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Transforming Springfield into a tech hub: Tech Foundry prepares for first class of students

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Tech Foundry is a school, a startup, a nonprofit and an employment agency that could help transform Springfield into a tech company hub.

SPRINGFIELD – A school, a startup, a nonprofit and an employment agency that will help transform Springfield into a tech company hub.

That’s the blend of ideas running under Tech Foundry, a nonprofit that will start training its first class of students in July.

Tech Foundry is a new style of education. It’s a nonprofit that teaches high school seniors technical and workplace skills, but its curriculum was developed in partnership with tech companies. The students learn the skills the company would want in an entry-level employee.

Director of Operations Natalie Sacco said the target student is someone graduating high school who is unsure of their next step. Maybe college isn’t the right choice.

Students could choose Tech Foundry’s summer program “instead of a four-year college, which is something that is sort of crammed down everyone’s throats,” she said.

The idea isn’t to shun college, Sacco said, but many tech companies don’t care much about degrees, and the entry-level positions Tech Foundry students will train for can pay up to $40,000 annually. That’s more than many of the inner-city students’ parents make.

“If someone had stopped me (before getting my MBA), maybe I would’ve done something different instead of getting this enormous amount of debt,” Sacco said. “I mean, enormous.”

From the beginning, the idea for Tech Foundry was not just about giving inner-city kids good job opportunities. It’s about that too, but founder Delcie Bean is thinking big picture.

Bean is the CEO of Paragus, I.T., and together with South Hadley High School math teacher Josh Finkel helped start Valley Technical Outreach. Out of that grew the plans for Tech Foundry.

Immediately, they were talking about revitalizing the entire city.

“What (Springfield) needs is something to become — our new identity,” Bean said.

When the city has a ready pool of tech talent trained to fit company needs, larger companies will take note. Other cities don’t have that applicant pool in an industry with high turnover at entry-level positions, so developing those applicants would help Springfield compete with cities like Boston, he said.

Sacco said companies like Google, Amazon and Twitter could start looking to Springfield as a smart spot for back offices. The industry and the city have plenty of room to grow.

“Even if (Tech Foundry) were wildly successful, it’s a small dip in what’s needed,” Bean said.

The startup’s donors seem to agree. Donations have come from all sides; Even the paint and much of the office furniture was donated. The company takes up the entire ninth floor of its building in downtown Springfield, and that space is also donated.

“Every sort of help that we could even think of has shown up,” Sacco said.

Even with the outpouring of help, getting the concept rolling hasn’t been all rosy. Bean said the company received lots of help from sources outside of traditional nonprofit funding. The traditional funding sources didn’t come through as he expected.

Bean figured about $150,000 would come through donations from banks. To date, the company has only received $3,500.

That lack of traditional funding was covered mostly through other sources, such as a private anonymous donor who gave $120,000. It’s a startup that’s also a brand new concept, Bean said, which may have contributed to traditional backers’ wariness.

The untested idea will soon have real metrics of success.

Through its Springfield campus, the UMass School of Education will conduct a study through its urban education research to gauge the effectiveness of Tech Foundry’s teaching.

As the program grows — and its funding requirements rise — Bean hopes the research will yield concrete data to show potential investors Tech Foundry’s success.


Fight for $15: Low wage worker protests in Springfield, Boston, Worcester call for rise in minimum wage

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The state legislature has a bill that would raise the minimum wage from $8 to $11 over three years. Watch video

SPRINGFIELD - Low wage workers and their advocates gathered Thursday in Boston, Worcester and Springfield to fight for worker rights, including a hike in the minimum wage to $15 an hour.

The Springfield protest, organized by the coalition Western Massachusetts Jobs with Justice, began at Mount Cavalry Baptist Church, 17 John St., and proceeded across Main Street to McDonald's. Police were called after protesters entered the McDonald's, but there was no incident.

Protester Kerry Brown, of Northampton, makes $9.30 an hour unloading trucks at the Hadley Walmart from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m., three or four nights a week.

"It was just more than $12,000 last year," Brown, 37, and a former worker on an organic farm, said.

In the first quarter, WalMart earned a $3.6 billion profit, down from $3.78 billion the year before, according to published reports.

He disagreed that the obvious solution would  be for him to find a better job than the one at Walmart.

"Why not work to make the jobs we have better?" he said.

Seattle recently instituted a $15 minimum wage, but  in Massachusetts a compromise bill seems to have settled on an $11-an-hou minimum wage. A conference-committee bill field this week in the Massachusetts Legislature would increase the current $8 per hour minimum wage by $3 during the next three years.

Kindalay Cummings-Akers is a personal care assistant who takes home, after taxes, $396 a week. She said raising the minimum wage, and all wages for under compensated workers, would be good for the economy and result in more sales at businesses. She's a memebr of Local 1199 of the Service Employees International Union, one of the unions participating in the protest.

"We spend our money," she said. "If I had more money, I'd probably go out and spend it and help the economy. That is instead of cutting back." 

Organizer Ivette Hernandez told the crowd how she went back to school as a single mother. She now is a social work with a master's degree, but wouldn't have been able to do it without access to a living wage.

"Even as a social worker, when my kids were in daycare I had to get a second job to pay for it," she said.

Cummings-Akers said she's also agitating for earned sick time for health care workers like herself. Workers can't afford to lose pay and coming to work ill endangers patients.

Former Alex and Ani CEO Giovanni Feroce addresses 2014 annual meeting of East of the River Five Town Chamber of Commerce

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Feroce shared some of his business principles, both specific and general, during his remarks.

LONGMEADOW — The former CEO of Alex and Ani, the Rhode Island-based jewelry producer that enjoyed a sales explosion under his tenure, had words of wisdom for attendees of the East of the River Five Town Chamber of Commerce annual meeting Thursday morning.

Two words in particular.

"If you remember nothing else that I have to say, please remember these two words: they are systems and standards," keynote speaker Giovanni Feroce told the audience at Bay Path College. "If you don't have these in your business, in my opinion, you don't have a real business.

"Such as, check your breath. Tell your employees to check their breath, to make sure they have good breath when they go in to work and they talk to people, because it's those kind of things that are important. And it might seem silly to some people, but again, that's a standard. You need standards in business," he said.

The event brought together business people from East Longmeadow, Hampden, Longmeadow, Ludlow and Wilbraham to enjoy a bit of fraternity, the chance to learn from the wisdom of others and lunch.

During Feroce's time at the helm of Alex and Ani, the jewelry production company increased its yearly revenue from $2.2 million in 2010 to $240 million in 2013, partially through striking deals with large businesses like Walmart, Nordstrom and Disney.

