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August 10, 2007

7to7 newsblog will be back in business Tuesday

Yes, it's a three-day, holiday weekend as Rhode Island continues as the only state in the nation to mark Victory Day.

It also means a short week for the 7to7 newsblog, which will be taking a break on Monday. Projo.com will return to blogging at 7 a.m. on Tuesday.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 6:56 PM | Comment

Newport jazz festival starts swinging tonight

Newport's JVC Jazz Festival opens tonight after a rainy, chillier-than-normal day. But the weather's looking up for the rest of the festival tomorrow and Sunday.

Tonight, it's Dianne Reeves and Her Band and The Count Basie Orchestra featuring Nnenna Freelon, Newport Casino, International Tennis Hall of Fame, 194 Bellevue Ave., Newport. (401) 847-3700, (866) 468-7619, www.Ticketweb.com, www.festivalproductions.net. 8 pm. $30-$85.

Tomorrow and Sunday, the show goes on at Fort Adams State Park, off Ocean Drive, 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. There's a $65 per day advance, $70 festival weekend (if available); $5 children under 12; children under 2 free. On-site parking $6. Reserved seating, JVC Stage, $75.

For more information, visit the festival's Web site at: www.festivalproductions.net

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:55 PM | Comment

Check your stocks while the roller coaster is stopped

It's been a crazy week in the stock market. Up and down, down and up.

So, while the market takes a breather this weekend, see how your portfolio has performed with projo.com's financial tools. You can check your stocks, get information on those pesky mortgage rates, use financial calculators, see how CEOs are doing on our "wealthmeter" and more.

And watch a quick video wrap of the week via AP's Money Minute.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 6:44 PM | Comment

Pinning down things to do this weekend / Photo

Journal photo / Bob Thayer
Of all the activities you might have thought were happening this holiday weekend in Rhode Island, we're betting that most of you weren't thinking about duckpin bowling. But never fear -- it's here, as the Duckpin Bowlers Association Professional Tour stops in Johnston tomorrow and Sunday at Town Hall Lanes. There will be two days of men's and women's championship bowling, with top bowlers from the United States and Canada. Above, Ken Palmer of Walkersville, Md., a member of the Duckpin Bowlers' Tour Hall of Fame, reaches for a ball during a practice session this afternoon. The event is free and open to the public.

For more ideas of what to do over the next three days, visit projo.com's Lifebeat page, and check out our calendars.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 6:07 PM | Comment

Tractor-trailer crash knocks down electric lines

SOUTH KINGSTOWN -- A tractor-trailer truck making a delivery to Chen’s Restaurant in Wakefield hit a utility pole today, and power lines fell across a car, trapping two people for about an hour, a co-owner of the restaurant said.

Leo Lau said about six parties were in his restaurant when the power failed. An Agar truck maneuvering around the building hit a pole toward the rear of the lot, which snapped, causing a transformer to pop and leaving power lines draped across a car.

Police said the call came at 12:32 p.m. Traffic was tied up briefly at 60 Old Tower Hill Rd. as the delivery truck was removed and National Grid trucks arrived. No one was injured, police said.

A woman, 40, and a girl, 11, were waiting in the car, Lau said, while a member of their party picked up food. They were trapped about an hour, he said, before they could safely drive away.

Lau said this is the third time the pole has been hit, twice by an Agar truck. He couldn’t accept the delivery because it required refrigeration. Gas is used for cooking but the exhaust fans run on electricity, so he closed temporarily, hoping to reopen for the evening. A new pole was still being installed at 5 p.m.

Chris Mabbott from Ransom Environmental Consultants said the pole held three transformers, each of which holds from 7 to 11 gallons of oil, in this case a vegetable-based oil. A crew from Clean Harbors used absorbent pads to remove the oil. Mabbott said he searched about a half-mile radius for oil slicks and leaving oil-absorbent booms, which he described as giant white cotton snakes, at streams and storm drains in that area.

