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Westfield Kiwanis honor 65-year member on his 98th birthday

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Donald Ouimet of Westfield was honored Thursday by members of the Westfield Kiwanis Club, in recognition of his 98th birthday and 65th year as a member of the club.

WESTFIELD - Donald Ouimet of Westfield was honored Thursday by members of the Westfield Kiwanis Club, in recognition of his 98th birthday and 65th year as a member of the club.

In presenting Ouimet with Kiwanis International's 65-year "Legion of Honor" award at his home Thursday evening, Club President Geana Delisle made note of Ouimet's long record of service to the club and to the community at large. She said she believes Ouimet is the longest-serving member in the history of the club, which was founded in 1922, and she also thanked Ouimet for his continued willingness to serve the club as chair of its Telephone Committee.

George Delisle, Geana's husband and the secretary of the New Englland and Bermuda District of Kiwanis, thanked Ouimet on behalf of the district and of Kiwanis International, and read a letter from Kiwanis International President Jane Erickson.

Erickson's letter congratulated Ouimet on his service and his long record of achievement as a Kiwanis member and a dedicated member of the Westfield community.

Ouimet, who lives with his wife Rose, is a retired executive with Stanhome (formerly Stanley Home Products). He has been a Westfield Kiwanis Club member since 1952, serving as the club's 43rd president in 1964.

Ouimet and his brother Francis were among the Kiwanis Club members who originally organized Little League Baseball in Westfield in the early 1960s. He is also a past president and director of the Greater Westfield Chamber of Commerce, and he continues to serve as an active member of Kiwanis.

Kiwanis International is a global organization of volunteers concentrating on service to children. In addition to Little League baseball, members of the Westfield Kiwanis Club founded the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Westfield.

The club sponsors Kiwanis Key Clubs at Westfield High School, Westfield Technical Academy and St. Mary High School; Kiwanis Builders Clubs at Westfield North and South Middle Schools, and Kiwanis K-Kids Clubs at Franklin Avenue, Papermill, Munger Hill, and Southampton


Westfield police searching transfer station; mum on details

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Police are reportedly searching the city transfer station on Twiss Street, but the department is being mum on exactly why.

WESTFIELD - Police are reportedly searching the city transfer station on Twiss Street, but the department is being mum on exactly why.

Capt. Michael McCabe confirmed earlier reports that detectives are investigating the site, but declined to comment any further about what is being sought or why.

WWLP TV-22 cited an earlier statement from Westfield Lt. Michael LaCroix who said the transfer station and recycling center, and an apartment complex at 50 Southampton Road are part of the same investigation. LaCroix also did not say what the investigated entailed.

The Hampden District Attorney's Office declined comment.

McCabe just before noon posted a message on the Westfield police detective bureau's Facebook page that read:


"There is an active investigation in the Southampton Rd. area that the Westfield Police Department and the Massachusetts State Police are involved in. Unfortunately, state laws prohibit us from commenting further about the nature of the investigation. That being said, I can assure you that there is no danger to anyone in the area. The reason that media sources are being vague is because I cannot legally give out any further information relative to the investigation. Respectfully yours, Captain Michael A. McCabe."

Western Mass News is reporting the transfer station was closed to the public on Friday morning.

The city website says the transfer station's normal hours of operation are Monday through Saturday from 7 a.m. to 2:45 p.m.

Springfield Renaissance School gains national honor as 2017 'Secondary Magnet School of the Year'

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The Magnet Schools of America has chosen Renaissance School in Springfield as its 2017 Secondary Magnet School of the Year.

SPRINGFIELD -- A national education association has honored The Springfield Renaissance School as the 2017 Secondary Magnet School of the Year.

The association, the Magnet Schools of America, announced the selection during  its national conference conducted recently in Los Angeles, according to the School Department.

Superintendent of Schools Daniel Warwick congratulated Principal Arria Coburn and Renaissance staff, the students and their families.

"I'm extremely proud of the direction in which our school district is headed and it's thrilling for one of our schools to receive national recognition," Warwick said. "I'm ecstatic that the MSA has bestowed this honor on Renaissance. It is greatly deserved."

During her acceptance remarks, Coburn said: "We are changing the narrative around urban education. Being a college bound Expeditionary Learning STEM magnet school has allowed us to develop a rigorous curriculum and learning environment that is redefining what privilege means for students of color, poor students, working class families and all students."

The honor followed the MSA's earlier designation of Renaissance as a Magnet School of Excellence, the only magnet school in Massachusetts to receive the designation in 2017.

MSA also earlier recognized John J. Duggan Academy and Central High School as 2017 Schools of Distinction. 

MSA is a nonprofit education association that represents approximately 4,340 magnet schools serving nearly 3.5 million students.

Springfield man to be charged with secretly photographing woman in Chicopee Walmart

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The post titled "Chicopee Walmart Goddess" had 10 photos of the woman which were taken without her knowledge.

