Cunningham and Hoyle were arraigned in Northampton District Court on a charge of witness intimidation in connection with an ongoing grand jury investigation, according to an assistant attorney general.

NORTHAMPTON -- Rex W. Cunningham and his co-defendant in a 1990s loan-sharking case found themselves co-defendants once again after arrests for witness intimidation on Thursday.

Cunningham, 65, and Brian Hoyle, 58, both of Springfield, pleaded not guilty to the charge in Northampton District Court on Friday afternoon. Both appeared in court in handcuffs and shackles after being held behind bars overnight.

They were released on $20,000 cash bail for each.

Details of the allegations were unavailable as they related to witnesses in an ongoing grand jury investigation in Hampshire County, according to Assistant Attorney General Gina Masotta. Discussions about the underlying alleged facts were discussed in whispers at a sidebar conference with Northampton District Court First Justice W. Michael Goggins.

Masotta asked for $50,000 bail for each defendant, citing their extensive criminal histories and the nature of the instant charge against them. Masotta also did not disclose the nature of the grand jury investigation.

In April, however, Massachusetts State Police raided two Springfield bars with ties to Cunningham and Hoyle: O'Brien's Corner on Page Boulevard and the Blarney Stone on Carew Street. Police also raided the homes of Cunningham and Hoyle the same day.

Cunningham spent 16 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to racketeering charges in 1998. Investigators said Cunningham, a former bar owner, bragged about his years of loan-sharking in concert with local Mafia members and once broke a man's arm after he fell behind in payments. He was released from prison in 2011 as he was jailed for some years before his plea. Cunningham spent three years on federal probation.

In addition, Hoyle and Cunningham were recruited by a third co-defendant, electrician Thomas Ferris, to collect about $21,000 in debts from customers. Hoyle was sentenced to 12 years in prison.

Cunningham's attorney, Daniel D. Kelly, asked that his client be released on $20,000 cash bail. Hoyle's defense attorney, Jeremy B. Powers, asked for the same.

Both lawyers said that despite their clients' long criminal histories, they had solid records of showing up for court dates.

"The only silver lining of having a record like this is the court does have a sense of the likelihood that the defendant will appear," Kelly said, also citing Cunningham's strong ties to the local community as a father of five children and grandfather of 13.

Powers echoed Kelly's argument.

"Mr. Hoyle's record is what it is, your honor. But he will appear in court," Powers said.

Goggins initially released the defendants on GPS bracelets and with a stay-away order from all potential witnesses against them. This was complicated slightly by the fact that Hoyle's live-in girlfriend and one of his longtime co-workers are witnesses in the case, according to Powers.

Hoyle is the entertainment director at O'Brien's Corner, Powers told the judge.

"Hmm, interesting. This is an interesting spot," Goggins said, before modifying the order to exclude co-workers and household members.

But then, Goggins vacated the stay-away orders altogether when the assistant attorneys general handling the cases left without providing the probation office with names and addresses of witnesses.

Kelly said he could not discuss details of the allegations since the reports were impounded by the court and grand jury proceedings are secret.

"The judge sealed the files so there's not much I can say about the facts, but my client is completely innocent," Kelly said.

Powers also maintained Hoyle is "100 percent innocent."

Both defendants were released before 4 p.m. on Friday.

"Say something nice about me," Cunningham joked to a reporter on the way out. "I'm always cheerful."

A pretrial hearing has been scheduled for Oct. 6.

Franklin County, hit hard by the opioid crisis, has seen sharply rising levels of hepatitis C.

Following a yearlong discussion, the Greenfield Board of Health this week approved a needle exchange and harm reduction program.

The board will send notice to the state Department of Public Health so it can solicit bids from organizations to run the service, reports the Greenfield Recorder.

An amendment to the fiscal 2017 state budget explicitly gave local health boards the power to approve needle exchanges, clearing up any confusion over whether Town Council approval was needed as well.

The proposal was introduced amid rising levels of hepatitis C infection in Franklin County, attributed to the sharing of dirty needles by drug users.

The goal of the program is to reduce the spread of disease and provide a place for health workers to connect addicts with services. A needle exchange provides a safe places for intravenous drug users to turn in dirty needles and receive clean ones.

In contrast to controversy in Holyoke, where opponents argued that the program will encourage drug use, the Greenfield proposal found favor with town officials. In March a judge ruled the Holyoke program could no longer be funded with state money because it was established without a City Council vote. The program run by Tapestry Health has stayed open and is seeking alternative funding.

Since needle exchanges were legalized in 1993, programs were established in Boston, Cambridge, Northampton, Cape Cod, Holyoke and Worcester.
Western Mass News - WGGB/WSHM

Tonight's Movie Night at Szot Park featuring "The Good Dinosaur" has been postponed due to the inclement weather forecast for this evening.

