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November 29, 2006

It's SRO outside Lupo's for WBRU's annual bash

PROVIDENCE -- Hundreds of music fans were standing in line this evening to get into Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel to see WBRU's annual birthday bash.

Just before 7 p.m., the concert-goers were wrapped around the block from Washington Street to Fountain Street.

The show features the band My Chemical Romance and has been sold out for weeks. But because Lupo's doesn't offer reserved seating, fans get in line early to get a good spot inside the club, which holds about 1,200 people.

Posted by Steve Peoples at 7:12 PM | Comment

Nurses union at Landmark ratifies contract

WOONSOCKET — Unionized nurses and health employees at Landmark Medical Center approved a new three-year contract today after working without an agreement nearly two months.

The pact with United Nurses & Allied Professionals Union Local 5067, approved by what negotiators on both sides deemed an “overwhelming” margin, calls for minimal increases in health insurance co-payments and salary increases of 3, 3.5 and 4 percent over three years.

It also gives the Landmark’s 460 union employees the option of moving to a defined-contribution pension plan, where the employer gives money to the employee to invest in a retirement fund.

The new contract is retroactive to September and runs through September 2009.

-- Journal staff writer Kia Hall Hayes

Posted by Steve Peoples at 6:56 PM | Comment

Cranston mayor-elect asks dept. heads to resign

CRANSTON -- Mayor-elect Michael Napolitano has asked all municipal department heads to submit a letter of resignation and, if they would like to retain their positions, a resume and statement explaining why they should be kept.

Napolitano was officially declared the winner of the seat Monday, and his challenger, Allan Fung, conceded the close race yesterday, three weeks after the election.

-- Journal staff writer Benjamin N. Gedan

Posted by Steve Peoples at 6:40 PM | Comment

Elections official: 'The people ... should be outraged'

PROVIDENCE -- The state Board of Elections voted unanimously this afternoon to appeal a Superior Court judge's ruling that the public may inspect photocopies of rejected ballots and argue to have them counted.

Judge Stephen J. Fortunato Jr. ruled today in favor of East Providence city council candidate Joseph Larisa Jr. who sought access to rejected ballots that he says may make a difference in his race. He trails his opponent by 16 votes.

The Board of Elections held a 4 p.m. meeting following Fortunato's hearing. A board attorney had argued that public inspection of ballots would compromise the objectivity of state elections.

"The people of Rhode Island should be outraged," said board chairman Thomas V. Iannitti of Fortunato's decision. "This is the most offensive thing I’ve encountered since I’ve been here...Maybe [Fortunato] should have come down and watched the process. He doesn’t even know the process.”

An attorney for the Board of Elections will attend a Superior Court hearing tomorrow at 11 a.m. to ask Fortunato to stay his decision pending a review by the state Supreme Court. In the meantime, the board has refused to release copies of the rejected ballots in the East Providence race.

The Supreme Court already ruled that the state Board of Elections must photocopy rejected ballots, but it didn't say that such ballots could be viewed by the public.

-- Projo.com staff writer Steve Peoples with reports from Journal staff writer Alisha Pina

Posted by Steve Peoples at 4:59 PM | Comment

Station evidence: Next release to be 50 to 60 DVDs

PROVIDENCE -- A spokesman for the Attorney General's Office said this afternoon that the 3,000 or so documents released today represent "just a downpayment" of the total evidence to be released in association with The Station fire case.

"The attorney general made a pledge to make as much of the evidence and other information about The Station fire available as quickly as possible. Today’s release really represents just a downpayment,” spokesman Michael Healey said.

“We’re putting the documents out there for public consumption. We’re not offering our interpretation of their relative importance or lack thereof. People are going to have to make up their own minds. We would respectfully urge people to wait until everything that can be made public is made public before forming their opinions.”

Healey said that the next installment of evidence released will consist largely of videos of bands that had played at The Station or amateur footage shot the night of the fire. The videos would fill 50 to 60 DVDs. They are expected to be released next week or the week after.

People who want to request a free copy of the CD-ROM of documents released today may call 401-274-4400, ext. 2328. The attorney general has not determined how to distribute videos to the general public.

More about today's release of evidence ...

