Roque was arrested as part of a Springfield police narcotics investigation into drug sales at an apartment at 11 Clyde St. in the city's Brightwood neighborhood.

Joshua Roque

SPRINGFIELD – A 22-year-old city man arrested Wednesday on weapons and narcotics charges following a police raid on a Clyde Street apartment has a juvenile manslaughter conviction for a fatal stabbing committed when he was 11 years old, The Republican has learned.

As a boy, Joshua Roque was arrested for the Feb. 3, 2001, stabbing death of Nestor “Tito” Herrera, also 11, in the lobby of cinemas on St. James Avenue. At the time, it was reported he was the youngest person who committed such a crime in Springfield since at least 1834. He pleaded guilty the following year.

Roque’s name was not disclosed to the media at the time because of his age.

However court records for his Wednesday arrest spell out explicitly that Roque is the same unnamed juvenile who pleaded guilty to manslaughter in 2002 and was remanded to the custody of the state Department of Youth Services until his 18th birthday.

Roque was arrested Wednesday as part of a Springfield police narcotics investigation into drug sales at an apartment at 11 Clyde St. in the city’s Brightwood neighborhood.

He was charged with trafficking cocaine and possession of marijuana, and several weapons charges including possession of a firearm without a license, possession of ammunition without a firearms identification card, possession of a high-capacity ammunition magazine, improper storage of a firearm with a child under age 16, and possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony.

Police recovered 24 grams of crack cocaine, 38 grams of marijuana, a loaded .40-caliber Ruger handgun with a 10-round magazine, and a .38-caliber handgun.

The Ruger was in the waistband of his pants when police took him into custody, according to police.

His girlfriend, Marangely Maldonado, 20, was not arrested but will instead be summonsed to appear in district court on the same charges.

Police allowed her to remain at home to care for her child, who police said has special needs. The police also notified the state Department of Children and Families to investigate for possible neglect of a child.

Roque denied the charges Thursday morning in Springfield District Court. He was ordered held in lieu of $100,000 cash bail or $1 million personal surety. He is due back in court on Feb. 3 for a pretrial hearing.

Among the reasons given in court for the district attorney’s request for a high bail was “record of conviction: juvenile delinquent manslaughter.”

The arrest report authored by Springfield police officer Jamie Bruno notes narcotics officers had learned that drugs were being sold out of the apartment at 11 Clyde St.

When police identified that Roque was staying there, police performed a records check to determine his criminal history.

“A records check for Mr. Joshua Roque revealed that as a juvenile, he was arrested for murder, and as a result pleaded delinquent as a juvenile for manslaughter, where he was committed to the Massachusetts Department of Youth Services,” Bruno wrote.

“This crime was committed by Mr. Roque when he was an 11 year old. He stabbed another 11 year old in the chest, killing the child upon his arrival at Baystate Medical Center. The stabbing occurred at the Entertainment Cinemas at 1277 Liberty St.”

According to Massachusetts law, juvenile court records are considered sealed from the public, but law enforcement officers, court and probation officials have access, and a judge can take into account the juvenile record of an adult during a bail proceeding or deciding on the length of sentence.

Nestor "Tito" Herrera, shown in family photo from 2001

News accounts at the time reported that Roque stabbed Herrera at what was then known as the Regal Cinemas, located on the St. James Avenue side of the Springfield Plaza at 1277 Liberty St.

At the time it was reported the stabbing resulted from an argument over a girl.

Herrera had only moved to Springfield with his family eight months earlier and had been given permission by his mother to go to the movies for the first time with his friends on the night he was stabbed.

Roque pleaded guilty to a charge of juvenile delinquency by manslaughter on Feb. 1, 2002. He was placed in the custody of the state Department of Youth Services until his 18th birthday. DYS had the option of petitioning with the courts to extend his commitment until age 21. It was not clear Thursday night when Roque had been released from state custody.

Under Massachusetts law, a juvenile offender is someone between the ages of 7 and 16. While it is possible to charge a minor as an adult for crimes considered particularly egregious, state law does not allow anyone younger than 14 to be charged as an adult.

Accounts of the 2002 sentencing describe the trial as emotional for all involved. The media at the time was allowed limited access to the juvenile court proceeding because of the high-profile nature of the case.

The prosecutor, James C. Orenstein, described it as one of the most difficult cases he ever faced. Defense attorney Alan J. Black called it “heartbreaking.”

Judge Rebekah J. Crampton noted at the sentencing that the state’s juvenile justice system is based on the philosophy of rehabilitation, not punishment.

“We hope the best for you,” she said.

Santorum engaged in a hostile exchange over gay marriage while emphasizing a conservative record that he acknowledges is imperfect.

Associated PressRepublican presidential candidate former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum speaks during a campaign stop with college students, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2012, in Concord, N.H. (AP Photo/Jim Cole)

By PHILIP ELLIOTT

TILTON, N.H. – Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum faced skepticism about his support for gun rights and engaged in a hostile exchange over gay marriage Thursday, all the while emphasizing a conservative record that he acknowledges is imperfect.

Santorum, who came within eight votes of winning Iowa's leadoff caucuses, is working to build a campaign machine, raise money and introduce himself to voters who had treated him as a footnote to this point. But as he has emerged as Mitt Romney's chief rival, he is drawing the scrutiny that comes with being at the front of the pack.

"What assurances can you give New Hampshire voters that you're not going to strip us of our Second Amendment rights?" one voter pointedly asked him in Tilton.

The voter cited Santorum's past endorsement of Arlen Specter, a former Pennsylvania senator who left the GOP and had supported restrictions.

Santorum said he was a supporter of gun owners' rights and took his son hunting during a recent trip to Iowa. He noted that he shot four birds on that outing near Des Moines, where he wore a high bright orange National Rifle Association hat. But he also acknowledged there were problems with his conservative bona fides, including his support of Specter, with whom he served in the Senate.

"Am I perfect? No. I've made mistakes and I've been upfront about that," he said, standing in a former train depot and addressing a standing-room-only crowd. That's become the new normal for a candidate who just weeks ago struggled to fill seats even in small venues.

His stark opposition to abortion and gay rights and his personal testimony of faith are central to his campaign. While that endears him to social conservatives, it won him a caustic reception at a conference in Concord for college students from across the country.

