Police on Monday arrested 32-year-old Antonio Durham on a murder charge in connection with the June death of Chauncey Cohen.

BROCKTON, Mass. (AP) --€” A Brockton man been charged with fatally beating his girlfriend's 4-year-old son.

Police on Monday arrested 32-year-old Antonio Durham on a murder charge in connection with the June death of Chauncey Cohen.

The Plymouth district attorney's office says the boy's mother, 27-year-old Tania Merisca, was charged as an accessory after the fact.

Chauncey was brought to Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton on June 2 by Merisca, who said he became unresponsive while she was bathing him. When the child died about an hour later, hospital officials alerted police.

Investigators determined that the boy died of blunt force trauma to the abdomen.

Merisca in June defended Durham.

Both suspects are scheduled to appear in court Tuesday. It could not be determined if they have lawyers.

Singer, songwriter and activist Harry Belafonte will receive an honorary doctor of music degree at Berklee College of Music in Boston this week during a concert in his honor.

BOSTON (AP) --” Singer, songwriter and activist Harry Belafonte will receive an honorary doctor of music degree at Berklee College of Music in Boston this week during a concert in his honor.

Berklee students and faculty will perform Thursday at the concert, which will celebrate Belafonte's life and music, from "Banana Boat Song" to "We are the World."

Belafonte has long been an activist. He was a confidante of Martin Luther King Jr. during the civil rights movement. He also helped set in motion that USA for Africa project to fight hunger in the 1980s and pushed for an end to apartheid in South Africa.

Past recipients of Berklee's honorary doctorate include Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, Steven Tyler, Aretha Franklin and Quincy Jones, among others.

The 4-year-old boy was not wearing a winter jacket when he was found alone and wandering a city street, according to authorities.

 

WESTFIELD — The state Department of Children and Families was contacted after a 4-year-old boy was found alone and wandering a city street on a frigid Monday morning, according to Westfield Police Capt. Michael McCabe.

"The child is fine," McCabe said Tuesday, adding that the boy remains in the custody of his mother.

The young child wasn't wearing a jacket when he was found outside without an adult at about 9 a.m. Monday, police said. Temperatures were still in the teens at that point.

A DCF report was filed and the mother was warned, McCabe said.

Mayor Domenic Sarno is expected to announce changes at the plaza.

SPRINGFIELD — The Springfield Plaza, site of a former small airport, is poised for a major facelift, according to city officials.

Mayor Domenic J. Sarno is slated to make an announcement at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday about new owners and renovations for the shopping center bounded by Liberty Street and St. James Avenue in the Liberty Heights neighborhood.

The mayor is expected to be joined by Kevin Kennedy, the city's chief development officer, Charles Irving, of Davenport Companies, and Christopher Knisley, of Albany Road Real Estate Partners.

Today's news conference will be held in front of the Stop & Shop supermarket off Liberty Street.

Accusing the West of encouraging an "unconstitutional coup" in Ukraine, Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that Moscow reserves the right to use its military to protect Russians there but voiced hope it won't need to do so.

TIM SULLIVAN, Associated Press
VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV, Associated Press

MOSCOW (AP) — Accusing the West of encouraging an "unconstitutional coup" in Ukraine, Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that Moscow reserves the right to use its military to protect Russians there but voiced hope it won't need to do so. The Russian leader's first comments on Ukraine since its fugitive president fled to Russia came as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Kiev to meet with Ukraine's new government.

Putin declared that Western actions were driving Ukraine into anarchy and warned that any sanctions the West places on Russia for its actions there will backfire. Both the U.S. and the 28-nation European Union have raised the possibility of sanctions against Russia.

The U.S. announced a $1 billion aid package Tuesday in energy subsidies to Ukraine, which is scrambling to get international loans to fend off looming bankruptcy. Its finance minister, who has said Ukraine needs $35 billion to get through this year and next, was meeting Tuesday with officials from the International Monetary Fund.

Tensions remained high Tuesday in Crimea, with troops loyal to Moscow firing warning shots to ward off protesting Ukrainian soldiers. Russia took over the strategic peninsula on Saturday, placing its troops around the peninsula's ferry, military bases and border posts. Two Ukrainian warships remained anchored in the Crimean port of Sevastopol, blocked from leaving by Russian ships.