CHICOPEE - A Springfield man accused of following a woman through Walmart, secretly photographing her and posting the pictures on Craigslist will face several criminal charges.

A criminal complaint has been issued by Chicopee District Court charging Edward Robichaud, 37, of 93 Grochmal Ave. #86, with criminal harassment, annoying and accosting a person sexually and taking secret photos of intimate body parts, Michael Wilk, Chicopee Police public information officer, said.

Robichaud is being accused of following a woman who he did not know through the store on Memorial Drive and taking multiple pictures of her on April 29.

Wilk said several people contacted him on Monday saying they saw lewd comments and photos he had published of the woman on Craigslist. Shortly afterward Craigslist removed the posts but some had saved them and sent them to him.

Officials for the online company did not respond to requests for comment.

The post titled "Chicopee Walmart Goddess" was shared by many people and went viral, Wilk said.

"In this post there were 10 photos of a female taken in various positions without her consent or knowledge. The poster put up a very lewd and lascivious post, stating he would pay money to learn her identity," he said.

Wilk said he met with Walmart security officials who allowed him to review the store video which showed the victim being followed by a man without her knowledge.

Around the same time the victim went to the Police Department after she learned about the posts, he said.

"She was extremely distraught and scared as this same male party was able to locate her on Facebook and sent her a provocative private message," Wilk said.

Upon further investigation through the messages sent and the video, Wilk said he was able to identify the suspect as Robichaud.

Robichaud will be summonsed to Chicopee District Court on May 16 for a hearing, Wilk said.

Car bursts into flames after allegedly fleeing police in Dartmouth and crashing

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A car in Dartmouth has caught fire after its driver allegedly fled from a police stop and crashed.

A car in Dartmouth has caught fire after its driver allegedly fled from a police stop and crashed.

State troopers attempted to pull over the car on Route 195 eastbound when the driver sped away and immediately crashed into another car and a light pole, State Police said on Twitter.

The suspect was allegedly driving without a license and sustained minor injuries, police said. The driver was taken into custody.

The driver's car caught fire after the crash, police said.

A trooper with the State Police Dartmouth barracks declined to comment, and a State Police spokesman said no further information was immediately available.

This is a developing story.

 

Boston beer entrepreneur, breast cancer survivor to give Survivors' Day talk

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Rhonda Kallman is the featured speaker for the 20th Annual Rays of Hope Breast Cancer Survivors' Day May 13, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the MassMutual Center.

SPRINGFIELD - "Beer Battered: Overcoming Personal Adversity," is the title of the talk beer and spirits industry entrepreneur and breast cancer survivor Rhonda Kallman will give during the 20th Annual Rays of Hope Breast Cancer Survivors' Day on Saturday, May 13, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the MassMutual Center, 1277 Main St.

Kallman
, a Boston native and mother of three, is founder and chief executive officer of Boston Harbor Distillery.

In 1984, at the age of 24, she and Jim Koch started the Boston Beer Company, perhaps best known for its award-winning Samuel Adams Boston Lager, and where Kallman served as executive vice president for 15 years.

Kallman started New Century Brewing in 2001, and operated it until 2011 when the Federal Food and Drug Administration ruled caffeine an unsafe additive for beer, and a state ban on sales of her Moonshot beer resulted.

Kallman, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2008, founded Boston Distillery in 2012.

In addition to Kallman's keynote address, participants can select two workshops to attend.

Workshop choices include "Fabulously Functional Fitness," "Rolling the Dice: Chance, Fate, and Risk - What would you do?" "Project Life - Papercrafting with Pocket Pages," "Treat Yourself - Make and Take," "Thriving with Breast Reconstruction: Patient Perspectives and New Directions," "The Healing Labyrinth," "Updates in Breast Cancer: A Surgeon's Perspective," "What's New (or Not So New) in Breast Prosthesis and Pocketed Lingerie," and "Healthy Eating for Stronger Bones."

A continental breakfast will be served as well as a buffet luncheon.

Registration is required. The cost is $35 per person, with the remaining dollars underwritten by the Rays of Hope.

For more information, or to request a registration form, call (413) 794-9556.

For those unable to afford the fee, a limited number of scholarships are available for breast cancer survivors by calling Sue-Ann Hilton at (413) 794-9556.

Springfield is for the birds: City gets federal money under 'Urban Bird Treaty City' program

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Springfield is one of 27 communities nationwide designated as an Urban Bird Treaty City, promoting a bird-friendly environment.

SPRINGFIELD -- The city of Springfield was recognized Friday as the 27th community nationwide designated as an "Urban Bird Treaty City," under a program intended to promote and expand bird-friendly environments.

City officials and supporters including Mayor Domenic J. Sarno gathered for a ceremony at the Springfield Science Museum to accept the designation from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The ceremony came with a $49,000 grant for a local organization, Regreen Springfield, to enhance educational programming and bird habitat improvements at Van Horn and Forest Park.

