Senate Bills and Such

Senate Bill 500 has been a hot topic in the state, and already I’ve written three stories on it in my new job. It deals with parole and release from prison, and what supports the state should provide to people getting released.

SB 500 has exploded in recent weeks because of some of the people it will affect. One of them is a registered sex offender who was out on parole when he assaulted a 16 year old girl.

It’s an interesting discussion, particularly because when the words “sexual predator” come up emotions trump reason. I’ve been told privately by several people they’d like to see sex offenders thrown in jail for life, killed or sterilized. That’s a far cry from an early release with state support to reintroduce them into society.

I’m still looking for facts on this, not just figures, but the discussion really comes down to whether sex offenders are fundamentally different than other criminals, and if their rights under the law are therefore different. What should happen when a sex offender reaches the end of their sentence?

According to the state attorney general’s office, the research shows that criminals are most likely to re-offend in the first eight months after their release from prison. By that rational, it makes sense to give former inmates supports for that period. Now, that research doesn’t deal with sex offenders specifically, so in the Conway case that is still up for debate, but otherwise it seems a win for both those convicted and society as a whole: individuals get supports that keep them from re-offending, and society experiences fewer crimes.

But this breaks down about where victims enter the equation. For some people prison is about rehabilitation, but for others it’s about retribution. Some people are bound to look at nine months of freedom as nine months those people don’t deserve. And they aren’t wrong.

And, when it comes to sex offenders, those emotions are understandable even if you don’t agree.

But how should it be enshrined by the law? SB500 has two parts that trouble people: the 90 day limit on parole violations, and the nine month early release program with monitoring. The monitoring structure hasn’t been set up yet, and victims don’t want to see a violator going to prison for 90 days if they have committed a crime.

There seems to be a solution for both: set up the monitoring program, and differentiate between parole violations and criminal acts. The monitoring program will cost money in the short term, but over the long term it will save corrections dollars and provide benefits to both convicts and society. That makes sense, even if it costs now. And tweak the law so if a parole violation is as a result of a criminal act the 90 day limit does not apply. That would give victim’s families confidence they won’t be subjected to repeated run-ins with offenders every six months, but it sets up the guidelines to govern parole violations that SB500 was enacted to address.

But in an election year, where this has become debate for the partisans, discussion is hard to come by. I’ll be interested to see where this goes, and whether people backpedal from what is essentially a good law.

And no one disagrees on that. Even the law’s most ardent critic, who’s daughter was targeted by a registered sex offender, thinks the law has value. He is concerned about specifics, however, and rightly so. But it seems the debate over the law has been fueled by an imprecise reading (and imprecise characterizations in the media). There are several measures to roll it back that will go before the house and the senate this week. It will be interesting to see where they go, and to see how the debate evolves over time.

First Week

What a week! My first week is over, and it was great.

Granted, some of the stories I covered weren’t all that uplifting, but several others were important discussions about the direction the state should go. I’ll have an interesting piece in Tuesday’s paper about what impact Senate Bill 500 has on the state (it’s not what you think.)

And the daily deadline, the daily pressure, is great. It motivates me and pushes me in ways I need. The office environment is great as well, with interesting discussions and perspectives that push my reporting.

I also get to cover a lot of the hard news. Whether it’s accidents or legislation, it lands on my desk. That’s how I prefer it.

And I’ve got the time and the resources to do more verification than I ever had before. The office helps out so much in that respect, because it’s a place where people can count on reaching me.

I am looking forward to when a few of my freelance projects settle down, so I can get caught up and stop running around like crazy. In time, I guess.

Most importantly, however, I resubmitted my Iraq application with new dates (I didn’t realize I wouldn’t hear until rather late in the game, and so I held off on buying tickets.) And I bought a plane ticket to Kuwait. I found out I can rent bulletproof gear, so I won’t have to spend $2,000 on equipment. It’s a January journey that should be both challenging and exhilarating. I am looking forward to doing justice to the stories of the troops so far from home, in the conflict that is now second priority.

So things are taking off, and I’ll have no rest until February.

