Wabbit Season?

Nope. Not in the Bay State - it's homicide season. And what post on the subject would be complete without the venerable...

DEAD HORSE BEATING ALERT

Much to the chagrin of law enforcement agencies across the state, Mother Nature has decided to put an end to the bitter cold and heavy snowfall that have gripped the region for the last few weeks. This means that life is back to normal and violent crime season is upon us yet again.

I was going to do a separate post about Police Commissioner O'Toole's comment on how January has been relatively calm and crime-free (which she disingenuously attributed to superior police work). But, this morning I found this article in the Boston Herald that makes the point for me.

Brutal winter blast may have cooled homicidal passions

When clocks struck 3 Monday afternoon, Boston - then suffocating under this month's 38 inches of snow and sub-zero windchills - humbly set a 10-year record for the most days to pass into a new year without a murder.

Hey, man, you try popping a cap in someone's ass wearing a pair of mittens.

The previous record for no homicides had stood since Jan. 24, 1999, when at 2:59 p.m., Steven Banks, 33, was stabbed to death in Roxbury by his ex-girlfriend's jealous lover. On that Sunday, according to records kept by the National Weather Service in Taunton, the temperature rocketed to 62 degrees for one day. The closest year to threaten the record was 2003, when Michael McQuay, 14, was shot to death Jan. 22 after a brutal cold snap of nine consecutive days in which temperatures were in the teens or below.

By comparison, in 2002, Darren Niles, 24, was shot to death Jan. 1 after an extraordinarily mild December 2001 in which daytime highs reached the low 70s.

The last killing in Boston occurred Christmas Day with the fatal stabbing of Rufus Jenkins, 57.

Baltimore already has posted 27 murders this year.

Yep, all's well in Mayor Menino's safe city.

After more than a month in hibernation from the lethal blood-letting that scarred 2004, one man was murdered, a teenager shot and two people viciously stabbed during a two-hour rude awakening for Boston yesterday morning.

Just a little something to keep in mind then next time some "progressive" tries to convince you that gun control in Massachusetts works because we have fewer murders than cities like Miami or New Orleans. If you compare the violent crime rates of New England states only, that argument goes right down the toilet.

If strict gun control laws are indeed necessary and effective in curbing violent crime, the newspapers should be filled with grisly stories of mayhem and death coming from the killing fields of Vermont, instead of Brockton...

Brockton gas station clerk found slain

A Brockton gas station clerk was found dead early yesterday inside the station, the victim of an apparent robbery and homicide, according to authorities.

Brockton police seek possible link between separate shootings

Police are investigating whether three shootings that happened within 30 minutes of each other in Brockton yesterday afternoon are related.

Two men were shot with a shotgun, one taking a blast to the stomach and the other to the face, police said.

...or Dorchester...

Man shot and killed in Dorchester

BOSTON- The city of Boston has had its first homicide of 2005.

Police are asking for the public's help finding who shot an unidentified 20-year-old male this morning.

...or New Bedford...

Police investigating New Bedford shooting

NEW BEDFORD, Mass.- Police are investigating the fatal shooting of a New Bedford man last night.

Police say that 22-year-old Jonathan Butler was getting something out of the trunk of his friend's car when he was shot at about 9:30 p-m.

...or Worcester...

Wild out west: Cops seize gunman

A Worcester man on a tear shot at police, robbed a pizza man and slammed a stolen car into a cruiser in nearby Shrewsbury, police said yesterday.

Worcester police first pulled over Julius Owens, 29, about 9:45 p.m. Sunday. But Owens pulled a gun and fired three off-target shots at the officer before speeding off.

Worcester police later found the car torched but traced it to Owens through a rental company. But before a SWAT team could move on Owens' home, gunshots were reported on Franklin Street.

There, a delivery driver told police he was returning to his car from dropping off a pizza about 1:20 a.m. when a man rushed up shooting his gun and demanding money. The gunman - later identified as Owens - also demanded the car but the driver's wife refused to open the door. So the delivery man handed over the keys.

...or Waltham...

Shooting suspect arraigned

WALTHAM -- The Quincy man accused of shooting a man three times during a fight at a Pine Hill Circle home Monday night was deemed a flight risk by prosecutors during a detainment hearing yesterday at Waltham District Court.

...or Randloph.

Police seeking gunman in fatal club shooting

RANDOLPH, Mass. - A man was shot and killed outside a South Shore dance club early Sunday morning in what authorities say is the town's first street killing in more than a decade.

And those were from a four-day span following the blizzard and sub-freezing temperatures in the region, with from a minimum amount of internet search time involved.

Buckle up. It's gonna be a long spring.