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Thursday, March 17, 2011

Vol. 148, No. 301 • 70 Pages • 50 Cents

Gribble, if freed, says he could murder again Knew it was wrong: Admitted Mont Vernon killer

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says he would get better psychiatric help if his insanity defense is accepted by the jury.

By KATHRYN MARCHOCKI

succeeds and he is ever set free.

“Legally it is possible if I were sent to the secure psychiatric unit that I could get out again,” Gribble told Senior Assistant Attorney General Jeffery A.

New Hampshire Union Leader

NASHUA — Mont Vernon killer Christopher A. Gribble admitted Wednesday he could kill again if his insanity defense

“

Strelzin.

“It’s one of those sort of million to one things. But I know it’s possible and, if I did get out, I think it’s possible that I could kill again,” Gribble told a Hillsborough County Superior Court jury on the fifth day of his insanity trial.

It was one of several admissions Gribble, 21, made when cross examined by the state for the first time since he took the

witness stand Monday afternoon.

Senior Assistant Attorney General Jeffery A. Strelzin challenged Gribble’s claims that he acted “instinctively” and “didn’t feel anything” when he stabbed Kimberly L. Cates, 42, to death and nearly killed her daughter, Jaimie, then, 11, during the Oct. 4, 2009, home

Prosecutor Jeff Strelzin shows indictments to Christopher Gribble at the start of his cross examination Wednesday.

VSee Gribble, Page A14

DON HIMSEL

School funding may see voters

There are potholes sprinkled everywhere.

Even our best roads have some damage.”

BRUCE BERRY Amherst’s director of Public Works

HEAVE WOE Bumpy ride: Sure, sap

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running is a sign of spring, but frost heaves provide a punctuation mark.

Opposition: Critics say they fear the proposed constitutional amendment would take local control and give it to the Legislature.

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By SARA YOUNG-KNOX Union Leader Correspondent

Spring is almost here and there’s likely a spring in your ride this time of year in the Granite State.

Patty V Streets of Boewe, of Manchester: Bad Freedom, pavement isn’t just can tell along country roads you that.

— Page B1 When she travels to North Conway and back for work these days, she budgets a little extra time. The bumps and frost heaves on Route 153 through Eaton and Conway slow her down as the late winter, early spring freeze and thaw cycles make the road LORNA COLQUHOUN an obstacle course.

The prolific frost heave signs that bloom this time of year in New Hampshire snowbanks are not enough to warn

By GARRY RAYNO

More inside

drivers on Route 142 between Whitefield and Bethlehem. An electronic sign warning of the bad roads ahead greets drivers on the Whitefield side of the road.

Millions, not thousands, of disks spilled into river Hooksett wastewater plant: Between 4 million

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and 8 million biofilm disks discharged into the Merrimack River last week, flowing into the Atlantic Ocean.

By DAN O’BRIEN Union Leader Correspondent

HOOKSETT —Between 4 million and 8 million small biofilm disks were released into the Merrimack River from the Hooksett Wastewater Treatment Plant last week, a much

higher number than the few hundred thousand that environmental officials had estimated.

Environmental officials said there is no additional public health risk from the heightened

REGULAR FEATURES Lotteries ........................A4 Notices ..................... B8-11 D5-11 Obituaries ..................A8-9 Religion ..................... B7 Sports ........................D1-5 Veterans .................... B5 Weather.......................D10

A Small Prayer

Today’s Chuckle

May we plug extra energy into whatever we do, Lord, by asking You to help us in everything we do.

Amen

There are two prime times when you wonder whether being a parent is really worth it: before you have your first child, and when you hand over the car keys for the first time.

New Hampshire Union Leader ©2011 Union Leader Corp., Manchester, N.H.

VSee Hooksett, Page A14

VSee Funding, Page A14

Gender doesn’t matter in today’s Army Army strong: The women of the 197th Fires Brigade say they are not to be underestimated but they work hard to prove themselves. .

By SHAWNE K. WICKHAM

These are the women of the 197th Fires Brigade.

