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Old city councilors never die - they just run for obscure offices that have no business being on the ballot anymore
By adamg on Fri, 09/15/2006 - 9:17am
Yeah, you know there's a primary on Tuesday for governor and other statewide offices. If you live in Suffolk County (Boston, Chelsea, Revere and Winthrop) and vote in the Democratic primary, you also get to decide who will represent your party in the races for country Register of Deeds, Clerk of the Supreme Judicial Court and Clerk of the Superior Court - Criminal.
What? Maybe in 1652, it made sense for these offices to be elected, but now they seem to be largely a way for old Boston city councilors to pick up a few extra dollars on the way to retirement.
In the deeds election, you've got former City Councilor (and Police Commissioner) Mickey Roache hoping to cling to power against a tough challenge from Michael Makan, who disagrees violently with Roache on, um, steel vs. wood shelves for property records or something. I don't know.
Maura Hennigan, who gave up a safe city-council seat to be slaughtered by Tom Menino in the mayor's race, hopes to make up for that by getting herself elected Clerk of the Superior Court - Criminal. Sure, she has no court experience, unlike her opponent, Robert Dello Russo (who currently works fulltime as asssistant clerk of the court), but I'm sure she'd do a fine job ensuring whatever it is the clerk ensures. Both are running to replace John Nucci. One guess what he was before his election.
One of the few people to spend more than 10 seconds thinking about this race is Mass. Marrier, who takes a dim view of Hennigan's bid:
... After failing, she inexplicably picked this clerk's spot to relaunch and redefine her political self. Forget that she has no experience or expertise here. She has attitude. Forget that she is running against a guy who actually understands the job and its duties, as well as the players. She's not coloring in the lines here. ...
In the SJC clerk race, you have incumbent Maura Doyle (South Boston Online bio) vs. Peter J. Walsh (South Boston Online bio). I won't bore you by repeating all the issues in this race.
Also up for re-election this year, although not with primary challenges, are Clerk of Superior Court - Civil Michael J. Donovan and District Attorney Dan Conley, who, surprise, used to be a Boston city councilor.
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Comments
One county elects the SJC clerk?
Isn't the SJC a court for the entire state? Why do only Suffolk County voters elect its clerk?
Because we're special?
I don't know, but this doesn't exactly bolster the argument for keeping these positions on the ballot.
As long as we're at it, another fun fact is that the Boston city council acts as the board of county commissioners for all of Suffolk County, which I'm sure would outrage people in the other three communities if county government in Massachusetts still actually did anything.
M I C...K E Y
Well, Mickey Roache seems to take this very seriously. To us, his career seem inverted, from running the police to shuffling papers, but he doesn't see it that way.
His opponent didn't show at the English High Dem candidates' forum, but he was there at his best. Honestly, he looks like a scrawny street guy, maybe a wino, but he spoke like a candidate. He went on about specific improvements he made to record handling and distribution, about how he improved the registry's morale and on and on.
He was quite credible, surprisingly so.
This should be an appointed position or a civil service qualified one. We want competence, eh? Yet, if you believe Mickey, he has done the right thing and fixed what's broken. This may be making lemonade.
Unfortunately he has a speaker's tic that stuck with those of us in my group. He repeatedly brought his hand down like he was headed for his privates. He stopped just short and briefly fondled his belt buckle, returned his hand to his side and in a minute or less repeated the cycle. I think the nuns would have taken a ruler to his knuckles.
I voted against Roache
I wonder if that habit comes from having been a cop (he was on the force before being chief, right?). With those heavy equipment belts that they wear, I've noticed that sometimes they'll sortof check on them or grab them, which is probably necessary--I mean, with gun, handcuffs, pepper spray, flashlight, and whatever else, those things must way a lot.
Belt analysis aside, though, I voted against Roache. He's probably fine at his job--I honestly haven't a clue--but I couldn't support the man who ran the BostonPD during the Charles Stuart affair. Roache may have said years later that he didn't think that William Bennett, the man falsely accured int he Stuart murder, should have been arrested, but it was under his watch that the police put all Black men in Mission Hill under suspicion and put Bennett through hell.