Tag: massachusetts

Woman Arrested for JUROR INTIMIDATION Outside Lindsay Clancy Triple-Murder Trial — Allegedly Filmed Jurors as Deadlock Deepens, Mistrial Now Possible

The Lindsay Clancy triple-murder trial erupted into even more chaos Tuesday after a 56-year-old woman was arrested outside the courthouse for allegedly attempting to photograph members of the jury.

Dawn Light, of Sutton, Massachusetts, was taken into custody at approximately 3:40 p.m. outside the courthouse in Plymouth, just minutes after jurors were dismissed for the day without reaching a verdict.

Massachusetts State Police charged Light with one count of intimidation of a witness, juror, or person furnishing information in connection with criminal proceedings. She is expected to be arraigned on Wednesday.

According to the Boston Herald, Light allegedly attempted to photograph the jury as its members left the courthouse.

CBS Boston reporter Kristina Rex separately reported that jurors allegedly noticed they were being filmed.

Fox News reported that attorneys on either side could potentially request a mistrial over the incident.

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FBI Arrests Massachusetts Democrat State Rep. on COVID Relief Fraud Charges — Second Lawrence-Area Democrat Busted This Month

The FBI arrested Massachusetts State Rep. Francisco Paulino (D-Methuen) on Wednesday morning after a federal grand jury indicted the second-term Democrat on 11 counts of wire fraud and money laundering.

Prosecutors say Paulino treated COVID relief programs like an ATM, fraudulently obtaining more than $700,000 in pandemic unemployment benefits and Small Business Administration disaster loans.

Paulino represents the 16th Essex District, which includes Methuen and Lawrence, the same Merrimack Valley corridor that just saw Lawrence Mayor Brian DePeña arrested two weeks ago on separate $1.5 million-plus COVID loan fraud and money-laundering charges.

Both men are Dominican-born Democrats. Both, prosecutors allege, used the pandemic as their “personal cash cows.”

The 24-page indictment alleges Paulino ran the operation from roughly April 2020 through at least December 2021 — the same period he was campaigning for and then winning the state House seat he still holds. He used his Lawrence tax-preparation firm, Madison Tax LLC, as the vehicle.

Highlights from the charging documents:

In April 2020 he filed a pandemic unemployment assistance claim in the name of a 77-year-old relative without her knowledge, falsely claiming she was self-employed.

More than $39,000–$44,000 in benefits went straight into a bank account he controlled. He kept filing false weekly certifications into September 2021 and submitted fabricated documents, including purported IRS paperwork, when the state asked questions.

He obtained or modified Economic Injury Disaster Loans for his own businesses (including a Heav’nly Donuts location) and for at least one client who spoke limited English and trusted Paulino with tax records and online banking access.

In one case he allegedly increased a client’s loan without the client’s knowledge, then later asked that same client for a $200,000 loan.

Funds were funneled through intermediaries into Paulino’s personal and business accounts and used for personal expenses, real estate, loan payments, and transfers into his campaign account.

Prosecutors also say he turned around and lent some of the cheap government money to others at higher interest rates, making a profit off the taxpayers’ dime.

Paulino faces eight counts of aiding and abetting wire fraud and three counts of aiding and abetting money laundering. He was taken into custody outside a Lawrence apartment complex shortly after sunrise and is scheduled for arraignment in Boston federal court.

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Court Backs DMCA Takedown of Public Meeting Videos

The US copyright system is often used as a tool of censorship, and a recent court ruling shows that there is little to stop this from happening.

The way the system is set up, it provides a powerful tool for anyone to unceremoniously remove content from the internet, with no questions asked. At least not initially.

That tool is the DMCA takedown notice, and the law that underpins it, and the whole system, is the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). One of its sections, 512(f), is meant to deter abuse of this process, but as the court decision shows, it is toothless.

The case concerns a local news outlet in Massachusetts that had its YouTube channel taken down because of videos it posted about local government meetings.

The city of Waltham had outsourced the recording of its meetings to a contractor, Waltham Community Access Corporation (WCAC), and it was this entity that sent the DMCA notices to YouTube, targeting 15 videos on the Channel 781 News outlet.

