THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018 newsminer

4
SOURDOUGH JACK: “I might not be wind powered, but I can blow a lot of hot air.” The weather. Snow. Areas of freez- ing fog. Areas of fog in the afternoon. A chance of light freez- ing rain in the after- noon. Snow accumu- lation around 2 inch- es. Tonight: Snow. High today .............. 35 Low tonight ............ 19 WEATHER » A5 GOOD MORNING Classified » B4 | Comics » B6 | Dear Abby » Latitude 65 | Markets » A5 | Opinion » A4 INSIDE • • • • • • House of Representatives discusses bill that would create refuge in Tangle Lakes. » A3 Inside Today Aurora forecast. Auroral activity will be moderate. Weather per- mitting, moderate dis- plays will be visible over- head from Utqiagvik to as far south as Talkeetna and visible low on the horizon as far south as Bethel, Soldotna and southeast Alaska. This information is provided by aurora forecasters at the Geophysical Institute at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. For more infor- mation about the aurora, visit http://www.gi.alaska. edu/AuroraForecast HIT THE TRAILS High school state ski meet starts today at Birch Hill. SPORTS Page B1 One dollar newsminer.com THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018 THE VOICE OF INTERIOR ALASKA Closing arguments heard in murder trial By Dorothy Chomicz [email protected] A Fairbanks jury heard clos- ing arguments Wednesday in the murder trial of Patrick Dale Burton-Hill. Burton-Hill, 24, is charged with one count of first-degree murder and two counts of sec- ond-degree murder for the May 17, 2015, shooting death of John D. Kavairlook Jr. The shooting happened after Kavairlook and one of Bur- ton-Hill’s friends, Demarius Hinson, were kicked out of the Rock N Rodeo bar after getting in a fight. The fight resumed in the nearby Walgreens park- ing lot and ended when Bur- ton-Hill grabbed Hinson’s 9 mm Glock pistol from their vehicle and fired off 12 rounds. One of the rounds entered the back right side of Kavairlook’s head and exited through the top of his left ear. He died on scene. Criteria for a murder conviction Superior Court Judge Paul Lyle began the day’s pro- ceedings by reading the jury instructions on how to deter- mine whether to convict or acquit Burton-Hill on any of the three charges against him. A first-degree murder convic- tion requires the state to prove that Burton-Hill intended to cause the death of another per- son, and that he did cause the death of any person. If the jury finds those first two items to be true, and also finds the state did not prove Burton-Hill acted in self-defense, they must find him guilty of first degree murder. A conviction on the first count of second-degree murder requires the state to prove that Burton-Hill intended to cause serious physical injury to anoth- er person, and caused the death of any person, or, that he knew his conduct was substantially certain to cause death or serious physical injury to another per- son, and he caused the death of any person. If the jury finds the state has proved these elements and has also proved Burton-Hill did not act in self-defense, they must find him guilty. A conviction on the second count of second-degree murder requires the state to prove Bur- ton-Hill did not act in self-de- fense when he caused the death of another person, that he know- ingly engaged in this conduct and the conduct was performed under circumstances manifest- ing an extreme indifference to the value of human life. Nondeadly force versus deadly force Lyle told the jury a defendant may use nondeadly force upon another if he believes it is nec- essary for self-defense against what he believes to be the use of unlawful force by the other person. The defendant’s beliefs must be reasonable under the circumstances. A defendant may not use nondeadly force in United States’ Jessica Diggins, left, and Kikkan Randall celebrate after winning the gold medal Wednesday in the women’s team sprint freestyle cross-country skiing final at the Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea. AP PHOTO/KIRSTY WIGGLESWORTH GOLD EXPERIENCE US women win 1st Olympic cross-country ski medal PYEONGCHANG, SOUTH KOREA As she headed up the steep- est, most grueling hill of her life in third place, Jessica Diggins thought to herself that just win- ning an Olympic medal was no longer good enough. She wanted more. She wanted gold. Diggins dug deep, remem- bering all the years of training she had put in, and of all her teammates waiting for her at the finish line to bring home the United States’ first medal ever in women’s cross-country skiing — and then she let loose. Diggins reached the peak of the hill in third place but sped past Norway’s Maiken Caspers- en Falla on the last big, wind- ing downhill. She rounded the final corner and took dead aim at Sweden’s Stina Nilsson on the final 100-meter homestretch. The crowd in the grandstand was on its feet sensing history, and at that moment Diggins said she felt “unstoppable.” “Around that final corner I felt like I was uncoiling a spring and letting it go,” Diggins, of Afton, Minnesota, said. “Giving it everything I had, digging as deep as I could and putting it all out there. When your team is counting on you, you don’t give up ever.” Diggins certainly didn’t give up. By Steve Reed AP SPORTS WRITER Regulators side with GVEA in dispute with Delta Wind Farm By Sam Friedman SFRIEDMAN @NEWSMINER.COM The Regulatory Com- mission of Alaska has again ruled against Delta Junc- tion wind turbine opera- tor Mike Kraft, this time concluding that the Gold- en Valley Electric Associ- ation doesn’t have to buy power from his proposed 13.5 megawatt Delta Wind Farm because it would cost Golden Valley ratepayers. Kraft is a homebuild- er who’s been in the wind energy business for about 10 years, much of it mired in conflicts with Gold- en Valley. He seeks to sell power under the Pub- lic Utility Regulatory Pol- icies Act, a 1978 federal law designed to encourage small companies that pro- duce renewable energy by requiring public utilities to buy their energy if it can be sold at a price that doesn’t hurt ratepayers. But Golden Valley says electricity from Kraft’s tur- bines wouldn’t be afford- able. The Fairbanks-based utility concluded it would cost money to add Delta Wind Farm’s power to the grid because wind power is sporadic and requires backup from fossil fuel power plants. Buying power from Kraft would mean having diesel plants in North Pole ready more often, and the diesel plants are among the most expen- sive plants in the Golden Valley network. A ruling from a group of five regulatory commis- sioners on Feb. 6 agreed with Golden Valley’s anal- ysis that the cooperative would lose 16 cents for every kilowatt hour of power that it would be required to buy from the wind farm. The loss would go up to 64 cents per kilo- watt hour if the calcula- tions are run with Gold- en Valley’s Healy 2 coal power plant online. After a few closures because of explosions in recent years, Golden Valley plans to have Healy 2 operational again in September. WIND » A3 TRIAL » A3 SKI » A3 Tearful student asks Trump, ‘How do we not stop this?’ WASHINGTON — Spill- ing out wrenching tales of lost lives and sto- len security, students and parents appealed to President Donald Trump to set poli- tics aside and protect America’s school chil- dren from the scourge of gun violence. Trump listened intently to the raw emotion and pledged action, includ- ing the possibility of arming teachers. “I turned 18 the day after” the shooting, said a tearful Samuel Zeif, a student at the Florida high school where a former stu- dent’s assault left 17 dead last week. “Woke up to the news that my best friend was gone. By Catherine Lucey and Matthew Daly ASSOCIATED PRESS President Donald Trump looks to Julia Cordover, the student body president at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School as she speaks during the listening session Wednesday in Washington. AP PHOTO/CAROLYN KASTER TRUMP » A6

Transcript of THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018 newsminer

Page 1: THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018 newsminer

SOURDOUGH JACK:

“I might not be wind powered, but I can blow a lot of hot air.”

The weather.

Snow. Areas of freez-

ing fog. Areas of fog

in the afternoon. A

chance of light freez-

ing rain in the after-

noon. Snow accumu-

lation around 2 inch-

es. Tonight: Snow.