Of the 2,500 members of CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait — They the brigade deployed here in Kuwait, 170 are are mothers, And daughters and NEW HAMPSHIRE women. most are from sisters. They miss New Hamptheir kids, parIN SHAWNE K. WICKHAM/SUNDAY NEWS shire’s own Army ents, friends and National Guard. Spc. Kayla White, a 19-year-old National Guardsman from pets. But they are Manchester, volunteered to deploy with the 197th Fires Army strong and VSee Kuwait, Page A14 Brigade in Kuwait.

New Hampshire proud.

New Hampshire Sunday News

GUARD

Today IN NEW HAMPSHIRE’S NEWSPAPER NEW HAMPSHIRE

Granite Status Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani comes to New Hampshire Friday, with some pointed talk about President Barack Obama. VPage A2

Goffstown teacher on leave Cassandra Beauchesne, a teacher at Maple Avenue Elementary School, did not return to work after police alleged she choked her husband for the second time in four months. VPage B1

NH WEEKEND

March Mashup Mid-March in the Granite State means two

things: Maple Weekend and St. Patrick’s Day. See Inside

V

WORLD

Nuclear crisis grows Japan’s nuclear crisis may have taken its most dangerous turn yet after a U.S. official said one of the pools containing highly radioactive spent fuel rods at the stricken plant had run dry. VPage A4

BUSINESS

More jobs for New Hampshire Fidelity Investments in Merrimack will gain perhaps hundreds of workers over the next two years as Fidelity shifts more than 1,000 jobs from its Marlborough, Mass., work site. VPage B3

NCHEST A

ER

Abby...............................B6 Business.....................B3-4 Classified ............... B12-14 Comics/TV ............. D12-13 Crossword....................D11 Editorials......................A12 Entertainment ........ C1-28 Lifestyles .......................B6

CONCORD — For the first time, the House on Wednesday approved a proposed constitutional amendment on education funding.

Offered by House Speaker William O’Brien, the amendment would give the Legislature the authority and full discretion to define education standards, accountability and funding and would end court control.

The House voted 252-113 — more than the three-fifths majority needed — to send CACR 12 to the Senate where another three-fifths majority is needed to place the question on the 2012 general election ballot.

The vote was largely down party lines, with 18

M

VSee Roads, Page A7

New Hampshire Union Leader

NH

03108

U S A

Today’s Letters: Page A13

SPORTS

Portsmouth, Milford win Portsmouth tops Souhegan and Milford beats Pelham in Division II semifinal high school basketball.

VPage D1

Page A14 • NEW HAMPSHIRE UNION LEADER • Thursday, March 17, 2011

From Page One

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Hooksett Continued From Page A1 number of spilled disks.

The disks spilled out of an overowing tank, along with about 300,000 gallons of raw sewage, and into the Merrimack River on March 6.

The disks oated downstream, ending up along the river shoreline and on ocean beaches in New Hampshire and northern Massachusetts.

Jim Martin, a spokesman for the state Department of Environmental Services, said an additional round of testing has been performed by ofďŹ cials in both states, which proved negative results for harmful

bacteria. “Most of these (results) have come back negative and if it’s positive it’s been very low,�

Martin said.

The disks from the Hooksett sewer plant, ofďŹ cially known as BiolďŹ lm Chip M Media, are not much larger than the size of a quarter. They were introduced to the plant last November in a ceremony that included Gov. John Lynch. Touted as a new sewage treatment method that reduced the number of aeration tanks that needed to be built, the disks were to save the town $1 million.

Hooksett is potentially facing a penalty of $25,000 per violation per day, according to Assistant Attorney General Allen Brooks, chief of the Attorney General OfďŹ ce’s Environmental Protection Bureau.

In initial testing last weekend, only two out of 52 disks were positive for E-coli bacteria, but Martin said the amount of the bacteria was so low it was similar to what you’d experience by touching the door knob of a public restroom.

