BOSTON — Sen. Elizabeth Warren is pressing the Trump administration on how they plan to pay for a wall on the U.S. and Mexico border.
The Massachusetts Democrat and five other Democratic senators have sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly raising concerns about what they said was the potential diversion of funds from key agency priorities.
Warren said Friday Trump’s executive order requires the Department of Homeland Security, to “allocate all sources of federal funds” for the planning, designing and construction of the wall to the extent allowed by law.
Warren said the order could divert money from other department priorities like cybersecurity, disaster preparedness and terrorism prevention.
New Mexico Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, Hawaii Sen. Brian Schatz, and California Sen. Kamala Harris also signed the letter.
NEW YORK — Passengers aboard a Boston-bound Amtrak train said Friday they were stuck in New York City overnight for about five hours without heat.
The passengers took to Twitter with complaints about being cold and given little information from Amtrak on what was happening. They said they were in some unknown part of the Bronx. The train originated in Washington.
“You don’t want to see an Amtrak bathroom after four hours with no power. It was nasty,” said passenger Sharon Rice as she finally arrived in Boston’s South Station just after noon Friday.
The railroad said in a statement Friday morning that the train had a problem with overhead electrical wires. It said crews restored power to the train at 7:10 a.m. and the train resumed travel around 7:30 a.m.
BLACKSTONE — A Massachusetts farmer is facing animal cruelty charges after some of his livestock was found living in what investigators called squalor.
Gary Guibault, of Blackstone, was released after being charged with two counts of animal cruelty by custodian.
Law enforcement officers from the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals say during several visits to the farm, they found thin cows and a steer living in unsanitary conditions, and chickens and other fowl living in filthy conditions.
WORCESTER — Police in Massachusetts say they’re working to identify a suspect after a teacher’s aide was found strangled to death in her apartment.
Worcester police said Thursday that 49-year-old Sandra Hehir, a middle school instructional assistant, was found dead on the floor of her home around 11:15 a.m. Sunday.
Police say a resident of the building had found the body. An autopsy determined the cause of death was homicide by strangulation.
CHICOPEE — Two people have pleaded not guilty in connection with the shooting death of a man in Chicopee.
Police say 29-year-old Michael Brawner faces murder and other charges while 33-year-old Sorheyddi Colondres has been charged with accessory after the fact and misleading a police investigator.
The Springfield residents were arrested Friday after 44-year-old Chicopee resident Kevin Blanton was found suffering from a gunshot wound inside a residence shortly after 1 a.m. He later died at the hospital.
Brawner has been held without bail following his arraignment Friday in Chicopee District Court. Colondres was held on $250,000 cash or a $2.5 million personal surety.
Police haven’t disclosed a motive but say the killing wasn’t random.
From Associated Press