Man in his early 20s stabbed to death

A man in his early 20s was stabbed to death Saturday, according to police. The victim, whose identity will not be released until his family is notified and an autopsy is completed, was stabbed multiple times on East Eighth Street in South Boston at 11:05 p.m., according to a police statement. The victim was pronounced dead at Boston Medical Center. Police have no suspects. It was the 25th homicide this year.

An 18-year-old Roxbury man was arrested yesterday in connection with the killing of a man last month, police said. Darius Washington was located by the Boston Police Youth Violence Strike Force and then arrested in Roxbury. He was charged with killing Sheikh Kakay, 22, on Weaver Street in Roxbury on May 17. Washington will be arraigned today in Roxbury District Court on charges of murder and unlawful possession of a firearm.

Facing a shortage of full-time judges, some Superior Courts are turning to retired judges to fill the gaps. The state is authorized to have 22 judges spread across 11 superior courts, but recent retirements and resignations have dropped that number to 19. Superior Court Chief Justice Robert Lynn said the shortage has not affected criminal cases yet, but civil cases are taking months longer to get heard. "It's becoming increasingly difficult to schedule civil cases for trial, because criminal trials take precedence, causing us to continue civil cases a lot more than we would like to," he said. The judicial branch has been asked to reduce its general fund spending by $2.3 million for fiscal year 2009. That involves leaving vacant positions open. At Strafford County Superior Court, newly retired Judge Peter Fauver is expected to return to the court in July for two weeks. (AP)

A Maine man died over the weekend in a crash on a Colorado highway that injured three other people. The State Patrol said 28-year-old Christopher Douglas of Lisbon was riding on US Highway 287 in a northbound vehicle that was struck head-on by a southbound pickup truck that had drifted into the wrong lane Saturday. Pickup driver Gregory P. Nessler, 20, of Fort Collins faces charges that include vehicular homicide and driving under the influence of a drug. Troopers said Amy V. White, 24, of Denver was driving the vehicle Douglas was riding in and had serious injuries. Troopers said Nessler and his passenger, Tyler Santomaso, 20, of Fort Collins, had minor injuries. (AP)

The former chief forensic investigator for the state medical examiner said she probably will accept a plea deal to resolve the nearly 40 felony charges she faces. Kathrine Wieder, 53, is accused of failing to inspect bodies before they were cremated and improperly accepting fees for the work. She was arrested in 2005, but the case has been delayed by her assertions that she is incompetent to stand trial because she is too sick to care for herself or make decisions. On Friday, lawyers in the case said a hearing to decide Wieder's competency will be postponed to July. But Wieder said she believes the case will be resolved by a plea bargain. (AP)

A stubborn forest fire continued to burn on Rattlesnake Mountain in Rumney, but officials said a month-old peregrine falcon chick nesting nearby is doing well. More than 60 firefighters spent Saturday trying to extinguish the fire, which began Wednesday in White Mountain National Forest and has consumed 54 acres. A spokeswoman for the US Forest Service said smoke blew over the falcons' nest, but not enough to harm the chick. At least 80 firefighters were back on the mountain yesterday. Officials said Saturday's rain not only was insufficient to put out the fire, it made the rocky slope more slippery and battling the blaze more difficult. (AP)

A new e-mail system will let patients at Frisbie Memorial Hospital schedule appointments, renew prescriptions, and communicate with doctors online. Called "MyHealth E-Team," the Web portal is similar to a system used at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center. (AP)