Projo 7 to 7 News Blog

By Amanda Milkovits
Journal staff writer

PROVIDENCE -- The man found dead under an overpass on Eddy Street last Friday has been identified as 56-year-old Paul Langlais, of Coventry, according to a state health spokeswoman.

The R.I. medical examiners office found that Langlais had died of heart disease.

Langlais' body was found by a construction worker early Friday morning, after a night of frigid temperatures.

Langlais was known to people at the Crossroads Rhode Island shelter in Providence, where he'd last been seen two years ago. The police said they also knew Langlais; he had a long criminal record with charges related to alcohol abuse.

Correction: An earlier posting misspelled Langlais' name.

PROVIDENCE -- Governor Carcieri's presentation tonight of his plan to grapple with Rhode Island's $357 million current-year budget deficit can be seen and heard by the public as it happens.

It's slated to air on Channels 6, 10 and 12 and, for radio listeners, on 630 WPRO-AM and 920 WHJJ.

Channel 12's Web site, wpri.com, and Channel 10's Web site, turnto10.com, will also Webcast the address.

The governor is due to speak at 7 p.m.

By Gina Macris
Journal staff writer

PROVIDENCE -- The city of East Providence must be allowed to join in legal arguments against the teachers' union, which wants the Superior Court to reverse a salary cut effective at the end of the current pay period, Jan. 16.

City officials say it is particularly urgent that they be permitted to intervene in the case in light of a cumulative $9.3 million deficit projected for the schools and the possibility that the city is facing bankruptcy.

"It's worse than broke," Mayor Joseph S. Larisa Jr. said at a City Council meeting Tuesday night.

"If we were to pay all of [the school district's still accumulating deficit], we would need a 20 percent tax increase, at least, in this economy," he said.

This afternoon, City Solicitor Matthew T. Oliverio said, "We can't sit by idly. We have to intervene and advance very critical arguments" that Judge Mark A. Pfeiffer must consider before he decides whether to grant the relief sought by teachers.

The School Committee is counting on a salary rollback of about 5 percent that would save nearly $3 million by the end of the city's current fiscal year, Oct. 31.

"We laud the School Committee for their position," Oliverio said after a conference in Pfeiffer's chambers, "but it is not enough."

The school department incurred a $4.2 million deficit in the last budget cycle and is expected to rack up an additional $4.1 million in debt by the end of October, Oliverio said.

By Amanda Milkovits
Journal staff writer

PAWTUCKET -- Two families were left homeless after a fire ignited today in the basement of aa home at 42 Campbell St.

Fire Capt. Timothy Noiseux said the firefighters on Engine 6, the first responding company, quickly knocked down the fire, but a 17-year-old boy living in the house was taken to Memorial Hospital for smoke inhalation. The Rhode Island Chapter of the American Red Cross was called to offer temporary shelter and assistance.

The Red Cross has had a busy winter in responding to house fires. In November and December, the Red Cross handled 33 house fires and assisted 229 people with food, clothing and shelter, said spokeswoman Marisa Albanese.

By Richard Salit
Journal staff writer

A Prudence Island mother said today that a coyote attacked her 7-year-old daughter in their backyard and might have dragged her off into the woods if their family dog hadn't fought off the wild animal and saved her from harm.

If accurate -- no adults actually witnessed the incident and it remains under investigation -- it would be the first known attack on a human in Rhode Island since coyotes first arrived here nearly 50 years ago, according to Charles Brown, principal wildlife biologist.

"It's an extremely rare occurrence," he said. "We've never had a case like this."

Denise Allard said that coyotes have been seen with increasing frequency the past couple of years on the sparsely-populated island off Portsmouth in the middle of Narragansett Bay. On Dec. 30, her daughter, Lauren, went to play outside with Kelly, their yellow Labrador, just as it was getting dark.

When Allard went out to check on her daughter, at about 4:15, "I heard the dog barking frantically and Lauren screaming," Allard said.

