QUINCY − A city police detective placed on leave last July amid an investigation into possible sexual misconduct has resigned from the department, according to Chief Mark Kennedy.

The officer, Detective Andrew Keenan, was accused of sexting a mentally disabled woman living at the Cardinal Cushing School in Hanover in 2017.

Keenan, who joined the department in 2014, is the son of former Quincy Police Chief Paul Keenan, who was acting chief at the time of the allegations.

Andrew Keenan, who was a detective, is the nephew of Quincy Mayor Thomas Koch and state Sen. John Keenan.

In September, Quincy Mayor Thomas Koch hired Kurker Paget, a Waltham employment law firm, to conduct an external investigation into the alleged 2017 incident.

Kennedy told The Patriot Ledger that Kurker and Paget delivered the completed report on Wednesday, April 24, at which point he scheduled a hearing to determine whether Keenan should be terminated. Kennedy said that decision would have ultimately rested with the mayor.

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However, before the hearing could take place, Kennedy said he received a resignation letter Thursday from Keenan's lawyer. Mayoral Chief of Staff Chris Walker said Keenan will still receive his pension.

Kennedy told The Patriot Ledger that Kurker Paget's investigation only dealt with Keenan's alleged misconduct. No disciplinary action related to the 2017 incident was ever reported to the state's Police Officer Standards Training Commission.

"Andrew was dealt with at the time," Kennedy said in a phone interview last September. "I can tell you that. The incident was dealt with in 2017. Administratively, it wasn't papered correctly. It wasn't documented the way we would have liked."

According to Hanover police documents, Keenan met the woman years earlier when he worked at the Cardinal Cushing School as a lifeguard and teaching assistant. In August 2017, he contacted her through Facebook and initiated a conversation, according to a Hanover detective's affidavit.

The woman worked and lived independently on the Cardinal Cushing campus during the alleged misconduct but was under the guardianship of her parents. Cardinal Cushing School serves students with mild to severe special needs such as autism and intellectual disabilities, according to its website.

A search warrant application submitted by Hanover police in 2017 stated they found probable cause for two criminal charges, "dissemination of obscene material" and "accosting and annoying."

The woman is described in the affidavit as needing "regular assistance with decision making. She has a past history of reduced insight and judgment in terms of social interactions."

Ultimately, the Plymouth County district attorney's office determined that no criminal activity had taken place.

"Our office worked together with the Hanover Police Department and, after an investigation, it was determined the conduct did not support criminal charges," a spokesperson for district attorney's office said in a statement.

"The allegation involved two consenting adults, and the victim did not want to go forward. (The) Quincy Police Department was notified of the conduct at issue for any potential violations of their rules or policies."

The affidavit says Keenan began a conversation through the Facebook Messenger app that quickly turned sexual, with Keenan telling her he was "horny," sending an explicit image of himself and asking the woman to reciprocate with a video of herself.

The woman's mother discovered the messages while conducting a regular check of her daughter's phone, according to police records.

A report by the Disabled Persons Protection Commission says Keenan "would know and be aware of her limitations and vulnerabilities."

When Hanover police detectives interviewed Keenan in 2017, he "acknowledged the situation and was remorseful about his actions," according to police documents.

Keenan was also investigated in 2012, when he worked for Cardinal Cushing, by the Disabled Persons Protection Commission for allegedly "sexting" with a different student, according to Hanover police records.

That case was found to be unsubstantiated and closed without referral for a criminal investigation.

News Source : https://www.patriotledger.com/story/news/2024/04/26/cardinal-cushing-school-andrew-keenan-quincy-ma-cop-quits-hanover-ma/73470794007/