Suzanne Hardy, 24, is charged with involuntary manslaughter for the deaths of Dylan Riel, 4, and Jayce Garcia, 1, passengers in her car in a 2014 crash on Route 20.

SPRINGFIELD -- Jury deliberation began Wednesday in the manslaughter trial of the driver of a car in which two young brothers were killed in a Brimfield crash three years ago. 

"This was an accident. Horrible, tragic, but an accident," Joan Williams, the lawyer for Suzanne Hardy, told Hampden Superior Court jurors Wednesday in her closing argument.

Assistant District Attorney James M. Forsyth said Hardy's actions were reckless and negligent.

Two of Hardy's passengers, Dylan Riel, 4, and Jayce Garcia, 1, both of Southbridge, were killed.

Hardy, 24, of Holland, is on trial on two counts of involuntary manslaughter and two counts of motor vehicle homicide by negligent operation for the crash on Route 20 on June 20, 2014, at about 4:45 p.m. She is also charged with two counts of reckless endangerment of a child for not properly securing the boys in her car's back seat, and one count of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon (her car) for injuries to the driver of the other vehicle.

Hardy was Dylan's aunt; her brother was Dylan's father.

Jurors began deliberating at about 2:15 p.m. in the trial before Judge Richard J. Carey.

The prosecution contends the involuntary manslaughter charge is based on Hardy's reckless driving and her failure to secure Dylan and Jayce.

Williams said the prosecution did not prove Hardy was wanton and reckless or negligent.

Forsyth said Hardy was driving, so she was responsible for the care of Dylan and Jayce.

"The children's lives were in her hands, and she disregarded their safety," he said.

The crash happened as Hardy was driving east on Route 20. A Babe's Lawn Care truck and trailer was in the left lane eastbound waiting to turn into the company headquarters at 345 Sturbridge Road (Route 20). Hardy went to the right, clipped the guardrail, spun out of control into the westbound lane and crashed into an SUV. Her car and another car collided head-on in the westbound lane.

Hardy suffered a fractured hip and a fractured foot and had her spleen removed, Williams said.

Jerold Baird, an engineer who was the defense expert and Williams' only witness, testified Wednesday morning. He said he went to the scene of the crash and reviewed police reports and other material about the case.

Baird said accidents, even fatal ones, can happen without anyone at fault.

According to Baird, Hardy would have had less than five seconds when she came around a curve to see the truck and trailer. He said if she was looking anywhere but straight ahead it would slow down the time it took to perceive the truck and react to it.

He said professional drivers are taught to always be aware of what is around them, so it is not wrong for drivers to be looking in their rear view or side mirrors.

Baird said he had no opinion on what caused the crash.

Williams told jurors the landscaping trailer was huge, and its brake lights were minuscule and hidden.

She said jurors can't speculate on what Hardy was doing or not doing right before the crash. Giving an example, she said one of the children might have punched another and she had to say something.

Forsyth said there was more than sufficient time for Hardy to stop for the large truck and trailer stopped and waiting to turn. He said the three people in the landscaping truck said it was stopped anywhere from 30 seconds to a minute.

Scanning mirrors is not going to cause someone to miss a stopped trailer, he said.

The jury will continue deliberating Thursday.

In partnership with the Center for Human Development and The Berkshire Eagle, WGBY is facilitating a town hall-style discussion titled "The Opioid Crisis: A Community Dialogue." Watch video

SPRINGFIELD -- With more than 1,400 Massachusetts residents dying of opioid-related overdoses in 2016, according to the state Department of Public Health, local PBS station WGBY is hosting a live televised event to address the issue.

In partnership with the Center for Human Development, WGBY is facilitating a live town hall-style discussion titled "The Opioid Crisis: A Community Dialogue" on Thursday at 8 p.m. moderated by Berkshire Eagle reporter Carrie Saldo.

Saldo said she expects discussion topics to cover the science of addiction, the impacts of opioid abuse, treatment options and the stigma of recovery.

"We hope people will come together to better understand not only the challenges of abusing these drugs," Saldo said, "but also to discuss potential solutions to this problem."

A recent U.S. Department of Health and Human Services report found Massachusetts to have the highest number of opioid-related emergency room visits among the 50 states.

These numbers have inspired efforts like an opioid task force that aims to reduce addiction and overdose deaths in Franklin County and the North Quabbin region.

The panel will field questions from a live studio audience, as well as from social media contributors using the hashtag #wgbydialogue on Facebook and Twitter. People can also follow WGBY at facebook.com/wgbytv and @wgby on Twitter.

The panel will include:

• Dr. Robert Roose, Sisters of Providence Health System

• Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni

• Chantal Silloway, adolescent recovery program director, Goodwin House

• Danyel Zerella, mother in addiction recovery

• Jennifer Kimball, public health program manager for the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission

• Liz Whynott, Tapestry Health needle exchange program
  

Editor's note: Social media participation during the program will be led by The Republican's Elizabeth Roman as part of a collaboration between WGBY, The Republican, MassLive.com and El Pueblo Latino. You an follow her coverage on Twitter @Lizro27.

Alexandria Ayala lives in Chicopee but attends school at Central High School in Springfield.

CHICOPEE - Police are asking for help to find a teenager who has been missing for six days.

Alexandria Ayala, 16, typically goes by the nickname Alex. She is 5 feet, 1 inch tall, weighs about 145 pounds and has tattoos on her arms. She was last seen wearing her school uniform, which is a black polo shirt and khaki pants, said Michael Wilk, Chicopee Police public information officer.

