The veteran attorney who led a probe into the Hinton drug lab scandal more than a decade ago will once again be called into action, to investigate the death of a Massachusetts State Police recruit.
Attorney General Andrea Campbell on Monday tapped David Meier to “independently and impartially” examine the case of Enrique Delgado-Garcia, a Worcester resident who died earlier this month following a State Police Academy training exercise in a boxing ring.
“Trooper Delgado-Garcia lost his life while training to protect and serve the Commonwealth, and I want to thank his family and the public for their patience as we sought to identify the most appropriate authority to investigate the facts surrounding his tragic death,” Campbell said in a statement. “Today, I am appointing Attorney David Meier to lead that investigation. Mr. Meier has deep experience in death investigations and will ensure independence and integrity in this matter.”
Meier is perhaps most well-known for his work as special counsel for Gov. Deval Patrick in the Hinton drug lab scandal, which saw former chemist Annie Dookhan convicted of falsifying lab results in what WBUR last year described as “the largest drug lab scandal in U.S. history.” Meier’s team identified tens of thousands of individuals accused of drug crimes based on potentially falsified evidence.
He worked in the Middlesex County district attorney’s office from 1986 to 1996, then the Suffolk County district attorney’s office from 1996 to 2008, serving under Suffolk DAs Ralph Martin and Daniel Conley. Meier eventually held the job of chief of homicide in the Suffolk DA’s office, overseeing homicide investigations and prosecution.
Most recently, Meier works in private practice as a partner at Todd & Weld LLP, where he chairs the firm’s government investigations and criminal defense practice group.
In a statement provided by Campbell’s office, Meier said his probe into Delgado-Garcia’s death “will be undertaken professionally, thoroughly, and responsibly.”
“The Delgado-Garcia family, their community, and the public have been waiting patiently. It is now time to get to work,” Meier said.
Campbell’s office said Meier will be given “complete authority to select his own investigative and legal team and to make his own independent decisions about the facts, the evidence, and the course of the investigation.” The attorney general’s office expects to be briefed over the course of the probe, while the State Police department “will have no role in the investigative team or decision-making process,” Campbell’s office said.
Worcester County District Attorney Joe Early Jr. reportedly had jurisdiction over Delgado-Garcia’s death, but signaled a potential conflict of interest because the State Police recruit previously worked for him.
Delgado-Garcia’s death -- and subsequent reports about alleged hazing and intense conditions at the training academy -- prompted renewed scrutiny of the Mass. State Police, which has been rocked by a series of controversies in recent years.
Gov. Maura Healey earlier this month named Geoffrey Noble, a former New Jersey State Police second-in-command, as the next Mass. State Police superintendent and colonel. Noble will become the first head of the department to come from outside its ranks when he takes command next month.
Healey on Monday praised Campbell’s decision to name Meier as responsible for the investigation into Delgado-Garcia’s death, and she noted that the state police department halted boxing training after the tragedy.
“I’m grateful to Attorney General Campbell for appointing an experienced, respected prosecutor to investigate the tragic death of Enrique Delgado-Garcia,” Healey said in a statement. “Enrique’s family and the public deserve answers about what happened here. The academy has suspended boxing training. In addition, I will be instructing new Colonel Geoff Noble to review academy training and policy practices to ensure they best serve the men and women of the State Police.”
