THE US DEPARTMENT of Justice has concluded in a scathing report that the state Department of Correction is violating its constitutional obligations by failing to provide adequate mental health services to prisoners. The 28-page investigation is rife with horrific stories of prisoners seriously harming themselves while correctional officers failed to intervene – in some cases even egging them on. As a […]
Andrew Lelling
Posted inDrug Addiction
Supervised drug use proponents trudge onward
MARYLOU SUDDERS, the governor’s secretary of health and human services, led a state commission that concluded supervised drug consumption sites would be useful tools for Massachusetts because they prevent overdose deaths and stem the spread of disease. But it’s never been clear how far she would go to launch the sites, given that US Attorney […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, State House News Service
Newton judge indicted on federal obstruction charge
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE A NEWTON DISTRICT COURT judge and former court officer were indicted Thursday on federal obstruction of justice charges for their alleged involvement in helping an undocumented immigrant evade immigration authorities. U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling announced the charges Thursday, alleging that Judge Shelley Richmond Joseph, 51, and former court officer Wesley MacGregor, […]
Posted inPolitics
Freeze criticism of ICE?
A CAMBRIDGE RESIDENT was arrested Thursday morning in New York City for allegedly tweeting that he would pay $500 to anyone who killed an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent. Today’s Boston Herald goes all in on the story, putting it on its front-page and featuring a newspaper editorial and column by Joe Battenfeld on the […]
Posted inThe Download
Freeze criticism of ICE?
A Cambridge resident was arrested Thursday morning in New York City for allegedly tweeting that he would pay $500 to anyone who killed an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent. Today’s Boston Herald goes all in on the story, putting it on its front-page and featuring a newspaper editorial and column by Joe Battenfeld on the […]
Posted inPolitics
Words matter in immigration debate
To say there’s a chasm as wide as the Rio Grande between both sides of the immigration debate would be an understatement. The conversation about compromise is a non-starter because neither side can even agree on what terms to use. US Attorney for Massachusetts Andrew Lelling, in a recent sit-down with CommonWealth, acknowledged his office […]
Posted inPolitics
Lelling: Trump’s point man in Massachusetts
ANDREW LELLING, the US Attorney for Massachusetts, is emerging as a loyal Donald Trump lieutenant in one of the bluest states in the country. Little was known about Lelling when Trump nominated him for the post last September. He had worked the previous 12 years in the office, first under Michael Sullivan and then Carmen […]
Posted inThe Download
Lelling: Trump’s point man in Massachusetts
Andrew Lelling, the US Attorney for Massachusetts, is emerging as a loyal Donald Trump lieutenant in one of the bluest states in the country. Little was known about Lelling when Trump nominated him for the post last September. He had worked the previous 12 years in the office, first under Michael Sullivan and then Carmen […]
Posted inThe Back Story
US Attorney carries Trump’s message on immigrants
WHEN PRESIDENT TRUMP took office 19 months ago, the US Attorney’s office in Massachusetts started issuing more and more press releases about cases where the defendants were identified by their nationality, a move designed to draw attention to the administration’s claim that illegal immigrants pose a danger to society. “One of the things we wanted […]