May 14 / 6:00 pm
Governor proposes rebate for sales taxes
(Hartford-WTNH) _ Governor John Rowland wants to double the odds you'll get a tax rebate this year. He not only wants to double the number of people who get one, and he wants to double the amount of money given back to tax payers. Last summer nearly 960,000 rebate checks went to Connecticut residents. The governor wants that number increased to 2.2 million.
 Chief capitol correspondent Mark Davis reports.
L.O.B. dealing with crumbling marble
(WTNH) _ "Home improvements" are in store at the legislative office building because of some "messy marble". The marble trim on the eleven year old atrium of the $62 million office building is crumbling. The trim in the five story high atrium is made from Spanish marble that a consultant says is flawed. Maintenance workers have chipped away loose pieces and chunks. The problem is especially bad where two pieces of marble are joined together.
Michael Nauer Legis. Management: "It was a flaw in the marble itself and didn't appear until about two to three years ago. We've encapsulated it so it will protect the people below. There's no safety problem.
"We'll begin seeking bids to replace all of the marble with a granite, black granite from probably Vermont or somewhere in the US"
The replacement is expected to cost $800,000. All of the marble is decorative and does not affect the structural integrity of the building.
Teen arrested on child porn charges
(Trumbull-AP) _ A Trumbull teenager has been arrested on child pornography charges. Police say 16-year-old Michael Pospisil has been charged with possession of child pornography that was picked up on the Internet. The arrest stems from an investigation that began earlier this year when federal agents contacted Trumbull police for help executing a search warrant at Pospisil's home. The boy was suspected of downloading child pornography from a Web site set up as a sting operation by federal agents. The case was turned over the local police. The teen has been suspended from Trumbull High School where he is a junior.
Threats and false alarms keeping kids out of class in large numbers
(Hamden-WTNH) _ Getting kids to go to school can sometimes be difficult, and since the shootings in Littleton, Colorado, safety concerns are keeping an increased number of students at home and out of the classroom. But is it because of a real concern over possible violence, or is it becoming a convenient excuse to cut-class? The situation is having a major impact on the end of the school year.
News Channel 8's Verna Collins reports.
Students protest tenure policy
(Middletown-WTNH) _ A number of students at Wesleyan are protesting the schools faculty tenure policy. Students marched to the deans' office Friday protesting what they call 'suspicious incidents concerning the retainment of the faculty of color.' On Monday, African-American studies professor Jeffrey Kerr-Ritchie was denied tenure. Students want the evaluation process investigated.
Alea Mitchell, Sophomore: "They point towards their recruitment efforts and they point towards the rising number of faculty of color on the campus and yet those same faculty members, they are pointing to are not staying. For varying reasons either because they want to leave or because they're being ask to leave."
The dean of the college tells News Channel 8 she's reviewing the students' demands.
Community college opts for downtown site
(Hartford-AP) _ Downtown Hartford is where college officials want to put a community college and higher education center. Yesterday the board of trustees for the state's community-technical colleges voted unanimously to proceed with plans to design and develop a city block just north of the old G.Fox department store on Main Street. The plans are to relocate the Capital Commmunity-Technical College. The Capital City Economic Development Authority is to vote on the selection. The move by the community college is one of the key building blocks in the revitalization of the downtown Hartford area. There has been an increased push to do something since the New England Patriots backed out of plans to move to Hartford.
Nine Connecticut Sears stores among those found with child labor violations
(Washington-AP) _ Nine Sears stores in Connecticut are among 44 stores of the nation's largest department accused of breaking child labor laws. The Labor Department says that around the country, it found 227 children working at Sears in violation of child labor regulations. The department lumps together its findings for Sears stores in Connecticut and Rhode Island, saying a total of 46 minors were found working in violation of the laws. The labor department says the violations in most cases involved young workers who were using power equipment such as paper balers, freight elevators and fork lifts.
There were a few instances of teens working too many hours.
Here's more of the story.
Duracell wins round one of battery battle
(WTNH) _ Duracell has won round one of a legal spat with rival Energizer.
A judge has ordered Energizer's parent company, Ralston Purina, to stop showing ads with the pink bunny pounding other company's batteries. One of those is Bethel-based Duracell. Duracell maintains the results shown in the bunny ads are unscientific.
Vernon curfew law upheld
(Bridgeport-AP)_ Vernon's teen curfew law has been upheld by a federal judge who says the law does not violate free speech rights of teenagers. Janet Ramos and her two teenage sons had challenged the curfew, claiming their basic constitutional rights were violated when police stopped, searched and ticketed one of the boys ten times last year. Federal Judge Alan Nevas ruled yesterday that the US Supreme Court has said that governments have authority to regulate the activities of children. Nevas is referring the case to Connecticut's Supreme Court, suggesting that the state Constitution might provide more rights for teens than the federal Constitution. The case was the first federal challenge to any of the dozen juvenile curfew laws in Connecticut.
