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Late soldier Jules Hauterman honored by Holyoke Council, Massachusetts Legislature

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The Holyoke City Council and the Massachusetts House of Representatives paid tribute to the late U.S. Army Cpl. Jules Hauterman Jr. on Tuesday, April 4, 2017 and on Wednesday and a similar honor is scheduled by the state Senate.

HOLYOKE -- The late U.S. Army Cpl. Jules Hauterman Jr. was saluted this week by the City Council and the Massachusetts House of Representatives, with a tribute also planned in the state Senate.

The remains of Hauterman, who was reported missing in action as of Dec. 2, 1950 in North Korea, were returned here in a ceremony March 29. He died at 19.

President Kevin A. Jourdain requested a moment of silence Tuesday in honor of Hauterman at the beginning of the City Council meeting at City Hall.

To the great relief of family and friends, medical science allowed for the identification of the remains of Hauterman, he said.

"This 19 year-old heroic hero gave his life for our freedom," Jourdain said.

State Rep. Aaron M. Vega, D-Holyoke, posted on Facebook Wednesday that House Speaker Robert DeLeo, D-Winthrop, read this tribute from the House rostrum:

"On behalf of Rep. Aaron Vega of Holyoke, I am requesting a moment of silence in memory of Corporal Jules Hauterman, Holyoke native, who was killed in action at the Chosin Reservoir in North Korea. Cpl Hauterman was 18 years old when he enlisted to serve and defend our country. Like so many before, and so many after him, he stood up to defend the freedoms and liberties we enjoy today, including the freedom to be in this chamber practicing democratic self-governance. He made the ultimate sacrifice at the age of 19. He has been listed as missing in action since December 2, 1950, but late last year his remains were identified and were brought home last week. Corporal Hauterman was finally laid to rest in his hometown of Holyoke last Friday."

State Sen. Donald F. Humason, R-Westfield, said the Senate will pay respects to Hauterman.

"We will adjourn in his honor and I will read a statement about him into the record," Humason said.

The Senate was unable to do so Wednesday because it adjourned in honor of the late state Sen. Ken Donnelly, D-Arlington, who died Sunday at 66 of a brain tumor, he said.

A motorcade from the tarmac of Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks, Connecticut received Hauterman's remains and drove into the city at Interstate 391 onto South Street and Northampton Street where people lined the route waving flags.

'We brought the corporal home' says police captain as motorcade carries remains of Korean War soldier Jules Hauterman from tarmac to Holyoke

The U.S. Department of Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency said last month that testing had identified remains as those of Hauterman.

Hauterman lived at St. Jerome Avenue and Monroe Street in a third-floor apartment. He graduated from Holyoke High School and enrolled in the army, fighting and dying in the North Korean War.

Hauterman's final mission was at the Chosin Reservoir. He was with the Medical Platoon, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. His unit was attached to the 31st Regimental Combat Team as one of its infantry battalions for the mission.

He is buried in St. Jerome's Cemetery, 1666 Northampton St.


Document describes Easthampton police investigation of alleged high school assault prompted by racial slur

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Easthampton High School student Joshua R. Brown, 18, was arrested Thursday evening on assault charges, hours after students walked out of class to protest what they said are unresolved racial tensions at the school.

EASTHAMPTON -- A patrol officer's report on file at Northampton District Court describes how Easthampton police investigated an alleged assault in the high school parking lot last week.

Easthampton High School student Joshua R. Brown, 18, was arrested Thursday evening, hours after students walked out of class to protest what they said are unresolved racial tensions at the school. Brown was arraigned Friday on charges of assault and battery and intimidating a witness, and released on the condition that he stay away from the alleged victim. He is due back in court May 10.

Brown has dark skin, and his alleged victim, a juvenile, is white. Two other juvenile students who took part in the March 29 incident would also face charges, according to the report filed March 30 by Patrol Officer Rick J. Rogalski. Rogalski is also an Easthampton High School football coach, according to members of the school community who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Easthampton officials respond to student walkout

The Republican does not identify juvenile defendants or victims of crimes, or release details, such as the names of their parents, that would allow them to be identified.

According to Rogalski's police narrative, submitted to the court in support of establishing probable cause to file charges against Brown:

* Officer William Mielke was dispatched to the Easthampton High School parking lot on March 29 at 2:10 p.m. for a report of a fight. Rogalski radioed dispatch that he would respond instead because he was "close to the high school."

* Rogalski arrived and observed a "large number of students" at the rear of the parking lot, but did not witness a fight. A student who was driving away identified Brown and the alleged victim by name.

* Rogalski located the alleged victim near his vehicle and observed that his face was red. The victim initially declined to talk about the incident, saying, "If he talked about it things would get worse." The victim said Brown had stated if he involved the police, "he would get his brother to come and take care of business."

* The victim named Brown and three other students, and said Brown had struck him. Rogalski asked the victim if anyone shot video of the incident on their cellphone, and he said yes. The victim was "very upset and crying" and said he would contact his parents himself.

* Approached by Principal Kevin Burke, Rogalski explained that he knew who was involved. The victim "informed Principal Burke of his reluctance of punishment for the involved and Burke told (the victim) that at this point he wanted charges pressed."

* Rogalski went with Burke to his office where Burke "printed out the information sheets" of the students involved.

* Rogalski said he had "spoken with Burke earlier in the day" and been informed of an incident described in a March 25 report by another police officer.

* According to the March 25 report, the victim sent a Snapchat message to a former girlfriend saying, "Are you still dating that n-----." The former girlfriend shared the message with a female friend, who in turn posted it to social media.

* The victim and his father "had contacted" the third-party female friend and her mother "and talked about and apologized for his inappropriate comment, an apology they accepted." The young woman, however, "refused to take the post down," according to Rogalski.

* Burke told Rogalski that he would be suspending the students involved in the assault.

* Rogalski left the school, called the victim's father, informed him of what had occurred, and said he would follow up in the morning. The father said he "had spoken with" his son.

* The father called back and told Rogalski he was going to pick up his son and bring him to the doctor because "he was not feeling well and his head hurt."

* After receiving the call, Rogalski decided to "make contact with Brown," at that point "the only one that I was sure struck (the victim)."

* Rogalski went to Brown's residence and spoke with his "former guardian" who said Brown was not at home. Rogalski left his card and "asked if she could have Josh reach out to me on Thursday morning so I could speak to him."

* After leaving the home, Rogalski received a third call from the victim's father, who reported that he had the name and address of a student who had shot cellphone video of the incident. 