-- Journal staff writer Paul Edward Parker

Posted by Steve Peoples at 4:30 PM | Comment

Man who died in fall at Fall River pier was from Mass.

FALL RIVER, Mass. -- Police today identified the man who died Monday night when he fell from a fishing boat into the waters around the State Pier.

Shawn Owen, 50, of Gloucester, Mass., fell from the boat he was working on at about 11 pm. Police originally identified the victim as a Rhode Island man.

Two security guards saw the accident on a surveillance system but couldn't find Owen in the darkness. In a subsequent search, police pulled his body from the water. Owen was pronounced dead at the scene.

Lt. Jeffrey Cardoza said the cause of death is not yet known pending an autopsy by the medical examiner's office.

-- Journal staff writer Alex Kuffner

Posted by Steve Peoples at 4:27 PM | Comment

Station evidence: Employee knew of band's pyro plan

Documents released today confirm for the first time that at least one employee of The Station nightclub knew of the band's plan to use pyrotechnics as part of the Great White show.

A part-time nightclub employee, David Stone, told authorities that prior to the show he met with the band's floor manager whom he knew as Dan (later confirmed to be Daniel Biechele).

"During this meeting Dan told David Stone that he would be using pyrotechnics which he described as 'gerbs,'" reads an affadavit signed by West Warwick Police Det. Sgt. Keith C. Azverde. "'Dan' stated that he then wanted the stage to go dark when the gerbs would light briefly. He was told that after the gerbs went out he should use his discretion in what sort of light show he wanted to do."

"Mr. Stone stated that he followed the instructions of Dan and the gerbs ignited as stated. He said that they were large and lasted longer than he expected. He stated they ignited the acoustic foam and that he pulled the fire alarm and exited the building through the kitchen exit."

The club owners, Michael and Jeffrey Derderian, have consistently denied knowledge of the band's plan to use pyrotechnics the night of the February 2003 fire that killed 100 people and injured another 200.

Posted by Steve Peoples at 4:00 PM | Comment

Reed, Dems push Bush to name envoy to Iraq

WASHINGTON -- Sen. Jack Reed and the Senate's new Democratic leadership team
called upon President Bush today to name a special envoy to push Iraq's government toward actions that might help to salvage the situation in that war-wracked nation.

``Time is of the essence,'' Reed told reporters as he released a letter in which leading Democrats asked Mr. Bush to follow up on his meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki by insisting on "immediate, tangible ways to quell the violence, provide services, and create long-term peace and stability.''

The U.S. and Iraq "can't afford to wait" until the expected January release of a bipartisan commission's report on possible options for a new course in Iraq, Reed said.

The Democrats commended Mr. Bush for meeting with Maliki in Jordan and urged
him to tell the prime minister "that the presence of U.S. forces in Iraq is
not open-ended and that the American people are impatient with the failure
of the Iraqi political leaders to reach a political compromise."

Read the letter.

Reed said in an interview after the news conference that Mr. Bush's meeting
with Maliki is one of several apparent signals that the administration seeks
to chart a new course in Iraq. But Reed warned that the high-level meeting
may not amount to more than "a photo opportunity" unless the president
moves quickly to secure concrete results in the form of political action by
the Iraqis.

Reed and his fellow Democrats renewed their call for several specific actions that he described as ``difficult but necessary'' to create a basis for political stability among Iraq's competing ethnic and religious groups.

The letter was signed by Reed and these fellow Democrats: incoming Senate
Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, incoming Majority Whip Dick Durbin of
Illinois, incoming Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin of Michigan,
and incoming Intelligence Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller of West
Virginia.

Reed said during the news conference that he has believed for months that the majority of the violence in Iraq is now attributable not to such foreign terrorist groups as Al Qaeda but to the struggle among Iraqi groups for control of the country and its future. Reed says that struggle meets the "classic" definition of civil war.

Posted by Jack Perry at 3:00 PM | Comment

Station evidence: Door left in place despite admonishing

Two employees of The Station nightclub told investigators after the deadly fire that they knew there was an “issue” with an exit door located to the right of the stage that opened inward against state code.

Nevertheless, on the night of the fire, the door was in place, without a doorknob. To open the door, people had to put their fingers in a small hole where the knob had been, according to documents released today.

