Chris Lisinski
State House News Service

A bill imposing new reporting requirements on the Department of Children and Families for oversight purposes quickly passed through the Senate Friday after receiving unanimous House approval earlier this month.

The Senate Ways and Means Committee’s version of the bill (H 4852) requires DCF to publish annual reports on children in its care, establish a three-year safety and well-being plan, and to study existing protections for vulnerable minors. Like the House bill, the Senate includes language granting new supports to foster parents and outlines clearer requirements DCF must meet in its interaction with foster parents, a section proponents called the “Foster Parents’ Bill of Rights.”

The full Senate unanimously approved the bill following its release from committee. In early July, the House approved the bill 158-0. Lawmakers on Thursday agreed to suspend the traditional July 31 deadline for completing formal lawmaking business, but they still appear to be on a sprint to wrap up at least some delayed or slow-moving priorities by the end of the week.

The town of Hingham has ordered the Hingham Fire Department to remove Thin Blue Line flags from their fire trucks. The flags were being displayed leading up to the anniversary of Weymouth Police officer Michael Chesna’s death, who was shot 10 times and killed with his own gun in 2018.

Officer Chesna was killed while responding to a call on Jul 15, 2018. Emanuel Lopes is being charged with striking Officer Chesna with a rock, picking up Chesna’s gun then standing over the officer and firing 10 shots into Chesna’s head, torso, and legs.

The Hingham Fire Department Union provided updates of them being ordered to take down the Thin Blue Line flags by the town:

On July 23:

“The Men and Women of Hingham Firefighters Local 2398 proudly support our brothers and sisters in blue. Our members recently displayed this support in the form of flying the “Thin Blue Line” American Flag on our fire apparatus. The flags were recently put on the apparatus leading up to the anniversary of the senseless murder of officer Michael Chesna in our neighboring community of Weymouth. We continued to fly the flags after the anniversary in support of the law enforcement officers in our own community, as well as all law enforcement officers who put their lives on the line every day. At NO TIME, was this meant to be a political statement in any way. Nor was it an attempt to show support for, or against, any specific political party or advocacy group. A complaint was made to the town in reference to the flags and it was determined that flying the flags on the apparatus was a violation of a town policy. While the members of Local 2398 are not pleased with the decision to remove the flags, we will continue our unwavering support for all the men and women of law enforcement who bravely protect their communities day in and day out. We will always Back The Blue.” – Local 2398 President

On July 27:

“The past few days have been very disappointing for the members of Local 2398. Our disappointment began with the decision that the “Thin Blue Line” flags should be removed from our apparatus. That feeling has continued over the past few days, as our repeated requests for a copy of the policy that we have allegedly violated, have been met with silence. The firefighters of Local 2398 display the highest level of professionalism and respect at all times, and it is disheartening to not have that reciprocated.

Despite the frustration this has caused, the community has responded with an overwhelming outpouring of support for the members of Local 2398, Hingham Police officers, Weymouth Police officers, and the Chesna family. The voices of support have far outweighed the voices of opposition. It is abundantly clear the vast majority of people support the thin blue line for exactly what it represents.

The “Thin Blue Line” has existed for over 100 years. It has always, and will always, represent the men and women of law enforcement that hold the line between peace and chaos. Especially those who have bravely made the ultimate sacrifice during the performance of these heroic duties. We stand by our initial statement that this has no political message for one reason, and one reason only, because honoring the sacrifices made by the men and women of law enforcement is not political. Period.

It should also be noted that several instances of material that could be viewed as “political” in nature have been found throughout the Town of Hingham. Many times on town owned property. It is our position that if this policy does exist, it should be enforced in all instances. It should not be based on whether or not a resident finds it offensive.
At this time the Hingham Firefighters of Local 2398 respectfully request the town reconsider their decision to deem these flags as political statements. Otherwise, we regret to inform you that over the past 4 days no member of Local 2398 was able to sacrifice his or her moral fortitude in order to remove the flags from the apparatus. As we said before, our support for our brothers and sisters in blue is unwavering. The flags have continued to fly with honor every day. They will have to be removed by someone other than a member of this union.