Her daughter had gone across a narrow street behind her house to a wall that borders state-owned woods. Now, she was hysterical and running home with Kelly.

The girl said that a dog by the wall had suddenly lunged at her and grabbed her arm with its mouth. The animal was tugging on her until Kelly jumped into the fray. The girl thought Kelly bit the other animal and that Kelly might have been bit, too.

Allard, who hunts deer with a crossbow and has seen coyotes lurking in her neighborhood, immediately figured it was no dog that attacked Lauren. She's confident it was a coyote.

Once inside, Allard could find no bite marks on Lauren's arm. And Kelly, who was up to date on her vaccinations, only seemed to have a slight mark under her chin.

Allard reported the incident to the Portsmouth Police and its animal control officer. The state Department of Environmental Management was also notified. Volunteer firefighters tended to her daughter, but Allard declined having the Portsmouth paramedics visit by boat. Instead, she consulted with Lauren's physician.

The state recommends that any dog that has been vaccinated immediately receive a booster shot and be quarantined at home for 45 days, according to DEM spokeswoman Gail Mastrati, speaking on behalf of the state veterinarian. Allard said her veterinarian directed her to quarantine Kelly and not to bring the dog in for a booster until afterward.

By Thomas J. Morgan
Journal staff writer

PROVIDENCE -- The Rhode Island Supreme Court has rejected the appeal of a suspect facing a drunken-driving charge who contended that law-enforcement officials improperly obtained records from Westerly Hospital that have become part of the evidence against him.

The court ruled that the case is moot because the records are already in the hands of Connecticut officials and said any ruling by the Rhode Island court system would not be binding on Connecticut courts.

John S. Remington Jr., whose age and address were not listed in the Supreme Court decision, was involved in an accident on Sept. 18, 2006 in Stonington, Conn., according to the court ruling. Remington's motorcycle struck the back of another vehicle after a party at Misquamicut Beach in Westerly, the court said, and he was knocked unconscious.

Remington was taken to Westerly Hospital, where medical personnel took blood samples.

Suspecting that Remington had been legally drunk, the police in Stonington enlisted the help of the Rhode Island Attorney General's office to obtain the results of the blood test. When the Office of the Attorney General issued a subpoena for the test results, Remington filed a motion to quash it. The Rhode Island Superior Court denied the motion, ruling that it had been filed in an untimely manner. The Superior Court later allowed the Office of Attorney General to obtain the blood test results, which were then turned over to the Stonington police.

"Now that the medical records are in Connecticut, this Court lacks the authority to tell our sister state what to do with them," the Supreme Court decision declared.

And, the court said, because any decision by it on the merits of the case "will not have a practical effect on the underlying controversy, the case is moot."

Read the court's order.

Reporter Linda Borg is new to Barrington and would like to speak with parents about the public schools. She is looking for story ideas, trends, anything that's on the minds of parents with children in the schools. You can reach her at lborg@projo.com or 277-7823.

Sit Down Baby plays the blues tonight at Tazza Caffe and Lounge in Providence.

The music begins at 9 p.m. Blues on Tuesday is a weekly feature at Tazza, at 250 Westminster St.

Check out what else is going on tonight and through the weekend by consulting projothebeat.com, projo.coms calendar of events in Rhode Island and beyond.

By C. Eugene Emery Jr.
Journal staff writer

If you own an old television set and haven't made your request for one of those $40 coupons to help you buy a digital converter box, you may be seeing a lot of snow on your Sony after Feb. 17, even if you request a converter today.

The problem could apply to as many as 10,000 households in the Providence-New Bedford television market.

The Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced this week that its coupons program has run into a cash flow problem.

People who requested vouchers for the boxes this week are now on a waiting list that, as of Monday, was roughly 103,000 names long. They will only get their coupons as already-delivered coupons expire.

About half the coupons that have been ordered have gone unused.

The converter boxes, which range in price from $40 to $80, are needed so older TVs can recognize view over-the-air signals when stations switch to digital broadcasts next month. Cable television subscribers will not be affected.

