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July 30, 2007

Pretend it isn't Monday: Let the music scene help

For a back-to-business Monday, there's live blues, rock and jazz aplenty tonight.

At AS220, 115 Empire St., Providence, Coal Hook plays rock. Call 831-9327. Show begins at 8 p.m. Cost is $3. All ages. Monday Night Potluck; bring food to share.

Bruce Jacques, rock, One Pelham East, 270 Thames St., Newport. 847-9460. 9 p.m.

Joe Parillo and Friends, jazz, True Brew Cafe, 213 Robinson St., Wakefield. 284-1850. 6:30-9:30 p.m. $5.

Shipyard Wreck, blues, Newport Blues Cafe, 286 Thames St., Newport. 841-5510. 10 p.m.

Creedence Clearwater Revisited, rock, Foxwoods Resort Casino, Fox Theatre, Route 2, Mashantucket, Conn. (800) 200-2882. 8 p.m. $27.50, $38.50.

Josh Groban, pop, Mohegan Sun, Arena, Mohegan Sun Boulevard (exit 79A off Route 395), Uncasville, Conn. (888) 226-7711, www.mohegansun.com. 7 p.m. $95-$150.

Steve Palumbo, pop, Colonel Blackinton Inn, 203 North Main St., Attleboro, Mass. (508) 222-6022. 6 to 9 p.m.

Looking for more ideas? For music, check our music page and for other events, see what's happening on our calendar page.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:55 PM | Comment

Crews battle Richmond's stubborn stump dump fire

RICHMOND -- Firefighters from six communities spent much of the weekend and most of today trying to contain a persistent stump dump fire that crews said covered an area about the size of a football field.

For what seemed like the umpteenth time this summer, the stump dump on Skunk Hill Road near Route 95 burned and burned, even as firefighters, aided by occasional thundershowers, poured water on the hot spots.

Firefighters responded on Saturday morning, again on Sunday and again today, at about 2:30 a.m., said Hope Valley Fire Chief Frederick A. Stanley.

Aiming to put the fire out for good, firefighters called in heavy equipment to dig a trench that will separate sections of the nine-acre stump dump that have burned from sections that have not burned.

Stanley said the trench will hopefully stop the fire from spreading underneath the ground as firefighters try to put it out from above.

“You’ve got tremendous heat down under the ground, and what happens is it has to go some place,” he said. “So the more dirt that you put on top of it and the more water that you put on top of it, you force it to go into places where it hasn’t been burning.”

Stanley said he expected firefighters to be at the scene "all night."

-- Journal staff writer Randal Edgar

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:12 PM | Comment

PC to stream some basketball games online

PROVIDENCE -- The Providence College Friars will begin broadcasting basketball games online next season, sending streaming video worldwide to alumni and parents and giving a consolation prize to frustrated fans who cannot score a ticket for a sold-out home game.

The college is not digitizing every dunk, but as many as seven home games next season will be available live on the Web, Arthur Parks, the college’s associate athletic director, said today.

“It’s a service to our fans and alums that can’t see the game but want to follow the team,” Parks said.

It is also a potential moneymaker for Providence College, which plans to sell access to the programming and use it to drive traffic to its athletics Web site, where visitors can donate to the university, buy tickets for games and purchase merchandise.

The streaming video technology is not new, but the Friars have been restricted from broadcasting their games by the agreement that gives ESPN ownership over all Big East basketball games.

That contract was renegotiated this year. It now permits Big East schools to air games online that ESPN does not broadcast on any of its cable channels — including ESPN 2, ESPN Classic, ESPN Regional Television and ESPNU — or through its subscription-based Web television site, ESPN360.

Selling access to the streaming video will allow schools to supplement the income they receive from the conference’s lucrative licensing agreement with ESPN.

-- Journal staff writer Benjamin N. Gedan

Providence College already sells subscriptions for online audio broadcasts of sporting events, charging $6.95 per month for men’s and women’s basketball and ice hockey.

The program, Providence All Access, is managed by CSTV Networks Inc., a college sports network founded in 1999 and acquired by CBS last year.

There were 1,208 subscriber-months sold in the last fiscal year, generating $8,845 in revenue that Providence College split with CSTV.

With streaming video, that monthly subscription fee will rise to $9.95. Parks said he hopes to increase gross revenue to $20,000.

