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Massachusetts inspections: Nearly 1 in 5 veterinarians had expired or improperly stored meds

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In Western Massachusetts, 2 practices were cited, each for a 1st instance of having medications with expired dates.

BOSTON – A series of inspections by the Board of Registration in Veterinary Medicine found that nearly one in five veterinarian offices checked had expired or improperly stored medications on its shelves in 2011.

Board investigators conducted unannounced, random inspections of medications at 104 veterinary practices across Massachusetts. Violations were found at 20.

In Western Massachusetts, two practices were cited, each for a first instance of having medications with expired dates. Each was fined $100. They were Michelle Haroules, VCA Palmer Animal Hospital, Palmer; and Robert Shurtleff, Eastfield Hospital for Animals, Wilbraham.

All 20 locations with violations had expired medication, and one location also had inadequate security measures for controlled substances, which require a prescription to obtain.

“This is a serious deficiency for the veterinarians who were not properly maintaining their medications,” said Mark Kmetz, director of the Division of Professional Licensure. “Expired drugs can have harmful effects on animals, and pet owners must be confident that their vet is using appropriate, and appropriately controlled, medicines.”

The violations led to discipline including $3,800 in fines by the board. This total included two instances of veterinarians having been found to have expired medications for a second time, and one who had a third violation. A full list of results can be found at the Division of Professional Licensure website.


Springfield police release list of 30 level-3 sex offenders residing in city

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Level 3 offenders are people previously convicted of sexual offenses and who the registry board considers to be of high risk to re-offend.

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SPRINGFIELD – The Springfield Police Department has issued a list of 30 residents determined by the state Sex Offenders Registry Board to be Level 3 offenders.

Level 3 offenders are people previously convicted of sexual offenses and who the registry board considers to be of high risk to re-offend. It also determined that the danger each poses makes community notification appropriate.

All people convicted of sex crimes since 1981 are required to register with the Sex Offenders Registry Board.

The board determines the person's likelihood of re-offending according to one of three categories: level 1 or low risk, level 2 or moderate risk, and level 3 or high risk.

None of the people on the list issued by police are considered wanted, and the state warns against harassment of any of them.

Scott Chapman of Hampden won't seek re-election to Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee

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Chapman said he is pleased with the board's accomplishments during his tenure, especially the planning and construction of the new Minnechaug Regional High School.

scottchapman.JPGscott r. chapman

HAMPDENScott R. Chapman, chairman of the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee, said he will not seek a fourth term as a member of the School Committee in the May 7 annual town election.

“It has been my honor to represent the citizens of Hampden for nine years as a member of this board,” Chapman said. “Nine years is a long time to serve in elective office, on a board that makes such important decisions that affect the future of the children of our two towns.”

He said he is making the announcement now to give others time to consider running for the seat.

Chapman said he is pleased with the board's accomplishments during his tenure.

“The most obvious is the planning and construction, and soon the completion of our new Minnechaug Regional High School,” Chapman said.

He said that for many years the members of the School Committee have spent endless hours in gaining the public’s support as to the need for a new high school and bringing the building to fruition.

“This accomplishment will always fill me with pride,” Chapman said.

Chapman said he is also proud of the attention the School Committee has paid to school safety, curriculum improvement, a sound school budget and the in-house professional development training given to teachers.

“The citizens of our communities have a dedicated and talented school administration and staff that works to further the educational progress and future of our children,” he said.

Chapman said he hopes his efforts, along with the people he has served with, have assisted in bringing students a 21st century quality education.

Chapman said he wished to thank the voters for the honor of serving them over the past nine years.

Steve Wynn details Foxborough casino envisioned near New England Patriots' home

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The casino would be built on vacant land across from Gillette Stadium that would be leased from Patriots owner Robert Kraft.

030212 foxborough casino steve wynn.jpgView full sizeThis image released Friday, March 2, 2012 by Wynn Resorts shows an artist's rendering of a proposed resort casino in Foxborough, Mass. Wynn sent a mailing Friday to thousands of Foxborough residents, which included a brochure and a 20-minute DVD explaining the proposal to develop the casino near Gillette Stadium. (AP Photo/Wynn Resorts)

By BOB SALSBERG

BOSTON (AP) — Las Vegas casino owner Steve Wynn unveiled details Friday of a proposed Massachusetts resort casino he hopes to develop near the home of the New England Patriots.

Wynn mailed a brochure and 20-minute DVD to thousands of Foxborough households explaining the proposal, which has met resistance from many residents who are worried that it will add to traffic congestion and crime in the town about 25 miles south of Boston.

An artist's rendering depicts a sprawling, six-story building that resembles a rustic lodge, rather than a high-rise Las Vegas-style casino. It would be built on vacant land across from Gillette Stadium that would be leased from Patriots owner Robert Kraft.

Wynn, the billionaire CEO of Wynn Resorts Ltd, had earlier pledged that the proposed casino would fit the character of the town and would not be as large or flashy as the typical Las Vegas casino.

In a letter accompanying the brochure and DVD, Wynn said the casino would benefit the town "both socially and economically." He said the plans included a luxury hotel, convention space, more than 5,000 covered parking spaces, a public skating rink, high-end shops, a spa, fine dining and casual restaurants, and a performance theater.

The casino would create more than 4,000 permanent jobs and about 10,000 construction jobs, Wynn wrote, and it would generate between $10 million and $15 million for Foxborough that could be used to lower property taxes or invest in other town services. He also said an agreement could be reached with the town to cover public safety and other costs associated with the casino and that a study would be done to determine the traffic impact.

Stephanie Crimmins, a spokeswoman for the group No Foxboro Casino, said casino opponents had anticipated that Wynn would launch a public relations blitz aimed at the hearts and minds of residents.

"We fully expected all along that they were going to send out some really fancy brochures," Crimmins said." It is certainly not going to change my mind or the minds of most people in the community."

Crimmins noted that Foxborough officials had not yet moved to enter into negotiations with Wynn, nor had they moved to revise town bylaws that currently prohibit gambling. She said opponents also question the jobs and revenue estimates provided by developers.

