Flynn proposes moving St. Patrick’s Day parade out of South Boston ‘indefinitely’ amid concerns

Jim Morelli,Maria Papadopoulos
·2 min read
14

Boston City Councilor Ed Flynn is proposing that the historic St. Patrick’s Day parade be moved out of South Boston “indefinitely” amid concerns about public drinking, violence and destruction of property in local neighborhoods.

Flynn cited those issues of concern with the annual parade, which draws hundreds of thousands of people to South Boston each year.

“We must make major changes and implement a zero tolerance for public drinking, any form of violence, fighting and destruction of property and other quality of life issues,” Flynn said in a Facebook post on Monday night.

“If we are not able to meet basic standards of decency and respect the South Boston neighborhood, the parade should be moved out of South Boston indefinitely,” Flynn said. “With almost a million visitors to South Boston for the parade, we can’t sustain an ‘anything goes’ attitude in the neighborhood. This is a neighborhood, and many of the spectators that come to the parade do not treat residents of South Boston with respect.”

Authorities on Sunday arrested a 26-year-old man for allegedly carrying a handgun while “highly intoxicated” near the parade, MBTA Transit Police said. An officer noticed the man, whose name was not released, while monitoring large crowds at Andrew Square Station for the St. Patrick’s Day festivities.

A firefighter from Ireland who flew into Boston for St. Patrick’s Day weekend is being held on a $100,000 bail, accused of raping a woman at the Omni Parker House hotel on Friday, according to Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden.

Prosecutors said Terrence Crosbie, 37, of Dublin, had flown to Boston from Ireland earlier on Thursday with other members of the Dublin Fire Brigade and that he was scheduled to leave on Tuesday. He boarded an earlier flight over the weekend, and state police stopped the plane on the Logan International Airport tarmac and removed him.

Crosbie was arraigned Monday in Boston Municipal Court on one count of rape, ordered not to leave Massachusetts, and to surrender his passport, Hayden said.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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