The man was fishing with a friend earlier in the day but they became separated.

This is an update of a story posted Monday at 5:50 a.m.

SPRINGFIELD - A man who drowned Sunday when he fell through the ice at 5 Mile Pond has been identified, according to police.

Police spokesman Sgt. John Delaney said the deceased has been identified as William Kitovich Jr., 63, of Chicopee.

Kitovich was ice fishing with a friend Sunday on 5 Mile Pond off Boston Road when he appartently fell through the ice.

The two men had been fishing together on the pond but separated for a period of time, police said.

Kitovich's body was recovered near the railroad right of way across the northern shore of the pond at about 3:30 p.m.

The report was commissioned in 2014, before the recent disclosure of offensive emails sent by members of the college's men's cross-country team.

AMHERST -- A special committee looking into Amherst College's athletic program has found the college "has a strong, even exemplary, program in athletics, one that enhances the experience of student-athletes ... and contributes positively to the life of the College."

But there are also areas of concern the report outlines.

College President Carolyn "Biddy" Martin charged the committee to "weigh ... the extent to which our athletic programs are consistent with the overall purpose of the College," according to the report released this week.

The report was commissioned in 2014, before the recent disclosure of offensive emails sent by members of the college's men's cross-country team.

But Martin addresses the email controversy in her letter to faculty, staff and alumni accompanying the report.

In December, the college magazine The Indicator broke the news about the messages, sent between 2013 and 2015. The emails contained misogynist, racist and homophobic messages.

After an investigation, the college issued sanctions including suspending some team members from participating in three contests and suspending some for the remainder of their enrollment. The men's cross-country team was placed on athletic probation until the fall of 2018.

"Recent events involving our men's cross country team and similar events on other campuses remind us that we must ensure the integrity of our athletics programs and the well-being of those who participate," Martin wrote. "These events also underscore the importance of accountability when individuals or team behaviors cause harm."

She wrote that the problems are not new: "They are not limited to particular individuals, to athletics teams, or to colleges and universities. If they were, they would be much easier to uproot. They are deeply embedded, society-wide problems that we must approach on campus by exemplifying the habits of mind we teach in the classroom."

The report found that athletic teams are less socioeconomically and racially diverse than the student body as a whole. "Once again, the causes are society-wide," Martin wrote.

The report also focuses attention on the grouping of student-athletes on campus in ways that separate them from students who are not involved in varsity sports.

"The report recommends that we take measures to lessen the divide between student-athletes and non-athletes in residential and social life," Martin wrote. She wrote that the committee comprised of faculty, students, a coach and a college trustee was particularly interested in whether "the professionalization of athletics across American society had affected the place of athletics at Amherst."

She reported that the New England Small College Athletic Conference, of which Amherst is a member, helps member colleges avoid the excesses of other divisions and leagues. Amherst and other NESCAC members compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division III and do not offer athletic scholarships. UMass Amherst, for example, competes in the NCAA's Division I, the highest level of collegiate competition with the most allowed athletic scholarships.

The committee is recommending that the college consult experts on "concussive and sub-concussive injury to ensure we are following the best possible practices." She said she will be working with the NESCAC medical adviser to schedule a symposium.

She also reported that the committee was not asked to do a Title IX gender equity review but that the college has hired Janet Judge, president of Sports Law Associates, LLC, to conduct a review this spring.

"Given the prominence, popularity, and professionalization of college athletics in American society, it is important to step back periodically and take a careful look at our athletics programs to ensure their strength, integrity, and contribution to Amherst's overall educational mission," Martin wrote.  

Amherst College spokeswoman Caroline Hanna said the report is a follow-up to a report from about 15 years ago.

Amherst College athletics report by ledermand on Scribd

The MassMutual Foundation has donated $150,000 to launch a program to help Springfield women between the ages of 12-24.

SPRINGFIELD -- The Women's Fund of Western Massachusetts is collaborating with the city of Springfield, Springfield Public Schools, MassMutual and the state treasurer's office to launch a project aimed at driving economic prosperity for young women in the city.

The public-private partnership, called the Partnership for Young Women's Progress: Springfield, will work with 20 organizations. An advisory council will include 20 young Springfield women.

State Treasurer Deb Goldberg's office will offer its Women's Economic Empowerment series as part of the project.

The three-year pilot program is funded in part by a $150,000 grant provided by the MassMutual Foundation Inc.

"This award is really amazing," said Layla Taylor, board chairwoman of the Women's Fund of Western Massachusetts. "It will allow us to build key partnerships and ensure that this is a successful program."

"Springfield has so many wonderful, innovative things going on and we are so proud to be a partner and to be a national example is wonderful," said Ali Mathias, MassMutual's director of Charitable Giving and vice president of the MassMutual Foundation. "We have a very long legacy of helping people secure their future and protect the ones they love and that absolutely extends to the community, and this partnership is a wonderful example of that."

Mathias added that global research has shown that women are a key driver of economic development.

"I think it's important to know that when we are investing in our young women and what that means for the city of Springfield," she said.

"This series is about savings, investing, salary negotiation, anything they want to learn about," said Leanne Fay, director of educational programs for the treasurer's office. "We are so thrilled to be partnering with the Women's Fund and the city of Springfield on this."

Also present at a press conference announcing the partnership were Springfield Mayor Domenic J. Sarno and Assistant Superintendent of Schools Lydia Martinez, who said this is a much needed program for Springfield students.

"Springfield Public Schools have approximately 12,366 young women that we get to touch the lives of everyday," Martinez said. "We do a lot of concentration with our male students ... but to really focus on our young women is so exciting to me."

According to a press release announcing the initiative, the project will allow the partners to:

• "Create leadership and high-level decision-making opportunities for young women in Springfield, and reward their efforts as part of a Young Women's Leadership Advisory Council."

