 Welcome to our newscast on the BU News Service website. I'm Justin Schmidhorst. Leading the news this Wednesday, a rising number of COVID cases and vaccines are reported here in Massachusetts. Reporter Sierra Sorrentino reports that the Bay State is getting a big boost of COVID-19 vaccine doses. Massachusetts is getting nearly 830,000 vaccination doses from the federal government. Mass vaccination sites will receive 445,000 with 385,000 going to community health centers. The remaining 42,000 will be dispersed between mobile vaccination sites and pop-up clinics. Governor Baker just got his shot Tuesday at the Heinz Convention Center. My message would be that the process worked pretty much as it was supposed to. Half of U.S. adults could have one of the vaccine shots as early as this weekend. Experts warn that we should not declare victory yet, with over 100 million adults still not vaccinated. Biden said April 19th as the goal for states to open vaccine eligibility to all willing adults. But the pace of this greatly varies state by state. A new study finds that one in three COVID-19 survivors may suffer long-term brain symptoms, with anxiety and mood disorders being the most diagnosed. The study examined more than 230,000 patients, making it the largest yet. Reporting for BU News Service, I'm Sierra Sorrentino. Issues with COVID forced the University of New Hampshire to cancel the rest of its football season. The team only played one game this season. The president of Massachusetts General Hospital, Peter Slavin, is stepping down after 18 years leading the renowned institution. Slavin announced his departure in an email to staff this morning. He will remain with Mass General while a search for his successor takes place. The news comes amid a broad restructuring of Mass General's parent company, Mass General Brigham, formerly known as Partners Healthcare. A gym teacher at Duxbury Middle School was fired after parents of a former student accused him of raping their son. John Blake is being accused by Joe and Melissa Foley of raping their son, Parker, when he was a student at Duxbury Middle School in 2006. The family says they discovered this in Parker's journal. Blake has denied the accusations and has not been criminally charged. Florida Republican Representative Matt Gaetz sought preemptive pardons from then-President Trump during the final weeks of Trump's term. Gaetz is under investigation for child sex trafficking regarding an alleged relationship with a 17-year-old girl. Gaetz said the pardons were for bloodlust of political opponents. It is unknown if Gaetz or the Trump White House knew of the ongoing investigation at the time he requested the pardons. The Trump administration did not grant Gaetz's pardon request. The trial of Derek Chauvin continues in Minneapolis this week. Members of law enforcement are testifying about police training and policies. CNN reporter Darrell Forges has more from Minnesota. One after another, veteran members of law enforcement taking a stand in the murder trial of Derek Chauvin, testifying on police training and procedure. Is this a use of force? Yes, sir. The prosecution attempting to cut the heart of the defense's argument that then Minneapolis police officer Chauvin was following his training when he knelt on George Floyd's neck for over nine minutes. We don't train leg neck restraints with the officers in service. We've been, as far as by knowledge, we never have. On Tuesday, the use of force instructor, testifying officers are trained to only use force that is proportional to the threat. You want to use the lowest level of force possible. Witnesses also said officers are required to de-escalate situations. We have the time to slow things down and reevaluate, reassess. And render aid. If you don't have a pulse on a person, you'll immediately start CPR. But in cross-examination, the defense maintaining Chauvin's actions were appropriate. Does this appear to be a neck restraint? No, sir. And argued use of force depends on the situation. There is no strict application of every single rule, agreed? Or every single technique? That is correct. An attorney for George Floyd's family says the testimony from members of law enforcement could make a big impact on the case. That really told us and shows us that Chauvin was very wrong and what he did was a serious, serious offense. In Minneapolis, I'm Daryl Forges. Derek Chauvin faces charges of manslaughter, second-degree murder, and third-degree murder in the death of George Floyd. A Massachusetts native killed during an attack on the Capitol last week will lie in state there. Congressional leaders announced that Capitol Police Officer Billy