Barry Locke
Encyclopedia
Barry Myles Locke was an American political aide who served as Massachusetts Secretary of Transportation from 1979 until he was indicted for corruption in 1981.
in 1953, Locke served two years in the United States Army
as a public information officer. After the Army he spent five years as a newspaper editor in Michigan before returning to New England as United Press International
's Vermont bureau chief.
F. Ray Keyser, Jr.
Later that year he became the state's Secretary of Civil and Military Affairs.
In 1963 Locke was appointed public information officer in the office of the Internal Revenue Service
's assistant regional commissioner for administration.
John A. Volpe
. When Volpe became United States Secretary of Transportation
after the election of Richard M. Nixon, he joined him as a personal aide.
After Volpe's departure as transportation secretary, Locke served as the public relations director for the Office of Economic Opportunity
and Director of the Office of Energy Policy
John Arthur Love
.
While working in Washington, Locke also served as the manager for middleweight boxer Leo Saenz.
. In this position he oversaw St. Louis' transportation network and managed a 2,400 employee workforce.
as Transportation Secretary. In 1980 he took on a second role as acting chairman of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
. In 1981, a reorganization of the MBTA forced Locke to turn over the day-to-day operation of The T to a general manager.
On May 1, 1981, Locke was placed on an unpaid leave of absence from his MBTA and cabinet posts after Governor King learned that Massachusetts Attorney General
Francis X. Bellotti
was investigating Locke for accepting kickbacks.
On February 2, 1982, Locke was convicted on five counts of conspiracy to commit bribery and larceny. Locke is the only Massachusetts Cabinet Secretary to be convicted of a felony while in office since the state's adoption of the cabinet system in 1970.
At sentencing, the prosecution requested a 4 to 5 year sentence. However, Judge Rudolph Pierce, who described Locke as having an "insatiable appetite" for payoffs, believed that the prosecution's sentence request was insufficent because it could allow Locke to be out on parole within 16 months. He sentenced Locke to 7 to 10 years in Walpole State Prison.
On September 29, 1983, Judge Pierce reduced Locke's sentence to 6 to 10 years, as he had miscalculated the date when Locke would have been eligible for parole.
On March 19, 1984, Locke was released on parole.
, Maryland
. For five years he was the president of CHI Centers, a Silver Spring, Maryland
-based organization that serves the developmentally disabled.
Locke died on March 4, 2007 of a heart attack.
Early life
After graduating from Boston UniversityBoston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
in 1953, Locke served two years in the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
as a public information officer. After the Army he spent five years as a newspaper editor in Michigan before returning to New England as United Press International
United Press International
United Press International is a once-major international news agency, whose newswires, photo, news film and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines and radio and television stations for most of the twentieth century...
's Vermont bureau chief.
Early government career
Locke's government career began in 1961 as the chief administrator and press secretary to the Vermont GovernorGovernor of Vermont
The Governor of Vermont is the governor of the U.S. state of Vermont. The governor is elected in even numbered years by direct voting for a term of two years; Vermont and bordering New Hampshire are the only states to hold gubernatorial elections every two years, instead of every four...
F. Ray Keyser, Jr.
F. Ray Keyser, Jr.
Frank Ray Keyser is a former American politician from Vermont, serving as the 72nd Governor of Vermont from 1961 to 1963....
Later that year he became the state's Secretary of Civil and Military Affairs.
In 1963 Locke was appointed public information officer in the office of the Internal Revenue Service
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
's assistant regional commissioner for administration.
Aide to John A. Volpe
From 1964 to 1969 Locke served as press secretary to GovernorGovernor of Massachusetts
The Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the executive magistrate of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States. The current governor is Democrat Deval Patrick.-Constitutional role:...
John A. Volpe
John A. Volpe
John Anthony Volpe was the 61st and 63rd Governor of Massachusetts and a U.S. Secretary of Transportation.-Early life and education:Volpe was born in 1908 in Wakefield, Massachusetts. He was the son of Italian immigrants Vito and Filomena , who had come from Abruzzo to Boston's North End in 1905;...
. When Volpe became United States Secretary of Transportation
United States Secretary of Transportation
The United States Secretary of Transportation is the head of the United States Department of Transportation, a member of the President's Cabinet, and fourteenth in the Presidential line of succession. The post was created with the formation of the Department of Transportation on October 15, 1966,...
after the election of Richard M. Nixon, he joined him as a personal aide.