The new Ukrainian leadership in Kiev, which Putin does not recognize, has accused Moscow of a military invasion in Crimea.

Yet world markets seemed to recover from their fright over the situation in Ukraine, clawing back a large chunk of Monday's stock losses, while oil, gold, wheat and the Japanese yen gave back some of their gains.

"Confidence in equity markets has been restored as the standoff between Ukraine and Russia is no longer on red alert," David Madden, market analyst at IG, said Tuesday.

Speaking from his residence outside Moscow, Putin said he still considers Viktor Yanukovych to be Ukraine's president and hopes that Russia won't need to use force in predominantly Russian-speaking eastern Ukraine.

"We aren't going to fight the Ukrainian people," Putin said, adding that the massive military maneuvers Russia has been doing near Ukraine's border had been planned and were unrelated to the situation in Ukraine.

Earlier in the day, Putin had ordered tens of thousands of Russian troops participating in those exercises to return to their bases — some 150,000 troops, hundreds of tanks and dozens of aircraft in all.

Putin also insisted that the Russian military deployment in Crimea has remained within the limits set by a bilateral agreement on a Russian military base there. He said Russia had no intention of annexing Crimea, but insisted its residents have the right to determine the region's status in a referendum set for later this month.

Putin accused the West of using Yanukovych's decision in November to ditch a pact with the EU in favor of closer ties with Russia to encourage the months of protests that drove him from power and put Ukraine's future in turmoil.

"We have told them a thousand times 'Why are you splitting the country?'" he said.

Yet he acknowledged that Yanukovych has no political future and said Russia gave him shelter only to save his life. Ukraine's new government wants to put the fugitive leader on trial for the deaths of over 80 people during protests last month in Kiev.

Ukraine's dire finances were a key issue in the protests that drove Yanukovych from power. On Tuesday, Russia's state-controlled natural gas giant Gazprom said it will cancel a price discount on gas it sells to Ukraine. Russia had offered the discount in December as part of Russian help for Ukraine. Gazprom also said Ukraine owes it $1.5 billion.

Crimea still remained a potential flashpoint. Pro-Russian troops who had taken control of the Belbek air base in Crimea fired warning shots into the air Tuesday as around 300 Ukrainian soldiers, who previously manned the airfield, demanded their jobs back.

About a dozen soldiers at the base warned the Ukrainians, who were marching unarmed, not to approach. They fired several warning shots into the air and said they would shoot the Ukrainians if they continued to march toward them.

The new Ukrainian government has said the troops that have overtaken Belbek and other Ukrainian military bases across Crimea were Russian, but Putin denied it, saying they were self-defense forces answering to Crimea's pro-Russian regional government.

Putin said 22,000 Ukrainian soldiers in Crimea have "dispersed." He didn't explain if that meant they had just left their posts or if they had switched allegiances from Kiev to the local pro-Russian government. Those officials claimed Tuesday that 5,500 Ukrainian soldiers had pledged allegiance to them and said they were seeking to move up a vote planned for March 30 on the region's status.

At the United Nations in New York, Russia's ambassador to the U.N., Vitaly Churkin, said Russia was entitled to deploy up to 25,000 troops in Crimea under the agreement.

Russia is demanding the implementation of a Western-sponsored peace deal that Yanukovych signed with the opposition last month that set a new Ukrainian presidential election no later than December. Yanukovych fled the capital hours after the signing and ended up in Russia, and the Ukrainian parliament then set the vote for May 25.

In Brussels, meanwhile, the ambassadors of NATO's 28 member nations held another emergency meeting on Ukraine at the request of Poland, which borders both Russia and Ukraine. The alliance said it and Russia agreed to discuss the latest developments in Ukraine at a special meeting Wednesday.

NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen has said Russia's military intervention in Ukraine violates the U.N. charter and threatens peace and security in Europe.

President Barack Obama has said Russia is "on the wrong side of history" in Ukraine and its actions violate international law. Obama says the U.S. is considering economic and diplomatic options that will isolate Russia.

In return, Russia's agricultural oversight agency on Tuesday reversed its earlier decision to lift the ban on imports of U.S. pork. It said the existing U.S. system of checks don't guarantee its safety.

