West Roxbury

Temple Street in West Roxbury today once again hosted the annual Shamrock Shootout, which has grown from a small neighborhood block party to an event large enough to feature a sitting US senator dropping the ceremonial first puck (well, yellow plastic ball, actually).

Managers at certain Boston restaurants and bars make frequent trips to the Boston Licensing Board to answer police citations for liquor-law violations. The Corrib Pub in West Roxbury is not one of them. Today, however, Corrib manager Tony Bligh had to explain why police on a routine inspection found two 20-year-old women with Coors Lites in front of them on Jan. 5.

Bligh offered no excuses - in fact, he read a statement that started, "I am embarrassed to be in front of this board."

Brian D'Amico and Dan Adams report a guy was hit by a train around 8:30 p.m. on the Needham Line tracks between Home Depot and the West Roxbury Education Complex.

Are those snow clouds moving in over the Great Blue Hill this morning? The scene from the top of Millennium Park in West Roxbury.

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Matt goes to his first Democratic ward caucus - held at the West Roxbury Pub:

Folks kept coming in as the big hand passed 12 on the clock, while city councilors (I counted four) circulated around the room, shaking hands and working magic. I made my way to the far back corner, where I found a place to stand between the end of a long table and the back exit. Admittedly, I wasn’t introducing myself to people. Being in the guts of Boston’s fabled Democratic party machine was overwhelming me, and I was admittedly distracted by a combination of the cultural value of the room, an almost total lack of any but white people, and little bets I was making with myself about who would start smoking first before everyone pulled out their packs of Pall Malls and began the process of tobacco-curing the entire delegation.

Also, he discovers Anna's Do-Nuts.

In addition to the guy charged with robbing a bank at lunchtime with a gazillion cops around and the guy charged with being unable to hold anybody up at gunpoint, let us now consider the two alleged criminal masterminds done in when a cop wondered why they were pulling a 36-inch TV on a dolly behind their car down Spring Street in West Roxbury.

Boston Police report the Tedeschi store at 7 Spring St. was robbed this morning by a gun-toting man who knocked the clerk to the ground in a struggle before grabbing money out of the register.

Police say a thin white man about 6' and in his mid 20s entered the store around 5:15 a.m., showed a gun and demanded money. After the struggle, the man, dressed in a black hoodie, drove away in a black Ford Ranger pickup, police say. The clerk suffered a minor injury but declined medical attention, police say.

A federal appeals court ruled yesterday that Peoples Federal Savings Bank has no grounds to immediately bar the Connecticut-based People's United Bank from opening branches in the Boston area under that name.

Boston Police report a deer jumped in front of a startled motorist around 8:30 p.m. yesterday, causing a two-car crash - and its own demise - on Baker Street near the cemeteries.

On arrival, officers observed two cars, one that appeared to have rear-ended the other, and a deceased deer in the roadway. Officers spoke to the operator of the first car who stated that she was driving along Baker Street when the deer came out of nowhere and jumped in front of her motor vehicle. According to the operator, she was unable to avoid the animal.

Police say a driver behind the first car was unable to stop in time and hit the back of the first car. Both cars, however, were able to leave the scene under their own power, unlike the deer.

In December, another deer met its demise in front of Faulkner Hospital in Jamaica Plain, when it collided with a Boston Police cruiser.

Look what you can buy at Super Flash T-Shirts on Centre Street in West Roxbury.

True, spark plugs are not normally considered contraband - unless you allegedly use one to try to break into a car, as a West Roxbury man learned in the South End last night.

Jonathan Holcomb, 34, was charged with breaking and entering a motor vehicle and possession of a burglarious tool - the spark plug - after a witness spotted him using the metal object to try to break the window of a car on Appleton Street near Clarendon around 11:30 p.m., police report.

This is not Holcomb's first arrest for an attempted car break-in.

Innocent, etc.

Steve Garfield spotted this Patriots cake at the West Roxbury Roche Bros.

Posted under this Creative Commons license. Tagged as universalhub on Flickr.

Boston Police report arresting a Dorchester man on charges he was wandering around Garnet Road breaking into cars.

Boston Police are looking for an SUV-driving white guy for the hold-up of the Eastern Bank branch at Centre and LaGrange streets around 1:30 p.m.