In Solidarity,

Hingham Firefighters Local 2398
Lt. Chris Melanson
Local 2398 President”

On July 30:

Katie Lannan
State House News Service

Cape Cod officials aired their frustrations Thursday with private house parties they said have contributed to an uptick of cases in the region, and urged residents to continue wearing masks, practicing social distancing and otherwise complying with public health guidance.

“There’s evidence that the community spread is limited, so we’re talking about private events, which admittedly is frustrating, particularly given the fact that there is ample fresh air and sunlight and breezes on Cape Cod,” Truro Sen. Julian Cyr said on a conference call with other members of the Cape’s reopening task force. “It’s frustrating to see these private events occurring, particularly if they’re occurring indoors. Private events at which physical distancing and mask-wearing are not occurring are the clear accelerate that is spreading the virus on Cape Cod.” Cyr said he can relate to the desire to socialize, but urged people to do so responsibly. He suggested visiting with friends outdoors, in chairs spaced apart from one another.

Thirteen people tested positive for COVID-19 in connection with a house party earlier this month in Chatham, Board of Selectmen chair Shareen Davis said. Davis called it “reckless and dangerous” to ignore public health guidance and said officials wanted to impress upon young people “that their actions have impact” and they could spread the highly contagious virus to loved ones who may be at higher risk.

Chris Van Buskirk
State House News Service

If supervised drug consumption sites were allowed in Massachusetts, Wrentham resident Lynn Wencus said the child she lost to overdose might still be alive today.

“As long as somebody is breathing, there’s always a chance for recovery,” the Team Sharing member said during a Wednesday rally.

The prospect of legal areas to consume controlled substances has long been a point of contention on Beacon Hill as questions about legality, implementation, and implications for professionals have circulated since the sites were first proposed.

Advocates for the measure gathered in front of the State House Wednesday urging the legislature to pass a bill that would (S 2717) create a 10-year pilot program for at least two sites where clinical professionals would monitor peoples’ use of controlled substances.

Organizers held the rally in honor of Aubree Esters, a longtime advocate for supervised sites. Sen. Julian Cyr, Senate chair of the Mental Health, Substance Abuse and Recovery Committee, said in the weeks before her death, Esters had spoken at length with Cyr’s staff about the legislation.

“This would give us another tool to save lives as the opioid epidemic continues to ravage communities across the commonwealth,” the Truro Democrat said. “This is ever more important in the time of COVID-19 when we have such isolation, when those who use drugs and who are struggling with drug use and addiction are so isolated.”

Under the legislation, the sites must provide hygienic spaces for consumption, on-premise health care professionals to monitor for overdoses, sterile injection supplies, and provide access to naloxone. The Department of Public Health would consider site operators for licensure only after local boards of health sign off on their participation.

Insite Vancouver opened in 2003 and became the first legal supervised drug injection site in North America and cities including Boston, San Francisco, Denver, and Philadelphia have considered opening similar locations.

“Let’s get these safe consumption sites going because we desperately, desperately need them,” Wencus, also a member of non-profit Team Sharing, said.

U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling has previously threatened to prosecute any effort to create a supervised consumption site program but in 2019 a federal judge in Pennsylvania ruled that the sites would not violate a section of the Controlled Substances Act as government prosecutors once alleged.

The bill is the result of nearly seven months of work from the Harm Reduction Commission, a group that was created after legislators toyed with the idea of creating the sites but instead decided to charge the commission to study the topic.

The Department of Public Health released data in early February showing that a total of 2,023 confirmed and estimated opioid-related overdose deaths occurred in 2019, down from 2,031 in 2018. The number peaked in 2016 at 2,097, according to the data, setting the overdose death rate at 30.5 per 100,000 residents.

