Beck had an unquestionably meteoric rise during his 2.5 years on Fox News.

Associated PressGlenn Beck speaks at the "Restoring Honor" rally in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, Saturday, Aug. 28, 2010.

Thursday, June 30 marks the last day of Glenn Beck's show on Fox News Channel. In April, Fox announced it was dropping the show, citing low ratings and an advertiser boycott.

Beck had an unquestionably meteoric rise during his 2.5 years on Fox News. He generated an avid fanbase — many of whom turned out in full force at his August 2010 rally in Washington, D.C. — and an equally avid group of critics, including Comedy Central's Jon Stewart, who occasionally mimicked Beck's chalkboard segments.

For casual observers, he built a reputation for outrageous moments that made him as much of a household name as anyone in cable news.

As Fox News' Great van Susteren wrote this week, "He managed to get everyone talking about him."

And talking, and talking, and talking, and talking...

Even though it feels like the end of an era, hold off on the farewell retrospectives: Beck isn't going away.

He will continue his radio show, his website The Blaze, and begin a new online video venture called GBTV. Though Beck's future is uncertain, the elements are in place for his fan following to outlast his Fox News program. Writing in the St. Petersburg Times, Eric Deggans says:

Like MSNBC's Keith Olbermann and Oprah Winfrey, Beck is counting on his fans to grant him the autonomy to say and do what he wants in media. By leaving the Fox News show, he moves his work to outlets he controls completely, including his website, the Blaze, his syndicated radio show, his books, the public speaking tours and GBTV. Beck is betting his brand is big enough to feed fans into that media network alone, free from interference by corporate bosses or critical outsiders.

But will Beck's fans open their wallets to continue watching him? The Associated Press reports that GBTV will cost $9.95 per month, or $4.95 if they just want Beck's daily show.

Preview videos of the GBTV program are already popping up online, ahead of the September 12 launch.

What's planned for Thursday's final episode at 5 PM? Beck's show page on FoxNews.com promises "Glenn reflects on his time at Fox News Channel and says goodbye in his final show."

If history is any guide, there will be tears.

Police are reviewing video from the pool for clues in the death of 36-year-old Marie Joseph.

Associated PressIn this Monday, June 27, 2011 photo, children rinse off at one of the new shower stanchions alongside the public swimming pool at Lafayette Park in Fall River, Mass. The body of Marie Joseph, 36, was found floating in the pool late Tuesday. She was seen swimming at the pool Sunday and had not been seen since. Officials are investigating whether her body was in the pool for more than two days while other people continued to swim.

FALL RIVER — Police are looking over surveillance video and state officials have ordered an internal investigation as authorities try to determine how a body wound up in a public pool in Massachusetts and how long it was there.

Fall River Mayor William Flanagan said Thursday that police are reviewing video from the pool for clues in the death of 36-year-old Marie Joseph. Officials are investigating the possibility that Joseph’s body was at the bottom of the pool for more than two days while other people swam.

A 9-year-old boy whom Joseph was watching has told police she slipped on a water slide Sunday and went under. Her body was discovered Tuesday night.

A driver for the same company lost his roof to the same bridge several months ago, police said.

Republican file photo

HOLYOKE – It was deja vu all over again Thursday morning for an Ontario trucking company and the railway underpass at Lyman and Main streets.

A box truck lost its roof after attempting to drive under the underpass shortly before 9 a.m., police said.

No injuries were reported in the mishap although the peeled-off roof narrowly missed crashing onto a nearby vehicle, Police Lt. Michael J. Higgins said.

The driver of the Ontario-based truck, northbound on Main, missed three clearly-marked signs stating that the bridge clearance is 11 feet, 6 inches. The truck was “well over 12 feet,” high, Higgins said.

The driver told police that another driver for the same company did “exactly the same thing” at the same underpass several months ago.

The truck, carrying aluminum parts, is operated by CLE Leasing in Burlington, Ontario, Higgins said.

Traffic impacts were minimal and the scene was cleared within 20 minutes, Higgins said. The driver was not cited, he said.

Judge Mark Wolf rejected a claim by Bulger’s lawyer that prosecutors were “judge shopping.”

This is an updated version of a story posted at 8:50 this morning.

Associated PressJames "Whitey" Bulger is seen in booking photos from a 1953 arrest in Boston, left, and last week's arrest in Los Angeles.

BOSTON – A federal judge in Boston has granted a bid by prosecutors to dismiss a 1994 racketeering indictment against former mob boss James “Whitey” Bulger so they can focus on a later indictment charging him with participating in 19 murders.

Judge Mark L. Wolf, the same judge who presided over the corruption trial of former House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi, ruled Thursday that prosecutors are within their rights to dismiss the case.

He rejected a claim by Bulger’s lawyer that prosecutors were “judge shopping.”

Bulger has another hearing ahead of him. He is also asking for a taxpayer-funded attorney.

He was arrested in Santa Monica, Calif., last week after 16 years as a fugitive.

More details coming on MassLive and in The Republican.

The announcement came on UMass President Jack Wilson's last day in office.

File photo by Michael Beswick / The RepublicanUMass Amherst Chancellor Robert C. Holub is seen at last month's 141st commencement ceremonies. Outgoing UMass President Jack Wilson is seen sitting behind Holub.

AMHERST - University of Massachusetts Chancellor Robert C. Holub will step down as chancellor in a year, according to an announcement from outgoing President Jack M. Wilson’s office.

“I look forward to leading this great institution on its current trajectory of success for another year,” Holub said in a prepared statement.

“Working together, the campus community has made great strides during my first three years – especially when one considers the difficult economic times – but we have much more work to do next year and in the future if we are going to attain our loftiest goals.

