Jabrai Jordan Copney, 20, of New York City, New York,
turned himself in to authorities at the Cambridge Police Station
yesterday at approximately 7:10  p.m. He has been charged with murder,
accessory after the fact to murder, and possession of a firearm.  

At
today's arraignment, he was ordered held without bail in Cambridge
District Court. His next court appearance is scheduled for  July 15 for
a probable cause hearing.             

According to authorities,
on Monday, May 18, at approximately 4:48 p.m., the Harvard University
Police responded to the Kirkland House located on Dunster Street in
Cambridge on reports of shots fired. Cambridge Police were also
notified and responded to the scene.             

Cosby,
suffering from an apparent gunshot wound to the abdomen, had left
the Kirkland House and stumbled to the intersection of Dunster Street
and Mount Auburn Street. He was transported to Beth Israel Hospital and
was pronounced dead  early on the morning of May 19.             

Massachusetts
State Police assigned  to the Middlesex District Attorney's Office,
Cambridge Police, and Harvard Police began an investigation into the 
circumstances of the shooting.             

Based on that
investigation, it was determined that the defendant, who is not
a student at Harvard University, was visiting friends at the campus. It
is alleged that the defendant, along with others,confronted Cosby in a
common area inside the Kirkland House. During the course of the
confrontation,multiple shots were fired. One of those shots struck
Cosby, resulting in his  death. It is believed that the defendant and
Cosby were known to one another.  

The defendant and others involved fled the scene. 

 This investigation
is ongoing into the circumstances of the shooting as well as into other
suspects who may have been involved.  

The prosecutor assigned
to the case is Assistant District Attorney and Senior Trial Counsel
Daniel Bennett. The victim witness advocate is Helena Clarke. The
case is being investigated by Harvard University Police, Cambridge
Police, and the Massachusetts State Police assigned to the Middlesex
District Attorney's Office.  

The
immediate and extended family of Justin Cosby is extremely grateful for
all of the love and support from friends, neighbors, childhood and
college friends, and everyone that has extended support in this trying
time. Justin was loved and respected by everyone that he came into
contact with, as there as there are so many that have a positive story
to tell when speaking of his kind heart, comical ways and loving
nature. "The boy with the smile that would always lend a hand" is how
so many have referred to him through the hundreds of people that have
been to visit with our family over the last couple days. We are still
in disbelief of the horror and shock of Justin's murder. He was not a
"hoodlum" or "gangster" – people actually laugh at the thought of him
being referred to in that manner.

Justin was a fashion
trendsetter, basketball player, student and self-admitted "mama's boy".
He was looking forward to picking up new studies, furthering his
aspirations to become successful and marrying his long-time girlfriend.
We know that Justin's wings will be on our shoulders to help us survive
God bringing him home for bigger tasks than he can do here on Earth.

In
support of the family, the Justin Cosby Memorial Fund has been
established and donations can be received at any Bank of America
nationwide.

The Wake will be held on Saturday, May 23 from 3:30
– 4:30pm at The Concord Baptist Church at 190 Warren Avenue (at West
Brookline St.) Boston, MA 02116. The Funeral service will immediately
follow the Wake at the same location. Justin will be buried in his
hometown of Richmond, VA.

Our angel Justin will be missed and will always be in our hearts and memories.

One
thing is for certain, based on his (emailed) response to a
constituent's email the week before – that "a discussion is something
that takes place either on the phone or in person. I don't blog and I
don't communicate through a listserve" – that he is 100% out of touch
with reality.

Welcome to the 21st Century, Lenny – welcome to
planet Earth. Hey, maybe he loves Newton and was born and raised there
and never left and yes, is part of an "old school" political
entrenchment that hearkens back to the days when local government
meetings weren't televised and elected officials made compromise by
either a hand to the throat in the hallway or a handshake and a Jameson
after the meetings.

Lord knows we have a few politicians in this
city that have been around for years and years and years. But so what?
What the Hell is so wrong with that? There's a little group that runs
around this city chanting for transparency and term limits and claims
that all the old school politicians who have been around for years are
crooks. Hey, not to rain on anyone's parade, but Senator Jehlen has
held elected office longer than anyone in Somerville – oh, but wait,
she's ok…she's the exception.

