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Show AN E D I T I O N OF PRIDE & P R rear-snee 1521 E3900SSte 100 Salt Lake City UT 84124-1550 Hie Spanish Fork News VOL. 3 / NO. 46 M I O C A L L Y O W N E D A N D O P E R A T E D SPANISH FORK, UTAH Police chase Hilarie Orman STAFF WRITER that they were not the objects of attention, they gawked at the unprecThere was a hubbub on edented display of local Woodland Hills Drive on law enforcement. Monday, Nov. 3, 2008. A One resident of the car passed through Salem area who was watching with an expired registra- the drama unfold opined tion tag, attracting the at- in jest that the police were tention of police officers. looking for pheasant huntThey followed the car, ers. which turned onto the Eventually, officers driveway at a residence apprehended two of the adjacent to farm fields. As fugitives and booked police approached, three them into the county suspects left the vehicle jail. Each was wanted on and ran into the fields, ig- outstanding warrants, innoring commands to stop. cluding retail theft, and The fourth stayed to face their evening escapade the police. resulted in several new Eventually several po- charges. The men, each lice cars, lights flashing, about 30 years old, had gathered at the residence heroin and drug paraon the north side of the phernalia in a drug-free road, and a sheriff's K9 zone, one had a dangerunit joined them. The ous weapon — a knife — clear evening turned into and both failed to stop at a manhunt in the fallow the command of officers fields. People returning during the traffic stop. home along Woodland The driver acquired ciHills Drive were surprised tations for driving with a by the unusual sight. The suspended license and not stretch of road is frequent- having insurance. ly a spot for speed traps, The fourth occupant of but when drivers realized the car eluded capture. ELECTION RESULTS Namon Bills / Spanish Fork News BEING COUNTED: Scott Bailey signs in to vote at the Spanish Fork Senior Center, assisted by Deloris Nelson, Jackie Lucas and Ruby Hansen. Before and after on election day in Utah County Hilarie Orman STAFF WRITER Courtesy photo HONOREES: Pictured, left to right, are Mayor Joe L. Thomas, Luke Olsen, Adam Russell, Matt Huntsman, Jessica Murdock and Gracie Bowcutt. Teens honored Jen Allen STAFF WRITER -\ Several proud parents attended Spanish Fork City Council Meeting this week. Mayor Joe L. Thomas and the rest of the council awarded three young men and two young women with the Citizen Recognition Award for an act of outstanding bravery. Adam Russell, Luke Olsen, Matt Huntsman, Gracie Bowcut and Jessica Murdock were given special plaques from the city in recognition of saving the life of Jason Matsuoka, but it was also a thank you. In the council comments , several of the council members thanked the teens for being outstanding citizens of the community but also thanked the parents, teachers and previous church leaders of the teens who raised and taught them. Councilman Davis especially singled out Luke Olsen because he had previous experience with him through the Boy Scouts of America program. A program that undoubtedly taught the teens how to respond to Matsuoka's emergency. Councilman Jens Nielsen mentioned his appreciation to the writer of the Spanish Fork News who covered the story, 'To Save a Life," for alerting them to the information. As citizens filled the seats, it became clear another group of teens had come to address the council. Several young men approached the council to request that the "No Bikes" rule be lifted at the Spanish Fork City Skate Park. They acknowledged that they understood the rule had been put in place because of some rival tension between bikers and skaters but wanted to point out the inequality the rule created. Jensen Lee said "It's like having a baseball field but only letting softball players use it." Mayor Thomas commended the youth for addressing the council, rather than just simply breaking the rules continually to prove their point. Several different possibilities were tossed around by Parks and Recreation Department Head Dale Robinson and Thomas. In new business, the council appointed City Manager Dave Oiler to represent Spanish Fork in the Utah Valley Dispatch Special Service District Board. Oiler has been attending the meetings and will continue to do so until such a time comes that he sees fit. Finally, the council approved the agreement with Southgate Village. The two changes to the agreement included that the city would provide two accesses from the subdivision onto the trail and that they would replace the strip of fence along a portion of the trail that made it too narrow for safety. The purchase price remained the same and was passed unanimously. By now we know the results of the election