"These casino developers consistently over-promise and under-deliver," she said. "That is something that has happened over and over again in every town and city in the country in which there has been a casino developed."

Under the state's new gambling law approved by the Legislature last year and signed by Gov. Deval Patrick, a majority of town residents would have to approve the casino proposal in a referendum.

If approved by voters, the proposal would also likely have to compete with others for the sole casino license in eastern Massachusetts under the new law, which would also allow for resort-style casinos in two other regions of the state. The licenses will be awarded by a new state gambling commission that is currently being formed.

The mailing and DVD is the latest in what has been a costly effort by Wynn to expand into the Massachusetts gambling market.

An Associated Press review of state lobbying records found that a Las Vegas-based Wynn subsidiary, Development Associates, LLC, spent more than $863,000 on lobbying in just the past three years to persuade state lawmakers to legalize casino gambling.

Wynn's chief rival for the single casino license in the greater metropolitan Boston area — Sterling Suffolk Racecourse — spent more than $2.8 million on lobbying in the past five years as it seeks to turn the Suffolk Down racetrack in East Boston into a destination casino.

Brimfield Town Hall scheduled to reopen

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The salmon-colored building, built in 1878, was closed in 3 years ago after the building inspector noticed that structural supports in the roof of the building were pulling apart.

brimfield town hall.JPGBrimfield Town Hall

BRIMFIELD – Three years after it was closed due to structural problems, the Town Hall will reopen Tuesday, just in time for the state primary voting.

Town Clerk Pamela E. Beall said the polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. The reopening means that all elections and major meetings can be held at the Town Hall again.

“We need to reclaim our civic building,” Beall said, adding the space in the nearby Town Hall annex, where her office and conservation were relocated, is cramped.

While she said she wishes that the move wasn’t happening at the same time as the primary, she is still glad to be able to be back in her former quarters.

“It’s three years almost to the day,” Beall said.

She said they will have to work around scaffolding, which was left in place by the contractor as a courtesy; the “monumental” George Washington painting still needs to be rehung, she explained.

The salmon-colored building was built in 1878. The Town Hall was closed in March 2009 after the building inspector noticed that structural supports in the roof of the building were pulling apart.

Selectmen Chairman Diane M. Panaccione said she believes conservation will remain at the annex.

The Police Department, which previously used the Town Hall for its headquarters, will remain at its new spot at the Fire Department. Joining Beall will be the cable access station, which used the basement.

Panaccione said Town Meeting voters appropriated approximately $110,000 for the Town Hall repairs.

Massachusetts judge hears arguments in contentious case of 351-year-old will

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William Payne's dying wish, written 8 days before his Oct. 10, 1660, death, stated land he owned in Ipswich should never be sold or wasted.

022212 little neck ipswich 351-year-old will dispute.jpgThis photo of Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2012, shows the entrance to Little Neck in Ipswich, Mass. The dying wish of William Payne, one of the state's earliest settlers, created the nation's oldest charitable trust and eventually led tenants to build 167 cottages on this land he left for the seaside city. The rent money has generated some $2.4 million to help fund public schools over the last 25 years. Now, the trustees want to tear up the will and convert the property into condominiums. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

By RODRIQUE NGOWI

BOSTON — A judge on Friday was hearing arguments Friday over whether the Massachusetts Appeals Court should freeze a deal to tear up a 351-year-old will that created the nation's oldest charitable trust to raise funds for Ipswich public schools and prohibited the sale of 35 acres of seafront property.

William Payne's dying wish was written eight days before his Oct. 10, 1660, death, stating that the land should never be sold or wasted. The will eventually led tenants to build 167 cottages — most of them used by summer vacationers — on the land he left for the seaside city of Ipswich. The rent money has generated some $2.4 million to help fund public schools over the last 25 years.

Some of the seven trustees, however, agreed last year to tear up the will, convert the property into condominiums and sell them to the tenants to settle a 2006 lawsuit filed by the tenants over rent increases. A probate court judge endorsed the deal in December, sparking bitter opposition from hundreds of Ipswich residents and some town officials who argue that the settlement violates the sacred intent of Payne's will and shortchanges the schools.

Fourteen Ipswich parents have asked the Appeals Court not to allow trustees to sell the land before residents opposed to the deal argue their case in court. They said in court documents the decision to sell the property known as Little Neck was shrouded in secrecy.

Ipswich Selectman Patrick McNally is one of three senior members of the city's board of selectmen who, under state law, automatically join four lifetime trustees sitting in the trust and are formally known as Feoffees of the Ipswich Grammar School.

He said in court documents filed ahead of Friday's hearing that he was never consulted on the settlement for the sale of the land known as Little Neck, he never voted for the deal or the sale and that a sworn statement filed to the Appeals Court by the trustees' attorney claiming that they all endorsed the sale is false.

In a sworn statement, McNally said that during his tenure as a trustee, the four lifetime trustees "typically and routinely" excluded the selectmen from their decision making.

Attorney General Martha Coakley, whose office enforces laws governing public charities, said in court documents that opponents of the settlement should not be allowed to join the case "because they are neither trustees nor beneficiaries." She also said they have no chance of succeeding on the merits of their pending appeal.

The attorney general's office also argued that the sale will protect Payne's intent of generating cash for the school once money from the sale is invested elsewhere.

"The Feoffees demonstrated that the lack of rental income, ongoing litigation and future expenses related to improvements to and maintenance of the common land and roads would substantially impair the dominant intent of William Payne to financially benefit the schools of Ipswich," according to the attorney general's filing.

Opponents of the sale contend that while four independent appraisals show the aggregate value of the land is an average of about $41 million, the agreement sets a sale price of nearly $32 million. An independent financial analysis also found that holding the land in trust and leasing it out accomplishes its best use, they said.

"Payne intended that the land be held 'forever.' A sale of the land destroys this intent," they said in court documents.

