NO OVERRIDE VOTE
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) – The Connecticut House of Representatives has decided not to try and override Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s veto of a state budget plan. Lawmakers convened Tuesday, but no one moved for a vote to reconsider the budget bill. The Democratic governor had rejected the Republican-backed budget, citing what he says were unworkable changes to the state pension system and cuts to higher education. Connecticut is the last state in the nation without a budget in place for the fiscal year that began July 1. Democratic leaders suggest lawmakers now negotiate just the revenue side of the budget to help cities and towns avoid cuts in state funding that go into effect this month in the absence of a budget. Connecticut faces a projected $3.5 billion deficit over the next two fiscal years.
CHARGES DROPPED IN COCAINE BUST
NEW LONDON, Conn. (AP) – A Connecticut judge has dismissed charges against two Rhode Island men who were arrested after authorities seized more than 60 pounds of cocaine worth nearly $3 million following a traffic stop. The Day reports the state decided not to prosecute Amulfo Hiciano and Giovanni Carmona, both of Providence. A New London judge dismissed drug charges against them at their attorneys’ request.
State police said last year they stopped the men, who were driving in two vehicles on Interstate 95 in Groton. Troopers said they found cocaine packaged in two cardboard boxes in the trunk of one of the vehicles. Authorities alleged the men were transporting the cocaine from New York City to Rhode Island. Authorities said at the time it was the largest seizure of cocaine in recent memory.
FREE NARCAN FROM L & M
10-thousand dollars worth of Narcan is being distributed to eleven local communities, thanks to New London’s Lawrence and Memorial Hospital and Yale-New Haven Health. The donation of the antidote to opioid overdoses is being welcomed by local officials, as they struggle with the opioid epidemic, and shrinking budgets. The communities receiving the free Narcan are: New London, Groton, East Lyme, Ledyard, Montville, Stonington, Waterford, as well as the Mashantucket-Pequot and Mohegan tribal nations.
FIRE AT LINEN SUPPLY BUILDING
Norwich fire officials are investigating what caused a fire last night in the Atlantic City Linen Supply building in the city’s business park…The fire was in the ductwork of the Consumer Avenue structure, causing the roof insulation to melt. No injuries reported, all workers were evacuated. Yantic fire chief Frank Blanchard says it appears the fire started in an exhaust fan. Crews from several local departments responded to the 10 pm blaze, which took two hours to bring under control.