CHICOPEE — Tonight's Movie Night at Szot Park featuring "The Good Dinosaur" has been postponed due to the inclement weather forecast for this evening.

The movie, sponsored by Chicopee Savings Bank, will be shown on Saturday, Aug. 27.

For further information, contact Rich Maciolek at 413-594-3481.

A severe thunderstorm warning has been issued for Central Berkshire County, according to the National Weather Service.

A severe thunderstorm warning has been issued for a number of counties in Western Massachusetts, including Western Hampshire County, Northwest Hampden County, and West Central Franklin County, according to the National Weather Service (NWS) based in Taunton.

The storms are expected to continue until roughly 6:00 p.m., according to the NWS.

The storms were detected by radar at approximately 5:16 p.m, traveling in a line that extended from Adams to Pittsfield, moving east at 30 mph.

The storms could be accompanied by 60 mph wind gusts, and could damage roofs, down trees, and cause other domestic damage, according to the NWS.

Areas such as Southampton, Shelburne, Worthington, and Plainfield, among others, will likely be affected.

Additionally, thunderstorms will hit Central Berkshire County at approximately the same time, with storms expected to affect Lenox, Lee, and Becket, as well as several other communities.

The NWS suggests moving into an interior room in the lower floor of a building as a cautionary measure if weather appears particularly hazardous.

With 12,500 employees, Baystate is the region's largest employer.

This story follows: Facing budget gap of $75 million, Baystate Health to eliminate about 300 positions

SPRINGFIELD -- Massachusetts Medicaid officials are devising a new plan for reimbursing hospitals in the state for the care they provide to the poor -- a new plan that looks at population health, emphasizes prevention and rewards doctors and nurses for avoiding procedures and being efficient.

"But that won't be in place until 2018," said Baystate Health President and CEO Mark Kerouac. "And I have four weeks."

That is when Keroack has to present a budget proposal to Baystate trustees for the new fiscal year that starts in October. He has to close a $75 million budget gap left in part by a shortfall in Baystate's Medicaid reimbursement. The shortfall is also partly the result of $35 million in missing federal payments caused by an accounting error at a small Nantucket Hospital, and by prescription drug costs that went up 7 to 9 percent in the last year.

Cost cutting in recent months -- including layoffs and other efficiency moves at the Baystate Visiting Nurses Association, Baystate Mary Lane Hospital in Ware, Baystate Wing in Palmer, Baystate Franklin Medical Center in Greenfield and Baystate Noble in Westfield -- made up some $40 million of that $75 million, leaving a $35 million gap.

"(Baystate board members) have an expectation that we have a disciplined and financially responsible operation," he said. "And if we are not financially healthy, we won't be here."

Baystate needs to have a 2 to 3 percent operating margin to keep its good bond rating and have money on hand for capital investments in buildings and equipment, he said.

On Friday, Keroack announced to Baystate employees that he'd ordered top managers to cut another $20 million in order to get Baystate's expenses within a reasonable range to help close the gap and get that margin in the 2 to 3 percent range. That $20 million cut translates into into about 300 layoffs.

The layoffs will occur over the next four weeks. Employees have not yet been told specifically who will go and who will stay.

With 12,500 employees, Baystate is the region's largest employer. 

Kerouac said the layoffs will be mostly in Springfield operations and mostly in support services -- like finance and marketing -- and not in clinical care areas.

"I don't think I'm cutting into fluff here," Keroack said. "But I don't want to cut into patient-facing areas because that might impact patient care. I won't do that."

He said patient-care departments will be asked to match their payroll expense with the national average for those departments for medical centers similar to Baystate. Support departments will be asked to match their payroll expense with similar departments around the country that are among the 25 percent lowest-cost in the country.

That is, when the cuts are done, 75 percent of the support departments at medical centers around the country will spend more on staffing than those departments at Baystate.

"It's hard," Kerouac said. "I wish it wasn't like this. I wish i didn't have to do it at all."

But he thinks this is the fairest way to cut back.

"I didn't want to do the across-the-board thing," Kerouac said. "Because that punishes those departments who are efficient."

When the Massachusetts Legislature last October passed a $328 million budget bill to close out the fiscal year, it didn't include a financial stipend for Baystate that hospital officials had asked for.

Then in April, Baystate asked the Legislature for $10 million to help patch an anticipated shortfall, which hospital officials warned at the time could lead to around 200 layoffs. Lawmakers in the House later approved a $1 million earmark for Baystate, but that was one of the spending items vetoed by Gov. Charlie Baker.

The earmark was among the vetoes overridden by the Legislature, which means that Baystate is poised to receive the $1 million.

"We are happy for the $1 million," Keroack said. "But UMass (Memorial Medical Center in Worcester) got $40 million. Mercy Medical Center got $14 million. And we serve three times as many people with Medicaid as Mercy." 

