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Show ( Visit us on the World Wide Web SUE Ferron City is preparing for Its Centennial Celebration. Get the details and see which citizens will be honored in conjunction with the event. 2 Page Merrill enters no contest plea for the murder of Charles Watterson in 1998 By BETTY BAILEY Green River correspondent Peruse the Sheriff's Log and Court Docket. 3 ,,ag(, Scott Joseph Merrill, the 30 year-oldefendant from Spokane Washington, charged with the killing of Emery County road worker Charles W'atterson of Green River pled No Contest to charges of aggravated murder saving himself from death, or life In prison. In exchange for the no contest plea, 7th District Court Judge Bryce K. Bryner sentenced Merrill to life In prison, with the possibility of pad 3HHEE Rosann Fillmore has advice for heritage businesses, and Paula expresses her opinions of changing others and our- Pap- - Emery Boys Basketball Team finishes first in Region, and undefeated for the season. Utah High School Athletic Association names locals to Academic All-Stat- e Teams. Jr Jazz posts standings for week seven. Local Jr. Highs gearing up for region basketball tournament. Pages 14 & 15 Zions Bank and First Security Bank merger back on track Zions Bancorp and First Security Corp. have reschedule meetings of shareholders and are once again ready to complete the delayed merger, but a lawsuit by Utahns trying to stop the $5.9 billion deal could still stop the plan. The two banks indicated to federal regulators last week they have agreed to pay a total of $40 million to the two New York investment banks which have been advising them on the merger. Zions has scheduled its meeting of shareholders to vote on the merger March 22, at 8:30 a m. in the Marriott Hotel in downtown Salt Lake City, and First Security has scheduled its shareholders vote for 1 1 a m. the same day. George M. Allen, a Provo attorney representing the coalition of Utahns in the lawsuit to stop the merger, said last Friday he will now ask the court to expedite the lawsuit so that it can heard, and possibly tried, before March 22. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit contend the merger would be anti competitive and not in the best interests of Utahns. A hearing on the lawsuit is scheduled March 10, at 9:30 a m. in Salt Lake City before federal magistrate Judge Richard L. Puglisi of the US. District Court on New Mexico. Allen indicated he will file a motion asking the judge to expedite the summary Judgment and the trial if the summary judgment is not h:!p.,'ww.ecpro3',e$s com Joseph Scott Merrill as he appeared at his preliminary hearing in 1998. Babbitt unveals new program for preserving open space in the West The land will not be managed by On Feb. 16 Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt unveiled a new pro- gram aimed at preserving up to 4 million acres of open space across the West, as part of the Clinton administrations plan to protect more federal land before leaving of- fice. The new system will be called the National Landscape Monuments, and will not be set up for large numbers of visitors or include any visitor centers. In making his announcement Babbitt said that the nation needs wide open spaces, and not necessarily those set aside in the tradition of national parks, with visitor centers and crowds. Its about a landscape, Babbitt indicated. The people in Chicago and their children are going to live In a big city but know that there is open space forever that belongs to them whether they come and visit or not." stand Republican leaders outline highlights of their budget g new role in preservation. The nations largest land management agency ought to be Induced to have a sense of pride," Babbitt said in the press conference. Babbitt said there will have to be changes in the internal workings of the BLM as a result of the new system. (Continued on page ) Watterson constitutes aggravated murder, Merrill said, I can underwhy the Ktate would think so. A psychologist, Dr. Nancy Kohn PhD., was brought in to certify Merrill's competency. Kohn testified that she had met with Merrill for 40 minutes before the hearing, as well as two times prior to the hearing. role. In documents signed by Merrill in She stated except for suffering from court Feb. 17, Merrill stated, "(he) depression, for which he was being treated by medication, she found acknowledged that his personal beliefs were at odds with the laws of him to be competent, and stated the State of Utah,. ..