This resulted in YouTube temporarily deactivating the channel.

But the court found that WCAC had done nothing wrong, and that its consideration of the fair use doctrine was sufficient, even though it was minimal.

The court’s decision was to grant summary judgment to WCAC and dismiss the claim that the takedowns were a misrepresentation under Section 512(f) of the DMCA.

We obtained a copy of the ruling for you here.

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Massachusetts Citizenship Rule At Center Of Alleged Voter-Impersonation Case

After federal prosecutors charged a Chinese man for registering to vote and casting a ballot under his former landlord’s name, experts are questioning Massachusetts’ verification processes.

Yupeng Sun, a Chinese national living in Andover, allegedly submitted an online voter registration in the name of his former landlord, who was not a U.S. citizen, on Oct. 10, 2024.

Massachusetts regulations – which took effect in June 2023 – require applicants using the state’s online voter registration system to have reliable citizenship information documented in their motor vehicle records before they submit an application online.

If that citizenship documentation is missing, the regulation says the applicant “shall be unable to submit an online application.”

“How did Sun manage to successfully, allegedly, impersonate a green card holder?” Logan Churchwell, research director at the Public Interest Legal Foundation, told The Epoch Times.

“Based on the regulation, a system functioning according to the letter should’ve halted the impersonation at the outset,” he said.

“Massachusetts seems to have everything it needs in place to verify citizenship, but there could be malfunctioning parts needing fixes,” he said.

The Secretary of the Commonwealth’s office has not explained how the application was able to proceed under that requirement.

Prosecutors allege that Sun used his former landlord J.L.’s real name, date of birth, former Malden address, and Massachusetts driver’s license number to register online.

J.L., a Chinese citizen and lawful permanent resident, was not eligible to vote.

The Secretary of the Commonwealth’s office did not respond by publication time to questions about what citizenship information was contained in J.L.’s registry record, how an online application submitted in his identity was able to proceed under the regulation, or whether the state has reviewed the process since learning of the case.

Three weeks after registering, prosecutors allege, Sun went to Malden City Hall, identified himself as J.L., received an early ballot for the presidential election, and signed J.L.’s name on the ballot envelope.

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Massachusetts Sanctuary Politicians Released A Man Charged With Vehicular Homicide Three Times — ICE Finally Got Him

Massachusetts Democrats protected an illegal immigrant three times while one of their constituents lost his life.

Heriton Da Silva Aredes is a deported Brazilian national who came back to the United States and continued to engage in a career of criminality by committing assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, reckless operations of a motor vehicle, and furnishing a false ID among other illegal acts.

He started to come on ICE Boston’s radar in August 2023, after the Massachusetts State Police apprehended him in Middleboro. He was released by the state authorities before immigration agents were able to act. Not long after his release, he was arrested for the same transgressions by the Stoughton Police Department. Once again, ICE was unable to act before he was released.

The situation was the most grave in July 2026 when Aredes was charged with the negligent homicide of a motor vehicle victim. With his posting of bail, the Bristol House of Corrections released him without notifying ICE or honoring the immigration detainer.

It was not until August 6 of 2026 that ICE was able to arrest Aredes in the targeted operations in Taunton, Massachusetts.

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Democrat Massachusetts Mayor Arrested on Fraud and Money Laundering Charges – Used $1.6 Million in Covid Loans as Personal Slush Fund to Pay Off Mortgages

A Democrat Massachusetts mayor was arrested and charged on Friday with fraudulently obtaining over $1.5 million in Covid business loans.

The Mayor of Lawrence, Massachusetts, Brian Depena, used the proceeds from Covid small-business loans to fund his campaign, pay his personal taxes and pay off nearly $900,000 in high-interest, hard-money mortgages on his properties, according to the Department of Justice.

According to the charging documents during the pandemic back in 2020 and 2021, Depena applied for a taxpayer-funded Covid-era Economic Injury Disaster Loans (“EIDL”) for his tire business.

