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February 28, 2006

Laffey offers amnesty in school case -- and a warning

CRANSTON -- Mayor Stephen P. Laffey has ordered charges dropped against the Providence woman he had arrested earlier this month for sending her son to school illegally -- and has offered a brief amnesty period to encourage other students improperly in Cranston schools to head back to their home districts.

But after March 10, Laffey says that he will prosecute any parents whose children are subsequently found in Cranston schools -- and he’ll be sending Providence the bill for the cost of educating them in Cranston so far.

At the same time, Laffey tore into Providence, blaming its "failed system’’ for forcing parents to send students his way, and threatened to have friendly legislators go after Providence’s state aid allocation unless it starts to reimburse Cranston for each student it sends there.

Laffey also proposed a school choice system where students in low-performing schools in one city could opt to go to a better-performing school in another, with the bill sent to their home city.

Providence Mayor David N. Cicilline declined comment, and Schools Supt. Donnie W. Evans, while contacted, has not responded with comment at this time.

-- Journal staff writer Daniel Barbarisi

Posted by Jack Perry at 05:21 PM | Comment

Fire line was source of Providence water break

PROVIDENCE -- A break in a 16-inch high-pressure fire line was the source of water that flooded parts of Cathedral Square and four nearby buildings this morning.

The Water Supply Board said the line, which runs through the city, provides water for emergency services to buildings, such as fire hydrants.

The water began pouring from the line before 4 a.m. today, and continued for several hours. It flowed into Cathedral Square, and flooded parts of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence's Chancery building, Grace Church Apartments, Cathedral Square Apartments and Regency Plaza apartments.

Much of it was pumped away, and sand was spread. Only one fire hydrant was out of service as a result of the break, and others nearby are enough to cover the area, according to the Water Supply Board.

-- With reports from Journal staff writer Gregory Smith

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 05:09 PM

Updated: Judge rules against punitive damages in lead case

PROVIDENCE -- A Superior Court judge today dismissed any punitive damages against three companies found to have created a public nuisance by selling lead paints in Rhode Island.

The decision by Superior Court Judge Michael A. Silverstein could save the companies billions of dollars since punitive damages are often a mutiple of actual damages. The decision sent financial analysts in the courtroom scurrying to make telephone calls.

As a result of a jury's landmark verdict last week holding the companies liable, the companies will have to clean up, or abate, lead paint on an estimated 240,000 homes in the state. That could cost billions of dollars, according to some estimates.

Lawyers for the three companies -- Sherwin Williams, NL Industries and Millennium Holdings -- argued against the punitive damages.

Paul Michael Pohl, for Sherwin Williams, yesterday said the law is clear -- for punitive damages to be awarded, it has to be shown that a party acted with clear intent to cause harm.

Silverstein is expected to rule later on details of an abatement program.

-- Journal environment writer Peter B. Lord

Posted by Jack Perry at 02:48 PM | Comment

Judge to rule on punitive damages for lead-paint makers

PROVIDENCE -- A judge will announce this afternoon whether former makers of lead paint should be subject to punitive damages after a jury last week found them responsible for creating a public nuisance in Rhode Island.

Both sides wrapped up their arguments before Superior Court Judge Michael A. Silverstein today. The lawyers for the three paint companies began their arguments yesterday and finished this morning. They were then followed by lawyers for the state, which brought the landmark suit after thousands of Rhode Island children suffered from lead poisoning.

Silverstein is expected to issue his ruling at 2 p.m. If he finds for punitive damages, the jurors who heard the trial will be asked to determine how much. Otherwise, they will be dismissed.

Even without the punitive damages, the defendants could be facing a total bill of several billion dollars to clean up, or abate, the lead-based paints found on an estimated 240,000 houses in Rhode Island.

-- With reports from Journal environment writer Peter B. Lord

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 01:46 PM

Free smoke detectors available for qualified Providence residents

PROVIDENCE -- The city Fire Department will use funding from a federal grant to install smoke detectors in nearly 5,000 homes, Mayor David N. Cicilline announced today.

According to the mayor's office, residents interested in having a smoke detector installed in their homes must meet one of several criteria.

Mayor Cicilline said the Providence Fire Department’s Fire Prevention Bureau has established the Smoke Detector Hot Line for residents to call and request smoke detectors at (401) 243-6034.

The Fire Department received a $127,412 Federal Emergency Management Agency grant to expand the department’s fire prevention outreach program and install the smoke detectors, according to Cicilline.

Read the mayor's press release.

Posted by Jack Perry at 01:03 PM

Updated: Water from main break pours into area near cathedral / Photo

Journal photo / Mary Murphy
Water flows down Washington Street just below the Service Road towards Greene Street and the Providence Public Library this morning around 8:15 from a water main break that occurred before 4 a.m.

PROVIDENCE -- While water has stopped flowing onto Washington Street after a water main break early this morning, it's left its presence behind.

Water had poured from the break for several hours, flooding several buildings and prompting officials to close a section of Washington Street.

Firefighters started pumping water at 4 a.m. from the Chancery of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, which is next to the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul.

-- Journal staff photographer Mary Murphy and Journal staff writer Gregory Smith

Water 5 inches deep collected in the plaza in front of the cathedral, while about water about 3 inches deep had flowed into the basement of the Chancery.

At the nearby Grace Church apartments, the lobby was flooded with 3 to 4 inches of water, while about nine of the building's 100 units took on a small amount of water.

Just one resident was forced to move from her apartment, but she was able to stay with a relative next door.

Workers for a property management company in an office on the ground floor of the nearby Cathedral Square Apartments had placed sandbags in front of the doorway and were clearing away water.

The company manages the Cathedral Square Apartments and properties in other parts of the country. Workers were especially concerned about protecting computer servers and other network equipment necessary for managing all of the properties.

Washington Street had been closed between Greene Street and Service Road earlier today.

-- Journal staff photographer Mary Murphy and staff writer Gregory Smith

Posted by Jack Perry at 12:50 PM | Comment

Cranston man nabbed after shooting into home

CRANSTON -- A 20-year-old man fired a pistol round into a home on Colwell Street last night, in what was meant to be a warning shot to disperse a group of youths fighting on the street, the police said.

The bullet passed through a window of the home at 68 Colwell St. and lodged in an inside wall, the police said.

Robert Garrin, of 154 Franklin Ave., was charged with disorderly conduct, shooting in a compact area, and shooting across a highway.

He was one of six men and boys charged in connection with the street fight. The police also reported seizing bats, knives, brass knuckles, and a BB gun from the group.

The incident is not considered gang-related, the police said.

-- Journal staff writer Zachary Mider

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 12:40 PM | Comment

Citizens earnings rise on acquisitions and growth

The Royal Bank of Scotland Group today reported earnings at its main U.S. subsidiary, Citizens Financial Group Inc. of Providence, rose 46 percent thanks to a major acquisition and strong organic growth.

RBS said Citizens' pre-tax contribution to its parent company last year totaled $2.87 billion, up from $1.96 billion in 2004.

A big part of the earnings increase resulted from the impact of Citizens' 2004 purchase of Cleveland-based Charter One Bank. Excluding that and other acquisitions, Citizens' earnings in 2005 rose 10 percent over the previous year.

The Citizens results are included in the 2005 earnings announced today by The Royal Bank of Scotland. It posted 2005 net income of 5.4 billion pounds, a 16.7-percent gain over last year's 4.6 billion figure.

Posted by at 12:02 PM

O.A.R. coming to Ryan Center in April

Alternative rock band O.A.R will return to the University of Rhode Island's Ryan Center on April 21, at 8 p.m., the venue announced late yesterday.

Tickets are $30 and go on sale Friday at noon at the Ryan Center box office in Kingston, at all Ticketmaster outlets, online at Ticketmaster.com, or by calling Ticketmaster at 401-331-2211.

Posted by at 11:27 AM

Weather service: Snow, rain on the way late tomorrow

The National Weather Service is monitoring a storm that could bring snow and rain into southern New England late Wednesday and Thursday.

The storm could drop several inches of snow to parts of the region, but coastal areas could see a change to rain or a mixture of rain, sleet and snow, according to the weather service in Taunton, Mass.

The heaviest precipitation should fall Thursday morning and taper off by late in the day, the weather service says in a special weather statement.

Posted by Jack Perry at 11:06 AM

Tim Hortons to offer shares at $18 to $20 in IPO

Canadian coffee and doughnut chain Tim Hortons Inc., which bought Rhode Island's Bess Eaton Donut Flour Co in 2004, filed paperwork estimating it will offer 29 million shares in a price range of $18 to $20 per share in its upcoming initial public offering.

Wendy's, based in Dublin, Ohio, will continue to own about 85 percent, or around 160 million shares, of Tim Hortons' common stock after the IPO.

Tim Hortons has stores located primarily in Rhode Island, New York, Michigan, Ohio and Connecticut.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:32 AM

Man allegedly attacks firefighters with sword during rescue

WOONSOCKET -- Police in Woonsocket say a sword-wielding man attacked two firefighters who tried to rescue him over the weekend from his smoke-filled apartment.

Police say Ferenc Orsos was eventually subdued after police officers shot him four times with a stun gun. Orsos was taken to a hospital for treatment, and police say he's now facing charges.

Firefighters responded to a call early Saturday morning that smoke was coming out of Orsos' apartment.

Police say Orsos threatened the firefighters, then attacked them. The firefighters were able to escape from the apartment.

Police later returned to the apartment, and officers say Orsos threatened them with a cane sword.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 09:13 AM

Arguments on punitive damages continue in lead-paint case

PROVIDENCE -- A Superior Court judge today must decide whether to ask a jury to determine punitive damages against three companies found responsible last week for creating a public nuisance by selling lead-based paints in Rhode Island.

The punitive damages would add to what the three companies must pay to clean up, or abate, the lead-based paints found on an estimated 240,000 houses in the state. That cost alone could reach several billion dollars.

Lawyers for NL Industries, Sherwin Williams and Millennium Holdings are arguing that the companies should not have to pay punitive damages. After the company lawyers complete their arguments, Judge Michael A. Silverstein will hear from three state lawyers who insist punitive damages are appropriate.

Silverstein has told the jury to return to court at 2 p.m.

