Governor Baker Proposes Reforms To Protect Public From Dangerous Individuals

Governor Baker Proposes Reforms To Protect Public From Dangerous Individuals

BOSTON – Governor Charlie Baker today filed legislation that will provide law enforcement and prosecutors with additional tools to prosecute people who repeatedly break the law. The reforms put forth in today’s legislation include expanding the list of offenses that can provide grounds for a dangerousness hearing and closing certain loopholes at the start and end of the criminal process that currently limit or prevent effective action to address legitimate safety concerns.

“Recent tragedies have demonstrated the tremendous damage that can occur when our criminal justice system fails to identify and detain dangerous people charged with serious crimes,” said Governor Baker. “The alarming frequency of these events confirmed for us that we need to fix a broken law, so we worked closely with law enforcement, district attorneys and victims advocacy groups across the Commonwealth and consulted with the courts to develop this proposal to do a better job of protecting Massachusetts communities from dangerous defendants.”

The governor’s legislation strengthens the ability of judges to enforce the conditions of pre-trial release by empowering police to detain people who they observe violating court-ordered release conditions; current law does not allow this, and instead requires a court to first issue a warrant. 

“Far too often, there are few consequences for defendants who violate the conditions of a court issued release,” said Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito.“This legislation will empower police officers with the tools they need to protect their communities and hold until trial defendants who pose a continuing danger to our communities.”

This legislation empowers judges to revoke a person’s release when the offender has violated a court-ordered condition, such as an order to stay away from a victim, or from a public playground. Current law requires an additional finding of dangerousness before release may be revoked.

“A person who is so dangerous that his or her release threatens the safety of a specific victim or of the community at large does not become safe to release merely because three or four months have passed since the time of their arrest,” said Secretary of Public Safety and Security Daniel Bennett. “This legislation would ensure that a person who a court determines is a danger or who violates his or her conditions of release is held until the time of trial or other disposition of the case, rather than being released after a defined period.”

“I’m very pleased with the governor’s proposed bail reform legislation,” said Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III. “This will make it more difficult for the court to release dangerous defendants.  Dangerous criminals should be held without bail until their cases are resolved. The public and law enforcement have a right to be protected from dangerous criminals. This legislation goes a long way towards doing that.  I have long advocated for changes to the bail system, and I appreciate the governor’s leadership on this very important issue.”

“It is encouraging to see that the call for action to keep dangerous and repeat criminals off the streets that began as a result of Sgt. Gannon’s murder is being taken seriously,” said Yarmouth Police Chief Frank Frederickson. “In July the Governor signed the MPTC Training Bill and now the announcement of this proposal is another significant move that will provide needed protection for our citizens from violent criminals.” 

"Regardless of whether their cases can be prosecuted, survivors of sexual violence who are respected and believed throughout the process have better health and wellness outcomes,” said Katia Santiago-Taylor, advocacy and legislative affairs manager at the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center. “The first and most powerful way to do this is to ensure that survivors are informed about what is happening with their case, including timely notification when an offender is released from custody."

The legislation expands the list of offenses which can provide grounds for a dangerousness hearing and follows the long-standing federal model in including a defendant’s history of serious criminal convictions as grounds that may warrant a dangerousness hearing. Current law requires courts to focus only on the crime charged and ignore a defendant’s criminal history when determining whether the defendant may be the subject of this sort of hearing.

Additional provisions of this legislation:

·       Improves the system for notifying victims of crimes of abuse and other dangerous crimes when a defendant is going to be released by creating clear lines of responsibility among police, prosecutors and corrections personnel to notify victims about an offender’s imminent release from custody, and create a six-hour window for authorities to inform a victim before an offender is allowed to be released.

·       Creates a new felony offense for cutting off a court-ordered GPS device.

·       Requires that the courts develop a text message service to remind defendants of upcoming court dates, reducing the chance they will forget and have a warrant issued for their arrest.

·       Allows dangerousness hearings at any point during a criminal proceeding, rather than requiring a prosecutor to either seek a hearing immediately or forfeit that ability entirely, even if circumstances later arise indicating that the defendant poses a serious risk to the community.

·       Requires that the probation department, bail commissioners and bail magistrates notify authorities who can take remedial action when a person who is on pre-trial release commits a new offense anywhere in the Commonwealth or elsewhere.

·       Creates a level playing field for appeals of district court release decisions to the superior court by allowing appeals by prosecutors, in addition to defendants, and giving more deference to determinations made in the first instance by our district court judges.

