Vermont Business Magazine Department of Public Safety Commissioner Keith Flynn and Vermont State Police Director Colonel Matthew Birmingham are pleased to announce that the Vermont State Police has become the first state police agency in the country to join the White House Police Data Initiative. In 2014, President Obama launched the Task Force on 21st Century Policing to identify the best means to provide an effective collaboration with local communities that reduces crime and increases trust. Currently, 129 individual law enforcement agencies have joined this effort. This past summer, the Vermont State Police became the first state police agency to join this effort, fulfilling in-part its commitment to transparency and fair and impartial policing in today’s data driven culture.
Department of Public Safety Commissioner Keith Flynn said “In the 21st Century, law enforcement must be accountable for its actions. The White House Initiative is just one step in building the Vermont State Police into the most transparent law enforcement agency in Vermont, but also building Vermont law enforcement into the most accountable force in the country.”
Colonel Matthew Birmingham said “The Vermont State Police is proud to participate in the White House Police Data Initiative. As the largest police agency in Vermont, we support every effort at transparency that helps us build relationships and trust with the public we serve.”
As part of this effort, the Vermont State Police and the Department of Public Safety have developed five data sets specific to VSP activities that will be available on the White House Police Data Initiative website. The data sets are:
- VSP Traffic Stop Data 2010 – 2015
- VSP Traffic Fatalities and Seatbelt Use 2010 – Present
- VSP DUI Arrests 2013 - Present
- VSP DUI Arrests with Crash 2013 - Present
- VSP Officer Involved Shootings – 1977 – Present
The data sets were chosen for their topical nature and potential public interest and impact, and are specific to Vermont State Police law enforcement activity. The data will be available for public download, and can be analyzed within the data portal using Socrata, an analysis and visualization tool that allows the user to develop their own visualizations of the data.
While this initial effort and collaboration with the White House is exciting, it is part of an ongoing transparency effort at the Vermont State Police and the Department of Public Safety. Moving forward, VSP will provide new data sets for analysis, and continue to update the five announced here.
Source: Vermont State Police 11.18.2016