The nation's first offshore wind farm has been completed in Rhode Island.

PROVIDENCE, RI — The nation's first offshore wind farm, located in the waters off of Block Island, Rhode Island, has finished its construction, according to the Providence Journal.

The Block Island Wind Farm is the product of Deepwater Wind, a developer based out Providence.

Workers for the developer finished the farm's final turbine at approximately 4 p.m. on Thursday afternoon. Deepwater had been constructing the wind farm since last year.

The project's website claims that the farm will not only "supply most of Block Island's power, but also reduce air pollution across southern New England for years to come."

A number of tests will be performed on the six-megawatt turbines ahead of Nov. 1, when they are scheduled to begin producing power.

Edward Schofield, of Auburndale, Massachusetts, started struggling and went underwater Thursday afternoon in Forest Lake in Dalton, the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department said.

DALTON, N.H. -- A 72-year-old Massachusetts man drowned Thursday while trying to swim from a raft to shore in a New Hampshire lake.

New Hampshire Fish & Game/Facebook 

Edward Schofield, of Auburndale, Massachusetts, started struggling and went underwater Thursday afternoon in Forest Lake in Dalton, the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department said.

A family member tried to help, but was unable to reach him in time, officials said. Other people in the area also tried to save the man, but were unsuccessful.

Emergency responders recovered Schofield's body a short time later. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

He and his wife had been staying at a friend's house on the lake at the time of the incident, officials said.

In June, a New Salem woman suggested the site is "sacred ground," and the Planning Board told Lake Street Development to hire an archaeologist.

SHUTESBURY -- Tempers flared at Wednesday night's Planning Board meeting as opponents of a 6-megawatt solar farm off Pratt Corner Road took aim at a developer's archaeological report and continued to assert that the site is "sacred ground" to Native Americans.

At various points, individuals yelled at the Planning Board, stormed out of the room, hissed and booed, waved protest signs and accused local officials of racism.

"This is absurd!" said Doug Harris, a Narragansett tribal deputy historic preservation officer from Rhode Island, as he jabbed his finger at the Planning Board. "Liars!" yelled Rolf Cachat-Schilling as he threw a sign and headed out the door. Cachat-Schilling said he is a Shutesbury resident and member of the Nipmuc Tribe.

Three police officers stood quietly at the back of the room.

"This is a public meeting, not a public hearing," said municipal lawyer Donna L. McNichol. "They don't have to let anyone speak. Raise your hand and the chair will recognize you. It's not fair to interrupt the meeting."

Planning Board Chairman Deacon Bonnar also asked for order as individuals spoke out of turn and demanded to be heard.

The meeting had been set for the board to review an archaeological report by SWCA Environmental Consultants, commissioned by the Chicago-based Lake Street Development as a requirement of its June special permit. The report determined that various mounds in the wooded Wheelock Tract were the result of trees being blown over long ago, and not Indian burial mounds. The report is inadequate, opponents charged, in part because there was no Native American input.

Pratt Corner Road resident Miriam DeFant opened the meeting by reading a lengthy written critique of the report, including letters from Bridgewater State University archaeology professor Curtis Hoffman, Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head historic preservation officer Bettina Washington and from Harris.

Shutesbury group opposes solar farm on W.D. Cowls forest land

DeFant presented a slide show depicting various stone structures, images that drew gasps from the audience. Planning Board member Jeff Lacy asked DeFant if the photos were from the site itself. DeFant said most of them were taken "in the Shutesbury area."

Among other things, DeFant said the U.S. Department of the Interior in 2008 designated a 16-mile radius around the Turners Falls airport as an area of special significance for Native American ceremonial sites, and that the SWCA report failed to take that into account.

The board at the end of two hours recommended that Lake Street prepare a new, enhanced archaeological report, incorporating comprehensive methods outlined by Eric Johnson, an archaeologist at the University of Massachusetts and consultant to the town.

