Overview
- Read filed the lawsuit Thursday in Bristol County Superior Court seeking damages and a jury trial against the Massachusetts State Police and the Town of Canton.
- The complaint includes thousands of explicit texts and audio exchanges between former State Trooper Michael Proctor and former Canton Sgt. Sean Goode that Read’s lawyers say show entrenched racism, misogyny and antisemitism.
- Proctor was fired in March 2025 after a State Police trial board found he violated department rules and POST took certification action, and Goode resigned effective Tuesday while on paid leave during an internal affairs investigation.
- The messages were recovered from Proctor’s personal cellphone in an unrelated prosecution, were under a protective order, and a court has permitted Read’s team to use that material in this civil case.
- Read’s suit alleges negligent hiring, training and supervision by both agencies, and it leaves open further oversight and legal consequences as internal affairs reviews, POST actions and parallel civil suits continue.