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September 28, 2007

Lynch praises decision on Brayton Point permit

Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch today praised an appeals board's denial of what he called Dominion Energy Brayton Point LLC’s request to "delay compliance" with permit requirements at Brayton Point Station in Somerset, Mass.

In a news release this evening, Lynch's office said Brayton Point's operation "under an inadequate 15-year-old permit" has been causing "significant violations" of Rhode Island water quality requirements.

The decision, dated yesterday, was by the Environmental Appeals Board, an administrative court of the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

Lynch said in his statement that the decision "gives us hope that Dominion will resist pursuing further legal action and implement the technology that must be employed if Mount Hope Bay — two-thirds of which is within Rhode Island — is ever to recover from the harm inflicted by the operation of Brayton Point Power Station.”

On Oct. 6, 2003, the Environmental Protection Agency's New England Office issued a permit requiring Brayton Point’s operator to lower the plant’s thermal output -- how much water can be discharged and at what temperature it can be discharged -- and requires the operator to reduce its intake of water from the bay.

The plant would have to install what are known as closed-cycle cooling towers in its four coal-and oil-fired electricity-generating units, which Lynch's office said would reduce the plant’s intake of water from about 1 billion gallons to 56 million gallons per day.

The plant’s owners appealed the permit.

The Environmental Appeals Board denied Brayton Point Station’s request for a second review, so terms of the 2003 permit must be carried out immediately, Lynch's office said.

However, Lynch's release noted the company may seek an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals, First Circuit, in Boston.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:48 PM | Comment

For Hannah Montana, they'll wait in line 15 hours

PROVIDENCE -- Talk about getting an early start.

A line of 15 to 20 people, adults and youths both, has formed this evening outside Rhode Island Convention Center to buy tickets to see Miley Cyrus -- aka Hannah Montana -- and the Jonas Brothers -- tickets that don't go on sale until 10 a.m tomorrow.

They've pulled up chairs outside the convention center to guarantee seats at the Dec. 20 performance of the Disney Channel favs at the Dunkin' Donuts Center.

There is a four-ticket limit per family.

Meanwhile, folk-rock icon Bob Dylan is slated to appear tomorrow night at the Ryan Center at the University of Rhode Island in Kingston.

He'll likely attract a different type of audience.

But you can react to his performance, and Journal staff writer Rick Massimo's review, Sunday on projo.com.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:11 PM | Comment

Textron agrees to loans for Las Vegas development

PROVIDENCE -- Textron Financial Corporation, a subsidiary of Providence-based Textron Inc., has agreed to provide loans to Westgate Resorts to pay for the $400-million Planet Hollywood Towers development in Las Vegas.

The 50-story residential development, on the Las Vegas Strip, is expected to open in two years. It will give owners access to the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino.

“The closing of this deal is testament to the financial strength and the industry and product expertise Textron Financial offers to all our customers,” Jay Carter, president of Textron Financial, said in a statement today.

The loan is the largest ever by Textron Financial's Resort Finance Division, established in 1990.

Westgate Resorts, based in Florida, is affiliated with Central Florida Investments Inc.

-- Journal staff writer Benjamin N. Gedan

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:00 PM | Comment

Gathering to mark same-sex marriage ruling

A gathering on the State House steps tomorrow will mark the first anniversary of a Massachusetts judge's ruling that allows Rhode Island same-sex couples to get married in the Bay State.

Rhode Island same-sex married couples, family and friends will attend, and couples and officials from gay-rights organizations are slated to speak.

The gathering, with a group photo planned, is scheduled for 10 a.m., according to a news release from Marriage Equality Rhode Island.

In September last year, Massachusetts Superior Court Judge Thomas E. Connolly ruled that Rhode Island law did not expressly prohibit gay marriage. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court already allowed same-sex marriages in Massachusetts.

In February this year, Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch, whose sister married a woman in Attleboro, Mass., issued an opinion saying Rhode Island would recognize same-sex marriages validly performed in Massachusetts. Lynch has said his sister's marriage had no bearing on his decision.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:28 PM | Comment

Sox keeping promising Buchholz out for season

Right-hander Clay Buchholz, who no-hit the Orioles on Sept. 1 in only his second big-league start, is being shut down for the season by the Red Sox.

Sox Manager Terry Francona said minutes ago that Buchholz's strength and mobility, among other things the organization test for on a regular basis, are not at the levels the Sox would like to see in order to have him continue to pitch.

So rather than risk his promising career by using him over the final three regular-season games and then in the postseason, the organization has decided to err on the side of caution.

Get the latest from projo.com's SoxBlog ...

-- Journal staff writer Steven Krasner

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 5:06 PM | Comment

State delays new Medicaid co-payments

PROVIDENCE – The state has delayed plans to ask 14,000 impoverished Medicaid recipients to pay a portion of their prescription drug costs.

The policy, enacted as part of the state budget passed by the General Assembly this spring, was set to begin Monday. It would have required $1 and $3 co-payments for generic and brand name medications, respectively.

The new fee structure has been put on hold until Dec. 1 because of federal objections to state regulations associated with the new policy.

The decision has nothing to do with an outcry from social welfare advocates at a public hearing earlier in the month, Department of Human Services Director Gary Alexander said today.

He did not immediately know how the delay would affect the $600,000 in revenue projected from the fees.

Several people testified that the copays unfairly target those least able to afford them, especially those on several medications and those with sick children. Fee-for-service Medicaid recipients affected by the new co-pays are generally adults under the age of 65 suffering from disabilities. Most live on monthly incomes fixed at $680.

-- Steve Peoples, Journal State House Bureau

Posted by Steve Peoples at 4:57 PM | Comment

9 Liberian journalists to speak at CCRI forum

Nine Liberian journalists will talk about matters impacting Liberia's "emerging democracy," including the media's contribution and the media environment there, during a Community College of Rhode Island forum tomorrow.

The noon forum is at the college's Liston Campus, 1 Hilton St., Providence.

At noon there will be a one-hour viewing of a photo exhibit by Liberian photojournalist Gregory Stemn, a former photo editor of such Liberian newspapers as the Daily Observer and Inquirer. "His photos trace the country’s transition from civil war to democracy and peace," the college said in a news release.

CCRI student government members will participate in the forum, which is free and open to the public.

Maureen Sieh, former senior reporter at the Liberian Daily Observer and now urban affairs editor at the Post Standard in Syracuse, N.Y., will moderate.

Print and electronic media journalists as well as journalists from "civic media organizations," the Press Union of Liberia, Female Journalists Association of Liberia, and the Liberia Media Center are slated to speak.

For more information, call Nyekeh Forkpa at (401) 477-4993 or at nyekeh33@ yahoo.com or Sam Togba Slewion at (215) 964-3217 or stslewion@aol.com.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

The visit is through an exchange program by the Center for Democracy and Development at the University of Massachusetts-Boston and is sponsored by the U.S. Agency for International Development.

The Liberia Media Support Initiative, described by the college as a media watchdog group, organized the event, working with the Center for Democracy and Development at UMass Boston and Rhode Island's Liberian community.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:43 PM | Comment

Photo: Brown students back protesters in Burma

Journal photo / Andrew Dickerman
Students at Brown University marched on campus today to show solidarity with protests in Myanmar, also known as Burma, against the ruling military government. Former U.S. Sen. Lincoln Chafee, now a visiting fellow at the Watson Institute for International Studies at Brown, was among the speakers.

Security forces first moved against the anti-government protesters on Wednesday, when the first of 10 deaths was reported. Images of bloodied protesters and fleeing crowds have riveted world attention on the escalating crisis, prompting many governments to urge the junta in Myanmar to end the violence. Get the latest from the Associated Press.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 4:39 PM | Comment

Rhode Island gets grant to stop elder-women abuse

Rhode Island has secured a $320,972 federal grant to develop and carry out statewide training that aims to end abuse against older women.

The grant will be used over three years to accomplish the initiative, according to a news release from U.S. Rep. Patrick Kennedy and U.S. Sen. Jack Reed.

The grant goes to Day One -- the sexual assault and trauma resource center -- and includes as partners the state attorney general's office, the Department of Elderly Affairs, the Rhode Island Police Chiefs Association, and state Coalition Against Domestic Violence.

“The needs of older woman who are victims of violence are different than those of other age groups,” Kennedy said in the statement. “They are very often the caregiver of an extended family and feel a tremendous responsibility to remain quiet, even while the abuse may threaten their personal safety."

Reed stated: "Too often, older women and senior citizens are targeted by criminals. We need to do more to protect our older citizens from abuse and violent crime."

The goal is for the organizations to work with other community and state agencies to create a "statewide systemic response" to women victims of sexual abuse and violence later in life.

From 2001 to 2005, 1,359 incidents of domestic violence against people 60 or older were reported to Rhode Island police, according to estimates from the lawmakers.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:18 PM | Comment

Update: Firefighters will participate in Sunday's drill

The Providence firefighters will be participating in Sunday's Homeland Security drill at the Rhode Island Convention Center, apparently meaning that the statewide drill will go forward as planned.

The Providence firefighters, who have been working without a contract, had planned to picket the drill, leading firefighters from other departments to say they would not cross the picket lines.

That plan was met with fierce objections by city and state officials.

Their Providence Fire Department's union president said in a statement, "It never was our intention to negatively impact the drill."

Anyone who asserts that it was, union president Paul A. Doughty added, "is either misinformed or is consciously misinforming the public."

The statement also says the Providence firefighters union has contacted all other Rhode Island fire departments to assure them their participation "will be as welcome as it is necessary."

Firefighters will stage a "teach-in" on the steps of City Hall after the drill is finished, according to a statement from the firefighters' union. Doughty's statement said the subject of the teach-in is that "Providence is alone among Rhode Island municipalities in its unwillingness to conform to state law regarding cancer benefits for firefighters."

He added that "in Providence, the city charter provides a legal loophole that allows the city to ignore the state law ... So our argument is not legal in nature. It's about morality. It's about right and wrong."

"Providence firefighters will proudly join colleagues from the other 38 cities and towns of Rhode Island and participate in a preparedness exercise of immense importance to the safety of our state," Doughty said.

Doughty was scheduled to give a news conference beginning at 3 p.m. today.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:19 PM | Comment

Zion Bible College, in Barrington, moving to Mass.

BARRINGTON -- Zion Bible College is moving to Massachusetts after all.

The Rev. Otis Stanley, the Board of Trustees chairman, says the Barrington school will move to the former campus of Bradford College in Haverhill, Mass., after the founder of an arts-and-crafts chain purchased the 72.5-acre campus and donated it.

The school last year considered the move, but backed out when trustees decided it wasn't financially feasible.

That changed when David Green of Hobby Lobby Stores bought the campus. Haverhill Mayor James J. Fiorentini says the school will now use the money it was planning to use to buy the campus to rehabilitate buildings.

Stanley says the campus could be ready by next September.

Bradford closed in 2000 for financial reasons.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:37 PM | Comment

Providence appoints a new finance director

PROVIDENCE -- Bruce T. Miller, the Plymouth, Mass. finance director, has been appointed Providence finance director and will begin work Oct. 15, Mayor David N. Cicilline's office announced today.

Miller has overseen a $155-million budget in Plymouth and fills the post left open by former finance director Alex Prignano, who retired last year, according to a news release.

Miller served as finance director for Provincetown, Mass, from 2000 to 2004, overseeing a $30 million budget. And, from 1993 to 1999, Miller managed the finances of Nantucket, Mass.

“Bruce Miller has a strong background in public sector finance and his track record at successfully implementing long-term financial strategies for several municipalities makes him uniquely qualified to manage the City of Providence’s finances,” Cicilline said in a statement. “He takes on the position at a time when Providence has earned ‘A’ grades from all three bond rating agencies and made progress towards implementing meaningful pension reform.”

Miller carried out long-term strategic planning for capital and operating budgets, "revising debt and cash management/investment policies," and restructured back-office operations of the town’s treasury, collector and accounting departments, the mayor's office said.

Miller modernized Plymouth’s financial operations by carrying out a change to new software.

He has a bachelor's degree in accounting from University of Baltimore.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:20 PM | Comment

R.I. Lottery: scratch a ticket, help the arts

Rhode Island Lottery announced today that beginning Monday all proceeds from a new one-dollar scratch ticket game during its first three months will go to the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts to help the local arts community.

The ticket was designed in part by Tom Roskelly of Roskelly, Inc. in Portsmouth, and features a performer from Fusionworks Dance Company. The RISCA ticket will be available in full distribution. The game will also be sold at certain arts events.

The new Rhode Island State Council on the Arts Instant Game came out of legislation, Rhode Island Lottery said in a news release. The law was spearheaded by Sen. Maryellen Goodwin, D-Providence, and Rep. John McCauley, D-Providence, with co-sponsors Reps. Peter Lewiss, John Shanley, Edith Ajello, and William San Bento.

"We hope that this instant lottery game is successful in raising additional support for the arts in our state, and we thank all those who have made this possible," Randall Rosenbaum, the state Council on the Arts executive director, said in the statement.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 1:34 PM | Comment

UAW takes step toward forming union at Foxwoods

NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- The United Auto Workers filed a petition today with the National Labor Relations Board seeking an election to form a union for about 3,000 dealers at Foxwoods Resort Casino.

Union officials called the move the largest organizing effort in Connecticut in decades. It also would be one of the first unions at a tribal casino.

"This step is epochal, portending huge shifts in the legal and labor landscape at tribal casinos all around the country," said Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, whose office has supported such efforts. "It would almost inevitably lead to similar union efforts at other casinos."

The move came after UAW officials said a "supermajority" of the 3,000 dealers had signed cards in support of the effort. At least 30 percent of employees of a proposed bargaining unit must sign cards to force a vote, which is supervised by the NLRB.

UAW officials said in June they had started gathering signatures in a bid to unionize workers at Foxwoods. The casino in Mashantucket is owned by the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe and has 11,430 employees.

Foxwoods officials have been fighting the unionizing efforts, telling employees they will be required to pay dues and may lose benefits through negotiations. In February, the casino announced 5 percent raises and improved benefits after a New Year's Eve sickout to protest working conditions.

Full story ...

-- Associated Press

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 1:26 PM | Comment

More officials decry firefighters' plan to picket

The state's Attorney General has added his voice to the list of state officials objecting to the Providence firefighters' decision to picket, threatening to cancel or drastically scale back a statewide mock disaster drill scheduled for Sunday at the Rhode Island Convention Center.

Patrick Lynch said in an interview, "There is a time and place for everything, and I don't think firefighters should use an important _ if not critically important _ public safety preparedness drill as a bargaining tool.''

He urged the union to find a way to allow the drill to take place as planned and said he had left a message for union president Paul Doughty to that effect.

In interviews this morning, Lt. Gov. Elizabeth Roberts and Gen. Treas. Frank Caprio added their voices.

Roberts, who chairs the state Emergency Management Advisory Council, said she was "shocked" when she read the news about the dispute and the refusal of firefighters from several communities to participate in the terrorism drill.

She said firefighters' "primary responsibility" is to respond to emergencies, something "they do very well.'' She said she was "extremely disappointed'' that an argument over disability benefits - which she acknowledged is an important matter - "is getting in the way of having this important drill.''

Caprio said he wants to see the drill go forward with full participation by everyone who was scheduled to be in it.

"The drill is of utmost importance for our region and I would hope the union and the city administration could work out their differences,'' he said.

Caprio said he'd place a call and pass along his thoughts to Doughty.

Minutes later, Caprio phoned The Providence Journal to say he spoke to Doughty and that the union leader "sounded very hopeful" the situation would be resolved. "I think you're going to to see some news from them sometime this afternoon,'' Caprio said.

Republican Governor Carcieri and Democratic Mayor David Cicilline assailed the firefighters' posture yesterday.

-- Journal staff writer M. Charles Bakst

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 1:00 PM | Comment

Lawyers ask court to affirm Urciuoli, Driscoll verdicts

PROVIDENCE -- Federal prosecutors are asking a federal appeals court to uphold guilty verdicts against two former hospital executives convicted in a corruption case.

They filed court papers today rejecting arguments from Robert Urciuoli and Frances Driscoll that the trial judge gave the jury flawed instructions.

Robert Urciuoli is the former president of Roger Williams Medical Center. Driscoll was a senior vice president. They were convicted last year of paying then-Senator John Celona to advance their agenda at the Statehouse.

Defense lawyers say the trial judge should not have allowed the jury to consider acts that Celona took on the hospital's behalf that were unrelated to his votes in the Senate. But prosecutors say that argument defies common sense.

The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeal has permitted Urciuoli and Driscoll to remain free on bail.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Mike McKinney at 12:45 PM | Comment

Judge: Cunha clients can't pursue Station foam claims

PROVIDENCE – A federal judge has ruled that Station fire victims represented by lawyer Brian R. Cunha may not pursue their claims against a publicly-traded company that may have manufactured the highly flammable foam that lined the walls of The Station nightclub because Cunha never properly notified the company that he was suing them.

This means that if a jury were to find foam manufacturer Leggett & Platt liable for money damages at a trial -- or if the company were to agree to an out-of-court settlement -- the 19 fire victims represented by Cunha would not share in any of the money paid by Leggett & Platt.

Cunha, in a hearing on Sept. 19, told Senior U.S. District Court Judge Ronald R. Lagueux that his failure to serve Leggett & Platt had been an oversight. He blamed one of his paralegals for the error. He argued that it would be unfair to punish his clients by throwing out their claims against the foam manufacturer. And he contended that the lawyer here representing Leggett & Platt should have called him on the phone to give him a head’s up that he hadn’t been served.

But Lagueux was not convinced. Cunha had had years since filing his lawsuits to serve notice on Leggett & Platt and the lawyer for Leggett & Platt “continually gave notice in various pleadings that they had not been served and that they were not answering” the Cunha lawsuits, the judge said.

“It’s unfortunate that this has happened, but trying to shift the blame to the defendants doesn’t carry the day in this case. I’m satisfied that the plaintiffs have not shown good cause for this long delay in either making service or presenting the waiver of service to the defendants,” said Lagueux.

The burden, said the judge, was on Cunha “to demonstrate to me there’s good cause for allowing them to make tardy service at this time."

Good cause, said Lagueux, “requires a demonstration of good faith on the part of the party seeking” an extension of time “and some reasonable basis for noncompliance” with court rules.

“And it’s been held that an attorney’s inadvertence, neglect or mistake is not good cause. And here, whether it’s a paralegal, or someone else in a plaintiff’s office has not satisfactorily explained what happened,” said Lagueux.

“Obviously, there was an oversight” but Cunha, said Lagueux, had given no detailed explanation about what had happened, except “a last-minute discussion with a paralegal and the representation made to the court that the paralegal somehow didn’t catch it.”

Cunha, in a telephone interview today, said he would appeal Lagueux's decision to the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston by day's end and predicted "I'm gonna win on appeal."

He said, "I was very surprised by the judge's decision," and that "with all due respect it was factually incorrect and I feel strongly, upon appeal, we'll be fine."

Cunha said that Leggett & Platt's lawyer filed an answer to all of the fire victims' claims against it and included him in the list of people served with answers. He said the foam company's lawyer never raised the issue of "insufficiency of process" until just recently.

Lagueux’s ruling does not affect the Leggett & Platt claims of the fire victims who are represented by other lawyers – just Cunha’s clients.

Leggett & Platt, a Missouri corporation, is one of the big-pocket defendants being sued by the families who lost loved ones and those who suffered injuries in The Station nightclub fire on Feb. 20, 2003. The company’s stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange. The fire victims allege in their lawsuits that Leggett & Platt manufactured foam that the owners of The Station, Michael and Jeffrey Derderian, bought as sound-proofing for their club.

-- Journal staff writer Tracy Breton

The lawsuits also allege that the highly-flammable polyurethane foam manufactured and sold by Leggett & Platt “possessed extraordinary dangerous and defective qualities” and “ignited too easily, burned too vigorously once ignited and produced unreasonably dangerous toxic smoke and gases.”

The lawsuits contend that Leggett & Platt’s foam “was an immediate cause” of the deadly fire at The Station, which killed 100 people and injured more than 200 others.

Leggett & Platt is vigorously contesting those allegations and contends that it bears no liability for injuries suffered by the fire victims and their families.

Lawyers for the fire victims, including Cunha, also allege that another foam manufacturer, General Foam, and the company that later purchased it -- Foamex -- are also liable to the fire victims for the same reasons.

They allege that both General Foam and Leggett & Platt delivered polyurethane foam to a Johnston distributor, American Foam, around the time that the Derderians bought the foam there that they installed in their nightclub.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 12:26 PM | Comment

Lawyer: Let injured Mexican worker stay in U.S.

PROVIDENCE -- An immigration lawyer is petitioning for Edgar Velásquez to remain in the country beyond Sunday, when his five-day humanitarian visa expires. The government-issued visa allowed Velásquez to travel from Mexico and attend a workers’ compensation pre-trial hearing yesterday against a former employer, for whom Velásquez worked when he slashed his face open with a chain saw last year.

Velásquez was in the country illegally at the time.

Bernard P. Healy, lawyer for the state Department of Labor, told workers’ compensation Judge Bruce Q. Morin today that an immigration attorney has filed a petition for a visa extension that would allow Velasquez to remain until an actual trial is held in his case against William J. Gorman Jr., owner of Billy G’s Tree Care in Warwick.

Velásquez is seeking compensation for medical bills and permanent injuries suffered on March 31, 2006, when a chain saw he was using kicked back from a fence, cut his forehead to the bone, and sliced through his eyelid and nose.

Velásquez testified at a separate trial this morning in the state labor department’s case against Gorman for not having workers’ compensation insurance when Velásquez worked for him. Gorman could face fines of up to $1,000 a day.

Velásquez testified through an interpreter that he was riding in a vehicle Gorman was driving on August 3rd, 2005, that was involved in an accident with another vehicle. He said he had started working for Gorman sometime before then but could not remember exactly when.

He also testified that he worked for Gorman for as many as six days a week, depending on the weather and work availability, until his accident. He did not work during December and January, he said.

The work involved chopping down trees large and small, chopping limbs into firewood-sized pieces, and mowing Gorman’s lawn, he said.

Asked by Healy who decided what work he would do and how, Velásquez said Gorman did.

“Well, how can I put it? We are just mere workers – we come to the United States and they decide what work we do and how we do it,” he said.

Under cross-examination, Velásquez said his uncle arranged the first meeting with Gorman.

-- Journal staff writer Karen Lee Ziner

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 12:06 PM | Comment

Documentary screening to benefit homeless shelter

What a weird name, Woonsocket.

If it hadn’t been for that thought, Mark and Normand, two homeless men who lived in the woods of Woonsocket, may not have been any better off today than they were before their lives were touched by two documentary filmmakers. Or maybe they would have.

Find out for yourself how a group of filmmakers who spend their time driving around looking for people help turned a chance visit to Rhode Island into a documentary film-worthy experience.

See the documentary film “Lost in Woonsocket,” tonight at the Blackstone Valley Visitors’ Center Theater at 7:30 p.m.

Director John Chester, and three of the film’s subjects -- Normand Cartier, Joe the Barber and Pastor Brian -- will be there after the movie for a discussion.

Proceeds for the screening, which costs $20, will help fund St. Paul’s Emergency Overnight Shelter in Pawtucket and the Lost and Found in America Foundation.

And if you're curious, find out where the name Woonsocket may have come from.

-- projo.com staff writer Brandie M. Jefferson

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:58 AM | Comment

Update: Bush sets goal to fight global warming / Video

Representatives from across the world are meeting in Washington, D.C., today to discuss climate change and strategies that major countries, and major companies, can use to develop cleaner technologies and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

In a speech to the group this morning, President Bush called on the world's worst polluters to come together to set a goal for reducing the greenhouse gas emissions that are causing the climate to heat up. He didn't exempt his own country from the list.

"By setting this goal, we acknowledge there is a problem, and by setting this goal, we commit ourselves to doing something about it," Bush said in a speech that capped two days of talks at a White House-sponsored climate change conference. "We share a common responsibility: to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while keeping our economies growing."

He said each nation should establish for itself what methods it will use to rein in the pollution problem without stunting economic growth.

The gathering drew representatives from 16 nations, including big producers from the developing world like China and India as well as the European Union and United Nations. Bush's emphasis is on using green technologies and other voluntary efforts to tackle global warming. The president said the reduction goal should be finalized by next summer, along with ways to measure progress toward it.

Watch a video report of Bush's speech.

Closer to home, politicians are still expressing disappointment at some of the administration’s policies toward climate change. According to documents made public by a congressional committee, the Bush administration is working to create opposition to new state rules designed to reduce carbon emissions from cars.

The potential effects of climate change in New England were outlined in a report earlier this summer by the Cambridge-based Union of Concerned Scientists, self described as “the leading science-based nonprofit working for a healthy environment and a safer world.”

The report warns of the decline of lobster stocks, increased drought, increased coastal flooding and conditions favorable for the spread of vector borne diseases.

Read the report here .

-- With reports from Journal staff writer Peter B. Lord and the Associated Press

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:35 AM | Comment

Pilobolus comes to PPAC

You could talk about the physics of it all, or the physiology. Of course, being dance, there’s artistry to be admired.

And talking about “a collaborative choreographic process and a unique weight-sharing approach to partnering” just doesn’t get the point across.

To understand what the Pilobolus dance troupe does – even if you’ll never understand how – just watch.

See more tomorrow night at 8 p.m., when the troupe comes to the Providence Performing Arts Center.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:24 AM | Comment

Queen Mary 2 in Newport tomorrow

Journal photo / John Freidah
Sharon Amaral and Joe Chaves of Newport watch the arrival of the Queen Mary 2 when it stopped in Newport in September 2004.

It’s the biggest thing in Newport this weekend.

The Queen Mary 2 will be making a stop in Rhode Island during its “Splendours of Fall” cruise which begins in New York and visits Boston, Halifax, Quebec City, and , Bar Harbor, Maine.

The 1,132-foot-long ship took just under 4 years to build at an estimated cost of $800 million.

It's expected to arrive at 8 a.m. tomorrow and depart for Boston at 5.

A document titled “Queen Mary 2 A Ship of Superlatives,” uses comparisons to make the magnitude of the ship comprehensible. For instance, on the ship, “enough toilet tissue is used to wrap the earth almost five times.”

Whether that's a good thing or not, the ship is certainly something to see.

And if you don’t get a chance to see the ship, you may be able to hear it.

The QM2’s whistle can be heard up to 10 miles away.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 8:29 AM | Comment

From Providence dumping ground to playground

Riverside Mills was once a thriving mill complex, but in recent years it’s become an eyesore.

The Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council has been working to clean up the sofas, tires, needles and oil drums that littered the area, even buying new soil to make sure contaminants from the industrial mill’s past were all gone.

And now, a playground and community parks are on the way.

It’s been quite a turnaround, but it’s not over yet.

The Council; Struever Bros. Eccles & Rouse; the Providence Parks Department and other community groups are sponsoring a James W. Rouse Community Service Day. They’re asking the public to help install playgrounds, plant new trees and clean up the river.

Tomorrow from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., stop by the park, near Aleppo Street, along the Woonasquatucket River in Providence and lend a hand in exchange for drinks and food – and the chance to be a part of the area’s revitalization.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 8:01 AM | Comment

Lead content prompts more toy recalls

WASHINGTON -- A Cumberland company recalls children's necklaces made in China because they contain dangerous levels of lead.

The 850 Spinning Wheel Necklace necklaces were produced by Rhode Island Novelty. They were sold nationwide from November 2006 through May 2007.

Under current regulations, children's products should not have more than .06 percent lead.

The government warns parents to make sure children are not playing or using any of the recalled products.

For more information, call the company 800-528-5599 or visit its Web site at www.rinovelty.com.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:02 AM | Comment

Rainy today, but nice for the weekend

Your car may be a little damp this morning, and there's more to come.

The National Weather Service is predicting rain and some thunderstorms across the state all day. The temperature should reach 79 degrees.

Rain should continue into the evening, but skies should clear by 9 p.m. The overnight low should be 54.

Saturday is looking nice, with sunny skies and temperatures in the low 70s.

Saturday night should be clear, with a low around 46.

Cooler Sunday, with a high near 65 and clear skies. Sunday's low is forecast at 44 degrees.

And Monday may be the perfect fall day, clear, sunny skies with a high near 72.

For more weather and regular updates, see projo.com/weather.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:01 AM | Comment

Today's front page

Today's front page features a story reporting that some defense attorneys in The Station fire civil cases are raising issues that could delay payments to victims' families.

Download a copy of today's front page in .pdf format.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:00 AM | Comment

September 27, 2007

Tonight: Benoit's blues and Feldman's artworks

Tab Benoit plays his own blend of blues at Chan's Restaurant in Woonsocket tonight at 8 and 10 p.m. Head to 267 Main St. Call 765-1900. It's $20 to see both shows; $12 for the late show.

Or go to the John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library at Brown University in Providence for the art of Walter Feldman, professor emeritus of visual art. Open from 8:30 a.m. to 2 a.m.

And don't forget it's showtime for The Brotherhood at PPAC.

For more ideas, visit projo.com/lifebeat and projo.com's calendar page.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 7:05 PM | Comment

R.I. man gets probation for Boston drug sales

BOSTON, Mass. -- A Rhode Island man who illegally sold prescription drugs in and around the federal building where he worked has been sentenced to three years of probation after pleading guilty.

Prosecutors say 45-year-old Anthony Carroll of Warwick, Rhode Island, sold oxycodone and morphine in and around the JFK Federal Building in Boston from October 2005 to February 2006.

He worked for the federal Office of Veterans Affairs at the time.

Carroll faced a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, but received three years of probation with the first six months to be served in electronically-monitored home confinement.

A co-defendant pleaded guilty last year.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Mike McKinney at 7:03 PM | Comment

Fire reported in Central Falls' Dexter Street area

CENTRAL FALLS -- Responders are at the scene of a fire this evening in the Dexter Street area.

The Providence Fire Department was asked to send its canteen truck to Central Falls.

No other details were yet available.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 7:00 PM | Comment

Carcieri asks for teacher contract task force

PROVIDENCE -- Citing concern over the delayed opening of school in several districts because of teacher contract battles, Governor Carcieri asked the new chairman of the Board of Regents for Elementary and Secondary Education to assemble a task force to study how teacher contracts are negotiated and recommend ways to improve the process.

“…This year the startup of school in our state was marred by labor disputes in a number of our communities,” Carcieri wrote in a Sept. 13 letter to Chairman Robert G. Flanders Jr. “Rather than ensuring students were ready for school … the focus was on such contractual issues as health care benefits and salaries for teachers. This must change.”

Carcieri asked Flanders to select task force members from a wide range of backgrounds -- including teacher unions, school committees, parents, municipal leaders and others, and to report back shortly after the General Assembly convenes in January.

“The governor wants to see if we can avoid strike situations that seem to pop up around the time children go back to school,” Flanders said at a regularly scheduled Regents’ meeting today. Flanders said he will move quickly to assemble the group, begin meetings and present recommendations to lawmakers early next year.

Flanders, a former state Supreme Court justice, was nominated by Carcieri in June to head the board and confirmed by the Senate before its close later that month.

-- Journal staff writer Jennifer D. Jordan

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:30 PM | Comment

Update: All 11 fire departments bow out of drill

PROVIDENCE -- All 11 Rhode Island fire departments slated to participate in a terrorism drill at Rhode Island Convention Center have dropped out, prompted by the Providence firefighters' union plan to picket as part of a protracted contract battle between the Providence firefighters and the city.

Yesterday, East Providence, Cranston and Pawtucket bowed out because of the union picket. This morning, Newport firefighters followed suit. As of this afternoon, all of the other departments dropped out, too, including Coventry, Johnston, North Providence, West Warwick, Warwick, and Central Falls. The 11th department is Providence itself.

Drill organizers, however, say they will conduct the exercise no matter what.

Meanwhile, RIPTA officials are also telling the Providence Emergency Management Agency that their union is concerned about getting involved.

The RIPTA bus drivers were going to transport victims, said Leo Messier, of the Providence EMA. Without them, the drill won’t be able to use its new statewide communications system.

Providence alone was planning to have 80 firefighters involved in the drill, including 40 who are on duty Sunday. There were no volunteers to work overtime.

This morning, the department ordered eight Providence firefighters trained in hazardous materials to come in and work the drill, said Assistant Fire Chief Michael J. Dillon. They are being paid overtime.

Providence Fire Chief George S. Farrell said this morning that he’s hopeful that the controversy can be smoothed over in time for Sunday.

Also today, Governor Carcieri, a Republican, and the head of the convention center authority criticized the union's plan to picket.

The state Republican Party chairman this afternoon said state Democratic leaders need to speak out against the union's planned picket.

Your turn: Are the firefighters justified in picketing a major statewide drill?

-- Journal staff writer Amanda Milkovits, with reports from Journal staff writer Michael P. McKinney

“Where are the Democrat leaders speaking out against this? Their silence is deafening and shows they won’t break ranks with the union bosses even when a job action threatens public safety, is an outrageous disruption to a planned anti-terrorism drill, and will waste taxpayers dollars,” GOP Chairman Giovanni Cicione said in a statement.

He added: “The Democratic Party used to stand up for the working class -- now they toss aside valuable training and funding that could save lives just to draw attention to the circus that the unions run for their own gain.”

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 5:08 PM | Comment

Update: Blue Cross to make cuts; details unknown

Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island said today it is cutting staff and eliminating "several programs and functions" to lower its operating expenses.

In a two-paragraph statement, the state's publicly chartered health insurer makes no mention of how many staff members are being cut or which programs -- or how any of that will impact the public.

The corporation said it's "under increasing competitive pressure to provide high-quality health insurance for less. To retain our market share and to ensure the long-term viability and success of the company -- we must operate at the lowest reasonable cost."

The statement adds: "Out of respect and sensitivity to those individuals who are directly impacted, it would be inappropriate for us to provide any more information," the statement says. "We are making every effort to treat those individuals with the dignity and respect they deserve."

Blue Cross is one of the state's two dominant health insurers. The other is UnitedHealthcare, which beat out Blue Cross early this year for the state employees' health insurance contract. Blue Cross is an independent, nonprofit company, while United is a for-profit subsidiary of a national company.

The major news this year from Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island has been construction plans for a new headquarters in the Capital Center in Providence. It plans a 13-story, 325,000-square-foot building rising 237 feet at the corner of Park Row and Exchange Street and above a parking garage under construction to serve two residential towers.

As of April, the insurer had about 1,100 employees in Providence, in six locations, two owned, four rented. The company has said it plans to sell the two buildings it alreay owns for $20 million and put the proceeds toward the cost of constructing the $114-million building.

Blue Cross has said it hopes to begin constructing the building late this year and occupy the site in early 2010. It is slated to get $25 million in tax breaks from the city, under a plan negotiated in 2004 with Intercontinental when the developer signed its long-term lease on the two-acre Capital Center parcel, Blue Cross officials have said.

In May, Governor Carcieri had expressed concerns about the location in terms of perception: an expensive location.

But Blue Cross & Blue Shield officials have said locating there saves money long term, including because of efficiencies resulting from consolidating in one spot.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney and Journal archival reports

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:30 PM | Comment

Brotherhood premieres at PPAC tonight

People can wait until Sunday to catch those Rhode Island standbys of political corruption, criminal shenanigans and friends influencing friends dramatized on Showtime's new season of Brotherhood. Or they can catch it tonight at the Providence Performing Arts Center.

The first two episodes will premiere at 7 tonight. Tickets are free. Pick them up at Cox stores at the South County Commons in South Kingstown, 50 Houghton St. in Providence, and 1999 Plainfield Pike in Johnston and at the Warwick Mall.

It was not clear if tickets were still available at those locations.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:00 PM | Comment

Sex offender, accused again, back in prison

A convicted sex offender, accused of raping a woman in Cumberland while he was on probation, today was ordered to serve the remainder of his sentence from the previous conviction.

Gary P. Lamountain was indicted on two counts of first-degree sexual assault and one count of larceny in 2003 after attacking a woman he had known for 20 years and stealing stereo equipment. He was given a 20-year sentence with five years to serve and 15 years suspended.

Lamountain was released April 23 of this year after serving three years of his five-year sentence at the Adult Correctional Institutions.

Lamountain, labeled a level three, or “high risk” sex offender, was arrested Aug. 12 after a 27-year-old woman accused him of breaking into her Cumberland apartment and raping her.

At a violation hearing today in Superior Court, Providence, Judge Gilbert Indeglia ordered Lamountain to serve the 15 years that had been suspended as part of his previous sentence.

The police were in the process of putting a notification to let neighbors know a registered sex offender was in the area, but the notice was posted on the police department’s Web site the day after Lamountain's arrest.
.
-- projo.com staff writer Brandie M. Jefferson, with reports from Journal staff writer Philip Marcello

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 2:12 PM | Comment

Guard transportation unit returning to R.I.

CRANSTON -- More than 130 members of the Rhode Island Army National Guard are returning this weekend from a year-long deployment to Iraq.

The 1207th Transportation Company conducted transportation missions in Basra. The Guard members arrived there in September 2006.

The company is scheduled to arrive at Quonset State Airport in North Kingstown.

One soldier in the unit received a Purple Heart in Iraq. Eight were awarded the Bronze Star Medal, and 31 received the Combat Action Badge.

This morning, 175 Guardsmen departed for Fort Dix, N.J., on their way to Iraq.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 1:53 PM | Comment

Blue Cross & Blue Shield of R.I. is cutting staff

Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island said today it is cutting staff and eliminating "several programs and functions" to lower its operating expenses.

In a statement, the nonprofit corporation said it's "under increasing competitive pressure to provide high-quality health insurance for less. To retain our market share and to ensure the long-term viability and success of the company -- we must operate at the lowest reasonable cost."

The statement made no mention of how many staff members are being cut or which programs.

"Out of respect and sensitivity to those individuals who are directly impacted, it would be inappropriate for us to provide any more information," the statement says. "We are making every effort to treat those individuals with the dignity and respect they deserve."

