From: Villeneuve, Marina (CMG-Boston)
<marina.villeneuve@boston25.com>
Date: Mon, Jul 17, 2023, 7:43 PM
Subject: Public Records Request-Boston 25-Sex Abuse-Schools
To:
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Massachusetts Public Records Law,
I hereby request the following records:
This letter constitutes a request pursuant to the
Public Records Act, M. G. L.c.66, §10, for public records in the custody of
your police department.
Boston 25 Investigates is investigating the
extent of sexual abuse in Massachusetts public K-12 schools, given data showing
MA has one of the highest rates of rapes/attempted rapes per-capita in the
nation.
According to U.S. Civil Rights Data Collection data for
2017-2018, MA had the 3rd highest rate of rape or attempted rape
at schools in the country: with 45 in documented instances on school grounds in
total.
We are looking to see how often schools are
getting reports of sex abuse of public-school students by school employees and
students.
And, we are looking to see whether school
employees investigated for sexual abuse are being transferred to other schools.
I request the following public records, as
defined in M. G. L.c. 4, § 7 (twenty-sixth):
An extract of
your records management system or database that includes every report
of suspected sexual abuse of public K-12 students from September 1,
2017 to present (up until the day records are produced) only in
cases of alleged abuse perpetrated by a school employee or other student.
Specifically, I request an extract of the database to include the
following columns:
Date report made
Time report made
School name
Location of
alleged abuse
Whether the
investigation is open
Whether the
alleged perpetrator is a teacher or student
Sex of alleged
perpetrator
Age of alleged
perpetrator
Gender of alleged
perpetrator
Race/Ethnicity of
alleged perpetrator
Sex of alleged
victim
Age of alleged
victim
Gender of alleged
victim
Race/Ethnicity of
alleged victim
Disability status
of alleged victim
Whether the
alleged perpetrator was arrested
Name of alleged perpetrator if arrested/convicted
Name of referred law enforcement agency, if applicable
Whether the alleged perpetrator was transferred to
another school
Whether the alleged perpetrator is still teaching at
the school
If
such an extract of the database in question 1 is not possible, please
provide each report of alleged sexual abuse of students by
school employees or students from September 1, 2017 to present (up
until the day the records are produced).
If
such an extract of the database in question 1 or 2 is not possible, please
provide each report of alleged sexual abuse of students from
September 1, 2017 to present (up until the day the records are produced).
A
list of school employees investigated for alleged sexual abuse from
September 1, 2017 to present in cases where sexual abuse was documented –
this list should include names, titles and whether the employee is
currently employed at the district.
Any records instructing or informing
school personnel of, or otherwise describing, data reporting requirements
and procedures for reporting sexual abuse of students by school employees
or other students.
As this request involves a matter of public
interest and will not be used for any commercial purpose, we ask that all fees
associated with this request be waived pursuant to 950 C.M.R. 32.07(2)(k).
I am a member of the
news media and this request is related to news gathering purposes. This
information is not being sought for commercial purposes.
If
there are any fees for searching or copying these records, please inform me if
the cost will exceed $20. However, as a reporter for Boston 25
Investigates, I would also like to request a waiver of all fees pursuant to 950 C.M.R. 32.07(2)(k) in
that the disclosure of the requested information is in the public interest.
The purpose of this request is to determine
whether schools are properly reporting and investigating all allegations of
sexual abuse. The public has an interest in knowing whether public servants are
carrying out their duties in an efficient and law-abiding manner, and whether
teachers found to have committed sex abuse are teaching in other schools.
Finally, pursuant to 950 C.M.R. 32.07(2)(i), a
records access officer shall assess no fee greater than the lowest hourly rate
of a person capable of compiling, segregating, redacting and reproducing a
requested record. In the event that a charge is incurred for this request which
you will not waive, please so indicate and include an itemization of estimated
good faith costs.
Please provide public records to a requestor in
an electronic format unless the record is not available in an electronic
format. M. G. L.c 66, § 6A(d).
The Public Records Act requires that you comply
with this request within ten (10) business days following receipt.
If you believe that documents or data responsive
to any request herein is not public record and thus not subject to disclosure,
please set forth in writing the specific reasons for such assertion, including
the specific exemption or exemptions that you believe apply, and please notify me of the appeal
procedures available to me under the law.
To the extent that you
determine that records need to be redacted in order to be produced under any
law protecting the privacy of named individuals, please do so rather than
withholding them in their entirety.
If you have any
questions, please reach me via cell phone at (207)-358-9859.
Sincerely,
Marina Villeneuve
Investigative producer,
Boston 25 Investigates
Boston 25 News-WFXT
25 Fox Drive | Dedham, MA
02026
Cell: 781-467-6897
Google Voice:
207-358-9859
Good Morning. I have attached a word document with our response to this request. Please let me know if you have any questions by emailing me directly at rfortier@maldenpd.com.
Regards,
Request Date
2023-07-18
Agency Tracking
2023-0192
Acquisition Notes
This record was automatically imported from https://www.townforms.com/FOIADirect-MaldenMACitizens/