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« August 2, 2007 | Today | August 6, 2007 » August 3, 2007Ronstadt, Allmans and more: Newport Folk beginsTonight, tomorrow and Sunday, the Dunkin’ Donuts Newport Folk Festival draws musicians ranging from Linda Ronstadt to searing slide guitar of the Allman Brothers, to acoustic music and more. Tonight, the big act is Ronstadt, playing at the Newport Casino, International Tennis Hall of Fame, 194 Bellevue Ave. The show starts at 8 p.m. Fees range from $30 to $85. Tomorrow, the events move to Fort Adams State Park: On the Dunkin’ Donuts Stage: The Allman Brothers Band, The North Mississippi Allstars, The John Butler Trio, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, and The Dirty Dozen Brass Band. Harbor Stage: Assembly of Dust, Tom Morello, Martha Wainwright, Song Circle with Martha Wainwright & Sloan Wainwright and Phonograph. Waterside Stage: Vishten and others, 11 a.m.-7 p.m. On Sunday: Dunkin’ Donuts Stage: Alison Krauss and Union Station featuring Jerry Douglas, Emmylou Harris, Amos Lee, Alejandro Escovedo and The Carolina Chocolate Drops. Harbor Stage: Alejandro Escovedo, Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys, Cheryl Wheeler, Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem and Elvis Perkins in Dearland. Waterside Stage: The Carolina Chocolate Drops, Julie Lee, Song Swap with Hazel Dickens, Dudley Connell & Diana Jones and Sierra Hull and Highway 111, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Read more about this year's festival here. Call 847-3700, (866) 468-7619 or go to www.ticketweb.com, www.newportfolk.com. Advance: $55, $75; $5 children 2-12; children under 2 free. Weekend of show: $59; $95 two-day, if available. Posted by Mike McKinney at 7:05 PM | Comment Moving up adult age clouds public records accessBRISTOL -- When they pushed the new law that treats 17-year-olds as adults on criminal charges, the General Assembly and Governor Carcieri’s administration introduced some vagueness into the state’s Access to Public Records laws, a special assistant attorney general said today. Christy Hetherington, special assistant to Attorney General Patrick Lynch, told a group of lawyers and public officials meeting at the Roger Williams University Law School that her office has not determined yet whether the state’s open records laws should apply to 17-year-olds who are now treated as adults. "I really have no idea,’’ said Hetherington, who oversees public records and public meetings compliance for the attorney general. ``I don’t think it is a black and white case, it is not easy.’’ Hetherington confirmed that a Rhode Island "police agency’’ has asked the attorney general’s office for an opinion on the issue, but declined to say which police agency had made the request. The issue comes into play when citizens -- often media representatives -- ask police officials for police and criminal arrest records. For example, all initial arrest records of an adult are public records, but most juvenile records are shielded from public disclosure. "This is something we are trying to sort out,’’ said Hetherington. -- Journal staff writer Scott MacKay At the urging of Carcieri, the legislature enacted a budget for the 2007-2008 fiscal year that includes treating 17-year-olds as adults, rather than juveniles, for purposes of criminal charging and sentencing. The reason the change was made: Carcieri and legislative leaders believed that the move would save money, because sending 17-year-olds to the state Adult Correctional Institutions, the state’s adult prison, would be cheaper than incarcerating them at the Rhode Island Training School, which houses juvenile offenders. While the change was supposed to save $3.6 million, some have disputed whether that figure will be reached in the next 11 months. But what is known is that the change has presented a conundrum for those -- such as police officers -- who must administer the open records provisions of state law. Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:55 PM | Comment Bolivian independence fest in Providence tomorrowPROVIDENCE -- A Bolivian Independence Day celebration will be held at City Hall tomorrow at 2 p.m. Mayor David N. Cicilline and Rhode Island Bolivian-American Association President Nelson Valdivia will host it at City Hall. It's meant to commemorate 182 years of Bolivian independence and will inuce a Bolivian art display, music, dancers, and traditional food. The event is free and open to the public. Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:49 PM | Comment A sub, security scare, and 2 Rhode Islanders / Photo
NEW YORK -- A Brooklyn artist manning a replica Revolutionary War submarine -- along with two Rhode Islanders -- caused a scare this morning after police found the strange-looking vessel foundering in a security zone near the docked Queen Mary 2, authorities said. The handmade wood and fiberglass vessel, at the end of a tow rope tied to an inflatable boat, was spotted by police near the luxury ocean liner docked at the cruise ship terminal in the Buttermilk Channel off Red Hook in Brooklyn. "It was a strange sight," said Coast Guard Petty Officer Angelia Rorison. Police held the artist, Philip "Duke" Riley, and Jesse Bushnell of Providence and Michael Cushing of Newport for questioning. But there was no indication the trio meant any harm with the replica of the 1776 "Turtle submarine." One of the Rhode Islanders claimed he was descendant of David Bushnell, the inventor of the original one-man vessel that inspired the replica, police said. Riley, according to his Web site, is a 1995 graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design. The makeshift sub "is the creative craft of three adventuresome individuals," Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said in a statement. "It does not pose any terrorist threat. ... We can best summarize today's incident as marine mischief." -- The Associated Press The brown, egg-shaped wooden vessel was a replica of a submarine used during the American Revolution, Rorison said. The inflatable boat was towing the submarine, authorities said. Rorison said the vessel resembled a diving bell, with a hatch on top, and was about 8 feet long and 4 feet wide. It was propelled by a pedal-operated paddle. The Coast Guard issued two citations to Riley, 35, of Brooklyn - one for having an unsafe vessel, the other for violating a security zone. The sub came within 200 feet of the bow of the Queen Mary 2, Rorison said. "Basically, the vessel was not safe to sail. It had no lights, no flares. It was not registered," she said. "Instead of safety violations, this could have turned into a search and rescue." Riley is a sculptor and performance artist whose work "addresses the prospect of residual but forgotten unclaimed frontiers on the edge and inside overdeveloped urban areas, and their unsuspected autonomy," according to his Web site. "All three males are expected to be charged with a number of violations and both vessels will be secured by the Harbor Unit," the NYPD said. Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:48 PM | Comment Judge: Fire survivors' lawyers can question BiechelePROVIDENCE -- The man whose pyrotechnics ignited The Station nightclub fire can be questioned by lawyers who represent survivors of the February 2003 blaze and relatives of the 100 who died from the fire. That's according to a ruling this afternoon from U.S. Magistrate Judge David Martin. But the ruling also permits Daniel Biechele, the former tour manager for the rock band Great White, to avoid answering questions he believes could expose him to future criminal prosecution. Biechele pleaded guilty last year to 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter for lighting the pyrotechnics inside The Station nightclub. He is serving a four-year prison sentence, but his lawyer says he's concerned that Biechele could be prosecuted in federal court or in other states if he testifies before lawyers for the victims and their families. -- The Associated Press Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:45 PM | Comment Update: RITBA says Pell, Mt. Hope bridges safe
Both the Pell Bridge and Mount Hope Bridge have been thoroughly inspected and regularly maintained and motorists should feel assured of their integrity despite the deadly collapse this week of the Interstate 35 span in Minneapolis, according to authority chairman David Darlington. “I can report, without reservation, that both bridges entrusted to this authority are in very good shape,” Darlington said at a news conference outside the authority’s headquarters, at the Pell Bridge tolls. Unlike many other bridges in Rhode Island, the spans are not the responsibility of the state Department of Transportation. “As of late 2006 -- just months ago -- we completed inspections that are part of an on-going inspection regime in which major bridge components are inspected annually. These inspections have satisfied us that our maintenance and rehabilitation efforts have been successful in placing major bridge components to a state of good repair,” he said. Darlington said the authority has spent $50 million on bridge repair and maintenance, $10 million in just the past year alone. Another $120 million will be spent over the next 10 years on the two spans, which he described as “aging.” Peter M. Janaros, the authority’s director of engineering, held up two reports -- each a couple of inches thick -- on the results of recent inspections of the two spans. “It’s not an inspection periodically. These bridges receive an inspection each year,” Janaros said. “These inspections are done by professional engineers by professional companies.” Janaros said the inspections occur every year -- twice as frequently as federal regulations call for -- because they are so large, because safety is paramount and because of their importance to the economy of the state. He and Darlington noted both of the authority’s spans are suspension bridges, unlike the truss bridge that failed in Minneapolis. The engineering firms that inspected them have expertise in suspension designs, said Janaros. PB Americas, which is the consultant on the Pell Bridge, designed the span and oversaw its construction. -- Journal staff writer Richard Salit, with reports from the Associated Press Reading from the report, Janaros said the 78-year-old Mount Hope Bridge, which connects Bristol and Portsmouth, “is in generally good condition.” The rehabilitation of the bridge, which has been taking place for the last few years, has been “successful in having the major components established in good shape.” As for the 38-year-old Pell Bridge, formerly known as the Newport Bridge, he said that engineers determined that “The bridge is in good condition and functions as designed.” Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:04 PM | Comment Update: 2 Mass. men victims of Smithfield crash
