Boston bar owner Ran Duan and the death of Julia Phan

News Snapshot:

Although the roommates were usually inseparable, they spent this past New Year’s Eve apart. Aylee — whose last name is not being used to protect her privacy — left town. Phan planned to spend a quiet few days with her 16-year-old dachshund, Lolli, and volunteer at a soup kitchen on New Year’s Day. But as the hours counted down to midnight, Phan texted Aylee with an update: Ran Duan, a scion of Boston night life who GQ magazine once named “America’s most imaginative bartender,” had invited her out with a group of friends. There was a show that night at...