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COLUMNS: GREAT BEND: Yesterday the Great Bend Methodist church celebrated its 110th anniversary. Methodism commenced here about the year 1800, when services were held in an old log house by Rev. Buck, located near where the Erie depot now stands. Many walked five or six miles to hear him, or came up or down the river in “dugouts” or canoes. After the morning service the people would go to their canoes, eat their dinner, usually composed of mush and milk, they bring the milk in bottlers, and in the afternoon would attend another service. Services continued until 1843 in the private homes, but in that year seats were placed in the Emmons copper shop. The first chapel was built in 1854 on the site of the present edifice. In 1870 the present church was built at a cost of $12,000 and was dedicated March 13, 1873. HALLSTEAD: William Wetmur has gone to Towanda, where he is employed in a cut glass factory. He expects to return about Jan. 1 and will take a position in the Hallstead cut glass factory now being established by a Honesdale firm. FRANKLIN FORKS: William Smith has lately gone to Johnson City, Tenn., where he will spend the winter at the National Soldiers’ Home. Hiram Sivers, Wm. H. Street, Walter Jackson and George E. Woodruff and wife contemplate going to the home next week. Mrs. Woodruff has secured employment at the home and will accompany her husband. MIDDLETOWN TWP.: Rev. Hugh Jones was a visitor here yesterday. Mr. Jones is a most agreeable, well read man and perfectly at home in a printing office. He learned the printers’ trade in England, working at it five years, and although glad to give up the “art preservative’ for a different calling, he still enjoys the smell of printer’s ink. ALFORD: Mrs. Mary Percy, an aging lady of Harford Township, walked from her home, two miles to the station here on Monday and went to Montrose. She returned at noon and walked home again. She has lately erected a monument for her father and mother in Harford cemetery. LITTLE MEADOWS: Election day passed off very quietly. The big questions of the day do not disturb the quiet of our little town. BROOKLYN: Mrs. Eliza Moore died at the home of her daughter, Mrs. M. B Grinnell. She celebrated her 90th birthday last Friday and remarked that she had heard her mother tell that in the year she was born snow fell that day and remained on the ground until spring. Mrs. Moore was married twice, first to Mr. Shadduck, father of the late T. E Shadduck and next Mr. Moore. ALSO A new sign, “Austin House,” is to be seen on Maple Street, which announces the fact that J. J. Austin is now ready to furnish accommodation to the traveling public. SUSQUEHANNA: Work on M. J. Lannon’s new hotel is progressing rapidly. The construction of a large balcony in front of the building is under way. ALSO The Laurel Athletic club will hold a smoker in their rooms this Friday evening. A number of athletic contests will provide entertainment for the club members. MONTROSE: Forty one boys indicated interest in forming a Boy Scout organization here. This organization is being much talked of and written of in the magazines and papers of today. Its primary purpose is to band the boys together under competent leadership for outdoor recreation that shall also combine with it the learning of useful information. Woodcraft, first aid to the injured, telegraphy and wig wag signaling, are among the things learned. ALSO A few days ago we met our old friend, Nort Scott. He has reached the age of three score and ten, but is a pretty good fellow yet. We well remember when he supplied the town with milk, and his measure was so generous that somebody said: “When I get a pint of Nort I almost think I have a quart.” In those days the milkman rang a bell and we had to scurry out with a pail or pitcher. Now no bell is heard and we get our exact quart or precise pint in a bottle. GLENWOOD: The splendid new barn belonging to Mr. Graham, which cost upward of $4,000, was destroyed by fire last Saturday morning. The fire had gotten sufficient headway before being discovered to prevent its being subdued. Mrs. Graham was quite badly injured. HERRICK CENTER: Miss Curtis, a returned missionary from the Crow Indians, on the Little Big Horn river in Montana, gave a very interesting talk and display of curios on Sunday evening. It seems that the Indians are gradually vanishing. Many methods have been employed in our civilizing process, and as a result they cling to their old savage customs, even to the bitter end. CHOCONUT: The funeral of Edmond, son of Thos. Donley, was held at St. Josephs Saturday. He had been an invalid for some time and his death was not unexpected. He is survived by his father and mother and two brothers, Raymond and Leo. FLYNN: The hobble skirt has struck our town and for the reason that it makes old maids look five or six years younger, not only than her real age, but the age she claimed to be and for that reason I think it will become quite popular in this place. CLIFFORD: Our youngsters that attended the grand opening hop at the new spring floor at Hotel Royal report a fine time and that they intend to attend the dance and chicken supper to be given at said hotel on Nov. 24, Thanksgiving night. The new floor is complimented as one of the best in the county. FOREST LAKE: Many roads in this township are impassible on account of the severe snow storm. NEWS BRIEFS: Down in Sullivan county the recent election brought out the fact that there is a man who has not voted at a single election since 1865 when Lincoln was assassinated. He contends that when a good man is elected they kill him off, so that he thinks his vote is wasted.
