While hosting lawmakers on a tour of New Bedford's Ash Street Jail, Bristol County Sheriff Paul Heroux pitched a second option for his plan to close the jail.
New Bedford City Council Flexes Political Muscles [OPINION]
Members of the New Bedford City Council are outraged with Mayor Jon Mitchell and his positions on public safety. Recent fires and shootings are motivating them.
Mayor Mitchell hasn t been able to successfully negotiate a contract with either the police or firefighter unions for years. Year after year has gone by and the tensions between the first responders and the former federal prosecutor have grown in part because of the unsettled contracts.
The city has recently experienced a rise in fires and criminals firing off illegal guns. Just after Thanksgiving, a man allegedly killed a person and nearly killed another with a stolen pistol. That suspect later attempted to kill four police officers in the city. A few weeks ago, a police officer s apartment was shot eight times and the suspect is still on the loose.