MA's Aly Raisman: FBI Said Sex Abuse 'Wan't That Bad' | Patch PM

MASSACHUSETTS — It's Wednesday, Sept. 15. Here's what you should know this afternoon:

• Boston voters have for the first time narrowed the field of mayoral candidates to two women of color who will face off against each other in November.
• A couple from Long Island is fighting to keep their son with special needs at Canton's Judge Rotenberg Center, which allows staff to administer electric shocks to residents via a remote control device.
• Parts of western Massachusetts are under severe weather watch Wednesday afternoon as hot, hazy, humid weather returned to the area earlier in the day.
• Moose are apparently making their semi-annual migration back to Worcester.

Scroll down for more on those and other stories Patch has been covering in Massachusetts today.

Today's Top Story

Olympic gold medalist and Needham native Aly Raisman told the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday she was "disgusted" by the FBI's handling of its investigation of doctor Larry Nassar.

Nassar, the former Olympic Team USA gymnastics doctor, is serving 40 to 175 years in prison after more than 160 women came forward, accusing him of sexually abusing them under the pretense of receiving medical treatment.

In testimony delivered Wednesday, Raisman said the FBI "failed to follow their basic duties," and "worked to conceal" Nassar's abuse, calling for a serious investigation into the neglect from the FBI, USA Gymnastics, and the U.S. Olympic Committee.

"It was like serving innocent children up to a pedophile on a silver platter."

Read the full story.

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Preliminary Election Roundup: Boston's Historic Vote

Boston voters have for the first time narrowed the field of mayoral candidates to two women of color who will face off against each other in November. City Councilors Michelle Wu and Annissa Essaibi George topped the five-person race in Tuesday's preliminary runoff. They bested acting Mayor Kim Janey, City Councilor Andrea Campbell and John Barros, the city's former economic development chief. Whoever wins on Nov. 2 will make history in a city that has never elected a woman or person of color. For the past 200 years, the office has been held exclusively by white men.

In other preliminary elections held Tuesday:

• Framingham voters gave mayoral challenger Charlie Sisitsky a large victory over incumbent Mayor Yvonne Spicer.
• Incumbent Malden city councillor Jadeane Sica and challenger Nate Bae Kupel will move on to the general election in Ward 8.
• City Councilor John Falco will challenge Medford Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn in the general election.
• Mayor Ruthanne Fuller and former City Councilor Amy Mah Sangiolo will be on the ballot on Nov. 2 after being the top vote getters in Newton's preliminary election.
• Peabody voters narrowed the field in two city council races. Incumbents placed second to challengers in both races.
• Mayor Kim Driscoll was the top vote getter in Salem's preliminary election. She will face City Councilman Steve Dibble on Nov. 2.
• Councilor At-Large Will Mbah and Ward 7 Councilor Katjana Ballantyne will try to succeed Somerville Mayor Joseph Curtatone, who is not running for reelection after nearly 20 years in office.
• Worcester voters chose candidates to appear on the general election ballot in two city council races.

Weather Alert

Parts of western Massachusetts are under severe weather watch Wednesday afternoon as hot, hazy, humid weather returned to the area earlier in the day. Areas under the watch will see the chance of hail, damaging wind gusts and heavy rainfall. There is also a slight chance of tornadoes.

The storm is expected to weaken as it moves east. A cold front moving into the region could return temperatures to seasonable levels, with much of the state seeing highs in the mid-seventies on Thursday.

Wednesday's Other Top Stories

Couple fights to keep son a Canton facility: A couple from Long Island is fighting to keep their son with special needs at Canton's Judge Rotenberg Center, the only facility they say has helped him overcome the challenges of living with severe autism. They said New York 's Office for People with Developmental Disabilities is trying to remove him, putting his safety at risk and his progress in jeopardy, New York's CBS2's Jessica Layton reported Monday. The facility has come under fire in the past for the use of the Graduated Electronic Decelerator (GED), which allows staff to administer electric shocks to residents via a remote control device. It is in the only facility in the country to use electric shock treatments

1,000-pound moose caught wandering in downtown Worcester: Moose are apparently making their semi-annual migration back to Worcester. State and local police and firefighters subdued a 1,000-pound moose seen wandering through a downtown-area neighborhood in Worcester early Wednesday morning, according to Spectrum1. The moose was so big, it was carted away in a Worcester Department of Public Works truck from near King Street and Jaques Avenue, less than a mile from City Hall downtown.

Pats hall of famer's daughter dead at 19: Kevione Faulk, daughter of former Patriots running back star and Super Bowl champion Kevin Faulk, died at the age of 19, according to a press release from Louisiana State University Monday night. Working alongside her father for the LSU football team, Kevione was a student worker while her father is currently the Tigers' running backs coach. A cause of death has not been publicly released.

Eat fresh: Patch's 2021 Massachusetts Farmers Market Guide

Picture This: MA Firefighters in LA

Since first responders in Louisiana have been working non-stop since the storm hit, ten local firefighters from Lynnfield, Carlisle, and Dalton have been working down in Louisiana to offer some much-needed relief. Tuesday morning, Peter Ostroskey, the Louisiana State Fire Marshall took to Facebook, posting a picture of some of the firemen after they put out a car fire.

They Said It

"I’ve always believed in God, country, and family. I love families, I love kids. I had a calling, and I knew it was a fight that I needed to take on."

• Vincent Delaney, the Peabody man who filed a lawsuit against Gov. Charlie Baker over coronavirus-related mask mandates, business and church restrictions last summer. Delaney is planning a State House rally to build support for his new nonprofit organization that says it plans to use legal action to defend families against government overreach.