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« December 12, 2006 | Today | December 14, 2006 » December 13, 2006Update: Sox bring Matsuzaka to Boston in style
TheJapanese pitching star landed at 5:16 p.m. at Hanscom Field in suburban Bedford after the flight from John Wayne Airport in Orange County, Calif., aboard the Dassault Mystere 900 tri-jet of Boston owner John Henry, with a big Red Sox logo on its tail. Red Sox chairman Tom Werner, president Larry Lucchino and general manager Theo Epstein were seen coming off the plane with Matsuzaka and agent Scott Boras in a light rain. An SUV and two sedans were waiting on the tarmac along with a police cruiser with flashing lights. Several dozen fans were on hand to great Matsuzaka, who waved and smiled as he was driven away from the airport to Boston. He appeared surprised by the fans and media presence. In prior days, agent Scott Boras had said he would not allow Matsuzaka to travel to Boston for a physical unless the sides had reached a preliminary agreement. People on both sides said today that agreement is near on a $52 million, six-year contract. More from the Associated Press ... Sox unveil new shortstop Lugo BOSTON — In the time it took the plane carrying Daisuke Matsuzaka to cross Illinois at 41,000 feet today, the Boston Red Sox unveiled their new shortstop, Julio Lugo, leadoff hitter and best buddy for All-Star slugger David Ortiz. “Me and David are very close friends,” said free agent Lugo, who played against Ortiz in the minor leagues and in the offseasons at home in the Dominican Republic. “He said, ’We’ve got to get you here.’ ” The Red Sox agreed to terms with Lugo and right fielder J.D. Drew at the baseball winter meetings in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., last week, but needed to give the players their physicals before it was official. Drew’s contract hasn’t been finalized yet, in part because general manager Theo Epstein and agent Scott Boras have been haggling over Matsuzaka. “Scott and Theo have been pretty busy with some other stuff,” assistant general manager Jed Hoyer said. “The whole group is at (41,000) feet right now. Other than that, I have no comment.” Also today, the Red Sox agreed to terms with backup catcher Doug Mirabelli, pending a physical. -- The Associated Press Posted by Steve Peoples at 6:37 PM | Comment 5 URI students released on bail after drug arrestsEight of the nine University of Rhode Island students arrested last week after an undercover investigation into drug dealing on the Kingston campus have been released from prison. Just in time for finals week. The arrests followed early-morning raids at two dormitories. The students have been accused of selling or plotting to sell drugs to two female officers working undercover at the school this fall. The drugs included marijuana, psychedelic mushrooms and crack cocaine, police said. Derek Delahunt, a freshman from North Kingstown, appeared today before Judge John M. McLoughlin in District Court. Delahunt, 18, of Tamarack Circle, was arrested Dec. 6, the day after the raids, and charged with selling and conspiring to sell hallucinogenic mushrooms. Special Assistant Attorney Gen. Erik B. Wallin asked – as with all the adult URI cases – that he continue to be held without bail at the Adult Correctional Institutions. “They want you kept in the ACI and I can understand why,” McLoughlin said. “It’s because they want to send a message to every student, ‘You do drugs, you go to jail.’ ” -- Journal staff writer Katie Mulvaney Wearing a baggy Carhartt jacket, khakis and sneakers, his blond hair edging toward toward his shoulders, Delahunt quietly agreed to a series of restrictions and was released on $25,000 surety bail. The conditions include random urine tests, waiving his Fourth Amendment protection against search and seizures, and a curfew from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. He was placed under pretrial supervision and is due to return to court Jan. 17. Four other students were released under similar terms after appearing Tuesday before McLoughlin. They are: -- Ryan P. Wilkin, 18, of Old Bethpage, N.Y., charged with three counts of selling marijuana; two counts of conspiring to sell marijuana; and possession of a controlled substance, Ketamine, an animal tranquilizer taken for its hallucinogenic effects. -- Joshua D. Giorgi, 18, of 14 Vinton St., Providence, faces two counts of selling marijuana and one count of possessing marijuana. He faces additional charges in Family Court for other crimes allegedly committed before he turned 18, the police said. -- Owen Hnat-Dembitz, 18, of Colts Neck, N.J., was charged with conspiracy. -- George R. Andrea, 18, of Washington Township, N.J., is accused of two counts of selling of marijuana and conspiracy to sell marijuana. They, too, are set to appear in court Jan. 17. -- Benjamin Meskell, 18, of Manhasset, N.Y., was released under the same terms Friday. The police charged Meskell with selling marijuana. His next court date is Jan. 26. All waived their right to a bail hearing. A ninth student, Sadiq A. Kafo, 19, continues to be held without bail at the Adult Correctional Institutions. Kafo, of 44 Randall St., Pawtucket, faces five counts of selling crack cocaine and possessing crack cocaine with the intent to deliver. The police charged two female freshmen as well. Those cases are being handled in Family Court because they were 17 at the time of the alleged crimes. The police declined to identify the women because of their age. Posted by Steve Peoples at 6:21 PM | Comment Chafee passes the plates to Whitehouse / Photo
