Massachusetts
Boxing training suspended at Massachusetts police academy after recruit's death
The Massachusetts State Police have suspended full-contact boxing training activities among recruits until further notice after a trainee died, a police spokesperson said.
Enrique Delgado-Garcia, 25, of Worcester, died at a hospital on Sept. 13, a day after the exercise in the boxing ring at the Massachusetts State Police Academy in New Braintree, in Worcester County, about 80 miles (130 kilometers) west of Boston.
Delgado-Garcia was wearing boxing gloves and headgear during the exercise. The medical team determined he required urgent care and took him to the hospital, where he died.
His manner and cause of death have not been released. Family members told reporters that he suffered broken teeth and a neck fracture.
“The Academy suspended full-contact boxing training activities between trainees until further notice,” Tim McGuirk, a state police department spokesperson, said in a statement Sunday night.
On the day of the exercise, Col. John Mawn Jr., head of the state police, requested an investigation by the agency’s detective unit that is assigned to the Worcester County District Attorney’s office, McGuirk said.
Worcester District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. said last week that he will name another agency to investigate because of a conflict of interest. Delgado-Garcia worked in his office as a victim witness advocate before joining the state police training program in April.
“The department is fully cooperating with investigatory authorities and urges the Worcester County District Attorney’s Office to name an independent investigator as soon as possible,” McGuirk said.
Mawn also directed the state police’s Division of Standards and Training “to comprehensively review the Academy’s defensive tactics program,” McGuirk said.
“That review remains ongoing and will ensure that the program delivers relevant skills safely and effectively to those preparing to become troopers,” he said.
The review is assessing safety protocols, training methods and curriculum, as well as medical and health considerations, he said. It is soliciting feedback from recruits, instructors, and others.
Details on the boxing training exercise Delgado-Garcia participated in have not been released.
The boxing training has been part of a 25-week, paramilitary-style curriculum that is “both physically and mentally demanding,” the academy says on its website. “While it’s designed to be challenging, it isn’t meant to be impossible.”
Delgado-Garcia’s class is scheduled to graduate Oct. 9. He was administered the oath of office by state police in the final hours of his life.
Born in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico, Delgado-Garcia came to Worcester as a young boy, according to his obituary. He received a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Westfield State University in Springfield, Massachusetts.
“Enrique was an exceptional young man who devoted himself to the service of others,” the obituary said. “He had always dreamed of becoming a state trooper and to be someone big who made a difference in the lives of the people in his community.”
A funeral service has been scheduled for Saturday.
Massachusetts
A magical holiday village is tucked inside Massachusetts’ most famous candle store
Yankee Candle is a staple in the Bay State, famous for its colorful jars full of fragrance and warm light.
And while its candles can essentially be bought from anywhere, the mothership of the iconic candles lies in South Deerfield at Yankee Candle Village.
The flagship store, known for its ginormous collection of Yankee Candle scents and retail goods, is a winter holiday destination for those in New England.
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Leading up to Christmas, the store turns into a complete holiday stop.
Now on prominent display are the brand’s many different winter scents, including such classics as Red Apple Wreath and Balsam & Cedar, and such holiday scents as Christmas Cookie and North Pole Greetings.
Bavarian Christmas Village, arguably the most festive room in Yankee Candle Village, is Christmas all year. Guests will stroll through an enchanted forest featuring a 25-foot-tall Christmas tree, nutcrackers, winter village displays and even indoor snow that falls every 4 minutes.
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But scattered throughout the flagship store are hints of Christmas and a winter wonderland — from the home section filled with holiday kitchen decor to the Toy Shop filled with jolly trinkets.
Santa even pays a visit to the Yankee Candle Village, hosting a storytime with kids every Monday through Thursday at 11:30 a.m.
And if the shopping and holiday joy become overwhelming, the store even has cafes that offer a bite to eat. Guests can also indulge in sweet treats in its candy store or try freshly made fudge.
Yankee Candle Village is located at 25 Greenfield Road in South Deerfield. It is open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
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Massachusetts
Two stranded dolphins rescued from Massachusetts marsh
It swims in the family.
A mother and calf wandered off the beaten path and got stranded in a Massachusetts marsh, forcing an emergency mammal rescue crew to save the wayward dolphin pair.
On Dec. 8, the Wareham Department of Natural Resources responded to a report of two stranded dolphins in the area of Beaverdam Creek off of the Weweantic River, a 17-mile tributary that drains into Buzzards Bay, which directly connects to the Atlantic Ocean.
When crews arrived, two common dolphins were located alive and active, but partially out of the water stranded in the marsh, according to the Wareham Department of Natural Resources.
Responding authorities alerted the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) Marine Mammal Stranding Response Team, based in Cape Cod.
IFAW team members put the dolphins on stretchers and brought them to safety, where they conducted preliminary tests on the wayward dolphins.
“Our teams were easily able to extract the animals and transport them via our custom-built rescue vehicle,” Stacey Hedman, senior director of communications for IFAW, said.
The dolphins were weighed; the smaller of the two weighed approximately 90 lbs, and the larger mammal around 150 lbs.
Upon further analysis, it was revealed that the dolphins were an adult female and a socially-dependent juvenile female, a mother and calf pair.
According to Hedman, IFAW had some concerns over the mother’s decreased responsiveness and abnormal blood work, though it was deemed the pair was healthy enough to release back into the ocean at West Dennis Beach in Dennis, Mass.
“By releasing them into an area with many other dolphins around, this would hopefully increase their chances of socialization and survival. Both animals have satellite tags that are still successfully tracking,” Hedman said.
Massachusetts
Man seriously injured after being thrown from moving vehicle during domestic dispute
A 19-year-old Massachusetts man was seriously injured after he was thrown from a moving vehicle he had grabbed onto during a domestic dispute Thursday morning.
Duxbury police said they responded to a report of an injured male who might have been struck by a vehicle on Chandler Street around 5:22 a.m. and found a 19-year-old Pembroke man lying in the roadway with serious injuries.
Through interviews with witnesses, officers learned that the man had gone to his ex-girlfriend’s residence on Chandler Street to confront her current boyfriend. An altercation ensued, during which police said the 19-year-old appears to have jumped on the hood of a vehicle and was then thrown from the moving vehicle.
The incident remains under investigation, police said. At this time, they said no charges have been filed.
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