Posted by Jack Perry at 09:00 AM

February 27, 2006

Providence board mull pension of employee who embezzled park funds

PROVIDENCE - A hearing that started today will help the city's Retirement Board decide if it should revoke or reduce the pension of a retired Parks Department employee who pleaded no contest to embezzling city money.

In August, the Retirement Board appointed lawyer Jennifer S. Sternick to conduct a hearing on Kathleen Parsons' pension. After the hearing process is completed, Sternick will make a recommendation to the board.

Parsons, a 19-year city employee who receives a $3,900 monthly check, pleaded no contest in 2004 to stealing about $26,000 from a fund at the Parks Department. She has since repaid the money.

The hearing will resume March 13.

-- Journal staff writer Gregory Smith

Posted by Jack Perry at 05:03 PM

Governor urges CRMC to reject Champlin Marina expansion

PROVIDENCE -- Governor Carcieri today called on the Coastal Resources Management Council to reject an application by Champlin’s Realty Associates to dramatically expand its marina at the Great Salt Pond on Block Island.

“I fear that expanding Champlin’s Marina will seriously threaten the health of the Great Salt Pond. I am also concerned that it will result in the transfer of a valuable public asset into the hands of a private company,” the governor said in a press release late this afternoon.

CRMC is scheduled to hold a public meeting on the proposal tomorrow at 6 p.m.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 05:00 PM | Comment

Arguments over lead-paint suit damages will continue

PROVIDENCE -- A judge will continue hearing arguments tomorrow morning on whether three former lead paint makers should have to pay punitive damages.

Superior Court Judge Michael Silverstein listened to arguments this afternoon from lawyers for the paint makers, and he will hear tomorrow from the state.

A jury last week found the three companies -- Sherwin Williams Co., Millennium Holdings and NL Industries -- liable for creating a public nuisance and said they should be ordered to clean up lead paint contamination.

At issue now is whether the companies can be punished with damages over and above the cost of cleanup.

The jury that reached the verdict was told to return to court at 2 p.m. tomorrow. It had originally been scheduled to come back at 9:30 a.m.

-- The Associated Press and Journal staff writer Peter Lord

The state says tens of thousands of children in Rhode Island have suffered lead poisoning since the early 1990s and that hundreds of thousands of homes contain lead paint.

Rhode Island sued former lead pigment manufacturers in 1999 and is the first state to defeat the companies in court.

-- The Associated Press and Journal environment writer Peter B. Lord

Posted by Jack Perry at 04:49 PM

Judge to hear arguments on punitive damages in lead paint case

PROVIDENCE -- A judge is scheduled to hear arguments this afternoon on whether three former lead paint makers should have to pay punitive damages.

A jury last week found the three companies -- Sherwin Williams Co., Millennium Holdings and NL Industries -- liable for creating a public nuisance and said they should be ordered to clean up lead paint contamination.

At issue now is whether the companies can be punished with damages over and above the cost of cleanup.

The state says tens of thousands of children in Rhode Island have suffered lead poisoning since the early 1990s and that hundreds of thousands of homes contain lead paint.

Rhode Island sued former lead pigment manufacturers in 1999 and is the first state to defeat the companies in court.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 02:26 PM

Hemenway's a finalist in best-bathroom contest

Call it the Toilet Bowl.

A bathroom supply company sponsoring an online poll to find America's best bathroom has narrowed the field down to five sparkling-clean, sweet-smelling potties.

And the finalists include one in Rhode Island -- Hemenway's Seafood Grille & Oyster Bar in Providence.
The four others are Atlantic City's Borgata hotel and casino, a Michigan bistro, an Illinois airport and an Ohio restaurant.

Sponsored by Cincinnati-based Cintas Corporation, manufacturer of Sanis restroom supplies, the America's Best Restroom contest was started in 2001 to spotlight businesses that maintain exceptional hygiene and stylistic grace in their potties. Nominations can be made by anyone, and about 30 are received annually.

"We're definitely pleased," said Chris Phillips, managing partner for the restaurant.

Like the quality of the food, the condition of the restrooms speaks to the concern a restaurant has for its customers, according to Phillips.

To help make that point, Hemenway's displays flowers in its bathrooms and also stocks them with hand lotions.

Prompted by an egg timer, the host staff checks the bathrooms every 15 minutes to make sure they're clean and haven't run out of supplies. A cleaning company comes in weekly to do a more thorough job.

Still, the bathrooms don't draw a lot of comments, according to Phillips. He says customers seem to expect it.

Cast your vote for the winner here.

Posted by Jack Perry at 02:09 PM | Comment

Photo: Bundling up against a wintry blast

Journal photo / Bill Murphy
Heather Agnew of Providence bundles up against the cold as she walks through Kennedy Plaza this morning. And chances are she'll and other city pedestrians will have to do so through Wednesday, as northwest winds chill air temperatures in the 20s and 30s even more.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 01:20 PM

Warwick crash victim ID'd as East Providence man, 42

WARWICK -- The police have released the name of the 42-year-old man who died Friday when he crashed his van head-on into an oak tree near Goddard Memorial State Park.

The driver, Jerome Hagy, of East Providence, was alone in the car when it crashed at about 9:45 a.m., Lt. Mark Brandreth said.

The head of the traffic division, Lt. Thomas Snow, said investigators still do not know why he drove his blue 1991 Dodge van into the large oak tree.

Results from an autopsy performed Saturday have not been released.

-- Journal staff writer Benjamin Gedan

Posted by Jack Perry at 01:09 PM

R.I. gas prices drop for 4th week in row

PROVIDENCE -- Gasoline prices in Rhode Island dropped another 4 cents this week, the fourth week in a row that prices have fallen, according to AAA Southern New England.

The average price for a gallon of regular, unleaded gasoline is $2.20 at the self-service pump, which is 21 cents less than it was on Jan. 30, according to AAA's weekly survey.

Posted by Jack Perry at 01:05 PM

Small fire spreads across 2 Oakland Beach backyards

WARWICK -- A small fire spread across the backyards of two houses in the Oakland Beach neighborhood this morning, Battalion Chief Gary Meegan said.

The one-alarm fire apparently sparked around 7:30 a.m. and spread between a cinderblock garage and a large wood shed in adjacent properties on Manning Street, Meegan said.

The shed and garage were only a foot apart, separated by a wooden stockade fence that also caught fire. The cause of the fire is under investigation by the fire prevention bureau, Meegan said. There were no injuries or damage to the houses.

-- Journal staff writer Benjamin Gedan

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 12:21 PM | Comment

R.I. firms can learn about exporting to Central America

CRANSTON -- Rhode Island companies can learn about export opportunities to Central America at a conference in Cranston this morning.

Morgan Associates and Bryant College's Chafee Center for International Business are offering the program, which consists of a 10-month commitment and a July trade mission to El Salvador, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic.

U.S. Sen. Lincoln Chafee, R-R.I., is expected to attend. The center is named after his late father, who was a U.S. senator and Rhode Island governor.

These countries are part of the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement, which also includes Costa Rica, Honduras and Nicaragua.

Posted by Jack Perry at 09:04 AM

Red Cross helps 3 after S. Kingstown fire

66 Canterbury Road SOUTH KINGSTOWN -- The Rhode Island chapter of the American Red Cross provided food, shelter and clothing for three adults, including an elderly resident, displaced by a fire last night in South Kingstown, according to a spokeswoman.

Volunteers responded to the scene at 66 Canterbury Road last night, according to spokeswoman Angie Moncada.

Posted by Jack Perry at 09:03 AM

Bitter cold continues to flow over region

PROVIDENCE - Baby, it's still cold outside.

With northwest winds blowing and arctic air over New England, the temperature was just 9 degrees in Providence at 5:30 a.m., but the wind made it feel like 7 degrees below zero, according to the National Weather Service in Taunton, Mass.

The good news: Today should be the coldest day of the week. The weather service says the temperature should reach 26 degrees today, but northwest winds between 15 and 18 mph will make it feel colder.

The temperature should climb steadily, if not dramatically, this week, reaching a high of 38 by Friday. The region could see rain or snow Thursday.

Get the latest conditions and forecasts for the region ...

Posted by Jack Perry at 09:02 AM

National Grid will buy KeySpan for $7.3B

LONDON -- British utility National Grid PLC said it agreed to buy Brooklyn-based electricity and natural-gas distributor KeySpan Corp. for $7.3 billion in a deal that would create the third-largest energy delivery utility in the United States.

National Grid said today it was paying the $7.3 billion in cash and also taking on debt estimated at $4.5 billion. KeySpan shareholders will receive $42.00 in cash per share.

Upon completion of the deal, National Grid will serve nearly 8 million customers in New York state and New England, the companies said.

National Grid, which owns and operates Britain's power grid, already has a large presence in the United States. It distributes electricity and natural gas to nearly 4 million customers in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Rhode Island.

KeySpan operates the liquefied natural gas terminaly at the Port of Providence in Rhode Island and is the fifth-largest gas-distribution company in the United States and the largest in the Northeast. I

A press conference on the acquisition will be Webcast today at 10 a.m.

-- The Associated Press

KeySpan operates the power transmission system for the Long Island Power Authority, bringing electricity to more than 1 million customers in New York's Nassau and Suffolk counties and the Rockaway Peninsula in Queens.

KeySpan's shares closed up 32 cents at $41.41 on Friday, near the high end of the stock's 52-week range of $32.66 to $41.52 on the New York Stock Exchange.

National Grid's shares rose 1.4 percent in morning trading on the London Stock Exchange to 622 pence ($10.19).

The acquisition is to be completed by early next year.

National Grid said it expects to deliver $200 million per year in savings.

Michael E. Jesanis will continue as president and CEO of National Grid USA. Bob Catell, currently chairman and CEO of KeySpan, will join the National Grid board as deputy chairman and will also become chairman of National Grid USA, National Grid said.

"KeySpan is an excellent operational and geographic fit and a natural extension of our business and our strategy," said Roger Urwin, National Grid Group chief executive.

"This transaction will deliver significant value to shareholders and customers of both companies," said Catell.

"KeySpan will become an important part of one of the largest and most efficient energy delivery companies in the world, and have access to additional financial resources to invest in our energy infrastructure and growth opportunities," Catell said.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by at 09:00 AM | Comment

February 24, 2006

High court upholds man's conviction for stabbing ex-girlfriend

PROVIDENCE -- The Rhode Island Supreme Court today upheld the conviction of a man who stabbed his former girlfriend at a Providence housing complex for the elderly and disabled.

