Brockton school cops worked without approval since January

BROCKTON — The police who guard Brockton Schools weren't appointed in January, as required by city law. They have been coming to work in plain clothes instead of their uniforms because of the error.

The city corrected the problem Wednesday night. In a special session of the city council, six councilors voted unanimously to confirm the appointments.

It isn't clear if the mistake leaves the city open to legal challenges for actions the officers took from January to July. The city's top lawyer, Solicitor Megan Bridges, as of Friday morning had not responded to a Wednesday afternoon request for information. A spokesperson for Mayor Robert Sullivan also didn't return a call or email.

The city's law on appointing special officers gives a specific timeline:

"The mayor, subject to confirmation by the city council, shall from time to time appoint, upon recommendation of the chief of police, such number of special police officers as he shall deem proper. Such appointments shall expire on the fourth Monday of January succeeding the date of appointment."

Officers worked 177 days without formal approval

Before Wednesday, councilors confirmed the last set of 10 special officers on Jan. 23, 2023, according to city council meeting minutes . That means the appointments expired on Jan. 22, 2024. It was 177 days before the city fixed the error Wednesday.

At Wednesday's special meeting, 24-year veteran Jason Mosley was the only officer in attendance. He wore plain clothes. Councilors themselves had low attendance, barely meeting the minimum number of councilors required: six. Ward 4 City Councilor Susan Nicastro completed the quorum and the resulting meeting took just 3 minutes and 7 seconds . After the unanimous 6-0 vote to confirm the officers, Ward 2 City Councilor Maria Tavares arrived.

The Enterprise has reached out to several defense lawyers to see if the error provides an opening to challenge actions the officers took while they were not correctly appointed.

Mosley declined to say how long he's been working in civilian clothes.

Who was appointed a school cop on Wednesday?

Here is the list of the school police officers whose appointments were confirmed by city council on Wednesday. These appointments expire Jan. 27, 2025:

• Darnell Campbell
• Alicia Fernandes
• Rendy Jean-Louis
• Adelson Mendes
• Alexander Moreta
• Jason Mosley
• Astrid Silva
• Eric Teixeira
• Daniel Vaughn

Councilors added Campbell's name on Wednesday as a late filing. He is on paid administrative leave, the Brockton Public Schools confirmed on Friday, July 12. Citing privacy protections, the schools declined to say why.

Send your news tips to reporter Chris Helms by email at CHelms@enterprisenews.com or connect on X at @HelmsNews .

This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: Brockton school cops worked without approval since January