* Rogalski went to the student's home "and spoke to both him and his mom and they agreed to let the student accompany me to the station and download the video from their phone."

* Rogalski viewed the video, which he said "clearly shows Josh Brown (and three named juveniles) partially surround the victim, "then Brown punches (the victim) with a closed fist in the left side of his face." Two of the juveniles also punched the victim, and a fourth "in close proximity" did not hit him or say anything, Rogalski wrote.

* An adult female approached the group "in what appears to be an attempt to quell the situation." She is told by one of the juveniles that the victim used the n-word and "needs to get his ass beat." An unknown female can be heard to say, "Kick his ass." Brown then strikes the victim a second time with a closed fist, Rogalski wrote, followed by "more rants" from the juvenile.

* "During this entire incident (the victim) made no attempt to strike any of the individuals involved," Rogalski wrote.

* The victim's father later informed Rogalski that his son had been diagnosed with a concussion, and sent documentation from the physician.

* At around 2:22 p.m. on March 30, Rogalski "was made aware of another video depicting the violent assault of (the victim)" that was sent via private message to the Easthampton Police Department Facebook page.

* Rogalski spoke with the office of Northwestern District Attorney David Sullivan, and "given the seriousness of the injuries, a concussion, which is an injury to the brain, witness statements and video evidence" the four suspects "are being charged with aggravated assault and battery resulting in serious injury and intimidation of a witness, for the comment made to the victim about there being consequences for him cooperating with or getting the police involved."

* Around 5:35 p.m., Rogalski "received information" that Brown was at an Easthampton residence, and went to the address with Officer Kyle Gribi. "I knocked on the door and asked to speak with Josh Brown, as he was coming to the door I observed (one of the juvenile suspects) sitting on the couch and asked to speak with him as well."

* Rogalski "placed Brown under arrest, cuffs were checked for comfort and double locked, and secured him in the rear of my cruiser. I explained to Brown what he was being charged with and why he was being charged with those crimes."

* Brown was taken to the police station on Payson Avenue, booked per department policy and read his rights by Gribi.

* A clerk magistrate set bail at $200 plus fee and Brown was taken to the regional lockup.

Federal police brutality trial to remain in Springfield after judge denies motion for change of venue

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The city lost a bid to transfer a federal police brutality trial from Springfield to Worcester over publicity concerns.

SPRINGFIELD -- The city's top legal adviser lost a bid to move an upcoming police brutality trial focused on one of the city's most notorious cops from Springfield to Worcester after a hearing in U.S. District Court on Wednesday.

However, after more than an hour of private settlement talks in U.S. District Judge Michael Ponsor's chambers this afternoon, it is unclear whether a May 1 trial date will come to fruition. Lawyers on both sides of the case declined comment outside the federal courthouse on State Street.

In a lawsuit brought by Justin Douglas against the city of Springfield, several police detectives and a state trooper, the plaintiff argues he was unnecessarily beaten when a task force burst into a West Springfield motel room on April 6, 2012, to serve an arrest warrant while Douglas was sitting on the toilet.

Under other circumstances, the case may be fairly cut-and-dried but for an ongoing scandal looming in the background involving the Springfield Police Department, several of its officers and its management. A cluster of police misconduct investigations has drawn the scrutiny of the U.S. Department of Justice.

That department is conducting a civil rights probe while the state attorney general's office investigates possible criminal charges, officials confirmed previously. An off-duty cop brawl at Nathan Bill's bar in 2015 and the chaotic arrest of a drug suspect caught on video in 2016 are also incidents under the microscope of outside agencies.

Hector Pineiro, plaintiff's attorney, has attempted to introduce much of the peripheral information regarding other police misconduct probes into his case. Pineiro is particularly interested in putting the "Bigda videos" before a jury to muddy Officer Gregg Bigda's credibility.

Bigda was captured on surveillance video at the Palmer Police Department on Feb. 27, 2016, screaming at two juvenile suspects who investigators believed stole an undercover car left idling outside a Springfield pizza shop earlier that night.

Bigda made sneering racial remarks, threatened to kill one in the parking lot and plant drug evidence on another if he didn't cooperate.

"That's my house!" he bellowed, referring to Springfield police headquarters. Bigda noted that the Pearl Street building is not equipped with cameras in the cells and suggested that anything he put in a police report amounted to gospel.

Bigda was suspended for 60 days once the videos publicly emerged nearly six months later. There also was an allegation of excessive force against former Detective Steven Vigneault in connection with the arrest of one young suspect. Vigneault resigned, then sued the police department under the state's whistleblower statute.

Vigneault has experienced his own domestic problems and has been arrested for violating a restraining order against a former girlfriend who also is a Springfield police officer.

In the Douglas case, Bigda is accused of punching Douglas in the face and other officers are accused of beating him and manhandling his girlfriend in the motel room.

In his motion for a change of venue and during arguments in court on Wednesday, City Solicitor Edward Pikula groused about The Republican and MassLive's persistent coverage of the state affairs at 130 Pearl St.

"Every time there's a story they go back and tell everything, always ... this regurgitation. They need more to fill up their columns or something," Pikula complained to Ponsor. 

Pineiro said he intends to call Vigneault as a witness against Bigda, and argued the "Bigda videos" were necessary to present an accurate view of Bigda's conduct as a police officer.

Ponsor said that while he does not intend to let the jury to see the entire 37-minute video, he is interested in hearing the slice of footage when Bigda crows about lying.

"I would be interested in seeing a redacted version of the video and a transcript ... where Officer Bigda allegedly brags about lying and getting away with it," Ponsor said.

He denied Pikula's motion for a change of venue to Worcester, citing the case of Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, whose defense lawyers were unsuccessful in getting the trial moved outside federal court in Boston.

"If you blow up an entire city and shoot up an entire city, and can't get a change of venue, I don't know what I can do for you here," Ponsor said.

However, lawyers for the city weren't the only ones looking for cover for their clients in front of a jury.

Douglas is serving an eight-year state prison sentence in connection with the 2012 arrest, where police discovered stolen jewelry and a "cache" of weapons "secreted" throughout the motel room.

Pineiro wants jurors to hear no mention of the weapons, his client's conviction, incarceration or details about girlfriend Samantha Rauls and her personal history.

"If she presents herself as Betty Crocker we'll have to deal with that ... but I want to be pretty tight with the plaintiff and I'll be pretty tight with the defense," Ponsor said.

The issue at had will be solely whether officers at the scene used excessive force during Douglas' arrest.