Medicaid is a federal-state program that provides health care to the poor. But it only pays about 70 cents on the dollar, leaving hospitals and other providers on the hook for 30 percent of the cost of caring for Meidcaid patients. Medicare payments generally leave a provider breaking even, Keroack said.

To help bridge that gap, the federal and state governments split the cost of payments, called DSTI (Delivery System Transformation Initiatives), to hospitals that have a large number of Medicaid patients and a small number of patients with commercial insurance. 

But Baystate has too high a percentage of Medicare recipients to qualify. The money from the state budget would have replaced the DSTI.

Baystate has already laid off more than 100 workers thus far in 2016, usually in small groups. These layoffs have come as a result of consolidating visiting nurse associations and operations at Mary Lane, Wing and Noble. Keroack said he's counted those savings in the $40 million he lopped off the $75 million shortfall before announcing Friday's cutbacks.

Baystate took over the formerly independent Noble Hospital in 2015.

"We have been able to streamline some executive positions," Keroack said. "We were able to bring things under one set of management."

Savings associated with Baystate's plan to discontinue inpatient care at Mary Lane and move that operation to Baystate Wing in Palmer are already accounted for in the $40 million in savings.

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health hearing to approve that switch isn't until later this month. Keroack expects the state to approve the consolidation   from Mary Lane to Wing.

The Massachusetts Nurses Association, a union representing 338 Baystate employees -- 118 at Noble, 207 at Franklin and 13 at the Visiting Nurses Association -- said any cuts to front-line staff are troubling. The union has opposed the Mary Lane-Wing consolidation. 

Nurses Association spokesman Joe Markman wrote:

Staff writer Shira Schoenberg contributed to this report.

Baystate Budget Memo by The Republican/MassLive.com on Scribd

"The DA's aware of the situation and it's under investigation," said Jim Leydon, public and media information director for District Attorney Anthony Gulluni.

AGAWAM — The Hampden District Attorney's office has declined to provide details of an incident involving a person who was allegedly injured after being taken into custody by Agawam police.

"The DA's aware of the situation and it's under investigation," Jim Leydon, public and media information director for District Attorney Anthony Gulluni, confirmed Friday.

A source with knowledge of the probe told The Republican that a "prisoner" was assaulted in the police station's booking area, but that information could not immediately be verified by authorities in Agawam. Mayor Richard Cohen and police Chief Eric Gillis did not respond to a request for comment Friday.

The source claimed the incident involved multiple officers and was captured on camera.

That it took Trump two days to walk back his widely debunked remark — and then walk back the walk-back — was worrying for Republicans who see such missteps as playing to Democrat Hillary Clinton's advantage.

By JOSH LEDERMAN, Associated Press

ERIE, Pa. -- It's the media's fault. That's out of context. Never said it in the first place.

Donald Trump's claim Friday that he was merely being "sarcastic" in accusing President Barack Obama of establishing a terrorist group was his latest attempt to blame others for the uproar over what he says. It's an instinct that Trump's opponents say a president can't possess. Some Republicans seem to have the same concern.

This time, it followed two days of critical headlines and Democratic outrage over Trump's claim that Obama was the "founder" of the Islamic State group. As Trump repeated the claim more than a dozen times, interviewers sought to ensure Trump wasn't being misconstrued. Surely, they offered, he meant Obama's policies had enabled the extremist group's rise.

"No, I meant he's the founder of ISIS. I do," Trump said, using one acronym for the group. (His remark comes at 15:26 of the interview .)

Then an about-face Friday. "THEY DON'T GET SARCASM?" he tweeted.

Ratings challenged @CNN reports so seriously that I call President Obama (and Clinton) "the founder" of ISIS, & MVP. THEY DON'T GET SARCASM?

-- Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 12, 2016

Or was he being sarcastic about the sarcasm? Hours later, he told a rally in Pennsylvania he was "obviously being sarcastic -- but not that sarcastic, to be honest with you."

Ryan Williams, a Republican strategist who advised Mitt Romney's 2012 campaign, said there's a common-sense playbook for dealing with political slip-ups: "Stop the bleeding and put it behind you by apologizing.

"That's what normal candidates do," he went on. "However, normal candidates don't careen from one self-inflicted wound to another on an hourly basis."

It was only two days earlier that Trump blamed the media for making much ado about nothing after he suggested during a rally that gun rights enthusiasts might find a way to stop Clinton if elected.

Clinton, whose lead over Trump has widened in recent polls of the most competitive states, has seized on those and other eyebrow-raising comments to portray the reality TV star as lacking the temperament to run the nation -- Trump has his own argument for why she's unfit to do so. She's hammered him for avoiding accountability for his actions.

To that end, Clinton's campaign on Friday intensified pressure on Trump to release his tax returns, while disclosing her 2015 filings and a decade of returns from her running mate. The filing shows that the Clintons earned $10.6 million and paid a federal tax rate of 34.2 percent last year.

