CITYWIDE

Judge Gives Dog Protection Order

A judge is this dog’s best friend. Bebe, a 5-year-old bichon frise, a puffy little white dog living in Queens, was given an order of protection after a Bronx man was accused of beating him. Fredrick Fontanez, 20, was arraigned yesterday on a misdemeanor count of animal abuse and released on his own recognizance, but not before the judge told him to steer clear of Bebe. The protection order, issued by Queens Criminal Court Judge Alex Zigman, says Mr. Fontanez, who’s accused of torturing Bebe, can’t come within a 100 yards of the dog and its owner, Derek Lopez. Bebe was found badly beaten July 20 in Mr. Lopez’s Howard Beach apartment, where Mr. Fontanez was staying, a criminal complaint said. Mr. Lopez, 27, says he had to go to work and left Bebe with Mr. Fontanez, trusting the dog would be safe. When he returned hours later, he found a severely bruised and whimpering Bebe, who “winced, yelped and cried” at the slightest touch, the complaint said. One of Mr. Lopez’s neighbors said he heard the squealing dog and saw Mr. Fontanez inside the apartment at the time. A veterinarian said the bichon frise, a type of toy spaniel known for its merry temperament and inquisitive expression, had been repeatedly hit or kicked.

— Associated Press

Roosevelt Island Cable Cars To Re-Open Today

The cable car system that malfunctioned in April and left dozens of people stranded over the East River for hours will reopen today.The Roosevelt Island Tramway, which includes two cable cars capable of transporting 125 people each, will begin operating at 6 a.m., spokesman Bob Liff said yesterday.The state Department of Labor issued a certification of registration yesterday, meaning the cars are safe to operate. Both cars of the system, which shuttles commuters and tourists between Manhattan and Roosevelt Island while offering breathtaking views of the city from up to 250 feet high, stopped moving because of mechanical problems April 19, stranding 69 people. The system has been repaired and tested since then, receiving upgrades that include a refurbished electrical drive, which powers the system, tram officials said.

— Associated Press

STATEWIDE

State Wants Teachers To Pay More for Health Care

ALBANY— School districts across the state want teachers to pay for a greater share of their health care benefits, even as dozens of school districts have reached impasses in new contract negotiations with their teachers, according to a survey released yesterday. The survey by the New York State School Boards Association also found that a typical teacher with a master’s degree and 10 years experience is paid about $53,000 a year. Teacher salaries rose an average of 4% last year, the same percentage increase as the previous two years. Of the 412 school districts that responded to the survey, 70 said they were able to win some concessions on health care premiums while 50 said they had not. The survey found that the average premium for family coverage rose 11% to $12,190 annually from a year earlier. The average new teacher pays 13% of those costs while the district pays the rest. “The average teacher pays less for coverage and generally gets better coverage.”

— Associated Press

Woman Diagnosed With West Nile Virus

PORT JEFFERSON STATION — A 41-year-old woman is the second person to contract the West Nile virus in the metro region this year, health officials said yesterday.The Suffolk County woman, whose name was not released, was expected to recover from the mosquito-borne virus, which causes flu-like symptoms and can be lethal. She was hospitalized for about 13 days with fever, headache, weakness and joint pain. The first virus victim in the New York-Long Island region this year was a 67-year-old Staten Island man, hospitalized earlier this month. New York’s health department has been spraying pesticides and urging residents to use mosquito repellent, get rid of standing water on their property and make sure window and door screens are intact to help prevent the spread of the illness. There was one West Nile death among 11 cases of the virus reported in humans last year in New York City.

— Associated Press

POLICE BLOTTER

Man Found Dead On Upper West Side

Police are investigating the death of an Upper West Side man, found dead early yesterday morning with burn marks on his body. Police said Elvin Archibald, 74, was discovered unconscious inside his West 90th Street apartment around 12:30 a.m. Relatives found Archibald in his third-floor apartment and called emergency services, who pronounced him dead at the scene. According to police sources, Archibald had fresh burns on his arms, which are of concern to investigators.

— Special to the Sun

Man Charged in ID Theft

In a 211-count indictment, prosecutors have charged a man with fraud and identity theft, the Brooklyn District Attorney announced yesterday. Prosecutors said Kevin Griffith, 27, withdrew cash and fraudulently charged purchases totaling more than $67,000 by scamming account holders at Chase Manhattan Bank. At least nine times, prosecutors said he obtained cards belonging to existing account holders by requesting secondary cards be sent to him in the mail. At least once, he opened an entirely new account using someone else’s name and a fraudulently obtained Social Security number. Prosecutors said his expenditures varied, although in one case he spent $7,406.60 on a rental car. Mr. Griffith was ultimately apprehended after he was seen on a bank surveillance tape using a fraudulent bank card, prosecutors said. He was charged with second-degree grand larceny, 14 counts of third-degree grand larceny, and 16 counts of identity theft, among other related charges.

— Special to the Sun