PAX Centurion - March / April 2015

www.bppa.org PAX CENTURION • March/April 2015 • Page 5 Vice President’s Message: Michael F. Leary, BPPA Vice President The most important things… On that night, as BPPA officers, we responded to a variety of locations requiring our assistance. Some of us went to the shooting scene on Humboldt Ave., others responded to the BMC to meet with and assist family members, and others transported family members to and from the hospital. Many other members and union reps assisted with traffic control, escorts, and a variety of duties which will go unnoticed, but we are all thankful for. (The names are too plentiful to list at the risk of missing somebody, but we thank you all…). To say it was chaotic would be a mild understatement, but everybody did their jobs. I was going to use this Pax article to address outstanding grievance and arbitration issues, ad nauseum, some of which have been stalled for several years. But at this time, let me address the single most important issue: the well-being of our member John Moynihan and his fellow officers who saved his life on March 27 th , 2015. Officer John Moynihan, of the gang unit (YVSF), was shot ( as all of us know) at point-blank-range, by AngeloWest, a career-criminal who had previously (in 2001) attempted to kill Boston and State po- lice officers in the theater dis- trict. West had recently been released on parole and was, according to some reports in the media “been attempt- ing to turn his life around.” (Stop us if you’ve heard this before.) West destroyed the careers of many good of- ficers, including Officer Billy Griffiths of AreaA-1, who narrowly escaped death from West’s gun in 2001. On that night, as BPPA officers, we responded to a variety of locations requiring our assistance. Some of us went to the shooting scene on Humboldt Ave., others responded to the BMC to meet with and assist family members, and others transported family members to and from the hospital. Many other members and union reps assisted with traffic control, escorts, and a variety of duties which will go unnoticed, but we are all thankful for. (The names are too plentiful to list at the risk of missing somebody, but we thank you all…). To say it was chaotic would be a mild understatement, but everybody did their jobs. The injuries to Officer Moynihan (a .357 slug below the right eye which lodged behind his right ear) were so severe that, quite frankly, many of us feared the worst. Thank God, and with the help of the outstanding trauma surgeons at BMC and the quick actions of his partners in the gang unit and our EMT’s, John Moynihan was able to pull through. Obviously, it’s going to be a long road to recovery, but things look good as of 4/3/15, ironically, Good Friday. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the calm patience and temperament – al- most to a fault – of our BPD Supt. Wil- liamGross. Supt. Gross, as many have seen in recent viral video/text messages, endured withering criticism from self-ap- pointed “activists” in the hours after Officer Moynihan was almost killed. These “activists” attempted to equate this situation with other situations across the United States (Ferguson, MO, NewYork, etc., etc.) Despite overwhelming evidence right in front of them of the fact that AngeloWest had brutally and without provocation shot Officer Moynihan in the face, some of these “activ- ists” attacked Supt. Gross personally and professionally. Supt. Gross, possessing the tempera- ment and composure that few of us would have under such conditions, re- mained calm and tried to explain logic and reason to illogical and unreason- able people. (Undoubt- edly without success, but you can’t blame a guy for trying…) The bottom line is this: We all thank God that John Moynihan has survived this brutal attack and we thank all of his partners from the gang unit andArea B who helped him survive and also sustained withering gunfire from the suspect even as they protected their wounded colleague. To all of the officers who responded that evening, in any capacity whatsoever, the BPPA – and the BPD, on behalf of Comm. Evans and the command staff, thank you.You might not realize it, but every traffic post, every officer praying at the BMC, every officer guarding the crime scene, every officer covering 911 calls for those EDT teams called to the situation – WAS noticed. NOT THAT ITMATTERS, BUT: In comparison to John Moynihan, but just a few notes of interest: we have been plodding through the resolution of past grievances. Some of these matters are years old and time has a way of wear- ing on issues that some may have forgotten. Of course, this works to the department’s interest: delay, delay, delay, obfuscate, etc. etc. and the matter will disappear. The collection of records and appropriate paperwork is the single biggest key to winning a grievance months or years after it has been filed. Please help us to help to help you by submitting documents that will help you win your grievance.