McCarter, Brian v. Department of State Police (SPR 20260064)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records January 21, 2026 SPR26/0064 Allison Mondello Public Records Manager Massachusetts Department of State Police 50 Maple Street Milford, MA 01757 Dear Ms. Mondello: I have received the petition of Brian McCarter appealing the response of the Department of State Police (Department) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On June 20, 2025, Mr. McCarter requested records from January 1, 2023 to the present pertaining to “incidents occurring within approximately 1 mile of the Mass Ave Connector in Boston – including the area commonly referred to as the Connector, Mass and Cass, Methadone Mile, Recovery Road, Miracle Mile, or the Albany Street corridor – including intersections with Albany Street, Melnea Cass Boulevard and the I-93 ramps.” Specifically, Mr. McCarter sought: [1] All incident reports, arrest records, and field interview reports for events occurring within 1 mile of the Mass Ave Connector [including] records involving overdoses, assaults, weapons-related incidents, disorderly conduct, trespassing, and medical assistance. [2] All call-for-service logs, CAD data, or dispatch records involving response to this area [including] any classification codes or incident types where available. [3] All internal communications (including emails, memos, text messages, and messages sent through Signal, WhatsApp, iMessage, Slack, Microsoft Teams, or other messaging applications) referencing crime, overdoses, encampments, repeat hazard areas, or public safety concerns near the Connector. [4] Any communications with Boston Police, MBTA Police, MassDOT, Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH), Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS), Executive Office of Public Safety and Security (EOPSS), Department of Mental Health (DMH), Department of Public Utilities One Ashburton Place, Room 1719, Boston, Massachusetts 02108 • (617) 727-2832 • Fax: (617) 727-5914 sec.state.ma.us/pre • pre@sec.state.ma.us

Allison Mondello SPR26/0064 Page 2 January 21, 2026 (DPU), Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), City of Boston (including the Mayor’s Office, Boston Public Health Commission, Office of Recovery Services, and Department of Neighborhood Development), Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department, or any other state, municipal, or regional, city agency/departments concerning safety risks, public health issues, enforcement coordination, or planned operations in the area. [5] Any records relating to EMS responses, ambulance transports, or hospital coordination for incidents occurring in the area, including overdose incidents or mass casualty preparations. This includes records received from, shared with, or created in coordination with Boston EMS, private ambulance services, area hospitals, or public health agencies. [6] Any crime pattern analyses, intelligence bulletins, or internal threat or risk assessments pertaining to the Connector and adjacent locations. [7] Any reports, complaints, or internal safety alerts from troopers regarding repeat threats, unsafe conditions, or health/sanitation concerns along the Connector corridor. [8] Any communications between MSP and MassDOT or its contractors related to encampments, pedestrian hazards, debris removal, public safety issues, or cleanup efforts along the Connector. [9] Any internal communications regarding a decision not to issue a public safety bulletin, press release, or public warning despite known or ongoing danger at or near the Connector. [10] Any daily shift logs, roll-call briefings, patrol directives, or command staff situation reports that reference the Connector area or nearby encampments, drug activity, or public safety hazards. [11] Records of naloxone administrations or other life-saving medical interventions by troopers within the 1-mile zone, including supply-reorder logs or usage summaries. [12] All cruiser dash-camera, body-worn camera (if any), or radio-channel audio recordings associated with incidents in the area. If video is retained only under specific incident numbers, please identify the numbers or hash values so the footage can be requested or preserved. [13] Any after-action reports, operational plans, or “directed patrol” / “hot-spot” enforcement plans that reference the Connector corridor, including joint operations with Boston Police, MBTA Police, or MassDOT.

