Search

Reports on a land dispute in New Haven, Connecticut between police officer Charles Gargano and Lawrence Moon Jr., local businessman and supporter of mayor John DeStafano Jr. Offer of Gargano for the purchase of the lot; Rejection of his proposal by the city board after objections by Moon; Questions on political favoritism at the city's Livable City initiative; Other incidents of rejected proposals attributed to favoritism.

Reports that while the case against John G. Rowland may be winding down, with Connecticut's former governor facing 15 to 21 months in prison after his guilty plea, the fate of several of his associates may be in his hands. Possible role as the government's star witness in other corruption cases tied to his administration; Rowland with no obligation to testify against others.

Reports on the closure of the Stamford Town Center in Connecticut after a fire damaged the shopping mall on December 6, 2004.

Reports that Stamford, Connecticut voters have defeated a proposition that would have changed the city's charter to make the mayor and other city officials eligible for pensions.

Reports on Stamford, Connecticut mayor Dannel P. Malloy's decision to open his personal financial records to state prosecutors and to journalists to show that there had been no wrongdoing involving city contractors and work done on his home. Malloy's decision to provide a summary of his income; Malloy's explanation to the prosecutors on how he afforded his house and renovations; Plans of Malloy to run for governor.

Reports that a contractor who worked on the house owned by Stamford , Connecticut Mayor Daniel Malloy has a tax bill with the city going back to 1992 and is associated with a company that got more than a hundred thousand dollars in city contracts. Amount owed by Ronald J. DiSette to the city on back taxes; City records showing that the company owned by DiSette's family, Site-Tech Excavating, also received more than a hundred thousand dollars in work from Stamford officials from 1997 through 2001; Malloy's effort to cooperate with the state inquiry.

Reports on the dispute of the owners of the Curley's diner in Stamford, Connecticut with the city in relation to a property redevelopment. Ownership of the diner by sisters, Maria Aposporos and Eleni Anastos, since 1976; Case won by the sisters in the Connecticut Supreme Court in 2002; Fence erected by the city which eliminated access to the diner's parking space and Dumpsters.

Reports on key controversies pertaining to the bidding for government contracts in Stamford, Connecticut by Mayor Dannel P. Malloy criticizing the mayor for granting contracts to people who supported him in his gubernatorial campaign. Details about the contracts; Criticisms to Malloy's administration; Issues on local administration.

Reports on the controversy surrounding the bidding for nursing home contract in Stamford, Connecticut. Republicans' objection and criticism on the bidding process; Fund-raising event held by one of the bidding companies, Haven Healthcare, for Mayor Dannel P. Malloy.

Reports on the fund raising aimed at helping the victims of a car accident in Stamford, Connecticut involving Guatemalan immigrants. Intended use of the money raised to return the bodies to Guatemala; Results of police investigation on the accident.

Focuses on the forecasts made by political observers in Connecticut about the administration of incoming Governor M. Jodi Rell. Indications that Rell's talk on ethics has already made a favorable impression; Uncertainty on whether Rell will maintain the costly aid to towns and cities by her predecessor John Rowland.

Reports on the Connecticut legislature's inquiry into allegations of political corruption against Governor John G. Rowland. House Select Committee of Inquiry counsel Steven F. Reich and chief investigator James B. Mintz's role in the Rowland inquiry; Lack of evidence connecting Rowland to the Connecticut Juvenile training School in Middletown which was built by Tomasso Brothers.

Discusses the draft report prepared by the House Select Committee of Inquiry concerning Connecticut Governor John G. Rowland's admission hat he lied about renovations to his Litchfield cottage being provided by people working for or doing business with the state. Allegations on Rowland's knowledge of the unfair advantage given to project contractor, William A. Tomasso; Testimonies of Rowland's executive assistants, Kathleen Mengacci and Christine Corey; Former judge Nicholas Cioffi's testimony against Rowland relating to the development of the Connecticut Juvenile Training School.

This article looks at how states spend the money they get from tobacco companies as part of a court settlement and says that Connecticut took in $140 million in 2007 and spent none of it on smoking prevention measures. Too often the money goes to stadiums, sprinkler systems and the like when some reasonable proportion should be used to help smokers quit and prevent younger people from taking up the habit.

