UMass Dartmouth has raised a Black Lives Matter flag on the main flagpoles on the campus grounds. From Interim Chancellor Randy Helm:

Dear members of the UMass Dartmouth Community,

On November 18th I shared with the campus community a new “flag policy” that UMass Dartmouth adopted after extensive consultation and research, and vetting by the Cabinet. For those who wish to review the policy again, it can be found at: www.umassd.edu/media/umassdartmouth/universitypolicies/Flag_Policy_11-18-16.pdf

This policy provides a process by which requests to fly flags for specific causes and organizations can be reviewed and, if appropriate, approved. The first request received under this new policy was from the UMass Dartmouth Council on Diversity and Inclusion advocating for the Black Lives Matter flag. An advisory committee comprised of student, faculty, and staff representatives endorsed (though not unanimously) this request and I have approved it. The Black Lives Matter flag was raised this morning and will, in accordance with our policy, be flown through Friday, December 16th.

Some members of our campus or the broader community may wonder why we feel it is appropriate to fly this flag at this time. I realize that there have been controversies about the Black Lives Matter movement. I thought it might be helpful for me to share my thoughts on what this flag means – and what it does not mean – in the context of our University’s values.

In raising this flag we are taking the words on it literally. We are not endorsing the political agenda or platform of any off-campus group or organization. It is a statement that emphasizes the extent to which racial prejudice and violence have disproportionately affected African Americans. In the aftermath of the recent presidential election, our nation has seen a sharp increase in hate crimes and violence against people of color. It is understandable that these friends and colleagues feel especially vulnerable at this time, and it is especially important for us now, as a community, to signal our strong support for their lives and their dignity.

Let me be clear. The flag does not mean that other lives do not matter, or that they matter less than Black lives. Nor do we endorse views that are anti-Police or anti-Semitic. To the extent that any BLM organizations have embraced such positions, we do not agree with them. In particular, I want to commend the service of our own Public Safety Officers and their colleagues throughout the region who have a very difficult and often thankless job, and who do an outstanding job of keeping us safe, often in challenging situations.

It is my sincere hope that this action will encourage civil and respectful dialogue at a time of deep divisions in our country. This symbolic gesture will not change anything unless we listen to each other and engage in thoughtful conversations with our colleagues, our family, friends, and others. Our Faculty Senate has approved a motion in support of a Teach-In Day related to race and violence, to take place early in the Spring semester. The event is being organized by the Diversity and Inclusion Council, in collaboration with faculty and staff. I look forward to engaging in this important conversation with other members of our community.

Finally, I wish all our colleagues and neighbors a restful and restorative holiday season, and a happy New Year.

Sincerely,

Randy Helm
Interim Chancellor

As result of the ongoing investigation into the 2016 Halloween Ride, Officer Mark Raposa, who has been working closely with members of the Massachusetts Environmental Police, will be charging two juveniles in connection with the incident. One of the juveniles is from Fairhaven and the other is from Acushnet. Both are 17 year old males.

They are being charged with operating a snow/rec vehicle on a public way, reckless operation of a snow/rec vehicle, and causing gridlock. In addition a request will be made to RMV for an immediate revocation of their drivers licenses.

This all stems from the October 31st incident, which resulted in 9 arrests, followed by an additional 2 males being charged on November 1st and 6 more males on November 10th.

As we continue to investigate we ask anyone with information to please contact us at 508-992-7463 or at tip@newbedfordpd.com.

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Brighten the season for a local child while boosting your own holiday spirit by participating in the sixth annual Fill the Bus toy drive from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 17.

During those hours, a Tremblay’s school bus will be parked outside three New Bedford locations: Walgreens, 1103 Kempton St.; Wonder Bowl, 66 Hathaway Road and The Boat Restaurant, 945 Ashley Blvd. Hours for the Boat Restaurant only will be 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Residents are encouraged to bring an unwrapped toy to fill the school buses. Those gifts will then be distributed to children in need. Gifts are accepted for children in grades kindergarten through 12.

Unwrapped gifts can also be dropped off through Dec. 20 at any New Bedford Police station. Stations are located at 572 Pleasant St.; 781 Ashley Blvd.; 168 Cove St.; and 871 Rockdale Ave.

