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Anthony Gulluni Wins Race For Hampden County DA

Anthony Gulluni will be the next District Attorney in Hampden County. He won the four-way Democratic primary last night, and faces no Republicans or Independents in November.

After results showed him holding a wide and steady lead over his three opponents, Gulluni walked into a packed room of supporters at Samuel’s bar at the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Gulluni said he was excited, and “I’m just so happy and thankful to the voters first and foremost, and the people who helped me, and my family and friends. It’s an incredible feeling, very gratifying.”

Gulluni beat out 3 opponents in the race, with 45 percent of the vote. Brett Vottero was the closest runner up, with 28 percent. Vottero says he was disappointed with the low turnout in the race.

“The district attorney has a profound impact on the economic vitality of the city,” said Vottero. “Addressing crime is the first step towards bringing out economic vitality back. So to me, this race should have received a lot more attention from the media, from the business community, from the citizens.”

Vottero, who also lost the 2010 Democratic primary for DA, was clearly sad about the loss, but went with another candidate, Shawn Allyn, to Gulluni’s party to congratulate the winner.

According to the Springfield Republican newspaper, Anthony Gulluni will the youngest ever Hampden DA, at 33 years old. But he’s not exactly an outsider. He’s been an assistant DA for nearly six years, he was endorsed by former Hampden DA Bill Bennett, and in a speech to supporters, Gulluni profusely thanked a top aide to Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno, Jim Leydon, who he called an adviser.

With the race over, Gulluni says his next step is to get some rest. After that?

“We’ll start thinking about getting things organized, and carrying out the job the voters have given us, and carrying out our campaign promises,” Gulluni said.

Gulluni will officially take office in January. He replaces interim D-A James Orenstein, who’s been running the office since former district attorney Mark Mastroianni was confirmed as a federal judge in June.

How The Four White Men Running For Hampden County DA Say They’ll Reach Out To Minorities

The candidates vying for District Attorney in Hampden County all say they plan to improve communication with communities of color, but have slightly different approaches.

The four candidates, all of whom are Democrats and white men, said in a roundtable discussion they want to help foster better relationships between minority communities and law enforcement. Candidate Hal Etkin said he’ll help facilitate meetings between any group and police.

“And I believe that through that discussion, it would lead to a greater understanding and improve law enforcement,” Etkin says.

Anthony Gulluni says he plans to form a team of prosecutors and victim advocates that would regularly meet with the public.

“And it would be something that we would publicize, and say, ‘On such and such a date, we’re going to be in a school gym,'” Gullini says. “The district attorney, assistant district attorneys, and victim-witness advocates, to talk to young people, to talk to people from all communities,”

The Democratic field also includes Shawn Allyn and Brett Vottero.

No Republicans or Independents are running for Hampden DA, so the election will be decided in the September 9th primary.

Candidate roundtables are part of a collaboration between The Republican newspaper, MassLive, CBS3 and New England Public Radio.

Candidates For Hampden District Attorney Meet In NAACP Debate

The four candidates vying for the open District Attorney’s seat in Hampden County all agree the criminal justice system needs fixing. The candidates met in a debate hosted by the NAACP last night in Springfield.

The main challenge for candidates in this race will be to stand out. All four are white men, all are lawyers, all are Democrats. The candidates, Shawn Allyn, Hal Etkin, Anthony Gulluni, and Brett Vottero, also agreed on most issues. For example, the need to keep juvenile offenders from heading into an already overcrowded prison system.

“If we can keep a young person…out of jail, or out of prison, I think we’re being successful,” said Gulluni. “So the eye has to be on rehabilitation, because we can not incarcerate our way out of the current urban crime problem in particular.”

Brett Vottero, meanwhile focused on improving rehabilitation programs for those leaving prison.

“Right now, somebody comes out of prison, and if it’s a drug offense, they can’t get public housing, they can’t get educational loans, they can’t get public assistance, they can’t get a driver’s license,” said Vottero, “and then we are surprised when they come back in to the system.”

The candidates also each emphasized their work with diverse communities, and were asked after the debate to join the NAACP. Only Shawn Allyn was already a member. No Republicans or Independents are running, so the election will be decided in the Democratic primary on September 9th.

Anthony Baye Trial: Opening Statements Show Some Prosecution, Defense Agreements

The trial of Anthony Baye began with opening statements in Springfield Thursday. Baye is accused of setting fifteen fires in Northampton, Massachusetts in December 2009. One fire killed two men in their home.

Anthony Baye smiled and waved to his family as he entered Hampden Superior Court, before 36 indictments were read by the court clerk.

30 charges are related to fires set on the night of December 27th, 2009, including two counts of murder and over a dozen counts of arson of both houses and cars. Six charges are for misleading police officers in the days that followed.

In his opening statement, state prosecutor Brett Vottero acknowledged that there is little direct evidence that Baye set the Northampton fires.

“There wasn’t a single person that saw anyone setting fires in Northampton on December 27th. You won’t hear from an eyewitness to any of it,” said Vottero

Vottero also said there is no DNA or fingerprint evidence linking Baye to the fires. But Vottero argued Baye lied about his whereabouts during several meetings with police after December 27th, which along with other statements before police, indicate his guilt.

Though Baye has pleaded not guilty to all charges, defense attorney David Hoose said in his opening that he and Vottero agree that Baye should be found guilty of misleading police.

“He told a lie, he didn’t set a fire. That’s what the evidence will show you,” said Hoose.

Hoose added the state has no evidence to show Anthony Baye set any fires. After opening statements, the jury was bussed to Northampton to view several fire sites.