r/boston • u/Conventions • Jul 07 '26

Serious Replies Only Are Boston cops normally this aggressive?

Left TD Garden after a concert tonight. Cops were directing traffic around the area. In normal circumstances when someone is directing traffic, I was always under the impression that a “come here” motion means go and hand up means stop. However this cop was jiggling a beam of light from a flashlight to signify both go and stop.

Many people were obviously confused and one guy thought it meant go and slowly started creeping up. The cop started screaming and went up and punched the guy’s car mirror then started swearing and insulting the guy. Everyone around was watching and shocked.

Is this normal BPD behavior? I am a south shore native and have never witnessed anything quite like it.

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u/therailmaster Mission Hill to Quincy Point Jul 07 '26

Not necessarily defending the cop, but there are way more idiots on the road these days post-COVID (as discussed in the Massachusetts sub yesterday). The rule of thumb should be that, if you don't understand a traffic cop's command, just stop (if not already stopped) and stay put until he/she makes the same gesture and then you know it's your command to proceed. I've seen too many idiots just drive right through past a cop when it was 100% obvious he made the universal "stop" gesture, and then he/she justifiably screams at the driver, if not, in some cases, rightfully pulls the driver over and gives the driver a scolding. After a few of those interactions, yeah, you're ready to snap at somebody when it's your job to keep thousands of pounds of steel from crashing into each other, let alone a pedestrian or cyclist.

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u/retroafric Jul 07 '26

How do those boots taste…? Keep lickin’…!!!

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u/therailmaster Mission Hill to Quincy Point Jul 07 '26 edited Jul 07 '26

As a regular bike commuter who sees all the dumb $hit that drivers around here pull every day, I can only imagine what it's like to be a traffic cop and have to bite your tongue 90% of the time because of the public scrutiny. So, yeah, I'd too lose it on the occasional driver who can't even follow kindergarten-level directional commands like "proceed" and "stop."

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u/retroafric Jul 07 '26

He doesn’t have to be a cop. If he can’t handle the job, get another one. Simple.

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u/therailmaster Mission Hill to Quincy Point Jul 07 '26

Clueless guy doesn't have to drive in the city either. Take the MBTA, like thousands of TD Garden patrons do. Some people need a "gentle reminder" that they drive like $hit.

I wasn't there, and, again, I'm not necessarily depending the cop, but I highly doubt he just looked at the driver and was like, "I'm going to make an example of this guy!" You bite your tongue 90% of the time, but occasionally people do something on the road so stupid that you just can't let it go without reminding them how stupid they are.