"On the first day (at Alex and Ani), when I sat down, (I) was approached by the head of sales, who brought the Disney contract to me, because Disney wanted to do some business. And they said, 'You have to sign this.' I said, well, first of all I have to read it, and they said 'no, no, no, you have to sign it.' ... We went back and forth about three times," he said. "Then I marked it up, I said change Paragraph H and have it reflect this, and change Paragraph G to reflect the following, and she said, 'You can't do that.' ... I said, 'What do you mean?' She said, 'Well, that's Disney.' ... I will not bless you with profanity today, my son's in here as well, but I said, 'We're such-and-such Alex and Ani!' "And so there is the standard again. The following year, and years later, the same held true," Feroce said.

"I always had this thought, and I lived with it, and I still live with it today, which is – I'm not better than anyone, but there's no one better than me. I have to believe that," he said. "It doesn't matter if I'm on the top floor of the largest financial institutions in the world, talking to the most powerful people, I have to believe that. Otherwise, how can I negotiate? How can I get what I want, if I don't believe that?"

Feroce also discussed specific aspects of his business and personal philosophy, including calibrating marketing efforts to fit aspirations, putting employees first, even in front of customers, and the need to profit while still addressing environmental and social issues.

Feroce was a member of the Rhode Island Senate for two years, from 1992 to 1994, and served in the U.S. Armed Forces during the Iraq War.

Other speakers included Dr. Carol Leary, the president of Bay Path College, and Carmina Fernandes, chair of the ERC5 Board of Directors.

Fernandes is also a member of the Ludlow Board of Selectmen.

Approximately 120 people were in attendance at the meeting, which was held in the Blake Student Commons.


MMWEC awards scholarships to two Ludlow High School graduates

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MMWEC awards two $1,000 scholarships annually to two Ludlow High School graduates.

LUDLOW – The Massachusetts Municipal Wholesale Electric Co. (MMWEC) awarded $1,000 scholarships to Ludlow High School graduates Alexander LaFayette and Erik Nyzio.

MMWEC awards two $1,000 scholarships annually to Ludlow High School graduates pursuing a college education in engineering, environmental sciences, finance or accounting.

LaFayette is planning to pursue a degree in accounting at American International College. A four-year varsity baseball player, he also was a member of the cross country team, the basketball team and the high school band.

Nyzio plans to pursue a degree in computer engineering, starting at Holyoke Community College. A varsity tennis player and math team member, he also volunteered helping children at a local robotics summer camp.

“These students have shown an ability to balance the demands of school, extracurricular activities and other aspects of their lives to achieve success through hard work and dedication,” said MMWEC Chief Executive Officer Ron DeCurzio. “Such attributes will serve them well going forward, and we wish them continued success in their academic careers,” he said.

As part of its commitment to the Ludlow community, MMWEC has awarded $32,000 in scholarships to help Ludlow High School students defray the cost of higher education since the inception of the scholarship program in 1998.

MMWEC is a non-profit, public corporation that provides a variety of electric power supply, financial, risk management and other services to the Commonwealth’s consumer-owned municipal utilities. MMWEC is the operator and principal owner of the Stony Brook power plant on Moody Street and has been a corporate resident of Ludlow for more than 35 years.


President Obama: US will send fresh help to beleaguered Iraq

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Less than three years after pulling American forces out of Iraq, President Barack Obama is weighing a range of short-term military options, including airstrikes, to quell an al-Qaida inspired insurgency that has captured two Iraqi cities and threatened to press toward Baghdad.

JULIE PACE, Associated Press
LARA JAKES, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Less than three years after pulling American forces out of Iraq, President Barack Obama is weighing a range of short-term military options, including airstrikes, to quell an al-Qaida inspired insurgency that has captured two Iraqi cities and threatened to press toward Baghdad.

"We do have a stake in making sure that these jihadists are not getting a permanent foothold," Obama said Thursday in the Oval Office.

However, officials firmly ruled out putting American troops back on the ground in Iraq, which has faced resurgent violence since the U.S. military withdrew in late 2011. A sharp burst of violence this week led to the evacuation Thursday of Americans from a major air base in northern Iraq where the U.S. had been training security forces.

Obama, in his first comments on the deteriorating situation, said it was clear Iraq needed additional assistance from the U.S. and international community given the lightning gains by the militant group Islamic State of Iraq and Levant. Republican lawmakers pinned some of the blame for the escalating violence on Obama's reluctance to re-engage in a conflict he long opposed.

For more than a year, the Iraqi government has been pleading with the U.S. for additional help to combat the insurgency, which has been fueled by the civil war in neighboring Syria. Northern Iraq has become a way station for insurgents who routinely travel between the two countries and are spreading the Syrian war's violence.

Iraqi leaders made a fresh request earlier this week, asking for a mix of drones and manned aircraft that could be used for both surveillance and active missions. Officials said Obama was considering those requests and was expected to decide on a course of action within a few days.

The U.S. already is flying unmanned aircraft over Iraq for intelligence purposes, an official said.

Short of airstrikes, the president could step up the flow of military assistance to the beleaguered Iraqi government, increase training exercises for the country's security forces and help boost Iraq's intelligence capabilities. The U.S. has been leery of its lethal aid falling into the hands of militants or being otherwise misused.

State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the U.S. is sending about $12 million in humanitarian aid to help nearly a million Iraqis who have been forced from their homes by recent fighting.

Vice President Joe Biden discussed the deteriorating security situation Thursday with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. The White House said Biden underscored that while the U.S. stands ready to help, it would be crucial for Iraq to come up with longer-term solutions to its internal political strife.

Nearly all American troops left Iraq in December 2011 after Washington and Baghdad failed to negotiate a security agreement that would have kept a limited number of U.S. forces in the country for a few more years at least.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., a frequent White House critic, called on Thursday for Obama's entire national security team to resign. House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, accused the president of "taking a nap" while conditions worsened.

But Congress appeared divided over how to respond, with some Republicans backing airstrikes and other lawmakers from both parties suggesting that was the wrong approach.

There were no calls for putting American troops back on the ground in Iraq, and Obama's advisers said the president had no desire to plunge the U.S. back into a conflict there.

"The president is mindful that the United States has sacrificed a lot in Iraq and we need to not just be taking this all back on ourselves," said Ben Rhodes, Obama's deputy national security adviser. "We need to come up with solutions that can enable the Iraqis to manage their internal security and their internal politics."

