Things You Need to Know Today: Troy Woman Arrested in Death of 7-Week Old Son

Here are the things you need to  know today......

From the Associated Press:

State police have arrested a 32-year-old woman and charged her in connection with the death of her 7-week-old son. Authorities say Miranda Hopkins was arrested at her home in Troy Friday night and charged with murder in the death of her son, Jaxson Hopkins. She'd called 911 Thursday and reported the baby was unresponsive. He was pronounced dead around 2:30 a.m. It wasn't immediately known if she is represented by a lawyer.

A group of friends in Oakland  are placing old Christmas trees in the ice on Messalonskee in the hopes of preventing another accident similar to one that killed a Massachusetts man a week ago.mithfield resident Todd Jackson is leading a drive to prevent such a tragedy from happening again. The Morning Sentinel reports he and friends have sunk 15 trees in the lake's ice just short of where it becomes open water to warn people of where the safe ice ends. Hazard signs are also going up at the lake.

Maine graduates facing student loan debt are getting some help figuring out how to lower monthly payments. The state Finance Authority of Maine says a new online tool is aimed at helping Mainers understand the consequences of taking on student loan debt.

Hundreds of people who want to save the Affordable Care Act are joining a group of Maine Democrats to rally for Congress to keep the health care law. U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, state Sen. Troy Jackson and state Rep. Ben Collings are hosting the rally on the steps of Portland City Hall on Sunday.

The oldest Bath-built wooden vessel known to be still afloat is returning home. The Maine Maritime Museum is set to acquire a two-masted clipper built by shipwright Thomas E. Hagan in 1906. The goal is to have it returned this spring.

Some farmers and conservationists say the resurgence of the American bald eagle has come at a price. Biologists say that in some areas, they are interfering with efforts to preserve more jeopardized species, such as loons and cormorants. And their proliferation is leading to encounters at livestock farms that sometimes end badly _ and illegally _ for the eagles.

The listing agent says the former Harvest Hill Farm where a teenager died in a haunted hayride crash may continue operating as a farm. Roger Gagnon tells the Sun Journal he's received several serious inquiries for the $1.6 million property including at least two plans to grow marijuana. The property was sold at a foreclosure auction in July 2016 for $1 million.

Republican Maine Senate leaders say they'll ask the state's highest court to weigh in on a new voting system approved by voters last fall. Democratic Secretary of State Matt Dunlap is supportive of the effort, which is targeted at a new system that would let Maine residents rank their preferred candidates from first to last.

Maine's potato industry will gather in northern Maine for a conference related to all things tuber. The University of Maine Cooperative Extension is hosting the 32nd Annual Maine Potato Conference and Trade Show on Jan. 18 and 19 in Caribou.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, the NASDAQ Composite, and the S&P 500 are all well-known stock indexes. Husson University's College of Business has created a new index for companies that have an impact in Maine. Professor Douglas Wellington says the Husson Stock Index tracks and analyzes 28 companies that have an effect on Maine's economy.

Several congressional Democrats are vowing to skip President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration this Friday. The charge that Russian interference in the election delegitimizes his Trump's presidency. Congressman John Lewis of Georgia is one of those Democrats who's skipping the swearing in. Incoming White House chief of staff Reince Priebus (ryns PREE'-bus) told ABC's "This Week" that Republicans did not question the legitimacy of President Barack Obama's victory eight years ago.

Outgoing CIA Director John Brennan says President-elect Donald Trump's impulsivity could be dangerous. And Brennan also told "Fox News Sunday" that Trump lacks a full understanding of the threat Moscow poses to the United States. Trump responded on Twitter Sunday night, asking, "Was this the leaker of Fake News?" Trump was referring to a recent document that contains unverified financial and personal information that could be damaging to him.

Thousands of people showed up in freezing temperatures on Sunday in Michigan to hear Sen. Bernie Sanders denounce Republican efforts to repeal President Barack Obama's health care law. Democrats staged dozens of rallies across the country to highlight opposition. President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to overturn and replace the Affordable Care Act, and majority Republicans in Congress last week began the process of repealing it using a budget maneuver that requires a bare majority in the Senate.

The death toll is up to at least 37 in the Central Asian nation of Kyrgyzstan, where a cargo plane crashed into a residential neighborhood. The Turkish Boeing 747 crashed just outside an airport, south of the capital Bishkek. Emergency officials say many of those killed were on the ground. The country's deputy prime minister says 15 homes were destroyed.

Oman says it's accepted 10 inmates from the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay ahead of President Barack Obama leaving office. It's part of Obama's efforts to shrink the facility he promised to close. The sultanate of Oman, on the eastern edge of the Arabian Peninsula, previously accepted 10 Guantanamo prisoners from Yemen in January 2016. Oman also took another six in June 2015. The U.S. Defense Department has not commented about the transfer.