Camillo Lorenzo, now 61, was convicted of four charges, including assault with intent to murder, and was sentenced to serve 10 years in prison for stabbing Delphine Garnetto at Pocasset Manor in 2001.

The court rejected Lorenzo's argument that Superior Court Judge Francis J. Darigan Jr. should have allowed his lawyer to introduce evidence about Garnetto’s mental health and to cross-examine her about why Lorenzo stabbed her. Lorenzo claimed he acted in self-defense.

-- Journal staff writer Edward Fitzpatrick

At the time of the attack, Lorenzo and Garnetto were living on the same floor of Pocasset Manor, a high-rise apartment building on Kelly Street in Providence.

Lorenzo, who was partially disabled from two heart attacks and a stroke, had begun living there in 1999 after an argument with his wife, according to Justice Paul A. Suttell’s opinion. At some point in March or April 2000, he entered into a “dating relationship” with Garnetto, who is now 49.

“After about a year, the liaison ended,” Suttell wrote. “Ms. Garnetto attributed the termination of the relationship to the incompatibility of the couple’s respective medical patches.”

More in tomorrow's Journal and on projo.com

-- Journal staff writer Edward Fitzpatrick

Posted by Jack Perry at 05:28 PM

Lynch wants to allow comments on revised Weaver's Cove LNG plan

PROVIDENCE -- Attorney General Patrick Lynch says he wants to continue the debate over plans to build a liquefied natural gas terminal in Fall River, Mass.

Lynch today called on the Army Corps of Engineers to reopen the public comment period on the proposed LNG terminal.
The move comes after the company behind the project revised its plans. Weaver's Cove recently said it wants to use smaller vessels that would make more frequent trips to transport the LNG.

Lynch says Weaver's Cove is radically altering its proposal -- not merely tweaking it -- and that the public deserves to have the comment period reopened.

He says the new plan would result in increased traffic delays and more bridge closures.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 04:30 PM

S. Kingstown man admits to trading crack for guns

PROVIDENCE -- A South Kingstown man has admitted trading crack cocaine for guns.

Tyson Ford, 22, pleaded guilty to drug trafficking charges today in U.S. District Court, Providence.

Federal prosecutors say Ford took six handguns from an undercover agent in October and in return provided 13.5 grams of crack cocaine and $500.

Ford pleaded guilty in federal court in Providence to distributing crack cocaine and being a felon in possession of firearms.

Ford is in custody pending sentencing, which is scheduled for June 9.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 04:18 PM

Custer Battles co-founder says he knew little about firm's billings

ALEXANDRIA, Va. - The co-founder of a Rhode Island-based defense contractor at the center of a federal whistleblower lawsuit testified today that he knew little about his firm's multimillion-dollar billings for its work in Iraq.

"I wasn't involved in the invoicing process ... as the owner of the company, you hire other people to do this," Michael Battles told federal jurors.

Two former employees filed a whistleblower suit accusing the company, Custer Battles LLC, of war profiteering and defrauding the government of millions of dollars.

Battles, a former Army Ranger and CIA employee who ran unsuccessfully for Congress in Rhode Island, appeared self-assured as he was asked about his company's contracts and business dealings in postwar Iraq.

"If I had to weigh in before an invoice was submitted, the company would have ground to a halt," he said.

Alan Grayson, the attorney for the two whistleblowers, alleged that Battles had "deliberate ignorance and reckless disregard" about Custer Battles' billing practices.

-- Associated Press

Battles said the Middletown, R.I.-based firm grew rapidly as it took on more work in Iraq.

"One thing I learned as lieutenant is that the secret to successful leadership is to surround yourself with people smarter than you are," he said.

-- Associated Press

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 03:38 PM

Jury finds Swain liable in wife's death

PROVIDENCE -- A jury hearing a civil case found today that a Jamestown scuba shop owner killed his wife during a 1999 diving trip in the Caribbean, and it awarded her parents more than $3.5 million in damages.

The Superior Court jury found that enough evidence was presented to prove that David Swain, 50, a former Jamestown Town Council member, acted with "malice aforethought" in killing Shelley Tyre, 46, off the island of Tortola.

The five women and one man on the jury returned with their verdict at about 11:45 a.m. after deliberating for a little more than three hours over two days.

Tyre's parents, Richard and Lisa Tyre of Jamestown, brought the wrongful-death suit against Swain, alleging that Swain killed their daughter for money at a time when he was pursuing a relationship with another woman.

-- Journal staff writer Tom Mooney

Posted by Jack Perry at 12:20 PM

Driver dies when van hits tree in Warwick

WARWICK -- A motorist died this morning in Warwick after driving his van into a tree near 439 Ives Road, the police said.

The police did not release the name of the driver.

Lt. Mark Brandreth said the driver was alone in the car when it hit a tree at about 9:45 a.m.

An accident reconstruction team has been dispatched to the area, near Goddard Memorial State Park.

-- Journal staff writer Benjamin Gedan

Posted by Jack Perry at 11:48 AM

Swain jury signals verdict is imminent

PROVIDENCE -- The jury deciding the wrongful-death lawsuit against Jamestown resident David Swain asked the judge a question this morning that indicates it may have already reached a verdict in the case.

Jurors late this morning asked Superior Court Judge Patricia Hurst whether a formula exists for determining punitive damages.

The jurors nodded at Hurst when she told them that she assumed their question meant they had reached a verdict on the major question at issue in the trial -- whether Swain is liable for his wife's death while diving off the island of Tortola in 1999.

She then told the jurors that there is no formula, but they could consider punishment and deterrence in deciding damages.

The jurors later told Hurst they did not want sandwiches brought in because they expected to have their decision by 12:30 p.m. They began their deliberations yesterday afternoon.

Swain's former in-laws have sued him for wrongful death in the March 1999 death of their daughter, Shelley Tyre.

-- Journal staff writer Tom Mooney.

Posted by Jack Perry at 11:41 AM

R.I. co-founder of Custer Battles expected to testify today

ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- Michael Battles, the co-founder of war contractor Custer Battles, was expected to testify today in the federal whistleblower lawsuit brought against the Middletown, R.I. -based firm.

Two former business associates charged in a civil lawsuit that officials of the firm filed false claims for some of the millions of dollars they made from the U.S.-led Coalition Provisional Authority, which ran the first efforts to secure and rebuild Iraq after the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003.

Company cofounders Scott Custer, 37, of Virginia, and Battles, 35, a former Rhode Islander who made an unsuccessful bid for Congress, have denied the accusations, as has their former employee and codefendant, Joseph Morris, 43, of Connecticut.

-- With Associated Press and Journal reports

Posted by Jack Perry at 11:30 AM

2 Newport mansions named national historic landmarks

NEWPORT -- Two well-known Newport mansions are being named National Historic Landmarks.

Chateau-sur-Mer and Marble House have been granted the honor. Both mansions are among those owned by the Preservation Society of Newport County, which opens them to visitors.

This afternoon, U.S. Sen. Lincoln Chafee, R-R.I., will announce the designation, which allows the properties to get federal funding and tax breaks.

--The Associated Press

The Victorian Chateau-sur-Mer was built in 1852 and later redesigned by architect Richard Morris Hunt. It was owned by a former Rhode Island governor and U.S. senator, George Peabody Wetmore, and was acquired by the Preservation Society in 1969.

Marble House was a summer home for the Vanderbilt family and also designed by Hunt. The Preservation Society bought the house in 1963.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:59 AM

R.I.'s own take to the ice tonight in Providence

PROVIDENCE -- Tonight could mark your last chance to see Rhode Island's own "Olympians" speeding across an ice rink -- in lounge chairs.

The Down City Olympic Winter Fest holds its final competitions from 6:30 to 8 p.m. today at the Bank of America City Center in Providence.

Tonight's events at the Kennedy Plaza rink include a figure skating exhibition, speed skating finals, toboggan race finals, biathlon race finals and the Cardi’s Furniture chair race finals. They'll be followed by a medals presentation.

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:52 AM

National Grid in talks to buy KeySpan

National Grid Plc., owner of Rhode Island's electric utility, confirmed that it is has been in discussions to purchase KeySpan Corp., the biggest natural-gas seller in the Northeast and the owner of the liquefied natural gas terminal at the Port of Providence.

National Grid, which is based in the United Kingdom, earlier this month agreed to buy the Rhode Island operations of New England Gas Co. from Southern Union for $498 million in cash and $77 million in debt.

Keyspan distributes gas to 2.6 million customers in Massachusetts, New York and New Hampshire.

The Wall Street Journal earlier reported that National Grid offered $42 per share, compared with Keyspan's closing share price of $41.09 yesterday.

Bloomberg News reported last week that Consolidated Energy, a utility that Serves New York City, had also approached Keyspan about buying it.

-- With reports from Bloomberg News and Journal staff

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:34 AM

Reed hosts Medicare forum

PAWTUCKET -- U.S. Sen. Jack Reed is hosting a forum this morning on a Medicare prescription drug program he opposed.

The forum in Pawtucket will include elected officials, advocates for senior citizens and drug providers.

A spokeswoman for Reed says the Rhode Island Democrat opposed the new Medicare benefit program due to concerns over its complexity and other issues.

The plan has been plagued with problems since it was introduced in January. Rhode Island authorities created an emergency program to fill about 2,000 prescriptions for Medicare patients who qualified for the benefit but couldn't get their prescriptions filled.

State officials have asked the federal government for reimbursement.

Posted by Jack Perry at 09:12 AM

Weather service warns of high winds

PROVIDENCE -- The National Weather Service in Taunton, Mass., has issued a high wind warning for much of southern New England, including all of Rhode Island, northern Connecticut and all but the northwest corner of Massachusetts.

A strong cold front will move across the region this morning, bringing scattered snow showers and 30 mph northwest winds with gusts of 45 to 55 mph, according to the weather service.

A gale warning has been posted for all coastal waters from this afternoon through this evening, the weather service says.

Posted by Jack Perry at 09:00 AM

February 23, 2006

Pre-trial conference for Derderians held in chambers

PROVIDENCE - Lawyers for the state and Station nightclub owners Jeffrey and Michael Derderian met today with Superior Court Judge Francis Darigan in a previously scheduled pretrial conference.

