Message from the Commissioner

I would like to take this opportunity to recognize the outstanding job that has been done by members of this department. The men and women of the Boston Police Department continue to work extremely hard to keep this city safe. You have been ceaseless in your efforts to reduce crime and engage in true partnerships with key stakeholders in our neighborhoods.
Your work has earned the department an international reputation for its commitment to Community Policing. As I said at my swearing in, one of my goals is to build upon this commitment. Community Policing is a department-wide philosophy, not simply a strategy or unit within a department. In order for us to continue to be successful, we must be organized in such a way that the entire agency supports this philosophy.
The patrol force is the backbone of this organization. As Police Commissioner, it is my responsibility to put in place a command and accountability structure that supports this commitment to our patrol force. It is also my responsibility to ensure that every police officer- patrol officer, detectives, rapid response units, special operations units and their superiors- all operate with a Community Policing philosophy that focuses more on the prevention of crime than it does on the rapid response to it.
The Boston Police Department will soon implement a COMPSTAT process. COMPSTAT is a command and accountability system where the department commanders review crime patterns. The Boston Police COMPSTAT process will be a bi-weekly meeting among commanders and external partners, who will focus on geographical accountability coupled with intelligence-driven deployment. The goal of this process is to provide oversight to facilitate the effective deployment of resources, to create geographic accountability and to enhance cooperation and communication department-wide.
The department is making the following organizational changes to support the successful implementation of COMPSTAT and geographic-based policing.

• Captains will be responsible for developing strategies to address crime and quality of life issues specific to their geographic command.
• Captains will be assisted by one of three Deputy Superintendents tasked with prioritizing and allocating resources within a newly zoned area. Each Deputy will be responsible for one of three geographic zones. The new zones are as follows:
  Zone 1: District A1, A15, A7, D4 and D14
  Zone 2: B2, B3, C6 and C11
  Zone 3: E5, E13 and E18

• As recognition that the Youth Violence Strike Force (YVSF) and the Boston Police School Police Unit are fundamentally patrol resources, both units will be moved from the Bureau of Investigative Services to the Bureau of Field Services.
  

  The Youth Violence Strike Force will be located at 170 Hancock Street in Dorchester. They will report to a Deputy Superintendent. Utilizing tactics proven successful in the past, YVSF officers will conduct operations at the discretion of their commander. They will assist with visibility and proactive strategies to reduce gang violence.

  Boston Police School Police Unit will continue to operate from their present location at Latin Academy. All patrol officers of this unit will now report in uniform.

• District detectives will now be working under a central authority to coordinate a unified investigative response. The District detectives will be moved from their current location in the Bureau of Field Services and will be placed under the administrative command of the Bureau of Investigative Services. District detectives will maintain an operational responsibility to the District Captains.
• The Tactical Mountain Bike Unit will transfer from Special Operations and will report to a Deputy Superintendent under the Bureau of Field Services. The Mountain Bike Unit will be housed at 170 Hancock Street in Dorchester. This unit will be deployed in various patrol assignments.
• The Bureau of Internal Investigations and the Bureau of Professional Development will be combined to create the Bureau of Professional Standards and Development. This reflects the reality that training is vital to all aspects of Community Policing. In addition, a review of citizen complaints against officers indicated that many of the issues identified could be mitigated with training that is designed to prevent misconduct.
  

  The Bureau of Professional Standards and Development will come under the command of Superintendent Robert Harrington. Deputy Superintendent Marie Donahue will be assigned to the Training & Education Division as Academy Commander.

• Drug Control Unit resources will be reallocated so that each District will have dedicated DCU personnel.
• Lastly, disorder control is a fundamental component of Community Policing. Captains are expected to place an emphasis on the individual needs of each neighborhood. To assist them with this requirement, I have appointed Deputy Superintendent Gladys Gaines to serve as a Liaison between the department and City Hall to focus exclusively on issues of neighborhood services and to lead the department’s response to the complex issue of homelessness.

By reaffirming our commitment to Community Policing and structuring our agency so it supports this mission at every level, we are giving this department the foundation it needs to drive down violent crime, adapt to emerging crime trends with innovative programs and make our city safe.
Ed Davis, Commissioner