--A young woman from Southbridge died from a gunshot wound after an alleged robbery attempt in the Bronx, NY. The 18-year-old's fiance was also wounded in the incident. Her young child, who was nearby, was unharmed. [Boston Herald, Gothamist] --Former mob boss Cadillac Frank Salemme entered a plea margin on charges of lying and obstruction of justice. The 74-year-old, who has been locked up since 2004, has been recommended to serve five years. He... [continue]

This Bostonist always pictured solar panels being best-suited to dot the rooftops of sun-baked, equatorial locales. But according to the Associated Press (via the Herald), the Commonwealth is quickly becoming a leader in solar energy. The AP piece talked to one solar executive whose biggest customer is Germany--not a country known for its tropical lifestyle. He says that, "Solar works better when you have cool, sunny days, so a solar system here in Massachusetts,... [continue]

--According to the Herald, the Commonwealth's Supreme Judicial Court ruled that, "Dancing nude in Harvard Square to protest the commercialization of Christmas is not a constitutionally protected act of self-expression," overturning a decision by a lower court to throw out a case against a local woman. The Herald doesn't have much background information about the defendant, except what they could obtain from a vague MySpace profile. [Boston Herald] --Police are investigating the dissapearance of... [continue]

Despite evidence to the contrary, we know that the State House is bigger than two men, more than just a turf battle between Governor Deval Patrick and Speaker of the House Sal DiMasi. For example: it also includes Speaker Pro Tempore Thomas Petrolati. A day after the House passed Patrick's tax plan (some corporate taxes went up, smokers got another thing to complain about while shivering outside), a key DiMasi legislative ally takes a... [continue]

Deval Patrick isn't the first person to get into casino-related trouble, though few of us had to be publicly confronted with our regrettable outcomes the way Deval Patrick did. Eager to move past his failed plan to create much needed revenue for the Commonwealth through gaming, Patrick gave a major economic address yesterday at MIT. Patrick's speech (text here, video here) lists $344 million in budget cuts, a several billion dollar infrastructure improvement plan,... [continue]

--"Operation Barber Shop" went into action on the day of the Red Sox's home opener, busting a Commonwealth-wide gambling ring after 15 months of investigation by local, state, and federal authorities. They raided 14 locations, arresting 36 people and collecting 33 laptops. [Boston Globe, Boston Herald] --A local man confessed to having been inside a Dorchester recording studio when four people were shot and killed there in 2005. He was sentenced 13 years for... [continue]

In March, the Boston Zoning Commission gave the green light to a Boston City Council proposal to restrict the number of college age tenants in a rental unit to four. Now the legality of the plan will be challenged in court. The rationale behind the restriction was that having large numbers of students together in one dwelling leads to raucous partying and ascending rental prices (which could price "traditional families" out of neighborhoods.) But... [continue]

A wall at affluent Newton South High School has become an exhibit of college denial letters, a catharsis for one of the most anxious populations around. The Globe reports that, "With each punch of the stapler, each slam of his fist, [student Kellen Mandehr] won a small measure of payback. And a large measure of liberation." As the annual reports from elite schools of "lowest admissions rate ever!" come out, the wall is an oasis... [continue]

--Prosecutors in Malden District Court have charged a 57-year-old employee of Everett High School with child rape. He is accused of molesting a boy over a seven month period last year. He has worked for the school as a janitor and coach of the junior varsity basketball team. [Boston Globe] --A 28-year-old man has been arrested for the alleged murder of a 25-year-old woman who was found dead in her home in Peabody. Few... [continue]

--Boston University police have released a sketch (left) of a suspect in the robbery of a law student--"one of several recent attacks on young women near the BU campus." [Boston Herald] --In other sad collegiate news, a 20-year-old UMass Amhert student is dead after apparently jumping from the 17th floor of a dorm. The student was from Hingham. State police are investigating but the school does not suspect foul play was involved. [Boston Globe]... [continue]

The Boston Herald today--in sadly predictable fashion--posted online an article of theirs about a local Youtube star without anywhere linking to the Youtube video in question. (They do have their own embedded version of the video, but this Bostonist couldn't get it to load, and the whole premise of the piece is the unlikely Youtube stardom of a Natick toddler.) Anyway, if you missed it, here's the adorable footage: The Herald reports that the Bay... [continue]

Boston may be the Athens of America and the most collegiate of American cities, but our mayor doesn't get by on professorial aloofness. Tom Menino is an old school, roll up the sleeves politician. That being the case, the Globe has some fun (your eyes do not deceive you: fun at the Globe) with the news that he's one of many who have been nominated to be the next chancellor of the University of... [continue]

--The Commonwealth's fire marshall says that arson caused a fire that took out five businesses Tuesday in Northborough. 70 firefighters were needed to put down the flames. A five and dime that had been in operation for 50-plus years was among the casulties, which also included "an appliance store, a jeweler, a market and a bead shop." [Boston Herald] --We don't often link to college blotters (there's only so many times you can report... [continue]

Last week Governor Deval Patrick took "personal days" as the casino plan he had been pitching for six months was going down in flames. Today the Associated Press reveals that during that time Patrick was out of state pitching an autobiography to New York publishers. This is another public relations blunder for the governor, whose political problems were laid out on the front page of the New York Times yesterday. Though the debate over... [continue]

We feel an illogical sense of pride when our local politicians are covered in the national media. It validates our process somehow. Not to get carried away, but maybe one of these years a Massachusetts leader will even run for President! Perchance to dream. Governor Deval Patrick is the subject of a story in today's New York Times, which contrasts Patrick's growing mainstream profile as a Barack Obama friend, surrogate and rhetorical inspiration with... [continue]

--It seems like the only time news from Brockton reaches Boston outlets is when someone gets killed. That's true today as the Globe reports that a 15-year-old male was killed there when his 18-year-old friend's gun discharged. The Globe notes that the shooting, "...took place about an hour after Gov. Deval Patrick came to Brockton to laud local and state police for a surge of officers that had prevented any shootings since mid-February." [original... [continue]

Ex-Herald crime writer Michele McPhee hasn't completely abandoned print journalism for the joys of radio--which include sharing the booth with media maven Mayor Menino. She has a lengthy (4000+ words) and well-sourced piece in the newest issue of Boston Magazine that brings perspective and insight to the much-chronicled troubles of the Boston Police Department. The force's legitimacy has been crippled by a string of recent scandals, some of which McPhee recounts. But she's also... [continue]

Charismatic media personality Tom Menino is now doing stints on Michele McPhee's radio show on WTKK-FM (96.9.) Perhaps the mayor is looking for ways to supplement his meager income? The Herald originally reported that Menino would be going on the air once a week, but Boston Daily talked to McPhee and clarified that he'll actually be on once a month. McPhee told them, “We go way back, so this show will be an extension... [continue]

--We were looking at the weekend crime stats provided by the Boston Police Department and were surprised to see that there were eight non-fatal stabbings over the Easter weekend. Call us ignorant, but that seemed like a lot of stabbings. But last weekend's report also listed eight non-fatal stabbings (the report itself is confusing: the headline suggests that the numbers are for a 96 hour period, while the first paragraph says it covers 24... [continue]

Last week, all of the talk was about Speaker of the House Sal DiMasi's demolition of Governor Deval Patrick's casino plan. He was credited with spearheading the movement against what had been the highest profile piece of the governor's plan to boost the Bay State economy. In the wake of his defeat, Patrick sent an e-mail Saturday to supporters from his election campaign that didn't mention DiMasi by name but suggested that the process... [continue]