Pikula has argued that Douglas showed no visible injuries and refused medical attention despite saying he had been pistol-whipped as well as beaten by several officers.

Among the defendants are Bigda and city detectives Christopher Bates, Mark Templeman, Thomas Kakley and Edward Kalish plus Massachusetts State Police Trooper Liam Jones.

Police patrols to focus on distracted drivers in Holyoke as Massachusetts launches attentive driving effort

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Holyoke police patrols will be aimed at reducing the number of vehicle crashes caused by distracted driving such as drivers texting and talking on cell phones, an official said Wednesday, April 5, 2017.

HOLYOKE -- The Police Department will be doing patrols to reduce the number of vehicle crashes caused by distracted driving such as drivers texting and talking on cell phones, an official said Wednesday.

"Our goal is keeping all road users in our community safe. If you text, dial, or read a message on your phone while driving, you are endangering the lives of those around you, and you will be stopped," Police Chief James M. Neiswanger said.

"Using our community's crash data, our officers will determine where the majority of crashes occur and focus their patrols in those areas," he said, in a statement emailed by Lt. James Albert.

The patrols are part of a statewide enforcement and education campaign by the Highway Safety Division of the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security to address crashes fueled by driver distraction, the statement said.

The campaign is designed to raise awareness of the importance of attentive driving and will focus on the dangers distracted driving poses to everyone on the road including bicyclists and pedestrians, the statement said.

Massachusetts law prohibits adult drivers from writing, sending, or reading electronic messages, interacting with apps or browsing the internet while driving even if stopped at a light, the statement said.

Drivers under 18 are prohibited entirely from using mobile phones and other electronic devices while driving. Fines go as high as $500. Teen drivers can also lose their license for up to one year, the statement said.

"Drivers focused on anything but driving put every road user - especially pedestrians and bicyclists - in danger," said Jeff Larason, Highway Safety Division director. "Transportation experts agree that the increase in fatal crashes is linked to drivers who aren't paying attention. These types of crashes are not 'accidents' - they kill innocent people and they are 100 percent preventable."

Holyoke police offered these tips:

  • Turn off phones and place them out of reach while driving.

  • Inform family and friends you'll be driving and unable to call or text.

  • Park in a safe place if you realize you must call or text.

  • Review directions before driving.

  • Watch for pedestrians and bicyclists, especially at night.

  • Buckle up, because seat belts are the best defense against a distracted driver.
  • Judge demands embattled Springfield police officer Luke Cournoyer show up in court

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    Judge Mark Mason ordered Springfield detective Luke Cournoyer to appear in court and report on whether he will testify in a motion hearing on a gun defendant.

    SPRINGFIELD -- Luke Cournoyer, one of the city police officers embroiled in controversy over a videotaped interrogation, was in Hampden Superior Court on Wednesday on the order of a judge.

    Cournoyer has been a primary player in the the controversial "Bigda videos," which feature Officer Gregg Bigda, a former narcotics detective, threatening two teens suspected of stealing an unmarked police vehicle during interrogations at the Palmer Police Department in February 2016. Cournoyer was with Bigda at the interrogation.

    Judge Mark D. Mason ordered Cournoyer to be in his courtroom at 4 p.m. Wednesday to discuss his testifying in a motion to suppress a gun case.

    Since the interrogation tape was brought to light, prosecutors have reported Bigda and Cournoyer would not be available to testify in court procedures. Many cases were dismissed or defendants were given reduced sentences in plea agreements because of the lack of availability of the officers.

    Cournoyer appeared at court with his lawyer, former Hampden District Attorney William M. Bennett.

    "Are there going to be any issues for my consideration? For example, is Officer Cournoyer going to seek to invoke his Fifth Amendment privilege?" Mason asked.

    "I hope that Officer Cournoyer is going to be able to testify, that's his intention," Bennett said.

    Bennett, without being specific, said he wants to check about "all the things I've read about in the newspaper." He said he hopes to be able to "clear that up," and Cournoyer can testify.

    If Cournoyer testifies, defense lawyer Timothy Farris would most likely seek to question him about the videotapes from the Palmer police station to attack his credibility as a witness.

    Mason set the motion to suppress hearing for April 12.

    The case in question is against Anthony Lee Rivera, charged with carrying a firearm without a license (as a serial offender), illegal possession of ammunition and carrying a loaded firearm.

    Rivera expected to plead guilty to lesser charges before Mason on Wednesday morning, and get a sentence of 18 months in the Hampden County Correctional Center in Ludlow.

    Mason refused to accept the sentence recommended by prosecution and defense since the charge against Rivera before the recommended reduction called for a minimum of 15 years in state prison.

    Mason said he had not received a satisfactory reason for such a drastic reduction from Assistant District Attorney Ingrid Frau. When Frau, according to Mason, gave him no better explanation at 4 p.m., that is when Mason rejected the plea and asked Bennett about whether or not Cournoyer would testify at a hearing.

    The case has a history going back even further. When the motion to suppress was argued in August and Cournoyer was the lead witness, Mason denied the motion.

    But in November, when Mason found out about the Palmer videotape, he ordered the hearing reopened to allow Farris to question Cournoyer more.

    Due to scheduling issues and the fact Mason was assigned to other counties, the hearing was not scheduled until Wednesday, Mason said.

    Mason asked Frau if she was going to amend the indictment against Rivera so the crime for which he was charged would be a lesser crime, not carrying the 15-year minimum mandatory.

    She said she could consider that.

    Mason did not say whether he would accept a plea based on a lesser indictment.

    In the Palmer footage, obtained by The Republican and published on MassLive in early November, Bigda screams threats of violence at both boys and threatens to kill and plant drugs on one of the teens. Cournoyer is standing in the room listening to all of Bigda's comments.

    The questioning took place after a police pursuit that began in Wilbraham, when a patrolman there spotted the stolen SUV, and ended in Palmer. Springfield detectives showed up at the scene of the arrest, uninvited, when they heard of the pursuit over the scanner.

    Bigda was suspended for 60 days over the Palmer incident and now is assigned to the records division, according to police. Cournoyer was not disciplined but took a brief "stress-related" leave in November, officials said. He is now reportedly back on the narcotics unit.

    Obituaries from The Republican, April 5, 2017

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    View obituaries from The Republican newspaper in Springfield, Massachusetts.