High today ..............35

Low tonight ............ 19

WEATHER » A5

GOODMORNING

Classified » B4 | Comics » B6 | Dear Abby » Latitude 65 | Markets » A5 | Opinion » A4INSIDE

• • •

• • •

House of Representatives discusses bill that would create refuge in Tangle Lakes. » A3Inside Today

Aurora forecast.

Auroral activity will be

moderate. Weather per-

mitting, moderate dis-

plays will be visible over-

head from Utqiagvik to

as far south as Talkeetna

and visible low on the

horizon as far south as

Bethel, Soldotna and

southeast Alaska.

This information is provided

by aurora forecasters at

the Geophysical Institute

at the University of Alaska

Fairbanks. For more infor-

mation about the aurora,

visit http://www.gi.alaska.

edu/AuroraForecast

HIT THE TRAILSHigh school state ski

meet starts today at

Birch Hill.

SPORTS

Page B1

One dollar newsminer.comTHURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018

T H E V O I C E O F I N T E R I O R A L A S K A

Closing arguments heard in murder trialBy Dorothy [email protected]

A Fairbanks jury heard clos-

ing arguments Wednesday in the murder trial of Patrick Dale Burton-Hill.

Burton-Hill, 24, is charged with one count of first-degree murder and two counts of sec-ond-degree murder for the May 17, 2015, shooting death of John D. Kavairlook Jr.

The shooting happened after Kavairlook and one of Bur-ton-Hill’s friends, Demarius Hinson, were kicked out of the Rock N Rodeo bar after getting in a fight. The fight resumed

in the nearby Walgreens park-ing lot and ended when Bur-ton-Hill grabbed Hinson’s 9 mm Glock pistol from their vehicle and fired off 12 rounds. One of the rounds entered the back right side of Kavairlook’s head and exited through the top of his left ear. He died on scene.

Criteria for a murder conviction

Superior Court Judge Paul Lyle began the day’s pro-ceedings by reading the jury instructions on how to deter-mine whether to convict or

acquit Burton-Hill on any of the three charges against him. A first-degree murder convic-tion requires the state to prove that Burton-Hill intended to cause the death of another per-son, and that he did cause the death of any person. If the jury finds those first two items to be true, and also finds the state did not prove Burton-Hill acted in self-defense, they must find him guilty of first degree murder.

A conviction on the first count of second-degree murder requires the state to prove that Burton-Hill intended to cause serious physical injury to anoth-er person, and caused the death

of any person, or, that he knew his conduct was substantially certain to cause death or serious physical injury to another per-son, and he caused the death of any person. If the jury finds the state has proved these elements and has also proved Burton-Hill did not act in self-defense, they must find him guilty.

A conviction on the second count of second-degree murder requires the state to prove Bur-ton-Hill did not act in self-de-fense when he caused the death of another person, that he know-ingly engaged in this conduct and the conduct was performed under circumstances manifest-

ing an extreme indifference to the value of human life.

Nondeadly force versus deadly force

Lyle told the jury a defendant may use nondeadly force upon another if he believes it is nec-essary for self-defense against what he believes to be the use of unlawful force by the other person. The defendant’s beliefs must be reasonable under the circumstances. A defendant may not use nondeadly force in

United States’ Jessica Diggins, left, and Kikkan Randall celebrate after winning the gold medal Wednesday in the women’s team sprint freestyle cross-country skiing final at the Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea. AP PHOTO/KIRSTY WIGGLESWORTH

GOLD EXPERIENCE

US women win 1st Olympic

cross-country ski medal

PYEONGCHANG, SOUTH KOREA 

— As she headed up the steep-est, most grueling hill of her life in third place, Jessica Diggins thought to herself that just win-ning an Olympic medal was no longer good enough.

She wanted more. She wanted gold.

Diggins dug deep, remem-bering all the years of training she had put in, and of all her

teammates waiting for her at the finish line to bring home the United States’ first medal ever in women’s cross-country skiing — and then she let loose.

Diggins reached the peak of the hill in third place but sped past Norway’s Maiken Caspers-en Falla on the last big, wind-ing downhill. She rounded the final corner and took dead aim at Sweden’s Stina Nilsson on the final 100-meter homestretch.

The crowd in the grandstand was on its feet sensing history,

and at that moment Diggins said she felt “unstoppable.”

“Around that final corner I felt like I was uncoiling a spring and letting it go,” Diggins, of Afton, Minnesota, said. “Giving it everything I had, digging as deep as I could and putting it all out there. When your team is counting on you, you don’t give up ever.”

Diggins certainly didn’t give up.

By Steve ReedAP SPORTS WRITER

Regulators

side with

GVEA in

dispute

with Delta

Wind FarmBy Sam FriedmanSFRIEDMAN

@NEWSMINER.COM

The Regulatory Com-

mission of Alaska has again ruled against Delta Junc-tion wind turbine opera-tor Mike Kraft, this time concluding that the Gold-en Valley Electric Associ-ation doesn’t have to buy power from his proposed 13.5 megawatt Delta Wind Farm because it would cost Golden Valley ratepayers.

Kraft is a homebuild-er who’s been in the wind energy business for about 10 years, much of it mired in conflicts with Gold-en Valley. He seeks to sell power under the Pub-lic Utility Regulatory Pol-icies Act, a 1978 federal law designed to encourage small companies that pro-duce renewable energy by requiring public utilities to buy their energy if it can be sold at a price that doesn’t hurt ratepayers.

But Golden Valley says electricity from Kraft’s tur-bines wouldn’t be afford-able. The Fairbanks-based utility concluded it would cost money to add Delta Wind Farm’s power to the grid because wind power is sporadic and requires backup from fossil fuel power plants. Buying power from Kraft would mean having diesel plants in North Pole ready more often, and the diesel plants are among the most expen-sive plants in the Golden Valley network.

A ruling from a group of five regulatory commis-sioners on Feb. 6 agreed with Golden Valley’s anal-ysis that the cooperative would lose 16 cents for every kilowatt hour of power that it would be required to buy from the wind farm. The loss would go up to 64 cents per kilo-watt hour if the calcula-tions are run with Gold-en Valley’s Healy 2 coal power plant online. After a few closures because of explosions in recent years, Golden Valley plans to have Healy 2 operational again in September.

WIND » A3

TRIAL » A3

SKI » A3

Tearful student asks Trump, ‘How do we not stop this?’

WASHINGTON — Spill-ing out wrenching tales of lost lives and sto-len security, students and parents appealed to President Donald Trump to set poli-tics aside and protect America’s school chil-dren from the scourge of gun violence. Trump listened intently to

the raw emotion and pledged action, includ-ing the possibility of arming teachers.

“I turned 18 the day after” the shooting, said a tearful Samuel Zeif, a student at the Florida high school where a former stu-dent’s assault left 17 dead last week. “Woke up to the news that my best friend was gone.

By Catherine Lucey and Matthew Daly ASSOCIATED PRESS

President Donald Trump looks to Julia Cordover, the student body president at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School as she speaks during the listening session Wednesday in Washington. AP PHOTO/CAROLYN KASTERTRUMP » A6

Page 2: THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018 newsminer

A3Thursday, February 22, 2018 Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

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Hockey activities don’t always happen on the ice. Check out what

second-graders at Barnette Magnet School plan to do this week.

Two classes of students will present hockey-related performances for their class-mates and families in a special Reader’s Theatre. Thanks to an informal collaboration with Fairbanks Hockey Week, these students discovered the “Brady Brady” books.

These are hockey-themed books for children that are really all about life lessons. The author, Mary Shaw, actu-ally visited Fairbanks during the hockey week a couple years ago.

