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DA Kevin Hayden pays $5,000 ethics fine over controversial primary

The Suffolk County DA released a press statement in 2022 to discredit Ricardo Arroyo's claims that sexual assault allegations against him were "unfounded," the state ethics commission said.

By Molly Farrar

April 25, 2024

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The Suffolk County District Attorney will pay a fine for violating a conflict of interest law when his office discredited an opponent in a press statement, resulting in a political advantage, the state Ethics Commission announced Thursday.

Kevin Hayden admitted to the violation and waived his right to a hearing, the commission said. He’ll pay a $5,000 civil penalty.

Hayden’s conflict of interest was regarding his response to sexual assault allegations against his then-opponent for Suffolk County DA Ricardo Arroyo. In 2022, Arroyo was battling against sexual assault allegations from when he was a teenager during the primary race. He sued for the files — which showed the matter was “unfounded” when Arroyo’s campaign released them.

Hayden, however, let his office release a statement four days before the election and just an hour and a half before the files were released to Arroyo, the ethics commission said. The statement released by Hayden’s office was widely circulated by the media and published by Boston.com. It said “nothing in the file suggests the allegations were unfounded,” and that “the campaign to sabotage the victim’s credibility is shameful.”

The Massachusetts State Ethics Commission said Hayden knew his office was planning to publicly contradict Arroyo’s claims and didn’t withdraw it.

On Thursday, Hayden’s spokesperson James Borghesani said the statement was written by him “with no participation or coordination from the DA.”

“Our office’s communications on this matter were above-board, limited and cautious. Out of great concern for the alleged victims involved, we responded to voluminous media questions with extreme care and without revealing any case details,” Borghesani said. “However, District Attorney Hayden takes responsibility for his office and he wants no distractions from his vital mission of ensuring justice and public safety for the residents of Suffolk County.”

Arroyo posted a statement to X Thursday afternoon to thank the ethics commission for “holding him accountable for these illegal actions.”

“We have always maintained that Kevin Hayden betrayed the public’s trust and illegally used the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office to win his campaign,” Arroyo shared.

In 2022, Hayden went on to win the primary for the county’s top prosecutor job and was unopposed in the general election. His current term is up in 2026.
Arroyo — who admitted to his own ethics violation in 2023 when he represented his brother in a sexual harassment lawsuit — continued his term as District 5 City Councilor. Later that year, he became one of the first incumbents to lose a primary election for the Boston City Council in at least four decades.