The board also recommended that land owner Cinda Jones, president of W.D. Cowls, allow a Native American tribal cultural expert to survey the 30-acre property. Jones had previously issued a no-trespass order against Harris, other tribal officials and project opponents, barring them from the land.

The board can recommend but can not order Jones to allow tribal representatives on the land, noted McNichol. "You're asking the Planning Board to do something outside of their purview," she said to the angry crowd. Opponents had insisted that tribal officers be allowed to determine whether the land contains cultural properties.

Harris had advised the board that tribal historic preservation officers need not be trained as archaeologists to know if land is sacred. "It is a ceremonial stone landscape, so you must use a technique developed by the tribe in 2008. You've got blinders on!" Harris said the Planning Board was inviting a lawsuit.

McNichol said the Planning Board cannot impose a condition that leaves the final development decision to a tribal official. "That would be a taking," she said. The special permit stipulates that any development stay 15 feet away from cultural properties identified by a qualified archaeological consultant.

Johnson, the archaeologist for the town, said he agreed with the conclusions of the SWCA report but felt that the methodology was inadequate. He described a set of methods that he believes should be used for such a report.

Alliance for Appropriate Development has been fighting the solar project for about a year. The group previously claimed the project would violate local zoning, pollute groundwater, and endanger town finances, but the Planning Board issued their special permit in June along with a set of conditions.

The idea that the site contains Native American artifacts was introduced in June when New Salem resident Sarah Kohler, an amateur researcher, attended a Shutesbury public hearing and said she believed the land contains ceremonial stone structures pointing to burial mounds.

"It is not esoteric or mysterious. It is logic and science. Art and mathematics. A physical, pragmatic framework within which is woven the sacred," wrote Kohler in a printed statement distributed Wednesday.

The neighborhood group is working with Plymouth lawyer Margaret Sheehan of Environment Watch Massachusetts, according to a press release. Sheehan is an outspoken opponent of felling trees to build solar farms. The group is also working with RESTORE: The North Woods of Westford.

Moments before Cachat-Schilling threw his sign and left the meeting, he announced that he had filed a federal civil rights lawsuit naming Shutesbury officials and Lake Street development. Lawyer Michael Pill, representing Lake Street, interrupted Cachat-Schilling and demanded to know the docket number. He said there is no record of such a lawsuit having been filed in U.S. District Court.

Cachat-Schilling later told The Republican he is acting as his own lawyer, and that he sent the civil complaint to the courthouse in Springfield via certified mail.

Even after the meeting adjourned, sparks flew. "This is native land and you are abusing your authority," shouted Kohler.

DeFant suggested that Planning Board members are biased against Native Americans. "To what do you attribute your belief that (tribal historic preservation officers) are unqualified, except that they are a different color, race and religion?" she asked. DeFantis declared that the board should take a formal stand against racism.

Lake Street Development managing director Zachary Schulman said he would take the board's recommendation under advisement. Lake Street has two weeks to respond to the Planning Board request.

Schulman later told The Republican that Lake Street plans to move ahead with the enhanced archaeological report. Under an agreement, the town will receive $50,000 a year in a payment in lieu of taxes, he said. Schulman said the solar facility would not be visible from Pratt Corner Road.

"It is very disturbing how The Alliance has used the Native Americans to push their own agenda, when in actuality The Alliance has never cared about Native Americans until they learned that it can be used against this project," wrote Schulman in a follow-up email. "This project has been approved by the town, and we look forward to putting together a great project."

Mary Serreze can be reached at mserreze@gmail.com

Beginning in the early 1960s, Bradley photographed some of the best-known black figures in America, from Muhammad Ali to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

SPRINGFIELD -- Longtime Springfield resident James B. Bradley, a local concert promoter, television cameraman and the founder and publisher of Chat magazine, died Tuesday. He was 93.

