Record Cold: The cold snap gripped Montrose like a vice. Tuesday morning the mercury stood at 12 degrees below zero in many places and the day was biting cold, the mercury failing to rise to zero. Wednesday morning the mercury was down to 18 below. Plumbers were busy all over town thawing frozen water pipes. On the E. W. Rogers farm, just outside of town, the mercury was 24 below. On the Frink farm, near Fairdale, along the Wyalusing creek, the same mark was also reached. From Louden Hill Farm, the Percy Ballantine estate, 30 degrees below. Tuesday morning, while the mercury registered anywhere from 6 to 12 below, a biting wind caused the cold to be more keenly felt. Brooklyn also had readings of 12 degrees below in the early morning.
Harford – Fred Osborne is now a full-fledged Justice of the Peace, being here recently to take out his commission, having been elected last fall. He will make a good one.
Montrose – Edward Button, a boy about 14 years of age, was kicked by a horse last Saturday while leading the animal from the blacksmith’s shop to Harrington’s livery. The boy fell and the horse whirled and kicked him just above the right ear. It was sometime before the lad regained consciousness. He is recovering. For a youngster he has had his share of narrow escapes. While living with his parents at Wyoming, Pa., a few years ago, he was taken from the river in a nearly drowned state. Only resorting to strenuous measures revived him. Also “Steamer” Flanagan, the well known ball player, a brother of Conductor Chas. Flanagan, has been appointed a policeman in Wilkes-Barre. Twenty cops were dismissed from the force last week.
Gibson – Cornelius Pickering, one of the best known citizens of Gibson township, passed away at his home Jan. 3, 1914, aged 62 years. His death was due to injuries received in a runaway accident. He had been a life long resident of Gibson, residing since marriage a short distance from the place of his birth. Also There was an auction in South Gibson and during part of the sale the weather was so cold that Auctioneer W. C. Cox’s voice froze up, and did not thaw out until he was on his way home on the train, when he was surprised to find himself saying, “How much more am I offered? Do I hear five?”
Hop Bottom – One case of scarlet fever having developed here, the public schools have been closed. A little son of Mr. and Mrs. Claude Roberts is ill with the disease and several children were exposed, before the nature of his ailment was known. The school building has been fumigated and every means taken to avert the spread of the disease.
New Milford – F. W. Dean was in Montrose on Friday. Mr. Dean is a relentless foe of the city commission men who cheat the farmers out of a lot of money they should receive for the produce, and his recent clever ruse, in revealing the tactics of city produce dealers, was given publicity in the New York newspapers.
Auburn Four Corners – There will be a box social in the Four Corners school building Friday evening, Jan. 16. Proceeds to purchase an organ for the Pickett Hill school. Every one is invited to attend. Ladies, please bring a box.
Forest City – A deal has been consummated whereby the Baptist church on the corner of Dundaff and Delaware streets, passed into the hands of the Slavish Roman Catholic Parish of St. Michael and will hereafter be known as St. Michael’s church.
Brooklyn – Extensive improvements are in progress on the interior of the M. E. church.
Clifford – Mr. and Mrs. L. E. Lee, Mr. and Mrs. E. G. Greene, Mr. and Mrs. L. E. Taylor, B. F. Bennett, S. J. Horton, and the Misses Ruth Reynolds, Florence Morgan and Teresa Kenyon made up a sleighing party to Elkdale last Saturday night, where they attended the installation of officers at Elkdale Grange. After the ceremony the party was royally entertained in the dining room. S. J. Horton, of Clifford Grange, was the installing officer.
Springville – There is every assurance that Springville will have a bank of its own in the near future. A good part of the capital stock has already been subscribed and the project is said to be a certainty. It will be a great addition to the place as well as a convenience to business men. Also Strickland & Parks, who own the grist mill at States’ pond, will stock it with a full line of feeds, at once, and have engaged C. D. Travis to operate it. This will be a great convenience to the people in that section.
West Jackson – Mr. and Mrs. Lavern Aldrich, of Lake View, entertained Mrs. Aldrich, Mrs. A. N. French and Mrs. Mame Savory’s Sunday school classes, Friday evening. They were treated to warm sugar and pop corn.