From the Desk of the D.A. On August 27, 2007, there was a traffic accident on Route 272 in Lancaster County that resulted in the deaths of Mary and Esther Hoover. The Hoovers’ vehicle had been traveling in the southbound lane when it was struck head-on by a tractor trailer which had left the northbound lane and crossed into the southbound lane. The tractor trailer had swerved into the other lane of traffic to avoid hitting a car in the northbound lane which had stopped and was waiting to make a turn. The tractor trailer had been traveling 62 m.p.h. in a 45 m.p.h. zone. The tractor trailer also had numerous safety violations discovered in the inspection after the accident that would have resulted in it being removed from the highway had the infractions been discovered prior to the crash. The operator of the motor vehicle was Thomas Lamonda. A blood test after the crash revealed that he had cocaine metabolites in his system. Lamonda was charged with Homicide by Motor Vehicle and a DUI offense. Despite the pairing of these charges, the Commonwealth did not charge him with the offense of Homicide by Motor Vehicle while DUI. The reason for this may have been because the cocaine metabolite in Lamonda’s system was indicative of past cocaine use, but not necessarily cocaine use in close proximity to the accident itself. As such, the Commonwealth did not believe that intoxication caused the accident, which is the essential component of the charge of homicide by motor vehicle while DUI. The DUI statute, however, has a per se rule relating to controlled substances. If there is any indication of controlled substances while you are driving a motor vehicle, then you are guilty of a DUI offense. There is no requirement that actual impairment be demonstrated to sustain a conviction - only the blood test demonstrating the presence of a controlled substance. As such, Lamonda was convicted of both the Homicide by Motor Vehicle charge and the DUI charge. At the time of sentencing, the court increased Lamonda’s punishment because the sentencing guidelines require an increased sentence for a Homicide by Motor Vehicle charge where the driver was also convicted of a DUI offense. In other words, the DUI conviction is an aggravating factor that increases the gravity of the Homicide by Motor Vehicle charge. In the end, he received a sentence of 40 months to 120 months for recklessly killing two people with his tractor trailer. Lamonda filed an appeal contending that his equal protection rights had been violated by this increased punishment on the Homicide by Motor Vehicle charge. He argued that he was being treated differently than other defendants convicted of the same offenses because of the mere presence of the cocaine metabolite in his system. Lamonda argued that he was no different than other offenders because there was no suggestion that he was actually impaired or that any impairment caused the accident. The Commonwealth conceded that he was being treated differently, but that this was not a denial of equal protection as Lamonda was in a different position than other offenders convicted of Homicide by Motor Vehicle because he had also been convicted of a DUI offense. A divided Superior Court agreed with Lamonda’s argument. In essence, because there was no suggestion that cocaine was a causal factor in the accident, the majority (2 justices) determined that there was no rational reason to increase Lamonda’s sentence simply because he had also been convicted of DUI for the same offense. In other words, the DUI conviction arising from the same accident was not a constitutionally permissible reason to treat Lamonda differently from other offenders convicted of Homicide by Motor Vehicle. Justice Shogan dissented from the majority opinion concluding that the existence of a DUI conviction provided a rational basis for treating Lamonda differently. It seems that a person convicted of a DUI offense along with a Homicide by Motor Vehicle offense is markedly different than a person simply convicted of a Homicide by Motor Vehicle offense. The existence of the separate DUI conviction obviously makes them different scenarios. It seems reasonable to treat the offenders differently even if there is no casual connection between the impairment and the accident. The fact remains that one defendant was also convicted of a DUI offense while the other defendant was not. This makes them different - not equal - and I would tend to agree with Justice Shogan that there is no constitutionally impermissible reason that would prohibit treating the defendants differently. Please submit any questions, concerns, or comments to Susquehanna County District Attorney’s Office, P.O. Box 218, Montrose, Pennsylvania 18801 or at our website www.SusquehannaCounty-DA.org or discuss this and all articles at http://dadesk.blogspot.com/.
