Connecting US Cities » State Of Connecticut

Police step up patrols for Super Bowl

admin — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 20:51:52 +0000

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) -             Patriots and New York Giants.
Connecticut state police are       State police say that could
planning to step up their          mean a historically busy
efforts to get drunk drivers       weekend for them.
off the roads during the           Troopers are planning roving
Super Bowl weekend.                DUI patrols, and say they
The game is expected to draw       will be out in force in
more interest than usual in        heavily traveled areas
Connecticut where there are        beginning Thursday night.
fans of both the New England

Firefighter recruit upset over dismissal

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 05:04:20 +0000

New London, Conn. (WTNH) - To      apologize for giving a video
have a firefighter recruit         camera the finger in jest.
fired while still in the fire      “Involved in other incident
academy may not be such a big      of vandalism,” said Mayo.
deal, but when Alfred Mayo         Then there was an incident
was dismissed it shed some         where his class name was
light on the fact that there       written in wet cement.
hasn’t been a black                “Which I denied from day one,
firefighter hired in New           ” Mayo said. “I did not do it.
London since 1978.                 ”
What may be considered a so-       A memo from Fire Chief Ron
called tradition continues,        Samul outlines concerns
as 33-year-old Mayo was            saying it was "very probable
dismissed just two days            that Recruit Mayo was
before graduating the academy.     involved" and that "we have
“It's upsetting because I          to question whether or not he
worked hard for that job and       will be trustworthy and
I earned that job,” said Mayo.     honest."
As the only black recruit          Mayor Daryl Finizio then sent
Mayo says he worked extra          Mayo a letter saying his
hard so he wouldn't be             employment was 'rescinded'
perceived as lazy, but claims      because of "concerns
he was singled out and             regarding attitude and growth.
reprimanded for having too         "
much enthusiasm.                   “They didn't give me the
“Not to go first all the time.     opportunity to prove myself,”
It would be perceived as           Mayo said.
cockiness,” said Mayo. “I was      News 8 did reach out to the
also told that my facial           mayor and the fire chief, but
expressions were of concern.       were unable to speak to
They were difficult to             either of them. It was
interpret.”                        learned from another source
He admits to some problems         however that there is
though. His grades weren't         currently one African
the best, but they weren't         American on the force.  
the worst and he did

Military dad makes surprise visit

admin — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 13:02:55 +0000

Willington, Conn. (WTNH) -         just minutes later. Her
Monday night, 25 airmen from       father appeared at the door.
the 103rd Security Forces          "Dad!" Caitlin yelled as she
Squadron returned home after       jumped off a rocking chair
a six month deployment to          and ran into her father's
Afghanistan.                       arms. "I missed you! I missed
Many family members greeted        you so much!" Caitlin had
the hometown heroes at             thought her father wouldn't
Bradley International Airport.     be home until at least the
But one group was not there        end of February, maybe the
was the family of Master           beginning of March. The
Sergeant James Reynolds.           surprise was a well kept
There was a reason for that.       secret, but one worth it for
Tuesday afternoon, at Hall         both daughter...and child.
Memorial School in Willington,     "It was perfect, it can't get
teacher Kara Hennessey             any better," Master Sergeant
received a special package         Reynolds said. Caitlin
for one of her students, ten-      couldn't agree more.
year-old Caitlin Reynolds.         "What's the first thing you
Inside a post office box was       want to do with Dad after you
a small giraffe named              get out of school here," News
"Geoffrey." Geoffrey has           8 reporter Jamie Muro asked.
appeared in a number of            With a big smile, Caitlin
pictures taken by Caitlin's        said, "Go home and cuddle
father in Afghanistan. There       with him on the couch."
are pictures of the stuffed        The pair, along with
animal holding a weapon,           Caitlin's step-mother, then
driving a humvee, and writing      left school to embark on
on a computer. The arrival of      another surprise. Caitlin's
the giraffe was a surprise to      older sister, in high school,
Caitlin, but not as big of a       didn't know her father had
surprise as what was coming        come how either.