Clifford – Elwood, little son of Rev. and Mrs. W. L. German, met with quite a severe accident one day last week, while coasting near the school house. He lost control of his sled and ran into a tree striking his head, rendering him unconscious for a time. He is all right now, only carrying the marks of the impact.
Franklin Forks – Mr. and Mrs. Friend Summers and children, of Saskatchewan, are visiting their father, Harvey Summers.
Liberty Twp. – Archie Ireland started to Binghamton, Saturday, with a big load of hay for I. H. Travis and when he got below Milbron the wind unloaded his hay rigging and all upon the bank. Archie came home and left the hay and rigging and will try going to town some day when the wind don’t blow.
Great Bend – Henry Ackert, of this place, received the sad news of the death of his brother, Stephen Ackert, who died at his home in West Colesville, Friday afternoon, aged 97 years and 9 months. Also Carl White has returned to Ann Arbor, Mich., where he is attending the University of Michigan.
How about some crime statistics to start out 2014? If you follow this column, you know that I occasionally give you a snapshot of what we are dealing with in terms of criminal caseload. For our adult criminal caseload, the numbers have generally been increasing over the past decade. For an adult criminal case to be counted in our caseload, it has to involve a misdemeanor or felony level offense. To give you an idea of our trends, here are the numbers of criminal cases that we have prosecuted over the past several years: there were 388 cases in 2005, 439 cases in 2006, 479 cases in 2007, 558 cases in 2008, 596 cases in 2009, 554 in 2010, and 586 cases in 2011. You may recall that we reached an unfortunate milestone in 2012 with a staggering 644 adult criminal cases. It was the first time Susquehanna County had ever gone over 600 criminal cases in a single year.
In 2013, we had two particular defendants that accounted for nearly 40 cases by themselves – and that skewed the numbers to some degree. But we would have gone over 600 criminal cases even without those two “overachievers.” As I have stated in the past, the explanation for the trend is pretty simple: drug addiction is the primary cause of most criminal activity. In particular, the use of opiates – both prescribed painkillers and heroin – has become a national epidemic, and Susquehanna County has not been spared. As the illegal use of these opiates has spread, the rate of property crimes has increased as well.
Another big portion of our caseload represents DUI cases – and those numbers have increased substantially and remained consistently high over the past decade. In 2003, we had 80 DUI cases and another 81 DUI cases in 2004, followed by 92 in 2005. Then, our DUI numbers started to increase substantially: 106 in 2006, 140 in 2007, 157 in 2008, 195 in 2009, 207 in 2010, 160 in 2011, and 158 in 2012. I do not have the statistics for 2013 available as of this date, but the DUI caseload will continue to represent a substantial chunk of our work – consistent around 25%.
But I do have some good news for 2013 – we only had a total of 493 cases filed in 2013. This is a significant drop off from not only the 644 in 2012, but also the trend over the previous several years. In fact, this is the first year since 2007 that there were less than 500 adult criminal cases. This means that there were 151 less cases in 2013, or a reduction of nearly 25% from 2012. While I cannot tell you whether or not we are now trending in the other direction, it is certainly a welcome change from the previous several years.
If you ask me what to attribute this statistically significant drop in caseload to, I would not be able to give you a good answer to that question. I can tell you that over the past several years, our juvenile numbers have been trending downward, i.e., we had less kids getting into trouble in the criminal justice system. Given that the demographics for criminal conduct tends to occupy the 18 to 25 age group, the fact that there were less juveniles in the system suggested that we had less potential for problems as those juveniles grew older. Moreover, in terms of the juveniles that we are dealing with within the juvenile justice system over the past few years, it seems that less of them are going on to commit adult crimes after they turn 18 years of age.
The most significant factor that drives criminal conduct is drug usage – whether it is alcohol abuse (DUI cases) or the use of controlled substances (both prescription and illegal substances). While I am optimistic about last year’s numbers, I also know that substance abuse counselors tell me that they are servicing more and more people struggling with some form of substance abuse here in Susquehanna County. Not every person with a drug or alcohol problem commits a criminal offense – but the vast majority of the people in the criminal justice system have an addiction that drives their behavior. If we want to keep reducing our numbers, we have to work on reducing alcohol and drug abuse in our communities.