The article focuses on a dilemma confronting the United Methodist Church of Cheshire, Connecticut. The socially and politically active church has been a center of opposition to capital punishment. On July 23, 2007, parishioner Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her two daughters were murdered, and two men awaiting trial for the crime face the death penalty. The congregation has kept silent on the issue out of concern for the sole family survivor, husband William Petit.

The article reports on the overcrowded prisons in the state of Connecticut. The Willard-Cybulski Correctional Institution once had 50 beds but is holding 118 as of the year 2007. The prison system is so overcrowded that it is testing the state's resolve to become tougher on criminals, according to the article. President of a correction officers union Jon Pepe, believes the officers are trying to manage a crisis population. Details are given for the effects of the Cheshire murders on parolees.

The article reports on a Stamford, Connecticut day care which was closed by the state's Dept. of Public Health and the Dept. of Children and Family when the 14-year-old daughter of the owner, Collette A. Barnes, was found solely responsible for seven children, while Barnes was in Florida. Barnes faces eight counts of risk of injury to a minor and eight counts of reckless endangerment in the second degree. The parents of the children who attended the day care believe state officials overreacted.

The article discusses convicted felon Joshua Komisarjevsky who is charged multiple murders, sexual assault, and arson in connection with a home invasion in Cheshire, Connecticut. He has a long criminal history dating back to his teenage years. He was paroled early contrary to his sentencing in 2002 for a string of burglaries.

This article presents information about how a new Connecticut state law might help to save a youth prison that opened in 2001 and was built under Governor John G. Rowland's administration. The prison needs extensive repairs to remain functional and it will receive a $40 million cash infusion because of the change in the law which governs the age at which criminal suspects are charged as adults. Increasing the age to 18 will increase the number of youths staying at the prison.

This article reports that a burglary the day before the triple murder in Cheshire, Connecticut was done by Joshua Komisarjevsky and Steven J. Hayes, the two men charged in the triple murder. Ron Bergamo, who lives about four miles from the site of the murders, reported that some money and credit cards were stolen from his home. Komisarjevsky and Hayes led the police to a dumpster where the credit cards were found. Prosecutors will use the additional burglary in arguing for the death penalty.

This article reports on the background of suspect Joshua Komisarjevsky who is charged with killing a physician's family during a home invasion in Cheshire, Connecticut. Komisarjevsky came from an illustrious family of achievers but privilege did not prevent the crime. Komisarjevsky and accomplice Stephen J. Hayes are charged with 13 felony counts in the brutal crime which killed the wife and two children of Dr. William Petit Jr. The state has not decided whether or not to seek the death penalty in the case.

This article describes the problems a group of Roman Catholic nuns in Darien, Connecticut have run into since a fire in July 2006 alerted local fire officials that the guesthouse run by the nuns did not meet the state fire code. The sisters say they will need over a $1 million to make the building comply and to reopen. The deputy fire marshall believes the nuns are running a bed and breakfast and that they might need to comply with even stricter standards for hotels.

This article describes how city officials in Stratford, Connecticut were forced to order vacationers to leave the city-owned property that is part of a peninsula that lies between Long Island Sound and a bay. Summer residents who had stayed in properties leased over the years from Stratford on the beach were told to leave because an access bridge had burned making it very difficult to get supplies and emergency equipment to the area.

The article focuses on the emergence of Greenwich, Connecticut as a destination for U.S. presidential candidates seeking to raise campaign funds. Nearly all the leading candidates have held fund-raisers there. Greenwich is one of the most affluent communities in the nation. Hosting a campaign fund-raiser has become fashionable there. The wealthy persons courted by the candidates enjoy the access to a potential president.

This article discusses racial balance in Greenwich, Connecticut schools. The article notes that Greenwich has long been a predominantly Caucasian and wealthy town, and that busing programs have been installed to give minority children an opportunity to attend Greenwich schools. The impact of these busing programs on Greenwich's community is also discussed.

