The Holyoke City Council's granting of a Florida company's zone-change withdrawal lets the company rework its plan to convert the former Lynch School into a retail site.

HOLYOKE -- The City Council voted 14-0 Tuesday to let a Florida company withdraw its request for a zone change related to developing the former Lynch School.

The step at City Hall lets Frontier Development of Miami rework its plan to convert the site at Northampton and Dwight streets into a retail use that won't include a CVS pharmarcy as a tenant, though inclusion of the CVS wasn't the only objection of councilors and others on the project.

Councilor David K. Bartley, chairman of the council's Development and Government Relations Committee, said Frontier Development has an agreement with the city to buy the property from the city for $750,000 that expires Dec. 11.

Before the meeting, lawyer Thomas N. "Toby" Wilson, who represents Frontier Development, said the company is studying its next moves regarding the former Lynch School site.

"They're just looking to regroup and kind of plan their next step," Wilson said.

Councilors Howard B. Greaney Jr. and Daniel B. Breshanan are among those who favor the City Council voting to restore Lynch School as a school facility possibly as the location of School Department headquarters. Lynch was last used a school property in 2008.

Among concerns of councilors and others was that the initial Frontier plan, which consisted of a CVS and a fast-food restaurant, would increase traffic at the busy intersection to the point of being a problem.

The company asked the City Council at the June 7 meeting to table an item related to the property on that night's agenda.

Tabling let Frontier Development avoid what was likely to be a rejection by the City Council of the zone-change request based on opposition to the CVS-fast-food restaurant plan.

The council's Ordinance Committee had voted 4-1 to recommend the full City Council reject the zone change request and other councilors had spoken against the plan.

Frontier Development needed Lynch School to be rezoned to a highway business zone from the current designation of residential single family to build the retail site.

The city has CVS stores at 400 Beech St. and 250 Whiting Farms Road. Putting a CVS at Northampton and Dwight streets would have produced three pharmacies at or near that intersection given the existing Walgreens and Rite Aid.

Additional coverage on the Lynch School issue in Holyoke will be published in the next week.

Kendall Hill, 29, will serve 57 months followed by three years of supervised release, according to federal prosecutors. He pleaded guilty in April.

SPRINGFIELD - A convicted felon found in possession of a firearm during an arrest last year has been sentenced to nearly five years in prison.

Kendall Hill, 29, will serve 57 months followed by three years of supervised release, according to the office of U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz.

Hill was arrested Sept. 21, 2015, in connection with a violent home invasion in Athens, Ga., in which guns were stolen. Police recovered a fully loaded .22 caliber Ruger pistol from a closet in his Beacon Circle home.

"Hill has an extensive, violent criminal history, including 2004 and 2005 firearms convictions in Massachusetts state courts and 2015 Massachusetts state convictions for breaking and entering and assault and battery," said federal prosecutors. "Hill was on probation for the 2015 cases at the time that he committed this federal offense."

He pleaded guilty in April.

The Holyoke City Council voted Tuesday to approve a $14,000 settlement to end a lawsuit from a woman who said she was hurt in a traffic accident after a former provisional fire chief had sent out a truck on a fake call to teach a few firefighters a lesson in 2011.

HOLYOKE -- The City Council Tuesday voted 12-1 to approve paying $14,000 to an Agawam woman for injuries she said she suffered in a vehicle accident after a former fire chief had dispatched a truck to a fake emergency to teach a few firefighters a lesson.

Marilyn Garcia had filed a lawsuit against the city June 10, 2014 in Hampden County Superior Court in Springfield that named former provisional fire chief William P. Moran and the city as defendants.

Garcia had sought payment of $257,667 to cover pain and suffering that included torso burns, a left knee injury, injury to lumbar spine and pain, numbness and dysfunction in lower extremities, according to the suit.

Assistant City Solicitor Kara Cunha discussed the settlement with the City Council Tuesday at City Hall (see below).

The accident occurred on June 15, 2011 just before 12:30 p.m. on Homestead Avenue near Pynchon Road.

Moran, who retired in November 2011, said in a May 2013 interview that he regretted making the phone call that cost him the job he loved. But he said one bad decision shouldn't be all that defines him or negate the positives of his 28-year career in firefighting.

Former Hampden District Attorney Mark G. Mastroianni sought a criminal complaint against Moran because he said sending a fire truck on a fake call jeopardized public safety.

Moran admitted April 5, 2012 in Springfield District Court there were sufficient facts to prove the charge he made the false fire call and he agreed to pay $500 in restitution.

Councilor at Large Peter R. Tallman abstained from voting on the settlement because of a personal matter.

Ward 3 Councilor David K. Bartley voted against the settlement.

Councilors who voted to approve the settlement were Jossie M. Valentin, Nelson R. Roman, Linda L. Vacon, Rebecca Lisi, Joseph M. McGiverin, Michael J. Sullivan, Diosdado Lopez, James M. Leahy, Todd A. McGee, Daniel B. Bresnahan, Howard B. Greaney Jr. and council President Kevin A. Jourdain.

