City councilor would supplement 3Rs with recognizin' hypodermic needles

City Councilor Tim McCarthy (Hyde Park, Mattapan, Roslindale) thinks local schools need to educate students on what to do if they find syringes, needles and similar implements in public spaces.

McCarthy's district includes Readville, where a 7-year-old girl was pricked by a discarded needle at Iacono Playground last month.

At the council's regular meeting today, McCarthy also called for a hearing to determine specific protocol for the safe clean up and disposal of needles, syringes and other dangerous objects in parks and beaches. "We should engage the mayor, first responders and public health officials," he said.

"It's a sad day in Boston when we’re not talking about reading, writing or arithmetic," Councilor Tito Jackson (Roxbury), who chairs the council's education committee, said. "It's a really low point in the city when we’re teaching young people not on aspirational things for their future but on needles on the ground."