Wayland Town Crier 5/3/16: Wayland committee supports administrators in Cass case. “We have heard the concerns that have been raised by the community in regards to the former athletic director Mr. Cass,” School Committee members stated in a prepared release. “We would like to state that we fully support the actions taken by (Superintendent Paul Stein) and other school administrators.”
The following is the full press release submitted by the Wayland School Committee. It includes a letter to the School Committee by Police Chief Irving. A PDF of the statements are online here.
We have heard the concerns that have been raised by the community in regards to the former athletic director Mr. Cass. As a follow-up to Police Chief Irving’s letter to the School Committee, which is attached below, we concur with the Chief’s statement about the School Department’s role in this matter and we would like to state that we fully support the actions taken by the Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Stein, and other school administrators. We believe these administrators acted appropriately and in accordance with the best interests of the Wayland Schools, including both students and staff, and the Wayland community. Just as we expect the Police Department to defer to the Schools in matters regarding the education of our students, we believe the Schools must defer to the expertise of the Police Department in matters regarding law enforcement and public safety.
The School Committee, together with Dr. Stein, wants to reiterate our ongoing commitment to deliver a quality education in a safe and supportive environment. We encourage the public to continue to express any concerns so that we as a community can move forward together.
Sincerely,
The Wayland School Committee
Wayland School Committee
41 Cochituate Road
Wayland, MA 01778
Dear Members of the School Committee,
At the School Committee meeting on Monday, March 21, a group of residents publicly requested the dismissal of several school administrators because of their perceived role in the arrest of Steven Cass last fall.
I would like to clarify the role played by Dr. Stein, the School Department and its Administrators in this case. They provided information, but had no decision making role in the arrest and prosecution.
Last October, school officials reported to the Police Department a possible theft of School Department property. Members of the Police Department began an investigation in an effort to locate and return the property and to determine if probable cause existed that a crime had occurred.
Detectives conducted the investigation, which led to the recovery of the property and the arrest of Steven Cass. The decision to file charges was made by the Police Department and the decision to prosecute the case was made by the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office.
Respectively,
Robert Irving
Chief of Police