The Urban Bird Treaty Program is geared to promote collaborations between participating communities and the federal department with participation from federal, state and municipal agencies, private organizations, educational institutions "to create bird-friendly environments and provide citizens, especially youth, with opportunities to connect with nature through birding and conservation," according to a news release from the mayor's office.

The first two communities to join the program were New Orleans in 1999 and Chicago in 2000.

"Cities can become effective sanctuaries for birds and other wildlife with an environmentally aware citizenry dedicated to learning about and conserving birds and their habitats," an announcement  stated. "This is not only good for the birds, but also for the health and well-being of people living in and visiting Urban Bird Treaty Cities."

The Urban Bird Treaty program emphasizes "habitat conservation through invasive species control and native plant restoration; hazard reductions through bird-safe building programs; citizen science activities involving bird and habitat monitoring; and education and outreach programs that give people, especially youth, opportunities to learn about and appreciate birds and participate in their conservation," the announcement stated.

In Springfield, the partnership will include the city, School Department, Springfield Science Museum, Regreen Springfield and others, that will continue to work with students from across the city in conducting environmental education programming across Springfield, officials announced.

In one example listed, students from Commerce and Central High Schools will be assisting in the restoration of bird habitat in Van Horn Park, Forest Park and at the Springfield Museums campus during this summer. In the fall, students from Duggan High School will participate in monitoring wildlife and bird habitat at several city parks.

Sarno praised Bloniarz "for continuing to enhance, respect and educate our Springfield public on the synergies of nature and wildlife."

Those attending the ceremony included Patrick Sulivan, the city's director of parks, buildings and recreation management; David Bloniarz, President of Regreen Springfield; Roxanne Bogart, National Urban Bird Treaty Program Coordinator Dr. Keith Nislow, Project Leader for the U.S. Forest Service's Urban Forests Environmental Quality and Human Health Research Unit; City Councilor Michael Fenton and David Stier, Director of the Springfield Science Museum.

Students from South End Middle School were also in attendance for the announcement, which was held at the Springfield Science Museum.

Pittsfield man sentenced to 5-7 years for armed robbery spree, bomb threats

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Damien Ivas pleaded guilty to 6 counts of armed robbery for a month-long spree targeting Pittsfield convenience stores.

PITTSFIELD - A 42-year-old Pittsfield man was sentenced to up to seven years in state prison on Friday after pleading guilty to his part in an armed robbery spree and for calling in multiple bomb threats.

54 damien ives.jpgDamian P. Ivas
 

Damian P. Ivas pleaded guilty in Berkshire Superior Court to six counts of armed robbery while masked, single counts of assault by means of a dangerous weapon and resisting arrest.

He also pleaded guilty to a single count of threatened use or presence of explosives, chemical or biological agents, and two counts of threatened use or presence of explosives, chemical or biological agents causing evacuation or disruption.

Judge Edward McDonough Jr. ordered Ivas to serve five to seven years at the Massachusetts Correctional Institution at Cedar Junction in Walpole.

The robbery and assault charges relate to a series of robberies at Pittsfield convenience stores that occurred between Dec. 23, 2015, and Jan. 24, 2016.

Ivas was arrested on Feb. 10, 2016, by Pittsfield police.

After he was arrested he was charged with making bomb threats on Jan. 7, 2016. The threat listed 15 different targets including schools, post offices and municipal buildings in and around Pittsfield. Schools and Lenox, Lanesboro and Dalton were also evacuated.

The call, which was traced to a Walmart payphone, was made roughly 20 minutes before Ivas robbed Dawes Avenue Variety.


US Rep. Jim McGovern: 'Pathetic' Obamacare repeal bill huge giveaway to rich

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A "disaster from start to finish," cobbled together via "backroom deals" "bribes" and "secret negotiations," with "zero" hearings or public input.

A "disaster from start to finish," cobbled together via "backroom deals" "bribes" and "secret negotiations," with "zero" hearings or public input.

U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Worcester, offered this harsh assessment of ongoing Republican efforts to repeal Obamacare and replace it with legislation bound to go down under the moniker Trumpcare. 

The Republican plan seeks to repeal individual and employer health insurance mandates and taxes on high incomes, prescription drugs, medical devices and indoor tanning, proposing to pay for it all in part by an $880 Medicare cut.

And additionally, McGovern said on the House floor Thursday, by gutting "protections for individual's with preexisting conditions, eliminating "essential health benefits like maternity care, mental health treatment and prescription drug coverage -- just to name a few." 

"Pathetic," McGovern said. "That is the word to describe this process and this bill. If the American people could sue Congress for malpractice, my Republican friends would be in deep trouble."

He added, "How could you do this to the people you represent? You are taking away essential healthcare protections. You're supporting a bill that will throw 24 million people off of healthcare and cut Medicare by $880 billion to give a trillion dollar tax break to the wealthiest people in this country."

