Massachusetts police officers push for Mass State Police review amid ‘crisis of confidence’

A local law enforcement group is again pushing for a state review of Mass State Police following a series of brutal headlines for the embattled agency facing a “crisis of confidence.”

The Massachusetts Association for Professional Law Enforcement (MAPLE) is proposing a “Blue Ribbon” commission to take a close look at Mass State Police after a long string of scandals.

Earlier this year, troopers were charged in federal court on bribery charges linked to commercial driver’s licenses. Troopers in past years have been in hot water over overtime abuse.

After MAPLE pitched a Blue Ribbon commission to Gov. Charlie Baker several years ago, the head of MAPLE on Monday resubmitted the commission request to Gov. Maura Healey.

“We have been communicating with your predecessor since 2018 over the subject of the Massachusetts State Police, an organization that has been repeatedly beset with cases of malfeasance,” MAPLE President Dennis Galvin wrote to Healey. “In our judgment, only superficial efforts were made by the previous administration to address systemic problems with that agency.”

“Our organization recommended to Governor Baker that a ‘Blue Ribbon’ commission be convened to conduct a stem-to-stern review of the agency,” Galvin later added. “Such a review would be a necessary prelude to the development and implementation of a reform agenda. We fear that anything less will not sufficiently rectify the damage done to the public reputation of the Department.”

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A spokesperson for Healey did not immediately respond to comment, nor did a spokesperson for the State Police.

Such Blue Ribbon commissions have been convened in New York and Boston to address widespread allegations of police corruption and brutality, Galvin cited in the letter.

“Based upon our collective experience, it is our judgment that the current situation facing the Massachusetts State Police rises to this level of response,” he added.

MAPLE’s president recommended that a potential commission get the authority to compel witness testimony and produce records about the management structure and practices of Mass State Police.

Also, Galvin requested that the hearings be open to the public, and that appointees to the commission would have “minimal ties to the Massachusetts political establishment.”

“The crisis of confidence facing the Massachusetts State Police strikes at the very heart of the public’s trust and confidence in our state government,” Galvin wrote in the letter. “This matter must not be taken lightly. It is absolutely imperative that a review of the State Police be conducted promptly, competently, impartially and comprehensively.

“To do less, is to betray a legacy of fair and open government, for which this Commonwealth has long been known,” he added. “Our organization stands ready to assist you in any way that we can.”

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