-- Journal staff writer Donita Naylor

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:27 PM | Comment

3 Bay beaches closed to swimmers

The state Health Department today recommended closing Barrington Town Beach, Bristol Town Beach and Warren Town Beach to swimming because of high bacteria counts.

Officials will monitor water quality and recommend re-opening when the areas are deemed safe for swimming. All closed beaches will be posted closed at the beach.

Because of rain today -- which can cause bacteria counts to climb -- the DEM advises the public to check the hotline at (401) 222-2751 and go to www.ribeaches.org throughout the weekend for updated closure/opening information.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:11 PM | Comment

Downed tree cuts power in Warren

WARREN -- About 600 National Grid customers in Warren are without power after a tree came down across power lines on Main Street at about 3:45 p.m., a National Grid spokeswoman said.

At the height of the outage, about 3,000 customers in parts of Warren and Bristol were without power, but a majority have been restored.

Spokeswoman Deborah Drew said that crews are trying to get to the site of the outage, but there is traffic on the route there. She said the crews will work as quickly as they can to clear the tree and restring wire to restore power.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:42 PM | Comment

Accident blocks Rte. 10S left lane at Reservoir Ave.

PROVIDENCE -- An accident was blocking the left lane of Route 10 south at Reservoir Avenue, the state Transportation Management Center advised at 4:23 p.m.

Check for updates of this incident at the TMC's Web site.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:40 PM | Comment

Alert: DEM denies dredge permit for LNG project

In a blow to the controversial liquefied natural gas terminal proposed for Fall River, Mass., the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management today denied Weaver's Cove Energy's request for a permit to dredge 230,000 cubic yards of sediment from Mount Hope Bay.

The DEM issued a news release saying the company behind the terminal proposed over the state line in Massachusetts, which would require tankers to traverse Rhode Island waters, submitted an "incomplete and invalid application."

Weaver's Cove Energy failed "to provide a valid application with a definitive project proposal, and its failure to demonstrate that the proposed activities would not violate surface water quality and anti-degradation standards pursuant to [Rhode Island] water quality regulations, " the DEM said.

Along with denying the application because it was incomplete, the DEM says it also found that the scope of the project "had substantially changed and that Weaver's Cove had failed to provide adequate information to enable the department to determine the exact nature of its project or how the project is viable" in light of a U.S. Coast Guard letter dated May 9 "effectively denying the project."
“I have long opposed Weaver’s Cove’s efforts to build a liquefied natural gas terminal in Fall River," Governor Carcieri said in a statement. “Today’s decision by the state’s top environmental officials to deny the company’s application for a dredging permit is another important step in our efforts to block this potentially dangerous project.”

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

The DEM's news release described the area this way:

"The waters of Mount Hope Bay in Rhode Island and Massachusetts bear the states' highest water quality classifications -- SA and SB waters -- that provide high quality fish habitat and a resource for fishing. The waters are designated for shellfish harvesting for direct human consumption, primary and secondary contact recreational activities, and fish and wildlife habitat. Mount Hope Bay and Lower Taunton River is a valuable natural resource, supporting important habitat for quahogs, oysters, and finfish such as winter flounder."

The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection put on hold its review following the Coast Guard assessment.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:35 PM | Comment

Patriots exhibition season begins tonight

Football fans rejoice: You get a chance tonight to see your Patriots heroes (even it it's only for a quarter or so) as they open their preseason with a road game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The game, which begins at 7:30, will be televised on Channel 5 Boston and Fox 64 in Providence.

Projo.com will have pregame blog reports from Shalise Manza Young (on our PatsBlog) in Tampa, as well as a live scoreboard.

For now, read what questions the Patriots have entering the preseason, and vote in our survey: What's the best thing about the preseason?

Posted by Mike McDermott at 3:27 PM | Comment

Lanes blocked on Rte. 95 north from exits 15 to 16

CRANSTON -- Three left lanes of Route 95 north from exit 15 to exit 16 are blocked because of a motor vehicle accident, the state Transportation Management Center reported at 2:42 p.m.