• "Analyze available data, examine current investments, and identify where partners can make a lasting impact."

• "Create a public document with young women's economic growth and empowerment recommendations."

• "Generate and fund a phased action plan for the region that will include re-granting partnerships."

• "Engage message research conducted by a leading national firm that will help shape strategic communications. These strategic communications will be aimed at creating a positive shift from the current negative cultural narratives regarding young women in Springfield."

"The Women's Fund is very excited, very energized and honored that the community has entrusted us to steward this project," Taylor said. "We will make sure it's successful and we can't wait to see the results that it brings."

The Every Student Succeeds Act passed Congress in 2015.

SPRINGFIELD -- Federal No Child Left Behind legislation measured schools based on test scores, too narrow a gauge for most observers.

But how will schools in Springfield, Holyoke and other Massachusetts Gateway Cities respond to new standards that require a broader measure of how well a school is doing?

"Everybody says that a thing that gets measured gets managed," said Benjamin Forman, research director for MassINC, a Boston think tank. "What is happening now is that people are taking broader measures of school performance."

Forman hosted a series of panel discussions Thursday in Springfield in an effort to learn how schools in Gateway Cities -- older industrial communities now struggling to reinvent their economies -- can have a say in new school criteria and use them to their advantage.

Congress passed the Every Student Succeeds Act in December 2015, calling for states to measure more than just standardized test scores and also include things like career and college readiness, exposure to the arts, and Advanced Placement, early college and other accelerated coursework. Forman said Massachusetts plans to implement the new standards for the beginning of the 2017-18 school year in September.

Forman, MassINC and its Gateway Cities Innovation Institute are collecting ideas an input from educators and reporting back to the state education commissioner. Thursday's event in Springfield was moderated by Henry Thomas III, president and CEO of the Urban League of Springfield and a University of Massachusetts trustee.

Imani Hines, a teacher at Up Academy Kennedy Middle School on Berkshire Avenue, said there is a need to put all high schools through the rigorous evaluation the state does for poorly performing Level IV schools now.

She also called for the state to add comprehensive end-of-course tests similar to New York state's Regents exams in place of or in addition to the 10th-grade MCAS tests.

"Now we test in the 10th grade and that's it," she said. "We don't keep track of how well students are doing in all these advanced courses."

Arria Coburn, principal of Springfield Renaissance School, talked about how she presented a full set of data to parents both in groups and in individual meetings. The numbers showed not just test scores but also discipline numbers and classroom performance.

"A lot of parents wanted to know why they couldn't get this data before," Coburn said.

She presented all the numbers to help the school meet improvement goals.

"I knew the numbers were not good. I knew I had to make gains," she said. "But now the trends are headed up."

Involving parents will be important under the new law. Forman said MassINC wants to help schools develop ways of communicating data in understandable ways.

Forman said he and MassINC want the state to take into account the demographic challenges students in Gateway Cities meet every day. Sixty percent of a student's test performance is always due to factors outside of school, he said.

"If a kid is in and out of foster care, if a kid is homeless, that is going to impact how well a kid does on a test that day," Forman said. "Those scores may tell us where we need to put more resources. But they don't say the state should take over the school, fire half the teachers and the principal needs to be out of here."

The University Union hopes to "set an example for how public debate should be, civil and engaging. We believe debates like this are vital for academic life on campus."

AMHERST -- The University Union debate club at the University of Massachusetts is again taking on opposing views -- this time on "Pros and Cons of the Free Market."

It's the first of two debates planned this semester.

According to an email from organizer Owen Wiggins, the Feb. 8 debate "will showcase opposing views on economic theory and timely topics like the minimum wage and trade."

He said the union hopes to "set an example for how public debate should be, civil and engaging. We believe debates like this are vital for academic life on campus."

"Although we did not plan this debate because of campaign rhetoric, the presidential election featured ample discussion on trade and markets, so the topic is timely," Wiggins wrote. 

Panelists include Jim Miller, Smith College economics professor; Anne Rathbone Bradley from the Institute of Faith Work and Economics; and Avanti Mukherjee and Robert Pollin, both from the UMass economics department.

The debate begins at 8 p.m. in the Campus Center auditorium.

Wiggins said the club will host a debate on March 22 on "Do You Have the Right to do Drugs?"

Wiggins helped create the debate club modeled on the Oxford Union at Oxford University in 2015 to provide the opportunity for the campus to hear from divergent points of view.

"Many students and professors at American universities have come to feel that the public lectures on campus are frequently one-sided," he said at the time. "Each speaker, whether liberal or conservative, draws an audience that already agrees with the speaker's ideas."

Since the launch, the debate club has taken on issues such as God, affirmative action and Israeli and Palestinian views.

President Donald Trump called on U.S. Rep. Richard Neal and a small group of House and Senate lawmakers Thursday to revamp or replace the North American Free Trade Agreement with one that ensures more fairness for American workers.

President Donald Trump called on U.S. Rep. Richard Neal,D-Springfield, and a small group of House and Senate lawmakers Thursday to revamp or replace the North American Free Trade Agreement with one that ensures more fairness for United States' workers.

Echoing concerns he repeatedly made about NAFTA on the campaign trail, Trump told reporters Thursday that he would like to change or completely replace the agreement with another trade policy.

"NAFTA's been a catastrophe for our country, it's been a catastrophe for our workers and our jobs, and our companies are leaving our country," he said following the White House meeting. "I want to change it and maybe redo it -- maybe we do a new NAFTA and we put an extra "f" in the term NAFTA, you know what the "f" is for? Free and fair trade."

Trump, who stressed that his administration is adhering to statutory guidelines, added that he would like to speed up the renegotiation process.

The president's comments came after a morning White House huddle with Neal, the ranking member of the House Ways and Means Committee; Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady, R-Texas; Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah; and Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden, D-Oregon.

