Contested Election Underway In Newton: Patch PM

MASSACHUSETTS — It's Tuesday, March 16. Here's what you should know this afternoon:

• The Department of Public Health said Tuesday the state's first known case of the Brazilian coronavirus variant was confirmed in MA.
• A lawsuit claiming state-funded circumcisions are a waste of taxpayer money will be allowed to move forward.
• Thousands of Massachusetts workers qualify for state food assistance programs despite having jobs with some of the world's biggest companies.

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

Today's Top Story

A Special Election is underway in Newton, and voters have been turning out to vote in two hotly contested city council races.

The winners will be in a seat as the city determines key zoning regulations and works through the economic and social fallout from the effects of the pandemic.

Tuesday afternoon candidates stood on street corners across from City Hall with signs and cold hands, and hoping for the best.

"We are confident and happy with the race we ran," said 20-year-old candidate Madeline Renalli, a college student at Harvard who is running against John Oliver to replace the late Jay Ciccone.

Across the library drive from her, David Micley stood holding a homemade sign, daughter in a stroller with him.

"I feel good," he said.

Exclusively On Patch

The working poor in Massachusetts: Thousands of Massachusetts workers qualify for state food assistance programs despite having jobs with some of the world's biggest companies. In the first of a three-part series, Patch looks at five years of data from the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance and finds companies like Walmart, Stop & Shop, Target and Dollar Tree employ thousands of Massachusetts residents who still need government food assistance to make ends meet.

Read the full story.

Nearby News

• Newton Landscaper Accused Of Tax Evasion
• New Details About VineRipe Grill Oust: Brookline Sets Meeting
• Car Crashes Into Building At Chestnut Hill's The Street

Tuesday's Other Top Stories

More vaccine on the way: State officials expect to receive 170,000 doses of the coronavirus vaccine this week, a modest increase from the 155,000 Massachusetts has been given by the federal government in previous weeks. The shipment, which Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker announced Monday, includes 8,000 doses of Johnson & Johnson's single-shot vaccine. The shipment came as a surprise to state officials, who had been told not to expect any more Johnson & Johnson vaccine in March as the company ramped up production of the recently-approved drug.

Cut it out: A lawsuit claiming state-funded circumcisions are a waste of taxpayer money will be allowed to move forward following a Suffolk Superior Court judge's ruling last week. Ronald Goldman, an anti-circumcision activist from Boston, and 27 other plaintiffs filed the lawsuit challenging the way MassHealth pays for the procedure. Goldman's complaint argues that taxpayer dollars should not be used to pay for medically-unnecessary circumcisions.

Brazilian coronavirus variant on Cape Cod: The Department of Public Health said Tuesday the state's first known case of the variant was confirmed in Barnstable County. A woman in her 30s tested positive for the variant, known as P.1, in late February. Other variants have already been spreading in Massachusetts. One that originated in the United Kingdom, B.1.1.7, has been confirmed in 213 people here. The B.1.351 variant, first found in South Africa, has been confirmed in six residents.

Orange line riders see red: A low-speed derailment on the Orange Line disrupted service late Tuesday morning. A spokesperson for the MBTA said a northbound train was slowly crossing over to the southbound track when it derailed at Wellington Station.

Police department cleared in probe: An independent investigation into the actions of officers in the Needham Police Department who stopped and detained a Black man they suspected of shoplifting last year, found that there was no racial profiling. The independent investigation comes a month after the police department's internal investigation exonerated the officers of racial profiling. Both investigations found issue with the officers reporting methods and stressed that operational and procedural changes be made in the department.

In Case You Missed It

• Boston Marathon 2021 Will Host 20K Runners This October
• Gov. Baker's Approval Rating Tumbles As Pandemic Takes Toll
• MA State Workers Had More Job Security In Pandemic: Study