08/21/2008

Worker injured in fall from roof in East Providence
EAST PROVIDENCE — A local man was in critical condition at Rhode Island Hospital last night after he fell from a Hazard Avenue roof he was working on.

Committee eases path for donation
In talks with philanthropist Shawn Alan Feinstein, the school board now allows the naming of schools after people.

Isolation room deemed to violate school, fire rules
A report prepared by consultants hired by Block Island’s School Committee recommends major changes in the room’s design and school policies.

ACLU sues Carcieri over records access
At issue are documents setting out the chain of command if the governor were out of state during an emergency.

2 hurt in motorcycle crashes in Cranston, Warwick
Two motorcyclists were admitted to Rhode Island Hospital Hospital yesterday after accidents that occurred less than two hours apart in Warwick and Cranston.

New resource for hurricane preparedness
As this year’s hurricane season enters its active period, a handful of organizations have put together a hurricane preparedness guide to ensure residents are ready if another serious hurricane hits the Ocean State.

Despite soft market, pricey condos are selling / Video
While many are feeling the pinch of high oil prices and the credit crunch, the rich do not seem to be pinching pennies, at least as far as the high-end condominium market in Rhode Island is concerned.

ACLU sues Carcieri over records access
At issue are documents setting out the chain of command if the governor were out of state during an emergency.

Senate OKs new judges
Among the other appointments approved yesterday are nominees for fire marshal and state magistrates.

Isolation room deemed to violate school, fire rules
A report prepared by consultants hired by the Block Island’s school committee recommends major changes in the room’s design and school policies.

Vocal RIPTA critic resigns from board
Retired businessman Robert D. Batting, who had served on the panel since 2003, says, “I’m better off on the outside.”

Immigrations summit: Officers meet to discuss the laws
PROVIDENCE -- More than 70 police commanders from nearly every department in Rhode Island met privately yesterday morning to discuss methods to handle the illegal immigration issue.

Roger Williams gets $11.8-million grant
PROVIDENCE — Although not its largest ever, Roger Williams Medical Center was recently awarded an $11.8-million federal grant.

Kent Hospital names new president
Miriam COO Sandra L. Coletta, of Johnston, will succeed Mark E. Crevier, who received a vote of no confidence by doctors in September.

08/20/2008

Making the switch: Home heating oil versus natural gas
CRANSTON –– There are eight men crammed into Jimmy Cavanaugh’s tiny basement, and two of the biggest guys are now at the center of attention. They’re maneuvering a dolly holding a new steam boiler, a blue metal boxy device the size of a small freezer, which needs to go into the corner beneath an assembly of 2-inch heating pipes.

Benefactor long at odds with scholarship fund oversight
Alan Shawn Feinstein sued the Education Partnership two years ago over its handling of a scholarship fund named for his father.

Education Partnership programs to continue
While the troubled affairs of the agency get sorted out, two of its successful programs will be run by another group.

Suburban, urban school gap remains
Nearly three-quarters of schools in the state made “adequate yearly progress” last year as required by the federal government, but urban schools fared significantly worse than suburban schools.

Education divide
Performance varied significantly among urban, urban ring, and suburban schools on the annual state tests in 2007-2008.

Commended schools
Twenty-one schools from 10 districts were honored by the Board of Regents for Elementary and Secondary Education for exceptionally high performance in English and Math for two years, significant annual progress for two years or for closing the achievement gap between student groups.

Lynch: Judicial panel erred in withholding letters
In an advisory opinion, the attorney general says the panel that selects judicial nominees may only withhold letters or portions of letters that contain “personal and medical information” about the candidates.

Judicial nominees go for Senate vote
The judiciary committee approves selections for several new judges and magistrates.

Carcieri faces ethics probe in hiring
A state panel votes to investigate whether the governor broke anti-nepotism provisions of the state Code of Ethics by hiring a relative.

Where would state, town get money for Station settlements
In tough financial times, West Warwick and the state have each conditionally offered to pay $10 million to victims of the 2003 fire.

Panel won’t review 6 Carcieri nominees
President Joseph A. Montalbano says the Senate committee refuses to act because the governor didn’t consider suggestions from affected groups.