PROVIDENCE -- U.S. Sen. Lincoln Chafee and Sheldon Whitehouse worked today on paving the way for the Democrat to take over the role of junior senator from Rhode Island. The two spoke for about 15 minutes behind closed doors, covering such issues, Chafee said, as individual constituent concerns with medical benefits and immigration, and projects now under way, such as getting train service to T.F. Green Airport. Then the two men met the media. From behind his back, Chafee pulled out his license plate, joking that one of the subjects on Whitehouse’s mind was: "When do I get my license plates?’’ The plates might be the two objects Chafee will miss the least from his days as Rhode Island’s Republican senator -- a moderate who voted against the Iraq war but an election casualty of anti-Bush sentiment all the same. Asked what advice he would give the incoming freshman senator, Chafee said Whitehouse should remember that the U.S. Senate "is a club’’ and to assure your value, "you have to get respect from both sides of the aisle.’’ -- Journal staff writer Tom Mooney Posted by Andrea Panciera at 6:03 PM | Comment Suspect in Lincoln woman's death found at FoxwoodsA suspect in what is now being called the murder of a Lincoln woman was found sleeping in his car at Foxwoods Resort parking garage last night, police said at an afternoon press conference. Jeremy Pontbriant, 31, of Lincoln was arrested after being found by Connecticut police, has waived extradition and is on his way back to Rhode Island. Police believe he killed 24-year-old Dawn Alves at her home in Lincoln yesterday. Briant is due to be arraigned tomorrow on one count of first-degree murder. The two were acquaintances who went to the gym and tanning salon together, Lincoln police said this afternoon. They also both worked at Stop & Shop supermarket. The police said that Alves, who lived with her mother at 55 Arnold St., died of blunt force trauma to the head. Alves's mother found her dead in the bathroom of their home yesterday morning. The police did not say how or why the killing took place. There was no sign of forced entry. Correction: An earlier post incorrectly spelled the last name of the suspect. -- projo.com staff writer Steve Peoples with reports from Journal staff writer Tatiana Pina Posted by Steve Peoples at 5:55 PM | Comment Dr. Moon's killer gets maximum prison sentencePROVIDENCE -- The man who admitted killing Dr. Alfred C. Moon in 1999 was sentenced to 60 years in prison with 40 to serve in Superior Court today. Judge Mark A. Pfeiffer gave Angel Navarro, 38, the maximum prison sentence allowable under the terms of a plea bargain reached with prosecutors last month. Navarro pleaded no contest to second-degree murder. Moon, 67, was murdered the night of Aug. 19, 1999. Moon let Navarro into his home on Briarwood Road in Lincoln's Kirkbrae Estates section. Navarro beat him to death with a brass lamp. Moon's body was found in bed, his head so severely injured that he had to be identified by dental records. Pfeiffer said that the viciousness of the attack was a key factor in his decision to levy the maximum penalty. "No one knows what happened in that room," Pfeiffer said of the murder, "but nothing warranted the severity of that attack." -- With reports from Journal staff writer John Hill The judge suggested that Moon may have been alive after the beating and that Navarro left him to die. Pfeiffer's sentence followed statements from Moon's wife and three children. Navarro's wife and mother also addressed the court. Moon's murder stunned Lincoln and the state's medical community. He was a radiologist who had worked at Rhode Island Hospital for 31 years and had been a clinical associate at Brown University since 1973. He was credited with bringing the first CAT scan unit to Rhode Island. Posted by Steve Peoples at 4:18 PM | Comment Warren man accused of bilking ex-neighbor pleads outPROVIDENCE -- Thomas G. Foster, a Warren machinist accused of bilking a mentally impaired elderly neighbor out of $410,000, pleaded no contest today to one count of felony larceny and was spared a prison term as part of a plea deal in which he made $200,000 in restitution. The victim, Leger R. Morrison, 84, is a retired professor who taught secretarial studies and education courses at Bryant College for 32 years. He suffers from dementia and is living with around-the-clock caregivers in his 88-year-old sister's home in Warren. According to the prosecution, Morrison wrote out three checks to Foster, his former neighbor, between October 2001 and February 2002 totaling $410,000, believing Foster would use the money to buy property on the Dighton/Rehoboth, Mass., line and build a home for wayward girls as a memorial to Morrison's deceased wife, Lucia. The property was to include a recreational area with horses. Foster never bought the property. Instead, prosecutors alleged, he used the money to buy the three-bedroom, five-bath house where he now lives -- for cash -- with his wife and his mother-in-law, Suzanne Almeida, 63, who worked as a caregiver for Morrison. She and Foster, 41, were each indicted last year on four counts of felony larceny and one count of conspiracy to commit larceny for allegedly bilking Morrison out of his money. Today, as part of the plea agreement, prosecutors dismissed all the charges against Almeida and all but one of the