Latest news with #BedfordHighSchool
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Underage drinking party may have preceded Bedford teen's death, chief says
The 17-year-old Bedford High School junior who died in a motor vehicle incident Sunday had been at a party where there may have been underage drinking, police said. The teenage boy, whose name has not been released, was pronounced dead at a local hospital after police and emergency responders went to Wallace Road around 8:15 p.m. following a report of a person jumping out of a car near Stagecoach Lane. The circumstances that led to the boy's death are still unclear though, Bedford Police Chief Daniel Douidi said in a statement Wednesday afternoon. 'A preliminary investigation indicates that the student, a 17-year-old male, exited a moving vehicle under unclear circumstances while traveling on Wallace Road,' Douidi said. 'The incident appears to have followed a social gathering that may have involved underage drinking. We are and have been investigating the circumstances surrounding the gathering, including any potential violations of the law.' The name of the driver of the car involved in the incident has not been released. Douidi said it was with 'great sadness' that he confirmed the incident that led to the death of the local teenager, the third teen killed in a Bedford motor vehicle incident over a 49-day stretch. Lauren Souza, a 16-year-old Trinity High School junior from Bedford, was killed in a crash early Easter morning on April 20. On May 28, a Manchester 13-year-old died in a crash at the Kilton Road exit off Route 101. 'The Bedford Police Department is working closely with the School District and community leaders to support students and staff during this difficult time,' Douidi said. Bedford High Principal Bob Jozokos sent a letter to parents first thing Monday informing them that a student had died and that resources were available for students at the school. The investigation is ongoing. Police have not said if any arrests have been made or are imminent. 'Our hearts are with the family, friends, and entire school community mourning this tragic loss. We urge everyone, especially parents, to understand the life-threatening risks associated with underage drinking and gatherings that are not properly supervised. No parent should have to face the loss of a child under these circumstances,' Douidi said. Anyone who may have seen anything on Wallace Road leading up to the incident can call the Bedford Police Department at 603-472-5113. dpierce@
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Bedford teen killed in motor vehicle incident
More than 20 bouquets of flowers, many mementos, empty beer cans and an American flag encircled a utility pole on Wallace Road in Bedford on Monday afternoon. It marked the scene of yet another tragedy — the third time in 49 days that a teenager was killed in a motor vehicle incident in town. This time, a Bedford High School junior — a boy on the precipice of ascending to his senior year — died Sunday night in an incident with few details made public. The name of the boy has not been released and police are still investigating what happened. At 8:15 p.m., Bedford officers responded to a report of a person jumping out of a moving vehicle near Stagecoach Lane. The boy was taken to a local hospital where he was later pronounced dead. Bedford High Principal Bob Jozokos sent a letter to parents first thing Monday, informing them that a student had died and offering help to students who would struggle with the news, which mourners said has become too common in Bedford. 'Why does this keep happening here?' one mourner said at the scene Monday afternoon while wiping tears and hugging her friend. The town suffered a similar loss on April 20 when resident Lauren Souza, a 16-year-old Trinity High School junior, was killed in a crash early Easter morning. On May 28, a Manchester 13-year-old died in a crash at the Kilton Road exit off Route 101. For about 100 or so students who intermittently gathered where their classmate was killed, there were more questions than answers. Most didn't want to talk. Those who did, didn't want their names in the paper. Everyone was shaken. 'He was the light of every room he was in,' said a female classmate. 'There wasn't a single person he wasn't friends with.' The girl and her friend were there when the victim's best friend arrived around 4:30 p.m. He, too, was still processing the news and unable to talk. About three hours earlier, a much larger contingent of mourners paid their respects, attaching dollar bills and a T-shirt to the utility pole. They gathered. They laughed. They cried. They shared stories. One young man who identified himself as the victim's brother asked for privacy. Others said they would love to share stories of their friend at another time when the sense of shock had cleared. And then, one by one, they reluctantly left the scene. Cars came and went like that all afternoon, just two days after the latest class of seniors celebrated at graduation. Bedford investigators determined the victim was a passenger of a car, but would not provide additional details. Residents of Bedford and surrounding towns speculated on social media platforms like Facebook as to who the boy was and how he died. Emotions and blame ran high. But still, there were no official answers. Anyone who may have seen anything on Wallace Road leading up to this incident can call the Bedford Police Department at 603-472-5113. dpierce@
Yahoo
05-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bedford sends fire station, ballfields and budget proposals to voters in March