SMITHFIELD -- The police this evening identified the two men killed in a horrific accident on Route 295 north this morning as Shawn M. Sullivan and Daniel Joyce, both of Bellingham, Mass. Sullivan, 26, of 29 Pond St. and Joyce, 25, of 45 Rondeau Rd., were both thrown from a pickup truck they were in. Police may never know for certain which of them was driving and which was the passenger. Joyce landed in the highway and was struck by several vehicles, including an 18-wheeler, after the initial crash, state police Capt. Raymond S. White said. Joyce landed on the grassy right edge of the highway. The state police closed a stretch of the highway for nearly four hours, White said. Evidence at the scene indicates that excessive speed may have been a factor, White said. The accident, which was reported at 4:09 a.m., closed the highway between Exit 7, which is Route 44, and Exit 8, which is Route 7. The state Department of Transportation reported the highway opened at 7:55 a.m. Route 295 southbound remained open. At about 7:20 a.m., what appeared to be a pickup truck split in two lay on a flatbed truck. A crane helped clear the debris from the highway just north of the Route 104 (Farnum Pike) overpass. Skid marks perhaps 100 feet long begin in the center lane of Route 295. Those marks were from the vehicles attempting to avoid striking the man who lay in the road, White said. It appears that one vehicle was in the far left lane and swerved into the center lane, where the marks begin, and then off into the right lane of the three-lane stretch of highway. The Toyota pickup truck carrying the two men landed off the right side of the highway, down a gulley, where it struck a cliff wall, White said.
Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:45 PM | Comment Update: Carcieri can be made to testify about raidPROVIDENCE -- Judge Susan E. McGuirl ruled this afternoon that defense lawyers can compel Governor Carcieri to testify in the Narragansett Indian smoke-shop raid case going to trial on Sept. 17. But the Superior Court judge also said the testimony must be limited to the instructions the governor gave that day to Col. Steven M. Pare, at the time the state police superintendent. Carcieri ordered the state police to use a search warrant on the roadside shop on tribal land in Charlestown on July 14, 2003, after learning the tribe was selling cigarettes without charging Rhode Island taxes. The raid turned into a violent clash when officers met resistance as they came onto Narragansett Indian land. The governor has not yet decided whether to appeal today's ruling. “We are disappointed by Judge McGuirl’s decision," Michael Maynard, a spokesman for Carcieri, said in a statement. "We believe that the governor’s testimony is not relevant to the criminal trial of the seven individuals. Furthermore, even if the testimony were relevant we believe that the defendants have access to the same information that they are seeking without requiring the governor’s personal testimony.” The statement goes on to say that "it is important to remember that this trial is not about the governor’s actions but about the actions of the defendants.” Yesterday, McGuirl decided that jurors weighing the criminal charges against seven Narragansett Indians arrested in the raid will hear testimony about the orders that led to that confrontation. McGuirl ruled that defense lawyers can question witnesses about the instructions state troopers received that day. Repeatedly, the governor said he directed the state police to withdraw if they met resistance. Pare told the court this week that he never received such instructions. -- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with reports from Journal staff writer Katie Mulvaney and Journal archival reports Lawyers for the tribal members subpoenaed Carcieri Wednesday to testify next month at the criminal trials of the Narragansetts arrested during the raid. Seven Narragansetts, including Chief Sachem Matthew Thomas, face misdemeanor charges, including resisting arrest, obstruction, disorderly conduct and assault. They face up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine. A lawyer for the governor is fighting the subpoena, arguing that high-ranking public officials should be able to carry out their duties without fear of being called to testify. Extra: More about the raid and its aftermath ... Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:16 PM | Comment Beaches in Scituate and Warwick are reopenedThe state Health Department today recommended reopening to swimming the Hope Community Services Beach in Scituate and Kent County YMCA Beach in Warwick. The decision is based on water sample results that show bacteria levels within acceptable limits. To check information about swimming at Rhode Island beaches, go to www.health.ri.gov or call (401) 222-2751. Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:12 PM | Comment Authority says Pell and Mt. Hope bridges safePROVIDENCE -- The Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority says its two bridges -- the Pell Newport Bridge and the Mount Hope Bridge -- are safe. David Darlington, chairman of the authority, says both bridges are in very good shape. The Pell Bridge -- formerly called the Newport Bridge and opened in 1969 -- connects Jamestown and Newport, on Aquidneck Island, while the Mount Hope Bridge -- opened in 1929 -- spans the waters between Bristol and Portsmouth, on the northern end of Aquidneck. He made his comments today amid concern about bridge safety after a bridge in Minneapolis collapsed this week, killing several people. Peter Janaros is the authority's director of engineering. He says the two bridges are inspected every year -- twice as frequently as federal regulations call for -- because they are so large, because safety is paramount and because of their importance to the economy of the state. He says both bridges are in good condition. Bridge maintenance and repairs are paid for through tolls.
Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:45 PM | Comment 3 indicted after New Bedford immigration raidFive months after a sweeping immigration raid at the Michael Bianco Inc. plant in New Bedford, company president Francesco Insolia and two of his top managers have been indicted on charges of conspiring to harbor and hire illegal immigrants, to fulfill almost $230 million in government contracts. U.S. Attorney Michael J. Sullivan said the indictment “should send a clear message to all employers that hiring illegal or unauthorized aliens, or conspiring to shield them from detection, will not be tolerated.” Extra: Read a special report on the immigration debate. Insolia and the other two defendants will be arraigned on Thursday, August 9. Insolia, of Pembroke, Mass., had no comment. He remained on the job, according to a spokesman. The indictment was announced yesterday by Sullivan and Bruce M. Foucart, special agent in charge for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office of investigations in Boston. The Bianco company, which produces rucksacks and other military gear for U.S. soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, is operating on a reduced production schedule agreed to by the Department of Defense, said spokesman Doug Bailey, of Rasky Baerlein Strategic Communications of Boston. If convicted of the charge of conspiring to hire illegal aliens, Insolia, Costa and Melo each face maximum sentences of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and a $100 special assessment, plus at least two years of supervised release. They face months in prison, a $100 special assessment, and a $10,000 fine for each illegal alien hired by the Bianco company on the charge of conspiracy to hire illegal aliens. The indictment stems from an ongoing investigation that started last year and culminated with a March 6 raid at the plant at 89 West Rodney French Boulevard, during which 361 illegal immigrants were detained. -- Journal staff writer Karen Lee Ziner The raid sparked widespread community outrage. Social service agencies, immigrant advocacy groups and public officials decried a “humanitarian crisis” that disrupted the lives of families. After the raid, workers accused Insolia and his managers of maintaining “sweat-shop” conditions referenced in the affidavit. They said Insolia fined workers $25 for arriving more than a minute late, or staying too long in the restrooms, and charged them for aspirin. They also said that the front door was the sole entrance and exit. Last month, the Bianco company agreed to pay a reduced fine of $37,500 after the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited the company for 15 alleged serious violations of workplace health and safety standards, including, mechanical, electrical and chemical violations. Left uncorrected, those conditions expose employees to the hazards of lacerations, amputation, burns, electrocution, eye and face injuries, and to being caught in moving machine parts or struck by machinery," said Robert B. Hooper, OSHA’s acting area director for southeastern Massachusetts. Bailey, the Bianco spokesman, said OSHA reduced the proposed $45,000 fine after the company remedied the conditions cited in the inspection. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is continuing its investigation with assistance from the Social Security Administration’s Office of Inspector General; the Department of Defense’s Criminal Investigative Service; the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General; the Massachusetts Insurance Fraud Bureau and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Posted by Jack Perry at 2:25 PM | Comment Citizens sees 2-percent increase in period earningsPROVIDENCE -- The Citizens Financial Group earned $1.48 billion in the first half of the year, a 2-percent increase over the same period last year, the Providence-based bank announced today. Citizens, owned by the Royal Bank of Scotland Group, said it had made "good progress" in credit card issuing and experienced "strong growth" in corporate and commercial lending that compensated for decreased demand for mortages. In March, the Royal Bank reorganized its North American operations, replacing Lawrence K. Fish, the chief executive officer of Citizens, with Stephen D. Steinour. Fish was named chairman of RBS America, a new organizational unit. --Journal Staff Writer Benjamin N. Gedan Posted by Mike McKinney at 1:48 PM | Comment Hot and muggy, but still no sign of West Nile VirusWe're into August and there's still no sign in Rhode Island of West Nile Virus or Eastern Equine Encephalitis. Test results taken from 78 mosquito pools came up negative for the virus, the state Department of Environmental Management announced today. The results are from 35 