Ward 1 Councilor Gladys Lebron-Martinez was absent.

Holyoke legal settlement:

Holyoke voters on Nov. 8 will get to vote whether the city should adopt the state Community Preservation Act, which would impose a surcharge on property taxpayers to raise funds to do open space, historic restoration and affordable housing projects.

HOLYOKE -- The City Council voted 11-3 at City Hall Tuesday to put a question on the Nov. 8 election ballot that will ask voters if they want the city to adopt the state Community Preservation Act.

Debate mirrored the clashes that have occurred in discussions over the past year about the Community Preservation Act (CPA) about whether the act is a helpful revenue stream or just another tax.

Adoption of the CPA would establish funding by assessing a surcharge on property owners which, combined with matching state money, could be used for projects related only to open space, historic restoration or affordable housing.

Specifically, the question would ask voters if they are agreeable to the city adopting the CPA that would impose a surcharge on property taxpayers of 1.5 percent of the tax bill they pay to the city.

Councilors made clear in the wording of the summary that will accompany the CPA question on the election ballot that the City Council vote to give voters a say on the CPA does not mean the board supports adopting the CPA.

Voting in favor of placing the CPA question on the ballot were Jossie M. Valentin, Nelson R. Roman, David K. Bartley, Rebecca Lisi, Joseph M. McGiverin, Michael J. Sullivan, Diosdado Lopez, James M. Leahy, Todd A. McGee, Peter R. Tallman and council President Kevin A. Jourdain.

Voting against placing the CPA question on the ballot were councilors Linda L. Vacon, Daniel B. Bresnahan and Howard B. Greaney Jr.

State law permits adoption of the CPA with a surcharge of 1 percent to 3 percent on a property tax bill. In other words, property owners would be charged an additional 1 percent to 3 percent of the tax bill that they pay to the city to fund the CPA.

But exemptions can reduce the burden such as excluding the first $100,000 of a property's value from the surcharge and providing exclusions for senior citizens and the poor.

CPA supporters said the key is cities and towns that adopt the act get matching money from the state that is otherwise unavailable to communities that fail to adopt the CPA.

Supporters said adopting the CPA would let the city complete projects it currently cannot afford.

Opponents of the city adopting the CPA said the measure is just another tax that strapped taxpayers here cannot afford. They also said the CPA is an unfair expense because only property owners would be paying more but the whole city would get the benefits.

Tuesday evening's Mega Millions drawing is giving those who bought a ticket a shot at one of the biggest lottery jackpots in U.S. history.

Tuesday evening's Mega Millions drawing is giving those who bought a ticket a shot at one of the biggest lottery jackpots in U.S. history.

Mega Millions

Here are the winning numbers in the drawing:

6-13-21-49-50; Mega Ball: 10; Megaplier: 5x

The estimated jackpot for the drawing is $333 million.

If no one wins, the Mega Millions jackpot will get even bigger for Friday's drawing.

According to the game's official website, the odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 258,890,850.

Players pick six numbers from two separate pools of numbers -- five different numbers from 1 to 75 and one number from 1 to 15 -- or select Easy Pick. A player wins the jackpot by matching all six winning numbers in a drawing.

Jackpot winners choose whether to receive 30 annual payments, each five percent higher than the last, or a lump-sum payment.

Mega Millions drawings are Tuesdays and Fridays and are offered in 44 states, Washington D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Tickets cost $1 each.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation says installation of metal gantries as part of its push toward all-electronic tolling starts late tonight in the Sumner and Callahan tunnels.

BOSTON - The Massachusetts Department of Transportation says the installation of vertical metal gantries, part of its push toward all-electronic tolling, starts late tonight in the Sumner and Callahan tunnels.

The work is set to continue during "off-peak hours" over the course of the next several days, the department said in a release.

The new tolling infrastructure is set to go live in October. New metal gantries have been built up and down the Massachusetts Turnpike.

The twin tunnels go under Boston Harbor.

The Sumner and Callahan tunnels will be tolled in both directions, instead of the current fare structure where a car traveling westbound with a E-ZPass transponder is hit with a $3.00 charge.

West and eastbound drivers will be charged $1.50 each way when all-electronic tolling is switched on, in order to keep the "revenue-neutral" pledge made by state transportation officials.

"Qualified drivers from East Boston, the North End and South Boston that have an E-Z Pass transponder will pay 20-cents as they enter and as they exit the tunnels," the department said in a release about the infrastructure work.

The gantries are meant to replace the toll plazas, which will be reconfigured after all-electronic tolling goes live.

New Mass. Pike all-electronic tolling: How it works

State transportation officials say the move to all-electronic tolling will reduce congestion, since drivers won't have to slow down as they do when going through the toll plazas.

Earlier this month, WBZ reported that Massachusetts Department of Transportation Highway Administrator Tom Tinlin apologized for failing to remind drivers the state would start tolling both the northbound and southbound sides of the Tobin Bridge, instead of just the southbound side.

Gov. Charlie Baker, speaking with reporters before Tinlin's apology, noted that the state had started conversations about two-way tolling in 2013 and said he felt it was hard to come up with a sensible argument to toll in only one direction.

