CCNA BET COMPETITI' ille b e a v e r .c o m A K V H 1 E M e e t th e Far the finest in CUSTOM UPHOLSTERING call Baier's. Makers o f fine upholstered ftimiture. 2333 Wyecroft Road, Unit 7 B u c k re c a p tu re s j C A SC A R c ro w n B ra in y B u n c h b e tw e e n "B ro n te *T h irdL in o (U/-Z001 oyt FOCUS Vol. 39 No. 85 I SPO RTS WEDNESDAY. JULY 18,2001_________ M ercedes-Benz 75 Cents { p l w G S T ^ A Metroland Publication Cyclist says officer beat him Jeremy Melendez says when he was stopped by police officer, he was ticketed and beaten - now he wants to know why A "I said 'What? What did I do?' " said Melendez. 27-year old Oakville man has filed a for mal complaint with the Halton Regional "That sent him flying." The cyclist said the officer told him he was under Police after he was allegedly beaten by a Halton officer last week and handed $655 worth arrest so Melendez put his arms behind his back. He said the officer held his arms and starting striking his of cycling-related fines during the same incident. Jeremy Melendez said he was riding his bike right leg and foot "several times" with a baton before westbound on Speers Road at the incline near he was pushed to the ground. "The officer said 'I 'm going to pepper spray you!' Sixteen Mile Creek around 9:45 a.m. on Sun. July 8 " said Melendez. "The when he was stopped by handcuff's were so tight, an officer. It was then, said but I didn't resist." Melendez, that he was After a second officer arrested and beaten, then responded, Melendez was later fined and charged placed in a cruiser, at with assaulting police. which time he asked "All this for riding my about his bicycle and bike on a Sunday morn Walkman. He said one of ing?" said Melendez, a the officers told him they roofer by trade, who later were "probably stolen." that same day returned to #2 Division and lodged a This photo of Jeremy Melendez's bruised and The bike was taken back to #2 Division on White formal complaint. swollen foot was taken on June 13 by Oakville Oaks Boulevard but the Halton Regional Police stereo was left on the Sgt. Larry Brassard con Beaver photographer Barrie Erskine sidewalk, said Melendez. firmed that Melendez's Once at the station, Melendez maintains he was complaint has been filed and that the incident is now confronted by theSergeant on duty who said, " being looked into. 'T h e matter has been turned over to our 'We'll knock your teeth out if you do anything.' He Professional Standards Branch which is conducting thought I pulled some violent trip." After being released, Melendez was given tickets an investigation as it would with any complaint of for four infractions under the Highway Traffic Act: this kind," he said. Sgt. Brassard went on to say that, given the seri having no hom on his bicycle ($110), careless driving ous nature of the charges and the complaint, both ($325), crossing a divided highway, no proper cross sides of the story plus information from any and all ing provided ($110) and bicycle failed to turn to right when overtaken ($110.) witnesses will be carefully considered. Melendez says he does not intend to pay the fines. Melendez admits he was doing a wheelie up the Melendez attended a walk-in clinic for an assess hill in the left lane while wearing earphones plugged into a Walkman when he saw a police car travelling ment of his injured right ankle and foot on July 11. east down the hill. He said he pulled out of the wheel According to the doctor's note provided, Melendez ie and crossed over to the right side of the road as the had soft tissue injuries such bruising and swelling cruiser made a U-turn at the base of the hill. He then and was placed on anti-inflammatory medication. Halton Regional Police are interested in hearing heard a siren and a command to stop. Melendez said he got off his bike and admitted to from anyone who may have witnessed the alleged incident. Please call Sgt. Larry Brassard at 825-4899. approaching the officer ^"aggressively." Photo by Barrie Erskine Jeremy Melendez and hand full of tickets he received while cycling: they total $655. Patients give OTMH & Milton hospital 4 out of 5 on quality scale By Howard M ozel OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Hi Patients at Oakville-Trafalgar Memorial Hospital and Milton District Hospital, have given the facilities 4 out of 5 on a satisfaction scale. The findings are part of a report on the hospitals, collectively known as Halton Healthcare Services (HHS). "The results confirm that during busy times we continue to provide quality patient care in a fiscally sound manner," says John Oliver, president and CEO for HHS. "Our performance in this report is a credit to the efforts of all staff, medical staff and volunteers at HHS." In "Hospital Report 2001: Acute Care," released Monday by the Ontario Hospital Association and the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. HHS received an overall opinion score of four stars out of five - among the high est in the GTA/905 areas. "This indicator measures a patient's (S e e `R eport' page A 4) Be An InS&mcA traitor Male or Female Only One Hour a Week Q g ll B ig Photo by Barrie Erskine OTMH gets $1.8 m bonus Halton Healthcare