Chief homicide prosecutor is named

Edmond J. Zabin has been named chief homicide prosecutor, responsible for reviewing every suspicious death in Boston, Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop, Suffolk District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said yesterday. Zabin replaces David Meier, who held the job 12 years and is leaving the job to go into private practice. Zabin recently directed the investigation that led to an indictment in the slaying of a Revere police officer.

Police are stepping up patrols and warning women to be vigilant in the Faneuil Hall area and the Theater District after connecting two sexual assaults that began when women accepted rides in those areas, the Police Department said yesterday. Both assaults occurred in the early morning hours, and, in both cases, the women were taken to Charlestown, where they were assaulted. The mayor's office and police have scheduled a meeting on the danger with bar and nightclub owners.

Berklee College of Music is in discussions with the government of Valencia, Spain, to open a sister campus in the coastal city on the Mediterranean. The school would focus on contemporary music and music technology and would build on the college's international scope and reputation, officials said. Discussions began last May and could wrap up by year's end, said Larry Monroe, Berklee's vice president for international programs. Valencia officials have already set aside land for the school, which would feature Berklee in its name. The cost of the project is undetermined, and the school would not open until 2010 at the earliest. Berklee students and professors would enjoy an open exchange between the two campuses, Monroe said.

Newton would not lose $46 million in construction money, even if it downsizes its plans for what is billed as the most expensive high school in the state, the city was told yesterday. Katherine Craven, executive director of the Massachusetts School Building Authority, said in a letter to Mayor David B. Cohen that the authority would "work with the city to develop a plan that is fiscally responsible and educationally appropriate." Some aldermen are pushing Cohen to consider a smaller, cheaper design in light of the mayor's estimate last month that the school will cost at least $186 million, up from the $141 million price tag of a year ago.

A man with a gun entered a Lawrence restaurant last night and shot another man multiple times, killing him, Lawrence police said early today. The attack happened at about 9:30 p.m. at the La Bahia restaurant on Newbury Street, said Police Chief John Romero. The victim, an unidentified man in his late 20s, was taken to Lawrence General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival. Romero said police were questioning a "person of interest."

A 43-year-old MBTA driver suffered a medical emergency in Revere yesterday, lost control of his bus, and crashed, MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo said. Three people, including the driver, were rushed to the hospital. The Route 119 bus was on Malden Street when it veered onto Washington Avenue, Pesaturo said. The bus hit a parked car, three utility polls, a hydrant, a fire box, a tree, and a church sign. It skidded across a lawn before stopping at a guard rail, Pesaturo said. The driver was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital. It was not immediately clear what type of medical emergency he suffered. Two passengers were taken to Whidden Memorial Hospital in Everett after reporting neck and back pain, Pesaturo said. Police are investigating the crash.

Governor Deval Patrick has signed a measure that will keep about 30 Salem teachers from losing their jobs. The city had planned to start laying off the teachers, as well as reducing the hours of five others, as part of about 60 job cuts caused by an unexpected $4.7 million deficit. The bill, filed by Patrick earlier this week and swiftly approved by the Legislature, allows the city to borrow up to $1 million or to spread the deficit over seven years. The bill required Salem officials to consolidate city and school financial functions in order to receive the aid. The City Council and School Committee approved the consolidation last night.