A man was arrested after he escaped police in a chase that started in Rhode Island and continued into Massachusetts on Friday, according to the Newton Police Department. The driver was found unconscious in a car in an MBTA Green Line parking lot Friday evening and arrested after another attempt at escaping, according to a statement from Newton’s police chief Saturday. The driver had been speeding up Interstate 95, crossing from Rhode Island into Massachusetts, earlier in the day, according to Newton police. Massachusetts state troopers cut off the chase after the car exited the highway at Norw ..read more

A lawsuit has been filed by a Black-led running group over last year’s Boston Marathon. Lawyers on behalf of the group TrailblazHers Run Co. filed the federal lawsuit Thursday against the Boston Athletic Association — the race’s organizer — and Newton police, claiming the group was racially profiled by police. “As the Boston Athletic Association (‘BAA’)…describes it, spectators ‘play a powerful role in fostering a sense of belonging and community for participants, volunteers, staff, and fellow spectators,'” the complaint reads. TrailblazHers, however, alleges that BAA “does not extend that sam ..read more

A hostage memorial wall was rebuilt in Newton, Massachusetts, on Sunday, as the community came together to fight anti-Semitism. The posters with the names and photos of Israeli hostages being held by Hamas that were allegedly defaced and damaged by vandals last month are now back up and on full display. “I wouldn’t say it’s a happy event but we want to be upbeat, that we are all here together, we stand together, stand against anti-Semitism,” homeowner Jeff Kosowsky said. Kosowsky and his family had built the hostage wall on their private property in Newton after Hamas invaded Israel in October ..read more

Police say a man who accidentally fired a gun in a brewery in Ipswich, Massachusetts, injuring himself and a child, has been arrested. The gun went off in the dining area of the True North Ale brewery on County Road Friday afternoon. Police arrived to find a man, identified Thursday as 35-year-old Donald Terenzoni of Newton, New Hampshire, suffering from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Terenzoni was taken to a hospital to be treated, police said. A juvenile grazed by shrapnel was also brought to a hospital as a precaution. Another person who suffered a minor injury from shrapnel declined to be ..read more

[This story first appeared on Boston Restaurant Talk.] A chocolate shop in Newton Highlands will soon be joined by another outlet, this one in Boston. According to an article from Universal Hub, Cacao is planning to open a location in the South End, moving into a space on Columbus Avenue just east of the Mass. Ave. intersection. The post mentions that the upcoming store plans to be open from 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM and will have both indoor and outdoor seating. Another location of Cacao had been in Jamaica Plain until it closed at the end of 2022. The address for the upcoming location of Cacao in t ..read more

Two recent deadly fires in Massachusetts, one in Newton and one in Lowell, were likely caused by smoking materials, fire officials said Thursday, identifying the men who died in both incidents. The fire on Walnut Street in Newton on Sunday left 69-year-old Scott Patz dead and one other person with minor injuries, officials said. Smoking materials were found to have started that fire, near a couch in the living room. A 56-year-old man, Charles Bearden, died in the fire on Farmland Road in Lowell on March 16, state and local officials said in a news release. Another person was hurt in the fire ..read more

A man died from injuries he sustained in a fire in Newton, Massachusetts, on Sunday morning, authorities have confirmed. Firefighters were called to Walnut Street around 8:30 a.m.  The initial call was from an off-duty Boston firefighter who was driving down Route 9. When authorities arrived a couple of minutes later, they saw heavy fire on the first floor.  Authorities were told one person was potentially still inside and tried to save him, but unfortunately he did not survive. Firefighters entered the two-family duplex from the front, and encountered heavy flames and heat as t ..read more

A hate crime investigation is underway in Newton, Massachusetts, after posters with the names and photos of Israeli hostages being held by Hamas were allegedly defaced and damaged by vandals. In total, police say they are investigating “five instances of hate and vandalism” since late February. Vandals targeted one home twice. “Bias, hatred and targeting of those for their personal beliefs can not and will not be tolerated by the Newton Police Department,” Chief John Carmichael said in a statement. “Now is a time for solidarity to prevail in our community not divisiveness. We ask the community ..read more

Police in Newton, Massachusetts are investigating an alleged hate crime after flyers lining the fence of a home were vandalized. Nearly 100 feet of flyers posted outside of Homer Street home displaying the names and pictures of Israeli citizen taken hostage by Hamas on October 7 were defaced with spray paint, police confirmed. Newton police said the incident is being investigated as a hate crime since the incident specifically targets victims of a protected class.​ “We denounce such behavior, and our community has no tolerance for such bias and hateful acts. We will investigate the matter full ..read more

A judge has issued a final judgment on the case against the teachers’ union in Newton, Massachusetts, following a strike over contract negotiations that shut down schools for 11 days and will cost the union $625,000 in fines, but parents say they will continue to fight for compensation in the form of a class action lawsuit. According to a notice dated Tuesday, Judge Christopher Barry-Smith denied a motion to intervene filed by Chicago lawyer Daniel Suhr on behalf of Newton parents on the grounds that the case against the Newton Teachers Association is over, so the motion is moot. The class act ..read more