« June 29, 2007 | Today | July 3, 2007 »

July 2, 2007

Missing fisherman's body found off Newport

NEWPORT -- Divers have discovered the body of Phillip Stevens, the Massachusetts fisherman who disappeared on Saturday off the coast of Newport, according to state Department of Environmental Management spokeswoman Gail Mastrati.

Stevens, 59, of Watertown, Mass., was found at 4:47 p.m. at Prices Point, east of Brenton Reef, Mastrati said.

His body was transported to Castle Hill Coast Guard station, where it was identified by the state medical examiner, she said.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 7:00 PM | Comment

Update: New Providence firefighters graduate / Photo

Journal photo / Steve Szydlowski
Providence Mayor David N. Cicilline swears in the 34 newest members of the city's Fire Department, at a training academy graduation ceremony this morning at the Rhode Island Convention Ceremony.

The 47th Training Academy graduates are: Jason Augus, Stepany Blackwell, Derek Bishop, Timothy Bock, Steven Britto, Patrick Burke, Joseph Caffey, Richard Coughlin, Nicholas Date, Eric Estrada, Ruben Feliz, Michael Foley, Christopher Gastall, Bruno Goncalves, Dennie Guzman, Michael Kelly, Raphael Joseph, Jennifer LaBerge, Jason LaSalle, Derek Lopez, Kenneth Mangan, Jamie Medeiros, Michael Misto, Matthew Mowry, Eric Pedro, Benjamin Poirier, Derek Silva, Derek Simoneau, Christopher Stoney, Matthew Tadry, Paul Tang, Jason Thibault, Jose Vargas and Tiffany Wolff.

Posted by Jack Perry at 6:53 PM | Comment

Oh, Fiddlesticks: Mini-golf course is no more / Photo

Journal photo / Gretchen Ertl
Butch Cole works on demolishing the base for a former castle at the Fiddlesticks course.

NORTH KINGSTOWN -- The last remnants of the Fiddlesticks Amusement Park are facing the business end of a backhoe today.

The owners of the park – which at one time included batting cages, a driving range and a mini-golf course – said a 36-hole mini-course would stay after the rest was razed for a 55,000-square-foot grocery store.

But that was two years ago. The course hasn’t been used since and is too expensive to maintain, according to its owners.

“We ran the numbers, and we figured it just wasn’t worth it at this juncture,” said Fred Schick, former head of Fiddlesticks Ltd.

On-site, Butch Cole of Cole Construction was in charge of the demolition.

He also worked on the original excavation in the late 1980s, when Fiddlesticks opened on the site of a former farm.

“We did all of the excavation for the range,” Cole said.

“Then I’ve came back here to tear it down.”

-- Journal staff writer Brandie Jefferson

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 5:35 PM | Comment

Update: Suspect in dual slaying violated probation

PROVIDENCE -- Prosecutors say a suspect in the murder of two Providence women last month violated his probation on two prior convictions, and they will ask a magistrate to order him to serve 4 ½ years in prison, a spokesman for the state Attorney General's Office said today.

No decision was made in a probation hearing this afternoon for Raymond Clements, 23, of 38 Comstock St., Pawtucket, who has been charged with murder and first-degree arson in connection with the June 14 slaying of Heather Jesus, 20, of 375 Plainfield St., Providence, and her 17-year-old cousin, Amanda Sousa, at Jesus' Silver Lake apartment. The bodies of the two women were found after a fire in the building.

Clements made an appearance in District Court this morning and was ordered held without bail, according to Michael J. Healey, a spokesman for the Attorney General's Office.

Then, during this afternoon’s hearing, two new court dates were set for Clements – a hearing to determine an attorney for him on July 9 and a violation-of-probation hearing on July 17.

An alleged co-defendant, Anthony J. Carter, 22, of 13 Busby St., Pawtucket, was arrested Friday in Polk County, Fla. The Attorney General's Office has started the process of having Carter brought back to Rhode Island to face charges here, according to Healey.

-- projo.com staff writers Jack Perry and Kate Bramson

The Attorney General's Office alleges that Clements has violated his probation on two prior convictions. In November 2003, he pleaded no contest to forgery, counterfeiting and conspiracy in Kent County, according to Healey. He was sentenced to six years, with three years to serve and three years suspended with probation, Healey said.

While serving that sentence, Clements escaped in 2004 from a work-release program, Healey said. He was later convicted of escape and sentenced to two years in prison with six months to serve and 18 months suspended with probation, Healey said.

"Given the gravity of the most recent allegations," prosecutors will ask Magistrate William J. McAtee to find that Clements has violated probation on both prior convictions and order him to serve the suspended portions of the sentences for a total of 4 ½ years, Healey said.

