FRIDAY August 9, 2013
Airport Upgrade Page A2 Terminal building gets a makeover
PGA Page B1 Tie atop leaderboard after one round
Weather Partly cloudy skies today. High 78. Low 60. Mix of sun and clouds Saturday. Page A8
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Drone strikes up in Yemen
GOOD MORNING Lawmakers seek review of office of inspector general INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Top Statehouse Democrats called Thursday for a review of the Indiana inspector general’s office following several cases that they say raise questions about the ethics code applied to those in the executive branch of state government. Sen. Tim Lanane and Rep. Scott Pelath sent a letter to Inspector General David Thomas seeking a “fundamental review” of the office’s duties. They cited a number of troubling cases, including a scandal over former schools chief Tony Bennett’s changes to the school grading formula to benefit a top Republican donor’s school. The Associated Press last week published emails showing Bennett and his staff changed the grading formula to raise Christel House Academy’s score from a C to an A. School founder Christel DeHaan has donated $2.8 million to Republicans since 1998, including $130,000 to Bennett. Indiana’s school grades are used to determine how much money schools get and whether “failing” schools are taken over by private operators. They also have become critical economic development tools in recent years, used in part by homebuyers picking locations based on the quality of their schools. Bennett denies any wrongdoing, but he resigned as Florida’s education commissioner. He has asked the Indiana inspector general’s office to review his handling of the formula change.
Jobless claims at 6-year low WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans who have a job may take comfort in knowing that companies are laying off fewer people than at any time since before the Great Recession. The government said Thursday that weekly applications for U.S. unemployment benefits have averaged 335,500 over the past month. That’s the lowest level since November 2007, which was one month before the recession began. But while most companies have stopped cutting jobs, many remain reluctant to hire. That’s bad news for the roughly 11.5 million Americans who are unemployed and a major reason the unemployment rate is still so high four years after the recession officially ended.
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Classifieds.................................B5-B8 Life..................................................... A3 Obituaries......................................... A4 Opinion ............................................. A5 Sports.........................................B1-B3 Weather............................................ A8 TV/Comics .......................................B4 Vol. 101 No. 218
U.S. kills more suspected militants
two years suspended and eight years to serve. Rowe was placed on probation for two years. The plea agreement capped the amount of executed prison time at eight years. In a letter to the court, Rowe apologized for his actions. “I am truly sorry for what I have done. I have no one to blame but myself for where I am today. To (the victim), I am deeply sorry
SANAA, Yemen (AP) — Three U.S. drone strikes killed a total of 12 suspected al-Qaida militants Thursday, a Yemeni military official said, raising to eight the number of attacks in less than two weeks as the Arab nation is on high alert against terrorism. The uptick in drone strikes signals that the Obama administration is stepping up its efforts to target Yemen’s al-Qaida offshoot — al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula — amid fears of attacks after the interception of a message between its leader and the global leader of the terror network. Since July 27, drone attacks have killed 34 suspected militants, according to an Associated Press count provided by Yemeni security officials. The Yemeni military official said the first drone attack killed six alleged militants in central Marib province, while the second killed three more in the al-Ayoon area of Hadramawt province in the south. The third killed three others in the al-Qutn area of Hadramawt, he said. All the airstrikes targeted cars, added the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media. The high alert in Yemen came after authorities revealed an al-Qaida plot to target foreign embassies and international shipping lanes in the Red Sea. The U.S. and Britain evacuated diplomatic staff this week after learning of a threatened attack that prompted Washington to close temporarily 19 diplomatic posts in the Middle East and Africa. While the United States acknowledges its drone program in Yemen, it does not confirm individual strikes or release information on how many have been carried out. The program is run by the Pentagon’s Joint Special Operations Command and the CIA, with the military flying its drones out of Djibouti, and the CIA out of a base in Saudi Arabia. In the capital of Sanaa, an Associated Press reporter said a
SEE ROBBERY, PAGE A8
SEE YEMEN, PAGE A8
MATT GETTS
There was plenty of free swimming space at the Auburn city pool Thursday afternoon, as recent
cool temperatures have failed to draw swimmers to test the chilly waters.
