In Their Own Words

Amherst School Committee 2/25: Nothing to say on this sorry incident

A month after a racial/bullying incident escalated out of control leading to the closing of Amherst Regional High School originally ascribed to "unforeseen circumstance", ARPS School Superintendent Maria Geryk will issue a "conclusive statement to the community on Friday".  

Let's hope it is as transparent as it is fair.

Mother/son's letter to Faye Brady, ARPS Director of Student Services 2/3/14

   Mother:Son Letter Bullying

Tweets from black youth threatening white student: 

 "Extendooo" could refer to high capacity ammunition clip commonly used with assault rifles or a police baton

 

Even now 2 of the black youths still use "the word"

Amherst School Superintendent Maria Geryk

DUI Honor Roll

Yeah, you read that headline correctly. I created a new category of award for Taylor S Aldrich, age 29, as I have a feeling he will learn from his mistake.  And I only wish I could say that more often.

On his initial appearance before Judge Payne on Monday he asked for a continuance of his DUI case and requested the court appoint an attorney. But his "liquid assets" were a tad too high (note he was driving an Audi) and the cost conscious judge denied him a public defender.

About an hour later Mr. Aldrich, having gone out of the courtroom into the hallway to confer with an Assistant DA, came back before Judge Payne and accepted a "Standard 24D disposition," available only to first time offenders: Immediate 45 day loss of license, one year probation, take an alcohol training program, pay $500 in court costs. and monthly probation fees.

The prosecution still went through the motion of presenting evidence from the APD investigation: Mr. Aldrich was all over the road before being pulled over, reeked of alcohol, failed the agility portion of the Field Sobriety Tests and even back at APD station had to use a wall for balance.

Although he was rational enough to refuse to take the Breathalyzer test back at the station

Judge Payne looked directly at him and asked, "Are the facts just presented true?" "Yes your honor," he replied. As the Judge read him the standard disclosures asking if he were now under the influence of drugs or alcohol or had anyone pressured him into making this plea deal he responded "No, I prefer to take my punishment."

Yes, a good lawyer could -- for a price -- probably could have gotten him a better deal. I've seen attorneys use police witnesses in these type cases for target practice.

But instead he stood up and accepted his punishment.  Making the road to recovery just a tad smoother.

3 of the 4 charges were dismissed

Public Safety Crossover

Usually it's Amherst Police Department assisting AFD --shutting down traffic so firefighters can lay out lines of hose, or calming an unstable scene so EMTs can get a patient safely out of a rambunctious crowd. 

But on Friday night, with hazardous road conditions due to a a sudden freeze over, Amherst Fire Department Chief Tim Nelson returned the favor.  He noticed a vehicle operating erratically about a mile from Amherst town center.

Chief Nelson (now off duty) not only called 911, but continued to follow and then stopped when the truck pulled into the Hess Station in South Amherst.  He then pointed out the driver to the responding officer.

Deoclecio Artur, age 38, was arrested for DUI after he failed every aspect of the Field Sobriety Test.

   Chief Nelson: Witness to DUI

In court on Monday morning his case was continued to next month as his lawyer wishes to review the Hess Station security video, which probably will not help his case.

These days everyone has a phone on them almost all of the time.  Like Chief Nelson, if you see a car on the road and you even remotely suspect the driver is impaired, do the right thing:  Call 911.

Amherst police vehicles are rolling 24/7, so it's not a big deal for them to be vectored to a suspected drunk driver to check it out.

The life you save could be a friend or loved one.

AFD Chief Tim Nelson

A Mother Laments

ARHS: Our All American High School

In a letter to Faye Brady, Director of Student Services at ARPS, dated Febuary 3rd, exactly one week after Amherst Regional High School was closed because of a Facebook "threat", the mother of the white student accused of using a racial slur corroborates everything her husband outlined in his 4 page letter used to defend himself against job termination for trying to get the schools to stop three black youths from bullying his son.

After the Wednesday, January 22nd impromptu meeting where the father first informed Mary Custard of the bullying his son was enduring, the mother also spoke with Ms. Custard later that afternoon.  She wanted to know why the parents of the three black students had been contacted the day before but not her family?  Ms. Custard did not give her an answer.

She closed the conversation with, "My son is afraid to go to school and this is not acceptable -- as the School should be a safe place to be."

On Friday, January 24 after three confrontations in the High School the mother met in person with Ms. Custard where the joint meeting with all the parents was concieved and scheduled for Monday, January 27.  That meeting was cancelled due to the sudden closing of the school.

The mother continues, "I again told her (Ms. Custard) that my son was afraid to go to school and did not feel safe, and I felt that not enough had been done in regards to the situation."

In her poignent closing the mother directly addresses her son being branded a racist for using the "N-word" (five letter version ending in a), to congratulate a black friend (who took no offense).

"What started out as an argument between teenagers, all of whom use 'the word', somehow turned into a 'racially motivated' hate crime."

She emphatically continues:  "This is NOT true as the original statement that my son made was NOT racial, but a pat on the back.  My son is NOT a racist as he has been portrayed.  Having been brought up in Holyoke he was brought up NOT seeing color.  He has many friends of all different colors -- black, Puerto Rican, Indian, Pakistani, Moldovan as well as white.

We have many races within our own family.  The accusation that my son is a racist is the most hurtful thing that has come out of this entire incident. "

Her final sentence says it all:  "It was not handled expediently and was allowed to go on for four days -- far too long.  Only then (after the Facebook "threat" discovered)  was anything done -- obviously too little too late."

The letter was signed by the mother, father and son.

Party House of the Weekend

7 Willow Lane, Amherst

Very early Sunday morning (1:56 AM) Amherst police broke up a large party at 7 Willow Lane and arrested the party host Dery Jesus Aldeano, age 22, a UMass student. 