The meeting was in Darigan's chambers, and the judge did not make an announcement about the results of the meeting in open court.

The Derderians face 200 counts of manslaughter each for the nightclub fire that killed 100 and injured more than 200 on Feb. 20, 2003.

-- Journal staff writer Tracy Breton

Posted by Jack Perry at 05:30 PM

Report: Pats let franchise tag for Vinatieri pass

A Patriots Football Weekly story posted on the New England Patriots Web site reports that the team had declined to use its franchise tag on kicker Adam Vinatieri or any other player before today's 4 p.m. deadline.

That means Vinatieri, wide receiver David Givens and the team's other unrestricted free agents will become free agents unless they agree to contracts before March 3.

Journal sports writer Tom Curran reported today that the team wasn't likely to use the francise tag on Vinatieri because it would have required them to pay the Super Bowl-winning kicker $3.01 million.

Posted by Jack Perry at 05:16 PM

Jury begins deliberating in Swain case

PROVIDENCE - A Superior Court jury this afternoon began deliberating a wrongful death lawsuit against a Jamestown man accused by his in-laws of killing his wife during a diving trip in the Caribbean.

After hearing closing arguments from the plaintiff's attorney and defendant David Swain, who is acting as his own attorney, the jury began its discussions at 3:13 p.m. and concluded at 4 p.m. The jurors are scheduled to resume at 9:30 a.m. tomorrow.

Swain's wife, Shelley Tyre, 46, died in March 1999 during a diving trip off the Caribbean island of Tortola. Tortola authorities ruled the death an accident "unless proven otherwise," and Swain has never been charged with a crime.

-- Journal staff writer Tom Mooney

In his closing argument, J. Renn Olenn, the lawyer representing Tyre's parents, claimed that Swain had gotten away with murder on Tortola, and he urged the jurors not to let him get away from them.

He claimed that evidence he presented at trial, including testimony from the chief medical examiner Florida's Miam-Dade County, proved that Swain went into the water with his wife and attacked her from behind, then surfaced quickly because he had run out of air from the struggle.

Swain, a former member of the Jamestown town council, reminded the jurors that he had never been charged with a crime and asked why the chief medical examiner in Miami hadn't contacted authorities in Tortola if the medical examiner was so convinced that he had killed his wife.

He said the death of "the wife I so loved" was a loss for all.

-- Journal staff writer Tom Mooney

Posted by Jack Perry at 04:45 PM

Carcieri applauds regional approach to LNG siting

Governor Carcieri today applauded New England legislators who are urging a regional approach to the siting of liquified natural gas terminals.

Carcieri has opposed the siting of LNG terminals in Providence and Fall River, Mass., because of what he considers safety, security, and environmental risks to residents of Rhode Island and Massachusetts.

On Dec. 16, Carcieri suggested the need for a regional approach to LNG in a letter to other New England governors.

“A regional approach is the best way to balance our increased energy needs with environmental, safety, security, and cost considerations," said in a press release today.

Rhode Island's two congressmen, James Langevin and Patrick Kennedy, both Demcorats, were among those who signed a letter to Department of Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman urging a regional effort.

Carcieri says he first raised the issue of a regional approach to siting LNG terminals in 2004, has since met with premiers from Eastern Canada and is engaged in ongoing discussions.

He says LNG facilities under construction in eastern Canada will expand the natural gas supply "while avoiding the dangers of siting these terminals in densely-populated areas along Narragansett Bay and in similar areas throughout New England."

Posted by Jack Perry at 04:23 PM

Looks like Ramirez wants to stay in Boston

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- In good news for Red Sox fans, developments today indicate that slugger Manny Ramirez no longer wants to be traded and isn't going to play for the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic.

The team's principal owner John Henry, speaking to reporters at the team's spring training base in Fort Myers, said, "We want to support the World Baseball Classic, but it's a plus he's coming here on March 1 and not playing in that.''

As long as Ramirez doesn't change his mind, that means he will be in spring training with the Red Sox beginning Wednesday.

Henry refused to comment on whether Ramirez was still demanding a trade. But former Yankee Enrique Wilson, a good friend of Ramirez's who is in Red Sox camp as a non-roster invitee, said that Ramirez had recently told him he wanted to play in Boston.

-- Journal sports writer Steven Krasner

Find a complete report on the news out of Red Sox spring training every day in The Journal and on projo.com...

Posted by Jack Perry at 03:12 PM

Dress rehearsal for J.C. Penney opening at Providence Place / Photo

Journal photo / Bob Thayer
Debi Gabriela, of Johnston, set execution supervisor at J.C. Penney's new store at the mall, adjusts gowns in the Juniors' Department today.

PROVIDENCE -- J.C. Penney quietly opened the doors of its new store in Providence Place mall at midweek, in advance of tomorrow's grand opening.

The mid-priced department store replaces a Lord & Taylor outlet that closed last June.

About half the goods in the three-level J.C. Penney outlet will be private-label brands the Texas company markets to shoppers in four "lifestyle" categories.

More about the opening in tomorrow's Journal and on projo.com...

Posted by Dealhawk at 03:06 PM

Rumford woman pockets $667,142 PowerBall prize

CRANSTON -- A PowerBall prize of $667,142 from last Saturday's big drawing was claimed this morning by a Rumford woman, who bought the winning number at Columbus Mini Mart in Pawtucket with four quarters.

The Rhode Island Lottery did not identify the woman, saying she had requested no publicity.

But in a press release, the lottery said she had bought a single quick-pick ticket at the Pawtucket store. She had played four tickets in total, each from a different retailer, hoping it would better her odds.

The last stop proved to be the one worth her while.

According to the press release, she jokingly asked the counter attendant if he minded the change. His reply: “Hey, it only takes one.”

The woman said she had known she was a winner since Sunday but only came forward today because "she did not want to take the time off of work."

The ticket was the largest prizewinner sold at a Rhode Island from last Saturday's record PowerBall jackpot drawing. The top prize of $365 million was claimed by eight co-workers in Nebraska.

Several other prizes in Rhode Island were still outstanding as of yesterday, according to the lottery.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 02:35 PM | Comment

Study: R.I. households served by food bank on rise

An increasing number of working Rhode Islanders are turning to food pantries and soup kitchens for help, according to a study released today.

Thirty-two percent of the households served by Rhode Island's food bank network last year had at least one or more working adults, according to Hunger in America 2006, a national and local study on charitable response to hunger.

That's an increase from 29 percent in 2001 and 25 percent in 1997, according to the report.

The report "points to a huge gap in government assistance to the near poor and the working poor," said Bernie Beaudreau, executive director of the Rhode Island Food Bank.

Many of the people who turn to Rhode Island's network of food pantries and soup kitchens don't qualify for public assistance, but still find themselves having to choose between eating and paying the rent, utilities or buying medicine, according to the study.

"The standard for public assistance programs is so low that many people are still in dire straits even if they're a little above poverty," Beaudreau said.

The Rhode Island Community Food Bank and its network of member agencies serves 62,324 people annually, more than 6 percent of Rhode Island's population.

The report concludes that "the growth of hunger in Rhode Island and in America continues to outpace private charitable responses."

Posted by Jack Perry at 02:03 PM

New England lawmakers call for regional approach to LNG siting

WASHINGTON -- New England lawmakers are calling for a new regional approach to siting onshore liquefied natural gas facilities.

The congressmen, who are seeking a meeting with Department of Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman, said today the current project-by-project review of proposed LNG facilities by federal regulators is not good for New England.

"We believe that this ad hoc approach is unsuitable for New England and that a more comprehensive and regional approach is required," wrote the lawmakers in a letter to Bodman.

U.S. Reps. James Langevin and Patrick Kennedy, both Rhode Island Democrats, are among those who signed the letter.

Read the full story.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:57 AM

Slippery roads in the forecast

PROVIDENCE - The National Weather Service has issued a special weather warning that rain and snow late this morning and early this afternoon could make roads slippery in southern New England.

The Providence area should see rain showers, but inland areas and higher elevations such as the Worcester hills in Massachusetts and the Interstate 84 corridor from Vernon and Union, Conn., to Sturbridge, Mass., could see an inch or two of snow fall quickly this afternoon as temperatures drop.

Posted by Jack Perry at 09:58 AM

Flower show begins today in Providence

PROVIDENCE - The Rhode Island Spring Flower and Garden Show begins at 10 this morning at the Rhode Island Convention Center, 1 Sabin Street, Providence.

The show runs through Sunday. Tickets are $16 for adults and $7 for children age 6 to 12.

Check out the flower show's Web site.

Posted by Jack Perry at 09:09 AM

R.I. Food Bank to announce results of hunger study

PROVIDENCE - The Rhode Island Food Bank has scheduled a press conference this morning with U.S. Reps. James Langevin and Patrick Kennedy to announce the results of hunger study, "Hunger in America 2006."

The press conference is scheduled for 10 a.m. at the food bank in Providence.

Posted by Jack Perry at 09:00 AM

February 22, 2006

Governor apologizes for Kass e-mail comments

PROVIDENCE - Governor Carcieri apologized today for language his communications director used in an e-mail sent to a local GOP leader.

Steve Kass, the communications director, sent the e-mail after David Quiroa had criticized the governor's budget plan to save $4 million by eliminating an estimated 3,000 undocumented children from RIte Care, the state's Medicaid program for low-income families.

Quiroa, a Latino who is the Newport GOP chairman, complained on several online discussion groups that Carcieri is "insenstitive to all minorities." He added, "Although the official name of the state is Rhode Island and Providence Plantations -- We are not a Plantation!"

Kass, a former talk-show host, wrote in response, "Speaking for myself, I would suggest that all proud Latino-American Republicans like Mr. Quiroa, should step up to the plate, say thank you for all the support they have been given by Rhode Island taxpayers, and then start a fundraising effort to assist those that do live on a plantation until our finances improve. I would be glad to make a contribution. Please tell me where to send the check."

Although he said he was writing for himself, Kass used his State House e-mail address and signed it, "Steve Kass, Communications Director, Office of the Governor."

Carcieri's statement said in part, “While I stand by Steve Kass’s efforts to defend my record from Mr. Quiroa’s offensive statements, I disagree with some of the language he used to explain my positions. I have made it clear to Steve that, as government officials, we should always avoid using sarcastic language that may be subject to misinterpretation.”

