BOSTON

Tsarnaev team again asks for hearing on leaks to media

Lawyers for Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev have renewed their request for a judge to hold a hearing on leaks to the news media.

Last month, a judge issued a stern warning to prosecutors about former or current members of their team speaking to the media after Tsarnaev’s lawyers objected to interviews retired FBI agents gave around the anniversary of the deadly 2013 bombings.

The request came after several news outlets this week reported that investigators believe a friend of Tsarnaev provided the gun authorities say was used by Tsarnaev and his brother in the fatal shooting of an MIT police officer several days after the bombings.

On Friday, Tsarnaev’s lawyers asked the judge to hold a hearing to determine what instructions were given to law enforcement about not talking to the media.

MONTPELIER, Vt.

High court finds for airport over plan to raze 54 homes

The Vermont Supreme Court has ruled for the Burlington International Airport and its plan to demolish 54 nearby homes so it doesn’t fall out of compliance with federal noise mitigation rules.

A 3-2 majority of the justices found tearing down the houses and filling in their cellar holes doesn’t constitute a change in use under zoning regulations.

The court on Friday said as a result, the more extensive review process sought by neighborhood resident George Maille doesn’t need to happen.

A stinging dissent from Associate Justice Beth Robinson, joined by acting Justice James Morse, argued that turning a housing development into a series of empty lots is clearly a change in use.

PROVIDENCE, R.I.

City getting $3 million grant for 2 innovative high schools

The Carnegie Corporation of New York has awarded a $3 million grant to Providence to develop two small nontraditional high schools.

Providence School Superintendent Susan Lusi said the schools each will have no more than 450 students.

She says the idea is to close the city’s learning gap by using innovated teaching methods to prepare students to succeed at a college level. Those methods could include longer days, weekend classes and online learning.

The schools are expected to be opened in existing buildings, with enrollment starting with a group of ninth-graders in 2015.

The city plans to use part of the three-year grant to hire two experts to design and lead the schools.

LYNN, Mass.

Two teens put on probation for throwing eggs at officer

Two Swampscott teenagers charged with throwing eggs at an undercover Lynn police officer posing as a prostitute have admitted to sufficient facts for a guilty finding on an assault and battery charge.

Jacob Finlay and Spencer Webber, both 19, were sentenced Thursday to a year of probation. The Daily Item reported that the charges will be dismissed if they successfully complete probation.

A third teen involved is scheduled in court on Aug. 26.

Prosecutors say in June 2013 the teens were in a car that made several passes, yelling and throwing things at the officer. On the fourth pass, the officer was hit in the leg with an egg. The car was pulled over on a fifth pass.

Finlay’s lawyer said his client is remorseful. Webber’s lawyer refused comment.

BOXFORD, Mass.

Officer asks board to credit lifeguarding toward pension

A veteran Boxford police officer wants his time working as a lifeguard for a state agency decades ago counted toward his pension.

In a letter to a state appeals board, John Iannazzo said working as a lifeguard for the state in the 1970s and ’80s qualifies as a “temporary” job that should be credited toward his retirement.

Adding Iannazzo’s lifeguard service, which totals nearly two years, would increase his retirement benefit by 4.6 percent, according to the Essex Regional Retirement System.

The state and regional retirement systems have turned down Iannazzo’s request, but he has appealed to the state’s Contributory Retirement Appeal Board.

A state lawmaker supporting Iannazzo told The Salem News that there is precedent for the request.

— From news service reports