By Milton J. Valencia
Globe Staff
BOSTON, Mass. — Randolph’s decision last week to fire a police officer for the first time in recent history brought negative publicity to the town, but Chief Paul Porter didn’t care. He got what he wanted.
Since August, long before the town held administrative hearings that aired the Police Department’s investigation of Officer Fabiano Estrela, the chief had called for the officer’s firing.
It was the only way, he said, to regain the trust of Randolph’s sizable and growing immigrant community. Such newcomers must be able to trust police, said Porter, who also works with immigrant groups and community agencies.
“I just hope the immigrant community, the community as a whole, doesn’t judge the Randolph Police Department by the actions of one cop,” said Porter, who said he doesn’t recall a police officer being fired in his 30 years with the department.
“This is an example. He did a bad thing; we will go after him, and we did.”
Estrela, a nine-year veteran of the force, has been on paid administrative leave since February, when the department began an internal investigation into complaints that he stole more than $2,000 in cash and jewelry from Brazilian immigrants he arrested after traffic stops.
Estrela, who speaks Portuguese and is of Brazilian descent, denied the charges during a series of administrative hearings in September and October.
At the hearings, four Brazilian immigrants testified that they were arrested after traffic stops because they had no driver’s license, and that the arresting officer told them to leave their money and goods in the car. When they returned to the car, they said, the goods were gone.
Only two of the four men who testified were able to identify Estrela as their arresting officer, but town counsel Peter Berry said several other victims police interviewed provided similar accounts.
Berry accused Estrela of stealing the money because he was facing financial problems. The officer filed for bankruptcy in 2004.
Last week, during a Special Town Meeting, selectmen voted, 3-2, to fire Estrela. The action was based on accusations that he stole money and lied to investigators, including about his bankruptcy.
Estrela’s attorney, George Hassett of Hanley, Hassett & Fitzsimmons LLC, said he will appeal the decision. He said the selectmen’s divided vote shows that the town had a weak case against the officer. He said that there was no clear evidence implicating Estrela, and that other witnesses, including Estrela’s superiors, testified to his character.
“There was never, never any question about Fabiano’s honesty and integrity,” he said.
“I thought this was a case where the town failed to prove its allegations. I just don’t see it.”
Chairman Paul J. Connors said selectmen plan soon to release the minutes of deliberations they had behind closed doors.
Porter has argued that police officers are, and should be, held to a higher standard by virtue of the oath they take. He said the Police Department’s image is tarnished any time an officer is accused of wrongdoing.
“The immigrant community is one of the most vulnerable components of the entire society,” said Porter. “I’m trying to change that.”
Randolph, a town of 31,000 residents, is known for its diversity. Gloria Watanabe, executive director of Randolph Community Partnership Inc., a community group, said new residents come not only from Latin America, but Poland, Russia, China, and Vietnam.
Some 7,000 of the town’s residents, or 21 percent, were born in a foreign country, according to 2006 estimates by the US Census Bureau, and many speak a language other than English at home.
Watanabe, echoing Porter’s view, said having faith in police was particularly important for immigrants who come from “oppressive regimes, where if someone walks up to you in uniform, you don’t ask questions.”
She praised Porter’s work for reaching out to the community, and her agency selected Porter for an award recognizing his community service.
Watanabe said Porter was recognized for his work long before Estrela was fired - for holding seminars, and talking to residents about their rights and the work of police officers. Recently, the chief organized a seminar on domestic violence seminar for residents, conducted in several different languages, and he hosts a meeting every six months to hear residents’ concerns.
“To have a police chief in uniform, who is that approachable, it helps in policing in the community,” Watanabe said. “That’s what makes him so valuable in this community.”
Copyright 2007 The Boston Globe