“It was never Steve’s intention or mine to cause offense to anyone. And I apologize to any Rhode Islander who was offended by Steve’s statement.”

The exchange generated a story in The Providence Journal and was the topic of discussion today on Rhode Island radio talk shows.

Posted by Jack Perry at 05:30 PM

Powerball prizes still to be claimed in R.I.

So the record Powerball jackpot didn’t go to a Rhode Islander. But it doesn’t mean that everybody who bought a ticket here was a loser.

Most were, but four lucky gamblers won $10,000 -- and one person hit a $667,142 payout for a ticket purchased at Columbus Mini Mart in Pawtucket. That big prize has yet to be claimed along with two of the $10,000 winners which were sold at the Newport Ave Gold Mart and the Liquor Shoppe on Broad Street, both also in Pawtucket.

Eight workers at a Nebraska meatpacking plant stepped forward yesterday to claim the single winning ticket to the $365 million PowerBall jackpot.

In addition to this Saturday’s Powerball, there are still several winning tickets, some worth up to $10,000, that were purchased in Rhode Island stores in the last six months but have yet to be claimed.

-- Journal staff writer Scott Mayerowitz

Those prizes are:

-$5,000 for a July, 27, 2005 drawing, purchased at New England Liquors, 500 Cranston St., Providence

-$10,000 for a Nov., 19, 2005 drawing, purchased at Colbea Enterprises, 2025 Post Rd., Warwick

-$10,000 for a Dec., 31, 2005 drawing, purchased at Joyal’s Liquors, 90 West Warwick Ave., West Warwick

-$10,000 for a Dec., 31, 2005 drawing, purchased at Cumberland Farms, Main Road, Tiverton

-$10,000 for a Feb. 4 drawing, purchased at Manville Road General, 37 Manville Rd., Woonsocket

-$10,000 for a Feb. 8 drawing, purchased at Coventry Discount Wine & Liquor, 600 Washington St., Coventry

-$10,000 for a Feb. 15 drawing, purchased at 7-Eleven, 10 Dorrance St., Providence

Archives for the past twelve months of drawings can be found RILOT.com

-- Journal staff writer Scott Mayerowitz

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 05:08 PM

Swain calls daughter as his sole witness in wrongful-death suit

PROVIDENCE - Jurors deciding a wrongful-death lawsuit should hear directly from the defendant tomorrow when he tries to sway them with a closing argument.

The trial took an unusual twist today when defendant David Swain of Jamestown decided to act as his own lawyer, addressed the jury in an opening statement, then presented his first and only witness, his 30-year-old daughter, Jennifer Swain.

Until today, the Superior Court jury, which has been hearing the case for a week, had seen Swain only in a videotaped deposition taken two years ago.

He had previously chosen not to sit through testimony and challenge it, either with an attorney or himself acting as an attorney.

Swain's wife, Shelley Tyre, 46, died in March 1999 during a diving trip off the Caribbean island of Tortola. Tortola authorities ruled the death an accident "unless proven otherwise," and Swain has never been charged with a crime.

Swain was subpoenaed to testify this morning, but the plaintiff's attorney, J. Renn Olenn, decided against calling him to the stand.

Instead, Swain, wearing a suit and tie but not socks, gave jurors an opening statement and presented his witness.

-- Journal staff writer Tom Mooney

Swain, who was on the dive with his wife, is being sued for wrongful death by her parents.

Jennifer Swain, who was Shelley Tyre's stepdaughter, testified about a meeting with the Tyre family a few days after Shelley Tyre's death.

She said the meeting was heated and emotional over the "sticking point" that David Swain was not by his wife's side when she died, but the meeting eventually took a more civil tone.

Closing arguments are scheduled for 12:45 p.m. tomorrow.

-- Journal staff writer Tom Mooney

Posted by Jack Perry at 04:59 PM

Updated: Pats' Brady has hernia surgery

New England Patriots star Tom Brady, who had been coping with a hernia, had surgery to repair it last week.

And he's already out on the golf course, though he joked with reporters at a tournament in Miami yesterday that he had to take it easy on hard swings.

The Patriots confirmed Brady had an operation, but did not provide details.

Citing an injury, Brady did not play in the NFL Pro Bowl on Feb. 12. He was at the Super Bowl on Feb. 5 in Detroit, where he conducted the opening coin toss.

-- With reports from Journal sportswriter Tom Curran and the Associated Press

Posted by at 04:02 PM

Naked motorist hits car, then truck on Providence street / Photo

Journal photo / Mary Murphy
A naked man driving this white car rear-ended a pickup truck on North Main Street, Providence, this afternoon, seriously injuring the truck driver and tying up traffic, according to the police.

PROVIDENCE - The city police say a naked man was seen walking along North Main Street before he jumped into a car, sped south along the street, sideswiped a car and rear-ended a pickup truck, seriously injuring the driver.

The man hit the first vehicle near Cemetery Street, then struck the pickup truck, which was stopped at a red light at Rochambeau, according to the police.

The naked man faces several charges, according to the police, who were still investigating late this afternoon. The police believe he was driving more than 50 mph on the heavily traveled road.

The accident happened shortly after noon. Police officers were still on the scene at 3 p.m. rerouting traffic.

-- Journal staff writer Gregory Smith

The driver of the pickup truck was taken to Rhode Island Hospital with serious injuries, according to the police. His dog was in the truck with him and was taken to an animal hospital for minor injuries.

The naked man suffered minor injuries and was taken to Rhode Island Hospital. He tried running away but was captured by the police.

None of the names those involved were released as of late this afternoon.

-- Journal staff writer Gregory Smith

Posted by Jack Perry at 03:56 PM

Updated: Girl, 11, critical after Johnston fire truck, car collide / Photo

Journal photo / Mary Murphy
The firetruck and car collided at the intersection of Hartford and Atwood Avenues in Johnston this morning. In the background is the Johnston Town Hall.

JOHNSTON - An 11-year-old Johnston girl was in critical condition at Hasbro Children's Hospital today after a car and a fire engine collided this morning at Atwood and Hartford Avenues.
The girl, whose name was not released, was a passenger in a car driven west on Hartford Avenue by her mother, Anne Marie Indell, 39, of Johnston, when the accident occurred at about 10:30 a.m., according to the police.

The fire engine, heading south on Atwood, was responding to an alarm and traveling with its lights and siren activated, according to the police.

The fire engine is equipped with a device that automatically sends a signal changing the traffic light in front of it to green, while changing the light in the other direction to red, according to Deputy Police Chief Gary Maddocks Jr. He said the device was working.

-- Journal staff writer Arthur Kimball-Stanley

The front of the fire truck collided with the right side of the car, an Acura Integra, in the middle of the intersection, pushing the car to the corner of the intersection. The girl was sitting in the front passenger's seat.

Indell was taken to Rhode Island Hospital, although a witness said she was able to get out of the car on her own.

Indell was identified as a town worker. A co-worker said she had taken the day off to be with her daughter, who is on school vacation.

None of the firefighters was injured.

-- Journal staff writer Arthur Kimball-Stanley

Posted by Jack Perry at 03:21 PM

Jury: 3 former paintmakers created lead-paint nuisance

PROVIDENCE -- A jury has decided that three former makers of lead paint created a public nuisance that contiues to poison children, a ruling that means they could be held responsible for millions of dollars in cleanup and mitgiation costs.

The verdict sides with the state in its landmark trial against four paint companies.

-- Associated Press

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 11:58 AM | Comment

Jury in lead-paint case has reached verdict

PROVIDENCE -- The jury in the state's landmark lawsuit against lead-paint companies has reached a verdict and is returning to the courtroom.

The verdict is expected to be read shortly.

Jurors began deliberating on Feb. 13.

They've been asked to decide whether four companies that used to make lead pigment for paint are responsible for creating a public nuisance that continues to poison children.

It is the second time the state has taken its case to court. The first attempt ended in a mistrial.

More to come on projo.com ...

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 11:45 AM

Swain: Plaintiff's account of wife's diving death a "fabrication"

PROVIDENCE -- The Jamestown man accused in a wrongful-death lawsuit of killing his wife acted as his own lawyer this morning, addressing the jury with an opening statement.

David Swain was subpoenaed into court today, but he did not take the witness stand.

Instead, after an hour-long chambers conference with the judge and opposing attorney, he addressed the jury, calling the plaintiff's account of the diving trip that claimed his wife's life "a fabrication."

Shelley Tyre, 46, died in March 1999 during a diving trip off the Caribbean island of Tortola. Tortola authorities ruled the death an accident "unless proven otherwise," and Swain has never been charged with a crime.

But his former in-laws filed a wrongful death lawsuit against him.

Swain told the jurors that he has suffered as a result of his wife's death in 1999 and charged that the plaintiff's attorney, J. Renn Olenn, had to go back 30 years to find something sordid in his past: his mother's murder at his brother's hand.

Swain also said he plans to call his daughter as a witness this afternoon.

He asked for the jury's indulgence, saying he's not a lawyer: "I'm begging you to keep an open mind."

This is the first time the jury has gotten to see Swain in person. Earlier this week, they saw him speak in a videotaped deposition.

-- Journal staff writer Tom Mooney

Posted by Jack Perry at 11:40 AM

Johnston fire engine, car collide at intersection

JOHNSTON -- A Johnston fire engine and a car collided at the intersection of Atwood and Hartford Avenues at about 10:30 this morning.

The driver of the car, an Acura, was able to get out of the vehicle unassisted, but the passenger had to be helped out by rescue personnel and was taken away in an ambulance.

The collision caused heavy damage to the right side of the car and the front of the fire engine.

The Johnston police were on scene investigating.

-- Journal staff writer Arthur Kimball-Stanley

Posted by Jack Perry at 11:37 AM | Comment

Jurors continue deliberating in lead-paint lawsuit

PROVIDENCE -- Jury deliberations are continuing today in the state's lawsuit against former lead paint manufacturers.

The six-person jury has been meeting for more than a week to try to decide whether four companies are responsible for creating a public nuisance that continues to poison children.

Jurors got the case on February 13th and have been deliberating ever since.

Lawyers for the state presented historians, doctors and contractors to persuade jurors that the companies knew about the hazards and tried to hide them.

But the companies say the state did not show a definitive link between lead poisoning in children and the products they made.