One man asked Santorum about his opposition to same-sex marriage, which is legal in New Hampshire. The candidate quickly picked a fight with the crowd, which seemed to support same-sex unions.

"So anyone can marry anyone else?" Santorum asked, swiftly turning the conversation to polygamy. "So anyone can marry several people?"

The crowd objected and tried to talk over him.

"I tried," he offered reporters as he left the conference center.

Santorum is making a hard, conservative play in New Hampshire despite its sometimes moderate electorate. He acknowledged New Hampshire's reputation but challenged its wisdom.

"Back in 1980, Iowa chose George H.W. Bush. New Hampshire chose Ronald Reagan," Santorum said, casting himself as the heir to Reagan and likening his rivals to Bush, whose moderate stances frustrated his party's conservative base.

Santorum's aides said he has raised $2 million in two days on the strength of his Iowa showing, and the campaign sought to show momentum by announcing the support of a New Hampshire tea party leader, a state senator, the head of a conservative think tank and Catholicvote.org, an online organization.

"And while no political candidate, or human being for that matter, is perfect, Rick Santorum's baggage contains his clothes," CatholicVote.org President Brian Burch said. "Republicans hoping to win back the White House in November must unite behind the candidate most dedicated to the foundational issues of faith, family and freedom."

A buoyant Santorum urged New Hampshire voters to make their own decisions, even as polls favor Romney as the Republican presidential standard-bearer.

"Don't settle for less than America needs," he said at the old train station here. "Don't defer your judgment to national polls. Don't defer your judgment to the pundits."

Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, eked out a victory in the Iowa caucuses and was favored to win the New Hampshire primary on Tuesday. But Santorum, carried by the momentum from his second-place Iowa finish, cast himself as the conservative best suited to challenge Obama.

"Our mission here is to show that we're the conservative alternative to Mitt Romney," he said in Manchester, virtually conceding he wouldn't be able to close a yawning New Hampshire gap in the polls.

"We were a mere 39 points behind Gov. Romney," Santorum said as he closed his day in Windham to an audience of more than 700. "I have a feeling we're not going to end up that way."

Associated Press Broadcast correspondent Sagar Meghani contributed to this report.

Ideas for rebuilding Springfield ranged from a bicycle-walking trail to improved promotion of cultural events.

The Republican | David MolnarConsultant Bobbie Hill of the "Rebuild Springfield" coalition speaks before a crowd at the St. Anthony's Social Hall, gathering ideas on how to rebuild Springfield in the aftermath of a June 1 tornado.

SPRINGFIELD – People packed the St. Anthony’s Social Center on Thursday night and ideas flowed as concerned residents and representatives of businesses and organizations discussed ways to rebuild Springfield in the aftermath of a June 1 tornado.

Officials involved in the “Rebuild Springfield” effort, their consultants and city officials praised the turnout, estimated at more than 250 people, and said they were excited about the exchange of ideas and recommendations that focused on physical, cultural, social, economic and educational opportunities.

Small, round table discussions occurred in the hall, and table leaders brought out ideas that ranged from creating a bike and walking trail that would traverse the city, to providing new recreational and cultural activities downtown as well as in the neighborhoods.

Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said the response since the tornado has been “the exact opposite of ‘turn out the lights,’” with residents and other stakeholders taking part in the rebuilding and planning effort. There have been multiple district and citywide meetings, work sessions and other public input that will culminate with presentation of a master plan for Springfield on Jan. 26.

“This is an important signature moment in city history,” Sarno said. “This is a team approach. There is now a golden opportunity.”

Gerald W. Hayes, co-chairman of Rebuild Springfield with Nicholas Fyntrilakis, said Thursday’s meeting was “probably the largest citizen driven planning exercise in city history.”

Liz Stevens, of the McKnight neighborhood, said her table was particularly interested in a bike and walking trail that would stretch across the city along the former Highland rail trail. In addition, there must be a focus on providing more activities for children.

View full sizeThe Republican | David MolnarResidents and community and business leaders listen to speakers at the Rebuild Springfield Planning Committee at St. Anthony's Church on Island Pond Road.

Joseph Gallo, chairman of the South End Community Center, said there are plans to rebuild the center at a different site known as the Gemini property in the South End and to add a track, a pool, a senior center and other improvements. The center has been closed since the tornado due to extensive damage.

Others ideas included providing easier and less expensive transportation, such as a small monorail system and loop connecting the North End, downtown and South End. There was also a proposal to develop a low cost way to bring people downtown, perhaps assisted by groups such as the Business Improvement District, Spirit of Springfield and DevelopSpringfield.

One table coordinator said that special tax incentives could be created, such as lower taxes for owners of apartment buildings who also live in the building. Those owner-occupied buildings would likely be better maintained and improve property values, she said.

Another table coordinator said her group believes the Springfield website and local cable channel could be better used to promote cultural events in the city.

There were also specific suggestions such as ferry boat crossing of the Connecticut River to Six Flags New England in Agawam, and more outdoor dining, festivals and neighborhood events.

“There is really no such thing as a bad idea,” said Bobbie Hill, the lead planner on the Rebuild Springfield project from Concordia LLC, a New Orleans based firm hired to develop the tornado-recovery plan. “I’m thrilled with such creativity.”

The parcels lie along the historic path of the Mill River, which once ran along the base of the hill leading up to South Street before the area was settled.

File photo | The RepublicanNorthampton City Hall

NORTHAMPTON – The City Council Thursday authorized the purchase of 72 acres of open space that will augment the Fitzgerald Lake and Historic Mill River conservation areas.

Half that area consists of 36 acres presently owned by James Laizer off Boggy Meadow Road in the Broad Brook-Fitzgerald Lake Greenway. Laizer has agreed to sell the land to the city for $20,000, considerably less than its assessed value of $28,500.

According to Planning Director Wayne M. Feiden, the Broad Brook Coalition is donating about a third of the cost. The rest will be paid with Community Preservation Act money.

Although there is already a conservation restriction on the land, preventing it from being developed, the public will be able to use previously private trails and the city will have more leeway in maintaining the property by purchasing it.

