Madison News Roundup

Area residents are invited to recycle their old electronics from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, April 3, at Hammonasset Beach State Park. Accepted electronics include computers, telephones (both cell and land line), televisions, copiers, printers, VCRs, microwaves, and more. Any hard drives will be erased or destroyed.

Electronics are a danger to the environment when disposed of improperly because they contain toxic materials such as lead and mercury.

The recycling is sponsored by the Connecticut Resources Recovery Authority for towns in the Mid-Connecticut region. You can find the list of towns whose residents are eligible to participate here.

If you are unable to make the event but would still like to participate, call (203) 318-0242 to arrange for a pick up of your electronics. For more information, go to http://www.crra.org/pages/recy_electronics.htm, or call (203) 318-0242.

Stephen Ferreira

Madison’s Stephen Ferreira, a senior at the University of Connecticut and captain of UConn’s diving team, competed at the NCAA Division I Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships this past weekend at Ohio State University.

Ferreira, an All-Big East selection this year and the champion of the three-meter diving event at the NCAA Zones, competed in both the one-meter dive and the three-meter dive.

In the one-meter dive, Ferreira scored 294.35 points for 29th place in the preliminaries while he was 28th in the three-meter dive with a score of 287.70.

You would be well advised to keep your doors locked and a sharp lookout for any suspicious activity in your neighborhood.

Madison Police are investigating two more residential burglaries that occurred on March 27 on Country Way off of Bradley Corners Road. The burglaries are believed to have occured at approximately 9 p.m. Guilford Police are also investigating a similar burglary off of Podunk Road in that town.  Anyone with information is requested to contact Madison Police, attention Det. Bill Roy.

These are the latest in a string of burglaries that have been reported, primarily in the northern part of town. On March 18, a resident of Esterly Farms Road arrived home at approximately 8 p.m. and saw a 20- to 30-year-old male wearing dark pants and a dark pea coat-style jacket running from the area carrying a bag. Canine tracking of the suspect proved unsuccessful. It was the second burglary in that condo complex over the past several months.

Using the department’s Nixle alert system, Madison police have reported more than 10 residential and commercial burglaries and thefts from cars since the beginning of the year. Incidents have included thefts from motor vehicles on Cornfield Lane, Farm View Lane, Pond View Lane, and White Cedar Lane; residential burglaries on Esterly Farms Road, Stepping Stone Lane, Langshire Drive, Concord Drive, Sperry Road, Hickory Lane, and Country Way; commercial burglary of a car wash on the Post Road, and a burglary at the Academy Street School on the town green. Three juveniles were arrest in connection with the school break in.

There will be an open meeting of Nite in Hand at 6:30 tonight in the Daniel Hand High School Library Media Center. Nite in Hand is currently planning the post-graduation party for the Daniel Hand High School Class of 2010. The organization is seeking volunteers, raffle items, and donations, according to the group’s website. Nite in Hand is also looking for baked goods for the bake sale and senior auction that will start at 6 p.m. on April 6. For more information, visit the group’s website.

We’re about a day late with this weekend’s listings — sorry about that. We hope you made it to Friday’s third of Five Fridays Lenten Concert Series at the Congregational Church or to the free wine tasting at the Madison Wine Shop (as of this posting, it’s still not too late, and Rick just tweeted that a “1995 Lynch Bages is open and drinking beautifully!” If you missed Friday’s wine tasting, there’s another one starting at noon on Saturday).

SATURDAY:

The Madison and Guilford chambers of commerce are creating a Women in Business networking group as an extra benefit for their respective members.  The group will meet every other month and will feature local speakers and timely topics.  The first luncheon meeting will take place at noon on Wednesday, April 28, at the Café Allegre in Madison.  The featured speaker will be Ann Nyberg, WTNH anchorperson and Madison resident.

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Jeffrey Hamburg

The fact that Jeffrey Hamburg is now being called a suspect in the murder of his ex-wife probably will not surprise many people (“You don’t have to be Einstein” to figure that out, defense attorney Hugh Keefe told the Hartford Courant).  But allegations that he was involved in an international money laundering scheme — and that his ex-wife had contacted authorities about his involvement — may raise a few eyebrows.

Citing an anonymous source, the New Haven Register reports that Barbara Hamburg sought out authorities because she claimed that Jeffrey Hamburg had acquired at least $100 million in an international money-laundering scheme.

In an even stranger turn, the Register reports that Jeffrey Hamburg’s criminal defense attorney, Hugh Keefe, also represented Barbara Hamburg back in 2004 when she said she would tell federal investigators about her ex-husband’s financial dealings in exchange for immunity, the anonymous source said.

Asked about the alleged money-laundering scheme and his representation of Barbara Hamburg, , Keefe told the Register that there was no conflict of interest and that their information was only partially correct.

The body of Barbara Hamburg, 48, was found late in the morning on March 3 on the lawn of her rented home at 44 Middle Beach Road West. The state medical examiner’s office said she died from multiple blunt and sharp force injuries, and the death was ruled a homicide. She had been scheduled to appear in court that morning with her ex-husband in a hearing related to their 2002 divorce. Jeffrey Hamburg was present for the hearing.

Madison police have said they have wanted to speak with Jeffrey Hamburg in connection with the murder, but that he was not a suspect. Keefe said Wednesday that his client is being investigated as a suspect in the case.

Jeffrey Hamburg appeared in New Haven Family Court Wednesday in connection with $151,000 he owes his late ex-wife for child support, attorney fees, and other expenses. He owes his late ex-wife and their two children a total $475,000, the Register reported. He filed for bankruptcy last week.

The Madison, CT Board of Education has decided to the move the first day of school in 2011 from Monday, August 30 to Tuesday, August 31. The board made the change based on a recommendation of the Madison Public Schools’ Administrative Team.

“We (administration) believe that a four day opening week of school is a much more humane and thoughtful way to transition students back into the school routine after the summer break,” School Superintendent David J. Klein wrote in a letter to parents.

The change means that the last day of school next year will be June 15. The full school calendar can be viewed here.

Klein also reminded residents of other upcoming significant dates on this year’s school calendar:

• School is closed on Friday, April 2 (Good Friday holiday)
• Spring Athletic Programs began on March 22nd, and the Daniel Hand High School Spring Athletics Meeting for Parents and Students is scheduled on Monday, April 5 at 6 p.m. in the Daniel Hand High School Dining and Assembly Hall.
• The Opening Reception for the Annual K-12 Visual Arts Exhibit is scheduled on April 7 in the E.C. Scranton Memorial Library Community Room from 7- 8:30 p.m. The exhibit will remain open during regular library hours from April 7- 24.

The Trust for Public Land (TPL) still needs to raise $1 million of the $1.7 million it has committed to the town of Madison’s purchase of the former Griswold Airport property.

The TPL was supposed to provide written confirmation to the town by March 15 that it had its share of the funds in hand, according to the New Haven Register. Alicia Betty of the TPL said the organization has raised about $700,000 for the project. She said it is not unusual for the TPL to have to raise $1 million for a project with 7 weeks until closing, the Register reported.

Republican Town Committee Chairman Tom Banisch has said the deal should be scrapped because the TPL missed the funds confirmation deadline. Banisch, speaking as a private citizen, said the deal should be considered null and void and the town should negotiate a better deal with Leyland, the Register reported. The town is paying $7.8 million toward the purchase.

First Selectman Filmore McPherson said he was advised by town counsel that the missed dealine does not matter because the closing date on the Griswold deal has been moved from April 1 to May 4. The change was made so that the town has time to pursue several grants, including a Department of Environmental Protection grant worth $500,000, McPherson told the Register.