White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said the meeting sought to "help chart the future of US trade policy" with the goal of ensuring the best and fairest treatment of U.S. workers and businesses.

"The president believes that those interests are best secured by bilateral, rather than multilateral trade deals," he told reporters.

Throughout his 2016 White House run, Trump campaigned on a seven-point trade plan that called for immediately renegotiating NAFTA's terms "to get a better deal for (American) workers."

Failure to do so, according to Trump's plan, would result in U.S. withdrawal from the trade pact with Mexico and Canada.

Neal has offered support for overhauling the country's trade policies, saying in an early January statement that they "are in need of reform, with a refocus on the American worker."

Congressman Richard Neal welcomes President-elect Donald Trump's pick for US trade representative

Trump signed a memorandum calling for the United States' withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a multilateral trade agreement primarily with Asian countries, during his first week in office.

"It is the policy of my administration to represent the American people and their financial well-being in all negotiations, particularly the American worker, and to create fair and economically beneficial trade deals that serve their interests," the order stated.

Hazen Paper Col. of Holyoke gets the final design in the middle of January . Team logos are printed later after the conference championship games determine who will play in the Super Bowl.

HOLYOKE -- At Super Bowl LI between the New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons in Houston on Sunday, the programs will shine, once again, because of Hazen Paper Co. of Holyoke.

Family-owned Hazen once again created the 3-D holographic image of the Vince Lombardi Trophy that graces the cover of the official in-stadium gameday program.

In this year's image, the familiar Lombardi Trophy emerges in three dimensions from the roman numerals LI, representing the 51st Super Bowl game. The background is a starry night sky with a blue-green background that only comes out as the program is tilted into the light.

That 3-D image and those night stars are the result of Hazen's holographic technology and its Envirofoil  paper, coated with a layer of shiny silver-colored aluminum less than 1/20th as thick as a human hair. The metal layer is so thin, the amount of aluminum in one beverage container covers a piece of paper the size of a football field. The paper has so little aluminum on it, it can be recycled as paper by conventional means.

That ability to be recycled along with Hazen's reliance on hydroelectric power generated by Holyoke Gas & Electric helped Hazen create the name Envirofoil.

Hazen has been making the images for the Super Bowl programs since 2006.

The process lasts  about as long as an NFL season.

Hazen Co. artists start sketching out cover designs each year in September or October. It usually takes until Christmas to get the designs approved by the National Football League and by H.O. Zimman Inc. of Lynn, publishers of the program and Hazen's customer.

If the company is lucky, the final design will be approved and in hand at the end of January. Hazen prepares the paper and adds the holographic images in time to ship the paper to a printer in the Midwest by the Thursday before the NFL conference championship games, which take place two weeks before the Super Bowl.

Team logos are printed later after the conference championship games determine who will play in the Super Bowl.

The hologram-covered paper is shipped in heated trucks -- so as to keep it warm and pliable in cold weather -- by teams of drivers who switch off on the way -- no stopping.

The Hazen program sells for $20 at NRG Stadium in Houston. It's not the program that is available at bookstores around the country.

 

"Many staff, including myself, are proud Central grads and we wanted to support Central in whatever way we could," said Frederick Harris Elementary School Principal Shannon Collins.

SPRINGFIELD — In the hours and days following the Jan.17 automobile accident that claimed the lives of three Central High School students, shock, disbelief and sadness rippled across the city.

At Frederick Harris Elementary School on Hartford Terrace, the tragedy hit home and offered a painful but teachable moment for grade schoolers after they learned that some of their classmates had connections to the victims.

Killed when the SUV they were riding in hit a tree on Union Street were Central seniors Katrina Maisonet Jones and Adrianna Hernandez, both members of the school's cheerleading squad, and Cassidy Spence, also a school athlete. A fourth occupant of the car, Andrew Savage, also died. The person who is believed to have been the driver remains in the hospital.

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Frederick Harris Principal Shannon Collins said two of her young students were related to the victims and that a fifth grader, who is a junior cheerleader, had crossed paths with the Central cheerleaders.

"A tragedy like this affects so many people who you don't know and we wondered what we could do," Collins said. "Many staff, including myself, are proud Central grads and we wanted to support Central in whatever way we could."

Collins said discussing such a tragedy can be a delicate balance. "We needed to bring it to a level they could understand," she said.

So Collins and the staff decided that the students can do what other people do when a they are at a loss for words to come to grips with a tragedy. "We can send them our best wishes and let them know we are thinking about them," she said.

Frederick Harris celebrated Central High School's colors, holding a black-and gold day, and decorated a banner reading, "Central Strong." The school also ordered black and gold bracelets for Central students, printed with "Central Strong" on one side and the first names of the Central students who died on the other side.

Letters were sent to students' parents about the project.

Students at Harris also collected $450 in "nickels and dimes," which they sent to Central to help fund a scholarship in the victims' honor, Collins said.

Harris fifth-grader Jalonni Martinez, who crafted the heart at the center of the banner, asked if she could join staff members who delivered the banner and bracelets after school last Friday. Jalonni said the Central cheerleaders who died were coaches of her cousin's junior cheerleading team.

The banner was placed outside the high school gymnasium.

"It felt good helping them feel better," Jalonni said.

The kind gesture was appreciated by students at the high school and Principal Thaddeus S. Tokarz, Collins said, who told Collins that Central students came to school wearing the bracelets.

The company cleaned up a small spill at its warehouse in July but failed to report it to either the city of Springfield or the state DEP, as required.

Patrick Johnson | pjohnson@repub.com 

SPRINGFIELD - The state Department of Environmental Protection announced it has fined Astro Chemicals, Inc. of Springfield $5,000 for violating regulations by failing to report a small chemical spill in July.

