Boston Blotter: Woman Set on Fire at Party Testifies

--In Suffolk Superior Court today, Masha Badinter testified against Eliezer Falcon, who allegedly set her on fire after she was bullied at a 2005 party in Allston. The case is baffling and gruesome. According to a release from the DA's Office, Badinter had "second- and third-degree burns from the base of her spine to the nape of her neck," and Falcon may have threatened her to keep her from talking to police.

The Herald adds further details from Badinter's testimony--that someone had filled her backpack with excrement and then gave her a cup of urine to drink. And that was after she had been set on fire. What happened at this party? How can someone do such a thing? Horrifying shootings happen often in Boston, but what is described her seems to be a specific method of torture.

--Brockton is suffering through a crime outbreak. Two people have already died in incidents that the Plymoth DA says are related. However, Brockton's $10 million budget gap can't be helping the situation. [Boston Herald, Boston Globe]

--The machete has returned. On Monday night, officers were called to Roxbury, where two men were caught chasing two other people down the street--with a machete. [BPD]

All charges alleged until proven under law.