Always Last... To Breaking News!
Staff Writer
Staff writer for The Charlotte Mercury covering government, elections, public safety, and development across multiple publications. Beckett has filed more than 600 stories on local policy, crime, zoning, and civic accountability in Connecticut and the Carolinas.
Four arrests, three defendants, and one very busy Officer Fausel: Farmington's overnight log for July 28 was a crime wave that posted bond and went home before last call.
Jack Beckett·Jul 29, 2026
Farmington police made one arrest in 24 hours: a Bristol woman served on a breach-of-peace warrant at the police station and released on a written promise to appear, with the bond column recording…
Jack Beckett·Jul 28, 2026
Across 72 hours, Farmington police made exactly one arrest: a 28-year-old charged with assault and disorderly conduct at his own Town Farm Road address, released on a bond secured by his signature.
Jack Beckett·Jul 28, 2026
Three people were arrested in Farmington on July 22 and 23: a Simsbury woman on a warrant for evading responsibility after a crash, and two Hartford men on larceny charges, including a second-degree…
Jack Beckett·Jul 24, 2026
The Farmington Historic District Commission approved a picket fence at 7 Church Street on May 19 and called it the last exterior detail on a house it had reviewed in stages since March 2025.
Jack Beckett·Jul 24, 2026
The new oil tank behind 772 Farmington Avenue was installed, the bollards reset, and the screening panel built and painted before the Farmington Historic District Commission ever voted on it.
Jack Beckett·Jul 23, 2026
A Hartford man was held on a $50,000 bond after being booked at Farmington police headquarters Tuesday on a warrant charging him with stealing a firearm and carrying a pistol without a permit.
Jack Beckett·Jul 22, 2026
A Hamden man was charged with assault and strangulation after a Saturday afternoon arrest on Batterson Park Road, and was the only person on the weekend log who did not post bond.
Jack Beckett·Jul 22, 2026
Farmington's bicycle and trails committee met July 15 with six members absent and a short agenda, but a full to-do list: new trail signs, a bollard question, Safe Routes to School talks, and a…
Jack Beckett·Jul 21, 2026
Farmington's newly seated Fire Station Building Committee held its first meeting Friday, taking control of a Town Council-scoped plan to build two new fire stations and renovate the historic Village…
Jack Beckett·Jul 20, 2026
Farmington police logged a single arrest in the day ending Friday morning: a 1:54 a.m. driving-under-the-influence case on Scott Swamp Road.
Jack Beckett·Jul 17, 2026
A 21-year-old Farmington man, Gannon Montgomery Patrick, was charged with first-degree criminal trespass on July 15 and released on a $1,500 bond.
Jack Beckett·Jul 16, 2026
The Farmington Town Council voted unanimously to build a sidewalk along Meadow Road, approving the revised Option 2 alignment after two years of hearings, a deferral, and a redesign.
Jack Beckett·Jul 16, 2026
Farmington's Town Plan and Zoning Commission unanimously rejected all four applications behind the Enclave at the Farmington River, the 237-home development proposed along the river between…
Jack Beckett·Jul 15, 2026
Inna Manashkin, 34, of Farmington was booked on three separate arrest warrants at police headquarters early Wednesday, the most serious a felony charge of assaulting a public-safety worker that…
Jack Beckett·Jul 15, 2026
Farmington police logged a single arrest in the 24 hours ending Tuesday morning: Shawn Cyr, 54, of Bristol, taken in on a re-arrest warrant for failure to appear and held on a $3,500 surety bond.
Jack Beckett·Jul 14, 2026
A man was killed in Farmington in March and left in the wood line behind a Talcott Forest Road condominium complex. For nearly four months the record held no name.
Jack Beckett·Jul 13, 2026
Farmington police logged four arrests from July 10 to 13, led by a murder charge against a 27-year-old Meriden woman in the March death of a Bridgeport man found behind a Talcott Forest Road…
Jack Beckett·Jul 13, 2026
The pump station that turned up corroded pipe in June is now, per the superintendent, 100 percent done, short of calibrating the new flow meter.
