HOPKINTON – Police Chief Joseph Bennett reports that the Hopkinton Police Department was notified yesterday that the Massachusetts Office of the Chief Medical Examiner issued its findings on the cause and manner of the death of Mikayla Miller, age 16.
The Hopkinton Police Department reached out to a representative of Mikayla’s family and continues to offer its most sincere condolences and support during this unspeakable time.
As is the case with all unattended deaths in the county, the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office has primary jurisdiction over the investigation, which remains active and ongoing. The Hopkinton Police Department is assisting in that investigation.
In response to the significant public inquiry regarding this investigation by members of the press and community, Chief Bennett has also today ordered the release of certain records that are germane to this investigation and that show the Hopkinton Police Department’s response to, logging of, and role in investigating Mikayla’s death.
The Hopkinton Police Department is committed to transparency in policing, and careful consideration was made prior to the release of these records. However, Chief Bennett believes the release of records is the prudent course of action given the volume of records requests received and the amount of public commentary already made regarding this case. The public should have faith that its municipal police department responded to this tragic circumstance promptly and treated it with due care and consideration. The Police Department also communicated with the District Attorney’s Office to ensure that the release of these records would not adversely affect the ongoing investigation.
Certain records could not legally be released during the initial death investigation, and some records remain restricted from public disclosure by law. Specifically, under the Domestic Violence Act of 2014, an incident that occurred on April 17 that has generated significant attention and inquiry must be excluded from the department’s public log and reports regarding that incident are prohibited from public disclosure as a matter of law due to the existence of a dating relationship.
However, Chief Bennett reiterates that the Hopkinton Police Department did its duty and promptly responded to, investigated, logged and treated the incident on April 17 and Mikayla’s death with the utmost care and professionalism as the public should rightly expect and demand of its police departments.
“The death of a child is a universal tragedy, and it is the most difficult situation a police officer or firefighter can be called to respond to,” Chief Bennett said. “We generally do not comment publicly on such cases. I do appreciate and understand the tremendous public interest in this investigation. We all want answers. However, our department is at all times bound by the laws of the Commonwealth, and there is much we cannot disclose during an active death investigation. We are today releasing a number of records that have been requested by the public and approved for release. The Department has also met with District Attorney Marian Ryan’s Office to ensure the release of these records will not adversely affect the ongoing investigation.
“I wish to state for the record that the officers and staff of the Hopkinton Police Department are professionals who responded to this tragedy with urgency and who are assisting in conducting a thorough and impartial investigation.”
The Hopkinton Police Department is today releasing the following:
- The recording of the 911 call to the police station concerning Mikayla’s death on April 18
- The recordings of police department and dispatch radio transmissions on April 18
- The recordings of the Hopkinton Fire Department response on April 18
- The Hopkinton Police Department log and separate call entries concerning Mikayla’s death on April 18
- The Hopkinton Police Department police cruiser dashboard camera recordings for the entire morning shift on April 18 with no edits or redactions.
The death investigation call was omitted from the April 18 public-facing log file because incidents involving the deaths of children are generally not included in the public log. It is being released at this time, on the advice of counsel, separately from the previously released public log.
Please note that call log entries are updated by dispatchers during the shift with the most currently available information. This is done to ensure correctness when 911 callers may provide inaccurate information in the heat of an emergency situation.
Certain items also appear as “Closed” or “Open” on the log. This is done for a variety of reasons; in some cases items are closed for reasons including “locking” cases to prevent them from being edited or to signify that another agency has joined the investigation.
The radio and dispatch recordings are often difficult for the public to decipher, but they show first responders being dispatched to the area after a 911 call was placed. Police and fire units arrived quickly, established incident command, secured the scene and requested a detective, the state police and the medical examiner to respond. Another officer also indicates that the department will notify the family. These are standard operating procedures for death investigations. (Note: Periods of long silence are not recorded, so the transmissions should not be taken as “real time.”)
Chief Bennett and the Hopkinton Police Department urge all residents to familiarize themselves with mental health and suicide prevention resources available to families and individuals including the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK and the National Alliance on Mental Illness of Massachusetts https://namimass.org/. To learn more about local resources and what you can do to prevent suicide in Hopkinton reach out to Hopkinton Youth & Family Services at 508-497-9781.
April 18, 2021 Death Investigation Police Log Entry and Call Log Entry
April 18, 2021 911 Call and Initial Dispatch
April 18, 2021 Hopkinton Police Department Radio Audio
Hopkinton Fire Alarm Dispatch Audio
April 18, 2021 Hopkinton Police Department Cruiser Camera Footage