Amazon will open major new outposts in northern Virginia's Crystal City and in New York City.

Amazon will open major new outposts in northern Virginia's Crystal City and in New York City, splitting its much-sought investment of up to 50,000 jobs between the two East Coast sites, according to people close to the decision-making process.

An announcement could come early as Tuesday, according to the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they had signed nondisclosure agreements with the company.

An Amazon spokesman declined to comment. The company has said it would make a decision on the high-profile project, which it calls HQ2, this year.

Amazon picks Northern Virginia and New York for its additional headquarters after year-long, high-profile search https://t.co/QIYcEBnHXP

-- The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) November 13, 2018

The choice of Crystal City in Arlington County as one of the winners could cement northern Virginia's reputation as a magnet for business and potentially reshape the Washington, D.C., region into an East Coast outpost of Silicon Valley over the next decade.

The decision also would hand Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, D, and local leaders the largest economic development prize in a generation - one promising billions of dollars in capital investments alone - but could also put pressure on the region's already steep housing prices, congested roads and yawning divide between wealthy and low-income residents.

It also represents a victory for New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, D, and Gov. Andrew Cuomo, D, who had joked that he would change his name to "Amazon Cuomo" if necessary to land the prize.

Northam's spokeswoman, Ofirah Yheskel, did not respond to multiple texts, phone calls and emails Tuesday night. Neither did the office of Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va.

The offices of Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., and Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va., whose district includes Crystal City, declined to comment, as did Alexandria Mayor Allison Silberberg.

Arlington Director of Economic Development Victor Hoskins also did not respond to inquiries.

Other final suitors included the District of Columbia, Montgomery County, Maryland, and 16 other jurisdictions Amazon has considered since narrowing its list in January. News of the decision was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.

Amazon's decision to split the project rather than open a second headquarters on par with its Seattle campus has angered some who said the company had ginned up competition among cities only to change the rules midstream. Some said it was unfair that the company seemed to be considering only sites in more affluent communities.

Amazon launched the project in the fall of 2017, dubbing it HQ2 and issuing search criteria for "a second corporate headquarters" with as many as 50,000 jobs and an investment of $5 billion.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos personally described the scope of the project, saying in a news release: "We expect HQ2 to be a full equal to our Seattle headquarters." (Bezos owns The Washington Post.)

Others said a split makes sense for Amazon because of the difficulty of finding 50,000 qualified workers - many of them computer engineers - in a single region. Dividing the project also could ease concerns about the pressure that Amazon's growth could put on housing, transportation networks and schools.

In picking Crystal City, Amazon opted for a close-in suburban site, just across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C., and a half-mile from Reagan National Airport. Outdated buildings and underused properties now fill the site, including yawning vacancies in some of the office buildings.

In New York, the company had been eyeing a neighborhood in Queens called Long Island City. Long Island City is across the East River from midtown Manhattan.

Arlington County offered Crystal City as part of a joint bid with an adjoining property at Potomac Yard, in the City of Alexandria. The state played a leading role in sponsoring the bid, including offering incentives that have not been disclosed publicly.

The selection represents a triumph for the growth strategy of Arlington and Alexandria to promote development along mass transit routes. The site is close to the Crystal City Metro station on the Blue and Yellow lines, and the planned Potomac Yard station scheduled to open in 2021.

But residents in the nearby Del Ray neighborhood in Alexandria expressed worry earlier this year that Amazon's arrival would worsen daily rush-hour backups that already slow traffic to a crawl, and erode the quality of life in their neighborhood of mostly single-family homes.

The decision marks a dramatic upturn in fortune for Crystal City, which lost thousands of jobs when military agencies and defense contractors departed in the Pentagon's Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission (BRAC) process, beginning in 2005.

The initial building that Amazon would occupy is at 1851 South Bell Street or 1770 Crystal Drive in Arlington, Virginia, according to individuals familiar with the decision.

One advantage is the properties are all overseen by a single, well-capitalized company, JBG Smith. The $4.4 billion company is the region's biggest real estate owner, most active developer, and owns a majority of the property in the bid - enough to accommodate the entire project on its own.

Amazon's choice also burnishes northern Virginia's standing as an attractive site for corporate headquarters. In the last 15 years, it has lured Volkswagen Group of America to Herndon, Northrop Grumman to Falls Church, Hilton Worldwide to Tysons and Nestle's U.S. headquarters to Arlington.

Northam said in March that the state's pitch centered on workforce development, inclusivity and transportation, along with quality of life.

Although 238 locations initially submitted proposals to Amazon, the Washington, D.C., region was considered a favorite from the outset by many experts due to Bezos' personal connections in the region, particularly the $23 million mansion he purchased in the city's Kalorama neighborhood last year and his ownership of The Washington Post.

Others suggested that Amazon executives want to be near Washington to cozy up to the federal government, either because of increased concerns that regulators may pursue antitrust actions against the company or because the federal government has become a critical Amazon customer.

Virginia also offers the political advantage of being a purple state, making it easier for the company to seek support from both political parties.

Amazon previously announced that it would headquarters its cloud computing unit, Amazon Web Services, in Herndon, near some of its data centers.

The Washington area also naturally fit many of the criteria Amazon called for in its search, among them a deep workforce of talented workers, a robust public transit system and easy airport access.

In discussions with local officials earlier this year, Amazon executives were especially focused on the quality of the workforce and availability of affordable housing, according to Arlington Economic Development Director Victor Hoskins.

When Amazon narrowed the list of contenders to 20 in January, it included three in the Washington area - the District, northern Virginia and Montgomery County - more than any other part of the country.

Unlike other contenders such as Chicago or Dallas, northern Virginia largely lacked a single site able to accommodate the entire project.

Amazon launched its search in September of 2017, vowing to make a decision by the end of 2018 and occupy an initial building of 500,000 square feet in 2019.

The company claims that its Seattle headquarters injected $38 billion beyond what the company spent on its buildings into the area economy, generating an additional $1.40 for every dollar the company spent.

Seattle officials have not disputed the figures, but have also been racing to keep up with the company's staggering growth and the requirements it places on public transit, schools, road networks, parks and utilities. The company now has more 45,000 employees, occupying than 40 buildings and 10 million square feet of office space.

Compared with other large corporations, Amazon employees are less likely to commute by car, as about 55 percent either walk, bike or take public transit, according to a survey the company did of its Seattle workforce. The company purchases transit cards for employees and is building a dedicated cycle track to separate bikes from cars near its Seattle buildings.

