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Judge orders Janey to hold off firing the police commissioner so he can appeal ruling that she can fire him

The judge who yesterday dismissed Briefly Police Commissioner Dennis White's request to block his firing today blocked Acting Mayor Kim Janey from actually terminating him at least long enough to let White appeal her ruling.

After Suffolk Superior Court Judge Heidi Brieger denied White's request for a temporary restraining order, White's attorney asked Brieger to stay that denial pending an appeal to a single justice of the Massachusetts Appeals Court.

In a brief, handwritten note on a copy of the request by White's attorney, Brieger agreed, which means that, technically, White remains police commissioner even though he's only actually worked at the job for the two days between the time then Mayor Marty Walsh appointed him and then suspended him after the Globe reported on a 1999 domestic-violence incident involving his wife at the time.

Janey used the report an outside attorney Walsh hired to investigate the claim as justification to remove White from office, which White then sued to block.

In his request for a stay, White's attorney, Nicholas Carter insisted that White deserves the "trial-like, name-clearing hearing" that Brieger had ruled just yesterday he does not. Without such a hearing:

His reputation will be permanently ruined making it impossible for him to pursue employment in his profession. Even though the allegations that he committed domestic violence are false, Commissioner White will not be able to repair his reputation unless the constitutionally mandated trial-like hearing occurs at the same time as the termination decision is made. No one will pay attention to a later hearing that might be provided months after his termination as he will be ‘old news.’

Brieger had ruled that the state law on removing appointed officials, such as police commissioners, does require a hearing, but not the sort of potentially protracted one White is seeking. She also found that the mayor has the right to remove appointed officials and that there was nothing legally wrong with the way Janey called White at 10 a.m. to inform her she would be removing him at a hearing just a few hours later in the day.

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Comments

So the judge wants to see a wife beater running the Boston police department?

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Where did you get that from?

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Just turn on the news

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I don't see any news outlets saying a judge wants to see a wife beater running the police dept.

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I'm just not getting what you are getting, apparently.

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A judge wants to see the rule of law followed.

The end result is immaterial. In any event, I don't see White being commissioner beyond January 2, if he's successful with all of this.

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... his termination appears inevitable and Boston needs a police commissioner that is free to focus on the department, not himself.

If he were to bow out now, out of respect for the department, that would not hurt his reputation.

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It’s time to go. Start working on your next career. Give Ed Davis a call. I am sure he has some private security work for you. Save us from your drama.

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If he were to bow out now, out of respect for the department...

I don't think that's even in the BPD playbook. I would bet he doubles down and uses the threat of never-ending legal action to extort a huge settlement from the city.

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good guys will take out the bad apples something police themselves something

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Yeah, no. She can do it.

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There is no more disgusting group in America than cops. A huge percentage of them are just like Dennis White: wife beaters who steal a six figure salary while doing nothing but sitting on their fat ass.

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I can think of a more disgusting group: internet trolls who incessantly stalk the same website all day long espousing their vitriol as an outlet in lieu of getting the therapy they so very desperately need.

- a Boston Cop

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I find the police unions who defend and protect bad cops and use their influence to secure crazy contract concessions to be worse.

I don't hate cops. I hate the fact they aren't held accountable. Half the country thinks they can do no wrong while the other half the country hates them with rage irrespective of what they do. Nothing will get better if people keep taking one of two extreme positions.

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All I can say is WOW, that's a pretty gross generalization there, pal.

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You’ve never read a comment by Kinopio before? Gross generalization is all he has.

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A new low

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