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The John Adams Courthouse in Boston, home of the state's Supreme Judicial Court. (Robin Lubbock/WBUR) Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court is sending a strong message about how courts should consider prisoners' requests for release because of the coronavirus pandemic. In a ruling involving two prisoners, the high court explicitly says the risk of the virus needs to weigh heavily in decisions about releasing those sentenced and appealing their convictions. The SJC approved both prisoners' requests for stays of their sentences. "We transferred the cases here so that we could address a variety o...

BOSTON — Gov. Charlie Baker's extensive, executive order-fueled pandemic response is justifiable under state law and did not violate the constitutional rights of businesses and organizations affected by mandatory shutdowns, the state's highest court ruled Thursday. Six months after the New Civil Liberties Alliance sued Massachusetts on behalf of business owners and religious institutions, the Supreme Judicial Court upheld the Baker administration's emergency actions, concluding that the governor acted within the emergency powers afforded to governors under a 1950 law. The consequential d...

Gov. Charlie Baker's extensive, executive order-fueled pandemic response is justifiable under state law and did not violate the constitutional rights of businesses and organizations affected by mandatory shutdowns, the state's highest court ruled Thursday. Six months after the New Civil Liberties Alliance sued Massachusetts on behalf of business owners and religious institutions, the Supreme Judicial Court upheld the Baker Administration's emergency actions, concluding that the governor acted within the emergency powers afforded to governors under a 1950 law. The consequential decision allows...