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Archive for the ‘MASSACHUSETTS’ Category
Do-Nothing Boston Massachusetts Police Commissioner Edward F. Davis Claims Officers Didn’t Use Excessive Force In Attack On Unarmed Sports Fan - 9 Police Officers Ran To Hospital After “Confrontation” For “Stress-Related Injuries”
July 2nd, 2008
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - Boston Police Commissioner Edward F. Davis, standing alone and solemn at police headquarters, said yesterday it did not appear officers used excessive force on the night of the Celtics championship victory when they arrested a 22-year-old Brookline man who stopped breathing while in police custody and died in the hospital 11 days later.
But as Davis left myriad questions unanswered over the brief but fatal encounter between police and David Woodman, vows and calls for investigations rang through Boston.
Mayor Thomas M. Menino said any probe should be swift. Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley assigned a senior homicide prosecutor to work with police, in an investigation he said would be “neutral, impartial, and beholden only to the facts.” And the lawyer for the family, Howard Friedman, reached out to the US Attorney and FBI in Boston, asking them to investigate Boston police actions on June 18.
Read MoreMassachusetts State Senator James Marzilli Indicted For Crimes Against Women
July 1st, 2008
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS - A Middlesex County grand jury handed down sexually explicit indictments Tuesday against state Sen. James Marzilli, D-Arlington, charging him with crimes against women, the district attorney said.
The charges are based on accusations made by four women in Lowell who said Marzilli accosted them with sexually charged comments. The crimes are alleged to have taken place on the same day, June 3.
The most serious charge against Marzilli is one count of attempt to commit indecent assault and battery.
He faces up to five years in prison if convicted on that charge.
“These are troubling allegations in which Senator Marzilli is alleged to have engaged in a string of highly inappropriate and sexually explicit acts against four separate women,” District Attorney Gerard Leone said.
Read MoreStudent Dies After Being Deprived Of Oxygen During Arrest By Boston Massachusetts Police
June 30th, 2008
BOSTON, MASACHUSETTS - A 22-year-old man who stopped breathing while in police custody after his arrest during the June 18 Boston Celtics NBA championship celebration died yesterday, prompting an investigation by Boston police and the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office into his death.
The parents of David Woodman, a former Emmanuel College student who was living in Brookline, said their son did not receive prompt medical attention while lying unconscious, face down on Brookline Avenue with his hands cuffed behind his back. They also accused police of failing to give them a full account of what happened.
Boston police say they immediately administered cardio-pulmonary resuscitation, flagged an ambulance after noticing Woodman was in distress, and did everything they could to help him before he was taken to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. But Jeffrey and Cathy Woodman of Southwick say their son must have been deprived of oxygen for at least four minutes because he suffered significant brain damage.
Read MoreConcord Massachusetts Correctional Officer Robert Sweeney Arrested, Suspended, Charged With Drug Trafficking
June 30th, 2008
CONCORD, MASSACHUSETTS - A Massachusetts correctional officer faces arraignment today on drug charges after the Middlesex district attorney’s office said he attempted to sell eight pounds of marijuana to a State Police trooper working undercover in Lowell.
The case against Robert Sweeney, 48, of Dracut, who works at MCI-Concord, is not related to the arrest of another correctional officer on Thursday in Winthrop, said Corey Welford, spokesman for District Attorney Gerard T. Leone Jr.
Investigators were led to Sweeney in June, when they first learned he was allegedly dealing marijuana, the DA’s office stated. About 3:15 p.m. Saturday, he attempted to sell the marijuana to the trooper for $10,000, according to the office.
Police executed a search warrant at his address after the arrest and seized two pounds of marijuana, 100 bottles of steroids, and six tablets of ecstasy, Leone’s office said.
Read MoreFitchburg Massachusetts Police Officer Robert Soroka Arrested, Suspended, Charged With Raming Woman
June 29th, 2008
FITCHBURG, MASSACHUSETTS - A city police officer was charged with rape Thursday and put on unpaid leave, police said.
Robert Soroka, 28, was arrested after a 28-year-old acquaintance accused him of raping her.
“As soon as we heard the allegations, we investigated, as we would do with any crime,” Chief Robert A. DeMoura told the Worcester Telegram & Gazette Friday. “This time it was a police officer.”
Police said Soroka had been on the force since September 2006 and also spent time in Iraq with the Army Reserves.
Soroka’s lawyer, Edward P. Ryan Jr., told the paper told the Telegram & Gazette that a not guilty plea was entered.
“We fully expect, at the end of the day, that he will be exonerated of these charges,” Ryan told the paper.
Soroka was one of six officers scheduled to be laid off next week because of budget cuts.
Read MoreLowell Massachusetts Police Officer David Annis Suspended And Removed From Injured List After His Indictment For Gambling, Extortion, And Database Misuse
June 29th, 2008
LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS - Say this about an indictment: It’s a sure way to shorten the list of city police officers out of work with injuries.
