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Boston Globe
a day ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
75 years later, Malcolm X's pardon request resurfaced in Massachusetts. What should the state do with it?
Malcolm X pardon file. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Nearly 75 years later, the pardon file for the future civil rights leader surfaced amid a routine renovation of a state government building. The documents provide a snapshot of the budding activist during a formative time. By the time of the report, he had converted to Islam in prison and begun advocating about racial issues. The discovery of the documents also provides an opportunity, according to the Governor's Council member whose staff found them, for the state to take a small step to acknowledge a historic wrong. Related : Advertisement Terrence Kennedy, the council member and a longtime defense attorney, said Governor Maura Healey's office should grant the pardon request posthumously for Malcolm X. The sentencing, Kennedy said, was unduly severe. 'It was excessive, and I cant believe that race wasn't a factor,' he told the Globe. Healey's office did not comment. Members of Malcolm X's family, who still live in Roxbury, said the documents bring an interesting opportunity for a teaching moment. Advertisement 'It was an exorbitantly harsh punishment,' said Malcolm X's grandnephew Arjun Collins. Still, a pardon just for pardon's sake would feel like an empty gesture, he said: 'Too little, too late.' But there's a way of doing this right, he said. The state could use this as an occasion to take a broader look at mass incarceration rather than just one man. Examine how Black people were by the criminal justice system treated before, and how disparities remain. 'In the end, words don't mean anything,' Collins said. 'Only action means something.' Malcolm X speaks to reporters in Washington, D.C., May 16, 1963. Uncredited/Associated Press Malcolm X's pardon request, filed Dec. 4, 1950, contains a small amount of biographical information in what appears to be his own hand. He wrote his name as Malcolm X. Little, adding that he was born in Omaha, Nebraska, on May 19, 1925. The file also contains reports created by state bureaucrats detailing Malcolm X's personal and criminal histories to analyze whether he should be granted a pardon. He grew up in Michigan until his teenage years when, in 1940, he came to live with his half-sister Ella Collins in Roxbury. He started taking odd jobs, according to reports and his autobiography: a busboy, a shoe shiner, and a soda jerk. He also began doing drugs and gambling. In 1945, according to the pardon file, he began burglarizing homes, a step up from the petty crimes he had been picked up for previously. The pardon board wrote that the 20-year-old Malcolm X, along with with two other men and three women, 'made a practice of driving around, spotting darkened houses that looked like good prospects to rifle, breaking in, and carrying off house furnishings, jewelry, and clothing.' Advertisement The reports in the pardon file lists breaks in Belmont, Milton, Arlington, Brookline, Newton, and Walpole, from November 1945 to January 1946, when he was arrested and admitted to the break-ins. He was arraigned in Quincy District Court that Jan. 16. Over the next several months he was sentenced in three different counties, in effect resulting in a sentence of eight to 10 years in prison. He appealed some of the sentences, the report says, and was denied. Malcolm X filed his sparse pardon request in December 1950. It doesn't appear to make much of an argument, other than citing his half-sister, Ella Collins, as someone who would vouch for him. Another piece of paper lists the name of a political science professor in Texas, but the purpose of that paper isn't clear. Pardon-board staff compiled a report of his personal and criminal history. The report, which is part of the file, says he would be eligible for parole a few months later, in June 1951, though his sentence could run through February 1956. That report ended with a recommendation that the governor deny his request. The application passed through the district attorney's and attorney general's offices. They, too, recommended denial. 'The members of the board have reviewed all the facts in connection with this case, but can find no extenuating circumstances which would warrant executive clemency,' the board wrote in a letter to Dever, the governor, on Jan. 30, 1951. The pardon file does not have any documentation of the governor's decision, though it's clear in retrospect that Malcolm X was not pardoned because he was paroled out in August 1952. Advertisement Over the 14 years after his release, Malcolm X's public persona would rise meteorically as the civil rights movement gained steam. He worked to found the Nation of Islam's No. 11 Mosque in Roxbury, and rose through the ranks of the Black nationalist organization. Related : But after he split with Elijah Muhammad, the Nation's leader, he was assassinated in 1965 at age 39. Three men who were members of the group were charged and convicted, though two of the men have won motions to have their convictions vacated in recent years. The firebrand activist gained fame with a more militant approach to the push for civil rights than his contemporary the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Sixty years after his death, Boston hasn't forgotten the man who lived here, who stole here, who found a purpose here, who preached here. A large street cutting through the middle of Roxbury bears his name, and so does the park near the Dale Street home where he and his sister lived. That home has been The fact that someone in Kennedy's office bothered to recognize the old document and potentially do something with it, Rodnell Collins said, means that people are interested in learning from the past and continuing to seek ways to improve. 'This is what my family and uncle were about,' Rodnell Collins said, clad in a florescent yellow work vest as he labored on the house. 'Teaching, and learning.' Advertisement Sean Cotter can be reached at
