Laurel Street to Close, Closures of I-290 Scheduled

WORCESTER – Laurel Street in Worcester will close on Thursday, March 26, at 5 AM for MassDOT roadwork and phase one of the Laurel Street bridge project. The City of Worcester says it expects the street to reopen on Friday, April 3, at 7 AM.

Phase one of the Laurel Street bridge project will set new bridge beams. The city expects MassDOT to move a crane into the area to facilitate the work on Sunday night, March 29.

The city says no-parking signs will begin going up on Tuesday, March 24.

The work will also require lane closures on both sides of I-290 overnight on both Sunday, March 29, and Monday, March 30. All lanes are expected to reopen by 5 AM on both Monday and Tuesday.

The two left lanes of I-290 Eastbound will be closed overnight between Tuesday, March 31, and Thursday, April 2. Intermittent closures of all lanes on I-290 Eastbound are expected, but will be limited to between midnight and 5 AM.

22-Year-Old Westminster Man Dead After Officer-Involved Shooting

WESTMINSTER – The office of Worcester County District Attorney Joe Early Jr. announced on Tuesday, March 23, an investigation into a fatal officer-involved shooting in Westminster on Monday.

According to Early’s office, Westminster Police officers responded to a home on South Ashburnham Road to serve an arrest warrant on Monday, March 22, at around 4:45 PM. Officers made contact with the suspect inside the home.

Early’s office said that during the officer’s interaction with the 22-year-old Westminster resident, the man moved toward the officers while holding a large knife. Officers discharged their firearms and struck the individual.

After shooting the man, the officers provided medical aid.

EMS responded to the scene and transported the man to a local hospital, and later to a hospital in the Worcester area, where doctors pronounced him dead.

None of the responding officers sustained injuries during the incident. The officers involved were placed on administrative leave pending an investigation.

Massachusetts State Police detectives assigned to the Worcester County District Attorney’s Office and the Westminster Police Department are conducting the ongoing investigation.

City Officials Respond to Racist Rhetoric Aimed at South High Athletes

WORCESTER – A series of social media posts and replies using bigoted tropes and racist language directed at the girls basketball team at South High Community School has drawn a response from City Councilor Khrystian King, Mayor Joe Petty, and Superintendent of Worcester Public Schools Brian Allen.

Those who made the comments were responding to a post about a recent South High girls basketball game against Andover High School.

King released a statement on Monday, March 16, which included some posts that drew his response. A selection of those posts appear on this page.

In his statement, King said that the racism and bullying directed toward the student athletes “is a youth wellness issue, and we as a community must stand up
for them and protect them.”

“These young women are not just competing at the highest levels of high school basketball. They are setting an example for younger students across Worcester of all identities and backgrounds, including my own daughter and her classmates, who are watching and learning from them.

That should be the story. Instead, the conversation has been overshadowed by threats, racism, and bullying directed at these young women. That behavior has no place in high school athletics or in any community that claims to value its young people.”
– City Councilor At-Large Khrystian King

King also said that “Reports of threats invoking immigration enforcement toward student athletes during games, combined with the wave of racist commentary circulating online about these young women cannot be ignored.

On Thursday, March 19, Petty, who is also the chairperson of the Worcester School Committee, and Allen issued a joint statement in response to the posts, saying they “overshadowed the girls’ opportunity to celebrate their accomplishments and included hateful, racial comments directed toward South High’s players by adults and individuals not affiliated with either district.”

“The Worcester community stands united in denouncing racism in all its forms. We are deeply troubled by the recent rhetoric.

Hate and discrimination have no place in our society, and certainly not toward our youth. All human beings deserve to be treated with respect and decency. We emphasize that adults must serve as role models for kindness, respect, and appropriate behavior. School staff continue to offer support and hold ongoing discussions with affected students, while serving as role models.”
– Mayor Joe Petty and Superintendent of Worcester Public Schools Brian Allen

Petty and Allen also said that the Worcester Public Schools and Worcester School Committee “remain steadfast in their commitment to ensuring safe, welcoming environments where all students feel valued and respected.”

