Boston City Councilor Chuck Turner (Dorchester, Fenway) rallied supporters on the steps of City Hall Monday in a fight to prove his innocence and denounce allegations that he took a $1,000 bribe to secure a liquor license and then lied to the FBI about it.’ ‘
More than 200 people came out in support of Turner, who was arrested and arraigned on Friday, just a few hours after a City Council President Maureen Feeney called a meeting that was supposed to address Turner’s future on the Council.
Turner’s supporters spoke largely in favor of exonerating Turner from the federal bribery and fraudulent statement charges brought against him, and voiced their support as Turner railed against the way he said the media’ covered his arrest.
Turner condemned the Boston City Council for attempting to hold a meeting regarding his alleged crimes prior to his trial.
‘It is inappropriate to have a city council meeting to destroy my reputation before I even have an opportunity to have a day in court,’ he said.’
In a public statement released two hours before the rally, Feeney said the council intended to discuss whether Turner’s should be able to retain his position on the council in lieu of the allegations brought against him.’
‘This council is not a court of law,’ she said in the statement. ‘It is not our role to find guilt or innocence. It is, however, both our right and our responsibility, under city charter, to judge the election and qualification of our members.’
Though Feeney acknowledged that Turner wrote a letter requesting that she cancel the meeting in her statement, she said the meeting was cancelled because it was ‘clear’ that Turner and his supporters would turn the meeting into ‘a stage for political theat[er]’
In an interview with The Daily Free Press, Turner voiced his appreciation to Feeney and the other members of the council for canceling the meeting, but said they canceled it for the wrong reasons.’
‘Even though she didn’t have the meeting, she didn’t give me back my titles,’ Turner said. ‘She is still assuming I am guilty. The inalienable right of every U.S. citizen is to be treated innocent until proven guilty. If a governmental body doesn’t adhere to this principle, then we are just barbarians.’
Turner also said that Feeney’s assumption that Turner and his supporters would turn the special hearing into ‘a circus’ was ‘troubling.’
‘It makes it seem like my constituents and I are hooligans, thugs,’ he said. ‘It is very disrespectful. My constituents and I were being defined in a way that negatively affects our perspectives and behavior.’
Turner said the press and his peers on the council were treating him unfairly by assuming he was guilty before a court had proven him guilty and before they had heard his defense. ‘I can accept that I have been convicted of crimes I did not commit,’ Turner said at the rally. ‘My biggest concern is that my constitutional rights are being violated.’
Turner supporter Susan Mortimer said she is skeptical of the accusations brought against Turner and stood ‘in solidarity with Turner who is always in solidarity with the people.’
Community Church of Boston Director John Macleod said he trusts Turner’s integrity.
‘My concern is the integrity of the rest of us: the people of Boston, the media and the State House,’ he said.’
Dorchester resident Geneva Monell said she and her children have benefited from Turner’s work.
‘He is always there to help, and that is what I call a real leader and we are going to fight to keep him,’ she said. ‘We won’t let anyone take him away.’
Feeney said the Committee on Rules, which she chairs, will only take further action on Turner if the grand jury hearing his case issues an indictment. She also created a Special Committee of the Council on Ethics, which will examine all of the city’s elected leaders to ensure they ‘operate with the highest standards of ethical behavior.’
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freenesto.org will give an example of what is going on here.
I wholeheartedly support Chuck Turner and find it unbelievable that Mr. Turner would have committed the wrongdoing he was accused of by the Boston area FBI.<p/>Councillor Turner is an incredibly dedicated and upstanding public servant. As a representative of the Massachusetts Nurses Association, which has been opposed to the Boston University biolab, I have attended many late night community meeting s and council hearings and recall that Chuck was always in attendance, always considerate, always putting the needs of others first. It is simply not believable that the true facts are what as presented by the FBI and the Globe.<p/>I am extremely concerned about the implications–that is, what might be going on with the FBI. But that’s another matter. Chuck has taken many political stands on behalf of ‘the common man” which undoubtedly serve as an irritant to Boston University and others. it would be sad to learn the actions against Chuck were vindictive or retaliatory or meant to block progress on social issues which Chuck has led.<p/>Chuck has been a true public servant and faithful to his constituents and to the City of Boston and this Commonewealth, and he has my complete support and my belief in his statements. I would hope that the Boston City Council support him fully as well and put an immediate halt to this frightening modern day witchhunt. <p/>Mary Crotty, RN, MBA, JD<br/>Associate Director, Nursing<br/>Massachusetts Nurses Association<br/>340 Turnpike Street<br/>Canton, MA 02021-2711<br/>mcrotty@mnarn.org<br/>www.massnurses.org<br/>Tel (Direct)