Bradley, who went by "JB," was the first African-American cameraman hired by WWLP-TV/Channel 22 and one of the first black TV news cameramen in the country. But it was his photographs of Springfield's black community and the many luminaries who visited the city -- B.B. King, Muhammad Ali and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., to name a few -- that ultimately made him a local celebrity.

The son of an Alabama coal miner, Bradley moved to Springfield in 1950, spending most of his life in the Mason Square/Hill-McKnight sections of the city. "It was a good time to be away from Alabama," he said wryly in a 2013 interview with The Republican.

He began chronicling the photographic history of the city's black community in the 1950s, taking pictures of weddings, graduations and political campaigns. By 1962, he launched Chat magazine -- modeled after Jet, a national magazine aimed at the African-American community -- giving him a chance to photograph some of the nation's best-known black entertainers and performers. The magazine survived into the 1980s.

His interest in photography began as a child. His sister bought him an Eastman Kodak Brownie camera when he was 11 years old, and a quarter bought him a lesson in film developing. That sparked a long career of viewing life through a lens, both as a photographer and TV cameraman.

Vintage photos: James 'J.B.' Bradley showcased African-American notables in Springfield

As a young man, Bradley polished gun parts at the Springfield Armory before turning to photography full-time. By the mid-1960s, he opened his own studio on Hancock Street.

"He's the love of my life," said Anne Bradley, JB's wife. "God blessed me to have him. I couldn't have imagined a better life partner."

In Springfield, everyone seemed to know JB. "He was a man that loved people, and people loved him," Anne said. "I don't know anyone who didn't love him."

Wayne E. Phaneuf, the executive editor of The Republican, called Bradley "the consummate gentlemen," a man who leaves behind a photographic legacy that will be cherished for generations.

"He was a pioneer in the TV broadcast world as one of the first, if not the first, cameraman of color in the country," said Phaneuf, who met Bradley while working on "The Struggle for Freedom: The History of African Americans in Western Massachusetts," a book in The Republican Heritage Series that chronicles the history of African-Americans in Western Massachusetts.

"He also helped tell the story, known only to Springfield's black community, of what an important role the city played in the entertainment world. JB told that story through his pictures and shared them for all to remember," Phaneuf said. "We at The Republican offer our condolences to his family and friends."

In January 2015, Bradley's work was featured in "The Rewards of Freedom" photographic exhibit at Springfield's Forest Park Branch Library. Bradley was too ill to attend the exhibit, according to his son, JB Bradley II, who stood in for his father.

Bradley II said his family has always been focused on the content of a person's character, not their race. "I thank the Lord that I grew up in a family where it was never about color," he said, adding that the Bradleys abide by the Golden Rule - "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

One of the most significant and influential people JB Bradley ever met and photographed was King, the man who led the 1955 Montgomery bus boycott, received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, and campaigned for civil rights up until his assassination in 1968.

Bradley photographed MLK during his four visits to Springfield, where the famous leader would stay at the Buckingham Street home of the Rev. Paul A. Fullilove, founder of the Springfield Pastor's Council. Bradley, in a 2013 interview with The Republican, referred to King as a true "blessing," someone who spoke up for the black community and "got us out of bondage."

Moments later in the interview, Bradley, in a soft-spoken voice, said, "I've lived long enough to see the first black president. I wouldn't have believed it then."

In addition to his wife and son, Bradley is survived by a daughter, Charlene Bradley Harmon. A funeral is scheduled for 10 a.m. Monday, Aug. 29, at Shiloh Seventh Day Adventist Church, 797 State St., Springfield.

Worcester Polytechnic Institute said Friday that the entire campus was swept and "no active threat" was found after a food service worker was charged with threatening to set off bombs and randomly shoot people.

WORCESTER - Worcester Polytechnic Institute said Friday that the entire campus was swept and "no active threat" was found after a food service worker was charged with threatening to set off bombs and randomly shoot people.