The European Union's foreign ministers on Monday threatened Moscow with halting talks on visa liberalization and negotiations on further economic cooperation unless Russian troops in Crimea pull back over the next three days. The bloc's 28 heads of state and government will hold an emergency meeting Thursday to decide whether to impose sanctions against Russia.

Putin's economic advisor, Sergei Glazyev, says Russia can develop financial ties with other nations to offset any potential Western sanctions.

___

Sullivan reported from Crimea. Ivan Sekretarev in Sevastopol, Juergen Baetz in Brussels and Raul Gallego in Crimea contributed to this report.

In a somber show of U.S. support for Ukraine's new leadership, Secretary of State John Kerry walked the streets Tuesday where nearly 100 anti-government protesters were gunned down by police last month.

LARA JAKES
AP National Security Writer

KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — In a somber show of U.S. support for Ukraine's new leadership, Secretary of State John Kerry walked the streets Tuesday where nearly 100 anti-government protesters were gunned down by police last month, and promised beseeching crowds that American aid is on the way.

The Obama administration announced a $1 billion energy subsidy package in Washington as Kerry was arriving in Kiev. The fast-moving developments came as the United States readied economic sanctions amid worries that Moscow was ready to stretch its military reach further into the mainland of the former Soviet republic.

Kerry headed straight to Institutska Street at the start of an hours-long visit intended to bolster the new government that took over just a week ago when Ukraine President Viktor Yanukovych fled. He lay a bouquet of red roses, and twice the Roman Catholic secretary of state made the sign of the cross at a shrine set up to memorialize protesters who were killed during mid-February riots.

"We're concerned very much. We hope for your help, we hope for your assistance," a woman shouted as Kerry walked down a misty street lined with tires, plywood, barbed wire and other remnants of the barricades that protesters had stood up to try to keep Yanukovych's forces from reaching nearby Maidain Square, the heart of the demonstrations.

Piles of flowers brought in honor of the dead provided splashes of color in an otherwise drab day that was still tinged with the smell of smoke.

"We will be helping," Kerry said. "We are helping. President Obama is planning more assistance."

The Ukraine government continued to grapple with a Russian military takeover of Crimea, a strategic, mostly pro-Russian region in the country's southeast, and Kerry's visit came as Russian President Vladimir Putin said he wouldn't be deterred by economic sanctions imposed punitively by the West.

U.S. officials traveling with Kerry, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Obama administration is considering slapping Russia with unspecified economic sanctions as soon as this week. Members of Congress say they're preparing legislation that would impose sanctions as well.

As Kerry arrived, the White House announced the package of energy aid, along with training for financial and election institutions and anti- corruption efforts. Additionally, the officials said, the U.S. has suspended what was described as a narrow set of discussions with Russia over a bilateral trade investment treaty. It is also going to provide technical advice to the Ukraine government about its trade rights with Russia. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to be quoted by name before the official announcement was made.

Putin pulled his forces back from the Ukrainian border on Tuesday, yet said that Moscow reserves the right to use all means to protect Russians in the country. He accused the West of encouraging an "unconstitutional coup" in Ukraine and driving it onto anarchy, declaring that any sanctions the West places on Russia will backfire.

Speaking from his residence outside Moscow, Putin said he still considers Yanukovych to be Ukraine's leader and hopes Russia won't need to use force in predominantly Russian-speaking eastern Ukraine.

In Washington, the White House said the $1 billion loan guarantee was aimed at helping insulate Ukraine from reductions in energy subsidies. Russia provides a substantial portion of Ukraine's natural gas and U.S. officials said they are prepared to work with Kiev to reduce its dependence on those imports. The assistance is also meant to supplement a broader aid package from the International Monetary Fund.

Clutching five red carnations, Svitlana Moherouska, an 18-year-old student at Kiev National University, said Ukraine desperately needs economic aid to ensure its people continue to collect salaries. She said joined in the protests, starting last November.

"We come here to leave flowers and to walk the streets where there was a war," she said. "It's very painful for us. It was hard for me to see how the police ran after our people. I hope it will be our victory and be a better life for us. But it will be very hard for us because the economy is very bad."

The U.S. officials traveling to Kiev said Washington is warily watching to see whether Russia will try to advance beyond Crimea.

