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Every day 100's of people are injured, raped or killed across the country as a result from alcohol.  Below on this page are just a FEW of the 100,000's of stories in the news  throughout just the past year; reporting on the harms on your body caused by alcohol and the death and distruction alcohol has caused on people's lives and society.  Some of these stories are just sick what people do under the influence of alcohol, while others are just sad that someone had to lose their life because of something so stupid.  Every two weeks or so I will update this page and include the stories I collected from the previous two weeks.  Another good website to see the latest alcohol related news stories is http://westminstersc.com/about/health/alcoholnews.htm, which is updated with current news stories to the second.

Speed, alcohol possible factors in crash

 

Speed and alcohol may have caused a "horrific" crash that left one person dead and three others seriously injured near Tai Tapu, southwest of Christchurch.

A Nissan Silvia two-door saloon carrying two women and two men, all in their early 20s and from Christchurch, crashed into a concrete wall near Macartneys Rd, while travelling south on State Highway 75 about 10.45pm yesterday.

The male driver died at the scene.

The three passengers were taken to hospital with serious injuries, including burns.

Selwyn Sergeant Danny Harker said it appeared the driver had lost control on a straight stretch of road and crossed over the centre-line before hitting a concrete wall.

"The vehicle appears to have immediately exploded into flames and been torn apart."

One passenger was thrown out of the rear window while other parts of the car were "flung some distance" from the impact.

Harker described the scene as "a particularly horrific one".

The serious crash unit and disaster victim identification teams attended the crash.

Harker said a full investigation was under way, but early indications were that speed and alcohol may have been factors in the crash.

A hospital spokeswoman said the three passengers were all in intensive care in Christchurch Hospital.

All three are seriously injured, but are in stable conditions this afternoon.

The road reopened about 4am, but the scene remains cordoned off.

The driver was expected to be named later today after family overseas had been notified.

Three dead, two injured in Fitchburg crash

 

FITCHBURG — Three people were killed and two others were injured Saturday in a crash on Lacy Road in Fitchburg, police said.

Fitchburg police Sgt. Don Bomkamp said all five were male and believed to be young adults.

Alcohol and speed are believed to be factors in the crash that was reported at 5:09 p.m., Bomkamp said.

All five were in a vehicle that was traveling east on Lacy Road at a high rate of speed that failed to stop at a stop sign at Syene Road, Bomkamp said. The vehicle then hit railroad tracks, went into the air and struck a utility pole, he said.

Four people were ejected from the vehicle, he said. Three died at the scene.

One person was taken by helicopter to a local hospital with serious injuries, he said. Another was taken to a hospital by ambulance with non-life-threatening injuries.

One of those injured fled the scene and was found a couple blocks away, Bomkamp said.

Witnesses said the five had been at McGaw Park prior to the crash, he said.

Alcohol fatality taught his friends nothing?

He better not be waking up dead: Witnesses who were with Chris Skinner before he died testify in court (Feb. 16)

Mike McEntee and Alex Standen, now both 19, testified they have not changed their binge-drinking habits since Chris Skinner’s death two years ago.

It’s unbelievable. Not only did they lose a friend in tragic circumstances but it doesn’t seem to have made any difference to their way of thinking and drinking. They said high school kids will do what they will do. Maybe some do, but thankfully not all kids follow this trend and luckily most them have parents that help them make the right decisions so they survive the turmoil of the teen years.

Why was there no one there for Mike and Alex? In the case of the Barons, they had the responsibility in their home to keep these kids safe and might have prevented the horrific outcome.

To Mike and Alex, you are not teens now, you are young men. You’ve seen first-hand what the terrible consequences of drinking can be to a friend. Please don’t think you are immune to the effects. You are too old for your parents to keep track of now.

You are college age now but you say talking to high school kids about the dangers of binge drinking would make you feel like a hypocrite. That is truly sad. It appears you have learned absolutely nothing from the death of your friend Chris. Time to remember.

Vincennes University student from Bargersville dies after fraternity party

11:24 PM, Feb. 17, 2012 |
1 Comments

A Vincennes University student from Johnson County has died following an off-campus incident, university officials said Friday.

Duane Chattin, university spokesman, identified the student as William A. Torrance, 18, Bargersville.

According to a Vincennes Police Department news release, Torrance had attended a fraternity pledge ceremony Thursday night at a residence off campus.

After the ceremony, minors and persons of legal drinking age began consuming alcohol, the release said. About 9 a.m. Friday, Torrance was found in distress, and 911 was called. Emergency responders arrived quickly, but Torrance was pronounced dead.

Alcohol is believed to be a factor in the death, police said.

Chattin said Torrance was a freshman welding technology major.

Speed, alcohol were factors in crash that killed 3 Marines

Alcohol and unsafe speed were the main contributors to an early morning crash that left three Marines dead and a fourth in critical condition, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department announced Wednesday.

The crash occurred at 2:05 a.m. Tuesday, when a Dodge Stratus struck a tree in the center divider of Golden Lantern in Dana Point. Jim Amormino, a spokesman with the Sheriff’s Department, said the driver was under the influence of alcohol and driving over the posted speed limit of 40 mph.

"The car was almost wrapped around the tree," Amormino said. The men had to be cut out of their seatbelts.

"We don’t have an exact speed yet," he said. "We do know it was over the speed limit and certainly unsafe for the conditions."

All four Marines were stationed at Camp Pendleton. Two passengers were killed instantly and a third died later at Mission Hospital. The driver remains in critical condition.

Amormino did not say whether the passengers also were under the influence of alcohol. Toxicology results are expected in several weeks.

The names of the dead Marines have been withheld pending notification of family members.

The Dana Point crash was the second fatal traffic accident in Southern California involving enlisted Marines this week.


Mom allegedly helped teen buy alcohol before fatal DUI crash

An Alameda mom who allegedly helped a teenage girl buy alcohol just hours before the youth was killed in a drunk-driving crash has been arrested in connection with the fatal accident, state officials reported Wednesday.

Amelia Chin, 51, is accused of accompanying the 17-year-old girl to the Good N Rich Daily Market in South San Francisco last February and standing by as Margaret Qaqish bought beer and wine coolers, the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control reported.  

Qaqish was killed early the next morning when the car in which she was riding crashed on southbound Highway 101 in Brisbane.

The driver had a blood alcohol level of .15 -- roughly double the legal limit, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

The group of friends was "talking loudly about what radio station to listen to," and the driver didn't realize that traffic in front of him had stopped, said San Mateo County Dist. Atty. Steve Wagstaffe.

Qaqish, who was sitting in the middle of the rear seat, was thrown forward when the car slid into another vehicle. A senior at Baden High School in South San Francisco, Qaqish died at a hospital just a week before her 18th birthday.

The 18-year-old driver, Sean Quintero, is now facing felony drunk-driving charges.

Chin is the mother of one of Qaquish' friends, the ABC reported.

The clerk at the market, Abduhl Azeem Buksh, 45, was also arrested in connection with the fatal crash. ABC said it is now seeking additional disciplinary action against Buksh and his wife, who own the market.

Buksh's attorney, John Forsyth, disputed the state's description of what happened, saying that although Qaqish was in the store, surveillance video shows his client actually sold the alcohol to Chin.

Alcohol suspected in crash that killed elderly woman

10:31 PM, Jan 11, 2012   |  0 comments
 
Investigators say William McClendon, 44, drove his Nissan Murano into the path of a Lincoln Towncar operated by Helen Sauerbier, 84, of Pinellas Park at Gandy Boulevard and 35th Street.
Pinellas Park, Florida -- Charges are expected to be filed against a St. Petersburg man who crashed his car into another Wednesday afternoon, killing an 84-year-old woman.

Investigators say William McClendon, 44, drove his Nissan Murano into the path of a Lincoln Towncar operated by Helen Sauerbier, 84, of Pinellas Park at Gandy Boulevard and 35th Street.

She was pronounced dead at the scene, police said, and McClendon was taken to the hospital with non life-threatening injuries.

Investigators said McClendon was operating the car on a suspended driver's license and they believe that he may have been drinking.

All eastbound lanes of Gandy Blvd. were shut down for several hours as authorities investigated the crash.

Charges are pending.

 

 

 

 

NM police point to alcohol in fatal head-on crash

Posted: Jan 02, 2012 4:08 PM CST Updated: Jan 02, 2012 4:08 PM CST

LYBROOK, N.M. (AP) - New Mexico State Police say alcohol was apparently a factor in a head-on crash that killed three people and injured several others on New Year's Day.

The crash happened Sunday evening on U.S. 550 in northwestern New Mexico. Four vehicles were involved.

State Police Lt. Robert McDonald says 54-year-old Agnes Lopez of Cuba, N.M., was traveling southbound in the northbound lane when she collided with another vehicle.

Lopez and her passenger, 70-year-old Cecilia Martinez, were killed. A third passenger was seriously hurt.

A passenger in the other vehicle, Delphine Woody of Farmington, was also killed. Her daughter was injured.

Police say passengers in the other two vehicles were treated and released at the scene.

Investigators found numerous open and full containers of alcohol in Lopez's vehicle.

Alcohol appears to be factor in Grays Harbor fatal

Updated 10:27 a.m., Sunday, January 1, 2012 \OAKVILLE, Wash. (AP) — The Grays Harbor County undersheriff says alcohol appears to be a factor in a crash that killed three on a logging road near Oakville on New Year's Eve.

KOMO-TV (http://is.gd/ZFYJur ) says a car went off the road and struck a tree.

Undersheriff Rick Scott says three of the people inside the car — a 52-year-old male driver, a 26-year-old man and a 21-year-old woman — were pronounced dead at the scene. Another passenger, a 49-year-old woman, was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center.

Scott says alcohol appears to be a factor in the crash.


Documents: Firefighter's blood alcohol content reportedly three times the legal limit in fatal crash (with warrant)

MIDDLETOWN — A South District firefighter charged with manslaughter and driving under the influence in connection to a fatal car crash in July had a blood alcohol level more than three times the legal limit, documents show.

The crash at the intersection of Highland Avenue and South Main Street killed 20-year-old Alexander Martinez, of Meriden, on July 24.

Stephen Tyrseck, 36, 9R Mountain Road, Durham, whose blood alcohol level was .269 at the time of the crash, is facing charges of second-degree manslaughter with a motor vehicle, misconduct with a motor vehicle, negligent homicide with a motor vehicle, reckless driving, operating while under the influence of liquor, speeding and failure to drive right. The legal blood alcohol level limit for driving is .08.

The story of Tyrseck’s arrest was first reported by Killingworth-Durham-Middlefield Patch on Saturday.

Tyrseck turned himself in on Dec. 15, within a few hours of his attorney being notified there was a warrant out for his arrest, Middletown police said.

According to court documents, Tyrseck was driving in his a 2008 Ford F350, along South Main Street near the intersection of Highland Avenue around 2:30 a.m. on July 24 when he struck a 2002 Honda Civic, killing Martinez, who was a passenger in the Civic.

Martinez was ejected from the vehicle during the collision and landed 38 feet away from the point of impact. He was pronounced dead at the scene, having sustained multiple blunt traumatic injuries, according to police. The three other passengers in the car were taken to Hartford Hospital for non-life threatening injuries.

Police said Tyrseck appeared intoxicated at the scene, slurring his words and stumbling around, and he failed field sobriety checks, according to court documents. Tyrseck admitted to police that he had consumed “five or six Bud Light Beers several hours ago,” according to the warrant.

A witness saw Tyrseck coming out of Hair of the Dog Saloon, where he had been drinking for a few hours. The witness told police that she observed Tyrseck stumbling, walking side-to-side and falling onto the sides of buildings. The witness then observed Tyrseck get into his truck and drive off, and the witness called police to inform them that the man was driving and appeared under the influence, according to the warrant. The driver of the Honda Civic — 23-year-old Jedidiah B. Roesler, 23, 82 Wilcox Road, Meriden, had a blood alcohol level of .182, more than double the legal limit, according to the warrant.

Roesler reportedly told police that he made a left turn at the intersection, saw the oncoming car’s lights, but thought he had more than enough time to make it through the intersection safely. While making the turn, Roesler’s car was struck on the right-hand side, spun around and came to a stop a short distance from where it was hit.

Witnesses from the scene said the truck was speeding, swerving between lanes, and that the truck did not attempt to brake before the crash. Using the truck’s power control module, police determined that Tyrseck had been traveling at a speed of 71 mph at the time of the crash, according to court records. One second before the crash, Tyrseck hit the brakes, police said. The posted speed limit is 35 mph.

Tyrseck is scheduled to appear in court on Dec. 28.


 

Mother arrested after passing out from drinking alcohol at amusement park as her children played on rides

  • 'Heavily intoxicated' mother told police officers she thought the children were at home

  • Faces a charge of child neglect

By Nadia Gilani

Last updated at 9:58 PM on 2nd January 2012

A 'heavily intoxicated' mother-of-four was arrested after passing out at a Florida amusement park.

Karin Rosemarie Reinhard, from North Naples faces a charge of neglect after one of her children called a family friend to report that her mother was 'really drunk'.

The child also claimed her mother was 'hanging over some guy she didn't know' according to a report following the woman's arrest at King Richard's Family Fun Park in North Naples, Florida on Saturday.

Officers called to the scene and made several attempts to wake Reinhard before she finally came to.

When questioned, she told them she had thought her two children and two others belonging to a friend, all aged between eight and 12 were at home and hadn't realised they were at the amusement park.

The report stated that she called the officers 'Nazis' and 'Hitler' as she was arrested, according to the Naples Daily News.

The news website also reported that Reinhard was arrested on the same charge of child neglect without great bodily harm in 2007.

She is also reported to have a history with the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) which is also involved in the case.

The children were handed to the DCF after they said they were frightened of going home where it is claimed they were being abused by their mother's live-in boyfriend.


 

Three Sustain Knife wounds in Alcohol Related Incident in Mountain Village
MOUNTAIN VILLAGE, Alaska-The Alaska State Troopers in Saint Mary's received a call reporting a stabbing in Mountain Village on Sunday. But, severe weather conditions with high winds and blizzard conditions prevented any travel to the village. On Monday, when the conditions eased enough to allow travel to the community, troopers were able to convene an investigation into the stabbing incident. The investigation revealed that three individuals belonging to the same household had all sustained knife wounds during an altercation. 

Two of the three had sustained wounds of a serious enough nature, that it was determined that they needed to be transported  to the Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Center in Bethel.

Troopers have not released any names at this time as they have not yet determined the aggressor in the incident. According to the troopers release, they believe that all of the individuals had been highly intoxicated from drinking home-brew and were blacked out during the incident.

The Trooper investigation is continuing.

Upriver around 70 miles from the Bering Sea, Mountain Village is located on the north banks of the Yukon River at the base of Azachorok Mountain, the first mountain encountered as one travels up the river from the coast. Mountain Village has a population of approximately 813. The village is connected to Saint Mary's by a 17 mile road.
 

Tulpehocken man sentenced in death of girlfriend

David L. Peters Jr. pleads guilty to fatally shooting Janiel D. Keeney and is sentenced to four to 23 months in county jail

A Tulpehocken Township man was sentenced Thursday in Berks County Court to four to 23 months in the county jail for fatally shooting his girlfriend May 22 while both were under the influence of alcohol and synthetic marijuana.

David L. Peters Jr., 32, pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter for the fatal shooting of Janel D. Keeney, 26, in the residence they shared in the 500 block of Godfrey Street in Rehrersburg.

Ludgate allowed Peters, who is free on bail, to begin his sentence Dec. 29. Ludgate also ordered Peters to serve three years of probation.

Keeney died of a gunshot wound to the head.

Peters said he was deeply sorry.

“I’ve been blessed with wonderful family and friends,” he said. “I am fully prepared to face the consequences.”

Ludgate said that handling a gun while using drugs and alcohol is not a good mixture.

“I’m confident that involuntary manslaughter is appropriate,” Ludgate said.

Assistant District Attorney David Golberg asked for a sentence of six months to a year followed by three years of probation.

Golberg said Peters drank alcohol and smoked Cloud 9, synthetic marijuana, before he shot Keeney.

Golberg said the slaying was reckless and negligent. He said Peters was showing the gun to Keeney when it went off.

“This happened because of the use of alcohol and drugs,” Golberg said.

Peters’ lawyer, Jerry K. Russo of Harrisburg, said Peters is remorseful and asked for a sentence of probation or house arrest.

“This tragedy took place after a day of drinking alcohol and smoking Cloud 9,” Russo said. “He is taking every step to put this matter behind him.”

Russo said the victim’s family does not oppose probation.

Golberg said the victim’s family was unavailable to attend the sentencing.

Jaimi Hiver, the mother’s of Peter’s child, Carley, 9, of Lebanon County, said Peters is a great father.

“He spends time with her every week,” Hiver said. “We go to all of her sports together.”

Peter’s other family members and work friends told Ludgate that Peters was a considerate, well-liked person.

Cloud 9 and other designer drugs — often mislabeled as bath salts, herbal incense or potpourri — were sold legally in retail outlets in Pennsylvania and many other states at the time.

But a new law that took effect in August puts the drugs in the same category as marijuana, cocaine and heroin. Penalties range from probation to lengthy jail terms.

According to investigators:

Peters said he had been drinking beer, smoking synthetic marijuan and shooting pool since about 11 a.m.

After his friends left the house, Peters ordered a pizza to be delivered. While he was eating in the living room, Keeney asked to see his gun.

He got the gun from the bedroom. He went to clear the weapon’s chamber but forgot to remove the ammunition magazine. The gun discharged and a bullet stuck Keeney in the head.


Boozy brawl at Donburn Primary School Christmas Twilight Picnic
 2
 

Witnesses claim the school father had been drinking and "roughed up" a local man at the concert. Picture: Thinkstock Source: Supplied

EXCLUSIVE: TOO much festive spirit is being blamed for a boozy brawl at a school Christmas carol concert, leading to calls for a crackdown on the consumption of alcohol at school events.

An angry parent allegedly assaulted a disabled man last Friday at the Donburn Primary School Christmas Twilight Picnic at about 8.30pm.

Witnesses claim the school father had been drinking and "roughed up" the local man who was also attending the event.

Shane Varcoe, executive director of the Dalgarno Institute, which promotes alternatives to alcohol use, questioned the need for alcohol to be consumed at a school carols night.

"What in our culture says it is OK to bring alcohol to this kind of event?" Mr Varcoe said.

Education Minister Martin Dixon has promised to investigate the events.

School principal Kevin Sertori denied alcohol was involved in the attack, but a school mother who attended the picnic said the entire event was a "really boozy night".

"It's very much a family affair, but as the night wore on the champagne corks were popping and parents were drinking," the parent said.

Parents are horrified that school children in Santa suits at the picnic witnessed the altercation.

A school mother, who does not want to be identified, said the victim, who had been severely injured in a car accident many years ago, regularly hangs around the local shops and the school.

"He is harmless, everyone knows him," she said.

He was attacked by a school father who "grabbed him by the collar and pushed him," the school mother said.

She said another man tried to come to the disabled man's aid, "but he was told he had better butt out or he'd be next. It's quite devastating for the children who had to witness the violence."

She said the Christmas picnic was a family event attended by many children.

"The alcohol was not supplied by the school, but they allowed it to be brought on to school grounds," she said.

Blake Anderson Breaks Back: 'Workaholics' Star Injured In Party Prank

 

First Posted: 12/23/11 01:36 PM ET Updated: 12/23/11 02:18 PM ET

In a ridiculous example of life imitating art, Blake Anderson of 'Workaholics' -- the scripted Comedy Central series about a group of hard-partying twenty-somethings juggling office life with an ambitious regimen of drugs and alcohol -- landed himself in the hospital with a broken back when a stunt he tried to pull went horribly wrong. At a party at his Los Angeles home on Saturday, Anderson, presumably trying to dunk a ping-pong ball during a beer-pong game, jumped from his roof and landed on the table, fracturing his spine.

The 'Workaholics' star updated fans about his condition on his Twitter account. On Dec. 18, he tweeted, "See y'all in two weeks ... Broke Back Mountain." Later that night, he tweeted at rapper Tyler the Creator, who apparently attended the party: "I got the pain killers flowing I'm all GOOD." Last night, Anderson tweeted he was having surgery and asked fans to keep him "in your hearts and tweets."

Comedy Central renewed 'Workaholics' for its third season in October. The network has yet to comment on whether Anderson's injury may delay production.

 


Police pepper-spray rowdy Air Jordan shoppers at Seattle mall

 

 

 

 

SEATTLE -- The release of Nike's new Air Jordan basketball shoes caused a frenzy at stores across the nation Friday as scuffles broke out and police were brought in to stamp out unrest that nearly turned into riots in some places.

Shoppers stood in long lines through the night to get their hands on a retro version of one of the most popular models of Air Jordans ever made. The fights were reminiscent of violence that broke out in the early 1990s on streets across America as the shoes became popular targets for thieves.

The frenzy over Air Jordans has been dangerous in the past. Some people were mugged or even killed for early versions of the shoe, created by Nike Inc. in 1985.

In Tukwila, Murphy said the crowd was on the verge of a riot and would have gotten even more out of hand if the police hadn't intervened.

"It was not a nice, orderly group of shoppers," Murphy said. "There were a lot of hostile and disorderly people."

About 25 officers from Tukwila, Renton, Kent, Seattle and King County responded. Murphy said they smelled marijuana and found alcohol containers at the scene.

The Southcenter mall's stores sold out of the Air Jordan 11 Retro Concords, and all but about 50 people got their Nikes, Murphy said.

Shoppers described the scene as chaotic and at times dangerous.

Carlisa Williams said she joined the crowd at the Southcenter for the experience and ended up buying two pairs of shoes -- one for her and one for her brother. But she said she'll never do anything like it again.

"I don't understand why they're so important to people," Williams told KING-TV. "They're just shoes at the end of the day. It's not worth risking your life over."

 
 FHP: Woman dies in alcohol-related crash
Published On: Dec 19 2011 02:26:33 PM EST
PUTNAM COUNTY, Fla. -

A 42-year-old woman died in a single-vehicle crash in Putnam County on Sunday night, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

State troopers said Kristin Pelfrey was a passenger in a van driven by 50-year-old Ricky Cullen. The two were heading east on Sisco Road, just east of Burleigh Road at 9:50 p.m.

Troopers said Cullen was driving where the road curves sharply to the left at a high speed. They said he was going 68 mph in a 45 mph zone.

Troopers said Cullen drove off the road and onto the shoulder, then over-corrected to the left and rotated counter-clockwise.

The van overturned four to five times, throwing Pelfrey and Cullen out the windows.

Troopers said speed and alcohol were factors in the crash. Neither Pelfrey nor Cullen were wearing a seat belt.

Charges are pending, troopers said.

Police: Raleigh woman had high blood alcohol content when she hit, killed another driver

Elizabeth Stevens

Credit: Wake County Jail

Elizabeth Stevens 


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A Raleigh woman who crashed into a man and killed him early Sunday morning may have had four times the legal limit for blood alcohol level content, according to police reports.

Elizabeth Lorene Stevens, 21, appeared in court Friday morning. She had been charged Thursday with felony death by vehicle, the Raleigh Police said. According to her release report, she had "a potential .32" on her blood test. The legal limit in North Carolina is .08.

Stevens posted bond, which was set at $100,000, using her father's house as collateral.

Stevens’ Jeep SUV hit the 2008 Hyundai driven by Dewahn Tyler, 32. The accident happened shortly before 1 a.m. Sunday at the intersection of Lynn and Lead Mine roads. 

Tyler's funeral was Friday. 

"She should be held accountable for anything that happened," said Aryel Page, Tyler's sister. "I mean you always hope that justice will be served."

Another sister, Skyler Page, said, "She took somebody so special, to all of us, so special."

Stevens is also charged with failure to stop for a steady red light, and exceeding 45 mphin a 45 mph mph, police said.

The traffic report puts her speed at 77 mph and said there were no tire impressions before impact.

She already had been charged with driving while impaired and driving while impaired with a provisional license

Police said he was fatally injured in the car crash about 1 a.m. at the intersection of Lynn and Lead Mine Roads. 

Page said Tyler had four children. His oldest turned 12 on Thursday.

Stevens' record states she has failed to appear in court twice for speeding violations. She posted bond Thursday at 12:30 p.m. 

Her attorney, Roger Smith Jr., could not be reached for comment.

 

BCSO: Alcohol Contributed to Crash that Killed Hilton Head Teen

 
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Investigators said Friday that alcohol was a contributing factor in a crash that killed a 17 year-old Hilton Head Island girl and injured several other teens last month.

The single car crash happened November 17 on Indigo Run Plantation. The driver, Kendall Walton, died as a result of injuries suffered in the crash. Four other teens were hurt.

The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office said evidence from the crash site lead investigators to believe alcohol may have been the cause of the wreck. In accordance with South Carolina state law, the sheriff's office initiated an investigation into how the alcohol was obtained.

Investigators determined Kendall Walton had bought alcoholic beverages on three separate occasions before the accident. The sheriff's office found video surveillance footage showing Walton purchasing liquor at Island Liquors on November 12, 14, and 16.

Investigators said the identification Walton presented to the clerk represented her to be age 21.

A driver’s license recovered among Walton’s property belonged to Savanna Clary of Bluffton. Investigators interviewed Clary, who said she lost the license about a year and half earlier. Clary said she had no affiliation with Walton and did not know how it ended up in Walton’s possession.

Investigators concluded Walton bought the alcohol that was located in her vehicle on November 17 and did so with a South Carolina license that did not belong to her but portrayed her to be 21.

Authorities said no criminal or administrative charges will be filed.

Man stabbed to death in alcohol-fueled fight in Conroe

An alcohol-fueled squabble in Conroe escalated into a stabbing late Saturday that claimed the life of a man, according to the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office.

The victim, Thomas Morris, suffered stab wounds to his chest and abdomen, investigators said. His body was sent to the Montgomery County Forensic Center for autopsy.

The suspect, David Edward Mcglinchey, 32, was treated for a cut on his hand at an area hospital and transported to the Montgomery County Jail, reports show. He has been charged with murder.

Investigators with the sheriff’s office and Texas Rangers are investigating the killing, and the motive was unclear Sunday.

KTRK reports that the victim was stabbed 60 times and that the suspect claimed self-defense.

The information could not be immediately collaborated, however.

“I cannot confirm,” Lt. Dan Norris of the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office stated in an e-mail. “Incident remains under investigation.”

Investigators said that both men had been consuming alcohol.

Driver in fatal crash indicted

ROCK FALLS (MCT) – A Rock Falls man who, police say, was drunk when his SUV hit and killed a 33-year-old pedestrian last month was indicted Monday on two counts each of aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol.

