Two injured in shootings, one gravely

A young man suffered life-threatening injuries when he was shot last night in Roxbury, authorities said. Police responded at about 8:45 p.m. to Weaver Court where they found a man, described as being in his late teens or early 20s, shot in the chest. He was transported to Boston Medical Center. In another shooting early yesterday, a 40-year-old woman was in stable condition after being shot at a graduation party on Virginia Street in Dorchester, police said. She was taken to Boston Medical Center at about 3:22 a.m. with gunshot wounds to her legs. Police are investigating both cases.

A Brockton school named after the man credited with creating the concept of the department store Santa Claus and once attended by boxing champion Rocky Marciano is being torn down. The James Edgar School was built in 1899 and operated until 1979. It has since been used for storage. But City Council member Michael Brady says that despite its historical value, the building's dilapidated condition made it too difficult and too expensive to repair. It had also become a fire hazard. The school was named for James Edgar, the founder of a Brockton department store who in 1890 donned a Santa Claus suit, starting a tradition still practiced in stores and malls nationwide. The school eventually became known as the Santa Claus School. Brady says the Brockton Housing Authority will build homes on the site. (AP)

A construction worker died yesterday in a fire at a North Falmouth house, authorities said. Three other workers and several firefighters were injured in the fire that tore through a house on Deer Run Lane that was under construction shortly after 2 p.m., according to a statement by the Falmouth Police Department. No cause has been determined, but authorities believe the fire was accidental, State Fire Marshal Stephen D. Coan said. The fire is under investigation by Falmouth's fire and police departments, the State Police, the state fire marshal, and the Cape & Islands district attorney's office.

Forty-five employees will return to work early next month when the J.D. Irving Forest Products sawmill reopens nearly four months after shutting down. Company officials announced that its Pinkham lumber mill, in Nashville Plantation just north of Ashland, will reopen June 3. Two weeks after that, another 25 employees will return to work at the company's planer mill, which finishes the lumber for customers. When the mill shut its doors in February, company officials blamed poor market demand and depressed lumber prices brought on by the nationwide slump in housing construction. The company said the sawmill is now able to reopen for a number of reasons, including increased demand for the quality of lumber produced at the mill. (AP)

A Yarmouth woman has been sentenced to two years in prison for stealing more than half a million dollars from a natural foods store where she worked and spending the money on vacations, furniture, cars, and other luxuries. Rebecca McGilp stole $538,000 over a six-year period while working as a bookkeeper at Royal River Natural Foods in Freeport. Cumberland County Superior Court Justice Roland Cole sentenced her Friday to two years in prison. Prosecutors had asked for a five-year sentence, while McGilp's lawyer had recommended a three-month sentence. (AP)

A former Brattleboro man who said police violated his civil rights when officers knocked down his door, pulled him out of his hot tub, and shocked him with Taser weapons has settled his suit against the town for $37,500. The suit by Jeffrey Scott, now of Albuquerque, stems from his arrest Oct. 10, 2004, on charges of drunken driving, resisting arrest, and assaulting a police officer. All charges were later dropped after video and audio recordings raised questions about the officers' conduct. (AP)

A Hooksett company says it will open an operation in far northern New Hampshire, boosted by the new tax credit designed to bring jobs to the area. North American Equipment Upfitters will open in Colebrook, creating up to 60 jobs. The company will benefit from the new Coos County Tax Credit, which passed the Senate last week. The company makes truck-mounted aerials. (AP)