Mon 11 P.M. News Script

Mon 08-MAR-2010 11 P.M. News Script

1} MEETINGS_LVSD

Good evening... I'm Kristin Kelly. And I'm Melinda Davenport -- Darren Perron has the night off. A southern Vermont school board is protesting the way the state is conducting a series of meetings aimed at cutting education expenses. The meetings are being held behind closed doors - and the Dover School Board says that it's undemocratic. Bianca Slota has more now from the newsroom. Bianca? Kristin, Melinda .... The meetings are part of the recently signed "Challenges for Change" law - which asks for creative approaches to budget challenges. The Dover School Board wants them to be open - but the state says there's a good reason they're not.

2} MEETINGS_PKG

A group of state employees - teachers - school superintendents ...and more - met Monday afternoon in Montpelier for the first of seven meetings. They are the Education Design Team - tasked with reducing administrative expenses while achieving better outcomes. Earlier in the day - members of the Dover School Board sent a letter to the state's education commissioner demanding the meetings open to the public. (( PHONER tc 1:30 - :46)) (( Laura Sibilia, Dover School Board: "There's potentially some really transformative things that are being considered, or that have been asked to be considered by the legislature and we think those should be deliberated in the open.")) Tom Evslin - who is overseeing the education design team - and the 10 others like it across state departments - says the meetings are behind closed doors so they will spark more creative thinking. (( tc 2:35 - :48 Tom Evslin, Vt. Chief Technology Officer: "If from the very beginning you're saying "boy am I going to sound like an idiot if I make that suggestion?" then you can't really think, and so it's an opportunity perhaps for people to have dumb ideas, for people to fight about ideas.")) Each of the teams falls under the new Challenges for Change law passed by the legislature a few weeks ago. It seeks to streamline government and save money. The Dover School Board is worried that in education talk that means consolidation. (( PHONER tc 3:43 - :49)) (( Laura Sibilia: "There will have to be consolidation considerations in order to find those administrative costs.")) The design team has to submit its ideas to lawmakers in two weeks - and that's when Evslin says the public will have its chance to weigh in on the proposals. (( tc 4:46)) ((Tom Evslin: It's not that they're being shut out of the process.")) Evslin also consulted with the Attorney General's office - which concluded the state's open meeting law does not apply to the design team - because it doesn't have the power to make a decision. Its simply an advisory panel.

3} MEETINGS_TAG

The Dover School Board also requested that it be allowed to see any documents the design team uses to make its decisions. Evslin says they will comply with that request and make the documents public. Kristin... thank you bianca ...

4} REVENUES_FONT

Vermont's economy is still stalled. New state revenue numbers surprised officials -- who were already bracing for some bad news. The General fund came in nearly ten-million dollars short of projections for February. That's an 18-percent shortfall. And -- three of the four major tax categories all well below fiscal 0-9. Personal income tax revenue is off nearly 13-percent -- as Vermonters' incomes shrink.

5} LUNDERVILLE_SOTVO

((at 4601, Neale Lunderville/Administra tion Secretary: The Vermont economy and the recovery is still very fragile. Its clear that families and businesses are still struggling and what we anticipated would be a little bit more growth in the first part of this year we haven't seen yet.)) Lunderville says the ten million dollar shortfall in the General Fund will force budget writers to prioritize even more. They are already trying to find 150-million dollars in savings for next year's budget.

6} CREDIT_VO

Burlington Telecom's outstanding debt -- is now affecting the City's credit rating. Moody's Investors services knocked Burlington's rating down two notches today -- after concerns over BT's inability to repay 17 million dollars in debt -- which it borrowed from city coffers. If BT cannot repay the money -- experts say the City may face long-term cash flow issues. Mayor Bob Kiss says it is critical to move quickly in finding a solution to the financial mess. Moody's will review the City's finances again in 90 days.

7} IRV2_VO

Montpelier will listen to Burlington voters on I-R-V. Queen City residents decided to repeal the instant runoff voting system. But -- it requires a charter change -- and that needs legislative approval. Some IRV supporters had talked of tabling the issue until next session -- to try to bring the issue back to the voters. But legislative leaders will move forward on the charter change.

