Who will lead the investigation?

“This will help convince the public that the case has been thoroughly investigated and whether charges can be brought,” said Tom Merrigan, a retired district judge.

At an inquest into a death, the judge listens to witness statements and gathers evidence in hearings that may last for weeks, and then decides whether to recommend that charges be brought.

Talks are ongoing among local, state and federal agencies over who will take over the investigation into the death of 25-year-old Delgado-Garcia, according to the Worcester District Attorney’s Office. That agency has jurisdiction over deaths in New Braintree, where the academy is now located, but Worcester District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr. said he would resign because Delgado-Garcia previously served under him as a witness advocate for victims, creating a conflict of interest.

Attorney Michael Wilcox, who represents the Delgado-Garcia family, declined to comment on the details of the investigation but said the family wants answers.

“All the family wants is a thorough, impartial investigation and disclosure of the facts as they are,” Wilcox said. Asked if the family was considering a civil lawsuit, he said a decision would not be made until “we have a much clearer picture of what happened.”

Worcester-based civil rights attorney Hector E. Pineiro told the Globe that “a judicial investigation would provide the public with an opportunity to learn what happened at the academy.”

Typically, criminal investigations and discussions about bringing charges take place behind closed doors. Many prosecutors’ offices have policies that prohibit them from discussing investigations in which no charges have been brought, and Supreme Court case law also sets limits on what can be discussed publicly.

Merrigan said that holding a judicial inquiry publicly “can be used to help the district attorney, and in this case the attorney general, reassure the public that if nothing is done, it has been approved by an independent review.”

Although the procedure is rare, prosecutors have increasingly used judicial inquests to investigate some police shootings in recent years. In Reading, for example, in 2020, a judicial inquest requested by Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan led to the indictment of police officer Erik Drauschke. A Middlesex Superior Court jury later acquitted Drauschke of manslaughter.

Last year, Ryan requested an investigation into the Cambridge police shooting of a 20-year-old college student. A judge ultimately concluded the officer acted reasonably, and Ryan’s office did not file charges.

Complications arose in the investigation into the 1988 death of Pittsfield police recruit Timothy Shepard. Shepard and the others were hospitalized in September of that year with liver and kidney problems caused by dehydration. Shepard underwent a liver transplant and fell into a coma. Attorney General James Shannon found that the recruits had been given a “wholly inadequate” amount of fluids for their grueling training at the Agawam facility, but the evidence did not support charges. Shepard died a few days after Shannon’s decision.

After Shepard’s death, Shannon requested an inquest because the family wanted a full investigation into what happened. The inquest consisted of 15 days of hearings over two months and included testimony from 66 witnesses. Ultimately, the judge found there was sufficient evidence to support three counts of manslaughter.

However, the attorney general said the judge had reached incorrect conclusions and declined to file charges. An appeals court later upheld Shannon’s decision.

Delgado-Garcia was scheduled to graduate next month from the academy at New Braintree, where prospective soldiers undergo a six-month training program that tests their physical and mental endurance. But he suffered fatal injuries during a fight described as defensive tactics training in a boxing ring. He was hospitalized on Sept. 12 and died the following day.

On Friday, a spokesman for the medical examiner’s office said the physical examination of Delgado-Garcia’s body was complete, “but additional tests are still being conducted to determine the cause and manner of death.” The exact timing of autopsy results varies, but in most cases, according to the medical examiner’s office, results are available within 90 days.

A spokesman for Early said Friday that the district attorney is in contact with four agencies at the local, state and federal levels to take control of the investigation.

“Decisions about the next steps in the investigation, including whether to collect evidence in a legal forum such as an inquest, will be made by whoever takes the case,” said Lindsay Corcoran, Early’s spokeswoman. “As the district attorney has said, he wants to refer this case to someone who will review it independently and who has no interest in the outcome of the matter.”

Early has said he does not believe the investigation should be handled by another district attorney. Attorney General Andrea Campbell confirmed that her office has been in contact with Early.

“I am in discussions with the Worcester District Attorney and many other appointing authorities and continue to do my due diligence. I hope to make a decision very soon on the appointment of a prosecutor who has no conflicts of interest, is independent and objective and, most importantly, will be a point of contact for the family as the investigation progresses,” Campbell told reporters Thursday evening. She declined to give a specific timeline for the decision.

On Thursday, Governor Maura Healey, a former attorney general, told reporters the decision on next steps “has to be made. It has to be made quickly so the family can get answers, which is most important.”

A key factor in moving forward will be whether Campbell’s office believes it could be viewed as a conflict of interest if it investigates the state police, said former Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone, who once headed the criminal bureau in the attorney general’s office. The state police are assigned as investigators to the attorney general’s office, as they are to district attorneys across the state.

If Campbell decides it would be wise to hand the investigation over to a third party, “typically in that case you turn to the federal agency.” That could involve the U.S. attorney’s office and the FBI or an inspector general, says Leone, a former federal prosecutor.

Another possibility would be for the Attorney General’s Office to appoint a special prosecutor and investigator, he said.

On Friday, three senators from Worcester, Michael Moore, Robyn Kennedy and Peter Durant, sent Campbell a letter asking him to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the circumstances of Delgado-Garcia’s death. They said the prosecutor should issue a public report and also make recommendations for changes in policies, practices and culture at the State Police, where the academy’s culture is under scrutiny.

The ACLU of Massachusetts called on federal authorities to take the reins.

“After more than a week, Massachusetts law enforcement has still not launched an independent investigation,” Law Director Jessie Rossman said in a statement. “Because the state police are embedded within every major law enforcement agency in the Commonwealth, there does not appear to be a state-level law enforcement agency capable of doing so at this time.”

Globe writers Matt Stout, Mandy McLaren and Jeremiah Manion contributed to this report.

Sean Cotter can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him @cotterreporter.