Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association, Inc. PRST. STD. 9-11 Shetland Street U.S. POSTAGE BPD psychiatrist: Boston, Massachusetts 02119 PAID BPD psychiatrist: PERMIT NO. 2226 Anti-military bias? WORCESTER, MA By James Carnell, Pax Editor (Also see related article by BPPA attorney Susan Horwitz on page B7) he BPPA has filed a grievance against the BPD’s medical unit in regards to a Treturning veteran who was prevented from resuming his duties as a patrolman despite being fully cleared by military mental health professionals. BPPA member and US Army Major Vladimir Levichev recently returned from his (continued on page A4) Nation’s First Police Department • Established 1854 Volume 39, Number 3 • May/June 2009 PPAXAXCENTURIONCENTURION Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association, Inc. Boston Emergency Medical Technicians RETIRED PILOT Committee BPPA President Tom Nee (right) chair City Councillor along with President Stephen Murphy Barack Obama, Vice President talks to the PAX Joe Biden, and Pax Centurion: What legislative action needs to US Attorney take place in order to address the issue related to General Eric non-profit institutions receiving property tax-free Holder honoring status? the 2009 NAPO Councillor Stephen F. Murphy: The Boston City Top Cops award Council, through legislation recipients, in the that I’ve proposed, has been Rose Garden, working on this issue for a during Police few years. It’s been a slow Week. process that needs the sup- port of the Mayor and, pos- sibly, the legislature. I’ve proposed several options to Flagman Facts: MassHighway bids implement PILOT reform, all of which are posted on my web site www.steve- average $53.25 per hour murphy.com. True PILOT By Jim Carnell, Pax Editor hour (for so-called “redline details”, ing a Masshighway roadway flagger, payment reform has to be n this issue of Pax Centurion (page which are designated by the city as despite Governor Patrick’s assertions embraced by all levels of City Councillor IA7) you will find a copy of a rou- high-traffic, high-impact locations, to the contrary. What many people who government. I think we are Stephen F. Murphy tine MassHighway contract bid for a such as Tremont St., Rutherford Ave, buy into the Governor’s self-serving at that point, because of the construction/bridge project on Route etc.). statements about alleged “cost savings” current economic climate, to reach the point where re- 24. The category for “roadway fail to take into account are the addi- form is not only warranted, it is necessary. flagger” has been highlighted. Each tional costs related to hiring flaggers, PC: The citizens of Boston do not appear to be of the five construction companies including profits for the flagman com- well-informed about the gross inequity of having to submitted bids for the costs of a In any event, the costs associated pany, liability and insurance costs, pay their own property taxes while Harvard Uni- flagger; the bids averaged $53.25 per with a Boston police detail officer are equipment, overtime, night and holi- versity and other well-endowed “non-profits” pay hour. These costs include the indi- already far below (by about $20.00 per day rates. (Note: a Boston police next-to-nothing. What can/should the City Council vidual flagman’s pay plus other costs hour!) the costs associated with hir- (continued on page A7) do to educate Boston’s residents about this issue. In such as insurance, worker’s comp, equipment, etc. These costs do not my opinion, if more citizens knew what they pay in The advertisers of the Pax Centurion do relation to what these tax-free parasites offer in PI- factor into a police detail officer’s pay, not necessarily endorse the opinions of the LOT payments, people would be outraged. as these items are already assumed by Pax Centurion/Boston Police Patrolmen’s SM: I could not agree with you more. It’s been frus- the local city or town. Association. trating to work on this issue year after year and have it Please note that a Boston police The advertisers are in support of the BPPA go mostly ignored by the media. As an at-large coun- officer’s detail rate is currently either Scholarship Fund and every patrolmen who cilor I do what I can to get the word out – when I’m $33.00 per hour (a so-called “standard risks his or her life to protect and serve the community. (continued on page A3) detail” rate, which comprises the ma- jority of our details) or $37.00 per Nation’s First Police Department From the President: Thomas J. Nee PAX Unity & Strength The view from CENTURION here CENTURION he news from the State House is not good since the first of the year it continues to Tget worse as the economic problems continue to grow and take huge bites out of the State revenues. As of this moment the current State deficits have exceeded five RETIRED billion dollars. This continues to be a huge issue of concern at the BPPA in that due to Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association, Inc. the massive revenue shortages the State subsequently