Trump has refused to make his filings public, saying they're under audit by the Internal Revenue Service and he'll release them only once that review is complete. All major U.S. presidential candidates in modern history have released their returns.

Minutes after releasing her returns, Clinton tweeted that it's possible Trump paid no tax at all.

Trump worked to profit on the fuss over his Islamic State remark. In an email to supporters asking them to donate, Trump accused the "liberal media" of telling "outrageous lies about me."

It's no surprise that the media are Trump's go-to scapegoat. Just 6 percent of Americans said they have a great deal of confidence in the media in a Media Insight Project poll earlier this year.

Trump says Obama-ISIS claims were sarcastic, blames media for taking him seriously

Almost never does Trump admit error. One exception came this month when he acknowledged a video he said showed a plane carrying U.S. cash to Iran was actually a plane carrying U.S. hostages who were being released.

Most of the time, Trump casts blame elsewhere:

STAR OF DAVID: In July, Trump's campaign tweeted an anti-Clinton message that seemed to show the Star of David atop a pile of cash, raising questions about anti-Semitism. When Clinton's campaign cried foul, Trump blamed her for trying to "divert attention from the dishonest behavior of herself and her husband." Also, the media.

PAGING MOSCOW: Last month Trump caused a stir in a news conference by saying "Russia, if you're listening, I hope you're able to find the 30,000 emails" missing from Clinton. Even some Republicans questioned whether he was encouraging a foreign government to interfere in the election. Trump's response later? "Of course, I'm being sarcastic."

CRIMEA RIVER: Heads spun in the foreign policy world when Trump said this month that Russia wouldn't enter Ukraine, seemingly unaware it already had. When an interviewer pointed out Russia had annexed Crimea, Trump said he meant Russia wouldn't dare go farther if he were president. He insisted he'd said nothing incorrect.

ABOUT SADDAM: In July, Trump said former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein was "so good" at killing terrorists. He also suggested the Mideast would be more stable were Saddam still in power. He took offense that his comments were interpreted as praise for Saddam.

A man from Everett pleaded guilty in Boston to a murder-for-hire plot on Friday.

BOSTON — A man from Everett pleaded guilty Friday in U.S. District Court in Boston to charges that he plotted to murder a man for money.

Joseph Burke, 52, pleaded guilty to planning a murder, which he discussed with an undercover federal agent (UC) during a series of meetings.

During one of the meetings, Burke expressed to the UC that he was in need of money and would be willing to commit murder for compensation. In another discussion, Burke reportedly told the agent "You might know some rich people who want to get out of a marriage." Later, Burke came to an agreement with the agent that he would murder a man who the agent had told him was causing problems.

The agent and Burke met several times to discuss how the murder would be carried out – had several meetings to discuss the logistics of the murder, including where Burke would do it, the disguise he would wear, and Burke's compensation for the murder.

Burke described, in profanity-laced detail, how he would commit murder.

"I'm gonna [expletive] shoot him in the head. . . . gonna hit him right in the [expletive] derby," Burke reportedly said.

Later, Burke claimed that he would shoot the man in the chest and then, "stick [the gun] in his mouth . . [and] say, 'Listen, this is for [the UC].'"

For these charges, Burke could receive up to 10 years in prison, as well as three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000.

The acceptance of Burke's guilty plea has been deferred until the date of his sentencing.

If Burke's plea is accepted, he will be sentenced to 90 months in prison.

Burke is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov.15.

A federal magistrate judge said she will issue separate rulings on pretrial detention for each of five reputed local organized crime figures under indictment for extortion and loan-sharking.

SPRINGFIELD -- Five reputed organized crime associates from Greater Springfield will remain behind bars in a Rhode Island prison over the weekend as a federal magistrate judge mulls whether to grant them pretrial freedom.

During a detention hearing that spanned two days and included more than five hours of testimony and arguments, U.S. Magistrate Judge Katherine Robertson now must decide whether the defendants are too dangerous to be released pending trial.

Arrested on Aug. 4 were were Ralph Santaniello, 49, Giovanni "Johnny Cal" Calabrese, 53, and Gerald Daniele, 51, all of Longmeadow, along with Francesco "Frank" or "Sammy Shark" Depergola, 60, of Springfield, and Richard Valentini, 51, of East Longmeadow. They had been under investigation by the Massachusetts State Police, Hampden County district attorney's office and the FBI.

All pleaded not guilty to extortion- and loan sharking-related charges.

Testimony from an FBI agent and video and audio recordings played in court portrayed Santaniello and Calabrese -- and Depergola and Valentini to a lesser extent -- strong-arming a local tow company operator into paying a $20,000 "street tax."

The businessman, identified only as Victim One in court, previously paid tribute to slain mob boss Adolfo "Big Al" Bruno before Bruno's 2003 murder.