The EIDL loans must be used as working capital to provide relief to businesses that suffered economic losses during Covid.

However, Depena used the Covid loans to fund his struggling campaign, pay off two high-interest mortgages, and pay back taxes.

Per the DOJ:

Depena allegedly caused Tenares Tire to apply for and obtain an EIDL in the amount of $150,000 in June 2020 and then used the majority of those funds as working capital for the business. However, according to the charging documents, Depena needed cash by early 2021. It is alleged that his mayoral campaign was struggling to pay bills, he owed the IRS for back taxes and he owed almost $900,000 to two private, hard money lenders who were charging Depena 12% and 8% interest – significantly more than the EIDL rate of 3.75% – on loans that encumbered various properties Depena owned in Lawrence.

In April 2021, Depena allegedly caused a request for an increase of the Tenares Tire EIDL. On July 14, 2021, the SBA approved an increase of the loan by $350,000, bringing the total Tenares Tire EIDL to $500,000. However, the SBA did not release the funds for another month. While waiting, Depena allegedly sent the following texts (originally in Spanish, here translated to English) to his accountant and financial advisor, who had been assisting Depena with the EIDL application and modification.

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Teen allegedly slaughtered mom, brother after asking AI to create ‘fantasies’ about murdering family

A teenager allegedly killed his mother and brother after using ChatGPT to create chilling “fantasy stories” about murdering his family, according to police.

Arjun Aravind, 17, is accused of killing his mother Sudha Venkatesan, 45, and his brother, Siddharth Aravind, 14, after the two were found slain in their Acton, Mass. home on Tuesday night, according to prosecutors.

The Acton-Boxborough Regional High School student had been demonstrating “concerning behavior” recently before the killings — including using the AI chatbot to create “theoretical ideas or fantasy stories regarding the killing of his family,” Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan said.

Aravind asked ChatGPT to help generate twisted “gothic novel-kind of stories,” Ryan said, according to Boston.com.

Aravind’s mom and brother were found around 6:30 p.m. Tuesday after his father contacted police and reported that a tutor had been unable to get inside their house.

He said he had last spoken to his wife earlier that morning before he left for work. Siddharth Aravind was last seen around noon.

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Democrat Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey Signs Bill Legalizing Abortion Throughout Pregnancy

Democrat Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey signed a bill on Monday that legalizes abortions in the state throughout the duration of pregnancy.

The bill, called “An Act Prioritizing Patient Access to Care” or H.5595, ultimately allows unborn babies to be aborted throughout pregnancy and strikes down the state’s current 24-week limit, which had exceptions for the life of the mother and a deadly fetal diagnosis. Under the bill, doctors have the discretion to decide whether or not to perform a late-term abortion.

“Today, mothers and fathers and families who experience these devastating diagnoses — and they are devastating, heartbreaking — now they’ll be able to make their own choices,” Healey said, according to a WCVB report.

“I promise that no matter what Donald Trump or Republicans in Congress or the Supreme Court does, we’re going to continue to make sure that women and families have access to the health care that they need right here in Massachusetts,” Healey said during the signing ceremony.

Massachusetts joins Alaska, Vermont, Oregon, New Mexico, Colorado, Minnesota, Michigan, Maryland, New Jersey, and Washington, DC, in allowing unborn babies to be aborted throughout the entire pregnancy.

The bill passed the Democrat-dominated state House and Senate last month. 

“It’s a very sad day in the commonwealth of Massachusetts,” Republican state Rep. Alyson Sullivan-Almeida said at the time. “The precedent that we’re setting is that a mother can get an abortion up until the moment of birth for a healthy, viable baby.” 

SBA Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser mourned the news of the governor’s signature on the radical bill. 

“It should shock the conscience that tens of thousands of unborn Americans are barbarically dismembered limb by limb and torn apart every single year. Sadly, that number will only increase with Gov. Healey’s approval of the Abortion Up Until Birth Bill,” Dannenfelser said in a statement. “The GOP must abandon the ‘leave it to the states’ position — a stance that permits egregious late-term abortion laws like this one — and advance national protections for unborn children. Without a minimum national standard, the United States remains 1 of only 8 countries worldwide that allows abortion at any point in pregnancy. We must do all we can to turn the page on America’s ugly chapter of late-term abortion.”

