Attorney general names lead investigator in Massachusetts State Police recruit's death
BOSTON - A lawyer with previous experience overseeing murder investigations will lead an independent probe into Massachusetts State Police recruit Enrique Delgado-Garcia's death, Attorney General Andrea Campbell announced Monday.
Delgado-Garcia was training in a boxing ring at a State Police academy in New Braintree when he was hit in the head and knocked out for several minutes, I-Team sources reported. The 25-year-old was sworn in as a trooper before he died at a hospital on Sept. 13.
David Meier to lead investigation into State Police recruit's death
Campbell said attorney David Meier "will have complete authority" over the case. Meier is a longtime trial attorney who represented the driver convicted of killing two people and injuring seven others in the Newton Sweet Tomatoes pizza shop crash. Before going into private practice he was chief of homicide investigations in the Suffolk County District Attorney's office.
Meier previously served as special counsel to Governor Deval Patrick, trying to find individuals impacted by the tampering scandal at the Hinton state drug lab which led to the dismissal of tens of thousands of drug convictions.
"Trooper Delgado-Garcia lost his life while training to protect and serve the Commonwealth, and I want to thank his family and the public for their patience as we sought to identify the most appropriate authority to investigate the facts surrounding his tragic death," Campbell said in a statement. "Today, I am appointing Attorney David Meier to lead that investigation. Mr. Meier has deep experience in death investigations and will ensure independence and integrity in this matter."
Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. had jurisdiction over the case but said an outsider would be appointed because he has a conflict of interest in investigating the death of Delgado-Garcia, who worked in his office at a victim witness advocate.
"The investigation into Trooper Delgado-Garcia's death will be undertaken professionally, thoroughly, and responsibly," Meier said in a statement. "The Delgado-Garcia family, their community, and the public have been waiting patiently. It is now time to get to work."
Last week, State Senator Michael Moore and two other lawmakers called on the attorney general to appoint a special investigator.
"Every year it seems to be that we're having a new incident with the state police and so I think if we really want to make sure that the public perception of the state police is not further tarnished that we have a independent entity come in," Sen. Moore said.
Massachusetts State Police won't have role in investigation into recruit's death
Campbell said State Police "will have no role in the investigative team or decision-making process."
State Police have suspended full-contact boxing between trainees in the wake of Delgado-Garcia's death. His funeral is scheduled for Saturday in his hometown of Worcester.
Gov. Maura Healey called for an investigator to be appointed in Delgado-Garcia's death earlier on Monday.
"I support anything to move this forward. It's been a week. The family is anxious for answers," Healey told reporters. "This is a terrible tragedy and we need to get to the bottom of it."
Earlier this month, Gov. Healey named retired New Jersey State Police Col. Geoff Noble as the next colonel of the Massachusetts State Police. Healey said she will ask Noble to undertake an independent review of all of the academy's trainings and programs.