Even after American troops left Iraq, the U.S. has continued to send weapons and ammunition — although not nearly as much as Baghdad has requested. A U.S. training mission for Iraqi counterterror forces dwindled to almost nothing earlier this year, and Baghdad asked as early as last summer for armed U.S. drones to track and strike terrorist hideouts.

The administration resisted, and similarly rejected options for airstrikes in neighboring Syria.

Instead, the U.S. Embassy has sold small scout helicopters, tanks, guns, rockets and at least 300 Hellfire missiles to Iraqi forces. A U.S. shipment of ScanEagle surveillance drones is to be delivered to Iraq later this summer, and the State Department is trying to speed an order of Apache helicopters to Baghdad. Additionally, Congress is reviewing a $1 billion order of arms, including Humvee vehicles, to Iraq.

Several thousand Americans also remain in Iraq, mostly contractors who work at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad on programs to train Iraqi forces on American military equipment like fighter jets and tanks. One of the largest training missions was based at the air base in the city of Balad, about an hour northwest of Baghdad, where three planeloads of Americans were being evacuated on Thursday. They included 12 U.S. government officials and military personnel who have been training Iraqi forces to use fighter jets and surveillance drones.
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Associated Press writers Robert Burns, Bradley Klapper and Donna Cassata contributed to this report.

Massachusetts Senate votes to raise minimum wage to $11 an hour by 2017

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The Massachusetts Senate on Thursday voted overwhelmingly in favor of a bill that would raise the state’s minimum wage to a nation-leading $11 an hour by 2017 in a move that Democratic leaders said they feel confident will be enough to avoid a costly ballot campaign this fall for higher wages.


By MATT MURPHY, GINTAUTAS DUMCIUS and ANDY METZGER

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Senate on Thursday voted overwhelmingly in favor of a bill that would raise the state’s minimum wage to a nation-leading $11 an hour by 2017 in a move that Democratic leaders said they feel confident will be enough to avoid a costly ballot campaign this fall for higher wages.

The Senate voted 35-4 to pass legislation that would gradually increase the minimum wage in three steps from its current perch at $8 an hour to $11 an hour in 2017, with $1 increases taking effect on the first day of each of the next three years starting on Jan. 1, 2015.

While supporters touted the need to help lift minimum wage workers out of poverty and stimulate the economy, some small business groups warned the effort would cost jobs and drive some small employers out of business.

“If you’re payroll is going up, you’re taxes are going up,” said Jon Hurst, president of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts. Hurst said the bill, which also overhauls the state’s unemployment insurance system, reflects the clout of unions in Massachusetts.

Senate President Therese Murray, before the vote, said she believed the bill would be sufficient for ballot organizers to drop their proposed referendum to raise the minimum wage to $10.50 by 2016 and link future increases to inflation. Though the Senate initially supported indexing wages to inflation, the measure was dropped in a compromise with the House.

Asked whether she had been given any assurances from ballot petition leaders, Murray said, “We have gotten some feedback that if this is passed today and the House passes it and we get it timely to the governor's desk and he signs it, that the ballot question will not go forward.”

During floor remarks, Sen. Dan Wolf (D-Harwich) referred to the minimum wage increase as important “from a moral perspective,” as well as functioning as an economic stimulus. Minimum wage earners will see an increase of $6,000, and they will spend it in small businesses and restaurants, he said. Wolf sat on the conference committee that negotiated the final bill with the House.

The hike in the minimum wage will also decrease the number of people on government assistance rolls, Wolf said.

The bill also includes unemployment insurance reforms, which will provide the business community with the predictability they requested, according to Wolf. It adjusts rates businesses pay to cover benefit costs for the jobless and seeks to avoid steep increases in rates.

“Everybody in the business community is going to see a decrease or stabilized rates for the next four years and that‘s really very important. As a business person I would say that’s really important,” said Wolf, who owns Cape Air.


Hurst, however, said the UI reforms don’t go nearly far enough to close loopholes in the law that can increase fraud and costs for small businesses. “I fear for the future of 351 Main Streets across the Commonwealth. Common sense tells you that a mom and pop store cannot afford to pay a teenager $16.50 per hour to start on a Sunday; certainly not in the days of exponential sales growth to the Internet competition. Voters need to start asking the tough questions as to why their Main Streets are going dark,” he said.

Responding to Hurst, Murray said, “I know Mr. Hurst wanted us to do away with the overtime on Sundays. That is something I think that pretty much the entire membership felt very strongly they did not want to do.”

Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr (R-Gloucester) said he was disappointed that additional measures, such as an increase to the earned income tax credit for low income workers were not included in the bill.

He said Senate Republicans, all four of whom voted against the compromise, also wanted to raise the minimum wage but at a more moderate level and with regular reviews of its impact.“We offered several attempts at that,” said Tarr, saying the 750,000 Massachusetts residents living below the federal poverty line is “unacceptable.”

The compromise bill, which now moves to the House where a vote is expected next week, would provide Massachusetts with the highest minimum wage in the country. Over 575,000 low wage earners, who are currently earning less than $11 per hour, would get a raise, said Lew Finfer, the co-chair of the group seeking to place a minimum wage increase on the November ballot.

The group, Raise Up Massachusetts, will meet next week to review the bill and decide whether they should go forward with the ballot initiative. The deadline to turn in the final round of signatures to local elections officials is June 18, Finfer said, and the group will continue gathering signatures for now. The deadline to turn certified signatures in to Secretary of State William Galvin’s office is in early July, after which it will be too late to stop the ballot drive.

Asked about the compromise bill’s lack of tying future increases to inflation, Finfer said the group will discuss the matter in its meeting planned for next week.

“We’ll look at the whole picture but we think this was a very good and important step,” Finfer said. “It’s a significant wage increase.”

Finfer said the potential ballot initiative has been a key driver of getting the minimum wage increase through the Legislature and onto the governor’s desk. “I think they might have raised it but not at all to this extent,” he said.

Sen. Marc Pacheco, a Taunton Democrat, exhorted activists to persist in their effort to pursue a ballot initiative that would raise the wage to $10.50 by 2016 and link it to inflation, which he said would raise the lowest wages more than the bill would over time.

Pacheco also said the bill before the Senate had a minimum wage for tipped employees that is “significantly lower” than other versions of the legislation. The compromise bill raised minimum wages for tipped workers from $2.63 to $3.75.“I would urge you to continue to go to the ballot, because I know the Massachusetts voters,” Pacheco said.