"At the conclusion of what will be my fourth year as chancellor, I am confident that I will leave UMass Amherst in a stronger position to build upon the many outstanding achievements of the campus during my tenure. I look forward to working with President Caret, the Board of Trustees, and the all members of the campus as we continue to elevate the stature of the Commonwealth’s flagship institution, UMass Amherst.”

Holub according to the statement would leave the post sooner another chancellor is able to begin before his new term expires July 31, 2012. A search process is expected to begin in September.

Holub was hired Aug. 1, 2008 and his contract was set to expire at the end of July. It was reported that the committee to evaluate him recommended against reappointing him.

Wilson leaves his position Thursday with Robert L. Caret replacing him. Holub met with Wilson, Caret and others in June to talk about his evaluation.

Holub then sent a letter to Wilson Wilson’s office demanding that Wilson ask the attorney general’s office to investigate the leak of his confidential evaluation to The Boston Globe last month, saying it violated university regulations that require confidentiality when dealing with job performance evaluations.

Quoting unnamed sources, that story reported that the evaluation committee recommended against reappointing Holub.

The driver of a Saturn was cited for a marked lanes violation.

PALMER - A 52-year-old Bondsville man was taken to Baystate Medical Center with serious back injuries after a car made a U-turn in front of him as he was operating his 2000 Harley-Davidson motorcycle Thursday morning, police said.

Officer Rudy Wilk said Stella Backus, 55, of 10 Allen St., was operating her Saturn east on Fuller Road in the Bondsville section when she made the U-turn in front of Randall Walder, of 61 Crawford St., who was heading west.

Wilk said Backus was cited for a marked lanes violation. The accident was reported just before 8 a.m.

Customs officers in Boston have seized a huge shipment of counterfeit items worth close to $90,000.

Associated Press photoThis photo provided by Candella Matta shows Marie Joseph, foreground, holding family friend Dalianys Melendez, daughter of Candella Matta, in the public swimming pool at Lafayette Park in Fall River on Sunday. Click on the link, above right, for a report from the Boston Herald about pool inspectors being place on leave in the wake of her death.

• Inspectors placed on leave after body found in bottom of Fall River pool [Boston Herald]


• Massachusetts commission calls on schools to submit annual school bullying reports [Boston Globe]


• Customs officers seize $90,000 worth of fake 'Dr. Doom' lunch boxes, CDs In Boston [CBS Boston.com]


• Fugitive found working for MassHealth contractor (video) [WFXT-TV Channel 25 Boston]


• Neil Entwistle, of Hopkinton, files appeal in murder of wife, daughter (video) [WHDH-TV Channel 7 Boston]


• U.S. Senate cancels July 4 holiday recess to work on national debt agreement [Washington Post]


• Building boom continues at UMass Amherst as campus grows, espands research (photo gallery) [Daily Hampshire Gazette]


• How big a role did Facebook, Twitter play in global revolutions? [Christian Science Monitor]


• Twitter posts tagged #westernma in Western Mass. [MassLive.com]


• Read more News Links »


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Colbert is forming Colbert Super PAC, a type of political action committee that will allow him to raise unlimited amounts of money from corporations, unions and individuals.

Associated PressComedian Stephen Colbert speaks to supporters on the sidewalk in front of the Federal Election Commission in Washington, Thursday, June 30, 2011.

WASHINGTON — The Federal Election Commission said Thursday that comedian Stephen Colbert can use his TV show's resources to boost his political action committee, but he must disclose some major expenses as in-kind contributions from the show's corporate owners.

Colbert played it straight during his appearance before the commission, letting his attorney do most of the talking while saving his trademark quips for a crowd that gathered outside the commission building after the meeting.

"I don't accept the status quo," he told the crowd, brandishing a portable credit card processing machine. "I do accept Visa, MasterCard or American Express."

Many in the crowd handed Colbert their credit cards or dollar bills as contributions.

Asked what point he was trying to make about corporate America, Colbert did not miss a beat.

"None," he quipped. "I want their money."

Colbert, who plays a conservative TV pundit on "The Colbert Report," is forming Colbert Super PAC, a type of political action committee that will allow him to raise unlimited amounts of money from corporations, unions and individuals. The money will be used to support or oppose candidates in the 2012 elections through independent expenditures such as TV ads.

Colbert has not indicated what kinds of candidates he might support.

The FEC decision comes amid a broader erosion of campaign finance regulations in the wake of recent court rulings and with Republicans on the Federal Election Commission and elsewhere pushing for a rollback to give corporations and other wealthy donors stronger sway in financing campaigns.

Colbert had asked the commission for a "media exemption" to allow him to use his show's airtime, staff and other resources for his political action committee without having to publicly disclose them as in-kind contributions from Comedy Central's parent company, Viacom Inc.

In-kind contributions are given as goods or services rather than money.

Colbert has said those undisclosed contributions could include the use of his show's staff to create TV advertisements about candidates that would air as paid commercials on other shows and networks.

The commission ruled 5-1 that he would have to publicly disclose as in-kind contributions from Viacom any ads produced by the show for Colbert Super PAC that air on other shows or networks. He also would have to disclose administrative costs that his show covers for Colbert Super PAC.

The Colbert ruling eclipsed a lesser-noticed decision by the Federal Election Commission Thursday that could also have a significant impact on the 2012 elections.

The commission said candidates and party officials may solicit contributions for super PACs, but those contributions could not exceed the $5,000 limit for donations that applies to traditional political action committees.

Some campaign watchdog groups had feared the commission might permit candidates and party officials to solicit unlimited contributions, opening yet another door to big-ticket donations.

While Colbert delights in lampooning politicians on his Comedy Central show, he raised some serious issues about public disclosure of corporate campaign contributions before the Federal Election Commission.

