Here is a press release issued Wednesday by Tisbury town administrator Jay Grande:
“The crime, now more than 10 years later, was horrible and tragic. However, the not so backhanded attempt by The Martha’s Vineyard Times to again undermine and slander the current personnel of the Tisbury Police Department is contemptible and dangerous. The select board approved my personnel recommendations in July, which have provided for an orderly transition and promising new direction for the department, which has been well-received by the community. I am concerned that this article is an effort to demoralize our police officers that are doing such a great job. I and the select board have heard nothing but praise of the Tisbury Police Department. A department that is now unified and finally absent of the factional internal politics that plagued it in the past. The select board strongly supports the police department. I have absolute confidence in the chief, lieutenant, and officers of the Tisbury Police Department, and I urge them to ignore the bad press from The Martha’s Vineyard Times, which continues to sow the seeds of dissension and doubt amongst residents and town officials, both appointed and elected. I reject it, and others should as well.”
You’ve heard “nothing but praise”. Who are you listening to?
And 10 years later means nothing to the rape survivor…she’s living under a life sentence. Take responsibility for what was done and what was not done.
It is the Tisbury Police Department that is contemptible and dangerous.
I agree Brian. What a horrifying and stunning pattern of misconduct by TPD. I’m disgusted that officers involved in that incident are still wearing the badge today. No justice!
Well, no one likes to hear they have done a bad job! So let me make this simple for the Grande and his three blind mice, you sir are doing a terrible job! It is under your watch that the vestiges of this contemptible lack of action were allowed to remain at the TPD. It is under your watch that a high ranking member (who had clearly had enough of your nonsense) walked away with nearly a half million dollar settlement, it is under your watch that two officers with alternate lifestyles have pending federal lawsuits, it’s under your watch that less than two months ago a senior sergeant made a false arrest, it is under your watch that a Korean War veteran was treated poorly, it is under your watch that the latest and greatest Chief has slunk away before even finishing his contract! These and many other examples fall to you and your three short sighted accomplices! You are responsible for every bit of information the Times has had to fight for, while you hid it from the light! The Times should be applauded for taking on such nefariousness! As the saying goes, ‘he who sows the wind will reap the whirlwind’; well here comes the tornado. Do us all a favor and resign before this gets worse, your actions and reasoning are beyond shameful.
Just curious if Jay Grande would be putting this same statement out if the rape survivor was his daughter??? The TPD needs to clean house once and for all and rid themselves of these people who thought playing the childhood game of cops and robbers might be fun!!! This is real life and the story that I read about what “really” happened back in 2011 to this poor girl and to the the convicts wife and children is extremely disturbing and anyone involved with the coverup should hand in their badge!!!
Look any of you that are so quick to pass judgment on TPD as whole should try to walk a mile in their shoes. Yes our police department has made mistakes. So haven’t every single one of you. Yes they should be held accountable. But the trend is set to bash and destroy some very hard working men and women. These people stand tall in front of troubles daily that most of us would coware at just witnessing. I am not a police officer so I don’t know to the full extent what our proud and honorable members of our force deals and feels. I am a Veteran. With that I know and feel things that the general public can not fathom. It makes me feel proud when someone thanks me for my service. By a stranger saying it to me I do my best to act more honorable. With our new Chief in charge, why don’t we all give him and the rest of the men and women that serve us and hand by thanking them for their service. I bet we all will see a great outcome. Thank you TPD for your service. Because of you I have no need to lock my doors nor worry about a fishing rod left on my porch. Let’s all help them help us.
Not all are passing judgment on the TPD as a whole. I don’t doubt that there are good people on that particular force; the issue is with the three members involved in the case in question. They don’t appear to have stood very tall in that instance, and the damage is irreparable. Yes, we have all made mistakes but (and I can only speak for myself), none of mine have ever enabled the rape of a young girl.
As for your fishing rod, I doubt the existence of the TPD has anything to do with it’s security: my son’s gas tanks were emptied from his boat, which was parked in front of our house on a busy street, near the middle of town. It’s either a crappy rod or you’ve been lucky.
You seem to be confused. The police of MV do not face significant adversity or daily troubles that would make the rest of us cower. They are not the thin blue line between society and chaos. They mostly deal with the effects of cultural alcoholism and the odd property crime, generally unsolved. Maybe this new chief can change that, but the incentives are always to hide problems rather than solve them. The TPD do not automatically get our respect by default. Props to the MV Times for airing the dirty laundry and reminding us that excellence in journalism continues to exist.
Excellent response, Alexis.
Staties should have no problem handling it.
RECEIVERSHIP.
NOW.
So, Grande pulls the old, “You’re doing a heck of a job TPD!” defense of the indefensible.
This can only mean Grande’s own job is coming up for review by the BOS, so the self-serving lies will be spewing faster than Rudy’s claims of “election fraud!”.
Shame on Grande.
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