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« November 19, 2007 | Today | November 21, 2007 » November 20, 2007Tonight: 'High School Musical' hits PPAC stageSome of us will be at home cutting up vegetables, chasing the dust out of corners and otherwise getting ready for Thanksgiving. But for those of you who are ready for a night out, take note: It became a sensation on the Disney Channel, and tonight a touring stage version of "High School Musical" comes to the Providence Performing Arts Center. The show starts at 7 p.m. and has a six-day run at PPAC. Tickets: $28 to $60 by calling (401) 421-2787 or www.ppacri.org. For those of you well past your early teen years and hoping for something more enduring musically, Jethro Tull comes to PPAC on Nov. 30 with its brand of rock n'flute n'roll. Looking for more of what's happening tonight and this long holiday weekend? Check out projo.com's Lifebeat page. Seeking last-minute ideas for the Thanksgiving table? Visit our Thanksgiving Time page, for tips, recipes and much more. Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:57 PM | Comment Pickup driver dies after rollover in ExeterEXETER -- The driver of a pickup truck that went off Exeter Road, up an embankment, struck a tree and rolled onto its side earlier today has died at South County Hospital, state police said. State police Capt. James Swanberg said police confirmed the man, who had been unconscious but had a pulse when he was taken from the scene to the hospital, later died. The police have not yet identified the driver because next of kin must be notified. The Chevrolet pickup had Connecticut plates and bore on its side the name of a business out of Farmington, Conn. Initial investigation indicates the driver was not wearing a seatbelt, the police said. -- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with reports from Journal staff writer Donita Naylor Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:13 PM | Comment Man arrested at gunpoint in Warwick courthouseWARWICK -- A Warwick man was arrested at gunpoint this morning in the Kent County Courthouse after he walked through a metal detector and allegedly told officers he was carrying a gun. Paul Hutchins, 29, of 73 Church Ave. was charged by State Police with disorderly conduct, according to a Rhode Island Judiciary news release. Hutchins entered the courthouse about 9:10 a.m., approached the security station and allegedly told the Capitol Police officer on duty that the metal detector would activate as Hutchins walked through it. The detector "registered the presence of metal," the news release said, and Hutchins was asked if he had metal objects in his possession. "Hutchins then reportedly told officers he had a gun and pointed to his waist." Two Capitol Police officers wrestled Hutchins to the floor and handcuffed him while a third officer drew his gun, the news release said. No weapon was found when officers searched Hutchins. It all happened when the lobby was filled with people entering the courthouse at the beginning of the day. Officers escorted Hutchins to the courthouse’s cell block until state police arrived. District Court Judge Jeanne E. LaFazia ordered that Hutchins receive a mental health evaluation. The news release said no additional information about Hutchins and why he was in the courthouse was available. -- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:57 PM | Comment Crews work to clean up fuel spill in Pawcatuck RiverWESTERLY -- Firefighters are working to clean up a fuel spill in the Pawcatuck River, after a fuel truck overfilled a tank in Westerly's business district. Westerly Fire Chief David Sayles tells The Westerly Sun that teams will place booms in the river to contain the fuel. The Hope Valley-Wyoming Fire Department is also sending a hazardous-materials truck and crew. The spill was reported shortly after noon. Sayles says the driver of the fuel truck is being held responsible. The Pawcatuck River abuts buildings in Westerly's downtown and at that point forms the boundary between Rhode Island and Connecticut. It empties into Little Narraganset Bay and eventually Block Island Sound. -- The Associated Press Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:52 PM | Comment N. Providence High team aces 'financial literacy'A North Providence High School student team is New England's best in "financial literacy" after beating out high school teams from each state in a college bowl-like competition this afternoon. The North Providence High School students won Federal Reserve Bank of Boston’s 2007 “Reserve Cup” challenge, which focuses on economics, personal finance and financial current events, according to a news release from Secretary of State Ralph Mollis's office. North Providence High School seniors Kelly DeAngelis, Vincenzo Gianfrancesco, Raymond Iannuccillo, Rita Nerney and Luisa Murillo represented Rhode Island. Mollis, who is from North Providence, was invited by the Federal Reserve to talk with the cup competitors "about the importance of being smart consumers and smart savers" before the competition, the release said. Mollis warned students the number of college freshmen with credit cards tripled between 1999 and 2002. Freshmen carry an average of $1,585 in credit card debt, according to the national student-loan lender Nellie Mae, the secretary of state's office said. The competition will be aired on NECN cableTV at a later date, according to the Reserve Cup's Web site.
Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:23 PM | Comment Ex-bank manager faces charge in online sales schemeA former Bank Rhode Island branch manager pleaded innocent today to a federal charge that he solicited a bribe in exchange for helping defraud the Providence bank of nearly $1 million, according to federal court documents. David Carpenter, 34, of Cranston is the first person to face criminal charges in connection with an Internet sales scheme that bilked nearly $15 million from people across the country who wanted to buy electronic gadgets. Appearing in U.S. District Court today, Carpenter said little during a brief hearing before U.S. Magistrate David L. Martin. He pleaded innocent to a felony charge of soliciting a bribe as a bank officer. He also waived his right to an indictment on the charge, which carries a penalty of up to one year in prison. He is due back in federal court tomorrow afternoon when he is expected to change his plea to guilty, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Carpenter allegedly arranged for a $1 million line of credit that helped two men, one of them a former Warwick resident, set up a Rhode Island company selling consumer electronics over the Internet. It’s unclear what Carpenter accepted to arrange the credit line. The customers of Mixitforme.com tended to be people who scour the Web to find deals on bulk purchases of consumer electronics, such as Xboxes, PlayStations, iPods, or cell phones, and then resell them in small lots to independent retailers or individuals. Workers at Mixitforme.com office in Providence took hundreds of orders from people over the Internet. But the company filled only some of its smallest orders, according to court records and former customers, and even many of those orders were late in arriving or generated billing headaches for customers, who began complaining to law-enforcement agencies. The company imploded in early 2006 after law enforcement officials raided its offices at 275 Westminster St. in Providence. Agents from the U.S. Secret Service, the FBI, the U.S. Postal Service, state and Providence police seized business records and computer equipment during the raid in March 2006. A related business, Biggles Toys, also shut down as a result of the raid. -- Journal staff writer Paul Grimaldi Mixitforme’s owner, Cory Johnson, of 272 Pierce St., Warwick, and a second man connected with the company, fled the state at the time. State and federal authorities have never clearly established the identity of the second man, who went by various names, including David Andrews, David Whitaker and “Chase,” according to people familiar with the businesses. The raid followed a move by Bank Rhode Island to push Mixitforme into state receivership in an attempt to collect at least $900,000 it was owed by the online electronics retailer. State receivership is a form of bankruptcy in which a court appoints a fiduciary either to sell company or to liquidate the company to pay the accumulated debt. A Superior Court judge appointed Joseph Ferrucci, a Providence lawyer, as the receiver to manage Mixitforme’s assets. Bank Rhode Island has so far received little of the money it says it’s owed. Ferrucci sold off furniture, computers, toys and other goods belonging to the related companies, but garnered less than $1 million. He also sought about $940,000 from a credit-card payment processor that managed purchases for Mixitforme. This summer, Superior Court Judge Michael A. Silverstein awarded $340,000 of that money to a Florida electronic broker, Gamma Trading. The bank’s holding company, Bancorp Rhode Island Inc. said in late 2005 that it expected it would take a hit to its earnings “related to the unauthorized actions of a former employee.” The company said in the December 2005 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission: “Our maximum exposure is $1.4 million,” though the bank expected its “exposure” to decline over time. A bank representative, Senior Vice President William C. DeWitt, today declined to specify how Johnson and his associate where able to secure the financing through Carpenter, whether the Cranston man was fired or quit his job after the discovery of the Mixitforme credit line arrangement, or whether any other employees were disciplined in connection with the case. In a statement e-mailed to The Journal, the bank said it recovered $800,000 from an insurer, enough to cover some of the loss resulting from the incident. “In the first quarter of 2006, Bank Rhode Island reported that it had incurred a loss on a ‘note receivable’ of approximately $850,000,” the e-mail states. “The bank disclosed that the receivable arose in connection with the ‘unauthorized actions of a former employee.’ Bank Rhode Island also disclosed that it had filed a claim with its insurance carrier seeking recovery for the loss. “In the fourth quarter of 2006, the bank reported that it had recovered approximately $800,000 on the insurance claim it had filed with respect to that loss. “ The bank and others carry insurance precisely to protect themselves from these types of actions. “The bank repeatedly has made disclosure of this situation as well as that there have been reviews of all the facts and circumstances by its internal auditors and external auditors (KPMG Peat Marwick), and they found no lack of internal controls. “The bank has cooperated fully with the U.S. Attorney’s office and its investigation. “Given the arraignment of Mr. Carpenter, the bank can now disclose that Mr. Carpenter was, in fact, the former employee referenced in its previous statements on this matter.” Carpenter, the former branch manager at the bank’s Park Avenue branch in Cranston, has agreed to pay the bank $945,605 as a result of the agreement he made with federal authorities, according to federal court documents. Martin released Carpenter on a $10,000 unsecured bond and ordered him to remain in Rhode Island or Southeastern New England, unless he’s granted permission to travel elsewhere by a probation officer. Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:27 PM | Comment Canadian drug company charges Lin TV with defamationA Canadian drug company claims that it was defamed by a story on allegedly fake drugs produced by a Lin TV station in Indianapolis. CanaRx Services, based in Windsor, Ontario, sued Lin TV, WISH and reporter Karen Hensel in federal court in Indianapolis Monday seeking unspecified monetary damages and an order prohibiting any further broadcast of the stories. Lin is based in Providence. ``The reports prepared by Hensel and broadcast and posted by LTC, taken as a whole, conveyed to viewers the message that CanaRx deals in counterfeit drugs,'' the company said in its complaint. ``Such message was false.'' Importation of foreign drugs into the U.S. is opposed by President George W. Bush who has said he'll veto any new law easing restrictions on imports that doesn't resolve safety concerns. Municipal and state governments have lobbied for easier access to foreign drugs to reduce costs, with brand-name drugs in other countries costing as much as 70 percent less than in the U.S. Bloomberg News said it was unable to get a comment from two Lin TV officials.
-- Bloomberg News The WISH station's investigative team, known as I Team 8, showed U.S. Food and Drug Administration officials opening packages of counterfeit drugs, which the report said came from China, India and Canada. ``FDA officials say they're concerned drugs found in the packages could be sugar pills, could have strychnine or ground up concrete, which was found in some tablets,'' the report said, according to court filings. CanaRx denied any sugar pills, strychnine or ground up concrete was ever found in any prescription the company filled. CanaRx also objected to Hensel's statement that the company didn't return I Team 8's calls for comment, saying one message was left on an answering machine at 4:03 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 2, after the first part of the report was broadcast the previous day and hours before the second part was to be aired. Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:28 PM | Comment URI gets anonymous $1M gift for baseball upgradesAn anonymous donor has given $1 million to the University of Rhode Island's athletics department for upgrades to the school's baseball team field, an indoor batting range and more. A university news release today said it was the first $1 million pledge to the athletics department as part of the university's $100-million "Making a Difference" capital money-raising campaign. Among improvements planned are: * A synthetic surface installed on Bill Beck Field, home of URI baseball. * A sod and sprinkler system for the outfield. * An indoor batting range used by the baseball and softball teams. * A donation toward the student-athlete development center, including naming rights for the baseball offices. -- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney "We are so appreciative of this extremely generous gift to URI Athletics and, in particular, to our baseball program," Thorr Bjorn, the URI athletics director, said in the statement. "Because of this gift, we are able to upgrade the playing surface at Bill Beck Field, as well as provide both our baseball and softball student-athletes with an indoor batting facility." Bjorr added that the donor "understood the importance of allocating a portion of the gift toward the Student-Athlete Development Center, which is going to enhance the overall experience for the 500-plus URI student-athletes." He stated that the university is working to raise $5 million for the student-athlete development center and other upgrades under "Making a Difference" capital campaign. Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:55 PM | Comment Recalls highlight need for careful toy buying / Photo
