Editorial: Council vote to cut police budget undermines Boston

A question for the members of the Boston City Council who voted to cut some $31M from the police budget – just what city are you representing?

Judging by your vote, it can’t be Boston, the city with 213 gun-related arrests and 55 shooting incidents year-to-date, according to BPD data. Those numbers are down from the past year, thanks in large part to the very police department these councilors have targeted for budget cuts. Logically, those statistics point to a need to keep police funding where it is, or even increase it.

But logic is in short supply here.

While some crimes are on the downswing, gun violence still threatens Boston’s safety, and there have been 14 homicides so far this year compared to six the same time last year, according to the BPD. News of Boston police officers arresting drug traffickers, thus getting cocaine, fentanyl and other illicit, often deadly substances off the streets is hard to miss. Boston Police officers are doing yeoman’s work for our communities.

The communities these councilors were elected to serve.

“We’ve got the best police department in the country,” said City Councilor Michael Flaherty, who with councilors Ed Flynn, Erin Murphy, Gabriela Coletta and Frank Baker voted against the budget,  “And we’ve got the best community policing model in the country. We are the envy of cities our size and bigger across this country and we’re all seeing it daily as to what’s happening to cities that are defunding the police.”

Cities like Chicago, Portland, Los Angeles. They viewed police as the bad guys and cut budgets accordingly. The result can be seen in steady reports of rising crime and fleeing businesses. They are not role models.

“This cut of $30 million would be decimating to our Boston Police Department,” said Flaherty.

A department that’s already struggling with a shortage of officers. BPD Commissioner Michael Cox put the deficit at about 400 officers in March. They’re already doing more with less – and councilors want to cut funding to boot?

Flynn added that this budget included “deep and painful cuts to city departments that provide critical services to our residents,” including the Boston Police, Fire, Transportation, Inspectional Services, Public Works, and Veterans Services departments.

Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association President Larry Calderone blasted the $31 million cut saying councilors “are too busy grandstanding with police biases.” He added: “Their constituents deserve to live in safe neighborhoods.”

The BPD knows that, the people who live in Boston neighborhoods know that.

“We now await an acceptance, rejection, or amendments back from the mayor,” Coletta said.

We are hopeful that Mayor Michelle Wu puts Boston first and rejects the budget cuts to the BPD, veterans and other city services.

Wu has been on the scene of too many shootings, held too many press conferences on violent incidents, and initiated too many projects aimed at Boston’s growth to miss the correlation between safety and a thriving city.

The mayor has rejected cuts to the police budget proposed by the council before. We look forward to a reprise.