He added, “I hope this bill passes and I hope we actually have the ballot question go to the ballot.”
Murray said she has not heard directly about business leaders being unhappy with the bill, pointing to many of the UI reforms that were included in the bill at the request of the business community. She also refuted the assertion that unions exert undue influence over the legislature.

“That’s just not true. If that were the case, indexing would be on there,” she said.

While Murray plans to retire from the Legislature at the end of this year, the Plymouth Democrat said the conversation about the cost of living in Massachusetts must continue even after wages increase.

“This can’t be the end of the discussion because in order to live, particularly in the city of Boston, making $23,000 a year isn’t going to cut it, especially if you have a family of four. You’re still going to be below the poverty level,” she said.

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Zackary Lawrence, missing 14-year-old Pittsfield boy, found in Arizona

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Pittsfield police, the Berkshire County Law Enforcement Task Force and the FBI were able to track 14-year-old Zackary Lawrence to Chandler, Ariz.

PITTSFIELD — Zackary Lawrence, a 14-year-old Pittsfield boy who had been missing since Friday, was found safe Wednesday night 2,500 miles away in Chandler, Ariz., and a 47-year old Arizona man is in custody in connection with the incident, Pittsfield police said.

zackary LawrenceZackary Lawrence 

Lawrence was the subject of a regional search after he went missing on Friday evening.
Pittsfield police said a joint investigation with Pittsfield police, the Berkshire County Law Enforcement Task Force, the FBI and Chandler police led them to a location in that city where Lawrence was found.

He is due to be returned home shortly.

Police in Arizona arrested 47-year-old Bradley David Cooper of Chandler, charging him with a variety of offenses in connection with the incident.

Pittsfield police said the investigation is ongoing, and it has not been determined if charges will be filed in Massachusetts as well.

Chandler police said Cooper met Lawrence over the Internet, and drove out to Massachusetts to help him run away. He picked him up on Friday evening and then they spent three days driving to Arizona, police said.

Chandler is a city of about 280,000 people and is considered a suburb of Phoenix.


Anthony Repp of New York declared competent to stand trial in stoning death of parents

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Repp was arrested in Deerfield one day after the murders when he was found hiding in a freight car.

Anthony Repp.jpgAnthony Repp  

A 23-year-old New York man arrested in Deerfield a year ago after his mother and stepfather were found beaten to death with rocks at their home north of Albany has been declared competent to stand trial in connection with their deaths, according to reports.

The Albany Times-Union reports that the lawyer for Anthony Repp and the prosecution have agreed Repp does not need a competency hearing prior to his trial for the murders of his mother, Cynthia Matala, and his step-father, Michael Matala.

Since November, Repp has been held at the Central New York Psychiatry Center at the Marcy Correctional Center in Oneida County. He has been evaluated by two psychiatric specialists who determined he is competent to stand trial.

The Times-Union reports Repp’s lawyer Terrance Kildon agreed that Repp is fit to stand trial but he wants the jury to be able to consider whether Repp is not guilty by reason of mental illness or defect.

Judge Andrew Ceresia gave assistant district attorney Shane Hug two weeks to decide, the paper reports.

Repp was arrested in Deerfield on the morning of July 5, one day after the Matalas were found severely beaten at their home in Schaghticoke, roughly 20 miles north of Albany. Both had skull fractures and brain injuries from being hit repeatedly with a stone. Michael Matala died on July 4, while Cynthia Matala died a day later.

Repp was apprehended after called police to report someone had stowed away inside a rail car.


La. tour operators ordered to stop feeding alligators after video of guide doing so goes viral

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At one point the video captures the guide putting a marshmallow in his mouth and letting an alligator snatch it away.


STACEY PLAISANCE

LAFITTE, La. — Authorities have ordered swamp boat tour operators in the South Louisiana community of Jefferson Parish to stop feeding alligators after video of a tour guide doing so went viral.

There is no Louisiana law prohibiting luring and feeding of alligators, but it's against local law in Jefferson Parish, where a tourist captured video of an Airboat Adventures tour guide swimming with and feeding two alligators.

At one point the video captures the guide putting a marshmallow in his mouth and letting an alligator snatch it away.


Sheriff's spokesman Col. John Fortunato said Thursday his office has begun an investigation and is working closely with Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries. Fortunato says swamp tour companies were ordered to cease any feeding of the gators.

No charges had been filed as of Thursday.

West Springfield residents voice concerns over proposed condos on Piper Road during Conservation Commission meeting

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A roomful of nearly West Springfield 30 residents voiced their concerns about ground and storm water levels related to the potential development of 18 condominiums for individuals over the age of 55 at 302 Piper Road.

WEST SPRINGFIELD — A roomful of nearly 30 residents voiced their concerns about ground and storm water levels related to the proposed development of 18 condominiums for individuals over the age of 55 at 302 Piper Road during a Conservation Commission meeting Wednesday.

The proposed development by Piper Green Estates, Inc. and Robert Mitchell, to be called “Piper Green Estates,” would be roughly six acres situated between Springfield Country Club and Duke Street.

Robert Levesque, owner of R. Levesque Associates, Inc., a landscape architect company based in Westfield, said the development is not allowed to increase the amount of runoff at the site, with drainage patterns remaining roughly the same, due to vegetative wetlands nearby.

“Under the storm water regulation, we’re required to match the pre-post development run-off flows,” he said. “So, if we have a development that creates a certain amount of storm water, we have to analyze that pre-development.”

The site area is generally flat except for a slope near the Landmark assisted living area and former Passionist Monastery, which is beyond the boundaries of the development area.

“We’re required to contain that (storm-related) water long enough that we’re not sending that water to somebody else’s property, that we’re not sending more water to somebody else’s property,” he said.

A 60-inch water transmission line running through the property with a 30-foot easement associated with the line, site grating, erosion controls and sewer connections, which will run through the back of the condominium units heading out toward Piper Road, are all a part of the site plan, he said.

Within the site plan, a storm water infiltration basin will be used to catch roof runoff and standard precast concrete catch basins will collect rainfall running off the roadway, he said.

Mark Noonan, conservation officer and assistant planner, said the developers need to be approved by the Conservation Commission due to the wetlands nearby and must also pursue a zone change from the City Council and discuss the site plans with the Planning Board.

Water cannot be added or decreased within the nearby wetland areas under Conservation Commission regulations, he said.

Residents’ concerns over the water levels were related to seasonal water flows, increased mud in the area and home flooding.

“This is an ongoing process,” said Noonan. “We want you involved, we want your input because you know the area and we don’t.”

The Conservation Commission will be doing site visits of the area before its next meeting, he said.