A $200,000 arrest warrant was issued for Chad E. Morse, 40, who also was indicted on three counts of reckless homicide and two counts of misdemeanor DUI alcohol.

The most serious charge, aggravated DUI, is punishable by 3 to 7 years in prison. Reckless homicide carries 2 to 5 years.

As of Monday night, Morse was not yet in custody. His attorney, William Detrick of Moline, could not be reached for comment.

Joan Nitsch, of Creola, Ala., is the mother of the victim, Brad E. Nitsch of Rock Falls.

She said Monday that her family has “faith that justice would be served for our son.”

She said that although she is happy about the indictment, it won’t bring Brad back. “We’re never going to get over it,” Nitsch said. “It’s always going to be this big empty hole in our heart.”

According to police:

Brad Nitsch was standing in the 700 block of Avenue D, on the east side of the road, around 11:30 p.m. on Nov. 26 when he was struck by a northbound SUV driven by Morse.

The SUV then hit a utility pole head-on, rolled and lodged between the front porch and two trees at 703 Ave. D. Nitsch’s body was found in the yard, south of the SUV.

Morse had two passengers: his girlfriend, Nicole Leal, 25, and Kari Folkers, 45, both of Rock Falls. All were taken to CGH Medical Center in Sterling and treated for injuries, police said.

According to the indictment, Morse’s blood-alcohol level was 0.08 percent or higher at the time of accident.

Morse also was “driving at a speed that was greater than was reasonable and proper with regard to the existing roadway conditions and the safety of persons on or about the roadway” when he hit Nitsch, the indictment said.

30-year-old San Franciscan killed in I-280 crash

Updated: 12/19/2011 10:27:23 PM PST

Alcohol may have been a factor in a fatal traffic collision early Monday morning in Redwood City that took the life of a 30-year-old San Francisco man.

Officers were notified of the accident at approximately 1:18 a.m. The driver was identified by the San Mateo County Coroner's Office as Steven Raj, 30, of San Francisco.

Raj died after his black 2006 Honda veered off southbound Interstate Highway 280 near the Farm Hill Boulevard off-ramp and hit a tree, according to California Highway Patrol officer Art Montiel. Raj was ejected from his vehicle and landed on the off-ramp, where he was struck by an oncoming silver Chevrolet driven by a 41-year-old Redwood City man.

Raj, who was pronounced dead at the scene, may have been drinking before the accident, Montiel said.

"It appears he may have been under the influence, but we won't be sure until the toxicology reports come back," he said.

During the investigation, the Farm Hill Boulevard off-ramp was closed for about two hours.

Officer: Woman killed in crash had left another wreck

A woman who died when the pickup she was driving flipped over on U.S. 31 South on Saturday night had been involved in another wreck just moments before and kept going, Decatur police said.

Police also elaborated on their earlier statement that they believe alcohol contributed to the crash that killed Mary Chambers, 67, of Crane Hill.

“We are waiting on test results, but we have reason to believe it was involved,” said officer James Spence, a traffic homicide investigator.

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“There was a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from her and from the vehicle.”

Spence said officers did not find any alcohol in the vehicle and are still investigating Chambers’ activities before the crash.

Chambers, southbound on U.S. 31 in a red 1998 Chevrolet S-10, had left the scene of another collision, in which she ran a red light at Cedar Lake Road Southeast and hit an eastbound vehicle, Spence said.

“She didn’t cause a whole lot of damage,” Spence said. “She barely clipped the end of it.”

About 1½ miles farther south, at about 8:23 p.m., Chambers’ pickup left the highway and flipped several times, striking several vehicles in the parking lot of Midsouth Motors, police said.

Chambers was thrown from the vehicle and killed instantly, Morgan County Coroner Jeff Chunn said.

Alcohol 'a contributing factor' in Harford fatal crash Sunday, police say

December 05, 2011|AEGIS STAFF REPORT

Maryland State Police say "consumption of alcoholic beverages is believed to have been a contributing factor" in a fatal head-on collision in northern Harford County early Sunday morning.

Donald Vangosen, 41, of Fawn Grove, Pa, died at the scene from injuries suffered in the crash on Route 23 (Norrisville Road) just south of Harford Creamery Road near Norrisville, according to state police.

Troopers from the Maryland State Police Bel Air Barrack D in Bel Air responded to Norrisville Road for a reported serious motor vehicle collision just after 5 a.m. Sunday.

The preliminary investigation by troopers revealed Mr. Vangosen was traveling southbound on Norrisville Road in a 1999 Chevrolet Cavalier. At the same time, a 2007 Nissan Xterra being operated by Charles Creaney, 22, of Bel Air, was northbound on Norrisville Road.

Troopers determined the Nissan Xterra crossed the center line of the roadway for unknown reasons, striking the Chevrolet Cavalier head-on, according to a state police news release issued Monday morning.

Mr. Vangosen was the sole occupant of the Chevrolet Cavalier. Creaney and his passenger, 19-year-old Kimberly Martin of Bel Air, were transported to York Hospital by Norrisville Volunteer Fire Company ambulances for treatment of non life-threatening injuries.

High blood-alcohol level in teen driver in fatal crash

Posted: 12/07/2011 01:00:00 AM MST
The Denver Post

The driver of an SUV that crashed in Wheat Ridge on Nov. 6, killing him and another teen and critically injuring two others, had a blood-alcohol content well above the legal limit, according to the Jefferson County coroner's office.

Tyler Lovell, 18, was behind the wheel when the vehicle tumbled off the road in the early morning and crashed into a tree. An autopsy found his blood-alcohol level to be 0.228g/100ml, nearly triple the legal limit of .08.

Both Lovell, of unincorporated Jefferson County, and front-seat passenger Rain Walsh, 17, of Lakewood died of blunt-force trauma in the wreck. Back-seat passengers Andre Lang and Steven Miskimon, both 19 and from Lakewood, were injured.

Three adults face potential charges in connection with a party in which the teens drank alcohol.


 

3 men sentenced in fatal Phillies ballpark attack

PUBLISHED 1 hour and 38 minutes ago

LAST UPDATED 1 hour and 38 minutes ago

PHILADELPHIA — Three men who fatally attacked a man outside a Philadelphia Phillies game in a brawl police say was sparked by a spilled drink have been sentenced to prison terms.

Thirty-year-old Francis Kirchner, 37-year-old Charles Bowers and 48-year-old James Groves each pleaded guilty in October to voluntary manslaughter and criminal conspiracy in the July 2009 death of David Sale Jr.

Kirchner was sentenced Tuesday to consecutive terms totaling nine to 18 years. Bowers got consecutive terms totaling five to 10 years. Groves was sentenced to concurrent terms of two to four years.

Authorities say the 22-year-old Sale and his friends were at a bar attached to the Phillies stadium when they had an altercation with the defendants. Both groups were kicked out of the bar. The confrontation escalated in the parking lot.

The Phillies were playing the St. Louis Cardinals.


 

Police: Alcohol, high speeds led to fatal crash

 
Posted: Dec 30, 2011 9:05 AM CST Updated: Dec 30, 2011 9:05 AM CST

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - Kentucky State Police say alcohol and speeds of near 140 mph contributed to a fatal wreck that killed three teens in Frankfort in April.

Troopers determined that an Audi driven by 18-year-old Nick Jacoby on April 1 may have overcorrected and spun out of control after having reached speeds between 139 and 145 mph. Two other 18-year-olds, Ben Laslie and Allen Williams, were also killed.

An accident report, obtained through an open records request by The State Journal, says Jacoby's blood alcohol level "would have a significant impact on his judgment and driving ability".

The Audi hit an embankment, causing it to go airborne and roll into several trees. Police found the car engulfed in flames.

Michael Hawkins, attorney for Jacoby's family, declined comment on KSP's findings

Coroner: Clemson Sophomore Died of Alcohol Poisoning

The 19-year-old Mt. Pleasant native had alcohol levels of .267

 

The death of a 19-year-old Clemson sophomore that shook the campus in November was caused by alcohol poisoning, officials said.

Tyler J. Karolczyk had a blood-alcohol level of .267 at the time of his death, according to Pickens County Coroner Kandy Kelley.

"This boy was intolerant to alcohol, he wasn't a heavy drinker," Kelley said. "And that's like 3 times the the level of the legal limit."

Karolczyk had been drinking during a Friday night party at his off-campus aprartment at 116 Smoke Rise Lane in Central and it is unknown how many students were involved, Pickens County Assistant Sheriff Tim Morgan said.

"There's been a lot of block parties there," Morgan said. "The way those houses are all packed in there parties just spill out all over."

Karolczyk was found unconscious Saturday morning by one of his three roommates.

Morgan said the case remains under investigation and detectives are waiting until students return from winter break to resume questioning.

Police: Alcohol played role in Janesville stabbings

JANESVILLE - Four Janesville men were stabbed during a fight outside bars in the city's downtown area early this morning, according to the Janesville Police Department.

All four victims were transported to Mercy Hospital for treatment, police said. Three victims were released, but one remained in the intensive care unit with non-life threatening injuries, said Lt. Tim Hiers, of the Janesville Police Department.

 As of 9:30 a.m. today, no charges had been filed and no arrests had been made, Hiers said. Police were working to piece together "multiple descriptions of what happened," given by victims, witnesses and bar staff members, he said.

So far, the process has been complicated by the fact that "most people, if not everyone, had been drinking," Hiers said. Several victims, despite suffering stab wounds, told police they never saw a knife, Hiers said.

According to police, at 1:52 a.m., officers were dispatched to 16 N. Parker Drive where 15 individuals were observed fighting. The fight was between two groups leaving a downtown bar area.

Hiers declined to comment on what specific bars the individuals had been previously patronizing, but did say it appeared those involved in the fight had been at several bars, no just one.

Most downtown bars have surveillance video technology, he said.

One man had been stabbed in his arms, another had been stabbed in his neck, Hiers said. One of the victims had also reportedly suffered blunt force trauma injuries to his head.

 

Alcohol involved in Big Horn County crash that killed 4

 

Alcohol played a role in a head-on crash that killed four people and injured one person Thursday evening in Big Horn County, the Montana Highway Patrol said on Friday.

None of those who died was wearing a seat belt, while the injured person was wearing a seat belt, the patrol said. It is not known if speed also was a factor in the crash.

The accident happened at 5:40 p.m. on the East Frontage Road along Interstate 90 near Dunmore on the Crow Reservation, MHP said.

A 2006 Dodge Durango was disabled and stopped in the northbound lane when a southbound 2000 Ford Mustang moved into the northbound lane and hit the Dodge head-on, MHP said.

The driver of the Mustang, a 41-year-old Marva Knows His Gun, of Hardin, died at the Indian Health Service in Crow Agency. Her son, 17-year-old Frankie Knows His Gun, Jr., and another passenger, 19-year-old Corma Jefferson Fire Bear, from Crow Agency, both died at the scene, said Big Horn County Coroner Terry Bullis.

The driver of the Dodge, a 25-year-old man from Crow Agency, was injured and taken to the hospital in Hardin. His passenger, 27-year-old Vincent Fighter-Davies, from Crow Agency, died at the hospital in Crow Agency.

Bullis said all four died from injuries sustained in the crash.

 

16-year-old Canucks fan roughed up at Sharks game

Posted on: December 30, 2011 10:41 am
Edited on: December 30, 2011 2:30 pm

Fan violence in sports is becoming a bigger problem all the time. It's sad but true.

At a recent game in San Jose between the host Sharks and the visiting Canucks, 16-year-old Maggie Herger, who four years ago had surgery to remove a brain tumor, was left concussed by another fan at the game. Herger says that she was hit in the head by a drunken Sharks fan who had been bothering her and her sister during the game after a San Jose goal.

Here's the story from the San Jose Mercury News:

The girls said they did just that, keeping to themselves as they rooted for the Canucks and took smiling pictures that appeared destined for a happy digital photo album. But one intoxicated woman wearing a Sharks jersey, who appeared to be in her 40s, kept bumping into the teens and yelling curses at them, the two sisters said.

Then, as the fans jumped up to celebrate a second period Sharks goal, the sisters said, the woman behind them brought down both her hands and smacked Maggie in the back of her head "really hard," forcing Maggie to fall forward and leaving her dazed.

Her sister then rushed to an usher. Maya said she heard the woman tell the usher "she's a Canucks fan," but that she "didn't mean to" hurt her.

"I was just really surprised," Maggie said. "I didn't think people acted like that."

She later found out from doctors that she had suffered a slight concussion, leaving her head "spinning" a day later and her neck and head still hurting. She was bedridden, nauseous and on pain medication.

 
Biker drunk when he perished
--------------------

By Jeff Long
Tribune staff reporter

August 24, 2006

A motorcyclist who lay dying in a cornfield last month as rescuers scrambled to locate him while he talked by cell phone to an emergency dispatcher was too drunk to drive and not wearing a helmet, a coroner's jury heard Wednesday.

The jury ruled that Kurt Regnier's July 9 death was accidental. An autopsy several hours after the crash showed a blood-alcohol content of 0.12 percent. The legal limit to drive is 0.08.

Officials were unable to say how long it was after his 1:28 a.m. call to 911 that Regnier died.

A motorist spotted his 2003 Harley-Davidson at 5:37 a.m., and Regnier, 47, of Capron in Boone County, was pronounced dead at the scene about 5:50 a.m.

Officials have said that neither Regnier's phone nor McHenry County's 911 system were equipped with technology that could have helped pinpoint his location.

A second call picked up by Boone County dispatchers at 1:36 a.m. also could not be traced.

McHenry County Sheriff's Deputy Matt Matusek told the coroner's jury that it did not appear that Regnier was speeding on the level, dry, unmarked stretch of Dunham Road southwest of Harvard.

"He wasn't flying by any means," Matusek said, estimating that Regnier was within the 55 m.p.h. speed limit, but was not wearing a helmet.

Regnier was returning home from NASCAR races in Joliet.
 
Guilty plea in car crash that left 2 teens dead
--------------------

August 24, 2006

CRYSTAL LAKE -- A Crystal Lake woman who supplied alcohol to two teenagers who later died in a car crash pleaded guilty this week to two misdemeanor charges, officials said Wednesday. (Nice, 2 people are dead and she gets a misdermeanor charge)

Jessica Ochal, 22, will begin serving three weekends in the county jail on Sept. 8, said McHenry County State's Atty. Lou Bianchi. With her trial on the charges scheduled to begin next week, she pleaded guilty Tuesday to two counts of unlawful delivery of alcohol to a minor.

Prosecutors sought jail time because "two people are dead," Bianchi said.

The crash shortly after midnight Feb. 19 killed Jeffrey Mills-Micek, 17, and Scott Scheckel, 16, both of Crystal Lake. The Prairie Ridge High School students attended a party where Ochal provided beer, officials say.
 
Fitness instructor faces abuse charge
--------------------

August 24, 2006

CHICAGO -- A Lincoln Park health club fitness instructor charged with sexually abusing a 14-year-old girl at the club was ordered held on $40,000 bail Wednesday.

Thomas Rahim, 21, of the 1200 block of West Pratt Boulevard, appeared before Cook County Criminal Court Judge Raymond Myles charged with aggravated criminal sexual abuse.

On Sunday, Rahim, who worked at the Lakeshore Athletic Club, approached the girl and her 14-year-old female friend as they played basketball, said Assistant Cook County State's Atty. Brad Giglio.

Rahim then went to a liquor store to buy alcohol and returned to the club where he, another employee and the two girls went to a rooftop club known as the Red Room, Giglio said.

That same day, the girl told her parents that Rahim attacked her. He was arrested later that evening, according to a Chicago police report.

Firefighter could be fired for alleged on-the-job intoxication
--------------------

Associated Press

August 23, 2006, 12:56 PM CDT

KOKOMO, Ind. -- A firefighter who was allegedly drunken, loud and abusive while on emergency medical runs might be fired for violating department rules.

Kokomo Fire Chief Dave Duncan on Tuesday brought formal charges that allege John J. Iseminger was drunk on duty the night of June 9, testing above the legal limit for alcohol.

The Kokomo Board of Public Works & Safety will hear the case Sept. 19.

Rick Daily, president of Firefighters Local 396, had no comment on the case Tuesday, but said the union will help the 18-year veteran of the department fight the charges.

Iseminger remains on duty with the department while the charges are pending.

There was no answer Wednesday at a number listed for John Iseminger in Kokomo to obtain comment.

In addition to a charge of performing duties while under the influence of alcohol, Iseminger is also charged with conduct unbecoming an officer. He also faces allegations he violated state laws governing conduct by a public employee.

In his written report to the board of works, Duncan said Iseminger took part in emergency runs June 9 while under the influence and that after one run, "medics complained that a firefighter was loud, abusive and smelled of alcohol."

Man who swung, killed kitten spared jail

By Edith Bevan

August 25, 2006 04:00am

A MAN who swung a kitten by its tail and slammed it repeatedly on to a road as his friends laughed was yesterday given a one-year good behaviour bond.

Jamie Stephen Thorley, 23, of Doonside in Sydney's west, could have faced a jail sentence of up to two years for the brutal attack which killed the three-month-old kitten on May 31 this year.

But instead Parramatta Local Court Magistrate Geraldine Beattie made Thorley agree to be of good behaviour for one year after being found guilty of aggravated animal cruelty, resisting police arrest and malicious damage.

The RSPCA said yesterday they were concerned that the good behaviour bond would send the wrong message to the community.

RSPCA chief inspector David O'Shannessy said the attack had been particularly cruel.

"The sentence is disappointing from the point of view that this animal died as a consequence of the attack," Mr O'Shannessy said.

"It would have been a fairly horrific way to die and the fact that similar offences in similar months have met with more severe penalties in the form of custodial sentences.

"We're certainly happy in other matters where custodial sentences have been given - our concern is a sentence such as this could be misconstrued by members of the public.

"Animal cruelty to defenceless animals is unacceptable."

The court had heard Thorley was drunk when he picked up the kitten on Delany St, Doonside. He stroked it at first before swinging it by its tail over his head and repeatedly slamming it into the road.

Thorley and the friends he was with laughed as the attack unfolded.

Thorley told the court he had no recollection of the event because he had mixed 350ml of rum with his schizophrenia medication that day.

When the attack took place Thorley was supposed to be facing Wyong Local Court answering charges of break and enter and stealing a car.

Under NSW's tough new animal cruelty laws, an aggravated matter carries with it a maximum two-year jail term.

In a test case of the new laws, a 45-year-old Blackett man was jailed for a year in June after torturing and trying to drown a kitten.

Man sentenced to 24 years for fatal DUI
--------------------

By Jeff Borgardt
Special to the Tribune

August 31, 2006, 7:00 PM CDT

A 30-year-old Lyons man was sentenced to 24 years in prison Thursday for the drunken driving crash that killed three members of a Chicago family three years ago on a McCook overpass near Interstate Highway 55.

Jaime Guzman of the 8700 block of West Ogden Avenue pleaded for leniency before Cook County Judge Kerry Kennedy imposed sentence on the reckless homicide conviction in the Bridgeview Courthouse.

But Kennedy had little sympathy for Guzman, who was driving a sport-utility vehicle the wrong way on Illinois Highway 171 at about 3 a.m. on Sept. 7, 2003, when it slammed into a mini-van carrying Luis Velazquez, 44, his wife, Norma, 34, and their two children. The couple died, as did their 5-year-old son, Diego. A daughter survived.

Valeria Velazquez, now 7, was in Kennedy's courtroom with several relatives on Thursday.

"You have shown no remorse," the judge said. "You had a choice to drink that night and you decided to. There are consequences for your actions."

Guzman's vehicle was traveling north in the southbound lanes of the highway, also known as 1st Avenue, at more than 50 m.p.h. when it crashed into the Velazquez van.

Homicide charge filed in motorcycle crash
--------------------


August 29, 2006

ZION -- A Zion man was charged Monday with driving under the influence and reckless homicide in connection with a crash that killed a motorcyclist early Sunday.

Lake County Circuit Judge Valerie Ceckowski ordered Margarito Morales-Ramirez, 24, held in lieu of $100,000 bail.

Zion police said Michael Moll, 49, of Zion was killed just before 3 a.m. Sunday when his motorcycle was struck by an oncoming Chevrolet Cavalier driven by Morales-Ramirez near the intersection of 30th Street and Lewis Avenue.

Moll was pronounced dead at the scene, said Coroner Richard Keller.

Morales-Ramirez, of the 2400 block of Lewis Avenue, was treated for minor injuries. Tests indicated his blood-alcohol level was 0.16. The legal limit is 0.08.

West Chicago teen killed, girlfriend hurt in collision
--------------------

By Dave Wischnowsky
Tribune staff reporter

August 27, 2006

Chicago Bears tickets in hand, Nick Jannotti said goodbye to his mom Friday afternoon, then hopped into his car, taking off from West Chicago with his girlfriend bound for Soldier Field.

Jannotti wouldn't make it back home.

After Friday night's preseason game and apparently spending part of the night and next morning in the city with friends, state police said, Jannotti, 18, driving his 2002 Cadillac Catera, slammed into the back of a semitrailer about 6:20 a.m. Saturday. He was traveling west on Interstate Highway 290 near Elk Grove Village, about 300 feet from the Biesterfield Road exit, police said.

Jannotti, a 2006 Bartlett High School graduate, was pronounced dead around 10 a.m. at Alexian Brothers Medical Center in Elk Grove village, officials said.

His girlfriend, also a Bartlett graduate, now a freshman at the University of Illinois at Chicago, was taken to the hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening.

"She came away pretty unscathed," said Jannotti's father, John. "She was lucky."

The driver of the semi wasn't seriously injured and declined medical treatment, police said. No citations were issued, police said.

Illinois State Police Sgt. Theodore Whittier said alcohol appears to have been a factor. He said Jannotti was speeding at the time of the crash.

Man sentenced in drunken driving accident that killed 2
--------------------

Associated Press

August 25, 2006, 12:03 PM CDT

INDIANAPOLIS -- A man convicted in a drunken driving crash that killed two people, including the father of the groom, as they left a wedding reception was sentenced Friday to 52 years in prison.

Rosalio Pedraza, 32, expressed remorse for the first time to the families of the two men killed and a woman injured in the August 2005 crash.

Marion County jurors last week needed just 25 minutes to convict Pedraza in the crash that killed the father of the groom, Tom Youngstafel, 45, of Burlington, Ky., and Joe Gehler, 30, of Union, Ky. Gehler's longtime girlfriend, Emily Kelly, 30, was injured.

Pedraza had a blood-alcohol content about three times the legal limit for motorists to drive in Indiana when he ran a red light and smashed into a sport utility vehicle leaving the reception at the Indianapolis Zoo.


Pedraza was convicted of two counts of operating a vehicle while intoxicated causing death and two counts of operating a vehicle while intoxicated causing serious bodily injury. He was found to be a habitual offender because of two prior convictions for drunken driving, in November 2001 and October 2003.

Kelly testified in favor of more prison time for Pedraza.

"You created this nightmare for me," said Kelly, who spoke along with Gehler's mother and Youngstafel's wife and two sons. "When you killed Joe, you took my life. I will do whatever it takes to never let you forget that."

Vikings release Koren Robinson

By JON KRAWCZYNSKI, AP Sports Writer
August 26, 2006

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Wide receiver Koren Robinson was among eight players cut by the Minnesota Vikings on Saturday, 10 days after he was charged with drunken driving and fleeing police.

Robinson, who made his first trip to the Pro Bowl as a kick returner last season and signed a three-year, $12.7 million contract extension in March, was one of the Vikings' few bright spots last year.

Former coach Mike Tice convinced Robinson to sign with the team following a stint in an alcohol treatment facility in North Carolina, and the player rewarded Tice's faith with one of the best seasons of his up-and-down five-year career.

But as soon as things started looking up for the oft-troubled Robinson, he was back in jail.

His blue BMW sedan was caught on radar going more than 100 mph in a 55 mph zone on the night of Aug. 15, as he tried to get from the Twin Cities back to the team's training camp headquarters in Mankato for curfew.

When police tried to pull him over, Robinson refused to stop, police said. Robinson was arrested by police about 10 miles away in Mankato, and the criminal complaint said a field test measured Robinson's blood-alcohol content at 0.11 percent.

Man hit by pickup mirror may lose eye
By Gene Haschak
Daily Herald Staff Writer

A 22-year-old St. Charles pedestrian was hit early Tuesday by a man accused of drunken driving, South Elgin police said.

As a result, the man might lose sight in one eye, police said.

Steve Lapradd of 35W354 Bonfield Ave., St. Charles, was walking along Route 25 in South Elgin at 12:30æa.m. when he was hit in the face by the passenger-side mirror of a northbound 2003 Ford pickup driven by John A. Martin III, 40, of 1423 S. Prospect Ave., Park Ridge, police said.

Martin was found wandering near the accident scene on Route 25 about 900 feet north of Middle Street, police said.

Martin failed three sobriety tests and said he had been drinking at the Royal Fox Golf Club in St. Charles, police said.

Martin was charged with aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol, failure to yield the right of way to a pedestrian and no insurance, according to court documents.

In addition to the severe contusion to his left eye, Lapradd suffered a broken nose, lacerations to his face and arm and a chipped tooth. He was taken to Delnor-Community Hospital in Geneva.

Martin was taken to the Kane County jail, where he posted a $1,500 bond. He was released with a preliminary court date on Sept. 14 at the Kane County Judicial Center.

Athlete cites second NCC hazing incident
By Melissa Jenco
Daily Herald Staff Writer

The 2005 North Central College baseball team’s freshman “initiation” was not an isolated case at the school, a former player said Thursday.

The team also was disciplined this spring after taking part in similar antics that included some players wearing diapers and others having alcohol poured down their throats at a freshman initiation party.

Officials at the Naperville school said Wednesday they were launching an investigation into the 2005 incidents, which were captured in more than 100 pictures posted in an online album titled “Frosh Initiation ’05.”

Some of the photos showed players having alcohol poured in their mouths from as many as six liquor bottles at one time. Others showed team members playing baseball in their underwear and still others showed players wearing women’s lingerie.

When questioned about the 2005 incident Wednesday, Laurie Hamen, vice president for enrollment management and student affairs, said she was unaware of any other hazing incidents at North Central.

“I would never say it never happens,” she said. “It hasn’t been reported to us.”

When asked to confirm reports of a second incident with the team, Hamen said she could not discuss judicial incidents involving students.

School officials saw pictures of the 2006 party on the Internet just days later, he said, and coaches punished the team by making them do extra running at practice and temporarily stripping some players of their captain status. (What a freaking joke that punishment!)

