Lawsuit Planned To Stop Court Repairs -- MesoLink.org -- 05-01-06

A number of high ranking officials from the Edward J. Sullivan Courthouse in Cambridge, along with the Middlesex District Attorney, Martha Coakley, are planning to file a lawsuit against Chief Justice Robert A. Mulligan, head of the state’s trial courts. The lawsuit claims that he broke his promise not to allow repairs to be carried out in a building that was at risk from asbestos contamination.

The suit claims that Mulligan made a promise not to allow any work to be carried out on the court building until the hundreds of staff located in it were relocated out of harm’s way due to the risk of asbestos being dislodged during work. Inmates at Cambridge Jail were also to be relocated prior to works being carried out according to the lawsuit.

A date has already been scheduled for the relocations of staff and inmates, and this is for 2007. However, Coakley claims that Mulligan has already authorized some work to start, which could effectively dislodge some of the asbestos and create health hazards for those in the building.

Coakley and a number of other officials have now asked a judge to get the work halted in order to ensure the safety of staff within the court house. In a written statement Coakley stated: ''It is only as an absolute last resort that I have authorized counsel to go into court to stop this work."