There are 25 people in this room, most of them classmates from 1971, who could make this nomination.  It is a special honor, on behalf of myself, Navy Commander (ret.) Brian Flannery and this collection of our classmates to officially nominate Charles “Chuck” Boyle as a “Legend” in the Bishop McDevitt Alumni Hall of Fame.  Chuck is a Class of 1971 graduate who has had an exemplary career in law enforcement, service to his community and dedication to his alma mater.  We would like to offer three reasons why he deserves this accolade.

First, Chuck had a legendary 45-year career in law enforcement, 30 years of that as a Philly homicide detective.  During that time, Chuck solved over 150 homicides, including at least three cases that attracted national attention.  Each perpetrator in those three infamous cases was at large for a long time--the Center City rapist who murdered a 23-year-old Penn grad student, the Cobbs Creek Park murderer of an 18-year-old West Catholic grad and the long unsolved rape/murder of a 10-year-old girl (in her own home).   These three horrible crimes had one thing in common—Chuck Boyle was on the case.  He never forgot the victims, and he never stopped working each case, until he got justice for these two young women and that little girl.  And he eventually solved each one of them—he would tell you with help from all over the country and especially with the help of his partners here in Philly.  

We have had some famous McDevitt grads who have done some amazing things, but not sure we ever had someone who has made as many national TV appearances as Chuck.  Whether appearing with his longtime partner Richie Bova opposite Diane Sawyer on national TV (25 years ago!!), or explaining how he closed cases on syndicated shows like Forensic Files, Cold Case, Dateline NBC and People Magazine Investigates, Chuck probably could have started his own True Crime Podcast and given the Kelce Brothers a run for their money!!  

I talked to my brother Kevin about this, another law enforcement legend, and we agreed that the TV cameras love Chuck because he is so authentic.  Always was,  always will be.  Authentic is a word that used to refer to antiques.  But Chuck was “authentic” long before people started applying that term to a person’s character, and that explains a lot about his success.  His Philadelphia law enforcement career alone is enough to merit Chuck’s entrance into our Legends Hall of Fame.  But let us offer a second and third reason as well.  

Second, Chuck spent another 15 years as the most trusted lieutenant on the team of another Philly law enforcement legend—Maureen Rush, a decorated Philly cop who led the way for women on the force and  who went on to lead the second largest police force in the five-county area (at Penn).  When he took that job, Chuck was already a nationally known (just retired) Philly detective, but he elected to start at the bottom—bicycle patrol duty on the night shift—12-8, when as Chief Rush put it, “everything happens.”  She also said those are the hours when “character comes out”—in perpetrators and in cops.  She describes Chuck as an incredibly experienced veteran who saw it all but never lost his humanity, never forgot a victim or the families they left behind.  She said he was a father confessor of sorts, both for his rookie colleagues and for the young campus and neighborhood knuckleheads that he often personally counseled.  Chief Rush says that “Chuck Boyle is just a good human being who happens to be an amazing detective.”

We have one final reason for nominating Chuck.  Chuck Boyle is just a good man, husband to his incredibly kind and understanding wife Joanne for 46 years, father to Melissa and Elizabeth, grandpop to Mollie, Owen, Gracie and Maura McShane, father-in-law to Lt Commander (ret.) Brendan McShane; brother to Michael Class of ’75 and Mary who was just a year behind us at McDevitt and brother in law to Mark Merlini (Mary’s McDevitt classmate and one of the 12 Immaculate Conception Merlini’s who graduated from McDevitt).  Whether coaching CYO basketball back in the day at OMC for his girls, or cheering on their grandkids now with Jojo at his side, Chuck is the classic “It’s a Wonderful Life” guy.  He has weathered storms over the years in his health and in his life but never missed work or a community activity for his girls.  

Chuck is also perhaps THE model alum from our 502 member Class of 1971.  Chuck is a first generation American, his parents Charlie and Susan emigrated from County Donegal.  Though best known at McDevitt for his exploits on the football field, Chuck was well known and liked by so many in our class—no matter their parish, their academic section (D-1 to A-6), or their chosen curricular or extracurricular activities.  

No one in our class cheered harder--then or now--for the accomplishments of his classmates—and frankly for all McDevitt grads--than Chuck.  He is a walking Wikipedia for our class—he knows an incredible number of our classmates, their back stories, their family histories, their personal and professional accomplishments, and makes sure the rest of us know the stories as well.  If we had voted, back in 1971, for the classmate we most trusted to represent all of us—football players, CSC volunteers, Drill Team, band members, thespians, Key Clubbers, debaters, basketball players (you name the activity, Chuck had a line into it)—it probably would have been Chuck who got our votes back then and it definitely would be Chuck today.

Last word about this guy—on the idea of friendship.  I want to get two lines in here, one from Shakespeare and the other from William Butler Yeats.  [Note to Chuck—now you can tell everybody they had to pull out perhaps the two greatest writers in the history of the English language in order to get the full measure of Charles Boyle].  Anyway, Shakespeare wrote that “I am wealthy in my friends.”  And your Irish ancestor Yeats said that you could “count where man’s glory begins and ends, and say my glory was I had such friends.”  Both true for this man.

Well, I like both those lines but my favorite definition of friendship is this one—“lots of people want to ride in the limo with you but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down.”  Chuck is not only the guy you want on the bus with you, he would wave the bus down and insist that it take us direct to our destination!!  That is our friend, our nominee Chuck Boyle.  

We are very proud to nominate Charles “Chuck” Boyle to be a member of the 2025 Class of the Bishop McDevitt Legends Hall of Fame.  And we join our classmates in saying that when they post the definition of “true friend” in the dictionary, Chuck’s picture will be right next to it.