Massachusetts 2012 maple sugaring season kicks off

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State Department of Agricultural Resources Commissioner Scott Soares read a proclamation declaring March "Massachusetts Maple Month."

WILLIAMSBURG — State Department of Agricultural Resources Commissioner Scott J. Soares kicked off the Massachusetts maple sugaring season Friday by participating in the ceremonial tapping of a sugar maple tree at Paul’s Sugarhouse on Goshen Road.

Soares also read a proclamation declaring March “Massachusetts Maple Month.” Ed Parker, president of the Massachusetts Maple Producers Association, said, “Some maple producers are already tapping, the earliest in 40 years.”

In 2011, Massachusetts produced 62,000 gallons of maple syrup, more than twice as much as the 29,000 gallons produced in 2010. Massachusetts boasts more than 300 maple producers, who annually produce about syrup worth almost $3 million. Visit www.massmaple.org for more information.

National Weather Service Winter Weather Advisory in effect; roads slick

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A Winter Weather Advisory in effect until 5 a.m. covers all of Hampden County, eastern Hampshire County and southern Worcester County.

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SPRINGFIELD – Roads are slick throughout much of the Pioneer Valley as rain is now falling on about an inch of snow that fell late Friday night.

With temperatures hovering around the freezing mark, roads can become hazardous.

The National Weather Service issued a Winter Weather Advisory that is in effect until 5 a.m., and covers all of Hampden County, eastern Hampshire County and southern Worcester County:

...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 10 PM THIS EVENING TO 5 AM EST SATURDAY...

* LOCATIONS...HAMPDEN COUNTY...EASTERN HAMPSHIRE COUNTY...
SOUTHERN WORCESTER COUNTY ACROSS WESTERN AND SOUTH CENTRAL MASSACHUSETTS.

* HAZARD TYPES...SNOW...SLEET...FREEZING RAIN.

* ACCUMULATIONS...SNOW ACCUMULATION OF UP TO 1 INCH...ALONG WITH A
TRACE TO POSSIBLY A TENTH OF ICE.

* TIMING...10 PM TONIGHT TO 5 AM SATURDAY MORNING.

* IMPACTS...UNTREATED ROADS AND WALKWAYS WILL BE SLIPPERY.

* WINDS...EAST 5 TO 10 MPH.

* TEMPERATURES...IN THE LOWER 30S.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IS ISSUED WHEN SNOW AND/OR ICE IS
FORECAST TO DEVELOP IN THE AFFECTED AREAS...BUT ACCUMULATIONS ARE
EXPECTED TO BE LIGHT. ANY SNOW OR ICE WOULD MAKE DRIVING AND
WALKING DIFFICULT...BUT NOT IMPOSSIBLE...ON UNTREATED ROADWAYS
AND SIDEWALKS. WHEN TEMPERATURES ARE BELOW FREEZING...MOTORISTS
NEED TO BE ESPECIALLY CAREFUL ON BRIDGES AND OVERPASSES WHERE
SLIPPERY SPOTS CAN EASILY DEVELOP.


Massachusetts Primary preview: Rick Santorum, Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich also enjoy support in Mitt Romney territory

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Santorum may pick up votes in the Massachusetts Republican primary on Tuesday partly based on his strong stand against abortion.

022212 republican candidates.jpgView full sizeRepublican presidential candidates, from left, Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich stand together before the start of a Republican presidential debate in Mesa, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

BOSTON – Saying they want dramatic change in Washington, many people in Massachusetts are getting behind a Republican presidential hopeful other than W. Mitt Romney, the state’s former one-term governor, in Tuesday’s primary.

While former Gov. Romney is expected to coast to victory in the state’s GOP presidential primary, each of his remaining three rivals – former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum, former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich and U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas – enjoys a base of support in Massachusetts.

Santorum may emerge with at least the minimum 15 percent of the vote needed to win some delegates from Massachusetts, according to a poll.

Ann M. Demos of West Springfield, a teaching director for Community Bible Study, an interdenominational Christian organization, said she will be voting for Santorum, citing his firm opposition to abortion.

anndemos.jpgAnn Demos of West Springfield plans to vote for Rick Santorum on Tuesday, largely because of his strong "pro life" stance.

Demos, who is married with five children, said she likes and respects Santorum as a person and family man. Santorum supports a constitutional ban on abortion and opposes abortion even in cases of rape or incest.

“Most important, I love his Christian morals and his respect for life,” said Demos. “He believes it and he lives it.”

Another local supporter of Santorum, Mark Manolakis, 19, of Wilbraham, said the former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania and father of seven holds some fundamental conservative values. Manolakis said he likes the experience of Santorum, who served two terms in the U.S. House and two terms in the Senate before losing his attempt at re-election in 2006.

Manolakis, a freshman at Western New England University in Springfield, said he also agrees with Santorum’s “pro life” position and his plans for the economy.

“He can excite voters a lot more than Mitt can in the general election,” he said.

Paul also has some backers in Western Massachusetts. People said they are attracted to Paul because he wants to bring home troops from foreign nations and because of his stands in favor of limited government, low taxes and free markets.

Christina Moroney, 19, a sophomore at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, said she worked for Paul for 10 days in Maine before that state’s primary and also started a student group for the candidate at the university. Paul won about 35 percent of the vote in the Maine caucuses, finishing second to Romney, who received 39 percent.

moro.jpgChristina Moroney, a student at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, is supporting Ron Paul in Tuesday's primary.

Moroney, a registered Republican, said she is concerned about the lengthy wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and their tremendous human and financial costs. She said she likes Paul partly because he wants to stop spending billions of dollars on undeclared wars.

David P. Kopacz Sr., an environmental consultant from Ware, said he believes that Paul will cut government regulations that are hurting business. “We’ve got to get back to free enterprise,” said Kopacz, who is running for a seat on the Republican State Committee.

Joseph Ureneck, 60, a Chinese language interpreter from Boston, is a supporter of Paul who started “a meetup” group on the Internet.

