BIDDEFORD — Several alleged victims spoke through tears as they stood before city councilors Thursday and detailed the sexual abuse they say they suffered at the hands of two Biddeford police officers.
“How long does this have to drag out before justice is served?” said Norm Girard, a Biddeford native who spoke publicly for the first time about the sexual abuse he says he was subjected to by the police officer at the center of an abuse scandal that has deeply divided the city.
The alleged victims and their supporters implored city councilors to suspend the police chief and push for an outside investigation of the police department amid allegations that two former officers molested multiple victims over the course of two decades. However, unlike previous City Council meetings, there were no angry outbursts by speakers demanding action from city and state officials.
“This issue is tearing my city apart,” resident Daniel Parenteau said.
The general meeting was called under a provision of the city charter that allows residents to collect 100 signatures to compel the City Council to meet to hear their grievances. The residents who signed the petition – including several men who say they were sexually abused by now-retired Biddeford police officers – have been frustrated and angered by how city officials have handled the public outcry over the allegations.
The three-hour meeting in the high school library was attended by about 80 people, roughly twice the turnout at recent meetings in support of the alleged victims. City councilors listened but did not speak or take action during the meeting.
During previous tumultuous council meetings, the alleged victims and supporters called for the suspension of Police Chief Roger Beaupre, who has led the department for 34 years and was in charge when two officers are alleged to have sexually abused teenage boys. Many also are calling for the suspension of Deputy Chief JoAnne Fisk.
“We are a city of souls in turmoil,” said resident Charlene Brochu, who says she was abused by a Biddeford detective 50 years ago. “We’re asking our leaders to usher us out of this cold, dark cave of our memories.”
City officials have been largely silent on the accusations, citing state law barring them from speaking specifically about an ongoing investigation into the sex abuse allegations against Stephen Dodd, a former police officer who was investigated after similar accusations in 2002 but never charged.
EMOTIONAL WORDS, PROBE CRITICISMS
The controversy was sparked by Matt Lauzon, a Boston businessman who went public on social media three months ago with his accusations of being sexually abused by Dodd more than a decade ago. Lauzon and his supporters – including state Sen. David Dutremble of Biddeford – also have raised concerns about the investigation of another officer, Norman Gaudette, in the early 1990s after similar allegations of sexual abuse of teenage boys. That investigation ended when a grand jury declined to indict Gaudette. Lauzon and his supporters believe the state Attorney General’s Office intentionally undermined the case.
The Attorney General’s Office has consistently declined to comment on the ongoing investigation of Lauzon’s allegations against Dodd. The former officer and his attorney, Gene Libby, have not responded to multiple requests for comment. Attempts to reached Gaudette have been unsuccessful.
Plans for the general meeting got off to a rocky start when residents were upset with its proposed time and location, which were changed to accommodate more people. They also balked at a decision by city officials to have John Alfano, a professional mediator, facilitate the meeting. Instead, the meeting was run by Melissa Bednarowski, a former city councilor and liaison between the alleged victims and city officials. Alfano attended the meeting to advise Bednarowski if needed.
Unlike regular City Council meetings, speakers didn’t have a time limit and had more leeway to talk about their concerns and allegations. At previous meetings, Mayor Alan Casavant had ruled speakers out of order if they used the names of specific city employees or alleged abusers.
Lauzon spoke twice during the first hour of the meeting. He started by reading a statement from his brother, Chris Lauzon, asking residents to stop the “senseless mudslinging” on social media. Lauzon left the podium in tears after talking about how the sex abuse allegations are tearing his and other families apart.
The second time he got up to speak, Lauzon said he was going to read a statement from an unnamed former police officer. After Lauzon read allegations about a sexual relationship between Beaupre and another officer, Alfano warned Lauzon against continuing. Lauzon did not speak of those specific allegations again.
John Drake, who grew up in Biddeford, said he first went to authorities about Dodd’s alleged abuse of Drake’s friend in 2001. He said a year-and-a-half elapsed before Dodd was suspended during an investigation by the Attorney General’s Office.
“We were met with a stone wall of silence,” Drake said.
Nearly all of the 24 residents who spoke called for the suspension of Beaupre and Fisk, as well as independent investigations of the police department and Attorney General’s Office.
COUNCILORS URGED TO BREAK SILENCE
Girard, the Biddeford man, spoke publicly for the first time about the abuse he says he and his two brothers were subjected to by Dodd when they were teenagers in the late 1970s. He said it is “ludicrous” to think Beaupre didn’t know what his officers were doing. Girard said he reported the abuse to the Attorney General’s Office around 2002.
“People need to know,” Girard said of the years of allegations by more than a half-dozen men. “All of those who were aware of what was going on are accomplices and they deserve to be in prison as well.”
Beaupre did not attend the meeting. Dutremble and Rep. Ryan Fecteau, Democrats who represent Biddeford, both spoke to residents.
Dutremble urged city councilors to suspend Beaupre and Fisk and to break their silence on the issue.
“At some point we’ve got to say something,” Dutremble said. “We have to acknowledge that something is wrong.”
After the meeting, Casavant said he felt the gathering was productive and offered councilors the chance to hear “heartfelt” testimony.
“I think the council and the residents are on the same page in terms of wanting to see that justice is done,” he said.
Casavant said the council has not decided whether to schedule an executive session to discuss suspending Beaupre and Fisk.
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