Major Cover-Up

In the early afternoon of September 20th, 1987, a car was traveling at an extremely high rate of speed as it drove south on Route 103-A in Newbury. As it approached the intersection with Chalk Pond Road, it crossed the center line, entirely into the northbound lane. The car then crashed directly into a dump truck,instantly killing a 16-year-old girl who was the passenger in the car.

Her name was Tara Ann Linehan and she lived with her family in New London.

Newbury Police Department responded to the scene, as did New London Police. The crash investigationwas turned over to the New Hampshire State Police. The Merrimack County Attorney’s Office reviewed the case for potential criminal charges. Despite the fact that three different law enforcement agencies responded to this fatality, and the County Attorney reviewed the case for possible indictment, no one seems to have a copy of the report. Recently, requests for this report were filed with all of these agencies under NH RSA 91-A (Right to Know Law). Each one resulted in a response of essentially, “We don’t have it.” (See attached receipts)

We know the crash that killed Tara Ann Linehan definitely happened. The Concord Monitor covered the crash, and their article is still readily available. (See attached receipts) Kearsarge High School has a memorial scholarship in Tara’s name. (See attached receipts) Her burial site can be located via findagrave.com (See attached receipts) The Town of Newbury Annual Report for 1987 clearly lists Tara Linehan’s death. (See attached receipts) But, for some strange reason, each of the involved law enforcement agencies has no record of this crash. How could that possibly be?

Did we neglect to mention the at-fault driver of the car was Matthew S. Shapiro?

Who is Matthew Shapiro, you ask? He is currently the Executive Major of the New Hampshire State Police. Tara Ann Linehan was Major Shapiro’s high school girlfriend at the time of the crash. That’s right: The number two in command of the New Hampshire State Police has an at-fault, fatal crash in his history, and no one can seem to find a copy of the report. Shocking.

Executive Major Shapiro’s current position might provide insight as to why law enforcement agencies are reluctant to release the report (or maybe even destroyed it). However, it does not provide reason for the lack of prosecution on a charge of Negligent Homicide, which was likely warranted. Nor does it explain the almost immediate disappearance of any reports or official documentation of the incident. So how did that happen?

From 1960 to 1980, Mr. Shapiro’s grandfather, Arthur W. Jones served as the Chief of Police in Newbury, NH. Yes, that is the same Newbury in which the fatal crash took place. It is almost a certainty that the Newbury Officer responding to the crash worked for Chief Jones just a few years earlier.

Additionally, Chief Jones divorced his first wife and married into a very wealthy family. His 2 decades in a political position, as well as some newly acquired wealth, undoubtedly provided him significant influence.

Tara’s father, Paul Linehan, was the former principal at Kearsarge High School, where both Mr. Shapiro and Ms. Linehan attended. Mr. Linehan had moved on and became the superintendent of the school district. He was well liked and every bit as politically connected as Mr. Shapiro’s family. Perhaps even more so. But this was his daughter. Why would he not want the person allegedly responsible for her death to be punished? Was he trying to protect the memory of his daughter and the reputation of his family?

Fortunately, the driver of the dump truck is still in the area. His name is Ted Gallup. He resides in Sunapee. In a recent interview, he recalled the crash like it occurred yesterday. On September 20, 1987, shortly after noon, he was driving his 1979 International S Model 10-wheel dump truck. He was headed north on Route 103-A in Newbury, on his way to New London with a full load of sand. The traffic was light. The weather was cloudy but there was no rain. The pavement was dry and visibility was clear.

Route 103-A makes a very sharp bend to the left in the area of the intersection with Chalk Pond Road. The posted speed is 40 mph but there are caution arrows and signs warning that speed should be reduced to 30 mph in that extreme corner. As Gallup approached this intersection, he observed a car headed southbound, in the northbound lane, at an extremely high rate of speed. Mr. Gallup estimated the speed of the approaching vehicle at 70+ miles per hour. There were no road obstructions (fallen tree, large animal, etc) that would have forced the car into the oncoming lane.

In an effort to avoid what would have been a head-on collision, Mr. Gallup quickly turned hard right towards Chalk Pond Road, almost overturning his truck in the sloped soft shoulder. He hit the brakes and brought the fully loaded dump truck almost to a complete stop. The approaching car also steered towards Chalk Pond Road but never slowed. It struck the International dump truck on the left side, just forward of the passenger compartment. Most of the impact on the car was to the passenger side. Gallup recalled the car was traveling so fast, the impact actually stopped the fully loaded dump truck from rolling over, and down the embankment.

