Colleague Defends Embattled DCF Commissioner – And Her Pension
Controversial former Department of Children and Families Commissioner Olga Roche resigned in May, but her last day on the state payroll was October 17.
Why the lapse?
The Boston Herald reported that Roche retired last Friday, 10 days after her 60th birthday, implying she hung on that long to take home a larger pension. According to Open Checkbook, Roche’s annual salary is listed at $139,758. Her pension information was not available.
After resigning as commissioner, Roche stayed on at the DCF as a paid consultant until August 1, and was on family medical leave until last week.
“I was on a family medical leave, and I hope that the privacy of myself and my family is respected,’’ Roche told Boston.com in a statement.
“She has asked that we respect her privacy, and we will of course honor that request,’’ Health and Human Services spokesman Alec Loftus said.
John Laing, who worked closely with Roche as a national child welfare consultant, spoke up in defense of his embattled former colleague:
“Olga Roche has dedicated over 30 years of her career towards protecting children and families, and she deserves our respect for her service. She paid into the pension system just like everyone else and earned her retirement. She is clearly being unfairly targeted by the media, and others, and deserves privacy as she is no longer a public official.’’
David Tuerck, of the conservative think tank Beacon Hill Institute, disagrees.
“The real problem here is the way we do pensions for public employees,’’ Tuerck said. “There is frequently a temptation to use the program to reward people who have won the loyalty of, in this case, the governor.’’
Roche was scrutinized after Jeremiah Oliver, 5, of Fitchburg went missing while in DCF care. Later found dead on a roadside in Sterling, he was not the first to die under DCF care. Two-week-old Bailey Irish, also of Fitchburg, died April 26 when her parents said she stopped breathing. A 2-month-old living in a Weymouth hotel room with her family died in May. Four-week-old Aliana Lavigne of Grafton died April 11 after DCF workers misplaced a fax from the Grafton Police Department.
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