Internal affairs files

To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Massachusetts Public Records Law, M.G.L. c.66, §10, I hereby request the following records:

All internal affairs records for Marcus Humber and Jamie Reardon

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 calendar days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Andrew Quemere

Supervisor of Records,

The Amherst Police Department has rejected my records request for internal affairs records for two police officers. The department cites the privacy exemption. However, there is no exemption — the privacy exemption included — that allows the blanket withholding of internal affairs files.

Internal affairs files are public records because "[t]he internal affairs procedure fosters the public's trust and confidence in the integrity of the police department, its employees, and its processes for investigating complaints because the department has the integrity to discipline itself. A citizenry's full and fair assessment of a police department's internal investigation of its officer's actions promotes the core value of trust between citizens and police essential to law enforcement and the protection of constitutional rights." (Worcester Telegram & Gazette Corporation v. Chief of Police of Worcester, & another, 58 Mass. App. Ct. 1 (2003); see also SPR Bulletin 03-04).

Furthermore, the department has failed to state with specificity how the privacy exemption applies to the records in question.

All correspondence regarding this matter can be found here: https://www.muckrock.com/foi/amherst-2/internal-affairs-files-28160/

I ask that you order the department to immediately comply with my records request. If the department does not agree to comply, please forward this request to the attorney general's office for enforcement since this is already a settled matter of law. Additionally, please order the department to undergo training on the public records law since this response is so clearly deficient.

Yours truly,
Andrew Quemere