traps set around the state during the week of July 23. Results from two additional pools are pending. Still, the DEM warns that West Nile and Triple-E are "both firmly established throughout the state. Therefore, throughout the mosquito season, residents are encouraged to protect themselves by eliminating mosquito breeding grounds and avoiding mosquito bites." People should get rid of mosquito breeding grounds from yards by removing anything that holds standing water, such as old tires, buckets, junk and debris, clean gutters so that they drain correctly, and maintain swimming pools properly. Mosquitoes breed in standing water. Avoid getting bitten by putting screens on windows and doors, covering up at dawn and dusk, and putting mosquito netting over playpens and baby carriages when they are outside. And use mosquito repellent, but with no more than 30 percent DEET. Do not use repellent on infants. For information about mosquito-borne diseases, go to www.state.dem.ri.gov, and click on "Public Health Updates", or go to www.health.ri.gov and click on "E" (Eastern Equine Encephalitis) or "W" ((West Nile Virus)) under "Health Topics". -- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney Posted by Mike McKinney at 1:32 PM | Comment Update: Man charged in case of body found at schoolJOHNSTON – A North Providence man has been charged in connection with the death of a woman who police said died while the two of them were using drugs last Saturday at the man's home. Police had found the decomposing body of the woman, identified today as Gina Hughes, 34, behind the Winsor Hill School on Wednesday. The man, Frank A. Marsella, 45, of 17 Brown St., North Providence, has been charged with failure to report Hughes' death with the intent to conceal a felony, that is, a violation of the uniformed controlled substance act; and a misdemeanor charge of failure to render assistance to Hughes, who was in need of medical assistance. Police said Marsella said Hughes died at his apartment on Saturday while the two were using drugs. He told police that he wrapped her body in two tarps on Sunday, put it in the trunk of a vehicle and drove to the Winsor Hill School at 100 Theresa St., where he left her body in a grassy area next to the road. Police, who initially indicated that the death might be a homicide, said the investigation is ongoing. Marsella is being held at the police station in Johnston until his arraignment this afternoon at District Court in Warwick. At a press conference today, Johnston police said that because Hughes' body was so badly decomposed, she had to be identified by fingerprints. A preliminary exam from the state medical examiner's office showed there were signs of cocaine and opiates in her system, the police said. It appears the woman died of an overdose, and Marsella was apparently concerned that if he reported the death, his own drug use would become known to authorities and he would go back to jail, Police Chief Richard S. Tamburini said before the press conference. The police have also said they had identified the woman as having a criminal record. They said she had been released from the Adult Correctional Institutions June 26. Today, Tamburini thanked the Attorney General's Office, the state police and the Providence police and medical examiner's office for their help. -- With reports from projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson and Journal staff writer Mark Reynolds Posted by Kate Bramson at 1:30 PM | Comment Motorcyclist to serve 15 years for fatal crash/ Photo
Joseph Santos, of 133 Chester Ave., was convicted June 11 of driving under the influence, death resulting, and driving to endanger, death resulting. Superior Court Judge Susan E. McGuirl also fined Santos $5,000, ordered that he perform 200 hours of community service, undergo alcohol counseling and lose his driver's license for five years. Santos has been held without bail since the jury convicted him after two hours of deliberations, according to Michael J. Healey, spokesman for the state Attorney General’s Office. According to evidence presented during the six-day trial, Santos had a blood-alcohol content of .163, twice the legal limit, about an hour after the crash that killed passenger Susan Renaud, 37. While awaiting trial, Santos twice violated the conditions of his bail and was placed in custody, according to Healey. In August 2006, he was pulled over driving in Providence and failed a breath test measuring the alcohol in his blood, Healey said. Four months later, he was released to home confinement, but in February of 2007, a random urine screen tested positive for opiates and barbituates, Healey said. -- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson A witness, 18-year-old Elicia Poland, testified during the trial