Prosecutors say Natick police initially shrugged off allegations that Officer James Quilty groped a dispatcher. And even now, with the officer facing criminal charges, the town refuses to release any information or documents.
to release the records when she was campaigning for the office last year, but has yet to do so. Her office declined to say when it would release the documents.
Within days, a sergeant heard about the incident and reported it to his supervisor, Lieutenant Cara Rossi. Prosecutors, however, said in an opposition to Quilty’s motion to dismiss the indictments that Rossi initially failed to follow up. According to prosecutors, instead of interviewing the dispatcher in private, Rossi approached her in the open office, directly in front of Quilty, and asked her if she had anything to report. The dispatcher said she didn’t. Again, Rossi, who did not respond to requests for comment, dropped the matter.
But the town never publicly disclosed the allegations or the law firm’s report. Nor is there any sign the town handled the case like a criminal matter. The town said it doesn’t have any records of an arrest, police report or request for criminal charges on file. Finally, in December 2021, Quilty was indicted on three counts of indecent assault and battery and placed on unpaid leave again.
Meanwhile, the town of Ashland named a new police chief last spring: Rossi, the Natick police lieutenant who prosecutors say initially shrugged off the allegations against Quilty.