“We’re hoping that will go up because the video really enhances it,” Parks said. “It drives people to our Web site. There’s advertising on there that we generate revenue from, and an online store. As costs go up, you’re always looking for new revenue streams.”

Providence All Access will also include live video for some home games for field hockey, women’s basketball, men’s and women’s ice hockey, volleyball and lacrosse.

The games will be captured by college staff using a digital camera and laptop the college bought last summer.

Eventually, the service will feature interviews with coaches and players online, as well as other features.

Tom Odjakjian, an associate commissioner for the Big East conference, negotiated the new contract with ESPN. He said some colleges might not set up a pay-per-view system for the streaming video, and the number of games available for streaming might vary significantly.

But all schools, Odjakjian said, could benefit from better brand recognition and new supporters. “Your fans around the world can see this,” he said. “It’s amazing the feedback you get from that outreach.”

For Providence College next season, 18 of the 29 games are against conference rivals and will be broadcast on ESPN. Of the remaining 11, seven will be played at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center, in Providence. The season begins in November and ends in March.

ESPN could choose to air some non-conference games, such as the Dec. 22 contest against Florida State University.

But the network is unlikely to snatch up all 29 games, with some rivalries, including Providence College and Brown University, of more local interest. (They are scheduled to play Dec. 9.)

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 6:06 PM | Comment

Photo: A lesson in school hostage situations

Journal photo / Frieda Squires
Middletown police conducted a training session today on how to deal with sniper and hostage situations in schools. Overseeing the exercise above was Middletown Sgt. Allan Garcia, left, the training officer for the two-day training. On the floor at right is Lexi Coristine, 12, who portrayed a shooting victim.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 5:55 PM | Comment

3 ex-Smithfield council presidents urge Tocco to quit

SMITHFIELD -- Citing "criminal involvement" in bribery and the turmoil that has gripped town government lately, three former Town Council presidents today called upon the current president, Stephen G. Tocco, to resign.

“More and more we feel that a cruel hoax has been perpetrated on the voters of Smithfield,” the former presidents wrote in a letter addressed to Tocco. “We are certain that your continued presence on the Smithfield Town Council will result in further erosion of public confidence in our government and further deterioration of our quality of life and the superior town government that previous councils, Republican and Democrat, have worked so hard to build over the last generation.”

The letter was signed by John F. Emin, a council member for 18 years, 14 as president; Richard A. Poirier, a member for 12 years, two of them as president; and Alberto J. LaGreca Jr., a member for 12 years, eight as president. All are Republicans. Tocco is a Democrat.

Poirier said he delivered the letter to Town Hall today. He said he tried unsuccessfully to contact Michael R. McGuinn, a Democrat and former council president. He said other former presidents live out of town.

An attempt by The Journal to reach McGuinn also was unsuccessful.

The ex-presidents joined James W. Archer, chairman of the Smithfield Republican Town Committee, in seeking Tocco’s ouster.

Archer said last month, "I find it distressing that someone who is president of the Smithfield Town Council spent two years of his life not only delivering bribes to public officials in two cities, but personally overbilled the City of Providence to get money to cover the bribes."

-- Journal staff writer Thomas J. Morgan

Tocco’s tenure as chief began decaying after a reporter requested archive material from the U.S. District Court.

According to the transcript of the 1993 trial of Gary Garafano, then deputy public works director in Providence, Tocco, who at the time was a Capitol Police officer and an employee of a construction company, testified against the defendant under a grant of immunity so as to avoid prosecution.

He testified that he acted as a bagman who delivered bribes to officials in Pawtucket and Providence from the construction company.

Tocco described on the witness stand how he had negotiated bribes and carried thousands of dollars’ worth on a number of occasions both to Garafano and to Louis S. Simon, public works director in Pawtucket during the administration of former Mayor Brian J. Sarault in the 1980s. Simon and Sarault pleaded guilty and served jail terms.

In June, Tocco dismissed his role in the briberies as “something that happened in the ‘90s.” He added, “I’ve got no record.”

He said that he and Forte Bros., the company for which he worked, had been the victims in the case, and that to have refused to pay the bribes would have meant being shut off from city contracts.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:35 PM | Comment

Update: Thunderstorms leave mark on northern R.I.

