The latest alleged law enforcement misconduct in Mass, Aug. 24-Sept. 20

Hey everyone,

Here are the media reports of alleged law enforcement misconduct in Massachusetts that I’ve tracked during the last month. Normally I try to post these updates more frequently, but my partner has been having some health issues recently and taking care of her (and her dogs!) has eaten up a lot of my time. I’ll try to get back to posting these every week or two.

Anyway, ICE has evidently been busy, so I’m listing the stories involving these miscreants separately for this post:

• “An East Boston woman went to a scheduled appointment at an immigration office in Revere on [August 28], then never returned home, according to a suit filed on her behalf [two days later].” (Universal Hub)
• “They drank water from a toilet tank. They begged for food, for medical attention; one pleaded for sanitary pads. Many were transported to facilities far from family and lawyers. They didn’t know what time it was, or what day. The Light collected the testimonies of five immigrants from the Greater New Bedford area who spent time in federal detention in recent months, as well as the account of a sixth detainee in New Hampshire, provided by a family member.” (New Bedford Light)
• “Three people were arrested outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office in Burlington on [September 12], after they tried to deliver food to people detained there. … Former detainees and immigration lawyers have described conditions inside the field office as ‘abysmal’ and ‘inhumane.’ People were crowded into windowless rooms where, if they even had room to lie down, they had to sleep on cement floors. There was little privacy and no access to showers. And food rations were meager.” (WBUR)
• “U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton, D-6th District, has called on the Trump administration to explain what he described as the heavy-handed tactics employed during an immigration enforcement stop in Marblehead on [September 12]. … In a statement, Moulton, of Salem, said that deploying ‘armed agents in unmarked cars surrounding a local landscaping truck and screaming at the driver in front of neighbors without even notifying Marblehead Police or the District Attorney is not law enforcement—it’s intimidation.’” (MassLive)
• “Gustavo Oliveira, 16, who attends Milford High School, was taken into custody by ICE masked agents after he got a sandwich at a Main Street bakery in downtown Milford on [September 12]. … Oliveira’s friends said he was detained by the agents and later released. … Gustavo’s attorney is questioning ICE’s method and said she still has not been told why Gustavo was detained.” (WCVB)
• “Edgar Hernan Elias Escobar was driving in his white pickup truck in Malden when he was pulled over [September 17] just before sunrise. ‘I was on the phone with him when I heard them shatter the window, and I heard my husband say, ‘Ow, you are hurting me,’’ Escobar’s wife, Leslie Gonzalez, said. … Escobar was later seen on a stretcher, being taken by ambulance to the hospital with blood streaming down his arm. … Escobar’s attorneys say he has a pending petition to become a permanent resident.” (WCVB)

And here are the rest of the stories I tracked:

• “Suffolk County Sheriff Steven Tompkins, who is facing federal extortion charges, has agreed to ‘step away’ from his position until the federal case against him is resolved, Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey announced [August 27].” (NBC10 Boston)
• “A U.S. postal inspector, once the head of Boston’s Mail Theft Unit, stole more than $330,000 in cash from packages and used it to upgrade his house, cover costs on cruises and pay for sex, federal prosecutors said.” (NBC10 Boston)
• “The off-duty police officer shot at her home by a fellow North Andover, Massachusetts, officer in June has been indicted by a grand jury, elevating the case to Essex Superior Court. The grand jury on [August 25] indicted Kelsey Fitzsimmons on one count, assault by means of a dangerous weapon, according to the Essex County District Attorney’s Office. She had initially been arraigned in Lawrence District Court on charges of armed assault with intent to murder and two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon.” (NBC10 Boston) “
• “A Massachusetts State Police trooper who died after participating in training exercises at the Massachusetts State Police Academy last September had fatal complications from ‘blunt impact injuries,’ according to the family’s attorney. Enrique Delgado-Garcia was hospitalized and later died after participating in a boxing training exercise at the academy in New Braintree last September.” (NBC10 Boston)
• “The new municipal police academy on Cape Cod is facing significant personnel changes, with the academy director, coordinator, and five instructors fired following a monthslong investigation into alleged ‘code of conduct’ violations.” (Boston 25)
• “The [Boston Office of Police Accountability and Transparency], launched in response to protests following the police murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, has so far sustained 18 citizen complaints and has proposed varying levels of discipline. But records show the police commissioner [Michael Cox] has routinely flouted even modest disciplinary recommendations.” (WBUR)
• “A pair of police officers are set to go to trial in January on charges connected with the operation of an illegal nightclub out of a Jamaica Plain basement, court records show. Boston police officer Richard McDermott and Health Commission Campus police officer Luigi D’Addieco were indicted last fall, several years after police learned of the club’s existence in July 2021.” (MassLive)
• “The manner of death of a man who’d been restrained by police officers outside a Haverhill, Massachusetts, restaurant this July was ruled a homicide, prosecutors announced [September 5]. … [Francis] Gigliotti died on Friday, July 11, … in an incident that was caught on video. Seven police officers were placed on paid administrative leave amid the investigation into the incident.” (NBC10 Boston)
• “After a six-month suspension and two firings that were overturned by arbitrators, former [Springfield] patrolman Anthony Bedinelli has been promoted to sergeant, police confirmed [September 8].” (Republican)
• “Adams Police Chief Scott Kelley was placed on leave on [September 8], the town said. The Select Board’s agenda listed a discussion of ‘the reputation, character, physical condition or mental health of a public officer.’” (WNYT)
• “The former West Boylston town administrator is suing the town and its police chief after he was fired over a controversy involving a Donald Trump flag displayed inside the police department headquarters. In his lawsuit, James Ryan argues that the town, Select Board Chair Kristina Pedone, and its police chief, Dennis Minnich Sr., wrongfully retaliated against him for reporting on and objecting to the display of the flag.” (MassLive)
• “A Boston police officer who testified at Karen Read’s second trial this spring resigned from the department effective Sept. 1, months after she took medical leave. Officer Kelly Dever’s testimony at the Read trial was marked by a number of tense exchanges with Alan Jackson, the lawyer who headed Read’s defense. … On the stand, Dever explained that her recollection to the FBI … was a ‘false memory.’” (MassLive)
• “The Framingham Police Department put two of its officers on leave amid an internal investigation into alleged ‘misconduct,’ Chief Lester Baker announced [September 15]. The two officers, who were not named, are on paid administrative, Framingham police said, and the issues ‘under review involve potential health and wellness concerns.’” (Boston.com)
• “Norfolk County Sheriff Patrick McDermott agreed to pay a $7,500 penalty and hand over tens of thousands in campaign cash to resolve allegations that he misused political funds to contract services for personal business ventures instead of efforts to stay in elected office. In a Sept. 10 agreement with the Office of Campaign and Political Finance, regulators said McDermott made more than $31,000 in payments to 10 vendors where the documentation was either incomplete or indicated that the money was used to serve a now-defunct real estate holding company or himself.” (Boston Herald)
• “25 Investigates has learned the Massachusetts Municipal Police Training Committee (MPTC) is investigating its police academy in Randolph following a recruit’s allegations of abuse. The probe has led to the academy director and two instructors being placed on leave, according to 2 law enforcement sources who spoke … on the condition of anonymity.” (Boston 25)
• “The former deputy chief of police for Stoughton, who retired amid an internal police investigation after the death of Sandra Birchmore, called the pregnant 23-year-old on the day she died, according to newly released videos of a disciplinary hearing. Robert Devine used the alias ‘Marty Riggs’ — the name of a fictional character in the Lethal Weapon film series — on Facebook to message Birchmore and to coordinate a sexual encounter while he worked on duty in December 2020, according to an attorney for the Peace Officers Standards and Training Commission, or POST, at a hearing in June.” (MassLive)
• “A Worcester college police officer was arrested on opening day of The Big E after she hit a West Springfield police officer in the face, sparking a brawl that involved eight other officers and another fairgoer, according to West Springfield police. Cheyenne Walker, 28, … [was] arrested about 10 minutes before The Big E closed on Sept. 12.” (MassLive)
• “A Boston police sergeant that authorities say raped a teenager he met online was indicted on eight counts, including four counts of rape of a child aggravated by age difference. Paul Downey was previously charged in Dorchester BMC and ordered held on $250,000 bail.” (MassLive)
• “Instead of donating thousands of dollars raised for charities, a police officer with the Massachusetts Port Authority is accused of pocketing the money. The funds were intended for organizations that focus on causes like breast cancer research and autism awareness. … Massport police launched the internal investigation into [Laura] Lewis last March after an officer filed a complaint. The ensuing probe found Lewis sold hundreds of patches, but did not make any charitable donations.” (NBC10 Boston)
• “A former Boston correctional officer has been accused of raping an inmate at a jail in the city this summer. William Cooper, 37, of Boston was charged with one count of rape of a person in custody and arraigned in Suffolk Superior Court on [September 19], according to the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office.” (MassLive)

If you missed it, I recently wrote a response to a Boston Globe editorial that argued we “need more Charlie Kirks”:

That ostensibly liberal publications like the Globe are lionizing someone as despicable as Kirk is the triumph of process over substance. As long as you go through the motions—debating college students, producing podcasts, etc—then the fact that you are calling for violence against marginalized people is just a difference of opinion. The celebration of Kirk’s vile legacy also reveals that many liberals view repulsive right-wing propagandists as their peers more so than the marginalized people Kirk spent his life trying to harm. Bigotry, it would seem, is not a barrier to being in good standing with the liberal media.

No, Boston Globe, we don’t “need more Charlie Kirks”

A shocking death cannot retroactively transform a wicked man into a saint

The Mass DumpAndrew Quemere

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