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• Mass. couple's wedding day is also town's ZIP code

  January 9, 2013 12:46 PM

  AMESBURY, Mass. - Couples often hold weddings on significant dates, but a Massachusetts couple has come up with a new way of remembering their ceremony. Cheryl Bennett and Steven DeLong, longtime residents of Amesbury, are getting married Wednesday, the same date as the town's ZIP code of 01913. Forty-five-year-old mechanic... more »

• Mass. meningitis pharmacy blames cleaning company

  January 4, 2013 7:06 AM

  BOSTON - The Massachusetts compounding pharmacy linked to a nationwide meningitis outbreak that has been blamed for 39 deaths and hundreds of illnesses is blaming its cleaning contractor. The Boston Globe reports that attorneys for New England Compounding Center sent a letter to UniFirst Corp. demanding that it take... more »

• Obama nominates Kerry for secretary of state

  December 21, 2012 1:12 PM

  WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama has nominated Sen. John Kerry as his next secretary of state, saying Kerry's entire life "has prepared him for this role." If confirmed, the Massachusetts Democrat would succeed Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton in Obama's second-term Cabinet. Clinton did not attend the Roosevelt Room... more »

• Mass. gas firm president: We'll make things right

  November 26, 2012 5:25 PM

  SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - A Massachusetts company whose worker breached a gas line that led to a massive explosion in one of New England's biggest cities says it'll do whatever it takes to return things to normal. Friday's explosion in downtown Springfield damaged 42 buildings housing businesses and residences. The gas... more »

• Gas explosion reported in downtown Springfield Play Video

  November 23, 2012 5:35 PM

  SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - Authorities say a natural gas explosion in one of New England's biggest cities has destroyed two buildings but hasn't killed anyone. They say firefighters and gas company workers are among more than a dozen injured people. The explosion in a downtown area of Springfield blew out all... more »

• Cops: Mass. bargain hunter took home TV, left tot

  November 23, 2012 10:42 AM

  SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - Police say a Massachusetts man left his girlfriend's 2-year-old son in a car while he went shopping for Black Friday bargains, then went home with his new 51-inch flat screen television and left the toddler behind. Police, alerted by store security, found the boy asleep in the... more »

• No electrolysis for Mass. transgender prisoner

  November 20, 2012 12:37 PM

  BOSTON - A federal judge in Massachusetts says he won't order more hair-removal treatments for a transgender inmate who won a court order for taxpayer-funded sex-change surgery. Judge Robert Wolf also ruled Tuesday that the gender reassignment surgery he ordered for Michelle Kosilek in September will be on hold until... more »

• Fraud? No, spider delays Mass. town's vote count

  November 8, 2012 12:24 PM

  REHOBOTH, Mass. - It wasn't hanging chads or voter fraud that delayed the vote count in one Massachusetts town - it was a spider. Rehoboth Town Clerk Kathleen Conti says one of the town's aging voting machines malfunctioned Tuesday morning. She called a technician, who said a spider web apparently... more »

• Couple drowns trying to save dog

  August 21, 2012 7:31 PM

  An elderly couple in Massachusetts drowned in a pond while trying to save the family dog. Police say the husband and wife were on a pontoon boat when the dog went into the water. Daniel Cyr jumped in to save the animal, but struggled. Then his wife, Patricia, went in... more »

• Mass. man gets 'wrong' lottery ticket, wins $1M

  August 17, 2012 12:26 PM

  BRAINTREE, Mass. - When a store clerk gave a Massachusetts man a different kind of scratch-off lottery ticket than he asked for, he didn't make a big deal about the mistake; he said he just "rolled with it." It was a good decision: He won $1 million. Richard Brown of... more »

• Mass. man pays off mortgage with pennies

  July 6, 2012 12:15 PM

  MILFORD, Mass. - A Massachusetts man who pledged to make the last mortgage payment on his home with pennies has fulfilled that promise. After warning his bank, Thomas Daigle dropped off about 62,000 pennies weighing 800 pounds in two boxes for the final payment on the Milford home he and... more »

• Mass. cyclist attacked by man swinging sausage

  June 18, 2012 12:27 PM

  BROCKTON, Mass. - A Massachusetts man is facing charges for allegedly attacking a bicyclist with sausage links and a wrench before making off with jewelry and the bike. Police say Michael Baker is scheduled to be arraigned Monday on charges including assault and battery with a dangerous weapon in connection... more »

• Police say roving cows drank Mass. backyard brews

  May 25, 2012 11:17 AM

  BOXFORD, Mass. - Police say a roving group of cows crashed a small gathering in a Massachusetts town and bullied the guests for their beer. Boxford police Lt. James Riter says he was responding to a call for loose cows on Sunday and spotted them in a front yard. Riter... more »