Ayala lives in a home on Broadway but is a student at Central High School in Springfield. She was last seen at the school, he said.

"Our detectives have spoken to friends and family and they have not heard from her and are concerned," he said.

Anyone who has seen Ayala since she disappeared on May 4 or has any information about her whereabouts is asked to contact Det. Nicole Devlin at 413-594-1736, send a private message to the Police Department Facebook page or text a tip by typing SOLVE CHICOPEE to CRIMES (274367) and then typing in the message, Wilk said.

The Holyoke, Massachusetts public schools began converting to "green," or environmentally friendly, cleaning products to improve air quality and promote health in late April and the entire system will have the green products by September, officials said on Wednesday, May 10, 2017.

HOLYOKE -- The public schools have gone green to get clean.

The School Department is converting to environmentally friendly cleaning products and shelving the chemically potent standard cleaners to improve air quality and end exposure to potentially toxic liquids and sprays, a press release said.

"We have chosen to make an investment in green cleaning products so that our staff and students will have a more asthma- and allergy-friendly learning environment," the press release said.

Asthma is a chronic illness that affects the respiratory tract and airways that carry oxygen in and out of the lungs. Asthma is more prevalent among Holyoke students in grades kindergarten to grade eight, with 27 percent reported to have asthma, than the statewide average for such students of 12.4 percent, according to the press release and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.

Introduction of the green cleaning supplies began late last month in pre-kindergarten classrooms and will be used system-wide by September, the press release said.

"Improving public outcomes has been a priority of my administration over the years, particularly among our city's children," said Mayor Alex B. Morse, who is chairman of the School Committee, when asked to comment on the schools' green conversion.

"The Green Housekeeping Program fits into our broader efforts to promote renewable and sustainable practices, while also having a positive impact on asthma rates in the long term. On a separate but related note, we are also working to remove and/or replace outdated carpeting in some of our schools that will improve air circulation and further decrease asthma rates," he said.

Using green cleaning products will cost about the same as the standard cleaning products, the press release said. Officials didn't immediately return a message from The Republican seeking the amount the School Department pays yearly for cleaning products.

Helping the public schools with the conversion has been a program called Healthy Holyoke, which consists of a partnership between the city of Holyoke Health Department, Holyoke Medical Center, Holyoke Health Center and the Pioneer Valley Asthma Coalition, along with help from state agencies, the press release said.

Green products means they usually are free of chemicals such as phosphates and chlorine that in repeatedly breathed-in doses can be harmful.

"For instance, a little vinegar rubbed onto glass with a wad of crumpled newsprint will give you a streak-free shine on window panes. No glass-specific cleanser needed," according to an article on livescience.com

"In its truest sense, a cleaning product deemed 'green' is derived from natural or bio-based elements. Bio-based means a product which is derived from a renewable source such as the extracts or oils from fruits, vegetables, plant matter, seeds, or nuts," said Healthier-Cleaning-Products.com "They are not derived from crude oil or petroleum distillates otherwise known as petrochemicals. These petrochemicals contain toxic chemicals which are hazardous to human health."

Benefits of using green cleaning products over standard ones include, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency:

Police in Holyoke, Massachusetts will participate in a "high-visibility mobilization" to promote seat-belt use with increased traffic enforcement to reduce motor vehicle deaths and injuries in a "Click It or Ticket" campaign that began May 8, 2017 and runs through May 29.

HOLYOKE -- Police here will participate in a "high-visibility mobilization" to promote seat-belt use with increased traffic enforcement to reduce motor vehicle deaths and injuries.

"More people buckling up means more lives saved," Police Chief James M. Neiswanger said. "Our officers will be out enforcing the seat belt and child passenger safety laws so that fewer people are needlessly injured or killed in crashes in Holyoke."

The"Click It or Ticket" campaign began May 8 and runs through May 29, a Police Department press release said Tuesday.

Up to 200 other local police departments are participating in the focus on seat-belt enforcement with the Massachusetts State Police and the Massachusetts Highway Safety Division of the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security, the press release said.

Of the 172 people killed in vehicle crashes in Massachusetts in 2015, 64 percent, or 110, were not wearing seat belts, said the Holyoke police press release, citing the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Reviews of traffic accidents showed 41 deaths in Massachusetts in 2015 could have been avoided with seat belt usage, the press release said.

"We're asking all drivers to protect themselves by wearing a seat belt on every trip - short or long, day and night - and to keep their eyes on the road," said Jeff Larason, Director of the Highway Safety Division.

The collapse of a tunnel containing radioactive waste at the Hanford nuclear weapons complex underscored what critics have long been saying: The toxic remnants of the Cold War are being stored in haphazard and unsafe conditions, and time is running out to deal with the problem.

RICHLAND, Wash. -- The collapse of a tunnel containing radioactive waste at the Hanford nuclear weapons complex underscored what critics have long been saying: The toxic remnants of the Cold War are being stored in haphazard and unsafe conditions, and time is running out to deal with the problem.

"Unfortunately, the crisis at Hanford is far from an isolated incident," said Kevin Kamps of the anti-nuclear group Beyond Nuclear.

For instance, at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina, which opened in the 1950s and produced plutonium and tritium, the government is laboring to clean up groundwater contamination along with 40 million gallons of radioactive liquid waste stored in tanks that are decades past their projected lifespan. The job is likely to take decades.

