MONADNOCK LEDGER-TRANSCRIPT

Lower Mascenic budget passes; cuts coming next

By Josh Bond
Monadnock Ledger-Transcript

Mascenic School District voters overwhelmingly approved the proposed budget, an outcome that will force the School Board to cut another $333,000.

At the deliberative session, voters amended the proposed budget from $15,533,098 to $15,200,000, citing the recent withdrawal of Mason and the resulting 27 percent increase in school tax rates. Superintendent Leo Corriveau has said the $333,098 cut could require the removal of teaching and administrative positions in addition to middle school sports and district technology plans.

By a vote of 1,112 to 570, voters declined to support a larger default budget of $15,984,460, which district officials had strongly supported in the weeks leading up to the election. The default budget would have nearly equaled last year’s proposed budget.

Both the teachers’ contract and staff contracts also failed, by 1,036 to 631 and 1,045 to 611 respectively, as did articles requesting authority for special meetings to address revised contracts within the coming year. Voters defeated the special meetings 992 to 674 and 1,000 to 627, respectively.

March 10th 2010 at 04:38:10 PM

Past NewsBlogs

Suspect in burglaries to cooperate

February 7th 2012 at 09:28:45 AM

JAFFREY — One of two men police say was involved in a wide-ranging burglary ring was granted reduced bail at a probable cause hearing Monday, based on his health and the level of cooperation he has offered police.

Thomas Bragdon, 56, and Scott Lefebvre, 48, of Manchester, were arrested by Greenfield Police Chief Brian Giammarino on Jan. 3 after allegedly attempting two burglaries in Greenfield.

They were also charged with an earlier Greenfield burglary, possession of burglary tools and prowling. Lefebvre was also charged with criminal mischief and with two additional burglaries that occurred in Peterborough.

Story in Tuesday's Ledger-Transcript.

Senate proposes to amend districts

February 7th 2012 at 09:21:22 AM

Those who can’t immediately remember which state senator represents their hometown will have a good excuse next year.

Last week, the 24-member New Hampshire Senate approved a proposed redistricting plan that will redraw boundary lines, and residents of some Monadnock region towns could find themselves voting for candidates who live 50 to 60 miles away.

Story in Tuesday's Ledger-Transcript.

Two charged in holiday robberies

February 2nd 2012 at 10:38:43 AM

GREENFIELD — A Jaffrey man and Greenfield woman have been arrested on burglary charges relating to two Greenfield burglaries on Christmas Day.

Jesse Dennis, 27, of Jaffrey, and Ashleigh Starr, 26, of Greenfield, were arrested by Police Chief Brian Giammarino and charged with two counts of burglary, stemming from break-ins that allegedly happened on the evening of Dec. 25, according to Giammarino.

Giammarino arrested Starr in Peterborough on Jan. 25, with co-operation from the Peterborough Police Department. Dennis was arrested on Jan. 27 in Greenfield.

According to Giammarino, the two stole jewelry of significant value from two Greenfield homes.

More details in Thursday's Monadnock Ledger-Transcript.

Wilton man charged with aggravated DUI

January 31st 2012 at 02:30:08 PM

MILFORD — Milford Police arrested a Wilton man and charged him with aggravated DUI last Thursday after concluding an investigation into a November car accident that left one person hospitalized with critical injuries, according to a press release from the Milford Police Department.

Bryan Parker, 20, of Wilton was allegedly driving under the influence when he crashed his car in Milford on Nov. 6. The accident sent Parker's passenger, Shawn Vazquez, 21, of Wilton to the Lahey Clinic in Burlington, Mass., where he is listed in critical condition.

Parker was released on $800 personal recognizance, according to the Jan. 31 press release. He is scheduled to appear for arraignment in the Milford District Court on Feb. 15 at 8:30 a.m.

Details in Thursday's Ledger-Transcript.

Dublin official resigns after allegations of conflict

January 31st 2012 at 01:15:10 PM

DUBLIN — After months of call for his resignation over alleged conflicts of interest, Select Board member Curt Merrick announced Monday that he was withdrawing from the board.

