The Full Story

To the Editor,

I was quite amused and yet perplexed to read the recent entry [from 1986] in the Way We Were, June 17, 2011:

“One sheep has been on the loose for at least one week in the Taunton Lake Drive area because he prefers the terrain of his neighbors’ yards to that of his own home, police speculate. A sheep, owned by Dr Robert Grossman, has been sighted several times in the yard of John Kursawe, of 10 Taunton Lake Drive. June 12, at 4:16 pm, Mr Kursawe reported that Dr Grossman’s sheep was loose on the property. At 7:45 he called to report the sheep was on his porch and would not leave. Apparently, the sheep enjoys Mr Kursawe’s porch because there is a big window where the sheep stares at its reflection. On June 13, Mr Kursawe reported the sheep was still in his yard. On June 14, police received a call from the Sciaretto residence, at 21 Taunton Lake Drive, that the sheep was now in their yard. The sheep was last seen heading into the woods.”

I was perplexed to see that the Way We Were is not a verbatim transcript of the pages of The Bee, but rather a synopsis of the editorial whim of the reporter doing the copying. I know this for two reasons, one I am the author of the above article and two I also used to be tasked with opening the dusty tomes in the dark attic where bound back issues of The Bee once lived to copy similar paragraphs.

In order to give Bee readers the full flavor of that story I have copied it here verbatim from a yellowing old newspaper clip squirreled away in a folder containing articles from my days as a cub reporter covering crime at The Bee. The story is made even more fascinating by the fact that in those days I, as The Bee’s police reporter, had full access to the police dispatcher’s log book, which always revealed the most salient facts and comic details about a story. Combine that with actual interviews and a full story emerges.

Lisa Peterson

Irvington, N.Y.                                                            June 20, 2011

 

The Newtown Bee, Friday, June 20, 1986

ONE SHEEP ROAMS FREE

One sheep has been on the loose for at least one week in the Taunton Lake Drive area because he prefers the terrain of his neighbor’s yard to that of his own home, police speculate.

 According to police reports, a sheep, owned by Dr Robert Grossman, has been sighted several times in the in the yard of John Kursawe, of 19 Taunton Lake Drive.

 On June 12 at 4:16 pm, Mr Kursawe called police and reported that Dr Grossman’s sheep was loose on his property again. At 7:45 p.m. he called again to report the sheep would not leave.

 Lieutenant Michael Fekete said that apparently the sheep enjoys Mr Kursawe’s porch because there is a big window where the sheep stares at his reflection. The sheep so enjoys it that he doesn’t want to leave, police said.

 According to the police log book, on June 13, at 3:50 pm, Mr Kursawe called the police department back and said the sheep was still in his yard.

At 5:10 pm Mr Kursawe called headquarters and wanted to know what the police were going to do about the sheep.  

Lt Fekete and Assistant Dog Warden George Mattegat were dispatched to the scene to try and catch the sheep.

Lt Fekete said he got within five feet of the animal when it ran away. Dog Warden Mattegat tried to lasso the sheep with a snare pole that is used to catch stray dogs. Both men were unsuccessful in their attempts at capture.

On June 14, at 8:51 am, police received a call from the Sciaretto residence, at 21 Taunton Lake Drive, reporting that the sheep was now in their yard.

Police dispatched Sergeant Raymond Paccadolmi to try and sedate the sheep with a tranquilizer gun, police said. Apparently the sheep would not stand still long enough to let Lt Fekete take aim.

 This sheep was last seen heading into the woods on June 14 and is still apparently at large at this time.

“I guess the sheep just likes it better out of his yard,” Lt Fekete said.