Broadcast personality Sam Topp will be guest speaker at the Rotary Club of St. Thomas II at Marriott's Frenchman's Reef Beach Resort.

Oct. 26, 2002 – The public is advised that the Paternity and Child Support Offices will be closed for in-service training from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 28, at the St. Thomas Office.

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Oct. 26, 2002 – Police on Saturday identified a taxi driver who was fatally shot Friday night in Christiansted as Emmanuel Lee, 58, a native of Trinidad. His death was the fourth homicide on St. Croix this month.
Police Lt. Gregory Bennerson, chief of investigation, said Lee was pronounced dead at the scene. He had been shot once in the torso.
The victim's body was found in the taxi van he was driving after it veered off the road on King Street and crashed into a building. Investigators say they believe Lee may have been the victim of an armed robbery. Three people were reportedly seen emerging from the van and running away after it crashed.
Police brought three people in for questioning later Friday night, "but they were subsequently released," Bennerson said.
The killing occurred two days after the last fatal shooting on St. Croix, of Ricky Maxwell, 24, who was found shot several times in a storage room at the Paradise Mills housing community. He died Wednesday night at Juan Luis Hospital.
Lee's death is the 19th homicide on St. Croix this year and the 37th in the territory. The figures through Oct. 25 for the previous three years were:
2001 – St. Croix, 10; Virgin Islands 20.
2000 – St. Croix, 6; Virgin Islands 14.
1999 – St. Croix 7, Virgin Islands 18.
Bennerson said he thinks the climbing statistics may be related to a growing reluctance on the part of the public to help police solve crimes and take violent offenders off the street.
"There is a definite communications gap between the Police Department and the community that has to be closed," he said. "We do have to recognize that we have a very serious problem with drug-related crime, and people have a fear because of the violent nature of the crime," he added.
Nonetheless, the public is being asked to help authorities with the investigation into the slaying of Emmanuel Lee by calling police at 778-2211 or emergency number 911.

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Oct. 26, 2002 – The Baha'i Community of the Virgin Islands invites the public to a prayer breakfast Sunday at 10 a.m. at the Frederiksted Baha'i Center at 22A Smithfield. Call 772-3827 for directions.
On the 40th anniversary of United Nations Day, established Oct. 24, 1945, the Baha'i faith's governing body, the Universal House of Justice, issued a statement titled "The Promise of World Peace." To acknowledge the most recent UN Day, the Baha'i community shared an excerpt from the 1985 document, which begins:
"To the Peoples of the World: The Great Peace towards which people of goodwill throughout the centuries have inclined their hearts, of which seers and poets for countless generations have expressed their vision, and for which from age to age the sacred scriptures of mankind have constantly held the promise, is now at long last within the reach of the nations. For the first time in history it is possible for everyone to view the entire planet, with all its myriad diversified peoples, in one perspective. World Peace is not only possible, but inevitable. It is the next stage in the evolution of this planet and in the words of one great thinker; it is 'the planetization of mankind.'"
The Baha'i community believes that humanity can achieve this promise of world peace and endorses the formation and efforts of the United Nations. For more information on "The Promise of World Peace" and Baha'i activities towards achieving this goal in communities throughout the world, please visit the Web site http://www.vi.bahai.org or e-mail info@vi.bahai.org.

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Oct. 26, 2002 – The Baha'i Community of the Virgin Islands invites the public to devotional meetings at 10 a.m. Sunday on St. Thomas at the Baha'i National Center at 129 Contant; call 776-5852 for directions. On Wednesday, an evening devotional meeting will be held on St. John; call 776-6254 for information.
