| Home | About | Archives | RSS Feed |
Superior Court: Man Arraigned in North Adams Murder
 David Delratez at his rendition hearing in Bennington, Vt. He was arraigned in Berkshire Superior Court in Pittsfield on Wednesday for the murder of Ellen Depaoli. |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The man accused of murdering 84-year-old Ellen Depaoli in North Adams is being held without bail after his case was moved to Berkshire Superior Court.
David Delratez entered not-guilty pleas on single counts of murder and larceny of a motor vehicle on Wednesday.
Delratez is accused of murdering Depaoli at her home on Walker Street in North Adams on September 17, 2013 and fleeing in her car.
He was taken into custody a few days later in Bennington for violating his probation from a previous charge.
Authorities then charged him with murder and larceny of a motor vehicle and he entered not guilty pleas to those charges at an arraignment in Northern Berkshire District Court on Sept. 23.
The case is now moved to Berkshire Superior Court after a grand jury indicted him on Monday; he was arraigned again on Wednesday.
He again pleaded not guilty to the previous charges of breaking and entering with intent to commit a misdemeanor and malicious destruction of property in connection with an incident in Clarksburg on Sept. 13, 2013 — the charges he was originally taken into custody on because it violated his probation.
Also from that Sept. 13 incident, he was charged and pleaded not guilty to a single count of use of a motor vehicle without authority.
According to police documents presented at the first arraignment, Delratez was found after police tracked down Depaoli's car in Bennington. They found a knife in the car, which police say was used in the murder.
Delratez then allegedly told police that two other men committed the crime and forced him to take the car and drive them out of town. He then says he was scared and went to stay with a friend in Bennington, according to police documents.
Police Investigating Shooting in Clarksburg
 |
CLARKSBURG, Mass. — Police are investigating an alleged shooting Friday night that sent one person to the hospital.
Law enforcement officials are tight-lipped about the incident although it reportedly occured during an altercation in the town.
Police Chief Michael Williams referred all inquiries to the district attorney's office; Fred Lantz, spokesman for the DA's office, said the incident is currently under investigation.
Lantz did say the incident led one person to be transported and later released from the hospital. No arrests have been made yet, and the investigation is ongoing.
The investigation has included Clarksburg, North Adams and state police.
North Adams Police Director Michael Cozzaglio on Monday said a fight between two women at the Artery Lounge early Saturday morning involved city police in the incident.
"In the course of their investigation, it was brought to the officers' attention that there was a person inside the bar who had a gunshot wound," said Cozzaglio. The officers contacted North Adams Ambulance, which transported the individual to the hospital. "We assisted Clarksburg until the state police detective unit arrived on scene."
According to the North Adams police log, officers were called to the Artery on Union Street at about 1 a.m. for a report of a fight in progress between two women, neither of whom had any relation to the earlier incident in Clarksburg. At 5:36 a.m., the log reports that a North Adams officer also found two .22-caliber casings on Cross Road.
Tour Bus Plows Into Snowpile at Hairpin Turn
 |
|
| CLARKSBURG, Mass. — A tour bus ran into brake trouble coming down the Mohawk Trail on shortly before noon on Saturday and plowed into a pile of snow when it couldn't manage the Hairpin Turn. The snow stopped the bus before it could hit the wall in front of the Golden Eagle Restaurant right at the sharp turn. No was reported seriously injured in the accident. |
 |
Clarksburg Rollover Injures One
 |
|
 |
 |
CLARKSBURG, Mass. — A single-car accident injured at least one person and closed the River Road (Route 8) just north south of Town Hall shortly after 3:30 p.m.
A late-model silver Hyundai sedan was believed to be southbound when it veered and hit the soft shoulder of the road on the east side and flipped. Police were still investigating the accident and could not confirm the sequence of events.
The windshield was removed to allow emergency responders to get to the driver, a woman. The driver was taken to North Adams Regional Hospital with unknown injuries; the only other occupant, an underage boy, did not appear to be injured.
Clarksburg Police and Fire responded to the scene, as did North Adams Police and Fire and North Adams Ambulance Service.
The highway was reopened at 4:31 p.m.
Clarksburg Crash Takes Fatal Turn
 |
Nancy Carpenter, 61, of North Adams was a longtime educator in the North Adams Public School System.
Police said Carpenter appeared to be making right from North Eagle into the eastbound lane of West Cross Road at 11:40 a.m. on Thursday when she collided with a westbound pickup truck operated by Jennifer Lefevre of Stamford, Vt.
Both Clarksburg and North Adams fire departments responded to the scene and North Adams firefighters used the Jaws of Life to remove Carpenter from her vehicle.
Carpenter was Life-Flighted to Albany and Lefevre was taken to North Adams Regional Hospital where she was treated and released. A number of ambulances responded to the scene, including North Adams Ambulance.
Police Chief Michael Williams said the state police accident reconstruction was called to the scene. "Because of the extent of the accident, we determined to cover all the bases," he said.
Police say it appeared that Carpenter did not stop at the stop sign at the top of North Eagle but it was unclear how her car swung into the truck's path. According to the passenger in Carpenter's car, they were on their way to Stamford. The passenger was also treated and released from NARH.
Reports of a third car involved were incorrect. Williams said a car was stopped at the stop sign at the bottom of West Road, across from North Eagle Street. Both Carpenter's car and the pickup ended up in front of it, which may have been why the initial report was for three vehicles.
The accident remains under investigation.
Updated on Aug. 5, 2012, rewrite of lede, headline to reflect fatality.