The entire Massachusetts congressional delegation has stood in opposition to the Republican proposal, alongside Gov. Charlie Baker, a Republican. Baker says the bill could cost the state $1 billion.

In a nationwide ranking early in 2017, U.S. News and World Report ranked Massachusetts as the second-best state in the nation in overall healthcare quality and access. 

Before Democrats passed the Affordable Care Act in 2009, Massachusetts had had a similar plan in place for years passed by former Republican Gov. Mitt Romney. 

House Republicans on Thursday succeeded in narrowly passing a measure to repeal and replace Obamacare in a 217 to 213. It received no Democratic support and a total of 20 Republicans defected to cast opposing votes.

The proposed legislation faces a tough road ahead in the Senate -- where Republican leaders have already announced plans to scrap many of its key provisions, according to The New York Times

Westfield State University opens $48M Dr. Nettie M. Stevens Science & Innovation Center (photos, video)

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The center is the first new building built on the campus since 1973 that is used only for academics. Watch video

WESTFIELD -- Dr. Nettie M. Stevens, who proved in 1905 that inherited X and Y chromosomes determine sex, died of breast cancer in 1912.

Steven G. Richter, founder of MicroTest Laboratories in Agawam, reminded the audience of that fact Friday during the ceremonial ribbon cutting of the $48 million Dr. Nettie M. Stevens Science & Innovation Center at Westfield State University. He did so because students and researchers in the Stevens Center, working with modern genetic science, have the potential to treat or cure breast cancer, lupus, multiple sclerosis and a host of other diseases.

"This isn't just about bricks and mortar," Richter said. "This is about students' lives. This is about the health care system."

He believes more students will pursue science education at Westfield State now that the building is open. "We have given them the tool," he said.

The 54,000-square-foot science center opened at the start of the academic year after two years of construction funded in part by a state higher education bond. It is the first new building on campus designed solely for academic purposes since the Wilson Building opened in 1973, although there have been mixed-use buildings constructed in the meantime.

Wilson, which is attached to the Stevens Center, remains as classroom and faculty office space in the sciences.

The Stevens Center is focused on students, with laboratory and classroom space, as well as lounge areas for study and work on projects. It houses nursing and allied health programs on the first floor, biology on the second floor, and chemistry and physics on the third floor. 

More than 2,200 students enrolled in 148 sections had class in Stevens during the soon-to-be completed 2016-17 academic year.

Stevens, who lived in Westford, Massachusetts, and Cavendish, Vermont, attended what was then the Westfield Normal School from 1881-83 to prepare for a teaching career. She finished the four-year course at Westfield in just two years and went on to advanced degrees from Bryn Mawr College and Stanford University.

She identified the X and Y chromosomes in 1905 in a study involving mealworms. She proved her theories in a series of papers, but went unheralded as her male colleagues received the credit.

Edmund Beecher Wilson -- not the Wilson who Westfield's other science building is named after -- published his own genetics theories only after reading Stevens's work. Thomas Hunt Morgan, Steven' former teacher, publicly denounced her work. They won the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1933, 11 years after Stevens' death, Westfield State University said.

Westfield State President Ramon S. Torrecilha said Stevens' story shows the importance of offering high-quality science and technology programs at regional public universities where education is accessible to more people.

"She got her start here and she literally changed society and the way we understand biology," he said.

Linda Slakey, a Westfield State trustee, scientist and director of undergraduate education at the National Science Foundation, said what's important to understand about Stevens is that she was an evidence-based thinker.

"She didn't argue for what she thought was right. She looked at all the evidence and let that guide her thinking," Slakey said. "That is something our society lacks today."

Westfield State has seen a 44 percent increase in female faculty members and a 109 percent increase in women science majors in the last 10 years, according to university data.

Following Open Meeting Law violation ruling, Amherst Regional School Committee chairman Eric Nakajima wants 'very open and transparent' board

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Eric Nakajima wasn't on the Amherst Regional School Committee during the time reviewed by the Attorney General's office and wants to focus on moving the committee forward to ensure it isn't found violating the Open Meeting Bylaw again.

AMHERST -- Amherst Regional School Committee chairman Eric Nakajima wasn't on the board during the time reviewed by the Massachusetts attorney general's office and wants to focus on moving the committee forward to ensure it isn't found violating the Open Meeting Law again.

The attorney general's office determined the committee violated the Open Meeting Law by deliberating by email and failing to follow certain procedures for convening executive sessions and by failing to list sufficient detail in the notices for several meetings when it was discussing the termination agreement of former Superintendent Maria Geryk last summer.


