MA Bilingual Officers (New Bedford Police Department)

To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Massachusetts Public Records Law, I hereby request the following records:

- Copies of all forms currently used by the department to evaluate an officer/candidate's ability to speak, read, and write languages other than English.

- Copies of department policy on interacting with deaf and hard of hearing individuals

- Copies of department policy related to American Sign Language, if any

- Copies of forms currently used by the department, if any, to evaluate an officer/candidate's knowledge of American Sign Language

- If there exists documentation, such as spreadsheets, of which officers are currently certified as speaking any second language (e.g. Spanish, Vietnamese,) please include this as well.

I also request that, if appropriate, fees be waived as we believe this request is in the public interest, as suggested but not stipulated by the recommendations of the Massachusetts Supervisor of Public Records. The requested documents will be made available to the general public free of charge as part of the public information service at MuckRock.com, processed by a representative of the news media/press and is made in the process of news gathering and not for commercial usage.

I expect the request to be filled in an accessible format, including for screen readers, which provide text-to-speech for persons unable to read print. Files that are not accessible to screen readers include, for example, .pdf image files as well as physical documents.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 10 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Adrien Salzberg