TIMELINE: Controversy and scandal at Mass. State Police

Enrique Delgado-Garcia, a recruit in the Massachusetts State Police Academy, tragically died after, the agency said, he sustained injuries during a boxing training exercise in September. The public is awaiting the results from an attorney hired to conduct an independent investigation into what went wrong. 

At the beginning of the year, federal prosecutors charged four current or former state troopers with taking bribes in exchange for giving passing grades on commercial driving tests, allegations the officers denied in court. According to the indictment, the troopers communicated about the scheme via text message and referred to it as the “golden handshake.”

In the high-profile Karen Read murder trial this summer, Trooper Michael Proctor, the lead investigator in the case, testified about crude and misogynistic texts to his friends and co-workers about the defendant. Proctor remains suspended without pay while an internal affairs investigation is pending. His explosive testimony has already created fallout on other murder cases. 

This is part of our series, "Commonwealth Confidential: State of Policing." Learn much more on police in Massachusetts here.

These scandals – and others – involving state police all took place in 2024. However, to the casual observer, it might seem like the allegations of impropriety and misconduct within the state’s largest law enforcement agency have continued unabated for the past decade. 

“It’s not only a steady drumbeat [of scandals], it's a loud drumbeat. And it's getting louder and louder and louder,” said Mary Connaughton, a government watchdog with the Pioneer Institute, a public policy research institution.

The modern Massachusetts State Police agency was born in 1992, when state lawmakers voted to consolidate four separate policing agencies into one organization, largely due to budget concerns and issues with overlapping jurisdictions. 

“At that time, the state police were seen as the creme de la creme. The people respected the state police,” said Kevin Blanchette, a former state representative who voted to consolidate. “Unfortunately, you know, over time, things became different.”

The stream of negative headlines, and the subsequent effect on public sentiment, can be tough for retired troopers who look back fondly on their public safety careers. 

James Bigelow spent 24 years with the agency and retired as a lieutenant. He now teaches criminal justice as a professor at Mount Wachusett Community College.

“I would have done the job for free. I loved it,” Bigelow said. “It’s very frustrating that instead of giving the benefit of the doubt to police, it’s almost like it’s constant suspicion.”

So how did the state’s preeminent law enforcement agency get to this crucial inflection point? 

NBC10 Boston teamed up with journalism students at Boston University’s College of Communication for a deeper dive into the Massachusetts State Police. In an in-depth reporting class taught by NBC10 Investigator Ryan Kath, we explored angles about the culture inside the Academy, how deaths are investigated in Massachusetts, concerns about lack of transparency, complaints about racial and gender discrimination and what it will take to restore public trust. 

To kick off the series, here is a recap of the controversies that have surfaced for the Massachusetts State Police. 

1988 - Recruit dies after collapse from intense training

Trooper recruit Timothy Shepard dies from dehydration and heatroke after rigorous training in an early autumn heat wave. Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis forms a commission to investigate training practices and protocols at police academies in the state.

1992 - Several state agencies consolidate with Mass. State Police

State lawmakers vote to have the former Massachusetts Department of Public Safety – Division of State Police, Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles Police, Massachusetts Capitol Police, and Metropolitan District Commission Police consolidate and form into the modern-day MSP.

April 1998 - Pregnant troopers sue for discrimination

Female troopers file a lawsuit, stemming from a directive which prohibited pregnant women from “wearing uniforms, interacting with the public, working overtime, and driving police cruisers.”

Sep. 2005 - Hazing allegations lead to shakeup at Mass. State Police Academy

A lieutenant is transferred out of the Academy in the wake of allegations that an instructor shoved recruits' heads down a dirty toilet bowl at the New Braintree facility.

Feb. 2006 - State Police sergeant arrested in sting operation

Brian O'Hare, a State Police sergeant, is arrested in a sting operation by the FBI. O'Hare believed he was meeting a boy aged 14, who he intended to have sex with.

Aug. 2012 - Drug lab scandal

MSP shut down Jamaica Plain drug lab. Years later, prosecutors in seven Massachusetts counties dropped more than 21,000 low-level drug cases tainted by the work of a rogue lab chemist who worked there, Annie Dookhan, who, over the course of several years, ingested many of the drugs she was tasked with analyzing.

