Secretary of State John Kerry has been hit with a $50 fine for not having snow removed from the sidewalk outside his Boston home.
The fine was imposed after a winter storm blanketed Massachusetts with more than 2ft of snow, a spokesman told Reuters on Friday. At the time, Kerry was in Saudi Arabia with President Obama to pay respects at the funeral of King Abdullah and to meet with his successor, King Salman.
Spokesman Glen Johnson told Reuters a snow-removal company hired by the Kerrys saw yellow caution tape blocking the sidewalk near the diplomat’s Beacon Hill home. Believing the tape was placed there for security-related reasons, the company left without clearing Kerry’s portion of pavement.
The tape had in fact been placed there to warn pedestrians to be wary of falling ice and snow.
“Once they understood that they were allowed to enter the area, the contractors finished the sidewalk late on Thursday morning,” Johnson said.
The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment by the Guardian.
