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Show comment Review - Wednesday, Dec. 21, 1988 - Page 2 Lehi investigation ending is unsatisfactory TheUtah Attorney General's conclusion to its investigation of alleged child abuse in Lehi is an unsatisfactory ending to a confusing episode in the history of one Utah community. In a strongly worded press release issued last Thursday, attorneys from the Attorney General's office said they were closing the case, not because they don't think anyone's guilty, but because they don't think they can prove it in court. This approach leaves an impression of guilt, rather than innocence, that unjustly stains an entire Lehi neighborhood. Lehi isn't the first community to face this particular trial. The nation is dotted with towns where bizarre accusations of child sex abuse and sex abuse rings have arisen. Like Lehi, few or no criminal charges have resulted from the accusations, largely because the victims and witnesses are children, often very young children, who are so traumatized and confused by what has happened that they make poor courtroom witnesses, often recant their testimony, and often tell stories of abuse that are hard for adults to believe. Investigators end up in the same situation described by Robert Parrish, Assistant Attorney General: "The troubling issue for the Attorney General's Office was not in determining that sexual abuse of some children had occurred, but rather in proving beyond any reasonable doubt who commited the abuse." That's not only troubling for the Attorney General, but for the community of Lehi, as well, which has been tagged, un-justly, as the child sex abuse capitol of Utah. And by abandoning the investigation as they have, the Attor ney General's office has denied Lehi any opportunity t0 that claim. ref"te In other words, no one wins. Mr. Wilkinson will leave office next week with the Leh' V ; sex abuse case as one of his biggest failures - even T ? investigation resulted in one conviction. e .' Lehi is left with a tarnished reputation, and no ' the damage. "stoundo But the biggest losers are the children, who have found th many adults simply won't believe them when they say the h been hurt, and those who do believe them are often i6 help them. unable ta It's the worst possible ending for one of the most dam ' situations modern society could possible face. Spirit of Christmas is found in giving the editor's column Holidays have never meant much to me. Even Christmas. I've always given the gifts to those I have to, and forgotten about the rest. Most of the other aspects I saw as a waste of time. I've always seen it as a time to get, and I didn't worry about get-ting much. Except for one Christmas. And I spend that one as an observer, rather than a giver or taker. I was a junior in high school, working in my father's grocery store. Our store was nearest the railroad tracks of all those in town, so when the transients drifted into town from time to time, usually on the train, they would come to us first. As far as we were concerned, these unkempt, unshaven men were just bums, picking through the garbage out back in the large cinder block garbage dump, look-ing for something to fill stomachs that were always been hungry. I was born too late to appreciate the romance of the road that was common during the Depression, when a lot of folks were "on the bum." Those in our small, conservative farming community had little use for the carefree life of the hobo what we knew, we learned from Red Skelton's Freddie the Free-loader. Tramps weren't people to us, for the most part. Then, about two weeks before Christmas, one of these hobos appeared out behind the store, It never occurred to us how cold it must be to be without shelter in the harsh Bear Lake Valley winter. The week before Christmas was the busiest of the year, with people stocking up for the holiday. We filled up both the Main Street park-ing and the back lot parking each night. On one of those nights, the bum was going through the garbage again, in full view of everyone who parked in the rear parking lot. That was a lot of people. A family of eight came in the store, addingto the congestion. The father and mother worked their way through the store, urging the children behind them, as they filled two carts full of groceries. Merle, the gruff, sharp-tongue- d produce manager, checked them out while I bagged the groceries. There were no extravagances in their purchases. They couldn't af-ford them. Pushing two carts filled with six sacks, I helped them out to their station wagon, unloaded the gro-ceries in to the back and slid my way back into the warmth of the store over the blacktop. There was a lull in business at that moment, so I looked outside to see if the old bum was still going through the garbage. And I noticed this family watching him along with me. The man and woman were look-ing at the man, then back at each other, then at the man again, talk-ing all