The other acquisition involves a 50 percent share in three parcels in the Meadows area below the South Street, also 36 acres in total. Feiden said the owner has agreed to sell his interest to the city for $10,500.

The parcels lie along the historic path of the Mill River, which once ran along the base of the hill leading up to South Street before the area was settled. The Conservation Commission and the Massachusetts Audubon Society are working to preserve the remainder of the land, Feiden said.

Brockton Police say Jesus Silva Santiago was pulled over for running a stop sign, then threw a punch and ran when the trooper tried to search him.

Associated PressJesus Silva Santiago, 37, stands behind a partition during his arraignment in Brockton, Mass., District Court, Thursday, January 05, 2012, on several charges including assault and battery on a state trooper (AP Photo/The Enterprise, Marc Vasconcellos,)

BROCKTON – A Brockton man who spent seven years behind bars before being acquitted of a 2003 bar slaying is facing new charges after allegedly scuffling with a state trooper while hiding 18 bags of heroin.

Police say 37-year-old Jesus Silva Santiago was pulled over Wednesday for running a stop sign, then threw a punch and ran when the trooper tried to search him. The trooper tackled Santiago, who allegedly threw more punches. Police said troopers found the heroin on Santiago when he was booked.

The Brockton Enterprise reports police said Santiago told the troopers: "No matter what this bail is, I've got the cash."

He pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges including drug possession and assault. He was held on $250,000 bail

Santiago's 2006 conviction was overturned in 2009. He was acquitted in 2010.

Obituaries from The Republican.

Ardy Iennaco Jr.

Ardy Mario Iennaco, Jr., 46, of Longmeadow, passed away on Tuesday. Born in Springfield, he was a lifelong area resident. He was a communicant of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church in Springfield and a graduate of Longmeadow High School. Iennaco carried on the family tradition and recently opened the Primos 2 Go Restaurant in Longmeadow. He enjoyed working with computers and had designed his own motorcycle that he used to give disabled children rides.

Obituaries from The Republican:

• 
  Arpino, Patricia A. "Pat" (Rooney)
  



• 
  Atwater, James C.
  




• 
  Baker, Jared Joseph "Joe"
  



• 
  Bedard, Yvette C. (Tetreault)
  



• 
  Belanger-Gilbert, Fernande




• 
  Bonafilia, Marlene C. (Fehling)
  



• 
  Broughton, Doris "Sandy"
  




• Ciborowski, Mary L. (Jarrett)
  




• 
  Conlon, Robert P.
  



• 
  Daviau, Louis H.




• 
  Densmore, Nanci A. (Barker)
  



• 
  DiDonato, Santi J. "Sam"
  




• Dunn, Eleanore Asinof
  




• 
  Fearn Jr., George F.
  



• 
  Glen, Frances A.




• 
  Griffin, William Bernard
  



• 
  Houghton, Joan L. (Abare)
  




• Howard, Alan Carl
  




• 
  Iennaco Jr., Ardy M.
  



• 
  Kay, Veronica H. (Couming)




• 
  Kennedy Jr., Thomas J.
  



• 
  Kenworthy, Patricia A. (Hannum)
  




• Kovalchik, Denise M.
  




• 
  Maesto-Stone, Ruth E. (Cummings)
  



• 
  Marsh, Timothy




• 
  Martin, Eleanor Ann (Welch)
  



• 
  McCarthy, Claire Frances (Murphy)
  




• Mulrooney, Bonnie L. (Pope)
  




• 
  O'Connor, Diane M.
  



• 
  Osowski, Barbara Ann




• 
  Pankiewicz, Yvonne E. (LaFleur)
  



• 
  Pike Sr., Harold E.
  




• Reardon, David J.
  




• 
  Rondinone, Frances M. Chase (Osowski)
  



• 
  Roughgarden Jr., LeRoy M.




• 
  Sheehan-Black, Melissa J.
  



• 
  Sliwa, Edward A.
  




• Superneau, Joseph J.
  




• 
  Temkin, Milton Samuel "Mickey"
  



• 
  Ulan, John R.




• 
  Valtelhas, Sophie J. (Wojtowicz)
  



• 
  Warren, Anne M. (Dumelle)
  




• Wright Jr., Albert A.
  




• 
  Wyrobek, Stanley
  

The crews flew a C5-B Galaxy cargo jet full of supplies and equipment to an unnamed island in the Indian Ocean.

Photo by Albert J. Masciadrelli

CHICOPEE – Dozens of members of the Air Force Reserve 439th Airlift Wing based at Westover Air Reserve Base were deployed Thursday on a mission to support the war in Afghanistan.

The crews flew a C5-B Galaxy cargo jet full of supplies and equipment to an unnamed island in the Indian Ocean. For security reasons, details are being withheld.

The crews will be used to fly vital equipment into Southwest Asia. Other aircraft will also be tapped to support flights into the region to ferry equipment, parts and personnel.

The change would help reduce the time illegal immigrant spouses and children are separated from citizen relatives while they try to win legal status in the U.S.

Associated PressFILE - In this July 28, 2011 file photo, two men illegally cross the border fence separating Nogales, Ariz., and Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. The Supreme Court agreed Monday, Dec. 12, 2011 to rule on Arizona's controversial law targeting illegal immigrants. The justices said they will review a federal appeals court ruling that blocked several tough provisions in the Arizona law. One of those requires that police, while enforcing other laws, question a person's immigration status if officers suspect he is in the country illegally. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

By ALICIA A. CALDWELL and LUIS ALONSO LUGO

WASHINGTON – The Obama administration plans a rule change to help reduce the time illegal immigrant spouses and children are separated from citizen relatives while they try to win legal status in the United States, a senior administration official said Thursday.

Currently, illegal immigrants must leave the country before they can ask the government to waive a three- to 10-year ban on legally coming back to the U.S. The length of the ban depends on how long they have lived in the U.S. without permission.

The official said the new rule would let children and spouses of citizens ask the government to decide on the waiver request before the illegal immigrant heads to his or her home country to apply for a visa. The illegal immigrants still must go home to finish the visa process to come back to the U.S., but getting the waiver ahead of time could reduce the time an illegal immigrant is out of the country.

The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because the proposed policy change had not been made public.