Ureneck, a member of the Republican State Committee, said Paul wants to downsize government, reduce waste and get government out of people’s personal lives.

Gingrich, who served as speaker from 1995 to 1999, worked with President Bill Clinton to overhaul welfare and balance the federal budget.

Joseph R. Granger, of Ludlow, a retired Army major and software engineer, said he will vote for Gingrich on Tuesday.

“He is a masterful strategist and a capable tactician,” Granger said. “He proved that back in the 1990s.”

Among the candidates, he said, Gingrich represents the best chance for the opportunity to transform government.

DaveIowa.jpgRepublican activist David Kopacz of Ware supports Ron Paul because of his emphasis on boosting the free market.

Granger said the federal bureaucracy holds too much control over people’s lives. He said Gingrich might return some powers to communities and the state.

Gingrich, for example, is pledging to reform the federal Department of Homeland Security, created after the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks.

Granger said the nation needs to keep its guard up and seek out terrorists, but the homeland agency is too oppressive. “I’m absolutely aghast the United States has an agency like that,” Granger said.

Robert R. Eno, 38, of Shrewsbury, who is publisher of www.redmassgroup.com, said he has been a fan of Gingrich since he was in high school.

“He is a leader with vision and big ideas,” Eno said. “We need big ideas to fix what is wrong with the country.”

Eno said he cannot back Romney in a primary because of the former governor’s passage of the 2006 health care law, which mandates that most adults obtain health insurance or face a possible tax penalty.

“I cannot vote in a Republican primary for someone who is forcing me to buy a private product against my will,” Eno said.

alexsherm.jpgAlex Sherman, left, the chairman of the Republican City Committee in Springfield, and U.S. Sen. Scott Brown, right, are among the state's Republicans backing Mitt Romney in Tuesday's primary.

In the primary, a candidate needs at least 15 percent of the vote to win at least some delegates from Massachusetts for the party’s national nominating convention, scheduled to be held Aug. 27-30 in Tampa.

In 2008, leading Republicans in Massachusetts were divided over the party' presidential candidates.

This year, Romney is being backed by virtually all of the state’s Republicans in the state Legislature including Reps. Todd M. Smola of Palmer, Donald F. Humason of Westfield and Nicholas Boldyga of Southwick and Sen. Michael R. Knapik of Westfield. U.S. Sen. Scott P. Brown, a Republican, is also backing Romney.

“Mitt Romney is, in my belief, the one candidate with the best shot for winning in November,” added Alex Sherman, chairman of the Republican City Committee in Springfield, who is supporting Romney. “I like his economic policies as well and especially his tough stances on China which is something we've been lacking from our commander in chief for quite some time.”

In the 2008 Republican primary in Massachusetts, Romney won 51 percent of the vote to defeat U.S. Sen. John S. McCain of Arizona, who received 41 percent. Paul won 3 percent.

This year, Santorum may be the only other Republican candidate to capture at least 15 percent of the vote, according to a recent poll by Suffolk University in Boston and WHDH-TV Channel 7 in Boston.

The poll of 172 likely Republican voters in Massachusetts, taken between Feb. 11-15, showed Romney with 64 percent; Santorum, 16 percent; Paul, 7 percent; Gingrich, 6 percent; and undecided, 6 percent.

Three other Republicans who have dropped out of the primary – Texas Gov. Rick Perry, former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman and U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann – also appear on the ballot. President Barack Obama is the only candidate on the Democratic primary ballot. The Green-Rainbow candidates, in order of appearance on the ballot, are Kent Mesplay, Jill Stein and Harley Mikkelson.

Springfield City Council President James Ferrera pays fine for campaign finance law violation

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The fine was in connection with a violation last year when he was reimbursed too much for past loans to his campaign coffers.

010212 james ferrera.jpgSpringfield City Council President James Ferrera III has paid a state fine in connection with a violation of the campaign finance law.

SPRINGFIELD – City Council President James J. Ferrera III has paid a $750 fine to the state in connection with a violation of the campaign finance law last year when he was reimbursed too much for past loans to his campaign coffers.

The state Office of Campaign and Political Finance now lists the case as resolved, as Ferrera has corrected the mistake and has made the “agreed payment” of $750 to the state, state agency spokesman Jason Tait said. The payment is personally made by the candidate, not from campaign funds, Tait said.

“Because you and the committee have taken appropriate remedial action, we have determined that this matter may be closed at this time,” state Office Director Michael J. Sullivan said in a letter to Ferrera.

Ferrera, who had loaned $21,990 to his campaign over the course of several years, was overpaid by $4,405 last year in reimbursements, according to the state. He reimbursed the overpayments after contacted by the state.

Ferrera, reached Friday for comment, said the overpayments were an “oversight” and will not happen again.

“The matter has been resolved,” Ferrera said. “I take full responsibility for the oversight.”

His campaign committee had made numerous small payments to Ferrera since 2007 to repay the loans, as permitted by state law, according to the state report. However, the amounts being paid back began to exceed the amount owed last April and reached the overpayment of $4,405 by August, according to the state.

Last September, Ferrera said the overpayments came from his campaign treasurer, Catherine Cocchi, his grandmother. On Friday, he said he was not blaming anyone but himself.

The state office refers to the payments as “agreed payments” rather than fines, Tait said. The funds go to the general fund of the state. Ferrera’s committee reported a balance of $2.72 in his campaign account as of Feb. 29.

In an unrelated case, the state agency found “no reason to believe” a complaint that the campaign committee for former Holyoke Mayor Elaine Pluta violated the campaign finance law last year in its rental of office space at 250 Westfield Road. The source of the complaint was not revealed, but claimed that Pluta’s campaign committee was paying less than the fair market value for the lease, without disclosing it as an “in-kind contribution from the landlord to the committee.”

While Pluta’s committee paid $300 a month for that office space, the state was convinced the low rate was potentially available to other candidates and others in the general public, due to being vacant for two years, and based on comments from the landlord, according to the state’s summary.

The landlord was listed as West Holyoke Plaza LLC, and the principal as Ron Eckmann.

