SPD After Action Report Straight Pride Parade and Counter Protest 11.14.19 Final — File 209271

1 After Action Report “Boston Straight Pride Parade” and Counter-Protest of August 31, 2019 Somerville Police Department November 14, 2019

2 Introduction In the aftermath of the “Straight Pride Parade” and Counter-Protest on August 31, 2019, the Administration and the Department believed that this event deserved a thorough evaluation of the events of that day and the City’s public safety role at the event. In this report, the City evaluates Departmental Policy, best public safety practices, Boston’s mutual aid request, the City’s deployment of the COBRA Unit, the actions of SPD officers during the event, and key learnings for the City and the Department. We hope to convey understanding to the community about the role of the Somerville Police Department at this event. The Somerville Police Department is guided in all actions by a Mission Statement that states: “The Somerville Police Department, as part of, and empowered by, the community, is committed to protect the lives, property, and rights of all people, to maintain order, and to enforce the law impartially. Members of the Department actively pursue the cooperation of every resident in an effort to create a police/community partnership that is sensitive to the multitude of cultures that make up the human fabric of our community. To fulfill our mission, we will utilize innovative and proven crime prevention strategies and problem-solving partnerships with our community.” The Department strives in all aspects of its operations to meet the community’s expectations of its Police Department. The Straight Pride Parade and Counter-Protest was a complex event, and we have endeavored to evaluate many aspects of the incident. We look forward to explaining in what follows more about this event and related topics as a matter of transparency and to acknowledge the diverse perspectives of this community. Somerville Police Department: Crowd Management and Control  General Order 121: Crowd Management and Control According to General Order 121 of the Somerville Police Department Policies and Procedures, “It is the responsibility of the Somerville Police Department (SPD) to protect the lives, property and rights of all people and to enforce the law. The SPD and the City of Somerville recognize the rights of all individuals to assemble and speak freely, as guaranteed by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution and Article XVI of the Massachusetts Declaration of Rights, and will actively protect those rights. The SPD will strive to effectively manage crowds during demonstrations or civil disturbances to prevent loss of life, injury, or property damage and minimize disruption to persons who are uninvolved.”

3  Best Law Enforcement Practices for Crowd Control The Somerville Police Department is committed to protecting the first amendment rights of the public and to preserving public safety. Both our crowd management and control policy, as well as our continuous pursuit of best practices and our faithful review of community feedback, will continue to guide our efforts to fulfil these important duties in the best service of our community. Chuck Wexler, Executive Director of The Police Executive Research Forum, points out that, “changes in mass demonstrations in recent years have prompted a reexamination of how police departments need to equip and train their officers to prepare for these events.” Mr. Wexler states that today’s mass demonstrations are often less organized, occur more spontaneously and are promoted and managed largely through social media. Mr. Wexler further states that police agencies often have to manage multiple groups of protesters with diverse, and sometimes opposing, viewpoints. These factors complicate the police mission of maintaining public safety and officer safety while protecting demonstrators’ constitutional rights to free speech and assembly. In a white paper published by the Police Executive Research Forum in 2016, “The Police Response to Mass Demonstrations: Promising Practices and Lessons Learned,” many of the concerns referenced above are examined through the lens of best practices learned through experience and consider input from groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union, academic experts, and the Advancement Project (The Advancement Project’s vision statement is: “We envision a future where people of color are free – where they can thrive, be safe and exercise power. Driven by the genius of ordinary people and their movements, racism will no longer exist and justice will be radically transformed.”). One recommendation discussed in the white paper was the use of officers on bicycles in managing mass demonstrations because, among other factors, bicycle officers are seen as less intimidating than other officers and are therefore more easily able to engage with protesters and manage crowds through verbal communication and other de-escalation techniques. The Somerville Police Department is guided by the research of crowd psychologists who point out that crowds are not homogenous. Crowds are heterogeneous: they can have different groups and individuals with different aims, some are peaceful, some are non- violent disruptors, and some present a public safety threat. Participants may not be privy to or aware of the risks presented by these differences of intent. The best practices for

