A Boston City Council hearing was held Friday over the ongoing turf war between Massachusetts State Police and Boston police and who has jurisdiction over the Seaport District.
Massachusetts State Police troopers have patrolled the Seaport for years, but Boston police are pushing for shared responsibility.
Under state law, state police have sole jurisdiction.
"You’ve got Massport, state police, Boston police all fighting for calls," Boston Police Commissioner William Evans said.
Boston police can respond to 911 calls in the area but if they need to make an arrest, state police troopers need to be called in.
Evans said police are trained at neighborhood policing and have the specialized units better equipped to handle issues including sex assault, domestic violence, and bar fights.
Massport argues there is open communication already in place and at this point, there is no question as to who is in charge.
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"We had this up until '97 then someone snuck in a bill in '97 and we haven’t been able to get it back. It’s just so dysfunctional," Evans said.
No state police members were present for Friday's hearing but did provide a statement which said in part, "Colonel (Kerry) Gilpin looks forward to continued discussions with Boston Police about Seaport District public safety issues."