Right. Gotta love that "stare you in the face" double standard.

At
the other end of the spectrum, there are those out there, and
admittedly not very many of them in this particular instance, that
think Lenny might be misinformed somewhat, but not completely out of
line disparaging Somerville the way he did. After all, this city has
had it's share of mishaps and miscreants over the years…after all,
Newton is Newton – and well, Somerville is Somerville.

We will
take Somerville any day over Newton – and any jackass that is that far
gone should be voted right the Hell out of office – especially you,
Lenny Gentile – especially you.

***************

Appears
the PDSers have found a willing PDSers who has taken out papers to run
against incumbent Jamie Norton for Ward 4 School Committee seat. We
hear she's been calling various people around the city, stating she is
a candidate for the Progressives and she's made it clear to more than
one person that the only way to win is to run a negative campaign – in
fact, we heard it was the SC member from Ward 5 – Mr. Neidergang who
told her to do that. We're not surprised. We also here he's been having
meetings at his home to get other PDSers to run against those that
would criticize them. You might remember its on record and recorded
that Mr. Neidergang made a comment that Good Friday and other various
holidays be done away with here in Somerville, even referring to Bunker
Hill Day as an "annoying" holiday. She is said to be a friend, maybe
she wants to do away with Good Friday as well? This the PDSers agenda –
taking over and having no sense of purpose other then to tear down
everything that isn't to their liking. Hmmmm, sounds like? Looks like?
You decide!

***************

We also heard that Rebekah
from Ward 6 is blaming The News for her opponent this year, as usual
Rebekah you're wrong again – other then a "hello" and "how do you do" –
no one at The News knows this guy – we asked and we can assure you no
one here at The News put anyone in any race at any time. We know you
might find it hard to believe, since the PDSers consider anyone that is
born, raised and grew up here as crooks. Again not all PDSers – but
most – appear to love negative campaigning because they can't face the
real issues! By the way, it's nice to see their monthly meeting this
month has a place, date and time and imagine that you don't have to
email them to see if it's secret meeting – maybe they are becoming more
transparent, you think?

***************

What's this
from Newton? Seems like Alderman Gentile from Newton resents being
compared to us here in Somerville, actually he's insulted that now the
city administration of Newton has made reference to our city and that
we're doing good, that doesn't wash with Alderman Gentile we think –
maybe he thinks it's still "Slumerville," not Somerville?

***************

Should
someone post a "Help Wanted Ad" in the paper? According to sources
telling us that the Somerville police department's vehicle maintenance
garage is short handed. Apparently the department has only one full
time overwhelmed mechanic on duty to service the fifty-one police
vehicles in the department's fleet. We are also hearing that the same
situation exists with the Somerville Fire Department as well. One
mechanic to service the entire fleet.

***************

We
heard through reliable sources that Ames Envelope Company has given a
few employees the heads up that if things don't work out and get better
withing three weeks that the envelope giant may begin to close there
doors forever. Let's hope that they pull through these difficult times
and begin to prosper once again, as well other employers here in the
city and area.

***************

Condolences go out to the
family of Roseanne Donato, Roseanne was the wife of the Medford
Representative Paul Donato, she was a nice lady and very well liked in
Medford and here in Somerville by many people.

***************

Congratulations
to the new owners of "Pizza Palace" in Somerville on their grand
opening this past week! It's nice to see new businesses opening
considering the shape of the economy in general. We hear that Cindy
from the former "Ocean Reef Restaurant" is one of the new owners so we
know that the food will be delicious! Best wishes!

***************

We
hear that Dick Brescia, Somerville's Chief City Assessor, is not doing
well after suffering a serious heart attack. We hope he gets well soon
– he is a very hard working, dedicated and well-respected City Hall
staple.

***************

Well apparently Congressman Mike
Capuano made a big hit at the BU commencement ceremonies this past
weekend, he was his old self we hear, the students, who by the way
originally weren't excited about him coming, ended up giving him high
praise. We knew he could do it…maybe he managed to get Obama's speech
writer, or did he?