4 public safety in crowd management scenarios are to respond to each group or individual behavior pattern as appropriate. COBRA History Since the early 1990s, police departments across the nation have deployed police officers on bicycles to promote the philosophy of and to advance community policing, which has proven effective. The SPD COBRA Unit started with 5 officers and has grown to 20 officers. Our specialized training has also led to a specialized bicycle patrol unit called the Bravo Unit, and we have used our specially trained COBRA officers to provide for public safety at numerous citywide events. Since joining COBRA, the SPD has participated in many events in which other police departments have requested mutual aid. This year alone, not counting the Straight Pride Parade, the SPD has responded to five requests from either the Boston Police Department (BPD) or the Massachusetts State Police. The Somerville Police Department has been part of Cops on Bikes for Regional Assistance (COBRA) since 2016 and has a history of providing public safety at rallies and crowd management scenarios. For example, regional COBRA units provided mutual aid and valuable assistance for a Black Lives Matter rally in Somerville, which occurred right after the assassination of five police officers in Dallas, TX. The specter of violence in Somerville during this time period was very real. SPD’s work to protect public safety, including the safety of the protestors and our officers, began well before the rally. SPD leadership reached out to rally organizers to establish a dialogue before the event in order to work collaboratively to ensure safety. During the rally, where many officers and state troopers responded to provide Somerville mutual aid, only the COBRA Unit was deployed, and there were no violent incidents or arrests. The primary focus of the COBRA Unit both locally and regionally is on de-escalation. The 13 Somerville Police Officers who answered a call to assist with the Boston Straight Pride Parade are a diverse group trained to protect people’s right to free speech and right to assemble. These officers were chosen to be part of the COBRA Unit as a result of their dedication to the community, their empathetic nature and their commitment to community policing.

5 Mutual Aid The City of Somerville has approximately 80,000 residents and 130 police officers. To protect our residents in the event of a human-made emergency or natural disaster that threatens the health, safety, or welfare of the public and that also threatens to overwhelm the capacity of our force, we rely on mutual aid to ensure that we have the resources to provide safety to the community. The provision of mutual aid is governed under section 4J of chapter 40 of the Massachusetts General Laws and requires participating police departments to provide aid. In recent years, Somerville has both benefitted from mutual aid as well as provided mutual aid in cases involving high-risk situations with dangerous and armed suspects that put the public in danger if not handled appropriately with sufficient deployment of officers. Recent mutual aid responses have included, for example, aid in apprehending a home invasion suspect armed with an Uzi, a high-capacity weapon capable of inflicting mass casualties.  “Straight Pride Parade” and Counter-Protest Mutual Aid Callout In early July of this year, BPD informed us of an expected mutual aid callout on August 31. On August 22, we received a written request for mutual aid on behalf of Boston Police Commissioner William Gross asking for “any assets available”: Good afternoon, Please be advised that Boston Police Commissioner William Gross has requested a full COBRA activation on Saturday, August 31, 2019 for Straight Pride Boston. Roll Call location and time to be determined. All COBRA bicycle riders should be in in High Visibility gear and bring inclement weather gear if needed. We understand it is a busy weekend but are looking for any assets available. Please let me know what officers will be participating as soon as possible. Thank you all in advance for any assistance.  Source of Legal Authority for Mutual Aid The source of the legal authority for Boston’s request and Somerville’s assent to assist in the “Boston Straight Pride Parade” is c. 40 sec. 4J. The City accepted the provisions of c. 40 sec. 4J in 2014, and Boston accepted the statute in 2013. Section 4J(d)(3) states that “a