"Stephen Colbert is a funny man, but he asked a legitimate question and received a serious answer," FEC Chairwoman Cynthia Bauerly said. "The opinion adopted today does not give him everything he asked for, but it appropriately applies the press exemption consistent with past Commission and court precedent. "

Campaign finance watchdog groups also had warned that a favorable ruling for Colbert could spur many more undisclosed contributions to political figures who are TV hosts or commentators and who could opt to create their own super PACs to take advantage of any new loopholes.

The groups cited politicians such Sarah Palin, Mike Huckabee, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum who already have traditional political action committees and are either working now, or have worked, as TV hosts or commentators.

The Campaign Legal Center, one of the watchdog groups, called the commission's ruling on Colbert "a victory for disclosure" that prevents new loopholes.

"The FEC's advisory opinion will give Mr. Colbert the freedom to engage in legitimate political commentary and comedy with the support of Viacom, but will also ensure that the public is informed about the corporate money his PAC receives," said Tara Malloy of the Campaign Legal Center.

"The Colbert Report" has used satire to shine a light on campaign finance rules following the Citizens United ruling by the Supreme Court that helped pave the way for super PACs. Campaign finance reform advocates complained the ruling gave wealthy donors, particularly companies and unions, considerably more sway in politics.

Super PACs can accept unlimited contributions from corporations, labor unions or individuals, unlike candidates or traditional political action committees. Super PACs cannot contribute directly to candidates, however.

Colbert has said any ads for Colbert Super PAC would not be coordinated with any candidate or party.

About 120 people have pledged to take turns occupying the church 24 hours a day.

Republican staff photo by David MolnarParish members at Mater Dolorosa celebrate the last Sunday Mass June 26.

HOLYOKE – A group of parish members from Mater Dolorosa Church began a continuous vigil Thursday in the hopes of keeping their church open.

The church was to close after the last mass at 8 a.m. Thursday, but after the service, people decided to stay. They have plans to sleep in the church tonight, said Victor Anop, one of the vigil organizers whose family has been attending Mater Dolorosa for at least three generations.

About 120 people have pledged to take turns occupying the church 24 hours a day. They said they want answers from Bishop Timothy A. McDonnell, the head of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield, about structural problems with the church as well as information about the church debt, said Anop, of Chicopee.

“We have plans to stay until our questions are answered,” he said.

The length of the vigil will also depend on the answers parish members get, he said.

Months ago the diocese announced plans to merge the parishes of Mater Dolorosa and Holy Cross and create a new church, Our Lady of the Cross, at the Holy Cross building on Sycamore Street. The Mater Dolorosa church will close but its school will continue to operate through the new parish.

About a month ago Mater Dolorosa parish members started discussing ways to keep their church open. They have appealed the decision to the Vatican and held a prayer vigil in protest in front of the bishop’s Springfield home.

The primary reason for the church closing is the number of Catholics in the city has dropped and they cannot support the six churches in the city. When deciding which buildings should close, the condition and location of the church buildings are among issues considered, said Mark E. Dupont, spokesman for the diocese.

The bishop will release the engineering report that shows there is serious structural damage to the steeple of the church, which was a factor in choosing to keep a different church open, Dupont said.

Church officials may also try to end the vigil by issuing a trespass order against the group, he said.

Dupont said the bishop has no intention to meet with any of the members who are involved in the vigil.

“We are not negotiating with them. Their behavior was beyond the scope of acceptable,” Dupont said, referring to the last Sunday Mass held at the church June 26.

A group of angry protesters greeted McDonnell when he tried to walk into the church and several interrupted his service, one yelling “Liar” when he talked about the reasons for closing the church.

“Before they place any demands, they need to be accountable for their actions,” he said. “They owe the community an apology and they owe the bishop an apology.”

This is a developing story; MassLive.com will have more details later today

Prosecutors argued that Bulger's family — including his brother William Bulger, the former Massachusetts Senate president — have the means to help pay for Whitey Bulger's defense.

Associated PressThis courtroom sketch depicts James "Whitey" Bulger before U.S. District Judge Mark Wolf during a hearing in a federal courtroom in Boston Tuesday, June 28, 2011.

BOSTON — Former mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger, who escaped prosecution for 16 years until he was apprehended last week in California with more than $800,000 in cash, was given a taxpayer-funded attorney Thursday after a judge concluded that he is unable to pay for his own lawyer.

Prosecutors argued that Bulger's family — including his brother William Bulger, the former Massachusetts Senate president — have the means to help pay for Whitey Bulger's defense.

But Bulger's provisional attorney, Peter Krupp, said no one in Bulger's family had come forward and offered to help him financially. He also said authorities have seized all of Bulger's assets as the proceeds of illegal activity, leaving him with no way to pay for his defense.

Magistrate Judge Marianne Bowler agreed.

"I find at this time that the defendant is unable to retain counsel privately," Bowler said.

She appointed J.W. Carney Jr., a prominent Boston defense attorney, to represent Bulger.

Carney has represented a long list of high-profile defendants, including John Salvi III, who was convicted of killing two people and wounding five others in a shooting rampage at two Planned Parenthood clinics in Brookline, Mass., in 1994. He also represents Tarek Mehanna, a Sudbury man now awaiting trial in an alleged terror plot to shoot shoppers at U.S. malls, assassinate two politicians and kill American troops in Iraq.

Bulger, the former leader of the Winter Hill Gang, is accused of participating in 19 murders during his decades as one of Boston's most notorious gangsters.

Krupp said he believes it will be "profoundly difficult" for Bulger to receive a fair trial, given the pervasive media coverage Bulger received during his years on the run and the recent avalanche of coverage since his capture last week in Santa Monica, Calif.

Carney said it is too early to say whether he will ask for the trial to be moved out of Boston.

"Our constitution guarantees every defendant the right to a fair trial, and we're going to see that he gets it," he said.

Earlier Thursday, U.S. District Judge Mark Wolf granted a bid by prosecutors to dismiss a 1994 racketeering indictment against Bulger so they can focus on a 1999 indictment charging him for his alleged role in 19 killings.

