How Did DPW Driver Get Hired in the First Place

An arrest of a City of Boston Department of Public Works (DPW) employee accused of selling heroin out of his work truck has sparked a lot of controversy.

Somehow, the driver was hired with his record showing his license had been suspended numerous times and served two long stints in prison for dealing drugs and armed  assault with intent to murder.

The supervisor responsible for screening the arrested driver’s application is playing the role of Sergeant Schultz… “I know nothing.”

He is a public employee and should be held accountable for his negligent actions that has allowed this public safety situation to occur.

While the Mayor has vowed to scrutinize the driving records of city workers with access to municipal vehicles in the wake of this preventable incident, he should also be working on telling the public how this could have happened.

Mayor Walsh has noted, “It’s something that should not have happened and it won’t be happening in the future.”

It certainly appears the public can count on the Mayor’s commitment. He indicated that he was at a loss to explain why the driver was giving such a high rating (the highest possible). So is everyone else.

Like the hundreds of unsolved homicides in Boston, this questionable hiring did not occur on the Mayor’s watch and it appears Walsh is taking all the appropriate action in both cases.

Hopefully, once the investigation is complete, the general public will be privy to what happened.