In another case, the state office found that Dian Taylor, who ran unsuccessfully for Chicopee City Council last year, did not file campaign reports in a timely manner, but that no further action was needed by the state after Taylor provided amended reports.

Springfield police want to question Jose Santiago regarding stabbing of city woman

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Police are not sure what kind of relationship Santiago had with the victim, who is in Baystate Medical Center in critical condition.


This story has been updated. Read the new story here.

032008 springfield police cruiser cropped.jpg

SPRINGFIELD - Police want to question a city man after a 25-year-old woman was stabbed multiple times early Saturday morning, leaving her in critical condition.

Lt. Robert P. Moynihan said the stabbing happened around 3:15 a.m. at 132 Washburn St. in the north end.

Police believed the woman lived there. Her name is not being released at this time.

Moynihan said police are seeking Jose Santiago, 30, in connection with the incident. He said police are not sure what his relationship is to the victim, but said he was “some domestic relation.” He said police are uncertain as to Santiago’s address.

Moynihan said he did not know who called 911. The woman was taken to Baystate Medical Center.

Holyoke bedroom fire started by overheated electrical cord

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The fire woke up two young children who were in the bedroom, who started yelling, Fire Department Lt. Thomas Paquin said.

2003 holyoke fire truck

HOLYOKE – A fire at 233 Suffolk St. early Saturday morning was started by an overheated electrical cord, according to Fire Department Lt. Thomas G. Paquin.

The fire was reported just before 5 a.m. at the three-family home.

The cord was powering a space heater in a first floor bedroom, he said. The fire woke up two young children who were in the bedroom, who started yelling, Paquin said.

Their mother, Iris Santiago, heard them screaming and got them out of the house, he said. Paquin said Santiago closed the bedroom door, which prevented the fire from spreading.

Paquin said the space heater’s cord was plugged into an extension cord. He said the space heater cord should have been plugged directly into the wall electrical socket. Residents should always check cords for signs of damage, he said.

Paquin said 14 firefighters went to the fire and extinguished it within 20 minutes. The fire was contained to the room of origin, causing approximately $5,000 in damage, and there were no injuries. Smoke alarms were activated, he said.

He said he believes the family can continue to stay in the apartment. The building is owned by Rosa Javier.

State Sen. Gale Candaras, other legislators push for Massachusetts to clean up, help develop former Belchertown State School

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Candaras, state Sen. Stanley C. Rosenber and state Rep. Stephen Kulik worked together to secure a $10 million bond bill for environmental remediation at the State School and to assist in development.

Belchertown State School.JPGView full sizeAn interior view of a building at the former Belchertown State School property.

BELCHERTOWN – State Sen. Gale D. Candaras said she isn’t worried about language in a land deal that others say could derail the development of the former State School property; she just wants the state to remove hazardous chemicals from the site and the rest will fall into place.

It’s called an indemnification clause. Before 2002, anyone who filed a lawsuit over asbestos exposure at the State School would have sued the state Division of Capital Asset Management. With the clause in place, the liability transferred to the town’s Economic Development Industrial Corp. when it took ownership, and it will transfer to any future owner.

If the language stays in there, Pennsylvania-based developer Weston Solutions won’t buy the property and develop an assisted living complex, said Selectman Ronald E. Aponte.

The EDIC and the selectmen have been working to strike the clause.

Candaras, though, a Wilbraham Democrat, said she is focused on getting the site clean and said she isn’t aware of any existing or upcoming asbestos lawsuits. She called the indemnification clause an “ancillary” issue.

Massachusetts doesn’t have specific laws governing asbestos exposure lawsuits. According to Wellesley-based Sokolove Law, it would be a personal injury case, so there is a statute of limitations of three years from when a health problem is discovered.

When the state first transferred the property, it removed some underground tanks, but left an ever-worsening environmental mess untouched, Candaras said.

Weston has already committed $2 million for remediation and the selectmen have endorsed a Town Meeting warrant to seek a $1 million bond to build the infrastructure necessary for construction.

GDCandaras92310.jpgView full sizeGale D. Candaras

“I believe strongly that the Commonwealth should still be responsible,” said Candaras. “Once these issues are cleared up, the issue of indemnification goes away.”

She said she understands the position Weston is in, but thinks the clause will be harmless after remediation takes place.

Candaras, state Sen. Stanley C. Rosenberg, D-Amherst, and state Rep. Stephen Kulik, D-Worthington, worked together to secure a $10 million bond bill for environmental remediation at the State School and to assist in development. It was authorized by the legislature in 2008, but it still has to be approved by Gov. Deval Patrick and included in an upcoming capital plan.

Before that can happen, a state agency needs to be brought in to oversee Weston’s remediation, Candaras said. And conversations are taking place to make that happen.

She and town officials met recently with representatives of DCAM and the Westmass Area Development Corp.

“The meeting was very, very productive,” said Candaras. “I think you can appreciate the importance of everyone being in the room at the same time. ... Times have changed.”

Another meeting is in the works.

“We are making this project a priority,” she said.

Westfield officials plan review of downtown parking requirements

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Westfield officials will look into the feasibility of leasing city-owned parking spaces to prospective downtown housing developers.

2007 westfield parking sign.JPGThe sign leads to municipal parking at the intersection of Elm and Arnold Streets in Westfield


WESTFIELD
– City officials will look into the feasibility of leasing city-owned parking spaces to prospective downtown housing developers.

Ward 2 City Councilor James E. Brown Jr. plans to seek full City Council support for a review of downtown parking requirements along with the feasibility of leasing spaces to developers at the council’s March 15 meeting.

“We want to look to see is this is something that can be done. It could satisfy city parking regulations for downtown housing and assist in the on-going revitalization of our downtown,” Brown said.

The interest was sparked by Mayor Daniel M. Knapik in response to growing interest in the downtown commercial and retail corridor.

“There are several buildings in the downtown available for housing but there is no parking associated with the buildings,” Knapik said. He said he asked Brown, chairman of the council’s Legislative and Ordinance Committee, to consider looking into the problem.