Fighting to increase the minimum wage to $15 per hour, Wage Action protest held in Worcester

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Chanting rhymes the likes of "Low pay is not okay!" a few dozen advocates for increasing the minimum wage gathered in front of the Tobias Boland Way Walmart for one hour Thursday night in hope of bringing attention to the issue.

WORCESTER — Chanting rhymes the likes of, "Low pay is not okay!" a few dozen advocates for increasing the minimum wage gathered in front of the Tobias Boland Way Walmart for one hour Thursday night in hopes of bringing attention to the issue.

"We're here to demand that corporations listen to workers. People are struggling to make ends meet," Natalia Berthet, a representative from Massachusetts Jobs With Justice and one of the organizers of the event, said. Other organizers include Raise Up Worcester and the 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East. Similar protests were also held in Springfield and Boston.

A single Worcester police officer watched over the group and Walmart patrons either stopped to watch or walked around the group to enter the busy store. Some were stopped and asked to sign non-binding petitions in hopes of obtaining the 200 verifiable signatures to have an advisory question put on the November ballot in Worcester's 17th district.

Representatives from the group Socialist Alternative said that they'd like businesses in the Worcester area and across the state to enact similar wage regulations to what was recently implemented in Seattle, Wash., by that city's city council. A federal lawsuit has since been filed to challenge the wage increase to $15 an hour, according to news reports.

In Massachusetts, legislators are considering whether to increase the minimum wage from $8 to $11 an hour during the next three years.

"It's a first step," Richard Poole, of Worcester, said of the Seattle action as he stood alongside Jeff Booth, of Holliston, collecting signatures for the non-binding ballot question. Poole said the group is targeting the 17th District because it is a working-class neighborhood with several small businesses.

Not everyone was focused on collecting signatures, though. Several people were there either for personal reasons or to stand in solidarity with workers they said were underpaid and under-appreciated.

"I'm here because my working-class brothers and sisters are under attack, not just in the US but all over the world," Gwen Davis, of Worcester, said. "We're all getting squeezed and whatever we're getting paid here is even more than what people are paid in other countries. It's a crime. I believe another world is possible, and it's an egalitarian world."

Lillie Williams, of Worcester, said that although she is paid for the job that she does, she joined the effort to fight for an increase in the minimum wage because "there are so many other people working in America that are not."

"If we don't come out and raise up our voices, then the government will not know, they will not have to answer," Williams said.

For University of Massachusetts student Taryn Ferancz, a senior next year studying comparative literature, it's the fear of not being able to repay the roughly $80,000 in students loans that she expects to accumulate by the end of her college career that brought her to the protest.

"I'm here for everyone who is not making a living wage," Fernacz said.

And for David Bentley, of Worcester, who works at a grocery store, the issue is about being able to make enough money to pay his rent.

"I hope someone is listening and that this shows our state government that they really should raise minimum wage. Everyone needs to make a living," Bentley said.

Before leaving for the night, the group marched to the sidewalk under the large Walmart sign, chanting, "When workers are under attack, what do we do? Stand up and fight back!" and, "Corporations you can hide, we can see your greedy side!" And then they stopped for a group photo.

Holyoke taxpayers kept in dark by city as released records fail to show why former solicitor Heather Egan got $45,000

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The Republican and MassLive.com will appeal to the secretary of state the city's refusal to provide full documentation about the exit agreement.

HOLYOKE -- Despite a public records request, it remained a mystery Thursday (June 12) to all but a few why former city solicitor Heather G. Egan was given a $45,000 exit agreement.

The city responded to a request from MassLive.com and The Republican for all documents related to the April 29 Egan exit agreement by providing only 24 pages of blacked-out paragraphs, previously reported numbers and boilerplate legalese.

Kara Lamb Cunha, second assistant city solicitor, said she made the decision to withhold the information. Some of the withholding and redactions were made to protect attorney-client privilege between Mayor Alex B. Morse and the Springfield law firm of Sullivan, Hayes & Quinn, which worked on the Egan exit agreement, Cunha said.

Emails the news outlets requested between Morse and Egan constitute "personnel and medical files or information" and "other materials or data relating to a specifically named individual, the disclosure of which may constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy," she said.

Still, Cunha's wording in a June 12 cover letter to the news outlets is the first time "medical" was used in relation to the Egan exit agreement. But Cunha wouldn't elaborate.

When Egan quit, Morse said it was for "personal reasons." Shortly after, it became known the agreement included a payment of $45,000.

Egan, who headed the Law Department for just over a year, hasn't returned calls seeking comment.

The Republican and MassLive.com will appeal the city's response to its documents request to the supervisor of public records of the office of state Secretary of State William F. Galvin, The Republican Executive Editor Wayne Phaneuf said.

"We feel this is unacceptable. It's obvious that the essential information to really get to the bottom of this has been redacted and we will appeal to the supervisor of public records of the office of the Secretary of State," Phaneuf said.

Even the specific amount of money the city paid the law firm to work on the agreement was excluded from the documents requested. Cunha would say only the work was done as part of the $3,800-a-month arrangement between the city and the firm.

City councilors and others, including readers commenting on MassLive, have criticized Morse for refusing to explain why the $45,000 in taxpayer money was paid to Egan.

Cunha declined to address the right of taxpayers to know the disposition of their money in relation to the Egan exit agreement.

"I would just say that we complied with the public records law," Cunha said.

The news outlets' request was filed under Chapter 66 of Massachusetts General Laws. It sought all documents that contain information that led up to and that formalized the agreement, including records of discussions between officials, all emails pertaining to this issue and records of related phone calls.

Also sought was a copy of the contract the city has with Sullivan, Hayes & Quinn and details about how much the city paid the Springfield law firm for its work on the Egan exit agreement.

What the city did provide, at a cost of $85.26, was a cover letter from Cunha; request for the appropriation transfer to the city auditor for the $45,000; four mostly blacked-out pages of the "Separation Agreement and General Release"; payroll information about the payment to Egan; and a six-page "Agreement for Professional Legal Services" between the city and Sullivan, Hayes & Quinn signed Aug. 29, 2013 by firm Managing Partner Meghan B. Sullivan, Morse and Egan, who was then city solicitor.

The documents include 10 pages on Sullivan, Hayes & Quinn letterhead -- most of it blacked-out -- titled "Professional Services" and listing items like "Letter from H. Egan, City Solicitor," "Return telephone call from City Solicitor, H. Egan" and "Reply to email from Mayor A. Morse requesting conversation regarding employee matter."

Councilors have asserted Morse exceeded his authority with such an agreement because the money adds to what Egan was paid and only the City Council can establish the city solicitor's salary. The solicitor's yearly salary is $70,000.