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Yahoo
Karen Read's defense rests its case in her retrial for the death of her police officer boyfriend
Defense attorneys for Karen Read rested their case Wednesday, bringing her retrial for the death of her Boston police officer boyfriend one step closer to its blockbuster conclusion. Judge Beverly Cannone indicated closing arguments will begin Friday, with jurors expected to begin deliberating thereafter. Prosecutors have accused Read of hitting John O'Keefe with her SUV in January 2022 during a wintry night out drinking with friends – alleging she struck the off-duty officer while driving in reverse and left him to die outside a home in Canton, Massachusetts. Read's defense has claimed she is the victim of a cover-up, alleging other off-duty law enforcement inside that home killed O'Keefe, placed his body on the lawn and conspired to frame her. But their case during the retrial – the first ended with a hung jury – appeared more focused on sowing doubt in jurors' minds about the quality of the investigation, rather than substantiating the theory of a third-party culprit. Both sides have concentrated on the forensic evidence, with expert witnesses for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and Read's defense offering conflicting theories about what caused O'Keefe's fatal injuries. The Commonwealth presented testimony and evidence it said showed O'Keefe was hit by Read's vehicle around 12:30 a.m. on January 29, 2022, pointing to data taken from his phone and Read's SUV, as well as fragments of the vehicle's taillight found scattered across the scene. In prosecutors' telling, the collision threw O'Keefe to the cold ground, causing blunt force injuries to his head that left him incapacitated as the snowfall buried him. Prosecutors also presented evidence suggesting the couple was at odds leading up to O'Keefe's death. That included text messages indicating they were fighting on January 28. In the hours after prosecutors say O'Keefe died, Read called him dozens of times, testimony showed, leaving eight scathing voicemails. 'F**k yourself,' Read said. Read's attorneys challenged this theory: Their experts testified some of O'Keefe's injures – specifically cuts and scratches on his arm – were caused by a dog, and that the damage to Read's taillight was inconsistent with it striking a person. The defense also worked to undermine confidence in the investigation, highlighting sexist and offensive text messages the lead investigator, Michael Proctor, sent about the defendant, which ultimately led to his dishonorable discharge from the Massachusetts State Police. Proctor, however, was never called to testify. Read also chose not to take the stand. Throughout the prosecution's case, the Commonwealth played numerous clips taken from interviews Read provided news outlets and documentary film crews, using her own words to highlight inconsistencies in her account and refute the defense's arguments. 'I didn't think I hit him, hit him,' Read said in one clip taken from her October 2024 interview for NBC's 'Dateline.' 'But could I have clipped him? Could I have tagged him in the knee and incapacitated him? He didn't look mortally wounded as far as I could see,' Read said, 'but could I have done something that knocked him out and, in his drunkenness, and in the cold, (he) didn't come to again?' Asked Tuesday if she would testify, Read confirmed she would not, nodding to the many clips played in court, according to CNN affiliate WCVB. The jury, she said, has 'heard my interview clips. They've heard my voice. They've heard a lot of me.' This story has been updated with additional information.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
‘A quiet hero': Mass. department mourning unexpected death of active-duty firefighter
A fire department in the Bay State's Merrimack Valley is mourning the unexpected death of an active-duty firefighter. Firefighter Jeffrey Deschenes died this week at a local hospital after experiencing a medical emergency, North Andover Fire Chief John Weir and Deputy Chief Graham Rowe announced Friday. He was 54. Deschenes was named North Andover's first EMS Coordinator in 2019 and is credited with bringing the fire department to the forefront of pre-hospital care. 'Jeff Deschenes brought the North Andover Fire Department into the modern era of emergency medicine and treatment, and his life's work undoubtedly saved and improved the lives of countless people,' Chief Weir said in a statement. 'He was a quiet hero in our community and a true brother in the fire service. He will be missed. I speak on behalf of all the men and women of the North Andover Fire Department in extending my heartfelt sympathies to Jeff's wife, children, and his entire family. We mourn this loss with you.' Deschenes was also named a Firefighter of the Year by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 2019 for his response to the 2018 Merrimack Valley natural gas disaster, in addition to earning an array of other accolades. 'Jeff's impact reached far beyond his firefighting duties, touching the lives of many in the Merrimack Valley and the region,' Deputy Chief Rowe said in a statement. 'He was always willing to lend a helping hand in any way possible, looking out for his fellow firefighters, friends, family, and the community.' Deschenes began his career with the Lawrence Fire Department in 2000 and served 12 years there before transferring to North Andover in 2012. Town Manager Melissa Rodrigues added, 'The Town of North Andover mourns the loss of a good and dedicated firefighter, friend, and a true professional. Our community offers its unwavering support to his family at home and his family in the firehouse during their time of need.' Deschenes is survived by his wife and two children. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