Brown said the city maintains several off-street parking lots in the immediate downtown area. There are at least four such facilities, he noted.

If the council supports the review, Brown said his committee will look into the feasibility of renting or leasing parking to building owners.

City ordinance requires two parking spaces for each apartment rental in the downtown.

Knapik and Brown said they see the possibility of leasing parking spaces to building owners as encouragement to convince developers and/or building owners to create additional downtown residential units.

“Why should we penalize prospective development because of parking requirements,” Knapik asked.

Westfield State University currently has 216 students living in Lansdown Place on Thomas Street. Those students, who own vehicles, have secured municipal parking stickers for use in off-street parking lots located off nearby Arnold Street.

Also, University Housing LLC, owned by Springfield’s Peter A. Picknelly, is currently rehabilitating the former Westfield Normal School building on Washington Street into market rate apartments. That $5 million project will need parking for its tenants.

Those two projects, as well as a recent $6 million rehabilitation effort in the downtown by Domus Inc., and a $14 million reconstruction of Main and Broad streets has fostered renewed interest in the downtown, Brown and Knapik said.

Brown suggested that the city “use its assets and resources, such as off-street parking, to spur downtown development.”

“I believe an answer to the parking requirements for residential housing is another key to reviving our downtown,” Brown said.

Little Red Schoolhouse can remain at Amherst College for additional year

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The school had been slated to leave the campus at the end of this school year.

RED.JPC.JPGThe Little Red Schoolhouse has been on the Amherst College campus for nearly 75 years.

AMHERST – The Amherst Day School will have another year on the Amherst College campus.

The school, which was founded by the college nearly 75 years ago to provide childcare to faculty and staff and the greater Amherst community, was slated to move out at the end of this school year.

College officials notified the school, also called The Little Red Schoolhouse, last year it would have to leave because construction of the new science building adjacent to the school was slated to begin during the 2012-2103 academic year.

The schedule has been revised allowing the school to remain through May 2013, according to a press release.

"By affording us an extra year in the Schoolhouse, Amherst College has given us a tremendous gift which we deeply appreciate," school director Therese Ross wrote in an email.

"We are excited to use the additional time granted to thoughtfully evaluate and organize the Little Red Schoolhouse program to be the most effective it can be for our families, Amherst College and the wider community."

Many from the school and community were upset with the announcement last year.

The school was founded with an endowment, which has been used to help students who can't afford the $2,375 annual tuition. The college also pays for heat and electricity, with the day school providing janitorial services. The college has taken care of repairs.

Last month, before the latest announcement, College President Carolyn A. Martin wrote to Ross stating that if the school "can commit to providing a program that helps address the College's child care needs," the college would continue providing support at another site.

The college is looking for 10 to 20 full-day, flexible slots, available from 8 to 6 p.m., and
for Amherst faculty and staff to be given priority.

Currently, the preschool accepts children 3½ to 5 years old, four days a week for three hours in the morning, with an optional one-hour extension.


Obituaries today: Alexander Trusiewicz was machinist, co-founded Eagle Precision, OMT

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Obituaries from The Republican.

030312_alexander_trusiewicz.jpgAlexander Trusiewicz

Alexander "Al" Trusiewicz, 65, of Chicopee died Thursday. Born in Holyoke, he lived there for 13 years before moving to Chicopee. He graduated from Chicopee Comprehensive High School in 1966. Trusiewicz worked as a machinist for Jet Tool Co. in Agawam and, was later employed as foreman at Sanford Tool & Die in West Springfield for 10 years. In 1978 he co-founded and was part owner of Eagle Precision Inc. in West Springfield. Trusiewicz also was a co-founder of OMT in Holyoke in 2009, where he was currently employed with his good friend and partner Michael Dostal. As a huge "Trekkie" fan, he succeeded with getting his DNA to Mars on one of his own manufactured pieces.

Obituaries from The Republican:


Springfield stabbing victim has died; third murder victim this year

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Jessica Rojas worked as a legal assistant in the Springfield City Hall law department.

This is an update to a story posted at 10:37 a.m.

springfield police cruiser back end.jpg

SPRINGFIELD - Jessica Rojas, the 25-year-old city woman who police say was stabbed multiple times early Saturday morning, has died, becoming the city's third murder victim this year.

Capt. Peter Dillon said Rojas lived at 132 Washburn St., in the north end, where she was stabbed at approximately 3:15 a.m. Saturday. She was brought to Baystate Medical Center, where she later died, Dillon said.

Police said they are seeking Jose Santiago, 30, Rojas’ sometimes boyfriend, on an arrest warrant charging him with murder.

Jessica Rojas.jpgJessica Rojas/Facebook

Dillon said Rojas’s family told police that she recently got a new job as a legal assistant. She worked for City Hall, in the law department.

Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said he knew Rojas, even though she had only been working for the city for a short time.

“She was a nice, pleasant young lady with a lot of opportunity. I’m very sorry to hear about it,” Sarno said.

Sarno said he was notified about the murder early Saturday morning, and reached out to Rojas’s mother. He said Rojas worked with the city’s director of licensing, attorney Alesia Days.

“Police are working very hard to hunt down the individual responsible for this tragic event. I’m sure they will get the individual but it’s not going to bring back Jessica,” Sarno said.

He said Rojas also had four children.

Dillon said the investigation is continuing.

According to Rojas’s Facebook page, she celebrated her 25th birthday on Friday at a Springfield club. Her page indicates that she had been dating Santiago recently.

Springfield police are asking anyone with information about Santiago to call the Detective Bureau at (413) 787-6355 or “Text-a-Tip.”

The first murder of the year in the city was reported on Feb. 1 when police found the body of Judy Ramirez, 38, of 47 Pendleton Ave., in the rear stairwell of the Progressive Community Chapel on State Street.

Ronald Ruell Jr., 30, has been charged with Ramirez’s murder.