***************

We hear from a couple
of Sales Representatives over at the Farm Team papers that their office
in Concord was drastically cutting back there and they're going to make
some serious cuts locally. We noticed and we're sure others have
noticed that the boxes – in a few spots around the city didn't even get
any papers delivered last week. We have a secret squirrel out there
tracking this down – meanwhile, we added two more spots in Ward 2 over
the last week – now we are up to 165 locations and counting. If you
know of a store or location you'd like to see The News at, let the
circulation department know and we will put it on the list.

***************

Resting
at his daughters house is well known local favorite (always can be seen
at DD in Magoun Square) Eddie Abate, he was in the hospital from a bad
fall – he says he'll be back real soon in the Ball and Magoun Square
areas.

Approximately 40
local and state organizations and vendors, including MIT Electric
Vehicle Team, Groundwork Somerville, the Somerville Gardening Club and
NSTAR, provided information, displays and workshops that discussed
green initiatives to support the surrounding community.

Workshops,
taught by volunteers and organizers, were held in classrooms throughout
the day and featured a variety of subjects. The owner of the recently
opened and aptly named bike shop Open, Joshua Kampa provided
instruction on how to tune and perform basic maintenance on bicycles.
Jen Capuano and Dave Madan demonstrated how to let worms break down
food scraps into rich compost and discussed the various uses of
compost. Eric Becker, one of the festivals organizers, discussed the
implementation of solar power, the possibility of attaining government
rebates for doing so and how to make solar Somerville a reality. There
were also workshops that dealt with shopping for and cooking locally
and sustainably grown foods, properly insulating homes and vastly
reducing our reliance on non-renewable energies.

Brad Arndt,
Coordinator of Somerville's Urban Forest Initiative, was present to
discuss the efforts that are underway in order to increase the number
trees in Somerville's public space. "The Urban Forest Initiative is a
plan that is a direct result from Mayor Curtatone's inaugural address,"
Arndt stated, "Mayor Curtatone discussed the importance of trees and
greenery in a city as densely populated as Somerville." According to
Arndt, The Urban Forest Initiative plans to increase the amount of
trees and green space in Somerville by 20 percent over the next four to
five years.

The Mayor, along with Red Sox mascot Wally the
Green Monster, and State Representative Denise Provost all made
appearances in support of the Living Green Festival.

Checklists
were given to attendees offering ways in which they could begin to live
a more green lifestyle, which included simple solutions such as making
sure to turn off lights and appliances when they are not being directly
used and closing curtains in order to reduce the amount of heat lost in
the winter months. Instruction on the weatherization of homes was
another popular topic of discussion. Weatherization is the process of
installing proper insulation in homes and sealing air leaks to prevent
the loss of heat and air conditioning, which is not only beneficial for
the environment, but is also economically efficient.

Raffle
tickets were sold for attendees with prizes that included a pair of
Boston Red Sox tickets, Gift cards from Wheel Works, O2 Yoga, Pemberton
Farms, A BBC Planet Earth Box set, among a other prizes. Proceeds from
the raffle went to support further initiatives of the Somerville
Climate Action group.

According to both Eric Becker and Vanessa
Rule, another of the festivals organizers, the festival was a great
success and they anticipate that it will become an annual event.

The
Somerville Climate Action group, which started in 2001, holds public
meetings on the third Tuesday of every month. The next meeting will be
held at the Community Growing Center on May 19th.

A
resolution passed at the May 11th Board of Aldermen meeting suggested
the city implement a "white bike" system modeled on both Portland,
Maine and Paris-style programs where people can either rent or borrow
bikes at points throughout the cities.

"Somerville is four
square miles. It's time to make the city a model for bicycle use,"
Alderman at Large Dennis Sullivan said at the meeting.

Aldermen also voted for a resolution asking the Mayor's office to let city employees use bikes while on business.

Sullivan suggested costs could be kept down by letting employees choose from among the city's abandoned and lost bikes.

Alderman
at Large Jack Connolly passed around a Boston Globe magazine article
citing the Paris program and the progress Boston has made with the
idea.

If implemented, Connolly said locked bike racks could be
placed every 300-400 yards throughout Somerville. The T stations within
the city would serve as hubs for the system.

"We're in a
particularly dense urban area that would be tailor-made for this bike
sharing concept," Connolly said. "I don't think we want to wait for
Boston."