The waiver shift is the latest move by President Barack Obama to make changes to immigration policy without congressional action. Congressional Republicans repeatedly have criticized the administration for policy changes they describe as providing "backdoor amnesty" to illegal immigrants.

Immigrants who do not have criminal records and who have only violated immigration laws can win a waiver if they can prove that their absence would cause an "extreme hardship" for their citizen spouse or parent. The government received about 23,000 hardship applications in 2011 and more than 70 percent were approved, the official said.

Applications for the waiver can take as long as six months to be acted upon, the official said. The new rule is expected to reduce that processing time to just days or weeks, the official added.

"This would streamline the process (and) reduce the time of separation between family members," the official said.

The proposal will be published in the Federal Register on Friday. The official said the administration hopes to change the rule later this year.

Immigration has become a difficult issue for Obama ahead of the November election. As a presidential candidate, he pledged to change what many consider to be a broken immigration system.

To that end, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano announced plans last year to review some 300,000 pending deportation cases in an effort to target criminal illegal immigrants, repeat immigration law violators and those who pose a national security or public safety threat. Napolitano said the DHS would delay indefinitely the cases of many illegal immigrants who have no criminal record and those who have been arrested for only minor traffic violations or other misdemeanors.

A pilot program to review about 12,000 cases pending in immigration court in Baltimore and Denver was launched in November and ends next week. The review is expected to expand to other jurisdictions later this year.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director John Morton also issued a memo in June outlining how immigration authorities could use discretion in deciding which illegal immigrants to arrest and put into deportation proceedings. Morton wrote in the memo that discretion could be used in a variety of cases, including for people with no criminal record and young people brought to the country illegally as children.

Congressional Republicans have decried the policy changes, arguing that the Obama administration is circumventing Congress to essentially provide amnesty to countless illegal immigrants.

Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, who chairs the House Judiciary Committee, has been among the most vocal critics and has accused Obama repeatedly of not enforcing immigration law.

Several attempts at an immigration law overhaul have failed in recent years, including the so-called DREAM Act, which would have allowed for some young illegal immigrants brought to the U.S. as children to earn legal status if they went to college or joined the military.

The railroad fatality is the second in Wallingford since Dec. 5.

John Munson/The Star-LedgerPassengers at Newark Penn Station board an Amtrak train bound for New York. Earlier this evening, Amtrak and NJ Transit trains faced major delays because of power problems on several rail lines between New York and Philadelphia.

WALLINGFORD, Conn. — A person has been killed by an Amtrak train in Connecticut.

Amtrak spokesman Cliff Cole says the train on the New Haven-Springfield line struck the trespasser Friday morning in Wallingford. None of the 25 passengers or crew was injured.

Service has been suspended and Amtrak is providing alternate bus transportation for passengers traveling between Berlin and New Haven.

The railroad fatality is the second in Wallingford since Dec. 5.

Santorum told his audience that the United States has succeeded in part because "we tolerate inequality of results." Watch video

Speaking to voters and supporters at Keene's Public Library Friday morning, Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum quoted from the Declaration of Independence and cited Alexis De Tocqueville's "Democracy in America" as he discussed what he called "the essential nature of America."

"This is a watershed election," Santorum told his audience, adding, "This is an election about freedoms." President Barack Obama, Santorum said, holds a "fundamentally different view of what America is" from many people in the room, and from the country's founders.

Santorum talked about the need to build a great country "from the bottom up," offering this explanation for the success of the United States:

"We have transformed the world. Why? Because we believed in you. […] We believed that free people can go out and pursue their dreams and, yes, rise to great heights -- and, yes, fall. And we would tolerate inequality of results. Why? Because some people bring more and add more value, and therefore should be rewarded for that."

Watch Santorum's full remarks in the video above from The Republican's Brian Canova.

Any iced-over ponds or lakes are unsafe for walking or skating.

SPRINGFIELD – The city has issued a warning for people to stay off any iced-over ponds or lakes because they are unsafe.

Due to unseasonably warm temperatures and the presence of underground streams in most of the lakes and ponds any ice is too thin for walking and skating, according the city’s Department of Parks, Buildings and Recreation Management.

Since November, warning signs have been posted at all city ponds and lakes. The department encourages all parents and guardians to educate their children on the danger of unsafe ice and to heed the warning signs.

Future snow covering ice could give a false sense of security, according to the city’s press release.

For information for ice safety conditions, call the Recreation Division at 787-6434 or 750-2799 during the week from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.,, and on weekend at 787-6461 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The governor’s office says students will be urged to sign a pledge against name-calling and are encouraged to wear black on Jan. 25 to symbolize their commitment to “Black Out Bullying.”

File photo by Mark M. Murray / The RepublicanSchool kids lead by some of the stars of the ABC-TV's "Extreme Home Makeover: Home Edition" march up Northampton Avenue carrying signs with words that hurt in September. Massachusetts Gov. Deval L. Patrick Friday proclaimed Jan. 25 as "No Name Calling Day" in the Bay State.

BOSTON – As part of the state’s anti-bullying efforts in public schools, Gov. Deval L. Patrick has designated Jan. 25 as “No Name Calling Day” in Massachusetts.

The governor’s office says students will be urged to sign a pledge against name-calling and are encouraged to wear black that day to symbolize their commitment to “Black Out Bullying.”

Legislation signed by the governor in 2010 following a spate of highly-publicized bullying incidents included a provision for a ‘No Name Calling Day.”

The law requires school districts to develop anti-bullying strategies. It was enacted after the high-profile case of Phoebe Prince, a 15-year-old Irish immigrant who hanged herself after South Hadley classmates taunted her when she dated a popular boy.

A 28-member statewide youth council appointed by Patrick plans to discuss the anti-bullying campaign at its regular meeting Saturday.

There will be a candle lighting for Cane on Saturday night from 5 to 7 p.m. on the Southbridge town common.

The Republican | Lori StabileA cross has been placed off Route 19 in Wales to remember Cory Cane, the 23-year-old Worcester man who was the victim of an apparent hit-and-run Tuesday morning. The site is next to a wildlife sanctuary.