Jesus, who lived in the tenement, and Sousa, who was visiting, were both found dead on the floor of the living room of Jesus’ four-room third-floor apartment.

Dr. Thomas Gilson, Rhode Island chief state medical examiner, said Jesus died of “sharp-force injuries and asphyxia due to neck and chest compression,” and that Sousa died of “multiple blunt impact and sharp-force injuries.”

Police Major Stephen Campbell has said the fire was set deliberately to destroy evidence and that the blaze began in the living room, where the bodies were found. Both victims were attacked prior to the fire, he has said.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 5:11 PM | Comment

Carcieri says he was unaware of foster-care abuses

PROVIDENCE -- Governor Carcieri met today for 45 minutes with state Child Advocate Jametta Alston and then spoke publicly for the first time about Alston's charges against the state.

Alston last week filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court alleging widespread abuse of foster children in state custody and systemic failure at the Department of Children, Youth and Families.

The governor said he was not aware that any abuse was taking place in the state's foster care system.

"In order for me to take action, I need to be aware of these things," he said.

Carcieri said his office was now investigating allegations of sexual and physical abuse detailed in the 85-page lawsuit and that his staff would brief him on the situation tomorrow.

"Are any of the allegations true?" Carcieri said. "I don't know any of that right now."

Meanwhile, Alston said she did not discuss the lawsuit during the meeting with the governor, which was primarily about how to maintain communication while the lawsuit plays out. Alston, a Carcieri appointee, investigates abuse among other things and works closely with the DCYF.

"I didn't come here to talk about the lawsuit," she said while leaving the State House tracked by reporters.

Extra: Read the full text of the 85-page lawsuit.

-- Steve Peoples, Journal State House Bureau

Posted by Steve Peoples at 3:36 PM | Comment

State child advocate meeting with the governor

PROVIDENCE – State Child Advocate Jametta O. Alston is meeting now with Governor Carcieri for the first time since she filed a U.S. District Court lawsuit last Thursday against the governor and other state officials on behalf of the 3,000 children now in state custody.

Alston said this morning that the goal of the meeting is to keep the lines of communication open. She will continue to need to work with the state Department of Children, Youth and Families and with the governor’s staff as the class-action lawsuit proceeds.

Carcieri is expected to speak to the press after the meeting, which is expected to last about 30 minutes. It would be the first time he speaks publicly about the lawsuit.

Alston was about 20 minutes late to the 1 p.m. meeting. She went into the governor’s State House office at about 1:20 p.m.

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson, with reports from Steve Peoples, Journal State House Bureau

Posted by Kate Bramson at 1:35 PM | Comment

State trooper's condition upgraded to fair

PROVIDENCE – The condition of the state trooper who was critically injured after he approached a motorist while off duty in downtown Providence has been upgraded.

Trooper Brendan R. Doyle has been upgraded to fair condition from serious condition at Rhode Island Hospital, spokeswoman Nancy Cawley said early this afternoon.

Doyle was initially in critical condition after he was allegedly punched so hard that he fell backward, struck his head on the pavement and suffered severe head injuries that almost cost him his life. He had attempted to stop a man whom he allegedly saw driving recklessly in downtown Providence.

The man accused of punching him, James D. Proulx, of Smithfield, was sentenced today in Sixth District Court, Providence, to serve five months at the Adult Correctional Institutions on a separate misdemeanor charge.

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson

Posted by Kate Bramson at 12:43 PM | Comment

High court upholds life sentences for carjacker Day

The state Supreme Court has upheld the murder convictions and the life without parole sentence for one of the five men convicted in the 2000 carjacking and killing of two college students.

Kenneth D. Day, of Providence, was sentenced to four consecutive terms of life without parole Aug. 16, 2004, in the June 2000 murder and carjacking of college students Amy Shute and Jason Burgeson. He was the fifth and final man convicted.

The court found that Day's sentence of life in prison without the eligibility for parole was appropriate, but it did overturn three charges against Day: two counts of robbery and one count of conspiracy to commit carjacking.

The court upheld the convictions for two counts of murder, two counts of carjacking resulting in death and one count of conspiracy to commit robbery.

Shute, 21, of Coventry, and Burgeson, 20, of Lakeville, Mass., were kidnapped from downtown Providence after a night of dancing, and driven to a golf course under construction on the Providence/Johnston line. According to testimony, Gregory J. Floyd shot the students in the head as they begged for their lives while Day urged Floyd to pull the trigger.

At sentencing, prosecutor Gerard B. Sullivan said, "We can empty a dictionary of adjectives and then search a thesaurus for synonyms and not come close to describing this crime."

Day appealed, saying in part that the trial judge, Superior Court Justice Joseph F. Rodgers Jr., had exceeded his authority in imposing four sentences of life without parole and that his conviction for murder and the underlying carjacking charge had violated the legal system's double jeopardy clause.

