WVTK Local & State News June 30, 2011

Vermont law enforcement will be out in force this 4th Of July Weekend with increased activities to include extra patrols and checkpoints. Through Operation C.A.R.E. (Combined Accident Reduction Effort), the Vermont State Police will focus on identifying impaired and aggressive drivers over the weekend. Those who drive impaired and/or aggressively present the highest risks on our highways and have a greater chance of being involved in a motor vehicle crash. Vermont law enforcement strongly urges our citizens and visitors to focus on safe and responsible driving. If you plan to consume alcoholic beverages, please use a designated driver or available public transportation.

Today is a big day for politics in Vermont. First Lady Michelle Obama will swing through the Burlington area for a mix of official and campaign events. Mrs. Obama's visit is about meeting troops and raising cash for President Obama's 2012 campaign. But her trip also means overtime for police departments and traffic delays for drivers. In Burlington, police are warning drivers to avoid Main Street between five and six because of potential traffic problems. Police say there will also be delays around the ECHO center. That's where a second fundraiser will take place tonight.

Vermont State Police are currently investigating multiple larceny complaints from unlocked motor vehicles at Kampersville as well as a vandalism that took place at the park. There are six larceny victims and one vandalism victim. The incident took place between the evening of June 28th and June 29th. Unknown individuals vandalized the Kampersville pool by throwing rocks and deck furniture into the pool. Furniture as well as the pool were both damaged. The case is considered active and police are pursuing leads provided. Anyone with information concerning this incident is asked to contact Vermont State Police in New Haven. (802-388-4919)

The Vermont State Police in Williston are investigating a rash of car thefts in the Town of Charlotte that occurred some time between 10PM on June 28th and 6AM on June 29th. Several vehicles on Spear Street and Greenbush Road in Charlotte were rummaged through and had numerous items stolen to include GPS's, IPODS, small electronics, and loose change. Anyone who has any information or who saw anything suspicious or out of the ordinary please contact the Williston State Police Barracks. (802-878-7111) All of the vehicles that were stolen from were unlocked. The Vermont State Police encourage you to keep your vehicles and homes locked to deter criminal activity.

A new report blames problems at the Vermont Police Academy on a lack of leadership. Issues arose at the Pittsford-based academy following the resignation of executive director R.J. Elrich. He stepped down in 2010 shortly after he and training coordinator David McMullen were targeted in an internal investigation. Just days later McMullen committed suicide on the academy grounds. Retired state police director James Baker conducted the investigation. He says the resignation and suicide sent the academy and staff into chaos and turmoil.

A former state Department for Children and Families supervisor who says she has a gambling addiction is being sentenced for her role in a $490,000 embezzlement scheme. 47-year-old Kathy Lantagne, of Charleston, got the state to issue more than 250 checks that she and her sister then cashed, keeping the proceeds. She pleaded guilty in March to mail fraud, theft from a program that receives federal funds and filing a false tax return. She's being sentenced Thursday in federal court in Rutland.

Rutland City police are warning residents on or near Dorr Drive to lock their doors following a series of burglaries that took place in occupied homes this week. Rutland Police Detective Robert Gorruso said police are investigating four burglaries in the area. Three that took place Monday night while the other took place over the weekend. Anyone with information about the burglaries is asked to call Gorruso. (773-1816)

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is looking to hire up to ten temporary workers in Vermont as a part of a program designed to target the unemployed and victims of disasters. FEMA officials swore in the first new hire yesterday. The agency will take applicants through the Vermont Department of Labor website.

A new, 4-year Christian college could be opening its doors in Bennington. A New Hampshire-based nonprofit group created to launch a new Christian college is in talks with Bennington's Grace Christian School to use the upper, unused floors of the school.

A panel adjusting Vermont's state Senate districts to reflect changes in population is recommending the elimination of a seat in the Northeast Kingdom. The seven-member Legislative Apportionment Board approved a plan Wednesday that reduces from four to three the number of state Senate seats representing Orleans, Essex and Caledonia counties. But the decision isn't final. The plan now goes to the Legislature, which has the authority to amend it, approve it or reject it.

A judge says a Democratic advocacy group violated Vermont campaign finance laws by spending over $500,000 on attack ads without registering with the secretary of state, filing required disclosure reports or properly included identification information on its ads. In a ruling Tuesday, Washington Superior Court Judge Geoffrey Crawford found for the state, which filed a civil complaint over Green Mountain Future's spending in last year's gubernatorial race between Democrat Peter Shumlin and Republican Brian Dubie, which Shumlin won.

Officials say 775 acres of Taconic Mountain forestland will be protected near the town of Arlington in southern Vermont. The U.S. Forest Service and The Conservation Fund announced that the Spruce Peak tract will be incorporated into the Green Mountain National Forest. They say the popular area for hunting, hiking, fishing and wildlife viewing contains some of the highest quality northern hardwood forests in Vermont ranging in elevation from 1,300 feet to Spruce Peak at more than 3,000 feet.

Rep. Peter Welch and a Representative from Utah introduced the Geolocation Privacy and Surveillance or GPS Act to the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill says that companies, individuals, and police cannot track your GPS without your consent or a judge appointed search warrant. Welch said the bill is necessary because current privacy laws do not include clear language about GPS devices, which are now common in most modern cell phones. There are some exceptions to the GPS Act where a search warrant is not required. They include allowing parents to track their own children and some emergency situations.

Pfizer has exercised its option to re-acquire the Rouses Point facility from Akrimax and plans on remaining for another two years. The change will mean, however, that about 60 of 400 workers will lose their jobs in the next few weeks, as Akrimax is leaving. Akrimax purchased the facility in January of 2008 from Wyeth Pharmaceuticals. Pfizer then bought Wyeth in October 2009.

Dairy farmers who sell handcrafted cheese at New York farmer's markets say the state is taking the art and the ease out of artisanal cheese. Under a new interpretation of food-processing regulations by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets, vendors at open-air stands must sell only pre-wrapped cheese, rather than cutting off a wedge from a wheel of Cheddar or Gouda.

A new poll shows Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo with high approval ratings among New York voters, including members of the Republican Party and Catholics whose church leaders opposed his successful push last week to legalize gay marriage. The poll shows the overall approval rating for the way Cuomo is handling the job at 64 percent, far higher than ratings for any of six other governors in recent surveys.

Beware of bears and leave them alone! That's the message from the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department. The department has seen a spike in the number of nuisance bear reports, including an attack on woman in Cabot who had been feeding a bear. That's prompted a new state website for everything bears and to report when one becomes a backyard problem. Officials say the bear population is up and bears are moving out of the mountains and foothills into lowland areas.