*Boston police bought spy tech with a pot of money hidden from the public.*

The thug department got the money via "civil forfeiture", which is a legal excuse to take people's money --

punishment without a trial.

That's not their only source of funds for thumbing their noses at the law: many thug departments have foundations set up to give them money they can use in unaccountable ways.

In Cambridge, the thug department cannot evade the surveillance tech ordinance by using outside funds. Boston should do likewise. More generally, laws should forbid thug departments from buying arms or spy devices without city authorization, regardless of what money they use, and from accepting them as gifts.

As for civil forfeiture, that must be abolished.

Punishment without trial is tyranny.