Powerful thunderstorms in the northern part of the state left much of Lincoln Mall still without power and included a lightning strike that damaged three cars in a Glocester driveway and caused a Burrillville house fire.

This morning, 20,000 customers were without electricity in Woonsocket for more than hour starting at 5:17 a.m., a National Grid spokeswoman said.

Lincoln Mall's Web site at this hour says all stores and restaurants except for Stop & Shop and Target are closed and that National Grid is working to restore power.

A fire brought under control this morning in a duplex house at 27 Gazza Rd., Burrillville, is believed to have been caused by a lightning strike, the Oakland/Mapleville Fire Department chief said.

Firefighters battled the fire that was reported at 9:10 a.m. today. Emergency crews determined the fire was under control earlier, but hot spots then flared up and they were continuing to fight the fire around 10:40 a.m., according to a police dispatcher.

The fire was mainly confined to the overhang of the two-and-a-half story house in the attic, said Fire Chief Joe Bertholic said. Bertholic said his understanding was one family had been home at the time of the fire. The family had left the home when the fire department was on scene.

Several trucks went to the scene on a morning when firefighters battled humidity as much as the fire. Firefighters pulled apart roofing and used various ladders in order to reach the fire inside the attic

-- projo.com staff writers Michael P. McKinney and Kate Bramson, with reports from Journal staff writer Philip Marcello

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:01 PM | Comment

Judge: Send teen drinking/drug cases to Family Court

PROVIDENCE -- Prompted in part by the recent death of a Barrington teenager, Family Court Chief Judge Jeremiah S. Jeremiah Jr. today asked police chiefs to refer teen drinking and drug charges to Family Court rather than to local juvenile hearing boards.

Jeremiah said the proposal is not meant as a criticism of the hearing boards, which handle juvenile cases in 33 of the 39 cities and towns in Rhode Island. Rather, he said, Family Court can offer more services to deal with the kind of problems highlighted by the charges levied against a Barrington teenager following the death of his classmate on July 17.

Patrick Murphy, 17, had been riding a kneeboard pulled by a boat on the Barrington River when he disappeared. Authorities say Murphy was struck and slashed by something sharp, probably a propeller. The driver of the boat, Ryan A. Greenberg, 17, has been charged with reckless boating, death resulting; refusing to take a Breathalyzer test; and underage possession of alcohol. Greenberg has entered not guilty pleas.

Jeremiah noted the Barrington police broke up a house party with 35 to 40 teens just nine hours after Murphy’s memorial service on Thursday. Four teens were charged with underage drinking. “It appears they are still drinking in Barrington,” Jeremiah said. “The parents have to take responsibility.”

Jeremiah sent letters to police chiefs throughout the state, saying, “As of Aug. 1, 2007, I am respectfully requesting that all wayward alcohol and drug charges be referred to the Rhode Island Family Court instead of your local juvenile hearing board.”

Now, when juveniles face first offenses, police chiefs may send those cases to local juvenile hearing boards or to Family Court. So Family Court often handles cases involving second offenses and more serious charges.

Instead, Jeremiah is asking police chiefs to send Family Court all alcohol and drug cases that include “wayward” charges -- the juvenile equivalent of adult misdemeanor charges. Wayward charges could include possession of alcohol by a minor or an alcohol-related charge of disorderly conduct, Family Court officials said.

“The Family Court has both staff and specialized programs in place to effectively and efficiently handle this serious problem facing our youth throughout the state,” Jeremiah wrote. “Therefore, I am asking that all wayward alcohol and drug charges be referred directly to Family Court to assure that this problem is managed in a standardized way statewide.”

-- Journal staff writer Edward Fitzpatrick

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:57 PM | Comment

Sen. Clinton coming to fundraiser in R.I., Sept. 27

Sen. Hillary Clinton will bring her presidential campaign to Rhode Island on Sept. 27 with a fund-raising event in East Greenwich.

Sen. Clinton will appear at a luncheon at the home of Democratic Party activists Mark and Susan Weiner. Lobbyist Gerry Harrington is chairman of the event. Harrington was a top fund-raiser for John Kerry’s unsuccessful 2004 presidential campaign.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse and Rep. James Langevin, both of whom have endorsed Clinton’s quest for the Democratic presidential nomination, are also scheduled to attend.

