Boston, MA

Boston rape case: The full story of Dublin firefighter Terence Crosbie’s trial

Published

6 months ago

June 22, 2025

Boston rape case: The full story of Dublin firefighter Terence Crosbie’s trial

After a six-day trial and more than 22 hours of jury deliberations, a Dublin firefighter arrested on rape charges in a US city last year remains behind bars, his fate still in limbo.

A Boston judge declared a mistrial and the jury “hung” on Friday, sending the jury of eight men and four women home, and Terence Crosbie (38) back to the Nashua Street Jail.

If a retrial moves forward, Mr Crosbie will once again face charges for raping a 29-year-old attorney.

The alleged assault was first reported to authorities by the woman at a hospital in the early hours of March 15th, 2024.

The night began at The Black Rose, an Irish pub in the city on one of the busiest nights for the bar, leading up to St Patrick’s weekend.

The Black Rose Irish pub in Boston

The woman alleged she returned to the hotel room of a Dublin firefighter she met at the bar for a night of consensual sex. She was with a man she described as a little shorter than herself, bald, white, with an Irish accent and who authorities later identified as Liam O’Brien.

Mr Crosbie and Mr O’Brien had travelled to Boston as part of a Dublin Fire Brigade contingent that was due to march in the city’s St Patrick’s Day parade.

The woman claimed she fell asleep in the other bed and woke up to another man who “was not bald” but who “also had an Irish accent” raping her. The man, she claimed, mocked Mr O’Brien and insisted that she “wanted it”.

All this occurred to the “dull background soundtrack”, as a prosecutor put it, of Mr O’Brien’s continuous snoring.

“Our nightmares belong in our sleep,” prosecutor Daniela Mendes told the jury in her opening statement on the first day of trial.

“Her nightmare began as she woke up.”

Throughout, Mr Crosbie was steadfast in his insistence that he was wrongly accused and had been held behind bars for 15 months, unable to make bail or afford living costs in the foreign country.

“I’m going to ask you to consider Mr Crosbie’s nightmare. I’m going to ask you to end that nightmare,” said defence attorney Daniel C Reilly in his closing argument to the jury.

The assault allegedly took place at the historic Omni Parker House, the hotel made famous as the location where a young US politician named John F Kennedy proposed to Jacqueline Bouvier. The case was heard blocks away at the Suffolk Superior courthouse, an art deco relic with marbled hallways and wood panel courtrooms in the heart of Boston.

The jury heard testimony from the woman and Mr Crosbie, with assistance from a transcript, at times, to parse Mr Crosbie’s accent.

His defence team alleged the woman was a “less than reliable reporter due to intoxication and memory lapses”. They argued that she did not remember Mr O’Brien’s first or last name or having ever met Mr Crosbie. They made insinuations about her promiscuity and questioned her about psychiatric medication on the stand.

On the other side, the prosecution alleged Mr Crosbie’s testimony was “rehearsed and insincere”.

The woman was the prosecution’s first witness. She testified that on Thursday, March 14th she had been hosting a social work gathering, went to a restaurant with colleagues afterwards and then to The Black Rose with a coworker.

In cross-examination, Mr Crosbie’s legal team asserted she had been out drinking for more than 10 hours.

Dublin Fire Brigade member Terence Crosbie (centre) alongside his defence lawyers Daniel C Reilly (left) and Patrick Garrity during his trial in a Boston court. Photograph: Susan Zalkind

A witness for the defence – Dr Chris Rosenbaum, who serves as the director of medical toxicology for Newton Wellesley Hospital – testified that the complainant reported a “prior history of binge drinking” in her medical documents and that her blood alcohol level at the time she reported the assault the next morning can “correlate with memory loss and impairment”.

He said she could have been almost three times the legal driving limit at the time of the alleged assault.

Prosecutors argued that she had her wits about her. They played CCTV video of The Black Rose from the evening in question. In the witness box, she pointed herself out in the video to jurors as the individual dancing “very awkwardly” and trying to get others to join in.

She said Mr O’Brien and his colleagues were wearing T-shirts identifying themselves as members of the Dublin Fire Brigade.

