City, Universities Plan Deadly Riot Probe
Deadly Melee Erupted After Pats' Super Bowl Win
POSTED: 5:47 pm EST February 4,
2004
UPDATED: 6:40 pm EST February 4,
2004
BOSTON -- City leaders will sit down with representatives from Boston University, Northeastern University and other colleges to talk about preventing future sports-related melees.
NewsCenter 5's Pam Cross reported that during riots following the New England Patriots' Super Bowl win Sunday, a 21-year-old man was killed and another person critically injured.Critics complain that college students were out of control, but they also said police and city officials were not prepared.
A police spokeswoman said there were three times as many officers on duty as three years ago after the Patriots' first Super Bowl win. The mayor said there was too much underage drinking and a few determined to cause trouble."Police were coming down Brookline Avenue in formation and (students) are throwing rocks at them, and bottles. We had 148 officers, that is almost triple the number we had two years ago. I think we had enough officers out there," said Boston's Mayor Thomas Menino.But critics of the Menino administration say police were overwhelmed. The police union, which is in a contract battle with the city, said officers in Kenmore Square had little support."(Officers were) frustrated, demoralized. The energy was there, the effort was there, the commitment was there -- the resources were not, " said Thomas Nee of the Patrolmen's Union.James Grabowski, 21, of West Newbury, Mass., was killed and three others injured near Northeastern University when a vehicle ran into a crowd of revelers.The Boston City Council plans to investigate the incidents in hopes of preventing future problems."We are going to look at the staffing levels of the police. We are going to look at the behavior and what happens on campuses of universities and what (the universities) are doing to send the message to their students to be responsible young adults," said Boston City Councilor Michael Ross.
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