Jack Beckett·Jul 12, 2026
Farmington's Green Efforts Committee spent its July meeting not dreaming up new initiatives but narrowing the ones it already has, settling on four goals it might actually complete: waste reduction…
Jack Beckett·Jul 11, 2026
The owner of a West Avon Road house bought her first home, was told a grassy bowl out back was hers, and dug it into a pond.
Jack Beckett·Jul 10, 2026
Farmington police made a single arrest in the 24 hours ending Thursday morning: a Bristol man, 21, charged with engaging police in pursuit, interfering and resisting, and a traffic-signal violation…
Jack Beckett·Jul 2, 2026
The $16M renovation of Farmington's 1928 town hall is essentially done. At its June 23 meeting, the Ad Hoc 1928 Building Committee turned to the project's last mile: a signage and wayfinding package…
Jack Beckett·Jun 30, 2026
Farmington police made two arrests in the 24 hours ending Tuesday morning, both of non-residents: a Berlin woman charged with fifth-degree larceny in a shoplifting case, and a Wethersfield man…
Jack Beckett·Jun 30, 2026
Farmington's Town Council reviewed Town Manager Kathleen Blonski behind closed doors on June 23, then returned to open session and unanimously extended her contract through June 30, 2030, raised her…
Jack Beckett·Jun 27, 2026
Farmington police made a single arrest in the 24 hours ending Friday morning: a 47-year-old Waterbury man re-arrested on two counts of failure to appear in the second degree, served by writ of habeas…
Jack Beckett·Jun 26, 2026
The Next Chapters Bookhouse, a used bookstore and cafe built for slow browsing, cleared its last zoning step on June 22 and is headed for a second-floor storefront on River Road in Unionville.
Jack Beckett·Jun 26, 2026
A new Connecticut law, Public Act 25-1, forces Farmington to approve two-to-nine-unit housing in its commercial and industrial zones with no public hearing.
Jack Beckett·Jun 25, 2026
Farmington police made a single arrest in the 24 hours ending Wednesday morning: a Waterbury man charged with a second-offense DUI and operating under suspension after a Tuesday-evening arrest at…
Jack Beckett·Jun 24, 2026
Farmington police logged four arrest entries overnight, but only two men account for all of them: a local driver charged with DUI, who posted bond, and an out-of-state man whose narcotics stop came…
Jack Beckett·Jun 23, 2026
Farmington police made three arrests on their latest log, two of them men at adjacent Haberern Avenue addresses arrested the same Friday evening under one shared incident number.
Jack Beckett·Jun 22, 2026
Noble Energy withdrew both its wetlands and zoning applications for the proposed diesel truck stop on 86 acres above Batterson Park Pond, ending a fight that drew an intervener, dueling hydrology…
Jack Beckett·Jun 19, 2026
Farmington's Architectural Design Review Committee spent a second evening shaping the 237-unit Enclave at the Farmington River down to the brick, the dormers, and the fences.
Jack Beckett·Jun 18, 2026
A single warrant arrest dominates the Farmington police log for June 17: a Hartford man charged with third-degree burglary, first-degree criminal mischief, and third-degree larceny, plus a conspiracy…
Jack Beckett·Jun 18, 2026
Farmington police logged three arrests on Tuesday, two of them the same East Hartford man, taken into custody twice in under two hours on charges ranging from shoplifting to burglary, with two of the…
Jack Beckett·Jun 17, 2026
Farmington police logged four arrests over the June 12-15 weekend, three of them the same Hartford man: one shoplifting arrest on South Road and two failure-to-appear warrants served at police…
Jack Beckett·Jun 15, 2026
The Farmington Bicycle and Trails Advisory Committee narrowed its plan for Highlands bike-route signs to two nearly identical streets on June 9, a red route off Crestwood and a blue off Briarwood.
Jack Beckett·Jun 15, 2026
The Unionville Historic District and Properties Commission approved a rooftop solar array and two EV chargers at 796 Plainville Avenue on June 11, with no objection to how the panels would look from…
Jack Beckett·Jun 14, 2026
Three Farmington bodies weigh in on the fate of the Noble Energy truck stop, but the elected Town Council, the one residents keep asking to stop it, doesn't actually decide.
