Massachusetts Police Data Collection (Somerville Police Department)

Dear Mr. Sinyangwe,

Thank you for your follow up email in connection with your 8/19/21 public records law request. I apologize for the delay in responding. The City inadvertently overlooked your initial request.

I respectfully request until 9/20/21 to respond and provide any responsive records. City staff equipped to assist me is on vacation until next week.

Please let m know if this is acceptable. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

David

David Shapiro
City of Somerville
Assistant City Solicitor
93 Highland Avenue
Somerville, MA 02143
(617) 625-6600 Extn. 4409
DShapiro@somervillema.gov

City of Somerville Public Records Notice

Please be advised that the Massachusetts Attorney General has determined that email is a public record unless the content of the email falls within one of the stated exemptions under the Massachusetts Public Records Laws.

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Dear Mr. Sinyangwe,

On behalf of the Records Access Officer and the Records Custodian(s), I write in response to your public records request below dated August 19, 2021. I am informed that the documents in the attachments, as well as the link below, contain responsive documents.

To the extent provided by law, you have the right to seek an administrative appeal to the Massachusetts Supervisor of Public Records under 950 CMR 32.08(1) and the right to seek judicial review by commencing a civil action in the superior court.

Contact information for the Records Access Officer is: Francis X. Wright, Jr., City Solicitor, City Hall, 93 Highland Ave., Somerville, MA 02143, Phone: (617) 625-6600 x4400, Email: publicrecords@somervillema.gov.

This completes the City of Somerville's response to your request. There is no fee for providing the documents.

https://somervillema-my.sharepoint.com/:f:/g/personal/stkaczuk_somervillema_gov/EqcuLUgN7wlGg7l5IWmdUJ4BvF4F5uB6n1o8DQHpxmBFyA?e=qxljfv

David Shapiro

David Shapiro
City of Somerville
Assistant City Solicitor
93 Highland Avenue
Somerville, MA 02143
(617) 625-6600 Extn. 4409
DShapiro@somervillema.gov

_____________________

Somerville Police Department
PRL Office
220 Washington Street
Somerville, MA 02143
September 2, 2021
This is a follow up to a previous request:
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Massachusetts Public Records Law request, copied below, and originally submitted on Aug. 19, 2021. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
View request history, upload responsive documents, and report problems here:
https://www.muckrock.com/
Filed via MuckRock.com
E-mail (Preferred): requests@muckrock.com<mailto:requests@muckrock.com>
For mailed responses, please address (see note):
MuckRock News
DEPT MR 117966
411A Highland Ave
Somerville, MA 02144-2516
PLEASE NOTE: This request is not filed by a MuckRock staff member, but is being sent through MuckRock by the above in order to better track, share, and manage public records requests. Also note that improperly addressed (i.e., with the requester's name rather than "MuckRock News" and the department number) requests might be returned as undeliverable.
---
On Aug. 19, 2021:
Subject: Massachusetts Public Records Law Request: Massachusetts Police Data Collection (Somerville Police Department)
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Massachusetts Public Records Law, I hereby request the following records:
1. the total number of use of force incidents reported by law enforcement, separated by year and by type of force used from 2013-2015 and 2020 (for example: 27 taser incidents in 2013, 34 taser incidents in 2014, 6 baton incidents in 2013, 3 baton incidents in 2014, etc.)
2. the total number of civilian complaints alleging any form of law enforcement misconduct that were reported and the total number sustained from 2013-2015 and 2020, separated by year (for example: 8 complaints in 2013, 2 complaints sustained in 2013, 4 complaints in 2014, 1 complaint sustained in 2014, etc.)
3. the total number of civilian complaints alleging law enforcement use of excessive force that were reported and the total number sustained from 2013-2015 and 2020, separated by year.
4. the total number of civilian complaints alleging biased policing or racial profiling that were reported and the total number sustained from 2013-2015 and 2020, separated by year.
5. the total number of civilian complaints alleging criminal conduct that were reported and the total number sustained from 2013-2015 and 2020, separated by year.
6. all information reported to the FBI's National Use-of-Force Data Collection program to date.
7. a list of all officer involved shootings that were directed at a person from 2013-2020 (excluding shootings of animals and accidental discharges that are not directed at a person).
If only partial information is available responsive to one or more of these requests, please provide all of the information that is available.
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,
Samuel Sinyangwe
View request history, upload responsive documents, and report problems here:
https://www.muckrock.com/
Filed via MuckRock.com
E-mail (Preferred): requests@muckrock.com<mailto:requests@muckrock.com>
For mailed responses, please address (see note):
MuckRock News
DEPT MR 117966
411A Highland Ave
Somerville, MA 02144-2516
PLEASE NOTE: This request is not filed by a MuckRock staff member, but is being sent through MuckRock by the above in order to better track, share, and manage public records requests. Also note that improperly addressed (i.e., with the requester's name rather than "MuckRock News" and the department number) requests might be returned as undeliverable.

City of Somerville Public Records Notice
Please be advised that the Massachusetts Attorney General has determined that email is a public record unless the content of the email falls within one of the stated exemptions under the Massachusetts Public Records Laws.