the while. ., .. Then the entire family marched back into the store, grabbed a shop-ping cart, and began the trip through the store all over again. This time they picked up only essentials -- - bread and milk, fresh fruit, and similar items. They gath-ered enough to fill one bag of grocer-ies. Merle checked them out again. I bagged the groceries, and offered to take them out, but the man said no, picked up the bag, and started out the door. His wife and children went to the car, but the man headed straight for the garbage bin, where the hobo was still rumaging for his Christmas dinner in our leavings. The sun had set and the scene was now spotlighted by a lamppost. With a brief word, the man handed the hobo the sack, said goodbye, and walked back to his car. He got inside and drove away. The gift had been given with no fanfare. There was no hope of any return, no assurance of any grati-tude, no qualifications whatsoever; because the family and the bum knew they would never see one another again it was the most self-less gift I'd ever observed. We were all left with lumps in our throats, and a new vision for those who don't have any place to call home for Christmas. As the family drove off, Merle said to me, "You know. That dad just gave his kids the best Christ-mas they could ever have." He'd done that for me, as well. By MARC HADDOCK going through the garbage. From time to time he would come into the store to buy a loaf of bread or quart of milk with some change he had scrounged. I'd check him out, and then, when he was safely out of the store, my cousin and I would get together and laugh at the pathetic figure, makingfunofhisrottingteeth and ragged clothes. I PG Man returns wallet lost at airport A man from Henrieville, Utah will have a much merrier Christ-mas due to the honesty of a Pleas-ant Grove man, according to the Pleasant Grove Police Dept. Hugo Martinez of Pleasant Grove found the walletbelonging to Thorley C.Johnson while he was at the Salt Lake International Air-port. The wallet containing $99.17 was turned into the Pleasant Grove Police Dept. Det. Cody Cullimore tried to reach Johnson by phone but could not catch him at home. Cullimore was eventually able to reach a rela-tive of Johnson who told the officer that Johnson was in Bountiful for a wedding. Johnson stopped in Pleasant Grove and picked up the wallet on his way home. He said he had been to the airport to pick up a relative who had come for the wedding. When he left the Police Dept., Johnson took the address of Mr. Martinez so that he could thank him for being so honest and return-ing his wallet. Incidently, Henrieville is down by Bryce Canyon, Det. Cullimore said. The officers at the Police Dept. were extremely complimentary to Mr. Martinez and said his actions restore their faith in mankind. In other police business, officers are trying to identify a man who is wanted for indecent exposure. The officers said that a clerk at Griffin Bakery looked up and saw a man standingjust outside the door of the bakery wearing only blue bikini underwear. The man's description fits that in other cases which have occurred in American Fork and Springville, officers said. Two women reported that their purses were taken from a car parked at 810 S. Locust on Dec. 15 while they attended a Christmas party. Ronda Bennett of West Jordan and Jeanette Furstenau, Sandy, reported that their purseshadbeen taken. Bennett said that her purse contained $12 in cash, her check-book, credit cards and personal items. Furstenau reported that her matching purse and wallet, valued at $450, had been taken. She also had her checkbook inside her purse. There are no suspects, accord-ing to Sgt. Steve Frampton. SarinahButler,14ON.380EM ' Lindon, reported that her v2 (i with $70 was taken from C ' hide while it was parked at her ?? residence. $ The wallet was later found i 'J Pleasant Grove but the money 2 missing. j Police cautioned business ( people to be on the alert for some x older male teens whohave success-full-exchanged rolls of what ap. ! pears to be dimes for cash at two Pleasant Grove businesses. Upon further 1 investigation, the businesses have found that' the 'f rolls really contain just pennies ? with dimes placed in each end J" Neil Bonham, 325 W. Center, (? reported that during the week f someone had shot out the wind, shields in two of his vehicles, caus-ing $250 damage. ' There are no suspects, accord-ing to Det. Bert Bean. $ Leita Pine, an employee of the x Alpine Valley Care Center, re- f ported that someone had takenher purse from the laundryroomatthe D( rest home. f' There was $155 in the purse, Det. Bean said there is a possible suspect. Eric VonBrakel, 816 E. 8M & North, Pleasant Grove, reported :si the theft of a Redline RL20 Pro Style bicycle. The bike is valued ai M $600. ' - Officer Jeff Wilson investigated, ' Officer Wilson arrested a 35- year-ol- d male on a felony forgery charge. The man is already serving ?f a term at the state