The Rhode Island Public Interest Research Group released “Trouble in Toyland” -- its annual report on hazardous toys -- during a meeting at the Mount Hope Child Care Center in Providence. The group used the opportunity to urge Congress to strengthen product safety laws and increase funding for the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, one of the nation’s primary oversight agencies. “Recent high-profile product recalls have given us a chance to urge Congress to pass strong product safety reforms and give kids the best holiday gift of all,” said Laura Brion of RIPIRG. Similar presentations were made today by PIRGs in other states around the country. Standing before a table in a daycare classroom, Brion pointed out a handful of suspect toys found on shelves in Rhode Island stores. Among them was a stuffed Curious George doll, a hand-sized John Deere front-end loader, lip gloss and other items. Each, she said, presented some hazard to children. The Curious George doll, for instance, contained five times the amount of lead allowed by the CPSC and a toy zipper that contained 65 percent lead by weight. “We were shocked to see how dangerous this would be” to children, she said. RIPIRG’s research focused primarily on six categories of dangerous toys: those that pose choking hazards; are dangerously loud; pose strangulation hazards; contain toxic chemicals; contain improperly secured magnets; or those that could form dangerous projectiles. As in past years, the public advocacy group found balls, plastic playthings and other toys with small pieces continue to be marketed toward children. Magnets have recently raised more concerns as they’ve been added to more toys in recent years. Mattel Inc., the nation’s largest toymaker, this year recalled 18 million toys with small magnets that could be swallowed by children. “We all know toddlers love to put things in their months,” Brion said. “These small powerful magnets pose a serious hazard.” Find RIPIRG tips on toy safety here. -- Journal staff writer Paul Grimaldi There are at least three proposals in Congress to strengthen the nation’s consumer product laws. The bills all would increase the CPSC’s, raise the penalties manufacturers face for producing faulty toys and make product testing mandatory -- though only one, the SAFE Consumer Product Act would require testing by entities independent of the manufacturers themselves. “We urge passage of the SAFE Products Act,” Brion said. RIPIRG’s efforts come during a year when toymakers are dealing with repeated recalls and lawsuits tied to faulty or dangerous products. This summer, more than 21 million Chinese-made toys were recalled because of high lead levels or dangerous magnets. More recently, a toy high on wish lists, Aqua Dots was recalled because it was tainted with a date rape drug. Aqua Dots and other Chinese-made toys make up 80 percent of the playthings made in this country. Between 1990 and 2005, at least 166 children choked to death on children’s products, accounting for more than half of all toy-related deaths at a rate of about 10 deaths per year, according to RIPIRG’s national counterpart, U.S. PIRG. Several times this year potentially dangerous toys were sold without the required warning labels of possible choking risks while the CPSC also has been slow to issue public warnings, U.S. PIRG said. Other consumer safety groups are urging Congress to act as well. “The root cause of the imported product safety crisis lies in U.S. trade policies, trade agreements and incentives that have promoted the export of whole swaths of the U.S. manufacturing base, while simultaneously imposing limits on import safety standards and inspection,” Lori Wallach, director of Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch Division, told a congressional panel in September. That same month, a House of Representatives subcommittee disclosed its expectations that recalls of lead tainted toys would continue into late fall. Mattel disclosed to congressional investigators earlier this year that some of the 1.5 million toys it recalled because of lead-paint hazards contained nearly 200 times the legal amount of lead. Disclosures like that forced Mattel, the nation’s largest toymaker, and even far smaller companies, to ensure they’re preventing lead from getting into their supplies. One such company is Little Kids, of Providence, which makes bubble toys and other plastic playthings intended for small children. "We have customers who are asking us to certify that all of our toys are lead free,” said Jim Engle, president of Little Kids Inc. “They want to make sure all toys coming out of Chine are tested the right way.” The company has not had to recall any of its toys, Engle said. Retailers, such as Toys R Us Inc., and companies that contract others to make toys for them, such as Walt Disney Co., this year have