The word around City Hall is that councilors Ian Abreu and Brian Gomes are locked in a battle to become the next council president, with both well aware of the possibility that an accidental mayorship is looming.
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Posted inEmbattled former hospital president
Spousal privilege option can be complicated, legal experts say
“There are many reasons why a victim cannot testify or says they choose not to. And I would pause before jumping to quick judgments about that person or their motivation.” – Margo Lindauer, director of Northeastern University’s Domestic Violence Institute
Posted inJack Spillane column
New Ward 6 councilor will focus on ‘constituent services’
“If you’re able to solve someone’s problem, they’re going to vote for you,” said former Ward 5 Councilor Jane Gonsalves, who spent 20 years on the council between 1994 and 2014.
Posted inCOVID-19
New Bedford to begin distributing free at-home COVID-19 tests
City will use community groups to reach vulnerable clients and provide a limited number of tests at schools and libraries.
Posted inEmbattled former hospital president
Judge dismisses Keith Hovan’s domestic assault and battery case
Hovan’s wife was present with her own attorney and invoked her spousal privilege in declining to testify as a witness against Hovan. As a result, the commonwealth could not prosecute the case, the judge said.
Posted inJack Spillane column
Afghan refugee fights for her family’s new life in New Bedford
“I’m so grateful to the American people,” Farkhanda Ehssan said, explaining that she will no longer have to worry about Taliban attacks or bombings or someone dragging children away to fight.
Posted inImmigration
Essential but excluded
Immigrants put seafood on America’s tables. But many have been shut out of pandemic aid — and so have their U.S. citizen children.
Posted inPolice and Courts
New Bedford Police Union leadership resigns en masse
The resignations follow continued arbitration on a collective bargaining contract, recent agreement on COVID-19 vaccines for officers, and the union’s former treasurer, Joshua Fernandes, pleading guilty in October to wire fraud.
Posted inCOVID-19
COVID-19 cases spike across New Bedford and Bristol County
There were 132 new cases among students and staff in the New Bedford Public School District last week, the highest number in a single week since the beginning of the pandemic.
Posted inCOVID-19
Police union agrees to New Bedford’s employee vaccine mandate
The officers will join 882 other city workers who have been subject to the policy since Nov. 15, including the New Bedford FireFighters Union and members of AFSCME Local 851, who work across 24 city departments.