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W of 1 inner Awa0* 201 Exc rds fo 8 e r Rep llence i o n rt * Ala ska P i n g ! res
P E N I N S U L A
Vol. 50, Issue 38
Thursday, November 14, 2019 • Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
Hazardous
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$1 newsstands daily/$1.50 Sunday
Board shoots down proposed brewery regulations By Victoria Petersen Peninsula Clarion
Breweries on the Kenai Peninsula are free to host fundraisers and other events after the state’s Alcoholic Beverage Control Board decided to not further define current regulation. Under current state statute, local breweries and distilleries with manufacturing licenses are barred from allowing on-site live entertainment, TVs, pool tables, darts, dancing, video games, game table
In the news
Winter storm warning issued Kenai peninsula residents should prepare for hazardous weather conditions on Thursday, according to a winter storm warning from the National Weather Service. The warning is in effect for the western Kenai Peninsula, including Kenai, Soldotna, Homer and Cooper Landing. Residents should expect freezing rain, snow and sleet. Total ice accumulation is expected to reach up to 3/10 of an inch, and snow accumulation is expected up to 1 inch. Residents should expect hazardous travel conditions, and freezing rain may turn into snow or sleet at times, according to the warning. For the latest road conditions, call 511 or visit 511.alaska.gov. The warning will remain in effect until 1 p.m. Thursday.
Second suspect arrested in man’s death ANCHORAGE — A second man is in custody in connection with an Anchorage homicide. Police have arrested 2 3 - ye a r- o l d E l i ja h Ramirez on suspicion of first-degree murder and kidnapping in the death of 48-year-old Oscar Garcia. Another man, 27-yearold Rhadames Marmolejos Jr., is charged with first-degree murder in the case. Online court documents do not list attorneys for Ramirez and Marmolejos. Garcia was found dead Nov. 3 in a car parked on Merrill Drive in west Anchorage. Police said Garcia had suffered
or “other recreational or gaming opportunities.” The proposed clarification — voted down Tuesday — would have defined “entertainment” and “other recreational opportunities” to include festivals, games and competitions, classes, public parties, presentations or performances and other types of organized social gatherings that are advertised to the general public, according to a July 9 memo from the then-director of the state Alcohol and Marijuana Control Office
Inside ■■ Top state marijuana regulator fired. Page A2 Erika McConnell. Doug Hogue, owner of Kenai River Brewing Company, said he was pleased to see the board reject the proposal to clarify the definitions. “We’re super happy the board decided to not go with the changes,” Hogue said. “Obviously it would have been devastating for all the
breweries in Alaska if (that clarification) went through.” The proposed regulations wouldn’t have allowed for Kenai River Brewing Company to host their August Brewery to Bathroom 0.5K run, benefiting Relay for Life and the American Cancer Society, or special events such as the recent beer-pairing dinner. Hogue said the next hurdle for breweries is to urge the Legislature to pass SB 52, which is sponsored by Sen. Peter Micciche, R-Kenai/ Soldotna.
The bill, which could be addressed in the next session in January, modernizes statute governing the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, a sponsor statement from Micciche’s office says. “The bill allows the board to function more efficiently as they regulate the alcohol industry in a manner that promotes public safety and health, while supporting the alcohol industry’s continued growth and viability in today’s current climate,” the sponsor statement said.
