Auburn Twp. - Wm. Magee, who went West three years ago and took up a claim at Kalispell, Montana, was killed while assisting to operate a steam plow, at North Cote, Minnesota, June 5, 1911 (12?). Mr. Magee was well known in Auburn Township, where he was reared. He is survived by a wife and six children.

Kingsley - Stearns Bros. are erecting a fine new hotel, which they hope to have ready for guests about August 1st. It will be a temperance house, having 40 rooms, we understand.

This hotel will have modern conveniences and will fill a long needed want for this town, and the fact that Stearns Bros. are the proprietors, is a guarantee that travelers may find entertainment there which will be satisfactory. This house has assurance of a good patronage for 2 or 3 years, through the activities incident to the cut-off operations on the D. L. & W. railroad. A competent couple has been engaged to take charge when it opens.

Lake View - The preachers of Susquehanna Co. held their annual picnic on the church grounds last Tuesday. There were about 30 who came. The Walters catered for them.

Fairdale - A tennis club has been started and if we are to judge by the enthusiasm with which the young people have taken the matter up, we are safe in predicting many enjoyable evenings for the young people during the summer months,.

Thompson - The Thompson boys played their first game of base ball last Saturday, when they crossed bats with Starrucca, who beat Thompson 17 to 14. Next Saturday they play with Como.

Uniondale - Hugh Williams has been making improvements in and around his store; gasoline lights and a new stone walk in front of the building.

Franklin Forks - Children’s Day at Franklin Hill was well attended and the children recited and sang lovely. Mrs. A. Fish, of Franklin Forks, had charge of the music.

Heart Lake - Heart Lake Inn opens this Sunday for the summer season. Preparations are made for a bigger season than ever before and this popular resort is fortunate in having such a fine hotel where you can go and spend a day and get a good meal.

Brooklyn - C. A. Roselle is now making regular trips to Montrose, coming Tuesday and Saturday, bringing inviting loads of green vegetables. Mr. Rozell’s operations are on an extensive scale, as he informs us that he has three and one-half acres in sweet corn; nearly an acre in peas, and has asparagus beds started covering a half acre of ground. The frosts damaged him about $300, he estimates.

Montrose - Charles E. Roberts has an argumentative new automobile adv. today, “Charley” says Ford-i-fy yourself—there will be 75,000 people who will do it this year.

Flynn - On Saturday afternoon J. E. Lane had 6 acres of corn planted by three young men, from 2 p.m. until 5 p.m., about 3 hours. That was going some and done a good job,

Hallstead - It is now several years since the good people of Hallstead and vicinity have had an opportunity to entertain any of the poor children of New York during the summer. But now another opportunity is to be given, by which it is hoped to give an outing of two weeks or more to a large number and let the people extend their charity in this direction. Miss Arden, of New York City, has been here for several days canvassing in the interest of the Tribune Fresh Air Fund, and is desirous of placing as many of these little ones in this section as possible. It is requested that all who will care for one or more children for a period of two weeks, beginning July 8th, will give their names to any of the local pastors as soon as possible, in order to obtain places for as many as possible.

Friendsville - This end of the Binghamton stage has changed drivers, Orrin Rounds having taken the place of Bird Corson.

Nicholson - The borough of Nicholson will have six teachers for the coming year. The principal will receive $1100 per year.

West Auburn - George Brotzman is very feeble. It is not thought that he will last many days.

Herrick Center - Wallace Dunn, the 10-year-old son of Mr. and Mrs. Dan Dunn, met with a painful accident last Thursday. He was thrown from a horse which he was riding and received a blow on the face from the horse’s hoof. The jawbone was broken and nearly all the teeth in the upper jaw knocked out. Dr. Craft carefully set the jawbone and dressed the lacerations and the injuries, while not serious, are very painful.

Elkdale - Mr. and Mrs. James Stevens attended commencement exercises at Wyoming Seminary, where their daughter, Janette, is a member of the graduating class.

South Gibson - Photographer Roper, of Heart Lake, who has been located here for three weeks, has done a good business and the pictures have given good satisfaction. ALSO Peter Patterson, an old war veteran, has moved to Marathon, N.Y., where he has sisters residing.

Susquehanna - Our citizens were awakened early Sunday morning by the fire whistle. The fire was in the old Cascade House, one of the town’s landmarks. It was badly damaged and will not be rebuilt.

Foster (Hopbottom) - Measles have broken out in town, but thus far have been confined to one family, that of Mr. Hardy.

Forest City - Frank Janezie and Jennie Karley, John Roginsky and Josephine Rusczyk have applied for marriage licenses to marry in the near future.

News Brief: Thomas A. Edison has taken up the problem of harnessing the wind. His idea is to generate electricity thru means of a dynamo driven by a windmill and stored in his improved type of storage batteries, when it can be used as desired for lighting power or heating purposes.