charges against Foster. Superior Court Judge Mark Pfeiffer imposed a five-year suspended sentence on Foster and placed him on five years' probation. Foster took out a mortgage to make the $200,000 restitution payment. -- Journal staff writer Tracy Breton Foster's lawyer, Michael Egan, said after court today that Foster, Almeida and Morrison were "best friends" and that the original plan -- before Morrison became so mentally impaired -- was to have him move in with them for the last years of his life. He said he didn't think Foster and his mother-in-law should have been charged in the first place and that his client agreed to plead no contest to one count because he "did not want to put ... Morrison through any more trauma. He is in very ill health and is in no shape to testify." -- Journal staff writer Tracy Breton Posted by Andrea Panciera at 3:47 PM | Comment Update: Oldest retired officer, 105, laid to rest / Photo
James F. Shea Sr., who died Friday and was buried today, had many opportunities to move over and work from a patrol car. But he always declined, worried he wouldn’t stay as fit, Deputy Police Chief Paul J. Kennedy said today. When Shea’s family called to notify current police officers of Shea’s death, Kennedy said the department asked them what they’d like from the Providence Police Department. In the end, six Providence officers served as pall bearers, and the motorcycle unit led the procession from the funeral home to the church and, ultimately, to the cemetery. Two officers on horseback joined the procession. Smithfield police attended, and the Adult Correctional Institutions sent an honor guard, Kennedy said. Kennedy himself volunteered – as did all the officers – to be a pall bearer. About 100 people attended the funeral – maybe 20 of them police officers, Kennedy said. “It was really a nice tribute, kind of saluting this man’s longevity,” he said. -- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson Today, Kennedy said he just wishes he had known Shea was out there before his death. Kennedy’s own father, who also served on the Providence police force, joined the department in 1956 – three years after Shea retired. “I would have loved to have sat with this man and picked his brain about the police department,” said Kennedy, who learned this week from Shea’s family that the retired officer had a great memory. “He’s three generations removed now from the officers we’re working with – it’s just remarkable,” Kennedy said. A patrolman with the Providence Police Department for 28 years, Shea retired in 1953, after serving in the traffic division’s precinct foot patrol, in the Smith Hill neighborhood, and with the department’s Flying Squad during Prohibition. Two years ago, the Providence Police and Firefighters Retirement Association honored Shea and two other, younger men for their service to the fire and police professions. Today, Kennedy and five others carried him to his final resting place, Gate of Heaven Cemetery in East Providence. The other pall bearers were Lt. Timothy Lee, Patrolman Scott Keenan, Patrolman Patrick Mulholland, Patrolman Edmund Malloy and Patrolman Timothy Pickering. Posted by Kate Bramson at 3:10 PM | Comment Common Cause endowment fund honors WestPROVIDENCE -- Common Cause Rhode Island has raised nearly $240,000 in pledges to go into a special endowment to promote its open government mission in the name of the organization's longtime leader H. Philip West Jr. West retired last month after leading Common Cause in Rhode Island for 18 years. He was replaced by Christine Lopes. The nonprofit announced the creation of the endowment fund today. “Our success in raising a significant initial sum for the endowment is a great tribute to Phil West, but also a huge vote of confidence in the organization," Lopes said in a statement. "It demonstrates that the Common Cause community remains dedicated and ready to meet new challenges. This fund will help to provide the resources for us to do that.” Common Cause Rhode Island hopes to raise $500,000 for the endowment. -- projo.com staff writer Steve Peoples Posted by Steve Peoples at 2:53 PM | Comment Japanese pitcher on plane to BostonBOSTON — Daisuke Matsuzaka headed to Boston today with Red Sox officials, a sign Boston had reached a preliminary contract agreement with the star pitcher. “They all took off together,” Red Sox owner John Henry said in an e-mail to The Associated Press. Team president Larry Lucchino said shortly after noon that the plane was leaving California. In prior days, agent Scott Boras had said he would not allow Matsuzaka to travel to Boston for a physical unless the sides had reached a preliminary agreement. The team and Matsuzaka have a midnight Thursday deadline to reach an agreement. -- The Associated Press Boston officials flew to Newport Beach, Calif., on Monday on Henry's plane and said they would return Wednesday with or without Matsuzaka. The team and Matsuzaka have a midnight Thursday EST deadline to reach an agreement. The Red Sox called a news conference for Wednesday afternoon to introduce shortstop Julio Lugo, who agreed to a four-year, $36 million deal last week. With the top Red Sox brass still en route, manager Terry Francona and assistant GM Jed Hoyer were to attend that event. Boston bid $51.1 million last month for the right to negotiate with Matsuzaka. The Red Sox will pay that money to his Japanese team, the Seibu Lions, only if an agreement is reached. If there is no deal, Matsuzaka's