BOSTON – Boston City Council President Ed Flynn said Monday he is calling for an emergency meeting with Boston’s police commissioner after a city officer was ordered to work 24 hours a day , a claim Boston police deny.
Flynn and his colleague, At-Large City Councilwoman Erin Murphy, also called for the hiring of additional Boston police officers to address what they call a major public safety issue in Boston and a problem within the department with mandatory overtime.
“Working 24 hours without a break to rest is not only harmful to police officers and their families, it’s harmful to residents and our neighborhoods,” Flynn said in a statement. “It is also illegal to work so many hours without rest. Mistakes are made when a police officer is sleep-deprived.”
However, in a statement shortly before 7pm on Monday, a Boston police spokeswoman said: “No officers were ordered to work 24 hours.”
“On Friday evening, officers were offered overtime to support a district that was understaffed,” the statement said. “For a number of officers who volunteered, this meant that in this case they were approved to work more than the permitted 18 hours in a day.”
“The well-being of officers is critical to public safety, so we continue to prioritize taking steps to fill vacancies on the civilian and jury side, and to increase our numbers to meet minimum staffing levels and to ensure that the agents and their families can have the rest and the health they deserve and need,” says the statement. “We currently have a recruiting class going through the academy and are actively working to recruit officers, and we appreciate your help in spreading the word about opportunities to join the Boston Police Department.”
Boston police said they use mutual aid when city resources are limited.
“To support public safety, when districts need additional resources, they have the option to request personnel from other districts or city units when available, or to use mutual aid agreements established with the ‘State and other surrounding departments,’ he said. the department statement said. “We are carefully reviewing any situation of individual officers working unsustainable hours and believe the hour limit is an important protection for officer health and public safety.”
Flynn said he spoke with Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox about this staffing issue last year “and they assured me it wouldn’t happen again. However, this recent incident is confirmation that we have a major problem in the department with mandatory overtime”.
Murphy said in a statement Monday that summer in particular presents challenges, from annual spikes in violence to health risks for the elderly and others from the oppressive heat. Murphy also said that at least one Boston police officer had recently been forced to work a 24-hour shift.
Also, emergency calls to 911 have been met with delayed responses in several neighborhoods due to staff shortages, Murphy said.
“Especially in neighborhoods that have historically been underserved, we need to be able to provide fast, high-quality emergency responses,” Murphy said. “That’s very difficult to do with a reduced staff or with police officers, EMTs or 911 who are working at the end of an overtime shift. I’m at community meetings every week all over the city and people want safety public and a stronger public health presence, not a depleted one.”
Murphy said the city needs to do a better job of hiring and retaining first responders, citing Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox’s public statement that the city was evaluating leaving the civil service system of the state Noting Boston’s rising cost of living, Murphy affirmed his support for some residency rules, but said the worsening emergency response situation warranted a full evaluation of the civil service system .
Flynn said over the past six years, “I have consistently advocated for the hiring of at least 300 police officers each year for the next ten years due to forced overtime, over-resourcing, transfers out of the department and retirements.”
“The current system of forced overtime is a failure and cannot continue,” Flynn said. “You will be filing an order for a hearing on this troubling situation at the next City Council meeting and I will request an immediate meeting with the Boston Police Commissioner to discuss my concerns.”
In a tweet Monday, the Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association echoed Flynn’s comments about the 24-hour shift worked by the Boston officer.
“A triple shift is one too many. NO ONE should be working 24 hours straight. Waiver of the 90 hour rule is an abuse of power,” the police union said. “Our officers are constantly being ordered to work 16-hour shifts all summer long. It’s unacceptable and dangerous.”
The police overtime issue comes as officers in Boston and the city deal with a spate of shootings, including gunfire that erupted in Mattapan on July 5 that left five people injured.
Police on Saturday night arrested a Boston man on assault-murder charges near the scene where five people were shot earlier in Mattapan.
Murphy had shared similar concerns last July, when several Boston police officers were forced to work 24 hours a day as a result of major events throughout the city, including the Open Streets festival in Jamaica Plain, a of the Red Sox-Yankees at Fenway. , and a festival in the Seaport District.
Those demands, Murphy said at the time, both impaired the officers’ mental and physical health and created a public safety liability for residents. Murphy has also previously called for increased class sizes at the Boston Police Academy.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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