On Feb. 23, Alfred Pellot Lopez, 29, was fatally shot in the head at a Whittier Street duplex, a murder police say may have been drug-related. No one has been charged.

In Easthampton, police say Jessica Ann Pripstein, 39, was murdered by her boyfriend, Ryan D. Welch, 36, on Feb. 20.


Candidates meet public at South Hadley Know Your Town program

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The only contested race this year is between Winston Lavallee and Eric Sarrazin, who are vying for a two-year spot on the School Committee.

2012_winston_lavallee_eric_sarrazin.jpgWinston Lavalle, left, and Eric Sarrazin are candidates for one seat on the South Hadley School Committee.


SOUTH HADLEY
– There will be only one contested position in the Town Election on Tuesday, but “Candidates’ Night” at Town Hall Thursday night brought out 12 candidates.

“Although I’m running unopposed, I think it’s important for the town to hear from me,” said Kevin McAllister, running for a three-year seat on the School Committee.

The program was sponsored by Know Your Town.

The only contested race this year is between Winston Lavallee and Eric Sarrazin, who are vying for a two-year spot on the School Committee.

Sarrazin, a father of two and lifelong resident of South Hadley, is seeking his first elected office. “I love this town and community,” he said.

“My children will be in the school system for the next 11 years. I live and breathe the schools on a daily basis.”

Sarrazin promised to “bring energy, passion and fresh perspective” if elected.

His opponent, Lavallee, has lived in South Hadley for 46 years and has a long history as an educator, both in the classroom and in administration.

He was a biology professor and at one time acting president at Holyoke Community College. He also writes novels.

Lavallee stressed the importance of high standards that prepare students for post-secondary education.

Lavallee and Sarrazin agreed that South Hadley should be proud of its school system, which Lavallee noted had been enhanced by the recent emphasis on civility and inclusion.

Most of the people running in this election are incumbents. An exception is Anna Symington, seeking to serve as a Library Trustee.

Symington, who has a master’s degree in plant and soil science from the University of Massachusetts, worked for the state’s Department of Environmental Protection for 23 years. She was director of the UMass Alumni Association for two years.

Sarah Etelman and Thomas Knightly, who are running unopposed for seats on the Hampshire Council of Governments, are also participating in their first Town Election.

They explained that the Council of Governments allows its member towns to save money by purchasing services and utilities in common.

Knightly is a lifelong resident of South Hadley with 25 years of experience in business. Etelman is development coordinator at Girls Inc. in Holyoke and chairwoman of the Democratic Town Committee in South Hadley.

Also new to Town Election is Melissa O’Brien, who was appointed to the Planning Committee and is running to finish out her term. She has a master’s degree in Public Administration and previously worked on city policy in New York City.

Springfield begins hearings for bars seeking extended entertainment permits

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Under a new curfew, entertainment must stop in Springfield bars and clubs at 1 a.m., unless a special permit is secured.

Springfield City HallSpringfield City Hall and Campanile.

SPRINGFIELD – With a 1 a.m. entertainment curfew set to take effect April 6, the city has begun hearings for bar owners seeking permits to offer entertainment beyond the 1 a.m. curfew.

The hearings, which began Thursday and resume Monday, come three months after Mayor Domenic J. Sarno proposed the 1 a.m. curfew to cut down on violence in the city's entertainment district.

Under the curfew, bars can remain open until 2 a.m., but music, television, video games or other amusements must stop at 1 a.m.

The curfew received hostile reviews at a public hearing on Dec. 23, with bar owners maintaining it would cut into their profits and reduce business in the entertainment district without significantly reducing crime.

Based on a recommendation by Associate City Solicitor Alesia Days, who conducted the hearing, the mayor decided to impose the curfew.

In announcing his decision, the mayor noted that an East Hartford man was arrested with a gun shortly after 2 a.m. during the previous weekend, illustrating the risk posed by the late closing times.

Sarno said the curfew, coupled with restrictions on under-21 nights, will reduce the amount of violence between midnight and 4 a.m., a major concern of city law enforcement officials.

The public is invited to the hearings to be held in the anteroom, second floor, City Hall.
Hearings scheduled this week are:

Monday: Glo Ultra Lounge, 9:30 a.m.; Clemente (Kush) 10:30 a.m.; the Shadow Lounge, 11:30 a.m.; Mardi Gras, 1:30 p.m.; Jazzberry (OZ), 2:30 p.m.; Royal Seasons, 3:30 p.m.

Wednesday: Scores, 9:30 a.m.; Xstatic, 10:30 a.m.; Center Stage, 11:30 a.m.; Coconuts, 1:30 p.m.; Fifth Alarm, 2:30 p.m.; The Ale House, 3:30 p.m.

Three bars – Mattie's Cafe, Chessman Lounge, and McCaffrey's – had hearings last week.

Tornadoes death toll climbs in Kentucky, Alabama, Georgia, Indiana and Ohio

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The storms, predicted by forecasters for days, killed at least 38 people in five states – Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio,

030312_henryville_tornado.JPGDebris from homes and trees litter the path of Friday's tornado in Henryville, Ind., on Saturday. Severe storms, predicted by forecasters for days, killed dozens of people in five states - Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

By ROGER ALFORD and JIM SUHR

WEST LIBERTY, Ky. - Rescue workers with search dogs trudged through the hills of Kentucky, and emergency crews in several states combed through wrecked homes in a desperate search Saturday for survivors of tornadoes that killed dozens of people.

But amid the flattened homes, gutted churches and crunched up cars, startling stories of survival emerged, including that of a baby found alone but alive in a field near her Indiana home, a couple who were hiding in a restaurant basement when a school bus crashed through the wall, and a pastor nearly buried in his church’s basement.

The storms, predicted by forecasters for days, killed at least 38 people in five states – Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio, where Gov. John Kasich proclaimed an emergency. President Barack Obama offered Federal Emergency Management Agency assistance as state troopers, the National Guard and rescue teams made their way through counties cut off by debris-littered roads and knocked down cellphone towers.