"There is currently no active threat to our campus, nor was there any evidence of imminent danger posed to the community at the time the threats were made," said WPI's Chief of Police Cheryl Martunas in an email to the college community.

Heather Lyons, 23, of 14 Longmeadow Ave., Worcester was arrested on a warrant on a charge of bomb/hijack threat with serious public alarm and was arraigned in Worcester Central District Court on Thursday.

A city hospital called police on August 11 to report that Lyons, an employee of Chartwells Food Service, a food vendor for WPI, was in the emergency room being evaluated by mental health staff after she made homicidal threats against the college.

"Ms. Lyons stated that she had planned to place a decoy bomb in the WPI Campus Center, then set off real bombs in Morgan Hall," police said in court statements.

Lyons, according to police, told investigators she would also use a sawed-off shotgun to kill a chef at the college then "shoot and kill people at random."

"She had printed out bomb making plans from the Internet, but had not purchased any bomb making materials," police said. "She did not have any partners in the plan and had not discussed it with anyone. In her plans she had considered how many bombs, firearms and clips she would need. She does not have access to firearms."

After the threat from Lyons, officers conducted an "extensive sweep" of the campus and found nothing of concern, according to Martunas.

Lyons was held without bail pending a dangerousness hearing scheduled for Monday. On Friday, Lyons was committed to the Worcester Recovery Center after a doctor testified.

Martunas noted Lyons has been fired by Chartwells and banned from campus.

Two men were arrested on heroin charges after a police sting in Easthampton on Tuesday.

EASTHAMPTON — Two men were arrested during a police sting on Tuesday, on charges related to heroin distribution in Easthampton.

Angel Rivera and Santiago V. Soltren-Ramirez have been the subjects of an ongoing investigation for quite some time, according to Easthampton police spokesman Chad Alexander.

Both Rivera and Soltren-Ramirez were taken into custody at approximately 11:24 a.m. on Tuesday, after police discovered that the two men had traveled to Easthampton specifically to sell heroin.

Officers seized eighty seven bags of heroin and hundreds of dollars in cash during the sting, said Alexander.

Rivera has been charged with possession of heroin and with conspiracy to violate drug laws, while Soltren-Ramirez has been charged with possession of heroin with intent to distribute, and with conspiracy to violate drug laws.

The $318,00 in federal firefighting grants to Holyoke and Westfield that U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, announced on Friday, Aug. 19, 2016 are intended to to fund professional training, fitness equipment, protective equipment, facilities modifications and supplies.

HOLYOKE -- This city received a federal firefighting grant of $177,273 and Westfield of $141,205 for training, fitness, protective equipment and other uses, U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, said today.

"I am a longtime advocate of the firefighters and first responders in Western Massachusetts, and will continue to do all I can to support their important work," Neal said in a press release.

"When there is a fire or an emergency, they are the ones who run towards the danger. I want to congratulate both Chief John Pond and Chief Mary Regan for securing these very competitive federal grants. Under their leadership, both Holyoke and Westfield will have better trained and equipped fire departments that will help keep their communities safe during fires and other hazards," he said.

The grants were from the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, he said.

The program awards grants directly to fire departments, emergency medical services unaffiliated with hospitals and state fire training academies to enhance their capabilities, the press release said.

The money is to fund professional training, fitness equipment, protective equipment, facilities modifications and supplies, the press release said.

Holyoke Mayor Alex B. Morse thanked Neal for the grant.

"I'm thrilled to see the Holyoke Fire Department being awarded this grant," Morse said. "It's critical to have our emergency services and first responders well prepared for any crisis that comes our way."

The grant will help Westfield replace 50 seats of outdated protective firefighting gear, Fire Chief Mary Regan said.

"The Westfield Fire Department is sincerely grateful for this grant award," Regan said.

Westfield Mayor Brian P. Sullivan said in the press release, "We are most fortunate to have partners in federal government who share our understanding of the importance of these investments as part of our larger mission to provide Westfield residents with qualified and well-equipped public safety officers capable of responding to all calls."

