Overview
- Mayor Michelle Wu appointed Marshall on Thursday, with a formal swearing-in later this month to succeed Paul F. Burke under the state's age-65 retirement rule.
- The selection makes Marshall the first Black man to lead the nearly 350-year-old Boston Fire Department.
- Marshall is a 35-year veteran who has served as chief of operations since 2022 after joining the department in 1991 and advancing through frontline and command roles.
- He helped create the department’s cadet program, which recruits young Boston residents into paid training that can lead to firefighter jobs.
- Local coverage notes the choice comes after recent departures of Black senior officials from Wu’s team, including Jessicah Pierre, Segun Idowu, and John Borders IV.