"Former Watertown policeman gets 3 months in ID case" by Milton J. Valencia | Globe Staff, November 16, 2013
Joseph Deignan, a retired Watertown police sergeant, could have faced two years in prison for aggravated identity theft after stealing someone’s ID and using it to buy prescription painkillers.
But the 58-year-old pleaded guilty to lesser charges in August, and on Friday US District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock contemplated in court whether to sentence him to prison at all.
His lawyer, Thomas M. Hoopes, had argued before Woodlock and in court records that his client worked hard in the community, is a family man, and has already been shamed enough. He said that Deignan has undergone drug addiction treatment.
But Woodlock said he needed to send a stronger message to the community, citing Deignan’s betrayal of public trust.
“This is not merely dealing drugs,” the judge said. “It’s taking somebody’s identity. It’s a matter of fundamental seriousness.”
Deignan, a 24-year veteran of the Watertown force before his retirement in 2012, was sentenced to three months in prison.
He must also serve three years of supervised probation and pay a $10,000 fine.
Woodlock also sentenced Deignan to drug and mental health counseling, though he said he hopes that the disgraced former police officer has already found the right path.
“Sanctions are not merely as important to me as what you do with your life hereafter,” the judge said. “You have much to be thankful for.”
Dozens of family members and friends attended the court hearing, as well as Watertown police officers and Chief Edward Deveau. The chief would not comment after the hearing.
The Watertown Retirement Board is considering whether it can revoke Deignan’s pension.
He was first arrested in December as part of an investigation of identity fraud. Authorities later determined that, while working as a traffic supervisor in 2010, Deignan stole a man’s license and used it to obtain phony prescriptions for oxycodone and other prescription drugs....
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