Despite his upcoming absence, Merrick predicted that underlying problems plaguing the board will not be resolved. “The seeds of this crisis were sown years before I was elected to the board,” Merrick read from a letter addressed to Chair Sterling Abram. “I did not cause it. I did not want it to happen.”

Abram formally asked Merrick for his resignation in a Jan. 23 letter, citing a conflict of interest generated by Merrick’s wife, Kathy Merrick, who has filed a lawsuit against the town and a former town administrator claiming harassment. In his letter, Abram said he felt the Select Board could not perform its duties well given the current situation.

More details in Thursday’s Ledger-Transcript

ConVal School Board to lose 5 reps

January 31st 2012 at 10:51:29 AM

Five new faces will be sitting at the ConVal School Board table this spring, as only one of the six incumbents whose terms are expiring plans to seek re-election.

Among those leaving the board will be School Board Chair Bart Goodeve, who has served as Sharon’s representative to the board since 2006 and previously served as vice chair for one-and-a-half years, and Gail Cromwell of Temple, a seven-year member who has advocated during her tenure for greater cost cutting and actively campaigned against some of the proposals recommended by the full board.

Story in Tuesday's Ledger-Transcript.

Two held in regional burglaries

January 31st 2012 at 10:44:15 AM

JAFFREY — Two Manchester men were arraigned at the 8th Circuit Court in Jaffrey on Monday on multiple charges related to a string of burglaries in Greenfield and Peterborough.

“This has cleared up a lot of area burglaries,” said Greenfield Police Chief Brian Giammarino in an interview with the Ledger-Transcript on Monday. Giammarino said police believe the two suspects are responsible for several burglaries throughout the area.

Thomas Bragdon, 56, and Scott P. Lefebvre, 48, both of Manchester, were arrested on Friday by Greenfield police and each charged with one count of burglary, two counts of attempted burglary, possession of burglary tools and prowling, according to a Greenfield Police Department press release.

Story in Tuesday's Ledger-Transcript.

Student is victim of gun mishandling

January 26th 2012 at 05:40:53 PM

PLYMOUTH — A 20-year-old Conant High School graduate and former Jaffrey resident died Saturday from injuries sustained in a self-inflicted shooting at his apartment in Plymouth, police said Wednesday.

Plymouth police responded to an emergency call and found Dylan Evans unconscious in his kitchen at approximately 11:57 p.m. Friday night, Evans, a sophomore at Plymouth State University, was transported to Speare Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead on Saturday, according to a press release issued by the department.

Postal worker injured after dog attack

January 26th 2012 at 05:00:38 PM

BENNINGTON — A dog attack on Paradise Drive resulted in a mail carrier being transported to the hospital with injuries to her face and legs.

Christine Bouchard, 29, of Deering, who normally works at the Antrim Post Office, was filling in for the regular mail carrier for Bennington on Jan. 19 when she was attacked, according to police.

Normally, Bouchard would not have had to approach the door, delivering mail to a mailbox situated on the curb.

Details in Thursday's Ledger-Transcript.

Antrim man facing charges after drug bust

January 24th 2012 at 03:02:59 PM

An Antrim man is facing multiple criminal charges in connection with a scheme to deliver approximately $120,000 worth of hashish via a United Postal Service package, Londonderry police said in a press release issued Monday.

Samuel Ruoff, 20, of Antrim was arrested last Thursday with Jordan Reynolds, 24, of Keene after Reynolds went to the Londonderry UPS facility to pick up a package containing 20 pounds of hashish, a cannabis-based drug. According to the press release, facility workers had alerted police to the suspicious-seeming package and police, posing as postal workers, were waiting for Reynolds.

Ruoff had accompanied Reynolds in another vehicle, police said, and the men were arrested and charged with possession of a controlled drug. Ruoff was also charged with conspiracy to commit possession with intent to distribute and falsifying physical evidence. Reynolds was charged with possession of a controlled drug with intent to distribute. They were both held at the Rockingham County jail in lieu of $100,000 cash bail.

Details in Thursday's Ledger-Transcript.

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