CALEDONIAN Black Cyan Magenta Yellow TUESDAY, MARCH 24, 2015 CALEDONIANRECORD.COM ESTABLISHED 1837 75 CENTS YOUTH SPORTS DANVILLE High Winds Cause Accident The Record’s expanded weekly youth sports coverage, see PAGE B4 DERBY PAGE A3 ST. JOHNSBURY LYNDON INSTITUTE POSSIBLE PLEA DEAL FOR PAT O’HAGAN MURDER SUSPECT PSAPS MAY BE SAVED FOR NOW BY TODD WELLINgTON Staff Writer House Appropriations Budget Gives Time To Find Funding the event, said. Simpson took over the event three years ago and moved it to the auditorium. “Three years ago we were just over 30 entries,” Simpson said. “This year we broke 58 bridges.” Students are asked to create a bridge A suspect in the murder of Sheffield resident Pat O’Hagan may be ready to cut a deal with prosecutors. A change of plea hearing has been scheduled for Richard Fletcher, 27, on Thursday at 10 a.m. in Caledonia Superior Court. Caledonia County State’s Attorney Lisa Warren declined to comment Monday on the scheduling of Richard Fletcher Fletcher’s change of plea hearing. Fletcher is facing charges of burglary, kidnapping and first degree murder for his alleged role in the kidnapping and murder of O’Hagan, 78, See Bridge, Page A6 See O’Hagan, Page A6 Photo By BrendAn KozloWSKi Chad Simpson, host of the Bridge Building competition, instructs two LI helpers as they break a bridge titled “The Monster” made by a team from Miller’s Run School in Sheffield, Saturday morning at the Lyndon Institute auditorium. The competition tests the strength of each group’s bridge. The Monster’s bridge withstood 966 pounds of pressure, surpassing the group’s prediction it would hold up to 904 pounds. BY ROBIN SmITH Staff Writer SCHOOL BRIDGE COMPETITION CONTINUES EXPANSION The House Appropriations Committee unanimously passed out a budget bill Monday afternoon that if adopted would keep the Derby and Rutland 911 call centers open until September while negotiations for their future are worked out. The budget bill would appropriate $425,000 in one-time funding to stop the imminent merger of the Derby and Rutland public safety answering points into Williston and Rockingham, as part of a consolidation to save the state $1.7 million annually. And it would require Vermont Public Safety Commission Keith Flynn to negotiate with local emergency responders, lawmakers and assistant judges to see if there are funding sources in each county to pay for continuing dispatch services from the state. The development created a buzz at a forum featuring Flynn at the Gateway in Newport City Monday evening, where emergency responders and dispatchers peppered Flynn with questions about the pending closure of the Derby PSAP in less than 45 days. Rep. Michael Marcotte, R-Orleans 2, said before the meeting that he understood that the budget bill contained some of the language that See PSAP, Page A6 BY BRENDAN KOZLOWSKI Staff Writer LYNDON CENTER — Saturday morning, 62 teams composed of 163 elementary students came together at the Lyndon Institute auditorium to destroy the bridges the teams had built in a test of strength. This was the 14th year of the competition. “The competition has always been held at LI. It has moved from the Baker Building, to the Town House, the Sanborn Hall, to the Auditorium three years ago,” Chad Simpson, who coordinates EAST BURKE BUSINESSES, RESIDENTS BEGIN PLANS FOR DOWNTOWN BRIDGE CLOSURE Photo By JAMeS JArdine BY JAmES JARDINE Staff Writer The East Burke Log Yard owned by Timber Resource Group is filling up with logs in advance of the mud season closure of town roads in the area. Manager Craig Owen said the yard will continue to take loads of logs for awhile longer, but soon the yard will begin shipping out loads of logs and emptying the yard. Burke area businesses will gather Wednesday for a Burke Area Chamber of Commerce meeting and planning session to discuss a proposed bridge reconstruction closure downtown. The state highway bridge on Route 114 in the middle of downtown East Burke is scheduled to be closed from May 26 through June 15. The state will build a new bridge on Route 114 to cross the stream. In order to expedite the construction period and reduce construction costs, the state of Vermont wants all traffic blocked for three weeks as the existing bridge is lifted out of position and a new bridge is lifted in place. Trying to maintain one lane of traffic would See Closure, Page A6 VERMONT Cuts, Taxes, One-time Spending Help Close $113M Budget Gap TODAY: Mix of clouds and sunshine INSIDE VOL. 177, NO. 193 © T HE C ALEDONIAN -R ECORD Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . B7 Entertainment. . . . . . . B5 For the Record . . . . . . A2 Opinion. . . . . . . . . . . . A4 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . B1 Television . . . . . . . . . . B6 HIGH: 37 LOW: 9 Details on Page A2 NATIONAL DEBT CLOCK —Dem. Rep. Mitzi Johnson, House Appropriations Chairwoman The committee’s version still must clear the full House, which is expected to vote on it later this week; then it goes to the Senate before final details are worked out by a conference committee of three House and three Senate members. Democratic committee chairwoman Rep. Mitzi Johnson, whose district is in the Lake Champlain islands, said the budget “is the biggest policy document that we put out as a Legislature.” “It’s where we prioritize resources to things that are important for Vermonters,” she said. “So it’s a struggle.” The Appropriations Committee faced a tough task when lawmakers NATION MONTPELIER — Low-income state residents are expected to get less help paying for heat next winter, and fewer developmentally disabled residents will be able to enroll in state programs, under a budget approved by a House committee on Monday. Those are among the results of what is widely regarded as a tough fiscal 2016 general fund budget that won unanimous approval from the House Appropriations Committee. It was the first time in more than a decade the panel decided on a spending plan by an 11-0 bipartisan vote, said longtime committee member Rep. Robert Helm, R-Castleton. The $1.475 billion general fund budget is just part of state spending that totals about $5.5 billion. It doesn’t include the statewide education fund for public schools, the transportation fund or federal funding the state distributes through Medicaid and other programs. But because it pays for the largest range of state programs — everything from prisons to a share of the Vermont Symphony Orchestra’s annual outlay — the general fund budget usually gets the most attention. “It’s where we prioritize resources to things that are important for Vermonters. So it’s a struggle.” Terrorism Expert: Tsarnaev Note In Boat Used Jihadi Themes ––––– Clashes Rage In Ukrainian Town, Making Mockery Of Truce ––––– Alaska Police Discover Four Bodies, Handgun Near Home Of Family Missing Since May $ 18,159,554,167,168 Population: 320,247,356 Your share: $56,704.77 “The budget should be balanced; the treasury should be refilled; public debt should be reduced; and the arrogance of public officials should be controlled.” –Cicero, 106-43 B.C. Page A7, A8 Black Cyan Magenta Yellow convened in early January: trying to close a projected $94 million budget gap. It got tougher later that month, when two economists who forecast state revenues downgraded those expected in fiscal 2016 by $18 million. Overall, the committee’s version of the budget calls for the roughly $113 million gap to be closed with $53 million in cuts, $35 million in new taxes, $24 million in one-time expenditures and nearly $2 million from renting state prison beds to the U.S. Marshals Service for federal inmates. The budget gives Democratic Gov. Peter Shumlin many of the cuts he sought when he delivered his annual budget address to lawmakers in January, but it softens some of them. For instance, Shumlin called for reducing the number of public safety answering points that handle 911 calls from four to two, but the committee said it would fund the four for a quarter of the year and then ask municipalities to chip in. While the four Republicans on the committee supported the budget, party leader Rep. Don Turner, of Milton, said there was likely to be widespread opposition in his minority caucus. See Budget, Page A6 REGION BY DAVE gRAm Associated Press State Police Link 1971 Student Disappearance To Durst Heir ––––– US And Canadian Officials Cite Regional Energy Collaboration Page A5 Go Mobile Scan and visit us on your handheld device. FBLA PRESENTS COMEDIAN GLENN STRANGE Opening Act: The Endorsements Friday and Saturday, April 3 & 4 7:00 p.m., Fuller Hall Tickets available through Catamount Arts. CALEDONIAN Black Cyan Magenta Yellow A2 the record • tueSdAy, MArch 24, 2015 FOR THE RECORD OBITUARIES LOUISE R. HALE 1934-2015 Louise R. Hale, most recently of Lyndonville, Vt., went home to heaven on Saturday, March 21, 2015. Louise was born in St. Johnsbury, Vt., on May 13, 1934, to George Harvey Frye and Ramona Hutchins Frye. Louise graduated from Danville High School in 1952 and attended Champlain Business College in Burlington, Vt. On Sept. 4, 1954, she married Donald L. Hale who predeceased her in 2007. Louise and Don had four children: Linda McGregor Essaff (Paul), St. Johnsbury,Vt., Keith Hale, who predeceased her in 1986, Timothy Hale (Lisa), Waterford, Vt., and Bonny Paradis (Carlos Carrero), Rutland, Vt. She is the grandmother of Robert McGregor (Tracey), Milton, Vt., Tennille McGregor, Milton, Vt., Justin Hale (Sabrina Pych) and Corey Hale, Brattleboro, Vt., Zachary Hale, who predeceased her in 1984, Emily Hale, Boston, Mass., Katie Carpenter (Ryan), Lunenburg, Vt., Rebecca Hale, Lyndonville, Vt., and Jessica Paradis (Daniel Villarreal), Stephanie Paradis (Nick Blair) and Samantha Paradis (Emil Schumann), all of Rutland, Vt. She is the great-grandmother of 16, including two babies who will be born in 2015. As she was growing up on the family farm in Danville, Louise decided that she wanted to leave the farm when she grew up. She got her wish. Following her wedding, she and Don moved to Connecticut. This was just one of the many places she lived. While in Connecticut, Don enlisted in the Army and as an Army wife, Louise lived in Newfoundland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Munich (Germany), Arkansas, Arizona, Vermont, Virginia, Frankfurt (Germany), and Florida. For two years of her marriage, she was virtually a single mother as Don was deployed to Viet Nam during the war. Germany was her favorite place. After Don’s death, Louise returned to Vermont and lived in Waterford and then in St. Johnsbury at the Colonial Apartments. She enjoyed her apartment for two years before declining health made it necessary for her to move to the assisted living facility at the Pines Rehabilitation and Health Center in Lyndonville. Over the years, Louise enjoyed working as a waitress. When Don retired from the Army, they owned and operated Montgomery Wards in St. Johnsbury where she supported the business operations. After many successful years of building the business, Louise and Don decided to “retire.” They spent time traveling in their motor home and finally settled in Florida, where Louise worked in the office at Citrus Valley Campground. She and Don loved to camp and snowmobile in their younger years. They were members of Kingdom Kampers and Coles Pond Sledders. In the beginning, she rode with Don on his snowmobile, but while on a trip to Maine she agreed to Don’s suggestion to drive her own. She found out she really enjoyed being in the driver’s seat and she spent countless hours traveling the trails with many friends. She enjoyed watching TV especially soap operas, reading and eating out. With the help of family, she learned how to use a computer to play games and loved to scroll through Facebook. Louise will be remembered for her sweet and gentle spirit, her sense of humor (which she never lost even during her fight with cancer) and her amazing strength. Louise is survived by her siblings, Marylene Sevigny (Walter), Danville, Vt., John Frye, Lunenburg, Vt., Georgiana Page, Groton, Vt., Berton Frye (Virginia), Danville, Vt., and William Frye (Kathy), Passumpsic, Vt. In addition to Don, Keith, and Zachary, she was predeceased by her parents, her son-in-law Douglas McGregor, son-inlaw Richard Paradis and several other family members. Calling hours will be at Sayles Funeral Home, 525 Summer Street, St. Johnsbury, Vt., on Friday, March 27, from 6-8 p.m. A celebration of Louise’s life will be held Saturday, March 28, at 11 a.m. at Lyndon Bible Church, 250 Brown Farm Road, Lyndonville, VT. A committal service with the family will be held May 16. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to American Cancer Society/ Relay for Life Caledonia ( ww.relayforlife.org/) or the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (aspca.org/donate) . Memories and condolences may be shared privately at www.saylesfh.com. DO YOU HEAR BUT NOT UNDERSTAND? Preferred Provider of: Why miss a word if you don’t have to? Try NEW Starkey Z Series™ wireless hearing aids today. The latest in hearing aid technology. Z Series hearing aids lead the way in performance, comfort, personalization and connectivity. CALL (802)-748-4852 TODAY, TRY IT RISK-FREE!