[BCN: Anyone who has had any contact with this lying sack of shit is left with the desire to kill him dead. Annis sells drugs, assaults and robs those he arrests, receives sex from known whores in exchange for protection, threatens individuals with arrest if they won't lie for him, stalks the spouses and girlfriends of those he arrests in efforts to get laid, and deals in stolen goods. Annis belongs behind bars, or better yet, 6 feet under.]
[Note: Unreliable news source. The Lowell Sun is a known mouthpiece for the Lowell Massachusetts Police Department and has previously published inaccurate content which included outright lies by its reporters.]
Lowell police officer David Annis was indicted Thursday by a Middlesex County grand jury on charges he ran up a $5,000 debt with a Westford bookie and then used his power and badge to renege.
On the same day, Annis, 33, of Dracut, was kicked off the Police Department’s injured roster, which he’s been on since Nov. 11.
During that time, he’s collected his $1,276 weekly salary free of local, state or federal taxes, thanks to state law.
The circumstances of Annis’ injury, however, are a bit out of the ordinary. The Column has learned that Annis was off duty and helping public safety officials at an emergency in another Merrimack Valley community when he apparently hurt an upper extremity.
So not only has Annis been taken off the injury list, he’s also been placed on unpaid administrative leave pending the outcome of the case.
WITH ANNIS’ removal, there are now 10 police officers remaining on Lowell’s injured roster. That’s relatively low. Historically, the total pushes 18 to 20.
Five other officers are still on the list, but their status is different as the city is finally moving to retire them. They are Joe Espinola, who went out March 2005, plus Deputy Superintendent Dennis Cormier, Joe Durham, Robert Dyer, and Leo Mendes, all of whom have been out since various dates in 2006.
The Fire Department, which has fewer injuries, has five of its members on the roster.
Read MoreLowell Police Officer Det. David Annis Indicted, Charged With Extortion, Gambling, And Unauthorized Access To Police Database Information
June 27th, 2008
LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS - A 10-year veteran Lowell police officer ran up a $5,000 debt with a Westford bookmaker, then used his power and badge to renege on the debt, according to a criminal indictment handed down yesterday.
[BCN: Anyone who has had any contact with this lying sack of shit is left with the desire to kill him dead. Annis sells drugs, assaults and robs those he arrests, receives sex from known whores in exchange for protection, threatens individuals with arrest if they won't lie for him, stalks the spouses and girlfriends of those he arrests in efforts to get laid, and deals in stolen goods. Annis belongs behind bars, or better yet, 6 feet under.]
[Note: Unreliable news source. The Lowell Sun is a known mouthpiece for the Lowell Massachusetts Police Department and has previously published inaccurate content which included outright lies by its reporters.]
David Annis, 33, of Dracut, faces charges of extortion, keeping a place for registering bets or dealing in pools, unauthorized access to a computer system, and unlawfully obtaining personal information under the Criminal Offender Record Information Act, according to Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone.
“We allege that David Annis violated the trust and authority bestowed on him as a police officer to commit these crimes,” Leone said. “I want to thank the Lowell Police Department for discovering these alleged crimes and then stepping forward to refer this case to us for a full and thorough investigation.”
Lowell Police Superintendent Kenneth Lavallee said, “This indictment alleges serious crimes committed by Officer Annis.”
Annis, a former detective within the department, is on unpaid administrative leave from his $63,000-per-year job. While he was a detective, Annis received two departmental citations last year.
Annis could not be reached for comment.
Based on a five-month investigation by Lowell and state police assigned to Leone’s office, Annis allegedly began gambling in August 2007 on sporting events through a Web site run by a Westford bookmaker.
Annis soon accumulated a debt of $5,000, the maximum he was allowed
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to incur. Leone’s office is not releasing the name of the alleged bookmaker, and no charges have been issued against him.
Last September, the bookmaker arranged to meet Annis so that he could collect. During that exchange, Annis allegedly showed the bookmaker his badge and indicated that he may be investigating gambling cases.
Annis allegedly indicated to the bookmaker that he wouldn’t be arrested and that “things could go smoothly” for him.
Annis then never paid the bookmaker and warned him not to blow his cover. Annis also allegedly showed the bookmaker the criminal-offender records of the bookmaker and others during the conversation.
During the investigation, Annis admitted that he was not officially investigating gaming crimes.
If convicted, Lavallee said, “Annis will have betrayed his oath of office and his badge. Public trust is critical to the law-enforcement mission. Criminal behavior cannot be tolerated at any level.”
The case is being prosecuted by John Verner, chief of the state police assigned to Leone’s office.
No arraignment date has been scheduled in Superior Court.
Read MoreMiddlesex County Massachusetts Corrections Officer Scott Sears Arrested, Jailed, Charged With Smuggling Drugs Into Billerica House Of Correction
June 26th, 2008
BILLERICA, MASSACHUSETTS - A Middlesex County corrections officer was arrested today in a sting operation at a Winthrop doughnut shop on charges that he ferried drugs from dealers to inmates at the jail where he worked, State Police said.
