Dave Wedge
Encyclopedia
David Wedge is a reporter and political columnist for the Boston Herald
and a freelance journalist.
, 2000 Wakefield massacre
, the September 11 attacks, and The Station nightclub fire
in West Warwick, Rhode Island
in 2003. He's also covered many national political stories, including the 2004
and 2008 presidential races
, the administration of former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney
, the historic 2006 election
of Deval Patrick
as Massachusetts' first black governor, and the 2010 congressional and Massachusetts election.
He also covers music for the Heralds entertainment section, is a contributor to Boston's Weekly Dig, Big Shot magazine, and Metalunderground.com, and has written for Boston
, Revolver
and Lime Wire Music Blog among other publications.
Wedge is a frequent TV and radio commentator, appearing on CNN
, Fox News, MSNBC
and several local stations. He appears monthly on The Emily Rooney
Show on WGBH-FM in Boston and weekly on Monday Night Talk with Massachusetts State Senator Robert L. Hedlund
on WATD-FM
radio.
In 2005, Wedge and the Herald lost a jury verdict in a libel case filed by Massachusetts Superior Court
Judge Ernest B. Murphy. The verdict was appealed to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
but the SJC upheld the verdict in a ruling on May 7, 2007. The Herald and Wedge maintained the stories were accurate and that the court rulings were flawed.
Wedge is married to Jessica Heslam
, the Heralds media reporter.
and Wedge centers on a series of articles about Judge Murphy that were published by the Herald.
Also named in the suit were Herald reporters and columnists Jules Crittenden, Margery Eagan and David Weber. According to official court documents, “at the close of the evidence, the trial judge entered judgment in favor of Eagan and Weber pursuant to Mass. R. Civ. P. 50 (a), 365 Mass. 814 (1974). The jury returned their special verdict finding Crittenden not liable. None of the three is involved in this appeal.”
The Boston Herald published the first articles about Judge Murphy on February 13, 2002 in a front-page story that used the headline “Murphy’s Law; Lenient judge frees dangerous criminals.” The article, written by Wedge and Crittenden, depicted Judge Murphy as “callously indifferent to victims” and quoted unnamed courthouse sources that claimed Judge Murphy had said about a rape victim: “‘She’s 14. She got raped. Tell her to get over it.’”
Judge Murphy denied ever making the alleged rape comment but after the Herald published the stories he was "bombarded with hate mail, death threats and calls for his removal from the bench." Someone in a Boston Herald internet chatroom even said that Murphy's own daughters "should be raped."
In June 2002, Judge Murphy filed suit against Wedge and the Herald claiming that his reputation had been damaged and that he had been emotionally scarred.
On March 7, 2002, Wedge appeared on Fox News’s The O'Reilly Factor
and said Judge Murphy coddled defendants and "caused headlines for making disparaging remarks to victims." Wedge's comments were cited as being "crucial" in Murphy's libel case against the Wedge and the Herald.
, Inc., et al. began.
Wedge testified under oath that two sources told him about Judge Murphy’s alleged comments regarding the 14 year-old rape victim. Wedge understood, according to his testimony, that these two sources were not present when the rape comment was allegedly made by Judge Murphy. According to Wedge, he then confirmed the quote with a third source who was present when Judge Murphy allegedly made the comment about the rape victim. He "refused to concede that his front-page story on Murphy was at all flawed."
The court found Wedge’s testimony in the trial to be "thoroughly and convincingly impeached by his own deposition testimony," which he gave in July and August 2002. At the deposition, "Wedge contradicted his trial testimony in every material respect."
During the trial, the jury also heard testimony from Wedge's three sources, Bristol County
District Attorney Paul F. Walsh, Jr. and Assistant District Attorneys Gerald Fitzgerald and David Crowley. Fitzgerald testified that he told Wedge that Judge Murphy said "tell her to get over it." Crowley, the source who claimed to be present when Murphy made the alleged comment, testified that "the gist of the quotes in what was said appear to be accurate," but that he did not remember Judge Murphy using the words "tell her." Walsh said Crowley told him about Murphy's remarks in the lobby conference and acknowledged he did not know whether the judge said, "get over it," "she needs to get over it," or "tell her to get over it."
Murphy testified that the quotes attributed to him by defense witnesses were "absolutely preposterous."
In February 2005, the jury found that the Boston Herald and David Wedge had defamed Judge Murphy and published false information about him. The jury awarded Murphy $2.09 million in compensatory damages, an award later reduced to $2.01 million.
