Joseph and Jenny Carrier were arrested after robbing a Wilmington, Delaware, bank Monday morning, Ludlow police said.

LUDLOW — A husband and wife suspected of robbing a bank here late last month and another in Florida a week later was arrested Monday afternoon in southeastern Pennsylvania.

Ludlow Police Sgt. Louis Tulik said Joseph and Jenny Carrier robbed a Citizens Bank in Wilmington, Delaware, on Monday morning. They were arrested after police stopped them on Interstate 95 in Pennsylvania.

Tulik said he was informed of the arrests by the FBI.

"I'm awaiting more information," he said late Monday afternoon.

Police said Joseph Carrier, 36, likely homeless, was sought in the robbery of Country Bank in the Big Y at 425 Center St. in Ludlow on Sept. 28.

His wife, Jenny Carrier, 37, is the suspected driver of the getaway driver, police said.

Police said the Carriers are likely heroin addicts.

Carrier also has been identified as a suspect in a Wells Fargo bank branch robbery committed Oct. 12 in Palm Coast, Florida, as well as a robbery of a bank in Abderdeen, Maryland, last week.

Tulik said Joseph Carrier appears to be wearing the same pink shirt in all the bank robberies.

The Carriers are believed to have been traveling with their seven Brussells griffon dogs - a male and female and five puppies.

The Carriers, shortly before the Ludlow bank robbery, were known to have been staying in Chicopee hotels and may have been spotted at Mittineague Park in West Springfield.

As Musa Sandi stood behind a partition in handcuffs in court Monday morning, the Bridgewater State University student he was accused of raping in a dorm on campus stood a few feet away before a judge seeking to have an emergency restraining order against him extended.

A digest of news stories from around New England.

This video originally aired Oct. 9.

Lishan Wang 

Assistant Hampden District Attorney Eduardo Velazquez asked a judge to sentence Joseph Martinelli to 10 to 15 years in state prison for the robbery of a Subway sandwich shop on Center Street in Chicopee.

SPRINGFIELD — Joseph Martinelli of Chicopee was sentenced Monday to six to eight years in state prison for armed robbery while masked in connection with a December robbery at a Subway sandwich shop in Chicopee.

Hampden Superior Court Judge C. Jeffrey Kinder also sentenced Martinelli to three years probation.

A jury on Friday found the 24-year-old Martinelli guilty of armed robbery while masked. The jury deliberated about three hours before finding Martinelli guilty of a Dec. 6, 2014, robbery of the Subway on Center Street at about 6 p.m.

Joseph Martinelli 

Martinelli was also found guilty of misleading investigators and possession of heroin. Defense lawyer Amanda C. Stutman told jurors in closing arguments that Martinelli was guilty of having heroin but of neither of the other charges.

Assistant District Attorney Eduardo Velazquez asked Kinder to sentence Martinelli to 10 to 15 years in state prison followed by five years probation.

Stutman asked for a sentence of five years in state prison. She said Martinelli has struggled with addiction and been to rehab three different times.

Velazquez said for some reason, Martinelli called the Chicopee police department on Dec. 8 and said he knew who did the robbery.

Martinelli had details of the robbery not known to the public. Police checked out the man who Martinelli said confessed, and that man had a solid alibi as he was at work in Westfield.

Stutman told jurors in her closing argument it was not a solid alibi as the man could have left the restaurant during his work shift.

She said the description given by the 18-year-old store clerk of the robber, who had most of his face covered, did not match Martinelli's description at all.

Barbara Rivera Way was renamed in honor of the longtime activist and New North Citizens Council executive director. Watch video

SPRINGFIELD — Anyone who grew up or currently lives in the North End knows the name Barbara Rivera and now when they walk, ride or drive through Barbara Rivera Way, they will remember the North End's most beloved social activist and community leader.

Rivera was a longtime community activist who served 31 years as executive director of the New North Citizens Council. She died in February of 2005. On Tuesday local politicians, family and friends of Rivera gathered for the dedication of Barbara Rivera Way, the new honorary name of Plainfield Street.

"My mom believed in social justice, and not only did she believe it, but she lived it," said Janet Denney flanked by her sisters Doreen Coakley Rodriguez and Cheryl Coakley-Rivera. "She cared for the people that lived here and we try to carry that tradition on with all of you."

Denney is the director of Elder Affairs for the city, Coakley Rodriguez is a longtime business woman, owner of New World Travel in the city's North End, and Coakley-Rivera was the first Hispanic woman elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives where she served for 15 years. She now serves as an assistant clerk in the Hampden County Superior Court Clerk's office.

The sisters were applauded by many who attended the event which was organized by City Councilor Bud Williams.

"Nothing can highlight and represent parents better than their offspring and I may not have known Barbara Rivera, but I do know her three daughters and they are three of the most phenomenal women you will ever meet," said City Councilor Justin Hurst. "If all of you are a representation of your mother then you had a darn good mother."

All three sisters spoke highly of their mother who taught them about family and community.

"She cared about her family and her family was not just Brightwood, but Memorial Square and the entire city of Springfield," said Coakley-Rivera breaking down in tears as she remembered her mother.

