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Councilors don't like being disrespected by Northeastern over high-powered weaponry for campus cops
By adamg on Wed, 03/02/2016 - 1:05pm
Boston city councilors are going to give Northeastern officials a second chance to show up and discuss their decision to equip the campus police force with high-powered weaponry.
College officials declined requests to attend a hearing on Monday on the issue, one attended by several city councilors and Northeastern students.
City Councilor Josh Zakim, who represents part of the area where Northeastern sits, said he was "shocked and disappointed" nobody from Northeastern - including, he noted, former city councilor and current Northeastern VP John Tobin - attended. He agreed to give the university another chance to meet.
But it was City Councilor Tito Jackson - who also represents part of the area into which Northeastern has been expanding - who really tore into the school.
Jackson, who once got the council order the president of BU to appear at a hearing under threat of arrest, said Northeastern's decision not to send anybody showed "institutional immaturity" and said the university needs to "grow up."
He noted university officials readily seek out officials and residents when they want their approval for a 20-story dorm tower and yet are unwilling to talk to them about "tactical, military style weapons around our neighborhood."
And in an apparent reference to the BU tussle, he added he hopes he doesn't have to take the gun dispute "to the next level."
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Comments
Disgusting...
...that they are trying to avoid having to justify their decision.
Yeah shit happens around Northeastern's campus sometimes, but giving campus police bigger guns will just start the countdown to the inevitable, tragic, "accidental" shooting of someone innocent.
Disgusting
that the City Council is forcing a PRIVATE institution to "justify" their decisions in equipping the police force that patrols THEIR property.
Memo to Boston City Council- MYOFB
so by your logic
you think that boston has no business wanting to talk with what you consider to be a private police force armed with, at the minimum, AR-15 carbines, or for all i know M4 assault rifles
a private police force within the city- by your own words- owes not even a MEETING to boston? or am i missing something here
i mean fuck it dude, i have a company too thats a private institution. you want to step up to my sidewalk and answer to my police force?
AR15s are already banned in
AR15s are already banned in Boston unless you are a sworn officer.
Who do you think private security forces hire?
.
whats your point
we dont want any illegal murders committed with a banned gun? wooo!
point is
The private institution in your above example wouldn't be allowed ARs or anything on the "banned" list.
NUPD officers ARE sworn
NUPD officers ARE sworn officers.
The Northeastern Police
The Northeastern Police Department is a full police department with sworn officers equivalent to Boston Police officers.
Their jurisdiction includes more than just Northeastern property. It also includes the adjacent city streets and surrounding neighborhoods. They patrol Huntington Ave. They patrol Ruggles station. They will even issue traffic tickets.
If Northeastern Police officers are patrolling the City of Boston, then it most definitely is the City of Boston's business.
preach
preach
*duplicate comment *
*duplicate comment *
inevitable?
Boston Police have had long guns for years. Have there been any reported "accidental shootings" with them?
no dude
everybody knows that they only kill people accidentally with their non lethal guns
Victoria Snelgrove. RIP
Accidently killed by a non leathel stun gun FN 303
NU is goimg the wrong route, BPD Headquarters is practically on there campus.
As has been mentioned numerous times
BPD headquarters isn't the home of Boston SWAT. I highly doubt if there's an active shooter on NU campus, the commissioner and the top brass of BPD are going to be grabbing AR-15's and running over to NU.
Ayup
It's basically an office building, albeit with a lot more people with guns inside. But if its mere presence were enough to quell violence, we wouldn't see all the shootings we do in the housing projects right across the street and on the other side of the train tracks, near Ruggles station, etc. Unfortunately, real life is not SimCity.
lord of the rings said it best
with regards to crimes being committed near a police station;
"the closer you are to danger, the farther you are from harm"
Justify their decision?
Justify their decision? Civilians can own the exact same rifle. How's that for justification?
Everyone else in the state
Everyone else in the state except Boston residents if a state AWB compliant model or modified by a federally licensed dealer to be state AWB compliant. Boston residents cannot because of a 1989 city ordinance.
Wasn't there
A shooting by NU/Ruggles yesterday?
Not a shooting
At least, nobody hit, but a car did get shot up on Whiitier, Stanley Staco reported.
No one was hit doesn't mean
No one was hit doesn't mean it didn't happen...
Was yesterday a day that
Was yesterday a day that ended in y?
This really isn't unusual.
Boston University, MIT, Tufts University, and University of Massachusetts Boston all have the same firearms. The city council is really wasting time here. To the best of my knowledge, there's not an event in the history of Northeastern where anyone was harmed by the police force with a firearm. The Northeastern police force is well trained, work to deescalate issues and have these rifles only for extreme situations such as a campus shooter/terrorist attack.
Northeastern couldn't even
Northeastern couldn't even spare a representative for a couple of hours to explain its decision on this touchy topic. Shame on the university for failing to show an ounce of respect to the rest of the city.
Shame on the City Council
For grandstanding and name-calling.
Big black guns
I'm actually more irritated that they didn't show up to the council than with the concept that they have a gun that'll shoot a 5.56 longer distance than their sidearms
One rifle is essentially the
One rifle is essentially the same as another rifle despite the differences in appearance.
NU had two on campus rifle ranges well into the 1980s and was not noted for bedlam in the era 1898 to 1989. Nor were any of the collegiate, ROTC, or Boston Public School rifle teams during that time period known for public safety issues.
This is political posturing by council members which appear to lack even a basic understanding of firearms and potentially the laws on the books.
NUPD should spend 8 hours teaching Tito and Zakim the state's required safety course to dispel the councilors ignorance.
They had the chance...
in fact they were INVITED to educate the councilors but decided it wasn't worth their time. I agree with you on the facts re. NU's safety record etc. but Northeastern brought this attention on themselves.
NUPD should spend 8 hours
I doubt they'd take them up on that offer. So much misinformation about firearms is a result of willful ignorance.
The arms race has begun!
Next up- BU,U-Mass Boston, MSP, Transit, BC, meanwhile the school police can't get a can of mace to defend themselves.
BU, UMass, MSP, and Transit
BU, UMass, MSP, and Transit Police already have patrol rifles. BC PD might but I'm not sure.
Tito gets my vote (again)
Personally, encountering and working in tandem with NUPD, one apple spoils the bunch. They have a lot of good men and women on the force but also people who embody the antithesis of what it means to serve your community and the people. Leave the toys at home, Rambo!