| Date: | 10/31/2025 |
|---|---|
| Organization: | Division of Administrative Law Appeals |
| Docket Number: | CR-25-0427 |
- Petitioner: Rebecca Aldrich
- Respondent: State Board of Retirement
- Administrative Magistrate: Yakov Malkiel
- This page, Aldrich v. State Bd. of Ret., CR-25-0427, is offered by
- Division of Administrative Law Appeals
Decision
Decision Aldrich v. State Bd. of Ret., CR-25-0427
Table of Contents
Order of Dismissal
Petitioner Rebecca Aldrich serves as a captain of a campus police force. She appeals from a decision of the State Board of Retirement (board) classifying her in group 1 under G.L. c. 32, § 3(2)(g).
Group 4 under that statute includes “members of police and fire departments . . . .” § 3(2)(g). Some twenty years ago, the Contributory Retirement Appeal Board (CRAB) assigned all members of the Boston Housing Authority Police to group 4, reasoning that “[t]he duties and functions of the Boston Housing Authority Police are consistent with those of other police departments in the Commonwealth.” Boston Housing Auth. v. Boston Ret. Bd., No. CR-01-573 (Contributory Ret. App. Bd. Jan. 31, 2003) (BHA). DALA decisions have since read the term “police . . . departments” as limited to “municipal” forces. See Tillinghast v. State Bd. of Ret., No. CR-22-223, 2024 WL 1364920 (Div. Admin. Law App. Mar. 22, 2024). Even if that test is not compelled by CRAB’s analysis in BHA, it is reconcilable with the result there.
Essentially on the basis of cases such as Tillinghast, the board moved to dismiss Ms. Aldrich’s appeal. She was instructed to file a response within 28 days, with a caution that her failure to comply would be “interpreted as indicating her agreement with the board’s position.” Ms. Aldrich’s deadline has expired. She has filed nothing further.
Where a live dispute is no longer being litigated, a suit or appeal is appropriately dismissed based on mootness and failure to prosecute. See 801 C.M.R. § 1.01(7)(g)(2); Fannie Mae v. Branch, 494 Mass. 343, 347-48 (2024). Compare Bray & Gillespie Mgmt. LLC v. Lexington Ins. Co., 527 F. Supp. 2d 1355, 1371 (M.D. Fla. 2007), with Jones v. Providence Pub. Sch., No. 23-1407, 2024 WL 1128034 (1st Cir. Mar. 11, 2024). Accordingly, it is hereby ORDERED that this appeal is DISMISSED.
Dated: October 31, 2025
/s/ Yakov Malkiel
Yakov Malkiel
Administrative Magistrate
Division of Administrative Law Appeals
14 Summer Street, 4th floor
Malden, MA 02148
Tel: (781) 397-4700
www.mass.gov/dala
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Aldrich v. State Bd. of Ret., CR-25-0427
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