Skip Navigation

University News

Ed Deveau, Police Chief Who Led Boston Marathon Bomber Search, to Speak at GCU

Man smiling wearing a tie and a suit

“No one, my officers or even myself . . . ever receive any training that would prepare us for something like this.” That’s what Ed Deveau, chief of the Watertown, MA, Police Department, told Boston radio station WBUR-FM about his police department’s 20-hour search on April 19, 2013, for now-convicted Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. Four days earlier, Tsarnaev and his brother Tamerlan set off two bombs near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, killing three people and injuring hundreds of others.

On Thursday, October 26, at 6:30 p.m. in Georgian Court’s Casino Auditorium on the Lakewood campus, Chief Deveau will speak about his experiences leading his police officers, state police, and federal agencies in their successful effort to apprehend the bomber. Despite his role as the leader of this mission, Chief Deveau insists the capture was a team effort.

“When I rushed to the scene,” he told WBUR, “all I could think and pray is that my officers were going to be OK when I got there. We caught him that day. Bin Laden didn’t get caught for how long? We won in Watertown. No one else got hurt. As the police chief in a very tense day, that’s what I take away from that.”

In an interview with CBS News’ Dean Reynolds, he spoke highly of his officers: “It’s just an amazing bunch of six guys.”

Chief Deveau retired in July 2015, but he postponed his retirement in order to attend Tsarnaev’s trial, going to the federal courthouse nearly every day of the proceedings. He served as police chief for 14 years and was a member of the force for 32 years. (Tsarnaev was sentenced by a jury to death by lethal injection. He is currently in the ADX supermax prison in Florence, Colorado.)

Admission to Chief Deveau’s speech is free.

Aerial view of GCU.

About Georgian Court University

Georgian Court University is a leading regional university that provides a transformative education, preparing students for ethical leadership and service in the Catholic Mercy tradition. Founded in 1908 and sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy, Georgian Court University is Central and South Jersey’s only Catholic university. The university has a strong liberal arts core and a historic special concern for women.

As a forward-thinking university that supports diversity and academic excellence, GCU is known for expanding possibility for more than 1,900 students of all faiths and backgrounds in 35+ undergraduate majors and 10+ graduate programs. The GCU Lions compete in 16 NCAA Division II sports in the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC). In 2020, GCU was named a Best Value College by Money.com and a Best Bang for the Buck (Northeast) by Washington Monthly. High student retention and graduation rates make GCU a Top Performer on Social Mobility on U.S. News & World Reports rankings.

The main campus is in Lakewood, New Jersey, on the picturesque former George Jay Gould estate, a National Historic Landmark. Georgian Court, which is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, also serves students through its Center for Professional Studies, and at other locations, including GCU at Brookdale, and through multiple online degree and certificate programs.

Deposit Deadline Extended to June 1

Georgian Court University has extended the deposit deadline to June 1 in response to the U.S. Department of Education announcement concerning delayed data availability from the revised Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Additionally, deposits are also refundable up to June 1. Click here for more information about the deposit extension.