In addition to the tunnel collapse discovered Tuesday, dozens of underground storage tanks at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation in Washington state -- some dating to World War II -- are leaking highly radioactive materials.

The problem is that the U.S. government rushed to build nuclear weapons during the Cold War with little thought given to how to permanently dispose of the resulting waste.

Safely removing it now is proving enormously expensive, slow-going, extraordinarily dangerous and so complex that much of the technology required simply does not exist. The cleanup has also been plagued with political and technical setbacks.

For example, the nation's only underground nuclear waste repository, in New Mexico, closed to new shipments in 2014 after an improperly packed drum of waste ruptured. The site just recently reopened.

The U.S. Department of Energy spends about $6 billion a year on managing waste left from the production of nuclear weapons.

"The temporary solutions DOE has used for decades to contain radioactive waste at Hanford have limited lifespans," said Sen. Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat and frequent Hanford critic. "The longer it takes to clean up Hanford, the higher the risk will be to workers, the public and the environment."

U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry acknowledged the problem with nuclear waste, saying the nation can no longer delay fixing the problem because lives are at stake.

During a tour Wednesday of the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, Perry said the federal government has failed to remove the waste in a timely manner and he pledged to make progress.

A recently approved bipartisan federal budget deal for this fiscal year includes $2.3 billion for the ongoing Hanford cleanup, which matches the amount that Sen. Patty Murray, a Washington Democrat, worked to include last year. President Donald Trump is expected to release his 2018 proposal later this month.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said the state plans to issue an order making sure the federal government determines the cause of the tunnel collapse. The order will also require the Energy Department to assess if there's an immediate risk of failures in any other tunnels and take actions to safely store waste in the tunnels until a decision is made about how to permanently handle the material.

Thousands of workers at Hanford were told to stay home as efforts began to plug the 400-square-foot (37-square-meter) sinkhole in the earth over the unoccupied storage tunnel.

Officials said they detected no release of radiation and no one was injured in the collapse, though thousands of workers were forced to take shelter for several hours as a precaution. The cause of the collapse was not immediately known.

A gravel road was built to the collapse site, and workers wearing protective suits and breathing masks planned to fill the hole with 50 truckloads of dirt, the Energy Department said.

The rail tunnel was built in 1956 out of timber, concrete and steel, topped by 8 feet of dirt. It was 360 feet long (110 meters). Radioactive materials were brought into the tunnel by railcars. The tunnel was sealed in 1965 with eight loaded flatbed cars inside.

Gerry Pollet, a Washington state legislator and longtime Hanford critic, said the collapse of a waste storage tunnel at Hanford had been feared for years.

"This disaster was predicted and shows the federal Energy Department's utter recklessness in seeking decades of delay for Hanford cleanup," he said.

He noted the Energy Department last year received permission to delay removing waste from the tunnels until 2042. The waste was supposed to be gone by 2024, Pollet said.

The radiation levels of the waste in the tunnel that collapsed would be lethal within an hour, Pollet said.

Hanford, a 500-square-mile (1,300-square-kilometer) expanse in remote interior Washington about 200 miles from Seattle, was created during World War II as part of the Manhattan Project to build the atomic bomb.

Hanford made most of the plutonium for the nation's nuclear weapons, including the bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan, during the war. It now contains the nation's greatest volume of radioactive waste left over from the production of weapons plutonium.

The cleanup there has cost $19 billion to date and is not expected to be finished until 2060, at an additional cost of $100 billion.

The most dangerous waste at Hanford is 56 million gallons stored in 177 underground tanks, some of which have leaked.

Plans to embed the toxic stew in glass logs for burial have floundered. Construction of a $17 billion glassification factory has stopped because of design and safety issues.

The plan is to bury the glass logs at a nuclear waste dump carved inside Nevada's Yucca Mountain, a project that has been on the drawing board for three decades but has run into resistance from Nevada politicians, including former U.S. Sen. Harry Reid.

President Donald Trump has proposed $120 million to restart the licensing process for the dump.

Northampton area activists flocked to the steps of City Hall on Wednesday evening to protest the dismissal of FBI Director James Comey. Watch video

NORTHAMPTON - After hearing the news that FBI Director James Comey had been fired on Tuesday evening, Northampton resident Lindsay Sabadosa says she knew local activists should do something. 

Sabadosa was one of several event organizers for a flash protest that took place on the steps of Northampton City Hall on Wednesday afternoon as a response to Comey's dismissal.  

President Trump's decision to dispense with the head member of the U.S.'s leading domestic intelligence agency has spawned outcry, alarm, and criticism from multiple corners of the nation's political community, as well as from activist groups.

There is little precedent for an FBI Director being fired; since the birth of the agency in 1908, the only other time this has occurred was 24 years ago when President Bill Clinton let go then Director William Sessions amidst a controversy surrounding ethical concerns. Comey's firing also comes in the midst of a potential clash between the FBI and the Trump White House, after Comey announced in March that the Agency had actually been investigating the Trump campaign for possible ties to Russia since July of 2016.   

Only several days before Comey was let go, he allegedly asked the Department of Justice for more money to further pursue the investigation into the Trump cabinet's possible ties to Russia. 

Critics of Trump's decision to can Comey now allege that the President fired him as a response to the FBI Director's public announcement of the investigation; defenders of the President's decision say that Comey has proven himself unfit for his position and that Trump was right to let him go. 