Town talks about imposing curfew after teen death

admin — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 02:06:20 +0000

Bridgeport, Conn. (WTNH) -         them to pick up and transport
With the city of Bridgeport        every single child or every
still reeling from the  loss       single young person that's on
of 14-year-old Justin              the street after hours, but
Thompson , residents and city      it at least gives them the
leaders are looking to have a      ability to do that when they
curfew imposed. They say           suspect something or when
that's the answer to               they feel there's an at risk
preventing other children          situation."
from having their own lives        The city's mayor supports a
cut too short.                     curfew.
If the curfew proposal is          "We still are not satisfied
approved, teenagers under 15       we want to do more Ali," said
years old will have to be off      Mayor Bill Finch, "we want to
the streets between the hours      do more and try things that
of 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. Sunday       we think might work."
through Thursday. The curfew       Teenagers who violate curfew
would be pushed back to            could be picked up by police
midnight on Fridays and            and fined.
Saturdays. "When you               "When people know there is a
establish a curfew you really      curfew and that people can be
set a tone," said Paul Vallas,     picked up, and that there is
Interim Superintendent of          a consequence, it acts like a
Schools.                           deterrent," Vallas said.
The tone the city hopes to         City leaders were scheduled
set is one of intolerance for      to meet Monday evening at 6 p.
violent crime, especially          m. to discuss the possible
among the city's youth.            curfew. The city council will
"It gives police a tool they       vote on the issue sometime in
can use," said Vallas, "not        February.
that you're going to expect

Group seeks calmer seas for one-time slave ship

admin — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 14:25:58 +0000

a trip to eight cities, each       continue to be a part of what
of which would pay $40,000 to      Amistad does. He said he is
$50,000 for the visit, he          negotiating with a southern
said.                              city that would like Amistad
"But those days are gone.          to be part of a War of 1812
Cities don't have the              celebration this summer.
discretionary income to have       With the state of Connecticut
tall ships visits anymore. I       facing large budget deficits,
can understand that. Do they       Belanger said Amistad America
want to pay their teachers or      also can no longer depend on
have a tall ship visit? So we      receiving any state funding.
can't depend on that model         "We have to learn to live
anymore," he said.                 without it. Our goal is to be
But Belanger said such             self-sufficient," he said.
occasional visits will

Kids camp out for the homeless

admin — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 00:28:06 +0000

Orange, Conn. (WTNH) - A           different design with the
group of kids in Orange are        boxes," said Beth Rafferty,
spending their Saturday night      Orange Congregational Church,
camping out, but it isn't for      "this year is a big open
fun. They are holding a            space so they can just kind
"freeze out" to raise              of hang out and talk. And it
awareness about homelessness.      actually stays quite warm in
The camp-out is taking place       there, which is nice.
on the front lawn of the           This year marks the fourth
Orange Congregational Church ,     year the church will be
located at 205 Meetinghouse        hosting the "freeze out,"
Lane.                              raising money for Habitat for
Approximately 25 kids are          Humanity.
participating in the event as      The church has already raised
part of their youth program.       enough money to build one
They will take one-hour            house for the homeless, and
shifts throughout the night,       now they are hoping to build
until 9 a.m. Sunday.               a second. Their goal is to
The kids will be spending the      raise $2,000.
night in a make-shift shanty       The church says anyone who
town made entirely of              wants to bring hot chocolate
cardboard boxes, tape and          down for the kids and
string.                            possibly make a donation is
"Each year we have a               welcome.

Portland woman missing, has dementia

admin — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 05:23:17 +0000

PORTLAND, Conn. (WTNH) - The       health issues. She is
Portland Police Department is      possibly suffering from
investigating a report of a        dementia.
woman that has been missing        Oliver is a white female, 
for just over a day.               5'5" 140 lbs. She has grey
Margret Oliver,59, left the        and brown shoulder length
Greystone retirement home in       hair and blue eyes.
Portland around 3 p.m. on Jan.     She was last seen wearing a
26.                                blue coat, knit cap and
She took a bus heading             carrying a white purse.
towards Middletown.                Portland Police ask anyone
Oliver is considered               with information to call 860-
endangered due to her mental       347-2541.