Exit 15 is Jefferson Boulevard and exit 16 is for Route 10 north.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:44 PM | Comment

Six more R.I. communities ordered to fix sewers

Six more Rhode Island communities are under order to fix their sanitary sewer systems, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today.

The administrative orders from the EPA's New England office were issued to East Greenwich, Jamestown, Narragansett, Warwick, West Warwick, and
Woonsocket. The goal is to get them to review and repair systems.

An EPA news release said the orders are part of a strategy of "both enforcing existing regulations and increasing targeted compliance assistance to help municipalities take necessary steps" to deal with sewer overflow problems.

In February, the EPA New England office issued the same orders to the Narragansett Bay Commission and officials in Providence, Barrington, Bristol, Cranston and Smithfield.

The systems are below-ground pipes that take sewage from homes and businesses to a wastewater treatment plant. Breaks and other problems with pipes can result in water pollution, beach closings and fishing and shellfish harvesting bans.

Each community named in the most recent order must get to the EPA and the state Department of Environmental Protection a report about the problems and a schedule of improvement plans by November. The orders mean developing plans to fix "any deficiencies found" and dopting a long-term preventative maintenance program, the EPA news release said. (The first list of towns, receiving the February order, were told to make their filings by August).

The EPA said it and the DEM are providing guidance to communities through workshops, fact sheets and onsite assistance, on how to come up with long-term plans for future sewer protection.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with Journal archival reports

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:34 PM | Comment

Local television reporter is a Quill Award recipient

QUINCY, Mass. -- A Rhode Island TV reporter is among five New England journalists receiving the 2007 Yankee Quill Award for their contributions to improving journalism in the region.

The award is presented annually by the Academy of New England Journalists through the New England Society of Newspaper Editors. It's considered the highest individual honor awarded by fellow journalists in the region.

WJAR-TV investigative reporter Jim Taricani will be honored for his role as an advocate for journalists' rights and a defender of the First Amendment.

Taricani was sentenced in 2004 to home confinement for refusing to divulge the source of an FBI videotape showing an aide to former Providence Mayor Vincent ``Buddy'' Cianci taking a bribe

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:08 PM | Comment

Fingerprints on robbery note lead to prison sentence

A Rhode Island woman who passed a note to a Providence bank teller, claiming she had a gun and demanding money, was sentenced today to more than six years in federal prison for robbery.

U.S. District Court Judge Mary Lisi sentenced Dawn Walker, 28, to 77 months.

Walker pleaded guilty in April to robbing a Bank of America branch teller on Atwells Avenue in Providence.

Prosecutor Stephanie S. Browne said at the plea hearing that the government could show Walker passed the note to a teller on Dec. 27 last year and the teller gave her $4,438, U.S. Attorney Robery Clark Corrente' s office said in a news release.

Providence police lifted fingerprint from the note that they matched to Walker, and detectives familiar with her from past contacts identified her from bank surveillance photos.

Walker had numerous past convictions for a range of offenses, "and was classified at the highest level of criminal history under federal sentencing guidelines," the U.S. Attorney's office said.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:01 PM | Comment

Would-be robber arrived in a limo, but heads to jail

A woman who came to Rhode Island by way of a hired Connecticut limousine to attempt a bank robbery in Cranston was sentenced today to more than three years in federal prison.

Evonne D. Maurice, 22, of Westbrook, Conn., pleaded guilty in May to attempting to rob a drive-in window teller at a Citizens Bank branch on Garden City Drive in December 2005, according to a news release from U.S. Attorney Robert Clark Corrente's office.

U.S. District Court Judge Mary M. Lisi imposed a 37-month sentence on Maurice.

Prosecutor Andrew J. Reich said at the plea hearing the government could prove Walker had hired a limousine to drive her to T. F. Green Airport. She told the driver at some point that she had missed her flight, and asked him to take her to a bank so she could withdraw money to pay him, the U.S. Attorney's office said.

