Two colleagues of embattled School Committee member Scott W. Wood Jr. said they are “disappointed and saddened” by his alleged racist and sexist comments depicted in a decade-old background check, and a sitting city councilor and mayoral contender decries, what she calls, “hatred and depravity” by her opponent.
On the eve of a public rally that seeks an investigation and possible “censure” of Wood, School Committee members Paul A. Magliocchietti and Richard J. Rosa said in a joint statement Thursday night, “Hate speech in any form cannot be tolerated.”
The three elected city officials were reacting to a story WHAV broke Monday, reporting Wood is no longer working as a police patrolman as a result of allegations made in a 2013 background check written by since-retired Deputy Police Chief Donald Thompson and apparently backed up by a Feb. 15, 2022 review by Haverhill Police Capt. Meaghan Paré.
WHAV obtained the background checks after making several public records requests dating back more than a year in search of answers as to why Wood did not appear to be working as a Haverhill police officer despite his hiring in 2020.
“It’s been more than 72 hours, and he (Wood) has not directly addressed the allegations or denied making the hateful comments attributed to him. It is also disturbing that, allegedly, city officials knew of this investigative report but did not provide the Haverhill School Committee with the information. Instead, according to the news story, a deal was struck to destroy the report, leaving us in the dark,” said Magliocchetti and Rosa.
Reached by telephone Sunday, former Police Chief Alan R. DeNaro said “The mayor was very, very, very upset” about the original background check…In retrospect, he was correct.” Nevertheless, the city gave Wood “three years to mature up.” Wood conceded last week in a lawsuit he filed against the city relating to losing his job as a police officer that he entered into the agreement on the understanding the 2013 background check would be destroyed.
DeNaro said there were also at least two mistakes from the original background check—failure to obtain Wood’s side of the story on each allegation and not conducting a forensic check of Wood’s computer to confirm he was actually the one sending the off-color messages.
Magliocchetti and Rosa reasoned the School Committee should have copies of the investigative reports from 2013 and 2022 “so that we can assess this serious situation without relying on third parties. Most importantly, we reject racism and hate in all forms and believe Haverhill Public Schools students, their families, and our staff should feel welcome, safe and supported.”
Earlier this week, City Councilor Melinda E. Barrett, who is also seeking election as Haverhill’s mayor, asked why the city would even agree in 2013 to destroy Wood’s background check “particularly when the allegations pertained to racism and sexual harassment?”
“Like many of you, I was disturbed about Monday’s story on WHAV. To say I am shocked about this entire situation is an understatement. I had always heard rumors about the reason Mr. Wood was not a police officer, but I had no idea of the depth of hatred and depravity that was behind it. I fully trust the veracity of the due diligence and investigative work of the Haverhill Police department and other law enforcement agencies that have refused to have Mr. Wood as a part of their organizations,” she said.