[Feature] 
What's the Commonwealth doing to keep former prisoners from returning to jail?
The night before Hakim Cunningham was released from MCI Plymouth, he lay in his cell unable to sleep.
[Feature] 
The how and why of overcrowding
Phillip is a gentleman. He folds up his limbs with poise and wears wool pants with an impeccable crease. He's prone to diatribes against misogyny.
[Feature] 
Immigrant labor is the backbone of the summer tourism industry, a remaining bright spot in a dire economy. But a federal crackdown could mean trouble.
Fewer people will be bustling in the kitchen and making beds in restaurants and hotels across Cape Cod this year.
[Feature] 
Where did all your money go?
Unless you're hiding out from the IRS or lost your calendar, you probably filed your taxes yesterday. Ever wonder where your money goes when you see deductions on every paycheck?
[Feature] 
Can corporations buy your love by rooting for Boston's not-so-underdogs?
Remember the good ole days when clueless co-eds in pastel B hats were the most infuriating side effects of Red Sox mania?
[Feature] 
New England lore deserves a tipple or two
History class never was this fun (except for that one time polishing off the Bailey's right before midterms—whoooo boy). Boston's many contributions to the storied annals, items both fair and failed, provide the perfect vehicle to spotlight cocktails that could be seen as tribute to the following historical events. Inspired, derived or merely hinging on threadbare logic, these paired drinks serve as the best complement to pondering treasured local milestones. We sip, ponderously.
[Feature] 
The brave new world of private police forces
After the Virginia Tech massacre last April, Brandeis University considered repealing its long-standing policy of keeping campus police unarmed. A committee of students, staff and faculty met five times over the summer, hearing presentations from Waltham Police and public safety officials at Bentley and Babson Colleges. In September, the committee submitted a report to President Jehuda Reinharz recommending that Brandeis Police carry firearms. It signals a larger trend of militarizing campus security forces in preparation for a possible violent catastrophe.
[Pint and the Pen] 
Third Place Winner
The storefront shutter slammed down like a guillotine.
The streets were as empty as the refrigerator cases; the houses full as the freezer. Parents roasted by the fire; their children neatly tucked in blankets. It was 9 o'clock at night, but the snow blew in with a ferocity usually reserved for witching hour.
It was a chance that brought Nathan into the butcher shop that morning. Chance, and a generously sized sheet of butcher paper in the window, yellowed by the sun, with faded red letters that read "HELP WANTED."
[Pint and the Pen]
Second Place Winner
Hillary Clinton withdrew her nomination today and everyone's blaming me. The truth is, the fault lies with a careless mushroom-picker. Vincenzo is a 72 year-old stoner who supplies area restaurants with rare and delicious 'shrooms that he forages in the woods surrounding Boston.
[Pint and the Pen]
First Place Winner
Mom always sautéed our chicken dinner in too much beer – Bass Ale or Harpoon – so by the time us kids finished eating, we'd be looking at each other funny. Colby once fell over in his chair, and we all laughed. Alexis would jab her fork around the table in a threatening manner if Mom didn't serve dessert.
