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William Hayhurst III's dream of joining the Boston Fire Department and carrying on a family tradition - his late father was a Boston firefighter for 32 years - appeared to be dashed when he received relatively dismal scores on the civil service exam all three times he took it.
Then, in what critics call an example of the patronage and favoritism lingering in Massachusetts government, the Hayhursts' political connections turned things around.
A special state law passed this year for the benefit of the Hayhurst family vaulted William III from 623d place to the pinnacle of the hiring list. As a result, he is now slated to be the next person hired by the Boston Fire Department. His brothers Marc, who ranked 202d on the list, and Michael, if he passes the test, are also guaranteed head-of-the-line status.
The jumps were made possible in large part by state Senate President Therese Murray, who, said two public officials involved in helping the Hayhursts, told several influential people throughout the process that the Hayhursts were family friends and were deserving of special treatment.
The bill for the Hayhursts gave them the same benefits that are given to survivors of a firefighter who died in the line of duty, even though their father died of eye cancer in 2002, not in the line of duty. The bill flew through two committees and the state Senate in less than two hours in September.
The Hayhursts were also supported by Mayor Thomas M. Menino, the Boston City Council, and Governor Deval Patrick.
A group representing minority firefighters says the political boost that resulted in the preferential treatment of the sons of an Irish firefighter over dozens of nonwhite applicants with higher test scores is "disgraceful."
"It's just another example of the favoritism and nepotism and patronage that exists," said Karen Miller, president of the Boston Society of Vulcans, an organization of black firefighters.
For 30 years, a federal court order required the department to hire one black applicant for every white applicant it hired. But in the four years since the order was lifted, the department's nonwhite ranks have dwindled by nearly 50 firefighters.
Common Cause Massachusetts, a watchdog group dedicated to open government, said special legislation benefiting individuals can be justified in some cases, but always deserves extra scrutiny.
"It can be used to rectify individual injustices," said Pamela Wilmot, Common Cause executive director. "But it should never be used to help an individual because of their connections."
Murray declined to discuss what steps she took to help the Hayhursts. Her spokesman, David Falcone, would also not discuss her role, saying only that Murray "knows of the family, but she is not a close, personal friend of the Hayhursts." Falcone said the Hayhursts exercised the right of every citizen to lobby politicians for legislative relief.
The Hayhursts did not return messages seeking comment.
Boston fire officials also declined to comment on the law. "We have nothing to do with the establishment of the hiring list," Steve MacDonald, department spokesman, said.
The state Civil Service Commission, created to prevent nepotism and patronage from undermining fair hiring practices, administers tests for police officers and firefighters statewide. It produces hiring lists for cities and towns based on applicants' scores. It also takes into account special preferences granted to classes of individuals, such as veterans and disabled veterans. Children of public safety employees who die in the line of duty are given the highest preference.
The Boston firefighters exam is highly competitive, with the department hiring only about 200 firefighters from each hiring list, which is created every two years.
After the death of the Hayhursts's father, William Jr., the Boston Retirement Board granted his survivors disability benefits, including a larger pension for his widow, based on a presumption that his eye cancer was job-related.
But the rules to get preferential hiring benefits are stricter. State law grants head-of-the-line status only to children of public safety employees who die in the line of duty, which is defined for firefighters as death from mortal injuries or death sustained as "the result of an accident while responding to an alarm of fire or while at the scene of a fire."
Since William Hayhurst Jr.'s death in 2002 did not fit the definition, his sons could not qualify for preferential hiring without passage of a special law.
Passing state laws that exclusively benefit certain individuals has been a common practice in Massachusetts, but legislators rarely pass bills requiring the preferential hiring of specific individuals.
A Globe review found that 40 of the 218 state laws passed in 2007 provide benefits to specific individuals by name. Thirty allowed employees of certain state agencies to donate sick days to particular colleagues, and three granted retirement benefits to certain public employees. Six exempted particular police and firefighter applicants from maximum age requirements, allowing them to take civil service tests and apply for municipal jobs at an older age. The Hayhurst law was the only one granting head-of-the-line status on a civil service hiring list.
Lobbying for the Hayhurst law began about three years ago, when the Hayhursts approached the Boston City Council for help in getting preferential hiring treatment.