5 years for beating up the wrong teens
BY CHRISTY GUTOWSKI
Daily Herald Legal Affairs Writer

Armed with baseball bats and a "vigilante" vengeance, Ryan R. Thomas went back with friends to the Naperville neighborhood where he had lost a fight over a traffic dispute.

Too bad he couldn't remember with whom he had tussled.

On Thursday, DuPage Circuit Judge Michael Burke sentenced Thomas to five years in prison for beating up three teens who just left a Naperville junior police program and had nothing to do with the original fight.

Thomas, 25, pleaded guilty six months ago to felony armed violence for the brutal Nov. 9, 2002, attack. In return, prosecutors dropped more serious attempted murder charges.

The three teens were standing outside one of their homes on the 300 block of Cedarbrook Road when Thomas and several friends attacked them with baseball bats.

One victim escaped into his house after suffering one blow to his back. He called 911 while the other two, still outside, tried in vain to protect themselves from the armed mob.

"I thought I was going to die," said one of the victims, a Naperville man, now 20, who was the most seriously injured. "I was thinking, 'What did I do?' I did nothing to deserve this beating."

He was in the hospital for five days and endured two surgeries. The three teens' injuries included a dislocated shoulder, cuts, black eyes, bruises and a broken nose and arm.

They recovered physically, but the teens said their emotional scars linger. They complained of anger, distrust, depression and a nagging fear of future attacks.

As part of a civil settlement, Thomas' family paid two of them $70,000 each for medical bills. His guilty plea March 6 spared them an emotional trial. He also apologized Thursday.

"There are no words to describe how sorry I am," he said, looking straight at the victims. "The things that happened that night were completely out of character for me."

Nearly four years ago, the Naperville man got into a traffic dispute at Bailey Road and Washington Street. He admitted following the other motorist home to Cedarbrook, where a fight ensued. Another man jumped into the melee. Thomas, who took a kick to the nose, left, but not without making a threat to return and kill them.

He did come back, this time with a gaggle of friends toting baseball bats. Police tracked Thomas down after conducting several interviews and matching his DNA to dandruff found inside a hat left at the scene.

He did not have a prior criminal record. Thomas was free on bond for the attack in May 2005 when police stopped his car and discovered "hundreds" of pounds of marijuana and at least $100,000 cash.

Authorities said he cooperated with an ensuing federal investigation and, in exchange for his help, drug agents did not pursue criminal charges.

Prosecutors David Johnston and Paul Marchese said Thomas doesn't deserve another break. They also questioned the sincerity of his remorse.

"He doesn't care about these innocent victims," Johnston said. "The defendant is the boogeyman to these young boys. He is a monster to them, and what he did that night was monstrous."

Authorities did not uncover any other evidence of violence in Thomas' past. Defense attorneys Todd Pugh and Tom Breen said Thomas stopped the attack after realizing he had the wrong guys.

His attorneys asked the judge for leniency. They presented two dozen letters from family and friends who describe Thomas as a thoughtful, trustworthy man with remorse.

Thomas has been in jail since his plea six months ago. He is a model inmate, Pugh said, and has participated in classes for anger, religion, computers and job readiness.

"Ryan Thomas is not a bully and he is not a thug," Pugh said. "They can call him every name they want, but he is not a violent person but for that night."

Prosecutors argued Thomas was eligible for consecutive terms of up to 14 years, but the judge disagreed. The defendant faced either probation or three to seven years behind bars.

In meting out the punishment, Judge Michael Burke called Thomas "the leader of what can only be described as an alcohol-and-testosterone-fueled vigilante group."

Thomas must serve half the five-year sentence before he is eligible for parole. Another man also is facing charges for the attack. His case is pending. Police were unable to build strong enough cases to arrest the others.

Man says anger, alcohol fueled threat
Immigration issues prompted e-mail to Salazar

By Pamela Dickman
The Daily Reporter-Herald

A Berthoud man has admitted sending an e-mail threatening Sen. Ken
Salazar and his family — a hate-filled message he said was prompted by
alcohol and anger over illegal immigrants taking jobs away from him.
Joseph James King pleaded guilty Aug. 25 to a federal charge of
threatening the senator in an e-mail sent May 5, which is Cinco de Mayo.

King could be sent to prison when a U.S. District Court judge sentences
him Nov. 17.

On May 23, Salazar’s chief of staff contacted the FBI after the
senator’s staff read a threatening e-mail, according to court documents.

The e-mail repeatedly calls Salazar a derogatory term referring to
sexual preference and a “rat” who supports illegal immigrants,
according to the plea agreement document filed in U.S. District Court
in Denver.

“You stick a knife in my back, and I will cut your (expletive) THROAT
and that of your family,” the e-mail states, according to the plea
document.

Another line of the e-mail begins with an expletive and continues, “I
would say go back to (derogatory term for Mexico) but please stay some
day I want to beat you half to death and your wife twice as much.”

Investigators traced the e-mail to King’s computer in Berthoud, and
King admitted sending it, according to the plea document. He told an
FBI agent he was drunk and upset over national immigration events when
he sent the e-mail, according to the document.

He reportedly said he works as a roofer and was upset because he thinks
illegal immigrants are taking his work, something he said he sees every
day, the court document states.

Iowa State student pleads guilty to fatal crash

NEVADA, Iowa - An Iowa state student has pleaded guilty to a car crash
that killed a fellow student last December following an on-campus party.
Shanda Munn of Lawler admitted in court Friday that she was driving
impaired in the early morning hours of Dec. 2 after consuming several
drinks at the party. Police said her car struck 20-year-old Kelly
Laughery while she was walking along a street. Laughery was found
around 4:30 a.m. on the side of the street and was pronounced dead at
an Ames hospital.
Munn, a 20-year-old sophomore at the time, was charged in her death two
months later.
During the court hearing Friday, Munn pleaded guilty to vehicular
homicide, a Class C felony that carries a maximum sentence of 10 years
in prison, plus fines. She originally was charged with a more serious
form of vehicular homicide, which would have carried a maximum sentence
of 25 years in prison.
As part of a plea agreement, Story County prosecutors dropped a charge
of leaving the scene of a personal injury accident, which would have
added another possible two years in prison. In exchange, Munn must
cooperate with prosecutors if charges are brought against the people
who supplied the alcohol that she consumed.
Laughery's parents, Douglas and Pamela Laughery, have filed a
wrongful-death lawsuit against Munn and four other Iowa State students
they say were responsible for their daughter's death. The Laugherys
contend the other students hosted the keg party Munn attended. The four
are identified in the lawsuit as Jody George, Nicholas Tonelli, Tony
Galante and Kelly Campbell.
Members of Laughery family declined to comment on the plea agreement
Friday.
Story County prosecutors would not say whether they will pursue charges
against those who supplied the alcohol.

Son of former police chief to spend 30 months in prison
--------------------


Associated Press

September 9, 2006, 2:36 PM CDT

WAUKESHA, Wis. -- The son of a former City of Pewaukee police chief was sentenced to 30 months in prison for his role in a car accident that killed a 21-year-old woman.

Michael Stone, 26, of Hartland was found guilty of homicide by negligent operation of a vehicle for a fatal crash in June 2005 that killed Erin Gutknecht.

"I have to give the community a message that we cannot, cannot, and will not, tolerate criminally negligent behavior," Waukesha County Circuit Judge Ralph Ramirez said Friday before sentencing Stone, son of former Police Chief Denny Stone.

After a night of barhopping, Michael Stone was driving early the morning of June 12, 2005, when he swerved off the road and collided with trees.

Gutknecht, who was riding in the rear storage area of the vehicle with Joseph Froehlich of Sussex, suffered head injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Son Killed in Head-On Crash With Dad
--------------------

By Associated Press

September 5, 2006, 11:04 PM CDT

PEMBINE, Wis. -- A man drove into oncoming traffic and struck his father's car, killing himself and seriously injuring his father in northeastern Wisconsin, the sheriff's department said Tuesday.

Cory Ehlert, 31, was driving east when he crossed the center line early Monday and hit a westbound vehicle driven by his 53-year-old father, Kerry Ehlert. Both were alone in their vehicles.

The son's girlfriend had called the father to the son's home to assist at a family disturbance, Marinette County Sheriff Mike Kessler said in a statement.

The son died on the scene and the father underwent surgery at a Green Bay hospital. He was listed in fair condition Tuesday, hospital spokesman Jim Reck said.

Alcohol and speed contributed to the accident, the sheriff said.

Several Arrested After Ohio State's Win
--------------------

By Associated Press

September 10, 2006, 9:55 PM CDT

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- An Ohio State University student accused of driving his car into three people, injuring them slightly, was among several people arrested during a raucous celebration of the No. 1-ranked Buckeye's win over No. 2 Texas.

There were about 40 fires reported, with couches and mattresses set ablaze, in student neighborhoods Saturday night, said Columbus police Sgt. David Howson, whose department arrested about 17 people, five of them on arson charges. A trash bin also was set on fire, burning two nearby cars, he said.

Battalion Fire Chief Kevin O'Connor said he was treated for bumps and bruises after he and two others were struck by a car that came through a temporary command post set up in the driveway of a student union building.

The two others, Ohio State assistant vice president for student affairs Barbara Rich and her husband, were treated early Sunday at Ohio State University Medical Center for minor injuries.

The driver of the car, George Karadimas, 22, a student at the school, has been charged with vehicular assault, said Ohio State Assistant Chief Rick Amweg. He declined to comment on whether alcohol was involved.

Karadimas was being held in a Franklin County jail and is scheduled to appear in court Monday morning for an arraignment, said sheriff's deputy Travis Carter.

Most students haven't returned to campus because fall classes don't start until Sept. 20, Howson said. Still, police concentrated their patrols on the campus area last night.

"This happens on big games, so we were prepared for it," Howson said.

The 24-7 victory kept the Buckeyes (2-0) in perfect position for a run to a college football national title. Texas, which saw its 21-game winning streak snapped, is the defending national champion.

School bus driver charged with drunken driving
--------------------

Associated Press

September 5, 2006, 11:48 PM CDT

NEW ALBANY, Ind. -- School district officials suspended a bus driver following her weekend arrest on a charge of being drunk while transporting 13 cheerleaders and their coach.

The cheerleading team from New Albany High School was on a bus returning Friday night from a football game against Jennings County in North Vernon when the team's coach became concerned because the driver seemed confused and was driving erratically, said Tony Bennett, assistant to the superintendent for operations for the New Albany-Floyd County schools.

The coach persuaded the driver, Sylvia Cooke, to exit from Interstate 65 and stop at a gas station near Uniontown and state police were called, he said.

Cooke, 60, was arrested on a drunken driving charge after a test found she had a blood-alcohol level of 0.19 percent, more than twice the state's legal limit to drive of 0.08 percent, according to state police.

She was released Saturday from the Jackson County Jail on $700 bond. Cooke could not be located for comment as no home telephone number is listed in her name.

Bennett said Tuesday that Cooke, who had driven a daily bus route for New Albany High School for the past 18 months, has been suspended while the school district investigates her arrest.

"(Cooke) placed the safety of our students in jeopardy," Bennett said. "We're very disappointed because the primary role of a bus driver is to transport students safely."

Bennett said the school district knew of no other driving incidents or accidents by Cooke.


McHenry County crashes kill 2
--------------------


September 6, 2006

Two people were killed over the Labor Day weekend in McHenry County crashes, one of them a fiery collision involving a pickup truck, police said Tuesday.

Jesus Rivera, 40, of McHenry was killed in a crash before 11:30 a.m. Sunday in the 1400 block of Illinois Highway 120 in rural McHenry Township, authorities said.

Rivera's blood-alcohol level was 0.25, said McHenry County sheriff's Sgt. Karen Groves, three times the legal limit in Illinois.

Rivera was headed west when he struck the rear of a vehicle in front of him and lost control, crossing the median and hitting another vehicle, police said.

A passenger in Rivera's car, Jose Alfredo Barradas-Rosales, was arrested by sheriff's police on unrelated warrants for DUI and failure to appear in court, Groves said.

Also, Corey J. Bain, 20, of West Dundee was killed just before 1 a.m. Monday when he failed to stop his pickup at a stop sign and pulled into the path of a truck at Illinois Highway 23 and Carls Road in unincorporated Riley Township, Groves said.

The pickup burst into flames, and Bain was pronounced dead at the scene, Groves said.

Drunken-driving charge in fatal crash
--------------------


September 6, 2006

A Palos Park man was charged with drunken driving and speeding Tuesday in a weekend crash that killed an off-duty Chicago police officer.

Wojciech Sikon, 20, of the 10700 block of Grandview Drive was charged with a misdemeanor count of driving under the influence and cited with failure to reduce speed in the Sunday morning crash that killed Officer Timothy Harts, said Chicago Police Officer JoAnn Taylor.

The crash occurred at about 3:40 a.m. in the 6700 block of South Cicero Avenue. Sikon was driving north on Cicero at a high rate of speed when his vehicle slammed into Harts' vehicle, which was making a left turn onto Marquette Road, Taylor said.

Harts' vehicle spun and slammed into a utility pole, ejecting him.

Harts, 29, of the 3900 block of West 104th Street was pronounced dead at about 7:50 a.m. Sunday in Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, the Cook County medical examiner's office said.

Sikon and his male passenger suffered minor injuries and were treated at Advocate Christ, Taylor said.

6-year sentence for DUI death
--------------------

Man got break at first, but violated probation

By Art Barnum
Tribune staff reporter

September 7, 2006

The mother of a Naperville teen killed in a 2001 car crash stormed from a DuPage courtroom Wednesday after a judge sentenced Sean McNees, the intoxicated driver, to 6 years in prison.

Jamie Blundell said McNees, now 21, deserved a longer prison term for abusing alcohol and drugs while on probation for the reckless homicide of her daughter, Stacey, 17.

Weeping, Jamie Blundell expressed outrage in a 15-minute statement after the sentencing.

"My kid is dead, and [McNees'] mother is bawling," she said. "They have no respect and understanding. They should be crying for my kid."

Her husband, Ted Blundell, said, "We aren't going to argue with the judge's ruling, but we expected a [longer] sentence. ... We didn't believe there was any sincerity coming from [McNees] at all."

McNees was 16 when he smashed his car into a tree, killing passenger Stacey Blundell. He had been drinking and smoking marijuana, authorities said.

After he was convicted, the Blundells asked Judge George Bakalis to show mercy, saying they thought sending McNees to prison would be wrong.

Bakalis gave McNees probation, six months in the County Jail and ordered him to pay restitution. But since then, McNees has been accused three times of violating the terms of his probation, including his arrest in May 2005 on charges he was driving under the influence of alcohol on a revoked license. Those accusations led to his resentencing.

"It's God's will," McNees said while gazing at his parents in the front row of the Wheaton courtroom.

The McNeeses did not speak to the Blundells while leaving the courtroom and declined to comment about the sentence.

Assistant DuPage State's Atty. Michael Pawl had sought the maximum 14-year sentence while defense attorney Joseph Laraia argued for probation.

Bakalis said he could not take into account McNees' probation violations in resentencing him on the reckless homicide charge. And he said a first-time reckless homicide conviction likely would not yield a sentence of more than 6 years.

"If I gave McNees the maximum 14 years, I would be quickly reversed" on appeal, Bakalis said.

McNees will serve about 85 percent of the 6-year term, or about 5 years and one month. Because he has been held in the County Jail in lieu of $1 million bail since his 2005 arrest, McNees should be released from prison in about three years, Bakalis said.

Jamie Blundell said she was sorry she stormed out of the courtroom. "The impact of knowing he's still alive and my daughter's dead got to me."

Lions assistant arrested twice
--------------------

September 7, 2006

A former Illinois assistant coach--now with the Detroit Lions--was arrested twice in the last two weeks, once for allegedly driving drunk and once for driving in the nude, according to the Detroit Free Press. Joe Cullen, whom first-year head coach Rod Marinelli hired from Illinois, coaches the defensive line. Cullen, 38, posted bond in both misdemeanor cases and was still coaching the Lions at practice Wednesday, the paper reported. In the latter incident, a Dearborn police ticket describes the coach as "driving on a public street without any clothes on. (NUDE)." The team released a statement from Cullen apologizing and said Cullen has requested treatment. The nudity incident happened Aug. 24, the night before the Lions flew to Oakland for a game against the Raiders. The Lions said alcohol was involved. Police again arrested Cullen on Sept. 1, the night after the Lions lost their final exhibition game to the Bills at Ford Field. Records show Cullen had a blood alcohol content of .12.

Driver charged with DUI in biker's death
--------------------

By Hal Dardick
Tribune staff reporter

September 7, 2006, 6:45 PM CDT

A Joliet man was charged with three counts of aggravated driving under the influence Thursday, a day after he was accused of causing a crash that took the life of a motorcyclist.

Jesse G. King, 22, of the 2200 block of Douglas Street was arrested Wednesday after the 9:24 p.m. crash that led to the death of Joseph Kingsmill, 45, of Joliet. Kingsmill was declared dead in Provena St. Joseph Medical Center in Joliet less than an hour after the crash.

King was driving a car south on Larkin Avenue at Jefferson Street when he crossed the median, sideswiped a northbound car and then hit the northbound motorcycle ridden by Kingsmill, said Joliet Deputy Police Chief Patrick Kerr.

Kingsmill, who was not wearing a helmet, suffered massive head injuries, Kerr said. No one else was injured in the crash, he added.

According to the charges filed against him, King's blood-alcohol level topped .08 percent, the legal limit in Illinois, at the time of the accident. He also had unspecified drugs in his system, the charges allege.

A judge ordered King, whom police also charged with possession of less than 10 grams of marijuana, held in lieu of $250,000 bail Thursday afternoon. If convicted, King would face up to 14 years in prison.

Illinois man's night of killing still a mystery
--------------------

Slayings, suicide still shake Wyoming city

By Liam Ford
Tribune staff reporter

September 5, 2006

Even as police released more details of a double homicide-suicide in Laramie, Wyo., that involved a young man raised in South Beloit, Ill., experienced investigators said a motive may never be known.

Forensic evidence and witness interviews after the July attack have provided a timeline of how Justin Geiger, 20, of Rockton, stabbed Adam Towler to death, attacked his roommate then fatally shot Amber Carlson before turning the gun on himself, authorities said.

But investigators said they have unearthed no clear motive to explain why Geiger killed Towler, 20, and Carlson, 19.

"We approached this as if we were going to try to prosecute someone--motivation was a critical piece," said Laramie Police Cmdr. Dale Stalder. "From everything we've been able to determine at this point in the investigation, we can't point to anything that triggered the event."

Before last week, police had not released information laying out the order in which the attacks occurred.

Geiger, Carlson and Geiger's 19-year-old roommate who was stabbed in the attack were students at the University of Wyoming who met as freshmen last school year.

Geiger grew up in South Beloit, and Carlson was from Denver. Towler's father is head of the chemical and petroleum engineering department at the university. Towler was home for the summer taking classes as he prepared to transfer to Georgetown University from Emory University in the fall.

Family members have not spoken to the media since just after the incident. The Tribune is not naming Geiger's roommate because he was sexually assaulted.

The rampage took place early in the morning of July 16, after a small drinking party at a one-story frame home close to the university campus in Laramie. Geiger rented the house with several roommates.

About six or seven people had attended the party, and autopsy results indicated the victims and Geiger had all consumed alcohol, police said.

By the time Geiger attacked Towler shortly before 2 a.m., most of the guests had left, leaving only those who became involved in the attacks.

Geiger stabbed Towler multiple times, fatally injuring him, then attacked his roommate, sexually assaulting him and giving him superficial stab wounds, police said.

Police believe the sexual assault was "a crime of power and control and violence" and not one of sex, Stalder said.

The roommate fled the house and shouted for help, alerting people in the quiet residential neighborhood, who called police.

It was at that point that Carlson walked into the room where Geiger had killed Towler; Geiger shot her once in the head, killing her, then put the rifle to his own head, police said.

The multiple homicides shook the small city of Laramie and raised questions among the students' friends and acquaintances about what could have caused Geiger, known as a close friend of Carlson's, to attack the others.

Though university officials said talk of the killings has quieted in recent weeks, some residents said each mention in the media brings a new round of questions.

In the days after the incident, Stalder said that police considered it their responsibility to determine "what started this" to help provide closure for the families. But officials said they are still stymied in their attempts to explain the slayings, and some with experience with homicide investigations said a motive may never be known.

"You look at a bloodstain pattern analyst who will look at where the blood is. And that will tell you where the shooter was from the victim, whether or not there was struggle, things like that," said Gary Rini, a Cleveland-based forensics consultant who has worked for the Denver and Naperville Police Departments.

"When you're talking about motive--that goes into a whole other realm."

Determining an exact motive can be difficult even when the attacker is still alive, said Douglas Godfrey, a former prosecutor and a professor at Chicago-Kent College of Law.

"One, it's very hard to look into men's minds, it's very hard to figure out what they're thinking. Second, people often work from mixed motives," Godfrey said.

Richard Kling is a clinical professor of law at Chicago-Kent and a defense lawyer for 35 years. Forensic evidence can nail down what happened and who was responsible, but he added: "Why it happened, it can never tell you."

So for now, it appears police know who was responsible for the killings, but not why.

"That's not to say that next week or next month, or a year or two years from now, something might come to light that will tell us, `This is what that trigger was,'" Stalder said.


Indiana woman killed in crash on Dale Hollow Lake
--------------------

Associated Press

September 11, 2006, 10:30 AM CDT

CELINA, Tenn. -- An Indiana woman died over the weekend when a boat she was riding in crashed on Dale Hollow Lake in Tennessee, officials said.

Robin Bentley, 45, of Martinsville, Ind., was found under the boat after it struck an exposed gravel bar and flipped early Saturday, said Glenn Moates, an investigator with the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency.

Two others among the eight people on board the 18-foot ski boat were taken to a hospital for examination, then released.

The boat's operator, Mike Kirkman, 40, also of Martinsville, was arrested and charged with boating under the influence and violating the state implied consent law -- meaning he refused a blood-alcohol test, Moates said.

The crash occurred shortly after midnight Saturday and did not involve any other boats.

Dale Hollow Lake is on the Tennessee-Kentucky border, about 75 miles east-northeast of Nashville.

Michigan man arrested in fatal crash at Yellowstone National Park
--------------------

Associated Press

September 8, 2006, 5:47 PM CDT

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. -- Federal authorities have arrested a Michigan man who was driving a pickup truck involved in a fatal crash in the park earlier this week.

Colby A. Skippergosh, 27, of Mount Pleasant, Mich., was being held in federal custody, awaiting a court appearance next week before U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephen Cole.

Authorities said Skippergosh was driving a pickup truck late Wednesday night that went out of control and crashed on the park road between Gardiner, Mont., and Mammoth Hot Springs, Wyo., killing the passenger, 27-year-old Meghann R. Williams, also of Mount Pleasant.

Authorities said the vehicle skidded more than 160 feet, struck a guardrail, then vaulted 45 feet down an embankment.

Park Service officials said in a news release that alcohol was believed to be a factor in the crash, although the specific charges against Skippergosh would not be disclosed until his initial court appearance.

Skippergosh was injured in the crash and was arrested after his release Thursday night from a hospital in Idaho Falls, Idaho.

 
Driver, 16, faces homicide charge
--------------------

Friend died in wreck; another teen linked to separate fatality


July 27, 2006

A Carpentersville teenager sobbed Wednesday as prosecutors charged him as an adult with aggravated drunken driving and reckless homicide in a Barrington crash that killed his friend.

Police also were investigating another crash involving a teenage driver that killed a Carpentersville man Tuesday in McHenry County, but authorities said it didn't appear that the teen was at fault.

In the Barrington accident, Ramiro Granados-Dominguez, 16, admitted he drank four to six beers before Monday's crash, authorities said. He had a blood-alcohol content of 0.119 after the 12:45 a.m. wreck that killed passenger Saul Jimenez, 21, also of Carpentersville, prosecutors said. The legal limit in Illinois is 0.08.

Granados-Dominguez was "driving at a very high rate of speed when the accident occurred," said Cook County Assistant State's Atty. Lynn Palac. "The car ended up in a ditch."

Jimenez was thrown from the vehicle, Palac said.

A second passenger, Jacquelyn Pereznegron, 18, of Algonquin, was in a drug-induced coma Wednesday in Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital in Barrington with a punctured lung and broken femur, officials said.

"Jacquelyn's condition is very serious," Palac said.

Granados-Dominguez is a Dundee-Crown High School junior and works for his uncle part time as a roofer, said his lawyer, Dwight Adams, who said he would try to get the case moved to Juvenile Court.

Granados-Dominguez broke two vertebrae in the crash and wore a body brace in court. He sobbed quietly during the hearing in the Rolling Meadows courthouse, which was attended by his parents and other family members.

Judge sentences man to 16 years for crash that killed toddler
--------------------

Associated Press

July 23, 2006, 10:10 PM CDT

INDIANAPOLIS -- A man who admitted he was drunk when he crashed into a van, killing a 22-month-old boy, was sentenced to 16 years in prison.

Michael Grelle, 50, sobbed Friday as he apologized to Max Boncosky's relatives for the September 2005 drunken-driving crash that killed the toddler.

During the hearing, Grelle pleaded guilty to driving while intoxicated causing death and drunken driving causing serious bodily injury.

Marion Superior Court Judge Sheila Carlisle sentenced Grelle to 16 years, with four years suspended, and ordered him to serve two years of probation after his release.

Carlisle questioned whether Grelle felt true remorse for the boy's death and expressed disbelief that he continued to drink even after bonding out of jail following the fatal crash.

Last September, Grelle was traveling in excess of 80 mph on Indianapolis' north side when his vehicle slammed into the back of a sport utility vehicle waiting to make a turn.

Max Boncosky died of head injuries, while his father, David Boncosky; mother, Kelly Boncosky; and 4-year-old brother, Connor, all were injured.

A test showed Grelle had a blood-alcohol level nearly three times the state's threshold for drunken driving.
 
Woman charged with DUI in hit-run that killed boy
--------------------


July 23, 2006

WEST SIDE -- A Chicago woman was charged Friday in connection with the death of a 6-year-old boy who was injured in a hit-and-run accident in April, police said.

Wanda Richardson, 37, of the 2800 block of West Fulton Street, was charged with aggravated DUI and leaving the scene of an accident in the April 30 accident.

The boy, Dontrell Martin, of the 7400 block of North Sheridan Road, died of his injuries July 14.

