City Police Chief Answers Critics

Cambridge's police chief replied yesterday to charges that he had acted unjustly in transferring to the traffic bureau a detective who ran for public office. Daniel J. Brennan said that he had reassigned William G. Maher because Maher received campaign contributions illegally and injected politics "into the operation of the police department."

"Stated in simple terms, police and politics do not mix," Brennan said. "If a police officer wants to go into politics, he should separate himself from the police department and give full attention to his new profession."

Maher ran for City Councillor last fall, finishing tenth in the race for nine seats. After the election, according to testimony at a public hearing Jan. 27, Brennan transferred him out of the detective bureau, in which he had served for almost six years.

Letter to City Manager

Brennan's lengthy statement on the case--which came as a letter to City Manager John J. Curry '19--contrasted strongly with his reticence at last week's hearing, when he said only that he had transferred Maher "for the good of the department."

Yesterday, Brennan accused Maher of having broken both a departmental rule and a Massachusetts statute that prohibit the acceptance of political contributions by police officers. He also claimed that Maher's campaign had infringed "the right of our citizens to be assured that no attempt is being made to mix politics with police work."

"Some very sensitive relations developed" after the Nov. 5 election Brennan said, adding that he had been forced to ask police to guard the ballots "because of the charge of possible favoritism."