By Bruce Mohl
A bipartisan group of state lawmakers today called on the Parole Board to put off any more hearings until a report is completed on the parole of Dominic Cinelli, who allegedly gunned down a Woburn policeman last month during a botched robbery. Patrick administration officials said the hearings will go on but no parole decisions will be made until a full review of the Cinelli case is completed.
The Parole Board held one meeting earlier this week; its next session is scheduled for Tuesday. Law enforcement officials have sharply criticized the board and some have called for the board members to step down.
Republican Sen. Bruce Tarr of Gloucester said a moratorium on new hearings is a measured response to what happened; he promised the Legislature would take additional steps once the report and the facts behind Cinelli’s release are established. Cinelli, who died in the shootout, was serving three concurrent life terms for robberies, shootings, and assaults when he was paroled in 2008.
Sen. Steven Baddour of Methuen said a handful of “vicious murderers” are scheduled to come up for parole hearings in the coming weeks. He urged the Parole Board to back off for now and allow the Legislature “to craft a response to a tragedy that never should have happened.”
But John Grossman, the undersecretary for public safety who is overseeing the review of the Cinelli parole decision, said the hearings are required by law for those sentenced to life terms with the eligibility of parole. He also said the hearing dates were set long ago, and many of the victims’ families have already made plans to testify.
Grossman said the administration’s review of the Cinelli decision should be finished next week.