Amazon's growth is also likely to put new strains on housing. Since Amazon's arrival, Seattle has become one of the most expensive places in the United States to live, forcing lower-income residents to move to far-off suburbs. The city and surrounding King County declared a state of emergency in 2015 over homelessness.

Even without Amazon, the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments estimated that the region needs to add 235,000 housing units by 2025 to keep pace with expected job growth. Amazon's arrival could push the goal above 275,000, according to a recent analysis by the Urban Institute. Right now it is only on pace to add about 170,000 new units by 2026.

Since beginning the headquarters search, Bezos and the company made several announcements that could soften the company's image in the public eye as it moves to open its second hub.

Bezos announced in September that he would donate $2 billion of his own funds to support groups battling homelessness in America and create a network of preschools in underserved communities. In October - after bearing months of criticism from Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., over its treatment of workers - Amazon announced that it would raise its minimum wage for all employees to $15 per hour.

The minimum wage decision isn't likely to have much effect on the company's hiring in northern Virginia, where Amazon says its facility will employ mainly white collar positions with an average salary of more than $100,000 a year.

Before Amazon announced its search, Washington-area jurisdictions - forced in part by federal budget cuts - had already been diversifying their workforce away from a reliance on federal spending. The region gained more than 55,000 jobs annually from 2015 to 2017 despite budget cuts and stagnation in Congress. But its job growth has been slower than average among major metropolitan areas.

(c) 2018, The Washington Post. Written by Jonathan O'Connell, Robert McCartney, Patricia Sullivan. Gregory S. Schneider contributed to this report.

At least 42 people were confirmed dead in the wildfire that turned the Northern California town of Paradise and outlying areas into hell on earth, making it the deadliest blaze in state history. Watch video

PARADISE, Calif. (AP) -- The dead were found in burned-out cars, in the smoldering ruins of their homes, or next to their vehicles, apparently overcome by smoke and flames before they could jump in behind the wheel and escape. In some cases, there were only charred fragments of bone, so small that coroner's investigators used a wire basket to sift and sort them.

At least 42 people were confirmed dead in the wildfire that turned the Northern California town of Paradise and outlying areas into hell on earth, making it the deadliest blaze in state history. The search for bodies continued Monday. Authorities said they were bringing in cadaver dogs, two portable morgue units from the military and an additional 160 search and rescue personnel to help find human remains.

"This is an unprecedented event," Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea told an evening news conference.  "If you've been up there, you also know the magnitude of the scene we're dealing with. I want to recover as many remains as we possibly can, as soon as we can. Because I know the toll it takes on loved ones."

Officials said they did not know how many people were missing four days after the fire swept over the town of 27,000 and practically wiped it off the map with flames so fierce that authorities brought in a mobile DNA lab and forensic anthropologists to help identify the dead.

Meanwhile, a landowner near where the blaze began, Betsy Ann Cowley, said she got an email from Pacific Gas & Electric Co. the day before the fire last week telling her that crews needed to come onto her property because the utility's power lines were causing sparks. PG&E had no comment on the email, and state officials said the cause of the inferno was under investigation.

As the search for victims dragged on, friends and relatives of the missing called hospitals, police, shelters and the coroner's office in hopes of learning what became of their loved ones. Paradise was a popular retirement community, and about a quarter of the population was over 65.

Tad Teays awaited word on his 90-year-old dementia-stricken mother. Darlina Duarte was desperate for information about her half brother, a diabetic who was largely housebound because he had lost his legs. And Barbara Hall tried in vain to find out whether her aunt and the woman's husband, who are in their 80s and 90s, made it out alive from their retirement community.

"Did they make it in their car? Did they get away? Did their car go over the edge of a mountain somewhere? I just don't know," said Hall, adding that the couple had only a landline and calls were not going through to it.

Megan James, of Newfoundland, Canada, searched via Twitter from the other side of the continent for information about her aunt and uncle, whose house in Paradise burned down and whose vehicles were still there. On Monday, she asked on Twitter for someone to take over the posts, saying she is "so emotionally and mentally exhausted."

"I need to sleep and cry," James added. "Just PRAY. Please."

The blaze was part of an outbreak of wildfires on both ends of the state. Together, they were blamed for 44 deaths, including two in celebrity-studded Malibu in Southern California , where firefighters appeared to be gaining ground against a roughly 143-square-mile (370-square-kilometer) blaze that destroyed at least 370 structures, with hundreds more feared lost.

Some of the thousands of people forced from their homes by the blaze were allowed to return, and authorities reopened U.S. 101, a major freeway through the fire zone in Los Angeles and Ventura counties.

Malibu celebrities and mobile-home dwellers in nearby mountains were slowly learning whether their homes had been spared or reduced to ash.

All told, more than 8,000 firefighters statewide were battling wildfires that destroyed more than 7,000 structures and scorched more than 325 square miles (840 square kilometers), the flames feeding on dry brush and driven by blowtorch winds.

In Northern California, fire crews still fighting the blaze that obliterated Paradise contended with wind gusts up to 40 mph (64 kph) overnight, the flames jumping 300 feet across Lake Oroville. The fire had grown to 177 square miles (303 square kilometers) and was 25 percent contained, authorities said. Winds were expected to weaken on Monday night.

Greg Woodcox, who led a caravan of vehicles that was overcome by flames, said he heard screams and watched a friend die as the heat blew out the vehicle's windows. Four other people also died.

The 58-year-old told the San Francisco Chronicle he was in a Jeep ahead of the other vehicles and ran when the flames overtook them. He followed a fox down a steep embankment and survived by submerging himself in a stream for nearly an hour.

But there were tiny signs of some sense of order returning to Paradise and anonymous gestures meant to rally the spirits of firefighters who have worked in a burned-over wasteland for days.

Large American flags stuck into the ground lined both sides of the road at the town limits, and temporary stop signs appeared overnight at major intersections. Downed power lines that had blocked roads were cut away, and crews took down burned trees with chain saws.

The 42 dead in Northern California made this blaze the deadliest single fire on record, surpassing the toll from a 1933 blaze in Griffith Park in Los Angeles that killed 29. A series of wildfires in Northern California's wine country last fall killed 44 people and destroyed more than 5,000 homes.