* LIMITED APPOINTMENTS AVAILABLE! St. Johnsbury 802-748-4852 198 Eastern Avenue St. Johnsbury, VT 05819 Monday-Wednesday | 9-4 Deposit may be required. Newport 328 Main Street Newport, VT 05855 By Appointment CHARLOTTE B. DUNBAR 1932-2015 Charlotte B. Dunbar, 82, of Barnet, Vt., died Friday, March 20, 2015, at Our House Too Residential Care Home in Rutland, Vt. following a period of failing health. She was born in Williston, Vt., April 16, 1932, a daughter of Charles E. and Irene E. (Austin) Miles. She went to school in Barnet and attended St. Johnsbury Academy. Charlotte worked at Kimball and Miles Store and for the Barnet School lunch program. Later, she worked for 27 years and served as the Postmaster in Barnet, retiring in 1992. Charlotte married Dale W. Dunbar on March 15, 1949, and together they raised their family in Barnet. She was a member of the Lakeview Grange of West Barnet, and enjoyed handwork such as knitting, crocheting and braiding rugs, along with flower gardening. Music and dancing with Dale in their youth was always a special time for Charlotte, along with spending time with the children, grandchildren, and her pets. She was also a former member of the Barnet Congregational Church. She was predeceased by her husband, Dale Dunbar; a son, Charles Dale Dunbar; a son-in-law, John H. Adams, Jr.; and two sisters, Wilma Kimball and Lorraine Rutledge. Survivors include two daughters, Donna L. Adams of Barnet and Debra L. Lacroix of Ludlow, Vt.; four grandchildren, John H. Adams III, Lisa Clifford, James D. Adams, and Michelle Richling; five great grandchildren, Jack, Emma, Ava, Luca, and Anna; along with several nieces, nephews, cousins. There will be no calling hours. A graveside service will be on Saturday, May 23, at 3 p.m. in the Pleasant View Cemetery, Barnet, Vt. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to a charity of one’s choice. For more information or to sign an online condolence please visit www.rickerfh.com Ricker Funeral Home & Cremation Care of Woodsville is in charge of arrangements. 1943-2015 Donald R. “Don” Lyon, 72, of Lyndonville, died suddenly early Monday morning March 23, 2015 at Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital in St. Johnsbury. He was born March 14, 1943, in Gilman, Vt., the son of Reynold and Jeanette (Sylvaine) Lyon. Don worked as a painting contractor for many years. He also worked for several years for Ethan Allen Inc. in Orleans, Vt., building furniture. He liked helping people and volunteered at the Burke Senior Meal Site in West Burke and later at the Lyndon Area Meal Site at the Darling Inn for many years. Favorite pastimes included playing cribbage, fishing and spending time with his family. Survivors include his wife Karen Lyon of Lyndonville, Vt. (P.O. Box 1065, 05851); two children, Gidget Lyon of Lyndonville and Yancy Lyon of Tennessee; two step-children, Mollie Smith of Utica, N.Y., and Samantha Badger of Williamstown, Vt.; nine grandchildren; one great-granddaughter; four brothers: Rodger Lyon and his wife of Texas, Al Lyon of Connecticut, Ray Lyon and his wife of Florida and Ron Lyon of New Hampshire; a sister, Shirley Spencer and her husband Richard of East Concord; several nieces and nephews; and many friends. Graveside funeral services will be held Friday, May 8, 2015, at 2 p.m. at Woodmont Cemetery in East Burke. Donations made in his memory may be directed to the Burke Senior Meal Site, P.O. Box 100, West Burke, VT 05871 or to the Lyndon Area Meal Site, 76 Depot Street, Lyndonville, VT 05851. Memories and condolences may be shared privately at www.guibordfh.com. Arrangements are by Guibord Funeral Home of Lyndonville. RIVERSIDE RESCUE ADOPTIONS GLORIA MAE (LONTINE) REYNOLDS 1940-2015 Gloria Mae (Lontine) Reynolds passed away peacefully on March 22, 2015, in Newport, after several months of courageous battle with a rare form of disease affecting the kidneys and blood. Due to a recent fall other complications set in. Gloria was born in Newport on Aug. 10, 1940, to Floyd and Laura (Barber) Lontine. She was predeceased by her parents, her sister Anita Rivard, and grandson Charlie Buckland Jr. She was also predeceased by her former husband, due to a tragic accident, Irwin Piper, the father of their three children: Julie Dupree of South Carolina, Shari McAllister of Newport and Jon Piper of North Carolina as well as grandson Joshua McAllister of Barton. Gloria leaves her husband Brad Reynolds of Derby and four step-children, Mary Beth Belmore and husband Rick of Island Pond, Kim Reynolds of Waterbury, Conn., Michael Reynolds and wife Germane of Mulberry, Florida and Jacquelyn LaCasse of Hooksett, N.H. And sister-in law Janice Fournier and her husband Joseph. Between them they have nine grandchildren and twelve great-grandchildren. She also leaves one niece and two nephews. Gloria attended Sacred Heart High School then transferred to Newport High School where she graduated from. She then attended Champlain College where she obtained an associate’s degree in math. Gloria loved to work with numbers. Gloria worked for Community National Bank, the Ames Department Store as assistant manager, then as executive director for City Manager of Newport until she retired. Gloria’s passion was her love of golf until she suffered from a back injury. She especially liked Tiger Woods. She loved to play at Orleans Country Club with Pat Hunt and other ladies. She then turned and devoted the rest of her life to helping Veterans. She became a life member and got really involved in the Ladies Auxiliary of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. She served as President and Secretary of Post 798 her in Newport. She then went through the chairs in the Veterans of Foreign Wars Ladies Auxiliary and became State President in 1994-1995. Then in 1998-2000 she became National Councilwoman covering District 2 Massachusetts and Vermont. She traveled extensively through the U.S. and Gloria was then approached by the Eastern States Conference to go through the chairs for National President of the Ladies auxiliary to the Veterans of Foreign Wars, but decided not to go any farther. She has received numerous awards on the state and national levels. She later transferred her membership to the VFW Post 10038 Ladies Auxiliary to the Veterans in Lyndonville. She is also a life member of Brighton post 80 Auxiliary in Island Pond, and a member of the Eagles Auxiliary 4329 in Newport. Gloria was proud to watch her daughter Shari follow in her footsteps as she went through the chairs to become State President of the Ladies Auxiliary of the Veterans of Foreign Wars department of Vermont in 2012-2013. Gloria installed Shari as President and became Shari’s Chief of Staff during her term of office. They were the only mother and daughter to become State President in the Department of Vermont. Gloria was always the life of the party and loved to sing and play her guitar. She will be greatly missed by everyone who knew her. She especially loved Brad who was always with her and they always strove to make each other proud and happy. She also enjoyed her German Shepard “Chermack” who was always by her side. Funeral services will be held at 3 p.m. on Thursday, March 26, 2015, at the Curtis-Britch-Converse-Rushford Funeral Home, 4670 Darling Hill Road, Newport. Friends may call at the funeral home on Thursday, March 26, from 1 p.m. until the hour of the funeral. Should friends desire, contributions in her memory may be made to the American Legion Brighton Post 80 Auxiliary, 60 Railroad Street, Island Pond, VT 05846 or to the Lyndonville VFW Auxiliary Post # 10038, in care of Bonita Before, P.O. Box 356, Lyndonville, VT 05851 or to the Charity of one’s choice. Online condolences at curtis-britch.com. Arrangements are entrusted to the care of Curtis-Britch-Converse-Rushford Funeral Home, locally family owned and operated. © 2015 Starkey. All Rights Reserved. 2/15 33759-15 The Numbers FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK facebook.com/caledonianrecord DONALD R. “DON” LYON GIMME 5 (Monday) 1-3-24-31-45 DAILY PICKS (Monday) day draw — Pick 3: 5-3-9; Pick 4: 3-1-5-1 evening draw — Pick 3: 6-1-9; Pick 4: 8-3-5-7 Black Cyan Magenta Yellow Blaze, above right, is a 7-month-old male kitten that is neutered and up-to-date on vaccines. Blaze and his brother, Dante, are super active, sweet and wonderful. Logan, above left, is a wonderful 3-year-old lab mix that is neutered and up-to-date on vaccines. Logan would love an active home where he could play ball and go for walks. Logan would be an excellent fit for most any home. To adopt please call 802-892-5300 or fill out an application at www.riversideanimalrescue.org. Local Forecast Today: Mostly sunny and not as cold. Highs from the upper 20s to lower 30s. Light north to northwest winds. Tonight: Mainly clear. Lows zero to ten above. Light and variable winds. Tomorrow: Any early sun giving way to increasing clouds. A rising chance of rain or snow showers in the afternoon. Highs in upper 30s to lower 40s. Winds becoming south to southeast at 5 to 10 mph. Extended Forecast: Wednesday Night: Periods of mixed precipitation likely, before changing to light rain or rain showers. Lows in the low to mid 30s. Thursday: Rain likely. Highs in the mid 40s. Thursday Night: Evening rain showers likely, then changing to snow showers. Lows around 30. Friday: Mostly cloudy. Scattered snow showers. Highs in the mid 30s. Friday Night: Cloudy with a chance of snow showers. Much colder, with lows in the lower teens. Saturday: Mostly cloudy. Slight chance of snow showers. Highs in the mid to upper 20s. Daily Weather Highlights A warming trend will get under way tomorrow, but by Friday it will have shown itself to be somewhat reversible. High pressure is edging in from the west at present. In the absence of strong winds today, sunshine will have more of a noticeable effect that it has had the past couple of days, but temperatures will remain will below average. By tomorrow, low pressure to our west will bring southerly winds as it approaches, but also a rising chance of precipitation. It looks like the bulk of the precipitation will occur on Thursday, accompanied by highs mainly in the 40s, as low pressure moves overhead. A cold front will move through on Thursday night. That will keep temperatures from rising too dramatically on Friday, amidst scattered showers of rain or snow. Well below-average temperatures will return for Saturday, says Lawrence Hayes of the Fairbanks Museum weather station. CONDITIONS AT 4 P.M. YESTERDAY Partly Cloudy TEMPERATURE Temp. at 4 p.m. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22 Maximum past 24 hours . . . . . . . . .23 Minimum past 24 hours . . . . . . . . . .3 Yesterday’s average . . . . . . . . . . . .13 Normal average . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34 Maximum this month . . . . . . . . . . . .50 Minimum this month . . . . . . . . . . .-18 Maximum this date (1938) . . . . . . .70 Minimum this date (1906) . . . . . . .-12 HUMIDITY 41% DEWPOINT 2 WINDS 11 mph, 20 max . . . . . . . . . . . . . .NW BAROMETER 30.17 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Rising PRECIPITATION New . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0.00 in. Total for Month . . . . . . . . . . . .0.85 in. Normal Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1.86 in. SNOWFALL Past 24 Hours . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0.0 in. Monthly Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9.9 in. Season Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92.8 in. Season Norm To Date . . . . . . .78.7 in. Snowpack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11.4 in. ALMANAC Sunrise today . . . . . . . . . . . .6:44 a.m. Sunset today . . . . . . . . . . . .7:05 p.m. Length of day . . . . . . .12 hrs. 20 min. DEGREE DAYS Average temp. difference below 65° Yesterday* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52 To date since July 1 . . . . . . . . . .7169 To date last year . . . . . . . . . . . . .7184 * calculated for the day before yesterday Periodicals postage paid at St. Johnsbury, VT, Post Office, 05819. Published daily except Sunday, New Years, Thanksgiving and Christmas by The Caledonian-Record Pub. Co., Inc., P.O. Box 8, 190 Federal St., St. Johnsbury, VT 05819, Tel. 802-748-8121. Publication (USPS-083020). Postmaster send address changes to: The Caledonian-Record Pub. Co., Inc., 190 Federal St., P.O. 