The sting came at the end of an eight-month investigation into Scott Sears, 36, of Winthrop, said David Procopio, a State Police spokesman. In October, State Police and the Middlesex Sheriff’s Office heard from informants that Sears was allegedly smuggling drugs into the Billerica jail.
Sears, who had worked for the sheriff’s office for two years, would allegedly meet with drug dealers, collect marijuana and heroin on behalf of the inmates, and then bring it into the jail for a fee.
Read MoreDemocrat Massachusetts Rep. James Fagan Vows To Torment And “Rip Apart” Child Rape Victims Who Take The Stand In Trials
June 25th, 2008
MASSACHUSETTS - A Massachusetts politician and defense attorney has touched off a firestorm with his shocking public vow to torment and “rip apart” child rape victims who take the witness stand if the state legislature passed stiff mandatory sentences for child sex offenders.
Rep. James Fagan, a Democrat, made the comments during debate last month on the state House floor.
“I’m gonna rip them apart,” Fagan said of young victims during his testimony on the bill. “I’m going to make sure that the rest of their life is ruined, that when they’re 8 years old, they throw up; when they’re 12 years old, they won’t sleep; when they’re 19 years old, they’ll have nightmares and they’ll never have a relationship with anybody.”
Fagan said as a defense attorney it would be his duty to do that in order to keep his clients free from a “mandatory sentence of those draconian proportions.”
Read MoreNearly 4000 Inmates Sue Suffolk County Massachusetts House Of Correction After Being Locked In Cells Without Toilets Or Sinks
June 22nd, 2008
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - Nearly 4,000 current and former inmates are suing the Suffolk House of Correction for failing to provide timely access to bathrooms.
U.S. District Judge Nathaniel Gorton has allowed the class action case to move forward. He ruled that anyone held in Building Four of the jail since August 2003 could be a plaintiff.
The lawsuit was filed in August 2006 by three former inmates. It alleges the jail housed prisoners in cells without toilets or sinks and required them to ask guards for permission to use the bathroom.
The suit says the practice amounted to cruel and unusual punishment. It alleges some prisoners were forced to rely on plastic bags and empty shampoo bottles when they were unable to use the bathroom.
Attempts to reach the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department for comment were unsuccessful.
Massachusetts Police Solve All Drug And Violence Crimes, Target Sex On The Beach
June 20th, 2008
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - Officials are looking to crack down on the increased number of people having sex on the beach in areas of the Cape, a newspaper reports.
According to the Cape Cod Times, the number of complaints concerning public sex in the Provincetown and Truro parts of the national park has more than tripled over the past decade. “It’s a growing issue, both from the number of complaints and the number of areas doing this activity,” Seashore superintendent George Price told the paper.
Just last year, seashore rangers handed out 132 citations. That’s a huge jump from the 70 citations handed out annually from 2003-2006, according to the Cape Cod Times.
Seashore acting chief ranger Craig Thatcher told the paper several of the complaints have come from tourists.
Read MoreInnocent Men Sue Suffolk County Massachusetts District Attorney Michael O’Keefe After He Lied About Returning Voluntarily Submitted DNA Samples
June 19th, 2008
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - Cape Cod men who voluntarily gave DNA samples during the investigation into the murder of fashion writer Christa Worthington are suing to have the samples returned.
A class action lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts in Suffolk Superior Court accuses District Attorney Michael O’Keefe with failing to make good on a promise to return or destroy the samples.
The samples were taken to exclude the men from the investigation. A trash collector, Christopher McCowen, was later convicted in the fatal stabbing in 2002.
The lawsuit alleges O’Keefe refused to confirm that the samples were destroyed, and the director of the State Police Crime Lab said the samples would not be destroyed without a request from O’Keefe.
A call to O’Keefe’s office was not immediately returned.
Former Boston Massachusetts Police Officer Michael T. Jones Pleads Guilty After Armed Robbery At Gas Station - Sentenced To Just 2 Years In State Prison
June 19th, 2008
ROSLINDALE, MASSACHUSETTS - A former Boston Police officer pleaded guilty last week to numerous charges stemming from a January armed robbery in Roslindale. He was sentenced to two years in state prison.
Michael Jones, 44, of Dorchester, admitted last week that he entered the Best of Boston gas station in Roslindale with his department-issued weapon, demanded that the 24-year-old clerk open the cash register and lay down on the before stealing $125.
The robber then approached another gas station employee, stuck his gun into the victim’s stomach and demanded more money before fleeing to Dorchester where he was pulled over.
Right before his arrest, Jones told police that he was a cop and was coming from the Foxwoods casino. He was also in possession of a Glock firearm in an off-duty holster.
