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Battenfeld: Maura Healey dodges blame for repeated MBTA failures

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:10:13 GMT

Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey continues to dodge responsibility for the beleaguered MBTA nearly a year after she took office and promised to restore accountability and transparency.The T is still a dangerous and unreliable mess even after Healey hired a public relations savvy general manager and replaced much of the board of directors.Healey blamed the Republican Baker administration for the latest embarrassment – the narrow rail problems on the new Green Line extension. She talks a tough game but hasn’t produced with results.“What’s important is that it was not disclosed, and it was really not addressed,” she said of the Green Line fiasco. “That is something we’ve been really clear about. Under the prior administration, senior management at the T, for whatever poor judgment made the decision not to disclose identified failures, and then made the poor decision not to address those failures prior to the opening of the Green Line extension.”The Union Square branch of the new G...

Police arrest suspect wanted in connection to two sexual assault cases at Boston University

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:10:13 GMT

Boston University Police has arrested a suspect wanted in connection to two sexual assault cases that authorities say appear to be related.Officers, with assistance from Boston Police, arrested the suspect early Wednesday on an outstanding warrant after the suspect allegedly sexually assaulted two students just 9 hours apart on Tuesday.Authorities did not share the suspect’s identity but said it appears it was the same man involved in each case.“With the arrest, the individual is no longer a threat to the community. Our thoughts are with our students that were assaulted, and the University has offered them support,” authorities wrote in a crime alert Wednesday. “We will continue to be a resource and provide our community with support.”The first case occurred around 10:45 a.m. Tuesday, with a BU student reporting that an unknown person touched them inappropriately while walking on a sidewalk on Commonwealth Avenue in the BU Central area.The student did not see who touched them due to...

What is going on with Toucher and Rich? Social media accounts get new handles, dropping a host’s name

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:10:13 GMT

Boston sports talk radio listeners were digging for answers on Wednesday after the social media accounts for the top morning show dropped one of the host’s names.But it has been radio silence from Toucher & Rich so far following the drastic change to the social media accounts for the 98.5 The Sports Hub show.Around midday on Wednesday, the speculation about the show’s future took off when the Toucher & Rich accounts on Twitter (now X), Facebook and Instagram removed host Fred Toucher’s name.The social media accounts with hundreds of thousands of followers are now only showing host Rich Shertenlieb’s name. The X account is now @heyrichhey.After the bombshell change to the socials, there was no immediate explanation from the radio station or the hosts. The Herald reached out to Toucher, Rich, 98.5 The Sports Hub, and Beasley Media Group — but they did not immediately respond.Loyal listeners to the top rated sports morning show in the region were p...

Vandal who swung on crucifix at Cathedral of Holy Cross ordered held on $5,000 cash bail

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:10:13 GMT

A pair of construction workers had a unique assignment Wednesday at the largest church in New England: repairing a crucifix that a vandal broke while swinging on it.A judge at Boston Municipal Court ordered the man behind the damage, Michael Patzelt, 37, of Attleboro, held on $5,000 cash bail and to stay away from the Cathedral of the Holy Cross and witnesses who caught him committing the unholy act in the South End.Officers assigned to the neighborhood for the Boston Police Department arrested Patzelt around 6:15 p.m. Tuesday after receiving a call for a suspicious person who had knocked a hat off a woman in the area of the cathedral.“The suspect then proceeded to climb up the cross where he began to swing and hang from it, breaking off several parts of the cross,” a police release states. “The suspect broke both the statue’s arms prior to officers responding and placed him under arrest.”Patzelt pleaded not guilty to charges of assault and malicious destruction of property during a...

Patterson Mill football running back RJ Wilhelm plays in mold of former NFL All-Pro fullback Mike Alstott

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:10:13 GMT

It was after Patterson Mill dismantled Bohemia Manor for four quarters — a 41-14 win on Sept. 22 — that RJ Wilhelm realized it was within reach.The junior running back walked confidently off the field having dashed 240 yards that night. His dad, Rich, told him the outing positioned him for a successful season and potentially to sniff a lauded milestone. A month later, RJ is at 943 on the year, only 57 rushing yards from joining a short list of Huskies to eclipse 1,000 in a single season.He’ll have the chance to do it at 7 p.m. Thursday at Aberdeen in the Huskies’ regular season finale.“I’ve always had a special connection with my football team,” RJ said. “I wouldn’t be able to get any of these yards without my teammates blocking for me. It’s all the line. They make the holes and I’m just the one who gets to run through them.”Football wasn’t RJ’s first sport growing up. Like many 5-year-olds, he gave ...

