Cambridge officials announced Friday the city hired an outside agency to conduct an independent review of the fatal shooting of Sayed Faisal by Cambridge police, as well as a review of what changes to police training, policies and protocols could prevent similar incidents in the future.
A Cambridge police officer shot and killed Faisal on Jan. 4 after they say he approached officers with a knife. The incident has resulted in protests and multiple lengthy community meetings. In response, city officials have pledged to implement body cameras for police and look at alternative responses to 911 calls.
“Following the tragic police shooting of Arif Sayed Faisal, I have been committed to charting a path forward by working with the Police Commissioner and City department heads to evaluate our existing services and implement the six recommendations outlined by the City Council that will strengthen our overall safety and support for the Cambridge community,” City Manager Yi-An Huang said in a press release announcing the move on Friday. “Bringing on PERF is one of several commitments we are in the process of implementing and they have a strong record on police reform and helping departments make meaningful changes.”
The independent review will be conducted by a team at the Washington, D.C.-based Police Executive Research Forum that will include both law enforcement officials and civilian members, including one who specializes in officer-involved shooting investigations, according to the press release. Part of the review will involve interviews with those involved in Cambridge’s emergency response, such as dispatchers and trainers.
Barbara Dougan, legal director for the Massachusetts chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, was cautiously optimistic about the announcement.
“It may turn out to be a good thing if they are willing to look at this beyond the confines of your traditional policing analysis. If they’re willing to be visionary and explore alternative ways of responding to an incident where someone is in the throes of a mental health crisis,” Dougan said. “If instead, they limit themselves to kind of the traditional analysis, they may not end up with anything that, at least from our perspective, is that much more helpful.”
Dougan emphasized that the external review will have no effect on the judicial inquest, an independent investigation that began last month to determine whether there’s probable cause that the officer who shot Faisal committed a crime. That investigation is being conducted at the request of the Middlesex district attorney's office and involves the DA's office, Massachusetts State Police detectives assigned to the DA's office and the Cambridge Police.
“[PERF’s independent review] will help us continue to learn and grow from the January 4th fatal shooting, particularly from the lens of our policies and procedures,” Police Commissioner Christine Elow said in the release. “Additionally, we expect they will help us with recommendations on less-than-lethal alternatives, how we could evolve the department and city’s capacity for alternative responses to mental health crisis’; and identify new or enhanced prospective training opportunities that would support safe, effective crisis response services to residents with behavioral health challenges. Ensuring that our officers and staff receive training that is consistent with national best practices will enhance the safety of our residents and officers, and help promote trust within the community.”
Cambridge has separately allocated $3 million for the creation of a new community safety department outside of the police department, formed at the recommendation of a task force in 2021 that would be made up of peer counselors and mental health professionals to respond to some nonviolent calls that are currently handled by police. The department’s interim director says they're planning to have responders from the new department begin responding to 911 calls in the fall of this year.
