By: Tom Duggan While the Democrat leadership on Beacon Hill has blocked any attempt by Republican Legislators to change the Massachusetts Public Records Law (M.G.L. Ch. 66), a revolt among Democrats has caused a tidal wave to build in both the House and the Senate where rank and file members of both parties are calling […]
By: Mark Gray – January 2013 What could your city/town do with 500,000 a year? Throw it in the garbage, right? Isn’t that what all your politicians and elected officials are doing right now in Lawrence with the illegal DiAdamo lease on Essex Street? What would you do if they were? Would you call them […]
By: Joe D’Amore – December 2012 With headlines announcing Grand Jury indictments of two city officials and the already completed take- over of Lawrence public schools many are suggesting comprehensive receivership of the City of Lawrence is warranted. For an assessment of this possibility the major precedent for state control of a municipality is […]
By: Tom Duggan: December 4, 2012 Former Lawrence City worker Tom Sapienza has been fired by Mayor Lantigua as a laborer with the Department of Public works and has been replaced by former State Representative Jose Santiago. Santiago has been a long time adversary of Lantigua and the two have a long sordid history as […]
By: Tom Duggan – November 12, 2012 Just days after taking office in 2010, Lawrence Mayor William Lantigua, his Chief of Staff, Leonard “Lenny” Degnan of North Andover, and then DPW Director Frank Mcann of Haverhill, were involved in a transaction with Patriot Ambulance Company, a private contractor that provides ambulance services to The City […]
Paying Attention! with Tom Duggan November 3, 2012 After watching all the debate, interviewing the candidates, consuming the news and commercials every day I have made my final decisions on who I am supporting in Tuesday’s election. As the publisher of a newspaper, a political radio talk show host and an activist in my […]
Legislators Blame Deval Patrick Administration for Not Addressing the Lawrence Crisis By: Tom Duggan – October, 18, 2012 More Legislators on Beacon Hill are stepping forward this week to say they are tired of the state tax payers footing the bill for what Andover State Rep. Jim Lyons has called “an ongoing criminal enterprise” in […]
Local Legislators to File Bill Adding Penalties to Public Records Law Violators By: Tom Duggan – October 17, 2012 (2:30pm) TOWN HALL, NORTH ANDOVER, MA During a press conference today endorsing Karin Rhoton for the 14th Essex Rep. seat, Rhoton, Senator Minority Leader Bruce Tarr (R) Gloucester, Representative Brad Hill (R) Ipswich, and Representative Brad Jones […]
By: Joe D’Amore October, 2012 With headlines announcing indictments of key public officials in Lawrence the city has reached an historic crossroad which will define its emergence or decline from the current state of turmoil. At stake is the well- being of the city and all the surrounding communities as results that stem from […]
Attorney Violates Judges Murtaugh’s order to Turn Over Public Documents Lawrence City Attorney Charles Boddy has turned over half of the public documents requested by the Valley Patriot back in February of this year (and refiled in July). The documents that the city did release had the amounts paid to the Law Firm of […]
October 11, 2012 Essex County Superior Court Judge Murtaugh ordered the City of Lawrence to turn over public documents sought by The Valley Patriot “forthwith, and that means immediately, sooner than immediately, I want these records produced,” Murtaugh said this afternoon. At issue is Valley Patriot publisher Tom Duggan’s claim that the City of […]
City Hides DiAdamo Payments – Double Dipping in School Department By: Allan Knowles, Staff Writer – October 3, 2012 Valley Patriot publisher Tom Duggan filed court action Wednesday against The City of Lawrence, Lawrence City Attorney Charles Boddy and Secretary of State Bill Galvin’s Office for purposely refusing to turn over public documents that […]
Marc LaPlante Calls Lantigua “Wayward Mayor” BREAKING – September 11, 2012 In the wake of indictments against Lawrence Mayor Willie Lantigua’s Chief of Staff and Deputy Police Chief today, Lawrence City Councilor Marc LaPlante says that he is concerned the “conspiracy” charges against Lenny Degnan and Melix Bonilla may lead to Lantigua himself. “It is […]
By: Peter Larocque – July, 2012 In case you didn’t know, In God We Trust is the motto of the United States of America and it has been on our coins beginning as far back as 1864. At first it was just printed on the new two cent coin, but by 1909 it was […]
By: Jamison Tomasek – March, 2012 The entire region was buzzing recently as Boston Magazine published an article titled “Lawrence: City of the Damned.” The online version of the magazine added a response from City Councilor Dan Rivera. The Eagle Tribune followed with an editorial which tried to put some positive spins on Lawrence, but […]