Stories from Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Voters will go to the polls next Tuesday, Nov. 6, to cast ballots to elect candidates ranging from president of the United States to soil and water conservation district supervisors. Locally, two county commissioner posts and all three seats from the new Legislative District 23 are up for grabs...

Emergency responders from Mountain Home prepare to move a patient onto a waiting stretcher following a two-car collision at the intersection of Frontage Road and Highway 30 on Friday. According to information from the Elmore County Sheriff's Office, the driver of a Ford Fiesta pulled out onto the highway from Ditto Creek Road where he was broadsided by a mini van coming off the interstate at Exit 90...

Witnesses tried to recall details of events that occurred more than a decade before as Elmore County Prosecutor Kristina Schindele and deputy prosecutor Lee Fisher continued to present their case last week against Jorge Alberto Lopez-Orozco. He is charged with the 2002 murders of Rebecca 'Becky'Rameriz, 4-year-old Ricardo Rameriz and 2-year-old Miguel Rameriz...

The city Parks and Recreation Department will host this year's Super Safe Halloween Carnival from 6-8 p.m. tonight at Hacker Middle School. "We take pride in offering a safe place for children to dress up for Halloween, play games and enjoy lots of candy and prizes that we have for all participants," said Deb Brito, assistant recreation director with the city department...

Mountain Home Police will be out in force tonight helping keep Halloween safe as goblins, ghosts and ghouls travel throughout the city in hopes of collecting the most candy. Police spokesman Sgt. Rick Viola said there have been few problems in recent years, as more and more people have opted for Halloween parties, such as the city's Super Safe Halloween at Hacker Middle School, rather than going door to door trick-or-treating...

Maria Dominguez and Keith Warrick have announced the birth of a girl, Makaila Mae Warrick, on Oct. 3, 2012, at Elmore Medical Center in Mountain Home, Idaho. Makaila weighed 7 pounds, 5.2 ounces, and was 20 inches long at birth. She joins a sister, Tiannah Adeline Warrick, 16 months, at home...

Barbara Thomas, daughter of Tom Thomas of Bruneau, and Daniel Hiler, son of Fred and Kathleen Hiler of Mountain Home, were united in marriage by George Cotton at the Shalimar Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas, Nev., on Oct. 20, 2012. The bride's grandparents are Keith and Grace Thomas of Bruneau. The groom's grandparents are Addie Whitt and Fred Hiler of Mountain Home...

Dear editor: While most of our attention is on the upcoming national elections, it is extremely important to remember that our local elections have the same impact on some of the same issues: jobs, economy, etc. As one of your former county commissioners for six years and the current Elmore County representative for the Area Agency on Aging, I feel well qualified to support Bud Corbus for the position of county commissioner...

Dear editor: I, Pete Nielsen, candidate for District 23B, do subscribe to the following political views, which are limited because of space allowed for printing. First thank you to the paper for allowing me the space. I will go directly to the Declaration of Independence...

Dear editor: I am writing in response to the editorial in this week's paper: "Kiss of Death." I am okay with the editorial board deciding not to support Al Hofer for County Commissioner, but I am not okay with them putting out false information. If they are, in fact, basing this decision on his voting record then they should take into consideration his entire record and not put out false information. ...

Dear editor: Voting YES on propositions 1, 2, and 3 is a stand for accountability, excellence and teaching innovation. Teacher unions put teachers first, not the students. Collective bargaining without concern for performance is the objective of the union. Numbers translate to power for the self-serving collective. Growth is the focus. Power is the objective. These unions shelter the tenured incompetent member while intimidating new teachers to join...

Dear editor: A USGS study discussing the effects of habitat and predator compositions on waterfowl nesting sites says "Intensive predator management is a warranted and important alternative when habitat management alone is inadequate." The study describes waterfowl as an "economic, recreational, and aesthetic resource" appreciated by 22 million (2006) hunters and non-consumptive users. Dwindling habitat and highly-adaptable predator populations are cited as the main threats to this resource...

Dear editor: Thank you very much. On Oct. 12, I was in line at the Dollar Tree store purchasing stocking caps. The lady behind me asked what I was going to do with so many caps. I explained that every year we make up and deliver Christmas gift bags to the veterans in the nursing homes and the caps are one of the items that go in the bags...

A story published in the Oct. 31 edition of the Mountain Home News lists an incorrect time when polls will open during the general election on Tuesday. Polls will open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. that day. In-person absentee voting ends this Friday, Nov. 2. The general election will be held next Tuesday, Nov. 6. Absentee voting can be conducted from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Elmore County Courthouse and there is no longer a requirement to explain why people are choosing to vote absentee...