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Committee Backs New Oversight Model For MBTA

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 10:50:28 GMT

Massachusetts would stand up a new agency, empowered with subpoena power and other regulatory muscle, to oversee public transit safety under a bill that has cleared the Joint Committee on Transportation.Nearly a year after federal investigators said the Department of Public Utilities was falling short of its MBTA safety oversight responsibilities, the committee advanced legislation that would strip those duties from the DPU and instead assign them to a proposed Office of Transit Safety.The new office would be an independent entity “not subject to the supervision or control” of any other state board, agency or department, according to a copy of the legislation provided by committee co-chair Rep. William Straus. Its executive director, who would need experience in “transit operations or transit safety,” would be appointed by a majority vote of the governor, attorney general and secretary of state.That represents a shift from the DPU, which is a part of the exec...

Peabody chiropractor arraigned on charge that he allegedly placed secret camera in office bathroom

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 10:50:28 GMT

A chiropractor working in Peabody was arraigned on a charge of taking nude photos of an unsuspecting person in his office’s bathroom, according to the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office.Scott Kline, 44, of Middleton, is accused of placing a hidden camera in the bathroom of his business, “Back on Track,” after a patient told police he allegedly found one.According to the DA’s office, it was Friday, July 14, when the patient used a bathroom at the office and noticed a black, plastic coat hook hanging on the wall next to the toilet tank that “looked out of place.”“Upon further inspection the patient observed a blue light on the side of the hanger and discovered that it appeared to be a hidden spy camera complete with a lens on the front, USB port, on/off switch and an SD memory card,” the DA’s office stated in a news release. “The victim also documented what he observed on his personal cell phone and provided that to p...

Ticker: First-gen iPhone nets $190G at auction; Wesleyan drops legacy admissions

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 10:50:28 GMT

A first-generation iPhone has sold at auction for $190,373, almost 380 times its original price of $499 when the groundbreaking device went for sale in 2007.LCG Auctions, which hosted Sunday’s sale, said the 4GB iPhone model was 20 times rarer than the 8GB model released at the same time for $599. That’s largely because the 4GB model was discontinued two months after launch given customer preference for the larger memory size.“A new bar was set Sunday night,” said Mark Montero, the founder of LCG Auctions. “We are thrilled to be a part of this fantastic record breaking sale.”It is the third original iPhone to sell for record prices at auction in the past year. An 8GB model sold for $63,356 in February and another 8GB model fetched $39,340 in October 2022. All were factory sealed in their original packaging.Wesleyan drops legacy admissionsWesleyan University in Connecticut announced Wednesday that it has become the latest school to end its policy o...

Brockton teen, 15, killed in Randolph crash

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 10:50:28 GMT

A 15-year-old Brockton boy was killed in a single-vehicle crash in Randolph.Randolph Police were called to North Main Street just before 10:30 p.m. Tuesday and found a 2011 Nissan Altima crashed, with four teenagers present.One of the teens, Terry Boston, Jr., 15, of Brockton, was pronounced dead at the scene. Three other teenagers, who authorities have not identified, were transported to area hospitals. Two female passengers were driven by ambulance and a teen boy was transported to Boston Medical Center via helicopter.“I join the Randolph Police in extending my condolences to young Mr. Boston’s family on this tragic loss of life,” Norfolk District Attorney Michael Morrissey said in a Wednesday statement.The initial investigation, according to the DA statement, indicates the Nissan was traveling southbound when it left the roadway and smashed into a tree in the 700-block of North Main Street.This is a developing story.

Gun reform bill jammed on Beacon Hill

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 10:50:28 GMT

A top House Democrat behind major gun reform legislation said the bill is still locked up in an inter-branch procedural dispute even as House Speaker Ronald Mariano said last week he wants his chamber to pass the bill by the end of the month.Judiciary Committee Co-Chair Rep. Michael Day said he has “no idea” when his omnibus firearms bill will make it to the House floor for a vote. The legislation tackles unregistered ghost guns, illegal firearms, gun violence, and responds to a U.S. Supreme Court decision on licenses to carry publicly.Day said he has not had any discussions with Senate leaders “at this stage” to resolve a procedural back-and-forth over what legislative committee will take possession of the bill for a public hearing.The House tried to send it to the Judiciary Committee while the Senate instead wanted the Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee, chaired by Democrats Rep. Carlos González and Sen. Walter Timilty, to review the proposal.“It’s a dispute betwe...

