The more we discover about the shady police handling of the recent incident on Cape Cod involving alcohol, unregistered firearms and the son of the colonel of the Massachusetts State Police, the worse it looks for all concerned.
Finally, after weeks of my inquiries regarding the rather dodgy chain of events, one of Col. Christopher Mason’s lackeys issued the following statement:
“Col. Mason has not and will not seek any involvement or influence over the independent judicial process involving a member of his family. Furthermore, he will appropriately refrain from any further public statement on this pending matter.”
Well, we’ll see about that, won’t we?
In case you’re new to this latest tawdry tale, the colonel’s 22-year-old son ingested a bad ice cube late on the evening of Feb. 27. When he came to the attention of the Barnstable PD, he was passed out, hanging out the door of his 2013 Jeep Wrangler at 12:15 a.m.
On Tuesday, a clerk magistrate decided to issue a complaint against the privileged lad for improper storage of five firearms.
His vehicle was turned off, which meant Reid Mason was not charged with OUI. But the cops did find five firearms in the SUV, including two rifles and an unregistered Glock 17 that “has been unidentified on the registered owner.”
Hmmm. Does that mean that the colonel’s son was in possession of what they used to call a “throw down,” or was the mysterious Glock 17 perhaps one of those fearsome new “ghost guns?”
The Barnstable PD produced two reports on the incident, two months apart. We still haven’t seen the first one. The second report says the guns were unloaded. No word on how the firearms are described in the initial one that they’re still refusing to release.
The report we do have in hand was written by one of the responding cops, Eric J. Rogorzenski.
In an incredible coincidence, the 2018 Town of Barnstable payroll indicates that both Officer Rogorzesnki and defendant Mason were summer cops – “Seas Community Service Officers.”
Questions, questions, questions.
Who was the “family member” who drove Reid Mason home that morning? Why won’t the colonel tell us whether it was him? Why won’t Col. Mason release his phone and vehicle logs for that morning?
The incident occurred Feb. 28. Why is the second report dated May 4? What happened to the first report?
The May 4 report by Mason’s former co-worker says that the cops asked the district attorney “to review my interpretation of intoxication and its influence on control as it applies to the improper storage situation.”
Huhhhh? The colonel’s son was reeking of booze, “his eyes were red and glassy and (he) had a difficult time answering questions.”
It took Mason’s buddy more than two months to figure this out — and only after several of us in the media started asking pointed questions?
Another question concerns the Barnstable PD’s public daily log. We’ve reported that the initial stop Feb. 28 was not reported on the log for reasons that the cops have steadfastly refused to discuss.
Now, after the release of documents by the court, we discover that two days later, on March 2, cops were dispatched to the Masons’ home near Cape Cod Community College to handle a “firearms surrender” by Reid — his 20-gauge Benelli Montefeltro shotgun.
So I checked the Barnstable PD log for March 2. Surprise, surprise — no mention of the firearm surrender at the colonel’s home either. However, the Barnstable PD did consider a “dog barking” call at 6:56 p.m. worthy of note that day.
Covering this story, I’ve learned a lot more than I ever wanted to know about the hackerama on Cape Cod. It’s out of control, just like everywhere else.
The soon-to-be-getting-a-pay raise $155,084-a-year clerk who okayed the hearing was Charles Ardito. His father was a judge. Ardito stepped aside for the hearing, given the, uh, conflicts of interest.
What an interesting crew turned out for Mason’s hearing. Sitting in the back of the courtroom was Barnstable Lt. Mark Mellyn, who bought his house in Centerville from the future colonel, Christopher Mason.
Also in attendance was the local soon-to-be-getting-a-pay raise $184,694-a-year Judge John Julian. He’s a lifelong payroll patriot, whose brother Jim was a second-generation hack for Billy Bulger, Whitey’s little brother.
Jim Julian still remains on the UMass payroll for $419,259 a year.
The police report indicates that, before he passed out in his Jeep, Reid Mason had been knocking them back at the 19th Hole, a popular local hack gin mill that was owned by Christopher Doherty until his death in 2019.
According to his online obituary, Doherty was the brother of one Brendan Doherty, who used to be … wait for it … the colonel of the Rhode Island State Police.
The late 19th Hole co-owner’s other brother was one Ed Doherty, who used to be … wait for it … a clerk-magistrate, in the Wrentham District Court.
A former bartender at this fine establishment where the elite meet to eat is a lesser-known member of a Worcester County hack family known for two generations of embarrassing political scandals, up to the present moment.
In fact, the 19th Hole is a favorite summer watering-hole for assorted Worcester County courthouse hacks. Some evenings, in fact, you might hear this sad question being asked of a lifetime Worcester layabout, “And how’s poor Ali doing these days?”
Barnstable is the summer playground of the Kennedy family, so it’s easy to understand the apparent breakdown of the justice system there over the decades.
Did I mention that the No. 2 guy in the MSP, Richard Warmington, who now makes $248,083 a year, started his cop career at the Barnstable PD? I asked the State Police if Warmington has made any calls on young Mason’s behalf, but the State Police stonewalling continues.
All I know is, if I were pitching a screenplay to Hollywood about the political/police demimonde that is Barnstable County, I would tell the money men, “Think Barney Fife. Think Sheriff Buford T. Justice. Only drunk and disorderly.”