Despite the fact that it defies common sense and logic people continue to text, scroll social media, take selfies and do their hair in the mirrors while driving. It not only places oneself at risk of injury or even death, but it also places everyone – pedestrians and commuters alike – at risk.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), driving a vehicle while texting is six times more dangerous than intoxicated driving. It borders on addiction – not being able to stop a bad habit and always looking to use. Is it time to start charging people with DUI for using their phones while driving?

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“April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month. AAA recently produced a PSA as a reminder that distracted driving continues as a significant problem. Please feel free to share this PSA on your social media channels and/or website AAA’s new television public service announcement. It’s a good time to remind driver of the hand-held phone ban and texting laws as traffic begins to pick up with increased vaccinations, decreased pandemic restrictions, and warm weather coming.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in 2019 distracted driving crashes killed 3,142 people in the U.S., an average of 9 deaths per day. That number was up 10 percent from the year before (2,839 deaths in 2018). In southern New England (RI/MA/CT), 35 people died in 2019 as a result of distracted driving.

Distracted driving remains a growing traffic safety problem according to the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety’s 2019 Traffic Safety Culture Index. The survey found most drivers (96 percent) believe typing or reading on a hand-held cellphone while driving to be very or extremely dangerous, but 39 percent admit to reading and 29 percent admit to typing on a smartphone at least once while behind the wheel within the last month.

Even though using a hand-held device is illegal while driving and while stopped at a red light or stop sign in many states, the survey suggests some drivers do so anyway and aren’t aware of the “hangover effect,” which comes from interacting with technology while on the road. In a study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, researchers found drivers can experience a “hangover effect” where the mind stays distracted for up to 27 seconds after using smartphones or voice-to-text vehicle infotainment systems to send text messages, make phone calls or update social media.

Please join AAA in encouraging all motorists to eliminate distracted driving by following these tips:

• Put it away. Place your mobile device out of sight to prevent temptation. Know where you’re going. If using a navigation system, program the destination before driving.
• Pull over. If you must call or text while on the road, pull off the road safely and stop first.
• Ask passengers for help. If riding with someone, seek their help to navigate, make a call or send a message.
• Be a good passenger. Speak out if the driver of your vehicle is distracted.
• Don’t be a distraction. Avoid calling or texting others when you know they are driving.
• Activate Do Not Disturb. Setting up this feature on iPhone or Android device will prevent calls from coming in while you’re driving.

Everyone should prevent being intoxicated. Just as drivers need to pay attention, so do pedestrians and bicyclists. Never call, text or play games while walking or cycling.”

In late March, a young female Jack Russell Terrier-type dog was found deceased near a Lawrence, MA, school.

A necropsy has revealed the dog’s death was the result of extensive abuse, and the Animal Rescue League of Boston’s (ARL) Law Enforcement Department, working in conjunction with the Lawrence Police Department, are urgently seeking information to determine who may have been responsible.

A Lawrence police officer discovered the approximately 1-year-old dog along a frequented walking trail behind South Lawrence East Middle School on March 17, at approximately 10:45 a.m.

The white and tan dog had been partially wrapped in a “pee pad” and placed in a black plastic bag. There was blood present inside the bag and on the dog’s body, as well as urine staining on the dog’s tail.

It is likely the dog had not been left in the area for very long.

It appears the animal suffered extreme cruelty and abuse, which led to the dog’s death.

A necropsy has determined the animal’s cause of death to be acute blood loss and multiple skull fractures. Extensive bruising on the body indicates the dog was also intermittently abused in the 36-hours leading up to its death.

Anyone with information pertaining to this ongoing investigation is urged to contact Lawrence Police Det. Carmen Poupora at (978) 794-5900 x625, or ARL Law Enforcement at (617) 426-9170 ext. 110 or cruelty@arlboston.org.

On Tuesday, April 6, at about 2:15 p.m. Wareham Police Detectives stopped a vehicle on Cranberry Highway near Depot Street. The detectives had developed information that the female operator was suspected of dealing illegal drugs in Wareham.

It was believed that the suspect was hiding the drugs in a safe in the trunk of the vehicle. During the stop, she was placed under arrest after it determined that her driver’s license was suspended. During a search, detectives located a small safe in the trunk and seized it.

At the police station detectives applied for and were granted a search warrant to investigate the contents of the safe. Inside detectives located 44 grams of suspected fentanyl, 12.4 grams of suspected cocaine, $600.00 cash, a digital scale, and multiple other items consistent with illegal drug dealing.