The creation of the waiting list prompted Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch to issue a statement today warning consumers not to fall for conversion-related scams designed to charge people far more than the cost of the box itself.

"As frustrating as it is that the federal government has failed to adequately fund this initiative, it will be worse if consumers become victimized by scams in the days leading up to the switch-over," he said.

>> Continue reading: Coupons for converter boxes run into cash-flow problem

By Tracy Breton
Journal staff writer

PROVIDENCE -- At the request of lawyers representing victims of The Station nightclub fire and the parties they sued for money damages, federal Magistrate Judge David L. Martin has rescheduled the next status conference in the case until Jan. 20 at 10 a.m.

At a hearing yesterday, Martin had set Jan. 14 as the date for the next conference.

More than 300 plaintiffs who suffered injuries or lost a loved one in the Feb. 20, 2003, nightclub fire are expecting to receive money from a $176 million settlement fund. A court-appointed special master, Duke University Law School Prof. Francis E. McGovern, is expected to submit his plan for distributing the proceeds to the court on Friday.

Cranston police have been in Massachusetts today, working with the FBI to determine what happened to a woman from Cranston found today at a Braintree, Mass., shopping center.

An attempted abduction is one possibility police say they are looking at, but the investigation is ongoing. Few details are available at this time.

Cranston police Maj. Ronald T. Blackmar said Cranston police received a call at about noon today in reference to a situation involving the woman. Cranston detectives have been talking with the woman, he said.

PROVIDENCE -- Mayor David N. Cicilline has ordered that flags in Providence be flown at half staff in memory of Fire Capt. Frank J. Quetta, who died Tuesday.

Quetta, who received several commendations for bravery and heroic actions since joining the department in 1979, had been struggling with leukemia.

-- Journal staff writer Richard C. Dujardin

By Felice J. Freyer
Journal medical writer

Mario Della Grotta, the Cranston man who became the first American to undergo brain surgery for obsessive-compulsive disorder, died Monday night at Rhode Island Hospital in Providence. He was 40.

Della Grotta died of a medical illness that was not related to his psychiatric disorder nor to his brain surgery, according to his psychiatrist, Dr. Benjamin D. Greenberg of Butler Hospital. His wife, Sheri, said he fell ill on Dec. 27 and had been in the hospital until his death.

In February 2001, Della Grotta became the first person in the United States to have electrodes implanted in his brain for the purpose of controlling OCD, in a procedure called deep brain stimulation. The experimental surgery, performed at Rhode Island Hospital with Butler Hospital researchers, was an attempt to quiet the malfunctioning brain circuitry that underlay his extremely severe and disabling OCD.

At the request of Della Grotta's family, a fund is being established to support OCD research at Butler Hospital. Checks can be sent to the Mario Della Grotta Memorial OCD Research Fund, Funds Development (attn: Michele R. Berard), Butler Hospital, 345 Blackstone Blvd., Providence, RI 02906.

>> Continue reading: OCD brain surgery recipient dies of unrelated causes

Journal file photo / Frieda Squires
Now up for sale, the old Shooter's Waterfront Cafe has been heavily vandalized, as seen in this photo taken last September.

By Phlilp Marcelo
Journal staff writer

PROVIDENCE -- A former waterfront nightclub in the Fox Point neighborhood that was purchased by the state is going on sale to finance the next parts of the Route 195 relocation project. The property has an appraised value of $3.5 million.

The State Properties Committee, which manages the state's property assets, this morning approved a request by the state Department of Transportation to dispose of 73,436 square feet of land at 25 India St., the former Bootlegger's Nightclub (previous to that it was known as Shooter's Waterfront Cafe).

The state purchased the nightclub for $4.7 million in 2000 by eminent domain, which is the state government's power to seize private property, with due monetary compensation, but without the owner's consent.

The land up for sale is about 2 acres of the more than 3-acre property that initially was purchased. Part of the area (56,658 square feet) has been for part of the new stretch of Route 195, often referred to as the Iway. The rest was used temporarily as a staging area for construction.

