Boston Globe

Most everyone agrees that this is the year to overhaul the state’s criminal justice system. But sharp divisions remain over how far the changes should go.

While I appreciate the important work that District Attorney Michael O’Keefe and his office do to prosecute criminals on the Cape and Islands (“Mandatory minimums play a role in criminal justice system,” Letters, Dec. 29), I must interject a dose of reality into the conversation about mandatory-minimum sentencing in the Commonwealth.

Hundreds of people from about 50 faith-based organizations filled a Jamaica Plain church Thursday night to renew a call for equality and justice at a time of uncertainty under President Donald Trump.

After Bostonians overwhelmingly voted for the Community Preservation Act, a small property tax increase aimed at improving neighborhoods, a new battle is taking shape — over the committee that will decide how that nearly $20 million in new revenue will be spent.

State senators Thursday called for bold criminal justice reform on issues ranging from repealing mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolent drug crimes, to restricting the use of solitary confinement, to offering more services for offenders suffering from drug addiction.

A gathering of the Massachusetts Board of Rabbis last month featured a pair of unusual speakers: the leaders of Boston’s largest mosque

At Passover Seders, symbolic foods bring alive the story of the Jews’ exodus from bondage in ancient Egypt. Bitter herbs are a reminder of suffering. Charoset — a paste of fruit, wine, nuts, and spices — recalls the mortar used in slaves’ labor. Unleavened matzo, the haste of their departure