Bristol boy’s alert helps save drowning man
Sunday was so beautiful that Stephen and Robin Zasowski, of Bristol, decided to camp an extra day with their four children at Burlingame State Park, in Charlestown.

Reed to speak at Democratic Convention
Sen. Jack Reed will discuss national security on night three of next week’s Democratic National Convention in Denver.

Haitian delegation on U.S. tour make stop in R.I.
The delegation stops by Crossroads Rhode Island on a U.S. tour to find new ways to deal with their nation’s economic and political hardships.

Suspect in drug ring arrested
Jeremy Barnes has been living in a Providence apartment once occupied by a cast member of Grey’s Anatomy, according to a federal drug agent.

Instructions in Latin
Sydonee Harris, right, of Providence, teaches salsa dancing to Richard Cord, of Cranston, yesterday at the Black Repertory Theater, on Westminster Street in Providence. In addition to salsa, Harris teaches all types of ballroom dancing.

Health briefs
Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island will offer free hearing screenings on Sept. 22 through Sept. 26 at morning and afternoon sessions. Audiologists from the physical medicine department will conduct screenings and analyze results. For information or to schedule an appointment, call (401) 729-2022.

Artists win national honor
Sophomores Charlie Colvin and Sean Beard earn the honor of having their piece exhibited in Washington, D.C.

08/19/2008

For Station families, money can never bring closure
Holding up what’s left of her right hand and left arm, Gina Gauvin didn’t know if any amount of money could be sufficient for the lives and body parts lost at The Station nightclub five years ago.

West Warwick, state of Rhode Island propose settlements in Station fire
West Warwick and the state each file a tentative conditional agreement to pay $10 million into a growing fund for victims of the fire and their families.

Security cameras to monitor entire Bay
The idea is to keep an eye on large ships and watch for people in trouble on the water, but some say individuals’ privacy will be lost.

Homes in four municipalities to be made lead-safe
A settlement with DuPont in the state’s lawsuit against paint companies will finance the project, which targets 600 homes.

Burrillville man, 18, held in fatal stabbing
Aaron Menard is accused of killing a Smithfield man who apparently tried to get into an apartment occupied by Menard and the man’s former girlfriend.

College presidents want drinking age reconsidered
The group says the current age limit encourages binge drinking; URI President Robert L. Carothers is among those who reject the argument.

West Warwick panel seeks new approaches to fighting underage drinking
The town’s Substance Abuse Task Force has to broadly “change the environment the kids live in,” says one of its leaders.

Chariho members add weight to fight vs. underage drinking
WEST WARWICK — Town police officers yesterday learned about emerging tools and strategies for combating underage drinking, in a training session sponsored by the West Warwick Substance Abuse Task Force.

Intrigue and turmoil, but few answers, on tax position battle
In a heated meeting, the Town Council discusses the issue but reaches no conclusions.

N.Y. man pulled from Watchaug Pond
A lifeguard and park patron at Burlingame State Campground bring the man to shore, where a CPR instructor administers life-saving breaths.

Rhode Island briefs
Shape Up meeting: Shape Up RI, a statewide, nonprofit wellness organization, will hold one-hour informational meetings regarding the 2009 program in the Rhode Island Room at the Rhode Island Foundation on Tuesday, Aug. 26, at 3:30 p.m. and Thursday, Aug. 28, at 9 a.m.

Go ride a kite
Brian Kology, of Vernon, Conn., takes to the air yesterday afternoon while kite surfing off the Camp Cronin fishing area at Point Judith in Narragansett.

Volunteer briefs
www.soarinri.org.

Health briefs
www.health.ri.gov/wellnessaward or call (401) 222-7637. Application deadline is Aug. 31.

08/18/2008

Johnston scrapyard fire fouls air for miles
JOHNSTON — Firefighters from four communities scrambled into the late evening to snuff out a fire yesterday that sent columns of black smoke into the sky from piles of burning cars at a scrap metal plant.

More R.I. voters register as Democrats
The party posts a 5.6-percent gain while the number of Republicans increases by 0.8 percent and the number of independents declines 5.3 percent.

