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Show 7 50 ,GrMy miiiriar claims mother, baby 'V formation charging Ronald W. t ! Highland, with criminal 6 ulle t murder in the first If"" , ' connection with the brutal delree' Tuesday of an American h Hman and her old signed before Judge-fffackluri-d, Eighth Circuit !lt 0"!: JSentified the victims as 24- - PS Brenda Wright Lafferty !'ear ehter, Erica Lane. J andherian Fork Police Chief At Johnson and Utah County m y Noall T. Wootton said Atrtv the brother-in-la- of the k U f?An all points bulletin has out for him, Johnson noted. S is believed driving a 1974 gjrolet impala stationwagon, light green in color. Lafferty is believed to be in the company of another brother, Dan Charles Lafferty, and two other unidentified males, officials said. All are described as having beards and as having a "Mountain Man" ap-pearance. Johnson said the victims were found by Allen Lafferty, husband of Mrs. Lafferty, when he returned to his home at 352 E. 500 South from work in Ogden shortly before 8 p.m. Mrs. Lafferty was last seen alive at 12:05 p.m. Tuesday, he said. Neighbors reported hearing a commotion at the home about 3 p.m. but thought it was just the television on loud. Johnson said Mrs. Lafferty was found in the kitchen of the residence and the baby was in her crib in the bedroom. He indicated there were signs of a struggle and said cause of both deaths is believed to be a "sharp cutting instrument." An autopsy was being performed Wednesday by the State Medical Examiner to determine the exact cause. The Chief said police have a possible motive, but he was unable to release it at this time. He refused to comment on rumors that "something religious in nature" was involved, saying officials Wednesday morning were still checking out all rumors and leads that have come in. "This is a very complicated case and at this point we are still drawing ever ything together," he said. Residents of the neighborhood -- and of American Fork --- were still in shock Wednesday that such a thing could happen in their community, especially in a "quiet neigh-borhood." The Laffertys resided in a brick duplex similar to others in the block, and the night of the slaying many residents said they planned on locking their doors at all times. Before a suspect was announced, residents were afraid the home had been picked at random for the slaying. "You just can't imagine anything like this would happen in American Fork, let alone in our neigh-borhood," one commented. Many just stood across the street from the scene watching in near silence as police completed their investigation at the home, even though it was past midnight before any information was released. Bishop Ken Beck of the American Fork LDS 1st Ward said the Laf-fertys had resided in his ward for about a year. Mrs. Lafferty was serving as a Primary teacher at the time of her death. He said the couple were both active, and described Mrs. Lafferty as a "real nice per-son." The suspect, Ron Lafferty, is a former member of the Highland City Council. His brother, Dan Charles Lafferty made headlines two years ago as a candidate for Utah County Sheriff when he was arrested for a traffic violation and jailed when he resisted arrest. According to acquaintances, Lafferty was active in the Highland community and LDS Church until about three years ago. In the in-tervening period he has been divorced, excommunicated from the LDS Church and reportedly became involved with a religious cult which practices polygamy. His former wife lives in Florida. 13,1 Vol. 6, No. 29 Thursday, July 26, 1S84 50 cents a single copy Planning commission to draft high tech ordinance for Manila A definition of what a high tech zone would include will be prepared at the same time that the Pleasant Grove Planning Commission is working on a master plan for the Manila area. A research park has been proposed by the firm of Larsen and Davis on property located between the Manila School and the Manila Stake Center. The Planning Com-mission will draft an ordinance that specifies the use and objectives of a high tech park zone. The Planning Commission would have to draft regulations and changes to the master plan that would provide for research parks. This draft will be presented to the city council on Aug. 21. Bryan Larsen of Larsen and Davis Laboratories noted that there is a time problem involved in purchase of the property and they were needing the feelings of the council on the matter. For that reason the council asked the Planning Commission to proceed with making the suggestions on the changes. In other action the council ap-proved the names of Bill Yost and Regula Holdaway to serve on the Pleasant Grove Historical Society Committee. The City Council approved the hiring of Sherri Atwood as the full-tim- e police department secretary to replace Deanna McElhinney who has moved from the area. Beverly Prestwich was approved to be a part-tim- e police department secretary and dispatcher. The council also approved re-hiring Officer Tom Prestwich who had taken a four month leave of absence. ?! rrr ;T stT"" r- - . t v vl " '' . ; ! "l J: . t rV:vV:: ' ; -- " ' - . : . Super Sliders : Cedar Hills youngsters cool off Monday rnorning with water and a piece of plastic, as they tuned up for the community water fight as part of the city's Pioneer Day celebration. Council to decide improvements