Mayor Erin V. Joyce solemnly shares that the Town of Braintree has reached a settlement in principle in the matter of Frederick Weichel v. Town of Braintree, et al. Mr. Weichel sued the Town in 2020, alleging injuries stemming from his arrest, imprisonment, and wrongful conviction for the May 1980 murder of Robert LaMonica in Braintree. Mr. Weichel served more than 36 years in prison and lost most of his adult life as a result of this conviction. In 2010, new information was discovered in the case in response to a public records request to the Town of Braintree which ultimately led to Mr. Weichel’s 2017 release from prison and exoneration. In lawsuits that followed his release, Mr. Weichel sued public authorities, including both the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the Town of Braintree. In a 2022 trial with the Commonwealth, the jury awarded Mr. Weichel $33 million. However, his recovery was limited to $1 million by a law that protects the Commonwealth from liability exceeding $1 million. The Town of Braintree does not have the same legal protection from liability exceeding $1 million. Heading into settlement discussions with Mr. Weichel and his attorney, the Town of Braintree faced greater monetary exposure because of the uncapped liability and recent trends of large jury awards in similar cases tried against municipalities.
After years of casework, legal consultation, and a lengthy mediation, the Town settled with Mr. Weichel for $14.9 million on Thursday, September 19, 2024. In settling this matter, the Town was cognizant of the many jury verdicts around the country in cases of this nature that have resulted in substantially larger damages awarded. Before engaging in the mediation process that resulted in this settlement, the Mayor consulted with legal advisers as well as the Town Council. While the Mayor is Office of the Mayor One JFK Memorial Drive Braintree, Massachusetts 02184 clearly sensitive to the Town’s financial situation, particularly on the heels of layoffs and a Proposition 2 1/2 override, she felt it was in the best interests of the Town to achieve this settlement in order to avoid the risk of a potentially much greater jury verdict. In a statement, Mayor Erin V. Joyce said:
“There are no winners with this case. Mr. Weichel spent 36 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. He missed out on the opportunity to have a family, to travel, or to enjoy all the normal experiences of life we take for granted. Mr. Weichel was found innocent and wants to rebuild his life. In my judgment, the Town reached a sensible settlement with Mr. Weichel that is fair to him and prudent under the circumstances. To control the impact on our own financial stability going forward, we are aggressively pursuing insurance coverage collections with the help of our legal team, and we anticipate recovering a meaningful portion of this settlement.”
In the coming weeks we will be working with the Town Council, Bond Counsel, Town Financial Planners and legal professionals to assess the best option for financing this payment in connection with ongoing insurance recovery efforts. “The Council will continue to work closely with Mayor Joyce to resolve this claim that originated over four decades ago and to mitigate the impact of the settlement on the Town’s finances,” said Council President Charles B. Ryan. “We commend the Mayor for her efforts to keep the Council informed throughout the legal process and for her diligent work to secure coverage from the Town’s insurers. We will join with the Mayor in advocating for legislative reforms that will provide municipalities with the same protections from legal judgements that the Commonwealth provides for itself.”