6 party that receives a request for mutual aid assistance shall provide and make available, to the extent reasonable and practicable under the circumstances, the resources requested; provided, however, that a sending party may withhold requested resources to the extent necessary to provide reasonable protection and coverage for its own jurisdiction.” Boston followed the statutory procedure in sec. 40J(d) by making a request in writing. Because accepting Boston’s request did not endanger public safety in the City of Somerville, we believe Somerville did not have the discretion to deny Boston’s request. Boston was concerned about the number of protesters the parade might generate and had intelligence that violence could occur during the event. Pre-Event Intelligence and Event Observations  BRIC-Issued Intelligence The day before the event, the Boston Regional Intelligence Center (BRIC) issued intelligence that 200 to 300 marchers were expected to be part of the parade, and that an estimated 1,800 to 10,000 people were expected to counter-protest. The intelligence stated that “individuals from both sides were expecting and hoping for violent confrontation.” It also stated that “Straight Pride Parade” protestors were organizing their own “security” (sic), planned to bring batons and pepper spray, and were associated with known white nationalist groups that have promoted and engaged in violence. The intelligence also stated that social media posts indicated that some individuals were planning to carry concealed firearms at the event. It also noted that “organizers of one of the protests provided guidance to its participants that their event would be confrontational and include violence.” It was also noted that counter-protesters planned to block the parade route and that it was highly likely that some individuals attending would attempt to engage in disruptive and/or criminal behavior targeting the opposing side and law enforcement.  Officer Deployment and Event Observations On the morning of the Parade, 13 members of the SPD COBRA Unit met at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center. While officers from other police departments were assigned to protect and monitor the “Straight Pride Parade” participants and ensure the route was not blocked, one of the assigned duties of Somerville Police COBRA Unit

7 members was to protect and monitor counter-protestors. The observations below reflect the assignment of the SPD COBRA Unit. Approximately 100 COBRA officers were present from numerous cities, towns, and universities. Somerville officers were placed with BPD officers and assigned to Arlington Street at Boylston Street. Social media had identified this spot as the location for the Antifascist Bloc (sic) Party. After the parade passed, all SPD officers were assigned to the area of Boylston and Tremont and then to Cambridge Street in front of Boston City Hall. At each location the SPD COBRA unit remained as one cohesive group. At the first location, our officers encountered large groups whose members were clad all in black, and many of whom wore face masks and dressed in military tactical gear with pepper spray clearly visible. Officers observed groups of young males with backpacks. Some members of these groups were communicating via walkie talkie. In advance of the parade/counter-protests, the BPD had issued an advisory that, among other warnings, strongly urged participants not to bring backpacks and also banned sticks, shields, weapons (which includes pepper spray), and athletic equipment (such as knee and elbow pads). There was a group of counter-protesters from the John Brown Gun Club, a citizen protection group that employs the use of guns at protests for self-defense. So officers had to take into account that some civilians in the crowd may have been carrying concealed weapons, which presents additional danger (even when the carrier’s intent is self-defense). The members of this organization were dressed in brown pants and had red bandanas covering their faces. Officers saw groups in the background moving about with large plastic shields made from what looked like cut-up construction barrels. Meanwhile the Boston Tactical Operations Center reported that shields were being deposited in green garbage bags along the parade route. Throughout the entire event, the crowd called officers “Nazis” and chanted, “Fuck the police” and “Who do you protect? Who do you serve?” SPD officers are well aware that visual cues such as group-signifying clothing and walkie- talkies do not necessarily indicate a risk of violence. Officers must, however, keep all potential risk factors in mind when evaluating the threats or risks to public safety from moment to moment. The majority of counter-protestors encountered by the Somerville COBRA Unit were peaceful demonstrators exercising their constitutional right to free assembly.

