The Latest
-
Transit Woes Mount for Boston's Beleaguered Subway Riders
For Boston subway riders, it seems every week brings a new tale of transit woe. Runaway trains. Subway cars belching smoke and fire. Fatal accidents. Malfunctioning station escalators. Rush hour trains running on weekend schedules. Brand-new subway cars pulled from service. Derailed construction vehicles. The repeated chaos of the nation’s oldest subway system has stretched the nerves of riders,...
-
Top Democratic Lawmaker Nixes Baker's Sales-Tax-Free Plan
The top Democrat in the Massachusetts Senate on Friday dismissed a proposal by Republican Gov. Charlie Baker to expand the state’s annual two-day sales tax holiday to a two-month event this year — dealing a possible fatal blow to the plan. Consumers in Massachusetts are already eager to hit the stores as the state emerges from more than a year…
-
Boston Police Files on Ex-Officer's Child Sex Abuse Allegation Are Released
Boston Police internal investigators found sufficient evidence in 1996 to support allegations that an officer sexually assaulted a minor, yet the officer remained on the force and was eventually returned to full duty, according to documents released Tuesday.
-
Massachusetts Lawmakers Pass Sweeping Climate Change Bill
Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker said Tuesday he is reviewing legislation passed by lawmakers that would overhaul the state’s climate laws, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, create renewable energy jobs and protect poorer communities that can be at higher risk from pollution. A highlight of the bill is the goal of attaining a net-zero greenhouse gas emission limit by 2050 in part…
-
Christmas Storm Causes Damage, Power Outages Across Mass.
A storm packing a mix of heavy rains and winds knocked out power to thousands of homes across the Northeast region Christmas morning. There were more than 7,000 customers without power early Friday in Massachusetts. As of 10:45 p.m., 740 had yet to see their power restored. State officials and utility companies had warned that the winds could knock down…
-
Baker Sends Police Accountability Bill Back to Lawmakers
Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker returned a police accountability bill to state lawmakers Thursday, asking for changes before he can sign the legislation. A key element of the long-debated bill is the creation of a civilian-led commission to standardize the certification, training and decertification of police officers. Baker had wanted the commission to be part of the administration under the Executive…
-
Massachusetts Lawmakers Approve Police Accountability Bill
The Massachusetts House and Senate voted Tuesday to approve a compromise bill backers say would increase police accountability — including, for the first time, creating an independent, civilian-led commission to standardize the certification, training and decertification of police officers. The bill would also ban the use of chokeholds, limit the use of deadly force, and create a duty to intervene…
-
Mass. House OKs Measure Codifying Abortion Rights
The Massachusetts House approved a measure Thursday aimed at codifying abortion rights into state law, adding it on as an amendment to their version of the proposed state budget. The measure would let women obtain an abortion after 24 weeks of pregnancy in cases of “fatal fetal anomalies.” Current state law allows abortions after 24 weeks only to preserve the…
-
Markey Keeps His Senate Seat With Defeat of O'Connor, Mass. Votes on Ballot Measures
Democrat Joe Biden won Massachusetts and Democratic U.S. Sen. Edward Markey was reelected for another six-year term as voting concluded Tuesday. Massachusetts residents on Tuesday faced a lot of choices: They voted to fill an open U.S. House seat, weighed two hotly contested statewide ballot questions and decided whether to reelect some longtime incumbents to Congress. A record number...
-
Sen. Markey, Rep. Kennedy Clash Again in Final Debate
Massachusetts U.S. Sen. Edward Markey and his challenger, U.S. Rep. Joe Kennedy III, clashed during their final televised debate of the increasingly rancorous Democratic senate primary election Tuesday. The debate broadcast on WCVB-TV came just days ahead of when in-person early voting is set to begin and as mail-in ballots are already being sent to voters who requested them....
