Two a penny

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The mayor of a small US town has defended the town council’s decision to fire its city manager after officials learned his wife is an adult film actress.

Fort Myers Beach mayor Larry Kiker insistedthat Scott Janke’s termination had nothing to do with his spouse’s job, but that the Florida town was merely trying to maintain order.

Janke married Anabela Mota Janke, who goes by the stage name Jazella Moore, in October.

“What we were addressing was a situation where we weren’t going to be able to govern the town with all the disruption and interruption,” Kiker said. He began working for the town in March 2008.

“I’ve done over 30 interviews (with media) .

The plan appears to have backfired.. I’ve gotten hundreds of emails, we’re getting threatened,” Kiker said.. . “Nobody is getting any work done around here.”

However, the mayor also noted: “It was not his job performance.

“We didn’t fire him because his wife was a porn star,” Kiker griped, adding that the decision wasn’t a “knee-jerk reaction. We all liked Scott . We all liked Scott . He’s a good guy.. He said he then spoke to Janke, who agreed “this was going to be a big disruption for the town and he was not going to be able to do his job well”.”

Kiker said he learned of Janke’s wife’s job after receiving a telephone call from a reporter on Tuesday.

Councilman Tom Babcock said at a council meetingthat Janke was fired because his wife’s profession brought an inaccurate image to Fort Myers Beach, the News-Press of Fort Myers reported.

Within a few hours, Kiker had called an emergency town council meeting, and the group voted 5-0 to exercise a “no-cause” clause in Janke’s contract, effectively firing him.

Janke said on Wednesday night that he and his wife had their “heads held high.

“When you become a public figure you are held to a different level of scrutiny and ethics,” Babcock said at the meeting. We’ve done nothing wrong,” Janke said.”

“We have done nothing to be embarrassed about.

He will get a severance package worth six months’ salary, which comes to about US$50,000(NZ$76,453) plus health benefits.

He will get a severance package worth six months’ salary, which comes to about US$50,000(NZ$76,453) plus health benefits.

Dan Miller, editor at the AVN Media Network, which covers the adult industry, said he had not heard of a similar case, but noted the adult film industry is “not necessarily widely accepted” in mainstream American politics.

Diane Duke, executive director of the Free Speech Coalition, a trade association for the adult entertainment industry, said the firing could present legal problems for the town.

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Convicted double murderer John Barlow has lost his final bid to have his convictions overturned, as the Privy Council in London ruled against his appeal today.

The five law lords that heard Barlow’s appeal tonight announced that while he had an arguable case, on the evidence he was properly convicted by the jury. ….that, while the introduction of the misleading evidence..Barlow’s lawyer Greg King appealed to the council in February to have the murder convictions quashed.was indeed a miscarriage, no substantial miscarriage of justice actually occured,” the judgement said.The Privy Council said while the introduction of the “misleading evidence” was a miscarriage “no substantial miscarriage of justice actually occurred”.Mr King rubbished FBI forensic evidence that led a jury to send his client to prison.Mr King’s first victory was for the law lords to hear the petition for special leave to appeal, and to consider evidence the New Zealand Court of Appeal would not hear when it denied Barlow an appeal in March last year.After twice going through trials that ended in hung juries, Barlow was jailed for the murder of Wellington father and son Eugene and Gene Thomas, who were killed in 1994.Mr King told the law lords that crucial evidence relating to the weapon and bullets that killed the Thomas’ had been falsely linked to Barlow, a former antiques dealer, who is serving 14 years in Upper Hutt’s Rimutaka Prison.Mr King told the law lords that crucial evidence relating to the weapon and bullets that killed the Thomas’ had been falsely linked to Barlow, a former antiques dealer, who is serving 14 years in Upper Hutt’s Rimutaka Prison.The Crown case in all three trials hinged on proving that Barlow’s CZ27 pistol, and related bullets and a silencer, was the murder weapon.The tests have since been discredited worldwide for providing a high number of false matches.

Mr King said he would make a comment after reading the full court ruling.Mr King would not comment on the Privy Council’s verdict tonight.

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The future of Michael Jackson’s children was thrown into question Thursday when his ex-wife emerged and won a delay in a custody hearing while she decides whether she wants to raise her two offspring.

It was the first legal move from Deborah Rowe since the entertainer’s death. Jackson’s will asks for his mother, Katherine, to get permanent custody of all three of his children. She is the mother of his two oldest children and received US$8.

Rowe, who met Jackson as a receptionist in the office of his dermatologist, has characterised their relationship as strictly for the purpose of birthing Jackson children. His youngest child was conceived with a surrogate.5 million in their divorce, according to court records.