By GILLIAN FLACCUS and DON THOMPSON, Associated Press. Contributing to this report were Janie Har, Jocelyn Gecker, Paul Elias, Martha Mendoza and Andrew Selsky.

A fast moving storm is bringing heavy rainfall and damaging winds through New England on Tuesday.

A fast moving storm is bringing heavy rainfall and damaging winds through New England on Tuesday. 

The storm, which began moving across Massachusetts late Monday, is expected to drop up to two inches of rain in the region. 

"A period of heavy rainfall this morning may result in minor street flooding in urban and poor drainage areas, and minor river flooding," the National Weather Service said. 

A wind advisory has been issued for Cape Cod and the islands, where winds with gusts up to 60 miles per hour are expected. The wind advisory will go into effect at 10 a.m. Tuesday and remain in effect until 4 p.m. 

"Strong winds may blow down limbs, trees, and power lines," the National Weather Service said. "Scattered power outages are expected."

Some relief will be offered Wednesday, when sunny skies are in the forecast, but it will be temporary as another storm is expected this week. Snow and sleet are likely Thursday night into Friday morning before transitioning into rain across the state. 

Massachusetts Democrats, who won race after race in Tuesday's elections, appear to have a some racial tensions within their party.

Massachusetts Democrats, who won race after race in Tuesday's elections, appear to have a some racial tensions within their party.

In a televised interview that aired Friday night on WGBH, Suffolk County District Attorney-elect Rachael Rollins and state representatives-elect Nika Elugardo and Liz Miranda, all of Boston, pledged to be forceful agents of change, discussed how they built winning campaigns, and raised serious concerns with leadership in the Democratic party, with Elugardo describing the party as "straight-up racist."

"What I found was a little disappointing was that I think that the Democratic party of our commonwealth and across the country needs to take a look at themselves," Miranda told Basic Black host Callie Crossley. "We all won without major support for our primaries."

"Or any," added Rollins. "Stop being nice."

Elugardo, who defeated House Ways and Means Chair Jeff Sanchez in the Democratic primary, added, "There was major support for my primary, for the opponent."

The newly elected black women were prompted to discuss the role that the party played in this year's elections by Crossley, who mentioned this summer's apology, from Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez, during a July fundraising appearance before a predominantly black audience in Atlanta.

"We took too many people for granted," Perez said, according to The Atlantic, "and African Americans -- our most loyal constituency -- we all too frequently took for granted. That is a shame on us, folks, and for that I apologize. And for that I say, it will never happen again!"

Miranda said that as a candidate this year, she felt she was "fighting" against a party that she says should have been helping her.

"What I found is, I'm a Democrat. I feel I'm gung ho for the party and then you see yourself really fighting against the system that is meant to support you and that is something that needs to be discussed and brought up," Miranda said. "It shouldn't be black women having to shout that. I think the party understands that they are at a crossroads."

"And it's tokenism. Let's be honest," said Rollins, 57, who beat four candidates, including assistant DA Greg Henning and Rep. Evandro Carvalho, to win the primary in September.

Rollins recalled knocking on the doors of voters in Roxbury with Miranda and realizing the Massachusetts Democratic party literature they were handing out featured "eight white people and Ayanna," referring to now congresswoman-elect Ayanna Pressley, who is black. She recalled calling party chair Gus Bickford and complaining that she and Miranda were not featured on the party literature they were handing to potential voters.

"What's so beautiful about this moment - nobody did anything to help, at least me, get here," Rollins said. "We don't owe anyone anything. I report to the voters. ... They said resoundingly they want me to do this and all of the people that were not supportive, they know that they weren't and they need to really look around and see the changing demographics and we aren't going to ask for permission, we're just going to take it."

Bickford said he was "thrilled" with the Democrats elected on Tuesday and cited restrictions on supporting candidates during primary elections.

"We are working every day to build a more diverse and inclusive Party in Massachusetts, and we always welcome constructive feedback on how we can do that better," Bickford said in a statement to the News Service. "While Party bylaws prohibit us from actively supporting candidates in primary elections, we are thrilled with the slate of candidates who were elected on Tuesday, and look forward to working with them to continue fighting for the rights of women, the LGBTQ community, communities of color, and working familes here in the Commonwealth."

Miranda, who won the House seat Carvalho gave up, said she learned during the course of her campaign that the "experts" who advise candidates need to adapt.

"They have to diversify their leadership ... diversify their strategies, because it's not going to work in communities like Brockton or Roxbury or maybe even Lowell where there's a different demographic," she said. "It's already shifted. It shouldn't take 2018, for four black women to emerge for people to say, 'Oh what's the sauce?' I got so tired of getting that question. The sauce is we busted our behinds. The sauce is we know our communities ... And the other sauce is we included people that you ignored."

Elugardo and Rollins then alluded to Tuesday's Democratic party celebration at the Fairmont Copley Plaza in Boston, where Pressley, the first African-American woman elected to the Massachusetts U.S. House delegation, spoke as well as Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who won a second six-year term and addressed a crowd that was buzzing over the possibility that Warren will run for president in 2020.

Said Elugardo: "What needs to be said in a very straightforward way is that the Democratic party is straight-up racist. The structural racism that we're talking about dismantling is in the party. And this is one of the reasons why it's frustrating to be standing up on a stage at a Democratic party behind speeches behind made about Republicans dividing the country."

"And that's why I left early and went to my after-party right after I spoke," Rollins said, interrupting Elugardo.

Elugardo continued, "And so here's the thing. You have thirty minutes of a speech. Thirty percent of it is bashing people. Thirty percent of it is talking about why we're unifiers and then the rest is rhetoric with a couple of sentences thrown in I could actually clap for, legitimately."

Elugardo, who said she personally knocked on 5,500 doors during her campaign, said she has been "sick to her stomach" since voting, at the age of 19, for Bill Clinton for president because she "hated" his policies on race, welfare, and criminal justice. She said she registered as a Democrat on June 12, 2017 when she filed papers to run for office.

"Eventually I said, you know what I'm going to be a joiner. I'm going to join you," Elugardo said. "Right, now we're the Democratic party. But if you think it's time to change the face of leadership - get out of the way. That's what has to happen. Because the leaders that have been leading it have led us down the wrong path. That is not leadership."