Dontrell was struck by a sport-utility vehicle driven by Richardson at about 4:20 p.m. while walking with his sister in the 200 block of North Pulaski Road, police said.
Police Look for Clues in Stabbing

Springfield police are investigating a stabbing on the city’s north
side Friday night.
Around 6:30 p.m., officers were called to a home at 1601 N. Grant Ave.
Police say a 35 year old woman called to say she had stabbed her
boyfriend and he needed immediate medical attention.

When they arrived at the scene, officers found a 53 year old man with a
stab wound to the center of his back.

"At this point, we don`t know what led up to this incident. Alcohol
seems to be a significant factor as normal,” said Lt. Kevin Routh, of
the Springfield Police Dept.

Police call the victim’s injuries critical, but not life threatening.

The woman was taken away in handcuffs for questioning.
 
Pranksters arrested in Delhi


  NEW DELHI: Three pranksters were arrested on Friday for breaching
security by driving into Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s
residential compound, police said. Two air hostesses and a man, who
said they were ‘playing a joke’, were arrested on charges of criminal
trespass and impersonation.

  One of the women was said to have told security guards she was the
prime minister’s niece.

  The trio, in their 20s, created a huge stir late on Thursday as they
rode a luxury car past the first security cordon into the sprawling
complex in view of television crews who were outside to cover a cabinet
meeting.

  When turned away at the next security check, the woman at the wheel
blew kisses at TV cameras and her companions smiled. The car was
stopped a short distance and questioned by TV reporters.

  Newspapers said the three pranksters were drunk.

  The women said they just wanted to meet the prime minister and had
thought they could seek an appointment with him at the gate.

  Air Sahara sacked the two air hostesses after the prank was shown
repeatedly on television.

  Prime Minister Singh is on the hit list of many militant groups
fighting Indian rule in occupied Kashmir and the northeast.
 
Woman killed in Buffalo Grove crash
--------------------

By Dave Wischnowsky
Tribune staff reporter

August 5, 2006, 8:57 PM CDT

A woman was killed early Saturday morning in a single-car accident in northwest suburban Buffalo Grove, after she veered onto a median and lost control of the vehicle, which then struck a tree, police said.

About 3:45 a.m., Priscilla Chan, 21, of Buffalo Grove, was traveling westbound on the 1000 block of Deerfield Parkway when she drove her 1995 Acura Integra partially up on onto the center median and swerved sideways before the car hit a tree on the north side of the street, police said.

Chan, who was wearing a seat belt, was pronounced dead at the scene. There were no other passengers in the car, and alcohol appears to have played a role in the crash, police said.
 
Dad faces DUI charges in Gilberts crash
--------------------


August 5, 2006

EAST DUNDEE -- An East Dundee man charged with driving under the influence and endangering the life of a child had a blood-alcohol level nearly five times the legal limit when he crashed into a truck Thursday in Gilberts, police said Friday.

James T. Becker, 44, of the 400 block of Springcrest Road, was driving a car with his daughter, 11, and son, 14, west on Illinois Highway 72 at Tyrrell Road shortly before 10 a.m. when he hit a truck stopped at the intersection, said Police Cpl. Todd Block.

Becker drove about a half-mile to an industrial park. "There was a strong odor of alcohol coming from his breath," Block said.

Becker and the children, who live with their mother in Lake County, were taken to Provena St. Joseph Hospital in Elgin where preliminary tests indicated he had a blood-alcohol content of 0.39, Block said. The legal limit in Illinois is .08.

Becker has a previous DUI conviction, Block said.


Motorcyclist killed on Edens
--------------------

By Dave Wischnowsky and Jason Meisner
Tribune staff reporters

August 4, 2006, 6:05 PM CDT

An Arizona man was killed early today when the high-speed motorcycle he was driving slammed into a guardrail on the Edens Expressway in Skokie, state police said.

Krystian Marzec, 23, of Phoenix, was pronounced dead at 4:45 a.m. from multiple injuries in an accident, a spokeswoman for the Cook County medical examiner's office said.

About 1:05 a.m., Marzec was alone on his bike in the northbound lanes of the Edens (Interstate 94) when he lost control just before the Old Orchard Road exit, Illinois State Police Trooper Ivan Bukaczyk said.

Marzec and his bike skidded into a guardrail separating the exit ramp from the expressway. The bike then flipped, landing about 100 feet away on the entrance ramp that leads back onto the expressway from Old Orchard Road, Bukaczyk said.

Marzec's body was severed in two from the impact with the guardrail, police said. No other vehicles were involved in the accident.

Following the crash, both ramps at Old Orchard Road were closed for several hours while police investigated the accident. Officials believe speed was a factor in the crash, but the exact cause remained under investigation.

The model of Marzec's bike was not available this afternoon, but police described it as a blue sport motorcycle. According to a sales representative with a motorsports dealership in Chicago, sport motorcycles can reach maximum speeds ranging from 90 to 200 mph.

Alcohol appears to have played a role in the accident, Bukaczyk said. The crash was still under investigation Friday night.

Driver charged with DUI in passenger's death
--------------------


August 4, 2006

DES PLAINES -- A Des Plaines man was charged Thursday with aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol after his car crashed into a tree last month, injuring him and killing a passenger.

Zachary A. Legg, 20, of the 1600 block of East Oakton Street, was released on a personal recognizance bond after a hearing in the Skokie branch of Cook County Circuit Court. He was charged with one count of aggravated driving under the influence and four counts of DUI, according to Des Plaines police.

Police said that about 3:55 a.m. July 22, Legg lost control of his car, which jumped a curb and hit a tree in the 1300 block of South White Street in the northwest suburb.

The passenger, Christopher T. Jost, 21, of the 1400 block of Campbell Avenue, Des Plaines, was pronounced dead at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge.
 
Michigan men plead no contest in fatal golf cart crash
--------------------

Associated Press

August 2, 2006, 11:36 AM CDT

GRAND HAVEN, Mich. -- The drivers of two souped-up golf carts that collided in a deadly accident will be sentenced Sept. 5 after pleading no contest to counts of drunken driving causing death.

By entering their pleas, Mathew Krimmel and Scott Soltys, both 43, avoided a trial that was to have started Tuesday in Ottawa County Circuit Court.

Krimmel entered his plea on July 21 and Soltys on July 28, the court said Wednesday.

Police say Krimmel, of Marshall, and Soltys, of Grand Rapids, had blood-alcohol levels above the legal driving limit of .08 percent when the modified golf carts they were operating collided on a rural Robinson Township road early on May 8, 2005, causing Krimmel's vehicle to overturn.

Teresa Fergison, 42, of Grand Haven Township, a passenger in the cart that flipped, died later that day.

County prosecutors said the case was unusual because it involved vehicles that normally do not operate on roads.

"It would have been interesting on how that would have played out" at trial, assistant prosecutor Greg Babbitt told The Grand Rapids Press.

Babbitt said the plea deals called for the prosecution to recommend no state prison sentence but allow the judge to determine any county jail time. A plea of no contest is not an admission of guilt but is treated as such during sentencing.
Man, 57, dies after boating accident in Forest County
--------------------

Associated Press

August 1, 2006, 5:46 AM CDT

CRANDON, Wis. -- A 57-year-old man died following a boating accident in the Town of Hiles, the Forest County Sheriff's Department said.

The department said Monday it received a call early Sunday about the accident on Pine Lake.

According to the report, Kenneth J. DeBruin, of Combined Locks, fell out of the boat and his arm hit the propeller. DeBruin was brought to shore by a friend and taken to a local hospital, the department said. He was transferred to Appleton Medical Center, where he died as a result of his injuries.

The department said it is still investigating the case, along with the county medical examiner and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

Alcohol most likely played a role in the accident, the sheriff's department said.
 
Soldiers tell of drinking, rape, killing
--------------------

GIs' statements aired at hearing on Iraq case

By Louise Roug
Tribune newspapers

August 7, 2006, 10:17 PM CDT

BAGHDAD -- U.S. soldiers played cards and drank whiskey at a checkpoint as they devised a plan to rape and kill a 14-year-old Iraqi girl and slay her family, one of the accused told investigators. After the alleged attack, one of the soldiers grilled chicken wings, according to the testimony at a military hearing Monday.

The second day of the hearing in Baghdad brought other disturbing testimony from agents investigating the March 12 deaths in Mahmoudiya. The accusations have enraged Iraqis and led to demands by Iraqi officials to investigate the case.

Spec. James Barker, 23, told investigators in sworn statements that he and Sgt. Paul Cortez, 23, took turns sexually assaulting the 14-year-old, and that former Pfc. Steven Green, 21, also raped the girl before killing the teen and her mother, father and 5-year-old sister, military investigator Benjamin Bierce testified.

A fourth soldier, Pfc. Jesse Spielman, 21, was inside the house while another, Pfc. Bryan Howard, 19, was keeping watch elsewhere, according to Barker's statement to investigators.

The military proceeding, known as an Article 32 hearing, is similar to a civilian grand jury session. Testimony in the first two days focused on the prosecution's case. After hearing from prosecutors and defense attorneys, an investigating officer will determine whether there is enough evidence to bring the four soldiers before a court-martial on charges of rape and murder.

A fifth soldier from the same unit, Sgt. Anthony Yribe, is charged with failing to report the attack but is not alleged to have been a participant.

Green was honorably discharged in May because of a "personality disorder," according to court documents; he was arrested in North Carolina in late June. He will be tried in federal civil court.

According to Bierce, Barker wrote in his sworn testimony that he, Cortez, Spielman and Green had been playing rummy and drinking Iraqi moonshine mixed with an energy drink on the day of the attack.

"While they were playing cards and drinking Iraqi whiskey, the idea came to go to the Iraqi house, rape a woman and murder her family," said another military special agent, Gary Griesmyer, who interviewed Cortez.

Cortez said in his sworn statement that Barker and Green raped the girl, according to Griesmyer. Cortez acknowledged holding the girl down when Barker began to rape her, Griesmyer said. The girl was crying and speaking in Arabic and Barker told her to "shut up" after raping her, Cortez stated.

According to Barker's statements, the men had practiced hitting golf balls near the checkpoint after finishing their card game. Green persistently said he wanted to go and kill some Iraqis, and asked Barker if he thought Cortez would go along with it. He also directly asked Cortez who, in turn, asked Barker what he thought. Barker, in his testimony, wrote that his answer was "it's up to you," Bierce testified.

According to the testimony, the men then changed into black thermal underwear and black ski masks. Cortez gave the radio to Howard, who was supposed to be on the lookout. Arriving at the house, Cortez pushed the girl to the floor and raped her as she struggled, Bierce testified.

Barker told the agents that Green came back into the living room, where the girl was pinned to the floor. Referring to her family, Green told his fellow soldiers: "They're all dead. I just killed them."

Green then put down the AK-47 he was holding and raped the girl while Cortez held her down, Bierce testified. Afterward, Green shot the girl several times before Barker took a lamp and poured kerosene on her body, the investigator said.

After the men got back to the checkpoint, Barker wrote that he began to grill chicken wings.

Pfc. Justin Watt, whose testimony prompted the investigation, told the tribunal earlier Monday that he became suspicious of his friends and, through conversations with Yribe and Howard, began piecing together what happened.

Watt also described how fighting in the area south of Baghdad known as the "Triangle of Death" had taken a toll on the soldiers.

He described how one Iraqi man had approached two soldiers with an outstretched hand, as if to shake their hands. Instead, the man pulled a gun and shot and killed both men.

Watt reported his suspicions to a combat stress team in Mahmoudiya. His superiors in the chain of command "were extremely skeptical" about the allegations at first, he said.

Watt also testified that before the massacre he heard Green say, "I want to kill and hurt a lot of Iraqis."

Driver Kills Motorcyclist, Sparks 7 Miles Of Fires

(CBS 13) A drunk driver faces serious charges after killing a motorcyclist and setting a series of grass fires.

It happened along Highway 49 south of the town of El Dorado Sunday afternoon.

Officers say 48-year-old Tamara Sue Wilson was driving drunk on Highway 49 when she drove into the opposite lane, hit a motorcyclist head on killing him. That motociyclist has been identified as Gregory Clyde Shannon of Placerville.

Sheriff's depuites day Wilson did not stop after hitting Shannon eventhough one of her front tires came off. They say she continued on for another 7 miles sending sparks into dry brush along the way, starting 9 grass fires.

The fires spread quickly and destroying 3 homes, and forcing the evacuation of a dozen others.

Wilson is now facing charges of vehicular manslaughter, felony drunk driving, and charges for starting the fires.

Beating trial begins for ex-police officer
--------------------

State says altercation `dishonored badge;' defense calls him hero

By Amanda Marrazzo
Special to the Tribune

August 9, 2006

A former Richmond police officer "dishonored his badge" by participating in an attack last year that severely injured a Wisconsin man, a prosecutor said Tuesday as the former officer's trial got under way in McHenry County Circuit Court.

Brian Quilici, 34, who resigned in May 2005 from the Richmond Police Department, is facing charges of aggravated battery, official misconduct, obstruction of justice and mob action.

He and three other people are accused of attacking Ryan Hallett, 27, of Twin Lakes, Wis., outside a tavern near Fox Lake on Feb. 20, 2005. Quilici is the first of the four to stand trial.

In her opening statement, Nichole Owens, chief of the criminal division for the McHenry County state's attorney office, told jurors that Quilici, who was off-duty at the time, kicked Hallett in the face with a boot, crushing his right eye socket.

She also said Quilici told Hallett that he would have shot him if he had had his weapon.

"He betrayed the community," Owens said. "He dishonored his badge."

Vincent Solano, Quilici's lawyer, told jurors that Hallett started the fight.

Hallett testified that he had gone to the tavern around 3 a.m. to meet a friend. When he arrived, his friend was quarreling with Ronald Pilati, 34, a Spring Grove police officer who also has been charged.

Pilati is on administrative leave while charges against him are pending. The others charged in the beating are Jerome M. Volstad of McHenry, a former police officer in Richmond and Lincolnshire, and Jessica Thelen, of Bristol, Wis.

Hallett said he attempted to calm his friend and asked Pilati and his group to ignore him.

As he was leaving, Hallett said he exchanged words with Quilici and the others. Hallett said the three men surrounded him and started punching and kicking him. During the beating, Volstad handcuffed his hands behind his back, Hallett said. He said he blacked out after a kick to his face.

"I just remember waking up cold and wet," he said.

Hallett has had two operations to reattach his eyelid, repair a tear duct and insert a permanent plastic plate around his right eye.

Owens said the Fox Lake Police Department never investigated the incident. The Illinois State Police began an investigation after Hallett filed a federal civil-rights lawsuit.

When police officers interviewed Hallett at the tavern that evening, Owens said Quilici was present.

"The defendant set the tone that night, and told three witnesses, `Keep your mouth shut,'" Owens said.

Solano said Hallett had been drinking and had a blood-alcohol level twice the legal limit, which is 0.08. He said Hallett held a pocketknife to Thelen's throat and pulled her hair, which provoked the altercation.

$50,000 bail set for man who crashed into building
--------------------


July 20, 2006

COOK COUNTY -- A Des Plaines man was ordered held in lieu of $50,000
bail Wednesday after he crashed his SUV into a building Tuesday, authorities
said.

Diego Santiago, 23, of the 9000 block of Washington Street, was charged
late Tuesday with two counts of felony driving under the influence and
appeared at a hearing Wednesday in the Skokie branch of Cook County Circuit Court.

Santiago was also issued six traffic citations, including failure to
reduce speed to avoid an accident, said sheriff's spokeswoman Penny Mateck.

Santiago lost control of his Ford Explorer and jumped a curb on Golf
Road at David Place around 3:30 p.m. Tuesday before crashing into a two-story
brick building at the Courtland Square condos, in unincorporated Cook County
between Des Plaines and Niles, she said.

NYC Priest Killed by Drunken Driver
--------------------

By Associated Press

July 19, 2006, 11:28 PM CDT

GARDEN CITY, N.Y. -- A woman who authorities said was driving with a
suspended license when she fatally struck a 79-year-old priest was ordered held
on $100,000 bail Wednesday.

The woman's blood-alcohol reading was 0.28, more than three times the
legal limit of 0.08, at the time of her arrest, said Robert Clifford, a
spokesman for the Suffolk County District Attorney.

Karen Fisher, 42, of East Hampton, was driving a minivan Tuesday when
she struck William Costello, said police Chief Todd Sarris. She was charged with
driving while intoxicated, driving with a suspended license and leaving the
scene of an accident.

The suspended license charge stems from an arrest on April 1 in which
Fisher's blood-alcohol level was 0.31, Clifford said.

Telephone messages left with her attorney were not immediately returned
Wednesday.

Costello, a monsignor who retired in 1998, had lived at the St. Anne
Church rectory in Garden City for the past eight years, said a spokesman for
the Diocese of Rockville Centre.

Complaint: Man who crashed into clinic was angry at doctor
--------------------

Associated Press

July 19, 2006, 11:09 PM CDT

LA CROSSE, Wis. -- A man who crashed his minivan into a medical clinic
and then went on a damage rampage inside was trying to find a doctor he blames
for endangering his life by refusing to run an HIV test on him in 1988, a
criminal complaint says.

Geoffrey Fitzgerald, diagnosed with AIDS eight years later, was charged
in La Crosse County Circuit Court Wednesday with second-degree recklessly
endangering safety, criminal damage to property and failure to comply with an
officer's attempt to take him into custody.

Prosecutors said Fitzgerald, 50, of Dubuque, Iowa, did more than
$300,000 damage to the Franciscan Skemp Clinic early Friday by driving into the glass
front of the building and vandalizing offices and examination rooms, including
the family practice area where the doctor works.

According to the criminal complaint, he was intoxicated from alcohol
and prescription drugs while driving in the area, and he nearly hit a nurse
who was walking toward the clinic after parking her car. The nurse told police
Fitzgerald stopped, told her to call police and said he was angry at
the doctor.

Records showed that Fitzgerald filed a malpractice lawsuit in 1998
against two doctors, claiming he should have had the HIV test in 1988 but he wasn't
tested until 1995, when a test showed he had AIDS. He argued his prognosis
would have been more positive if he had gotten the diagnosis sooner.

The lawsuit was later dismissed. Among other things, the defense argued
Fitzgerald could not prove harm.

Judge Michael Mulroy ordered Fitzgerald held on a $50,000 cash bond. He
continued the case to July 26 after Fitzgerald said he wanted to get an
attorney.

Police: Laramie deaths double-homicide/suicide
--------------------

By COLIN FLY
Associated Press Writer

July 19, 2006, 6:26 PM CDT

ROCKTON, Ill. -- People who knew Justin Geiger in this northern
Illinois town expressed shock and surprise Wednesday that Wyoming police say he was
responsible for a double murder-suicide and a knife attack on a fourth
person last weekend.

Geiger, 19, died from a rifle blast to the head early Sunday morning at
a house he shared with other students near the University of Wyoming, Commander
Dale A. Stalder of the Laramie Police Department said Wednesday.

Before turning the rifle on himself, police say they believe Geiger
shot and killed Amber N. Carlson, 19, of Denver, and also killed Adam Towler,
20, of Laramie, with a knife.

Police say Geiger used the knife to wound another man, Anthony Klochak,
19, of Chardon, Ohio. Klochak survived the attack, fled the residence and has
been cooperating with the police investigation.

Geiger, Carlson and Klochak were all UW students; Towler had attended
Emory University and planned to transfer to Georgetown University in the
fall.

"We don't know an exact motive yet," Stalder said Wednesday. He said
alcohol was involved in the incident, but said he didn't have information about
blood-alcohol levels of any of the deceased.

Geiger graduated last year from Hononegah High School in Rockton, a
town of about 6,000 on the Illinois-Wisconsin state line. He had just completed
his freshman year at UW, where he majored in marketing.

DUI suspect put victim in car, police say
--------------------

July 16, 2006

CHICAGO -- A Chicago man was ordered held on $250,000 bail Friday in
the death of a woman who prosecutors said was struck and killed by the car he was
driving. Police discovered the woman in the suspect's car after he was in a
second accident shortly afterward, authorities said.

Pedro Perez, 36, of the 6000 block of West Gunnison Street appeared in
Cook County Bond Court, charged with reckless homicide and aggravated
driving under the influence.

Assistant Cook County State's Atty. Jennifer Bagby said Perez was
driving in the 4700 block of West Wabansia Avenue about 7 a.m. Wednesday when his car
struck Michelle Chaney, 37. Perez pulled his car over and put the injured
woman in the back seat and continued driving, authorities said. In the 2500 block of
North Central Avenue, his car and another car collided, injuring another
person, authorities said. A police report said Perez told officers that the
woman in his car was a friend and he was driving her home.

Perez later said he was driving the woman to a hospital, according to
authorities. Chaney was pronounced dead at Illinois Masonic Medical Center at 5 p.m.
Wednesday.

Man arrested in officer's house while retrieving pants
--------------------

Associated Press

July 15, 2006, 3:45 PM CDT

SHEBOYGAN, Wis. -- An 18-year-old man was charged with felony burglary
and property damage after he returned to the site of an unauthorized party
at a police officer's house when he forgot a pair of pants.

Eric D. Hening was caught at the home of Officer Timothy Patton when he
returned the night after Patton's son threw a party that included underage
alcohol consumption without his father's permission.

Authorities are investigating after a police-issued handgun, seven
other firearms, ammunition, speed loaders, high-powered radios and several
Sheboygan Police Department uniform shirts were taken during the party.

Hening has only been charged with theft of a shirt and misdemeanor
counts of criminal damage to property and obstructing an officer.

A sheriff's department deputy found Hening wearing the inside-out
police department shirt while he was hiding in the shower of an upstairs
bathroom, a criminal complaint said.

Hening was also photographed wearing the shirt for his mug shot before
officers realized he was wearing it, authorities said.

Hening told police he returned because he needed to retrieve a pair of
pants, the complaint said. Hening said he leaned a ladder against the locked
home and entered a second-story window.

Man busted for seventh drunken driving offenses, threatens deputy
--------------------

Associated Press

August 19, 2006, 11:50 AM CDT

MADISON, Wis. -- A man threatened to kill a sheriff's deputy who busted him for his alleged seventh drunken driving offense, according to court documents.

Dane County Sheriff's Deputy Eric Stacey stopped Brian C. Kuhn in the town of Blooming Grove Sunday. Kuhn was doing 60 mph in a 45-mph zone, a criminal complaint said.

Kuhn, 41, of Stoughton, told Stacey he'd been drinking. He asked the deputy for a break because he has six prior drunken driving convictions.

When the deputy refused, Kuhn grew angry and called him a "pig." After Kuhn failed his sobriety tests, Kuhn threatened to kill Stacey and his family, the complaint said.

"You picked the wrong (expletive)," Kuhn said, according to the complaint.

Kuhn was charged Friday with operating under the influence. He also has been ticketed for having an open alcohol container in his car and speeding.


Teen indicted in crash that killed friend
--------------------

August 19, 2006

COOK COUNTY -- A Carpentersville teenager was indicted Friday on reckless homicide and aggravated DUI charges in a Barrington car crash that killed his friend and seriously injured another passenger, prosecutors said.

Ramiro Granados-Dominguez, 16, was charged as an adult after the July 24 wreck that killed Saul Jimenez, 21, also of Carpentersville. The indictment was announced during a hearing in the Rolling Meadows branch of Cook County Circuit Court.

Granados-Dominguez said he drank four to six beers before the one-car rollover crash, authorities said.

'I See Handcuffs': Osment Charged in DUI
--------------------

By Associated Press

August 18, 2006, 2:22 PM CDT

GLENDALE, Calif. -- Teen actor Haley Joel Osment, who suffered a broken rib last month when his car struck a mailbox, faces up to six months in jail on charges that he was driving drunk and possessing marijuana, authorities said.

Osment's blood-alcohol level after the July 20 crash was measured at .16 percent, twice the legal limit, said Jane Robison, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County district attorney's office.

The 18-year-old actor was charged Thursday with misdemeanor counts of driving under the influence, marijuana possession and driving under the influence with the special allegation of having a blood-alcohol content of .15 percent or higher. He also faces a vehicle code infraction of being under the age of 21 and driving with a blood-alcohol level of .05 percent or greater.

Osment was scheduled to be arraigned Sept. 19 in Glendale Superior Court.

His attorney will work with authorities to arrange a time for the star of such films as "The Sixth Sense" and "Pay it Forward" to surrender, Robison said. The district attorney plans to request that bail be set at $15,000.

DreamWorks spokesman and family friend Marvin Levy said Thursday the family would have "no comment at this time" on the charges. Levy said Wednesday that Osment has recovered from injuries that landed him in the hospital and is preparing to attend college in the fall.

The actor recently finished work on the film "Home of the Giants."

"He's fine. The injuries were slight, not serious," Levy said.

Authorities said Osment was driving home alone about 1 a.m. when his 1995 Saturn hit a mailbox and flipped over.

Father upset over authorities' organ-donation warning
--------------------


Associated Press

August 18, 2006, 11:58 AM CDT

FLINT, Mich. -- The father of a 24-year-old woman who died in a car crash is angry after officials told him donating his daughter's organs might stop authorities from charging the driver accused of causing the crash.

The family of Kimberly Marie Smith of Flint eventually donated her liver and kidneys, which officials say were transplanted into three patients.

But Smith's father, Charles Smith of Marysville, said he was told that donating Kimberly's organs could prevent building a criminal case when state law specifically requires county medical examiners to help make organ donation possible.

"First I'm going to bury my daughter," Smith told The Flint Journal before visitation began Wednesday at a funeral home. "Then I'll be talking to the lawyers about this. No one else should have to go through what I've gone through."

Kimberly Smith, a mother of two, was a passenger in a Jeep Liberty driven by her boyfriend, Wayne Waldrop, 39, when they were struck by a Ford Expedition on Aug. 10 in Genesee County's Flint Township. Her brain stem had been severed and she was left brain dead, doctors said.

Police said at the time that the driver of the Ford had failed to stop at a blinking red light at the intersection and that alcohol was likely a factor in the crash. The case remains under investigation and no charges have been filed.

Waldrop remains in intensive care at Genesys Regional Medical Center.

The family says they were approached about donating Kimberly Smith's organs and they agreed.

But shortly afterward, the family says an officer called and said authorities might not be able to prosecute the case if her organs were donated. They say Flint Township police wanted them to reconsider the donation.

Flint Township Police Sgt. Gene Dubuc said there have been other cases in Genesee County when organ donation created difficulties in a case. He said prosecutors instructed police to make the family aware that the donation could create difficulties for the medical examiner in determining the cause of death.

To prevent problems, police officers and a deputy medical examiner attended the organ harvesting and videotaped it so that they could testify that the harvested organs were not damaged and had nothing to do with Kimberly Smith's death. Dubuc said he was confident the solution would prevent any potential problems in the case.

