Boston's Top Cop Criticizes Federal Terror Task Force's Communications

For not sharing important information that could have helped regarding marathon bombing

Advance planning, long-standing relationships with area police departments and an "unprecedented level of coordination" were keys to the capture of suspected terrorist Dzhokhar Tsarnaev within days of the Boston Marathon bombings, Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis told a Senate panel Wednesday.

But while Davis praised strong partnerships among local, state and federal law enforcement at the crime scene and command posts, he criticized communication between local officials and the federal Joint Terrorism Task Force led by the FBI. The Boston Police Department has four officers with security clearance assigned to the task force, Davis told the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee.

The policies governing communication between the task force and local officials need to be amended "to mandate immediate sharing of terror information that poses a threat to our cities," Davis said.

Boston police were never told that Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's brother, Tamerlan, had traveled to Russia, Davis said.