Anonymous letters accused a New Bedford judge of having an inappropriate relationship with a prosecutor whose cases he oversaw. A man seeking to overturn his conviction on those grounds saw his appeal dismissed on Wednesday due to a lack of credible evidence supporting the allegations.
Bristol County
Posted inCriminal Justice, South Coast Bureau
Police witness testifies about alleged cover-up at Fall River police station
A booking officer testified on Tuesday that Fall River Police Officer Nicholas Hoar struck a suspect on the head with a baton and filed a false report to avoid punishment.
Posted inCriminal Justice, South Coast Bureau
D.A. ties letters alleging misconduct in New Bedford court to ‘harasser’ with personal vendetta
Anonymous letters accused a Bristol County prosecutor of having a romantic relationship with a judge who ruled on her cases. The judge resigned shortly after.
Posted inCriminal Justice, South Coast Bureau
Fall River cop heads to trial on charges of covering up excessive force
Nicholas Hoar, a fifth-generation Fall River policeman with a lengthy internal affairs file, is accused of injuring a man’s head with a baton in 2020 and filing a false report to cover up the incident.
Posted inCriminal Justice, South Coast Bureau
Appeal alleging misconduct by New Bedford judge can move forward
The case centers on unproven rumors that a judge had an undisclosed romantic relationship with a prosecutor. It cleared a key hurdle on Wednesday as a specially appointed judge granted one of the parties the power to subpoena new evidence.
Posted inCriminal Justice, South Coast Bureau, Stories
Anonymous letters shake up old cases in a New Bedford courthouse
An attorney has filed motions for a new trial in two cases on behalf of the state’s public defender agency, which he said is conducting a larger review of hundreds of cases overseen by a judge accused in anonymous letters of having an inappropriate relationship with a criminal prosecutor.
Posted inArticle, Politics, South Coast Bureau
The enduring challenge of closing New Bedford’s 135-year-old jail
Less than a month into his first term, Bristol County Sheriff Paul Heroux announced his intention to close the Ash Street Jail. It’s one of the oldest carceral facilities in America, but the project of closing it has proven to be more difficult than expected.
Posted inArticle, Criminal Justice, South Coast Bureau
Arrest of Fall River cop raises questions about a fatal police shooting from his past
A family is calling for the re-investigation of a fatal police shooting after the officer involved was recently charged with filing false reports in another case.
Posted inEpisode, Political Roundtable
Bonus Q&A: Hodgson On ICE Detainees, Audit, Winning As A Republican & More
Bristol County, Massachusetts, Sheriff Thomas Hodgson joins Bonus Q&A to discuss a recent audit of his office, the debate over housing ICE detainees, and much more.