Miriam Komaromy, medical director at Boston Medical Center’s Grayken Center for Addiction, recalled a time when naloxone was considered “bizarre and exotic.” Now, she said, the country finds itself in an era when the use of the opioid overdose prevention drug is common.

“Safe consumption sites are the same. They have excellent evidence for their benefit for saving lives, for engaging people in treatment if they’re interested in treatment, for helping to prevent the spread of infectious diseases,” she said at the rally. “There are so many reasons to embrace safe consumption sites and we can’t let the stigma and the politics overwhelm our efforts.”

Two-thirds of the Committee on Mental Health endorsed the bill in mid-May, sending it to Senate Ways and Means where it has remained over the past month.

The House voted Wednesday to extend formal sessions for the rest of 2020, and the Senate seems on board with that idea, raising the possibility that legislators could take up the bill at some point in 2020.

Mary Althoff turns 60 next week and has used IV drugs since she was 14-years-old. She said she would like to see a moment in time when injection drug users have the right and privilege to use in a safe environment.

“I’ve watched a lot of people overdose unnecessarily. I’ve lost a lot of lives unnecessarily. My life could have been lost unnecessarily,” she said. “So please bring it to bear, give these people an opportunity to do what they have the right and privilege to do.”

The following is a statement from New Bedford Public Schools Superintendent Thomas Anderson:

“We are in a time unlike any other that we have experienced. Although anxiety remains high, I was very pleased with the success and excitement around our multiple virtual graduation ceremonies we had in June. Last spring New Bedford High School scheduled a tentative August in-person graduation date based on the health and safety requirements at that time. Unfortunately, at this time I do not believe we should bring together a very large crowd of people. The NBHS staff is in the process of creating a plan to distribute Diplomas and yearbooks to students by appointments on August 4, 5, and 6th.”

On January 1, 1863, almost 3 years into America’s Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln declared “that all persons held as slaves are, and henceforward shall be free.” with his Emancipation Proclamation that officially made slavery illegal.

However, the enforcement of slavery depended solely on how deep Union troops advanced into those states that allowed it. The last bastion of these states was Texas and until that state was reached slavery would continue to exist. Texas would eventually fall to Union troops almost 2 1/2 years after President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation. From Galveston, Texas Union General Gordon Granger would issue General Order No. 3 on June 19th, 1865 which declared the Union’s authority of the state of Texas, finally putting an end to the practice of slavery.

The order stated:

“The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, ‘all slaves are free.’ This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor. All acts of the Governor and Legislature of Texas, since the Ordinance of Secession, are hereby declared illegitimate.”

155 years later, on Friday July 24th, 2020, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker signed legislation that officially declared June 19th as Juneteenth Independence Day, a state holiday and an action to “recognize the continued need to ensure racial freedom and equality.”

That leaves only Hawaii, North Dakota, and South Dakota who do not recognize Juneteenth as a holiday and only Texas observing Juneteenth as a paid holiday.

UPDATE: At the time of this article, 07/28/20, it was true that all but three states recognized Juneteenth. North Dakota recognized the holiday on April 13, 2021 and Hawaii would follow suit on June 16, 2021. The last state standing, South Dakota would observe the holiday for 2021 only. However, under pressure South Dakota would finally make it an official holiday in February of 2022.

Under the $3 trillion dollar Heroes Act proposed by Rep. Lowey, Nita M. (D) and passed by the House of Representative on May 15, Americans would receive a helping hand from the government.

According to the wording of the bill, it “…responds to the COVID-19 outbreak and its impact on the economy, public health, state and local governments, individuals, and businesses.”

The specifics of the bill include nearly $1 trillion alone for emergency supplemental appropriations to federal agencies and payments to state, local, tribal, and territorial governments, direct payments of up to $1,200 per individual, expands paid sick days, family and medical leave, unemployment compensation, nutrition and food assistance programs, housing assistance, expands the Paycheck Protection Program, establishes a fund to award grants for employers to provide pandemic premium pay for essential workers, tax credits and deductions, funding for COVID-19 testing and contact tracing, extends and expands the moratorium on certain evictions and foreclosures and requires employers to develop and implement infectious disease exposure control plans.

