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A Massachusetts man who raped and killed his teacher when he was 14 years old has pleaded guilty in an assault on a different woman, which took place while he was in custody months later. Philip Chism was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole for the October 2013 killing of math teacher Colleen Ritzer at Danvers High School. In June of 2014, when Chism was 15, he allegedly attacked a Massachusetts Department of Youth Services worker at a facility in Boston’s Dorchester neighborhood. Chism, now 25, pleaded guilty to charges of attempted murder, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, assault with intent to murder and kidnapping in Boston Juvenile Court Friday. Chism is accused of following the 29-year-old woman into the bathroom, using a pencil as a weapon, pinning her against a wall and attempting to strangle her, leaving the victim with injuries to her head, neck, face and back. In a victim impact statement read by Assistant District Attorney David Bradley, the victim called Chism a monster and said she still feels the terror from the attack 10 years later. “I remember being unable to leave my bedroom for hours for fear that he’d be waiting for me, ready to kill me,” the victim wrote. “True monsters exist in the world. Philip Chism is a monster, a murderer.” The state requested a sentence of 15 to 18 years in the case, Bradley noting that there are very few juvenile defendants in the Massachusetts system with a pattern of behavior this dangerous. Chism’s attorney Patrick Sparks requested a sentence of 17-20 years, saying that his client wished to take responsibility for what he’s done. Chism was sentenced to 17-20 years for the attempted murder charge and 9-10 for the other charges, to be served concurrently at Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center with his time in the Ritzner case. Get updates on what’s happening in Boston to your inbox. Sign up for our News Headlines newsletter.

Montpelier, Vermont, woke up to a chilly Friday morning, tying the record low temperature for this date at 22 degrees Fahrenheit. This record was previously set in 1967 at Montpelier-Edward F. Knapp State Airport (KMPV), where records date back to 1949. The cold wasn’t isolated to Montpelier, as much of New England experienced a hard freeze. Freeze warnings were issued for southern New England and coastal areas, with temperatures dropping significantly compared to the previous day. Many locations saw lows in the 20s. At night, especially on clear nights with light winds, a process called radiational cooling takes over. Without the sun’s heat and under clear skies, earth’s surface radiates heat out into space. With minimal wind to disrupt this transfer, the ground loses heat rapidly. This radiational heat loss cools the ground, and the air in contact with the ground cools down as well, leading to the significant temperature drop we experience at night sometimes. Thankfully, this afternoon offers a decent rebound with high pressure still in control. Sunshine prevails with highs in the 50s to near 60 inland: about 5 to 10 degrees cooler than average for this time of year. Friday night, the center of high pressure will move offshore, and while overnight lows will drop back to the 30s, it won’t be quite as cold as Friday morning. Patchy frost is still a possibility, so be sure to bundle up if you’re heading out early Saturday morning. More weather-related stories news 15 hours ago Asia was most impacted by extreme weather and climate in 2023, UN report shows Boston Apr 23 Here's when to see Tuesday night's full pink moon Weather Apr 17 UAE government unit denies cloud seeding took place before Dubai floods

A USPS worker was robbed in Boston’s Dorchester neighborhood Friday. Boston police said they were called to Mora Street around 11:10 a.m. NBC10 Boston has reached out to U.S. Postal Inspection Services for more information. Robberies of mail carriers have been a growing concern in recent months. The workers are often targeted for their arrow keys used to access mailboxes. The thieves then often steal checks to be used in check-washing schemes. Last year, the U.S. Postal Service launched Project Safe Delivery, an initiative meant to combat the uptick in such crimes. As part of the program, the USPS increased rewards offered for information leading to arrests and convictions in mail crimes. More from Dorchester Boston Apr 24 Person stabbed at Boston pilot school, police say restaurants Apr 19 Wahlburgers at South Bay in Dorchester has apparently closed dorchester Apr 18 Boston police seek Dorchester package thieves

We had another widespread hard freeze across all of New England with freeze warnings Friday morning in southern New England and along the coast. Temperatures dropped to the 20s in many more spots compared to Thursday morning. This afternoon will be nice and sunny again thanks to high pressure settling in. Once the afternoon, sun warms us up a bit more, temps reach the mid to upper 50s to near 60 inland. However, the classic sea breeze keeps our temps in the low 50s for Boston and the coast.  The center of high pressure slips offshore to our east, southeast and our wind direction changes to be more from the south Friday night. Overnight, lows drop to the 30s but it won’t be quite as cold, still watch for patchy frost. Temps warm to the 60s for Saturday and to near 70 for Sunday. Sea breezes are still likely at the coast both days, so expect some cooler temps there. More clouds will be around for Sunday as a system is nearby. The forecast models have actually decreased our rain chance for Sunday. Though a few showers will be around from morning to midday. As the jet stream amplifies more north, south and we build in warmth under a ridge. With that, temps reach the low to mid 70s for early next week inland. Either sea breezes or a backdoor front early next week will keep us at the coast in the 60s to even 50s. Inland we stay in the low 70s through at least midweek.   

Four people suspected of orchestrating sophisticated break-ins of the homes of Indian and South Asian families across Massachusetts and beyond in recent years were arrested in Rhode Island Friday, authorities said. Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan referred to them as “a very sophisticated ring of homebreakers,” and said some of the victims “were truly traumatized and, in some cases, robbed of pieces of their heritage.” The burglaries involved at least 43 break-ins across 25 communities, Ryan said. Authorities on Friday recovered some of the gems — including one worth $75,000 — and other jewelry and cash stolen from the homes. The value of the stolen goods totaled over $4 million. The four suspected robbers include two brothers and their father. They’re believed to be part of a gang in Rhode Island, and investigators found they used wifi jammers while they knew the victims were out of the house, and targeted the families because they believed the victims would have high-value items at home, in part because of their cultural heritage. “These were items hat had been passed down in families from generation to generation,” Ryan said. The suspected burglars were identified as brothers Jovan Lemon, 29, of Providence, and Paul Lemon, 30, of Warwick, Rhode Island; their father, Paul Miller, 46, of Woonsocket, Rhode Island; and Steven Berdugo, 28, of Providence. It wasn’t immediately clear if they had lawyers who could speak to their arrest, on the 95 counts of unarmed burglary and breaking and entering a dwelling house in the daytime with intent to commit a felony handed down by a grand jury in Middlesex County last week. Ryan said prosecutors are looking into whether hate crime charges are appropriate, given that most of the victims were targeted because of a belief that families of South Asian descent often keep many valuables at their home. Authorities had previously warned about break-ins targeting the South Asian community. Ryan said police were working to notify the victims, some of whom were apparently identified through lists of temple membership. The rash of break-ins began July 21, 2018, and carried on through March 30, 2024, according to authorities, giving the towns involved as Billerica, Boxborough, Carlisle, Easton, Hopkinton, Lincoln, Weston, Sudbury, Andover, Bellingham, Boxford, Franklin, Hudson, Littleton, Medway, Middleton, Millis, North Attleboro, Norwell, Pembroke, Seekonk, Sharon, Southborough, Wenham and Westwood. More on the robberies targeting Massachusetts' South Asian community crime Aug 10, 2023 Burglaries targeting South Asian community to be addressed by local officials Sudbury Aug 3, 2023 2 home break-ins reported in Sudbury over 2 days