Hundreds of tacos delivered to East Haven Mayor Maturo

admin — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 03:31:34 +0000

East Haven, Conn. (WTNH) - A       Evening Soup Kitchen in New
group focused on racial            Haven.
injustice hand-delivered 500       Below is the full statement
tacos to East Haven Mayor          released by Mayor Maturo:
Joseph Maturo's office             "The Town of East Haven has
Thursday.                          received an abundance of
The tacos, packed in several       tacos as a result of the
large disposable pans, were        campaign initiated by the
delivered a little after 1:30      group 'Reform Immigration for
p.m. News 8's Erin Cox says        America.'  Recognizing that
Mayor Maturo was not at Town       there are many in need in our
Hall when the delivery was         State, we have arranged for
made.  [Read his statement         all of the tacos to be
below]                             donated to local soup
They're in response to a           kitchens and pantries
comment made by the mayor          including the 'Downtown
that he "might eat a taco"         Evening Soup Kitchen' in New
when asked what he would do        Haven.
for the Latino Community           The abundance of tacos that
following the arrest of four       we received today underscores
police officers.                   the importance of the issues
The group that made the            currently facing the Town of
delivery, Reform Immigration       East Haven and highlights the
for America, says via Twitter      need for the Town to continue
this "is about more than           the process of healing and
tacos: it's about addressing       reform that I initiated
the racial injustice plaguing      immediately upon taking
East Haven for years."             office through the efforts of
"These tacos represent every       the Town's newly constituted
person in America who was          'LEARN' Committee.
disgusted and condemns your        The events of the past few
comments," said Latrina Kelly,     days have focused our Town,
the Interim Executive              and my administration, on the
Director at  Junta For             need to deal sensitively and
Progressive Action.The group       compassionately with the
says it wants to open up a         challenges currently facing
dialogue with the mayor on         our Town.  We will continue
the relationship between           to address those challenges
Latinos and police in East         while also striving to
Haven.                             provide the services our
The tacos, which were made by      residents have come to expect.
a restaurant in New Haven,         "
were donated to the  Downtown

98-year-old fisherman-turned-author inspires youth

admin — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 22:20:22 +0000

Ledyard, Conn. (WTNH) - A          "I think he's a good inspirer
formerly illiterate fisherman-     and I just think he says good
turned-author is hoping to         things," said third grade
inspire our youth, speaking        student Nina.
to students in Ledyard just a      "I thought it was really
few years after teaching           amazing to actually listen to
himself to read and write.         his stories and actually
On Wednesday, 98-year-old          learn about him," said third
Captain James Arruda Henry         grade student Erika.
made a guest appearance at         When asked how he felt
Carol Ambrosch's third grade       talking to the students Henry
class at Ledyard Center            responded, "Oh...that was
School. The class has been         hard for me. That was real
reading Henry's book "In a         hard for me cause I'm not
Fisherman's Language."             used to this. Hey I'm a
Henry was in the third grade       fisherman."
himself when he was pulled         However, that never stopped
out of school by his father        the 98-year-old who learned
and forced to go to work. He       to read and write just a few
would later become a lobster       years ago, and then penned
boat captain, but was              his autobiography which
illiterate until he was in         congressman Joe Courtney
his 90's and says he wants         submitted to the Library of
more for these kids.               congress. It was accepted.
"Just the thought," said           Henry's words have certainly
Henry, "I cry just because I       reached the students at
don't want to see none of you      Ledyard Center School and
do that. Learn to read and         will reach beyond the third
you may become, sometime in        grade classroom. Henry's book
the future, when you get old       is going to be sent to
enough, you will know what to      classrooms in all fifty
do and not to do. One of you       states throughout the next
may become president of the        year and then eventually the
United States."                    president's desk.

Man faces cruelty charge in videotaped hunt

admin — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 07:06:11 +0000

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - State       telephone.
environmental officials have       He was charged two weeks ago
increased the charges against      with failing to report a deer
a New Hartford hunter who          kill within 24 hours, as
posted the killing of a deer       required. He paid a $100 fine
on YouTube.                        by mail.
A spokesman for the                Cruelty to animals is
Connecticut Department of          typically applied to domestic
Energy and Environmental           animals and is a violation of
Protection said Monday that        criminal law. A conviction
Anthony Piana will be charged      carries a penalty of up to
with animal cruelty in             five years in prison and a
addition to violations of          fine of up to $5,000.
hunting rules.                     ___
The Republican American            Information from  :
reports that Piana had no          Republican-American
comment when reached by