By Steven Brown Under the settlement agreement, the city acknowledged that police officers “unconstitutionally interfered” with Judith Reilly’s First Amendment rights in 2010 when they threatened to arrest her. At the time, she was distributing leaflets on a sidewalk adjacent to the auditorium where Cicilline was scheduled to give his annual “State of the City” […]

The following is an excerpt from a blog post originally published by the New England First Amendment Center. The center is a joint undertaking of the New England First Amendment Coalition and Northeastern University’s School of Journalism. By Colman Herman I have made a lot of public records requests through the years. Last May, I wrote a […]

By Zack Sampson DEDHAM, Mass. — Though readers turn to newspapers for disparate reasons — arts, sports, politics, and more — it is investigative reporting that unites them, Boston Globe Editor Brian McGrory told a select group of New England journalists Sunday. “The one area of journalism that crosses these divides and brings people together is our […]

By Robert A. Bertsche BOSTON — I attended the spirited hearing at the State House on the proposed Massachusetts shield bill, before the Legislature’s Joint Committee on the Judiciary. The bill is titled the “Free Flow of Information Act,” H.1553, described as “An Act providing against compelled disclosure of certain information by the news media.”  Here’s a […]

By Laura Krantz HOPKINTON, Mass – A small rural Massachusetts town determined to ward off a casino in its backyard got stonewalled this year by a state commission and the secretary of state, but the fat lady hasn’t sung yet for Hopkinton. After eight fruitless months battling the Massachusetts Gaming Commission for records, the town this month sued the […]

By Steven Brown PROVIDENCE — For the third time in less than two months, the ACLU of Rhode Island has taken legal action against the state Board of Education for violating open government laws. They all involve the board’s persistent refusal to publicly address a controversial “high stakes testing” requirement that takes effect this school year for high school seniors. Parents, […]

By Michael Donoghue BURLINGTON, Vt – The U.S. Marshals Service says the privacy rights of a man who pleaded guilty to the 2008 kidnap, rape and murder of his 12-year-old niece far outweigh the rights of taxpayers to see the man they will pay to keep behind bars for the rest of his life. It is a head scratcher. […]

By Todd Wallack BOSTON — While writing a story recently about the Massachusetts state pharmacy board, I noticed something odd: Only half the board members showed up for a meeting last summer — too few for a quorum — but the board members went ahead with the meeting anyway and voted on one item after the […]

By Joseph Cote NASHUA, N.H. — You never really know what a right-to-know request – or a motion to unseal documents – will turn up. When The Telegraph filed a motion with the Hillsborough County Superior Court in Manchester to unseal documents prior to Steven Spader’s second sentencing hearing we expected to learn more about Spader. We did, but […]

By Steven Brown PROVIDENCE — A judge agreed with the ACLU of Rhode Island in blocking the state Board of Education from meeting in private to hear from invited “experts” on its “high stakes testing” requirement for high school seniors. Superior Court Judge Daniel Procaccini said allowing such a discussion to take place in private during a board retreat would significantly undermine the […]