New documents uncovered by the NBC10 Boston Investigators show the Lawrence mayor tried to avoid an investigation into the acting police chief, a political ally he had appointed to the important public safety position.
Last March, the Massachusetts POST Commission suspended William Castro’s law enforcement certification after he engaged in the vehicle chase of a suspect wanted for writing a bad check.
The suspension order from POST said the chase violated department policies and accused Castro of being untruthful about the incident by reporting that he thought it was a bank robbery. The oversight agency said it was also probing questionable hiring practices.
Video of the incident obtained by NBC10 Boston shows Castro pursuing a Mercedes in his unmarked department vehicle through the streets of Lawrence in the middle of the day last February. At one point, Castro followed the suspect vehicle onto a sidewalk and later into lanes of oncoming traffic on a bridge.
“You could not chase for that. There’s no gray area,” said Sgt. Mike Simard, the president of the superior officers' police union, who responded to the scene that day. “Luckily, no one was hurt, but our officers were put at risk and so was the public.”
Following the incident, the lieutenant in charge of the internal affairs unit compiled a summary of his findings for Mayor Brian DePeña, who had appointed his chief of staff to the police chief position in October 2023.
In his written response, DePeña said he did not believe Castro’s behavior was inappropriate and justified further investigation.
“I have concluded there is insufficient evidence to move forward with this matter,” DePeña wrote. “I believe (Castro) acted assertively and quickly in an attempt to safeguard the citizens of the City of Lawrence.”
“I believe his response to be truthful,” DePeña added.
However, the lieutenant reported the incident to the POST Commission, saying in an email he “cannot in good conscience” close out the investigation because “it does not appear any meaningful investigation or even the appearance of one was conducted.”
Following Castro’s suspension by POST, city leaders eventually hired Daniel Bennett, the state’s former secretary of public safety, to conduct an independent investigation.
When the time came for Bennett to interview Castro about the allegations last October, the acting police chief did not appear.
The following day, an email from DePeña’s senior adviser told Bennett to “halt any investigation that is currently underway by your investigative firm.”
Meantime, the personnel director who had served Castro with the order to appear for the investigative interview was suddenly no longer at City Hall.
That timing was not lost on Councilor Wendy Luzon during a recent discussion about the controversy in a public meeting.
“What a coincidence,” Luzon said. “Just for the record, what a coincidence we lost a great employee.”
The former personnel director declined to comment to NBC10 Boston and said he had recently resigned from his position with the city. Payroll records show he received a $65,000 lump sum payment at the end of the year.
When Bennett finished his report, he determined Castro violated department policy, broke laws, and recommended he be fired.
However, while Castro continued collecting his $210,000 salary to stay home on administrative leave, the Lawrence mayor did not act on the recommendation.
Instead, he ordered a second investigation to enhance transparency into the process, according his remarks during an interview late last year.
A spokesperson for DePeña said he would be making no public remarks about the Castro situation until the release of the second investigation, which is expected soon.
Last week, Castro returned to his previous chief of staff job at City Hall. It was a contractual arrangement he had worked out with DePeña when he’d been appointed to the police chief position.