Beacon Hill Archives

COORDINATED RESPONSE

Greater Boston bars and venues are grappling with a rise in involuntary drugged drinks, but procedures for addressing future incidents are in sight “When you raise awareness, if you even help prevent one person from getting drugged, then that’s a good thing.” Amidst a rash of incidents in which people

KENDALL POLIDORI May 24, 2023

DANCING ON BANANA PEELS

Life On Lifetime Parole In Massachusetts “I am now in the same predicament as I was when I first got out of prison.” Khalid Mustafa attempted what many considered unthinkable: he tried to sue the Massachusetts Parole Board. Specifically, Mustafa took legal action against the body for decisions under former

JEAN TROUNSTINE May 17, 2023

SO MUCH FOR CONTRACTS

State Report Blasts MBTA Contractor Company hired to run Transit Police dispatch service under-delivered, charged extra, and kept inadequate records, according to inspector general’s report Ed. note: This article has been updated to reflect comments from IXP that were received after publication The private company hired to run the MBTA’s

DAN ATKINSON February 7, 2023

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: CHERYL AMIRAULT LEFAVE

“Everything that I came across for 40 years has been a battle.” It seemed that last week a decades-old controversial case was headed for a pardon vote. Outgoing Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker had recommended a pardon for Cheryl Amirault LeFave and her brother, Gerald, in the well-known and highly disputed

JEAN TROUNSTINE December 22, 2022

JUDGMENT ON THE CHOPPING BLOCK

Photo of Gloriann Moroney at Governor’s Council, Oct. 12, 2022 by Lisa Berland, Parole Watch Parole Board Chair Gloriann Moroney’s contentious hearing to become a judge Another Parole Board chair with a prosecutorial background is vying to be a judge. This time, it’s Gloriann Moroney, whose hearing before the Governor’s

JEAN TROUNSTINE October 17, 2022

“THIS IS ILLEGAL BEHAVIOR”

Photo via Rayla Campbell for Massachusetts Mass GOP candidate questioned by cop about book she calls kiddie porn Rayla Campbell, the Republican candidate for Massachusetts secretary of the commonwealth, found herself in an awkward position at a Back the Blue rally on August 15—she had to explain to one of

ANDREW QUEMERE August 24, 2022

HACKS, FACTS & CONTRACTS: FOIA FOLLOW-UP

Photo of Gov. Baker surveying Orange Line track work in 2019 by Joshua Qualls/Governor’s Press Office Internal Emails Show How MBTA Sought To Market “Safe,” “Good” Trains As System Failed Starting today, the MBTA shut down the entire Orange Line for a month for massive maintenance and repair work. Riders

DAN ATKINSON August 19, 2022

“POLARIZING FORCE”

Governor’s Council weighs controversial Parole Board renomination “You have an unbelievable amount of people who are against you.” Governor’s Councilor Christopher Iannella, a personal injury attorney, was grilling Massachusetts Parole Board member Colette Santa on August 3. Santa, first nominated by Gov. Charlie Baker for the board in 2017, is

JEAN TROUNSTINE August 8, 2022

HACKS, FACTS & CONTRACTS

As trains broke down, the MBTA’s million-dollar marketing campaign kept running In 2019, a politically-connected state contractor laid out a series of messages and ideas for its Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority clients in what was dubbed their “MBTA Brand Creative Presentation.” Large concepts like “Performance Improvement” and “Fiscal Discipline” were

DAN ATKINSON June 28, 2022

WHERE CANDIDATES FOR GOVERNOR STAND ON THE ENVIRONMENT

Pictured: Weymouth Compressor Station With multiple ongoing environmental fights in the state, our next governor will have major power to protect residents’ health and prosperity Amid ongoing fights over the proposed East Boston substation, a proposed Peabody gas power plant, and the Weymouth compressor station, the race to succeed Charlie

JON LAMSON April 14, 2022