The four others pleaded guilty in federal court to carjacking charges. Three are serving life sentences, and one is serving a 30-year sentence.

Posted by Jack Perry at 12:27 PM | Comment

Update: A grand old flag for a new citizen / Photo

Journal photo / Sandor Bodo
Thelma Espinal, of Providence, holds an American flag at a ceremoney where she and more than 50 Rhode Island residents took the oath of allegiance to become a U.S. citizen this morning at the Roger Williams National Memorial Park in Providence.

The park is named after the founder of Rhode Island, who established a settlement to provide refuge for those seeking religious freedom in 1636.

People from more than 20 nations -- including Cambodia, Malaysia, the Ukraine, Liberia, Bolivia and Iraq -- were among taking the citizenship oath today, two days before the annual celebration of the Declaration of Independence, on July 4, 1776.

-- With Associated Press reports

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 12:16 PM | Comment

Lottery looking for $200,000 winner

The Rhode Island Lottery is waiting to hear from a $200,000 winner.

A ticket matching the first five numbers for Saturday's PowerBall was sold by the Sunnybrook Farms in East Greenwich.

The player hit everything but the PowerBall number in the $15 million drawing.

Posted by Peter Phipps at 11:47 AM | Comment

Update: Man accused of assaulting trooper in court

PROVIDENCE – The man accused of critically injuring a state trooper last month was sentenced this morning in Sixth District Court, Providence, to serve five months at the Adult Correctional Institutions on a separate misdemeanor charge.

James D. Proulx, of 2 Danecroft Ave. in Smithfield, pleaded no contest to failing to keep the peace and be of good behavior.

Proulx's plea today was related to a prior misdemeanor charge by the North Providence Police Department for making crank and obscene phone calls. That case had been filed by the court, with the stipulation that Proulx must keep the peace and be on good behavior. If he did not do that, he was subject to court review of that charge, which is why he was in court today, according to Michael J. Healey, spokesman for the Attorney General’s Office.

In court today, Proulx's defense attorney said one other misdemeanor and two felony charges are still pending against him. The other misdemeanor is for violating a no contact order against an ex-girlfriend, according to Healey. The two felony charges stem from the attack on the state trooper.

Proulx has been held at the Adult Correctional Institutions on $1 million bail with surety for felony assault and reckless driving, following the incident on June 16 that left trooper Brendan R. Doyle fighting for his life.

Proulx allegedly punched Doyle early that morning after Doyle, then off-duty, confronted him for alleged reckless driving. Doyle fell, struck his head and suffered a serious head injury.

Today, attorneys met in the district court judge’s chambers before the public court hearing, Healey said.

Meanwhile, the Attorney General's Office is moving forward with the felony assault case against Proulx, Healey said. Because the charge is not considered a capital offense, the case does not need to go before a grand jury.

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson, with reports from Journal staff writer Tom Mooney

Posted by Kate Bramson at 11:43 AM | Comment

Photo: Eye the eagles at Roger Willams Park Zoo

Journal photo / Bob Thayer
Two bald eagles have nestled into their new digs at the Roger Williams Park Zoo in Providence. The eagles are in the exhibit area where the polar bears used to be. The exhibit opens officially today. Read more.

Posted by Jack Perry at 11:02 AM | Comment

Green ups security following terrorist threats in U.K.

WARWICK -- There's heavier security at T.F. Green Airport in Warwick following the recent terrorist incidents in Britain.

A spokeswoman for the Rhode Island Airport Corporation says the airport has added additional staff and is -- quote -- ``being more diligent'' about searching vehicles.

At Logan Airport in Boston, canine units are patrolling terminals and state police are conducting random searches of vehicles.

Attackers on Saturday rammed a Jeep Cherokee into the main terminal building at the airport in Glasgow, Scotland. On Friday, two car bombs failed to explode in central London on Friday. Seven people have been arrested in connection with the attempted attacks.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:45 AM | Comment

Coast Guard suspends search for Mass. fisherman

NEWPORT – The U.S. Coast Guard has suspended its search for a 59-year-old Watertown, Mass., fisherman who disappeared Saturday afternoon while spearfishing from a kayak off Brenton Point.

After receiving a 911 call Saturday around 4:30 p.m. that reported Phillip Stevens as missing, the Coast Guard searched 11 times in an area measuring more than 300 square nautical miles. Stevens’ kayak and spear were found onshore.

The Coast Guard called off the search around 10:45 p.m. last night, Petty Officer Luke Pinneo said this morning. The Coast Guard has heard nothing new this morning, Pinneo said.

