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Everything Is Going UP!!!
May 13, 2008
Bad when we are talking gas and food prices…Good when it’s your 401-k and afternoon temps. Here is a thought, It’ll be warm enough tomorrow to leave the gas loving car in the driveway and bike to work. Good for your waist and your wallet.
We should have sun for most of the day Wednesday, a nice breeze and a high in the upper 70s. By late in the day clouds should increase and we have a pretty fair chance of showers and maybe a thunderstorm tomorrow night. Possibly a leftover shower Thursday morning then back to sun by afternoon but we fall back to normal temps in the mid 60s.
Friday, Saturday and Sunday will be cooler…much cooler. How does 55 grab you? And at least a 30% chance of showers through the period. We won’t have a ton of sun, either…it looks to be mostly cloudy into Monday.
Watch me at 6pm, 10pm, 10:30pm and 11pm for details.
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Murderer’s Guilty Plea Will Stand
May 13, 2008
Convicted killer Michael Bodah will not be allowed to withdraw his guilty plea in the death of his ex-wife.
Bodah had challenged his conviction on the grounds that his public defender allegedly gave him incorrect advice when he accepted a plea bargain for second-degree murder.
In a four page decision, Judge Jerry Richards denied Bodah’s request to vacate his plea.
The judge’s ruling said Bodah “failed to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that his plea was not knowingly and voluntarily entered.”
Read more background on the case.
Feedback: ‘Helping Hands’ Part 1
May 13, 2008
Teressa Vardano lives in a camper on the Gulf Coast of Mississippi.
Her five grandchildren frequently visit her in her camper, which was meant to be a temporary setup after Hurricane Katrina destroyed her home.
Repairing her old home was too much for one person and she spent nearly two years looking for help.
But, Teressa says her luck started to change about a year ago.
That’s when she met a church group from Ogdensburg, New York, volunteering to help Katrina victims in Gulfport, Mississippi.
“I can’t explain it. It is very overwhelming,” said Teressa.
The latest visit last week marked the third trip members of Ogdensburg’s First Presbyterian Church have made in a year to see Teressa Vardano.
It’s the fifth trip the group has made to Mississippi.
“These people deserve to have this house finished,” said Nancy Skiff, one of the Ogdensburg volunteers.
With the help of new friends from a place Teressa had never even heard of, the job is getting done.
“My job is to make a tiny dent in helping these people regain a normal lifestyle,” said Dorothy Sharlow, an Ogdensburg volunteer.
Because of another week of work from the volunteers, Teressa is getting ready to move into her home.
For more information on the volunteer’s organization, go to www.pcusa.org/pda.
See Part 1 of Alexandra Field’s report:
Share your thoughts. Use the form below to send your comment to Diane Rutherford for the Your Turn segment on 7News. You must include your name, e-mail address and phone number for your comment to be considered. Your personal information will not be posted to the website - this form sends an e-mail. Your comment can be kept anonymous if you so request.
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Ouch! Gas Hits $4 Mark
May 13, 2008
It was just a matter of time before it happened.
The price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline hit the $4 mark at a full-service gas station in Jefferson County Tuesday.
At Chris’s Service Station in the village of Clayton, gas costs $4.02.
Owner Chris Rhinebeck says he purchased the fuel at $3.85 per gallon and has numerous expenses to make ends meet.
He wants customers know he’s not gouging them at the pump.
“If they actually saw our costs, our facts of what we have to pay for the product, they would know that’s not the case,” said Rhinebeck.
On Monday, regular unleaded fuel cost $3.89 a gallon.
Rhinebeck said his competitors offer cheaper gas, but he’s able to keep customers who’ll pay the extra cost for full-service, which his rivals don’t offer.
At the same time, he realizes the price at the pump is tough to take.
“The price affects everybody from the 16 year old kid that just got his license to the 80 year old lady that is on Social Security. It hurts everybody,” said Rhinebeck.
He said he charges about 20 cents more than what it costs him to buy a gallon of gas just to make a profit.
See our report:
Former Mill Catches Fire…Again
May 13, 2008
Over the past few years, it has become known as a place prone to fires.
Tuesday afternoon, crews were called out to the former Champion Mill in Deferiet again.
Fire officials said the blaze started as crews were working to demolish the building.
It’s unknown what exactly sparked the blaze.
The property has earned a reputation for being prone to this sort of emergency.
Over the past three years, the former mill has caught fire four or five times.
“That’s a problem that we’re looking into at this point. We’re trying to find out legal obligations. There’s federal situations involved with OSHA as well as some village ordinances and county possibly, but we’re not real sure at this time that that’s being pursued,” said Joe Plummer of Jefferson County Emergency Management.
No one was hurt in the fire.
County officials are still investigating.
Feedback: St. Lawrence County Sheriff’s Department Investigating Homicide
May 13, 2008
A 31 year old St. Lawrence County man was killed early Tuesday morning and investigators say the homicide initially appears to be drug-related.
Officials said Daniel Simonds had been shot once in the lower torso at a home at 649 Porter Lynch Road in the town of Stockholm.
