In response to concerns about public safety, driver background checks were required as part of the new law.
Justice
animal welfare, civil law and procedure, criminal law, disability, drug policy, family law, freedom of speech, guardianship, gun violence, housing law, immigration, lgbtq rights, privacy, sexual child abuse, terrorism, women's rights
The Appointment and Training of Clerk Magistrates and Assistant Clerk Magistrates
A recent Boston Globe Spotlight story highlighted the court system’s use of clerk magistrates to oversee show cause hearings, closed-door proceedings in which clerk magistrates determine whether to press forward with charges against an individual, raising concerns about transparency and equity in the judicial process.
Dissuasion — the Portuguese Approach
Portugal has consolidated efforts to help people with addiction under a single public-health-oriented umbrella agency and relies heavily on medically assisted treatments for people with opioid addiction.
Question 3 — Yes for Transgender Rights
A Yes vote on Question 3 on the November 6 ballot will approve the legislature’s vote in 2016 to extend full civil rights protections to transgender people.
Marijuana Vote in Belmont on Tuesday
A yes vote will approve a new town Bylaw limiting the number of retail marijuana establishments in Belmont and prohibiting testing, manufacturing and cultivation facilities in Belmont.
System Responses to Problematic Behaviors by a Child Under 12
As a result of the recent increase in the age of juvenile court jurisdiction at the lower end to 12 for purposes of adjudicating juvenile delinquency, Senator Brownsberger’s office has received a number of inquiries as to how the court system, a school system, or other entities might respond to problematic behaviors by a child under the age of 12.