Gov. Maura Healey and Michael Minogue made their case to voters Thursday in the final gubernatorial debate ahead of the Nov. 3 state election, and one of the topics dicussed was the alleged rape that occurred at the Massachusetts State Police Barracks in Oak Bluffs in August, which sparked a fiery exchange between candidates.
Panelist Adrian Walker, a columnist and associate editor for the Boston Globe, asked Healey and Minogue how they would change “the culture of misconduct in the State Police.”
“Massachusetts State Police have opened an internal affairs investigation after a trooper let a friend stay at the Martha’s Vineyard State Police barracks, and he allegedly raped a woman, and that’s just the latest scandel for the agency,” Walker said.
Edward Joseph Brown, 27, of Boston was arraigned Tuesday, Oct. 13, in Edgartown District Court, and pleaded not guilty to a felony rape charge. The charge stemmed from an Oak Bluffs Police investigation into a reported sexual assault on August 15 by a suspect who stayed at the Massachusetts State Police barracks on Temahigan Road in Oak Bluffs this summer to visit a trooper friend.
Brown works in the Department of Safety Services for Boston Public Schools, attorneys said at the arraignment, and was on the job at Boston Latin Academy in Roxbury when he was arrested Oct. 9 by Oak Bluffs and Boston Police. Brown was held at the Dukes County Correctional Facility until he posted a $10,000 cash bail.
During the debate, Healey said that she was proud to have the support of the State Police in the race and highlighted her appointment of Geoffrey Noble, the current superintendent of the department. She said “sometimes things happen.”
“Colonel Noble has come in and with his management team done a wonderful thing in my view,” Healey said. “Do things happen? Sometimes things happen, but I can tell you, he and I make sure that swift action is taken.”
Minogue responded: “I think the governor just said, ‘Sometimes things happen.’ That is unacceptable,” he said. “A woman was raped. ‘Sometimes things happen’ is not acceptable.”
In his initial response to Walker’s question, Minogue blamed leadership.
“It starts with the leader, and we have to make sure that we have high expectations, and this other person shouldn’t have even been there,” Minogue, the Hamilton Republican, said.
The Oak Bluffs barracks, located at 51 Temahigan Road, are living quarters for officers stationed on-Island. The official State Police website doesn’t clarify whether civilian guests are allowed to stay overnight or not. Media relations for the State Police department didn’t respond to questions from The Times about an overnight guest policy.
“As a person with two daughters and as a person who was raised a certain way, this is not acceptable in the culture. I will make sure that corruption is not tolerated,” Minogue added.
He said that people need to be held accountable for “this type of nonsense,” which he claimed Healey doesn’t do.
Brown was released on conditions to stay away and have no contact with the alleged victim and any potential witnesses, to turn over any firearms to Boston Police, and check in with probation once a week. There is a pretrial hearing scheduled for Dec. 3 at the Edgartown District Courthouse.
Governor Healey I expected better from you.