove by clear and convincing evidence that he submitted the public-records request.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether Griffin submitted a valid public-records request under R.C. 149.43(B)(1)	Griffin: he mailed a records request by regular U.S. mail ~Nov. 12, 2020 seeking specified personnel records and received no response	State/APA: no record of receiving any request; investigations show request not received; relator offers no proof of mailing/delivery	Court: Griffin did not prove by clear and convincing evidence that he submitted the request; entitlement not established
Whether APA had a duty to produce records and thus mandamus is warranted	Griffin: nonresponse establishes APA duty and entitlement to records and statutory damages	APA: duty does not arise where relator fails to show he made a request; no production required absent proof request was sent	Court: Mandamus denied because relator failed to show he made the request; no duty to produce is triggered

State ex rel. Cincinnati Enquirer v. Sage, 31 N.E.3d 616 (2015) (mandamus standard to compel public records; relator must show clear right and respondent a clear duty)
State ex rel. McCaffrey v. Mahoning Cty. Prosecutor’s Office, 976 N.E.2d 877 (2012) (relator must establish entitlement by clear and convincing evidence)
State ex rel. Welsh-Huggins v. Jefferson Cty. Prosecutor’s Office, 170 N.E.3d 768 (2020) (relator must show he requested the record under R.C. 149.43 and that the record was not made available)
State ex rel. Miller v. Ohio State Hwy. Patrol, 995 N.E.2d 1175 (2013) (definition and required degree of clear-and-convincing evidence)
State ex rel. Ware v. Giavasis, 170 N.E.3d 788 (2020) (evenly balanced evidence that a request was sent does not satisfy the clear-and-convincing burden)
State ex rel. Pietrangelo v. Avon Lake, 74 N.E.3d 419 (2016) (contradictory evidence about delivery defeats proof of hand-delivery)