Cunha responded to a City Council request for a legal opinion by telling the council June 2 that Morse had the authority to execute such an exit agreement and that the council's only role was to appropriate the funds. Councilors have disputed this.

Morse, under fire, called a special meeting of the City Council June 3. Morse maintained the position that on the advice of lawyers he was unable to discuss why the exit agreement was made and why it included a payment because Egan's privacy rights must be protected.

He made the decision he felt was in the city's best interest, he said.

Documents Related to Heather Egan Separation Agreement

Amherst Regional High School students, staff and faculty Thursday paused to reflect on events of the last year, offer suggestions for future

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The idea was to offer Amherst High School students and others time to reflect on the year do some thinking together about next year, according to the dialogue goals.

AMHERST – For 75 minutes Thursday morning, Amherst Regional High School students had a chance to talk about all the events that happened during the school year from the lockdowns to the targeting of math teacher Carolyn Gardner.

The idea was to offer time to reflect on the year do some thinking together about next year, according to the dialogue goals.

"We needed a context that was non-reactive in which to reflect on the year. And we needed to reestablish a sense of our community," Principal Mark Jackson said in an email.

This year, there were at least four instances in which Gardner was targeted with racist graffiti, there were a series of lockdowns and school closing Jan. 27 when a student  later identified as Dylan Akalis said he was packing a weapon because of being bullied. Police said they were confident that he never brought a weapon to school.

There was an investigation, which found that there were "events that are consistent with the definition of both bullying and racial harassment."

Akalis had used the "N" word in a Facebook posting in what he meant in a playful manner, his mother Paula Akalis said. He, in turn, said he was bullied.

Last month a note was left with the intent of the author to bring a weapon into the building. The note was signed using Gardner's name.

Pat Romney, an organizational consultant from town, worked with the school to create the program, the first of its kind offered at the school that Jackson knew of.

Staff and students, including 15 who graduated last week, participated in a training Monday during the late arrival day to get ready to lead the discussion

After the discussions, there was with all kinds of festivities activities and ice cream.

"The day was a success," Jackson said. "Both halves; the discussion and the all-school celebration. Everyone took the discussion seriously and productive recommendations for next year were part of the yield. As for the all-school celebration, we all had fun. The hour and a half amount to a genuine community building experience," he wrote in an email.

"We are on to thinking about the implications of this experience for next year."

As part of the process, students were asked not only to talk about their experiences but to "come up with ideas about what they would like to see happen" with the ideas shared with Jackson.

Junior Sajo Jefferson, who's working on a documentary about race, in an email said she thought the day was "a really successful start. To me, it was less of a dialogue and more of a sharing of experiences, thoughts and feelings about the year and how we can improve (at least in my advisory).

"I think dialoguing, not discussing or debating, but actually dialoguing is the next step and I do think there will be several opportunities to do just that next year, so I'm very hopeful. 

"To me, the difference is sharing those same experiences, listening, and then working as a group to figure out why we feel and experience things differently and invent a plan or a different mode of thinking to get to a better place. It's putting everything out there honestly and then really working with that stuff. That's the hard part. That's the part we never really get to, but I think we're getting closer.

"The community party was wonderful; the music, the sports, the dancing, and the dunk tank put everyone in a good place, which is very important to do after having a heavy experience. If we can sustain this experience, one that lets us dialogue and come out closer rather than separated further, then I think our school will begin to improve its climate

  .

Springfield elder affairs director: elderly commonly targeted by scammers and con artists

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The elderly are considered easy targets for scammers and con artists, Rodriguez Denney said, because they tend to be more trusting and less technically savvy.


SPRINGFIELD – The recent report where an elderly woman was scammed out of $10,000 by an Indian Orchard woman is an example of the many instances of con artists targeting the elderly, the city Director of Elder Affairs said.

Janet Rodriguez DenneyJanet Rodriguez Denney, Springfield Director of Elder Affairs. 

Janet Rodriguez Denney said on Friday that unfortunately the number of cases of people preying on the elderly remains an ongoing problem.

“Some scams just keep going on,” she said.

On Friday, Springfield police arrested Linda Nadeau, 56, of 217 Steele St., charging her with larceny over $250 by single scheme, larceny over $250 from a person over 60 and entering a dwelling at night without breaking by false pretenses. Nadeau denied the charges at her court arraignment. She was released on her own recognizance and ordered to appear back in court on Aug. 13.

Nadeau is accused of gaining the confidence of an elderly woman with the promise of buying her mobile home. The woman invited Nadeau to stay with her but would later accuse Nadeau of drugging her and then siphoning $10,000 from her bank account.

Rodriguez Denney said the elderly people are continually targeted with any number of scams. Sometimes a caller will say they have the person’s relative and demand a ransom. Other times, they offer a discount price to seal a driveway and never do the work.

There have been so many such incidents that the offices of Elder Affairs, Consumer Affairs, District Attorney and the Springfield police are planning a community forum on the subject, she said. The exact date and location have not yet been determined, but Rodriguez Denney said they are aiming for the end of July.


See also: Springfield police arrest Linda Nadeau, 56, accused of repeatedly drugging elderly woman and stealing more than $10,000 from her bank account


She said there are 25,000 people in Springfield age 60 and older, and that number is only expected to grow over the next decade.

The elderly are considered easy targets for scammers and con artists, Rodriguez Denney said, because they tend to be more trusting and less technically savvy. Another factor is many elderly people, like the woman who was reported taken by Nadeau live along and don’t have anyone to watch out for them.

Rodriguez Denney said she said she continually hears from people who have been taken advantage of by con artists.

The elderly, she said “are so trusting. I keep hearing ‘But he seemed like such a nice man,’ or ‘she seemed like such a nice woman.’

Rodriguez Denney said there are multiple programs in place to protect the elderly from being taken advantage of but the number of cases keeps coming in. Notices about being vigilant are regularly included in news letters at the city’s nine senior center and church bulletins, she said.

“Whatever we’re doing is not working,” she said.

One of the reasons for the forum is to help the elderly get information they need to protect themselves, she said.

Rodriguez Denney said any Springfield seniors that believe they are victims of a scam are welcome to call her at (413) (413) 750-2654, Greater Senior Services at (413) 781-8800, Milagros Johnson at the Mayor’s Office of Consumer Information at (413) 787-6437 or Officer Larry Gormally with the Springfield police at (413)787-6302

Wilbraham selectmen seeking volunteers for town boards and committees

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To apply, contact the selectmen's office by July 1.

