EAST LYME — The town has provided little information about Daigle Law Group’s internal investigation into the conduct of the East Lyme Police Department leading up to the arrest of Chief Michael Finkelstein in June.
CT Examiner received a heavily redacted version of the town’s contract with Daigle on Thursday. The document states that the Southington-based firm would gather evidence, conduct interviews and prepare a written report after its investigation, but the unredacted material does not detail what specific information they will be pursuing.
The contract names Eric P. Daigle and Tricia Koosa as the two attorneys conducting the probe, along with private investigator Tim Webster. They will be paid hourly, with Daigle making $225 an hour, Koosa $200 and Webster $175.
State Police were originally tasked with conducting the internal affairs investigation after the Board of Police Commissioners ordered the probe, but they dropped the investigation after The Day published an article where Cunningham named two of the four officers under investigation and Capt. Matthew Kane as the lead investigator.
First Selectman Dan Cunningham told CT Examiner he didn’t know how long the investigation will take or how many hours he expected the law firm would dedicate to the case. He had no comment on the scope of the investigation or when the probe would start. However, the Board of Selectmen voted to transfer $50,000 for public safety and legal services on Wednesday from the town’s contingency fund.
According to its website, Daigle is experienced in “police misconduct litigation and employment actions.” Daigle began the law group in 2010 after working as state trooper for 10 years, according to his LinkedIn profile. He is a member of both the International Chiefs of Police Association and the Connecticut Police Chief Association.
Koosa works at Daigle Law Group in the firm’s litigation section. She specializes in municipalities and public officials.
Webster, who owns the private investigation business Blue and Gold Consulting Group, spent 20 years with the State Police as a detective, according to his LinkedIn.