GOP Senate candidate Gabriel Gomez spoke with The Republican's editorial board this week about issues of national security, including immigration reform.

Fontaine said she went to Summerfest to have a fun day with her family.

MONSON -- A confrontation last summer between a Southbridge woman and Monson police questioning her care for her young daughter ended with charges either dismissed or not prosecuted.

Shaina L. Fontaine, 25, a 2006 Monson High graduate, went to Summerfest, Monson’s July 4th festival, with her mother and 3-year-old daughter. Having recently given birth to twin boys, she said she was looking forward to a day of fun out of the house, and spending time with her daughter.

But as she was leaving to attend a relative’s cookout on Bethany Road, she had a run-in with the police that ended in her being arrested and charged with assault and battery on a child with injury and permitting an injury to a child.

The first charge was not prosecuted by the Commonwealth, and the second was dismissed on the request of the Commonwealth. The case, heard in Palmer District Court before Judge Patricia T. Poehler, wrapped up earlier this year. Fontaine said she wanted an opportunity for her side of the story to be told.

“I’m devastated by this,” Fontaine said during a recent interview.

She said she had her shirtless daughter in a stroller when she accidentally bumped into a tire on a parked all-terrain vehicle, prompting police to begin questioning her about her day.

Her daughter was shirtless because she had spilled something on her shirt and Fontaine said she planned to change her when she got to the cookout. She said her daughter wasn’t slumped over, as described in Officer Adam J. Szymanski’s report, but was leaning over to play with a bag of toys.

Fontaine acknowledges having two Margarita mixed drinks at the Beer Garden, but says she wasn’t intoxicated, and noted that she was not arrested for drunken disorderly conduct. The narrative included in her court file by Szymanski states that she was given a field sobriety test by Officer David Rondeau and was determined to be under the influence of alcohol, which she denies.

“I was just having a fun day with my family,” Fontaine said.

She said she couldn’t believe she was being questioned, and that the police and emergency medical technicians planned to have her daughter taken to Wing Memorial Hospital in Palmer by ambulance to be evaluated due to concerns about a sunburn and dehydration. At approximately 6 p.m. that night, Monson police were notified that the girl had been evaluated by a physician and appeared OK, Szymanski wrote in his report.

Fontaine was taken to the police station where she was booked and released on bail.

She said she was shocked when she saw the charges on the paperwork she was given to sign. She admits she was argumentative with the police. She said the officer kept asking her when her daughter last had water.

Fontaine said she bought three bottles of water and had sunscreen on her child.

“All of a sudden there were cops everywhere. It was a huge spectacle,” Fontaine said. “I was polite to (the officer) to begin with, but I got defensive and irritated. They were making a big deal that I didn’t have water with me . . . They were making a problem when there wasn’t one. I was in total shock that the whole thing was even happening.”

She said she’s not looking to “trash the police” but wants to make sure her side of the story gets told.

Her court-appointed lawyer, David Chivers, said he felt the case had the proper outcome.

Assistant District Attorney Colleen Martin filed a motion asking for the second count, permitting an injury to a child, to be dismissed, which was allowed by Poehler on Jan. 9. In the motion, Martin wrote that the state Department of Children and Families case is closed and “they are satisfied there are no issues.”

Count 1, assault and battery on a child with injury, was not prosecuted because there was “insufficient evidence,” according to the court file.

The father of the two Boston bombing suspects said Thursday that he is soon leaving Russia for the United States, to visit one son and lay the other to rest. Their mother said she was still thinking over whether to make the journey.

By MAX SEDDON, Associated Press

MAKHACHKALA, Russia (AP) — The father of the two Boston bombing suspects said Thursday that he is soon leaving Russia for the United States, to visit one son and lay the other to rest. Their mother said she was still thinking over whether to make the journey.

"I am going there to see my son and bury my older one," Anzor Tsarnaev said in an emotional meeting with journalists. "I have no bad thoughts, I'm not planning any bombings, I don't want to do anything. I'm not offended by anyone. I want to know the truth, what happened. I want to work it out."

Tamerlan Tsarnaev, 26, was killed in a gun battle with police, while his 19-year-old brother, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, remains hospitalized with gunshot wounds.

Their parents returned last year to Dagestan, one of several predominantly Muslim provinces in southern Russia, where the family lived briefly before moving to the U.S. a decade ago.

The elder suspect spent the first half of 2012 in Russia's Caucasus, which has been ravaged for years by an insurgency led by religious extremists. Anzor Tsarnaev said his son stayed with him for at least three months in Makhachkala, the capital of Dagestan, and spent one month with relatives, but he was unclear on where his son was for the remaining time.

U.S. investigators have been trying to determine whether Tamerlan Tsarnaev was radicalized during his stay in the Caucasus, where he regularly prayed at a Makhachkala mosque.

A team of investigators from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow has questioned both parents in Makhachkala this week, spending many hours with the mother in particular over the course of two days. Tsarnaev said the questions were mostly about their sons' activities and interests.

The father, who wore dark aviator sunglasses during Thursday's news conference, said he was leaving "today or tomorrow" for the United States. But the family later said his travel may be delayed because he was not feeling well.