New Hampshire Gov. Sununu announces he will not seek a fifth term

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 10:50:28 GMT

New Hampshire’s four-term Republican governor will not seek re-election, he announced Wednesday.In a letter to supporters and in social media postings, Gov. Chris Sununu said that though he has enjoyed the work, it’s time to pass the torch to someone else.“After much consideration, I have decided not to run for another term as Governor in 2024,” Sununu wrote. “Be assured we will keep working and that the Granite State will continue to be our priority for the next 18 months.”“Public service should never be a career, and the time is right for another Republican to lead our great state. This was no easy decision as I truly love serving as Governor. I could not be more proud of our record and it’s thanks to your support that we’ve accomplished so much,” he continued.News that New Hampshire’s 82nd governor would not seek a further two-year term was met with both praise for the work he’s done and thinly veiled hints at others’ ambitions.“I’m grateful to Governor Sununu f...

Orioles’ Cedric Mullins returns to injured list with right groin strain: ‘Waiting to turn that corner’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 10:50:28 GMT

Orioles center fielder Cedric Mullins seemed to be finally returning to himself when he pulled up going into third base on a foul ball Saturday. It turns out that injury will keep from even returning to the field for at least another week.Mullins was put on the 10-day injured list Wednesday with a right adductor groin strain, the same injury that cost him 20 games earlier this season. The Orioles and Mullins had been classifying the latest ailment as right quadriceps tightness and said it was unrelated to the groin strain, with Mullins saying Tuesday that he hoped to return to Baltimore’s lineup sometime this week.“It’s just kind of his upper leg, and so groin, quad,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “Felt it in his quad, originally. The soreness is moving around in that upper leg area. It’s a lower-body injury that we just want to take a little bit more time with and be careful with. It was progressing, has been progressing. It’s just not progres...

Start of Orioles-Dodgers game Wednesday delayed 41 minutes as grounds crew works on wet field

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 10:50:28 GMT

Despite the sun shining above Camden Yards on Wednesday afternoon, the Orioles’ series finale against the Los Angeles Dodgers was delayed 41 minutes as the team’s grounds crew tended to a rain-soaked infield.Storms Tuesday night and Wednesday morning left the infield wet after the tarp was not placed on it overnight. The Orioles announced the delay about 50 minutes before the scheduled 1:05 p.m. first pitch without giving an official reason.“The grounds crew had to do a lot of work on the infield. Yes, it’s unfortunate that the tarp was not placed on last night — we had a surprise storm — but this grounds crew did pretty amazing work to make this only a 40-minute delay to get this field in playable condition,” MASN play-by-play broadcaster Kevin Brown said during the first inning. “They were nonstop for hours today.”Both teams’ managers, Baltimore’s Brandon Hyde and Los Angeles’ Dave Roberts, conferred with the ...

Teamsters, UPS to resume negotiations

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 10:50:28 GMT

NEW YORK — The Teamsters said Wednesday they will resume contract negotiations with UPS next week, marking an end to a stalemate that began two weeks ago when both sides walked away from talks while blaming each other.The union, which represents 340,000 UPS workers, credited the picketing and rallies it’s been holding across the country for getting the delivery company back to the negotiating table before the current contract expires on July 31.It said UPS reached out to resume negotiations.In a prepared statement, the company confirmed negations will resume next week and said it was pleased to go back and “resolve the few remaining open issues.”Before contract talks broke down, both sides had reached tentative agreements on several issues, including installing air conditioning in more trucks and getting rid of a two-tier wage system for drivers who work weekends and earn less money. A sticking point in negotiations has been wage increases for part-time workers, wh...

Stolen vehicle suspect carjacks 2 vehicles during pursuit in San Fernando Valley

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 10:50:28 GMT

A man who is wanted for stealing a vehicle has carjacked two cars during a dangerous pursuit in the San Fernando Valley. The Los Angeles Police Department began tracking the suspect after learning he was wanted for stealing a van in the Ventura County area around 8 a.m., officials said. At some point, two LAPD officers were taken to a hospital in connection with the chase, though police did not have any details on how they were injured. By 1:33 p.m. the driver had abandoned the van, was seen running into a Chevron gas station in Porter Ranch and got into a BMW sedan that was stopped filling up. The driver then took off and was able to evade authorities that had surrounded him at the station, aerial video showed. The passenger of the parked vehicle was able to safely get out of the car, video showed. The suspect was then speeding on surface streets, where he ran red lights and drove on the wrong side of the road. Around 1:45 p.m., the driver was seen pulling into another gas station ...