Ex-Environmental Police chief sues state over firing
The former head of the Massachusetts Environmental Police is suing the state over his termination, alleging he was fired for refusing to fix speeding tickets for high-ranking staff and disobeying orders to keep a “lid on things” regarding misconduct during the 2018 gubernatorial election.
Col. James McGinn, a former state trooper and driver for Gov. Charlie Baker, was fired in October 2018 after an investigation alleged he installed cameras to spy on employees and fixed tickets given to former neighbors in 2015. McGinn, appointed by Baker to the position in 2015, is seeking a return to his position, along with $1.4 million in the suit filed in federal court Tuesday.
A spokeswoman for Baker referred comment on the suit to the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, which responded to a Herald reporter’s inquiry with a copy of the October 2018 investigation into McGinn.
The suit states McGinn objected to former EEA secretary Matthew Beaton about a perceived “accepted lack of accountability” for many senior members of the MEP, specifically regarding officers arriving to work on time and completing their shifts.
McGinn hired an independent investigator, as the MEP lacks an Internal Affairs division, and the investigator found a senior member did not appear to work on time, or at all on assigned days, according to the suit. The act of hiring an independent investigator was “incredibly” used as a basis to fire McGinn, the suit states, claiming the findings were not made public prior to McGinn’s firing to avoid negative publicity during the 2018 gubernatorial election.
On numerous occasions, McGinn’s suit claims, he rejected requests by Beaton and other officials to “assist” with their speeding tickets, including a request by Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito’s campaign driver to fix two speeding tickets given while operating Polito’s personal car.
Beaton, who stepped down from his position in April for a private sector job, did not respond to a request for comment.