Wolf ruled that prosecutors were within their rights to dismiss the case and rejected a claim by Bulger's lawyer that prosecutors were "judge shopping."

Krupp had argued that prosecutors decided to charge his client in connection with the murders in a new indictment because they were trying to avoid having Wolf hear the case.

Wolf was a pivotal figure in the Bulger case. He held a series of hearings in the 1990s that exposed the corrupt relationship between Bulger and the Boston FBI. Bulger was an FBI informant who fed his handlers dirt on his gang's main rival, the New England Mob.

"It looks like they are trying to avoid this court as the judicial officer and that's judge shopping, in my view," Krupp said.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Fred Wyshak Jr. said the later indictment, which includes the murder charges, is simply the government's "best and strongest case."

The families of the 19 murder victims have been waiting for years for justice, Wyshak said.

The prosecutor also blasted Bulger for trying to seek a tactical advantage in court after spending years in hiding.

"He's the one who has been a fugitive for 16 years. He's the one who ran away ... He shouldn't be able to gain a tactical advantage for that at this point," Wyshak said.

Selectmen said they would see if the cleanup time could be extended through the end of July.

WILBRAHAM – Residents of Beebe Road asked the selectmen to extend until the end of July the period during which debris is picked up from the June 1 tornado from tree belts.

Selectmen said they will ask the Federal Emergency Management Association, which is endorsing continuing the cleanup through the end of July.

An environmental cleanup company, Ashbritt Environmental of Florida, is doing the cleanup work from the tree belts. The work will be reimbursed by FEMA. Residents have to get the debris to the tree belts and it will be picked up.

Donna Morrison of 100 Beebe Road told selectmen that the 2½-acre lot that surrounds her house on Beebe Road is covered with overturned stumps that are filling up with water.

“There are a lot of downed limbs on my property,” she said. “They are starting to turn into a fire hazard.”

Morrison said she is trying with the help of her extended family to get the downed limbs and stumps to the tree belt, but it is taking a lot of time.

Selectmen said Ashbritt Environmental originally estimated the cleanup would go for 60 days from the date of the tornado, but the work has been going faster than the company expected.

FEMA now is projecting completing work in Wilbraham by July 12, Wilbraham Department of Public Works Director Edmond W. Miga said.

Selectman James E. Thompson said for some residents in town, the tornado “ravaged their property.”

“It is not easy for residents to keep up with this schedule,” Thompson said.

He said that on upper Tinkham Road and Beebe Road there is still a lot of work remaining to be done.

Selectmen said they will seek a commitment from FEMA to extend the cleanup period through the end of July.

The generating station will also have to bring in an outside consultant to correct air-quality problems.

Republican File Photo

HOLYOKE – The Mt. Tom Station coal-burning power plant will install air-monitoring equipment, comply with more stringent air-quality standards and hire an outside consultant to correct persistent air pollution problems at the plant under a settlement announced Thursday by the state Attorney General’s Office.

The station’s owners, FirstLight Power Resources and GDF Suez North America, have also agreed to pay a $25,000 penalty to the Commonwealth and pay $70,000 for a program educating owners of old wood stoves and wood-fired boilers in the greater Holyoke area, according to a news release from the Attorney General’s Office.

The public education plan will also encourage people to upgrade to wood-burning equipment meeting modern U.S. Environmental Protection Agency emissions standards.

The arrangement settles allegations that Mt. Tom violated clean air standards in 2009 and 2010, according to the Attorney General’s Office.

It’s a case first brought by the Conservation Law Foundation, a Boston-based monitoring group that has actively opposed coal-burning plants like Mt. Tom. The Foundation has alleged that Mt. Tom violated clean air standards thousands of times from 2005 to 2010, despite $55 million worth of pollution-control equipment that was installed from 2007 to 2009 at the plant.

“The issue is essentially over how much soot they are putting into the air,” said Shanna M. Cleveland, a staff attorney with the Foundation.

The station had been estimating the amount of soot it has been producing based on the color and thickness of the smoke from the smokestacks. Now, with the new monitoring equipment, Mt. Tom will have a more exact measure of the pollution it produces, Cleveland said.

“The Mt. Tom generating company makes environmental compliance and public safety a priority in its operations,” wrote spokesman Charles B. Burnham in a news release. “ We share the Massachusetts Attorney General’s and Department of Environmental Protection’s concern for the well-being of state citizens and were pleased to come to this agreement that was satisfactory to all parties involved.”

The plant paid more than $40,000 to settle federal clean air violation in February.

Holyoke Mayor Elaine A. Pluta said the additional monitoring and environmental safeguards will provide peace of mind to Holyoke residents.

She also looked forward to implementing the education program for homeowners with wood-burning stoves and furnaces.

The Republican / File photoThe Mt. Tom Power Plant along the Connecticut River in Holyoke.

Cernak allegedly tried to kill his 83-year-old mother by dousing her with lighter fluid and setting her on fire.

The Republican file photo | John SuchockiGary Cernak, of Easthampton, left, is seen during his arraignment in Northampton District Court. At right is public defender Thomas Robinson.

NORTHAMPTON – The trial of an Easthampton man charged with trying to murder his mother could go forward in January 2012, attorneys told Hampshire County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Kinder.

Gary B. Cernak, 57, of 222 Park St., Easthampton, was in court for a status hearing Thursday and for the judge to act on a motion filed by his attorney Thomas E. Robinson asking that Cernak remain voluntarily committed to Bridgewater State Hospital. Kinder agreed to the motion.

Robinson told the judge that he was expecting to proceed with trial in January. The prosecution agreed, but no date was set. The case will be back in court Dec. 16.

In May 2010, Cernak allegedly tried to kill his 83-year-old mother by dousing her with lighter fluid and setting her on fire. Cernak pleaded innocent to charges in February after a Hampshire Superior Court grand jury indicted him.

