Thursday, 4:30 PM
Mashpee Wampanoag tribe chairman to step aside indefinitely
(Lisa Poole/AP)
On July 28, Glenn Marshall signed an agreement as the chairman of the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe to build a $1 billion casino in Middleborough.
By Globe Staff
The chairman of the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe, which is proposing to build a $1 billion casino in the town of Middleborough, said today he is turning over his day-to-day responsibilities to his vice chairman so he can "properly deal with the mental and physical issues I'm facing."
Glenn Marshall issued a statement saying he would turn over his responsibilities to Shawn Hendricks after newspapers published reports that Marshall had been convicted of rape in 1981 and that he had embellished his military record.
Marshall said he was proud of his service in the Vietnam War but "I am sorry to have distorted my record and to allow it to stand uncorrected."
"Like a lot of veterans from that era, I realize I have my own demons that I need to deal with," he said.
Scott Ferson, a spokesman for the tribe, said Marshall would retain the title of chairman but would turn his responsibilities over to Hendricks indefinitely.
The Cape Cod Times reported today that Marshall was convicted of raping a 22-year-old visitor to the Cape in summer 1980. The Times also reported that Marshall had embellished his military record.
According to the Times, Marshall offered to drive an Illinois woman to her sister's house from a party in Barnstable. Instead, he drove her to a secluded spot in West Barnstable and sexually assaulted her, the newspaper reported, citing its archives. Marshall, who was 31 at the time of his conviction, was sentenced to five years in state prison, but he served only three months before being released on probation, the newspaper reported, citing court records.
Hendricks, the vice chairman, said the tribe will continue pushing its plans to build the state's first casino in the mostly rural town south of Boston.
"It has been through Glenn's leadership the Tribe has realized federal recognition and all that comes with it. That work will continue," Hendricks said in a statement.
Late last month, residents in the town of Middleborough approved the proposal. But it must clear several more hurdles before it becomes a reality.
The Times reported that Marshall told Congress in a 2004
hearing that he had survived the siege of Khe Sanh, a major Vietnam War battle in 1968, but school records indicated that he was still a senior in high school. The Times also reported that Marshall had said in an interview that he had served from 1966 to 1972, when Marine records showed he had served slightly less than two years.
The Day of New London, Conn., also reported that Marshall's legal adviser and lobbyist, James Morris, said that Marshall had earned five Purple Hearts and one Silver Star during three tours of duty as a Marine in Vietnam. The newspaper said that the Marines said the only person named Glenn Marshall who served in Vietnam did not receive any top awards for valor.