"She had a conviction, a devotion, a sense of community and neighborhood. Her size was a big factor in her life and I remember her struggling every morning to get up and go to work to support her family and at the end of the day it wasn't just about the community it was about putting food on our plates," Coakley-Rivera said.

Doreen Coakley Rodriguez was described by her siblings as being the most like their mother, from her appearance to her frequent use of the "four letter word," as Denney said jokingly.

"They speak highly of me as you can tell," Coakley Rodriguez said laughing. "But that's OK because if it reminds you of Barbara then I am good with that, because that is who I am, I am Barbara. We are here to honor her legacy and to thank you all for making it happen."

Mayor Domenic Sarno, who helped reveal the new sign, said Rivera did not like the spotlight and hated having her photograph taken.

"It was never about her, it was about the cause, it was about the neighborhood, it was about that person (she was trying to help)," Sarno said.

Williams said he was trained by women like Rivera who fought for justice for the North End. He said in In 2013, city officials considered a formal name change for the street in memory of Rivera. City officials chose to pursue an honorary name change rather than a formal name change because it would have involved a prolonged process including a signature petition, multiple public hearings, document changes and approval from the U.S. Postal Service.

Gov. Charlie Baker is already a fan of the Boston Cream Pie cupcakes from Springfield's Koffee Kup Bakery and a bill before the legislature would make owner Dino Facente's heralded cupcake the official cupcake of Massachusetts.

BOSTON -- Fill birthday cake-style yellow cake with creamy yellow custard, then top it with rich fudge frosting and a cherry for good measure.

The result? A Boston Cream Pie cupcake from Springfield's Koffee Kup Bakery, a desert that Gov. Charlie Baker has called "magical." Now, lawmakers are considering a bill to make the Boston Cream Pie cupcake the official cupcake of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Boston Cream Pie is already Massachusetts' official dessert, and the official donut is the Boston Cream Pie donut.

"With the phenomenon of cupcakes being so popular across Massachusetts and the country, this is just a natural extension," said the bill's lead sponsor, State Rep. Angelo Puppolo, D-Springfield.

Baker first tasted the Koffee Kup version of the dessert during a campaign stop at the Big E. He stopped by the bakery three weeks later.

"He took a real liking to them," said Koffee Kup Baker owner Dino Facente.

Springfield Koffee Kup Bakery owner Dino Facente and State Rep. Angelo Puppolo, D-Springfield, testify on a bill that would make the Boston Cream Pie cupcake the official cupcake of Massachusetts.Courtesy of Rep. Angelo Puppolo 

Baker has bet Boston Cream Pie cupcakes from Koffee Kup in friendly wagers with other governors on games ranging from the Frozen Four hockey semifinal to New England Patriots games. But Facente acknowledged that he has not made much money off those bets since the New England sports teams "haven't lost yet." Facente did ship cupcakes to a Seattle food pantry after Baker made a win-or-lose wager over the Patriots-Seahawks Super Bowl.

So what is the Koffee Kup secret? "Everything is made from scratch and having good people working for me," said Facente, who has owned and baked for Koffee Kup for 22 years.

Puppolo added that Boston Cream Pie cupcakes are not only made by Koffee Kup. "This can be made by any baker, any mom or dad in the kitchen," Puppolo said. "It's a symbol of tradition, it's a symbol of patriotism." The first Boston Cream Pie was created at the Omni Parker House in downtown Boston in 1856.

Puppolo added that Baker's love of the Koffee Kup cupcake also "shows the governor's commitment to small business."

Baker and Puppolo are not the only politicians to enjoy Koffee Kup's Boston Cream Pie cupcakes.

"I'm a big fan... It's a hell of a cupcake," said State Sen. Eric Lesser, D-Longmeadow, a co-sponsor of the cupcake bill. "It's delicious and a terrific innovation to turn a pie into cupcake form."

The Republican/MassLive.com asked Baker spokesman Tim Buckley what the governor thinks of the idea.

"The Governor looks forward to trying all the cupcakes he can from the 351 cities and towns in the commonwealth, but he thinks Koffee Kup's Boston Cream Pie has earned a spot in cupcake history," Buckley responded.

After Facente testified before the Legislature's Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight, he dropped cupcakes off for the committee members and at offices around the Statehouse. Buckley said he ate two.

If you saw plumes of smoke coming from the area of Westover Air Reserve Base in Chicopee on Tuesday, it was likely due to the fact that personnel burned approximately 200 acres of grassland located within the base property. Watch video

CHICOPEE — If you saw plumes of smoke coming from the area of Westover Air Reserve Base in Chicopee on Tuesday, it was likely due to the fact that personnel burned approximately 200 acres of grassland located within the base property.

View of Westover ARB burning the grass fields around the runways as seen from the Summit House in Skinner State Park on Oct. 27, 2015. (JOHN SUCHOCKI / THE REPUBLICAN )John Suchocki, The Republican 

Smoke billowed from the base, but area fire departments had been notified of the planned burn ahead of time and no alarms were sounded.

