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Man wrongfully convicted of 1988 crime released from jail after serving 34 years

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:49 GMT

A man who was behind bars for decades has now been set free. On Monday, just after 6 p.m., 57-year-old Sydney Holmes, walked out of the Broward County Jail a free man and into the arms of waiting family members.Asked by a reporter what it feels like to be hugged by his family now that he’s free, he said, “I can’t put it into words. It’s overwhelming.”Broward prosecutors announced his upcoming release earlier in the day. He had already served 34 years of a 400-year prison sentence.Holmes contacted the State Attorney’s Conviction Review Unit in November 2020, claiming his innocence from an armed robbery case from 1988. “I never did give up hope,” said Holmes. “I knew this day was going to come, sooner or later, and today is the day.He was convicted of being the driver for two men who robbed two people at gunpoint outside a convenience store. Holmes was just 23 years old when he was convicted of being a getaway driver in an armed ro...

More Right Whales Spotted South Of The Islands

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:49 GMT

Another slow zone has been added south of Martha’s Vineyard due to the presence of North Atlantic right whales, which analysts say are one of the rarest marine mammals in the world. NOAA reported Monday that a New England Aquarium aerial survey team on Friday detected the presence of right whales south of the Vineyard. Teams also redetected the presence of right whales south and southeast of Nantucket. All of the right whale slow zones are in effect through March 25. The areas are the subject of potentially competing policies governing fishing and maritime industry regulation, the establishment of offshore wind energy turbines, and protection of the endangered whales. Under the voluntary slow zones, mariners are requested to avoid the areas or transit at 10 knots or less. “North Atlantic right whales are on the move along the Atlantic coast of the U.S. If seen, remember that approaching a right whale closer than 500 yards is a violation of federal and state law,” N...

Worcester man held without bail after allegedly stabbing uncle in Blackstone

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:49 GMT

A Worcester man was called to court Monday facing several charges including murder after police said he allegedly killed his uncle in Blackstone over the weekend. Andrew McGrath, 32, has been held without bail. The Worcester County District Attorney’s office said officers responded to a reported assault on Blackstone Street around 11:15 a.m. Saturday to find a 42-year-old man had been stabbed.The DA’s office said the man was later pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.Blackstone Police Chief Gregory Gilmore said this was an isolated incident and there was no danger to the public.Prosecutors on Monday said a witness reported seeing McGrath standing over his uncle after the stabbing. McGrath is expected back in court in April.

Crews line boulders along Plum Island ahead of high winds, possible flooding from nor’easter

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:49 GMT

Crews were seen using heavy machinery to slide boulders into place along part of Plum Island Monday amid ongoing preparations for the nor’easter set to hit the region beginning Monday night. Conditions are expected to deteriorate overnight, starting with rain for parts of eastern Massachusetts. Snow is expected to overspread Massachusetts by Tuesday afternoon before winter weather pulls away overnight between Tuesday and Wednesday. Much of the North Shore is expected to see between three and six inches of snow from this storm. While accumulation will be smaller than expected snow totals further west, coastal regions around Massachusetts could get hit with wind gusts up to 60 miles per hour. The storm could also cause some flooding, with high tide around 5 a.m. and lingering rough surf. There is a coastal flood advisory in place from 3 a.m. to 8 a.m. Wednesday, as a result. Hardly a stranger to flooding, coastal communities were already preparing on Sunday, loading sandbags...

Jamaican vacation leads Dorchester man to arrest by Border Patrol in Philadelphia

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:49 GMT

A Dorchester man wanted by the Boston Police on serious charges was arrested in Philadelphia last week, after agents with U.S. Customs and Border Protection encountered him on his way home from a Jamaican vacation.“U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers arrested Reginald Junior Galette, 24, after he arrived on a flight from Montego Bay, Jamaica,” CBP’s Baltimore field office wrote in a Monday release.According to CBP, police in Boston had a warrant out for Galette to answer charges of assault to murder, assault with a dangerous weapon, possession of a large capacity firearm, firearm discharge within 500 feet of a building, and possessing a firearm with a defaced serial number, among other charges.Agents were able to grab the wanted man after the flight manifest was compared to a national law enforcement database and his name popped up. When Galette landed in Philadelphia and attempted to pass through customs, he was directed by an automated system to instead report for addition...