Evans will lie in honor at the Capitol rotunda. The North Adams native died when a suspect ran to security checkpoint at the Capitol last Friday. Another officer was hurt and the suspect was killed. Ceremonies will take place this Tuesday. Coming up next, why Massachusetts drivers may face trouble this week, and to celebrate a tradition returns. Opening day at Fenway. These stories end much more when you return. I first saw a turtle. My heart was full, not anything but lonely. We have this, like, deep connection, this heart connection. He just wants to be close to you and part of your life. Every day with a turtle is a perfect day. When I'm holding her, it makes me feel calmer. I think everything he does shows how much he loves us. When we adopt a shelter pet, we discover they're a little bit of a lot of things. But they're all pure love. Welcome back to our newscast. Here in Massachusetts, vehicle inspections are still on hold at the registry of motor vehicles. The delay is due to a malware attack on the Wisconsin company, the RMV uses to service inspections. Drivers with expired inspection stickers will need to wait for Friday for a new one. More than 100 evacuated Florida residents may now return home despite a toxic waste water leak. The leak is caused by a breach in the 79 acre reservoir south of Tampa, raising concern of unleashing a 20-foot wall of water. Around 34 million gallons per day are being moved from the reservoir through pumps and other methods. Around 180 million gallons of water have been removed so far. Two New York doormen are fired after not intervening during an attack upon a 65-year-old Filipino-American woman almost two weeks ago. One of the two doormen closed the building's doors while a 65-year-old Filipino-American woman was attacked on the sidewalk outside. Building management said the two staff members had not followed, quote, required emergency and safety protocols, end quote. The attack follows a wave of assaults on Asian-Americans during the past year. A Russian opposition leader is on a hunger strike in jail despite reports of having a high temperature and a cough. Alexei Navalny is protesting prison officials' refusal to give him access to medical care. His team's Instagram account made the claims. Navalny was the victim of poisoning before his imprisonment and believes the Kremlin and President Putin were behind the attack. It looks like it is going to be a blockbuster summer for businesses on Cape Cod in the islands. So many visitors that business owners are worried. Hotel and restaurant owners are having trouble finding enough employees to handle the expected search of vacation-starved visitors. COVID delays and visas for crucial foreign workers are blamed as well as a local shortage of available workers. Stormy weather caused the Red Sox to delay their opening day game last Thursday. BU news reporters Bart, Tochi, and Daphne Mark visited Fenway on Friday to gather all the sights, sounds, and smells of this year's opening game. Opening day is Boston tradition. Normally the northwest corner of Fenway Park at the intersection of Brookline Avenue, Jersey Street, and David Ortiz Drive is bustling. Red Sox Royals, limited edition opening day paid. Yes, that's it. I'll be happy. But the vendors say the Red Sox 2021 opening day crowds were just not the same. Not much business, kind of feeling it out a little bit. A lot of downtime sitting out here, twiddling your thumbs. At the Red Sox store on Fenway Plaza, manager Tim Pettit said business has been good despite the limited attendance. Great that they did the vaccines here, but we're a baseball park, and it's good to finally get it back going. And having fans in the stands really, compared to last year, world of difference. We were down to pretty much nothing last year. And so we're just happy to be back in any capacity. And the fans seem to be just happy to be here. I don't hear a lot of complaints. I'm so happy to be back. Welcome to our new care. Pettit is not the only one glad to have Sox fans in Fenway. Arthur Alexander has attended every opening day for 63 consecutive years. And I travel from all over the country to come here and I fly back. Except for last year, when he was stranded in Hawaii by the pandemic. If you're a fan, you're a fan. Good days, bad days. If you only picked the good days, you're not a fan. Alexander Streak began when he ditched graduate school at MIT in the 1950s with a classmate. He has that in common with some of the youngest parkgoers. I pulled him out of school early. So he had to have a full day of school yesterday. Another thing that unites Sox fans, young and old, craving for a classic Fenway hot dog. The