First Day

I wrote about a pedestrian who got hit by a truck and a man who drowned int he Swift River yesterday. Not exactly a slow start to the new job.

But I have a desk, and other people to talk to, and an office with a kitchen. The little luxuries…

But again, as the Fraser mill nears the deadline, I can’t help but to be drawn north. The experience and proficiency I’ll gain by working at a daily are important, but I don’t want to lose sight of other long-term projects. I’m trying to pitch a larger, more nationally focused version of my NHPR story it I can, hopefully to air before the mill closes.

By the way, if you missed my NHPR piece, you can listen to it here.

And check out my new paper, the Conway Daily Sun.

More NHPR

Well, that was encouraging.

After feeling like I was juggling a bit more than I could handle, today I dropped and came out fine.

In the crazy week that was I thought the Lumberjack Festival was today. So I went up there to take pictures as my last act for the paper, and also to interview people for my NHPR story on the Fraser mill.

Well, the festival is tomorrow. And I couldn’t just wait around: my editor needed the piece tonight because he was heading out of town.

So I hit up Cascade Flats, the borough where the mill sits, to talk to residents about what their reactions were to the closing of the mill.

What I got was gold. It didn’t have the kitschy sound the Lumberjack Festival would have, but it was authentic. Two of the people I talked to worked at the mill, and both had been laid off. For one it was recent, 30 months ago, and for the other it was 30 years ago.

Those two voices mixed with those of business owners, selectmen, city councilors and the governor to weave a great story about what people fear will come. It isn’t Shakespeare, but it is by far the best radio piece I’ve done. It’s nice when you feel like you trip, and you wind up doing a somersault and landing on your feet.

I think it’ll be on Monday morning, but I’ll put up more information as I know.

Short weekend though—I’ve still got two videos to finish, as well as my last stories for the Berlin Reporter. That’s OK, after such a success it’ll be a quick ride home.

Crazy

When things get busy, they get crazy.

It’s my last official day at the Reporter (I’ve still got stories to write, but those I’ll finish over the weekend), and I’m running around like mad. When something like this mill story happens it’s impossible to get too deep. New Hampshire Governor John Lynch was there today to talk to the workers, to reassure them the state was doing what it could.

I was trying to take notes, pictures, audio and video. What a way to roll.

The daily deadline (like the one I had for NHPR today) will be a new experience for me, something I’m anxious to tackle. I already received a tip for a story in my new coverage area, and I haven’t even started yet. And I’ve got freelance projects for several clients, all of which are about to come due.

So I’m sitting at WMCC with a video camera, minidisc recorder, point and shoot and laptop, trying to make sure I cover every one of my bases. It’s been an exciting day, and it’s still not over. I’ve got another interview in a couple hours. It’s already 5 p.m. on Friday night.

But that’s the way it goes, and I wouldn’t change anything. I am hoping over time I’ll get better at this, so juggling the different aspects doesn’t create a disaster. I didn’t get as much audio as I would have liked from Gov. Lynch because I didn’t have the right microphone, and when I did get close enough to him to record my minidisc went dead. I was able to fix it, but by the time I did he was done speaking. Luckily I got an interview afterward, but it wasn’t the gems I lost from earlier. It seems like I’m juggling too many balls right now, but with practice it’ll get better (I hope).

Regardless, even more interesting than Gov. Lynch’s statements were the comments I got from workers. That’s what really matters. They are who are really going to be hit. It is their story that needs to be told. And I got that. I’ve got an NHPR story lined up for next week about them, the ones who really deserve to be heard. That’s the story I don’t want to drop, no matter how crazy it gets.

Political Impact

Gov. John Lynch will be in Gorham today to speak to workers about the mill shutdown. I’ll be there for the Reporter, but I’m also going to grab some tape of it for NHPR, and maybe even shoot some video of it for myself. I am interested to hear what it is he can do. The reaction to the Reporter’s facebook page report that he was coming up was exactly that: what is he going to do about it? That’s a fair question, because at this point it seems far-fetched that something is going to come through. But we’ll see.

