Xiarhos Urges Governor Baker to Oppose Efforts to Undercut State Police

June 9, 2020

BARNSTABLE — Steve Xiarhos, Republican candidate for State Representative in the Fifth Barnstable District, issued a call today for Governor Charlie Baker to oppose efforts to undercut the Massachusetts State Police and other law enforcement agencies.

Specifically, Xiarhos urged the Governor to use the power of his office to oppose and seek reversal of recent actions taken by the MBTA Fiscal and Management Control Board and the UMass Boston Chancellor to deny the use of public resources under their management by the State Police while responding to civil unrest.

In a letter sent to Baker today, Xiarhos said, “As a former police officer, I know how important it is for law enforcement to have cooperation from fellow agencies in times of need…. Our State Police officers are available 24/7/365 to ‘answer the call’ when people are in distress. We should be giving them the same courtesy when it comes to their need to share public resources for the public good.”

Xiarhos repeated his strong condemnation of recent events in Minneapolis involving the tragic killing of George Floyd. “We should all agree that hateful actions like those that led to George Floyd’s death are intolerable, and we should collectively commit ourselves to healing the hurt in our community and making sure such acts never happen again, ever, anywhere,” said Xiarhos. However, Xiarhos noted that such actions also should not provide cover for appointees to quasi-independent agencies to make political statements using public resources. “I flatly oppose any effort to ‘defund the police,’” said Xiarhos.

The full text of the letter sent by Xiarhos to Governor Baker appears below.

Steven G. Xiarhos
67 Saddler Lane
West Barnstable, MA 02668

June 9, 2020

Governor Charlie Baker
Massachusetts State House
24 Beacon Street, Room 280
Boston, MA 02133

Dear Governor Baker:

My name is Steven G. Xiarhos. I was a police officer in the Town of Yarmouth for four decades. Eventually, I was named Deputy Chief of the department, a position in which I served proudly and from which I retired in late 2019.

I am writing to voice my extreme disappointment with recent decisions by quasi-independent state agencies to deprive our State Police of needed resources during times of civil unrest. These decisions include a vote by the MBTA Fiscal and Management Control Board saying T buses may not be used to transport State Police officers responding to disturbances, and correspondence from the UMass Boston Chancellor making parking lots unavailable for staging by the State Police.

These decisions are wrong and should be immediately reversed. I urge you to use the power of your office to oppose them.

As a former police officer, I know how important it is for law enforcement to have cooperation from fellow agencies in times of need. In certain cases, that means sharing information. That’s why I believe strongly that our state should not be home to so-called “sanctuary cities,” which prevent cooperation between municipal, state, and federal law enforcement. In other cases, that means sharing resources. That’s what is wrong with these recent decisions by the MBTA and UMass. By making their resources unavailable to the State Police, they are preventing law enforcement from performing vital functions in time of crisis. These decisions not only could exacerbate civil unrest, but also lead to problems with the safety of officers and those who seek to peacefully exercise their First Amendment rights to speak out in protest.

Our State Police officers are available 24/7/365 to “answer the call” when people are in distress. We should be giving them the same courtesy when it comes to their need to share public resources for the public good.

I am particularly concerned that these quasi-independent agencies appear to be making a political statement using public resources. As a Commonwealth, I believe we should come together in unity to voice our condemnation of recent events in Minneapolis surrounding the tragic killing of George Floyd. I find these events particularly disturbing as a former police officer who served with honorable men and women who wore the badge, and as someone who has worked previously to train fellow officers. We should all agree that hateful actions like those that led to George Floyd’s death are intolerable, and we should collectively commit ourselves to healing the hurt in our community and making sure such acts never happen again, ever, anywhere. However, these events and the protests surrounding them should not be used as cover for appointees to quasi-independent agencies in our state to make political statements using public resources and to deprive law enforcement of appropriate tools they need – and traditionally have had at their disposal – to respond effectively to civil disturbances. I flatly oppose any effort to “defund the police.”

I hope that your administration will move swiftly to oppose these actions and take appropriate steps to make sure law enforcement has sufficient resources to do its job. Thank you for your consideration of these comments.

Sincerely,
Steven G. Xiarhos