that on Saturday, July 30, 2005, she was in a car driven by her boyfriend at around 10:20 p.m. On Route 44 in Smithfield, the couple saw a motorcycle traveling in front of them swerve dramatically as it came to a stop at a traffic light in front of Benny’s. Both the driver, later identified as Santos, and his passenger appeared drunk, Poland testified, according to Healey. Poland said her boyfriend pulled up alongside the motorcycle, and Poland called out to the driver, offering to give him and his passenger a ride home. The driver made an obscene gesture and remark and sped off, Healey said. Poland and her boyfriend followed the motorcycle along Route 44 and onto Route 295 north, where Poland testified that Santos nearly wiped out on the entrance ramp. He managed to get onto the highway and then proceed to “take off so fast that I couldn’t believe it,” she testified, Healey said. The couple tried to keep up with the motorcycle but when they reached a speed of 95 mph, they became concerned for their own safety and decided not to “risk our lives for this,” she testified. They pulled back, lost sight of the motorcycle’s taillight and then saw a large cloud of dust ahead and came upon the motorcycle tipped over in the high-speed lane, according to the evidence presented at the trial. An off-duty West Warwick firefighter, 28-year-old Arthur Houle, was at the scene when the couple stopped. Houle asked Poland and her boyfriend to help him find the people who had been on the motorcycle, Healey said. Poland testified that she found and approached Santos, whom she described as smelling of alcohol and having slurred speech. He told her he was coming from Bonnie & Clyde’s, a bar on Putnam Pike (Route 44), and he had been drinking, Healey said. The last thing Santos said to Poland, as emergency sirens approached, was, “Please don’t tell the cops I’m drunk,” Poland testified. After Poland and her boyfriend pulled back from following the motorcycle, a second witness observed the bike. Michael Levesque testified at the trial that when the motorcycle passed him on Route 295 north, his full-size Chevy pickup truck shook, Healey said. Levesque then testified that he saw the motorcycle slam into the back of an SUV and saw both the driver and passenger fly through the air. He called 911 at 10:32 p.m., Healey said. Renaud, Santos’ passenger, died six days after the crash, on Aug. 5, 2005, as a result of skull fracture and brain injuries due to blunt force trauma, Healey said. Posted by Jack Perry at 12:55 PM | Comment Cranston man gets 2 years in mob extortion plotPROVIDENCE -- A Cranston man who was snared in a mob extortion scheme last year was sentenced to two years in federal prison today. Chief U. S. District Court Judge Mary M. Lisi brushed off a defense argument that James G. Manning, 64, is elderly and infirm and should be sentenced to probation or electronic monitoring on home confinement. She said that Manning, who used a walker to enter the courtroom, was well enough to travel to Massachusetts and participate in the mob-sanctioned extortion plot last year. ``At your age, I’m wondering, `What are you thinking?’’’ Lisi said. ``I’m not convinced that Mr. Manning gets it today.’’ Manning was one of four men arrested for participating in the April 2006 shakedown of two men, a pizza parlor owner and bookmaker/drug dealer, in the Taunton, Mass., area. Under the direction of Anthony M. ``The Saint’’ St. Laurent, the two men were supposed to make an initial payment of $200,000 and later weekly payments of $2,000. St. Laurent was sentenced to five years in prison last January. Manning, who has had a gambling problem and has known St. Laurent for 35 years, was ordered to surrender to a yet to be named federal prison on Aug. 24. Until then, he will remain on home confinement. -- Journal staff writer W. Zachary Malinowski Posted by Jack Perry at 12:12 PM | Comment Ken Weber, outdoor writer, dies at 63
“For many years, Ken Weber was a beloved institution here, bringing deep knowledge, acute observation, and charm to his weekly explorations of the world of nature,” said Robert B. Whitcomb, Journal vice president and editorial pages editor. “We will greatly miss his columns and his quiet, affable, good-humored and cooperative personality.” Weber is survived by Bettie J. (Hoorman) Weber, his wife of 42 years; four children, and nine grandchildren. Weber and his wife lived on Deerfield Drive in Greenville. Weber began his career at The Journal in 1971, when he was hired as a copy editor; he retired as a section editor in 1996. His nature columns ran for years in the Sunday Magazine, and when the magazine ceased publication, in 1995, his columns continued on the commentary pages of the Saturday paper. Weber was also the author of several popular