Massachusetts – News Stories About Massachusetts - Page 20

Employee's
Yelp Review on
Competitor Costs
Him $34.5K

Apr 7, 2017 9:50 AM CDT

Employee's Yelp Review on Competitor Costs Him $34.5K

'Incensed' rival did his own detective work to find out who posted phony review

(Newser) - "No one should have to go through this, not children, adults, elderly," Stephen Blumberg tells CBS Boston , and a jury apparently agreed with him. The cause of Blumberg's emotional turmoil: a fake, "inflammatory" Yelp review of his Massachusetts jewelry store posted by the son of a...

23K Convictions to Be Wiped Thanks to Crooked Chemist

'Stunning': 23K Convictions
to Be Wiped Over Fraud

Mar 30, 2017 10:22 AM CDT

'Stunning': 23K Convictions to Be Wiped Over Fraud

Chemist admitted tampering with evidence

(Newser) - It's been five years since former Massachusetts State Police chemist Annie Dookhan pleaded guilty to tampering with evidence while working on tens of thousands of criminal cases. But 24,000 people left with questionable convictions as a result of her fraud are still waiting to see if their...

New England Lawmakers Want Their Own Time Zone

New England Wants to
Dump the Clock Change

Mar 13, 2017 10:55 AM CDT

New England Wants to Dump the Clock Change

Lawmakers contemplating ditching daylight saving switch, joining Atlantic Standard Time

(Newser) - New England really wants to get ahead—by one hour. The New York Times reports on the movement that's afoot in that region for some states to transition permanently to the Atlantic Standard Time zone, ignoring the changing of the clocks that takes place at the start and end...

Inside a Once-Bustling Home,
a Horrifying Discovery

LONGFORM

Mar 10, 2017 12:10 AM CST

Inside a Once-Bustling Home, a Horrifying Discovery

Tragedy befalls 'eccentric' elderly sisters, and a town wonders why no one noticed

(Newser) - In a story reminiscent of Grey Gardens , Patricia Wen tells the tale in the Boston Globe of two reclusive Massachusetts sisters—and the strange story of how one of them eventually disappeared from sight as life buzzed on around them. Sheryl Waldman and her older sister, Lynda, shared their 4,...

He Donated $40M.
Now His Ex Wants
Some of It Back

Mar 8, 2017 11:48 AM CST

He Donated $40M. Now His Ex Wants Some of It Back

Janet Foisie says hubby hid funds from her in Switzerland during divorce

(Newser) - Robert Foisie has donated $63 million to Massachusetts' Worcester Polytechnic Institute over the years, making him the largest donor in its history, per the Worchester Business Journal . His ex-wife, however, says some of that money should instead be in her pockets. In a lawsuit, Janet Foisie explains she and Robert...

Turkeys Circle Dead Cat,
Internet Goes Wild

VIRAL VIDEO

Mar 3, 2017 3:59 PM CST

Turkeys Circle Dead Cat, Internet Goes Wild

A 'bizarre scene' in a Massachusetts suburb

(Newser) - A bizarre scene of a group of wild turkeys walking in a circle around a dead cat was caught on video by a Massachusetts man who perhaps best described it: an attempt to give the feline its 10th life. Jonathan Davis came across the fowl play in the Boston suburb...

Man Blames Hypothetical Deer for Speeding Ticket

It Wasn't Me, Officer;
It Was the Deer

Jan 27, 2017 11:40 AM CST

It Wasn't Me, Officer; It Was the Deer

Man blames speeding ticket on hypothetical deer

(Newser) - A Massachusetts man fighting a speeding ticket in court had a unique explanation—the officer's radar gun may have picked up a deer, the AP reports. According to the Newburyport Daily News , Dennis Sayers was clocked going 40mph in 30mph zone in West Newbury in November. He got a...

They Call Him the 'Codfather.'
It's Not Exactly a Compliment

They Call Him the 'Codfather.' It's Not Exactly a Compliment

Carlos Rafael has become rich using unsavory methods—but is there another way?

(Newser) - Almost as soon as the profanity-hurling fisherman sporting an electronic bracelet sauntered into the fish auction, Brendan Borrell knew he was seeing the Codfather. In his piece for Hakai Magazine , Borrell dives into the murky waters around Carlos Rafael, the 65-year-old he describes as "the most powerful man" in...

Woman Found Living With
Sister's Decomposing Body

Jan 12, 2017 6:10 PM CST

Woman Found Living With Sister's Decomposing Body

Authorities say she may have been doing so for up to 18 months

(Newser) - A 74-year-old Massachusetts woman may have been living with the decomposing body of her sister for up to 18 months, possibly without even realizing her sister was dead, the Brookline TAB reports. According to the Boston Globe , Lynda Waldman lived alone with her 67-year-old sister, Hope Wheaton, in the $1....

