Around New England

Retired State Trooper Says He Was Targeted For Outing No-Show Sergeant

May 22, 2018

Retired Massachusetts State Trooper Lawrence Smith says that when he showed up for work on June 4, 2014 he found that a sergeant who was supposed to be at the barracks in Newbury was actually at home.

It mattered because the trooper who was covering for the sergeant not he desk at the barracks didn’t know basic information about patrols on the road, including which troopers were performing them and where they were, Smith told MassLive.com.

Smith says that when he wrote about that embarrassing detail in the barracks’ official log, he was subjected to a baseless disciplinary report and harassment.

Smith, who eventually got the disciplinary report overturned, retired as a sergeant earlier this year. But he has refused to end the matter, seeking to clear his name and see what actions the State Police took and why.

His lawyer says he has been unable to get records pertaining to the dispute, even though he is entitled to them, according to MassLive.com.