Canandaigua's city manager, police chief and city attorney all are declining to comment on the city's decision to withhold the name of the police officer involved in the Oct. 4 shooting that claimed the life of an off-duty parole officer at Pinnacle North Apartments. The Daily Messenger on Tuesday filed a Freedom of Information Law request seeking the identity.

CANANDAIGUA — No comment.

Almost two weeks after a Canandaigua police officer shot and killed an off-duty parole officer at the Pinnacle North Apartments, the city has not only declined to identify the police officer involved but also has declined to say why it's withholding the name.

Contacted early Friday, City Manager John Goodwin at first said a statement would be released in the afternoon but later opted against it and declined comment.

Canandaigua Police Chief Stephen Hedworth also declined to comment Friday afternoon on the decision to withhold the police officer's name and instead referred all questions to Goodwin and the city attorney.

Terence Robinson, with Boylan Code LLP, the corporation counsel to the city, also declined to discuss the decision when reached Friday at the firm, saying that by policy, he doesn't comment publicly on clients.

On Tuesday, the Daily Messenger submitted a Freedom of Information Law request to the city seeking the identity of the police officer, who has been placed on administrative leave following the Oct. 4 shooting. To date, the identity has not been disclosed — despite the state's most prominent public records expert declaring that the information is "clearly public, clearly public, clearly public."

Robert Freeman, executive director of the New York State Committee on Open Government, said Tuesday the city had no legal reason for not releasing the officer’s identity.

“There may be other elements of the record that can be held, but the mere identity of the officer acting in the performance of his duties would be public, even though there is a possibility that other aspects of the record may be withheld,” Freeman said.

So if there is no legal reason to withhold the name, what is the city's reason for doing so? As of Friday evening, no one with the authority to make that determination had given an explanation as to why.

To help determine the city's reasoning, the Daily Messenger on Friday polled the elected members of the City Council and the mayor. The responses, when given, were largely circumspect and cautious:

Mayor Ellen Polimeni said she has been told the investigation is nearing completion but said it is right that the name should not be released until “we’re assured by our attorney that it’s appropriate to release the name of the officer.”

“Government has to really follow the advice of the people employed as attorney," she said. "If they tell us to wait until the investigation is complete, that’s what we will do.”

Councilmember Nick Cutri said the council also was not receiving information in regards to the shooting investigation or identity of the police officer involved.

"I don’t think they would keep it a deep, dark secret unless they wanted to gather more information in the investigation," he said. "That’s their position, and they know what they’re doing. They’re not hiding anything. The total scope of the event will be given.”

Councilmember Robert O'Brien deferred comment to those involved in the investigation.

“That's really a call for the police chief," he said. "This is a police matter, and I'm not an expert on police matters, and I'm going to defer to his good judgment.”

Councilmember David Whitcomb urged patience on Friday, saying, "While the internal investigation is continuing, it is prudent not to release the name. Once that is done, they are going to release it.”

Councilmember Karen White said she didn't feel she had any influence on the decision at this time, though she expressed reservations about reporting information in criminal investigations until they were complete.

"I think that sometimes we jump the gun, so maybe a conservative approach is best here," she said.

Councilmembers Matt Martin, James Terwilliger, Anita Twitchell and Cindy Wade had not responded to repeated phone and emailed messages seeking comment as of late Friday.

The shooting occurred, authorities have said in news conferences and briefings, after Sandy Guardiola, a parole officer with the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, failed to report to work as expected after recovering from injuries suffered weeks earlier in a car accident in the Southern Tier. Fearing for her welfare, DOCCS contacted Pinnacle North, where she lived, to have someone check on her.

A Canandaigua police officer then was dispatched to the complex, and Pinnacle North staff provided access to the apartment after attempts to contact Guardiola were unsuccessful, police have said. Two minutes after the police officer entered the apartment at 4:29 p.m., he radioed 911 to report that shots had been fired. Guardiola was killed, and the police officer, who was unharmed, was placed on paid administrative leave pending progression of the multi-agency investigation now being directed by New York State Police.

Police have said that a handgun issued by the state to Guardiola fired at least one round during the encounter with the police officer.

Following the city’s continued refusal to provide the identity of the police officer involved, the Daily Messenger has retained the legal representation of Greenberg Traurig LLP, an Albany-based firm that provides counsel to GateHouse Media, parent company of the Daily Messenger. The firm on Wednesday sent the city a letter demanding the immediate release of the records being sought in the newspaper’s FOIL request.

Under the Freedom of Information Law, an agency is required to respond within five business days of receipt of a request. Nancy Abdallah, the city’s clerk-treasurer and designated FOIL officer, initially responded Tuesday, notifying the paper that its request would be granted or denied within 20 business days of receipt.

“As a surrogate for the public it serves throughout the Ontario County vicinity, the Daily Messenger respectfully requests that the City reconsider its legally insupportable decision to defer a decision on public access for twenty business days, and grant immediate disclosure of the records the Newspaper has requested,” states the letter, signed by Michael J. Grygiel, an attorney with Greenberg Traurig.

"We will consider the City's failure to disclose the [records being sought] by COB (5:00 p.m. Eastern) on Monday, October 16, 2017, a constructive denial of the Newspaper's FOIL request," the letter from Grygiel concludes. "In that event, the City should treat this correspondence as the Newspaper's administrative appeal from such denial."

Robinson did indicate Friday that the letter originally delivered to Abdallah had been given to him and that he would be responding soon.

Daily Messenger Assistant Editor Mike Murphy and reporter Denise Champagne contributed to this report.