Cernak is also charged with arson of a dwelling, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon on a person over 60, and mayhem in connection with the May 23, 2010, fire at his home.

According to police reports at the time, Cernak was seen standing near a vehicle eating salsa when police arrived at his home. His mother, Dorothy Cernak, was found in a living-room chair calling for help. She had burns to her upper body, face and head, authorities said.

According to court records, Dorothy Cernak told police her son was angry at her for calling the doctor and police the day before. Police had responded to her call to check on Gary Cernak’s well-being, court records said. That day, Cernak talked with police and “claimed he was fine and asked to be left alone.

“Dorothy Cernak told police then that her son is a passive person and she was not afraid of him,” according to a police report. Police instructed her on how to file for a restraining order, but she did not want to seek one, report said. According to court documents, Gary Cernak has been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia.

The dramatic drop might be a result of lenders just holding off instead of a sign that the housing crisis is ending.

File Photo

SPRINGFIELD – Foreclosure numbers are down drastically locally and statewide, but it might be that lenders are just holding off instead of a sign that the housing crisis is ending.

“Nothing has changed in the game. The players are still the same,” said Deborah L. Broaden, director of home ownership programs for HAP Housing Inc. in Springfield and head of the Western Massachusetts Foreclosure Prevention Center operated by HAP Housing.

But Broaden said fewer people have been calling the center fearful of losing their homes in the past few months, which she takes as a hopeful sign.

There were 58 foreclosure deeds filed in Springfield during the first five months of 2011, according to statistics released Thursday by The Warren Group, a Boston-based compiler of real estate data and publishers of Banker & Tradesman newspaper.

Those 58 represented an 81.59 percent drop from the 315 foreclosure deeds field in the first five months of 2010, also according to The Warren Group.

Foreclosure deeds are typically the last step in the mortgage foreclosure process, coming after an initial petition and an auction.

For Hampden County as a whole, the number of foreclosure deeds filed fell 79.8 percent from 540 in the first five months of 2010 to 109 in the first five months of this year.

In Hampshire County, the number of foreclosure deeds filed fell 57.33 percent from 75 in the first five months of 2010 to 32 foreclosure deeds filed in the first five months of this year.

In Franklin County, foreclosure deeds fell 43.28 percent from 67 in the first five months of 2010 to 38 this year.

Statewide, the number of foreclosure deeds fell 58.06 percent from 6,118 in 2010 to 2,566 in the first five months of this year.

Broaden said lenders are not following through on foreclosures out of fear that they’ll lose a court case and because the market for homes is slow and lenders don’t know if they’ll be able to turn around and sell the property.

That leaves many homeowners neither here nor there, Broaden said. The foreclosure auction has been indefinitely postponed. But many have trouble trying to catch up on their payments even with the extra time.

“There are many homeowners right now who have reached the end of that road,” Broaden said. “They are thinking they are living rent free until the final shoe drops. They’ll just save as much money as they can until someone tells them to leave.”

Homeowners facing foreclosure whose homes were also damaged by the June 1 tornadoes now have a 90-day automatic stay under federal emergency management rules, Broaden said. But that leaves homeowners deciding if they can afford to rebuild and catch up on their payments of it their only choice is to walk away. “The lender will come back eventually and reschedule that auction date,” Broaden said.

For the second time in two years, Springfield officials have issued a warning about coyotes in Forest Park.

Republican file photoA file photo of an Eastern Coyote. Springfield officials are warning visitors of Forest Park to watch out for coyotes after evidence was found of them in the park.

SPRINGFIELD - The head of city parks on Thursday issued an advisory to warn patrons of Forest Park about the discovery of "coyote activity" there.

Patrick Sullivan, Springfield executive director of Parks, Facilities and Recreational Management, said the advisory is intended as a precaution and not meant to cause alarm.

Parents, however, should keep a close eye on small children, and all dogs should be leashed at all times, he said.

Parents should also instruct their children not to go near wild animals in the park, and not to feed coyotes.

"When wild animals are fed they lose their natural fear of people and become more aggressive," Sullivan said. "Feeding wild animals puts the animal, yourself and your neighbors at risk."

He said Parks Department employees have discovered evidence of continued activity by coyotes. The department was also contacted about the discovery of what turned out to be deer meat along trails in the park.

The department will be working with the state Fisheries and Wildlife to determine if there is a coyote den somewhere inside the park.

The department will be coordinating with all park staff to report any sightings to the authorities.

People living in the vicinity of the park should also make sure to clean up trash and secure trash barrels on their property.

Coyotes have been known to go after cats and small dogs, as well as garbage cans, compost, pet food and fruit found on residential properties.

If the public has any information, please contact (413) 787-6441.

This is the second time in three years the city has issued a coyote warning for Forest Park. In 2009, coyotes were blamed for killing a deer inside the park.

In recent years, there have been an increase in coyote activity in suburban and even urban areas across the state. Last July, coyotes were blamed for the deaths of three cats in the Florence section of Northampton.

Eastern coyotes are between 48 and 60 inches long and weigh between 30 and 50 pounds. They have been known to attack dogs weighing up to 25 pounds.

Town Manager Gretchen Neggers said the town's expenses are approaching 25% of its annual budget.

MONSON – Even with a few million dollars expected from the federal government to help cover expenses related to damage by the June 1 tornado, Town Manager Gretchen Neggers said the town will have extraordinary expenses to pay from its own treasury.

“This is approaching 25 percent of our annual budget,” Neggers said Tuesday during a report to selectmen on damage and recovery efforts.

Neggers said she is hoping that federal disaster money could come to the town in a way that has the Federal Emergency Management Agency picking up 90 percent of the recovery cost, which has been discussed by congressional representatives as an alternative to the 75 percent share, which is traditionally kicked in by the federal government.