 14-year-old boy arrested after plowing into 11 cars

REDONDO BEACH, Calif. (AP) - A 14-year-old boy has been arrested in Redondo Beach for drunk driving, hit-and-run and evading police after plowing into nearly a dozen cars in a mall parking structure. Cops say he tossed beer bottles out of his car as he tried to flee.

The teen, whose name was not released, was arrested Friday afternoon at the South Bay Galleria.

The string of accidents began when the boy, believed to be driving his mother's car, hit a vehicle on the top floor of a parking garage and fled.

As he tried to exit the structure police say he hit 10 more cars and began jettisoning the beer bottles.

Man who attacked elderly Loveland woman to serve 12 years in prison

The Associated Press
August 19, 2006


With her silver hair piled neatly atop her head, a 79-year-old Loveland woman asked a judge to help her feel safe by sentencing her attacker to prison for a very long time.

“I have no malice against him,” she said Friday of former friend Michael Robertson, 25.

“I’m sorry he had to do something to ruin his life, but I pray you give him the maximum so I can live to 90 in peace.”

Eighth Judicial District Judge Jolene Blair agreed that Robertson should spend many years behind bars for violently attacking a vulnerable woman in the place she should feel most safe.

The judge sent Robertson to prison for 12 years for second-degree burglary and 18 months for third-degree assault of an at-risk person. The sentences will run at the same time.

Robertson had denied all accusations until a jury convicted him June 27.

On Friday, he admitted his guilt. He looked directly at his victim and said, “I am truly sorry for what happened, and I do understand I have to be punished.”

The Loveland woman, who is two months shy of 80, lives alone outside Loveland on a ranch where she raises cattle and chickens. She had hired Robertson, a man she met through a church friend, to help her around her property.

She considered him a friend, she said, until she saw him coming up the stairs to her bedroom with an evil look in his eye on Dec. 11, 2004. He grabbed her by her thermal nightshirt, ripping the entire front, before she escaped by biting his ear and fleeing.

She feared he was going to kill her and said she considers the fact he did not a miracle.

For nearly two years, Robertson denied that he was the attacker. After three trials, he was convicted of assault and burglary and acquitted of attempted sexual assault.


After court Friday, she said she was relieved the ordeal was over and Robertson was headed to prison for the next 10 years (the 12-year sentence minus the nearly two years he already served).

Before the sentencing, Robertson’s mother and stepfather asked Blair for leniency and said the attack was out of character and spurred by alcohol.



Death in Galesburg fire ruled an accident
--------------------

Associated Press

May 5, 2006, 10:37 AM CDT

GALESBURG, Ill. -- A Knox County coroner's jury ruled as accidental the
death of
a man whose body was found in a burned-out downtown building here, but
authorities say they still don't know why he was in the building or
what caused the fire.

Crews clearing debris found the body of 23-year-old Michael Olson about
three weeks after a Jan. 23 fire that leveled the former O.T. Johnson
department store, a nearly 150-year-old building that was once one of the state's
largest department stores outside Chicago.

Olson had been drinking at a tavern near the building and was last seen
about a half-hour before firefighters were called to the scene, investigators
told the coroner's jury Thursday. Toxicology reports showed Olson's
blood-alcohol level was .138, nearly double the standard for driving under the influence in
Illinois.

Knox County Coroner Mark Thomas said Olson died of smoke inhalation and
carbon monoxide poisoning.

Investigators say Olson's body was found about 32 feet inside the
building Firefighters were only able to enter about 15 feet into the building
before falling debris forced them out. The building later collapsed from
intense heat.


Man with 2 prosthetic legs, deaf man brawl after meeting in a bar
--------------------

Associated Press

May 5, 2006, 10:32 AM CDT

VALPARAISO, Ind. -- Two men who had driven around several towns for
hours after meeting in a bar ended up fighting after one of the men couldn't
communicate directions clearly to the driver.

Kent Hisey, 52, of Portage, became frustrated by the difficulty of
James Mills, who is deaf, in communicating directions, Valparaiso police said. They
had driven from the Playboy Lounge in New Chicago to Portage, then Hobart
-- where the 46-year-old Mills lives -- and finally to Valparaiso -- communities
spread across two northwest Indiana counties about 30 miles southeast of
Chicago.

Hisey, who has two prosthetic legs, stopped his car at the Porter
County Airport, got out and used his walker to go around to the passenger
side, where he grabbed Mills to pull him from the car, police said.

Mills allegedly pushed Hisey to the ground, causing him to hit his
head.

Paramedics arrived Thursday about 1:30 a.m. to treat Hisey's
lacerations and take him to Porter Hospital. Police wrote a note to Mills informing him
he was being arrested on a battery charge.

Officers conducted a field sobriety test on Hisey. His blood-alcohol
level registered 0.16 percent. Under Indiana law, the threshold for drunken
driving is 0.08 percent.

Both Hisey and Mills were taken to the Porter County Jail, where they
were being held Friday morning.

Man guilty of lesser charge in slaying
--------------------

Aurora victim shot outside club in 2000

By Rita Hoover
Special to the Tribune

May 5, 2006

A man who admitted fleeing to Mexico after fatally shooting a
20-year-old Aurora man in 2000 avoided a first-degree murder conviction Wednesday when a
jury returned a verdict of second-degree murder, authorities said Thursday.

Guadalupe R. Alvarado, 35, of Melrose Park, who said he acted in
self-defense when he shot Mersed Valles in the early hours of Sept. 17, 2000,
outside an Aurora nightclub, could potentially get probation for the crime.

A jury took less than four hours to return a verdict in the case at the
end of a three-day trial before Kane County Circuit Judge Grant Wegner.

Alvarado will return to court Thursday to begin the sentencing phase.

Kane County Assistant State's Atty. Greg Sams said he was "very
disappointed" with the lesser conviction.

The second-degree charge carries a sentence of 4 to 20 years, of which
only half must be served. Alvarado will also get credit for the more than three
years he has spent awaiting trial, Sams said.

"This was a shock to the victim's family," said Sams, who said Alvarado
admitted the shooting was motivated by jealousy. "Truly this was a first-degree
murder case or nothing at all," Sams said.

Valles, who was hit by four bullets from a 9 mm revolver outside The
Alamo, 2445 Church Rd., in Aurora, was pronounced dead at Provena Mercy Medical
Center less than an hour after the 2 a.m. confrontation.

Alvarado, who testified through an interpreter, said he and his
girlfriend had been harassed repeatedly throughout the evening by Valles and his group
of friends, who tried to pull her onto the dance floor.

Toxicology results showed Valles' blood-alcohol content was 0.226 at
the time he died.

Once the bar closed and the crowd dispersed to the parking lot,
Alvarado said, Valles and at least three other men approached his truck and verbally
threatened him.

"These men were getting up close to the truck," while other vehicles
intentionally blocked his exit, Alvarado said.

"I was afraid. I felt blocked in and I didn't know what to do,"
Alvarado told jurors.

Alvarado drove home after the incident and testified that he hid the
gun the next day. He left for Mexico shortly afterward, he said, because he was
afraid.
He was arrested in Utah in 2003, when police learned of a warrant for
his arrest.

La Crosse man drowns after fleeing train-truck crash
--------------------

Associated Press

May 4, 2006, 2:25 PM CDT

LA CROSSE, Wis. -- A man drowned in the Black River after he fled from
a truck-train crash, an autopsy found.

Levi Noffke's body was found in the river three days after he
disappeared in a marsh after the accident.

The autopsy of the 21-year-old La Crosse man also showed he had a
blood-alcohol concentration twice the legal limit for driving, said La Crosse County
Chief Medical Examiner John Steers.

Police say driver drunk in fatal crash
--------------------


Tribune staff report

May 14, 2006, 8:33 PM CDT

A woman was killed Sunday morning in an auto collision on the Far South
Side in which the driver of other vehicle was driving drunk, police said.

The woman, 51, was headed west on 115th Street at State Street about
5:30 a.m. when the car she was driving was struck by a van heading north on
State, Officer Kristina Schuler said.

The driver of the van ran a red light into the intersection and hit the
victim's car, which spun out of control and slammed into a light pole, Schuler
said.

The woman, identified as Benita Martin, of the 11400 block of South
Eggleston Avenue, was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where
she was pronounced dead about 9:30 a.m., according to a spokesman for the Cook
County medical examiner's office.

The driver of the van was arrested and charged with driving under the
influence. He was identified as Eduardo Morales, 28, of the 5700 block of South
Talman Avenue. Results of a blood-alcohol test on Morales were not immediately
available, Schuler said.

Victim of fiery crash named, alcohol a factor
--------------------

Associated Press

May 13, 2006, 5:02 PM CDT

REEDSVILLE, Wis. -- A Manitowoc man had a blood-alcohol level nearly
three times the legal limit when he collided head-on with a semitrailer truck and
died on Friday, officials said.

Norward L. Pearson, 34, was severely burned and died of massive head,
internal and thermal inhalation injuries, said Manitowoc Deputy Coroner Mark L.
Busse. Pearson's car burst into flames following the collision on U.S. 10
Friday.

The Fond Du Lac County Medical Examiner's Office confirmed Pearson's
identity through an autopsy on Saturday. There were no indications a medical
condition contributed to the accident, Busse said. Alcohol was considered to be a
major contributing factor, he said in a news release. More detailed
toxicology tests are expected to follow in at least six weeks.

Sgt. Brian Nack of the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department quoted
witnesses as saying the car was swerving into the opposite lane prior to the crash.

Pearson was alone in the car. The truck driver suffered bumps and
bruises and was taken to Theda Clark Medical Center in Neenah for treatment.

ESPN pulls plug on Sutcliffe for 1 game
--------------------

Punishes announcer for `bad judgment'

By Teddy Greenstein
Tribune sports media reporter

May 13, 2006

Rick Sutcliffe's self-described "bad judgment" has cost him an
assignment at ESPN.

An industry source said ESPN has removed Sutcliffe from Monday night's
telecast of the Red Sox-Orioles game. Steve Phillips will replace him.

Sutcliffe, who calls one game per week for the network, is expected
back in the booth May 22 for the Yankees-Red Sox game.

The source didn't know whether the one-game suspension would be paid or
unpaid.

Sutcliffe, who won the National League Cy Young Award after going 16-1
for the 1984 Cubs, gave a rambling, slurred interview during the local
broadcast of Wednesday's Brewers-Padres game.

Shortly after announcers Matt Vasgersian and Mark "Mud" Grant invited
him into the booth, Sutcliffe began a meandering story about his daughter and
George Clooney's efforts to provide humanitarian aid in Africa.

Sutcliffe, whose microphone eventually was cut off, apologized Thursday
in a statement, saying he "exercised bad judgment" by going on the air.

Jury awards quadriplegic $26 million
--------------------

By Mickey Ciokajlo
Tribune staff reporter

May 24, 2006, 7:06 PM CDT

A Cook County jury has awarded more than $26 million to a woman who was
rendered a quadriplegic after a Cook County sheriff's officer's patrol car
collided with her vehicle in the south suburbs five years ago.

Sheriff Michael Sheahan on Wednesday criticized the judge in the case,
Richard Elrod, himself a former sheriff, for barring the jury from hearing
evidence that the woman had been drinking before the crash.

County officials vowed to appeal the verdict, which was reached late
Tuesday, if the judge denies their attempts to have the award reduced or for a new
trial. If it stands, the verdict would be one of the largest monetary awards
resulting from a lawsuit against Cook County.

Last October, the county approved a $35 million medical malpractice
settlement for an incident at Oak Forest Hospital. In 1999, the county agreed to
pay $36 million to settle lawsuits brought by the Ford Heights Four, men
wrongfully convicted in a 1978 double murder.

"We're exploring several post-trial options, including asking the judge
for a reduction in the verdict or a new trial. Failing those, we will
appeal," said John Gorman, spokesman for the Cook County state's attorney's office.

On Friday, the county reached a $5.75 million settlement with the
family of Delia Grimmett, the passenger in the vehicle who was killed in the
crash.

Jurors awarded driver Margaret Petraski $26.88 million, court records
show.

In a written statement, Sheahan blasted Elrod for refusing to allow
evidence into trial that Petraski had been drinking. According to Sheahan, a
blood test taken at a hospital more than an hour after the crash showed Petraski's
blood-alcohol content was 0.116 percent, over the legal driving limit
of 0.08 percent.

Petraski, a 58-year-old widow with two grown children, lives in a care
facility and requires 24-hour care. She cannot speak and is fed through a tube
in her stomach.

Salzetta said her past and future medical expenses were established to
be $11 million.

Teen driver charged in fatal crash
--------------------


May 24, 2006

A $100,000 bail was set Tuesday for a 17-year-old Hickory Hills
teenager charged with reckless homicide in connection with the weekend traffic death of
another youth.

Cook County prosecutors said Andrzej Kalata, of the 9300 block of South
79th Avenue, was driving between 85 and 95 m.p.h. along Archer Avenue near
95th Street when he lost control of his car about 2:45 a.m. Saturday.

As the car skidded off the road in Palos Township and struck several
trees, backseat passenger Andrzej Gil, 17, of Burbank was thrown from the
vehicle, prosecutors told Cook County Circuit Judge Cynthia Brim during Kalata's
bond hearing in the Bridgeview courthouse. Gil was pronounced dead about an
hour later in Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, according to the
Cook County medical examiner's office.

Kalata and two other teens in the car were injured, one of them
critically.
Kalata remained hospitalized Tuesday in Advocate Christ Medical Center,
said Marcy Jensen, Cook County state's attorney's office spokeswoman.

The critically injured passenger, a 17-year-old boy, remained
hospitalized Tuesday in Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, where he was
airlifted after the crash. The fourth passenger was treated and released Saturday
at LaGrange Memorial Hospital, according to Cook County sheriff's police.
That youth, also 17, was the only one in the car wearing a seat belt, police said.

Kalata told police he had been drinking at a party before the crash,
Jensen said. Prosecutors did not disclose his blood-alcohol content, Jensen
added.


Bail set at $1 million for driver in fatal crash
--------------------


May 23, 2006

McHENRY COUNTY -- A Huntley man remained jailed in lieu of $1 million
bail Monday after he allegedly left the scene of a head-on crash near
Woodstock that killed a motorcyclist.

Lorenzo Alvarez, 28, of Huntley, was charged with aggravated driving
under the influence and leaving the scene of a fatal accident in the Sunday crash
that killed Jon M. Fiala, 48, of the 12500 block of Grandview Lane in
Huntley.

Alvarez fled on foot, but was arrested after a search by several police
departments and a helicopter, McHenry County sheriff's police said.

Alvarez was driving a 1992 Dodge Shadow south on Dean Street outside
Woodstock, police said, when he crossed the center line and struck the cycle.
Fiala was pronounced dead at Centegra Memorial Medical Center in Woodstock.

Two killed as car rolls on Indiana 46 in Bartholomew County
--------------------

Associated Press

May 22, 2006, 6:08 AM CDT

COLUMBUS, Ind. -- Speed and alcohol were involved in a crash that
killed two people on Indiana 46 near Columbus, a Bartholomew County Sheriff's
Deputy said.

Police said a car being driven Max E. Craig II, 24, of North Vernon
left the road and struck a tree. He and his passenger, Ericka Shirley, 16, of
Hope, both died of injuries suffered in the crash about 2:30 a.m. Sunday.

Craig's blood-alcohol content was tested at .15 percent, almost twice
the legal limit for drunken driving, Lt. Todd Noblitt said.

Investigators believed the car was traveling at about 91 mph when it
crashed, he said.

"It became airborne, striking a tree, and then the vehicle flipped,"
Noblitt said.

DUI suspect had 3 kids in car
--------------------


May 22, 2006

A Chicago man accused of fighting police while being arrested for
allegedly driving under the influence had three passengers in his car under age
6, prosecutors said Sunday.

Raymond Diez, 28, of the 2000 block of North Avers Avenue is charged
with several misdemeanors, including DUI, court records show.

Diez refused to get out of his car after being pulled over about 12:45
a.m. Sunday in the 300 block of North Kostner Avenue, authorities said. He
then pushed officers and swung his arms and legs as they tried to detain
him, authorities said.

Diez appeared in Bond Court on Sunday before Judge Matthew Coghlan, who
set bail at $15,000.

Three children, ages 6 months, 18 months and 5 years old, were inside
the car, records show.

Amish family still recovering from crash
--------------------

Associated Press

May 21, 2006, 9:23 PM CDT

WASHINGTON, Ind. -- Family members are waiting until two Amish girls
are released from the hospital to set a date for the funeral of the girls'
mother.

Edna Knepp, 41, of Loogootee, died May 13 when a truck struck the
family's horse-drawn buggy on a Daviess County road.

Her husband, Enos Knepp, 40, who was driving the buggy, and five of the
couple's children were injured when the crash threw them from the buggy.

Jo-Anna Knepp, 15, and her sister, Judith, 14, are the only family
members still hospitalized. They suffered head, leg, hip and pelvic injuries and are
beingtreated at Kosair Children's Hospital in Louisville, Ky.

"We are hoping that even if we can just have them home for the day,
that would be OK," said Marlisa Wagler, Edna Knepp's sister.

Enos Knepp, who suffered cuts to his head, and oldest sons, Jason,
Justin and Jonathon, all in their early 20s, are at the hospital, helping care for
Judith and Jo-Anna. The boys were not with the family when the accident
occurred.

Wagler said the family is doing as well as could be expected. Enos
Knepp is focusing on his children's recoveries and "probably doing better than I
would be doing," she said.

The youngest Knepp children are staying with their grandparents in
Montgomery, a small community west of Loogootee. Janelle, 6 months, suffered a broken
arm and fractured pelvis, but her aunt said the baby is recovering well. Both
of 5-year-old Joshua's legs were broken, and Joseph, 12, suffered two
broken ribs and a punctured lung.

"With three little kids all hurt like that, we have a lot of family
members at my parents' house constantly up and helping them," Wagler said.

The Knepps were heading home from a dinner with friends when their
buggy was rear-ended by a truck driven by Carmen J. Swartzentruber, 23, of Odon.
The accident occurred about 10 p.m. on a county road about 40 miles
southwest of Bloomington.

Swartzentruber faces a series of drunk driving charges and is being
held at the Daviess County Jail on $1 million bond. Police said he had a
blood-alcohol level of 0.24 percent, or three times the legal limit.

Deputies said Swartzentruber has told them he did not see the Knepps'
buggy. 


Michigan State player imprisoned in sex case
--------------------

Associated Press

May 18, 2006, 5:09 PM CDT

ADRIAN, Mich. -- A Michigan State University football player was
sentenced Thursday to two to 10 years in prison for his role in a sexual assault
that took place while he was in high school.

Cole Corey was a track and football star at Tecumseh High School in
April 2002, when authorities said he and a classmate, Anthony Sandoval, assaulted a
17-year-old girl in Sandoval's home.

Police said the two athletes took the drug Ecstasy, gave tequila and
half an Ecstasy tablet to the female classmate and had sex with her over the
next several hours.

Corey acknowledged having sex with the girl but disputed that she was
unable to give her consent. However, Lenawee County Circuit Judge Harvey Koselka
said during Thursday's sentencing hearing that the teen was incapacitated by
the alcohol and drugs in her system and was not capable of consenting to
have sex.

Corey originally faced 13 criminal counts, including rape and drug
charges, relating to the incident. Prosecutors dropped all but one of the
charges when Corey agreed to plead guilty in February to the Ecstasy charge and
cooperate in their case against Matthew Peterson, the former track coach at Tecumseh
High.

The 2002 incident was unrelated to a series of sex-and-alcohol parties
Peterson hosted for students, including minors, in the summer of 2003,
authorities said.
Peterson this month was sentenced to up to seven years in prison after
pleading guilty to four felony charges.

Corey, 21, who had been projected as a possible starting defensive back
for Michigan State this fall, was taken into custody immediately. He was
suspended from the team, university spokesman Terry Denbow said in a statement
released Thursday.

Sandoval, a former track star at Tecumseh High, pleaded guilty to
felonious assault in the 2002 incident. He faces sentencing June 6.

Woman Sentenced In Motorcyclist Death

POSTED: 6:26 pm PDT May 24, 2006
UPDATED: 7:12 pm PDT May 24, 2006
A woman who was drunk when her car crossed into oncoming traffic on
state Route 94, killing a motorcyclist and his 12-year-old passenger,
was sentenced Wednesday to nearly 19 years in state prison.
Ana Maria Garibay, 36, was convicted April 5 of two counts of gross
vehicular manslaughter involving alcohol, including allegations of
hit-and-run and great bodily injury.The defendant, a mother of four from El Cajon, was also convicted of  hit-and-run causing injury or death, said Deputy District Attorney
Kristian Trocha. The May 22, 2005, crash near Jamul killed 57-year-old Dale Ellis Le
Mere and Rudy Parra Carranza, who was riding behind Le Mere on the
motorcycle.

Le Mere was engaged to marry the boy's mother, Patricia Gallaga.
Trocha told the jury that a witness saw Garibay driving erratically and
dialed 911 moments before the 5:25 p.m. crash. The witness said she saw Garibay zigzagging across the road to prevent another car from passing her.
After the crash, Garibay doused herself with perfume, trying to conceal
the odor of alcohol on her breath, Trocha said.
Defense attorney Paul Neuharth contended that Le Mere caused the crash
by crossing the center line of the two-lane highway near Rancho Jamul
Drive.
Trocha said Garibay's blood-alcohol level was 0.12 percent three hours
after the crash.

HIJACK KILLING
Teen dies after abductors throw couple from moving car
Richard Charan South Bureau

Monday, May 29th 2006

Teen lovers abducted by three men were thrown out of their hijacked car
moments before it crashed on Saturday.Reshma Boodoo and Anil Singh, both 19, were fighting back when they were pushed out the back seat, police believe. Boodoo, of Lothians Road, Princes Town, hit the road and tumbled into the bushes.

Both her arms were broken. She died before paramedics arrived.

Singh, of Petite Cafe Village, Princes Town, was listed in a critical
condition at the Intensive Care Unit of the San Fernando General Hospital last night.
He has been unconscious since the crash. The stolen car slammed head on into a pick-up truck, injuring two men. The incident happened at around 6.30 p.m. on the Tarouba Link Road, Palmyra Village.

Police initially investigated the case as an accident. However, witnesses told of seeing three men climbing from the wrecked car and running through a housing development under construction. One of the witnesses told the Express: "I was sitting in my gallery
when I see a car swerving around. I saw some people in the car trying
to push the woman and the man out the car. Then the car crash into the
van. And some men ran in the bushes."

Police were also told that the injuries suffered by the teenagers could
not have come from a collision. It took police two hours before a search was mounted involving tracker dogs and a helicopter using search lights.

Homes were searched by Guard and Emergency branch and Crime Suppression
Unit officers. No one was held. The car was examined yesterday for forensic evidence. At Boodoo's home, her parents, Suekeran and Lanifa Boodoo, said they were not told about
the abduction, only about an accident.

Boodoo left home at 1.30 p.m. on Saturday to go to the grocery.
Instead, she went to a bar in Princes Town where she met Singh.
The two spent the evening together and were last seen by a friend,
Stasha Sankar Murray, at a restaurant and bar in Marabella that
evening.
Murray said: "She (Boodoo) was drinking. She was talking
about wanting to have a party for her birthday Wednesday.
When they left (the bar) she said she was going home because she said
her friend waiting."
It is unclear where the couple were grabbed.
Murray said both Boodoo and Reshma were "like magnets for bandits" that
evening.
"Nice car, plenty jewelry, bling phone," she said.
Boodoo's father said his daughter had a troubled past, but had changed
over the past three months.
"As a father I would do my best to caution her.
Now there is nothing we can do. We are helpless."
Boodoo said he did not know Singh.
Singh's family, who own a trucking transport company, said they knew
nothing of how he ended up critically injured at the side of the road.
"We hear all the stories. But we wasn't there and he can't talk," said
a sister.
The driver of the pick-up truck, Neil Rambharose, of Grant Street,
Rousillac and passenger Ramraj Haitool, of Iere Village, Princes Town
were discharged after treatment at hospital.
They told police that Singh's car swerved into their path.
Police said they found both Singh and Boodoo lying 25 feet off the road
and the crashed vehicles in the bushes on the opposite side further
along the road.
Patrons at a bar heard the impact and saw the men run from the scene
Report: Police find alcohol at wreck site
05/29/06
By Matt Tuck, Rome News-Tribune Staff Writer
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A Floyd County woman was taken to jail after she wrecked her truck on
Horseleg Creek Road early Sunday.

According to Rome police reports:

Shortly after midnight, Beverly Hope Brown, 35, of 17 Pine Valley Road,
was going north on Horseleg Creek Road in a 1995 Dodge Ram. As the
truck rounded a curve at Creekside Way, it ran off the east shoulder of
the road and flipped onto the driver’s side. Rome police officer Steve
Cantrell broke the truck’s rear window, and he and EMS workers pulled
Brown from the wreckage.

She was later taken to Floyd Medical Center, where she was medically
cleared before going to jail. She was released from jail Sunday,
posting $2,320 bail, after being charged with having an open container
of alcohol in her car.

Oakland man behind bars after fatal crash during police chase

OAKLAND, Calif. An Oakland man is behind bars after allegedly running a
red light during a police chase and killing two people.

Police say they were trying to stop 33-year-old Amani Bolten's van last
night during a crackdown on illegal sideshow car rallies when he took
off.The van plowed through a red light and slammed into a Nissan in an East
Oakland intersection, killing the 25-year-old driver and a passenger.
A second passenger is in critical condition at a local hospital.
Police say Bolten was drunk and wanted for a parole violation.
He was treated at a local hospital for minor injuries.
He was arrested on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter, hit and run,
and other charges.
 
Man sues casino, alleging he was allowed to bet while drunk
--------------------

Associated Press

May 30, 2006, 12:23 PM CDT

BRIDGEPORT, Ind. -- A Kentucky man is suing Caesars Indiana, alleging that he was drunk when casino employees offered him $75,000 in credit that he quickly gambled away in a drunken blur of blackjack and craps.

Caesars officials sued Jimmy L. Vance, 64, in October for failing to repay the $75,000. Vance's countersuit, filed last month, claims he was drunk the night he accepted the credit and then lost it gambling at the casino about 15 miles southwest of Louisville, Ky.

"They kept serving me till I was intoxicated. In fact, I don't remember losing all the money," said Vance, a developer from Corbin, Ky.

He maintains he was visibly drunk the night of Sept. 22, 2004, and was "induced" by Caesars employees to take several credit advances while gambling that night.