Tara Linehan was killed instantly.

The New Hampshire State Police responded to the scene. Both vehicles were impounded as evidence and subjected to what is known as a “motor vehicle autopsy.” According to Gallup, although there was significant damage done to his dump truck, there were no mechanical or safety deficiencies found with it. The truck was found to be in perfect working order at the time of the crash.

In the months after the crash, Gallup was contacted by Tara’s father, Paul Linehan. He reached out to explain that the crash was not his (Gallup’s) fault. He encouraged Gallup to just get on with his life, like it hadn’t happened. He also disclosed that Matt Shapiro had apparently been in a heated argument with Tara at the time of the crash.

As much as Gallup would have liked to put the incident behind him, he could not. His truck was seriously damaged. It was impounded for months. It took months more to repair it. Worst of all, he learned Matt Shapiro was uninsured at the time of the crash. Gallup considered a lawsuit against Shapiro, but Shapiro’s lawyer said he would simply declare bankruptcy. In the end, Shapiro paid Gallup $1,000 to settle everything. Gallup estimates his losses were about $25,000-$30,000, between damage to the truck, loss of business while it was out of commission, and legal fees.

To date, Matt Shapiro has never called Ted Gallup. He’s never apologized for the crash, nor the emotional and financial toll it took on him. And despite a very significant, six-figure Executive Major salary, he has never reimbursed him.

To sum it all up, Matt Shapiro got into a heated argument with his girlfriend. He lost his temper and drove his car at a high speed, in the wrong lane, then crashed it (either recklessly or intentionally) into a dump truck. The crash kills his girlfriend and almost bankrupts the innocent driver of the dump truck. He never gets charged for killing Tara Linehan because of the political influence of either his family or his girlfriend’s. He never reimburses Ted Gallup for his losses. He never apologizes, either.

He is now the Executive Major of the New Hampshire State Police: The same agency that seemingly can’t locate their own report on this incident.

On the New Hampshire State Police Recruitment website, it lists “Automatic Disqualifiers” that preclude an applicant from ever becoming a Trooper. One of those automatic disqualifiers is “manufacture, sale or transport of controlled substances.” In other words, if a college kid drove across campus and sold a couple of his Adderall to a buddy during his freshman year, he can never be a Trooper. Ever. But if the same kid got into a fight with his girlfriend while driving like a maniac, then slammed his uninsured car into a dump truck, killing her…not only does he qualify to be a Trooper, he will be on the fast track for promotion.

And who is responsible for the meteoric rise of Matthew S. Shapiro’s State Police career? Commissioner Bob Quinn. The same Bob Quinn who was recently discovered to be illegally running criminal history queries for personal use…

Absent a comprehensive police report, we are left with nothing but questions: Was Matt Shapiro drunk at the time of the crash? Was he stoned or high? Was a blood draw even conducted? Was this crash the result of a rolling, domestic violence incident? After all, he was reportedly arguing with Tara Linehan at the time of the crash. What was the argument about? Was Tara pregnant and thus a threat to his pending scholarship at Penn State University? Was this shear recklessness, or was it intentional? Was it an attempt at a murder/suicide based on unstable teenage emotions? On what basis did the Merrimack County Attorney determine that no criminal charges should be brought?

Shapiro was hired by the Division of State Police in 1997, only ten years after killing his girlfriend in an extremely suspicious crash. Prior to that, he was employed by Concord Police Department, where he spent 4 years as an officer. How did that agency hire him only six years after this event? The public deserves to know how a guy who kills his girlfriend in this manner gets hired as a cop, anywhere? Who made what phone calls to whom in order to facilitate this?

The irony of all this is that over the course of his career, Matt Shapiro has ruthlessly pursued criminal charges for drivers who did much less. For instance, on December 23, 2010, Chad Belleville was driving on Route 28 in Pittsfield when he caused a crash while distracted by his cell phone. As a result of the crash, a child was seriously injured…not killed, injured. Shapiro led the investigation and brought a felony charge of Second Degree Assault against Belleville. Belleville was subsequently convicted and sentenced to 3 ½ -7 years in prison. So, Belleville is distracted by his phone, causes a crash which injures a child, and he gets sent to prison for 3 ½ to 7 years. Matt Shapiro recklessly drives his uninsured car at almost twice the speed limit, in the wrong lane, while arguing with his girlfriend, slams into a dump truck, killing her instantly…and he gets sent to the third floor of State Police Headquarters.

The same State Police Headquarters that can’t seem to locate their copy of this fatality report.

Seems fair.

Rules are for Thee. Not for Me.