This article discusses the legal charge of "failure to appear." The article notes that such criminal charges are being challenged in Connecticut during 2007, as nearly one in every ten cases not involving motor vehicles in the state from 2001-2006 ended in "failure to appear" convictions. The case of Ayanna Khadijah, who was charged with "failure to appear" in 2003, is being used as a test case.

This article describes the paintings on the unsightly traffic signal control boxes in and around Stamford, Connecticut. Artists have painted nearly 50 of the city's 190 boxes in the experiment to beautify the graffiti-covered installations. The artwork, at first, was subdued, with the boxes blending in with the landscape, but now artists are becoming bolder and are beginning to draw scenes and items that evoke feelings and humor.

This article profiles the Democratic candidate for the Connecticut Senate race, Ned Lamont. Lamont beat out incumbent Joe Lieberman in the democratic primary, prompting Lieberman to run independently. Lamont's success was from a focused effort to highlight Lieberman's decision to support the Iraq war. But since the primary, Lamont has struggled to define himself as a qualified candidate and as a "Washington outsider." INSET: Profile.

The author reports that U.S. Senator Joseph I. Lieberman of Connecticut, who is facing his first serious reelection challenge in 18 years, has sought to brand his opponent Ned Lamon as a wealthy dilettante who is trying to buy his way into office. Details related to Lieberman's recent campaign advertisements are reviewed. The author suggests that Lamont's business career shows that he has clearly benefited from his family's wealth.

This article discusses a legal battle over hickory trees in Milford, Connecticut. Milford resident Una Glennon has asked the town to remove three hickory trees from her front yard, due to the fact that her grandson is highly allergic to hickory nuts. Glennon's neighbors have criticized Glennon, saying that removal of the trees will lessen the beauty of the neighborhood.

This article discusses the admission of Bridgeport, Connecticut mayor John M. Fabrizi that he used cocaine and abused alcohol during his mayoral tenure. Fabrizi punished himself with at least 100 hours of community service and would donate $5,400 to the city. Fabrizi also plans to write letters of apology to U.S. president George W. Bush, U.S. first lady Laura Bush, and Connecticut governor M. Jodi Rell.

The article reports on the cocaine and alcohol use of Bridgeport, Connecticut's mayor John M. Fabrizi. Fabrizi admitted to problems with alcohol and drugs during a press conference on June 20, 2006. His announcement followed speculation that Fabrizi had used drugs with another Democratic elected official. Fabrizi wishes to continue his term; he is up for re-election in 2007.

The article discusses Morton Morrison, a 94-year-old man from Connecticut who still drives his car. Morrison is a driving coach for the AARP and teaches elderly people how to continue driving as they age and when to think about giving up driving. The fact that Connecticut has no additional requirements on renewals for older drivers is examined.

The article focuses on the murder of real estate developer and Andrew M. Kissel, who had been accused of fraud before his death, in Greenwich, Connecticut in April 2006. Greenwich police chief James A. Walters says that Kissel was likely the intentional target of homicide, and not the victim of a random crime, given that no signs of robbery or forced entry have been found.

The article discusses home building in Greenwich, Connecticut, Connecticut's richest town. Hedge fund manager Joseph M. Jacobs submitted plans for a nearly 40,000 square foot residence, making the proposed structure the largest house in the city. Local residents criticize the project, claiming that the home is too big even for Greenwich.

This article discusses the claims of three Greenwich, Connecticut women who leveled racism charges against the town after being denied access to the beach. Town officials say they were merely enforcing rules that limit group access to the beach, but official bureaucratic e-mails suggest otherwise. Beach access in Greenwich has been limited in the past.

The article reports on a U.S. government secret that was revealed because the government had left clues throughout court records. U.S. federal investigators did not want the public to know they had requested confidential information about library use in Connecticut from an organization called Library Connection. But as the federal government was arguing in court that it needed to keep Library Connection's name a secret, it left the organization's name throughout court records. Government censors had applied black splotches to the court records to erase the identity of the organization, but the censors missed the organization's name. INSET: Slipshod Censorship.

Reports that E. Forbes Smiley III was charged with larceny in the first degree when he removed from a book in the Beinecke Library at Yale an antique map valued by the university at $150,000. Discovery of a fragile map from a book by Capt. John Smith in Mr. Smiley's inside jacket pocket; Appearance of other maps, worth more than $700,000, in Mr. Smiley's briefcase; Claim by Mr. Smiley that he is not guilty and that the maps were his and that he was simply comparing them to others at the library; Reference to embarrassing incidents at other prestigious and elite collections.

