Reformer of the Month

We never hear about the courageous reformers in Massachusetts who stand against the entrenched establishment and demand change. That’s because the establishment media do not want us to know about them. Whereas, our difficulty at Massachusetts News is the multitude of people from whom to pick. We could write a book.

Police Cannot Arrest Without Cause

December 2001

When James Nollet was held on the 18th floor of the Courthouse in Cambridge for three days in 1993 because his wife had made a phony charge against him, he was upset.

But when he was arrested again a few years later by Lawrence police and spent a night at the county jail in Middleton, he decided (after being acquitted of this false charge) that he had to do something about this.

Everyone told him he couldn’t win damages, including the lawyers with whom he had talked. But he didn’t believe it. So he studied the law himself.

As a result, he received a $5,000 check from the city of Lawrence last month in settlement of the charges of false arrest he brought against it.

What prompted Nollet to undergo this unusual task?

“The civil rights scandal of the late 20th century has been the legal lynching of men. Martin Luther King had it exactly right when he said that when one person’s freedom is taken away, then no one is free. I can only hope that my legal action will blaze a trail for other men who are in a similar position.”

He also believes that after Sept. 11, we will see the police become more powerful. “Lest power go to their heads and they become a cure which is worse than the disease, we need people like me and you to remind them that they too are mortal, that they too must observe reasonable and proper limits, lest we descend into dictatorship. That is why my lawsuit was important.”

Nollet told the court in his original Complaint that the matter was “urgent” because it happens frequently to men in Massachusetts.

“[Plaintiff] believes Defendant’s illegal warrant and arrest was not an isolated incident, but rather is something that happens frequently and routinely in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, in that men are always arrested, even without Probable Cause, as soon as police officers understand that it is an accusation of Domestic Violence or violation of a Restraining Order that has been made. It is Plaintiff’s belief that police officers everywhere must be sent a message that constitutionally sub-standard arrests cannot and will not be tolerated, even if such arrests are performed to attempt to alleviate the serious problem of Domestic Violence.”

Studied How to Represent Himself

The first thing Nollet did after being cleared of the charges against him was to attend a course by the Liberty Bell Union, a nonprofit group which has sessions in five locations around the state for those people, including fathers, who wish to know their rights under the Constitution.

Then he filed his suit in federal court in Boston and had Judge Edward F. Harrington assigned to the case.

Later on, he heard Judge Harrington advise the city they should settle the case for $5,000-$10,000 even before the judge had denied their request to dismiss the suit. After the judge refused to dismiss his case, Nollet realized the suit was worth even more after the city had suffered that defeat.

But he chose to settle now that he had made his point.

“In short, my musical career would have been set back if I had taken the time I would have needed to get ready for trial without an attorney. So, for this reason I settled for the $5,000. I’m well aware that if I had been more willing to play “chicken” with them, I might well have gotten more. But that’s just not a game which I overly enjoy.”

Besides, he had single-handedly won an important case for everyone in the state.

It is especially important to Massachusetts fathers and husbands because it holds that a policeman must carefully investigate whether there is probable cause to arrest a man who is accused by his wife of violating a restraining order.

The Lawrence policeman, John S. Dushame, had asked the judge to dismiss the case because he said that Nollet had failed to state a cause of action under the facts he alleged. But the judge refused to do so. There was no oral or written opinion.

Because the attorney for the defendant made some procedural errors which were helpful to the plaintiff and there was no oral or written finding by the judge, it is difficult to know exactly how far this decision will go in helping men who have been unjustly arrested, but no one doubts that it is an important case.

Degrees in Chemistry and Music

Nollet has college degrees in chemistry and in music. He has worked for 21 years as an analyst with the U.S. Food & Drug Administration, but he is also a part-time musician, playing the trombone in symphonies. Lately he has also been heard at King Richard’s Faire in Carver.

He is happy with what he accomplished in court.

“At this juncture, I can honestly thank God for putting me through this. I know that sounds strange. But sometimes it takes years to discern purpose in tragedy. But now I can see that perhaps the reason I had to go through all this was because I was able to accomplish something worthwhile with it. This thought gives me serenity and a sense that my life has had purpose, and for that, I am grateful.”