State officials investigate cheating at two police academies
The state Municipal Police Training Committee is investigating cheating by student officers at police academies in Holyoke and Boylston, according to a letter from the committee that was sent to police chiefs on Friday.
Four student police officers have been disciplined, “including dismissal from the academy,” according to the letter that was signed by Robert Ferullo, the committee’s executive director.
The agency has suspended testing as it reviews its policies and will retain an independent investigator “to identify the extent of any misconduct and provide policy recommendations,” he wrote.
“The values of personal and professional integrity, self-discipline, and ethical decision-making principles are fundamental to a successful career in policing and an officer’s ability to serve the community,” Ferullo wrote. “We reaffirm our commitment to addressing this matter comprehensively and transparently while ensuring all appropriate steps are taken to uphold academic integrity and prevent future violations.”
A spokesperson for the committee, Kayla Rosario-Muñoz, said the panel had no comment beyond the information in the letter. She also declined to answer questions about the scandal.Jillian Fennimore, communications director for Governor Maura Healey’s office, also declined to comment and referred questions to the committee.
In the letter, Ferullo said the committee found that “several officers in the Holyoke and Boylston academies compromised the integrity of testing procedures and materials in violation of our agency’s honor code and academy policies.”
The letter does not specify how the cheating was carried out. Ferullo said the committee is investigating to identify other students who may have cheated on testing.
“The MPTC demands a high standard of academic integrity and excellence from our staff members and student officers,” he wrote. “Failure to comply with these standards is a serious matter, requiring a comprehensive and transparent review of the facts and circumstances.”
The agency has implemented new measures in response to the cheating, including a new course quiz and test questions, increased proctor-to-student ratios in testing rooms, and enhanced test-taking software “with additional security measures,” Ferullo wrote.
Student officers will also be required to re-sign a pledge to adhere to the committee’s honor code before taking an exam, the letter said. It was not clear when testing could resume.
Agendas and meeting minutes posted on the committee’s website show it has held disciplinary hearings with student officers in recent months but it was unclear whether any are connected to the cheating scandal.
The committee is in charge of developing and enforcing training standards for municipal, MBTA, and environmental police officers, as well as UMass campus police and deputy sheriffs performing police duties, according to the committee’s website. The committee operates five police academies across the state in Holyoke, Boylston, Lynnfield, Randolph, and Plymouth.