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 1:35 PM | Comment

Update: Male jumps from Jamestown span

A male jumped off the Jamestown-Verrazzano Bridge today, according to police.

He was being taken by a Jamestown Fire Department boat to a local hospital.

Coast Guard from Station Castle Hill in Newport responded and helped clear the scene after the incident, which happened around noon.

Police have not found a vehicle on the bridge or immediate area.

The span connects North Kingstown and the island of Jamestown.

No other information is available at this time.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with reports from Journal staff writer Donita Naylor

Posted by Mike McKinney at 1:11 PM | Comment

Mexican gets day in court on workers' comp case

PROVIDENCE -- A day after Edgar Velásquez returned from the mountains of Mexico on humanitarian parole, he got his first chance at seeking justice today against his former employer for a devastating chainsaw injury that sliced his face open.

Though Velásquez was in the country illegally when he worked for William J. Gorman Jr., owner of Billy G’s Tree Service in Warwick, state law allows a person to pursue workers’ compensation regardless of their legal status. Last year when Velásquez tried to pursue against Gorman, however, immigration agents arrested him outside the J. Joseph Garrahy Judicial Complex on the day of a scheduled hearing, and he was sent back to Mexico a month later.

After today’s pre-trial hearing before Judge Bruce Q. Morin, Velásquez said through an interpreter, “I feel very happy to be back in Rhode Island. I hope it’s going to come to a happy conclusion, God willing.”

The case is not over. Lawyers have arranged for Velásquez to give a deposition before his humanitarian parole expires on Sunday. Unless immigration authorities grant an extension, Velásquez must return home that day. It is scheduled to go to trial. It is not clear when.

During the hearing, Velásquez stated that he worked six days a week, between 10 and 12 hours a day for Gorman for more than a year -- except for winter months -- up until the time of the accident. Gorman picked him up and drove him home each day, and he was not free to leave “until the job was done.”

He also said he continues to suffer headaches and dizziness and cannot fully close his left eye since the injury, and he experiences recurring infections along the scar at his hairline.

Michael A. St. Pierre, lawyer for Gorman, argued that his client is an arborist, and as such is exempt from the workers’ compensation statute. He said, however, that Gorman has $300,000 indemnity insurance and as such, there is likely a remedy for Velásquez outside of workers’ compensation.

Maureen Gemma of the firm of Stephen Dennis, argued that Gorman is not a licensed arborist and can better be described as “a woodsman.” She also contended that Gorman “has on one or more occasions, collected workers’ compensation” as an employee of a tree service.

-- Journal staff writer Karen Lee Ziner

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 1:08 PM | Comment

Bringing Rhode Island history into the now

The Rhode Island Historical Society is set to go online this evening.

The organization will wave goodbye to the past – its 185-year-old card catalogue system – and enter the modern age with an electronic database that allows anyone with access to the Web to peruse items stored in the Historical Society’s museum and library.

A formal demonstration will be held this evening at 7:30.

The first step is to let users search through about one quarter of the society’s documents, that’s 150,000 items, and determine where they are in the library or museum.

Digital scans or reproductions will not be available online.

The project was paid for with a $75,000 grant from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services.

The society will continue cataloguing its collections as the grants and individual donations become available. Next will be genealogical artifacts, including diaries and 19th-century books.

-- projo.com staff writer Brandie M. Jefferson, with reports from Journal staff writer Steve Peoples

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 12:16 PM | Comment

Carcieri, convention head criticize union picket plan

Governor Carcieri and the head of the Rhode Island Convention Center Authority are criticizing the Providence firefighters union for its plans to picket a statewide terrorism drill this weekend at the convention center.

The union's decision to picket the drill has prompted dozens of firefighters from other departments to say they won't participate.

Your turn: Are the firefighters justified in picketing a major, statewide drill?

Carcieri and David A. Duffy, chairman of the convention center authority's governing board, say they hope the union changes its plans and participates in the drill.

The drill, paid for in part by a $50,000 federal grant, will simulate a terrorist attack at the convention center that leaves hundreds of victims, requires 40 ambulances, and mobilizes seven hospitals to help.

Duffy said the threatened picket could force organizers to scale back, or even cancel, the drill.

Providence firefighters are embroiled in a protracted contract battle with the city. They say they plan an "informational demonstration" for disability benefits.

Carcieri says it's "unconscionable" for the union to even consider picketing the drill.

"In the wake of September 11th and The Station nightclub fire, Rhode Island has worked hard to improve the state’s ability to prevent and respond to emergencies,” Carcieri said in a statement issued this morning. “While we have upgraded our equipment and protocols, the most important thing we can do is drill, practice, and train. In that light, the statewide terrorism drill scheduled for Sunday is a critical part of our ability to protect Rhode Island citizens.”

At this morning's board meeting, Duffy said, "I don't see how this helps anyone. I don't see how this has anything to do with their contract."

"This benefits all the people of Rhode Island," Duffy said. "I hope that common sense will prevail."

Carcieri said he hopes the union does "the right thing" and fully participates in the drill.

-- With reports from Journal staff writers Amanda Milkovits and Benjamin Gedan

Posted by Jack Perry at 11:34 AM | Comment

Someone got lucky in Kentucky

You may have noticed on your way to work today that the big Powerball billboard on Route 95 had a new number.

The prize is down to a measly $15 million, after a ticket bought in Kentucky hit the jackpot in last night's drawing.

The winning numbers were: 25 27 31 44 54 Powerball 8 Powerplay 2

The estimated grand prize -- $61.5 million

For more on last night's winning numbers around the region, and every day's drawings, visit projo.com's lottery page.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 11:29 AM | Comment

Defendants' objections could delay Station payments

PROVIDENCE – A month ago, lawyers for those who lost loved ones or suffered injuries in The Station nightclub fire told a federal court judge that some of the parties they’d sued had tentatively agreed to pay $13.5 million to settle the victims’ claims. They asked the court to allow them to hire a special master who would decide how the settlement money would be divvied up.

But lawyers for two foam manufacturers who are being sued – General Foam and Foamex -- are now objecting to the court’s appointment of a special master. And in a move that may further delay any money getting to the victims, they say in newly filed court papers that they intend to object to the proposed settlements and challenge a law, enacted by the General Assembly in 2006, that is aimed at facilitating pre-trial settlements cases in which there are 25 or more deaths.

Legal experts have said that the new legislation – which lawmakers call The Station fire bill -- could result in monetary settlements with some of the seemingly most culpable defendants who have little insurance and few assets to reach settlements with the fire victims. It was modeled after one that was enacted to pay back credit-union depositors during the state’s banking crisis in 1991.

The new law was enacted despite objections from insurance defense lawyers, the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce and several local and publicly traded companies. Those lobbying against it included lawyers for some of the large corporations the fire victims are now suing.

More than 300 fire victims and their survivors have lawsuits pending in U.S. District Court in connection with the Feb. 20, 2003, fire at The Station in West Warwick. One hundred people died in the blaze and more than 200 others were injured. The fire began when the tour manager for the rock band Great White set off fireworks inside the club. Sparks from the pyrotechnics ignited highly flammable polyurethane foam that the owners of the club, Michael and Jeffrey Derderian, installed on the walls as soundproofing.

Lawyers for the victims have worked out settlements with about a half-dozen defendants and say they are making headway in negotiating with a number of others.

But lawyers James A. Ruggieri and Gerald C. DeMaria, who represent foam manufacturers Foamex and General Foam, assert in papers filed last week that the new law the settlement offers are conditioned upon “is unconstitutional and invalid” and that they “fully intend to object to any proposed settlements on those grounds at the appropriate time.”

-- Journal staff writer Tracy Breton

Up until the new law was enacted, no lawyer representing any of the Station fire victims had entertained any settlement offer because there was a risk that a victim might forfeit millions of dollars in damages if a jury were to find a party that settled primarily at fault for the fire.

But now, with the new law, there would be less risk in a victim accepting pre-trial settlement offers because there would merely be a dollar-for-dollar write-off attached to whatever verdict is rendered at a trial. The degree of culpability will not be a factor in reducing a verdict for this special class of fire victims.

But that is precisely what Demaria and Ruggieri are objecting to.

In a memorandum of law filed with Senior U.S. District Court Judge Ronald R. Lagueux, they say that the 2006 law operates to the detriment of deep-pocket defendants in mass tort cases who may have very little culpability. If these large corporations choose to go to trial and have a jury weigh the allegations against them, they could face having to pay for close to 100 percent of the damages awarded, even if they are found to be only minimally at fault.

Demaria and Ruggieri declined to comment further this week when asked what their timetable for contesting the new law would be – and at what point they plan to do so. They could seek declaration of the constitutionality of the act before Lagueux and then appeal to the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals if the judge rejects their constitutional objections. But the appeals court could decide to wait to take up the issue until after the case is tried and damages are awarded.

While it is anticipated that other defendants who haven’t offered to settle may also join in the fight over the constitutionality of the new law, the defendants who have offered to settle or the victims’ lawyers could also ask Lagueux to take up the issue soon, in an effort to speed the settlement process.

The parties that have agreed to contribute to the proposed $13.5-million settlement are:

* Luna Tech Inc., of Alabama –and two of its European subsidiaries –which the lawsuits contend manufactured the pyrotechnics used by Great White the night of the fire.

* High Tech Effects Inc., a Tennessee company that is alleged to have sold the pyrotechnics used by Great White at The Station the night of the fire.

* Celotex Corp., which manufactured SoundStop board and then sold it for distribution to consumers. According to the lawsuits, the Derderians purchased SoundStop for their club from Home Depot and then installed it in the ceiling of the drummer’s alcove and elsewhere inside The Station.

* Triton Realty and Raymond Villanova, owners of the building on Cowesett Avenue where The Station was located.

* Joseph LaFontaine, of Warwick, owner of New England Custom Alarms, the company that installed the fire alarm system at the club when it was owned by Howard Julian, before the Derderians bought it.

The victims’ lawyers are asking Lagueux to appoint a special master who would devise a grid for apportioning the settlement proceeds among the plaintiffs. They are proposing that the court appoint Francis E. McGovern, a law professor at Duke University who has performed similar duties in mass tort cases more than 50 times.

Lagueux has scheduled a hearing for Oct. 18 to determine whether he will appoint a special settlement master.

DeMaria and Ruggieri say that if the victims’ lawyers want to hire someone as a private mediator to help them come up with a formula to impartially divvy up settlement proceeds, they have no objection. But they don’t want Lagueux to approve the hiring of a special master as an arm of the court or having him involved in the process of sanctioning what he does.

They assert that the court should decide whether the settlements are fair without input from a special master.

And, they say in their court filing that they don’t want to face the prospect of having to pay any of the fees that a special master might charge for his services.

The fire victims’ lawyers, they say, “have not demonstrated exceptional circumstances necessitating a special master.” And Lagueux, they say, has not indicated that he needs any assistance in approving any of the proposed settlements. They contend that “the court should continue its practice of insulating itself from settlement negotiations so that it can more easily conduct trials as they become necessary.”

The court, they say, “should consider the propriety of allocation only at the end of plaintiffs’ internal allocation efforts, when plaintiffs’ work –and presumably that of their internal consultant—is completed. The court need not otherwise be improperly drawn into the internal process of allocation, which could very well be contentious among counsel and/or parties seeking compensation.”

Posted by Jack Perry at 11:15 AM | Comment

DownCity merchants to take to sidewalk

Just in time for fall weather -- the Shop Downcity Fall Sidewalk Sale.

Tomorrow and Saturday afternoon, downtown retailers will be showing off their wares indoors and out, if the weather permits.

Goods from books to furniture will be on sale on Westminster Street between Eddy and Union.

The sale begins tomorrow, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Saturday, shop from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; there will also be live music from noon to 2 p.m.

The downtown Farmers Market is also tomorrow, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Kennedy Plaza.

And Saturday is the Providence Street Painting Festival, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. at Bank of America City Center, and the Providence Open Market from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the corner of Westminster and Union Streets.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:07 AM | Comment

Sentencing postponed for Mollis's stepson

Sentencing of Gian Piscione, Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis’ stepson, has been postponed Oct. 24.

Piscione was scheduled for sentencing today in Superior Court for a January shooting.

He was initially charged with two counts of attempted murder after shooting a shotgun twice into the back of a car with two men seated inside.

Piscione later pleaded guilty to assault with a dangerous weapon and discharging a firearm while committing a crime of violence.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 10:32 AM | Comment

Workers comp hearing today for Mexican man

PROVIDENCE -- Edgar Velásquez wanted his day in court, and now he will get it.

Velásquez, a Mexican man who slashed his face open with a chain saw while working for the owner of a Warwick tree service, returned to Rhode Island yesterday on a humanitarian permit issued by the U.S. government, so he can to pursue a worker’s compensation case against William J. Gorman Jr., his former employer.

Velásquez had been living in the country illegally and was deported last year after being picked up by immigration agents outside the J. Joseph Garrahy courthouse on the day of a scheduled hearing. By law, Velásquez is entitled to pursue a workers’ compensation claim, regardless of his undocumented status.

"I am not afraid, I’m going to tell the truth as I lived it … of what happened on the day of the accident and how I was treated by Mr. Gorman,” said Velasquez in an interview yesterday afternoon.

Read more about Velásquez
Read projo.com's ongoing series on immigration

-- Journal staff writer Karen Lee Ziner

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 10:20 AM | Comment

Bristol Guard unit leaves for N.J. to prepare for Iraq

One hundred seventy five members of the Rhode Island National Guard set out this morning on a bus to Fort Dix., N.J., where they’ll stop for training on their way to Iraq.

The members of the C Battery, 1st Battalion, 103rd Field Artillery Brigade left from the National Guard Armory in Bristol, where friends and family said their last goodbyes. They were accompanied to the Connecticut line by the Patriot Guard Riders, according Lt. Col. Denis J. Riel.

They should arrive in New Jersey by 2 this afternoon.

For many of the soldiers, this is a voluntary second tour in Iraq, where they will act as a security force. The group is expected to return home in October, 2008, Riel said.

With this deployment, 445 Rhode Island National Guardsmen are on active duty.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 10:07 AM | Comment

U.S. women fall in World Cup

Brazil has defeated the United States, 4-0, in the semifinal of the Women's World Cup in Hangzhou, China. We'll have more coverage this morning on the projo SportsBlog.

Posted by Mike McDermott at 9:56 AM | Comment

Convicted sex offender due in court today

A convicted sex offender now accused of raping a woman in Cumberland is scheduled for a bail violation hearing in Superior Court, Providence, this morning.

Gary P. Lamountain, a level three, or “high-risk” sex offender, was arrested Aug. 12 after a 27-year-old woman accused him of breaking into her Cumberland apartment and raping her.

Lamountain was released from the Adult Correctional Institutions on April 23 after serving just over three years of a five-year prison sentence for raping a 38-year-old Cumberland woman and stealing her stereo in 2004.

Police had prepared a letter notifying neighbors that a high-risk sex offender had moved into the neighborhood four days before he allegedly committed this latest crime. The notice was posted on the police department’s Web site the day after Lamountain's arrest.

Magistrate Joseph Keough will consider violations for each of the three charges Lamountain faces: first-degree sexual assault;, felony assault; and forgery and counterfeiting.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 9:40 AM | Comment

Bike path opens today

It's been ten years, but the second phase of the Northwest Bike Trail/ Fred Lippitt Woonasquatucket River Greenway is scheduled to open this morning.

The 3.6-mile bikeway runs from Valley Street, Providence, to Lyman Avenue, Johnston. Part of the path is on-road, but 2.9 miles along the Woonasquatucket River is unpaved.

The path connects the 1.5-mile on-road route from Valley Street to Providence Place mall.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony is set for 10 a.m. at the start of the off-road section in Riverside Mills Park, off Aleppo Street, in Providence.

Mayor David N. Cicilline, Department of Transportation Director Jerome F. Williams, Department of Environmental Management Executive Director W. Michael Sullivan and Jane Sherman, of the Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council, will be there.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 9:24 AM | Comment

Funeral for Rep. Paul W. Crowley

A Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10:00 this morning for Rep. Paul W. Crowley at St. Augustin Church, Carroll Avenue in Newport. The burial will be at St. Columba Cemetery, Brown's Lane, Middletown.

Crowley, a Newport restaurateur who, in almost 30 years in the General Assembly, championed schoolchildren in the city where he was raised, died Monday after a protracted fight with melanoma.

He was 57.

Read M. Charles Bakst's column on Crowley.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 8:45 AM | Comment

Lotteries will determine ballot lineups

Three lotteries to determine the layout of ballots will be held tomorrow afternoon.

One will determine the order of names on the ballot to fill the seat of former Rep. Peter Ginaitt, D-Warwick, who resigned to take a job with Lifespan hospital network.

By state law, endorsed Democratic candidate Edgar Ladouceur will be the first name on the ballot for the Democratic special primary election on Oct. 23. A lottery will determine where Frank Ferri and Olin Thompson appear on the ballot.

A second lottery will determine where the winner of the Democratic primary and Republican Jonathon Wheeler appear on the ballot for the Nov. 27 election. A state law requires “recognized parties” to be listed first; independent Carlo Pisaturo will be listed third.

The final lottery will determine whether a Democrat or Republican is listed first on the Nov. 6 ballot in races in Jamestown for town moderator, school committee, and town council.

Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis has invited the public to attend the three lotteries tomorrow at 4:30 p.m. at 148 W. River St. in Providence.

“I campaigned for this office on a pledge to make government more transparent," Mollis said in a press release.

"There is nothing that will give voters more faith in the fairness of their elections than the opportunity to see for themselves how the process unfolds."

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 8:16 AM | Comment

Update: Hillary Clinton cancels Rhode Island visit

Sen. Hillary Clinton has canceled her visit to the Ocean State, according to Susan Weiner, who was set to host the event with her husband, Mark.

A fund-raising lunch was scheduled this afternoon at the Weiners' East Greenwich home, but the Democratic presidential candidate canceled to cast a vote in Washington, D.C., Susan Weiner said.

"That takes precedence," she added.

Lobbyist Gerry Harrington, a top fundraiser for John Kerry’s unsuccessful 2004 presidential campaign, was set to chair the event.

Fellow Democrats from Rhode island, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse and Rep. James Langevin, were scheduled to be there, but Mayor David N. Cicilline, former co-chairman of Clinton’s Rhode Island campaign, had resigned as co-chair and agreed not to attend the event after Providence firefighters pledged to picket the luncheon if he showed up.

In a recently released Brown University poll, Clinton had a lead among other Democratic candidates. If the primary were held today, according to the poll of 380 voters who said they would probably vote in the primary, the New York senator would collect 35 percent of the votes, Sen. Barack Obama would get 16 percent.

Earlier this year former President Bill Clinton appeared at a fund-raising event for his wife at the home of former Providence Mayor Joseph R. Paolino Jr.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:42 AM | Comment

Last day of summer?

Another mostly sunny, summer-like day this September. The National Weather Service is forecasting a high of 84 degrees with a southwest wind up to 15 mph.

But there may be a change of pace this evening, with a 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Rain or not, it will be mostly cloudy with an overnight low near 65.

Tomorrow we can expect rain, fog and a high in the mid-70s -- ah, spring!

For more weather and regular updates, see projo.com/weather.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:01 AM | Comment

Today's front page

Today's front page features a story and photographs about a Rhode Island National Guard unit that is deploying for Iraq.

Download a copy of today's front page in .pdf format.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:00 AM | Comment

September 26, 2007

Tonight: Beatles, Plastic People and girls rock

For retro stuff tonight, go across the universe -- well, across the Connecticut line, which might be the same thing -- for The Fab Four, The Ultimate Beatles Tribute, at Mohegan Sun, Cabaret, Mohegan Sun Boulevard (exit 79A off Route 395), Uncasville, Conn. Call (888) 226-7711 or go to www.mohegansun.com.Starts at 7:30 pm. $35

Or stay in Rhode Island and catch Plastic People of the Universe. That band, Suishou no Fune?, Alasehir and Déjà Vu Mountain play rock at AS220, 115 Empire St., Providence. Call 831-9327. Starts at 8 pm. $10 advance; $12 at the door. All ages.

Brickpark plays rock at Olives, 108 North Main St., Providence. Call 751-1200. 10 p.m. to 1 a.m.. No cover. Includes karaoke

Tom Ferraro and Keith Munslow play rhythm and blues at Nick-A-Nee's, 75 South St., Providence. Call 861-7290. Starts at 9 p.m.

John Worsley plays jazz at Capriccio, 2 Pine St., Providence. Call 421-1320. From 7 to 11 p.m.

Chris Gauthier plays rock at One Pelham East, 270 Thames St., Newport. Call 847-9460. Starts at 9 p.m.

In Newport, there's the Girls Rock & Girls Rule Tour. Playing rock, pop and blues tonight are Marisa Mini, RewBee?, Loki the Grump, Beyond Blonde, G-Spot, The Lydia Warren Band and Emiko. It's at the Newport Blues Cafe, 286 Thames St., Newport. Call 841-5510 or go to www.newportblues.com. Starts at 7:30 pm. $10. The shows is a benefit for the Willie Mae Rock Camp for Girls

Also in Newport, on the jazzier side is Dick Lupino, Yvonne Monnett and Jeff Fountain, playing at Sardella's Restaurant, 30 Memorial Blvd., Newport. Calol 849-6312. From 7:30 to 10 p.m.

At Chan's Restaurant in Woonsocket, there's an open mike blues jam with Ken Lyon and Friends. That's at 267 Main St., Woonsocket. Call 765-1900. Starts at 7 p.m. No cover.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:40 PM | Comment

A.G. investigating whether woman died waiting for rescue

PAWTUCKET -- The Attorney General’s Office is investigating whether a woman bled to death because a Pawtucket Fire Department rescue truck wasn’t dispatched quickly enough to provide her with treatment.

Maria A. Carvalho, 53, died Thursday in her home at 101 Gooding St., after her husband João Carvalho said she began bleeding from a shunt, or bypass, inserted as part of the treatment she was receiving for kidney failure, and Pawtucket fire dispatchers delayed sending a rescue truck, despite several frantic calls to 911.

Speaking through his son, John, João Carvalho described how his wife Maria got on the phone to 911 herself as soon as the bleeding started.

A Portuguese immigrant who speaks little English, and has a foot injury, João Carvalho said he hobbled across the street to the house of a neighbor when his wife told him she was having difficulty getting help.

“My mom said, ‘No one’s helping me,” John Carvalho said.

When the neighbor, 81-year-old Yvette LeBlanc of 96 Gooding St., dialed 911, she was asked for the address of the Carvalho house. “I said it’s a yellow house across the street from my house. I didn’t even know the number,” she said.

Mrs. LeBlanc said João Carvalho was on his way back across the street when the dispatcher told her to have him call for help personally..

“The dispatcher told me he’s got to call up from his house.”

City officials said that the incident is being investigated, and that the two rookie fire dispatchers who were on duty at the time have been suspended, with pay, pending the outcome of the investigation.

Michael J. Healey, a spokesman for the Attorney General’s Office, confirmed that the office has agreed to investigate the matter: “Pawtucket has asked us to review this incident. We have agreed to review it and we’re moving quickly.” he declared.

Healey declined to comment when asked whether the attorney general’s office had taken the case because the alleged delay in dispatching the rescue truck rose to the level of criminal misconduct.

“That’s an absolutely fair question. I just can’t answer it now,” he said.

-- Journal staff writer John Castellucci

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:14 PM | Comment

State closes down Artistic Surgical Center

The Artistic Surgical Center in East Greenwich, which offers "extreme makeovers," "breast enlargement" and "facial rejuvenation" among procedures, must cease all surgical procedures because of license and regulation violations, the state Health Department announced today.

The center, at 1567 South County Trail -- does not have a required license, its physician Curtis J. Perry does not have surgical or hospital privileges and he is letting unlicensed medical assistants administrator Versed and Ketaine without a nurse or anesthesiologist present.

According to a Health Department news release, Perry has been licensed to practice medicine in Rhode Island since 1990 and he is board certified by the American Board of Medical Specialties in Otolaryngology. "Additionally, he claims a certification by the American Board of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (ABFPRS), a board that was created in 1986 to assist ear, nose and throat physicians to obtain additional recognition for 'their knowledge and skills.' "

Along with the aforementioned procedures, rhinoplasty, liposuction and abdominoplasty are also performed at Artistic Surgical Center, the Health Department stated.

Because Perry does not have surgical or hospital privileges at any accredited Rhode Island hospital, the Health Department said, he "is unable to assist patients for post-surgical complications in a hospital."

When Perry is away, he does not have "post-surgical coverage service" with another surgeon. "This lack of identified coverage leaves Kent Hospital and other area hospitals responsible for the respondent's post-surgical complications."

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:55 PM | Comment

Exeter-W. Greenwich contract talks set for next week

Negotiators for teachers and administrators in the Exeter-West Greenwich Regional School District will sit down again on Monday, Oct. 1, and possibly Oct. 5, state-appointed mediator Matthew T. Oliverio said today.

The six School Committee and nine teachers union bargainers last met Monday at the National Education Association-Rhode Island offices in Cranston. Next meeting will be at the school administration offices in West Greenwich.

Finding a time when 16 people, including three lawyers, can meet is difficult, Oliverio said. Negotiations are confidential until an agreement is reached.

-- Journal staff writer Donita Naylor

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:20 PM | Comment

New report profiles gays and lesbians in R.I.

There were 27,000 gay, lesbian and bisexual residents of Rhode Island in 2000, according to a study released today.

Drawing on 2000 Census data, the report, by the Williams Institute on Sexual Orientation Law and Public Policy at UCLA, found most of those couples lived in Providence County: 1,600. Kent County was next with 347 same-sex couples.

Twelve percent of the same-sex couples are raising children.

The Williams Institute on Sexual Orientation Law and Public Policy describes itself as a "think tank dedicated to the field of sexual orientation law and public policy. The Institute supports legal scholarship, legal research, policy analysis, and education regarding sexual orientation discrimination and other legal issues that affect lesbian and gay people."

Among other statistics in the report:

* More same-sex couples in the state are female than male, by a 53 percent to 47 percent in 2000.

* Individuals in same-sex couples average 40 years old, compared to 49 years old in married couples.

* "Contrary to a popular stereotype," the report says, men in same-sex couples earned an average income of $37,358, below the $48,769 average for married men.

* Women in same-sex couples earned more, on average, than married women -- $30,695 per year compared to $26,443.

* Same-sex couples in the state have fewer economic resources to provide for their families than do their married counterparts.

* About 7 percent of adopted children in Rhode Island live with a gay or lesbian parent.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:56 PM | Comment

Immigrant returns on humanitarian permit

PROVIDENCE -- Edgar Velásquez wanted his day in court, and now he will get it.

Velásquez, a Mexican man who slashed his face open with a chainsaw while working for the owner of a Warwick tree service, returned to Rhode Island today on a humanitarian permit issued by the U.S. government, so he can to pursue a worker’s compensation case against William J. Gorman Jr, his former employer.

Velásquez had been living in the country illegally and was deported last year after being picked up by immigration agents outside the J. Joseph Garrahy courthouse on the day of his comp hearing. By law, Velásquez is entitled to pursue a workers’ compensation claim, irregardless of his undocumented status.

“I am not afraid, I’m going to tell the truth as I lived it … of what happened on the day of the accident and how I was treated by Mr. Gorman,” said Velasquez in an interview this afternoon.

-- Journal staff writer Karen Lee Ziner

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:41 PM | Comment

Former Somerset man turns himself in at courthouse

John P. Makuch, a former Somerset, Mass., man who was ordered by a judge to leave the town last June but then became a fugitive this week, for an alleged attack in Somerset on his daughter's boyfriend, turned himself in at Fall River District Court this morning.

Makuch, 50, with a last known address of 45 Malbone St., Lakeville, Mass., was released following a court hearing today and he has a Nov. 14 violation hearing.

The police said that on Monday last week, Solomon Haddad, 25, reported that he had stopped his car at Read Street and Riverside Avenue, with 25-year-old Holly-Lyn Makuch with him. Makuch left his red Ford Explorer, crossed County Street, reached through the window and tried to punch Haddad, according to the police.

He missed, but allegedly tried again, slapping Haddad in the face. Haddad, son of state Rep. Patricia Haddad, went to the police station.

Police Chief Joseph C. Ferreira said this week that although Haddad didn’t want to press charges, his department did.

For the case that resulted in a judge's ruling last June, Makuch had pleaded guilty to four counts of criminal harassment, three counts of witness intimidation, one count of assault with a dangerous weapon, five counts of disturbing the peace and one count of disorderly conduct. Since 1998, the police have said, they had been called to his neighborhood about 120 times as a result of various complaints, most involving him.

Makuch has said the charges were part of a conspiracy against him and his family.

Today, Makuch's wife Lorraine said of the assault/fugitive allegation this week: "I think it was something blown out of proportion -- it made him look like a big, bad criminal when there was no need for it."

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with reports from Journal staff writer C. Eugene Emery Jr.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:21 PM | Comment

Today's high temperature tied a 1930 record

Today's high of 89 degrees tied the record for this day, recorded in 1930 and in years prior to that, the National Weather Service in Taunton, Mass., said.

The temperature, taken at T.F. Green Airport in Warwick as a benchmark for the area, came around 2 p.m.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:09 PM | Comment

English, math scores for high school juniors stay flat

For the third consecutive year, results from English and math tests administered to high school juniors statewide in March remain flat, a frustrating outcome as the state pursues aggressive reform of secondary education and has targeted several areas -- including math and literacy -- for improvement.

Statewide, 53.3 percent of eleventh graders scored proficient or better on the English portion of the test, and 43.3 percent scored proficient or better in math – roughly the same percentages as 2006 and 2005.

According to the federal education reform law, No Child Left Behind, which requires yearly testing of students in grades 3-8 and one high school year, the goal is to have all students performing at a proficient level by 2014.

State education officials cited several potential reasons for the stagnant scores -- including the fact that juniors have continued to take an eight-year-old test that is not aligned to what students are now learning in the classroom. But they also acknowledged that progress is urgently needed.

“We don’t have any time to waste,” said Peter McWalters, state commissioner of education. “If we really want rapid change, we have to work with teachers to make sure they understand what they need to do. We need to provide them with sample lessons and make sure our grade span expectations are lined up with all subjects -- English, social studies, science and math.”

Scores in the urban districts (Central Falls, Pawtucket, Providence, and Woonsocket) trail the statewide average but showed improvement, with 37.1 percent proficient in English (up 0.3 points) and 24.9 percent proficient in mathematics (up 1.4 points).

Complete results will be available tomorrow on the state Education Department's Web site and on projo.com.

-- Journal staff writer Jennifer D. Jordan

In a national test for fourth and eighth graders, Rhode Island students are making progress in math, but not in reading. State education officials say they are particularly concerned that students lost ground in eighth grade reading scores, which dropped two points since the tests were last administered, in 2005.

The results, commonly referred to as the Nation’s Report Card, were released yesterday by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). As in past years, Rhode Island’s scores trailed the five other New England states. The state also lags the national average in all categories. The national group, which conducts research for the U.S. Department of Education, does not rank states but places states into one of three tiers. Rhode Island again placed in the middle tier on all four tests.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:01 PM | Comment

Traffic alert: Accident blocking Rte. 146 south lane

LINCOLN -- Drivers should take care because an accident is blocking the right lane of Route 146 south in the area where it meets George Washington Highway, the state Transportation Management Center advised at 3:52 p.m.

Transportation Management Center estimated the blockage could last 30 minutes.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:54 PM | Comment

R.I. money to help women ex-cons avoid criminal life

The state Department of Corrections is getting more than $294,000 for a program that aims to help women who've been imprisoned make a smoother transition into society and avoid committing more crimes.

The U.S. Justice Department awarded the money, according to a news release today from U.S. Sen. Jack Reed's office. Known as Prisoner Reentry Initiative, it's given to state and local governments to come up with and carry out programs for ex-convicts. A goal is to help prevent them from resuming a life of crime by helping them find work and access to community services

Rhode Island's Department of Corrections will use the money to:

* Enhance vocational training for female inmates by expanding computer literacy and culinary arts training.

* Expand the use of risk/needs assessment to all sentenced women.

* Provide training on "gender-responsive principles" to all staff in the women’s prisons.

* Hire a specialist who will give planning/outreach services to the highest risk women immediately after release from prison. Corrections plans to overhaul its current risk/need assessment method.

“This federal funding will allow the Rhode Island Department of Corrections to overhaul and strengthen its prisoner reentry program for women,” said Sen. Jack Reed, D-Rhode Island, a member of the subcommittee that oversees federal spending on criminal justice. He added: "Giving these women job-skill training, substance abuse treatment, and other support services will give them the opportunity to successfully transition back into society as law-abiding citizens."

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:24 PM | Comment

Flu pandemic: How prepared are we? / Video

WASHINGTON -- If an influenza pandemic hits, there won't be enough stockpiles of key supplies -- medicine, food and more -- so it is up to individual citizens and communities to prepare as best they can, Rhode Island's chief emergency medical officer told a House panel today.

But the waning of last year's flu threat is itself an obstacle to proper planning for an eventual pandemic because public interest in the topic has waned, Dr. L. Anthony Cirillo told a subcommittee of the House Homeland Security Committee.

Cirillo, chief of the state Health Department's emergency response center, was one of several federal, state and local officials who testified about the nation's level of preparedness for a flu pandemic.

``I very much fear another Hurricane Katrina situation,'' said Rep. James R. Langevin, chairman of the panel on emerging threats. The Rhode Island Democrat said delays in identifying principal federal officials after the hurricane led to needless losses of life.

Langevin said planning for an influenza pandemic is problematic because it is hard ``to fathom both the potential casualties and the impact.''

Langevin questioned whether the Homeland Security and Health and Human Services Departments have sorted out their role and responsibilities in for fighting a pandemic.

Cirillo said the amount of federal money for pandemic preparedness is decreasing, so the state doesn't have enough money to ensure care of the number of patients expected in a pandemic.

Cirillo also cited trends in the medical system as limiting its ability to respond to a pandemic. For example, he noted that hospitals have cut down on their stockpiles of vital supplies in order to save money.

Nevertheless, Cirillo said government at all levels has taken steps to improve pandemic preparedness. For example, he described how Rhode Island has created a medical emergency command center that would coordinate pandemic response. Some state-level stockpiling of vital supplies has occured, he said.

Cirillo said every citizen has a role in preparing for a flu pandemic in a number of basic ways -- stockpiling food and water, for example. He said citizens can consult a federal Web site, http://www.pandemicflu.gov, that offers checklists for preparedness.

Video: Dr. L. Anthony Cirillo speaks about the country's and Rhode Island's state of preparedness for a pandemic.

-- John E. Mulligan, Journal Washington bureau

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 3:18 PM | Comment

Motorcycle rally to benefit children of fire victims

A motorcycle rally to benefit the children who lost a parent in The Station nightclub fire will serve as the first official fundraiser for a new, nonprofit organization created by Jeffrey and Michael Derderian, the owners of the club, and Jody King, who lost his brother Tracey in the fire.

The ride is the brainchild of volunteers of the Station Education Fund, a nonprofit organization set up to provide educational support to the 76 children who lost a parent or guardian during the deadly blazed that killed 100 people in February 2003.

King, Jeffrey Derderian and Kristina Derderian, Michael’s wife, spoke with a reporter today outside of Tollgate High School in Warwick, where the ride will begin on Sunday.

In September, Derderian and his brother, Michael, pleaded no contest to 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter for their part in the fire. In exchange, Michael Derderian is serving a four-year term at the Adult Correctional Institutions. Jeffrey, 39, received a suspended sentence and was ordered to perform 500 hours of community service and serve three years' probation.

“Revving Up for Kids" will kick off at 9:30 a.m. at the high school and end at Excalibur Powersports, 20 Excalibur Blvd., Plainfield, Conn., for a finale party. For more information, call (401) 441-7823 or visit www.stationeducationfund.org. Rain date is Sunday, Oct. 7.

-- Journal staff writer Talia Buford

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 2:42 PM | Comment

Mother of boys struck by car thanks supporters/ Photo

Journal photo / Mary Murphy
Elizabeth Jimenez speaks with reporters about her son Eric, who remains in Hasbro Children's Hospital after being struck in a hit-and-run incident on Sept. 9 that killed his brother. Providence City Councilman Leon Tejada, D-Ward 8, left, is her interpreter.

PROVIDENCE -- One toll taken on Elizabeth Jimenez isn't measured in dollars, but by a little boy's absence. Every day she grapples with the loss of 8-year-old son Ivan, killed by a hit-and-run driver this month.

But today she said her days are also spent in the hospital room of 12-year-old son Eric, who survived that driver on a West End sidewalk but is only beginning the road to recovery.

It's those days that literally add up. So Jimenez and Providence City Councilman Leon Tejada went before news cameras in the Hasbro Children's Hospital chapel today with a message urging people to help.

The fund for Ivan Jimenez at Citizens Bank, was set up in part to help defray Eric’s medical expenses. The fund was established with the help of City Clerk Anna M. Stetson, who also is handling cash donations at City Hall.

Donors to the Ivan Jimenez Memorial Fund, as announced in the Journal last week, may send a check made out to the fund and indicate on the check that it is intended for account number 91853493 at Citizens. Checks may be dropped off at any Citizens branch office in Rhode Island or Massachusetts or mailed to the branch where the account has been arranged: 333 West River Ave., Providence, 02909.

There's also a First Annual Ivan Jimenez Memorial Golf Tournament in Rehoboth, Mass., on Oct. 5 at 12:30 p.m. It's a $100-per-person benefit at the 18-hole course at Hillside Country Club, plus a steak fry immediately following the tournament.

Or you can buy burgers and soft drinks at a Providence picnic Oct. 6, the proceeds going to help with Eric's medical bills, Tejada said. The picnic will be held at at the social club at 100 Niagara St.

When Eric finishes at Hasbro Children's Hospital, he will need to undergo physical rehabilitation at a Boston hospital, said Tejada. Eric was initially in critical condition but is now in fair condition. The Jimenez's also have two other children.

