Latest news with #AmherstPoliceDepartment
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Yahoo
Prank call prompts police response at Amherst Regional High School
AMHERST, Mass. (WWLP) – A prank phone call received Thursday morning by Amherst Regional High School prompted an immediate safety response and a police presence on campus. In a letter issued by the Amherst-Pelham Regional School District, Superintendent Dr. Xi informed the school community that the Amherst Police Department is on site 'out of an abundance of caution' to support safety protocols. 'This morning, Amherst Regional High School received a prank phone call that prompted an immediate safety response,' the letter states. 'Out of an abundance of caution, the Amherst Police Department is present on site to support school safety protocols.' While the nature of the prank was not disclosed, school officials emphasized that there is no active threat to students of staff. 'Please know that all students and staff are safe. We are working closely with law enforcement to ensure the continued security of the building, and we are following all established procedures,' the superintendent wrote. No disruptions to the school day were mentioned in the notice, and officials indicated that more information would be shared if necessary. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Yahoo
Amherst Police: Don't send checks for free documents
AMHERST, Mass. (WWLP) – The Amherst Police Department is alerting residents that the Assessors' Office has a new warning. Police warn of woman found in Chicopee Canal social post The police department states that people in town are getting letters telling them to send a check to a UPS office in Cambridge to get copies of important documents, like the deed to their home. Those who fall victim to the scheme risk giving out private information, such as banking details. Those documents are free, and you can get them at the registry of deeds for free or at the registry of deeds website. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Former cop sues police chief and town of Amherst
A former Amherst, N.S., police officer is suing the town and the chief of police for defamation. Mark Rushton, who filed his suit in Nova Scotia Supreme Court earlier this month, alleges accusations last year that he misrepresented his qualifications for his job have ruined his reputation and career and caused personal hardships. Rushton resigned on June 6, 2024, just 10 days after being told a complaint had been made against him under the Nova Scotia Police Act. He worked for the Amherst Police Department for about a year as a constable and says in his lawsuit that his resignation was not related to the complaint, but rather was the result of a decision to move to the Annapolis Valley to be closer to his family. According to his lawsuit, Rushton was served with the complaint on May 27, 2024, and it accused him of acting "in a disorderly manner" and having "willfully [made] a false or misleading statement in an official record." When Amherst police announced the following month that they were conducting an internal investigation of one of their own officers, police Chief Dwayne Pike never identified Rushton by name in his public statements when he said they were investigating questions about an officer's credentials and qualifications. But the Nova Scotia Public Prosecution Service and court documents did identify him. The prosecution service launched a review of all cases Rushton handled during his time on the Amherst force, resulting in nine charges against seven people being dropped. In his lawsuit, Rushton contends Pike's comments "tend to lower the reputation of the Plaintiff by right thinking members of society" and were "libellous and defamatory." In an email, Laura Neilan, the lawyer who filed the lawsuit on behalf of Rushton, said she "looked forward to vindicating his reputation during the litigation process." "We have not seen a shred of evidence to suggest that Mr. Rushton was dishonest during the interview process, or that he lacks the necessary qualifications to work as a police officer in Amherst," the email said. Rushton worked as a military police officer in 2017 and served as a special constable with a town in Alberta before taking the job in Amherst. Reputation, career 'have been destroyed' Rushton said the Amherst department had his resumé and a full record of his training, which includes graduation from the Canadian Forces Military Police Academy and Dalhousie University's police leadership program. His suit says there's nothing in the Police Act to suggest his military police training was inadequate and asserts that "his reputation and career have been destroyed as a result of Chief Pike's libellous statements." Rushton says he's been unable to get a job with a municipal police force because any background check invariably leads to stories about his problems with the Amherst force. He says he tried to resume work as a military police officer, but the force wouldn't accept him until after it conducted its own investigation into his credentials. He was able to land a short-term contract with them that expires this month. Rushton says in the suit that he has lost custody of his children and been forced into bankruptcy because of his lack of steady employment. "Chief Pike's statements were made with a reckless disregard for the consequences to the Plaintiff's reputation and livelihood and as such, they amount to bad faith, warranting both aggravated and punitive damages," the lawsuit says. While no specific monetary amount is referenced in the suit, Rushton's lawyer said in its preamble that the case falls within a rule that limits damages to under $150,000. None of the allegations in the lawsuit have been tested in court and none of the participants accepted CBC's invitation to comment on the case. MORE TOP STORIES
CBC
31-03-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Former cop sues police chief and town of Amherst