State properties Committee chairman Kevin Flynn said that the state is obligated to put the property up for sale because 80 percent of the purchasing costs were covered with federal money, on the condition that whatever was left over be sold at market value and the proceeds used to help pay for the highway project.

The property will be advertised in a public auction, with the properties committee having say over whether the state moves forward with a sale or not.

Since the property was taken by eminent domain, Chestnut Street Associates owner Michael C. Kent, the original owners of the property, has the opportunity to match the highest bidder, a right that is often referred to as the right of first refusal. The city would be next in line to exercise that option.

Opened in June 1990, Shooter's was the city's first waterfront nightclub, a three-story dancehall and restaurant that could fit nearly 1,600 people. Since being taken over, the building and property have been the targets of much vandalism.

Providence firefighters work to extinguish a two-alarm fire at 89 Waldo St., on the city's South Side. Providence Journal photo / Frieda Squires

PROVIDENCE -- Firefighters are battling a two-alarm fire at an apartment house in the area of 89 Waldo St., according to fire department dispatch.

About a dozen fire trucks are on scene. Much of the building is charred.

It was not known whether anyone had been inside or if there were any injuries.

-- With reports from Journal staff writer Donita Naylor

Imax Corp. has sold Feinstein Imax Theatre in the Providence Place mall to Quincy Amusement of Dedham, Mass. That means Rhode Island philanthropist Alan Shawn Feinstein and Imax "part company," according to a news release from the Feinstein Foundation today about the sale.

The new management "would not continue some of the rights" that Feinstein has had in an agreement with Imax Corp. The rights he's had were naming rights, free admission for local school children and their parents, on-screen dedication of the theater to the state's school children "and their good deeds," and a yearly donation to help fight hunger.

The new management asked for "a very huge sum of money from Feinstein to continue just the naming rights alone," the Feinstein Foundation news release states.

Feinstein stated he could not accept that.

"I would rather give that money to the schools," he said in the statement. "I had a contract with the Imax Corporation. I kept my part of it and I would expect them to keep theirs -- and the promises they made to me and our school children."

Quincy Amusement is parent company of Showcase Cinema, according to the release.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

By Gina Macris
Journal staff writer

PROVIDENCE -- The East Providence teachers' union pressed Superior Court Judge Mark Pfeiffer this morning to issue a temporary order barring the School Committee from unilaterally cutting its members salaries and imposing a 20 percent contribution to their health-insurance premiums.

But Pfeiffer was not inclined to rule without having had a chance to even read the union's complaint, which was filed moments before this morning's 11 a.m. hearing.

And the judge noted that the cuts, rolling back base pay about 5 percent, would not affect teachers until the next payday, Jan. 16. By that time, he said, he will have issued an order.

Pfeiffer continued the case until tomorrow at 2 p.m.

A "significant winter storm" will affect parts of southern New England late tonight and tomorrow, the National Weather Service said in a winter weather advisory issued shortly after 11 a.m.

The weather advisory -- for a mix of snow, sleet and freezing rain -- is in force from 11 p.m. tonight until 9 a.m. tomorrow.

Snow is in the forecast for late this evening, and warmer air will turn it to a mix of sleet and freezing rain shortly after midnight.

For the latest weather conditions, visit projo.com/weather.

Accumulation of snow and sleet combined will be less than one inch.

But "occasionally difficult travel" will happen between midnight and 7 a.m. tomorrow. Be prepared for potentially icy surfaces tomorrow morning.

The weather service said enough warm air should arrive between 8 a.m. and 11 a.m. tomorrow for things to turn to rain.

By Lisa Vernon-Sparks
Journal staff writer

EAST GREENWICH -- A suspect has been arrested in the robbery this afternoon of an Independence Bank on Route 2 just south of Division Road, authorities said today.

Two officers took Lincoln Craighead, 58, of Hull, Mass., into custody after another person pointed him out in the Panera Bread restaurant at 1000 Division St., according to Lt. James Poccia.

