100 South Boston parade-goers breach barriers, follow float on St. Patrick’s Day route
About 100 fairgoers broke through barrier gates to surround — and follow — a St. Patrick's Day Parade float in South Boston earlier this month.
The takeover happened around 1:53 p.m. on March 15, according to a Boston police report on the incident. At that point, the parade procession had reached the area of E Broadway and G Street — two intersecting roads, each on the route.
The 2026 parade was designed to proceed in reverse order this year, with a start-off at Andrew Station and exit on Broadway, along with the Medal of Honor Park on M Street designated as a "family-friendly zone" in an effort to curb violence seen in years past.
But about two and a half hours after the parade kicked off, the section just over halfway through the route became unruly and chaotic.
A "large group" of about 75 to 100 people bypassed the barriers along the parade route near East Broadway and G Street, the Boston police report read.
Then, the group began "surrounding and following a float" as it made its way along the route, according to the report.
Officers started "physically assisting the parade goers back towards the barriers" and at that moment, a 19-year-old woman in the group shoved back at the police. She was immediately arrested and faced a single charge of assault and battery on a police officer.
A total of 17 people were arrested during the parade this year, facing charges such as assault and battery on a police officer, affray, drug possession with intent to distribute, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and drinking an alcoholic beverage in public.
Boston City Councilor Ed Flynn, who represents South Boston, cited past instances of violence from parade revelers as a reason behind the new "family-friendly zone."
In 2024, a person was kicked and punched by four other people by the parade route after its conclusion at Medal of Honor Park. A viral social media video of the altercation showed the victim beaten down a slope that led to a baseball field.
Following these incidents, a task force that conducted "monthly preparation meetings" was formed ahead of the 2025 parade by Flynn, state Sen. Nick Collins and other elected officials in South Boston. Despite the task force's efforts, Boston police arrested nine people at the parade last year and issued court summonses to four more.
And though arrests made during the parade nearly doubled in 2026, Flynn had called the 2024 incident "an embarrassment to the South Boston veterans and our military families."
He said he was confident the monthly planning meetings would help deliver a "safe and healthy" parade in 2026.
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