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/.
“It is growing cold. Winter is putting footsteps in the meadow. What whiteness boasts that sun that comes into this wood! One would say milk-colored maidens are dancing on the petals of orchids. How coldly burns our sun! One would say its rays of light are shards of snow, one imagines the sun lives upon a snow crested peak on this day. One would say she is a woman who wears a gown of winter frost that blinds the eyes. Helplessness has weakened me. Wandering has wearied my legs.” ― Roman Payne
The New Year—a blank page that only you can fill in. Everyone speaks of resolutions, and how difficult it is to keep them. Why not focus on just one item—being happy? Happy with yourself, your surroundings and expand from there? Perhaps strive to do something thoughtful/kind for others on a regular basis, then watch the happiness flow! It will make you and the recipient feel good, Do yourself a favor and start today and every day with a smile. You’ll be surprised how good you will feel and while you’re smiling, make it a point to stop in at your local Library Branch and pick out a book to snuggle up with on these frigid winter days.
We have a winner. Louise Ferra has won the gift basket filled with Author Troy Soos’ baseball-themed mysteries. I hear by the Library “Grapevine” that Louise is a voracious reader, a familiar face at the Hallstead/Great Bend Branch Library and a diehard fan of the works of James Patterson and Janet Evanovich. Congratulations Louise. We hope you enjoy every page of your new mysteries. A big Thank-You goes out to Kensington Publishing in New York for their generosity and all those who purchased raffle tickets. Your participation helps us purchase the items that make our programs and services so special for you—our patrons. We couldn’t do what we do without you.
Louise Ferra with her basket of baseball-themed mysteries
How many in our audience remember “Flat Stanley”? Maybe the name rings a bell, but you don’t remember the whole story? “Flat Stanley”started as a 1964 children's book written by the late Jeff Brown and was originally illustrated by Tom Ungerer. It is the first in a series of books featuring “Stanley Lambchop” January marks “Flat Stanley’s” Big 5-0 birthday!! As the original story goes, Stanley Lambchop and his younger brother Arthur are given a huge bulletin board by their father so they could display pictures and posters. Dad hangs it on the wall over Stanley's bed. During the night the board falls from the wall, flattening Stanley in his sleep. He survives and makes the best of his altered state, and soon he is entering locked rooms by sliding under doors, and playing with his younger brother by being used as a kite. One special advantage is that “Flat Stanley” can now visit his friends by being mailed in an envelope. Stanley was even clever enough to help catch some art museum thieves by posing as a painting on the wall! Eventually, Stanley gets tired of being flat and Arthur changes him back to his proper shape with the use of a bicycle pump. “Flat Stanley” has been around the world several times and has had many adventures, including one with a magic lamp, trying his hand at being invisible, and even a journey into space! Since Mr. Brown’s passing other Authors have continued the “Flat Stanley” series with adventures to such places as Mount Rushmore, Egypt, the U.S. Capitol, Canada, Mexico, Africa and Australia to name a few. Your local Library Branch has the original storybook on the shelf, just waiting for you—and who knows? “Flat Stanley” just might be waiting there too! Be on the lookout—I understand he would like to do some exploring here in Northeast PA.
Happy 50th Birthday “Flat Stanley”—and best wishes for entertaining young and old alike for many years to come.
Don’t forget to find us on “Facebook”: (Susquehanna County Library) and look us up on “Pinterest” for lots of interesting nooks and crannies to explore and now, if you “Tweet”, follow us on Twitter (@susqcolib) to check out event information, local scoops and much more.
As I put the kettle on for another steaming hot cup of tea, I leave you with this thought:
"The shortest day has passed, and whatever nastiness of weather we may look forward to in January and February, at least we notice that the days are getting longer. Minute by minute they lengthen out. It takes some weeks before we become aware of the change. It is imperceptible even as the growth of a child, as you watch it day by day, until the moment comes when with a start of delighted surprise we realize that we can stay out of doors in a
twilight lasting for another quarter of a precious hour." - Vita Sackville-West
Icicles—warm afghans—handmade mittens
Enjoy.