Fire crews comprised of Westover firefighters and U.S. Forest Service wildland firefighters used fire starters containing a mix of gasoline and diesel fuel to light rows of fires that quickly spread along the ground. Acre after acre was soon smoldering and nothing but black grass could be seen among the islands of snow remaining in the fields.

Controlled or "prescribed" fires have been used for ages as a forest management tool. They are used to decrease the chance of an out-of-control wildfire by reducing the available fuel that a fire would need.

Check out photos from the April controlled burn above and a video of the burn below.

The supposed weapon turned out to be a piece of martial arts training equipment, not a knife, and the community was never in any danger, Saugus Police Chief Domenic DiMella and Wakefield Police Chief Rick Smith said in a joint statement Tuesday afternoon.

SAUGUS — Saugus High School was briefly placed on lockdown Tuesday morning after investigating a report of a student with a knife at a school bus stop.

The supposed weapon turned out to be a piece of martial arts training equipment, not a knife, and the community was never in any danger, Saugus Police Chief Domenic DiMella and Wakefield Police Chief Rick Smith said in a joint statement Tuesday afternoon.

"After an investigation, police determined that the student had a piece of martial arts training equipment that is not dangerous and not considered a weapon. Police do not believe there was ever any danger to the schools or community," the chiefs' statement said.

Saugus police responded to a 7 a.m. call for a student with a knife at a bus stop at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Central Street. "Out of an abundance of caution, Saugus High School was placed on lockdown as police investigated the report," the chiefs said, noting that the lockdown order was lifted around 8:30 a.m., once officials determined there was no threat.

Officers located and spoke to the male, a student at the Northeast Metropolitan Regional Vocational School, who had a piece of martial arts training equipment with no blade, police said. The student did not make any threats and no criminal charges were filed.

"We appreciate the diligence of the community in reporting this," DiMella said. "Thankfully, it does not appear as if there was ever any danger to residents or students. We are glad to see our emergency practices work effectively and that there was minimal disruption to the schools."

A carbon fee would raise the price on energy generated from oil, natural gas and coal. The model proposed by the bill would rebate the fees to Massachusetts residents and businesses.

BOSTON - Environmentalists and economists packed a Statehouse hearing on Tuesday to support a bill that would implement a carbon fee in Massachusetts and eventually raise the price of gasoline by 36 cents a gallon.

A carbon fee would raise the price on energy generated from oil, natural gas and coal. The model proposed by the bill, S.1747, would rebate the fees to Massachusetts residents and businesses in a flat rebate, so that residents who use less energy would save money while residents who use more energy would lose money.

Supporters of the bill say a carbon fee is the only way to price energy that takes into account the long-term environmental and health costs of carbon emissions.

"Massachusetts can legislate a nation-leading strategy against climate change by applying a simple principle - the price of a product should include the expenses associated with it," said state Sen. Michael Barrett, D-Lexington, the bill's prime sponsor.

No U.S. state has implemented a carbon fee, although a similar model is in place in British Columbia in Canada.

Barrett's bill would set a fee at $10 per ton of carbon emissions in the first year, and that rate would gradually increase to $40 per ton of carbon emissions within seven years. The $40 a ton figure translates to 36 cents per gallon of gasoline. At that rate, residents would get an annual $225 rebate.

So residents who use more energy - which supporters of the bill estimate would be the 40 percent of higher-income households - would lose money. The estimated 60 percent of lower-income households would pay less in fees than they get back in rebates. There would be extra rebates given to rural residents, who have less access to public transportation. Businesses, non-profits and government would get rebates based on the number of employees they have.

If the entire amount collected from fees is not returned in rebates, salaries would be reduced for the governor, secretary of administration and finance and secretary of energy and environmental affairs.

The goal is for higher energy costs to incentivize people to cut back on their energy usage. The rebate provision ensures that legally, it is a fee, not a tax. That is important politically since Gov. Charlie Baker and other Republicans have said they will not support new taxes.

Marc Breslow, co-director of the advocacy group Climate Xchange, who worked on climate policy for the state under former governor Deval Patrick and was lead author of the state's clean energy and climate plan, said the state currently has no policy that will get it to its mandated goal of reducing fossil fuel emissions by 80 percent by 2050. "Carbon pricing is the single policy that has the most potential for bridging that gap," Breslow told the Legislature's Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy.

Breslow noted that some industries like paper manufacturing and construction would be hurt by the fees, while others like health care and professional services would come out ahead.

Barrett's bill is based on a study released by the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources in December on how a revenue neutral carbon tax could be implemented. The study found that it would be administratively feasible to apply a carbon tax or fee to fossil fuels - oil, coal, natural gas and gasoline - and rebate those fees to residents and businesses. The study predicted that there would be a small positive economic impact, since the state would spend less money importing energy, and the money raised by the fees would be spent in-state. There would be a drop in carbon emissions.

Cindy Luppi, a coordinator of the advocacy group Clean Energy Future Massachusetts, said a carbon fee is "the next key leadership step for climate" in Massachusetts. "It's cost effective. It's a proven success story in British Columbia," Luppi said.

