Dear Select Board Members, Mr. Malloy, and Chief McLean:
We are glad to see that the Commission on Disability, with support from the Lexington Human Rights Committee, is forming a collaborative working group to study interactions between Lexington police and persons with disabilities, identify best practices for emergency response, and recommend staffing and programming to meet the needs of our community more effectively and with lower risk. We are glad to hear that Chief McLean supports this effort to identify an appropriate model of social service integration in public safety.
We believe that the best practices that emerge from this effort will benefit the entire community. People of all identities and circumstances will benefit from receiving appropriate help (whether from social service providers, police, or both) in the most peaceful manner possible.
We therefore call on you as Town leaders to make a public commitment to this effort, before the vote at Special Town Meeting on Article 2, and agree to:
Participate collaboratively in the working group being developed by the Commission on Disability;
Fit-out the Social Services space of the new police station during the main construction phase; and
Establish a specific plan for social service integration (and related programming) to be implemented by the time the new police station opens.
Thank you for your time and consideration,
Lexington Residents Reimagining Public Safety (LRRPS)
Sarah Higginbotham, TMM Pct. 5
Valerie Overton, TMM Pct. 1
Alexis Porras
Tom Shiple, TMM Pct. 9