According to a DEP statement, the chemical supply company had a minor spill at its facility at 64 Shaw Lane on July 19.

Several drums of divinylbenzene, a combustible and reactive chemical, spilled from metal drums likely because elevated temperatures in the warehouse caused the chemical to expand. A small amount of the chemical spilled on to the floor and ventilated into the building.

Employees took steps to clean the chemical up but the company failed to either notify city public safety officials or the DEP of the spill.

A spill is required to be reported to the state DEP within two hours after it is discovered.

The DEP learned of the spill two days later when an anonymous complaint was filed with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

DEP officials have since inspected the site, and Astro Chemical officials have submitted all necessary reports on the spill. The company also announced it has taken steps to remove the chemical from its warehouse.

In accepting the consent order, Astro Chemical agreed to pay the fine and to retain employees on proper protocols for reporting chemcial spills.

"A reactive chemical such as this has the potential to cause significant damage, which is why it is very important that MassDEP and public safety officials be notified when there is a release or a threat of a release," said Michael Gorski, director of MassDEP's Western Regional Office in Springfield. "Responders can provide technical advice, monitoring and cleanup capabilities."

MassDEP is responsible for ensuring clean air and water, safe management and recycling of solid and hazardous wastes, timely cleanup of hazardous waste sites and spills and the preservation of wetlands and coastal resources.

Councilors authorized up to $450,000 for design services which could leverage up to $4 million in federal dollars.

EASTHAMPTON -- The City Council on Wednesday unanimously approved $450,000 in potential borrowing for a comprehensive redesign of Union Street.

The upfront investment could leverage up to $4 million in federal dollars to eventually reconstruct the downtown corridor connecting Main and Cottage streets, officials said.

Money is available from the U.S. Department of Transportation to rebuild certain roadways according to a "complete streets" standard, where the needs of bicyclists, pedestrians, and people of all abilities are considered along with the need to move vehicular traffic.

"This will be a very competitive process," said Finance Committee chairman Daniel Rist. "We don't want to delay." He said the city will only borrow what it needs from the $450,000, but must have the entire bond authorization in place to move forward.

Public works director Joe Pipczynski said the engineering firm Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc., or VHB, has been selected for the design project, and is ready to get to work.

The project would stretch from Main Street to Cottage Street. It would reconfigure the area near Liberty Street and the Manhan Rail Trail crossing, where there have been a number of accidents, he said.

If the project moves forward, infrastructure would be upgraded or replaced at the same time. While stormwater work could be done under the potential grant, new water and sewer pipes would be funded through the city's water and sewer enterprise reserve funds.

"Complete Streets" are designed for all users, according to Smart Growth America. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation, or MassDOT, awards the grants using federal dollars.

Pipczynski said it will be important to make sure the Union Street project gets listed on the regional Transportation Improvement Plan, or TIP. The four-year plans, approved by the Pioneer Valley Metropolitan Planning Organization, are compiled on an annual basis and prioritize projects for federal funding.

"We're going to have to lobby for this," he said, adding that he hopes the project will be approved for fiscal 2018 or 2019.

The University of Massachusetts is allowing overnight weekend guests but limiting those who can visit residence halls on Sunday when the New England Patriots take on the Atlanta Falcons in the Super Bowl.

AMHERST -- The University of Massachusetts is allowing overnight weekend guests but limiting those who can visit residence halls on Sunday when the New England Patriots take on the Atlanta Falcons in the Super Bowl.

From noon Sunday through Monday at 8 a.m., no non-UMass guests will be permitted to visit the residence halls. 

UMass Amherst resident students may have up to four guests who are UMass students from the same residential area, according to a message sent to the campus community. For example, residents of Northeast may only host guests who also live in Northeast.

No other guests, from either on or off campus, will be allowed into the residence halls.

The University of Massachusetts limited weekend guests two years ago when the Patriots last played in the Super Bowl, and banned all guests in dorms from noon Sunday until noon the following day.

Last year, when the Patriots did not play, standard guest policy for Friday and Saturday was in effect and up to four UMass students were allowed in as guests in residence halls.

UMass spokesman Edward F. Blaguszewski said most students associate with people in their dorms and limiting guests is a way to manage residence crowds. Electronic registration will allow staff to keep track of how many guests are where, he said.

Dining services, meanwhile, is offering special game day fare of New England clam chowder, Maine lobster sliders, Patriot flat bread pizza, local sweet potato quesadillas, avocado fries and a guacamole bar with homemade tortilla chips

There's also a watch party in the Student Union beginning at 6:30 p.m.

Students have also been notified that "if new concerns emerge related to the health, safety and well-being of students, and additional changes to the guest policy are required, we will send out timely updates." If necessary, the school may "curtail or end guest registration by building or residential area."

Police will be on hand, Blaguszewski said, as they have been the last several years.

Three years ago, officers responded to a raucous Super Bowl celebration in riot gear. That was before the Davis report, which provided guidance to the university about better community policing tactics to help reduce campus disturbances.

UMass Chancellor Kumble Subbaswamy hired former Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis to review the Blarney Blowout in March 2014 and provide the town and the university with recommendations to prevent a similar riot. 

Two years ago, about 1,000 students gathered outside the Southwest Residential Area after the Super Bowl, while in the past several thousand had gathered. One arrest was made in 2015.

None of the four off-duty officers cooperated with the investigation, with all asserting their Fifth Amendment rights and refusing to speak with internal affairs and criminal investigators.

SPRINGFIELD -- Citing a lack of positive identification and probable cause, Hampden District Attorney said Thursday his office will not bring charges against the off-duty city police officers accused of beating a group of four men in April 2015 outside Nathan Bill's Bar and Restaurant -- despite clear evidence that the victims were attacked.

Gulluni said he had no doubt the men were victims of an assault that left one victim, Paul Cumby, with serious injuries, including a broken ankle and loosened teeth.