WESTFIELD - Stanley Home Products retirees, their spouses, children, former associates will gather at Stanley Park Sept. 10 for their annual reunion picnic. Anyone with ties to Stanley Home Products is asked to call the park office at 413-568-9312, extension 108 for additional information concerning Sept. 10 picnic activities. Information is also available on-line at www.stanleypark.org. Also, memorabilia, such as...

WESTFIELD - Stanley Home Products retirees, their spouses, children, former associates will gather at Stanley Park Sept. 10 for their annual reunion picnic.

Anyone with ties to Stanley Home Products is asked to call the park office at 413-568-9312, extension 108 for additional information concerning Sept. 10 picnic activities. Information is also available on-line at www.stanleypark.org.

Also, memorabilia, such as pictures are being requested and will be on display during the picnic.

The picnic is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Beveridge Pavilion at Stanley Park.

An armed fugitive who had disguised himself in an "old man" mask was arrested on Cape Cod on Friday.

SOUTH YARMOUTH — An armed fugitive was arrested on Cape Cod Thursday afternoon while attempting to elude capture through the use of a realistic "old man" mask.

Shaun Miller, 31, of Hyannis, had been on the run from law enforcement since April – when he was indicted along with a number of other alleged gang members for drug trafficking.

Miller allegedly had been part of a larger drug distribution network that police believed was responsible for selling large amounts of heroin in and around the Cape.

The gang, sometimes called the Nauti-block, had also been linked to a number of assaults, brawls and even murders, according to a press release issued by the office of U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz.

On Thursday, police surrounded a house in South Yarmouth where they believed Miller had been staying and ordered him to exit the residence. After a few moments, what appeared to be an "elderly man" emerged from the building.

However, police soon discovered that the "elderly man" was actually Miller in disguise. After pulling off his mask, police placed Miller under arrest.

After Miller had been placed in custody, police searched the house where he had been staying and subsequently discovered nearly $30,000 in cash, as well as two loaded firearms that had been stashed inside of a laundry basket.

A Vermont man was arrested on Friday after being found in possession of hundreds of bags of heroin.

SEARSBURG, VT — A Vermont man was arrested on Friday after police discovered hundreds of bags of heroin in his vehicle.

Vermont State Police say that Thomas Cross, 40, of Bennington, was pulled over in Searsburg by State Troopers at roughly 11:15 a.m., for speeding.

After stopping Cross's vehicle, police noticed a number of things that led them to believe there were narcotics inside the car.

After receiving consent to search Cross's car, Troopers found six hundred bags of heroin. Additionally, police found several pieces of evidence that led them to believe Cross had been in the process of trafficking the drugs from Holyoke to Bennington.

Cross was subsequently arrested and taken to the Shaftsbury Barracks for processing.

Cross's bail was set at $150,000, and he was subsequently sent to the Marble Valley Correctional Center.

He is set to be arraigned in the Criminal Division of the Bennington County Superior Court on Aug. 22.

Pioneer Valley Planning Commission is assisting the city in the upgrade.

WESTFIELD - A hearing has been set for Aug. 31 to assist city officials in a planned upgrade to the city's Hazard Mitigation Plan.

The public can weigh in on the plan during the 6:30 p.m. hearing to be held in Room 201 at City Hall.

Assisting the city on the effort is the Pioneer Valley Planning commission and both federal and state Emergency Management agencies.

The plan is used to assess the risks from natural hazards, identify action steps that can be taken to prevent damage to property and loss of life, and to prioritize funding for mitigation efforts. Mitigation actions and plans help reduce or eliminat any long-term risk to human life and property from hazards.

Additional information concerning the hearing or mitigation plan is available by contacting PVPC representative Ashley Eaton at aeaton@ovoc.org or by calling 413-781-6045. Also, Westfield Emergency Management Director Jim Wiggs at j.wiggs@cityofwestfield.org or at 413-568-1222.

