BOSTON, Mass. — Four years after The Boston Foundation and the Crime and Justice Institute (CJI) at CRJ published Priorities & Public Safety II: Adopting Effective Probation Practices, Len Engel, Managing Associate for Policy at CJI and Paul Grogan, President and CEO of The Boston Foundation, have co-authored a Boston Herald op-ed piece to review where Massachusetts is now, following leadership and practice changes in the Probation department:
The trial has ended, the sentence handed out. Probation Commissioner John O’Brien is going to prison for his role managing a patronage system that put political connections over competence. Over the course of the trial, we heard the details about how for years politically connected leaders used their power to get jobs for their friends and families. The case may be closed, but the lessons we need to learn are far from complete.