Sabadosa, who could be seen handing out lists of contacts for members of the U.S. House Intelligence Committee on Wednesday evening, said that she believes there's something not right about the Trump White House's relationship with Russia and that she believes it should be investigated. Sabadosa is a member of the Pioneer Valley Women's March, which is a branch of the Pioneer Valley Resistance Coalition--which is, in turn, associated with Indivisible, a national non-profit and "resistance group" that formed in the wake of Donald Trump's election to office. 

In an interview with The Republican, Sabadosa said that she became very involved in local activism after Trump won the 2016 presidential election.

"I've been really heavily involved since pretty much the day after the election," Sabadosa said, revealing that she acted as the coordinator for the Hampden, Hampshire, and Franklin counties Women's March on Washington--the national protest movement that sprung up as a response to Trump's allegedly derogatory remarks about women.   

"Why is it important to be involved? Just read the newspaper," she said. "We had the Director of the FBI fired last night; we had high level Russian diplomats in the White House today; we have no independent investigation and there's no transparency about what's going on," she said.  

"The reason we are having this rally is that we want an independent investigation, not a partisan one," Sabadosa said. "It's not about pitting Democrats against Republicans; it's about getting real answers about what's happening in our country," she said. 

Three men from Springfield were arrested by Vermont State Police in Montpelier, Vermont, and are now facing heroin trafficking charges.

MONTPELIER, VT - After allegedly attacking and beating a man in a motel parking lot in Vermont, three men from Springfield, Massachusetts were arrested for assault on Tuesday.

Now, after an investigation by law enforcement, the men are also facing a number of drug-related charges, including heroin trafficking.

Augustin Mendoza, 25, Victor Guzman-Hernandez, 30, and Michael Krasin, 19, all of Springfield, were taken into custody on Tuesday after an investigation by the state's Drug Task Force. 

Task Force agents were in the process of monitoring potential drug activity at an Econo Lodge on Northfield Street in Montepelier on Tuesday afternoon, when they saw three men attack another man in the motel's parking lot, according to a statement released Wednesday by Vermont State Police. 

After the attack, the assailants fled the scene in a car, but Vermont State Troopers were able to pursue and stop the vehicle on Route 64 in Williamstown, where the occupants--Mendoza, Krasin, and Guzman-Hernandez--were arrested.

Further investigation by law enforcement showed that the trio had rented a room at the Hilltop Motel on Airport Road in Berlin, Vermont, where it was believed the men had been involved in drug trafficking.  

Police executed a search warrant for the room where the men had been staying, and discovered a large cache of narcotics--including roughly 650 bags of heroin, 44 grams of cocaine, and 28 grams of crack cocaine. Police also found prescription medication and a large amount of cash. 

Mendoza, Krasin, and Guzman-Hernandez have all been lodged at the Chittenden Regional Correction Center and were arraigned in Washington Superior Court on Wednesday.

All three face charges of heroin trafficking, possession of cocaine, aggravated assault and robbery, and possession of stolen property. 

A man had to be hospitalized after receiving burns to his arm in a kitchen fire on Wednesday evening.

SPRINGFIELD - A Springfield man was hospitalized after receiving "minor burns" in a fire in the city's Indian Orchard neighborhood on Wednesday night. 

Springfield firefighters were called to a residence at 25 West Laramee Street at approximately 8:40 p.m. Wednesday, after reports for a kitchen fire were called in from that address, according to Dennis Leger, spokesman for the Springfield Fire Department.

Leger said the cause of the fire appears to have been "unattended cooking" on a stove top.  

A man received minor burns to his left arm in the fire and had to be hospitalized, Leger said.

Additionally, the residence suffered nearly $10,000 in damages and both residents have been displaced. They are currently being assisted with relocation by Red Cross, Leger said.  

Latonia Naylor kicked off her campaign for Springfield School Committee At-Large on Wednesday night. Watch video

SPRINGFIELD - Latonia Naylor kicked off a campaign for Springfield School Committee At-Large seat this week, speaking to a large crowd at the Brownstone Banquet Hall on Boston Road on Wednesday night. 

Naylor currently works as the Senior Community Impact Manager with the United Way of Pioneer Valley, a community development and charity organization based in Springfield.

However, in addition to professional experience, Naylor says she also has a personal and multi-faceted connection to the city's public schools. 

Naylor, who has lived in Springfield for most of her life, says that she knows what it's like for children growing up and living in the city's rougher neighborhoods, who have to go to school with "bullets whizzing by" their heads. 

Speaking Wednesday night, Naylor said she wants it to be different for the next generation of children; different from what it was like for her. "We're going to do better by our children," Naylor said. "I'm sorry to say but we have not done a good enough job for our kids in our school system," she said.  

Naylor discussed the three aspects of her approach on Wednesday night, emphasizing that she wants to create a safe learning and teaching environment, bring fun and enthusiasm back to schools, and to make sure community support and resources were being put into the public school system. 

"We need to make sure that families are engaged in the schools, because that makes sure students are," Naylor said Wednesday in an interview with The Republican. She also pointed out that she believes programs that promote mentoring would also be a big help for children in the local community. 

Naylor also said that she feels her experience working with United Way would allow her to be an effective leader because it gives her a different perspective on the community. "As a parent I see one side, but as a community leader I also get to see what's really happening on the inside of the city and what the struggles for the school system are," Naylor said.

Also Naylor also stressed her relationship to the religious community in Springfield. Many of the people present at the campaign kickoff Wednesday knew Naylor through her church, the First Redeemer Cathedral Church on Prospect Street. 