Read MoreDisgraced Former Essex And Suffolk County Massachusetts Prosecutor Gary Zerola Arrested After Pissing In Public
June 18th, 2008
LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS - Lynn native Gary Zerola and two Saugus men were among 23 people arrested early Wednesday for disturbances following the Boston Celtics Championship victory.
Reportedly caught urinating in public as fans all around him reveled in the Celtics’ win over the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals, Zerola, 36, was later arraigned Wednesday morning and was released on personal recognizance.
A police officer observed Zerola, a former prosecutor in Essex and Suffolk counties, unbutton his pants and turn toward the corner of a building near Faneuil Hall around 1:45 a.m., police said.
When the officer asked what he was doing and ordered him to stop, he attempted to grab Zerola’s hand as he walked away, but Zerola then struck him on the shoulder and ran away before being tackled to the ground by other officers, according to police.
Read MoreFalmouth Massachusetts Police Officer Mario Cunha Quits After Being Charged With Physically And Sexually Assaulting His Girlfriend
June 18th, 2008
FALMOUTH, MASSACHUSETTS - A Falmouth police officer has resigned amid allegations he physically and sexually assaulted his ex-girlfriend.
Mario Cunha, 24, quit his job as a patrolman on Friday after a restraining order was filed against him the previous day in Falmouth District Court, said Town Manager Robert Whritenour.
Falmouth District Court Judge Michael Creedon signed the order on Thursday after determining Cunha represented “substantial likelihood of immediate danger” to his ex-girlfriend.
Cunha cannot go within 100 yards of the woman, and he also was required to relinquish all guns, ammunition and his license to carry a firearm.
The woman, who says she dated Cunha between March 2006 and last January, claimed she dealt with emotional and physical abuse “many times” at the hands of Cunha and is “nervous of what he could be capable of,” according to court records.
Read MoreBoston Massachusetts Police All But Kill Man Man With Bad Heart For Having An Open Container
June 18th, 2008
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - A young man who was apparently out celebrating the Celtics victory early Wednesday morning was rushed to the hospital after a struggle with police. According to Boston Police, 22-year-old David Woodman of Southwick is in critical condition at Beth Israel Medical Center.
Woodman was in the Fenway area with a group of four other men, when police say officers tried to question him about an open container they believed contained alcohol. They say Woodman tried to run away, but was stopped by officers.
“The suspect began struggling with the officers as they attempted to handcuff him. At that time, officers realized that he was in medical distress; they immediately began to administer CPR,” Boston Police said in a written statement.
Woodman was then rushed in an ambulance to Beth Israel where he is in critical, but stable condition.
Read MoreFalmouth Massachusetts Police Officer Mario Cunha Quits Amid Investigation Into Physical And Sexual Assault On His Girlfriend
June 17th, 2008
FALMOUTH, MASSACHUSETTS – A Falmouth police officer has resigned amid allegations he physically and sexually assaulted his girlfriend.
Mario Cunha, 24, resigned from his position as a patrolman on June 13, after a restraining order was filed against him the previous day.
Although no criminal charges have been filed, Town Manager Robert Whritenour said there is an ongoing criminal investigation.
The restraining order, signed by Falmouth District Court Judge Michael Creedon, said Cunha is a substantial threat to the alleged victim and ordered Cunha to stay 100 yards away from the woman at all times.
Cunha also have to give up all of his firearms and his license to carry.
Cunha was still in his probationary period as an officer, and was officially sworn in the beginning of April. Appeared Here
Massachusetts State Worker Was Falsely Charged By Police With Child Pornography In Suffolk County And Fired - Victim Of Spammers And Malware
June 17th, 2008
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - Prosecutors have dropped a child pornography charge against a former state worker who was fired over illicit content that prosecutors now say wasn’t the man’s fault.
A spokesman for the Suffolk District Attorney tells the Boston Herald that a forensic investigation of Michael Fiola’s state-issued laptop found it was hit by a virus that was the source of the pornography.
Fiola was fired as a Department of Industrial Accidents investigator in March 2007 after the child porn was found. The discovery led to a criminal charge against Fiola in August 2007. But a forensic analyst who examined the laptop for the defense concluded spammers had bombarded the 53-year-old’s computer with porn.
Veteran Northhampton Massachusetts Probation Officer Juan F. Latorre Indicted And Arrested, Faces Drug Dealing Charges
June 16th, 2008
SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS - A veteran Northampton probation officer was arrested for the second time in a year on Friday for drug charges, according to police.
Juan F. Latorre, 59, was charged with four counts of distribution of heroin, possession of heroin, school zone violations and conspiracy. The new charges come six months after Latorre was indicted in Hampden Superior Court for drug trafficking.
He was originally arrested after a drug raid at 2281 Main St. in the city’s North End, according to police reports. A market and boutique at that address was linked to a drug ring, investigators said.
After the charges against Latorre were dropped in district court, he was indicted in Superior Court. The disposition of those charges was not available yesterday.