"I wanted to thank everybody for the support," Jimenez said in an interview. She added: "I know everybody's been praying for my kids.

"It's very tough moments right now," she added. "We are right now focusing on getting Eric healthy."

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Dennis H. Cherry Jr., 26, of no permanent address, faces two felony charges for allegedly having left the scene of the accident, and he is being held at the Adult Correctional Institutions in Cranston. He also has been charged with three traffic violations: leaving his lane of travel, operating left of center, and failure to show due care.

The police have said Cherry, an alleged crack addict with a criminal history, gave himself up to Chief Dean M. Esserman in an agreement arranged by the pastor of the church where Esserman's family worships.

In the aftermath, crisis teams went into the boys' schools to help children come to terms with what happened. Family and Ivan's classmates have tried to find a way forward.

Last week, the Journal reported that Ivan’s funeral and burial expenses apparently had been paid by donations raised so far, according to Deborah A. Wyatt, executive director of the West End Community Center, where the boys attended the daycare program.

Jimenez said that Eric can walk and communicate. She said he must eat a special diet of softer foods for the time being.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:09 PM | Comment

Live video: Reed panel hears Bush's Iraq funding request

The Senate Appropriations Committee is holding a hearing today on President Bush’s request for additional funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

U.S. Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., was appointed to the committee at the end of last year. Reed, a West Point graduate, also sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee and has made several wartime visits to Iraq.

Watch the hearing live here.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 2:06 PM | Comment

Woman's body found in Coventry

The Coventry police have confirmed that they found a woman's body last night at about 7 p.m.

In a statement issued this afternoon, the police say they received a call reporting a body near Lewis Farm Road.

When they arrived, the police found the body of a woman in a ravine below an old railroad trestle.

The Coventry detectives are working with the state Medical Examiner to determine a cause of death and to identify the woman.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 1:17 PM | Comment

Rhode Island to receive federal help for utility bills

Rhode Island is set to receive nearly $2 million from a federal fund aimed at helping low-income households pay utility bills.

Sen. Jack Reed was one of more than 50 senators who asked the White House Office of Management and Budget to release money from the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program contingency fund.

About $131 million will be dispersed in all.

“I am pleased that the president responded to our request and will release this critical funding,” Reed said in a statement. “This money will help thousands of working families and seniors in Rhode Island.”

The state will receive $1.9 million.

The federal block grant program gives funding to states yearly to help operate home energy assistance programs for low-income households.

Find guidelines for the assistance program here.

Last year the program assisted nearly 30,000 with their utility bills.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 12:16 PM | Comment

Weather update: Dry and hot equals poor fall color

Journal photo/ Bill Murphy
Today's sunrise over Lincoln Woods signals that another hot day is on the way. But the morning's golden color is deceptive -- it's not likely to translate into the season's sought-after foliage.

“New England color is terrible.”

When a statement like that -- about the changing leaves -- comes from a horticulture professor, it’s worth listening to.

Brian Maynard, who is such a professor at the University of Rhode Island, says the prolonged dry weather spells bad news for leaf-peepers who will find brown leaves -- if they find any at all – on many of the trees that should be changing color between now and late October, peak leaf season in Rhode Island.

But it’s not just the Ocean State that’s out of luck. Maynard said he was at a conference last week, and “all throughout New England, everyone is saying it’s the worst season,” he said.

One bright spot, he said, is swampy land, “especially coming out of Massachusetts into Pawtucket,” he said, and “off Route 4 in South County, it’s coloring up right.”

For a look at foliage reports around the region, try this Web site.
For others, the situation may be even more dire than lack of autumn color.

Maynard’s recommendation for people trying to keep a tree alive: Set a sprinkler near the root system and give it four solid hours of watering.

The region is due for some rain tomorrow night and Friday morning, according to the National Weather Service. But dry – albeit cooler – weather should return Friday afternoon.

“Instead of the upper 80s and 90s,” Charles Foley at the National Weather Service in Taunton, Mass., said, “We’re looking at temperatures you would expect at the end of September, generally around 70 degrees.”

But we still had to get through today, where the high of 89 degrees tied the record for this day recorded in 1930 and in years prior to that, the National Weather Service in Taunton, Mass., said.
The temperature, taken at T.F. Green Airport in Warwick as a benchmark for the area, came around 2 p.m.

Earlier, before it was confirmed, Foley said: “I think we’ll challenge the record,” or at least, "we’ll come close."

At 7 a.m., it was already near 70 degrees with humidity at about 90 percent.

Some gusty winds of up to 28 mph are also on the way, and there's a 20 percent chance of rain overnight and an overnight low of about 66.

Tomorrow we may see rain again, and a bit of fog, before 9 a.m. The forecast high is a "cooler" 80 degrees.

For more weather and regular updates, see projo.com/weather.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:30 AM | Comment

Bird amputation case postponed

WARWICK -- A pre-trial conference in Kent County District Court has been postponed for a woman accused of stealing a parrot in May and amputating its foot to dispose of an identification tag.

Police say minutes after a woman walked into a pet store and inquired about a bird, a clerk went to check on the parrot, only to find it -- and the woman -- gone.

Sgt. Robert C. Rocco said what followed was the most bizarre crime he had seen.

After tracing purchases of a similar bird, the police say they were led to Pamela Worden. When they arrived at her apartment, they said they heard birds chirping.

When Worden opened the door, officers said they saw two birds; one bleeding and missing a foot. On a counter nearby, they saw a pair of scissors, a bird foot and a bird identification band.

“I’ve been doing this for 24 years.” Rocco said at the time, “and this was probably the most bizarre thing I’ve ever run into.”

The parrot was taken to Ocean State Veterinary Specialists, in East Greenwich, for treatment. The other bird and a poodle that police also found in the apartment were taken into custody.

Worden was charged with one count of felony possession of stolen goods and one misdemeanor count of cruelty to animals.

-- projo.com staff writer Brandie M. Jefferson, with reports from Journal staff writer Cynthia Needham

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:28 AM | Comment

Frozen hamburgers recalled

ALBANY, N.Y.-- There's a recall involving boxes of frozen hamburgers.

Officials say a New Jersey-based meat company is voluntarily recalling some of its hamburgers after a cluster of illnesses in the Northeast caused by E. coli bacteria.

The New York Health Department says at least six people have fallen ill there. All are recovering. Contaminated burgers were found in one victim's home freezer.

The USDA says the recall affects more than 331,000 pounds of frozen beef patties that were distributed not just in New York, but nationwide.

They carried the number ``Est. 9748'' inside the USDA mark of inspection, and were produced June 22nd, July 12th or July 23rd.

The recalled products include certain 10-pound boxes of Butcher's Best 100-percent All Beef Patties; certain 10-pound boxes of Kohler Foods burgers; certain 10-pound boxes of Sand Castle Fine Meat; some two-pound boxes of Topps 100-percent Pure Ground Beef Hamburgers; and some three-pound boxes of Topps 100-percent Pure Ground Beef Hamburgers.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 9:14 AM | Comment

Traffic Alert: Accident on Route 10 slows commute

An accident on Route 10 northbound is slowing the morning commute for some.

The Transportation Management Center is reporting the accident near the Union Avenue exit in the left lanes.

For up to date traffic information, visit the TMC Web site.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 8:06 AM | Comment

R.I. Guard members to deploy for Iraq

PROVIDENCE -- Soldiers of the Rhode Island National Guard are scheduled to leave the Ocean State today for deployment in Iraq.

Lt. Col. Denis Riel says about 175 members of the 103rd Field Artillery Brigade will serve as military police during a security mission near Baghdad. Their rotation will last for one year.

Army officials say the overseas deployment is the first for C Company, 1st Battalion, since the September 11, 2001, terror attacks. Some of its soldiers previously volunteered to serve abroad with other units.

The soldiers of C Company will train at Fort Dix in New Jersey before leaving for Iraq.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:02 AM | Comment

Today's front page

Today's front page features a story reporting how Rhode Island students scored on national math and reading tests.

Download a copy of today's front page in .pdf format.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:00 AM | Comment

September 25, 2007

Rock, jazz and a tribute to Dave Matthews tonight

In area clubs tonight, you can get something new, something jazzy and something that sounds like someone familiar.

Blonde Redhead and School of Seven Bells, rock, Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel, 79 Washington St., Providence. Call 331-5876, 272-5876, www.etix.com. 9 pm. $20.

Dancing Nancy plays a tribute to Dave Matthews, the lead singer of the Dave Matthews Band, which rose to prominence during the 1990s. The show is at Gillary's Tavern, 198 Thames St., Bristol. Call 253-2012. 9:30 p.m.

Half Boozed plays at One Pelham East, 270 Thames St., Newport. Call 847-9460. 9 p.m.

The Hi-Hat Trio with Tish Adams plays jazz at The Hi-Hat, 3 Davol Square, Providence. Call 453-6500. 7 to 11 p.m.

Lois Vaughan plays jazz at The Chanler, 117 Memorial Blvd., Newport. Call 847-1300. 6:30 to 9:30 p.m.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:55 PM | Comment

Brush and floss, sure, but consider toothprinting too

If you’re afraid that your child or another family member may wander off or be abducted, and you are storing fingerprints or photographs in the event that happens, consider adding another identifier: a toothprint.

In Cumberland today, Mason, a three-year-old saliva-sniffing German Shepherd, and his handler, police officer William Bailey of Dracut, Mass., visited a dentist's office to show off the dog’s scent-sniffing skills to police officials from Cumberland and neighboring Central Falls.

Dr. Angeles V. Felix opened her office at 490 High Street for a demonstration of the toothprinting process. It's a dental imprint of a person’s bite that can be used to identify a body, especially when the body is that of a younger child who may not have a dental record.

And it can be useful for tracking missing people because the imprint captures a person’s DNA and saliva. Specially-trained police dogs can seek out a missing person or people based on a whiff of saliva and the DNA can be used to compare to other samples gathered at the scene of a crime.

In New England, there are two such saliva-sniffing dogs, kept by the police departments in Milton, Mass. and Dracut, Mass.

-- Journal staff writer Philip Marcelo

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:37 PM | Comment

Car sideswipes school bus on reservoir causeway

SCITUATE -- A car and a school bus collided this morning, causing minor injuries to three people aboard the bus.

Scituate Police Capt. Stephen B. Lang said a car driven by a 16-year-old student bound for Mount St. Charles Academy was headed east on the causeway that carries Plainfield Pike across the Scituate Reservoir around 7:20 a.m. when it sideswiped the bus, which was going in the opposite direction.

Lang said the driver, whose name was withheld because he is a juvenile, apparently was blinded by the rising sun. “The sun is very strong at that time of morning,” he said.

The bus driver, Carol G. Gurjion, 67, complained of chest pains and was taken to Rhode Island Hospital.

The bus monitor, Erling Holm Jr., 52, reported lower back pain, and was taken to Rhode Island Hospital.

The only student aboard, a 14-year-old Scituate High School student, had had surgery recently, Lang said, and she was taken to Hasbro Children’s Hospital as a precaution.

Lang said no charges were filed immediately. He said investigators have not had a chance to interview the bus driver and monitor.

-- Journal staff writer Thomas J. Morgan

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:32 PM | Comment

Ethics board calls for probes in E. Prov., Woon. cases

PROVIDENCE -- The state Ethics Commission today ordered investigations into separate complaints against former East Providence Mayor Joseph S. Larisa Jr. and Woonsocket Councilwoman Suzanne J. Vadenais.

The commission also told a third local official, North Providence Town Council President Joseph S. Burchfield, that he cannot vote on a major development planned near his home.

The decisions to investigate the East Providence and Woonsocket cases are the first steps in a process that could lead to prosecution of the two officials under the state Code of Ethics. Both officials are involved in local political disputes related to the complaints.

-- Journal staff writer Bruce Landis

Larissa is known both for his role in East Providence politics and as a lawyer for both the state and the town of Charlestown in battles against casino plans. Larisa lost a close election and recount for an at-large City Council seat last November, and his replacement was sworn in in December. In East Providence, the mayor is a City Council member.

Larisa is accused of violating the state’s “revolving door” rule, which says that former officials can’t represent persons before their previous agencies for a year after leaving their government positions.

The East Providence Democrats and Republicans are in a continuing battle over the activities of the Canvassing Authority, which is dominated by Democrats. In July, Larisa represented Canvassing Authority member Thomas Riley in a disciplinary hearing before the council. Riley received a reprimand, and the city Democratic Committee chairman, John F. Conley, subsequently filed the ethics complaint against Larisa, a Republican.

Vadenais’ case in Woonsocket cropped up during a dispute over a Police Department appointment. Mayor Susan D. Menard’s appointed Richard A. Dubois deputy chief in March 2006. The council says it can reject the contract. Menard says it can’t.

Vadenais’ son, Kevin Greenough, is a city police officer. The complaint -- filed by Dubois -- states that in February 2005, Dubois was involved in a disciplinary case involving Greenough and damage to city property, with Greenough ordered to pay $642 in restitution. Vadenais, the complaint states, opposed Dubois’ contract.

In the North Providence case, Burchfield had asked the commission for a legal opinion on whether his future participation in a zone change might violate the code.

The commission said that Burchfield shouldn’t vote on the zone change that would allow Generation Realty to build 86 condominiums on the site of Camp Meehan, one of the last parcels of open space in town, because the council president would probably be affected financially.

Burchfield owns a condominium on Quail Ridge Road in the adjacent Lees Farm Commons development. Complicating the question before the commission, Staff Attorney Esme DeVault said, is the fact that while his condo is about 1,200 feet from the proposed development, far enough so its value might not be affected, the common land he owns a share in abuts the development. The commission decision noted that it’s a reasonable assumption that there will be a financial impact, with no contrary evidence.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:28 PM | Comment

Former Mass. Gov. Swift will speak at Brown

PROVIDENCE -- Former Massachusetts governor Jane Swift is scheduled to speak at the Taubman Center for Public Policy and American Institutions at Brown University this afternoon.

Swift was the first and only woman to serve as governor of Massachusetts. She was not elected, but appointed while serving as lieutenant governor. She assumed the governorship after Gov. Argeo Paul Cellucci resigned to serve as Ambassador to Canada.

She served from 2001 to 2003.

Her lecture, titled “Rising to the Occasion: Public Leadership in Challenging Times,” is free and open to the public. It begins at 4 p.m. at the Salomon Center for Teaching, on the green, in room 001.

Swift’s visit comes on the heals of another politician looking to make a first, Sen. Hillary Clinton, the first female Senator elected in New York, and aspiring first woman president, is scheduled to arrive in the Ocean State tomorrow for a fundraiser in East Greenwich.

The event caused a shake-up in the capital city, when the threat of a firefighter and police picket of the event forced Providence mayor David N. Cicilline to resign his role as co-chairman of Clinton’s Rhode Island campaign, and pledge not to attend the event.

-- projo.com staff writer Brandie M. Jefferson

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:20 PM | Comment

Connecticut man again found not competent for trial

SOUTH KINGSTOWN -- A Connecticut man charged with shooting at police officers last year on Block Island today again was found incompetent to stand trial in Superior Court.

The next competency evaluation for Ernesto A. Lacayo, 20, of Fairfield, Conn., will be Nov. 27.

Lacayo, who faces a list of felony charges for firing five rounds at police, was declared unfit to stand trial shortly after his arrest on June 25, 2006, but state psychiatrists in April declared him competent, after he was treated for bipolar disorder at Eleanor Slater Hospital.

A defense expert later said Lacayo’s condition had deteriorated. He has been found unfit to stand trial twice since then.

The case has been put on hold pending a determination of competency.

Lacayo continues to be held at the Adult Correctional Institutions, in Cranston, on $400,000 cash bail and is being treated at Eleanor Slater Hospital.

-- Journal staff writer Maria Armental

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:18 PM | Comment

Release of gunshot-wounded seal postponed

An adult male harbor seal, found earlier this summer with a gunshot wound to its eye, will not be released tomorrow at Blue Shutters Beach in Charlestown.

Connecticut's Mystic Aquarium had planned to release the seal at 9 a.m., but today the aquarium said the seal had developed a problem with its right eye -- the only eye with which it can see. Over the summer, the seal was found off the Bridgeport coast with the wound to its other eye.

A $3,000 reward is being offered for information about who shot the seal.

Estimated at 20 to 25 years old, and weighing 212 lbs., the seal had been cleared to be released by the National Marine Fisheries Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration after two months' treatment by aquarium veterinarians.

-- with reports from projo.com staff writer Michalel McKinney

Estimated at 20 to 25 years old, and weighing 212 lbs., the seal had been cleared to be released by the National Marine Fisheries Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration after two months' treatment by aquarium veterinarians.

“Because the animal has vision in only one eye, the veterinary staff at Mystic Aquarium is reluctant to have the animal released until a temporary condition called corneal edema is fully resolved,” Dr. Lawrence Dunn, aquarium veterinarian, said in a statement.

“The seal will be treated and monitored intensively over the next several days until its vision is totally restored,” he said. “Corneal edema is a common transitory condition seen in seals wherein the cornea, the outer clear portion of the eye becomes cloudy, often because of osmotic changes combined with exposure to bright light.”

When the eye problem clears, a new date will be set for its release.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:14 PM | Comment

Ramirez back in lineup for Red Sox

Manny Ramirez, who has missed the last 24 games, is in the Red Sox starting lineup for tonight's game against the Oakland Athletics. Ramirez will bat second and play left field. For more information throughout the night, go to the projo SoxBlog.

Posted by Mike McDermott at 3:56 PM | Comment

Disaster drill will be staged Sunday in Providence

PROVIDENCE -- A disaster drill will be staged Sunday at the Rhode island Convention Center to test responders' readiness, Mayor David N. Cicilline's office said.

It will simulate a "full-scale emergency" at the convention center in which toxic chemicals released into the air cause hundreds of injuries. Nearly 300 people have volunteered to portray victims, according to today's news release.

The Providence Emergency Management Agency and Office of Homeland Security will hold the drill starting at 8 a.m.

It means carrying out various emergency plans and will involved first responders from Providence, Pawtucket, East Providence, Warwick, Cranston, Central Falls, West Warwick, North Providence, and Johnston, plus mutual aid from elsewhere. Also involved will be Rhode Island Emergency Management, the state Health Department, the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority, hospitals and other agencies.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:44 PM | Comment

Photo: A few proud drilling Marines

Journal photo / Bill Murphy
Members of the U.S. Marine Corps Silent Drill Platoon run through a drill during the filming of a new advertising campaign and video documentary this morning at the Point Judith Coast Guard Station. Gallery: See more photos.

Posted by Jack Perry at 2:44 PM | Comment

Traffic advisory: Accident on Rte. 95 south, exit 25

Drivers may encounter heavy traffic traveling through Providence this afternoon. There's a truck accident on Route 95 south near exit 25 and the right shoulder is closed, the state Transportation Management Center reported at 2:16 p.m.

That's the exit for Smithfield Avenue and North Main Street.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:40 PM | Comment

Women's organization settles rosaries-ovaries suit

The Women’s Studies Organization and Rhode Island College have settled after the organization filed suit against the school for taking down signs in 2005 that read “Keep your rosaries off our ovaries,” “Our bodies, our choice,” and “Brought to you by RIC Women’s Studies Organization.”

In a statement from the Rhode Island affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union, Jennifer Magaw, president of the organization, said she hopes the settlement will encourage other student groups to be more vocal.

“College is a place for the free exchange of ideas and I can now be proud to say I attend a school which allows the free speech rights that are essential to a learning community," she said.

Jane Fusco, a spokeswoman for Rhode Island College, said in a statement today that the school was pleased to have reached an agreement with the Organization.

“The issue was never about free speech or freedom of expression,” she said. “It was a matter of miscommunication of the campus sign policy that has now been clarified.”

The signs were posted in by the group as it got ready for activism the next day on issues such as reproductive health and the refusal of some pharmacists to sell contraceptives.

According to the suit, a Catholic priest saw the signs on his way to weekly Mass at the college president’s home. When he mentioned them, the suit said, President John Nazarian had campus police take them down.

Initially, the college asked for the lawsuit to be dismissed, claiming that it was not a government institution and, therefore, had the right to restrict students’ speech.

That claim was quickly withdrawn at the request of state higher education officials.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 2:27 PM | Comment

Burrillville teachers, committee meeting today

Burrillville teachers are scheduled to meet with the school committee to work out the details of a contract both parties can agree to.

The union’s last proposal was partially based on its recent review of the district budget, union spokesman Patrick Crowley said.

The 203 teachers in the union called for a strike on the first day of school, Aug. 28. That held the first day of school until after Labor Day.

State law does not give teachers the right to strike, and the state Supreme Court has ruled strikes illegal. But the higher court also said the lower level judges cannot order the teachers to return to work without a hearing.

Teachers are scheduled to meet with the committee today and Oct. 5.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 2:03 PM | Comment

Phase 2 of Northwest Bike Trail opens Thursday

The second phase of the Northwest Bike Trail/ Fred Lippitt Woonasquatucket River Greenway is scheduled to open Thursday morning after ten years in the making.

The 3.6-mile bikeway runs from Valley Street, Providence, to Lyman Avenue, Johnston. Part of the path is on-road, but it 2.9 miles along the Woonasquatucket River is unpaved.

The path connects the 1.5 on-road route from Valley Street to Providence Place mall.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony is set for 10 a.m. at the start of the off-road section in Riverside Mills Park, off Aleppo Street, in Providence. Mayor David N. Cicilline, Department of Transportation Director Jerome F. Williams, Department of Environmental Management Executive Director W. Michael Sullivan and Jane Sherman, of the Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council, will be there.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 1:56 PM | Comment

Fall River real estate agent shot in his office

FALL RIVER — A real estate agent shot at his longtime Fall River office last night was released from the hospital today, a Fall River Police Department spokesman said.

Antonio F. Alberto, 54, owner of Antonio Alberto Insurance and Real Estate Agency on Stafford Road, was going to meet clients shortly after 8 p.m. yesterday when the incident occurred.

When the police arrived, they found Alberto, a Somerset resident, had suffered a gunshot wound to the head area. He was taken to Rhode Island Hospital.

The police said he was released this morning. Additional information was not released because the police department’s Major Crimes Division is still investigating. The police have not made any arrests.

-- Journal staff writer Alisha Pina

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 1:36 PM | Comment

Traffic alert: Route 195-95 merge is jammed up

The Traffic Management Center is doing emergency maintenance on Route 195 eastbound at Route 95.

The work should be cleared up by about 1 p.m.

For up to the minute traffic information, and to see views of the interstate from traffic cameras, visit the TMC Web site.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 12:34 PM | Comment

Besides R.I. cuts, Amgen plans California layoffs

WEST GREENWICH -- Rhode Island is not the only state suffering from Amgen's struggles.

In addition to laying off about 450 employees in West Greenwich, the pharmaceutical giant plans to dismiss about 600 staff members at its headquarters in Thousand Oaks, Calif.

Amgen is also laying another 350 employees at other U.S. facilities, part of an effort to reduce spending in response to a sharp drop in sales of Epogen and Aranesp, top-selling anemia drugs that have come under scrutiny after studies found that they may increase the risk of stroke and heart attack in some patients.

-- Journal staff writer Benjamin N. Gedan

Posted by Mike McKinney at 12:26 PM | Comment

Governor willl announce grant for 'Physics First'

Rhode Island has gotten a $1-million federal grant for a science curriculum that stresses teaching physics to high schoolers, Governor Carcieri's office announced today.

It changes the order of subjects taught to physics in 9th grade, chemistry in 10th grade and biology in 11th grade. (Current curriculum teaches biology, followed by chemistry and physics -- an order of subjects the governor's office says dates to 1893).

The governor's office says at least six high schools are using the Physics First program: Portsmouth, Cranston West, Lincoln, Mount Pleasant, East Providence, and Woonsocket.

Governor Carcieri will hold a news conference at 10 a.m. tomorrow at Portsmouth High School to announce the grant, from the National Science Foundation. Robert Tinker of the Concord Consortium, the grant's main author, will attend along with with Portsmouth High School principal Robert Littlefield, state Education Commissioner Peter McWalters, and Jeffrey Schoonover, Portsmouth Science Department chairman.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 11:44 AM | Comment

Record-breaking temperatures likely

If it starts to feel a bit tropical today, you have the Bermuda High to thank.

Charles Foley, at the National Weather Service in Taunton, Mass., says this type of weather pattern – with high pressure, clockwise winds – gets its tropical name because it’s so large that it extends from the east coast of the U.S., all the way to Bermuda.

Warm, dry weather is typical for the system, which carries mild, dry air from the southwest up to New England. But the system is not typical of late September; it usually shows up in July and August.

The record high temperature records for today and tomorrow are 89 degrees, set in 1920 and 1930, respectively.

“We stand a good chance of breaking both records today and tomorrow,” Foley said. But the heat should break late Thursday, he said, making way for a cold front and probably some rain.

We’ll see another high pressure system this weekend, Foley said, but with more seasonable temperatures and dry weather.

“For this time of the year,” he said, “you look for temperatures just about 70 or 71 degrees.”

Fall is set to arrive, it will just be a week late.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:36 AM | Comment

Lynch to talk about Lindsay Ann Burke law in NYC

Attorney General Patrick Lynch is in New York today with the parents of 23-year-old Lindsay Ann Burke, a North Kingstown woman who was killed by a former boyfriend, to speak at a domestic violence education initiative.

It’s Time To Talk Day, a creation of Liz Claiborne, Inc., has partnered with the Teen Dating Abuse Helpline to bring attention to violence in teen dating.

At a press conference scheduled for 11:30 today at Liz Claiborne’s headquarters on Broadway, Lynch – with Ann and Christopher Burke – will discuss the Lindsay Ann Burke Law. The law was passed in the General Assembly this year, and requires dating violence education in Rhode Island schools.

The attorney general also plans to interview live with talk show hosts to raise awareness about domestic violence.

On Sept. 14, 2005, 29-year-old Gerardo E. Martinez, of Warwick, murdered Lindsay Ann Burke. The two had dated for two years, but had broken up.

Martinez was sentenced to life in prison without parole.

“It’s a tribute to the work accomplished by Ann and Chris Burke,” Lynch said in a statement, “and very meaningful to me as well, that Liz Claiborne Inc. views the Lindsay Ann Burke Law as a national model in curbing dating violence.”

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:26 AM | Comment

R.I. students still trail in national reading, math test

Rhode Island students improved in most areas of a national reading and math test given to fourth and eighth graders, but lost ground in eighth grade reading scores, dropping two points since the test was last administered two years ago.

Once again, Rhode Island trailed the five other New England states in the tests, released at 10 a.m. this morning by the National Assessment of Educational Progress and commonly referred to as the Nation’s Report Card.

As the only national reading and math tests administered to groups of diverse students in all 50 states, the rigorous test is considered a gold standard by many educators and policy makers. Nationally, more than 702,000 students took the tests last spring.

About 3,200 Rhode Island fourth graders took the reading and math tests, as did about 2,600 eighth graders, and the students came from virtually every district, said state education officials.

-- Journal staff writer Jennifer Jordan

In reading, 31 percent of fourth graders tested in Rhode Island were proficient, an increase of one percent from 2005, but just 27 percent of eighth graders were proficient, down from 29 percent two years ago.

Part of the problem is that Rhode Island provides more reading support for younger children, but once a student reaches the fifth grade, there is less intensive reading help, said Mary Ann Snider, director of assessment and accountability for the Rhode Island Department of Education.

“We need to provide much more professional development to teachers in grades five through eight in reading,” Snider said. “That’s the next work for us as a state.”

Rhode Island students showed gains in math, with 34 percent of 4th graders reaching proficiency – a 3 percent increase from 2005, and 28 percent of eighth graders were proficient, up from 23 percent two years ago. State officials credit math specialists and an increased focus on math and science skills as contributing to the increase.

Nevertheless, Rhode Island continues to trail its neighbors and the national average in most areas. Massachusetts is the highest scoring state in the country, with about half its students proficient in math and reading.

The Nation’s Report Card uses four categories to assess student performance: below basic, basic, proficient and advanced. Rhode Island’s yearly statewide tests for grades 3-8 and 11 use similar categories, but the standard the state uses to determine proficiency lies between basic and proficient for the Nation’s Report Card, Snider said.

“Their proficiency standard NAEP uses is acknowledged to be at a very, very high standard,” Snider said. “Our purpose for proficiency is determining if a student has learned the prior year’s materials and is prepared to be instructed at the next grade level with minimal support.”

When basic, proficient and advanced categories are combined, 65 percent of Rhode fourth graders scored at or above basic, as did 69 percent of eighth graders. In math, 80 percent of fourth graders scored at or above basic, as did 65 percent of eighth graders.

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:30 AM | Comment

12-year-old injured in hit-and-run now in fair condition

The 12-year old boy who was critically injured during a hit-and-run accident on Sept. 9th in Providence is now in fair condition at Hasbro Children’s Hospital, according to a spokeswoman.

Eric Jimenez was hurt when, the police say, 26-year-old Dennis Cherry veered off the road, striking Eric and his 8-year-old brother Ivan, who died of his injuries.

Cherry, who turned himself in, is scheduled to be in District Court, Providence, today for a violation hearing on a misdemeanor weapons charge. He is tentatively scheduled to face two charges of leaving the scene of an accident with death or injury resulting – a felony – in early November.

Eric Jimenez was in critical condition for about one and a half weeks after the accident. Although the hospital cannot give out information about his specific condition, Fair is described by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act as “Vital signs are stable and within normal limits. Patient is conscious, but may be uncomfortable. Indicators are favorable.”

People who want to donate to the Ivan Jimenez Memorial Fund can make a check out to the fund and indicate that it is intended for account number 91853493 at Citizens Bank. Checks may be dropped off at any Citizens branch office in Rhode Island or Massachusetts or mailed to 333 West River Ave., Providence, 02909.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 10:04 AM | Comment

DAs want answers from Patrick on casino plans

BOSTON -- The state's district attorneys want to question Gov. Deval Patrick about his casino proposal, saying they'll consider publicly opposing the legislation unless the governor satisfies their concerns about crime.

Along with the tax revenue, resort casinos like the three that Patrick wants to license in Massachusetts will bring increases in property crimes, child neglect, and possibly prostitution and organized crime, said Jonathan Blodgett, Essex district attorney and president of the Massachusetts District Attorneys Association.

Read the full Associated Press story.

Posted by Jack Perry at 8:44 AM | Comment

Traffic Alert: Lane re-opened on 195 East

The Transportation Management Center says the center lane on Interstate 195 eastbound near the Wickenden Street exit has been reopened.

The land was closed for emergency maintenance this morning.

For traffic updates and live views of the roads, check out the TMC Web site.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 8:13 AM | Comment

Providence mayor wants input on neighborhoods

The mayor is asking the public to join an open discussion about neighborhood development in Providence’s Mount Hope, Hope and Blackstone neighborhoods.

The forum begins this morning and runs through Thursday.

“Feedback from residents and business owners at these neighborhood planning workshops is critical to our efforts to shape the future of our neighborhoods,” Mayor David N. Cicilline said in a statement.

This will be the second in a series of similar forums. The first was held earlier this year in Washington Park.

Participants, who will also include Councilmen Cliff Wood and Kevin Jackson, will discuss the character, affordability, safety, and infrastructure of the neighborhoods. Opening up the neighborhoods to each other and creating open space will also be on the agenda.

The workshop schedules are as follows:

Tuesday, Sept. 25, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Wednesday, Sept. 26, 9:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Thursday, Sept. 27, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:54 AM | Comment

R.I. senators tout legislation to help coast, marine life

Legislation that Rhode Island's two U.S. senators say will help restore the state's coastal and marine ecosystems has won congressional approval.

The Estuary Restoration Act (ERA) passed as part of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), which authorizes nearly $21 billion for flood control, navigation, and ecosystem restoration projects, Senators Sheldon Whitehouse and Jack Reed, Democrats, said in a news release.

“We have seen what unchecked development combined with more severe storms can do to vital coastal regions,” Whitehouse said in the statement. “Restoring estuarine and coastal ecosystems is one important way we can preserve our environment and our communities."

Reed said: “I am pleased that Congress has taken this important step to help restore the Ocean State’s waterways. Narragansett Bay is one of the many estuaries that play a crucial role in protecting our environment and bolstering the economy."

Narragansett Bay and other estuaries help the coastal environments by serving as barriers that insulate fragile coast from flood waters. Estuary restoration helps local economies, supporting recreational activities and preserving unique coastal cultures, according to the news release.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 7:02 AM | Comment

A beach day? But isn't it fall?

There may be some beach days left yet. The National Weather Service is forecasting a high of 87 degrees today with clear, sunny skies and an overnight low in the 60s.

And tomorrow may be just plain hot, with a high of about 90 degrees and sun all day long.

Believe it or not, the first day of fall was Sunday.

For more weather and regular updates, see projo.com/weather.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:01 AM | Comment

Today's front page

Today's front page features a story about Amgen's plans to lay off 450 workers from its West Greenwich plant.

Download a copy of today's front page in .pdf format.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:00 AM | Comment

Whitehouse to focus on healthcare in D.C. today

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse is scheduled to address a healthcare forum this morning in Washington D.C.

The theme of this year’s Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society’s 5th Annual Public Policy Forum is the potential long-term benefits of information technology to the healthcare industry.

HIMSS, a not-for-profit company that works to help integrate information technology and management systems into the healthcare industry.

The forum, at the National Press Club, is set to start at 9:30 a.m.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 6:59 AM | Comment

September 24, 2007

Tonight: bands of all names, films of Latin America

An eclectic mix of bands -- or at least, band names -- is on the bill tonight at AS220 in Providence. Sweetthieves, Big Bear, The Science Logic and Sick Electric play the club at 115 Empire St. 831-9327. 8 pm. $6. All ages.

Check Club Calendar for more tunes on a Monday night.

There's something going on in the film arena: the Providence Latin American Film Festival, tonight and tomorrow night. There's still time to catch Mas Que a Nada en el Mundo (More than Anything in the World) at 8:30 p.m., Cable Car Cinema, 204 South Main St., Providence. Call 272-3970.

And there's Zulo at 9 p.m., Rhode Island School of Design auditorium, 17 Canal St., Providence.

Read the reviews.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:55 PM | Comment

Smithfield recall vote on council president is Nov. 13

SMITHFIELD -- The town’s Board of Canvassers has picked Nov. 13 as the date for a special election that will decide whether Stephen G. Tocco remains a member of the Town Council.

The canvassers acted on Friday, just hours after a Superior Court judge declined to intervene and force the special election to take place Nov. 3.

Under the terms of the town Charter, if Tocco is voted out of office, the Town Council will pick a successor because Tocco would have served more than half his two-year term. If the election had been scheduled for Nov. 3, with the same result, he would have served less than half his term and thus would be replaced at a townwide special election.

Tocco, president of the council, is a Democrat. The Charter requires the council to pick another Democrat if he is voted out.

Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis's office today said Smithfield filed the necessary paperwork today to hold the special election.

-- Journal staff writer Thomas J. Morgan

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:03 PM | Comment

Amgen is laying off 450 Rhode Island employees

Pharmaceutical giant Amgen is laying off as many as 450 of its Rhode Island employees, the company announced late this afternoon.

The employees will leave the company by early November.

-- Journal staff writer Benjamin N. Gedan

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:01 PM | Comment

Somerset police search for man who fled courthouse

SOMERSET, Mass. -- The police are searching for a Lakeville, Mass., man who fled a court house this morning. He is wanted on several warrants for violating probation after he was involved in an assault and battery in Somerset this week.

John Makuch, last known address of 45 Malbone Street in Lakeville, fled the courthouse during a meeting at the probation department, the police said in a news release.

He formerly lived in Somerset, but as part of the outcome of a previous case he was told he had to move out of Somerset. In that case, he had been the subject of several complaints that he harassed and intimidated Lake Street neighbors in Somerset -- some said they feared for their safety.

"It is believed he fled [this morning] after he realized that he would be held without bail and required to serve a sentence imposed on him this past summer," the release says.

The police released a description of Makuch as a 50-year-old white male who is 6 feet tall, about 180 to 200 pounds, with brown eyes, shaven head or extremely short light-brown hair. He has visible head scars from surgery.

Police said he is known to be driving any of these:

* Red 1995 Ford Explorer, MASS 410PHJ
* Red 1997 Dodge Caravan, MASS 209FLE
* Red 1977 MG convertible , MASS AN 48100
* A black Harley Davidson motorcycle, color black, MASS SHUVL

The police ask that if someone sees Makuch, call the department at (508) 679-2138.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:33 PM | Comment

Providence police seek help finding woman

PROVIDENCE -- The police today are asking the public's help in the search for a woman missing from the Cathedral Street Apartments.

Marian H. Edmonds, 53, left her residence on Sept. 3, and family have not heard from her, the police said.

The police described Edmonds as five feet, two inches tall, weighing 240 pounds, with blue eyes, shoulder-length brown hair, and possibly wearing a sweatshirt with designs, sweatpants and sneakers.

Anyone with information should call (401) 243-6406, the missing persons unit at the detective division.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:24 PM | Comment

R.I.'s dating violence law to get NYC airing

Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch and the parents of a Rhode Island woman who was murdered by her former boyfriend will take Rhode Island's new law against such violence to a national stage tomorrow at a New York City forum.

The parents of Lindsay Ann Burke, the 23-year-old North Kingstown girl who was murdered , are slated to be with Lynch at the news conference, according to Lynch's office.

"It's Time to Talk Day," created by Liz Claiborne Inc. to increase awareness nationally about domestic violence, will include an 11:30 a.m. news conference that will launch a digital Teen Dating Bill of Rights. The news conference will be at Liz Claiborne headquarters, 1441 Broadway, New York City.

The Lindsay Ann Burke Law, approved in Rhode Island this year, requires each school district in the state to come up with and carry out a zero-tolerance dating violence policy that sets guidelines and disciplinary consequences for incidents taking place at school or on school grounds. The new law mandates that all school districts include dating violence education in existing health education curriculum in grades 7 through 12.

