In the News… quick recap of the news of the week ending April 5th, 2025

RHODE ISLAND & VICINITY

Large amount of drugs/arrests at homeless encampment off of Plainfield Pike, Cranston

Roxbury, MA summer youth jobs event shut down after over 1,000 engaged in fighting

Drug overdoses in New Hampshire decreased by 35% in 2024

MA will cut 170 state workers, ½ of all case workers, in their department of mental health

Seekonk Flea Market, held at Seekonk Speedway, changed opening day to Sun, April 6

Six people were injured when a rental truck drove onto a sidewalk in the Chinatown section of Boston – deemed an accident

Point32Health lays off 110 workers in MA

Cuts of $106M in federal funding for MA K-12 schools. Gov. Healey says she will appeal in court

Rep. Enrique Sanchez has DUI charges dropped

Cranston school official arrested for DUI, asleep in a parked car in the lane of traffic

$106M in COVID funds for schools terminated by federal govt

Retired Major General Christopher P. Callahan to serve on the Rhode Island Ethics Commission.

HealthSource RI concluded its annual Open Enrollment period with its highest ever OE total of 42,695, eclipsing last year’s record of 34,456. Of those, 8,557 RI residents are newly enrolled. The remaining 34,000+ individuals, or 73% of last year’s are renewals.

Dr. Jill Hume Harrison will serve on the Rhode Island Parole Board.

Fall River Police Chief terminated by the Mayor

Uber Eats and Door Dash will need to get new permits in the Boston market

James Beard Awards has 4 entries from Rhode Island: Outstanding Restaurant – Oberlin, Providence; Emerging Chef, Nikhil Naiker, NIMKI, Providence; Best Chef (Northeast) Sky Haneul Kim, Gift Horse, Providence and Derek Wagner, Nicks on Broadway, Providence

Camp Canonicus sale delayed

Woodward Communications, owner of Providence Business News, acquires 4 radio stations in the Midwest

Providence will invest $10M in new 95-gallon gray garbage bins with black lids and 95-gallon blue recycled bins with blue lids with educational labels.

Guests announced for RI Comic Con in November, to include:  Alec Baldwin, Punky Brewster, Susan Sarandon, Geena Davis, and the “last performance” of Sting, Nov. 7-9.

U.S. District Court in RI denied a motion for preliminary injunctive relief by arts organizations applying for National Endowment for the Arts funding relative to “gender” themes

Brown University on the list of universities to lose federal funds for failure to address anti-Semitic activities on campus last year. Brown looking at $500M loss

Jordan Furniture’s Eliot Tadelman, to retire

A restaurant reality show will film in Narragansett

Anchor Medical announced its closure – impacting as many as 25,000 people in Rhode Island who will now search for a new primary care doctor

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NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL

Mississippi has eliminated all state income taxes

Amazon submits last minute bid to buy Tik Tok

Peter Marks, FDA’s director for the center for biological evaluation and research resigned

Utah becomes first state to ban LGBTQ+ Pride Flags in government buildings

Federal judge ordered temporary pause on shut down of Voice of America, stopping the government from firing 1,300 journalists and put on leave earlier this month.

Taliban released an American woman who had been held for over a month on drone charges

Pope looking at 3 new saint designations – as his health continues to improve

Panama deal where China would sell 2 ports may not now happen

One of Putin’s limousines caught fire (unclear if it was an explosion). No injuries – Russia claims it was Ukrainian attempt on Putin’s life. Putin was not in the car.

USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier and its strike group left Guam for the Middle East

Number dead from Myanmar earthquake continues to increase with widespread devastation

Both Harvard & Yale have removed anti-Israel curriculum and some staff from Middle Eastern studies programs

US Institute of Peace – most employees terminated, agency closing

French National rally leader Marine Le Pen found guilty in embezzlement case – faces up to 10 years and $1M fine – still in process

Fire set in the Republican Party headquarters in Albuquerque, New Mexico in act of arson.

Smugglers are now offering those in US that came in from Mexico packages to deport

QVC and Home Shopping laying off 5% of workforce – 900 people – moving to Pennsylvania from Florida

Wellesley College becomes first college to charge over $100K/year starting next year

Tufts will charge over $100K/year starting next year for int’l students

Israel orders Rafah evacuated

Air Canada reports travel to Canada down 10%

Mayor Adams (NYC) corruption case dismissed with prejudice – he becomes an Independent, withdrawing from the Democratic party

All imports into the US will face increased tariffs following a broad order by President Trump – setting off a huge slide – $5 trillion in the stock market and investments – 10% on all imports now – more coming next week

Vietnam has come forward saying they are willing to eliminate all their tariffs on the US

Scientists have invented a pacemaker that is smaller than a grain of rice and able to be inserted using a syringe for babies. It is temporary and lasts for a few months

Tesla vehicle sales fell 13% last quarter

Director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, Kevin Young, has gone on personal leave

400 books from Naval Academy library dealing with DEI will be removed

Sen. Cory Booker spoke for 25 hours – taking the record from Strom Thurmond

CVS seeking dismissal of federal lawsuit on opioids

NSA Director and Asst. Director terminated for cause

Deborah Norville will leave Inside Edition – will host a game show soon to be launched

Basic Fun toy maker will raise prices because there are no production factories here to switch to, all their toys are made in China

Simplay 3, another toy manufacturer makes all their toys in US and will NOT see any price raises

VW will add an import fee to cars

Stellantis will pause production and layoff hundreds

Hyundai says their prices will rise

Michigan couple released after being imprisoned in Mexico for a financial dispute

So. Korean president’s impeachment confirmed

London’s Tate Modern museum receives largest donation since 1969 as a Miami-based philanthropist gifted the museum a collection of works, including a large Joan Mitchell painting

ChatGPT users have generated more than 700 million images in roughly 10 days

Scientists develop test to identify HIV in minutes

Disney pauses “Tangle“, the Repunzle re-make – after remake of Snow White failed

Hershey strikes $750M deal to buy healthier snacks maker LesserEvil

Japan builds the first 3D-printed train station

Dr. Oz named administrator of CMS (Medicare and Medicaid)

Pres. Trump says he is open to negotiations on tariffs – countries advised to make a proposal

Former VP Mike Pence will receive a JFK Profile in Courage Award at the Kennedy Library on May 4

97 y.o. Tortoise gives birth for the first time to 4 babies – with her partner, a 96 y.o. at the Philadelphia Zoo. 

A bill moving toward passage to reverse school ban on whole & 2% milk – experts are saying they are “all in”

TikTok extended another 75 days while sale is negotiated

Maryland man mistakenly deported to El Salvador needs to be returned, court says. He may be an MS-13 gang, it is unclear, but he is in the country on a work permit, married with 2 children. The US govt said they can’t get him back, they have no authority in El Salvador

3 people in California have died of hantavirus, the rodent virus that killed Gene Hackman’s wife

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PASSINGS

Richard Chamberlain, 90, actor, Dr. Kildare, Shogun, Thorn Birds, complications from a stroke

Patty Maloney, 89, actress, Little House on the Prairie