A 2002 trial in the case ended in a hung jury after four days of jury deliberations.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:40 AM

Pope names former Fall River bishop a cardinal

BOSTON -- Boston's Archbishop Sean P. O'Malley, appointed almost three years ago to bring healing to a Roman Catholic community rocked by the clergy abuse scandal, was named a cardinal today by Pope Benedict XVI.

O'Malley, former bishop of Fall River, was among 15 new cardinals named by the pope, and one of two Americans in the group. Benedict also said his successor at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Archbishop William Levada, would be a cardinal.

The men will be elevated during a ceremony at the Vatican on March 24.

Read the full story.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 08:59 AM

Following chase, Mass. police arrest two on warrants

MIDDLEBORO, Mass., -- A state trooper waded into the Taunton River yesterday to fish out a suspect who was trying to escape from police.

It all started when police stopped a car on Route 495 in Middleboro yesterday upon learning that 30-year-old Richard Bembery was a passenger in the car. Bembery was wanted on outstanding warrants in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

Police say Bembery took off in the direction of the river with officers in pursuit. Trooper Joseph Baker found the suspect in the river, holding on to brush along the edge, too cold and tired to pull himself out.

Baker donned a dry-suit -- designed for cold water -- dragged Bembery out of the water and arrested him.

Police say they found $550,000 in cash, a handgun and more than 200 grams of what they believe is cocaine.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 08:53 AM

February 21, 2006

Judge orders Swain to take stand tomorrow

PROVIDENCE - A Superior Court judge has ordered David Swain of Jamestown to testify tomorrow morning in the wrongful-death lawsuit brought against him for the March 1999 diving death of his wife.

Judge Patricia A. Hurst this afternoon ruled against Swain's motions to dismiss the case and to quash the subpoena for his testimony.

Swain was at the courthouse this afternoon, meeting with Hurst and the attorney for the plaintiff, J. Renn Olenn, and without a lawyer himself, in the judge's chambers for well over an hour.

He was also later in the courtroom, but sitting stoically as Hurst announced her decision on his motions. The jury was not in the courtroom at that time.

Shelley Tyre, 46, died in March of 1999 during a diving trip off the Caribbean island of Tortola. Tortola authorities ruled the death an accident "unless proven otherwise," and Swain has never been charged with a crime.

Swain is accused in a lawsuit filed by his former father-in-law, Richard Tyre.

-- Journal staff writer Tom Mooney

Posted by Jack Perry at 05:28 PM

Fall River shooting victims upgraded to good condition

FALL RIVER, Mass. -- The three men shot outside a local McDonald's early Sunday were listed in good condition this afternoon at Rhode Island Hospital in Providence.

Two had previously been listed as critical, with the third in serious condition.

Earlier today, a District Court judge set bail at $150,000 cash today for each of the two suspects captured in connection with the shootings.

Two other suspects, including the alleged shooter, remain at large.

-- Journal staff writer C. Eugene Emery

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 05:15 PM

Jury calls it a day -- again -- in lead-paint trial

PROVIDENCE -- Jurors in the state's lawsuit against lead paint makers have concluded their deliberations for the day, again without reaching a verdict.

They deliberated all day without a question. The case went to the jury late on Feb. 13, after 15 weeks of trial.

The state contends that four companies -- Sherwin Williams, Millennium Holdings LLC, Atlantic Richfield and NL Industries -- created a public nuisance by marketing the lead-paint pigments that helped poison more than 37,000 Rhode Island children during the last 11 years.

The jury has been asked to decide whether the presence of lead paint in Rhode Island is a public nuisance, if the defendants are liable, and whether they should be required to clean it up.

-- With reports from Journal environment writer Peter B. Lord

Posted by Jack Perry at 04:52 PM

2 men held in Fall River shootings, 2 more sought

FALL RIVER, Mass. - Two men charged in connection with the shooting of three other men at a Fall River McDonald's Sunday morning were ordered held on $150,000 cash bail during their arraignments this afternoon in Fall River District Court.

Antero M. Pontes, 17, of 28 Platt St., and Adam. C. Woods, 19, of 183 George St., pleaded innocent to three counts of armed assault with intent to murder, carrying a firearm without a license, possession of ammunition without an FID card and discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a dwelling.

The police are still looking for a 22-year-old Fall River man and a 16-year-old city juvenile in connection with the shootings.

The police said the victims were waiting to purchase food shortly before 3 a.m. Sunday morning at the Plymouth Avenue restaurant when an argument occurred with people in two other automobiles. All the parties left their cars; one man had a handgun, the police said.

The police have not said which of the suspects was believed to be the gunman.

The three victims are a 25-year-old New Bedford man, a 32-year-old Fall River man and a 32-year-old New Bedford man.

Two of the victims were still in critical condition today at Rhode Island Hospital, while a third has been upgraded to serious. The police have not released their names.

-- Journal staff writer C. Eugene Emery

Posted by Jack Perry at 04:23 PM

Lawyer plans to sue state over ACI inmate's treatment

CRANSTON -- A Cranston attorney says he plans to file a lawsuit on behalf of an inmate at the Adult Correctional Institutions who claims that he was abused by correctional officers.

Eight prison staff members have been suspended over allegations that several of them "abused and seriously mistreated" the inmate in the ACI's minimum-security unit, according to the state Department of Corrections.

On Friday, ACI Director A.T. Wall said nine staff members had been suspended, but a department official said today that one has since been put back to work.

Cranston attorney Kenneth Schreiber identified the inmate today as Michael Walsh, 30, of East Providence, and said he plans to seek unspecified monetary damages in the lawsuit, claiming that Walsh's civil rights were violated.

He plans to name the state of Rhode Island and the state Department of Corrections as defendants.

-- Journal staff writer Mark Arsenault

Schreiber said he might also pursue criminal charges depending on the results of a criminal investigation by the Rhode Island State Police. A little-used state law allows citizens to filed criminal complaints, he said during a press conference at his office this afternoon.

Schreiber says his client was forced to eat his own fecal matter and also struck in the face with a telephone book after he was confronted about smuggling cigarettes Feb. 14.

Walsh is serving time at the ACI as a probation offender and is due to be released in May, according to Schreiber.

-- Journal staff writer Mark Arsenault

Posted by Jack Perry at 03:57 PM

Red Sox will let Ramirez report late

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Manny Ramirez was given permission by the Boston Red Sox to report to spring training on March 1, six days after the team's first full-squad workout and one day after Major League Baseball's mandatory reporting date.

Ramirez, 33, asked the team through his agent to trade him during the off season, but the Red Sox were unable to find a deal to their liking.

"Manny is in Florida completing an extensive training regimen and is prepared to have an exceptional season," said a joint statement from Ramirez and the team that was released by the Red Sox today.

Read the full story...

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 01:45 PM | Comment

Lawyer in deposition questions Swain's accounts of wife's death

PROVIDENCE -- The lawyer pressing a wrongful-death lawsuit against Jamestown resident David Swain suggests in a deposition that Swain told the police in Tortola a different version of events about his wife's fatal dive than he gave during the deposition.

The issue concerns whether Swain swam away from his wife, Shelley Tyre, or she swam away from him before she was found dead during the dive off Tortola in March 1999.

Early in court today, jurors watched more of a videotaped deposition by Swain two years ago.

In the deposition, lawyer J. Renn Olenn questioned Swain about his statement to the police in Tortola hours after his wife's body was pulled from the water.

Olenn suggested that Swain had told the police in Tortola that she had swam away from him during a dive on two tugboat wrecks, and that he went looking for her in the shallow water by the reef.

But in the deposition, Swain said it was he who had swam away from his wife to take photographs while she stayed by the wrecks.

-- Journal staff writer Tom Mooney

During the deposition, Swain and Olenn quarrelled over the meaning of this quote: "After I looked up for a few minutes, I decided to go to shallow water to try to locate her."

Olenn said an interpretation of that meant Swain was the one who swam away. Swain disagreed, saying that was Olenn's interpretation.

Swain then questioned the accuracy of the police reporter who was taking his statement that day, "I didn't write this."

Olenn reminded Swain that he had initialed every page of the police report and signed it at the end as being accurate.

Swain said, "I was stressed. I was at wit's end. I don't know what I did."

Tortola authorities ruled Tyre's death an accident "unless proven otherwise," and Swain has never been charged with a crime. But Swain is accused of killing Tyre in a lawsuit filed by his former father-in-law, Richard Tyre.

Swain has not been in court for the trial, but he was subpoenaed to appear this afternoon

-- Journal staff writer Tom Mooney

Posted by Jack Perry at 01:28 PM

Swain, accused in civil suit of killing wife, to be in court today

PROVIDENCE -- The Jamestown man charged in a civil suit with killing his wife is scheduled to be in Superior Court at 1:15 p.m. today.

David Swain has not been in court for the trial, which stems from a wrongful-death lawsuit, but he was subpoenaed to appear today. Whether he will testify is unclear.

The judge ordered the jury to return at 1:45 p.m.

Swain has so far chosen not to attend the trial, although jurors heard him speak about his wife's diving death in a videotaped deposition shown in court yesterday.

Shelley Tyre, 46, died in March of 1999 during a diving trip off the Caribbean island of Tortola. Tortola authorities ruled the death an accident "unless proven otherwise," and Swain has never been charged with a crime.

Swain is accused in a lawsuit filed by his former father-in-law, Richard Tyre.

-- Journal staff writer Tom Mooney

Posted by Jack Perry at 01:09 PM

Burrillville High student accused of sexually assaulting 5 teen girls

BURRILLVILLE -- A 15-year-old Burrillville High School male student is being held after being arrested yesterday morning on 14 sexual-assault charges against five teenage girls, police said today. Most of the incidents are alleged to have happened on school grounds.

The boy turned himself in to the police station at 10 a.m. yesterday after police called his home and told him that a warrant for his arrest had been secured, according to Police Lt. Kevin S. San Antonio.

He was charged at the police station with one count of first-degree sexual assault, or rape; 11 counts of second-degree sexual assault, and one count of assault with intent to commit sexual assault.

He was arraigned Monday in Family Court, according to the police.

After receiving reports from Burrillville school administrators, the school resource officer and detectives began to investigate the allegations against the boy.

-- Journal staff writer Arthur Kimball-Stanley

San Antonio described the 11 counts of second-degree sexual assault as incidents of unwanted sexual touching that occurred in public on school grounds.