Shortly after the verdict, in an apparent attempt at "bullying" the Herald into a settlement, Judge Murphy wrote two letters on court letterhead
to Herald publisher Patrick Purcell, demanding the publisher meet with him and deliver a $3.26 million check.
, but on May 7, 2007 the court upheld the verdict.
In a unanimous decision "sharply critical of the newspaper and its reporter, David Wedge," the Supreme Judicial Court said "there is an abundance of evidence that, taken cumulatively, provides clear and convincing proof that the defendants either knew that the published statements found by the jury to be libelous were untrue or that they published them in reckless disregard of the probable falsity."
The court found the evidence in the case supported the jury’s verdict of actual malice. The Supreme Judicial Court opinion, written by Justice John Greaney
, said that "by the end of Wedge's testimony, his credibility on any material factual point at issue was in tatters."
publisher Patrick Purcell released a statement saying "We are disappointed with the Supreme Judicial Court’s relentlessly one-sided view of Dave Wedge’s reporting on a public controversy within the judicial system, and are unwavering in our complete confidence in Wedge’s journalistic skills." Purcell referred to the letters he received from Judge Murphy saying, Murphy "correctly predicted the Herald had ‘zero chance’ that his colleagues on the bench would side with the Herald rather than one of their own" and that "no shred of evidence exists, as Justice Greaney alleged in his opinion, that Wedge altered the quotation provided by his trusted sources."
Wedge released his own public statement in which he "vehemently" disagreed with the SJC’s decision and continued to "firmly stand by" his reporting on the stories.
On May 21, 2007, the Herald filed a petition requesting the court reconsider its decision, alleging that the SJC judges made several errors in their ruling, including misquoting Crowley's testimony and erroneously suggesting that Crowley said he heard Murphy make a sympathetic-sounding comment. The SJC acknowledged the error, as well as others, and corrected the record but denied the Herald's motion to reconsider, ending the case in the state's courts. The Herald paid Judge Murphy $3.4 million on June 7 to cover the jury award plus interest.
On July 10, the Massachusetts Commission on Judicial Conduct charged Judge Murphy with ethical violations including "willful misconduct" for the controversial letters he sent to Purcell. The CJC held a public hearing on Murphy's letters on October 15.
Murphy claimed in August that he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and asked Governor Deval Patrick
to retire him early with a full pension, even though he hadn't earned retirement benefits. Patrick denied the request. The judge also filed a $6.8 million suit against the Heralds insurance company, claiming that the libel case should have been settled.
In November the CJC issued a 27-page report that found Murphy's letters to Purcell were "improper in tone and content" and recommended a public reprimand. The CJC recommended a 30-day suspension, a $25,000 fine and a public censure for Murphy for the letters. In August 2008, Judge Murphy and the CJC reached an agreement that he was "permanently disabled" and he stepped down from the bench.
The same series was also awarded first place in the "Right to Know" category by the New England Associated Press News Executive Association in September 2008.
Wedge again made national headlines during the 2010 congressional elections when he caught an exclusive video of U.S. Rep. Barney Frank
's longtime domestic partner, Jim Ready, taunting the congressman's Republican opponent, Sean Bielat, following a debate. The video went viral and wound up on Fox News Channel
, among other news outlets. http://www.bostonherald.com/news/politics/view.bg?articleid=1289702
Boston Herald
The Boston Herald is a daily newspaper that serves Boston, Massachusetts, United States, and its surrounding area. It was started in 1846 and is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the United States...
and a freelance journalist.
Career and personal life
Wedge has covered such national news stories as the 1999 Worcester Cold Storage Warehouse fireWorcester Cold Storage Warehouse fire
The Worcester Cold Storage Warehouse fire was a fire that began on December 3, 1999, in Worcester, Massachusetts. It started when two homeless and mentally disabled people, Thomas Levesque and Julie Ann Barnes, who were living inside the warehouse, knocked over a candle after an argument earlier in...
, 2000 Wakefield massacre
Wakefield massacre
The Wakefield massacre occurred on Tuesday, December 26, 2000, at Edgewater Technology in Wakefield, Massachusetts, United States, during which the gunman, Michael "Mucko" McDermott, an application support employee, shot and killed seven co-workers....