Clean energy companies are lining up behind the bill. Roger Freeman, founder and president of the solar energy company Solventerra, who is active in the progressive business group Alliance for Business Leadership, called the proposal "a market based solution that addresses climate change while driving innovation and job growth in the Commonwealth." The bill would help clean energy companies like his.

State Sen. Ben Downing, D-Pittsfield, chairman of the Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy, has not taken a position on the bill.

"I think the policy case is a strong one," Downing said. He said he has heard a "compelling case" from advocates that a carbon fee is the cleanest way to provide a market incentive to move away from carbon pollution.

But Downing said there are questions about implementation, particularly about whether it is right for one state to implement a carbon fee or whether it has to be done by the whole region, since Massachusetts is in a regional energy market.

Michael Ferrante, president of the Massachusetts Energy Marketers Association, which represents home and commercial heating marketers, said the industry is strongly opposed to a carbon fee. "Fundamentally, we are opposed to increasing the price of energy," Ferrante said.

Ferrante said practically, it would be difficult to implement a rebate. He said the industry already made efforts to reduce the carbon intensity of its products and reduce air pollution by mixing heating oil with biofuels and putting less sulfur in heating oil. Trying to figure out how to credit customers for using less carbon intense products gets into "a morass of a complicated set of circumstances," Ferrante said.

Ferrante said Massachusetts residents are already cutting down on their energy usage without a carbon fee.

The Holyoke mayor said the TV ad was necessary to counter his opponent's messages.

Updated at 5:21 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2015 with mayoral candidate Fran O'Connell saying he has highlighted Mayor Alex Morse's record, not focused on negatives.

HOLYOKE -- The reelection campaign of Mayor Alex B. Morse will release what it said is the first television advertisement of Morse's political career Thursday.

The 60-second spot was shot and produced by Holyoke filmmaker Scott Hancock. It touts Morse's accomplishments since becoming mayor in January 2012 while asserting that mayoral candidate Fran O'Connell, identified only as the "opponent," focuses only on "negative ads disparaging Holyoke," said a press release from Morse campaign spokeswoman Kristen Beam.

"People are being inundated with negativity from my opponents campaign and I think it's important for folks to see a positive, forward looking political ad," Morse said in a text message. "We have a lot to be proud of over the last four years, and people deserve to see the difference between our two campaigns."

The ad will air Thursday at the following times on the following stations: twice between 5 and 7 p.m. on WWLP-TV, Channel 22; once between 6 and 6:30 p.m. on CBS3; once between 6 and 6:30 p.m. on Fox6; and once between 6 and 6:30 p.m. on WGGB abc40.

Western Mass News, which consists of CBS3, FOX6 and WGGB abc40, is the media partner of the The Republican and MassLive.com.

Morse said his campaign spent $2,900 on the ads compared to what he said has been O'Connell's outlay of more than $20,000 on TV ads. O'Connell spent $15,000 on TV ads according to Federal Communication Commission financial filings, as reported by MassLive.com June 25.

O'Connell, owner of the business O'Connell Care at Home, said in an email he has never attacked Morse personally but only highlighted failures in his record related to the city's poverty and unemployment levels and the state's having seized control of the public schools.

"I think it is fair to discuss Alex Morse's record and appropriate to make sure the voters know the facts. Campaigns are very expensive and paid advertising was the only way to get my message to the public. I have used my own resources to get my message out to the public and I consider this an investment in Holyoke's future," O'Connell said.

He also has offered plans with specifics related to improving education, public safety, economic development and job creation, he said.

Morse and O'Connell are competing on Election Day Nov. 3.

The video used in the ad can be seen on Morse's campaign website morseformayor.com/openforbusiness

Elliot Perez stole 3 cases of handguns from a Smith&Wesson and then sold them on the street in Connecticut before he was caught, official said.

Patrick Johnson | pjohnson@repub.com 

A Bridgeport truck driver who admitted to stealing three cases firearms during a 2012 pickup at the Smith & Wesson plant in Springfield was sentenced to 17 years in federal prison, officials said.

Elliot Perez, 30, pleaded guilty in February 2014 to conspiracy to possess and sell stolen firearms, possession of firearms by a convicted felon, and making a false statement to a federal law enforcement officer in connection with the theft of 111 handguns in Springfield on Nov. 8, 2012.

Elliot Perez in a 2012 arrest photoPatrick Johnson | pjohnson@repub.com 

Many of the guns were sold illegally and more than 50 of them remain unaccounted for.

According to Deirdre Daly, U.S. Attorney for Connecticut, this is one of the reasons for the length of his sentence.

"There is no telling how many additional acts of violence will stem from this offence. These sobering facts make clear that his long prison term is fair and appropriate," she said in a prepared statement.

Guns from the theft have turned up in a Bridgeport, Connecticut homicide investigation, a shooting at a Hartford nightclub and as far away as North Carolina, she said.

One of the guns was found in the possession of Alexander Bradley, an associate of former Patriots player and convicted murder Aaron Hernandez, as police investigated Bradley's shooting in Hartford in February 2014.

