law enforcement trip to israel (Massachusetts State Police)

Ms. Young,

The Department of State Police is in receipt of your records request in which you are seeking emails "1) Sent or received between March 1st, 2018, and the latest possible date (i.e. today's date October 1st, 2018, or the latest possible date available in the email system, as the systems are often up to a month behind) 2) Between email addresses associated with the police department to which this request is addressed and one (or all) of the these four addresses: jstuckey@adl.org<mailto:jstuckey@adl.org>, taliab@adl.org<mailto:taliab@adl.org>, rtrestan@adl.org<mailto:rtrestan@adl.org> or ejarvis@adl.org<mailto:ejarvis@adl.org> 3) Containing in the subject line or body of the message one or more of the following search terms: 'Israel' 'NECTS' 'New England' 'Counter-Terrorism' 'Counter' 'Terrorism' 'Seminar' 'Session', The emails are likely to contain, but may not be limited to, the following attachments: Participant roster, Participant booklet, Program or trip itinerary, Travel and accommodation information." The Department considers your request a submission under M.G.L. c. 66 s. 10, The Public Records Law. Attached, please find 140 pages of responsive emails and attachments. Please note, the Department has made redactions under M.G.L. c. 4, s. 7 cl. 26(n) (security exemption) and M.G.L. c. 4, s. 7 cl. 26(d) (deliberative process exemption).

The Department has made redactions to sensitive information regarding the Anti-Defamation League's (ADL) Leadership, Resilience and Counter-Terrorism Seminar in Israel pursuant to M.G.L. c. 4, s. 7 cl. 26(n). The Department has made redactions to the detailed itinerary of the trip, travel and flight information, and the number of law enforcement personnel attending the event. Additionally, some of the responsive emails contain exchanges between the ADL and Department members regarding other trainings or threat assessments. Information in these emails has been marked as "not for public dissemination" by the ADL and, accordingly, the Department has made redactions to that information. Exemption N exempts from disclosure records "including but not limited to blueprints, plans, policies, procedures and schematic drawings, which relate to internal layout and structural elements, security measures, emergency preparedness, threat or vulnerability assessments, or any other records relating to the security or safety of persons or buildings, structures, facilities, utilities, transportation or other infrastructure located within the commonwealth, the disclosure of which, in the reasonable judgment of the record custodian, subject to review by the supervisor of public records under subsection (b) of section 10 of chapter 66, is likely to jeopardize public safety." A recent Supreme Judicial Court decision, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, Inc. vs. Department of Agricultural Resources & another, 477 Mass. 280 (2017), addressed this exemption. In this decision, the Court laid out a two prong analysis to determine if a record was properly withheld under this exemption. The first prong of analysis considers," whether, and to what degree, the record sought resembles the records listed as examples in the statute" and the second prong of analysis requires "...the factual and contextual support for the proposition that disclosure of the record is "likely to jeopardize public safety." PETA, 477 Mass. at 290. The Department asserts that disclosing the names and total numbers of those who attended this seminar, the travel itinerary, and flight information the Department would not only jeopardize the safety of the involved law enforcement personnel but the public at large. Additionally, the release of this information may also jeopardize those individuals who participate in this program in the future. The Leadership, Resilience and Counter-Terrorism Seminar in Israel is a program the ADL intends to continue holding with a similar training itinerary. As a result, revealing the specific itinerary and where individuals who attend will be on any given day could jeopardize the safety of the law enforcement members who attend this seminar in the future. In the same vain, the Department has withheld the specific travel itinerary of Colonel Gilpin, as the manner of travel for future attendees would likely be the same or similar enough that, if the date of departure were known, an individual or individual(s) with mal-intent would be able to predict the approximate location of a Department member's departure. The redacted portions of these records implicate the safety and security of Department members and the disclosure of this information would jeopardize both their safety, as well as the public present in the same location of these Department members.

The Department has also redacted internal notes and documents circulated by members of the Governor's Task Force on Hate Crimes pursuant to the deliberative process exemption (M.G.L. c. 4, s. 7 cl. 26(d)). Exemption (d) applies to inter-agency or intra-agency memoranda or letters relating to policy positions being developed by the agency. The intent of this exemption is to prevent the premature disclosure of materials that could taint the deliberative process. Records that possess a deliberative or policymaking character and relate to an ongoing deliberative process are exempt from mandatory disclosure. The notes which have been redacted are related to the development of policy and recommendations made by the Governor's Task Force on Hate Crimes. These notes and discussions culminate in an annual report which addresses the objectives of the task force and recommendations made to the Governor. The redacted portions of these communications are directly related to policy positions and recommendations being developed by the taskforce and, as a result, as exempt from disclosure pursuant to M.G.L. c. 4, s. 7 cl. 26(d).

If you object to this response, you may appeal to the Supervisor of Records in accordance with M.G.L. c. 66, §10(b) and 950 CMR 32.00. Thank you for your time and attention to this matter.

Siobhan E. Kelly
Staff Counsel
Office of Chief Legal Counsel
Massachusetts State Police
470 Worcester Road
Framingham, MA 01702
Tel: (508) 820-2337
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