, the September 11 attacks, and The Station nightclub fire
The Station nightclub fire
The Station nightclub fire was the fourth deadliest nightclub fire in American history, killing 100 people. The fire began at 11:07 PM EST, on Thursday, February 20, 2003, at The Station, a glam metal and rock n roll themed nightclub located at 211 Cowesett Avenue in West Warwick, Rhode Island.The...
in West Warwick, Rhode Island
West Warwick, Rhode Island
West Warwick is a town in Kent County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 29,191 at the 2010 census.West Warwick was incorporated in 1913, making it the youngest town in the state. Prior to 1913, the town, situated on the western bank of the Pawtuxet River, was the population and...
in 2003. He's also covered many national political stories, including the 2004
United States presidential election, 2004
The United States presidential election of 2004 was the United States' 55th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 2, 2004. Republican Party candidate and incumbent President George W. Bush defeated Democratic Party candidate John Kerry, the then-junior U.S. Senator...
and 2008 presidential races
United States presidential election, 2008
The United States presidential election of 2008 was the 56th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on November 4, 2008. Democrat Barack Obama, then the junior United States Senator from Illinois, defeated Republican John McCain, the senior U.S. Senator from Arizona. Obama received 365...
, the administration of former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney
Mitt Romney
Willard Mitt Romney is an American businessman and politician. He was the 70th Governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 and is a candidate for the 2012 Republican Party presidential nomination.The son of George W...
, the historic 2006 election
Massachusetts general election, 2006
A Massachusetts general election was held on November 7, 2006 in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.The election included:* statewide elections for U.S. Senator, Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Secretary of the Commonwealth, Treasurer, and Auditor;* district elections for U.S...
of Deval Patrick
Deval Patrick
Deval Laurdine Patrick is the 71st and current Governor of Massachusetts. A member of the Democratic Party, Patrick served as an Assistant United States Attorney General under President Bill Clinton...
as Massachusetts' first black governor, and the 2010 congressional and Massachusetts election.
He also covers music for the Heralds entertainment section, is a contributor to Boston's Weekly Dig, Big Shot magazine, and Metalunderground.com, and has written for Boston
Boston magazine
Boston is a monthly magazine concerning life in the Greater Boston area and has been in publication for more than 40 years.-About the magazine:The magazine is self-described as:...
, Revolver
Revolver (magazine)
Revolver is a bi-monthly rock and heavy metal magazine published by Future US. Before covering heavy metal, rock & hard rock solely, it was a more mainstream oriented magazine. The magazine is structured in a manner similar to publications such as Spin while covering many avenues within the heavy...
and Lime Wire Music Blog among other publications.
Wedge is a frequent TV and radio commentator, appearing on CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
, Fox News, MSNBC
MSNBC
MSNBC is a cable news channel based in the United States available in the US, Germany , South Africa, the Middle East and Canada...
and several local stations. He appears monthly on The Emily Rooney
Emily Rooney
Emily Rooney is an American journalist, TV talk show and radio host and former news producer. Since 1997, Rooney has been the host, executive editor and creator of Greater Boston and the weekly Beat the Press on WGBH-TV, which are also later rebroadcast on the Boston-based WGBH radio station...
Show on WGBH-FM in Boston and weekly on Monday Night Talk with Massachusetts State Senator Robert L. Hedlund
Robert L. Hedlund
Robert L. Hedlund is a member of the Massachusetts Senate, representing the Plymouth and Norfolk District. He is a member of the United States Republican Party....
on WATD-FM
WATD-FM
WATD-FM is a radio station carrying local news and features for the South Shore of Massachusetts , with music shows in jazz, oldies from the 1950s through the 1970s, and classic hits...
radio.
In 2005, Wedge and the Herald lost a jury verdict in a libel case filed by Massachusetts Superior Court
Massachusetts Superior Court
The Massachusetts Superior Court has original jurisdiction in civil actions over $25,000, and in matters where equitable relief is sought. It also has original jurisdiction in actions involving labor disputes where injunctive relief is sought, and has exclusive authority to convene medical...
Judge Ernest B. Murphy. The verdict was appealed to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The SJC has the distinction of being the oldest continuously functioning appellate court in the Western Hemisphere.-History:...
but the SJC upheld the verdict in a ruling on May 7, 2007. The Herald and Wedge maintained the stories were accurate and that the court rulings were flawed.
Wedge is married to Jessica Heslam
Jessica Heslam
Jessica Heslam is currently the media reporter for the Boston Herald.Heslam was hired by the Boston newspaper in 2000 from the Patriot Ledger in Quincy, Massachusetts...