Desiree S. Martin (31), of Taunton, is charged with trafficking in fentanyl, possession with intent to distribute a class (B) substance, and operating after suspension of her driver’s license.

Police Chief John Walcek said, “Wareham Police detectives are aggressively investigating reports of drug dealing. People who refuse to heed our warnings will be arrested and charged accordingly.” He added, “Don’t deal drugs in our community, and if you do know that we are coming for you.”

Wareham Police Department photo.

After a 29-year old Rowlan L. Dasher was released from NORCAP Lodge, a nearby drug and alcohol rehabilitation center, he was unable to get a ride to a Seekonk Motel where he was staying, so he allegedly robbed a Shell gas station on Rt. 140.

After ordering a doughnut and iced tea, the clerk’s till drawer was opened to make the transaction and it is then that Dasher allegedly reached into the drawer grabbing a handful of cash amounting to $140. Dasher and the unnamed clerk then struggled for a moment before Dasher ran out of the store, went behind the building, and ran into the woods.

Local and state police responded to the call, gathered intel from the clerk and eye-witnesses, and brought out a K9 to assist in the search. After a citizen spotted Dasher coming out of the woods he alerted police who then detained Dasher.

“I don’t know what the (expletive) I was thinking. Thinking I could get away,” said Dasher to the police.

Dasher was charged with unarmed robbery but because district courts do not have jurisdiction for trials where unarmed robberies are concerned, the prosecutor asked for charges be reduced to larceny so the case could still be litigated in district court instead of going to a grand jury for indictment.

Dasher who already has a larceny case pending in another court will appear for these charges in June.

A 61-year-old man who had been living on the lam in South Carolina for 17 years before being apprehended was convicted late last month of child rape and other related charges, Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III announced.

John Rodrigues of Anderson, SC, pleaded guilty in Fall River superior Court on March 23 to indictments charging him with two counts of rape of a child with force, three counts of indecent assault and battery on a person under 14 and one count of attempted indecent assault and battery on a person under 14.

Most of the rapes and molestation occurred in New Bedford on various dates from 1995 through 1997. In August 2002, the defendant attempted to molest his young neighbor, but the victim stopped him and told her mother. This disclosure led two other young girls to also come forward to report their prior victimization. The defendant, however, fled the state immediately after the August 2000 incident.

Charges issued against the defendant in 2002 and several attempts were made to locate him over the years. In 2017, he was finally tracked down to Anderson, SC and was apprehended without incident.

Between 1995 and 1997, this defendant sexually assaulted two pre-teen girls in New Bedford on multiple occasions. These two victims, who are now 27 and 34 years old, both submitted written victim impact statements to the court during the defendant’s sentencing hearing on March 23. They both described how the crimes perpetrated against them had long-lasting effects on their lives.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Matthew Friedel and Judge Sharon Donatelle sentenced the defendant to serve 10 years in state prison, to be followed by five years of supervised probation.

“The defendant took advantage of his position of trust and committed numerous acts of sexual abuse against his young nieces and a third victim. After getting caught, he fled to South Carolina where he was apprehended 17 years later,” District Attorney Quinn said. “I commend the victims for coming forward and for their perseverance in trying to move on with their lives despite the terrible trauma caused by the defendant. I hope they can find some sense of peace.”

CORRECTION: An earlier press releases stated there was one arrest, when in fact there were two arrests.

“On April 2 NBPD Narcotics and Gang Detectives seized approximately 88.5 grams of Fentanyl, a small amount of cocaine and $2,578 from a Nissan Altima in the parking lot area of 85 Coggeshall St.

Daejhon Gomes, 23, 2 Shawmut Ave., the target of the search warrant, was charged with trafficking Fentanyl and Hector Nieves, 27, 173 Coggeshall St., Apt. #1, was charged with drug possession. Nieves was arrested last July for trafficking cocaine and fentanyl. Both of his cases are pending in District Court.

Detective Bruce Szyndlar investigated the case.

If anyone has any information regarding the vehicle or operator who fled, please contact New Bedford Police at 508-991-6300.”

A Cambridge woman was arrested today and charged with stealing Social Security benefits and committing wire fraud to receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (“SNAP”) benefits, formerly known as Food Stamps.

