Massachusetts General Laws Part IV. Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases (Ch. 263-280) Ch. 276, § 100

Every probation officer, or the chief or senior probation officer of a court having more than one probation officer, shall transmit to the commissioner of probation, in such form and at such times as he shall require, detailed reports regarding the work of probation in the court, and the commissioner of correction, the penal institutions commissioner of Boston and the county commissioners of counties other than Suffolk shall transmit to the commissioner, as aforesaid, detailed and complete records relative to all paroles and permits to be at liberty granted or issued by them, respectively, to the revoking of the same and to the length of time served on each sentence to imprisonment by each prisoner so released specifying the institution where each such sentence was served; and under the direction of the commissioner a record shall be kept of all such cases as the commissioner may require for the information of the justices and probation officers. Police officials shall co-operate with the commissioner and the probation officers in obtaining and reporting information concerning persons on probation. The information so obtained and recorded shall not be regarded as public records and shall not be open for public inspection but shall be accessible to the justices and probation officers of the courts, to the police commissioner for the city of Boston, to all chiefs of police and city marshals, and to such departments of the state and local governments as the commissioner may determine. Upon payment of a fee of three dollars for each search, such records shall be accessible to such departments of the federal government and to such educational and charitable corporations and institutions as the commissioner may determine. The commissioner of correction and the department of youth services shall at all times give to the commissioner and the probation officers such information as may be obtained from the records concerning prisoners under sentence or who have been released. The commissioner may use systems operated by the department of criminal justice information services, pursuant to sections one hundred sixty-seven to one hundred seventy-eight, inclusive, of chapter six, for any record-keeping lawfully required by him provided that such records remain subject to the regulations of said department.