The Daily Free Press
Year xliii. Volume lxxxiv. Issue XI
WINTER WOES Unemployment rises after holidays, page 3.
[
Tuesday, February 5, 2013 The Independent Student Newspaper at Boston University
‘RAINE PAIN
What might be causing your migraine, page 5.
]
www.dailyfreepress.com
SPILL THE BEAN
Poor power play costs men’s hockey the Beanpot, page 8.
WEATHER
Today: AM snow showers/High 29 Tonight: Snow showers late/Low 25 Tomorrow: 39/17 Data Courtesy of weather.com
Terriers fall to NU in Beanpot first round More students fail
to pay college loans, new study suggests
By Tim Healey Daily Free Press Staff
The No. 11/13 Boston University men’s hockey team made history Monday night, but in a way the Terriers (13–11–1, 10–7–1 Hockey East) least desired. BU fell, 3–2, to Northeastern University at TD Garden in the semifinals of the 61st Annual Beanpot, making the Terriers’ seniors the first class since 1965 to go their entire BU career without winning the fourteam tournament. “It’s pretty devastating,” said senior captain Wade Megan, tears welling up in his eyes. “I just wanted this so bad, for my teammates, my classmates, the school and the BU community.” The Class of 2013’s Beanpot experience was certainly a rough one. After falling in the championship game to Boston College as freshmen in 2010, they got topped by the Eagles in overtime in the semifinals the next year. They then lost a heartbreaker — again to BC, and again in overtime — in the championship of their junior year. This time, the Huskies (8–13–3, 4–11–3 Hockey East) and freshman forward Kevin Roy did them in. Roy netted a goal per period for a hat trick in his Beanpot debut, giving him a team-high 15 on the season. The Terriers, although flashy at times, did not do themselves any favors. Marred by an inconsistent effort throughout the 60 minutes, just as they have been for most of their games since Christmas, they couldn’t
By Margaret Waterman Daily Free Press Staff
MICHELLE JAY/DAILY FREE PRESS
Senior captain Wade Megan hangs his head on the bench after Northeastern University scores its third goal in the first game of the Beanpot at TD Garden Monday night.
take advantage of the young Northeastern defensive corps, and let the Husky freshman sensation beat them too many times. “I feel badly for … my seniors but especially my captain here, Wade, who’s given us an unbelievable career and won’t get a Beanpot,” said BU coach Jack Parker. “A real disappointing loss for us. We’re in a bad frame of mind here, a bad stage of the season for us … We weren’t unfortunate
tonight. Northeastern was the better team.” Northeastern got the scoring started at 2:09 in the first when, after Megan turned the puck over in the neutral zone, Roy drove to the crease and stuffed it through freshman goaltender Matt O’Connor’s pad. The Terriers did not take long to strike back, with Needham native and freshman
Beanpot, see page 7
Investigation continues in bus crash that injured 32 By Kyle Plantz Daily Free Press Staff
Massachusetts State Police are continuing to investigate the scene where a bus crashed into an overpass, injuring several passengers, on Soldiers Field Road Saturday night. The MSP said they will reconstruct the collision to determine the cause of the accident before issuing any charges or citations. The reconstruction process will be finished in two-to-six weeks, according to a press release Monday. On Saturday, the Boston Fire Department received a call at 7:34 p.m. that a Calvary Coach bus, which was full of students and chaperones on their way back to Pennsylvania after visiting Harvard University, crashed into the Western Avenue overpass on Soldiers Field Road, said Steve MacDonald, BFD spokesman. “It [the overpass] shattered the whole
roof off leaving many people trapped,” MacDonald said. “Approximately 36 people were on board. Thirty-two went to the hospital and three were in critical condition.” The bus exceeded the 10-foot limit that prohibits large vehicles on the road, he said. Michael Verseckes, Massachusetts Department of Transportation spokesman, said the DOT was notified at about 8:10 p.m. that the bus struck, and by 9:42 p.m., officials closed the road. A technical rescue response was needed to remove the victims trapped inside the bus. Firefighters used the Jaws of Life and backboards to remove the passengers from the top of the bus, MacDonald said. By about 3 a.m., the bus was loaded on a flat bed truck and was towed away, he said. Verseckes said the road reopened Sunday at 7:27 a.m.