Santaniello and Calabrese showed up at the man's property on Sept. 30, 2013, to demand that Victim One resume payments and pay what they regarded as 10 years of arrears, according to testimony. Santaniello emphasized his demand by slapping the man in the face and threatening to behead him and bury his body on his property.

Victim One went to the state police with a bruised face and fat lip, and agreed to make audio and video recordings of eight subsequent meetings in October and November of that year. He paid the defendants off with $20,000 in cash supplied by the government.

Snippets of the recordings played in the courtroom revealed shades of Mafia stereotypes: paranoia, albeit justified, over law enforcement surveillance, threats of violence for lack of submission, and declarations of having public officials in their pockets.

Santaniello appeared the lead bully in the alleged scheme, delivering the smack that sent Victim One to police and later alleging he could make inroads with state officials and Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno to secure towing contracts. Sarno called the suggestion "preposterous."

Calabrese often acted as Santaniello's wingman, according to investigators, driving around in his Braman pest control truck to collect payments and reaffirm threats if Victim One did not comply.

Depergola, according to the recordings, acted as the elder statesman, encouraging Victim One to pay the money because his cohorts were "vindictive mother-------."

Valentini appeared in just one recording and was mostly silent, his large frame a suggestion of what could be, Marianne Shelvey, a trial attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice, told Robertson.

"The mob flourishes with the use of intimidation and threats of violence. ... That's who these men are," Shelvey said during her final argument to keep the defendants detained. "This is the culture these men have volunteered to associate themselves with."

During cross-examination of FBI Agent Robert Zanolli -- the government's sole witness during the detention hearing -- defense attorneys attempted to disassociate their clients from the New York-based Genovese crime family and shred the credibility of government witnesses.

Victim One, Santaniello defense lawyer Daniel D. Kelly pointed out, was a former Springfield police officer fired in 2002 over an insurance scam.

Victim Two was an alleged offshore betting debtor to Daniele, who admittedly was once an alcohol, drug and gambling addict.

Defense lawyer Michael Entin picked at the scabs of Victim Two's troubled past and tried to goad Zanolli into detailing all the witness' past arrests for drug possession, theft and credit card fraud.

"This is the man we're supposed to believe?" Entin asked.

Victim Two went to police months after Daniele showed up at his place of employment suggesting they "slug it out" over a $4,700 debt, according to court records. Calabrese resumed responsibility for collections, according to the prosecution.

"Gerald Daniele was smart; he took a step back," Shelvey said in court, adding that the men all worked in concert to perpetuate the intimidating legacy of the New York-based Genovese crime family, which has long had a foothold in Western Massachusetts.

Depergola and Santaniello also were named in a 40-defendant racketeering indictment out of lower Manhattan issued Aug. 4.

Zanolli said those two defendants were under consideration to become "made men," or sanctioned members of the crime family, until New York higher-ups "closed the books" on new sponsorships.

In terms of their pretrial release, defense lawyers argued their clients posed no flights risks and did not fit the "special subset" of dangerous defendants who needed to be held behind bars.

All have prior criminal histories, some dating back further than others. Daniele had seven restraining orders filed by five women, Shelvey said. But Entin said the last was seven years ago and prompted Daniele's longtime girlfriend to stand in court and smile, declaring theirs a "wonderful relationship."

Calabrese was the only defendant to have steady employment. He also owns a home and lives with his wife and two children. He has been a devoted member of Alcoholics Anonymous for two decades, defense lawyer Jeremy B. Powers told Robertson.

"He is a leader in the sober community," Powers said.

Defense lawyer Jared Olanoff told Robertson that Valentini was a fringe player who never leveled threats and had limited association with his co-defendants. "There's not a whole lot to talk about," Olanoff said.

At the close of the hearing, Robertson said she had a lot of evidence to review and anticipated issuing separate rulings on each defendant's fitness for pretrial release by Tuesday.

"There's not much to go on. He's not cooperating," Springfield Police Lt. Mark Roland said of the gunshot victim, whose injuries were not believed to be life-threatening.

SPRINGFIELD — One man was injured and two homes were damaged after shots rang out in the city's Bay neighborhood Friday afternoon, according to preliminary police reports.

Springfield Police Lt. Mark Roland said the victim, who's not cooperating with authorities, sustained non-life-threatening injuries in the incident, which remains under investigation. Anyone with information is asked to call detectives at 413-787-6355.

"There's not much to go on," Roland said.

Officers responded to a 2:53 p.m. report of gunfire in the area of 89 Cambridge St., after a 911 caller reported hearing up to five shots between that location and nearby Oak Grove Cemetery.

Two minutes later, police responded to 180 Oak Grove Ave., the street immediately east of Cambridge, after someone found a bullet hole in the home's rear wall.

By 2:59 p.m., police confirmed that 89 Cambridge St. had also been struck by gunfire. "This house here has holes in it, too, so this is all one thing," an investigating officer said.