• Baby in car seat found in road

  May 16, 2012 12:26 PM

  Worcester, Mass. -An abandoned baby led police to a murder mystery in Massachusetts. Saturday night, a driver called Worcester police after seeing a baby in a car seat in the middle of the road. The three-month-old was not hurt. But-when officers searched a nearby apartment, they found... more »

• Mass. woman balks at paying old $73 debt to NJ

  April 30, 2012 12:56 PM

  AMESBURY, Mass. - A Massachusetts woman who got a bill for $73 from the state of New Jersey for a decades-old debt says she has no intention of paying. Alice Mainville, of Amesbury, got a letter recently telling her she owes New Jersey's Department of Labor $73 because it gave... more »

• Kids found slashed in Mass. apt blaze; mom charged

  March 19, 2012 12:39 PM

  SALEM, Mass. - A Massachusetts mother accused of slashing her children's throats and setting the family's apartment on fire has been ordered held without bail. Tanicia Goodwin didn't enter a plea at her arraignment Monday in Salem District Court. She's charged with two counts of assault with intent to murder,... more »

• 9-year-old boy summoned to jury duty in Mass.

  March 19, 2012 12:30 PM

  YARMOUTH, Mass. - Like many people who get summoned to jury duty, Jacob Clark didn't want to go. But unlike most people, he had a legitimate excuse - he's 9 years old. "I was like, 'What's a jury duty?'" Jacob told the Cape Cod Times in response to his summons... more »

• Coach bites opposing coach's ear

  March 13, 2012 12:33 PM

  A Massachusetts man is accused of biting off part of a coach's ear following a kids basketball game. Timothy Forbes turned himself in at a Springfield court Monday. Police say the 34-year-old assistant coach attacked the winning coach as the Catholic Youth Organization teams shook hands at the... more »

• Ex-Mass student sues college over roommate's sex

  March 2, 2012 12:56 PM

  BOSTON - A former student at a Roman Catholic college in Massachusetts is suing the school, saying officials didn't do enough to help her move out of the dorm room she shared with a roommate she found to be overly sexual. The former Stonehill College student, Lindsay Blankmeyer says she... more »

• Moonshine at the City Water Plant

  November 29, 2011 7:32 PM

  Water wasn't the only thing being produced at a city treatment plant in Massachusetts. A water department employee in Groton set up a still and was producing moonshine. The Town Manager says the distilling apparatus was discovered this month and the man operating the still was placed on administrative leave.... more »

• Woman who taught Emeril how to cook dies at 79

  September 27, 2011 12:07 PM

  FALL RIVER, Mass. - The woman who taught celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse how to cook has died in Massachusetts. A family member says Ines De Costa died in her sleep in her Fall River home last weekend after doing what she loved most - spending all day Friday cooking.... more »

• Obama says 'rule is over' for Libya's Gadhafi

  August 22, 2011 2:08 PM

  CHILMARK, Mass. - President Barack Obama said Monday that Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi's "rule is over" although elements of his regime continue to resist rebels who have taken control much of the capital. He appealed to Gadhafi to prevent further bloodshed, and urged opposition forces to build a democratic... more »

• Murky Mass. pool being drained after woman's death

  July 17, 2011 11:19 AM

  FALL RIVER, Mass.- A swimming pool where a woman's body lay unnoticed in murky water for days is being drained as part of the investigation into her drowning death. Authorities working on the investigation in Fall River, about 50 miles south of Boston, expected to need most of the... more »

• Tufts president ends naked student run

  March 16, 2011 12:30 PM

  MEDFORD, Mass. - The president of Tufts University in Massachusetts has put an end to the student tradition of running around nude to mark the end of the fall semester. President Lawrence Bacow said in an op-ed piece in the student newspaper Monday that the Naked Quad Run has... more »

• Authorities: Man traveled across country for sex with online bride

  February 10, 2011 12:52 PM

  DETROIT - Authorities say a 54-year-old Massachusetts man traveled to Michigan to have sex with a 13-year-old girl who was his bride in an online role-playing game. John Phillips of Fitchburg, Mass., is charged with sexual assault, child sexually abusive activity and accosting a child for immoral purposes. ... more »

• Probation for Teacher Who Ran Away with Student

  January 26, 2011 7:34 PM

  A judge in Massachusetts gave a teacher probation when she pleaded guilty to statutory rape for running off with a 15-year old student because he says he does not see her as a sexual predator. Lisa Lavoie and the boy were found in West Virginia after they were reported missing... more »

• Parole Board Members Quit after Officer Shot

  January 13, 2011 7:30 PM

  The governor of Massacusetts accepted the resignations of five members of the state parole board who voted to release a career criminal who killed a cop in a shoot-out. Governor Deval Patrick also said he would seek to remove other officials from the board. Its been under review since... more »