CCTV video later showed her and Mr O’Brien entering the hotel, just before midnight, taking the elevator and walking towards room 610.

Other video footage showed Mr Crosbie walking to a lobby area on the sixth floor, adjust the chair and scroll through his phone for the next two hours.

The woman said she didn’t know Mr O’Brien had a roommate. CCTV video and hotel records later supported Mr Crosbie’s testimony that they met briefly at the bar and he was briefly in the room when the woman and Mr O’Brien first arrived, and that he “read between the lines” and quickly left the room.

She testified that after having sex with Mr O’Brien she went to the bathroom and left the light on. When she returned Mr O’Brien was already asleep and taking up the majority of the bed, so she got into the other bed and fell asleep, intending to leave and work from home the next day.

She told the court she “woke up to somebody on top of me” raping her, she told the court, in tears.

“This person was taller than Liam and was not bald and I could hear Liam snoring,” she said.

The woman testified that the man, who prosecutors said was Mr Crosbie, also disparaged Mr O’Brien, while assaulting her, saying that Mr O’Brien “can’t even do this for you – what a loser”.

She testified that she could feel his weight on top of her and she told him to “stop!” But he didn’t, the court heard.

When she eventually managed to manoeuvre her legs off the side of the bed and break free, and started to collect her clothes, she testified that Mr Crosbie continued to follow her around the hotel room, trying to kiss her.

She said she went to the bathroom and that Mr Crosbie tried to get in and “was jiggling the handle” after she locked the door.

Under cross-examination, defence attorney Mr Reilly noted that she initially reported that the assailant was about her height and her testimony did not include details about Mr Crosbie’s birthmarks or tattoos.

“I was trying not to look,” she said.

The prosecution noted that she texted a friend at 2.18am as she left the hotel.

“I hate everyone,” she wrote. “What the f*** is wrong with people.”

“I woke up and a guy was inside of me telling me I wanted it and telling me how pathetic it was that his friend couldn’t give that,” the court heard.

She then walked home, changed and went to hospital, bringing the clothes she wore in the hotel. There she reported the rape.

DNA analyst Alexis Decesaris testified that the evidence collected from the woman was “consistent” with there being “two individuals” separate from her who were both male.

There was a high likelihood that one of those male profiles belonged to Mr O’Brien, the court heard, but due to the limited amount of material collected it was unclear if the second set of male DNA, obtained from the woman’s genitals, was deposited by Mr Crosbie.

The defence argued that the testing “did not identify Terence Crosbie’s DNA”.

Prosecutors argued that the finding of two male profiles matched the woman’s account.

The jury heard from Mr Crosbie twice, in a recorded police interview before his arrest, and as the concluding witness when he took the stand in the trial.

“I 100 per cent didn’t do this. I’ve done nothing wrong,” Mr Crosbie said.

“I had no physical or sexual contact with her at all.”

He said he knocked on the door when he returned to the hotel and shouted for Mr O’Brien. He said the room was dark and he “heard no reply”. He said he used the torch on this phone to find his way to his bed and the complainant wasn’t there.

“There was nobody in my bed, my bed was empty,” he told the court. He said he brushed clothes off his bed, and crawled under the covers in his boxer shorts.

About a minute and a half after he got into bed he testified that he heard someone “rummaging around the room” and assumed the woman was collecting her things to leave.

He disputed the woman’s account that he called Mr O’Brien a loser; this was not “an Irish term” that he would use, he argued.

Mr Crosbie claimed he attempted to fly back to Dublin on an early flight home because he was “scared like a rabbit in the headlights” after being questioned by police.

When Mr Crosbie took the stand, prosecutors also played a portion of his interview with police that had been previously redacted in which he told detectives he had masturbated in the hotel room and asked whether his DNA could have got on the complainant that way. A pair of Mr Crosbie’s underwear with semen on it was later collected as evidence.

In cross-examination, prosecutors pointed out that Mr Crosbie would not have had time to masturbate alone in his room until after the alleged assault. Mr Crosbie’s defence team stressed that his story about masturbation was “hypothetical”.

