A veteran MBTA Transit Police officer will be disciplined after a rider saw the officer sleeping at a station and posted the photo on Twitter.
The rider posted the photo last night and it shows the officer sitting in a chair inside the substation at the Mattapan station with his head back.
“And I’m suppose to feel safer on the #mbta while the #transitpolice sleep on the job,” the rider, @I_amTheKnighT tweeted.
Transit Police Deputy Chief Joseph O’Connor said today that police saw the rider’s tweet and responded to the station about 9:30 p.m.
When the sergeant arrived the officer was alert and attending to his duties, but when questioned by the supervisor, the officer admitted that he fell asleep, O’Connor said.
“We are certainly embarrassed by it and I’m sure the officer is embarrassed by it,” O’Connor said. “I don’t believe it’s a full reflection of the good work the officers do day in and day out.”
O’Connor did not identify the officer except that he was a 29-year veteran of the Transit Police.
The officer will now go through a disciplinary hearing that will further investigate the incident and will look at the officer’s previous record. Discipline could range from a written warning to termination, O’Connor said.
The incident comes shortly after Transit Police launched their new See Say app that allows users to take photos and report suspicious activity and incidents.
O’Connor said the agency’s “See something, say something” campaign does not exclude police.
“If it’s employee conduct we will certainly contact the department. We investigate every allegation that is made,” O’Connor said.
