By: Jessica Finocchiaro – June, 2015 NORTH ANDOVER—Massachusetts State Auditor Suzanne Bump is the first female to serve as Auditor in the Commonwealth’s history, and she spoke frankly about her experiences at the Merrimack Valley Chamber of Commerce’s “Women in Business Series” last month. Members of the Chamber fielded questions as last minute attendees checked […]
Massachusetts Legislators, members of the media and 1st amendment advocates testified last month before a joint House and Senate committee on Beacon Hill, asking legislators to add penalties to the state’s fake public records law. The law, MGL Ch. 66, states that the keeper of records in any municipality or public agency must turn over public […]
By: Jeff Katz – June, 2015 In early May, the Beegle family of Portland, Oregon was flying home from Orlando, Florida. Mom and dad with two children in tow. What should have been an uneventful flight turned in to an ordeal which the family will never forget and an embarrassment that United Airlines should not […]
BOSTON – A Worcester man pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Worcester today to carrying out a stolen identity refund fraud scheme that netted almost $1 million. Jose Manuel Abreu-Elicier, 24, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to covert public money. U.S. District Judge Timothy S. Hillman scheduled sentencing for Sept. 16, 2015. […]
NEIL HARRINGTON IS THE POSTER BOY When I started this journey to reform our state’s public records law five years ago I had no idea that the Town of Salisbury would feature so prominently in my motivations to add stiff penalties for officials who refuse to turn over public documents. Yet, here we are. […]
By: John MacDonald – June, 2015 This past Memorial Day weekend I traveled down to a campground in Rhode Island. It’s a place called Holiday Acres and it has a lot of seasonal campers year round and, of course, many weekenders during weekends in the summer. Those of us who have made the decision and […]
Hosts DiZoglio for Civic Education Day at North Andover Middle School Patrick McGravey, head of the social studies department at North Andover Middle School, was recently awarded the 2015 C-SPAN Teaching Fellowship, an honor presented to just three educators across the nation. C-SPAN’s Fellowship program recognizes educators who demonstrate successful methods of integrating C-SPAN’s […]
Downtown Lowell rocks again this summer as the 6th season of Thursday Night Concerts on the Corner kicks off June 18th. The 2015 Season begins this Thursday with Reverend J.J. & the Casual Sinners bringing their unique brand of folk & soul music to the Athenian Corner Restaurant outdoor patio area. There’ll be plenty of tasty food […]
By: State Senator Katy Ives – June, 2015 Last week, I testified on a bill I filed, S.1700, An Act Relative to Obtaining Information, before the Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight. This bill promotes access to information, available to all, within a reasonable time frame and for residents to have recourse in […]
By Christine Morabito – June 2015 As an environmentalist and bird lover, it gives me no pleasure to criticize the largest conservation organization in New England; an organization of which I am a member. Personal conflict aside, it seems apparent that Massachusetts Audubon Society’s support for a massive industrial project threatens thousands of birds a year. […]
By: Tom Duggan – June, 2015 The Methuen police are testing new body camera equipment donated to the department as part of a pilot program. So, last month I had the opportunity to do a police ride-along in Methuen to see how well it was working out. Riding with Officer Jeff Torrisi, we pulled over […]
Listen to or Download Hour 1: Methuen Mayor Steve Zanni talks about running for reelection, the new turf at Nicholson Stadium, and more. Listen to or Download Hour 2: State Senator Katy Ives talks about her transparency bill, S-1700 which will penalize public officials who refuse to comply with the state’s public records law. Ives also […]
06-11-15 Haverhill Mayor James J. Fiorentini announced Thursday, that he has appointed John Parow as Interim Acting Fire Chief for the City of Haverhill. Prow replaces Chief Richard Borden who passed away last month. Most recently, Acting Chief Parow was the Interim Fire Chief in the Town of Ipswich. He also served as the Fire […]
Haverhill Police Department Narcotics Unit and ATF Agents arrested 21 year old Franklin Cruz, a laborer for the Lawrence Youth Team. Law enforcement seized 129.9 grams of heroin with a street value of $10,000 along with $1432 in cash on Wednesday Cruz (of 2 Grove St Haverhill) was charged with trafficking heroin over 100 grams, and operating a […]
BOSTON—Two more friends of convicted Boston Marathon bomber, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, were sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Boston for their role in impeding the Boston Marathon bombing investigation. Robel Phillipos, 21, of Cambridge, was sentenced this afternoon to three years in prison and three years of supervised release, and ordered to report to the […]