8} LEADERS_SOTVO

((tape 830 tc 23:33 Sen Shumlin: It's our job to follow the will of the voters and that's what we do here in charter change requests.)) ((tape 830 tc 12:40 Rep Shap Smith: It seems to me that the people of Burlington have spoken on this issue and I would concur with them on their viewpoint.)) In response -- Mayor Bob Kiss says he remains disappointed in the outcome of the IRV vote. But he's leaving it up to lawmakers to decide how they want to handle it.

9} LAWSUIT_INTRO

Chittenden County's top prosecutor is facing accusations that he tried to ruin a police officer's reputation -- and the dispute ended up in court. Jack Thurston reports.

10} LAWSUIT_PKG

A lawsuit filed in Chittenden County Superior Court has the county's elected head prosecutor, T.J. Donovan, on the defense. The suit filed by South Burlington police officer Jack O'Connor claims Donovan spread rumors and innuendos about O'Connor trying to ruin his reputation, used foul and unprofessional language toward him, and threatened to run him out of Chittenden County. ((T.J. DONOVAN/Chittenden County Prosecutor: 1:18: This lawsuit is completely without merit.)) O'Connor also claims Donovan's campaign against him has stymied promotions and the raises that come with them, and says he's the victim of severe emotional distress. He wants the Court to award him money for this distress, and is asking that Donovan stop what he calls interference with his career. Donovan denies having a vendetta against O'Connor: ((JACK THURSTON: 2:02: People may wonder if there are other strained relationships that may impact your ability to prosecute cases. Are there? T.J. DONOVAN: I don't think so. I think over the 3-plus years I've been here, we've done an excellent job working with law enforcement protecting this community and keeping this community and safe and vibrant one for everybody in Chittenden County.)) The accuser Jack O'Connor has himself faced accusations in the past. In 2005 Reverend Rico Diamond claimed racial profiling when O'Connor seized more than 5-thousand dollars in church money he thought came from a drug deal. A jury later cleared O'Connor of racism charges. In his new lawsuit against T.J. Donovan, O'Connor says he has done excellent work as a police officer, always striving to reduce drug dealing in South Burlington. ((T.J. DONOVAN/Chittenden County Prosecutor: 2:47: I just look forward to resolving this issue in Superior Court.)) ((Jack Thurston reporting: I spoke to Jack O'Connor's boss this afternoon. South Burlington Police Chief Trevor Whipple calls this a private issue between two men -- and he would not comment on O'Connor's claims that Donovan has campaigned against the officer... Saying he never comments on personnel matters. Incidentally, Chief Whipple says he has had a professional working relationship with T.J. Donovan. Jt ch 3 btv.))

11} HEALTHCARE_VO

President Obama is putting the heat on lawmakers to set politics aside in a final push to get health care reform through Congress. In our region, New York Congressman Bill Owens has yet to read the revised bill, and is still undecided on how he will vote -- but says there are concerns over the language and content of the legislation.

12} OWENS_SOTVO

(Tape 164 2:01:44) ((Bill Owens D-NY: "My concerns at this point really go to issues related to making sure we cover as many people as possible you know the Senate bill reduced the number that the house bill covered, there's some concern about taxing health care benefits, there's been some modifications made, but I haven't seen the final language of the bill.")) The President is pushing for the House to vote on the reform bill already passed by the Senate -- before he visits Asia next week.

13} GOVERNOR_INTRO

Today -- one of five Democrats officially entered the race for governor. Secretary of State Deb Markowitz is looking to win the democratic primary to face Republican Lieutenant Governor Brian Dubie in the election.