The suspects' mother, Zubeidat Tsarnaeva, who was charged with shoplifting in the U.S. last summer, said she has been assured by lawyers that she would not be arrested, but said she was still deciding whether to go.

Tsarnaeva, wearing a headscarf and dressed all in black, said she now regrets moving her family to the U.S. and believes they would have been better off in a village in her native Dagestan.

"You know, my kids would be with us, and we would be, like, fine," she said. "So, yes, I would prefer not to live in America now! Why did I even go there? Why? I thought America is going to, like, protect us, our kids, it's going to be safe."

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that the Boston bombings should spur stronger security cooperation between Moscow and Washington, adding that they also show that the West was wrong in supporting militants in Chechnya.

"This tragedy should push us closer in fending off common threats, including terrorism, which is one of the biggest and most dangerous of them all," Putin said during his annual call-in show on state television.

The Russian government contacted first the FBI and then the CIA in 2011 with concerns about Tamerlan Tsarnaev, U.S. officials said. The FBI said it had asked for more information from Russia, but none was provided.

Putin said Thursday that the Russian special services had no information to give because the Tsarnaevs had spent so little time in Russia.

Putin warned against trying to find the roots for the Boston tragedy in the suffering endured by the Chechen people, particularly in mass deportations of Chechens to Siberia and Central Asia on Soviet dictator Josef Stalin's orders. "The cause isn't in their ethnicity or religion, it's in their extremist sentiments," he said.

The suspects are ethnic Chechens and their father's family was deported to Central Asia in the 1940s. The Tsarnaev family moved back to Chechnya in the early 1990s, but soon fled back to Kyrgyzstan after fighting broke out between Chechen separatists and Russian troops, whose bombs and artillery pummeled Chechen cities and town.

Putin criticized the West for refusing to declare Chechen militants terrorists and for offering them political and financial assistance in the past.

"I always felt indignation when our Western partners and Western media were referring to terrorists who conducted brutal and bloody crimes on the territory of Russia as rebels," Putin said.

The U.S. urged the Kremlin to seek a political settlement in Chechnya and criticized rights abuses by Russian troops during the two separatist wars. It also provided humanitarian aid to the region during the fighting in the 1990s and early 2000s.

Russian officials have claimed that rebels in Chechnya have close links with al-Qaida.

Putin said the West should have cooperated more actively with Russia in combatting terror.

"We always have said that we shouldn't limit ourselves to declarations about terrorism being a common threat and engage in closer cooperation," he said. "Now these two criminals have proven the correctness of our thesis."

___

AP writers Vladimir Isachenkov and Lynn Berry in Moscow contributed to this report.

The victim was treated at Baystate and released.

SOUTH HADLEY -- A faulty electrical outlet was the cause of a Tuesday night blaze that sent a Granby Road man to Baystate Medical Center in Springfield for treatment of smoke inhalation, Fire District 1 Inspector Jeremy Simmons said.

The victim, the sole occupant of the home at 335 Granby Rd., was treated and released, Simmons said.

The victim reported the blaze shortly after 6 p.m. and arriving firefighters spotted smoke coming from the rear of the building.

Firefighters, aided by their counterparts in Fire District 2, quickly knocked down the blaze. A cat perished in the fire, Capt. James Pula, also of Fire District 1, said Tuesday night.

Simmons could not provide a damage estimate.

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Officials also said more definitive proof was needed and the U.S. was not ready to escalate its involvement in Syria.

By JULIE PACE & ROBERT BURNS
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. intelligence has concluded "with some degree of varying confidence" that the Syrian government has twice used chemical weapons in its fierce civil war, the White House and other top administration officials said Thursday.

However, officials also said more definitive proof was needed and the U.S. was not ready to escalate its involvement in Syria. That response appeared to be an effort to bide time, given President Barack Obama's repeated public assertions that Syria's use of chemical weapons, or the transfer of its stockpiles to a terrorist group, would cross a "red line."

The White House disclosed the new intelligence Thursday in letters to two senators, and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, traveling in Abu Dhabi, also discussed it with reporters.

"Our intelligence community does assess, with varying degrees of confidence, that the Syrian regime has used chemical weapons on a small scale in Syria, specifically, the chemical agent sarin," the White House said in its letter, which was signed by Obama's legislative director, Miguel Rodriguez.

Shortly after the letters was made public, Secretary of State John Kerry said on Capitol Hill that there were two instances of chemical weapons use.

Hagel said the use of chemical weapons "violates every convention of warfare."

It was not immediately clear what quantity of weapons might have been used, or when or what casualties might have resulted.

Obama has said the use of chemical weapons would be a "game-changer" in the U.S. position on intervening in the Syrian civil war, and the letter to Congress reiterated that the use or transfer of such weapons in Syria was a "red line for the United States." However, the letter also suggested a broad U.S. response was not imminent.

Rodriguez wrote that "because the president takes this issue so seriously, we have an obligation to fully investigate any and all evidence of chemical weapons use within Syria."

The letter went to Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Carl Levin, D-Mich.

The assessment, Rodriguez said, was based in part on "physiological samples."