Services (HHS) is on a roll this week: first a glowing report card from the province, then nearly $7 million in funding courtesy of Queen's Park. The money - $6,957,020 (an 8.6% increase over 2000-2001) - was part of Monday's announcement by Health Minister Tony Clement of a $450-million annual increase in hospital funding. According to Clement, this permanent base funding will ensure that Ontario hos pitals are in a "solid financial position" for their 2001-2002 fiscal year. Clement explained that the announcement also means that hospitals are now receiving on average 5.5% more base funding than last year and 28% more than five years ago. "This allows us to continue all the ser vices we launched last year... and contin ue on with full service," said HHS presi dent and CEO John Oliver. The latest funding includes approxi mately $1.7 million in new money for a 2% inflation adjustment; $ 1.7 million for HHS' efficiency in dealing with growth; $1.7 million to keep run the 31 beds that were opened last year. In addition to the funding just announced, Oliver explained that HHS is receiving a one-time, $ 1.3-million cheque to cover the costs of dialysis services. Oliver went on to say that another $ 1.8 million, which was awarded to OakvilleTrafalgar Memorial Hospital (OTMH) based on its positive performance for the past two years, brings the total to approx imately $9 million. That said, Oliver explained that this cash covers about 80% of HHS' mandate but is not enough to allow OTMH to cover new growth or to open an addition al emergency clinical decision unit. Carole Shepherd, Oakville Big Sisters coordinator of The Club; Lee Shepherd, caseworker Big Brothers of Halton; Don Lawson, marketing director for Big Brothers of Burlington Hamilton-Went worth; Gary Sadler, superintendent of education, Halton District School Board; Larry Stevens, principal, King's Road School, Burlington; Evelyn Rea, executive director, Big Brothers of Halton; Demetra Saldaris, principal, Oakwood School, and John Susi principal, St James School are looking for in-school mentors for local children. Pilot project looking for In-School Mentors Halton Big Brothers leading way in Ontario with learning program By W ilm a Blokhuis BEAVER FOCUS EDITOR today' spaper Edftorials...............................A6 Homes &Gardens....................A8 Focus................................. B 1 Sports..................................B6 En te rta in m e n t............................. C1 Classified...............................C4 Autom otive.......................... ,C8 M idnite Madness.....................D 1 P a rtia ld elivery: T h eB a y .E nnisdareIn terio rs, G in o 's P izza .G u a rd ia nD ru g s. H o m eD ep o t, M in it T u n e, R evy H o m e. C o n serva tio nH a lto n ,H a u ser. C o lo rY o u rW o rld . F u tu reShop. L akeshoreP la ce. E n glelakeL td . Canadian Publications Mail Product Agreement #435-201 Wanted: 50 volunteer school mentors. The Big Brothers of Halton is leading the way to launch a new pilot project in this region and in Ontario - InSchool Mentoring. The program is to be offered at five Halton elementary schools starting in September. The goal is to match 50 children with the mentors, 10 at each school, who will spend one hour together each week until the end of June. The Big Brothers is working in partnership with the Oakville Big Sister Association, hence it will be open to boys and girls, and both men and women can volunteer as mentors. The Big Brothers of Burlington and Hamilton Wentworth, and Halton's two school boards, are the other partners. The volunteer mentors will be matched one-to-one with a child aged 6 to 12 who has been identified by teachers as needing encouragement to learn and to build self-esteem, explains Evelyn Rea, executive director of Big Brothers of Halton. Students and professionals aged 18 and up, who can spare one hour per week, and would be interested in men toring a child, are invited to volunteer. The volunteers will act as friends, not tutors. Activities - everything must be done at school - can range from arts and crafts to reading, playing board games, cooking, sports, computers, to building projects to checking home work. The program was developed by Big Brothers and Sisters of Canada after exploring in-school mentoring pro grams in the United States, explained Don Lawson, mar keting director for the Big Brothers of Burlington and Hamilton-Wentworth. Big Brothers and Sisters of America has been offering the program for the past decade. (S e e `Program ' page A4) W eiglein B.Sc., M.D. FRCSC Certified Plastic Surgeon M em ber ASPRS LSNA ASAPS S cecidm a exclusively in Cosmetic Surgery and Anti-Aging Therapeutics f a c e · n e c k · e y e lid s · b ro w · n o s e · la s e r s k in re s u rfa c in g b re a s t a u g m e n ta tio n · b re a s t lift · tu m m y t u c k · u ltra s o n ic lip o s u c tio n Ail procedures carried out in our private accredited surgery facility - no hospital stay - financing available "... over 15 years experience and thousands of satisfied patients have made us the region's first and foremost private cosmetic surgicentre. 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