In closing arguments, prosecutor Erin Murphy told jurors that they “might not agree” with or “relate” to the complainant’s choice to go to the hotel with Mr O’Brien but that it was “her choice”.

“That doesn’t mean that that man’s hotel roommate gets to rape her,” she said.

Mr Crosbie is not the “unluckiest man in the world; he is the man who raped [the woman] and he is the man who got caught”, she told the jury.

Mr Reilly argued that prosecutors had not met their “high burden” of proof beyond a reasonable doubt.

“I suggest to you there are multiple reasonable doubts in this case,” he said.

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Boston, MA

Free December events in Boston: Hanukkah celebrations, new play readings, and more – The Boston Globe

Published

7 hours ago

December 15, 2025

Press Room

Free December events in Boston: Hanukkah celebrations, new play readings, and more – The Boston Globe

Though the bitter New England wind is upon us, the holiday calendar is just warming up. This week’s schedule features a fire-and-ice Hanukkah celebration in Watertown, readings of two soon-to-debut theatrical works, and offbeat holiday film screenings at a dive bar. However you choose to get ready for the festivities, here are some no-cost and discounted events across Greater Boston and beyond for the week of Dec. 15-21.

A HOT AND COLD HANUKKAH Chabad Watertown’s Hanukkah celebration kicks off at 4:45 p.m., live performances featuring fire breathing, flaming prop juggling, and other heated tricks. Then, at 5 p.m., Chabad’s 7-foot-tall ice menorah will be lit, followed by a gelt drop, when chocolate coins will be parachuted from above for attendees to catch. Crafts and games will be set up around the venue, and free hot chocolate and doughnuts will be offered while supplies last. Dec. 15, 4-6 p.m. RSVP recommended. Arsenal Yards, 130 Arsenal St., Watertown. arsenalyards.com

HOLIDAY HORRORS There’s nothing like the gritty texture of VHS that elevates a scary movie: WickedVHS, a series of free public screenings of VHS movies at bars, screens a double feature of two creepy Christmas movies at the Model Café on Monday. Film names won’t be revealed until you’re at the event, but a few clues have been offered. The first pick is a childhood horror staple, featuring cutesy monsters who turn evil once you feed them at night; the other is a folkloric fable about Santa’s evil twin. Dec. 15. 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. 21+. Model Café, 7 North Beacon St., Allston. instagram.com/wickedvhs

On Sept. 30, viewers attended a Wicked VHS double-screening of “The Faculty” and “Scream 2” at Deep Cuts in Medford.Craig Silva/Wicked VHS

GONE CAROLING Caroling isn’t just an activity from the days of old: The New School of Music hosts a drop-in session for curious carolers to practice for the doorways. The session is led by NSM instructor Joe Reid, who will teach attendees a wide variety of Christmas, Hanukkah, and general winter tunes, demonstrate different ways to harmonize, and provide live piano accompaniment. Hot cider will be provided to soothe your throat, and free Christmas cookies can keep spirits high. Dec. 16, 6:30-8 p.m. New School of Music Concert Room, 25 Lowell St., Cambridge. newschoolofmusic.org

NEVER-BEFORE-SEEN THEATER The Huntington Theatre’s Winter New Play Intensive, a development program for new plays, will present its two projects this season for the first time. “Blue Train,” which has its live reading on Tuesday, is a familial drama about a son who hopes to inherit his ailing father’s beach retreat. Wednesday, it’s “Three Bears,” a sci-fi epic about two wandering spacemen attempting to reach a distant outpost before they run out of the necessary resources for their journey. Dec. 16 and 17, 7 p.m. The Maso Studio in the Huntington Theatre, 264 Huntington Ave. huntingtontheatre.org

The Huntington Theatre will present two live readings of new works from its Winter New Play Intensive.MIKE RITTER

CELEBRATORY CRAFTS Before the holidays are upon us, visit Assembly Row for some casual activities. Attendees can take part in various family-friendly crafts celebrating Christmas and Hanukkah, including ornament-crafting, snowflake-making, and drawing, and indulge in some free hot chocolate while supplies last. The J.P. Licks deck also turns into a dancefloor with tunes from DJ Axelrod, who will play house beats to keep the crowd moving and grooving. Dec. 20, 1-3 p.m. J.P. Licks Deck at Assembly Row, 355 Artisan Way, Somerville. assemblyrow.com

