PEDESTRIAN KILLED IN NORTH STONINGTON
NORTH STONINGTON, CT (WFSB) – A road in North Stonington is closed after a person was struck and killed by a car. State police said Route 201, also known as Cossaduck Hill Road, was closed while police investigate. It has since reopened. The person was hit a little before 2 p.m. That person’s identity has not been released.
UNION WORKERS AGREE TO CONCESSIONS
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) – Unionized state employees say now that they’ve approved the third labor concession package in a decade, they want lawmakers to make sure Connecticut’s wealthiest citizens pay more in taxes. Union officials on Tuesday announced that all 15 voting members of the State Employee Bargaining Agent Coalition approved the latest givebacks, which amount to about $1.5 billion over the next two years. Eighty-three percent of rank-and-file members voted in favor of the agreement, which provides four years of job security in return for a two-year hard wage freeze and higher insurance premiums and pension contributions, among other things. Many union members held signs Tuesday that read, “We did our part.” The General Assembly still needs to approve the deal, which is considered key to passing a yet-to-be-reached state budget agreement.
GOP DOESN’T LIKE CONCESSIONS DEAL
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) – Republican lawmakers are not celebrating the approval by unionized state employees of a labor concessions package projected to save $1.5 billion over two years. House Minority Leader Themis Klarides said Tuesday she still opposes the deal because it ties the hands of future legislatures and doesn’t make long-term, lasting changes that will result in more savings down the road. She and Senate Republican Leader Len Fasano say their respective budget proposals generate more savings by renegotiating with the unions and imposing workplace changes. House Speaker Joe Aresimowicz disagrees that the GOP plans will save more money. He says House Democrats are pushing ahead with a two-year budget proposal that includes the $1.5 billion in labor savings. It’s unclear when lawmakers will vote on the labor deal.
NORWICH RESIDENT AMONG THOSE ARRESTED IN GOVERNOR’S OFFICE
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) – Five Connecticut residents, including one from Norwich, are facing trespassing charges after refusing to leave Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s state Capitol office. The individuals on Tuesday were protesting cuts to state programs benefiting people with intellectual and other disabilities. Some were holding signs with pictures of relatives who rely on services that are at risk because Connecticut currently doesn’t have a new, two-year state budget in place. State Capitol Police say the group refused to leave Malloy’s office. He was not at the Capitol at the time of the protest. They were each charged with second-degree criminal trespass and were issued a misdemeanor summons. Among those arrested were former Norwich City Council candidate Elanah Sherman. Governor Malloy appeared Monday at a nonprofit that services people with intellectual disabilities, saying he doesn’t support the cuts and doesn’t want to run state government using his limited spending authority.
SWIMMING AREAS REOPENED
Two state parks are now open to swimming again. Environmental officials say Rocky Neck in Niantic and Mashmoquet Brook State Park in Pomfret have reopened, after tests show bacteria levels have gone down. Patchaug State Forest in Voluntown and Gay City State Park in Hebron remain closed, with new water tests to be done there on Friday.
PARALYZED HUSBAND SENTENCED
A former Mystic resident, who’s now a paraplegic, will serve four months in prison, followed by four years probation. 53-year old Bryan Marshall pleaded guilty to second-degree assault and third-degree arson last April. Police say Marshall cut his wife’s throat, set fire to their home, and jumped out a second-floor window in 2013 due to a domestic dispute. It was that fall that led to Marshall’s paralysis. His attorney had argued for a fully suspended sentence, citing his client’s health. Marshall and his wife are now divorced.
YET ANOTHER GUBERNATORIAL HOPEFUL
STAMFORD, Conn. (AP) – The man who’s handled finances for the city of Stamford for the past five years has entered the race for governor. Republican Michael Handler, the city’s director of administration, skipped the exploratory phase and formed a candidate’s committee, according to his filing with the State Elections Enforcement Commission. He tells The Advocate he has put the city on sound financial footing and can help the state control finances. Connecticut faces a $5 billion budget deficit over the next two years. He has worked under two mayors, one Republican and one Democrat, and says he has “practical experience in solving fiscal problems.” Democratic Gov. Dannel P. Malloy announced that he will not seek re-election next year. More than a half dozen potential candidates from each party have expressed interest in running.
COFFEE STABBER SENTENCED
STAMFORD, Conn. (AP) – A Connecticut teenager who fatally stabbed a man outside a fast-food restaurant during a dispute over spilled coffee has been sentenced to 20 years in prison. The Stamford Advocate reports that 17-year-old Marquest Hall was sentenced Tuesday by a judge who called the March 2015 killing of 52-year-old Antonio Muralles “brutal, senseless and totally unnecessary.” Hall, who in March pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter, is eligible for parole in 12 years. Prosecutors say Muralles had just left a Stamford McDonald’s with a coffee when he inadvertently bumped into Hall and a friend, and spilled some on them. Hall was 15 at the time, but was charged as an adult and proceedings were held in open court. He did not speak at sentencing but his lawyer says he is remorseful.