His suit claims the casino is responsible for his losses and violated state law by serving him alcohol while he was drunk, impairing his ability to enter into a contractual agreement.

Vance's lawyer, Larry Wilder, cited "dram-shop" laws that make taverns liable for damages if they serve an intoxicated customer who leaves the premises and harms himself or others.

But when he has had too much to drink on occasional trips to Atlantic City, he said casino bosses refused to let him continue gambling.

For its part, Caesars is seeking triple damages -- $225,000 -- plus 18 percent interest, court costs and legal fees from Vance for the unpaid $75,000. Its lawyers have asked a judge to dismiss Vance's suit.

"Vance is certainly not the first unsuccessful gambler to want his money back," Caesars' lawyer Gregory Taylor wrote.

Some drunken gamblers win and sober gamblers lose big, Taylor noted, so it's impossible to pinpoint Vance's intoxication as the cause of his losses.
 
Man's bond $600,000 in fatal DUI accident
--------------------


May 31, 2006

CHICAGO -- A Chicago man was ordered held in lieu of $600,000 bond Tuesday on charges he killed a 9-year-old girl and injured four others while driving drunk.

Eduardo Ambriz, 28, of the 4300 block of South Artesian Avenue, was naked at the time, according to a police report. He remained at Mt. Sinai Hospital, where he has been since the accident Friday in the 3500 block of West Cermak Road.

A Chicago police officer told Criminal Court Judge Raymond Myles that Ambriz was in stable condition.

Ambriz was charged with aggravated DUI and driving without insurance after running a red light and allegedly striking a car carrying Arasley Gonzalez, three other children and Gonzalez's father, police said.

Prosecutors said Ambriz had a blood alcohol level of .226, nearly three times the legal limit.
 
Cops say teen died racing his brother
--------------------

Fast car was a gift for good grades

By Andrew L. Wang and Dan Gibbard
Tribune staff reporters.

May 31, 2006

Ryan Meinken spent much of Memorial Day polishing the sports car he got for being an honor roll student at Carmel High School in Mundelein.

By evening, he was dead, killed while apparently racing his brother at speeds witnesses said may have exceeded 100 m.p.h., a Lake County sheriff's spokesman said.

Meinken, 17, of Green Oaks, and his brother, Chris, 21, were driving powerful versions of 2006 Subaru Imprezas on Buckley Road in an unincorporated area near Libertyville about 5:30 p.m. Monday when Ryan collided with two cars and crashed into a wooded area, Sgt. Christopher Thompson said.

The brothers had gone to get gas for their cars and were returning home, said their mother, Nancy McDonald-Meinken. She said she didn't know if they were speeding but denied they had been drag-racing.

Ryan Meinken was pronounced dead at the scene. Chris Meinken was not injured, and the people in the other vehicles were taken to hospitals for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries, Thompson said.

An investigation of the accident may take up to two weeks, he said. No charges had been filed Tuesday.

Ryan Meinken had a blood-alcohol level of 0.02 (that's all it takes is less than 1 drink), said Lake County Coroner Richard Keller, below the legal limit of 0.08 for adults but above the state's zero-tolerance threshold for minors.

Witnesses said the two cars appeared to be racing on a four-lane stretch of Illinois Highway 137, also known as Buckley Road, when Ryan Meinken's car rear-ended a Honda Accord carrying four people at Oak Grove Avenue. He then spun into a Jeep Cherokee traveling in the opposite direction before careering off the road.

It was unclear if he was wearing a seat belt, Thompson said.

Police and local hospitals declined to release the names of the people who were in the other cars or information on their conditions.
 
Police charge ice cream truck driver with drunken driving
--------------------

Associated Press

May 31, 2006, 8:51 AM CDT

GOSHEN, Ind. -- Police say they found a nearly empty pint bottle of vodka between the front seats of an ice cream truck after they pulled over the driver for swerving into the wrong lane.

Goshen Police Patrolman Jared Baer spotted the yellow-and-white van in a subdivision, after several motorists called Saturday to report the swerving vehicle in the city about 25 miles southeast of South Bend, police said.

The van was stopped, and the driver was selling ice cream to children, so Baer waited until Dennis D. Cogburn, 51, of Bowie, Texas, started up again.

Baer said he followed the van and pulled it over after Cogburn failed to signal turns and swerved into the wrong lane.

Cogburn failed field sobriety tests and was arrested on a preliminary charge of driving under the influence of alcohol.

Cogburn reported having chest pains, so he was taken to a hospital, where a test showed his blood-alcohol level was 0.24 percent, three times the state's legal level to drive a car.

Baer impounded the ice cream van and found the nearly empty bottle of vodka, he reported.

Cogburn told police he's staying in a South Bend motel, working for the ice cream company, but planned to move back to Texas soon.
 
Woman sentenced to 4 years in husband's death she claims was self-defense
--------------------

By JIM SUHR
Associated Press Writer

June 1, 2006, 1:36 AM CDT

CARLINVILLE, Ill. -- Colleen Hall says she had no other choice than to go for her gun when her husband, in another drunken rage that left much of their home in ruin, grabbed their toddler grandson and began striding toward their farm pond to drown the boy.

Daniel Hall had had his fill of the 2-year-old boy's crying by that night last August, and he never cared much for the kid anyway, Colleen Hall recalled. So with no time to call police, she says, she saved the boy by stopping her husband dead with five rounds outside their rural Bunker Hill home.

During Colleen Hall's sentencing hearing Wednesday, such testimony meant to help decide her fate did little to sort out what happened -- or whether Daniel Hall really had to die.

Many of Daniel Hall's kin pressed for prison, casting Colleen Hall as a murderous 46-year-old queen of fiction about the dead man they called caring. But the couple's three sons rallied around mom, depicting her as a probation-deserving saint, of sorts, who weathered three decades of assaults at the hands of a father they termed an animal who had it coming.

So with prosecutors seeking a 10-year prison sentence and Colleen Hall's defenders saying she should walk free, Macoupin County Circuit Judge Patrick Londrigan reached the outcome that satisfied no one -- four years in prison.

Probation "would deprecate the seriousness of the offense," he declared, then agreed with prosecutors that Colleen Hall had other less-lethal options during her stormy relationship, perhaps including just walking away.

Still, Londrigan credited her with her time already jailed, meaning she could be free in nine months if her lawyer's calculations are right.

Prosecutors weren't available afterward for comment. But one of the dead man's brothers who testified for them Wednesday decried the punishment as too lenient for a killer. "We're all going by her story," Ron Hall said after earlier testifying he didn't believe his sister-in-law's account.

"Was he really headed down to the pond? Only Colleen knows," he testified. "We will never know."

Colleen Hall pleaded guilty April 4 to second-degree murder, punishable by probation to 15 years in prison. In exchange, prosecutors agreed to drop counts of first-degree murder and aggravated assault, as well as cap the state's sentencing request at 10 years behind bars.

Most of the 10 witnesses who testified on Colleen Hall's behalf, including her sons, described Daniel Hall as a Jekyll-and-Hyde type whose dark side was a hair-trigger temper often set off by his virtual daily abuse of alcohol.

Daniel Hall's blood-alcohol content the night he died, an investigator said Wednesday, was .19, nearly two and a half times the state's legal threshold for intoxication.

"He was like the Incredible Hulk," his outbursts fanned by beer, said Danny Hall, one of Hall's sons and the 22-year-old father of the toddler he credits his mom for saving. He called his mom's shooting of his father "the perfect decision that day."

"She did what she had to do," he said.

Hogwash, countered one of Daniel Hall's other brothers. In a statement read in court by prosecutor Jennifer Watson, Mike Hall said his late brother had been "happy-go-lucky" and a "good man who cared about his family."

"Only a cold person could have shot Daniel five times," his statement read. "I think she should accept responsibility for killing Daniel. I think she owes the family that much."

But on Wednesday, Colleen Hall testified she had little recourse but to kill her husband, the same man she called her first love but who was physically abusive and a drinker since before they married in 1978.

The night of the shooting, she insisted, an argument over her failure to water plants escalated into Daniel Hall's trying to force their grandson into watching a porn movie, saying he wanted the boy to become a serial killer and porn star.

Daniel Hall then smashed the television set with a hammer and left the living room in shambles before grabbing the boy and walking out toward the pond to drown the child, Colleen Hall said.

When she confronted him with a gun, she says, Daniel Hall dropped the boy and was shot during a struggle.

"I was absolutely positive that he meant to cause (the grandson) fatal harm," she testified.

The prosecutor wasn't buying it.

"Whether Daniel Hall was a citizen of the year or a bad man, he didn't deserve to be shot," she told the judge. "We cannot allow society to go around shooting people because they are mean."

 
Driver held in crash that killed woman
--------------------

Cops say man jumped bail for previous DUI

By George Houde
Special to the Tribune

June 1, 2006

A man charged with reckless homicide and aggravated DUI in this week's death of a Hoffman Estates woman had been convicted of DUI last year and was wanted for jumping bail on another DUI case, authorities said Wednesday.

Javier Rico, 26, of the 6700 block of Pine Tree Street, Hanover Park, was ordered held without bail Wednesday by Cook County Circuit Judge Karen Thompson Tobin in the Rolling Meadows courthouse. He was charged in the collision that killed Patricia Henneken, 28.

Henneken had left her home early Monday to run an errand at a nearby pharmacy, said her husband, Matthew, who had been out of town on a fishing trip.

"I talked to her [via cell phone] while she was on the road," he said. "I told her there were a lot of crazies out there and to be careful. I told her to text-message me when she got home. But I never heard back from her."

After leaving the Walgreens at 2560 Golf Rd., Patricia Henneken was turning out of the parking lot onto Golf when her car was broadsided by Rico's car, police said. Rico's car was traveling from 70 to 100 m.p.h. and went through a red light on Golf, police said.

Henneken, the mother of an 8-year-old boy, was pronounced dead about 2 a.m. Monday in St. Alexius Medical Center, Hoffman Estates. Rico was arrested at the crash scene.

Rico, who was not hurt, had a blood-alcohol level of 0.234, nearly three times the legal limit, police said. Prosecutors said a bond forfeiture warrant had been issued for Rico when he failed to appear after posting bail on a DUI charge in March.

In 2005 Rico was convicted of DUI and driving without a valid license, prosecutors said. He received court supervision. Rico has never held a valid Illinois driver's license and apparently is an undocumented immigrant, prosecutors said.

Tobin appointed a public defender for Rico, who told her through an interpreter that he wanted to seek help from the Mexican Consulate in Chicago.

Matthew Henneken said his wife's death shocked her family. "This affects the lives of 100 people. It's absolutely devastating," he said after the hearing. "She was such a beautiful person. You couldn't ask for a better wife and mother."

Henneken said he wasn't sure why his wife went to Walgreens, which is less than a mile from their home. Andrew, her son from a previous marriage, was at his father's house.

Henneken said police told him that officers had gotten a report before the crash that Rico's car had no headlights on. Police had almost caught up to the car when the crash occurred, he said.

Rico is married and has a 1-year-old child, authorities said.

Handcuffed Illinois teen steals, then crashes squad car
--------------------

Associated Press

June 2, 2006, 1:27 PM CDT

PEKIN, Ill. -- A handcuffed teenager told police he was just trying to get home and get to bed when he stole and crashed a squad car after he was arrested for leaving the scene of an earlier accident.

"We don't have a lot of empty (jail) beds here, but we found one for him," Tazewell County Chief Deputy Dick Ganschow said.

Police say 17-year-old Joshua Hall of Manito was belted in the back seat of the squad car when he somehow wriggled free, crawled through a small sliding door into the front seat, then drove away in handcuffs before crashing through two fence rows, a gate and into a row of trees.

"This is the kind of thing that you can joke about when it's over and no one ends up hurt, but this is a very serious incident that could easily have ended badly," Tazewell County Sheriff Robert Huston told the Pekin Daily Times.

Hall was first arrested on suspicion of leaving the scene of an accident and illegal consumption of alcohol by a minor after losing control of his car, crashing through an electric fence and landing in a ditch early Thursday, police said.

He walked home, where police found him and took him back to the crash scene.

Because Hall had injured his hand in the crash, a deputy bandaged the wound then cuffed Hall's hands in front of his body instead of behind, Huston said. His hands were then secured in a leather transport belt, the procedure when prisoners are cuffed that way.

When the deputy got out of his car to retrieve Hall's insurance card, the teenager slipped out of the transport belt and a seat belt, squirmed through the tiny door and sped away, Huston said.

"The weird thing is I've never known anyone to go through one of those. The door is there to allow communication. ... He's a pretty small person and had to be pretty agile to do it," Huston said.

After crashing about a mile from his first accident, the 5-foot-7, 115-pound teenager was arrested again on charges of escape, aggravated possession of a converted vehicle, failure to wear a seat belt, reckless driving and another count of leaving the scene of an accident.

Hall was in Tazewell County Jail in lieu of $25,000 bond Friday.

"We don't regard the deputy as negligent in any way," Huston said. "He did everything he was supposed to do."
 
Bartender sued over arm-wrestling match
--------------------

June 7, 2006

Alleging that he tore a tendon during a barroom arm-wrestling match with a former bartender of a Downers Grove Irish Pub, a man filed suit Tuesday seeking $30,000 in damages plus court costs.

The suit claims that a bartender of Ballydoyle Irish Pub and Restaurant, identified as "Brad," approached Shawn Kabat, 38, and "engaged" him in an arm-wrestling match in March 2005.

During the match the bartender "threw himself" toward Kabat, severely injuring Kabat's arm, according to the suit filed in Cook County Circuit Court.

Kabat, who worked as an airline mechanic, tore a biceps tendon and needed surgery, causing him to miss work for about six months, the suit said.

Kabat, who alleged that the bartender was drunk at the time of the arm-wrestling match, is suing the pub and its owner, Phil Cullen.

Neither Kabat nor his lawyer could be reached.
 
Suit claims adults let teens drink before fatal crash
--------------------

By Jo Napolitano
Tribune staff reporter

June 6, 2006

The mother of a young man left comatose after a car wreck that killed another teen last month in Palos Township filed suit Monday against the families who hosted a party where the car's driver allegedly had been served alcohol.

The lawsuit, filed in Cook County Circuit Court, also names as a defendant Andrzej Kalata, 17, who was driving the car when it crashed.

Kalata has been charged with reckless homicide in the May 20 crash that killed Andrzej Gil, 17, of Burbank. Prosecutors have said Kalata was speeding along Archer Avenue near 95th Street when he lost control of his car, striking several trees.

Gil was in the backseat and was thrown from the vehicle. He was pronounced dead an hour after the wreck.

Kalata told police he had been drinking at a party before the crash, according to Marcy Jensen, a spokeswoman for the Cook County state's attorney's office.

The lawsuit was brought on behalf of 17-year-old Daniel Garczek of Burbank, who remains hospitalized with multiple injuries.

G. Grant Dixon III, the mother's attorney, said Garczek lost his left leg just below the knee. Doctors at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood tried to save the limb by performing surgery to relieve the swelling, he said.

Garczek also suffered a shattered pelvis, broken hip, femur, tibia and fibula and a lacerated bladder, as well as other internal injuries. Dixon said the boy was in a coma for about a week after the wreck and still goes in and out of consciousness.

"It's frustrating that people would allow these kids to drink at the house," he said. "They were allowing a large group of kids to get drunk on their property. In Illinois, if you do that, you are responsible for the injuries caused when people get drunk."

Stanislaw Kulawiak, Zofia Kulawiak, Stanislaw Ziomek and Janina Ziomek are named in the suit as the homeowners. Dixon said the two couples may have used the house in the 1200 block of East 151st Street in Lockport as a second home, a quiet retreat set far back in a wooded area.

Dixon believes at least one of the adults was present during the party. Although he is unsure whether any of the adults supplied the teens with alcohol, Dixon said he believes they knew the party was in progress.

None of the defendants could be reached for comment.

"The kids drank at a location they wouldn't be able to drink at unless these parents made it available," he said.

Penny Mateck, a Cook County sheriff's office spokeswoman, said investigators had not completed their accident reconstruction. "It's a very extensive procedure," she said.

Gil's older brother, Rafal, 21, said he didn't know if his family plans to sue. He said they have been struggling since his brother's death, but have had help from family and friends.

"It's a roller coaster of emotions, feelings and memories," he said. "But we're holding strong."

2 Men Drown Trying to Rescue Woman in Fla.

Jun 11th - 2:12pm
 
 

Jaguar boy 'kills three'
By ALEX PEAKE

A TEENAGE driver has been charged over a crash that killed three women
pals, police said last night.

The 18-year-old was accused of a total of seven offences after the
accident on Saturday.

The women — best friends Anne Riley, Carol Backshall and Jean
Wigglesworth — died instantly in the tragedy on the Isle of Sheppey in
Kent.

The three, in their 50s, had all been for a day out in Sheerness when
Carol’s Peugeot was in collision with a Jaguar.

Carol’s year-old grandson Ricky escaped by being dropped off minutes
earlier.

Police said the teenager had been charged with three counts of causing
death by careless driving while drunk, aggravated vehicle taking,
driving while unfit through drink, driving without insurance and making
off without paying for fuel.

Carol’s daughter Rebecca, 34, said: “Mum was a lovely person, everyone
loved her.”

The driver faces Sittingbourne magistrates today.
 
Rays' Prospect Charged With Drunk Driving
--------------------

By Associated Press

June 16, 2006, 8:22 PM CDT

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- Durham Bulls shortstop B.J. Upton, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2002 amateur draft, was charged Friday with drunken driving.

The Tampa Bay prospect was stopped by Chapel Hill police about 3:30 a.m. for traveling 51 mph in a 30 mph zone, according to a police report. He had a blood alcohol level of 0.11 percent. The legal limit for drivers in North Carolina is 0.08.

Upton was released on a written promise to appear in court, the report said.

"The Devil Rays and B.J. Upton recognize the seriousness of this matter," the major league team said in a statement. "We will continue to monitor this situation as the judicial system runs its course."

The 21-year-old player is batting .270 with five home runs in 66 games this season.
Loaiza gets W to go with DUI
--------------------

Associated Press

June 16, 2006

Oakland's Esteban Loaiza earned a win Thursday after spending a night in jail as the Athletics beat Seattle 9-6. The former White Sox pitcher, 2-3 with a 6.03 ERA for the A's, faces drunken driving and speeding charges after police clocked his Ferrari exceeding 120 m.p.h. on a freeway near San Lorenzo at 3:30 a.m. Wednesday. Loaiza failed a sobriety test, a California Highway Patrol spokesman said, and is scheduled to appear in court July 14.
 
Saudi players won't accept award
--------------------

By Tarek Al-issawi
The Associated Press

June 15, 2006, 11:05 AM CDT

MUNICH, Germany -- Saudi players who are chosen as FIFA's man of the match during their World Cup games will refuse the award from sponsor Anheuser-Busch.

"It's a matter of principle. No special meeting or decision needed to be taken. Saudi players will not accept an award linked to the maker of an alcoholic beverage," Abdullah al-Dabal, a senior Saudi soccer federation official told The Associated Press.

He said as a Muslim nation it was unacceptable for any of the Saudi players to accept such an award. Saudi officials told organizers before the Tunisia match Wednesday.

"It was straightforward and they understood," al-Dabal said.

Alcohol is banned in conservative Saudi Arabia and anyone found in possession of alcohol in the kingdom faces flogging.

"If any of our players play well enough to deserve a man of the match award, they will refuse to accept it. It's simple," al-Dabal said. "Saudi Arabia is the birthplace of Islam, and the players are Saudis and represent that religion and that land."

The match ended in a 2-2 draw and the man of the match award was given to Tunisia's Ziad Jaziri.

"We met with the Saudi officials in the routine team managers meeting ahead of the match, and the Saudis made it clear that they wanted nothing to do with this award because the sponsor is a famous beer manufacturer. FIFA was already aware of the complexity of the issue, and everyone involved accepted the decision because there was no other choice," a FIFA official said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

He said that FIFA was aware of the Saudi position as a Muslim leader.

"We will activate common sense in this situation, but it is a given that no Saudi player will be nominated for the award, simply because we know for certain that they will refuse to accept it," the FIFA official said.

Judge agrees to move bus crash trial outside of Eau Claire
--------------------

Associated Press

June 14, 2006, 11:30 AM CDT

EAU CLAIRE, Wis. -- The trial of a truck driver accused in a crash that killed five people on a bus will take place outside Eau Claire County, a judge decided Wednesday.

Eau Claire County Circuit Judge William Gabler cited media coverage of the Oct. 16 crash in deciding to move the trial to Hudson, about 60 miles west of Eau Claire in St. Croix County.

"There is substantial doubt an impartial jury can be properly chosen in Eau Claire County because of past extensive and unremitting media coverage that is likely to continue up to the commencement of trial," Gabler wrote in his decision.

Michael Kozlowski, 23, of Schererville, Ind., has pleaded not guilty to 34 criminal charges related to the crash on Interstate 94 near Osseo. His trial is expected to start Dec. 6.

The accident occurred when a charter bus slammed into Kozlowski's overturned semi. The bus was filled with 44 students, teachers and chaperones from Chippewa Falls High School returning from a marching band competition in Whitewater. The crash killed five and injured 29.

Kozlowski's attorney, Earl Gray of St. Paul, Minn., had asked the judge to move the trial to St. Croix County because of media coverage in Eau Claire County.

Eau Claire County District Attorney Rich White said the judge's decision to do so won't significantly hinder the prosecution's case, though it will complicate it.

According to the criminal complaint, Kozlowski stayed out late partying in Indiana and eventually fell asleep at the wheel of his semi-truck hauling grocery products to Minnesota, triggering the crash.

Kozlowski's truck went off onto the interstate shoulder and went out of control when he pulled back onto the highway about 2 a.m. The semi overturned and jackknifed, blocking both lanes, the complaint said. The charter bus plowed into the wreckage.

Kozlowski told investigators he was going to pull his semi over to go to the bathroom in the ditch, but he got too far off the shoulder into some soft ground, the complaint said.

Kozlowski told investigators he last drank alcohol about midnight Oct. 14 and he got 10 hours of sleep before embarking on the 436-mile trip to the Twin Cities about 8 p.m. Oct. 15, the complaint said.

Friends who were with Kozlowski at a tavern indicated he stayed up until at least 5 a.m. Oct. 15, the complaint said.

Killed were band director Douglas Greenhalgh, 48; his wife, Therese, 51; and their granddaughter, Morgan Greenhalgh, 11. Also killed were driver Paul Rasmus, 78, and student teacher Branden Atherton, 24, authorities said.

Kozlowski faces five felony counts of homicide by negligent operation of a vehicle, 16 felony counts of reckless driving causing great bodily injury and 13 misdemeanor counts of reckless driving causing injury.

He faces more than 100 years in prison if convicted of all the felony counts.

Not best timing for Redick
--------------------

DWI arrest could drop ex-Duke guard to Bulls' slot at No. 16

By Marlen Garcia, Tribune staff reporter. Tribune news services contributed to this report


June 14, 2006

The fallout for Duke's J.J. Redick over his arrest early Tuesday for drunken driving probably will not be severe.

Nevertheless, it could hurt him. It could drop his stock for the upcoming NBA draft all the way down to No. 16, a pick the Bulls own.

Redick is one of several shooting guards the Bulls are eyeing. Until Tuesday it didn't look like he would be available at 16.

The arrest probably would not prevent the Bulls from drafting Redick, a team source said, but several NBA teams, including the Bulls, will scrutinize the incident and likely question Redick's maturity.

A few days ago, it was believed Redick had locked up a top-10 selection in the June 28 draft. He canceled Wednesday's workout with the Orlando Magic, who have the 11th pick, because of a sore back but there was speculation Redick had secured a better spot in the draft.

By Tuesday afternoon, his mug shot was plastered on the Internet alongside news of his arrest and questions about his draft status.

In addition to drunken driving, he was charged with unlawful use of highways for an illegal U-turn. He had turned around as he neared a license checkpoint near Duke's campus, but police caught up to him in the parking lot of an apartment building.

Redick, 21, had a blood-alcohol level of 0.11 percent, exceeding North Carolina's legal limit of 0.08. According to the arresting officer's report, Redick had "very glassy eyes" and his breath had a "strong odor of alcohol." He was released on $1,000 bond and has a July 17 court date.
 
Vehicles crash into houses in city, suburb
--------------------

By Jeremy Gorner
Tribune staff reporter

June 12, 2006, 7:38 PM CDT

A vehicle crashed into the front of a Northwest Side house this morning, sending the motorist to the hospital, Chicago police said.

It was the second similar incident today involving a vehicle and house in the Chicago area.

A 19-year-old boy was driving a 1985 Toyota vehicle about 10:20 a.m. when it jumped the curb and struck the side of the porch of a two-story home at 5934 W. Byron St., Chicago. The Toyota then struck a vehicle parked in the driveway, police Officer John Mirabelli said.

A stone pillar that holds the porch together collapsed, causing the roof of the porch to dangle, according to a neighbor, who asked not to be named.

"A piece of the pillar cracked the windshield of the vehicle on the driver's side," she said in a telephone interview. "He crawled out of the vehicle, but staggered to his home on the block. He could barely walk." The man was taken in "stable" condition to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center, Mirabelli said. No other injuries were reported.

There was no apparent structural damage to the rest of the house, said Pete Scales, a spokesman for the Chicago Department of Buildings.

"The porch took the brunt of the damage," Scales said, adding that workers will have to do some emergency shoring to stabilize the roof of the home.

Earlier, a 25-year-old Mt. Prospect man was charged with aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol, a felony, after he crashed his car into a residence in the northwest suburb of Elk Grove Village, police said.

Esteban Quintero was heading north in a 1989 Oldsmobile Cutlass Sierra on Arlington Heights Road from Elk Grove Boulevard around 12:30 a.m. when his car left the roadway, Elk Grove Village Police Sgt. Jeff Prior said.

The car cut across two lawns, hit two trees and crashed through the side of a garage at a home at 433 S. Arlington Heights Rd., Prior said. Quintero was taken to Alexian Brothers Medical Center in the suburb, where he was treated and released.

He was the sole occupant of the vehicle, and no other injuries were reported, according to Chief David Miller of the Elk Grove Village Fire Department. Neither Miller nor Prior knew whether anyone was home during the crash. Prior said Quintero was wearing a seatbelt.

"We believe the seatbelt substantially reduced any injuries he would've suffered," the sergeant said.

Prior said Quintero was also driving without a license or proof of insurance. He appeared for a bond hearing in the Rolling Meadows courthouse, where his bail was set at $25,000.