MENORAH AT THE MUSEUM The MFA’s Hanukkah celebration, which features discounted entry for the museum’s $5 Third Thursdays event. This month features activities and exhibitions celebrating Jewish traditions beginning at 5 p.m. At 5:30 p.m., catch a performance from the Global Yiddish Orchestra, or, at 5:45 p.m., a performance from AJ Rubin that blends Jewish folk music and clowning. Among the many festivities are tours and live readings celebrating Jewish history, an interactive scavenger hunt to gather candles for a menorah, a drop-in dreidel-decorating workshop, and a face-painting booth. Dec. 18, 5-10 p.m. Museum of Fine Arts, 465 Huntington Ave. mfa.org

PET PORTRAITS Furry friends can get in on the festive fun at the Paws and Claus event hosted by Bond Vet, a veterinary clinic with several locations in Greater Boston. Pets will get their photos taken for free alongside a (human) Santa Claus, for a professional-looking portrait their owners can put on kitschy greeting cards. Dogs and cats can snag a free treat, and humans get hot chocolate for tagging along. Dec. 20, 6:30-7:30 p.m. Bond Vet, 320 Foley St., Somerville. bringfido.com

Check individual event websites for the most up-to-date information.

Send info on free events and special offers at least 10 days in advance to ryan.yau@globe.com.

Ryan Yau can be reached at ryan.yau@globe.com.

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Boston, MA

Proposed “perfect” Red Sox trade sees Boston deal Jarren Duran, prospects for $15.5 million two-time All-Star ace

Published

19 hours ago

December 14, 2025

Press Room

Proposed “perfect” Red Sox trade sees Boston deal Jarren Duran, prospects for .5 million two-time All-Star ace

The Boston Red Sox found their ace in Garrett Crochet this year, after trading for him around this time last year. Now, they’ve made some moves to finally get him some support in the rotation, but none of those moves are truly a No. 2 to back him up.

Fansided’s Cody Williams believes he has the perfect trade for a name that’s been floated around as an option: Milwaukee Brewers All-Star Freddy Peralta.

“While Boston has long looked like an obvious suitor for Peralta, the trade assets haven’t necessarily lined up perfectly for both them and Milwaukee…Now, the Brewers still aren’t in need of outfield help, so to speak, but there is certainly room to upgrade over the likes of Jake Bauers, Garrett Mitchell or Blake Perkins, which Duran or Abreu would allow them to do. Furthermore, in typical fashion for Milwaukee, they could flip an asset they’re unlikely to be able to pay in Peralta for immediate major-league upgrades with plenty of club control at low cost and prospects that could help keep the ball rolling under Pat Murphy,” Williams wrote.

MORE: Cubs predicted to trade for $3.75 million 150 SO ace to create 1-2 punch with Shota Imanaga

The trade would look like this:

Red Sox get: RHP Freddy Peralta

Brewers get: OF Jarren Duran, SS Franklin Arias (No. 1 Prospect), RHP Juan Valera (No. 12 Prospect)

MORE: Mariners predicted to trade for $5.75 million All-Star, Gold Glove as amazing replacement for Jorge Polanco

Peralta posted a 17-6 record, a 2.70 ERA, 204 Ks, and a WHIP of 1.075 over 176 innings pitched last season. Combine him with Crochet, and the Sox have a World Series-contending-level rotation.

The only problem with this is it’s basically a one-year rental. Peralta’s contract is up after this year, and he’s projected to get a five-year, $152 million deal.

The Sox have shown they don’t believe in giving long-term contracts out to players over 30, and Peralta will be 30 in the upcoming season. Hopefully, the Sox make an exception, get uncomfortable like they said they would, and pursue this trade.