Irish punk rock band Flogging Molly took the stage at the Toyota Oakdale Theatre on Thursday with a little help from their friends Frank Turner and Chuck Ragan.

WALLINGFORD, Conn. — Irish punk rock band Flogging Molly took the stage at the Toyota Oakdale Theatre on Thursday with a little help from their friends Frank Turner and Chuck Ragan.

Flogging Molly is best known for their adaptive punk-rock covers of traditional Irish folk songs, as well as their unique songwriting and lively arrangements. Their music combines authentic instruments like the accordion, mandolin and banjo with heavier punk rock inspired rhythms in a beautiful marriage of culture and chaos.

Frank Turner is a well-known English singer-songwriter and former front man of popular English post-hardcore punk band Million Dead. Turner has been touring on his own since 2005, and brings along his own backing band, The Sleeping Souls. His newest release in his discography, "Positive Songs for Negative People," has been a hit with fans and held the 69th position on the Billboard 200 chart at its release.

They have been supported throughout the tour by folk singer Chuck Ragan, former front man for popular alternative band Hot Water Music.

The stop in Wallingford was one of the last three stops in the summer tour, which started on July 31 in Portland, Oregon.

Check out photos from the show above and for more information about Flogging Molly, Frank Turner or Chuck Ragan visit their official websites.

A truck driver crashed into a utility pole in Springfield on Friday night.

SPRINGFIELD — A truck driver crashed into a utility pole in Springfield on Friday night, bringing the pole and attached wires down into the road, according to Lt. Kenneth Murray of the Springfield Police Department.

Springfield police responded to site of the incident on Alden Street at 6:03 p.m. There, they found that a white Ram Truck had crashed into the pole.

The truck driver was shaken, but otherwise uninjured, Lt. Murray said.

Police have blocked off traffic on Alden Street between Bonnyview St. and Roosevelt Avenue, where the wires are strewn across the road.

Eversource workers are currently headed to the site of the crash to assist with the situation, Lt. Murray said.

A person riding a dirt bike was seriously injured after being struck by two cars in Springfield on Friday night.

SPRINGFIELD — A person riding a dirt bike was seriously injured in Springfield on Friday night, according to Lt. Kenneth Murray of the Springfield Police Department.

Police received a call for a traffic related incident on Cooley Street at approximately 6:31 p.m., Murray said.

After preliminary investigation, police believe that a Burgundy Buick pulled out in front of the biker as both were driving down Cooley, causing a collision between the two vehicles.

Upon impact, the biker was thrown from his vehicle, and subsequently struck another car that appeared to have been headed in the opposite direction, Murray said.

During the incident, the biker lost his helmet and sustained major injuries. He was taken by ambulance to Baystate Medical Center for treatment, Murray said.

Murray went on to say that the Springfield Accident Reconstruction Bureau has been called to the scene and is investigating how the crash occurred.

The status of the victim wasn't currently known.

The drivers of the other two vehicles were not harmed in the incident, and are both cooperating with police, according to Murray.

Springfield police say they have identified the suspects

SPRINGFIELD — The two women who stole "Flint" the kitten from the Dakin Society in Springfield have been identified, but they have not yet been apprehended, according to Lt. Kenneth Murray of the Springfield Police Department.

Authorities were somehow alerted to the kitten's whereabouts on Friday morning, but were unable to track down the feline in time for him to be rescued.

Murray said the cat and his captors were temporarily located in Northampton on Friday, but by the time Northampton police arrived at the scene, they had moved elsewhere.

However, Murray also confirmed that police know the identities of the cat thieves and that the Springfield Major Crimes Unit is now working to track them down, and to bring Flint home safely.