Shirley Buchanan, 66, was indicted on one count of theft of public funds and three counts of wire fraud. She is scheduled to make an initial appearance today before U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge Jennifer Boal this afternoon.

According to the indictment, Buchanan maintained and used two Social Security numbers under two different names, both of which she applied for and received Social Security benefits under. Buchanan also allegedly applied for and received SNAP benefits she was not entitled to using the two names and numbers. As a result, Buchanan stole approximately $184,410 in Social Security benefits from March 1993 through November 2018, as well as approximately $12,916.89 in SNAP benefits from February 2012 through April 2020.

The charge of theft of public funds provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. The charge of wire fraud provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell; Tonya Perkins, Special Agent in Charge of the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Boston Field Division; and Suzanne M. Bump, State Auditor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts made the announcement today. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Burzycki of Mendell’s Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.

A 28-year-old New Bedford man who took part in the vicious beating of another man was convicted last month during a six-person Fall River Superior Court jury trial, Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III announced.

Kevin Aquino was convicted by the jury of his peers of an indictment charging him with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon–resulting in serious bodily injury. After his conviction, Judge Renee Dupuis sentenced the defendant to serve four to six years in state prison.

The conviction may be the first of its kind in modern Massachusetts history. Superior Court juries have long been comprised of 12 members, but due to the ongoing Covid-19 Pandemic, the trial court system recently began allowing for a limited number of six-person jury trials in the Superior Court. According to the new rules of limited superior court trials, the defendant must first consent to the reduced number of jurors, which in this case did occur.

The defendant stood accused—along with co-defendants whose cases still remain pending—of driving to the intersection of Phillips and Acushnet avenues to confront a male victim. Surveillance footage from the incident, which occurred around 12:40 am on June 2, 2019, show the defendant drive his 2007 Nissan Altima to the intersection. Within moments of arriving, the defendants backseat passengers emerged from the car and began attacking the victim. While the backseat passengers were attacking the victim, the defendant and a front seat passenger also exited the vehicle and entered the area where the attack was ongoing. Surveillance footage shows this defendant pick up the victim’s baseball cap and place it over his face as he laid on his back, apparently unconscious.

The victim was rushed to St. Luke’s Hospital before being transferred to Rhode Island Hospital due to the severity of his injuries. He went into cardiac arrest after being intubated and had no pulse for four minutes. He suffered multiple complex facial fractures, a broken ankle and is at risk for blindness in the future due to the injuries sustained.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Jeanne Veenstra and the trial lasted three days. The jury returned its verdict on March 19.

“I am very pleased that the jury convicted the defendant for his role in the brutal assault on the victim, who almost lost his life. A defendant has always had a right to trial by a 12-person jury in superior court. Because of the pandemic, the SJC issued an order allowing for a defendant to consent to a six-person jury trial in superior court. This defendant consented. This appears to be the first case in the history of Massachusetts and Bristol County where a defendant was tried and convicted before a jury of six in superior court,” District Attorney Quinn said.

“We have recently been harassed and vandalized by a God-fearing Christian who thinks we do evil.

She is a repeat offender and nothing is being done about it. She douses the shop with holy water, burns small sage fires, steals my cart, and tonight (4th offense I’ve called police for) she engulfed the plant/pumpkin cart in flames threatening the safety of the tenants who live above the shop, including an elderly woman on oxygen that lives upstairs.

Police have not yet heeded our warnings that this would escalate.

We ask all of you who are part of our dear witch family and community to PLEASE keep an eye out for ANY suspicious activity, and to call 911 immediately if necessary.

Then PLEASE immediately call the shop line at 774.202.1365 and please report it to Lucky!

This is NOT 1692!!!
THIS IS A HATE CRIME!!!
THE GODS DO NOT SLEEP!
JUSTICE WILL BE SERVED!!!
SMIB!!!!”

All photos by Sanctum Folklorica:

“On Friday, April 2, 2021, at approximately 8:00 p.m., Dartmouth Police were dispatched to a home regarding a domestic dispute.

Upon arrival, officers learned that one of the involved parties had been slashed several times with a razor knife, the worst wound being an approximate 11” long, ¼” deep laceration.

After interviewing both the victim and other witnesses, officers arrested a 38-year-old Dartmouth man, and charged him with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

The victim was transported to a local hospital to have their non-life-threatening wounds treated.

In order to protect the identity of the victim, neither the names of anyone involved nor the location of the incident are being released.” -Dartmouth Police Department.