Oxford

IPG Photonics Corp. of Oxford was down for the week. The company, which is a leading maker of high power fiber lasers, was scheduled to start a jury trial in federal court in Michigan on Wednesday in a patent-infringement case, according to court records. Rival fiber laser technology company IMRA America has asserted in a lawsuit that IPG violated one of IMRA's patents. IPG has in the past denied the claims by IMRA, which is based in Michigan. IMRA filed its lawsuit in 2006.

The Maine Gambling Control Board has approved a license for the Oxford Casino, which is due to open in two months. The board's 4-to-0 vote Tuesday removed one of the final obstacles to the casino. Spokesman Scott Smith says casino operators are now putting their focus on ensuring 350-plus full-time workers are hired and trained to create a smooth opening in early June. The casino has already taken delivery of 500 slot machines, which are being installed.

A Millbury couple is facing charges after a domestic dispute outside a Walmart in Oxford yesterday led police to believe that a woman had been kidnapped. A woman and man, both 21, were arguing in the store's parking lot while the man was erratically driving a 1999 blue Ford pickup truck around the woman at 7 a.m., Oxford police said. At one point, the man stopped the truck, grabbed the woman, and forced her into the vehicle as witnesses yelled at him. One witness attempted to motion for the truck to stop, police said, but was struck by the truck as it left the parking lot. He...

The Oxford bow man who collapsed after the Boat Race has been released from the hospital, a day after Cambridge won the event that was interrupted by a swimming protester. Dr. Alexander Woods was taken to Charing Cross Hospital after collapsing post-race. Paramedics later said Woods was in a stable condition but kept overnight for monitoring before returning to Oxford on Sunday. "I think it was just a case of somebody being able to row themselves absolutely to a state of exhaustion," Oxford coach Sean Bowden told the BBC. Protester Trenton Oldfield, who studied...

The state Gambling Control Board has ruled that releasing the names of the investors behind a casino under construction in Oxford would not be a violation of trade secrets or of the owners' privacy. Black Bear Development is the group of investors behind the casino on Route 26. The control board ruled Tuesday that the names as well as their percentage of ownership could be made public, despite the objections of lawyers for Black Bear, who claimed disclosing the information would violate privacy.

OXFORD, England - In the early hours of the morning, when the streets are still and the ancient stone walls, the towers, the spires, and domes are bathed in moonlight, Oxford is its most beautiful. Over the centuries it has developed from a small provincial town to what it is today, one of Britain's most impressive cities. Its famous university has been a stepping-stone for many world leaders and thinkers. Its architecture is monumental. For history buffs it is a paradise.

The state attorney general's office today announced a temporary freeze on the assets of an Oxford oil company that allegedly scammed about 30 customers on their home heating oil contracts since 2006. A complaint filed in Worcester Superior Court early this week claims that Action Oil & Septic conned consumers into signing unfair prepaid oil delivery contracts and failed to deliver enough oil to them, according to a statement from Attorney General Martha Coakley's office. The company is accused of delivering only enough...

Oxford says it will receive a $100,000 insurance settlement to partially recoup money that town officials say was misappropriated by the former tax collector. The Connecticut Post reports ( http://bit.ly/oLsUAY) that First Selectman Mary Ann Drayton-Rogers said Thursday the money is the total amount for which the town bonded Karen Guillet, the former tax collector. Drayton-Rogers said the insurance company's decision demonstrates that the town has a solid case Dominick Thomas, Guillet's lawyer, said he sees no connection between the insurance company...

Maine game wardens say two men have been injured in separate hunting accidents, including one man who is in critical condition. Authorities say 60-year-old Mark Mattson, of Portsmouth, N.H., was doing target practice in the woods in Casco on Friday afternoon when he was shot in the stomach. Authorities identified the shooter as Travis Wood, of Windham, Maine, who had been hunting nearby. Mattson was airlifted to a hospital. He's listed in critical condition. In a separate incident, a 26-year-old Steven Hutter, of Hebron, was tracking a deer with a friend in Oxford on...