“It’s a tribute to the work accomplished by Ann and Chris Burke, and very meaningful to me, as well, that Liz Claiborne Inc. views the Lindsay Ann Burke Law as a national model in curbing dating violence,” Lynch said in a statement.

This year, Liz Claiborne Inc. has partnered with the National Teen Dating Abuse Helpline to press for national education on teen dating abuse.

Lynch also will interview with a number of talk show hosts from throughout the nation who are broadcasting live from the event tomorrow to raise awareness of domestic violence and teen dating abuse.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:55 PM | Comment

Bomb scare closes Tiverton High School early

TIVERTON -- School officials evacuated Tiverton High School today after receiving a bomb threat.

A caller dialed the main office today at about 11:30 a.m., claiming that a bomb would detonate in the building at noon, the School Department said in a news release. Students were immediately evacuated by their teachers to the football field, and the police and bomb-sniffing dogs searched the high school.

Police Chief Thomas Blakey said the police found no evidence of a bomb.

Students were released from school at 12:40 p.m., and all after-school activities were cancelled. The building was declared safe at 3 p.m., the school district said.

School will start on-time tomorrow.

-- Journal staff writer Meaghan Wims

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:36 PM | Comment

R.I. gets $8.25-million grant for drug/alcohol treatment

Rhode Island is getting a three-year, $8.25-million federal grant that the governor's office says will increase people's access to drug and alcohol treatment and recovery services.

“This funding gives Rhode Island the opportunity to both expand our current treatment capacity and to develop new recovery services offered by potential new providers," Governor Carcieri said in a statement announcing the money today.

In the first year, $2.75 million will be used to target people released from the Adult Correctional Institutions, younger offenders from the state Training School, and parents/guardians involved with state Department of Children, Youth and Families.

The money will let state Department of Mental Health, Retardation and Hospitals issue vouchers in which people can choose when they want to get treatment/recovery services, and what kind.

Treatment options include inpatient and outpatient treatment modalities, residential treatment, medical detoxification and methadone treatment, peer support, and relapse prevention. Recovery support services include modified sober houses, as well as family and marital counseling.

People seeking help will be offered a "client coach" to help them navigate the treatment system and ensure they make it to appointments.

In the grant's first year, 600 people are expected to participate, with, 1,200 clients projected in the second year and 1,600 in the third.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:22 PM | Comment

Climate scientist wants to impart extraordinary truth

Benjamin Santer was introduced to a group of about 250 scientists and journalists as "a statistician type."

And for an hour today, the award winning climate scientists who has used painstaking statistical analysis to show the impact humans make on the Earth's climate, lived up to his introduction: he flew through a slideshow peppered with graphs and talked about calculating statistical deviation and anthropomorphic components of climate change.

But his last slide, before and after pictures of the Rocky Mountains, was anything but statistician-like.

"It is tremendously sad," he said, "that my children, my grandchildren will not experience these mountains."

Santer was the keynote speaker at the 2007 Grantham Prize Seminar on Environmental Journalism.

A physicist and atmospheric scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, Santer was a lead author with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and earned an award from the Department of Energy for environmental science and technology, and an Outstanding Paper award from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association.

He shared some of his work with the audience to help them -- many, journalists from around the country -- interpret data and better understand the complicated science used in the study of climate change.

"Extraordinary claims," he said, "demand extraordinary truth."

-- projo.com staff writer Brandie M. Jefferson

A major theme of his presentation was the idea of human "fingerprints" to make better use of statistical models. Teasing out how different factors -- from volcanos to solar flares -- could affect temperature made it possible, he said, to also model the human affect.

It is an "immutable fact," he said, that humans have been and continue to be responsible for changes in the climate.

But a statistician knows as well as anyone that graphs and spreadsheets are not likely to sway public opinion.

"Katrina galvanized people's attention," he said when a member of the audience asked why, after more than a decade of doing this work, the public seemed to be on his side.

"CO2 is an odorless, colorless gas. It's difficult to make it real to people."

In his introduction, Bud Ward, a environmental journalist for more than 30 years, said that because Saner was a better scientist than a diplomat, he was able, in the mid-90s, to write a chapter in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change attributing warming to human activity by arguing, rather undiplomatically, with diplomats.

At the time of the report, however, he was accused of editing it to delete references of scientific uncertainty about the human impact of climate change. Ultimately, the 1995 IPCC report concluded that "the balance of evidence suggests a discernable human influence on global climate."

That statement, Santer said, is "forever in my memory."

The $75,000 Grantham Prize for Excellence in Reporting on the Environment – the largest of its kind – will be awarded to Kenneth R. Weiss and Usha Lee McFarling of the Los Angeles Times for their five-part series “Altered Oceans.”

Awards of special merit, a $5,000 prize, will be given to a team of reporters at NOVA for “Dimming in the Sun;” a team at the East Oregonian Publishing Company for its series, “Our Climate is Changing … Ready or Not;” and for Eugene Linden’s “The Winds of Change.”

The Grantham Prize was created in 2005 through a joint effort between URI's Metcalf Institute for Marine and Environmental Reporting, and the Grantham Foundation for the Protection of the Environment.

The Metcalf Instute was named for Michael P. Metcalf, the late publisher of The Providence Journal, "who was keenly interested in marine and environmental issues and was known for his integrity, vision, and high standards for writing," according to the institute.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 3:54 PM | Comment

A seal, wounded by gunshot, will return to the sea

The adult male harbor seal that was found in Seaside Park, Bridgeport, Conn., with a gunshot wound to its left eye will be released into the ocean from Blue Shutters Town Beach in Charlestown Wednesday morning.

The injury was severe enough that the seal will never use its left eye again. But Mystic Aquarium Institute for Exploration said in a news release today that the seal will be capable of hunting and surviving.

The aquarium in eastern Connecticut, which rehabilitated the seal that was found in western Connecticut, announced today that the release is slated for 9 a.m.

The full-grown seal weighs more than 200 pounds and is 20 to 25 years old, the aquarium says. A reward of more than $3,000 is being offered for information about who may have shot the seal.

“After almost two months of treatment here at Mystic Aquarium by our staff veterinarian Lawrence Dunn and our entire staff, the harbor seal has been given a clean bill of health by the National Marine Fisheries Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) and can now be returned to its natural habitat,” Cindy Davis, stranding assistant at Mystic Aquarium, said in the statement.

“As is the case with any stranded marine animal, our goal is to return it to its natural habitat once it has received proper treatment and care," said Davis.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:26 PM | Comment

Providence's future? Help mold it this week

PROVIDENCE -- Residents who want their say on future of several city neighborhoods are invited to sound off this week.

Known as a charrette, the workshop/feedback session runs today though Friday at the Church of the Redeemer, 655 Hope St. It's the second in a series of neighborhood charrettes, this one looking at planning for the Mount Hope, Hope and Blackstone neighborhoods.. The first was held this year in Washington Park.

Attendees will look at "neighborhood character, affordability, community safety, neighborhood infrastructure, connecting neighborhoods and open space," the mayor's office said in a news release today.

“Feedback from residents and business owners at these neighborhood planning workshops is critical to our efforts to shape the future of our neighborhoods,” Mayor David N. Cicilline said in the statement. “Thanks to unprecedented input from the public we will now have more detailed information about our neighborhoods to add to the Providence Comprehensive plan than ever before.”

Here's the schedule:

* Tuesday, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.
* Wednesday, 9:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.
* Thursday, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:17 PM | Comment

Photo: Swinging in the sunshine

Journal photo / Bill Murphy
Sogand Nugent, 18 months of Providence, enjoys the sunshine and swings at Humboldt Park on Providence's East Side this morning. Tomorrow should bring more sunshine and a high temperature of 85 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.

Posted by Jack Perry at 3:14 PM | Comment

Prepare for next week's Providence Rte. 95 closings

Weather permitting, the DOT will close portions of Route 95 in Providence from Sunday through Oct. 5 during overnight hours to remove road surfaces, put down temporary paving and stripes.

The work will happen between Thurbers Avenue (Route 95 Exit 18) and the Route 95/Route 195 split (Exit 20 on Route 95).

“We expect delays to be minimal and we are optimistic that motorists will be as patient as they have been previously," said Jerome F. Williams, the Department of Transportation director, in the statement.

Beginning Sunday at 8 p.m., the DOT will use one lane on Route 95 north to set up for the road surface removal -- known as "cold planing." Full closures will happen at 11 p.m. All lanes will reopen by 5:30 a.m.

Drivers should expect a rough surface through the area until it is paved.

They will also find all lanes shifting to the left on the road’s original alignment. The DOT advised that drivers give themselves extra time for the morning commute on Monday, Oct. 1. Crews will sweep the road and wet it to keep the dust down.

That Monday and Tuesday, the surface removal will continued on Route 95 north. On Wednesday, Route 95 north will be paved.

Route 95 south will be closed, weather permitting, for road surface removal, paving and striping from Wednesday through Friday -- Oct. 5 -- next week. That Friday's night work will begin after midnight. The work Route 95 south requires that the Route 195 west ramp to Route 95 south also be closed.

Alternate routes for the Route 95 north and south closures, and for closing the Route 195 west ramp to Route 95 south include using Route 10 and Route 295. Local detours including Allens Avenue will also be available.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 1:53 PM | Comment

Governor orders flag to half staff in Crowley's memory

PROVIDENCE -- Governor Carcieri today ordered the Rhode Island state flag lowered to half staff in tribute to state Rep. Paul W. Crowley, who died this morning in Newport after battling cancer.

The flag will remain at half staff until Crowley's funeral, the governor's office said in a news release.

“Paul Crowley was a legislator who served the public well, with a legendary work ethic and a decades-long commitment to improving education," Carcieri said in the statement. "His support of charter schools, promotion of school accountability, and backing of technical education are a living testament to his foresight and his work. Paul will be sorely missed at the State House. My deepest sympathies go to his wife and family.”

House Speaker William J. Murphy said: “Paul Crowley was all that is good with Rhode Island politics. He was devoted to the General Assembly and the House of Representatives. He placed great importance in the way the institution of the General Assembly was run. He was always conncerned about the process.

“He was a representative I greatly admired because he stood by his convictions. He was never afraid to take an unpopular stand."

Posted by Mike McKinney at 12:49 PM | Comment

Get your motors runnin' ... plow on up the driveway ...

PROVIDENCE -- You've been waiting for it, maybe. Get ready for the rumble!

Yes, this Wednesday the third annual Snow Plow Rhodeo arrives in Roger Williams Park.

Snow plows, gettin' their motors runnin', in September -- weeks and weeks before you're ready to contemplate winter and sliding cars.

The drivers will negotiate an "intense obstacle course" from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., Mayor David N. Cicilline's office announced today.

There's the snow plow slalom competition. And there will be grades for how well a driver backs the truck into a simulated loading slip. Teams will also be scored on a safety quiz and vehicle inspection.

Prizes are handed out for each event and then combined scores are tallied. The overall winner gets a shot at the upcoming statewide Snow Plow Rhodeo, sponsored by the Rhode Island Public Works Association.

The drivers, from the city Department of Public Works, Parks Department and city water supply, will "put their skills to the test as they compete for the top prize and bragging rights," the mayor's office says.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 12:00 PM | Comment

Feds to discuss international smuggling operation

PROVIDENCE -- U.S. Attorney Robert Clark Corrente is scheduled to hold a news conference this afternoon to discuss “a criminal matter involving an alleged multi-million dollar international smuggling operation.”

News reports are coming out across the country about a federal drug investigation with links to Rhode Island that has led to the seizure of 56 laboratories for manufacturing anabolic steroids and human growth hormone and more than 120 arrests.

While some news outlets are reporting a crackdown of Chinese steroids, U.S. Attorney spokesman Thomas Connell said in Rhode Island that the investigation was focused on human growth hormone.

He declined to give more information this morning; a news conference will be held at 1 p.m. at the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Members of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service will also be there.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:18 AM | Comment

Gas prices up for first time in 10 weeks

Gasoline prices in Rhode Island have increased for the first time in ten weeks, according to AAA Southern New England.

The average price for a gallon of regular, unleaded gasoline is $2.679 at the self-service pump, according to AAA's weekly survey.

That's two cents higher than last week, AAA says.

Rhode Island is still 13 cents below the national average.

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:20 AM | Comment

Belo makes partnership deal with Mochila

Belo Corp., which owns the Providence Journal and newspapers and television stations across the country, announced today that it had reached partnership agreement with Mochila, an online content market designed to facilitate news syndication.

Belo newspapers and TV stations will syndicate its content through Mochila and tap into Mochila's content, which consists of millions of articles and photographs and video generated by its other partners.

Belo, in its press release, said it has also invested in Mochila "to help drive Mochila's future growth."

Belo will participate in Mochila's AdMatch program, creating new revenue opportunities. The Mochila AdMatch program allows members to acquire content for free and syndicate content to other publishers while earning a share of advertising revenue.

"At Belo, we continue to seek out innovative business investment opportunities designed to broaden the Company's tools and services we offer our online users and advertisers," said Skip Cass, executive vice president in charge of Belo's business development team. "This strategic partnership with Mochila increases the value of Belo's content and also provides our audiences with a richer online experience across our brands."

"This partnership is further validation of the Mochila model," said Mochila CEO Keith McAllister. "We look forward to helping Belo capitalize on new opportunities, while we benefit from Belo's experience and expertise to help us expand the Mochila marketplace."

-- projo.com staff writer Brandie M. Jefferson

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 10:12 AM | Comment

Veteran lawmaker Paul W. Crowley dies

NEWPORT — Veteran Newport lawmaker Paul W. Crowley, a champion for schoolchildren and the city where he was raised, died this morning after a battle with cancer, according to Larry Berman, a spokesman for Speaker William J. Murphy. Crowley was 57.

Crowley’s distinguished public-service record began early, when he was a student at the University of Rhode Island, and ended with his 27-year tenure as a top legislator in the House of Representatives. He was the longest-serving Democrat in the House.

Crowley became the point man on education issues as the legislature took on an increasingly active role in financing — and shaping — the state’s public schools. He championed charter schools, school accountability, improved vocational education and increased aid to poorer school districts years before other politicians caught on.

As Crowley said during his last campaign for the House, in the fall of 2006: “I’ve been the education guy.”

Crowley’s efforts were frustrated for many years, until a Rhode Island Supreme Court ruling in 1995 called on the legislature to devise an adequate funding formula for education. That decision gave momentum to Crowley and like-minded lawmakers.

In 1997, Crowley became one of the prime sponsors of the state’s educational accountability law, which ushered in annual school report cards and authorized state intervention for failing schools.

He was the “go-to person on education in the General Assembly,” said Gary Sasse, executive director of the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council, who advised Crowley on legislative matters over the years.

“His vision and leadership made a significant contribution to our state. He was universally respected by everybody and he will be sorely missed,” Sasse said. Crowley “was a legislator who was truly driven by the public interest, and he was a man of great integrity.”

-- Journal staff writers Meaghan Wims and Gina Macris, with reports from Journal staff writer Richard Salit

Crowley had long favored consolidation of school districts and a single, statewide teachers’ contract. In his final days at the State House, Crowley helped ongoing efforts to establish a statewide school-funding formula and to rein in growing teacher salaries.

Crowley didn’t just focus on school issues, however. He opposed early proposals for a casino in Newport, and recently resisted the proposed Harrah’s Narragansett Indian casino in West Warwick. He supported tax incentives for energy savings and regionalization of municipal services decades before those concepts were realized. He recently proposed measures that would protect coastal residents from rising homeowners’ insurance rates.

Despite the serious issues he grappled with at the State House, Crowley maintained a certain levity.

In 1999, mall developer Aram Garabedian became the lone independent in the overwhelmingly Democratic General Assembly. Crowley posted a sign on the phone booth outside the House chamber. It read: “Representative Aram Garabedian. Mini Minority Leader. Please knock.”

Crowley twice ran unsuccessfully for the Newport City Council before being elected to his first public office, state representative, in 1981 at age 31.

That election pitted Crowley, who had deep Newport roots and a family name synonymous with popular Newport restaurants La Forge Casino and the now-closed Christie’s, against Eileen Slocum, the wealthy Republican leader and Bellevue Avenue denizen. In a rematch the following year, Crowley beat her again.

He never lost another election.

Crowley once questioned his political future. He lost his second bid, in 1979, for the Newport council in part because of criticism over his participation as a URI student in an anti-Vietnam War demonstration.

“I’m proud of what I did,” he said at the time, but added, “There’s a real question now of how credible a candidate I can be now.”

Newport voters didn’t share his concern. Crowley maintained a stanchion of local support for decades, particularly in the predominately Irish Fifth Ward neighborhood, where he lived with his family on Harrison Avenue.

As a former chairman of the Newport County Convention and Visitors Bureau, Crowley actively marketed his hometown as a tourist destination. And, of course, there were the nights he spent greeting diners at La Forge Casino.

“Politics is a little more laid back [here] than upstate,” Crowley said in 1993. “It’s not so much going to ‘times,’ it’s more of a ‘Hi, neighbor’ chat-across-the-fence kind of thing."

About 18 months ago, in February 2006, Crowley was diagnosed with stage-three malignant melanoma, a deadly form of skin cancer. He returned to the State House in May of 2006 when he was greeted with applause and a standing ovation. By the end of the 2006 legislative session, Crowley had secured the funds for a new alternate high school in Newport.

Crowley went on to win another election last fall, and at that time, he said tests showed his cancer had not spread to other organs and his prognosis looked good. He remained active through the end of the 2007 legislative session in June, but the cancer returned.

Crowley leaves his wife, Diana, and three children

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 9:55 AM | Comment

Groups to press for special legislative session

Several activist groups plan to gather outside the State House this afternoon to urge legislators to set a date for a special session to override a number of bills vetoed by Gov. Carcieri, including a bill that would eliminate mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses and one that would legally recognize domestic partnerships.

In a press release, the American Civil Liberties Union, Direct Action for Rights and Equality, Marriage Equality RI, Ocean State Action, SEIU Local 1199 and United Nurses and Allied Professionals say they are pushing for the General Assembly to override Carcieri vetoes of "civil rights, worker rights and health care legislation.”

“These pieces of legislation are too important to the community to let die or to make us wait any longer,” John Prince, chairman at DARE said in the release.

The rally begins at 4 p.m. on the Smith Street side of the State House.

Click below for links to the texts of the bills.

-- projo.com staff writer Brandie M. Jefferson

Bills 5099 & S0029 would restrict hours worked and eliminate mandatory overtime for nurse employees in public and private hospitals.

Bills 207 & s619 would establish rights for municipal employees.

Bill 1014 & 5904 would ensure the state adhered do affirmative action requirements when making appointments.

Bills 648 & 6125 outline the establishment of a health care planning and accountability council.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 9:07 AM | Comment

Suspected drunken driver drives into cove

EAST PROVIDENCE -- An East Providence man was charged with drunken driving and trying to
elude police after he crashed his car into Watchemoket Cove, the
authorities said last night.

Thomas Correia, 34, of 28 Apollo Rd., was seen on top of his partially
submerged Mitsubishi, and he tried to swim away when a fire department
rescue boat pulled up, according to Lt. Armen Garo.

Correia was brought to shore by rescuers. He faces charges of drunken
driving, reckless driving and eluding, disorderly conduct and refusing
to submit to a chemical test, Garo said.

The arrest followed a brief pursuit that began on First Street near
Mauran Avenue around 1:30 a.m. Sunday, he said.

Two police officers, Patrolman Andrew Dubois and Patrolman Kyle
Shibley, had pulled the driver over after seeing him
driving at a high rate of speed, Garo said.

Both officers were working together in a federally funded initiative to
combat drunken driving, he said.

As the officers approached the car, they could see Thomas's physical
condition and they suspected alcohol consumption, Garo said. Correia
drove away and headed south on Veterans Memorial Parkway, he said.

It was 30 to 40 seconds before the car veered off the parkway to the
right and plunged into the cove, Garo said.

The crash, he said, happened in an area near the junction between the
parkway and South Broadway, where people often feed the geese.

Correia was taken to Rhode Island Hospital for treatment.

He was released on personal recognizance, Garo said. He is scheduled
to appear Sept. 27 in District Court, Providence.

-- Journal staff writer Mark Reynolds

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:02 AM | Comment

Today's front page

Today's front page features a story about the safe recovery of Anthony Smith, a 43-year-old developmentally disabled man who went missing after the Johnston police released him from custody.

Download a copy of today's front page.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:00 AM | Comment

A great start to fall

The first full day of fall is looking good. The National Weather Service is forecasting a high near 80 degrees with mild, north winds.

Tonight's low should reach the mid 50s.

Tomorrow will be even warmer, with a high in the mid 80s and west winds up to 15 mph.

For more weather and regular updates, see projo.com/weather.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:00 AM | Comment

September 21, 2007

Tonight: Duke plays the blues at OctoberFest

The blues come to Pawtucket tonight, when Duke Robillard helps kick off the Blackstone River OctoberFest at the German Club, 78 Carter Ave.

Robbillard's band plays at 8.

Besides tasty guitar licks, there will be "traditional German food with plenty of Warsteiner beer on tap," the club's Web site says.

More bands play tomorrow. Read about it here.

For more ideas on weekend events, check projo.com's calendar, Lifebeat page and Fall Guide.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 7:00 PM | Comment

At Portsmouth pond, long-awaited day arrives / Photo

Journal photos / Mary Murphy
A channel was dredged out from the shore line along the Taunton River north of the Mount Hope Bridge, left. Water will flow through inton Town Pond; above right is a view from a trestle. See larger views of the photos here.

PORTSMOUTH -- Thurston Gray waited 10 years for this day.

At least once a week since 1997, the 70-year-old volunteer for Save The Bay visited what remained of Town Pond, 40 acres of marshland that was once a pristine salt pond. Gray, a Portsmouth resident, would tramp through the mud and weeds to test the salinity levels of the small pool of water left in the pond.

The idea was to collect a year or two of water-quality data before a plan to restore the pond started was implemented. The information would then be compared with to salinity levels after the plan was completed.

“I guess I was a little premature on the before part,” Gray said dryly, standing on a railroad track above the pond.

Today, after years of work, the Army Corps of Engineers and the state Department of Environmental Management finally reached the culmination of the $4.5-million effort to restore Town Pond, also known as Boyd’s Marsh.

Just after 7 a.m., crews cleared away a 50-foot wide “plug” of sand and seashells, opening up the channel between the pond and Mount Hope Bay for the first time in more than 50 years.

It wasn’t a riveting sight. Water didn’t surge down the channel. It trickled in, slowly filling the pond, as the tide came in.

But, promised DEM Director W. Michael Sullivan, “you’ll see a very dramatic impact within the year.”

The tide will gradually flush out the wetland, creating a permanent nine-acre pond ranging in depth between from one and to six feet. Phragmites, an invasive freshwater plant, will die off as salt water flows in. Scallops and clams will return to the area as will flounder, which, experts say, will use the pond as a spawning ground.

-- Journal staff writer Alex Kuffner

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Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:59 PM | Comment

Video: Student from R.I. helps rally for small farmers

WASHINGTON -- A Rhode Islander was among students from across the country who rallied on Capitol Hill today for a more equal Farm Bill.

Dorie Obertello, a Westerly High School graduate who attends Vassar College, called for a more level playing field for small farmers.

The omnibus bill under consideration this year reviews agricultural programs, from support for farmers to food stamps.

Watch the full interview, by Belo Capital Bureau reporter Katie Greenan.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 6:30 PM | Comment

N. Providence school panel investigates project

NORTH PROVIDENCE -- The school department announced today it has begun a "fact-finding investigation" after a report of alleged overcharging by a construction vendor for work at the high school.

In a sparse news release, the department said the School Committee had met in a special session and decided to retain a construction consultant "with substantial experience" in commercial/institutional construction. The release said the response came after a report on ABC Channel 6.

The consultant will review the bid specifications from the work -- the news release does not specify which project or who was the construction vendor. The consultant will also review the type of workmanship done and the reasonableness of the project costs.

The School Committee will have no further comment, according to the news release, until its investigation is finished. It expect to get a report next month and for the fact-finding to be done in 60 days.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:54 PM | Comment

Troopers probing Burrillville police union funds

BURRILLVILLE -- State police detectives are investigating the alleged misappropriation of money belonging to the Burrillville police union, state police Maj. Stephen O’Donnell said today.

O’Donnell did not elaborate any further on the allegations, and he declined to identify any suspects, emphasizing that troopers will look into any complaint.

“We have had information turned over to us that we’ve been asked to look at,” he said.

The town’s police chief, Col. Bernard E. Gannon, said he could not discuss any such investigation.

He clarified that no one in the Burrillville department is investigating any matter involving the union, a local wing of the International Brotherhood of Police Officers.

The union does not have an elected president who can comment on the situation at the present time.

The longtime union leader, Sgt. Robert McBrier, recently resigned from the position, Gannon said.

McBrier confirmed that he stepped down from the job, but he said he resigned about five months ago.

McBrier said he had no knowledge of the state police probe before a reporter apprised him of that earlier today. He also said he was not aware of any complaints regarding the union’s finances.

“This is all news,” he said.

-- Journal staff writer Mark Reynolds

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:54 PM | Comment

Bush to Brown women's crew: 'You play hard' / Video

AP photo
Elizabeth Fison, who was co-captain of the winning Brown crew team, is smiled upon by President Bush, at his right, as he greets the NCAA champs today.

WASHINGTON -- "You play hard," President Bush told a group of collegiate championship athletes on the sun-kissed South Lawn, "and you end up here at the White House!"

So saying, the First Fan welcomed the Brown University varsity women's crew and seven other national championship teams for an afternoon visit to the White House today.

Mr. Bush introduced the teams in turn; they ranged from the men's and women's rifle teams of the University of Alaska at Fairbanks to the women's basketball team from the University of Tennessee -- all 2007 champions of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division One.

"It's really fun to be with people who set high standards and achieve goals," said Mr. Bush.

Representing Brown were the women of three boats -- the varsity eight, the junior varsity eight and the varsity four -- who together collected top honors this summer at the NCAA championship in Oak Ridge, Tenn.

Mr. Bush noted that Brown's women have been NCAA champions five of the past nine years and are the winningest women's crew program in NCAA history.

"These women know how to row!" Mr. Bush said.

After the ceremony, crew members senior Vanessa Rathbone and 2007 graduate Rachel Dearborn said that the president had enthusiastically greeted all of the athletes and coaches at a ceremony before his remarks outside on the South Lawn. The president joked with the Brown women about their Ivy League rivals at Yale, his alma mater.

Mr. Bush concluded the proceedings on an uplifting note, saluting the athletes for their accomplishments as scholars and models of good citizenship.

"You don't know how many people are looking at you," said Mr. Bush, "but there's a lot."

Video: Watch President Bush's acknowledgement of the championship Brown team, and an interview with its co-captain, Elizabeth Fison, by Belo Capital Bureau video reporter Ashley Patterson.

Video: See President Bush's speech to the athletes.

More about the team and its members ...

-- John Mulligan of the Journal Washington Bureau

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:25 PM | Comment

Another 175 R.I. Guard members going to Iraq

More Rhode Island Army National Guard members will head to Iraq next week, the state adjutant general announced today.

The 175 members of C Battery, 1st Battalion, 103rd Field Artillery Brigade, will leave on Sept. 26 to ready for a one-year deployment, a news release says. Other elements of 103rd Field Artillery Brigade have gone to Iraq, but this will be C Battery's first deployment as a unit.

A departure ceremony will be on Sept. 26 at Mt. Hope High School in Bristol, 199 Chestnut St., at 6 p.m.

The unit will initially go to Fort Dix, New Jersey, for training before heading to Iraq. The unit is currently slated to return home on Oct. 1, 2008.

"We are mindful of the continuing hardships these deployments represent for our soldiers, as well as for their families and employers and we pledge to provide the best support for, not only those soldiers we see off into harm's way, but also to those loved ones they leave behind and to their employers," said Major Gen. Robert T. Bray, adjutant general and commander of the Rhode Island National Guard.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:49 PM | Comment

Judge won't order Nov. 3 Smithfield recall vote

PROVIDENCE -- Superior Court Judge Allen P. Rubine ruled today that he was not going to order the secretary of state to allow a Nov. 3 vote on whether to recall Smithfield Town Council President Stephen G. Tocco from office.

There will be a recall election, however, but after Nov. 3.

">Smithfield Republican Committee Chairman James W. Archer had sued in an attempt to force the recall election to take place on Nov. 3.

If Tocco were recalled on that date, he would have served less than half of his term of office and, under the terms of the Town Charter, a special election would have been called to select a successor.

The recall election, however, will now take place some time after that date. And under the charter, if Tocco, a Democrat, is ousted, the Town Council itself would pick a successor, in this case from the Democratic Party.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with reports from Journal staff writer Thomas J. Morgan

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:23 PM | Comment

Update: Sen. Reed's troop withdrawal measure fails

AP photo
Rhode Island's Jack Reed, left, and U.S. Sen. Carl Levin talk with reporters after their measure failed today.

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Sen. Jack Reed's measure to fix a deadline for troop withdrawals from Iraq failed to win a majority today, capping a week of defeats for antiwar forces in the Senate and dimming Democratic hopes of imposing a strategic shift on President Bush.

On a vote of 47 to 47, the Senate blocked an amendment by Rhode Island Democrat Reed and Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., that would pull most American troops out of Iraq within nine months. The proposal lost ground on both sides of the aisle since it won 52 votes in its last Senate floor test about two months ago.

West Point graduate Reed said the defeat of his troop-withdrawal plan showed that Gen. David H. Petraeus, the commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, "has managed to buy some time'' for Mr. Bush to continue his strategy in Iraq.

"I don't think he made a huge impression on the public at large,'' Reed said of Petraeus, who last week warned Congress against an early reversal of the surge of U.S. troops that the Army general credited with significant security gains in Iraq this year.

U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said the purpose of the surge is "to have the Iraqi military take over more and more of the responsibilities'' as U.S. troops begin to leave. "You have to establish the military security environment in order for the political process of move forward'' in Iraq, McCain said.

Reed said that Petraeus and Bush have effectively bowed to Democratic pressure by announcing plans for some troop reductions later this year. The president last week said he would reduce U.S. forces to roughly the level -- about 130,000 troops -- where they stood early in 2007,when he ordered a surge of new troops to reduce violence, particularly in the capital city of Baghdad.

Reed has long maintained that the surge cannot continue beyond next spring in any event because maintaining it would disrupt the Pentagon's system of troop rotations.

Still, this week's Senate votes on Iraq were a letdown for Democrats, who appeared only last month to have made inroads in Republican support for Mr. Bush's policy.

-- John E. Mulligan, Journal Washington Bureau

Only three Republicans -- Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, Gordon Smith or Oregon, and Olympia J. Snowe of Maine -- supported it. U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican who voted for Levin-Reed in July, criticized Democratic leadership for refusing to seek compromise language to draw GOP moderates.

Three Democrats also defected: U.S. Sens. Ben Nelson of Nebraska and David Pryor of Arkansas, both moderates, and Christopher J. Dodd of Connecticut, a liberal candidate for president, who made clear that he does not think the Levin-Reed measure goes far enough.

Independent U.S. Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman voted against the Levin-Reed measure, as he has in the past.

The war amendments have been to the massive Pentagon spending and policy bill for fiscal year 2008.

After today's defeat, Reed said he and Levin will try to draw Republican support for their amendment with compromise language, perhaps seeking a non-binding goal rather than a hard deadline with the removal of most troops and the shift in mission from combat to training and support of Iraqi forces.

This week's big shift came Wednesday, when U.S. Sen. John W. Warner, R-Va., an influential voice on military affairs, surprised Democrats by voting against an amendment by U.S. Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., that would have forced the Pentagon to give troops more time at home between deployment in Iraq.

The measure would have had the effect of restricting the Pentagon's ability to maintain current force levels in Iraq. The Webb amendment died on a 52-to-47 vote on a procedural question that needed 60 votes to prevail.

Yesterday, Democrats -- including Rhode Island's two senators -- split on an amendment by Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., that would have forced a complete U.S. withdrawal from Iraq by next July 1, cutting off funding for the war at that point.

Fellow Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse supported the amendment, as he had earlier this year. Reed again opposed it, one of 20 Democrats to do so. ``I want to bring the troops home,'' he said, but called the Feingold measure ``just too restrictive'' because it could cut logistical and training fund that should continue after the bulk of U.S. forces leave Iraq.

After the vote today, Whitehouse issued a statement, saying Reed's amendment "would have set a smart, responsible strategy to safely redeploy American troops – but once again, the Republican minority in the Senate has used Senate rules to block the way.

“We face a simple question: is it in the long-term best interests of our nation for American troops to remain in Iraq? Americans have overwhelmingly answered no. I will keep fighting to bring our troops home safely, and bring them home soon.”

Reed said he still holds out hope for a vote next week on a compromise version of his measure that would command more Republican support and begin to chart a bipartisan course for concluding the war.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:52 PM | Comment

No West Nile or Triple-E in latest RI mosquito tests

Rhode Island mosquito samples from the week of Sept. 8 showed no signs of West Nile Virus or Eastern Equine Encephalitis, the state Department of Environmental Management said today.

Thirty mosquito pools -- from 56 traps set statewide -- were tested and came up negative. Results from 10 other pools, from the week of Aug. 28, also turned out negative.

But despite those results, the DEM said West Nile and Triple-E "are both firmly established in the state and the possibility of disease transmission remains likely."

Five mosquito pools have tested positive this year for West Nile -- four in East Providence and one in Barrington. None have tested positive this year for Triple-E.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:31 PM | Comment

Single in Providence? You may be out of luck

It’s Friday night. You’ve got the weekend off. You’re single and looking for love.

Your best bet? Catch the first flight out of town.

(Unless you happen to bump into Providence's most eligible bachelor or bachelorette)

Forbes magazine released its Best Cities for Singles report, and guess which city comes in dead last?

Providence moved to the bottom of the list this year, according to author Elisabeth Eaves, because it consistently scored low across all of the categories measured, including:

A lack of online dating – looking at Yahoo! Personals accounts, Providence comes in last.

A lack of job opportunities – using two companies’ projections of growth over the next five years, Providence comes in 35th out of 40.

And the city came in 33rd of 40 in cost of living alone, which was calculated using entry level salary information and a proprietary (and classy) algorithm: cost of rent + Pizza Hut pizza + movie ticket + six pack of Heineken.

Maybe we would have fared better if the equation used a brew that was a little less … expensive. Say, Narragansett Beer?

“Singles want to know that they’ll be able to nurture an interesting and prosperous career,” Eaves writes, “and Providence just doesn’t look that promising.”

Nearby Boston ranks 11th, and although it ranks just one step above Providence in job growth, the cost of living alone ranked 22nd, and culture was rated five of 40.

And coolness?

Boston rated 10th in that difficult to acquire, but easy to spot quality. Providence was 37th.

Coming in at number one for singles is San Francisco. The Big Apple is number two. Los Angeles, Atlanta and Chicago round out the top five.

The lowest five are Salt Lake City, Cleveland, Kansas City, Cincinnati and, well, you know.

Get an explanation of methodology -- like how, exactly, is coolness measured? -- here.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 2:28 PM | Comment

Update: Hot-air balloon fells lines; no one hurt

WESTPORT, Mass. -- A hot-air balloon struck and snapped a wooden utility police this morning, knocking down electricity and telephone lines, the police reported. No one aboard the aircraft was injured.

The accident occurred in a rural area on Sodom Road around 7 a.m., said police administrative assistant Nancy Braga.

WJAR-TV News reported that the balloon was owned by Balloon Adventures of New Bedford, based out of South Dartmouth, and was carrying six people, plus the pilot. The company’s principal, David Gifford, did not return a call seeking comment.

A police detail was assigned to the street until repairs could be made and electricity restored.

-- projo.com staff writer Richard Salit

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:20 PM | Comment

Yom Kippur begins tonight at sundown

Sundown tonight marks the beginning of what some consider the most important Jewish holiday.

Yom Kippur comes ten days after Rosh Hashanah, it is a day of atonement, and considered a complete Sabbath: no work, no eating, and no drinking anything until the holiday is complete, at nightfall tomorrow.

The holiday is also marked by the blowing of the Shofar, an instrument strongly associated with Rosh Hashanah.

Many will spend most of Saturday in praying in Synagogue, atoning for the sins of the previous year.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 1:04 PM | Comment

Once stranded in Jersey, a seal finds its way in R.I.

NARRAGANSETT -- A female grey seal pup that had been stranded in New Jersey in the spring has been released here at Salty Brine State Beach, the Coast Guard said today.

Coast Guard from Point Judith and stranding center personnel carried the seal in a crate to the beach yesterday. After initially going the wrong way up the beach, the seal turned around, went to the water and swam away. The seal was released at about 6:45 a.m.

The standing happened in the New jersey community Ship Bottom, on Long Beach Island. The seal was rescued and cared for by the Marine Mammal Stranding Center in Brigantine, and treated for a respiratory infection caused by sinus mites. The seal weighed 81 pounds when rescued. Yesterday, it weighed in at 140 pounds.

"The seal was set free in Rhode Island because of this species' inquisitive nature," the Coast Guard news release said.

The New Jersey shore is strewn with many fish and lobster traps, and grey seals find it difficult to avoid entanglement, Robert Schoelkopf, the stranding center's director, said in the statement.

"Most people who join the Coast Guard do it to save lives," Senior Chief Petty Officer Chad Curth, of Station Point Judith, said. "Every now and then we get the chance to help save an animal's life -- and that's rewarding too."

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 12:55 PM | Comment

Woman at Logan claims fake bomb is art, police say

BOSTON -- An MIT student with a fake bomb strapped to her chest - later claiming it was art - was arrested at gunpoint today at Logan International Airport, officials said.

Star Simpson, 19, had a computer circuit board and wiring in plain view over a black hooded sweat shirt she was wearing, said State Police Maj. Scott Pare, the commanding officer at the airport.

"She said that it was a piece of art and she wanted to stand out on career day," Pare said at a news conference. "She claims that it was just art, and that she was proud of the art and she wanted to display it."