What did Amherst Regional School Committee do wrong? A rundown of how it violated the Open Meeting Law


 The office also determined that the committee failed to respond to a citizen complaint within in 14 business days. The AG, however, determined the committee did not violate the Open Meeting Law when it held executive sessions to discuss Geryk's request to end her contract with the district, according to a letter written by Hanne Rush, Assistant Attorney General, Division of Open Government.

Geryk had threatened to sue the school district, and the committee voted a settlement agreement with her in August.

The attorney general's office is not fining the committee for the violations. Instead, the office is ordering "the Committee's immediate and future compliance with the law's requirements, and we caution that similar future violations could be considered evidence of intent to violate the law."

Nakajima was appointed to the committee in October to replace Laura Kent, who resigned. She had been the regional chairwoman at the time. He was named chairman, and in March won re-election.

He said he wants to focus on the future and not what went wrong.

"We have had significant turnover," he said, "so we're less likely to talk about the decision but more about how we move to forward."

He said he and Peter Demling are new on the Amherst Committee, and there will be new members on the regional committee from Pelham, Shutesbury and Leverett as well following their elections, so he thinks it will be helpful to review the law.

Amherst, Leverett, Pelham and Shutesbury comprise the district.

Since he was appointed, "we have been very careful to reflect on our practices, how we set up our agendas," Nakajima said.

He said the goal is "to be very open and transparent."

He plans to have a discussion about the Open Meeting Law at an upcoming  meeting.

"It's important when we deliberate (that everything) is done in the public view," Nakajima said. He said when the committee deals with "very challenging issues," working within the Open Meeting Law stipulations "can feel restrictive," but it doesn't have to be.

"I want to help the committee be at their best when it comes to doing that," the committee chairman said.

Michael Hootstein, who filed the Open Meeting Law complaint, said he received a copy of the ruling Thursday and wants to study it first before commenting in depth. But the Shutesbury man said, "I think they did a pretty good job."

What did Amherst school committee do wrong? A rundown of how it violated Massachusetts' Open Meeting Law

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The Office of the Attorney General of Massachusetts has determined that the Amherst Regional School Committee violated the state's Open Meeting Law twice.

Gov. Charlie Baker: Proposed Obamacare replacement a loser for Mass., could cost state $1 billion

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The projected $1 billion cost to Massachusetts of the Republican's bill to repeal and replace Obamacare would be a "difficult pill to swallow," said Gov. Charlie Baker in a statement promising to "protect Massachusetts' health care system."

Baker 

The projected $1 billion cost to Massachusetts of the Republican's bill to repeal and replace Obamacare would be a "difficult pill to swallow," said Gov. Charlie Baker in a statement promising to "protect Massachusetts' health care system."

Released following the House's move to pass repeal and replace legislation altering major parts of the Affordable Care Act on Thursday, the governor in his statement said he's holding out for "a different plan" that "works for Massachusetts."

"Massachusetts leads the nation in health care coverage and I am disappointed by today's vote as this bill would significantly reduce critical funds for the Commonwealth's health care system," Baker said. "As the U.S. Senate takes up this bill, we will continue to advocate for the Commonwealth's priorities so that all residents have access to the health coverage they need. Maintaining flexibility through the Medicaid program is critical to the Commonwealth's ability to provide coverage for the needy and I urge Congress to reject this bill in its current form."

Thursday's narrow House vote of 217 to 213 received no Democratic support while a total of 20 Republicans defected, casting opposing votes.

The proposed legislation faces a tough road ahead in the Senate -- where some Republican leaders have already announced plans to scrap many of its key provisions, according to The New York Times

Baker, a former health insurance CEO, added, "There are things we can do to fix the Affordable Care Act. I have written long and fairly, some would say, wonky and nerdy letters about the things that can be done to fix the Affordable Care Act. We have had conversations with the Obama and Trump Administrations about that, my big concern today is it would cost the Commonwealth of Massachusetts $1 billion and I would like to see a different plan."

The entire Massachusetts congressional delegation has joined the governor in opposition to the Republican proposal. 

In a nationwide ranking early in 2017, U.S. News and World Report ranked Massachusetts as the second-best state in the nation in overall healthcare quality and access. 

Before Democrats passed the Affordable Care Act in 2009, Massachusetts had had a similar plan in place for years passed by former Republican Gov. Mitt Romney.

"We will continue to work with other governors and on our congressional delegation, and others, to make sure that, in the end, whatever happens, if something happens, it works for Massachusetts," Baker said.


Should all police officers be required to wear body cameras?

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Skeptics point out body cameras create privacy concerns for both cops and citizens, and the costs are prohibitive.

After a horrific incident of police brutality in a Pittsburgh high school, activists are once again calling for mandatory body cameras on all police officers. Supporters say recording encounters between citizens and cops reduces police violence and protects officers by providing supervisors, judges, and reporters objective evidence of incidents. But skeptics point out body cameras create privacy concerns for both cops and citizens, and the costs are prohibitive. What do you think?

