Massachusetts State Police announces reforms under ‘Excellence Initiative’

The Massachusetts State Police has launched a new Excellence Initiative to claw back particular masses trust following modern embarrassments and improve its services and investigations The Excellence Initiative is not just a plan it s a promise MSP Col Geoffrey Noble announced in a video announcement A promise to our communities and a promise to our troopers and to the future of this department Noble declared that the initiative serves as a strategic plan to modernize how we operate deepen society trust and aid every member of this department with the structures training and leadership needed to succeed He identified four goals strengthening our foundation from within accountability to the community deepening public connection and outreach and enhancing crime prevention and violence reduction efforts From within Noble who was appointed commander of the MSP last September mentioned that he s refreshed the agency s command staff including a new deputy superintendent and division commanders The MSP has also reached out to the International Association of Chiefs of Police to review the MSP s recruit training a maturation first publicized following the death of MSP recruit Enrique Delgado-Garcia during a boxing training exercise around the time Noble was hired Delgado-Garcia s death led to scrutiny and calls for assessment by groups like the ACLU the Latino Law Enforcement Group of Boston and others Since Delgado-Garcia was a former staffer with the Worcester DA s office the episode was given to an independent investigator This goal also includes a new skills-based promotional process the agency says that evaluates leadership communication and provision history for promotions the improvement of a new leadership training initiative and initiatives to backing trooper resilience well-being and mental soundness Accountability Noble in a video announcing the initiative stated Citizens trust must be earned and maintained every day Under this goal the MSP says it has enhanced its training programs including advanced training for investigators so far that focuses on episode management courtroom testimony and investigative best practices The agency says it has also restructured the roles of captains launched a field supervisor pilot plan and made it so leadership operates under mission-aligned key performance indicators It also includes the creation of a Quality Assurance Unit to monitor and evaluate the quality of investigations more audits of trooper body-worn camera footage to help ensure trooper conduct aligns with departmental standards and population expectations Elements of this goal were first broadcasted in a message Noble circulated the same day last month that a Norfolk Superior Court jury acquitted murder defendant Karen Read of Mansfield of all charges other than drunken driving It was her second trial on charges that she murdered her boyfriend Boston Police Officer John O Keefe on Jan The examination was headed up by MSP detectives one of whom Michael Proctor was fired for his behavior during the analysis for which two of his supervisors were also placed under internal review but received no major repercussions The events of the last three years have challenged our Department to thoroughly review our actions and take concrete policies Noble mentioned in the June comment with those procedures being those reported in goal of the Excellence Initiative Outreach Noble explained that strong communities build safer communities and to that end he commented the MSP launched a Society Affairs Office headed by a civilian that will conduct outreach initiatives statewide Under this goal the MSP also created a six-week Citizen s Academy in which key locality stakeholders will learn how MSP operates Crime prevention Absolutely the MSP will have a long-term focus on proactive enforcement data-informed policing and strong partnerships to reduce violence protect critical infrastructure and endorsement safer communities statewide Under this goal the MSP reported it is enhancing its threat response and emergency management capabilities its content and intelligence sharing between agencies and its use of analytics and crime information to target those who drive the violence in the state It will also bolster trooper presence in the communities including through masses safety guidance programs and by safeguarding critical infrastructure across the state An MSP spokesperson did not promptly respond Wednesday to a Herald request for further information on specific of these initiatives AP Photo Steven SenneMassachusetts State Police recruit Enrique Delgado-Garcia died following a State Police Academy training exercise People last year protested outside the State Police Academy graduation ceremony at the DCU Center in Worcester AP Photo Steven Senne Greg Derr Pool photoMassachusetts State Trooper Michael Proctor faces a tough cross examination by Karen Read defense attorney Alan Jackson in July of last year Greg Derr Pool photo