Also on today’s menu:
Police Search For Clues In Northfield Homicides
Don’t Count On EV Credit
Not Quite A Tribble
After discharge of a juror, a prosecutor should avoid contacts that may harass or embarrass the juror, that criticize the jury’s actions or verdict, or that express views that could otherwise adversely influence the juror’s future jury service.
That statement is included in the American Bar Association Criminal Justice Standards for Prosecution which also state that a prosecutor should “respectfully accept acquittals” and that public statements after a verdict “should be respectful of the legal system and process.”
Instead, after a jury in Coos County acquitted Volodymyr Zhukovskyy on all 15 charges in the fatal crash that killed seven members of the Jarhead Motorcycle Club three years ago, Attorney-General John Formella and Governor John Sununu issued statements that disparaged the decision. Formella said, “Mr. Zhukovskyy should have been found guilty of the charges and held responsible....” Sununu said, “the fallen seven did not receive justice today and that is an absolute tragedy.”
Robin D. Melone, president of NH Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, was quick to respond: “While Governor Sununu is not a lawyer, the Attorney General is,” Melone said. “These statements are irresponsible, dangerous, disrespectful to the jurors and damaging to the integrity of the criminal legal system. They are also contrary to rules designed to protect the rights of the accused and protect jurors from undue influence and harassment.”
After about three hours of deliberation, the jury in Coos County found Zhukovskyy not guilty of all felonies, including seven counts of manslaughter by reckless conduct, seven counts of negligent homicide, and one count of reckless conduct with a deadly weapon. Coos County Superior Court Judge Peter Bornstein had previously dismissed eight other charges that had been brought against Zhukovskyy.
A New Hampshire State Police crash investigation initially found that Zhukovskyy had driven over the center line on Route 2 in Randolph, causing the crash, but the state’s third-party investigator found errors in the report, and that Zhukovskyy was on the centerline. A witness who was behind Zhukovskyy’s truck at the time of the crash, confirmed that the accused had not crossed the center line.
The charges against Zhukovskyy alleged that he was under the influence of drugs, and he admitted to having taken heroin, fentanyl, and cocaine 10 hours earlier that morning, but medical records indicate that he was not intoxicated by the time of the crash. The lead rider for the Jarheads, 59-year-old Al “Woody” Mazza, however, had a .135 blood alcohol percentage, while the legal limit is .08. Other members of the club also tested positive for intoxication.
Testimony indicated that Mazza looked back and crossed the center line in front of Zhukovskyy’s truck to cause the crash.
Since his arrest, Zhukovskyy, who was originally from the Ukraine, had been held without bail, in part because of concerns about his drug use. Now that he has been found not guilty in the crash, he remains incarcerated on an immigration detainer, and his prospects for freedom are uncertain.
Police Search For Clues In Northfield Homicides
The New Hampshire State Police and other law enforcement agencies will be out in force today between exits 17 and 20 of Interstate 93 in Concord, Canterbury, and Tilton, as they continue their investigation into the homicides of 25-year-old Kassandra Sweeney, four-year-old Benjamin Sweeney, and one-year-old Mason Sweeney in Northfield.
In announcing the search, Attorney-General John Formella, State Police Colonel Nathan Noyes, and Northfield Police Chief John Raffaelly said it is not the result of new information in the case, but is part of the ongoing investigative process.
Police previously searched the areas of Wethersfield Road, Shaker Road, Tilton Road, and Laconia Road, as well as the ramps entering Route 93.
Sean Sweeney, the husband and father of the victims, has been cooperating with authorities, and he and his family are receiving services from the Office of Victim-Witness Advocate.
Don’t Count On EV Credit
The Associated Press reports that most electric vehicles will not qualify for the $7,500 tax credit under the Inflation Reduction Act because of the requirement that they contain a battery built in North America, with minerals mined or recycled here. John Bozzella, chief executive officer of the Alliance of Automotive Innovation, said that most hydrogen or plug-in hybrid models sold in the United States cannot meet those requirements.
China is the major producer of the lithium and other minerals used in the production of EV batteries, and the Democratic Republic of Congo is the world’s leading producer of cobalt, another component of the EV batteries. Electric vehicles also require metallic elements known as rare earths, found in places like Myanmar, but their production has led to environmental destruction.
To qualify for the full $7,500 credit, 40 percent of the metals used in a vehicle’s battery must come from North America, and by 2027, 80 percent of the metals would have to meet that requirement. Otherwise, the tax credit is cut in half, to $3,750, and if the battery is not manufactured or assembled in North America, the rest of the tax credit would be lost.
Not Quite A Tribble
Tribbles are a fictional alien species in the Star Trek universe, but echidnas offer a close comparison.
They have a toothless, pointy snout like a cross between a bird and an anteater. They lay eggs like a reptile, have thick spines like a porcupine, and a pouch like a marsupial. Their front feet resemble spades and their hind feet point backwards. They walk like no other creature on Earth, as if at the behest of someone who is learning how to operate a remote-controlled robot, stopping and starting and changing direction every couple of steps. The way their limbs move, held at 90 degrees from the body, is unique. In every respect, echidnas are delightful.
When spooked, they roll up into a ball like a hedgehog and can maneuver their feet to dig and sink vertically into the ground.
Found in Australia and New Guinea, the unique creature’s habitat ranges “from the Snowy Mountains to monsoonal savannah, from desert to rainforest, from eucalypt woodland to vine thickets, from coastal heathland to arid-zone claypans, and from sandstone escarpments to towering pine forests.” They have even been found swimming in the ocean.
As cute as they are, their spines make them difficult to hold, unlike the furry tribbles that created trouble aboard the starship Enterprise.
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