At the drive-up window, Maurice got out of the back seat and passed a note through the deposit drawer demanding money and claiming there were bombs in the bank. The teller hit an alarm, Maurice got back into the limousine without the money, and the unsuspecting chauffeur drove away, the authorities said.

Maurice was arrested in May 2006 in Tampa, Fla., after Cranston and Tampa police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, investigated.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 1:56 PM | Comment

Wife, 88, waited for husband, 49, to get out of prison

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) -- A 49-year-old man who bludgeoned his grandmother and great-aunt to death more than three decades ago left prison this week ready to settle down with his 88-year-old wife.

Frank Czumalowski wed Radmilla Dobrijevick on Jan. 31, 2006, the day he was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison for violating his probation on a decade-old conviction for sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl.

Last year, Dobrijevick, who lives in Bridgeport, pledged in court that she would wait for Czumalowski.

His lawyer, Rob Serafinowicz, says she has.

-- The Associated Press

"Frank Czumalowski has paid his debt to society and it's time for everyone to forgive him and welcome him back with open arms," Serafinowicz said. "This is a man who is working to better himself, who has a woman who is a good influence on his life, and hopefully, the two of them will be able to lead a life free of controversy and put everything that has happened behind them. I wish them the best of luck."

Thirty years ago, police say Czumalowski, then 19, bludgeoned his grandmother and great aunt to death as they huddled over the stove, preparing Easter dinner for him. He loaded their bodies into a wheelbarrow and buried them under their beloved rose garden.

Czumalowski was found not guilty by reason of insanity and released from a state psychiatric hospital after about six years. He told police at the time that he had taken LSD before the killings.

He was arrested in 1994 and convicted of two counts of first-degree sexual assault. He was released from prison in 2003 and placed on probation with the condition he undergo sex-offender treatment and stay away from children.

But he failed a lie detector test on whether he had been alone with a boy related to his landlady and was kicked out of his sexual behavior program for making threats. He also threatened his probation officer and told her that he would "revert back to his past criminal inclinations," according to an arrest warrant affidavit.

Just before Czumalowski was sent to prison last year, Dobrijevick defended her husband to the judge.

"He didn't want to kill a bug on the porch. I had to use my velvet slipper to kill the bug," she said. "He is a very unlucky person. I hope I will have a good life with him."

Czumalowski was released from prison Thursday after serving 1 1/2 years.

Posted by Jack Perry at 1:44 PM | Comment

Massachusetts offers tax holiday this weekend

Rhode Islanders willing to do a little traveling this weekend can save money by driving to Massachusetts, which is observing a sales-tax holiday Saturday and Sunday.

The holiday exempts most single items priced at up to $2,500 from the 5-percent state sales tax. Sales of telecommunications services, tobacco products, gas, steam, electricity, motor vehicles, motorboats, meals and items priced above $2,500 remain subject to the sales tax. Also, prior sales and layaway sales are ineligible.

In some cases, Rhode Islanders won't have to drive so far to catch a break. Some Rhode Island businesses are offering discounts to counter the Massachusetts tax advantage.

Rhode Island businesses have tried unsuccessfully to get the state to enact its own tax holiday.

More information from the Massachusetts Department of Revenue's Web site.

Read a full story on the Massachusetts sales-tax holiday.

Posted by Jack Perry at 12:18 PM | Comment

Hasbro and video game maker team up

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. -- Hasbro is teaming with the world's largest video game maker, Electronic Arts, to create digital versions of its games and toys like Monopoly, Scrabble and Littlest Pet Shop.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. But the deal seeks to capitalize on the growing popularity of casual games, which are easier to play and target a mass audience beyond hardcore players.

Under the deal, Electronic Arts gets exclusive rights to create digital games based on toys by Pawtucket-based Hasbro. Hasbro will receive rights to bring some of Electronic Arts' franchises to toys and traditional games.

