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Show SECTION MM iDmltj&HmUii i: METRO EDITOR ... J " I Arale Rose - 7 2008 APRIL 19, SATURDAY, 344-253- 0 aroseheraldextra.com ; , 7 Court Kenya1 crisis hits home for locals date set ' in David Caleb Warnock DAILY HERALD Gardner case Jeremy Duda After a delay of a month and a half, former Utah County commissioner David Gardner's sexual battery case appears to be back on track. 4. JLh iff r HERALD DAILY ' nJ T-- i Africa Is Life Changing, Inc. i l- project started by Africa Is Life Changing Inc., allowing impoverished Kenyans to selleggs for a prof it. A pilot Fourth District Judge John Back-hin- d on Tuesday scheduled a status conference for April 25 in the case, which has been on hold since Gardner's jury trial was canceled in late February. A trial date could be set .at that hearing. "We'll know better next week," said Springville city prosecutor Paul See GARDNER, B3 - . humanitarian organizations. Koins for Kenya based in Alpine, and Africa Is Life Changing, based in Spring- - , ville, are just two groups that regularly take local volunteers to do humanitarian work in Kenya, and have invested tens of thousands of dollars in local donations, building schools, water systems and educational programs. More than 1,000 Kenyans were killed and 300,000 displaced following December elections there that both major political factions claimed to win. With the violence escalating, the rivals agreed in February to share power but then wrangled f or weeks over how to divide up their coalition cabinet, according to Associated Press reports. On Thursday, Kenya's opposition leader was sworn to office as prime minister as deal Within hours, part of a power-sharin- g a feared gang promised to stop its campaign of terror in the capital, a sign that healing could begin in this fragile nation. A key U.S. ally and regional economic and military powerhouse, Kenya was one of the most stable nations in East Africa for years. But the disputed elections laid bare frustrations over poverty, corruption and ethnic rivalries, according to the AP. Many in Kenya scrape by in polluted slums on less than a dollar a day. To combat that poverty, Bret Van Leeu-we- n of Alpine founded Koins for Kenya after first traveling to the country with another aid group in 2001. He returned from his latest trip to Kenya on Thursday with 15 humanitarian volunteers. The group helped See KENYA, ' B3 Leaving a Legacy """""""" DeWitt. Mike Esplin,' Gardner's attorney, said the trial was canceled because he was still trying to obtain medical reports regarding the alleged victim. Now that he has those records, "Espliffis reM6"proceedTn The" case. , "It was on hold because there was evidence, medical evidence, reports that we were trying to get that ... affected the case," Esplin said. Gardner, 53, is charged with one count of sexual battery, a Class A misdemeanor that carries a maximum penalty of one year in jail and a $2,500 fine. He is accused of fondling a woman during a car ride. Prosecutors allege that Gardner grabbed the woman, rubbed parts of her body, kissed her and made other sexual advances. An attorney for the woman said the assault was so upsetting that she spent a week in a psychological unit at a hospital. Gardner served on the Utah County Commission from 1994 to 2002, declining to run for after completing two terms. In March 2006 he "filed to run for his : old seat as an independent candidate, but pulled out of the race after failing to submit the required 300 petition signatures. During his second term in office, Gardner faced a number of legal difficulties. In 1999 he was arrested after running his car off the road, and was charged with driving under the influence, which was later dropped over a technicality. He claimed to have had only had a sip from an alcoholic beverage given to him by a hitchhiker he picked up, but tests showed his blood alcohol , Kenya may be 9,000 miles from Utah Valley, but that country's descent into chaos is hitting close to home for two local 1 " . ; '" ' ' """y5"""""" 1 I I I ; ,. , w H ' i MARK . ' JOHNSTONDaily Herald Garrett Yearsley right of Cedar Hills, receives some help from Vineyard Elementary's LeAnn Healey as they stock books at the Laura Stuver Memorial Autism Resource Library. ! Autism library honors teacher Brittani Lusk DAILY HERALD LindonStftte Street under construction She yard, frosted cupcakes and took children on errands to improve their social skills. Caleb Warnock DAILY HERALD i' Warm weather brings many , garden things to Utah Valley blooms, barbecues, camping and everyone's favorite, road construction. Driving State Street in Lindon is about to get hairy. The city is extending its Heritage Trail under State Street at City Center Park. The $3 million project will eventually allow the frail t6 stretch all the way from the mountain to Utah Lake. The temporary downside is that starting Sunday, traffic on State Street through Lindon will be reduced to two southbound lanes and one northbound lane. Construction will last no more than 80 days, Dam-erocity administrator Ott didn't have any children of own, but she held parties in her parent's I LAURA STUVER DIED LAST AUGUST from cancer, but her memory lives in " crayon drawings of children in a swimming pool decorated with orange fish that one of her students drew for her, in the lives she touched as an autism specialist for Alpine School District and in the new autism resource library at Vineyard Elementary where she taught special kin- -, classes for autistic students. "She affected hundreds of children during the years that she was teaching," said Stuver's mother, Marie Stuver. ' LeAnn Healey, the speech , therapist at Vineyard Elementary, had worked with Stuver for years. She said Stuver helped teachers all across the district. After her death, Healey said there was a gaping whole in the district's ability to get Amation, so she decided to try - infor-dergart- See , LEGACY, wuuriesy rnuio autism specialist with Alpine School District, spent a lot of time with the kids in order to improve their social skills. Stuver classroom the outside, of Laura Stuver, an B3 died in August of cancer. said-Lindo- n. To accomplish the crossing, a cut will be opened across the road; first on one half and then the other, to - allow a box ' to be built as the trail crossing V "A lot of people have had concerns, they call it a tunnel and say it will be dark and dank and risky to go through, but this will be open on both ends. It will be well lit and large, and it will be patrolled as well, though we don't anticipate any" problems," Dameron said. Crossing State has long been the See LINDON, B3 SpMgvill es Janice Peterson DAILY HERALD The nation's economy may have in recent months, but Utah is doing well, and Springville is doing even better. Mayor Gene Mangum, commenting on a recent city newsletter, said taken a hit economic outlook is the city has many new projects in place that will help bring jobs to the city, and he believes the city is doing very well, Mangum said in terms of the current economy, the city looks at the glass as half full, but it still continues to budget wisely and conserve where possible. "We recognize that it's only half full and we still have a ways to go," he said. . In the city's April newsletter, City Councilman Phillip Bird addressed the economy, telling residents not to give in to fear, but to have a positive attitude and work through hard times. Bird cited several new projects in the city, saying such developments only help to attract more people to the state and Springville. "All of these activities will help create jobs and opportunities for the people of Springville and add to the quality of life we enjoy," he wrote. One of the projects slated to begin See SPRINGVILLE, B3 S3 i |