House probe of allegations of inappropriate behvior by Rep. Paul McMurtry nearing conclusion

STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, MARCH 13, 2019....The House investigation into allegations of inappropriate behavior by Rep. Paul McMurtry toward an incoming woman legislator at a House retreat appears to be nearing its conclusion, with a summary of the findings potentially being made public as soon as Wednesday.

The House adopted an order on Wednesday morning that would allow House Counsel Jim Kennedy to file an executive summary of the complete investigatory report with the clerk that would be made available to the members and posted to the Legislature's website.

Asked if that meant the investigation into McMurtry had concluded, House Speaker Robert DeLeo said, "I would advise you to stay tuned."

The Boston Globe in January reported on allegations that McMurtry, a Dedham Democrat, had "walked up behind an incoming legislator and grabbed her backside" during a cocktail hour at the House's traditional post-election retreat at UMass Amherst for new lawmakers. McMurtry denied the allegations.

Democratic state Rep. Paul McMurtry accused of inappropriate conduct at event, report says

House Speaker Robert DeLeo's office confirmed in January that four representatives told him or his team about "inappropriate conduct" at the orientation in December, and that all relevant information had been turned over to the House's contracted Equal Employment Opportunity Officer, who determined the allegation was plausible and warranted a full investigation.

Under new rules to handle sexual harassment complaints adopted last session, allegations were then referred to a Special Committee on Professional Conduct, comprised of seven House members, including five appointed by the speaker and two by the House minority leader.

While it's unclear who DeLeo and House Minority Leader Brad Jones named to that committee, House Rules Committee Chairman William Galvin offered the order in the House on Wednesday that would allow a summary of the committee's findings to become public.

Ethics Committee Chairman Christopher Markey, standing with the speaker after a Democratic caucus on Wednesday, said the order he co-sponsored with Galvin accomplished three things, and was necessary because the House has not yet hired a full-time equal employment opportunity officer.

"We're trying to establish a way in which to balance the confidentiality of a potential complaint and I think what this order does is it allows for an executive summary to be released, it allows the person who the accusation had been made against to have an opportunity to review it and it allows to make sure those records to be maintained just as they would be if there were an EEO officer, make sure that they're held confidentially," Markey said.

The summary, pursuant the order, will not include the name of any witnesses or parties to the investigation without their written consent.

The House during a lightly attended Wednesday morning session rejected a Rep. Jay Barrows (R-Mansfield) motion to reconsider the order, which means the order can't be revisited by the House member during the afternoon session, which more members plan to attend.

DeLeo has been holding open the chairmanship of the Tourism, Arts and Cultural Development Committee for McMurtry, pending the investigation's outcome. Last session McMurtry was co-chairman of the House Committee on Personnel and Administration.