Please note the letters forwarded to the father of the victim in this notorious rape and homicide:
Mary Clements
75 Pearl St. #2
Hyannis, MA 02601
October 28, 2008
Mr. Christopher H. Worthington
15 Castle Road
East Weymouth, MA 02189
Dear Mr. Worthington,
Please review the articles published recently in the Cape Cod Times enclosed with this correspondence. I have recently finished reading Invisible Eden: A Story of Love and Murder on Cape Cod. Also enclosed are copied pages of Ms. Flook’s writings describing her intimate relationship with Michael O’Keefe. Ms. Flook provides a detailed account of the relationship that she established with O’Keefe in the first chapter. I have previously forwarded Michael O’Keefe’s campaign records confirming that O’Keefe accepted a $50 campaign contribution from Flook before the investigation was closed. The author not only printed O’Keefe’s slanderous remarks about the private life of a homicide victim, she compromised the investigation and compromised the state’s case against Christopher McCowan. The callous and insensitive remarks nearly cost the prosecution a hard fought conviction. As you know the case is in the appellate process and it appears that the conviction may not be sustained.
Glenn Marshall, host of the fundraiser attended by Michael O’Keefe and Maria Flook, had a previous conviction of a sex offense in 1980. The District Attorney’s Office was aware of the violent nature of the rape and his criminal record. It also appears that Marshall did not register as a sex offender as required. The event designed to raise money for candidates was thrown by the Wampanoag Indian Tribe and the fundraising party was attended by a number of politicians and public officials. Maria Flook concedes that O’Keefe used her as a “date” for the event. Prior to their arrival at the party, O’Keefe shows autopsy photographs of the rape homicide victim and confides matters privy to the investigation to the author. Ms. Flook describes O’Keefe’s deliberate breach in detail in the first chapter of her novel. Mr. O’Keefe accepted campaign contributions including the one donated by Maria Flook at a campaign fundraiser hosted by a convicted rapist.
Michael O’Keefe was also well aware of the conviction of Royden Richardson on a sexual assault charge and his subsequent dismissal from the local probation department in Barnstable. O’Keefe served on the Barnstable Human Service Needs Committee with Richardson. The incident occurred under the tenure of O’Keefe’s predecessor Phillip Rollins. The Barnstable District Court was at one time under the auspices of Bristol County and senior attorneys at Bristol County District Attorney’s Office remember the incident well. O’Keefe lobbied for funds and resources to expand these negligent and substandard organizations. Many of these clinics provided treatment for the perpetrator in the homicide of your daughter, Christa. District Attorney Michael O’Keefe and executives of substandard organizations responsible for negligent services were members of the Barnstable Human Service Committee chaired by Richardson. As I have demonstrated in the past, Michael O’Keefe also accepted a number of campaign contributions from a number of human service organizations with representatives on the board.
I have since uncovered fifteen homicides that occurred in Hyannis prior to 1998 related to parties known at the NOAH Shelter. There have been a number of suicides and overdoses in recent weeks here in Hyannis related to these substandard organizations. O’Keefe was well aware of the violent propensity of the clientele at NOAH, but continued to accept campaign contributions and subsequently lobbied for their interests. Considering Mr. O’Keefe’s tendency to accept campaign contributions from sex offenders, I am not surprised that he has adopted such a cavalier attitude toward rape and homicide.
Lastly, I have enclosed an article printed in last week’s Cape Cod Times describing two burglaries at O’Keefe’s new lavishly built home in the neighboring town of Sandwich. As you can see, his service weapon has been stolen and unfortunately, I don’t have it.
Sincerely,
Mary Clements
Click on these images to enlarge: Court records uncovered in the Barnstable District Court indicate that a DNA Sample was secured from McCowan after the arrest of this defendant. O'Keefe disputed my accounts that downtown Hyannis was replete with convicted felons and sex offenders. He continued to take campaign contributions from the human services that harbored such felons. I was charged with criminal harassment of law enforcement for forwarding items posted on this blog.
(Click on to enlarge)
Judge Joan Lynch compels the taking of McCowan's DNA three months after the arrest if her colleague, the embattled District Attorney Michael O'Keefe already had the DNA on file? He was using an informant to develop a profile on the offender. He told the victim's father, Christopher "Toppy" Worthington that the woman was had political ties and did not want to meet the family. The informant was working in a crack house developing a strategy to remove the NOAH Shelter. She was subsequently diverted into treatment, discredited and threatened with jail time if she reported her findings to Worthington or federal agents with interests in law enforcement.
Posted by Barnstable Safety Network at 3:34 PM 0 comments
Mary Clements
75 Pearl Street #2
Hyannis, MA 02601
June 29, 2007
Mr. Stone Phillips
NBC Dateline
NBC Studios
30 Rockefeller Plaza @ West 49th Street
New York, NY
Dear Mr. Phillips,
Enclosed are court records and documentation pertaining to Christopher McCowan. NBC Dateline recently broadcasted a documentary on the life and death of Christa Worthington. McCowan was recently convicted in the rape and homicide of Christa Worthington. Dennis Murphy, a Correspondent with “Dateline” interviewed the prosecutor Assistant District Attorney Robert Welsh III. Attorney Welsh was nominated to the judiciary months after the conviction of Christopher McCowan. As you will see, Robert Welsh’s father, Judge Robert Welsh, Jr. surrendered the probation of Christopher McCowan two years prior to the homicide of Miss Worthington. Instead of returning McCowan to prison, he was diverted into anger management and rehabilitation of non-violent offenders. He was a patient of Cape Cod Psychiatric Services and failed at rehabilitation despite the numerous efforts to place him in therapy. Furthermore, the District Attorney’s Office appeared to have never procured DNA until after the arrest of McCowan by local law enforcement.