A Springfield police officer was transported to the Baystate Medical Center with neck and head injuries after the cruiser he was a passenger in was struck by a civilian vehicle on Sumner Avenue Friday night. A second officer, the driver of the vehicle, was not injured.

Dave Canton | dcanton@repub.com 

Springfield Police Lt. Kenneth Murray told WWLP-TV that the officer suffered head and neck injuries in the 8:30 p.m. crash near the intersection of Sumner and Pomona streets. According to the TV station, that officer has since been released from the emergency room.

The driver of the cruiser was not injured in the crash, and police said they do not have information about the condition of the civilian driver.

Sumner Avenue was closed off and traffic rerouted as Springfield Police Traffic Bureau investigators examined the crash scene.

The street was reopened at about 9:30 p.m.

A 50-year-old Westborough mom was charged in District Court with biting a Pittsfield driving instructor after he canceled her son's driving test.

PITTSFIELD— A Westborough mom, and a member of the Westborough School Committee, faced charges that she bit a Pittsfield driving instructor on the arm when he canceled her son's driving test Thursday morning.

State Police arrested Ilyse Levine-Kanji on the Massachusetts Turnpike as she drove her son home after the alleged assault, the Berkshire Eagle reported.

MetroWest Daily News of Framingham reported that Levine-Kanji is a member of the Westborough School Committee and was charged in 2013 with assaulting a woman at a swimming pool.

Prosecutors told the court that on Thursday Levine-Kanji had driven from Westborough to Pittsfield, a distance of 106 miles, so her 18-year-old son could take his driver's test. Witnesses said the pair arrived at the Registry of Motor Vehicles about 11 a.m. However, upon arrival, the driving instructor informed the pair that he was canceling the test because he thought it would be unsafe. The reports do not spell out why the instructor was concerned about safety.

When the instructor refused to reconsider his decision, witnesses said Levine-Kanji grabbed his ballpoint pen and tried to stab him. He grabbed her arm to prevent the stabbing, and she bit him on the forearm causing lacerations.

Levine-Kanji and her son then left the RMV and headed back home. A State Police trooper stopped her car on the Mass Pike in Becket and she was taken into custody.

She was brought to Central Berkshire District Court and arraigned on charges of assault with a dangerous weapon and assault and battery. She was released on her personal recognizance pending a September 1 pretrial hearing.

MetroWest reported Friday that in 2013 Levine-Kanji was placed on probation after she was charged with punching a woman at a pool party. A district court judge continued the assault charges without a finding for nine months and ordered Levine-Kanji to undergo counseling for anger issues.

Dave Canton | dcanton@repub.com 

HCC has created a Community Health Worker certificate this year, the first institution in the area to create such a program.

HOLYOKE -- A new program at Holyoke Community College seeks to better connect communities to medical services outside of a doctor's office. 

HCC has created a Community Health Worker certificate this year, the first institution in the area to offer such a program. 

Community health covers a spectrum of needs, from providing direct services - such as informal counseling and health screenings - to offering culturally appropriate health information to people in their homes, schools or other community spaces. Position titles in the field vary from harm reduction counselors working with drug addicts to public health nurses employed by municipalities.  

"There's about 50 names for community health workers," said Janet Lavin Grant, an HCC professor involved in the new program. 

Such workers "look at health care through a different lens," she said, considering issues both on an individual and city-wide level. "Community health workers look at what's going on in a person's life to better assist them in receiving help."

If a community health worker notices an uptick in the number of children diagnosed with asthma in a neighborhood, he or she will investigate what environmental factors could play a role in the rise. Or, if a patient regularly misses appointments, such a worker will consider what factors could be preventing them from making their appointments. Does the person have access to reliable transportation? Is childcare an issue?

Since the program began this January, students enrolled in the program have come from a multitude of backgrounds. Some seek to complete their certificate before continuing their education to achieve a nursing degree. Others already work in the field and hope to gain a foundation in public health for their work in local hospitals and not-for-profits. 