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Advertisers will please notify the management immediately of any error which may occur. CALEDONIAN Black Cyan Magenta Yellow the record • tueSdAy, MArch 24, 2015 A3 LOCAL WELLS RIVER / NEWBURY HIGH WIND CAUSES ACCIDENT RENEWBURY: CELEBRATING THE PAST, ENVISIONING THE FUTURE Photo By JAMeS JArdine Danville firefighters and towing personnel work to right an overturned car on Route 15 in West Danville Sunday. Cecile Olney, 76, of St. Johnsbury, was traveling west shortly after 11 a.m. when she experienced high crosswinds and a brief moment of whiteout conditions. She was unable to maintain control, due to a patch of slushy mix on the roadway, and the vehicle rolled over. Danville Fire Department removed Olney and her passenger, Everett Carbee, 75, of St. Johnsbury, from the vehicle. Olney was transported to NVRH for precautions only. Both were wearing their seatbelts. State police and Danville Rescue also responded to the scene. LYNDON SELECTMEN TO APPOINT DILL REPLACEMENT BY JAmES JARDINE Staff Writer The Lyndon Board of Selectmen have set March 26 as the deadline to submit letters of interest as the Board prepares to appoint a selectman to fill the unexpired term of David Dill. Dill died on Feb. 26. The former Lyndon Municipal Administrator and long time selectman was serving a term as selectman set to expire in 2017. According to Lyndon Town Clerk Dawn Dwyer, the Board of Selectmen will receive letters of interest for the position until the March 26 deadline. The Board will then review the list of interested individuals at the next Selectman’s meeting scheduled for April 6. Dwyer said she anticipates the Board will choose someone to fill the position on April 6. The person chosen will fill out the position until March 2016, when the position will be up for election. NEWBURY — Newbury and Wells River residents and business owners are encouraged to attend a town-wide celebration and planning forum, titled ReNewbury, on March 27 and 28. The idea is to join with neighbors to enjoy good food, good fun, and plan for projects to improve the town in the next 10 to 20 years. How about a train station? Decent cell phone service? A grocery store in Wells River? A bike path along Route 5? Should locals organize energy-saving projects like a community solar farm? How can the town make best use of the Connecticut River? Organizers expect plenty of creative ideas to flow from a mix of long-time residents and newcomers, old and young people, renters and homesteaders, business owners and entrepreneurs, and people of all income levels. There’s no cost to participants. All three meals and childcare on both days will be free, courtesy of the sponsors. A magician will be on hand to entertain the kids Friday evening. Free transportation to the event can be arranged by calling Connie Philleo at 866-9008 by Tuesday, March 24. ReNewbury will begin Friday night, March 27, at 5:30 at Blue Mountain Union School. Volunteers will serve dinner, a song specially written for the occasion will follow, and then “favorite son” Frank Bryan will entertain with humorous stories of growing up in Newbury. Delia Clark, a facilitator specializing in engaging citizens in their communities, will guide participants in a discussion about successful communities; participants will then break into smaller groups to generate ideas for improving the town. NEWS BRIEFS Vermont state police conducting traffic safety survey Underage drinkers pretend they’re not home when police arrive In an effort to understand the effectiveness of traffic safety efforts, the Vermont State Police is looking for public feedback. A new survey has just been posted on the Vermont State Police website at vsp.vermont.gov. People are invited to share their observations on certain topics like seatbelt and cellphone use. This survey provides the public an opportunity to have input into an important statewide safety campaign. Vermont has made positive strides saving lives through enforcement, education, engineering safer roads and an improved ability to render medical aid immediately following a crash, but the public’s assistance is needed to keep the roads safe for everyone. 2014 saw the lowest number of fatalities since 1944 and the lowest number of alcohol impaired related fatalities (6) in decades. But even one fatality is an enormous loss to the state. To help us evaluate and build a stronger traffic safety program, visit the Vermont State Police survey at http://vsp.vermont.gov/trafficsurvey, or Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/VermontStatePolice . About 30 partying people inside a residence on Center Street in Lyndonville early Sunday shut the lights off and refused to answer the door when state police arrived. Undeterred from addressing the noise complaint that got them to 88 Center St., state police got a search warrant and made their way into the residence. They found 30 people inside. Fifteen of them were under age 21 and had consumed alcohol. Trooper Seth Loomis reported that Victor Romero, 20, was in the residence and lied to police about who he was. Romero was cited for a charge of false information to a police officer. Members from the St. Johnsbury Police Department assisted with the execution of the search warrant. The investigation is ongoing and more criminal charges may be pending, stated Loomis. Upper Wells River assessment project receives state funding In celebration of World Water Day the Connecticut River Watershed Council (CRWC) announced Sunday a new river assessment project that will take place this summer on the upper Wells River. CRWC recently was awarded an Ecosystem Restoration Program (ERP) grant from the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources. The nearly $68,000 grant will pay for a Phase 2 Stream Geomorphic Assessment, writing a River Corridor Plan, and developing potential restoration projects in the Wells River watershed, serving the dual purpose of protecting the State’s water quality and supporting the goal to protect and restore the Wells River and its tributaries. CRWC is working with the Caledonia County Natural Resource Conservation District and Redstart Inc. to complete the work during the summer of 2015. “Staff will be walking the upper Wells River watershed in the towns of Newbury, Ryegate and Groton in order to assess stream bank erosion, streamside vegetation, culverts and more. The end result will help us identify problem areas where river restoration projects can be pursued in 2016 and beyond,” said Ron Rhodes, North Country River Steward for CRWC. Notices about the staff doing fieldwork will be posted in town offices, shared via email and Listservs, and posted at numerous public locations in an effort to make local landowners aware of the project. Once the fieldwork is done, public information meetings will be held so landowners and others can see the assessment information and ask questions. “The upper Wells geomorphic assessment will assist the Agency of Natural Resources and our project partners in providing a better understanding of stream process, streambank erosion, and flooding potential. The river corridor plan and project development will identify and prioritize water quality and aquatic habitat restoration and protection areas and recommend specific flood resiliency actions for watershed towns and residents alike,” said Jim Ryan, VT ANR Watershed Coordinator. To learn more about CRWC visit www.ctriver.org. MEADOW LEASING Littleton, N.H. Ground Level Containers 20’ - 40’ Office Trailers Experienced skier crashes into trees at Vermont resort, dies KILLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — A 23-year-old skier has died after losing control and crashing into multiple trees at the Killington Resort in Vermont. State police said 23-year-old Terence Scott of Nashua, New Hampshire, was skiing down the mountain with family and friends on Saturday afternoon when the crash happened. His helmet came off during the crash. Police said Scott was immediately attended to by an EMT, doctor and nurse. He was unconscious throughout treatment and was pronounced dead at the mountain a short time later. Scott was described as an expert skier. The crash happened on an intermediate trail. Police said just before the crash, Scott was described as moving at a fast speed and had attempted to turn onto a connector trail while avoiding another skier. Police: Man fixes woman’s car, demands money, assaults her CAVENDISH, Vt. (AP) — Police say a man who came to the aid of a stranded driver and repaired her car on a Vermont road assaulted her after he asked for money and she said she wasn’t able to give him any. Police said the driver was able to get away in her car and call police on Sunday night. Her car had broken down on Route 103 in the Proctorsville Gulf, in the town of Cavendish. While she was attempting to get help, the man stopped by to assist her. The suspect was described as a white male, approximately 5-foot10 with a slender build. He had shoulder length dirty blond hair with a blaze orange winter hat and blue/gray winter coat. The suspect’s face had acne scars. Little Mover KAP Enterprises, LLC Local & Regional Moving Storage Trailers 28’ - 48’ 1-800-762-7026 • 603-444-7026 Let Us Help You With All Your Storage Needs. Keith A. Phelps 838 Keyser Hill Rd. St. Johnsbury, VT 05819 48 YEARS Phone 802-748-9112 Cell: 802-793-7986 E-mail: [email protected] U.S. DOT 458292 Black Cyan Magenta Yellow ReNewbury will continue on Saturday, March 28, at Newbury Elementary School with a breakfast at 8:45. At 9:15, there will be a mix of entertainment and small groups to focus on specific issues, projects, and goals. Lunch will be served at 12:15, followed by time to plan for the long-term projects the group has decided to pursue. The forum ends at 3:30. ReNewbury is designed to gener- ate ideas and build consensus. Organizers urge that participants take part in the entire event, both Friday evening and Saturday. For more information about ReNewbury contact Emily Hausman at 802-5843874/[email protected] or Rev. Kate Maver at 802-7572261/[email protected] ReNewbury is sponsored by many businesses, organizations and individuals. SERVICE CENTER I-91 EXIT 22 ROUTE 5 • ST. JOHNSBURY, VT Nick Pilotte, Service Advisor Pat Wheelock, Service Manager • Josh Bagley, Service FREE IN-TOWN PICKUP & DELIVERY Lube, Oil & Filter Service 18 $ 95 Includes FREE 27-Pt. Inspection • • • • Includes FREE battery check Most cars and light trucks Up to 5 qts. oil With this ad and scheduled appointment 59 Synthetic Oil Change $ • Up to 5 qts. oil & PLUS TAX 95 Purchase 4 Oil Changes Get The 5th One FREE! 4-WHEEL ALIGNMENT SPECIAL $ 64 95 (Most Cars & Light Trucks • Parts Extra) Save time –Get your alignment done while you put your winter tires on. END OF SEASON TIRE BLOWOUT! FREE MOUNT & BALANCE With Purchase of 4 Tires Most sizes & brands. VERMONT STATE INSPECTION $ 25 4 ONLY RED YOU ARE DUE Limit one offer per customer per scheduled visit. OFFERS GOOD WITH THIS AD UNTIL 4/1/15. May not be combined with other offers. SERVICE HOURS: MON.-FRI.,7:30-4:30 CALEDONIAN Black Cyan Magenta Yellow A4 the record • tueSdAy, MArch 24, 2015 Todd M. Smith, Publisher OPINION Dana Gray, Executive Editor Editorial Comment … Failure Bonuses Last week the United States Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs told Colorado’s congressional delegation that construction of a new veterans’ hospital in Denver will be at least $1 billion over budget. It’s one of four grossly mismanaged construction projects the VA is overseeing nationwide. The original $328 million price tag on the Colorado facility is now $1.73 billion. Similar debacles in Orlando, New Orleans and Las Vegas are expected to push the “over budget” line item over $3 billion. For their inadequacy, the two agency execs in charge (Glenn Haggstrom and Stella Fiotes), have received hundreds of thousands of dollars of bonuses over the lifetime of the projects. Remember that this is the “new and improved” Veterans Administration… The replacement for the scandal-ridden department that paid bureaucrats fat bonuses to falsify documents while veterans died waiting in line to receive health care. Only in government can you be so richly rewarded for such Herculean and devastating failures. In My Opinion… BEAUTY AND THE BEAST DEGRADING THE LANDSCAPE BY STEPHANIE KAPLAN AND ANNETTE SmITH Vermont’s scenic beauty has always been highly valued both by Vermonters and by visitors to our lovely state. In 1968 Vermont banned billboards to prevent the despoiling of Vermont’s landscape. And when Act 250 was enacted a few years after that, it included Criterion 8, which prohibits commercial or industrial development that would create an “undue adverse impact” on the scenic or natural beauty, aesthetics, historic sites, or natural areas. In 1986, the Environmental Board convened a group of people with expertise on aesthetics to develop an objective way of evaluating what is an “undue adverse” impact on aesthetics and scenic and natural beauty. The result is the “Quechee Analysis.” It has been used to evaluate aesthetic impacts in dozens of cases by the Environmental Board (EB), Environmental Court (EC), and Public Service Board (PSB) and upheld by the Vermont Supreme Court (VSC) over the last three decades. The Quechee Analysis has two steps. The first is to determine if a project will cause an adverse effect on aesthetics. If the impact will be adverse, then the second step involves addressing three questions. The impact will be undue if any one of the questions is answered in the affirmative. One of the questions is whether a project would offend the sensibilities of the average person. If it is so out of character with its surroundings or significantly diminishes the scenic qualities of the area so as to be shocking or offensive to the average person, the adverse impact is considered undue and a project is denied. The EB explained the purpose of this provision: Criterion 8 was intended to ensure that as development does occur, reasonable consideration will be given to the visual impacts on neighboring landowners, the local community, and on the special scenic resources of Vermont. The VSC has consistently upheld the EB and EC decisions on