14} GOVERNOR_PKG

((Deb Markowitz/Running for Governor: "I'm running for governor to get things done for Vermont")) In Barre, Vermont Secretary of State Deb Markowitz officially took the stage announcing her candidacy for Governor. Markowitz is entering her twelfth year as Vermont's Secretary of State, a position she's held since 1998. (Tape 000 13:55) ((Deb Markowitz/Running for Governor: "Just like I did as Secretary of State, we need to innovate. We need to change from a culture of red tape and bureaucracy to a culture of customer service.")) Her platform involves helping more than 20,000 out of work Vermonters back on the payroll of local companies, something she claims the Douglas administration has yet to accomplish. (Tape 000 10:36) ((Deb Markowitz/Running for Governor: "These times are different. Tougher and more complex. There's just not enough creative thinking from the legislature -- and the administration -- to address our state's most pressing need. To get Vermont working again.")) (Tape 000 25:40) ((Melinda Davenport/Promo "And Markowitz supporters seem to believe that experience is the key in winning this primary, especially with so many other democrats in the opposition.")) (Tape 000 20:53) ((Tim Briglin/Markowitz Supporter "She's had executive experience for the past twelve years, I think she's done a lot with the secretary of state's office, those are things that I think she can bring to the governor's office.")) (Tape 000 23:05) ((Elke Pinn/Markowitz Supporter "Her experience dealing with small towns. She has a lot of experience dealing with businesses directly.")) As one of five democrats vying for the top spot, she's the only candidate that has not served or is currently serving as a Vermont Senator. Her personality has won over many of her fans. (Tape 000 22:23) ((Elke Pinn/Markowitz Supporter "She's full of integrity. She is a wonderful and energetic person and I think that she'll be the woman to run the state.")) Creating excitement for the Markowitz camp and supporters throughout Vermont.

15} MARYRAY_VO

Mary Ray -- the oldest woman in the US -- and a resident from our region -- has died. Ray lived in Westmoreland New Hampshire. She passed away there Sunday at a nursing home. She was 114 years and 294 days old. Ray was the oldest person in America -- and just seven days younger than a Japanese woman -- who is the oldest person in the world.

16} 2WAY

Coming up -- Will voters in Claremont approve a major high school expansion? plus, JetBlue offers up TEN dollar flights -- we'll have the details... It was a nice start to the workweek today with plenty of sunshine and temperatures in a few spots reaching the low 50s. The great weather rolls right into the middle of the week with more sunshine on the way. Here's the wake up weather. Sunny and cool to start the day on Tuesday. Temperatures will be in the low to mid 20s. We may have some rain on the way by the end of the week. The complete forecast is coming up..

17} SNOWMOBILEAX_MAP

New details in a fatal snowmobile crash over the weekend in Northern New York. Police now say Everett Willis fell from the his snowmobile and was struck by another snowmobile driven by Todd Harrigan of New York. No charges have been filed -- as police are waiting for the results of a blood analysis of Harrigan. Roger Wilcox of Brainardsville - was charged with operating a snowmobile while intoxicated -- though he was not involved in the accident.

18} TIBBETTS_FONT

The man charged with a string of devastating fires in Berlin, New Hampshire -- has been confined to a psychiatric hospital. Police say Kerry Tibbetts targeted buildings where he spent time as a child and admitted he set the fires -- to relieve stress. A judge ruled Tibbetts incompetent for trial and a danger to the public. Tibbetts will spend the next five years at the secure psychiatric unit at the Concord state prison.

19} MUSEUM_VO

The Lake Champlain Maritime Museum is moving closer to being the third tenant for Burlington's Moran Plant redevelopment project. The Museum's main location would remain in Ferrisburgh -- but a satellite display would be housed in the Plant. A City Council committee made the recommendation to the mayor and city economic development office -- after looking at four possible applicants. An ice climbing wall -- and the community sailing center are also slated to fill the space.

20} SCHOOL_VO

Tomorrow is town meeting day in New Hampshire -- And in Claremont a big renovation project at the high school is on the ballot. The plan calls for new science, music, and English wings. It will also make the high school 100-percent handicapped accessible and more energy efficient. Its estimated cost is nearly 23-million dollars -- with 60-percent covered by the state.

21} RENOVATION_SOTVO

((Jacqueline Guillette//SAU 6: "Everyone knows that Claremont has been working like crazy for the last eight or ten years and trying to reinvigorate, reinvent itself. Education is a key piece of a community's economic development. And when new people come to Claremont and want to look at and tour our high school, they know that they feel caring in and they see good education but they also know that they see an amazingly tired, old building.")) The project needs approval from 60 percent of the voters to pass.