, the Heralds media reporter.
Murphy v. Boston Herald, Inc., et al.
The libel case brought by Judge Murphy, against the Boston HeraldBoston Herald
The Boston Herald is a daily newspaper that serves Boston, Massachusetts, United States, and its surrounding area. It was started in 1846 and is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the United States...
and Wedge centers on a series of articles about Judge Murphy that were published by the Herald.
Also named in the suit were Herald reporters and columnists Jules Crittenden, Margery Eagan and David Weber. According to official court documents, “at the close of the evidence, the trial judge entered judgment in favor of Eagan and Weber pursuant to Mass. R. Civ. P. 50 (a), 365 Mass. 814 (1974). The jury returned their special verdict finding Crittenden not liable. None of the three is involved in this appeal.”
The Boston Herald published the first articles about Judge Murphy on February 13, 2002 in a front-page story that used the headline “Murphy’s Law; Lenient judge frees dangerous criminals.” The article, written by Wedge and Crittenden, depicted Judge Murphy as “callously indifferent to victims” and quoted unnamed courthouse sources that claimed Judge Murphy had said about a rape victim: “‘She’s 14. She got raped. Tell her to get over it.’”
Judge Murphy denied ever making the alleged rape comment but after the Herald published the stories he was "bombarded with hate mail, death threats and calls for his removal from the bench." Someone in a Boston Herald internet chatroom even said that Murphy's own daughters "should be raped."
In June 2002, Judge Murphy filed suit against Wedge and the Herald claiming that his reputation had been damaged and that he had been emotionally scarred.
On March 7, 2002, Wedge appeared on Fox News’s The O'Reilly Factor
The O'Reilly Factor
The O'Reilly Factor, originally titled The O'Reilly Report from 1996 to 1998 and often called The Factor, is an American talk show on the Fox News Channel hosted by commentator Bill O'Reilly, who often discusses current controversial political issues with guests.The program was the most watched...
and said Judge Murphy coddled defendants and "caused headlines for making disparaging remarks to victims." Wedge's comments were cited as being "crucial" in Murphy's libel case against the Wedge and the Herald.
Trial
In January 2005, the case of Murphy v. Boston HeraldBoston Herald
The Boston Herald is a daily newspaper that serves Boston, Massachusetts, United States, and its surrounding area. It was started in 1846 and is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the United States...
, Inc., et al. began.
Wedge testified under oath that two sources told him about Judge Murphy’s alleged comments regarding the 14 year-old rape victim. Wedge understood, according to his testimony, that these two sources were not present when the rape comment was allegedly made by Judge Murphy. According to Wedge, he then confirmed the quote with a third source who was present when Judge Murphy allegedly made the comment about the rape victim. He "refused to concede that his front-page story on Murphy was at all flawed."
The court found Wedge’s testimony in the trial to be "thoroughly and convincingly impeached by his own deposition testimony," which he gave in July and August 2002. At the deposition, "Wedge contradicted his trial testimony in every material respect."
During the trial, the jury also heard testimony from Wedge's three sources, Bristol County
Bristol County, Massachusetts
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 534,678 people, 205,411 households, and 140,706 families residing in the county. The population density was 962 people per square mile . There were 216,918 housing units at an average density of 390 per square mile...
District Attorney Paul F. Walsh, Jr. and Assistant District Attorneys Gerald Fitzgerald and David Crowley. Fitzgerald testified that he told Wedge that Judge Murphy said "tell her to get over it." Crowley, the source who claimed to be present when Murphy made the alleged comment, testified that "the gist of the quotes in what was said appear to be accurate," but that he did not remember Judge Murphy using the words "tell her." Walsh said Crowley told him about Murphy's remarks in the lobby conference and acknowledged he did not know whether the judge said, "get over it," "she needs to get over it," or "tell her to get over it."
Murphy testified that the quotes attributed to him by defense witnesses were "absolutely preposterous."
In February 2005, the jury found that the Boston Herald and David Wedge had defamed Judge Murphy and published false information about him. The jury awarded Murphy $2.09 million in compensatory damages, an award later reduced to $2.01 million.
Shortly after the verdict, in an apparent attempt at "bullying" the Herald into a settlement, Judge Murphy wrote two letters on court letterhead
Letterhead
A letterhead is the heading at the top of a sheet of letter paper . That heading usually consists of a name and an address, and a logo or corporate design, and sometimes a background pattern...
to Herald publisher Patrick Purcell, demanding the publisher meet with him and deliver a $3.26 million check.
