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Boston Police Hope For Calm After Super Bowl

A Boston city worker hangs "No Stopping" signs Friday morning on Brighton Avenue in Allston in preparation for Super Bowl XLVI. (Jesse Costa/WBUR)
A Boston city worker hangs "No Stopping" signs Friday morning on Brighton Avenue in Allston in preparation for Super Bowl XLVI. (Jesse Costa/WBUR)

The city of Boston is taking aggressive steps to prevent any acts of violence similar to those that have followed some previous major sporting events.

Police say they expect to have more than 2,000 officers on the streets of Boston by the game’s halftime Sunday. Streets will be closed and parking will be restricted around Fenway Park, North Station, Faneuil Hall and around all of Boston's colleges and universities where previous sports celebrations have turned wild.

Patrica Malone, the director of the Boston Licensing Board, says the city is working closely with bar owners.

A fireman approaches a burning car outside of Fenway Park following a Boston Red Sox victory over the New York Yankees in October, 2004. (AP)
A fireman approaches a burning car outside of Fenway Park following a Boston Red Sox victory over the New York Yankees in Oct. 2004. (AP)

"We have spoken to [bar owners], if they even envision that there may be the slight agitation in the bar or something going wrong, whether it be two patrons that they keep an eye on, to just look out the door and get a police officer," Malone said. "Have the police officer in dispersing or escorting the patron from the license premises."

City officials said they will step up patrols and video monitoring near Kenmore Square and North Station, areas where fans congregate. Access to those areas will be restricted after the third quarter to discourage large crowds near bars and restaurants.

Police Commissioner Ed Davis says that surveillance cameras will record any criminal behavior and that those images will be used to lodge criminal complaints.

"We are going to maintain the tapes, we're going to look at them very closely afterwards," Davis said. "So, if they think they are getting away with it we will have a surprise for them in the future."

Boston Mayor Thomas Menino decided not to travel to Indianapolis, choosing instead to stay in the Hub.

"I want to be available if something does happen in the city. I remember one year I was in Houston at the Super Bowl when the young man got killed," Menino said. "I felt so out of place. I was so far away. Commissioner Davis will be on the scene. That time our commissioner wasn't on the scene."

With reporting by The Associated Press and WBUR's Delores Handy

This article was originally published on February 04, 2012.

This program aired on February 4, 2012. The audio for this program is not available.

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