The fill the bus event will also be held at Walmart, 42 Fairhaven Common Way, Fairhaven; Acushnet Police, 130 Main St., Acushnet (from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.) and Target, 479 State Road, Dartmouth. Those drives are sponsored by their respective police departments.

Safe Zones, Tremblay’s Bus Co. and the State Police in Dartmouth are also sponsoring the event.

For more information, call Jerry Pinto at 508-889-1752 or New Bedford Police Lt. Ricard Rezendes at 508-207-5962.

Photo by Josh Souza

Hundreds of people flowed in and out of the Black Hat Brew Works taproom in Bridgewater this past weekend to get a taste of a special beer by Acushnet homebrewers.

The Ole’ Buzzard homebrew group got the opportunity to brew and serve their India Pale Ale at Black Hat after taking first place in the homebrew competition at the South Shore Farm Brew Fest this past September. The group brewed their beer in mid-November and finally served it up to customers to enjoy for the first time. It was such a hit that two kegs were sold out over the course of just six hours.

Homebrewers Scott Stalter and Jeremiah Katz will be donating over $300 in profits from their beer sales to the Bridgewater Fire Department.

Katz said it was exciting to see so many people coming in and out of the taproom, enjoying pours of their IPA and leaving with some to go in growlers.

Stalter was also thrilled about the crowd and is looking forward to hearing what people think.

“It’s not about the money, it’s about making beer people will love,” he said.

Many of the folks that stopped by for a taste were sure to let the guys know they liked what they were brewing. The pair were also asked a number of times when they will start brewing on a larger scale and serving up beers to the public.

Both hope to open up a brewery of their own in Acushnet or Fairhaven in the near future, but for now they plan to continue homebrew in between their full-time jobs.

Photo by Josh Souza

The deceased victim’s from yesterday’s crash in Fall River are identified as Joseph Burnham, 36, of Providence RI and Laurence Wheeler, 23, of Providence RI. No further information is currently available. Please do not call the barracks directly.

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This morning at about 1:35 a.m., State Police from the Dartmouth barracks responded to a report of a single-vehicle crash on Route 24 in Fall River south of exit 8A which resulted in the death of two men.

Preliminary investigation by Trooper Antone Pereira indicates that a 2003 Mercury was traveling on Route 24 northbound when, for reasons still under investigation, the vehicle traveled off the right side of the roadway and struck a tree.

The operator, a 36-year-old man from Providence RI, and a passenger, a 23-year-old man from Providence RI, were both transported to Charlton Hospital where they were pronounced dead. A 23-year-old passenger was transported to Rhode Island Hospital.

The cause of this crash remains under investigation with assistance from the State Police Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section, State Police Crime Scene Services Section and Bristol County Detectives.

State Police were also assisted on scene by Fall River Fire and EMS, and Mass DOT.

The identities of the deceased are being withheld pending family notification. No further information is available at this time. Please do not contact the barracks for media inquiries.

The City of New Bedford – Department of Public InfrastructureAcushnet Ave & Wamsutta St Railroad Bridge:

-Contractor will be working on miscellaneous items throughout the project.

-The roadway closure at Acushnet Ave & Wamsutta will remain closed. Please follow detour signs.

Other:

-The Contractor is scheduled to complete final trench paving at various intersections along Ashley Blvd between Park Ave and Deane St.

-Contractor will be building the Cove Walk between West Rodney French Blvd. and Cove Rd.

-Contractor will be building an extension to the Multi use path on West Rodney French Blvd, between Hazelwood Park and Hurricane Barrier gate.

-Contractor will be performing miscellaneous tasks on Tallman Street, Bullard Street and Nye Street between Acushnet Avenue and Belleville Avenue.

-Contactor will be paving miscellaneous patches throughout the city.

-Hydrant flushing on dead ends in the city. This may cause a temporary loss of water pressure.

Due to the expected weather conditions, the emergency overflow at Sister Rose House on 71 Division Street in New Bedford will be activated for tonight and most likely through the weekend. Guests can start to arrive at 6pm and any inquires could also be sought through 1-800 homeless. More details about the overflow plan and Sister Rose House here. 