Whitehouse sets ‘community dinner’ to discuss nation’s sputtering economy
U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse invites the public to discuss “a weakening economy, the nation’s foreclosure crisis, and rising energy costs,” at a community dinner tomorrow in North Providence, according to an announcement released by his office.

Providence man, 19, found mortally wounded in car
PROVIDENCE — The police said yesterday that they are investigating the city’s 10th homicide of the year, a Providence man who died in Rhode Island Hospital after suffering gunshot wounds while seated in a car on Clym Street late Saturday.

Law & Order
The family members gathered on the hard wooden benches in Superior Court, in Providence, on a sunny day this past June. Huddling in their grief, they watched as Anthony J. Carter was brought into court, handcuffed and shackled. Carter had been extradited from Florida and indicted in the slayings of Heather Jesus and Amanda Sousa in June 2007. The young victims’ families now clutched each other as they faced the women’s alleged killer for the first time. Among the family, I’Loner L. Weaver quietly moved, passing out boxes of tissues.

Slip at fundraiser leaves mayor in a cast
Some say that politics is a dangerous business. Providence Mayor David N. Cicilline is sporting the cast to prove it.

Labor History Society sets awards dinner
Among those slated to be honored is former Attorney General Julius C. Michaelson.

Neighbor rescues Warwick woman from burning house
WARWICK — A woman trapped in her small Cape home early yesterday as a fire burned on the first floor was rescued by a neighbor who heard her cries and raised a ladder to a second-floor window.

Inmate had sex with supervisor during work release, officials say
Jessica Gonzalez, 25, convicted of murder when she was 15, had sex with a supervisor in a work-release job, officials say.

Man who died in fall from East Greenwich marina pier is identified
EAST GREENWICH — A man who died early Saturday after falling into the water at Milt’s Marina was identified by the police yesterday as Jerald St. Laurent, 45, of Westboro, Mass.

08/17/2008

Pride & politics
SOUTH KINGSTOWN –– Few Americans have heard of Liu Xiang, but the Chinese champion hurdler has an intense pocket of fans at the University of Rhode Island, where Chinese-born students have breathlessly followed every turn of their country’s Olympic games.

State workers retiring early because of health-insurance costs
Longtime URI employee Domenic J. Moretti, 57, is one example. He’s retiring now to keep free medical benefits. Otherwise he pays $172 a month.

The roller-coaster world of crack cocaine sentencing
The case of a Providence man who received the sentences illustrates the changing legal view of crack- versus-powder cocaine sentencing.

Still a crowd pleaser
PROVIDENCE — Come more than 90 minutes before the bonfires are lit and prime seating is yours.

Devils, angels abound at Bolivians’ joyous, colorful Urkupina Festival
The two-day event continues today at the Bank of America skating rink in Providence.

Man drowns after fall at East Greenwich marina
An unidentified 45-year-old Westboro, Mass., man drowned early yesterday morning at Milt’s Marina, at 20 Water St., East Greenwich, the East Greenwich police said.

Several hundred fish found dead near Bullocks Cove, East Providence
A few hundred dead menhaden were discovered near Bullocks Cove in East Providence Thursday by one of several teams sampling upper Narragansett Bay in what are believed to be worst-case conditions: high temperatures, low oxygen and neap, or weak tides.

In Quotes: The week that was

05/10/2008

R.I. budget hole grows by at least $50 million
Financial analysts say the shortfall for the coming fiscal year has grown by more than $50 million.

01/20/2008

Gay Evolution
What we know about gay history in America begins here, in Rhode Island, with a gay sex scandal that rocked the U.S. Navy and tarnished the reputation of a president. A half-century later, the gay rights movement rode into Providence on the back of a church. Those early activists drove a sweeping political and cultural agenda so unthinkable, the pioneers never thought they’d live to see it — a time when their lives would be as fabulous and as ordinary as anyone. Read about Providence’s transformation into a gay destination spot, watch slideshows of the everyday lives of gay men and women and listen to their personal stories. Staff writer Mark Arsenault and photographer John Freidah take you on a historical journey.

1919 Newport sting targeted gay sailors, ended in scandal
The nation was shocked to learn that the Navy sent out “agents” to solicit sex in an operation the Senate declared disgraceful.