News

Gloucester District Court


Published: April 29, 2008

He admitted starting the fire by carelessly tossing out his cigarette. So a judge ordered him to pay for a city-owned bench and a sign which were damaged in the March 27 fire behind the tennis courts on Western Avenue.

Glenn A. Davis, 51, of 257R Essex Ave., was ordered to pay restitution, in an amount to be determined at a later date, in exchange for having a charge of wanton destruction of property dismissed. Judge Joseph Jennings issued the order yesterday in Gloucester District Court, while also finding Davis guilty of drinking in public.

Police say they found the bench, sign and grass in flames, with Davis standing nearby smoking a cigarette. Davis, who police said smelled of alcohol, told them the fire started when he threw down a lit cigarette butt, according to the police report.

r A teenager caught punching a parking sign last February was ordered to pay $50 to the Victim-Witness Assistance Fund when a charge of disorderly conduct was continued without a finding for six months. Judge Jennings presided over the case against Michael McGrath-Dyer, 18, of 26 Veterans Way, yesterday.

Police say they saw McGrath-Dyer punching a sign on Feb. 4. When they confronted him about it, he yelled at them, swearing and telling them to "go find something better to do," according to the police report.

r A $500 fine was levied against Robert Tocco, 36, of 235 Washington St., when Jennings yesterday found him guilty of being present where heroin was kept. Tocco was also ordered to pay $50 to the Victim-Witness Assistance Fund.

Tocco had been a passenger in a car which was pulled over for speeding at Grant Circle last September. Police say Tocco had seemed nervous, and got out of the car during the stop. The driver of the car told police that she had two bags of heroin in her pocketbook, according to the police report, and both she and Tocco were arrested.

r He was caught buying baking soda at the grocery store.

When they later searched the room of 25-year-old Kevin E. Morgan, of 14 Smith St. No. 1, Gloucester, officers say they found residue of dried cocaine on a spoon. They arrested him and charged him with possession of a class B controlled drug.

Yesterday, Jennings continued the charge without a finding for six months, and ordered Morgan to pay $50 to the Victim-Witness Assistance Fund.

Police made the arrest on Dec. 7, 2007, while investigating a tip that a large amount of cocaine was expected to arrive in the city that night. They picked up Morgan after he left the Shaw's supermarket with baking soda, which police suspected was going to be used to dilute the cocaine.

A woman with Morgan told police the baking soda was going to be used to bake cookies.

r Police say they found him on Willow Street, leaning against a car and drinking a bottle of Budweiser beer.

Police arrested John R. Jerome, 26, of 5 Mystic Ave., and charged him with drinking in public. His arrest was part of a recent crackdown on people drinking alcohol outdoors in the area around Maplewood Avenue.

Now, Jerome will have to pay $50 in exchange for having the charge dismissed.

Jerome was caught with the beer at 6:15 p.m. last Thursday. Police seized his half-empty beer as evidence.

Jennings ordered on Friday that the case be dismissed upon payment of the $50 in court costs.

r A man who said he was looking for prostitutes when caught peering in windows on Sayward Street was ordered to stay away from that home as part of the disposition of his court case.

A charge of trespassing against Ross M. Rennex, 38, of 49 East Main St., was continued for six months on Friday by Jennings.

On March 26, police found Rennex looking into the window of a barn at 10 Sayward St. The residents said they had also seen him looking through the windows of their home, and claimed he had tried to open some of the windows.

Rennex told police he was looking for two prostitutes, who he insisted had gone into the house, according to the police report.

"I just want to talk to them. They want me," the police report quotes Rennex as saying.

r A Rockport man was ordered to pay $200 in court costs in exchange for the dismissal of a charge of driving with a suspended license.

Michael A. Bertolino Jr., 22, of 36 Stockholm Ave., Rockport, was found not responsible for the other charges against him, driving without an inspection sticker and a marked lanes violation.

Bertolino had been pulled over on Summer Street in Rockport at 1:16 a.m. on March 21. According to the police report, he argued with officers, repeatedly asking why he had been stopped and asking them to double-check his license status, since he didn't believe it had been suspended.

r A man arrested on heroin charges in Gloucester last June will have to complete a drug addiction recovery program in order to avoid jail time.

Douglas MacMillan, 23, of 299 Nahant Road, Nahant, will be on probation until March 2010, after being found guilty of possession of a class A controlled drug, heroin. He must pay $90 to the Victim-Witness Assistance Fund, according to the ruling on Friday by Jennings.

A sentence of 1 year in jail was suspended until his probation expires, meaning he could serve the time if he fails to comply with the terms of his probation, which includes completion of the recovery program.

MacMillan was also found guilty of being present where heroin is kept and receiving stolen property. He had been arrested on June 1, 2007, when the car he was in was pulled over on Route 128.

According to the police report, MacMillan kept talking and was sweating profusely as officers tried to talk to the driver of the car. Officers said they later found a small bag of heroin on the floor of the car.

r A woman who police say was driving 78 miles per hour on Route 128 will have to pay only $50 to the Victim-Witness Fund, for a charge of driving with a suspended license.

Amy Dinsmore, 41, of 36 Derby St., first floor, Salem, was found responsible for speeding, and the charge was filed. Other charges of driving with a suspended license, driving without insurance and driving with a suspended registration were also continued without a finding for six months.

State police said they clocked Dinsmore's 2005 Hyundai Accent driving 78 miles per hour last September. She was pulled over, and her license showed that it had been suspended due to a defaulted payment. Her registration was revoked a few months before because her insurance had been cancelled, according to the police report.

r Marlon M. Perez, 20, of 75 Friend St., was ordered to pay $100 in costs and a $100 fine for driving without a license and driving an unregistered motor vehicle. Jennings dismissed the unlicensed driving charge, but found Perez responsible for driving an unregistered vehicle.

Perez had been pulled over last Thursday night on Main Street in Gloucester.