Pleasant Grove City Council was expected to decide last night .'whether to keep Cascade Sub-division and Firwood Subdivision together in the sewer extension special improvement project. The council Tuesday night discussed separating the two in case one area was agreed upon by such a majority it pulled the other one with it. Some residents in attendance at the meeting felt that Firwood residents were split about 50-5- 0 on the issue and that Cascade probably would be in favor of the sewer line installations. On Wednesday, July 25, at 5 p.m. all those who wanted to protest the project had to have submitted their opposition in writing to the city hall. The council decided that at the public meeting Wednesday at 7 p.m. they would determine whether to separate the two based on the results of the opposition. If 51 percent or more of the property owners, based on one vote per frontage foot, were against the project it would be dropped. Mayor David Holdaway noted that even if 49 percent were against it the city council would take a long hard look before proceeding with the district. Residents in attendance noted that on Firwood those at the north end who have the septic tank problems will probably be in favor of the special improvement district while those on the south end who do not have problems probably will not be in favmr,"-",,,v-'- ..-... - The question was asked if people will be required to hook on to the sewer line when it goes past their property or will they be allowed to wait until later to hook on as was done when the sewer line was taken out to Manila School on 600 West, The council said it will not require people to hook on but the city will set up guidelines as to what con-stitutes a failing septic tank system. The council also agreed that if the bids on the project should be ap-proved, come in 10 percent or more over the engineers estimate the council will decline all bids and drop the project. ! Accident victim seeks witnesses The driver of the car in a single-aut- o accident last week is looking for the witnesses who helped him out. Kent Prestwich, 48 N. 1400 East, crashed into a 12 to 14 foot high pile of dirt which extended completely across the street, narrowly missing a hydro-ho- e parked there. Just after the accident, a good Samaritan couple in a vehicle came around the pile, ob-served the accident and helped Prestwich from his car. The couple took Prestwich home and left their names, saying they would be glad to testify for him. Prestwich reported the accident to the police and gave them the paper with the witnesses' names and address. That paper has been misplaced, and Prestwich is asking anyone knowing the name of the couple to please call him at 785-228- Victim mot at fault in atase eases Editor's note: This is the third in a series of article dealing with sexual abuse of children. This article deals with programs available to parents and children to help Prevent the crime, and to help them cope i'h the pain and trauma following an of sexual abuse. Iinstance By SHARON MORREY a child is a victim of sexual abuse, to blame? The offender, the child's Parits, the offender's family or the child nimself? What about society? Could it "ave been prevented? Dr Delbert Pearson,' psychiatrist on aff at Utah Valley Regional Medical enter says people need to be very careful signing the blame. , Tne victim did nothing wrong. I don't Diame the child, the child has been hurt," Declares Dr. Pearson, noting that Mimes programs and ,"eir instigators mistakenly give the Pression that because mistakes were m?e, a victim was created. Be a proper parent, take time with your s. 30 minutes a week at least to really en and talk to them. Teach them they e in command, that it's okay to say, urges Dr. Pearson, lhen realize that these things PPen and the child is not at fault. No one eserves' to be molested, whether he or ls scantily clad, alone at night or out "ere he or she shouldn't be. No one 'serves it and the victim should be ? ecled from that burden of guilt." a recent seminar in Orem, Dr. arson and other experts on child " and abuse identified some good Posvhir0grams designed to help prevent crimes against children but noted ngn program is foolproof. Divk- ph Crabb of the Orem Detectives noted that even g srams like McGruff House can be abused by a twisted determined in-dividual. "We have to be very careful in screening our McGruff homes so as to be sure we don't get someone volunteering their house with the wrong intentions," mentioned Det. Crabb. "We have all the McGruff posters numbered and we ask people to return them if they move or decide to stop using it. Crabb detailed how the McGruff posters themselves were designed to be difficult to copy and yet be highly visible. He urged patrons of local PTA groups to investigate the McGruff program and help set up a McGruff system -- - which basically identifies the homes that are safe for a child to run to for help. "But be careful even there, be sure your children know what rights they have to their own bodies. Teach them that no one has the right to touch certain places," cautioned Crabb. Other programs such as the "Safety Kids" portfolio by Janeen Brady are hitting the market just as the crime rate is Brady's approach is to teach rules and "how to be a good safety kid" with songs, illustrations to color and membership in the Safety Kids club. A cassette in