The first games are planned for next year.

The deal doesn't include Hasbro's Transformers brand, which is already licensed to another vide game company.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Mike McKinney at 12:04 PM | Comment

URI pharmacy dean stepping down, going to Iowa

The dean of the University of Rhode Island College of Pharmacy is leaving to become dean of pharmacy at The University of Iowa’s Academic Health Science Center.

Donald E. Letendre, who had been identified earlier this year as one of the Iowa school’s five top candidates in its dean search, announced in an e-mail early this morning on a URI list-serve that he’ll leave URI effective Friday, Nov. 2.

“I am extremely grateful to each and every one of you for all that you have done to help shape our College and instill a very special spirit of community,” Letendre wrote in his e-mail.

“Our collective efforts in recent years have resulted in remarkable strides in all aspects of our educational and research enterprise. Our students and all whom we strive to serve have been and will continue to be the beneficiaries of your commitment to excellence and high professional ideals. I feel most privileged and honored to have had the opportunity to work with you.

“Please be assured that in the days leading up to my departure from URI, I will be working closely with President Carothers and Provost Swan to help insure a smooth transition.”

URI's school of pharmacy is considered one of the university's top programs. Letendre has served as dean since 2001 and has been executive secretary of the Rhode Island State Crime Laboratory Commission. Under his tenure, the State Crime Laboratory, housed at the school, gained its first accreditation, and, last November, a new pharmacy building was approved by voters.

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson

Posted by Kate Bramson at 11:29 AM | Comment

6 journalists win Metcalf environmental fellowships

NARRAGANSETT -- Six journalists have been awarded 10-month environmental reporting fellowships from the Metcalf Institute for Marine and Environmental Reporting through the University of Rhode Island.

They are:

* Julia Kumari Drapkin, photographer and multimedia reporter for the St. Petersburg Times, St. Petersburg, Fla.

* Ambar Espinoza, researcher for Marketplace Productions, Los Angeles, Calif.

* Natalie Garcia, reporter for Visalia Times-Delta, Visalia, Calif.

* Ngoc Nguyen, freelance journalist and editor for NHA Magazine, San Jose, Calif.

* MA Shumin, independent filmmaker, Paris and New York City.

* Julie Varughese, reporter for the Norwich, Conn., Bulletin and NorwichBulletin.com.

National Geographic Adventure loves Newport

Newport is the place to be in Rhode Island.

So says National Geographic Adventure magazine, which has chosen Newport as one of the 50 Top Adventure Towns for 2007. The magazine selected one town per state for its September issue cover feature, and Newport was the selection from Rhode Island.

The magazine hits newsstands next Tuesday, but you can check out a sneak preview online.

The magazine breaks the Top 50 towns into five categories: wilderness, small town, mountain, waterfront and city. A few communities – labeled “Hot Spots” – will be highlighted in the issue.

Newport made the list in the waterfront category.

This weekend, the city hosts the JVC Jazz Festival Newport.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 11:20 AM | Comment

Narragansetts invite the public to annual powwow

CHARLESTOWN — This weekend, the Narragansett Indian tribe holds its 332nd recorded annual August Meeting, the tribe’s annual powwow and Green Corn Thanksgiving.

Held on tribal land deep in the Charlestown woods off Route 2, the gathering celebrates the ripening of the corn and is one of the oldest of its kind in the region. Festivities begin tomorrow and Sunday at 10 a.m. and last until sundown. They will draw Native Americans from across the country, Mexico and Central America.

Chief Sachem Matthew Thomas has invited all Rhode Islanders to share in the celebrations.

Led by Thomas and other tribal leaders, the grand entry takes place at 1 p.m. each day to the beat of pounding drums and chanting. Medicine Man Lloyd Wilcox will cleanse the sacred grounds tomorrow, followed by a peace pipe ceremony for representatives from all the tribes in attendance.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 10:47 AM | Comment

Sunshine and events on tap for Victory Day weekend

The weather looks pretty good for our upcoming three-day holiday weekend, as long as you don’t plan all your outdoor activities just on Monday.