Officers also checked out 77 Cambridge St., where they reportedly found the gunshot victim just after 3 p.m. Police did not indicate the location of the man's wounds.

During the course of the investigation, a ranking officer radioed dispatch to find out "what's going on with ShotSpotter," the city's gunshot locator system, because none of the shots were detected by the audio surveillance network.

MAP showing approximate area where shooting victim was located:

A woman and her dog were injured during a rollover crash in Whately on Friday afternoon, according to 22 News.

WHATELY — A woman and her dog were injured during a rollover crash on I-91 in Whately on Friday afternoon, according to Channel 22.

The woman, a 29-year-old from New Hampshire, was apparently headed south in a van on I-91 when the vehicle somehow crashed. Police reportedly found the van on its roof in the median of the highway.

Sgt. Ruyffelaert of the Massachusetts State Police said that the woman was "complaining of neck and back injuries, and was taken to Baystate," according to the news site.

The dog, which suffered "unspecified injuries," was transported to the Deerfield Animal Hospital for treatment.

One lane of I-91 was closed while officials cleared the scene and allowed the wrecked vehicle to be secured onto a loading truck.

An Uber driver has been charged with raping a 16-year-old girl from Everett, according to The Boston Globe.

MALDEN — An Uber driver is charged with raping a 16-year-old girl from Everett that he met through the driving company, according to The Boston Globe.

Darnell K. Booth, 34, was charged in Malden District Court on Thursday afternoon, and pleaded not guilty.

Police allege that Booth, who has a history of criminal offenses, met the girl while driving for Uber, before sexually assaulting her on July 5, according to the paper.

After meeting the girl during their ride together, Booth added the girl as a friend on Snapchat, according to Assistant District Attorney Carrie A. Spiros.

Booth messaged the girl on July 4, telling her that he was parked outside and that she should come and join him, Spiros said. The girl continued to message Booth, but ultimately did not come out to meet him that day.

On July 5, however, the girl told her summer-school bus driver over text that she had overslept and would be missing the bus.

At that point, Booth then asked the girl over Snapchat if she wanted a ride to school, and she accepted his offer.

Spiros said that after the girl had gotten into Booth's vehicle, he drove them to a "largely abandoned parking lot" in the vicinity of Melrose and ordered the teen to take her pants off. Booth also allegedly slapped the girl twice before pinning her down, taking off her clothes, and raping her.

Forensic analysts are currently examining evidence found on the teen's T-shirt, according to Spiros.

Jo Stringer – who is representing Booth – said the teenager's story raises "far more questions than answers."

A spokesperson for Uber told The Globe that the company was "cooperating with law enforcement" and that Booth had been "permanently banned from using the app."

Booth is currently being held without bail, until a dangerousness hearing can be conducted on Monday, according to the news outlet.

With Boston Mayor Marty Walsh running late to an event with William Shatner, the legendary Star Trek captain, was forced to vamp about the New England Patriots, Gisele Bundchen and throwing out the first pitch at Fenway Park the night before. Watch video

BOSTON - With Boston Mayor Marty Walsh running late to a Saturday event with William Shatner, the legendary "Star Trek" captain, was forced to vamp about the New England Patriots, Gisele Bundchen and throwing out the first pitch at Fenway Park the night before.

While sitting on stage in front of the large crowd of Boston Comic Con attendees and referring to Red Sox slugger David Ortiz as "Big Papa," Shatner kept looking over to the side of the stage to see if the mayor had arrived.

When he got the signal that Walsh was in the room, Shatner quipped, "The mayor's here? F--k him."

Shatner then chuckled as the crowd responded with a roar of laughter.

Shatner razzed Walsh for his tardiness, noting the development boom underway in Boston and saying a new building went up while everybody was waiting on the mayor.

After the mayor read the proclamation saying it was William Shatner Day in the city of Boston and posed for pictures with him, Shatner quickly exited the room, leaving behind some angry fans who had expected a question-and-answer session with him.

A Comic Con staffer attempted to placate the irate attendees, saying there had been a miscommunication about whether Shatner would be staying in the room after he received the proclamation.

The staffer added that Shatner would be at the convention throughout the day.

Walsh said Shatner is his favorite "Star Trek" captain. "it's this guy," he said.

"I liked him in 'Boston Legal,' too," Walsh said, referencing the legal television drama starring Shatner and actor James Spader.

The convention runs through Sunday, Aug. 14, at the Seaport World Trade Center.

Boston Comic Con: William Shatner talks about Fenway Park, 'Big Daddy' David Ortiz

Emergency crews have recovered the body of an Ashley Falls woman who reportedly fell while hiking Monument Mountain in Great Barrington Friday.

GREAT BARRINGTON ‒ Emergency crews have recovered the body of an Ashley Falls woman who reportedly fell while hiking Monument Mountain in Great Barrington Friday.

