Is Worcester breaking Open Meeting Law by going virtual? What the AG's office says
The city hall itself will be closed to the public at 5 p.m., per the notification.
In a statement released on Tuesday morning, Worcester Mayor Joseph Petty said that the change in venue is due to 'threats of violence' made to elected and city officials.
Petty said tensions in the city have been high since a Brazilian woman was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Eureka Street last Thursday.
Following the incident, the 'events of the last few days ... have been deeply disturbing and raised many questions,' the mayor said. 'As a result, many people — regardless of their viewpoint — are frustrated and angry.'
'Unfortunately, elected and city officials have received threats of violence,' Petty continued. 'City employees and department heads have also faced threatening calls and emails. It is important to remember that the people that keep city hall alive are just that — they are people. Employees have shared concerns about their safety."
The announcement of the change in venue was made public less than 48 hours before the meeting, raising the question as to whether the city violated the state's Open Meeting Law.
Guidance on holding meetings remotely under a continuation of COVID-19 measures in Massachusetts reads that meetings, including meeting locations, need to be posted at least 48 hours in advance — that's true even if the meeting is taking place remotely.
Section 20 of the law states that, except in the case of an emergency, 'a public body shall post notice of every meeting at least 48 hours prior to the meeting, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays.'
According to the Massachusetts Attorney General's office, a public body, in this case the city council, is allowed to change venues and post an amended notice at least 48 hours in advance.
However, if a meeting location is changed less than 48 hours in advance, the public body needs to provide the public with sufficient notice of the location change.
Additionally, a public body should also publicize the location through whatever channels it uses to communicate with the public, according to the Attorney General's office.
Examples of these channels include automated email notifications, social media platforms and online messaging boards, according to the Attorney General's office.
The public body must also be able to provide a rapid response to any email or phone inquiries from the public about meeting access.
Monday's announcement of the venue change was publicized by the city on social media platforms such as X, Instagram and Facebook.
On the city's website, a notification about Tuesday's meeting is highlighted at the top of the webpage. Clicking on the notification will bring the viewer to the full statement from the city along with a Zoom link, access code and telephone number to call into the meeting.
'In order to ensure active public engagement, remote participation for both meetings is available through at the City Council's Zoom link,' the statement reads.
A protest at City Hall against the actions of ICE and the Worcester Police Department is set to take place on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.
The protesters will demand that the city council request City Manager Eric D. Batista write a new policy for the Worcester Police Department that would prevent them from becoming involved in ICE operations, according to organizer Jim Miller of Worcester.
Protesters had planned to attend the city council meeting in person and speak during the meeting's public comment period, Miller said.
He confirmed to MassLive on Tuesday that the protest is still on for 5:30 and that some rally members will speak at the city council meeting remotely.