Red Sox play their next game at the Baltimore Orioles Thursday afternoon. Still to come, all the important weekend weather forecast, turnover time for our men in green. And Tom Brady talks about what's next, those stories, and all the sports news when we return. Hey, chat. Why do I wear a mask? Because when I'm not behind the screen, my mask is my cheat code. And when we stop the spread, we level up. What's the next level? Hanging with friends again. You're right. Mask have always been a part of our community. I miss you guys, too. Being face to face is truly the next level. Here's the cheat code. Stop the spread of corona. Mask up, America. I hear someone go, didn't it come from you guys? Strangers cough at me. Move away from me. Someone spit towards my direction. All the stereotypes that we've worked so hard to break are just going to be reversed. And it won't let that happen. We all have their player part. I donate my plasma. I've been making masks. We deserve respect as much as everybody else. I'm a firefighter, not a virus. I'm a mass maker, not a virus. I'm a nurse. I'm a delivery woman, chef, a neighbor, artist, bus driver, I'm a doctor. Fight the virus, fight the virus. Welcome back to the newscast. We have a couple of mild days ahead, right, Daphne? That's right, Justin. It'll be pleasant and dry throughout the week, and then we might even get some slightly warmer weather before showers roll in over the weekend. We're starting with a clear sky this morning, but clouds will be increasing throughout the day. A light wind today will be bringing those clouds in, and that means it's going to be cooler along the coast. It's expected to be in the low 50s there in areas like Nantucket, where it's 52. It warms up as we reach Vineyard at 58, then mows inland parts of the state, like Fitchburg and Orange, will reach the mid-60s. It's in the mid-50s around Boston. In states to our south and west, out near D.C. and Detroit, it's in the high 70s and 80s. Now, as our current weather system moves out towards the coast, it could pull in those higher temperatures along with it, though we probably won't see temperatures quite that high. With this new pattern, it'll be close to 70 degrees Friday and Saturday across the inland parts of the state, but keeping those cooler temperatures on the coast. You can see tomorrow it's expected to be about 70 in inland Springfield, while coastal province town is sitting at a chilled 51. The average temperature for this time of year is 53 degrees. Enjoy the sun while you can, because by Sunday we'll have our next chance for rain. There's a spinning system from the west, and as that rain comes swirling in, temperatures will come down, bringing cool and wet weather for the next week. You can look forward to some of those classic April showers. While things are pretty mild here in New England, the same system that's bringing our warmer weather is causing some dramatic storm systems across the rest of the U.S. Justin, how's it looking around the country? Well, there's another threat of severe weather in the south today. Severe weather is expected tonight in the lower Mississippi Valley, almost two weeks after Georgia and Alabama were struck by deadly tornadoes. Tornadoes could pop up in regions from Louisiana to Iowa. Along the Mississippi River, there is a chance of seeing severe thunderstorms, damaging winds, and even hail late tonight and early tomorrow. And the Philadelphia 76ers completed their series sweep of the Celtics last night in the garden for the first time since the 2000 to 2001 season. BU News Service sports reporter Laura Sickles has more. Thanks, Justin. The Cs had no answer for Joel and Bied last night. The MVP candidate racked up 35 points in the 6ers' 106-96 win. In Boston's, 20 turnovers did not help their cause. The Celtics now have not won three in a row since before the All-Star break. After the game, Kemba Walker spoke about the team's slump. At the end of the day, you just have to adjust. You have to adapt. It's what I did for everyone. It's tough. It's a hard year. It's been a very, very tough year for everybody, you know? So, you just gotta find a way, man. That's all you can do. Tonight, the Celtics host the New York Knicks. In another NBA News, league sources announced this morning that the NBA expects all arenas to be at full capacity next season. They're also hopeful they can safely welcome additional fans in arenas this season. The league is partnering with Biometric Screening Company, CLEAR, which provides fans with a health pass app that includes health surveys and can link to COVID-19 lab results and vaccination records. The Orlando Magic, San Antonio Spurs, and