State cops need policing
Yesterday, three recently retired or suspended Massachusetts State Police troopers were arrested and charged with embezzlement by the U.S. Attorney’s office. They stand accused of stealing government funds by putting in for overtime shifts they didn’t work.
This is the latest in a steady stream of bad news to come out of the Massachusetts State Police.
Late last year Col. Richard McKeon retired shortly after it was revealed he’d ordered the scrubbing of a police report that contained embarrassing information about the daughter of a district court judge.
In March, a state trooper who fired a rifle, hitting 28-yearold Aderito Monteiro during a melee on Interstate 93, was accused of having posted racist comments on an online forum. Trooper Matthew Sheehan was suspended while Internal Affairs investigated.
That same month, 21 current and former troopers were implicated in an overtime scandal in which they clocked-in for phantom shifts, did not show for others and participated in other forms of overtime abuse.
Trooper Leigha Genduso was placed on administrative leave in February after reports surfaced that in 2007 she had admitted in court to drug abuse, money laundering and other activities while helping her boyfriend who was convicted on drug running charges. Despite this she was subsequently sworn in as a Massachusetts state trooper.
As if March didn’t prove damning enough for the state police, a trooper was sent home after reportedly showing up for work intoxicated at the Devens barrack. This week, after denying to the Herald that they had investigated accusations of sexual assault against Gov. Baker’s son A.J., a report mysteriously found its way to The Boston Globe.
There are big problems at the statewide law enforcement agency. Obviously there is a culture of entitlement among at least some of the troopers who brazenly bilk the system for personal gain.
Is it routine? One hopes not, but the U.S. Attorney’s office indicated that the latest overtime scandal was just the beginning. Corruption among law enforcement is especially pernicious due to the powers afforded members of that community.
It is the responsibility of those who oversee the state police to rout out the problem immediately. Some changes have been made, but swift justice for those who have been involved in criminal activity is a must. The integrity of the entire agency is at stake.