Roxbury residents question demotion of Boston police official named to POST Commission

The demotion of Eddy Chrispin as a member of the high-level command staff at the Boston Police Department has been the talk of the town.

Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox demoted Chrispin from deputy superintendent after Chrispin accepted a position on the Massachusetts Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission, a police oversight board.

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POST Commission leaders were told it was because of a perceived conflict of interest.

A Boston deputy police superintendent was demoted after joining the POST Commission, Massachusetts' police oversight board. Mayor Michelle Wu and the Boston Police Department commented on the issue Tuesday amid some controversy.

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Wednesday night, the community gathered at the Twelfth Baptist Church in Roxbury to ask local leaders questions about the situation.

"I think the process in which it was done is what's bothering me," said Boston resident Marjorie Bernadeau. "If you can't explain where there's a conflict of interest and why he was demoted, I have a problem with that."

So far, the Boston Police Department has revealed little about the reasons behind the demotion.

"It is important that all members of this senior leadership team are aligned in carrying out the Department’s mission," a department spokesperson said last week. "From time to time — to strengthen the command staff's work to fulfill the mission and to promote cohesion of the team — changes are made."

Massachusetts' police oversight board says its appointment of Boston Police Deputy Superintendent Eddy Chrispin led to his demotion from his command position.

Mayor Michelle Wu defended Cox's decision last week, saying he has "full discretion" on whom to place on his command staff.

Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell, who appointed Chrispin to the POST Commission, spoke out against his demotion.

Former State Rep. Marie St. Fleur, who coordinated Wednesday night's community meeting, says the demotion is a particular slight to the Haitian-American community.

"He's one of the few, the only, we had on the command staff that has the cultural competency and the linguistic competency," she said.

Chrispin is meeting with the POST Commission for the first time Thursday.