But, he said, the victims' inability to positively identify their attackers and a lack of video evidence led him to conclude there could be no successful case against the off-duty officers accused of following the men out of Nathan Bill's after a dispute and jumping them in a nearby parking lot.

"I don't have a good faith basis to believe I have probable cause, and it would be unethical for me to bring charges," Gulluni said. "Let me be absolutely clear to you. I am frustrated."

Four off-duty officers were identified as being at the bar about an hour prior to the assault, and two of them -- Daniel Billingsley and Christian Cicero -- were implicated during criminal and administrative police investigations.

But there was no video of the assault and the identifications provided by victims were either uncertain or contradictory, according to the Major Crimes Unit and Internal Investigations Unit reports Gulluni relied on for his criminal review. The available evidence did not support bringing any charges, he said.

None of the four officers implicated in the incident cooperated with the investigation, with all asserting their Fifth Amendment rights and refusing to speak with internal affairs and criminal investigators, Gulluni said.

"I think one could hazard a reasonable guess as to who was the rabble-rouser," said Gulluni. "But our burden of proof is different."

Read the decision: DA to not file charges against Springfield officers accused of beating men after bar argument

Gulluni said he hopes the victims -- Cumby, his cousins Jozelle and Jackie Ligon, and their friend Michael Cintron -- will receive justice either through civil means or the police department's disciplinary process, which is still pending.

"These folks are victims. Despite that this investigation has to weigh against probable cause and reasonable doubt," he said. "This is the calculus we have to use when we make these kinds of decisions."

While security footage from a nearby Bank of America branch shows police cruisers responding to the fight, no video exists of the assault itself. Investigators did not secure footage from Nathan Bill's, the district attorney's office said.

Daniel D. Kelly, the attorney for Nathan Bill's, said investigators only requested the footage months after the assault -- and after the night's footage had been deleted. The Major Crimes Unit launched its investigation in May 2015, after Cumby filed a complaint with the police department.

"We cooperated with the investigation, however at the time we were notified of the incident it was several months later and the footage is not retained that long," Kelly said. "Nothing happened in the bar or outside in the bar parking lot."

The announcement of Gulluni's findings comes 22 months after the incident, which sparked an internal police investigation and a criminal probe. A total of 12 Springfield officers, including off-duty officers accused in the beating and uniformed officers accused of responding unsympathetically to the victims, were issued administrative charges by the police department, though no disciplinary hearings have yet been held.

"He was clearly beaten to a pulp," Paul Cumby's attorney Michelle Cruz said in an interview with MassLive.

Police Commissioner John Barbieri said that with the DA's review complete, those hearings will now move forward.

"The District Attorney's office has made a thorough review of the incident and determined that there is no probable cause to file criminal charges," Barbieri said in a statement. "Absent pending criminal charges, the Police Department Internal Investigation Unit is now free to work with the city Labor Relations Department to potentially re-interview officers and make preparations for an administrative hearing before the Community Police Hearings Board, as soon as possible."

The DA's review found the victims had been drinking at Nathan Bill's the night of April 7, 2015, when Jozelle Ligon became involved in a verbal dispute with another group of patrons over whether Ligon had whistled at or hit on a woman in the other party. The victims told investigators a bar employee identified the other group as off-duty Springfield police officers.

Uniformed police officers who were at Nathan Bill's on an unrelated call confirmed that off-duty officers Daniel Billingsley, Melissa Rodrigues, Christian Cicero and Anthony Cicero were at the bar at 1:15 a.m., about 50 minutes before the assault.

Cumby, Cintron and the Ligons were asked to leave the bar to de-escalate the argument, and about an hour later they were were attacked by a group of men in the parking lot of a Rocky's hardware store a block away from the bar.

Cumby suffered serious injuries including a fractured ankle and four damaged front teeth. Jackie Ligon was hit and kicked in the torso and head while on the ground, and Jozelle Ligon and Cintron had cuts and bruises, according to the DA's report.

"The physical assaults committed by several members of the large crowd were intentional and unjustified," the report said.

Cumby and his group identified the assailants as between eight and 15 white men between the ages of 25 and 45. Cumby filed a complaint with the Springfield Police Department on May 7, and in the following months all four victims were interviewed multiple times by internal affairs and Major Crimes Unit investigators.

All four men were shown photo arrays. Cumby, who said he was struck from behind and knocked unconscious, could not identify any specific attackers, but identified Billingsley as present at the bar.

Jackie Ligon told the Major Crimes Unit on July 17, 2015 that he was 80 to 90 percent confident that Billingsley was the officer he had argued with inside the bar, but did not identify him as an attacker, the report said. Two weeks later, Ligon told internal affairs investigators he saw Billingsley attack his brother Jozelle -- one of the contradictions Gulluni said made it difficult to establish probable cause for charges.

"This is not in my view calling into question the credibility or honesty of the victims," Gulluni said, noting the high bar in securing eyewitness testimony that could survive challenges in court and that everyone involved in the fight had consumed alcohol that night.

While the Major Crimes Unit interviews were recorded on video, the internal affairs interviews were not -- meaning the DA's office was left to rely on the internal affairs officer's summary of the interviews without being able to independently verify what the victims said.

Jozelle Ligon also gave an interview which largely confirmed the stories of his brother and cousin, but included inconsistencies about the timing of the attack and a failure to identify attackers through a photo array of Springfield police officers.

Cintron was not interviewed until April 2016, after an extensive effort to locate him, Gulluni said. Cintron spoke to an internal affairs investigator and could not identify an assailant -- but, he did name Billingsley as being present at the time of the assault.

The level of identifications would not have supported charges under Massachusetts law, the report said.

