This question is based on arrest records data that police departments have reported to the Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security (EOPSS). 

The following analysis is based on 19 years of data, from 2007-2025. 

In the 2020’s, across the Fifth Middlesex District municipalities, the total number of Black people arrested has declined compared to previous decades. However, Black people now account for an even higher share of all arrests.

In Massachusetts, for Black people, both the number and share of total arrests have increased each year of the 2020’s.

Additionally, in the Fifth Middlesex District municipalities, and in Massachusetts, the percentage of Black people among those arrested is much higher than the percentage of Black people in the population.

As Senator, what steps would you take to ensure that police departments in Massachusetts are not engaging in policing practices that perpetuate systemic racism?