Mother Grear Atkins, who works at First Redeemer, called Naylor a "fine young woman" and said that she supports her bid for the School Committee seat because she's witnessed her leadership abilities at the church. "She demonstrated her worthiness by her faithfulness to her job, as well as by her faithfulness to our church," Atkins said. "She's very active in our church community," she said.

People also expressed faith in Naylor's instincts with youth and education.  

"I know she's good at anything she puts her mind to, and I know she knows what she's talking about because she has four children of her own," said Kimberly Vaughn, at the event Wednesday. 

View obituaries from The Republican newspaper in Springfield, Massachusetts.

Much of the winter wrapping has come down, exposing web-like walls of scaffolding along much of the $950 million project exterior. Watch video

SPRINGFIELD- A rainy April and a cooler-than-average May hasn't slowed the progress at the MGM Springfield casino site in the city's South End.

Much of the winter wrapping has come down, exposing web-like walls of scaffolding along much of the $950 million project's exterior.

The MGM Springfield website lists many of the activities that are ongoing, such as spray-on fireproofing, concrete masonry wall construction, roofing, and many other items. 

According to the entertainment giant's website, the interior fit out is underway at 95 State St., "along with interior demolition work and cleanup, and floor leveling. Installation of a swing stage systems for facade restoration work is anticipated to take place in the coming weeks."

One of the more obvious signs of progress is the near-completion of the seven level, 3,400 space parking structure's precast concrete erection. Only the northwest corner remains just short of its final height.

According to MGM, construction crews typically work on the site from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. each working day- a pace that is setting the casino on track for a late 2018 grand opening as the Interstate 91 reconstruction concludes. 

The MGM project has been promised to create a minimum of 2,000 construction jobs and once open, hire at least 3,000 workers, of which at least 2,200 will be employed on a full-time equivalent basis with benefits.

Part of MGM's long-term employment pledge calls for the company to "use its best efforts" to ensure at least 35 percent of employees are Springfield residents, with no more than 10 percent of the workforce coming from outside the city limits to achieve labor participation goals regarding women, minorities and veterans.

MGM has begun recruiting and interviewing for several positions within the facility. To see what's available, visit their online job portals here and here. 

MGM Resorts International, the parent company of the MGM Springfield development, reported in late April that earnings per share for the first quarter of 2017 increased 200 percent to 36 cents, compared with 12 cents a share in the first quarter of 2016.

View obituaries from The Republican newspaper in Springfield, Massachusetts.

Voters trust Massachusetts' criminal justice system, but also believe someone released from prison will be more likely to commit a new crime.

Massachusetts voters support reforms to the state's criminal justice system, including giving judges more discretion in sentencing, providing job training and education for inmates, and sealing criminal records sooner, according to a poll released by the MassINC Polling Group on Thursday.

The polling group is affiliated with the MassINC think tank, which supports criminal justice reform.

"Massachusetts voters are ready to embrace reform throughout the system," said Steve Koczela, president of the MassINC Polling Group. "They support changing practices in everything from sentencing to what happens in prison to policies for what happens after release."

Among the findings:

By and large, voters trust Massachusetts' criminal justice system, with 75 percent saying they have some or a lot of confidence in the system and 94 percent feeling safe in their neighborhoods. At the same time, 53 percent believe someone released from prison is more likely to commit a new crime, while only 27 percent believe the person will be less likely to commit a new crime.

Koczela explained the apparent disparity by pointing to polling data showing that respondents believe the best ways to reduce crime are through preparing inmates to leave prison by moving them to less restrictive settings, and providing them with job training, education and connections to community groups. That is not necessarily what prisons are doing today.

"People have some confidence in what the system's doing, but there's a lot of room for improvement," Koczela said.

Regarding drug addiction, two-thirds (66 percent) of respondents said using drugs should be treated more as a health problem than as a crime (24 percent). They want the state to focus more on investing in drug treatment programs (62 percent) than on sending more drug dealers to prison (28 percent). Yet more respondents also felt people who committed crimes related to drugs - selling drugs, breaking into a car or breaking into a home - should be sent to prison, rather than to treatment.

Koczela said respondents appear to be envisioning prison as something "different from what we have today."

"They're thinking about something that improves someone's prospects rather than diminishes someone's prospects when they get out," he said.

One major issue on Beacon Hill today is whether to eliminate mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolent drug offenders. The poll showed voters support giving judges discretion, either with sentencing guidelines (46 percent) or on a case by case basis (41 percent) rather than having mandatory minimums (8 percent).

Voters generally support lessening the amount of time after which someone can have their criminal record sealed.

They generally favor the use of solitary confinement, 52 percent to 43 percent.

More people believe Massachusetts is incarcerating too many people (42 percent) than too few people (10 percent).

The poll of 754 registered voters was conducted April 27 to May 1 and has a margin of error of 3.6 percentage points.

It will feel like spring in Massachusetts today.

It will feel like spring in Massachusetts today. 

The National Weather Service reports sun will be seen between clouds Thursday. There's a slight chance of rain - around 20 percent - in the Greater Boston area, though no showers are expected in Central or Western Massachusetts. 

Temperatures will reach the 50s, 60s Thursday and will fall into the 40s overnight. 

During the school vacation, the club is maintained by a "summer garden club" made up of teachers, the school nurse parents and their families.

SPRINGFIELD -- As the Springfield Garden Club plans a series of events to mark its 100th anniversary, members of the group are partnering with century-old Kensington International School, where students are well on their way to becoming garden stewards of the future.

