Week in Review: K-9s Nose Leads to Cocaine Arrest; Sound Barriers Installed; Medford Family Featured in TIME

Here are some of the top recent headlines from around Medford:

Medford Family Shines Light on Pre-Natal Down Syndrome in TIME Magazine Story: When Melanie McLaughlin found out her unborn daughter had Down syndrome in 2007, she was faced with an unimaginably difficult decision. "We all like to think we know what we’ll do, but you don’t really know until until you're faced with it," McLaughlin said in a phone interview Thursday. After meeting with a family with a child with Down syndrome and much research, McLaughlin, 46, decided to keep her daughter, now four and named Grace. McLaughlin now helps other parents in the same position as a volunteer with Parents First Call, an organization that gives non-directive support to mothers who have discovered their unborn child has Down syndrome.

New Sound Barrier Going Up Along I-93 in Medford: A sound barrier is going up along I-93 in Medford, and some of the highway's neighbors have been waiting a long time for a little quiet. For the last 10 years, State Rep. Paul Donato has heard complaints from residents near the highway in Medford, some with the highway practically in their backyard. Some have been seeking a sound barrier for over 25 years, Donato said Thursday. "It was something they felt should have been done when 93 was built back in the 60s," Donato said.

Medford Officials Consider Reducing Restaurant Liquor License Requirements: The city council's subcommittee on licensing is contemplating an attempt to make liquor licenses available to more restaurants. In 2008, the city reduced its seating requirement for full liquor license eligibility from 250 to 99 seats. Restaurants with 19 or more seats are allowed to have a beer and wine license, but can't serve hard liquor or mixed drinks. Some of those establishments are interested in serving more than beer and wine, councilors Paul Camuso and Rick Caraviello said during a meeting Tuesday.

Speeding Stop Leads to Cocaine Bust in Medford: A routine speeding stop last week near Fulton Street led to the discovery of nearly two ounces of cocaine in a hidden compartment of a mini-van, according to a police report. Police allegedly found 14 plastic bags containing 1/8 ounce of cocaine each, and two one-gram bags of cocaine in a hidden compartment in the floor of a van driven by Seymour Hernandez-Garcia, 28, of Peabody on Friday. The discovery came after a State Police K-9 searched the van and police obtained a search warrant to open the hidden compartment, according to a police report.

Contentious Moments of the Medford City Council: The Boston Globe's Matt Byrne reported Thursday of the "outbursts, petty squabbles, and resentment of old disagreements and the city’s longtime mayor," that often occur during Medford City Council meetings on Tuesday nights at City Hall. Here are examples of a few of the council's more contentious moments in recent history.