Good morning. Bridgeport issues absentee ballots for the November mayoral election despite a trial starting this week into alleged election fraud.
A judge will consider whether to toss out the results of the city’s recent Democratic primary due to surveillance video showing a supporter of Mayor Joe Ganim allegedly stuffing an absentee ballot box. A second video suggests a supporter of his opponent John Gomes also engaging in fraudulent voting. The state is expected to appoint a monitor for the city’s voting system.
Here’s a bite-sized look at what else we're hearing:
A former Connecticut state employee faces charges after a gunfight in a Bristol police station. Suzanne Laprise, 51, allegedly open-fired in the station lobby on Thursday. She was hit with a stun gun and was handcuffed. Laprise allegedly begged for officers to kill her. No one was injured by the gunfire. Laprise faces nine felony charges, including attempted murder of an on-duty police officer.
A Smithtown school bus driver who was fired for drinking alcohol on the job will avoid criminal charges, according to Suffolk County Police. Amal Hanna told Newsday that she believed the White Claw was a regular seltzer. Hanna said she could not taste the alcohol after undergoing cancer treatment. She was pulled off the job mid-route Wednesday while bringing students home Wednesday from Smithtown High School West.
Sikorsky will partner to build unmanned helicopters to fight forest fires. Rain, an autonomous aviation startup, announced the collaboration with the Connecticut-based helicopter manufacturer. Sikorsky already has a Matrix autonomy suite, and Rain has developed a Wildfire Mission Autonomy System to issue mission commands to an unmanned Black Hawk.
Suffolk County wants to cultivate seaweed in Peconic Bay and Gardiners Bay. The plan builds on an existing partnership with Stony Brook University and a pilot program that is expected to be completed by 2024. The county’s leasing program provides access to publicly-owned underwater space for private and commercial shellfishing.
Hofstra University has completed a $75 million Science and Innovation Center. The facility will be shared by the Hofstra/Northwell School of Nursing and Physician Assistant Studies and the Fred DeMatteis School of Engineering and Applied Science. Governor Kathy Hochul said the building was paid for with a $25 million grant from the Empire State Development and $2 million from the Long Island Regional Economic Development Council.
Connecticut has a new law in effect to combat artificial intelligence. As of Oct. 1, the measure will create a task force to help the state understand how to use AI and regulate private industry use of the emerging technology. The goal is to create an AI Bill of Rights, and establish an Office of Artificial Intelligence to review concerns around data privacy and creativity.