Christopher McCowan was arrested three times by the Barnstable Police Department long after the murder of Worthington. He was again diverted into treatment for non-violent offenders three years after the homicide of Worthington. It was after one of his routine offenses that McCowan was compelled to provide a DNA sample. In 2005, Judge Joan Lynch of the Barnstable District Court instructed the Department of Public Safety to procure his DNA after a non-related felony offense two months after the arrest of McCowan. Christopher McCowan never volunteered any DNA sample and it appears that there was never any DNA match at the time of the arrest. The documents were tucked away in an obscure file in the district court rather than the superior court where the case was eventually tried. The judicial decision to establish the DNA match was made on an unrelated charge and McCowan was already in custody at the time. A different attorney, Francis O’Boy, Esq. was McCowan’s attorney on record at the time of the arraignment. The challenge to the effort was made by Christopher McCowans current attorney, Robert George, Esq. This all occurred nearly six years after Judge Robert Welsh, the father of the prosecutor in the case, surrendered McCowan’s probation and completely missed the boat on prevention of the crime.
Michael O’Keefe, the sitting District Attorney accepted campaign contributions from a number of human service professionals treating McCowan. A portion of O’Keefe’s campaign records are provided and lawyers and human service personnel donate routinely and generously to his campaign. He also sits on the Barnstable Human Service Needs Committee. The associated shelter is documented for housing a number of narcotics addicts, violent criminals and Level III Sex Offenders. Christopher McCowan was known to the crack houses adjacent to the shelter. There are a number of homicides related to the clientele of the NOAH Shelter. O’Keefe was aware of this and sat on the public safety subcommittee developing safety policy for the human service workers, abutters and Main Street merchants often complaining about crime in the area. The same human service professionals contributed to the efforts of Judge Joseph Reardon, a colleague and founder of The Barnstable Drug Court and Mental Health Task Force. Judge Joseph Reardon continued to place Christopher McCowan into therapy and narcotics treatment despite his record of violent offenses against women. Raymond Tamasi of Gosnold, Inc. was one of the narcotics treatment and rehabilitation centers into which McCowan was diverted. Mr. Tamasi also donated generously to O’Keefe’s campaign. His son, David Tamasi, also a contributor, is now a Political Field Operative for Presidential Candidate, Mitt Romney.
To literally add insult to obvious injury, Michael O’Keefe accepted a $50 campaign contribution from Maria Flook, author of Invisible Eden: A Tale of Love and Murder on Cape Cod. O’Keefe not only compromised the investigation by divulging details of the homicide to a journalist, he compromised the prosecution by disparaging the reputation of a rape victim.
At the rate we are going, it will only be a matter of time before there is another grisly murder on Olde Cape Cod.
Sincerely,
Mary Clements
Mary Clements
75 Pearl Street #2
Hyannis, MA 02601
December 17, 2007
Mr. Peter Manso
592 Commercial Street
Provincetown, MA 02657
Dear Mr. Manso,
Please review the enclosed correspondence, documents and court records pertaining to Christopher McCowan. It appears that there was never any DNA evidence available on McCowan at the time of the arrest of this defendant. The DNA sample was secured from McCowan subsequent to the coerced confession of Christopher McCowan. The effort to obtain the sample was compelled by Judge Joan Lynch pursuant to an unrelated felony conviction. The decision to compel McCowan to provide the sample was delivered three months subsequent to the arrest.
The arrest of Christopher McCowan was made based on prevarication that there was actually DNA evidence secured in possession of the state at the time. The ruse of DNA in possession of the state crime lab was not only used to coerce a confession from a confused suspect, but was convincingly reported to the public via the media. Christopher McCowan was clearly asking for an attorney throughout the interrogation. The state investigators had no compelling reason to record the interrogation and subsequent confession because the arrest occurred under false pretenses and before the state’s case had been fully established.
The network of jurisprudence, criminal lawyers, and law enforcement personnel were well aware that the arrest of McCowan is not clean and that all evidence obtained subsequent to the arrest would be excluded. The document forwarded to you was discovered in an obscure place in the Barnstable District Court files on Christopher McCowan. In addition, it appears that the defendant’s attorney is aware of the lack of evidence available at the time of the arrest. Francis O’Boy, Esq. could have suppressed any and all “fruits of the forbidden tree” as early as the arraignment of McCowan. The DNA dragnet in Truro remained in effect throughout the investigation and identification of McCowan as a suspect.
Christopher McCowan was certainly known to the criminal justice system and diverted into psychiatric care years before the rape and homicide of Miss Worthington. Judge Robert Welsh surrendered the probation of McCowan for failure to comply with the terms of his probation and refusal to attend required psychiatric therapy. Christopher McCowan was clearly demonstrating difficulty with anger management and demonstrated an increased propensity for violence and Judge Welsh was clearly apprised and fully aware.
