The Springfield City Council overwhelmingly voted Tuesday to authorize litigation against Mayor Domenic Sarno to compel implementation of the city’s Police Commission ordinance. The law passed over the mayor’s veto, has been in limbo since its passage four years ago. Despite this, Sarno has refused
Several months after accepting the pro bono representation from two Valley attorneys, the Springfield City Council appears ready to sue. Nearly four years after it passed an ordinance to revive the Police Commission—followed swiftly by Mayor Domenic Sarno’s promise to ignore a duly passed law—councilors
SPRINGFIELD—The City Council virtually returned from August’s semi-recess Monday to find a massive pile of fresh items on the floor requiring attention. The vast majority were financial, but several were also complex. Others fell under the Community Preservation Act (CPA) demanding more scrutiny than the
By Michael Lachenmeyer Correspondent-Intern When the 9th Hampden District was first established, it covered several small rural communities to the south and west of Springfield proper, including the towns of Agawam, Southwick, and Granville. However, over the course of the late 19th century, the borders
SPRINGFIELD—An accord to end the tensions between area social justice organizers and a local watering hole had already come together. But, as the sun beat down Saturday afternoon, it did feel as though the passing of Civil Rights icon Congressman John Lewis the night before,
UPDATED 10:37AM: To include statements from the City Council. After a two-year investigation, officials from the Department of Justice have found a disquieting pattern excessive force, shoddy and false recordkeeping and crummy supervision in the Narcotics Bureau of the Springfield Police Department. The damning portrait
Blessed are the viewers of public access, for they shall inherit knowledge of their community’s affairs. However, even devotees of Springfield government television may have mistaken what was the central issue during this past week’s budget hearings. If one could get past the City Clerk’s
SPRINGFIELD—Horses are in the streets. Fireworks are flying through the air—and more than a few houses. Mayoral chicanery is afoot on the Police Commission and Council unanimity reigns on steps to produce racial progress. Such was the nearly five-hour virtual meeting Monday. The remote nature
SPRINGFIELD—City Councilors voted Tuesday to accept legal counsel from a pair of Northampton-based lawyers in the ongoing dispute with the mayor over the Police Commission. Some 42 months after the body revived the Commission over Mayor Domenic Sarno’s veto, it remains in limbo. Sarno has
UPDATED 4:32PM: To include reaction from AG Healey’s office. SPRINGFIELD—In an abrupt reversal, Mayor Domenic Sarno apologized for the reinstatement of five cops charged with lying to investigators looking into the 2015 fracas outside Nathan Bill’s Bar & Restaurant. In a late morning press conference