What happens to the toll workers when all-electronic tolling is implemented?

A man from Rhode Island was injured on Tuesday after his vehicle crashed into

WRENTHAM — A man from Tiverton, Rhode Island, was injured on Tuesday afternoon, after he lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a road sign on Rt. 495 in Wrentham, according to Massachusetts State Police.

Police were dispatched to the crash site at roughly 7:25 p.m., where a vehicle had run off the road and crashed into a sign.

The road sign went through the car's windshield and struck the driver in the head, causing a head laceration, according to police.

A construction zone was directly ahead of the site of the crash, and traffic had been slow in the general area. Police believe the driver, who was operating a 2009 Toyota Corolla, realized too late that traffic was slowing, and attempted to slow but lost control of his vehicle, exited the road, and ran into the sign down, which then crashed into the car.

The driver was taken to Rhode Island Hospital, according to police.

James Villalobos, a Springfield native and broadcast journalism student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, is headed to Cleveland to report on the Republican National Convention.

SPRINGFIELD -- James Villalobos, a Springfield native and broadcast journalism student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, is headed to Cleveland to report on the Republican National Convention.

Villalobos was one of the two winners of "Crash the Parties," an initiative by the nonprofit group Voto Latino and the Fuse cable television network to send two young Latino journalists to cover the Republican and Democratic conventions this summer. Over 200 people applied for the positions.

"James is a stand-out in the journalism department here at UMass Amherst," UMass Amherst Journalism Department Chair Kathy Roberts Forde said in a press release. "He is an incredibly hard-working, energetic, bright and committed young journalist who has traveled to Ferguson, Baltimore and the White House on his own initiative to report on topics of national significance. And now he will be reporting on the Republican National Convention to help engage young American Latinos in the democratic process. We couldn't be more proud of him."

Villalobos, who previous reported from the scene of the 2014 Ferguson, Mo. protests for MassLive, will receive training and then file reports from the Republican National Convention from July 18 to July 21. His work will appear on Fuse's cable news programming and online, according to a press release.

Los Angeles based television host and actress Arlene Santana was the other winner of the contest, and will report for Fuse from the Democratic National Convention.

In an interview following his announcement as a finalist earlier this month, Villalobos said he was pleasantly surprised by the selection of his entry, which was one of 10 finalists chosen from among nearly 200 applicants by an internet vote. The two winners were chosen by a panel of judges.

"I never would have imagined it," he said.

Villalobos has long worked toward a career in broadcast journalism. He attended Forest Park Middle School and Central High School in Springfield, when he began writing for the Republican's now-defunct teen section "UNlisted."

As a senior in high school Villalobos was awarded the first Carl Joseph Walker-Hoover/Phoebe Prince scholarship by the Carl Joseph Walker-Hoover Foundation, a memorial scholarship funded by The Republican's Newspaper-in-Education program.

That class, with Central High School teacher Jim Adamopolous, led Villalobos to study broadcast journalism at UMass Amherst. Villalobos contributes to the Amherst Wire, a digital student publication, and will be a multimedia intern this summer at USA Today.

And he has reported from the White House three times: for the 2014 New England Patriots Super Bowl recognition ceremony, the White House's Easter Egg Roll this March and as part of a student journalist program last month.

Villalobos, who is of Costa Rican descent, said he plans to use the opportunity to report on issues important to Latino Americans, beyond the headline-grabbing focus on immigration.

Villalobos and Santana were chose by a panel of judges who included National Public Radio's Maria Hinojosa, Los Angeles Times Director of Multicultural Content Alejandra Campoverdi and MSNBC host Rachel Maddow.

A North Adams man has been arrested in connection with the armed robbery that took place at Quadlands Flowers & Gifts shop on Monday, according to police.

NORTH ADAMS — Authorities have arrested a man suspected of attempting to conduct an armed robbery at Quadlands Flowers & Gifts shop, according to the North Adams Police Department.

David Taylor, of North Adams, was taken into custody on Tuesday at approximately 5 p.m., after police found clothes matching the description of the perpetrator in Taylor's apartment, according to police.

Police say they also found a pellet gun in Taylor's apartment, which they believe he used to threaten the employees of the flower shop during the robbery.

The attempted robbery occurred on Monday morning at approximately 9:21 a.m. No one was injured during the incident, though police say the suspect brandished a gun that had been tucked in his waistband.

People at the scene described the suspect as a clean-shaven "white male," standing approximately 5'06" tall, with "light hair" that was styled in a buzz-cut, according to police. The suspect was allegedly last seen running east on Eagle St., while dressed in a dark blue shirt and gym shorts.

Police say that Taylor will be charged with assault with intent to rob a person over 60 years of aged while armed with a firearm, as well as being in possession of a firearm while committing a felony.

Knapik, a Republican, served 10 terms in the state Senate, then took a job at Westfield State University.

Former State Senator Michael Knapik, a Republican from Westfield, has been hired as the new director of Gov. Charlie Baker's Springfield office.

