William Green sues LPD
Former police Officer William Green has presented a demand in Lawrence District Court against the police department requesting that his license to carry be returned. Mr. Green believes, according to federal and state rules, they have no reasonable grounds for remove his license.
There are specific reasons to support this action but the letter given to him stated, “The Lawrence Policed Department conducted an investigation. The investigation determined that you are unsuitable to hold a license to carry firearms in Massachusetts. The Lawrence Police Department relied on credible information and has determined that you have exhibited behavior that suggests that you may be a threat to public safety.”
William Green says that, “This statement is vague, absolutely subjective, and articulates no violation of law. It was demonstrative of a negative bias and arguably malicious.”
Just because someone has said negative things about a person, including exhibiting behavior that suggests… anything, should not be valid to take such action against anyone. I can imagine that not everybody has nice things to say about me. What type of reprisal would I be a victim of based on their opinions?
Green needs that license should he prevail in his civil service case and be restored as a police officer. This appears to be a preemptive move in fear of the city losing in Civil Service. He cannot find a decent job and his financial problems were the cause for losing his home. The family is now disbanded and this latest action by the police department seems to be pushing the envelope.
The court appearance scheduled for July 5th has been rescheduled for July 12th to give the City time to prepare. Let the judge decide.
City Council $4M
On Tuesday, June 18th, the Lawrence City Council met and one of the important issues on the table was the $4 million loan to repair the Museum Square Garage. DPW did some minor repairs using some Capital Improvement Money, nailing some boards and last Friday, June 14th it was good enough to open.
The discussion went as expected, with David Abdoo, Marc Laplante, Estela Reyes, Kendrys Vasquez and Maria De La Cruz voting in favor of the loan. The problem is that it requires 6 votes. Ana Levy, Jeovanny Rodriguez, Brian De Peña and Pavel Payano voted negatively. They want to draft first a new contract stipulating that the Museum Square tenants pay their parking fee to the city by way of the attendants like everyone else who purchase a monthly ticket, not by paying to the building owner. Through the years, the owners have kept the parking fee instead of turning it over to the city that owns the garage and is responsible for its maintenance.
I understand what the renters are going through, particularly the disabled people and wheel chaired people who need to access their cars in the garage. They, in turn, should understand that those city councilors are there to watch after the interests of the taxpayers. All they are asking for is a new contract guaranteeing that their payment goes to the city, not their landlord. Have they placed any demands on the building owners?
Our city councilors are doing what they have sworn to do at the risk of losing votes in September yet, it’s not their concern. Let’s sit down and reason the best way to proceed.
I also think they are correct in asking for details of what is to be done, a clear outline on the scope of the work with accurate costs and time necessary for the repairs. How are they supposed to guess the final cost once they get started? Projects of that sort usually increase exponentially with unseen problems. We need details. We need solutions but not at taxpayer’s expense. Let’s sit at the table with the owners of Museum Square to find the best possible ways to solve it. Stay firm!
Reyes, part of the blackmail
Mayor Dan Rivera had been holding the purchase of new voting machines at a cost of $160,000 in exchange for approval of the budget.
First, he was holding it until the City Council approved the Capital Improvement Plan. They approved the CIP but not the $225,000 for free buses so he didn’t buy the machines. Now it’s the busses and the $4 million for the Museum Square Garage. Now that the $225,000 for free bussing around the city was approved, I still believe that he won’t sign for the purchase of the machines even though he told them at the end of the budget meeting on June 19th that he would because accuracy may affect elections results.
That used to be called blackmail; today is just “negotiations.”
Taking part on the negotiations is District B City Councilor Estela Reyes who was asking the dissenting councilors to vote for what the mayor wanted because she can talk to Dan and convince him to sign off on the voting machines.
That’s not negotiations; it’s extortion and intimidation!
Lawrence needs money
Always crying that this poor city needs help from the government, taxpayers, wherever they can get it; I have made suggestions that to many sound sensible but no one listens. I believe the intention is keeping the city in disarray to blame it on poverty.
I have suggested many ways to legally raise funds while keeping the city clean and forcing people to follow laws and ordinances. People learn when we hit them in the pocket. Here are some ideas:
Recycling – We need to spend a little money in an education campaign so residents can learn why it’s advantageous for all of us to recycle. We pay to remove the trash but we sell the recycled materials thus offsetting the cost of the trash. Have inspectors go around and ticket anyone mixing recyclables with trash.
Yard/garage sales – Not many people know that one permit (free) allows them to have 2 yard sales each year. We see the same homes offering merchandise all summer long. Have inspectors ask for the permit and if they are not complying, pay up. The best way to achieve that is hiring an inspector for weekends because the inspectional services employees do not work Saturdays and Sundays so it’s a free for all.
Loud music in cars/homes – This is something that characterizes Lawrence yet, we have clear rules against it. When police officers begin ticketing cars or breaking up after-hour parties with stiff fines, they’ll learn.
Double and triple parking on streets – People stop their cars “for just one minute” to go do their banking with total disregard for the traffic. Where are the cops when you need one?
J-Walking – Perhaps we should establish that because some people pay more attention to their telephone conversation while crossing the streets instead of traffic. Let’s give a money fine and take away the telephone for a month. They’ll learn.
Out-of-state plates – Everybody knows that registering a car in New Hampshire to avoid Massachusetts insurance is against the law. That’s an easy one!
None of these suggestions conflicts with workers’ unions as I have heard before. All it takes is the desire to clean up the city and its reputation.