The exit door was in place to suppress noise, the employees told inspectors, West Warwick Police Det. Sgt. Keith C. Azverde wrote in an affidavit in support of a search warrant.

West Warwick Building Inspector Steve Murray told investigators, according to Azverde’s affidavit, that The Station had been “previously admonished for having an unlawful door on the exit door located to the right of the stage.”

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson

“He stated that this door was a violation of code because it opened inward and was covered with acoustic foam,” Azverde wrote about Murray. “They [the nightclub owners] had been told to remove this door. It was his understanding that this door had been removed. Interviews with patrons and employees along with the physical inspection of the fire scene has conclusively established that this door was in place at the time of the fire, had no door knob, swung inward, was covered with acoustic foam and had to be opened by placing fingers in the small hole where the knob used to be.”

Azverde also noted that the state police sought a search warrant of club owner Michael Derderian’s home shortly after the fire. The document is among thousands of pages related to The Station fire investigation that the state Attorney General’s Office released today.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 2:47 PM | Comment

Providence bishop hospitalized

NORTH PROVIDENCE -- The Rev. Thomas J. Tobin, the Roman Catholic Bishop of Providence, who has been suffering from back pain, was admitted yesterday to Our Lady of Fatima Hospital for evaluation.

Tobin underwent tests, including a magnetic resonance imaging test, to determine a course of treatment, said Michael Guilfoyle, spokesman for Roman Catholic Doicese.

``He is still experiencing back pain and the doctors are continuing to evaluate and treat him,'' said Guilfoyle.

-- Journal staff writer Scott MacKay

Posted by Jack Perry at 2:22 PM | Comment

Fortunato: Rejected ballots may be reviewed

PROVIDENCE -- Over the strong objection of the state Board of Elections, Superior Court Judge Stephen J. Fortunato Jr. ruled this afternoon that the public may inspect photocopies of ballots rejected by voting machines to see if the votes should count.

The Board of Elections argued in court this afternoon that the voting machines used in recent years are the most fair and objective way to determine a voter's intent.

But Fortunato disagreed. He noted that a machine may reject a ballot in which a voter circled a candidate's name instead of connecting the arrow as instructed. In such a case, the voter's intent is clear and it should be counted, he said.

"We're dealing with a fundamental right," Fortunato said. "Surely we cannot surrender elections to machines."

The ruling gives new hope to candidates involved in very close races -- such as East Providence, Tiverton and East Greenwich -- who hoped that the inclusion of rejected ballots may give them an edge.

It's unclear how and when the Board of Elections will incorporate the rejected ballots in those races. The board argued that the process may be extremely time-consuming.

Today's hearing was the first major challenge to state election policy since electronic voting machines were introduced eight years ago. Read the full story in today's Journal.

Two candidates involved in tight races – Joseph Larisa Jr. of East Providence and Allan W. Fung of Cranston – challenged the Board of Election's policy earlier in the month, asking for permission to manually inspect ballots that cannot be read by the machines.

In addition to the Board of Elections, lawyers for Larisa and his challenger, Isadore Ramos, made arguments at today's hearing, while the Cranston mayoral candidates did not. Fung conceded defeat yesterday and withdrew his court challenge.

Fortunato said he would hold another court hearing tomorrow morning if, upon inspection, the Larisa campaign determines that enough rejected ballots should be counted as to make a difference in the race.

Larisa trails by 16 votes.

-- With reports from Journal staff writer Benjamin N. Gedan

Posted by Steve Peoples at 2:18 PM | Comment

Station evidence: City fire marshal didn't notice foam

The West Warwick fire marshal at the time of The Station fire, Denis Patrick Larocque, told the state police just days after the fire that he was so focused on an exit door that violated state code that he did not notice any foam around the stage area when he inspected the nightclub three months before the fatal fire.

The door, which opened inward, had been corrected by the club at least twice before, Larocque said. After the previous year’s inspection, the club had removed the door to meet state code, the fire marshal said in his witness statement to the state police and the deputy state fire marshal on Feb. 25, 2003.

