Dear Mr. Khumalo and Select Board Members:

I’d like to begin by thanking Muriel for doing an excellent job with her review of police chief Joseph Bennett on Tuesday, February 27th. While it certainly was uncomfortable, it was heartening to see the Chief finally being held accountable for his actions. Muriel, I applaud you.

>> RELATED: Kramer calls for Independent Investigation of Police Chief

I also would like to thank Mary-Jo, Amy, and Shahidul, for so succinctly presenting our case, both visually and verbally, as to why they are being recalled.

Honestly, were it not so sad, it would be funny knowing that the Hopkinton Select Board meetings have become the best sh*t-show on TV. File this under “You can’t make this stuff up.”

Some are tone deaf. Mary-Jo? She’s Town deaf.

Per usual, Mary-Jo was the last to clue into the fact that Chief Bennett has done a lousy job at best. Muriel’s reply was spot-on; “Mary-Jo, you’ve been in ALL the meetings.”

Mary-Jo, do you read (or have you ever read) the material provided for EVERYONE prior to all SB meetings? Have you ever read the SB meetings’ agendas in full? Have you ever read HopNews? What about the Hopkinton Independent? Did you happen to read any of the protest signs as you drove through the rally on your way to fire Tim Brennan? Did you notice that many of the signs read, “FIRE THE CHIEF!”? Have you read any of the printed materials, signs, websites, or the newspaper mentioned above?

Why were you so shocked to find that someone on the Select Board (Muriel) did read the material listed above? It makes me wonder, aside from Muriel, have any of you on the Select Board EVER prepared in advance of a SB meeting? Clearly you don’t read the letters written to the SB, nor do you listen to the people speaking at the public forum (more on that later). Which begs the question, have any of you (other than Muriel) reviewed the MA Select Board Handbook, which is given to every single select board member in the Commonwealth?

Start here: Massachusetts Select Board Handbook

If you’d read the handbook, you’d have known that Muriel was doing her job as Chairperson of the SB last Tuesday night. Further, you’d have known (looking at you, Mary-Jo) that Muriel was unable to discuss her assessment of the chief with board members in advance of the meeting as it would have constituted a violation of the Massachusetts open meeting laws. By statute, performance reviews such as the chiefs’ are required to be done in an open meeting.) P.S. it’s in the handbook!

Ostensibly each of you has certified that you not only received the Open Meeting Law Materials, but that you understand the requirements and the consequences of violating them. Given your reaction on Tuesday, I must ask…how can that be?

This excerpt was taken from the aforementioned Select Board Handbook: Within two weeks of election or appointment, or the taking of the oath of office, whichever occurs later, all members of public bodies must complete a Certificate of Receipt of Open Meeting Law Materials, certifying that they have received the materials and understand the requirements of the Open Meeting Law and the consequences of violating it.

Amy, predictably, you contributed…nothing. Nice job trying to rescue the Chief by lobbing softball questions and simply repeating what Muriel already said (which, perhaps to your surprise, resulted only in the Chief’s trademark passive-aggressive response that was, essentially, no response at all).

Shahidul, in your thinly veiled attempt to appear relevant – and as if you hadn’t just been caught completely off guard – you somehow concocted a few riveting requests. I found it especially interesting when you told the Chief that you’d like to see some “data points” on things such as “exit trends” over the last few years. Upon hearing that, I thought to myself, Really, Shahidul? You’re asking him that now? You mean to tell me that you still don’t have that very relevant information in front of you? Or do you just want all of us to think that that very-telling data doesn’t exist? It’s beyond perplexing that you’d have the guts to ask that question, thereby revealing your complete ineptitude.

How can any Select Board Member reviewing the job of the Chief who’s been under such great scrutiny by both the public and the local news publications still not know the attrition rate data?

In fact, I had just reminded you about those “data points” during my Public Forum comment – yes, just moments before your inquiry. Had you been listening, Shahidul, you would have saved yourself the embarrassment of asking the question. Play back the tape; You’ll hear me.

FOURTEEN. The number is 14. I said that fourteen officers have left the HPD in the last three years. What’s more, I told you where they went. I also told you that half the department left under Chief Bennett. Perhaps you don’t realize how bad that is. But you will. Someone, someday, will need a cop to “serve and protect,” but there won’t be an officer available to respond. How do you play a match with half a team? You don’t. You forfeit.

Irfan, you were absent. Again. Your colleagues didn’t even seem to notice that you were missing, as there was no mention of you, or why you were missing, whatsoever. You’ve made yourself irrelevant. Congratulations.

Again, Select Board Members, how could you not have known this (i.e., an appropriate review of the Chief) was coming? Muriel wasn’t alone up there on Feb. 27th. Three out of four of you had no facts before you except those generated by the self-serving incompetent Chief. Only Muriel had done any digging, which is what you all were supposed to have done as the residents’ elected supervisors of a Section 97 “weak” Chief like Bennett.

He answers to you. Not vice versa. So why didn’t you prepare? Why is it that you didn’t demand – weeks prior – that the Chief produce evidence and details in support of the claims he had made in his very self-serving, one-sided, and ambiguous review?

Here’s a news flash. He can’t say “no” to you. You’re his boss. If he refuses to produce something that he’s obligated to produce, then fire him! That’s what bosses do!

And while I applaud Muriel for presenting at least some of the data that the Select Board was obligated to mention in its mid-year review of the Chief, pursuant to a fair and accurate assessment of the Chief, I question the need for yet another expensive external investigation (separate and distinct from the criminal investigation being conducted by the MSP at the Northwestern District Attorney’s Office).

I would like to remind you, and the rest of the board, that our tax base is not your slush fund. We don’t need an investigation into the Chief. You, as a Board, have a duty under these egregious circumstances (poor performance on all levels and the alleged crimes committed by Chief Bennett), to FIRE HIM NOW, lest you continue to expose this Town to even more liability for keeping him in command of HPD. You have every fact in your possession to make this determination.

This is taken directly from the SB handbook: Select Board may remove the chief or other officers for cause, after a hearing, at any time during their appointments.

Respectfully submitted,

Paula Garland, Hopkinton