prison on other p" convictions. ' Det. Cody Cullimore and Sgt, Mike Blackhurst arrested a ' year --old male for falsely obtaining prescriptions. ;m The new snowfall Monday morning caused a series offender benders in the Pleasant Grove- l Lindon area, according to the Pleasant Grove dispatchers. " None of the accidents were sen- J ous. Snow began to fall at about3 f a.m., according to Dispatcher Sh-erri Atwood. I An accident Sunday at the of 400 E. and 200 South, Lin- el don, caused damage to two w hides. Officer Jay Thornton reported that cars driven by Steven Ruth, Lindon, and Dixie Markham, Orem, collided in the intersection, r There were no injunes. The'( J to the Ruts was $1,500 damage auto and $1,000 damage to tie Markham car. A guide to fun Christmas lights By MARCELLA WALKER One of our family's favorite things to do this time of year is go out and look at Christmas lights. I could do it every evening but time does not allow for that. I feel good if we can get out once or twice. Over the years we have found some of the really lovely and fun places in our area to visit. In Pleasant Grove this includes the Bud Baker home with its ani-- ated displays, the old Fugal home at 400 E. near Grovecreek which is absolutely a thrill, the front win-dow at the Joseph Sorenson home on 1100 North with its picture of the Madonna and child, the Dallen Beck home at 160 N. Main St. with a lighted panorama to thrill old and young alike, as well as the lovely trees and porches and windows of hundreds of homes asyou travel up and down the streets. Some of the businesses this year have done a marvelous job of deco-rating their establishments. We especially noticed the new State Farm office near the Purple Turtle, Huntsman's Country Woods where the old library was, and Bloomers on the west side of Main Street downtown. The new Pleasant Grove City Library also looks ex-tremely festive. A drive around Provo brought a gasp and oohs and aaahs from all of us when we went down Osmond Lane near the Sherwood Hills Racquet Club. Each ofthose gorgeous homes on that lane are decorated in a splen-dor of lights that nearly takes the breath away. PG Blah We always enjoy going to see the Mary Pulley home in American Fork, also. We have not yet been to see some of the lights in Lehi but we under-stand there are some which are glorious. At one spot a star hasbeen placed atop a very tall pine tree and can be seen for a long distance, I have been told. When we made regular trips to Ogden to see the folks, we would always be sure to visit the exten-sive animated display on the grounds of the Ogden City Hall. If you get up that way be sure to not miss it. Everyone loves the decorations and lights at Temple Square in Salt Lake City. That is another one that about takes your breath away. Salt Lake has several other streets who have had special deco-rations for many, many years. A lady called me the other day but would not identify herself. She called herself a concerned citizen. She was disappointed in the city's decorations this year noting that there was nothing on the light poles on Main St. nor any greetings on banners across the roadway. I tried to explain to her that the city council h ad deci ded th at the ol d decorations were too far shot to use anymore. Perhaps the little Santa and his sleigh was still usable that went above the street by Smith Bros. Market for many years. I don't know about that. Most of the rest of them, how-ever, were pretty bad off. So the city council decided to do the lighting around the new liba-rar- y and at each of the city en-trances, south and west. Those spots do look really nice. Gradually more lights will be added to the trees on Main Street so that it will look more Christmasy up and down Main and Center. The council would also like to eventually light the trees in the Downtown Park which would be spectacular. I had occasion to talk to Officer Jay Thornton at an accident a few days ago, and he reported he had been really busy following up on thefts of Christmas lights from outdoor displays at homes in the Blackhawk area. Every year there are many re-ports of stolen lights and other decorations. There have been thefts from the cemetery at this time of year. It doesn't matter if it is a small pine tree that someone has planted in memory of a loved one, a special wreath or decoration for Christ-mas, or what it is. Somehow the true meaning of Christmas is sorely lost when these kind of things happen during Christmas time. But for the most part people are especially generous and kind this time of year. I took a picture of all the thou-sands of cans of food that the Pleas-ant Grove Junior High School stu-dents have collected for the needy this Chrismtas season. It was wonderful. Mr. O'Berry, who kind of got the hall rolling on this project, said that Sometimes people are critical of junior high age kids, yet, look what these young people have accom-plished. He is right. In getting the police