The New Bedford Police Department still needs to do more to increase accountability and transparency, according to a consultant’s report released by the city on Wednesday.
The 71-page report by 21st Century Policing Solutions found that the NBPD has failed to increase the enforcement of transparency and disciplinary policies related to the narcotics and internal affairs departments.
Among the reforms recommended: providing the community with “performance metrics” for the narcotics unit; strengthening policies on confidential informants; and barring the use of underage informants.
The report by 21st Century Policing Solutions comes after the Boston Globe’s reporting earlier this year chronicled abuses by NBPD. And isn’t the first critical evaluation of NBPD confidential informant enforcement policies. In 2023, the consulting firm Jensen Hughes conducted a $120,000 study that included a review of internal data and various interviews.
The 51-page study delineated five “key issues of concern” within NBPD: problems around reduced staffing, increased demands for service, staffing for patrol shifts, the treatment of female officers, and a perception among officers that the city administration “does not respect police.”