Mental health coping strategies during global uncertainty

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:10:13 GMT

During times of global uncertainty and turmoil, it becomes increasingly difficult to care for your mental health. While there aren’t any cure all tips and tricks or easy fixes, there are ways to build resiliency that can help you cope better.Dr. Roger McIntyre, Professor of Psychiatry and Pharmacology at the University of Toronto says humans are evolutionarily predisposed to picking up on what’s wrong rather than what’s right.“We as human beings are in fact more sensitive to stress and negative information than we are to positive information. It’s how we’re wired … we’re trying to protect ourselves and towards that aim, we are much more attentive to maybe sources of negativity,” he explains.In the current global climate, with ongoing wars, wildfires, inflation and residual pandemic-related issues, McIntyre says people are being subjected to what’s called Chronic Uncontrollable Stress (CUS).“What we’ve learned in stress...

Lester Holt, Kristen Welker and Hugh Hewitt to moderate third GOP presidential debate Nov. 8 on NBC

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:10:13 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Lester Holt, Kristen Welker and Hugh Hewitt will moderate the third Republican presidential debate, scheduled for Nov. 8 in Miami, NBC said Wednesday.The first one held outside the confines of Fox News, the two-hour debate will be seen at 8 p.m. Eastern on NBC and the NBC News Now streaming service.Holt is the anchor of “NBC Nightly News” and Welker is the moderator of “Meet the Press.” Hewitt hosts a morning talk show for the Salem Radio Network, a co-sponsor of the debate.Qualified participants will be announced later. Former President Donald Trump, leading in polls for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, skipped the first two debates and has given no indication he will be at any others.The Associated Press

Federal officials say plan for water cuts from 3 Western states is enough to protect Colorado River

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:10:13 GMT

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Federal officials said Wednesday that conditions have improved on the Colorado River to the point that a plan by California, Arizona and Nevada to voluntarily reduce water use should help keep the river basin on stable footing for the next few years.The U.S. Department of the Interior said in a statement that the risk of reaching critically low water elevations at Lake Powell and Lake Mead, the river’s two key reservoirs, has gone down substantially. “We have staved off the immediate possibility of the System’s reservoirs from falling to critically low elevations that would threaten water deliveries and power production,” Deputy Secretary Tommy Beaudreau said in a statement.The river serves seven U.S. states, Native American tribes and two states in Mexico, supports a multibillion-dollar farm industry in the West and generates hydropower used across the region. Years of overuse by farms and cities and the effects of drought worsened by climate change ...

Ex-NFL player Sergio Brown, charged with killing mother, has been denied release

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:10:13 GMT

MAYWOOD, Ill. (AP) — Former NFL player Sergio Brown, charged with killing his mother, bought a one-way ticket to Cancun, Mexico, after being the last person seen with the woman before her slaying last month, a prosecutor said Wednesday.Brown, who faces charges of first-degree murder and concealing a homicide, appeared in court for a detention hearing Wednesday before Cook County Judge Teresa Molina-Gonzalez, who denied him pretrial release. He will be detained until his next court date, scheduled for Nov. 22.The body of his mother, Myrtle Brown, was discovered Sept. 16 near a creek in Maywood, about 12 miles (19 kilometers) west of Chicago. A medical examiner ruled her death a homicide and determined that she had been injured during an assault.Brown, 35, and his 73-year-old mother lived together in Maywood.On Oct. 7, Brown was deported to the U.S. from Mexico, and he was brought back to Illionis on Tuesday, local news outlets reported.During the hearing, Brown stood in a gray sweats...

Deer charges through crowded Wisconsin restaurant

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:10:13 GMT

BELOIT, Wis. (AP) — People go to Noodles & Company to save a buck, not to have one interrupt their meal. But that’s what happened in Beloit, Wisconsin, on Tuesday when a deer came crashing through the restaurant’s window.Surveillance footage shows a deer charging into the crowded restaurant around lunchtime, prompting diners to scatter. The animal then explored the dining area and kitchen before exiting out a back door opened by an employee, Noodles & Company spokesperson Stephanie Jerome told The Associated Press.No one was harmed in the incident, and the location has since reopened after a deep clean, Jerome said. The restaurant offered a “2 Buck Mac & Cheese” special on Wednesday to commemorate the incident.The Associated Press