"We need not people that speak for us, but speak with us," said Rollins. "White women are wonderful. You don't understand the black community, right. You believe that you can speak to us and about us but you don't even include us in the decision-making and I don't have time to be nice about it anymore because things are urgent right now. It is life or death. We don't have the death penalty in Massachusetts. We send people away for life without the possibility of parole all the time and we are impacting people's lives that changes them drastically all the time. I don't have time for your feelings. We're going to change it now."

Miranda, executive director of the Hawthorne Youth and Community Center, is a first generation Cape Verdean-American and Roxbury resident who has spent her entire life in the district she will represent on Beacon Hill in January. A Wellesley College graduate, Miranda described her district as "one of the most diverse districts in the country, yet one of the most unequal districts with high unemplyment, high poverty."

Her brother Michael's murder last year spurred her to run for office. "The number one factor I would say was 14 months ago my youngest brother was murdered and we need to end gun violence," Miranda said. "And I felt that the best place to start ending it was to look at where the resources and where the laws were being made and I knew that that was the State House and that's what I was aiming for."

Miranda said she "challenged the status quo" during her campaign, by turning to people who felt disenfranchised - young men released from prison and others who she said were told they "don't matter." As she picked a campaign manager and volunteer coordinator, she began to build her network.

"I didn't know where to pull these people from," Miranda said. "And I decided that when I went back home I was going to pull from what I did have - I had young people. I had my family. I had neighborhood homies. And I felt that if I can excite them that they would excite their networks. And what we saw was we won in every precinct, which had never been done before."

Rollins, who said "everyone" told her she wasn't going to win the September primary, captured more than 80 percent of the vote Tuesday against independent candidate Michael Maloney.

"On the 6th, we got a mandate because we're going to change the criminal justice system," she said. "This is a very sort of acute problem and I think we needed a mandate in order to change it. I'm proud that we got one."

Rollins said she made it clear during her campaign that she would be a "bold and different" district attorney.

"We didn't hide the ball fom people like a lot of political peope do and speak in vaguaries," she said. "I said specifically, 'there's mass incarceration, there's massive wealth and race-based disparities, women are ignored and treated terribly in the criminal justice system."

Saying she outworked her opponents, Rollins recalled having a laugh with Pressley when a poll showed their opponents, Henning and Capuano, leading them.

"I say that to my 14-year-old daughter all the time - it's about the work," said Rollings. "Bill Belichick. Do your job. Stop complaining. Do your job."

Elugardo said she had been thinking about running for an at-large Boston City Council seat in 2019, before deciding to run for state rep.

"I was recruited by a number of people in and out of the State House and across the neighborhood because they know it's time for Massachusetts to lead and while we have many politicians who are who are mastering business as usual, and mastering the game as it's been played, we don't have time for games anymore," said Elugardo, who upset House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Rep. Jeff Sanchez of Jamaica Plain in the primary, and was uncontested Tuesday.

Elugardo said the Democratic party has become fond of "speaking negatively" and "attacking the other side, finding scapegoats." Touting "justice for all" and "taking down structural racism," she said her experience in community development and understanding of the 15th Suffolk District helped her win.

"That's a vision that resonates," she said. "That's what the wave is. The wave is people are grabbing on to a vision for change."

Framingham Mayor Yvonne Spicer, who won that post last year and joined Rollins, Elugardo and Mirands on the program, said African-American women are resilient and able to advance when they "step out on faith" and are fearless.

"When you can break through that concrete ceiling you grab a hold of some others and bring [them] along and that's one of the things that I look at that makes me smile so brightly," she said. "A year ago it was me. This year it's so many more and it just makes me smile and knowing that so many other women are coming through and bringing their greatness to the front. It's more to happen in our state and beyond and we see it rippling across the country."

Domino's Pizza stores in southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island are hiring about 200 employees and hope that those who were let go from Papa Gino's will apply.

Former Papa Gino's employees who were left jobless after the chain closed nearly 100 locations overnight this month may not be out of work for long.

Domino's Pizza stores in Southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island are hiring about 200 employees and hope that those who were let go from Papa Gino's will apply.

Earlier this month, the Dedham-based parent company of Papa Gino's Pizzeria and D'Angelo Grilled Sandwiches announced that it closed 95 underperforming restaurants and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection ahead of plans to sell the company.

NBC 10 News reported that 19 Domino's stores are hiring customer service representatives, delivery drivers and managers.

They will hold a hiring day on Tuesday from 2 to 7 p.m. 

"Any Papa Gino's employees unexpectedly out of work - please come see us at Domino's to complete an application! We'd love to help... visit your closest store or go online," Domino's Chelmsford location wrote on Facebook.

NBC 10 News reported that participating stores include:

271 County St. in Attleboro

1401 Park Ave. in Cranston

250 Mendon Road in Cumberland

3383 Mendon Road in Cumberland

2145 Pawtucket Ave. in East Providence

646 Washington St. in Easton

390 Rhode Island Ave. in Fall River

407 S. Main St. in Fall River

19 W. Main Road in Middletown

140 Point Judith Road in Narragansett

821 Rockdale Ave. in New Bedford

836 Ashley Blvd. in New Bedford

28 E. Washington St. in North Attleboro

210 Dexter St. in Pawtucket

448 Newport Ave. in Pawtucket

887 N. Main St. in Providence

1010 Chalkstone Ave. in Providence

702 County St. in Taunton

557 Warwick Ave. in Warwick

The Springfield Department of Public Works has issued its weekly advisory for roadway work.

SPRINGFIELD -- The city's Department of Public Works has announced the following roadway work for the week of Nov. 12:

• Mayfair Avenue, from Chapin Terrace to Carew Street - Paving scheduled Wednesday.

• Worthington Street, from Main Street to Dwight Street - Paving tentative Nov. 16; expect detours.

Sidewalk Restoration

East Springfield
Liberty Heights

Intersection Reconstruction
Cass Street and Carew Street. Paving.

Norwell fire officials say three boats were significantly damaged and one boat had minor damage from the fire at Kings Landing Marina.

NORWELL, Mass. (AP) -- Officials say several boats wrapped up for winter storage caught fire at a Massachusetts marina.

Norwell fire officials say three boats were significantly damaged and one boat had minor damage from the fire at Kings Landing Marina. New England Cable News reports officials say the fire began on one boat and quickly spread.

The fire was knocked down by responding firefighters Monday afternoon, and the local harbormaster says officials have conducted an overhaul.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation, though authorities say they believe the storage wrapping played a role.

Fire officials say there were no injuries.

