Article:
For most people, climbing Africa's tallest mountain is an impossible achievement. But how about doing it without legs?

 For Spencer West, nothing is impossible. Or as he would put it: everything is possible.

 Nearly all of the 31-year-old American's life has proven the doctors wrong. When they amputated both of his legs right below the pelvis when he was 5, they warned that he would never be a functioning member of society. But West has led not only led a life that is remarkably normal compared to his doctors' prognosis – he has accomplished feats that, by any measure, are extraordinary.

 Nothing is more extraordinary than his latest accomplishment: taking 20,000 "steps" to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro in Kenya. Elevation: 19,300 feet. He climbed 80 percent of it on his hands – propelling his torso forward, one hand after another, along the trail for eight days. In a conversation with ABC News on the phone after he descended, his voice sounded strong – but he admitted his arms were a little sore and his hands a little cut up and bruised.

 "It's literally climbing the largest mountain on Africa on your hands," he said. "I don't know if it can get much more challenging than that."

 West hopes that people who hear about his accomplishment will be inspired to believe that nothing is impossible. Or, as he puts it, he hopes that people will "redefine their own possible."

 "To use myself as an example – that if I enter life without legs and climb the largest mountain in Africa and overcome that challenge, what more can you do in your daily lives to define what's possible for you?" he asked. "We all have the ability to redefine what is possible -- whether you're missing your legs or not. Everyone has challenges and challenges can be overcome."

 Even before Kilimanjaro, West had already overcome so much. He was born with a genetic disorder called sacral agenesis, which left his legs permanently crossed and his spine underdeveloped. He had two operations as a baby; the second cut off his legs for good.

 But he says his parents instilled him with confidence that he could do anything he wanted, and that has given him the "strong backbone" that he was born without.

 "From the day I was born they treated me just like everyone else, and they wanted me to have the same dreams and aspirations as everyone else did," he said. "I've just always seem myself as a regular person. I've never seen myself as a person without legs. I'm only reminded of that when I'm out in public."

 He graduated from college and landed a well-paying job as an operations manager for a salon and spa. He drove a specially designed car that he could control with his hands, owned a house, and had a good life. But it took a trip to Kenya with the charity Free the Children to help him realize that he wasn't happy.

 He realized he wanted to do more from his life and returned to Kenya a second time. There, he remembers being confronted by a little girl. "She said to me, 'I didn't know white people had conditions like yours.'" He realized that his life might be an inspiration for others.

 "I wanted a job that not only paid well, but made the world a little bit of a better place," he said today by phone. "That's what I found in Kenya – not only how to use my story as a career, but then how to use that to give back to these incredible people that have given me so much. And that is wasn't really so much about material possessions, but actually helping others that made me happy."

 He became a motivational speaker for the organization Me to We, founded by the same people as Free the Children, and started encouraging audiences to overcome their challenges. He decided the climb Kilimanjaro to raise $750,000 for the Kenyans who had "helped me find my passion," he said.

 The money would build three boreholes and provide clean water to hundreds of thousands for those who have been struggling from Africa's worst drought in 60 years. In Kenya and the surrounding countries, the drought has poisoned millions of Africans' clean drinking water and killed off livestock that was once their sole source of income. Increasingly, children are being forced to work at home instead of go to school.

 It took West and his two best friends one year to train to climb Africa's tallest peak.

 The day he saw the peak, he says, will be one of the most memorable of his life.

 "The moment the summit was within sight was incredible," he wrote on his blog during the ascent. "After seven grueling days of relentless climbing, after 20,000 feet of our blood, sweat and tears (and, let's face it, vomit) we had actually made it. We were at the top. The summit sign seemed almost like a mirage."

 But it was not a mirage, and West redefined what was possible for him – and, he hopes, for anyone who comes across his story.

 "Small things like learning to swim, or learning to drive standard for the first time, or maybe even it's taking an hour and reading to their kids," he said. "Small little steps to redefine what's possible in their own lives as well, as I've done with mine." ||||| Minnesota Historical SocietyArchive-It Partner Since: Feb, 2006Organization Type: State Archives & LibrariesOrganization URL: http://www.mnhs.org The Minnesota Historical Society is a non-profit educational and cultural institution established in 1849. The Minnesota Historical Society uses Archive-It to capture and preserve Minnesota news and journalism on the web for future generations. This project was funded in FY10, FY11, and FY12 by a grant from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage fund. ||||| Spencer West lost his legs when he was 5. The Toronto-based 31-year-old reached the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro at 11:15 a.m. Monday.

 Spencer West Spencer West lost his legs when he was 5. The Toronto-based 31-year-old reached the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro at 11:15 a.m. Monday.

 Liam Casey

 Staff Reporter

 Spencer West woke up at 4:30 a.m. Monday to begin climbing toward the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro. He moved steadily, but slowly, hand over hand along the rocky path. Near exhaustion, he reached the top at 11:15 a.m. and collapsed.

 Unlike other mountains, such as the deadly Mt. Everest, which must be climbed, the 5,895-metre-high Tanzanian mountain can be hiked. And, unlike other hikers, West reached the summit without legs.

 “It was bittersweet and incredible to finally make it after all the hardships we went through to get there,” said West, 31, on a satellite phone from Kibo Hut, about 1,000 metres from the summit. “I would say it was humbling, beautifully overwhelming.”

 The trek took seven days, taking the Toronto-based West and his best friends, David Johnson and Alex Meers, through various microclimates that included jungles, snowfields and a desolate stretch known as the lunar desert.

 West said he was on his hands for about 80 per cent of the trek, leaving them beat up, despite a pair of gloves.

 When the terrain allowed, West hopped in his custom-made wheelchair. When desperate, he hopped on the back of porters. The team consisted of 50 people, many of them porters, plus Paul DeAngelis, who owns Mountain Climbing Adventures in Oakville, and two videographers documenting the trip.

 West was born with sacral agenesis, a birth defect that left his lower spine poorly developed and his legs permanently crossed, as if he was seated. Doctors recommended amputation, and took off his legs at the knees when he was only 3 years old. He needed further surgery at 5, which is when his legs were amputated below his pelvis.

 “Doctors told us when he was a baby that he would never do much with his life,” said his mother, Tonette, from Wyoming, where West grew up. “They said he should stick to activities like reading and writing.”

 But West’s parents didn’t let that sort of talk filter down to their boy. That, coupled with a strong stubborn streak he inherited from his father, allowed him to flourish. He moves his 2-foot-7 body with ease, using his hands as feet.

 He and his friends trained with a personal trainer for a year, climbing hills around Toronto and working on strength and core conditioning at the YMCA.

 The reason for the trip is two-fold. One, to inspire others to achieve the impossible, a campaign called Redefine Possible. Two, he is trying to raise $750,000 — he’s raised $500,000 already — to build a clean water program for nearly 20,000 Kenyans with Free the Children.

 Despite the placid terrain compared to other climbing meccas such as Everest, which took the life of Shriya Shah-Klorfine, of Toronto, last month, Kilimanjaro remains deadly. About 10 trekkers die each year on the mountain and 1,000 need to be evacuated annually.

 Up to 35,000 people try to climb Kilimanjaro each year, but only half reach the summit. Much of the danger is due to altitude sickness, a slight case of which befell West’s two friends who suffered terrible headaches, nausea and fatigue. West was fine, albeit drained.

 But with medicine and rest, the duo recovered to push on the next day.

 “We were nervous we wouldn’t make it to the top, especially after my friends got sick,” said West, who is also a motivational speaker with Me to We. “But that’s why the three of us came, to help each other.

 “We leaned on each, literally, to get to the top.” |||||Summary:

– Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro's 19,300 feet is tough enough for most people. But Spencer West just spent seven days climbing to the top on his hands, reports ABC News. West, who lost both his legs when he was 5 years old, estimates he did 80% of the climb on his own, taking about 20,000 "steps" to make it to the top. (He used a wheelchair on easier terrain, and was carried over the few patches that were too tough, notes the Toronto Star.) "It's literally climbing the largest mountain on Africa on your hands," he said. "I don't know if it can get much more challenging than that." Born with a genetic disorder called sacral agenesis, doctors amputated West's legs below the pelvis when he was 5, but he credits his parents with treating him normally and giving him the confidence to tackle any obstacle. West spent a year training for the climb, made to raise $750,000 for Free the Children's clean water program in Kenya (he's raised $500,000 so far). "We all have the ability to redefine what is possible—whether you're missing your legs or not," said West. "Everyone has challenges and challenges can be overcome."


