NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — A 34-year-old city woman was killed, and three other people were injured Friday morning, March 26, in a two-car crash on Route 91 in Longmeadow.

Tracy Gomez was driving a 2000 Hyundai Sonata southbound shortly before 10 a.m. when she apparently tried to turn left from the far right lane to use the median turnaround at the .8 mile marker, according to state police from the Springfield barracks.

Her driver's side door was struck by a 1996 GMC Jimmy being operated by 69-year-old Karl Johnson Sr. of West Suffield, Conn., that was traveling in the left lane adjacent to the median, according a preliminary investigation by Trooper Christopher Keyes.

Gomez was pronounced dead at the scene. Her passenger, 66-year-old Stephen Bowen of Springfield, was extricated from the vehicle and transported to Baystate Hospital in Springfield with serious injuries. The passenger of the Jimmy, 50-year-old Karl Johnson Jr. of West Suffield, and his father were taken to Baystate Hospital with serious injuries as well.

The accident was reported at 9:56 a.m. The left and middle travel lanes were closed for approximately two hours during the crash investigation.

The crash is under investigation by Troop B with the assistance of the Crime Scene Services Section, Collision Analysis Reconstruction Section and troopers from the Hampden County district attorney's office.

Troopers were additionally assisted at the scene by the Longmeadow Fire Department, AMR ambulance service, and MassHighway.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Two more people were arraigned Monday morning in the murder of 26-year-old Jahda M. Martin, who was stabbed outside a Pittsfield nightspot in the early hours of March 6, 2010. Martin later died of his injuries at Berkshire Medical Center.

Allen McGraw, 26, was arrested Sunday and Crystal Gonzalez, 21, on Friday evening. They both appeared before Judge Frederic Rutberg in Central Berkshire District Court.

McGraw, of Kingston, N.Y., had not-guilty pleas entered in his behalf on single counts of murder and assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon. Rutberg ordered him held at the Berkshire County House of Correction without the right to bail. He is scheduled to appear in district court for a pretrial hearing on April 8.

Gonzalez, of Springfield, had not-guilty pleas entered on her behalf on single counts of accessory after the fact to murder and accessory after the fact to assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon. She was ordered held at the House of Correction on $25,000 bail. She is scheduled back in court for a pretrial hearing on April 14.

Police say McGraw, Terrance W. Brown, Trevor L. Pryce Jr. and John C. Spratling stabbed and assaulted Martin in the Burger King parking lot by Wendell Avenue Extension. Martin, of Hamlin Street, Pittsfield, was a star athlete at Lee High School, from which he graduated in 2002. He later attended Long Island (N.Y.) University.

Brown, 26, was arrested in Springfield on the night of March 10 and returned to Pittsfield on Thursday morning, when he was charged on single counts of murder and assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon. He had not-guilty pleas entered on his behalf and was ordered, also by Rutberg, to be held at the House of Correction with out right to bail. Brown is scheduled to return to court for a pretrial hearing on April 8.

It is alleged that Gonzalez was operating the vehicle carrying Brown when he was arrested in Springfield on the Pittsfield warrant.

Pryce and Spratling were arraigned on March 8.

A two-vehicle accident on Sunday afternoon on Route 8 in Cheshire sent four people to Berkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield.

According to state police, Geoffrey Duval of Adams was making a lefthand turn, heading south, from the parking lot of Whitney's Farmstand in a green Chevrolet Cavalier shortly before 1 p.m. when he struck a northbound Honda CRV driven by David Malacarne, 54, of Pittsfield. Duval was taken to North Adams Regional Hospital with minor injuries.

Malacarne, his wife, Mary, and another passenger were taken to BMC where they were treated and released.  State police cited Duval for failure to use care when turning.

Cheshire Fire and Rescue also responded to the scene.
 

Updated 3:17 p.m., March 8: Two men were arrested and charged with the Saturday morning stabbing death of Jahda M. Martin.

Trevor L. Pryce Jr., 28, of Spring Street, North Adams, and John C. Spratling, 26, of Cherry Street, Pittsfield, were arraigned on single counts each of murder and assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon.

The two appeared before Judge Paul Vrabel on Monday morning in Central Berkshire District Court. Both had not-guilty pleas entered on their behalf and were ordered held at the Berkshire County House of Correction without the right to bail.

They are scheduled to return to court for a pretrial hearing on April 8.

Investigators have also applied for and received an arrest warrant for 26-year-old Terrance W. Brown in connection with Martin's death.

An autopsy to determine the cause of Martin's death has not yet been scheduled.

Once a star athlete at Lee High School, the 2002 graduate had also played basketball while attending Long Island University.

Pittsfield Man Slain in Stabbing

Original post, March 7, 9:42 a.m.: A Pittsfield man died Saturday evening after apparently being stabbed earlier Saturday in an altercation near the Burger King on First Street.
 
The Berkshire district attorney's office said that Jahda M. Martin, 26, of Hamlin Street, was rushed to Berkshire Medical Center by ambulance in the early morning hours after police received several 911 calls at about 1:40 a.m. reporting a stabbing in the fast-food restaurant's parking lot on Wendell Avenue Extension. Police and emergency medical technicians found Martin at the scene.

The Berkshire Eagle reported that the lot is commonly used for parking by patrons of nearby Club Groove and that police said Martin had left the bar when the altercation occurred. This is the city's first homicide of the year.

An autopsy to determine the cause of death will be conducted at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Holyoke. The date and time of the autopsy have yet to be determined.

Investigators are asking anyone who may have information regarding this incident to call the Pittsfield Police Department at 413-448-9700.
 
The investigation is being conducted by members of the Pittsfield Police Department, state police detectives assigned to the district attorney's office, state police from the Crime Scene Services Section and members of the Berkshire County Drug Task Force. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The North Adams Neighborhood Crime Watch seeks the participation of North Adams youth, not only at its meetings, but as a creative force.

The crime watch is soliciting logo designs for its program, and the winning designer will receive $100. The contest is open to students in grades six through 12 who reside in North Adams. The drawing/logo that will be chosen will be used on all Neighborhood Watch t-shirts, stickers and letterhead. It is important to think about using mediums that will transfer well into a logo or design that can be printed easily; thinking "outside of the box" is encouraged.

All drawings should be submitted on a standard white sheet of paper by April 10, 2010 and sent c/o NW Art, nbCC, 61 Main St., North Adams, MA 01247. Write your name, address and telephone number in black ink on the back of the submission.

The crime watch is a collaboration of the City of North Adams, North Adams Police Department and Northern Berkshire Community Coalition; it  has 17 captains throughout the city who are volunteering to help organize their neighborhood and make it a safer place to live by simply connecting and communicating with their neighbors.

For more information, contact Ashley Benson at 413-663-7588.