Police said the alleged victims are three 14-year-old girls and two 15-year-old girls.

One of the 14-year-olds is also allegedly the victim of the first-degree sexual assault, San Antonio said.

The suspect will be held at the Rhode Island Training School until Monday, Feb. 27, when he is scheduled to appear in court for a probable-cause hearing.

San Antonio said detectives are still investigating complaints against the boy.

-- Journal staff writer Arthur Kimball-Stanley

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 01:03 PM

Free career fair today at Crowne Plaza in Warwick

WARWICK -- A free Finance and Insurance Career Fair opened today at the Crowne Plaza Hotel. Sponsored by The Providence Journal, it is open until 5 p.m. today.

Finance and insurance job-seekers are encouraged to bring a hard copy of their resume for free distribution to all participating companies and for immediate posting on projo.com’s Resume Center.

Click here for a list of the fair's exhibitors.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 12:13 PM

2 men found murdered in Olneyville / Photo

Journal photo / Mary Murphy
Providence police Maj. Stephen Campbell talks with reporters this morning at the scene of the homicides at Magnolia and Agnes Streets.

PROVIDENCE - Two men with gunshot wounds were found dead this morning in Olneyville, and the police are investigating their deaths as the first and second homicides of the year, according to the Providence police.

Both men appear to be in their 20s, but the police have not yet positively determined their identities, according to Providence Det. Maj. Stephen Campbell, speaking from the scene.

The police found one of the men in the front passenger seat of a Pontiac Grand Am on Magnolia Street, Campbell said.

The other man was found about 175 feet away, on the sidewalk at Agnes and Magnolia Street, Campbell said.

The police were contacted at 7:30 a.m. by a passerby, according to Campbell.

The car has Rhode Island plates, and the police believe that the victims are from Rhode Island.

Anyone with information should contact the Providence police at (401) 243-6406.

-- With reports from Journal staff photographer Mary Murphy

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:01 AM

Providence police investigating apparent shooting in Olneyville

PROVIDENCE - The Providence police this morning are investigating an apparent shooting in Olneyville.

The state Medical Examiner's Office took two bodies from the scene, near Agnes and Atwood streets, at about 9:25 a.m.

A police detective lieutenant was scheduled to address the media this morning.

-- Journal staff photographer Mary Murphy

Posted by Jack Perry at 09:29 AM

Defendant in wrongful death lawsuit subpoenaed to testify today

PROVIDENCE -- The Jamestown man accused in a wrongful-death lawsuit of killing his wife has been subpoenaed to testify today at the trial in Superior Court.

David Swain has so far chosen not to attend the civil trial, although jurors heard him speak about his wife's diving death in a deposition played for them yesterday.

Shelley Tyre, 46, died in March of 1999 during a diving trip off the Caribbean island of Tortola. Tortola authorities ruled the death an accident "unless proven otherwise," and Swain has never been charged with a crime.

Swain is accused in a lawsuit filed by his former father-in-law, Richard Tyre.

Posted by Jack Perry at 09:14 AM

Jurors continue deliberations in lead paint lawsuit

PROVIDENCE -- Deliberations are expected to resume this morning in the state's lawsuit against companies that made lead paint and pigment.

Jurors are scheduled to be back at work at 9:30 a.m. They met for about four hours yesterday as they began week two of deliberations.

Lead paint has poisoned thousands of children in the Rhode Island, and the state contends the four companies created a public nuisance with their products.

-- The Associated Press

State's lawyers presented historians, doctors and contractors to try to persuade jurors that the companies knew about the hazards and tried to hide them.

But the companies say the state did not show a definitive link between lead poisoning in children and the products they made.

A 2002 trial in the case ended in a hung jury after four days of deliberations.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 09:00 AM

February 20, 2006

Argument over minor car accident escalates to stabbing

A Framingham, Mass., man was stabbed early yesterday morning after a minor car accident in a downtown parking lot, according to a police report.

Christian Alexandre de Oliveira, 25, was stabbed in the chest, apparently with a broken beer bottle, while sitting in the front passenger seat of a car leaving a parking lot on Washington Street, according to a police report.

He was taken to Rhode Island Hospital, where police said yesterday he was in critical condition. But late this afternoon, a hospital spokeswoman said she could not find information on anyone by that name.

-- With reports from Journal staff writer Gregory Smith

The driver of the car, Jose Da Silva, told the police that he, de Oliveira and another man, Erik Cordeiro-Bragnaca, had been at Club Diesel on Washington Street until about 2 a.m. yesterday.

As they were trying to leave a nearby parking lot to drive onto Mathewson Street, their car bumped the rear bumper of another car, Da Silva told the police.

An argument followed involving the occupants of the car and several males walking behind the car, according to the police report.

During the argument, one of the men opened the car door and stabbed de Oliveira, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, according to Cordeiro-Bragnaca.

DaSilva drove the victim to a fire station on Branch Avenue, where an ambulance took de Oliveira to Rhode Island Hospital, according to the report.

The report did not indicate that anybody had been charged with the stabbing.

Last month, an 18-year-old Johnston man was stabbed in the neck with a beer bottle after he and several friends left Club Diesel. The stabbing followed an argument and occurred in a parking lot off Fountain Street, owned by The Providence Journal.

-- With reports from Journal staff writer Gregory Smith

Posted by Jack Perry at 05:20 PM

Jurors in lead trial wrap up again without verdict

PROVIDENCE - Jurors have gone home for the day in the state's lawsuit against companies that made lead paint and pigment.

Jurors deliberated for about four hours this afternoon, after beginning deliberations a week ago today. They are expected back at 9:30 a.m. tomorrow.

Lead paint has poisoned thousands of children in the Rhode Island, and the state contends the four companies created a public nuisance with their products.

State's lawyers presented historians, doctors and contractors to try to persuade jurors that the companies knew about the hazards and tried to hide them.

But the companies say the state did not show a definitive link between lead poisoning in children and the products they made.

A 2002 trial in the case ended in a hung jury after four days of deliberations.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 04:37 PM

Photo: Swain gives deposition by videotape

Journal photo / Andrew Dickerman
Jurors in Superior Court today watched a videotaped deposition of testimony from David Swain of Jamestown, who is accused in a civil suit of killing his wife, Shelley Tyre, during a March 1999 scuba diving trip off Tortola. Swain said in the deposition he didn't administer CPR to his wife because he believed she was dead when she was pulled from the water. Swain has been subpoenaed to appear at court in person tomorrow.

Posted by Jack Perry at 03:48 PM

Photo: Saying prayers for Station fire victims

Journal photo / Steve Szydlowski

Joyce Buontempo, of West Warwick, was among those who stopped by site of The Station nightclub fire today, on the third anniversary of the blaze. Buontempo was saying prayers at each memorial marker at the location on Cowesett Avenue in West Warwick, where 100 people died and more than 200 were injured in the fire started by a band's pyrotechnics.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 03:41 PM

R.I. gas prices down again

PROVIDENCE -- Gasoline prices in Rhode Island have fallen 8t more cents this week, the third straight week prices have dropped, according to AAA Southern New England.

The average price for a gallon of regular, unleaded gasoline is $2.24 per gallon at the self-service pump, according to AAA's weekly survey.

This marks the first time prices have dropped three straight weeks since November. The price has fallen 17 cents in the past three weeks.

Posted by Jack Perry at 03:17 PM | Comment

2 arrested, 2 sought in shootings at Fall River McDonald's

FALL RIVER, Mass. -- Two men have been arrested and two more are being sought in the shooting of three men early Sunday morning following an argument in the drive-thru of a McDonald's restaurant, the police said.

Antero M. Pontes, 17, of 28 Platt St., and Adam. C. Woods, 19, of 183 George St., were charged last night around midnight with three counts of armed assault with intent to murder.

They were also charged with carrying a firearm without a license, possession of ammunition without an FID card and discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a dwelling. Woods was also charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute.

The police are looking for a 22-year-old Fall River man and a 16-year-old city juvenile in connection with the shootings.

The police have not said which of the suspects was believed to be the gunman.

-- Journal staff writer Alisha Pina

The police said the victims were waiting to purchase food around 2:44 a.m. Sunday morning at the Plymouth Avenue restaurant when an argument occurred with people in two other automobiles. All the parties left their cars; one man had a handgun, the police said.

The man, whom the police did not identify, shot three and then fled the scene with the three others. Officers immediately began looking for all four.

The victims did not know the suspects before the incident, the police said.

The three victims, whom the police have not identified, were still listed in critical condition at Rhode Island Hospital, said Police Lt. Gene Rodrigues, who last received an update this morning.

They are a 25-year-old New Bedford man, a 32-year-old Fall River man and a 32-year-old New Bedford man.

Two were shot once in the upper body, and the third was shot twice in the upper body, according to a police press release.

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call the major crime division at 1-508-324-2796.

-- Journal staff writer Alisha Pina

Posted by Jack Perry at 02:40 PM

Swain, on tape, acknowledges he did not use CPR on wife

PROVIDENCE - A Jamestown man accused in a civil lawsuit of drowning his wife acknowledged that he did not perform CPR on his wife after she had been pulled from the water despite his 10 years of experience as an emergency medical technician.

Jurors hearing the wrongful-death lawsuit against David Swain, a former Jamestown Town Council member, listened to Swain's statements while watching a videotaped deposition this morning in Superior Court.

"I did what I could and came to a conclusion she was gone from us," Swain said in the deposition taken two years ago.

Neither Swain nor an attorney representing him has yet been in court to challenge any of the testimony. Swain has been subpoenaed to testify in person tomorrow.

-- Journal staff writer Tom Mooney

Swain is accused in a lawsuit filed by his former father-in-law, Richard Tyre, in the March 12, 1999, death of Shelley Tyre, 46, off the island of Tortola.

Tortola police ruled Tyre's death an accident "unless proven otherwise," and Swain has never been charged with a crime.

In the videotaped deposition submitted today, Swain said he decided not to perform CPR because his wife's eye pupils did not react to light, and he assumed that she had been underwater and not breathing for anywhere between 10 and 30 minutes before another diver brought her to the surface.

Swain said he did initially clear his wife's air passage, checked for a pulse and tried to get some reaction from her pupils, but when he got none, he assumed any further life-saving action would have been futile.

