BOSTON (State House News Service) — Criminal proceedings can proceed against two former Holyoke Soldiers' Home officials accused of negligence that led to the deaths of dozens of veterans early in the COVID-19 pandemic, the state's highest court ruled Thursday.
In a 5-2 decision that reversed a lower court's dismissal of grand jury indictments, the Supreme Judicial Court said prosecutors should have a chance to present their case at trial against Bennett Walsh, the facility's former superintendent, and David Clinton, its former medical director.
Justice Dalila Argaez Wendlandt wrote in the majority ruling that testimony presented to the grand jury "constituted probable cause to believe that the defendants violated the elder neglect statute" and concluded Superior Court Judge Edward McDonough "erred in dismissing the indictments" in November 2021.
Justices David Lowy and Elspeth Cypher dissented, with Lowy writing that there was "insufficient evidence before the grand jury to support a finding of probable cause that the defendants acted wantonly or recklessly, as required to support an indictment."
Former Attorney General Maura Healey, who is now governor, announced the charges against Walsh and Clinton in September 2020, alleging that they made a series of decisions that ran counter to infection control protocols and exacerbated COVID-19's toll. The deadly outbreak in the Holyoke facility rocked Massachusetts, prompting a series of investigations and regulatory reforms. -
Written by Chris Lisinski/SHNS