Here is a news article: Camper Jon Elam told authorities he was visiting the campsite during the weekend of April 21 when he saw about 80 people there, according to the federal complaint. He was then greeted by Jossey and three other men who introduced themselves as members of a Chico State fraternity, federal authorities said. The men told him they would be participating in an initiation ceremony that night. ||||| CHICO (KPIX 5) — Fraternity brothers at California State University at Chico are accused of hacking down dozens of trees in a national forest.

 They’re facing criminal charges for allegedly going on a tree-cutting binge in Lassen National Forest as part of an initiation ceremony for new pledges.

 But the brothers say they didn’t do anything wrong.

 It’s finals weeks at Chico State and the men of Pi Kappa Alpha are laying low.

 It’s not just the pressure of final exams, it’s also the pressure of a federal investigation.

 The U.S. Forest Service says the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity at Chico State left a mess at a campground and now they’re all charged with federal crimes, including their president, Evan Jossey, from Pleasant Hill.

 Chico State student Mark Anderson said, “It sounds like they got a little out of hand in the middle of nowhere and caused some damage. Poor judgment and planning.”

 It happened in April at, according to their own pictures, an initiation event.

 According to the charges, the group illegally chopped down more than 32 trees and fired guns.

 A campground visitor took photos of the mess after the group left.

 Ray Mooney with the U.S. Forest Service said he couldn’t understand how anyone would want to disrespect the forest in this way.

 The chapter doesn’t have a house, but it’s Facebook page says it denies at least some of the allegations launched against them.

 But the U.S. Forest Service released surveillance photos of young men buying the tools they believe were used in the vandalism.

 Each member now faces vandalism, illegal firearms and degrading U.S. territory charges.

 According to their Facebook page, they also face threats from the community. And fellow students say, the scorn of fellow fraternities.

 The fraternity and its president will be in court June 26, 2017. But more charges may be headed their way. ||||| These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. |||||
A summary of this is?

– Fraternity members from the California State University's Chico campus are facing federal criminal charges after they allegedly cut down dozens of trees in Lassen National Forest during a camping trip as part of a pledge-initiation ritual, CBS San Francisco reports. Per the Los Angeles Times, at least 32 trees were cut down at the Deer Creek Trailhead campground in late April, and members of Chico State's Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity, including President Evan Jossey, now face counts of vandalism, possessing firearms, and degrading US territory. The US Forest Service tells CBS the fraternity left the campsite in disarray, and it has publicized surveillance pics showing college-age students buying tools that may have been used to cut the trees down. The trees that were felled included Douglas firs, white firs, and cedars, a Lassen rep tells the Sacramento Bee. Per the Times, camper Jon Elam told federal authorities he ran into 80 or so of the frat's members at the campground, including Jossey and three others who identified themselves as part of a Chico State fraternity that would be taking part in an initiation ceremony; Elam says he heard gunfire and trees being felled that night. He told the feds he saw the downed trees the next day and left, returning almost a week later to find a huge mess at the campsite. Elam filed a police report on April 28. In a Facebook post, the fraternity denies the charges and says it has filed its own police report, apparently against Elam. Pi Kappa Alpha's national organization says the Chico chapter has been suspended until the probe is done; a university rep says the frat has been suspended from campus. (The parents of a deceased frat pledge say he was treated like "roadkill.")


Here is a news article: A 12-year-old girl narrowly missed becoming a suicide statistic thanks to a rookie police officer in Southern California on a routine patrol.

 "Possible jumper on the York Bridge. Can you notify Pasadena?" a dispatcher could be heard saying over a police scanner.

 By the time that call went out, Officer Chris Perez, who had been on the South Pasadena Police force only for a year, was already there. The girl was on a 6-inch ledge ready to jump.

 One misstep, and she could fall some 80 feet to her death, so Perez did not rush up to her.

 "I walked up to her calmly. I literally didn't even start talking to her until I made it to the sidewalk and just asked her what was happening, what was going on," Perez told CBS News correspondent Carter Evans.

 The whole time, he knew if he said the wrong thing, she might just let go.

 "She told me she was upset by a group home that she was living at, and that's why she ran away. She was telling me they treated her poorly and badly and would lock her in a room every time she was bad," Perez said.

 It took time, patience and trust.

 "It was just back-and-forth banter with me and her. 'Can I come closer to you? Can I talk you closer? Can I pull you over the ledge so we can talk in a safer environment?'" Perez said. "It was that back-to-back conversation with her that I felt was going so smoothly that I felt comfortable enough to lean over and get her."

 The girl did allow him to rescue her.

 "I grabbed a hold of her arm, and I wrapped it around my neck and grabbed her body and bear hugged her and dragged her over," Perez said.

 "2-0-2. It's code four. I got her off the bridge," Perez could be heard saying afterwards over the police radio.

 Perez said the girl didn't seem happy after the rescue.

 "She was sad and just started breaking down even more," he said.

 By the time paramedics arrived, Perez's job was done -- but not forgotten. Now when he looks at the bridge, fear goes through his mind, he said.

 She had told him she only had an aunt -- no other family -- and wanted to live with her. For now, the 12-year-old is waiting in protective police custody. ||||| SOUTH PASADENA (CBSLA.com) — A hug saved a 12-year-old girl who had fled from a Los Angeles group home with the intention of jumping to her death.

 Officer Chris Perez was on patrol in the area of York Bridge and San Pascual Avenue at about 6:50 p.m. Tuesday when he was flagged down by bystanders who said a girl was sitting on the other side of the bridge’s guardrail, threatening to jump.

 The child – whom police described as sobbing and desperate – was hanging by one hand from the bridge, which was about 80 feet over asphalt.

 Perez walked to the area where the 12-year-old girl was dangling and spoke to her, learning she was from a group home in Los Angeles that she fled for severe emotional reasons, South Pasadena police officials said. The rookie officer, who had only been with the department for a year, asked if he could come closer to speak to her more personally, and she said he could.

 The officer quickly developed a rapport with the girl and was able to calm her down, according to police. The girl agreed to allow Perez to come closer, and he asked if he could help her back over the bridge railing.

 “She was just crying and holding on,” he said.

 The girl told Perez she was scared and needed help, so the officer leaned over the railing, grabbed her in a bear hug and helped her over the railing to safety, police said.

 Perez sat with the child on the sidewalk and gave her water, police said. When she complained of an ankle injury, Perez called the fire department for assistance.

 The girl, who had been living in a group home at an address off of Avenue 64 in Los Angeles, was taken into custody for medical evaluation, according to police.

 She “is safe tonight because of Officer Perez’s calm, professional actions,” police officials said.

 CBS2’s Kristine Lazar said this was an example of being in the right place at the right time.

 Her interview with Officer Perez is a story that is Only On 2.

 He told her he was only an hour into his shift when he was told about the young girl on the bridge.

 She told him she wanted to be reunited with her only family — an aunt.

 “I do have nephews, and nieces,” Perez said, “one who is 7, the other who just turned 2. So I can’t relate, that, oh my Lord, this young indivual, this juvenile, is on the other side [on the bridge] what could possibly be going wrong in your life to make you want to do something like this?”

 Perez is reluctant to call himself a hero and uncomfortable that others are calling him one — but he is glad his parents (and dad is also an officer) took notice.

 “Hearing it from my parents is one thing,” Perez says, humbly, “Because I know I did right by them.” |||||
A summary of this is?

– Faced with a 12-year-old girl hanging by an arm from an 80-foot-high bridge, threatening to end her young life, a rookie cop started talking, reports CBS Los Angeles. Asking the girl if he could come closer, Officer Chris Perez says the child "was just crying and holding on;" she told Perez she had fled a group home in LA, and that she needed help. "It was just back-and-forth banter with me and her," Perez says. "'Can I come closer to you? Can I talk you closer? Can I pull you over the ledge so we can talk in a safer environment?' It was that back-to-back conversation with her that I felt was going so smoothly that I felt comfortable enough to lean over and get her." Per CBS, Perez "leaned over the railing, grabbed her in a bear hug, and helped her over the railing to safety." Police officials credit Perez's "calm, professional actions" with saving the girl, while Perez himself seems appalled that someone so young could find herself so desperate. "I can’t relate, that, oh my Lord, this young individual, this juvenile, is on the other side [on the bridge] what could possibly be going wrong in your life to make you want to do something like this?" But after the rescue, "she was sad and just started breaking down even more," Perez tells CBS News. The girl, who wanted to reconnect with an aunt, her only family, was put in police custody.


