OFFICER ACCUSED OF THEFT RESIGNS

MIDDLETOWN - An 11-year police veteran accused of stealing drug
evidence from the police station has resigned.

The attorney for Michael H. Braley confirmed his client was no longer
a patrol officer with the Middletown Police Department in the wake of
charges he stole about $400 of marijuana from a secure evidence
cabinet in mid-May.

According to court documents, Braley told State Police he used a
contraption fashioned from a metal coat hanger and mailing labels
attached to one end to take the drugs to make high-ranking officers at
the department "look bad."

Warwick lawyer John D. Lynch Jr. said his client is scheduled to
appear in Newport Superior Court Nov. 23, when he is expected to enter
a plea as part of an agreement worked out with the court.

"He's just trying to put it behind him," Lynch said Monday morning, as
he stood outside an upstairs courtroom in the Florence K. Murray
Judicial Complex in Newport after a 10-minute conference with the
judge overseeing the case and the state's prosecuting attorney.

On June 11, Braley was charged by State Police with committing
prohibited acts by a law enforcement official, larceny less than $500,
obstruction and possessing marijuana.

According to a transcript of an interview earlier that day at the
Portsmouth barracks, State Police said Braley admitted taking the pot
after learning his fingerprints were found on labels stuck inside the
evidence cabinet.

The marijuana possession count was later dismissed after State Police
said those drugs had been destroyed by Braley. The prohibited acts
charge is a felony barring any law enforcement official from selling,
destroying or removing evidence confiscated as part of an
investigation. The charge carries a 10- to 20-year sentence, unless
extenuating circumstances exist for an alternate sentence.

The four baggies of pot were discovered missing the morning after a
May 16 felony drug arrest. State Police said that drug charge was
dismissed because the evidence could not be located and there appeared
to be no connection between Braley and the 19-year-old Newport man
from that case.

During their investigation, State Police interviewed close to 20
police personnel working at the time the drugs disappeared. At the
time of his arrest, Braley told State Police he acted alone and had
tried to take evidence from the cabinet before, but was
unsuccessful.

A month after Braley's arrest, State Police said they considered the
case closed and were not expecting any new charges.

Braley did not appear in court Monday before Judge Stephen P. Nugent.
The 43-year-old North Kingstown man was on hand Friday and left the
courtroom with his attorney after Lynch met privately for half an hour
with Nugent and state prosecuting attorney Maureen Keough to discuss
the case.

Town Administrator Gerald S. Kempen said the town has not received
formal notice of Braley's resignation.

An official with the town's human resources department said Braley has
been off Middletown's payroll since late July, but he continues to
draw health-care benefits, per order of the Police Officers' Bill of
Rights.

"If it's true (Braley's resignation), it's a good thing for the
department and the town," Kempen said.

"A: If someone commits this type of crime, they shouldn't be working
for our police department, and B: It's important for people to be able
to move on and get some closure and if it's the case, that would be
closure," he said.