"The men were beaten about their body and face by fists, shod feet and quite possibly dangerous weapons. As a result, all of the men suffered visible injuries and Mr. Cumby suffered serious injury, as well," the report states. "However, it is also undeniable that the victims' admitted lack of recollection of the events and the assailants, inconsistent versions of the incident, their admitted alcohol consumption, and ultimately and most significantly, their lack of legally sound and positive identifications of those who committed a criminal offense, hamstrings the Commonwealth from initiating a criminal complaint or indictment."

In an interview, Gulluni said evidence turned up during the investigation could still be used against the officers during disciplinary hearings. First Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Fitzgerald said Billingsley called in sick to work the next day with a headache, and another called out with a broken toe.

But investigators did not obtain their medical records to check the source of the injuries, and would have required a court order or the officers' permission to do so.

"If we had been able to identify, would that have been evidence that would have been brought up? I imagine it would," Fitzgerald said.

And the officers' refusal to testify, while not criminally admissible, could be used against them in administrative proceedings, Gulluni said.

In a November interview, Gulluni acknowledged the case had stretched on for too long, but said the responsibility for the delays lay with the police department. His office received the internal police investigation in July 2016 and had agreed not to issue its own findings until then, Gulluni told MassLive.

"I will say that 20 months is less than ideal and the procedure probably isn't perfect," Gulluni said. "You hope that in the future it will be better and it will be cleaner. We will learn from this situation."

The existence of the internal affairs probe into the actions of 12 officers that night was first reported by MassLive in October.

MassLive is publishing the Hampden County District Attorney's findings in the case of four men who were beaten in a parking lot following an April 2015 argument at Nathan Bill's Bar and Restaurant.

MassLive is publishing the Hampden County District Attorney's findings in the case of four men who were beaten in a parking lot following an April 2015 argument at Nathan Bill's Bar and Restaurant.

The men told investigators they believed the men who attacked them were off-duty Springfield police officers, and officers were identified in the bar in the hour prior to the fight.

Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni announced Thursday that he will not file charges in the case, saying that while the men were clearly victims of an assault they could not produce legally sound identifications of their attackers.

Read more: "Let me be absolutely clear to you. I am frustrated," says Gulluni

Read the full decision below:

12 Springfield officers facing investigation in beating of men outside bar

Amherst College President Carolyn "Biddy" Martin Thursday responded to student demands made Wednesday at a rally and sit-in, condemning the presidential immigration ban. Watch video

AMHERST -- Amherst College President Carolyn "Biddy" Martin on Thursday responded to student demands made Wednesday at a rally and sit-in, condemning the President Donald J. Trump's executive order on refugees, immigrants and some visa holders. 

In her message Thursday, Martin stressed her "firm commitment to working constructively with you to help everyone affected by the president's intolerable executive order, which I condemn."

Following Martin's statement, a small group of students requested a private meeting with the president. "While we are pleased that clear commitments have been made by the college in President Martin's latest statement, concerned students have decided to meet after classes to discuss the details of the response," said student Aubrey Grube, serving as a spokesperson for the group.

In the meantime, protesters called off a sit-in outside Martin's office, where at least nine students had remained until Thursday afternoon. 

Martin's statement came after students demanded she "explicitly condemn" the president's order and for the college do more for those affected.

Trump on Friday signed an order barring nationals from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen from entering the U.S. for 90 days. The order also banned refugees from entering the country for 120 days, and halted the entry of Syrian refugees indefinitely.  

The order "violates the principles of open-mindedness, tolerance, and human decency on which this nation and Amherst itself were founded," Martin said in her statement.

But she said she would not respond to a list of demands presented by the protesters, on the terms they outlined. Instead, she sought to clarify "two important points that have been subject to erroneous statements by some individuals."

After the order was the order was issued, college staff in several offices "immediately began gathering information on the complexities of the legal situation and communicating with students," she wrote. 

She said Wednesday she learned that some students said they were not contacted "or feel inadequately supported."

"I am, of course, troubled by this, and we are actively reaching out to those individuals. At the same time, others have told us they were contacted quickly and feel well-supported. I want that to be true of all affected students," Martin stated.

She wrote that college has been arranging for students to obtain the legal counsel of attorney Dan Berger, an immigration specialist, and will continue to do so.

The college set up a phone bank in the Alumni House for students to make calls and write emails to senators.

She also stated, "We do indeed need to strengthen the Office of International Student Affairs."  

"We are in this for the long haul. We will continue to provide these services, regardless of developments elsewhere, and we will constantly reassess what we are doing so as to determine what else is necessary to meet the changing needs of our students and others at Amherst," her statement said.

Martin expressed hope that the campus community would engage in a "critical debate" without giving in to "rigidly adversarial divides."

"Vigilance, skepticism, and critique are essential. They can occur in the context of open engagement and mutual respect," Martin wrote.

According to the statement accompanying demands, students said Martin's response "did not meet the needs of those who are directly and indirectly impacted."

Protesters claimed President Martin's campus-wide email neglected to swiftly condemn the order as antithetical to the college's values.

"Furthermore, the failure to guarantee concrete material and legal assistance also betrayed the College's apathy towards the emotional and physical welfare of the affected members of our community," the statement read. 

The executive order, the resolution writes, "is inconsistent with the nation's and the commonwealth's strong tradition of welcoming immigrants and refugees to our shores."

BOSTON -- The Massachusetts State Senate passed a resolution on Thursday condemning President Donald Trump's executive order on immigrants and refugees.

The executive order, the resolution writes, "is inconsistent with the nation's and the commonwealth's strong tradition of welcoming immigrants and refugees to our shores, while not conclusively contributing to the important goal of keeping our residents safe and secure from terrorism."

Trump's executive order bans residents of seven predominantly Muslim countries from entering the U.S. for 90 days. Trump's order also bars any refugees from entering the U.S. for 120 days and any Syrian refugees indefinitely.