Write an article based on this summary:

– The polls this week were right: Mitt Romney easily won the Nevada caucuses tonight, just as he did four years ago, report the AP and CNN. That's two straight victories for the frontrunner. The more interesting battle was that for second place: Romney took 42%, but Ron Paul at times looked poised to trounce Newt Gingrich. Gingrich prevailed in the final tally with 25%, Paul with 18%, and Rick Santorum had 13%. As he did after his South Carolina win, Romney addressed supporters and put the focus on the White House rather than his rivals."President Obama seems to believe America's role as leader in the world is a thing of the past," he said. "I believe the 21st century will be and must be an American century." Next up after tonight: Tuesday night caucuses in Minnesota and Colorado, and a primary in Missouri. (No delegates will be awarded in the Missouri contest, and Gingrich isn't even on the ballot, notes the Washington Post.)

Republican presidential front-runner Mitt Romney cruised to victory in the Nevada caucuses Saturday night, notching a second straight triumph over a field of rivals suddenly struggling to keep pace.

 Republican presidential candidate former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney greets supporters at his Nevada caucus night victory celebration in Las Vegas, Saturday, Feb. 4, 2012. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson) (Associated Press)

 Republican presidential candidate former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney greets supporters at his Nevada caucus night victory celebration in Las Vegas, Saturday, Feb. 4, 2012. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert) (Associated Press)

 Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, greets supporters after speaking at a campaign rally in Colorado Springs, Colo., Saturday, Feb. 4, 2012. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert) (Associated Press)

 Republican presidential candidate, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich speaks during a campaign stop at the International Church of Las Vegas on Friday, Feb. 3, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nev. (AP Photo/Evan... (Associated Press)

 Republican presidential candidate Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, speaks during a campaign stop at Bethel University Saturday, Feb. 4, 2012, in Arden Hills, Minn. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast) (Associated Press)

 The caucuses drew little attention in the nominating campaign, but Nevada figures to be a fierce battleground in November between the winner of the Republican nomination and Democrat President Barack Obama. The state's unemployment rate was measured at 12.6 percent in December, the worst in the U.S.

 Romney unleashed a sharp attack on Obama, whose economic policies he said have "made these tough times last longer."

 "President Obama seems to believe America's role as leader in the world is a thing of the past. I believe the 21st century will be and must be an American century," Romney said to cheers from his backers.

 Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, held a double-digit lead over his nearest pursuer as the totals mounted in a state where fellow Mormons accounted for roughly a quarter of all caucus-goers.

 Former House of Representatives Speaker Newt Gingrich and Texas Rep. Ron Paul vied for a distant second. Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum trailed the field. Returns from 14 of 17 counties showed Romney with 42 percent support, Gingrich with 25 percent, Paul with 20 percent and Santorum with 13 percent.

 Yet to report its results was Clark County, which includes Las Vegas and often accounts for half or more of the votes in a statewide election.

 Romney's victory capped a week that began with his double-digit win in the Florida primary. That contest was as intense as Nevada's caucuses were sedate _ so quiet that they produced little television advertising, no candidate debates and only a modest investment of time by the contenders.

 According to the AP count, Romney began the day with 87 of the 1,144 delegates needed to win the Republican nomination. Gingrich had 26, Santorum 14 and Paul 4.

 Preliminary results of a poll of Nevada Republicans entering their caucuses showed that nearly half said the most important consideration in their decision was a candidate's ability to defeat Obama this fall, a finding in line with other states.

 About one-quarter of those surveyed said they are Mormon, roughly the same as in 2008, when Romney won with more than a majority of the vote in a multi-candidate field.

 The entrance poll was conducted by Edison Research for The Associated Press at 25 randomly selected caucus sites. It included 1,553 interviews and had a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

 A total of 28 delegates were at stake in the state-by-state race to lock up the 1,144 needed to secure the Republican nomination.

 Nevada awarded its delegates in proportion to the caucus vote totals, meaning that any candidate who captured at least 3.57 percent of the total number of ballots cast would be rewarded. By contrast, Romney's victory in the Florida primary on Tuesday netted him all 50 of the delegates at stake there.

 From Nevada, the calendar turns to caucuses in Minnesota and Colorado and a non-binding primary in Missouri on Tuesday.

 Maine caucuses end next Saturday, and the next seriously contested states are expected to be primaries in Michigan and Arizona on Feb. 28.

 Nevada caucuses, coming four days after the Florida primary, meant little time for the type of intense campaign that characterized the first month of the race.

 The most memorable event of the four-day Nevada campaign was an endorsement that flamboyant billionaire Donald Trump bestowed on Romney in Las Vegas in a circus-like atmosphere that followed reports he would back Gingrich.

 By the time Nevada Republicans caucused, Paul was campaigning in Minnesota, Santorum in Colorado.

 Eager to demonstrate he intends to fight on, Gingrich announced plans to campaign next week in Ohio, one of several states with a primary on March 6.

 His Florida victory in hand, Romney was acting like a front-runner again, campaigning against Obama more than Gingrich. Restore Our Future took on the former speaker, airing ads that said he consistently overstated his connections to Ronald Reagan. ||||| “If you’re a swing voter, who are you going to believe?” Santorum said to a crowd packed into a hotel ballroom here on Colorado’s Western Slope. “America is not looking for well-oiled weather vanes. They are looking for leaders.”

 In Chanhassen, Minn., Paul said the state’s caucus system “rewards people who believe in something.”

 “We have reason to be optimistic about not only our future, but maybe we have optimism about Tuesday’s election too,” Paul said with a grin as he looked out at a couple hundred people wedged into a car collector club lounge.

 Paul didn’t mention President Barack Obama or any of his GOP competitors by name, diving instead into a lecture about a need to protect personal liberties, revive the gold standard, abolish the Federal Reserve and shift to a less-interventionist foreign policy.

 “Our problems are a lot longer than 3 years old. They’ve been going on for a long time,” Paul said, aiming his barbs at President Woodrow Wilson instead of Obama during an appearance in Rochester, Minn.

 Paul is building off a decent base of support in Minnesota, where he drew nearly 16 percent of the 2008 vote. Organizers were holding “practice caucuses” during his weekend events in Minnesota. He’s banking on help from anti-war Republicans and tea party members.

 Santorum, meanwhile, was heading to Minnesota late Saturday after the Nevada caucus results were announced. He planned a full day on Sunday, including a church visit and a stop at the factory that produces the sweater vests his campaign sells for $100 each to raise money.

 What he lacks in organization, he is hoping to supplement with sharper criticism.

 Santorum’s strategy has been to bloody Gingrich, outlast his one-time ally and then emerge as the eventual alternative to front-runner Romney. He also looked to have a strong showing Tuesday in Missouri, which is having a non-binding primary that lacks Gingrich’s name on the ballot. Santorum said he hoped the head-to-head matchup with Romney would change the narrative of his sagging fortunes.

 Opening his day, Santorum told Republicans here that Washington has gone too far in its environmental policies, especially here in the West. He said overreaching environmental regulators were trampling on ranchers with a Washington-knows-best approach.

 “’We’ll make sure that you don’t do something to scar the land or endanger a newt,’” Santorum said. “No, not that Newt. I want to endanger that Newt. That’s a different story.”

 It wasn’t going to happen in Nevada, though.

 Romney, as expected, captured the Nevada winner’s medal, and Santorum urged Republicans in conservative Weld County, Colo., at a Lincoln Day dinner to give his campaign one last shot.

 “I ask you to reset this race. Create an opportunity for someone who can speak to Americans about what America is all about,” Santorum pleaded at the same hour it became clear Romney was the victor in Nevada.

 And he showed no signs of relenting on Romney or Gingrich, even as he appeared at a county GOP fundraiser as results became clear.

 “Here are two candidates that are not just compromised but will be slammed even bringing up those issues. Why would you do this? ... Why would the Republican Party nominate candidates with those positions?”

 Paul, meanwhile, kept close tabs on Nevada, where he placed second in 2008 behind Romney. The Texas congressman had hoped for an outright win this time. Advisers had hoped the state’s independent, live-and-let-live ethos is receptive to Paul’s libertarian message and that his band of diehard supporters can be counted on to show up at the caucuses.

 Paul’s campaign has spent $350,000 on television ads in Nevada, just behind Romney who spent $371,000, according to the Smart Media Group which tracks political advertising. Newt Gingrich did not advertise on television in Nevada and Santorum placed only a $12,000 cable buy.