 

How experts stay young
--------------------

Do health care pros practice what they preach?

By Leslie Goldman
Special to the Tribune

April 18, 2006

We've all seen them: the nurses smoking outside the hospital doors; the
overweight doctor; the nutritionist with a borderline eating disorder.
Sometimes, it seems, health professionals prefer to adhere to a "Do as
I say, not as I do" routine.

But when it comes to healthy aging, practicing what you preach is
essential, and it seems that one of the best tacks may be to protect ourselves from
the very things that tend to shorten life, said S. Jay Olshansky, a professor of
epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of Illinois at
Chicago. His list: "I do not smoke, I don't drink any alcohol, I stay out of the sun
or use sunblock and do my best to manage my weight."


Here are more tips that some local health experts have incorporated
into their lifestyle:

Martha Clare Morris, an epidemiologist with the Rush Center for Healthy
Aging -- Preventing cognitive decline has been a top priority. The picture right
now, she said, is "What's good for the heart is good for the mind. People who
consume fish at least one a week reduce the risk of getting Alzheimer's
disease." So Morris makes sure to consume fish a minimum of once a week but more
typically three to four times.

Vitamins B and E, in food form, not supplement, also play an important
role in her diet.

"We do know that B-12 is very important to the brain, and it's also a
vitamin that, with age, you're less able to absorb." Heartburn medications can
impair one's ability to absorb B-12, so consult your doctor. Foods rich in
B-12 include fish, meat, milk and fortified cereals.

Morris also is a fan of brain-protective vitamin E, easy to obtain in
green leafy vegetables, nuts and oil. So she'll grab a handful of nuts for a
snack, and she eats a dark green salad every day for lunch, topped with an
oil-based dressing that enhances vitamin absorption. Forget the fat-free
philosophy; a shake of oil and vinegar can do your thought processes well.

Tom Prohaska, co-director of the Center for Research on Health and
Aging at the Institute for Health Research and Policy at UIC -- Daily exercise was
mentioned by numerous experts on healthy aging, including Prohaska. A devoted
runner, he also plays tennis twice a week and golfs. "Physical activity clearly
can contribute to prevention of many chronic illnesses such as diabetes,
arthritis, cardiovascular disease," he said, adding that exercise can also improve
mental health.

Olshansky, a runner for more than 30 years, recently slashed his
mileage to a mile a day and increased his walking to a couple of miles "to protect
my knees and hips so I will be able to exercise for longer. One thing you don't
want to have happen is to lose your ability to exercise; it's the only
equivalent to a fountain of youth."

Morris lifts weights, "because as we age, we lose more and more muscle,
and we can maintain [it] by weight-bearing exercise." This not only keeps
bones strong, it improves balance, making falls (and therefore fractures) less likely
as one ages. Also, some international studies show yoga, which Morris
practices, helps older people enjoy life on a day-to-day basis.

Colleen Lammel-Harmon, Illinois Dietetic Association spokeswoman and
registered dietitian -- "I could not do my job if I did not practice what I
preach." That means eating five to nine servings of cancer-preventing fruits and
vegetables daily. "People are overwhelmed by that, but it's very easy. The average
restaurant salad has four cups; there you go."

Lammel-Harmon fills her meals with high-fiber carbohydrates, which are
great sources of vitamin B, a must during the aging process. Folate,
especially, helps with stress and the immune system. "With age, you need this to fight
off disease. Same with vitamin C. You cannot fight off disease if your
immune system is not up to par."

One dietary change Olshansky favors: More than a year ago, he shifted
from three main meals to five small meals a day, based on the recommendation of a
friend who studies Okinawans (elderly Okinawans boast among the lowest
mortalty rates).

The change, he said, eliminated his heartburn and predinner food
cravings, and "the weight started dropping off." A typical breakfast for him now is a
grapefruit, a handful of almonds and an ounce of cheese.

Missing Soldier Died in Air Conditioner 'Accident'
By RUSS BYNUM, AP


SAVANNAH, Ga. (April 29) - A Fort Benning soldier missing 12 days
before his body was discovered in a downtown hotel died after he got
caught in an industrial-sized air conditioner, officials said Saturday.

   A maintenance worker at the DeSoto Hilton hotel found the man's body
Friday in an area accessible through a maintenance door after guests
complained of a foul odor in the lobby.

He died after being struck by a large, spinning blower wheel, said Lt.
Mike Wilkins, a spokesman for Savannah-Chatham County police.

"At this point, it appears to be an accident," he said.

An autopsy Saturday confirmed the identity of Spc. Robert Hornbeck, 23,
of Lapeer, Mich.,
who was last seen outside the hotel April 16 after a
late night of bar-hopping with an Army buddy
. He answered his cell
phone briefly after his father arrived just after 3 a.m. to give him a
ride. He said, "Dad, I'm on the stairs," then the connection went dead.

Family members spent nearly two weeks combing Savannah's historic
district for him. They posted fliers with Hornbeck's photo in store
windows, took out a full-page ad in the local paper and offered a
$10,000 reward.

   "At least we have closure and we can get him home and do the proper
things to honor him," said Kirk Hornbeck, the soldier's uncle in
Savannah.

Police had not determined how Hornbeck got into the hotel maintenance
area or what he was doing there. He was not a guest at the hotel. Blood
toxicology tests were also being performed.
Hornbeck's father had
previously said he suspects his son was intoxicated.

"I think maybe he'd in fact had too much to drink,"
Kirk Hornbeck said.
"He might've thought he was going out the right door to the outside and
got turned around inside the building and ended up in the wrong spot."

NO RESPECT
* Rector slams drunk yobs for smashing church's historic stained glass
windows
* The cost of specialist repairs will run into several thousand pounds
* Police reviewing CCTV footage and have good idea of what the culprits
look like
A CHURCH rector has blasted drunken louts who smashed irreplaceable
stained glass windows with beer bottles and stones.
Arriving at St Wilfrid's Church in Church Road, Haywards Heath, on
Sunday afternoon, Father Ray Smith discovered five windows on the west
side of the church had been damaged.
Several had missing or cracked shards of glass, while others had gaping
holes where a beer bottle had been hurled at them.
Father Ray initially thought there had been a break-in. He told the Mid
Sussex Times: "I've never seen anything like this here to this extent
before.
"I discovered the windows before Evensong so I'm pretty sure it
happened between 2 and 6pm on Sunday. I'm annoyed people have no
respect for what is a historic building. They are made of old glass and
really repairing them isn't the issue; it's the fact that it's historic
glass."
The cost of repairing the windows, which were designed by William
Morris and Edward Burne-Jones in the 1860s and 70s, is expected to run
into several thousands of pounds and each window will have to be taken
to a specialist workshop.
Father Ray said the secluded area behind the church where the windows
are is a popular gathering space. He said: "I don't mind people going
there. They just need to treat it with respect, bearing in mind
people's loved ones are buried there."
He added that the church would now look into installing security grills
in the windows, something he had tried to avoid because it made the
area less welcoming.
Police officers continue to collect evidence and are viewing CCTV
footage from town cameras to identify the vandals. Father Ray
commented: "The police have a good idea of what those responsible look
like and they are following up leads. When they find out who it was,
the culprit will be presented with a big bill."

Killer says: I'm sorry
Apr 7 2006


By Ben Griffin, Crime Reporter


THE teenage killer who stamped a man to death in a Coventry street
broke down in court and wept as he apologized to his victim's family.

"I didn't intend to kill Mr Kamdar, or anyone. I didn't know I was
capable of doing it.

"All I feel is guilt and remorse, and I don't like it.

"I would like to say sorry to his friends and family."

The 18-year-old told the jury at Birmingham Crown Court he was ashamed
of what he has done and his trial was adjourned for 15 minutes while he
composed himself .

Mozid has admitted killing 23-year-old Rushi Kamdar in Walsgrave Road,
Stoke, in September.

Mr Kamdar, who was on his way to buy ice cream when he was attacked,
died of head injuries in hospital on September 10, five days after the
assault.

Mozid admits manslaughter but denies murder, saying he was drunk he did
not know what he was doing.

On the day of the attack, Mozid, had appeared before Coventry
magistrates charged with criminal damage to car door mirrors in
Coventry.

After leaving court downed bottles of lager and vodka with friends in
Gosford Park and Hillfields
.

Asked about the attack, he said: "All I can remember is throwing a
couple of punches and kicking him and running off."

It is alleged the attack was motivated by robbery and racism, based,
the prosecution said, on Mozid's assumption Mr Kamdar, who lived in
Swan Lane, was Kosovan.

Patrick Thomas, QC, prosecuting, said: "I suggest to you the reason you
didn't tell police the truth about that is you knew perfectly well you
had been responsible for a brutal attack that left a man lying in the
street gravely injured."

College police: Parish man drove drunk on campus
Friday, April 07, 2006
A Parish man was charged with felony driving while intoxicated after he
drove the wrong way down a one-way street on the State University
College at Oswego campus,
Oswego State police said.

Louis E. Cutrie, 51, of 202 county Route 58, also was charged with
felony aggravated unlicensed operation and ticketed on a charge of
driving the wrong way on a one-way street.

He was sent to the Oswego County Jail without bail.

Michigan teen on spring break dies in highway crash
--------------------

Associated Press

April 18, 2006, 5:20 PM CDT

ST. CLOUD, Fla. -- A Michigan teen on spring break died in a head-on
highway collision early Tuesday that injured several friends riding with him,
officials said.

The teen, Christopher Mareel, 18, swerved into oncoming traffic on U.S.
192 about 5:30 a.m., hitting a truck.

Mareel was pronounced dead at St. Cloud Hospital while several friends
--
Gyldert Mufaraj, Justin Feutz and Michael Meade, all 18 -- were taken
to area hospitals.

Mufaraj was in critical condition. Another friend, Cordero Austin, 18,
was lying in the back seat and uninjured in the crash. The truck driver, Jeffery
Gustafson, 40, was in stable condition, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

The students were from St. Clair Shores, Mich., where they attend Lake
Shore High School.

Officials were investigating the crash as being alcohol-related after
about 20 beer bottles were found inside the van.


Man allegedly shot by Proof dies of gunshot wound
--------------------

By SARAH KARUSH
Associated Press Writer

April 18, 2006, 12:02 PM CDT

DETROIT -- The man who police say was shot by rapper Proof died
Tuesday, hours before mourners began filing into a Detroit church to pay their
respects to Proof, who was killed in the altercation at an after-hours club.

Meanwhile, prosecutors moved to shut down the club by filing a civil
nuisance complaint.

Police say Proof, whose real name was Deshaun Holton, shot Keith
Bender, 35, in the head just before he was shot and killed at the CCC, a nightclub on
Eight Mile Road, the border between Detroit and its northern suburbs.

Bender's cousin, Mario Etheridge, is suspected of shooting Proof and
has been charged with carrying a concealed weapon and discharging a firearm in a
building. Etheridge, 28, has pleaded not guilty and was released Sunday
after posting a $7,000 bond.

Prosecutors are continuing their investigation into the deaths.

Bender, who had been in critical condition since the April 11 incident,
died early Tuesday, said Wende Berry, a spokeswoman for St. John Hospital
and Medical Center.

Prosecutors filed a civil lawsuit in Wayne County Circuit Court against
the owners of the CCC club,
which they said illegally sold alcohol after 2
a.m.
and had been the scene of another shooting and other crimes.

County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said her office took the action as a way
to quickly shut down the club. Police raids on after-hours clubs have dropped
following cuts in vice squad staffing, she said.

"I see our actions today as a form of the prevention of homicides," she
said. Among the previous incidents at the CCC that Worthy cited were an Oct.
8 shooting in which a man was struck in the hand and a December raid in
which marijuana and weapons were found.

She said police had been to the club just two nights before the April
11 shooting and found 40 to 50 patrons drinking alcohol at 3 a.m. Michigan
law
prohibits establishments from serving liquor after 2 a.m.


Police say man caused 5-vehicle crash, left scene
--------------------

April 18, 2006

GLENVIEW -- A Highland Park man was charged with a felony after causing
a multiple-vehicle crash in Glenview this month, police said Monday.
Cornelio Sanchez, 25, of the 1600 block of McGovern Street, Highland
Park, was arrested Saturday and charged with a felony for leaving the scene of a
personal injury accident, a misdemeanor for failure to give aid and information
and with driving without a valid driver's license, Glenview Police Cmdr. Frank
Stankowicz said Monday.
He said Sanchez was also cited for illegally transporting
open alcohol
, not providing proof of insurance and disobeying a red light.

Stankowicz said Sanchez was the driver of an Eagle Talon that ran a red
light and caused a five-vehicle crash at Pfingsten and Willow Roads on April
5. Sanchez ran away, he said, but left his passenger, who was injured,
trapped in the vehicle.

The passenger and two drivers were taken to a hospital with non-life
threatening injuries, Stankowicz said.

He said investigators were able to track down Sanchez through
interviews and information from the vehicle he was driving.

Third Purdue fraternity suspended for hazing
--------------------

Associated Press

April 14, 2006, 10:07 AM CDT

LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Purdue University has suspended a fraternity -- the
third this year --
the school said because members stripped a drunk fellow
member down to his boxer shorts, bound him in duct tape and left him outside in
subzero weather.

Members of Delta Tau Delta -- already on probation for hazing
violations --
bought the man drinks until he was ill and left him nearly naked in
front of his girlfriend's sorority house
, the Office of the Dean of Students said.

Pablo Malavenda, associate dean of students, said the hazing happened
after the victim decided to give his girlfriend his Greek letter charm as a sign
they are a couple.

Jim Russell, executive vice president of the Delta Tau Delta national
organization, said the fraternity's own investigation agreed with
Purdue's findings. It suspended some members and expelled others as a result.

Earlier this year, Purdue University suspended Sigma Phi Epsilon for
violating
hazing rules after a pledge was hospitalized for drinking too much at a
party
.
The university said members provided alcohol to minors, who were
encouraged to play drinking games and consume dangerous amounts of alcohol in a short time during a house party
.

Also this year, Purdue suspended the Delta Chi fraternity, which was
already on probation, after officials determined a game of tag was hazing.
Fraternity members required pledges to participate in an indoor game of tag that
led to pushing and damage to the house, the university found. The game
continued even though chapter advisers had asked the fraternity to discontinue it,
Purdue officials said.

Man struck, dragged under pickup truck
--------------------

Associated Press

April 13, 2006, 6:38 PM CDT

LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- The driver of a pickup truck was drunk and had
cocaine in his system when he struck and dragged a man nearly three-quarters of a
mile, prosecutors said.

Donald C. Ginn, 36, of Dayton, suffered severe head trauma and other
injuries when the truck hit a mo-ped he was driving Tuesday night. He was in
critical condition Thursday at Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis, hospital
spokesman Gene Ford said.

The truck's driver, Kenneth S. Alford Jr., 35, of Lafayette, made an
initial court appearance Thursday on charges of
driving while intoxicated
causing serious injury and leaving the scene of crash with serious injuries
.

Magistrate Norris Wang found probable cause for Alford to remain jailed
under $25,000 bond until Tuesday while police continue to investigate the
crash.

A test after the crash found that Alford had a blood-alcohol content of
0.11 percent, city police Lt. Jeanette Bennett said. The state's legal limit
to drive is 0.08 percent.

Witnesses told police officers Alford had been speeding and ran some
red lights, Bennett said.

Cop: Duke accuser `passed-out drunk'
--------------------

Anti-assault group challenges value of police transmission

By Bill Ordine
Tribune Newspapers: Baltimore Sun

April 14, 2006

A police officer described the woman who allegedly was raped by Duke
lacrosse players as "just passed-out drunk," according to a recording of a radio
transmission obtained Thursday by the Associated Press.

The officer's observation came shortly after a grocery-store security
guard had called 911 to report a woman who would not get out of someone else's
car in the parking lot.

The conversation between the officer and a dispatcher took place about
1:30 a.m. March 14.

The 27-year-old woman, an exotic dancer and student at nearby North
Carolina Central, said she had been sexually assaulted and beaten about midnight
at an off-campus lacrosse team party.

The officer called in the code for an intoxicated person, and the
dispatcher asked if medical assistance was required.

The officer responded: "
She's breathing and appears to be fine. She's
not in distress. She's just passed-out drunk."

The president of a national anti-sexual assault organization said it is
hard to draw conclusions from that observation.

"Rape is trauma, and it's one of the most traumatic events someone can
go through, so people react in very different ways, both physically and
emotionally," said Scott Berkowitz, president of the Rape, Abuse and
Incest National Network.

"Ultimately, the issue is not whether she was drunk, but rather,
whether she was raped."

No charges have been filed, but Durham District Atty. Mike Nifong has
said he believes a crime was committed. Earlier this week he vowed to continue
the investigation despite DNA test results that failed to link any of the
lacrosse team members to the alleged assault.

In discussing the DNA results Monday, defense attorneys urged Nifong to
drop the investigation but also have said that the district attorney could ask a
grand jury to issue indictments as soon as Monday. Experts in forensic
science have said the absence of DNA evidence may make prosecution more difficult
but not impossible.

There has been no official word, however, on whether Nifong intends to
present the allegations Monday.

Defense lawyers have said time-stamped photos taken by the players show
that the accuser was drunk and already had suffered some injuries when she
arrived at the house.

Drunken driver collides with semi, dies
--------------------


April 13, 2006

A Hampshire woman died Tuesday after her sport-utility vehicle
apparently crossed the center line and hit a tractor-trailer on U.S. Highway 20
near Brier Hill Road in unincorporated Hampshire Township, police said Wednesday.

Mary A. Prescott, 49, was pronounced dead at Provena St. Joseph
Hospital in Elgin shortly after the crash at 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, said Lt. Al Swanson
of the Kane County sheriff's office.

Prescott's blood-alcohol level was 0.29 percent, several times more
than the 0.08 legal limit, said sheriff's police Lt. Don Kramer.


Prescott was driving west on U.S. 20 when her vehicle crossed into the
eastbound lanes and struck the tractor-trailer, Swanson said.

Prescott was thrown from her SUV as it rolled over.

The truck driver wasn't injured, authorities said.

Alcohol reported in crash that killed 2 teens
--------------------

By John Keilman
Tribune staff reporter

April 13, 2006

A McHenry County teen who was at the wheel during a car crash that
fatally injured him and another boy had alcohol in his system, a
coroner said Wednesday.

The blood-alcohol level for Jeffrey Mills-Micek, 17, was recorded at
0.06 percent, , said Winnebago County Coroner Sue Fiduccia.

Just after midnight Feb. 19, Mills-Micek was driving an Acura TL on Red
Barn Road just north of Crystal Lake. Scott Scheckel, 16, whose father owned
the car, was a passenger. Police say Mills-Micek had been drinking earlier at a
nearby party.

As the Acura approached a jog in the road at an estimated speed of 70
to 80 m.p.h.--well above the 30 m.p.h. limit--Mills-Micek lost control, and
the car slid sideways into a tree, authorities said. The crash was so severe
that rescue workers needed an hour to cut Mills-Micek from the wreckage.

Scheckel was flown to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge,
and he later died of his injuries. Another helicopter took Mills-Micek to OSF
St. Anthony Medical Center in Rockford, where he entered surgery at 4 a.m.

According to the coroner's report, surgeons soon determined that he
would not survive his devastating head and pelvic injuries. They stopped the
surgery at 5:20 a.m. so that Mills-Micek's family could be with him in his final
moments.
Five minutes later, he was pronounced dead.

Jessica Ochal, 21, who allegedly held the party, was charged with
unlawful delivery of alcohol to a minor, a misdemeanor. Police said she bought a
keg of beer to celebrate the birthday of somebody under age 21.


18-year prison sentence in DUI crash fatal to 2
--------------------


April 12, 2006

ROLLING MEADOWS --
A Glendale Heights man who prosecutors said had a
blood-alcohol level more than four times the legal limit when he was
involved in a fatal crash last summer was sentenced Tuesday to 18 years in prison.


J. Refugio Blancas, 31, of the 700 block of Cynthia Lane, wept during a
sentencing hearing in the Rolling Meadows branch of Cook County Circuit
Court.

Blancas had pleaded guilty in February to reckless homicide and
aggravated driving under the influence charges from the July crash in Elk Grove
Village that killed Zeni Grina, 63, and her mother, Ofelia Lao, 100.

Prosecutors said Blancas' blood-alcohol level was .345 and that police
had found an unopened six pack of beer in his car. The legal limit in Illinois is
.08.


Judge Thomas Fecarotta Jr. noted that Blancas had been sentenced to
court supervision after a drunken-driving arrest in 2003.

"The defendant did not learn from that experience," Fecarotta said.
"When you get behind the wheel with a [blood-alcohol level] four times the legal
limit at rush hour, it's not an accident."

Prosecutors said Blancas was driving a sport-utility vehicle when he
went through a red light at Oakton Avenue and Busse Road. The SUV collided
broadside with a compact car driven by Grina. Lao was in the back seat.

Woman climbs into squad car, arrested for public intoxication
--------------------

Associated Press

April 4, 2006, 1:07 PM CDT

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- A 20-year-old woman who climbed into the back seat
of a parked squad car was arrested for public intoxication by an officer who
opened the door to let her out, police said.

Two men told Officer Brandon Lopossa at the back door of Bloomington
police headquarters early Friday that they saw a woman climb into a squad car.
Lopossa checked the vehicles in the parking lot and saw a woman with her hands
and face pressed against the window of one of the cars.

He opened the door to let the woman out. She did not know the back
doors of squad cars cannot be opened from the inside, the report said.

The report said she appeared to be "very intoxicated."

Lopossa placed Lauren Yoder in the back of another squad car and took
her to Bloomington Hospital for a checkup because of her "high level of
intoxication,"the report said.


Yoder pleaded guilty to charges of public intoxication and illegal
consumption of alcohol on Monday


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Harley rider hit and killed
--------------------

Tribune staff reports

April 28, 2006, 8:57 PM CDT

A St. Charles woman was charged with DUI in a crash that killed a
motorcyclist late Thursday on North Avenue in Glendale Heights, police said Friday.

George C. Shirkey, 49, of St. Charles, was westbound on North Avenue
west of Glen Ellyn Road shortly before midnight when a Honda CRV driven by
Kimberly A. Flad, 50, of the 200 block of Sedgewick Circle, St. Charles, apparently
struck the back or side of his motorcyle, said Glendale Heights Police Cmdr.
Thomas Bialas.

Shirkey fell to the pavement but both the motorcycle and Flad's vehicle
crossed the median into the eastbound lanes, Bialas said. Shirkey was not
wearing a helmet, he said.

Flad was charged with three counts of driving while under the influence
of alcohol, including a count of DUI resulting in death, and also with
failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident.


Police said Shirkey had been riding a maroon 2000 Harley-Davidson Road
King motorcycle.

Man convicted of killing snowmobiler in northern Wisconsin
--------------------

Associated Press

April 28, 2006, 11:16 AM CDT

HURLEY, Wis. --
A man has been found guilty of killing a snowmobiler
while drunken driving on a frozen lake in northern Wisconsin.

A jury deliberated for six hours before deciding Andrew Zaleski, 25, of
Kimball, Wis., was guilty of homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle and
homicide by use of a vehicle with an alcohol concentration more than .08. The decision came down Wednesday.

Zaleski could face a penalty of up to 25 years in prison for the Jan.
8, 2005 death of Richard Ernest, 27, of Glidden.

Ernest's snowmobile collided with a truck driven by Zaleski on Island
Lake, authorities said.

Zaleski and a group of friends had been drinking the night of Jan. 7,
2005. They were on the lake doing doughnuts when Ernest's snowmobile hit Zaleski's
truck, according to a witness.

Ernest's cousin, Phillip Ernest, of Chelsea, testified he and Richard
Ernest also had been drinking. He said the two got separated before crossing
Island Lake on their snowmobiles.

Department of Natural Resources conservation warden John Windt said
speed, alcohol, and failure
to yield on the part of both vehicles contributed
to the accident.

During closing arguments, Iron County District Attorney Marty Lipske
said Zaleski should not have chosen to drive drunk that night after drinking
for five hours.

Zaleski's public defender Fred Bourg told the jury there was no
indication the snowmobile tried to stop and both men failed to yield.

Dead at 66 because he drank:

Philip Walden
--------------------

1940 - 2006

Capricorn Records founder launched Allman Brothers

`Brilliantly talented, instinctive music man' managed Otis Redding

Los Angeles Times

April 26, 2006

Philip Walden, whose Macon, Ga.-based Capricorn Records launched the
Allman Brothers Band and became known as "the citadel of Southern rock" in the
1970s, has died. He was 66.

Mr. Walden died Sunday at his home in Atlanta after a long battle with
cancer, said his daughter, Amantha Walden.

In a career that began when he started managing Otis Redding and
booking shows for other R&B artists in the late 1950s, Mr. Walden launched Capricorn
Records in 1969.

Capricorn earned a reputation as the South's most successful
independent record label in the 1970s, with acts including the Allman Brothers Band and
the Marshall Tucker Band. The label's roster also included artists such as
Wet Willie, Elvin Bishop and the Dixie Dregs.

"Phil was there at the beginning, and we could not have accomplished
what we have without him," Gregg Allman and the other members of the Allman
Brothers Band said in a statement Monday.

Mr. Walden's life and career were a roller coaster in which his music
empire collapsed in the late 1970s, he overcame problems with cocaine and
alcohol in the 1980s and finally re-entered the record business with a revived
Capricorn Records in the early 1990s.

Families mourn 2 crash vicitms
--------------------

By Mark Shuman
Special to the Tribune

April 24, 2006, 8:51 PM CDT

Relatives prepared traditional Laotian food Monday for a stream of
visitors who mourned the deaths of two young men killed in a weekend car crash that
critically injured a teen.

Monks from a local Buddhist temple honored one of the victims, Anousack
Simanivanh, at ceremonies performed at his home Monday on Elgin's east
side.

Killed were Anousack and Lamkhan Phommaleuth, both 20, of Elgin. The
two, friends since high school, were pronounced dead about 4:30 a.m. Sunday
after the car driven by Anousack went off Illinois Highway 31, hit a sign,
slammed into several trees and slid into a ravine just south of Big Timber Road,
Elgin police Sgt. Tom Olson said.

"The car appeared to be traveling at a high rate of speed and a number
of trees came down on top of it," Kane County Coroner Chuck West said.

Empty beer bottles were discovered in the car, and Anousack and Lamkhan
were not wearing seat belts, authorities said.


Officials said tests that might determine whether alcohol was involved
in the crash would not be available for at least a week.

An injured 15-year-old boy was discovered outside the car when police
arrived, and authorities declined to identify him.