The Healthy Geezer Q. My sister went through a nightmare of doctor visits before she finally found out she has fibromyalgia. Why did it take so long for a correct diagnosis? What your sister endured is common. It's not easy to diagnose fibromyalgia with just a laboratory test. Healthcare practitioners have to rely on symptoms to make a diagnosis. Unfortunately, fibromyalgia symptoms can vary between its victims. To further complicate the diagnosis, fibromyalgia imitates rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, lupus and many other conditions. The word “fibromyalgia” comes from the Latin term for fibrous tissue (fibro) and the Greek terms for muscle (myo) and pain (algia). Fibromyalgia is not a disease. It's a syndrome, which is a group of symptoms without a single cause. It is characterized by widespread pain, tenderness and fatigue. Other symptoms of fibromyalgia may include: cognitive difficulties (“fibro fog”); sleep disturbances, morning stiffness, headaches, irritable bowel syndrome, painful menstrual periods, numbness or tingling of the extremities, restless legs syndrome, and sensitivity to heat, cold, noises and lights. About five million people in the United States have fibromyalgia. More than 80 percent of those diagnosed with fibromyalgia are women. Most people are diagnosed during middle age. While fibromyalgia is a chronic condition, it is not progressive. It is never fatal, and it will not cause damage to the joints, muscles, or internal organs. In many people, the condition does improve over time. The causes of fibromyalgia haven't been found. There is speculation that the syndrome may be caused by trauma or repetitive injuries. According to one theory, people with fibromyalgia may have genes that cause them to react strongly to stimuli that most people would not perceive as painful. The American College of Rheumatology has established criteria for diagnosing fibromyalgia. The patient must have diffuse tenderness and a history of widespread pain lasting more than three months. Pain is considered to be widespread when it affects all four quadrants of the body. Fibromyalgia can be difficult to treat. Treatment often requires your doctor, a physical therapist, and other healthcare professionals. There are clinics that specialize fibromyalgia. Fibromyalgia can be treated with antidepressants, because antidepressants elevate the levels of chemicals in the brain that are associated not only with depression, but also with pain and fatigue. Increasing the levels of these chemicals can reduce pain in people who have fibromyalgia. People with fibromyalgia also may benefit from a combination of physical and occupational therapy, from learning pain management and coping techniques, and from properly balancing rest and activity. Some people with fibromyalgia also report success with massage, movement therapies, chiropractic treatments and acupuncture. There are steps you can take to minimize the effects of fibromyalgia. Getting enough sleep, exercising and making changes at work can all help. For example, some people cut down the number of hours they work, switch to a less demanding job, or adapt a current job. You can also change your work environment. An occupational therapist can help you design a more comfortable workstation. If you have a question, please write to fred@healthygeezer.com.
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