Nutcase Taunton Massachusetts Teacher Karen Boudreau Presses Criminal Charges Against 10 Year Old For Stick Figure Drawing That Only She Can Figure Out - Is She On Drugs?
June 14th, 2008
TAUNTON, MASSACHUSETTS - A Taunton teacher is pressing criminal charges against a 10-year-old student after she caught the fifth-grader drawing a menacing picture that depicts him, a gun and a figure of her with a “bullet whole” in her head.
But the boy’s furious mother said she plans to fight the charge in court and believes Taunton police and her son’s teacher at the Mulcahey Middle School overreacted to the drawing.
“Bringing charges against a 10-year-old? I’m irate. It’s caused a lot of turmoil to my son,” said Angela Smithson, who has enlisted the help of the American Civil Liberties Union to fight the charge.
The teacher, Karen Boudreau, 44, filed a police report Wednesday after she yanked away from Cullen Smithson a drawing that depicted a girl named “Kailey” as well as a figure named “Mrs. Boudreau,” both with the words “bullet whole” next to them. A stick figure named “ME” is shown next to a gun, according to the report.
Cullen will receive a summons to court to determine if there is enough evidence to proceed with criminal charges, police said.
Boudreau told police she wanted to file charges “in the hopes that the system could help the child,” according to the report, which indicates that Cullen has unspecified “behavioral issues.”
Read MoreTwice Suspended For Falling Asleep On The Job, Boston Massachusetts Public Works Dispatcher Horace White Finally Faces Firing After His Arrest For Setting Fire To A Home With Three Children Inside
June 14th, 2008
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - A dispatcher for Boston’s public works department who has been suspended twice for falling asleep on the job is facing termination now that he has been charged with arson.
A spokeswoman for Mayor Thomas Menino says last month 55-year-old Horace White fell asleep during his midnight to 8 a.m. shift when he was needed to send vehicles to the site of a fatal accident. It was his second suspension for falling asleep on the job.
Spokeswoman Dot Joyce says the city moved to fire him after he was charged with allegedly dousing a home with gasoline and setting it on fire last week while three children were inside. No one was hurt.
Police say he thought a resident of the home had stolen his $5,000 gold chain.
White pleaded not guilty.
He has been placed on unpaid administrative leave pending a termination hearing. Appeared Here
Former Swampscott Massachusetts Police Officer Thomas Wrenn Pleads Guilty To Federal Drug Charges - Sold Drugs While An Essex County Deputy Sheriff
June 13th, 2008
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - In a voice barely audible, former Swampscott police officer Thomas Wrenn pleaded guilty yesterday to two counts of possession with intent to sell cocaine and oxycodone while he worked as a patrolman and as an Essex County deputy sheriff.
U.S. District Court Judge Joseph Tauro delayed acceptance of the plea until Wrenn is sentenced on Sept. 18 at 2:15 p.m. That sentence, according to guidelines, could bring the disgraced officer anything from probation to 20 years in prison, plus a $1 million fine on each count.
He has already forfeited his Hummer, an extravagant vehicle prosecutors said was purchased with drug money. Tauro referenced a plea bargain between Wrenn and the United States attorney, only to note that he is not bound by it.
Assistant U.S. Attorney John McNeil outlined the case against the 37-year-old Wrenn, which began in January 2007 when someone described only as “a concerned citizen” approached the police with stories that the officer was using illegal drugs.
Read MoreInvestigation Of Massachusetts State Senator James Marzilli Expands After His Sexual Assault Arrest - Checked Into Psych Hospital
June 8th, 2008
LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS - Investigators have expanded their probe of longtime state Sen. James Marzilli after more people contacted police following Marzilli’s arrest Tuesday for sexually touching one woman and making lewd comments to another.
Three woman in as many months have accused Marzilli of making sexual advances. Late Wednesday, a spokesman for the Middlesex District Attorney’s office said that they were looking into other possible incidents involving Marzilli.
Marzilli, 50, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges he tried to grab a woman sexually at a park in Lowell, then fled police, and to charges he made lewd remarks to another woman.
“The commonwealth feels that the defendant is a danger to the community,” Prosecutor Richard Mucci said at Marzilli’s arraignment, adding he was “out of control at this point.”
Read MoreMassachusetts State Sentaor James Marzilli, Arrested After Groping Women, Decides Not To Run For Another Term, Is Admitted To Mental Hospital
June 7th, 2008
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - State Sen. James Marzilli was admitted to an area hospital Thursday afternoon, his attorney told WBZ, the same day he decided against seeking re-election after his arrest on charges that he groped and made lewd comments to two women recently.
A source close to Marzilli told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity that Marzilli was seeking treatment at McLean Hospital, a psychiatric hospital in Belmont.
The Arlington Democrat said in a statement Thursday that he would not seek another term this fall. He said his State House staff “will continue to respond to the needs of constituents within the district” until the end of his term.
