Category: Boston,

State Police troopers had quota system for tickets, officials allege

On By peanutgallerynhIn American Injustice System,, Boston,, Money, Class, and Poverty,Leave a comment

Federal prosecutors say troopers from a troubled State Police unit had a quota system for issuing tickets to motorists, a practice that state courts have deemed unconstitutional and agency officials have repeatedly denied exists.

Members of the now-disbanded Troop E were expected to issue at least eight citations during their shifts under a specialized overtime program, which dozens of troopers allegedly abused to collect fraudulent overtime, according to prosecutors.

…“Repeated failures to meet this quota often resulted in a trooper being blocked from receiving such overtime opportunities.”

…Criminal justice and legal experts told the Globe that quotas are unconstitutional in Massachusetts, citing a landmark 2005 state appellate court decision regarding Newton police.

“The Appeals Court was very, very clear that nobody should be making the decision to issue a ticket but the cop out there on a case-by-case basis,” said Boston-based attorney Peter Elikann. “Any kind of quota would interfere with the police officer’s judgment.”

Officials at the US Attorney’s and Massachusetts Attorney General’s offices declined to comment. Each cited their ongoing probes into overtime abuse.

State Police officials have repeatedly denied that any quota system exists. 

…Those troopers — roughly one-third of Troop E’s members — are accused of bilking taxpayers out of tens of thousands of dollars in 2016 alone, submitting bogus traffic citations, filing for no-show shifts, and taking steps to hide their allegedly illegal activity.

State Police troopers had quota system for tickets, officials allege – The Boston Globe

“In his 32 years in policing, Kyes said he has never come across a department with [a ticket quota].”  <—– Ahem, Cough. Liar. Bold-faced lies like this is why officers of the law have zero credibility. Someone who point out to this gentleman that outside of the court system a lie told by an officer in uniform is not magically converted into and treated as truth.

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Brad Marchand, daughter share sweet moment before Bruins game

On By peanutgallerynhIn Boston,, Media and Culture,, Modern Parenting,Leave a comment

Brad Marchand, daughter share sweet moment before Bruins game

Awwww

If Rosa Parks rode a bus in Boston today, she’d see nearly the same segregation she fought

On By peanutgallerynhIn Boston,, Infrastructure and Transportation,, Money, Class, and Poverty,, Race,Leave a comment

If Rosa Parks boarded a bus in Boston today, she wouldn’t see black and white sections; she’d see a dysfunctional system that is disproportionately failing the low-income people — largely people of color and immigrants — whose livelihoods depend on it.

…Even though white and minority riders use the bus system in roughly equal numbers, differences in reliability and frequency of service on routes that serve mostly black and mostly white riders effectively steal more than a week and a half of work [from riders who are not white]— 3 percent of a person’s annual productivity, skimmed right off the top.

…“These studies are replicated around the nation. It’s one of the greatest transportation injustices,” said Julian Agyeman, a professor of urban and environmental policy and planning at Tufts University.

…Only 19 of the T’s 176 bus routes offer frequent, all-day service. And 63 percent of area residents are not served by any of those 19 routes, which mostly run along major corridors and feed big job centers like Longwood or Kendall Square.

If Rosa Parks rode a bus in Boston today, she’d see nearly the same segregation she fought – The Boston Globe

sigh…

Boston Public Schools to boot older students from high school

On By peanutgallerynhIn Boston,, Schools,Leave a comment

School district officials this year are taking a hard-line approach in enforcing a two-decade-old policy that calls for ejecting students from school on their 22nd birthday — an edict they had routinely ignored in the past if overage students were on track to graduate.

The reversal is causing an uproar among students and teachers, who argue strict adherence is creating an unnecessary barrier for students — many of whom have already overcome steep odds — to earn a diploma, go to college, and build a better life for themselves in America.

In a school system that has been trying for years to boost graduation rates, even knocking on dropouts’ doors to lure them back to class, teachers say rigid enforcement of the age limit just a few months before commencement is nonsensical.

…A big issue at the time was that students were not told of the policy before they enrolled. This year, instead of amending the policy as teachers and administrators had hoped, the School Department informed students about the policy during registration. Students nearing the age of 22 were given the choice of enrolling — under the condition they wouldn’t be able to finish — or entering a part-time adult program.

BPS to boot older students from high school – The Boston Globe

sigh…