You are dealing with two issues:  the right of the archives to create
biographical files (just like libraries create vertical files) and the
right of an individual to privacy.   Given our society's numerous laws
granting living individuals the right to remove themselves from
telephone books, city directories, to redact certain items from online
databases, and the like, I would say that the individual and their
lawyer could probably make a good case.    I do believe theft of the
file was indeed theft, and I would tell her to
return it.   If she says you are not to have a file on her, then I would
remove it (and
probably from public access rather than destruction).

Yes, any archives/library can create a biographical file on someone, but
then there is the political risk that the person may not want this.

Dean


Dean DeBolt
University Librarian, Special Collections
John C. Pace Library, University of West Florida
11000 University Parkway
Pensacola, FL  32514-5750
850-474-2213
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