has many unfunded liabilities, specifically in the areas of local aid, Quinn bill and pension liabilities. Boston Emergency Medical Technicians Historically, we have watched as the economic cycles sometimes created surpluses 9-11 Shetland Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02119 and sometimes deficits, seasoned veterans of the budget process call it the yo-yo Phone: 617-989-BPPA (2772) system, sometimes its up, sometimes down and during the course of time it consis- Fax: 617-989-2779 tently regulates itself and recovers. We can certainly hope and expect that pattern of recovery will repeat itself as it has in the past. But times have changed and before all www.bppa.org Union Printworks is said and done this will be considered a time period of historic proportions. Volume 39, No. 3 • Readership 125,000 • May/June 2009 The news on the scope of budget deficits has opened the door to our adversaries who have BOARD OF EDITORS pounced on I understand the difficulties that we col- Thomas J. Nee, Executive Director James Carnell, Managing Editor our collec- Ronald MacGillivray, Vice President tively bar- lectively face and I don’t mind John Broderick, Jr., Secretary Mark Bruno, Pat Rose, Thomas Pratt, Treasurer Assistant Managing Editors gained ben- sacrificing my fair share, what I do mind efits. These EMS Officers very difficult are decisions made for sake of headlines. James Orsino, President John Bilotas, Secretary and emotional What I do mind is denigrating how much Robert Morley, Vice President Anthony O’Brien, Treasurer times have cre- we earn, calling our wages “perks”, given Len Shubitowski, Chief Steward ated a theater Bulk Mailing Postage Paid at Worcester, Mass., Permit No. 2226 of opportunity what we do, the hours we work and BPPA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES for our detrac- what is sacrificed to do it. Our benefits AREA A AREA B AREA C tors. You can are not “controversial”; they are Brian Reaney • Tom Corbett David Fitzgerald • Michael Sullivan Timothy Golden • Bill Hogan pick up a John Bates • Jimmy Carnell Cynthia Beckford-Brewington Joe Miskel • Mark Bruno Michael Leary • Robert Anthony Richard McCormack Patrick Rose • Chuck Kelley n e w s p a p e r collectively bargained and earned. Bob Luongo • James Warmsley Steve Parham • Vincent Stephens anywhere you AREA D AREA E AREA F can find one and no doubt on any given day you will find an article by some editorial Scott Yanovich Michael Harrington • Paul Nee IDENT. UNIT – Michael Griffin Robert Butler • Greg Lynch Lawrence Calderone DRUG UNIT – Paul Quinn writer advocating the roll-back of collectively bargained wages and other benefits for Tim Donovan • Samuel Berte Gerald Rautenberg • Steve Kelley YVSF – Steve Fabiano Tom Barrett Arthur McCarthy • Angel Figueroa Vance Mills public employees, but more specifically for police officers claiming that they are too Chris Morgan • Richard Jordan generous. Sadly, journalistic ethics today often value the story more than the story’s M.O.P. RADIO SHOP / P.D.S. TURRET accuracy, with commercial interests far out-weighing fair journalism or journalistic Mike Mylett John Kundy John Conway • Curtis Carroll John Ridion P.D.S. – Karen VanDyke Horace Kincaide integrity. And the result is a compromised legislature who are more concerned about ACADEMY / RANGE HARBOR E.S.U. mid-term polls, sensationalized new articles, and blogs authored by fictitious, ridicu- EVIDENCE MANAGEMENT Jeff Tobin Hector Cabrera • Francis Deary lous names. Where is the moral outrage of the media that allows a barter program Paul Downey called a “PILOT” to exist, especially here in Boston when they know that there is HEADQUARTERS K-9 / MOUNTED MASTER AT ARMS nearly a half “billion dollars” in untaxed real estate in the City of Boston as a result of Eric Hardin Kevin Ford • Thomas O’Donnell Robert Lundbohm • Mike Murphy John Rogers this outdated law, or how about untaxed endowments that reach into the billions of BPPA COMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS dollars. These are just a few examples of the revenues available through legislative AWARDS PUBLIC RELATIONS changes and yet the legislature has indicated that they are going to balance their bud- Bob Butler • J. Broderick • G. Rautenberg Jim Barry get on the backs of public employees. I am left to ask, as I have many times recently GRIEVANCE PAX CENTURION Bob Butler • Jim Carnell • Brian Reaney Jim Carnell • Mark Bruno • Patrick Rose where is the fundamental fairness in that. The governor has suggested zero-funding Mike Leary • Tom Pratt • Dave Fitzgerald BYLAWS the state’s portion of the Quinn Bill; to me that would be equal to 10-12% tax increase BUILDING Tom Nee this year on me in that the States action would remove that income from my annual Tom Nee HEALTH and SAFETY / LABOR MANAGEMENT BARGAINING John Kundy wages and even more far reaching a 10 - 12% lifetime consequence in my pension and Tom Nee • Ron MacGillivray • Brian Reaney ELECTIONS Tom Pratt • Dave Fitzgerald Dave Fitzgerald that is unacceptable.