The three Somerville officers
played a crucial role in a rescue operation in December, 2006. Shortly
after 11:00 p.m. on December 6th, emergency 911 dispatchers reported a
fire at a century-old home on Harvard Street. Although the first
responders arrived within minutes, the wood-frame structure was totally
engulfed in flames.

Officer Derrick Dottin, who was among the
first to arrive, was told that two people were trapped inside the
blazing home. Without hesitation, he ran along the right side of the
house amidst searing flames and burning debris, as Officer Alex
Capobianco and Steve St. Hilaire entered through an adjoining yard. At
the rear of the home, all three officers heard a faint groan from
inside the house. Officers Capobianco and St. Hilaire broke windows as
Officer Dottin kicked in the rear door. More smoke and flames reduced
visibility to near zero. After several attempts to enter the building,
Officers Dottin and Capobianco made their way in, but the intense smoke
limited the time they could remain in the structure.

After
repeated trips into what had become a full-blown inferno, Officer
Dottin finally caught a glimpse of a woman's foot. He tried to pull the
victim toward him, but debris had trapped her, and she was unable to
move. Pushing even further into the disintegrating structure – and with
the assistance of Officer Capobianco, who has joined him, Officer
Dottin was able to lift the unconscious woman over his shoulder and
carry her to a rear yard. Finding her unresponsive, Officer St. Hilaire
began CPR, working feverishly until he detected a faint pulse.

Although
out of the building, the officers and the victim continued to be
showered with flaming debris. Officers Dottin and Capobianco again
carried the victim out of harm's way. Simultaneously, firefighters
arrived and were able to rescue a second victim who was still inside
the burning home. Although the home was totally destroyed, both victims
survived their injuries.

The NLEOMF, a nonprofit organization
established in 1984 to honor the service and sacrifice of America's law
enforcement officers. Presently, the names of more than 18,000 officers
who were killed in the line of duty are engraved on the walls of the
National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial.

Baldasaro was a federal fugitive last known to be residing in the Roxbury area.

U.S.
Marshal Stephen Monier stated that "this was an attack on the
reputation of the U.S. Marshals, and not something that is taken
lightly; the quick and successful arrest of Baldasaro by the U.S.
Marshals is evidence of that!"

Baldasaro is currently being
charged by the New York City Police Department as a Fugitive From
Justice based on the following outstanding warrants, but additional
charges are currently being investigated. Known allegations include
Robbery and Kidnapping (Chesterfield, NH and Cambridge, MA),
Impersonating a Police Officer (Cambridge, MA), Vehicle Theft (Lincoln
County, ME) and a Parole violation in Vermont.

The U.S. Marshals
ask the public's assistance in identifying any additional people that
may have been victimized by someone impersonating a law enforcement
officer. If you were a victim of a similar crime, please contact your
local police department and report the offense.

As for right
now, Baldasaro will go on trial in each of the above states for each
individual charge, and there is still the possibility that he will be
tried on much more serious federal charges of impersonating a U.S.
Marshal.

The ramifications are even more serious because
Baldasaro was convicted of impersonating a Deputy U.S. Marshal in 1993.
No doubt this will be used against him on trial in establishing his
character. Furthermore, this could effect sentencing if he is convicted
again.

Annually, investigations carried out by the U.S.
Marshals result in the apprehension of approximately 36,000 federal
fugitives. More federal fugitives are arrested by Marshals than all
other federal agencies combined. Last year, U.S. Marshals task forces
arrested more than 73,000 state and local fugitives on felony charges.

And as U.S. Marshal Jeffrey White said, "Mr. Baldasaro chose the wrong agency to impersonate."

I
love when the weather allows us to return to the streets, squares, bike
trails and our favorite meeting spots. We were cooped up all winter,
and when we did go out, we got wet, froze and caught colds. I was on my
way to the ATM in Teele Square Saturday to get money to pay for the
pizza at Angelina's. Across from Angie's is a bar with one of those
open window-fronts so everyone can see you hanging around in a barroom.
The bus or a car goes by and you hear. "Hey Mommy…there's Daddy! Hi
Daddy!"

Anyway, there is a huge German shepherd and I say to my
son Jimmy, "what a beautiful dog." Next thing I hear is: "I recognize
that voice – is that Jimmy?" It was my old pal and excellent former
drummer, Billy. He had a headband on and a sleeveless vest, sunglasses
and a few new tattoos, so I couldn't tell it was him right off the bat.
It was great seeing him. We chatted a bit and exchanged cell phone
numbers.