Brady's kit spells out good ideas and what to do when; "someone wants to cross your line" and "how to sing your telephone number." There are "togetherness kids", "yell and scream" and "look for a grandma" ideas that give children clear directions for troublesome situations. Thomas G. Harrison, the for the Child Sexual Abuse program at Primary Children's Medical Center, has endorsed Janeen Brady's colorful and "forthright" approach. He calls it "an exciting new tool in the important work of preventing children from becoming vic tims of sexual assault, kidnap or abuse." "The Safety Kids" sing-a-lon- g items are available through Renae Pelo, 381 East 230 South, Orem, Utah, 84057. The set which includes cassette, coloring book, and "Safety Kids" membership cards is $8.95. Tana Johnson, a local police officer with the American Fork Department has also devised a "How Not to Become a Victim" program. Speaking briefly to parents and local citizenry, Johnson has outlined ways a parent can hopefully ward off trouble for their children. "Keep an eye on your kids, "says Johnson, "Children are not kidnapped when a parent is with them." Johnson draws attention to the fact that kids often link "a stranger" with someone big, and mean-lookin- They have dif-ficulty telling the bad guys from the good guys when the good guy is "nice." A good tip from Tana's program is the Family Code Word, developed ahead of time so a child can recognize someone sent to help in an emergency situation. Other steps suggested as ways to teach children aboul guarding their personal safety include: playing "what if" games with your children and taking "safety walks" with the whole gang. Mrs. Johnson can be reached through the American Fork Police Department and scheduled to speak to your church, civic or school group. American Fork Police Chief Randy Johnson points out that "Stranger-Danger- " isn't the major concern in teaching children to avoid child abuse, since most of abusers are individuals known and trusted by the victims. "Strangers are involved in 15 percent of the cases," Chief Johnson says. "The other 85 percent involve trusted adults." That means it is essential to teach children they have rights about what happens with their bodies no matter who is involved. "The major thrust of educating children should not be 'Stranger Danger,' " Johnson says. "It's unacceptable, behavior. Parents should teach their children to not become victims. You open up a line of communications so children can talk about these things with you." If the worst does occur and your child is abused, seek help. And report the crime to the police regardless of who the offender is. There are many programs designed to lift the guilt burden and put your family life back on track, such as the counseling service through Utah Valley Mental Health Center, Timpanogas Mental Health Services, The Gathering Place and Primary Children's Medical Center. The cost of counseling can be reim-bursed through the Victim Aid Program care of the Utah County District Attorney. The LDS Church also offers counseling services through its Department of Social Services. It has recently published a couple of small inexpensive pamphlets on safety precautions for women and children. Women are reminded to carry a whistle, plan walking or jogging routes through populated, well-lighte- d areas and replace and secure home locks that leave room for intrusion. Children are cautioned to know their full name and address and phone number, value staying close to a parent or family member, and protest loudly if anyone tries to pick them up or take them elsewhere. "Avoid dressing children in clothes that have their name printed on them. Knowing a child's name can help a stranger entice a child to them," advises the pamphlet on safety precautions. "I implore you mothers and fathers to keep a constant watchcare over your children," says LDS President Spencer W. Kimball in the pamphlet, "Teach them to beware of the growing danger of evil and designing men." The material is 10 cents a copy and available from The Relief Society Business Office, 76 N. Main Street, Salt Lake City, Utah 84150. "We do need to protect the child," reaffirms Dr. Pearson who works with children emotionally traumatized by sexual abuse. "And we do need to see that they get help because we are often just seeing people 30 years later. By then they've had problems with friends, em-ployers, their spouse. We need to see them earlier." Parents who suspect a child has been victimized are admonished to avoid such shaming statements as "I told you to come straight home!, "or "Why did you keep going back?" or "Mr. Jones is such a respected man, you must be making this up." "Be aware that your child has been lured, tricked or forced into doing something that cause deep confusion and a strong sense of guilt and shame," warns another paper on "What to do if your child is molested." "There is a bond between the victim and the molester, though it's a very unnatural bond," comments Dr. Pearson, "par-ticularly if the abuser is known to the child. There can be unconscious gratification to the child, overwhelming excitement, guilt and shame." "The child who is a victim of sexual molestation or abuse is damaged. We need to repair that damage," reminds Dr. Pearson. Families who have suffered such in-dignity and trauma are urged to seek competent, extensive counseling. |