The Boston Globe from Boston, Massachusetts • A1

the osteal lobe Wednesday, April 5, 2017 r- Green line extension gets back on track US approves new cost estimate, paving way for scaled-back project By Nicole Dungca GLOBE STAFF The long-planned Green Line extension into Somerville and Medford cleared a crucial milestone on Tuesday with the on the new estimate before proceeding. "It's an end to a long process," John Dalton, an MBTA manager hired last fall to oversee the project, said Tuesday. "It's a huge step in getting us ready to award construction contracts in the fall." The extension still needs separate approvals from the federal government, but MBTA officials and advocates said the endorsement of the new $2.3 billion Cost of Green Line extension 2021 Scheduled finish approval of the new cost estimate for the $2.3 billion project that clears up uncertainty about when and if the project would move forward. The federal government had previously earmarked nearly $1 billion for IDLIB MEDIA CENTER VIA ASSOCIATED PRESS A man carried a child in an Idlib province hospital. Besides the many dead, scores were sickened by chemicals.

Chemical attack kills dozens construction costs represented a major victory. The project is scheduled to be finished by the end of 202 1 with some stations opening that summer. Proponents say it will spur GREEN LINE, Page A8 the 4.7-mile light rail extension, but plans were put on hold for nearly a year when the estimated cost soared to up to $3 billion. The MBTA has since scaled back the project, but needed federal authorization Syrian regime accused of a war crime; US criticizes Russia, Iran gasping, or foaming at the mouth after breathing in poison that possibly contained a nerve agent or other banned chemicals, according to witnesses, doctors, and rescue workers. They said the toxins spread after war-planes dropped bombs in the early morning hours.

Some rescue workers grew ill and collapsed from proximity to the dead. The opposition-run Health Depart-SYRIA, Page A5 on Tuesday, inciting international outrage over the ever-increasing government impunity shown in the country's six-year war. Western leaders including President Trump blamed the Syrian government of President Bashar Assad and called on its patrons, Russia and Iran, to prevent a recurrence of what many described as a war crime. Dozens of people, including children, died some writhing, choking, Medical marijuana caught in limbo By Anne Barnard and Michael R. Gordon NEW YORK TIMES BEIRUT One of the worst bombings in Syria turned a rebel-held area into a toxic kill zone In the news 'We don't know what the regulations are, so we can't do JEREMY BROMBERG MassMedicum Bid for parental leave stalls City's unions push 'X to extend benefit Concerned about recreational pot, towns delay action By Dan Adams and Adam Vaccaro GLOBE STAFF Marshfield Selectman Jim Fitzgerald is a firm believer in the medical benefits of marijuana.

His mother used it when she suffered from liver cancer in the 1970s to manage the side effects of chemotherapy. "I know the efficacy I've watched it," Fitzgerald said. But like other municipal officials across Massachusetts, Fitzgerald is newly wary of medical dispensaries. In March, he joined his colleagues in deciding to not permit any in Marshfield until state lawmak- ers and regulators finalize new rules for the sale of pot. The concern? That medical dispensaries would quickly expand to include sales of recreational marijuana, too.

As written, the law approved by voters in November would allow that to happen without any additional local permission. "There's a big difference be- MARIJUANA, Page A9 The SJC questioned the state's role in immigration enforcement, setting the stage for Massachusetts to claim a legal defense to President Trump's immigration policies. Bl. A man from Kyrgyzstan who had a Russian passport was responsible for the deadly subway blast in St. Petersburg, officials said.

A4. Republicans said they have the votes to change the rules and crush a Democratic filibuster of Neil Gorsuch's nomination. A6. Struggling Staples is reportedly in talks for a potential sale with private-equity firms. CI.

The USS Constitution will return to Boston Harbor on July 23 after years in drydock. Bl. By Meghan E. Irons GLOBE STAFF In the spring of 2015, Mayor Martin J. Walsh and members of the City Council won accolades for granting paid parental leave for some city employees, a first for the city.

Walsh hailed it as the "right thing to do" for working families and urged businesses and other cities "to follow our lead." The initial policy applied only to the city's nonunion employees about 1,400 people but some councilors had said that the policy should be extended to every city worker. For 16,000 union employ- CRAIG F. WALKERGLOBE STAFF Lily Beagan fought to get parental leave to help her care for her newborn. ees, that has not happened. The issue of paid parental leave, gaining traction in the state Legislature and on the national PARENTAL LEAVE, Page A8 Antiabortion ads aimed at women near clinics blocked Jackson worked for drug maker Dry spot Wednesday: Better, some sun.

High 44-49. Low 36-41. Thursday: Heavy rain again. High 44-49. Low 43-48.

Sunrise: 6:20 Sunset: 7:15 Complete report, Bll. VOL. 291, NO. 95 Suggested retail price $2.00 $2.50 in Florida the marketing campaign, Boston-based Copley Advertising, from sending such messages. It says the company cannot use location data about people who are near a Massachusetts health care facility to send them advertisements based on a medical condition.

The agreement raised First Amendment concerns among some observers and also drew attention to the fairly common ability of advertisers to use smartphone data to track locations and infer personal details about cellphone owners. In this case, Copley Advertising used a technique known as "geofencing" that aims messag- ABORTION ADS, Page A8 By Curt Woodward and Hiawatha Bray GLOBE STAFF The digital ads from anti-abortion groups appeared on the smartphones of young women who were near reproductive health clinics. "You Have Choices," one message said. Others offered "Pregnancy Help," and assured recipients, "You're Not Alone," according to Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, who on Tuesday announced a legal action that alleged the ads illegally used consumer health data. A settlement reached with Healey's office preemptively bars the company that devised In 2000s, marketed opioid for pain relief By Jim O'Sullivan GLOBE STAFF City Councilor Tito Jackson has made the drug addiction epidemic a centerpiece in his campaign for mayor, lamenting "an opioid crisis which has not been addressed." But long before the scourge of widespread opioid abuse fully came into public view, Jackson worked as a pharmaceutical sales representative, and it was his job to convince doctors, pharmacies, and medical experts that one opioid in particular the morphine-based Kadian was an alternative to better-known drugs like OxyContin.

Jackson marketed Kadian for New Jersey-based Alpharma when he worked for the company from 2004 until 2006. The Food and Drug Administration describes Kadian as a "long-acting (extended-release) opioid pain medicine that can put you at risk for overdose and death." In a recent interview, Jackson JACKSON, Page A7 Tito Jackson marketed the Kadian as an alternative to better-known drugs. 14315 Ill III IBIIIIII I 0 "947 72 5m 4' 400 Varieties of Hardwood, Laminate, Bamboo, Vinyl and more Mil I iW April 5-11 (Wed Tues) from ooor-tooRS- 1-800-HARDWOOD lumberliquidators.com 59 sqft Pay no sales tax ON EVERYTHING in our stores! Valid in AR, AZ, CA, GA, MA, MD, NJ, NM, SC, TX, WA Wl only. Save by an amount equal to the sales tax. While supplies last.

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