Prison Inmate Charged With Courthouse Anthrax Scare

A Massachusetts state prison inmate has pleaded innocent to charges related to a hazardous materials scare at the  Hall of Justice in Springfield.   WAMC”s Paul Tuthill reports.

      Two envelopes containing a white powder were mailed to the office of  a judge and to the Hampden County District Attorney last fall. When a staffer opened one, it triggered a full scale hazardous materials response by authorities.  The courthouse was  shut down for four hours.  It was later determined the envelopes contained a soap powder.  Investigators traced the accompanying letters to  Derek Moldanado,a former Springfield resident, who is in prison for assault and battery with a firearm.  Prosecutors allege he perpetrated the hoax in hopes of being transferred  to a federal prison…