--- By Scott MacKay, Journal staff writer

Posted by Peter Phipps at 3:36 PM | Comment

Paz charged with simple assault, disorderly conduct

Boxing icon Vinny Paz turned himself in to Warwick police this morning after being charged with domestic simple assault and domestic disorderly conduct.

The arrest warrant for Paz, 44, was issued early Friday morning, police said.

Paz's girlfriend, Ashley P. Spencer, 25, of Eliot, Maine, is the alleged victim, the police said.

The former five-time boxing world champion arrived at the police station around 7 a.m. and was then taken to the Kent County Court to be arraigned, the police said.

Paz, a Cranston native who now lives in Warwick, has been arrested twice i the last eight years, most recently in February, for refusing to take a Breathalyzer test. Then in January 2000, he was arrested outside a club in Pawtucket and pleaded no contest to assaulting a police officer and resisting arrest.

-- Journal staff writer Stu Woo

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:18 PM | Comment

Pawtucket police discuss fatal shootings / Photo

Journal photo / Mary Murphy
Det. Sgt. Roberto DaSilva of the Pawtucket Police Dept., lead investigator into the shooting last Friday by the police on Coyle Avenue, describes what happened.

After two killings in one week, the Pawtucket police chief today offered his condolences to the families of two people who were shot and killed by officers.

An Attleboro woman was shot on Thursday when she allegedly tried to run down a Pawtucket officer with a stolen car. A little over 24 hours later, a 34-year-old Pawtucket man was shot when he allegedly pointed a loaded semi-automatic at officers called to investigate a break-in at a tenement on Coyle Avenue.

“What I think everybody has to realize is that the person they know is not the person the police encountered,” Police Chief George L. Kelley III said.

On Friday, the police were responding to a 911 call about a man with a gun trying to break into a house on Coyle Avenue. As the officers ran to cover both entrances, Officer Donna Joyal ran around the house and slammed right into an armed Jason Audette in the driveway, the chief said.

Chief Kelley said officer Joyal shoved Audette away. Audette, the chief said, then pulled a loaded .32 caliber semi-automatic gun on the police officers.

Officers David Holden, 26, Mark Ramos, 31, and Christopher LeFort, 37, all fired about a dozen shots at Audette, killing him.

The incident happened within seconds. The chief couldn’t say whether Audette had fired any shots.

-- Journal staff writer Amanda Milkovits

Audette’s family listened to these details from a back bench in the Municipal Court as the police held a press conference. Some gasped as the chief said the officers fired between 10 to 12 shots. Two women bolted from the room.

These three officers are on administrative duty, as is Officer Derrick Smith, who shot and killed Bridget DeGrafft, 49, when the Attleboro woman allegedly pinned him with a stolen car in a separate incident early Thursday. Smith is on crutches from the incident, Kelley said.

Both officer-involved shootings are being investigated separately by a multi-agency task force under the attorney general’s office. The chief said the Pawtucket Police Department will conduct its own investigation as well.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 3:10 PM | Comment

Animal rights group criticizes state DEM's decision

PROVIDENCE -- The animal rights group Defenders of Animals is criticizing the state Department of Environmental Management, after state investigators concluded that New England Pest Control did not violate environmental laws when it killed several sparrows at a National Grid facility in Lincoln.

Earlier this month, New England Pest Control used poisoned corn to kill birds that were nesting and roosting at a National Grid facility in Lincoln.

The DEM visited the facility and interviewed the New England Pest Control employee who distributed the poison. In a letter to the company sent last Thursday, Eugene Pepper, the Pesticide Enforcement Program supervisor, said the exterminators had not violated state or federal environmental laws.

The killing of the sparrows prompted Defenders of Animals to call for a boycott of New England Pest Control.

Now, the group says it will lobby the General Assembly to prohibit the use of Avitrol, the avicide New England Pest Control used in Lincoln.

"The pest control companies are trying to make it sound like Avitrol is a flock-dispersing agent. Avicides like Avitrol are acutely toxic and cause birds and other animals to suffer immensely," Defenders of Animals said. "It’s outright cruelty as far as we are concerned. It’s a reckless practice that must stop."

