In the wake of the Boston Celtics clinching their NBA championship win against the Dallas Mavericks, celebrations outside TD Garden turned raucous, leading to a series of arrests. According to MassLive, Boston police reported eight arrests late Monday night, with offenses ranging from disorderly conduct to assault and battery of a police officer. These arrests included six adults and two juveniles who were swept up in the overflowing exuberance that, for some, spilled into the streets with less than celebratory conduct.
Boston police spokesperson Officer Michael Torigian informed MassLive that the adults are expected to be arraigned in Boston Municipal Court, while the two juveniles face afferent charges related to affray, disturbing the peace, and trespassing, with their cases being handled in Boston Juvenile Court. As fans reveled in the victory, some took their antics to the extreme—climbing traffic lights, knocking over fences, and creating impromptu mosh pits on Friend Street. Boston police took measures to contain the situation by blocking off key areas around TD Garden shortly after the Celtics' victory.
The aftermath of the game saw incidents including fans mounting metal barriers on Friend Street and clambering up traffic light poles for better views, as reported by The Boston Globe. The area around Canal Street was overwhelmed by the crowd, with fans using barricades as makeshift ladders and creating bottlenecks that police had to manage. A sense of urgency gripped the police as they struggled to calibrate their response to the swelling crowds, who at times appeared to have overtaken the streets in their fervor.
As the celebration reached its peak, over 300 people gathered on New Chardon Street, where some fans burned a Kyrie Irving jersey and others danced to The Killers’ “Mr. Brightside” before the atmosphere gave way to anti-Kyrie chants, according to The Boston Globe. Later, tactical moves by law enforcement included officers in riot gear blocking access to Causeway Street and the perimeters being enforced to keep the jubilation from devolving into further chaos. Despite these barriers, the spirit of Boston fans remained undeterred, with pockets of revelers continuing the party into the early hours, setting off fireworks, and scaling street poles to voice their exuberance.
With the crowd dissipating after 1 a.m., officers began to withdraw, marking the end of an intense night that demonstrated the dual nature of sports victories—a cause for collective joy but also a potential catalyst for disorder.
