#BraintreeSettlesLawsuit So As To Avoid Even More Damages Imposed. Will Quincy Mayor Tom Koch do Likewise?

Image via the Boston Globe

— News via Quincy Quarry News – News, Opinion and Commentary

Wrongfully convicted and then incarcerated for thirty-six years
Image via the Patriot Ledger

The Town of Braintree just announced that it agreed to pay out $15 million dollars over a wrongful conviction  that had caused now 72 year old Frederick Weichel to suffer 36 years in prison for a crime that he did not commit.

Braintree officials settled as they were validly concerned that should the matter go to trial a jury could well impose an even greater damages award.

At the same time, Braintree officials deserve props for their handling of this matter. 

Specifically, Mr. Weichel’s Attorney Mark Loevy-Reyes said his client appreciated the respect showed to him:

“He (Weichel, ed.) thought the town really understood what he had been through.  They not only showed willingness to come to the bargaining table, but to look at him as a real person who had suffered these harms. That made a lasting impression on him.”

In an aside, the controversial and now late William “BIll” Delahunt was the Norfolk County District Attorney at the time of Weichel’s conviction and so arguably setting the stage that wrongful prosecutions look to perhaps be a pattern or practice of Norfolk County District Attorneys over the decades to arguably the present time.

City Hall, Sh*tty Hall …
A Quincy Quarry News exclusive file photo

In any event, Braintree’s recently doing the right thing to right a wrong baits the question: will the City of Quincy will follow Braintree’s lead.

How so?

For starters, the City of Quincy has been slapped with a wrongful death suit over the 2019 Squantum sucker punching homicide with the widow seeking $8 million at last report. 

Reasonable assessments of this tragedy are that the City of Quincy has no viable defense whatsoever for the wrongful death suit. 

For example, the City of Quincy is the landlord of the bar tied to the homicide and is thus legally in the crosshairs as regards liability as the deep pocket given the legal doctrine of joint and several liability.

Down and out …
Image via dontmesswithtaxes.com

Further problematic, the City of Quincy had not duly suspended the bar’s license to pour adult libations, much less shut it down, at the time of the killing given the bar’s failure to fulfill various requirements to see its liquor license renewed annually. 

in particular, how the former Public Health Commissioner, the former police chief who is one of Mayor Koch’s brothers-in-law, and the City Clerk, all of whom make up the local liquor licensing board were woefully remiss at seeing mandatory rules and regulations duly upheld.

Further problematic yet, the City of Quincy did not duly insist that the bar have liability insurance in place per standard operating practice by any and all landlords who rent space to a tenant who serves liquor.

Adding insult to fatal injury, it is Quincy Quarry News’ understanding that the Koch Maladministration has since long slowed walked reaching a settlement, if not arguably all but blown off paying the piper for its malfeasance;

Burn baby burn!
A 2009 Reuters image

In short, the Koch Machine’s now years-long dragging out of things in this matter is playing with fire. 

At a minimum, the damages claim is likely increasing per the standard 12% annual simple interest penalty for slow paying damages..

Even worse, this is the sort of lawsuit no defendant in her or in this case his right mind wants to see decided by a jury. 

Simply put, a jury would likely hammer the defendant with significantly greater damages given both the underlying facts and how dragging out things has further added to the emotional damage of the victim’s family.

The City of Quincy is also facing grave problem with its illegal taking control of the land underneath the Adams Academy and where the Quincy Hysterical Society is a tenant.

Specifically, the City of Quincy looks to be endeavoring to shortchange and so stiff the school girls at the Woodward School for Girls on roughly $10 million for land illegally seized by the city.

How so?

The stolen property …
Image via Wikipedia

Via the the Koch Maladministration engaging in basically de facto grand theft by wrongly claiming that the City of Quincy owned the land underneath the building.

So what the fact that multiple court decisions, appellate rulings and other judicial findings against the City of Quincy have gutted its bogus claim of ownership.

In turn, given comparable land purchases, what should be paid to Woodward, including late payment penalties, and all court costs likely to be imposed upon the city, upwards of $16 million or more looks to be the least local taxpayers should expect to be stuck with paying to cover the Koch Machine’s latest koching-up of things.  

“It’s only taxpayer’s money …”
Image via cheatsheet.com

Further, if one figures in how interest rates on municipal bonds have gone up since when the City of Quincy could have settled both of these indefensible matters, the Koch Maladministration’s truculence has likely fueled upwards of double the all inclusive costs to settle these matters.

Even worse for local taxpayers looking likely to cover the tab, punitive damages could further be added to the cost should this matter go to trial.

In short, as well as yet again, Only in Quincy …

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