The weather is getting nicer and people are coming out
of their winter burrows. I was happy to see a few of my older friends
emerge from their hibernations. I breathed a sigh of relief when they
finally started walking places again and I actually saw them in the
flesh. I have to do a quick inventory because we are all getting up
there and I have to check to see who may not have made it through the
cruel winter. Thankfully, most of them are coming back out, one by one.

I
thought I had gone back in time last week when I was up the park with
my dog. Was it a mirage or was one of my childhood friends sitting on a
park bench with a brown paper bag with a six-pack of Budweisers?
"Jimmy!!!" Yes, it was my old pal. He was actually waiting for another
of my old friends to join him. He said: "So and so should be walking up
over the hill from Mallet Street any minute." Sure enough, there he
was! Some things never change I guess – and old habits are hard to
break. These two guys have been carrying on their ritual for the last
40 years. It was like deja-brew! We talked about other old friends like
Bolo and Boogna among other things.

I saw another old friend
last Tuesday and somehow the topic of the Bal-A-Rue roller skating rink
on Mystic Avenue came up. I know it's in Meffa and this is a Somerville
article, but so what.

When the weather got nice in the old days
we use be dropped off at the Bal-A-Rue and cap the day with some
burgers from Kemps. Don't ask me how we crossed Mystic Avenue and
lived. And remember – no skating backwards! Eventually going to Kemps
would be replaced by going to the Golden Egg after the bars closed. The
Golden Egg was Medford's answer to Kay and Chips. The Century Bank is
now on the site of the old Bal-A-Rue.

I remember one spring
evening when my band members and me were on our way back from a gig on
Revere Beach. We approached an MDC Police checkpoint near Kappy's
Liquors in our band van. The MDC cop shined a flashlight in the drivers
face and asked where we were going. The driver replied that we were
coming home from work. The cop said, oh, what do you do? The driver
said: "We're magicians." Of course he was trying to say "musicians,"
but the late hour and fatigue from a long evening of performing in a
smoky lounge (Sammy's Patio) made it come out differently. When the cop
heard him say magicians, instead of asking him to pull a rabbit out of
his hat, he asked him to pull his license and registration out of his
wallet. Happily, we all went safely on our way.

Nice weather has
a way of bringing back memories too. The smell of lilacs still reminds
me of when we lived downstairs in Lenny Scott's house on Pearson Avenue
from 1955 to 1960. I still ride by there every so often. Next time I
ride by I hope to drop in and visit Louise. I have so many great photos
and memories of her family and mine from an innocent time – long, long
ago. We spent a few very happy springs there, as well as other seasons.

Spring
is graduations too. Because I was a rabble-rouser in high school, one
of the administrators or building masters or another one of my nemeses
decided to place my diploma at the very end of the pile. So with my
entire family in the stands at Dilboy, they called the A's, the B's,
the C's and the D's – and started the E's. I swear I heard my poor
mother gasp and say: "I knew he wasn't going to graduate, Fred!"
Finally after they called John Zagami or someone else at the end, they
called James Del Ponte. I stomped up to the podium and ripped my
diploma out of the presenters hand, and gave him the dirtiest look I
could come up with. They got the last laugh (until I returned as a
substitute teacher). That's my graduation memory.

So come out,
wont you? Come out and walk your dog, ride bikes with your kids on the
bike trail or go smell some lilacs. Enjoy every second of this
transformation from shivering to shimmering

And just a quick
note to you absentee landlords. It's time to clean up your nest eggs.
Some of your yards are so overgrown with freakish looking weeds, that
it looks like something from Jurassic Park. If you need someone to
clean it up, e-mail me, I could use some extra cash. You can email
Jimmy directly at jimmydel@rcn.com.