"Freedom of religion is central to our strength as a democracy, both as a nation and as a commonwealth," Senate President Stan Rosenberg, D-Amherst, said in a statement. "We will continue to defend the constitutional rights of the citizens and immigrants of Massachusetts who contribute so much to our culture and our economy. To do nothing in the face of an attack on one of our core freedoms would suggest that we will accept the slow erosion of our constitutional rights, but we absolutely never will."

The Senate resolution passed on a voice vote. It was sponsored by state Sen. Kathleen O'Connor Ives, D-Newburyport.

"The Senate passed this resolution today in solidarity with those affected by the order, and sends an important message that the Massachusetts state Senate rejects discrimination based on race, ethnicity, nationality, gender or religion," O'Connor Ives said.

Massachusetts has seen large protests against the executive order. Gov. Charlie Baker, a Republican, has criticized its implementation. Attorney General Maura Healey, a Democrat, joined a federal lawsuit on behalf of the state of Massachusetts urging a judge to overturn Trump's order.

The resolution says Massachusetts was founded by immigrants and is proud to welcome immigrants and refugees. It says important sectors of the Massachusetts economy, including health care and higher education, depend on immigrants. It says the executive order presents constitutional issues in prioritizing admittance to refugees based on religion.

The resolution concludes that the Massachusetts Senate "reaffirms the commonwealth's strong tradition of welcoming immigrants and refugees and rejecting discrimination based on race, ethnicity, gender or religion; calls on President Trump to reconsider and rescind those portions of the executive order that interfere with the rights of already documented students, workers, permanent residents and other visitors; (and) supports the legal actions of our attorney general and other plaintiffs to contest the legality of the executive order in court."

The resolution will be sent to Trump and to the members of Massachusetts' congressional delegation, all of whom are Democrats.

The State House News Service reported that several senators who came from immigrant families spoke in favor of the resolution before it was passed.

State Sen. Linda Dorcena Forry, D-Boston, whose family emigrated from Haiti, said Trump's order threatens to "criminalize the American dream," according to the State House News Service.

Lawmakers in the Massachusetts House on Thursday quickly voted to override Gov. Charlie Baker's veto of pay raises he called "fiscally irresponsible."

Lawmakers in the Massachusetts House on Thursday quickly voted to override Gov. Charlie Baker's veto of pay raises he called "fiscally irresponsible."

The vote was 116-43. A roll call, obtained by the State House News Service, is available below. The measure then headed to the state Senate for the second override vote necessary to enact the measure over the governor's objections.

The controversial pay package could end up costing the state $18 million on an annualized basis, since it includes hikes for high-ranking lawmakers, top government officials, and judges.

Here's what the pay raise proposal does

The votes to override largely matched the initial House vote to approve the proposal. All Republican lawmakers voted to block the pay raises, and they were joined by a smattering of Democrats.

Supporters of the pay raise say current pay levels are outdated, while opponents of the measure argue lawmakers are rushing to jam the pay hikes through.

Lawmakers received a slight bump in their base salary this year, an increase to $62,500. The hike came through a constitutional mechanism, and the pay raise proposal overridden on Thursday changes the structure of stipends for leadership positions, adding to many lawmakers' bottom lines.

Mass. House Roll Call on Pay Raise Veto Override by Gintautas Dumcius on Scribd

Cost of pay raise could end up hitting $18 million

Hampden District Attorney Anthony D. Gulluni said he can't defy his oaths as a lawyer and prosecutor and go forward without identifications that would stand up in court.

SPRINGFIELD -- Hampden District Attorney Anthony D. Gulluni took pains Thursday to explain why he can't prosecute anyone even though four men he describes as victims were assaulted and beaten outside a city bar. 

It's all about the lack of an identification by the four victims that will stand up to vigorous criminal prosecution standards, Gulluni said. The men allege they were assaulted by off-duty Springfield police officers following an argument at Nathan Bill's Bar and Restaurant on April 8, 2015.

Gulluni said four city police officers who were off-duty at the time of the incident asserted their Fifth Amendment privilege when questioned about the incident by the police department's Internal Investigations Unit.

"It is what it is. It is what it has to be," Gulluni said, after repeatedly expressing regret that his office will bring no criminal charges in connection with the incident. 

He said it would be "unethical" for him to charge the alleged perpetrators of the crime without more solid identifications.

In a nine-page statement, Gulluni detailed efforts reportedly made by the Springfield Police Department's Major Crimes Unit and the department's Internal Investigation Unit to establish who assaulted the four victims.

In the conclusion Gulluni wrote that it is "undeniable" the four men -- Herman Cumby, Jackie Ligon, Jozelle Ligon and Michael Cintron -- were beaten by a number of individuals, that the assailants may have used dangerous weapons and that the victims suffered visible injuries, including a serious injury suffered by Cumby. 

But, the statement continued: "However, it is also undeniable that the victims' admitted lack of recollection of the events and the assailants, inconsistent versions of the incident, their admitted alcohol consumption, and ultimately and most significantly, their lack of legally sound and positive identifications of those who committed a criminal offense, hamstrings the Commonwealth from initiating a criminal complaint or indictment."

Assistant District Attorney Eduardo Velazquez, chief of litigation in Gulluni's office, talked about the standard set by case law in Massachusetts.

Velazquez said courts throughout the country have revamped the rules allowing eyewitness identifications at trial -- reforms that have followed cases in which mistaken identifications led to wrongful convictions. The state Supreme Judicial Court has made several recent rulings that limit the use of identification evidence at trial.

One oft-referenced state Supreme Judicial Court decision says the prosecution, in order to indict a person for a crime, must present sufficient evidence to establish the identity of the accused -- and probable cause to arrest him or her.