The homicide of Miss Worthington occurred as McCowan was serving as an informant for The State Police and local law enforcement authorities. It is obvious that the local law enforcement, state authorities, the department of probation and the District Attorney’s Office completely dropped the ball on McCowan. McCowan was subsequently diverted into Gosnold, Inc. subsequent to the rape and murder of Miss Worthington. After the rape and homicide of Worthington, McCowan relocated to Hyannis and continued with court ordered treatment. He was well known to the properties adjacent to the NOAH Shelter and three permanent addresses all within walking distance of the Barnstable Police Department. McCowan was often seen in the Kendrick’s Bar and using narcotics in the adjacent apartments. The building not only attracted a number of convicted felons, narcotics addicts, and sex offenders, it also attracted the Barnstable Police Department and DEA Agents and personnel. The building was closely monitored and surveilled by local police and DEA for narcotics trafficking. McCowan continued his pattern of violence and was arrested three times by the Barnstable Police Department years after the homicide of Worthington and was in their custody three times as the investigation into the homicide and DNA dragnet continued.
The District Attorney’s Office clearly missed the boat and dropped the ball on Christopher McCowan. You can review the history that Michael O’Keefe had with fellow attorneys and judges that covered for his incompetence. Judge Joan Lynch was a former ADA under Rollins and a colleague and friend of Michael O’Keefe. Christopher McCowan was clearly known to law enforcement and was a patron of a crack house known to federal authorities and local police department. Please consider the documents and materials provided. Michael O’Keefe’s Office issued an arrest warrant for criminal harassment when I complained to local law enforcement about drug trafficking and associated violence at Kendrick’s and other properties adjacent to the shelter. They charged me and threatened to prosecute me when I disclosed that I was forwarding information on O’Keefe to Mr. Christopher Worthington, Esq., the father of the victim in this case.
Thank you for your time and attention.
Sincerely,
Mary Clements
Obviously, Chris thought he could find better rehabilitation services in Hyannis! He was placed on LaFrance Avenue by Bernice Phillips and participated in Drug Court through a collaborative and "joint" effort by Honorary Judge Joseph Reardon and Ray Tamasi of Gosnold, Inc. Tamasi continued to donate heavily to District Attorney Michael O'Keefe's Campaign as McCowan participated in treatment. Rick Presbrey continued to state that no known sex offenders were known to the shelter and adjacent properties where McCowan was often seen. Bernice Phillips also placed clients in the crack houses across from the shelter. McCowan was often seen at these locations, the Salvation Army and the Kendrick's Properties. The Barnstable Police and Judge Reardon continued to threaten residents in the area that complained about public safety with criminal harassment and diversion into psychiatric services.
Founders Court harbored Chris McCowan as he lived and beat up his girlfriend. Barnstable Police responded and McCowan continued to be diverted into treatment for non-violent offenders.
MCowan continued to be diverted into anger management and psychiatric services. Obviously, Chris thought he could find better rehabilitation services in Hyannis! He was placed on LaFrance Avenue by Bernice Phillips and participated in Drug Court through a collaborative and "joint" effort by Honorary Judge Joseph Reardon and Ray Tamasi of Gosnold, Inc. Tamasi continued to donate heavily to District Attorney Michael O'Keefe's Campaign as McCowan participated in treatment. Rick Presbrey continued to state that no known sex offenders were known to the shelter and adjacent properties where McCowan was often seen. Bernice Phillips also placed clients in the crack houses across from the shelter. McCowan was often seen at these locations, the Salvation Army and the Kendrick's Properties. The Barnstable Police and Judge Reardon continued to threaten residents in the area that complained about public safety with criminal harassment and diversion into psychiatric services.
What? You finally found him? Where to hide? In plain sight!
Founders Court, home of Christopher McCowan as he hid from authorities, is adjacent to the Barnstable Senior Center and the Barnstable Middle School.
Posted by Barnstable Safety Network at 2:57 PM 0 comments
Note the violent record of McCowan as he remained on the lamb, two miles from the barnstable police department!
Posted by Barnstable Safety Network at 2:54 PM 0 comments
Honey, I'm Home! Restraining orders were taken out by the resident and girlfriend of McCowan in Hyannis three years after the murder of Worthington!
Founders Court harbored Chris McCowan as he lived and beat up his girlfriend. Barnstable Police responded and McCowan continued to be diverted into treatment for non-violent offenders.
Posted by Barnstable Safety Network at 2:51 PM 0 comments
Click on to enlarge Christopher McCowan's arrest records.
Mary Clements
241D Stevens Street
Hyannis, MA 02601
August 5, 2005
Mr. Christopher H Worthington
187 Downer Avenue
Hingham, MA
Dear Mr. Worthington,
Enclosed are some documents that pertain to Housing Assistance Corporation of Hyannis and criminal activity related to the negligent operation of this substandard human service organization. The shelter system in Hyannis promotes an atmosphere of tolerance for criminal offenders and attracts drug addicts and convicted felons to the vicinity and greater Cape Cod region. Christopher McCowan frequented the area and was often seen with local drug dealers and addicts in associated crack houses. Many of these individuals are well known to local law enforcement and have been prosecuted by District Attorney Mr. Michael O’Keefe’s Office.
