City Councilors Seek Review of Boston Police Purchase of Surveillance Tech After WBUR and ProPublica Investigation. City councilors are calling for a review of the Boston Police Department’s purchase of controversial surveillance technology, after an investigation by WBUR and ProPublica revealed the transaction.
Massachusetts police can seize and keep money from drug-related arrests. No one has publicly reported how that money gets spent. A WBUR/ProPublica investigation found that Boston police used over $600,000 of it on a controversial surveillance device.
Boston police used a "slush fund" to pay for a surveillance device that can grab cell phone data from suspects and also from other phones nearby. The department says it has no policy on using the controversial spy gear.
Massachusetts police can seize and keep money from drug-related arrests. No one has publicly reported how that money gets spent. A WBUR/ProPublica investigation found that Boston police used over $600,000 of it on a controversial surveillance device.