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    Springfield Police/Community Relations Committee asks East Springfield residents about their concerns at second meeting

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    Springfield's Police/Community Relations Committee held its second meeting in East Springfield on Wednesday night. Watch video

     

    SPRINGFIELD - Springfield's Police/Community Relations Committee held its second ever meeting Wednesday night at East Springfield's Neighborhood Council Office on Carew Street. 

    In January, City Council President Orlando Ramos announced the creation of the 15-member group as a response to allegations of police misconduct that led to the City Council's votes last year to re-establish a citizen Police Commission to oversee the Police Department.

    The Committee is made up of city councilors, police officials, and community members, most of whom have previous experience with police/community relations. 

    Meetings are expected to be held every three weeks and will take place in each of the city's 8 Wards. During this time, the Committee is expected to go on a "listening tour" that will allow it to collect criticism from the city's residents, Committee President Tom Ashe said Wednesday night. This criticism will then be used to create a report that will be presented to the city council, the Springfield Police Department, and to Mayor Sarno regarding recommendations to improve relations between the police and the public, Ashe said.   

    While the committee's first meeting, held in Ward 1, was more of an internal discussion regarding the goals of the group, Wednesday's meeting in Ward 2 was the committee's first real opportunity to talk to and receive feedback from the surrounding community. 

    Prior to the meeting's beginning, "Satisfaction Surveys" were handed out to local residents who attended the meeting, as a means of rating how people felt about their interactions with police. 

    The discussion started with a short introduction by Ward 2 City Councilor Michael Fenton, after which the Committee members introduced themselves to the approximately 15 residents who attended the meeting.

    Chief among the concerns that residents had was their interactions with dispatchers, which many locals felt was often dismissive or offensive. Residents were reluctant to outwardly blame police officers for the poor service, instead arguing it was the outsourced dispatch employees who represented the problem. 

    "When you don't get an officer, it's generally a problem," said city resident Deb Huber, relating multiple incidents where she felt her calls weren't taken seriously or adequately addressed. "It's disrespectful, it's condescending--so the whole dispatch situation I find to be miserable," she said.

    Other residents made similar claims, often relating incidents where they felt their concerns were not taken seriously by dispatchers, or were ignored.

    Another concern was how little information police were allowed to give out when confronted by local residents about their activities. Some residents found it unsettling that police would be conducting investigations in their neighborhood but gave little in terms of explanation for what they were doing.  

    Social media came to be a central topic Wednesday night, with officials discussing with residents how it had become both a blessing and a curse to law enforcement officials. 

    Councilor Fenton pointed out that the city's police have recently been able to utilize social media to widely share surveillance images of suspects in possible crimes--often leading to the successful apprehension of those suspects. 

    On the flip side, Committee member and Springfield Police Detective Shawn Kearney made the point that civilian use of social media--including taking phone videos and pictures of working crime scene investigations--has made law enforcement officials' jobs more complicated. 

     

    West Springfield police seek to identify suspect who broke into local Dunkin Donuts

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    West Springfield police are asking for the public's help in identifying a man who broke into a local Dunkin Donuts.

    WEST SPRINGFIELD - West Springfield police are asking for the public's help in identifying a man who broke into a local Dunkin Donuts early Wednesday morning.

    Video of the suspect was captured by surveillance cameras at the Dunkin on Memorial Avenue at approximately 2 a.m. on Wednesday, according to police. 

    Police didn't state whether the suspect took any donuts or anything else in the store. 

    Anyone who believes they can identify the man pictured above has been asked to contact the West Springfield Police Department at 413-263-3210 ext: 229.


    Dog rescued by firefighters after mobile home fire in Springfield

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    A dog was rescued by firefighters on Wednesday night after a mobile home caught fire.

    SPRINGFIELD - A dog was rescued by Springfield firefighters on Wednesday evening after a mobile home caught fire in the city's Boston Road neighborhood, according to Dennis Leger, spokesman for the Springfield Fire Department.

    Firefighters were called to 8 Lamplighter Lane at approximately 6:21 p.m. on Wednesday, where they found the structure engulfed in flames.

    The dog was rescued and the fire put out, Leger said.

    As a result of the fire the mobile home was utterly destroyed and its occupant was displaced. Red Cross is helping the person with relocation, Leger said.  

    The cause of the fire is not currently known and the city's Arson and Bomb unit was on scene earlier Wednesday investigating. 

     

    Warehouse war between Amazon and the world heats up with more robots joining the workforce

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    Last year, Locus unveiled its own warehouse robotics solution called the LocusBot-first using it for its own business, then selling them to companies that ship everything from housewares to auto parts.

    It was Amazon that drove America's warehouse operators into the robot business.

    Quiet Logistics, which ships apparel out of its Devens, Massachusetts, warehouse, had been using robots made by a company called Kiva Systems. When Amazon bought Kiva in 2012, Quiet hired scientists. In 2015 it spun out a new company called Locus Robotics, which raised $8 million in venture capital. Last year, Locus unveiled its own warehouse robotics solution called the LocusBot-first using it for its own business, then selling them to companies that ship everything from housewares to auto parts.

    Now, Locus has landed a bigger fish: It's selling its robots to DHL Worldwide Express, the world's largest third-party logistics company. DHL will use the machines at a Southhaven, Mississippi, location to help ship surgical devices to operating rooms across the country.

    To do that, Locus's software directs a LocusBot to a shelf where the specific item is located. A human worker meets it there, reads a description of the item off an iPad, and drops it into a plastic bucket mounted on the machine. The idea is that the robot does the majority of the traveling, while the worker simply patrols a specified zone.

    "The first trend was to try to replace humans," said Rick Faulk, chief executive of Locus. "Now it's about humans and robots working collaboratively."

    Locus isn't alone. Amazon's acquisition of Kiva set off an arms race among robot makers and shippers across the U.S. who scurried to keep up with the e-commerce giant. That includes 6 River Systems, a Waltham, Mass.-based company founded by former Kiva employees, which this week is showing its robot at ProMat, an industry trade show in Chicago. There's also Fetch, a company in San Jose, California, whose robot scuttles around warehouses and also does the walking for workers.

    The big changes in warehouse robotics, said Adrian Kumar, vice president for solutions design at DHL, come in response to the rise of e-commerce. For decades, operators were focused on the task of loading pallets and shipping them to retailers, who broke up the shipments and routed them to retail locations. Fulfilling online orders, on the other hand, requires shippers to pack boxes with a diverse set of individual items and route them on to customers' homes.

    That shift has given way to what people in the business call collaborative robotics, in which a human warehouse worker toils alongside an autonomous machine.

