Letter from the Executive Director for March 2025: Backdoor Eviction Moratorium taking Effect
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In February we learned of a backdoor eviction moratorium taking effect without our realizing it. On February 6, the Peace Officers Standards and Training (POST) Commission notified the Housing Court, the City of Worcester and others that POST were reinterpreting a constable’s role in an eviction as that of an arresting officer. As such, no constable could conduct an eviction without first attending half a year of full-time police training, among other things.
The result has been chaos. Over Presidents’ Day weekend, notices started reaching constables, landlord attorneys and others. The following Tuesday, there were no lawful levies in Worcester except those conducted by the sheriff’s office. There was probably a “gray area” levy.
If you don’t give people a lawful option, they will find a less lawful one. Soon certain property owners (not our members!) may lose their minds and change the locks or worse in gross violation of the law. The POST Commission’s thoughtless attempt to reduce improper force will have greatly increased the risk of it.
The good intentions were of course there in spades: no one should get shot during their eviction. If a constable is going to be physically removing someone from the premises – especially if the constable carries a weapon for self-defense – the constable should be trained in de-escalation techniques, responding to mental illness, and more.
But the implementation left everything to be desired. POST and the City of Worcester gave no advance notice. When asked by the constables if this was on the agenda for an earlier meeting in February, POST incorrectly said, “No.” And when asked again if POST would provide a shorter, constable-specific training for them to comply, POST again said “no.” The clear intent seems to be to shut off all constable evictions.
I have reached out to all sides of this matter: Worcester City Council, Worcester City Manager, the Administrative Office of the Housing Court, the Worcester County Sheriff, the Hampden County Sheriff (when Worcester didn’t respond), the POST Commission, prominent landlord-tenant attorneys Raphaelson and Raphaelson, AAA Constables, the Massachusetts Bay Constables Association, and the advocate name that kept coming up, the Worcester Anti-Foreclosure Team (WAFT). Some sides have been more willing to talk than others. I’ve reached out to many more.
There is settled appeals court case law that says POST is out of line (Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. vs. Kyle Hargrove & others 2024). Also, the constables want to be trained, just at the level that fits a constable’s working life. I believe this situation can be fixed. But if it is not fixed soon, money will pile in for litigation. If it comes to that, we will fundraise heavily and likely surpass prior records. This issue will land most heavily on small landlords and our neighboring renters in the end. And frankly, I think a lot of us are sick of it.
Thank you for supporting our mission to create better rental housing. We've got your back only because you've got ours. Please join as a member, encourage others to join, become a property rights supporter or increase your level of support.
Sincerely,
Douglas Quattrochi
Executive Director
MassLandlords, Inc.