The letter also said the U.S. believes the use of chemical weapons "originated with the Assad regime." That is consistent with the Obama administration's assertion that the Syrian rebels do not have access to the country's stockpiles.

A senior defense official cautioned that the White House letter was not an "automatic trigger" for policy decisions on the use of military force. The official alluded to past instances of policy decisions that were based on what turned out to be flawed intelligence, such as the Bush administration's decision to invade Iraq after concluding that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons.

The official commented only on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.

McCain quoted from the letter in making his own comments to reporters on Capitol Hill.

"We just received a letter from the president in response to our question about whether Assad had used chemical weapons," McCain said following a closed briefing with Kerry on Syria and North Korea.

___

Associated Press writers Donna Cassata, Lara Jakes and Bradley Klapper contributed to this report. Burns reported from Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

A recommendation would lock the bathrooms and make keys available on request.

Employees and police say there are drug, homeless and other problems occurring in the Holyoke City Hall basement bathrooms.The Republican staff file photo 

HOLYOKE -- Blood on the walls. Sex in the stalls. Screams of hallucinating drug users.

It's not a Quentin Tarantino movie, it's the problems resulting from the basement bathrooms at City Hall being unlocked, according to a petition employees gave the City Council Public Safety Committee Wednesday.

"Something must be done to deter this problem. It has gotten out of hand," read the petition, signed by 13 employees.

The committee voted 3-0 to recommend that the full City Council approve an order that would require the bathrooms be locked and available to the public by requesting a key in one of the offices in the basement, which was the previous practice.

City Hall employees all would get their own bathroom keys or one key would be issued to each office, under the order.

When City Hall closes at 4:30 p.m., staff of the Holyoke Public Library, which is temporarily located upstairs in the auditorium, would be responsible for issuing keys to the basement bathrooms, under the order.

Officials must balance the public's right to use City Hall with the right of employees and others to expect public safety and decency, committee Chairman Anthony Soto said.

"It is a public building. It belongs to the public," Soto said.

Still, according to the employees' petition, "At one time or another one City Hall employees are subject to encountering drug use in the bathroom."

Other problems listed in the petition were drug paraphernalia "landing at our feet as we use the toilet"; blood on the floor and walls employees attribute to drug users "shooting up"; couples having sex; finding people having hallucinations or passed out; employees being threatened; and people using the bathrooms to bathe.

Among the reasons for the problems in the bathrooms suggested at the meeting were the presence of the library in City Hall and the proximity of a needle exchange program downtown.

Police have been called to deal with problems in the City Hall bathrooms 18 times in the last 14 months, Police Chief James M. Neiswanger said.

Problems were usually drug activity, suspicious people or unwanted guests, said Neiswanger, who said a few arrests were made in that period.

He supported the plan to have the bathrooms locked and accessible by requested key, he said.

Previously, getting into the bathrooms required a trip to the Purchasing Department, which is closest to the restrooms, to get a key.

The bathrooms have been unlocked since the library's relocation in January 2012 to ensure access to the increased amount of people using City Hall, said Joram Berrios, day custodian at City Hall.

Library Director Maria G. Pagan said the two bathrooms upstairs near the temporary library are available to library staff and children. Adults who want to use those bathrooms must exchange their library card for the key, she said.

The $14.5 million renovation of the 111-year-old library, at 335 Maple St., is nearly done and the library should vacate City Hall by summer, she said.

Councilor at Large Daniel B. Bresnahan said it appears something happened to bring about the numerous problems in the past 14 months in the City Hall bathrooms.

"It's either the library is open or they put a needle exchange program down the street and people are coming up here to shoot up." Bresnahan said.

But an official with needle exchange provider Tapestry Health questioned whether the program is to blame. Tapestry has run a program at 15-A Main St. since August in which people can bring in used needles and get clean ones in return in what is intended to be a public health step by getting infected needles off the streets.

"I would be interested to hear where he's getting that information from. I certainly haven't heard that there are more drug addicts," said Timothy W. Purington, Tapestry director of prevention services.

Purington, contacted after the meeting, echoed a point Neiswanger made, that it is common for drug users and homeless people to frequent public bathrooms.

"When you have a homeless population like this city does, restrooms are a big commodity," Purington said.

Purchasing Director David A. Martins said he will abide by whatever officials decide, but he has welcomed the past 16 months of his office having shed the duties of bathroom key providers.

"Every five minutes there's someone coming in, 'Can I have the key?'" Martins said, reached after the meeting.

Hip-hop artist Flo Rida launched his own label in 2010.

• Springfield M.C. signs songwriting deal with Flo Rida label International Music Group [What's the 413]


• The Trials of Charles Wilhite [Pioneer Magazine]


• New Haven 375th Anniversary Light Sculpture [Hartford Courant]


• Park Serve Day -- find a park clean-up effort near you [Mass.gov]


• Berkshire native, UMASS-Amherst student pleads not guilty to pot, weapons charges [Berkshire Eagle]


• Amherst honors Stan Ziomek [Only in the Republic of Amherst]






• Springfield Faces Deadline Over River Accessibility [Valley Advocate]



Video of Springfield North End arson fire [YouTube]:

• Twitter posts tagged #westernma in Western Mass. [MassLive.com]


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Yung Stelf 

Internet shoppers are moving closer to paying sales taxes for their online purchases. But the fight is far from over.

