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Thielman quizzes candidates
Posted on August 1, 2008 by ametzger
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School Committee member and local cable talk show host Jeff Thielman spoke to Ken Donnelly and Jack Hurd, candidates for the Fourth Middlesex State Senate seat on his show. Here’s the video.
The Public Square - One-on-One Interviews with Jack Hurd and Ken Donnelly from Josh Lobel on Vimeo.
VIDEO: Kayak polo
Posted on August 1, 2008 by ametzger
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Ever wonder what those people in kayaks are doing ramming into each other on Spy Pond?
Will Leone take this case? Maybe not.
Posted on July 31, 2008 by ametzger
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Even though the Cambridge District Court issued charges against state Sen. Jim Marzilli and ordered him to appear in court, he might not be prosecuted.
Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone will review the evidence presented at district court, but the DA already opted out of pursuing charges in May.
Leone’s spokesman Corey Welford said it is unlikely the DA’s office will change its mind on this case, but investigators will keep an open mind.
“We’ll take a look at it,” Welford said. But the district court clerk magistrate’s threshold for issuing charges is much lower than the DA’s threshold, Welford said. The DA has to be confident it can prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.
And though the female victim testified that crimes were committed, that amounts to only a “small fraction of the evidence,” the DA looked at in its investigation this spring.
The Arlington woman filed a request for complaint in mid-June. If the DA decides not to take the case, the two counts of indecent assault and battery would be dismissed, Welford said.
Leone’s office is pursuing other criminal charges against Marzilli stemming from his June arrest in Lowell.
Video: Flood in East Arlington
Posted on July 24, 2008 by ametzger
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Arlington DPW workers and firefighters pumped water from a flooded parking lot into the Alewife Brook today. Here’s the video.
Have you seen this missing girl?
Posted on July 22, 2008 by ametzger
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According to a notice from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, 14-year-old Tristine Kayne Danielle Mersing has been missing for about a week and a half, since Friday, July 11. She has a pierced nose and pierced ears. Anyone with information should contact the Arlington Police at 781-316-3900 during business hours or 781-316-3923 after hours.
POLL: proposed income tax repeal
Posted on July 21, 2008 by ametzger
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What do you think about the proposal to repeal the income tax? Tell us where you stand in our poll. And remember, you’ll see a similar question on the ballot this November.
Art up in Capitol Square
Posted on July 18, 2008 by ametzger
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The new 13 Forest Gallery in East Arlington - or Capitol Square if you prefer - has a show up featuring three local artists.
There will be a story about the show and the newly named Capitol Square in the paper and online.
But seeing as you’re here now, you might want to check out the homepages of artists Nancy Popper, David Colombo, and Yossi Veissid.
Capitol Square is the area around the Capitol Theater - get it?
That Tsongas party mentioned in the Marzilli allegations
Posted on July 16, 2008 by ametzger
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According to new publicly disclosed allegations against state Sen. Jim Marzilli, D-Arlington, the lawmaker attended a primary party for Niki Tsongas, and then invited one of his wife’s employees to stay in his guest bedroom.
Read more about that here.
Coincidentally, I happened to be at that victory party, covering the primary, and while I don’t remember seeing Marzilli there, I can recall other details from the party.
- The party was held at the Doubletree Hotel in Lowell, which is right next to one of that city’s storied canals.
- There was a cash bar in the function room, as well as a hotel bar nearby, where some attendees watched a Red Sox game.
- Later on in the evening, when it was clear Tsongas would win, the place started filling up, and she led the crowd in cheers of “let’s send a message to the White House.”
- Other prominent politicos showed up to the event, including state Sen. Susan Fargo, D-Lincoln, a few Lowell city councilors and John Walsh, chairman of the Massachusetts Democratic Party.
- As this was also early in the Presidential Primary race, volunteers from different Democratic campaigns were there as well.
- Tsongas went on to win Marty Meehan’s old seat in the Massachusetts Fifth Congressional District in a special election later that fall.
I also took a video of the event, which unfortunately has a kind of awkward ending.
Arlington earmarks
Posted on July 14, 2008 by ametzger
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Gov. Patrick signed the budget Sunday afternoon keeping a number of Arlington-bound earmarks intact, while some vetoing others.
To get a look at the governor’s vetoes click here.
You can either search for “Arlington” or look under the 7007-0900 line item, where one Arlington program was eliminated and another cut in half. The budget’s a little tricky to read. Look for both the phrase “Wording Stricken” and the phrase “Wording Inserted” to get a complete picture. You may also want to consult the budget the Legislature sent to the governor last week, in pdf format here.
Marzilli’s lawyer on WGBH
Posted on July 10, 2008 by ametzger
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Those following the legal saga of Jim Marzilli might want to check out Emily Rooney’s interview of Marzilli’s attorney Terrence Kennedy on “Greater Boston.”
The show aired Wednesday, but is available online here. (At least for now. You may need to look around to find the video a few weeks from now.)
On the show Kennedy elaborated on some of what he said outside Lowell Superior Court earlier in the day.
Kennedy also alluded to motions he might make to dismiss charges against his client.
According to Kennedy, the alleged victim denies the charge that Marzilli attempted to assault and batter her under oath. But Kennedy qualified that statement saying he hadn’t yet read the testimony from the indictment.
Rooney claimed one of Marzilli’s colleagues (another state senator?) told her that it was well known within the State Senate that Marzilli occasionally dressed like a homeless person.
Kennedy said he has no knowledge of anything like that, and said Marzilli’s a sharp dresser.
“I can’t imagine him dressing like a homeless person ever,” Kennedy said.
Kennedy also took umbrage at the way people with mental illness are treated in the courts, and in the media.
“In 2008 I think it’s outrageous that people are making fun of someone, because they have a mental disorder,” Kennedy said.
Currently, Marzilli is out of McLean Hospital at some times, but continues to receive treatment there, Kennedy said.
Kennedy also defended the decision by Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone not to bring charges against Marzilli for an incident in April, when an Arlington woman claimed the state senator groped her.
The investigation was thorough and if Leone had a case he would have prosecuted it, Kennedy said.
Toward the end of the show, Kennedy questions the Constitutionality of charging Marzilli for things he said to women.
Marzilli is charged with four counts of annoying and accosting a person of the opposite sex, as well as attempting to commit a crime (indecent assault and battery); disorderly conduct; and resisting arrest.
“And he’s not accused of using any foul language,” Kennedy said. “I don’t believe in this day and age is going to pass Constitutional muster,”
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