Reports on problems at a Nike swim camp, held at Fairfield University in Connecticut. Suggestion that nine young campers had to use a barricaded dormitory room for protection when counselors started drinking heavily; How swim coach William Farley handled the investigation after the incident was reported to him by campus security officers; Why the Fairfield police did not bring charges and closed the case; Details of an e-mail messages sent to parents by camp officials; Comment of Police Lt. Chris Lyddy about Mr. Farley's son, James, being escorted off campus.

Profiles mystery writer Peter Spiegelman, a former vice president of J. P. Morgan. How financial freedom allowed Spiegelman to enjoy the writer's life and write crime novels, short stories and poems in Ridgefield, Connecticut; Comments of Spiegelman, who invented a superhero as a child; Mention of his books "Black Maps" and its sequel "Death's Little Helpers"; How Spiegelman's fiction has Wall Street and New York City institutions as a common motif; Creation of his protagonist, a private eye named John March; Ways that Spiegelman's success is having an impact on those around him.

Focuses on Project Choice in Westport, Connecticut. The experience of Alexis Miller and Nathan Martinez who live in Bridgeport and won a lottery to attend school in Westport; Data explaining the differences in the school districts; The number of children from poor cities that participate in Project Choice; Pros and cons of Project Choice; The 1989 lawsuit that led to Project Choice; Reimbursement for transportation.

Reports that state legislators are leaning toward enacting far-reaching changes throughout Connecticut's public schools. State debate over junk food in schools; Decision by New Haven's schools to banish candy, sodas and vending machines and replace them with healthier choices; Roles of Donald E. Williams Jr., the Senate president pro tem, and Lucy Nolan, executive director of End Hunger Connecticut, a nonprofit advocacy group concerned with nutrition; Outlook for passage of a Senate bill that could end up as the toughest law in the country; Details of the bill, which addresses childhood obesity; Opposition to the bill by Republicans.

Reports that Connecticut's public schools would be banned from selling soft drinks and certain snacks during the school day under a proposal facing a final vote in the legislature. Details of the proposed bill, which represents the most far-reaching effort by any state to control the diet of students; Debate over the bill.

Reports that church leaders at the St. Thomas's Episcopal Church in the East Rock section of New Haven (Conn.) have announced they will perform no marriage ceremonies at all as a protest to the Episcopal Church's refusal to allow same-sex marriages. Compromises that have been offered to gay couples at some Episcopal churches; Comments from the Reverend Michael F. Ray of the church regarding the decision to perform no marriage ceremonies at all; Excerpts from the letter written by Ray to parishoners; Discussion of the issues involved, including homosexuality; Speculation about the impact of the decision on the parishoners at St. Thomas's.

Discusses the controversy surrounding the construction of the state-of-the-art institution to house and care for difficult youngster in Connecticut. Total cost of the residence; Criticism on how the Connecticut Juvenile Training School was planned and constructed; Revelation of weaknesses in state contracting safeguards; Possibility of manipulation of the process by the administration of Governor John Rowland.

Offers a look at the debate over whether to name a bridge after activist Ruth Steinkraus-Cohen in Connecticut. Her support for the United Nations; Claim that she promoted anti-American sentiment over the war in Iraq; Discussion of Steinkraus-Cohen's involvement in the community as a patron of the arts; Comments by the state representative who pushed through the legislation, G. Kenneth Bernhard.

The article reports on the U.S. Senate election in Connecticut.

The article reports on the fledging system of public campaign finance in Connecticut wherein U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy Jr. spoke against the way money pollutes the political process in the state.

The article reports on an incident involving a Connecticut state trooper who shot and killed a man who was attacking fellow bus passengers with a knife, which injured other two passengers.

The article reports on the theft case at the Anderson Farms, the family farm of Christopher Anderson in Wethersfield, Connecticut in July 2014 wherein suspects Carlos E. Pacheco and Efrain Pacheco were charged with larceny.