The students read a series of the books and chose their favorites. Stacy Foshee and Charity Moore’s entire sec-

ond-grade class will present “Brady Brady and the Run-away Goalie.” Lesa Meath and Cassie Kendall’s class will break into smaller groups and present “Brady Brady and the Big Mistake, Puck on the Ice, and The B Team.”

“Students have been work-ing hard, learning their parts and have enjoyed reading the Brady Brady books,” said Moore, a UAF student intern who works with the students. “Valuable conversations and lessons have been discussed during the weeks we’ve been reading them and the students have enjoyed connecting to the topics within.“

In 2017, students from Cant-well School also discovered the “Brady Brady” books and cre-ated their own version: “Brady Brady and The Last Frontier.” They performed it for their own community. An ice storm prevented their trip to Fair-banks to perform it here.

What makes this project especially meaningful for Bar-nette students is that imme-diately after the performance, students are invited to go ice skating on their new ice rink. If they’d rather not go outside, activity stations will be avail-able indoors.

The school already has 72 pairs of ice skates to loan to young skaters and some hel-mets. Helmets are required.

How fitting to read about hockey, act out a story about ice skating and then go skate.

Creation of the new rink was

spearheaded by the Barnette PTA, which hosted a Family Fun Day to commemorate opening of the rink earlier this winter.

Establishing the rink was a huge community effort that came to fruition with help from these businesses: Big Street Construction, Taylored Restoration Services and Ridge Construction. Gold-stream Water donated 30,000 gallons of water. Wilson and Wilson Construction provided a Zamboni to ensure smooth skating at the first Family Fun Day. Woody’s Auto Resurrec-tion spent a full day removing snow from the rink in time for that first Family Fun Day.

Spenard Builders Supply offered discount prices on building supplies. Florcraft Carpet One Floor and Home donated carpet to line the

walkway from the school to the rink. Play It Again Sports offered discount skate sharp-ening for the dozens of school skates.

Jersey DayFriday is “Wear Your Jersey

to School Day” for Fairbanks Hockey Week.

Every year, one school is selected for a special event. This year, it is University Park. An all-school student assem-bly will be held from 2-3 p.m. UAF Nanook Justin Woods will return to talk about set-ting goals and working hard to achieve those goals. He’ll also play a little floor hockey with students.Reach columnist/community editor

Kris Capps at kcapps@newsminer.

com. Call her at the office 459-7546. Follow her on Twitter: @FDNMKris.

Students celebrate skating with reading and new ice rinkKris Capps

COMMUNITY EDITOR

[email protected]

Anchorage Rep. introduces bill to create Tangle Lakes game refugeBy Erin GrangerEGRANGER

@NEWSMINER.COM

The Alaska House of Representatives is dis-cussing a bill that would create a wild game ref-uge in the Tangle Lakes region, protecting the lakes and surrounding area from further devel-opment.

House Bill 272 was introduced by Anchor-age Democratic Rep. Andy Josephson in Jan-uary.

Josephson said in a telephone interview that the push for a refuge has

been long in the works. “The idea of a refuge

has been bandied about at least since 2002,” Josephson said Tuesday.

In 2008, the Alaska Board of Game contact-ed then-Gov. Sarah Palin on the issue, noting the potent ia l for de ve l -opment and resource extraction in the area but added that the board remained “convinced the long-term value of main-taining wildlife habitat far outweighs the poten-tial benefits of possible development projects.”

I f passed, HB 272 would designate 156,000

acres of land as a game refuge in the Tangle Lakes region north of the Denali Highway and west of the Richardson Highway.

Josephson clarified that, while the refuge would protect the area from further develop-ment in mining or oil and gas exploration, it would honor those that are in the books now.

“This area is of great importance for recre-ational, hunting and fishing, subsistence and tourism purposes, and we would like to ensure the preservation of this

area and its resourc-es for our fellow Alas-kans,” Josephson wrote in his sponsor statement attached to the bill.

The legislation has yet to gain any cosponsors, but Josephson said this is common and bills typ-ically gain more of a fol-lowing later in the com-mittee process.

“We’ve received doz-ens of emails of support. We’ve only received one email in opposition,” Josephson said.

Josephson said there had been growing sup-port for the bill in the Copper Center area and

Southcentral near Ken-ny Lake, as well as from people in Fairbanks who travel to the area to hunt, fish and recreate.

Copper Country Alli-ance, a nonprofit organi-zation in the Copper Riv-er Valley, issued a news release in support of the legislation, saying that the area not only serves as a place for subsistence hunting and fishing but also for recreation for many Alaskans. It add-ed that the area serves as an essential habitat for the Nelchina Caribou herd that lives in that area.

Fairbanks Paddlers has also expressed sup-port for the bill, sending out an email to members to encourage calls and emails to legislators.

The bill has been heard once in the House Fish-eries Committee. If vot-ed out of the Fisher-i e s C o m m i tt e e , t h e bill would head to the House Resources Com-mittee, which Josephson co-chairs, before moving to a vote on the House floor. Contact staff writer Erin

Granger at 459-7544. Follow her on Twitter:

@FDNMPolitics.

TRIALContinued from A1

self-defense if he used the force in mutual combat not authorized by law; if he provoked the other’s conduct with intent to cause physical injury to the other, or if he was the initial aggres-sor.

If a defendant is justi-fied in using nondeadly force in self-defense, he may use deadly force in self-defense when and to the extent he reasonably believes the deadly force is necessary for self-de-fense against imminent death or serious physical injury. The defendant can’t use deadly force in self-defense if he knows that, with complete per-sonal safety and with complete safety as to others being defended, he can avoid the neces-sity of using deadly force by leaving the area of the encounter. He does not have a duty to leave the area if he is in any place where he has a right to be, according to Lyle’s instructions.

Burton-Hill’s attor-ney, Jeffrey Saffold, has asserted throughout the trial that his client shot Kavairlook because he was afraid Kavairlook was armed and was going to kill him and his friends.

Assistant Distric t Attorney Andrew Bal-dock told the jury the proof of Burton-Hill’s guilt can be found in Walgreens video sur-veillance footage of the shooting.

“He gets the gun and they fan out in into the middle of the parking lot, where it would be much easier, if John had a gun, to shoot them. There’s no cover at all. Look at the video and see if they look scared. The evidence is clear. They don’t,” Bal-dock said.

“At this time, in this place, they want John to run down toward them. That is evident in the vid-eo. Watch it and watch it again. The video does not lie, and it shows, beyond a reasonable doubt, that he was in no fear.”

“Under those con-ditions, unless DWF agrees to pay GVEA 16 cents per kilowatt hour to take DWF pow-er (which we do not expect it to do), GVEA’s ratepayers will be sub-jected to higher costs if GVEA takes power from DWF,” the regula-tory commission ruling stated.

The ruling closes the issue before the com-mission, although the parties have the option to petition for reconsid-eration or to appeal in court.

“Fur ther process will only add to the costs already borne by DWF and GVEA’s rate-payers in furtherance of a project that appears not to be workable under current or expect-ed conditions,” the com-mission stated.

G o l d e n V a l l e y announced the Regula-tory Commission ruling in a news release Tues-day.

“We are pleased with the commission’s rul-ing, particularly that GVEA acted in good faith in complying with the RCA’s regulations and the reasonableness of the modeling pre-sented by the co-op in establishing the rate to be paid for ener-gy from Delta Wind Farm’s proposed proj-ect,” Golden Valley CEO Cory Borgeson said in a written statement. “We will continue to work w i t h i n d e p e n d e n t power producers to integrate more renew-able power into our system — as long as we can keep our members’ costs low and main-tain system reliability,”

Kraft said in a tele-p h o n e i n t e r v i e w Wednesday that he plans to ask the Regu-latory Commission to reconsider.