By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Internet shoppers are moving closer to paying sales taxes for their online purchases. But the fight is far from over.

The Senate voted 63-30 Thursday to advance a bill that would impose state and local sales taxes on purchases made over the Internet. An agreement among senators delayed the Senate's final vote on passage until May 6, when senators return from a weeklong vacation.

Opponents hope senators hear from angry constituents over the next week, but they acknowledged they have a steep hill to climb to defeat the bill in the Senate.

Their best hope for stopping the bill may be in the House, where some Republicans consider it a tax increase. President Barack Obama supports the bill.

The bill would empower states to reach outside their borders and compel online retailers to collect state and local sales taxes for purchases made over the Internet. Under the bill, the sales taxes would be sent to the states where a shopper lives.

Under current law, states can only require stores to collect sales taxes if the store has a physical presence in the state. As a result, many online sales are essentially tax-free, giving Internet retailers an advantage over brick-and-mortar stores.

"We look forward to passing this landmark bill in 11 days and call on the House to stand up for America's Main Street businesses with us," Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said shortly after Thursday's vote.

Senate Democratic leaders wanted to finish work on the bill this week, before leaving town for the recess. But they were blocked by a handful of senators from states without sales taxes.

Oregon, Montana, New Hampshire and Delaware have no sales taxes, though the two senators from Delaware support the bill.

"I think it's going to be interesting for senators to get a response from constituents over this upcoming week," said Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore. "I'm not sure that the country knows that something like this coerces businesses all around America to collect other people's sales taxes."

The bill pits brick-and-mortar stores like Wal-Mart against online services such as eBay. The National Retail Federation supports it. And Amazon.com, which initially fought efforts in some states to make it collect sales taxes, supports it, too.

Retailers who have lobbied in favor of the bill celebrated Thursday's vote.

"The special treatment of big online businesses at the expense of retailers on Main Street will soon be a thing of the past," said Bill Hughes of the Retail Industry Leaders Association. "The overwhelmingly bipartisan support for leveling the playing field is rare in today's political environment and paves the way for a level playing field once and for all."

Supporters say the bill is about fairness for local businesses that already collect sales taxes, and lost revenue for states. Opponents say the bill would impose complicated regulations on retailers and doesn't have enough protections for small businesses. Businesses with less than $1 million a year in online sales would be exempt.

Many of the nation's governors — Republicans and Democrats — have been lobbying the federal government for years for the authority to collect sales taxes from online sales.

The issue is getting bigger for states as more people make purchases online. Last year, Internet sales in the U.S. totaled $226 billion, up nearly 16 percent from the previous year, according to Commerce Department estimates.

The National Conference of State Legislatures estimates that states lost $23 billion last year because they couldn't collect taxes on out-of-state sales.

Anti-tax groups have labeled the bill a tax increase. But it gets support from many Republicans who have pledged not to increase taxes. The bill's main sponsor is Sen. Mike Enzi, a conservative Republican from Wyoming. He has worked closely with Durbin, a liberal Democrat.

Enzi and Durbin say the bill doesn't raise taxes. Instead, they say, it gives states a mechanism to enforce current taxes.

In many states, shoppers are required to pay unpaid sales taxes when they file state tax returns. But governors complain that few people comply.

Under the bill, states that want to collect online sales taxes must provide free computer software to help retailers calculate the taxes, based on where shoppers live. States must also establish a single entity to receive Internet sales tax revenue, so retailers don't have to send them to individual counties or cities.

A Beverly man has been sentenced to four years in prison for sexually molesting his girlfriend's two daughters, starting when one was 9 years old.

SALEM, Mass. (AP) — A Beverly man has been sentenced to four years in prison for sexually molesting his girlfriend's two daughters, starting when one was 9 years old.

Norman Fertsch was sentenced Thursday in Salem Superior Court after pleading guilty to nine counts of indecent assault and battery on a child.

Prosecutors say the 47-year-old Fertsch was living with the victims and their mother when he began offering the older of the girls "massages" starting in 2000. Prosecutors say Fertsch would start with something seemingly innocent, but soon was touching the girl inappropriately. The abuse continued for about three years until the older girl was 14. Then Fertsch turned to the younger girl, who was 9.

The Salem News (http://bit.ly/Y91n1s ) reports that Fertsch's lawyer said his client accepts responsibility for his actions.

___

Information from: The Salem (Mass.) News, http://www.salemnews.com

Catch up on stories you may have missed this week.

Recapping some of the major stories from Springfield for the week:

City News:

• Dozens of buildings including St. Luke’s Retirement Home, several large apartment buildings and the U.S. District Court building were evacuated Monday morning when an excavator operator punctured a high-pressure gas line. This is the second accident with a work crew rupturing a gas line on Spring Street in less than three months frustrating Mayor Domenic J. Sarno who said the incidents are endangering the lives of firefighters, police and residents. “It is potentially a very, very dangerous situation,” he said. “This cannot become commonplace.”