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Massachusetts Senate Passes Bill to Allow Late-Term Abortions, Sends to Governor’s Desk

The Democrat-dominated Massachusetts state Senate passed a late-term abortion bill on Friday and sent it to Gov. Maura Healey’s (D) desk for approval. 

The bill, called “An Act Prioritizing Patient Access to Care” or H.5595, would ultimately allow unborn babies to be aborted throughout pregnancy in the state and would strike down the state’s current 24-week limit, which has exceptions for the life of the mother and a deadly fetal diagnosis. Under the bill, doctors would have the discretion to decide whether or not to perform a late-term abortion, the Washington Post reported. 

“While this legislation prioritizes access, it does not prioritize a woman’s safety,” Myrna Maloney Flynn, president of Massachusetts Citizens for Life, said in a video encouraging supporters to tell lawmakers to vote against the bill. 

If Healey signs the law, Massachusetts will become one of nearly a dozen places in the U.S. that allows abortions throughout pregnancy. Alaska, Vermont, Oregon, New Mexico, Colorado, Minnesota, Michigan, Maryland, New Jersey, and Washington, DC, have no gestational limits on abortion, according to Abortion Finder. 

The state House passed the bill last week 119-33. State Rep. Alyson Sullivan-Almeida (R) said after the vote that it was a “very sad day in the commonwealth of Massachusetts.” 

“The precedent that we’re setting is that a mother can get an abortion up until the moment of birth for a healthy, viable baby,” Sullivan-Almeida said.

“This is a significant change to the law to expand what is already an extremely progressive abortion policy in Massachusetts,” state Rep. Joseph McKenna (R) added at the time.

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18-Year-Old Woman Found Dead at Home Owned by Democrat Rep Ayanna Pressely’s Husband Was Murdered – Death Ruled a Homicide

The victim found dead at a home owned by Democrat Rep. Ayanna Pressley’s was identified last week as 18-year-old Yoseliani Marte.

Marte was found shot to death on July 18.

On Thursday, the medical examiner ruled the victim’s death a homicide.

As TGP previously reported, a death investigation was underway earlier this month at a home owned by the husband of far-left Democrat Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) after a body was discovered on the property, according to Boston police.

Authorities responded to the Mattapan residence after reports of a deceased individual on the grounds of the property. The home is owned by Pressley’s husband, Conan Harris, Boston Globe first reported.

Harris and Pressley do not reside at the Mattapan property.

The victim’s family revealed that Marte lost her life as a result of domestic violence.

“With shattered hearts, I share the unimaginable loss of my beloved daughter Yoseliani, who tragically lost her life at just 18 years old as a result of domestic violence,” the GoFundMe said.

“No words can truly express the pain of losing someone so young, with so many dreams, hopes, and milestones still ahead of her. Yoseliani was deeply loved by her family, friends, and everyone whose life she touched. Her kindness, beautiful spirit, and bright future will never be forgotten,” the GoFundMe said.

“Domestic violence has taken a beautiful young life far too soon. We hope that, through the love and support of this community, my family can find comfort in knowing we are not facing this tragedy alone,” they said.

Boston 25 News reported:

An 18-year-old woman who was found dead inside a home owned by the husband of Massachusetts Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley was murdered, authorities announced Thursday.

Officers responding to the home at 25 Malta Road in the city’s Mattapan neighborhood just before 2 p.m. on Saturday, July 18, found Yoseliani Ann Marte Ocasio suffering from an apparent gunshot wound, according to the Boston Police Department.

Ocasio was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner officially ruled her death a homicide on Thursday, according to police.

Ocasio’s mother, Elenie Ocasio, previously told Boston 25 News on July 20 that she believed her daughter was the victim of a homicide.

“This coward killed my baby. He put a gun to her head, took my baby in that house and left her to die,” Elenie said.

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