She has spent very little time with her son Michael Joseph Jr, known as Prince Michael, 12; and daughter Paris Michael Katherine, 11.

Rowe’s attorney, Eric M George, said Thursday she had not decided whether to seek custody. But Rowe also has opposed the idea of Katherine Jackson getting custody of her children when it came up in the past.

The identity of the surrogate mother of the singer’s youngest child, 7-year-old son Prince Michael II, has never been revealed.

Superior Court Judge Mitchell Beckloff rescheduled a guardianship hearing for July 13 at the request of attorneys for Rowe and for Katherine Jackson, 79, who has temporary guardianship of her son’s children.

Randy Phillips, chief executive of AEG Live, which owns the Staples Center and was Jackson’s promoter, said tickets would be free.

Jackson’s public memorial was set for 10 am Tuesday at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles, according to a press release from the office of the Jackson family’s publicist. . He was not sure how they would be distributed.

“If you can imagine 100,000 people show up and you have 20,000 capacity (at the Staples Center), there is not sufficient room. A week after the singer’s death, the location for a memorial has not been finalized and the cash-strapped city doesn’t have the money to pay police overtime. With the July Fourth holiday weekend “it’s the worst time . Now you have a crowd-control problem,” he said…”

. to work something out

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Race organisers have lost contact with four New Zealand men who are rowing across the Indian Ocean to raise money for a prostate cancer charity, but the wife of one man says the team is well-prepared and she’s not worried.

Competing in the Indian Ocean Rowing Race, the Rowing for Prostate team of Tom Wigram, Peter Staples, Billy Gammon and Matt Hampel had been reporting daily for 71 days until Saturday.

Their last confirmed position was received on Saturday, when they were 553 nautical miles from Mauritius.

Mr Wigram’s wife Rebecca told she was “really, really not worried” about the team, who had trained hard for two years, including in incredibly bad weather, ahead of the race, and who were prepared for anything.

Organisers said the boat’s GPS system has been faulty and the crew’s satellite phone stopped working at the weekend.

A spokesperson for the race organisers, Alan Gwyer, said there was nothing to suggest the boat was suffering anything more than communication problems.

The men had an emergency beacon and personal locator beacon and would have set those off if they ran into any trouble, she said.

A race support boat was being sent out to the boat’s last position, over two days’ travel, Mr Gwyer said.

The inaugural charity race from Geraldton, West Australia, to Mauritius, off the coast of Africa, has already been won by a British crew. .

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NZP 30/06/09 1913NZ

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Nick and Phil McCorry, 25 and 24, Matt Hellier, 20, and Ian Allen, 25, last Thursday won the 3132 nautical mile race, finishing in 68 days, 19 hours and 40 minutes

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Just two hours before police took Tony Veitch back to Hamilton’s central police station for treatment yesterday after his latest suicide bid, the shamed broadcaster sent a desperate text message to .

“I am done,” Veitch said in the text to sports editor John Matheson at 1.01pm.

“I can’t do this anymore.

“This has now totally destroyed me.

A family friend told last night Veitch had been left distraught that many commentators and talkback callers had questioned his levels of remorse since his Auckland District Court appearance on Thursday.”

Veitch begged to publish an email he had sent to Kristin Dunne-Powell in November 2006 which stated his desire for his ex-partner to have a happy and successful life.

He pleaded guilty to assault with reckless disregard resulting in injury, and was sentenced to 300 hours’ community service and fined $10,000.

Veitch wanted the email which he refers to in the text as “my final statement” published in full by . Six other assault charges were dropped.

She said she wanted Veitch to say sorry.

On Thursday night Dunne-Powell told TV3 Veitch hadn’t shown any remorse after he attacked her in January 2006.

It all became too much for him at about 12. Veitch contends as per the November 2006 email he has apologised.30pm yesterday when he left his Remuera, Auckland, home in his car.30pm yesterday when he left his Remuera, Auckland, home in his car.

“The family were very concerned about his state.

“He went into a panic attack and disappeared.”

Police sources last night said that at 1. We called the police to find him and he was found about four hours later at Ngaruawahia.

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Half a dozen police cars were sent to the area to search for him.42pm officers picked up a Vodafone signal from his phone at Brownlee Avenue in Ngaruawahia.

By about 3. .

He was pulled over and taken to Hamilton Police Station.15 a drowsy Veitch was spotted driving in the opposite direction of a police unit.

Last night, Veitch’s distraught wife Zoe issued a plea for the media and public to “back off” her husband.

Last night, Veitch’s distraught wife Zoe issued a plea for the media and public to “back off” her husband.

“The inordinate amount of stress on Tony would devastate anybody, let alone someone who is suffering from extreme depression and suicidal thoughts,” she said.

