Edward F. Davis III (born July 31, 1956) is the former police commissioner of the

Boston Police Department The Boston Police Department (BPD), dating back to 1854, holds the primary responsibility for law enforcement and investigation within the city of Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest municipal police department in the United States. The ...

, having served from 2006 to 2013, including during the Boston Marathon bombing. Following his resignation from the police, Davis has been the security analyst for

WBZ-TV WBZ-TV (channel 4) is a television station in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, airing programming from the CBS network. It is owned and operated by the network's CBS News and Stations division alongside independent station WSBK-TV (channe ...

in Boston. He is the founder and CEO of Edward Davis, LLC Security and Management Consulting.

Early life

Davis graduated from Bishop Guertin High School in

Nashua, New Hampshire Nashua is a city in southern New Hampshire, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 91,322, the second-largest in northern New England after nearby Manchester, New Hampshire, Manchester. Along with Manc ...

in 1974. He received a Bachelor of Science in criminal justice in 1986 at

Southern New Hampshire University Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) is a private university between Manchester and Hooksett, New Hampshire. The university is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education, along with national accreditation for some hospitali ...

. He received a Master of Science in criminal justice in 1990 at

Anna Maria College Anna Maria College is a private Roman Catholic college in Paxton, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1946 as a women's college, but has been coeducational since 1973. The school offers both undergraduate and graduate degrees. History Anna Maria ...

. Later he attended the John F. Kennedy School of Government's Program for Senior Government Executives and the Law Enforcement Executive Development Association program at the

FBI Academy The FBI Academy is the Federal Bureau of Investigation's law enforcement training and research center near the town of Quantico in Stafford County, Virginia. Operated by the bureau's Training Division, it was first opened for use on May 7, 197 ...

in Quantico, Virginia.

Law enforcement career

Lowell Police Department

Davis served on the Lowell Police Department from 1978 to 2006 when he was appointed Commissioner of the Boston Police Department. He held the positions of

beat cop In police terminology, a beat is the territory that a police officer is assigned to patrol. Beats are used to effectively divide available officers across a law enforcement agency's jurisdiction, ensuring organized police presence across a wide a ...

, Detective (1982–1984), Detective Sergeant (1984–1986) and Detective Lieutenant (1986–1992), before being promoted to Captain of the Narcotics and Organized Crime Unit in 1992. He was named Superintendent of Police, the highest-ranking officer in the Lowell Police Department in 1994. From 1994–99, he reduced the crime rate in Lowell quicker than any other American city with over 100,000 residents.

Boston Police Department

Davis was appointed the commissioner of the Boston Police Department on October 11, 2006. Davis is well known for his leadership during the Boston Marathon bombing and subsequent manhunt. His actions during these events were dramatized in the film ''

Patriots Day Patriots' Day (Patriot's Day in Maine) is an annual event, formalized as a legal holiday or a special observance day in six states, commemorating the battles of Lexington, Concord, and Menotomy, some of the first battles of the American Revo ...

'', in which he was portrayed by

John Goodman John Stephen Goodman (born June 20, 1952) is an American actor. He gained national fame for his role as the family patriarch Dan Conner in the ABC comedy series '' Roseanne'' (1988–1997; 2018), for which he received a Golden Globe Award, an ...

. On September 22, 2013, Davis announced his resignation from the Boston Police Department. He planned to become a visiting fellow at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government and also assist with a local non-profit helping offenders return to society. His final day as commissioner was November 1, 2013.

Later involvement

In 2022, Davis served on a panel appointed by Boston Mayor

Michelle Wu Michelle Wu ( zh, t=吳弭, first=t; born January 14, 1985) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the mayor of Boston, mayor of Boston, Massachusetts since 2021. She is a member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

to aid in the search for a commissioner of the Boston Police Department.

Personal

Davis was born and raised in

Lowell, Massachusetts Lowell () is a city in Massachusetts, in the United States. Alongside Cambridge, It is one of two traditional seats of Middlesex County. With an estimated population of 115,554 in 2020, it was the fifth most populous city in Massachusetts as of ...

and remains a resident of his hometown with his wife Jane. Davis and his wife have three children (Edward, Kaitlyn and Phillip).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Ed 1956 births Living people Anna Maria College alumni Commissioners of the Boston Police Department People from Lowell, Massachusetts Southern New Hampshire University alumni Bishop Guertin High School alumni