·       Creates a task force to recommend adding information to criminal records so that prosecutors and judges can make more informed recommendations and decisions about conditions of release and possible detention on grounds of dangerousness.

The legislation also closes loopholes at the start and end of the criminal process that currently limit or prevent effective action to address legitimate safety concerns. It extends the requirement that police take the fingerprints of people arrested for felonies to all people arrested, regardless of the charge, to ensure that decisions about release can be made with knowledge of a person’s true identity and full criminal history. It also allows, for the first time, bail commissioners and bail magistrates to consider dangerousness in deciding whether to release an arrestee from a police station when court is out of session. 

Governor Baker Highlights Early College Program in Chelsea

Governor Baker Highlights Early College Program in Chelsea

For more photos and high resolution, click here

CHELSEA– Governor Charlie Baker visited Chelsea High School today to see students taking early college classes, which gives high school students an opportunity to learn in college-level courses while earning credits, at no cost. The Baker-Polito Administration is working to significantly increase the number of early college seats in the Commonwealth to better prepare students for college-level work, boost college completion rates and provide opportunities for students to earn credits as a way to ease their financial burden.

Early college programs combine traditional high school courses with college-level courses taught by faculty at a local community college or state university, typically in a particular career pathway such as STEM. Successful programs boost college completion rates for low-income students, minorities and first-generation college-goers.

At Chelsea High School, the Governor was joined by Education Secretary James Peyser, Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education Jeff Riley, Board of Higher Education Chairman Chris Gabrieli, Chelsea Superintendent Mary Bourque, Bunker Hill Community College President Pam Eddinger and Chelsea City Manager Tom Ambrosino.

“An important goal of the early college program is exposing students to college-level work while they are still in high school so they can envision themselves on a track toward a college degree,”Governor Charlie Baker said. “The college-level experience, combined with the credits they earn in the courses, sets many students up for success by the time they arrive on a campus.”

“Early College also provides many students with experience and knowledge in a field of study, often in STEM, that gives them some insight to make future decisions about majors and careers,”Lt. Governor Karyn Polito said. “When they get to college, students who took early college courses have a pretty good idea about what they want to study.” 

   

Since its inception six years ago, Chelsea High has grown its early college program from 20 students to 300 taking classes this year. Students can earn from 3 to 24+ college credits during their junior and senior years. Chelsea High School students can attend early college classes regardless of GPA, past academic performance or language acquisition, ensuring all students feel they can pursue college. Chelsea High was among the first to receive official designation status from the state this spring.

During the 2017-2018 school year, 294 Chelsea High School students participated in early college. Of those, 180 seniors earned a total of 1,374 college credits. One student earned 33 credits, the equivalent to a full year of college. The average number of college credits earned per graduate was eight.

“Early College is a critical way for students to become ready for college-level coursework, while at the same time earning transferrable credits that help to lighten the financial stresses many families face with college costs,” Education Secretary James Peyser said.

This past spring, the Baker-Polito Administration awarded official designation status and grant funding to nine early college programs across the state giving thousands of students the opportunity to better prepare for college. Programs that receive designation meet certain criteria, including equitable access for all students, rigorous coursework, a guided academic pathway, connection to careers, enhanced support for students and strong partnerships between high schools, community colleges and state universities.

Artists illuminate eviction fight with creative media at Piano Factory

Artists illuminate eviction fight with creative media at Piano Factory

Several artists face loss of studio space at longstanding artists' building.

Contact: Helen "Homefries" Matthews, Communications Coordinator, City Life/Vida Urbana, (617) 784-1731

Boston, MA - It was 1983 when sculptor Wayne Strattman first signed a lease for his South End artist's studio. In the Piano Factory - known also as the Piano Craft Guild - Strattman has spent his 35-year professional career making sculptures involving neon light. Over the years in his studio, Strattman has churned out luminous backgrounds for Start Trek: The Next Generation, the movie First Contact, and exhibits at over a thousand science museums worldwide.

Left: A neon sculpture by Piano Factory artist Wayne Strattman.
In the 1970's, the Piano Factory was converted into a building for artists and low-income folks. Back in the 1990's, the building's owners tried to cancel the leases of artists, but several went to court, and Judge Daher stopped the evictions and forced the owners to maintain it for another 20 years as an artists property.