rights remain with the Lions and he cannot be offered to major league teams again until next November. He is not eligible to become a free agent in Japan until after the 2008 season. Posted by Steve Peoples at 12:55 PM | Comment Chafee meets Whitehouse today to pass torchPROVIDENCE -- With less than a month left in his term as a U.S. senator, Lincoln Chafee will meet this afternoon with the Democrat who cost him his job. Chafee and Senator-elect Sheldon Whitehouse plan to hold a transition meeting at Chafee's Westminster Street office at 3:15 p.m. Chafee "wants to make certain that his constituents' needs are met during the change in office and has vowed to do what he can to be sure that the transition is a smooth one," according to an announcement released today by Chafee's office. The meeting will be private, according to Chafee's office, but both men will pose for pictures together afterward. Posted by Steve Peoples at 12:51 PM | Comment Arguments over Station fire testimony conclude
Lawyers for the Attorney General's Office and the court concluded their arguments late this morning. Superior Court Judge Joseph F. Rodgers Jr. said he would rule on the matter in the next 10 days. Alan Goulart, head of the attorney general's criminal division, argued that the public might better understand the grand jury's actions if it could see the secret testimony. Goulart also argued that it wasn't the attorney general's responsibility to keep grand jury testimony secret. "The grand jury is an arm of the Superior Court, not the attorney general. It is the court that is responsible for maintaining the secrecy of the grand jury.'' Larry J. Ritchie, a law professor at Roger Williams University, who was appointed to represent the grand jury, took the opposing view. He said the grand jury needs to be protected from the press. He also said grand jurors might hestitate to speak freely if they thought testimony would become public. -- With reports from Journal staff writer Paul Edward Parker and projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson The grand jury indicted three people on involuntary manslaughter charges in the deaths of 100 people in the Feb. 20, 2003, fire. The brothers who owned The Station, Jeffrey A. and Michael A. Derderian, and the rock band tour manager who triggered fireworks that started the fire, Daniel M. Biechele, all entered pleas to the charges without going to trial. Michael Derderian, 45, and Biechele, 30, were each sentenced to four years in prison. Jeffrey Derderian, 40, was sentenced to 500 hours of community service. Posted by Steve Peoples at 12:28 PM | Comment 19-year-old accused of shooting boy, 15, in PawtucketA 19-year-old Pawtucket man will be arraigned in district court today on a charge of assault with attempt to commit murder. Nicholas Barber, of 6 Manchester St., is accused of shooting a 15-year-old Friday night after a confrontation with a group of about 10 teenaged friends who were walking on Broad Street. The police announced today that they arrested Barber after detectives working overnight on the case got a break with some new information. The police are not releasing the name of the boy who was shot in the buttocks and treated at Hasbro Children’s Hospital. -- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson After interviews with the victim and his friends, the police learned that the 10 teenagers were “acting out” on Broad Street Friday evening when they were confronted by three males who “took offense to their actions,” according to a statement issued by Police Major John J. Whiting. The altercation turned violent when one of the three males, all of whom appeared to be in their late teens, pulled out a handgun and pointed it at the teens, who fled on foot, Whiting said. After circling the block, two of the fleeing teens again ran into the three suspects. As they turned and fled a second time, they heard popping sounds, according to Whiting. One boy fell to the ground and was carried away by his friend. They hid behind a Dumpster and then called relatives for help, according to the police. Posted by Kate Bramson at 11:58 AM | Comment Morning commute slow on 146 South and 195 WestRoute 146 South and Route 195 West are pretty congested for this morning’s commute. Take a peek for yourself and see how your commute into or within Rhode Island may shape up. This link for congestion mapping -- i.e., how heavy the traffic is -- shows up-to-the-minute results for area roadways. For other traffic needs, check out the state roadways, via the Department of Transportation's online traffic offerings. You can find any traffic alerts describing accidents here, browse traffic cams to see real-time photos of the highways and check out the DOT’s road construction schedule here. To report a traffic incident, call the Transportation Management Center at (401) 222-5826 and choose option #2. Posted by Kate Bramson at 8:27 AM | Comment Small-craft advisory and rain in today's forecastPROVIDENCE – Boaters, beware. The National Weather Service has issued a small-craft advisory, beginning this morning at 9 and lasting through this evening. Winds from the south are expected to be 15 to 20 knots, with gusts up to 25 knots. Seas should be 4 to 6 feet. Rain is on the horizon for much of today. Expect a high of 49 today and a low of 39 tonight. Get the latest conditions and forecasts from projo.com. |
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ProJo 9 to 5 News Blog
Oct 2005 - March 2006