Great Barrington police said Saturday that the woman's body was discovered at around 10 p.m. after hours of searching.

Police and fire crews responded to Monument Mountain reservation after the woman called 9-1-1 at around 3:15 p.m. to report that she had suffered a bad fall near the top of Squaw Peak trail, officials said. Emergency responders did not hear from the woman again.

Great Barrington Fire Chief Charles Burger said in an interview that first responders hiked to the top of the trail -- one of the mountain's two peaks -- but did not find anyone there.

They launched an extensive search operation of the mountain from both its Route 7 and Housatonic sides after pings from the woman's cell phone carrier gave sporadic locations, he said. Eventually, with information from the hiker's family, emergency crews used the "Find my iPhone" app to get her exact location.

The woman's body was located about 30 feet over a cliff off the Squaw Peak trail, according to the fire chief. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

Burger would not comment on the woman's injuries, saying her cause of death is under investigation.

The top of Squaw Peak trail is steep and consists largely of boulders, according to the fire chief. It took responders about four hours to bring her body down the mountain as crews had to repel down and haul her back up before rigging a rope system to lower her down the trail to where they could access ATVs.

Thunderstorms, which left the peak icy, also hampered the recovery effort, he added.

Burger said hiker rescues are not uncommon for this section of the mountain. He noted that the woman had hiked the area before.

Police have not released the identity of the woman, who was reportedly in her 60s and hiking alone.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated as more information becomes available.

All you have to do is come to Fenway Park, throw out the ceremonial first pitch and enjoy the game. That’s what William Shatner, who starred as Captain James Kirk in “Star Trek” television shows and movies,” was told when he agreed to appear at Boston Comic Con this weekend. Watch video

BOSTON - All you have to do is come to Fenway Park, throw out the ceremonial first pitch and enjoy the game.

That's what William Shatner, who starred as Captain James Kirk in "Star Trek" television shows and movies, was told when he agreed to appear at Boston Comic Con this weekend.

"I haven't thrown the ball in years," Shatner later told his assistant, who got two gloves and a baseball to practice with him ahead of the event.

The one time they practiced, the ball bounced past him, down a driveway, causing the assistant to chase the ball into traffic and almost get hit by a car.

"We never did again," Shatner told the crowd, who had gathered to hear him speak at the Seaport World Trade Center the day after his first pitch. "I got here and I was like an actor who hadn't rehearsed his line."

On Friday night, when the Red Sox were facing the Arizona Diamondbacks, Shatner's first time the ball went into the dirt, but he threw a strike in his second attempt.

Shatner then watched the rest of the game from behind home plate. He said he was impressed with slugger David Ortiz, who he referred to as "Big Daddy" and "Big Pappa."

Shatner was attempting to kill time while waiting for Boston Mayor Marty Walsh to arrive with a proclamation declaring Aug. 13 "William Shatner Day" in the city of Boston.

The comic convention runs through Sunday, Aug. 14, at the Seaport World Trade Center.

Star Trek's William Shatner drops f-bomb after Boston mayor arrives late

Transit Police are seeking the public's help in identifying a man who disrupted train service this week after allegedly entering a train tunnel to take a selfie.

BOSTON ‒ MBTA Transit Police are seeking the public's help in identifying a man who disrupted train service this week after allegedly entering a train tunnel to take a selfie.

The man reportedly entered onto the right of way at the MBTA's Aquarium Station and continued into the tunnel just before 8 p.m. on Wednesday -- causing a delay and disruption in service, according to transit police.

Law enforcement officials responded to the scene to search the area and tunnel, but were unable to locate the man, police said.

A preliminary investigation into the incident suggests he entered the tunnel in an effort to obtain a picture of himself, MBTA Transit Police reported.

"This type of behavior will not be tolerated," transit police said in a statement. "This criminal act could have turned deadly, it placed TPD officers and MBTA employees in harms way and greatly inconvenienced our riding public."

Anyone with information on the man's identity or whereabouts is asked to contact the MBTA Transit Police's Criminal Investigations Unit at 617-222-1050.

Anonymous tips may also be texted to 873873 or through its "SeeSay" app.

A downed live electrical wire has closed traffic on Main Street in Hampden and caused power outages across the town, local police reported Saturday.

HAMPDEN ‒ A downed live electrical wire has closed traffic on Main Street in Hampden and caused power outages across the town, local police reported Saturday.

Emergency crews responded to reports of a downed live wire near 749 Main St. just before 3 p.m., according to Hampden Police. Power outages were reported following the incident.

Officials have closed the road from Laughing Brook Wildlife Sanctuary to the intersection with North and South Roads as crews from National Grid work respond to the scene.

Hampden Police say the road could likely be closed for some time.

According to National Grid's outage map, more than 800 people lost power from Hampden to South Monson.

