PAX Centurion - January / March 2016

www.bppa.org PAX CENTURION • January/March 2016 • Page 7 Secretary’s Thoughts: Christopher J. Broderick, BPPA Secretary A s we are all aware there have been a number of incidents already this year where Officers have showed a great amount of restraint with regard to the level of force they used. When these incidents happened there was a great deal of press, including statements by Department and City Officials, noting the Officers’ restraint when confronted with what was potentially deadly force against them. As a husband, father, brother and son I truly want to know that police will use the least amount of force necessary. That is the trust we all put in the police. Part of that trust is that if officers are put in a position to use force it will be the least amount of force necessary, regardless of who the person is that put the officer into that position or regardless of where that situation takes place. I think the Department and the City do a great job in making clear to the public that the officer did what they had to do and no more. I think their ability to do that is a direct result of the work the women and men of the Department do every day. The trust is not only established in meetings between community leaders and members of the Command Staff. The trust starts at ground zero. It starts with the way our members respond to 911 calls, treating people with compassion and dignity regardless of the circumstances. It starts with the way our Community Service Officers and other members interact with the community through different Department events. It starts when members of this Association volunteer their time to roll out the canteen truck to support community events. It starts when the community sees John Smith coaching their daughters’ hockey team or leading their sons’ scout pack and realizes that John Smith just finished up a last half, and then he gave a few hours of his time for the children. Let me try to bring the train back on the tracks and bluntly say what I want to say. We should no more be commending officers for using restraint than we should be condemning officers for using deadly force. Each and every situation is different. There are never going to be two exact fact patterns, whether it is the people involved and their current state of mind, environment, weather, lighting or any of the limitless factors of every distinct situation. As citizens we have to have trust that officers did exactly what they need to do in every situation with regard to the factors they encountered and how they perceived them. As police officers, who work alongside one another each and every day, we have to know that we will do exactly what we have to do and that the officers standing beside us will too. We cannot be worried about public opinion when the moment comes for us to act. We cannot consider political factors when the moment comes for us to act. I am sure there is not one of us who hasn’t run the scenario through their mind of “what would I have done” when sisters and brothers are forced into these situations. That is the time to do it. Not when it is happening to you and your partners. Trust your instincts. Trust your training. Trust your partner’s training and instincts and protect your partners with those instincts. To close this out let me say this… If you are confronted with a situation that you are forced to make a decision to use force, be just, be prudent, but be decisive. If the least amount of force necessary is the amount of force you used and you believe that you acted justly and fairly at the moment you are put in a particular situation, the BPPA will stand with you in articulating that. We When is restraint too restraining? have a responsibility to assess every situation and maintain the public trust while doing our job. We have an even bigger obligation to our families. They trust that every day we will go to work; we will do everything we can to help those that need help and we will do our part in holding those accountable who prey on good people. Most importantly we promise them we will come home. Using these promises to our families as our guiding principles we can do our jobs effectively and safely. If you are forced to use the Lamb Method on the 92 year old great grandmother who won’t remove her gnome garden off her neighbor’s lawn it is going to be hard to convince the public you acted righteously, but if the fact pattern as a whole justifies it, and you did it right, the BPPA will stand with you, no matter what public opinion is. National Association Of Police Organizations Top Cops Honorees I t is with great pride that we tell you Officers John Moynihan, Brian Johnson, Jamie Conley, Dennis Medina, Janet Lewis, Greg Bowden, Detective Brian Ball and Trooper Bill Cameron have been selected as honorees of NAPO’s 23 rd Annual TOP COPS. Their case will be one of ten cases selected from a multitude of nominations from every state. The presentation will be made at the TOP COPS Dinner, which will be held on Saturday, May 14 th , 2016 at the J.W. Marriott inWashington, D.C., in conjunction with Police Week 2016. If anyone is interested in attending the event tickets are available directly from NAPO ( NAPO.org ) or the BPPA will gladly assist in coordinating. Hotel options are available through the policeweek.org hotel link. Rooms should be available at the J.W. Marriott for those that are attending the Dinner. There were a number of incidents involving our members that we thought worthy of nomination in 2015, as there are every year, but we chose this case for what we believe are obvious reasons to send as a nomination. More information can be found on NAPO.org regarding the Event or policeweek.org for the events surrounding police week in general. Uniformed Officers Armed In Courtrooms A s many of you that are required to appear in Boston Municipal Court are already aware there is a new policy/practice of one particular Justice to not allow officers inside the courtroom with their Department-issued firearm. Recognizing that this is a common practice in Suffolk Superior Court, the question is why?Why in BMC and why in Suffolk Superior?As officers made us aware of this issue we voiced our concerns on the many surrounding safety concerns to the Department. We had hoped that there would be a simple resolution reached when there was dialogue and communication between the BPPA, the Department and the BMC. Well as they say “the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry”. Please know that this is a serious concern for the BPPA and we will continue to work with the other parties to resolve it, as well as exploring other mechanisms that can correct this policy/practice. See Secretary on page 30