CRIMINAL JUSTICE

As the public learned Thursday morning about the beating death of Emma MacDonald, allegedly at the hands of her husband, at a UMass Amherst hotel, organizers were setting up an annual girls empowerment conference in the same building. The juxtaposition of events was stark.

Jeffrey MacDonald of Wilbraham, Massachusetts, was arraigned Thursday morning in connection with the murder of his wife last night, inside the hotel on the campus of the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

A Chicopee, Massachusetts, man is facing felony and other charges related to the sexual exploitation of children. His arrest in West Springfield, Mass., on Friday came about following a multi-state, multi-agency sting operation.

The Berkshire County District Attorney has cleared Officer Jeffrey Spratt of any crime for the Jan. 7 killing of Biagio Kauvil, who was having a mental health crisis.

Healy sent a letter Friday giving the Department of Homeland Security one week to provide the legal basis of every ICE arrest in Massachusetts. She says most of those arrested had no criminal record.

The Clean Slate Massachusetts campaign is pressing state lawmakers to make it seamless for eligible criminal records to be sealed.

Police unions in Holyoke have released body camera footage from the arrest of a city councilor in December. They are now calling for his resignation.

Five years ago, a predominantly Black church in Springfield, Massachusetts, named after Martin Luther King Jr., was burned down in a suspected hate crime. Church leaders say they are trying to focus not on the fire but on rebirth and forgiveness.

65-year old David Morrison, who had been serving a life sentence in California, pleaded guilty this week to a 1981 kidnapping in Berkshire County and a 1986 murder in Vermont.

Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey on Wednesday issued a stern warning to participants in what she called "illegal street meetups," pledging "zero tolerance" for the growing wave of coordinated drag racing and mass car rallies that erupted across Massachusetts over the weekend.