BOSTON — Three Worcester-based state senators are calling on Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell to provide an update on the ongoing investigation into the death of Trooper Enrique Delgado-Garcia, who suffered fatal injuries during a training exercise last September at the Massachusetts State Police Academy.
Senators Michael Moore, Robyn Kennedy, and Peter Durant sent a letter to Campbell on Feb. 18, requesting a status update on the investigation, which is being led by special prosecutor David Meier. The letter, citing lingering concerns from the trooper’s family, asked for any available information regarding the timeline and preliminary findings of the probe.
“In the months since the death of Trooper Delgado-Garcia at the State Police Academy, critical questions have remained unresolved,” the senators wrote. “Trooper Delgado-Garcia’s family has patiently waited for answers to some of the hardest questions they will ever have to ask.”
In response, Campbell’s office stated that it does not comment on open investigations. However, the Attorney General’s office has since agreed to provide periodic updates to the Worcester Senate delegation, according to Sen. Moore.
“While I and my colleagues appreciate that thorough investigations take time, it is important for Enrique’s family and the residents of the Commonwealth to receive regular updates on the investigation,” Moore said in a statement.
Unanswered questions about the incident
Delgado-Garcia, a Worcester native, was weeks away from graduating from the Massachusetts State Police Academy when he was injured during a training session in a boxing ring on Sept. 12. He slipped into a coma and died the following day at UMass Memorial Medical Center. In his final hours, he was sworn in as a Massachusetts State Trooper.
Although an autopsy was reportedly completed, the full extent of his injuries has not been publicly confirmed. Media reports have indicated that he sustained a broken neck, a brain injury, and lost teeth. The academy’s boxing program—where the fatal incident occurred—was suspended but later reinstated in the 1990s following previous concerns about injuries, according to a Feb. 19 press release from Senator Moore’s office.
Concerns over potential hazing and harassment at the academy have further complicated the case, adding to the family’s calls for transparency.
“These looming questions, along with allegations of hazing and harassment, remain unanswered almost five months later,” Senator Moore said in the press release from his office.
Senators call for a broader investigation into academy culture
Shortly after Delgado-Garcia’s death, the same senators sent an earlier letter to Attorney General Campbell urging her to appoint a conflict-of-interest Special Assistant Attorney General to oversee the investigation. They also requested a broader probe into the academy’s culture, including any tolerance of hazing or harassment.
The senators further requested that all findings be released as a public report and include recommendations for changes in policy, practices, and culture at the Massachusetts State Police—including potential modifications to state laws or regulations.
Delgado-Garcia graduated from Worcester’s North High School in 2017 and went on to work as a victim-witness advocate for Worcester County District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr.’s office before joining the State Police. Due to this prior connection, the Worcester DA’s office declined to lead the investigation, citing a conflict of interest.
