A Mayor Called Sue(d): SJC Finds Springfield Police Panel Valid, Rejects Mayoral Omnipotence… (Feb 2022)
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court effectively settled a lingering question. Who really has the power in the government of the city of Springfield? The seven justices of the commonwealth’s highest court clearly, decisively and unanimously found the City Council has power. The mayor must share.
Just over five years ago, the City Council passed an ordinance reviving the Police Commission over Mayor Domenic Sarno’s veto. Rather than concede that the law now commanded him to appoint the panel, he insisted the ordinance was invalid. Despite a revised Police Commission ordinance and a new police commissioner—which, pursuant to the Control Board, had replaced the Commission—nothing changed. Then in 2020, the Council finally filed suit, culminating in the SJC’s ruling on Tuesday.
“The city council claims, and the motion judge held, that the 2018 ordinance was clearly within the scope of its power to ‘reorganize’ municipal departments,” the justices wrote. “We agree.”