Argument preceded fatal shot, police say

October 9, 2007

Shawndel Mitchell, 22, argued with two men before they shot him to death early Sunday on a Roxbury street, police said yesterday. Mitchell, who was identified by family and friends Sunday afternoon, was shot just before 3:30 a.m. on New Whitney Street, close to where he had gone to visit a friend. Police declined to provide more details about Mitchell's death and did not confirm his name yesterday because other relatives had not been notified. Police spokeswoman Elaine Driscoll declined to say what Mitchell and the men were arguing about. "Preliminary investigation shows that the victim was not gang-related," she said. Yesterday, candles and mementoes sat on the sidewalk near Mitchell's home in Roslindale, where the victim lived with his mother.

An independent medical examiner performed an autopsy Sunday on Ciara Durkin, the 30-year-old member of the Massachusetts National Guard who died in Afghanistan on Sept. 28. The autopsy was done at the request of the Quincy woman's family, said Doug Bailey, a spokesman for the family. Durkin's death, from a gunshot wound on a secure base, is under investigation by the Army, which classified it as "noncombat related" but has not made further details public. Bailey said the results of the family autopsy, and an earlier autopsy performed by the military, will not be available for several weeks. Durkin's funeral was Saturday.

Mayor Edward Lambert of Fall River plans to leave his job early to accept a post at University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth. Lambert will head the school's Urban Initiative, a new program focusing on urban issues. Lambert has served as mayor of Fall River for 12 years and was not seeking a seventh two-year term. He plans to resign on Oct. 26 to take the $120,000 a year position at UMass. Council President William Whitty will serve as acting mayor until the end of the term on Jan. 6. State Representatives David Sullivan and Robert Correia will face each other in the November election to become the city's next mayor. (AP)

Authorities are investigating the physical assault and taunting of an 11-year-old autistic boy by classmates who videotaped the after-school incident. The boy allegedly was bullied by three boys and two girls after they all got off a school bus on Sept. 28. Police have referred the case to a court magistrate, who could approve juvenile assault and battery charges. The boy's aunt and guardian said her nephew has Asperger's syndrome. She said he is withdrawn and struggling to understand what happened. School Superintendent Stephen Hemman said four students were suspended for a week from Narragansett Middle School. A fifth faces other discipline. He said one of the students physically assaulted the boy. (AP)

The construction manager of a nearly-completed retirement community that was destroyed by arson is vowing to rebuild. Investigators ruled that the massive Sept. 26 blaze at the 130-unit Bluebird Estates had been set after they found three melted gasoline cans amid the ruins of the complex. Tarry Michel of Colson & Colson General Contractors said the company plans to rebuild at the site and has posted a $100,000 reward for information leading to arrests in the case. The complex was to open early next year and the building's sprinkler system was to have been activated one day after the fire broke out. (AP)

A woman who was to face charges in court today in the drowning death of her 2-year-old grandson was found dead yesterday in her home. The body of Marcia Maglisco, 62, was discovered about 12:30 p.m. Police released few details and said they are treating the death as untimely. She was arrested Friday on a count of risk of injury to a minor several hours after the boy, for whom she was baby-sitting at the time, was found unresponsive in the bathtub of his West Hartford home. He was pronounced dead at Connecticut Children's Medical Center in Hartford. Maglisco was taken to a hospital for evaluation afterward and arrested later that night. She was released Saturday after posting $250,000 bail. Her husband, Frank Maglisco, said yesterday evening that he did not know what happened. (AP)