Club owners Michael and Jeffrey Derderian had installed highly flammable polyurethane foam on the walls of the club as soundproofing after neighbors complained about noise. On the night of the fire, the foam produced deadly fumes and helped the fire spread rapidly through the club, killing 100 people and injured about 200 others.

Larocque’s statement was first made public today, as the state Attorney General’s Office is releasing thousands of pages of documents related to The Station fire investigation.

“I really got upset that someone would reinstall something that we had already cited them for,” Larocque told State Police Det. Sgt. Brian K. Casilli and Deputy State Fire Marshal Robert Mowry. “ … My next stop was right back to the front of, well to the bar to speak with the bartender about who reinstalled the door.”

The last time Larocque said he inspected The Station prior to the fire Feb. 20, 2003, fire was on Nov. 20, 2002, at which point he found nine technical violations, “a lot of the same violations” from the inspection the previous year.

In addition to the inward-opening door, those violations included a broken panic bar on an exit door near the stage, fire extinguishers that weren’t mounted and/or needed service, and an open can of gasoline in the basement.

Larocque said it appeared as if the club owners were trying to limit noise to the neighbors with that second door by the stage, the one that opened inward.

Larocque said he did not know if any permits were ever given to The Station nightclub for pyrotechnics, which sparked the fire. He said he never issued permits for indoor fireworks displays or pyrotechnics and his department didn’t even have a form to issue a permit for such items. To his knowledge, no clubs in the city had ever applied for such permits, he said.

He was asked whether there had been complaints from citizens about overcrowding.

“We haven’t had any complaints that I can recall about any overcrowding or any type of complaints, complaints of that nature,” he said.

Read statements by West Warwick Fire Marshal Denis Larocque on Feb. 25, 2003 and April 7, 2003.In .pdf format. Wait to download.

View records of noise complaints, requests for liquor, victualing and entertainment licenses, and related inspection reports.In .pdf format. Wait to download.

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson

Posted by Kate Bramson at 2:16 PM | Comment

Coast Guard rescues man with crushed hands

A Coast Guard helicopter hoisted a fisherman from a lobster boat late last night after learning the man had crushed his hands in an apparent work-related accident.

Henry Benitec, 29, was injured while working on the Point Judith-based fishing boat Mister Marco, according to a Coast Guard announcement released today. The exact cause of the accident is under investigation.

At about 10:45 p.m. a Coast Guard helicopter reached the 74-foot lobster boat, which was located about 90 miles south of Point Judith.

Benitec was flown to Stony Brook Trauma Center on Long Island, arrived at 11:07 p.m., and was treated for six broken fingers, according to the Coast Guard.

Posted by Steve Peoples at 2:07 PM | Comment

Breaking news: AG releases thousands of pages Station fire evidence

Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch today began making public thousands of pages of evidence collected as part of the Station nightclub fire investigation.

Today’s release of documents comes in response to a Providence Journal public records request for the material. It also is part of a pledge Lynch made to relatives of the 100 people who died in the 2003 fire that he would let the public see the evidence. Lynch told the relatives he hoped the evidence would help answer lingering questions about the West Warwick nightclub and the fire that destroyed it.

Michael Healey, a spokesman for Lynch, said today that the attorney general regrets not being able to give victims' families advance notice of the release, but that his office was obligated to respond to the media's public records' request.

Healey said the material released today includes more than 3,000 pages of documents from the town of West Warwick and from the home office of Station co-owner Michael A. Derderian. Journal reporters are beginning to review the documents this afternoon.

Three people were charged with involuntary manslaughter for the fire: Derderian, 45, and his brother, Jeffrey A. Derderian, 40, the other owner of the nightclub, and Daniel M. Biechele, 30, the rock band tour manager who triggered fireworks that started the blaze. All three entered pleas to the charges. Biechele and Michael Derderian were sentenced to serve four years in prison. Jeffrey Derderian was ordered to perform 500 hours of community service.

Lynch has said he would release more evidence in the coming weeks, as soon as staff lawyers review it to determine that making it public would not violate the law. He also has petitioned the Superior Court for permission to give out transcripts of secret grand jury testimony that resulted in the charges against Biechele and the Derderians.

Today's release is a small fraction of what will ultimately be released, Healey said.

