Crime on Boston Common Not All That Uncommon
Two park rangers are recuperating from injuries they received when a suspected attacker stabbed the pair in Boston Common. The suspect in the stabbing, Bodio Hutchinson, 34, of Boston, was arraigned on Wednesday and held on $1 million cash bail. As horrific as Tuesday’s stabbing was, it wasn’t the first incident of violence in America’s first public park, and it likely won’t be the last.
Over the past century, there have been many violent crimes on the Common, a place where residents, tourists, college students and office workers often gather to soak in the sun on blankets or grab a quick lunch.
A trip back, via The Boston Globe archives, through Boston Common’s violent history, which includes out-of-control hippies, striking cops, curfews, stabbings, drug dealing, and shootings.
September 1919: Boston Common was a flashpoint during the city’s 1919 police strike. Members of the State Guard had to break up a “riot’’ that broke out near the Common’s Brewster Fountain. The riot was described as one of several “outbreaks of lawlessness.’’
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September 14, 1919: A guardsman shot and killed a man on the common after he ran from another officer during an argument.
April 1, 1928: Two men attacked and robbed at least two men in separate holdups near the park.
December 4, 1932: A man was accused of stabbing another man in the left hand and left chest with an ice pick after the two got into an argument earlier in the night.
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November 25, 1936: A woman was robbed of her pocketbook by a group of 15-year-olds on Boston Common.
January 2, 1948: A 70-year-old man withdrew from a crowd walking through Boston Common and shot himself three time in the chest.
June 28, 1968: Mayor Kevin White imposed a nightly curfew on Boston Common to combat complaints of drug use, runaways and health problems in the area. White met with a hippie committee to discuss other ways to improve quality of life in the park. “There is no law against long hair, beards or unusual forms of dress,’’ said White.
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July 5, 1973: 18-year-old man from Lewiston, Maine claims he was stabbed in the hand during attempted robbery.
July 31, 1979: Two men wounded, one man killed in early morning shooting.
October 3, 1980: Two men attacked a third man, throwing him to the ground and fatally stabbing him.
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July 12, 1981: Two Boston men were charged with stabbing and robbery of a 31-year-old Quincy man on the common.
November 12, 1981: A 20-year-old Roxbury man was accused in connection with two armed robberies, an attempted robbery, and a stabbing, all of which took place within two hours on Boston Common.
July 29, 1983: A man suffered two knife wounds in the chest after he shouted at players in a softball game on the Common near the intersection of Charles and Boylston streets.
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July 8, 1986: Mayor Flynn ordered a temporary overnight curfew for the Boston Common and Public Garden due to gambling, drug trafficking, and muggings. (AP via Boston Globe)
September 1, 1986: A man was stabbed in the back and two others were injured following thefts that resulted in five arrests toward the end of a children’s fair. (BG)
August 5, 1988: A Homeless man was fatally stabbed near the common after a Dorchester man attempted to rob him while he slept.
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June 16, 1995: Man allegedly raped a homeless woman after asking to share her blanket.
August 2, 2004: One man was shot and another stabbed on Boston Common in a drug deal gone wrong.
October 8, 2004: A 44-year-old Boston man allegedly stabbed two men on or near the Boston Common “for no apparent reason.’’
March 16, 2006: Two women mugged at knifepoint in common’s underground parking garage.
August 26, 2007: Boston police found a woman shot in the foot and a male shot in the leg after an argument between the two apparently turned violent.
May 29, 2008: Boston Police shot a man in a chase after believing the man to be in possession of a weapon. He was carrying a replica of a black semi-automatic.
April 29, 2011: An 18-year-old man was repeatedly stabbed near the common, suffering life-threatening injuries in a fight with three other men.
October 14, 2014:Two park rangers were stabbed by a man with a knife. One of the rangers, Al Hurd, 46, suffered life-threatening injuries from the attack. The suspect in the case, Bodio Hutchinson, 34, of Boston, was held on $1 million cash bail. During the arraignment, his attorney said Hutchinson suffers from paranoid schizophrenia.
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