-- The Associated Press

The device had wires connected to a battery, allowing it to light up, he said. Simpson also had Play-Doh in her hands, he said.

Simpson was charged with disturbing the peace and possessing a hoax device, and was to be arraigned in East Boston District Court later today.

"I'm shocked and appalled that somebody would wear this type of device to an airport," Pare said.

Simpson was "extremely lucky she followed the instructions or deadly force would have been used," Pare said. "She's lucky to be in a cell as opposed to the morgue."

Simpson is a Massachusetts Institute of Technology sophomore from Hawaii, officials said. A spokeswoman for MIT had no immediate comment.

She was arrested about 8 a.m. outside Terminal C, home to United Airlines, Jet Blue and other carriers.

A Massachusetts Port Authority staffer manning an information booth in the terminal became suspicious when Simpson - wearing the device - approached to ask about an incoming flight, Pare said. Simpson then walked outside, and the information booth attendant notified a nearby trooper.

The trooper, joined by others with submachine guns, confronted her at a traffic island in front of the terminal.

Pare said Simpson took a subway to the airport, but he was not sure if she had the device on at that time.

"She was allegedly picking somebody up," said Pare.

The major praised the booth attendant but said the incident is a reminder of the terrorism threat confronting the civil aviation system. Two of the four passenger jets hijacked on Sept. 11, 2001, took off from Logan.

"In this day and age, the threat continues to be there," said Pare. "She certainly jeopardized her own safety by bringing this to the airport, as well as the safety of everybody around her."

Posted by Jack Perry at 11:35 AM | Comment

Brown, RISD offering joint degree

Brown University or the Rhode Island School of Design -- it’s a tough choice isn’t it?

Not for long.

For students who want both a fine and liberal arts education without spending a decade in school, the two distinguished institutions are teaming up to offer a five-year, dual-degree program for as many as 20 students.

If students are successful, they’ll graduate with a bachelor of arts degree from Brown and a bachelor of fine arts degree from RISD.

For more information, check out the new, appropriately named Web site: http://risd.brown.edu

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:27 AM | Comment

Hurricane of '38 arrived on a day much like today's

Journal files
The trees bent in the wind, the pole tilted, and this Westerly clubhouse fought a valiant, but losing, battle, to the hurricane.

It was warm, sunny morning, perhaps much like today's, when the most devastating storm to hit the Rhode Island coast arrived 69 years ago -- the Hurricane of '38.

Equivalent to a Category 3 storm with sustained winds of 121 miles an hour, it ravaged the region with fierce winds and floods.

It killed nearly 700 people around New England, including more than 300 people in Rhode Island and Southeastern Massachusetts. It caused an estimated $300 million in damage.

And it left behind a fear, handed down to this day, of what hurricanes could do to the Ocean State.

For a reminder of what the storm was left, take this multimedia look at the past, compiled and narrated by The Journal's managing editor for visuals, Michael Delaney.

Read the accompanying story from 2005, written by Journal environment writer Peter B. Lord.

And share your, and your family's stories of the big blow that shook New England to its core.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 10:42 AM | Comment

Progreso Latino turns 30

In 1977, Progreso Latino started working with the Latino and immigrant communities of Rhode Island. Tonight, the group, which works with more than 11,000 people a year, celebrates its 30th anniversary.

Kicking off a new year and a new theme – Latina empowerment – will be keynote speaker, Marisa Rivera-Albert, is president of the National Hispana Leadership Institute.

Rivera-Albert has worked in the academic sector at Black Hawk College and Western Illinois University; in government for the U.S. Embassy in Panama, and an elections observer in Honduras.

Lt. Gov. Elizabeth Roberts and Sen. Rhoda Perry, D-Providence, will serve as honorary co-chairs.

The celebration, which runs tonight from 5:30 to 11, will be at Rhodes on the Pawtuxet, 60 Rhodes Place in Cranston.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 10:27 AM | Comment

Alfred "Freddie" Bishop's bail hearing postponed

Convicted killer Alfred “Freddie” Bishop's bail hearing has been postponed for the third time this month; it is now scheduled for Nov. 16.

Bishop spent 33 years at the Adult Correctional Institutions after being convicted for murdering a close friend.

He faces a new murder charge for a home invasion where the police say Bishop wounded two people and fatally shot Gabriel Medeiros in a quiet neighborhood off Warwick Avenue.

The hearing was scheduled for today in District Court, Warwick.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 8:42 AM | Comment

Third ATM scammer's sentencing rescheduled

Sentencing for one of four California men convicted of rigging ATM card readers and stealing information from shoppers in Rhode Island was rescheduled for Oct. 30 in U.S. District Court.

Arutyun Shatarevyan, 20, of Los Angeles, pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit fraud and aggravated identity theft.

Two other men, Arman Ter-Esayan, 22 and Gevork Baltadjian, 20 were sentenced earlier this month. Ter-Esayan was sentenced to six years in federal prison and Baltadjian was given about five years for playing what was called a “minor” role in the scheme.

A fourth man, Mikael Stepanian, 28, of Studio City, is due in court Nov. 2.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:54 AM | Comment

Environmental police officer will receive citation

Governor Carcieri will give a citation today to Richard Browning, an off-duty environmental police officer who went onto a boat to help a semi-conscious victim and alert the Coast Guard.

Browning was on with friends on a sport fishing boat recently when they responded to a distress call from another boat while both boats were 130 miles offshore at night.

Browning went aboard the other boat in rough seas, began medical treatment and called the Coast Guard. He hoisted semi-conscious victim Dave Preble onto his boat, from which Browning was able to help Coast Guard personnel put Preble up into a helicopter, the governor's office says.

Browning, of Saunderstown, had served as a Coast Guard boatswain’s mate third class at Station Castle Hill in Newport before graduating from University of Rhode Island. The Department of Environmental Management hired him in April 2004.

Browning, Preble, and W. Michael Sullivan, the state Department of Environmental Managemenrt director, will attend the State House ceremony at 12:30 p.m. in the state room.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 7:03 AM | Comment

A summerlike transition into fall

Two more days of summer...

Another cloudy start to what should be a beautiful day. The National Weather Service is predicting a high of 79 degrees today with clear, sunny skies.

Tonight's low should be around 60 with fog returning early Saturday morning.

Once the fog clears, the last day of summer should feel summerlike, the sun shining and a high in the mid 80s. Winds may pick up with gusts as high as 25 mph. in some places.

Saturday night should get down to about 60 with winds as high as 21 degrees.

Sunday, the Autumnal Equinox and the first day of fall, will feel more like summer with a high in the low 80s and calm winds. The overnight low is expected to drop to the mid 50s.

Monday is looking similar, with a high in the low 80s and clear skies.

For more weather and regular updates, see projo.com/weather.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:01 AM | Comment

Today's front page

Today's front page features a story on efforts to raise the $600,000 still needed to build a $1.3 million World War II memorial in Providence.

Download a copy of today's front page.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:00 AM | Comment

September 20, 2007

Photo: Rowing, rowing down the river

Journal photo / Frieda Squires
Randy Galloway, 16, a student at The Met and Alex Collier, 15, The Wheeler School, head down the Seekonk River during their sculling class with the Narragansett Boat Club. The students started three weeks ago and will row the river until the end of October. They work on form and conditioning, building their strength, control and endurance.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 7:05 PM | Comment

Tonight: Mob rules on one stage, arsenic on other

It's nighttime in Rhode Island, and the mob is about to take over... take over the stage of the Granite Theatre in Westerly, that is.

"Breaking Legs," a play in which a playwright looks for someone to bankroll his latest work and a former student's family comes through. But it turns out the family is, um, connected. The performance starts at 8 at the theater, 1 Granite Street. Call (401) 596-2341.

There's the classic mystery, "Arsenic and Old Lace," at the Mill River Dinner Theater in Central Falls at 8 tonight. Call (401) 721-0909.

For more on what's happening, visit projo.com's event calendars.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 7:02 PM | Comment

$5.7 million OK'd for state veterans cemetery

The federal Department of Veterans affairs has approved the state's application for more than $5.7 million to expand the Rhode Island Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Exeter.

The grant will pay for developing an additional burial area including 2,300 full-casket burial sites, 600 in-ground cremation sites and 624 columbarium niches for cremation remains, Governor Carcieri's office said in a news release this afternoon.

The state applied for the grant in August.

“As citizens, we owe a huge debt of gratitude to Rhode Island's veterans and their families," Carcieri said in the statement. "Rhode Island's Veterans Memorial Cemetery provides a fitting place where they can be appropriately honored for their patriotism and their sacrifices."

The governor added: “By funding the expansion of the cemetery, this federal grant will provide all Rhode Island veterans an opportunity to be laid to rest with their comrades, past and present."

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:42 PM | Comment

Victor Innovatex acquires Quaker Fabric's buildings

FALL RIVER, Mass. -- Victor Innovatex Inc., a textile manufacturer in Quebec, says it has acquired the bankrupt Quaker Fabric Corp.'s buildings and equipment and plans to hire at least 100 people as it reopens Quaker's shuttered plant in Fall River. Quaker fired about 900 people, including 62 Rhode Island residents, when it closed in July.

-- Journal staff writer Benjamin N. Gedan

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:28 PM | Comment

Swansea's Case High cancels night events

SWANSEA, Mass. -- In response to the discovery of two mosquito-borne illnesses in town, all outdoor activities at Joseph Case High School will end at 5:45 p.m. from now on as a precaution.

Town officials made the decision this week after West Nile virus and Eastern equine encephalitis were found in a local mosquito pool. This is the third consecutive year in which the change has been made.

All home games for outdoor sports will be pushed forward to afternoon start times. Those game and all outdoor practices, including those for marching band, will end at 5:45 p.m.

Insect repellent is available to all students who practice and play sports outside.

“Joseph Case High School remains proactive against mosquito-borne diseases,” said Principal Brian McCann. “We will continue this until further notice, in the event that there are early hard frosts this autumn.”

-- Journal staff writer Alex Kuffner

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:20 PM | Comment

Tiverton teachers hit back at superintendent

TIVERTON -- The teachers union is balking at Schools Supt. William J. Rearick’s decision not to pay them for what he calls “the illegal job action” they took when they went on a one-day strike on Sept. 4.

In a letter Monday to Rearick, Patrick Crowley, assistant executive director of the National Education Association of Rhode Island, writes that the teachers are protected under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, which requires salaried employees to be paid a “predetermined amount” which is “not subject to reduction because of variations in the quantity or quality of the work performed.”

Crowley said that Rearick’s decision could be interpreted to mean that the employees are now eligible for overtime pay for any hours worked beyond the statutory limits.

If that’s not Rearick’s intention, Crowley writes, “it occurs to me that the withholding of pay is a willful violation under the federal statute and may subject the violator to criminal sanctions.” The School Department, Crowley writes, could face up to $10,000 in fines for withholding the pay.

“Please clarify your understanding of the exemption status for the workers in the NEA bargaining unit in order for the members to adequately calculate the overtime paid owed to them in time for the next pay roll period,” Crowley writes. “If, however, the refusal to pay the teachers their agreed upon salary was inadvertent, we will work with you to remedy the situation as expeditiously as possible.”

Rearick faxed a copy of the letter to The Journal today. He could not be reached for comment.

This is the latest flap in the ongoing contract dispute between the Tiverton School Committee and the 200-member NEA-Tiverton union.

-- Journal staff writer Meaghan Wims

The teachers returned to work two weeks ago under the terms of a Superior Court consent order ordering the union and the School Committee to return to the bargaining table with an appointed mediator.

Both sides were set to meet again tonight.

The union voted unanimously Wednesday to only perform official duties detailed in their existing contract. They will still perform duties that involve helping students, such as writing recommendations and coaching, but they won’t participate on school-improvement teams, for example, Crowley said.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:01 PM | Comment

A $500,000 grant coming for Salty Brine pavillion

The state Department of Environmental Management is getting a $500,000 federal grant to replace the Salty Brine Beach pavillion in Narragansett, a move aimed at bettering public access there, U.S. Sen. Jack Reed's office announced today.

The money, from the National Parks Service, will be matched by another $500,000 from the state, Reed's office said.

“Salty Brine Beach is a wonderful family beach that gets a lot of use from both tourists and Rhode Islanders. The existing facility is over twenty five years old and in need of replacement,” said Reed in the statement. He is a member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on the Interior, which oversees National Park Service program spending.

The renovation will also meet enhanced accessibility requirements.

Formerly Galilee State Beach, the Salty Brine State Beach was dedicated in 1990 to Salty Brine, the state's well-known radio personality.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:57 PM | Comment

Update: A local presence at 'Jena Six' protest march

Some staff members at the University of Rhode Island’s Center for Nonviolence and Peace Studies have been working for decades to teach students and activists around the country and the world the tenets of nonviolent protest.

Today, their practices were put to use -- on a scale not seen since the civil rights movement -- in the small town of Jena, La., where reports say as many as 50,000 people came from across the country to protest what they see as a new threat to social justice.

The protesters came to march in defense of six black high school students facing decades in jail after a fight.

Five of the teenagers, who have come to be known as the “Jena Six,” were charged with attempted murder after a fight. They are accused of assaulting a white student months after a noose was hung on a tree that black students sat under.

The victim was bruised, swollen and suffered a concussion, but was released from the hospital the same day and attended a school function that evening.

“They’re criminalizing children rather than educating them,” Bernard LaFayette, the director of the URI center and a long-time civil rights advocate, said today.

“This is a nationwide problem, but because of the extremity in Jena, it becomes an example of how far it could go.”

While not at the march in Jena, LaFayette was in Washington D.C., meeting with the Congressional Black Caucus. “Nothing changes without leadership,” he said.

However, his co-worker, Charles Alphin, did attend the march. He went to Jena to help train people at the protest in nonviolent conflict resolution and protest.

Charles Steele, Jr., the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, founded by the late Martin Luther King Jr., was at the protest, where he said the mood was “awesome."

“It was very peaceful, even the local law officers were very nice, as well as state troopers, sheriffs … they were very hospitable in terms of us coming here.”

-- projo.com staff writer Brandie M. Jefferson, with wire reports

Steele said the goal of the event was to get 16-year-old Mychal Bell -- the only of the six to have been tried – out of jail, where he awaits sentencing. Ultimately, he added, the goal is to get charges dropped against all of the teenagers.

And while the march is over for the day, he said his work is not.

“We’re not just coming in there, having a march, and leaving. We must set up residence there, a presence in the community.”

LaFayette says he is working on policy issues. “We need to get lawmakers, judges and people with power to change laws. Like we did with the voting rights act, he said.

“The center in Rhode Island and the work that I’m doing is working through the system and the people who are in power, so it’s top down,” he said. “And Jena is bottom up.”

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 3:57 PM | Comment

Stakeholders gather questions about proposed sites for RI wind farm

It was a day of questions and few answers for the Governor’s wind stakeholder group, which met this morning at the University of Rhode Island's Narragansett Bay Campus.

The group is charged with identifying which of 11 potential sites would be best to place a state-owned wind farm. Governor Carcieri has proposed building a large wind farm off the coast of Rhode Island that would generate 15 percent of the state's electricity usage.

At their meeting, the stakeholders were asked to come up with a comprehensive list of questions they would need answered in order to help make their recommendation.

The questions proposed covered practically all aspects of the project, from what will the entire costs for each of the proposed sites be, to whether the state might be able to sell advertising space on the wind turbines.

The group was promised answers to the questions over the next month, in time for the next meeting in mid-October. The Governor’s energy adviser hopes the group will come to a consensus at that meeting and recommend a site.

That site would then move to the permitting process, which would involve public hearings and regulatory approvals from various state agencies. If the project is located in federal waters, it would require federal approvals as well.

Posted by Tim Barmann at 3:50 PM | Comment

Retired general will speak on Iraq and more at Brown

PROVIDENCE -- Retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey will deliver a lecture titled "After Iraq: How the World has Changed" at Brown University next month.

The university announced today that McCaffrey will speak on Oct. 9 at 6:30 p.m. in the Salomon Center for Teaching on the college green. The event is free and open to the public. It is the 77th event in the Stephen A. Ogden Jr. ’60 Memorial Lecture Series.

Attendees may ask questions after the lecture.

McCaffrey served in the U.S. Army for 32 years, retiring in 1996 as a four-star general. He served overseas for 13 years and finished four combat tours, including commanding the 24th Infantry Division during Operation Desert Storm.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

McCafrrey over saw national security operations in Latin American as commander-in-chief of the U.S. Armed Forces Southern Command, the university news release says.

From 1996 to 2001, he directed the White House Office of National Drug Policy. He got honors, including the Department of Health and Human Service Lifetime Achievement Award for achievements in the field of substance abuse prevention; the Federal Law Enforcement Foundation’s National Service Award; and, the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America Lifetime Achievement Award.

McCaffrey is president of his own consulting firm in Arlington, Va., and an NBC News national security and terrorism analyst.

A Taunton, Mass., native, McCaffrey graduated from West Point in 1964, earned a master's degree in American government from American University, and attended the Harvard University National Security Program.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:38 PM | Comment

Mind games: Red Sox Nation reacts to tight race

PROVIDENCE -- The tightening race between the Red Sox and the Other Team is not going unnoticed by Sox fans, despite the warm, comfy reversal of the 86-year-old Curse just four years ago.

Joe McGowan, walking on the connector between Providence Place mall and Westin Hotel, sported a weathered-looking Sox cap.

"When I get home, I'm changing my hat for the Patriots hat," offered McGowan, a Brown University graduate who now lives in Florida but has family in the area.

McGowan quickly made it clear he was kidding. But he said the pitching hasn't been the same. The team has "burned out" Daisuke Matsuzaka through use this season, he felt. At the same time, he said, the New York Yankees' pitching seems to have improved.

Joe Fitzpatrick, a Johnson & Wales University student from the Boston area, sported a Sox cap, but conceded he has not watched some of the games as the race has grown closer.

"A little bit nervous," he said of how he's feeling about the situation.

Still, Fitzpatrick is a "die-hard" Sox fan. He did watch the most recent game.

"I still support them -- you've got to support, it's loyalty," he said.

Tommy McCahey of Providence, sitting out front of the Coffee King on Fountain Street, pushed aside any notion that the closer race puts any dent in his psyche.

"No panic, no panic," he said, especially given that the Sox finally did it in 2004, vanquishing their foes.

And something else: "The Yankees have the A-Rod curse," McCahey said of Alex Rodriguez.

Sure, the Yanks look like they're reeling in the Sox like a fish firmly on a hook, but come post-season, McCahey predicted Rodriguez will keep the Yanks from doing much more than talking about the 20th Century.

"It's destiny," he said. "A-Rod's gonna choke ..."

Read more ...

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Besides, McCahey added, his young son has already experienced a World Series victory -- something Yanks' fans children can't say yet.

McCahey grew up around Yankee fans, so a close race in September is hardly enough to affect him.

"I'm as big a Red Sox fan as there is," he said.

Outside City Hall, Melissa, a Providence resident who would not give her last name, had Red Sox sunglasses tucked back over her head. But she expressed a less optimistic view.

"I think it's just aggravating," she said.

She said she missed a few games herself as things have gotten closer.

"It makes me tense to watch it," she said.

For Dan Levesque of Mashpee, Mass., the effect has been the opposite: He's watching the games closely.

As a Sox fan knows, the suddenly close race "is typical," Levesque said.

But he did question whether the trade for closer Eric Gagne, which came in exchange for two Sox players and lost two recent crucial games, hurt the team's "karma" a bit.

Projo.com's Red Sox quiz: Just how closely do you watch the games? Put yourself to the test and find out.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:32 PM | Comment

Quonset Gateway approved

A revised proposal to develop a gateway to the Quonset Business Park was approved this morning by the Statewide Planning Commission. The previous version of the plan to be submitted was rejected 11 to 1 by the commission less than six months ago.

The new design substantially increases the amount of office space and attempts to shield visitors from the retail outlets that have provoked the most pointed criticism.

Those shops -- a 117,000-square-foot Lowe's and an 89,000-square-foot Kohl's -- were not excised from the project, despite protests from North Kingstown officials and objections from state planners.

The new plan was endorsed by Governor Carcieri, the Quonset Development Board of Directors and the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation.

The 73-acre Quonset Gateway will host office space, retail space and a 160-room Hilton Hampton Inn hotel. Non-retail space and a community meeting space and fitness and recreation center – a suggestion put forth by high school students during the planning phase -- are new additions to the plan.

In addition to criticizing the large retail outlets, state planners had also objected to what they described as a lack of density on the property.

A State Planning Council review found that 40 percent of the site had been reserved for roadways and surface parking. Of the 1,700 projected new jobs, more than half were to be in the retail and hospitality sectors and offer relatively low wages.

Now, parking lots will be shifted behind buildings, creating more of a village atmosphere, according to Steven J. King, chief operating officer for the QDC.

"The whole feel of it has changed," North Kingstown Town Manager Michael E. Embury said. "We look at it as a 180-degree different proposal.”

In a statement, Carcieri said he believed the Gateway would lead to job growth and an improved local economy. “We can be proud of our vision for development at Quonset,” he said, “and for the hard work we have put into substantially revising the project over the last several months.”

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this post incorrectly reported the size of the Lowe's store, giving a larger figure that also included storage and garden space.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 1:16 PM | Comment

Update: Buddy debuts show on positive note / Photo

The Associated Press
Providence Mayor Vincent "Buddy" Cianci hosts his talk radio show today at WPRO's studio in East Providence.

Former Providence Mayor Vincent A. "Buddy" Cianci Jr. kicked off his morning radio show shortly after 10 today by thanking all of those who supported him during his prison stay and welcomed him back to Providence.

"I'm back on the radio because I love this city. I love this state," Cianci said.

He said prison had changed him.

"You find out new things about yourself when you're placed in situations like that," said Cianci, who recently finished serving a term for a corruption conviction.

Cianci, who was joined by former early morning host Ron St. Pierre, gave viewers a preview of his show and told them they could go elsewhere if they were looking for negativity.

He said he would tell some prison stories and also talk politics. Cianci, a radio talk-show veteran who gained national notice through his witty exchanges with radio host Don Imus, also said he encourages listener participation.

Cianci ended the first segment by playing a song with lyrics that said in part, "Folks are blessed who make the best of every day."

And it wrapped up with..."Give me the simple life."

Later, Cianci heard from several callers, including a priest, who welcomed him back. He told a joke (mp3) about the pope, former President Jimmy Carter and former Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley stranded in a lifeboat.

He and St. Pierre touched briefly on the Red Sox and their recent losing streak. "They're like some politicians around here," Cianci said.

Journal photo/ Steve Szydlowski.
Cianci and boxer Vinny Paz shake hands before the show -- not before they come out fighting.

Before starting his show, Cianci crossed paths in the hallway with another Rhode Island icon, boxer Vinny Paz. Paz had been on John DePetro's show, which aired before Cianci's.

They shook hands and Cianci said, "Nice to see you. Can I take some boxing lessons?"

Cianci, wearing a mustard-colored shirt, appeared nervous before starting the show, fiddling with his pen.

WPRO had kept the seat, or in this case, the headphones, warm for Cianci, who had been on the station previously and was once the top-rated talk-show host in Rhode Island.

The station held onto Cianci's old headphones, storing them in a box. He's wearing them again.

Cianci's much-promoted return to the airwaves drew several reporters to WPRO's East Providence studio, including four to five still photographers and three to four television cameras.

His show can also be heard online, via live streaming audio, on the statio's Web site.
Podcasts are also available after the show.

-- projo.com staff writer Jack Perry, with reports from Journal staff writer Karen Lee Ziner

Posted by Jack Perry at 12:39 PM | Comment

Warren boatmaker faces fine for clean-air violations

Pearson Composites, a maker of fiberglass sailboats and powerboats, is facing a proposed penalty of $264,349 for violations of the federal Clean Air Act.

The violations were cited in a recent Environmental Protection Agency complaint, which follows up on an administrative order issued to the Warrne company last December, the EPA said today.

EPA’s complaint claims Pearson violated five provisions of a federal hazardous air pollutant standard for boat manufacturing and two provisions of the company’s state-issued clean air operating permit. These violations include:

- Emission standards for Pearson’s fiberglass open molding operation, carpet adhesives and wood finishing wash coats;
- Work practice standards for inspections and for control equipment monitoring; and
- Reporting requirements by failing to timely submit required compliance notifications.

Pearson has reported that it corrected all of these violations as of mid-February of this year, the EPA said.

The proposed fine is designed to insure that Pearson will continue to comply with standards, according to the EPA.

Pearson’s manufacturing processes, which involve various chemicals, release significant quantities of hazardous air pollutants, primarily styrene, the EPA said.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 12:31 PM | Comment

2 police departments searching for missing man

Providence police have joined Johnston detectives to search for Anthony Smith, a 43-year-old, developmentally challenged man who was taken into Johnston police custody during a traffic stop where he was a passenger, questioned and released before a family arrived to bring him home.

The police say they were unaware that Smith had a handicap. They deny they did anything wrong and say they are now making intensive efforts to find him.

Johnston Police Chief Richard Tamborini said he called Providence Police Chief Dean Esserman and suggested officers could help. The idea, he said was “having Johnston detectives team up with officers in Providence to see where street people hang out in Providence, because we really hadn’t checked,” the investigation had been focused on hospitals and shelters.

Tamborini said the office has been “inundated” with sightings, and that they respond to every one immediately, but there is still no word on the whereabouts of Smith, who lives with his uncle in Providence, has been missing since Sept. 11.

The Smiths, who are black, say the traffic stop that started the chain of events smacks of racial profiling, the sort of discriminatory law enforcement that two detailed statistical studies have found is common among Rhode Island police.

See a new missing's person poster for Smith, which has two photos of him.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 9:00 AM | Comment

Coastweeks 2007: Big event you've never heard of

Today might be a good day to hit the Coast. The sun is shining, the temperature is right, and Coastweeks 2007 is in full swing.

The nationwide event is sponsored in Rhode Island by the Rhode Island Coastal Resource Management Council and the Rhode Island Sea Grant.

The celebration of coastal resources and history is offering a 75-minute cruise of Rhode Island lighthouses by Gansett Cruises. The $20 cruises will be offered every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday during Coastweeks.

Or take a tour on the Blackstone Valley Explorer. For $8 to $10, every Sunday passengers can take a guided tour and learn about the architecture, mill history and French Canadian history of Woonsocket between the Thundermist Dam and the Massachusetts border.

Beach cleanups, book discussions, boating, hiking, and aquaculture tours will all be offered throughout Coastweeks, which runs until Oct.15.

See the full schedule of events here.

-- projo.com staff writer Brandie M. Jefferson, with reports from Journal Staff writer Peter Lord

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:39 AM | Comment

Cianci returns to radio this morning

Former Providence Mayor Vincent A. 'Buddy' Cianci makes his return to radio this morning at 10 a.m. on WPRO-AM.

The 66-year-old Cianci, who recently completed a federal prison term, was once Rhode Island’s highest-rated radio talk show host.

He says his show will spend a lot of time talking politics.

“We’ll also talk about movies, books, the arts, things that interest me,” said Cianci.

“I see myself as an entertainer,” said Cianci. “I’m not a journalist, I never aspired to be a journalist.”

Streaming audio is available through WPRO's Web site. Sign-up required.

-- With reports from Journal staff writer Scott MacKay.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:02 AM | Comment

The sun should prevail today

It's a little cloudy, but the sun should make an entrance later today and the National Weather Service is predicting a high temperature of 81 degrees.

The clouds should return tonight and the overnight low will be in the high 50s.

Expect more of the same tomorrow, with clear, sunny skies and a high near 80.

For more weather and regular updates, see projo.com/weather.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:01 AM | Comment

Today's front page

Today's front page features the final installment in a series about Marine Cpl. Patrick D. Murray, of North Kingstown, who lost his leg in Iraq.

Download a copy of today's front page in .pdf format.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:00 AM | Comment

September 19, 2007

Here are tonight's riffs in Rhode Island

Here's what's riffing around Rhode Island tonight.

Brickpark, rock, Olives, 108 North Main St., Providence. 751-1200. 10 p.m.-1 a.m. No cover. Includes karaoke.

Thom Enright and Friends, rhythm and blues, Nick-A-Nee's, 75 South St., Providence. 861-7290. 9 p.m.

Chris Gauthier, rock, One Pelham East, 270 Thames St., Newport. 847-9460. 9 p.m.

Lois Greco, rhythm and blues, Newport Blues Cafe, 286 Thames St., Newport. 841-5510. 9:30 p.m-12:30 am.

Dick Lupino, Dennis Cook and Chris Taylor, jazz, Sardella's Restaurant, 30 Memorial Blvd., Newport. 849-6312. 7:30-10 p.m.

Bob Mainelli, jazz, Capriccio, 2 Pine St., Providence. 421-1320. 7-11 p.m.

2nd Avenue, rock, Pitcher's Pub, 80 Manville Hill Rd., Cumberland. 658-0058. 9 p.m.

The Vacancies, rock, The Living Room, 23 Rathbone St., Providence. 521-5200. 9 p.m. All ages.

Weird Al Yankovic, rock, pop and comedy, Zeiterion Theatre, 684 Purchase St., New Bedford. (508) 994-2900, www.zeiterion.org. 8 p.m. $46.50

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:55 PM | Comment

Providence teen chased off bus, stabbed

PROVIDENCE -- Stanton Towns, 17, a Mount Pleasant High School student, was stabbed in the stomach this morning after he argued with another young man over a seat on a bus, the police said.

Towns, of 29 Salmon St., Olneyville, told the police that he boarded a bus at Manton Avenue and Salmon and that the argument broke out once he was aboard, at about 7:45 a.m. In order to avoid further trouble, Towns said he got off the bus near Broadway and Valley Street. But the other man got off the bus too.

The suspect chased Towns down Valley Street where Towns slipped and fell and was then stabbed. His assailant ran to the rear of the church at 33 Valley St. and escaped.

The victim was treated at Rhode Island Hospital.

-- Journal staff writer Gregory Smith

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:24 PM | Comment

Reed announces $5.4 million for train station

NORTH KINGSTOWN -- U.S. Sen. Jack Reed today said the state will get $5.4 million in federal money to build a train station in Wickford.

The station is part of a proposed rail line that, in Rhode Island, will connect Providence, T.F. Green Airport and North and South Kingstown.

DOT recently announced plans to start work on a $222.5-million transportation hub at the airport. DOT officials said they have reached a preliminary agreement with Amtrak to allow MBTA commuter trains to connect Warwick to Boston.

The station won’t resemble the historic building in nearby Kingston.

Instead, the Wickford Junction Station will feature a parking garage, a platform and a waiting area inside the garage, said Stephen A. Devine, chief of intermodal planning for the state Department of Transportation.

Because the tracks are elevated, the garage will be partially hidden by a berm.

“This is the future of mass transit,” said Devine.

The state hopes to purchase land near Wal-Mart and a Staples store from the developer, Wickford Junction Associates. The two stores are part of a retail complex off Ten Rod Road.

According to Reed, the state will get more than $2 million to buy the land for the garage. Another $1.8 million will be spent on the design and engineering, and $1.2 million will be used to buy tracks.

Officials aren’t sure when construction on the Wickford station will begin, “but our ultimate goal to get the trains running by mid 2010,” Devine said.

“We still need to acquire some land from Amtrak” and the state is still negotiating a price with the owners of Wickford Junction, he said. “It’s an ideal site, with immediate access to Route 4,” Devine said.

-- Journal staff writer Paul Davis

South County is growing and there are few places left for new roads, Reed said.

“By getting more commuters off the highways and on to mass transit” the project will relieve congestion on Routes 4 and 95, “improve air quality and provide Rhode Islanders with some measure of relief from rising gas prices,” Reed said.

The station should also give local businesses a boost, he added.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:44 PM | Comment

OSHA head signs safety pact on armory project

PROVIDENCE -- Edwin G. Foulke Jr., the head of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, was in Providence today to sign a "site safety partnership" agreement with the Consigli Construction Co. Inc., the Maine company that is renovating the Cranston Street Armory.

As part of the agreement, Consigli pledges to "enhance safe and healthful conditions for employees" working at the site, according to OSHA.
Foulke was appointed by President Bush in 2005.

-- Journal staff writer Benjamin N. Gedan

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:33 PM | Comment

Warren girl sentenced to a year after DUI crash

A 17-year-old Warren girl will serve a year at state Training School and do 200 hours of community service after admitting in Family Court today to charges in connection with the crash that killed Kayleigh A. Raposa, 16, in February.

The girl, who was not named in a news release from the state attorney general's office, was charged with one count of driving under the influence, death resulting, and one count of driving to endanger, death resulting.

The Journal confirmed this year that the girl's identity is Julie Alfano, daughter of Warren Town Council President Frank J. Alfano.
The case resulted from the Feb. 23 high-speed collision in Bristol that killed Raposa, the car's lone passenger.

Family Court Chief Justice Jeremiah S. Jeremiah Jr. sentenced the girl to one year to serve at the Training School and a suspended sentence with probation, pending the further order of the court — which, in the language of the juvenile system, means until she turns 21.

Her license was suspended indefinitely and she was ordered her to participate in the Reducing Youthful Dangerous Driving program.

For her community-service requirement, thr girl will speak at schools and youth groups about the death.

“Although we asked the court for a longer term to serve, I’m satisfied that justice was done in this case,” Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch said in a statement. “Once she completes her term at the Training School, this respondent will have both the obligation and the opportunity to urge other teenagers not to drink and drive, which may be the only positive outcome of this tragedy.”

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:28 PM | Comment

Photo: Pumpkin monster

Journal photo / Bob Thayer
Joe Jutras shows off the biggest pumpkin in circumference he has ever grown, in his backyard garden in North Scituate. All the green leaves around it feed this one monster, which is protected by cheesecloth overhead. Jutras hopes it weighs more than 1,500 pounds.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 5:10 PM | Comment

Families react to parole for Biechele

Relatives of victims of The Station nightclub fire are reacting to the state Parole Board's decision to allow Daniel Biechele, the tour band manager who lit the pyrotechnics that ignited the disastrous blaze, to leave prison on parole in March.

Remarks include:

Dave Kane, the father of Nick O’Neil, the youngest person to die in the fire, said the board made "a good decision."

“I think it’s time now that this young man be given a chance to get back to his life,” O'Neil said. “It would have been OK with me if he had gotten out before March.”

O'Neil said Biechele "is the only guy who stood up and said, 'Here’s what I did, I’m sorry, I’ll take my punishment.' "

Anna Gruttadauria, mother of Pamela Gruttadauria, the 100th person to die, learned of the decision from a Providence Journal reporter, who called her at work shortly before 4:30 p.m. She responded:

“Oh, wonderful! I’m so glad!”

“I felt bad for him from the start. I think he was the fall guy for a lot of people.”

“He’s a good guy. He just made that mistake.”

William K. Anderson, father of fire victim Kevin P. Anderson, said:

“It doesn’t surprise me. I thought that they would.”

“I didn’t really care which way they went. Nobody’s ever going to bring these people back.”

-- Journal staff writer Paul Edward Parker

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 4:39 PM | Comment

Cicilline resigns as co-chair of Clinton's R.I. campaign

PROVIDENCE — The threat of a firefighter and police picket of Hillary Clinton’s upcoming East Greenwich fundraiser has forced Providence Mayor David N. Cicilline to resign his role as co-chairman of Clinton’s Rhode Island campaign, and pledge not to attend the event.

The Providence firefighters and police, who are embroiled in years-long contract disputes with the city, vowed in August to protest the Sept. 27 event unless Cicilline stepped down as co-chair and promised not to attend.

Weeks of furious behind-the-scenes negotiations followed, according to union officials, and this morning, Cicilline resigned as chairman of the Clinton campaign in Rhode Island, and this afternoon said he would not attend the fundraiser.

“I learned that the firefighters union are try to extort from the city and from me agreement to provisions of a contract, which I will not allow,” Cicilline said.

“It was important for me to remove that opportunity form the union leadership, the chance to use my position to in any way undermine my responsibility to the taxpayers of the city.”

Cicilline said that he isn’t worried about the picketing — but he couldn’t allow the police and fire unions to use his position with Clinton as a bargaining chip.

“My decision is not the consequence of fearing the disruption of the event. I’ve had them protest my events. There are signs across the city. I’m used to that.

“The issue is their trying to use my position to extort outrageous demands from the taxpayers of this city,” Once he recognized they were using this event, he said, “I knew I had to step down.”

In an interview earlier today, Cicilline said he would attend the event. But later in the day, he issued a statement saying he would not.

-- By Journal staff writer Daniel Barbarisi

Joseph Rodio, a lawyer representing both the police and fire unions, said that the negotiations go back weeks, and that the deal that was worked out was that Cicilline had to step down and promise not to attend.

If he does attend, Rodio said, the picket is on.

“There were two predicates. If he violated either one, it’s a full-fledged picket,” Rodio said. “If he wants to go, we’re picketing.”

If the picket is on, Rodio said, then he has been told that Clinton will not attend — in much the same way that John Edwards cancelled a 2004 campaign visit rather than cross the firefighters’ picket line.

“Her staff indicated to us that she would not show up if there was a picket. So there wasn’t a choice on his part, in my opinion,” Rodio said.

Rodio said that weeks of negotiations have been with event host and Clinton friend Mark Weiner and with State Democratic Party Chairman William Lynch, and Cicilline was not present. But he said that considering that fire first contacted the Clinton campaign on Aug. 6, and police joined them on Aug. 22, he’d be shocked if Cicilline hadn’t been aware at every stage.

“I can’t believe that once we gave them opposition, he was not part of that,” Rodio said.

In 2004, the threat of crossing a firefighter picket line caused then-vice presidential candidate John Edwards to cancel a scheduled speech at the Providence Biltmore Hotel at the very last minute, as Edwards’ plane circled T.F. Green airport.

That time, a similar demand was made: Cicilline must not attend the fundraiser. Cicilline refused to back down, and the event was cancelled.

The firefighters have also done informational pickets of two Hillary Clinton fundraisers. At one, Clinton entered through the back door, but came out front later to chat amiably with fire fighters.