-- Journal staff writer Benjamin N. Gedan

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:03 PM | Comment

Convicted killer will get to conduct religious services

PROVIDENCE -- A convicted killer banned from preaching at the state prison will be able to conduct religious services again under a settlement announced today.

Wesley Spratt had preached in prison for about seven years after receiving what he said was a ``calling'' from God. A new warden barred him from preaching in 2003, saying it was dangerous for inmates to be given positions of authority.

A federal appeals court this year ruled in Spratt's favor and sent the case to U.S. District Court in Providence for a resolution.

As part of the settlement, the corrections department has adopted a new policy that permits inmates to lead religious services under the supervision of a prison chaplain.

The department also acknowledged that its blanket ban on preaching had infringed on Spratt's right to practice religion in prison.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:59 PM | Comment

Bristol motorcyclist who died had struck median

BRISTOL -- The Bristol man, 59, who was killed in a motorcyle crash yesterday had been heading south on Route 114 when the cycle hit the median where the road narrows from two lanes to one, according to the police.

The police would not identify the man today, so that next of kin who have been notified can contact other family, said Deputy Police Chief Josh Canario. The police are also awaiting autopsy findings, he said.

Canario said today that the motorcyclist lost control after the cycle hit the median shortly after midnight near the Mount Hope Bridge, preliminary investigation shows. The motorcyclist was thrown from the motorcycle and landed about 50 feet from the impact. He was not wearing a helmet and suffered head injuries.

He was taken to Rhode Island Hospital in Providence, where he was pronounced dead.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney and Journal staff writer Richard Salit

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:58 PM | Comment

Cranston drug trafficker sentenced to 15-plus years

PROVIDENCE -- A Cranston man has been sentenced to more than 15 years in federal prison for trafficking in crack and powder cocaine.

The police said that in July 2006 they seized 28 grams of crack cocaine and 154 grams of power cocaine from Ricardo Pierre's home.

Pierre, 27, who had three prior state convictions for drug trafficking, received an enhanced 188-month sentence from Judge William E. Smith on July 27, the office of U.S. Attorney Robert Clark Corrente said in a news release today.

Prosecutor Sandra R. Beckner said at the plea hearing the government could prove that on July 28, 2006, Cranston Police used a search warrant at Pierre’s home on Stevens Road and found the drugs and drug-trafficking materials in various locations.

Pierre was convicted of three drug trafficking charges previously: one brought against him in 1999 and two in 2003.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:05 PM | Comment

Whitehouse, colleagues discuss global warming

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse and nine other senators this afternoon are discussing their recent trip to Greenland to study global warming.

The senators visited the Kangia Ice Fjord near Illulissat on Saturday, and toured iceberg-filled Disko Bay by boat on Sunday.

The press conference started about 1 p.m.

U.S. Sens. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, and Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., ranking member of the Subcommittee on Transportation and Infrastructure, led the weekend trip.

Posted by Jack Perry at 1:06 PM | Comment

More ticks in certain East Bay communities

JAMESTOWN – The East Bay communities of Aquidneck Island, Jamestown and Little Compton have seen a dramatic increase this year in the number of nymphal deer ticks seen there, compared with a decrease in ticks in many parts of the state.

The increases in certain parts of Newport County range from 50 percent to 850 percent above last year’s counts, according to Thomas N. Mather, director of the Center for Vector-Borne Disease at the University of Rhode Island. Mather today joined Congressman Patrick Kennedy at a press conference on the Jamestown waterfront to share the word about the recent tick samplings conducted around the state.

Tick experts are concerned about the increase and want the people who live in the affected communities to educate themselves about how to prevent Lyme disease, babesiosis and anaplasmosis, all of which deer ticks transmit. Mather said experts also hope physicians in these areas will learn more about the tick-borne illnesses to help in early detection of the diseases.

At the press conference, Anne Lane of Jamestown, held up a sign, “18 of 20 families have had Lyme disease at Jamestown’s North End.” Lane herself is from that neighborhood and said she has been treated for Lyme disease.

URI’s Center for Vector-Borne Disease is seeking state and federal financial support to increase tick awareness programs throughout the state. The center’s Web site provides effective strategies for protecting yourself, your property and your pets from ticks.