They cited reports of Russian helicopters nearly flying into mainland Ukraine airspace before being intercepted by jets controlled by Kiev. It's believed as many as 16,000 Russian troops have deployed to Crimea, while Ukrainian forces are amassing on both sides of an isthmus separating the region's peninsula from the mainland.

A Worcester man who was arrested on marijuana charges following a home invasion is an emergency dispatcher for the city.

Officials confirmed that Anthony Vuona, 26, of 32 Pocasset Ave. who was arrested Sunday has worked for the city as an emergency dispatcher. Worcester officials would not comment further on Vuona's employee status.

Vuona was arrested after two men armed with guns broke into an apartment he was in early Sunday morning. The men reportedly assaulted and tied up Vuona before searching the apartment on Pocasset Avenue.

During the investigation, police found three separate bags containing one pound of marijuana with another bag of marijuana packaged for distribution, according to police. Police charged Vuona on charges of possession of class D substance (marijuana) with the intent to distribute.

Police are investigating the home invasion and looking for two black men, each described as 6 feet 2 inches tall and weighing approximately 230 pounds. One man was wearing blue jeans and had short hair, while the other man was wearing all black clothing and a black winter hat and had his face covered.

If anyone has information about this incident they can send an anonymous text to 274637 TIPWPD + message or send an anonymous message at the Worcester Police Department Website. Calls can also be made to the Worcester Police Detective Bureau at (508) 799-8651.

The building that housed the Higgins Armory Museum for 82 years has officially been placed on the market.

WORCESTER — The building that housed the Higgins Armory Museum for 82 years has officially been placed on the market.

The real estate firm CBRE/New England will handle the sale of the building and land. "We are pleased to bring The Higgins Armory Museum to market," said Bob McGuire, senior vice president and partner at CBRE/New England, in a press release. "100 Barber Avenue is a unique and well-located asset in the city of Worcester that evokes a number of reuse options, which will appeal to an array of investors."

The 42,000-square foot building has is listed as an office building with additional sub-types of assisted living and residences. No price is listed along with the building at this time.

"CBRE/NE's extensive experience across the country, region, and also within Worcester gives us the confidence that this property will be marketed in the most efficient and effective manner possible," said Suzanne Maas, Higgins' interim director.

The art deco, steel-and-glass building was built in 1929 by wealthy Worcester industrialist John Woodman Higgins, owner of the Worcester Pressed Steel Company, whose wife encouraged him to find somewhere outside their home for his growing personal collection of armor. The museum opened in 1931, with Higgins’s metal company occupying the bottom two floors of the five-story building.

Museum officials announced last year that the museum would be forced to close, after failing to raise enough money to sustain its endowment.

The museum's 2,000-piece collection will be transferred to the Worcester Art Museum. The museum is planning to open a limited armor exhibit in the spring,. The Worcester Art Museum display Knights! is set for a March 28 grand opening. A permanent two-story, 4,000 square-foot arms and armor gallery that could be open as soon as 2019.

A Harvard Catholic school has decided it will not march in this year's South Boston St. Patrick's Day Parade due to the possible inclusion of gays and lesbians.

BOSTON — The Immaculate Heart of Mary School in Harvard has participated in the South Boston St. Patrick's Day Parade for decades. The school enters both its marching band and a float, but this year the school decided to stay home because of the possible inclusion of gays and lesbians.

The school said in a statement that its float featuring St. Patrick and a Celtic cross will not appear because they do not want to appear to be condoning the "homosexual lifestyle."

"This float has become the Icon of the St. Patrick's Day Parade in South Boston appearing in all types of media whenever the parade is mentioned. The familiar scene of St. Patrick joyfully giving his blessing to the crowds has, sad to say, come to an end. In the footsteps of Saint Patrick, IHM does not condone and will not appear to condone the homosexual lifestyle," said Principal Brother Thomas Dalton.

Dalton referenced the teachings of Pope John Paul II and Nos. 2357 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church as reasons for staying out of the parade this year.

The float and band have appeared for nearly 25 years in the parade and are often featured as one of the more prominent participating groups.

"This would have been the band'™s 25th time in the parade; you can imagine the disappointment of the students on not going, and yet they are happy to stand up for their faith," said band director Brother Peter Brackett.