The town of Norwell is located about 20 miles (32 kilometers) south of Boston.

The victim was shot on Keith Avenue just before 6:30 p.m.

A 27-year-old man was shot and killed in Brockton on Monday, officials said.

The victim was shot on Keith Avenue just before 6:30 p.m., according to the Bristol District Attorney's office.

Authorities have not yet identified the victim.

Brockton police and the district attorney's office did not release any information about a possible suspect. 

According to WCVB News, witnesses told police the alleged shooter ran away in the direction of Warren Avenue.

The investigation is ongoing.

Plans for the highly-anticipated Amazon "HQ2," which created a bidding war among U.S. cities, have now been finalized.

The race for Amazon's second headquarters is over.

The Seattle tech giant announced it will plant new roots across the country, in the Long Island City neighborhood of Queens, New York, and in the Crystal City area of Arlington, Virginia, just a short drive away from Washington D.C.

In a statement released on Tuesday, Amazon confirmed plans to invest $5 billion in its "HQ2" projects and create more than 50,000 jobs across the two locations in New York and Virginia. Hiring for the thousands of new positions will begin in 2019, the company said.

"These two locations will allow us to attract world-class talent that will help us to continue inventing for customers for years to come," Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos said in a statement. "The team did a great job selecting these sites, and we look forward to becoming an even bigger part of these communities."

Each HQ2 location will span 4 million square feet of "energy-efficient office space" with the potential to expand to 8 million square feet. Those locations dwarf the company's Seattle home-base, which is slated to expand up to nearly 14 million square feet. 

Amazon announced it is slated to receive a combined $2.73 billion in performance-based incentives from both HQ2 locations over the next 10-15 years. The incentives are tied to the thousands of high-paying jobs the tech company promises to create, as well as an expected rise in hotel room stays. In both Long Island City and Crystal City, Amazon has pledged to invest in infrastructure improvements.

In Virginia, Amazon will receive $573 million in performance-based direct incentives, according to the company. Part of that includes a workforce cash grant of up to $550 million from the state of Virginia, and a $23 million cash grant from Arlington. 

In New York, Amazon will receive $1.5 billion in performance-based direct incentives, including a refundable tax credit up to $1.2 billion from the state, and a $325 million cash grant from Empire State Development.

More than two dozen Massachusetts communities from Boston to the Berkshires pitched to Amazon last fall. Boston alone pitched four different locations, including the former race track area Suffolk Downs, as ideal locations for a new headquarters. 

Boston and Somerville made it to a second round of talks with Amazon, and even landed on the company's top 20 list of potential HQ2 locations. Last spring, one research study named Boston and D.C. as top contenders.

Here are the 26 sites Massachusetts pitched to Amazon for the company's second headquarters

But ultimately, Boston and other cities across the commonwealth were not selected. Instead, the e-commerce behemoth split its HQ2 into two, developing its existing presence in the country's political and financial hubs.

The entire bidding process became a media sensation and prompted a bidding war among U.S. cities and states, whose leaders felt confident that the presence of a giant, successful and international company would benefit its economy.

More than 200 cities in the U.S. and Canada offered proposals, delivering valuable data to a company for any and all future plans. 

Incoming Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the youngest woman in Congress recently elected to represent New York City's 14th congressional district consisting of the Bronx and Queens boroughs, announced on Twitter Tuesday that her constituents oppose HQ2 operations in Long Island City. 

On Twitter, Ocasio-Cortez said, "We've been getting calls and outreach from Queens residents all day about this. The community's response? Outrage."

In a thread of messages, the new representative said the Queens community is concerned with shifting rent prices and possible residential displacement to pave the way for gentrification as Amazon steps in.

Other local leaders, including Sen. Michael Gianaris and City Councilor Jimmy Van Bramer, echoed similar reservations about Amazon stepping into Queens. 

Amazon is a billion-dollar company. The idea that it will receive hundreds of millions of dollars in tax breaks at a time when our subway is crumbling and our communities need MORE investment, not less, is extremely concerning to residents here.

-- Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@Ocasio2018) November 13, 2018

The concerns stem from predictions that real estate property and traffic will dramatically increase in the HQ2 locations due to the influx of new residents. Amazon has stated the implementation of its new headquarters would create roughly 50,000 new jobs with average salaries around $100,000.

In a statement shared by Amazon, Democratic New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said he is "thrilled" to have the company move its second headquarters to Queens.

"We're going to use this opportunity to open up good careers in tech to thousands of people looking for their foothold in the new economy, including those in City colleges and public housing," Cuomo said, adding that the city and state are cooperating to make sure the company's expansion "is planned smartly."

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, also a Democrat, echoed Cuomo's excitement, emphasizing the deals struck between Virginia officials and Amazon that benefit the local community.

"The majority of Virginia's partnership proposal consists of investments in our education and transportation infrastructure that will bolster the features that make Virginia so attractive: a strong and talented workforce, a stable and competitive business climate, and a world-class higher education system," Northam said in a statement. 

Amazon said it picked the two locations to attract top talent in the areas of software development and related fields. Both areas in New York and Virginia are described as diverse, mixed-use communities with proximity to multiple transit lines. 

"He wasn't a household name," Miner says of Rancourt's short career with the Reds, "but he still was there."

Larry Rancourt was a bit of a local legend in Shelburne Falls. 

In the small Western Massachusetts town of about 1,700 the tall kid with an easy smile was the hometown boy who made good. 

In high school, Rancourt excelled at baseball. Then again, he excelled at pretty much everything he put his mind to. He played basketball and football and still managed to find time to play in the high school band. 

It seemed there was little he couldn't do well. He served in the Army National Guard and earned a full scholarship to the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, where he would play both football and baseball. 

But it was his Holy Cross baseball team's 1958 win of the District One bracket from New England that would catch the eye of professional baseball scouts. The 6-foot-tall catcher who threw right-handed and batted left would go on to spend five minor league seasons with Cincinnati Reds farm teams.

He played 317 games, according to his minor league stats. He batted an average of .255, not outstanding, but in 1961 hit his best season batting .301. 

But major league play was out of his grasp. Following a 1962 season with the Reds affiliate in San Diego, Rancourt came home to Shelburne Falls. He bought a local menswear store, renamed it Larry's Clothing and Footwear and settled down with his wife Ernestine, a Southern belle he'd met while playing in Tampa, Florida. 

