POLITICS - MASSLIVE.COM
Senate President Stan Rosenberg's husband Bryon Hefner sent unsolicited photo of nude male genitalia to state political player
By Gintautas Dumcius [email protected]
Massachusetts Senate President Stan Rosenberg's husband Bryon Hefner earlier this year sent a text message with a picture of male genitalia to someone who works in Massachusetts state politics.
The unsolicited picture from Hefner was of a random person's penis and the message was apparently meant for someone else in politics, according to the person who received it, who spoke with MassLive and shared a screenshot of the exchange.
In responding to Hefner, the person indicated they weren't interested in receiving it.
According to the source, Hefner responded with "i figured he was your type. i'll keep looking."
The recipient, who MassLive is not naming, is not one of the four men who came forward to the Boston Globe and alleged Hefner sexually harassed or assaulted them.
Three of the four men in the Globe story alleged Hefner groped them while one said Hefner kissed him against his will in incidents that occurred in the last several years.
"He participates in official functions and he uses his influence with the Senate president as a part of his tool-belt of harassment techniques," one of the four men told the Globe.
On Friday, an emotional Rosenberg read from a statement, a day after the original Globe report, and said Hefner was entering treatment for alcohol dependency. The Globe reported that it hadn't found any evidence that Rosenberg was aware of the alleged assaults.
Hefner gave a statement to the Globe saying he was shocked to hear the anonymous allegations of the incidents "years afterward" and that no one had complained to him.
He did not respond to a request for comment through email and voicemail from MassLive regarding the texted picture.
A Rosenberg spokesperson told MassLive the Senate president was not aware Hefner had sent a picture of a man's penis to another person.
Hefner, as of earlier this week, also appeared to have an active Grindr account. Widely known as a hook-up app, Grindr describes itself as the "world's largest social networking app for gay, bi, trans and queer people."
Rosenberg, an Amherst Democrat who married Hefner in September 2016, was aware of Hefner's Grindr account but he didn't know the account was still active, according to Rosenberg's spokesperson.
Hefner, 30, also has Twitter and Facebook accounts.
In 2014, Hefner was accused of starting an anonymous Twitter account that derided outgoing Senate President Therese Murray, Rosenberg's predecessor. Hefner was also accused of getting involved in Senate matters, such as leadership jobs.
The incident prompted Rosenberg to tell his colleagues at the time that there would be a "firewall" between his work as Senate president and his personal life.
The allegations of the four men who spoke with the Globe and the source who spoke with MassLive suggest the "firewall" is porous.
"I have repeatedly made clear that Bryon was to have no influence on what happens in the Senate," Rosenberg said on Friday, standing outside his office and surrounded by reporters. "He has no influence over policy, the internal operations of the Senate, or any Senate related business. If Bryon claimed to have influence over my decisions or over the Senate, he should not have said that."
Rosenberg declined to take reporters' questions, citing an impending independent investigation.
In past news reports, Hefner's name had been floated as a potential candidate for state Senate seats in East Boston and Amherst, the latter of which would have meant running against Rosenberg.
State senators plan to meet on Monday and set in motion an investigation into the allegations reported in the Globe. "Was there an effective firewall?" is among the questions the investigation will likely delve into.
Senate President Stan Rosenberg's husband Bryon Hefner sent unsolicited photo of nude male genitalia to state political player
By Gintautas Dumcius [email protected]
Massachusetts Senate President Stan Rosenberg's husband Bryon Hefner earlier this year sent a text message with a picture of male genitalia to someone who works in Massachusetts state politics.
The unsolicited picture from Hefner was of a random person's penis and the message was apparently meant for someone else in politics, according to the person who received it, who spoke with MassLive and shared a screenshot of the exchange.
In responding to Hefner, the person indicated they weren't interested in receiving it.
According to the source, Hefner responded with "i figured he was your type. i'll keep looking."
The recipient, who MassLive is not naming, is not one of the four men who came forward to the Boston Globe and alleged Hefner sexually harassed or assaulted them.
Three of the four men in the Globe story alleged Hefner groped them while one said Hefner kissed him against his will in incidents that occurred in the last several years.
"He participates in official functions and he uses his influence with the Senate president as a part of his tool-belt of harassment techniques," one of the four men told the Globe.
On Friday, an emotional Rosenberg read from a statement, a day after the original Globe report, and said Hefner was entering treatment for alcohol dependency. The Globe reported that it hadn't found any evidence that Rosenberg was aware of the alleged assaults.
Hefner gave a statement to the Globe saying he was shocked to hear the anonymous allegations of the incidents "years afterward" and that no one had complained to him.
He did not respond to a request for comment through email and voicemail from MassLive regarding the texted picture.
A Rosenberg spokesperson told MassLive the Senate president was not aware Hefner had sent a picture of a man's penis to another person.
Hefner, as of earlier this week, also appeared to have an active Grindr account. Widely known as a hook-up app, Grindr describes itself as the "world's largest social networking app for gay, bi, trans and queer people."
Rosenberg, an Amherst Democrat who married Hefner in September 2016, was aware of Hefner's Grindr account but he didn't know the account was still active, according to Rosenberg's spokesperson.
Hefner, 30, also has Twitter and Facebook accounts.
In 2014, Hefner was accused of starting an anonymous Twitter account that derided outgoing Senate President Therese Murray, Rosenberg's predecessor. Hefner was also accused of getting involved in Senate matters, such as leadership jobs.
The incident prompted Rosenberg to tell his colleagues at the time that there would be a "firewall" between his work as Senate president and his personal life.
The allegations of the four men who spoke with the Globe and the source who spoke with MassLive suggest the "firewall" is porous.
"I have repeatedly made clear that Bryon was to have no influence on what happens in the Senate," Rosenberg said on Friday, standing outside his office and surrounded by reporters. "He has no influence over policy, the internal operations of the Senate, or any Senate related business. If Bryon claimed to have influence over my decisions or over the Senate, he should not have said that."
Rosenberg declined to take reporters' questions, citing an impending independent investigation.
In past news reports, Hefner's name had been floated as a potential candidate for state Senate seats in East Boston and Amherst, the latter of which would have meant running against Rosenberg.
State senators plan to meet on Monday and set in motion an investigation into the allegations reported in the Globe. "Was there an effective firewall?" is among the questions the investigation will likely delve into.
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