Pope Francis recently called for a more measured tone when it comes to the Church's relationship with gay and lesbians, particularly gay and lesbian Catholics. In 2013, he responded to a reporter's question about gay men in the priesthood by saying, "Who am I to judge if they're seeking the Lord in good faith?"

The school's announcement not to participate comes as Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh and Congressman Stephen Lynch, both Boston Irishmen, have worked to win the inclusion of gay and lesbian groups in the parade for the first time.

The organizers of the parade, the Allied War Veterans Council, have excluded gays and lesbians since the 1995 landmark Supreme Court ruling Hurley v. Irish-American Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Group of Boston upheld the group's efforts to keep gays and lesbians from marching.

The organizers said they are open to allowing Mass Equality, a gay rights group, to march in the parade as long as they do not march with signs or shirts featuring the word "gay" or mention sexual orientation. Mass Equality has not accepted the offer and will only march under the condition that they are allowed to march openly.

"We made it clear to the Parade organizers that we would only march if LGBT people are able to march openly and honestly," said Kara Coredini, Executive Director of MassEquality in a statement.

Eleven people are being honored for their good deeds, which range from saving the lives of accident victims to ensuring that disabled children are able to play in organized sports.

SPRINGFIELD — The Pioneer Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross has announced its annual list of "Hometown Heroes" honorees, who will be feted at an awards ceremony later this month in Springfield.

This year's slate of honorees range from a man who works with disabled children to a lifelong blood donor to a pair of delivery drivers who rushed to the aid of a car-crash victim.

The recipients of the American Red Cross honor will be presented with awards at a March 27 breakfast at 7:30 a.m. in the ballroom of the MassMutual Center in downtown Springfield.

The honorees are:

* Steve Berube, of Westfield, who has dedicated his life to ensuring children with disabilities are able to participate in organized sports. Berube created the Ultimate Sports Program, whose mission statement is "social Inclusion through sports."

* Vincent Ferrero, of Ludlow, who has donated blood and platelets for more than 30 years, helping to save the lives of more than 400 people.

* Joseph Allen, of Granby, John Weston, of Longmeadow, and Maryann Alben, of East Longmeadow, who performed CPR on a man and helped save his life.

* UPS employees Art Hardy and Kevin Collins, both of Springfield, who helped rescue a car-crash victim from a burning vehicle.

* Alan Kraefft, of Belchertown, who saved a neighbor from his burning mobile home on Christmas eve.

* Gina Lopez and Sandra Land, both of Agawam, who were in the middle of a running race when they helped save the life of a rival competitor who suffered a severe seizure.

* Dr. Wilson Pyle, of Florence, who performed CPR on a car-crash victim who struck a tree after suffering cardiac arrest. As it turned out, the man Pyle helped save was also a physician.

The petition article asks for the state to pass special legislation.

AMHERST – While the debate to hike the minimum wage plays out across the country, Amherst town meeting is being asked to require town employers to pay at least $15 an hour.

More than 200 signed a petition forcing a special town meeting set for March 19. The Town Government Act requires that a special Town Meeting be held within 45 days of the filing, Town Manager John P. Musante said.

If supported by town meeting the request would go to the state Legislature for a special act.

The state current minimum wage is $8 an hour but there is legislation to raise it to $11 an hour over three years.

President Barack Obama is pushing for Congress to hike the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10. He will be in Connecticut Wednesday along with area governors including Massachusetts Gov. Deval L. Patrick who support the hike.

Town Manager John P. Musante said they just got the request and would look into whether such an act could be enacted for local control.

The Select Board will discuss whether to support it at its next meeting March 17. Musante said they will notify the Finance Committee as well.

According to the language, the petition asks that “Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in the General Court assembled, and by authority of same as follows: Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the Town of Amherst may regulate wages paid by employers within Town limits, including but not necessarily limited to establishing a minimum wage of $15 an hour.”

The article also asks that the town can adopt “reasonable polices for enforcement,” including fines of up to $500 a day.

Places like Seattle are also looking at adopting a $15 minimum wage as well.

The water main break was reported shortly after 5:30 a.m.

 

EASTHAMPTON — A water main break early Wednesday prompted police to close Park Hill Road from Oliver Street to the Northampton line.

