Posted on 02/09/2007 8:13:33 PM PST by kristinn
WRENTHAM - Police Chief Joseph Collamati has asked Norfolk County District Attorney William Keating to investigate allegations a town police officer may have posted information on an Internet blog critical of selectmen.
Collamati said Thursday the allegations, discussed in open session by selectmen at the end of their meeting Tuesday night, "demeans the reputation of everybody here" in the police department.
The police chief wants the district attorney's office to conduct an independent investigation.
"Quite frankly, I was a little disturbed by the allegations. I don't think they're true," Collamati said. "The officers of the Wrentham police department feel their character has been assassinated."
Collamati said individuals calling themselves "Little Bill" and "Guinness Boy" made the negative comments on a blog on Feb. 23, 2005.
The blog's address, www.freepublic.com/focus/f-news, now leads to MegaGo.com, which offers a "one click search" of keywords.
Collamati said he had done a preliminary look at the text.
"I don't see anything in there that refers to a Wrentham police officer, but politics does strange things," Collamati said.
Selectmen say they heard a police officer had used the name "Guinness Boy," but hadn't confirmed that.
"They were making fun of John Zizza and Mary Dunn and me," said Selectwoman Jennifer Firth, who raised the issue at the selectmen's meeting at the urging of board member Richard Dion. "It was concerning the election" of April 2005, and ideas being bantered about on how to unseat Greg Pazurchek.
Pazurchek ended up being defeated by George Labonte, who has a relative on the police department. Firth, who had been on the board since before 2005, won another term last year. Dunn and Zizza were selectmen during 2005.
Labonte pointed out at the selectmen's meeting that anybody can say they are anyone on a blog.
Firth called the Internet site a "political blog written on a left wing Web site, Free Republic," which included a chat room.
Firth said she has no problem with referral of the case to the district attorney's office.
"We certainly welcome him to do so, and file any complaint he would like to," Firth said of the police chief.
Information about the blog text was left anonymously at the selectmen's office, and that was forwarded by Dunn to Collamati for investigation, Firth said.
The matter was later discussed by selectmen in closed session.
Firth said Dion, who resigned at the end of the selectmen's meeting for personal reasons, wanted the blog issue discussed in open session against her wishes.
"There was no reason to put it in a public political forum," Firth said, adding she questions the credibility of blogs. "I thought it was inappropriate. You don't know who the people are who are actually chatting."
Selectmen and police officers have not had a smooth a relationship in recent years, and that worsened with budget reductions this fiscal year that led to layoffs of two patrolmen, one position of which has been restored.
There has also been controversy over improving public safety communications coverage in the west end.
In recent months, selectmen have discussed accountability and discipline procedures of police officers and firefighters with Collamati and Fire Chief Robert Morrill, but there have been no serious problems with the rank and file.
"I greatly respect the police department and think they are doing a great job for the town," Firth said. "I have nothing negative to say."
An economics thread, more likely.
LOL
The way I understand it,
A selectman, usually a member of a board, makes a vote on the will of the public at town meetings. Usually, since a very very minute amount of the public attend the meetings, the vote is subject to town interest groups.
The board of selectmen is the choice of many small towns vs. a Mayorship position......
agreed...
Someone should email Firth a link to this thread.
I'm sure it will be found, I'm sure a search for guinnessboy will bring it up, it's how they found the original thread in the 2005 election.
I now have in my possession a copy of the original thread (sans posts 47-53 or so). I don't know what are in those posts, but if they are anything like the preceeding posts, there is absolutely nothing.............
"I'm guessing that they have a printout with the URL at the top of the page. When they type it in, it is not recognized because the thread has been removed from FR"
Check out the spelling. They have it as freepublic not freeREpublic. It has nothing to do with the thread being removed.
I just tried that, I added the re, but it only brought me to a search forum section on FR, not to the direct thread they are talking about.
But it did bring you to FR. They didn't even get that far. Once they got here, they could have done a search and found the thread. Someone linked the thread that the reporters were looking for earlier in this thread. All they had to do was search for it but they couldn't even figure out that they had the wrong address to begin with. It is very lazy for a reporter to stop because he didn't get what he was looking for the first time.
no doubt, here is the title of the original thread:
Help Needed Local Campaign, Mass
I just did a search to match all words to no avail...
This is heating up behind the scenes. The Citizens Alliance is murmuring and abuzz about one of their own going down in flames. The word is the cops will be demanding Furth's head.
Left Wing???? Who's the CRYBABY concilwoman?? Geesh.
This how the msm works however we are not allowed to do the same.
Arnie, not sure of what's going on behind the scenes. I've offered to come foreward but it's not needed at this time because my identity is known and the actual situation that is going on - I don't think I'm in the middle of.......this is the clear case of don't assume: ass u me........
We've poked quite a few holes in this story, anyone see a retraction or correction in the next issues of the Chronicle Sun?
If they start beating on this cop I will get in touch with his lawyer, beat on me for what I say don't drag some innocent party in.
BR how you been buddy? I'm not sure about a retraction just yet, we'll see nothing before we see a retraction, the blowback from this could be an omlet to the face.....
.....for the record that is figuratively speaking, not a threat to put an omlet upon ones face......
LB, I have the orignal thread at my disposal, it's not about what you or I said at all.
This is clear from the postings, you and I were brought up in the article because they know who I am, and you initiated the thread, other than that there was one post that was taken to be a threat (not by either of us) and later posts that were just silly name calling (not by us either), really none of it matters in a free speach society when dealing with public figures, it's just political speak and nonesense. But, the subject matter is being used as an agenda tool, we'll see what happens, it's all in the article.........
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.