PROVIDENCE â The Attorney Generalâs Office recently ordered the release of internal affairs (IA) reports detailing police misconduct and neglect of duty, among other complaints, from the Narragansett Police Department (NPD), finding that the department had violated the Access to Public Records Act (APRA). Names and other identifying information can be redacted in the released documents, according to the finding. Â
âIn a number of the IA reports we analyzedâ¦, the public interest in disclosure was clear: the allegations concerned official misconduct, the misconduct was sustained, and the report shed light on the Departmentâs response,â said the Attorney Generalâs Office in its conclusion.
The Providence Journal
PROVIDENCE Finding that the Narragansett Police Department violated the Access to Public Records Act, the Attorney General’s Office on Thursday ordered the department to release 14 of 15 internal affairs reports, with names and other identifying details redacted.
Narragansett redacted and released seven reports. Lyssikatos agreed that two of the remaining 17 would not contribute to the public’s understanding of how the police investigate allegations of police wrongdoing, but renewed his request for the 15 that were still withheld.
The office of Attorney General Peter F. Neronha examined each of the reports and determined that 14 could be released after carefully removing all information that could be used to identify officers or civilians. In one case, no amount of redacting would protect identities, so the department was correct in withholding the report, the attorney general s office decided.