report this week I learned that a man named Hugo Martinez from Pleasant Grove had found a wallet contain-ing $99 and had turned it into the police department who was able to find the owner and return the wallet with money intact. Surely Christmas abounds in Pleasant Grove and Lindon with incidents like these taking place. If you could see the toys, cloth-ing, and food that has been donated by area residents for the families that The Review is helping this year, you would be amazed. In fact, so much food was co-llected that all the families that were suggested to the newspaper for help will receive food, not just the families selected from those submitted. This is Christmas the way it really should be. Thank you for your generosity and take a trip out and see the lights. It is worth your while. Only four more shopping days until Christmas. Hurry! mmmmmm . is like eating a Reading a metropolitan newspaper restaurant meal you pick and choose from whats offered. But reading the hometown weekly is like eating a good home-cooke- d meal -- - a fellow doesn't want to miss a thing. . . --Donald Fellows in Saugerties, N.Y., "Catskill Mountain Star i People, Politics & Policy in Pleasant Grove By E. MARK BEZZANT Monday morning's winter snow storm brought more needed mois-ture to the mountains and valleys of Utah, and also insured that this would be a white Christmas for the people here in Pleasant Grove. The storm caught a lot of citizens off guard as weatherpersons had pre-dicted snow would begin Monday afternoon. Street department crews were in high gear trying to clear the miles for road we have in the city limits. Their job is so vital in the preventative sense. The sand, cin-ders, and snow removal really make a difference in reducing the loss of life, property, and injury to human beings. Just one serious accident can cost far more than the total cost of any given snow re- - trnvnl rlnrintr n mainr cfnrm. Police are good to notify the street department when things get bad on the various roads as they are on patrol. Road crews have got to be frustrated trying to dodge all of the cars parked illegally on the city roads. It is a problem that occurs yearly and the best solution is for citizens to cooperate. Now relations are beginning to thaw between the USA and Russia you might be interested in a view from Tooele. Remember Tooele High School is the school our foot-ball team played in the state semi-finals this past fall. I asked one of their football players about that semi-fin- game. His view was about like Russia's view of Amer-ica, or for that matter America's view of Russia. According to this player the tackle made on Henry was an hon- - est mistake, and Tooele's quarter-back felt really badly that Darren got hurt. To them the real tragedy came from the hate mail originat-ing from Pleasant Grove directed at Tooele football team, and com-pany. Apparently a number of people sent some scorching letters Tooele way. In any case it is far better now that the healing process begins. This is a time for peace on earth good will to men. If anything, they should move the state playoffs to a grass field that the boys are used to playingon. There also should be some way to allow students to bring banners, etc. At Rice Stadium almost all of the things that students like in the way of school spirit are banned. There just has to be a better way than the present system. One good improvement is that the activities association has minimized the time students are out of school for state playoffs. That is definitely a posi-tive move. You might have noticed that there is a big flap over Pleasant Grove High being placed in the I ran into a fellow from the Orem area and he just could not understand our concern. He felt that Pleasant Grove could compete with the best of them and often beats the Orem schools which are already 4A. He said that PG gate receipts would be up since we would be playing teams closer to home, and that travel costs would go down. That logic soun ds good ifyou are the wolf trying to coach Red Riding Hood into grandma's house. What my friend forgot to say was the side that Pleasant Grove has been trying to get across to the people in the activities association. Before the thing is over we might need to meet at Camp David. Maybe it will take Orrin Hatch to settle our dif-ferences. What is really important is that we remember when it is all said and done there is so much that unites us-f- ar, far more than divides us. There is far too much hurting and killing in the world. We must rise above it proclaiminggoodwill to all, and peace on earth. There is so much room for understanding all points of view, even those from Tooele and Orem. Merry Christmas to all, and to all a joyous and happy holiday season, even if you do get a lump of coal. U.S.P.S.N0.4357 by Ne1 and Christmas 11 South M UUbW P.e.s.n. Grove, Advertising iCircula" Publisher MarcH Editors Marcel! Subscription P"ce' e paid Second class p |