WILBRAHAM – The Board of Selectmen is seeking volunteers who are willing to offer their time, talents and desire to various local boards and committees which have vacancies.

Selectmen welcome letters of interest from residents willing to serve on the Advisory Board of Health, Ambulance Oversight Committee, Broadband Advisory Committee, Bylaw Review Committee, Cable TV Advisory Committee, Capital Planning Committee, Commission on Disability, Fair Housing Committee, Finance Committee, Historical Commission, Personnel Board, Public Access TV Committee and Local Emergency Planning Committee.

Also, the Sewer Advisory Board, the Solid Waste Advisory Committee, the Wilbraham Cultural Council, the Advisory Board of Health, as fence viewer, hazardous waste coordinator, deputy of sealer of weights and measures, weigher of grain, surveyor of lumber, PVPC alternate commissioner and Planning Board associate member.

Interested citizens should contact the selectmen’s office by July 1 at 413-596-2800, extension 101.

Volunteers typically meet with selectmen for a brief interview in order to match candidates with the committees’ needs and mission.

Robert Russell, chairman of the Board of Selectmen, said, “Community volunteers are critical to the function of local government. We are very fortunate in Wilbraham to have many talented residents who are willing to give their personal time and effort to serve their community in one of the most honorable ways.”

Russell added, “We are seeking enthusiastic people who can contribute to policy development and public service delivery in the specialized area of responsibility for each board or position that is in need of membership.”

“If you have an interest in taking part in your town’s government, I encourage you to do so by letting us know,” Russell said.

To read abut the activities of town boards and committees read the town website at www.wilbraham-ma.gov. Additional information also is available in the annual town report.

Volunteers should be town residents and registered voters.

Interested residents can direct inquiries by email to selectmen@wilbraham-ma.gov.



Springfield firefighter Scott V. Campio appears in court, attorney tells judge he is 'interested in getting some help'

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Scott V. Campio appeared before Judge Maura McCarthy at the East Brookfield District Court on Friday afternoon for a brief Section 35 hearing and to answer to criminal charges.

This is an update to an article posted at 11:18 a.m. on Friday.

EAST BROOKFIELD — Scott V. Campio appeared before Judge Maura McCarthy at the East Brookfield District Court on Friday afternoon for a brief Section 35 hearing and to answer to criminal charges.

Acting in Campion's defense, Attorney Patricia Cantara said that Campion did not contest the request to commitment for the reason of receiving treatment and that he is "interested in getting some help."

On Wednesday, Campion, of Agawam was arrested on charges of assault and battery, disorderly conduct and disturbing the peace after he allegedly pushed his girlfriend and tried to drive off as she was hanging outside of the car in Spencer.

In court documents, Campion's girlfriend said he asked to borrow $30. She offered to give him what she had on her, $20. While on her way to meet him, she saw his car parked outside a pawn shop on Main Street.

Campion was attempting to pawn a video game console and DVDs when his girlfriend saw him and took the items away from him. When the woman attempted to check Campion's car for other items, he allegedly became violent, pulling her from the vehicle and driving away as she was hanging from the car. Two men who witnessed the incident were able to stop the vehicle from driving far and flagged down Spencer Patrolman Michael Shea, who was in the area.

Shea said Campion's girlfriend was covered in bruises and had chewing tobacco on her neck and in her hair.

She told the officer Campion struggled with drug problems and mental health issues, but that he doesn't have a history of being violent around her.

She and several members of Campion's family attended the hearing.

According to court documents, Campion struggled with drug addiction. His girlfriend said he recently filled a month supply of Ritalin, which he snorted in four days.

Assistant District Attorney Michael Luzzo told the judge that based on discussions with the female victim, he did not recommend conditions on Campion's release, other than that he not abuse the victim. Luzzo did not request bail.

During a brief appearance in East Brookfield District Court, Dr. Hanya Bluestone told the judge that based on her evaluation Campion did meet the criteria to be committed for substance abuse and mental health treatment under the state's Section 35 allowance.

After considering three treatment facility options, the judge said that her preference was for Campion to be taken to the Department of Public Health's Men's Addiction Treatment Center in Brockton. Being a veteran of the U.S. Navy, Campion is also eligible to see treatment at the state's VA hospital, a facility that he preferred.

The judge asked Dr. Bluestone to confirm that there was a bed available in Brockton. A bed was not available at the Brockton facility on Friday, Campion will be held without prejudice at the Worcester County House of Correction until a bed is available.

Campion graduated in the 2009 class of new firefighters with the Springfield Fire Department. In court documents, Campion told Shea several times that he was a firefighter, that he was late for work.

Dennis Leger, spokesman for Springfield Fire Commissioner Joseph Conant, said Conant has been made aware of the charges against Campion and the department is investigating. Conant has also notified the city Personnel Department and the Law Department about the matter.

Michelle Williams contributed to this report.

Ex-Agawam junior varsity volleyball coach, charged with statutory rape, had prior brush with law

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Rash was charged in Westfield District Court and released on $1,000 bail, fitted with an electronic monitor, and ordered to stay out of Agawam, court records state.


This is an update to a story first posted at 1:57 p.m.


SPRINGFIELD — Records in Hampden Superior Court show that Michael Rash, a former junior varsity volleyball coach at Agawam High School charged with statutory rape, also was charged in 2007 with assault and battery on a pizza delivery man.

Rash, 24, was arraigned June 6 in Westfield District Court on two counts of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old.

However, it is not his first brush with the law. Rash, of Westfield, was arrested in 2006 along with a pack of other teens charged with ambushing a pizza delivery man in Westfield around 2 a.m. He and others were charged in Superior Court in 2008 with armed and masked robbery and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

The charges against Rash were dismissed in 2009, court records show.

The pizza delivery man was shot with a pellet gun and beaten, police said. Two other young men identified as the ringleaders of the plan pleaded guilty to assault and were sentenced to probation.

Because the charges against Rash were dropped, they would not have turned up on a criminal background check.

Court records in the statutory rape case show the girl told police she and Rash began a relationship by trading Snapchat pictures and messages. They eventually began text messaging, she said. The girl told investigators she began sneaking out of her house after midnight on Wednesdays – when Rash played in a pool league at a local bar – to meet him.

"Victim (said) how she met suspect at the beginning of her street," a police report reads, adding that the two walked to a nearby park and began kissing. "According to the victim she then stated this is when it got physical."

Records state the girl's mother discovered the relationship because she had her daughter's password for her cell phone and laptop computer. She confronted her daughter, then contacted police.