Knapik served n the state Senate for 18 years, beginning in 1995, and was a member of the powerful Ways and Means Committee.

He resigned in 2013 to take a job as director of advancement, alumni and university relations at Westfield State University. He is also executive director of Westfield State Foundation, the university's fundraising arm.

"With more than two decades of experience representing Western Massachusetts constituents, Mike is exceptionally qualified to lead our Springfield Office," Baker, a Republican, said in a statement. "Operating the office is one of the many essential tools we use to maintain an important relationship with the people, local leaders and municipalities of Berkshire, Franklin, Hampshire and Hampden Counties."

Michael KnapikDwight B. Shepard | dshepard@repub.com 

Knapik said in a statement that he is excited to join the administration. "Western Massachusetts has a lot to offer and I look forward to playing an active role in our communities and the overall conversation with the rest of Massachusetts on behalf of the administration," Knapik said.

Knapik spent 22 years in the Legislature, as a representative from 1991 to 1994 and then as a senator. He stepped down to take a position closer to home, citing a desire to spend more time with his family.

Baker plans to announce Knapik's hire during a visit to the governor's Dwight Street office on Thursday. Knapik will begin work July 5.

The director of the governor's Western Massachusetts office has traditionally served as a liaison between the governor and constituents in the four western counties. The director goes to events on behalf of the governor and does constituent services work.

Governors as far back as Gov. Michael Dukakis have maintained an office in Western Massachusetts, although the office was closed for several years under Gov. Mitt Romney due to budgetary constraints.

The Republican/MassLive.com reported earlier this week that Baker closed the office temporarily amid staffing changes. The former director, Ryan Chamberland, was moved to a job with the Massachusetts Department of Correction.

The office has been open between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Tuesdays for staff hours, with calls and emails being forwarded to the governor's Boston constituent services office. Administration officials could not immediately provide information about when or how those office hours would change once Knapik takes over the post.

Knapik could not immediately be reached Wednesday evening.

The news release purported to be from an announcement at the Ronald Reagan Library in California.

SPRINGFIELD -- Hackers distributed a fake news release Wednesday saying Springfield-based gunmaker Smith & Wesson was working with the NRA to "get guns into the hands of statistically under-armed Americans" through a "buy one, give one" program called "Share the Safety."

The fake press release identified those "under-armed" populations as ranging from "homosexuals to the elderly to besieged urban communities." 

Officials with both the NRA and Smith & Wesson on Wednesday afternoon said the release and associated websites were fake.

While Smith & Wesson supports -- and is supported by -- the National Rifle Association, the announcement is not real, said Smith & Wesson spokeswoman Elizabeth Sharp. NRA spokeswoman Jennifer Baker also confirmed the NRA was not behind the release.  

Other officilas with the NRA's press office said the organization was aware of the hoax and were investigating to find out who did it.

NRA officials said the organization's website was "skinned," meaning the individuals behind the hoax grabbed the framework of the NRA's website and used authentic-looking graphics in the hoax email.

The NRA said it has contacted its lawyers.

The news release purported to promote a program called "Share the Safety," described as a program allowing purchasers to "give a gun to an American in an at-risk neighborhood." 

The hoaxsters also set up a fake Twitter account.

The hoax hit email in boxes just as Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives, including Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield  and James McGovern, D-Worcster, had a sit-in on the floor of the House in the Capitol building in Washington in an attempt to force votes on gun control legislation. 

Downtown Springfield was rocking with the sounds of the Hart & Woody Group as visitors found their way to Tower Square Park during White Lion Wednesdays.

SPRINGFIELD -- Downtown Springfield was rocking with the sounds of the Hart & Woody Group as visitors found their way to Tower Square Park during White Lion Wednesdays.

The weekly event features food, beer, and live music and is presented from 4 to 8 p.m. The program will continue June 29 at The Shops at Marketplace, July 6 at One Financial Plaza, July 13 at Tower Square Park, July 20 at The Shops at Marketplace, July 27 at One Financial Plaza, Aug, 3 at Tower Square Park, Aug. 10 at The Shops at Marketplace, and finishing the season Aug. 17 at One Financial Plaza.

The Wednesday night events are part of the Springfield Business Improvement District, Northwestern Mutual, MassLive Media, and the White Lion Brewing Company.

For more events check out SpringfieldDowntown.com and the Springfield Business Improvement District.

Amanda Plasse, 20, was found stabbed to death on Aug. 26, 2011, in her third floor apartment at 73 School St.in Chicopee Watch video

SPRINGFIELD - Dennis Rosa-Roman watched another man kill Amanda Plasse, a defense lawyer told Hampden Superior Court jurors Wednesday in his opening statement.

Donald W. Frank, lawyer for the 24-year-old Rosa-Roman, said the defendant was in Plasse's apartment when she was killed. "He did not do it, but -- he knows the guy who did," Frank said.

Frank said his client was afraid of the man -- but that, after his arrest in 2013, Rosa-Roman "told police about this guy, this killer."

"He could have, but did not give up this guy's name," Frank said.

