I had recently made an inquiry about a purchase of a large vehicle by the Framingham police. The 2012 Annual report describes it as: In 2012, FrEMA took delivery of a brand new mobile command post, this vehicle is outfitted with the latest technology for crime scenes, natural disasters and planned events. The vehicle has a conference room, 3 dispatch areas, hard wired telephones, weather station, 40 foot boom with camera and specialized scene lighting. The vehicle is operated by a nine member emergency management strike team. I made my request to: sbc@framinghamma.gov,town.manager@framinghamma.gov,selectmen@framinghamma.gov You had mentioned that this new mobile command center purchased by the police department was in a secure facility. At what address is it located? 100 Western Ave or in the A St. garage or somewhere else? The Vehicle is secured in the Public Works facility on A Street. It is a secure facility. Since you've told me that it is locked up in a secure place and I cannot get any pictures of it, I have to ask you a bunch of questions on this new magnificant albatross you purchased. How can I get a picture of this vehicle? Photo attached: On what date was it purchased? Purchased in June of 2012. As of May 20, 2015, the Framingham police had run up the mileage to 300. That's about 100 miles per year. How much did it cost? $ 285,658.00 Was it purchased with civil forfeitures money? Purchased with funds from civil forfeitures. Is there a specific line item in our annual report for its purchase, or is the cost buried in the $12 million police costs? Funds were not from police budget. Was it purchased as a new vehicle? If not, how many miles does it have on it? Vehicle is new. How many times has it been used? Deployed 18 times For what purposes has it been used? Training and incidents requiring a mobile command post. How many times do you expect to use it annually? 14-18 times per year on average. The albatross averages about 150 miles a year. Purchased for $285,000 in June, 2012, this big albatross was sold on July 25, 2016, to another sucker for $200,000. I'm guessing the odometer wasn't even close to one thousand miles. Commentary In 2011, Framingham received $285,913 in civil forfeiture monies and $862,163 in 2012. Does anyone think that there is any incentive to end the War On Drugs when you can easily buy some big useless shiny new toys like this every year. Does one kill the goose that lays the golden eggs? I suspect that in another year or two, the police department will announce the purchase of a heliocolopter. The most recent assessed value of my property in Framingham was $ 276,900. It is amusing that this useless albatross needs to be in a secure facilty, safely tucked away from the marauding masses in downtown Framingham. One might suspect that it has a weapons stash on board to handle emergencies. The nine member emergency strike team first has to drive to A St to get to it, hope that that someone remembered to bring the keys, before they can actually STRIKE! Each year, we will have to pay the insurance bill on the albatross.

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