He's further described as being about 6'2" and wearing a black Nike cap and black sunglasses. He was reported to be driving a black mid-size SUV - Westie bank robbers don't bother messing with public transit.

Zyoma Vasserman of Newton, who has a long history of traffic offenses, was doing 59 m.p.h. in a 30-m.p.h. zone when he killed a kid crossing the VFW Parkway in West Roxbury in June, the Suffolk County District Attorney's office charges.

Boston Police report a woman who'd gone to a friend's house in the area of Glenham Road and Kingsland Street yesterday afternoon to take her dog out for a walk found a man inside, putting things in a bag:

The suspect fled out of the door upon seeing the witness and was pursued by the witness until she came upon officers where officers took on the pursuit. The witness directed officers along the path that she had pursued the suspect before she came upon the officers where they recovered the bag that the suspect had with stolen items from the house. The owners of the house responded to the scene and positively identified all the items that were stolen from their apartment.

Terrence M. Kelley, 36, of West Roxbury was arrested on LaGrange Street and charged with breaking and entering a dwelling in the daytime, larceny from a building, knowingly receiving stolen property and resisting arrest.

Kelley was ordered held in lieu of $2,000 bail at his arraignment in West Roxbury District Court, the Suffolk County District Attorney's office reports. He was also ordered to stay away from the area around LaGrange and VFW Parkway.

Innocent, etc.

Boston Police report a Boylston Street teen who allegedly tossed a box full of guns and crack out a window and a West Roxbury man hiding in a crawl space over his bathroom were arrested yesterday afternoon as part of an investigation into crack dealing.

Niko Flores, 17, was arrested around 2:30 p.m. at his apartment at 209 Boylston St. by officers who'd arrived there with a search warrant. An officer assigned to guard the rear of the building looked up just in time to see:

West Roxbury Patch reports on some alleged domestic A&B that includes a roommate siding with the alleged attacker because women shouldn't kiss other men in West Roxbury bars.

Centre Street's culinary diversity expanded again Friday night when Red-Eyed Pig opened for business where Fresh Catch to Go used to be, just off of Belgrade.

They have some burger and chicken things on the menu, but, of course, you're going to go there for the pig things (St. Louis and baby back ribs, pulled pork and smoked pork belly, along with green chile and pork-belly donuts) and brisket, slathered in barbecue sauce. Or if you can't decide, there's the Piggy - a burger topped with pork belly, beef brisket, pulled pork, melted cheddar, tomato jam and barbecue sauce (fries and cardiologist visit extra).

Even without any advertising, word's quickly gotten out - the place was packed Friday and was pretty busy when we stopped by Saturday evening. It's pretty much a takeout place, although they have outfitted a counter with seats for four or five people.

Boston Restaurant Talk reports the place has the same owner as the Blue-Eyed Crab in Plymouth. No word is she's a green-eyed lady.

Pazzo Books in West Roxbury now has a window display that features Atlas Shrugged pepper-spraying 1984.

Wicked Local West Roxbury reports a Subway franchise is planned for that office-ish building at Centre and Corey, next to the West Roxbury Pharmacy - just like the one that opened this week in Roslindale.

West Roxbury Patch reports on the latest car break-in rash in Boston's most suburban neighborhood.

• 2010: Three guys with pit bull sought for ransacking unlocked cars in West Roxbury and West Roxbury residents once again shocked to learn they need to lock their cars overnight
• 2009: Police say string of car breakins a reminder to West Roxbury residents: Lock your car doors at night already
• 2007: Police offer radical advice to West Roxbury residents worried about car break-ins

The Payless store on Centre Street has a big "CLOSING" banner hanging from the front.

Take this citizen complaint about leaves partially covering a storm grate in Jamaica Plain. Surely, in the amount of time it took to take a picture and compose a complaint, the alert citizen could have kicked the leaves away.

The picture taker could take a lesson from some West Roxbury commuters this morning. As Mikhaela Houston reports, when they noticed a small tree lying across the tracks, they swung into action and moved the damned thing so the train could get through and they could get to work.

And then there's Citizens Connect devotee Susan Labandibar's action plan.