HOPKINTON — In the past few years, the Ashaway Fire District has struggled to attract the requisite number of voters necessary to be able to pass an annual budget. It has taken calls to neighbors and former volunteers still to get enough votes to meet the district’s protocols of having a min…
Voters in both Charlestown and Richmond will be asked at referendum in November to determine whether to allow the state to issue a license to any cannabis-related businesses within the community. Hopkinton residents may find themselves answering a similar question come election time, but off…
They are the most fiercely polarizing issues in American life: abortion and guns. And two momentous decisions by the Supreme Court in two days have done anything but resolve them, firing up debate about whether the court’s conservative justices are being faithful and consistent to history an…
NEW YORK (AP) — America has perfected the stressful TV cooking competition, pitting amateur or professional chefs against each other in such high-pressure, scream-filled shows as “Chopped,” “Cutthroat Kitchen” or “Top Chef.”
A Rhode Island police officer has been suspended from his job with pay while the Providence Police Department conducts a criminal investigation into his actions at a Statehouse abortion protest where a woman was assaulted. Providence police did not identify the officer, but local media identified him as Jeann Lugo, who had been running for the Rhode Island state Senate. Rhode Island Political Cooperative Chairwoman and state Senate candidate Jennifer Rourke said she was punched in the face at least twice by Lugo. Lugo tweeted Saturday that he would not be running for office this fall. Lugo told the Boston Globe that he “stepped in to protect someone that a group of agitators was attacking.”
A Massachusetts lawyer is facing federal charges he tried to bribe the Medford police chief to get help in opening a recreational marijuana dispensary in Medford. Court records say that Somerville Attorney Sean O'Donovan pleaded not guilty in federal court on Friday to three counts stemming from his efforts to win an agreement that would allow a client to open the dispensary. Prosecutors say that in February 2021, O’Donovan approached a “close relative” of the Medford police chief and offered to pay $25,000 to speak with the chief about the client’s anticipated application. The chief immediately alerted federal authorities. O'Donovan's attorney did not immediately return a message Saturday seeking comment.
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Religious schools got what they wanted when the Supreme Court allowed them to participate in a state tuition program.
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — New Hampshire’s proposed process for settling decades of sexual and physical abuse allegations at its youth detention center amounts to “setting a trap” for hundreds of financially insecure victims, according to their lawyers.
WESTERLY
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision allowing states to ban abortion stirred alarm Friday among LGBTQ advocates, who feared that the ruling could someday allow a rollback of legal protections for gay relationships, including the right for same-sex couples to marry.
PROVIDENCE — The Supreme Court’s decision overturning a gun-permitting law in New York has states with robust firearms restrictions scrambling to respond on two fronts — to figure out what concealed-carry measures they might be allowed to impose while also preparing to defend a wide range of…
The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday struck down a New York state law that had restricted who could obtain a permit to carry a gun in public. Under the law in place since 1913, New York residents needed to show proper cause, or an actual need, to carry a concealed handgun in public for self-defense.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House on Thursday launched a formal partnership with 11 East Coast governors to boost the growing offshore wind industry, a key element of President Joe Biden's plan for climate change.
BOSTON (AP) — A tomahawk once owned by Chief Standing Bear, a pioneering Native American civil rights leader, has been returned to his tribe after being housed for decades in a museum at Harvard University.
The leader of a large-scale drug trafficking organization that imported millions of doses of cocaine and fentanyl to several U.S. states has been sentenced to 15 years in prison, federal authorities in Rhode Island said.
A Connecticut woman who says she's descended from slaves shown in widely published, historical photos owned by Harvard University can sue the school for emotional distress. The top court in Massachusetts on Thursday partly vacated a lower court ruling that dismissed a complaint from Tamara Lanier over photos she says depict her enslaved ancestors. The court concluded the Norwich resident can plausibly make a case for suffering “emotional distress” from Harvard and remanded that part of the claim to the lower court. But the high court upheld the lower ruling that the photos are the property of the photographer and not the subject.
A former coach at a competitive cheerleading organization has been charged with sexually assaulting a student over a two-year period when the girl was from 12 to 14 years old. East Providence police say 33-year-old Alyshia Tkacs, of Cranston, faces five counts of first-degree child molestation and two counts of second-degree child molestation. She is being held pending a bail review scheduled for June 30. An email seeking comment was left with her attorney. Police say the alleged victim came forward recently and told investigators the assaults started in 2012 and continued for about two years.
The highest court in Massachusetts has ruled the wording of a summary of a ballot question for a proposed “millionaire tax” constitutional amendment is legal and the measure can go before voters in November. The amendment would impose a 4% surtax on the portion of an individual’s annual income that exceeds $1 million. It had been challenged by a business group and others who said that the summary's wording that said revenues raised by the surtax would be spent of education and transportation is “completely misleading.” The Supreme Judicial Court in its decision Wednesday said the wording is in compliance with the state constitution.