    At the Quiet Logistics warehouse, the robots shorten the distance a warehouse worker travels on a typical day from 14 miles to less than 5 miles, Faulk said. The robots, meanwhile, park themselves directly in front of the shelf that the worker is supposed to pick from, decreasing the risk the human will pick the wrong item. That makes the job easier, and is appealing to employees. "Working with robots is a fun thing to do," Faulk said.

    What that means for warehouse humans is an open question. There were 939,000 people working in the industry in February, up 44 percent over the past 10 years, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The rise of e-commerce has created a need for more hands to pick items and pack boxes. Seattle-based Amazon.com's rapid shipping times have taught customers to expect goods on their doorstep in two days or less, fueling a warehouse boom as retailers scramble to amass distribution hubs closer to their shoppers.

    Logistics firms can have a hard time hiring enough people, particularly during peak shopping seasons. Adding robots should ease some of the seasonal shortages, and may make the work less physically demanding. Working conditions at U.S. warehouses are often scrutinized for their grueling nature: Pickers complain of exhausting shifts, sometimes in oppressive heat or biting cold. Many of the jobs are temporary, fluctuating with the shopping calendar.

    Across the economy, almost 25 million jobs will be lost to automation in the next 10 years, while the new technology will create 15 million jobs, according to research firm Forrester. In the logistics business, smarter warehouse bots will likely reduce the number of people it takes to run a fulfillment center.

    "I don't think people are investing in automation because of a near-term labor shortage," said Karl Siebrecht, CEO at Flexe, a Seattle-based company that bills itself as the Airbnb of warehouse space. "It's about improving productivity. Fundamentally, that means people will be replaced."

    (c) 2017, Bloomberg. Patrick Clark and Kim Bhasin wrote this story.

    Rhode Island fugitive wanted in connection to shooting incident arrested by State Police in Holyoke

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    A Rhode Island fugitive that had been on the run since March was arrested in Holyoke on Wednesday.

    HOLYOKE - A fugitive from Rhode Island that had been on the run ever since a violent incident in March was apprehended in Holyoke on Wednesday night. 

    thumbnail_joshua rojas 4-5-17.jpgJoshua Rojas.  

    23-year-old Joshua Rojas was discovered "hiding" in an apartment at 139 Sargeant Street, said Lt. Jim Albert of the Holyoke Police Department in a statement. 

    Dubbed a "violent shooting suspect," Rojas is believed to be connected to an incident in which two men were shot in Woonsocket, Rhode Island on March 3, 2017.

    Another Rhode Island man, 27-year-old Diego Garcia, was arrested in March shortly after the incident and charged with shooting the two men. 

    Rojas has been on the run ever since the time of the incident, Albert said. 

    A Fugitive Warrant was used to arrest him, and he has been charged with a number of crimes related to the shooting incident. All of the specific charges have not been made available at this time. 

    He is being held in Holyoke overnight, Albert said. 

    A number of law enforcement agencies were involved in his arrest, including Holyoke Police Detectives and Massachusetts State Police. 

    Pittsfield middle school student arrested after allegedly threatening to blow up school bus

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    A Pittsfield middle school student was arrested Wednesday in connection to a number of fake bomb threats made on Monday.

    PITTSFIELD - A Pittsfield middle school student was arrested on Wednesday after allegedly making a series of threatening phone calls in which he threatened to "blow up" a public school bus, according to statement released by Pittsfield Police Chief Mike Wynn. 

    The suspect--a 15-year-old who has not been identified due to his age--allegedly made calls to the cell phone of a public school bus operator on Monday, repeatedly saying "I'm going to blow up 126 today." The number "126"referred to the specific bus that the operator was in charge of driving, Wynn said.

    At the time the calls were made police and the bus driver were unaware of the identity of the caller and the bus in question was parked at the Pittsfield Public School's School Bus Operations Center, located on Merrill Road.

    The calls resulted in a large operation in which bus 126 was transported to a "remote, isolated location" and inspected by a State Police Bomb Technician to clear it for explosive devices, according to Wynn.

    The bus was eventually cleared and then put back in service. 

    Investigation eventually led police to believe that the juvenile was responsible for the calls and he was subsequently taken into custody by Pittsfield Police Officers on Wednesday afternoon. He now faces a charge of making a threat concerning the location of a dangerous item, said Wynn in a statement. 

    He was arraigned in Pittsfield Juvenile Court on Wednesday. 

     

    Parents call for ouster of Easthampton High School principal Kevin Burke and School Resource Officer Alan Schadel

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    EASTHAMPTON -- Residents packed a meeting room at the Municipal Building and spilled into the hallway as the School Committee and Superintendent Nancy Follansbee heard a litany of concerns and complaints about leadership and culture at Easthampton High School. Resident Jonathan Poirier read a prepared letter aloud, saying "students and teachers do not feel safe within our schools." Parents...

    EASTHAMPTON -- Residents packed a meeting room at the Municipal Building and spilled into the hallway as the School Committee and Superintendent Nancy Follansbee heard a litany of concerns and complaints about leadership and culture at Easthampton High School.

    Resident Jonathan Poirier read a prepared letter aloud, saying "students and teachers do not feel safe within our schools." Parents have lost faith in Principal Kevin Burke's ability to lead, the letter stated, and "a conflict of interest now exists for Officer (Alan) Schadel."

    The letter, from a group of parents, called for the immediate removal of Burke and Schadel, the School Resource Officer and police department employee who is currently out on medical leave.

    Wednesday's "emergency meeting" was scheduled days after three students of color were arrested following a physical altercation in the school parking lot. One of the defendants, 18-year-old Joshua Brown, now faces criminal charges in Northampton District Court. The alleged victim, a juvenile white male student, was not disciplined.

    The parking lot incident, reportedly spurred by a racial slur posted to social media by the white student, prompted hundreds of students to walk out of class Thursday. Some of the students said school administrators don't handle racial issues well.

    The incident was "not an isolated flare up between teenage boys" but the predictable outcome of many smaller events, Poirier stated. The fact that violence erupted "can largely be attributed to the lack of leadership and improper conduct from certain school administrators, primarily Principal Burke." 

    The April 5 letter asks for a full investigation into Burke's performance. "It's now up to this committee to take the actions necessary to remedy this situation, and we are confident that you will," it concluded.

    Over the course of an hour or so, about a dozen people spoke, many echoing concerns expressed in the letter, and others calling for a new approach at the high school.

    "Whether you like it or not, it is no longer 1960," said one woman.