The 50-year-old Marzilli pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges he tried to grab a woman sexually at a park in Lowell, then fled police, and to charges he made lewd remarks to another woman.
Read MoreFormer Swampscott Massachusetts Police Officer Thomas Wrenn Expect To Plead Guilty To Federal Drug Charges
June 7th, 2008
SWAMPSCOTT, MASSACHUSETTS - A former Swampscott police officer arrested on drug charges in March is scheduled to plead guilty next week to charges of distributing both Percocet and cocaine, according to court records.
Thomas Wrenn, 37, of Nahant was charged last month in a superseding complaint with possession with intent to distribute both oxycodone, the active component of Percocet, and cocaine.
According to the case docket, a status hearing earlier this week was canceled and a change of plea hearing was scheduled for June 12 in U.S. District Court before Judge Joseph Tauro.
Wrenn was originally arrested March 13 outside a Lynn restaurant, where he had allegedly just accepted a package of Percocet pills from someone who was cooperating with federal investigators.
A judge subsequently found probable cause for the case to move forward to trial. Wrenn resigned from the force in April, citing “personal reasons.”
Read MoreMassachusetts State Senator James Marzilli Arrested, Charged After Trying To Sexually Touch Woman - Second Such Attack In 2 Months
June 4th, 2008
LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS - State Sen. James Marzilli was arrested Tuesday on charges he attempted to sexually touch a woman in a park in Lowell, just weeks after prosecutors said there wasn’t enough evidence to press charges when another woman claimed he assaulted her.
Lowell Police said the longtime Arlington Democrat was arrested at 3:45 p.m. Tuesday in the city’s downtown area after trying to flee. The charges include disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, attempting to commit a crime, assault and battery, and obstruction of justice.
Marzilli, 50, was scheduled to be arraigned in Lowell District Court on Wednesday.
Corey Welford, a spokesman for Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone, said Marzilli is accused of approaching a woman who was sitting on a park bench, making an “inappropriate comment” and attempting to touch her in a sexual manner, which she forcibly resisted. Welford said when Marzilli was approached by Lowell police he allegedly gave them a false name. He was arrested on Market Street after a police chase.
Read MoreSuspension And Demotion Of Haverhill Massachusetts Police Officer Victor “Manny” Pellot Upheld
June 1st, 2008
HAVERHILL, MASSACHUSETTS — The Civil Service Commission has sided with the mayor against a former police sergeant accused of being present in uniform during illegal drug sales at his cousin’s house.
Patrolman Victor “Manny” Pellot asked the commission to reinstate his sergeant’s rank and return back pay lost because of Mayor James Fiorentini’s 2004 decision to suspend him for a year and demote him.
Pellot has been on the police force 25 years. He said previously he knew nothing of the drug deals and was there only to keep an eye on a troubled family member.
His appeal was heard last August. The commission delivered its decision this month.
Pellot was not on duty Friday and could not be reached for comment, but his lawyer, Bryan Decker of Boston, said he was disappointed with the ruling and that Pellot is still considering his options. Asked if this demotion had destroyed Pellot’s career, Decker said Pellot is still a patrolman and has been on the job since he served out the suspension.
Read MoreMassachusetts Corrections Officer Justin P. Boudreau Arrested, Charged After Raid On Pot Growing Operation
May 31st, 2008
SPENCER, MASSACHUSETTS - A former Department of Correction employee was arraigned yesterday on charges he was growing marijuana for sale in his Main Street apartment and had a loaded gun in his car when police raided his home earlier this month.
Police allegedly found 75 fledgling marijuana plants set under grow lights in a spare bedroom, where the heat was also turned up, in Justin P. Boudreau’s apartment at 6 Main St., Apt. 6, when they conducted a raid May 18. They also allegedly found two rifles in the apartment and a loaded .40-caliber Sig Sauer handgun in the console of his unlocked car. Mr. Boudreau was arrested Wednesday night on a warrant issued by Western Worcester District Court, East Brookfield.
Officers also seized letters from a female inmate at Framingham State Prison. The letters were addressed to Jeff Podine of 8 Sunset Lane, Spencer, a residence police also raided May 18. In that incident, Jeff M. Castro, 26, of that address, was arrested and charged with drug violations.
Read MoreVeteran Worcester Massachusetts Police Officer John M. Degon Arrested, Suspended, Charged With Planning Insurance Scam
May 31st, 2008
WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS - A 14-year Worcester police veteran has been arrested on insurance fraud charges.
Worcester Police Officer John M. Degon is accused of trying to scam an insurance company by falsely claiming a vehicle had been stolen.
Police say Degon, 38, filed a stolen vehicle report last week on behalf of 25-year-old Timothy LaFratta, who is also charged in the case.
