Domestic Violence

In the middle of the night, Tonya Thomas' neighbors awoke to the sound of a gunshot and moments later heard a knock on their door. Three of Thomas' four children were outside, including one who appeared to have been shot. Before the neighbors could offer help, Thomas came out of her house and called the children back home. They complied. The neighbors dialed 911 after hearing more gunshots. Brevard County Sheriff's deputies found Thomas, 33, dead of an apparent self-inflicted wound and three of her children — Jaxs Johnson, 15; Jazzlyn Johnson, 13; and Joel Johnson, 12 —...

Massachusetts scored decently among states for injury prevention, in a national ranking released Wednesday by the non-profit groups Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The state has the third lowest rate of injury-related deaths, with 41.1 per 100,000 people dying from fatal injuries every year, compared with a national rate of 57.9 per 100,000. The report included a checklist of 10 research-based injury prevention policies, such as seat belt laws, drunk driving laws, and policies to prevent domestic violence.

ORLANDO, Fla. — The ambulance crew that responded after Tiger Woods crashed his SUV would not allow his wife to ride with him to the hospital because they suspected domestic violence, documents released yesterday by the Florida Highway Patrol show. But a police officer who responded said he didn’t know where the crew got that information because he never heard it from anyone at the scene. The reports also showed Woods’s wife, Elin, turned over two bottles of pain pills to troopers after the Nov. 27 crash outside the couple’s suburban Orlando home.

Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone will receive Jane Doe Inc.'s public service award for his efforts to help victims of domestic violence. Leone created a domestic violence pro bono attorney program through his office and instituted training and education for youth and professionals on the prevention of domestic violence and bullying. Leone will receive Jane Doe's Delahunt Award for Extraordinary Public Service on Thursday at a breakfast at the Algonquin Club in Boston. Jane Doe Inc. is an advocacy organization for victims of sexual and domestic violence.

A police officer who was shot while on duty earlier this week attended the graduation ceremony yesterday of 66 new officers, a day after he was released from the hospital. Officer Shawn Marando was shot in the calf while responding to a domestic violence call in Dorchester on Tuesday morning. Arriving on crutches yesterday, he sat toward the front of the Strand Theatre with his wife. Boston Police Commissioner Edward F. Davis took a moment during the ceremony to praise him, saying, “We’re glad to have him among our ranks.’’ “It’s very weird,’’ Marando said, of being...

NEWBURYPORT - A local domestic violence team born out of the homicide of a battered wife a decade ago is being hailed as a national model by organizers, who credit the organization with intervening in 106 potentially lethal disputes. "Our mantra became, ‘How can we prevent this from happening again,' " said Suzanne Dubus, executive director of the Jeanne Geiger Crisis Center, the organization that developed the team of more than a dozen local law enforcement officials and advocates for domestic violence victims.

Florida prosecutors have formally charged former World Series MVP Manny Ramirez with domestic violence. The Broward State Attorney's office filed the misdemeanor charge Thursday. The 39-year-old retired slugger was arrested Sept. 12 after his wife told deputies Ramirez slapped her in the face, which caused her to hit her head on the headboard. Authorities say Ramirez denied hitting his wife. Ramirez was named MVP of the 2004 World Series, where he helped the Boston Red Sox end an 86-year title drought.

NEW YORK - At the Divas beauty salon, Spanish-language talk shows play on the TV, blow driers and scissors are at the ready, and customers chat about everything from men to money to jobs. But for a few weeks recently, the women who work at the salon in the Washington Heights area of upper Manhattan gathered in the back to learn about domestic violence. They had volunteered to be part of a program that hopes to build on the trust between salon workers and their clients to identify cases of domestic abuse, especially in the Latino community.

Vermont's senior U.S. senator is pushing legislation to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, which he says is the centerpiece of the federal government's attempts to stamp out domestic and sexual violence. Sen. Patrick Leahy appeared at a news conference Monday on the topic with Vermont Attorney General Bill Sorrell and Burlington Police Chief Michael Schirling, as well as the head of the Vermont Network Against Domestic and Sexual Violence. Leahy says federal funding has enabled the network to help 7,000 adults and nearly 1,400 children in...

Yarmouth Police last night said they have begun an investigation into former Massachusetts gubernatorial candidate Christy P. Mihoscq regarding two possible incidents of domestic violence. In a statement, Yarmouth Police said they are working with the Martin County Sheriff's Department in Florida to investigate two alleged incidents that occurred in the last year. The first, police said, allegedly occurred July 7 in West Yarmouth, where the 62-year-old Mihos lives in a gated home on Great Island with his wife, Andrea.

Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone will receive Jane Doe Inc.'s public service award for his efforts to help victims of domestic violence. Leone created a domestic violence pro bono attorney program through his office and instituted training and education for youth and professionals on the prevention of domestic violence and bullying. Leone will receive Jane Doe's Delahunt Award for Extraordinary Public Service on Thursday at a breakfast at the Algonquin Club in Boston.

The 125th Maine Legislature is adjourning after clearing its agenda for 2011 and 2012. Before the gavel came down early Thursday, leaders emphasized bipartisan gains while recognizing partisan differences that also marked the session. In his parting speech, Republican Senate President Kevin Raye of Perry noted that five of six state budgets were passed with unanimous, bipartisan support of the Appropriations Committee. For the first time in decades, Republicans controlled both legislative chambers while a GOP governor was in office.

In the middle of the night, Tonya Thomas' neighbors awoke to the sound of a gunshot and moments later heard a knock on their door. Three of Thomas' four children were outside, including one who appeared to have been shot. Before the neighbors could offer help, Thomas came out of her house and called the children back home. They complied. The neighbors dialed 911 after hearing more gunshots. Brevard County Sheriff's deputies found Thomas, 33, dead of an apparent self-inflicted wound and three of her children — Jaxs Johnson, 15; Jazzlyn Johnson, 13; and Joel Johnson, 12 —...

NORTH ANDOVER ­— When MaryRose Mazzola was in eighth grade, her parents drove her to Howard Dean's presidential campaign rallies and took her around town to put up campaign signs. But the Mazzolas weren't campaigning for Dean; their 14-year-old daughter was. Now 21, Mazzola has been working for political campaigns ever since. She will graduate on May 20 from Merrimack College and has deferred her acceptance to a master's program at Georgetown University's Public Policy Institute.

Women Singing Out!, a chorus that tackles complex and difficult topics through music, is focusing on domestic violence awareness this season. The group performs Saturdayat First Church in Wenham in collaboration with HAWC (Healing Abuse Working For Change), based in Salem. It also presents a concert next Sunday at Christ Episcopal Church in Portsmouth, N.H., in collaboration with A Safe Place. Artistic director Claudia Frost, former director of choral music in the Hamilton-Wenham schools, has chosen music that addresses the needs of woman who have lost their...

BURLINGTON - Kristen Pulisciano threw her boyfriend out of her home recently after their longtime relationship soured. But he continued to show up and eventually became violent toward her, authorities said. On Thursday, authorities said, Christopher Piantedosi, dubbed the "Remorseful Robber" in 2011 after he returned stolen items with an apology, went back to Pulisciano's home at 23 Forbes Ave. and, in a fit of rage, stabbed her multiple times, killing her. Her teenage daughter was in the house and called police.

The City of Beverly and the Beverly Police Department received a grant for specialized domestic violence training from the U.S. Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women. The $255,846 grant will allow the department and city to strengthen partnerships and collaborations that will help establish safer regional community response to domestic violence. It will also enhance the police department's capacity to prevent, solve and control domestic violence cases such as dating violence, stalking and sexual assault.

Connecticut lawmakers and victim advocates are recommending several measures the state can take to improve its response to domestic violence. House Speaker Christopher Donovan and Democratic Rep. Mae Flexer of Danielson announced the Domestic Violence task force's 20 recommendations at a Monday morning news conference. The recommendations include increasing the maximum restraining order length to one year, expanding the number of courts with domestic violence dockets and improving notification to victims of changes in an offender's status.

When Jason Todd Ready took to the Arizona desert armed with assault rifles and dressed in camouflage to look for illegal immigrants, some feared that the reputed neo-Nazi's rhetoric would turn to serious violence. But police say blood was shed elsewhere: When Ready leveled his gun at four people and pulled the trigger, he was in a saguaro-lined neighborhood in the quiet middle-class Phoenix suburb of Gilbert where he lived with his girlfriend and her family. Ready's girlfriend, 47-year-old Lisa Lynn Mederos, made a domestic-violence call to 911 asking the police to come help her...

GILBERT, Ariz. - A man fatally shot four people, including a toddler, at a home in a Phoenix suburb Wednesday before being found dead, authorities said. Gilbert police said they were not sure yet whether the man committed suicide. At a briefing for reporters, Gilbert police Sergeant Bill Balafas said all the evidence points to the shooting being a domestic violence situation. He did not elaborate. Authorities said the man was armed with several firearms, and officers recovered two handguns and a shotgun.