D.C.’s former police chief is responding to allegations that he kept a watchlist of people who were asking for information that may be embarrassing toward its officers.
Speaking at an online community event, Peter Newsham, who is now the police chief in Prince William County, Virginia, was asked if he kept such a list during his time in charge of D.C. police.
“There was no watchlist that I created for FOIAs,” Newsham said. FOIA refers to the Freedom of Information Act that reporters and others use to get information from police departments and other government agencies that has not been released to the public.
Newsham said he was informed “if information was leaving the building,” so he could be ready to respond. The former head of D.C. police added that he thought criticism of the department actually made it better.
“If I was going to create a list of everyone who was critical of the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington D.C., it could be more than a couple of people,” Newsham said jokingly. “It would be a pretty lengthy list.”
A lawsuit recently filed against the District claims there was a list of reporters, advocates and others who made requests for information that might be embarrassing to the department.
In the complaint filed in U.S. District Court last Wednesday, defense attorney Amy Phillips alleged that the city’s police department “maintains a list of people whose requests for information under the D.C. Freedom of Information Act are set aside for special review by high-ranking officials, including the Chief of Police.”
WTOP’s Megan Cloherty contributed to this report.
