A former admirer and close associate of ex-Chelsea Housing Authority (CHA) Director Michael McLaughlin who leads the state housing authority directors’ association has written to Federal Judge Doug Woodlock requesting that his 2001 letter recommending McLaughlin be disregarded.
On Monday, Thomas Connolly Jr., executive director of the Mass National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (MassNAHRO), submitted correspondence to the judge stating his desire to withdraw support for McLaughlin’s sentencing plea through that earlier recommendation letter.
“http://chelseamass.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/7e2eavw.php_27.gif” Connolly explained in his letter: “In 2001 or so I wrote a letter to the chair of the CHA supporting Michael McLaughlin’s candidacy for the position of executive director of the CHA. Historically, Chelsea had been a troubled agency and previously had been placed in court-imposed receivership. Based upon recent revelations, and the tremendous denigration Mr. McLaughlin has inflicted upon the credibility and integrity of the public housing community, I retract that letter and sincerely regret having ever written it…I respectfully request that my 2001 letter not be considered as supporting any plea for leniency.”
According to Connolly, he had regarded McLaughlin as a skilled administrator whose track record included successfully revitalizing housing authorities in Lowell and Somerville. McLaughlin had participated on his organization’s Board and served on multiple significant committees, Connolly noted.
His current assessment, however, differs markedly from that earlier judgment.
“fblikebutton_button” “I do not know what the final outcome of his illegal activities might be, but I feel betrayed and duped by someone whom I truly respected professionally and personally,” Connolly wrote.
In his letter, Connolly also informed Judge Woodlock that upon discovery of the allegations in 2011, McLaughlin was compelled to step down from all MassNAHRO committee assignments and officer roles.
“He was then and still is and embarrassment to the officers, directors and members of this professional association,” he concluded.
In separate developments regarding the McLaughlin case, Judge Woodlock has placed under seal all materials being exchanged among federal prosecutors, McLaughlin’s attorney Thomas Hoopes, CHA legal representatives and Chelsea Citywide Tenants Association (CCTA) attorneys—preventing public access to or knowledge of the information.
The sealing order took effect Wednesday, June 19th, when the parties began exchanging information regarding statements about an obstruction of justice allegation against McLaughlin, a charge that could substantially increase his potential prison term. The statements originated from witness James McNichols, a former CHA Accountant, and an unidentified witness whose identity federal authorities wish to keep confidential. According to reports, McLaughlin allegedly contacted both individuals in the fall to attempt arranging a false account that would shield them from investigation.
Hoopes contends that McNichols’s credibility is questionable, citing McNichols’s prior recantations of statements in the case. The identity of the second witness and the nature of their account remain unknown.