Jack Beckett·Jun 13, 2026
A planned electrical upgrade at Farmington's Yukon Road pump station uncovered hydrogen sulfide corrosion eating through the discharge pipes.
Jack Beckett·Jun 13, 2026
Farmington's Town Council issued two unanimous negative referrals June 9, opposing the Noble Energy truck stop at 8261 Fienemann Road and a separate National Land Holdings residential project, even…
Jack Beckett·Jun 12, 2026
A Southington man was arrested Wednesday afternoon on New Britain Avenue on charges of disorderly conduct and fourth-degree sexual assault, according to the Farmington PD arrest log.
Jack Beckett·Jun 12, 2026
The Farmington Town Plan and Zoning Commission voted 4-2 on June 8 to deny a special permit for a new home at 8638 Pine Drive.
Jack Beckett·Jun 11, 2026
A Farmington man was arrested Monday on two warrants: one for failing to appear on a pending larceny charge, and one for a new larceny charge.
Jack Beckett·Jun 10, 2026
Noble Energy wants to build a diesel travel center and warehouse on 86 acres that drain toward Batterson Park Pond — the public pond the state is spending roughly $10 million to restore.
Jack Beckett·Jun 6, 2026
Two 19-year-old New Britain residents were arrested together Thursday on a single West Hartford retail-theft incident, Farmington police reported — one charged with sixth-degree larceny, the other…
Jack Beckett·Jun 5, 2026
Farmington police logged three arrests Wednesday, all Hartford residents, each charged with first-degree criminal trespass.
Jack Beckett·Jun 4, 2026
A single overnight arrest: Kamren Michaels, 18, of Farmington, charged with breach of peace, underage possession of alcohol, and littering after a 1:35 a.m. arrest on Main Street. Bond posted.
Jack Beckett·Jun 2, 2026
A single arrest over the weekend: Michael Joseph Pariano, 67, of Avon, charged with driving under the influence and failure to drive in the proper lane after a Friday-evening stop at Waterville Road…
Jack Beckett·Jun 1, 2026
Two weeks after the May 14 ribbon cutting, the Ad Hoc 1928 Building Committee approved $17,700 for a standalone air-conditioning unit serving the new Town Hall's server room — and pushed exterior…
Jack Beckett·May 30, 2026
Farmington police logged a single arrest in the 24 hours ending Friday morning: a sixth-degree larceny warrant for a Hartford woman, served at headquarters by Officer Daniel R. Aparo.
Jack Beckett·May 29, 2026
At the May 26 Farmington Town Council meeting, Westview resident Tim Kelly asked the council for an inventory of the town's current volunteer-firefighter ranks by decade — twenties, thirties…
Jack Beckett·May 29, 2026
A Life Scout in Troop 170 of Unionville presented his Eagle Scout project to the Farmington Town Plan and Zoning Commission on May 27: demolish the deteriorated wooden kiosk at the Red Oak Hill…
Jack Beckett·May 29, 2026
Eight planning firms have submitted proposals to write Farmington's next Plan of Conservation and Development — the document that will shape the town's growth, conservation, and housing priorities…
Jack Beckett·May 28, 2026
FEMA has finalized new Flood Insurance Rate Maps for Farmington, with an effective date now expected in fall 2026. Some homeowners will be required to carry flood insurance who weren't before — some…
Jack Beckett·May 28, 2026
A Stratford woman, 31, was arrested at Westfarms Mall on Wednesday afternoon and charged with seven offenses across five separately filed incident numbers — an on-scene shoplifting and first-degree…
Jack Beckett·May 28, 2026
A legal opinion delivered to the Farmington Town Council on May 26 concludes that using the Don Tinty parcel for cemetery purposes would violate the 2004 deed covenant, and that the town has no legal…
Jack Beckett·May 28, 2026
The Farmington Architectural Design Review Committee took its first formal look at the Enclave at the Farmington River master plan on Thursday, May 21, and after about two hours of going through…
Jack Beckett·May 26, 2026
The Farmington Police Department's May 25–26 arrest log carries one name — a 1:19 a.m. on-scene disorderly-conduct stop on Colt Highway, brought in by Officer John A. Salute.
