The Boston Globe
I worked as a full-time correspondent on the city desk of the Boston Globe from December 2014 through June 2015. I wrote 5-10 articles each day, all for immediate publication to the web and some for print publication as well. I covered mostly crime and breaking news, along with weather and transportation. I also occasionally wrote feature stories..
After my temporary position ended in June, I was asked to continue part-time. I worked as a nights and weekend reporter for almost another year.
Our shrinking vocabulary of death
When a 29-year-old woman was murdered in 1974, Boston police recorded the homicide as a blunt trauma by ice chopper. The description paints a gruesome image. Yet a similar murder today would likely be given a simpler classification: trauma — a more sterile description of what could be an equally grisly crime.
The difference shows up in a Boston police database of more than 4,000 homicides that occurred in the city from January 1963 to September 2016. An analysis of the data reveals that causes of death were often described in more colorful terms back in the 1960s and ’70s.
Northeastern to equip officers with semiautomatic rifles
Despite opposition from Boston police, the Northeastern University Police Department plans to begin equipping its officers with semiautomatic rifles to respond to campus emergencies. The move to provide more firepower for the force comes amid heightened worries about mass shootings nationwide and debate over arming college police.
After receiving a tip, I broke this story first for Northeastern University's independent college newspaper and then for The Boston Globe. It gained a lot of traction, getting picked up by ABC News and The Daily Show with Trevor Noah the next day (12-10-15).
Seder celebrates contributions of American immigrants
At 12 years old, Yarden Fanta-Vagenshtein walked 800 miles from Ethiopia to Sudan, carrying her baby sister on her back in search of a better life. After a year in a refugee camp, she made it to Israel.
Fanta-Vagenshtein shared her story on Sunday at the Anti-Defamation League’s annual Passover Seder, which draws on contemporary accounts of the immigrant experience to celebrate the liberation of the Jewish people from slavery in Egypt.
Would Ted Kennedy's legislative style work today?
A personal touch was emblematic of how Kennedy functioned in the Senate, according to a new book by two of his advisers.
At a panel discussion on Sunday, those who were close to Kennedy said his style could hold some lessons in an era of legislative gridlock.
Ceremony keeps alive the light of lost children
Chuck Snekvik held a candle for his daughter, Amy, and his wife held one for their son, Andrew. Amy died in a car accident when she was 7 years old. Andrew passed away from colon cancer at 38.
The Snekviks joined more than 50 people Sunday night at the Church of the Covenant fora candle lighting ceremony to honor children who are no longer with them, but whose memories continue to burn bright.
After attending the vigil, I wrote this story in 45 minutes.
Firefighter recalls friend on anniversary of Hotel Vendome fire
Although it’s been 43 years since the Hotel Vendome fire killed nine firefighters, Simon “Dan” Condon can still clearly remember turning to speak to his best friend just moments before the building collapsed and buried his friend under rubble.
Cold snap has harbors under thick layer of ice
After a month of unseasonable cold, with temperatures that rarely broke freezing, coastal communities in Massachusetts are seeing more ice on the water than they have in years.
Officials say Lawrence man set five fires in city
Just feet from the charred remains of an early-morning six-alarm blaze that destroyed three buildings, damaged five others, and displaced 14 people, officials told residents Friday they could take comfort in knowing an alleged serial arsonist had been captured.