Rhode Island’s governor signed three firearms bills into law on Tuesday that included a ban on magazines holding more than 10 rounds, calling it a response to a national crisis that has taken too many lives and torn apart too many families. The bills aim to reduce gun violence and prevent mass shootings like recent ones in New York and Texas. In addition to banning large-capacity gun magazines, the bills raise from 18 to 21 the state’s minimum age for buying rifles and shotguns, and prohibit loaded rifles and shotguns from being carried in public. The General Assembly approved the legislation this month.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A Native American is being appointed U.S. treasurer, a historic first.
PROVIDENCE — For the first time in over a month, gas prices have seen declines. With prices only falling to just under $5 per gallon, the drop will not provide much relief for Rhode Island motorists.
STONINGTON — As a master gardener, Noreen Kepple is familiar with the natural cycle of life — with birth and growth, with dying and death. Her next chapter is a natural progression.
WESTERLY
A $13.6 billion state budget passed the Rhode Island House late Thursday, sending it to the Senate for a vote. The House version of the budget for the 2023 fiscal year accelerates phasing out the car tax, eliminating what would have been the final year of the tax next year at a cost of $64 million. It has a one-time child tax credit of $250 per child. House leaders said they wanted to provide targeted taxpayer relief and direct how to spend the rest of the American Rescue Act Plan federal funding on one-time investments to address longstanding problems, rather than recurring costs.
For decades, it was accepted wisdom in the casino industry that eliminating smoking would automatically lead to revenue declines and customer losses. But a new report examining how the coronavirus pandemic has changed gamblers’ habits says that may no longer be the case. The report by Las Vegas-based C3 Gaming come as several states, including New Jersey, Rhode Island and Pennsylvania, are considering banning smoking in casinos. It says casinos in numerous states that have ended smoking did not suffer financially, and predicts customers will quickly get used to smoke-free casinos — even those who smoke.
Vince McMahon is stepping down as CEO and chairman of WWE during an an investigation into alleged misconduct involving the longtime leader and public face of the organization. McMahon will continue to oversee WWE’s creative content during the investigation, World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. said Friday. McMahon’s daughter, Stephanie, will serve as interim CEO and chairwoman. The Wall Street Journal recently reported that the board was investigating a $3 million settlement that McMahon paid to a departing female employee with whom he allegedly had a consensual affair.
RED LODGE, Montana (AP) — Just three months ago, the Yellowstone region like most of the West was dragging through an extended drought with little snow in the mountains and wildfire scars in Red Lodge from a year ago when the area was hit by 105-degree Fahrenheit (40.5 Celsius) heat and fire.
HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. (AP) — Legendary civil rights leader Bayard Rustin and three other men who were sentenced to work on a chain gang in North Carolina after they launched the first of the “freedom rides” to challenge Jim Crow laws had their convictions posthumously vacated Friday, more than …
RICHMOND — Chariho Adult Education Director Vincent Levcowich still recalls his final conversation with former Superintendent of Schools Barry J. Ricci as if it were yesterday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump’s closest advisers viewed his last-ditch efforts pressuring Vice President Mike Pence to halt congressional certification of his 2020 election defeat as “nuts,” “crazy” and even likely to incite riots if Pence followed through, witnesses revealed in stark testi…
HOPKINTON — The Hopkinton Recreation Department is offering programs over the summer for children of all ages. For more information about any of the programs, call 401-377-7795. To register, unless otherwise noted, visit http://Hopkintonri.org/Recreation.htm
Graduations are occurring and summer is fast approaching, with officials anticipating one of the busiest boating seasons in years. This summer, many are expected to hire or charter space on a boat — and the Coast Guard will be conducting operations to deter and stop illegal passenger operations.
A Rhode Island town has created a scholarship fund and will fly the Juneteenth flag to recognize its role in the slave trade. The Jamestown Town Council approved a resolution this week in memory of Betty Martin and “all who suffered the brutalities and injustice of slavery in our community.” The resolution calls for the town to fly the Juneteenth flag from June 19 to July 5. It also creates the Betty Martin Family Scholarship. According to the resolution, Martin and her family were seized then sold by the town after a local widow couldn't pay off a debt in the 18th century.
A father has been acquitted of paying off a Georgetown University tennis coach to get his daughter into the school in the final trial linked to the college admissions bribery scandal. Amin Khoury’s case is the 57th stemming from the investigation to come a conclusion and is the only one to end in an acquittal at trial. Khoury was not found guilty Thursday on all counts. Khoury’s attorneys argued his daughter was properly admitted to the school. A defense attorney says the government’s case was seriously damaged by the testimony of the daughter. She told jurors she didn’t know anything about the payment.
HOPKINTON — Only 202 residents, representing just 3% of eligible voters, came out to support the proposed $27.92 million combined general government, education and capital spending plan for the coming fiscal year. It was still enough to see the budget pass at referendum.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Recognition of Juneteenth, the effective end of slavery in the U.S., gained traction after the police killing of George Floyd in 2020. But after an initial burst of action, the movement to have it recognized as an official holiday in the states has largely stalled.