increased their own tests of the products they sell or license. Even the Toy Industry Association, a trade group, is calling on Congress to make toy testing mandatory. In formal statements, the association said it shares consumers’ concerns about the recent recalls of toys made with lead paint and other potentially harmful ingredients. “Recent recalls from a few manufacturers are an indication that we need to strengthen the testing and inspection procedures used to verify that all toy products, from all sources, comply with U.S. safety standards,” Daniel Grossman, the association’s chairman, said in September. In September, the CPSC and a Chinese governmental agency agreed to crack down on the use of lead in toys being exported to the U.S. China agreed to increase inspections at Chinese factories. RIPIRG though, is focused on seeing the CPSC strengthened. The agency is charged with oversight of some 15,000 kinds of products, but has only one toy inspector and 15 inspectors for the more than 326 import entry points around the country. Its staff of 400 is about 60 percent less than the nearly 1,000 workers it had in 1980. The 33-year-old agency currently operates on a $62-million budget, about one-seventh the size of the Food and Drug Administration’s funding for food safety alone. Current Congressional proposals would increase the CPSC budget to between $100 million to $140 million over the next three to six years. RIPIRG wants Congress to give the agency more staff and more authority, ban lead in toys and require independent toy testing. Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:40 PM | Comment These turkeys won't have to stand the heat / VideoWASHINGTON, D.C. -- Former President Harry Truman may have had some advice for these birds, the current Oval Office holder suggested today. If you can't stand the heat, you should "definitely" stay out of the kitchen, said President Bush, paraphrasing Truman's famous quote during his annual pardon of a Thanksgiving turkey. Bush was re-enacting a tradition that begin with Truman in 1947. And he incorporated a more recent one, by announcing the names of the two turkeys, which were selected through online voting. They are: "May" and "Flower" -- put them together and you get Mayflower, the ship the Pilgrims sailed to the New World, and whose first thanksgiving the holiday this Thursday recalls. The vice president, Bush joked, had suggested "Lunch" and "Dinner." Watch a video of today's ceremony in the Rose Garden. What's in store for the pair? Their next stop is Disney World, where they will be the honorory marshals of the the Thanksgiving parade there.
Posted by Andrea Panciera at 1:39 PM | Comment R.I. Guardsmen heading out to train Afghani soldiersSixteen Rhode Island Army National Guard members will deploy to Afghanistan next week to train Afghani soldiers in combat infantry tactics and procedures. Major General Robert T. Bray, the Rhode Island adjutant general and commanding general of the Guard here, announced today that the soldiers all have military specialties as infantrymen and belong to the 56th Troop Command at Camp Fogarty, East Greenwich. They will be honored at a departure ceremony Monday at 6 p.m. at Camp Fogarty. About 80 percent of the soldiers have deployed before in support of combat operations in either Iraq or Afghanistan. The deployment brings the number of Rhode Island National Guardsmen serving in combat zones to 377. There are 136 members of the 169th Military Police Company serving in the Ar Ramadi, Iraq, area while 175 members of C Battery, 1st Battalion, 103d Field Artillery Brigade, are in final stages of post-deployment training at Fort Dix, N.J.,and are slated to deploy to Iraq shortly. Eight members of the 65th Press Camp, all public affairs specialists, are serving in Baghdad. More than 3,800 Rhode Island National Guardsmen -- Army and Air -- have served in the combat zone since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. -- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney Posted by Mike McKinney at 1:11 PM | Comment Photo: A download of snow in Burrillville
Posted by Andrea Panciera at 12:53 PM | Comment JFK's daughter inspired Sox anthem 'Sweet Caroline'LOS ANGELES -- Neil Diamond held onto the secret for decades, but he has finally revealed that President Kennedy's daughter was the inspiration for his smash hit "Sweet Caroline." "I've never discussed it with anybody before - intentionally," the 66-year-old singer-songwriter told The Associated Press on Monday during a break from recording. "I thought maybe I would tell it to Caroline when I met her someday." He got his chance last week when he performed the song via satellite at Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg's 50th birthday party. The enduring hit recently reappeared on the singles chart, thanks in part to the Boston Red Sox. "Sweet Caroline" is played at every home