The landscape was littered with everything from sheet metal and insulation to crushed cars and, in one place, a fire hydrant, making travel difficult.

030312_henryville_tornado_2.JPGMelody Zollman finds a stuffed bear as she looks through the rubble of her home that was destroyed by a tornado as residents attempt to recover their possession in Henryville, Ind., Saturday. A string of violent storms demolished small towns in Indiana and cut off rural communities in Kentucky as an early season tornado outbreak killed more than 30 people, and the death toll rose as daylight broke on Saturday's search for survivors. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

No building was left untouched in West Liberty, a small eastern Kentucky farming town in the foothills of the Appalachians. Two white police cruisers had been picked up and tossed into city hall, and few structures were recognizable.

The Rev. Kenneth Jett of the West Liberty United Methodist Church recalled huddling with four others in a little cubby hole in the basement as the church collapsed in the storm.

The pastor and his wife had just returned to the parsonage when he turned on the TV and saw that the storm was coming. Jett yelled to his wife to take shelter in the basement of the church next door, where they were joined by two congregants who were cleaning the church and a neighbor. As they ran for the basement stairs, they could see the funnel cloud approaching.

The last one down was Jett’s wife, Jeanene.

“I just heard this terrific noise,” she said. “The windows were blowing out as I came down the stairs.”

The building collapsed, but they were able to get out through a basement door. They escaped with only bumps and bruises.

“We’re thankful to God,” Jett said. “It was a miracle that the five of us survived.”

In Indiana, a baby was found alone in a field near her family’s home in New Pekin, said Melissa Richardson, spokeswoman at St. Vincent Salem Hospital, where the little girl was initially taken. The child was in critical condition Saturday at a hospital in Louisville, Ky., and authorities were still trying to figure out how she ended up in the field, Richardson said.

A tornado hit the New Pekin area Friday, but it wasn’t clear whether it had picked up the child. Authorities have not identified the baby or her parents.

About 20 miles east, a twister demolished Henryville, Ind., the birthplace of Kentucky Fried Chicken founder Colonel Harland Sanders. The second story of the elementary school was torn off, and wind blew out the windows and gutted the Henryville Community Presbyterian Church. Few recognizable buildings remained.

A secretary at the school said a bus left Friday afternoon with 11 children, but the driver turned back after realizing they were driving straight into the storm. The children were ushered into the nurse’s station and were hiding under tables and desks when the tornado struck. None were hurt.

The school bus, which was parked in front of the school, was tossed several hundred yards into the side of a nearby restaurant.

Todd and Julie Money were hiding there, having fled their Scottsburg home, which has no basement. They were in the basement of their friend’s restaurant when the tornado struck.

“Unreal. The pressure on your body, your ears pop, trees snap,” Todd Money said. “When that bus hit the building, we thought it exploded.”

“It was petrifying,” Julie Money added. “God put us here for a reason.”

Friday’s tornado outbreak came two days after an earlier round of storms killed 13 people in the Midwest and South, and forecasters at the National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center had said the day would be one of a handful this year that warranted its highest risk level. The weather service issued 297 tornado warnings and 388 severe thunderstorm warnings from Friday through early Saturday.

In April, when tornadoes killed more than 240 people in Alabama, it issued 688 tornado warnings and 757 severe thunderstorm warnings from Texas to New York, said Greg Carbin, warning coordination meteorologist at the storm prediction center.

The storms have been carrying strong winds that change direction and increase in speed as they rise in the atmosphere, creating a spin, said Corey Mead, a storm prediction center meteorologist. The tornadoes develop when cold air in the storm system moving east from the Mississippi River Valley hits warm air coming north from the Gulf of Mexico, he said.

More severe storms were expected Saturday across parts of southern Georgia and northern Florida. Friday’s killed 19 people in Kentucky, 14 in Indiana, three in Ohio, and one each in Alabama and Georgia.

In Washington County, Ind., residents described seeing a massive tornado come over a hill and plow through a grove of trees, which looked almost like a line of bulldozers eight wide had rolled through, crushing the land.

When Gene Lewellyn, his son and his son’s 7-year-old daughter saw the tornado come over the hill, they rushed to the basement of his one-story brick home and covered themselves with a carpet. A black cloud enveloped the house.

“It just shook once, and it (the house) was gone,” said Lewellyn, 62, a retired press operator.

His family was safe, but their home was reduced to a pile of bricks with sheet metal wrapped around splintered trees. Pieces of insulation coated the ground, and across the street a large trailer picked up by the storm had landed on top of a boat. Lewellyn spent Saturday picking through the debris in 38-degree cold.

“Right now, we are not sure what we are going to do,” he said. “We will get out what we can get out. Hopefully, we won’t have to argue from the insurance company very much.”

Janet Elliott was sitting on her bed in Chattanooga, Tenn., when a severe weather warning scrolled across the bottom of the screen. She didn’t hear sirens outside, but fierce winds were blowing, and her cats seemed clingy. She noticed her dogs had gotten low to the floor.

She ran to the basement and tried with all her might to pull the door shut, but she couldn’t. She heard a ripping sound as the ceiling peeled off and wind wrenched the doorknob from her hand.

“I looked up and I could see the sky,” she said. “I realized if I had stayed on the bed two seconds longer, I would have been sucked out or crushed.”

Once the initial terror passed, a new wave of fear washed over her: Her husband had left for the store shortly before the storm hit, her 33-year-old handicapped son was likely on a bus headed home from school and one of her cats was missing. But within hours, all were found safe.

On Saturday, volunteers secured a tarp over the top of the house to keep the rain out. Waving her arm at the mess in the living room, Elliott pointed out the stone fireplace and mantle her husband had built and the antiques they collected in their decades together.

“This was more than just a house, more than just a place to flop,” she said. “There was a lot of love in this house, it was special.”

Suhr reported from New Pekin, Ind. Associated Press writers Kate Brumback in Chattanooga, Tenn., Tom LoBianco in Indianapolis and Bruce Schreiner in East Bernstadt, Ky., contributed to this report.

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