By Michael Jonas
No one in town seriously could have expected Boston City Council President Mike Ross to do anything other than what he did today: file an order recommending the expulsion of City Councilor Chuck Turner, who was convicted last month on federal charges of accepting a $1,000 bribe and making false statements to FBI agents. No one except, it seems, Turner himself.
Although Ross’s move was entirely expected, Turner reacted with apparent incredulity. “I have the best record of moral and fiscal integrity on this council,” Turner told the Globe. “For the council to vote me off because of integrity is absurd.”
Actually, to think the council will do anything other than vote him “off” when it takes up the matter on Wednesday is what would be absurd. “We have but one judicial system in this country, and whether we agree with the verdict or not, a jury of his peers found Councilor Turner guilty of very serious crimes,” Ross wrote in a letter to his colleagues outlining his recommendation.
The idea that city councilors would go back to their constituents – and face reelection a year from now – after having voted to maintain a convicted felon in office is beyond the pale even for this frequently derided body. At this point, Turner’s insistence on forcing a vote on Wednesday, rather than simply resigning, is only putting first-term minority councilors Felix Arroyo and Ayanna Pressley in an awkward spot. A pretty classy note to go out on.