DES MOINES - James Hoyt, one of four US soldiers who discovered the Buchenwald concentration camp as World War II neared its end, has died. Mr. Hoyt's wife, Doris, said he died Monday in his sleep at home in rural Oxford. He was 83. The cause of death was not immediately determined. Mr. Hoyt served in the Army's Sixth Armored Division during World War II, earning a Bronze Star. He fought in the Battle of the Bulge, the bloodiest battle fought by American troops in World War II. Buchenwald, one of the largest concentration camps established by Nazi Germany, was...

In its 183-year history, the Boat Race between English universities Oxford and Cambridge has thrown up its fair share of mutinies, sinkings, even near-death experiences. The latest edition, however, might go down as the most dramatic of them all. An intruder protesting against elitism and privilege brought both boats to a standstill just over halfway through the 4 ¼-mile race when he swam into the middle of the River Thames and narrowly avoided being struck by the oars of both crews.

A casino in Oxford, Maine has taken another step toward opening with the installation of the first slot machines. The first of more than 500 video-screen machines were installed in the casino on Thursday and a spokesman says the goal is to open the casino in June. Spokesman Scott Smith told the Sun Journal that hiring will begin soon in earnest for positions in security as well as food and beverage services. Training for table-game dealers began Monday and will continue for more than two months.

A Norway man police say broke into more than a dozen homes and businesses in early 2010 has been sentenced to two years in prison. Authorities say 21-year-old Shawn McAuliffe was sentenced in Oxford County Superior Court this week to 10 years behind bars with all but two suspended and six years of probation. He pleaded guilty to 31 of more than 70 charges, including burglary, criminal mischief and theft by unauthorized taking. The Sun Journal (http://bit.ly/wkiBDY) reports that the charges were from break-ins across Oxford County, including homes and businesses in...

The state attorney general's office today announced a temporary freeze on the assets of an Oxford oil company that allegedly scammed about 30 customers on their home heating oil contracts since 2006. A complaint filed in Worcester Superior Court early this week claims that Action Oil & Septic conned consumers into signing unfair prepaid oil delivery contracts and failed to deliver enough oil to them, according to a statement from Attorney General Martha Coakley's office. The company is accused of delivering only enough heating oil to last for about a...

With a little help from Led Zeppelin, the widow of Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun has donated more than 26 million pounds ($41 million) to Oxford University to fund humanities scholarships for graduate students. On Wednesday the university announced the Mica and Ahmet Ertegun Graduate Scholarship Program, which will initially fund 15 annual international scholarships for the study of subjects including literature, history, music, art history, Asian studies, Middle Eastern studies and archaeology.

OXFORD, England - It seemed like a shocking crime: An Oxford University academic was found dying in the home of one of his closest friends, who was promptly arrested by police on suspicion of murder. But yesterday the direction of the attention-grabbing investigation into the death of Steve Rawlings seemed to turn, with his friend and fellow academic Devinder Sivia released on bail, and a police announcement that the autopsy had proved inconclusive. The cause of death was not clear - leaving open all possibilities.

The Oxford bow man who collapsed after the Boat Race has been released from the hospital, a day after Cambridge won the event that was interrupted by a swimming protester. Dr. Alexander Woods was taken to Charing Cross Hospital after collapsing post-race. Paramedics later said Woods was in a stable condition but kept overnight for monitoring before returning to Oxford on Sunday. "I think it was just a case of somebody being able to row themselves absolutely to a state of exhaustion," Oxford coach Sean Bowden told the BBC. Protester Trenton Oldfield, who studied...

In its 183-year history, the Boat Race between English universities Oxford and Cambridge has thrown up its fair share of mutinies, sinkings, even near-death experiences. The latest edition, however, might go down as the most dramatic of them all. An intruder protesting against elitism and privilege brought both boats to a standstill just over halfway through the 4 ¼-mile race when he swam into the middle of the River Thames and narrowly avoided being struck by the oars of both crews.

With his shock of unruly white hair, thick glasses, and tweedy attire, the historian Hugh Trevor-Roper looked every inch the English don. But he was far from a cloistered academic. A globe-trotting journalist, influential scholar, and sparkling essayist, he was a central figure in many of the debates that roiled the trans-Atlantic intellectual world during the Cold War. Indeed, Trevor-Roper achieved a fame rare for a professor. Changing planes in Singapore in the early 1970s, Trevor-Roper's secretary found out just how far his renown had spread.