For the next 30 years, Rancourt and his wife raised their three children in Shelburne Falls. He coached local sports teams and became an integral part of the community. 

"Larry was involved in nearly every community effort through the years and led the charge to fund, purchase and install Christmas lights for the business district every holiday season," his obituary reads.

According to the Greenfield Recorder, his store was the place everyone in town went to buy uniforms, team jackets and cleats. 

"In a small town he was a pretty big fish in the pond," his first cousin, David Miner, told MassLive.

About 20 years ago, the Rancourts retired to Florida. 

Larry Rancourt passed away on Sept. 25 in Florida after a battle with Alzheimer's disease. 

"He was one of the greatest guys," Mohawk football coach Doug McCloud told the Recorder. "I played softball with him, played against him ... I walked into his store one day and asked him for a letter of recommendation to be the JV baseball coach. It was one of the nicest letters I've ever read.

"I'm really sad he's gone. Everybody loved him."

A memorial service was held at St. Joseph's Church in Shelburne Falls earlier this month so that folks in Rancourt's hometown would have a chance to remember one of the town's favorite sons.

But on the day family, friends and community members gathered, Miner received a letter overnighted to him from Cincinnati, Ohio. He showed the letter to Rancourt's son, David, who teared up. Then the showed it to the priest, asking if he could read it at the service. 

"And the priest looked up and he said, 'You're darn right you can read this'," Miner said. 

Miner stood up and announced that he was reading a letter received that morning from Robert H. Castellini, chief executive officer of the Cincinnati Reds. 

"There was this gasp of surprise," Miner recalls.

"On behalf of the Cincinnati Reds, please accept our most sincere condolences on the passing of your beloved Larry," the letter began. "From what I've learned, Larry was a tremendous man of many talents, dedicated to his faith, family and community.  Having men like Larry representing the history of the Reds organization makes me very proud to be a part of this franchise. His dedication is a reminder that we are entrusted with managing something that has deep, personal meaning for many.  We work hard every day to be worthy of such a privilege.

"As the Reds take the field next season, like you we will remember Larry with gratitude for sharing his life with us."

Several people were moved to tears, Miner recalled. He walked up to Rancourt's wife and handed the letter to her, much like you might hand a flag to a soldier's wife.  

"I thought it was great for the Reds," Miner said. "They're reaching out for a guy who hadn't been there in 50 years."

Miner confesses the letter was not unprompted.

A few days before the service he was driving through Ohio and thought to call the ball club to let them know of Rancourt's passing and to see if they did anything for old ballplayers. But it was only three days before the memorial service and Miner said he wasn't hopeful they could do anything in time. An emailed letter came the next day with a physical copy overnighted and arriving just in time for the memorial service. 

"He wasn't a household name," Miner says of Rancourt's short career with the Reds, "but he still was there."

Police went to the home Monday afternoon after a resident called police to report the theft and said he believes the items were taken while he was working in another part of the home.

GREENFIELD - Police arrested a suspect Monday afternoon after he allegedly stole a laptop computer, wallet and other items from a High Street home.

Officers Justin Purinton and Bryce Molnar went to the home about 2:15 p.m. after a resident called police to report the theft, according to a post on the department's Facebook page.

The victim told police he believed the items were taken while he was working in another part of the home.

The owner of the wallet, meanwhile, contacted her credit card company and learned that somebody attempted to use her card shortly before 1:50 p.m. at an ATM at Baystate Franklin Medical Center.

Purinton then went to the hospital and learned from a volunteer at the front desk that a man had used the ATM about a half-hour before. The man then asked the volunteer about the area gasoline stations.

Purinton then observed a purple suitcase sitting next to the ATM. The suitcase had a tag with the name of "Kevin Bonilla-Reyes", but listed a date of birth that did not match that name in state Registry of Motor Vehicle records.

An ATM receipt laying on top of the suitcase showed that the last four numbers on the card that was used matched the victim's card. The time-stamp on the receipt was 1:50 p.m.

Purinton then searched the suitcase and found a laptop computer matching the description of the one stolen, as well as paperwork with the name of Kevin Bonilla-Reyes, but with a different date of birth than was listed on the luggage tag.

A check on that name and date of birth showed a match in registry records and revealed three outstanding default warrants out of Springfield District Court.

Purinton found a picture of the suspect in registry records.

Sergeant Todd Dodge and Molnar then found the suspect, Kevin Bonilla-Reyes, inside the Sandri gasoline station at 295 Federal St. He was arrested.

Items stolen from the home were located on his person. Further statements made by Bonilla-Reyes led to the recovery of other stolen items in a restroom at the hospital.

Police believe the suspect used the victim's credit card at other businesses in the area as well.

Along with the outstanding warrants, Bonilla-Reyes was charged with breaking and entering in the daytime to commit a felony, larceny over $1,200, larceny of a credit card, improper use of a credit card under $1,200.

Bonilla-Reyes' age and address were not immediately available.

Edward Laboursoliere, 50, of Holyoke, is accused of having illegal guns and bomb-making materials.

SPRINGFIELD -- A prosecutor on Tuesday described Edward Laboursoliere as a dangerous man, recommending a bail amount of $100,000 for the 50-year-old Holyoke resident accused of making a machine gun in his basement. 

But Laboursoliere's defense attorney argued successfully for a bail amount of $10,000.

Hampden Superior Court Judge Daniel M. Wrenn ordered Laboursoliere to wear a GPS tracking device and be confined to his mother's house if he posts bail.

Wrenn said it appeared Laboursoliere has a problem with alcohol, so he ordered Laboursoliere not to drink and use an alcohol monitoring device. Laboursoliere is prohibited from using the internet, where he ordered many of the firearms- and explosives-related items he is charged with possessing.

In July Hampden Superior Court Judge Michael K. Callan agreed with Assistant District Attorney Christopher Bourbeau and ordered Laboursoliere held without right to bail for 120 days under the state law allowing pretrial detention for people determined too dangerous to be released under any conditions.

That time period expired, so the bail hearing was held Tuesday.

Laboursoliere has denied one count of possessing an incendiary device, 13 counts of possession of a large capacity weapon or feeding device, and 10 counts of improper storage of a firearm near children.

Defense lawyer Arthur J. O'Donald III told Wrenn there are no minimum mandatory penalties for the charges Laboursoliere faces in Hampden Superior Court. He said Laboursoliere had a firearms identification card.

