Reports indicate that Officer Michael Doherty, assaulted an Uber driver, yelled racial slurs “Spic” to the driver and “Nigger” to a good samaritan and stole the Uber driver’s car.
IN COURT: Boston cop Michael Doherty appears in South Boston Municipal Court yesterday after being charged with assault and battery in an Uber driver attack Sunday. Doherty had two Internal Affairs cases open prior to the Uber incident.
BPD veteran in Uber assault case faced complaints, personal strife
Tuesday, January 6, 2015
By: Jack Encarnacao, Antonio Planas
Boston Herald
A veteran Boston cop charged with beating an Uber driver and a passer-by while spouting racist epithets has a tumultuous personal life and a history of Internal Affairs complaints, and now could face termination, according to BPD officials and court records.
Michael C. Doherty, 40, of South Boston appeared in court yesterday with a black eye and an arm sling, his lawyer claiming he was the victim. Doherty was already on desk duty and had been stripped of his department-issued gun at the time of the alleged 2:45 a.m. Sunday attack on an Uber driver, actions that were taken by his superiors following a domestic violence incident Nov. 3, police said.
On Nov. 3, Doherty’s ex-girlfriend Mary Niland — who has been charged with breaking into Doherty’s house on Nov. 1 — filed for and received a protective order against Doherty. Niland, 24, said in an affidavit that Doherty dragged her downstairs and had hit her in the face and head, and claimed “this is not the first time this has happened.”
from WBZ-TV
Doherty had accused Niland of breaking into his house, attacking him after finding him inside with another woman, and claimed she injured herself when she fell down a flight of stairs after breaking free from him as he attempted to control her. A police report said Niland was “highly intoxicated and slurring her words,” and was bleeding from the face, with a swollen forehead. (See article on Domestic Violence issue here)
Doherty had two open Internal Affairs cases before the Uber incident, police spokesman Lt. Michael McCarthy said.
“Discipline has not been determined in those cases because the investigations are both still very active and ongoing,” McCarthy said.
Other than confirming that the date of one of the complaints matches one of the domestic incidents, McCarthy declined to provide details, saying the complaints contain information protected under a domestic violence law.
Doherty, a 16-year department veteran, was arraigned yesterday on two counts of assault and battery while using a racial slur and using a motor vehicle without authority — for briefly taking off in the Uber driver’s car.
READ FULL STORY HERE:
http://www.bostonherald.com/news_opinion/local_coverage/2015/01/bpd_veteran_in_uber_assault_case_faced_complaints_personal