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Groundbreaking transplant of pig heart into living recipient is performed for the second time ever

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:00 GMT

(CNN) — For the second time ever, a pig heart has been transplanted into a living human recipient, the University of Maryland Medical Center announced on Friday.The groundbreaking surgery was done on September 20 at UMMC by the same transplant team that preformed the first such experimental surgery in 2022.In a news release, the hospital said the recipient, 58-year-old Lawrence Faucette, “is currently breathing on his own, and his heart is functioning well without any assistance from supportive devices.”Faucette had end-stage heart disease. He had pre-existing peripheral vascular disease and complications with internal bleeding making him ineligible for a traditional heart transplant, the hospital said in the release. He was admitted to UMMC on September 14 after experiencing symptoms of heart failure.“My only real hope left is to go with the pig heart, the xenotransplant,” Faucette told the hospital in an internal interview several days before the surgery.T...

Dogs sickened by drug-tainted human waste in Boston

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:00 GMT

Jamaica Plain residents are demanding a fenced-in dog park after three pooches were poisoned by “drug-contaminated human waste” while out for a walk.The Friends of JP Dog Parks, during a hearing Friday, pressed city officials to do whatever they can to get the neighborhood a safe recreational space where pets can roam freely as soon as possible.The group reports three dogs walking along an unofficial dog path at Southwest Corridor Park near Green Street Station last month had a “run-in with drug-contaminated human waste” and were rushed to the Angell Animal Medical Center emergency department.The dogs survived, but the group says the situation could have easily been worse, with the pets and their owners experiencing “extreme physical and emotional stress, not to mention the expenses incurred.”This scare comes as the city is battling an opioid addiction problem that isn’t only contained in the Mass and Cass encampment.“This is unacceptable, avoidable and needs to be addressed,”...

Ex-FBI agent John ‘Zip’ Connolly’s parole in Massachusetts in jeopardy

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:00 GMT

Shady ex-FBI agent John “Zip” Connolly’s “conditional medical release” is up before a Florida parole board next week.This means the former handler of murdered mobster James “Whitey” Bulger could be forced back behind bars.The 83-year-old Connolly was allowed to return to Massachusetts on a medical release on Feb. 17, 2021, because he had about a year to live after being called “terminally ill.” That estimated timeline of his demise has not proven correct.The Florida Commission on Offender Review voted 2-1 to grant Connolly’s medical release, allowing him to “finish out his life in sunshine,” as one supporter testified that day.Now, that same commission has Connolly on the agenda for Tuesday. Zip is 11th on the list of convicts set for “Parole and Conditional Medical Releases/Revocations” in a hearing slated to begin at 9 a.m.Connolly was convicted of second-degree murder in 2008 for wearing his FBI-issued sidearm when he me...

Ticker: Amazon Prime Video will soon come with ads, or a $2.99 monthly charge; Judge blocks government plan to scale back Gulf oil lease sale to protect whale species

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:00 GMT

Amazon Prime Video will include advertising during shows and movies starting early next year, joining other streaming services that have added different tiers of subscriptions.Members of Amazon Prime can pay $2.99 per month in the U.S. to keep their service ad-free, the company said Friday.Streaming services are in a heated tug-of-war over viewers and users are growing more adept at jumping in and out of those services, often depending on price. The platforms risk losing customers with price hikes, but they could lose them if they don’t generate new content that wins over users.Judge blocks government plan to scale back Gulf oil lease saleA federal judge has ordered the Interior Department to expand next week’s scheduled sale of of Gulf of Mexico oil and gas leases by millions of acres, rejecting a scaled-back plan announced last month by the Biden administration as part of an effort to protect an endangered whale species.The Biden administration on Friday asked the 5th ...

Boston’s economic rebound hindered by vacant office space, remote work, report finds

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:00 GMT

A new report paints a sobering picture of what the shift to remote and hybrid work could do to the city’s economy in the months and years ahead, given the reduction in foot traffic and spending seen in the downtown since the pandemic.“Urban Economies on the Precipice: A Tale of Six Cities,” a report issued Friday by the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, examines the post-pandemic challenge Boston and five other major cities face in replacing worker-driven economies and managing the impacts of vacant office buildings.“Office-worker-driven economies in major cities are taking permanent hits as hybrid/remote work reduces downtown time and money spent,” MTF states in a document accompanying the report. “As office leases expire, more empty buildings will stress owners, local businesses and city finances.”Office occupancy rates are half that of 2019, MTF states, pointing to data from Kastle Systems that show a 99% pre-pandemic rate. In Boston, downtown occupancy was estimated at 30-35% ...

