MA Governor Back Bill to Increase Penalties for Attacks on Officers

Massachusetts governor Charlie Baker has launched a new push to ramp up the penalty for assaulting police officers with a bill his top public safety aid is calling “foolproof.”

The bill, which was set to be filed Wednesday, is similar to legislation Baker introduced after the murder of Officer Ronald Tarentino last spring in Auburn. That bill never made it to a vote in the state legislature.

Under current law, assault and battery of a police officer is a misdemeanor. In cases where cops sustain “serious bodily injury,” Governor Baker wants to increase the charge to a felony with a potential 10-year jail sentence,  Fox 25 reports .