In a separate case, he’s also appealing a Regula-tory Commission ruling on the rates Golden Val-ley pays for power from Kraft’s smaller, 2-mega-watt wind farm that’s already in operation.

“My hundred dollar question to the RCA (Regulatory Commis-sion of Alaska) is, ‘Hey you goofballs, don’t you realize you’re in Alaska Superior Court right now for violating these rules already?’” Kraft said

Kraft said the Gold-en Valley model that shows adding his wind farm to the grid will cost ratepayers money is wrong. Among other problems, he said Gold-en Valley assumes that power from his wind farm will be as sporad-ic as the wind farm that Golden Valley built at Eva Creek northeast of Healy. Kraft said his wind farm would produce more-reliable power. He said he com-missioned an engineer-ing study in 2010 that showed wind in Delta Junction is more con-sistent.

“They’re implying that my wind farm reacts the same way that theirs does. That’s the first fallacy right there,” he said. “The report came back and said if you build Eva Creek, you’re going to swing the grid 24 megawatts in under 10 minutes on a regular basis. At Delta Wind Farm, the same size wind farm at the time — 24 megawatts — the biggest swing we could create at one time was 10 megawatts.”

WINDContinued from A1

Thanks to Champion Sponsors

Fairbanks Tennis Association thanks its 2017 Champion

Sponsors for their sup-port: Randy Weaver, of Denali State Bank; Jack Wilbur, of Design Alaska; Ally Jenkins, of Kendall Automo-tive; Patty Mongold, of Mt. McKinley Bank; Drs. Raugust,

Hammond and Kim, of Fairbanks Ear, Nose & Throat Clinic; Jim Dieringer, of Fairbanks Youth Sports; Gwen Ramras and Gina Pender.Fairbanks Tennis Association

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She blew by Nilsson in a blur to capture gold in the team sprint, bring-ing the United States its first gold medal in cross-country skiing.

As she crossed the line, she collapsed in exhaustion as team-mate Kikkan Randall, of Anchorage, tackled her in the snow. Ran-dall lay on top of a cry-ing Diggins shaking her ski jacket in pure excite-ment and utter joy.

“That feeling of being able to cross the line and have Kikkan tack-le me was the coolest thing ever,” Diggins said.

It was fitting Ran-dall was her partner on the two-woman team. She has been through all of the tough times, compet-ing with the Amer-

ican cross-country ski team since the 2002 Salt Lake City Games. She said it was also fit-ting that the American women won their first medal in a team event.

“I got to see in 2013 when we won the world championships ... that team gold is worth far more than any indi-vidual accolade,” the 35-year-old Randall said. “What really kept me going over the last four years was trying to contribute toward a team medal. To do it with Jessie one more time is just amazing.”

So move over Bill Koch, you have compa-ny — finally.

Koch was the only other American to win a medal in cross-coun-

try, taking home silver at the 1976 Innsbruck Games.

Diggins and Ran-dall ended that 42-year drought and surely gave a huge boost to all of the young cross-country skiers back home in the United States.

“Hearing it out loud, it still doesn’t feel real,” Randall said. “It’s what I’ve been working on for 20 years and with this team for the last five years and, wow, it’s just so fun to put it together tonight — finally.”

“It feels unreal . I can’t believe it just hap-pened,” Diggins said.

It meant more that their teammates were there to celebrate — and family, too.

SKIContinued from A1

INTERIOR/NATION

Page 3: THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018 newsminer

A5Thursday, February 22, 2018 Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

Schedule of Events 2018FRIDAY, MARCH 2ND

7:30 P.M. Charlie Stevens Memorial-Texas Hold-em Poker Tournament (Nenana Senior Center)

SATURDAY, MARCH 3RD8:00 A.M. Breakfast - Sponsored by NCPS9:00 A.M. Craft & Vendors Booths Open (Civic Center)10:00 A.M. Sign-up for Sled Dog Race (Civic Center Back Stage)10:30 A.M. Mayor Jason Mayrand Welcomes Guests & Community and Leads Community in “Pledge of Allegiance”10:40 A.M. Beadwork Contest (Front Stage)10:45 A.M. Homemade “Dessert” Contest (Front Stage)10:50 A.M. Homemade “Candy” Contest (Front Stage)11:00 A.M. Poster Presentation - Honorable Mention 2018 Pin Presentation - Bill Howe Honorary Member Presentation Face Painting (FREE)11:15 A.M. Hula Hoop Contest (Dance Floor)11:30 A.M. Concession Stand Opens (Civic Center) - NCPS Jump Rope Contest (Dance Floor)12:00 P.M. Pickle Puss Contest (Dance Floor) Turkey Shoot - Moose Rifle Shoot “NIC 40” Dog Sled Race 1st Stage (Watch Tower)12:30 P.M. Ashley Hecox Memorial- Limbo Contest (Dance Floor)1:00 P.M. Saucer Races (‘A’ Street in front of Civic Center) Young Native Fiddlers Tripod Ski Race @ Living Center (end of 6th street)1:20 P.M. Zumba Demonstration2:00 P.M. Latin Dance Group2:30 P.M. Sack Races (‘A’ Street in front of Civic Center)2:45 P.M. Cutest Baby Contest 0-6 months & 7-12 months (Front Stage)3:00 P.M. Bubblegum Blowing Contest (Dance Floor)3:30 P.M. Donut Eating Contest (Front Stage)4:00 P.M. Nenana Jumping Lynx4:15 P.M. Nenana Native Dancers4:45 P.M. Pop Scramble (‘A’ Street in front of Civic Center)7:00 P.M. Nenana High School ‘Coffee House’ with Entertainment7:30 P.M. Charlie Stevens Memorial-Texas Hold-em Poker Tourn. (NSC)8:00 P.M. Fireworks Display-City of Nenana (Tanana River)

SUNDAY, MARCH 4TH9:00 A.M. Breakfast-Sponsored by NCPS10:00 A.M. Craft & Vendors Booths Open (Civic Center)11:00 A.M. Concession Stand Opens (Civic Center) - NCPS Face Painting (FREE) Homemade “Bread” Contest (Front Stage)11:10 A.M. Homemade “Sweet Bread” Contest (Front Stage)11:20 A.M. Homemade “Quilt” Contest (Front Stage)11:30 A.M. Parent/Child Look-A-Like Contest (Front Stage)11:45 A.M. Homemade “Chili” Contest (Front Stage)12:00 P.M. Jump Rope Contest (Dance Floor) Prettiest and Grungiest Carhart Contests (Front Stage) “NIC 40” Sled Dog Race - 2nd Stage (Tanana River)12:15 P.M. Kid’s Art Contest ages: 3-5, 6-9, 10-12, 13-15, 16-18 (back stage)12:30 P.M. Magic Show/Balloonist1:30 P.M. Nenana Native Youth Olympics Team1:45 P.M. Tug-O-War (Locals vs. Visitors) ‘A’ Street in front of Civic Center2:00 P.M. Dance Contest (Dance Floor)2:30 P.M. Banana Eating Contest3:00 P.M. Ashley Hecox Memorial- Limbo Contest (Dance Floor)3:30 P.M. TRIPOD RAISING: ON THE TANANA RIVER4:00 P.M. Pop Scramble (‘A’ Street in front of Civic Center)

For information, call 832-5446 • www.nenanaakiceclassic.com

WE HOPE YOU CAN JOIN US AND HOPE YOU ENJOY THE FESTIVITIES!