At about 2:30 p.m., a robber entered the branch at 1370 South County Trail and presented the teller a note demanding money, Poccia said. The teller turned over the undisclosed amount of cash, and the robber fled the bank on foot heading north. No one was hurt.

The employee followed the robber out of the bank and up the road into the sandwich shop.

Poccia said Craighead was arrested on a charge of second-degree robbery but had not yet been arraigned.

This is the second bank robbery on Route 2 in East Greenwich in the past two weeks.

A man wielding a machete robbed a BankRI at 1269 South Country Trail last month.

Matthew Joyce, 37,of Lincoln was arrested in the parking lot of Dave's Marketplace, a grocery store in the same shopping plaza on Division Street. Police made the arrest after an off-duty police officer followed the suspect to the nearby parking lot.

By Thomas J. Morgan
Journal staff writer

NORTH SMITHFIELD -- A house fire caused police to shut down Route 146A briefly this afternoon, but the highway was reopened by 5 p.m., according to the police.

Capt. Norman A. Malboeuf of the North Smithfield Fire Department said a second alarm had been rung in for the blaze at 343 Eddie Dowling Highway, and said the department had requested help from surrounding communities.

Malboeuf said the house was an occupied one, but he did not know whether anyone had been at home at the time of the fire. He said there were no reports of injury.

The captain said firefighters ripped open the roof to get at the flames.

A Cumberland man was sentenced today to more than four years' federal imprisonment for tax and bank fraud.

Michael P. Tatro, 38, was also sentenced to five years of supervised release to be served after the 51 months of prison by Judge William E. Smith in U.S. District Court in Providence, according to a news release from the office of acting U.S. Attorney Nora Dannehy in Connecticut, who handled the prosecution.

Tatro pleaded guilty on March 11 to one count of making and subscribing a false tax return and one count of bank fraud, according to the U.S. Attorney's office.

From May 2002 through September 2003, Tatro "engaged in a scheme to defraud Citizens Bank," the news release states, through which he caused various checking accounts to be opened, created counterfeit checks, caused the counterfeit checks to be negotiated through accounts under his control, and caused the money to be withdrawn or otherwise moved out of the accounts before it was disocovered the checks were counterfeit.

Tatro filed a false 2002 federal tax return stating he was single and his income was $77,944, when he was actually married and had gotten income "substantially in excess" of the stated amount that year. Tatro failed to report on his tax return bank fraud proceeds as well as money he obtained under false pretenses from his employer, Thielsch Engineering.

Tatro admitted the intended loss related to the bank fraud was $150,134, and the tax loss to the Internal Revenue Service was $58,000.36.

As part of the supervised release, Tatro must pay $59,178 in restitution to Citizens Bank and cooperate with the Internal Revenue Service to resolve his outstanding tax liabilities. He also has to participate in a mental health treatment program.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

By Barbara Polichetti
Journal staff writer

Albert E. DeRobbio Jr., son of the late District Court Judge Albert E. DeRobbio Sr., was arrested in Cranston Sunday on misdemeanor charges of domestic disorderly conduct and domestic crank or obscene phone calls, according to police reports.

Police reports state that DeRobbio's wife, Lori, called Cranston police shortly after 7 p.m. and stated that she had received repeated threatening phone calls from her husband and that he insisted that he was going to stay at her home on Uxbridge Street in Cranston.

Lori DeRobbio also told the police that her husband threatened her and her family.

Police officers who went to her home stated that her phone showed evidence of numerous phone calls from DeRobbio, a former state trooper. Also while there, Cranston police observed at least nine more phone calls from him between about 8:26 p.m. and 8:56 p.m.

According to the police report, Lori DeRobbio told her husband that she did not want to speak to him and the marriage was over.

DeRobbio was arrested at his wife's home shortly before 10:30 p.m. Police reports list his address as 61 Deerfield Drive, North Scituate.

Cranston police today declined to comment on the report.

DeRobbio was held overnight at the Cranston police station for arraignment today in District Court.