The break was reported shortly after 5:30 a.m. and the Water Department is on scene.

Police had no information as to when the roadway might be reopened.

A former state parks official has won the Democratic nomination to succeed Boston Mayor Martin Walsh in the state House of Representatives.

BOSTON (AP) --€” A former state parks official has won the Democratic nomination to succeed Boston Mayor Martin Walsh in the state House of Representatives.

Daniel Hunt topped a field of five Democrats in Tuesday's special primary for the 13th Suffolk seat. There were no Republicans on the primary ballot.

Daniel Joseph Ryan won the Democratic primary in the second Suffolk House District. There were no Republicans on the ballot.

In the 16th Suffolk House District, Democrat Roselee Vincent claimed the party nomination while Todd Taylor earned the GOP nod.

In the Fourth Hampden District House, Republican Dan Allie and Democrat John Velis were winners.

All results are unofficial.

The special election is April 1.

Four of New England's six governors are expected to join President Obama at the New Britain campus today.

NEW BRITAIN, Conn. — Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick and other New England governors are expected to join President Barack Obama at Central Connecticut State University on Wednesday for a rally in support of raising the federal minimum wage to $10.10 an hour.

Obama will be surrounded today by governors who support his push to raise pay levels for minimum-wage workers. States cannot approve a minimum wage lower than the current federal hourly rate of $7.25, but they can approve a higher one.

Obama and Patrick will be joined by Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy, Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee and Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin.The president is scheduled to deliver his speech around 2:30 p.m. at the university's William Detrick Gymnasium, located on Stanley Street in New Britain.

Campus security will be tight for the ticket-only event, though university officials said they don't anticipate any major parking or traffic issues. However, they are encouraging anyone planning on attending the rally to arrive early. Doors open at 11:30 a.m.

"Because of heightened interest in the president's visit, we do encourage you to come to campus earlier than usual to avoid delays caused by heavier than normal traffic," a message on the university's website states.

After the Connecticut event, Obama is expected to fly from Bradley Air National Guard Base to Logan Airport in Boston, where he will lend some political muscle to a pair of Democratic National Committee fundraisers, attend a roundtable discussion and dine with supporters.

Raising the minimum wage level and overhauling immigration laws have been priorities of his administration, but legislative changes are not expected anytime soon.

Patrick, who's not seeking reelection, used his final State of the Commonwealth address to advocate for raising the Bay State's $8-per-hour minimum wage to $10.10. The Senate has already passed a bill to raise the wage level to $11 an hour, the highest in the nation, and the bill is pending in the House, which could act on it in April.

"To those who are reluctant to raise the minimum wage, I ask only that, before you resolve to oppose it, consider whether you can live on it," Patrick said in his January Sate of the Commonwealth address.

In Connecticut, the minimum wage is scheduled to increase to $9 an hour, from $8.70, on Jan. 1, 2015. Malloy has called on state lawmakers to raise Connecticut's minimum wage to $10.10 by 2017.

Officials have confirmed that one person died in an overnight fire at a Gardner apartment complex for the elderly and disabled.

Fire Lt. Gregory Lagoy tells The Telegram & Gazette (http://bit.ly/1kxFIKn ) that the blaze broke out in one unit of the 171-apartment Heywood Place complex.

Damage, estimated at $175,000, was contained primarily to that one unit.

The death was confirmed by a spokeswoman for the state fire marshal. The victim's name was not released.

About 30 other residents were evacuated temporarily as a precaution and kept at the local Elks lodge to stay warm.

The cause of the fire at the four-story former furniture factory remains under investigation.

___

Information from: Telegram & Gazette (Worcester, Mass.), http://www.telegram.com

ATTLEBORO, Mass. (AP) — An Attleboro man charged with breaking his 4-month-old son's leg has been held on $50,000 cash bail. The Sun Chronicle reports that Ryan Ellis pleaded not guilty Tuesday to a charge of assault and battery on a child under 14 causing serious bodily injury. The 22-year-old Ellis told police that the infant slipped from his shoulder...

ATTLEBORO, Mass. (AP) — An Attleboro man charged with breaking his 4-month-old son's leg has been held on $50,000 cash bail.

The Sun Chronicle reports that Ryan Ellis pleaded not guilty Tuesday to a charge of assault and battery on a child under 14 causing serious bodily injury.