aesthetics that applied the Quechee Analysis. When the review of telecommunications towers and largescale solar and wind installations was transferred from Act 250 to the PSB, the law required the PSB to give due consideration to some of Act 250’s criteria, including criterion 8 on aesthetics. In the past, the PSB’s interpretation of the Quechee Analysis was consistent with that of the EB in ensuring that development did not degrade Vermont’s scenic views, including those enjoyed by neighbors. For example, in a 2001 case, the PSB denied a wind tower, ruling that “because … the Project will be in the direct view of the [neighbors] from their home and will significantly diminish their enjoyment of the scenic view from their home, … the Project will be offensive and shocking to them and to the average person in a similar situation.” In denying the project, the PSB accurately applied the Quechee Analysis as established in legal precedent. The decision was upheld in 2002 by the Vermont Supreme Court. But, the PSB no longer considers the interests of neighboring landowners. Every decision issued by the PSB on solar and wind projects has dismissed the interests of the neighbors, ruling that because they are most likely to be affected by the project, they cannot be considered the “average person.” The PSB’s finding is especially nonsensical because in order to participate at all, neighbors must show that they have a particularized interest that is greater than the interests of the public at large. But then the PSB uses that particularized interest to ignore the neighbors entirely. Thus in order to be able to participate in the proceeding, neighbors must prove that their interests (e.g. views) will be affected, but then because their views are affected, the PSB says that their interests (e.g. views) should not be taken into account. They base this absurd reasoning on their made up notion that a person who is directly affected cannot be the “average person” that the Quechee Analysis considers. Although the PSB says that it applies the Quechee Analysis, in fact the PSB is completely ignoring long-standing legal precedent. The PSB is also contradicting the EB and its own precedent by ruling that municipal zoning ordinances do not constitute clear written community standards for purposes of the Quechee Analysis. In its zeal to approve every See Degrading, Page A5 In My Opinion… VERMONT HEALTH CARE ON THE MEND In my few minutes today I’d like to share with you some concise thoughts for mending health care in Vermont. First, the overarching policy framework: For the past four years we have labored under an absurd and indeed destructive vision for Vermont health care. Gov. Shumlin and his political allies have constantly sung the praises of a government-managed, price-controlled, mandate-intense, taxpayerfinanced monopoly health system that gives everybody their human right to “appropriate care at the appropriate time in the appropriate setting,” at least until the money runs out. That vision will assuredly result in long waiting lines, maddening bureaucracies, demoralized doctors and nurses, shabby facilities, obsolete technology, declining quality of care, and of course much higher taxes. When Act 48’s Green Mountain Care vision foundered on its $2 billion dollar a year price tag, the adherents to that foolish idea came up with new variations on the same, tired theme, such as “all payer” and “public utility.” The Progs pushed a section into the current health care bill to create an insider task force to design a new state mandate on individuals, along with the penalties needed to enforce it, and of course a new taxpayer-financed uncompensated care pool to pay for care of those who refuse to obey the mandate, or can’t afford to pay its costs. It’s overdue for Vermonters to say “out with all that,” and start advancing a new and completely different 21st Century vision: Vermont should adopt and pro- third-party payments, the mote a Consumer better. Driven Health Care • Encourage direct pay model based on perto “focused factories”, sonal responsibility, not personalized health praccoercive mandates. Intices, urgent care clinics formed consumers in workplaces, malls, and would choose among a pharmacies, and indelarge array of innovative BY JOHN pendent physician and surhealth care and health insurance options, and use mCCLAugHRY gery practices. • End the notorious pre-tax dollars to pay for them. A consumer driven govern- practice of the state declaring more ment will oversee the suppliers, and more people eligible for free protect the consumers, and where health care, then failing to pay the necessary subsidize people and full costs of that care, thus forcing the providers to shift those costs families of modest means. Now, here are some specific onto private insurance premiums. • Offer the acute care Medicaid ways to move away from the abyss of costly, coercive government population a Healthy Indiana plan, where patients purchase care with health care. • Strongly reinforce the princi- their contributions to their own ple that the primary responsibility POWER accounts, supplemented for maintaining wellness and pay- with matching Medicaid dollars, ing for health services rests with with performance incentives and the informed individual and fam- state-provided catastrophic coverage. ily, not with the government. • Start paying attention to the lit• Spend public dollars to educate citizens – and especially erature on the business organizayoung people - in the conse- tion and financial incentives quences of healthy and unhealthy underlying the health care system. We need to allow disruptive entrelifestyle choices. • Stimulate, support and recog- preneurial change in hospital and nize a wide range of citizen-led associated enterprises, which do initiatives for maintaining health some things well but many things and managing chronic illness, such inefficiently, and are of necessity as Operation Access (North Car- focused on extracting the maxiolina), health care cooperatives, mum amount of revenues from free clinics, Remote Area Medical third party payers. Give attention clinics, friendly societies, church- including transitional support - to based clinics, lodge practice, adaptive reuse of stranded cost fahealth sharing ministries, and fa- cilities. • Repeal Certificate of Need recilitated networks. • Promote expanded Health view, a process that strengthens Savings Accounts, HRAs, and monopoly power at higher patient FSAs coupled with catastrophic costs. • Repeal age-based community major medical coverage. The more that first party payments replace rating that forces young healthy people to cross subsidize premiums for their older, sicker, but richer grandparents. • Replace guaranteed issue with a state high risk pool to pay the exceptional costs of the one percent of the population that is uninsurable. • Reduce insurance coverage mandates especially for pregnancy, substance abuse, and ill-defined mental health conditions, especially those that consumers don’t want or will likely never use. • Allow premium discounts for healthy lifestyles. This is prohibited by HIPAA, but the state should do it and let Washington try to stop it. • Install an income tax based recovery requirement for persons who get medical care, are able to pay for it, but won’t. • Encourage use of modern technology, including remote health monitoring devices. • Enact medical malpractice reforms, such as a pre-trial medical review board, creating a patient negligence formulary, and imposing fines for bringing frivolous cases. • Devise a legal workaround to allow means-tested Obamacare premium credits to flow to consumers purchasing care or coverage in a competitive, dynamic health care marketplace. When you’ve digested these seventeen points, let me know – I have more. John McClaughry, vice president of the Ethan Allen Institute, delivered these remarks to the Vermont Health Care Freedom Conference, held Saturday in South Burlington. Letters to the Editor… Why not protect the innocent? To the Editor: I am writing in disbelief how the Orleans Record would publish the name of an individual that recently reported an individual for possessing child pornography. How would the employee that published the name, found out the individual was now being harassed and their life has been threatened? Does the Orleans Record report the victims of sex crimes? If not then why isn’t a person that reports a sex crime not kept confidential? I want everyone to know I am extremely proud of the individual for reporting a sexual predator to authorities. Anyone that finds child pornography and does not report it, in my eyes is as guilty as the individual possessing it. I want everyone to know that in my opinion the Orleans Record will put a life in jeopardy to sell a story. Never will I in any way support the paper. In the future keep people that report crimes confidential, that is not news just a way to put lives in jeopardy! Todd Abel Newport, Vt. Carbon taxes To the Editor: The truth there are flocks of really tiny, invisible fairies who personally beam even tinier and also invisible very special molecules up from the ground to the atmosphere, which Secretary of State John Kerry explains is “maybe half an inch thick,” and their fairy buddies spread those molecules precisely focusing them down upon our icy poles. If we let the fairies flip the teensy on switches, then presto the poles will be zapped, New York will be under water, Dodos will become extinct, children won’t know snow, NASCAR will grind to a halt, and worse. There is only one thing we ignorant humans can do to prevent Thermageddon. We can pay carbon taxes and, if we pay enough, our heroes Bernie and Peter, who are in close personal contact with the leaders of the fairy hoard, will give the secret hand signal NOT to flip the switches. Not yet. 97% of all new age scientists say this is so. It’s settled. Just think of VPIRG as our life savings ac- Black Cyan Magenta Yellow counts. Sorry, no withdrawals. Jim Sawhill Kirby, Vt. An excellent example To the Editor: In the Caledonian editorial on March 16, “Let the Light Shine,” readers were given some disturbing information on freedom of the press in the US. “Freedom of the press in the United States decreased profoundly in 2014, according to a new report from ‘Reporters without Borders.’” Even worse, “The US fell three spots from last year, and is down 32 spots from its ranking of 17 in 2002.” Of course, the editor cherrypicked this data in order to criticize the Obama Administration and complain about its lack of transparency. Had the editor taken an honest approach and presented all the data available on the Reporters without Borders’ website, he would have ended up criticizing President Bush. Their Press Freedom Index for the US for the last 14 years is provided below. A rating of “1” indicates the most freedom of the press: 2002 (17); 2003 (32); 2004 (46): 2005 (49); 2006 (56): 2007 (48); 2008 (41); 2009 (22); 2010 (20); 2011/12 (47); 2013 (32); 2014 (46); 2015 (49). Our worst rating ever was 56 and occurred during the Bush Administration. I’m curious to know why the editor failed to mention that detail. In 2006, our rating was down 39 spots from its ranking of 17 in 2002. Again, the editor failed to mention that detail. If you average the numbers for the Bush Administration and the Obama Administration, you come up with overall ratings of 41 and 37, respectively. I look forward to reading an editorial in the Caledonian that looks at all the data from Reporters without Borders and acknowledges that, according to Reporters without Borders, freedom of the press suffered more under President Bush than under President Obama. Marion Mohri Wheelock, Vt. CALEDONIAN Black Cyan Magenta Yellow the record • tueSdAy, MArch 24, 2015 A5 NEW ENGLAND VERMONT REGION Vermont medical center working on a new nursing home RANDOLPH, Vt. (AP) — The Gifford Medical Center in Randolph, Vermont, is working on opening a new nursing home. CEO Joe Woodin tells the Valley News (http://bit.ly/1xcMj4y) the medical center now occupies about 15 aging buildings with construction in some cases dating back to the late 19th century. He said the nursing home and plans to move 25 patient beds from shared to private rooms are the first step of a campus-wide potential community integrated into Randolph Center. Hospital administrators said the projects will allow seniors at the nursing home to live within walking distance of Randolph Center, while providing privacy and extra space for hospital patients. Woodin said in the next few months, administrators will begin “firming up” plans for a 49-unit independent living building. Temporary insanity defense to be used in father-son killings BRATTLEBORO, Vt. (AP) — A Vermont woman who pleaded not guilty to fatally shooting her ex-boyfriend and his son plans to use a temporary insanity and diminished capacity defense. Troopers were called to a Townshend home in November for reports of a shooting. Police say Steve Lott and Robin O’Neill had recently ended their relationship of a year and had been living together at the time of the shooting. The 60-year-old Lott was found dead, as well as 28-year-old Jamis Lott, who had been visiting. The Rutland Herald reports (http://bit.ly/1FtyAJi) O’Neill’s lawyer says she