WALES – Hampden County District Attorney Mark G. Mastroianni said investigators want to hear from people who may have seen Cory Cane walking on Route 19 (Stafford Road) early Tuesday morning before he was killed in an apparent hit-and-run.

"It is my understanding that he was at the home of someone he knew, and was walking from that house," Mastroianni said.

Mastroianni said they are still trying to establish details, such as what side of the street he was walking on, and what the traffic patterns in the rural town are at that time of day. Mastroianni would not say what time Cane left the home, or exactly where the home is located.

"That's part of the investigation – why he left and when he left," Mastroianni said.

Cane, 23, of Worcester, is believed to have been struck between 1:30 a.m. and 4:48 a.m., the time it was reported to police by a passing motorist. Mastroianni said he is waiting for autopsy results. He said he does not think the medical examiner's office will be able to pinpoint the exact time of death.

He said anyone who has information can call Wales police at (413) 245-7222 or the state police Sturbridge barracks at (508) 347-3352. Anonymous tips can be texted to 274637. Type “solve” as the first word in the text and then the message.

"We are looking for information," Mastroianni said.

Submitted photoCory Cane is pictured with his daughter, Anaya, in this undated photo.

A white cross was placed in the area of where Cane's body was found on Route 19, approximately one mile from the Stafford, Conn., town line.

Three candles were placed by its base, along with two red roses, his photograph, a stuffed dog and a note telling him he was loved. "You'll be missed 4 eva," "Love you! Mom" and "I love you to the moon and back, love your big sis Trina" were some of the messages written on the cross.

A friend of the family, Barbara Jackson, said in an email that Cane was a happy person and leaves behind a young daughter. She described his family as close, and wrote that he shouldn't have been left by the side of the road "like a dead animal!"

According to a posting on his sister's Facebook page, there will be a candle lighting for Cane on Saturday night from 5 to 7 p.m. on the Southbridge town common. T-shirts will be sold to raise funds for a proper burial for him and to buy a headstone.

The Cane family was interviewed by WCVB-TV Boston Channel 5 this week. In the interview, held in Wales near where Cane's body was found, his mother, Joan Cane, described her son through tears as the "sweetest kid."

The victim's brother, Nathan Cane, told the station that his brother was "his right hand man, his heart" and that he would have an emptiness inside of him now.

Cane's sister, Katrina Stoliker, said that her brother was starting a new job the next day.

"I don't know why he would be out here. Why he would be walking on a road that leads to nowhere?" Stoliker told Channel 5. "We just need to know that someone out there has a heart. We just need closure. My brother doesn't deserve this."

It's not the first time the suspect has tangled physically with Springfield police.

Michael Molina

SPRINGFIELD – Police said they arrested a 24-year-old Chicopee man on Mill Street early Friday after he used a car's passenger-side door as a weapon to knock down an approaching police officer.

Sgt. John M. Delaney said the incident occurred about 3:50 a.m. when police officers Matthew Longo and Darren Fitzpatrick pulled a dark green Honda Accord over for a traffic violation.

When Longo approached the passenger-side door, he could see the suspect, Michael Molina, 24, of 85 School St., Chicopee, attempting to hide crack cocaine in the console, Delaney, aide to Commissioner William J. Fitchet, said.

Molina then pushed the door open with such force that it knocked Longo to the ground. The suspect fought with police as they attempted to take him out of the car and was finally subdued.

Molina was charged with assault and battery on a police officer, resisting arrest, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and possession of crack cocaine. Arraignment information was not available.

It’s not the first time that Molina has tangled physically with a Springfield police officer walking up to his car.

In 2008, Police Officer Darrin Fitzpatrick was briefly dragged by a white Audi driven by the then 21-year-old Molina in the Forest Park neighborhood.

Fitzpatrick and Officer Thomas Labonte approached the car on foot, believing the men inside were smoking marijuana.

As the car sped off, Fitzpatrick was briefly dragged, police said. The officer was treated a hospital and released.

Molina then smashed into a pickup truck parked nearby, police said. Molina and his passengers attempted to resist arrest.

The disposition of that case was not immediately available.

Ron Paul's New Hampshire spokeswoman said she didn't know who was behind the ad, but it wasn't anyone affiliated with the campaign. Watch video

CONCORD, N.H. — Republican presidential hopeful Jon Huntsman, who often speaks movingly of his adopted daughters while on the campaign trail, said Friday that Ron Paul's supporters were out of line in using the girls to argue that he is un-American.

An online ad posted by "NHLiberty4Paul" includes video footage of Huntsman, the former ambassador to China, with daughter Gracie when she was an infant. It also shows Huntsman holding Asha shortly after she was adopted from India.

"American values? Or Chinese?" the ad asks, ending with "Vote Ron Paul."

A message sent to the ad's creator was not immediately returned. Paul's New Hampshire spokeswoman, Kate Schackai, said Friday she didn't know who was behind the ad, but it wasn't anyone affiliated with the campaign.

"The video was utterly distasteful and no one who actually supports Dr. Paul's principles would have made it," she said.

In Concord, Huntsman said it was "stupid" to allege that he has Chinese values because he lived overseas and speaks Chinese.

"If someone wants to poke fun at me, that's OK," said Huntsman, whose campaign has posted several online ads attacking Paul as unelectable. "What I object to is bringing forward pictures and videos of my adopted daughters and suggesting there's something sinister there."

Huntsman and his wife have seven children, including Gracie, 12, who was abandoned at a Chinese vegetable market at two months of age, and Asha, 6, who was left to die on a roadside in India the day she was born.

Speaking to New England College's "College Convention," he called the two girls "a daily reminder that there are a lot of kids in this world who don't have the breaks that you do."

Huntsman, who skipped last week's Iowa caucuses and is counting on a strong finish in Tuesday's New Hampshire primary to continue with his campaign, also was asked by an audience member whether the other candidates have "clawed their way to the right," leaving him as the centrist in the race. Huntsman didn't accept the label but called himself a realist instead.

"We have to draw from ideas that are doable and not so outlandishly stupid that they create a lot of political infighting and finger-pointing and never, ever in 1000 years are going to get done," he said.

Despite his focus on New Hampshire, Huntsman still lags far behind front-runner Mitt Romney. Huntsman has been making the case that Romney lacks a "consistent core," a point he underscored Friday without mentioning Romney's name.

