Brawl at Town Hall Investigation Wraps Up.
By Jim Conley • Oct 17th, 2007 • Email This Post to a Friend •
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Word on the street is that the Brookline Police Department’s internal investigation into Town Meeting Member Arthur Conquest’s citizen complaint into alleged racial bias during the May 24th Brawl at Town Hall has wrapped up.
The allegations have been determined as “not sustained and unfounded.”
There’s a sorry history with this affair and only until we receive police reports in the matter will we be able to unwrap the events that led to the complaint. And now, consistent with a legal opinion this site received from the Massachusetts Division of Public Records, the Town is obligated to release the (redacted) reports used to pursue charges against Mr. Conquest.
If the reports show what has been publicly alleged, we’ll likely see that the threats to Conquest’s civil liberties were the product of misleading statements made by sworn officers of town government.
I reckon there’ll be a reckoning out of that.
Jim Conley is publisher of On Brookline.
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Do I understand this correctly?
1. TMM Arthur Conquest filed a complaint alleging racial bias on the part of the Brookline Police in responding to the Town Hall Brawl?
2. The investigation, conducted by the Police Department, concluded that Mr. Conquest’s allegations were “not sustained and unfounded”?
3. Were any independent persons involved with the investigation and its determinations?
4. Does this suggest that the Police Department in conducting its investigation can in effect dismiss the complaint of Mr. Conquest without either Mr. Conquest or independent persons having an opportunity to challenge statements of police officers involved with responding to the Town Hall Brawl and other witnesses?
5. Does this suggest that the Police Department should in fairness to Mr. Conquest and the public’s right to know release the full investigative report with a minimum of redactions? Otherwise this may be considered by some a CYA investigation.
Let’s see if fairness, due process and justice survives this investigation.