Kensington launched its first garden project in the fall of 2014, tapping U.S. Department of Agriculture grant money to create 16 raised beds constructed by John Alphin of the city's Facilities Department. The Kensington garden is one of 21 school agricultural projects in the city that Alphin and assistant Jessica Burt are involved with.

Students at Kensington, in the city's Forest Park neighborhood, have planted, harvested and feasted on the garden yields, including winter rye, garlic, strawberries, tomatoes, kale, collard greens and carrots, among other crops.

In 2015, the school added three pear trees, three peach trees and three blueberry bushes.

Garden club member and Forest Park resident Marlene Pepin attended Kensington as a student and was happy to help forge the connection.

On a chilly but sunny morning last week, students and veteran gardeners teamed up to help spread compost in a rectangular bed, constructed by Alphin, to plant a butterfly garden. The butterfly garden consists of a selection of plants and bushes that attract butterflies, bees and other pollinators that help gardens grow, according to club member Margot Eckert.

Eckert credited Janet Doldar, garden club president, "for authorizing funds for the plants and committing to gardening in our city schools."

Danielle Emery and other teachers have done a good job with raising student awareness of horticulture and agriculture, Eckert said. "They are whip-smart, curious, attentive gardeners," she said.

Emery said the gardening project has enriched the students. "It has exposed them to healthy eating habits and given them a chance to taste something fresh," she said.

Students have also become more adventurous eaters, trying vegetables they may have shunned as toddlers, Emery said. Every Friday in the fall, students bring home bags of produce from the garden, including kale, tomatoes, Asian eggplant, carrots and collard greens, Emery said.

Nine-year-old Natasha Gonzalez, who also has a garden at her house, said she looks forward to bringing home the produce to make soups, salads and other dishes from fresh ingredients.

During school vacation, the garden is maintained by a "summer garden club" made up of teachers, the school nurse, parents and their families.

This summer, the gardeners will be sure to spot those busy butterflies and bees.  Eckert said gardens in the surrounding area will all benefit.

"They know no boundaries," she said of the pollinators.

The new $406 million school budget was described as challenging financially, but designed to focus on classroom and student needs.

SPRINGFIELD -- The newly approved $406 million School Department budget for fiscal 2018 was described this week by top school officials as challenging financially but designed to focus on the classroom and student needs.

The $405,951,220 general fund budget for the schools for the fiscal year that starts July 1 reflects a 2.9 percent increase over the fiscal 2017 budget of $394.4 million approved last June. That budget was reduced to $391.2 million last fall due to reductions in charter school reimbursements, triggering more than $3 million in budget cuts, officials said.

Mayor Domenic J. Sarno, who is School Committee chairman, and Superintendent of Schools Daniel J. Warwick said the fiscal 2018 budget "protects the classroom and lays the foundation for continued success in areas including student achievement, graduation and dropout rates."

"As an urban school district, our goal is to work hard every day to provide students with resources and best practices that will help us to narrow the achievement gap and prepare our students to graduate poised for success in college or career," Sarno said. "This budget will allow us to do just that. And it is achieved against a very challenging fiscal backdrop."

The general fund budget is $406 million for fiscal 2018, and the total budget is $476 million when factoring in revenues such as federal grants and the school lunch fund, said School Budget Director Patrick Roach.

The new budget includes funds set aside for pay raises for teachers, subject to a contract not yet finalized, Roach said.

The School Committee unanimously approved the fiscal 2018 budget last week, and it will take effect after approval by the City Council.

Warwick said the school system has had to cope with regular increases in costs associated with supplies and services as well as escalating costs associated with charter and school choice assessments.

The superintendent said the district has achieved record-breaking improvements in its graduation rate and its dropout rate, which has been slashed in half since 2012, and an eight-fold increase in the number of schools achieving the state's highest ranking.

School Committee Vice-Chairman Peter Murphy said the committee's focus in reviewing the budget "was set squarely on protecting resources for teaching and learning.

"It's a very difficult task to balance a budget with so many competing priorities," Murphy said. "But I'm confident this budget puts students first and will allow our district to improve even more on the advancements we have made."

Warwick said in prioritizing schools and classrooms, Central Office departments were required to cut their budgets by 10 percent and schools by 3.75 percent. He said the district has cut more than 61 Central Office positions over the past several years.

Christopher Collins, who serves as chairman of the Finance Subcommittee, said the budget efforts are "painstaking and time consuming."

"But everyone is aligned about putting students first, and we are able to come up with a document that balances the budget and assures our continued movement forward," Collins said.

The congressman, who was named the panel's ranking Democrat in early December, took in more than $440,000 in campaign contributions in the first three months of 2017.

As U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal has taken on a leading role in House debates over health care, tax overhauls and trade policies, contributions to the Springfield Democrat's next re-election bid are also on the rise.

Although Neal's campaign war chest has held a steady cash balance of around $3 million since March 2015, data filed with the Federal Election Commission show donations to his campaign committee were nearly triple previous first-quarter amounts reported before he was named the top Democrat on the powerful Ways and Means Committee.

The congressman, who was named the panel's ranking Democrat in early December, took in more than $440,000 in campaign contributions in the first three months of 2017. That figure is up from nearly $167,000 during the same period of 2015 -- also a non-election year -- and $149,400 in the first quarter of 2016, according to FEC data. 

US Rep. Richard Neal calls President Donald Trump's tax plan 'rerun of the same failed tax policy'

Although the first quarter amount was significantly higher than previous contribution totals Neal has seen early in his re-election bids, it was not the first time he reported a spike in donations. 