The sheriff’s department said emergency dispatchers received a 911 call at approximately 12:40 a.m.
They said a female caller reported that several people broke into her home and that her boyfriend, Simonds, had been attacked and shot.
According to investigators, the woman said the suspects fled the home in two dark colored SUVs.
One vehicle was described as a Tahoe and the other as a Suburban.
The SUVs were reportedly headed in the direction of Brookdale Road.
There were others in the house at the time of the shooting, including children, but they did not witness the incident and all were unharmed, authorities said.
Simonds was transported to Fletcher-Allen Medical Center in Burlington, Vermont, and died shortly after 7 a.m. Tuesday.
An autopsy will be performed on the body.
“We expect to be on scene throughout most of today and tomorrow and ask anyone with any information…contact local law enforcement agencies,” Sheriff Kevin Wells said.
The Sheriff’s department isn’t sure how many people were involved in the incident, however they are looking for a group of subjects and were told that at least one of the persons of interest could have ties to the Canadian side of the Mohawk Reservation.
Mona Chapman, a neighbor of the Simonds’ residence, said that she and others were suspicious of activities at the house, but were not sure what was going on.
“Early mornings, late evenings, a lot of nice vehicles, it was questionable. There was obviously something going on and money was involved,” she said.
The investigation is on-going.
The St. Lawrence Sheriff’s Department phone number is (315) 379-2222.
John Friot reports:
Share your thoughts. Use the form below to send your comment to Diane Rutherford for the Your Turn segment on 7News. You must include your name, e-mail address and phone number for your comment to be considered. Your personal information will not be posted to the website - this form sends an e-mail. Your comment can be kept anonymous if you so request.
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Update: Teen Finds Dog That Bit Him
May 13, 2008
The dog that bit a Jefferson County teen has been found.
Now, 18 year old Justin Cole of Calcium is waiting to find out if the dog has rabies.
If the dog does have the virus, Justin will have to get rabies shots.
It all started Sunday evening between 7:30 and 8 p.m. on the Calcium Nature Trail.
Justin was jogging when a dog nipped him in the thigh.
Justin never thought to ask the owners if the dog had been vaccinated against rabies.
He said a couple in their 60s had been walking two dogs that were not on leashes.
One of the dogs, described as a brown and white animal resembling a bulldog, bit Justin.
The dog answered to the name ‘Sheika’.
Justin needed to find the dog before Wednesday or else he would have to receive rabies shots.
Immediately after our Monday 11 p.m. report, the dog’s owner got in touch with Justin.
Since our report, the Jefferson County Dog Control officer has confined the dog and will observe the animal for the next ten days.
If the dog exhibits symptoms of rabies, it will be tested.
If the animal tests positive for the virus, Justin will receive the vaccine.
County Public Health Specialist Jeff Leiendecker said rabies is only contagious if the animal has the virus in its saliva, which happens in the end stages of the animal’s illness.
Under guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and the State Health Department, an animal without a rabies vaccination that bites a human must be confined and observed.
The human does not immediately receive rabies shots because of the risks associated with the vaccine.
Shots are only administered to humans if the animal has rabies.
See Caroline Tucker’s report from 11 p.m. Monday:
Judge Rules Bates Is Competent To Stand Trial
May 13, 2008
A man accused of wounding a state trooper in a gun battle on an Adirondack back road last summer has been ruled competent to stand trial.
In making the ruling, a Franklin County judge dismissed Brent Bates’ claims that he had amnesia at the time of the confrontation with two state troopers in Tupper Lake last August 9.
The 50 year old Plattsburgh man is accused of opening fire on the troopers as they checked him out after finding him parked on a remote road in the middle of the night.
One of the troopers suffered a leg wound and has since recovered.
Bates suffered a gunshot wounds to the stomach and jaw.
He was in a coma for a month after the shooting.
Bates claims he can’t remember anything about the night of the shooting and has no memories from as far back as late 2006.
North Country To See Increase In Military Flight Training
May 13, 2008
Fort Drum announced Tuesday that the Syracuse-based 174th Fighter Wing will increase its night flying training activity south of Watertown and Fort Drum during the month of May.
Carthage, Lowville and Gouverneur, communities which usually see plenty of military aircraft, will also be affected.
The flying is to train pilots for missions they will fly later this year, while deployed overseas in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom.
The 174th Fighter Wing routinely uses Fort Drum and Wheeler-Sack Army Airfield for training operations.
According to Fort Drum, north country residents may notice an increase in the amount of night flying which is normal during the spring and summer months.
However, because of the very demanding flying environment deployed pilots will be operating in, the additional day and night training is essential.
The increased training will ensure that pilots are safe and proficient in all aspects of the mission prior to deploying later this year, Fort Drum said.
Academic All-Star: Dale McKay
May 13, 2008
This week’s Academic All-Star is Dale McKay.He is from Colton-Pierrepont Central School, where he participates in numerous activities and athletics while maintaining a high grade point average.
Dale plans to attend St. Lawrence University after receiving a prestigious scholarship.
See his interview with Jeff Cole:
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