Dick: New ratification vote offered
The Manchester Education Association has decided to scrap last week’s vote on the tentative agreement with the school district and do it again. As we reported last week, complaints with the voting process surfaced and M E A President Ben Dick said a meeting of the Executive Board was scheduled to tend to them. In an interview last night, Dick said that while the advertised times of the vote were followed, and even exceeded, they failed to meet the technical requirements of the union’s by laws which specify the hours of polling. Dick said they fell an hour and fifteen minutes short of what is required on the second day of voting. “It was a simple mistake” said Dick “that nobody caught until people complained, which was after the vote.” He said that the vote on a proposed contract in the spring had a similar deficiency that wasn’t complained about which is probably why it was missed this time. “We took our members’ complaints seriously and decided the only way to address the issues was to vote again.” It was only after the election, which approved the contract by a mere two votes, that a handful of folks, some of whom did vote, complained. When asked for comment on the matter, Manchester Mayor Ted Gatsas said he understood what the union had to do and why and was hopeful that the second vote would also approve the contract. “I wish them well,” he said. Dick said it would likely be a couple weeks before the vote was taken.
Bedford Police: BPD impostor calling town residents
The Bedford Police Department is alerting residents about a phone scam. A resident received calls from an individual claiming to be from the Bedford Police Department and then the I R S. The subject stated that the resident was committing tax fraud and if the resident did not pay they would be arrested. The department urges residents to use caution when receiving calls from those claiming to be from the department or the I R S. If your caller ID shows the number 4 7 2 5 1 1 3, ask the caller for their name and badge number. When in doubt, hang up and call the Bedford Police Department directly. Do not release any funds or personally identifying information to any caller without significant evidence that the call is legitimate.
Speaking of the Bedford Police, they’ll be co-hosting a Red Cross Blood drive tomorrow from twelve thirty to six with the Bedford Fire Dept at the Safety Complex on Constitution Dr.
MPD announces Citizens Police Academy
The Manchester Police Department will be hosting its twenty fourth Citizens Police Academy. The class is scheduled to begin October first. All classes will be held on Wednesday evenings from 6:00-8:00 at the Manchester Police Department Headquarters on Valley Street. The Academy is an eight week program designed to inform residents about the role of this agency in the community. Participants can expect an informative sessions examining different aspects of police work at the Manchester Police Department. There is no fee to attend this program, but you will be required to fill out a brief application and a background check will be conducted before your acceptance. For additional information or an application visit manchester p d dot com and click on the citizen’s police academy link to access the on-line application. Space in this class is limited.
News from our own backyard continues after this.
Carson: Juvenile status quo is “dangerous.”
The New Hampshire Senate was in session yesterday to vote on bills vetoed by Governess Margaret Wood Hassan. With twelve in favor and nine opposed, the effort to override Hassan’s veto of a bill that reformed the juvenile justice system failed. Hassan vetoed the bill saying it favored incarceration over rehabilitation. Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Sharon Carson Republican of Londonderry, issued a statement saying she was disappointed the governor chose the status quo. Quote “ The Sununu Youth Services Center is being mismanaged, leaving the community and the children in its care in danger.” The bill would have given the Director of Juvenile Justice Services direct oversight of the center. It would have also reformed the Juvenile Justice Advisory Board, which Hassan has refused to appoint members to. Carson said Hassan quote “lacks authority to rewrite this law through an Executive Order” end quote which she has essentially said she will do. We’ve linked to the bill SB 391 and the law it would have amended RSA 621-A:9.
Brown to Shaheen: Don’t leave Washington until the border is secured
G O P U S Senate nominee Scott Brown sent a letter to Senator Jeanne Shaheen, Health Care Queen, asking her not to adjourn for congressional recess without securing the border and passing a bill that will prevent American ISIS fighters from coming home. In the letter, Brown raises concerns about our porous borders in light of recent terrorist threats, writing, “If anyone (including ISIS) can cross our borders at any time, with anything in their possession, then Washington has no control over our nation’s security from terrorist attack.” Brown also called on Shaheen to sign onto the legislation proposed by Senator Ted Cruz that revokes the citizenship of Americans currently overseas fighting for ISIS. Brown writes he wants to prevent terrorists from returning home by quote “taking from them their greatest weapon – a U.S. passport.”
In a recent poll released by Citizens for a Strong New Hampshire, Brown is about a point and a half ahead of Shaheen. We’ve published the poll in its entirety and linked to it from this newscast at Girard at Large dot com. Even for the layman, it’s an interesting read.
Smith to supporters: Please take signs down around the state.
The campaign of former Senator Bob Smith has issued a statement asking supporters to remove any Bob Smith for U S Senate campaign signs that have been put up in and around the state. The statement asks supporters to call 4 4 0 3 3 7 0 and give the location of signs too big for them to remove so the campaign can send a crew to remove them.
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/167980663″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” /]