PERSPECTIVES

Research on the effect of body cameras on interactions between civilians and the police is extremely promising. In one year-long study in Orlando, use-of-force incidents dropped 53 percent among officers with the cameras. Civilian complaints also dropped 65 percent. Other trials show similarly encouraging results.

When police officer Darren Wilson was not charged with any crime after shooting Michael Brown -- an unarmed teenager in Ferguson, Missouri -- Brown's family made a statement calling for body cameras to record all police interactions.

We are profoundly disappointed that the killer of our child will not face the consequence of his actions. While we understand that many others share our pain, we ask that you channel your frustration in ways that will make a positive change. We need to work together to fix the system that allowed this to happen.

At Motherboard, Harlan Yu argues against body cameras.

Despite the popular narrative about the benefits of body-worn cameras, they carry huge risks for communities, especially for our overpoliced communities of color. Major civil rights and civil liberties organizations -- from the NAACP and the ACLU, to grassroots racial justice groups -- fear that "these new devices could become instruments of injustice, rather than tools for accountability," as a coalition of them wrote in a 2015 statement.
They are right to worry. Police departments across the country have consistently failed to implement policy safeguards that are critical to protecting the civil rights of individuals captured on video.

Civil liberties groups are also concerned body camera footage could be exploited.

And others argue simply putting cameras on cops will not solve the entrenched problem of police violence against black Americans.

Social justice advocates say body cameras are essential for police accountability.

While body cameras might not solve all of the problems, many say they are an important tool for improved police community relations, and could actually save lives.

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Federal spending bill includes $150 million for MBTA Green Line expansion to Medford, Somerville

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Funding to extend the MBTA's Green Line from Cambridge to stops in Medford and Somerville is among several appropriations included in a $1 trillion federal spending bill that President Donald Trump signed into law Friday.

Funding to extend the MBTA's Green Line from Cambridge to stops in Medford and Somerville is among several appropriations included in a $1 trillion federal spending bill that President Donald Trump signed into law Friday.

The legislation, which funds the federal government through September, sets aside $2.4 billion for state and local fixed guideway projects under the Federal Transit Administration's capital investment grant program, including $150 million for the Green Line Extension.

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation and Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority project looks to extend the light rail system's current route from a relocated Lechmere Station in Cambridge to College Avenue in Medford and Union Square in Somerville.

Officials have contended that the extension would "serve some of the region's most densely populated communities not currently served by rail transit," noting that more than 75,000 residents live within a half-mile of the proposed stations -- about a quarter of whom do not have access to a vehicle.

U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, who said she "fought hard" for the project's funding during the congressional appropriation process, lauded its inclusion in the omnibus spending bill that cleared both chambers this week.

"It's great news that we got this Green Line extension funding in the federal budget deal," she said in a statement. "This long-awaited infrastructure project will bring better transit options, jobs and economic growth to Somerville, Medford and all of Greater Boston."

Contending that federal funding has played a key role in the project's development, Warren stressed that she doing everything possible in Washington to keep the Green Line extension moving forward. 

MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo said the amount included in the new spending bill comes as part of a federal agreement and marks the third straight year of Massachusetts receiving such funds.

"The appropriation is a necessary part of the overall effort to keep the project on a successful path to completion," he said in an email.

The MBTA and U.S. Department of Transportation's FTA signed a full funding grant agreement in January 2015 establishing the scope of federal participation in the Green Line expansion project.

Under the agreement, the federal government will spend $996.1 million on the project's engineering and construction costs. State funds from MassDOT, meanwhile, will account for another $996.1 million plus finance charges, officials said.

As of the end of the September 2016, $250 million in federal spending included in the agreement had been appropriated to the Green Line extension, according to the FTA.  

Trump in January, however, reportedly called for a $137 billion nationwide infrastructure investment project that would kick back nearly $3 billion to Massachusetts for the Green line extension, according to a presentation sent to the National Governor's Association. 

President Donald Trump wants to spend $3 billion to extend Boston's Green Line

The project was plagued last year after the MBTA underestimated the cost of building about 4 miles of new rails into Somerville and Medford. It was originally supposed to cost $2 billion, but the MBTA was later told that the costs could be as high as $3 billion.

The MBTA board approved a scaled back version of the GreenLine extension project in May 2016 to bring the estimated cost down to $2.29 billion -- a redesign which federal officials reportedly concluded was consistent with the funding agreement, according to a March Notice of Project Change.

MBTA board approves scaled-back $2.29 billion Green Line Extension proposal

The extension will relocate existing commuter rail tracks and create 4.3 miles of new Green Line tracks and systems.

The project also calls for construction of multi-span viaducts, reconstruction of bridge structures, a new vehicle maintenance facility, as well as the relocation of one train station and six new stations.

The Green Line extension is expected to support an anticipated ridership of over 50,000 trips per day once completed in December 2021, according to officials. Construction is expected to begin in February 2018.


