Elder Abuse in Napanee

A woman accused of stealing from her elderly mother is to appear in Napanee provincial court next Tuesday.

Angela McKenna-Cox was charged after a lengthy investigation into a complaint from a retirement home in Amherstview. The 38-year-old is charged with theft by person holding power of attorney, theft over five-thousand dollars, personation with intent to obtain property and fraud.

Gold Digger on the Loose

All this snow but no where to go.. That’s how a Peterborough area man must feel today after his downhill skis and poles were stolen from his car over the weekend. According to police thieves also took a gold bloodstone ring, an omega gold watch and a pair of gold tinted sunglasses as well as 32 hundred dollars in cash. The value of belongings stolen is in excess of $11, 000. If anyone has any information they are asked to contact OPP.

Boy Beaten in Madoc

A 15-year-old boy from Tweed has been charged with attacking another teenager in Madoc. Central Hastings O-P-P say a youth was struck and fell to the ground on Elgin Street yesterday, and was then punched in the head several times. He was taken to hospital by ambulance for treatment of facial injuries. The other boy was arrested later in the day and charged with assault causing bodily harm.

Robbery on College Street West

Belleville Police are investigating a robbery on College Street West. Police say two men walked into a unidentified business at nine o’clock this morning. No one was injured, and there is no information yet on whether there were any arrests. Police expect to release more details this afternoon.

401 Delays

Expect major delays heading out onto the 401 this afternoon. Calls to our newsroom have reported traffic moving as slow as 40 km/h between Trenton and Belleville. OPP say this will be an ongoing process today as they try to remove vehicles that were left in the ditch overnight.

LHINs criticized at ROMA Conference in Toronto

Ontario’s Local Health Integration Networks took a beating during a session at this week’s  Rural Ontario Municipalities Association conference.

Bancroft Mayor Lloyd Churchill says he’s never been at a conference where there was so much “negativity” about an organization.    At least 20-people spoke against the LHINS, citing lack of community involvement…and the fact six of the14-chief administrative officers have walked off the job.  Churchill says many people think they’re not getting their money’s worth.   Hastings County CAO Jim Pine says the county has a good  relationship with the LHIN, but there’s concern across the province about how they’re operating.

Snow day gives students early start to weekend

It is a long weekend for tens of thousands of students in the Quinte area.

All school buses in Hastings, Prince Edward and Northumberland Counties have been cancelled.

Officials made that decision this morning because of poor road conditions caused by heavy snow overnight.

The buses carry tens of thousands of students . The schools will be open today for students who can walk or get a ride, but there will be no bus pickup this afternoon.

Prince Edward County likely to have Good Friday Store openings

Stores could be open in Prince Edward County on Good Friday, starting as early as this year.

The county’s Committee of the Whole voted in favour of amending a retail stores bylaw yesterday, allowing the stores to operate on that statutory holiday.

Mayor Leo Finnegan, says the committee heard from a large grocery store and the Picton Business Improvement area, which said it is the busiest day of the year for them when stores are open, albeit illegally, on Good Friday. He says the proposed amendment to the county bylaw allowing store openings on holidays will go to council on March ninth.

Northumberland United Way goes over the top

The highest fundraising goal in the 40-year history of the Northumberland United Way has been met.

Campaign chair Bill Patchett announced the 2009 fundraising tally, 903-thousand dollars, at the recognition breakfast in Cobourg yesterday, just over the goal of 900-thousand.

The United Way has 15 member agencies, including The Help Centre, Northumberland Big Sisters and Big Brothers and Northumberland Services For Women. The campaign was expected to be a difficult one because of the economic downturn the area has experienced over the past year.

School board approves instructional technology plan

A three-phase, multi-million-dollar instructional technology plan has been approved by the Kawartha-Pine Ridge School Board.

Trustees voted last night to begin making the latest technology a priority in the classroom as a teaching tool for all grade levels.

The plan is to increase the pupil to Smart Board ratio to 50-to-1 and laptop computers or similar devices to one device for every four students.  Full implementation of all three phases of the instructional technology plan would cost about 12 million dollars.