The class is even being offered outside the classroom in two locations.

Baystate Health employees in Springfield enrolled in the course this spring seeking a broader view of how to help patients who visit Baystate's campuses. 

More than an hour outside of Holyoke, students at North High School in Worcester are also enrolled in the course. The high school students interested in health care complete both college and high school courses during the school year, hoping to obtain both an associates degree and high school diploma at graduation. 

To earn a Community Health Worker certificate, students must earn 26 college credits of required classes as well as complete 125 hours of work expierence in the field. The credits can be applied towards an associates degree in foundations of health. 

The disguise drew a mixed response from the public, including suggestions that the outfit looked more like a Halloween costume than something a tall, athletically-built middle-aged woman would wear.

SPRINGFIELD -- Joseph J. Kroll left court a free man on Aug. 11, nearly a year after being charged with robbing a Chicopee convenience store decked out in a wig, dress and pearl necklace.

His trial in Hampden Superior Court had barely begun when it ended. The charges, including two counts of armed robbery while masked, were dropped at the request of Assistant District Attorney James Forsyth.

If convicted, Kroll would have faced a minimum of five years in prison for a robbery that allegedly yielded several thousand dollars in cash and a stack of lottery tickets.

Still, as legal victories go, this one wasn't easy -- or pretty.

Unable to post $10,000 bail, the cross-dressing armed robbery suspect spent most of the last year in jail awaiting trial. Three estranged relatives identified Kroll on surveillance video from the robbery and called police, leading to his arrest three weeks later, according to prosecutors.

He was charged with the gunpoint robbery of the Corner Store, 444 Front St. on Aug. 10, 2015.

A large man disguised as a large woman entered the store, showed a handgun and then stole cash, lottery tickets and other items, clerks told police. The suspect fled, but his photos soon appeared on the Chicopee Police Department's Facebook page.

Wearing sunglasses, a white skirt and purple sweater accessorized with pearls, the suspect was shown approaching the register in what Chicopee police spokesman Michael Wilk called a not-too-convincing sashay.

The disguise drew a mixed response from the public, including suggestions that it looked more like a Halloween costume than something a tall, athletically-built middle aged woman would wear.

"Dude looks like a ... lady?," a MassLive headline read.

Three weeks later, Kroll looked like an unhappy man in a mugshot posted along with the robbery photos.

Following his arraignment in Chicopee District Court, Kroll was indicted by a grand jury and arraigned a second time in Superior Court in November. A judge set his bail at $10,000.

In March, a motion by defense lawyer James Couture for reduced bail was rejected. During the hearing, Couture said the surveillance video and photos were unclear and his client was not the man in the dress.

In May, Couture filed a motion to bar the prosecution from using statements from Kroll's estranged relatives at trial; in a ruling made at the start of trial, Judge Constance Sweeney allowed the motion and barred the statements. Several witness testified for the prosecution before Forsyth asked the judge to drop the charges and dismiss the case.

Neither Forsyth nor Couture could be reached for comment Friday, and the case file was not available.

Kroll, who was homeless before his arrest, was freed after the judge's ruling.

Lester Norman has some medical concerns and people are worried about him.

CHICOPEE - Police are asking for help to locate a 93-year-old man who was last seen early Friday evening.

Lester NormanChicopee Police photo 

Lester Norman is described as being 5 feet, 10 inches tall and weighs about 175 pounds. He was last seen abound 7:15 p.m. on Sunrise Lane, Michael Wilk, public information officer for Chicopee Police said.

He may be wearing jeans or possibly pajamas and he should have a gold watch on his wrist. He drives a 2004 brown Toyota Camry with the Florida plate of M58OSI and may be heading towards Becket.

Norman has some medical concerns and people are worried about him. Chicopee Police detectives are actively working on the case and have contacted hospitals and other medical facilities in the area, Wilk said.

Anyone who spots Norman or his car are asked to call 911 from their location, he said.