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New Orleans truck attack spurs potential Halloween safety changes in Salem
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Funeral services for former President Jimmy Carter begin today in Washington, D.C. Tune into 90.9 for special live NPR coverage from 2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. of the service in the Capitol rotunda, where Carter’s remains will lie in state until Thursday.
But first, the news:
From the Bayou to the Bay State: Last week’s deadly New Year’s truck attack in New Orleans could prompt changes to one of the hallmarks of fall in Massachusetts. In the wake of the attack, officials in Salem announced new potential safety measures for their annual Halloween festivities, which often attract more than a million people. “For these reasons, it would be short-sighted not to consider Salem a potential target for those who might seek to make a political statement through violence for terrorism,” Mayor Dominick Pangallo and Salem’s police chief, Lucas Miller, wrote in a press release last week.
- Zoom in: Pangallo told WBUR’s John Bender they’re accelerating plans to install new retractable bollards and mobile barricades, such as Jersey barriers, to block off streets the city closes to cars during Haunted Happenings. Pangallo said potential changes include barriers in new locations and earlier in the season, as well as “hardening some of the barricades [where] we’ve typically had softer road closures at in the past.”
- Additional road closures will likely cause more traffic during the already-congested time of year, but Pangallo said it’s an “inconvenience that people are going to have to just live with, because safety is the priority concern.” He also noted no final decisions have been made.
- Pangallo also said they will bring in an “outside set of eyes” to review Salem’s current safety protocols and consider upping the city’s police presence during Haunted Happenings.
- Zoom out: Intentional vehicular attacks on crowds of people are not a new phenomenon. But as they’ve become popularized as a means of terrorism, NPR reports prevention is a challenge.
Massachusetts’ top federal prosecutor U.S. Attorney Joshua Levy announced yesterday that he will resign from the post next Friday. It’s a customary move from the Democratic appointee, before Republican President-elect Donald Trump takes office on Jan. 20.
- In the meantime: Levy’s top assistant, Mary B. Murrane, will take on the role of acting U.S. attorney until the Senate confirms the Trump pick for a replacement.
On Beacon Hill: State Rep. Christopher Flanagan, a Cape Cod Democrat, is under federal investigation, according to local officials. The details are still murky, but Barnstable police say the feds took over an investigation into a report of “potential criminal activity” related to Flanagan and his reelection campaign this past fall. The Cape Cod Times reported in November the investigation had to do with $26,500 that went missing from Flanagan’s old employer.
- The news comes after Flanagan was fined for creating a fake person on a mailer in his first State House campaign in 2022.
Closing time: Boston is eyeing the possible closure of four schools at the end of the 2025-26 academic year, including Excel High School in Southie. The Boston Globe reports BPS superintendent Mary Skipper told Excel parents in a letter that she’ll recommend the closures at a School Committee meeting later this month.
- The big picture: BPS has suggested over a dozen schools will eventually close or merge as part of their long-term facilities plan.
Drumroll, please: After announcing infrastructure changes and (slightly) reduced ticket prices last week, Boston Calling organizers unveiled yesterday the much-anticipated lineup for this May’s festival — with an emphasis on early-aughts nostalgia. WBUR’s Andrea Shea has all the details here, but here are the day-by-day highlights. (Tickets go on sale tomorrow, Jan. 8, at 10 a.m.)
- Friday, May 23: Country star Luke Combs headlines, plus Megan Moroney, Sheryl Crow, T-Pain and TLC (paging Michael Keaton).
- Saturday, May 24: Fall Out Boy aims to close the night with a memorable (thanks) performance, after Avril Lavigne (back again so soon!), Cage The Elephant and The Black Crowes take the stage.
- Sunday, May 25: The week(end) ends with Dave Matthews Band, following a day of Vampire Weekend, Sublime and Public Enemy.
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