*Sign up for the Ski Race at the Living Center before the race.

(School-age Children) **Sign-up for Texas Hold-em

Tournaments on Friday & Saturday at 7:00 P.M. on both days.

Tournaments start at 7:30 P.M.

F12527846

MONEY & MARKETS

BiggestGainers

NAME LAST CHG %CHG

AT&T Inc T 32.55 4 42.70 36.29 -.48 -1.3% -6.7% -6.6% 14 2.00f

Alaska Air Group ALK 59.25 2 101.43 64.69 +.30 +0.5% -12.0% -32.1% 8 1.28f

Alaska Commun Sys ALSK 1.60 5 2.91 2.17 -.02 -0.9% -19.0% +29.6% dd ...

Anadarko Petrol APC 39.96 7 66.66 57.23 -2.02 -3.4% +6.7% -11.0% 67 1.00f

Anglogold Ashanti AU 8.86 3 13.31 9.90 +.01 +0.1% -2.8% -22.5% ...

AvisBudget Group CAR 20.71 7 49.41 39.02 -.92 -2.3% -11.1% +18.3% 15 ...

BP PLC BP 33.10 5 44.62 38.83 -.69 -1.7% -7.6% +23.6% 21 2.38

Berkshire Hath B BRK/B 160.93 8 217.62 201.02 -2.03 -1.0% +1.4% +20.5% 27 ...

Block H&R HRB 20.02 6 31.80 26.41 -.76 -2.8% +0.7% +37.1% 14 0.96

Boeing Co BA 173.75 0 361.45 352.37 -.98 -0.3% +19.5% +108.1% 37 6.84f

Carnival Corp CCL 55.07 9 72.70 69.60 +.15 +0.2% +4.9% +28.3% 18 1.80

Columbia Sportswear COLM 51.56 9 79.21 74.46 +.68 +0.9% +3.6% +31.2% 27 0.88f

ConocoPhillips COP 42.27 7 61.31 53.76 -1.08 -2.0% -2.1% +17.7% 43 1.14f

EnCana Corp ECA 8.01 5 14.31 10.59 -.28 -2.6% -20.6% -11.5% 18 0.06

Exxon Mobil Corp XOM 73.90 1 89.30 74.89 -.86 -1.1% -10.5% -3.6% 16 3.08

General Commun GNCMA 17.50 9 44.11 39.52 -.18 -0.5% +1.3% +99.7% dd ...

Gen Dynamics GD 183.72 9 229.54 220.75 -1.08 -0.5% +8.5% +19.1% 23 3.36

Harley Davidson HOG 44.52 1 63.40 46.30 -.34 -0.7% -9.0% -15.5% 14 1.48f

Keycorp KEY 16.28 9 22.22 21.05 +.10 +0.5% +4.4% +12.5% 16 0.40f

Kinross Gold KGC 3.15 4 4.91 3.71 -.08 -2.1% -14.1% -2.3% 29 ...

Kroger Co KR 19.69 6 32.90 27.45 -.05 -0.2% ...% -17.7% 14 0.50

Lithia Motors Inc LAD 80.88 7 127.99 110.90 +1.42 +1.3% -2.4% +10.3% 14 1.00

Marriott Intl A MAR 85.63 9 149.21 142.05 +1.61 +1.1% +4.7% +58.6% 36 1.32

Nabors Inds NBR 5.32 2 15.25 6.44 -.07 -1.1% -5.7% -55.9% dd 0.24

Northrim BanCorp Inc NRIM 26.31 7 38.15 33.75 +.05 +0.1% -0.3% +14.3% 14 0.88

NovaGold Resources NG 3.35 3 5.92 4.08 +.07 +1.6% +3.7% -33.6% dd ...

Pioneer Natural PXD 125.46 7 196.00 174.73 -3.52 -2.0% +1.1% -7.1% cc 0.32f

Rowan Cos plc RDC 9.02 4 18.97 12.37 -.25 -2.0% -21.0% -27.6% 7 0.40

Royal Caribn RCL 93.40 9 135.65 130.55 -1.01 -0.8% +9.4% +40.5% 17 2.40

Sears Holdings Corp SHLD 1.99 1 14.32 2.36 +.03 +1.3% -34.1% -69.1% dd ...

Wells Fargo & Co WFC 49.27 7 66.31 59.76 -.19 -0.3% -1.5% +5.9% 14 1.56

Williams Cos WMB 26.82 3 33.67 28.62 -.47 -1.6% -6.1% +7.4% 11 1.36f

Yum! Brands Inc YUM 62.85 7 86.93 77.81 -.27 -0.3% -4.7% +16.0% 28 1.20

52-WK RANGE CLOSE YTD 1YR NAME TICKER LO HI CLOSE CHG %CHG %CHG %RTN P/E DIV

LocalStocks

AntherP rs 2.47 +.78 +46.0

RestorRob n 6.48 +1.79 +38.2

QuadGrph 27.83 +5.78 +26.2

LevelBr n 4.26 +.68 +19.0

NightstTh n 12.78 +1.99 +18.4

FateThera 10.61 +1.44 +15.7

VoyagerT n 27.18 +3.52 +14.9

AveThera n 5.05 +.62 +14.0

ChefsWhs 22.05 +2.60 +13.4

LegacyRes 2.89 +.33 +12.9

BiggestLosers

NAME LAST CHG %CHG

RAIT pfC 8.05 -9.96 -55.3

RAIT pfB 7.80 -8.60 -52.4

RAIT pfA 7.78 -7.89 -50.4

AegeanMP 2.75 -1.70 -38.2

TileShop 6.20 -2.25 -26.6

QTS RltTr 34.01 -9.99 -22.7

US Silica 25.15 -5.60 -18.2

DropCar rs 2.56 -.49 -16.1

Sientra 9.49 -1.73 -15.4

KratonCp 43.10 -7.69 -15.1

MostActive

NAME VOL (00s) LAST CHG

GenElec 980604 14.52 -.22

RiteAid 777410 2.03 -.18

BkofAm 721572 31.87 -.06

WalMart 494674 91.51 -2.60

AMD 400680 11.72 -.30

Apple Inc 373755 171.06 -.79

AntherP rs 365952 2.47 +.78

ChesEng 361211 2.64 -.13

FordM 360151 10.60 -.03

Ambev 324221 6.81 -.09

Commodities

Dividend Footnotes: a - Extra dividends were paid, but are not included. b - Annual rate plus stock. c - Liquidating dividend. e - Amount declared or paid in last 12 months. f - Current annual rate, which was increased by most recent dividend announcement. i - Sum of dividends paid after stock split, no regular rate. j - Sum of dividends paid this year. Most recent dividend was omitted or deferred. k - Declared or paid this year, a cumulative issue with dividends in arrears. m - Current annual rate, which was decreased by most recent dividend announcement. p - Initial dividend, annual rate not known, yield not shown. r - Declared or paid in preceding 12 months plus stock dividend. t - Paid in stock, approximate cash value on ex-distribution date. PE Footnotes: q - Stock is a closed-end fund - no P/E ratio shown. cc - P/E exceeds 99. dd - Loss in last 12 months.