Ticker: Audit finds $2.7M in benefits fraud; Gas prices up slightly   

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:49 GMT

Investigators in the state auditor’s office looked into 1,135 cases of suspected public benefits fraud over the last three months of 2022 and identified fraud in 255 cases totaling $2.7 million, according to Auditor Diana DiZoglio.The auditor last month filed a report with the Legislature outlining the recent work of the Bureau of Special Investigations, which occurred while Suzanne Bump, DiZoglio’s predecessor, was finishing out her term.During the last quarter of 2022, investigators found $1.6 million in Transitional Aid to Families with Dependent Children program (TAFDC) fraud, $771,000 in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) fraud, $283,000 in Medicaid fraud, and $7,300 in Emergency Aid to the Elderly, Disabled and Children (EAEDC) fraud.The bureau detected $13.5 million in fraud in fiscal 2022, and $6 million in fiscal 2021.Gas prices up in MassachusettsThe average gas price is up 2 cents in Massachusetts, averaging $3.29 on pressures from the coming swi...

Dave Hyde: The quiet signing of Mike White is Dolphins’ most important this offseason

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:49 GMT

He’s a developing talent, a popular teammate, a tough-minded quarterback who tested just fine in his career cameos.Mike White fits that way as the Miami Dolphins most important signing this offseason.He’s a hometown name, a local sensation, a Pembroke Pines kid who grew up a few miles from the stadium he’ll now play.White coming home works in that warm-hearted way, too.Finally — and this is important — no one outside White’s family and friends got overly excited about him signing Monday with the Dolphins. He’s not Tom Brady or even Jimmy Garoppolo, who were among those loudly reported to be Dolphins targets in ways that threatened the cocoon of confidence built around Tua Tagovailoa.There’s nothing loud about White’s signing. He isn’t even a veteran starter like Teddy Bridgewater, who kick-started a national debate last offseason on if he was better than Tagovailoa upon his signing. White brings no debate with him. Even the...

Mattapan woman charged with attacking 13-year-old boy at MBTA station; Sandwich man charged with assaulting, robbing owners of Hanover Street store

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:49 GMT

A 35-year-old Mattapan woman is accused of attacking a 13-year-old boy at a South Boston MBTA station last week, while a Sandwich man has been charged with assaulting and robbing the owners of a Hanover Street store last year.In Thursday’s incident at Andrew Station, MBTA Transit Police responded to a call at 7:30 a.m. for a juvenile who had been attacked and suffered a cut to his face.The boy told police that he was waiting for a bus with some friends, while a woman he did not know was walking around the bus stop yelling obscenities. Without provocation, the woman — later identified as Monica Velez-Caraballo — walked up to the boy and allegedly hit him in the face with a soda can that had jagged edges.A few minutes after police arrived, the boy spotted Velez-Caraballo. After being arrested, Velez-Caraballo told police, “They started it. They threw a chemical on my skin and it’s burning me.”Police officers reported that Velez-Caraballo was not suf...

Sportsmanship at the highest level

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:49 GMT

Game often respects game, but Xaverian junior goalie Cole Pouliot-Porter took that respect for an opponent to another level Sunday night at Tsongas Center.Teammate Joe DiMartino had just delivered a goal in overtime to propel the Hawks to a 1-0 win over 14th-seeded Reading in a Div. 1 state semifinal, sending No. 7 Xaverian to TD Garden for another bid at the state title. On the far end of the ice, Pouliot-Porter – briefly soaking it all in  – saw all his teammates bombard the senior at the glass by the student section in celebration. Right next to the frenzy was Rockets junior goalie Chris Hanifan, knelt to the ground in front of the net he posted a shutout in 48 minutes and 13 seconds of high-level hockey.Skating the length of the ice slowly, Pouliot-Porter decided he could wait a few more moments before celebrating with his team. First, he’d embrace Hanifan for a job well-done.“Chris obviously had a great playoff run and obviously he was a backbone of his team during the season, ...

Banks tumble; others rise on hopes for easier rates

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:49 GMT

NEW YORK — Bank stocks tumbled Monday following the second- and third-largest bank failures in U.S. history. But other stocks rose on hopes the bloodletting will force the Federal Reserve to take it easier on the hikes to interest rates that are shaking Wall Street and the economy.The S&P 500 dipped 0.2% after whipsaw trading, where it careened from an early loss of 1.4% to a midday gain. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 90 points, or 0.3%, while the Nasdaq composite rose 0.4%.The sharpest drops came from banks and other financial companies. Investors worried that a relentless rise in interest rates meant to get inflation under control are approaching a tipping point and may be cracking the banking system.The feds announced a plan late Sunday meant to shore up confidence following the collapses of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank since Friday.Most pressure is on the regional banks a couple steps below in size of the massive, “too-big-to-fail” banks that he...