Today, the Piano Factory consists of 176 apartments - largely rented to students and young professionals- plus a commercial wing with artist workspaces. Only about 20 artists remain, and only 4 of them have workspaces in the building. But those workspaces were threatened this spring when the owner, Simeon Bruner, issued eviction notices to their occupants - Ekua Holmes, Peter Lipfett, Paul Goodnight, and Strattman. The owners' vision?: convert the workspaces into additional high-end housing.

"They're pushing the arts further and further outside of the city. Boston's arts spaces are largely gone," says Strattman.

It's true that 2018 has seen a wave of artists displacement from the Boston area. From the 15 artists evicted from studios at 128 Brookside Ave. in the JP/Rox redevelopment zone when speculator Enrique Darer purchased it (and then sold it, only months later, to investors) to the many renowned Black artists of Northeastern's African American Master Artists in Residence Program (AAMARP) who are negotiating with the mayor and the university to stop their evictions, the displacement crisis is hitting artists hard. In nearly Central Square, Cambridge, over 100 artists were ousted from the longstanding EMF studio building. 

The building's management offered an alternative studio space in the building to Goodnight after an appearance in the Boston Globe. But the remaining commercial occupants are on the edge of displacement, their leases set to expire this January.

On August 30th, the artists' outrage defiantly glowed from the window's Strattman's studio. Strattman and co-worker Cary Rapaport mounted six large neon messages protesting the displacement of artists for luxury housing.

Data from the City of Boston's Arts and Culture department shows that the vast majority of artists certified by the City - 89% - earn less than $60,00 annually.

"As properties get more valuable, the artists can't afford it," says Alex Ponte-Capellan, Community Organizer with City Life/Vida Urbana, a grassroots organization that fights displacement and has been supporting the Piano Factory artists.

"Unless the City decides that keeping a vital arts community is important to them, this is gonna continue," says Strattman.

The Piano Factory artists facing displacement plan to launch an online petition soon in collaboration with City Life/Vida Urbana to gain more community support.

Helen "Homefries" Matthews, Communications Coordinator, City Life/Vida Urbana
http://www.clvu.org/

Quincy Asian Resources, Inc. Receives $10,000 Targeted Grant To Advance Women

Quincy Asian Resources, Inc. Receives $10,000 Targeted Grant To Advance Women Grant From Eastern Bank Charitable Foundation Will Support Youth Program Geared Towards Development of Asian Female Leaders

Quincy, MA, September 5, 2018 – Quincy Asian Resources, Inc. (QARI), a non-profit that provides services to the Asian population in Boston and surrounding South Shore areas, today announced it has received a $10,000 Targeted Grant from Eastern Bank, America’s oldest and largest mutual bank. The grant will support empowerment of Asian females in the Youth ServiceCorps, a youth engagement program that engages over 300 Quincy students to be leaders by developing and executing service learning projects in the Quincy community.

Each year, the Eastern Bank Charitable Foundation’s Targeted Grant program supports hundreds of community-based organizations working for progress on a specific issue in Eastern’s New England footprint. In 2018, in celebration of the Bank’s 200th anniversary and to honor its first depositor, Rebecca Sutton, Targeted Grants have been designated to support organizations addressing a range of issues that disproportionately impact women, such as sexual assault, domestic violence, human trafficking, health care, pay equity, and senior management and board representation. QARI is among 170 nonprofits each receiving a $10,000 grant. In total, Eastern is granting $1.7 million in Targeted Grants this year to nonprofits in communities from New Hampshire to Cape Cod and throughout the South Shore, North Shore, Metro West, Merrimack Valley and Greater Boston.

“We are proud to be working alongside Eastern Bank in a concerted effort to send a strong message to the young women in our community that they are respected, powerful, and recognized,” said Philip Chong, QARI’s Chief Executive Officer. “Our goal is to help young Asian women develop their college and career plans, ensure that they have access to a supportive, safe community, and arm them with concrete tools for success as career women.”

Eastern’s Targeted Grant program this year creates new opportunities and resources for women in areas where assistance is needed the most. The facts are staggering:

·         A woman is assaulted every nine seconds in the U.S. and one in three women has been a victim of physical brutality by an intimate partner, making intimate partner violence the single greatest cause of injury to women.

·         In Massachusetts, women earn 83 cents for every dollar paid to men. In New Hampshire, they earn 76 cents. African-American women nationwide earn 64 cents for every dollar earned by white men, and Latinas—only 56 cents.