Boston Globe
26-05-2025
- General
- Boston Globe
Today in History: May 26, the World War II Dunkirk evacuation begins
Advertisement In 1775, 250 years ago, the Second Continental Congress resolved to begin preparations for military defense but also sent a petition of reconciliation, the 'Olive Branch Petition,' to King George III. That action took place one day after British generals William Howe, Henry Clinton, and John Burgoyne arrived in Boston with reinforcements for military commander and governor Thomas Gage. In 1864, President Abraham Lincoln signed a measure creating the Montana Territory. In 1869, Boston University is chartered by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. In 1924, President Calvin Coolidge signed the Immigration Act of 1924, which barred immigration from Asia and restricted the total number of immigrants from other parts of the world to 165,000 annually. In 1927, the Ford Model T officially ended production as Henry Ford and his son Edsel drove the 15 millionth Model T off the Ford assembly line in Highland Park, Mich. Advertisement In 1938, the House Un-American Activities Committee was established by Congress. In 1940, Operation Dynamo, the evacuation of more than 338,000 Allied troops from Dunkirk, France, began during World War II. In 1954, an explosion occurred aboard the aircraft carrier USS Bennington off Rhode Island, killing 103 sailors. In 1967, the Beatles album 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' was released. In 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev signed the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty in Moscow, following the SALT I negotiations between the US and the Soviet Union. (The US withdrew from the treaty under President George W. Bush in 2002.) In 1981, 14 people were killed when a Marine jet crashed onto the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz off Florida. In 2009, California's Supreme Court upheld the state's Proposition 8 same-sex marriage ban, but said the 18,000 same-sex weddings that had taken place before the prohibition passed were still valid. (Same-sex marriage became legal nationwide in June 2015.) 2009, President Barack Obama nominated federal appeals judge Sonia Sotomayor to the US Supreme Court. In 2011, Ratko Mladić, the brutal Bosnian Serb general suspected of leading the massacre of 8,000 Muslim men and boys in Srebrenica, was arrested after a 16-year manhunt. (Extradited to face trial in The Hague, Netherlands, Mladić was convicted in 2017 on genocide and war crimes charges and is serving a life sentence.)
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Plymouth County town sues state over MBTA Communities Act, calling it ‘unreasonable'
A Plymouth County town filed a lawsuit against the state on Friday, saying they shouldn't have to alter its zoning to accommodate housing under the MBTA Communities Act. The town of Middleborough, who is currently one of six Massachusetts towns not in compliance with the 2021 law, says the 'one-size-fits-all interpretation' is 'unreasonable.' 'For generations, Middleborough's leaders have been thoughtful, responsible stewards of its future,' said Town Manager Jay McGrail. What we've done in Middleborough should be modeled and celebrated, not punished.' The MBTA Communities Act requires communities served by the MBTA to create a zone for multifamily housing. The town becomes the first in the state to officially sue the governor's office, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities over this law. SJC upholds MBTA Zoning Law but strikes regulations In a statement, Governor Maura Healey says the MBTA Communities Act was passed with nearly unanimous support in the Legislature, signed by a Republican Governor, and is simply being implemented by her administration. 'The law is not an unfunded mandate, and it is unfortunate that some communities are choosing to use the Division of Local Mandates' advisory opinion to try to stall its implementation,' the statement read. 'The law is essential to our efforts to lower the high cost of housing, which we know is one of the greatest challenges facing the people of Massachusetts. We are proud that 119 communities have already adopted new zoning under this law, with more than 3,300 new housing units in the pipeline because of it.' Middleborough contends that they're in compliance with the law because they've already enacted a 'Smart Growth Zoning District' whichis comprised of 40.4 acres, all within a half-mile of an MBTA Commuter rail station and where multi-family housing is allowed at a density of 20 units per acre. 'If the state wants to see how responsible growth and expanding housing opportunities works when municipal government acts responsibly, then we would be happy to show our leaders how what we have done should be a model for success statewide,' said Middleborough Select Board Chair Mark Germain. The lawsuit comes about as Middleborough missed their compliance deadline earlier this week. Because of this, the town claims they are missing out on millions in state funding. In filing the lawsuit, town officials are hoping to halt what they call a 'broadsword approach' to statewide housing. Healey's office says the law will be vigorously defended by Attorney General Andrea Campbell's office. 'We're committed to working with all towns to turn these plans into new housing and lower costs for all of our residents,' Healey said. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
