BUDGET HEADS TO GOVERNOR
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) – The Connecticut House of Representatives has passed a bipartisan state budget, sending it to Democratic Gov. Dannel P. Malloy. The roughly $41 billion, two-year plan cleared the House Thursday on a 126-to-23 vote, a veto-proof majority. The vote came hours after the Senate overwhelmingly passed the same package. Republican House Minority Leader Themis Klarides says the plan crafted by legislative leaders isn’t perfect but it “begins the process of getting our house in order.” She says it also ends the fiscal chaos that’s ensued without a budget in place since the fiscal year began July 1. Malloy has been running the state using only his limited executive spending authority. Democratic House Majority Leader Matt Ritter says it’s the “moral obligation” of lawmakers to end the budget impasse.
HUMAN REMAINS IN HAMPTON FIRE
HAMPTON, Conn. (AP) – Connecticut state police are investigating after human remains were found in a burning house in Hampton. The fire started sometime before 4:30 a.m. Thursday at a single-family home in the area of the Goodwin State Forest. State police say firefighters found the human remains inside the home after putting out the blaze. Police didn’t provide more information about the nature of the remains but said the medical examiner’s office will conduct an autopsy to identify the victim and a cause of death. The Hampton Fire Marshal is also investigating.
NORWICH MAN WANTS MONEY, NEW ATTORNEY
A Norwich man, due to be sentenced next month on federal drug charges, is demanding a new attorney, and money he claims the state owes him. 35-year old Christian Caba’s motion to seek new legal counsel was granted Thursday in New London Superior Court. He says his current lawyer failed to give him a copy of his file. He also claims the state has 23-thousand dollars that’s his. Caba and Krista Raffo were arrested in May 2014 at their Oakdale home, after police seized some 38-thousand dollars worth of heroin there. Caba is scheduled to be sentenced November 30th.
SOCCER COACH CHOKED
WILTON, Conn. (AP) – Police say a skirmish during a Connecticut girls high school soccer match led to the assault of a coach by a parent. The News-Times reports players from Wilton High School and Fairfield Ludlowe got into an altercation during the Wednesday night game. Three players were ejected after coaches broke up the fight. Wilton High School went on to win the match with a score of 3-0. Police say after the match, 47-year-old Sherman Eagan, of Wilton, confronted a Ludlowe assistant coach in the parking lot and accused him of hitting his daughter. Police say Eagan choked and hit the coach before he was pulled off by other coaches. Eagan was later arrested. Police have charged Eagan with multiple charges including third-degree assault. He is scheduled to appear in court Nov. 6.
