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Show I '',UiiDossy 3HX Emery County ;fffF4Wse .4YT tr h ;t Tuesday July 5, 1995 95th Year - No. 25 ' ' tVff ' " 5 t ' "' c OcMoan 500 Castle Dale, Utah Pearson found guilty; gets 'life" sentence with parole possibility By Larry W. Davis Progress editor CASTLE DALE- - Jason Scott Pearson was sentenced on Monday, July 3, to life in prison with the possibility of parole after he was convicted last week of aggravated murder charges in the shooting death of Trooper Lund "wants resti- tution," but he added that Pearson's attorney, Ken Brown, believes there is hope ofrehabilitation. He also talked about sentencing as an aspect of prevention. "What kind of signal are we sending to others who may find themselves in of Utah Highway Patrol Mr. Pearsons situation if we Trooper Dennis (Dee) Lund in don't sentence him to the maximum?" he asked, but then June 1993. Seventh District Judge Bruce added, "What hope do we exK Halliday handed down the tend to Mr. Pearson of any possentence about 11:15 a.m. on sibility to become better?". Monday after receiving testiJudge Halliday said that the Pearson's mony during sentencing youth "speaks phase ofthe trial. The prosecu- strongly to sympathy, to em- " tion had asked the judge to pathy, and for another chance. sentence Pearson to life with- He said that he couldn't ignore out the possibility of parole. Pearson's broken home, yet he Judge Halliday said, "I cant added, "I have in my mind the give up on Mr. Pearson," and Lundfamily thathehas caused then said that the sentence a broken home." would allow for a future parole When referring to the testihearing although the mony of Rod Lund, Dee Lund's Indiana man "will spend a father, Judge Halliday became great deal of time in the peniemotional, .frequently pausing. tentiary." The judge ordered a "I was impressed with Trooper presentence investigation beLund's father," he said. "I'm fore sentencing Pearson on impressed by the kind of fathree attempted aggravated ther Mr. Lund was, but I think murder convictions. He is to be that if Dee Lund were here sentenced on those Aug. 15, today, he might well be the 1995. first one to take Mr. Pearson As he considered sentencing, under his wing and give him a thejudge noted that the family second chance." ld r5 .rvl .V1 Testimony from George Kennedy, shown above, helped convict Jason Pearson of aggravated murder. Pearson was sentenced to life with possibility of parole on Monday. Photos by Larry Davis Prior to the handing down of the sentence, Pearson spoke in a tearful , broken voice to Judge Halliday. "I know that this is a tragedy for all the families involved, and I hurt bad for family of officer Lund because of their loss, my family and friends, and the family of George Kennedy. I hate what happened. I let my friends and family down. I've caused a forever pain to friends and family of officer Lund. I know theyll it-t- he program After receiving public input the welcomes exhibit CASTLE DALE- - The excite- ment is building! Memorabilia and artifacts of WWII are being gathered. Display tables, hangers, and stands are being made especially to display the many items that will be shown with the wonderful "Produce for Victory" poster collection in the Museum of the San Rafael, Castle Dale, during July and August. Smithsonian Museum. Dr. Powell, a native of Hun- tington, has many published articles and books of history about Utah, Emery County, coal mining, and also WWII. His subject will be "WWII- - on . the Home Front." Mr. Powell is always well received in his home area and has something new and exciting to share each time he is a speaker. The exhibit and programs have been made possible through a grant from the Utah Humanities Council, Smithsonian Institute and the Utah Humanities Speakers Bureau. The Museum of the San Rafael was chosen as one of only 25 museums in the nation as part of a pilot program of the Smithsonian. 4 .... P W I 5? -- (! 'Hrt V i' fjl . Jason Pearson leaves the courthouse in Castle Dale last week after he testified in his own trial. Later in the week, the was found guilty of aggravated murder in the shooting death of Trooper Dee Lund. loss. I hurt knowing that I did and make something of my that. I just hope that I may get life." the chance to help people. I In offering testimony on Monhope that one day Ill have the day for the prosecution in the chance to contribute to society (Continued on Page SB) City to close old landfill July 11th Everything will be well in place, and the public is cordially invited on Tuesday , July 11, at 7 p.m. for Dr. Kent Powell, historian and author with the Utah State Historical Society, who is the first program speaker in conjunction with the exhibit on loan from tfie never be able to replace that, and I have to live with knowing I took that. That makes me want to give and help as much as I can with society if given a chance. Ive done a lot of growing up the past two years," he said. Pearson said that he would like to make the best of his life. "I would like to continue my education, and I want to be a part of people's lives. I can't say how sorry I am for their IgHv sample of the Smithsonian Exhibit that will be at the Museum the San Rafael this month is shown above. The exhibit