Dorchester

Strangely, though, the correction to the story that alleged Boston police had detained two people in connection with the Dorchester quadruple slaying did not run on page 1. The Herald writes today:

While saying certain aspects of the story were inaccurate, police sources acknowledged others "were not beyond the realm of probability."

On its blog yesterday, the Boston Police Department said the Herald story was:

NOT TRUE

The Herald, though, now says its sources (presumably not the same ones who said two possible perps were in custody) said:

major points in the story were correct.

My standard newspaper disclosure.

The Herald today reports: POLICE NAB TWO - BREAK IN MASSACRE MYSTERY. Sergeant Detective Thomas Sexton, commander of the Boston PD's Office of Media Relations, uses the department's new blog to say the story is absolutely incorrect:

The "sources" are not credible. THE STORY IS NOT TRUE.

While homicide investigators, working around the clock, try not to be distracted by rumors and speculation, a story of this nature is very damaging. Commanders and detectives must now spend the next several hours contacting the victims' families and other witnesses to set the record straight rather than following important leads in this case. ...

My standard newspaper disclosure.

Relatives of the four men murdered in Dorchester are outraged that nobody with information seems to be coming forward. The feds have joined the search for their murderers (Commissioner O'Toole says people should not read anything into that except that Boston and the feds have a close working relationship). A bill aimed at cracking down on witness intimidation might not get through the House; Speaker DiMasi says his chamber has other priorities and that law enforcement already has the tools it needs.

Three alleged Dorchester gangbangers sentenced on racketeering charges.

Rev. Eugene Rivers, long an anti-violence activist, testified for a man accused of shooting two police officers in 2003 . Rivers said the man had become mentally ill.

State Police seize coke, cash and a loaded AK-47 in a Harbor Point raid.

Boston Police are on the lookout for a Blaine Hair School student who allegedly attacked two men with a mannequin pole on Thursday afternoon outside the 30 West St. (Downtown Crossing) school.

On Save Hip Hop, Bobo calls for the re-establishment of the hip-hop based Massachusetts Anti Violence:

The violence is getting worse folks. Can you imagine Christmas for these families? Plus someone is probably going to spend the holidays in jail. Fortunate enough, at this moment, I can say I know no one involved. However someone out there does. This is tragic on so many levels. We cannot let hip hop be the scapegoat for this one, however it will. ...

Globe: Dead mourned; hunt is launched and Dorchester oasis faces trouble in neighborhood

Herald: Massive manhunt for gutless gunmen: Four men blown away in studio. Also: Atrocity doesn’t fit mold and Violence may send fearful residents packing

Adrian Walker suggests local preachers are out of touch with today's murdering thugs.

Charles picks up today's Globe, which has a story about Rehoboth and Dedham contesting Boston Latin's claim to be the the first public school in what is now America - and he promptly goes pshaw:

... Apparently Rehoboth (in 1643) and Dedham (in 1644) voted to have a tax to support public schools, which is the basis of their claims for being the birthplace of public education. But what about Dorchester? Dorchester established the first free tax supported public school in the Commonwealth in 1639. ...

And what of Boston Latin's claim? Double pshaw, he explains (after first quoting from Dorchester town records).

Charles cannot believe a developer would be so stupid as to pull down a historic Beacon Hill building without a permit - and is equally amazed at what some builders are trying to foist on Dorchester, with the help of a lax city landmark code:

One Dorchester example is 40 Hancock Street, a five minute walk from my house, where a developer wants to replace a Colonial Revival house which had been used as a funeral home with ten residential and two commercial units on an approximately 13,000 square foot lot. The lot is zoned as a commercial subdistrict (which allowed the funeral home use), but the abutting residential zoning is 5000 3F, or a minimum of 5000 square feet to build a three family house. Needless to say, the scale of the project is inappropriate for an already dense urban neighborhood. ...

Sam Yoon has declared this the weekend of Dorchester and will be trying to convince people there to vote for him because he's from Dorchester. I thought at-large candidates represent the whole city. Hmm, I have one vote left; I think I'll vote for Matt O'Malley because, like me, he's from Roslindale. Sorry, Sam.

Rich, famous Bostonians are no more likely to vote than us poor shlubs. But that's because they're too busy doing Important Stuff.

The Girl, Jewish and white, gets to thinking about the topic when she overhears two women - one on the ground, one on a third-floor balcony - talking about the weekend Caribbean carnival in Franklin Park:

... The balcony woman explained that she had brought a couple of friends and the friends "had fun even though they're white." I was pulling grocery bags out of the car at that point, and I think I sensed a notable moment of uncomfortable silence, as both women must have acknowledged my presence. They went on with their conversation, and I went on with my task. ...

Even Carpundit is alarmed at the lack of defense lawyers for poor defendants in Dorchester District Court:

... I'm about the last one to care what happens to criminals - I've spent my professional life fighting them - but I care a lot about the Constitution and about the fair administration of justice in this country. The breakdown needs to be fixed right now.

John, the blogging real-estate broker, says that despite what the Herald reported last month, single-family and condo prices in Dorchester are not falling this year:

... Actually, this is now really burning my ass. I am all for a serious discussion about the housing market and bubbles, and all that, but people have to use real data and be educated, if they want to be taken seriously.

My standard newspaper disclosure.

The Cedar Grove Civic Association recently voted against the use of a local house as a group home for the mentally retarded. For shame, Christopher says:

... Our houses are worth more than ever before, our neighborhood is safe and yet there is real outrage that disabled people should want to live in this environment. The opponents of the house sale use fear of the unknown, fear of falling property values, fear of the mentally disabled to stoke their neighbors' ire. I live in Dorchester because I believe there is no substitute for the diversity and strength of community here. There is an ugly element of intolerance for anything or anyone that goes beyond the norm in the civic association's rejection of Bay Cove's bid to purchase the Chelmsford Street House. ...

Jodie gets e-mail from the tenant of John Beresford, the man murdered in the park he'd done so much to fix up:

... John and Adam were/are such great people and it breaks our heart to know this happened for only $40 in a purse.

On the 375th anniversary of First Parish Church in Dorchester, Charles offers a history of the early days of the neighborhood - which was actually founded before Boston:

... Those who met in Plymouth, England to come to Dorchester were carefully selected: two ministers, two magistrates of the Massachusetts Bay Company, which had invested in the journey, several older men with adult families, and a group of single or just married men. In this last group we see the names that have stayed in Dorchester's history: Stoughton, Clap, Minot, Hall, Strong. Some men were chosen for their military experience. On March 20, 1630 this group elected the Reverends John Warham and John Maverick their leaders, and embarked on the Mary and John for America. ...

Charles shows you just can't always believe what you read. The Globe today printed an AP "This Day in History" blurb that the first town meeting in America was in 1743 in Faneuil Hall. In fact, the first town meeting was Oct. 8, 1633 in the town of Dorchester.