-- Journal staff writer Paul Edward Parker

Posted by Steve Peoples at 12:32 PM | Comment

W. Virginia man sues Hasbro after son's death

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. -- The father of a 19-month-old boy who apparently suffocated on an oversized plastic nail from a toy that Hasbro Inc. has since recalled is suing the nation's second-largest toy maker.

Zakary Michael Tetlow of Martinsburg died on Jan. 8 after choking on a foreign object, according to Berkeley County Courthouse records.

After learning of Tetlow's death and the suffocation of a 2-year-old Texas boy, Pawtucket-based Hasbro announced a voluntary recall Sept. 22 of about 255,000 Playskool Team Talkin' Tool Bench toys intended for children ages 3 and older. The Texas boy's death prompted a separate civil claim.

In announcing the recall, Hasbro CEO Al Verrecchia noted in a news release that the plastic toy nails, which are more than three inches long and an inch wide, were "far larger" than what is considered a choking hazard under federal safety standards.

Tetlow and his wife, Audrey, also have two daughters and another son, who was born after Zakary's death.

The lawsuit seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages plus court costs.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Steve Peoples at 12:29 PM | Comment

Photo: Last blast for old Jamestown Bridge

Journal photo / Mary Murphy
The last remaining underwater piers of the old Jamestown Bridge are demolished this morning shortly after 9 a.m. The controlled explosion was delayed for about 10 minutes while the blasters waited for a seal to swim away from the area.

Posted by Jack Perry at 11:56 AM | Comment

Judge to rule on rejected ballots this morning

PROVIDENCE -- Superior Court Judge Stephen J. Fortunato Jr. is hearing arguments this afternoon over whether ballots rejected by electronic voting machines should be manually inspected.

The hearing amounts to the first major challenge to state election policy since electronic voting machines were introduced eight years ago will be heard today in Superior Court. Read the full story in today's Journal.

The hearing will run through the usual lunch break.

Two candidates involved in tight races – Joseph Larisa Jr. of East Providence and Allan W. Fung of Cranston – challenged the Board of Election's policy earlier in the month, asking for permission to manually inspect ballots that cannot be read by the machines.

Lawyers for Larisa and his challenger, Isadore Ramos, are attending the hearing, while the Cranston mayoral candidates are not. Fung conceded defeat yesterday and withdrew his court challenge.

Check back with Projo.com for updates from today's hearing.

Posted by Steve Peoples at 10:52 AM | Comment

Download today's front page

The top stories today are: the Pope's visit to Turkey, another secret memo on Iraq and a controversy about condoms at the ACI.

Download file

Posted by Peter Phipps at 9:15 AM | Comment

Traffic: Final blast today for old Jamestown Bridge

JAMESTOWN, R.I. -- The final explosive demolition at the old Jamestown Bridge is scheduled for 9 a.m. today, according to the state Department of Transportation.

The controlled explosion will remove two underwater piers on the Jamestown side of the bridge.

Officials are trying to avoid major traffic disruptions at the nearby Jamestown-Verrazzano Bridge. Just before the detonations, the state police will clear traffic from the bridge by executing a rolling roadblock.

According to the DOT's Jam Factor, traffic was moving slowly across the Jamestown-Verrazzano Bridge as of about 8:15 a.m.

The detonation will be similar to the previous 10 blasts that crews have used to destroy underwater piers. Just two piers remain, according to the state. And after today's explosions, there should be none -- if the weather cooperates.

The conclusion of the underwater demolition is among the last elements of the $19.5-million project, according to the state. Crews will be in the area to clear underwater debris through February.

For traffic needs, check out the state roadways, via the Department of Transportation's online traffic offerings.

You can find any traffic alerts describing accidents here, browse traffic cams to see real-time photos of the highways and check out the DOT’s road construction schedule here.

Also, check out congestion mapping -- i.e., how heavy the traffic is -- here.

To report a traffic incident, call the Transportation Management Center at (401) 222-5826 and choose option #2.

Posted by Jack Perry at 8:01 AM | Comment

R.I., others, arguing global warming case at Supreme Court

WASHINGTON -- Rhode Island and Massachusetts are among among 12 states acting as plaintiffs in a landmark global warming lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency that will be argued this morning before the U.S. Supreme Court.