lacked the ability to form the specific intent for the charges due to consumption of alcohol and medications. Windham County State’s Attorney Tracy Kelly Shriver declined to comment. O’Neill is being held without bail at the woman’s prison in Burlington. Eight people escape from house fire, no one hurt LEMPSTER, N.H. (AP) — Eight people, including five children, have escaped from a house fire in Lempster, New Hampshire. WMUR-TV reports crews were called to the home at about 10:30 p.m. Sunday. The home collapsed during the fire. No injuries were reported. The Red Cross assisted the residents, who stayed at a hotel overnight. The cause of the fire was not immediately known. Fishery disaster funds sought by congressional delegation CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — Members of New Hampshire’s congressional delegation are requesting an update on the status of federal disaster relief funds for fishermen in an industry harmed by rigorous catch limits and economic losses. U.S. Sens. Kelly Ayotte and Jeanne Shaheen and Congressman Frank Guinta sent a letter to the Office of Management and Budget. New Hampshire applied in December for its state-specific grant portion of $1.1 million in funds, but they say they haven’t heard anything more on it yet. New Hampshire was allotted a total of about $2 million funds. The 2014 appropriations bill included $75 million, to be administered by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration within the Department of Commerce, for disaster relief to help alleviate the economic impacts associated with fishery failures throughout the country. N.H. Fish and Game offering free turkey hunting workshop HOLDERNESS, N.H. (AP) — New Hampshire Fish and Game officials are offering a free turkey hunting workshop this spring. The workshop will cover the basics of turkey hunting, turkey calling and safe hunting practices. It will be held April 18 from 9 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. at the Owl Brook Hunter Education Center in Holderness. Officials say space is limited and those interested should sign up. Degrading continued from Page A4 single telecommunications tower and renewable energy project in the state, the PSB is fabricating its own interpretations of the law regardless of the standards of the local community and it is allowing the scenic beauty of Vermont – that was so carefully protected over so many years – to become degraded. Vermonters can speak to the House and Senate Natural Resources and Energy Committees at BRIEFS David Priebe, a hunter education instructor, will discuss aspects of turkey hunting. Wildlife biologist Andrew Timmins will take about the history and behavior of wild turkeys. New Hampshire’s spring gobbler season runs from May 3 through May 31. The state’s youth turkey hunting weekend will take place April 25-26, 2015. Hunting licenses and turkey permits can be purchased online at http://www.huntnh.com. Fishing rule changes could affect cod, haddock, lobsters CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department is holding a public hearing in Portsmouth on proposed fishing rules on April 7. The proposed rule changes include requiring any Atlantic cod taken from tidal waters to be immediately released; changing size and possession limits for haddock; and requiring new buoy line requirements for lobster traps and hauling times. The meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Urban Forestry Center. Man accused of drunken driving near police fuel pump area CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — New Hampshire State Police have accused a man of drunken driving after a trooper saw his pickup truck travel through a special fuel pump area used by state, county and municipal vehicles, then drift from side to side. Police say Trooper Irwin Malilay had just completed fueling his cruiser at the pumps on Sunday night when he saw the truck, which went back onto the road and crossed the center line. Malilay stopped the truck. A breath test indicated the driver, identified as 26-year-old Henry McPherson of Old Orchard Beach, Maine, had a blood-alcohol level of over three times the limit of .08 percent. McPherson was charged with aggravated driving while intoxicated. He’s scheduled to be in court on April 10. It couldn’t be verified whether he had a lawyer. N.H. bobhouses have to be removed from the ice by April 1 CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — It may still feel cold enough to go ice fishing, but an April 1 deadline is approaching for all bobhouses to be removed from the ice in New Hampshire. State law requires their removal, to make sure that bobhouses and their contents do not fall through the ice and become a hazard to boaters. Failure to remove a bobhouse from public waters, public property or private property by the deadline is a violation that can result in a fine of $124 per day and a one-year loss of the owner’s fishing license. The department can seize a bobhouse that hasn’t been removed in cases where it can’t identify the owner. Leaving a bobhouse on public or private property without written permission also is a violation. The Fish and Game Department says on Sunday, a man’s Jeep fell into soft ice at the end of Meredith Bay on Lake Winnipesaukee as he was trying to remove a bobhouse. The vehicle had to be towed off the lake. There were no reports of injuries. Lt. Heidi Murphy of the department’s law enforcement division said Monday she’s not aware of any other bobhouse removal-related problems. “In the past, usually, when it starts to warm up, it warms up pretty fast and so the ice goes out pretty fast in general, especially around those areas where people have fished before,” Murphy said. “It’s easier to do it the sooner the better, before it gets too warm.” Man says shooting of 16-year-old girl was an accident MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — A man accused of shooting a 16-year-old girl in Manchester, New Hampshire, says it was an accident. Damian Walsh has been charged with reckless conduct and falsifying physical evidence. Police said the girl was shot in the abdomen on Saturday. Her dad says she’s in critical condition. WMUR-TV reports the 18-year-old Walsh said in court Monday he didn’t do it on purpose. Walsh is accused of throwing the gun into the Merrimack River. His bail was set at $50,000 cash. He’s scheduled back in court on April 2. a public hearing on renewable energy siting on March 24, 2015 from 6 to 8 pm in the Statehouse in Montpelier. Please come and let legislators know that protecting Vermont’s scenic beauty is important and that communities and neighbors must be a respected part of the process in the development of new utility infrastructure. Stephanie Kaplan is former counsel for the Environmental Board. She lives in Calais. Annette Smith, of Danby, is executive director of Vermonters for a Clean Environment. WE CLEAN: Wall to Wall Braids • Dhurries Rag Rugs • Orientals • Upholstery Stone Floor & Grout Cleaning WE OFFER: • Repairs to Hooked & Braided Rugs • We can replace Fringes & Rewhip Edges • Professional Office Cleaning WE TREAT YOUR HANDMADE AND ANTIQUE RUGS WITH SPECIAL CARE MEMORIAL DRIVE • ST. JOHNSBURY CENTER, VT 802-748-3900 • 800-626-3911 www.topcarpetcleaningvt.com Black Cyan Magenta Yellow State Police Link 1971 Student Disappearance To Durst Heir MIDDLEBURY, Vt. (AP) — Police said Monday they’ve been investigating a link between the 1971 disappearance of a Middlebury College student and millionaire murder suspect Robert Durst. Investigators have been aware for several years of a link between 18-year-old Lynne Schulze and Durst, who operated the All Good Things health food store in the town, the Middlebury Police Department said in a statement. Schulze, a native of Simsbury, Connecticut, who entered Middlebury College as a freshman in September 1971, was last seen that December. Her missing-person flyer shows her peering serenely through a loosely parted mane of light-brown hair. The Schulze case was reopened in 1992 and has continuously generated leads, police said. Middlebury police call it an ongoing criminal investigation and say they aren’t releasing any other details. The 71-year-old Durst is a member of a wealthy New York real estate family that runs 1 World Trade Center. He’s charged with killing a woman 15 years ago in Los Angeles. He’s been ordered held on weapons charges in Louisiana, where a judge decided he’s a flight risk and a danger to others after considering what FBI agents found in his hotel room — an elaborate disguise and other escape tools fit for a spy movie. Durst was arrested at a hotel in New Orleans, where he had registered under a fake name and was lying low while HBO aired the final chapters of his life story, a documentary series called “The Jinx.” Authorities said FBI agents found Durst’s passport and birth certificate, stacks of $100 bills, bags of marijuana, a gun, a map folded to show Louisiana and Cuba and a flesh-toned latex mask with salt-and-pepper hair. “This was not a mask for Halloween,” Assistant District Attorney Mark Burton said. Durst’s lawyers say his arrest was illegal. They say the timing of an agent’s inventory proves the search was illegal. “That’s an improper search,” defense attorney Dick DeGuerin told the judge. Durst, who previously was acquitted of murder after a neighbor’s dismembered body was found in a Texas bay in 2001, appeared in court Monday with his hands shackled to his sides in padded cuffs. He has been in a prison’s mental health unit for nearly a week. Prison officials have called him a suicide risk. Authorities have said they believe Schulze, at the time of her disappearance, may have been a little depressed and self-conscious because of an acne condition but appeared to be well-adjusted. In 2005 they called her “a typical, wholesome, all-American kid off at college” who “wasn’t into the counterculture scene of that time.” On Dec. 10, 1971, Schulze was with some friends heading to a final exam when she told them she had to go back to her room to get a pencil, police said in 2005. “She didn’t show up for the exam,” Officer Vegar Boe said then. “Later, her friends went back to her room. All her stuff was there, but she was gone.” US And Canadian Officials Cite Regional Energy Collaboration BY WILSON RINg Associated Press BURLINGTON, Vt. — There is an abundance of clean electricity in eastern Canada waiting to be sent to the energy-hungry states of New England, officials said Monday at an international energy conference at the University of Vermont. A number of projects are underway to help move that power south, but officials from both the United States and Canada said there is still a need to reduce energy consumption through efficiency programs as well as expand ways to produce clean power locally across the region. “There is a real opportunity here between these six New England states and the four eastern Canadian provinces to work together,” said Aaron Annable, the acting consul general at the Canadian Consulate in Boston. Annable spoke at the conference at the University of Vermont entitled “Power from the North.” “Quebec and New England are pursuing the same objective and facing the same challenges raised by changes in the world’s energy market,” said Pierre Arcand, the Quebec minister of Energy and Natural Resources. “We have geographic proximity and the values we share make us natural partners.” New England energy planners are looking at ways to take advantage of the abundant supplies of hydro-electric power available in Quebec and other parts of Canada to help the region meet its power needs. David Cash, the former commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and Department of Public Utilities, said the current energy thinking doesn’t go far enough to bring in new ideas as well as new sources of electricity, ensuring electric sources are reliable and finding more ways of bringing that electricity to the people and businesses that would use it. He said the number of transmission lines in the planning stages should be expanded and the region should take advantage of offshore wind projects and the number of solar power installations should also be increased. And it should be done in a way that allows utilities to make money and customers to be happy as well, he said. “The mix is not going to be the mix we’re looking at here of natural gas and coal and maybe some oil in the winter,” Cash said. “It’s going to be hydro from Canada, it’s going to be offshore wind from one of the best resources in the entire world off the coast of New England and the Canadian provinces.” CALEDONIAN Black Cyan Magenta Yellow THE CALEDONIAN-RECORD A6 TuESDAY, MARCH 24, 2015 O’Hagan continued from Page A1 in September 2010. Fletcher, along with Keith Baird, 33, and Michael “Mouse Boy” Norrie, 23, are accused of entering O’Hagan’s Sheffield Village home at 3064 Route 122 on Sept. 10, 2010, with the intention of committing a burglary. According to court documents O’Hagan was then forced into her kitchen at gun point and shot in the head. Her body was found nearly four weeks later approximately 10 miles away on Horn Road in Wheelock on Oct. 3, 2010. State police said an autopsy showed a single gunshot wound to the back of O’Hagan’s head. A fragmented .22 caliber bullet was