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Pittsfield Man Arrested After Riot in U.S. Capitol

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A Pittsfield man is among those facing charges after the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday. 
 
David Lester Ross, 33, was recorded in the Metropolitan Police Department's listing for "Unrest-Related Arrest Data" on Wednesday, Jan. 6. He was the only Massachusetts resident charged as of Jan. 7 but his hometown was not provided. 
 
Boston.com reported Friday that he is a Pittsfield resident. 
 
Ross was charged with curfew violation and unlawful entry. He was picked up in the 100 Block of First Street NW in Washington, D.C., an area northwest of the Capitol building, according to police. The time he was arrested is not listed in the arrest data but Boston.com reports that police say he was arrested after 7 with a number of other people for refusing orders to abide by the curfew.
 
Police say Winter "without lawful authority, did enter and attempt to enter certain public property, that is, the United States Capitol Grounds, against the will of the United States Capitol Police."
 
It is not clear if he was involved in the mob that broke into the Capitol building during the counting of the electoral votes for president. 
 
Five people died in the attack, including one Capitol police officer. Numerous other officers were reportedly injured.
 
Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling, regarding the riot, said on Thursday that "anyone who traveled from Massachusetts with the intent to commit such crimes will be prosecuted in the District of Massachusetts."
 
More than 50 people were arraigned on Thursday, mostly for curfew violations and unlawful entry. They were ordered to leave the District of Columbia with return dates set to face charges. Boston.com reports that Ross has a court date of June 10. His attorney is Darryl Daniels II.
 
A Facebook page for a David L. Ross shows him holding a firearm in his profile picture with a "Trump Pence" logo. There are posts of conspiracy theories, such as Bill Gates chipping people, and of supporting the president. He also apparently attended a Trump rally in New Hampshire in October. The page gives his history as having served in the infantry in the Army and the National Guard. It says he also worked at Family Dollar and Big Y and is originally from Catskill, N.Y. 
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Pittsfield BOH Condemns Two Homes

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Two more Pittsfield homes have been condemned.

The Board of Health voted Wednesday to condemn 86 John St. and 224 Fourth St. It came with a pang of sadness about demolishing homes during a housing crisis and a conversation about prevention.

"I would think many years ago this property had flowers in front of it," Chair Roberta Elliott said about the John Street home. "It was not like this."

Another member said it feels like capital punishment to the properties.

Both homes have no owner or heir who wants to take responsibility for them. The city has 43 open condemnation orders — about 20 residential.

"The condemnation can be as simple as no running water, no electricity," Code Enforcement Office Andrew Gagnon said. "So it is a spectrum of severity."

The four-bedroom John Street property has been sitting since 2018 and the Fourth Street multifamily has been subject to break-ins despite being secured and deemed unsafe by the Fire Department.

"It's unfortunate that so many properties on John Street have had to meet the wrecking ball," Gagnon said.

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