8 COBRA’s mission is to prevent violence through positioning and de-escalation, specifically by using containment, isolation, and dispersal methods. COBRA followed this mission at the event. Somerville COBRA Unit officers were dressed in polo shirts and shorts, with no riot helmets or other tactical gear. This non-tactical uniform is an intentional component of the de-escalation tactics of the COBRA Unit setting the groundwork for non-confrontational interaction. At the locations where SPD officers were assigned (Arlington and Boylston and farther along the parade route), BPD entered the crowd to confiscate weapons or to stop protesters from throwing objects. In the process of entering the crowd, BPD officers were blocked and assaulted. When this happened, Somerville officers provided support. This included assisting officers who were placing people under arrest. No Somerville officer made any official arrests; however, SPD did assist in taking people into custody for violations of the law. No Somerville police officer initiated entry into the crowd, and at no time did any Somerville officer display pepper spray or deploy it. No Somerville officer struck or threatened anyone with a police baton. None of the 36 counter-protesters arrested required hospitalization. One of our officers was slightly injured when a protester stepped on his foot, but he did not require medical attention. To the best of our knowledge, four members of the BPD were injured and sent to the hospital. Somerville Police Officers were released from the event at 2:30 p.m. Since the event, Deputy Chief Stephen Carrabino, who oversees the COBRA Unit and was on scene for the entire event, has personally spoken individually with each COBRA Unit officer to debrief on the incident and to give them the opportunity to report any relevant information up the chain of command. And, just as SPD is concerned with public safety and adherence to protocol, we are also concerned about officer wellness. We train our officers to make decisions in the moment based on the best information they have available at the time. That level of alert vigilance in maintaining public safety can be stressful and consuming. Deputy Carrabino also thanked each officer for volunteering to work a potentially dangerous assignment and for taking a shift on a holiday weekend. Every officer reported to Deputy Carrabino that they were fine.

9 Video Review and Evidence Gathering  Video Review The SPD made numerous requests of the public to share video with the Department and made best efforts to obtain any video available of SPD Officers at the “Straight Pride Parade.” SPD also assigned a civilian to proactively search online for video on publicly accessible social media feeds. No parameters were placed on the search, with SPD committing to review all video discovered. The Department conducted more than 24 hours (three business days) of searching social media feeds. Feeds were searched for video evidence, many of which were found to have the same video clips. Multiple pertinent video clips of events at five locations were downloaded and reviewed. o Video footage locations and SPD involvement Arlington and Boylston – detaining a person Corner of Boylston – SPD assisting BPD Corner of Boylston – assisting in an arrest Boylston towards Tremont - Officers attempting to confiscate weapons Emerson College – assisting with arrest The entire Command Staff reviewed the downloaded video. The Department could find no evidence of SPD officers violating the Policy or Procedures of the Somerville Police Department. We investigated all allegations of misconduct or excessive use of force and were unable to support any violation of policy by our officers. If a civilian who is not familiar with police procedures views video only of the moment that police initiate hands-on techniques, we fully understand that it can appear concerning or overly aggressive. Furthermore, it’s hard to appreciate the full context of the interaction leading to the officer engaging with the citizen. This is why the SPD leadership supports body-worn cameras and will continue to engage the SPD unions regarding the implementation of body-worn cameras.  Call for evidence and complaints The City actively solicited complaints and concerns from the public via multiple methods, including public requests disseminated to local print, digital, and television

10 media; social media outreach; website postings; and at the Public Hearing on 9/18/19. One complaint was filed with SPD; it has been thoroughly investigated by the Office of Professional Standards, and pursuant to standard internal affairs procedures, is now undergoing final steps before release to the complainant.  Public Hearing and Additional Community Discussion Along with the City Council’s Committee on Public Health and Public Safety, the City co- hosted a Public Hearing to Discuss SPD Involvement in the “Straight Pride Parade,” on Wednesday, September 18, 2019, in the Somerville High School Auditorium, and all comments from this hearing were reviewed. Additionally, Chief David Fallon and Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone made themselves available both before and after the Public Hearing to listen directly to attendee concerns, feedback, and perspectives. These individual and group dialogues were helpful and were also taken into consideration.  Request for Boston PD Video Footage A request was made to Boston PD for video footage from area security cameras, video they collected or obtained, or video from any other source. They were unable to provide the Department with this material citing pending review by their Legal Office and Internal Affairs Division.  Debriefing with COBRA Unit Officers As noted elsewhere in this report, a debriefing with each officer present was conducted to gather officer observations of the events on scene.