On the 40th anniversary of United Nations Day, established Oct. 24, 1945, the Baha'i faith's governing body, the Universal House of Justice, issued a statement titled "The Promise of World Peace." To acknowledge the most recent UN Day, the Baha'i community shared an excerpt from the 1985 document, which begins:
"To the Peoples of the World: The Great Peace towards which people of goodwill throughout the centuries have inclined their hearts, of which seers and poets for countless generations have expressed their vision, and for which from age to age the sacred scriptures of mankind have constantly held the promise, is now at long last within the reach of the nations. For the first time in history it is possible for everyone to view the entire planet, with all its myriad diversified peoples, in one perspective. World Peace is not only possible, but inevitable. It is the next stage in the evolution of this planet and in the words of one great thinker; it is 'the planetization of mankind.'"
The Baha'i community believes that humanity can achieve this promise of world peace and endorses the formation and efforts of the United Nations. For more information on "The Promise of World Peace" and Baha'i activities towards achieving this goal in communities throughout the world, please visit the Web site http://www.vi.bahai.org or e-mail info@vi.bahai.org.

Publisher's note : Like the St. John Source now? Find out how you can love us twice as much — and show your support for the islands' free and independent news voice … click here.

Oct. 26, 2002 – The Baha'i Community of the Virgin Islands invites the public to devotional meetings at 10 a.m. Sunday on St. Thomas at the Baha'i National Center at 129 Contant; call 776-5852 for directions. On Wednesday, an evening devotional meeting will be held on St. John; call 776-6254 for information.
On the 40th anniversary of United Nations Day, established Oct. 24, 1945, the Baha'i faith's governing body, the Universal House of Justice, issued a statement titled "The Promise of World Peace." To acknowledge the most recent UN Day, the Baha'i community shared an excerpt from the 1985 document, which begins:
"To the Peoples of the World: The Great Peace towards which people of goodwill throughout the centuries have inclined their hearts, of which seers and poets for countless generations have expressed their vision, and for which from age to age the sacred scriptures of mankind have constantly held the promise, is now at long last within the reach of the nations. For the first time in history it is possible for everyone to view the entire planet, with all its myriad diversified peoples, in one perspective. World Peace is not only possible, but inevitable. It is the next stage in the evolution of this planet and in the words of one great thinker; it is 'the planetization of mankind.'"
The Baha'i community believes that humanity can achieve this promise of world peace and endorses the formation and efforts of the United Nations. For more information on "The Promise of World Peace" and Baha'i activities towards achieving this goal in communities throughout the world, please visit the Web site http://www.vi.bahai.org or e-mail info@vi.bahai.org.

Publisher's note : Like the St. Thomas Source now? Find out how you can love us twice as much — and show your support for the islands' free and independent news voice … click here.

(1) STX
(1) Territory
Date of death: Jan. 24
Kirby Charles, 25, died at about 2 p.m. after being shot in the chest by an unnamed off-duty police officer after the two fought outside the officer’s home in Campo Rico. The officer was placed on administrative leave.
(1) STT
(2) Territory
Date of death: Feb. 5
Ignatius Charles was killed at night as he was dropping his girlfriend off in Estate Nazareth. Speculation was running high that either the girl’s ex-boyfriend or a man who had been stalking her opened fire on Charles.
(2) STT
(3) Territory
Date of death: Feb. 8
Darien Gumbs, 23, was found with several gunshot wounds to his body in a house on Lower Kronprindsens Gade that had been riddled with gunfire.
(3) STT
(4) Territory
Date of death: Feb. 8
Julien Kline, 18, died from a gunshot wound to the chest inside a house in Hospital Ground.
(2) STX
(5) Territory
Date of death: Feb. 9
Ray Seeles, 47, was shot and killed by an unknown assailant. Seeles was shot in the upper body at the FNA Service Station across from Sunny Isle Shopping Center. He was pronounced dead at about 3 a.m. at Juan F. Luis Hospital.
(3) STX
(6) Territory
Date of death: Feb. 18
Donald Lewis, 31, was fatally shot in the forehead when two individuals sprayed a group of people with gunfire, also injuring another man. Lewis was sitting outside a Harborview Apartments building playing video games at about 10:30 p.m. when the shots were fired in what police said may have been an attempted robbery. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
(4) STT
(7) Territory
Date of death: March 11
Clayton Laurent, 39, a native of Dominica, was stabbed to death at his home on St. Thomas’s East End.