Defense lawyers can, and do, bring motions to dismiss indictments under that decision. And, challenges by the defense of witnesses' identification of an alleged perpetrator can sometimes make up the bulk of a trial.

 

The four off-duty officers who asserted their Fifth Amendment right in the internal affairs investigation were identified as being at Nathan Bill's Bar and Restaurant when on-duty officers separated arguing parties at the bar at about 1:15 a.m., according to Gulluni.

The first incident involved the four men who were later beaten at about 2:04 a.m.

On-duty officers who dealt with the 1:15 a.m. argument at the bar said the off-duty officers they saw there were Daniel Billingsly, Melissa Rodriguez, Anthony Cicero and Christian Cicero.

When police arrived in response to the 2:04 a.m. call, the assailants had fled the scene and only the victims were there, Gulluni said.

With no forensic evidence, no surveillance video of the assaults and no eyewitnesses, the case depended on the victims' identifications of the perpetrators, he said.

Gulluni's statement recounts identification attempts from two separate investigations: one by the police department's Internal Investigations Unit and one by the Major Crimes Unit.

The internal affairs process has much looser standards than a criminal investigation, Gulluni said repeatedly, noting that internal affairs findings that could support disciplinary actions meet a lower threshold than that required to support criminal charges.

Interviews with Cumby, Jackie Ligon, Jozelle Ligon and Cintron by internal affairs Sgt. William Andrew were not recorded on video and were summarized in reports by Andrew. Video of the Major Crimes Unit interviews were recorded, Gulluni said.

In the case of the internal affairs interviews, the victims were not given the opportunity to write statements, or to review summary statements written by police, Gulluni said. The internal affairs process did not include keeping a record of what photos of possible suspects were shown to the victims in various arrays, he said.

In criminal proceedings, police are often called on to present to the jury each picture included in a photo array. 

According to Gulluni's statement, Jackie Ligon -- during his second interview with Sgt. Andrews -- identified Officer Daniel Billingsly as the person who punched his brother. That statement contradicts an earlier statement to internal affairs investigators and his statement to the major crimes detectives, Gulluni said.

According to Gulluni's statement, in an interview with Sgt. Andrews, Jozelle Ligon "describes the man who punched him, who the Internal Investigation Unit report identifies as Christian Cicero. This identification contradicts Jackie Ligon's identification of Daniel Billingsly as responsible for the same behavior, the punching of Jozelle Ligon, and also contradicts Jozelle LIgon's previous videotaped interview with major crimes."

Gulluni said that while frustrated with the outcome of the case, "these are the realities of the criminal justice system that is designed to protect folks who are innocent and protect constitutional rights."

Gulluni also expressed hope that "other processes" would be favorable to the victims, that the men would see restitution and that "the folks who are responsible for this are held accountable."

Despite his personal emotions, Gulluni said, "I cannot defy my responsibilities and oaths as a lawyer and as a prosecutor. And it's a very hard thing, it's a very hard thing."

A mobilization ceremony was held Thursday at Barnes Air National Guard Base for 21 men and women who are preparing to serve in support of Operation Spartan Shield in the Middle East.

WESTFIELD - A mobilization ceremony was held Thursday at Barnes Air National Guard Base for 21 men and women who are preparing to serve in support of Operation Spartan Shield in the Middle East.

The ceremony on Thursday involved members of Detachment 1, Charlie Company, 3rd Battalion 126th Aviation Regiment Patriot Medevac Unit who will serve in their fourth year-long overseas deployment since the terror attacks of September 11, 2001.

Army Chief Warrant Officer 4 Timmy L. Tompkins, who served as narrator at the Army Aviation Support Facility, said "This represents another historic milestone in the rich heritage of the 3rd Battalion 126th Aviation Regiment and as members of the Massachusetts Army National; Guard."

Family and friends of the 21 members being deployed hugged and kissed as their loved ones will soon leave to an undisclosed location. Tompkins added that the 3rd Battalion 126th Aviation Regiment has participated, or supported authorized campaign streamers for Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom, the Kuwait Liberation, and the Southwest Border Patrol.

There are currently 21 soldiers located in various locations in the Middle East who are supporting Operation Spartan Shield, he added. Some of the 21 soldiers being deployed included, Matthew Thibodeau, Erica Yates, Jose Morales, Richard Allen, Thomas Harrigan, Brian Cadman, Drew Hornickel, John Peterson, Joshua Ferguson, Leah Vansickle, Mikel Norcross, Paul Blanchard, Jacob Brownell and Maria Iadonisi, all part of the Patriot Medevac Unit.

Tompkins said, "We, the citizens of Massachusetts, offer best wishes and a safe return from your journey in support of the Global War on Terrorism." The one-hour ceremony was staged in the Army Aviation Support Facility #2.

A car accident on Interstate 91 southbound has slowed traffic in both directions while police and emergency services clear the scene.

WEST SPRINGFIELD - A car accident on Interstate 91 southbound has slowed traffic in both directions while police and emergency services clear the scene.

State Police said they have little information on the accident, but state police vehicles, at least one tow truck and an ambulance have been dispatched to the scene. The accident was reported at 4:21 p.m.

The accident is reported near mile marker 10.3, which is just south of the Holyoke Mall.

The accident is in the southbound lane but it appears to be slowing traffic northbound too.

This is a developing story. More information will be added as it is known.

A car accident on Interstate 91 southbound has slowed traffic in both directions while police and emergency services clear the scene.

WEST SPRINGFIELD - A car accident on Interstate 91 southbound has slowed traffic in both directions while police and emergency services clear the scene.

State Police said they have little information on the accident, but state police vehicles, at least one tow truck and an ambulance have been dispatched to the scene.

The accident is reported near mile marker 10.3, which is just south of the Holyoke Mall.

The accident is in the southbound lane but it appears to be slowing traffic northbound too.

This is a developing story. More information will be added as it is known.