books, including Weekend Walks in Rhode Island: 40 Trails for Hiking, Birding & Nature Viewing, now in its fourth edition, and Paddling Southern New England: 30 Canoe Trips in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut, in its second edition. A Mass of Christian burial to which relatives and friends are invited will be held Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. in St. Philip Church, 622 Putnam Pike, Greenville. Burial will be private. Visitation Monday 4-7 p.m. in the Anderson-Winfield Funeral Home, Route 44 at Greenville Common, Greenville. In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory may be made to the Audubon Society of Rhode Island, 12 Sanderson Road, Smithfield, R.I., 02917. For messages of condolence, visit www.andersonwinfield.net -- Journal staff writer G. Wayne Miller Posted by Peter Phipps at 11:49 AM | Comment R.I. gets $600,000 grant to curb juvenile delinquencyRhode Island will get a $600,000 federal grant to keep up programs that aim to identify young people who are most likely to commit crimes and to come up with and carry out plans to curb juvenile delinquency. The grant is from the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Sen. Jack Reed's office said in a news release today. "I know the state will put this federal investment to good use by focusing on efforts to prevent and reduce juvenile crime throughout the state," said Reed, Rhode Island Democrat and member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, and Science, which oversees federal spending on law enforcement. There are various prevention strategies and services intended to keep juveniles out of the courts, such as tutoring, mentoring, recreational activities, and leadership development activities. Posted by Mike McKinney at 11:29 AM | Comment Today's front pageIn the wake of the disastrous bridge collapse in Minnesota, today's front page features a story reporting that Rhode Island's bridges are rated the worst in the country. Download a copy of today's front page. Posted by Jack Perry at 7:00 AM | Comment Do you like it hot and unhealthy with thunderstorms?It's going to be a day of extremes: extreme temperatures, extremely bad air and the risk of extreme thunderstorms. The state has posted an ozone alert, warning children and those at risk to limit their exercise. The National Weather Service cautions that the area could be hit with a powerful thunderstorm this afternoon. The high today could hit 91 with a 30 percent chance of rain. The humidity was at 87 percent at 7 a.m. Tomorrow will be similar. Sunday, however, looks like a gem. The weather service says it will be clear, sunny and cooler. Posted by Peter Phipps at 7:00 AM | Comment Ozone alert today; RIPTA is freeThe air is bad and the buses are free. The Department of Health, which declared today's ozone alert, warns that unhealthy levels of ozone can cause throat irritation, coughing, chest pain, shortness of breath, increased susceptibility to respiratory infection and aggravation of asthma and other respiratory ailments. These symptoms are worsened by exercise and heavy activity. Children, the elderly and people who have underlying lung diseases, such as asthma, are at particular risk of suffering from these effects. As ozone levels increase, the number of people affected and the severity of the health effects also increase. Posted by Peter Phipps at 6:55 AM | Comment Route 95 open in both directions by 5 a.m.PROVIDENCE – Both northbound and southbound lanes of Route 95 opened ahead of schedule tonight, after both directions of the highway were closed for the first time this month as the state Department of Transportation continues overnight work on the Route 95-Route 195 interchange project. The northbound lanes opened at 4:10 a.m., and the southbound lanes opened at 5 a.m., according to the state Department of Transportation. Last night was the fourth closure in a row for portions of the highway in this second round of closures for the highway project. The DOT's Transportation Management Center reported that Route 195 west to Route 95 south and Route 95 itself, between exits 18 and 20, were all closed by around 11 p.m. last night. The nighttime closures now take a break until Sunday, when northbound and southbound lanes of Route 95, between exits 18 and 20, are expected to close again by 11 p.m. – with individual lane closures starting by 8 p.m. The lanes are expected to reopen by 5:30 a.m. Monday in time for morning commuters. Check out the road-closure schedule on the DOT’s site. For a look back at the earlier closures this year, see projo.com’s special reports section. -- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson |
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ProJo 9 to 5 News Blog
Oct 2005 - March 2006