Despite that, DES is recommending people use rubber gloves when handling the

disks and to wash their hands thoroughly if touched without gloves.

DES is organizing volunteer clean-ups this afternoon on North Hampton Beach, Hampton Beach and Seabrook Beach.

The agency is looking for volunteers. Those interested to get more information at www.des. state.nh.us.

Coincidentally, the clean-up effort comes during the national “Fix A Leak Week� campaign, which urges homeowners to examine their faucets, spigots and other water connections to prevent wasting water. More

Gribble Continued From Page A1 invasion.

Gribble admitted he knew what he was doing and purposely intended to kill. “It’s hard not to be purposely doing something like that when you stick a knife into someone,� the former Brookline Eagle Scout and practicing Mormon answered. “Yes, I knew killing was wrong,� he added.

Gribble also read excerpts from his confession in which he told police he “wanted to kill for a long time� and, after the attack, “just felt nothing. It was cool because it was different.� But, he added, “I do not use that as an excuse.� Gribble concluded more than 11 hours of testimony over three days in an effort to convince jurors he was legally insane when he and machete-wielding Steve Spader attacked the mother and daughter, then robbed them during the random home invasion.

If the jury ďŹ nds Gribble not guilty by reason of insanity, he would undergo a dangerousness hearing to determine if he should be set free or committed to the state prison’s secure psychiatric unit, also known as the SPU, for up to 5-year renewable terms.

If Gribble’s insanity defense fails, he would be found guilty and automatically sentenced to life in prison without chance of parole.

Spader, 19, also of Brookline, is serving life in prison plus 76 years after a jury convicted him Nov. 9 of the same six counts of

ďŹ rst-degree murder, attempted murder and related charges.

Gribble denied he is lying about his mental state in the hope it might get him out of prison someday. “At this point, I’m going (to prison) one way or another,�

Gribble said. “I want to get some psychiatric help. But, from my point of view, it’s (PSU) still state prison. It’s just a different wing of it. It’s my impression that you don’t actually get very good help if you just go upstate.â€? But Strelzin told Gribble he can get psychiatric help without raising an insanity defense and challenged him several times to drop his defense. “It’s your choice. You can just stop this right now‌ You can get that help you want in prison,â€? the lead prosecutor said. “I don’t’ really trust you on that,â€? Gribble replied, saying his “best option for help is to go to the PSU.â€? “And the best option for avoiding life in prison is to go to the PSU,â€? Strelzin countered.

While Gribble said he expects to go to prison one way or another, the state read from a letter Gribble wrote a friend from jail updating her on his case and his “planâ€? to get out of prison or jail in ďŹ ve or six years. “When I come back‌I’m going to try to really go out and enjoy myself, too. Parties, clubs, dancing, whatever. I’m going to sue the papers. I can prove they lied‌So I will have plenty of money to enjoy myself,â€? Gribble wrote.

Strelzin used Gribble’s admis-

sions that he hated his mother and dreamed of killing her as proof he is capable of choosing whom and when to kill. “You said to your lawyer you don’t kill people you have an emotional attachment to, right?

Strelzin asked. “Hate is an emotion, isn’t it?� “There is a difference between an emotion and an emotional attachment, Mister Strelzin. I don’t think you like me, do you have an emotional attachment to me?�

Gribble replied. “Mr. Gribble, you don’t want to know what I think of you.

And that’s no relevant, “the prosecutor said.

Gribble acknowledged he told the state’s forensic psychiatric expert, Dr. Albert Drukteinis, he could kill again if he ever got out of prison. “You’re a dangerous guy, right?� Strelzin asked, noting he told Drukteinis “that people in jail don’t know how dangerous you are.� Gribble smiled. “I think it’s funny because all the people in there have no idea who they’re messing with.�

Strelzin claim Gribble was not insane, but planned to make money by robbing the house and chose to kill Kimberly and Jaime Cates to eliminate witnesses and make it harder for police to trace the stolen jewelry the killers intended to pawn.

