Two Suspects Arraigned in Back Bay Double Stabbing

By Amy Gorel
BU News Service

Five days after a bloody double stabbing in the Back Bay, two suspects were arraigned Wednesday afternoon at the Edward W. Brooke Courthouse on multiple charges of armed assault.

Naomi Charles, 26, of Dorchester, and Tyler Butler, 20, of Brockton, were each charged with two cases of assault with intent to murder, assault with a dangerous weapon, and assault and battery.

Each was being held on a $20,000 cash bail. Charles was arrested Tuesday after appearing near the courthouse on New Chardon Street in an effort to turn herself in, and Butler was arrested early Wednesday morning after turning himself in to police, according to the police report.

While neither Charles nor Butler physically appeared in the courtroom, two appointed attorneys spoke on their behalf, entering pleas of not guilty in the Boston Municipal Court.

Charles and Butler were arrested in connection with the assaults that occurred on March 7 at 2:31 p.m. on the corner of Hereford and Boylston streets, about half a dozen blocks east of Kenmore Square. When Boston police officers appeared on the scene, the alleged suspects had fled, leaving two women, both 19, conscious but bleeding on the scene.

“The two women were animated, crying, and complaining of pain. One woman made the statement, ‘Tyler did it’,” according to the police report read by Assistant District Attorney Matt Fitzgerald at the hearing.

One of the alleged victims was transported to Boston Medical Center with two chest wounds and a collapsed lung. The other was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital with two punctures in her torso and a collapsed lung. Both are expected to survive their injuries, Suffolk District Attorney spokesman Jake Wark said.

Fitzgerald asked Judge Mark H. Summerville to approve a $20,000 cash bail, as well as a protective order for Charles to stay away from the alleged victims, a nightly curfew, and a GPS tracking unit if released.

“The injuries were fairly serious and they could have been much worse,” he said. “There is a page and a half of criminal history here including forgery, attempts to commit a crime. Given the prior criminal history and nature of the incident, we want significant incarceration time and the [previously stated] conditions.”

The counsel for the defense, a female attorney in her mid-30s who declined to give her name, argued that since her client is being cooperative, a $2,000 cash bail is more appropriate.

“Ms. Charles came in at 9 a.m. yesterday knowing that she’d be taken into custody,” she said before the court. “These are serious allegations, but there’s a lot of information missing.”

The lawyer claimed that it is unclear why Charles’ photo was circulating in connection with the crime when one of the alleged victims reported that “Tyler did it.”

Judge Summerville rejected her argument and allowed the motion for a protective order and a $20,000 cash bail, repeating three times that “Ms. Charles was not to be let out without the GPS unit.”

Later Wednesday afternoon, a similar scenario played out between Fitzgerald and Attorney Nolan, who was representing Butler.

Nolan argued that since the alleged victims were too heavily medicated for interviews at the moment, there was still too much information missing to impose a protective order and such a high bail.

Judge Summerville approved the motion from the prosecutor, specifying that if Butler makes his bail, he will be fitted with a GPS unit, put on lockdown, and not have any contact with the alleged victims.

Charles and Butler are expected to appear at the Brooke Courthouse on April 7 for a probable cause indictment hearing.

Danielsen’s Prolific Philanthropic Legacy Largely Unknown to Students

By Toni Ann Booras
BU News Service
White-rimmed bay windows surrounded by rust-colored brick atop a trio of stone arches do not look out of place in the upscale Back Bay neighborhood. It might be surprising, however, to learn that this building is a college dorm.
Boston University wouldn’t own the building, Danielsen Hall, were it not for the generosity of philanthropist Albert V. Danielsen. But most BU students, even the ones living there, do not know anything about the man whose name is reflected in the residence name.
“I’ve never really thought about it,” said School of Management sophomore Jessica Carlson. “I just assumed it was just someone who donated a lot of money.”
The 10-floor dormitory-style residence, which houses 282 students, marks the eastern end of BU’s Charles River campus. The 512 Beacon St. location was given to Boston University in 1976 by Albert V. Danielsen and his wife, Jessie. It has served as a student residence since then.
Danielsen was a real estate investor, philanthropist and Brandeis University Fellow. The Danielsens helped found Boston University’s Albert and Jessie Danielsen Institute, which began as a pastoral counseling center but evolved into an institute incorporating spiritual development into its psychiatric services.
College of Arts and Sciences sophomore Justin Bram was the only resident who could say who Albert V. Danielsen was with any confidence.
“I know Danielsen was a BU donor and he donated this building and that medical center,” Bram said.
Referring to Danielsen Hall and the Danielsen Institute, respectively, Bram captured Danielsen’s philanthropic nature. But he didn’t know the full extent of Danielsen’s involvement at BU and other area schools, which included donations to BU, Brandeis and several southern colleges.
Danielsen also helped establish Marsh Chapel on campus as a way to honor former Boston University President Daniel Marsh, who graduated from BU’s School of Theology and served as a Methodist minister before a 25-year run as president of the university, according to a book by Abram Leon Sachar, the founding president of Brandeis University.
The Danielsens also hosted guests of the university and members of the BU community in their guesthouse. Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the Danielsen’s potential guests in 1956, though King did not end up staying there, according to records at the Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center.
Residents of Danielsen Hall pass by a plaque in the lobby daily, a plaque dedicating the building to the Danielsens “in grateful appreciation for a quarter century of wise counsel, devoted service and generous benefaction.” Still, only one of the residents questioned knew the namesake of the building. That didn’t stop the others from guessing, however.
“It’s probably someone famous,” said College of Engineering sophomore Abesari Woldeyesus, adding he had never thought about it.
“I heard that Danielsen used to be an insane asylum,” said sophomore Corinne Plaisir. “Maybe he was either a crazy patient or the founder of the asylum.”
Plaisir quickly added another guess.
“Or maybe he gave BU a lot of money,” she said. “BU likes people who give them a lot of money.”
It is true that Danielsen was a university benefactor. He established trusts and scholarships and made sizable donations to educational facilities throughout the state. But Danielsen didn’t always have money. Born in the Virgin Islands in 1893 and orphaned at 5 years old, he lived briefly with his grandmother before moving in with an aunt in Maryland, according to a biography on BU’s website.
His aunt, however, was troubled and abusive. At age 9 he began attending the McDonogh School, a school farm for orphan boys in Maryland where he was bullied and was eventually released at age 16. He worked a series of menial jobs before finding a niche as a bond salesman and realizing his true calling: real estate investment.
Danielsen immediately saw a substantial payout from a number of property investments. Among them were a series of residential buildings in the Beacon Street area, including the building now known as Danielsen Hall.
Danielsen married Jessie Boyd in 1939 and they moved to Wellesley, Mass., where they lived for the remainder of their lives. Recognizing the need to share their wealth, they immediately began engaging in philanthropy, keeping only 10 percent of their income and donating the rest, according to a biography of Jessie Danielsen on BU’s website.
The 70,768-sqaure-foot building bearing Danielsen’s name was originally built in 1926 and stands 103 ft. tall, according to the Boston Redevelopment Authority.