A District Attorney’s office wields extraordinary power: the power to charge, to dismiss, and to determine whose voices are heard. The trials of Karen Read for the death of John O'Keefe, the failure to prosecute the murder of Sandra Birchmore and other serious cases, the failure to act sooner to address the behavior of Trooper Michael Proctor, the excessive financial expenditures for the trials of Karen Read, and poor treatment of victims and defendants in many other cases have severely damaged public confidence in the Norfolk County District Attorney’s Office.
Restoring public trust requires transparency, accountability, and community engagement. By proactively sharing information, holding ourselves accountable, inviting oversight, and engaging honestly with the community, the District Attorney’s Office can begin to repair damaged relationships and reaffirm its mission to pursue justice fairly and impartially and keep the public safe.
The installation of any new District Attorney brings a period of transition. I believe responsibility for the errors of the past several years lies at the feet of leadership, because it is leaders who set the priorities and create the culture of any workplace. Yet to restore the community’s trust in the office as a whole, we must ensure that all staff and law enforcement assigned to the District Attorney’s Office, from top to bottom, meet the highest standards of professionalism and ethics and that they are fully committed to the pursuit of justice. To do that, I will:
Interview and select all Massachusetts State Police assigned to the District Attorney’s Office to ensure troopers meet the highest standards of professionalism and integrity and reflect the diversity of the community we serve.
Require each staff member to reapply for their position. Employees will be interviewed to assess skills, professionalism, commitment to public service, and professional goals. They will also be invited to provide feedback on the office’s strengths and weaknesses and suggest improvements.
I will also:
Review all prosecution protocols, personnel policies, training curricula, case management, and supervision models to ensure they adhere to best practices.
Publish clear, timely data on case outcomes.
Publish investigative reports of officer-involved shootings.
Draft a conflict of interest policy to determine when cases should be referred to outside agencies for prosecution.
Require all staff to report suspected misconduct of colleagues and community partners.
Publish prosecution policies and general information about charging decisions, sentencing recommendations, and the criminal justice process.
Require documentation of all dispositions and the rationale for each disposition.
Require written explanations and supervisor approval for declined cases.
Hold regular public forums and release audit results to rebuild trust through consistent, open communication.
Finally, to ensure that political and financial considerations do not impact case decisions, I will not accept campaign contributions from staff or police unions.
As District Attorney, I will take decisive action to restore transparency, justice, and integrity to the Norfolk County District Attorney’s Office.