First Mayan Officer in New Bedford Sparks Policy Clarification

NEW BEDFORD (WBSM) — The New Bedford Police Department has updated its website to reflect the citizenship requirements of those who apply to be police officers following questions regarding the status of an officer recently profiled in a New Bedford Light article.

On July 16, the Light published a piece by Kevin G. Andrade which tells the story of Edwin Yat Toj, the New Bedford Police Department’s first Mayan officer and speaker of the K’iche’ language.

“Toj said he came to the U.S. when he was 5 years old as an undocumented immigrant in 2005 with his mother, a monolingual K'iche’ speaker. He said she did it for her children,” Andrade wrote. “He said his mother normalized his status and her own when he was still a child. He is now a legal permanent resident.”

Questions Arise About Officer Toj's Citizenship Status and Employment

WBSM’s Chris McCarthy then went on the air and questioned how the NBPD could hire a non-citizen to be a police officer. Fellow talk show host Barry Richard did as well, and reached out to the NBPD and city officials to find out why a legal permanent resident could be hired when the department’s own website said U.S. citizenship is a requirement for employment with the NBPD.

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NBPD: "Inaccurate Information" Appeared on Police Website

Police spokesperson Holly Huntoon responded to Richard late Thursday night, citing “the long-standing policy of the NBPD that its officers must be U.S. citizens or permanent legal residents.”

“NBPD regrets inaccurate information that has appeared on a ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ page on its website, which indicated incorrectly that only U.S. citizens are eligible for employment as New Bedford police officers,” Huntoon wrote. “The webpage in question has since been corrected.”

A Wayback Machine search on the Internet Archive indicates that prior to April 2025, there was no “Frequently Asked Questions” section on the NBPD’s “Work With NBPD” page, so sometime between February and April of that year, that section was added with the question regarding citizenship and the response, “Yes, you must be a U.S. citizen to apply.”

It now reads as “You must be a U.S. citizen or a legal permanent resident.”

Legal Requirements for Police in Massachusetts

In Massachusetts, legal permanent residents (commonly referred to as “green card” holders) are legally permitted to work, can be licensed to carry a firearm, and can serve as law enforcement officers if the agency’s municipality allows it.

Assistant Deputy Chief Scott Carola told Richard that while there is no written policy regarding citizenship requirements for employment with the NBPD, he said it has always been the case that legal permanent residents were eligible to be hired.

Carola also told Richard that the department will provide information on how many other members of the NBPD are legal permanent residents following a complete review of personnel files.

New Bedford Police Department's Complete Statement on Citizenship Rules

Here is Huntoon’s statement to Richard, presented in its entirety:

“The New Bedford Police Department recently received inquiries regarding the qualifications of applicants seeking to serve as police officers in the City.

It is the long-standing policy of the NBPD that its officers must be U.S. citizens or permanent legal residents.

Police Departments throughout Massachusetts vary in eligibility requirements, with some departments following the same policy as the NBPD, and others limiting eligibility to individuals with U.S. citizenship status. For its part, the U.S. Armed Forces allows both U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents to serve our country.

The NBPD policy is in place because it addresses a compelling public safety need, specific to New Bedford. In a city of diverse populations and neighborhoods, strong community engagement is the foundation of all public safety work. The Department’s ability to build a strong partnership with the people it serves is its greatest resource when solving crimes, deterring criminal activity, de-escalating situations, and establishing an atmosphere of safety and security in our neighborhoods. That is why the Department works very hard to remove language and cultural barriers that may impede the trust and respect on which positive community interactions depend. Having police officers with the language skills and cultural experiences of those they protect is crucially important. When hiring its officers (whether holding U.S. citizenship or legal permanent resident status), the Department takes advantage of every opportunity to recruit individuals with the language skills and cultural experiences that are critical to the Department’s success.

One such officer, Edwin Yat Toj, was recently profiled by a local media organization for his bridge-building with the City’s Mayan community, as a native K’iche speaker. At present, Officer Toj is the only K’iche speaker serving with the Department. He is a legal permanent resident of the United States who is lawfully authorized to work in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and is fully certified to serve as a police officer. His appointment to the NBPD is in full compliance with local, state, and federal law.

Officer Toj is a dedicated and valued member of the New Bedford Police Department, and we are proud to have him serving our City.”