Framingham Police Recomendations

Every tax is a pay cut. Every tax cut is a pay raise.
Citizens for Limited Taxation

Recomendations to improve the accountability of the Framingham Police

Each police vehicle including (and especially) motorcycles should be trackable using GPS technology.
Tracking logs should be available to the public just as the current police logs are (one or two days old).
We can determine for ourselves just how long those Dunkin Donuts visits really are. Otherwise, we need access to the Dunkin Donuts video cameras and we do not have such access.
We can also get visual information on how the streets of Framingham are patrolled.
The police will fiercely resist this recommendation because they want anonymity in their behaviour. We the taxpayers want clear transparency in their behaviour.

Police uniforms should have large football jersey style numbers which allows for easy reading at a distance of 100 feet.
This removes some of their power of anonymity.
Currently their uniforms only have a tiny name tag which can only be read if you're 5 feet away or less. If you get any closer, you'll spook them and they will charge you with assault and battery if you touch them.
How utterly offensive!

Each police cruiser should have very large identifying numbers on each side so that we can identify its poor driver from a distance, using the police log files.
This removes some of their power of anonymity.
The fact that a big cruiser number is not on the side of the cruiser and only on the roof (where you can't see it) is a strong indication that these officers want anonymity.

Each police cruiser should have a camcorder on its dash that must be turned on with every encounter with the public.
Failure to turn the camcorder on should be punishable with 3 days of unpaid leave.

All officers should be required to clearly identify themselves when asked to do so. They are after all, public servants. They should not be trying to pretend to be our masters.
Failure to identify themselves should have a substantial penalty attached to it, such as one week of unpaid leave.
I would suggest that every officer have business cards to hand out.

The online police logs should show us who submitted the log entries. This would provide accountability and transparency. These are two words that are not well understood by our police.
The thin Blue line is very protective of itself and has often shown us its Wall of Silence.

The booking area in the rear of the main police station should have automated video and audio recordings of every person arrested in Framingham. Once a person is in the custody of the police, they should be under video surveillance until they are placed in a cell. Even then, video recordings might be recommended to keep police abuse at a minimum.

Recomendations to improve the accountability of the Framingham Police
Each police vehicle including (and especially) motorcycles should be trackable using GPS technology. Tracking logs should be available to the public just as the current police logs are (one or two days old). We can determine for ourselves just how long those Dunkin Donuts visits really are. Otherwise, we need access to the Dunkin Donuts video cameras and we do not have such access. We can also get visual information on how the streets of Framingham are patrolled. The police will fiercely resist this recommendation because they want anonymity in their behaviour. We the taxpayers want clear transparency in their behaviour. Police uniforms should have large football jersey style numbers which allows for easy reading at a distance of 100 feet. This removes some of their power of anonymity. Currently their uniforms only have a tiny name tag which can only be read if you're 5 feet away or less. If you get any closer, you'll spook them and they will charge you with assault and battery if you touch them. How utterly offensive! Each police cruiser should have very large identifying numbers on each side so that we can identify its poor driver from a distance, using the police log files. This removes some of their power of anonymity. The fact that a big cruiser number is not on the side of the cruiser and only on the roof (where you can't see it) is a strong indication that these officers want anonymity. Each police cruiser should have a camcorder on its dash that must be turned on with every encounter with the public. Failure to turn the camcorder on should be punishable with 3 days of unpaid leave. All officers should be required to clearly identify themselves when asked to do so. They are after all, public servants. They should not be trying to pretend to be our masters. Failure to identify themselves should have a substantial penalty attached to it, such as one week of unpaid leave. I would suggest that every officer have business cards to hand out. The online police logs should show us who submitted the log entries. This would provide accountability and transparency. These are two words that are not well understood by our police. The thin Blue line is very protective of itself and has often shown us its Wall of Silence. The booking area in the rear of the main police station should have automated video and audio recordings of every person arrested in Framingham. Once a person is in the custody of the police, they should be under video surveillance until they are placed in a cell. Even then, video recordings might be recommended to keep police abuse at a minimum.

Send comments to: hjw2001@gmail.com