Jack Beckett·May 26, 2026
Noble Energy's owner insists his proposed Fienemann Road project is "a mini travel plaza," not a truck stop — a distinction he argues turns on scale and a business model aimed at the local trucks the…
Jack Beckett·May 23, 2026
The Farmington Inland Wetlands Commission worked through a backyard patio, a post-fire wetland restoration, an 18-unit active-adult subdivision, and the third hearing on Noble Energy's diesel travel…
Jack Beckett·May 23, 2026
Noble Energy returned to the Farmington Inland Wetlands Commission on May 20 with a redesigned stormwater plan built around Contech "jellyfish" biofiltration filters — a system the project's own…
Jack Beckett·May 22, 2026
A single name on the Farmington Police Department's latest log carried two incident numbers — a 2025 re-arrest warrant for failure to appear and a fresh set of 2026 motor-vehicle charges.
Jack Beckett·May 21, 2026
A plain-English guide to the Farmington Historic District Commission: what it reviews (exterior changes visible from a public way), what it leaves alone (paint color), and how the…
Jack Beckett·May 20, 2026
The Farmington Historic District Commission approved the final exterior details — gutters and a cedar fence — for the new home at 7 Church Street, ending a staged review that began in March 2025.
Jack Beckett·May 20, 2026
Six arrests in a four-day window. Three §14-227a Operation Under Influence charges, including the Meadow Road fatal-crash DUI.
Jack Beckett·May 19, 2026
A motorcyclist died Monday afternoon after a Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck struck a motorcycle and a school bus from behind on Meadow Road in Farmington.
Jack Beckett·May 18, 2026
Town Manager Kathleen Blonski told the Farmington Town Council on May 12 that the Meadow Road sidewalk project will return as an agenda item at the council's May 26 meeting, with a potential vote at…
Jack Beckett·May 18, 2026
The Town Council voted unanimously to set the property tax rate at 27.36 mills for fiscal year 2026–27 and to divide an unexpected $1.7 million state aid grant — half for current taxpayers, half in…
Jack Beckett·May 15, 2026
A 2004 deed gave Donald Tinty Family Park to Farmington as a public park. On May 12, the Town Council took up — and a dozen residents came to oppose — whether part of it should become the town's next…
Jack Beckett·May 14, 2026
The Farmington Town Council voted unanimously on May 12 to advance a $30-to-$35-million plan to replace two of the town's three volunteer fire stations and renovate the third, seating a new building…
Jack Beckett·May 14, 2026
Farmington police logged a single arrest in the 24 hours ending Thursday morning — but it came with two charges, two incident numbers, and a $10,500 bond the man did not post.
Jack Beckett·May 14, 2026
Eight arrest records, five unique individuals, ninety-six hours, none of them Farmington residents — a six-charge Saturday-night pursuit cluster, a Friday-morning triple-warrant detention at Hein…
Jack Beckett·May 11, 2026
Nine months after a wave of departures left the Unionville Historic District and Properties Commission with three empty seats, two alternate seats remain vacant.
Jack Beckett·May 8, 2026
The Farmington Conservation and Inland Wetlands Commission unanimously accepted Stephanie Roman's intervener petition Wednesday in the continuing public hearing on Noble Energy Real Estate Holdings'…
Jack Beckett·May 8, 2026
Three arrests in Thursday's Farmington Police Department log: a six-count DUI warrant against a 21-year-old Avon woman that includes two counts of motor-vehicle assault, the first narcotics-sale…
Jack Beckett·May 8, 2026
A month-end reading of every police-beat article The Farmington Mercury published in April 2026 — twelve arrest logs, one wire-broken shooting at Forest Park Drive, and one statewide…
Jack Beckett·May 7, 2026
A single arrest in the May 4–6 Farmington PD log — Robert Derron Hinton, 46, of Wethersfield — becomes the third arrest at 1600 Southeast Road in seven days, crossing the threshold this column set…
Jack Beckett·May 6, 2026
A single weekend arrest at GA 18 — Officer Glaude's third habeas warrant in the FM series, and the first §53a-127f Possession of a Shoplifting Device charge to land on the page.
Jack Beckett·May 4, 2026
The latest Farmington PD log records one arrest: Joshua Anthony Soler of New Britain, charged with Larceny in the 6th Degree at 1600 Southeast Road. The notable part is the arresting officer — Jose R.
