Despite NPD’s efforts for greater transparency, we’d still like to know more
The Shoestring
Here are some unanswered questions on the police department’s capital request.
- Who is the Northampton supplier of
- Shields
- Helmets
- Chemical weapons (OC spray, tear gas, etc)
- Defense against chemical weapons (gas masks, hazmat suits)
- Firearms
- Ammunition
- “less lethal” weaponry (“rubber” bullets, bean-bag launchers, tasers, etc.)
2. With respect to each of the above, please provide
- All invoices for purchase of any of the above items from the past five years
- The expiration date of each item
- The disposal mechanism and disposal cost for the expired item
- Invoices (if any) associated with disposal
3. With respect to tactical training, including but not limited to active-shooter training and training in the use of any of the above, please provide
- The date of any training in which a department member participated
- The provider of that training
- The cost of that training
- When have the above-listed weapons been used outside of the training context?
4. Which of your officers has engaged in any of the following activities:
- Taken more than the minimum required firearms re-certification training
- Received non-mandatory tactical training
- Participated in a regional SWAT or other specially-trained tactical team
- Participated in active combat in the armed services
4. Which of your department members has expressed an interest in tactical training as a form of professional development? How has that interest been accommodated?
5. What other departments and municipal entities in a 10-mile radius have access to protective materials suitable for use in a hazmat situation? (This question is intended to identify unnecessary duplication of expensive but rarely used gear.)
6. Jody Kasper mentioned “implicit bias training” as something she does to make sure her officers use these weapons appropriately. Related to that
- Have her officers taken the Implicit Bias Association Test?
- If not, why not?
- If so, what were the results, what concrete steps have been taken to reduce officer bias, and did it work? (“You can’t manage what you don’t measure.” – Peter Drucker)
7. Please provide any documents (including a Collective Bargaining Agreement) that limits or prevents Northampton from disciplining officers involved in use of force that the civilian community finds excessive.
- Please explain the procedures by which use of force is investigated by supervisory personnel, including how supervisors locate and interview civilian witnesses and complainants.
- Please provide the form that civilians use to document complaints against the NPD.
• Please explain how civilians can access the form and what the steps are for filing and tracking the progress of a complaint.
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