Because of Perez, Daly said, dozens of guns have been put "directly into the hands of criminals."

In November, 2012, Perez, a driver with Pace Motor Lines of Stratford, had been dispatched to pick up an order of 5 crates of guns from Smith & Wesson in Springfield. He reportedly had made the same trip at least once before for the company.

Without anyone noticing, he grabbed an additional three crates of weapons and loaded them on his truck.

According to investigators, Perez left the Springfield plant and headed directly to his home in Bridgeport where he unloaded the three stolen cases. He then delivered the five legitimate cases to the Pace facility and ended his shift.

The three missing cases were not detected immediately and by the time they were, Perez and another man, Michael Murphy, started selling them on the street.

Perez was arrested by Stratford, Conn., police and federal officials on Nov. 23, 2012, and Murphy a week later on Nov. 30. Each has been in custody since their arrests.

Murphy has also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess and sell stolen firearms and possession of firearms by a convicted felon. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 30.

A third man, Edwin Charon, 30, who purchased several guns from Perez and Murphy and then sold them in the West Haven area, was sentenced in February 2014 to 46 months in prison.

Chuong Q. Dinh of Northampton is due back in court Oct. 30

HADLEY -- A Northampton man arrested last month on charges that he indecently assaulted a female employee at his Hadley nail salon is due back in court on Friday.

The alleged assault occurred Sept. 15 at Peter's Nails, a storefront within the Campus Plaza Shopping Center on Route 9.

Chuong Q. Dinh, 41, of 377 Coles Meadow Road, was arrested by Hadley police on Sept. 17, and is free on $5,000 bail, according to records at Eastern Hampshire District Court in Belchertown. Dinh denied the charges.

A judge who set bail on Sept. 18 ordered Dinh to surrender his passport, have no contact with the employee, stay away from Amherst High School, and have no unsupervised contact with persons under the age of 18.

According to police, the employee said on Sept. 15 Dinh told the other staffers to go home at closing time, told her he was lonely on account of a recent divorce, and started massaging her.

The employee told police she was in such shock and terror that she could not prevent the situation from escalating. She told police she was eventually able to break away by saying that she needed to go to the store.

During the incident, Dinh repeatedly said "I'm sorry I'm doing this, I just have to," and "please don't tell anyone," she told police.

Dinh is due back in court for an Oct. 30 pretrial hearing. Dinh's lawyer, Philip C. Ciccarelli, has requested a Vietnamese translator for all future court proceedings.

Dinh is charged with assault and battery and indecent assault and battery on a person aged 14 or over. A conviction could result in up to five years in state prison and registry as a sex offender.

Peter's Nail Salon appeared open for business on Tuesday. Dinh holds a current professional license to operate a manicuring shop, state records show.

Mary Serreze can be reached at mserreze@gmail.com

Fewer people think jobs are plentiful where they are.

NEW YORK -- Consumer confidence fell last month nationally as people took a dimmer view of the job market, The Conference Board said Tuesday.

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index now stands at 97.6 points, down from 102.6 in September after having a modest gain from August.

The Conference Board is a business think tank in New York City.

The Present Situation Index decreased from 120.3 points last month to 112.1 in October, while the Expectations Index edged down to 88.0 from 90.8 in September, the Conference Board said.

Lynn Franco, Director of Economic Indicators at The Conference Board said in a news release:

"Consumer confidence declined in October, following September's modest gain. Consumers were less positive in their assessment of present-day conditions, in particular the job market, and were moderately less optimistic about the short-term outlook. Despite the decline, consumers still rate current conditions favorably, but they do not anticipate the economy strengthening much in the near-term."

The index is based on a poll done by Nielsen. The cutoff date for the preliminary results was Oct. 15. 

Further results from the survey:

• Those saying business conditions are "good" decreased from 28.1 percent to 26.5 percent.
• Those who said  business conditions are "bad" increased from 16.4 percent to 18.3 percent.
• Those stating jobs are "plentiful" decreased from 24.8 percent to 22.2 percent.
• Those claiming jobs are "hard to get" edged up to 25.8 percent from 24.9 percent.
• Those anticipating more jobs in the months ahead declined moderately from 14.9 percent to 14.5 percent.
• Those anticipating fewer jobs increased from 15.9 percent to 16.9 percent.
• The number of consumers expecting their incomes to increase declined from 18.7 percent to 18 percent.
• The number expecting an income decline increased from 9.9 percent to 10.7 percent.
• The percentage of consumers expecting business conditions to improve over the next six months was unchanged at 18.1 percent.
• Those expecting business conditions to worsen increased to 10.6 percent from 10.4 percent.

Ward 5 Council candidate Marcus Williams said people "must demand answers" regarding the MGM Springfield proposal to reduce the size of its project.

Marcus WilliamsSubmitted photo 

SPRINGFIELD - Marcus Williams, a candidate for City Council in Ward 5, spoke before the Sixteen Acres Civic Association recently, commenting on issues ranging from public safety to proposed changes to the MGM Springfield casino project.

