Amherst Committee Frustrated With Town Manager's Silence on Social Justice Concerns

Amherst's Community Safety and Social Justice Committee continues to push the town manager for action on multiple fronts, from police oversight to funding for a youth center, as leaders say responses to their inquiries remain inadequate.

The committee met July 15 over Zoom to discuss persistent gaps between town government commitments and implementation on social justice initiatives. Members expressed frustration that Town Manager Paul Bockelman has not responded to questions about the $450,000 earmarked for a youth empowerment center, the police department's relationship with ICE, and other outstanding concerns.

CRESS, the town's civilian responder service, faces a leadership gap after its program manager was appointed director of senior services. CRESS Director Camille Theriaque told the committee that the service is severely understaffed with only six responders and needs a minimum of four more responders plus an assistant director. By comparison, Northampton operates 10 responders plus a director, an assistant director, and clinicians. Theriaque said CRESS has increased call volume from emergency dispatch and is seeing rising demand as the Hampshire County Sheriff's Office now requests the service for eviction-related wellness checks instead of police visits.

Chair Debora Ferreira raised concerns that non-violent emergency calls may still be routed to the Amherst Police Department rather than CRESS. Theriaque said she has been meeting regularly with Town Manager Paul Bockelman, APD Chief Gabe Ting, and the emergency communications director, noting that coordination "has greatly improved and will surely get better."

On police oversight, the Government Organization and Legislation Committee reviewed two models for a Resident Oversight Board for the APD but has faced objections from the town attorney focused on legal risk. Ferreira criticized the legal analysis as oriented toward preventing rather than enabling oversight, saying the attorney raised concerns about access to records and subpoena power without explaining why those limits must exist. "The town appears to be doing everything it can to prevent this from happening," Ferreira said. "But it is the BIPOC residents of this town who suffer most unjustly at the hands of the police, and we need to advocate for them so that there is some accountability."

Town Councilor Ana Devlin Gauthier told the committee she plans to contact communities where police oversight boards are operating to gather examples. She also committed to presenting answers to outstanding questions from the committee and the Human Rights Commission at the Town Council meeting on July 20.

The committee is also waiting for a formal response from the APD about a racist handbill circulated April 29. Ferreira said Bockelman indicated he would follow up with the police department and request a concluding report.

The committee has one vacant seat and is actively seeking applicants, with members emphasizing the need for a youth representative and broader committee expansion to handle the volume of outstanding work.