"Middlesex DA under fire for management style; After resignations, critics say Ryan put politics before policies" by Maria Cramer and Frank Phillips | Globe Staff July 26, 2014
Marian Ryan is under fire for what critics say is putting politics ahead of sound prosecutorial policies because of a fear of media scrutiny, and creating a demoralizing workplace where she has been accused of yelling at subordinates.
As many as 66 of about 240 employees in the office have left and been replaced during Ryan’s time at the helm, an issue that her opponent, Michael Sullivan, raised during a recent debate. While turnover in district attorneys’ offices is common, the number of departures in Ryan’s office is fueling criticism that she bears some responsibility for them.
“The employees of the Middlesex DA’s office are deeply committed and extremely hard-working despite the current executive leadership who often treats them in demeaning and disparaging ways,” said former prosecutor Lisa McGovern, who gave notice on June 2, a week after securing the first-degree murder conviction of Jared Remy for the killing of his girlfriend, Jennifer Martel. “It’s mismanagement to treat them in a harsh, demeaning way and mismanagement to base supervisory decisions on the fear of media criticism.”
McGovern, who has prosecuted several high-profile murder and rape cases, and who is backing Sullivan, was one of a dozen people interviewed who have left the office in the last year.
Each described a culture of dysfunction at the office. About half of those interviewed said they left because they were concerned about how the office was being run.
Except for McGovern, they all asked for anonymity, citing fears about future employment, or current employment in state jobs that do not allow them to speak to reporters.
In an interview, Ryan defended her management style, describing herself as detail-driven and passionate about cases. She attributed most of the employee departures to factors such as a desire for better pay or shorter hours.
“I love that office,” Ryan said. “I treat the people in my office like this is a family.”
She has a Campatelli quality to her, doncha think?
Ryan acknowledged instituting some unpopular policies, chiefly to tighten up supervision of prosecutors’ bail requests for domestic violence suspects, but she rejected the assertion that the policies were created because of media scrutiny of the Remy case. Her sole interest, she said, was ensuring the safety of victims and the integrity of cases in the wake of Martel’s killing.
Ryan’s office was rocked by criticism over the handling of Remy’s domestic violence arrest on charges he’d assaulted his girlfriend.
Remy was released from jail, with the approval of a Middlesex prosecutor, and two days later he murdered Martel. He pleaded guilty to first-degree murder on May 27....
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Related: Remy's Stormy Romance
UPDATE: Opponent criticizes DA Marian Ryan’s management style
She looks like a Marty Coakley clone.