Quinn Glover, one of Gribble’s accomplices in the home invasion, testiďŹ ed as a defense witness.

Glover and William Marks, both 19 of Amherst, participated in the home invasion and

robbery but were not charged in connection with the attack.

Both have cooperation agreements with the state to testify as prosecution witnesses.

Glover said “nobody was forced to go to Mont Vernonâ€? and that Spader told them as they drove to the Cates house that “the purpose of what we were going to do is to get Chris into killing.â€? Glover said he attempted suicide several months before the murder and was hospitalized for mental health issues. He said has been been taking Seroquel, Xanax, Klonopin, and Zoloft for severe depression, “really bad anxiety attacks,â€? difďŹ culty sleeping and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Glover pled guilty last year to burglary, robbery and burglary conspiracy and will serve 20 to 40 years in state prison. “You are not using your mental health issues as a reason for committing those crimes?� Assistant Attorney General Peter Hinckley asked. “No, sir,� Glover replied.

Marks, who has yet to plead guilty to the crimes, invoked his Fifth Amendment right not to testify at Gribble’s trial. Instead, the defense is reading a transcript of the sworn testimony Marks gave at Spader’s trial to the jury.

Autumn Savoy of Hollis, who also pleaded guilty to helping Spader and Gribble cover up the crimes and hide evidence, is expected to take the stand Thursday. Savoy also has a cooperation agreement with the state.

Kuwait Continued From Page A1 Up at Camp Buehring, where the Guard is providing security escorts for long-haul convoys into Iraq, there are women mechanics, drivers and gunners.

But don’t call them that in front of Capt. Brian Calhoun of Hooksett, the day battle commander there. “They’re not female gunners,� he’ll say. “They’re gunners.�

Three young gunners said their Convoy Escort Teams have become their families over here. But they say they do feel they have to prove themselves. “When we ďŹ rst got here and we were getting trained by the people already here, they’d ask you, ‘You’re the gunner?’ â€? recalled Spc. Megan Torres, 23, of Rochester. “Yeah, I’m a gunner,â€? she’d reply. “Plenty of times I would mount and dismount my weapon by myself just to prove myself,â€? she said. “You’d rather carry a mountain than have help carrying it.

There are people that doubt you.

You just ignore it and go about your day.� “I feel like I have to prove myself a lot,� said her fellow gunner, PFC Jensine Barr, a petite 20-year-old from Nashua. “I tend to go out of my way when they tell me I can’t do something to do it. “Do not underestimate me.�

The women say their smaller size can be an advantage in the turret. “You see a tall, big guy, when he gets up there, he’s squished,� Torres said. “We can drop down when we get hit by an IED.�

Sgt. Rachel Glover of Lincoln is just 26, but this is her third deployment with the National Guard. She went to Iraq with the 197th Field Artillery in 2004 and went back with the 3643rd in 2006-07.

She’s a supply specialist here at Camp Arifjan. Back home, she’s a student at Franklin Pierce University and plans to become

a nurse. She doesn’t think there are equality issues for women Guardsmen here. “I don’t feel I get treated any differently,� she said. “I’ve never had a problem.�

Changing attitudes Sgt. Katie Hannigan of Manchester, 33, works full time for the Guard back home as a ďŹ nance technician. She’s been in the Guard for nearly 14 years, and has seen the opportunities for women expand in that time.

She started out in an administrative position, but later trained in small-arms and Howitzer repair. She deployed with the 197th along with Glover in 2004-05, the only two women in the unit back then.

Chief Warrant OfďŹ cer Charlie Morgan of Rye has seen a lot of changes since she ďŹ rst joined the Army 29 years ago back in her home state of Kentucky.There were just ďŹ ve females in a company of 250, and she remembers her ďŹ rst sergeant liked to humiliate the women by making them do push-ups in front of the men. “He did not like females in the military, and he would make it perfectly clear.â€?