Worcester judge sets trial date for woman detained by ICE on separate charge
Worcester mayor says council meeting will be remote due to 'threats of violence'
Worcester City Council meeting to be held virtually 'due to public safety concerns'
Read the original article on MassLive.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
12 minutes ago
- USA Today
Dean Cain defends new role with ICE, says he's being 'pilloried and attacked'
Dean Cain is hitting back at those criticizing his recent decision to join the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The "Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman" star, in an appearance on "Piers Morgan Uncensored" on Aug. 11, said his decision to join the agency stemmed from wanting to support ICE officers. "I'm 59 years old and I've joined ICE," Cain said on the show. "Go ahead and denigrate my career. But what I'm doing is I'm standing up for the men and women of ICE. I'm a sworn deputy sheriff. I'm a reserve police officer. I have been for almost a decade now." Cain went on to defend ICE officers, saying they are being "vilified," "attacked" and "doxed" for "trying to their job" that the "American people hired them for" and the "Congress wrote laws for." "They're doing it very, very well," Cain said, appreciating ICE agents. Cain '100% proud' to stand with ICE agents The actor said the criticism started when he did a recruitment video for ICE, prompting some to think he had "actually joined" the agency. He then spoke with ICE officials and decided to officially join the agency and be sworn in. "I'm 100% proud to stand with our agents of ICE," Cain said on the show. "I love these people. They're wonderful men and women and husbands and fathers of every ethnicity, every race, every background." Cain also took a dig at John Oliver, who on a recent show had blasted the former's decision to join the federal immigration enforcement agency, which has come under scrutiny for aggressively deporting tens of thousands of undocumented immigrants in President Donald Trump's second term. "I'll happily take the jibes of John Oliver," Cain remarked. "I'm being pilloried and attacked for joining up with a law a federal law enforcement agency. (It) is insane. I did it to protect Americans and to protect our men and women of ICE." Untrained former actor? When political strategist Tim Miller, the show's other guest, asked Cain if he knows what rights an individual has if he shows up "at the door of someone's home as an ICE agent," Cain responded by saying he's "not an ICE agent yet" and is yet to undergo training. "So yeah, you're an untrained former actor," Miller said in response. "I'm a former actor," Cain said. "I'm a former professional football player, too. So, want to run down your resume? I mean, it's so stupid." "Denigrating somebody because they're doing this because of what they used to do or what they do or whether they're an actor or a writer or a newscaster is ridiculous. It's an ad hominem attack," Cain asserted, reminding viewers again of his law enforcement background. Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@ and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.
The Hill
12 minutes ago
- The Hill
The corporate tax-break spree meets federal austerity. Here's what states should do.
Chasing the next big things in manufacturing and tech, states and localities have given out special corporate tax breaks at record levels over the past several years. But federal austerity is about to force a long-overdue reckoning upon this form of corporate welfare. In 2022, the U.S. set an all-time record for individual factories receiving state and local subsidies of more than $1 billion each. That year, eight factories were given an average of $2 billion each. Engorged by five federal stimulus bills totaling $6.5 trillion, states and localities squandered some of their COVID-19 windfalls, enacting or expanding subsidies to industries such as data centers and movie production that are guaranteed economic losers. Others lavished subsidies on factories already gold-plated by Uncle Sam, such as electric-veh i cle battery plants in Tennessee, Kansas and Georgia, and microchip fabrication facilities in Ohio, New York and Texas. More states have enacted sales and use tax exemptions for d a ta centers, the capital-intensive server farms that threaten to drive up consumer electricity prices while creating very few permanent jobs. States such as Virginia and Texas are already losing $1 billion per year that way. In some states, data centers get local property tax abatements as well. Amazon Web Services has received two such awards totaling more than $5 billion. States such as Illinois have enacted new incentive programs by which workers will effectively pay their personal state income taxes to their employers — terrible policy that fuels structural deficits. Some states have enacted 'lard on' giveaways on top of the federal opportunity zone program — trickle-down economics by census tract. But now comes a winter of austerity. Trump and the Republican Congress are implementing deep cuts to scores of federal programs for education, job creation, small businesses, affordable housing, infrastructure, agriculture and workforce training. The full damage of the fiscal 2026 federal budget is not yet apparent, but state and local leaders will be forced to protect public services by taking a cold, hard look at all the ill-advised tax breaks they have on their books. Thanks to a new reporting rule, taxpayers will be able to help politicians find the money. The Governmental Accounting Standards Board's Statement No. 77 on Tax Abatement Disclosures requires most states and local governments, including independent school districts, to report each year how much revenue they lose to such tax-break programs. With seven years of abatement-loss data visible now, we can see some big losers and scary trends. Among those most harmed will be urban school districts; places with a lot of data centers; states such as Michigan that are still paying out tax credits for programs they long ago discontinued; and states such as Georgia, with its uncapped television and film production giveaway. But these places also have the most to gain from reform. Here is what to save and what to fix. Do sustain investments that benefit the most employers, such as infrastructure, K-14, workforce development and small business development. Don't subsidize industries that don't need aid, especially those that cost far more in tax revenue than they generate. Topping that list are data centers and television and film production. Never enact — in fact, repeal — any incentive that effectively means workers pay their state personal income taxes to their employers. Repeal any 'lard on' tax break you may have enacted on opportunity zones, and decouple your state income tax code from the federal definition of adjusted gross income to protect your revenue from the opportunity zones' capital gains exclusions. Amend your state enabling legislation for property tax abatements and tax increment financing to take the school share of the property tax off the table. For every other affected taxing body (such as transit agencies or fire districts), give them full autonomous control over their share of the property taxes (or other revenues) that might be abated or TIF-diverted. These safeguards will help the U.S. economy weather the coming federal austerity. Plus, they will reduce the risk inherent in economic development spending by curbing the 'too many eggs in too few baskets' problem of mega-deals.