For the past three years I have followed the tragedy that claimed the life of your daughter. Your family has suffered a terrible loss and I cannot begin to understand the anger that you must feel not only toward the perpetrator but also those entrusted to protect the innocent and insure public safety. Mr. O’Keefe’s Office was consistently made aware of the problems created by narcotics trafficking and convicted felons with violent criminal pasts living in the area and local law enforcement did respond with increased vigilance when I lived researching this organization in a known crack house. The Officers of the Barnstable Police Department interfaced with McCowan and his friends constantly at 72 North Street, Hyannis. Unfortunately, we did not know we were harboring Mr. McCowan at Kendrick’s/North Street, Hyannis.
I recognized Mr. McCowan from my building as did two other residents and a known local drug dealer, all of us known to a local human service organization that caters to criminal offenders. Ms. Arlene Crosby, a reliable source who serves as the Housing Placement Specialist at the NOAH Shelter confirmed that McCowan was known to the area and that a colleague named Bernice Phillips had placed him at his rooming house on Lafrance Avenue. Ms. Phillips also places clients at the rooming house across the street from NOAH. Photographs of the general decadence in the area and narcotics use in the pictures that accompany these materials demonstrate public safety problems created by this organization.
When Housing Assistance Corporation made an attempt to expand shelter operations by procuring the Mildred’s Chowder House, the District Attorney went on record suggesting that the residents of Barnstable show “a little deference” to the “disparate elements” of the community. The Chief of Police in Barnstable negotiated a twenty-thousand dollar pay increase annually in a six-year contract to sign-off on the project. He instructed his public relations agent to handle questions on public safety. Chief Finnegan failed to attend the crucial meetings on expansion of the project and negotiated the pay raise with the assistance of Town Councilor Royden Richardson. Councilor Richardson was on the Board of Trustees of the Salvation Army with Chief Finnegan. He also is a trustee of Community Action Committee and was the representative of the Town Council who established the Barnstable Human Service Needs Committee.
At the expansion meetings, Mr. Rick Presbrey, CEO of Housing Assistance Corporation insisted that 72 North Street, frequented by McCowan was not a crack house. He also insisted that there were no known criminal offenders known to The NOAH Shelter. He stated that Chief John Finnegan would categorically deny that any known offenders were known to NOAH. Since August of 2003, seven violent offenders were tracked to the NOAH Shelter and three more to the immediate area after the killing of young Jonathan Wessner of Falmouth. Mr. Presbrey referred to me as “irresponsible” for suggesting that NOAH and the surrounding areas are unsafe. Mr. Presbrey was sponsoring the controversial “Dana’s Field’s Farm” and intended to screen all offenders from the applicant pool and place violent offenders in an expanded facility across from the Raddison Hotel in Hyannis. There is an associated health clinic that liberally prescribes narcotics to offenders and this is across the street from one of the crack houses that McCowan frequented here in Hyannis.
I hope during preparation for the upcoming trial that you could ask the District Attorney to take a more conservative approach to the shelter in downtown Hyannis. I am sure that Mr. O’Keefe did not intend to suggest deference to sex offenders such as Christopher McCowan or his cohort Perry Bell. At the Town of Sandwich Zoning Board of Appeals, Mr. Michael Princi, Esq. representing Housing Assistance Corporation for Dana’s Fields insinuated that he had made a significant contribution to Mr. O’Keefe and that he was owed favors by the District Attorney. I am also convinced that Mr. O’Keefe did not intend to have Housing Assistance Corporation or its attorney boasting that it had such clout with $525 in campaign contributions. Nevertheless, attorneys with whom I have spoken who have background with RICO believe there is some form of influence peddling in regard to the Chief of Police. He did indeed accept a $120,000 windfall salary increase over six years to instruct his media relations agent to sign off on the initiative that would have expanded negligent services to individuals like McCowan.
Chief John Finnegan was made aware of the difficulty with criminal offenders at NOAH well before he instructed his public relations agent to support the expansion of the organization providing negligent services to offenders. The salary increase and new contract were negotiated during the Barnstable Human Services efforts at the Barnstable Airport Commission and Mr. Presbrey invoked the Chief’s name several times in his attempts to assuage abutting residents of the “Mildred’s Chowder House” of their concern for safety issues.
I have forwarded this correspondence and materials to the families of other victims of crimes by perpetrators known to The NOAH Shelter/Housing Assistance Corporation. As with the other victims, your family and in particular your granddaughter are in my thoughts and prayers.
Sincerely,
Mary Clements
Posted by Barnstable Safety Network at 1:15 PM 0 comments
Complaint Letters to the Chief of Police
Mary Clements
241D Stevens Street
Hyannis, MA 02616
April 6, 2004
Chief John Finnegan
PO Box Office B
1200 Phinneys Lane
Hyannis, MA 02601
Dear Chief Finnegan,
Enclosed are documents and materials that have been provided to Mr. Gary Brown in regard to public safety issues in downtown Hyannis. As you can see, there are a number of financial records from the Office for Campaign and Political Finance demonstrating contributions made by Housing Assistance Corporation and Community Action Committee to candidates such as Senator Robert O’Leary and District Attorney Michael O’Keefe that present a conflict of interest in regard to public safety in downtown Hyannis and throughout the region.
