John P. Harty Sr. had long been haunted by the death of his friend, a State Police trooper gunned down on a rural highway in Central Massachusetts in 1951.
Though police suggested the likely killer died in prison decades ago, Harty was never convinced. So last year, Harty and his granddaughter asked to see the records of Alje Savela’s murder themselves.
But the Worcester district attorney’s office refused — insisting the 67-year-old investigation was still ongoing — even after the secretary of state’s office found the DA didn’t offer good enough reasons to withhold the files.
That’s when Attorney General Maura Healey’s office stepped in — on the side of secrecy. It is one of a number of recent cases in which Healey has sided with agencies to keep records closed, despite her repeated calls for more transparency in government. Read more…