Plasse, 20, was found stabbed to death on Aug. 26, 2011, in her third floor apartment at 73 School St. Rosa-Roman, 24, has been held without right to bail since his arrest in November 2013 in connection with the killing.

Assistant District Attorney Karen J. Bell told jurors they will hear evidence such as the discovery of Rosa-Roman's DNA in scrapings from under Plasse's fingernails.

Other physical evidence tying Rosa-Roman to the crime, Bell said, includes a palm print investigators found on a broken porch window at Plasse's third-floor apartment, and a forensics expert's analysis of footprints found beside Plasse's body. Those footprints corresponded to a size 7 youth sneaker, Bell told the jury -- the size worn by Rosa-Roman.

Phone records will show Rosa-Roman called Plasse that summer, Bell said.

Bell told jurors they would also hear from Plasse's friends, including a woman named Mercedes Benz, whom Plasse had asked via text message for a ride to her job at Friendly's in Chicopee on Aug. 26, 2011.

But Plasse didn't come down to Benz's car. "Little did Mercedes Benz know that Amanda Plasse was lying in her kitchen on the floor, stabbed to death," Bell said.

The prosecution's evidence will also include photos of Plasse's kitchen. "You'll see pictures of the crime scene showing the struggle that occurred in the kitchen and how she was stabbed all over that kitchen," Bell said.

She said Rosa-Roman told four different stories to police, changing his story when police told him about evidence they had.

In one recounting, Rosa-Roman told police he went to Plasse's apartment and heard Plasse and a man yelling -- and that he "busted in to save her," Bell said.

In his final account to police, Bell said, Rosa-Roman told investigators he went to Plasse's apartment with his drug dealer, and that man killed her because she owed money for marijuana.

Frank, meanwhile, told jurors police failed to fully investigate a man matching the description of Plasse's killer that Rosa-Roman gave to police. While Rosa-Roman didn't identify the man, Frank said police already had a name: in November 2012, police received a tip from a man who said a fellow inmate confessed the killing to him.

Frank told jurors police didn't investigate the tip further -- despite the fact that the inmate who allegedly made the confession was serving a jail sentence for misleading police in the investigation of Plasse's killing.

That inmate, Frank told the jury, was charged and ultimately convicted after he called police, gave another man's name and confessed to the killing while pretending to be that man.

The trial continues Thursday in front of Judge Mark D. Mason.

Barnes Air National Guard Base in Westfield is being considered as a potential home for a set of fighter planes, according to Air Force officials.

WESTFIELD — Barnes Air National Guard Base is being considered as a potential base for a set of F-35A Joint Strike Fighters, according to Air Force officials.

A one-seat, single-engine fighter plane that can reach speeds of 1,200 mph, the F-35 is equipped with advanced sensors that allow it to "gather and distribute more information than any fighter in history," according to Lockheed Martin, the plane's creator.

Air Force officials will conduct "site surveys" at different air bases this summer as a means of assessing which bases will be the best fit for the planes.

The Air Force also recently released "basing criteria" that will be taken into consideration when determining which sites qualify for the F-35s. Officials will gauge factors like the weather and airspace surrounding potential bases, as well as sufficient hanger and ramp space and cost factors, to determine where the planes will eventually call home.

This is not the first time Barnes has been in the running as a possible site for F-35s. In 2008, the base's 104th Fighter Wing was also being considered as a potential home for the Joint Strike Fighter, as well as for the F-22 Raptor — another fighter plane that has been used often in missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Barnes also has a long history of hosting attack jets, including the A-10 Thunderbolt II, an aircraft largely used for close-air support of ground troops in combat.

Col. James Keefe, commander of the 104th, expressed the base's excitement at being considered for the basing of the new planes.

"We are excited to be on the list for the fifth-generation fighter like the F-35A or for a future-generation fighter," Keefe said in a statement. "We have the experience to excel at these future missions, as we have with the F-15 Eagle, and provide combat air power to our nation for years to come."

If chosen, Barnes would receive its first F-35s in the summer of 2022, according to officials.

The Forest Park Zoo will be closed on Friday if attempts to coax escaped monkey "Dizzy" back into his enclosure are unsuccessful, zoo officials say. Watch video

SPRINGFIELD — The Forest Park Zoo will be closed on Thursday if efforts to coax "Dizzy" the monkey back into his enclosure tonight are unsuccessful, zoo officials announced Wednesday evening.

Dizzy, an eight-year-old, 12-pound guenon monkey, escaped on Tuesday, after a zoo employee momentarily left the animal's enclosure to answer a question from a visitor. Though Dizzy remains inside the zoo, officials have been unable to convince him to return to his enclosure.

A number of strategies to lure the monkey back home, such as leaving out apricots – which Dizzy "loves" – have so far been unsuccessful.

Dizzy's mate – Mitzy – was also brought into their shared enclosure as a means of encouraging the monkey to return, but the strategy hasn't worked yet.

Zoo officials are optimistic, however.

"It's actually a really good sign that he's still in the zoo, because that means he wants to be back in his enclosure," said Meghan Rothschild, a board member for the Forest Park Zoological Association, which runs the zoo.