Records provided indicate that Michael Princi, Esq. of Wynn and Wynn, PC. representing Housing Assistance Corporation increased his campaign donations to the District Attorney during the proceedings in Sandwich at the Zoning Board of Appeals as the decision regarding Dana’s Fields became imminent. The effort to secure the Mildred’s Chowder House occurred contemporaneously and was intended not only to provide housing for clients that cannot apply to this project but also clients that fail at rehabilitation in Sandwich. Mr. Presbrey emphatically promised the residents and abutters in Sandwich that failed clients would be driven back to Hyannis.
As you know, there are significant public safety issues regarding clients not rehabilitated by NOAH and Duffy living unrecovered on the streets of Hyannis contributing to public health and safety concerns. I have spoken with an attorney in regard to my suspicions regarding the influence of these campaign contributions and he has cautioned me not to arrive at any conclusions as it is common for political organizations and candidates to contribute to campaigns in order to gain influence and curry political favor. I have been tracking offenders in the organization for some time and I have severe doubts concerning the methods and treatment for these clients in downtown Hyannis.
I am forwarding these documents to you as I have in the past. I realize that the authority in which you have been entrusted requires great responsibility. I also know that there may be a confluence of ideals and philosophy that can persuade decisions on a number of public safety issues. The role of politics in law enforcement is often ambiguous and underestimated. District Attorney O’Keefe is on record as requesting “deference” to the organizations in question. I am aware you instructed your Pubic Relations Officer Sergeant Sean Sweeney to sign off on the Mildred’s Project as a reasonable accommodation in regard to this population and their advocates. Fire department and law enforcement personnel voiced concerns and were unhappy with the decision you made in regard to this initiative. Both departments were voicing continued frustration with repeated calls to NOAH and organizations in the vicinity including the crack house in which I was placed by HAC. Although both departments maintain a high degree of professionalism both often appeared exhausted with the number and magnitude of calls and social difficulty with which they must constantly contend. I provided your department and the District Attorney with materials, documents and information about the organization three days before the decision on Mildred’s was made and final agreement formally signed. At this point it was clear that information regarding public safety was documented and available for public perusal. It indeed appeared quite difficult for your spokesman instructed to follow your directive.
I have forwarded the information provided to Nancy Paccia, the mother of the child who was accosted in Way’s News and to the family of Jonathan Wessner. The shelter is denying they knew Mr. Quick and states that I am “lashing out at them for being unable to follow their rules.” As you may know, I was banned for drinking a soda that I donated to the shelter. A copy of the “thank-you note” that enabled them to apply for matching funds was forwarded previously. I spent the next four nights in a crack house fearing for my life. There was a staff member living on the premises using narcotics who has since been terminated from NOAH. I was told not to speak with law enforcement about my experience. A counselor at The Duffy Clinic named Reverend Joe told me that I would have to attend mandatory “anger management” if I did not stop speaking with law enforcement. Arlene Crosby and Bob Lynch were present when I was disciplined.
I was able to trace a payroll check that demonstrates that Leon was not only at the shelter but that the clinic also employed him to do handy work on the premises. Mr. Quick entered my car without my permission and demanded a ride to the bank upon receipt of his paycheck drawn on The Duffy Clinic account. I was uncomfortable giving Mr. Quick a ride because I had recently discovered he was required to register as a sex offender. I cashed the Duffy payroll check for Mr. Quick with funds I had available and deposited it into my bank account. Leon Quick proceeded to the Duck Inn Pub where he imbibed despite his state mandated alcohol rehabilitation counseling.
At the time this incident occurred I was aware Leon was a sex offender and an alcoholic. I did not know that he was indeed a child molester and would proceed to leer at women and children on Main Street. Mr. Quick had a history of stalking vulnerable women at NOAH. Please refer to previous correspondence forwarded to your department before the event regarding the Paccia child. Mrs. Paccia states that she has observed him stalking children at the Sturgis Charter School with binoculars where her child is enrolled. She lives in fear for her child and her friends. She wonders if she should remove her child from The Sturgis Charter School. She states she doesn’t feel any better about Mildred’s knowing that the system enables the proliferation and expansion of substandard services and expansion to Sandwich where her family makes their home.
Please reconsider the directive you have issued to Sergeant Sean Sweeney. Although the District Attorney is attempting to placate both the human service organizations and the business community, it does not appear prudent to sacrifice the safety of the general public. I realize that the District Attorney did not intend to jeopardize the community by suggesting such deference but inadvertently compromised the public interest in supporting this project.
I have forwarded the information to the parties mentioned and intend to increase the circle maintaining public information in regard to the organization to the parent teacher organizations of the local schools. I am hoping for some resolution on this matter soon.
Sincerely,
Mary Clements
(508) 790-7980
cc. David Daly, Esq.
Michael O’Keefe, Esq.
Michael Trudeau, Esq.
Paul Niedzwicki
Sergeant Sean Sweeney
Gary Brown, President of The Barnstable Town Council
Nancy Paccia
Philip Tracey, Esq.
Mr. William Henchy, Esq.