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson, with reports from Journal staff writer Richard Salit

Posted by Kate Bramson at 11:43 AM | Comment

Smithfield man injured in Burrillville motorcycle crash

A 29-year-old Smithfield man is in the ICU trauma unit at Rhode Island Hospital this morning after a motorcycle crash in Burrillville last night on Reservoir Road.

Jason D. Heon, of 150 George Washington Highway, was traveling north on Reservoir Road from Glocester into Pascoag with a friend, Burrillville Police Lt. Kevin S. San Antonio said. The two were on separate bikes, and Heon was out front when he crashed.

Heon is in critical condition, Rhode Island Hospital spokeswoman Andrea Barbosa said this morning.

At a curve in the road, Heon somehow lost control of his 1995 red motorcycle, crossed over the lane of travel and hit a fence and a small wall. The bike bounced off one part of the wall and struck an abuument of another wall, San Antonio said. Heon was thrown about 20 feet from the bike. He was not wearing a helmet, San Antonio said.

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson

Heon’s friend did not witness the accident, but when he came around the curve in the road, he saw his friend had crashed, San Antonio said.

A police reconstruction team is working to determine the cause of the crash. It’s too early to say what happened, San Antonio said.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 11:27 AM | Comment

Carcieri leads governors association education panel

Governor Carcieri has been named to lead the National Governors Association's Education, Early Childhood and Workforce Committee.

"I look forward to taking on this role for the National Governors Association and working with my fellow governors in advancing education at the federal level," Carcieri said in a news release today.

The governor added: "This committee will take on many of the issues that we have faced in Rhode Island. We are seeing improvements in student success across our state and we are creating some truly innovative public-private partnerships to ensure that adults receive the education and training to prosper."

Posted by Mike McKinney at 11:21 AM | Comment

Stubborn blaze in Burrillville keeps firefighters busy

BURRILLVILLE – Firefighters are battling a house fire at 27 Gazza Rd. that was reported at 9:10 a.m. today.

Emergency crews determined the fire was under control earlier, but hot spots then flared up and they were continuing to fight the fire around 10:40 a.m., according to a police dispatcher.

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson

Posted by Kate Bramson at 10:45 AM | Comment

Gas prices drop five cents

Gasoline prices in Rhode Island have fallen for the second week in a row, according to AAA Southern New England.

The average price for a gallon of regular, unleaded gasoline is $2.909 at the self-service pump, according to AAA's weekly survey.

That's five cents less than last week.

At this time last year, Rhode Islanders were paying an average of $3.109.

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:45 AM | Comment

RIPTA's electronic fare system off to good start

PROVIDENCE – Bus riders disembarking at Kennedy Plaza said the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority’s new electronic fare collection system seemed to be working pretty well – and perhaps half a dozen RIPTA employees wearing fluorescent yellow vests with “Transit Info” emblazoned on their backs said the same.

The driver of passenger Natalia Lara’s Reservoir line bus from Cranston seemed to be focusing on the new system, which requires drivers to type information in on their side of the machine, Lara said. But it took her about the same time to get to Kennedy Plaza as it typically does, she said.

Gayle Ginish, who traveled on the 99 bus from Pawtucket with her mother, Rose Ginish, said people didn’t seem to know how to put the money into the machines. Gayle didn’t need to fiddle with the new system yet, as she has a disabled pass and those won’t change in this first phase of RIPTA’s new system.

Her mother, though, noticed one thing right away: “You almost have to have a new dollar bill,” Rose Ginish said.

Standing in the middle of Kennedy Plaza fielding all sorts of questions from riders, Mark Therrien, RIPTA’s assistant general manager for planning, agreed with Ginish.

“The dollar-bill machines are pretty sensitive,” he said right away when asked how the system changeover was going.

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson

The bills really must be flattened out before the machines will accept them, he said – but he said they don’t need to be new, just not all crumpled up.

Otherwise, “it’s going pretty good,” he said of the changes. “The system’s running on time.”

When a bus driver pulled up and said he was having trouble with his machine, Therrien said reporting a problem right away is the way to go. If someone can’t fix it quickly – often by just resetting the machine – RIPTA will get that bus off the street and send in another. They’ve got extra buses standing by today, he said.

The new machines replaced old bill machines from the 80s that just measured the size of the paper riders fed through – and would even take Burger King receipts because they were the right size, Therrien said. The new machines now measure size, weight and the magnetics in the ink, Therrien said.