June 2015 - Mass. State Police labeled as 'most secretive' government agency in America

The Investigate Reporters and Editors (IRE) organization award the MSP with the Golden Padlock, reflecting the agency’s lack of transparency with the public.

Oct. 2017 - Troopergate scandal

Trooper Ryan Sceviour files a lawsuit against top brass at headquarters, claiming he was forced to delete embarassing details in an arrest report involving a Worcester County judge's daughter. In the wake of the controversy, high-ranking MSP officials resigned and a lenghty ethics investigation ensued.

May 2018 - Mass. State Police overtime scandal

Nearly 50 troopers were implicated in a scandal that centered around them claiming overtime hours they did not work. The controversy lead to the elimination of Troop E, which patrolled the Massachusetts Turnpike, and ultimately resulted in 10 criminal convictions and restitution to taxpayers.

Aug. 2018 - Trooper dishonorably discharged for drug-dealing past

A Massachusetts State Police trooper is dishonorably discharged after the department said she did not disclose her past involvement in a drug-dealing operation before joining the force.

March 2021 - Mass. State Police colonel accused of helping allies on promotional exam

Three veteran supervisors sued Col. Christopher Mason, alleging that he distributed a predictive "study guide" to those closest to him in order to quickly promote them before a state law took effect.

Oct. 2021 - Off-duty trooper charged in fatal crash

Kristopher Carr had just graduated from the Massachusetts State Police Academy when he was charged for his involvement in a fatal crash while off-duty. The passenger in Carr's car claimed that he had ingested "6-7 alcoholic beverages" prior to the accident.

March 2022- Troopers sue for alleged discrimination against new parents

Five members of the Massachusetts State Police sued the agency, alleging it is illegally discriminating against troopers who take maternity or other types of leave.

July 2022 - Recruits injured after 'bear crawls' on hot pavement

The "unauthorized exercises" uncovered by the NBC10 Investigators resulted in at least 20 trainees being treated by medical staff and led to a shakeup at the Academy in New Braintree.

May 2023 - Former Mass. State Police Union president sentenced to federal prison

Dana Pullman, who had served as the president of the Mass State Police Troopers Union from 2012 to 2018, was convicted of accepting kickbacks from a lobbyist and also using his union debit card for personal expenses.

Aug. 2023 - Mass.S State Police troopers who refused COVID vaccine reinstated

The union representing the troopers called the reinstatement a "victory" after filing a grievance when the officers were suspensed for refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine.

Nov. 2023 - Historic dropout rate at Mass. State Police Academy

The NBC10 Investigators report that 46% of men and women who signed up for the police academy dropped out, a historic low in the history of the agency.

Jan. 2024 - Mass. State Police troopers charged in CLD bribery scandal

Four former and current Massachusetts State Police troopers are accused of taking bribes in exchange for giving passing scores on commercial driving tests. In the indictment, prosecutors alleged the scheme was referred to as the "golden handshake" in text messages.

June 2024 - Lead Mass. State Police investigator in Karen Read trial suspended without pay

Trooper Michael Proctor, who served as the lead investigator in the 2022 death of Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe, is suspended without pay amid an internal affairs investigation following his testimony in the murder trial of Karen Read. During the trial, Proctor's crude and misogynistic texts about Read raised questions about his credibility and bias. Proctor's testimony has already created fallout in other high-profile cases.

Aug. 2024 - Sandra Birchmore death investigation by feds

Matthew Farwell, a former Stoughton police detective, is accused by federal prosecutors of strangling Sandra Birchmore in her apartment and staging her death to look like a suicide. Farwell had previously been accused of grooming Birchmore when she was part of a youth program at the police department and having sex with her when she was only 15. Massachusetts State Police investigated Birchmore's death and did not pursue criminal charges, even though Farwell was the last person to see her alive and Birchmore had told the married police officer she was pregnant with his child.

Sept. 2024 - Recruit dies from training exercise

Recruit Enrique Delgado-Garcia dies in the hospital after sustaining injuries from a boxing training exercise at the State Police Academy. The Worcester District Attorney recused his office from the investigation and an independent attorney has been tapped to review the circumstances around Delgado-Garcia's death.

The story was reported by BU students Colmignoli and Dickerson and edited by Kath