Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Foreign with an AM Quincy news update for Wednesday, September 3rd. Well, the stage is set for the November 4th general election in Quincy after yesterday's preliminary election narrowed the field of candidates for Councilor at large and Ward 6 city council seats. Hannah Kaplan and Jackie Carvey were eliminated from the race for the three at large council seats. That leaves incumbents Noel Demona and Scott Campbell, along with Andrew Pham, Zaquan Yuan, Anne Mahoney and Allie Shaughnessy to face each other in November. Mahoney topped the ticket citywide with 3,242 votes. Nabona was a close second at 3,018.
[00:01:02] Councilor at Large Nina Liang is not seeking reelection this year. End of the race for Ward 6 incumbent William Harris will face a challenge from Deborah Riley in November. Harris earned 646 votes and Riley earned 609.
[00:01:19] Christopher Chan and James Coffee were eliminated. Voter turnout yesterday was just over 9% citywide, just over 15% in Ward 6. Ward 2 City Councilor Richard Ashe is the only unopposed candidate this year. There are also six candidates for three school committee seats in November.
[00:01:42] Things will be a little different at the Squantum School in Quincy this year due to the construction of of the new school. Student drop off and pick up is on Huckins Road and Standish Avenue. The main entrance to the school is now on Standish Avenue. Students will be housed in temporary modular classrooms as contractors prepare to demolish the old school to make way for the new facility. Over the summer, crews removed all hazardous materials and utility infrastructure on the surrounding streets has been completed.
[00:02:16] Mayflower Road will serve as the construction entrance for project vehicles. The project is expected to take two years to complete.
[00:02:26] Quincy officials would like to know where residents would like to see electric vehicle charging stations installed. The city is conducting an online survey asking residents to share where EV charging stations should be located along public streets. The surveys being conducted with help from a grant from the Mass Clean Energy center, which will also pay for a feasibility study to determine the best locations for EV charging stations. A public meeting about that plan will be held on September 10th at 6pm in the community meeting room of the Thomas Crane Library in Quincy center and the online survey will be open until September 26th.
[00:03:13] A situate man faced a judge yesterday after officials said he turned himself in on Saturday for the alleged murder of a main man who was left in a car outside south shore Hospital in Weymouth. 42 year old Christopher Karen was arraigned in Hingham District Court on a murder charge and was held without bail pending his next hearing on September 29th. During Karen's arraignment, officials said Karen and the victim, 27 year old Declan Perry from Maine, had been planning to meet up at Karen's Situate home via text, which allegedly included plans of obtaining fentanyl and cocaine. Perry overdosed while visiting Karen at his family's condo in situate on August 22. The day before his body was found, Karen called a friend who brought over Narcan. The female friend told police that Perry was alive when she fell asleep but deceased when she woke up. That's when prosecutors said Karen tried moving the body to the car. The next morning, the defendant allegedly wrapped the body of the victim in blankets and duct tape before driving it to South Shore Hospital, leaving the body in the car outside the emergency room entrance. An autopsy conducted on the body revealed injuries from blunt force trauma suggesting strangulation prior to death.
[00:04:41] New rules banning junk fees have taken effect in Massachusetts. Attorney General Andrea Campbell says the historic regulations require businesses in the state to be upfront about additional fees and let people cancel trial offers easily before they're charged more money. Campbell's office defines junk fees as hidden, surprise or unnecessary costs that increase the total price of a product beyond the advertised price. Back in May, a new federal rule targeted hidden fees at live sporting events and concerts and also required short term rental companies like Airbnb to more prominently display total prices on their websites, the attorney general said. The new rule affects hotel room bookings, concert tickets, apartment rentals, as well as any businesses that operate, advertise or sell products in the state, including online businesses and companies that are based outside of Massachusetts. Businesses will have to display the total price more prominently before customers enter payment information, for example, Campbell's office said that hotels must include in the total price fees that customers can't reasonably be expected to avoid, like a towel use fee or credit card processing expense. The rules also target trial offers and subscriptions that conceal the total cost and nature of a product or service while making it difficult for consumers to cancel or opt out of such features.
[00:06:20] Nearly a year after Massachusetts Treasurer Deb Goldberg fired Shannon o', Brien, the embattled head of the Cannabis Control Commission, a court has decided that move was unlawful. O' Brien was formally removed from her role last September after a lengthy suspension and legal battle. As treasurer, Goldberg appoints the chair of the commission. She picked o', Brien, a former Democratic nominee for governor, for the chair position in late August of 2022. O' Brien served in the role for a little over a year before being suspended and a legal battle followed. O' Brien sued Goldberg over the suspension, and related documents included a letter from Goldberg to o' Brien which indicates she was accused of making racially, ethnically and culturally insensitive statements. A judge in Suffolk Superior court issued a 50 page ruling yesterday that said Goldberg's decision failed to meet the high bar for removal. The judge determined o' Brien's actions didn't rise to the legal definition of gross misconduct and that legally required evidence of an inability to do the job was not presented or considered. The judge's ruling says o' Brien is entitled to reinstatement for the remainder of her statutory appointment and to an award of back pay and benefits running from the date of her, quote, unlawful termination.
[00:07:50] Norfolk County Sheriff Pat McDermott proud to announce the graduation of 12 new correctional officers from the Norfolk County Sheriff's Office Training Academy. The officers were celebrated in a ceremony held recently at the Dedham Hilton where they were joined by their families and friends. The theme of this training academy was attention to detail.
[00:08:14] Former American Idol finalist Ayla Brown was a featured performer during the graduation, singing the Star. Stiff bangled banner check of business news this morning and stocks took a dive yesterday. The Dow was down 249. The Nasdaq was down the same. The S and P dropped 44. Asian stocks also down, echoing the fall on Wall street as political uncertainty took center stage. In Japan, the dollar was higher, the euro was down and oil at $65 a barrel.
[00:08:53] Sports Red Sox beat Cleveland 11 to 7. They're back at it at Fenway tonight at 6:45.
[00:09:00] National Weather Service forecast today mostly sunny and high. 80 degrees. Clear tonight, low of 55. Tomorrow partly sunny at a high of 82. Friday could see some scattered thunderstorms, a little more humid, high of 83 and Saturday scattered showers, high of 85 for the boater. Waves 1 to 2ft. Winds southerly at 5 knots becomes southeast at 10 to 15 knots later today. High tide 8:35am and 8:45pm Sunrise 611 sets, 7:13.
[00:09:38] I'm Joe Catalano with an AM Quincy news update for Wednesday, September 3rd.