Two days later, the 1997 Jeep Wrangler was found at the intersection of Somerville and Stoneham streets and police later learned the car was not stolen. Police say Degon and LaFratta were trying to defraud the insurance company by faking the car’s theft.
Worcester police Chief Gary Gemme has recommended Degon be placed on administrative leave without pay.
Degon is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit insurance fraud and one count of concealing a stolen motor vehicle with intent to defraud insurance. Appeared Here
Boston Massachusetts Police Blame Computer “Glitch” - After Releasing Jersey Murder Suspect
May 30th, 2008
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - Boston police mistakenly allowed the release last week of a fugitive from New Jersey wanted on murder charges, setting off a manhunt in the city amid warnings that the suspect poses a serious threat to the public.
Yesterday, police officials blamed a computer glitch for release of the suspect, who is wanted in Trenton on charges of killing his brother last year and trying to run down a police officer in 2006. But they acknowledged that individual officers could have prevented the release.
Tormu Prall, 35, of Trenton, was in the custody of Boston police for two days after officers in the South End charged him with public drinking on May 17. They took his fingerprints and scanned them into a computer database, but the results, which revealed he was wanted on murder charges, took an unusually long time to be processed, more than four hours, and did not arrive until about a half-hour after a Boston municipal judge ordered his release.
Read MoreRoseboro North Carolina’s New Police Chief Anita Merritt’s Husband Is A Convicted Child Molester
May 30th, 2008
ROSEBORO, NORTH CAROLINA - Some town residents are upset that the husband of Interim Police Chief Anita Merritt is a registered sex offender, saying her relationship with a convicted felon is a conflict of interest.
Tyrone Merritt, 36, was convicted in Massachusetts in March 2001 of taking indecent liberties with a child in connection with a May 1999 incident. He was sentenced to probation.
The incident occurred before Anita Merritt married her husband and before she joined the Roseboro Police Department in September 2004.
“Anything that happened to him has no reflection on me or my character or on my job,” said Anita Merritt, who was sworn in as police chief Thursday.
“He’s made one bad choice in his life, and he’s paid his debt to society,” she said. “Anyone who knows my husband knows he’s a wonderful man.”
Read MoreBoston Massachusetts Firefighter Collin M. Herelle Wanted Sex For $29 - Busted In Sex Sting - Bonus: Driving A Cadillac
May 25th, 2008
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - An undercover Boston police operation to discourage prostitution near the Dorchester-Roxbury line Friday snared a man identified as a Boston firefighter, officials said.
An officer disguised as a prostitute was standing at a public parking lot near Blue Hill Avenue and La Grange Place at about 10:50 p.m. Friday when Collin M. Herelle pulled up in his white Cadillac and offered the officer $29 for a sex act, according to police. The undercover officer signaled to other officers nearby, who moved in and arrested Herelle, said Officer Eddy Chrispin, a Boston police spokesman.
Herelle, who is 44, lives in Dorchester. A spokesman for the Boston Fire Department confirmed yesterday that Herelle is an active firefighter who has served six years with the department. The spokesman, Steve MacDonald, could not immediately identify the station where Herelle works or provide other details of his service. City records show that Herelle earned nearly $98,000 in gross pay last year.
Read MoreWinchester Massachusetts Fireman Robert James Joyce III Arrested On Prostitution Charge
May 24th, 2008
LAWRENCE, MASSACHUSETTS — Police said a Winchester firefighter drove up from his Danvers home on Thursday in a black Nissan Murano, eager to pay $30 for sex.
But Robert James Joyce III, 35, was instead arrested after approaching an Essex County sheriff’s deputy posing as a prostitute. He was charged with sexual conduct for a fee.
Joyce was one of 10 men arrested on sex solicitation charges as part of the Lawrence Police Department’s annual quality-of-life crackdown dubbed “spring cleaning.” Police also busted a pair of homeless women on prostitution charges.
“It is what is. When you do those kinds of sweeps, you don’t know who you’re going to arrest,” Lawrence police Chief John Romero said on Thursday, reacting to the firefighter’s arrest.
“We’ve got a number of people with a number of different occupations and all walks of life — professionals, city workers, state workers — we don’t know who we’re going to get. It runs the gamut,” he said.
Read MorePissed Off Boston Massachusetts Transit Police Officers Stop Writing Tickets To Those Who Don’t Pay Fares
May 24th, 2008
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - Disgruntled MBTA police officers, who have routinely issued more than 100 citations for fare evasion a month, have not issued a single ticket in May and wrote only seven in April, prompting the T’s top brass to accuse them of dereliction of duty.
“They have an oath to uphold, to enforce the law,” T general manager Daniel A. Grabauskas said yesterday. “And if they’re not, they’re in violation of their own code of honor.”
Grabauskas said he has asked the acting T police chief, Paul MacMillan, to investigate the sudden drop-off in tickets, which was revealed in records obtained by the Globe through a freedom of information request. If MacMillan determines that officers are not enforcing the law, he said, “disciplinary action will follow.”