    Parent Barbara O'Brien said "it was not a single incident" which led to the student walkout on Thursday. The march was "a last ditch effort" by students who felt frustrated and unheard, she said.

    A black man said one of his children had been involved in the fight, and was "arrested, handcuffed, and fingerprinted" after throwing a punch. He said he thought the administration overreacted. "This sets a precedent," he said.

    Karina Patterson is editor of the high school newspaper, the "EHS Eagle." She told The Republican that "some minority students have expressed concern for their safety" at the school. She said she planned to write about the matter.

    Acting School Committee Chairman Peter Gunn thanked those present and asked people to submit as much commentary as possible in writing. "Your input is extraordinarily helpful to us," he said. Gunn said he and other committee members had not been fully aware of the level of discord.

    Follansbee said that the high school principal reports to her, and that she is responsible for hiring decisions. The school resource officer appointment is made by Police Chief Robert Alberti.

    Follansbee said Easthampton "is fortunate to have a school resource officer" and that the police department "has been with us every step of the way."

    Follansbee said Burke and Vice Principal Sue Welson would meet with smaller groups of students at the high school in the coming weeks "to address the issues that divide us." Follansbee said the student walkout and recent incidents brought "many teachable moments."

    Follansbee said that "we need to communicate better" and referred to an open letter she recently sent to parents about the incident. She said she is available to meet with parents at any time, and welcomes input and feedback. 

    In response to probing questions from committee members, Follansbee said any "conflict of interest" on the part of Shadel is a "bigger issue" best left for future discussion.
    Committee member Marissa Carrere asked who decided to press charges against the three boys -- police or school officials. Follansbee said Alberti would be the best person to address the School Committee and answer that question.

    Carrere praised the students who brought the issues to public attention, saying they behaved in a peaceful manner and showed "strength of character."

    Gunn said the School Committee would consider all issues raised by the public, but not make any immediate decisions.

    "We will try ... to proceed in a way that is respectful of the due process rights of everyone who is involved in this situation, to the fullest extent that we can," he said.

    In Schadel's absence, two other police officers are serving as "liaisons" to the schools. Follansbee told The Republican that one of the temporary school liaisons is Officer Rick Rogalski.

    Rogalski, also an Easthampton High School football coach, investigated the March 29 parking lot fight, arrested Brown one day later, and filed the criminal complaint, according to court records. It's unclear if the juvenile suspects have been arraigned.

    Resident Patrick Brough said he had never seen so many parents at a School Committee meeting, and encouraged those present to stay involved. The committee meets again next Tuesday at 6 p.m.

    Money laundering, loansharking case against local mobster Rex Cunningham advances (slowly) in Hampden Superior Court

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    A money laundering and loansharking case against Springfield gangsters Rex Cunningham and Brian Hoyle is set for trial on July 17 in Hampden Superior Court.

    SPRINGFIELD -- A money laundering and loansharking case against one of the region's most enduring gangsters is plodding toward trial, set for July 17 in Hampden Superior Court.

    Rex Cunningham and longtime sidekick Brian Hoyle were charged Sept. 28 with nine criminal counts including running an illegal gaming enterprise, making extortionate loans, money laundering and witness intimidation. They pleaded not guilty to all counts at their arraignment in Hampshire Superior Court, where a statewide grand jury handed up the indictments.

    It was not the pair's first time at the rodeo.

    They were convicted in the 1990s in a high-profile racketeering conspiracy case in federal court. Hoyle, 59, was convicted of extortion conspiracy for making collections at Cunningham's behest. Cunningham, 66, had long run with Greater Springfield's most prominent mobsters.

    He was convicted of loansharking and beating a man with pipes and bats over a $17,000 debt in 1992. Cunningham and his cohorts grabbed the victim outside his sister's wake.

    Cunningham was caught on police wiretaps crowing about directing the man's beating.

    "One guy at a time and don't hit him in the head," he was quoted as saying.

    Once the pummeling was done and the man's arm was broken, Cunningham told the victim he would call an ambulance, but then wielded a wrench and recounted:

    "Smash, smash on his hands. F---ed him up good and I told him, 'Ya still owe me the money.'"

    Cunningham was released in 2011 after serving nearly 17 years in prison and having many of his assets seized by the government, including a vacation home in New Hampshire, more than $200,000 in cash and two properties in Springfield where he ran bars.

    Hoyle was released in 2009 after serving 12 years behind bars.

    Investigators say Cunningham and Hoyle returned to the bar business, along with the illicit rackets, not long after their releases from prison. They ran the betting and loansharking enterprises using "The New" O'Brien's Corner and the Blarney Stone as ad hoc headquarters, according to state police.

    Those bars were raided along with the homes of Cunningham and Hoyle in August. Investigators maintain Cunningham has hidden interests in both. Hoyle at his arraignment stated his current job title as "director of entertainment" for O'Brien's Corner.

    Cunningham's defense lawyer, Daniel D. Kelly, filed motions seeking additional information from the state attorney general's office, which is prosecuting the case. He has requested that the court order the AG's office to turn over search warrant applications and inventories, evidence tags and names of witnesses against his client and Hoyle.

    Kelly also asked for Massachusetts State Police protocol for stopping and searching cars. Previous filings in the case have stated the money laundering and loansharking case was launched when a trooper pulled Cunningham over and found the car had "bad plates" and found betting records strewn about the vehicle.

    Assistant Attorney General Amy Lynne Pryor-Karangekis responded that several of the records have already been turned over or will be in the normal course of automatic discovery -- legally set standards around exchanges of information between attorneys in criminal cases.

    Kelly argued in one filing that "several witnesses and/or alleged victims stated that the statements given to Massachusetts State Police and their testimony while before the grand jury were inconsistent."

    "The witnesses and/or alleged victims claim to be coerced by investigating officers prior to their testimony before the grand jury," according to a motion for additional discovery.

    Pryor-Karengekis countered that she cannot respond to the contention because the individuals who were allegedly "coerced" were not named in the motion.

    The next pretrial hearing in the case is set for May 24.

    STCC hosts dual jazz concert featuring Marcus Johnson and company

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    Musician, educator and author were only a few hats that keyboardist Marcus Johnson wore as he blew the audience away at Springfield Technical Community College.

    SPRINGFIELD -- Musician, educator and author were only a few hats that keyboardist Marcus Johnson wore today as he blew the audience away at Springfield Technical Community College.

    As part of a free jazz concert that was part of STCC's Spring Diversity Series, Johnson and his band played their first round of music for a sizable crowd at 11 a.m. in the Scibelli Hall gymnasium.

