Mass. effort to certify police officers delayed. Boston has yet to submit key data

The state agency charged with certifying police officers is edging closer to finishing its first round of full reviews, but the Boston Police Department appears to be holding up the process.

Massachusetts Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission Executive Director Enrique Zuniga said in an interview Tuesday that every police department in the state has sent in the required paperwork, except for Boston.

The documents for the state's first full round of certification were originally supposed to be turned over two months ago. But Zuniga said Boston sought another extension. The commission gave the city until Sept. 15.

"We hope that this is the last extension," he said. "Every other agency has complied and submitted the required information."

A Boston police spokesperson said they needed time to allow the new police commissioner to review the information. Commissioner Michael Cox was sworn in Aug. 15.

In the first round, the state plans to certify officers with last names starting with letters A through H — about 8,800 officers. The POST Commission plans to certify other officers in later rounds.

Until recently, Massachusetts was the one of the few states that didn't require law enforcement officers to have a license from the state. But a new law created the POST commission and gave it the job of certifying police officers throughout the state.