(5) STT
(8) Territory
Date of death: March 16
Susana Sanchez, 42, was found lying in a pool of blood inside the Merengue Bar on Lower Kronprindsens Gade. She had been stabbed multiple times, police said. Roberto "Cuquie" Medina, also 42, was taken into custody and charged with murder in the death.
(6) STT
(9) Territory
Date of death: March 25
Franciso "Frank" Donato, 23, was killed when a gunman opened fire on a crowded corner near Rothschild Francis "Market" Square. Police did not publicly identify Donato until eight days after the killing.
(4) STX
(10) Territory
Date of death: March 30
Delroy Henry, 39, was shot to death near the intersection of Hill and Market Streets in downtown Christiansted shortly before 2 a.m. He suffered several gunshots to the body. Police had no suspects, nor any motive for the killing.
(7) STT
(11) Territory
Date of death: Jan. 18.
Body found: April 19
Ianthe Thomas, 51, was killed by a single gunshot wound to her head. Her body was found buried in a shallow grave on her own property. Her live-in boyfriend, Raphael "Nolo" Rivera, 36, a security guard, was arrested.
(5) STX
(12) Territory
Date of death: April 26
Terrance "Bouncer" Heywood, 31, was shot at about 1:30 p.m. by an unidentified police officer. Heywood had been bathing nude at Dorsch Beach when he was confronted by the officer and a scuffle ensued. Police said the officer would not be identified while the investigation was ongoing.
(8) STT
(13) Territory
Date of death: April 28
Alliston Francis Jr., 17, was repeatedly stabbed in the neck during a fight with another young man near the Carnival Children’s Village late on the night of April 27 and died later at Roy L. Schneider Hospital. Homicide detectives arrested a 16-year-old boy the next day and charged him with murder.
(9) STT
(14) Territory
Date of death: May 5
Jermaine "Fat Cat" Browne, 18, died after being shot several times, including once in the head. His body was found at the top of steps leading from Seventh-day Adventist Street to Blackbeard’s Hill.
(10) STT
(15) Territory
Date of death: May 10
Melea Pownell, 3, was dead on arrival at Roy L. Schneider Hospital. Derick Hoheb, 25, the boyfriend of Melea’s mother, was charged with 20 counts of murder and child abuse. Police say Hoheb beat the child to death after she had been playing with her food. An autopsy determined a history of physical abuse; Human Services had removed Melea’s older sister from their home several days earlier.
(11) STT
(16) Territory
Date of death: May 12
Irad Frett Jr., 20, was killed by a single gunshot wound to the back. His body was found next to a dumpster behind the former Aqui Me Quedo located adjacent to the Cock Pit on Brookman Road. Police had no suspects, witnesses or motives immediately following the shooting.
(12) STT
(17) Territory
Date of death: May 12
Dariel Wheatley was shot in the chest as she was leaving Forde’s Laundromat on Garden Street. She died about four hours later at Roy L. Schneider Hospital. Police theorized she was an unintended victim; there were reports of a man running and a gray Honda Accord speeding from the scene.
(13) STT
(18) Territory
Date of death: May 12
Kiante Charles, 20, died of multiple gunshot wounds en route to Roy L. Schneider Hospital after he and three other persons were shot in the Mariendahl area. Police said the shootings may have been in retaliation for the stabbing death of Alliston Francis Jr., 17, near the Carnival Children’s Village on April 27.
(6) STX
(19) Territory
Date of death: unknown
Body found: June 2
The decomposed body 37-year-old Edwin "Miller" Velaquez was found by two boys walking their dog on Carlton Beach four days after Velaquez was reported missing by his girlfriend. Medical Examiner Dr. William Fogarty said Velazquez died of a gunshot wound to the head.
(7) STX
(20) Territory
Date of death: June 14
George Anduze, 30, of Gallows Bay died at Juan F. Luis Hospital after suffering gunshot wounds to the head and abdomen. Assailants opened fire on him in the crowded Times Square area. Police said the shooting may have been a retaliation but had no other information.
