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Legislature Acts to Honor Slain Officer

The V.I. Legislature voted Thursday to posthumously honor V.I. Police Officer Cuthbert Chapman and to name the Frederiksted Bicycle Substation of the V.I. Police Department in his honor.

Sen. Terrence "Positive Nelson sponsored the measure, which passed unanimously. The respected and well-liked police officer Chapman was gunned down while trying to prevent the armed robbery of Wendy’s restaurant in 2004.

Four individuals are serving life sentences without possibility of parole for his murder.

The Legislature also unanimously passed a measure sponsored by Sen. Alicia "Chucky" Hansen declaring July 10 – the birthday of the late Gov. Juan F. Luis – a "day of special recognition in the Virgin Islands."

Also honored was longtime baseball, softball and volleyball player, coach, umpire and booster Joe "Joemeat" Sprauve for his decades of service to the territory’s youth.

The Legislature approved the nomination of Richard Doumeng, Bolongo Bay Beach Resort managing director, for a post on the V.I. Taxi Association.

The Legislature also approved several nonbinding resolutions. One would authorize the governor to execute an agreement to establish a technical school on St. Thomas. No funding currently exists for the project, and the bill does not identify or appropriate any funds.

Since the governor must come to the Legislature to approve leases and land purchases, the measure will help the government proceed once it has funds, said the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Alvin Williams, during committee hearings.

Another measure sponsored by Williams, Sens. Patrick Sprauve and Janette Millin-Young authorized the governor to negotiate for the purchase or exchange of land on St. Thomas for a car racing track.

A third expressed the Legislature’s opposition to any new fishing regulations without using local fisheries landing data to support them, sponsored by, Sens. Louis Hill, Sprauve and Sammuel Sanes.

In other business, the Legislature overrode Gov. John deJongh Jr.’s line-item veto of a section of Act 7346, authorizing the V.I. Government Employee Retirement System to conduct a feasibility and cost study for allowing private businesses and their employees to participate in the retirement system.

Voting yea on the veto override were Hansen, Nelson, Sanes, Sprauve, Williams, Sens. Craig Barshinger, Carlton "Ital" Dowe, Neville James, Shawn-Michael Malone, Nereida "Nellie" Rivera-O’Reilly, Usie Richards and Ronald Russell. Voting nay were Hill and Millin-Young. Sen. Celestino White was absent at the time of the vote.

The Legislature also passed numerous bills Thursday, which are discussed elsewhere in the Source.

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