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P E N I N S U L A
TUESDAY, APRIL 15, 2014 Soldotna-Kenai, Alaska
Vol. 44, Issue 167
Question Do you agree with the school district’s decision to reinstate funding for the Skyview pool? n Yes; or n No. To place your vote and comment, visit our Web site at www. peninsulaclarion. com. Results and selected comments will be posted each Tuesday in the Clarion, and a new question will be asked. Suggested questions may be submitted online or e-mailed to news@peninsulaclarion.com.
50 cents newsstands daily/$1.00 Sunday
Time for construction season State DOT, area public works departments gear up for summer projects By DAN BALMER Peninsula Clarion
Several road construction projects on the Kenai Peninsula are planned for this summer, as are city road improvements in Soldotna and Kenai, while other projects are still a few years down the road. Jill Reese, public information officer for the Alaska Department of Transportation central region, said pavement preservation has begun on sections of the Sterling and Seward highways and
rehabilitation construction is scheduled to begin on East End Road in Homer this summer. DOT will accept bids this month for pavement preservation from milepost 173 to 179 on the Sterling Highway near Ninilchick with work set to begin in June, she said. On the Seward Highway, four separate pavement projects are slated to begin this summer between Mile 54.5 to 75 near Turnagain Arm. Reese said work on two stretches of East End Road outside of Homer is
scheduled to begin this summer to address safety concerns on the narrow road. Crews will widen the road shoulders and add a separate multi-use pathway from Kachemak Drive to Waterman Road (milepost 3.75 to 5.16). After securing rights-of-way with property owners for the past three years, DOT awarded a bid last December for the remainder of East End Road to McNeil Canyon, which will undergo a pave and shave, in which dips and bumps will be smoothed over to improve sight dis-
tance, she said. The estimated completion date for both phases is the end of October. “Traffic will always be impacted by road construction, but we rarely ever totally close the roads,” she said. “We always provide a way around. We work on roads in most need of improvement first.” Plans to expand the Sterling Highway from Sterling to Soldotna and the Kenai Spur Highway from Soldotna to
Tire expert takes stand in murder trial
In the news Alaska Legislature passes abortion funding bill
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JUNEAU (AP) — The Alaska Legislature has passed a bill further defining what constitutes a medically necessary abortion for purposes of Medicaid funding. The Senate on a 13-7 vote Monday agreed to the House version of the bill that removed language calling for expanded family planning services. That language was added in the Senate last year. Supporters of the provision said greater access to services would reduce unplanned pregnancies and abortions. The bill’s sponsor, Sen. John Coghill, said the state already provides women’s health and family planning services. The House passed the bill 23-17 on Sunday. SB49 supporters say the state shouldn’t have to pay for elective abortions. Critics say the bill raises constitutional questions. The bill is similar to regulations adopted by the state health commissioner that are being challenged in court.
Inside ‘I can’t count the number of people that died. They took them in open vehicles. People were running and there was confusion.’ ... See page A-5
Index Opinion.................. A-4 Nation/World.......... A-5 Sports.....................A-7 Classifieds............. A-9 Comics................. A-12 Pet Tails............... A-13 Check us out online at www.peninsulaclarion.com To subscribe, call 283-3584.
See ROADS, page A-6
By DAN JOLING Associated Press
Clarion file photo
The Arctic Sun takes on a load of liquified natural gas bound for Japan in 1998. The shipment was ConocoPhillip’s 1,000th to leave the Nikiski dock. On Monday, the company announced plans to resume shipments of LNG from its Nikiski facility.
