‘Tragic’: Cambridge city manager shares update weeks after college student killed by police

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — Weeks after a 20-year-old college student was shot to death by a Cambridge police officer, the city’s manager on Tuesday shared an update, saying the “tragic” incident has “weighed painfully” on the community.

Sayed Faisal, a student at the University of Massachusetts Boston, was shot and killed on Jan. 4 while advancing on officers with what police described as a kukri knife.

“It has been a heavy and heart-breaking start to 2023 for Cambridge. The shooting and death of Arif Sayed Faisal by a Cambridge Police officer have weighed painfully on our community,” City Manager Yi-An Huang said in a statement. “As a nation, we are wrestling with how to fix policing, and Faisal’s death highlights that even in Cambridge, we have more work to accomplish.”

Police reportedly tried to subdue Faisal with a “less lethal” form of ammunition before shooting and killing him. An independent judicial inquest into the shooting has since been initiated.

Since the shooting, Huang said he has been “in frequent conversations” with the city’s mayor, vice mayor, and the nine-person City Council as they work to “chart a path forward.” The Council has also held more than six hours of public meetings, where the Cambridge Police Department’s training, policies, and practices have been up for review.

“Sayed Faisal’s death is unquestionably a tragedy. I am fully committed to making changes going forward, including acting with urgency on the actions recommended by the City Council,” Huang said.

Huang vowed that the city would implement body cameras, use alternative responses to emergency calls outside of the police department, evaluate additional less lethal options, deliver a procedural justice dashboard, and seek to strengthen the city’s mental health resources.

Huang noted that Cambridge also plans to hire a “credible, independent” consultant to review and make recommendations to the police department’s training, policies, and practices. He also said he’s been in constant contact with Cambridge Police Commissioner Christine Elow.

“There is a great deal of work to do in the aftermath of this tragedy. I have spent a lot of time with Police Commissioner Elow and I know that she is the right leader for our great city in this difficult moment,” Huang explained. “She is deeply rooted in our community, open-minded, and committed to change. She has my full support and trust.”

The findings of the independent judicial inquest will be forwarded to the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office to decide whether charges are warranted, a process that could take a year or more.

Authorities have not released the name of the officer who opened fire.

Faisal, who was known as Prince by his family, was an only child who was never violent and had never been involved with law enforcement before, according to his parents.

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