The “Heroes” aspect refers to the “…health care workers, police, fire, transportation, EMS, teachers and other vital workers who keep us safe and are in danger of losing their jobs.”

In addition, it modifies or expands a number of programs and policies such as Medicare and Medicaid, health insurance, broadband service, immigration, student loans and financial aid, prisons, veterans benefits, federal elections, and pension and retirement plans.

The bill now rests with the Republican-controlled Senate who will vote on the bill sometime this week before it becomes law. The timing is crucial since the $600 weekly supplement is set to expire on July 27th, which will have a dramatic and adverse effect on American households.

The Senate – many who have strong objections to certain aspects of the bill – would like to make some changes and adjustments before making the bill law. The $3 trillion bill had some flaws as evidenced by the fact that it was passed by the Democratic House by only nine votes, with 14 Democrats voting “nay.”

Here are the estimated awards that specific towns and cities on the South Coast would receive in 2020, if passed:

• Acushnet: $3,482,227;
• Dartmouth: $11,291,565;
• Fairhaven: $5,297,066;
• Fall River: $140,122,701;
• Marion: $1,692,731;
• Mattapoisett: $2,099,539;
• New Bedford: $132,036,398;
• Rochester: $1,852,360;
• Westport: $5,262,178;

The awards will continue into 2021 and would be as follows:

• Acushnet: $1,741,113
• Dartmouth: $5,645,783
• Fairhaven: $2,648,533
• Fall River: $70,061,350
• Marion: $846,365
• Mattapoisett: $1,049,770
• New Bedford: $66,018,199
• Rochester: $926,180
• Westport: $2,631,089

Colin A. Young
State House News Service

There were nearly 500 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Massachusetts over the weekend and the percentage of tests that come back positive for the coronavirus is rising.

The Department of Public Health confirmed 210 new cases of COVID-19 on Saturday and 273 more cases on Sunday, along with the announcement of 31 recent COVID-19 deaths between the two days. The number of daily new cases, which had generally settled at fewer than 200 a day earlier in the month, has been above 200 each of the last four days.

“Last four days in #Massachusetts had #COVID19 new positive tests over 200. Last time that happened? Mid-June – on the way down,” Dr. David Rosman, president of the Massachusetts Medical Society, tweeted Sunday night. “The data is early, but it looks like we are on the way back up. We should consider backing down a phase. #wearamask.”

Sunday’s report from DPH also showed that the seven-day average of the positive test rate as of July 25 had climbed to 1.9 percent from 1.8 percent after holding steady at 1.7 percent for more than a week. One month ago, the positive test rate was 2.0 percent.

Data reported Sunday would suggest the average will continue to climb — the 273 new cases reported Sunday were the results of 9,780 tests, meaning that 2.79 percent of all tests came back positive for the virus.

Last week, the governor pointed out that the state’s average positive test rate has dropped in the months since many aspects of the state’s economy began to reopen. When the earliest steps of the administration’s reopening plan began May 18, the seven-day average positive test rate was 9.6 percent.

“We actually had a higher positive test rate two and a half months ago than we have today, which speaks not only to the strategic decision-making that went into developing and implementing that plan, but it also speaks in a very big way to the work that’s continued to be done by the people in Massachusetts to do the things that we know are most successful in containing the virus and reducing the spread,” Gov. Charlie Baker said last week.

In Somerville, Mayor Joe Curtatone has taken a slower approach to allow business and social activity to resume. While most of the rest of the state has advanced to Phase 3 of the administration’s plan to open movie theater, gyms and more, Somerville is waiting until at least early August to permit most of those Phase 3 businesses.

