[USMCTrooper]

BOSTON - The Democratic Convention is over and with no security issues to speak of. Police showed tremendous restraint with the relatively few protest groups that did appear. It seems the months of planning and coordinating paid off. Or did it. Behind the riot police, security fences and barricades festered an animosity among a group many convention delegates were unaware of-the Police themselves. The US Secret Service controlled much of the actual convention security. But with Boston as the host, BPD was in charge of securing the city. Yet in Boston there are state buildings and highways, federal buildings, private colleges and universities. This meant that State Police, Federal Protective Police, F.B.I, Immigration and Customs and many others were thrown together in a relatively tight area. With the number of agencies working in Boston there was bound to be a little territorial toe stepping. However, it seems at least one agency was not welcomed by some. A coalition of local police departments known as the Northeastern Law Enforcement Council provided SWAT teams and other support at the behest of the Secret Service at the Fleet center. A ranking member of Boston's Tactical Operations unit, who asked not to be identified, provided an insider's opinion of this group. " They shouldn't be here" he stated bluntly. "We are the host agency. We have the manpower to get the job done. We expressed some concerns over liability issues at the Fleet about too many different cops. The next thing we know, they show up. I know this is a dog and pony show, but we didn't need a poodle". Other Boston officers also offered their views, provided they remained anonymous. "They think they're something. We have to fight for a contract and these clowns ride around our city acting like they own the place all in black. What for? Where'd they get the money anyway? We don't like 'em, we don't want 'em, they can just screw".

:shock: I found this online. Wow I thought it was just here they got bashed.

 

[Pinkos307]

That seems to be one BPD officer's view. From what I saw all agencies were working well together out on the street and in all command posts. There was informaion shared and assistance given all over the city (especially around Faneuil Hall and the media).

I am glad to hear there were no injuries during the past week.

 

[Tackleberry22]

I think one of the main reasons why not much happened is because half of city's residents got out of dodge. I had to work in Boston on Wednesday morning and not one ounce of traffic coming in or leaving. However, I do understand the BPD SWAT team view; it is all territorial issues. No police department wants to have another come into their city or town and be a show off, but in this case due to the situation at hand, you have to put the pride aside and work as one.

 

[MVS]

For whatever reason the Secret Service obviously wanted NEMLEC in there opposed to BPD Swat - maybe that says something....

Like Tack says, most of the residents got the hell out of dodge... Traffic was light, parking was actually available (where permitted). At night it was a ghost town...

Now wait for Monday... payback will be a biotch...

 

[Guest]

BPD SWAT was aslo there.. NEMLEC, Middlesex SWAT and Suffolk SWAT rotated into the hard zone to cover all shifts despite BPPA's requests for them not to show. It was also quite a sight watching BPPA members pelting the NEMLEC SWAT truck with water bottles when they decided to go leisurely cruises in their new tank....

 

[briand911]

I think everyone did one hell of a job considering all those morons protesting and yelling in their faces I think everyone worked well together and I think they put there egos aside and did one hell of a good job!!!!!

 

[MVS]

Anyone have any cool pics from DNC to post?

 

[Gil]

Didn't get to Boston like some others from my department, but did get a break from mids for the four days plus a little overtime. Special assignment......baby sit train stations.

DNC Travel in Attleboro

Did anyone else have similar details in your own city/town excluding Boston.

 

[Killjoy]

I was down at the DNC, about a block from the Fleetcenter and I saw no such ego-posturing between organizations, we all (state-local-federal) seemed to get along fine. I think those of us in the thick of things (not that there was much to be in the thick of, but in the back of our minds was the possibility that something bad could happen), were more concerned about accomplishing the mission of protecting the city, convention, delegates and citizens, then fighting each other for camera time. It reminds me of being deployed to the Saudi during the first Gulf War; all the inter-service rivalry bullsh*t melts away in the face of the enemy and we realized that when the lead was flying, we all have to work together, whether we were zoomies, swabbies, jarheads or grunts.

 

[mv577]

Didn't get to Boston like some others from my department, but did get a break from mids for the four days plus a little overtime. Special assignment......baby sit train stations.

DNC Travel in Attleboro

Did anyone else have similar details in your own city/town excluding Boston.

Ashland ran these details as well Gill... I didn't get a chance to work any... but all was quiet at the MBTA in our town....

 

[HousingCop]

I waited a few days to post to see if anybody asked the following question.....

Q. What internet site was this information culled from? It would be good to know the source from which it came.

While not directly involved in the DNC, it was heartening to know that if the "social misfits" got creative and went to the neighborhoods to cause disruption, that there was back-up available from a number of different sources. All they had to do was saddle up into their bus, be it NEMLEC, BPD, S/P or FPS, and be on scene within minutes.

Remember, They all wear the same "turtle" outfits, just different patches on the sleeves.

Posted Wed 04 Aug, 2004:

In a realted story..........

CNN: Lance Armstrong to be stripped of his latest win!!!
CNN is reporting that Lance Armstrong may be stripped of his 6th Tour de France title.

In a random check for banned substances, 3 substances were found in Armstrong's hotel room that are banned by the French.

The three substances were reported to be toothpaste, deodorant, and soap.

Thank you, thank you very much

 

[Guest]

It was very interesting to see the regional motorcycle squad (although I had no idea there was such a thing) ride into Harvard Sq and pull up infront of the Charles Hotel. It seems they thought they were going to escort Clinton into the Fleet for his speech on Monday night of the DNC. Well the motorcycle guys from Cambridge were not too welcoming, nor were the troopers. Ask those guys if these regional teams are a good idea. Everyone looked at them and their faces said thanks, but no thanks. No escort ride for NEMLEC. Cambridge and the State told them to hit the road.

 

[USMCTrooper]

The new article was retrieved after running a search on Google for "DNC protests". There were numerous sites and I read almost all of them looking for info on the lack of protestors and the report was on one of them. I think it was a news agency in Arizona. I remember it was somewhere in the SouthWest US area and I want to say it was the Phoenix something or other but I could be mistaken. The site had a blue header across the top. Whether they initiated it or picked it up on the "wire" I dont know.....