After a 12-year hiatus during which she became a high school teacher, she went back into the military in 2004, joining the Kentucky Guard just days before she would have turned 40 and become ineligible. “It was totally different,� she said. “There were women in higher positions.�

Morgan moved to New Hampshire three years ago and transferred to the New Hampshire Guard, where she works full time in the Deployment Cycle Support Program. She said things are different for today’s young soldiers. “I think we are treated with more respect than back in the day,� she said.

Morgan is the equal opportunity adviser for the brigade and is

implementing a brand-new Army program called SHARP, designed to prevent sexual harassment and assault. The idea is to make every soldier responsible for reporting harassment when he or she sees it, whether that’s inappropriate language, gestures, behavior or even pictures that make someone uncomfortable, she explained.

Since she’s been in Kuwait, Morgan has received 21 complaints about gender or racial harassment or discrimination.

None involved New Hampshire soldiers.

She said the idea of SHARP is to prevent sexual harassment from turning into assault. It’s an issue that doesn’t just affect females: In a recent conďŹ dential “climateâ€? survey conducted here, 23 females reported being sexually harassed.

Eighty-one males reported the same.

And in the same survey, some men complained that women were getting preferential treatment, Morgan said.

Some of the youngest women in the brigade say gender is irrelevant in today’s military.

Spc. Kayla White is a 2009 graduate of Manchester Central High School. She joined the National Guard at 17, and just two years later volunteered to come to Kuwait with the 197th as a videographer for the public affairs ofďŹ ce. “I really, really just wanted to be where everybody else was going to be,â€? she said. “I didn’t want to be sitting back in the rear detachment.â€? “I want to have the adventure and I want to be a part of something big,â€? she said.

When she gets home, White plans to go to college for pre-law and then to law school. She wants to be a prosecutor.

But for now, she’s really enjoying this deployment. “I would not trade this experience for anything,� said White. “I feel like we’re making a difference here, and that’s important.�

White said if you can prove yourself as a soldier, gender doesn’t matter. “As long as you can do your job effectively ...nobody’s going to be like ‘you’re a girl, you can’t do this.’ � “Because watch me try.

I can do it.�

Touch of home On Army bases here, the women are housed in separate barracks from the men; at Camp Arifjan, they can create their own private quarters by hanging blankets and using wall lockers as dividers. They decorate their walls with children’s artwork and family photographs.

They have to go outside to a different building to take showers or use the latrines, but there are facilities designated for females, and civilian contractors are hired to keep them clean. The paper towels here are the consistency of toilet paper; the toilet paper can’t be ushed or it backs up the works so it has to discarded in waste baskets.

Still, what these women soldiers miss are not the creature comforts.

For Torres, it’s hills, “something that’s not at.â€? “I don’t think I’ve ever eaten or inhaled or listened to as much sand in my life.â€?

Listened to? “It’s in my ears,â€? she explained. “You hear the wind blow, but it’s really just listening to sand ďŹ lling your ears.â€?

What does Glover miss most? “My dogs. My family. Good food,� she said.

Barr said she misses greenery.

She actually experienced a mirage on one long-haul trip, seeing a line of what seemed to be trees in the desert. “I think I was just seeing what I wanted to see,� she said. .

The “NH Guard in Kuwait� Union Leader and UnionLeader.com series is made possible in part with the assistance of Next Step Orthotics and Prosthetics and of DEKA Research.

than 5 billion gallons of water leak from New Hampshire homes every year.

State and local ofďŹ cials conďŹ rmed the Hooksett plant had not installed an alarm system on the sewage tanks that would have alerted workers to an overow until the day after the spill.

Plant ofďŹ cials also installed screens around the tanks to prevent future disk spillage.

Investigators are still determining if a ďŹ ne will be issued. “We haven’t reached any conclusions on what actions there might be,â€? Brooks said. “Everyone is focused on ďŹ xing

the problem right now.�

Brooks said the federal Environmental Protection Agency is charged with determining whether the plant’s actions warrant ďŹ nes under the Clean Water Protection Act. OfďŹ cials said the sewage discharge is considered a violation, but ofďŹ cials will be looking to see if Hooksett was negligent.