races that brought out all the signs. Debbie Swenson's efforts to capture House District 66 fell short; Mike Morley held onto the seat for the fourth time, and Swenson urged her supporters , to work with Morley for the changes they seek. Morley issued a statement saying that he is always open to questions and input. Jason Chaffetz won the Congressional seat against Bennion Spencer, and few other changes will affect this section of the county. What was election day like to the people who made it all happen, the voters and the election officials? Anticipation, dread and preparation were the election day themes in Utah County as the day dawned. Smoothness, few surprises, and efficiency were the themes that ended the day. On the morning of Nov. 4, at the Foothills Elementary School precinct location, voters began arriving at 6:20 a.m., and the line was about an hour long. That line disappeared by about 10 a.m. Jerry and Jill Johnson of Woodland Hills took advantage of the lunchtime calm to vote, and Jerry said "I'm as excited about this election as I've ever been." Janice Hansen said that the precinct process was "really easy. I hope this is the best turnout in history." One disappointed citizen was an 18-year-old Rachel Heinz accompanying a friend. "This is the election to .vote in, if any is," she told us, but she had been in England during September and returned to Utah on the very last day of registration. She didn't do it, and she sat in the Salem gym watching the voting with regret. Sandee Cherry of Woodland Hills said that the polls were well-run. She was voting because she is "very, very concerned about the future of our nation." Though she was happy to be voting for state and local candidates, she felt that her vote for president didn't count, "because the media have already decided. This has been such an ugly campaign. The only thing worse would be if we couldn't vote at all. We should celebrate the fact that we can." The polls ran smoothly due to experienced and well-trained personnel. Even the voting machines, sometimes subject to peculiar behavior, seemed tame. The poll manager said that "because we've used them for several elections now, we have experience to draw on when problems occur." The voters who had the most trouble were those who tried to vote early. The Spanish Fork Armory had long lines in the days before the election, and some voters waited an hour and half to get to the voting machines. About 15 percent of. the 1,800 voters assigned to the Foothills Elementary School location had voted early or by absentee ballot, and during the rest of the day, about 700 of them found the school gym quiet and nearly empty, save for the poll workers and the 14 voting machines. At least 50 people arriving at the precinct were surprised upon being told that they were not on the list of registered voters. Some were at the wrong precinct, some had received bad information about how to register, and others had moved. One man said, "I registered through the DMV when I renewed my license over a year ago. This could have been organized better." County Clerk Bryan Thompson said that all new registrations this year were scrutinized using a Federal database of Social Security information. County officials sent letters to anyone whose data was inconsistent. Other voters had been dropped from the rolls if they hadn't voted in over 10 years. At County Election Headquarters As the polls closed, the poll managers scrambled to shutdown the electronic machines and rush the memory cards and provisional ballots to the county elections office in Provo. The Spanish Fork High School precinct was the first to arrive, and poll managers Lisa Wiggin and Jan Galovich handed their materials over to eager workers. Within an hour dozens more poll managers lined up with their zippered bags of memory cards and provisional ballots. Down the hall, the elections department had a squad of experts geared up to read the cards and get the results to the state elections department and the county website as quickly as possible. Upstairs, Republicans held a party in the auditorium. Downstairs, four official observers from the Democratic party kept an eye on the operations and chatted about the Obama victory. The process of tallying the vote is a far cry from the days of paper ballots. See VOTING • A8 Miss USA visits SF ROYAL VISIT: Miss USA came to visit Big O Tires in Spanish Fork Saturday, Nov. 8. Pictured above, Miss USA, Crystle Stewart; Mrs. Utah, Emily Nelson; and Mrs. Arizona, Brooke Nelson are all smiles with General Manager Kevin Dunn, his wife, Janell and their granddaughter Frankie. The visiting queens are all participating in the Best Buddies program to "raise awareness and funds for people with intellectual disabilities." Dana Robinson / Spanish Fork Nettys |