I received an email from a friend the other day asking me what the definition of a “crime” was. No one had ever asked me that question before. I guess it seems obvious, but perhaps it is not quite as clear as one might think. Obviously, not every violation of the law is a criminal act – and that is a good thing given the countless laws and regulations that exist at the federal, state and local level. The question of whether something is “criminal” really depends upon whether there are criminal sanctions for the violation of the statute that regulates the conduct. Under Pennsylvania law, there are three different levels of criminal conduct under the Crimes Code: summary, misdemeanor and felony offenses.

Summary offenses generally result in a financial penalty only, though they are theoretically punishable by up to 90 days of incarceration. There are three levels of misdemeanors with punishments of up to one, two or five years, and fines between $2,500, $5,000 and $10,000. There are also three levels of felony offenses with punishments of up to seven, ten and twenty years, and fines up to $15,000 and $25,000. There are special circumstances that can increase the general maximum punishments.

Then there are other offenses outside the Crimes Code that are criminal in nature, but the punishments do not follow the framework set up in the Crimes Code itself. For instance, the drug offenses are simply divided into two categories, misdemeanor or felony offenses. The punishment for these offenses is particular to the type and weight of the controlled substance that was seized. Then there are other violations under the Vehicle Code which result in a fine only (and other collateral consequences like points on or a suspension of your driver’s license). The Game Code has a whole different category of offenses that are called summary and misdemeanor offenses, but the punishments are widely different from those set forth in the Crimes Code.

So, what is the definition of a “crime?” I told my friend that my definition would be any particular conduct that the Legislature has prohibited and has attached some form of sanction to the violation, whether it be financial (fine) or incarceration. On the other hand, there are only certain things that go onto your “criminal history,” and those offenses would have to be misdemeanors or felony offenses. For instance, the fact that you were convicted for speeding does not appear on your criminal history (but it will go onto your driving record). This is largely a semantics argument as we use different terms to refer to different prohibited conduct. We all understand that a speeding ticket is a traffic violation, but would we all agree that it is a crime? On the other hand, the more serious traffic violations, such as DUI offenses, are plainly understood as being “criminal.”

My attempt at placing some parameters on defining a “crime” left my friend feeling less than satisfied. Our conversation ended where it began when my friend asked the more precise question of what the “technical definition of a crime” was. I followed up with an internet search for the definition of “crime” and found that they generally tracked the definition I had given to my friend. Basically, a crime is a violation of a law for which there is a proscribed punishment.

I was thinking about this conversation the other day when I read a headline that New York Governor Andrew Cuomo was seeking to “decriminalize” the possession of small amounts of marijuana. I thought the use of the word “decriminalize” was odd – it implied that he wanted to legalize the possession of marijuana without actually saying it. For the casual reader, you might be left with that impression. If you actually read the article, it was clear that Cuomo was seeking to reduce the penalties for possession offenses to eliminate any potential for incarceration. There would still be a penal fine attached to the offense – so it would still be unlawful to possess marijuana in New York State. The Governor’s proposal has nothing to do with legalizing marijuana; rather, it simply would reduce the grading of the offense so that convictions for marijuana possession would not appear on an offender’s criminal history.

Semantics can be very important as to how an issue is presented and understood. The media reports that Governor Cuomo is seeking to “decriminalize” marijuana conveys the wrong impression to the public as it suggests some move to legalize this controlled substance. It also goes back to the question my friend asked me – what is the definition of a “crime?” Plainly, even if Governor Cuomo’s proposal passes in New York, the possession of marijuana will remain unlawful in New York and will be punished with a fine. Under the common definition of crime, the possession of marijuana will remain a crime under New York law – but it will not appear on someone’s “criminal history.” Does that mean that possession of marijuana in New York will no longer be a crime? There are some in the media who want you to believe that.

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/.

What is the common denominator between groceries and the Susquehanna County Library System? Pennies. Many, many pennies.

For several years now, the Susquehanna County Library has been the fortunate recipient of a sizeable chunk of change from the Community Rewards Program established by the ShurSave Markets Group. This program generously gives the Library three cents from every Shurfine and Western Family products purchased by customers who have designated the Library as beneficiary. We have received well in excess of $26,000 from this program since January 2006.

There are two local supermarkets that participate in the Community Rewards Program: Rob’s Market in Great Bend and Ray’s ShurSave Market in Montrose. We are now approaching the busy summer season with backyard barbeques and many guests from out of town. When you shop, we hope you will consider making purchases covered by this program to aid the Library.

To participate, you need to register your Gold Card and designate the Susquehanna County Library as the intended beneficiary. If you are not registered, you can stop in at any of our library locations and pick up the form. It takes just a moment of your time, but it is a gift that keeps on giving. Remember it is not necessary to re-register every year. If you do not have a Gold Card, it will be necessary to obtain one first from either of the two markets mentioned above.

The Susquehanna County Library is grateful for the support it received from the Community Rewards Program. Pennies do make a difference in keeping your local library open.