Read MoreMattapoisett Massachusetts Police Chief Mary Lyons Justifies Arresting Teens: “They Were Mouthing Off”
May 23rd, 2008
MATTAPOISETT, MASSACHUSETTS — Two students were arrested and another 15 to 20 staged a sit-in at Old Rochester Regional High School Wednesday in a protest that began after students briefly commandeered the intercom system during MCAS testing, school officials and students said.
[Feel free to send love letters to police chief Mary Lyons at chiefml@mattapoisettpd.com]
Thomas Buckley, 17, of 111 Acushnet Road, Mattapoisett, and Zachary Sherman, 17, of 79 Dexter Lane, Rochester, were charged with disorderly conduct, disturbing the peace and disturbing the school, according to police reports.
They were arraigned in Wareham District Court and released on personal recognizance; pre-trial is set for June 27, police said.
The incident unfolded around 8:30 a.m. when two to five students used a special code to access the school-wide intercom via a classroom system, officials and students said.
Read MoreReports Detailing Drugs, Guns, Evidence From Sexual Assault Cases, And Pornography Found In Fired Methuen Massachusetts Police Chief Joseph Solomon’s Locker Sent To District Attorney
May 23rd, 2008
METHUEN, MASSACHUSETTS — Reports detailing the items found in the Police Department locker of fired Chief Joseph Solomon have been sent to District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett.
A bag of marijuana, several handguns, evidence from sexual assault cases and pornographic magazines were among dozens of items discovered in Solomon’s locker after he was fired on May 7. Detectives are tracing the origins of the items found.
A package containing the locker inventory and detectives’ reports, to date, were mailed to Blodgett yesterday, said acting Chief Katherine Lavigne. The matter remains under investigation, but Lavigne said the reports will bring Blodgett up to speed “on where we are.”
Blodgett declined comment.
No criminal charges have been filed against Solomon.
Solomon, in a statement released through his attorney last week, said he had not opened the locker since he was appointed chief more than five years ago. He said he used the locker to store weapons.
Read MoreSenator Ted Kennedy’s Malignant Brain Tumor Stuns Colleagues (Who’ve Never Heard Of Karma or Chappaquiddick)
May 20th, 2008
Kennedy, 76, was hospitalized Saturday morning after suffering a seizure at his family’s compound at Hyannisport, Massachusetts.
“Preliminary results from a biopsy of the brain identified the cause of the seizure as a malignant glioma in the left parietal lobe,” according to a hospital statement.
Malignant glioma is the most common primary brain tumor, accounting for more than half of the 18,000 primary malignant brain tumors diagnosed each year in the United States, according to the National Cancer Institute.
A tumor in that area of the brain could affect Kennedy’s ability to speak and understand speech, as well as the strength on the right side of his body, CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta said. Video Watch Gupta describe treatment options »
Dumbass Bristol County Massachusetts Sheriff’s Department Firearms Instructor Maj. Donald Lamar Fires Gun, Nearly Shooting Himself While Teaching Firearms Safety Class
May 20th, 2008
Officials say the Glock handgun went off while Maj. Donald Lamar was demonstrating to deputy sheriffs how to safely holster the weapon. The bullet ripped a hole in Lamar’s pants but missed his leg and foot.
Bristol County Sheriff Thomas Hodgson told the Standard Times newspaper the officer made a “gross error in judgment” by not emptying the weapon before entering the class last week.
Hodgson added that Lamar, a certified firearms instructor since 2005, feels very embarrassed by the incident.
Hodgson says Lamar has been transferred to another division and will not carry a firearm while the incident is being investigated. Appeared Here
New Springfield Massachusetts Police Commissioner William Fitchet Brings Back Black Military-Style Uniforms With The Hope That They Will Scare Children
May 19th, 2008
The city’s new police commissioner, William Fitchet, says members of the department’s Street Crime Unit will again don black, military-style uniforms as part of his strategy to deal with youth violence.
Fitchet’s predecessor, Edward Flynn, had ditched the black attire as part of an effort to soften the image of the unit. Flynn left Springfield in January to become the police chief in Milwaukee.
Sgt. John Delaney told a city council hearing Wednesday that the stark uniforms send a message to criminals that officers are serious about making arrests.
Delaney said a sense of “fear” has been missing for the past few years. Appeared Here
Boston Massachusetts Police Officer Roberto “Kiko” Pulido Sentenced To Just 26 Years In Federal Prison For Role In Drug Trafficking Scheme
May 17th, 2008
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - Roberto “Kiko” Pulido, the rogue Boston police officer who enlisted two fellow patrolman in a brazen scheme to escort trucks bringing cocaine into the city, was sentenced today to 26 years in federal prison by a judge who said the defendant had disgraced his badge.
“The people who wear that badge have a sense of honor,” US District Judge William G. Young said, staring at Pulido, the ringleader of o