Rothschild noted that this has happened before at a number of other zoos, and that the monkeys tend to "hang out" for a little while, before returning to their enclosures. She also said that the Forest Park zoo has never had a problem with an animal getting loose before, and that this is a "unique" event.

When asked if Dizzy will be vulnerable to predators or hunger, Rothschild said that the biggest threat so far has been members of the public "spooking" the monkey and frightening him from returning to his home. Staff have been close to successfully catching Dizzy, only to have people try to involve themselves, which ends up "scaring" the monkey, Rothschild said.

There's little "fear of starvation," Rothschild said, as these kinds of monkeys eat leaves, berries, and insects.

Zoo staff say they are working "around the clock to return Dizzy" to his enclosure, and have reiterated that they appreciate the public giving them the space they need to bring the monkey home.

What started as a pedestrian stop in Harvey's Pebble Walk neighborhood ended in the fatal shooting of a Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office deputy Wednesday afternoon, a JPSO spokesman said. Watch video

HARVEY, La. -- What started as a pedestrian stop in Harvey's Pebble Walk neighborhood ended in the fatal shooting of a Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office deputy Wednesday afternoon, a JPSO spokesman said.

David F. Michel Jr. was repeatedly shot while on duty by the suspect near the intersection of Manhattan Boulevard and Ascot Road, JPSO spokesman Col. John Fortunato said.

The man was identified as Jerman Neveaux. Police said he had a .38-caliber revolver in his possession when he was apprehended.

Many people in nearby offices saw deputies swarm the area and Pebble Walk in search of the gunman as the Sheriff's Office's helicopter circled overheard. Authorities eventually caught the suspect during the manhunt. Fortunato said witness accounts indicate the suspect acted alone.

Michel was driving a department-assigned black Dodge Charger when he stopped the suspect, who was walking near Manhattan and Ascot, authorities said. It is not clear why Michel initiated the stop. Michel's vehicle was parked in the entrance to the parking lot of a strip mall in the 2400 block of Manhattan Boulevard.

JPSO cited witnesses who described seeing a scuffle erupt between Michel and the male suspect. At some point in their interaction, the suspect withdrew a gun from his waistband and repeatedly shot the deputy around 12:21 p.m. The suspect shot Michel three times in his back, the Jefferson Parish corner said. He then fled into Pebble Walk, Fortunato said.

"The suspect fired several shots, including when the officer was down," Fortunato said.

Minutes later, Michel, 50, was rushed to University Medical Center in New Orleans by ambulance. New Orleans Police Department spokesman Aaron Looney said NOPD aided JPSO in clearing the route by managing traffic for the deputy, who arrived at 12:45 p.m. Michel died from his injuries less than an hour later.

Victoria Le, whose office is in the Manhattan Boulevard strip mall adjacent to the shooting, said neither she nor her co-workers overheard the gunshots. She said they witnessed the rush of Sheriff's Office vehicles and sirens as deputies responded to help Michel. Some vehicles even sped through their parking lot, she said.

A swift reaction followed Michel's fatal shooting as law enforcement and the deputy's loved ones rushed to the hospital. Among those present was a sobbing woman related to Michel, said Rose Harper.

"It makes me want to cry," Harper said while leaving the emergency room.

Michel become a reserve deputy at JPSO in 2007 before a promotion to full-time deputy in 2014, JPSO said. Chief Deputy Craig Taffaro said he spoke with the deputy's father after the shooting, telling Taffaro that "as difficult as this is," his son was "doing what he loved to do."

Reporters Michelle Hunter, Jonathan Bullington and Emily Lane contributed to this report.

Two Springfield men who pleaded guilty to a 2015 home invasion were sentenced to seven years in prison this week.

HARTFORD, CT — Two men from Springfield were sentenced this week after both of them pleaded guilty to a 2015 home invasion, according to the Hartford Courant.

Clinton Mitchell, 29, and Michael Walters, 27, were both sentenced to seven years in prison, and five years of special probation, according to the paper.

Mitchell had previously pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree burglary, while Walters had pleaded guilty to second-degree burglary, as well as risk of injury to a minor.

Court records say that the two men broke into a home at 26 Walnut St. in Manchester in December, 2015. Though both Mitchell and Walters believed that the house was empty, two children – an 11-year-old girl and 12-year-old boy – were present at the time of the break-in.

The children apparently hid on the second floor of the house after they both heard the men breaking in.

At one point during the robbery the burglars even entered the room where the children were hiding, but were never aware that the children were there.

Eventually the children apparently called their mother, who then contacted the police. Officers then came to the site of the break-in, rescued the children, and discovered the two burglars hiding in the basement of the house. Police say one of the men was armed with a .22-caliber handgun, according to the paper.

The stunning and unruly scene was broadcast live to the world from Democrats' cellphones, feeds picked up by C-SPAN after Republicans shut down the network's cameras.

WASHINGTON -- Rebellious Democrats staged an extraordinary all-day sit-in on the House floor Wednesday to demand votes on gun-control bills, shouting down Speaker Paul Ryan when he attempted to restore order as their protest stretched into the night.