Cool temps cut pool crowds BY MATT GETTS mgetts@kpcmedia.com
AUBURN — This summer’s moderate temperatures haven’t done any favors to city-operated swimming pools in Auburn and Garrett. The number of people enjoying the cool waters just isn’t that high when the air temperatures are low. “Attendance has been pretty slow,” said Carlena Magley, manager at the Auburn pool. “We’ve probably had five or six days when no one has come at all,” said Bob Lapadot, the manager of the Garrett pool. “It’s been at least a week and a half since we’ve been open a full day.” When the weather was warm, people made up for it at Garrett. According to city figures, so far this year total attendance stands at 11,002. In 2012, that figure was 10,726. The Garrett pool has a longstanding policy of not opening without at least 10 swimmers, and it will close if the number falls below that figure.
Area tourist businesses unfazed by summer chill BY MIKE MARTURELLO mmarturello@kpcmedia.com
ANGOLA — The dog days of summer have been pretty tame this year in northeast Indiana. July set records for one of the coolest months on record for South Bend and Fort Wayne this year. With August making up the final days of the so-called dog days of summer, the relatively cool weather pattern is expected to remain intact in the Midwest through the third week of the month and possibly beyond. “No heat waves are forecast through the middle of the month from the upper Midwest to the Northeast. While the pattern will have some warm and humid days, they will tend to be brief.
The pattern will make working outdoors more enjoyable and less risky,” said Alex Sosnowksi, senior meteorologist for AccuWeather.com, which provides weather information for kpcnews.com. “The frequent cool weather pattern is likely to continue over much of the Midwest moving forward into September.” The weather hasn’t seemed to impact tourism in Steuben County, which attracts visitors with its more than 100 lakes. “Things have been pretty steady. If anything the cooler weather has helped; however I have no quantitative evidence yet,” said June Julien, executive director of the Steuben County Tourism Bureau. “We will SEE TOURIST, PAGE A8
SEE POOL, PAGE A8
Aiding in robbery earns 8 years BY KATHRYN BASSETT kbassett@kpcmedia.com
AUBURN — An Auburn man was sentenced to eight years behind bars Thursday for his role in the robbery of an Auburn convenience store. Derek Rowe, 26, of the 2300 block of C.R. 34, pleaded guilty to aiding in robbery, a Class B felony, as part of a plea agreement filed in DeKalb Superior Court I.
He was accused of acting as a look-out while a second suspect, Taylor McBee, robbed the Auburn Pride convenience store, 1902 S. Wayne St., on Dec. 22, 2012. Armed with a nickelplated revolver, McBee allegedly demanded cigarettes and money. Rowe also was accused of driving the vehicle carrying McBee from the scene. Judge Kevin Wallace sentenced Rowe to 10 years in prison, with
School board to consider superintendent’s contract WATERLOO — The DeKalb Central school board will meet Aug. 20 at 6:30 p.m. at the district’s administration offices, 3326 C.R. 427, Waterloo, to discuss a proposed Superintendent of Schools employment contract. Terms of the contact include a base annual salary of $118,267, which includes a 2 percent increase. The contract term is July 1, 2013, to June 30, 2014, with a work year of 240 days with 14 vacation days and 12 sick leave days. Sick leave days accumulate up to a maximum of 120 total days. Sick days beyond the maximum will be compensated at $150 per day and will be paid to a 401(a) account. Paid holidays are the same as other full-year administrators. The contract includes an annual benefit allocation of $29,700, including a $1,000 increase, which may be allocated toward health insurance, dental insurance,
annuity and transportation expenses. The school district shall pay the full cost, except for $1 per year, for a term life insurance policy with a face value of twice the amount of the annual contracted salary. The school district pays the superintendent’s statutorily required TRF contribution, which is currently 3 percent of the superintendent’s base salary. There is a one-time performance stipend of $3,000. The school district will pay all reasonable expenses for the superintendent to attend state and national conferences with board approval. The school district will pay for professional organizational memberships upon board approval. The superintendent is reviewed annually and may be eligible for a salary increase with a rating of highly effective or effective.
JEFF JONES
Long-distance pickle racers Abraham, 6, and sister Sarah Alajarmeh, 7, show off their decorated cucumbers for the pickle derby at the St. Joe Pickle Festival Thursday. The siblings, from Woodbridge, Va., made their first visit to the pickle festival while visiting grandparents near Auburn. The festival continues through Saturday.