recovered from her skull. All three Photo By BrendAn KozloWSKi Hobo’s Mansion, a team from Waterford Elementary composed of seventh graders Wilder Hud- suspects were charged in March son and Kyle Johnson, presents a covered bridge it made to immitate other covered bridges 2014 with kidnapping and murderthroughout Vermont. Hobo’s Mansion viewed covered bridges from around the state to get in- ing O’Hagan and have pleaded not guilty to the charges. All three are spiration for their own design. Bridge continued from Page A1 made out of popsicle sticks for the event. “The Monster” a team from Miller’s Run, made a bridge they expected to withstand 904 pounds of pressure, but it in fact held nearly 1,000 pounds as it broke at 966 pounds. Wilder Hudson and Kyle Johnson, from Waterford School, made PSAP continued from Page A1 he had drafted to save the Derby and Rutland PSAPs. The budget bill with the compromise came out of committee Monday with multi-party approval, said Rep. Catherine “Kitty” Toll, D-Caledonia-Washington, a member of the House Appropriations Committee. “It was a unanimous vote, that’s just outstanding,” Toll said in a voice mail message to The Record. Also voting for the budget bill and to give more time for PSAP discussions was Rep. Martha “Marty” Feltus, R-Caledonia-4. Feltus said the bill encourages regional groups to decide how best to provide 911 needs. “But importantly, local/regional groups have to decide how to pay for the dispatch services,” Feltus said in a covered bridge which they modeled after other covered bridges throughout Vermont. “This year there were a few teams that found a couple of loop holes in the rules, so kids are always trying to push the boundaries,” Simpson said. “Bridges are becoming more complex. Workmanship is getting much better.” “The bridge that held the most weight was from Waterford, Yo Mama’s Kids, and it held 2,541 an email message to The Record. The language on the PSAPs would provide a funding bridge for a quarter of a year of $425,000 from the Universal Services Fund on everyone’s phone bill to keep the PSAPs in Derby and Rutland open until Sept. 15. By May 15, Flynn would be required under the bill to review the number of PSAPs needed in Vermont, the number of dispatching positions needed, the cost per position and ways to improve the services. And the E911 Board would have to look at the E911 call taking system and make a recommendation as well. Any agreements about the funding and future of the Derby and Rutland PSAPs would have to be in place by Sept. 15, when extra funding runs out. The budget bill language would give Flynn the authority to make pounds,” Simpson said. The event kicks off the tech department’s spring, which involves several different SkillsUSA competitions, according to Simpson. “This year we have kids competing from the end of March until BY ROBIN SmITH the second of April, when the closStaff Writer ing ceremonies occur,” Simpson said. “We fund-raise to offset the NEWPORT CITY — The city costs of competitions and will be having a benefit breakfast at Hoa- council has joined Coventry in supporting a new name for the gies from 8-10 on April 12.” Newport State Airport. The new name, Northeast Kingdom International Airport, has also contracts with counties which want won the support in an online surto pay for services. vey and from the airport’s new opMarcotte has envisioned that erating committee. It now requires counties which want supplemental legislative approval. 911 services would pay through Other names were NEK Retown-by-town fees. gional Airport and Vermont’s Toll said the language and the ex- North Country Regional Airport. tension gives all the parties time to The select board in Coventry, hammer out the most efficient way where the airport is located, alto operate and fund the PSAPs. ready approved the new name for “All voices will be heard,” she the expanding airport. said. Last week, the city council “This is good news for those who voted in favor of the new name support keeping four state PSAPs with no opposition. One alderman, open,” said former Sen. Vincent Il- Jacques “Jack” Roberge, said he luzzi of Derby, who represents state preferred the “regional” designaemployees. “It’s not a done deal, but tion, and abstained from the vote. gives life to the movement to keep the Derby and Rutland PSAPs/dispatch centers open.” At the meeting in Newport, Flynn was asked about the budget bill language to save the PSAPs. He said he had heard there was a development, but he said he had not seen it. BY JENNIfER HERSEY Michael Norrie Keith Baird facing possible life prison sentences if convicted. Both Baird and Norrie also have court hearings this week. Both are scheduled for status conferences on their O’Hagan charges today at 9 a.m. On Friday, Baird is scheduled to be sentenced on 30 counts of violating an abuse prevention order at 1:30 p.m. in unrelated cases. Baird was convicted by a jury in August 2014 of 30 counts of violating an abuse prevention order (VAPO) by contacting Sheila Conley, 31, from a prison telephone in the fall of 2012. Norrie was sent to federal prison in November 2013 after being convicted of stealing his father’s .22 caliber Rough Rider revolver and selling it for marijuana and money. He was sentenced to a prison term of four years and eight months with credit for time served. NEWPORT CITY COUNCIL BACKS EFFORTS TO RENAME AIRPORT Patricia Sears of Lowell, chairman of the airport committee, said the airport committee wanted a new name, in part to recognize the expansion and opportunities that will be created at the growing airport. As well, the committee made up of airport users like pilots, hangar owners, the company managing the airport and the state Agency of Transportation, wanted to differentiate the airport from the other “Newport” airports in Rhode Island and New Hampshire. Sears said 68 percent of those who responded to the online survey liked the NEK International Airport name. The airport will be international, she said, because of its proximity to the U.S.-Canadian border and its designation by U.S. Customs and Border Protection that it will serve international flights. It is already designated as a hub in the area’s foreign trade zone. The name has a green light from the Shumlin administration. A bill, H. 303, is sponsored by Rep. Michael Marcotte of Coventry and has bi-partisan support from lawmakers across Orleans County. It is being considered now in the House in Montpelier. If approved by the Legislature, the bill would take effect on passage. The name change could come as construction begins in earnest on the first phase of a multi-year expansion of the airport. Mayor Paul Monette and Alderman Steve Vincent, in a meeting last week, said they liked the name. Improvements are being made to the airport by VTrans, using funds approved by the Federal Aviation Administration, to build a 5,300-foot-long runway that would allow private jets and larger planes to land under all weather conditions and at night. NEWPORT CITY COURT FINDS FOR NEWPORT OFFICER IN EXCESSIVE FORCE SUIT CLEVELAND Staff Writer Closure continued from Page A1 cost more and take longer to complete the project. Jessica Sechler, marketing director for Q Burke Mountain Resort, says Q Burke is anticipating the bridge closure and planning shipments of hotel construction materials in advance of the bridge closure. Sechler said Peak CM Construction Company will attempt to stockpile needed materials as much as possible to carry the company through the closed bridge period. Sechler said the anticipated bridge closure completion date is cutting it a bit close as Burke area businesses prepare for the national mountain bike manufacturers trade show and exhibition in East Burke beginning June 19. At the entrance to East Burke Village, Craig Owen, who has managed the Burke Log Yard for Timber Resource Group for the last 12 years, had a full yard Monday as area loggers were harvesting wood before town highways are closed for mud season. Owen says the log yard’s “slow season” runs from the middle of April into the first weeks of June. He is hopeful that there will be no delays and the bridge closure will not last longer than the scheduled three weeks. Owen noted that the Burke Log Yard is south of the bridge on Route 114 and most of the loads of logs leaving the yard are headed north on Route 114 toward the Canadian border. The bridge closure is not the entirety of the project, as the con- struction will include replacing sidewalks alongside Route 114. Sechler said one of the most important details will be for Burke area businesses to all stay on the same page. She said the area businesses will work to present a single message, with signage, directions and exits all agreed upon in advance. Burke Selectman Ken Sanderson, in the meantime, says the town still must have a final meeting with state engineers to agree on schedules and detours. Sanderson had remarked earlier that the town of Lyndon boundary extends closer to downtown East Burke than most would think. To plan detours off of Route 114 at the Mount Hunger turn or up Darling Hill Road will require working with Lyndon officials, Sanderson said. Budget continued from Page A1 Newspapers In Education (NIE) sponsorships/ partnerships make good sense to businesses, professionals, organizations, families and schools. Newspaper use has documented benefits for education... and a good education benefits all of us. But without your support, many students will not be able to take advantage of this “living textbook.” To find out more about the NIE program at The Caledonian-Record, to sponsor a classroom, or helping with support efforts, contact: Rosie Smith, NIE Director The Caledonian-Record 190 Federal St., P.O. Box 8, St. Johnsbury, VT 05819 802-748-8121 • 800-523-6397 [email protected] Advocates for low-income Vermont residents greeted the budget with a combination of bitterness and a sense it could have been worse. Cuts to low-income heating assistance and a welfare-to-work program will hit hard, said Karen Lafayette, of the Vermont Low-Income Advocacy Council. The budget, she said, “really doesn’t invest in moving people out of poverty.” ONLINE? Check us out: ► www.caledonianrecord.com ► www.orleansrecord.com ► www.littletonrecord.com BURLINGTON — A federal court judge found in favor of a Newport City Police officer in a lawsuit where the plaintiff alleged the officer used excessive force in subduing him. U.S. District Court Chief Judge Christina Reiss granted summary judgment to officer Richard Wells in the suit filed against him by Fabian Prive, effectively settling the case unless Prive decides to appeal the decision. “Obviously we are disappointed,” wrote Prive’s attorney David Sleigh by e-mail. “We believed the evidence of excessive force was overwhelming.” Sleigh didn’t say whether Prive would appeal, but wrote, “We are considering our options.” Wells declined to comment on the suit’s outcome. Prive filed the suit alleging false arrest, excessive force, intentional infliction of emotional distress, assault and battery, false imprisonment, and malicious prosecution, stemming from a drunken driving investigation Aug. 14 and 15, 2012. In the most basic terms, Reiss found that because Wells had either probable cause or arguable probable cause to believe that a crime had been committed and the defendant committed the crime, he is entitled to qualified immunity. After a Border Patrol agent claimed he saw Prive’s wife, Laura, operating their vehicle erratically, Newport police and the agent investigated both Laura and Fabian Prive for drunken driving, although Fabian Prive admitted he’d been driving the whole night and was found to not be driving drunk. While versions of the events that took place that night differ widely, which normally would prevent a court from granting a motion for summary judgment, Reiss found that the facts in dispute were irrelevant and immaterial to the outcome of the suit. What is clear is that when police began investigating Laura Prive for driving drunk, Fabian Prive – who Reiss described as loud and confrontational – exited the vehicle and walked up to the officers, insisting that they stop their investigation Black Cyan Magenta Yellow File PhotoS ABOVE: Fabian and Laura Prive. RIGHT: Newport City Ofc. Richard Wells since he’d been the only one driving. Wells lightly shoved Fabian Prive, the judge found after viewing the video of the event, and Prive still refused to comply with Wells’ order to hit the ground, within the 12 seconds between the first order and Wells tasing him and forcing him to the ground with the help of the other three officers. Reiss found – in a section entitled “Undisputed Facts” – that Prive appears to have attempted to push Wells back, but Prive testified that his arms raised in reflexively in response to being shoved backward. Because the court found that Wells had probable cause or arguable probable cause, that created a “complete defense” to the counts of false arrest, false imprisonment and malicious prosecution. In evaluating claims of excessive force, courts must consider the severity of the crime, whether the suspect poses an immediate risk of harm to others, and when the suspect is actively resisting. Drunken driving is a serious crime that poses danger to the public, Reiss wrote. Because