WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) — A supervisor and two instructors with a Massachusetts State Police tactical unit plead not guilty Thursday in connection with the death of a recruit who suffered a concussion during a sparring session and blunt force injuries a day later in what investigators called an “unapproved and unsafe” boxing match.

Enrique Delgado-Garcia, 25, died at a hospital on Sept. 13, 2024, a day after undergoing a “medical crisis” and becoming unresponsive during a defensive tactics exercise in the boxing ring, authorities said at the time. Charges in these types of cases are exceedingly rare.

David Meier, an investigator appointed by Massachusetts' attorney general, announced in February that the supervisor and the instructors in the police academy’s defensive tactics unit were being charged with involuntary manslaughter and causing serious bodily injury to a person participating in training. The supervisor also was charged with perjury in connection with her grand jury testimony.

Meier had said unsafe sparring sessions led to the trainee's concussion, adding he sustained “multiple blunt force injuries to the head and massive brain bleeding” a day later after academy staff failed to stop a training boxing match.

Lt. Jennifer Penton, the supervisor and a sergeant at the time she was charged, along with Troopers Edwin Rodriguez and David Montanez, entered not guilty pleas to all charges before Worcester Superior Court Judge J. Gavin Reardon Jr.. A fourth trooper, Casey LaMonte, faces arraignment April 14.

All plead not guilty

In a packed courtroom, Penton, Rodriguez and Montanez stood together and responded “not guilty” as the charges were read. Across the courtroom, relatives of Delgado-Garcia watched quietly. A handful of people outside court help up signs showing the trainee's face and the words, "Justice For Enrique."

The three defendants were released on personal recognizance under several conditions including having no contact with potential witnesses in the case.

Outside court, the family's attorney, Mike Wilcox, said Thursday was “a difficult and long day” for Delgado-Garcia's relatives, some seen holding back tears.

“They've been patient. They have been gracious through all this. They have shown nothing but class,” Wilcox said.

“They are grieving still, as you can tell, and they are going to stick with this process for as long as it takes,” he said. “They want justice for Enrique, and they want to make sure that the process is fair and that Enrique is heard here.”

The defendants didn't speak exiting the court but their attorneys called the death a “tragic accident” and said the three were just doing their jobs and would be found innocent.

“The tragedy of Trooper Delgado is not a crime. Filing these criminal charges will not bring Trooper Delgado Garcia back,” Penton's lawyer Brad Bailey said. “The Commonwealth’s effort to apply ... convoluted legal theory to the underlying facts will not change them. Nor will it transform this tragedy into criminal conduct.”

Attorney defends training and troopers

Kevin Reddington, representing Montanez, described all three troopers as “good people" and defended the training as necessary to prepare recruits for their crime-fighting duties.

“It’s so easy for people to say oh my goodness that was just too rough,” Reddington said. “This is reckless conduct that they’re alleging, manslaughter charges that they are alleging against people that were doing their job, consistent with rules, regulations, and what has been recognized as valid training.”

Brian Williams, the president of the State Police Association of Massachusetts, also defended the troopers.

“These members and our entire defensive tactics staff are among the best in the nation and all established protocols were strictly followed,” he said.

Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell appointed Meier in February and said it was important to have an independent, impartial investigatio. It follows calls from advocacy groups and Delgado-Garcia’s family and friends for those responsible to be held accountable.

More than 30 recruits have died in academies since 2015

An Associated Press investigation, “ Dying to Serve, ” has found that more than 30 recruits have died during law enforcement academies since 2015, caused by a mix of violent or grueling training exercises, heat, exertion and other medical conditions.

The number of deaths have risen in recent years as departments turn to less-traditional candidates to fill openings but maintain longstanding academy drills. Investigators have generally treated them as unfortunate but unavoidable medical incidents, and criminal charges have rarely been considered.

The charges in Massachusetts are believed to be the first related to a police academy recruit’s death in years. In examining the deaths of 37 recruits since 2005, AP could not find any other case that led to criminal charges.

Other forms of legal accountability, including civil lawsuits and workplace safety investigations, have also rarely been pursued. Families have struggled to collect federal death benefits, even after Congress passed a law clarifying that recruits were eligible.

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Associated Press writer Ryan J. Foley in Iowa City, Iowa, contributed to this report.

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