Pearson v. Board of Selectmen

This appeal concerns the applicability of G. L. c. 39, §§ 23A and 23B, the open meeting law, to a nonpublic meeting attended by the chairman of the board of selectmen of Longmeadow, officials of the city of Springfield, and others. A judge of the Superior Court, after a jury-waived trial, held that there was no violation of c. 39 by reason of the chairman’s attendance. We affirm the judgment.

The facts found by the trial judge, supplemented in minor details by uncontroverted testimony, are as follows. In the spring of 1996, the city announced plans to reopen a part of Forest Park known as the…