Newsweek
13 minutes ago
- Newsweek
ICE Detains Man With 'Pending' Green Card Application After Car Crash
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Oladipo Oyeneyin, a Nigerian-born man who has lived in the United States for more than 15 years and has a "pending" green card application, was arrested and detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) following a car crash, according to an online fundraiser. Newsweek has reached out to ICE via email and to the GoFundMe page for comment on Wednesday. Why It Matters Oyeneyin's detention comes amid an immigration crackdown under the Trump administration, with the president having pledged to launch the largest mass deportation operation in U.S. history. Immigrants residing in the country both illegally and legally, with valid documentation such as green cards and visas, as well as those with criminal histories, have been detained. The Trump administration has deported thousands of people to their countries of origin, as well as a smaller percentage to third countries with U.S. agreements. It has also encouraged individuals without proper documentation to self-deport. What To Know A GoFundMe created on Oyeneyin's behalf says he was in a car accident "but not as the person at fault," last week. The online fundraiser continued, "he was arrested and charged with hit-and-run and evading arrest." Oyeneyin, 48, was then held by ICE due to his immigration status, the online fundraiser says. Newsweek has confirmed in the ICE database tracker that he is held in the Montgomery Processing Center in Conroe, Texas. The center has a capacity of around 1,300 people and is run by the Geo Group. The GoFundMe notes that Oyeneyin has lived in the U.S. for over 15 years and that "his green card application has been pending for years." His next immigration court date is reportedly in January 2027. The fundraiser noted that Oyeneyin lost his job and was unable to pay his former immigration attorney, "which caused delays in completing necessary steps for his case — steps he was determined to finish before his hearing." In 2018, Oyeneyin was charged with assaulting a family member in Houston, according to court documents reviewed by Newsweek. The charge was a misdemeanor class A. The judge placed him on probation in 2022. Another Texas court report shows that in 2019, Oyeneyin was arrested by the Harris County Sheriff's office for driving while intoxicated. Inset: Oladipo Oyeneyin. Main: National Guard and other law enforcement stationed in Eagle Pass, Texas, on March 20, 2024. Inset: Oladipo Oyeneyin. Main: National Guard and other law enforcement stationed in Eagle Pass, Texas, on March 20, 2024. GoFundMe/Raquel Natalicchio/Houston Chronicle via AP What People Are Saying Ikenna Ezeaju, who organized the GoFundMe for Oladipo Oyeneyin, wrote in the online fundraiser: "Oladipo Oyeneyin is a kind, hardworking person who simply wants the chance to clear his name, continue his life here, and contribute to the country he's called home for most of his adult life." Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, said in a statement previously shared with Newsweek: "Under Secretary [Kristi] Noem, we are delivering on President Trump's and the American people's mandate to arrest and deport criminal illegal aliens to make America safe. Secretary Noem unleashed ICE to target the worst of the worst and carry out the largest deportation operation of criminal aliens in American history." What Happens Next U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has released its September 2025 visa bulletin, providing key updates for applicants across family-based, employment-based, and diversity visa categories. USCIS currently has 11.3 million pending applications.