“Now, it’s got to be a dollar bill,” he said.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 9:42 AM | Comment

Pawtucket police to ID officer involved in fatal shooting

PAWTUCKET – The police expect today to name the officer or officers who were involved in the fatal police shooting of a burglary suspect on Friday, which was the second fatal shooting by Pawtucket officers last week.

State and local police and a representative from the Attorney General’s Office expect to report other details about the shooting at a press conference this morning at 11 a.m. in the Municipal Court at Pawtucket City Hall.

The robbery suspect was shot in the driveway of a multifamily house at 62 Coyle Ave. after the police arrived in response to a report of a burglary in progress and the suspect brandished a semiautomatic handgun, Maj. John J. Whiting, the officer in charge of the detectives division, said Friday.

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson

“A struggle ensued. Shots were fired,” Whiting told reporters that afternoon.

The man was taken to the hospital, where he died, Whiting said.

Whiting declined to name the officers or identify the burglary suspect, saying the incident remained under investigation and the police were still notifying the suspect’s family. However, neighbors identified the suspect as 34-year-old Jason S. Audette and said he grew up in the neighborhood and had family in the area.

The other fatal shooting by a Pawtucket officer last week followed the chase early Thursday morning of a female carjacking suspect who led police from multiple departments through several communities.

The driver lost control of the car, which got snagged on a Jersey barrier, and then attempted to get away by jerking the car back and forth, according to the police. As that happened, a member of the Pawtucket Police Department got wedged between his cruiser and the Honda. He fired a round at the suspect, the police said.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 8:23 AM | Comment

Rollover in Lincoln ties up traffic on Route 146 N and S

LINCOLN – A single-car rollover is jamming up traffic on Route 146 north and south.

A woman in the car is injured, but her injuries don’t appear life-threatening, State Police Cpl. John Beauregard said.

The car was traveling north on Route 146 just north of Breakneck Hill Road when it rolled over and struck the jersey barrier on the left side of the roadway, pushing it into the southbound lanes, Beauregard said.

Because the jersey barrier in the southbound lane must now be fixed and the accident is in the far left lane of the northbound lanes, those lanes are each closed and traffic in both directions “really got jammed up,” Beauregard said.

For other 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 and listen to or read the radio reports for the week about traffic and construction on specific roadways.

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

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson

Posted by Kate Bramson at 7:55 AM | Comment

Heavy rain, thunderstorms, flooding possible

Scattered showers and thunderstorms are expected in southern New England through this evening, according to the National Weather Service.

Thunderstorms with torrential rain and frequent lightning are expected to move across Rhode Island and eastern Massachusetts through 8 a.m., the weather service says. The storms could bring wind gusts up to 30 mph.

Because the storms are moving slowly, they have the potential to dump a lot of rain onto the region, the weather service says. Rainfall could approach two inches per hour and cause flooding.

Otherwise, it will be mostly cloudy with a high near 84 degrees.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:01 AM | Comment

Route 95 closures to resume tonight

PROVIDENCE – Nighttime motorists, take two. You’ll still have to plan ahead for overnight closures of Route 95, but not until tonight., weather permitting.

The Route 95 closure was set for last night. But it had to be delayed by one day, because some of the steel needed for that night’s work has been delayed in transit, according to Dana Alexander Nolfe, spokeswoman for the state Department of Transportation.

As the DOT is poised to begin its second phase this year of Route 95 overnight closures, Nolfe said that all the work is weather-dependent.

Route 95 southbound lanes will close by 11 p.m. tonight – with individual lane closures starting by 8 p.m. The lanes are expected to reopen by 5:30 a.m. The next two nights of the Route 95 work are also expected to close only the southbound lanes.

The last night of the work next week – Thursday – is expected to shutter the northbound and southbound lanes. Check out the road-closure schedule on the DOT’s site, but for now, be aware that everything is pushed back one day. [i.e., where the Sunday schedule is posted, know that that’s now for Monday, etc.]

For a look back at the earlier closures this year, see projo.com’s special reports section.

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson

Posted by Kate Bramson at 6:55 AM | Comment

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Overtime pay and the Iraqi soccer team lead today's Journal.
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Posted by Peter Phipps at 6:54 AM | Comment