police overtime

In a departure from prior years, senior members of the mayor’s administration appeared before Boston City Council members, as well as members of the public, to discuss in broad strokes the city’s ongoing process in negotiating new contracts with police unions.

Of the six lead candidates running for mayor, none backs a fully elected school committee, only one supports rent control.

Police overtime has increased despite there being fewer court sessions, fewer public festivals and parades and other traditional drivers of overtime. City councilors who are trying to find answers for why the police budget continues to rise have found few answers.

Amid renewed scrutiny of the BPD’s $60 million overtime budget, some criminal defense attorneys are speaking out about court overtime abuses they have witnessed, including the delivery of documents and evidence that could have been safely emailed, saving time and thousands of taxpayer dollars.