The congressman pulled in $421,600 in campaign contributions from April to June 2016 and $324,000 during the same quarter of 2014 -- just months before his two most recent election wins, according to FEC data. 

Neal said his increased fundraising is probably due to both a reaction among Democrats to President Donald J. Trump and his agenda, as well as his elevation to the ranking Democrat spot on a powerful committee.

"The party that is out is always more invigorated. That plays a role as well," he said, contending that donors want constancy and stability.

PAC impact

Of the $440,000 Neal's campaign raised between January and the end of March of 2017, three-quarters, or about $329,000, came from political action committees, including 12 contributing $5,000 each -- the maximum amount that can be given to a candidate under campaign finance rules. 

Several of those PACs represented health care and insurance industry groups, including: the American Council of Life Insurers Political Action Committee; Cardinal Health Inc. PAC; Guardian Life Insurance Company of America Political Action Committee; National Association of Spine Specialists Spine PAC; Prudential Financial Inc. Political Action Committee.

By contrast, the congressman reported receiving just $99,750 in PAC contributions during the first three months of 2015, and $91,000 during the same period in 2016, FEC data showed. 

Neal noted that legislation that has passed through or is expected to soon pass through the Ways and Means committee includes financial regulation and tax legislation -- the latter of which both Republicans and Democrats are looking to overhaul. 

Spending increases

As contributions to the Democrat's re-election went up in the first quarter of 2017, so did his campaign's spending. 

Neal reported $455,000 in disbursements over the three-month period, including $152,200 in operating expenditures and nearly $303,000 in "other disbursements."

Those figures mark a significant increase over the $154,200 he reported spending in the first quarter of 2015 and the $148,000 spent during the same period in 2016.

The bulk of the $222,000 in 2017 spending not related to operating expenditures went to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in the form of two funds transfers, according to FEC data.

Other spending largely went to congressional campaigns in states across the U.S.

"Part of being in the leadership is having the responsibility to recruit and support candidates," the congressman said.

According to Neal, Democrats are currently working with more than 90 candidates looking to run in districts all over the country that are either currently held by Republicans or that will be open and without incumbents.

The congressman also reported donating $2,500 from his campaign to Berkshire Medical Center's Hillcrest Campus in Pittsfield, $500 to the Cassin Academy of Irish Dance in Westfield, $500 to the Irish Culture Center of Western New England in West Springfield and $250 to Springfield Pics Hockey.

Richard Neal to defend medicare, social security as House Ways and Means top Democrat

Despite the increase in contributions and spending, Neal's campaign balance remained largely unchanged from the $3 million cash on-hand reported at the end of 2016. The balance was up slightly from the $2.7 million reported at the close of 2015, according FEC data.

The congressman's leadership political action committee, Madison PAC, which raises money to help various political candidates, meanwhile, collected $31,000 in contributions during the first three months of 2017, according to FEC filings. 

Just over a third of those contributions came from insurance and health care-related political action committees, including $5,000 from Prudential Financial Inc. State and Federal PAC, $5,000 from the Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers PAC and $1,000 from the College of American Pathologists PAC.

Madison PAC, which made four $3,000 disbursements between Jan. 20 and March 30, for a total of $12,000 to Washington D.C.-based C&G Consulting, ended the quarter with a cash balance of nearly $902,000.

The Republican's Jim Kinney contributed to this report.

The Prevention and Wellness Trust Fund pays for programs in high-disease communities to prevent illnesses like asthma and hypertension. Funding for the program runs out this summer.

A state program focused on improving health in areas with high rates of preventable diseases - including Holyoke, Berkshire County and Worcester - is at risk of ending this year.

The Prevention and Wellness Trust Fund was created in 2012 and started the following year as part of Massachusetts' health care cost containment law. It was funded with $57 million over four years, paid for by a fee on commercial insurers and large hospitals. Funding for the program is set to end in June, if the Legislature does not renew it.

"It's making a difference, saving money and saving lives," said State Rep. Aaron Vega, D-Holyoke, who is spearheading a legislative effort to renew the program. "If we don't get a bill passed, the first nine programs are going to go away and we won't be able to expand it."

The outstanding question, however, is who will pay for the program?

The fund focuses on preventing common, preventable diseases and injuries, through things like increasing healthy behaviors and promoting workplace wellness programs. The idea is to reduce health care costs over time by helping people remain healthier. The emphasis is on communities that have particularly high rates of certain conditions, including asthma in children, falls in older adults, tobacco use and hypertension. The program is currently operating in nine regions statewide.

The program gives grants to local organizations, which provide care in the communities.

For example, Dr. Cristina Culcea is a pediatrician at Holyoke Health Center, an inner city health center, who treats pediatric asthma. When she sees a patient with asthma who has ended up in the emergency room recently and who has not responded to conventional treatments, she refers them to the program. A home health worker goes to their house and looks for asthma triggers - things like cockroaches, mold, dust mites, poor ventilation or tobacco smoke. The home health worker will try to eliminate the trigger, whether that means working with a landlord, buying the family different cleaning supplies or putting food in plastic bags, away from bugs. The parents can also meet with a nurse to learn how to properly administer asthma medication.

When Culcea follows up with these patients, she said, she sees improvements. "Usually they have less problems, use less controlled medication, they don't go as often to the emergency room as they used in the past," Culcea said.