(8) STX
(21) Territory
Date of death: June 19
Kurt Lawrence, who police say was 19 or 20 years old, was killed by a single gunshot wound to the head. Police believe he was killed in retaliation for the shooting death of George Anduze a week earlier.
(14) STT
(22) Territory
Date of death: July 14
Warrington George, believed to be in his mid-30s, was shot and killed as he left a party after a cricket match in Estate Nazareth near Ivanna Eudora Kean High School. He was pronounced dead at the scene from a gunshot wound to the head.
(15) STT
(23) Territory
Date of death: July 21
Sylvia Byrd, 35, was killed by gunshots to the head. She was the mother of Melea Pownell, 3, who died of a beating in May. Byrd was charged in May with 12 counts of child abuse and neglect after Melea was killed on May 10. Byrd’s former boyfriend, Derick Hoheb, 25, was charged with first-degree murder in connection with Melea’s death and was in jail at the time of Byrd’s killing.
(9) STX
(24) Territory
Date of death: July 15
John Bentick, a Christiansted shop owner, died in Juan F. Luis Hospital after being assaulted three days earlier by a man described by police as homeless and apparently mentally ill. Police said the assailant, Selvin "Shamba" Durant, entered Bentick’s Liquor, a neighborhood store, and got into an argument with the clerk. When the owner, John Bentick, who was in the back of the shop, heard the altercation and came out to investigate, Durant struck him on the head.
(10) STX
(25) Territory
Date of death: unknown
Body found: Aug. 9
Law-enforcement divers found the body of Chamonie Miller, 26, at 11:50 a.m. in her vehicle submerged in the murky waters of Krause Lagoon on St. Croix’s southwest shoreline, ending a five-day search of the island. Miller was last seen by co-workers early Monday morning when she dropped them at their home in Castle Coakley after they got off work.
(16) STT
(26) Territory
Date of death: Aug. 8
The bullet-ridden body of Leroy "Tyrene" Williams, 22, of St. Joseph and Rosendahl was found at night outside Building 21 of the Tutu Hi-Rise complex. Williams had been shot multiple times in the chest and was found lying face down on the ground by police on patrol. Williams had been charged in March with threatening to kill a child witness in the November shooting death of another child, Bertha C. Boschulte Middle School student Alphonso Blyden III.
(11) STX
(27) Territory
Date of death: Aug. 27
Jose Williams Torres, 27, of the John F. Kennedy public housing community was gunned down outside Building 11 of the D. Hamilton Jackson public housing community in Christiansted. He was found face down with multiple gunshot wounds to his body.
(12) STX
(28) Territory
Date of death: Aug. 30
Glen Williams, 27, was found by police about 6:17 p.m. sitting in a parked car in Estate La Reine, bleeding from gunshot wounds to thigh, shoulder and back. An ambulance transported him to Luis Hospital, where he died a few hours later. A second shooting victim, Andre Williams, age unknown and unrelated to Glen Williams, was in critical condition. Police said he may have been the only witness to the killing and that the circumstances of the shooting were unknown.
(17) STT
(29) Territory
Date of death: Sept. 1
Travis Poleon, 21, was found by police after calls to 911 reported a man kidnapped and shot. Police made contact with Poleon on the porch of a house in the Lower Agnes Fancy area and observed bullet wounds to his legs and multiple head injuries. Poleon was taken by ambulance to Roy L. Schneider, where he was pronounced dead at 4:16 p.m. Suspects were unknown.
(13) STX
(30) Territory
Date of death: Sept. 4
Police responding to a call shortly after 6 a.m. found the body of Jose F. Garcia, 19, of No. 10 Calquohoun on a porch in the Harvey housing community. Police said he had been shot once in the head, possibly as early as 11 p.m. Sept. 3, and that he was a suspect in a recent carjacking.
