MERRIMACK, N.H.
Man charged with killing his wife by shooting her in neck
A Merrimack man has been charged with killing his wife at their home.
The New Hampshire attorney general’s office says 62-year-old Joseph Lawrence was arrested Thursday night. His wife, 61-year-old Darlene Lawrence, was found dead at their home earlier in the day.
Late Friday, the attorney general’s office said an autopsy determined Darlene Lawrence was shot in the neck.
Lawrence has been charged with second degree murder and is due in court for arraignment Friday afternoon. It was not immediately known whether he has an attorney.
WASHINGTON
Bernie Sanders campaign raises $1.5 million online
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders says he has raised $1.5 million online in the first day since launching his Democratic presidential campaign.
The independent senator says he has received contributions from 35,000 donors, and more than 100,000 people have signed up on his website.
Sanders filed papers to run for president on Thursday, becoming the first major challenger to enter the race against Hillary Rodham Clinton. She opened her campaign in April.
Clinton is heavily favored but Sanders has positioned himself as a liberal who intends to promote economic and environmental issues and oppose contentious trade legislation.
KEENE, N.H.
Offenders must explain to schoolchildren to reduce fine
Three young men convicted of disorderly conduct after violence broke out near last year’s Keene Pumpkin Festival have been offered a chance to reduce their $1,000 fines by explaining their actions to elementary school students.
Keene police Sgt. Jason Short says a judge told the three college-age men that they could reduce their fines by $200 for each Keene elementary school classroom they visit to explain how their behavior led to the festival’s cancellation.
After alcohol-fueled parties nearby led to injuries, property damage and more than 100 arrests last year, the Keene City Council rejected its permit for 2015. Laconia plans to host it next fall instead.
CONCORD, N.H.
Bill gets OK to bar schools from students’ social media
New Hampshire schools would be prohibited from accessing students’ social media accounts under a bill that has passed both the House and Senate.
The Senate on Thursday approved an amended version of a bill which previously had passed the House. House lawmakers now will decide whether to go along with the Senate’s changes or ask for a committee of conference to reconcile the differences.
Supporters of the bill, including the New Hampshire Civil Liberties Union, argue that students have a right to personal, private lives outside of school and that accessing their accounts is an invasion of privacy. Opponents say it would prevent schools from fully investigating bullying allegations.
CONCORD, N.H.
Second inmate convicted in attack on presumed snitch
The second inmate convicted in a fatal attack on a prisoner believed to have snitched on white supremacist gang members was sentenced to 38 ½ years.
The Concord Monitor reports Brotherhood of White Warriors members William Edic and Thomas Milton lured the victim into a third-floor cell block and jumped him. The 42-year-old victim died from his injuries.
The gang had suspected the victim of snitching on their members. Another inmate was later revealed as the informant.
Edic’s public defenders asked Judge Richard McNamara to choose a sentence that would punish, but not exceed what was necessary for rehabilitation. McNamara chose the full amount requested by prosecutors.
Milton received the same sentence earlier this month in Merrimack County Superior Court.
BOSTON
Man fined for skipping final Marathon jury selection
A man who skipped the final stages of jury selection in the Boston Marathon bombing trial has been fined $400 and sentenced to 40 hours of community service.
A federal judge imposed the sanction Thursday against Jose Gutierrez of Lawrence.
Judge William Young found that Gutierrez intentionally violated his obligation to serve as a juror by skipping jury service March 3 so he could go to work. Gutierrez had made it through the initial rounds of jury duty.
The judge cited more than 1,300 other prospective jurors who complied with their obligation to appear in court for the trial of bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. The judge told Gutierrez he should be “ashamed.”
Attorney Hank Brennan, who represented Gutierrez, said he reported for the first two rounds of jury selection, but did not attend the third round because he felt he needed to go to his job as a medical interpretor that day.
BOSTON
Sergeant apologizes to man confronted for videotaping
A Boston police sergeant has apologized to a 61-year-old man he confronted for videotaping officers as they detained a teenager – an incident that prompted a police investigation into apparent intimidation by the sergeant.
Sgt. Henry Staines met with Lawrence Dugan on Friday and apologized. City Police Commissioner William Evans apologized for Staines’ actions on Thursday.
Dugan was taking video of the officers in the Roxbury neighborhood on Monday when Staines approached.
The video shows Staines telling Dugan he didn’t have permission to film the officers. Staines later presses a fake gun against the camera, saying: “See that, see that, that’s why we’re here.”
A police spokesman says all officers have been reminded citizens can legally videotape them. Staines remains on duty during an internal affairs investigation.
BOSTON
Meehan named president of five-campus UMass system
Marty Meehan, the former congressman and current chancellor of the University of Massachusetts-Lowell, was named president of the five-campus UMass system on Friday after selling his vision of turning the system into one of the nation’s best and promising to raise more money than his predecessors.
“I want excellence in everything we do,” Meehan said during a lengthy public interview with the board of trustees before his unanimous appointment.
Meehan listed a number of his priorities, including collaboration between UMass and other state universities and community colleges, cooperation with business and industry, and diversification of the student body, faculty and staff. He promised to listen to faculty and student concerns. – From news service reports
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