NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Tuesday, April 1, 2008

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INCIDENTS

Great Smoky Mountains NP

Follow-up On Felony Vehicular Assault

On May 27, 2007, M.R.D.-M. was heading north in his Saturn on the southbound one-way section of Highway 441 when he hit a Lincoln Towncar head-on. Two of the passengers inside the Lincoln suffered serious injuries - an elderly woman lost vision in her right eye and an elderly man suffered permanent damage to his knee and hip. M.R.D.-M. fled the scene on foot soon after the collision. According to an eyewitness, alcohol was apparently a contributing factor in the accident. Special agent Jeff Carlisle took the lead in identifying the driver of the Saturn, whose name was not yet known. Carlisle determined that M.R.D.-M. had been driving the Saturn, that he'd immigrated to the U.S. from Honduras about 10 years previously, and that he was in the United States illegally. Carlisle also learned that M.R.D.-M. had been convicted on two prior occasions for DUI, with one conviction occurring less than a month prior to this accident. A two-count indictment was obtained, charging M.R.D.-M. with aggravated assault. He was found and arrested about three weeks after the accident. On March 18th, after changing his original plea of not guilty to guilty, M.R.D.-M. was sentenced in federal court to 48 months in jail, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $600 in restitution to the victims. He was also notified that he will face deportation back to Honduras following his incarceration in a federal penitentiary. M.R.D.-M., who has fathered two young children in the U.S., sought a downward variance from the sentencing guidelines, stating that incarceration in addition to being deported was akin to cruel and unusual punishment. The district judge ruled in favor of the government and the variance was denied. [Lisa Slobodzian, Law Enforcement Specialist]

OTHER NEWS

The following stories (among others) can be read on InsideNPS:

Lake Mead NRA - According to a new study, there's a 50% chance that Lake Mead could become functionally dry within the next couple of decades if climate changes and increased

water use continue as expected.

HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=6339" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=6339

Intermountain Region - Stanley Austin has been named superintendent of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and Rainbow Bridge National Monument. He replaces Kitty Roberts, who recently retired.

HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=1870" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=1870

Intermountain Region - Laura Joss has been named associate regional director for resource stewardship and research for Intermountain Region. She is expected to begin her new assignment in mid-June.

HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=1869" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=1869

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Prepared by the Division of Law Enforcement, Security and Emergency Services, Washington Office, with the support of the Office of the Chief Information Officer and Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. Edited by Bill Halainen ( HYPERLINK "mailto:Bill_Halainen@nps.gov" Bill_Halainen@nps.gov).

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