Nantucket work group to draft RFP seeking independent review of African Meeting House investigation

The first meeting of the African Meeting House Investigation Procurement Work Group opened at 10 a.m., where members agreed to draft a request for proposals to hire an independent investigator to review the police response to the March 11 vandalism at the African Meeting House.

The work group, chaired by Malcolm McNabb, a select person and the committee chair, agreed the investigator should be independent of persons and organizations involved in the original inquiry, possess demonstrable experience with criminal-investigation practices and be prepared to produce a public report and presentation of findings. "Our essential goal is essentially to find an organization to do an independent review of the investigation of the African Meeting House vandalism," McNabb said at the meeting.

The group's discussion centered on three interlocking topics: how to define "independent," what minimum qualifications to require, and how the town should structure procurement. Dr. Noelle Trent, president and CEO of the Museum of African American History, said the work group should seek candidates who "do not have ties to…