The 22-year-old Ellis told police that the infant slipped from his shoulder as he was trying to burp him.

But doctors at Hasbro Children's Hospital in Providence, R.I., where the child was brought Sunday, said the right leg injury was consistent with twisting it enough to break it.

The state Department of Children and Families has taken temporary custody of the child.

The father of the infant's mother defended Ellis as a "good kid" but a "klutz" and said the injury was accidental.

___

Information from: The (Attleboro, Mass.) Sun Chronicle

NATO prepared to take up the issue directly with Russia in an extraordinary meeting of the military alliance, originally created as a counterbalance to the Soviet Union, and an international team of military observers headed to tense Crimea.

JUERGEN BAETZ, Associated Press
LORI HINNANT, Associated Press

PARIS (AP) — The European Union prepared $15 billion in aid to Ukraine and top diplomats from the West and Russia gathered in Paris on Wednesday to defuse tensions over the Russian military takeover of the strategic Crimean Peninsula.

NATO prepared to take up the issue directly with Russia in an extraordinary meeting of the military alliance, originally created as a counterbalance to the Soviet Union, and an international team of military observers headed to tense Crimea.

The ultimate goal in Paris is to get the Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministers in the same room, negotiating directly in the fast-moving dispute that has raised tensions to nearly Cold War levels.

"It will be a test this afternoon of whether Russia is prepared to sit down with Ukraine, and we will strongly recommend that they do so," British Foreign Secretary William Hague said.

On the verge of economic collapse, Ukraine accused Russia of a military invasion after pro-Russian troops took over Crimea on Saturday, placing forces around its ferry, military bases and border posts. Moscow does not recognize the new Ukrainian leadership in Kiev that ousted the pro-Russian president, and raised the pressure by threatening to end discounts on natural gas supplies.

Wednesday's offer by the European Union matched the Russian bailout for fugitive President Viktor Yanukovych. Yanukovych took the Russian loans instead of a wide-ranging trade and economic agreement with the EU, which fuelled the protests that eventually led to his ouster.

On Tuesday, the U.S. readied a $1 billion aid package.

"The situation in Ukraine is a test of our capability and resolve to stabilize our neighborhood and to provide new opportunities for many, not just a few," European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, speaking in Spain ahead of meetings planned with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in Paris, warned against Western support of what Moscow views as a coup. He said that could encourage government takeovers elsewhere.

"If we indulge those who are trying to rule our great, kind historic neighbor, we must understand that a bad example is infectious," Lavrov said.

Wednesday's Paris gathering, originally scheduled to deal with the Syrian refugee crisis, came after Russian President Vladimir Putin appeared to step back from the brink of war, but the crisis is far from resolved.

"This is my first trip to such an important venue where the Ukrainian future, maybe the future of the region, will be decided," Andriy Deshchytsia, Ukraine's foreign minister, said of the meetings in Paris. "We want to keep neighborly relations with the Russian people. We want to settle this peacefully."

On the flight from Kiev to Paris, Deshchytsia told reporters that Ukraine was unlikely to go to war to prevent Russia from annexing Crimea but said doing so wouldn't be necessary because Russia would be unwilling to suffer the resulting economic penalties and diplomatic isolation.

Russia has suggested that it will meet any sanctions imposed by Western governments with a tough response, and Putin has warned that those measures could incur serious "mutual damage."

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe sent a team of 35 unarmed military personnel to Crimea on Wednesday at the fledgling government's request.

"They will not be contented with assurances that these people are volunteers, who bought their uniforms in a shop," Polish Defense Minister Tomasz Siemoniak said. The hope is to learn "who is in power there and conclusions the OSCE should draw from that."

___

Juergen Baetz reported from Brussels. Associated Press writers Laura Mills in Moscow, Monika Scislowska in Warsaw, Poland, and Lara Jakes, Greg Keller, and Sylvie Corbet in Paris, contributed.

The annual party is slated to run from 5-8 p.m. Thursday, March 5.

Hampden Count Register of Deeds Donald Ashe with "colleens" at the 2013 St. Patrick's Day party at the John Boyle O'Reilly Club in Springfield.Michael Beswick I The Republican 

SPRINGFIELD — The Mac and O brigade is expected to descend on the Boyle on Thursday for Don Ashe's annual Paddy's Day bash, the unofficial kickoff to the political season.