Cicilline said in his letter to Clinton that he plans to continue working on her behalf, and that he looks forward “to working with you on issues ranging from community policing to education reform when you are sworn in as the next President of the United States.”

Posted by Jack Perry at 4:01 PM | Comment

ALERT: Biechele to be released in March

CRANSTON -- The state Parole Board today decided to release Daniel M. Biechele in March 2008, when the former tour manager of rock band Great White will have served less than half his four-year prison sentence for triggering fireworks that ignited The Station nightclub fire and killed 100 people.

It was Biechele's first try for parole.

The Parole Board hearing, held at the state prison where Biechele has been jailed, was closed to the public. Parole officials were slated to notfiy relatives of fire victims of the outcome. At about 3:30 p.m., officials were to hold a news conference.

Biechele, 30, pleaded guilty last year to 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter in the Feb. 20, 2003, blaze in West Warwick that became one of the nation's worst nightclub fires. The fireworks sent sparks onto club surfaces lined with highly flammable polyurethane foam used as soundproofing.

Dave Kane, the father of Nick O’Neil, the youngest person to die in the fire, said the board made "a good decision."

“I think it’s time now that this young man be given a chance to get back to his life,” O'Neil said. “It would have been OK with me if he had gotten out before March.”

O'Neil said Biechele "is the only guy who stood up and said, 'Here’s what I did, I’m sorry, I’ll take my punishment.' "

-- With reports from Journal staff writers Mark Arsenault and Paul Edward Parker.

The brothers who owned the nightclub, Michael A. and Jeffrey A. Derderian, pleaded no contest to 100 counts each of involuntary manslaughter for fire-code violations that helped the fire spread. Michael, 46, was sentenced to serve four years in prison. Jeffrey, 40, was sentenced to 500 hours community service. Michael Derderian is not yet eligible for parole because his sentence started about four months after Biechele's.

After Biechele's sentencing on May 10, 2006, relatives of victims offered a mix of views on Superior Court Judge Francis J. Darigan's punishment.

Some said Biechele seemed genuine in his remorse to families and survivors, that he did not deserve the blame to the extent that others did and that it was not his intention for people to die.

Others, such as the parents of victim Diane Matteras-Housa, who had spoken out about the fire before, criticized the sentence as not enough, given they they can never get back the loved ones killed in the fire.

Diane Mattera, whose daughter Tammy Mattera-Housa died in the Station fire, said it's "very hard right now."

"What kind of message does it send?" Mattera said of the Parole Board decision. “I think it’s not right” and “II think he should be spending the full term.”

She added: “It was such a big let down" and "I was very disappointed and upset, but deep down I knew he would be getting parole.”

"There is such a hole -- that's a void you can't fill," said Mattera.

But an informal survey of projo.com visitorshas found most respondents saying Biechele should be given parole now.

His sentencing had followed days of victims' impact statements in court. Excerpts are available , as well as multimedia coverage of the fire, its victim, and its aftermath, at:
http://projo.com/stationfire

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:34 PM | Comment

ME cites 'acute intoxication' in immigrant's death

The cause of death of Edimar Alves De Araujo, a 34-year-old Milford, Mass., man who died in Providence last month after federal immigration agents took him into custody, was "acute intoxication due to the combined effects of cocaine and hydroxyzine'' -- the latter an anxiety medication.

The state Office of the Medical Examiners released the cause of death this afternoon.

Chronic seizure disorder was "another significant condition contributing to death," the medical examiners office stated.

Araujo was arrested Aug. 7 by Woonsocket police on a traffic violation.

He was released into federal custody after a fingerprint check revealed he was in the country illegally.

One hour and 20 minutes after entering federal custody, Araujo was pronounced dead. He has since been buried in Brazil.

Read the Medical Examiner's release.

His sister, Irene Araujo, has alleged through her lawyer that Woonsocket police rebuffed her efforts to provide anti-seizure medication for her brother, who was epileptic.

Woonsocket Police Chief Michael L.A. Houle says his department is not at fault, and has released time-stamped surveillance video and police reports.

Extra: Read a a special multimedia report on Araujo's arrest and death.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with Journal archival reports

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:13 PM | Comment

School Committee VP's work as announcer questioned

BURRILLVILLE -- The vice president of the School Committee may have violated the town’s charter by working as a hockey announcer at the ice rink, according to the town solicitor.

The official, Raymond J. Trinque, a well-known face at the arena, said he has worked as an announcer for years and donated his earnings to charity. The June Rockwell Levy Community Ice Rink is located behind Burrillville High School.

Trinque has received an official notice that informs him of his alleged violations and summons him to an Oct. 3 hearing before the Town Council.

“I plan to appear at this hearing and explain my actions,” he said in a news release. “…I am preparing for the worst but hoping for the best…”

The notice was sent by the town’s solicitor, Timothy F. Kane. It says an investigation “independent of the Town Council” has found probable cause to allege that Trinque repeatedly violated the charter by earning compensation at the rink and paying the money to “third parties.”

The alleged violations occurred on 10 dates during the previous school year, beginning on Dec. 1 and ending Jan. 20, the notice says. It notes that any member of the School Committee must “forfeit” his or her office if found in violation.

The council hired a Narragansett lawyer, Patrick J. Dougherty, to investigate a complaint about Trinque’s work at the rink, according to the panel’s president, Nancy F. Burns.

Dougherty has not supplied any information about his findings.

“Mr. Trinque is entitled to a fair hearing,” she said.

-- Journal staff writer Mark Reynolds

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 2:26 PM | Comment

Update: Decision due this afternoon on Biechele's parole

CRANSTON -- The state Parole Board was deciding today whether Daniel M. Biechele, former tour manager of the rock band Great White, will be released after serving 16 months of his four-year sentence for triggering the fireworks that started The Station nightclub fire and killed 100 people in 2003.

Biechele went before the board between 12:30 and 1 p.m. in a hearing closed to the public. Parole officials are said to be in the process of notifying relatives of the fire victims of the outcome.

After that, at about 3:30 p.m., officials will hold a news conference to announce the results.

Biechele, 30, pleaded guilty last year to 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter. The brothers who owned the nightclub, Michael A. and Jeffrey A. Derderian, pleaded no contest to 100 counts each of involuntary manslaughter for fire-code violations that helped the fire spread rapidly. Michael, 46, was sentenced to serve four years in prison. Jeffrey, 40, was sentenced to 500 hours community service.

Biechele became eligible for parole after serving a third of his prison sentence. Michael Derderian is not yet eligible for parole because he began his sentence about four months after Biechele.

-- Journal staff writer Paul Edward Parker

Posted by Jack Perry at 2:21 PM | Comment

Family of Iraqi refugees arrive at new R.I. home

A family of four who fled the regime of Saddam Hussein have landed here in Rhode Island after a journey that included a five-year stay in Turkey.

The refugees are among about 1,200 Iraqis who have been allowed into the United States since the Bush administration changed policy in March under pressure from Congress and international human rights groups.

Before that, only about 400-plus Iraqis had been let in following the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.

Today, Atheer Kiriacos Jajou, his wife, and their two children, ages 10 and 12, were welcomed at T.F. Green Airport by members of the International institute of Rhode Island. The institute has been handling the family's unusual resettlement case as part of its constant dealings with refugees.

It hasn't been an easy task.

Jajou said he had had to bribe Turkish officials in order to leave that country, and that their departure had been cancelled twice before.

Before leaving Iraq five years ago, Jajou said he had been jailed three times, as well as tortured, in the wake of getting sick and being unable to work at his job at a weapons arsenal.

One of the first things he asked about today was how to get a job here.

This afternoon, the tired-looking foursome were on their way to their new apartment, which was arranged by the International Institute.

But before taking off, they got a lesson in basic U.S. geography.

Jajou has a brother in Detroit, but he didn't know just where Rhode Island was. Greeters got out a map and helped the family orient themselves to both Motor City and their new location.

-- With reports from Journal staff writer Karen Lee Ziner

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 2:14 PM | Comment

Check your wallet, winning lottery ticket expires Friday

Do the numbers 13, 21, 26, 45 or 50 sound familiar?

Someone bought a PowerBall ticket at a Park Avenue gas station in Cranston last year with four of those five numbers plus the PowerBall: 20.

That adds up to $10,000 – and it hasn’t been claimed.

Around the state, there’s nearly $458,000 in unclaimed lottery money waiting for its winners, who have a year to claim their prizes before they’re turned over to the State’s General Fund.

The $10,000 ticket from Cranston expires Friday.

The biggest single jackpot still to be claimed is $200,000 from April of this year.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 1:55 PM | Comment

Rhode Island tops in people who get flu shots

PROVIDENCE -- New data from the federal government shows Rhode Island leads the nation in the percentage of people who get flu shots.

During the 2005-2006 flu season, almost 79 percent of Rhode Islanders older than 65 got the preventive shots, compared with just 69 percent nationwide.

The Ocean State led the country in two other age groups, people between 18 and 49 who are at high risk and people between 50 and 64.

Manufacturers expect to ship 130 million doses of flue vaccine in coming months. Federal health officials are advising that anyone who wants to avoid the flu should get a shot, especially people at high risk of flu complications because of age or underlying illness.

For more about getting flu shots in Rhode Island, check the state Department of Health's Web site.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Mike McKinney at 1:30 PM | Comment

48 Hour Film projects screened tonight in Providence

After rushing to make a seven-minute movie in two days, some of the Rhode Island teams that entered films in the 48 Hour Film Project decided to smooth over the rough edges and “finish” them.

Now, nearly one and a half months later comes the 48 Days Later Screening at the University of Rhode Island's Providence campus.

In six years, the 48 Hour Film Project has grown into a world-wide event, with more than 100 cities and towns having hosted competitions for film makers around the world.

Check out the winning, seven-minute films from Rhode Island, then see what 48 days can do, tonight at the URI's Paff Auditorium, 80 Washington St.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 12:02 PM | Comment

Update: Cianci returns to City Hall / Photo

Journal photo / Mary Murphy
Former Providence Mayor Vincent A. Cianci Jr. arrives at Providence City Hall this morning to register to vote.

PROVIDENCE -- There were flashes of old times this morning at Providence City Hall as former Mayor Vincent A. Cianci Jr., walked into the Board of Canvassers office and registered to vote.

As the television cameras rolled, Cianci showed his driver’s license, swore he was a citizen of the U.S., and joined 76,000 other Providence residents as a legal voter in city in which he served about 20 years as mayor.

The move came on the eve of his first day back as a talk radio host. Cianci begins he stint as a talkmeister on WPRO-AM at 10 a.m. tomorrow.

Cianci was given a friendly welcome by several City Hall employees. He enrolled as an independent -- called an unaffiliated voter in Rhode Island political argot -- and said it was important to him to register because a talk show host who is going to criticize politicians ought to be registered.

Cianci was mayor until he was convicted in 2002 on a racketeering charge related to corruption in City Hall while he was mayor.

Cianci finished serving his prison term at Fort Dix, N.J., in May, then spent more time at a halfway house in Boston, followed by a stint in home confinement at a nephew's home in East Greenwich. His first full official day of freedom was Friday, July 27.

Cianci is still on probation but is allowed to vote because Rhode Island voters in a referendum last year approved a ballot question allowing felons to vote.

-- Journal staff writer Scott MacKay

Cianci may be the first high-profile citizen to take advantage of the change in state voting law narrowly approved by voters in a referendum last November.

Question 2 amended Section 1, Article II, of the state Constitution to return the right to vote to felons after they were discharged from prison.

They still are not allowed to vote while in prison.

He could also run for mayor again, if he so chose.

But because of his felony conviction, he could not do so until the 2014 election, when he would be 73.

Posted by Jack Perry at 11:51 AM | Comment

R.I. nonprofits get money from music biz. settlement

Six Rhode Island nonprofits are each getting $2,905 under settlement of a multi-state anti-trust lawsuit that accused music distributors and retailers of conspiring to increase prices people pay for recorded music.

Providence CityArts for Youth, the Providence Black Repertory Company, Blackstone River Theatre in Cumberland, the Chorus of Westerly, Newport’s List Academy of Music and Arts, and the Kent County Arc/J. Arthur Trudeau Memorial Center in Warwick each received a check last week, Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch's office announced today.

The money must be used for music-related programs.

“The six recipients of this funding, all of whom are required to use the money for music-related programs, serve a wide spectrum of our Rhode Island residents, including inner-city youth and people with developmental disabilities,” said Lynch.

As of today, 15,000 Rhode Island consumers who filed claims have gotten a total of about $150,000. The settlement terms also included distributing 20,000 CDs, valued at $275,000, to the state's public schools and libraries.

The money is the last to be distributed, under court order, stemming from the federal suit filed several years ago.

Rhode Island was among 42 states to sue, according to the attorney general news release. Defendants were music distributors Bertelsmann Music Group Inc., EMI Music Distribution, Warner-Elektra-Atlantic Corporation, Sony Music Entertainment Inc., and Universal Music Group, as well as three national retail chains: Transworld Entertainment Corporation, Tower Records, and Musicland Stores Corporation.

The defendants denied the allegations.

Under the settlement, the defendants agreed to an injunction "whereby they would not engage in sales practices that allegedly led to artificially high retail prices for music CDs," Lynch's office said.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 11:46 AM | Comment

Diocese of Providence selling property -- again

Journal file photo
Our Lady of Peace Spiritual Center in Narragansett, a 38-acre parcel with several buildings, is among the assets the diocese plans to sell.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence is selling seven properties it no longer needs, diocesan officials announced today. Proceeds from the sales will be used to establish a maintenance fund for other properties and to help reduce diocesan lines of credit, some related to the $14.2-million settlement in 2002 of claims by victims of the priests’ sex-abuse scandal.

The diocese describes three of the properties as “significant’’ and likely to bring in substantial revenue: the Cluny Sisters Convent and Provincial House in Newport; undeveloped land near Dunn’s Corner in Westerly; and Our Lady of Peace Spiritual Center, 333 Ocean Road, Narragansett, a 38-acre parcel with several buildings that was once used as a retreat center.

The decision to sell the properties comes after months of study by a committee of priests and lay people.

“After thorough study, it was concluded that these properties would no longer be used for ministry purposes,” Bishop Thomas J. Tobin said in a statement. “Many diocesan ministries and agencies that serve the local community are housed in structures in need of repair. Portions of the proceeds from the sale of these properties will enable us to address concerns at other ministries so that they may continue to effectively serve those in need.”

The other four properties are the former Carter Day Care building in Providence, St. Anthony House in Providence, and land in West Warwick and West Greenwich.

In 2003, the diocese sold other properties, including the bishop's Watch Hill summer home for $7 million, to help pay settlements in sexual-abuse lawsuits against diocese priests.

Read a report on the properties decision in the Rhode Island Catholic, the diocesan newspaper.

-- Journal staff writer G. Wayne Miller

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 9:50 AM | Comment

Developers eyeing casino sites in western Mass.

PALMER, Mass. -- Developer Leon Dragone envisions a shining hotel and casino complex on a hill just off the Massachusetts Turnpike, a tourist destination that will bring jobs and money to the struggling economy of western Massachusetts.

Kathleen Norbut, a member of the Board of Selectmen in neighboring Monson, sees a behemoth that will put an unbearable burden on roads, public safety, schools and housing and will change forever her quiet New England town.

Gov. Deval Patrick has proposed licensing three resort casinos in Massachusetts - one specifically in the western part of the state. Though his plan needs legislative approval, and it could be years before any casino would be built, developers already are eyeing possible sites as towns debate whether they should embrace gambling.

"We do not have the infrastructure to support something of that magnitude," Norbut said. "The town of Palmer doesn't even have a full-time board of health. The average taxpayer, the working middle class, like myself, I don't want to be supporting the profits that will be going to the casino owners."

Dragone's Northeast Realty and the Mohegan Indian tribe, which runs the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Conn., want to build a $1 billion resort casino on a 150-acre wooded site in Palmer, just 50 yards from the current turnpike toll booths. Preliminary plans envision a gaming floor with up to 4,000 slot machines and table games, a 600-room.

Palmer is not the only town where a casino might go. Several developers are expected to compete with Northeast Realty for the right to build the western Massachusetts casino.

Chicopee Mayor Michael Bissonnette said he knew of three developers interested in putting the gaming facility in his town, at a site near the turnpike and the Westover Metropolitan Airport.

Read the full Associated Press story ...

Your Turn: What impact would three Mass. casinos have on R.I. gambling?

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 9:25 AM | Comment

Of interest rates, stocks -- and your pocketbook

AP photo
Stock markets around the world are reacting positively to the surge in U.S. stock exchanges yesterday. Above, employees of the Korea Stock Exchange look at an electronic stock board in Seoul, South Korea, where the Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 64.04 points, or 3.5 percent, to close at 1,902.65, its third-biggest point gain ever.

The Fed did it -- cut that key interest rate. And the stock market soared on the news.

What might this all mean to the economic picture in Rhode Island?

Earlier this week, The Journal asked several local financial experts their opinions. See what they had to say in the resulting story. Hint: They don't all agree.

Meanwhile, you can keep track of your investments through projo.com's personal portfolio tools.

And see what happens today when the market re-opens at 9:30 a.m.

Today also brings brings new economic data, which investors will be parsing to determine how the economy is faring amid the current credit climate and volatile stock market.

The Labor Department's August consumer price index came out a few minutes ago, showing that the prices fell for the first time in 10 months, as another big drop in energy costs offset higher food prices.

And the Commerce Department will report on new home construction. The data is anticipated to show that the annual rate of construction of new homes and apartments in August fell since July.

Get the latest here.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 9:00 AM | Comment

Geeks gather to discuss state's fostering efforts

There's a geek get-together tonight in downtown Providence.

Saul Kaplan, executive director of the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation will join folks from Traction Software -- a local development company that specializes in Web applications -- at a Providence Geek Dinner to talk about the state's efforts to foster innovation in media and technology.

According to the Providence Geeks Web site, topics up for discussion include Web applications, start-ups, gadgets, entrepreneurship, social computing, digital art.

The food-optional dinner starts at 5:30 tonight at AS220, at 115 Empire Street.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 8:23 AM | Comment

17-year-olds at the ACI; hearing tonight

The state Senate Health and Human Services Committee is meeting this afternoon to hear testimony from state officials and child advocates about a law requiring that 17-year-olds be prosecuted as adults.

Attorney General Patrick Lynch yesterday called for the General Assemble to repeal the law – passed by the House Finance Committee as a budgetary fix.

Lynch is expected to be joined by child advocate Jametta O. Alston, Corrections Department Director A.T. Wall, and representatives from Family Court and the state Police Chiefs Association.

The local chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union has also raised objections to the law, including issues created for students applying for financial aid.

-- projo.com staff writer Brandie M. Jefferson, with reports from Journal staff writers Amanda Milkovits and Steve Peoples

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:52 AM | Comment

A cool start to a comfortable day

Words of advice today: Dress in layers.

It's in the low 40s now, but the sun is shining and temperatures should reach the mid 70s this afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.

The low tonight will approach 50.

Tomorrow may feel like summer again, with clear skies and a high near 80.

For more weather and regular updates, see projo.com/weather.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:01 AM | Comment

Today's front page

Today's front page features the fourth in the five-part series on Patrick Murray, a North Kingstown Marine, who lost his leg in Iraq.

Download a copy of today's front page in .pdf format.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:00 AM | Comment

September 18, 2007

Tonight: Don't forget a moment of silence for Jimi

For those who can get there fast, "All the King's Men" is on stage tonight at 7 at Trinity Rep in Providence. It's adapted from Pulitzer winner Robert Penn Warren's novel.

But if you miss it, it's OK. The play is running at Trinity through Oct. 21.

For rockers and jazzers, the club scene tonight is slim.

Dancing Nancy, paying tribute to the Dave Matthews Band, plays at Gillary's Tavern, 198 Thames St., Bristol. Call 253-2012. 9:30 pm.

Bobby Ferreira plays jazz at The Chanler, 117 Memorial Blvd., Newport. Call 847-1300. 6:30-9:30 pm.

Half Boozed plays rock at One Pelham East, 270 Thames St., Newport. Call 847-9460. 9 p.m.

The Hi-Hat Trio with Mariann Solivan riffs on some jazz at The Hi-Hat, 3 Davol Square, Providence. Call 453-6500. 7 to 11 pm.

Besides, rockers, maybe you should be staying in tonight anyway, taking a moment to remember the icon who died 37 years ago today in London. Jimi Hendrix, you're never forgotten. Especially when I'm the one writing the what-to-do-tonight blog post.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:52 PM | Comment

Anchor Lou Dobbs' talk at RWU cancelled

BRISTOL -- Lou Dobbs, political commentator and anchor of CNN's "Lou Dobbs Tonight,'' has cancelled his Sept. 27 appearance at Roger Williams University for unspecified medical reasons.

The university said in a news release today it hopes to reschedule Dobbs' appearance for early next year.

Dobbs was slated to present “his unedited take on today’s hot-button headlines,” according to an earlier university statement, as part of a series has included several figures, including writer Salman Rushdie.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:58 PM | Comment

West Nile, EEE found in Swansea mosquitoes

SWANSEA, Mass. -- A mosquito pool here has tested positive for both West Nile virus and Eastern Equine Encephalitis, the town Board of Health announced today.

The sample was collected on Sept. 14 and included culex pipens mosquitoes, a kind that can bite humans and other mammals.

The Board of Health and Massachusetts Department of Health advise the public to take action to avoid mosquito bites and to cut down the mosquito population around homes and neighborhoods.

In the nearby Rhode Island communities of East Providence and Barrington, mosquitoes have also tested positive recently for West Nile.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Remove standing water around your home, including in ceramic pots, trash cans, recycling containers, old tires, wading pools, and bird baths.

People should limit time outside during peak dusk and dawn mosquito activity periods. If someone must be outdoors, wear a long-sleeved shirt and pants. If bringing a baby outside, cover the carriage or playpen with mosquito netting. Put screens on windows and doors; fix holes in screens.

Use mosquito repellant containing DEET or Picaridin, or consider oil of lemon eucaplyptus. Repellents should not be used on children younger than 2 months. And oil of eucalyptus should not be used on children who are under 3 years old.

Horse owners are encouraged to vaccinate their animals and keep safeguards in places to prevent mosquito exposure.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:59 PM | Comment

Vitrus Inc., in Pawtucket, to lay off most staff

PAWTUCKET -- Vitrus Inc., a manufacturer of special electrical connectors in Pawtucket, is laying off most of its staff, the company acknowledged today.

Vitrus employs about 40 people in its plant on Main Street. It is owned by the Tecumseh Products Co., based in Tecumseh, Mich.

-- Journal staff writer Benjamin N. Gedan

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:46 PM | Comment

Pawtucket bakery issues bread recall

A Pawtucket bakery is recalling 76 loaves of sweet bread that contain egg, which was not declared on the ingredient statement.

Luzitania Bakery, of 312 Barton St. is recalling the bread, the state Health Department announced today. The bread was sold at the Pawtucket sore and at several retail markets in the Pawtucket, Attleboro, Mass., and Norton, Mass., area.

People with an allergy or severe sensitivity to egg products run risk of serious or life-threatening reactions if they eat the bread, the Health Department news release said.

There have been no reported illnesses associated with the bread. Anyone concerned about an illness associated with the bread should contact a physician immediately.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:40 PM | Comment

Newport stone carver receives national art award

A Newport stone carver became the first Rhode Islander to receive a national award for folk and arts given out today in Washington.

Nicholas Benson, a third-generation stone-letter carver and calligrapher, was among a dozen recipients of the 2007 National Endowment for the Arts (NEA)’s National Heritage Fellowship, according to a news release from U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-Rhode Island, who delivered the ceremony's keynote address.

“Nick’s work has added immeasurably to our state and our nation’s cultural heritage," Whitehouse said in the statement. "His dedication to the traditional forms of stone carving will help ensure that they survive for generations to come.”

The National Heritage Fellowship is the highest public honor awarded for folk and traditional art -- a fellowship in its 25th year.

Benson oversees the John Stephens Shop, founded in 1705 on Newport’s Thames Street. His work, and that of his father, graces the National Gallery of Art, the Kennedy Center, the National Cathedral, the World War II Memorial, the Franklin Roosevelt Memorial, and the gravestones of President John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis in Washington, D.C.; the Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery, Alabama; the Poet's Corner in the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York; and the Georgia O’Keefe Museum in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:40 PM | Comment

Providence officials seek after-school program growth

PROVIDENCE -- The city’s after-school programs for middle school students have been so successful that Mayor David N. Cicilline wants to expand the model to include high school students.

Today, Gary Bliss, Cicilline’s policy director, explained the concept to 25 school officials and non-profit organizations who gathered at Casey Family Services on Eddy Street.

According to Bliss, the high school program would be based on the Providence After School Alliance, a partnership that drew together the city’s public schools, recreation departments and non-profit groups like Save the Bay to provide high-quality after-school activities to middle school students.

The creation of Hillary Salmons and the Education Partnership, a business-backed policy group, PASA was born three years ago as a way to bridge the often dangerous gap between the close of the school day and the time that working parents return home. While elementary school children are enrolled in after-school care, middle school students typically go home to an empty house where the combination of boredom and lack of adult supervision can become a recipe for trouble.

-- Journal staff writer Linda Borg

PASA was smart: it didn’t create another layer of bureaucracy, nor did it try to duplicate existing programs. Instead, it set out to enlarge the existing pool of after-school activities and improve their quality. PASA divided up the city into separate zones, which radiate from a middle school. The challenge: to persuade non-profit organizations that they would get a lot more out of collaborating with their colleagues than going their own separate ways.

The After School Alliance has two major goals: to improve school attendance and reduce suspensions by offering students incentives to not only attend school, but to do well while they’re there. PASA currently offers a total of 47 activities in its five After Zones.

“We were looking at the success of PASA and listening to those people who are active in serving high school students,” Bliss said. “We want to develop a strong after-school program for high school youth.”

The middle school initiative was launched with the prospect of a five-year $5 million grant from the Wallace Foundation, which asked Providence to apply for the funding. The high school proposal has no such backing from a prominent charitable organization like Wallace.

But Salmons said, “We think there are opportunities out there because of the mayor’s national leadership and the excitement around PASA. We are attracting national attention.”

There are definite advantages to starting a high school after-school program. For starters, the city already has a number of innovative programs, from New Urban Arts to the Everett Dance Theater. The challenge, Bliss said, will be persuading high school students, many of whom have jobs or child care responsibilities, to make time for after-school activities.

“That’s why we’re turning to those people who have been active in this field,” he said. “We want you to come forward. We’re looking to develop a team of providers to lead the planning process and we’re asking that you collaborate with the school department.”

Cicilline has committed $100,000 to finance the planning phase, which will last approximately 10 months. The planning team will figure out what entering ninth-graders need, track their achievement and monitor their graduation rates; explore how PASA can provide organizational support; and identify how many high school students should be targeted for the program.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:33 PM | Comment

Sitting in Providence traffic? Count your blessings

PROVIDENCE -- We may curse the traffic on Route 95, but a national study released today says that drivers in the Providence area have less to cuss about than drivers in most other urban areas of its size.

Nationally, traffic congestion continues to worsen in cities of all sizes, according to the study by the Texas Transportation Instiutute, which said it creates a $78-billion annual drain on the U.S. economy in the form of 4.2 billion lost hours and 2.9 billion gallons of wasted fuel.

The study estimates that drivers during peak traffic hours in the Providence area lost 19.5 million hours to congestion in 2005, the last year for which data was available, or 29 hours per traveler. That figure has risen seven hours per peak traveler since 2000, but remained stable from 2004 to 2005.

The good old days, meanwhile, really were much better as far as traffic was concerned. Back in 1982, the earliest data the study includes, Providence area peak-time travelers lost only 3 hours to delay during that year.

The study says that Providence drivers now suffer much lower congestion than the other urban areas in its group, and much slower growth since 1982 in the amount of delay due to congestion than the group as a whole. Nationally, lost time and fuel amount to the equivalent of 105 million weeks of vacation and 58 fully-loaded supertankers, the institute said.

Congestion cost Providence-area travelers during peak traffic times $343 million in 2005, the study says, counting travel time at $14.60 per hour, truck time at $77.10 per hour and fuel using average costs per gallon. That cost amounted to $507 per peak traveler.

Meanwhile, there was improvement in some factors that help reduce congestion. Use of mass transportation has steadily increased, totaling 99 million passenger miles in 2005 from 64 million miles in 2000. The number of mass transit trips, however, increased only slightly, to 20 million trips in 2005 from 18 millioin trips in 2000.

The study dealt with 800 square miles of urbanized area, with a population density of more than 1,000 persons per square mile, in and around Providence and extending into Massachusetts. The Providence urban area's population has grown only 40,000 since 2000, to 1,245,000 persons. It included 780 square miles in 2000.

The study ranks the Providence metro area among "large" cities with populations between 1 million and 3 million. There were no other New England urban areas in that group, which includes San Diego, Baltimore, Pittsburgh and.Cleveland.

--By Bruce Landis, Journal staff writer

Posted by Pam Cotter at 3:18 PM | Comment

ACLU: New criminal law may hurt college applicants

The Rhode Island affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union says a new state law that treats 17-year-olds as adults for criminal justice purposes could also keep some students from getting into college.

That’s because prospective students with state or federal drug convictions are ineligible for federal grants, loans or work study programs for one year to life under Section 483 of the federal Higher Education Act.

In a letter to the state Board of Governors for Higher Education, the local ACLU’s Executive Director Steven Brown argues that for the first time here, applicants with drug convictions at age 17 would not be eligible for federal college financial aid. Before the law, such matters were handled in Family Court.

In a letter sent today, Brown, a sharp critic of the new law from the start, asked the Board to veer from the federal policy, saying financial aid offices in more than a dozen other states do so.

He also requested the board speak out at a state Senate panel hearing tomorrow against charging 17-year-olds as adults.

The letter also encouraged the higher education board to contact the General Assembly leadership to urge the repeal of Article 22. Brown said the ACLU has made a similar request to college and university presidents.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 3:00 PM | Comment

Lynch urges repeal of law trying 17-year-olds as adults

Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch today called on the General Assembly to repeal the recently-approved law requiring that all 17-years-olds be prosecuted as adults.

With a Senate committee hearing scheduled on the matter tomorrow at 3 p.m., Lynch's office issued a release today saying there are 12 “statutory inconsistencies” that are “in force and effect,'' causing confusion because they do not reflect changes spurred by the law for 17-year-olds.

Lynch has said his office has received several inquiries from police and towns' solicitors about prosecuting 17-year-olds.

“From a public policy perspective, placing 17-year-olds in the adult criminal process and system is short sighted. From a budgetary point of view, any savings hoped for under the new law are and will continue to be illusory," Lynch said in a letter to House Speaker William J. Murphy and Senate President Joseph A. Montalbano. "From a human perspective, it is dangerous for the 17-year-old offenders themselves and, longer term, damaging to their prospects for productivity and success in life."

Lynch is among those expected to testify to the committee tomorrow.

The local chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union has also raised objections to the law, including issues created for students applying for financial aid.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with Journal archival reports

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:48 PM | Comment

Leader of R.I. lead safety initative named

A Rhode Island lead-safety program has a leader and is seeking proposals for the use of $2 million toward raising the awareness of adults and others about lead safety.

Lynch and the Children’s Health Forum announced today they have appointed Barbara Baldwin, of Providence -- a former cancer control program leader and, for nine years, the state's Planned Parenthood executive director -- to coordinate the Healthy Kids Collaborative, the statewide lead safety program.

Baldwin issued a request for proposals on Sept. 12 for use of $2 million to raise public awareness. The request is looking for community-based organizations to carry out activities that educate and train parents, homeowners and others about lead safety.

The collaborative is coming up with a $9 million program, to be used over several years, that will include education, outreach, training, cleanup, and safety regulation enforcement.

The program is part of an agreement between Lynch and the DuPont Corporation. Local health advocates, state and municipal agencies, and care providers are helping to shape it, according to an attorney general news release.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

“I’m very pleased to have Barbara Baldwin, with her extensive background in public health and organizational management, joining us to work with the advisory commission to make our mutual goal of preventing childhood lead poisoning a reality,” Lynch said in a statement.

Last week, Lynch proposed that three paint companies that lost a historic public nuisance trial last year now spend $2.4 billion removing lead paint from more than half the houses and apartments in Rhode Island.

The so-called abatement plan, if approved by the courts, would lead to the single biggest construction job in state history and create a precedent that is being closely watched around the country.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:31 PM | Comment

Mass. casino campaign: The debate begins

Journal photo / Gretchen Ertl
Massachusetts state Sen. Susan Tucker, D-Second Essex, says the casino industry "depends on addiction to make its money" during a panel debate sponsored by MassINC, a public policy think-tank, at the Omni Parker House in Boston this morning, a day after Gov. Deval Patrick proposed licensing three full-scale casinos in Massachusetts.

BOSTON -- Gov. Deval Patrick has started the long process of selling his plan to allow three resort casinos in Massachusetts.

A day after unveiling the proposal, Patrick was out trying to rally support.

He took to the airwaves of three Boston-area radio stations, where morning commuters heard him tout casinos as being able to one day generate up to $450 million annually in state tax revenue.

Patrick says he'll split the revenue between paying for transportation upgrades and giving property tax credits to more than a million homeowners.

The governor also trumpeted the proposal after an event at Genzyme Corporation in Cambridge, saying his revenue projections are "conservative."

The Legislature must approve expanded gambling before casinos can open in Massachusetts.

In Rhode Island, where the debate over full-fledged casinos has been hot, political leaders reacted differently to the plans yesterday. Read the story.

-- Associated Press

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 2:24 PM | Comment

She says menhaden / Photo

Journal photo / Andrew Dickerman
Menhaden's telling signs, DEM's April Valliere says, are the signature black spot and yellow fins. Bluefish, which chase the fish for food, may be mixed in the group, too.

PROVIDENCE -- Blues or not. Blues or not. The battle has been raging this morning here in the newsroom.

And April Valliere, principal marine biologist for the Division of Fish and Wildlife at the state Department of Environmental Management, has given us the official scoop:

They're menhaden. Adult ones. And they've been observed, in varying amounts, in the Providence River since May.

Journal photos taken yesterday of fish circling in the river below the Providence County Superior Court building sparked the debate. But this closeup view, sent to Valliere e-mail, settled the matter today.

By return e-mail, Valliere also gave us some details on the fish's presence in local waters this season.

Earlier this year, she said, DEM's Marine Fisheries section started an extensive monitoring program of menhaden stocks in Narragansett Bay. It collected data using onboard purse seine vessels, floating fish traps and observations by spotter pilots.

Last month, large numbers of juvenile Atlantic menhaden were collected and spotted in both the juvenile finfish survey of Rhode Island coastal ponds and of Narragansett Bay.

Huge schools of both juvenile and adult menhaden were seen being chased up into the less saline waters of the Providence and Blackstone Rivers by striped bass, which can tolerate fresh water, and by bluefish, she said, which are menhaden's prime predators.

Menhaden can tolerate a wide range of salinity, or salt in the water, from almost freshwater to ocean waters, according to Valliere. They are filter-feeders, primarily feeding on large quantities of phytoplankton, which must be abundant in the river.

Menhaden remain in large quantities throughout the Bay. But there's no concern at this time about a large die-off, unlike the recent Slater Mill incident where the oxygen dropped to very low levels and abnormally low tides were occurring.

"Hope that clears things up," she concludes.

We think it does. Thanks, April.

P.S. Journal environment writer Peter B. Lord both concurs and reports that the fish have made their way up into Waterplace Park today, where they're continuing to swirl.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 1:06 PM | Comment

Lincoln council to mull gambling expansion

LINCOLN -- The Town Council tonight is slated to consider whether to hold a non-binding referendum on expanding gambling operations at Twin River.

Earlier this month, a state elections official said that if the council decides to move ahead with a referendum, then the referendum will probably have to be after Nov. 6.

A resolution proposed for consideration tonight, as last reported, includes whether to support expanding casino gaming hours at the facility and, secondly, whether to support expanding gambling to include such things as table games.

Twin River operates a video slots facility and dog-racing track.

Yesterday, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick announced his proposal for three resort casinos in that state, prompting reaction from top officials in Rhode Island, where recent efforts to build full-fledged casinos have been defeated.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with Journal archival reports

Posted by Mike McKinney at 12:31 PM | Comment

R.I. treasurer joins bid to disclose climate risks

The Rhode Island treasurer has joined a group of more than 20 investors, state officials and environmental advocacy groups to ask the regulating authority of the U.S. securities market to compel publicly traded companies to disclose what financial risks they face from climate change.

Frank Caprio and 21 other petitioners, including California’s treasurer and New York’s Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, today filed a petition asking the Securities and Exchange Commission to begin closely “scrutinizing the adequacy of registrants’ climate disclosures,” under existing law.

The petition says the risks of climate change can affect corporate performance in a number of different ways from basic physical damage of facilities, to presenting opportunities for climate-friendly services and products.

In addition, the petition states that under current law, companies may be required to disclose financial risks and opportunities associated with present or probable greenhouse gas regulation and any legal proceedings related to climate change.

The 22 petitioners -- who together control more than $1.5 trillion in assets -- are:

California State Controller John Chiang
California Public Employees' Retirement System
California State Teachers' Retirement System
California State Treasurer Bill Lockyer
Ceres
Environmental Defense
F&C Management
Florida Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink
Friends of the Earth
Kentucky State Treasurer Jonathan Miller
Maine State Treasurer David G. Lemoine
Maryland State Treasurer Nancy K. Kopp
The Nathan Cummings Foundation
New Jersey State Investment Council, Orin Kramer, Chair
New York City Comptroller William C. Thompson, Jr.
New York State Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo
New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli
North Carolina State Treasurer Richard Moore
Oregon State Treasurer Randall Edwards
Pax World Management Corporation
Rhode Island State Treasurer Frank Caprio
Vermont State Treasurer Jeb Spaulding

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:51 AM | Comment

Parole Board to decide on Biechele's release

CRANSTON -- The state Parole Board meets tomorrow to decide whether Daniel M. Biechele will be released 16 months into his four-year sentence for triggering the fireworks that started The Station nightclub fire and killed 100 people in 2003.