Bush doctors take their place in history Evidence
argued ahead of murder trial By Megan Pacer Homer News
Troopers issued a Silver Alert four weeks ago for Murnane. Anyone with information on her whereabouts can call Homer Police at 907-2353150 or the Silver Alert hotline at 855-SILVR99 or 855-745-8799. A Silver Alert is for an adult considered a vulnerable person. Anonymous tips can be given to Crimestoppers by calling 907-283-8477. Before the search and canvass, Ed Berg, Murnane’s stepfather, briefed the volunteers and handed out maps of the area to be canvassed. The family has been working with psychics who have suggested things associated with Murnane’s disappearance. Berg said the psychics believe Murnane is with other people and is safe. Berg asked people to look for things like a compound of four or
The beginning of a jury trial for a Homer man accused of murder hinges on an argument over what evidence can be admitted into that trial. The state and the defense for Lee John Henry, 58, argued Tuesday in an evidentiary hearing over DNA testing results and whether they should be allowed to be considered by a jury. Kenai Superior Court Judge Lance Joanis heard their arguments and ruled on the issue Wednesday afternoon. Discussion on a second, separate disagreement over the DNA testing also took place on Wednesday, and Joanis was set to announce a decision Thursday morning. In order to hash out the evidence arguments, calling in the jury for the trial has been delayed. Henry is accused of killing Mark Matthews, who at 61-years-old was found dead in 2013 on the trail that connects to Poopdeck Street. Police found Matthews with Mark Namey his pockets turned out Matthews name and a later autopsy determined that he died of blunt force trauma to the head. The case went unsolved for three years until Homer police arrested Henry in 2016, and he was indicted on one count of first-degree murder, three counts of second-degree murder, one count of manslaughter and one count of first-degree murder. DNA was found in one of Matthews’ pockets, and the results from testing done on it was at the crux of the argument between Public Defender Joy Hobart and Kenai District Attorney Scot Leaders on Tuesday. There were two separate tests done on the DNA sampling, using two different test kits at two different times and using different standards and methods for analyzing. The first of two issues was whether to include the results from
See search, Page A3
See trial, Page A14
Brian Mazurek / Peninsula Clarion
From left, Dr. Peter Hansen, Arnie Sullenger, Darrell Hamby, Tim McGahan and Andrew Conwell stand in front of the new Kenai Bush Doctor’s Historic Cabin on Wednesday. The cabin, which was installed Wednesday outside the Kenai Visitor and Cultural Center museum, honors the work of Alaska’s Bush doctors. The project is being spearheaded by Hansen, who moved to Kenai in 1957. The cabin was constructed in Nikiski by Sullenger, and Hansen will be donating his historical medical equipment for display inside the cabin.
Search still on for missing woman By Michael Armstrong Homer News
Friends, family and police have kept up the search for Anesha “Duffy” Murnane, the Homer women who went missing from downtown Homer on Oct. 17. About 50 people gathered in the Homestead Restaurant parking lot on Sunday to canvass the East End Road area past Fritz Creek. Volunteers drove down gravel roads in one of the more remote areas of the greater Homer area. Murnane, 38, disappeared after leaving her Main Street apartment for an appointment at the SVT Health & Wellness clinic on East End Road. The last confirmed sighting is a security camera photo showing her leaving the Maintree Apartments, a supported housing complex. Murnane had a 1 p.m.
appointment at SVT Health and Wellness Center, about a 1-mile walk from her home. She did not show up for that appointment. A caretaker at the complex reported Murnane missing about 10 a.m. Oct. 19. Homer Police Lt. Ryan Browning said staff at the complex check on residents periodically, and interact with them daily or several times a day to give them any medications they might be on. He did not know why it took two days to report her missing, he said. “I think it was ‘We haven’t seen her in a while’ and they called,” Browning said. On Monday, a 17-year-old Nikiski woman reported missing on Nov. 9 was located safely. Alaska State Trooper spokesperson Ken Marsh said Heather “Heidi” Swearingen was found and confirmed safe. Homer Police and Alaska State
See news, Page A3
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Diplomats share ‘investigations’ concerns By Lisa Mascaro and Mary Clare Jalonick Associated Press
WASHINGTON — For the first time, the Democrats’ case for President Donald Trump’s impeachment streamed from Americans’ TVs Wednesday, including a new contention that he was overheard asking about political “investigations” that he demanded from Ukraine in trade for military aid. On Day One of extraordinary public
U.S. House hearings — only the fourth formal impeachment effort in U.S. history — career diplomats testified in the open after weeks of closeddoor interviews aimed at removing the nation’s 45th president. The account they delivered was a striking though complicated one that Democrats say reveals a president abusing his office, and the power of American foreign policy, for personal political gain. “The matter is as simple and as terrible as that,” said Rep. Adam Schiff,
the Democratic chairman of the Intelligence Committee, as he opened the daylong hearing. “Our answer to these questions will affect not only the future of this presidency but the future of the presidency itself.” Career diplomat William Taylor, the charge d’affaires in Kyiv, offered new testimony that Trump was overheard asking on the phone about “the investigations” of Democrats that he wanted Ukraine to pursue that are central to the impeachment inquiry. Trump said he was too busy to
watch on Wednesday and denied having the phone call. “First I’ve heard of it,” he said when asked. All day, the diplomats testified about how an ambassador was fired, the new Ukraine government was confused and they discovered an “irregular channel” — a shadow U.S. foreign policy orchestrated by the president’s personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, that raised alarms in diplomatic and national security circles. See impeach, Page A14