As
the governor and the legislature grapple with what has become, in
dollar terms, the largest fiscal crisis in Massachusetts history, one
of the hottest questions is whether the state can cut its way to
solvency, or whether some new and additional revenues are necessary. My
position on this question has been loud, clear and public. I believe
that:

· Some cuts are inevitable, but you can't cut your way to success;

· Fundamental reform can lead to significant savings;

· We should approach this challenge not by shifting the blame, but by sharing the burden;

· No matter how many cuts and reforms we impose, we cannot maintain core services without some new revenue; and

·
As part of a comprehensive rebalancing of the fiscal relationship
between the state and its municipalities, cities and towns should be
given more freedom and authority to diversify revenue and to manage
costs – especially the soaring cost of health care

I hope that
is the approach that ultimately carries on the day on Beacon Hill. Here
in Somerville, we will do our best to lead by example.

On cost
management, we are taking the lead by collaborating with our police
unions on new contracts that not only include zero percent pay
increases, but also call for pay furloughs in which employees give back
one week's salary without reducing their hours. Our patrolmen's union
courageously led the way on this approach by agreeing to these
provisions in a one-year contract signed in March; our police superior
officers' union signed on to the same austerity measures in a new
three-year agreement signed on May 1st.

I am deeply grateful for
the community spirit represented by these contracts, which set an
example for other municipal unions here in Somerville and across the
state.

This week, I took the next logical step by telling our
non-union workforce (including all elected officials), that they, too,
would be looking at a continued wage freeze in FY2010 – and that they,
too, would be receiving one-week furloughs. Taken together, the
non-union and police furloughs represent a cut in the FY2010 budget of
well over $300,000.

That's a significant amount of money – but
it is even more significant as an indication of the fact that we are
all in this together. The employees covered by these furlough policies
are making a genuine sacrifice to preserve core city services at a time
of fiscal crisis.

Even though it would completely unfair to ask
city workers to bear the entire burden on their own, I wish I could say
that their sacrifice would, by itself, be sufficient to meet our
ongoing budget shortfall. The truth, of course, is that it will take
far more, both in terms of cost savings and enhanced revenues.

To
help us find the best menu of budget options, I turned in January to a
group of outside fiscal experts from both the private and the
non-profit sectors. I asked them to advise the city on a full range of
potential costs savings and revenue items – both short-term and
long-term – that could help us get past the current crisis without
reducing core services.

This week, the Financial Advisory
Committee (FAC) submitted its recommendations. (You can download a copy
from the "FY-2009-2010 Budget Development" page on the city's website.
There's a link to the budget page from our homepage at
www.somervillema.gov.)

It's an impressive, thoughtful and
provocative list. I am grateful for all of the committee's hard work,
and I will carefully review its suggestions. Some of them are entirely
within the City's choice and control, including such options as:
exploring opportunities for competitive sourcing between city employees
and private vendors; establishing higher license fees and violation
fines; or moving the entire city to residential permit parking.

It's
already clear, however, that the City of Somerville cannot implement
several of the FAC's most important recommendations unless the state
gives us the tools to do so – and/or our municipal unions lend their
assent. Nowhere are these restrictions more evident than in the area of
health care cost management.

We have been working steadily over
the past five years – and with some success – to bring employee and
retiree health insurance contributions more in line with standard
practice in the private sector (and, indeed with many other cities and
towns). I am also ready now to embrace the FAC's suggestion that we
"determine and quantify the potential benefits and costs-savings of
joining the Commonwealth's Group Insurance Commission (GIC)."

But
there are millions more in savings (with no loss in access or quality
of services) that can be had from other changes on the health care
front. Here are a few of the key FAC recommendations on health care
that require authorization or endorsement at the state level:

· "Encourage a move away from an Indemnity Plan while ensuring comparable coverage through other cost-effective options

· "Issue a Request For Proposals (RFP) for a sole health insurance provider

·
"Pursue a broad range of plan design changes with the potential of
reducing costs while maintaining coverage and quality of care

·
"Support legislative authorization for cities and towns to have the
same administrative authority to change plan design as exercised by the
Commonwealth since 1955 (plan design encompasses changes in deductibles
and co-pays)"

This week, along with our legislative delegation
and city officials from across the state, I will be helping lead the
fight on Beacon Hill for the authority we need to implement these
changes, as well as gaining more ability to diversify local revenues.

Will
we succeed? It's by no means a certainty. But here's one thing I know
for sure: Whatever the outcome, Somerville will be leading by example.
We will gather the best analysis, look at the big picture, and take on
the shared sacrifices and the hard choices – squarely and fairly.

That's all we can do – and that's all we're asking for.