LNG exports to resume ConocoPhillips to restart operations at Nikiski facility By TIM BRADNER Morris News Service-Alaska Alaska Journal of Commerce
ConocoPhillips is restarting its liquefied natural gas plant on the Kenai Peninsula and will resume shipments of LNG in May, the company announced Monday. Five shipments are planned this year, ConocoPhillips spokeswoman Amy Burnett said. The announcement came as the U.S. Department of Energy issued its approval of exports, also on Monday. DOE authorized the shipment of 40 billion cubic feet of gas over two years. “This is great news for the cradle of
Alaska’s oil and gas industry on the Kenai Peninsula,” said Alaska U.S. Sen. Mark Begich, who worked with the DOE on the approval. “With plenty of gas available to meet local needs through at least 2018, we’re seeing the kind of job growth responsible oil and gas development can provide.” The federal agency had agreed earlier that ConocoPhillips could export to nations that are in Free Trade Agreements with the U.S., such as South Korea. Exports to those nations are approved by DOE with a streamlined process. The April 14 approval by DOE, however, extended that to countries who are not in free trade agreements, such as Ja-
pan. ConocoPhillips has mainly exported LNG to Japan in the past although there have been shipments to Korea. Begich had pushed the DOE to process the ConocoPhillips application to ship to non-Free Trade Agreement countries outside the queue DOE has set up for nonFTA LNG export projects. “DOE has approved only six applications from Lower 48 projects in that queue since 2012, and at least 24 applications remain in the queue,” Begich said in a statement. Except for Alaska’s project, LNG export proposals seeking DOE approval are all Lower 48 plants. Those have sparked See EXPORT, page A-6
ANCHORAGE — The nail found in the truck tire of the man charged with killing two co-workers at a Kodiak Coast Guard facility likely was inserted mechanically, not picked up along a roadway, a tire expert said Monday. The weathered nail, about 3.5 inches long and bent 7 degrees, was perpendicular to the tire tread, Gary Bolden testified. The head of the nail showed no abrasions that would have indicated it had been driven on asphalt or gravel, Bolden said. “My conclusion was that it was inserted manually,” Bolden said. Federal prosecutors put Bolden on the stand to poke holes in the alibi of James Wells, 62, who’s charged with murder in the shooting deaths of Richard Belisle, 51, a fellow electronics technician, and Petty Officer First Class James Hopkins, 41, on April 12, 2012. See TRIAL, page A-6
Former CES captain, wife face charges By RASHAH McCHESNEY Peninsula Clarion
A Soldotna couple is facing multiple felonies after more than $8,200 was stolen from two organizations with ties to Central Emergency Services. Bank account records show the money was spent on multiple Amazon.com purchases and a trip to Disney Land, in addition to utility payments made to the Homer Electric Association and ENSTAR, according to court documents. The thefts occurred from 2011-2013, according to the documents. Former Central Emergency Services Captain Jack D. Anderson, of Soldotna, faces two class C felonies, punishable by up to $50,000 in fines and up to five years in jail per charge and one class B felony, punishable by up to $100,000 in fines and up to 10 years in jail. His wife, Angela J. Ander-
son is being charged with the same three felonies, theft II, fraudulent use of an acJack Anderson cess device and scheme to defraud. The charges come after nearly a year of investigation when two Central Emergency Services employees, John Evans and Josh Osborn asked for investigation into money missing from a non-profit fraternal organization they belonged to with Anderson, according to charging documents. The organization, Great Fools of Fire, a local chapter of the national Fraternal Order of Leatherhead Society, or FOOLS, had been defunct since 2009 and when efforts to resurrect the organization began, members were unable to
Family seeks answers after death of inmate By RACHEL D’ORO Associated Press
ANCHORAGE — A California parolee who recently was found dead in his Alaska jail cell continued to be held in custody even though his case had been dismissed more than a week earlier. The Alaska fugitive case against Davon Mosley of Bakersfield, Calif., was dropped March 27 after California authorities declined extradition even though a regional parole administrator said his office there recommended his return to that state. Mosley, 20, died April 4. He was arrested in Anchorage March 16 on a fugitive warrant from California. Alaska Department of Corrections spokeswoman Kaci
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Schroeder declined to comment, saying the death and custody issue are under investigation. “We understand the desire for answers, however, until all of the investigations are complete we can’t say much,” Schroeder said in an email Monday. Alaska State Troopers said public safety officials were notified in writing by the California Department of Corrections that the state did not want to seek extradition. Alaska officials in turn notified prosecutors, who sent copies of the case dismissal to state authorities, including corrections officials. Mosley’s fiancee, Vernesia Gordon, said officials kept her from visiting Mosley after March 23, telling her he
could not have visitors when she showed up at the correctional facility. Mosley, who was schizophrenic and bipolar, told her during earlier visits that he wasn’t allowed to take his medications for those conditions, according to Gordon, who is pregnant with her third child with Mosley. The couple had planned to marry in May. Gordon and other family members have hired a lawyer to investigate. “I really can’t just let this go without knowing what happened, without getting justice,” Gordon said. “I have to answer to my kids in the long run.” Mosley previously served 14 months in California after attacking two of Gordon’s See DEATH, page A-6