Tempers flare at Police Audit Committee meeting

Police Audit Committee members discuss questions from prospective firms. (Click image to view CCTV coverage)

What began as routine meeting to review prepared responses to questions raised by prospective auditing firms quickly devolved into chaos and finger pointing as members of the town’s Police Audit Procurement Committee clashed with the audience and one another throughout the duration of a nearly three-hour meeting last week at Town Hall.

Over the course of the evening, tempers flared repeatedly as members David Clough and Kathleen Howley questioned the fairness of the process and the motives of their fellow committee members, while two members of the audience were asked to leave the meeting — including one by police escort. Other attendees took to the microphone to chastise the committee chairperson, Bob McCarthy, for his handling of the proceedings, with one individual noting that he felt compelled to show up partway through after seeing the events unfold on TV.

Beyond the procedural concerns that were raised, it was also disclosed during the meeting that some prospective firms had reached out to voice their reservations with the audit as proposed, particularly in light of the ongoing investigations surrounding the deaths of two Canton residents, John O’Keefe and Sandra Birchmore.

Towards the end of the meeting, McCarthy read a letter from one particular firm that indicated it was declining to submit a bid due to “significant concerns” it had with the town’s request for proposals (RFP), including the “undefined scope, unrealistic timeframes, insufficient funding for the scale of work required, and potential legal complications.”

“As it currently stands, this is a losing proposition for any firm that undertakes this audit,” the letter stated.

At the objection of Clough, who felt that it would “taint the process,” McCarthy went on to share that the firm felt there was a “substantial likelihood” that any company taking on this audit could be drawn into the legal proceedings related to the O’Keefe and Birchmore cases.

At one point, the question was raised whether the town should withdraw the RFP and start the process over; however, with proposals due in a matter of days (September 30) and with at least one firm having already submitted its bid, McCarthy said it was best to move forward and see what types of proposals the RFP attracts.

Regarding the questions submitted by prospective vendors, Clough argued that the responses put together by a group that included Canton’s town counsel, Police Chief Helena Rafferty and Finance Director Randy Scollins were far too vague, and he alleged that it was done so intentionally to prevent the kind of “unfettered access” that he said residents wanted when they approved the police audit at a November 2023 Special Town Meeting.

A visibly frustrated Clough went so far as to accuse town officials, including some of his fellow committee members, of “obstructing and covering for murderers” — a claim that fellow committee member Dr. Dan Muse took serious offense to. “How do you even say that?” responded Muse. “You do not know if they were murderers. The FBI did not come in and say that anybody in the Canton Police Department is a murderer. Number two, they are innocent until proven guilty.”

Committee member John Kelly also took issue with the accusations, and insisted they were all trying to accomplish the same goal; however, both Clough and Howley — who were appointed to represent the petitioners of the audit — argued they were being set up to fail by the way the committee was structured. Noting that almost every motion they proposed or objection they raised was defeated by McCarthy and his two appointees, Clough concluded, “It doesn’t matter what we think because it’s 3-2. That’s the way it was designed.”

One of the few points that all members were able to reach consensus on was the insertion of other examples in a response to a vendor’s question about recent “unfortunate and untimely deaths” that the Canton Police Department has investigated.

While the original response only mentioned Birchmore — whose death was initially ruled a suicide prior to the launch of a federal investigation into former Stoughton Det. Matthew Farwell — Clough and Howley requested that several more names be included, starting with Birchmore’s unborn child, as she was pregnant at the time that authorities believe Farwell strangled her. After a lengthy discussion, committee members voted 5-0 to also include O’Keefe as well as Craig Casey, a 2018 accident victim whose body was found by a motorist after police had cleared the scene, and a “Jane Doe” victim who was found with gunshot wounds at Farnham-Connolly state park and whose death was ruled a suicide.

The committee also agreed to correct the spelling of Birchmore’s first name, which was written as “Sarah” in the draft document. However, resident Tara Shuman blasted McCarthy for what she said was his disrespectful tone when informed of the error.

“[Birchmore] was a Canton resident,” Shuman said. “She was pregnant. She was murdered in this town. And what I’m seeing here is a committee that was formed as a result of [a town meeting] vote not behave in a way that I think the majority of people would want it to behave.”

Towards the tail end of the meeting, a woman who identified herself as a public safety consultant stood up and praised the committee for their willingness to engage in a difficult public process; however, she said the RFP they put together may be unrealistic given its broad scope, limited budget and compressed timeline.

“It’s clear to me that everybody wants the best for Canton and to help move this town forward, and most importantly, to help this town heal,” she said. “I’m concerned that the expectations of this audit in terms of healing this town are set at a very high bar, and I don’t think the audit as presented is really going to meet what you’re looking for.”

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