East Haddam News

A guided hike with views of the Salmon and Connecticut rivers will be held on New Year's Day, hosted by the East Haddam Land Trust. via Hartford Courant

“We're two guys who are not only a little nuts over Christmas but both of our moms are, too”

EAST HADDAM, Conn. - Certain sparkly specimens come to mind at the mention of 'famous Christmas trees': The one rising from Rockefeller Center, of course. via Poughkeepsie Journal

A former firefighter has been sentenced to prison for using hidden cameras to spy on his stepdaughter. via WFSB-TV Hartford

A retired New Haven firefighter has been sentenced to six months in prison for secretly videotaping his stepdaughter. via WNBC-TV New York

A decade ago, retired New Haven firefighter Richard Stevenson might have faced a misdemeanor breach of peace or disorderly conduct charge for secretly videotaping his stepdaughter undressing and having sex with her boyfriend. But in 1999, voyeurism became a crime in Connecticut, raising the stakes for video voyeurs who could now get a year in prison. Those caught distributing the photos or videos faced a felony of up to five years in jail. Stevenson's was one of the more high-profile cases of video voyeurism prosecuted in the state since legislators stiffened the penalties in 2003 for video voyeurs who did not disseminate photos or videos. He was sent to prison Monday for six months, a sentence his victim said is not long enough. Stevenson, 59, now a Hamden resident, admitted to police that he hid cameras inside the East Haddam home he lived in with his former wife and her daughter. Stevenson said he put cameras in a carbon monoxide detector, the basement ceiling and on a night table in the stepdaughter's bedroom. Stevenson's attorney, Thomas E. Farver, urged Judge Patrick J. Clifford in Superior Court on Monday to spare Stevenson prison. He had no criminal record, had served in the Army and had served at one of New Haven's busiest firehouses for more than 35 years. 'He did not want to bring further humiliation and shame to the department,' Farver said about Stevenson's retirement from the firehouse shortly after he was arrested. 'If this never occurred, he'd still be there.' Stevenson had faced 18 months in prison after pleading no contest in October to one count of voyeurism, now a Class D felony that carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. Assistant State's Attorney Jeffrey Doskos called the 18 months 'a favorable offer' since Doskos said he considered it a case of sexual assault 'by use of a camera.' The stepdaughter told Clifford she used to look up to Stevenson. 'He broke my trust,' she said. 'A fireman is supposed to save lives, not destroy them.' Clifford said any time Stevenson does in jail 'is going to be serious' and added that Stevenson's name will join the state's registry of sex offenders. Stevenson also received five months' probation and was ordered to get sex-offender treatment. In Connecticut, someone who knowingly photographs, films, videotapes, or otherwise records another person's image without that person's knowledge and consent is guilty of voyeurism and is motivated by either malice or an intent to satisfy or arouse his or another person's sexual desires. The filming must be of someone who is not in plain view and has a reasonable expectation of privacy. Voyeurism became a crime following several incidents of secret videotaping in the state, including one in which a male Cheshire High School student in 1997 videotaped four females changing into their swimsuits at pool parties and distributed the footage. The boy was charged with breach of peace because the state had no laws applying to the case. Read more

A retired New Haven firefighter who pleaded no contest to charges that he videotaped his adult stepdaughter in their East Haddam home without her permission was sentenced Monday to six months in prison.

Richard Stevenson, 59, now of Hamden, told police he hid cameras inside a carbon monoxide detector, the basement ceiling and on a night table in the stepdaughter's bedroom that recorded the woman undressing and having sex with her boyfriend, according to an arrest warrant affidavit.

Prosecutors had argued for a sentence of 18 months in prison. Superior Court Judge Patrick Clifford handed down the sentence. Read more

A mystery set in the underworld of 20th-century Japan is the story told in 'Jade Rooster' (Broadsides, $17.95). The author is R.L. Crossland, a retired U.S. Navy officer who lives in Connecticut.

Crossland will talk about his book Saturday at 4 p.m. at Burgundy Books, 4 Norwich Road, East Haddam.

Also at Burgundy Books, on Saturday at 2 p.m., will be some of the authors of 'The Dangerous Book for Dogs' (Villard, $15.95). The parody book, ostensibly written by 'Rex and Sparky,' is in fact the work of writers Joe Garden, Chris Pauls, Anita Serwacki, Janet Ginsburg and Scott Sherman. The first three will visit the bookstore to sign copies. Read more

“I'm so excited to be back in such an incredibly charming theater and hope that people come support the Players, especially during the holiday season.”

Set for Dec. 7 and 8, the concert features Cassandra Kubinsky, originally from Enfield. via Windsor Journal

“This class would have made Venture Smith very happy”

It takes many kinds of narrators to tell the full story of slave-turned-merchant Venture Smith - historians and scientists to uncover the story, actors and poets to bring it to life, his many living descendants who recall the legends of their ancestor, and, of course, Smith himself, who dictated his autobiography.

Last fall, a diverse chorus of narrators visited the University of Connecticut to tell that story in what is believed to have been the first academic course devoted entirely to the study of a man who was born a West African prince but was kidnapped and sold into slavery, one of the hundreds of thousands of people who sailed the Middle Passage in chains and one of the few to record his story. The freshman honors class used Smith, whose life and legacy are being dissected by an international community of scholars and scientists, to explore the meaning of identity from a scientific, legal, philosophical, historical and artistic viewpoint, said genetics Professor Rachel O'Neill. Read more

“We had some that were quite simple, and some that were elaborate. We were able to make up a nice variety on the platters.”

If visions of December afternoons, spent in the cozy warmth of the kitchen, turning out picture perfect Christmas cookies, dance in your head, then it's time to fire up the oven. via Hartford Courant

The annual community carol sing will be held Dec. 16 from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Grange Hall on Town Street. via Hartford Courant

The planning and zoning commission's public hearing on the draft plan of conservation and development, which officials have dubbed a 'long-range operating manual' for the town, will be held Thursday beginning ... via Hartford Courant

“He told me that the workmanship and everything about the puzzle was excellent, but that he would never order another puzzle from me because they were way too hard for him.”

After losing his job as a purchasing agent at a New Jersey company in 1995, Mark Cappitella turned to a childhood hobby - woodworking - and discovered a talent for creating jigsaw puzzles. via Hartford Courant

“After a successful run last year, Goodspeed audiences will be treated to a full scale production featuring an expanded orchestra and bigger, broader dance numbers”

Goodspeed Musicals, under the leadership of Michael P. Price - who will be celebrating his 40th year as the Tony Award-honored troupe's executive director - announced Happy Days, Half a Sixpence and Big River ... via Playbill

The Minneapolis bridge collapse last summer had particular resonance for Connecticut residents who still shiver with the chilling memory of a similar tragedy that killed three people driving over the Mianus ... via Hartford Courant

She's an actress, was a professional cheerleader, rides horses and is now a book publisher. via Hartford Courant

Burgundy Books in East Haddam is showcasing writers who live in Connecticut whose debut books are being released by small or independent presses or are self-published. The author selected for November is ... via Hartford Courant

“Of all the travelogues ever published, none is more ambitious, controversial and erratic than Marco Polo's 'Description of the World.”

Marco! Polo! The author of a new book about the fabled 13th-century traveler, whose 'Description of the World' is still controversial today, will talk about 'Marco Polo: From Venice to Xanadu' at Burgundy ... via Hartford Courant