Police Stepping Up Patrols Around Carson Beach After Several Gang Fights
BOSTON (CBS) -- State police are increasing patrols in the area of Carson Beach after hundreds of teenagers were found fighting there several days in a row over the long holiday weekend.
On Friday, night about 700 teens were at the beach where gang fights started. On Saturday, several hundred teens were at the beach after closing and moved from the beach without incident.
But Sunday, more than 1,000 teens were at the beach and as troopers and officers tried to get them to disperse a trooper says he was assaulted by a suspected gang member who then ran into the crowd holding his pants in a way the trooper thought he had a gun.
Then on Monday night, state police estimated 1,000 teens gathered at Carson Beach and several fights between rival gangs erupted.
Veteran state police say these incidents included an unprecedented number of people.
WBZ-TV's Diana Perez reports.
In all, police made nine arrests between the incidents. Officers say they could have made more arrests, but their primary goal was to "move the crowds and restore the safety of the neighborhood."
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Lana Jones reports.
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Mayor Tom Menino disagrees with how the incident was handled. He says there weren't as many teens involved as police said and the officers' tactics need to be more in line with Boston's when dealing with teens saying the area needs to be patrolled better and with more consistency. He added that state police could learn some lessons from Boston police on dealing with gang violence.
Police are stepping up their patrols including Boston police and several units within state police including the gang unit, K-9 section, auto theft task force, and violent fugitive apprehension section. The patrols started Tuesday and are expected to continue indefinitely.