game. "I think they consider it good luck," Diamond said, adding that the World Series champs have become his favorite baseball team. Diamond was a "young, broke songwriter" when a photo of the president's daughter in a news magazine caught his eye. "It was a picture of a little girl dressed to the nines in her riding gear, next to her pony," Diamond recalled. "It was such an innocent, wonderful picture, I immediately felt there was a song in there." Years later, holed up in a hotel in Memphis, he would write the words and music in less an hour. "It was a No. 1 record and probably is the biggest, most important song of my career, and I have to thank her for the inspiration," he said. "I'm happy to have gotten it off my chest and to have expressed it to Caroline. I thought she might be embarrassed, but she seemed to be struck by it and really, really happy." The tune's return to the charts leaves Diamond "speechless," he said: "That song was written 40 years ago, so I am just overwhelmed by the fact that it has returned and that, more importantly, people have taken it into their hearts for so many years." Audio: Listen to a clip of "Sweet Caroline." -- Associated Press Posted by Andrea Panciera at 12:33 PM | Comment Prep for rain at Thanksgiving football tiltsFor high school football fans gearing up for games tomorrow and on Thanksgiving, make sure to pack an umbrella. The forecast calls for a chance of rain both days. A high of 49 degrees is forecast for tomorrow, with a low of 41 degrees. Thanksgiving's forecast calls for a high of 59 degrees and low of 36 degrees. Six games are sheduled for tomorrow night in Rhode Island and 14 on Thanksgiving morning. Here's the schedule for tomorrow, and for Thursday. You can preview them and make your own predictions for game results at projo.com's High School Game Time, which covers Rhode Island and southeastern Massachusetts schools. To find out if games are cancelled, check the Rhode Island Interscholastic League Web site. -- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney Posted by Mike McKinney at 12:22 PM | Comment Update: Ethics panel keeps Irons' case in its handsPROVIDENCE -- The state Ethics Commission has denied former state Senate president William Irons’ requests that the commission dismiss a case against him and that he be allowed to take his case to a jury. Irons may appeal the decision. But if the ethics panel has its way, his case is due to go before its members at a trial-like hearing. In April, the Ethics Commission turned down a proposal from its staff to settle the case again Irons. Irons is accused of breaking state ethics laws by voting on pharmacy legislation when he had a conflict of interest. The charge is related to his involvement in the Senate Corporations Committee’s consideration of pharmacy “freedom of choice” legislation in 1999 and 2000. Irons chaired the Corporations Committee at the time, and as an insurance salesman, he had business dealings with CVS and Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island. He resigned from the Senate in 2004. Irons’ lawyer, John A. Tarantino, said he was not surprised by the decision because of the similarities between Irons' case and that of Senate President Joseph Montalbano, who made the same demands, which were denied. The issues had been so fully argued that both sides agreed today that rulings on Irons' requests could be made without any testimony. Tarantino said he plans to appeal the commission's decision to Superior Court. -- projo.com staff writer Brandie M. Jefferson Tarantino, like Montalbano’s lawyer, Max Wistow, wanted the case to be dismissed on the grounds that it violated the state constitution’s “Speech in Debate” clause, which states that “For any speech in debate in either house, no member shall be questioned in any other place.” After the commission’s decision, Tarantino said that he did not interpret the clause to mean legislators were immune from prosecution, but that the “sole basis” of a charge could not be if or how a legislator voted. Although Wistow made a similar argument, Montalbano’s case was settled without the commission making a determination on that issue. Tarantino hesitated to say whether he foresaw a settlement in Irons’ case. “I learned a long time ago to never say never,” he said, “but I think it’s highly unlikely.” Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 12:02 PM | Comment Swain's extradition hearing postponed to Dec. 5PROVIDENCE -- An extradition hearing for David Swain, charged with killing his wife while scuba diving in the Caribbean in 1999, has been postponed until next month. The hearing had been scheduled for tomorrow. But a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Providence said the hearing is now on for Dec. 5 at 10 a.