A former Amherst, N.S., police officer is suing the town and the chief of police for defamation. Mark Rushton, who filed his suit in Nova Scotia Supreme Court earlier this month, alleges accusations last year that he misrepresented his qualifications for his job have ruined his reputation and career and caused personal hardships. Rushton resigned on June 6, 2024, just 10 days after being told a complaint had been made against him under the Nova Scotia Police Act. He worked for the Amherst Police Department for about a year as a constable and says in his lawsuit that his resignation was not related to the complaint, but rather was the result of a decision to move to the Annapolis Valley to be closer to his family. According to his lawsuit, Rushton was served with the complaint on May 27, 2024, and it accused him of acting "in a disorderly manner" and having "willfully [made] a false or misleading statement in an official record." When Amherst police announced the following month that they were conducting an internal investigation of one of their own officers, police Chief Dwayne Pike never identified Rushton by name in his public statements when he said they were investigating questions about an officer's credentials and qualifications. But the Nova Scotia Public Prosecution Service and court documents did identify him. The prosecution service launched a review of all cases Rushton handled during his time on the Amherst force, resulting in nine charges against seven people being dropped. In his lawsuit, Rushton contends Pike's comments "tend to lower the reputation of the Plaintiff by right thinking members of society" and were "libellous and defamatory." In an email, Laura Neilan, the lawyer who filed the lawsuit on behalf of Rushton, said she "looked forward to vindicating his reputation during the litigation process." "We have not seen a shred of evidence to suggest that Mr. Rushton was dishonest during the interview process, or that he lacks the necessary qualifications to work as a police officer in Amherst," the email said. Rushton worked as a military police officer in 2017 and served as a special constable with a town in Alberta before taking the job in Amherst. Reputation, career 'have been destroyed' Rushton said the Amherst department had his resumé and a full record of his training, which includes graduation from the Canadian Forces Military Police Academy and Dalhousie University's police leadership program. His suit says there's nothing in the Police Act to suggest his military police training was inadequate and asserts that "his reputation and career have been destroyed as a result of Chief Pike's libellous statements." Rushton says he's been unable to get a job with a municipal police force because any background check invariably leads to stories about his problems with the Amherst force. He says he tried to resume work as a military police officer, but the force wouldn't accept him until after it conducted its own investigation into his credentials. He was able to land a short-term contract with them that expires this month. Rushton says in the suit that he has lost custody of his children and been forced into bankruptcy because of his lack of steady employment. "Chief Pike's statements were made with a reckless disregard for the consequences to the Plaintiff's reputation and livelihood and as such, they amount to bad faith, warranting both aggravated and punitive damages," the lawsuit says. While no specific monetary amount is referenced in the suit, Rushton's lawyer said in its preamble that the case falls within a rule that limits damages to under $150,000.
Miami Herald
14-03-2025
- Miami Herald
Music teacher sent explicit videos, tried to meet with 13-year-old, NY official says
A school music teacher sent sexually explicit videos to someone he thought was a 13-year-old girl, then tried to meet up with her — but it wasn't a teen girl he was talking to, according to a district attorney's office in New York. As a Buffalo Public School District employee, Steven C. DeMart repeatedly messaged with the person on social media, believing they were a minor, according to Eerie County District Attorney Michael J. Keane. DeMart, 36, of Amherst, pleaded guilty March 12 to one count of attempted endangering the welfare of a child, Keane's office said in a March 14 news release. A judge sentenced the now-former music teacher to a one-year conditional discharge, according to the district attorney's office. DeMart was also ordered to give up his teaching license, the district attorney's office said. Attorney information for DeMart wasn't listed in the release. The attempted meet-up happened May 28, 2024, according to the district attorney. That same day, DeMart himself reported to Amherst Police Department and told officers about his attempt to meet up with the supposed child, according to the district attorney's office. In June, a Buffalo Public School District spokesperson told WKBW-TV that DeMart 'was immediately placed on paid administrative leave on May 29, 2024, pending an investigation.' DeMart was suspended as a teacher following the police report, the district attorney's office said in an earlier news release announcing his Aug. 22 arraignment. He was 'communicating with an adult who was impersonating a juvenile female,' the office said at the time. The district attorney's office didn't identify the adult. In recent years across the U.S., people have set out to catch adults who might be preying on children online, McClatchy News previously reported. Several citizens have formed groups to carry out their own unofficial sting operations, which often involve a member of the group posing as a decoy minor. Mary Graw Leary, a law professor at the Catholic University of America's Columbus School of Law and a former federal prosecutor, previously told McClatchy News that 'if your goal is to incarcerate offenders of children, the best people to leave it to are the professionals, law enforcement, prosecutors, etc.' Suspected child exploitation can be reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's CyberTipline online, or by calling 1-800-843-5678.