Appeal
The Herald appealed to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial CourtMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The SJC has the distinction of being the oldest continuously functioning appellate court in the Western Hemisphere.-History:...
, but on May 7, 2007 the court upheld the verdict.
In a unanimous decision "sharply critical of the newspaper and its reporter, David Wedge," the Supreme Judicial Court said "there is an abundance of evidence that, taken cumulatively, provides clear and convincing proof that the defendants either knew that the published statements found by the jury to be libelous were untrue or that they published them in reckless disregard of the probable falsity."
The court found the evidence in the case supported the jury’s verdict of actual malice. The Supreme Judicial Court opinion, written by Justice John Greaney
John Greaney
John M. Greaney is a former Associate Justice on the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts and director of the Macaronis Institute for Trial and Appellate Advocacy at Suffolk University Law School....
, said that "by the end of Wedge's testimony, his credibility on any material factual point at issue was in tatters."
Reaction and response
In the wake of the failed appeal, Boston HeraldBoston Herald
The Boston Herald is a daily newspaper that serves Boston, Massachusetts, United States, and its surrounding area. It was started in 1846 and is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the United States...
publisher Patrick Purcell released a statement saying "We are disappointed with the Supreme Judicial Court’s relentlessly one-sided view of Dave Wedge’s reporting on a public controversy within the judicial system, and are unwavering in our complete confidence in Wedge’s journalistic skills." Purcell referred to the letters he received from Judge Murphy saying, Murphy "correctly predicted the Herald had ‘zero chance’ that his colleagues on the bench would side with the Herald rather than one of their own" and that "no shred of evidence exists, as Justice Greaney alleged in his opinion, that Wedge altered the quotation provided by his trusted sources."
Wedge released his own public statement in which he "vehemently" disagreed with the SJC’s decision and continued to "firmly stand by" his reporting on the stories.
On May 21, 2007, the Herald filed a petition requesting the court reconsider its decision, alleging that the SJC judges made several errors in their ruling, including misquoting Crowley's testimony and erroneously suggesting that Crowley said he heard Murphy make a sympathetic-sounding comment. The SJC acknowledged the error, as well as others, and corrected the record but denied the Herald's motion to reconsider, ending the case in the state's courts. The Herald paid Judge Murphy $3.4 million on June 7 to cover the jury award plus interest.
On July 10, the Massachusetts Commission on Judicial Conduct charged Judge Murphy with ethical violations including "willful misconduct" for the controversial letters he sent to Purcell. The CJC held a public hearing on Murphy's letters on October 15.
Murphy claimed in August that he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and asked Governor Deval Patrick
Deval Patrick
Deval Laurdine Patrick is the 71st and current Governor of Massachusetts. A member of the Democratic Party, Patrick served as an Assistant United States Attorney General under President Bill Clinton...
to retire him early with a full pension, even though he hadn't earned retirement benefits. Patrick denied the request. The judge also filed a $6.8 million suit against the Heralds insurance company, claiming that the libel case should have been settled.
In November the CJC issued a 27-page report that found Murphy's letters to Purcell were "improper in tone and content" and recommended a public reprimand. The CJC recommended a 30-day suspension, a $25,000 fine and a public censure for Murphy for the letters. In August 2008, Judge Murphy and the CJC reached an agreement that he was "permanently disabled" and he stepped down from the bench.
Post-trial
Wedge continues to cover news and politics for the Herald and in 2008 was part of a team of reporters who won a New England Press Association award in the "Right to Know" category for a series on public officials' salaries.The same series was also awarded first place in the "Right to Know" category by the New England Associated Press News Executive Association in September 2008.
Wedge again made national headlines during the 2010 congressional elections when he caught an exclusive video of U.S. Rep. Barney Frank
Barney Frank
Barney Frank is the U.S. Representative for . A member of the Democratic Party, he is the former chairman of the House Financial Services Committee and is considered the most prominent gay politician in the United States.Born and raised in New Jersey, Frank graduated from Harvard College and...
's longtime domestic partner, Jim Ready, taunting the congressman's Republican opponent, Sean Bielat, following a debate. The video went viral and wound up on Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel , often called Fox News, is a cable and satellite television news channel owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of News Corporation...
, among other news outlets. http://www.bostonherald.com/news/politics/view.bg?articleid=1289702