News digest

M-W student has whooping cough, Health Department advises Central Valley —Dr. Jean Hudson, the commissioner of the Orange County Health Department, sent the following letter this week to parents of Monroe-Woodbury students: “A student in Monroe Woodbury Middle School has been treated for confirmed pertussis (whooping cough). Antibiotics given early in the infection may reduce symptoms and does shorten the period of communicability. “Pertussis begins as a mild respiratory infection. Symptoms resemble those of a common cold with sneezing, runny nose, low-grade fever and mild cough. Within two weeks the cough becomes more severe and is characterized by episodes of numerous rapid coughs followed by a crowing or high-pitched whoop. A thick, clear mucous may be discharged. If your child has any of these symptoms please consider a physician’s evaluation. Emphasis on hand washing and disposable tissues may also help prevent contagion. “While pertussis can occur at any age, the risk of symptomatic infection in appropriately immunized persons is low. “The main danger of pertussis is to infants up to one year. Do not allow anyone with an active cough near very young children, particularly babies. Anyone with a persistent cough (all ages) should be evaluated for pertussis. “If you have any questions, you may call the Health Department at 291-2330.” Police charge Monroe man with stealing iPhone from unlocked car Monroe — In the early morning hours of Sunday, Nov. 20, Monroe police officers were called to a local bar to follow up on a report that items had been stolen from an unlocked vehicle in the parking lot. Among the items was an iPhone. A few hours later, the staff at a local business called Monroe police, reporting that a disorderly, intoxicated man was refusing to leave the premises. When officers arrived, the intoxicated man refused to say what his name was or provide any identification. When they searched him, police said they found an I phone and a Honda emblem, which were reported stolen earlier in the night from the bar parking lot. Arrested was Kevin Matthews, 21, of Monroe on charges of larceny and possession of stolen property. He was arraigned the following morning by Monroe Village Judge Forrest Strauss and sent to Orange County Jail on $1,500 bail. Police remind residents to always lock their cars, even in their own driveways, as most thieves attempt to steal undetected and entering an unlocked car is quick, easy, and quiet. Group asks judge to oversee N.Y. redistricting NEW YORK — A group of civic leaders has filed a lawsuit asking a federal judge to take over the process of redrawing the boundaries of New York’s congressional districts. The plaintiffs say Gov. Andrew Cuomo and state lawmakers now working on a redistricting plan are engaged in “an exercise in partisan self-dealing and incumbent protection.” They say dysfunction in the process could jeopardize elections in 2012. The suit was filed Nov. 19 in Brooklyn. The governor and legislature have been squabbling over the best method for redrawing the state’s political maps, which have to be adjusted as New York loses seats in Congress. A lawyer for the community leaders who filed the suit tells The New York Times that they believe the plan ultimately produced in Albany will be flawed and partisan.