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Lincoln D. Almond. Swain, a former Jamestown council member who owns a dive shop, was arrested last week on a murder warrant brought by authorities in Tortola. Swain’s arrest culminated months of quiet diplomacy between U.S State and Justice department officials and diplomats with the British Virgin Islands and the United Kingdom. Until then, 51, had never been criminally charged in the death of his wife, a private school administrator and expert diver. The lawyer for Swain, an assistant federal defender, has requested more time to prepare for the international extradition hearing, citing its rarity and the "voluminous" nature of the warrant. Posted by Andrea Panciera at 11:08 AM | Comment Break out the ice skates, winter is hereWinter is here. If snow in the forecast isn’t enough proof, there’s more: the Bank of America City Center Skating Rink is opening today at noon. Mayor David Cicilline says last year there more than 60,000 skaters used the rink, and hopefully this year will be just as successful. “This promises to be a very exciting season at the Bank of America City Center,” he said in a statement. This year’s prices will be the same as last year: $6 for adults; $3 for seniors and children under 12; $2 admission for school groups. Skate rental is $4. And free admission and half-price skate rentals for residents on the first Saturday of each month. Click below for a list of upcoming events. * Skate with Santa the weekends of December 15th and 16th and December 22nd and 23rd from 2 p.m. until 5 p.m. Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:52 AM | Comment Download today's front pageThe governor decries welfare and the state's poverty rate is examined on today's front page. Posted by Peter Phipps at 7:23 AM | Comment Ex-Trudeau Center staffer due in court on rape chargesA former employee of a health services center that serves more than 1,000 individuals with disabilities is due in court today on charges related to a series of sexual assaults. Robert E. Bellow, 67, of 53 Indian Trail, Coventry, pleaded not guilty in October to more than 15 counts of sexual assault. He has been accused of attacking a client at an off-site apartment owned by The J. Arthur Trudeau Memorial Center. Bellow is scheduled to return to Superior Court, Warwick, today for a pre-trial hearing. Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:20 AM | Comment Cicilline hosts Thanksgiving food drive tonightPROVIDENCE -- Hundreds of people are expected to drop by Mayor David N. Cicilline's house tonight with turkeys and other foods that will go into Thanksgiving food baskets for people in need. It is the mayor's 17th annual Thanksgiving Food Drive reception, from 5 until 9 p.m., at Cicilline's home at 702 Elmgrove Ave. Volunteers will be there to put the food into the baskets, which will be distributed to Amos House, Camp Street Community Ministries, John Hope Settlement House, Mount Hope Community Baptist Church, Mount Hope Neighborhood Association, Nickerson House, St. Vincent De Paul Ministry and other nonprofit agencies. Local businesses are also contributing to the food drive, including Eastside Marketplace, Gasbarro’s Wines-Providence, Gary’s City Gardens, Sodexho, A.G. & G. Inc., and Jephrey’s Floral Studio. Cicilline and volunteers will distribute the food baskets on Wednesday at 10 a.m. The first stop will be Camp Street Community Ministries, 190 Camp St., then stops at nonprofit agencies throughout the city. Posted by Mike McKinney at 7:20 AM | Comment USDA: Tyson Foods' labels may be misleadingThe Department of Agriculture says it overlooked a feed additive when it gave Tyson Foods the OK to label its fresh chicken "raised without antibiotics.'' Now the USDA wants Tyson to change the label and the company says it will -- but that the "raised without antibiotics'' phrase will stay. Tyson says the feed additive in question isn't an antibiotic. The USDA says it is, but Tyson says the Food and Drug Administration disagrees. The company says the additive is permitted by the federal government as a preventive measure against intestinal illness in chickens. The USDA has given the company until late December to submit a new label and new arguments, to change its feed formula, or to stop using the label. Tyson says it will modify the label to include additional wording stating that no ingredients have been used that could create antibiotic resistance in humans. -- The Associated Press Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:02 AM | Comment Rain, sleet, snow... maybe.Cross your fingers. The National Weather Service is forecasting a mix of rain, sleet and snow later this morning with a high temperature near 41 degrees. There's also a chance of rain tonight, before midnight. The overnight temperature should drop to about 32 degrees. Tomorrow, look for rain in the afternoon, but milder temperatures with a high near 50 degrees.
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ProJo 9 to 5 News Blog
Oct 2005 - March 2006