DOW24,797.78 -166.97

NASDAQ7,218.23 -16.08

S&P 5002,701.33 -14.93

10-YR T-NOTE2.95% +.06

30-YR T-BOND3.23% +.08

CRUDE OIL$61.68 -.11

GOLD$1,330.00 +1.20

EURO$1.2300 -.0036q

q q q pp q p

Gold (oz) 1330.00 1328.80 +0.09 +1.8

Silver (oz) 16.60 16.43 +1.09 -2.7

Platinum (oz) 996.60 1004.00 -0.74 +6.7

Copper (lb) 3.21 3.19 +0.80 -2.1

METALS CLOSE PVS %CHG %YTD

Cattle (lb) 1.30 1.30 -0.50 +5.4

Coffee (lb) 1.19 1.20 -0.67 -5.8

Corn (bu) 3.66 3.66 +0.07 +4.3

Cotton (lb) 0.79 0.78 +1.81 +0.4

Lumber (1,000 bd ft) 526.40 516.80 +1.86 +17.5

Orange Juice (lb) 1.43 1.46 -2.22 +5.3

Soybeans (bu) 10.34 10.27 +0.75 +8.7

Wheat (bu) 4.47 4.49 -0.45 +4.7

AGRICULTURE CLOSE PVS %CHG %YTD

Crude Oil (bbl) 61.68 61.79 -0.18 +2.1

Ethanol (gal) 1.48 1.48 +0.14 +11.1

Heating Oil (gal) 1.93 1.93 +0.24 -6.9

Natural Gas (mm btu) 2.66 2.62 +1.64 -10.0

Unleaded Gas (gal) 1.76 1.75 +0.40 -2.3

METALS CLOSE PVS %CHG %YTD

FAIRBANKS 5-DAY FORECAST

IceFlurriesSnowShowersRainT-storms Cold Warm Stationary

Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, r-rain, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice

The World

The Nation

Almanac

Sun & Moon

The Region

Temperature

Snowfall

Shown is today’s weather.

Temperatures are today’s highs

and tonight’s lows.

City Hi Lo W Hi Lo W City Hi Lo W Hi Lo W

Tok

Prudhoe BayBarrow

Kotzebue Bettles FortYukon

Tanana Fairbanks

Anchorage

ValdezHomer

Bethel

Nome

Kodiak

Cold Bay

Juneau

Ketchikan

Shown are noon positions of weather and precipitation.Temperature bands are highs for the day.

National Extremes:

City Hi Lo W Hi Lo W City Hi Lo W Hi Lo W City Hi Lo W Hi Lo W

City Hi Lo W Hi Lo W City Hi Lo W Hi Lo W City Hi Lo W Hi Lo W

Washington54/42

New York45/34

Miami84/72

Atlanta80/61

Detroit39/32

Houston62/61

Chicago39/34

Minneapolis29/22

Kansas City38/32

El Paso61/36

Denver29/14

Billings16/-6

Los Angeles59/44

San Francisco54/39

Seattle40/27

Today SaturdayFriday Sunday Monday

Snow at times, 1-3”

35/19

Some sun

17/-1

Colder; a bit of morning snow

22/3

A bit of morning snow

10/-2

Mostly cloudy with a little snow

16/10

Sunrise .......................8:25 a.m.Sunset ....................... 5:44 p.m.Length ......9 hrs, 18 min, 33 secDaylight gained ... 6 min, 49 secCivil twilight starts ......7:34 a.m.Civil twilight ends ...... 6:37 p.m.

Data through 2 p.m. Wednesday

High/low .......................... 21/3Normal high/low .......... 13/-11Last year high ...................... -5Last year low ...................... -26Record high ............ 41 in 1977Record low ........... -54 in 1932

24 hrs ending 2 p.m. ........ 0.6”Month to date ................ 10.5”Normal m-t-d .................... 6.3”Season to date ............... 61.4”Normal s-t-d ................... 54.5”

First

Feb 22

Last

Mar 9

Full

Mar 1

New

Mar 17

Arctic Village 11 -2 c 7 -17 pcCordova 40 22 sn 37 19 sEagle 25 17 sn 23 -2 sfGalena 35 6 sn 15 -3 pcKenai 34 12 sn 26 16 sKing Salmon 38 19 c 32 27 sn

Today Fri.

Northway 22 15 sn 22 -4 pcSitka 40 36 sn 39 28 snWillow 33 14 sn 27 13 sWrangell 35 33 i 41 29 snUnalakleet 33 12 sn 18 11 pcYakutat 41 30 sn 42 21 sf

Today Fri.

Forecasts and graphics provided by

AccuWeather, Inc. ©2018

26/14

24/412/3

29/6 27/9

26/13

32/12 35/19

36/19

39/1643/26

31/16

24/6

41/29

40/31

36/30

38/36

Summary: Rain will fall from southern Texas to the mid-At-lantic and southern New England coasts today. Snow and ice are expected over part of the interior Northeast and in parts of the Plains and Upper Midwest. Spotty snow is fore-cast from the southern Rockies to the southern Cascades and northern Sierra Nevada. Rain will fall on the West coast.

Wednesday for the 48 contiguous states

Edinburg, TX ..................... 89

Port Heiden ....................... 52

Chinook, MT .................... -32

Eagle ............................... -10

Athens 61 50 t 61 50 shBarcelona 50 38 pc 51 40 pcBeijing 49 22 pc 51 24 pcBeirut 67 57 pc 68 56 sBelgrade 41 34 r 45 34 cBerlin 36 21 c 33 23 s

Today Fri.

Calgary 17 0 pc 28 14 pcEdmonton 20 -4 pc 27 13 cHong Kong 62 57 sh 67 64 cJerusalem 59 48 pc 60 47 sLondon 42 31 s 42 30 sMadrid 51 25 s 48 27 s

Today Fri.

Mexico City 76 51 pc 75 53 pcMoscow 14 -2 pc 14 -2 sParis 40 26 s 39 28 sRome 51 42 sh 54 43 rTokyo 41 38 sn 47 39 pcVancouver 39 25 s 38 31 sf

Today Fri.

Atlanta 80 61 pc 78 61 cAtlantic City 49 39 r 48 46 rAustin 44 44 r 67 59 cBaltimore 50 38 r 51 46 rBoise 34 15 sn 34 24 cBoston 39 31 sn 41 37 rBuffalo 36 31 pc 49 34 shChicago 39 34 c 47 32 rCharlotte 77 59 pc 78 59 pcCleveland 39 37 i 54 37 rCincinnati 50 47 r 64 49 rDallas 49 39 r 57 52 rDenver 29 14 pc 36 17 cDetroit 39 32 c 48 34 r

Today Fri.

Grand Rapids 39 32 c 44 30 rHartford 40 29 i 39 35 rHonolulu 82 70 sh 81 72 shHouston 62 61 r 80 68 cIndianapolis 47 44 c 56 42 rKansas City 38 32 i 43 30 cLas Vegas 57 38 pc 51 32 pcLos Angeles 59 44 pc 61 41 pcMemphis 61 59 r 69 63 rMiami 84 72 pc 84 72 pcMinneapolis 29 22 sn 31 16 cNew Orleans 84 70 pc 80 70 shNew York City 45 34 r 43 40 rOklahoma City 38 27 i 49 40 r

Today Fri.

Orlando 84 65 pc 85 64 pcPhiladelphia 49 37 r 48 45 rPhoenix 62 42 pc 57 36 pcPittsburgh 45 42 r 62 45 rPortland, ME 38 23 pc 37 31 rPortland, OR 41 22 sf 40 35 shSt. Louis 49 42 c 55 42 cSalt Lake City 37 24 c 34 20 snSan Antonio 48 47 r 66 60 cSan Diego 61 52 pc 60 45 pcSan Francisco 54 39 pc 56 41 pcSyracuse 36 27 c 44 33 shTampa 87 70 s 87 69 pcWash., DC 54 42 r 55 50 c

Today Fri.

