Bill adds penalty for illegal gun at home

Councilor at Large Michael F. Flaherty won unanimous support from colleagues yesterday for legislation that would apply the same penalty to illegal firearms found in homes as to those found on the street, according to his office. Boston's gun ordinance provides a minimum sentence of 18 months for anyone arrested with an illegal firearm, but has no minimum penalty for guns found in homes. The legislation will go to Mayor Thomas M. Menino, who has vowed to sign and send the bill to Beacon Hill.

A man accused of robbing tourists in Manhattan hotels was arrested yesterday in Boston. Ermal Qoshja, 22, of Revere was scheduled to be arraigned today in Chelsea District Court on a fugitive-from-justice warrant, said State Police Trooper Eric Benson. Qoshja is wanted in New York on charges of armed robbery, armed assault to rob, and kidnapping, Benson said. Qoshja was arrested at 1 p.m. in a Hyde Park lot. New York police said that on April 13 he entered a hotel elevator with an 8-year-old and her parents, drew a pistol, and forced his way into the family's room, where he handcuffed the parents and bound the daughter with duct tape before robbing them. He is also accused of taking ATM cards and forcing the parents to disclose their personal identification numbers so he could withdraw $700 from a bank account, police said. The daughter freed herself after 30 minutes and alerted security officers. On June 6, a man fitting the same description robbed a woman from California as she entered her room at the Roosevelt Hotel in midtown Manhattan. (AP)

BEVERLY

A Beverly police officer who drove his cruiser into a parked car in January, killing a 61-year-old woman, is facing a charge of motor vehicle homicide by negligent operation. Karen Dawley, a spokeswoman for the Essex district attorney's office, said a clerk magistrate will determine whether a complaint will be issued against Stuart Merry. Merry was also cited for speeding, a marked lanes violation, and operating a car without a license, Dawley said. Merry's license was expired at the time of the accident. Bonney Burns of Beverly died at the scene in front of her home on Cabot Street.

WEST SPRINGFIELD

Two drivers were killed last night in a two-car crash in West Springfield, State Police said. Troopers responded to the crash on Interstate 91 south just before Riverdale Street, about 6:30 p.m. The preliminary investigation indicated that a 19-year-old male was driving north in his 2001 Mazda sedan when he lost control and entered the southbound lanes. He collided with a 1998 Buick sedan operated by a 43-year-old woman. The male was later pronounced dead at Bay State Medical Center in Springfield. The female was pronounced dead at the scene. The identities of the drivers are being withheld pending notification of their families.

WORCESTER

A 35-year-old Fitchburg man pleaded not guilty yesterday in Worcester Superior Court to two counts of possessing child pornography. The attorney general's office said Christian Darby possessed the images and allowed them to be accessed by other people through the Internet. Darby was released on $1,000 bail and is due back in court Sept. 13 for a pretrial conference. Darby's lawyer, Leonard Staples, did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

BOURNE

After 18 years of investigations and cleanup, the Environmental Protection Agency has proposed taking some of the Massachusetts Military Reservation off its Superfund list. Superfund is the federal government's program to clean up the nation's hazardous waste sites. The partial deletion does not affect any groundwater plumes on the site. The EPA will seek public comment for 30 days.

CONCORD, N.H.

The state is going after 3,700 E-ZPass scofflaws, including about 300 who it says have run tolls daily for a year. The targeted drivers are those who did not respond to "last chance" letters from the Department of Transportation urging them to settle their accounts or risk losing their licenses and registrations. (AP)