7 Worcester Youths Campaign Against Underage Alcohol Access

WORCESTER – Seven Worcester youth volunteers recently completed a “sticker shock” awareness campaign designed to deter adults from purchasing alcohol for minors and to reinforce the importance of ID checks by retailers.

The volunteers placed over 250 visible warning stickers directly on alcohol products as real-time reminders that providing alcohol to those under 21 years old is a crime that can result in legal, financial, and health consequences. They placed over 250 stickers across three participating retailers whose customer base spans multiple city districts: East Side Discount Liquors (129 Shrewsbury St.), Highland Liquors (121 Highland St.), and Mass Liquors (392 Chandler St.).

The volunteers also led working with retailers as part of the campaign.

Sticker shock campaigns are evidence-based and shown to interrupt risky decision-making, reduce social access to alcohol, and promote shared responsibility for youth safety and well-being.

The campaign was part of an initiative by the Worcester Division of Public Health (DPH) in partnership with the Division of Youth Opportunities (DYO) and the Worcester Police Department (WPD).

Sobriety Checkpoint in Worcester County March 20 to March 21

WORCESTER – The Massachusetts State Police announced there will be a sobriety checkpoint in Worcester County from Friday, March 20, to Saturday, March 21.

Police are required to announce the dates and county in which sobriety checkpoints will appear. The checkpoint will appear on a public way within Worcester County.

According to the state police, the purpose of sobriety checkpoints is “to further educate the motoring public and strengthen the public’s awareness of the need to detect and remove motorists who operate under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs from our roadways.”

A grant from the Office of Grants and Research, a division of the Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety, funded the operation.

New State Loan Program Supports Accessory Dwelling Unit Construction

BOSTON – Governor Maura Healey’s office announced the launch of a state loan program for homeowners across Massachusetts to add a second unit to their homes. The statewide accessory dwelling unit (ADU) loan program provides borrowing through a second mortgage of up to $250,000 to enable homeowners to add a second unit to their homes.

An ADU is a small residential living space located on the same lot as a single-family home.

The Affordable Homes Act, which Healey signed into law on Aug. 6, 2024, created the right for any single-family homeowner in Massachusetts to add an ADU attached to their home or a detached unit on the same lot.

The program supports the construction of new ADUs. The loan will carry a 5.25 percent interest rate with a 20-year term. Those with an income over 135 percent of area median income, around $165,345 in Worcester County, will not qualify.

Applicants must secure local permits and be ready to move into construction when applying.

“Expanding housing options for Massachusetts residents is one of our administration’s top priorities, and accessory dwelling units are one of the most practical ways to create housing and drive down costs in communities across our state,” said Governor Maura Healey. “This program will open the door for families to create new homes, support loved ones and strengthen neighborhoods across Massachusetts.”

Applications are now open at the MassHousing website.

Worcester City Council Approves $25 Million Loan Order to Pay Holden

WORCESTER – The Worcester City Council approved a request by City Manager Eric Batista to borrow $25.5 million to pay the Town of Holden during the council’s meeting on Tuesday, March 17.

In another item on the council’s agenda, Batista requested the council approve a $10 million transfer from an account for reserve funds for sewer service to an account for sewer maintenance.

In a letter to the city council, Batista says the transfer will allow him “the ability to complete discussions with the Town of Holden to address the final judgement rendered against the City of Worcester.”

Holden Town Manager Peter Lukes told Spectrum News earlier this month that “The time for settlement negotiations comes BEFORE the final judgment (and appeals), not after.” He also said that “The courts have spoken. Their decision(s) ARE the settled outcome.”

The attorney representing Holden, Christopher Petrini, told Spectrum that “every day payment is delayed an additional $8723.96 of post-judgment interest is added to the amount due.”

The City of Worcester owes Holden over $35 million for what a jury decided was “unjust enrichment” in August 2022, after an eight-day trial. Holden filed the lawsuit in 2013, alleging that Holden paid overcharged fees for sewage treatment. The 2022 judgement in the case awarded Holden $14.6 million.

Worcester pursued overturning the case. In April 2023, a Worcester Superior Court judge upheld the jury’s verdict. The finalized judgement at this time, including costs and pre-judgement interest, was nearly $27 million.

