No one hurt when facade of Massachusetts building collapses

SOMERVILLE, Mass. — The brick facade of a Somerville building that houses two restaurants has crashed to the ground while diners were inside one of them enjoying breakfast.

There were no injuries.

Police say the facade on Beacon Street collapsed onto the sidewalk just before 10 a.m. Monday.

The building houses Zoe’s Chinese restaurant and Mixtura restaurant, which was open at the time.

Broadcast video shows a pile of rubble on the sidewalk. Police closed the street for cleanup.

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The cause remains under investigation.

UNH starts school of marine science

DURHAM, N.H. — The University of New Hampshire has started a new school of Marine Science and Ocean Engineering, focusing on newer topics such as adaptations to climate change and coastal planning, in addition to subjects such as marine biology and oceanography.

The school is the first interdisciplinary one at UNH and will provide graduate and undergraduate courses.

The school operates two research vessels as well as numerous smaller boats. It maintains the Judd Gregg Marine Research Complex in New Castle, the Jackson Estuarine Laboratory on Great Bay in Durham, and the Chase Ocean Engineering Laboratory on campus.

Nearly 70 faculty members from 14 departments in three colleges teach marine and ocean engineering-related courses to 300 undergraduate and 100 graduate students.

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“Whether responding to an oil spill, mitigating the effects of climate change, or launching an aquaculture solution to declining fish stocks, we must provide knowledge that transcends biology, chemistry, engineering, economics, policy, and oceanography, among other disciplines,” said UNH President Mark W. Huddleston, who announced the new school Monday.

The school will be housed in UNH’s Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans and Space. It will focus on three doctoral programs: ocean engineering, oceanography, and marine biology. The school will also develop graduate courses and certificate programs in areas such as coastal planning and adaptations to climate change. Undergraduates will continue to pursue marine-related studies within the various majors’ departments.

No new trial for Massachusetts man who shot wife 18 times

BOSTON — A Massachusetts man who shot his wife 18 times in a jealous rage because he thought she was having an affair will not get a new trial, the state’s highest court ruled Monday.

The Supreme Judicial Court refused to grant John Tassinari a second trial or to reduce his first-degree murder conviction in the 2008 killing of his wife, Barbara Tassinari.

Prosecutors said Tassinari used two handguns to kill his 29-year-old wife in the driveway of their home in Abington. When police arrived at the scene, they found the victim’s brother holding the suspect.

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Tassinari’s lawyer called the slaying a crime of passion, saying he flew into a rage when his wife told him she was having an affair. The defense argued for a manslaughter conviction.

In his appeal, Tassinari argued that the judge at his trial should have excluded testimony from his wife’s best friend and her sister-in-law, who testified about ongoing hostility in the couple’s marriage and how Barbara Tassinari had asked for a divorce.

John Tassinari also objected to the judge’s decision to allow three autopsy photographs of the victim, saying they were unduly prejudicial.

He also objected to jury instructions and portions of the prosecutor’s argument.

The high court said it found no errors and rejected Tassinari’s arguments.


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