Massachusetts State Police said in a press release Monday the investigation is still ongoing. “Troopers from the Brighton Barracks, along with members of our Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section and our Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Section, continue to review and analyze evidence,” according to the press release. The MSP said the trove of evidence they collected is large. “That evidence includes physical evidence, witness and victim statements, information pertaining to the bus’ route of travel prior to the crash and posted signage along that route, results from our examination of the bus and preliminary results of the collision reconstruction,” to the press release stated. One victim, a 17-year-old male, remains in critical condition, and others sustained
Crash, see page 2
In light of a new study finding college students more likely than ever to default on their student loans, students must be aware of various repayment options and strategies to avoid default, Boston University officials said. The average size of student loan debt has increased 58 percent since 2005, while the average credit card loan balance and average balance on car loans have decreased, according to a study released by FICO Labs Wednesday. “You can always default on your loan, obviously, but my understanding is if you make money below the poverty line, you basically don’t have to repay things anyway, it can change your loan terms,” said Johannes Schmieder, a BU economics professor. In 2005, the average student loan debt was $17,233, whereas in 2012 the average was $27,253, according to the study. Students were more likely to default on their student loans in 2012 than in 2005 due to significant growth in the amount of debt new graduates carry, the study stated. Frederic Hyunh, FICO’s senior principal scientist, said he was not surprised by the results of the study as student loan default rates have been increasing. “We’ve been hearing for quite some time regarding some of the dangers in the student loan sector,” he said. “We have come across previous studies that indicated student loan debt is increasing — defaults are increasing.” Consumer interest regarding the student loan and the student loan sector has increased, which prompted FICO’s research, Hyunh said. “We basically wanted to corroborate this to better understand what we’re seeing in terms of the growth of outstanding debt — being able to qualify that as well as measuring how well the consumers with student loan debt are repaying those sort various obligations,” Hyunh said. For federally subsidized loans, Schmieder said students have the option of entering the Income-Based Repayment Plan, which allows borrowers to pay back their loans based on their current income in rela-
Debt, see page 2
14 months after encampment, Occupy Boston begins legal action By Jasper Craven Daily Free Press Staff
Five Occupy Boston defendants appeared in Boston Municipal Court Monday, contending that the arrest and removal of Occupy protesters last October by the Boston Police Department infringed on their constitutional rights of assembly and free speech. “Arresting them and charging them with criminal conduct for exercising those rights was plainly unlawful and in violation of their constitutional rights to assembly and free speech under the First Amendment,” stated a Friday press release from the National Lawyers Guild, the association from which attorneys have volunteered to represent the protesters. The court appearance Monday brought the assignment of a new judge to the case, said Urszula Masny-Latos, executive director of the NLG. The planned agenda for Monday — ruling on a motion to dismiss the trail altogether — will now take place
Feb. 11, she said. “If he [the judge] grants our notion, then there will be no trial. However, if he denies our motion to dismiss, we will go straight to trial. Everything will be decided on Monday,” Masny-Latos said. The five Occupy Boston defendants, Andrea Hill, Ashley Brewer, Brianne Milder, Tammi Arford and Kerry McDonald were among 140 protesters charged with trespassing and unlawful assembly in October 2011, when the Occupy Boston encampment in Dewey Square was shut down, according to a Saturday press release from the NLG. “In our opinion, Occupy Boston was a peaceful, political movement,” MasnyLatos said. “As it’s form of expression, it used occupation of public land set aside for this purpose.” Masny-Latos said Dewey Square was a public space intended for the people. “Conservancy documents say it was de-
Occupt, see page 2
KENSHIN OKUBO/DAILY FREE PRESS FILE
Five Occupy Boston protesters are contesting that they were illegally removed from Dewey Square in October 2011.