There have been two independent analyses of the program, although because of a lag in available data, the results are still preliminary. Those studies have shown some success.

According to a final report [pdf] on the fund written by an independent board overseeing the program and released by the Department of Public Health, people in communities served by the Prevention and Wellness Trust Fund reported a decrease in blood pressure and an increase in hypertension screenings that, if sustained, could result in 500 to 1,000 fewer heart attacks and strokes per one million residents treated, and 125 to 250 fewer deaths from cardiovascular disease. More than 900 falls were prevented in one year, and asthma interventions had "promising results." More than 6,000 housing units implemented smoke-free policies.

Based on a year and a half of data from the portion of the fund that increases the availability of workplace wellness programs, evaluators found an estimated savings of $0.76 million to $4.07 million in health care costs.

The report by the Prevention and Wellness Advisory Board recommends that the program be continued in order to lower health care costs. "It represents the future of health care," the report states. "A system that focuses on keeping people healthy instead of one primarily focused on treating the sick."

Maddie Ribble, director of public policy for the Massachusetts Public Health Association, said the fund has already been successful in a short time period, and it should be renewed. "It really is the first fund of its kind anywhere in the country," Ribble said. "I think it's a real testament to Massachusetts health policy leaders who put this in place to say ... we need a system that works hand in glove with our health care system that helps prevent people from getting sick in the first place, before they need expensive medical treatment."

"The potential for impact and cost savings is huge," Ribble said.

Vega's proposed bill, H.2480, has 98 co-sponsors and is pending before the Joint Committee on Public Health. It would extend the current programs for a year and do more analysis. It would then put the program out to bid again so new communities can apply.

But so far, renewal has been hung up on a debate over funding. A proposed amendment to the House budget that would have renewed the program with an annual $33 million assessment on insurers was left out of the budget after insurer and business groups wrote a letter to House leaders opposing it. The letter said that since 2006, the state has imposed nine new assessments on health insurance, totaling $2.5 billion.

"Imposing new assessments will increase health care costs for employers, exacerbating the challenge they face to make high-quality, affordable coverage available to their employees," the insurer and business groups wrote. They suggested that if the program is renewed, it be paid for through the state's general fund.

Jon Hurst, president of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts, called the fee a "discriminatory assessment" that raises premium costs and does not help small businesses. He said small businesses generally do not benefit from offering wellness programs because they are part of larger risk pools, so having healthier employees does not decrease their premiums.

Lora Pellegrini, president of the Massachusetts Association of Health Plans, said if the program is renewed, there should be a broad-based funding source. For example, if lawmakers pass a bill to tax sugary drinks, that money could pay for the Prevention and Wellness Trust Fund.

But Pellegrini also questioned whether the fund is the best use of state health care dollars or whether the program is duplicating efforts that already exist. "A lot of the things the Prevention and Wellness Trust Fund are funding are programs the health plans are doing," Pellegrini said, pointing to insurer-sponsored programs educating people about diabetes and asthma and assigning case managers to people with chronic conditions.

Sen. Jason Lewis, D-Winchester, chairman of the Joint Committee on Public Health, filed legislation with Vega to reauthorize the fund and said he is in conversations with House and Senate leaders about where the money will come from. "We're looking at a number of different funding mechanisms potentially," Lewis said.

Lewis said options could include taxing sugary drinks, assessing insurers, using the general fund or anything else. "Every option's on the table," Lewis said.

Jonathan Acevedo was standing in the middle of Worthington Street, holding a gun in his right hand as he watched two other males fighting, the arrest report said.

SPRINGFIELD - By the time he arrived at police headquarters Tuesday, Jonathan Acevedo was already facing five charges after allegedly brandishing a gun during a street fight and running down a pedestrian with his car.

An hour later, two more charges were filed when 220 packets of heroin were found hidden in a very private part of Acevedo's body, according to the arrest report.

Jonathan Acevedo 

"A rectangular object tightly packed with individual heroin packets ... was located in the anal cavity area of Jonathan Acevedo," the report noted.

Acevedo, 20, of Springfield, pleaded not guilty Wednesday in Springfield District Court to assault with a dangerous weapon, reckless operation of a motor vehicle, failing to stop for police, leaving the scene of a personal injury accident, operating with a suspended license, possession of heroin with intent to distribute and violation of a drug-free zone.

He was arrested Tuesday afternoon after a city police officer spotted him outside a liquor store on Worthington Street "swinging a handgun at his side," the report said. By the time the officer turned around and called for backup, Acevedo was standing in the middle of Worthington Street, still holding the gun as he watched two men fighting, the report said.

The fight ended quickly and Acevedo drove away in a gray BMW, with several of the fight spectators as passengers. A chase ensued, with Acevedo speeding through several stop signs and crosswalks before knocking down a pedestrian on Federal Street and continuing on to Bowdoin Street, where he and his passengers abandoned the car and fled on foot, he report said. The report does not indicate if the pedestrian was injured.

By the time he was captured on Flordia Street, Acevedo had dumped the gun and no firearm was found. Surveillance video obtained later by police showed Acevedo with the gun in his right hand, the report said.

Acevedo also had $3,620 in cash on him when he was arrested, the report said.

Police requested $100,000 bail, based on "the handgun, the drugs, the money and the total disregard (he showed) for the safety of the public around him," the report said.

The 20-year-old defendant has "a history of violence which has not subsided (and) appears to be increasing," the report said.

Judge John Payne set bail at $25,000 and continued the case for a pretrial hearing on June 12.