    STCC will host another free and open concert at 6 p.m. in the same venue for those who missed the first showing.

    According to Vonetta Lightfoot, multicultural affairs operations manager for STCC's Diversity Council, Johnson's career as a musician and speaker were a perfect match for this year's annual jazz performance.

    Lightfoot said Johnson's music is good for the community aspect of the series while his work as an author and speaker made him a good choice to help educate students on the possibilities for their goals and passions.

    Opening for Johnson and his band was a jazz group called Simple, a trio made up of STCC students Veronica Hardy, Joshua Bednaz and Kat Leung.

    Following the opening act, Johnson and his band mates took the stage and wasted no time with an upbeat tune filled with plenty of solos to get the crowd moving.

    After about two songs, Johnson took a moment to speak with the crowd, providing words of encouragement to the audience to pursue their dreams and ultimate happiness.

    "This is your life, this is not a dress rehearsal," he said. "Your passion is one of the most intimate things you will ever have."

    Along with his successful music career and releasing 15 studio albums, Johnson is CEO and founder of his own brand of wine, FLO Wine LLC. He is also an author, recently releasing a book titled "For the Love of." Johnson read an excerpt from his book just before he and his band continued on with its set.

    At the end of the concert the author signed books and visited with the audience. Just before the show was over the frontman challenged the audience to strive to chase their dreams and get better every day.


    Women's Fund CEO Elizabeth Barajas-Roman stepping down

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    She is stepping down to head the Northampton-based Solidago Foundation.

    SPRINGFIELD - Elizabeth Barajas-Roman, chief executive officer of the Women's Fund of Western Massachusetts for the past three years, is stepping down on Friday to head the Northampton-based Solidago Foundation, which does charitable grantmaking on a national basis.

    Barajas-Roman called it "incredibly difficult to leave a fantastic organization, with amazing staff," but said her new position will allow her to "advocate for gender equity in a different, but powerful way." She called Solidago "a thought leader in innovative collaborative funding for social impact."

    "They move the needle through strategic project leadership," she said of the organization whose principles include funding community based organizations working to increase political participation.

    She will also oversee Solidago related organizations, the See Forward Fund, Inc. and The Frances Fund.

    Barajas-Roman joined the Women's Fund, which provides funds to organizations that work collaboratively to help empower women as well as runs the annual Leadership Institute for Political and Public Impact to help women develop civic leadership, in the summer of 2014 from Pew Charitable Trusts, where she coordinated lobbying efforts on behalf of children's health.

    "Elizabeth's vision and leadership has elevated our Women's Fund to new heights, helping to build strong and powerful partnerships regionally and nationally," said Layla G. Taylor, an attorney who chairs the Women's Fund board, in a release.

    "She will be greatly missed by the staff, board, donors and our partners. However, we are also excited about the potential we have to gain a new national partner through her leadership at the Solidago Foundation."

    During Barajas-Roman tenure, the fund is said to have had three consecutive years of fund-raising growth, a 300 percent increase in social media visibility, a new three-year strategic plan, whose consultants included Irma V. Gonzalez, and, in April, the fund moved from Easthampton to 276 Bridge Street.

    More recently, the fund launched a partnership with Longmeadow's Baypath University to offer academic credit to participants in the funds leadership program, and the Partnership for Young Women's Progress, a multi-sector initiative that, with lead support from the MassMutual Foundation, is designed to create an economic prosperity blueprint for young women in Springfield.

    The fund also worked with the Obama Administration as part of the national Prosperity Together coalition. Barajas-Roman and Ellen Moorhouse, the fund's program director, recently attended the White House Council on Women and Girls forum in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in the White House complex in Washington, D.C.

    Irma Gonzalez, described as a long-time fund supporter as well as a principal of Zoen Resources, and strategic management consultant, has been appointed by the fund's board to serve as interim CEO during the transition.

    Barajas-Roman will remain as a consultant to the organization during the transition to help manage strategic initiative, and will continue on the national board of the Women's Funding Network. She is a graduate of Oberlin College, and received her master's degree in international policy from Harvard University.

    Springfield-based United Personnel Service, Inc. will lead the search process for the permanent CEO, which will open in early April.

    Watch: Former white supremacist Christian Picciolini discusses his violent past at Flywheel Collective in Easthampton

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    Former white supremacist Christian Picciolini talked with Easthampton locals at the Flywheel Collective on Tuesday night. Watch video

    EASTHAMPTON - Former white supremacist Christian Picciolini spoke to a full house at the Flywheel Collective in Easthampton on Tuesday night, discussing his violent past and the attempts he's made to spread compassion since leaving the movement.  

    Piccioli was recruited to the Chicago Area Skinheads (CASH)--a violent neo-nazi gang--in 1987 at the age of 14. 

    At the age of 16, Picciolini ascended to the head of the organization after the group's founder, Clark Martell, was sentenced to prison.

    Picciolini turned away from his life as a neo-nazi in the mid-1990s. He would eventually go on to become an author, music manager, and peace activist.

    Picciolini discussed his experiences with Easthampton residents Tuesday night while Mehlaga Samdani, director of the Longmeadow-based Critical Connections, moderated the discussion.

    You can watch video of Picciolini discussing his experiences above.  

    Citizens' statement on Massachusetts marijuana ballot question was effective, but little known

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    Massachusetts voters who read an independently produced statement about the marijuana legalization ballot question felt better informed about the issue, research shows.

    Massachusetts voters who read an independently produced statement about the marijuana legalization ballot question felt better informed about the issue and more confident in their knowledge. But it is likely that few residents were even aware of the so-called "Citizens' Statement."

    Organizers of the Citizens Initiative Review pilot project, which produced the statement, are now pushing for legislation that would make the citizens' review process a permanent feature of Massachusetts elections and would include the statement in the official state voter guide.

    "Realistically, we were limited in what our means were to get it out there," said State Rep. Jonathan Hecht, D-Watertown, who spearheaded the initiative. "Our hope is to get this established as a regular part of Massachusetts elections."

    The Citizens Initiative Review has existed in Oregon for seven years. The way it works is organizers select a diverse panel of 20 voters. The voters do an in-depth study of a ballot question over four days and hear from supporters, opponents and policy experts. They then produce a statement that includes key findings and statements in support of and opposition to the question.

    Organizers in Massachusetts chose the ballot question that legalized recreational marijuana as the subject of the pilot program.