Pressed by the plaintiff's attorney, J. Renn Olenn, as to why he did not do more and did not follow training he had received as an EMT to continue with CPR until a doctor responds, Swain said, "If I had oxygen, I would have administered it."

Olenn said, "You did not need equipment to administer CPR, but you didn't do it."

Swain replied, "I did not."

-- Journal staff writer Tom Mooney

Posted by Jack Perry at 02:32 PM

Derderians issue statement on Station fire anniversary

Jeffrey and Michael Derderian, co-owners of The Station nightclub, have issued the following statement on today's third anniversary of the disastrous fire in West Warwick:

"We are ever mindful that despite the passage of time, so many of us, in our state and beyond, still suffer tremendous heartache and loss. And so, above all, this is a day about remembering our close friends, our co-workers, and our fellow Rhode Islanders and New Englanders who were affected by the terrible fire that occurred on February 20, 2003.

"We offer our sincerest prayers and condolences to all those involved with this horrible tragedy.

"Finally, no words could express the deep gratitude we feel for the people - many of whom we have never met - who have continued to offer their support to us."

The Derderian brothers face criminal charges and civil suits stemming from the blaze -- the worst in the state's history -- which killed 100 people and injured more than 200.

Posted by Jack Perry at 02:05 PM

Sportscaster Curt Gowdy, voice of the Sox, dies at 86

FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) - Legendary sportscaster Curt Gowdy has died, the Boston Red Sox said today.

Gowdy, who was 86, died in Palm Beach, after a long battle with leukemia, according to Red Sox spokeswoman Pam Ganley.

Gowdy, the long time "Voice of the Red Sox," made his broadcasting debut in 1944.

In 1951 Gowdy became main play-by-play voice on the Boston Red Sox broadcast team. He left the Red Sox in 1966 for a ten-year stint as Game of the Week announcer for NBC. He was also the longtime host of the "American Sportsman" series.

Gowdy broadcast 13 World Series and 16 All-Star Games.

More about Gowdy from redsox.com ...

-- Associated Press

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 01:46 PM

Curran to serve as ethics monitor for Roger Williams Medical Center

PROVIDENCE -- Former U.S. Attorney Margaret Curran has been appointed ethics monitor for the Roger Williams Medical Center as part of the hospital's agreement with prosecutors to dismiss federal corruption charges, the center's board of directors announced today.

Curran will monitor and ensure that the hospital meets the conditions outlined under a deferred prosecution agreement reached with the U.S. Attorney's Office late last month.

Curran served as U.S. attorney for Rhode Island from 1998 until 2003, when she resigned because of illness with multiple sclerosis. She oversaw the Operation Plunder Dome prosecution of corruption at Providence City Hall.

On Jan. 5, Roger Williams was charged with conspiracy and mail fraud in an indictment alleging that Roger Williams and its representatives stole the "honest services" of a Rhode Island senator, John A. Celona, by putting him on the payroll to do their bidding at the State House.

Celona pleaded guilty last year to selling his office to Roger Williams and two other companies, the CVS drugstore chain and Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island.

On Jan. 27, U.S. Attorney Robert Clark Corrente announced that the medical center had agreed to take responsibility for "criminal misconduct" in its hiring of Celona, and to atone by providing $4 million worth of free health care to the poor and taking other steps.

If Roger Williams follows the conditions, prosecutors will dismiss the 36 counts in two years, and recommend to federal health officials that the hospital not be debarred from government programs, including Medicare and Medicaid.

Roger Williams has also agreed to cooperate in the continuing cases against its former president, Robert A. Urciuoli, and another former executive, Frances P. Driscoll.

Curran will be assisted by Leonard Henson, former chief assistant district attorney in Suffolk Count, Mass.

Posted by Jack Perry at 01:38 PM

Sikorsky helicopter workers on strike in Conn., Fla.

STRATFORD, Conn. -- Nearly 3,600 Sikorsky Aircraft workers in Connecticut and Florida went on strike today, blaming increased health insurance costs in the company's contract offer.

Workers with Local 1150 of the Teamsters overwhelmingly rejected the contract and voted Sunday in favor of the strike, the company's first since 1963. The union represents 3,500 workers at the helicopter-maker in Connecticut and 90 in Florida.

Read the full story.

Posted by Jack Perry at 12:12 PM

3 men shot in confrontation at Fall River McDonald's

FALL RIVER, Mass. -- Three men were in critical condition after being shot during a confrontation that started in a McDonald's drive-thru early yesterday morning, and police are seeking the gunman today.

City police said the victims were waiting to purchase food around 2:44 a.m. at the Plymouth Avenue restaurant when an argument occurred with people in two other automobiles. All the parties left their cars and one man had a handgun, according to the police department’s press release yesterday.

The man, whom the police did not identify, shot three and then fled the scene.

The victims were also not identified. They are a 25-year-old New Bedford man, a 32-year-old Fall River man and a 32-year-old New Bedford man.

-- Journal staff writer Alisha A. Pina

All three victims were sent to Rhode Island Hospital, where they were listed in critical condition, the news release said.

Two were shot once in the upper body, and the third was shot twice in the upper body.

Police said the victims did not know the suspects before the incident.

The department is not releasing any additional information because of the ongoing investigation. Anyone with information can call the major crime division at 1-508-324-2796.

-- Journal staff writer Alisha A. Pina

Posted by Jack Perry at 11:25 AM | Comment

Providence stabbing victim in critical condition

PROVIDENCE -- A stabbing in Providence early yesterday morning left a man in critical condition.

Police say the victim walked into a Branch Avenue fire station around 2:30 a.m complaining that he had been stabbed in the chest.

Authorities have not released the name of the victim, but say he was taken to Rhode Island Hospital and underwent surgery. He was listed in critical condition.

Police say they believe the attack happened at Club Diesel in downtown Providence.

-- Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:51 AM

Lead-paint jury to resume deliberations this afternoon

PROVIDENCE -- Jurors in the state's landmark lawsuit against makers of lead paint are scheduled to resume their deliberations at 12:30 p.m. today in Superior Court.

Judge Michael A. Silverstein is letting the jury return to court later than usual this morning because one juror had a conflict this morning.

The case was sent to the jury late last Monday after 15 weeks of trial.

The state contends that four companies -- Sherwin Williams, Millennium Holdings LLC, Atlantic Richfield and NL Industries -- created a public nuisance by marketing the lead-paint pigments that helped poison more than 37,000 Rhode Island children during the last 11 years.

The state also claims that the paints remain on more than 240,000 houses and threaten future harm as they deteriorate.

The jury has been asked to decide whether the presence of lead paint in Rhode Island is a public nuisance, if the defendants are liable, and whether they should be required to clean it up.

It is the second time the state's case has come to trial. The first ended in a mistrial.

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:22 AM

Jury to see video deposition by Jamestown man accused in wife's death

PROVIDENCE -- A jury in Superior Court today is scheduled to see a videotaped deposition by the Jamestown man accused in a civil suit of killing his wife during a scuba-diving vacation in the Caribbean.

David Swain is accused in a wrongful-death lawsuit filed by his former father-in-law, Richard Tyre, for the March 12, 1999, death of Shelley Tyre, 46, off the island of Tortola.

Tortola police ruled Tyre's death an accident "unless proven otherwise," and Swain, a former Jamestown Town Council member, has never been charged with a crime.

But in testimony Friday, the chief medical examiner of Florida's Miami-Dade County called the 1999 diving death of Tyre a "homicidal drowning," while an underwater forensic investigator said his review of evidence drew one conclusion: Swain, had attacked her in 80 feet of water.

The trial ended for the day with the jury hearing a videotaped deposition of a Warwick woman who said Swain made romantic advances toward her eight months before his wife's death. She said they became lovers after Tyre's death.

Neither Swain nor a lawyer representing him has been in court to challenge the testimony.

-- With reports from Journal staff writer Tom Mooney

Posted by Jack Perry at 09:14 AM

Man accused of driving up State House steps faces hearing

PROVIDENCE - A hearing is scheduled today for a Woonsocket man who was accused of driving a car up the stairs of the State House and scuffling with Capitol police officers Feb. 3.

Robert R. Negrotti was charged with three misdemeanors and also assaulting his mother, who was with him in the car. He faces a hearing in Superior Court to determine whether he violated his probation for a 2005 felony domestic assault and domestric robbery charge.

Read the Journal story.

Posted by Jack Perry at 08:46 AM

February 17, 2006

2 events Sunday will mark Station fire's 3rd anniversary

Families and friends of those who perished in The Station nightclub fire are expected to gather at two events this weekend to commemorate the third anniversary of the deadly fire.

A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday at the site of the Feb. 20, 2003, fire on Cowesett Avenue in West Warwick.

The names of the 100 people killed in the fire will be read aloud, and participants will observe 100 seconds of silence. A giant heart containing 100 light bulbs will also be lit.

Also on Sunday, an awards ceremony will be held honoring two Rhode Islanders for the roles they took during and after the fire.

It's the first year the Hope Awards will be given out by the state. The award was started as a way to honor victims and survivors of the fire.

The ceremony will begin at 7 p.m. at Rhodes on the Pawtuxet, in Cranston. It is open to the public.

More details on the events ...

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 04:18 PM | Comment

Carpio trial date set for April 24

PROVIDENCE - An April 24 trial date has been scheduled in Superior Court for Esteban Carpio, accused of murdering Providence Det. James Allen at police headquarters last April.

Carpio, 27, was in court last month with his lawyers asking Judge William Dimitri to suppress incriminating statements he made to the police at the hospital after his arrest and later at the police station.

Carpio's lawyers are arguing that he didn't waive his right to refuse to speak to the police, or if he did waive that right, his physical and mental impairments made it impossible for him to make a sound decision.

Carpio, who was being interviewed by Allen, jumped out of a third-floor window at police headquarters and was captured after a scuffle with police.

Dimitri has not yet issued a decision on the statements, according to Craig Berke, a court spokesman.

Posted by Jack Perry at 04:11 PM

Lead trial jurors wrap up for week, without verdict

PROVIDENCE - Jurors in the state's lawsuit against lead-paint manufacturers ended their deliberations a little early this afternoon and without reaching a verdict. They're scheduled to return to court Monday afternoon.

The jurors had returned to work after deadlocking briefly yesterday afternoon.