(14) STX
(31) Territory
Date of death: Sept. 8 – Police officers dispatched to the D. Hamilton Jackson Terrace public housing community shortly before 8 p.m. Sunday in response to reports of shots fired were directed to an apartment where they found the bullet-riddled body of Walston Tonge, believed to be in his 30s. Police officials said afterward that they had no motive or suspects in the killing.
(18) STT
(32) Territory
Date of death: Sept. 17
Dan’l Liburd, 24, was shot multiple times outside Building 7 of the Michael J. Kirwan Terrace housing community; he died after undergoing emergency surgery at Roy L. Schneider Hospital. Police said Liburd said he did not know his assailants. Sources said Azula Nibbs, 20, of Lindbergh Bay surrendered to police before Liburd died and that charges against Nibbs were later upgraded from assault to first-degree murder.
(15) STX
(33) Territory
Date of death: Sept. 23
Rose Ovalle, 33, was shot multiple times by a lone gunman during the mid-morning robbery of her convenience store of $60 to $80. Before dying after undergoing emergency surgery, Ovalle identified Khamalli Barker, 22, as her assailant. Police charged Barker with first-degree murder on Sept. 25 and a judge set bail at $1 million. Police were seeking the driver of a green Honda sedan in which Barker allegedly made his getaway.
(16) STX
(34) Territory
Date of discovery of Body: Oct.5
Noel Rivera’s decomposed body was found in the rear seat of a Mitsubishi Mirage found parked in a bushy area in White Bay, Frederiksted — a stone’s throw from the Walter I.M Hodge public housing community.
(17) STX
(35) Territory
Date of death: Oct. 17
Julio Rivera, 19, of Estate Humbug, died around 1:30 a.m. of a gunshot wound to the back that exited the chest. According to Lt. Greg Bennerson of the Criminal Investigation Unit, the victim was still alive and underwent emergency surgery, but did not recover from his injury.
(18) STX
(36) Territory
Date of death: Oct. 23
Ricky Maxwell, 24, of Estate New Works was gunned down in the Louis E. Brown Housing community. When police found him he was semi-conscious, having sustained multiple gunshot wounds. He died at Juan Luis Hospital less than an hour after he was shot.
(19) STX
(37) Territory
Date of death: Oct 25
Emanuel Lee, a taxi driver, was shot and killed Friday night near King Street, Christiansted. Lee was pronounced dead at the scene. First reports indicated the taxi driver had been kidnaped near Sion by two suspects who forced him to drive to Christiansted.
(20) STX
(38) Territory
Date of death: Oct. 27
Jonathan Almestica, 19, died at Juan F. Luis Hospital after being shot Sunday night in the Campo Rico area. Police initially put a cap on the release of information concerning the case but identified Almestica at a press conference on Oct. 31. Officers were called shortly after 8 p.m. and told that two persons had been shot. The second was reported in stable condition in the hospital with a gunshot wound to the leg.
(19) STT
(39) Territory
Date of death: Oct. 28
The body of Khoy A. Smith, 23, was found Monday in the bush near Building 3 of the Tutu High-Rise Apartments. Police were called to the scene around 10 a.m. Smith had been shot once in the back. By late afternoon, police indicated they had no suspects but were receiving some cooperation from area residents.
(21) STX
(40) Territory
Date of death: Nov. 9
The body 17-year-old Stephanie Parris of Castle Burke was found on the ground in the Castle Burke area, and near a black Nissan Altima, where a second body was found.
(22) STX
(41) Territory
Date of death: Nov. 9
Dale Roberson, 19, of Morningstar was found shot to death inside a heavily tinted black Nissan Altima in the Castle Burke area. The body of Stephanie Parris was found a few feet from the car.
(23) STX
(42) Territory
Date of death: Nov. 17
Glenroy Farrell, 21, a resident of the Ralph de Chabert housing community, was shot several times by an unknown assailant in a stolen pick-up truck. Police suspected Farrell’s killing may have been retaliatory.