In an interview Sunday with WBZ-TV’s Jon Keller, Curtatone defended his approach and said he has two goals: “to ensure the public health, safety and wellbeing of everyone in our community and also to make sure that in any reopening, that it sustainable.”

“As we move forward and as we have been moving forward, we have to commend the governor, his administration, the commonwealth and everyone out there who has done their part to flatten the curve,” he said. “But there are lessons to be learned and there’s data that we should be fully looking at.”

The mayor pointed to California, which he said was a few weeks ahead of Massachusetts in flattening the curve and has since rolled back reopening measures in many counties as case trends went in the wrong direction. Reiterating the widespread belief that a second wave of the coronavirus is in the offing this fall or winter, Curtatone said Massachusetts is not prepared to deal with that.

“We’re not prepared for a resurgence, not when we don’t have contact tracing where it should be, testing up to the level that it needs to be to gauge and respond to any outbreaks,” he said.

Keller asked Curtatone about Tufts University and the return of thousands of college students to Somerville. Curtatone said not having a comprehensive plan and some requirement for baseline testing of college students returning to Massachusetts from other parts of the country is “another glaring example where we are not prepared.”

“This is a big risk, I agree, and this approach by really the governor and the commonwealth of self-regulatory self-compliance is one that has proven to be a failure,” Curtatone said. “We’re not a selfless society, I’m sad to say that. We go around and we spike the football to victory, we have state beaches and parks and other facilities that are over-crowded, people refusing to wear face coverings at a time when the rest of the country is on fire, we know a resurgence is going to hit us and we’re struggling to save lives, get our schools open, now we’re going to have to deal with a major influx of people coming from outside the state and there’s a major gap.”

The mayor said that what Massachusetts needs is “a deliberative, bold approach to mandate at least some sort of baseline testing within a certain amount of days before you come to the commonwealth.”

At the end of a press conference Friday at which he announced new mandatory quarantine or testing requirements, Baker said the data he’s seen do not suggest that young people are driving coronavirus activity in Massachusetts.

“So the way to think about this is if you go back to April and May, the per capita positive test rate for people over the age of 60 was very high. The per capita positive test rate for people between the ages of 30 and 60 was high but not as high as the over 60s, and the per capita positive test rate for the 0 to 30 population was underneath those two, but it was also reasonably high,” Baker said. “What’s happened since then is the positive test rate per capita for the over 60s has crashed, the positive test rate for the 30 to 60s has also crashed, and the positive test rate for the under 30s has also crashed. So, what has happened as a result of that is there’s been an increase in terms of the percentage of positives that are in the 0 to 30 category and the 30 to 60 category, but that’s only because the over-60 group was so high to begin with.”

The governor said he brought the topic up because of the way that “an astonishing run-up in positive test rates for the under-30 crowd” drove a lot of the recent surges in cases in the south and southwest.

“We do not have that,” Baker said. “Our under-30 crowd is a higher percentage than it was two months ago, but that’s not because their positive test rate overall has gone up. It hasn’t, it’s collapsed the same way the 30 to 60 crowd did and the over-60 crowd did.”

He added, “our young people, for the most part, appear to be doing all the same things that the 30 to 60 and over-60 folks are doing. They’re not driving trend, they’ve done a really good job of reducing their overall positive test rate over the same period of time that other people did, they just didn’t have as far to go in reducing their positive test rate as the other two groups did.”

There is nothing that brings up more emotion on social media in New Bedford than to discuss the shooting death by police of 15-year old Malcolm Gracia. Anytime a teenager is killed, by police or other means, it’s important to learn from it, hold people accountable, and seek out the truth. As a journalist, you must be skeptical and ask the tough questions of the players with a vested interest in the case – the police and the family lawyer suing the City for a large sum of money.

I recommend you read ‘A deep dive into the 2012 shooting death of 15-year old Malcolm Gracia in New Bedford’ before proceeding to get educated on the case. The article is written based on the 14-page Bristol County District Attorney investigation and details provided by Gracia’s family lawyer Donald Brisson (to include a 1-hour interview with him). Brisson for several months now has stated he will present more evidence to the public, so expect more on this case in the future.