Or, put a bit more properly, a few hundred people are expected to attend the annual St. Patrick's Day party hosted by Hampden County Register of Deeds Donald E. Ashe at Springfield's John Boyle O'Reilly Club, where generations of Kerrymen and their ancestors have traditionally celebrated Ireland's patron saint with pints of Guinness and corned beef sandwiches.

Thursday's event is from 5-8 p.m. at the Boyle, located at 33 Progress Ave.,

Ashe said the event will feature "numerous elected officials and candidates running for state and county seats." And music, of course.

The host also will introduce Mary Miller, Springfield's Colleen, and her court.

"They don't come to see me, they come for the corned beef," Ashe joked at last year's party.

While County Kerry has undoubtedly sent more of its children to greater Springfield than any other Irish county over the decades, the region is also home to pockets of people whose roots are in Mayo and Cork.

After a group of Boston University students failed to convince officials to cancel Tuesday's Robin Thicke concert at Agganis Arena, some staged a protest outside of the venue to express their disapproval of the message they argue Thicke sends in his hit song "Blurred Lines."

After a group of Boston University students failed to convince officials to cancel Tuesday's Robin Thicke concert at Agganis Arena, some staged a protest outside of the venue to express their disapproval of the message they argue Thicke sends in his hit song "Blurred Lines."

About 20 students were present at the protest, reported The Daily Free Press, Boston University's independent student newspaper.

Although Agganis Arena is on the university's campus, school officials told Boston.com the administration played no role in booking it.

As of Wednesday morning, the Change.org petition started by student group the Humanists of Boston University had about 3,000 signatures in support of the plea to cancel the concert. The petition read: "Having Thicke perform is a political statement that is out of touch with the realities of sexual violence and Boston University's own history. Thicke's hit song 'Blurred Lines' celebrates having sex with women against their will. Lyrics such as, 'I know you want it,' explicitly use non-consensual language."

Humanists of Boston University President Patrick Johnson encouraged others to use the Twitter hashtag #ThickeatBU to express why they don't support Thicke's concert at BU.

#ThickeAtBU is not right when this is happening* pic.twitter.com/TMNm1Gdowa

— Jess Allan (@jess_allan1) February 28, 2014

My sign for #thickeatbu protest. Consent is sexy :D pic.twitter.com/M4XGe4d67R

— ALLISOR (@Allisor) March 4, 2014

Ready for the #ThickeAtBU protest on Tuesday? @SociologistPDJ @HumanistsOfBU pic.twitter.com/ZUvEhKYTJ6

— Jess Allan (@jess_allan1) February 28, 2014

Some tweeted in disagreement with the idea that the song promotes "rape culture," however:

Why do some think that #BlurredLines lyrics promote rape when the only physical contact alluded to is "the way you grab me"? #ThickeatBU

— Meowsoginy (@pawtriarchy) March 4, 2014

The event comes amid a renewed focus on rape and sexual assault on college campuses following a call to action by earlier this year by President Barack Obama.

In January, Obama created a task force to focus on preventing sexual assaults on university campuses, citing a report by the White House Council on Women and Girls White House Council on Women and Girls showing that one in five women experience sexual assault or rape in her lifetime, and rape is most common on school campuses.

Billionaire businessman and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has been selected to speak at Harvard University's 2014 commencement exercises.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) --€” Billionaire businessman and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has been selected to speak at Harvard University's 2014 commencement exercises.

The Ivy League university announced Wednesday that the Massachusetts native and Harvard Business School graduate will speak at afternoon exercises at the school's 363rd commencement on May 29.

Harvard President Drew Faust said Bloomberg's career has been "a rare blend of public leadership, private-sector entrepreneurship, and powerful philanthropic engagement."

Bloomberg has remained engaged with the university. He has endowed a professorship and the renovated Baker Library/Bloomberg Center is named in honor of his late father.

In addition to founding Bloomberg L.P., the financial services news company that has more than 300,000 subscribers, he established Bloomberg Philanthropies.

Afternoon exercises serve as the annual meeting of the Harvard Alumni Association.