Neggers also said she would hope that the state could provide some assistance to the cities and towns that were hard hit by the tornado.

Homes, businesses, government buildings and trees and other vegetation were severely damaged in the June 1 tornado.

Neggers said the tree and vegetation removal costs have already topped $3.4 million, and she expects they will eventually reach $5 million.

Without a change in the federal disaster relief formula or a contribution from the state government, the town will wind up paying 25 percent of that cost.

The Republican | Michael BeswickMonson Town Administrator Gretchen Neggers discusses the town's financial position to date following the tornado.

Neggers said town officials will meet July 6 with insurance company representatives and engineers to discuss what is to be done with the heavily damaged town office building.

“A lot depends on what structural damage there is besides the roof coming off,” Neggers said. “There is still water coming into the building and ceiling tiles are coming down.”

Most town departments are now operating out of Hillside Elementary School, and the Police Department has been working out of temporary office trailers.

Neggers said that besides the damage to the town office building, there was roof damage at the Highway Department, its salt shed, the Water Department, the Park and Recreation Department gazebo and storage shed and the skate park. Several town vehicles were destroyed or heavily damaged, she said.

There were also 238 homes with substantial damage, and $11.9 million in value loss to private property has been reported to the Board of Assessors, which will have to factor the final amount into calculating the tax rate.

Neggers said the amount of value loss reported for assessment purposes would translate into about a 26 cent increase in the tax rate and roughly $50 in additional property taxes for the average homeowner who did not lose value during the storm.

“These values will eventually come back, but right now that is almost $12 million in value lost,” Neggers said. “All of the land retains its value.”

The Dow Jones industrial average ballooned 480 points over the last 4 days of the month.

By DAVID K. RANDALL and FRANCESCA LEVY | AP Business Writers

Associated PressA protester shouts a slogan as she waves the Greek flag during a protest outside the Parliament in Athens, Thursday, June 30, 2011. Global stocks pushed higher once again on Thursday after Greece cleared the final hurdle required to get bailout cash needed to avert a potential debt default next month. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

NEW YORK — Four days, 480 points.

That's how the Dow Jones industrial average closed the final four days of June. The Dow added more than 150 points on Thursday alone after Greece cleared the final hurdle needed to receive its next installment of emergency loans. A pickup in manufacturing around Chicago also pushed indexes higher.

The weeklong rally began Monday when Nike Inc. reported quarterly results that showed that consumers were spending more than expected. The stock market's gains put it on track for the best week since July of last year.

It was a stunning reversal from the beginning of the month, when the Dow dropped nearly 280 points in one day. The first day of June, reports showed that auto sales fell sharply in May and that private companies were hiring far fewer people than expected. The late surge was not enough to turn the broader stock market positive for the month, but it brought the Dow up 0.8 percent for the quarter. The Standard and Poor's 500 index and Nasdaq composite each lost about 0.3 percent for the month.

Thursday's gains came after Greek lawmakers passed a cost-cutting bill that had to be approved before international lenders would release $17 billion in rescue funds to Greece. The country needs the money to avoid defaulting on its debt. A default by Greece could disrupt financial markets and lead to a widespread European financial crisis.

Traders were also reassured by encouraging signals about the U.S. economy. A trade group reported that manufacturing in Chicago sped up unexpectedly in June. Analysts had forecast a decline. Earlier in the week, Nike Inc. reported earnings that were better than analysts had predicted. That led many investors to believe that high gas prices haven't stopped consumers from spending on non-necessities.

The Dow rose 152.92 points, or 1.3 percent, to 12,414.34. The S&P 500 added 13.23, or 1 percent, to 1,320.64. The Nasdaq composite gained 33.03, or 1.2 percent, to 2,773.52.

Companies that typically benefit from global expansion led the Dow. Intel Corp., Caterpillar Inc., and Hewlett-Packard Co. each gained more than 2.4 percent.

Stocks are still below the 2011 highs they reached in late April, when a series of weak economic reports indicated that the U.S. economy was slowing down. Since then investors have been debating whether the slowdown would be a short-term blip or the beginning of a long stall in the economic recovery.

"We have been in the camp that says it's temporary," said Brad Sorensen, a market analyst at Schwab. Sorensen says the pickup in Chicago manufacturing was the latest proof that the short-term slowdown view is correct

The manufacturing report, along with the government's formal end to its bond buying stimulus program known as QE2, sent bond prices lower as investors put less money into safer assets. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury fell to 3.16 percent from 3.11 percent late Wednesday. Bond yields rise when prices fall.

Among U.S. companies, metals manufacturer Worthington Industries Inc. jumped nearly 10 percent after the company raised its quarterly dividend and said it would buy back up to 10 million shares of its own stock. Callaway Golf Co. fell 1.7 percent after the company shook up its leadership, announced job cuts and said it expects to have weak results in the second quarter. And fertilizer maker CF Industries Holdings Inc. fell 5.1 percent on news that farmers planted more corn in spring, which may weigh on prices and reduce farmers' income.

Three stocks rose for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange. Volume was average at 3.8 billion shares.

Springfield residents living in trailers next to their tornado-damaged home will receive free water and sewer use for a year, plus waive all turn-on and shut-off fees.

View full sizeThe Republican | Mark M. MurrayWorkers from the Associated Building Wreckers work on removing some of the remaining walls of the building at 947 Main St. in Springfield, at left, which housed Square One day care center. The building was irreparably damaged in the June 1 tornado.

SPRINGFIELD – The federal government will provide $3 million to create temporary jobs for Hampden County workers who lost jobs due to the June 1 tornadoes.

The grant, announced Thursday by the U.S. Department of Labor, will bolster cleanup and recovery efforts from three tornadoes that tore through western and central Massachusetts, killing 3 people, destroying dozens of homes and businesses, and inflicting millions of dollars in property damage.

