Quincy police detective is on paid leave amid 'sexting' investigation

QUINCY – The city has hired a law firm to investigate possible misconduct in 2017 by a Quincy police officer who was accused of sexting a mentally disabled woman living at the Cardinal Cushing School in Hanover.

The officer, Andrew Keenan, who joined the department in 2014, is the son of former Quincy Police Chief Paul Keenan, who was acting chief at the time of the allegations. Andrew Keenan, who is now a detective, is the nephew of Quincy Mayor Thomas Koch and state Sen. John Keenan.

The city hired Kurker Paget, a Waltham law firm that specializes in workplace investigations, to conduct the review, which began in mid-September.

The probe will look into communications between Keenan and the student and at how the police department handled the allegation.

The woman worked and lived independently on the Cardinal Cushing campus during the alleged misconduct but was under the guardianship of her parents. Cardinal Cushing School serves students with mild to severe special needs such as autism and intellectual disabilities, according to its website.

A search warrant application submitted by Hanover police in 2017 stated they found probable cause for two criminal charges, "dissemination of obscene material" and "accosting and annoying."

Ultimately, the Plymouth County district attorney's office determined that no criminal activity had taken place.

"Our office worked together with the Hanover Police Department and, after an investigation, it was determined the conduct did not support criminal charges," a spokesperson for district attorney's office said in a statement.

"The allegation involved two consenting adults, and the victim did not want to go forward. Quincy Police Department was notified of the conduct at issue for any potential violations of their rules or policies."

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Quincy Police Chief Mark Kennedy, who replaced Paul Keenan on June 23, said he called for an internal review when he learned of the 2017 incident through social media posts in the weeks following his swearing-in ceremony.

Kennedy said the city hired the law firm in September to "avoid the appearance of impropriety based on Paul Keenan being his father" and the fact that Andrew Keenan's "uncle is a senator and his other uncle is the mayor."

The investigation has two goals, Kennedy said: to determine whether Andrew Keenan violated the department's code of conduct and to review how the matter was handled internally.

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"Andrew was dealt with at the time," Kennedy said in a phone interview. "I can tell you that. The incident was dealt with in 2017. Administratively, it wasn't papered correctly. It wasn't documented the way we would have liked."

Because the investigation is active, Kennedy said he couldn't comment on how Keenan was disciplined in 2017. Keenan has been on paid administrative leave since July 13 and will remain on leave until the investigation is completed, Kennedy said.

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Officer disciplinary records published by the Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission show no entries for Keenan in 2017 or at any other time. Kennedy said he has notified the commission about the current investigation.

He said no information about the incident left the police department.

"It was kept completely in house," he said. "It never reached city hall. They had no idea what had happened."

Why did Hanover police investigate Keenan in 2017?

According to Hanover police documents, Keenan met the woman years earlier when he worked at the Cardinal Cushing School as a lifeguard and teaching assistant. In August 2017, he contacted her through Facebook and initiated a conversation, according to a Hanover detective's affidavit.

The affidavit says Keenan began a conversation through the Facebook Messenger app that quickly turned sexual, with Keenan telling her he was "horny," sending an explicit image of himself and asking the woman to reciprocate with a video of herself.

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Keenan then told the woman to delete their communications, the affidavit says.

The woman's mother discovered the messages while conducting a regular check of her daughter's phone, according to police records.

The woman is described in the affidavit as needing "regular assistance with decision making. She has a past history of reduced insight and judgment in terms of social interactions."

A report by the Disabled Persons Protection Commission says Keenan "would know and be aware of her limitations and vulnerabilities."

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When Hanover police detectives interviewed Keenan in 2017, he "acknowledged the situation and was remorseful about his actions," according to police documents.

Keenan was also investigated in 2012, when he worked for Cardinal Cushing, by the Disabled Persons Protection Commission for allegedly "sexting" with a different student, according to Hanover police records.

That case was found to be unsubstantiated and closed without referral for a criminal investigation.

Paul Keenan and Andrew Keenan did not return emails requesting comment.

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Reach Peter Blandino at pblandino@patriotledger.com.

This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Quincy detective, son of former Chief Paul Keenan, under investigation