Worcester DA denies wrongdoing in MSP 'Troopergate' scandal

Worcester County District Attorney Joe Early vehemently denies any wrongdoing in the recent State Police scandal involving the arrest report of a judge's daughter.

Early denies his office did anything wrong, even after a recent report claims the DA was involved.

Boston 25 News reporter Bob Ward confronted the DA on Monday afternoon, inquiring into his office's involvement in the scandal.

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When asked if it was a mistake to ask for the report to be redacted and why he did it, Early replied, "First off, no one asked for the report to be redacted, all the employees at the district attorney's office acted properly and lawfully."

For the first time, Early took on tough questions about the so-called "Troopergate" scandal, a scandal that pushed State Police Col. Richard McKeon into early retirement and prompted two state investigations.

At the center of the scandal is the DUI arrest of Ali Bibaud, the daughter of a district court judge who once worked for the DA.

The move to redact, or remove, parts of the arrest report was due to statements Bibaud allegedly made, in which the arresting trooper quoted her as saying she used sexual favors to buy drugs.

An independent State Police report released Friday found:

"Early told McKeon that changes could be made to the report to remove the offensive language, that revision of the report was 'proper and within accepted procedure.'"

The DA, however, denies he or his office did anything wrong.

When asked if the order or the request to redact came from the colonel and not his office, Early said, 'We did not ask anyone to change the report.'"

According to the State Attorney General's report, McKeon ordered the arresting trooper to change the report for the judge's daughter after several personal conversations between he and Early. The report states:

"When asked, DA Early could not recall another instance in which he had contacted a police department or otherwise intervened in a matter because of such concerns."

"All standard protocols were followed here and that's what we do," said Early. "How it looks is not my concern. My concern is we follow our rules and we follow our regulations."

Early is up for re-election in 2018. Blake Rubin, another candidate running for Worcester County District Attorney, is calling for Early's resignation.

"The request to revise the arrest report of Ms. Bibaud by DA Early to Col. McKeon smacks of special and preferential treatment for a 'connected' individual that the average person charged with a criminal offense that is not 'connected' would certainly not receive," Rubin said in a press release. "That DA Early chose to bring one report to the attention of law enforcement, which involved the daughter of a judge, does not appear to be a coincidence."

However, Early said he's looking forward to the campaign and is not resigning.

Cox Media Group