will be introduced to the public at a July 1 1 meeting of the Emery County A of Historical Society. "We have gained credibility withthe Utah Humanities Council over several years, utilizing their Speakers Bureau and being part of 'The Book Group,'" said Janet Petersen, project coordinator. "They know we have a very active Historical Society, museum board and excellent volunteer support. Then when they saw the fine museum and setting we have for exhibits, they asked us to be in this pilot program. We feel very honored to have such a fine reputation, hope that we can live up to their expectations, and offer something unusual and of special value to the people of our area." WWII veterans will be on hand to answer questions and give information, and provide a secure setting for the dis- plays and the posters. Many local residents have volunteered their precious mementos and family photos to be shown, while others are volunteering their time and talents to put it all together. If you have any questions about the exhibit or would like to volunteer, please call the Museum of the San Rafael then make plans to bring the family members to experience this exhibit and the many fine programs that will be presented along with it. (381-525- 2) Green River City Council voted last week voted to close the existing landfill and to secure bids for contract pick up and hauling of refuge. The federal government, by way of. the Subtitle D of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, has mandated that all landfills be designed to protect the ground water, the environment and public health. The responsibility for drafting and enforcing the regulations was given to the individual states. In 1994, the state of Utah finalized the administrative rules giving small landfills, those accepting fewer than 20 tons per day, until Oct. 9, 1995, to comply with the new rules or close. To address this issue and explore various options the city of Green River contracted with Tahoma Companies Inc. inMarch. This company was to provide a preliminary costbenefit analysis of several options available to the city council. Tahoma presented the options report to the city council, Emery County Commissioner Bevan Wilson and Rex Funk, supervisor the county road and landfill departments, during a meeting on April 29, 1995. Proposals were narrowed to three from five and plans were set on informing the public and encouraging their input for a solu- of tion. A public opinion poll was mailed to each residence in Green River asking for input concerning several solid waste management issues. Consumers were also explained of an outline of the three alternatives. One of the three alternatives included permitting the current landfill site as a class II landfill which would require closing the existing landfill and then construction a new one that would meet new regulations. Another alternative proposed to convert the existing facility to a class IV landfill to handle inert waste and then hauling all municipal solid waste to a remote landfill. The third proposal would have the existing landfill closed and hauling everything to a remote landfill. Proposals two and three would include mandated automat ed trash collection services within in the city limits with a choice of the city providing this service or subcontracting the service. The public was told that the current landfill does not comply with new federal regulations and one of the tree proposals would have to be implemented. There are currently three landfills in the immediate areaof Green River that would accept refuge. The closest one is ECDC located about 35 miles from Green River in Carbon County. Another will be located in Grand County after the opening of a new landfill is realized. This one would be approximately 35 miles away from Green River also. On June 29 a public meeting was held at the John Wesley Powell River History Museum where the final costs versus benefits figures were present to the citizens of Green River. The results of the public opinion poll that was mailed to the 41 1 utility users in Green River were discussed. Only 125 responded. Of those that were returned 46 percent responded in favor of (Continued on Page 6B) Board approves tax rate HUNTINGTON- - The Emery County School Board recently approved 1995-9- 6 tax rates for Emery County along with a new budget. According to the minutes of the meeting, the budget pro- vides for revenues from property taxes at the certified rate which will be a decrease of 17 percent from last year. The tax rate for 1994-9- 5 was .00791 while the new rate was ap proved at .00677. Officials noted that 31 of the state's 40 school districts presently have higher tax rates than the Emery School District. Also at the meeting, which was held June 21, 1995, at the district office, a resolution for the sale of $3.5 million in tax anticipation notes was presented and approved by the board. V In other business, the board approved the use of district buses for transportation to and from the Castle Valley Pageant in July and August. The next board meeting will be held July 5 at 7 p.m. at the district office. The agenda includes: bids for Emery property utilization, new employees, superintendent's appointment, and the superintendent's report. r |