• Much like their fellow soldiers of color, Tuskegee Airmen and the Navajo Code Talkers the Borinqueneers were members of a segregated infantry regiment, established in 1899 with members serving in World War I and World War II as well as in Korea. The infantry regiment was disbanded in 1959. Currently, the Borinqueneers is the only segregated military infantry unit to have not not been awarded the Congressional Gold Medal. The Borinqueneers Congressional Gold Medal Alliance is working to change that. “It’s a tall order, but we are hoping that they see the importance of this recognition for the veterans and their families,” Larry Bystran, founder and chairman of the Latino Alliance, said.

• Arson is believed to be the cause of a fire on April 20 that displaced more than 40 residents of a large apartment complex at the corner of Main and Portland streets in the city's North End, according to an investigation by the Springfield Arson and Bomb Squad. "They're saying it's a set fire, it's an arson," Springfield Fire Department Public Information Officer Dennis G. Leger said.

• DevelopSpringfield recently acquired a deteriorating historic property at 83 Maple St. for rehabilitation in keeping with its historic significance. A property to the rear at 234 Union St. was also acquired and will be developed as a part of the project, according to a press release from DevelopSpringfield. “This is a property of great importance historically and it is located on a major gateway to downtown. It cannot be lost to disrepair,” said Jay Minkarah, president and CEO of DevelopSpringfield.

• Savanna Stebbins, of Enfield, Conn., decided to celebrate her 10th birthday with a party to benefit homeless animals. “I was in the car with my mom and she asked me what I wanted to do for my birthday,” said Savanna. “I told her I had so much stuff that, instead of getting more stuff, I wanted to collect things to give to needy animals." Savanna’s mom, Jenn Stebbins, arranged for the party at T.J. O’Connor, which serves Springfield, Chicopee and Holyoke. The Stebbins family had adopted a dog there before moving from Springfield to Enfield five years ago.

• Courtney Stewart is preparing for an April 28-30 trip to Washington, D.C., where he will represent Massachusetts in the national finals of the “Poetry Out Loud” contest for high school students after winning the state finals. “The competition rose with every level, but when I got to the state finals, I felt surprisingly calm, almost light-hearted. Actually, I feel empowered in front of a crowd. I really love being center stage, with all eyes on me,” Stewart said.

• Dr. John Synder, pediatrician at High Street Health Center Pediatrics at Baystate Children's Hospital, noted childhood vaccinations are one of the best ways for parents to protect their children against vaccine-preventable diseases. This message is currently highlighted during National Infant Immunization Week. "I don't want to minimize the stress and pain some children feel when it comes time for them to be vaccinated, but that is nothing compared to how sick they will feel when they contract a potentially life-threatening vaccine-preventable disease," Snyder said.

Boston Marathon bombings aftermath:

• Could the trial of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev be held in Springfield? That possibility was raised by Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz, who told the website Newsmax that it would be difficult to hold the trial in Boston. “I think he would get as fair a trial as possible under the circumstances,” Dershowitz told Newsmax. “When you commit horribly heinous offenses you’re only entitled to the fairest trial that your alleged offenses justify."

• In a fund-raiser for victims of the Boston Marathon bombings, Springfield College student Ben Kissam ran his own marathon on Wednesday on the college’s track. He came up with the idea after visiting a memorial for victims in Boston last weekend with friends. “It was one of the most powerful things I’ve ever seen – I thought it would be nice if we could find a way to give back, and get my school involved,” he said.

Crimes and arrests:

• A suspicious vehicle spotted behind the Clarion Hotel one night last week led detectives to two arrests and the confiscation of nearly 6,000 bags of heroin with a street value of $25,000 to $30,000 from a room at the hotel. Detectives arrested Antonio Mantilla, 26, of 64 Taylor St., second floor, Holyoke. Mantilla was charged with possession of heroin with intent to distribute -- subsequent offense; trafficking in heroin; and possession of a Class B drug (15 oxycodones). The first man arrested, Raymond Carrasquillo, 22, 73 Allendale St., Springfield, was charged with two counts of possession of a Class B drug with intent to distribute.

• Two men suffered gunshot injuries Tuesday night during what police are describing as a shoot-out with another man in the parking lot of an apartment complex on Franklin Street. Springfield Police Capt. Cheryl C. Clapprood said the men were taken by ambulance to Baystate Medical Center after the 6:30 p.m. incident. The shootings occurred in the area of 415 Franklin St., a multi-unit apartment complex near Nursery Street in the Lower Liberty Heights neighborhood.

Court Cases:

• Jurors in a police brutality trial in U.S. District Court rejected claims leveled by a Westfield man who accused a police officer of intentionally breaking his ankle during an a late-night arrest in 2008. After six days of testimony and about five hours of deliberations, the panel of six men and two women found in favor of Springfield Police Sgt. Julio Toledo. The plaintiff, Guy Larkins, 39, sought damages including $1.5 million in lost wages and pain and suffering.

• On Thursday, Michael Ververis was found not guilty of three charges stemming from an incident in the entertainment district in January 2011. Springfield District Court Judge Mark Mason, in the jury-waived trial, acquitted Ververis - a FedEx driver from Middletown, Conn. - of assault and battery on a police officers, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct.

