Commentary by Frank Schroth

Early last spring, members of the Warrant Committee made statements indicating that they felt there was a strong possibility that the town would need an override if it wants to maintain service levels (teachers, police, etc.) at their current levels. This is not a surprise. What might come as a surprise is Myles Connor’s appearance this evening at the Milton Art Center. We won’t be there.

The economic equation that determines Milton’s municipal health puts the burden of financing services on the backs of property owners. This is the bed we have made for ourselves as there has been little effort to develop or expand our commercial tax base. Proposition 2 1/2 is not our friend either. The cost of running the town goes up every year. Salaries go up, utilities go up, maintenance needs to be performed, and the net cost of that exceeds the 2 1/2 tax cap on property tax, so every several years there is a need to override the cap in order to prevent significant cuts in services.

No one understands this better or sees it coming sooner than the Warrant Committee. To our knowledge, these are the only people in town who have a truly comprehensive view of the town’s financial health. The recent DOR report touches on this, and we will see what if anything develops from that (let’s cross our fingers). In the meantime, the members of the Warrant Committee should be heeded and the Board of Selectmen and the School Committee should act now to provide leadership and direction in the event that an override becomes necessary (and we expect it will). It is understood that revenue numbers are not known, budgets are not yet defined; but if past budgets and revenue numbers are any guide, then it might make sense to start the discussion and planning now.

Tonight Myles Connor will be appear at the Milton Art Center. Mr. Connor is out of jail at the moment. He has been arrested on numerous occasions for a variety of offenses including but not limited to theft, sale and possession of narcotics, and murder. During one of his arrests a law enforcement officer was shot and injured. Mr. Connor was shot during that incident also. He went to jail. He once escaped from a jail in Maine using a gun made of soap. That is an amusing story, but I suspect if you were the corrections officer with what you believed was a gun pointed at you from a man who had injured an officer previously, the humor might have escaped you.

Connor was convicted of murdering two young women. On appeal that conviction was reversed due to “prejudicial error” on the part of the presiding judge (please see COMMONWEALTH vs. MYLES J. CONNOR, JR., 392 Mass. 838, January 13, 1984 – August 21, 1984). A reversal is not an acquittal.

More recently Mr. Connor was arrested on  July 5th of 2012 for stealing a cell phone from a woman he claimed owed him money, He pointed the barrel of a pellet gun or toy gun at her head.

He stole from the town. One of his early thefts was from the Forbes House Museum.

It is the choice of any organization to invite anyone they want to discuss anything they want. That is understood, and I fully expect a fair number of people will attend this event. There is a natural curiosity and, let’s be honest, a certain sensationalism that is of course a draw. However, crimes have victims and as newsworthy as this is, I choose not to be in the audience.