SPRINGFIELD — A controversial contract that lets police patch into the school cameras in live time during an emergency is currently causing debate amongst the community, educators and police.
In September, the School Committee approved a 120-day extension of the contract, which was first implemented in 2021, with the expectation that a series of public meetings would be conducted to gather residents’ concerns and questions about the contract. The first meeting was conducted on Nov. 14 at DeBerry/Swan School and the second one will happen on Dec. 12 at 5:30 p.m. at Brightwood/Lincoln School.
Some students and parents who attended the Nov. 14 meeting expressed concerns over the Springfield Police Department’s level of access to the cameras, while others were miffed about a lack of transparency and lack of easy access to the contract’s language.
Several people who talked were student organizers from the Pioneer Valley Project, including Davian Pagan, a Springfield Honors Academy student and organizer with the PVP.
“We are here today to talk about a policy that is rooted in a lack of transparency, a lack of trust and a lack of accountability,” said Pagan, who cited a previous 2019 assault case where a police officer grabbed at student by the neck at Commerce High School as a reason for student distrust of police.
“My question is, how can we trust the Police Department when we know they have assaulted students in the past?” he said.
Springfield Police Superintendent Lawrence Akers, Springfield Public Schools Director of Safety and Security Adam Fenn, Mayor Domenic Sarno and other city and school officials were on hand at the Nov. 14 to attempt to quell residents’ concerns surrounding the level of access police have with the cameras.
“We don’t want to watch inside the schools,” Akers said during the Nov. 14 meeting. “We don’t know what you do, we don’t know when you go to class; we don’t care about any of that, unless someone is in there attempting to hurt some people. That’s when we come into play.”
Akers, who told the public at the meeting that he has his own grandchildren and great grandchildren in the Springfield Public Schools system, said he would never allow anyone in the department to access the camera for no reason at all.
Akers also noted that the police can only access to the cameras when there is an emergency and with the School Department’s permission.
“We do not surveil, we do not have access to cameras; we do not want to sit back and watch what you’re doing,” Akers said.
According to information provided by the city, the school camera policy allows the Springfield Police Department’s Real-Time Crime Analysis Center and the civilian video analyst live access to these cameras only in the event of emergencies, like when there is an active shooter, or other life-threatening situations.
Since the inception of the agreement three years ago, the interior cameras have been accessed eight times in total. Seven of those times were prank swatting calls while the other involved the incident at Springfield’s High School of Science and Technology in the spring where shots were fired inside the schoo. The Sci-Tech incident was considered the only “real-time use” for the cameras.
City officials argue that the cameras were “invaluable” during the situation at Sci-Tech because the Real-Time Crime Analysis Center was able to utilize the interior cameras to provide responding officers with information like where the perpetrator fled the building, how many people were involved and who was driving.
The city said the cameras were also helpful when a student at Springfield Public Day Elementary School stole a teacher’s cell phone and called police, falsely stating there was an active shooter in the building. That incident happened almost two months ago.
“All we care about, and I know you do care about it too, is that our children, our students, families, teachers and staff are safe and sound,” said Mayor Domenic Sarno, during the Nov. 14 meeting.
Fenn said that Springfield is one of 30 districts in the state that have similar contracts.
Some other communities’ contracts, he said, gave officers carte blanche to access to the cameras.
“We don’t want that; we don’t have that,” Fenn said. “We have checks and balances. If there is a severe emergency in your school, the civilians in Real-Time Crime Analysis … access those cameras to make sure you are safe and direct the responding officers.”
Springfield Public Schools Superintendent Sonia Dinnall said that the Nov. 14 meeting reflected a level of mistrust, misunderstanding and misinformation, but she assured the people present that the cameras were used to keep the district safe.
She recounted a time during her tenure as principal of the High School of Commerce when the cameras allowed security to apprehend trespassing students who were beating another student.
She said officers were able to pinpoint students’ exact location because of the cameras.
“I can tell you that when we use the cameras, we are sincerely using them for your safety and well-being,” Dinnall said.
With the next public meeting in December looming, School Committee member LaTonia Monroe Naylor said the contract will be more visible on the district’s website so people have an easier time accessing it.
“We heard that loud and clear … it is hard to find on the current website,” Monroe Naylor said. “we’ll make sure that it is there so that you all can see it.”
Akers, meanwhile, said that when he took over as police superintendent earlier this year, he wanted to engage with the community more than the department has done in the past. He said, after what he heard at the meeting, he still has “a lot of work to do.”
“I have hundreds of good women and men that want to do the best for you, the youth, as well as everyone else,” Akers said. “So, like I said, I have some more work to do, but you all have to help me do that work.”
At the end of the meeting, Monroe Naylor said that the questions the public asked will soon be posted on the website with answers.