Atlanta Hawks are already using the program. Tom Brady is continuing to dabble in the business world. Now, he is launching a non-fungible token platform called Autograph. The platform will bring together the biggest names in sports, entertainment, fashion, and pop culture to create unique digital collectibles. On Tuesday morning, on Good Morning America, the Goat talked about what keeps him going. What do you have to say to those people now? I would say, I was always kind of motivated by people that say, you can't do it. You're not good enough, you're not fast enough, not big enough, you don't have a good enough arm. You know, I've had a body of work over a period of time. So, you know, you just say, hey, like, quickly you forget. I think that's a great part about football. It's not really about what you did last year. It's kind of what you're gonna do this year. So, for me, it was what I was gonna do for the bucks last year. I still feel that way. And in case you forgot, that motivation looks like seven Super Bowl rings, and now an NFT company. Golfers at the Masters, which is set to begin in Georgia this week, are speaking out about the state's new restrictive voting laws. Rory McLeroy told reporters that voters should be able to get to the ballot boxes as easily as possible. Bryson DeChambeau said it's important that we treat everyone equally. On Tuesday, President Joe Biden praised the athletes and businesses that are speaking out against the laws. It is reassuring to see that for-profit operations and businesses are speaking up about how these new Jim Crow laws are just antithetical to who we are. The best way to deal with this is for Georgia and other states to smarten up. Round one of the tournament begins tomorrow. The Red Sox got a 6-5 win against the Tampa Bay Rays last night in extra innings. Boston started the season on a three-game skid, but now has two wins over the Rays. The Sox have a chance to sweep the three-game series and even out their record this afternoon at Fenway. And on Patriots Day weekend, the Red Sox won't actually be wearing red. Yes, Laura, instead I heard they're sporting new yellow and blue jerseys that honor the official colors of the Boston Marathon, which was made virtual this year. Some local businesses have suffered during the pandemic, and that includes independent booksellers. BU News Services Valerie Wenzis visited Belmont Books to see how one local bookstore is doing in the midst of a pandemic. Nearly one year into the pandemic, things look a little different for Belmont Books. The independent bookseller now does 40% of its sales online as compared to 5% pre-pandemic. One of the great pleasures of a bookstore is browsing and then picking up something that you really had no intention of buying. The pandemic forced Belmont Books owners, Chris and Kathy Abuzade, to get creative when people couldn't be inside the store. They offer FaceTime appointments where staff can show customers books, and they set up pop-up displays on the sidewalk. New books really sell best when people can just see them on the shelf. Belmont Books sales are down almost 30% for 2020, which is in line with the entire independent bookseller industry, according to the Abuzades. We think that what kind of makes a neighborhood a neighborhood is having all of these little stores. And if you don't make the effort to go support them, then you're not gonna have them anymore. Jerry Dickout, local retailer and president of the Belmont Center Business Association, says local businesses are a key part of the community. A local business gets to know the community, people, whereas big-box stores or Amazon don't really know you. Belmont Books received a forgivable PPP loan and has applied for another. The bookstore has a cafe inside, and the Abuzades hope to return it to in-person dining as soon as it's safe to do so. Reporting for BU News Service, I'm Valerie Wences. Belmont Books will be displaying books and other merchandise outside as early as next month when Belmont Center's thoroughfare partially closes down to allow more space for outdoor dining and merchandising. Today is National Beer Day, whether your beer of choice is on the lighter side or a hoppy IPA, today is a day to raise a glass of your favorite pint. National Beer Day is on April 7th, because in 1933, the measure that made the selling of low-alcoholic beverages like beer and wine in the United States legal again. And for the first time in more than a decade, Americans could step outside and enjoy a brew to celebrate. Cheers to beer. And that's it for our newscast for the BU News Service. I'm Justin Schmitthorst. Thanks for watching and have a great day.