After Volpe's departure as transportation secretary, Locke served as the public relations director for the Office of Economic Opportunity
Office of Economic Opportunity
The Office of Economic Opportunity was the agency responsible for administering most of the War on Poverty programs created as part of United States President Lyndon B. Johnson's Great Society legislative agenda.- History :...
and Director of the Office of Energy Policy
Energy Czar
Energy Czar is a nickname, using the political term "czar", for the person in the Government of the United States given authority over energy policy within the executive branch...
John Arthur Love
John Arthur Love
John Arthur Love was a United States attorney and Republican politician who served as the 36th Governor of the State of Colorado from 1963 to 1973....
.
While working in Washington, Locke also served as the manager for middleweight boxer Leo Saenz.
Bi-State Development Agency
In 1977, Locke was appointed executive director of the Bi-State Development AgencyBi-State Development Agency
The Bi-State Development Agency is an interstate compact formed by Missouri and Illinois in 1949. Since February 2003 the agency has been doing business as Metro. It operates with a budget of $160 million, which is funded by sales taxes from the City of St. Louis and St. Louis County, the St...
. In this position he oversaw St. Louis' transportation network and managed a 2,400 employee workforce.
Secretary of Transportation and Chairman of the MBTA
In 1979, Locke joined the administration of Massachusetts Governor Edward J. KingEdward J. King
Edward Joseph "Ed" King was the 66th Governor of the U.S. state of Massachusetts from 1979 to 1983.Born in Chelsea, Massachusetts, and a graduate of Boston College and Bentley College, King played professional football as a guard with the All-America Football Conference Buffalo Bisons from 1948 to...
as Transportation Secretary. In 1980 he took on a second role as acting chairman of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, often referred to as the MBTA or simply The T, is the public operator of most bus, subway, commuter rail and ferry systems in the greater Boston, Massachusetts, area. Officially a "body politic and corporate, and a political subdivision" of the...
. In 1981, a reorganization of the MBTA forced Locke to turn over the day-to-day operation of The T to a general manager.
On May 1, 1981, Locke was placed on an unpaid leave of absence from his MBTA and cabinet posts after Governor King learned that Massachusetts Attorney General
Massachusetts Attorney General
The Massachusetts Attorney General is an elected executive officer of the Massachusetts Government. The office of Attorney-General was abolished in 1843 and re-established in 1849. The current Attorney General is Martha Coakley....
Francis X. Bellotti
Francis X. Bellotti
Francis Xavier Bellotti is an American lawyer and politician. In his first campaign he was the Democratic nominee for District Attorney of Norfolk County in 1958, but was defeated in the general election. In 1962 Bellotti was elected as Lieutenant Governor for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts...
was investigating Locke for accepting kickbacks.
Indictment and conviction
On July 17, 1981, Locke and eight others were indicted for their roles in a kickback scheme at the MBTA.On February 2, 1982, Locke was convicted on five counts of conspiracy to commit bribery and larceny. Locke is the only Massachusetts Cabinet Secretary to be convicted of a felony while in office since the state's adoption of the cabinet system in 1970.
At sentencing, the prosecution requested a 4 to 5 year sentence. However, Judge Rudolph Pierce, who described Locke as having an "insatiable appetite" for payoffs, believed that the prosecution's sentence request was insufficent because it could allow Locke to be out on parole within 16 months. He sentenced Locke to 7 to 10 years in Walpole State Prison.
Prison
Locke began serving his sentence on March 19, 1982 in Walpole State Prison, but was later transferred to Concord State Prison for the classification process. On July 1, he was transferred to the medium-security Berkshire County House of Correction. On December 23, he was transferred to the Lawrence House of Correction on the basis of family hardship. While in prison, Locke was the editor of a jailhouse newspaper.On September 29, 1983, Judge Pierce reduced Locke's sentence to 6 to 10 years, as he had miscalculated the date when Locke would have been eligible for parole.
On March 19, 1984, Locke was released on parole.
Later life and death
Locke later left Massachusetts and moved to Montgomery VillageMontgomery Village, Maryland
Montgomery Village is a northern suburb of Gaithersburg in an unincorporated area in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It is a large, planned suburban community, developed in the late 1960s and 1970s right outside Gaithersburg city limits...
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. For five years he was the president of CHI Centers, a Silver Spring, Maryland
Silver Spring, Maryland
Silver Spring is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It had a population of 71,452 at the 2010 census, making it the fourth most populous place in Maryland, after Baltimore, Columbia, and Germantown.The urbanized, oldest, and...
-based organization that serves the developmentally disabled.
Locke died on March 4, 2007 of a heart attack.