Cold case conduit
Activists plan go-between with cops
Activist Mary Franklin wants to hire a liaison to bridge the gap between families of murder victims and the police in her push to solve Boston’s cold case backlog — but so far, she claims, police officials have been unresponsive.
Franklin’s newest project, the Trauma Spa, is aimed at helping families of Boston murder victims. She said it is creating a position focused on helping solve cold cases. At a round-table discussion Thursday, Franklin said the project is looking to create an “unsolved homicide liaison,” who will work with both law enforcement and survivors on unsolved homicides in the city.
The liaison will be a fulltime position for a current or retired cop who will act as fresh eyes to look at old cases as well as coordinate and help connect families to police and other resources in the city.
While Franklin expects the liaison to work closely with the Boston Police Department, she also told the Herald no communication has been established between her and police Commissioner William Gross since the launch of Trauma Spa in December.
“I have called, on numerous occasions, to his office and to the homicide unit and I haven’t had any of my calls returned,” Franklin said, calling the actions disrespectful.
Boston police spokesman Sgt. Detective John Boyle told the Herald that Gross would be happy to talk to Franklin, and noted that BPD has a neighborhood trauma team — two officers who serve as a liaison with the homicide department — as well as an unsolved crimes unit.
Franklin, referring to her spa for victims’ families, said, “A majority of our guests — because our city has an issue around solving murders — their crimes will not be solved. What this is also doing is starting to build trust between law enforcement and families.”
Larry Ellison, who was a BPD detective and the former president of the Massachusetts Association of Minority Law Enforcement Officers — which is supporting the effort — said of Franklin’s liaison proposal, “I think it would be a huge change agent because what it does, takes time.
“Do we have a problem of unsolved murders in Boston? That isn’t blaming anyone, that is just fact — so let’s deal with the problem,” he said. “Let’s step up and deal with the problem.”
Ellison said it can take detectives up to 15 visits with families to start to break down barriers before they feel comfortable enough with law enforcement to give information on murders and deal with their trauma. He said people don’t want to talk to a cop, who is perceived as a stranger, but they would talk to someone like the liaison, who can build those connections.
Franklin hopes to start the eight-week Trauma Spa pilot program in the fall or winter, assisting 100 men and women in urban communities with diagnosed PTSD from an immediate family member’s murder. The goal is to de-stigmatize mental health help as well as give families a relaxing outlet to deal with their trauma.
“You have a program that everyone here understands each other’s culture, ethnicity and struggles in life,” Franklin said.
Franklin conceived the idea of the spa two decades after her husband Melvin was murdered in 1996. His killer was never caught.
“Even in Melvin’s death, he continues to speak and say ‘Someone murdered me, the victims need your help’ while the families wait for justice, so why not help them? And that is what we are here to do,” Franklin said.
The spa brings a multitude of community partners together to address various aspects of trauma to provide resources for guests during and after they leave. Currently involved are Mayor Martin Walsh and Gov. Charlie Baker’s offices, Boston Medical Center, MAMLEO, Women Survivors of Homicide, the MBTA, Eliot Congregational Church and more.
The organizers will be holding fundraisers over the next few months, including a gala at Vincent’s Nightclub in Randolph and a campaign with the MBTA to raise money for Trauma Spa. People can also donate to Trauma Spa on their website.