The alleged relationship began in March and police recovered a final text message exchange between Rash and the girl on June 2, according to investigative reports.

Agawam and Westfield police arrested Rash on June 6.

He was charged in Westfield District Court and released on $1,000 bail, fitted with an electronic monitor, court records state.

Agawam Police Chief Eric Gillis declined to comment on further details of the case.

"As soon as the information came to our attention, we contacted the District Attorney's office and coordinated with the Special Victims Unit on the investigation." Gillis said.

Rash's defense lawyer, Terrence Dunphy, said neither he nor his client would comment.

Agawam Schools Superintendent William Sapelli sent a letter to parents on June 11, stating that "one of our coaches has been arrested for inappropriate contact. ... As a result of this arrest, the coach was informed that the district would no longer need his services."

The letter offered no further details, citing the ongoing police investigation.

Agawam Athletics Director David Stratton referred all questions to Sapelli.


Wilfredo Carrion - called by police person responsible for numerous guns on Springfield streets - and Omar Khaled face gun trafficking, other charges

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Recorded buys of firearms from Omar Khaled and Wilfredo Carrion were set up by the ATF task force and carried out by a confidential informant.

SPRINGFIELD - Wilfredo Carrion Jr., 18, and Omar Khaled, 20, each face a charge of gun trafficking after a federal ATF Task Force investigation led to their arrest.

Recorded buys of firearms were set up by the task force and carried out by a confidential informant.

In a report written by city Police Officer Thomas Kakley, he said Carrion is "a street level gun source who is responsible for numerous illegal firearms being put out on the streets of Springfield."

Carrion, of 54 Patton St., denied 17 charges in Springfield District Court and bail was set at $250,000 cash or $2.5 million surety.

Khaled, of 119 South Blvd. in West Springfield, denied the trafficking charge in Springfield District Court. Hampden District Court Judge William J. Boyle set the same $250,000 cash or $2.5 million surety bail amount for Khalid.

On the form giving reasons for the bail, it was written one of the reasons for the bail amount was the length of time he lived in Baghad, Iraq.

Joe Smith, Khaled's lawyer, appealed the bail amount Thursday in Hampden Superior Court, as is allowed by law after a District Court bail is set.

Hampden Superior Court Judge Edward J. McDonough reduced the bail amount for Khaled to $5,000. If released Khaled must by monitored by GPS, surrender his passport and have a zero curfew.

Carrion is charged with trafficking in firearms (3-9 firearms), six counts of carrying a firearm with a license, seven counts of possession of ammunition without a firearms identification card, one count of carrying a loaded high capacity firearm without a license, and one count of possession of marijuana with intent to distribute.

Khaled is charged with trafficking in firearms (3-9 firearms) and carrying a firearm without a license.

According to the police report supporting the arrest of Carrion, the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms task force had been investigating Carrion for gun trafficking for several months before his June 3 arrest.

The confidential informant told an agent Carrion had offered several guns to him.

The informant made the following purchases from Carrion: On March 27 he purchased a 9 mm Smith & Wesson loaded with two rounds of ammunition.

On April 8 he bought a .45 caliber Auto-Ordnance gun loaded with seven rounds.

On April 23 he purchased a Hi-Point .380 loaded with four rounds.

On April 24 he purchased a 9 mm Ruger loaded with eight rounds.

The report said in early June the informant said Carrion contacted them and offered two .45 caliber guns for $2,000.

Members of the ATF task force and the FBI gang task force assembled near Patton Street June 3. Carrion contacted the informant and moved the deal to the Big Y parking lot at 1090 St. James Ave.

The officers moved there. At 3:30 p.m. Carrion drove in and officers blocked in his car.

The arrested him and found a Smith & Wesson .45 caliber firearm loaded with 10 rounds in his waist band.

In a backpack there were two firearms, a .45 caliber Colt Commander loaded with seven rounds and a loaded F & H with a high capacity magazine loaded with 10 rounds.

According to the "statement of facts" in Khaled's court file, on March 26 Khaled contacted the informant and offered to sell him a 9 mm pistol for $500.

On March 27 Khaled told the informant Carrion (Khaled used a street name for Carrion) would carry out the sale.

The statement for Khaled lists the April 8 and April 23 sales by Carrion to the informant.

It said on April 24 both Carrion and Khaled sold the gun to the informant.

In the April 24 recorded purchase, Khaled said to the informant, "Brother you bought hammers off us there has to be some type of trust."

In a phone conversation listened to be an ATF agent, Khaled told the informant he sometimes gives firearms to Carrion to sell for him, and sometimes Carrion gives Khaled firearms to sell.

3 Western Massachusetts firefighters graduate from state Firefighting Academy

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Local graduates were Gregory Belanger and Jason Bienvenue of Ludlow and Jonathan Becker of Ware.

STOW – Three Western Massachusetts residents were among the 24 firefighters to graduate Friday from the Massachusetts Firefighter Academy in Stow, marking the start of their careers in fire services.

Local graduates were Gregory Belanger and Jason Bienvenue of Ludlow and Jonathan Becker of Ware. In all, there were 22 men and two women representing 15 fire departments in the 213th graduating class at the academy.

Other graduates were from Billerica, Bridgewater, Fitchburg, Framingham, Gloucester, Lexington, Marshfield, Mashpee, Orleans, Tewksbury, Wayland, Wilmington, and Yarmouth.

The firefighting academy, part of the State Division of Fire Services, is offered tuition-free to municipal firefighters to provide the basic training they will need when they start their careers.

“This rigorous professional training provides our newest firefighters with the basic skills to perform their jobs effectively and safely,” said Deputy State Fire Marshal Peter J. Ostroskey said.

PM News Links: R.I. bus monitor faces porn charges; Slaying suspect fights DNA request; And more

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Luxury cliffside home burned by Texas fire department.

  • Judge refuses to delay depositions in Studio 38 case [The Providence Journal]

  • Police seek robbers of cinemas [The Berkshire Eagle]

  • R.I. school bus monitor faces child porn charges [The Providence Journal]

  • North Adams slaying suspect fights request for DNA sample [The Berkshire Eagle]

  • Gardens planted for cancer patients [source]

  • Fire Crews Burn House on Texas Cliff

    Charred debris from a luxury lakeside home in Whitney, Fort Worth, Texas fell 75 feet to the water below Friday after fire crews set the $700,000 retreat ablaze rather than wait for it to crumble into the lake as the cliffside faltered around it. (June 13)

    Do you have news or a news tip to submit to MassLive.com for consideration? Send an email to online@repub.com.



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