 “We just don’t have those resources,” Santorum conceded.

 ___

 Bakst reported from Minnesota. Associated Press writer Beth Fouhy in Nevada contributed to this report.

 Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |||||


News article:

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 A 63-year-old postal worker was found dead in her mail truck in Woodland Hills as temperatures pushed toward 120 degrees last Friday, her family members said.

 Peggy Frank of North Hills had worked for the U.S. Postal Service for 28 years and was nearing retirement. She had just returned to work for the first time in months on Friday after suffering a broken ankle, according to loved ones.

 Frank was pronounced dead at the scene on the 4800 block of Calderon Road after paramedics attempted to revive her, the Los Angeles Daily News reported. The temperature in the neighborhood had reached 115 degrees that day, according to the National Weather Service.

 L.A. County coroner's officials said although an autopsy has been performed, Frank's official cause of death is still pending. But — especially because the carrier vehicles have no air conditioning — her family believes it's possible her death was related to Friday's extreme heat.

 “I can not believe it because I don't think that it should have happened,” said Frank's sister Lynn Calkins. “I’m so sad because she was going to retire soon. Now she can’t.”

 Frank had suffered heat stroke last year during the scorching summer months, Calkins added.

 Some of Frank's distraught relatives flew to L.A. from Arizona, still in shock that the vibrant mail carrier — who many neighbors in this Woodland Hills community considered a family member — died so unexpectedly. Calkins places part of the blame on the Postal Service

 “They need to start caring about their people a little bit more,” she said.

 A Postal Service representative said in a statement that it's "been a very challenging time. Our thoughts and prayers are with the employee’s family at this time.”

 The spokesperson added that while mail trucks aren’t equipped with air conditioning units, “the safety of employees is always a priority.” Workers are reminded every day to stay hydrated, wear appropriate clothing and hats, carry sufficient amounts of water and ice and to stay in the shade as much as possible.

 But for Calkins, that's not enough. “They need to change things a little so it happens to nobody else,” she said. ||||| A mail carrier who worked for the U.S. Postal Service for 28 years died on the job Friday, as a massive heat wave hit Los Angeles.

 Peggy Frank, 63, was sitting in her mail truck in the Woodland Hills area when she was found unresponsive by a neighbor, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles County Department of the Medical Examiner-Coroner’s office told PEOPLE. Paramedics arrived on the scene and tried to revive Frank, but she was pronounced dead at 3:35 p.m. local time.

 Temperatures in the area that afternoon had reached 117 degrees, CBS Los Angeles reported. An excessive heat warning for the region had even been released by the National Weather Service.

 USPS trucks are not equipped with air conditioning, CBS Los Angeles reported. It’s unclear whether the heat lead to her death.

 The corner’s office told PEOPLE that an official autopsy had been completed but that her cause of death was “deferred pending additional tests.” Results from those can take between four a six weeks.

 “Our thoughts and prayers are with the employee’s family at this difficult time,” a representative for the USPS told PEOPLE in a statement. “The unfortunate incident involving this employee remains under investigation. This includes the underlying cause(s) of the employee’s death.”

 The spokesperson added that postal carriers are encouraged to prioritize safety as they often work through all kinds of extreme weather.

 “The safety of our employees is a top priority and the Postal Service has implemented a national Heat Illness Prevention Program (HIPP) for all employees,” the statement said. “In connection with the HIPP, the Postal Service provides mandatory heat-related and other safety training and instruction to all employees and assures they have the resources needed to do their jobs safely. Carriers are reminded to ensure they’re hydrated, wear appropriate clothing, including hats, get in the shade whenever possible, and to take sufficient amounts of water and ice with them out on their routes.”

 Friday was Frank’s first time back at the Woodland Hills Post Office in months after suffering a broken ankle, her family told KTLA. She resided in North Hills and was just months away from retiring. Frank was also a mother of two and grandmother.

 “I can not believe it because I don’t think that it should have happened,” her sister Lynn Calkins explained to KTLA, adding that Frank had suffered a heat stroke last year during the hot summer months.

 “I’m so sad because she was going to retire soon. Now she can’t,” Calkins added to the outlet. “[The U.S. Postal Service] need to start caring about their people a little bit more. They need to change things a little so it happens to nobody else.”

 Frank’s son, Kirk Kessler, blamed the USPS too.

 “To have my mom 107 [degrees], humidity, carrying the mailbag around with no air conditioning in the car — yeah, I’m sure she’s probably gonna overheat,” he told CBS Los Angeles.

 Coworker Joni Hogan Salvatore — who remembered Frank as an “amazing” coworker, a “very hard worker” and “just a really good person” – told The Los Angeles Daily News that the mail trucks are 10 to15 degrees hotter inside.

 “They make us lock them and seal them for safety of the mail, but it’s horrible in there,” she said. ||||| NORTH HILLS (CBSLA) — A family is in mourning after a mother and grandmother who worked as a mail carrier died during the heat wave that hit Southern California over the weekend.

 The Los Angeles County Coroner said Peggy Frank, 63, was found unresponsive in her mail truck Friday afternoon in the Woodland Hills area, where temperatures reached 117 degrees.

 “To have my mom 107 [degrees], humidity, carrying the mailbag around with no air conditioning in the car — yeah, I’m sure she’s probably gonna overheat,” Frank’s son Kirk Kessler told CBS2 News.

 After multiple attempts by paramedics to revive her, Frank was pronounced dead. She had been with the U.S. Postal Service for 30 years and was just a few years away from retirement.

 Residents in the area saw the activity of emergency crews but had no idea what was happening.

 “She was very nice,” said one man who was driving by the area Monday afternoon. “Now her face is coming […] in front of me, honestly, because I talked to her, and it becomes personal.”

 Frank is survived by her two children and several grandchildren.

 “She’s great, friendly, sensitive, always there for ya,” said Kessler.

 The coroner said it’s not yet clear if the heat was the cause of her death. She had recently returned to work after having been off the job for more than two months with a broken ankle.

 USPS would not go into details about Frank’s death but said their thoughts and prayers were with the family.

 In Hemet over the weekend, an elderly couple was found dead inside their RV. Their air conditioner was not on when they were found. ||||| A longtime U.S. postal carrier was found dead in her mail truck in Woodland Hills on Friday afternoon amid blistering summer temperatures, authorities confirmed Monday.

 Peggy Frank, 63, of North Hills was found unresponsive while seated in a postal vehicle in the 4800 block of Calderon Road by a co-worker or bystander, said Ed Winter of the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner’s office.

 Paramedics attempted to revive her without success, Winter said. Frank was pronounced dead at 3:35 p.m. Friday.

 UPDATE: Federal investigators launch probe into Woodland Hills mail carrier’s death on 117-degree day

 Temperatures soared to 117 degrees in the Woodland Hills area on Friday, surpassing the record of 106 degrees for that day, July 6, that was set in 1976. (The National Weather Service has kept records there since 1949, according to Keily Delerme, a NWS meteorologist.)

 But Winter could not say Monday whether the heat was a factor in Frank’s death.

 While her autopsy had been completed, the cause of death was deferred pending additional tests, Winter said. She also had some type of medical history that Winter declined to specify until the final cause of death is determined.

 “We want to express our thoughts and prayers for the employee’s family at this difficult time,” said Evelina Ramirez, a spokesperson with the U.S. Postal Service.

 She noted that carriers deliver mail in “all kinds of weather, including high temperatures.”

 “Safety is our top priority for all of our employees,” Ramirez said. “The Postal Service strives to ensure that they have the tools and training to do so safely.”

 Carriers are reminded daily to stay hydrated, wear appropriate clothing, such as hats, and get into the shade whenever and as much as possible, she said.

 “The most important thing is to make sure they have water and ice for their entire route,” Ramirez said.

 Employees at the Woodland Hills Post Office remembered Frank, a dog lover who had some 28 years working at the post office, as always upbeat and positive despite her health challenges.

 “She was a sweetheart – always happy, even when she wasn’t feeling good,” said co-worker Cindy Pritchard.

 Frank had recently returned from medical leave, according to colleagues.

 Co-worker Joni Hogan Salvatore, who started working at the Woodland Hills Post Office before Frank, called her colleague “amazing” and “a very hard worker.”

 “None of us are 20 (years old) anymore; it’s a hard job,” Salvatore said. “It’s a super-hard job, but she always had something nice to say. Never was a complainer or anything. She was just a really good person.”