Home Showcase: Bring it on down to Osterville

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:00 GMT

We’re toasting the last weekend of summer in Osterville Village via the charming updated ranch at 38 Sunset Lane. The cedar-clad home promises a modern coastal living experience in a smaller-but-mighty frame.Built in 1927, this timeless residence boasts three bedrooms, offering ample space for family or guests. The 1,153-square-foot interior is bathed in natural light, creating a warm and inviting atmosphere for all your (next) summer escapes.Step inside, and you’ll immediately notice the attention to detail. The fully renovated kitchen is a chef’s dream, boasting pristine quartz countertops and gleaming stainless steel appliances.The property has also undergone significant upgrades, including two majorly refreshed bathrooms, updated electrical and plumbing systems, plus HVAC system. With these improvements, you can move in with ease and enjoy all the comforts of modern living.As you venture outdoors, you’ll discover fresh landscaping adorned with a new rear patio ...

Nikki Haley goes there, says she would raise Social Security retirement age

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:00 GMT

GOFFSTOWN, N.H. — In 2020 and 2016 the signs in front of Denise Sherwood’s Manchester home would have featured the name of former President Donald Trump.Despite the fact the 45th president is on the Republican primary ballot for a third election cycle running and is dominating in the polls, Sherwood left an event at St. Anselm College held on Friday with a new lawn sign declaring her support for former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley.In the midst of a whirlwind tour of a state that seems to be taking her presidential candidacy more and more seriously as the election cycle carries on, Haley delivered a policy-laden address her campaign is calling her “economic freedom speech” in which she went so far as to touch the fabled “third-rail of politics” and call for an increase in the social security retirement age.Titled, “America’s Secret Weapon” and given to a standing-room only crowd at the school’s New Hampshire Institute of Politics, the speech pulled no punches in decl...

Reward offered after man found dead on South Bay street

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:00 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- A $1,000 reward is being offered by San Diego County Crime Stoppers and the San Diego Police Department with information that leads to an arrest in their investigation of a man found dead in Otay Mesa West earlier this month.On the night of Sept. 6, authorities received a report of a man down in the roadway at the intersection of Del Sol Boulevard and Beyer Way, the two agencies said in a news release Friday.When first responders arrived, they found the man suffering from a head injury, according to law enforcement. The victim was taken to a hospital, where he died 11 days later. Teacher, hockey coach sentenced to 16 years in ‘Mr. Pickles’ child sex abuse case The victim, who has not been identified, is described as a 42-year-old man, about 5 feet 8 inches tall, 150 pounds, brown hair and unshaven, per officials. He was wearing a black shirt and was known to visit the area often.Anyone with information that may assist in this investigation can submit a tip through San...

FBI is investigating alleged abuse in Baton Rouge police warehouse known as the ‘Brave Cave’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:00 GMT

The FBI said Friday it has opened a civil rights investigation into allegations in recent lawsuits that police in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, assaulted drug suspects they detained in an obscure warehouse known as the “Brave Cave.”In one case, a man says he was taken to the warehouse and beaten so severely he needed hospital care before being booked into jail. In another, a woman claims she was strip-searched, with an officer using a flashlight to scan her body.Since the first complaint was filed last month, the city’s mayor has ordered the facility closed, the police department has disbanded its street crimes unit and an officer at the center of the allegations — the son of a current deputy chief — resigned and was arrested on a simple battery charge.FBI officials confirmed Friday that the agency has opened an investigation based on “allegations that members of the department may have abused their authority.”This latest scandal adds to a long list of corruption and misconduct allegation...

Biologists in slow and steady race to help North America’s largest and rarest tortoise species

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:00 GMT

ENGLE, N.M. (AP) — While the average lifespan of North America’s largest and most rare tortoise species is unknown, biologists have said it could span upward of a century.So saving the endangered species is a long game — one that got another nudge forward Friday as U.S. wildlife officials finalized an agreement with Ted Turner’s Endangered Species Fund that clears the way for the release of more Bolson tortoises on the media mogul’s ranch in central New Mexico. The “safe harbor agreement” will facilitate the release of captive tortoises on the Armendaris Ranch to establish a free-ranging population. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Martha Williams said the agreement, which offers private landowners protections from regulations, can serve as a model as officials look for more innovative ways to work within the Endangered Species Act.Dozens of people gathered for the release Friday of 20 more adult tortoises on the property, which is already home to 23 of them...