22} JETBLUE_VO

Looking to catch a flight to New York in the next 48 hours?? Jetblue is offering TEN dollar flights. The low cost carrier is celebrating its tenth anniversary -- by offering travel between New York -- and the first ten cities that signed on with the airline when it started. Burlington is one of those cities. But you need to hurry -- the discount is only available until 12:59-AM tonight -- and applies only to flights for Tuesday and Wednesday that still have seats available.

23} WX

24} FORECAST

Tonight: Becoming mostly clear. Lows: 20/28 Winds: Light Tuesday: Mostly sunny. Highs: 40/47 Winds: N 5-10 mph Tuesday Night: Clear skies. Lows: 18/25 Winds: Light Wednesday: Sunny skies. Highs: 40/47 Winds: Light Extended: Thursday through Monday. Thursday: Partly sunny. Highs 43/50 Lows 28/35 Friday: Periods of rain, mixing with snow showers, esp. Friday night. Highs 40/47 Lows 33/40 Saturday: Periods of rain. Highs 40s Lows 30s Sunday: Chance of rain showers. Highs 40s Lows 30s Monday: Partly sunny. Highs 40s

25} WX_OUT

26} SIMULATOR_INTRO

In a medical emergency -- seconds count -- and mistakes can be deadly. That means training is critical. Kate Duffy reports on a new high-tech tool aimed at advanced training.

27} SIMULATOR_PKG

(nats) Doctors and nurses swing into action-- as a patient with a gun shot wound is wheeled into Fletcher Allen's Emergency Department. (nats) The patient and the gun shot are simulated, but the response is real. (14:06-16 dr jake wagner/fahc senior surgical resident)((we got an iv in, we got fluids going, we got monitors on, blood pressure cuff, very very rapidly. what we're doing is assessing the patient, figuring out what's wrong and trying to fix it as fast as you can.)) Doctors and nurses are using this high-tech mannequin to train for real-life emergencies. (18:30-40 wagner)((this guy just doesn't do gunshot wounds, he does cardiac arrest, motor vehicle trauma, unlimited possibilities.)) (23:13-22 kate)((the medical school has used simulators like this for the past five or six years, but this one is much more high-tech. doctors say it gives them tremendous detail, down to the dilation of the pupils.)) (14:57-15:06 wagner)((you get responses to what you do so, when you intubate this gentleman his vital signs instantly change, if you give pain medicine they change and you kind of get that continuous feedback.)) Doctors and nurses aren't the only ones training on this mannequin. About 80 medics from the Vermont National Guard are learning to treat emergencies they'll see when they deploy to Afghanistan. (22:40-57 brig gen steve cray/vt air national guard)((you can only read practical exercises so much, when you have hands-on training, it's kind of that muscle memory kind of thing where you've seen this before and it really sinks into your mind. i can remember, i get into this situation again, i know what i'm going to do.)) Senator Patrick Leahy secured $1-point-7 million to buy eight high-tech mannequins -- and says partnerships like this are critical when budgets are tight. (12:24-36 sen patrick leahy/d-vermont)((the guard can't do this alone, the hospital can't do this alone. you can work together on it and the bottom line then is all of us here in vermont benefit by that.)) Training that will save lives -- in the battlefield or the emergency room. Kate Duffy, Channel 3 News, Burlington.

28} KIM_SOTVO

Dartmouth Idol -- an annual singing contest at Dartmouth College -- was capped off Friday night with a surprise performance by a familiar face of campus. ((nats: "and rot inside a corps shell ...Kim dancing on stage...)) President Jim Yong Kim joined students on stage for the college's version of Thriller -- a music video made famous by Michael Jackson. Kim was dressed in a leather jacket, white socks, and the signature Michael Jackson glove. The audience rose to their feet as Kim danced around the stage for the impromptu routine. Mahy in the audience said President Kim stole the show from the night's official winner -- Dartmouth Junior Dan Van Deusen.