I’m also scheduled to speak to a Gorham selectman and Berlin’s mayor, and I’ll take the opportunity to talk to as many mill workers as possible. It’s going to be a busy day, but at least it’s raining.

On a completely different note…

Here’s the start of the project I’ve been working on for NCIC and the New Hampshire Grand Initiative:


This is the first of many, and there are more already on deck in my computer. I’m going to be spending the next 10 months (at least, I hope) publishing and publicizing the adventure opportunities Northern New Hampshire has to offer through photos and videos. Hopefully through getting the word out there people will start to realize what an asset the region is.

And besides, who wouldn’t want to run around Coös County checking out adventure opportunities and shooting video. If only I could get it to be full time…

Just kidding, I don’t want to give up reporting, but this is a great side project for a great cause. And honestly, the job change makes me a little more confident I won’t run into conflicts of interest. I ran into one this week involving PSNH (they gave me a scholarship for a leadership program I’m doing at WMCC), and while disclosing the conflict is good enough I prefer complete separation.

Anyway, let me know if you enjoy the video. I always said the region needs to market itself better. Now I’m doing just that. Look for more of these in the coming months.

(Fhe final version should be on the NCIC Facebook page shortly, with some minor edits and additions.)

What’s Next for Cascade

Funny how things work. The week after I give my notice at the Reporter the biggest story since I’ve been in Berlin breaks, and I’m watching it as I sail away.

The deal to sell the Cascade mill fell through, according to Fraser, meaning 237 employees will almost certainly be laid off in the coming weeks. The paper mill isn’t the largest employer in the city, but many of these people have no other skills. If this mill stays closed it could add significant hardship to the region.

I was on NHPR today talking about it, giving some of the details about the events leading up to the closure. I’ve been trying to prepare for this possibility all week, including interviewing a historian on the paper industry just today to get a little more background. Tomorrow I may be on the Exchange on NHPR again talking about the closure.

It’s a little strange to be answering questions as I walk away from my full time job up there, but again I won’t be leaving the area. This event is important not to let go, not to ignore, because it is both a huge shift for Berlin/Gorham and the whole Androscoggin Valley and indicative of the struggles of industrial communities around the country. I’m going to be squeezing more into less time, but my telling the story of the North Country is far from over.

A Short Look North

Several councilors and staff members congratulated me on my new job last night at the council meeting. The discussions threw into sharp relief why the transition was a difficult decision.

Berlin has been good to me. My bosses at the Reporter allowed me to chase whatever stories I wanted, and city staff, politicians, business owners and residents always welcomed me into their lives and opened up about stories, issues and events. I’ve been out on my own, but in a community, not just a city.

So why go? Because the Reporter’s resources are limited, and being a one man show in a city of 10,000 is a tough job. Many times I felt outmatched, if for no other reason than because I was alone. To get the resources to handle such a challenge I need to be the least experienced reporter in a newsroom for a while, not the only reporter in a newsroom on wheels.

But I don’t want to give up my connection to the North Country. I’m already digging into some bigger projects with more long-term objectives than a daily or even weekly newspaper. Things are changing in Berlin, some for the good, others for bad. I don’t intend to lose track of that.

I want to tell stories better; that’s what this next move is all about. I want to see how the daily deadline works for me, how the pressure to generate content in hours, not days, affects my work. But I don’t intend to reduce the other projects I’m working on, the larger pieces that fill out the flesh of daily reporting. They tell a side I haven’t been able to get into so far, but it is lining up for the future.

I won’t have the time I had at the Reporter, I won’t have the same flexibility, but a close friend of mine told me she works better under pressure than when she has the time to put things off. I think that’s a universal: when forced to perform, we do. Daily deadlines are one version of that paradigm, as are my non-print projects. I may have to squeeze them in, but in doing so I may just do them more, do them better.

But I will miss the daily connection with the North Country, and I will lament having to “squeeze them in.” But if the outcome is better storytelling, better reporting and a more impactful version of history, the sacrifice is worth it. I may miss the North Country, but it I can tell its story better it’s a change worth making.