"I don't like to spend a lot of time posturing and being one thing during the pre-primary phase, then during the primary phase then the general (election)," he said.

He took another jab at Romney when an audience member asked "Are corporations people?" In August, Romney told an Iowa crowd, "Corporations are people."

Huntsman ignored the question and launched into a long answer to the second part of the man's question, which was about energy policy. But the next person he called on promptly reminded him that he hadn't answered in full.

I think that's so self-evident, I'm not sure that needs to be answered," he said, then quickly continued as audience members groaned. "Of course corporations are not people. Who would say such an outlandish thing? I can't imagine anyone running for president would say something like that."

While Huntsman has been emphasizing his commitment to grassroots campaigning, television appearances and other media interviews consumed most of his day Friday. He was heading to northern New Hampshire in the evening for a house party and Chamber of Commerce dinner.

The state library board had originally given local officials until Jan. 30 in order to keep a $6.3 million grant from it that is crucial to funding the project.

File photo by Dave Roback / The RepublicanLibrary Director Antonia Golinski-Foisy and Trustees Chair Sharon Scott talk to residents aboutj plans for a new West Springfield public library at an open house in October.

WEST SPRINGFIELD – A $13.4 million proposed new library project has been granted a reprieve in the form of an extension from the state for getting local financing in place for the venture.

Sharon E. Scott, chair of the local Library Board of Trustees, said Friday that the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners has extended the deadline to June 30. The state library board had originally given local officials until Jan. 30 in order to keep a $6.3 million grant from it that is crucial to funding the project.

“We are very excited. The board of library commissioners thoroughly appreciates the issues in our town right now,” Scott said.

Scott made her case Thursday along with state Sen. James T. Welch, D- West Springfield; state Rep. Michael J. Finn, D-West Springfield; Library Director Antonia Golinski-Foisy and Anne B. Dempsey, another member of the West Springfield Library Board of Trustees.

“I think at this point in time it at least allows the town to completely vet the process thoroughly. At least it gives us some time,” Welch said.

Several city councilors have balked at approving a $7.1 million bonding request needed for the project on the grounds that there are too many unanswered questions about the issue. They have also questioned the wisdom of spending money for a new library while just having broken ground on a new high school. Councilors at their Jan. 3 meeting agreed to postpone voting on the bonding to allow for more time.

City Councilor Angus M. Rushlow has questioned whether Mittineague School, the proposed site for a new library, should be torn down. He has also expressed concern about how much it will cost to accommodate the 147 students at Mittineague at another school. Rushlow noted the city has not gotten funding to renovate Tatham School for that purpose from the Massachusetts School Building Authority.

“The majority of people in West Springfield are in favor of a new library, but not on the conditions it is being thrown at them,” Rushlow said, referring the current plan as like “buying a pig in a poke.”

In addition, the newly installed mayor, Gregory C. Neffinger, has expressed reservations about the project, including whether the library should be moved from its current location downtown on Park St.

Scott said that library trustees choose Mittineague School as the site for a new facility only because the School Department had already slated it for eventual decommissioning in its master plan.

“We care about education for everybody,” she said of the issue of closing the school, which has become an emotional one in the community.

The extension of the deadline will give local officials time to learn the answers to such questions as whether the state grant is site specific or if another location may be used as well as how soon ground must be broken in order to keep the state grant, according to her.

Rick Santorum said President Obama's fundamental world view comes at odds with his, as well as the implications of that on economic policy. Watch video

KEENE, N.H. – Taking the pulpit of the basement auditorium in Keene Public Library, Rick Santorum said a fundamentally different world view and interpretation of history drives the difference between his proposed policies and President Barack Obama's.

Campaigning ahead of Tuesday's New Hampshire primary, Santorum blasted a new rule imposed by the EPA in late December that, according to Santorum, will cause 60 coal mines to shut down.

According to an Associated Press survey, because of the rule, 32 plants in 12 states will have to shut down, which may be followed by 36 more.

While the Associated Press reported the move is unlikely to cause power outages, Santorum warned of becoming a country like war-stricken Iraq where power shortages in Baghdad caused rotating blackouts throughout the city.

"When you walk into a room and you want the power to go on, you want the power to go on," Santorum said.

Later he contended the United States drills better than any other nation, and proposed a plan to open all offshore drilling. Audience members scoffed and one called out "BP" when Santorum claimed no reason to think a drilling industry regulated by its own market would have issues regarding environmental concerns.

Santorum traced the president's unwillingness to allow a self-regulated market-based energy industry to a fundamental difference the two share in their interpretations of world history.

"We have a president who has a fundamentally different view of what America is than I suspect of most of the people of this room, and certainly our founders. You see it from his economic talks, the way he talks about America, and the way his wife talks about America," Santorum said.

"We've transformed the world, why? Because we believed in you. We didn't believe in the divine right of kings that the government should lord over us and allocate resources and tell us how to live our lives," Santorum said.

Santorum explained his interpretation reciting an excerpt from the Declaration of Independence, emphasizing that citizens are endowed by their creators.

"Everyone was considered to have dignity and value because what? Because we were children of God," Santorum said.

Santorum criticized the idea of pundits and voters who feel the party should just focus on who has the best chance of winning, or defeating President Obama.

"This is a watershed election. This is an election that's more about jobs, more about national security, more about what we'll culturally look like. This is an election that's about the essential nature of America," Santorum said.

At the end of the question and answer session a persistent attendee burst through the overflow room door and demanded Santorum comment on the Occupy Wall Street movement.

Santorum said the government needs to make sure there is opportunity available for everyone in America to rise.

"That does not mean picking winners and losers. That does mean creating an equal playing field, where if you do work hard, if you do have good ideas, if you do take proper risks, if you do the things that are necessary to succeed, that you do so," said Santorum.

"Here's the problem, the problem I see with some, and not all, but the problem I see with Occupy Wall Street and Occupy Wall Street's biggest supporter, Barack Obama. He believes in a very different idea of capitalism. He believes in crony capitalism. He believes in picking winners and losers, and he believes in more of equality of result than equality of opportunity," Santorum said.