“By creating jobs, today’s grant will help repair the many public buildings and schools that sustained damage as a result of the severe weather,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis.

Details of the grant, including how soon the jobs will be created and how much each community will receive, were not available Thursday.

The grant was awarded to the Massachusetts Department of Workforce Development, with funding targeting Westfield, West Springfield, Springfield, Wilbraham and Monson.

Two weeks after the storms touched down, the Federal Emergency Management Agency declared Hampden County eligible for FEMA’s Public Assistance Program. Additional counties may be included under the grant if FEMA determines such inclusion is warranted, Solis said.

U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, said the grant will help Hampden County clean up from the worst natural disaster in a generation and also help the workers hired to do the cleaning up.

“This grant is another example that the people of western and central Massachusetts are getting the resources they need to rebuild their homes, businesses and lives,” he said.

Springfield Mayor Domenic J. Sarno expressed similar sentiments, noting that the job program will “not only help to rebuild structures and infrastructures, but also help people to rebuild their lives.”

The Republican | Don TreegerAt the MassMutual Center in Springfield on Thursday, Siena College men's basketball coach Mitch Buonaguro presents a $5,000 check to the Pioneer Valley Red Cross tornado relief fund on behalf of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, which will be holding its championships in Springfield. From left, Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno; Maureen Hayes, Board Chair, American Red Cross Pioneer Valley Chapter; Marissa Skibbe, Director of Marketing for the MassMutual Center; and Buonaguro.

Also in Springfield, residents living in trailers next to their tornado-damaged homes also got good news: The city will provide free water and sewer use for a year, plus waive all turn-on and shut-off fees.

The offer, announced by Sarno, is available to anyone living in temporary housing on their own property, and expires as soon as residents return to their actual homes.

Approximately 220 properties were condemned in Springfield due to storm damage, most of them homes and apartments, said Sarno and Katherine J. Pedersen, a representative of the Water and Sewer Commission.

The average annual water and sewer bill for homeowners is about $600, Pedersen said, noting that families are likely to use less water living in a trailer.

Also in Springfield, Caring Health Center, 1030 Main St., has reopened to serve its patients.

In other tornado-related news, the state Division of Insurance said 9,500 claims for $175 million in damages have been submitted by property owners in Hampden and Hampshire counties.

Insurance companies have received 5,000 personal insurance claims, totaling $135 million in storm damage; during the same period, 1,000 commercial property claims, with a price tag of $20 million, have been filed, along with 3,500 auto insurance claims, totaling $20 million.

In West Springfield, the city's temporary shelter for tornado victims will close on Friday, Mayor Edward J. Gibson said.

Earlier this week, 56 people were still living at the Moses Building at the Eastern States Exposition, but as of Thursday all but one had found housing, Gibson said.

“The last person was looking at apartments. We’re keeping our fingers crossed,” Gibson said.

The Majestic Theater also raised $10,358 for tornado victims from two recent concerts featuring well-known local acts, including Mitch Chakour, Floyd Patterson and Frank Manzi.

The money will be split between the families of Angelica Guerrero and Sergey Livchin, two West Springfield residents killed in the storm, and the town’s Park and Recreation department to be distributed to local tornado victims.

The task force was appointed after the body of 25-year-old Stephanie Moulton was found in Lynn; a resident of the mental health facility where Moulton worked has been charged with her death.

File photo | The RepublicanThe privately run Providence Behavioral Health Center in Holyoke, with only 24 beds available for children in need of hospitalization, is the only in-patient facility for youngsters in Massachusetts outside the Route 128 belt.

By STEVE LeBLANC

BOSTON — A task force formed after the slaying of a mental health counselor is blaming years of budget cuts for undermining Massachusetts' publicly funded mental health system and forcing some staff to work under unsafe conditions.

The task force released a set of 17 recommendations Thursday in the 42-page report it said is intended in part to improve the safety of workers at state facilities.

Among the recommendations are a significant increase in spending over the next five years in the mental health system and an increase in the number of beds and services available for those suffering from mental illness.

The report also recommends giving all those who provide direct care in mental health facilities with "a reliable way to rapidly summon assistance when needed, such as an electronic alarm."

Stephanie Moulton

The task force was appointed after the body of 25-year-old Stephanie Moulton was found stabbed in Lynn earlier this year. A resident of the North Suffolk Mental Health Association facility where Moulton worked has been charged with her death.

The report paints a picture of a mental health system straining under years of budget cuts, which have led to a breakdown in communication, increasing caseloads of people with more acute needs and the fostering of a system that is "unable to consistently provide more intensive services when needed."

That has led to situations where staff counselors and others are required to work in "conditions that do not provide for adequate safety," according to the task force chaired by retired Judge Paul Healy and psychiatry professor Dr. Kenneth Appelbaum.

"None of this should come as a surprise. In recent years, DMH has undergone significant changes in the context of repeated budget cuts," the report said. "Some past practices that are no longer in place served to increase the cohesion of the community system, the continuity of care, and safety."

Department of Mental Health Commissioner Barbara Leadholm said she's reviewing the report. She said that although the state has had to make difficult budget cuts in recent years, she's not convinced that those cuts have resulted in increased risks for workers.

"Honestly I would say I disagree," she said. "To me, the cause and effect is not that simple."

Leadholm, who appointed the task force, said she's also not convinced that a scarcity of beds has strained the system or led to situations where people may have been released before they were ready.

"We do not discharge people sooner than they should be discharged," she said. "It's always easy to say 'Could you have given someone more services?'"

Massachusetts did lose 120 psychiatric beds when it closed a state hospital last year, Leadholm said.

Both Leadholm and the members of the task force agreed that most individuals in the state's mental health care system do not pose a threat.

"Our efforts therefore focused more on the needs of those few individuals who present a high risk of violence, rather than on the many who do not," the task force wrote.