His opponent, Ward 5 Councilor Clodovaldo Concepcion, who is president of the neighborhood group and was present, said he chose not to speak. Concepcion looked on as the 30 minute event was followed by the association's regular meeting.

Concepcion said the people know his record.

Williams, who was introduced by association vice-president Peter Fett, said he spoke about issues affecting the ward and city, including MGM Springfield's proposal to reduce the size of its casino project by 14 percent.

"The people must demand answers," Williams said, in relaying his comments from that night. "We must hold our elected officials from the mayor to the City Council accountable for future decisions that will be made relating to the project."

On other issues, Williams said that his campaign stresses the need to represent the people throughout the Ward 5 district from Pine Point to Sixteen Acres.

Williams said he also spoke about traffic concerns around Sabis Charter School and speeding on Parker Street.

There is a need for better programs for senior citizens and for affordable assisted living facilities.

Williams said he closed the program by saying that sometimes politicians get 'too comfortable" in their position. The council seat neither Concepcion's seat nor Williams' seat, but is "the public's seat," Williams said.

The candidate' event was conducted at the civic association's regular meeting location -- the Clodo Concepcion Community Center on Parker Street, which is named after Concepcio

Williams had spoken previously before the Pine Point Community Council.

Anyone who recognizes the man in bank surveillance photos is asked to call the Chelmsford Police Department at 978-256-2521.

CHELMSFORD — The Chelmsford Police Department is searching for a man who robbed the Citizens Bank branch inside the Stop & Shop on Tuesday morning.

A man entered the supermarket at 299 Chelmsford St. at about 10:30 a.m. He approached the bank counter and gave a teller a note demanding money, Chelmsford Police Chief James Spinney said. The suspect fled with an undetermined amount of cash, Spinney said.

No one was injured and no weapon was shown during the incident, which remains under investigation. Authorities are asking the public for help in identifying the suspect, who was photographed by store surveillance cameras and is described as a white or Hispanic man. He was wearing a baseball cap, jeans, sneakers and a dark, two-tone fleece jacket at the time of the robbery, police said.

Chelmsford police officials said they were consulting with police in Stoneham and Reading to see if the Chelmsford suspect might be the same person responsible for recent similar crimes in those Middlesex County towns.

"This is an open and active investigation," Spinney said. "Anyone who was in the area at the time of the robbery and saw something, or who recognizes the suspect, is asked to call the Chelmsford Police Department."

The department's main number is 978-256-2521.

Students want to promote civil discourse at UMass.

AMHERST - More than 200 students, faculty, staff and community people gathered outside the University of Massachusetts Tuesday evening to rally for democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. 

Students had computers set up at tables to register people to vote. They shouted "Bernie, Bernie" and waved signs, sported Bernie t-shirts and stickers.

Elliot Jerry, a junior who lives in town, painted a "Feel the Bern" frame allowing people to pop their faces over a Bernie-like suit jacket to post on social media. "What we're trying to do is generate more support, get people talking," he said/

Brennan Tierney, a sophomore legal studies student from Little Compton, Rhode Island, organizer of UMass for Bernie Sanders, which was one of the rally organizers.

"Our main objective was to have a serious discussion about the issues facing the American people," he said.

He'd love everyone to support the Vermont independent but said "We believe in raising consciousness as the election approaches."

H said having "a civil discourse is critical to democracy. Right now, the American people are facing enormous and complex problems."

He's a big supporter of Sanders because he believes like Sanders that healthcare is a right and finds his candidacy "really inspirational."

And he said beyond this campaign he wants to help "build a movement of what America should be. It's really about transforming America."

Casey Pease, a freshman from Worthington, told the crowd about a conversation he recently had with his mother.

She told him she didn't know if they could afford to send him to school.

He said students have $1.3 trillion in debt and some can't afford school.
Education is "transformative and inspirational.

"America will not be prosperous if we allow the crisis to continue."

He said Sanders supports making public college tuition-free.

"We must stop the federal government from making a profit off student loans. We have to cut student interest rates."

He said students need to graduate debt-free. "These are not radical ideas. They are necessary," he said.  

"The only way things are going to change is if we get involved."

He said that means getting family and friends to register to vote.

"Bernie Sanders can't do it alone," he said. "It's going to take all of is. It's going to take a political revolution."

Tierney said they will have other rallies and will continue meeting weekly. 

Views of the Pioneer Valley's fall colors were at the peak of intensity on a day that you could see the Hartford skyline clearly from Skinner State Park atop Mt. Holyoke.

HADLEY — Views of the Pioneer Valley's fall colors were at the peak of intensity on a day that you could see the Hartford, Connecticut, skyline clearly from Skinner State Park atop Mt. Holyoke.

Visitors who drove up to the top of the mountain shared the views with hikers who made the 20-minute walk. They were treated to the flowing colors of the valley in the crisp fall weather that could only be called eye candy.

Visitors were pointing out Springfield and Hartford's skylines and the University of Massachusetts campus in Amherst, as well as Westover Air Reserve Base, which was a cloud of billowing smoke from the annual burning of the grass fields around the runways.

