MacHenry v. Civil Service Commission

Thomas MacHenry, a sergeant in the Wakefield police department, appeals from a judgment of the Superior Court dismissing his complaint, which sought relief in the nature of certiorari pursuant to G. L. c. 249, § 4, from a decision of the Civil Service Commission (commission).

This procedurally complex controversy stems from Mac-Henry’s short-lived promotion to police lieutenant in 1988, when the board of selectmen of the town of Wakefield voted *633to “bypass” two higher scoring individuals on the certified civil service promotion eligibility list and to promote Mac-Henry, the lowest scoring of…