Archive - 2011 - News Article
December 9th
WOONSOCKET â Kelley M. Lajoie, 33, of Chicopee, Mass., pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for her participation in the September 2010 robbery and murder of David D. Main, 49, of Woonsocket.
Main, a Shell station manager, was followed as he drove from the gas station to the Citizens Bank on Diamond Hill Road, then robbed and shot to death as he attempted to enter the bank to make a deposit.
Lajoie pleaded guilty to one count each of Hobbs Act conspiracy; aiding and abetting a Hobbs Act robbery; and use of a firearm during a federal crime of violence.
PROVIDENCE â Matt Oriani received the call from his friend, Lincoln Patrolman Kyle Wingate, at about 11:20 a.m., Wednesday.
That's when the officer asked him if he would participate in the Standardized Field Sobriety Tests instruction course, otherwise known as a live alcohol wet lab, being taught at the Providence Police Academy, located on Chad Brown Street.
Oriani acquiesced, and â less than 50 minutes later â he began drinking light beer.
December 8th
CUMBERLAND â Two townsmen were arrested Monday and charged with altering the serial numbers on guns believed to have been stolen, police said.
One of the suspects was also charged with illegal possession of cocaine and a knife with a blade longer than three inches.
At around 4:30 Monday morning, police were summoned to Birchwood Drive to investigate a report of suspicious activity. Upon arrival, Sgt. John Cook located a car occupied by Corey Ridolfi, 24, and Jared Lemay, 18, each of whom has a last known address of 20 Green St., Cumberland.
LINCOLN â Facilities Manager and Recycling Coordinator Dave Sale admitted he usually goes away with his wife for Thanksgiving, but they made different plans this year.
As the couple and their daughters' families sat down at the Saylesville home for a magnificent meal, âGrandpaâ Sale looked around him and said, âYou know what makes me so thankful this year? I know 304 families who right now, or sometime this afternoon, will enjoy a beautiful Thanksgiving dinner.
NORTH SMITHFIELD â Despite the recession and the continuing gloomy economic climate, North Smithfield was able to move forward with several economic and social initiatives during 2011, a year Town Administrator Paulette D. Hamilton called "great" in terms of how the town was able to meet the needs of residents.
"This has been a great year for improving the way we interact and respond to town residentsâ needs," Hamilton said recently in her annual state-of-the-town address to the Northern Rhode Island Advisory Group, a small business affiliate of the Chamber of Commerce.
December 6th
WOONSOCKET â In the end, it probably wasn't a surprise to some city observers that an ongoing audit of city finances in 2011 would end up reporting a $2.7 million deficit for fiscal 2011.
The auditing firm, Braver PC, had been working on the School Department's final numbers for fiscal year 2011 last week and indicated it would only have a preliminary finding on Monday, one day prior to inauguration of city officials to the new term of office Tuesday night.
December 5th
PROVIDENCE â Monday was a big day for fighting child abuse in Rhode Island.
The Child Advocacy Center at Day One, the non-profit agency that deals with sexual assault of all kinds, earned re-accreditation from the National Childrenâs Alliance, and Attorney General Peter Kilmartin announced the creation of a special Child Abuse Unit in his office to prosecute the physical and sexual abuse of children.
Even before he took office after last yearâs election, Kilmartin said he noted that âwe have seen a lot of child abuse and child molestation cases.â
December 4th
CUMBERLAND â Remember the guy from Cumberland who fought so diligently to keep open the Valley Falls Post Office?
Despite his valiant attempts to combat both the U.S. Postal Service and the Postal Regulatory Commission, he failed, but he apparently didn't in the hearts and minds of members of the American Postal Workers Union/Rhode Island State Organization.
On Saturday, Nov. 12, APWU/RISO President James Ozanian presented Derrick Watson with a 2011 Community Service Award at Marchetti's Restaurant in Cranston.
The staff at Supreme Pizza in Cumberland (right to left),Rick, Lucy, Willie, Joey, Matt and Sandra, present Sue Tessier MacKenzie, far left, with a pizza â one of many they are donating and serving at the upcoming Italian Buffet Dinner to benefit the Milk Fund. MacKenzie is the organizer of the dinner, which will take place Thursday, Dec. 8, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at the Italian Workingman's Club, 947 Diamond Hill Rd. in Woonsocket.
PROVIDENCE â Twenty-eight state legislators joined with the anti-abortion group Rhode Island Right to Life (RIRTL) Thursday in a court challenge questioning the constitutionality of the Health Benefits Exchange Gov. Lincoln Chafee established by executive order earlier this year to carry out a portion of the federal âObamacareâ healthcare reform law.
