Register warns about Homestead-form scam

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March 5, 2009

By Tom Dalton The Salem News Thu Mar 05, 2009, 05:25 AM EST

SALEM — Victoria Lord of Beverly was advised by her accountant to file a Homestead form at the Registry of Deeds to gain some added legal protection for her home.

She went to a Web site and downloaded one of the forms for $15. When she took it over to the Registry of Deeds in Shetland Park, she was told that they would have given it to her for free.

Lord is one of dozens of North Shore residents who have been "scammed," according to Register John O'Brien.

"In today's economy, charging $15 for one sheet of paper is just outrageous," Assistant Register Kevin Harvey said.

Lord said she doesn't plan to ask for her money back but hopes her story makes others aware of a free service provided by the Registry of Deeds.

Under an estate of homestead, homeowners can get up to $500,000 in protection on their principal residence.

For more information, call the Registry's customer service department at 978-542-1704 or go to www.salemdeeds.com.

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Local News

Mom denies hitting girl on bus

A Salem mother today denied hitting a kindergarten student, saying she simply held her face to get the girl’s attention while demanding that she not hit her son.
Dominique Hans, 38, of 8 Heritage Drive, pleaded not guilty in Salem District Court to charges of assault and battery and being disorderly, stemming from an incident on board a school bus on Proctor Street Thursday.
Police and prosecutors say Hans marched on board the bus, ignoring a driver’s request to stop, and asked her 6-year-old son to point out a child he said had hit him earlier this week.
“I didn’t hit that little girl,” said Hans.
Hans told reporters outside court that she was upset after she said school officials failed to respond to her complaint about the earlier incident involving her son.
“I understand her position,” Hans said of the mother of the little girl. “I trespassed. I felt I needed to protect my son, which (the driver) did not do for him.”
Hans remains free on $1,000 cash bail posted last night at the Salem policestation. Judge Robert Brennan ordered her to have no unsupervised contact with children under 12 except for her own, to stay away from the girl’s school bus stop, the girl and her family, and to follow any orders issued by the Department of Children and Families while the case is pending.
She is due back in court on March 15.
For more on this story, see tomorrow’s Salem News.

Feb 3, 2012 11:36 am
Lawsuit: Social Security number stolen

DANVERS — Like a lot of Americans his age, 55-year-old Jorge Cruz Hernandez lost his job at a commercial cleaning company and found himself facing hard times.
After more than two years out of work, in 2010, Hernandez was forced to apply for benefits from the Department of Transitional Assistance, what used to be known as welfare.

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PEM buys 3 buildings

SALEM — The Peabody Essex Museum is buying three downtown properties as part of its $200 million expansion.
One acquisition is a downtown landmark: 179 Essex St., the home of Bernard's Jewelers.

Updated Feb 3, 2012 9:54 am 2 Photos
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SALEM — The Blubber Hollow neighborhood may be trading a cluster of aged, dilapidated and disused industrial buildings for hundreds of new neighbors and three four-story apartment buildings.
The Planning Board held what is sure to be one of many public hearings last night on the Legacy Park Apartments at Harmony Grove Road, a proposal by MRM Project Management to build a mixed-use development that includes 141 one- and two-bedroom apartments along the North River canal.

Feb 3, 2012 5:00 am
Police: Mom attacks son's kindergarten classmate

SALEM — The mother of a kindergarten student was arrested yesterday after police said she boarded a school bus on Proctor Street and physically attacked the boy's classmate, yelling, screaming and hitting the little girl in the face.

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