Oct. 26, 2002 – Police on St. Croix are looking at the recent shooting death of a man near the Paradise Mills housing community as possibly being related to another killing that took place a short distance away, a few days before.
Ricky Maxwell, 24, was shot several times Wednesday night by an unknown assailant. He was found gravely wounded in a storeroom of Paradise Mills Building 3 and died later that night at Juan F. Luis Hospital.
The shooting took place "within a few hundred feet" of where 19-year-old Julio Rivera was fatally shot on Oct. 17, according to Police Lt. Gregory Bennerson, the chief investigator. Both incidents may have been linked to drugs, Bennerson said on Saturday.
The area where the two deaths occurred is recognized by authorities as a congregating point for people — not necessarily public housing residents — who buy and sell drugs.
But police also are looking at the possibility that Maxwell may have been shot in retaliation for the earlier shooting at Paradise Mills.
Maxwell's death was the third homicide recorded this month that occurred near a public housing community on St. Croix. On Oct. 7, the decomposed body of Noel Rivera was found in a bushy area near the Walter I.M. Hodge Pavilion. The nature of the man's death was not immediately evident at the time of the discovery, Bennerson said, but gunshot wounds were found on the body in later examination, and the case was ruled a homicide.
The two Riveras were not related, police said.
Police are now going door to door in the communities in search of clues. Bennerson said there has been some cooperation from residents, but much of the information that has been shared so far was already known to investigators.
Anyone who may be able to assist police with the investigation of these crimes is asked to call the police at 778-2211 or emergency number, 911.
The three killings brought the homicide toll for 2002 to 18 on St. Croix and 36 territorywide, compared with 10 on St. Croix and 20 in the Virgin Islands as of this time last year.

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Oct. 26, 2002 – Talks are expected to begin soon between the Water and Power Authority and a company that wants to sell electricity and water to the utility as a part of its solid-waste processing system for the territory. WAPA meanwhile is appealing the decision that made the talks mandatory.
The decision to negotiate with Caribe Waste Technology came during a recent meeting of the WAPA governing board and three months after the Public Services Commission certified CWT as a small power provider, paving the way for the company to build and operate at least one waste-to-energy production plant in the Virgin Islands. But at the same meeting, the board voted to appeal the PSC's certification of CWT, although board members voting against the move questioned its propriety.
(For background, see "WAPA board balks at push for talks with CWT".)
Meantime, CWT's chief executive officer, Mark Augenblick, said company executives "look forward to negotiating in good faith" with the WAPA board "for the purchase of power and water." He said later that it was most likely the company would sell only electricity, and not water, to the local utility.
Since the WAPA board's go-ahead to begin negotiations, Augenblick said, he had heard from WAPA attorney Samuel H. Hall Jr. and representatives of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, a New York law firm the utility had hired to investigate CWT's technological and financial background while the company's application for certification was before the PSC. Augenblick said he thought it was a smart move for WAPA to engage the same firm for the negotiations that it had used for the investigation.
CWT and WAPA jointly had hired Stone and Webster, a utility consulting firm, to investigate what the "avoided cost" to WAPA would be of an agreement for the utility to purchase power produced by CWT. The WAPA board decided to retain Stone and Webster until it completed the avoided cost study.
WAPA's acting executive director, Glenn Rothgeb, told board members at their last monthly meeting that outside counsel would be needed to draft a skeleton interconnection contract. "I believe professionals operating in good faith can accomplish a great deal," he said.
On Friday, Augenblick said he expects negotiations to begin as soon as the parties involved can find a mutually agreeable date. From CWT's perspective, he said, talks could begin within a week. He estimated that it could take four to six weeks to reach an agreement.
One WAPA board member, Andrew Rutnik, said holding the talks is the responsible thing to do, given the mandate from the PSC, which regulates the utility. By law, he said, "we're required to negotiate with them."
But at the same time, Rutnik said, talks about WAPA agreeing to buy power derived from burning trash are only talk until CWT proves it can deliver a reliable product consistently. It's a point that other board members, including Claude "Tappy" Molloy, raise as their primary objection to holding the talks at all.
