Deval Patrick Announcing the Departure of Nearly Half His Cabinet

Deval Patrick Announcing the Departure of Nearly Half His Cabinet. The governor will announce today the shake-up in four of his cabinet positions, including the addition of Suffolk Sheriff Andrea Cabral, who will replace Safety and Security Secretary Mary Beth Heffernan. Patrick will appoint a replacement sheriff until a special election in 2014. Administration and Finance Secretary Jay Gonzalez, Health and Human Services Secretary JudyAnn Bigby, and Education Secretary Paul Reville are also leaving, according to the Globe.  [Globe]

Jury’s Still Out on How Cahill Outcome Will Impact Martha Coakley. The debate is divided along party lines on whether the Cahill mistrial will come at a political cost to the Attorney General, with many critics questioning whether Coakley should have brought charges against him in the first place.  [Boston.com]

Photo: Baby Girl Born at 12:12 p.m. on 12/12/12 at Mass General. At 12:11, new mom Colleen Klinker “saved the final push” so Noelle would be born at the right moment.  [Fox]

Winning $50 Million Powerball Ticket Sold in Lexington. The ticket was purchased at the Shell on Waltham Street in Lexington and is the only winning ticket sold nationwide for Wednesday night’s jackpot.  [WBZ]

PDF Co-Inventor Donates $4.8 Million to School That Sparked His Curiosity in Computer Programming. Edward Taft, a student at St. Mark’s School in Southborough in the 1960’s, made the donation so the school could renovate and expand its Science Technology Engineering and Math facility. Years ago, Taft would spend hours in front of a six-foot Digital Corp. PDP-8 learning the ins and outs of programming. Taft became an early employee of Adobe and help to develop Postscript and later, the PDF.   [MetroWest Daily News]