Good afternoon and welcome to This Just In. I’m Mike McDermott, managing editor of The Providence Journal. And I’ve never even been to Iowa, so don’t blame me. Speaking of Iowa, did you know that one of the caucus sites was right here in Rhode Island? You do now.
For the last four years, state Sen. Adam Satchell has battled to provide an avenue that would allow out-of-state wine sellers to ship directly to Rhode Island consumers. His efforts have gone nowhere in the State House. But now, a lawsuit filed by three wine enthusiasts is posing a challenge to the state laws barring such shipments. The Indiana law firm representing the wine enthusiasts say the law is unconstitutional and pure protectionism, while a coalition of local wholesalers maintain that the state is protecting its legitimate interests.
It’s been quite a 24-hour period for Colby Corson. The senior at Narragansett High has suddenly become a viral sensation, thanks to his full-court, buzzer-beating shot that led to a victory over Pilgrim last night in Warwick. It was the No. 1 play of the day on ESPN’s “SportsCenter.” Rhode Island high-school sports doesn’t get featured on ESPN’s Top 10 plays very often, but incredibly, Corson has been a part of two such occasions. Last year, his Narragansett team was on the losing end of a buzzer-beating 3-pointer in a state championship game against East Greenwich, a play that was No. 6 on that day. “This feels good,” Corson said today. “Feels a lot better than last year.”
While the other candidates in the Democratic presidential field were sweating the lack of results from the Iowa caucuses, Michael Bloomberg was out in California going on the attack against President Donald Trump. Bloomberg, a late entry into the race, decided to ignore Iowa and focus elsewhere. Tomorrow morning he’ll be in Providence to meet voters. No word on whether longtime Bloomberg admirer Gov. Gina Raimondo will make an appearance with him.
Education reporter Linda Borg sat down with Jeannine Dingus-Eason, the dean of education at Rhode Island College, to discuss her efforts to recruit more young teachers — particularly teachers of color.
It turns out there was no black mold in the State House, but there is a grand jury investigating the controversial audit of the Rhode Island Convention Center that had been requested by House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello.
Meanwhile, Mattiello’s predecessor as House Speaker, Gordon Fox, is set to be a fully free man (albeit one who owes $93,000 in restitution) later this week.
The Providence firefighters union has sent a letter to a city councilman drawing attention to the aging condition of the department’s fleet of vehicles. Coincidentally, our visuals chief Mike Delaney recently put together this gallery of historic photos of the Providence Fire Department.
Food editor Gail Ciampa reports that Fall River’s Portugalia Marketplace is about to get a spotlight on PBS.
Our most-read story: Moses Brown School released findings of an investigation that concluded five former employees engaged in sexual misconduct involving students between the 1950s and early 2000s. The report, however, named only one of the alleged perpetrators.
Tonight, the URI Rams will look to keep climbing toward a possible Top 25 spot when they host UMass, a team that is heading in the opposite direction. If you’re not going to the Ryan Center, the game is at 7 p.m. on the CBS Sports Network.
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