Molloy said his doubts are based on the facts that the company has no assets, owns no land, has never built the kind of waste-to-energy plant it is proposing to build in the Virgin Islands, and is proposing to use technologies that have never been used commercially before. "I'm opposed to it because our consultant indicates it's a sham," he said.
He added, "Interstate General is the parent company of Caribe Waste Technology, and they don't do anything in this area." CWT itself, he said, hasn't "had a profit in the last five or six years. They're not viable."
Molloy said he opposed the WAPA board's decision to enter into the negotiations while simultaneously appealing the PSC action that made the negotiations mandatory. He did so, he said, "because if we win on appeal, we don't have to negotiate."
Attorney Hall did not return telephone calls inquiring as to the status of the board's appeal.

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Oct. 26, 2002 – Talks are expected to begin soon between the Water and Power Authority and a company that wants to sell electricity and water to the utility as a part of its solid-waste processing system for the territory. WAPA meanwhile is appealing the decision that made the talks mandatory.
The decision to negotiate with Caribe Waste Technology came during a recent meeting of the WAPA governing board and three months after the Public Services Commission certified CWT as a small power provider, paving the way for the company to build and operate at least one waste-to-energy production plant in the Virgin Islands. But at the same meeting, the board voted to appeal the PSC's certification of CWT, although board members voting against the move questioned its propriety.
(For background, see "WAPA board balks at push for talks with CWT".)
Meantime, CWT's chief executive officer, Mark Augenblick, said company executives "look forward to negotiating in good faith" with the WAPA board "for the purchase of power and water." He said later that it was most likely the company would sell only electricity, and not water, to the local utility.
Since the WAPA board's go-ahead to begin negotiations, Augenblick said, he had heard from WAPA attorney Samuel H. Hall Jr. and representatives of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, a New York law firm the utility had hired to investigate CWT's technological and financial background while the company's application for certification was before the PSC.. Augenblick said he thought it was a smart move for WAPA to engage the same firm for the negotiations that it had used for the investigation.
CWT and WAPA jointly had hired Stone and Webster, a utility consulting firm, to investigate what the "avoided cost" to WAPA would be of an agreement for the utility to purchase power produced by CWT. The WAPA board decided to retain Stone and Webster until it completed the avoided cost study.
WAPA's acting executive director, Glenn Rothgeb, told board members at their last monthly meeting that outside counsel would be needed to draft a skeleton interconnection contract. "I believe professionals operating in good faith can accomplish a great deal," he said.
On Friday, Augenblick said he expects negotiations to begin as soon as the parties involved can find a mutually agreeable date. From CWT's perspective, he said, talks could begin within a week. He estimated that it could take four to six weeks to reach an agreement.
One WAPA board member, Andrew Rutnik, said holding the talks is the responsible thing to do, given the mandate from the PSC, which regulates the utility. By law, he said, "we're required to negotiate with them."
But at the same time, Rutnik said, talks about WAPA agreeing to buy power derived from burning trash are only talk until CWT proves it can deliver a reliable product consistently. It's a point that other board members, including Claude "Tappy" Molloy, raise as their primary objection to holding the talks at all.
Molloy said his doubts are based on the facts that the company has no assets, owns no land, has never built the kind of waste-to-energy plant it is proposing to build in the Virgin Islands, and is proposing to use technologies that have never been used commercially before. "I'm opposed to it because our consultant indicates it's a sham," he said.
He added, "Interstate General is the parent company of Caribe Waste Technology, and they don't do anything in this area." CWT itself, he said, hasn't "had a profit in the last five or six years. They're not viable."
Molloy said he opposed the WAPA board's decision to enter into the negotiations while simultaneously appealing the PSC action that made the negotiations mandatory. He did so, he said, "because if we win on appeal, we don't have to negotiate."
Attorney Hall did not return telephone calls inquiring as to the status of the board's appeal.

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