 Salvatore said that when it’s 100 degrees outside, it can be 10-15 degrees hotter inside the mail trucks, which do not have air conditioning.

 “They make us lock them and seal them for safety of the mail, but it’s horrible in there,” she said.

 The National Weather Service had issued an excessive heat warning on Friday for the region.

 A spokesman for the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), which has jurisdiction over federal employees, could not be reached late Monday for comment.

 In the fall of 2014, an administrative law judge upheld a willful citation to a U.S. Postal Service station in Independence, Mo., by the federal OSHA after a mail carrier died in July 2012, according to media reports.

 The mail carrier had collapsed while working his route and died as a result of his exposure to excessive heat, according to an OSHA investigation.

 That investigation found that the Postal Service “did not have procedures in place to address worker concerns during times of excessive heat,” according to the administrative agency. A willful violation is one that is committed with intentional, knowing or voluntary disregard for the law’s requirements or with plain indifference to worker or safety health.

 The Postal Service was required to pay a penalty of $70,000 in that case, according to the news site Fox4KC.com.

 In October of 2016, OSHA cited the Postal Service after two Des Moines, Iowa, workers suffered heat-related illness while delivering mail that past summer. The agency found that the two mail carriers, one of whom was told to continue walking her route despite feeling ill, were exposed to excessive heat.

 RELATED STORY: Employees should ‘force breaks’ in extreme heat, top LA County health official says |||||
What is a shorter version of the above article?

– A 63-year-old postal carrier was found dead in her mail truck Friday amid a record-breaking heat wave in the Los Angeles area, CBS LA reports. Peggy Frank was found unresponsive in the Woodland Hills area, where temperatures had reached 117 degrees that afternoon, by a neighbor. Paramedics called to the scene could not revive her. Frank, who had worked for the US Postal Service for 28 years, was close to retirement. Friday was her first day back on the job after months off due to a broken ankle, KTLA reports. An autopsy has been completed, but her cause of death has been "deferred pending additional tests" and may not be determined for weeks, the coroner's office tells People. Frank's family believes the heat may have played a role in her death, and a colleague tells the Los Angeles Daily News that in such high temperatures, it can be as much as 15 degrees hotter inside the mail trucks, which do not have air conditioning. "They make us lock them and seal them for safety of the mail, but it’s horrible in there," she says. But a USPS rep, while expressing sympathy for Frank's family, says that mail is delivered in "all kinds of weather, including high temperatures" and that "the Postal Service strives to ensure that [carriers] have the tools and training to do so safely," including by reminding them to keep hydrated, have water and ice available for their entire route, stay in the shade when possible, and wear appropriate clothing.


These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. ||||| The man credited with helping San Francisco police capture a pair of Orange County jail escapees over the weekend is an unlikely hero.

 Until recently, 55-year-old Matthew Hay-Chapman was living in the botanical garden of Golden Gate Park — homeless, depressed about a string of family tragedies and unable to work because of severe back pain.

 Still, he managed to stay connected to the world. Every day, he would check out online news sites at the library or find a newspaper and read it front to back in the McDonald’s by the park.

 It was his obsession with current events, along with his keen eye, that led him to spot the fugitives Saturday, hanging out down the block from a police station. As a result, Hay-Chapman is in line to collect $140,000 in reward money.

 “When they told me about the benefits, that didn’t matter,” Chapman said Tuesday in front of the McDonald’s at Haight and Stanyan streets, still proudly wearing the black hoodie that San Francisco police gave him as thanks for his assistance. “I was just doing the right thing.”

 Hay-Chapman had already escaped living in the park, having befriended a man who lets him sleep on his couch. Now he hopes to use the reward money not just to rebuild his own life, but also to help a troubled son, disabled daughter and two young grandchildren who are in foster care in Oregon.

 Life turmoil

 Hay-Chapman hasn’t always been one wrong step from the streets. He was raised on military bases all over the world, one of 10 children of an Air Force colonel. Two of his eight brothers are in law enforcement.

 Before his life fell apart, Hay-Chapman worked as a carpenter, as a heating and air conditioning installer, as a vault locksmith and as a hotel night manager. Then came the back pain, brought on by lifting something in 2000. It got so bad he couldn’t work.

 His daughter, now 33, suffered a brain hemorrhage at birth and is severely disabled. His 30-year-old son lost custody of his two children because of struggles with drug addiction.

 ‘Ups and downs’

 His family said Hay-Chapman has trouble staying on a steady course, but did not have a drug or alcohol problem.

 “He’s had his ups and downs,” said his brother John Hay-Chapman, “He is a jack of all trades — he is a good mechanic. ... But he can be irresponsible too, and his troubles came when he followed the wrong road.”

 He added, “But here is the thing about Matt: He is sharp, he reads the paper and he is up on everything.”

 Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 5 Caption Close Image 1 of 5 Matthew Hay-Chapman enters Golden Gate Park in front of the McDonald's restaurant at Haight and Stanyan streets in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016 near the location where two Orange County jail escapees were apprehended after he recognized the fugitives and pointed them out to police last Saturday. less Matthew Hay-Chapman enters Golden Gate Park in front of the McDonald's restaurant at Haight and Stanyan streets in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016 near the location where two Orange County jail ... more Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle Image 2 of 5 Matthew Hay-Chapman returns to the McDonald's restaurant at Haight and Stanyan streets in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016 to describe how he spotted two of the Orange County jail escapees last Saturday and pointed them out to police, resulting in their capture. less Matthew Hay-Chapman returns to the McDonald's restaurant at Haight and Stanyan streets in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016 to describe how he spotted two of the Orange County jail escapees last ... more Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle Image 3 of 5 Matthew Hay-Chapman crosses Stanyan Street in front of the McDonald's restaurant at Haight Street in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016 after describing how he recognized two of the Orange County jail escapees last Saturday and pointed them out to police, resulting in their capture. less Matthew Hay-Chapman crosses Stanyan Street in front of the McDonald's restaurant at Haight Street in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016 after describing how he recognized two of the Orange County ... more Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle Image 4 of 5 Matthew Hay-Chapman returns to the McDonald's restaurant at Haight and Stanyan streets in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016 to describe how he spotted two of the Orange County jail escapees last Saturday and pointed them out to police, resulting in their capture. less Matthew Hay-Chapman returns to the McDonald's restaurant at Haight and Stanyan streets in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016 to describe how he spotted two of the Orange County jail escapees last ... more Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle Image 5 of 5 Matthew Hay-Chapman returns to the McDonald's restaurant at Haight and Stanyan streets in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016 to describe how he spotted two of the Orange County jail escapees last Saturday and pointed them out to police, resulting in their capture. less Matthew Hay-Chapman returns to the McDonald's restaurant at Haight and Stanyan streets in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016 to describe how he spotted two of the Orange County jail escapees last ... more Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle Hard-luck hero helped police nab dangerous escapees 1 / 5 Back to Gallery

 Matthew Hay-Chapman and his friend regularly go to the McDonald’s at the entrance of the park — and it was there, on Saturday, that Hay-Chapman was at the right place at the right time.

 He was on his way into the fast-food restaurant when when he spotted a white 2008 GMC Savana van parked at the side of the Whole Foods Market on Haight. It looked like the one he used to drive when he worked as a mechanic — and then lived in when times got hard.

 Recognized van

 Because he’s a news junkie and has what he calls a photographic memory, Hay-Chapman realized that the van matched one that had been linked to three men who had been on the run since they escaped from the Orange County jail Jan. 22.

 “I noticed the windows were all steamed up — real heavy condensation,” Hay-Chapman said. He figured someone was living inside.

 Suddenly, “boom, this guy pops out of the van. I had seen him in the news,” Hay-Chapman said. “I said, ‘That’s the guy — that’s the Iranian escapee!’”

 He followed the man, 37-year-old Hossein Nayeri, into the McDonald’s. Nayeri got in a line that was six people deep, while Hay-Chapman sat down at a table.

 Photo: Associated Press This undated photo provided by the Orange County Sheriff's...

 “I knew I had time,” Hay-Chapman said. “I studied the man ... because I wanted to be 100 percent sure before I go and alert the authorities.”

 Once he was sure, he slipped outside. After a passerby refused to let him use a cell phone, he headed for the nearby Park police station.

 Before he got there, a patrol car with two officers in it happened by. Hay-Chapman flagged them down with his metal cane.