Alaska Extremes Yesterday:

The Public Safety Report

is compiled from criminal

complaints filed in state and federal courts, as well as some

police blotter information,

trooper dispatches, fire department reports and

interviews with public safety

officials. Individuals named as arrested and/or charged

with crimes in this report

are presumed innocent until

proved guilty in a court of law.

Assault• Bryan Kelly Joseph,

39, of Minto, was charged wi th two counts o f fourth-degree assault Feb. 7 for reportedly break-ing into the home of his estranged wife and hitting her. Joseph left the wom-an’s house after a relative and the village council arrived to help.

• Robert Lee David Thronsen, 30, of North Pole, was charged with fourth-degree assault and criminal mischief for allegedly assaulting a man and breaking a window in his trailer. According to charging documents, Thronsen kicked the door after the man wouldn’t let him in his house. The man

responded by spraying Thronsen with bear spray. Thronsen then pulled the man out of the house and beat him before breaking the window with a boat propeller.

DrugsWiliam Beattus Vent,

23, of Anchorage, was charged with fourth-de-gree drugs misconduct Feb. 8 after Fairbanks police responded to a report of a shoplifter at Walmart. Loss preven-tion detained him and he was arrested and trans-ported to Fairbanks Cor-rectional Center. After-ward, the transporting officer found about 0.5 grams of methamphet-amine spilled all over the back seat and floor-board of his patrol vehi-cle, according to charging documents.

HarassmentKieran Brown, 18, of

Fairbanks, was charged with first-degree harass-ment Feb. 6 for an inci-dent that occurred Sept. 29. Brown touched a

minor female’s genitals several times. The girl reported that Brown touched her at a fast-food restaurant and tried to get her to drink alco-hol in another incident. Brown told investigators he touched the girl two to five times but said he was “joking” or “messing around.”

Multiple charges

Daniel Michael Miles Northway, 28, of North-way, was charged with two counts of first-degree criminal trespass and two counts of fifth-de-gree criminal mischief Feb. 6 after he report-edly broke down his uncle’s door and tried to lie down in the man’s bedroom. Northway ini-tially wouldn’t leave but went outside and rolled in the snow after his uncle said he was calling troopers. Northway then broke into a neighboring house and went to sleep, according to charging documents.Dorothy Chomicz

PUBLIC SAFETY REPORT

At the recent opening night performance of Fairbanks Drama Association’s “Terra Nova,” the show’s co-sponsors, Julie Scott, of Wealth Management, far left, and Richard and Patricia Seifert (not pictured) were honored at the gala celebration for their generous donations. FDA Director Peggy Ferguson and FDA President Cindy Wright,far right, presented the honors.

COMMUNITY SNAPSHOTINTERIOR

Page 4: THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018 newsminer

Thursday, February 22, 2018 Fairbanks Daily News-MinerA6

ST. LOUIS — Police who find suspected drugs during a traffic stop or an arrest usually pause to perform a simple task: They place some of the material in a vial filled with liquid. If the liquid turns a certain color, it’s supposed to confirm the pres-ence of cocaine, heroin or other narcotics.

These chemical field tests have been standard procedure for decades, with officers across the country using them every day. Prosecutors rely on the results to jail suspects and file criminal charges.

But some large law enforce-ment agencies have recently abandoned the routine tests out of concern that officers could be exposed to opioids that can be absorbed through the skin or inhaled. Even a minute amount of the most potent drugs, such as fentanyl, can cause violent illness or death.

Police are instead sending suspected drugs to crime lab-oratories, which have quickly become over-burdened, delay-ing many cases.

“We instituted the precau-tions for self-preservation,

frankly,” said James Shroba, the agent in charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration office in St. Louis. Agents, he said, began finding fentan-yl in everything they seized, including marijuana, cocaine

and methamphetamine.Over the past 18 months, field

testing has been banned by the DEA, state police in Oregon, Arizona, Michigan and Missou-ri, and several big-city depart-ments, including New York and Houston.

No police deaths have been blamed on fentanyl, a synthet-ic opioid developed for cancer patients and others suffering severe pain. But dozens of offi-cers have become ill, including 18 in one raid last year in Pitts-burgh.

Illegal raw fentanyl powder can be 50 times more potent than heroin and is often mixed with other street drugs. Syn-thetic drugs were blamed for more than 20,000 U.S. over-dose deaths in 2016 — double the number from 2015. Prince and Tom Petty are among its victims.

The field test provides only a preliminary finding that must be confirmed by a lab. In fact, a 2016 New York Times report

called into question the accu-racy of field tests, saying they often produce false positives.

Still, field test results often convince suspects to plead guilty even before the initial indications are checked by sci-entists, prosecutors said.

For cases that go to trial, full lab results can take months, which puts some suspects back on the streets for long periods.

State police in Oregon and Missouri stopped field testing last month.

Paige Clarkson, who is in charge of drug prosecutions in Marion County, Oregon, which includes Salem, has been trying to focus on rehabilitation for low-level drug offenders. She worries that the long wait for lab results makes it harder to help defendants.

“If we don’t have a confirma-tory test and cannot enter into a criminal-justice process, we lose our window to get those people into treatment,” Clark-son said.

Bill would exempt companies from pesticide pollutionBy Jacob ResneckKTOO

JUNEAU — A bill that would protect power com-panies from liability relat-ed to a widely used pes-ticide is moving through the Alaska Senate. Fed-eral wildlife officials have already alerted the state they’ve found “concerning levels” of the toxic com-pound on the Kenai Pen-insula.

There are about a quar-ter million wooden pow-er poles in Alaska. Most are treated with a pesti-cide marketed as “penta,” which is short for penta-chlorophenol. It’s been around since the 1930s.

Senate Bill 173’s spon-sor is Sen. Peter Micciche. The Kenai Peninsula Republican told the Sen-ate Resources Commit-tee that protecting power companies from liability is

important for consumers.“The reason for bring-

ing this forward is the financial protection of nearly every Alaskan rate-payer who depends upon a utility to have electricity delivered to their home, business or facility,” he said.

In 2015, biologists working for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service dis-covered what it termed “concerning levels” of the pesticide in soils around power poles run-ning through the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge.

The refuge manag-er notified the Alaska Department of Environ-mental Conservation in January 2016. State regulators then wrote to Homer Electric Associ-ation saying the utility would be responsible for any contamination since it owns the poles.

Homer Electric’s Gen-eral Manager Brad Jan-orschke testified to the Senate committee that it would be expensive if they had to remove the poles, especially as they’d need to be barged south for dis-posal.

“The cost to remove a single utility pole from service and comply with a lengthy site clean-up process would be about $30,000,” he said. “30,000 bucks a pole.”

A Feb. 8 letter to Mic-ciche from the Alaska Power Association states that the organization “strongly supports this bill.”

“Senate Bill 173 ensures that Alaska’s public utili-ties will not incur signifi-cant regulatory expenses from the use of federally regulated pesticides on wood utility poles,” the letter reads. “This bill

benefits Alaska consum-ers, who would eventually end up paying for these expenses through their utility bills.”

Golden Valley Electric Association in Fairbanks is a member of the Alaska Power Association.

The Fish and Wildlife Service has yet to pub-lish its findings from the Kenai Peninsula, but its correspondence with the state — and raw data from the soil samples — were released to the Alas-ka Community Action on Toxics.

Pamela Miller is the Anchorage-based envi-ronmental group’s execu-tive director. She says the group filed a Freedom of Information Act request when it found out about the studies on the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge.