Feb. 4—Yellow strips of paper — 215 of them to be exact — were quickly sorted into piles for yes and no on the stage floor of Bedford High School's theater. At stake: a secret ballot vote to zero out the plan for a new fire station. That's a deliberative session in a nutshell, where direct democracy took a historic turn Monday night as more than three times as many Bedford voters turned out to have a say in annual town spending than during last year's Town Meeting. The town's first-ever municipal deliberative session after adopting Senate Bill 2 (or SB 2) produced the desired result — higher participation, which will only grow when voters cast ballots March 11 in the second half of the process. After discussing but ultimately agreeing to put the as-is $8.9 million fire station warrant article on the ballot, voters agreed Bedford's proposed $38.9 million operating budget for next fiscal year and a $3.2 million proposal for new ballfields and skate park upgrades, too, should stand as written. The session started around 6:30 p.m. and ended just before 10 p.m. with approximately 230 registered voters checking in and about 135 still there at 9:15 p.m. when the budget came up for discussion. Past traditional Town Meetings had 40-70 voters, town officials estimated. In a passionate plea to pass the ballfield and skate park improvements, former town councilor and current Bedford Little League board member Kelleigh Gleason summed up the night this way: "We send things to the ballot. I was also on the Charter Commission that pushed SB 2, but we're here because we want to give the most voters the opportunity to say yay or nay, and if it goes before the whole town and the voters say no, so be it," Gleason said. "But at least democracy played out and everybody had a chance to vote, which is not what's going to happen here tonight if we reduce this line item to zero." Zeroing in on zeroing out As Gleason mentioned, there was a motion to amend the parks and recreation upgrades plan by amending the cost to $0. And a similar proposed amendment for the fire station plan. Both failed. Almost as if to get it out of the way, as soon as the fire station and ballfields/skate park warrant articles came up for discussion, voters rushed to microphones in the auditorium and motioned to cut all funding. The prevailing wisdom of the voters in attendance was decidedly in favor of not messing with the cost or wording and having voters decide. The amendment to "zero out" the fire station plan failed 181-34 via secret ballot. The vote to defund the recreation article easily failed by a show of voter cards raised in the air, as is the custom. Stepping up to the plate Bedford Little League officials answered a bevy of questions from residents not sure about the necessity of spending $3.2 million to build new ballfields at Swenson Field Complex, reconstruct the Nashua Road Complex (which is in disrepair and sits on a capped landfill) and reconfigure the skateboard park at Earl Legacy Park. The proposal breaks down as follows: $2,132,555 for Swenson Field, $800,000 for the skate park and $293,436 for the Nashua Road field improvements. The Swenson Field plan includes spending $700,000 to build a new concession stand and permanent bathrooms and $440,000 to install lights. Voters debated separating the projects or defunding all or parts of the warrant article, and originally town councilors voted against recommending the plan. After hearing residents and officials wanted the Little League to raise money to offset the cost to the taxpayers, Gleason stepped up to the plate, offering a $100,000 contribution from the league. That swayed Town Council Chairwoman Lori Radke, who then threw her support behind what she called a much-needed project. After the meeting, town councilors held a special meeting to recommend the article, 5-2, a change from its original 4-3 vote against it. "I always say it should be a partnership," Radke said. "Organizations should be working with the town to contribute so it's not 100% funded by tax dollars. That's what I wanted to hear." Fire station proposal survives The proposal for the new fire station on South River Road calls for bonding $8.2 million over 10 years and using $700,000 from a capital reserve fund to build the town's second fire station. The town has had a second station in the Master Plan for more than 30 years and as recently as last year asked voters to approve a new facility to cut response times to the busiest part of town in half. The plan is scaled down significantly from a $36.5 million combined police and fire safety complex last year. Big-ticket tax impact The proposed budget is 1.4% higher than the default budget and would not raise the tax rate, officials said. The estimated tax impact of the new fire station is about 17 cents per $1,000 of assessed home value in 2026, or a little more than $100 per year for the owner of a house assessed at $600,000 until the bond would be paid off in 2035. The parks and recreation article would raise taxes by almost 7 cents per $1,000 of assessed property, or about $42 for a house valued at $600,000. The bond would also be paid off in 2035. Odds and ends The Bedford ballot includes 15 articles and includes proposals for: * $2.6 million to 56 separate capital reserve funds for various departments (42 cents per $1,000 tax impact). * $2.5 million to replace a bridge on Greenfield Parkway (zero tax impact because of state funding). * $2.7 million to replace a bridge on Beals Road (zero tax impact because of federal funding). * $670,000 to build a sidewalk on Old Bedford Road (zero tax impact because of state funding). * $400,000 to reconstruct town roads (6 cents per $1,000 tax impact). * $202,000 to fix Memorial Pool (zero tax impact because the town already raised the money). No other articles require raising and appropriating money. A majority of town councilors recommended all the spending proposals. dpierce@