It was one of those perfect fall days in the Valley.

Relaying personal stories of hardship caused by the birth of a baby, a sick family member or an illness, dozens of people on Tuesday pushed lawmakers to support a bill that would extend paid family and medical leave to most employees in Massachusetts.

By COLIN A. YOUNG

BOSTON - Relaying personal stories of hardship caused by the birth of a baby, a sick family member or an illness, dozens of people on Tuesday pushed lawmakers to support a bill that would extend paid family and medical leave to most employees in Massachusetts.

The bill (H 1718 and S 1008) would make employees eligible for up to 12 weeks of job-protected leave to recover from a significant illness or injury, to care for a seriously ill family member or to care for a newborn child.

"It is a struggle to take care of a baby who needs our undivided attention, emotionally and physically," said Damali Simmonds, a Boston woman who testified with her six-month-old daughter, Malia, on her lap. "The first few months after a child is born are an essential bonding time between parent and child. The absence of a paid family leave policy adds more stress to an already stressful situation."

Right now, about 40 percent of Massachusetts workers are not eligible for family and medical leave through the federal Family and Medical Leave Act because they work for companies with fewer than 50 employees, according to the office of Sen. Karen Spilka, who sponsored the Senate bill, and for many people unpaid leave is financially not viable.

The bill "would allow all workers in the Commonwealth to enjoy some of the same common sense benefits that workers in every other industrialized country have the benefit of receiving," Spilka told the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development on Tuesday. "Mainly, workers would not have to choose between a paycheck and caring for a child or a sick family member."

Under the legislation, employees who have worked at least 1,250 hours for their employer would be able to take up to 12 weeks of leave and would be eligible for a temporary disability benefit equal to a percentage of his or her average weekly wages, capped at $1,000 per week.

The partial wage replacement benefits would be paid out of a Family and Employment Security Trust Fund that would be created by the bill, and would be administered by a new Division of Family and Medical Leave in the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development.

Employers that do not offer equivalent benefits on their own would be required to make contributions to the trust fund -- at a rate to be determined by the new division -- to secure paid leave for their employees.

The bill also prohibits employer retaliation against workers who take time off under these conditions.

Randy Albelda, an economist at the University of Massachusetts-Boston, said that she and Northeastern University economist Alan Clayton-Matthews developed a simulator that estimated that the bill, if it becomes law, would spur an increase of about 16,000 leaves per year across the state -- an increase of about 3.6 percent.

And the annual cost of the program, according to the simulator, would be $495 million, Albelda said.

"If you average that costs across all covered employees, the annual cost is $160 per worker or just a weekly cost of just over $3 a week, which I believe is less than a latte," Albelda said. "So a latte a week can buy a lot."

According to Spilka, the United States is in the company of Suriname and Papua New Guinea as the only three industrialized nations in the world that does not have paid family or medical leave.

Sen. Daniel Wolf, a committee co-chair and co-sponsor of the legislation, at one point during the hearing told attendees how much paid family or medical leave other nations offer, including "that bastion of human rights, Saudi Arabia," where employees are entitled to 14 weeks of leave.

"There is no one to testify against it, you can see why," Wolf said later, as he pointed out that no one opposed to the bill had signed up to testify Tuesday. "You do have to ask yourself how it's possible in Massachusetts in 2015 that we're even having this dialogue."
Though they may not have testified at Tuesday's hearing, business groups did register their opposition to the paid family or medical leave bill.

"The proposals before you are expensive for employers and will have a disparate impact on small businesses," Bill Vernon, director of the National Federation of Independent Business in Massachusetts, wrote in testimony he provided to the News Service. "The impact on a small business' productivity would be extreme, the impact on the remaining employees forced to take up the work of the missing worker is significant. The financial cost to the employer and to the small business entity is substantial."

Associated Industries of Massachusetts also opposed the bill, posing several questions the group says lawmakers must get clarity on before considering the legislation.

Though some business groups may be against the idea of paid family or medical leave, Rep. Kenneth Gordon said it would actually help Massachusetts companies compete with those in California, which along with New Jersey and Rhode Island has already approved similar legislation and offers paid family and medical sick leave "as a matter of law."

"The problem that we face is that companies based in California are coming in to recruit graduates from our great colleges and universities, they can offer paid family and medical leave in California and they can pay that through a trust fund," Gordon said. "Whereas our companies, to provide the same benefit have to provide it on their own, and that is a competitive disadvantage."

Behind the push for paid family and medical leave in the Bay State is Raise Up Massachusetts, a coalition of organizations that successfully pushed for an increase in the minimum wage and led a successful ballot initiative last year to ensure access to earned sick time for all workers.

The paid leave issue has emerged during a session that has already seen the Legislature take action on a number of worker-friendly bills. Last week, the Senate voted to expand the scope of workplace disfigurement injuries covered under workers' compensation policies and to strengthen the attorney general's efforts to enforce wage and hour violations by allowing her office to file a civil action for injunctive relief.

Supporters of paid family or medical leave said Tuesday that the policy would be a continuation of the work to establish a safety net for all citizens that they have been engaged in for years.