The commander of the U.S. Air National Guard was on-hand for six changes and assumptions of command for the 104th Fighter Wing. Saturday's ceremony was also a chance to recognize the recipients of several prestigious awards.

WESTFIELD - A special occasion, called "the mother of all change of command ceremonies," brought the director of the U.S. Air National Guard to Barnes Air National Guard Base on Saturday.

Maj. Gen. L. Scott Rice was on-hand for six changes and assumptions of command for the 104th Fighter Wing, a notably high number for one event. Saturday's ceremony was also a chance to recognize the recipients of several prestigious awards.

Rice called the 104th "one of the best fighter wings that we have, out of 90, across the country."

"This is what I use to set my standard," said Rice. "The world is a very dangerous place out there. ... The 104th Fighter Wing is the pointy end of making a difference across the world."

The changes of command are as follows:

• Brig. Gen. Sean Collins relinquished command of the 104th Medical Group to Lt. Col. Gary Archambault
• Lt. Col. David Halasikun relinquished command of the 131st Fighter Squadron to Lt. Col. Jeffrey Beckel
• Lt. Col. Jared Conaboy assumed command of Operations Support Flight
• Lt. Col. Steven Reynolds relinquished command of the Security Forces to Maj. Vincent Heitman
• Maj. Dean Lambert assumed command of Force Support Squadron
• Lt. Col. Michael Dibrindisi relinquished command of the maintenance squadron to Maj. Keith Tatlock and accepted Command of the Aircraft Maintenance Squadron from Lt. Col. Pete Carr

The new commanders have proven they have "the temperament, drive and leadership skills to lead at what I believe is the most important level of the Air Force: inside of a fighter wing," said Col. James J. Keefe, Commander of the 104th Fighter Wing.

"This will most likely be, for all of you, the most challenging but rewarding assignment of your careers, and I have the utmost confidence that you'll be successful and will take this Wing to the next level of greatness," said Keefe.

The Wing's Air Control Alert unit was recognized as the best in the nation for 2015. The unit's superintendent, Chief Master Sgt. Robert Roy, accepted the award.

"It is a true Wing mission. There are a lot of players that contribute to this every day," said Roy. "There are a lot of other people who have said, terrorists have one chance to get it right, and we have to get it right all the time, so we truly take that to our hearts."

Other awards given Saturday included the Legion of Merit, presented to Col. Edward J. Gunning Jr.; the 2015 Air Force North Air Control Alert Maintainer of the Year, presented to Staff Sgt. Trevor Tompkins; and the Massachusetts Air National Guard Non-Commissioned Officer of 2016, presented to Staff Sgt. Shane Coakley, who deployed to Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Freedom Sentinel.

One of the last survivors of Sobibor--the Nazi extermination camp based in Poland--died last week at the age of 90.

DELRAY BEACH, FL — Philip Bialowitz, a survivor of the Holocaust who escaped from the death camp known as Sobibor in 1943, died last week at the age of 90, according to the New York Times.

Bialowitz, a Polish Jew who documented his experiences in his memoir A Promise at Sobibor, was one of the last living survivors of the Nazi extermination camp.

The news outlet reports that Bialowitz died on Aug. 6 of congestive heart failure in Delray Beach, Florida.

Originally from the Polish town of Izbica, Bialowitz and his family members were taken by Nazi personnel to Sobibor in 1943, where only he and his brother were put to work doing slave labor. The rest of his family were reportedly killed.

Several months after arriving at Sobibor, a revolt was carried out in which roughly 300 Jewish prisoners attacked and killed a number of SS officers with knives and other weapons that had been secretly obtained, and then attempted to escape.

Almost all of those attempting to escape were recaptured. However, the two Bialowitz brothers were among the small percentage that were not.

Philip's brother, Symcha, died in Israel in 2014 at the age of 102.

Matthew Devaney, 29, of New Bedford was indicted Friday on five counts of assault and battery on a household or family member, one count of animal cruelty and related offenses.

NEW BEDFORD, Mass. -- A Massachusetts man is facing charges he beat, tied up and held a woman against her will and also beat her dog.

Matthew Devaney, 29, of New Bedford was indicted Friday on five counts of assault and battery on a household or family member, one count of animal cruelty and related offenses. He's being held without bail, according to
Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz.

Police responded to a home June 3 after a woman reported she was being held against her will. The home was empty, but police found the victim's dog in need of medical attention.

Authorities made brief contact with the alleged victim by cell phone. She told police she was being held against her will. She also described a red Toyota Camry, and police issued a bulletin for the vehicle, WLNE-TV reported.

Officers then located Devaney's car and arrested him following a foot chase.

The victim, who was with the suspect at the time, told police Devaney beat her the previous evening and also beat her dog several times.

It's unclear whether Devaney has a lawyer.

The National Desk contributed to this report.