Civil Rights Trial Opens In Cambridge

A Cambridge resident accused of attacking a Harvard School of Education graduate student goes on trial today on charges of civil rights violations and destruction of property.

Rev. Judith B. Howie alleges that Christopher Hassell, who lives on Everett Street near Harvard Law School, hit the car she was driving with a 30-inch stick. Hassell reportedly yelled, "Don't ever drive that close to me, nigger."

Hassell said he would "probably" plead innocent.

Howie, a second-year doctoral candidate at the Education School, has also accused the two Cambridge police officers who responded to her call of "[failing] to engage themselves in a serious response" to the alleged attack.

Howie alleges that the officers, Stephen Ahern and Peter Calnan, neglected to record the presence of two witnesses at the incident. One of the witnesses is Howie's father.

Soon after the incident, Howie filed complaints with the Cambridge Police Department's Internal Affairs Division and with the Cambridge Police Review and Advisory Board.

Howie's complaint accused Officers Calnan and Ahern of "neglect of duty and civil rights violations." She said in an interview this week that she thought that had she been a white woman accusing a Black man, the officers would have acted differently.

In addition, Howie filed charges against a third Cambridge police officer, Frank Pasquarello, to whom she talked when she called the day following the incident to inquire about the progress of her case.

Howie alleges that Pasquarello treated her with indifference and told her that "it is just your word against his."

Shortly after the alleged incident, President Neil L. Rudenstine and Cambridge Mayor Kenneth E. Reeves '72 wrote to Howie to express support for her case.

In addition, both Rudenstine and Reeves contacted the Cambridge Police Commissioner regarding thecase.

"I want you to know that as a member of Citygovernment, I absolutely cringe to think that suchan incident could have occurred in the City ofCambridge," Reeves wrote to Howie, "and furtherthat the official response was so poor."

The Mayor lives in the same apartment buildingas the suspect.

Howie, a resident of Roslindale who has studiedat Harvard for five years, filed the complaintsagainst the officers last September.

The internal investigation cleared Calnan andAhern. Officer Pasquarello's case was classifiedas "inconclusive," meaning that the police couldneither prove nor disprove the charges.

The external investigation conducted by theCambridge Police Review and Advisory Board isstill in progress.

The original incident occurred August 8, 1991,when Howie said she was caught in traffic onEverett St. while driving her father's car.

Howie said she was approached by the suspectwho yelled and "hit the car with a flag attachedto a stick." According to Howie, the suspect brokethe mirror and dented the body and fender of hercar.

After the incident, the alleged assailant raninto his apartment building. He soon returned indifferent clothes, Howie said.

Although Howie's father and a nearby driverknown only as "Steve" identified the suspect,Howie said, neither man was recorded in the policereport as a witness. The police also did notrecord the name of the man identified by thewitnesses, Howie said.

Internal Investigation

Lieutenant Thomas O'Connor, who was assignedthe case in the internal investigation, said hecleared the officers of all charges because therewas no proof of misconduct.

"There's a difference between a mistake andviolating a rule or regulation," O'Connor said.

"The long and the short of it was she felt shedidn't get a vigorous police response. It was ourconclusion that this was not the case," he said.

O'Connor added that the officers spent anotherhour following up after they left the scene of theincident.

"That's certainly not, in our opinion, brushingoff the incident or the report," he said.

Howie criticized the internal investigation,calling it "perfunctory." She said that she wastold she didn't need a lawyer when presenting hercase to O'Connor although the police officers hadcounsel present when they spoke to O'Connor.

O'Connor said that both Howie and the officershad the right to counsel.

"They [the officers] didn't need it either," hesaid. "That's their right and privilege."

Howie and Officer Pasquarello testified at aDecember meeting of the Police Review and AdvisoryBoard, which is conducting the external review.

Officers Calnan and Ahern, refusing to givetestimony that could be used to incriminate them,cited the Fifth Amendment in front of the ReviewBoard.

Officer Calnan could not be reached yesterday,and Ahern refused to comment.

Howie will be represented in tomorrow's trialby Assistant District Attorney Miranda Jones.Jones declined to comment on the case whencontacted yesterday

"I want you to know that as a member of Citygovernment, I absolutely cringe to think that suchan incident could have occurred in the City ofCambridge," Reeves wrote to Howie, "and furtherthat the official response was so poor."

The Mayor lives in the same apartment buildingas the suspect.

Howie, a resident of Roslindale who has studiedat Harvard for five years, filed the complaintsagainst the officers last September.

The internal investigation cleared Calnan andAhern. Officer Pasquarello's case was classifiedas "inconclusive," meaning that the police couldneither prove nor disprove the charges.

The external investigation conducted by theCambridge Police Review and Advisory Board isstill in progress.

The original incident occurred August 8, 1991,when Howie said she was caught in traffic onEverett St. while driving her father's car.

Howie said she was approached by the suspectwho yelled and "hit the car with a flag attachedto a stick." According to Howie, the suspect brokethe mirror and dented the body and fender of hercar.

After the incident, the alleged assailant raninto his apartment building. He soon returned indifferent clothes, Howie said.

Although Howie's father and a nearby driverknown only as "Steve" identified the suspect,Howie said, neither man was recorded in the policereport as a witness. The police also did notrecord the name of the man identified by thewitnesses, Howie said.

Internal Investigation

Lieutenant Thomas O'Connor, who was assignedthe case in the internal investigation, said hecleared the officers of all charges because therewas no proof of misconduct.

"There's a difference between a mistake andviolating a rule or regulation," O'Connor said.

"The long and the short of it was she felt shedidn't get a vigorous police response. It was ourconclusion that this was not the case," he said.

O'Connor added that the officers spent anotherhour following up after they left the scene of theincident.

"That's certainly not, in our opinion, brushingoff the incident or the report," he said.

Howie criticized the internal investigation,calling it "perfunctory." She said that she wastold she didn't need a lawyer when presenting hercase to O'Connor although the police officers hadcounsel present when they spoke to O'Connor.

O'Connor said that both Howie and the officershad the right to counsel.

"They [the officers] didn't need it either," hesaid. "That's their right and privilege."

Howie and Officer Pasquarello testified at aDecember meeting of the Police Review and AdvisoryBoard, which is conducting the external review.

Officers Calnan and Ahern, refusing to givetestimony that could be used to incriminate them,cited the Fifth Amendment in front of the ReviewBoard.

Officer Calnan could not be reached yesterday,and Ahern refused to comment.

Howie will be represented in tomorrow's trialby Assistant District Attorney Miranda Jones.Jones declined to comment on the case whencontacted yesterday