The report was prompted by the death of Moulton, whose body was found in a church parking lot in Lynn in January.

Police say Deshawn James Chappell, who was a resident at the group home where Moulton worked, stabbed the Peabody, Mass. resident repeatedly in the throat, piercing her jugular vein and carotid artery.

The 27-year-old Chappell pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder.

After a March hearing that included testimony from a court clinician who interviewed Chappell, Judge Frank Gaziano committed Chappell to Bridgewater State Hospital.

Moulton's parents, Kim Flynn and Robert Moulton have filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the directors of the agency that runs the facility, two doctors and Chappell.

Kim Flynn and Robert Moulton are seeking unspecified damages for the death of their daughter.

The $30.6 billion budget agreement is poised to reach Gov. Deval Patrick's desk.

The Republican | Joe DeburroThe Massachusetts Statehouse in Boston.

By KYLE CHENEY

BOSTON – In a little-foreshadowed move, lawmakers in a fiscal 2012 budget accord filed Thursday night essentially wiped out a $65 million cut to local aid that cities and towns have anticipating for months, House and Senate officials said Thursday.

During the spring, the House and Senate passed budgets that slashed unrestricted aid to municipalities by $65 million, the latest in a series of local aid cuts. But a conference committee report agreed to Thursday would send unspent funds left over at the end of the current fiscal year – called reversions – back to cities and towns. That plan, legislative officials say, will assuredly eliminate the cuts that municipalities were expecting.

The plan, initially offered by the House Republican caucus, was included in an annual budget approved by the House in April. The conference committee negotiating the budget for the fiscal year that begins Friday – a panel of three House members and three senators, including on Republican from each branch – agreed to preserve that proposal in the final budget, which they filed to minutes before an 8 p.m. deadline Thursday evening.

The $30.6 billion budget agreement is poised to reach Gov. Deval Patrick’s desk Friday. As expected, the proposal redefines the way cities and towns share health care costs with employees care, overhauls the state’s system of indigent defense counsel, and counts on a major curtailment of public health care spending.

The budget was filed after more three weeks of closed-door negotiating that guaranteed an annual spending plan won’t be in place for the dawn of the new fiscal year. It appears lawmakers will be asked to vote on the bill with little time to review it.

The plan includes provisions aimed at cracking down on the use of electronic benefit cards for the purchase of alcohol, tobacco and lottery tickets, It also preserves a health insurance program for about 19,000 legal immigrants, at a cost of $42 million.

Stripped from the budget during negotiations were a House-passed repeal of a ban on gifts from pharmaceutical companies to doctors, a Senate-passed proposal to sharply restrict the use of aversive therapy for certain developmentally disabled residents and the repeal of a policy that levies triple damages on employers who fail to pay wages on time.

Stripped from the budget during negotiations were a House-passed repeal of a ban on gifts from pharmaceutical companies to doctors, a Senate-passed proposal to sharply restrict the use of aversive therapy for certain developmentally disabled residents and the repeal of a policy that levies triple damages on employers who fail to pay wages on time.

If the House and Senate pass the proposal during Friday sessions, as expected, Gov. Deval Patrick will have 10 days to review the bill before signing it, announcing vetoes and proposing amendments to various policy areas he wishes to adjust.

The compromise budget would be the largest in state history and is based on expected tax collections base of $20.525 billion. That figure represents an increase of more than $700 million over the current fiscal year but still falls short of the state's tax take three years ago, prior to the recession. The budget was crafted without $1.5 billion in federal aid that lawmakers and the governor relied on in fiscal 2011.

The proposal relies on a $185 million draw from the state’s rainy day fund, leaving the account at about $584 million. It also cuts services and depends squeezing $800 million in health care cost growth by cutting and capping certain provider rates, slashing some Medicaid benefits and raising co-pays, streamlining Medicaid programs, and seeking $351 million in savings through contracts for Medicaid, Commonwealth Care and Group Insurance Commission health plans.

The budget plan includes $3.99 billion in education aid to cities and towns, an uptick in the state's commitment but an overall reduction when the loss of federal aid is taken into account. Unrestricted local aid would come in at $834 million, a $65 million decrease that lawmakers hope will be replenished by returning unspent funds – known as reversions – back to cities and towns.

The bill includes a $90 million uptick in a special education circuit breaker, as well as a $3 million increase in the regional transportation account.

The Patrick administration and lawmakers have also cheered what they have described as the elimination of a persistent structural deficit – caused largely by an annual reliance on onetime sources of revenue and an unchecked use of capital gains taxes – that has forced policymakers to close budget gaps each year with new revenues or revenue grabs, spending cuts or withdrawals from the rainy day fund.

Michael Widmer, president of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, said the near-elimination of the structural deficit could help lawmakers begin to restore funds for programs that have taken deep cuts throughout the recession, or cover unanticipated costs in programs like Medicaid.

The negotiated budget includes a compromise between competing House and Senate versions of a plan to restructure the state’s public counsel program for the indigent, which had seen its costs increase throughout the economic downturn and forced lawmakers to plug gaps in the program’s funding.

The pact would reduce the state’s reliance on privately funded defense counsel, requiring 25 percent of cases that involve indigent defense be handled by defenders on the public payroll, up from the current 10 percent. The plan also requires the Committee on Public Counsel Services, which oversees the state’s program of indigent defense, to apply a new set of standards to verify whether applicants for public defense are truly indigent. At budget hearings, critics said indigency verification efforts were weak.

The compromise budget represents a series of decisions by the six-member conference committee, which met privately for most of June to merge the House and Senate versions of the budget into one agreed-upon plan. The final report of the conference committee cannot be amended when it comes to the floor, and members will likely be asked Friday for an up or down vote on the plan. Since the respective House and Senate fiscal 2012 budgets passed this year with bipartisan support, the conference budget is expected to pass.