"That safety net, we built it last year when the voters voted for earned sick time and almost a million people got 40 hours or five days to care for themselves or sick family members," Lew Finfer, co-chair of Raise Up Massachusetts, said. "And now we're talking about how do we care for ourselves and ill family members when there is very serious illness requiring months of care."

Two employees were hit by a stun gun when a coin store was robbed in Stoneham Tuesday morning.

A digest of news stories from around New England.

Christopher Chester 

New Hampshire community mourning 9-year-old boy who died while delivering cookies to friend [Union Leader] Photo at left

Solomon Martinez 

2 coin store employees hit by stun gun during robbery in Stoneham [WHDH-TV, 7News, Boston] Video above

Video originally aired Oct. 13.

Luke Gatti  

Joseph and Jenny Carriers' seven Brussells griffon toy dogs were riding in the get-away vehicle, police said. The dogs were secured, police said.

LUDLOW - A husband and wife, likened to a real-life "Bonnie and Clyde" by an ever-widening circle of media after they embarked on what police describe as a spree of heroin-fueled bank robberies that began here last month, were arrested on Interstate 95 in Pennsylvania Monday after they rammed two state police cruisers during a wild chase, police said.

"Basically, they rammed into two (state police cruisers) and their vehicle became disabled," Sgt. Louis Tulik said. "Thankfully, there were no injuries."

Joseph and Jenny Carriers' seven Brussells griffon toy dogs were riding in the get-away vehicle, the same dark-brown Buick Encore that was allegedly used in the all four of their bank robberies, Tulik said.

Tulik could not immediately provide any additional information on the dogs - a male, female and their 5 puppies. "I am sure they were secured by animal officers," he said.

Pennsylvania State Police could not immediately provide any information on the dogs.

The Carriers, both 37, were arrested after allegedly robbing a bank branch in Wilmington, Delaware, about noon on Monday, Tulik said.

A Delaware state trooper spotted the couple shortly after the bank robbery and initiated a traffic stop, Tulik said. The Carriers fled, however, and the chase eventually got onto Interstate 95 in Pennsylvania.

Police said the bank robberies started in Ludlow at a Country Bank branch inside a Big Y World Class Market on Sept. 28 and continued in West Sadsbury, Penn. on Oct. 9, Palm Coast, Fla, on Oct. 12 and Aberdeen, Md, on Oct. 16.

The West Sadsbury bank robbery occurred at a bank branch inside a Walmart, Tulik said.

The run of bank robberies caught the attention of the national and even international media. Last Friday, the Today show went to the Ludlow Police Department to tape a segment that aired the following day. The Daily Mail in Britain ran a piece on the Carriers last week.

Tulik said the couple's heedless spree - they apparently made little effort to cover their tracks as they drove thousands of miles in a stolen vehicle with seven distinctive little dogs along for the ride - speaks to the power of heroin addiction.

"It speaks to the addiction itself and how your only focus is to satisfy the urge to get more," Tulik said. "You are not concerned about hiding or changing your vehicle at that point."

Joseph Carrier appears to be wearing the same pink shirt in all the bank robberies, Tulik said.

Tulik said he is relieved that the Carriers are safely in custody and that they can get the help that they need.

"To me, having them both in custody without injury is the best ending for us, the best resolution," he said.

In at least the first three bank robberies, Joseph Carrier implied that he had a weapon but did not show one. Tulik said he doesn't know whether any weapon has been recovered, however.

Authorities, after receiving a warrant, will likely search the Encore today, he said.

Tulik said federal authorities may take over the case. He said he may know more later today after a conference call with all the involved jurisdictions. "Right now all the jurisdictions have to get together and determine the best course to go forward," he said.

The Carriers, shortly before the Ludlow bank robbery, were known to have been staying in Chicopee hotels and may have been spotted at Mittineague Park in West Springfield.

Their last known address was in Quincy, where they were living with a family member. Tulik said they were asked to leave that home in late August because of their heroin addictions, he said.

Sunday's footrace will wend through scenic Nonotuck Park.

EASTHAMPTON -- Lace up your running shoes -- it's nearly time for the third annual Apple-a-Day 5K -- which, by the way, also includes a ten-kilometer option.

All proceeds from the Nov. 1 event, organized by the Easthampton Elementary PTO, will benefit the Maple, Pepin, and Center Street elementary schools.  

This Sunday afternoon, the family-friendly footrace will make its way through scenic Nonotuck Park. Those who prefer may sign up for a two-mile walk. There's even a quarter-mile fun run that's suitable for children.

All events start and finish at the Easthampton High School. The race is chip-timed with results posted online.

Online registration is accepted until October 30, but day-of-race registrations are fine. Package deals are available for families.

All registered runners will be entered into a raffle to win prizes from local businesses.

If you go:

What: Apple-A-Day 5K
When: Sun., Nov. 1.
5K and 10K races: 1 p.m.; two-mile walk: 12:30 p.m.; fun-run: 12:15 p.m.
Where: Easthampton High School, 70 Williston Ave.