Bourbeau said the FID card didn't allow Laboursoliere to have high capacity magazines. Some of the weapons investigators found lacked serial numbers -- making it illegal to own them, he said.

Bourbeau said Laboursoliere was making explosives and setting them off in the house.

Wrenn told Bourbeau the bail hearing was to determine if Laboursoliere was likely to appear in court if he posted bail. 

In September Laboursoliere was indicted on three criminal counts in federal court: receipt and possession of an unregistered firearm; unlawfully making a firearm; and possessing a firearm without a serial number.

Those charges relate to the same investigation which gave rise to the Hampden Superior Court charges, O'Donald said.

The federal charges focus on a fully automatic machine gun he made in his basement, police records say.

The 19th-century Pumpkin Hollow church will be replaced by an energy-efficient, fully-accessible house of worship.

A historic Congregational church in Conway, badly damaged by a 2017 tornado, has been torn down.

Rev. Candice Ashenden and others watched Monday as excavators demolished the 19th-century United Church of Christ building at 44 Whately Rd. in Pumpkin Hollow.

In June, a valiant campaign to save the church came to an end after insurance adjusters and inspectors found the building beyond repair, with cracks to its foundation, threats of roof collapse, and a separated bell tower.

The small congregation received a $1.5 million insurance settlement and acknowledged that it was time to move on.

The church was first built in 1841, and rebuilt in 1885 after a fire. After the tornado, a historic organ was removed and placed in a safe, climate-controlled location. The congregation has been meeting at the Conway Grammar School since the calamity.

Ashenden told the Greenfield Recorder that Northampton architect Rick Katsanos is now working on plans for a one-story, energy efficient, fully-accessible building on the same spot.

"Our church, really because of this, is stronger than ever," she said. "The congregation has pulled together and we're eager to move forward."

Other attempts to scare away the crows haven't been successful.

A flock of crows that has been creating issues for a North Adams National Grid substation will hopefully be deterred with the use of a propane cannon that emits sound, the energy company said.

National Grid said from Tuesday, Nov. 13, through Saturday, Nov. 17, they'll be using the sound-emitting cannon between 4 - 6 p.m. to deter the crows near the Brown Street office location. No projectiles will come from the cannon.

In a Facebook post from National Grid employee Joanne DeRose, she wrote, "The crows are creating a hazardous situation with the potential for outages in the substation located at that site."

A Code Red phone alert will be given by local officials to warn residents of the sound.

Other attempts to scare away the crows haven't been successful. North Adams Police Director Michael P. Cozzaglio said in a Facebook post that residents can expect the noise to be quite loud.

He added, "The sonic waves that have been produced have proven to be successful at other locations."

Anyone with questions can contact National Grid at 800-322-3223.

Steven Mrowzinski of Springfield Cannabis Co. apologized and said he would attend a later meeting better prepared to answer questions. Watch video

Updated at 4:47 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2018 with photo gallery and video.

SPRINGFIELD -- Showing up late and unable to answer questions with specificity about jobs, traffic and security, a representative of a proposed marijuana facility was criticized Tuesday for being unprepared.

"It doesn't strike me that you're entirely prepared," City Councilor Michael A. Fenton said. "But it strikes me that this meeting today is a colossal waste of time."

Fenton is the councilor for Ward 2, where Springfield Cannabis Co. is proposing to open a marijuana business at vacant industrial property at 732 Cottage St.

Steven Mrowzinski, president of Springfield Cannabis, apologized for arriving late to the meeting at the John Boyle O'Reilly Club, 33 Progress Ave., and being unable to address residents' questions.

"It's a little bit of a rough start. I apologize for that," he said, adding, "I understand what you're saying and we're trying our best here."

He said he would take up residents and officials on the suggestion that another community meeting be held later when he is able to provide more answers to their questions.

About 30 people attended  the meeting.

Springfield Cannabis lists Steven Mrowzinski and Michelle Mrowzinski, both of Middle Island, N.Y, as the corporate officers and directors. Steven Mrowzinski is listed as company president.

Philip Dromey, the city's deputy planner, said that a fully detailed security plan is part of the submission required by the city and state. In addition, he said he would expect that a traffic study will be needed from the company.

Check back with The Republican and Masslive.com for more coverage of the Springfield Cannabis Co. community meeting about its recreational marijuana proposal.

One or both of the men may live or work in the Ludlow area, police said.

WESTFIELD - Police are asking for help to identify two men who are believed to have been involved in the theft of a piece of heavy equipment.

The men, who were recorded on a video camera at a business, are persons of interest in the ongoing investigation, said Police Capt. Michael McCabe.

One or both of the men may live or work in the Ludlow area, police said.

Anyone who can identify either man or have information about the investigation is asked to contact the detective bureau at 413-642-9387 or by email at s.phelon@cityofwestfield.org.

Losartan, irbesartan tablets recalled over an impurity regard as potentially cancer causing.

Two more additional blood pressure medications have come under voluntary recalls during the last two weeks, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The FDA announced Oct. 30 that ScieGen Pharmaceuticals has placed voluntary recalls on its irbesartan tablets in 75-, 150-, and 300-milligram dosage forms packed in 30- and 90- count bottles with certain expiration dates.

The recall is attributable to the presence of an impurity, N-nitrosodiethylamine, that has been classified by the International Agency for Cancer Research as a probable human carcinogen.

According to the posting on the FDA site, NDEA was found in the active pharmaceutical ingredient irbesartan, manufactured by Aurobindo Pharma Limited. The irbesartan tablets are labeled as Westminster Pharmaceuticals and Golden State Medical Supply, Inc. The recalled lots with their expiration dates are listed on the site.

Sciegen Pharmaceuticals said it has not received any reports of adverse events related to this product. Patients are advised to contact their pharmacist or physician for an alternative treatment prior to returning their medication as stopping it could pose a higher health risk.

Sandoz Inc. announced its voluntary recall of one lot of losartan potassium hydrochlorothiazide tablets, also used to treat hypertension, for the same reason on Nov. 8, according to the posting on the FDA website.

The lot being recalled is for 100 milligram/25 milligram tablets in 1,000-count plastic bottles, NDC 0781-5207-10, Lot number JB8912; Exp. Date 06/2020.

The contaminated active ingredient losartan is manufactured by Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. Sandoz's Losartan Potassium Hydrochlorothiazide product is manufactured by Lek Pharmaceuticals dd, Ljubljana, Slovenia.