Three firearms bills are headed to the governor’s desk after passing the Rhode Island Senate. The bills passed Tuesday are intended to reduce gun violence and prevent mass shootings. They include a ban on magazines that hold more than 10 rounds, raise from 18 to 21 the minimum age for buying rifles and shotguns, and prohibit loaded rifles and shotguns from being carried in public. The bills were passed last week by the state House. Democratic Gov. Dan McKee is expected to sign them. The state Republican Party says the high-capacity magazine ban will turn law-abiding citizens into criminals.
A Rhode Island man man convicted of fatally shooting another man during a traffic confrontation on Halloween night in 2020 has been sentenced to life in prison. Prosecutors said Tuesday that 23-year-old Jairo Esdel Galva, of Central Falls, was sentenced earlier this month in the killing of Joel Rosario in Pawtucket on Oct. 31, 2020. Prosecutors say Rosario had been celebrating his 22nd birthday with friends when they got into several cars to travel to another location. Galva got behind them and flashed his high beams several times. That led to the fatal confrontation.
Federal transportation officials have issued orders to the Boston area’s troubled public transit agency to address what they called longstanding issues with the system’s overall safety program and safety culture. The Federal Transit Administration’s issued four “special directives” Wednesday. They require the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority to better staff its operations control center; improve track maintainance; address unintended and uncontrolled train movements in maintenance facilities and rail yards; and ensure that all employee training certifications are up to date. The MBTA said it is already developing a plan to implement the orders.
RICHMOND — With only three of the five members of the Town Council present at last week’s meeting, council members voted to postpone discussions and formal allocation of American Rescue Plan Act funding until July, but directed town staff to be prepared to present a final plan for council co…
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Some of the giants of women’s basketball say if not for Title IX, doors would not have been open for them to blaze trails to Hall of Fame careers on and off the court, but sound complacency alarms when it comes to the future of the law.
RICHMOND — A fire that erupted early Monday morning when lightning struck the porch outside a trailer-style home along Gardiner Road left the home with smoke and fire damage, officials said, but no injuries were reported in the fire or response.
PROVIDENCE — The average cost for a gallon of gas continues to rise in Rhode Island, surpassing $5 per gallon as demand continues to outpace supply globally and leaving little relief for motorists.
Police from Maine say they’ve made an arrest stemming from a 36-year-old homicide investigation into the death of a baby in the far northern part of the state. The baby’s body was discovered in Frenchville in December 1985 after a dog carried the newborn's body several hundred feet to the home of the dog owner. Police then investigated and found that the baby was born and abandoned in below-zero temperatures at a gravel pit in the town. They said Tuesday they’ve arrested the baby’s mother, 58-year-old Lee Ann Daigle, in Lowell, Massachusetts. It wasn't immediately known if she is being represented by an attorney.
RICHMOND — Fourth-grader Titus Castrotaro smiled as he sat at his table for lunch at Richmond Elementary School on Thursday, staring down at a cup with a small side salad featuring a mix of house-grown hydroponic lettuce and basil. After taking a bite of the greens, he paid the ultimate comp…
KINGSTON — In a world filled with overwhelming challenges and rainstorms, members of the Chariho Regional High School Class of 2022 were challenged to remember there is always a rainbow if you look for the light, however scarce it may be.
Grace Catherine Abbott
PROVIDENCE — The Rhode Island General Assembly has approved legislation that would make “stolen valor” a crime.
PROVIDENCE (AP) — The Rhode Island House approved bills Friday that would ban firearm magazines that hold more than 10 rounds, raise from 18 to 21 the minimum age for buying guns, and prohibit loaded rifles and shotguns from being carried in public.
WESTERLY
WARWICK (AP) — Kent Hospital’s Women’s Care Center has launched Rhode Island's first pasteurized human milk program.
Rhode Island will improve the way students are taught to participate in the political process in order to resolve a federal lawsuit over whether public school students have a constitutional right to a civics education. The state’s education department announced Friday that both sides in the suit have come to an agreement on how to strengthen civics education. The plaintiffs had been planning to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review the case. Lawyers for Rhode Island public school students and parents sued in federal court in 2018, arguing that the state wasn't preparing young people to fully participate in civic life.
A $13.6 billion state budget passed the finance committee in the Rhode Island House late Thursday, sending it to the chamber floor for a vote next week. The budget proposal is higher than the governor’s recommendation of $12.8 billion for the 2023 fiscal year. The House Finance Committee’s budget accelerates phasing out the car tax, and adds a one-time child tax credit. The committee supported the governor’s proposal to eliminate the income tax on military pensions to help veterans. The committee said it wanted to provide targeted taxpayer relief and direct how to spend the rest of the federal pandemic relief funding.
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Federal authorities spent the past few years analyzing rules for the shipping industry and are now close to releasing fresh guidelines to help protect a vanishing species of whale.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — After a record-setting Midwestern rainstorm that damaged thousands of homes and businesses, Stefanie Johnson’s farmhouse in Blandinsville, Illinois, didn’t have safe drinking water for nearly two months.