As the officer noted, Willow Lane is a densely populated neighborhood not  known (yet anyway) for being predominantly a student zone.

In Eastern Hampshire District Court on Monday he took the deal suggested by the DA, known as "conversion".  The criminal charges (Noise and Nuisance House) are converted to civil charges and he pays $300 out of the $600 in tickets issued by APD.

The other $300 ticked is "filed" for a year, so he probably does not want to repeat this behavior.

   Party House of the Weekend

BS Blarney Blowout

A logo for trouble in the making

While Ancient Order of Hibernians, the largest fraternal order of Irish in America, calls for a boycott of retail giant Spenser Gifts over insensitive stereotypical merchandise the local Party Boys have come up with a t-shirt to immortalize the ignoble all-day debauchery known as "The Blarney Blowout 2014".  

The drinking marathon commences apparently at whatever time college age youth roll out of bed these days, and traditionally falls (if you can call four years a "tradition") on the Saturday before St. Patrick's Day, this year March 8.  

Because St. Patrick's Day always falls during Spring Break why waste an excuse to get drunk, rowdy and obnoxious in Amherst, your adopted hometown of four years (or five or six)?

Last year the "official" event in town center went well enough, only to successfully lull town officials and local media into a false sense of security.

Daily Hampshire Gazette Break Page 3/11/13

It was then the north end of town exploded in violence. Thousands of students, fueled by alcohol, took to the quad area around Townhouse Apartments, set fires, threw bottles and vandalized property.

State Police, APD and UMPD had to break out the riot gear to disperse the unruly crowd.

Amherst officials were unhappy to say the least (more like "pissed off") with UMass officials for not putting out advance communications with students and parents about maintaining decorum.  UMass officials responded they didn't want to give the "event" any advance free PR with the email blast notifications.

The fiasco and resulting friction between the two superpowers did directly lead to formation of the Town Gown Steering Committee, "to jointly develop a plan to address shared areas of interest including housing and economic development issues." 

It took years for authorities to retire the "Hobart Hoedown."  Now it's time once-and-for-all to shut off "The Blarney Blowout."

Call in the Marines!

Gazette eventually figured it out:   front page (above the fold) 3/12/13

"Umass Amherst black out or transfer " #SMACK
— Smack College (@SMACKCOLLEGE) February 23, 2014

New Equipment, Old Home

AFD Chief Nelson, Assistant Chiefs McKay and Stromgren at JCPC meeting 2/20

Amherst Fire Department capital requests for FY15 (starts July1st) has a h-u-g-e bottom line number, $8,555,000 -- or almost twice their $4,358,412 operation budget for the upcoming year.

But you can, unfortunately, immediately scratch $8,000,000.   Because that is the first year installment ($4 million in year #2) on a new $12 million South Amherst Fire Station -- a Holy Grail talked about since the 1950s.

For the last couple years it shows up in the capital request line item as a placeholder, or what Finance Director Sandy Pooler described as an "Important reminder ... here to keep it on the radar screen." 

But the problem with keeping it on the radar screen so very long is, it starts to get tuned out.

About half the remaining ($555,000) budget request will go towards a new ambulance ($255,000) a standard workhorse machine on a ten year replacement cycle.  Although they do not yet make reliable enough hybrid vehicles for emergency first responders, the new ambulance will have a touch of green: a high efficiency air conditioning unit powered by a solar panel embedded in the roof. 

The new ambulance will also come with a power loader and power stretcher which significantly reduces the physical stress on EMS personnel loading and unloading patients into the back of the ambulance.

 Power loader demonstration

In addition AFD is requesting $91,600 for three more power loaders to retrofit the current fleet of ambulances.  Last year they were given approval to purchase five power stretchers.

Two new UHF/VHF portable radios at $7,000 each will allow command personnel to communicate with other agencies (Amherst police or any police and fire in Franklin County when assisting via mutual aid) at the scene of an incident.  The old radios are beyond their rated lifespans and are starting to break down.

The vital protective gear that separates bare skin from sizzling temperatures also needs to be replaced on a rotating basis, and this coming year that installment (20 sets of gear) will cost $40,000. 

A Federal mandate requires all single-walled underground storage tanks be removed by 2017.  The 8,000 gallon tank at North Station, used by AFD as well as other town departments -- Schools, Recreation, Library and Conservation -- needs to come out of the ground.

And that will cost $80,000.

Since the two pumps that dispense gas and diesel are also over 20 years old they will be replaced at the same time, for a cost of $20,000.

While not nearly as expensive as an ambulance or fire engine a 4WD pickup is still pretty costly at $35,000.  The utility vehicle will be used to plow North Station in winter and even to accompany  emergency vehicles during a major winter storm.  The old unit was a 1993 hand me down from the DPW that has now failed to pass inspection.  

When asked by JCPC Chair Kay Moran what he would do if her committee decided to cut funding for the vehicle Chief Nelson responded, only half-kidding, "punt."

Rounding out the requests is $20,000 in extra equipment for the new pumper arriving in August that allows it to act as a "Emergency First Responder."  Sort of turns a fire engine into a temporary ambulance, except it cannot transport the patient to the hospital.

But when things get busy and you need to get to a patient ASAP a Fire Engine can travel just as fast as an ambulance to at least deliver highly trained help who can stabilize the patient until an ambulance can arrive to transport to a hospital.

The Joint Capital Planning Committee seemed to look favorably at the AFD requests, but they do need to cut some items from department requests before sending their recommendations to Town Meeting.

Even then, Town Meeting can still fail to fund a single line item, although it doesn't happen often.

The hard part somewhere down the road, assuming town officials radar still works, will be the $12 million debt exclusion for the new South Amherst Fire Station.