The official website of the Plymouth County District Attorney's Office
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ASSOCIATED LINKS
SECTION IX: EXCEPTION 5
5. To investigate charges of criminal misconduct or to discuss the filing of criminal complaints.
It has been recognized that it is not necessarily consistent with effective law enforcement to conduct criminal investigations in the public eye. In this regard it has been held that public access to information related to criminal misconduct should be restricted in certain circumstances. Bougas v Chief of Police of Lexington, 371 Mass. 59 (1976). It should be noted, however, that general complaints or charges against individuals are governed by the second exception to the open meeting law, and executive sessions are limited by the procedural protections afforded the individual under that exception. Governmental bodies must proceed with caution to distinguish between instances which properly fall within exception two, rather than exception five. For example, a school committee may meet to discuss the discipline of a student who has assaulted another student. If the committee is meeting to discuss exclusion of the student without intending to explore a criminal option, it would be inappropriate to meet under exception (5).