MORE MLB NEWS

Braves predicted to be top trade candidate for $325 million two-time World Series MVP, five-time All-Star as massive upgrade over Mauricio Dubon

Red Sox predicted to be top landing spot for $116.5 million three-time All-Star, two-time Silver Slugger, would be massive upgrade from David Hamilton

Phillies predicted to be top trade candidate for $7.7 million All-Star MVP, would replace Nick Castellanos

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Boston, MA

BU spoils Northeastern final game at Matthews Arena

Published

1 day ago

December 14, 2025

Press Room

BU spoils Northeastern final game at Matthews Arena

BOSTON – Before the lights went out at Matthews Arena for the last time, they shined brightly on Boston University center Brandon Svoboda.

The sophomore from Pittsburgh scored two goals including the game-winner at 18:21 of the third to lift the Terriers to a 4-3 victory over Northeastern, on Saturday night. Svoboda’s fourth of the season was the final goal scored at Northeastern’s historic Matthews Arena.

The Terriers’ victory over the Huskies was the last sporting event played inside Matthews Arena, which officially opened its doors as Boston Arena in April of 1910.

“I got a lucky bounce and I capitalized on it and put it in the back of the net,” said Svoboda. “Playing the last game ever in this building is pretty special and what was it, 1910 this place was built so it was pretty special being the last team playing in this building.

“We are a young group and we are figuring it out so it was obviously a big deal to get a W in the last game in this arena.”

BU improved to 9-8-1 and 6-3-0 in Hockey East going into the semester break while the No. 11 Huskies fell to 10-6-0 and 5-4-0 in the conference.

“It was just a big win for us going into the semester break,” said BU coach Jay Pandolfo. “The first half has not been ideal for us so to finish it that way, to come back in the third period to win a hockey game in this environment, where this is their last home game here and they wanted to win and we found a way to pull it off.”

Northeastern purchased the structure in 1979 and renamed it Matthews Arena three years later. The demolition of the old barn nestled between Mass. Ave and Gainsborough Street will begin in January and the new arena is scheduled to go online in September of 2028.

“Having a new facility is definitely a big selling point,” said NU coach Jerry Keefe. “It is going to have all the amenities you need to develop players and I think this generation of recruits like the shiny and the new.”

The first Beanpot Tournament was played at Boston Arena in 1952, so it seemed appropriate that Northeastern would play its final game against a neighboring Beanpot opponent. BU played its home games at Boston Arena from 1918 to 1971 before moving into its new facility on Babcock Street.

Pandolfo enjoyed many Matthews moments both on the ice and behind the bench. Pandolfo also played in the final Beanpot game at the old Boston Garden.

“I always enjoyed playing here that’s for sure,” Pandolfo said. “It was a fun place to play and I always enjoyed it and I enjoyed coaching there. It is a great environment and a special old building.

“That’s the biggest attachment for me and that I just enjoyed it. My grandfather played at Northeastern, my mom’s dad and that makes it special as well. It was also Boston University’s home rink as well for a long time and that is a big reason we are here closing it out with Northeastern.”

The Huskies had some extra zip in their blades that created several scoring opportunities, all of which deftly handled by BU netminder Mikhail Yegorov.

NU went up 1-0 on a power play goal by freshman center Jacob Mathieu at 11:28 of the first. Mathieu found an opening outside the BU crease and redirected Giacomo Martino’s wrister from the left circle for his fifth of the season.

NU went up 2-0 at 14:36 when junior center Tyler Fukakusa finished a two-on-one break with his second goal of the season. BU got on the board when Svoboda netted a power play goal at 17:40, his third of the season.

“We were playing fine but we just made some mistakes so to get out of that first period 2-1 was important no question about that,” said Pandolfo.

BU tied the game 2-2 on sophomore center Sacha Boisvert’s second of the season at 13:38 of the second. NU went up 3-2 when sophomore left wing Joe Connor beat the buzzer at 19:59 with his sixth of the season. NU tied the game 3-3 on Kamil Bednarik tally at 18:02 of the third. Svoboda would score 19 seconds later to complete the comeback.

“You give up a late goal at the end of the second period after a power play, that can really hurt you,” said Pandolfo. “But our guys were determined to come back.”

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