--An 18-month-old baby girl from East Somerville was kidnapped, allegedly by her own aunt. WBZ reports that Somerville police found the baby today. Four people were arrested in the kidnapping of Hayden Augustin-Laurent, and one of them was her aunt, Ketia Valmont. Two detectives were hurt because one of those arrested went after them with a baseball bat. Auditi Guha at the Somerville Journal reports that the kidnapping may have resulted from a fight over......

-- Police shot and killed a corrections officer last night. Marquis Barker, 38, an officer at Nashua Street Jail, was gunned down after stealing a police cruiser and leading officers on a chase through Dorchester and Mattapan. Police responding to calls found Barker out of control outside his Dorchester home, wielding what appeared to be a handgun. Barker begged police to shoot and kill him before escaping in the police cruiser. After crashing the cruiser......

--Police are warning the public after the discovery of bad drugs on Cape Cod. Two people died yesterday in Falmouth after taking heroin that might be cut with something even worse than the heroin itself. --The mother of Shawn Dow, the college student who died during a party in Allston over the weekend, is saying she doesn't think he died from falling from the top of a building. She believes he died as a result......

--The DA's office announced earlier this week that it will expand its "Gun Court," which speeds up prosecution of gun-related crimes. Only cases from Dorchester, Roxbury, the South End, and parts of downtown were accelerated to gun court, but now cases from South Boston, East Boston, and Charlestown will go there as well. The DA's office press release touted its success rate: "Gun Court prosecutors have secured convictions in 85.1% of the viable cases handled......

--Hmmmm … a loud party in Allston/Brighton ends with 6 arrested. It couldn't have involved college students, could it? Officers spotted some partygoers toting cans of Natural Ice Beer. Police arrested two people for "Keeping a Disorderly House" and four people for underage drinking. All are guilty of bad taste in beer. --Brookline police are searching for a sexual assault suspect who attacked a woman in her home on Naples Road early Sunday morning. The......

Ann Patchett, Wednesday, September 26, 6:00 pm, Coolidge Corner (via Brookline Booksmith) The author of Bel Canto situates her latest book in Boston, and the plot should seem awfully familiar - the head of a political family tries to perpetuate a political dynasty. A Boston mayor steps down and tries to drive two of his adopted sons into politics. In the span of one day, events unfold that might change those plans. Vincent Lam, Wednesday,......

It's official – police are now cracking down on the Common. The bullet in the State House, public OD's, and freaked-out tourists pushed the city brass over the edge, and the BPD is making a move. Now, the BPD will be enforcing curfew on the Common, which means people are required to "move on" from whatever legal or illegal activity they are up to at 11 pm. Of course, that doesn't seem to solve anything......

-- The Roxbury man found shot in Mattapan on July 4 died from his injuries on Tuesday. Michael Wiggins was 22 years old and found near Arbutus and Ashton streets before he was rushed to Boston Medical Center. Police have upgraded the investigation to a murder investigation as a result. -- Banks are becoming the new candy shoppes: The Bank of America on Cambridge Street was robbed at gunpoint at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, the......

--The BPD blotter writer had reason to be confused yesterday afternoon because something happened, only the BPD isn't exactly sure what it was. Here's what they know: In Brighton, two witnesses claim they saw three people "wearing sweaters, camouflaged clothing, and ski masks drag a white male off the sidewalk and push him into a van." The witnesses got a description of the car and a license plate number, but the BPD blotter writer is......

--A man was shot and killed yesterday afternoon in Dorchester on Nottingham Street. The 39-year-old man was a resident of the neighborhood and has been called "Jo Jo." A neighbor told the Globe, "In his heart, he was a good man. He cared." This is the 30th murder of the year. --Yesterday morning, the feds came down hard on the "Kendall Street Thugs," a gang operating out of Framingham. The twenty gang members are accused......

This time, it's personal. Sean Linehan, the son of brand-new City Council member Bill Linehan, has told police he was the victim of random violence. He said that, after a late-night meal at Teriyaki House following his dad's victory party, he "accidentally walked into a brawl on the sidewalk." He was stabbed in the upper back, which "pierced his lung and broke a rib." And his father is starting his City Council term royally pissed......

--Sean Stevens and Peter Berdvosky can breathe a sigh of relief now that they are officially off the blotter with a slap on the wrist. The artists who were hired by the Cartoon Network and Interference, Inc., to hang the Mooninites throughout Boston will do community service. Instead of offering the public another '70s hair comedy routine, the two had more substantial things to say this time around. The Herald quoted Stevens as saying, "I......

Looks like we might have our very own case of Super Troopers in Boston. The Globe reported that 10 officers working in the Boston Police Department's drug warehouse have been transferred because someone among them may have been chipping off confiscated stashes. Captain Frank Armstrong, evidence management commander, ordered an investigation after an audit revealed drugs were missing back in August. Investigators kept taking stock of the drugs and found amounts missing. In their......

Houstonist reports on cross-dressing thieves and undressing educators this week. A Peeping Tom defends himself with a papaya and an outraged onlooker asks Ken Lay, "TATER TOTS OR FRIES?" Also, FEMA wants its money back. LAist are a bug bunch of geeks. They're Star Trek geeks, David Duchovny geeks and Frank Gehry geeks. During their Cochella preview their readers reveal themselves to be Depeche Mode geeks. Seattlest saw their basketball team preparing to leave for......

Everyone is running around today. Well, mostly in a more or less straight path from Hopkinton to Boston. Watching people complete a marathon makes Bostonist feel proud that they’re strong and a little guilty that we’ve never even tried to make it the 26.2 ourselves. We’ll be watching, but when our spirits start to drop it will be time for some good music. An eclectic mix of shows make the picks this week –......

There's a whole wide world out there, and here's the proof: DCist revels in The University of Maryland's basketball triumphs, marvels at Metro's security strategy, and applauds DC local Katie Couric's new gig. Phillyist is all about the Philadelphia Film Festival. OK, not all about -- they still have time for loitering, underage sex, and random wacky news. LAist would have to send a camera around the world to get shots as bizarre as Katie's......