The hearing will be closed to the public. When the hearing ends, parole officials will notify relatives of the fire victims of the outcome. After that, at about 3:30 p.m., officials will hold a news conference to publicly announce the results.

This is the first time Biechele, 30, is up for parole since starting his prison term.

Biechele pleaded guilty last year to 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter. The brothers who owned the nightclub, Michael A. and Jeffrey A. Derderian, pleaded no contest to 100 counts each of involuntary manslaughter for fire code violations that helped the fire spread rapidly. Michael, 46, was sentenced to serve four years in prison. Jeffrey, 40, was sentenced to 500 hours community service.

-- Journal staff writer Paul Edward Parker

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 11:45 AM | Comment

Menhaden near Slater Dam are not now at risk

The state’s Department of Environmental Management is still keeping an eye out on the large number of menhaden spotted near the Blackstone River on August 30, but for now there isn’t much reason to fear a fish kill.

April Valliere, the principal marine biologist at the Department’s Division of Fish and Wildlife, said when the fish were reported up stream, near Slater Dam, there hadn’t been much rain. But since then, we’ve had at least one good rain.

Menhaden, which thrive in salt water, had been chased up the river nearly to the Slater Dam by bluefish, which can tolerate fresh water. The millions of fish were struggling with low water and low oxygen levels.

“Once we got all that rain it was great,” Valliere said, because the water carried the fish back to the lower bay.

Adult menhaden are typically in Narragansett Bay from May through September, but juveniles remain throughout the year.

Valliere said DEM will continue to monitor the fish’s situation.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 10:45 AM | Comment

Do you prefer old-fashioned bulletin boards?

Staff writer Karen Ziner is looking for comment for story on old-fashioned, bulletin boards that survive in the digital age. Do you prefer posting to the cork board? Do you enjoy reading the notices? Where is your favorite board? (i.e., Supermarket? Coffee shops?)

Contact: kziner@projo.com

Posted by Peter Phipps at 9:24 AM | Comment

Pumpkins to passports: It's all happening at the fest

There’s just one place to go Saturday if you’re looking to walk away with a passport, a pumpkin and a brand new Harley Davidson -- North Smithfield.

Postmaster Christine Charest announced that Saturday’s pumpkin fest, at North Smithfield Elementary School, will also serve as a passport processing center.

Woonsocket Postmaster Ron Poulin and staff members will be running the booth.

“(They) agree that this is an opportunity for the area residents to meet the new passport requirements,” Charest said in a statement.

Beginning next month, US citizens traveling abroad – including to Mexico and Canada – will be required to have valid passports.

Interested residents will need to bring a birth certificate with a raised seal and pictures which can be taken ahead of time or purchased at the fest.

If you prefer cross country to overseas travel, the Kiwanis Club will be raffling off a 2007 Softail Deluxe motorcycle at 2 p.m. Tickets can be bought at Village Paint and Decorating, Quick Stop Deli, Village Haven Restaurant, Leeway Truce Value, Victory Square Diner in Burrillville and R&D Seafood.

This year’s grand prize raffle winner will receive a 2007 Harley Davidson Softail Deluxe. The motorcycle is on display at Village Paint & Decorating, Slatersville Plaza.

The raffle will take place Sept. 22 at 2 p.m. during the Great Pumpkin Festival at North Smithfield Elementary School.

Raffle tickets are $20, and can be purchased at Village Paint and Decorating, Quick Stop Deli, Village Haven Restaurant, Leeway True Value, Victory Square Diner in Burrillville, and R&D Seafood.

And of course, there will be pumpkins to eat, pumpkins to decorate --even a town committee sponsored pumpkin chucking booth.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 8:56 AM | Comment

Secretary of State going to colleges to add voters

The Secretary of State is working with the Board of Elections to get Rhode Island students to register to vote.

Ralph Mollis plans on presenting a first-hand civics lesson to high schools and colleges across the state.

“Students who register to vote are more likely to become active and informed citizens of this state. Some of these young people will be our leaders of tomorrow. Now is the time to engage them,” Mollis said in n statement.

He'll be registering students at the University of Rhode Island’s Memorial Union today from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

At Salve Regina University's O'Hare Academic Center tomorrow from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

And at Providence College's Slavin Center Friday from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

According to the Center for Information research on Civic Learning and Engagement, about 35 percent of Rhode Islanders between the age of 18 and 29, voted in 2006 mid-term elections. That’s 10 percent higher than the national average of about 25 percent.

The Center is funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts and Carnegie Corporation of New York. It's based in the University of Maryland’s School of Public Policy.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 8:04 AM | Comment

Barrington Bridge to close tonight, tomorrow, Thursday

A 10-year-old temporary bridge over the Barrington River will be closed tonight, tomorrow and Thursday from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. as the State Department of Transportation for inspections.

Northbound traffic will take a detour onto New Meadow Road, take a left onto Masasoit, then return to Route 114. Southbound traffic will turn left onto Masasoit, right onto New Meadow return to Route 114.

The DOT new Barrington Bridge is now slated to be finished in 2010 – four years late and, at $22 million, more than twice the contract price.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:24 AM | Comment

Bush to congratulate Brown crew at White House

Brown University’s women’s crew team is going to the White House.

The 2007 NCAA Division I rowing champions will join eight other NCAA championship teams at a White House ceremony Friday afternoon. The Bears will be the first collegiate team from Rhode Island to be recognized at a White House ceremony.

Co-captains Rachel Dearborn and Elizabeth Fison, 2007 graduates, will meet with President Bush in the East Wing and then join their teammates on the South Lawn for the public ceremony.

Brown won its fifth NCAA women’s rowing championship May 27 at Oak Ridge, Tenn. The team could not attend a similar White House ceremony on June 28 because it departed that day for the Royal Henley Regatta in England.

- Journal sportswriter Mike Szostak

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:01 AM | Comment

WW II Memorial Commission to open HQ today

The commission seeking to raise money to finish the state's World War II memorial will open a fundraising office in Warwick today.

The 10 a.m. event will be held in the Warwick Mall parking lot across from the carousel food court. Several veterans officials and political figures are expected to attend.

Over the summer, memorial supporters began a campaign to increase interest and the almost $600,000 needed to finish the project by this Veterans Day, Nov. 11.

Eight granite slabs sit at a stone company in Seekonk. Covered in plastic, the slabs are engraved with the names of 2,559 men and women who died in the war.

-- Journal staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with Journal archival reports

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:56 AM | Comment

It's Rhode Island Day at the Big E

Today is Rhode Island day -- In western Massachusetts.

It's five days into the annual Eastern State's Exposition -- The Big E -- and today The Ocean State gets to put its best face forward for thousands of fairgoers.

The 17-day fair has been showcasing the best of livestock and local fare for 90 years, interrupted only by two World Wars.

Last year, more than one million people attended the expo, where each New England state gets one day to showcase its local color.

It's a safe bet that lstuffies and coffee milk will be on the menu today.

And, like any fair, there's a petting zoo, carnival rides and more than enough food to keep fairgoers from losing any weight, including the Big E Cream Puff.

The expo runs until Sept. 30, ending with a musical march performed by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 6:37 AM | Comment

It's almost fall and it feels like it

It's crisp, it's clear, and it's sunny. The National Weather Service predicts a high of about 68 degrees.

Tonight's low should be in the high 40s.

Tomorrow should be a little warmer, with a high of about 73 degrees.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 6:33 AM | Comment

September 17, 2007

Chafee has no plans now for another political run

Despite the rumors about his next move, former U.S. Sen. Lincoln D. Chafee said today that he isn’t making plans for another political run -- for the first time in 22 years.

There’s been talk that he would run for governor, general treasurer, or mayor of Providence. Chafee said any such decision is years away.

Right now, he’s a private citizen. “Fortunately, Rhode Island has the status of unaffiliated, which I’m enjoying right now,” he said.

Chafee said he has no interest in switching sides. “The Democratic Party is just as bad,” Chafee said today. “It’s leaderless and complicit in this war.”

His decision to leave the Republican Party, announced on Saturday, and become an unaffiliated voter has become a hot topic on Rhode Island and national political Web sites and blogs.

Chafee lost the seat previously held by his late father in last November's election, which sent Sheldon Whitehouse, a Democrat, to Washington in an election cycle that saw Democrats' push to gain congressional majorities become a priority in blue-leaning states.

-- Journal staff writer Amanda Milkovits, with reports from projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:53 PM | Comment

ALERT: R.I. family among 14 to settle 9/11 suits

The families of 14 victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, including Pawtucket’s Shawn M. Nassaney, today settled lawsuits that they had filed against airlines, security companies, plane manufacturers and airport owners.

U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein, of the Southern District of New York, signed an order today saying agreements had been reached in each of the 14 lawsuits, so the cases will be closed as long as the settlements are completed within 30 days.

All parties agreed to not disclose details of the settlements, which followed pretrial rulings favorable to the plaintiff in a case that was set to go to trial on Monday, Sept. 24, said one of the plaintiff’s lead lawyers, Donald A. Migliori, a Rhode Islander who is a partner in Motley Rice law firm.

“We settled our case,” Nassaney’s father, Patrick Nassaney Sr., said in a statement. “We are ready to put this aspect of our loss behind us. The feelings we are left with are mixed. We learned a great deal about what happened on September 11th, but compensation does not heal our wounds. We choose to focus on our family now. And we will stand by Motley Rice in its continuing fight for answers until the very last case is tried.”

After the attacks killed nearly 3,000 people, 98.5 percent of the victims’ families chose to accept money from a federal compensation fund, and in doing so they gave up their right to sue. But some families opted out of the fund and sued — including relatives of Nassaney and of David L. Angell, who owned a home on the East Side of Providence and was executive director of the Frasier television series.

The Angell case is one of 21 lawsuits that remain unresolved and that may head to trial, Migliori said. No trial date has been set.

“Fourteen of the plaintiffs were in a place to accept the offers that came about as a result of a lot of activity over the past week, including favorable pretrial rulings,” Migliori said. “But 21 cases did not resolve. They haven’t reached that level of completeness regarding compensation and accountability. That fight continues.”

More to come ...

-- Journal staff writer Edward Fitzpatrick

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 5:08 PM | Comment

DOT closing temporary Barrington span at night

BARRINGTON -- The state Department of Transportation is closing the temporary bridge over the Barrington River at night this week so the structure can be inspected.

The small span was built for traffic to cross the river during the long-delayed construction of the Barrington Bridge linking Barrington and Warren. It was closed Sunday and Monday nights from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. and will be blocked off again tomorrow, Wednesday and Thursday nights during the same hours.

Dana Nolfe, a spokeswoman for the DOT, said the bridge must be closed during the inspections because a device used to lower a person over its side will take up much of the roadway. Any maintenance or repairs to the structure will be carried out during the work this week. Nolfe said the bridge will be open at night again on Friday.

-- Journal staff writer Alex Kuffner

All traffic, including the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority’s buses on Route 60 between Newport and Providence, will be detoured. Vehicles traveling north to the bridge will be diverted onto New Meadow Road and then turn left on Masasoit Avenue before turning back onto Route 114. Vehicles traveling south must turn left onto Masasoit Avenue, then right on New Meadow Road to reach Route 114.

The Barrington Bridge is slated to be finished in 2010, four years after the original completion date. It will cost more than $22 million, more than twice the contract price.

Nolfe said DOT Director Jerome F. Williams meets regularly to discuss the progress of the bridge project. “That is definitely moving ahead,” she said. “We’re working hard.”

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:01 PM | Comment

R.I. speaker, governor react to Mass. casino plans

Reacting to Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick's proposal today to license three Bay State resort casinos, Rhode Island House Speaker William Murphy said state lawmakers in January will have to take "another serious look" at whether to have table games up and running before Massachusetts does.

Murphy, a Democrat, spoke of the existing Twin River facility in Lincoln and the Newport Grand -- and perhaps looking at a third option.

"For the time being, both entities will survive. However, if three casinos go in Massachusetts, I think we will have some problems," he said, referring to the argument that casinos in neighboring states steal away dollars from Rhode Island.

But asked if Republican Governor Carcieri would propose table games, spokesman Jeff Neal said it was extremely unlikely.

'From a regional perspective, the casino industry has taken a divide and conquer approach to New England. The danger is once one New England state falls for that argument, all of the other New England states may be forced to take that same step," Neal said.

Two of the largest casinos in the country are being operated by Indian tribes in eastern Connecticut, while the Narragansetts continue to press for a casino in Rhode Island, where Governor Carcieri remains strongly opposed.

Patrick today proposed licensing three casinos in a move he said would generate between $400 million and $450 million in annual tax revenue that he would spend on transportation upgrades and property-tax relief.

Under the plan, the "tasteful and appropriate" casinos would be distributed one each in the western, southeastern and greater metropolitan Boston regions of the state, Patrick said. The licenses would be put up for bid in a competitive process open to Indian tribes and casino companies.

"Casino gambling is neither a cure-all nor the end of civilization," Patrick said. "On balance, however, and under certain conditions, I believe resort casinos can work well in, and for, the Commonwealth."

However, lawmakers must approve expanding legalized gambling beyond the state lottery and four racetracks, and House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi said he was not persuaded by Patrick's plan.

"So far, our concerns for ushering in casino gambling have not been eased," DiMasi said in a statement. "We in the House remain skeptical. But we will hear the governor out and we will be asking the governor to explain the rationale behind his conclusions.

"I will obviously be discussing this with members of the House, some of whom have serious and justified concerns about creating a casino culture here in the Commonwealth."

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney and The Associated Press, with reports from Journal staff writer Paul Grimaldi

Gambling opponents already are mobilizing against the plan, arguing the casinos won't be the cash cow Patrick hopes and will end up costing the state money - primarily lottery revenues - while destroying its character.

"I didn't make this proposal without understanding that it's going to take some work to get it passed," Patrick said.

Patrick said the casinos would generate more than $2 billion annually in economic activity and create "good jobs at good wages." He said "tens of thousands" of construction jobs would be created to build the facilities.

"With that kind of economic benefit, we cannot reject the gaming industry out of hand," he said.

Patrick did not address how much money could be raised up front for the licenses, nor how long the licenses would last.

The governor said developing casino gambling in the state was part of his overall plan to advance initiatives that provide long-term sustainable growth for Massachusetts.

"Destination resort casinos can serve a useful role in our overall economic plan," he said.

Patrick is under pressure to find new revenues as the state looks for extra money to close an estimated $15-billion to $19-billion gap in transportation spending over the next 20 years.

"Our roads, rails, buses and bridges are showing the effect of over 16 years of neglect," the governor said.

Patrick also wants to spend the revenue to fulfill one of his campaign pledges to reduce property taxes, which he said he would do through tax credits.

The governor also has proposed big ticket items including a $1 billion, 10-year life-science project that would include the world's largest stem-cell bank and a $1.4 billion commuter rail line from Boston to Fall River and New Bedford.

He also said trust funds would be created to deal with public health issues linked to gambling and "community mitigation" -- to help towns offset the costs of hosting a casino.

DiMasi has opposed an expansion of gambling in the past. But in the weeks leading up to Patrick's announcement, the Boston Democrat said he would keep an open mind.

Massachusetts Senate President Therese Murray has said she supported expanded gambling.

Patrick's plan follows a proposal by the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe to build a $1 billion casino on land it owns in Middleborough. The tribe could either try to outbid others for one of the licenses proposed by Patrick, or continue along a more lengthy track to win federal approval that could result in a fourth casino in the state.

The governor said at least one of the licenses would have "a Native American component."

"I fully expect that we will give special weight to the tribe. I think they have a special role and interest," he said of the Mashpee Wampanoags.

"I just can't tell you whether that means reserving one of the licenses, or giving special weight to one or more of the licenses with the tribe as a partner," he said.

The Aquinnah Wampanoag Indians have declared that they would also open a casino if their Mashpee counterparts do the same.

Consumers spent $32 billion in commercial casinos in 11 states last year - more than consumer spending on specialty coffee and books combined, according to the American Gaming Association.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:47 PM | Comment

Photo: Bluefish circle near courthouse

Journal photo / Andrew Dickerman
A school of bluefish was spotted in the Providence River outside Rhode Island Superior Courthouse this afternoon. The sight was unusual not only because the fish were in the river at all, but because they are most often spotted feeding and are usually associated with frothy water as the baitfish on which they feed jump to escape and the bluefish jump after them. But the water outside the courthouse was unusually calm, with the bluefish simply circling.

Posted by maria caporizzo at 4:44 PM | Comment

Naval Station Newport has a new commander

NEWPORT -- A new commander has taken charge of Naval Station Newport.

A Navy spokeswoman says Captain Michel Poirier has assumed command of the base.

He's a 1983 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and arrived at the local base after a stint on the staff of the chief of naval operations.

Poirier also served aboard five submarines, including during two deployments to support military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.

He replaces Captain Todd Malloy, who's joining the staff at the Command Leadership School.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:40 PM | Comment

Two human cases of West Nile in Massachusetts

BOSTON, Mass. -- State health officials have confirmed two more human cases of West Nile Virus.

The Department of Public Health has identified the latest people to contract the disease as a 53-year-old woman from Arlington and a 48-year-old woman from Worcester.

Both became ill last month.

The two cases are the first of the season contracted from mosquito exposure within Massachusetts.

Health officials say three previous West Nile Virus cases identified in Massachusetts were detected in people who contracted the infection outside the state.

Three people in Massachusetts were diagnosed with West Nile last year, while another five became sick with eastern equine encephalitis.
In an effort to reduce exposure risks, people are urged to drain standing water and avoid going outside during peak mosquito hours.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:38 PM | Comment

Treasurer to study public pensions across the country

The State Retirement Board has approved a proposal to study differences between the state’s Employees’ Retirement System and similar public-sector systems across the country.

The Benchmarking study was proposed by General Treasurer Frank Caprio who said in a statement that the study “will enable us to measure the productivity of our operation and identify areas where we can do our jobs more effectively for the people of Rhode Island."

The study will consider service level, costs, number of transactions and complexity in its comparisons.

CEM Benchmarking, the company approved to conduct the study, has a database of information about many public-pension services.

Caprio said improving the system’s performance “is an essential part of my commitment to improve customer service and make government accountable.”

This move comes two months after the State Retirement Board announced a 14 percent increase this fiscal year – about a $50 million increase -- in the cost of the state pension system.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 4:31 PM | Comment

Whitehouse 'cautiously optimistic' about A.G. choice

Journal photo / Frieda Squires
U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse speaks today at Roger Williams University School of Law, where the former U.S. attorney for Rhode Island's topic was "Why We Need an Independent Department of Justice."

BRISTOL -- U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse today said he was “cautiously optimistic” about Michael B. Mukasey, the former federal judge who is President Bush’s choice to replace Alberto R. Gonzales as U.S. attorney general.

Whitehouse, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee that will hold Mukasey’s confirmation hearings, spoke at the Rogers Williams University School of Law as part of a program marking the 220th birthday of the U.S. Constitution.

“Not only is it Constitution Day,” Whitehouse told the audience, “It is also the first Gonzales-free day.”

Gonzales resigned late last month amid controversy over the firing of U.S. attorneys and allegations that he may have perjured himself when he testified before Congress. He left the Justice Department on Friday.

Overall, Democrats did not declare any outright opposition to Mukasey, whose selection was announced by Bush this morning.

Before the speech, Whitehouse told reporters that Mukasey “seems to be well qualified, and he does not seem to be the kind of individual who would let his ideology run away with him and affect his ability to run an independent Department of Justice.”

Mukasey, 66, was appointed to the federal bench by President Reagan in 1987, and retired last year to go into private practice. He spent 19 years as a federal judge in New York, including as chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

-- Journal staff writer Edward Fitzpatrick

But Whitehouse emphasized that “very serious issues” remain regarding congressional oversight, such as getting documents related to the firing of federal prosecutors. He said he wants to make sure that Mukasey “understands how important it is that the Justice Department be rebuilt and how serious the damage is.”

He said he wants to ensure that Mukasey is “not following the Bush line that this was just a political attack on Gonzales, that there’s nothing really wrong there.”

“If he gets those things, and the hearing process will show that, then I think he’s got a very good chance to be our next attorney general,” Whitehouse said. “But a lot depends on the hearings.”

Whitehouse said Mukasey appears to be a better choice than Theodore B. Olsen, the former solicitor general favored by some conservatives. “The purpose right now that the department needs to achieve is convincing the American public that it will do the right thing first and the political thing second,” he said. “So somebody who has been as closely associated with President Bush and has been as involved in political matters as Ted Olsen had a lot to explain.”

By contrast, Mukasey is “coming off a court where he served for a long time through many administrations with considerable distinction,” Whitehouse said. So Mukasey “starts with a better feel for his independence, and I think that’s an important starting point.”

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:12 PM | Comment

Update: Chafee's quiet GOP exit draws loud response

Former U.S. Sen. Lincoln Chafee's adios to the GOP is catching kudos, drawing fire or getting catty shrugs along the lines of "He was a Republican?"

The response today to the weekend news that Rhode Islander Chafee is now an unaffiliated voter depends on where you turn or click your mouse.

From Rhode Island's Republican Party this morning comes a news release saying it's an "unfortunate but not surprising outcome of the senator's long, difficult relationship with the national party in recent years."

Party Chairman Giovanni Cicione says in the statement, "We were aware that he had made this decision and that he planned to reveal it himself on his own terms."

Cicione goes on to say that Chafee is "personally well liked, well-regarded, and he always will be, but it is no surprise that having had a long, difficult struggle as a moderate with the more conservative wing of the party in Washington, he felt estranged from the party. But in light of his family's long, well-respected history and affiliation with the Rhode Island Republican Party, this is an unfortunate outcome."

Cicione states it's his sincere hope the national Republican Party "can again become one that stands on principle. We must redefine our party as one that advocates vigorously and consistently for limited government while standing firmly for equal treatment and justice for all citizens. By doing this we will become a magnet for those that are looking to serve the public as proud Republicans rather than driving them out."

Local and national blogs and their commenters are also staking out turf on the decision.

Over at rifuture.org, one commenter says "a good move for Linc. If he had the courage to do before November he would still be sitting in the Senate." Another commenter bemoans "the party of fiscal conservatism decided to become the party of giving middle taxpayer money to selected (Republican owned or Republican donor) corporations for big profits while cutting taxes for the wealthy."

At Anchorrising.com, a commenter says Chafee's exodus from the party is "possibly the best thing that has happened to it in a generation."

A projo.com reader has a more bipartisan approach: "Maybe if they got rid of the Republican Democratic parties all together things could get done in the goverment."

Add your own comments via projo.com's survey on Chafee's decision.

Continue reading to find a sampling of more comments from more blogs.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

The commenter waxes poetic to the melody of the Seven Dwarfs' "Hi Ho, Hi Ho, it's off to work we go":

RI-No

Ri-No

It's independent he'll go

No more feckless Linc

Whose family did the party sink

RI-No

Ri-No

A blog item at themoderatevoice.com has more about RINOs, saying that if "more of them are excluded, perhaps some more of them will leave the elephants' party -- and decide on Election Day to join the donkeys.

"And there are more RINO and donkeys put together than elephants."

The 23 comments attached to the piece swing back and forth: elephant, donkey, etc.

Some commenters at www.dailykos.com, which calls itself a liberal blog, see Chafee's leaving as a portentious sign for the Republican party in the northeast. "Overall, the future of the GOP on the East Coast is uncertain," begins one comment.

Another goes farther: " ... The way things are going, it's going to be hard to find anyone who will admit to being a GOPer outside of the deep South by 2010 ... ."

Not so fast, say the voices sounding off at www.clubforgrowth.org, where a writer keeps it tight: under headline "Lincoln Chafee Leaves the GOP" is this:

"What a shocker."

At Arianna Huffington's politics site, www.huffingtonpost.com, a commenter says Chafee is "one of the Few Rockefeller Republicans left and he is leaving the party." Another commenter puts it this way: "The one Republican that I didn't want to see get defeated in Nov. 06 was Chafee, other than the fact that it gave the Dems a little majority. Living in Ct., I would've gladly traded a Lieberman for a Chafee (albeit the impossibility.)"

But a commenter at www.thecarpetbaggerreport.com has a different take, putting Chafee and former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan in a "pathetic" category. "Their admissions and realizations come only after they’ve been driven from office. They’re not even ‘deathbed conversions’: it’s more like they’ve converted only after they’ve died and had to face the afterlife (and, for the record, the correct answer is Buddhism, if I have to pick one), " the commenter says.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:46 PM | Comment

Update: Assault case against Paz dismissed

A District Court judge today dismissed a case against former boxer Vinny Paz after the woman he was accused of assaulting failed to appear in court.

At issue, according to Judge William Clifton, was Paz’s Sixth Amendment right “to be confronted with the witnesses against him.”

But despite looking for her in her hometown, Eliot, Maine, as well as in Massachusetts and this state, prosecutors could not find Ashley P. Spencer, the woman police found two months ago, crying with a bloody nose near Paz’s home in Warwick.

The prosecutor in the case was Robert Sgroi and Paz's lawyer was William Devine.

Paz, a five-time boxing world champion, pleaded no contest last month to a drunken driving charge after the police found him asleep at the wheel of his running Jeep, parked in a gas station. He was sentenced to substance-abuse counseling and 60 hours of community service.

Paz worked as a sports commentator on television, and endorsed several products since he retired from boxing in 2004. He’s currently playing the lead in Thunder Doyle, a movie being filmed in Rhode Island.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 2:19 PM | Comment

Update: Mass. governor backs plan for 3 casinos

BOSTON -- Gov. Deval Patrick proposed licensing three full-scale casinos in Massachusetts today, in a move he said would generate billions of dollars in revenue and thousands of jobs.

Under the plan, the casinos would be distributed in the western, southeastern and greater metropolitan Boston regions of the state. The licenses would be put up for bid in a competitive process open to Indian tribes and casino companies.

But, he said, he did not know if bids from tribes would be given special weight. Bids also would not be limited to Massachusetts entities.

The Legislature must approve expanding legalized gambling beyond the state lottery and four racetracks.

Patrick said the casinos would generate more than $2 billion annually and create "good jobs at good wages."

"With that kind of economic benefit, we cannot reject the gaming industry out of hand," he said.

Some of the revenues would go to transportation and property tax relief, Patrick said. He also said trust funds would be created to deal with public health issues linked to gambling and "community mitigation" -- to help towns offset the costs of hosting a casino.

Patrick also emphasized the casinos would be part of a wider economic development plan.

Two of the largest casinos in the country are being operated by Indian tribes in eastern Connecticut, while the Narragansetts continue to press for a casino in Rhode Island, where Governor Carcieri remains strongly opposed.

-- With reports from Journal staff writer Paul Grimaldi

More from the Associated Press ...

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 1:47 PM | Comment

State claims man conned 8 more victims

PROVIDENCE -- The list of people allegedly conned by John P. Kluth Jr. continues to grow.

Kluth, a former lobsterman from Newport, was arraigned today on eight more counts of obtaining money under false pretenses in Superior Court, Providence.

The charges name eight new victims, bringing to 40 the total number of people he's alleged to have connned in Rhode Island. Charges are also pending in Massachusetts and Connecticut.

Investigators say Kluth would typically approach people with a story about a broken-down lobster truck. He allegedly would tell them he needed money for repairs or his catch would spoil and promise to pay them back.

Kluth, 47, pleaded not guilty to the five felonies and three misdemeanors through his lawyer, assistant public defender Joseph Dwyer.

Kluth continues to be held at the Adult Correctional Institutions.

Philanthropist Alan Shawn Feinstein is among the eight alleged new victims. Kluth allegedly cheated Feinstein out of $450. The charge is a felony because Feinstein is over 65.

Another of the alleged new victims is a Providence certified public accountant who says he was cheated out of $3,620 via several requests for money.

Kluth has been arrested several times in the state and he's been convicted at least three times of obtaining money under false pretenses.

Extra: Listen to Kluth talk about what he did with the money in an interview with Journal staff writer Gregory Smith

-- With reports from Journal staff writer Gregory Smith

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 12:46 PM | Comment

Johnston police still searching for disabled man

The Johnston police have not found a 43-year-old developmentally disabled man who has been missing since he was taken into custody and released alone last Tuesday.

The police took Anthony Smith into custody after pulling over a car he was riding in as a passenger. Smith gave conflicting information about his age, and the police brought him into the station to verify his identity.

Family members say the police knew that Anthony Smith, who lives with relatives in Providence, was disabled; they are angry he was taken into custody, and they are angry he was released before his uncle arrived at the police station.

The police say there were not aware of Smith's condition and that he went to the station voluntarily. A detective has been assigned to the case.

Smith’s relatives ask anyone with information about him to call (401) 954-5709, 863-0472 or 263-5389.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:24 AM | Comment

Cianci takes up residence in newest home / Photo

Journal photo / Steve Szydlowski
Cianci poses this morning in the courtyard of his new home at the 903 condo complex in Providence.

PROVIDENCE -- A historic East Side carriage house, the Providence Biltmore hotel and a federal prison in New Jersey share at least one distinction: They have all housed former Mayor Vincent A. "Buddy" Cianci Jr.

Now, you can add The 903 Residences to that list.

The owners of the Providence condominium complex announced today that Cianci will live among the "young professionals, empty nesters and first-time homebuyers" in the 330-unit development.

The units cost between $187,900 to $462,900. But the owners of the 903 have not said what, if anything, Cianci is paying for his new digs.

In June, Cianci worked at the 903 while on home confinement following his release from prison.

This Thursday, Cianci starts a new job -- as a talk-show host on WPRO-AM radio.

-- Journal staff writer Benjamin N. Gedan

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:07 AM | Comment

Update: Whitehouse to discuss AG's office post Gonzales

BRISTOL -- U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse is planning a trip to Roger Williams University today to discuss the state of the Department of Justice in the wake of the departure of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.

The Rhode Island Democrat is the author of legislation aimed at restoring safeguards against political interference at the Justice Department.

Whitehouse's bill would limit the number of people at the White House and Justice Department allowed to initiate discussions about ongoing cases or investigations.

The Justice Department and White House would be required to notify Congress if other officials were allowed to discuss pending investigations.

Whitehouse is scheduled to speak at noon at the university's school of law in Bristol on the same day Gonzales has announced he will leave office.

Meanwhile, President Bush this morning announced his choice of Judge Michael B. Mukasey as his nominee to replace Gonsalves.

Mukasey, 66, is a retired federal judge who served in the Southern District of New York and prosecutor is a law-and-order conservative with a strong background handling terrorist cases.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:45 AM | Comment

Gas prices drop 2 cents

Gasoline prices in Rhode Island have dropped this week, according to AAA Southern New England.

The average price for a gallon of regular, unleaded gasoline is $2.659 at the self-service pump, down two cents from last week, according to AAA's weekly survey.

The price of gasoline has dropped eight of the nine past weeks, according to AAA. It was unchanged last week.

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:12 AM | Comment

Mayor Cicilline to field questions from residents

PROVIDENCE -- Is there something you’d like to say to the mayor?

You might have a chance to tell him tonight at Mayor’s Night Out.

Beginning at 5 p.m., residents and groups are invited to meet Mayor David N. Cicilline at the city’s Emergency Management Agency & Office of Homeland Security, at 591 Charles Street.

The meetings, on a first-come, first-serve basis, give residents ten minutes to ask questions and let the mayor and city officials know what issues they're concerned about.

For more information, call (401) 421-2489, ext. 752.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 9:10 AM | Comment

Senate panel hearing set on status of 17-year-olds

Debate over the recent removal of those 17 and older from Family Court jurisdiction is headed to a state Senate committee hearing.

The Senate Health and Human Services panel's look into the matter will include a hearing Wednesday at 3 p.m. in Room 313 of the State House.

Slated to testify at the hearing are Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch, Child Advocate Jametta O. Alston, and A.T. Wall II, the state Department of Corrections director.

Invited to testify are representatives from Family Court and the state Police Chiefs Association.

The public can also testify, according to a General Assembly news release. Written testimony can also be submitted by Monday for review before the meeting.

The committee is holding a series of hearings on concerns raised about the state Department of Children, Youth and Families' care of children.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 8:00 AM | Comment

Paz due in court on domestic assault charge

Former boxer Vinny Paz is scheduled to appear in District Court, Warwick, today to face charges of domestic simple assault and domestic disorderly conduct.

Paz, a Cranston native who is now a Warwick resident, was arrested in July after the police found his girlfriend, Ashley P. Spencer, from Maine, crying with a bloody nose not far from Paz’s home.

The five-time boxing world champion pleaded no contest last month to a drunken driving charge after the police found him asleep at the wheel of his running Jeep, parked in a gas station. Paz, who legally changed his name from Vincent E. Pazienza to Vinny Paz four years ago, was sentenced to substance-abuse counseling and 60 hours of community service.

Paz worked as a sports commentator on television, and endorsed several products since he retired from boxing in 2004. He’s currently playing the lead in Thunder Doyle, a movie being filmed in Rhode Island.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:20 AM | Comment

Sunny in the mid 60s

You may want to bring a jacket with you today. The National Weather Service is forecasting a high in the mid 60s with clear and sunny skies.

Tonight we'll drop down to the high 40s.

Tomorrow should be sunny and a little warmer, with a high near 70s.

For more weather and regular updates, see projo.com/weather.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:01 AM | Comment

Today's front page

Today's front page features the second of a five part series on Cpl. Patrick Murray, a Marine from North Kingstown who was lost his leg in Iraq.

Download a copy of today's front page in .pdf format.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:00 AM | Comment

September 14, 2007

All RI's a stage, and some feature mere guitar players

Rhode Island's fall theatre season is in swing tonight. And for another kind of theater -- the guitar-slinging variety -- there's plenty going on too.

At Trinity Rep. in Providence, All the King's Men opens tonight at 8. It's adapted from Robert Penn Warren’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, with music by Randy Newman.

For more theater listenings, go here.

At Chan's Restaurant in Woonsocket, Popa Chubby -- no that's not a typo -- plays blues and rock, channeling Jimi Hendrix. (He's just put out a two-CD set of live performances of Hendrix songs.) Head over to Chan's, 267 Main St.. Call 765-1900. 8, 10 pm. $15 early show; $10 late show; $18 for both shows.

In Newport, Josh Barber and the Stack play rhythm and blues at Club Royale at Newport Grand, Admiral Kalbfus Boulevard. Call 849-5000. 9 pm.

In Providence, Brickpark play rock at Olives, 108 North Main St. Call 751-1200. 10 pm-2 am. $5.

The Paul Broadnax Trio play jazz at Capriccio, 2 Pine St., Providence. Call 421-1320. 9 pm-1 am.

For the younger set, there's the Dropkick Murphys, Horrorpops and Everybody Out playing rock at Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel, 79 Washington St., Providence. Call 331-5876, 272-5876, www.etix.com. 8:30 pm. $22.50 advance; $25 day of show; $28 reserved.

Check out the rest of the Rhode Island club listings tonight.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:55 PM | Comment

Cranston police seek public help to solve break-ins

CRANSTON -- Police are asking for the public’s help in solving a rash of house breaks in the Eden Park-Auburn section of town.

Police Maj. Ronald Blackmar today said that there have been homes burglarized in the area between Sept. 4 and Sept. 13, and that police are asking residents to phone in any suspicious or unusual activity -- even if it is just an unfamiliar person walking around a neighbor’s yard.

Detectives are pursuing a number of leads, according to Blackmar who said who could not divulge many details yet, except that all the homes were burglarized during the day, were unoccupied at the time, and that the entry was forced. He said that the thief or thieves have been taking jewelry and small electronic equipment.

“It’s mostly been the type of things that you can hide in a jacket and carry without being too noticeable,” he said.

Blackmar declined to say if the suspects are believed to be using a vehicle.

-- Journal staff writer Barbara Polichetti

He said that the Cranston police have community policing officers working in the area and have increased the number of cruisers patrolling the neighborhood which consists of closely-placed houses on side streets that extend from the west side of Pontiac Avenue near Rolfe Square.

Blackmar said that police believe that enlisting the eyes and ears of residents in the area will greatly increase the chances of catching the culprits. He said the burglaries have occurred within an area consisting of just a few blocks – roughly from Waldron Avenue to Lexington Avenue.

“We’re asking for the public’s help,” he said today. “If anybody sees anything out of the ordinary, we want them to call. People shouldn’t worry about bothering us and they should call at the time they see something and not wait until a couple of hours later.

“We’re here 24-7.”

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:14 PM | Comment

Man struck by car on Hope Street earlier today

PROVIDENCE -- A 77-year-old man was struck by a motorist earlier today on Hope Street.

The man, whom police have not identified, was taken to Miriam Hospital and then on to Rhode Island Hospital, according to Major Paul Fitzgerald. More details were not yet available.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:01 PM | Comment

Missing R.I. woman on America's Most Wanted site

Katherine N. Corcoran, the missing Lincoln woman whom police say was apparently sighted twice in Newport, is now being featured on the missing-person section of the Web site of America's Most Wanted.
The posting includes photo of Corcoran, 35, and a brief "case file" that says she's been missing since Sept. 5. It also offers a place for people to report a tip.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:35 PM | Comment

More E. Providence mosquitoes reveal West Nile

Another mosquito pool sample has tested positive for West Nile Virus, the fifth to do so this year, the state Department of Environmental Management announced today.

The mosquitoes were trapped at the same southern area of East Providence, next to the Seekonk, Mass., border where three West Nile-positive mosquito pools were found in recent weeks.

The sample was from 44 traps set around the state during the week of Sept. 1. Results from 47 other mosquito pools collected that week were negative for both West Nile and Eastern Equine Encaphalitis. Results from 10 pools from the week of Aug. 28 are still pending.

The DEM advised the public to keep screens on windows and doors and to cover up at dawn and dusk. Mosquito netting should be put over playpens and baby carriages when outside. People should use mosquito repellant with no more than 30 percent DEET in it; don't put repellant on infants.