11 Next Steps  Continual Reinforcement of Department Policy In an effort to continuously improve our response to incidents such as the Straight Pride Parade, SPD will hold a roll call prior to any deployment at which a supervisor will reaffirm our commitment: 1. To protect public safety, 2. To protect first amendment rights, 3. To refrain from making any unnecessary arrest, and 4. To abide by Somerville’s use of force policy. Somerville supervisor(s) will reiterate this message on scene and ensure that no Somerville officer makes an unnecessary arrest and that all officers strictly adhere to Somerville’s Use of Force Policy.  Increased Supervision and Input for Mutual Aid Deployments While the host agency and the mutual aid agencies should work as a unified force, mutual aid agencies – Somerville officers in this case – should have been used in more of relief and support role. In future mutual aid deployments, we will work to ensure our officers are deployed appropriately. In the future, more Somerville supervisors should be at events, and those supervisors need to have more input into the strategic planning, mission objectives, and philosophy of the particular event. In the case of an event in which the host agency’s philosophy does not comport with SPD’s or the City – especially in a case involving freedom of speech and expression – Somerville will voice its concerns and request re-deployment.  Policy Changes:  In acknowledgment of lessons learned during the “Straight Pride Parade” and counter-protest and in an effort to increase transparency both internally and externally, the Somerville Police Department is making important changes to Policy Number 106 (Incident Reporting Guideline). The changes include updating language under “Incidents Requiring Additional Reports” to include verbiage requiring that officers working outside the city in an official capacity, who take someone into

12 custody or assist other officers in taking someone into custody, must file a timely report documenting their actions and observations.  SPD is also working to train and assign more first-line supervisors to the COBRA Unit. The supervisors will be tasked with providing direct supervision, monitoring officers for signs of stress during events, and debriefing officers under their command at the conclusion of each event.  In an effort to ensure and promote officer wellness, we will offer peer support after each event and also send letters offering support to officers’ families who now witness these events in real time via the 24-hour news cycle and social media.  Again, as noted above, the SPD leadership supports body-worn cameras and will continue to engage the SPD unions regarding the implementation of body-worn cameras.

13  Commitment to Community – Concluding Statement from Chief David Fallon The objective of the Somerville Police Department in rendering mutual aid during the “Straight Pride Parade” and counter-protest was to help ensure the maintenance of public safety and to protect all attendees’ Constitutional right to free speech and assembly. One of the burdens of police work is not knowing or being unable to quantify what harm your service may have prevented when you are in the community solving problems or de- escalating potentially violent confrontations, or when an officer takes an illegal weapon off the streets. This is also true when officers place themselves between two groups, each of whom may have some members who are intent on doing harm to the other side. We will never know what harm our officers helped prevent at the August event. What we do know is that some members of our community who were present at the counter-protest felt disenfranchised and harmed by their experience. We acknowledge that and must work to ensure that these individuals – and all in our community – feel protected and safe. It is my belief that we can achieve this through continuing and ongoing dialogue as well as continuing and ongoing commitment to our mission statement. We understand that this report is not a final step but rather the start of a continued response to these events. At the same time, it is important to note that Somerville Police Officers volunteered to respond to the departmental call for mutual aid, knowing the situation could be dangerous, sacrificing personal time on a holiday weekend to uphold the values of our community, a community that I believe values every voice. I take great pride in the Officers of the Somerville Police Department and witness everyday their efforts to solve problems and provide public safety to the residents of Somerville in a compassionate, empathetic, and professional manner. I look forward to further dialogue that will help us continue to grow and evolve as an organization. It is my belief that when we engage in positive and constructive dialogue, with every member of our community, we will be best able to model and uphold the high standards we set for ourselves and that our community deserves. We will continue our efforts to earn the trust and to protect the people of this city.  ________________________________________________________________________