    According to John Gastil, professor of communication arts and sciences at Pennsylvania State University who has studied Oregon's initiative, around half of Oregon's voters are familiar with that state's Citizens' Statement because it appears in the official voter guide.

    Without that, knowledge of the Massachusetts statement was limited to being posted on a website, sent out by some lawmakers through emails and covered by the press. Hecht acknowledged that it was "not very widely (read) because it wasn't made available through any official channels."

    Peter Levine, associate dean at the Tisch College of Civic Life at Tufts University and one of the initiative organizers, said the pilot program had a very small budget, so it was limited in the outreach it could do. "We certainty didn't get 50 percent of Massachusetts citizens to read the report. You could do that by putting it in the voter guide," Levine said.

    Legislation that Hecht sponsored with Rep. Brad Hill, R-Ipswich, and Sen. Jason Lewis, D-Winchester, would make the Citizens Initiative Review a regular feature of Massachusetts statewide elections. The bill would create a commission to oversee the initiative, and the statement would be printed in the official voters' guide.

    The bill could get a boost from research by Gastil, who studied Massachusetts' pilot program and concluded that it had a positive impact. In an online survey where respondents were shown the Citizens' Statement, 77 percent said it was very or somewhat helpful in deciding how to vote on the ballot question. Those who read the statement reported a slight increase in knowledge about the proposed marijuana policy, and they had more confidence in that knowledge.

    "The statement they produced for voters ... increased their knowledge on the issue," Gastil said. "It's not just that they learned more facts. It's that they became more confident in the accurate factual information they could have guessed at, like can you sell marijuana that you cultivate at your home."

    Gastil's study also found that the panelists themselves were highly satisfied with the process and felt they learned enough to make an informed decision.

    George Kerxhalli, a panelist from Worcester, said the panel represented a good cross-section of Massachusetts residents. He said he came away feeling like he was "really taking part in something that would make a difference in the future in the Massachusetts legislation."

    Ware School Committee says additional $72K needed for FY18 budget

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    School board chairman Aaron Sawabi said that negotiations would continue with Town Manager Stuart Beckley, to try and agree on a number

    WARE -- The school committee at Wednesday's budget hearing said the district needs an additional $72,374 from the municipality to adequately fund programs during the fiscal year that begins on July 1.

    The committee said the "gap" between the amount needed and the spending recommended by town officials was initially almost $140,000.

    School board chairman Aaron Sawabi said that negotiations would continue with Town Manager Stuart Beckley to try to agree on a number.

    Sawabi also said that should the two sides reach an impasse, the committee is prepared to ask for an amendment to the overall municipal budget at next month's annual Town Meeting to fund the additional $72,374.

    Data provided by the committee at the April 5 meeting shows the school department's "needs based budget" proposal for the coming fiscal year, which includes busing costs, is $13.94 million and the amount to maintain services is $13.66 million.

    The district was allocated nearly $13.2 million for the current fiscal year.

    State trooper testifies Mohamed Fofanah fired at him (video)

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    Mohamed Fofanah is charged with armed assault with intent to murder for allegedly shooting at a state police trooper in Springfield on April 30, 2016. Watch video

    SPRINGFIELD -- State Trooper David Stucenski testified Thursday that Mohamed Fofanah fired a shot at him in the early morning hours of April 30, 2016, in the city's South End.

    Stucenski said Fofanah was 15 to 20 feet away when he fired and missed. Fofanah fired the gun when Stucenski's canine partner Frankie was "just about" on top of of the suspect.

    Fofanah, 36, of Hartford, is on trial before Hampden Superior Court Judge John S. Ferrara on 10 charges, including armed assault with intent to murder. The other charges are three counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, three illegal firearms counts, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, leaving the scene of a property damage accident, and mistreating or interfering with a police dog.

    The latter count alleges Fofanah punched and choked Frankie while the Belgian Malinois was attempting to restrain Fofanah. Fofanah was treated for bite wounds.

    Assistant District Attorney Robert Schmidt told jurors in his opening statement that when the gun Fofanah used was recovered at the scene, there were five live rounds and one spent shell in it. The gun's serial number was obliterated, he said.

    Andrew M. Klyman, Fofanah's lawyer, said his client was not firing at the trooper with the intent to harm him. He asked jurors to listen to the testimony about the actions of Stucenski and, more importantly, the actions of Frankie.

    Schmidt said a civilian called 911 after seeing a motorist crash into several vehicles and then leave his car off West Columbus Avenue.

    Stucenski testified he was responding to a dispatch about the incident. He said Fofanah walked toward him under an underpass. The trooper said Fofanah didn't respond to repeated orders to stop, even when he warned that he would release his canine.

    "Canine Frankie is much faster than I am," Stucenski said, saying the dog was running toward Fofanah when Fofanah took a gun from his waistband and "fired directly at me."

    Stucenski said at that point he didn't have his own gun out.

    Frankie got hold of Fofanah at his left hip/buttock area, after which Fofanah dropped the gun, Stucenski said.

    Stucenski pulled his own weapon, and called "shots fired" over his radio.

    Meanwhile, Fofanah placed Frankie into a headlock and began to strike the dog with a closed fist and choke him, Stucenski said. The choking got Frankie to momentarily lose the grip, but the dog immediately got a second grip on Fofanah's neck and chest area, Stucenski said.

    By that time another trooper arrived and handcuffed Fofanah, Stucenski said.

    Frankie was checked out by a veterinarian for bruises but had no significant injuries, Stucenski said.

    Klyman, cross-examining Stucenski, asked if Belgian Malinois were aggressive dogs.

    "I don't know what you mean," Stucenski said.

    Klyman asked if they barked or snarled and Stucenski said no. Asked about Frankie's weight, the trooper said he weighed 78 pounds.

    Under questioning from Schmidt, Stucenski said he did not see Fofanah point the gun at Frankie.

    When Fofanah was arrested, a Massachusetts State Police spokesman said he was an undocumented immigrant who now stands to be deported.

    State police said that a records check of Fofanah revealed he is a "deportable felon," based on felony offenses committed in Connecticut. As a result of his arrest in Springfield, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement was contacted and has filed a detainer against Fofanah.

    According to state police spokesman David Procopio, Fofanah is from Sierra Leone. At the time of his arrest, he was wearing an electronic monitoring bracelet, and had previously been identified by ICE for deportation, Procopio said.

    According to Connecticut court records, Fofanah was sentenced in 2010 to five years in prison for criminal possession of a firearm. The sentence was to be suspended after 30 months, and he was released on probation in December 2013.

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