City Politics:

• Foreign policy and national security took center stage in a fiery and aggressive debate between U.S. Reps. Edward Markey and Stephen Lynch, which also touched on issues as varied as medical marijuana and NAFTA. Markey and Lynch, both Democrats, resumed their U.S. Senate campaigns on Monday after a week-long hiatus after the bombings at the Boston Marathon last week. Tuesday night’s debate between Markey and Lynch in Springfield was the last chance the public will have to see the candidates onstage before the April 30 primary.

The schools, which share the same building, were evacuated three times this week.

SPRINGFIELD – Extensive testing of Van Sickle Middle and Renaissance schools, which have been evacuated three times this week due to reported odors of natural gas, indicate that the building shared by the two schools is safe, officials said.

Extensive testing by Columbia Gas, performed Thursday afternoon in and around the 1170 Carew St. facility after it was evacuated for a third time, showed no leak, according to an automatic telephone message that went out to the parents of students in both schools.

“The gas company conducted a full battery of tests to check, double and triple check the building,” the message stated in part. “Their tests included checking every single gas line and pipe in the building and the gas lines leading to the building from the streets outside. They have assured us that there is no gas leak in the building and that the school is safe.”

The building was first evacuated Tuesday at about 10:30 a.m. Responding firefighters and Columbia Gas crews, however, found no sign natural gas, Dennis Leger, aide to Commissioner Joseph Conant, said.

The odor of natural gas was again reported on Thursday at about 7:20 a.m. and the school was evacuated once again. Azell Cavaan, spokeswoman for the Springfield School Department, said this second evacuation affected primarily staff because classes had yet to start.

Again, no trace of natural gas was found, Leger said.

The odor of natural gas was again reported shortly after 1 p.m. Thursday and the school was evacuated for the third time.

School officials told parents, via the automatic call that it’s customary to evacuate buildings whenever the odor of natural gas is reported. “It is a safety precaution used while authorities check the building,” the message stated.

Some 1,006 students attend Van Sickle Middle School and 680 attend Renaissance School, Cavaan said.

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The owners of the New England Patriots say their efforts to raise money for a fund to help victims of the Boston Marathon bombings have netted $617,000.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — The owners of the New England Patriots say their efforts to raise money for a fund to help victims of the Boston Marathon bombings have netted $617,000.

The number is significant because 617 is Boston's telephone area code.

The Kraft family, who also owns the New England Revolution soccer team, said the day after the attacks that left three dead that they would match the first $100,000 raised for the One Fund Boston through their charitable foundation. The team reached that in three days. Since then, the NFL, the NFL and MLS players unions, as well as tenants of the Patriot Place shopping center next to Gillette Stadium have added to the fund.

The One Fund Boston had raised more than $25 million as of Friday morning.

Stock indexes are edging lower in early trading on Wall Street after the government reported U.S. economic growth that wasn't as strong as economists had forecast.

NEW YORK (AP) — Stock indexes are edging lower in early trading on Wall Street after the government reported U.S. economic growth that wasn't as strong as economists had forecast.

The Dow Jones industrial average slipped two points to 14,694 shortly after the opening bell Friday.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index was down three points at 1,581, or 0.2 percent.

The Nasdaq composite was off eight at 3,281, or 0.3 percent.

The government reported that the U.S. economy expanded at an annual rate of 2.5 percent in the first three months of the year. That's better than the 0.4 percent growth rate in the final three months of last year, but not as strong as the market had been expecting.

Homebuilder D.R. Horton jumped 6 percent after reporting a surge in revenue.

Even as Jeff Bauman Jr. was being rushed to the hospital in the frantic minutes after the Boston Marathon bombings, he was already providing investigators with their first leads.

BOSTON (AP) — Even as Jeff Bauman Jr. was being rushed to the hospital in the frantic minutes after the Boston Marathon bombings, he was already providing investigators with their first leads.

Bauman told WEEI-FM radio Friday that he spotted a man later identified as Tamerlan Tsarnaev while he was waiting for his girlfriend to cross the finish line on April 15. The man seemed "odd." While everyone else was cheering and having a good time, this man wasn't enjoying himself. He was overdressed for the weather.

Full interview: WEEI.com

Bauman says the man disappeared, then "boom," he was down.

The 27-year-old Bauman helped a sketch artist draw the man.

Bauman, seen in an Associated Press photo being led away from the blast scene in a wheelchair by a man in a cowboy hat, lost both his legs.

The court was also scheduled to preview State Trooper Michael Mazza's testimony to see if it would be admissible.

SPRINGFIELD -- Superior Court Judge Constance M. Sweeney convened the final pre-trial hearing in the Anthony P. Baye arson and murder case Friday morning, facing more than a dozen motions.

Baye is charged in connection with a number of fires in Northampton. Among them is the spree of 15 fires on Dec. 27, 2009, that included a Fair Street blaze that took the lives of Paul Yeskie and his son, Paul Yeskie Jr. Baye is charged with two counts of murder stemming from that fire.

In an early ruling Friday, Sweeney said the prosecution could not present the fact there were no similar fires after Baye was taken into custody.

