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Statement of Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan

Posted on: May 27, 2014 - 3:38pm

In August 2013, I asked former Essex District Attorney and Secretary of Public Safety Kevin M. Burke and Norfolk First Assistant District Attorney Jeanmarie Carroll to conduct an independent review of the conduct of the Middlesex District Attorney’s office in the handling of the domestic violence case against Jared Remy in the Waltham District Court.  I asked them to conduct a thorough, fact-finding assessment to determine whether any mistakes were made, or whether office policies and procedures in these types of cases needed to be modified.

I stated at that time that I would do two things:

First, I said I would immediately implement recommendations on procedural changes needed.
 
Second, I said I would release the findings after the case had concluded, so as not to prejudice the defendant’s fair trial rights.  Now that Mr. Remy has been convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, I am releasing the findings.

The review found, “in this instance, the absence of a dialogue among colleagues or request for a supervisor’s opinion for both the assistant district attorney and the victim witness advocate is striking. We find that critical information that was available at the time of arraignment and additional critical information readily available…was not given appropriate attention or weight.”
 
Prior to receiving the findings, I instituted several procedural changes in the office. The most significant were changes to ensure increased communication between colleagues and a change on bail recommendations. Previously, assistant district attorneys in the District Courts had the discretion to make bail recommendations themselves.  Each recommendation in a domestic violence case now requires the review and approval of a supervisor or second prosecutor. In light of this and other changes I instituted immediately following the events of August 15, 2013, Attorneys Burke and Carroll, “do not believe any comprehensive overhaul is needed.”