Questions remain unanswered in the death of a Massachusetts State Police recruit exactly one week ago.
Enrique Delgado-Garcia's family is seeking justice, but officials say picking a lead investigator in the case has many challenges.
Exactly one week after Delgado-Garcia's death, an outside agency still hasn't been found to investigate. Because the recruit died during a state police training exercise, detectives there can't oversee the case. Complicating matters is the fact that Delgado-Garcia once worked as a victim witness advocate for the Worcester County District Attorney's Office.
A spokesperson for the district attorney said they have been in discussion with multiple agencies about handing over the case and are waiting to hear back from them so they can make a decision soon.
In a statement to NBC10 Boston, the DA's spokesperson said, "[Joseph Early] had discussions with independent local, state, and federal entities regarding taking over this matter due to the offices conflict as Enrique was a former employee of our office. Decisions have not all been made by the four entities at this time. Decisions regarding next steps of the investigation including whether to gather evidence in a legal forum such as an inquest will be the decision of whoever accepts the case."
"As the district attorney said he is looking to send this case to someone who will give it an independent review and who has no stake in the outcome of the matter," the spokesperson concluded.
We do know that Delgado-Garcia wound up with serious injuries, including missing teeth, skull damage and a fractured neck. But we still don't know his cause of death.
As that process lingers, people are questioning what trainees experience at the state police academy and who provides oversight and accountability.
On Thursday, NBC10 Boston caught up with Gov. Maura Healey and asked her for her thoughts on the situation.
"As a former attorney general, former prosecutor and now as governor, I want to make sure that we have the very best in terms of instruction and training at the academy," she said. "I'm proud of the fact that the Massachusetts State Police Academy is top notch in the country. Obviously, there was a tragic incident with a recruit who lost his life. We don't know what fully happened here. We're going to get answers to that."
Some of Delgado-Garcia's family and friends have said they suspect foul play. They are demanding answers, and his family has already retained an attorney.