Chief John Miller
Posted by Barnstable Safety Network at 1:05 PM 0 comments
Labels: Chief of Police for the Town of Barnstable, Janet Joakim, Senator Robert O'Leary
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(click on to enlarge)
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Mary Clements
241D Stevens Street
Hyannis, MA 02616
April 6, 2004
Chief John Finnegan
PO Box Office B
1200 Phinneys Lane
Hyannis, MA 02601
Dear Chief Finnegan,
Enclosed are documents and materials that have been provided to Mr. Gary Brown in regard to public safety issues in downtown Hyannis. As you can see, there are a number of financial records from the Office for Campaign and Political Finance demonstrating contributions made by Housing Assistance Corporation and Community Action Committee to candidates such as Senator Robert O’Leary and District Attorney Michael O’Keefe that present a conflict of interest in regard to public safety in downtown Hyannis and throughout the region.
Records provided indicate that Michael Princi, Esq. of Wynn and Wynn, PC. representing Housing Assistance Corporation increased his campaign donations to the District Attorney during the proceedings in Sandwich at the Zoning Board of Appeals as the decision regarding Dana’s Fields became imminent. The effort to secure the Mildred’s Chowder House occurred contemporaneously and was intended not only to provide housing for clients that cannot apply to this project but also clients that fail at rehabilitation in Sandwich. Mr. Presbrey emphatically promised the residents and abutters in Sandwich that failed clients would be driven back to Hyannis.
As you know, there are significant public safety issues regarding clients not rehabilitated by NOAH and Duffy living unrecovered on the streets of Hyannis contributing to public health and safety concerns. I have spoken with an attorney in regard to my suspicions regarding the influence of these campaign contributions and he has cautioned me not to arrive at any conclusions as it is common for political organizations and candidates to contribute to campaigns in order to gain influence and curry political favor. I have been tracking offenders in the organization for some time and I have severe doubts concerning the methods and treatment for these clients in downtown Hyannis.
I am forwarding these documents to you as I have in the past. I realize that the authority in which you have been entrusted requires great responsibility. I also know that there may be a confluence of ideals and philosophy that can persuade decisions on a number of public safety issues. The role of politics in law enforcement is often ambiguous and underestimated. District Attorney O’Keefe is on record as requesting “deference” to the organizations in question. I am aware you instructed your Pubic Relations Officer Sergeant Sean Sweeney to sign off on the Mildred’s Project as a reasonable accommodation in regard to this population and their advocates. Fire department and law enforcement personnel voiced concerns and were unhappy with the decision you made in regard to this initiative. Both departments were voicing continued frustration with repeated calls to NOAH and organizations in the vicinity including the crack house in which I was placed by HAC. Although both departments maintain a high degree of professionalism both often appeared exhausted with the number and magnitude of calls and social difficulty with which they must constantly contend. I provided your department and the District Attorney with materials, documents and information about the organization three days before the decision on Mildred’s was made and final agreement formally signed. At this point it was clear that information regarding public safety was documented and available for public perusal. It indeed appeared quite difficult for your spokesman instructed to follow your directive.
I have forwarded the information provided to Nancy Paccia, the mother of the child who was accosted in Way’s News and to the family of Jonathan Wessner. The shelter is denying they knew Mr. Quick and states that I am “lashing out at them for being unable to follow their rules.” As you may know, I was banned for drinking a soda that I donated to the shelter. A copy of the “thank-you note” that enabled them to apply for matching funds was forwarded previously. I spent the next four nights in a crack house fearing for my life. There was a staff member living on the premises using narcotics who has since been terminated from NOAH. I was told not to speak with law enforcement about my experience. A counselor at The Duffy Clinic named Reverend Joe told me that I would have to attend mandatory “anger management” if I did not stop speaking with law enforcement. Arlene Crosby and Bob Lynch were present when I was disciplined.
I was able to trace a payroll check that demonstrates that Leon was not only at the shelter but that the clinic also employed him to do handy work on the premises. Mr. Quick entered my car without my permission and demanded a ride to the bank upon receipt of his paycheck drawn on The Duffy Clinic account. I was uncomfortable giving Mr. Quick a ride because I had recently discovered he was required to register as a sex offender. I cashed the Duffy payroll check for Mr. Quick with funds I had available and deposited it into my bank account. Leon Quick proceeded to the Duck Inn Pub where he imbibed despite his state mandated alcohol rehabilitation counseling.
At the time this incident occurred I was aware Leon was a sex offender and an alcoholic. I did not know that he was indeed a child molester and would proceed to leer at women and children on Main Street. Mr. Quick had a history of stalking vulnerable women at NOAH. Please refer to previous correspondence forwarded to your department before the event regarding the Paccia child. Mrs. Paccia states that she has observed him stalking children at the Sturgis Charter School with binoculars where her child is enrolled. She lives in fear for her child and her friends. She wonders if she should remove her child from The Sturgis Charter School. She states she doesn’t feel any better about Mildred’s knowing that the system enables the proliferation and expansion of substandard services and expansion to Sandwich where her family makes their home.
Please reconsider the directive you have issued to Sergeant Sean Sweeney. Although the District Attorney is attempting to placate both the human service organizations and the business community, it does not appear prudent to sacrifice the safety of the general public. I realize that the District Attorney did not intend to jeopardize the community by suggesting such deference but inadvertently compromised the public interest in supporting this project.
I have forwarded the information to the parties mentioned and intend to increase the circle maintaining public information in regard to the organization to the parent teacher organizations of the local schools. I am hoping for some resolution on this matter soon.