14 APPENDIX Clarification on Utilization of Equitable Sharing Funds for “Boston Straight Pride Parade” and Counter-Protest The Somerville Police Department is committed to preventing the loss of life through harm reduction and has displayed this commitment through the build-out of our Community Outreach Help and Recovery Office, which consists of two licensed clinicians, a licensed drug and alcohol counselor, a recovery coach, and graduate-level interns. SPD has been a robust part of the Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative since 2018. SPD Officers staff National Take Back days each spring and fall. The SPD has hosted numerous Recovery Coach Academies and stakeholder meetings. The SPD has just started to work on an Overdose Aftercare Program. Each of the efforts are meant to collectively instill a department-wide philosophy that our priority is to divert residents facing the disease of addiction away from the criminal justice system and toward treatment and recovery services. The focus of our Officer assigned to the Federal Drug Enforcement Administration is on the top tier drug dealers (cartel level) in our region in an effort to remove tools of crime from criminal organizations and deprive the top tier, cartel-level drug dealers of the proceeds of their crimes. One of the ancillary benefits of having an officer assigned to the DEA and FBI is that it allows SPD to participate in the Department of Justice Equitable Sharing Program concerning criminal cases in which the officer was directly involved. Federal Law authorizes the Attorney General to share federally forfeited property with participating state and local law enforcement agencies. In order to receive an equitable share, an agency must assist in the law enforcement effort resulting in federal forfeiture. Equitable sharing occurs only after the federal forfeiture has been completed, the United States has taken clear title of the property, the property has been sold or otherwise disposed of as provided by law, third parties and victims have been fully compensated, and a final sharing decision has been made by the appropriate federal official. Agencies should not “spend it before you get it” or budget anticipated receipts. The Department of Justice Equitable Sharing Program is designed to supplement and enhance, not supplant, appropriated agency resources. Shared funds must be used to increase or supplement the resources of the receiving state or local law enforcement agency. Shared funds shall not be used to replace or supplant the appropriated resources of

15 the recipient. G.L. c. 94C, section 47 provides that proceeds from forfeiture funds must be deposited in a special law enforcement trust fund and expended without further appropriation to “defray the costs of protected investigations, to provide additional technical equipment or expertise, to provide matching funds to obtain federal grants, or to accomplish such other law enforcement purposes” as the chief of police deems appropriate. Department of Revenue Guidance references the statute. Below is a Program breakdown. 1. Criminal Asset Forfeiture Program description 2. Program oversight a. Internal i. Oversight is completed by City financial and Public Safety staff including the Director of Finance, Chief of Police, and Financial Analyst. b. Procedural i. Procedural oversight is completed by Patrol Office assigned to DEA and FBI 3. Public records a. Revenue and expenditures from the LETF are available in response to public records requests. Financial information for the FY16-FY20 period is presented below. 4. Internal Controls 5. Guidance on supplantation and budgeting 6. Permissible use: a. Law enforcement operations and investigations b. Law enforcement training and education c. Law enforcement, public safety, and detention facilities d. Law enforcement equipment e. Joint law enforcement/public safety operations f. Contracts for services g. Law enforcement travel and per diem h. Law enforcement awards and memorials i. Drug, gang, and other prevention or awareness programs j. Matching grants k. Support of community-based organizations 7. Impermissible uses a. Use of forfeited property by non-law enforcement personnel b. Creation of endowments or scholarships c. Uses contrary to state or local laws d. Personal or political use of shared assets e. Purchase of food or beverages

16 f. Extravagant or wasteful expenditures and entertainment g. Cash on hand, secondary accounts, and stored-value cards h. Transfers to other law enforcement agencies i. Purchase of items for other law enforcement agencies j. Costs related to lawsuits k. Loans l. Money laundering operations 8. Current balance: $208,001 9. Expenditure and Revenue Table: See attachment.