The plaintiffs, which also include three cities, a U.S. territory and 13 environmental groups, are arguing that the EPA, in neglecting to regulate carbon monoxide emissions from new motor vehicles, ignored the clear language of the Clean Air Act. Under the 1970 law, carbon dioxide is an air pollutant that threatens public health and the EPA must regulate it, they said.

It's the first case about global warming to reach the Supreme Court.

In court papers, the Bush administration argues that the Environmental Protection Agency lacks the power to regulate carbon dioxide as a pollutant under the Clean Air Act. Even if it had such authority, the EPA still would not use it at this point because of uncertainty surrounding the issue of global warming, the administration said.

Global climate change is "a controversial phenomenon that is far from fully understood or defined," trade associations for car and truck makers and automobile dealers said in a court filing signed by former Solicitors General Theodore Olson and Kenneth Starr that backs the administration position.

Carbon dioxide is produced when fossil fuels such as oil and natural gas are burned. It is the principal "greenhouse" gas that many scientists believe is flowing into the atmosphere at an unprecedented rate, leading to a warming of the Earth and widespread ecological changes. One way to reduce those emissions is to have cleaner-burning cars.

Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick Lynch said in a statement, "Because the Supreme Court's decision will determine whether the language of the Clean Air Act requires the EPA to regulate carbon dioxide as an air pollutant, this lawsuit has assumed great national and international significance."

He said "solid scientific evidence" points to "carbon dioxide emissions as the biggest contributor to global warming."

A federal appeals court in Washington, in a fractured decision in 2005, upheld the Bush administration's position. The Supreme Court decided to take the case in June and is expected to rule before July 2007.

The court's decision could have far-reaching effects. A separate case involving the EPA's claim that the Clean Air Act similarly does not give it authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants also is making its way through the federal courts.

Together, U.S. power plants and vehicles account for 15 percent of the world output of greenhouse gases, said David Doniger, counsel for the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group involved in the Supreme Court case.

An association of electric utilities, the Utility Air Regulatory Group, opposes greenhouse gas regulation. But two individual power companies, Calpine Corp. and Entergy Corp., are on the other side.

"This case makes for strange bedfellows," Entergy said in its brief. The company said it has to be able to make plans 25 years in advance and that the EPA's current rules will not "stand the test of time."

Michigan, home of the U.S. auto industry, and eight other states are backing the EPA.

The case is Massachusetts v. Environmental Protection Agency, 05-1120.

-- The Associated Press and projo.com staff reports.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:57 AM | Comment

Truck crash cuts power in Hope Valley, driver arrested

A Hopkinton man was arraigned early this morning on a drunken driving charge after crashing his Dodge pickup truck into a utility pole on Route 138 westbound in Hope Valley last night, the state police said.

No one was injured, but the crash near the intersection of Bank Street cut power to area residents and the state police department’s Hope Valley barracks, according to Lt. David Neill.

At the police station, a generator kicked in almost instantaneously. Residents’ power was restored in about a half hour, Neill said.

Paul E. Chapman, 40, of 220 Skunk Hill Rd. in Hopkinton, is charged with one count of driving under the influence. When he took a breath test, his blood-alcohol level was .266, Neill said. The legal limit is .08.

He is due back in court for a full arraignment in Washington County District Court on Dec. 6.

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson

Posted by Kate Bramson at 7:42 AM | Comment

Mostly cloudy with a high near 53

PROVIDENCE – This morning’s fog and drizzle should turn to a mostly cloudy day after 9 a.m.

Expect a high near 53, with a calm wind between 4 and 7 miles per hour.

But look out for a low-pressure storm system that’s expected to move over the southern plains and northeast over the next 48 hours.

Expected to move into northern New England Friday afternoon and night, the storm will push a strong cold front through the region. Very strong winds from the west and southwest will develop immediately behind the front, with gusts that may rise in excess of 50 knots across the water.

The National Weather Service warns mariners planning to travel on Friday to monitor the potentially dangerous storm before heading out on the water.

The rest of this week, expect temps in the mid-60s tomorrow and down into the 40s this weekend.

Get the latest conditions and forecasts from projo.com.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 7:09 AM | Comment