Sincerely,
Mary Clements
(508) 790-7980
cc. David Daly, Esq.
Michael O’Keefe, Esq.
Michael Trudeau, Esq.
Paul Niedzwicki
Sergeant Sean Sweeney
Gary Brown, President of The Barnstable Town Council
Nancy Paccia
Philip Tracey, Esq.
Mr. William Henchy, Esq.
Chief John Miller
WELCOME TO DOWNTOWN HYANNIS! WHERE THE DIDDLERS RATE AND THE RAPISTS RULE! Mike O'Keefe was already dropping the ball in more ways than one with his position on the Barnstable Human Service Committee. O'Keefe was intially committed to improvement for the standard of services for the shelter and possible closure of this negligent organization. O'Keefe was discovered taking substantial campaign contributions from these negligent organizations and agencies. For letters to Mike O'Keefe addressing public safety concerns read on:
Mary Clements
241D Stevens Street
Hyannis, MA 02601
April 26, 2004
District Attorney Michael O’Keefe
Barnstable County Office of the District Attorney
PO Box 455
Barnstable, MA 02630
Dear Mr. O’Keefe,
Please note the correspondence to several public officials and attorneys with interests in regard to Dana’s Fields and NOAH. In addition I have enclosed documentation of campaign contributions made to you from Community Action Committee and Housing Assistance Corporation. During your tenure on the Barnstable Human Service Needs Committee a decision was made to dismantle the makeshift camps. The police action executed per the directive of Town Manager John Klimm was a clean maneuver that obviously required sound legal skill and judgment. The evidence that law enforcement collected demonstrated a compelling case requiring the necessary action to protect public health and safety. Moreover the legal expertise met all legal precedents preempting challenge by opposing parties. This was an exciting time for those following the controversial politics of the local human service establishment and its ardent supporters. For a short time it seemed that common sense might prevail in Hyannis.
Unfortunately there must have been sufficient pressure on you to accommodate the “homeless industry” in the downtown area. As the organizations involved lobbied for your support local law enforcement provided increased support to problem crack houses and wooded areas around the shelter. There was a concentrated effort to provide assistance to the homeless in downtown Hyannis. Police, fire and rescue personnel were used as human service workers while Rick Presbrey of Housing Assistance Corporation pursued his $11.5 million dollar farm project in Sandwich. The majority of applicants would be precluded from applying to the project because of significant criminal backgrounds.
The intent of the organization was to warehouse serious offenders at Mildred’s and return failed clients to Hyannis according to a guarantee provided to the residents of Sandwich. As I have explained, the majority of these clients that may potentially fail at rehabilitation and be transported to Barnstable will not originate from NOAH. This means an expansion of the industry and attraction of more homeless clients to an already saturated market. Because of the negligent operation of HAC/Duffy the community and local law enforcement have perpetual offenders running circles around them. After the killing of Jonathan Wessner, there was an increased effort to notify the public of sex offenders living and working in the area despite the organizations efforts to protect the privacy of recidivist offenders. This occurred shortly after Chief John Finnegan directed his public relations agent to sign off on the Mildred’s Chowder House Project. Police and rescue personnel continued to respond to “human service calls” while Alan Burt pressured the Council of Churches to resist the “slick and deceptive action” of law enforcement.
Please review all documents that pertain to criminal activity in Barnstable County and in particular offenses against children. I am particularly concerned in regard to a known child molester accosting an innocent child in Way’s News and the rape and murder of Jonathan Wessner. Past clients who remember him from several years ago have traced Paul Nolin to the shelter. This was confirmed by a uniformed police officer. Both men performed handy work for local organizations. I indeed cashed a payroll check drawn on The Duffy Clinic for Mr. Leon Quick. You will note him continuing to leer at women in front of The Hooters Restaurant in the photographs provided. He frequently imbibes at Hooters and The Duck Inn Pub adjacent to the Sturgis Charter School despite state mandated alcohol rehabilitation counseling. Bob Lindsay of the Duffy Clinic provided transportation to Lowell for his treatment.
You may recall Rick Presbrey publicly referred to me as irresponsible for stating that there is a significant number of criminal offenders residing at NOAH and surrounding properties. He did not respond to my suggestion that most parolees are homeless when released from incarceration.
Thank you for your time and attention.
Sincerely,
Mary Clements
cc. William Henchy, Esq.
Jason Talerman, Esq.
Paul Niedzwicki, Esq.
WARNING! WARNING! WARNING!
The following letter was forwarded to former President Gary Brown of the Barnstable Town Council. President Brown was an incredible advocate for public safety measures and shouldered a tremendous amount of grief for drawing a line in the sand on ineffective services for the homeless.
Mary Clements
72 North Street
Hyannis, MA 0261
December 17, 2003
Mr. Gary Brown
Barnstable Town Council
Barnstable Town Hall
367 Main Street
Hyannis, MA 02616
Dear Mr. Brown,
I have been following the crisis involving the homeless in Hyannis and have noted your comments regarding practicality and feasibility of renovating the Mildred’s Chowder House into an expanded center serving this needy population. Please consider the materials enclosed in addition to documents and information that have been forwarded to you via Mr. Gonzaga/Stuart Bornstein.