Miller is alarmed that the power industry wants

the law changed.“This particular study

by the Fish and Wildlife Service may have been at least the primary impetus for the utilities to seek a political solution to their problem,” she said.

There’s been push back on the Resources Com-mittee. Sen. Bill Wiel-echowski, an Anchorage Democrat, said the bill would shift liability for contamination away from the utilities and onto property owners.

“I’m concerned that nobody’s going to be responsible,” he said. “I mean, should the man-ufacturer possibly be responsible? Should the person who’s applying it be responsible? It would seem to me, there should be some responsibility somewhere other than the person who has absolutely no say about where these

poles go.”The Department of

Environmental Conserva-tion is studying the issue.

“We know what the product does and its tox-icity. That’s been clear-ly defined by EPA,” said Kristin Ryan who heads DEC’s spill response and prevention division.

Ryan told senators that recent samples were taken to see whether the pesti-cide leaches from pow-er poles. She said DEC doesn’t expect results for at least several weeks.

The bill now heads to the Senate Judiciary Com-mittee.Alaska’s Energy Desk is a public

media collaboration focused on

energy and the environment

with partners KTOO in Juneau,

Alaska Public Media in

Anchorage, KUCB in Unalaska,

Fairbanks Daily News-Miner in Fairbanks and KBRW

in Utqiagvik.

Cure to remedy gardeners’ spring feverBy Julie Riley

Master gardeners have come to the rescue for those in need of

a dose of spring. On March 23-24, gardeners will come together in Fairbanks to glean information on fruit, flowers, herbs, wild mushrooms and the Georgeson Botanical Gar-den.

As volunteers for the Uni-versity of Alaska Fairbanks, master gardeners help the Cooperative Extension Service disseminate gardening infor-mation throughout Alaska. This year’s statewide confer-ence is being hosted by Master Gardeners of the Tanana Valley at Pike’s Waterfront Lodge.

Bob Bors, northern climate fruit breeder and recently pub-lished gardening author, will make his fourth trip from the

University of Saskatchewan. Alaska fruit growers love this guy. Carmine Jewel, a very early ripening sour cherry, and many varieties of haskap, also known as honeyberries, have come from Bob’s breeding program. Bob will highlight super-hardy fruits, a chapter in his new book, “Growing Fruit for Northern Gardens,” co-au-thored with Sara Williams. Aware of gardening interests in the community, the master gardeners have also asked Bob to address pruning and train-ing techniques for fruit.

The gardening event kicks off the Friday evening before with a dinner presentation by Les Brake titled “Wildflowers and Wildlife of Africa.” Les’ images are sure to inspire. They will show the amazing biodiversity of Namaqualand in Southwest Africa, Kruger National Park

and Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, acclaimed to be one of the most magnif-icent botanical gardens in the world.

Many of our garden flowers hail from Africa, including geranium, gladiolus, nemesia, diascia and felicia. Les’ own Coyote Garden in Willow has appeared in over 20 books, magazines and TV shows, including Horticulture, Sunset and Better Homes and Gar-dens.

Renowned Alaska mush-room expert Gary Laursen will offer a glimpse of the many wild mushrooms that can be found in the Interior. Gary has studied mushrooms in Arc-tic regions for more than 40 years and is co-author of two books, “Alaska’s Mushrooms” and “Common Interior Alaska Cryptogams.” The classes he

teaches during the summer are always packed full of students so it’s a real treat to have Gary as part of the agenda.

Changes have been afoot at the Georgeson Botanical Garden, and garden manager Katie DiCristina will provide a preseason snapshot of plans for the 2018 growing season and how to become involved. Volunteers from the Herb Bunch plant and help care for the Georgeson herb garden and Herb Bunch member Marsha Munsell will speak at the conference on herbal tinc-tures and other concoctions you can make from the herbs you grow.

The conference planning committee, headed by master gardener Virginia Damron, promises attendees a chance at many door prizes. Register for the Saturday conference

($25-$60), the Friday night dinner program ($20), or both. But register early as eating is limited. Details are available at bit.ly/1F3RKFj. Early bird prices are in effect through Feb. 28.

Spring will definitely be in the air when over 100 passionate gardeners gather March 23-24. You don’t need to be a master gardener to join Master Gardeners of the Tanana Valley or be a member of the organization to attend the 2018 Alaska Master Gar-deners Conference.Julie Riley is horticulture agent for

UAF Cooperative Extension Service in

Fairbanks. She has trained more than

1,200 Master Gardener volunteers.

She can be reached at 907-474-2423 or [email protected]. The Tanana

District office recently moved to the University Park Building, 1000

University Ave, Room 109.

COOPERATIVE EXTENSION

And I don’t understand why I can still go in a store and buy a weap-on of war. An AR. How is it that easy to buy this type of weapon? How do we not stop this after Columbine? After Sandy Hook?”

Trump promised to be “very strong on back-ground checks.” And he suggested he supported allowing some teachers and other school employ-ees to carry concealed weapons to be ready for intruders. But largely he listened Wednesday, holding handwritten

notes bearing his mes-sage to the families. “I hear you” was written in black marker.

The president had invited the teen survivors of school violence and par-ents of murdered children in a show of his resolve against gun violence in the wake of last week’s shoot-ings at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, and in past years at schools in Connecticut and Colora-do. The latest episode has prompted a renewed and growing call for stronger gun control.

Trump asked his guests to suggest solutions and solicited feedback. He did not fully endorse any spe-

cific policy solution, but pledged to take action and expressed interest in wide-ly differing approaches.

Besides considering concealed carrying of weapons by trained school employees, a concept he has endorsed in the past, he said he planned to go “very strongly into age, age of purchase.” And he said he was committed to improving background checks and working on mental health.

Most in the group were emotional but quiet and polite.

But Andrew Pollack, whose daughter Meadow was killed last week, noted the previous school mas-sacres and raged over his

loss, saying this moment isn’t about gun laws but about fixing the schools.

“It should have been one school shooting and we should have fixed it and I’m pissed. Because my daughter, I’m not going to see again,” said Pollack. “King David Cemetery, that is where I go to see my kid now.”

A strong supporter of gun rights, Trump has nonetheless indicated in recent days that he is will-ing to consider ideas not in keeping with National Rifle Association ortho-doxy, including age restric-tions for buying assault-type weapons. Still, gun owners are a key part of his base of supporters.

The NRA quickly reject-ed any talk of raising the age for buying long guns to 21.

“Legislative proposals that prevent law-abiding adults aged 18-20 years old from acquiring rifles and shotguns effectively prohibits them for pur-chasing any firearm, thus depriving them of their constitutional right to self-protection,” the group said in a statement.

Several dozen people assembled in the White House State Dining Room. Among them were students from Parkland along with their parents. Also present were parents of students killed in mas-sacres at Columbine High

School in Littleton, Col-orado, and Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut. Students and parents from the Washington area also were present.

The student body pres-ident at the Parkland school, Julia Cordover, tearfully told Trump that she “was lucky enough to come home from school.”

She added, “I am confi-dent you will do the right thing.”

Trump later tweeted that he would “always remember” the meet-ing. “So much love in the midst of so much pain. We must not let them down. We must keep our children safe!!”

TRUMPContinued from A1

Opioids dangers force police to abandon drug field testsBy Jim Salter ASSOCIATED PRESS

A reporter holds up an example of the amount of fentanyl that can be deadly after a news conference about deaths from fentanyl exposure June 6, 2017, at DEA Headquarters in Arlington, Virginia. AP FILE PHOTO/JACQUELYN MARTIN

INTERIOR/NATION