The AG’s OfďŹ ce is focused on potential solid waste violations, which would involve the disks in this case. “Everything they did will be considered,â€? Brooks said.

Funding Continued From Page A1 Republicans voting against the amendment.

Gov. John Lynch said after the vote that he believes if any amendment is to achieve the two-thirds majority of voters to change the constitution it will need the support of the House, Senate and his ofďŹ ce. “I think an amendment has to both afďŹ rm the state responsible for public education but at same time allow us, the Legislature to target aid to communities and children who need it more than others,â€? he said after the Governor and Executive Council meeting.

He said he supports parts of the amendment, particularly the second sentence, which gives the Legislature the discretion to target aid. “But I think there needs to be an appreciation and acknowledgement of the state’s responsibility,� Lynch said. “Outside of the House, there is general consensus that there needs to be acknowledgement of state responsibility.�

He said he believes the ďŹ rst sentence of the House amendment would allow the state to potentially abandon its responsibility to public education.

During debate on the House oor, O’Brien called the Supreme Court’s Claremont education decisions “twistedâ€? and said the court has done “violence to our constitution.â€? “We have a historic opportunity here to depart from the chaos the Claremont decisions have visited upon New Hampshire,â€? O’Brien told the House.

He said lawmakers for the last two decades have been put in handcuffs by the Claremont decisions. Without the amendment, he said, lawmakers will have the Supreme Court forever looking over their shoulders on education decisions.

After the vote, O’Brien said, “For the past 15 years, we have seen a repeated cycle of chaos that has spread across both our education system as well as our Legislature. This process began with the Claremont lawsuits, but it is my ardent belief that today’s vote will mark the start of the end of this chaos and the beginning of an era of sustainability, consistency and a focus on actually helping real students in need and no more battles pitting communities against each other and taxpayers against the judiciary.�

However, others disagreed, saying the amendment would end local control over public education and instead give it to the Legislature.

Rep. Laura Jones, R-Rochester, said “Make no mistake, this amendment does not give local control. It takes local control and gives it to the General

Court.�

She said she and others, like former gubernatorial candidate Karen Testerman, agree the proposal does not ďŹ x the Claremont decisions and “is not to be trusted.â€?

But other longtime critics of the court’s Claremont decisions joined O’Brien in backing the amendment. Rep. Paul Mirski, R-EnďŹ eld, called the amendment “a defensive measure that limits what the court can inict on New Hampshire.

It’s not a panacea, but it beneďŹ ts us to move this forward,â€? he said.

Opponents of the measure argued the state could easily abdicate its responsibility and a future budget crisis could end state education funding altogether.

Rep. Mary Stuart Gile, DConcord, said the amendment “discriminates against children from property wealthy communities and denies educational opportunities to the students who live there.�

Rep. Gary Richardson, DHopkinton, said the amendment does not say the Legislature has to act reasonably, but leaves it up to lawmakers to deďŹ ne what is reasonable. “This brings us to a whole new low levelâ€? of court scrutiny, he said.

The amendment would also give the Legislature “unfettered control over what we will pay for education,� Richardson said. “It will be the most incredible downshifting of costs we have ever seen.�

He said he believes the state should better target money to the neediest communities and stop sending money to wealthy communities that don’t need it, but the amendment does little to address that issue. “It would be a tragic mistake to adopt this amendment,�

Richardson said.

Rep. Ken Weyler, R-Kingston, blasted school superintendents saying “they are using our children as shields� in the education funding debate. “We’ve got to start controlling this process,� he said. “It is out of control.�

Senate President Peter Bragdon praised the House vote and said the Senate has its own similar amendment it will act on soon. “This is deďŹ nitely a huge step forward. The House sent a strong signal today that an amendment remains the longterm solution to our ongoing education funding dilemma,â€?

Bragdon said. “A winning vote on a constitutional amendment regarding education funding has been a long time in coming here in New Hampshire.�

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