The City of Worcester continued to pursue appeals and asked the Massachusetts Supreme Court to review the case while interest continued to accumulate. In February, the court declined the Worcester request for review of the case.

By then, accumulating interest pushed the amount due to Holden to over $35 million.

Batista’s letter to the city council concludes with: “I will continue to keep the City Council apprised as terms are finalized and the impact on the Sewer Fund and rate payers is determined.”

Uxbridge Man Sentenced for Child Sex Abuse Content

WORCESTER – A federal judge in Worcester sentenced a local man for possession of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on Friday, March 13.

Scott Morrill, 52, of Uxbridge, received a sentence of 10 years in prison followed by 15 years of supervised release. Morrill pleaded guilty in October 2025 after being arrested and charged in April 2025.

According to federal prosecutors, Morrill used a Google account to store hundreds of images of CSAM. Google identified the use of its services to store the material and notified the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

The resulting investigation discovered the content within Morrill’s Google account and on a computer in his home.

At the time of the crime, Morrill remained on supervised release for a 2013 conviction for distribution of child pornography, for which a judge sentenced him to five years in prison.

Lawsuit Claims Mental Health Discrimination in Worcester Emergency Response

WORCESTER – Three mental health organizations filed a civil lawsuit against the City of Worcester on Monday, March 16, alleging the city’s 911 emergency response program discriminates against children, youth, and adults with mental health disabilities.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) of Central Massachusetts, NAMI-Massachusetts, and the Parent-Professional Advocacy League filed a discrimination lawsuit against the city, alleging its 911 program violates Section 504 of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Section 504 requires “that People with Disabilities Have Equal Access to, and an Equal Opportunity to Benefit From, the Services, Programs, and Activities of a Public Entity’s 911 Program, Including by Making Reasonable Modifications to a Public Entity’s 911 Program,” according to the complaint.

In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs allege that calling 911 in Worcester in response to a physical health emergency, like a heart attack, brings qualified healthcare professionals like EMTs and paramedics to the scene. Calls in response to a mental health emergency, like suicidal ideation or post-traumatic stress episodes, bring armed police officers to the scene.

Unlike qualified medical professionals, the qualifications and training provided to police officers prepare them for maintaining public order, ensuring public safety, and promoting prompt compliance from the public, not emergency mental health response, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit also cites a quote attributed to the International Association of Chiefs of Police Law Enforcement Policy Center: “the mere presence of a law enforcement vehicle, an officer in uniform, and/or a weapon . . . has the potential to escalate a situation’ when the person is in crisis.”

Estimated 35,000 Mental Health Calls

The lawsuit quotes Deputy Chief of Police Ed McGinn Jr., cited as telling the Human Rights Commission on July 11, 2022, that, “upwards of 25% [of] calls on a daily basis are people who are experiencing some sort of mental health crisis. We are the epicenter of all things social service here in Worcester.”

Based on the number of total calls reported in 2024, that would amount to over 35,000 mental health calls that year received by the City of Worcester Emergency Communications department, which dispatches calls to the Worcester Police Department, Worcester Fire Department, and Worcester Emergency Medical Services.

The lawsuit also alleges that the Emergency Communications Department has inadequate practices to serve mental health emergencies.

According to the complaint:

“Emergency Communications has no specific intake procedures for mental health emergencies. There is no behavioral health specialist employed by Emergency Communications who can triage calls or provide specialized intake for mental health emergency calls. There are no intake questions or protocols that are used for answering mental health emergency calls, despite the fact that Emergency Communications receives thousands of mental health emergency calls per year.”

The Emergency Communications Department’s protocols, according to the lawsuit, are also inadequate for responding to mental health calls. It says that the department’s procedures require dispatching medical personnel to calls reporting physical injuries, while calls related to mental health emergencies require dispatching armed officers.

The city’s dispatchers have specialized training and protocols for physical health emergencies, according to the lawsuit, but not for mental or behavioral emergencies, according to the lawsuit. It also alleges that the Emergency Communications Department has limited guidance for intake and classification of mental health emergency calls.

The lawsuit also cites several studies, including from both the state and federal government.

