ARLINGTON — Chief Julie Flaherty would like to inform the community that the Arlington Police Department, in partnership with Arlington Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Director Jill Harvey hosted a day-long training conference focused on hate crimes with the Matthew Shepard Foundation.
The Creating Safer Communities Hate Crimes Training offered by the Matthew Shepard Foundation and the Lawyer’s Committee for Civil Rights Under Law focuses on teaching police tools to help them improve relations with marginalized communities while also understanding the need for effective hate crime reporting and enforcement.
Forty Arlington Police Officers learned in a series of classes led by law enforcement and legal experts to recognize and identify indicators of bias when investigating crimes; to identify and determine what facts are needed to substantiate a hate crime charge; and to understand how police and prosecutors must work together to obtain hate crimes convictions and report data.
Representatives of the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office, the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office, a retired member of the FBI’s Civil Rights Unit, and two legal fellows from the Lawyer’s Committee for Civil Rights Under Law were among those who led seminars at the event.
“Identifying, investigating, prosecuting and accurately reporting hate crimes can be a challenge due to the complexity of identifying and proving motive, so this training was truly invaluable as the Arlington Police Department seeks to ensure it’s officers are as aware and effective as possible while performing their duties,” said Chief Flaherty. “I would like to thank the Matthew Shepard Foundation, our law enforcement partners, and all who contributed to this important educational opportunity.”
While many of the training day’s sessions were open only to Arlington Police, about 45 community members representing local clergy, the Rainbow Commission, the Arlington Select Board, and town employees were invited to a special conversation via Zoom with Dennis and Judy Shepard, the parents of Matthew Shepard, who was brutally murdered in 1998 because of his sexuality. Several Arlington community members who have themselves been victims of hate were also in attendance for the discussion, which was moderated by Robert Trestan, executive director of the Anti-Defamation League’s Boston Office.
Following that 45-minute conversation, participants also had an opportunity to converse with Susan Bro, the mother of Heather Heyer — who was murdered in Charlottesville, North Carolina in 2017 — and Richard and Dawn Collins, parents of U.S. Army 2nd Lt. Richard W. Collins III, who was murdered at the University of Maryland in 2017.
“A Conversation with Survivors of Hate” was aimed primarily at helping both police and invited community members to gain a deeper understanding of all that is faced by families who lose loved ones to hate.
“Police Officers don’t just investigate crimes and enforce laws. We must also interact with individuals and families who have suffered tremendous loss, often at some of the most painful times in their lives,” said Chief Flaherty. “We have a profound responsibility to be as compassionate, understanding and professional as possible in those moments, and the courage and openness of these families who shared with us will help all who attended have a deeper understanding of these crimes and what victims face.”
Arlington Police are also supporting a Transgender Day of Remembrance being held via Zoom on Nov. 20, from 7 to 8:15 p.m. That event is being co-sponsored by the Arlington Rainbow Commission, as well as several other organizations from neighboring communities.
The Transgender Day of Remembrance will aim to honor the lives of those killed in transphobic violence in the past year, and will include a reading of names and reflections by local transgender women and nonbinary people of color.
For more information on the Transgender Day of Remembrance, click here. To register for the event, click here.
To learn more about the Matthew Shepard Foundation, click here.
To learn more about the Lawyer’s Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, click here.