 The officers were about to confront Nayeri when a man on the street suddenly collapsed into the arms of one of them. As the police called for paramedics, Hay-Chapman kept watch for Nayeri, who soon emerged from McDonald’s with a cup of coffee.

 ‘Last taste of freedom’

 “I call it his last taste of freedom,” Hay-Chapman said. “McDonald’s coffee is worth a lot, and he paid for it.”

 With the officers preoccupied with the man who had collapsed, Nayeri “walked calmly past me, calmly with his coffee,” Hay-Chapman said. He watched as the fugitive walked down the restaurant’s steps and crouched between two parked vehicles.

 “Now he pops up and he starts to walk calmly across Stanyan,” Hay-Chapman said. After a few feet, “he bolts and he runs into the park. Man, the guy was running right toward the police station.”

 The officers fanned out and eventually caught up with Nayeri in front of the station. When they returned to the van, a second fugitive, 20-year-old Jonathan Tieu, was still in it.

 Photo: Associated Press This undated booking photo provided by the Orange County, Calif.,...

 Nayeri, who had been held on aggravated mayhem, kidnapping and torture charges, and Tieu, who was facing gang-related murder and attempted-murder charges, were returned to authorities in Orange County. The third fugitive, Bac Duong, 43, had turned himself in Friday in Santa Ana.

 “Would that every citizen would be paying that much attention,” said Police Chief Greg Suhr, who confirmed Hay-Chapman’s pivotal role in the capture. “God bless him for having courage and for being that observant and that sharp.

 “It is pretty amazing,” Suhr said of Hay-Chapman’s story. “He makes the neighborhood safer.”

 Orange County sheriff’s officials say they will work with agencies that offered separate rewards — including the county Board of Supervisors, U.S. Marshals Service and the FBI — to deliver the money where it belongs.

 Hay-Chapman figures it’s his time.

 “When I was down and out, nobody wanted to help me out,” he said. He hopes that because he was “brave enough to stand up” on Saturday, the money will lead to a better life for him and his family.

 Friend’s point of view

 The friend who finally did help him said Hay-Chapman deserves every penny coming to him.

 “He is really a straight-up guy,” said the friend, who asked that his name not be used. “He is a guy who is into doing good things for people even though he is homeless.

 “He did what he was supposed to do, what people are asked to do. That money would help him straighten his life out.”

 Jaxon Van Derbeken is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: jvanderbeken@sfchronicle.com |||||
What is a one-paragraph summary of the above article?

– A homeless San Francisco man who calls himself a "news junkie" might be able to get off the streets because of his news habit: He will receive the lion's share of a $150,000 reward for helping recapture two escaped inmates in January, the Los Angeles Times reports. Matthew Hay-Chapman recognized the inmates' stolen van in a Whole Foods parking lot on Jan. 28 and spotted fugitive Hossein Nayeri emerging from the vehicle. He says he found a police officer and led him to the van, leading to the capture of Nayeri and fellow escapee Jonathan Tieu. A third man had surrendered a day earlier. Hay-Chapman, 55, was living in Golden Gate Park at the time of the arrests but says he still kept track of the news every day by going online or reading newspapers, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. The Orange County Board of Supervisors decided to award him $100,000 of the $150,000 cash reward for the inmates' recapture, with $20,000 going to the owner of the stolen van, and two employees who spotted the escapees acting suspiciously at a Target store receiving $15,000 each. A cab driver kidnapped and almost murdered by the escapees, however, won't get a share of the reward money because the supervisors decided that he had not provided information that led to the men's recapture.


Article:

Bend day care operator gets 21 years for abandoning kids

 BEND, Ore. - (Update: Comments from sentencing judge, parents)

 A Bend woman who grabbed world headlines after her arrest for leaving numerous young children alone at her unlicensed day care, giving them melatonin to sleep while she went for a tan or to work out, was sentenced Friday to more than 21 years in prison after a long litany of sorrow and anger from many tearful parents — and her own tearful apology to them.

 Deschutes County Circuit Judge Wells Ashby imposed a sentence of 21 years and four months on January Irene Neatherlin, 32, at the close of an emotional day of testimony by the parents and family of numerous children suffering lingering issues with sleep cycles, trust and more. Prosecutors had requested a 35-year prison term.

 “I failed you all. I let you all down,” January Irene Neatherlin, 32, told the crowded courtroom.

 “I let all of you down that trusted me, and no one is at fault but me,” she said. “I know you may never forgive me, but I ask you consider it.”

 Neatherlin, speaking through tears, said despite what she had admitted doing, she thought of “all my day care kids as my own, and I believe they loved me.”

 “Everybody makes mistakes, but not everybody takes responsibility for those mistakes,” she said. "With that said, I pray that the court and the parents accept my apology, It was never my intention to put any of your children at risk of injury or harm. I truly loved them all, but I made a very poor call that has forever changed my live, and maybe even has ended it."

 She also noted she failed her own children, who she hasn’t seen since her arrest nearly a year ago. ‘I have abandoned my children, because of my actions.”

 “I have a lot of demons to face. I have a lot of things pushed down inside of me that I was scared to face,” Neatherlin said. “I lost a part of me long ago, and I haven't been the same since. I lost all focus on what was right from wrong, thinking things through before doing them.

 "I had tunnel vision, so I didn't have to face the reality of my life. ... I was being selfish, thinking only of myself, not thinking of people I could be putting in jeopardy, and not of the people I could be potentially hurting. All I could think of was trying to keep my mind from facing the reality. I had one mindset and didn’t think about the consequences in the long run."

 Ashby said the day's testimony gave him a clearer understanding of what he called a "very tragic situation" that resulted in "sheer terror" and guilt for parents who trusted a child to someone who they thought was trustworthy.

 "You (as parents) find a way to blame yourself, even if it's not your fault," the judge said, noting the "carnage" left by the case, including a number of couples who said jobs were lost or marriages or partnerships ended "because of the tidal forces of this case. They couldn't withstand the forces -- and how could they?"

 The judge said it was good that Neatherlin has taken responsibility for her actions, but said she still has a "very long way to go."

 Ashby said a judge is supposed to strike a balance, looking at all the factors, but said he "will not take a risk on community safety."

 Neatherlin told one girl’s parents that the girl did fall out of her chair but she “didn’t think she hurt herself that bad.” She said she tried to reach out to them, but police said not to contact them, and she apologized to them as well.

 Ashby rejected that explanation of injuries prosecutors said were consistent with shaken baby syndrome.

 "There is a pattern with you of lying repeatedly, of repeatedly putting children at risk," the judge said.

 "There is something broke and something missing in you," he said. "I don't say that to be mean to you -- simply a gap there. It is the court's hope you can make yourself whole again."

 The judge directed photographers not to show the faces or reporter to identify the family members who testified. But some parents spoke with us outside the courtroom after the sentencing.

 "I'm glad that there is some kind of closure," Kevin Hord said, his voice trembling at times. "It's going to be tough, but we'll make it through. And I think justice was served. I think the judge was right on with fully understanding the extent of the charges and making a judgment that will hopefully make somebody like that think twice, if they make it out."

 Audrey Torrance said, "To hear these other testimonies is absolute heartbreak." Asked what's next for her family, she smiled but said tearfully, "We move on, we -- I go home, I hug my kids and we move on."

 The emotional, daylong sentencing hearing came nearly a year after police investigators found seven children under age 5 drugged and unattended at Neatherlin's Little Giggles Day Care while she was at a tanning salon.

 Neatherlin entered negotiated guilty pleas last month to a dozen of the 122 charges against her, including 11 counts of first-degree criminal mistreatment and one count of third-degree assault.

 Deputy District Attorney Kandy Gies laid out the details of how the case came to light last spring, after a former roommate who stayed home sick saw kids being left home alone.

 Police conducted surveillance and on March 15 of last year, knowing she had again left, entered the home. Officer Devin Lewis testified they were shocked when they walked in and saw seven young children -- and no adult present. He said he went into “father mode” and had to change a couple of diapers. One baby, he said, had vomit on the neck and face, and Lewis said that child could have suffocated if police had not intervened.

 Each parent had put their trust in Neatherlin, Gies said, calling the situation “each parent’s nightmare.” The case is different, she said, and not a typical matter of criminal mistreatment.

 The prosecutor listed each of the children there at the time and what happened to them – one with bruises, one with burns and a third that led to the assault charge, with injuries consistent with shaken baby syndrome.

 That baby had bleeding and swelling in the head when the injuries came to light in January 2014 The child was 11 months old and now is 5. In fact, the prosecutor said, the baby was taken away from the parents and placed in foster care for seven months when state child welfare investigators thought the parents were at fault.