Murray supported the request, telling Councilor at Large Michael F. Flaherty, president of the council at the time, that the Hayhursts were family friends and that she wanted the petition passed, said the two public officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
But Flaherty refused, saying such legislation "wouldn't pass the smell test," the officials said. Menino also declined to support it at the time, the officials said. Among the reasons for Flaherty and Menino's resistance: Therewas no medical documentation to support a declaration that the Hayhursts's father had died in the line of duty, the officials said.
Still, William Hayhurst III, a Dorchester resident, persisted in his lobbying efforts.
This year the political landscape shifted. Councilor Maureen E . Feeney of Dorchester replaced Flaherty as council president, and Murray, who grew up in Dorchester, ascended to the state Senate presidency.
Feeney agreed to introduce the legislation this summer after a visit from Hayhurst and a telephone call from his mother, she said.
"I said, 'Well, I just don't know if it will fly,' " Feeney said in a recent interview. "She said, 'Will you at least try?' "
Feeney said she spoke about the measure with Murray, who was "supportive" and "very happy that it had come forward." Feeney said she told Menino about Murray's support, and the mayor agreed to sign the legislation if it passed the council.
On Aug. 1, Feeney introduced the petition for a special law giving the Hayhurst sons the head-of-the-line status accorded children of firefighters killed in the line of duty. She asked for expedited scheduling of a public hearing on the initiative, and on Aug. 24, the council's Government Operations Committee held a six-minute hearing. William Hayhurst III offered the only testimony.
"The young man who is about to present this petition to us is in fact the son of firefighter William Hayhurst, who, although he did not die in the line of fire in terms of being, you know, at a fire, but in fact did die as an active member of the Boston firefighters association," Feeney said at the hearing, according to a video transcript.
William Hayhurst, a stocky 30-year-old with short-cropped brown hair, said there has been a Hayhurst in the Boston Fire Department since 1913.
"My father was very well established in the Fire Department, seeing very busy times throughout the '70s, and it's been a dream of mine and my younger brother to also be on the Fire Department," Hayhurst said. He said his father, a district captain, developed terminal cancer behind his left eye and worked until five weeks before his death.
Feeney and the chairman of government operations, Councilor Rob Consalvo of Hyde Park, did not ask how the eye cancer related to his work as a firefighter.
Less than three weeks later, the City Council passed the measure with a unanimous vote, and on Sept. 21, the mayor signed it and sent it to the State House. Flaherty could not be reached for comment last week to explain his apparent change of heart on the issue.
Dorothy Joyce, Menino's spokeswoman, said the mayor changed his position and signed on because of strong support from the City Council. She declined to comment on Murray's influence on the process.
On Thursday, Sept. 27, it made it through two state committees of the Legislature, the Joint Rules and Public Safety committees, and the state Senate in 1 hour and 28 minutes. The following Monday, it passed the House and was sent to the governor's desk for his signature. According to a legislative log of the acts of 2007, the legislation became law Oct. 12, because the governor did not act on it. The log indicates, however, that it was passed with his approval.
"After examining past legislative precedent in similar matters, the administration supported the bill becoming law," Patrick's press secretary Kyle Sullivan said in a written statement. "We will continue to closely scrutinize such bills on a case-by-case basis."
Representative Brian Wallace of South Boston, who was listed as a sponsor of the bill, did not return calls for comment.
Representative Stephen Stat Smith of Everett cosponsored the measure.
"The reason I signed on is, as a new legislator, I'm not really familiar about the process," he said. "So I looked to some reps who are friends of mine who had some easy things that weren't going to be controversial, and I just signed on to provide assistance to them and learn more about the process. "
The Boston Fire Department plans to begin hiring a new class of recruits in the spring, fire officials say. Hayhurst will still have to pass physical tests and the firefighting academy before becoming a firefighter.
Miller of the black firefighters organization said she now plans to do some lobbying of her own. "We need a law to make sure this doesn't happen again," she said.
Andrea Estes of the Globe staff contributed to this report. Donovan Slack can be reached at dslack@globe.com.
© Copyright 2007 Globe Newspaper Company.