I understand that you have lobbied for state funds and requested assistance from associated government agencies to meet this regional problem. I would ask you to review any and all pertinent documentation that may suggest that the negligent standards of the predominant human service establishment may be complicit by precipitating the current crisis. It is entirely possible that the not-for-profit Housing Assistance Corporation and its associated spin off industry “The Duffy Health Clinic” may have created the current crisis by providing substandard services and negligent practices. Please review tax forms provided.
The organization often appears to serve as a charitable industry that rehabilitates the disenfranchised of society. The joint organizations have instead promoted an industry that generated a clientele and cash flow while providing services so negligent that vulnerable clients were forced out into the streets to make room for additional clients. The conditions at the shelter were indeed so hostile that emotionally and psychologically ill clients suffered exacerbation of their individual conditions. Please review documentation of policies and practices including my health records at said shelter. When the problem reached compelling proportions Town Officials and Law Enforcement Personnel responded appropriately and effectively to protect both client health and public safety.
The human service advocates supporting this substandard agency generated sufficient public outcry in regard to unfairness that more municipal resources were provided to support the negligent practices and substandard organization. This resulted in not only promotion of the status quo, but also forced the town and taxpayer to support and provide services to a clientele already mismanaged by the Housing Assistance Corporation. Meanwhile the organization pursued its spin-off Dana’s Field Project at a price tag of 11.5 million. Please review the architectural designs for the personal homes planned for two HAC Executives at a price tag of $578,000 and $482,000 respectively. Mr. Presbrey stated in the Sandwich Zoning Board proceedings that HAC takes a $200,000 loss annually by keeping the shelter open as “favor” to the town of Hyannis.
Please review all documents to procure funding for NOAH/DUFFY and the State Budget appropriations for these organizations. The organization has promised the residents of the Town of Sandwich that the clients that fail at rehabilitation will be returned to the NOAH Facility here in Hyannis. The combined human service organizations applying for funds for the Pilot House/NOAH expanded center indeed disputed that many if not most of the clients they have been serving are not rehabilitated and have not been provided effective treatment and services. Please review documents pertaining to the quality of services rendered in what intended to be a brief stay at NOAH. Livia Davis of Housing Assistance Corporation has promised extensive background checks by the Dana’s Fields Advisory Board with CORI checks performed by two parties on of which would be Chief Miller of the Sandwich Police Department. This agreement for public safety would preclude the majority of clients from becoming eligible for the consideration in the application process for the farm where Livia Davis and Tom Brigham and their respective families intend to make their prospective homes.
It appears that we may need to limit the number of “incoming wounded”. There is substantial evidence the shelter is operating at such a negligent standard that it presents a great risk to both vulnerable clients and an unsuspecting community. The Barnstable Human Services Needs Subcommittee was already addressing problems regarding homelessness at the time I began to notice grave deficiencies in services at the shelter. Livia Davis informed me that the organization was not going to send in another representative to the meeting because the meetings were becoming “accusatory in nature”. She did have Rick Brigham attend the meeting scheduled for the following morning where the decision to dismantle the camps was virtually made.
The town indeed followed a plan to “clean up the camps and to identify homeless in need”. The shelter Director Rick Brigham is on record in the Cape Cod Times supporting the effort but stated that the organization was at capacity and essentially not responsible for the crisis. There was a cry for financial support and a relief effort established by the Council of Churches. Housing Assistance Corporation continued to focus on an expansion project such as “Dana’s Fields. It appears that HAC has deliberately or inadvertently increased the number and the morbidity of people that have yet to be served, treated or rehabilitated. It appears that their strategy was to continue to do so at the expense of clients and the community in which they function.
I am recommending closure of the NOAH Shelter with an alternative system put in place. Funds that have been allocated to Housing Assistance Corporation can be redirected through federal receivership or court injunction. I recommend a network of permanent houses set up such as group homes that could provide necessary services. Ms. Heather Lowe who works for Baybridge and is connected with VINFEN has served on the Barnstable Human Service Needs Committee can give you a more comprehensive approach to what can be achieved for vulnerable and disadvantaged clients. Jemma Lambert also serving on the Barnstable Human Services Task Force has expertise in the field of gerontology and aging and I have confidence that she could provide you with a high standard with services that have been traditionally procured for the elderly. This most often does not include banning them for Maalox or eating a banana after bedtime.
The majority of clients are indeed struggling with criminal backgrounds and progressive sociopathic illness. The immersion of such personalities into a network where narcotics are plentiful and abundant is foolhardy at best. In an atmosphere or climate where a hostile and aggressive climate will further exacerbate existing conditions for not only the individual but also the community. Alan Burt states, “criminal halfway houses that were traditionally established for parolees have not proven successful for rehabilitation.” I am unsure that an innovative highly structured program instituted for this clientele that separates them from potential victims would not be more effective that allowing parolees to roam and rule the streets. It may be time for the human service industry and the community at large to concede that these individuals need to be returned to the auspices of the Department of Corrections.
Sincerely,
Mary Clements, RN
cc. John Klimm
Chief John Finnegan
Sergeant Sean Sweeney
David Daly, Esq.
Representative Thomas George, Esq.
Michael O’Keefe, Esq.
Paul Niedwicki, Esq.
William Henchy, Esq.
Stuart Bornstein
Arthur Tonini
Philip Magano