Get rid of mosquito breeding grounds such as old tires, buckets, junk and debris. And clean gutters so they drain correctly, the DEM said.

More about mosquitoes, West Nile virus and EEE...

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:17 PM | Comment

Rainy forecast moves Pawtucket Pops to Sunday

PAWTUCKET -- The Pops in the Park concert that had been scheduled for tomorrow has been rescheduled to Sunday at 4:30 p.m. in Slater Park.

Mayor James E. Doyle said, “With rain and blustery winds forecast for late Saturday afternoon, we decided to play it safe and use the rain date schedule. We want everyone who attends the concert to have the best possible experience and we feel drier is better.”

Rhode Island Philharmonic Pops conductor Francisco Noya has planned an exciting program that includes the 1812 Overture complete with fireworks.

Officials said parking for people with handicaps is available. Participants are reminded to bring a lawn chair and a sweater or jacket as cooler temperatures are forecast for Sunday.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:12 PM | Comment

GOP hires former Chafee staffer who sent e-mails

PROVIDENCE -- The state Republican Party has hired a one-time staffer for former Senator Lincoln Chafee who sent negative e-mails about Chafee's opponent from her government computer.

Lammis Vargas was placed on unpaid leave from her job in Chafee's Providence office a week before the November election after she admitted sending e-mails criticizing Democrat Sheldon Whitehouse. She used her office computer, violating Senate rules.

State party executive director Donna Perry says party chair Giovanni Cicione discussed the incident thoroughly with Vargas. Perry says Vargas made a mistake and apologized, and she deserves a second chance.

Vargas will help with outreach and other duties.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:35 PM | Comment

Ocean State due for coastal cleanup tomorrow

Ocean Conservancy volunteers have a lot to show for 21 years of work: 100 million pounds of garbage, all from coastal areas.

Tomorrow, you can join the millions who have volunteered since then and clean up Narragansett Bay.

The Audubon Society of Rhode Island will host local activities for the International Coastal Cleanup, which was started by the Conservancy unofficially in Texas in 1986.

If you're in Providence, join the Woonasquatucket Watershed Council at corner of Kinsley and Sims Avenues in Providence to clean up debris along the Providence River which would ultimately find its way into the Bay. Another cleanup crew will tackle Fields Point.

Lunch, T-shirts, and an excuse to spend a sunny, mild day outside are on the council.

Click here for a list of cleanup areas and coordinators around the state.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 3:22 PM | Comment

Photo: Finding ways to improve the R.I. economy

Journal photo / Mary Murphy
The Economic Policy Council, a group of business, academic and political leaders that advises the governor, released the "Next Ten Ways" it believes Rhode Island can improve its economy at its quarterly meeting today. Here, council member Kip Bergstrom addresses the group. The council stressed that the state must solve the problems of water scarcity to hasten the pace of job creation. Its list also included goals for altering the state's public transportation network and high-school and adult education.

Posted by Jack Perry at 3:15 PM | Comment

Is it fugitive 'Whitey' Bulger or not? You decide

The FBI today released a photograph and videotape of a man and woman in Italy in April, believing the man in the images could be fugitive gangster James "Whitey" Bulger, one of the FBI's "Ten Most Wanted" fugitives.

We cropped one of the photographs and put it next to a known photo (right) of Bulger to help readers compare the photographs and draw their own conclusions.

Your turn: Tell us if it's him.

Read the Associated Press story.

Posted by Jack Perry at 2:28 PM | Comment

Lynch outlines $2.4B lead-paint abatement plan

PROVIDENCE -- Attorney General Patrick Lynch is proposing that three paint companies that lost an historic public nuisance trial last year now spend $2.4 billion removing lead paint from more than half the houses and apartments in Rhode Island.

The so-called abatement plan, if approved by the courts, would lead to the single biggest construction job in state history and create a precedent that is being closely watched around the country.

Lynch’s office wants the three paint companies to clean up lead paints in 240,000 houses and apartments, 12,969 seasonal housing units, 419 child care centers and 339 elementary schools over a four-year period.

He is proposing that some 10,000 workers will be needed to complete the work quickly. The massive job of replacing windows and doors and covering walls would require a “substantial training and outreach effort . . . to attract the needed workforce,” the attorney general said, in a 132-page document filed today at Providence Superior Court.

“We believe the state plan is, in a word, ridiculous,” Scott Smith, one of the lawyers representing Millenium Holdings, said.

“It’s completely unprecedented, it’s unworkable and it will, indeed, be harmful to the state.”

A six-person jury made history in February 2006 when it found Sherwin Williams, Millenium Holdings and NL Industries created a public nuisance generations ago when they made and sold the lead paints that continue to poison children in Rhode Island. The jury did not find against a fourth company, ARCO.

A fifth, DuPont, settled with the state for about $12 million. (Just last week the Healthy Homes Collaborative, formed to manage the funds, sought proposals to spend up to $2 million on public outreach and education programs in Rhode Island.)

The jury ordered the defendants to abate, or clean up, the lead paints. At the time, the state estimated the cost would range from $1.37 billion to $3.7 billion.

Researchers have shown that inhaling or ingesting even minute quantities of dust or flakes from lead paints can damage the neurological systems of developing children. Since 1991, more than 36,000 Rhode Island children have been found with elevated lead levels.

The verdict was the first loss for the paint industry in the country despite dozens of lawsuits by individuals, housing authorities and various governments.

Extra: Look back at a 2001 special report on the lead paint poisoning crisis in Rhode Island.

-- Journal environment writer Peter B. Lord

Last February, Judge Michael A. Silverstein, who presided over the trial and some six years of litigation that preceded it, rejected every plea and motion the companies filed to retry or throw out the case.

Now the defendants are pinning their hopes on an appeal to the Rhode Island Supreme Court. But that hasn’t moved forward because all sides are awaiting completion of an official transcript of the trial.

In the meantime, Silverstein rejected the companies’ petition to stop planning for the abatement work until after the appeal is heard. Instead, he set a timetable for the two sides to present abatement plans, which he said he wouldn’t put into effect until the appeal is completed.

Following Silverstein’s schedule, the companies will have until Nov. 15 to respond to the state’s plan, and then the state will have until Dec. 15 to rebut the companies’ arguments.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 12:54 PM | Comment

Jackknifed truck closes Richmond' s Rte. 138 ramp

RICHMOND -- The Route 138 east ramp onto Route 95 north should reopen soon after being closed this morning since a tractor-trailer jackknifed about 3:50 a.m., according to state police Capt. James Swanberg

The truck carried clothing and furniture in three pod containers, which apparently dislodged when the truck went off the highway and ended up on its side.

The truck driver was taken to Westerly Hospital for what were believed to be minor injuries.

The driver indicated to the police that he had been cut off, though the police haven't been able to verify that.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 12:19 PM | Comment

Convicted killer Bishop's bail hearing again put off

A bail hearing scheduled for convicted killer Alfred "Freddie" Bishop this morning has been postponed for the second time.

The hearing will be rescheduled for one week from today, according to Michael J. Healey, spokesman for Attorney General Patrick Lynch.

After spending 33 years at the Adult Correctional Institutions, Bishop now faces a murder charge stemming from a June home invasion in Warwick.

Last week, Bishop's lawyer said he was not sure if Bishop would go forward with a bail request or waive his right to a hearing.

If he does elect a hearing, it is unclear whether District Court Judge Elaine T. Bucci would grant bail given Bishop's extensive criminal background.

He was on parole at the time he is accused of fatally shooting Gabriel Medeiros and wounding two others in the home.

-- projo.com staff writer Brandie M. Jefferson, with reports from Journal staff writer Cynthia Needham

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 12:00 PM | Comment

Driver charged after man struck, killed changing flat

SOMERSET, Mass. -- A Somerset man is being charged this morning in connection with a car accident yesterday afternoon that killed 35-year old Sergio M. DaSilva, of Fall River, who was struck as he changed a flat tire.

At about 2:30 p.m., DaSilva was changing a tire on a trailer belonging to his employer, Century Paving, on Riverside Avenue in front of Somerset Marina, Police Chief Joseph Ferreira said today in a news release. DaSilva had parked in the breakdown lane, disconnecting the trailer from a truck and placing two orange safety cones behind it.

A car driven by Shain Vandal, 18, of 195 Grant Ave., struck the trailer and then DaSilva, who was in the roadway near the breakdown lane, Chief Ferreira said.

DaSilva was taken by ambulance to North Elementary School, where he was airlifted to the trauma unit at Rhode Island Hospital. The police said he was pronounced dead at about 3:55 p.m.

An off-duty Somerset Police Department reserve officer was driving behind Vandal and witnessed the accident. A preliminary investigation has ruled out alcohol and excessive speed. Vandal was reportedly putting a CD in his car’s audio player when he swerved and crashed into the trailer and DaSilva, Ferreira said.

Vandal was charged with operating a car negligently, with death resulting, a felony. He was also cited for failing to travel inside marked lanes.

A 15-year old passenger in Vandal’s car was not injured.

DaSilva’s wife gave birth to the couple’s first child two weeks ago, the police said.

-- Journal staff writer Meaghan Wims

Posted by Mike McKinney at 11:47 AM | Comment

2 Warwick men nabbed in URI dance stabbing

Authorities have arrested two Warwick men in connection with a stabbing at a University of Rhode Island dance.

Police say they do not believe Antinori D. Butterfield, 20, or Troy D. Whorms-Chotan, 22 – both of 3595 Post Road – stabbed the 20-year-old victim, who was treated and released.

But the victim said both men assaulted him, according to police.

Both men are full-time students at New England Technical Institute, in Warwick.

Whorms-Chotan is a native of the cayman Islands, Butterfield is from the Bahamas and has lived here for one month.

University and Warwick police say are anticipating more people will be charged before the investigation is complete.

A 20-year-old URI student was stabbed at an on-campus dance last week. As a result, officials have canceled school dances while they review the school’s safety procedures and determine the next course of action.

The student who was injured in the incident was treated at South County Hospital and released, according to URI.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:01 AM | Comment

Was gangster Whitey Bulger spotted in Italy?

BOSTON -- The FBI today released photographs and a videotape taken in Italy in April that show a man and woman who resemble fugitive gangster James "Whitey" Bulger - one of the agency's 10 Most Wanted - and his longtime girlfriend.

(Read more about Bulger and see video on the FBI's Web site.)

A facial recognition analysis to determine if the photos were Bulger, 77, and girlfriend Catherine Greig, 56, was inconclusive, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Authorities also questioned the couple's associates, but still couldn't determine if the photos were Bulger and Greig.

The video was taken on April 10 in Taormina, an Italian city on the island of Sicily, by someone who thought they recognized the fugitives. Authorities now want to speak with anyone who visited that area in March, April, or May 2007 and may have seen Bulger and Greig.

-- The Associated Press

The possible Bulger sighting was first reported in May by Providence television station WPRI and The Boston Globe.

WPRI in Providence, R.I., reported that a source gave the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration two photographs taken in Italy, showing a man and a woman who bear a resemblance to Bulger and Greig. The DEA turned the evidence over to the Bulger Task Force, based in Boston. FBI agents went to Italy to investigate.

Bulger, the former leader of the notorious Winter Hill Gang who also an FBI informant, fled just before he was indicted on racketeering charges in 1995. He is charged in 19 murders.

Bulger planned for life on the run by leaving cash in safe deposit boxes around the world. Safe deposit boxes believed used by Bulger have been discovered in Florida, Ireland, England and Canada and authorities believe there are more out there.

Authorities have received hundreds of tips about possible Bulger sightings in more than a dozen countries.

The last confirmed sighting, according to the FBI, was in London in September 2002. Many of the sightings have turned out to be Bulger lookalikes.

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:24 AM | Comment

Break leaves 100s without gas in East Providence

National Grid employees are walking door to door in the Riverside neighborhood of East Providence turning the gas back on and igniting pilot lights after a gas main break disrupted service to about 400 households yesterday.

According to David Graves, a spokesman for National Grid, the company got a call from a construction crew working on Crescent View Avenue at about 3 p.m. reporting the main had been ruptured.

Graves said a loose drainage pipe rose with the tide along the Providence River -- where construction crews were working on a bridge – and knocked into the gas main.

National Grid employees walked to all of the houses, manually turning off gas and letting residents know that they'd call when main was repaired.

"Many residents said, 'Don't bother waking us up,'" Graves said. The damage was repaired at about 11:30 p.m.

Graves said he does not know exactly how many people are still without gas, but employees are calling and going door-to-door until they’ve reached everyone.

After turning on the gas line to individual homes, workers need to get inside the house and relight pilots.

It's not hard work, Graves said, "but it's labor intensive."

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 9:46 AM | Comment

Update: Patient goes off Kent Hospital roof

A patient dropped from a one-story rooftop at Kent Hospital yesterday and was taken to Rhode Island Hospital in stable condition, according to a Kent spokesman this morning.

The spokesman said that the male inpatient, admitted to Kent Monday, was in a room with a nurse and a staff member when he left his bed and broke through a window, falling one story and landing on the roof of another hospital building.

He went from one rooftop to another, one-story structure, and then "left the roof and landed on the ground," according to Brian Wallin, director of public relations at the Warwick hospital.

Wallin said he was not able to say whether the patient jumped or fell. He would not identify the patient.

An EMT near the spot where the patient landed responded. The patient was taken to Kent's emergency room, stabilized, and then transported to Rhode Island Hospital "because of the nature of his injuries," Wallin said.

Kent reported the incident, and the state Department of Health visited the hospital yesterday to begin a review.

"We certainly conduct our own review," Wallin said, "and will make it known to the department."

This incident less than a month after a 59-year-old Westerly woman died from her injuries after falling out of a window at Our Lady of Fatima Hospital in North Providence.

This week, the Health Department issued a formal reprimand in that case and ordered the hospital to hire an independent consultant to determine whether systematic problems led to the woman's fatal fall.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 9:26 AM | Comment

Teacher talks continue in East Greenwich

EAST GREENWICH — Contract talks between the East Greenwich teachers’ union and the School Committee resume this evening at 5.

This is the first scheduled meeting for both sides, since the 235 rank-and-file members were ordered back to work by a Superior Court judge last Friday, following a three-day strike that delayed the start of school.

On the third day, the School Committee filed a compliant against the union in Kent County Superior Court seeking an injunction.

Teachers are working under their previous contracts which expired Aug. 31

-- Journal staff reporter Lisa Vernon-Sparks

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:08 AM | Comment

Chinese pingpong star to tour Bryant University

SMITHFIELD -- A Chinese pingpong star who helped rekindle contact between the U.S. and China during the Cold War plans to appear at Bryant University tonight.

Zhuang Zedong was a member of the Chinese national pingpong team in 1971, when Communist leader Mao Zedong had closed off contact with the West.

During a competition in Japan, Zhuang spoke with a member of the American team, one of a series of exchanges that culminated in President Nixon's groundbreaking visit to China in 1972.

Promoted within the Chinese Communist Party, Zhuang was drawn into a power struggle after Mao's death and detained. Freed years ago, he's now traveling the U.S. to promote Chinese language and culture institutes, including one at Bryant.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:02 AM | Comment

Sunny and 76

What a great way to start the weekend.

The National Weather Service is predicting a high today of 76 degrees and sunshine all day long.

Tonight's low will be in the high 50s.

There's a chance of rain tomorrow morning, but the clouds should move on and Saturday should be mostly sunny with a high in the low 70s and an overnight low in the high 40s.

Sunday is looking sunny too, but chilly, with a high in the mid 60s and an overnight low in the mid 40s.

Next week looks like it will get off to a nice start, with a high in the low 70s and sunny skies.

For more weather and regular updates, see projo.com/weather.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:01 AM | Comment

Today's front page

Today's front page features a report on the NFL's penalizing the New England Patriot's and Coach Bill Belichick for illegally videotaping an opposing coach in Sunday's game against the New York Jets.

Download a copy of today's front page in .pdf format.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:00 AM | Comment

September 13, 2007

Photo: A treat for all the senses

Journal photo / Bob Thayer
Those who make a habit of getting their coffee and pastries at Pastiche on Federal Hill are also treated to the lovely window boxes at the cafe's entrance. Today, employee Derek LaBrie of Providence takes a peek at the equally lovely weather outside.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 7:00 PM | Comment

Tonight: Live in L'il Rhody, it's rock and R&B

There's rock and rhythm and blues shows aplenty around the state tonight.

And some jazz: Mac Chrupcala plays Capriccio restaurant, 2 Pine St., Providence. Call 421-1320. 7 to 11 p.m.

ContraBand, acoustic rock, Parente's Restaurant, 1114 Douglas Pike, Smithfield. Call 231-7600. 9:30 pm.

East Side Horns and Mac Odom and Chill, rhythm and blues and Motown, The Hi-Hat, 3 Davol Square, Providence. Call 453-6500. 8 pm to midnight.

The 'Mericans, rhythm and blues, Nick-A-Nee's, 75 South St., Providence. Call 861-7290. 9 pm.

Split Infinity, rock, J.R.'s Bourbon Street Rock House, Mardi Gras Multi Club and Johnny Bahama's Complex, 1500 Oaklawn Ave., Cranston. Call 463-3080. 9 p.m. to 1 a.m.

Take3, rock, Ri-Ra, 50 Exchange Terrace, Providence. Call 272-1953. 10 pm. $5.

For more of what's happening around Rhode Island, visit projo.com's music and calendar listings.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:58 PM | Comment

Update: Still 5 candidates for Traffic Tribunal post

PROVIDENCE — A screening committee today decided it would not eliminate any of the five candidates vying for the new $132,062-a-year position of chief magistrate of the state Traffic Tribunal.

The Magistrate Selection Committee could have provided anywhere from three to five names to Supreme Court Chief Justice Frank J. Williams, whom the legislature has placed in charge of choosing a nominee.

But after more than two hours of interviews and less than 10 minutes of deliberations, the committee decided to forward all five names.

“Some did a little better than others, but there was not such a great difference that would exclude anybody,” said Traffic Tribunal Judge Edward C. Parker, chairman of the Magistrate Selection Committee.

So the five finalists are:

· William R. Guglietta, 46, of Cranston, chief legal counsel to House Majority Leader Gordon D. Fox, D-Providence, and a part-time Cranston Municipal Court judge.

· Kelly A. McElroy, 35, of Warwick, a special assistant attorney general in the criminal division.

· Bruce W. McIntyre, 54, of Jamestown, deputy legal counsel in the state Health Department, where he advises the Rhode Island Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline.

· Gail M. Valuk, 42, of Richmond, deputy state court administrator.

· William J. Vescera, 46, of Woonsocket, who has solo law practice in Johnston concentrating in residential and commercial real estate transactions.

There was no immediate word on when Williams might choose a nominee, who will face Senate confirmation. The chief magistrate will be appointed to a 10-year term and have the power to appoint magistrates to the Traffic Tribunal.

-- Journal staff writer Edward Fitzpatrick

Earlier this year, the General Assembly removed the Traffic Tribunal from under District Court Chief Judge Albert E. DeRobbio and created the position of chief magistrate. Legislators denied they were exacting revenge for DeRobbio’s failure to pick magistrate candidates favored by Assembly leaders. They said the change was part of a budget article creating greater uniformity among the state’s 18 magistrates.

Candidates for the new job are not going through the Judicial Nominating Commission process required for all state judges. Instead, the Assembly put Williams in charge of the appointment, and Williams created the selection committee, which includes Parker, AAA Southern New England Senior Vice President Robert P. Murray and lawyer Alfred A. Russo Jr., a former Democratic state representative from Johnston who served on the transition team of Fox, and Democratic House Speaker William J. Murphy.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 6:45 PM | Comment

Fall River man struck, killed while changing flat tire

SOMERSET, Mass. -- A Fall River man who was changing a flat tire on Riverside Avenue died after being struck by a car heading north on the avenue this afternoon, said Lt. Stephen Moniz.

The police have not yet disclosed the identity of the man who was killed, but said he was in his mid-30s. He was flown by helicopter to Rhode Island Hospital from the accident that happened about 2:30 p.m.

Local police are working with a state police reconstruction unit to figure out what happened.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:20 PM | Comment

Algae bloom promotes toxin in Ten Mile River

State officials today advise the public to temporarily avoid recreational activities that include contact with water from the Ten Mile River and a related reservoir and pond because of an algae bloom.

The river starts in Massachusetts and forms the boundary between that state and Rhode Island, along the northern half of East Providence and Seekonk, Mass.

The state Department of Environmental Management said today it had spotted a bright green algae bloom in the Turner Reservoir and that lab tests found high levels of the natually occurring toxin microcystin. The algae can undergo explosive growth under certain conditions, such as continued warm, sunny weather.

Health risks from casual contact with water containing the toxin are low, but people could feel serious health effects if they drank the water. High microcystin levels in water can seriously damage the liver. Symptoms of exposure include stomach cramps, vomiting, diarrhea, fever, muscle and joint pain, skin, eye and throat irritation.

"People should avoid recreational activities, such as swimming or fishing, that involve contact with this water, until water samples are safe," David Gifford, the state health director, said in a statement.

The situation is likely to improve over time, the DEM said, noting that Tuesday's rains flushed some of the algae downstream. The shorter, cooler days ahead should also help kill off the algae and reduce toxins.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:06 PM | Comment

Cessna, a Textron unit, reaches accord with union

WICHITA, Kan. -- Cessna Aircraft officials say they've reached a tentative three-year agreement with their machinists union.

Cessna is a unit of Rhode Island-based Textron.

The negotiating committee for the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers are recommending workers approve the agreement when they vote Saturday. The union represents 5,400 hourly workers.

Union representatives couldn't be immediately reached for comment.

According to the union's Web site, Cessna's offer calls for a 5 percent wage increase the first year and a 4 percent increase in the second and third year. There's also a $3,000 lump-sum bonus.

Under the deal, insurance premiums for all three health care plans remain the same. Pensions would increase. Workers also will get more time off.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:54 PM | Comment

Update: Bomb in Worden Pond posed no threat

SOUTH KINGSTOWN -- The aerial bomb the police say a fisherman found in two to three feet of Worden Pond waters was heavily rusted and posed no threat, said Kevin Quinn, deputy chief of the Union Fire District.

Quinn said divers located the bomb after about 45 minutes. It disintegrated when they tried to retrieve it, so they left the pieces on the pond floor, he said.

Three divers from the Navy bomb squad and members of the state fire marshal's bomb squad were studying the find, which was in the northwest corner of the pond, to determine whether it was active.

According to the Kingston fire chief, the Navy used the pond for World War II target practice.

In 1999, a diver discovered an unexploded, 350- to 400-pound torpedo warhead at Point Judith Pond. It was removed -- with a backhoe -- without incident.

-- projo.com writers Michael P. McKinney and Brandie M. Jefferson, with reports from Journal staff writer Katie Mulvaney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:28 PM | Comment

Lawyer: Va. daughter took much of Eifrig's money

PROVIDENCE -- In a stunning development, a lawyer for a demented 90-year-old woman told a Superior Court judge today that the woman’s Virginia daughter took more than $300,000 of her mother’s money and deposited it in accounts in her own name, without ever disclosing to him or the mother’s court-appointed guardian that the money existed.

The funds represented about 40 percent of retired schoolteacher Laurette Eifrig's life savings, control over which has led to a long and bitter court battle between two sisters, one of whom lives in Rhode Island.

By late this morning, the daughter in Virginia, Francine Ardito, of Reston, had returned $251,183.27 of the money she had taken.

The money arrived by overnight Federal Express mail, as Superior Court Judge Alice B. Gibney was weighing whether to proceed with a scheduled contempt hearing against her.

She’ll have to repay her mother another $5,000. The rest the judge approved as payment of legal fees to Ardito’s Rhode Island lawyer, Janet Mastronardi, whom Ardito hired in her unsuccessful bid to become her mother’s guardian.

Gibney continued the contempt hearing until Oct. 11. Ardito -- who is currently barred by court order from visiting with her mother -- was ordered to provide a full accounting of Eifrig’s assets by then.

If she does -- and there are no other unforeseen developments -- the battle between Eifrig’s daughters over where their mother should live and who should have control of her money may finally end.

-- Journal staff writer Tracy Breton

Continue reading for the latest. Find more about this story in Tracy Breton's continuing report on elder abuse.

It was supposed to end over a month ago when Gibney signed off on a settlement agreement. The settlement would allow Eifrig to remain living in Rhode Island as she desires but also cost her $186,000 in lawyer and guardian fees -- including $60,122.49 for daughter Ardito’s lawyer.

But the settlement got stalled when Eifrig’s lawyer, Richard A. Boren, and her court-appointed guardian, Paula M. Cuculo, learned that Ardito had used some of her mother’s money, without court approval, to pay Mastronardi and to hire a Virginia lawyer to undo orders issued by Gibney.

Then, earlier this week, they learned from the Virginia lawyer that Ardito had taken almost $302,000 of her mother’s money out of her trust and put the money in various accounts in her own name.

James P. Head, Ardito’s Virginia lawyer, said in a letter to Boren that the reason his client had transferred the money was “to prevent her sister from accessing them.”

He said Ardito did this shortly after her older sister, Suzette Gebhard, a one-time congressional candidate and the former head of the Rhode Island League of Women Voters, moved their mother from Virginia to her house in Warren, without notifying Ardito. At the time of the move, in May 2006, Ardito had power of attorney for her mother and was co-trustee of her mother’s trust.

Head insisted in his letter that Ardito’s transfer of the money was “expressly permissible” under Virginia law because Eifrig’s trust gave her younger daughter the power “to hold property in her name or in the name of nominees.”

But Eifrig’s lawyer, Boren, disputed that today. He said he is “deeply troubled” by Ardito’s actions. Her ailing mother, who is now blind and also suffers from Alzheimer’s disease, needs her savings to continue to be able to afford her $4,900-a-month rent at Capitol Ridge, her assisted-living residence on Smith Street in Providence.

And Boren pointed out that even though Eifrig had testified in summer 2006 that she had about $735,000 in savings at the time of her move to Rhode Island, Ardito had given sworn testimony to Gibney in mid-2006 that the amount she was holding in her mother’s trust was $500,000 to $600,000.

Eifrig, he said, “testified on the mark…In fact it is approximately $725,000.”

Eifrig’s court-appointed guardian, lawyer Paula M. Cuculo, went further. She called Ardito a liar who had engaged in “a cover-up.”

“Who was she protecting the money for? Her or her mother? The excuses her Virginia attorney has come up with are blatantly false. There was no need to put money in her own name when Smith-Barney (a brokerage company) had agreed to freeze all of the funds, and she in fact had deposited several of Laurette’s accounts into the Smith Barney, She could have put all of the money in there.”

Cuculo said that since she first met Ardito in the summer of 2006, “she has repeatedly told me that the only money she was holding for her mother was between $400,000 to $500,000 and that she’d made a mistake on the stand” in claiming there might be $600,000. In fact, it there was much more so it was a cover-up.”

Head, Ardito’s lawyer, has repeatedly said in interviews that Ardito only has her mother’s best interest at heart. But Cuculo disputed that today.

“If she was truly putting the money into her own account to protect it…then she had an obligation to disclose what she had and she repeatedly lied about it. Had Richard and I not asked for Laurette’s tax returns as part of an accounting, I think that’s when she realized we were going to find out about these other funds.”

After Boren received the emoney from Ardito at his law office, he turned over the four checks -- all payable to Cuculo -- who promptly mailed them to an investment adviser in New York who is handling Eifrig's investments.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:00 PM | Comment

Photo: Building a house to call a home

Journal photo / Kathy Borchers
Sheila White and two of her five children, Jenna and Jonah Tate, 9-year-old twins, attend a wall-raising ceremony today at the site of their new home at 815 Potters Ave. in Providence. It will be built as part of a Habitat for Humanity initiative called "First Families Building Homes Across America," a two-year program of Habitat's Women Build program. Among those helping out today were Governor and Mrs. Carcieri and Lt. Gov. Elizabeth Roberts.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 3:57 PM | Comment

E. Greenwich teacher talks resume tomorrow

EAST GREENWICH -- Contract talks between the East Greenwich teachers’ union and the School Committee resume tomorrow at 5 p.m.

This is the first scheduled meeting for both sides, since the 235 rank-and-file members were ordered back to work by a Superior Court judge last Friday, following a three-day strike that delayed the start of school.

On the third day, the School Committee filed a compliant against the union in Kent County Superior Court seeking an injunction.

Meanwhile, in Exeter-West Greenwich, mediated contract talks continue tonight.

The 210 teachers in the regional school district reported to work when school began on Aug. 29.

Both unions are working under their previous contracts, which expired Aug. 31.

-- Journal staff writer Lisa Vernon-Sparks

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:45 PM | Comment

Traffic Tribunal chief candidates to be interviewed

PROVIDENCE -- A committee this afternoon will interview five candidates for the new post of state Traffic Tribunal chief magistrate, a $132,062-per-year position.

The candidates are:

* William R. Guglietta, of Cranston, chief legal counsel to House Majority Leader Gordon D. Fox, D-Providence, and a part-time Cranston Municipal Court judge.

* Kelly A. McElroy, of Warwick, a special assistant attorney general in the criminal division since 2000.

* Bruce W. McIntyre, of Jamestown, deputy legal counsel at the state Health Department, where he's been legal adviser to the Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline since 1991.

* Gail M. Valuk, of Richmond, a lawyer and deputy state court administrator since 2001.

* William J. Vescera, of Woonsocket, a lawyer with a private practice in Johnston.

The legislature this year created the chief magistrate post, removing the tribunal from under District Court Chief Judge Albert E. DeRobbio.

The legislature put Supreme Court Chief Justice Frank J. Williams in charge of the appointment, and he created a selection committee: Traffic Tribunal Judge Edward C. Parker, lawyer and former Democratic state Rep. Alfred A. Russo Jr., and AAA Southern New England senior vice president Robert P. Murray.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with Journal archival reports

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:10 PM | Comment

In Newport, an international feast for boaters / Photo

Journal photo / Frieda Squires
Gene Magnetti, left, of Eastland Yachts, Mamaroneck, N.Y., invites visitors to tour the Sabre 42 today as the boat show opens in Newport.

Do you like sailboats?

Power boats?

Boat accessories?

Boaters?

They’ll all be at the 37th annual Newport International Boat Show, which started today and runs through Sunday.

More then 500 companies will be showing off products, and a special project “Newport for New Products” displays the newest of the new products – those released between April 13 and Sept. 13.

Last year, 65 boats were debuted at the show.

And you couldn’t ask for better weather in the East Coast sailing mecca, at least for today and tomorrow, with predicted high temperatures in the low 70s and clear, sunny skies.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 2:37 PM | Comment

Boy, 12, hit by driver Sunday remains critical today

PROVIDENCE -- Eric Jimenez, the 12-year-old injured by a hit-and-run driver on Bucklin Street Sunday, remains in critical condition at Hasbro Children's Hospital this afternoon, a hospital spokeswoman said.

Eric's brother, 8-year-old Ivan, was killed when the pair were struck while walking home, the police said.

Ivan's wake was held last night at Bell Funeral Home on Broad Street, where a funeral service was slated for 10 a.m. today.

The accused hit-and-run driver, Dennis H. Cherry Jr., 26, of no permanent address, faces two felony charges for allegedly having left the scene of the accident, and he is being held at the Adult Correctional Institutions. He also has been charged with leaving his lane of travel, operating left of center, and failure to show due care.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 1:52 PM | Comment

Observances begin together: Rosh Hashanah and Ramadan

Journal photo / Andrew Dickerman
From left, Rabbi Wayne Franklin, his daughter, Batya, 13, Rabbi Alvan Kaunfer and Dr. Steven Peiser, participants in Temple Emanuel-el Rosh Hashanah service, yesterday practice blowing the shofar. The horns will be sounded during observances today in the Providence synagogue and others around the world.

For the third year in a row, Rosh Hashanah and Ramadan are overlapping.

Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, began at sundown last night, and continues through today and, for some communities, tomorrow.

The holiday marks the first day of the Hebrew month Tishrei, 163 days after the first day of Passover. It can come as early as Sept. 5, or as late as Oct. 5.

The holiday is also marked by the shofar, a trumpet made from a ram's horn and prayer.

Like many holidays across religions, meals during Rosh Hashanah are marked with symbolism. Apples and honey are staples that symbolize the sweetness of a new year and round loaves of challah refer to the cycle of a new year.

Food is a symbol in another holiday that begins today; this year, Sept. 13 is the first day of the fast for Ramadan.

Abstaining from food represents discipline during the ninth month of the Islamic year when Muslims focus less on day-to-day affairs and more on faith and community.

The fast begins after a pre-dawn prayer and breakfast and lasts until the end of the fourth daily prayer, at sundown.

While Muslim holidays are tied to a lunar calendar, Jewish holidays are are determined both by calendar that is mostly, lunar but adjusted to keep seasonal constancy.

For the past three years, the calendars have met on these two holidays.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 1:11 PM | Comment

Burrillville teachers tender new contract proposal

BURRILLVILLE -- The town’s teachers have tendered a new proposal in their contract negotiations with the School Committee.

The union’s latest offering is based, in part, on a recent review of the school system’s spending plan for the current fiscal year, Patrick Crowley, a representative of the Burrillville Education Association, said today.

“It’s something that we envision as a way to break the stalemate,” he said.

Crowley declined to discuss the specifics of the proposal in any further detail, but he said union leaders had high hopes for it after they made the offer during a mediation session yesterday.

The union expects a counter-proposal from the school district when both sides meet again at 4 p.m. Wednesday.

-- Journal staff writer Mark Reynolds

Posted by Mike McKinney at 12:46 PM | Comment

Sen. Reed to give Dems' response to Bush tonight

President Bush will speak to the nation about Iraq at 9 tonight, and U.S. Sen. Jack Reed, D-Rhode Island, will deliver the Democrats' response immediately after.

Reed is on the Senate Armed Services Committee, one of the panels that heard in person this week from Gen. David H. Petraeus, the leading commander of U.S. forces in Iraq.

Petraeus came under questioning from congressmen about the situation relative to current and future troop numbers in Iraq. He and others argued the increase in troop levels, known as the surge, has fostered signs of progress in Iraq while others criticized him as repeating the administration's line while ignoring evidence that means it's time for a larger draw-down there.

Bush is expected to say his approach now is to gradually phase out in escalation in forces in Iraq by next July.

Bush's speech will be broadcast on TV and online. Projo.com will have live streaming video of the speech and Reed's response.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 12:04 PM | Comment

ACLU files suit against Providence police

The Rhode Island Affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union has filed an open records lawsuit against the Providence Police Department.

The lawsuit comes one week after the group released a report citing examples of non-compliance with the state's open records law.

Extra: read the report.

The group says it filed the lawsuit after sending two records requests to Providence Police Chief Dean Esserman asking for information relating to the use of video surveillance in public places.

The ACLU says in a press release that the two requests went unanswered.

ACLU Attorney Staci Kolb calls the lawsuit "particularly troublesome," because two requests were ignored and, she said, because it is similar to a lawsuit filed by the group in 2000 where the court ruled in the ACLU's favor.

"I believe that as a result of this conduct," Kolb said, "the public is left to question the police department's dedication to complying with the Access to Public Records Act."

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:37 AM | Comment

Grants will help keep pollutants out Narragansett Bay

The state’s Department of Environmental Management has awarded nearly $170,000 for seven projects to restore vegetation along rivers, lakes and ponds across the state.

The vegetation – also known as a riparian buffer -- will act as a filter removing sediment and other pollutants from water making its way through watersheds to a bigger body of water and, ultimately, into the Bay.

“Maintaining riparian buffers in a natural condition is integral to the ecology of natural systems,” DEM Director W. Michael Sullivan said in a statement.

The money is part of the $70 million Open Space, Recreation, Bay and Watershed Protection Bond that was approved in 2004.

In a statement, Gov. Carcieri said he believes Narragansett Bay is the state’s most valuable resource.

“While this work will be performed in communities like East Greenwich and Middletown,” he said, “the benefits of these environmental improvements will be felt throughout Narragansett Bay and throughout all Rhode Island for years to come.”

Middletown will get two grants -- $20,000 to remove invasive plants and plant native ones along Bailey Brook, and $39,000 to restore watershed land on the north end of the Bailey Brook watershed.

East Greenwich will get $32,000 to build a 50-food wide vegetated buffer an both sides of the peninsula at Maskerchugg Creek and Greenwich Cove.

Johnston and Wales University is getting $26,000 to establish a 2-acre vegetated buffer along the Providence/Cranston line.

Two grants will go toward restoration at the DEM’s Arcadia Management Area -- $7,700 to restore vegetation along Brook Trail, adjacent to the Wood River and $34,500 for replanting at Beach Pond.

The Woonasquatucket Watershed Council is getting $10,000 to restore the vegetation on land owned by the Department of Transportation adjacent to Cutler Brook in Gloucester.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 10:49 AM | Comment

Business group opposes Providence waterfront plan

Taking aim at the City Plan Commission’s vision of the Providence waterfront, a group of Providence Port-area businesses, are announcing the formation of the Providence Working Waterfront Alliance.

The new comprehensive plan, which the commission approved on Aug. 23, restricts heavy industrial business south of Thurbers Avenue and uses new zoning regulations to encourage mixed-use development.

In a statement from the new group -- which includes representatives from companies such as J. Goodison Company, Promet Marine Services and Northeast Marine Pilots -- Captain E. Howard McVay, Jr. said although residential development along the port could increase property tax revenues, he cautioned “this gentrification of Providence’s working waterfront is shortsighted.”

The group plans to meet with city officials and the public to share the history of the industrial port and explain why it thinks mixed-use development is a bad economic move.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 10:20 AM | Comment

Injured protester arraigned in wheelchair/ Photo

Journal photo / Bill Murphy
Alexandra Svoboda enters District Court for her arraignment this morning.

PROVIDENCE -- The 23-year-old protester whose leg was broken as she was being arrested by the North Providence police wheeled herself up to the judge's bench this morning for her arraignment.

Alexandra Svoboda, 23, was arrested on August 26 d