·         In the sciences, women represent less than 25% of those employed in computer and mathematical occupations and only 15% in architecture and engineering. For women of color, this gap is even wider. Asian women, African-American women, and Latinas make up less than 10% of working scientists and engineers in the U.S.

·         Women receive more graduate degrees and they hold more faculty positions in colleges and universities, and yet, men hold the highest number of tenured university positions.

·         Only 32 women run Fortune 500 companies and only two are women of color. Less than 20% of all board seats in Fortune 1,000 companies are held by women.

“We believe in breaking down the barriers that stand between people and prosperity. That’s why Eastern is a strong advocate for the advancement of women,” said Bob Rivers, Chair and CEO of Eastern Bank. “With each Targeted Grant, we aim to enhance the lives of our neighbors and contribute to real progress around the advancement of women in our local communities. On behalf of everyone at Eastern, we congratulate this year’s Targeted Grant recipients and thank them for working to level the playing field.” 

For a complete list of the 2018 Targeted Grant recipients, click here. 

2019波士頓馬拉松賽9/10開始接受報名

REGISTRATION FOR THE 2019 BOSTON MARATHON OPENS MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 10

Field size will be 30,000 official entrants for the 123rd running on April 15

BOSTON -- Registration for the 2019 Boston Marathon opens on Monday, September 10, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. ET. The B.A.A. will use the same process to register qualified runners as it used in the 2012 through 2018 Boston Marathons, allowing the fastest qualifiers to register first.

Registration will be held entirely online at www.baa.org, and qualifying performances run since September 16, 2017 may be submitted for entry.

In cooperation with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the eight cities and towns along the Boston Marathon route, the B.A.A. has set the field size for the 2018 Boston Marathon at 30,000 official entrants. The 123rd annual race will mark the 34th consecutive year that the event will have John Hancock as its principal sponsor.

2019 BOSTON MARATHON REGISTRATION DATES

• Monday, September 10 at 10:00 a.m. ET: Runners who have met the qualifying standard by 20 minutes, 00 seconds or more may apply for entry. 
   
• Wednesday, September 12 at 10:00 a.m. ET: Runners who have met the qualifying standard by 10 minutes, 00 seconds or more may apply for entry (if space remains).
   
• Friday, September 14 at 10:00 a.m. ET: Runners who have met the qualifying standard by 5 minutes, 00 seconds or more may apply for entry (if space remains).
   
• Saturday, September 15 at 10:00 p.m. ET: Registration closes for the first week.
   
• Monday, September 17 at 10:00 a.m. ET: All runners who have met the qualifying standard may apply for entry (if space remains).
   
• Wednesday, September 19 at 5:00 p.m. ET: Registration closes for the second week.
   

If space remains after this initial period, then on Monday, September 24 at 10:00 a.m. ET, registration will reopen to anyone who meets the qualifying standards on a first-come, first-served basis. Registration will remain open until the maximum field size is reached.

Registration for Athletes with Disabilities (AWD) Divisions and Programs — Push Rim Wheelchair, Visually Impaired, Mobility Impaired, Handcycle, and Duo Teams — will open on September 10, 2018 and follow the same procedures as detailed above. Registration for AWD Divisions and Programs will occur on a “rolling admission” schedule, beginning with the fastest qualifiers. Refer to AWD Divisions and Programs of the 2019 Boston Marathon for eligibility criteria and qualifying standards. 

The B.A.A. will not predict or provide an anticipated date for when the race will reach its maximum field of qualified applicants. However, the B.A.A.'s website (www.BAA.org),Facebook page and Twitter account will provide updates throughout the registration process, and will answer many frequently asked questions during this time period. These pages will be continuously updated throughout registration.

The registration fee for the 2019 Boston Marathon for qualifiers is $200 USD for United States residents and $250 USD for international residents.

QUALIFYING TIMES

Applicants for the 2019 Boston Marathon must meet the designated time standard that corresponds with their age group and gender in a certified marathon on or after September 16, 2017. Proof of qualification must accompany each athlete's application, and participants are required to be 18 years or older on race day (April 15, 2019). All standards below are based on official submitted net time, and age groups are determined based on a participant’s age on Boston Marathon race day.

