The Star Store, a former university arts campus in downtown New Bedford that closed abruptly in 2023, has been sold to a nonprofit that develops housing and workspace for artists. The Arts & Business Council Of Greater Boston purchased the Star Store for $1 on Thursday, according to a deed filed with the Bristol County […]
South Coast Bureau
Posted inImmigration, Local, South Coast Bureau
New Bedford man arrested in ICE road stop is released on bond
Juan Francisco Méndez is being reunited with his family after nearly a month at the Strafford County Department of Corrections in Dover, N.H. He was released Thursday on a $1,500 bond, according to his attorney, Ondine Galvez-Sniffin. Méndez was detained in April after ICE agents smashed through his car window with an axe. He was […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Local, South Coast Bureau
Special master to investigate claims of a courthouse romance in New Bedford
A justice from Massachusetts’ highest court has appointed a special master to investigate claims that a New Bedford judge carried on a romance with a prosecutor while ruling on her cases. The allegations were first circulated in anonymous letters that swept through the New Bedford District Court in the fall of 2023, offering salacious details […]
Posted inImmigration, Local, South Coast Bureau
New Bedford resident due to be released from ICE detention remains in custody
A Guatemalan man detained last month in New Bedford after immigration agents used an axe to break through his car window is still being held at a New Hampshire detention facility despite a judge’s order to dismiss his case. Juan Francisco Méndez was expected to be released last Thursday after Immigration Court Judge Donald Ostrom […]
Posted inImmigration, Local, South Coast Bureau
Guatemalan man detained in New Bedford due to be released after judge’s order
Immigration Court Judge Donald Ostrom said he was dismissing a case against Juan Francisco Méndez because immigration authorities had failed to properly file the necessary paperwork to charge him, according to his attorney, Ondine Galvez-Sniffin. In court, Galvez-Sniffin said, the the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was unable to account for itself when asked about […]
Posted inEn Español, Immigration, Local, South Coast Bureau
‘Tienes que seguir adelante’: Cómo un arresto infame de ICE cambió la vida de una familia
Click here to read in English. Marilú Domingo Ortiz dice que Lunes, abril 14, comenzó como cualquier otro día. “Mi esposa tenía una cita en la clínica con el dentista, estábamos yendo por la cita”, Marilú dijo. Marilú dice que ella y su esposo, Juan Francisco Méndez, fueron detenidos mientras estaban manejando por la calle […]
Posted inImmigration, Local, South Coast Bureau
‘I need to keep fighting’: How an ICE arrest changed one New Bedford family
Haga clic aquí para leer en español. Marilú Domingo Ortiz says Monday, April 14, started like any other uneventful weekday. “My husband had a dentist appointment which we were driving to,” said Marilú. Marilú says she and her husband, Juan Francisco Méndez, were stopped while driving on Tallman Street in New Bedford. That’s where two […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Local, South Coast Bureau
Fall River pays $100,000 to settle another police brutality case
The City of Fall River has agreed to pay $100,000 to settle an excessive force lawsuit against a former problem police officer, who has now cost the city over $400,000 in settlements to resolve various police brutality cases. The settlement resolves a federal lawsuit filed by David LaFrance, a Fall River resident who accused former […]
Posted inEnvironment, Local, South Coast Bureau
Massachusetts communities that bet big on wind face uncertainty
Since taking office in January, President Trump has worked to fulfill a campaign promise to shut down the young offshore wind industry in the U.S. He stopped all federal permitting, and this week, his administration issued a stop-work order to a project under construction off the coast of New York. These actions have sent a […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Local, South Coast Bureau
Conflict escalates at top of Fall River Police Department
When former police chief Paul Gauvin was clearing out his office this fall, he thought he was coming back in a few months as a captain. But because of the items he left behind, the former chief was fired instead. Along with office junk like paper clips and push pins, Gauvin left a knife and […]