 The girl’s father and both sets of grandparents of the girl spoke next, saying the injuries came to light when they picked the girl up and she was lethargic, then threw up and was acting groggy. They took her to the hospital, where bleeding on the brain was found. A doctor told them it appeared there had been a previous injury.

 The family members said the little girl needed therapy for several years and that they remain worried about long-term impacts, but so far she’s a normal 5-year-old. The allegations of abuse also tore the family apart, they said, asking that the judge impose the full 35-year sentence sought by the state.

 The grandparents cried during their testimony. Neatherlin wiped her eyes and removed her glasses, before a break in the proceedings was called.

 The baby’s mother then testified, saying Neatherlin gave them fraudulent documents and that Neatherlin did not respond to repeated calls. She said the baby was shivering and shaking after being picked up from the day care and could barely roll over after the injuries. She said they had to take an ambulance to a Portland hospital, as a Life Flight helicopter could not fly due to the weather – and that they probably will never know exactly what happened.

 Another mother said she met Neatherlin when her daughter was 9 months old and she seemed nice and that she’d researched her name – though she gave the wrong name – and the family was in a pinch. A year later, they learned she had shoved scalding hot milk into the girl’s mouth, burning her mouth and shoulder.

 Neatherlin also had asked the family to watch her own child once, and she said when her husband went to the home, they found 16 children in the home. She said Neatherlin also told the family to give her (Neatherlin's) own daughter melatonin. That’s when she looked up Neatherlin under a different name and learned what was going on. She said her daughter came down with severe pneumonia and a doctor asked about abuse. She removed her child after 10 months in Neatherlin’s care.

 Another mother said they had been friends for over a decade when she placed a child with her. She said she’d tried to get the place shut down three years ago and was sorry her voice wasn’t heard.

 “She is a danger to society and all of our children,” the mother said. “She cannot be rehabilitated. She is and always will be a habitual offender.”

 Another mother said her baby was in Neatherlin’s care from 3 to 9 months of age and often was crying.

 The woman said they had been lied to and their child was mistreated. But she also said that “finding child care is a parent’s nightmare” – that she’d contacted 20 days cares before finding Neatherlin, who knew the struggles parents face finding day care.

 After time in Neatherlin's care, she said her child didn’t sleep through the night until after he turned a year old, having been fed melatonin for months.

 She said she and her husband attended therapy to cope with their loss of trust in people. Despite that, she said, "We will never feel safe leaving our children with anyone."

 Another mother told of how Neatherlin said she was licensed and could provide documentation – also assuring her that her daughter would be the only infant in her care.

 She said their daughter went to Little Giggles five days a week starting in August 2016, as both parents are teachers. Neatherlin told her to let her know when she was on her way to pick up her child.

 The woman said Neatherlin often said her baby could be tired because she hadn’t slept well. She said her daughter was always constipated and cried constantly. The mother, in tears, said what happened caused her to lose trust in people and the community.

 Her husband said Neatherlin repeatedly administered sleeping agent to children “and drove off in her car to fulfill her narcissistic needs. January had no respect for human life,” he said. “The community will be safer without her in it.”

 The afternoon session continued with more parents telling of their kids having lasting issues -- a mother said her daughter came home with broken blood vessels in her face and neck, and Neatherlin said it was from screaming. Her son, 4 years old at the time, remembers police entering the home and asks about Neatherlin.

 While the family feels betrayed and manipulated, the mother said, "I want to teach my kids about forgiveness and understanding."

 The children's father, crying and angry, called it "unbelievable that any person on this Earth ahs the capacity to make children a target."

 "In my opinion, your honor, 100 years would not be enough for this person," he said. "There is no place in this world for monsters like January."

 Ashby thanked each parent for their comments, telling this father: "It's great to hear your strength, and it gives this court a lot of confidence that your children are going to do well. So thank you for being here."

 Another mother said her children would start crying the moment she turned down Neatherlin's street, and their time in her home changed their behavior - her son trying to ransack the refrigerator and cupboards. The kids later told counselors she would hit or kick them and yell at them.

 "I will always wonder how this damage will shape who they will become," she said, before her husband called Neatherlin "an absolute manipulator."

 Neatherlin " has a lengthy criminal history of scamming people for her own financial gain," Gies and fellow Deputy District Attorney Errol Laure said in their 13-page sentencing memo, filed Wednesday, requesting the 35-year sentence.

 "She has repeatedly demonstrated that stealing is a way of life in her world," they wrote, noting her past theft and ID theft convictions. "This defendant has now taken her criminal scams to a new level and she has placed the lives of children in danger -- not once, not twice, but numerous times, day after day."

 In her day care operation, the prosecutors said Neatherlin "would tell parents what they wanted to hear, that she was licensed and certified to care for children and that she had CPR training. When a parent expressed concern about her child's medical needs, (Neatherlin) responded that would be fine, she could handle it, she was a trained RN (registered nurse). None of this was true."

 A former roommate and a former boyfriend, as well as other adults and children, "detailed atrocious behavior" by Neatherlin, prosecutors said, including "regularly giving melatonin to the children to put them to sleep while she would leave ... multiple children alone on numerous occasions," to go to a gym and tanning salon, as well as to take her own children to school.

 The prosecutors said one thing they found "important and disturbing ... was the ease with which she would lie. When parents were seeking out day care for their children, (she) always had the answer the parents were looking for," going so far as to "create her own certificate stating that she was licensed to provide day care. She was not."

 Parents were told they could not pick up or drop off children between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. "because this was 'nap time' for the children," and it would disrupt all of them.

 The prosecutors also said Neatherlin, since her arrest, had contacted other inmates in various ways "and has tried to get them to report they were working for her and helping with the day care services." In a letter to a former inmate, turned in to the DA's office, Neatherlin asked others to bring her bail money, "promising she had offshore accounts worth a lot of money" she would repay them from -- "yet another example of her denial and her scams."

 The prosecutors also laid out Neatherlin's criminal history, with at least five convictions before the day care investigation began, including several cases of theft and ID theft, such as buying a trampoline at Walmart, taking an old, rusted one, putting it in the box and returning it, as well as stealing from co-workers at St. Charles Bend.

 They also said three of the young day care victims were injured, one a burn to her lips because she heated a bottle in a microwave and didn't test it before forcing the girl to drink from it. The prosecutors said several of the children regularly given melatonin had "significant trouble sleeping through the night' until only recently.

 "The parents placed their children in (Neatherlin's) care, believing her lies, expecting their children would be cared for,” they wrote. “The defendant violated this expectation and trust."

 In her guilty plea petition, Neatherlin acknowledged she could face a maximum of 60 years in prison and a $1.5 million fine for the dozen guilty pleas. She will have 30 days to appeal her sentence to the Oregon Court of Appeals, if she wishes, and could challenge the sentence by petition on constitutional grounds such as inadequate defense within two years. ||||| A Bend day care owner who had been accused of slipping children melatonin so that she could hit the gym and go tanning was sentenced to 21 years and four months in prison by a Deschutes County judge Friday.

 January Neatherlin, 32, had been running an illegal childcare operation called Little Giggles for approximately four years and pleaded guilty to 11 counts of first-degree criminal mistreatment and one count of third-degree assault, according to court records. She had also lied to parents about being a registered nurse, even though she had no such qualifications.

 Bend police, based on tips provided by a former boyfriend and a former roommate, surveilled Neatherlin last March and saw her leave the house twice while she was supposed to be watching seven children.

 She drove her kids to school on the first trip. On the second, police found her at a local Tan Republic.

 The children who had been left in her care during those excursions had the sleep aid melatonin in their systems, according to a sentencing memo.

 Neatherlin had been telling parents they couldn't pick up or drop off their kids between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Police checked Cross Fit and Tan Republic records to find that's when she would leave the house, hours she referred to as "nap time."

 The Bend Bulletin also reports that a child in Neatherlin's care was once sent to a Portland hospital with multiple head injuries and that she admitted to overheating bottle of milk, giving a young child burns.

 Since her arrest last March, Neatherlin had approached other inmates and asked them to claim they had worked for her. She also wrote letters to former inmates asking for bail money and promised to pay them from offshore accounts worth "a lot of money," according to the sentencing memo.

 Neatherlin's rap sheet dates back to 2007, when she was charged with multiple instances of theft and identity theft. Court documents filed by the state describe her as having an "on-going, systematic scheme of doing what she wanted and getting what she wanted, without any concern for the danger she was placing others in."