The National Weather Service is predicting a high of 80 and mostly sunny skies for tomorrow, a high of 86 and sunshine for Sunday and a high of 88 on Monday, with a 30 percent chance of thunderstorms.

As Rhode Island prepares to celebrate Victory Day on Monday, we are the only state left in the union to celebrate the surrender of Japan and, consequently, the end of World War II on this day.

The holiday was established by President Harry Truman in a 1946 proclamation. Critics of Rhode Island’s continued celebration of the day would like to eliminate the holiday or at least remove any reference to the victory over Japan. Arkansas is believed to be the state that most recently dropped Victory Day as a holiday, in 1975.

As for how Rhode Islanders will celebrate the day, we’ve included a smattering of planned events below. Let’s hope those thunderstorms aren’t here mid-morning. And if you’re planning to hit the beach this weekend, make sure to check out the state Health Department’s beach-monitoring site before you go. For now, Warren Town Beach is closed due to high bacteria counts.

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson

Some of Monday's Victory Day celebrations:

In Bristol:
10 a.m. Victory Day ceremony in the War Memorial Garden, next to Burnside Building on Hope Street: Wreath-laying, followed by tossing of a wreath from Coast Guard Station into Bristol Harbor to honor Navy, Coast Guard and Merchant Marines who served in all wars. Hosted by the Victory Day Committee of the Bristol Veterans Council.

In Barrington:
11 a.m. Victory Day ceremony in front of Town Hall on County Road: Wreath-laying, speaker program, playing of taps and Veterans Honor Roll.

In Pawtucket:
11 a.m. Victory Day ceremony at Veterans Memorial Park, Roosevelt Avenue and Exchange Street: Sponsored by the Pawtucket Veterans’ Council.

In Newport:
Noon Victory Day ceremony on the front lawn of City Hall, on Broadway: Speaker, Newport Artillery Company, veterans organizations of Newport County, clergy, city and legislative officials. Also, collection of worn/faded/unserviceable flags for proper disposal. Hosted by the United Veterans Council of Newport County.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 9:16 AM | Comment

31 to become citizens in Fall River today

FALL RIVER – Thirty-one Bristol County residents from more than 15 nations are preparing for their U.S. citizenship ceremony this morning aboard the historic battleship USS Massachusetts.

The citizenship ceremony for those from Angola, Cape Verde, Haiti, Ireland, Portugal and Russia – among other countries – helps kick off a weekend of events for Fall River Celebrates America, a family oriented waterfront festival.

Congressman Jim McGovern expects to address the new citizens.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 8:24 AM | Comment

Showers likely

Look for periods of showers today, mainly between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., according to the National Weather Service.

The high should reach 70 degrees with an east wind of 6 to 11 mph.

There's also a chance of showers tonight with a low of 53.

For more weather and regular updates, see projo.com/weather.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:01 AM | Comment

Today's front page

Today's front page features a story about Beacon Mutual Insurance Co.'s financial backing of professional golfer Mike Capone.

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

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:00 AM | Comment

Morning commute on Route 95 should be normal

PROVIDENCE -- Route 95 is ready again for morning commuters after overnight work on the route 95-Route 195 interchange project overnight closed a portion of the highway.

Three southbound lanes of the highway between exits 18 and 20 reopened at 4:25 a.m., and Route 95 north along that same stretch opened at 4:35 a.m., according to the state Department of Transportation.

Last night's closure of the highway allowed traffic to get through on Route 95 south. Just the three left lanes of the highway closed, according to the DOT. Route 95 north closed completely for the overnight work.

This is the second week of this second round of closures for the highway project.

The DOT has just two more overnight closures planned -- none for the weekend. Sunday and Monday, the closures are expected to affect just Route 95 north and Eddy Street.

Check out the road-closure schedule on the DOT’s site.

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 6:27 AM | Comment