Domenic Sarno

Four elected Hampden County justice officials — Sheriff Nick Cocchi, Register of Deeds Cheryl Coakley-Rivera, Clerk of Courts Laura S. Gentile and Register of Probate Rosemary Saccomani — sent Gov. Maura Healey a letter at the end of September opposing the state's July selection of 125 Liberty St. in Springfield as the site for a new Roderick Ireland Courthouse. They cite unresolved concerns over lease costs, parking, lot size and site contamination, and argue the choice doesn't serve taxpayers or the roughly 1,600 daily courthouse users.

The state's Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance selected developer Liberty Junction (led by FD Stonewater) for a $1.94 billion, 40-year build-and-lease deal meant to speed delivery of a replacement for the aging courthouse. DCAMM defends the process and says it will deliver the project years faster than traditional construction. Healey has backed the procurement, noting a judge declined to block it. Separately, developers James Balise and Dinesh Patel, who submitted a rival bid, are suing over alleged conflicts of interest and running a competing public-relations campaign, while Liberty Junction pushes its own ads touting union jobs and neighborhood revitalization.

A cyberattack described by officials as "sophisticated" knocked out IT systems across Springfield, Massachusetts public schools, forcing the cancellation of classes for an entire week for more than 23,000 students. Mayor Domenic Sarno said the breach left the district unable to access email, phones, medical and food databases, and curriculum systems. The FBI, Massachusetts State Police, and local police are investigating; officials have not disclosed who is responsible or how the attack occurred, though Sarno hinted at a possible ransom demand without elaborating.

Classes are set to resume Monday, with officials saying instruction will continue even if it means returning to "paper and pencil." Friday was designated a teacher professional development day. The shutdown disrupted child care and work schedules for families in the working-class city, prompting frustration and uncertainty among parents and students. The incident coincided with a separate cybersecurity breach reported in nearby Everett, underscoring growing concern over cyberattacks targeting municipal and school networks in Massachusetts.