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson

Stevens was said to be fishing about 20 yards from the shore, in about 14 feet of water. He was last seen fishing near Brenton Reef around 12:30 p.m. Saturday. Water temperature in that area was around 66 degrees Fahrenheit.

Stevens had planned to meet his wife around 3:30 p.m. Saturday. When he failed to show up, she called the Coast Guard.

The Guard searched the area with Jayhawk helicopters from Air Station Cape Cod, Coast Guard Auxiliary aircraft from Providence, the Coast Guard Cutter Chinook from Long Island Sound, Coast Guard Cutter Tigershark from Newport, a 25-foot response boat from station Castle Hill, a 47-foot motor life boat from station Point Judith as well as local and state agencies.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 10:26 AM | Comment

Sen. Reed to return to Iraq for 10th time

WASHINGTON – Sen. Jack Reed will make his tenth wartime tour of Iraq this week, seeking first-hand information on the effectiveness of the ``surge’’ of U.S. forces, initiated early this year by President Bush to improve security -- especially around Baghdad -- so that the struggling Iraqi government can move toward political stability.

Reed, a former Army officer, is a member of an unofficial Senate Democratic war council that is preparing a renewed effort to force the Bush administration to begin removing combat forces from Iraq. Reed and Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., the chairman of the Armed Services Committee, have announced plans to add troop withdrawal language to the 2008 defense authorization bill that the Senate will debate soon after Congress returns from this week’s Independence Day recess.

Mr. Bush vetoed such language when Congress attached it to a war-spending bill in May. Mr. Bush prevailed in the resulting confrontation last month, as Congress granted him a war-funds bill free of mandatory troop withdrawal deadlines. But Democrats in both houses of Congress vowed to continue their efforts to push the president toward a timetable for winding down the commitment of American fighting forces in Iraq. In recent weeks, key Republicans have added their voices to the growing call for a change of course in Iraq strategy.

Reed plans to attend the Bristol Fourth of July Parade and then depart for Iraq on July 5. As he has often done on previous trips to Iraq, Reed will travel with a single aide. Reed’s office, which has not released details of his itinerary, said he plans to return to the U.S. on July 9.

-- By John Mulligan, Journal Washington Bureau

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:24 AM | Comment

Gas prices fall again

Gasoline prices in Rhode Island have dropped for the fifth straight week, according to AAA Southern New England.

The average price is $2.929 for a gallon of regular, unleaded gasoline at the self-service pump, according to AAA's weekly survey.

That's one cent less than last week.

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:01 AM | Comment

Dozens to become citizens in Providence today

PROVIDENCE -- More than 50 Rhode Island residents will take the Oath of Allegiance this morning to become United States citizens during a special ceremony.

The event is set for the Roger Williams National Memorial Park -- where the founder of Rhode Island first established a settlement to provide refuge for those seeking religious freedom in 1636.

People from more than 20 nations -- including Cambodia, Malaysia, the Ukraine, Liberia, Bolivia and Iraq -- are among those set to take American citizenship.

Between half a million and 700,000 people become U.S. citizens each year.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:39 AM | Comment

Today's front page

Today's front page features the first in a Monday series of Creature Chronicles, which this week chronicles the ongoing war of farmers and gardeners against those persistent pests, woodchucks.

It also features a story and photographs of the tall ships leaving Rhode Island and the first Sunday of car sales in Rhode Island.

Download a copy of today's front page in .pdf format.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:00 AM | Comment

The sky will be full of wild animals

It's going to be a good day to lie on your back and let your imagination drift.

Officially, the National Weather Service is calling for partly cloudy skies, winds of 9 to 11 mph and a high of 75.

But that also means -- assuming, that is, that you can still see the sky like a 5-year-old -- the sky will be full of bears, pigs and alligators.

Tomorrow will be warmer with fewer clouds and, therefore, less to look at.

Thunderstorms loom later in the week.

Posted by Peter Phipps at 6:53 AM | Comment

R.I. mosquito samples come up clean again

Two weeks of testing down and no signs yet of West Nile virus or Eastern Equine Encephalitis in mosquitoes in Rhode Island.

That's the word today from the state Department of Environmental Management.

Results from 50 mosquito pools -- from 26 traps set around the state during the week of June 18 -- came back negative for the viruses.

DEM staff trap mosquitoes every week around the state and then send samples for testing at the state Health Department laboratory. Mosquitoes trapped in June will be part of results announced this week.

The DEM urges people to eliminate things mosquitoes could breed in. That includes anything that holds standing water, such as old tires, buckets, junk and debris. People should also clean gutters so they drain properly and maintain swimming pools correctly.

To avoid mosquito bites, use sceens on windows and doors and cover up at dawn and dusk. Put mosquito netting over playpens and baby carriages when they're outside.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:50 AM | Comment