One of the biggest claims against the police is that Malcolm Gracia should have never been stopped and that the police officer was never stabbed or that his stab wounds were not serious. A judge recently ruled that the stop was illegal. Though the stop was ruled not legal, being unlawfully stopped by the police doesn’t justify stabbing police.

Several police officers on the scene and an independent witness that watched the entire stabbing/shooting, state that Malcolm did in fact thrust a knife towards Detective Barnes twice before being tasered then shot to death. Photos I’ve seen of Officer Barnes shown by Gracia’s family lawyer Donald Brisson did show a wound to the torso though Brisson pointed out that there was no blood on the officer’s muscle shirt (a valid point, but not concussive on its own). The internet is full of claims from people who have very little knowledge of the case except what they’ve been fed by social media, the mayor/police, or Don Brisson. Some claim Officer Barnes was never stabbed, others claim he was only stabbed on the arm and not the chest, or that the chest wound wasn’t serious. So what does the EMT report state? He was stabbed in the chest and the arm, and that the chest wound was serious.

A copy of the redacted report (they took out the names of the EMT) can be seen below, but here are the transcribed details on the stabbing from the EMT that treated Officer Barnes. I spelled out some of the acronyms:

“Dispatched for an officer down. En route to the scene police department updated that they needed an additional medic. On arrival found a mob of people located at the corner of Cedar and Middle. About 50 yards north on Cedar found two patients. One patient was not breathing, the second was stabbed to the right chest and having trouble breathing. Immediately went to the officer down with the stab wound while (another medic) began care on patient not breathing. Our patient is a 34-year-old police officer with a single stab wound to the right chest with a hooked knife approximately 6 inches long. Upon initial assessment found the chest wound to be a sucking chest wound. Immediately applied pressure with gloved hand and then placed a chest seal.”

The medic then talks about the vitals and medical history of the police officer before continuing.

“Lung sounds were clear on the left, and present but slightly diminished on the right side. Patient is complaining of some difficulty breathing.”

The medic again talks about the vitals before continuing.

“Penetrating stab wound to the right chest wall the 5-6th nb. Abrasion to the left forearm. After placing the chest seal on, immediately placed the patient on 15 LPMO2 via NRB. Patient transported via stretcher with assistance of police and fire department. Patient transported to Medic 1. Vital signs assessed. EKG Sinus. Multiple IV attempts made without success. Did eventually establish two IVs. 20g. NS lock flush to left forearm. 20g NS lock flush to right.”

“En route to Rhode Island hospital, patients respiratory rate increased and patient began to show signs of an increase in difficulty breathing. LS (Chest seal?) became absent on the right side of the chest. At this moment performed a needle decompression on the right side of the chest located in the 2-3 intercostal space. Immediately heard and felt a rush of air. Sealed the needle decompression with a second chest seal. Patient’s respiratory rate decreased within normal limits. SPO2 increased and patient no longer had any difficulty breathing. Patient was able to be placed on a NC at 4LPN. Rhode Island Hospital nottified via C-med CH 1. Upon arrival at Rhodes Island Hospital, patient was brought to trauma 2 and report was given to Rhodes Island Hospital ED staff. Patient status remained stable at the time of the transfer. Patient transported to Rhodes Island Hospital with fire department driver, police officers present in the back of the ambulance with police intern student as well.”

Based on this EMT report, Officer Barnes suffered two wounds, the more serious one a sucking chest wound. A chest seal was applied to Barnes’s chest at the scene of the stabbing and then again while being transported to Rhode Island Hospital. It’s important to note at the time of the stabbing in 2012 all seriously wounded patients were sent to Rhodes Island Hospital, not St. Luke’s because there wasn’t a trauma center there at that time. The medical records of Officer Barnes have not been released – I’ve been told they won’t be released as part of the settlement. Besides the photos that Don Brisson showed me but hasn’t released yet, the EMT report is the only medical document that we currently have available to make judgement.