Jack Crawford, a 64-year-old retired attorney from Stofford, N.H., a town 10 minutes from Keene, said before the speech he was most interested in hearing about the disparity between the haves and have-nots, an issue he feels runs deeper than budget-cuts.

Santorum said he plans to introduce a two-tiered tax plan set at 10 and 28 percent.

"Why 28 percent? Well 28 percent is as low as Reagan went so I say if it's good enough for Reagan it's good enough for me," said Santorum.

Santorum, whose quick rise in Iowa left him 8 votes shy of victory on Tuesday in that state's caucuses, will appear in ABC News' Sunday night debate alongside presidential hopefuls Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul, and Rick Perry.

Stay with MassLive.com for the latest on the campaign trail in New Hampshire.

In appointing Conant, Sarno apparently bypassed Deputy Chief Jerrold Prendergast, the department's chief administrative officer.

Republican file photoFrom left, Joseph A. Conant, Commissioner Gary Cassanelli, Mayor Domenic Sarno, and Deputy Chief Jerrold Prendergast pose in front of a new fire truck in this file photo from July 21. Sarno on Friday appointed Conant as the interim fire commissioner following Cassanelli's retirement on Jan. 13.

SPRINGFIELD - Mayor Domenic J. Sarno on Friday afternoon announced he is picking Deputy Fire Chief Joseph A. Conant to lead the fire department on an interim basis with the Jan. 13 retirement of Fire Commissioner Gary Cassanelli.

Sarno, in a prepared statement, praised Conant, a member of the fire department since 1987 and the deputy chief of operations for the past year.

In appointing Conant, Sarno apparently bypassed Deputy Chief Jerrold Prendergast, the department’s chief administrative officer.

Prendergast has been dogged by a recent report by the state Civil Service Commission that faulted him for improperly being involved in the screening process that resulted in his son, Zachary Prendergast, being hired by the department.

The report, authored by Commission Chairman Christopher C. Bowman found fault with Prendergast’s direct involvement in the review and selection process compromised the department’s ability to conduct a fair and open search. There is also “strong circumstantial evidence” to suggest Deputy Chief Prendergast “tipped the scales in favor of appointing” his son, the finding notes.

Cassanelli issued a statement earlier in this week that he felt Prendergast did nothing wrong and the selection process was above board.

“There have never been any political influences or objectives unrelated to merit that guided any of my decisions to hire firefighters,” Cassanelli said in his statement.

Prendergast was not available for comment.

Sarno in his prepared statement avoided mention of Prendergast and the controversy all together. Instead, he praised Conant for his work ethic, his leadership skills and his work each day with the city’s Emergency Operations Center following the June 1 tornado.

Joseph A. Conant

Sarno also expressed his appreciation for Cassanelli for his 35 years service with the fire department. “His service to the city has been exceptional and his commitment to protecting life and property has been beyond commendable.”

Cassanelli has been head of the department for 21 years, first as fire chief since 1990 and then as commissioner in 2005 when the city restructured the department to create the commissioner position.

Conant, a Marine Corps Reserves veteran, was appointed to the fire department on Sept. 14, 1987. He was promoted to lieutenant on April 21, 1997, and to captain on April 16, 2004.

He was promoted to district chief on Jan. 1, 2007 and named deputy chief of operations on Jan. 10, 2011.

A Springfield native, he has been in command at several major incidents, including the 2008 Macedonia Church fire, the 2010 fire at Indian Orchard Mills, the"> June 1 tornado and more recently the October ice storm.

“I am honored by the confidence Mayor Sarno has placed in me and my abilities to serve as acting fire commissioner,” Conant said. “I am looking forward to continuing with the department and maintaining my commitment to protecting life and property for the residents of Springfield.”

His salary will increase from $109,948 to $126,440. Cassanelli's salary was $155,002.

Sarno aide Thomas Walsh said the mayor did not indictate if the Civil Service controversy played a role in his decision.

Walsh said Sarno said he felt comfortable with Conant after working closely with him in the aftermath of the tornado.

Since the Prendergast controversy developed, the mayor’s office has not commented on this issue. As recently as Friday morning, Walsh was referring all questions on the issue to William Mahoney, the city’s Labor Relations Director.

It is not clear how long the position will remain interim.

Sarno is evaluating the next steps for finding a permanent fire commissioner, Walsh said.

At the moment he is undecided about whether to promote from within the department or to commission a national search to recruit candidates from outside the city.

City Councilor Thomas A. Walsh, chair of the council’s Public Health and Safety Committee, said he has not given much thought to how the city should proceed to fill the commissioner’s post permanently.

“The fire department is a little different from other departments. Often you don’t need a national search,” he said.

Conant is capable of running the department and “there are probably others in the department who are fully capable.”

He said he stands by the appointment of Conant, saying “I think it’s a good one.”

"Mr. Seewald wants to abandon us so he can work with our opponent in court," Alan Scheinman said.

Photo by Don Treeger / The RepublicanAlan Seewald listens to arguments in Hampshire Superior Court on his motion to withdraw from a suit filed by the Northampton Business Improvement District. Seewald has been offered the job of Northampton City Solicitor, and his clients Eric Suher and his partner in the suit Alan Scheinman feel that he should be not be allowed to withdraw as their attorney.

NORTHAMPTON – The plaintiffs in a suit against the city are not letting their lawyer go gently into public service, appearing in court Friday to block the appointment of Alan Seewald to the post of Northampton city solicitor.

Seewald, a former Amherst town counsel, represents Alan L. Scheinman, Eric G. Suher and David R. Pesuit in their suit over the creation of the Business Improvement District that serves some downtown property owners. With the suit still pending, Mayor David J. Narkewicz has asked Seewald to become Northampton's new city solicitor. In order to assume that position, Seewald must withdraw from the case against the city. He has filed a motion asking the court to allow this.

Scheinman and Suher, both of whom appeared before Hampshire Superior Court Judge Mary-Lou Rup on Friday, objected strenuously to the withdrawal, saying it would harm their case.

"Mr. Seewald wants to abandon us so he can work with our opponent in court," said Scheinman, "the city of Northampton."

