New violence, new mayor, new ideas

BOSTON — Incoming Mayor-elect Michelle Wu has a lot on her plate when she takes office next week, including an uptick in violence in recent days. The Mayor-elect said she has been getting all sorts of input as she gets ready to take the reigns of the city.

One first order of business Wu said is to find a new police commissioner right out of the gate. The city’s homicide rate is down but a string of violence has made headlines for days including four police officers being shot or stabbed.

Father Richard “Doc” Conway was at a community rally Wednesday for police.

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“We have to try things. If things are not working now let’s try something that has worked somewhere else and apply it here,” Conway said.

The incoming mayor has made it clear law enforcement needs to work alongside mental health experts, something she plans to fully fund. 

“We need to deliver the services that our residents need in a way that meets them where they are at, and that is not happening all the way across the board right now,” Wu said.

“I think the community supports the police, they support the work they do, but we can’t expect them to also be psychologists and psychiatrists,” Conway said.

Mayor-elect Wu sat down with the We Are Better Together Warren Daniel Hairston Project, a non-profit that champions those affected by violence and incarceration. Ruth Rollins is the founder. 

“I feel like we can do much better, much better. Because we all have children with major mental health and there is a lack of services especially for our Black and brown young men,” Rollins said.

The Mayor-elect said cutting the police budget doesn’t mean a smaller department. She said more needs to be spent but it needs to be allocated the right way.  

“To make sure we are using our resources in a way that matches what services are needed in the community, which will require spending more in public safety and health but understanding how those pieces are interconnected,” Wu said.

The Mayor-elect said she has been getting briefings on the recent rash of violence. She’s scheduled to get a full briefing on all police matters before she takes office.

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