AGE GROUP	MEN	WOMEN
18-34	3hrs 05min 00sec	3hrs 35min 00sec
35-39	3hrs 10min 00sec	3hrs 40min 00sec
40-44	3hrs 15min 00sec	3hrs 45min 00sec
45-49	3hrs 25min 00sec	3hrs 55min 00sec
50-54	3hrs 30min 00sec	4hrs 00min 00sec
55-59	3hrs 40min 00sec	4hrs 10min 00sec
60-64	3hrs 55min 00sec	4hrs 25min 00sec
65-69	4hrs 10min 00sec	4hrs 40min 00sec
70-74	4hrs 25min 00sec	4hrs 55min 00sec
75-79	4hrs 40min 00sec	5hrs 10min 00sec
80 and over	4hrs 55min 00sec	5hrs 25min 00sec

麻州初選落幕 普莉斯萊翻天將成麻州首名女黑人聯邦眾議員

              (Boston Orange 周菊子整理報導)麻州初選9月4日落幕，全州大約450萬的選民出席投票率並不高。最令人矚目的選舉結果是，年輕的非洲裔女候選人普莉斯萊(Ayanna Pressley)，打敗了在位多年的”老”白男人卡普阿諾(Michael Capuano)，將成為麻州首名女性黑人聯邦眾議員。

               普莉斯萊獲悉自己贏了時，喜極而泣的連呼”我的天呀，我的天呀”。

               各大英文報章稱這是全美正掀起的民主政治叛變潮，也捲到了麻州，才讓現年44歲，有著黑人，女性兩重少數族裔身分的波士頓市議員，一舉打敗在位十任，現年66歲的卡普阿諾。

               麻州州議員部分，也有2名在位者被年輕挑戰者擊敗。一個是麻州眾議會領導層，在位28年的Byron Rushing輸給了Jon Santiago，另一個是眾議會預算長Jeffrey Sanchez敗給Nika Elugardo。

               波士頓市的選民出席投票率，也因這兩人的爭戰，比四年前高了將近一倍。麻州總共有94,668名選民為他們兩人投了票。在270個投票站中的267個投票站開完票後，普莉斯萊得票55,743票，卡普阿諾得票38,925票。得票率為58%與41%的差距。

               在今年的選舉中，另一場較受矚目的爭戰是州務卿席位，從1994年當選在位迄今，現年67歲的麻州州務卿威廉蓋文(William Galvin)，今年遭遇年僅34歲的波士頓市議員Josh Zakim挑戰，而且六月份的麻州民主黨黨代表大會還高調支持了Josh Zakim。不過後來在他們兩人的競選辯論中，查金強調麻州應採取更多行動來改善選民的出席投票率，包括通過同日登記選民法等，威廉蓋文則指稱查金完全沒經驗，不知道州務卿工作如何運作，而且查金達到投票年齡後，至少有10次沒出席投票。

               這場選戰，他們兩人的得票率也差距頗大。威廉蓋文德384.597票(67.6%)，查金得184,524票(32.4%)。

               其他席位的初選結果，大多並不令人意外。

               州長部分，共和黨部分，在位州長查理貝克(Charlie Baker)得票率64.1%，遠超過挑戰者Scott Lively的35.9%。民主黨部分，也一如眾人預料的由Jay Gonzalez進入大選，得票數315,975(64.7%)。他的對手Bob Massie僅得172,083票(35.3%)。

               聯邦參議員部分，伊莉莎白沃倫(Elizabeth Warren)在民主黨沒人挑戰，11月6日時，將和共和黨籍的Geoff Diehl競爭。

               聯邦眾議員部分，除了卡普阿諾這一戰役外，最受矚目的是第三選區，因為在位者Niki Tsonga決定不再競選連任，吸引10人跳進選戰，形成了1998年以來最龐大的候選團。9月4日晚開出94%的票數時，排名在前的候選人高丹尼(Daniel Koh)和Lori Trahan的得票數還太接近，難以決勝負。

               為參選，辭去波士頓市長幕僚長職位的高丹尼，也是這場選戰中的唯一亞裔，他父親是曾任美國衛生部助理部長的韓裔高京柱(Howard Koh)，母親是敘利亞人。在79,309名選民中，他的得票數是17,199(21.7%)，Lori Trahan得票16,555(20.9%)。

               來自安多福，曾擔任兩屆麻州參議員的Barbara L’Italien，以及為參選，不惜借給自己70萬元競選經費的美國前駐丹麥大使Rufus Gifford都已宣佈退讓。

               這些候選人為參選這聯邦眾議員席位，總共籌募了860萬元。麻州聯邦眾議員席位的初選，以前籌到過的競選經費，從來沒有這麼高過。