The stunning and unruly scene was broadcast live to the world from Democrats' cellphones, feeds picked up by C-SPAN after Republicans shut down the network's cameras.

The sit-in was well into its 10th hour, with Democrats camped out on the floor stopping legislative business in the House, when Ryan stepped to the podium to gavel the House into session and hold votes on routine business. Angry Democrats chanted "No bill, no break!" and waved pieces of paper with the names of gun victims, continuing their protest in the well of the House even as lawmakers voted on a previously scheduled and unrelated measure to overturn a veto by President Barack Obama.

Ryan attempted to ignore the outbursts and announce the business of the day, pounding down his gavel over shouting. "Shame! Shame! Shame!" Democrats yelled, but Ryan left the lectern and the voting continued. Then Democrats began singing "We Shall Overcome," still holding up the names of gun victims.

The scene presented a radical, almost shocking departure from the normal orderly conduct of the House. It was uncertain what would happen as the night stretched on. Republicans planned to attempt to adjourn the House, and hoped to present themselves as soberly attending to business and Democrats as disruptive. Democrats said they would stay until Republicans yielded to their demands to hold votes on bills to strengthen background checks and prevent people on the no fly list from getting guns.

"Are they more afraid than the children at Sandy Hook?" asked Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Calif., referring to the 2012 shooting that killed 26 people, including 20 elementary school children, in Newtown, Connecticut. "What is so scary about having a vote?"

Rep. John Lewis, a veteran civil rights leader, asked what Congress has done, then answered his own question: "Nothing. We have turned a deaf ear to the blood of innocents. We are blind to a crisis. Where is our courage?"

Ryan dismissed the protest as "nothing more than a publicity stunt," and in an interview with CNN, made clear there would be no vote.

"We're not going to take away a citizen's constitutional rights without due process," he said.

'Hippies in a '60s photo-op': Louisiana Republicans deride Democrat gun control sit-in

The protest began around 11:30 a.m., interrupted briefly when Rep. Ted Poe, R-Texas, tried to start the House's work at noon. The customary prayer and Pledge of Allegiance went ahead, but Poe was forced to recess the House when dozens of Democrats refused to leave the well.

By evening, 168 House Democrats -- out of 188 -- and 34 Senate Democrats joined the protest, according to the House minority leader's office. One after another, they spoke of the need for gun control and talked of constituents who had been killed.

Scattered around the House floor were signs reading "Disarm Hate." Visitors watched from the galleries. A crowd of several hundred gun control advocates gathered outside the Capitol and cheered as Democrats addressed them.

Congress remains gridlocked over gun control, a divide even more pronounced in a presidential election year. The sit-in had the feel of a 1960s-style protest, as some lawmakers sat on the floor, others in their seats.

Republicans had staged a similar protest in 2008. Democrats controlling the House at the time turned off the cameras amid a GOP push for a vote to expand oil and gas drilling. Republicans occupied the floor, delivering speeches after then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi sent the House on its August recess. Pelosi ordered the cameras turned off.

Republicans ultimately forced the drilling provision to be attached to a stopgap spending bill.

Alabama Congressman Gary Palmer calls House Democrats sit-in on gun control 'attempt to distract'

C-SPAN, a cable and satellite network that provides continual coverage of House and Senate floor proceedings, does not control the cameras. They're run on authorization by legislative leaders.

Although the cameras were turned off Wednesday, lawmakers relied on social media to transmit video, using Facebook, Twitter and Periscope. C-SPAN broadcast live video streamed on Periscope and Facebook from lawmakers' accounts. Democrats posted the Capitol's main telephone number, which was overwhelmed, and urged constituents to call and request a vote. They also encouraged tweeting under the hashtag #NoBillNoBreak.

Democratic senators joining the protest included Minority Leader Harry Reid, Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Chris Murphy, D-Conn., who had waged a nearly 15-hour filibuster last week to force votes in the Senate on gun legislation. Those votes failed Monday night.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Samuel Dorman and Michael Hixon hurt Troy Dumais' historic Olympic bid Wednesday. Dorman and Hixon finished the men's synchro 3-meter with a final score of 1,308.36 at the U.S. Olympic diving trials, taking the lone spot on the American team. Dumais and partner Kristian Ipsen, the 2012 bronze medalists in London, finished second at 1,260.34. In the...

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Samuel Dorman and Michael Hixon hurt Troy Dumais' historic Olympic bid Wednesday.

Dorman and Hixon finished the men's synchro 3-meter with a final score of 1,308.36 at the U.S. Olympic diving trials, taking the lone spot on the American team. Dumais and partner Kristian Ipsen, the 2012 bronze medalists in London, finished second at 1,260.34.

In the night's only other event, Indiana University teammates Jessica Parratto and Amy Cozad earned their Olympic spot by winning the women's synchro 10-meter with a score of 935.76. Samantha Bromberg and Delaney Schnell were second at 846.42.

Dumais will have one more chance to become the first American male diver to make five Olympic teams Saturday in the 3-meter final, but he'll need to make up a 110-point difference to qualify.

