NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Friday, October 30, 2009

INCIDENTS

Antietam NB

Sentencing For Inappropriate Sexual Behavior

Last spring, rangers began receiving complaints from visitors and maintenance staff regarding a suspicious person frequenting the observation tower parking area and nearby Bloody Lane. Rangers identified him and began monitoring his activities, but he was never seen violating any laws. During a welfare check on one occasion, the man told a ranger that he enjoyed the serenity of the battlefield. On July 6th, the man was again seen at the tower and a ranger in plainclothes responded. The ranger saw the man follow a woman into the tower and peer up her dress from below her on the stairs. He then followed the woman down the stairs. As he entered the parking area, he was contacted by uniformed rangers and interviewed. During the course of the investigation, he made incriminating statements concerning his behavior and was subsequently charged with disorderly conduct with a mandatory court appearance. On October 20th, he appeared in court and pled guilty. The U.S. magistrate judge sentenced him to a year of probation with the proviso that he undergo a mental health evaluation and not return to the park for the term of probation. He was also required to pay court costs. [Ed Wenschhof, Chief Ranger]

Grand Teton NP

Driver Killed After Losing Control Of Truck On Ice

A 55-year-old man from Freedom, Idaho, died when he apparently lost control of his Chevy truck on icy conditions and slid off an embankment on Highway 26/89/191 just south of the Gros Ventre Bridge on the morning of October 27th. After rolling over, the vehicle came to rest about 40 yards from the roadway. The driver was ejected from his truck. Indications are that he was not wearing a seatbelt at the time. Other motorists witnessed the accident and called 911 for help. A Teton County Sheriff's Office dispatcher then notified the Teton Interagency Dispatch Center of the accident at 8:30 a.m. A member of Jackson Hole Fire/EMS arrived on scene; park rangers, along with park emergency medical technicians, immediately responded from park headquarters at Moose. CPR was begun but was not successful. Rangers believe that the driver was heading southbound on Highway 89 when he encountered black ice near the Gros Ventre Bridge. His truck crossed the northbound lane and came to rest on the east side of the highway after rolling over. A German shepherd dog riding in the truck with the man was taken to Spring Creek Animal Hospital for evaluation of possible injuries. The dog was determined to be in good condition. [Jackie Skaggs, Public Affairs Officer]

OTHER NEWS

The following stories are among those in today's edition of InsideNPS:

National Mall and Memorial Parks - Secretary Salazar and the Martin Luther King, Jr. Foundation signed a permit yesterday that will allow construction of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial to go forward. The memorial is scheduled to be completed by late 2011.

Yosemite NP - Yosemite National Park's meadows, trails and wildlife are better off thanks to a $5.8 million contribution by the nonprofit Yosemite Fund. The contribution will go to trail repairs, habitat restoration, wildlife protection and improving visitor services.

Servicewide Training Calendar - A listing of upcoming training courses offered by the NPS and its partners across the nation. Added to this week's listing are the following - a counterdrug task force training session at Padre Island, three structural fire training sessions (Lake Mead and Glen Canyon), and a half dozen new offerings at FLETC.

Servicewide Events Calendar - A calendar of upcoming NPS-related events from around the National Park System. New this week are the following - a black women's history celebration at Mary McLeod Bethune Council House NHS in Washington, an update on the program at the upcoming Ranger Rendezvous at Gettysburg, and a bioblitz and all taxa biological inventory conference in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.

To see these and other stories posted on InsideNPS (or NPS Digest, its public version), click on one or the other of the following links (please note that not all stories in the former appear in the latter): NPS employees: HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=index" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=index ; non-NPS employees: HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/

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Submission standards for the Morning Report can be found at the following web site:

HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Announcements&id=3363" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Announcements&id=3363

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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