29} SPORTS

30} UVM_HOOPS_INTRO

Who needs spring break?.... Both the Vermont men's and women's basketball teams will happily forego the mid-semester respite in order to prepare for the America East conference championship games this Saturday.... And as Mike McCune tells us, their success in the conference tournament was due in large part to the undying support of Catamount Country....

31} UVM_HOOPS_PKG

Make a quick scan of the University of Hartford's Chase Arena Sunday and you might see a sampling of Seawolves...a troup of Terriers...or a handful of host Hawks ...but everywhere you looked, the one thing you couldn't miss was the green and gold of the Catamounts. --- Well over 500 UVM fans made the trip down to Hartford for the tournament and players on both teams said that fan support was crucial... --- ((Courtnay Pilypaitis/UVM Guard/"All four years we're had great fan support and I think it was the difference in our game.")) --- ((Marqus Blakely/UVM Forward/"There's probably 75% of the fans at the games throughout the weekend that were Vermont fans and we all appreciate that.")) -- And whether they were difference makers or not, those fans were ready to cheer on both teams to victory yesterday. --- ((Tom Raub/Burlington/"Last night it was like being at a home game instead of an away game. It was all Vermont. You look around today, it's the same thing.")) --- ((Ida McNamara/Colchester/"I t's so much fun. There's so much basketball to watch and they're just great teams, great students."))

32} MATCHUPS_TAKE_CG

So here are the matchups for Championship Saturday .... The Vermont men will look to win their way into the NCAA tournament when they host Boston University at Patrick Gym at noon .... ---- And the UVM women are looking to make their second-straight national tournament appearance, and the berth will be automatic if they take care of Hartford Saturday night at 8:00 ....

33} BEVERLY_WHITE

Some breaking news out of Hartford tonight as Hawks star and America East defensive player of the year Erica Beverly is out for the rest of the season after tearing a ligament in her knee during Hartford's semi-final win over Stony Brook.... More on this breaking story tomorrow....

34} ICE_CATS_TAKE_VO

After a loss and a tie a UMass-Lowell this weekend, the Vermont hockey team drops three spots - from 16th to 19th - in the latest U-S College Hockey online national poll and is tied for 16th in the Pairwise rankings.... The Cats are gearing up for a first-round Hockey East tournament matchup with top-seed New Hampshire in Durham....

35} DIV_3_HOC_TAKE_VO

The national tournament field is set for division 3 and we have a doozy of a quarterfinal matchup .... Middlebury and Plattsburgh will meet at Middlebury's Kenyon Arena this Saturday night with the winner earning a trip to the Frozen Four in Lake Placid next weekend .... These two teams met twice this season .... Plattsburgh took a 3-1 win in the Primelink in November, and most recently, Middlebury earned a 5-3 victory over the Cardinals at home back on February 2nd....

36} CADETS_TAKE_VO

The picture is not yet clear for top-ranked Norwich.... The Cadets have already earned a spot in the national quarterfinals but their opponent will not be decided until Wednesday when Curry and Elmira meet in a first-round game.... The Cadets will take on the winner of that matchup with a berth in Lake Placid on the line.... Norwich beat Curry earlier this season, but has not played Elmira....

37} AUCOIN_TAKE_VO

Former Norwich star Keith Aucoin has signed a two-year contract extension with the Washington Capitals.... Aucoin is currently playing with Washington's A-H-L affiliate, the Hershey Bears, and leads the league in scoring with 84 points on 31 goals and 53 assists....

38} RED_SOX_VO__L3RD_

With the impending conclusion of the winter sports season, that only means one thing.... Baseball season is right around the corner.... Let's check in on some spring training action .... Josh Beckett and the Red Sox taking on the St. Louis Cardinals.... --- Beckett goes three scoreless innings giving up no hits and striking out three.... In five innings this spring, the fireballer has only given up one run.... --- J-D Drew also looking good.... He'll knock this one off the wall in left-center field .... That'll be good for a triple.... The Sox win 7-6....

39} YANKEES_TAKE_VO__L3RD_

Yankees playing a split-squad game today .... This one against Philadelphia.... Robinson Cano with a two-run single off Jose Contreras.... Yanks win this one 7-5 ....

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