Allison Mondello SPR26/0064 Page 3 January 21, 2026 It is my understanding that the Department assigned the request reference number P006467-062225. Previous Appeals This request was the subject of previous appeals. See SPR25/1988 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (July 23, 2025) and SPR25/2189 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (August 1, 2025). In my August 1st determination, I encouraged Mr. McCarter and the Department to communicate to facilitate providing records more efficiently and affordably. On August 23, 2025, Mr. McCarter clarified the scope of his request by “defining the search area with precise geographic parameters.” The Department responded on September 3, 2025, September 10, 2025, September 22, 2025, and November 14, 2025. Unsatisfied with the Department’s responses, Mr. McCarter petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR26/0064, was opened as a result. The Public Records Law The Public Records Law strongly favors disclosure by creating a presumption that all governmental records are public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A(d); 950 C.M.R. 32.03(4). “Public records” is broadly defined to include all documentary materials or data, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made or received by any officer or employee of any agency or municipality of the Commonwealth, unless falling within a statutory exemption. G. L. c. 4, § 7(26). It is the burden of the records custodian to demonstrate the application of an exemption in order to withhold a requested record. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(iv); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(3); see also Dist. Attorney for the Norfolk Dist. v. Flatley, 419 Mass. 507, 511 (1995) (custodian has the burden of establishing the applicability of an exemption). To meet the specificity requirement a custodian must not only cite an exemption, but must also state why the exemption applies to the withheld or redacted portion of the responsive record. If there are any fees associated with a response, a written, good faith estimate must be provided. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(viii); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.07(2). Once fees are paid, a records custodian must provide the responsive records. The Department’s Responses In its September 3, 2025 response, the Department stated: The Department of State Police currently does not have a method of conducting a search for the requested records based on the radial parameters provided… If you are able to provide any specific addresses or a range of addresses you would like to have checked, please provide those addresses and we will attempt to locate any responsive records.

Allison Mondello SPR26/0064 Page 4 January 21, 2026 Following additional clarification provided by Mr. McCarter on September 3, 2025, a Department Official responded on September 10, 2025, “I will look into this further and hope to have information for you within the next few days.” In its September 22, 2025 response, the Department stated, “[w]ith the… additional information you provided, we were able to locate potentially responsive records. We are in the process of reviewing the data for responsiveness and necessary redactions, and expect to have a more substantive response for you soon.” After Mr. McCarter sent multiple follow-up inquiries, the Department responded on November 14, 2025, “[p]lease be advised the Public Records Unit processes requests in the order they are received. Due to the extensive volume of this request, we have not completed reviewing all potentially responsive records.” Current Appeal In his appeal petition, Mr. McCarter argued: The Department confirmed its ability to search for responsive records, reopened the request, and then failed to produce records or issue any response required by statute… The Department delayed this request in July by asserting vagueness… The Department has now possessed adequate search parameters and acknowledged responsive records for more than four months. Timeliness in Providing Records G. L. c. 66, § 10(b) provides, in pertinent part, that if the magnitude or difficulty of the request unduly burdens the other responsibilities of the agency or municipality such that the agency or municipality cannot provide records within 10 business days, the agency or municipality must inform the requestor in writing within 10 business days. With respect to the timeframe to produce responsive records, the written response shall: identify a reasonable timeframe in which the agency or municipality shall produce the public records sought; provided, that for an agency, the timeframe shall not exceed 15 business days following the initial receipt of the request for public records and for a municipality the timeframe shall not exceed 25 business days following the initial receipt of the request for public records; and provided further, that the requestor may voluntarily agree to a response date beyond the timeframes set forth herein. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(vi). Where Mr. McCarter’s request was submitted on June 20, 2025, and clarified on August 23, 2025 and September 3, 2025, and the Department has not provided responsive records, nor cited an exemption for withholding records, I find the Department has not met its burden in

Allison Mondello SPR26/0064 Page 5 January 21, 2026 responding to the request in accordance with G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(vi). Accordingly, I find the Department must provide an estimated date as to when it expects to complete its review and provide the requested records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(a) (records must be provided without unreasonable delay). To the extent possible, the Department must provide responsive records on a rolling basis. Conclusion Accordingly, the Department is ordered to provide Mr. McCarter with a response to the request provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law, and its Regulations within ten (10) business days. A copy of any such response must be provided to this office. It is preferable to send an electronic copy of the response to this office at pre@sec.state.ma.us. Mr. McCarter may appeal the substantive nature of the Department’s response within ninety (90) days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Brian McCarter