In Salem Superior Court on Wednesday, Judge Thomas Drechsler had a few reasons to hold Willy Antonio Hernandez Camilo without bail. Camilo had been charged with attempted murder for stabbing someone in a club in Lawrence. He had used a stolen identity and had failed to show up for an earlier hearing in 2017. But […]
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A pot research bonanza
Massachusetts, despite its Puritan “blue laws” past, showed more of its blue state liberal leanings through a 2016 ballot question that made it one of 10 states to legalize recreational marijuana. Now, given its status as a world center of biomedical research, it seems only fitting for the state to also become a mecca […]
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Decapitation case focuses on text, audio messages
Chilling text and audio messages sent to classmates in 2016 are coming back to haunt Mathew Borges as he goes on trial for the murder and beheading of a fellow classmate at Lawrence High School. Borges was 15 at the time of Lee Manuel Viloria-Paulino’s murder, but he is being tried as an adult because […]
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Baker increasingly isolated on transportation taxes
Gov. Charlie Baker finds himself increasingly isolated on Beacon Hill with his opposition to new revenues for transportation. House Speaker Robert DeLeo and Senate President Karen Spilka are both open to raising additional revenues for transportation and the two chairs of the Legislature’s Transportation Committee, in an interview on the CommonWealth Codcast, said new money […]
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Are road rage and maddening traffic congestion linked?
Traffic fatalities have gone up in Massachusetts in recent years, but is anyone tracking road rage incidents? There have been a few notable ones in the last few months and weeks. In Danvers last month, a 33-year-old woman from Gloucester duked it out with a 64-year-old Beverly woman on the roadway of Route 128, leading […]
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Nursing homes shutter amidst corruption, financial chaos
Nursing homes in Massachusetts continue their steady descent into chaos, leaving seniors struggling to find adequate care as more facilities shutter, and fewer affordable beds are available. Five nursing homes owned by Skyline Healthcare are shutting down in Massachusetts, as employees miss weeks’ worth of paychecks, and seniors endure lower quality care standards stemming from […]
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Juul says it’s only here to help
E-cigarette use has exploded, and whether this is a good thing or not depends very much on the vantage point from which it’s viewed. Both vantage points were on display this morning on the Boston Globe homepage. A huge ad for Juul appeared, promoting efforts the e-cigarette maker says it’s taking to address “youth usage […]
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Transparency sacrificed with consolidated amendments
Back in January, the House Democratic caucus gathered to nominate Rep. Robert DeLeo for another term as speaker. There was no question that DeLeo had the votes, but a small group of lawmakers sought a rules change that would allow the next caucus vote for speaker, whenever that might happen, to be taken by secret […]
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New voices, proposals emerging in Boston’s biz community
Winds of change are starting to blow through Boston’s business community. One clear signal came earlier this month, when close to 20 business organizations said they would heed an appeal from House Speaker Robert DeLeo to help develop a transportation policy that likely will call for additional revenues. “It’s time for a united voice from […]
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Biden, other pols rally around Stop & Shop workers
Former Vice President Joe Biden got national media attention on Thursday when he spoke at a rally of striking Stop & Shop workers, saying, “This is wrong. This is morally wrong, what’s going on around this country. And I have had enough of it. I’m sick of it, and so are you.” While many showed […]