It’s hard to read this EMT report and not conclude that Officer Barnes suffered a serious and a minor stab wound. All witnesses on the scene of the stabbing/shooting state that Malcolm Gracia thrust a knife twice at officer Barnes and the EMT report confirms two wounds. To say otherwise is just to ignore the facts to continue to push a false narrative. Anyone who says officer Barnes wasn’t stabbed that night could only conclude a deep cover-up by not only the police but the district attorney, fire department personnel, EMT, all the doctors/staff that treated officer Barnes at Rhode Island Hospital and the independent witness at the scene. For me, the wounds are irrelevant – it’s clear that Malcolm Gracia thrust a large knife at a police officer. If a suspect shoots at police, would you honestly say police shouldn’t shoot back because the suspect missed?

People are allowed to conclude whatever they want about this case, but at least now you have not only a 14-page DA investigation report but the EMT report detailing the wounds inflicted on Officer Barnes.

In 10 years, New Bedford police officers have responded to 868,074 calls for service and made 41,871 arrests while shooting one person. So why are we punishing New Bedford and other good police departments across the country that have shown restraint when it comes to police-involved shootings and deaths?

The police-involved death of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25 has resulted in severe ramifications for all police departments across the nation with calls for defunding the police (or even abolishing police departments) and ending qualified immunity for police officers. In Massachusetts, legislators and Governor Baker are moving quickly on police reform bills with the Senate already passing their bill and the House is close to passing their version of police reform. Why are we throwing out the baby with the bathwater? Why are we punishing all police for the actions of a few bad actors?

In the past 10 years, from 2010 to 2019, the New Bedford Police Department has had one police officer-involved shooting resulting in injury or death; 15-year old Malcolm Gracia. You can read my recent article ‘A deep dive into the 2012 shooting death of 15-year old Malcolm Gracia in New Bedford’ to get caught up from the Bristol County DA’s and the Gracia family lawyer’s perspectives. According to Sam Sutter, the Bristol County District Attorney at the time, the shooting was justified after Gracia stabbed a black New Bedford police officer multiple times with a large knife. The report shows a non-lethal taser was deployed after the stabbing and before the final shots. The family settled out of court, accepted a $500,000 one time payment, and agreed to a no-fault settlement with the City of New Bedford.

Earlier this month, the NAACP’s New Bedford Branch published a list of demands to reform the New Bedford Police Department. In June, New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell started the process of setting up a Commission on Police Use of Force Policies and in July kicked off the review and recommendation process. While it is reasonable to continue to call for investigations and ask questions about Malcolm Gracia’s death, it is unreasonable to call for deep reforms into the New Bedford Police Department based on Malcolm Gracia’s death and George Floyd’s death 1,400 miles away. Based on my research, New Bedford police officers have an excellent record of restraint when it comes to police-involved deaths.

I’ve run New Bedford Guide since 2010, and besides Malcolm Gracia, I could not recall another shooting death or even shooting involving a New Bedford police officer. So I put in a request with the New Bedford Police Department for the official statistics. From January 2010 to December 2019, New Bedford police officers responded to 868,074 calls for service for an average of 86,807 per year. In that same 10-year period, New Bedford police officers made 41,871 arrests for an average of 4,187 arrests per year.

With so many interactions and arrests, a single police-involved shooting, though tragic, doesn’t seem to fit the narrative that the New Bedford Police Department needs drastic reform and to strip the officers of qualified immunity. I think most would agree on some of the reform recommendations like certification/decertification and more transparency on police misconduct are appropriate, but decreasing police budgets and ending qualified immunity around the country seems more political than rational. If anything, the New Bedford Police Department should be a model for other police departments when it comes to showing restrains with firearms. We should be identifying police departments around the country with a high amount of police shootings and reform those departments, not punish police departments with a history of restraint.