Easthampton superintendent: Student wearing Confederate flag sweatshirt has free speech rights

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A public forum with U.S. Department of Justice lawyers is planned, said schools chief Nancy Follansbee.

EASTHAMPTON -- Superintendent Nancy Follansbee said Friday she will not ban a student from wearing a Confederate flag sweatshirt to school.

Follansbee, in an emailed newsletter to parents, confirmed that a student had been wearing the sweatshirt to school, and said her decision to allow the shirt had been informed by legal counsel:

"State and federal law protects a student's right to freedom of speech, and this includes wearing clothing with a symbol of the Confederate flag," Follansbee wrote. "The law also limits protection of freedom of speech, but to a limited extent and in limited circumstances, none of which apply to the current situation in our high school."

The news comes as Easthampton High School struggles with fallout from a racially charged incident in the school parking lot in March, in which charges are pending against three students, and another incident last month where a student was seen displaying a Confederate flag outside the school.

Follansbee said at the time the student displaying the flag would face "appropriate  disciplinary action." It was unclear what form that disciplinary action took, or if the student with the flag was the same as the one wearing the Confederate flag sweatshirt.

Follansbee and other school officials recently consulted with a school department attorney, an attorney for the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents, and attorneys with the American Civil Liberties Union on the sweatshirt issue.

The superintendent announced plans to host a public forum in collaboration with the Civil Rights Unit of the U.S. Department of Justice in Springfield. In addition, she said, lawyers with the ACLU of Massachusetts offered to conduct a day-long teach-in at Easthampton High School.

Dress codes in student handbooks may not be used to deny students freedom of speech, Follansbee wrote.

City and school officials met with DOJ lawyers

"The mayor, chief of police, EHS administrators and I participated in a meeting with attorneys from the U.S. Department of Justice, Springfield office, and together we developed a plan for attorneys from their Civil Rights Unit to do a forum for Easthampton community members," Follansbee wrote in her Friday parent newsletter.

"I contacted the Boston office of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and was referred to a local attorney who does ACLU work. He responded immediately to my request for assistance and has offered to organize a teach-in at our high school where he and his colleagues will come for a day to teach lessons on civil rights in our classrooms."

Racial tensions at the school came to the forefront March 29 after three students of color allegedly surrounded and punched a white student who had sent a racial slur via social media to a former girlfriend, according to police. The three students were arrested, and one of them, Joshua R. Brown, faces charges in Northampton District Court. The alleged victim is the son of a police officer who works in the school.

The incident prompted a mass student walkout and passionate discussion at School Committee meetings. Some parents called for the ouster of high school Principal Kevin Burke and for the removal of School Resource Officer Alan Schadel.

The schools have since hired the Collaborative for Education Services to work with the district to help transform school culture.

"Our mission in our public schools is to educate, and with this in mind, I have taken the following steps to provide educational experiences for our administrators, students, teachers, staff, parents and community members," Follansbee wrote to parents.

Student free speech protections strong in Massachusetts

Massachusetts students enjoy some of the strongest free speech protections in the country, according to the ACLU.

In 1996, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts held in Pyle v. South Hadley School Committee that state law protects student rights as long as their expression is not disruptive to the educational process. In that case, a student had worn a "Co-ed Naked Band Do It In Rhythm" T-shirt to school, and school officials maintained the slogan was lewd.

"The students' rights include expression of views through speech and symbols without limitation," Chief Justice Paul Liacos wrote. "There is no room in the statute to construe an exception for arguably vulgar, lewd or offensive language absent showing of a disruption within the school."

The Massachusetts statute referenced in Pyle is the Student Free Expression Act.

"The right of students to freedom of expression in the public schools of the commonwealth shall not be abridged, provided that such right shall not cause any disruption or disorder within the school," the law reads.

The act covers the "rights and responsibilities of students, collectively and individually" to express their views through speech and symbols, to "write, publish and disseminate their views," and to assemble peaceably on school property for the purpose of expressing their opinions.

The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects freedom of speech. A landmark case concerning free speech in public schools was decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in Tinker v. DeMoines Independent School District.

The 1969 decision considered the case of students who wore black armbands to school to protest the Vietnam War. The court ruled that "undifferentiated fear or apprehension of disturbance is not enough to overcome the right to freedom of expression."

Amherst Town Meeting to weigh library expansion proposal

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Town Meeting on Wednesday night will determine whether or not to allow Jones Library officials to proceed with renovation and expansion plans.

AMHERST - Town Meeting on Wednesday night will determine whether or not to allow Jones Library officials to proceed with renovation and expansion plans.

The article does not include any request for money but rather would authorize the library's board of trustees to apply for, accept and "expend funds from a Massachusetts Public Library Construction Grant which application is based on preliminary designs submitted to the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners."

"Passage of this motion does not commit the town to appropriate funding as may be necessary to implement the grant," the article states.