“It has now reached a level where it is intolerable and now I am begging that both the media and the public back off.

“Enough is enough. Please let us at least attempt to move on and get Tony well.”

Veitch was last night in the care of family.

Yesterday’s suicide attempt is the third known time Veitch has tried to take his life.

In a letter to the judge overseeing his case, Zoe said there were at least another five times when she feared for his life.

The first attempt came in September last year when reported Veitch was rushed by helicopter from a remote Northland farm to Auckland Hospital after police were forced to smash into his car to free him.

And then in January this year, he was rushed to Thames Hospital after going missing late at night in Pauanui on the Coromandel coast.

Police discovered the ex-broadcaster in a “distressed state” among sand dunes and a paramedic found he had taken an overdose of tablets.

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Wellington challenged to ban cars in CBD

The Thursday, 26 February 2009

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AGREED IN PRINCIPLE: Sir Robert Jones and Wellington Mayor Kerry Prendergast who was careful in her support for the idea of a car-free CBD.

Wellington's mayor is in favour of ridding the cbd of vehicles and creating a pedestrian mall from Lambton Quay to Courtenay Place – but not yet.
The idea was suggested by property investor Sir Robert Jones in a speech to the Property Council of New Zealand, in which he challenged the mayor to do something about it.
Sir Robert said statistics showed more than half the world's population lived in cities and it was ludicrous to have a cbd that catered for vehicles over people.
Mayor Kerry Prendergast agreed with Sir Robert but said Wellington was too young for it to happen yet. "They were designed around cars and nobody wants to live there.
He compared the success of pedestrian-only city centres in the world to Canberra and Brasilia, the capital of Brazil."
Wellington's cafe culture was "crap" compared to European cities, mainly because there was a lack of pedestrian-only malls.
Ms Prendergast was careful in her support for the idea, pointing out that many cities mentioned by Sir Robert had been around for centuries and Wellington was founded only in the 1800s. Building tenants would love it because it would make the city more attractive and stimulate inner-city development, Sir Robert said."
The council was "doing its best" to make life pleasant for pedestrians, with a lowered speed limit in Lambton Quay and a proposal for a 30kmh limit in Courtenay Place. "It's one step at a time I'd love to do all these things tomorrow.
Support for pedestrian malls was illustrated by the backlash against a proposed bus lane through Manners Mall, but there were many Wellingtonians who were against banning vehicles from the main CBD streets, she said.
Any moves toward an extensive pedestrian precinct would have to take into account the rest of the city, such as the side streets to Lambton Quay and how they would be affected, Ms Prendergast said. Such a scheme would need the support of a wide range of people. Such a scheme would need the support of a wide range of people.
He believed property owners and retailers would support the idea, but department store Kirkcaldie & Stains managing director John Milford was unconvinced. Public transport would be more efficient if routed through hubs that people could walk to.
Shoppers wanted to drive close to their destinations, and if they could not, would go to Porirua or Lower Hutt where car parks were under cover and free. ."
SIR BOB'S PEDESTRIAN-MALL PLAN:
Make the Lambton Quay to Courtenay Place route pedestrian-only
Put a skating rink in Courtenay Place
Commercial kiosks in the middle of the mall would earn the city council revenue
Reroute buses around the mall
Allow restricted access to delivery vehicles

. "I would have great difficulty with anything stopping my customers getting to me

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‘Idiot’ yacht thieves forced to row ashore

By JO McKENZIE-McLEAN – Thursday, 26 February 2009

A drunken joyride on a stolen yacht proved sobering for thieves who had to row ashore after drifting out to sea.
"Idiot" thieves stole a dinghy overnight on Tuesday from Lyttelton Harbour's Cass Bay, rowing it to a 34-foot yacht which they took to sea.
The thieves did not know to turn on the water to keep the engine cool and consequently it blew up.
"They are idiots," said Sumner Constable Richard Scott.
"Luckily, they tied the dinghy to the back of the yacht.
The yacht ended up drifting about 500 metres off the South New Brighton shore, Scott said. It was a cold night with a southerly blowing and they could have easily drifted into the deep sea. If that wasn't there they would have been stuck on the boat with nowhere to go. There are a lot of `what ifs'.
"They would have had no idea how to operate the GPS and they could have just disappeared.
"They [the thieves] had tried to take the radio, and bourbon bottles were lying everywhere."
A fisherman discovered the drifting vessel at South New Brighton early yesterday.
"They have obviously got to shore and done a runner pretty quickly."
A member of the public discovered the dinghy between the pier and the Waimairi Surf Club full of lifejackets, flares, and other items off the yacht.