The “Massachusetts 911 Call Study” by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) and the Executive Office of Public Safety and
Security (EOPSS), released in June 2023:

“A system in which law enforcement is the default responder to an individual experiencing a behavioral health crisis increases the potential of avoidable adverse outcomes for the subject, such as being arrested, involuntarily hospitalized, traumatized, or subjected to harm. These adverse outcomes disproportionately impact Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC).”

It also cites national guidance by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published in 2020, which says that “[p]olice involvement in crisis situations can provoke fear, anxiety, and trauma response or re-traumatization, particularly among Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color (BIPOC) youth and families and those in low-income, segregated communities.”

SAMHSA’s 2025 guidelines for behavioral health crisis response, which is also cited, say:

“Communities that already face disparities in access to services and resources may be further marginalized through primary law enforcement response to behavioral health crisis and extended stays in emergency departments (EDs). Crisis responders may refer individuals in crisis to psychiatric inpatient services when they may have better outcomes in less restrictive and more inclusive community-based services.”

In situations of involuntary commitment under M.G.L. Ch. 123 § 12 (commonly referred to as Section 12 or “being sectioned”) the lawsuit says that the law prohibits the use of “any restraint that is unnecessary for the safety of the person being transported or other persons likely to come in contact with the person.” The Worcester Police Department’s Emergency Mental Health Procedures policy states that in cases of involuntary commitment ““restraint during transport is virtually always warranted.”

The full passage from the department’s policy:

“7. RESTRAINT, SEARCH & TRANSPORTATION:

Restraint:

Pursuant to MGL Ch. 123 § 21; any person who transports a mentally ill person to or from a facility for any purpose authorized under Chapter 123 shall not use any restraint which is unnecessary for the safety of the person being transported or other persons likely to come in contact with him. Since a person who is taken into custody pursuant to Section 12 has or is demonstrating a “likelihood of serious harm” as defined by Section 1 of Chapter 123, restraint during transport is virtually always warranted. In those rare and isolated cases where physical restraint is contraindicated, alternative methods such as close police guard must be used to insure the patient’s safety and that of the others.”

The complaint also alleges that the crisis response services pilot, which the city contracted with Community Healthlink to create for an 18-month pilot program, “was limited in time, place, and resources for its short, one and one-half year duration, failed to provide meaningful alternative responses to people with mental health disabilities and produced little, if any, diversion of 911 mental health emergency calls.

It also says that currently, the city has “no professional clinical health response for 911 mental health emergency calls.”

The City of Worcester maintains a policy that it does not comment on ongoing litigation.

See the full complaint.

See the Neighborhood Meetings This Week in Worcester

WORCESTER – The Worcester Police Department is encouraging residents to attend their neighborhood watch meetings to stay up-to-date on what’s happening in their neighborhoods and to share any concerns or questions they may have. Representatives from the city also regularly attend these neighborhood meetings.

There are over 50 Neighborhood Watch Groups in Worcester. Meetings are held regularly — often once a month in various locations in the city.

Contact the Worcester Police Department’s Neighborhood Response Team at (508) 799-8664 for more information.

Here are the neighborhood meetings this week in Worcester.

Wednesday, March 18

• Indian Lake Neighborhood Meeting, Worcester Business Center, 67 Millbrook St. – 6 PM

Thursday, March 19

• Mill Street Area Neighborhood Meeting, Stearns Tavern, 140 Mill St. – 6 PM

Wednesday, March 26

• Whittier Terrace Neighborhood Meeting, Whittier Terrace, 86 Austin St. – 4 PM
• Quinsigamond Village Neighborhood Meeting, Journey Church 46 Greenwood St. – 6 PM

Thursday, March 27

• Columbus Park Neighborhood Meeting, Stearns Tavern, 140 Mill St. – 6 PM

Wednesday, April 1

• Seabury Heights Apartments Neighborhood Meeting, 240 Belmont St. – 4 PM
• Coes Pond Village Apt. Meeting, Coes Pond Village 39 First St. – 5:30 PM

Thursday, April 2

• Lincoln Village Neighborhood Meeting, Victoria Building, 116 Country Club Blvd. – 4 PM
• Webster Square Neighborhood Meeting, Our Lady of Angels Church, 1222 Main St. – 7 PM