Judge DeRobbio died on Dec. 22.

By Katherine Gregg
Journal State House Bureau

PROVIDENCE -- Governor Carcieri will unveil the details of his plan to close a $357-million current-year deficit in a live televised address Wednesday night.

Carcieri will deliver the address at 7 p.m. on all three local network affiliates: WJAR Channel 10, WLNE Channel 6 and WPRI Channel 12.

"Theses are truly extraordinary times. Rhode Island is facing unprecedented budget challenges that will require many difficult decisions to resolve," Carcieri says in a statement.

"My supplemental budget plan will include many hard choices necessary to bring the budget back into balance and to put the state backon the right path," the governor states.

The proposal, which will represent a significant rewrite of the current-year budget, is expected to touch tens of millions of dollars in local aid. Beyond that, it remains unclear.

Friday Night Live presents The Open Stage, a monthly event for young performers featuring house dance troupe Case Closed and hosted by Everett Dance Theatre's Sokeo Ros. The Open Stage happens on the first Friday of each month from 8 to 10 p.m., immediately following the Friday Night Live comedy show at 7 p.m.

The Open Stage is at The Carriage House Theatre, 7 Duncan Ave., in Providence's Mt. Hope area.

The aim is to give local youth performers a forum to show their talents in front of a live audience. Each show will feature an opening act by local hip hop theater troupe Case Closed as well as a different headliner each month.

Audience members will have the opportunity to sign up for a 5-minute performance slot before each show.

Call (401) 831-9479 for information.

For more to do tonight and this weekend, check out projothebeat.com, the Journal's online calendar of events in Rhode Island and beyond.

Journal photo/ Kathy Borchers
Icicles hang from the exterior of the Garner Building, 40 Fountain St., Providence, where a burst pipe spilled water on several floors. The Providence Biltmore is reflected in the window.

PROVIDENCE -- Several state employees at the General Treasurer's Office and Department of Health and Human Services were sent home this morning after a pipe burst on the sixth floor of the Garner Building, 40 Fountain St.

The floor houses the Department of Health and Human Services' Disability Determination Services. A state employee said there were 3 to 4 inches of standing water in some places and lots of puddles elsewhere, said Tim Gray, a spokesman for the treasurer, whose offices occupy the 1st, 7th and 8th floors.

Power was shut off in most of the building as crews worked on pumping out the water.

The pipe has been repaired, according to a news release this afternoon from the Office of Rehabilitation Services, which includes the Disability Determination Services unit.

The Office of Rehabilitation Services, which also includes Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired and Vocational Rehabilitation Program, will stay up and running but will work out of other places including the Department of Administration, local One Stop Centers and other community organizations.

Case workers with the Department of Health and Human Services called clients this morning to offer an alternate meeting location or reschedule appointments, said spokeswoman Anne-Marie Beardsworth. Most employees were sent to work at alternate locations. Those employees who chose to go home took personal or vacation time, Beardsworth said.

The Office of Rehabilitation Services said this afternoon that counselors in the office are calling all people who have appointments scheduled for Monday to notify them of a different location for their appointment.

People can reschedule appointments if unable to meet at the new location.

People who appear for services at 40 Fountain St. will be met in the building lobby by a staff member and directed to the most appropriate different location.

Customer information is at (401) 421-7005. People served by Office of Rehabilitation Services can call that number and leave a message including their name, telephone number and reason for calling. Staff will retrieve messages over the weekend and will return calls as needed.

All staff are expected to report to work, the Office of Rehabilitation Services said. Managers will contact staff over the weekend to tell them where to report on Monday.

The Department of Administration is working with the landlord to get the 40 Fountain St. building ready for occupancy as soon as possible, according to the news release.

No records were damaged, treasurer's spokesman Gray said.

Non-critical employees in Treasury were sent home this morning, said Gray, but the offices were still open for business.

Video: Firefighters respond to the Gardner Building

-- Reports from projo.com staff writers Maria Armental and Michael P. McKinney