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Quick-thinking woman nets thief

By JO McKENZIE McLEAN – Tuesday, 24 February 2009

A Christchurch woman who surprised two burglars managed to block their escape route and used her cellphone to take a picture of one offender.
Southern Area Commander Inspector Malcolm Johnston said the woman's Lower Cashmere home was burgled on Saturday one of dozens burgled during the weekend.
The woman, who lives in Hollis Ave, returned home about 6pm to find a car parked in her driveway, Johnston said.
The weekend burglary spree reflected a general spike in Christchurch home burglaries particularly in the police district's southern area over the past three months. She drove up behind it boxing it in and these guys tried to ram into her on their way out.
"It was fantastic work by the woman.
"It's an absolutely fantastic picture. She had the immediate presence of mind to take a picture of them on her cellphone."
One offender ran off, but police dogs found him hiding. The attending officers were almost immediately able to recognise a problem burglar.
Other burglary victims, who declined to be named, said they returned to their Huntsbury Ave home on Friday at 5. The other offender got away, but police knew his identity, Johnston said.
"In the bedroom they had been through the drawers; tipped everything out and gone through it all, maybe looking for jewellery.50pm to find a rock had been thrown through their lounge window and the house ransacked."
Stuffed inside the bags were items including a passport, bank statements and a digital camera. Then we noticed two booty bags, which the burglars were intending to take, but left when they got disturbed probably when we came home.
On Saturday after police had been taking statements and fingerprints, a burglar alarm went off at another neighbour's house, she said.
After inquiries in the neighbourhood on Friday, the couple discovered several of their neighbours had also been burgled. The burglar had wrenched the plasma TV from the wall, but had been disturbed by the alarm and fled.
"(Her partner) went to check it out and found the door had been jemmied open.
Senior Sergeant Stephen Kelly, of the southern police intelligence unit, said that since December the number of burglaries across the area was 50 per cent up on what they would expect."
The police district's southern area had 13 house burglaries last weekend, and 28 the weekend before.
"We expected about 120 to 130 for January but there were close toly 200.
"It started to peak in late December and went really high in January," he said.
"We are attributing the burglaries to about three or four groups operating in our area.
"We are attributing the burglaries to about three or four groups operating in our area. We are taking a number of steps in relation to addressing this problem, including increasing the number of police dogs available and increasing patrols in the most affected suburbs of Riccarton, Lower Cashmere, St Martins and Spreydon."

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Tourist offers reward for stolen gear

Thursday, 19 February 2009

CAN YOU HELP: Johannes Hesseling will pay $2000 to find possessions, including epilepsy medication, that were stolen from his car.

A German tourist in Nelson is willing to pay his entire $2000 savings as a reward for the return of stolen gear that includes priceless photos and crucial medicine.
While the items would not be worth much more than the reward he was offering, Hesseling said all his photographs from the last 3½ months in New Zealand were on the computer, and that meant it was money well spent.
Johannes Hesseling, 20, offered the reward after his locked car, parked beside Anzac Park on Saturday night, was broken into, with thieves taking his laptop computer, camera and large black bag containing epilepsy medication.
However, on Sunday morning when he discovered the theft, he reported it to police and then started driving to Christchurch with plans of returning to Germany and abandoning his travels.
He had spent three months working at a Roxburgh apricot orchard and had only just begun travelling, going to Nelson as a result of the good things he had heard about the area.
Nelson Senior Constable Phil Wylie said thieves did not appear to be targeting tourists, but tourists tended to park in popular spots, which thieves targeted, and were more likely to have valuables in their cars. .

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Anyone with information on can contact Hesseling on 021 0220 5232

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Beds too big for new Wellington hospital

By REBECCA PALMER Tuesday, 17 February 2009

Builders have been forced to widen doorways in Wellington's new state-of-the-art hospital after officials discovered new beds were too big to squeeze into some rooms.
The beds were chosen to give patients more leg-room. But workers moving them into the new regional hospital building last week found that, although a single bed sailed through the doors with no problems, it was too hard manoeuvring a second bed into rooms designed for two patients.
"This isn't a deal-breaker.
Builders are now enlarging the door frames in 28 two-patient rooms throughout the new hospital in Newtown, which is due to open formally next month the centrepiece of Capital and Coast District Health Board's $346 million redevelopment.
Hospital management decided some time ago to extend the length of patient beds by 30 centimetres. In fact, it more realistically falls into the category of `teething problems'," project director Liz Maddison said yesterday. "An unforeseen consequence of this is that, in a minority of rooms …"
The district health board was unable to say yesterday how much the door widening would cost. this makes it unnecessarily difficult to move a window-side bed into or out of the room past the bed close toest the door.
Two wards have already shifted into the new hospital. But Ms Maddison said it would be covered by the hospital project's incident funds. The next is scheduled to move on March 23. .