The current library is about 48,000 square feet, according to the grant application, and the renovation would expand it to 65,000 square feet. About 18,800 square feet of the existing building would be demolished.

Officials have been working on the project to address the library's space needs since 2014, when they received a $25,000 matching grant from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners to look at expanding and renovating the current library or building a new facility.

Opponents last year blocked a zone change at Town Meeting that affected the initial design.

The Finance Committee voted 5-1, with one abstention, to support the project. "It would be fiscally unwise for the Town and Library not to take advantage of this opportunity," the committee said in a statement.

"If this article is not passed, the process of applying for this grant would be terminated," the committee wrote, "however, there are still many improvements that would have to occur in the library, such as repairing the leaking atrium, making the elevator and stacks accessible, etc."

According to a library list, the cost of such deferments could near $10 million.

The expansion project also has support from myriad groups, committees and residents including the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and Hampshire college libraries, the Amherst Historical Society and the Select Board.

A group called Jones Library for Everyone is trying to enlist support but there is also a group opposing the project called Save Our Library, which is made up of patrons and former trustees, according to its website. It calls itself "the loyal opposition."

The group, according to its website, is alarmed that 40 percent of the existing library would be demolished and "forever alter the Jones Library's warm, home-like interior and wastefully demolish the well-built, 1993 brick addition that blends with its historic neighbors."

"The Jones Library is a historic treasure that has brought Amherst together as a community for generations," the group says on its website.

The vote is slated as the first item for discussion Wednesday night at 7:05 p.m at Amherst regional Middle School.

Aaron Hernandez allegedly threatened to kill corrections officer: Details revealed in investigation documents

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Over 130 pages of documents released by the Department of Corrections shed light on the investigation into Aaron Hernandez' death.

Eastman Chemical, Performance Foodservice cited by EPA for Springfield violations

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The two Springfield companies agreed to pay fines totaling nearly $200,000 for violations found by EPA inspectors.

 SPRINGFIELD - The federal Environmental Protection Agency announced on Friday that two Springfield companies will pay a total of nearly $200,000 for violating portions of the Clean Air Act that require planning to protect first responders and the public from exposure to hazardous chemicals.

 The federal agency announced that Performance Foodservice, located in the Smith and Wesson Idustrial Park, agreed to pay a fine of $184,717, while Eastman Chemical Co., formerly Solutia, in Indian Orchard will be fined $15,222, according to the EPA.

 In additional Eastman Chemical agreed to pay $59,779 for a supplemental environmental project that will look at enhancing the response capabilities of the Springfield Fire Department in chemical emergencies at the plant. Part of the project will involve the purchase and donation of new emergency response equipment.

 Performance Foodservice operates a food distribution and refrigeration warehouse off Roosevelt Avenue. The facility makes use of anhydrous ammonia in its refrigeration systems, which is harmful to direct contact to the skin or eyes and is potentially flammable.

An inspection by the EPA found "potentially unsafe conditions" related to including failure to file a risk-management plan, which is required to aid first responders in the event of an emergency.

Performance Foodservice has since drafted an emergency plan for its Springfield facility, and as part of the settlement, it agreed to verify that its nine other facilities around the country have emergency plans in place for dealing with large amounts of ammonia, according to the EPA.

At the former Solutia plant, inspectors identified several concerns with compliance of section 112 R of the Clean Air Act and the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act, according to the EPA.

Section 112 R is known as the General Duty clause, which states companies using hazardous materials have a general duty and responsibility "to prevent and mitigate the consequences of chemical accident."

Eastman Chemical officials have since come into compliance and corrected all deficiencies found in the inspection.

Deb Szaro, acting regional administrator of EPA's New England office, issued a statement that said both Eastman Chemical and Performance Food Service worked with EPA staff to correct the problems, and "Federal air and reporting laws help protect public health, first responders, and our environment."

Rabbit found abandoned inside Springfield clothing bin; MSPCA searching for person responsible

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It is unclear how long the rabbit had been left in the box, but it was found to have suffered "significant and painful trauma," officials said

SPRINGFIELD - Staff at the T.J. O'Connor Animal Control and Adoption Center report they are taking care of a rabbit that had apparently been abandoned by someone who dropped it inside a metal clothing-donation box on Sumner Avenue.

The black-colored female rabbit was found inside the donation box by Goodwill staff and turned over to the T.J. O'Connor facility.

It is unclear how long the rabbit had been inside the box, but staff report it suffered "significant and painful trauma" by being abandoned that way. 

Staff are nursing the rabbit to health and officers with the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of the Cruelty to Animals is looking for the person who abandoned it.

Anyone with information is asked to call the T.J. O'Connor Animal Control and Adoption Center at 413-781-1489, extension 1.

The facility requests that people who have a pet that they are no longer able to keep or care for should call the nearest animal shelter or humane society an inquire about rehoming options.

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