 Prosecutors originally angled for a 35-year sentence.

 Follow @edercampuzano

 --Eder Campuzano | 503.221.4344

 ecampuzano@oregonian.com ||||| January Neatherlin listens as a parent describes to Judge Wells Ashby how her actions of abandoning their child has caused emotional, physical and financial damages to their family during her sentencing hearing at Deschutes County Circuit Court on Friday, March 9, 2018. (Ryan Brennecke/Bulletin photo) 7252860

 January Neatherlin listens as a parent describes to Judge Wells Ashby how her actions of abandoning their child has caused emotional, physical and financial damages to their family during her sentencing hearing at Deschutes County Circuit Court on Friday, March 9, 2018. (Ryan Brennecke/Bulletin photo) - Bulletin

 January Neatherlin addresses the parents and family members of the children she abandoned during her sentencing hearing at Deschutes County Circuit Court on Friday, March 9, 2018. (Ryan Brennecke/Bulletin photo) 7252859

 January Neatherlin addresses the parents and family members of the children she abandoned during her sentencing hearing at Deschutes County Circuit Court on Friday, March 9, 2018. (Ryan Brennecke/Bulletin photo) - Bulletin

 January Neatherlin wipes her eye as she addresses the parents and family members of the children she abandoned during her sentencing hearing at Deschutes County Circuit Court on Friday, March 9, 2018. (Ryan Brennecke/Bulletin photo) 7252861

 January Neatherlin wipes her eye as she addresses the parents and family members of the children she abandoned during her sentencing hearing at Deschutes County Circuit Court on Friday, March 9, 2018. (Ryan Brennecke/Bulletin photo) - Bulletin

 January Neatherlin addresses the parents and family members of the children she abandoned during her sentencing hearing at Deschutes County Circuit Court on Friday, March 9, 2018. (Ryan Brennecke/Bulletin photo) 7253030

 January Neatherlin addresses the parents and family members of the children she abandoned during her sentencing hearing at Deschutes County Circuit Court on Friday, March 9, 2018. (Ryan Brennecke/Bulletin photo) - Bulletin

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 After a contentious sentencing that revealed horrific details about an illegal day care in northeast Bend, its former owner, January Neatherlin was sentenced to 21 years, 4 months in prison.

 She had ignored and abandoned children, even burned a baby with scalding milk. Parents of one child say Neatherlin violently shook their daughter.

 “There is something broken and something missing in you,” Deschutes County Circuit Judge Wells Ashby told Neatherlin, who had drugged children and left them at her Little Giggles Daycare while she went to a tanning salon or to work out. “It is this court’s hope that you are able to find it or reconstruct it, and make yourself whole at some point.”

 During the hearing Friday, parents and grandparents of more than a dozen children left in Neatherlin’s care spoke about their experiences with her over the course of nearly five years.

 Statements from Deschutes County Deputy District Attorney Kandy Gies and concerned family members revealed that she had sent a child to a Portland-area hospital with multiple head injuries, and admitted to causing burns on a young child by overheating a bottle of milk. Parents accused Neatherlin of everything from disrupting children’s sleep cycles to striking them.

 “I don’t know what’s wrong with the defendant; I don’t know what could bring a person to do what she’s done to the most helpless and innocent people in our society,” said Les Adams, the grandfather of one of the children. “But I hope she can understand that she damn near killed the easiest, happiest, most easygoing baby I’ve ever known in my life.”

 Neatherlin pleaded guilty in February to 11 counts of first-degree criminal mistreatment and one count of third-degree assault. Each of the counts was related to a different child under her care, according to Gies. Prosecutors had pushed for 35 years in prison, according to The Bulletin’s archives.

 Before she was sentenced, Neatherlin addressed the families of those children publicly for the first time. Wiping away tears and brushing a lock of dark hair from her eyes, Neatherlin apologized to a room of about 30 parents, grandparents and young children.

 “I loved all my day care kids as my own, and I believe they loved me and enjoyed hanging out with me during the week,” she said. “But I failed you all. I let you all down.”

 A baby brought by one of the families in attendance cried softly while Neatherlin spoke.

 Neatherlin was arrested March 15, 2017, after police followed up on a tip that she was leaving young children alone in her home where she operated her day care on Blue Bush Court. They found children between 6 months and 4 years old alone in the home. Seven of the criminal mistreatment charges relate to the children found in March 2017.

 However, her problems with children began well before last year. On Jan. 21, 2014, an 11-month-old child was picked up from Little Giggles and rushed to St. Charles Bend, and eventually to Doernbecher Children’s Hospital in Portland with bleeding and swelling in her head. The head injuries were consistent with a baby being shaken or struck repeatedly, according to Adams, the child’s grandfather, and were the source of the third-degree assault charge.

 During her apology, Neatherlin said she turned her back on the 11-month-old girl to answer a phone call and the baby fell while sitting up.

 “I didn’t think she hurt her head; I didn’t think she was injured in any way,” Neatherlin said. “I would never hurt her.”

 During the sentencing, the judge rejected that description of the assault, describing it as inconsistent with the evidence in this case. After the hearing, Adams called it “an outright lie.”

 The other four criminal mistreatment charges are from previous incidents with children in Neatherlin’s care in 2013, 2015 and 2016. One of the parents during that period, Audrey Torrance, said Neatherlin heated a bottle of milk in the microwave, which left her daughter with blisters on her mouth and shoulders. Torrance said Neatherlin at the time called the injuries spider bites when pressed about it.

 “She has shown no remorse, after being confronted multiple times by multiple sets of parents,” Torrance said.

 Devin Lewis, a sergeant with the Bend Police Department, testified that one of the children found in her home was covered in vomit that was still damp, and officers were concerned that the child was choking.

 “What we saw was shocking,” Lewis said.

 Other statements during the sentencing included a litany of crimes — diaper rash, poor nutrition, allegations of scratching.

 “This isn’t a one-time, ‘oops, I made a mistake,’” Gies said. “This is a continued course of conduct that went on for several years.”

 Angela Therese Lee-Mandlin, Neatherlin’s attorney, objected to allegations that Neatherlin had beaten or punched any children. Lee-Mandlin added that Neatherlin opted not to enter an Alford plea, which allows defendants to concede that the state has sufficient evidence to find them guilty while not admitting any criminal conduct. She did so, Lee-Mandlin said, to atone for what she’d done.

 When passing the sentence, Ashby said he wanted to balance Neatherlin’s efforts to improve while in prison with her consistent pattern of reckless behavior.

 “It is sheer serendipity and chance that some of those kids were not killed,” he said.

 Adams said he hoped that the sentence would be longer, and added that he hoped there was a condition that she never be near kids again. The vast majority of parents testifying advocated for the maximum allowable sentence.

 “In my opinion, your honor,” said Kevin Hord, one of the fathers in attendance, “100 years would not be enough.”

 — Reporter: 541-617-7818, shamway@bendbulletin.com

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What is a summary?

– The operator of the Little Giggles day care center in Bend, Ore., had a rule: Parents couldn't drop off or collect their children between 11am and 2pm. That was the period January Neatherlin referred to as "nap time"—and when she headed out to go tanning and to CrossFit. The 32-year-old was on Friday sentenced to just north of 21 years in prison after pleading guilty to 11 counts of first-degree criminal mistreatment and one count of third-degree assault. Per court documents, Neatherlin would give the children in her care the sleep aid melatonin and then take off. Her misdeeds didn't end there: the daycare was an illegal one, and she was not a registered nurse, though she told parents otherwise. The Oregonian reports the scheme unraveled after an ex-boyfriend and ex-roommate tipped off police, who began tracking Neatherlin a year ago. They observed her exiting the house on two occasions, leaving alone seven kids, ages 6 months to 4 years, reports the Bend Bulletin. Bend Police Sgt. Devin Lewis testified that "what we saw was shocking." For example, one of the kids left unattended was found covered in damp vomit, and KTVZ reports Lewis feared the child could have possibly suffocated without intervention. Using CrossFit and Tan Republic records, police verified Neatherlin visited those establishments during "nap time" hours. Four of the charges relate to prior incidents, in which Neatherlin was said to have burned a baby with scalding milk; on another occasion, an 11-month-old was taken to a hospital with head injuries. Said the sentencing judge: "It is sheer serendipity and chance that some of those kids were not killed." (This day care is also in the news over alleged melatonin use.)