of Fabian Prive’s actions – his proximity to the officers, his agitated and confrontational tone, and his refusal to return to his vehicle – the officers were forced to focus their attention on him rather than Laura Prive, Reiss wrote. “In such circumstances, it was objectively reasonable for Defendant to believe that probable cause existed regarding an additional, and not trivial crime – hindering a law enforcement officer,” Reiss wrote. During the confrontation, Laura Prive was “admittedly intoxicated, confrontational, and ultimately physically assaultive,” Reiss wrote. Their refusal to obey police commands is enough by itself to justify a use of force, Reiss wrote, and in this case, Fabian’s noncompliance coupled with Laura’s “screaming and cursing at the officers and attempting to push and strike them” escalated the level of aggression in the encounter. Reiss wrote that Fabian Prive was warned he’d be tased if he continued to fail to comply with orders, and the use of the Taser was a reasonable response to “the rapidly escalating confrontation.” Where there is no excessive force, there is also no valid claim of assault and battery, Reiss found. To get a ruling that an officer intentionally inflicted emotional distress, the plaintiff must show that the defendant’s conduct was outrageous, done with reckless disregard to the probability of inflicting emotional distress, and actually resulted in such. “The conduct must be so outrageous in character, and so extreme in degree, as to go beyond all possible bounds of decency, and be regarded as atrocious, and utterly intolerable in a civilized community,” Reiss wrote, quoting a 1994 Vermont case. Since Wells’ use of force was deemed reasonable, Prive’s claim of emotional distress fails as well, Reiss wrote. CALEDONIAN Black Cyan Magenta Yellow the record • tueSdAy, MArch 24, 2015 A7 NATION & WORLD WORLD BRIEFS Police chief: No evidence of gang rape doesn’t mean something terrible didn’t happen at UVa CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) — A four-month police investigation into an alleged gang rape at the University of Virginia that Rolling Stone magazine described in graphic detail produced no evidence of the attack and was stymied by the accuser’s unwillingness to cooperate, authorities said Monday. The article, titled “A rape on campus,” focused on a student identified only as “Jackie” who said she was raped at the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity more than two years earlier. It described a hidden culture of sexual violence fueled by binge drinking at the college. Police said they found no evidence of that either. There were numerous discrepancies between the article, published in November 2014, and what investigators found, said Charlottesville Police Chief Timothy Longo, who took care not to accuse Jackie of lying. The case is suspended, not closed, and the fact that investigators could not find evidence years later “doesn’t mean that something terrible didn’t happen to Jackie,” Longo said. Israel’s Netanyahu apologizes for offending Arab citizens with his comments during election JERUSALEM (AP) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu apologized to Israel’s Arab citizens on Monday for remarks he made during last week’s parliament election that offended members of the community. The move appeared to be an attempt to heal rifts and mute criticism at home and in the United States. Netanyahu drew accusations of racism in Israel, especially from its Arab minority, and a White House rebuke when, just a few hours before polling stations were to close across the country, he warned that Arab citizens were voting “in droves.” But President Barack Obama’s chief of staff, Denis McDonough, rejected Netanyahu’s attempt to distance himself from his comments, telling an Israel advocacy group Monday that the U.S. can’t just overlook what Netanyahu said on the eve of his re-election. Netanyahu, whose Likud Party won re-election in the vote, met with members of the Arab community at the prime minister’s residence in Jerusalem on Monday and apologized. He said he knows his “comments last week offended some Israeli citizens and offended members of the Israeli-Arab community.” Cruz goes all-in on conservatives, starting White House bid with scant attention to moderates LYNCHBURG, Va. (AP) — Launching his bid for the Republican presidential nomination, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas asked Christian conservative voters to imagine a United States without the IRS, Obamacare or abortion rights – and to imagine they can make that happen by supporting him. His aspirational appeal on Monday, aimed at America’s most conservative voters, could quickly run into challenges in winning over moderate voters – and eventually deep difficulties in governing should Cruz win the White House. But it’s a message that Cruz, the first major 2016 contender to declare himself a candidate, is expected to forcefully emphasize in the coming year before voters start to pick nominees. “God’s blessing has been on America from the very beginning of this nation, and I believe that God isn’t done with Americans,” Cruz declared at Liberty University, a Christian school founded by the late Rev. Jerry Falwell. “I believe in you. I believe in the power of millions of courageous conservatives rising up to reignite the promise of America. And that is that is why, today, I am announcing that I am running for president of the United States of America.” 3 dead in scaffolding collapse at 11-story highrise under construction in downtown Raleigh RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Workers were dismantling a scaffold at a highrise construction project on Monday when a piece of it fell to the ground in downtown Raleigh, killing three men and sending another to a hospital. All four men were involved in the construction of Charter Square, a glass and steel building in downtown Raleigh, said Jeffrey Hammerstein, community outreach chief for Wake County EMS. A 911 caller told the operator that men were working on the scaffold when it fell about 11 a.m. The equipment, known as a mast climber scaffold, moves up and down a building’s facade to take workers to different floors. “We just had a mast climber fall off. There were men on it,” the caller said, estimating the men fell 200 feet. The operator asked if the victims were awake, to which the caller responded: “No, they’re dead.” Governor signs law making Utah only state to use firing squads if lethal drugs are unavailable SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Utah became the only state to allow firing squads for executions Monday when Gov. Gary Herbert signed a law approving the method’s use when no lethal-injection drugs are available. Herbert has said he finds the firing squad “a little bit gruesome,” but Utah is a capital punishment state and needs a backup execution method in case a shortage of the drugs persists. “We regret anyone ever commits the heinous crime of aggravated murder to merit the death penalty, and we prefer to use our primary method of lethal injection when such a sentence is issued,” Herbert spokesman Marty Carpenter said. “However, when a jury makes the decision and a judge signs a death warrant, enforcing that lawful decision is the obligation of the executive branch.” The measure’s approval is the latest illustration of some states’ frustration over bungled executions and difficulty obtaining the drugs. Utah is one of several states seeking new forms of capital punishment after a botched Oklahoma lethal injection last year. States have struggled to keep up their drug inventories as European manufacturers opposed to capital punishment refuse to sell the components of lethal injections to U.S. prisons. WHO spokeswoman: Politics played no role in the declaration of an Ebola emergency LONDON (AP) — The World Health Organization denied Monday that politics swayed the decision to declare an international emergency over the spread of the Ebola virus last year, despite evidence senior staffers repeatedly discussed the diplomatic and economic fallout of such a move. A year after WHO declared that Ebola had been found in Guinea, the agency is on the defensive over reports that it dragged its feet when raising the international alarm over the disease. Internal communications published by The Associated Press last week documented senior agency MASSACHUSETTS Terrorism Expert: Tsarnaev Note In Boat Used Jihadi Themes BY DENISE LAVOIE AP legal Affairs Writer BOSTON (AP) — A note written by Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev as he hid inside a boat contained themes of global jihad similar to those found in extremist materials on his computer, a terrorism expert testified Monday at his federal death penalty trial. In the note, scrawled in pencil and carved in wood on the inside walls of the boat, Tsarnaev condemned U.S. actions in Muslim countries and asked Allah to make him a “shaheed,” a martyr, said Matthew Levitt, a terrorism expert at The Washington Institute, a think tank that focuses on U.S. policy in the Middle East. Levitt said many of the ideas included in Tsarnaev’s note are contained in lectures by Anwar al-Awlaki — an America-born Muslim cleric suspected of being a terrorist and killed in a U.S. drone strike in Yemen in 2011 — and writings in the al-Qaida publication Inspire magazine, both of which were found on Tsarnaev’s computer. In one Inspire article shown to the jury, titled “Make a Bomb in the Kitchen of Your Mom,” the instructions say a pressure cooker “should be placed in crowded areas and left to blow up” and “More than one of these could be planted to explode at the same time.” Two pressure-cooker bombs were planted by Tsarnaev and his older brother, Tamerlan, near the finish line of the 2013 marathon, killing three people and injuring more than 260. Prosecutors say Tsarnaev made it clear in the note he wrote in the boat that the brothers saw the attack as retaliation for U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Tamerlan Tsarnaev died three days after the bombings following a shootout with police and being run over by Dzhokhar during an escape. Dzhokhar was found more than 18 hours later hiding in a boat parked in a yard in Watertown. During opening statements, Tsarnaev’s lawyer acknowledged that he participated in the bombings but por- trayed Tamerlan, 26, as the mastermind who recruited his younger brother, then 19, to help him. Tsarnaev’s lawyers have made it clear they are using both the guilt and penalty phases of the trial to try to save him from the death penalty. Prosecutors are expected to rest their case in the guilt phase this week. The same jury will then decide whether he spends the rest of his life in prison or receives the death penalty. Levitt, testifying for prosecutors, said the themes in Tsarnaev’s note are common in the global jihadi movement. In one part of the note, Tsarnaev wrote, “We Muslims are one body, you hurt one you hurt us all.” “It’s the idea that if you hurt one Muslim in any part of the world, it’s incumbent upon a Muslim … to do something about it,” Levitt said. Levitt was expected to be crossexamined Tuesday by Tsarnaev’s lawyers. Earlier Monday, one of Tsarnaev’s lawyers aggressively questioned an FBI agent about extremist materials found on Tsarnaev’s computer as the defense attempted to portray Tamerlan as more radicalized and primarily responsible for the 2013 attack. Kevin Swindon, a supervisory agent in charge of the Boston FBI’s cybersquad, last week described a variety of extremist content found on Tsarnaev’s computer. During cross-examination Monday by defense attorney William Fick, Swindon acknowledged that Tamerlan Tsarnaev’s computer had encryption software on it, but Dzhokhar’s computer did not, an apparent attempt by the defense to suggest that Tamerlan had something to hide. While questioning Swindon, Fick also suggested that much of the activity on Dzhokhar’s computer centered on Facebook and other subjects of interest to teenage boys, including popular music and homework. As part of one of his questions, Fick said there was nothing about “jihad” or “Islam” among the top search terms on Dzhokhar’s computer. Clashes Rage In Ukrainian Town, Making Mockery Of Truce BY mSTYSLAV CHERNOV Associated Press SHYROKYNE, Ukraine — To reach rear-guard government positions in the seaside town of Shyrokyne, Ukrainian soldiers gingerly wind their off-roaders through private gardens hugging a precipice along the Azov Sea. The truce announced in mid-February has never taken here, so traveling by the main roads is too dangerous. Government and Russian-backed separatist forces face off in daily gun and artillery battles across an unseen line cutting through the town. The skirmishes are fierce, but contained — for now. Still, the enduring unrest arouses deep anxieties that a conflict which has already claimed more than 6,000 lives in eastern Ukraine could flare up again across the entire 450kilometer (280-mile) front line. Shyrokyne itself is not much of a prize. It is the industrial port city of Mariupol, 10 kilometers (6 miles) further west, that Ukrainian forces want to defend from the rebels at all costs. Residents and government troops alike believe the separatists’ ultimate aim is to take Mariupol — and eventually create a land bridge between Russia and Crimea, which Russia annexed last March. Crimea has no physical link to Russian territory now and a bridge being discussed is years away from completion. Government forces in Shyrokyne are only truly at ease behind three defensive lines separating them from the heat of fighting in the center. At a makeshift garrison installed there, on the grounds of a restaurant near the shore, two tanks stood parked Sunday under a striped awning. Several hundred meters away, mortar shells landing in the sea sprayed up columns of water. “They are hurling anti-tank shells at the lighthouse. Another one just came this way,” said a bearded, barrel-chested fighter with the government’s Azov Battalion who gave only his nom de guerre, Al. As reports came that two enemy tanks had been spotted, Al’s thoughts turned to the combat ahead. “It is all about to start,” he said. To proceed closer to the area where the battle is fiercest, soldiers abandon their cars and race on foot toward a school, climbing through a hole in the fence. The asphalt on the road had been torn up by explosives, so only armored vehicles could get through with ease. The responsibility for defending Shyrokyne is shared between the Azov and Donbass battalions, who take weekly turns to serve in the town. Coordination is sometimes poor, however. As Azov troops jogged for cover behind the school Sunday, one soldier shouted: “What are you doing? Are you crazy running like that? There are booby traps there.” Another soldier corrected him. “Nah, the booby traps are over there,” he said, waving his hand vaguely to the left. “The Donbass guys put them there.” Inside the school, children’s drawings still decorated the walls. One man fried sausages and another chowed down on boiled oats as a mobile phone blared out music by a Russian death metal band. Underfoot, amid the spent bullet cartridges and shrapnel, students’ art collages lay covered in fallen plaster. As the sound of mortars grew more intense, all the men ducked inside for cover. A cease-fire between Ukrainian and rebel forces was forged after marathon negotiations between the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France on Feb. 12. Under the truce, fighting was supposed to stop and heavy weapons were to be pulled back from the front line. Responsibility for verifying the cease-fire lies with monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. Mathematician said the rebels always wait for the OSCE teams to leave before resuming their attacks. “As soon as the OSCE leaves, the firing starts,” he said. Separatists accuse Ukrainian forces of similar deviousness, and it’s hard to know definitely even at the front line who started any specific round of firing. The head of the OSCE monitoring mission on Monday demanded that his teams be granted secure access to Shyrokyne. “Both sides in this area continue to violate numerous provisions of the (cease-fire) agreements, including those related to cessation of fire, prohibition of attacking moves, withdrawal of heavy weapons, and deployment of (airborne drones),” said Ertugrul Apakan. In Washington, U.S. State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said the disparity between what Russia and the separatists say and what they do threatens stability in the region. “Russia and the separatists claim to be honoring the ceasefire, but in reality, they are violating it on a regular basis, and are encroaching further beyond the ceasefire line,” she said, and reiterated a call for unfettered access for OSCE monitors. Later on Sunday afternoon, sounds resembling outgoing mortars could be heard from a field near Shyrokyne. Soldiers refused to give an AP reporter access to the area. “We don’t have any mortars,” Mathematician said, smiling. “They only allow us to have small arms. But when they (rebels) get really brazen, we call in support and flatten them.” Many in the Azov Battalion have unabashed Ukrainian nationalist sympathies, prompting rebels to label them neo-fascists. From time to time, Azov fighters in Shyrokyne greeted one another with ironic Roman salutes and then grinned at their own humor. That kind of idle larking and the battalion’s flirtation with neo-Nazi symbolism is seized upon as confirmation of their critics’ worst fears. The infamy appears only partly deserved, however. Some embrace fervent Ukrainian nationalism as a repudiation of the heavily Russian-dominated Soviet legacy, all while serving with fighters from a wide array of political and ethnic backgrounds. Chit-chat switches casually from Ukrainian to Russian and back again. The best view of the skirmishes raging inside the village is from the House of Culture, a stolid building of a style popular across the Soviet Union during Josef Stalin’s rule. From there, fighters unleashed salvoes from an automatic grenade launcher and 73 mm caliber anti-tank guns. Ukrainian forces hold the elevated sections of Shyrokyne, giving them a tactical advantage. Smoke could be seen billowing from houses in the lower-lying buffer zone. One shell apparently flying in from rebel positions landed by a church. All at once, the men on the House of Culture roof cried out in a jubilant chorus, pointing toward the village. “Did you see those flames? We hit a tank. Two direct hits,” one government fighter said. By the day’s end, the final Ukrainian tally was at least one enemy tank destroyed and two relatively light injuries among their ranks. Almost every day brings new casualties — on occasion, some fatal — but their determination to stop the rebel advance along the Azov Sea coast is intense. One Azov fighter calling himself Tantsor — Russian for dancer — said the rebels were clearly hoping to take Mariupol by stealth. “They are violating the cease-fire everywhere and using any chance they get to advance even by one centimeter toward peaceful Ukrainian towns,” he said. 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The remains of King Richard III were discovered in 2012 in the foundations of Greyfriars Church, Leicester, 500 years after he was killed in the Battle of Bosworth Field. Richard III’s casket will lie inside Leicester Cathedral for public viewing for three days until 26 March when he will be reinterred during a service. 530 Years After Death, Richard III Honored Before Reburial BY SYLVIA HuI Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Richard III was finally getting the ceremony and honor a king deserves, 530 years after his ignominious death in battle. Hundreds of people, including some in period costume and armor, turned out in Leicestershire on Sunday to watch a procession carrying the remains of the medieval king whose bones were found in 2012 under a parking lot. The cortege made its way to Leicester Cathedral, where the monarch will be properly reburied. Richard, the last Plantagenet king, was killed in battle against Henry Tudor in 1485 and buried hastily without a coffin in a longdemolished monastery. His bones weren’t found until 2012, when archaeologists excavated them from a Leicester parking lot. DNA tests, bone analysis and other scientific scrutiny established that the skeleton belonged to the king. On Sunday, a hearse carrying the monarch’s remains, sealed inside an oak coffin, processed Briefs Weathertech® Floorliner 10% OFF • Digital Laser Measurements ensure a prefect fit. • Available for vitually any car, truck, suv or mini-van • Black, Tan or Gray Expires 4/30/15. Spring Service Specials FREE MOUNT & BALANCE WITH PURCHASE OF 4 TIRES Many brands to choose from. Most cars & light trucks. POT HOLE SPECIAL 4-WHEEL ALIGNMENT $ 64.95 * *Most cars & light trucks. Parts extra. Expires 4/30/15. We Do Vermont State Inspections! NEW BOSS SNOWPLOWS AND SAND SPREADERS USED PLOWS 800-973-3649 684 PORTLAND STREET ST. JOHNSBURY, VERMONT week will have all the dignity and solemnity that his original burial never had,” said Phil Stone, chair of the Richard III Society. It was time to reconsider the king’s legacy, he added. The monarch was most famously portrayed as a hunchbacked villain in Shakespeare’s play “Richard III,” though some historians say he was a relatively enlightened monarch whose name was besmirched by his opponents. “Let us remember King Richard III: The good king. The warrior king,” Stone said. to federal prison for nine years. He pleaded guilty to sexual assault in Arizona and no contest in California to raping two women he knocked out with a potent sedative mixed with booze. Sharper, 39, wearing a striped, light blue suit, said he was entering the plea because it was in his best interest. He had faced up to 33 years in prison if convicted of all counts against him in California. By not contesting the charges, the former all-pro safety who won a Super Bowl with the New Orleans Saints, admitted he raped two women he drugged after meeting them at a West Hollywood bar in 2013 and 2014. The no contest plea has the same effect as a conviction. The women were not in court, but prosecutors said they had agreed to the plea deal. continued from Page A7 MUD SEASON SPECIAL through Leicestershire’s countryside to Bosworth, the battlefield where the monarch fell. Crowds lined the route of the cortege, and re-enactors in costume fired cannons in a 21-gun salute. Michael Ibsen, a descendant of the monarch who built the coffin that carried Richard’s remains, was among academics and others who placed white roses on the casket during a short ceremony earlier Sunday. The coffin will lie in Leicester Cathedral, where it will be lowered into a tomb on Thursday. “His reburial at the end of the staff discouraging the move about two months before the international alert was finally raised, citing diplomatic relations, mining interests and the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca. WHO spokeswoman Dr. Margaret Harris said Monday that “political considerations did not play a role” and that notions to the contrary were due to a misinterpretation of the leaked documents. Political worries appear to loom large in the communications obtained by AP, which include emails and memoranda. A June 10 memo sent to WHO Director-General Dr. Margaret Chan says declaring an emergency — or convening a committee to discuss the issue — could be seen as a “hostile act” by Ebola-affected countries. When senior African staff floated the idea of deTaylor Swift, Harvard, Microsoft among those claring an emergency on June 4, WHO official Dr. Sylvie Briand wrote that she saw such a move as a “last resort.” buying up .porn, .adult suffixes as a precaution An international emergency was eventually declared on Aug. 8, by which NEW YORK (AP) — The singer Taylor Swift, Microsoft Corp. and Harpoint nearly 1,000 people had died. vard University are among those buying up .porn and .adult Web suffixes as a pre-emptive move before those domain names become available this summer. Alaska police discover four bodies, handgun The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or ICANN, near home of family missing since May is making Internet address suffixes beyond the usual .com or .org available KENAI, Alaska (AP) — Authorities investigating the disappearance of for people and businesses to use. While some are in Chinese or other lanan Alaska family missing for nearly a year have discovered four bodies and guages besides English, others could include the likes of .music, .app or, of a handgun about a half a mile from their home. course, .porn. Kenai police Lt. Dave Ross said Monday the bodies haven’t been identiTo check what brands, groups and celebrities have bought their domain fied by a coroner, but police have every indication it’s the missing family. names, visit http://icmregistry.com/domaincheckhttp://icmregistry.com/doHe added that they believe the gun came from the family home based on maincheck . According to the site, Microsoft has bought not only a serial number match. Microsoft.porn but Office.porn and Office.adult as well. Ross provided few details, saying the investigation remains open. But he Representatives for Taylor Swift, Microsoft and Harvard could not immesaid there’s no reason to believe another person was involved in the deaths diately be reached for comment. or that the bodies were moved. He said the remains of a dog that match the size of the family dog also Unexploded bomb forces were found along the trail. 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Police spokeswoman Sona Stetinska said the discovery of the bomb that weighs several tens of kilograms (pounds) in a densely populated neighborhood in the city of Opava prompted the evacuation Monday afternoon. Stetinska said several nearby roads and streets also had to be closed. Opava City Hall said the bomb is likely from World War II. It said police experts have started to defuse it. Bombs left over from World War II are discovered from time to time in the region and elsewhere in the Czech Republic. Police didn’t immediately give any further details. PUBLIC NOTICE All interested persons are invited to comment on any potential effects that may be caused to historic properties from a proposed 90-foot tall monopole telecommunications tower to be located off of Thistle Hill Road, Cabot, VT, if any such properties are located at or near the site. 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