If Dumais does not rally over the weekend, it will be the first time in two decades he will not be part of the American team. The 36-year-old Californian also is trying to become oldest American male diver to make the team in more than a century.

But Dorman and Hixon took advantage of their more difficult dives in last weekend's preliminary and semifinal rounds, putting Dumais and Ipsen in a 56.52-point hole coming into the finals.

While Dumais and Ipsen performed better Wednesday, they couldn't cut into the lead.

"It's tough," Dumais said, his voice cracking. "I didn't know if I was going to be able to dive with the shoulder (injury). I never wanted to let Kristian down. I'm not that kind of athlete."

The synchro teams matched one another's scores through each of the first two rounds and even a splashy third-round dive from the Olympic veterans only netted them a gain of 2.01. Dumais and Ipsen never got any closer as the 24-year-old Dorman, a Miami resident, and the 21-year-old Hixon, a student at Indiana University, pulled away.

Both will make their first Olympic appearance in Rio.

Hixon will be surrounded by some familiar first-time Olympians. Parratto still competes for the Hoosiers, and Cozad graduated from Indiana in 2013.

Parratto and Cozad, like Dorman and Hixon, never allowed it to get close.

Instead, they padded the 41.28-point lead they built in prelims and semis and were so far ahead at the end of the night they didn't have to attempt their final dive, which produced a score of 69.12.

Two people who fell ill while working at the U.S. research station at the South Pole have been evacuated by a small plane that made the daring rescue flight in Antarctica's harsh winter.

SANTIAGO, Chile -- Two people who fell ill while working at the U.S. research station at the South Pole have been evacuated by a small plane that made the daring rescue flight in Antarctica's harsh winter.

The National Science Foundation said the two workers arrived safely late Wednesday in Punta Arenas, the southernmost city in Chile, after a long trip from the Amundsen-Scott station at the South Pole. They stopped for a few hours at a British station on the edge of Antarctica to be put on another plane.

"From Punta Arenas, the two patients aboard will be transported to a medical facility that can provide a level of care that is not available at Amundsen-Scott," said a statement on the National Science Foundation's Facebook page.

The two were taken to a clinic in Punta Arenas, but it wasn't clear if that was the facility the foundation referred to.

The foundation, which runs Amundsen-Scott and two other centers in Antarctica, said it was not disclosing the location of the medical facility. It also did not identify the sick workers or give their conditions, citing medical privacy. They were described only as seasonal employees of Lockheed Martin, which is the prime contractor for operations and research support for the foundation's Antarctic program.

In a hectic two days of flying, the rescue team flew 3,000 miles roundtrip from Britain's Rothera station to the South Pole and returned to Rothera with the sick workers Wednesday afternoon, said Peter West, spokesman for the National Science Foundation. The workers were transferred to a second Canadian-owned Twin Otter plane for the flight to Punta Arenas.

At Rothera, the temperature was a balmy 27.5 degrees (minus 2.5 Celsius) Wednesday afternoon. That was toasty compared to the South Pole where it was minus 75 (minus 60 Celsius) in the morning.

A worker from the U.S. South Pole Amundsen-Scott station arrives at a clinic in Punta Arenas, Chile, on Wednesday, June 22, 2016. A small plane with two sick U.S. workers arrived safely in Chile after leaving Antarctica in a daring rescue mission from the remote South Pole research station, officials said. (AP Photo/Joel Estay)
 

Before they left, there were 48 people -- 39 men and nine women -- at the Amundsen-Scott station for the winter.

Normally planes don't go to the U.S. polar outpost from February to October because of the dangers of flying in the pitch-dark and cold. The first day of winter in the Southern Hemisphere was Monday -- the sun will not rise at the South Pole until the first day of spring in September.

Steve Barnet, who works with a University of Wisconsin astronomy team at the polar station but is in the U.S. now, lauded the rescue crew.

"The courage of the pilots to make the flight in extremely harsh conditions is incredible and inspiring," Barnet wrote in an email.

The extreme cold affects a lot of things on planes, including fuel, which needs to be warmed before takeoff, batteries and hydraulics, West said. The Twin Otter can fly in temperatures as low as minus 103 degrees (minus 75 degrees Celsius), he said.

"The air and Antarctica are unforgiving environments and punishes any slackness very hard," said Tim Stockings, operations director for the British Antarctic Survey. "If you are complacent it will bite you."

"Things can change very quickly down there" with ice from clouds, high winds and snow, he said.

The station has a doctor and a physician's assistant and is connected to doctors in the U.S. for consultation, West said, but sometimes workers need medical care that can't be provided at the South Pole. There have been three emergency evacuations from Amundsen-Scott since 1999.

The 1999 flight, which was done in Antarctic spring during slightly better conditions, rescued the station's doctor, Jerri Nielsen, who had breast cancer and had been treating herself. Rescues also were done in 2001 and 2003, both for gallbladder problems.

Scientists have had a station at the South Pole since 1956. It does astronomy, physics and environmental science with telescopes, seismographs and instruments that monitor the atmosphere. The foundation runs two other research stations in Antarctica.