Hey, there! Log in / Register
BPD could finally gain formal approval to patrol the Seaport
By adamg on Mon, 04/02/2018 - 1:48pm
Gov. Baker and the new head of the State Police, Col. Kerry Gilpin, today announced a series of reforms stemming from all the recent State Police scandals, including the elimination of a State Police troop for just the Massachusetts Turnpike. Also:
Governor Baker is requesting that, as part of this study [of the role of Troop F at Logan], the Colonel looks at a plan for the Boston Police Department and State Police to work together to ensure the safety of the Seaport District.
Boston officials have been trying for years, with a complete lack of success, to give Boston police officers the formal right to patrol and respond to 911 calls in the waterfront areas still technically under Massport jurisdiction, now that pricey condos and apartments and upscale hotels and restaurants have replaced what used to be parking lots and maritime warehouses. BPD has argued it makes sense to bring its expertise in community policing to what is now a community; State Police have countered with: Yeah, tough.
State Police managed to fend off BPD moves in the state legislature - which must approve the sort of joint jurisdiction BPD and State Police have everywhere else - in part over the issue of details, which have led to the sorts of Troop F overtime pay that make the front page of the Herald.
Also announced today: State Police will look to pilot the use of body cameras, based on a yearlong pilot of body cameras by Boston Police.
Neighborhoods:
Topics:
Free tagging:
Ad:
Support Universal Hub
Help keep Universal Hub going. If you like what we're up to and want to help out, please consider a (completely non-deductible) contribution.
Comments
Body cameras in Boston
All police officers working in the city of Boston should be mandated to wear body cameras. That should include campus ,transit and massport police. Can someone explain the policing strategy at Logan Airport the security guards checking me for weapons of mass destruction are making minimum wage and the highly trained troopers making 200 grand a year are screaming at my grandmother if she waits too long in the parking area at the terminals.
What the hell does that have to do with
The Seaport? And ya sorry, campus police don't need body camera.
Many campus police carry
Many campus police carry firearms and are officially BPD officers. They can pull shady shit (or be wrongly accused of doing so) just like any other police officer.
No
They are not "officially BPD officers." They are officially police officers, but in their own departments and NOT part of BPD.
If anything, most campus
If anything, most campus police officers are "Special State Police Officers". Like Adam said, they're officers of their own departments. Transit PD has their own Police Academy as well.
https://www.mass.gov/service-details/special-state-police-officers
hmm
its my understanding that most campus police officers are basically state cops, in terms of jurisdiction
Alas, your understanding is wrong
State Police troopers can enforce the law and make arrests anywhere in the state. Campus police officers are limited to law enforcement on their college's campuses or properties or to cases involving college students and staff (with a few exceptions - if they start a chase on campus, they can keep going).
The Supreme Judicial Court stated this pretty clearly in a 2010 decision involving a couple of BU cops who decided to run somebody's license plate while the guy was pumping gas at a gas station not on BU property, discovered the registered owner had an outstanding warrant and chased him and arrested him on an I-93 ramp - and found heroin and cocaine in his car. Nope, the court ruled, throwing out the drugs as possible evidence, because BU cops don't have authority in cases not having anything to do with BU.
What about the Southwest Corridor?
Can BPD take that over also in the name of efficiency and common sense?
Now is the time for action
Hopefully Baker uses this opportunity when the SP are on the back heels to make some real changes that are long overdue.
This would be a great time
This would be a great time for the Gov to tell the State Police that they don't own the on-ramp to I-90 in the Seaport that is actually called Silver Line Way, and tell the T that the Silver Line buses can start using it, since ya know, that's what it was originally designed for.
Interesting
Can you explain what's going on now to someone like me who rarely goes to the Seaport area?
State hates transit so they
State hates transit so they force the MBTA to spend huge amounts of money and passengers huge amounts of time as the silver line buses meander through a bunch of streets in the seaport rather than use the ramp built for them
https://commonwealthmagazine.org/transportation/free-the-ramp/
Silver Line Way— Direct Ramp To Airport, Hostage Of State Police
The Silver Line project included a special ramp for busses coming out of the Silver Line tunnel, to loop around the corner and head directly into the I-90 tunnel towards the Airport. Unfortunately, the State Police keep the ramp for their own, exclusive use, prohibiting even Silver Line busses from using the ramp named Silver Line Way.
As a result, Silver Line busses must travel an additional 3/4 mile, going all the way back around the big ventilation building, while merging with other ramps which are frequently clogged with horrible traffic.
Not letting pubic transit busses use such an important piece of public infrastructure is another terrible waste of money, and an insult to people who ride the Silver Line. Letting Silver Line busses use their intended ramp would save money for the Ⓣ and make commuting to the airport much faster, benefiting many people.
Unlike so many other things, it wouldn't cost a penny to do. This is indeed the perfect time to get this fixed.
Freetheramp
The current restriction is decidedly not adorable.
Nicely done Elmer
I pass that ramp all the time, but didn't know it wasn't being used. da fudge?
I'll say it. That post was
I'll say it. That post was adorable! And very informative. Thanks Elmer!
Thanks Elmer
Very helpful post. Baker should fix this NOW.
Oddly, Google Maps Routes Bicycles Down The Ramp
To get it to draw the blue line indicating the intended route of Silver Line busses shown in the first picture, I had to choose "bicycle" as the travel mode.
When I read cden4's mention of the situation I wanted to visualize it myself, and nowadays Google Maps does that better than ever.
Like I do with many things on Universal Hub, I posted back what what I found. A few real-world pictures can explain things better than thousands of words.
Thank you to everyone who found it informative— and by all means, share the link to cden4's post with Charlie!
http://www.universalhub.com/comment/660543#comment-660543
dogs and cats
living together
Boston Police - No training for "Details"
Did you know that the Boston Police (at least) receive ZERO training on exactly what a "Detail" is - just "Rule 314" which say's nothing about situational awareness, OSHA laws, not chatting or texting on cell phones while in a construction zone (occasionally leading to injuries or death).