The court was also scheduled to preview State Trooper Michael Mazza’s testimony to see if it would be admissible.

In 2012, the state Supreme Judicial Court threw out a “confession“ by Baye that was based on an interview conducted over 10 hours by Mazza and state police Sgt. Paul Zipper.

The trial in the widely publicized case is to begin with jury selection in Springfield on May 6.

Opening arguments are tentatively scheduled for May 8 in Hampshire Superior Court in Northampton, where the trial will continue.

Get a recap of some of the major news stories from Holyoke for the week.

Employees and police say there are drug, homeless and other problems occurring in the Holyoke City Hall basement bathrooms.The Republican staff file photo 

Recapping some of the major news stories from Holyoke for the week:

City News and Politics:

• Drug use, spilled blood, sex mean Holyoke City Hall bathrooms would be locked with keys available only on request under proposal.
• Holyoke is set to promote child literacy by creating "mini-libraries" at police substations, stocking cruisers with books.
• Holyoke unloads 13 of 14 properties at public auction of lots, buildings seized for nonpayment of taxes.
• Transcript: Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse answers reader questions on activity in City Hall bathrooms, downtown revitalization, education and more.
• Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting first responder talks about the horror at victim rights conference in Holyoke.
• Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse, City Council willing to discuss disputes about $28 million plan to renovate Victory Theatre.
• Holyoke's new school superintendent Sergio Paez to be paid $160,000 a year, become city resident, as contract ratified.
• "Holyoke Stars of the Silent Screen" highlights three silent-film actresses from Paper City as part of Holyoke Points of View art series.
• Holyoke Community College sets 'Cut-a-Thon' to raise money and get hair for group that makes wigs for ill children.


• Holyoke police offer free collection of prescription drugs, medications residents want to remove.
• Holyoke city clerk's office at City Hall closed for regular business on special primary election day.
• Holyoke Democrats plan brunch to honor retired Congressman John Olver.
• Holyoke still reviewing how to deal with Essex House at 400 High St. after falling bricks.

• Holyoke police investigate rollover accident on Sargeant Street near St. Jerome Avenue.

Read more Holyoke headlines on MassLive.com's Holyoke news page.

Sign-up to receive daily Holyoke headlines in your inbox.

Related topics: Holyoke

"Big Billy" Leete, 62, of Springfield, passed away April 18. He was born in Springfield and was a lifelong resident. He worked in the restaurant and entertainment business, beginning at Riverside Park. During that time he met Anthony and Carol DeLevo and spent the next 35 years with them in their concession business at the Big E and various...

William 'Big Billy' Leete 

"Big Billy" Leete, 62, of Springfield, passed away April 18. He was born in Springfield and was a lifelong resident. He worked in the restaurant and entertainment business, beginning at Riverside Park. During that time he met Anthony and Carol DeLevo and spent the next 35 years with them in their concession business at the Big E and various other events, and also had positions at Mr. C. Magoo's Restaurant, The Mardi Gras, 5th Alarm, The Charm and the Arbor, until his retirement.

Obituaries from The Republican:

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  Alissi, Martha
  



• 
  Becker, Patricia Ann Daggett
  



• 
  Bovat, Linda A.
  



• 
  Clermont, Robert A.
  



• 
  Greene, Hubert F.
  



• 
  Leete, William
  



• 
  Lowe, Katherine E.
  



• 
  McCann, Antonette
  



• 
  McMahon, Paul D.
  



• 
  Messier, Marjorie A.
  



• 
  Pantuosco, Louis J.
  



• 
  Rioux, Pauline E.
  



• 
  Rochon, Olga
  



• 
  Shea, Ellen B.
  



• 
  Trombly, Doris R.
  

The UMass Football Performance Center will allow some games to return to campus.

AMHERST -- University of Massachusetts Football coach Charley Molnar called the $34.5 million Football Performance Center the "front porch to the university", a place from which to view all that goes on at the campus.

Molnar was one of seven who spoke at a ceremonial groundbreaking Friday for the 55,000-square foot complex upgrade that will include coaches' offices, a new locker room space, meeting rooms, athletic training facilities, a dedicated strength and conditioning facility, and a new press box.

More than 100 people, many of them donors to the project, attended the event held in a tent outside McGuirk Stadium.

Officials say the upgrades are necessary to bring the football programs home games back to the campus.

UMass joined the Mid-American Football Conference last year; the conference is college football's top division. With that move, officials signed a five-year agreement to play home games at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro.

With the improvements to be made as part of the $34.5 million project, the team will be play at least one game in Amherst in 2014.

04.26.2013 | AMHERST -- UMass Campus Center Hotel manager David O'Connor, left, and UMass director of football operations Jordan Jarry look over the design of the new football complex.John Suchocki | The Republican

Having a successful football program "enables us to retain quality student athletes," said UMass athletic director John McCutcheon.

“We want to compete at a high level at everything we do,” said Chancellor Kumble Subbaswamy, including athletics.

Subbaswamy said football has been part of the college’s history for 140 years. And, he said, "We're breaking ground on our future and our next era of greatness."

State Sen. Stanley C. Rosenberg praised the project because it will bring the games back to the campus.