(I) personally that his mental faculties were intact. In exchange for the No Contest disagree with the State of Utah's criminalization of my conduct. plea, which has the same effect as a The documents go on to state the guilty plea, prosecutors dropped former Army Sergeant and postal charges of aggravated robbery, crimiemployee believed, in (my) mind, I nal mischief and attempted escape. Had Merrill been convicted at trial received a commandment from God that superseded Utah law, and did of the charges Iip could have faced not believe that I was In a position the death penalty, or life in prison to do anything but follow that with no possibility of parole. Under command, ...an order from God to the plea agreement, however, prosecutors could only recommend a sendeliver Justice." tence of life in pnson with the possiMerrill stated in the plea, he executed that order by hiding in some bility of parole which was the senrocks above the San Rafael River tence imposed Thursday by Judge Road and began firing his Bryce Bryner. Merrill declined making any statesemiautomatic rifle at Wratterson as he passed below on his grader ments in court, however upon senuntil he was dead. tencing Merrill, Judge Bryner stated Your conduct has deprived this famMerrill appeared in court dressed in bright orange prison garb, with ily of it's Patriarch,... you have comhis aims and legs shackled, and sat mitted a senseless and despicable act... it is my hope that the family through the proceedings exprescan bring their lives back together sionless with very little verbal interand eventually understand why it action. Judge Bryner asked a series of happened. the National Park Service but by the During a Feb. 16 press conference Bureau of Land Management on Capitol Hill, Republican leaders (BLM). Babbitt has often battled with the BLM over what he consid- from the Utah Senate and House of ers its and logging poli- Representatives outlined budget move to have it highlights including proposed eduand cies, by this manage the new land monuments cation funding to the media. Flanked by Republican Senate says he wants to give the agency a pro-minin- questions directed at Merrill to see if he understood the meaning of his plea, Merrill answered yes to all but one. When Judge Bryner asked Merrill if he understood that what he did in shooting Charles and House leadership. Senate Presi- Bountident Lane Beattie, ful, and House Speaker Martin West, recomStephens, mended every public education teacher in the state receive at least R-Fa- a $2,000 salary increase. The $2,000 increase is not a onetime bonus, but a permanent, ongoing pay raise. Additionally, legis lative leaders are proposing an overall increase in education equal to a WPU increase of 7.424 percent to help address many education needs as well as school supplies and textbook shortages. Beattie pointed out the enhanced benefit to entry level teachers if a flat $2,000 increase is awarded rather than a set percentage. If the average teacher started at $23,226 last year, a $2,000 increase would move their salary to $25,226. If a 5.5 percent pay raise Is awarded instead of the $2,000 increase, the same teacher would receive a $1,277 (Continued on page 2) Costly lunch for someone. League of Conservation voters give Utah Delegation an F on environment By DORIS QUINN Proorcss editor In its annual analysis of Congress voting record on environmental issues the League of Conservation Voters has decided, that in its opinion, Utah's delegation voted correctly just 7.4 percent of the time. Nationally', senators scored an average 41 percent grade, and House members scored an average 46 percent. The analysis is created by representatives from 27 national conservation groups including the Wilderness Society. Environmental Defense Fund, Trout Unlimited and Friends of the Earth. Lawson LeGate, Utah based regional director for the Sierra Club believes this score indicates the Utah delegation is out of step with the rest of the country on environmental issues. Representative Merrill Cook, according to the analysis, voted cor- - POOR COPY rectly 19 percent, scoring highest among Utah congressmen. But environmentalists say it Is nothing to brag about. LeGate indicated the group believed Cook had been particularly good on some forest issues, but where the rubber meets the road on the floor, he's pretty bad. A spokesman for Cannon criti- cised the analysis as propaganda from an organization who believes humans are only pests on public land. As far as we're concerned, our low score is a badge of honor, said Rusty Payne from Cannon's Washington office. In the House the rnalysis followed 16 votes, on issues from ending subsidies to companies that resources from public lands to funding for the U.N. World Heritage Kites program. In the House, 121 members scored the same or less than Cannon. Thirty-ninmembers, 37 of which are democrats, scoied GO percent. (Continued on page 2) e 1 rive male juveniles from Emery High School were involved in an accident IVh.TS at approximately 12:15 p.m. as they were traveling to downtown Castle Dale for lunch. The driver of the truck indicated he stopped to avoid hitting an object in the road, and the driver or the car collided with the hack of the truck. There were two occupants in the truck, and three in the car. No one was injured. The Emery Sheriffs Department investigated the accident. County |