The children at 321 Rockdale Ave, Little People’s College in Miss Tara’s pre-k class went to spread some holiday cheer to our officers at Station 1 (Downtown NB) and then they made another stop at Headquarters (Rockdale Ave). The children made special ornaments for our officers and wanted to show them how much they are appreciated. At the end of our visit the children sat down and had some pizza. The officers and children were very happy and excited. Smiles all around. Merry Christmas.

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Southcoast Behavioral Health unveiled its new 24-bed psychiatric unit for adolescents ages 13 to 17 at an event this morning at the facility in North Dartmouth. Former Bristol County Juvenile Court judge Bettina Borders (center) served as the keynote speaker. Also pictured (from left) is Ian Trombly from Congressman William Keating’s office; Kelly Andrade from Senator Michael Rodrigues’ office; Leslie Duclos from Congressman Joseph Kennedy’s office; Dr. Kalpana Polu, Medical Director for Adolescent Services at Southcoast Behavioral Health; David Cressman, Town Administrator for the Town of Dartmouth; and Kevin Burchill, CEO of Southcoast Behavioral Health.

To address a chronic lack of mental health services for adolescents in Southeastern Massachusetts, Southcoast Behavioral Health has opened a 24-bed psychiatric unit and will be opening an outpatient treatment center for adolescents ages 13 to 17 pending approval by the Department of Public Health’s Bureau of Substance Abuse Services,.

The unit and treatment center will be located within the 120-bed psychiatric hospital that Southcoast Behavioral Health operates at 581 Faunce Corner Road, North Dartmouth. The new adolescent wing was unveiled to the community Dec. 9, 2016.

“There is a statewide shortage of placement options for adolescents suffering from psychiatric disorders,” said Kevin Burchill, CEO of Southcoast Behavioral Health. “Each year, hundreds of adolescents across Massachusetts end up in the care of acute care hospitals that lack both the space and the specialized staff and services to treat them.

“On an average day at St. Luke’s Hospital alone, one child or more ends up at the emergency room in need of mental health services. These patients will be able to receive the specialized services they need close to home and right away, rather than wait for a bed to open somewhere in the Commonwealth, perhaps not for days.”

The unit will have a staff of clinicians in a number of behavioral health and substance abuse disciplines, including child and adolescent psychiatrists to treat adolescents. Patients who are discharged from in-patient stays will be able to receive services through the unit’s outpatient center.

“Ensuring our patients receive the highest quality of care close to home is central to our mission. Families and patients should not have to travel long distances to find top-quality treatment options,” said Burchill.

“The good news is that because their brains are still developing, adolescents are usually highly receptive to behavioral therapies that can benefit them throughout their lives,” said Burchill.

The need for adolescent psychiatric care is acute and growing, especially in greater New Bedford and Fall River, where thousands of children living in low-income homes suffer from mental health disorders that are left untreated.

“This 24-bed unit will help ease the chronic shortage of inpatient adolescent services that we, at Southcoast Health, experience every day,” said Keith A. Hovan, President & CEO of Southcoast Health. “From January to November of this year, our three acute-care hospital emergency departments boarded more than 850 patients ages 21 or younger, while they waited as long as a few weeks for a residential placement.”

Untreated mental health problems often lead to poor school performance, chronic absenteeism, school dropout, strained family relationships, involvement with the child welfare or juvenile justice systems, substance abuse, risky sexual behaviors and suicide.

The statistics paint a troubling picture:

One in five low-income children ages 6 to 17 have mental health problems, and 80 percent of those suffering from mental health problems receive no treatment;

Almost 70 percent of children in the state and local juvenile justice system have a diagnosable mental health disorder, with at least one in five experiencing symptoms so severe that their ability to function is significantly impaired.

At approximately 6:20 PM on Thursday, December 8th, New Bedford police officers were dispatched to a motor vehicle accident at Pa Raffas located on Ashley Blvd.

A 71-year old New Bedford woman was charged with leaving the scene of an accident and an immediate threat of revocation of her license will be sent to the RMV.

The vehicle she was operating struck a vehicle that was traveling south as she traveled north on Ashley Blvd a few blocks from Pa Raffas. She continued on without stopping then striking a parked car in front of Pa Raffas. When she struck that parked car it was forced into the takeout area of Pa Raffas hitting and injuring a 45-year old New Bedford woman who was waiting for her food. This female was transported to St. Lukes hospital with minor injuries.