According to the recall notice, the product was not distributed prior to Oct. 8. Sandoz Inc. said to date it has not received any reports of adverse events related to this lot.

Patients are advised as well to contact their health care provider and to continue to take their medication as the risk of harm to a patient's health may be higher if the treatment is stopped immediately without any alternative treatment.

FDA informed the public in July that an impurity with the same warning - N-nitrosodimethylamine - had been found in the valsartan active pharmaceutical ingredient manufactured by Zhejiang Huahai and that three companies supplying the U.S. market were recalling some of their products as a result. The recall was expanded to other manufacturers in August.

This spring the European Medicines Agency began reviewing certain angiotensin-II-receptor antagonists - sartans - for both N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) and N-nitrosodiethylamine (NDEA).

The EMA's initial review initially was focused on valsartan medicines but, according to its website, was expanded as a precautionary measure to include other "sartan" medicines with a similar chemical structure in September following the detection of very low levels of NDEA in some batches of losartan.

Songjiang Wang and Schultz Chan were convicted of sharing information about clinical trials and trading stock on it.

BOSTON - An employee of a Cambridge biopharmaceutical company will spend six months in jail, one year on supervised release and was ordered to pay restitution after being convicted in an insider trading scheme.

Songjiang Wang, 54, of Westford, was sentenced Tuesday in U.S. District Court. Along with his prison term, he was ordered to pay a $50,000 fine by Judge Indira Talwani.

Wang and co-defendant Schultz Chan, 54, of Newton, were convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and two counts of securities fraud in a two-year scheme to share information about successful clinical drug charges at the biopharmaceutical companies where they worked and use that information to purchase shares of stock, said Christina DiLorio-Sterling, spokeswoman for Attorney General Andrew Lelling.

Chan, who was also convicted of a third count of securities fraud, was sentenced on Nov. 5 to three years in prison and one year of supervised release. He too will pay a fine and restitution, she said.

Chan, the director of Biostatistics in Cambridge, was convicted of providing inside information about a clinical study conducted by the company to Wang, the director of statistical programming at Akebia Therapeutics.

Wang then traded on the information that came from a phase 3 clinical trial, she said.

In turn, Wang gave Chan cash, which he used to purchase stock shares of Akebia Therapeutics. Chen later sold the shares and paid Wang back. The two were friends at the time of the scam, DiLorio-Sterling said.

Lelling and Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division, made the announcement. The United States Attorney's Office was assisted by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jordi de Llano, Deputy Chief of Lelling's Securities and Financial Fraud Unit, and Assistant United States Attorney Kriss Basil, also of the Securities and Financial Fraud Unit, prosecuted the case.

If you've ever signed a sweet-sounding cable contract with Comcast only to find yourself surprised to be paying more in the long-run, the company may owe you money.

If you've ever signed a sweet-sounding cable contract with Comcast only to find yourself surprised to be paying more in the long-run, the company may owe you money. 

Comcast has agreed to pay $700,000 and to cancel some debts for more than 20,000 Massachusetts customers who may have entered into misleading agreements with the company that left them stuck with high cable bills they did not expect. 

The company filed an assurance of discontinuance in Suffolk Superior Court Tuesday, part of a settlement worked out with the office of Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey. 

"Comcast stuck too many Massachusetts customers with lengthy, expensive contracts that left many in debt and others with damaged credit," Healey said in a release. "Customers have a right to clear information about the products and services they buy. This settlement should encourage the entire cable and telecommunications industry to take a close look at their advertisements and make sure customers are getting a fair offer."

An investigation by the attorney general's office found that when Comcast advertised a $99 deal it did not disclose to customers that equipment costs and mandatory monthly fees were not included in the price. The company also failed to tell customers that fees could increase while the customer was on the "locked-in" contract. 

Those fees often increased the advertised price by as much as 40 percent, according to Healey's office. 

Customers, realizing the deal was not what they thought they signed up for, would additionally face early cancellation fees of up to $240, even if they were trying to downgrade to a more affordable plan, Healey's office said. 

Who will Comcast be paying?

The company will provide refunds to Massachusetts customers who paid early termination fees after downgrading their cable service or who were involuntarily disconnected by the company between January 2015 and March 2016.

The company will also be forgiving any outstanding early termination fees and related late fees during the same period.

Customers don't need to do anything to get the refunds. According to the Attorney General's office, Comcast will be providing refund checks to all customers impacted and those checks should be going out within the next 60 to 90 days. 

In addition, the settlement requires Comcast to change its practices going forward so that customers are aware of all disclosures before entering long-term contracts. 

The settlement isn't the first of its kind for the cable company. 

In 2016, Comcast agreed to pay 2.3 million in a civil penalty as part of a settlement with the federal government. It was the largest civil penalty ever assessed against a cable company. 

The Federal Communications Commission said the fine was in connection to customers being charged for services and equipment they didn't ask for or even declined. The services and equipment ranged from premium channels and cable boxes to digital video recorders and other products.

Chris Soules faces up to two years in prison.

Chris Soules, who starred in ABC's reality TV show "The Bachelor," has pleaded guilty in connection with a fatal crash in Iowa in April 2017.

Soules, 36, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of leaving the scene of an accident resulting in serious injury, according to KCCI-TV in Des Moines. He was originally charged with a felony count of leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death.

In February, the Iowa Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal by Soules' lawyers to dismiss the felony charge.

Soules' pickup truck rear-ended a John Deere tractor in rural Buchanan County, leaving Kenneth Mosher, 66, dead, investigators said. While Soules initially stayed at the scene, police said he left before authorities arrived.

The county attorney said Soules "took off" from the scene before officers arrived and holed up in his home, refusing to come out for hours after officers arrived to question him.

Soules has had multiple driving and alcohol-related convictions in the past, including a conviction in connection with a November 2006 operating while intoxicated arrest, according to The Courier.

He faces up to two years in prison.

His sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 19 at 1:30 p.m.

Soules appeared on Season 19 of "The Bachelor" in 2015.

He proposed to Whitney Bischoff in the March 9, 2015 finale at his family's barn in near Lamont, Iowa. Two months later, the couple announced that they had called off their engagement.

Soules previously appeared on the sister series "The Bachelorette" and later on ABC's "Dancing With the Stars" and Food Network's "Worst Cooks in America."