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November 2008 |
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By MATT NICHOLS
Staff Writer
A former Wapakoneta law enforcement officer’s future is now in the hands of seven state Supreme Court justices.
Former Wapakoneta Police Chief Dave Harrison’s 6-year-old sex crime case reached the pinnacle in Ohio’s court system Wednesday, as justices heard arguments from Harrison’s attorney Dean Boland and state prosecutor Scott Longo.
Each party had 15 minutes to present their case to the justices. After both attorneys argued their cases, a single word in Harrison’s sentencing entry and a grilling delivered to Longo by justice Maureen O’Connor left Boland optimistic about his client’s future.
In June, 2003, Harrison plead guilty to a six-count bill of information after child pornography was found on his computer. After entering his plea, the man who served as police chief from 1988 to 2002 was sentenced to one year in jail.
Seven months after he completed his sentence, it was discovered by county prosecutors that Harrison should have been sentenced with an additional five years of mandatory post release control, or probation.
During a court hearing, Harrison was given the option to either be re-sentenced or withdraw his plea. Harrison chose the latter, taking things back to square one.
With the plea withdrawn, the state of Ohio slapped Harrison with a 23-count indictment which he was ultimately found guilty of and sentenced to six years in prison.
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Wednesday, 23 July 2008 |
By ANDREA POTEET
Staff Writer
Walking down the hallway of the Wapakoneta Manor retirement home, Lin Morgan and her 3-year-old mixed-breed dog, Stanley, stop when they reach the door of an old friend.
“What are you doing, Dodi?” Morgan calls into the room of resident Dodi Knutzen.
“I was just eating,” Knutzen said, her face breaking into a smile as she sees the dog, “and thinking of you, kid.”
With that, Stanley runs up to Knutzen and claims his regular spot on her bed.
Morgan, a volunteer for Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based Share-A-Pet, visits the retirement home, as well as the St. Rita’s Hospice in Lima and Shawnee Manor for a few hours once every two weeks.
The dog therapy organization sends out dogs trained by volunteer handlers to nursing homes, hospitals, and other facilities.
At some facilities, his visits have medicinal effects, Morgan said. Residents who use walkers have an added incentive to exercise when they walk with Stanley. she said.
One woman at St. Rita’s Medical Center in Lima was bedridden for more than a year but took her first steps when Morgan promised she’d let her take the dog on walk. Morgan said.
The dog is also a welcomed visitor for many who may not have regular visitors, Morgan said.
“I think Stanley makes people laugh,” Morgan said. “He brings joy to their lives.”
Morgan, a realtor, rescued Stanley from an abandoned home she was selling in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. more than two years ago. When she read a newspaper article about Share-A-Pet and its founder, Sachin Mayi, who began the program with one dog in 2003, she decided to volunteer. The organization now has more than 300 volunteers.
After a three-week training program that included general obedience and monitored trips to convalescent homes, Morgan spent a year volunteering with Stanley near her Florida home before moving back to Lima.
She and her granddaughter, Savanna Booth, 15, are the only two volunteers from the group based in the area. She said she is actively searching for volunteers with well-behaved dogs to lend their time to the organization.
“I’ve always been a believer that you need to give back,” Morgan said. “It’s something that gets under your skin when you see the happiness these animals bring people.”
One particular display of happiness cemented her commitment to the program, Morgan said.
At a hospital in Florida, she met a physician and a woman whose mother was in a coma. The woman told Morgan that her mother had always raised dogs and asked her to take Stanley in to see her. Morgan said Stanley hopped up on the bed and kissed the woman’s face and the woman broke into a smile and a tear rolled down her cheek.
“He had gotten through to this woman,” Morgan said. “I knew then that I was hooked.”
Wapakoneta Manor resident Betty Ridenour said she looks forward to her meetings with Stanley twice each month.
“I’m a dog lover,” Ridenour said. “I’ve always had them back home, but I can’t have them here.”
“Betty is one of Stanley’s favorites,” Morgan said. “She knows just where to scratch him.”
Morgan has rescued six other dogs in the past; some she has found homes for and others she has kept, but she said Stanley had a little something extra that would make him a good therapy dog.
“The most important aspect of a dog that does pet assistance is personality,” Morgan said. “Stanley never met a stranger.”
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Last Updated ( Monday, 28 July 2008 )
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