Authorities Find $20M
Hidden Under Mattress

Authorities Find $20M Hidden Under Mattress

While investigating an international pyramid scheme

(Newser) - You'd think that much cold, hard cash would make for an uncomfortable night's sleep. The AP reports a 28-year-old Brazilian man was arrested this week in Massachusetts after authorities found about $20 million hidden in a box spring. The arrest of Cleber Rene Rizerio Rocha is connected to...

Meeting of Clinton, Trump
Aides Turned Nasty Fast

Dec 2, 2016 6:34 AM CST

Meeting of Clinton, Trump Aides Turned Nasty Fast

'You guys are bitter'

(Newser) - The post-election forum at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government has traditionally been a respectful meeting of rival campaign strategists. This year, it's a miracle they didn't start throwing chairs. The forum turned into a shouting match as six Hillary Clinton aides and six Donald Trump aides...

Navy Will Scatter Vet's Ashes
at Site of Worst US Sub Disaster

Nov 30, 2016 3:19 AM CST

Navy Will Scatter Vet's Ashes at Site of Worst US Sub Disaster

'He felt he should have gone down with the Thresher'

(Newser) - For a half-century after the deadliest submarine disaster in US history, Navy Capt. Paul "Bud" Rogers struggled with feelings that it should have been him—and not his last-minute replacement—on the doomed voyage of the USS Thresher in which 129 men died. This week, at his family's...

College Lowers
Flag Over Trump,
Then Removes It

Nov 25, 2016 9:59 AM CST

College Lowers Flag Over Trump, Then Removes It

One critic says move is 'baseless, cowardly, a disgrace'

(Newser) - After a week of controversy surrounding its US flag, Hampshire College opted to do away with it—only to invite more controversy. In a move that first generated anger, students at the Massachusetts liberal arts school lowered the school flag to half-mast a day after Donald Trump became president-elect, reports...

We May Finally Know Exactly
Where the 1st Pilgrims Lived

Nov 24, 2016 12:36 AM CST

We May Finally Know Exactly Where the 1st Pilgrims Lived

And it only took 396 years

(Newser) - We likely now know the exact location of the first Pilgrim settlement in the New World—thanks, in part, to a cow named Constance. The Boston Globe reports it's long been known that the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth in 1620, but it was never clear exactly where they built...

Bank Robber Keeps Spelling
One Important Word Wrong

Nov 18, 2016 9:30 AM CST

Bank Robber Keeps Spelling One Important Word Wrong

'Robery'

(Newser) - A bank robber dubbed the "spelling bee bandit" because the notes he's passed to tellers contain the same misspelling is being sought for four robberies in Massachusetts, reports the AP . The FBI says the man's notes have just one word: "robery" with one "B."...

Man Used Cheetos to
Try to Burn Down Ex's House

Nov 17, 2016 5:55 PM CST

Man Used Cheetos to Try to Burn Down Ex's House

They actually make decent kindling

(Newser) - A Massachusetts man who tried to use Cheetos to burn his ex-girlfriend's house down with her inside was sentenced to 36 months in jail this week, the Taunton Daily Gazette reports. The victim and her friend called police in March to report 31-year-old Shemroy Williams attempting to set fire...

New Clue in Mass. Jogger's
Murder: 'Dark-Colored SUV'

Nov 17, 2016 10:07 AM CST

New Clue in Mass. Jogger's Murder: 'Dark-Colored SUV'

Cops hunt vehicle spotted near where Vanessa Marcotte was killed in Princeton, Mass.

(Newser) - The hunt is on for a vehicle that police think may be linked to the murder this summer of a NYC Google worker visiting her family in Massachusetts. The body of 27-year-old Vanessa Marcotte was discovered in August in the woods in Princeton, and per ABC News , there's now...

Quirk of Time Creates
Very Unusual Twins

Nov 11, 2016 1:52 AM CST

Quirk of Time Creates Very Unusual Twins

Daylight Savings Time ended between them

(Newser) - Samuel and Ronan Peterson are identical twins born 31 minutes apart—but they both have a case for being the older brother. The boys were delivered on Sunday, Nov. 6 in Cape Cod Hospital, with mom Emily Peterson giving birth to Samuel first, at 1:39am, AOL reports. Ronan arrived...

Popular Overcoats Doomed Victims in Old Boston Tragedy

Trolley plunge into water in 1916 killed 46

(Newser) - It is the tragedy that "Boston completely forgot," declares a fascinating account in the Boston Globe . The story by Eric Moskowitz recounts an accident almost exactly 100 years ago—on Nov. 7, 1916, election night—in which a trolley car crammed with about 70 people plunged over an...

Why Election Day Is a Big Deal
for Pot Legalization Efforts

Oct 31, 2016 7:58 AM CDT

Why Election Day Is a Big Deal for Pot Legalization Efforts

Green light for recreational pot in Maine, Mass. could mean major changes nationwide

(Newser) - Having proven they can win in the West, advocates for recreational marijuana hope the Nov. 8 election brings their first significant electoral victories in the densely populated Northeast, where voters in Massachusetts and Maine will consider making pot legal for all adults. Supporters believe "yes" votes in New England...