Mass. lawmakers propose changes to how police handle rape cases following WBUR investigation

Several state lawmakers say law enforcement in Massachusetts needs to pursue sexual assault cases more aggressively. This comes following a WBUR investigation into how authorities failed to arrest a suspected serial rapist for years despite DNA evidence.

Possible improvements, lawmakers said, could include creating a new statewide sexual assault unit, requiring police to disclose more information about rape reports and expanding the state’s DNA database.

WBUR’s investigation found that police and prosecutors repeatedly declined to arrest or charge a former Uber driver, Alvin Campbell Jr., even though a number of women reported assaults from 2016 to 2018 and DNA evidence pointed to Campbell.

Boston police eventually arrested Campbell after a fifth victim came forward in 2019 — and even she complained in text messages summarized in court documents that police had initially been “unhelpful.”

Campbell, the brother of Attorney General Andrea Campbell, is currently in prison awaiting trial on charges of raping eight women and attempting to rape a ninth. He pleaded not guilty to all charges. DNA evidence also linked him to two other rapes, according to a search warrant application. WBUR noted that 10 of the attacks allegedly occurred after the first woman went to police.

“My initial reaction is just frustration on behalf of all survivors who report their sexual violence to law enforcement,” said Rep. Natalie Higgins of Leominster, a Democrat and co-chair of the Caucus of Women Legislators’ Sexual Violence Task Force.

Nationally, only one in five people accused of sexual assault are ever arrested and even fewer are convicted, according to a study sponsored by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Research Division.

Some outside observers questioned whether authorities may have been hesitant to arrest Campbell because he has a prominent sister. Andrea Campbell was a Boston city councilwoman at the time of her brother’s alleged crimes. She told WBUR in a statement that she would “never interfere with or influence any investigation, especially when it involves such serious allegations.” A spokeswoman said she has had no contact with law enforcement regarding the investigation or prosecution.

Both Medford police and the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office said the family relationship was not a factor in their response. Boston police declined to answer questions about the story.

Higgins, the state representative, said the case shows that Massachusetts can deploy a statewide team to assist local authorities and track down serial criminals who have crossed city or county lines to attack victims. Some other states, such as Rhode Island and New Hampshire, already have similar units.

“I think this case really highlights the need for that,” she said.

Higgins said members of the Women’s Caucus are researching the legislation and lobbying Gov. Maura Healey’s administration to take executive action. A spokesperson for Healey said the governor will “review any legislation that comes to her table.”

WBUR reported that police also invoked the state’s sweeping privacy laws to withhold documents about how they handled the investigation. This makes it more difficult to understand why the police took so long to arrest Campbell. Massachusetts is the only state in the country that requires police to withhold all arrests and reports related to sexual and domestic violence.

Some police departments also say the law prohibits them from informing the public about attacks. Quincy, for example, said it had six unsolved rape cases from 2019 to 2021 but never informed residents about them, claiming that the law prevents it from disclosing details.

House Republican leader Brad Jones said he was concerned about “the constraints of the law” on public notification and information sharing.

“That caught my attention because maybe this is ripe for a change,” he said.

Westfield state Sen. John Velis filed a bill last year that would create a task force to review the statute and make recommendations. The proposal was sent for consideration in February, effectively killing the bill for the session. Velis said he plans to refile the bill in the next session, which begins in January.

He noted that other states have found ways to protect victims’ privacy, such as redacting their names and other identifying information from documents, rather than withholding everything from the public. “I think that’s the right balance,” Velis said.

Some lawmakers, including Jones and Higgins, are also supporting a bill that would ensure the state’s DNA database on convicted felons is up to date and regularly reviewed. Lawmakers say the state failed to collect DNA from 10,000 to 15,000 people who were supposed to be in the database. Advocates say expanding the database could make it easier to solve rapes and other unsolved cases.

In Campbell’s case, police had already stored his DNA because he had cycled to prison on previous assault and firearms charges.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu declined last month to explain why Boston waited years to arrest Campbell, citing the state’s ongoing criminal case and privacy laws.

“Ultimately, the law currently provides that these documents and information are protected from public records,” she said in an interview with WBUR Radio Boston.

Boston City Council President Ruthzee Louijeune also declined to comment through a spokesperson.

Campbell was not charged in two of the alleged rapes in which DNA identified him as a suspect, including one in Medford in 2018. Medford police did not release a statement.

In Medford, Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn’s office declined to comment and Medford City Council President Isaac “Zac” Bears did not respond to messages left at his office.

The attorney general’s office, which has a new police accountability unit, declined to say whether it plans to investigate how police and prosecutors handled the allegations against Alvin Campbell. Tim McGuirk, spokesman for the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security, said his state agency has no legal authority over municipal police investigations.

The attorney general’s office said Andrea Campbell has recused herself from her brother’s case and that the prosecution has its “unconditional support.” Alvin Campbell’s trial is currently scheduled to begin in December.

Higgins, the state representative from Leominster, said she would like to believe that “all of our departments are doing everything they can to achieve justice for the survivors.”

But, she said, “We come across story after story where that’s not the case.”