Vernon's law requires youths under 18 to be off the streets between eleven at night and five in the morning Sunday through Thursday and after midnight on weekends. It provides several exceptions.
Hartford fire chief won't face criminal charges
 (Hartford-WTNH) _ Hartford's fire chief won't face any criminal charges.
Chief Robert Dobson was caught on tape allegedly working at his wife's frame shop on city time, and taking comp time he hadn't earned.
Dobson was suspended for 15 days and fined nearly $4,000. State's attorney James Thomas says poor record keeping by the city has raised serious doubt as to whether Chief Dobson could be prosecuted.
News Channel 8's Leon Collins reports.
Gun used in killing owned by New Haven cop
(New Haven-AP) _ New Haven police are trying to find out how a gun registered to a city police officer ended up as a weapon in a love triangle shooting. Detectives say the revolver is registered to Officer Shafiq Abdussabur, but ended up in his brother's possession April 26th. The brother, Andre Johnson, is charged with firing the gun when he found another man with his girlfriend. The shooting victim, Leander Vaughn, was in critical condition at a New Haven hospital before dying eleven days later. Johnson is being held on $100,000 bond.
Ross death penalty hearing closed to public
(New London-AP)_ A New London judge has shut out the public from part of the death penalty retrial of serial killer Michael Ross. The public was banned from the courtroom yesterday as defense lawyers began arguments on two defense motions. Judge Thomas Miano says the testimony, if made public from the hearing, could hinder the attempt to get an impartial jury. The judge sealed both motions from public view. Miano postponed the court closure for 72 hours, giving interested parties an opportunity to challenge his ruling. Lawyers are in the process of selecting 12 jurors and four alternate jurors to rehear Ross' penalty hearing. The hearing is being held to determine whether Ross is to be executed or sentenced to life in prison for raping and strangling four eastern Connecticut girls and women in the early 1980s. A jury convicted him of the murders in 1987 and immediately afterward, following a penalty hearing, voted to execute him. In 1994 the state Supreme Court upheld Ross' murder convictions, but ordered a new penalty hearing.
State closing Indian Well State Park for remainder of year
(AP) _ Indian Well State Park in Shelton and the park's state boat launch on Lake Housatonic will be closed to the public for the rest of the year, the state Department of Environmental Protection announced Friday. The park and boat ramp will undergo an $812,000 renovation project, state officials said. The renovation is part of the state's plan for upgrading facilities in all state parks and forests. Local residents with docking permits will be allowed to use the boat ramp on May 22-23 to put their boats in the water. The ramp will be opened again September 11-12 to permit them to remove their boats from the lake.
Operation Lifesaver promotes rail crossing safety
(New Haven-WTNH) _ State officials are promoting Operation Lifesaver Awareness Day. Since 1992, Connecticut's Operation Lifesaver has been providing programs aimed at reducing the number of injuries and deadly accidents on or near railroad crossings. Officials say education, enforcement and engineering is the key to the program.
Kenneth Gambardella, Operation Lifesaver: "We have quite a number of individuals who dedicate a lot of time and effort to this program. And this is one way of sharing and celebrating their contributions to our program."
In 1998 three people were killed and many were injured in crashes involving trains in the state. There are 353 public railroad crossings in the state.
Injured dolphin improving, swimming with others
(Mystic-WTNH) _ After six-weeks of isolation, Mystic Aquarium's miracle dolphin is getting to know the public. 'Stormy', who survived a tropical storm and a shark attack, is now healthy and swimming in the aquarium's main pool.
He's been introduced to two other dolphins, both older females, and so far so good.
News Channel 8's Peter Standring updates Stormy's story.
Students clean up beaches
(Groton-WTNH) _ Two popular spots in Groton are a lot cleaner thanks to some enterprising young people who are pitching in.
Third and fourth graders from the Eastern Point Elementary School were out doing community service Friday. In this case they combed Eastern Point Beach, picking-up cigarette butts and other trash.
The kids chose the project on their own, and had a special interest in hitting the beach.
Josh Satter, Groton: "Because a lot of people come to the beach and most of the time they litter."
"So you wanted to cleanup the litter?"
Josh: "Mm hmmm."
While josh and his friends worked on Eastern Point Beach a large group of their classmates was busy nearby cleaning up Fort Griswold Park.
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