Patrick Blanchette fined $20,000 for taking money from campaign

Blanchette is Mayor Lantigua’s Economic Development Director and Former City Council President By: Tom Duggan – October, 2010 The State Office of Campaign Finance (OCPF) has fined former Lawrence City Council President Patrick Blanchette $20,000 for taking money from his city council campaign account going back to 2006 among other violations. Blanchette has admitted to […]

Torissi desperate to hold on to Rep. Seat

Kevin Begley talks issues while Torissi launches personal attacks   By: Tom Duggan – October, 2010   A debate was held between State Rep. Dave Torissi and his Republican challenger Kevin Begley at the Frost School in Lawrence last month. The debate was sponsored by the Mount Vernon Neighborhood Association. State Rep. Dave Torissi: “Most […]

LaPlante Calls on Court to Impose Max. Sentence on Repeat Scofflaw Who is Back on the Street

  By: Tom Duggan – September, 2010 LAWRENCE, MA, August 14, 2010: In an unprecedented action, Lawrence City Councilor Marc L. Laplante calls on the Lawrence District Court to “throw the book” at Victor Delgado, who Lawrence Police call “Lawrence’s number one car breaker” in Delgado’s upcoming trial. Delgado, 79 Haverhill Street, was released on […]

Cahill Charges DOR Officials with Conflict of Interest

Cahill Charges DOR Officials with Conflict of Interest

Calls for Third Party Audit, and possible bankruptcy for Lawrence By: Tom Duggan – September, 2010 Massachusetts State Treasurer and candidate for Governor Tim Cahill is calling attention to the budget mismanagement in the City of Lawrence by urging Governor Patrick to issue an independent third party audit of the city’s finances. Last March, the […]

An interview with Senate Candidate Barry Finegold

 Finegold Defends Lawrence Mayor Willie Lantigua   By: Tom Duggan – August, 2010 State Representative Barry Finegold is a candidate for State Senate. Valley Patriot editor Tom Duggan interviewed him last month on the Paying Attention! Radio Program on WCAP in Lowell. Duggan asked Finegold about his vote in favor of a $35 million loan […]

Lawrence finances take center stage in state senate race

  By: Tom Duggan – August, 2010 The race to replace State Senator Sue Tucker in the Second Essex District of Massachusetts has found the failed finances and financial mismanagement of the City of Lawrence at the center of this contentious campaign among both Democrat and Republican candidates. The Second Essex district is comprised of […]

Lantigua attacks Firefighters for “getting paid to sleep”

Lantigua attacks Firefighters for “getting paid to sleep”

Valley Patriot Exclusive! Lawrence Firefighters react to Lantigua’s Attacks By: Tom Duggan – July 2010 Lawrence Mayor Willie Lantigua’s war against police and firefighters in the city of Lawrence has reached a new low, firefighters told The Valley Patriot last month after Lantigua attacked them as lazy and greedy during several city council meetings and […]

Lawrence Fire Chief Murphy Says He is Being Targeted

Lawrence Fire Chief Murphy Says He is Being Targeted

TARGETED! Valley Patriot Exclusive! By: Tom Duggan – July, 2010 Lawrence Mayor Willie Lantigua is targeting Fire Chief Brian Murphy after the chief publicly opposed the mayor’s efforts to layoff more than two dozen firefighters and close two more fire stations, the chief told the Valley Patriot. Since Chief Murphy appeared before the city council […]

Lantigua using School Employees for City Services

By: Tom Duggan – June, 2010 Lawrence School Committeeman Mark Gray says that Mayor Willie Latigua is violating state law by using Chapter 70 Education money (earmarked solely or school spending) to balance the city budget. “He is using the school’s Internet Technology department to do work on computers in city hall and in the […]

Rep. Torrisi attacks N. Andover constituents, American Citizens

    By: Tom Duggan – June, 2010   NORTH ANDOVER – State Representative David Torissi says he is proud of his record of representing illegal aliens. In a letter he sent to a constituent last month he clearly states his opposition to a measure that would have cut off all state funding for illegal […]

Massachusetts Police Officers Honored at National Police Memorial

MA State Trooper Cashin, Officers Davey & Towner Honored in D.C. Names of three Mass. police officers killed in 2009 added to National Monument, honored by president   By: Tom Duggan – June, 2010 Last month more than 25,000 police officers and families filled the grounds of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington […]

EPA: Untreated Raw Sewage Flowing into Shawsheen

  By; Tom Duggan – June, 2010   The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has sent a letter to Lawrence DPW Director Frank McCann (right) informing the City of Lawrence that the EPA has first hand knowledge that the city is pumping wastewater (human waste) into the Shawsheen River. According to documents obtained by The Valley […]

Scratch Lawrence off the List: Council President Says Media Reports on Arizona Boycott “Just Plain Wrong”

By: TOM DUGGAN – May 5, 2010  Lawrence City Council President Frank Moran says that media reports listing Lawrence among the cities in Massachusetts to call for a boycott of the State of Arizona are “Just plain wrong.”  A news story by the Associated Press was picked up by The Boston Herald and Fox25 News yesterday […]

Courts Rule in favor of The Valley Patriot … again!

Massachusetts Appeals and State Supreme Courts Reject Kevin Thompson’s Bogus Lawsuit … Again!   May, 2010 The Massachusetts Court of Appeals and the State Supreme Court have dealt a final defeat to Kevin Thompson of Methuen who unsuccessfully sued The Valley Patriot newspaper for libel and defamation of character stemming from an opinion piece published […]