Tom Reilly needs to stop talking about it. So does Kerry Healey.
Reilly's steady stream of protestations shows he can't fathom why his
call to John Conte might have been objectionable, which hints at a
troubling lack of self-awareness. As for Healey's incendiary claim that Reilly
obstructed a criminal investigation, let me just say that the
lieutenant governor should have followed
my advice. Right now, this back-and-forth is only good for two people:
Deval Patrick and
Christy Mihos.
Here's State House News Service's latest update on Reilly v. Healey:
WAR OF WORDS OVER ACCIDENT CASE CONTINUES BETWEEN REILLY, HEALEY
By Amy Lambiaso
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE
amy.lambiaso@statehousenews.com
STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, JAN. 9, 2006….Attorney General Thomas Reilly on Monday
accused Gov. Mitt Romney and Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey of exploiting for
political purposes the family of two Southborough sisters who were killed
in a car accident last October.
Speaking to reporters following an anti-crime press conference that he and
Healey attended, Reilly said the lieutenant governor and governor commented
on the case before they knew the facts and further questioned Healey’s
character for not apologizing to the family.
“This is about the privacy of a family to be protected in situations like
that,” Reilly said. “Anyone that would exploit this family’s situation and
this family’s grief, for whatever reason and were part of this, have caused
a great deal of harm and they should be ashamed of themselves. Anyone,
including anyone who had anything to do with this, making charges,
accusations.”
Reilly further said Healey was “absolutely among” the people whom he was
referring to. When asked by a reporter what it says about Healey that she
has not apologized to the family, Reilly said: “It tells you all you need
to know about her. All you need to know.”
Reilly’s comments came after Healey’s Sunday morning appearance on CBS4’s
“Keller At Large,” during which Healey alleged Reilly “managed to stifle
and probably obstruct a criminal investigation into whether or not there
was a violation of our social host law, the idea that people shouldn’t be
offering alcohol to minors or providing a place where minors could consume
alcohol.”
On the show, Healey, Reilly’s potential opponent in this year’s race for
governor, responded to a question regarding Reilly’s involvement in an
investigation into whether Shauna and Meghan Murphy were drunk the night of
the fatal accident. Reilly last week confirmed he called Worcester County
District Attorney John Conte in November to ensure the Murphy sisters’
medical records were not released to the media.
“The lieutenant governor obviously didn’t have the facts, the governor
didn’t have the facts,” Reilly said. “They never should have stepped into
this. They never should have exploited this family’s grief, but they did.
The harm is done now.”
Healey’s campaign office fired back at Reilly, claiming the attorney
general initially “interjected politics” into the situation, said Timothy
O’Brien, a Healey campaign spokesman.
“He’s the one who started this,” O’Brien said. “There are other people that
are raising questions. This isn’t just Kerry Healey. A lot of people want
to know what his role was.”
Northborough Police Chief Mark Leahy, who was investigating the case
because the Murphy sisters were returning from a house in Northborough when
the accident occurred, told the Associated Press last week the
investigation was impeded by Conte’s decision not to release the medical
records to his department.
Leahy today declined to comment on the case; news outlets have reported
that Conte says he provided the medical records to the Northborough Police.
The investigation was closed last Thursday.
In response to Healey's comments that he may have obstructed a criminal
investigation, Reilly today said: “That’s a very strong thing to say. And
if you say something like that you should be able to back it up, and she
cannot back it up. She stepped out here and made comments, as did the
governor, they made comments they cannot back up, before they had the facts.”
Healey today declined to elaborate on her call for Reilly to explain his
involvement in the case or on the comments she made during the show, which
was taped on Friday morning, saying: “I asked that the questions be
answered, and that’s always appropriate for public officials.”
Reilly has maintained that his involvement in the case was an effort to
protect the family. Christopher Murphy, Shauna and Meghan’s father,
contributed $300 to Reilly’s gubernatorial campaign last June.
O’Brien further defended the lieutenant governor’s inquiry into Reilly’s
role in the investigation. “Tom Reilly has not been forthcoming about his
involvement in this investigation. The public and the lieutenant governor
have every right to ask the questions.”
Romney and Healey raised several questions last week after news reports of
Reilly’s involvement surfaced. Romney questioned whether Reilly had “gotten
the message” that Beacon Hill is trying to crack down on drunken driving,
and while acknowledging he didn’t know the full circumstances of the
accident, further asked: “Why would we ever want to hush up the truth about
alcohol in an accident?”