Appeals court considers remote access to New Hampshire House
HOLLY RAMER, Associated Press
FacebookTwitterEmail
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) Federal appellate judges on Monday questioned whether the New Hampshire House has undermined the Americans With Disabilities Act by insisting on in-person sessions during the coronavirus pandemic, while also suggesting that vaccinations have made the issue moot.
Seven Democratic lawmakers sued Republican House Speaker Sherm Packard in February arguing that holding in-person sessions without a remote option for medically vulnerable lawmakers violates the Americans with Disabilities Act and has forced them to either risk their lives or abandon their duties as elected officials.
Sense of hope accompanies Passover, Easter in New England
April 4, 2021
FacebookTwitterEmail
BOSTON (AP) The Easter and Passover holidays were accompanied Sunday by more relaxed restrictions on houses of worship and gatherings in New England, along with worries about the spread of COVID-19.
Many houses of worship required congregants to RSVP for a limited number of in-person service seats. Others held outdoor ceremonies. And, as has been the case throughout the pandemic, many had online services through Zoom, Facebook or YouTube.
Bishop Thomas Brown of the Episcopal Diocese of Maine said the Easter holiday felt different from last year. People now have a better understanding of the pandemic and they see light at the end of the tunnel as more people get vaccinated.
Maryland lawmakers approve $577M to settle HBCU lawsuit
BRIAN WITTE, Associated Press
FacebookTwitterEmail
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) Maryland lawmakers gave final passage Wednesday to a measure to pay $577 million over 10 years to settle a federal lawsuit alleging discrimination and underfunding at the state s four historically Black colleges and universities.
An attorney described it as “one of the largest pro bono civil rights settlements in history.”
The House voted 120-14 to send the measure to Gov. Larry Hogan, who vetoed a similar bill last year after citing economic difficulties created by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Senate approved the bill 47-0 earlier in the day in response to the 15-year-old lawsuit.
Ex-officer MacDonald in Fort Bragg murders seeks release
GARY D. ROBERTSON, Associated Press
March 12, 2021
FacebookTwitterEmail
FILE - In this March 1, 1995 file photo Jeffrey MacDonald gestures at the federal correctional institution in Sheridan, Ore. MacDonald, a former Army captain serving three life sentences for the 1970 murders of his pregnant wife and two young children, has a hearing scheduled Thursday, March 11, 2021 on his request to a federal judge to free him due to his age and failing health.Shane Young/AP
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) A former Army physician serving life prison sentences for the brutal murders of his wife and two young daughters more than 50 years ago should be released because of his deteriorating health, his attorneys told a judge on Thursday.