Jack Beckett·May 1, 2026
Farmington's annual budget referendum closed at 8 p.m. Thursday with 950 of the town's 18,707 registered voters casting ballots — a turnout of 5.08 percent.
Jack Beckett·Apr 30, 2026
After a 90-minute public hearing, the Town Council declined to vote on the south-side alignment and asked Town Engineer Russ Arnold to redesign the project as a south-side / north-side split crossing…
Jack Beckett·Apr 30, 2026
One arrest, two motor-vehicle charges, and the first FM log entry to put §14-140 on the page. Officer Sotelo's third appearance in the series.
Jack Beckett·Apr 30, 2026
Four arrests on the Farmington PD log for April 28, 2026, the densest single 24-hour log of the year by charge count. The official record on the Forest Park Drive shooting confirms the suspect's name…
Jack Beckett·Apr 29, 2026
Farmington TPZ on Monday night accepted a formal zoning application for the Enclave at the Farmington River — a 240-to-296-unit, $225 million proposal by Crown Equities affiliate National Land…
Jack Beckett·Apr 28, 2026
Three arrests on the Farmington PD log for April 27–28, 2026: a shared-incident dual arrest at 47 New Britain Avenue (Caron + Faulkner, Officer Karangekis) and a five-charge on-scene arrest at 1600…
Jack Beckett·Apr 28, 2026
The Farmington Police Department's 72-hour weekend log for April 24–27 records one arrest: Edward Charette of Wolcott, charged with shoplifting at 500 South Road. With this arrest, Officer Daniel R.
Jack Beckett·Apr 27, 2026
Farmington Police are participating in Connecticut's statewide April distracted-driving crackdown — the "Put the Phone Away or Pay" campaign coordinated across 37 law enforcement agencies.
Jack Beckett·Apr 27, 2026
A public hearing on the proposed Meadow Road Sidewalk Project will be held Tuesday, April 28, at 7:05 p.m. in the Town Hall Annex Council Chambers, 1 Monteith Drive.
Jack Beckett·Apr 27, 2026
Farmington's annual budget referendum is Thursday, April 30. Polls open at 6 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. across four locations.
Jack Beckett·Apr 27, 2026
Two arrests and eight charges in a 24-hour log introduce four new statute categories to the FM series — including §53a-64bb Strangulation 2nd, the most serious new charge debuted in several logs.
Jack Beckett·Apr 24, 2026
Before April 30, voters decide whether to condition the air in four elementary schools. The bond is the simple number. The math around it is not.
Jack Beckett·Apr 22, 2026
The Conservation and Inland Wetlands Commission signed off on removing twelve inches of fill and a three-year monitoring schedule at 24 Somersby Way.
Jack Beckett·Apr 22, 2026
Farmington's $143 million operating budget and $18.3 million in bond questions go to voters Thursday, April 30. Polls are open 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Jack Beckett·Apr 22, 2026
Town Meeting voters referred a 4.74% spending plan and two bond questions to the ballot. The average homeowner would pay $281.20 more in taxes.
Jack Beckett·Apr 21, 2026
Noble Energy returned to Farmington Inland Wetlands with a smaller plan for 8261 Fienemann Road: no restaurant, a shrunken warehouse and travel center, and wetlands impact cut from 3,700 square feet…
Jack Beckett·Apr 20, 2026
Two arrests over a 72-hour weekend window — both on Friday night, both on motor-vehicle charges, both by Officer Daniel J. Taylor, two hours apart.
Jack Beckett·Apr 20, 2026
Spring bulky waste collection starts Monday, April 20. Here's a quick reminder of the rules before you drag anything to the curb.
Jack Beckett·Apr 19, 2026
Six arrest records, two people — one of them Honesty Love Tirado, 23, of New Britain, with five incident numbers and $105,000 in bond stacked against her in a single Thursday morning.
Jack Beckett·Apr 17, 2026
Six arrests in 48 hours — three at Westfarms Mall, the first co-defendant pair in the Mercury's series, and four statutes new to the log.
Jack Beckett·Apr 16, 2026