• Mass. pizza parlor stiffed by fake Dylan rep

  November 24, 2010 12:32 PM

  AMHERST, Mass. (AP) - A man wearing a Bob Dylan backstage pass who ordered 178 pizzas from a Massachusetts pizza parlor has left the restaurant blowin' in the wind. The man walked into Antonio's in the college town of Amherst early Saturday morning shortly after Dylan performed at the... more »

• Cape Wind

  November 22, 2010 7:21 PM

  Regulators in Massachusetts approved a power-purchase deal between the nation's first offshore wind farm and its first customer, National Grid. The Cape Wind turbine farm is planned for Nantucket Sound and will have 130-turbines. National Grid agreed to buy half the power generated and the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities... more »

• Effort to delay Nancy Pelosi leadership vote fails

  November 17, 2010 12:49 PM

  WASHINGTON - Democratic critics of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have failed in their effort to postpone a vote on keeping her as the party's leader. The California Democrat hopes to secure the job in a vote later Wednesday by Democrats who will be in the House next year. ... more »

• Woman brings fake $10,000 to bank

  October 20, 2010 1:06 PM

  A $10,000 bill? The staff at a Massachusetts bank just wasn't buying it. The suspicious staffers quickly determined that the bill a woman brought into the Lowell bank was a fake. Michael Gallagher, risk management director at Enterprise Bank, tells The Sun of Lowell that it is... more »

• Mom Wins Right for Burial Next to Son

  September 30, 2010 7:44 PM

  A mom in Massachusetts who lost her only son in Iraq won the right for parents like her to be buried alongside their children in national veterans cemeteries. Denise Anderson fought for two-years to get Congress to change the rule and approve the Corey Shea Act, named for her 21-year-old... more »

• Boston Tea Party museum in the works

  September 20, 2010 9:24 AM

  The Boston Tea Party is one of the most famous events in U.S. history, yet the only thing that marks the spot these days is a plaque. There was a museum in Fort Point Channel at the sight of the 1773 Tea party, but it burned down in 1991.... more »

• Authorities: Mass. man fakes death to avoid trial

  August 17, 2010 1:21 PM

  Massachusetts authorities are searching for a man they say faked his death to beat charges of driving without a license. The Gloucester Times reports that 42-year-old Michael Rosen of Salem sent a man to court last week to file a certificate showing that Rosen had died the previous week.... more »

• Markey wants BP to accept government oil estimate

  August 11, 2010 1:32 PM

  A Massachusetts congressman is asking BP to accept the government's latest estimate of how much oil spewed from the company's blown-out Gulf well as a basis to determine how much it may face in civil fines. Rep. Ed Markey sent a letter Wednesday to the head of BP's U.S.... more »

• Mass. official aims to shame library porn viewers

  June 29, 2010 12:55 PM

  A city councilor in Massachusetts thinks he's come up with a way to stop people looking at pornography on public library computers - name them and shame them. Quincy Councilor Daniel Raymondi has asked Mayor Thomas Koch to make public a list of people who have viewed pornography on... more »

• Mass. governor objects to condom policy

  June 24, 2010 1:05 PM

  Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick says he objects to a new policy in Provincetown allowing even elementary school students to receive free condoms, and to do so without telling their parents. The Democrat told The Associated Press he called Superintendent Beth Singer on Thursday to register his complaint after media... more »

• Man to change plea in Church Arson

  June 21, 2010 8:05 PM

  A second man is expected to change his not guilty plea in an arson that destroyed a predominantly black church in Massachusetts hours after President Obama was elected. Thomas Gleason goes to court tomorrow for a change-of-plea hearing before a federal judge. He was supposed to go to trial on... more »

• Dad tries to sell baby for beer

  May 19, 2010 1:28 PM

  A Massachusetts man has been summoned to court after allegedly trying tosell his infant daughter for a case of beer. Police confronted 24-year-old Matthew Brace outside the Pride Gas Station in Chicopee, Massachusetts Monday afternoon after a caller said he offered his baby in exchange for beer money. Police... more »

• Water in Boston: unsuitable for drinking

  May 1, 2010 4:17 PM

  Water in 38 Massachusetts communities, including Boston, is temporarily unsuitable for drinking after a break in a pipe that connects a major suburban reservoir to Boston. State officials say the break in the 10-foot diameter pipe in Weston is leaking water into the Charles River at a rate of... more »

• U.S. 190 bridge improvements possible

  October 3, 2009 11:59 AM

  The U.S. 190 bridge over the Mississippi River in Baton Rouge may get an $80 million facelift. The initial contract to put together a plan for the facelift has been awarded to a Massachusetts company. Bridge improvements could start as early as 2011 although that could be delayed. Included... more »

• Hot dog thief

  September 28, 2009 8:10 PM

  A man who stole a hot dog from another man at gunpoint and then spilled mustard on his shirt got 18 months in prison in Massachusetts. Antonio Judd pleaded guilty to charges including larceny. Judd flashed what appeared to be a gun at a man in a park... more »