As Seewald explained the situation, Narkewicz called him on Dec. 26 and asked if he would be interested in the job. After thinking about it for a day, Seeewald decided to accept and notified his clients of his intention to withdraw as their attorney. He told Rup he has already sounded out several lawyers about taking over the case and would spent time bringing them up to speed.

“I have done everything in my power to make sure there would be no adverse impact,” he said.

Scheinman said Seewald’s assurance “strains credibility,” noting that he would, in effect, be working against his new employer by briefing a successor about the case. Meanwhile, he said, Seewald would be in a position to help Northampton.

“He knows every fact and applicable law in our suit,” Scheinman told Rup. “In short, he’s had complete and total access to otherwise privileged information in this case.”

Scheinman, who is himself a lawyer, also noted that he and his co-plaintiffs have already paid Seewald $39,000 in legal fees and disputed Seewald’s assertion that time is of the essence because the appointment, by city charter, must be made in January.

“The mayor can hire of fire a city solicitor anytime,” Scheinman said. “This problem is of Mr. Seewald’s own making.”

Suher told Rup he was “dismayed” and “shocked” by Seewald’s request to withdraw.

“It’s a blatant disregard for any ethical standard whatsoever,” he said. “This really smells. After two years on the case, the city is looking to hire our counsel.”

Because Seewald is still representing the plaintiffs, the hearing offered the odd spectacle of him and Scheinman trading arguments from the same table. It was opposing attorney Michael Pill, who represents the Business Improvement District, who rose to Seewald’s defense.

“I’ve known Alan Seewald since the 1980s,” Pill told Rup. “Both as a person and as an attorney, Alan Seewald is the best city solicitor Northampton will have had in years.”

Pill also said he does not oppose Seewald’s motion to withdraw, contending that the city is a secondary defendant in the suit.

“The (Business Improvement District) is the real defendant in this case,” he said.

Scheinman disputed that, saying the suit contends that the process by which the city accepted the district was flawed.

“If we win the case against the city, the BID will not exist,” he said.

Rup declined Scheinman’s request that she report Seewald to the Board of Bar Overseers for conflict of interest, saying that is not within her purview. She did agreed, however, to take Seewald’s request to withdraw under advisement and scheduled a status hearing for Feb. 15. Rup noted that her ruling could come before that.

Stock indexes teetered between small gains and losses all day as traders fretted about Europe’s ongoing financial drama.

File photo / Associated PressPolly Brown of Riesel, Texas, shops for holiday gifts at the Family Dollar store, in Waco, Texas, in 2010. Family Dollar's stock plunged 7.5 percent Friday after reporting revenue that was less than Wall Street expected. (Photo by Tony Gutierrez)

NEW YORK - The stock market offered a reminder Friday that even if the U.S. job market is improving, there’s plenty to worry about elsewhere in the world.

The unemployment rate fell in December to 8.5 percent, the lowest level in nearly three years. Yet stock indexes teetered between small gains and losses all day as traders fretted about Europe’s ongoing financial drama.

Italy’s borrowing costs spiked to dangerously high levels and the euro fell to a 16-month low against the dollar. U.S. bank stocks fell on concerns that the debt crisis will spread through the financial industry.

The Dow Jones industrial average ended down nearly 56 points and the S&P had a tiny loss, its first of the year. Both gained more than 1 percent over the first week of 2012.

Most European markets closed lower after new data showed economic sentiment and retail sales falling across the region. Unemployment is stuck at 10.3 percent in the 17 nations that use the euro.

Europe’s debt woes and China’s slowing economy are overshadowing signs of strength in the U.S. economy, said Doug Cote, chief market strategist at ING Investment Management.

“The global risks continue to exert their weight,” Cote said. Ultimately, improving U.S. stronger consumer demand, manufacturing activity and corporate profits will drive U.S. stocks higher, Cote said.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 55.78 points, or 0.5 percent, to 12,359.92. Alcoa Inc. was the Dow’s biggest loser, slipping 2.1 percent. A Citi analyst forecast that the aluminum maker lost money in the fourth quarter of 2011 for the first time since the recession. Alcoa, which reports earnings Monday, said late Thursday it would close an aluminum smelter in Tennessee and other operations to cut costs.

The latest sign that the labor market is strengthening failed to spur buying by investors. The unemployment rate fell last month to 8.5 percent, while U.S. employers added a net 200,000 jobs, the Labor Department said.

The economy has generated 100,000 or more jobs each month for the past six, the longest such streak since April 2006. The number of people applying for unemployment benefits last week fell, pushing the four-week average of new claims down to its lowest level since June 2008.

In other trading, the Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 3.25 points, or 0.3 percent, to 1,277.81. The Nasdaq composite index rose 4.36, or 0.2 percent, to 2,674.22.

It was the second day in a row of indecisive trading on the stock market. The Dow and the S&P closed nearly unchanged Thursday. The indexes still had strong gains in this first, shortened trading week of the year. The Dow is up 1.2 percent this week, the S&P 1.6 percent. Trading was closed Monday, when the New Year’s Day holiday was observed.

The euro fell as low as $1.2696 Friday, its lowest point since Sept. 10, 2010. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 1.97 percent from 2 percent late Thursday as investors put money into low-risk investments. Bond yields fall when demand for them increases.

Italy is now paying 7.09 percent to borrow for 10 years, reflecting investors’ fears that the nation might default. Ireland and Portugal were forced to take bailouts when their ten-year borrowing rates rose above 7 percent.

Unlike those nations, Italy is too big for the rest of Europe to bail out. Leaders of France and Italy met in Paris on Friday to discuss the spiraling debt crisis that threatens to engulf both nations and push much of the region into recession.

In corporate news:

Family Dollar Stores Inc. plunged 7.5 percent, the most in the S&P 500, after reporting revenue that was less than Wall Street expected.

Dendreon Corp. jumped 16.3 percent after the drug developer said sales of its prostate-cancer therapy Provenge kept growing in the fourth quarter. Sales of the drug jumped 25 percent over the previous quarter.

Global Payments Inc. fell 3.4 percent after the processor of credit, debit and gift card payments reported earnings that fell short of analysts’ expectations. Janney Capital Markets analyst Thomas McCrohan said prospects for a sustained increased in profit margins “remain fleeting.”