Rosenberg said the project has been controversial and he has heard from business people unhappy with the move away from town.

“I’m so happy we’re coming home,” he said, adding that he wants to see the Homecoming on campus and the marching band play on campus. “I don’t mind going to Foxboro (for some games). I can’t wait for some of the games come back.”

This is the first of two groundbreakings Friday. In the afternoon, groundbreaking for the Basketball Champions Center will be celebrated.

In the days following the bombing, a 12-block area surrounding the explosions was identified as a crime scene by the FBI, and a large portion of this area remained closed for 10 days.

BOSTON – Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick on Friday requested federal relief for small businesses and private non-profits impacted by the Boston Marathon bombings that occurred on April 15.

In a letter sent to the U.S. Small Business Administration on Friday, Patrick requested that the USSBA issue an Economic Injury Declaration for Suffolk County so that long term/low interest SBA loans may be available to the affected businesses and private non-profits. In order to receive such federal assistance, the state must show that businesses were negatively impacted and suffered substantial economic injury, according to a press statement released by Patrick's office.

“Requesting this federal aid will help Boston and the commonwealth recover faster from the tragic events that unfolded at the Marathon,” Patrick said. “I urge the Small Business Administration to approve our request quickly to help the small businesses that keep our commonwealth strong rebuild.”

If the Small Business Administration issues an Economic Injury Declaration, the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency will coordinate with the USSBA and Boston’s Office of Emergency Management to have USSBA disaster specialists available in Boston to work with impacted businesses that may be interested in the loans.

In the days following the bombing, a 12-block area surrounding the explosions was identified as a crime scene by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and a large portion of this area remained closed for 10 days. In coordination with the City of Boston, MEMA conducted a preliminary survey of businesses to determine the potential economic impact caused by this incident. This survey found that at least five small businesses in the area near where the bombings took place were severely impacted, satisfying the requirement within the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 13, Part 123.3, according to the press statement. The finding enabled Patrick to ask for federal assistance.

President Barack Obama has already issued an Emergency Declaration for Suffolk, Norfolk and Middlesex counties, the counties that host the Marathon route. The declaration authorizes the federal government to reimburse municipalities, state agencies and certain non-profits for 75 percent of the cost of Direct Federal Assistance and emergency protective measures necessary to save lives and to protect property and public health and safety, or to lessen or avert the threat of catastrophe in the designated counties.

Democratic State Reps. William "Smitty" Pignatelli of Lenox, Aaron Vega of Holyoke and James Welch of West Springfield and Agawam Mayor Richard Cohen, though included on a list of Markey endorsements, said they wanted to remain neutral in the Senate campaign.

When the U.S. Senate campaign of Democratic U.S. Rep. Edward Markey emailed a list of recent endorsements to reporters as a press release on Thursday, they didn't think that less than 24 hours later some of the politicians on the list would be disputing their advertised support for the Malden native.

But that is what has happened as at least four Western Massachusetts politicians are disputing the Markey campaign's contention that they officially endorsed him over Democratic U.S. Rep. Stephen Lynch of Boston in the Democratic primary.

Holyoke State Rep. Aaron Vega told The Republican/MassLive.com on Friday that he is neutral in the U.S. race.

“I have not been formally asked nor did I send an endorsement for any campaign in the Senate race,” Vega said.

Vega said the Markey campaign has called him about events in his area, but due to his schedule, the only event he actually attended was an event run by House Speaker Robert DeLeo in Boston. He does not know how he got on the Markey campaign’s press release.

“It’s not that I don’t like Ed Markey. It’s not that I’m supporting Steve Lynch,” Vega said. “I met them both briefly in the campaign. I have friends and organizations supporting both. I’m just concentrating on my job as state representative.”

Vega said organizations that endorsed him are split between Lynch and Markey, and Vega did not want to get between them. “I’m publicly staying neutral,” he said.

Agawam Mayor Richard Cohen also denied endorsing Markey, although the campaign listed him as well.

"I never put my name on anything for them," Cohen said in a telephone interview. "I like Mr. Markey and I also like Mr. Lynch. I have nothing against either of them, but it doesn't do me any good to choose sides."

State Rep. William “Smitty” Pignatelli, D-Lenox, said that despite being named as a Markey supporter, he hasn't even had a conversation with the candidate.

"I've spoken with people from the campaign on a couple of occasions, but I never endorsed him. And I've never even spoken with him," Pignatelli said. "And I certainly wouldn't endorse anyone I've never spoken to."

State Sen. James Welch, D-West Springfield, stopped short of confirming an endorsement of Markey, although he said he supports him.

"I support Ed Markey and plan on voting for him in the upcoming special election," Welch wrote.

Pittsfield State Rep. Tricia Farley-Bouvier and North Adams State Rep. Gailanne Cariddi both confirmed via email that they are supporting Congressman Markey.

Additionally, messages have been left with seeral other Western Massachusetts politicians claimed as Markey supporters on a release sent out on Thursday. The campaign said Friday morning that they were looking into the situation, but hadn't released an official statement as of early Friday afternoon.

This story will be updated throughout the day as additional information becomes available.