Anousack and Lamkhan were friends and 2004 graduates of Elgin High
School, family member said.

On Saturday night, the two friends had been celebrating the birthday of
Senganan's cousin in Elgin until early Sunday, Senganan said. The men
picked up the 15-year-old after leaving the party, he said.


Trial underway for German mom accused of killing nine newborns

FRANKFURT AN DER ODER, Germany (AP) — A woman suspected of killing nine
of her newborn babies went on trial Thursday in a case that shocked
Germans and fuelled calls for tighter protection for minors.

Sabine Hilschinz was arrested after police discovered the remains of
the nine infants last July buried in flower pots and a fish tank in the
garden of her parents’ home in a village near the Polish border.

Hilschinz, 40, faces eight charges of manslaughter. She could be
imprisoned for up to 15 years if convicted.

The death of a ninth child is covered by a statute of limitations.

Defence lawyer Matthias Schoeneburg told the court Thursday that his
client did not wish to testify. Presiding Judge Matthias Fuchs instead
read out an account of her testimony at a hearing after her arrest.

Last August, Hilschinz told a judge that she could remember properly
only two of the births because, in the other cases,
she got drunk when
she went into labour.

"We already had three children, and my husband didn’t want any more
children," she said, according to the transcript. She added that "I
always hoped my husband would notice the pregnancies of his own
accord."

She said she had drowned her sorrows over the dead babies in alcohol,
and had not got herself sterilized because she feared a gynecologist
would notice traces of the births.

Sobbing teenager convicted of murder
'I hope you're happy now,' 17-year-old says to parents whose son he
killed

HAYLEY MICK
After a jury found him guilty yesterday of murdering Tanner Hopkins, a
Toronto teenager sobbed for an hour in his mother's lap.

When guards led him handcuffed from the prisoner's box, he said to her,
"I love you."

And then the 17-year-old turned to the parents of his victim, Charryn
and Robert Hopkins, and said, "I hope you're happy now."

The events brought an end to the two-week trial of the youth, who had
admitted to killing Mr. Hopkins, 18, but pleaded not guilty to
second-degree murder.

The 12-member jury took one day to reach their verdict .

Outside the court, Dr. Hopkins, a Toronto dentist, told reporters that
the decision brought him no happiness.

"This is a sad day for everybody," he said.

"This is just one more sad day for us in a string of sad days."

Dr. Hopkins and his wife had been at a Christmas party in Orillia when
a snowstorm stopped them from returning home to York Mills. Their son
was stabbed to death on Dec. 11, 2004, as he tried to eject a group of
teens who had arrived uninvited and refused to leave a party being held
by his younger brother, Cameron, at the family home.

In court yesterday, the accused began weeping even before the jury
filed in and took their seats. He began with a sniffle, then a sob, and
he continued moaning after he was pronounced guilty, and the jurors
were dismissed.

He held his mother for almost an hour before Madam Justice Susanne
Goodman of the Superior Court denied his lawyer's request he remain on
bail until his sentencing, which is scheduled for May. 19.

"This is a very serious case and there is no doubt that there is going
to be a period of detention," Judge Goodman said.

The maximum youth sentence for second-degree murder is seven years,
split into four years in custody and three years in the community, with
supervision.

Bill Parker, the lawyer for the accused, said afterward that he was
"shocked" by the conviction, and would advise his client to appeal.

"There's no way in hell there should be a second-degree finding based
on the evidence," he said.

Through most of the trial, the accused sat slumped over a table behind
Mr. Parker with his head bowed. He claimed that he picked up a knife
from the ground and accidentally plunged it into Mr. Hopkins when he
was pushed from behind.

But his recollection of that night -- patchy and blurred by alcohol, he
said -- did not explain the stabbing injuries Mr. Hopkins received: two
in the back, one cut to the calf.

A friend of the accused was also cut on the buttock as he scuffled on
the lawn with Mr. Hopkins. The jury also heard how the accused tried to
cast blame on his friend when police interviewed him 24 hours after the
killing.

In court, much of the evidence came down to the testimony of the
accused, versus the testimony of the victim's younger brother.

Cameron Hopkins, now 18, told the jury how the accused chased him with
a knife, shouting threats, then turned back and stabbed Mr. Hopkins
three times.

None of the other teen witnesses -- there were about a half-dozen
called by Crown prosecutors Maria Speyer and Laurie Gonet -- said they
saw the stabbing, or heard shouts, asserting it was either too dark, or
they were too drunk to remember specific events.

But one said he saw the accused slip a knife up his sleeve in the
Hopkins's home, and another saw him brandishing a knife outside.

On the first day of trial, she felt pain when the word "murdered" was
read before her son's name.

And it never got easier: seeing police photos of his battered face;
hearing the scientific account of the knife wounds that cut short his
life; or bumping into the accused, who was free on bail, in the halls
of Superior Court.

For her, the guilty finding was the only acceptable one. For Dr.
Hopkins, no verdict would help because, as he put it, "I've already
lost."

Even now that their legal journey is over, the Hopkins say they have
had difficulty healing since the day their son was murdered.

"It's always just as bad as it ever was," Dr. Hopkins said. "You just
constantly get reminded of things that keep throwing you back again."

Cameron switched to a private school, too distressed by the notoriety
of the killing to continue at York Mills Collegiate.

Mrs. Hopkins has so far been unable to finish her doctorate in
education, which was nearing completion when her son was killed.

Dr. Hopkins said his work has been a lucky distraction, but there are
days when only his family can keep him going.

But they can still smile and laugh to remember Tanner Hopkins's love of
films, such as Ferris Bueller's Day Off and Scarface, or his love of
hockey, snowboarding and cooking.

Their brick bungalow, their home for 20 years, is still their
sanctuary. Tanner's bedroom remains as it did the day he died: his
mirror cluttered with ticket stubs and photos of his girlfriend, Sarah.
His family visit there often, to remember him.

"That's where Tanner grew up," Mrs. Hopkins explained. "There's this
one aberration that never should have happened."

Probe into officer's crash looks at alcohol
Friday, April 28, 2006
The Associated Press
Albany -
The investigation into the fatal car crash of a decorated city
police detective will examine whether he was drinking alcohol before he
went on duty early Wednesday, according to the Albany police chief
.

Kenneth Wilcox, 39, had begun his overnight shift as a homicide
detective when his unmarked police car crashed about 2:30 a.m.
Wednesday on Interstate 90 in Albany. The car hit a guard rail, crossed
into the median and slammed into a concrete barrier, police said. He
was pronounced dead at a hospital an hour later.

Authorities hadsaid the results of blood toxicology tests will take
four to six weeks to complete. However, law enforcement officials told
the Albany Times Union on Thursday that a hospital test showed Wilcox
had a blood-alcohol level of 0.03 percent (see impaired at just .03), Police Chief James Tuffey issued a statement Wednesday acknowledging
internal affairs detectives retraced Wilcox's movements before the
crash. "
Understanding the sensitive nature of this investigation, if it
is determined that alcohol was a factor in the accident, an integral
part of the internal investigation will focus on the environment of
that alcohol consumption and police department standard operating
procedures relative to his on-duty work,"
he said.

Part of the probe will focus on whether Wilcox checked in with other
officers or supervisors when he reported for work, Tuffey said.

The Times Union reported that Wilcox and Aaron R. Dare, his business
associate in an Albany real-estate firm,
had spent seven hours at Noche
Lounge, an upscale Albany nightclub, before leaving about 11 p.m.
Tuesday carrying an empty cognac bottle. Others in the bar told the
newspaper they drank expensive cognac and beer.

 
Man sentenced in hit-and-run death of coach
--------------------

The Associated Press

March 22, 2006, 9:37 PM CST

OSHKOSH, Wis -- A repeat drunken driver convicted in the hit-and-run death of an assistant football coach from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh was sentenced Wednesday to 25 years in prison.

Justin Butler, 26, of Oshkosh, will also spend 25 years under extended supervision under the sentence handed down by Judge Tom Gritton of Winnebago County Circuit Court.

In a plea deal, Butler had pleaded guilty to charges of homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle and hit and run resulting in death in the accident a year ago that killed 27-year-old Joe Mostofi.

Butler's extensive record includes three previous drunken driving convictions and 20 traffic offenses, authorities said. He has 17 past convictions related to drugs and alcohol.

Winnebago County District Attorney William Lennon said the case was particularly disturbing because Butler had so many chances to change his behavior when sent to jail on seven previous occasions.

``How could you not get it, unless you didn't want to get it?'' Lennon asked.

At the sentencing, friends and relatives recalled the life of Mostofi, who had nearly completed a master's degree and was planning to attend law school.

His mother, Judy Mostofi, said she hopes Butler never has the ability to put anyone else's life at risk.

``Joe did not deserve to die, and our family didn't deserve to be sentenced to hell on Earth,'' she said.

The criminal complaint said Butler hit a minivan on U.S. 41 early on the morning of March 5, 2005. The collision sent the minivan across three lanes of traffic and into a cement wall. Butler drove away but a semitrailer truck and Mostofi's car also became involved in the crash, resulting in fatal injuries to Mostofi.

Butler, arrested later in Oshkosh, told police he fled because he had been drinking and he didn't have a driver's license, the complaint said.
Copyright (c) 2006, The Associated Press
Drifter gets 20 years for killing his friend
--------------------

By George Houde
Special to the Tribune

March 23, 2006

A homeless drifter was sentenced Wednesday to 20 years in prison for killing a Prospect Heights man who had befriended him.

Robert W. Taylor, 43, pleaded guilty to murdering Michael Sieben in a hearing before Cook County Circuit Judge John Scotillo in Rolling Meadows. In custody since his arrest in December 2003, Taylor will have to serve 100 percent of the sentence, according to Assistant State's Atty. Cathy Nauheimer.

Taylor stayed in homeless shelters and at Sieben's home on Thomas Street. On Dec. 7 Sieben and Taylor had been drinking with a third man when the two quarreled. Taylor struck Sieben, causing him to fall, then beat him to death. Sieben had skull fractures, a broken arm and leg, and stab and blunt force wounds, prosecutors said.

Taylor put Sieben's body on his bed, and it was not discovered until several days later when police found Sieben's dog roaming the area and traced the animal's tags.

Taylor had fled in Sieben's sport-utility vehicle, leaving it in a parking lot at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital when he tried to check into the psychiatric unit at the Park Ridge facility, authorities said. Taylor ended up at Read Mental Health Center in Chicago, and police arrested him there after finding the car. The third man was to have been a prosecution witness but died of natural causes before testifying.

Members of Sieben's family, including his parents, attended the hearing and some of them wept as Nauheimer described the slaying. Sieben, a mechanic, was 48.

In a victim impact statement, Sieben's sister, Marilyn McIntosh of Pompano Beach, Fla., described how the murder affected the family.

"We no longer have Mick, the auto mechanic guru who gave us help and advice on our cars," McIntosh said. "His death runs through our minds like a TV show, but this was no TV show. He was viciously and cruelly murdered. We all miss him very much."
 
Husband charged in fatal crash
--------------------


March 23, 2006

A felony arrest warrant was issued Wednesday for a Geneva man on charges of reckless homicide and aggravated drunken driving in a one-car crash last month that killed his wife.

Kane County Assistant State's Atty. Steve Sims said prosecutors were in contact with an attorney for Chad Minalga, 47, of the 800 block of North Lincoln Avenue following his release Tuesday from a physical rehabilitation facility in Wheaton.

Minalga is charged with causing the death of his wife, Laverne, 29, who was pronounced dead at Delnor Hospital following the Feb. 17 crash in St. Charles. She was front-seat passenger in the car.

Both the severely injured Minalga and his wife had to be pried from their car after it hit a tree in the 700 block of 3rd Street.

At a coroner's inquest Wednesday, a Kane County jury ruled the woman's death was a reckless homicide.

Circuit Judge Joseph Grady set bond for Minalga at $500,000, according to Sims.

According to St. Charles police investigators, Minalga's blood-alcohol level exceeded .08.

Minalga faces four felony counts, the most serious of which, if convicted, could bring a sentence ranging from probation to up to 14 years in prison.
 
Police Eye Drugs, Alcohol in Holloway Case
--------------------

By Associated Press

March 23, 2006, 9:20 PM CST

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- Aruban police are reportedly looking into the possibility that the disappearance of Alabama teen Natalee Holloway could be linked to alcohol or drugs, according to a report Thursday by CBS.

Witnesses have come forward who say the then 18-year-old Holloway had drugs in her possession and was drinking heavily on May 30, the day she disappeared, Gerald Dompig, deputy chief of police for Aruba, told CBS television's "48 Hours Mystery" program, which released a partial transcript of the interview on Thursday.

"We feel strongly that she probably went into shock or something happened to her system with all the alcohol -- maybe on top of that, other drugs, which either she took or they gave her -- and that she ... just collapsed," he said in the interview, scheduled for broadcast on Saturday.

A cover-up may have ensued after the death, he said. Dompig specified that witnesses did not see Holloway taking drugs, only that she had them in her possession.

"After 10 months of investigation, including hearing many witnesses, we have strong indications that Natalee has died," Dompig told The Associated Press.

Dompig said she could have either died in a nonviolent manner, by her going into shock or that she collapsed due to her body's reaction to effects from alcohol or drugs, or she was killed.

Holloway was last seen leaving a bar with Dutch national Joran van der Sloot and Surinamese brothers Deepak and Satish Kalpoe. No one has been charged in her disappearance -- though Dompig told AP that the three remain suspects -- and the investigation has produced a number of false leads.

Dompig said searches for her body in sand dunes along the island's northern tip, at a beach close to the Marriott Resort -- where van der Sloot said he last left Holloway -- and a salt pond near the hotel, were ongoing and will continue in the coming weeks.

"Our main priority is to find forensic evidence," he told AP, noting searches were based on tips.
 
Man Charged With DUI After Crash

A 55-year-old Des Plaines man is facing a charge of driving while under
the influence after a car he was driving rammed into and through the front
window and wall of a vision care center at 1070 Oakton St. Tuesday
evening, Mar. 14.

According to Police Chief Jim Prandini, when Thomas Buda, 2107 Craig Dr.
was leaving the McDonald's Restaurant drive-through across from the vision
care center, he somehow drove across Oakton Street, jumped the street curb
into the building. As he was leaving the McDonald's his car hit a garbage
can and proceeded across the four lanes of heavy Oakton Street traffic.

Two people inside the vision care building were slightly injured, said
Prandini.

Buda was charged with driving under the influence and failure to reduce
speed to avoid an accident. He is scheduled to appear in Skokie court on
Apr. 11.
Outcome of video rape case no cause for celebration
Chuck Goudie


The festivity was sickening.

“I feel great,” Adrian Missbrenner declared in Saturday’s Daily
Herald headline.

Judging by the teary eyes, hand-slapping, waves to the cameras and
ear-to-ear grins, you would have thought Missbrenner’s family was
celebrating an Olympic gold medal and not the end of a rape trial.

The only thing missing was Missbrenner shouting, “I’m going to Disney
World!”

What was there to celebrate?

That a Cook County jury had found no crime in the fact that he participated
in repulsive group sex with a 16-year-old drunken Naperville girl?
That it had been videotaped like a birthday party? That the unconscious
teenager was defiled with a cigarette, a condom, spit and magic markers?

There is no disputing any of that. Missbrenner admitted his actions.
He just maintained that the 16-year-old girl was a willing participant
— and the jury bought it.

In other words, on Dec. 7, 2002, Missbrenner and his friends just
took “a few liberties with one of their female party guests,” to quote
a line from the movie “Animal House.” For God’s sake, Missbrenner
was just “a child” himself at the time of the drunken sex, as one
of his straight-faced lawyers actually described him shortly after
being charged.

How could prosecutors have lost this case? At the time of the incident,
the Naperville girl was 16. Under Illinois law, a 16-year-old cannot
consent to have sex with an adult. Period. The law is intended to
prevent adults from taking advantage of children.

Missbrenner was almost 18. You have to wonder whether the sex, booze
and videotape party had taken place on March 27, 2003 — the day after
Missbrenner turned 18 — he would have been considered “more” of an
adult. What if he was 19 or 20? Would the jury have considered the
girl a minor under his control?

“We think justice has finally prevailed,” said Missbrenner’s father,
Damir, after the verdict.

By that he meant the jury determined the girl consented to having
sex with his son and the others. Maybe she was indeed a willing participant.
But state law says that a 16-year old girl is legally incapable of
consenting to have sex with anybody. What happened to her protection
under the law?

After the lightening-quick not guilty verdict was announced Friday,
Missbrenner’s mother, Dobrilla, said her son’s behavior wasn’t “nice”
and she had been stunned to find out he engaged in “group sex and
drinking.” It must have been especially jarring considering she and
her husband were home the evening it occurred, in another wing of
the house.

Mrs. Missbrenner said she just wanted to hug her son.

“I haven’t hugged him for nine months,” she said.

I wonder when the girl her son was accused of assaulting will be
able to hug a man without flinching?

Jury  acquits man of murder
By Christy Gutowski
Daily Herald Legal Affairs Writer

Nickolaus Artman died hours after being beaten with a flashlight while
unconscious and lying face down outside an Addison burrito joint.

His parents, Arthur and Pamela, came to the DuPage County courthouse
demanding justice for their son’s death.

They left Wednesday disappointed.

“This isn’t justice,” said Arthur Artman, whose anger seethed. “My
son was bludgeoned to death. Who’s accountable?”

A jury acquitted Troy Kindt, of Glen Ellyn, of murder, aggravated
battery and obstruction of justice for a June 12, 2004, fight over
a parking space that left Artman dead at 24 and his older brother,
Anthony, seriously injured.

Members did convict the 35-year-old former stockbroker of mob action,
a felony punishable by up to three years in prison. Jurors deliberated
for nearly 12 hours over two days and were sequestered overnight before
reaching a verdict.

It’s rare for a DuPage County jury to acquit for murder. Bruce Keintz
was found innocent in 2003 of his adopted baby’s death in Lombard.
Noe Franco was acquitted in 1992 of a Bensenville gang shooting.

Deputies took Kindt into immediate custody Wednesday to await sentencing
later this year. He had been free on a $3 million bond.

His former friend, Louis Battistoni, 31, of Elmhurst will be paroled
in August for his role in the fight outside El Burrito Tapatio. Battistoni
received a three-year term after admitting guilt to two lesser felonies.


He and Kindt blamed each other for inflicting the fatal blows. Kindt
denied harming Nick, who he said came at him with something in his
hand. A knife was found nearby.

The defendant’s parents, Tom and Jacquelyn Kindt, declined comment.
So did the jury foreman.

Attorney Brian Telander attributed the murder acquittal to the conflicting
testimony of Anthony Artman and Battistoni, as well as the lack of
DNA testing in the case.

“The case just made no sense,” said Telander, who with attorney
Don Angelini defended Kindt. “They charged the wrong guy.”

Anthony Artman, who arrived after his brother, said he saw Kindt
charge at Nick, grab him by the throat and bang his head into a steel
wall. Artman said he grabbed the flashlight from inside his truck
and ran to help his brother. He struck Kindt once, but Battistoni
overpowered him. Artman, of Roselle, said he was hit twice in the
back of the head, likely by Kindt, since Battistoni was in his view.


Patrons at the restaurant did not witness the violence. The flashlight
was absent of fingerprints. All four men had been drinking alcohol.
Everyone had a motive to lie.

Prosecutors Robert Berlin and Josh Dieden told jurors that if they
looked at the brothers’ horrific injuries there’s no way Kindt is
telling the truth that he never harmed Nick and only exchanged punches
with Anthony after being attacked. They argued it was clear two men
were responsible for the brutality.

DuPage State’s Attorney Joseph Birkett said jurors likely acquitted
because they knew Battistoni got a three-year deal.

“I was afraid of this, but sometimes to get the truth out you have
to call people who were involved in the criminal activity,” he said.

Kindt, now a convicted felon, isn’t out of legal trouble yet. Birkett
said he also may pursue felony witness tampering charges since Kindt’s
friend testified he telephoned Battistoni at the defendant’s urging.


The Artmans also filed a lawsuit. Even if they win, however, Arthur
Artman said it doesn’t change their sad reality.

“That doesn’t bring my son back,” he said. “Where is the justice
for my family?”

Artman died months before his twins, Nick Jr. and Ally, were born.
 

Police allege man drove while drunk

Sunday, March 19, 206

BETHLEHEM | An Allentown man was charged with driving under the influence Friday after telling police he had been drinking and should be arrested.

Police said an officer stopped Eric M. Snyder on Drury Lane near Rockingham Drive after a witness reported a truck driving erratically.

When the officer asked Snyder for his license, Snyder said he had been drinking and a DUI charge would be inevitable, so the officer should just arrest him.

Police said the officer smelled alcohol on Snyder's breath. Snyder, 30, initially refused to perform a field sobriety test, but after being handcuffed he consented, police said.

A breath test showed Snyder's blood-alcohol content was 0.17 percent, more than double the state's legal driving limit of 0.08 percent, police said.

Snyder was taken to the Northampton County DUI center, police said. Snyder will be mailed a summons for driving under the influence and careless driving.

Drunk Walker Killed
A driver and a pedestrian from the same bar meet with a fatal result.

Knightdale, NC -- Police say James Warren was trying to do the right thing, and it cost him his life.

Warren went to a bar in Knightdale on Friday night to watch the NCAA tournament. Police say, when it was time to go, he realized he'd had too much to drink, so he started walking to meet his wife.

Warren passed out on the side of the road. A Wake County deputy and a passing motorist stopped to check on him. But at that point, police say, a man who had been drinking at the same bar came driving by, hit the deputy's cruiser and sent it rolling over Warren, killing him.

Police have charged Samuel Morris of Wendell with felony death by vehicle while driving drunk.

Driver arrested on suspicion of DUI after fatal accident
SIGNONSANDIEGO NEWS SERVICES

12:32 p.m. March 19, 2006

OCEANSIDE – A man crossing a street was killed and a woman was arrested Sunday for alleged drunk driving after a traffic accident, an Oceanside police officer said.

The victim, 37-year-old Juan David Cristobal of Oceanside, was struck by the car just after midnight as he crossed Mission Avenue near Mesa Drive, said Officer Ken Newsom.

An officer found an injured Cristobal in the roadway, and a witness said he saw the crash, Newsom said.

The driver, a 43-year-old Oceanside woman whose name was not released, fled after the collision but returned minutes later, and was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, Newsom said.

Cristobal died at the scene, the officer said.

Dog may have been drunk, but police say owner was for sure


By Brendan McCarthy
Tribune staff reporter

March 16, 2006, 9:01 PM CST

Ignoring warning signs and weaving an erratic path through parked school buses, an Island Lake woman drove up on the sidewalk to the front door of an elementary school just before dismissal, officials said Thursday.

After picking up her 10-year-old son and with her 3-year-old daughter also in the car, Diane Marcotte, 49, smelled of alcohol and failed several sobriety tests Monday afternoon, police said.

Then officers noticed Chico, an erratic-acting Chihuahua, in the back seat.

"The officer got real close to the little pooch and determined there was a strong odor of alcohol about the dog," said Island Lake Police Chief John Fellmann. "The dog proceeded to throw up in the car."

While Chico recovered from what officials said appeared to be a hangover, Marcotte, of the 800 block of Plymouth Lane, was charged with driving under the influence and child endangerment, both misdemeanors.

Marcotte told police that she entered the bus area because she was in a rush, her puppy was having a seizure and she needed to get to the veterinarian immediately.

Marcotte refused to take a Breathalyzer test and was taken into custody, police said. Released on $1,000 bail, she also was cited for a fire-lane violation, police said. If convicted, she could face up to a year in jail and a $2,500 fine, authorities said.

Officials from McHenry County Animal Control said she could also face charges of animal cruelty.

Marcotte could not be reached for comment Thursday.

While initial reports indicate the Chihuahua may have imbibed tequila, the findings aren't complete, animal control manager Jerry Rivard said.

"Our officer got there, and basically the dog fell out of the car," Rivard said. "The dog smelled like alcohol. ... He couldn't stand up. It was like a drunken stupor."

The incident left school administrators at Cotton Creek Elementary School baffled and prompted the district superintendent to review traffic-safety regulations at the school.

"The school has been open since 1995, and in all the years this has never happened," District 118 Supt. Daniel Coles said. "We were very concerned about the kids and the staff."

Marcotte ignored "Do Not Enter" signs when she parked on the sidewalk in front of the school entrance, Coles said.

School personnel called police because the school's approximately 600 pupils, from pre-kindergarten to 4th grade, were about to be dismissed.

Marcotte's children were left with school administrators, and their father picked them up later that afternoon, officials said.

cheerleader attack
By Gene Haschak
Daily Herald Staff Writer

A 46-year-old South Elgin man was Friday was sentenced to 18 months
of probation, a $250 fine and 60 hours of community service and was
ordered to have no contact with witnesses on charges he assaulted
two 11-year-old cheerleaders last fall.

The cheerleaders were celebrating the homecoming of their football
team and at about 10:30 p.m. Sept. 23 strew toilet paper in the yard
of Michael Ledford, thinking it was the yard of a football player.

Ledford was found guilty on Feb. 8 of throwing one cheerleader down
seven concrete steps and pushing another into the railing on his porch.


There were about 20 cheerleaders in the yard in all and about 10
adult chaperones.

Ledford’s sentencing hearing Friday at Elgin Branch Court lacked
much of the drama that occurred during the trial. There were no staredowns
between Ledford and the mothers of the cheerleaders, no nervous girls
testifying, no shouting of, “You knocked them down like bowling pins.”
Only one cheerleading mom was in the courtroom.

The prosecutor asked for 18 months of probation, three weekends
in jail, anger management classes, a fine of $300 to $500 and that
Ledford have no contact with the witnesses.

“Mr. Ledford came out of his home with alcohol on his breath and
profanities coming from his mouth,” said Assistant Kane County State’s
Attorney Avery Johnson. “All of the cheerleaders there were crying,
upset and traumatized, and it will be on their minds for the rest
of their lives.”

Ledford’s attorney, Richard W. Robinson, said his client, who has
no criminal history, was in his home at 10:30 p.m. Sept. 23 when the
cheerleaders and their chaperones came into his yard.

“He was at home antagonizing no one when these people descended
on him,” he said.

In rendering his decision, Kane County Judge Timothy McCann admonished
Ledford.

“I’m concerned about someone coming to your door in the future selling
cookies, or trick-or-treating on Halloween, or even your reaction
to strangers,” the judge said.
 

Fatal wreck blamed on alcohol, speeding
--------------------

2 students killed near Crystal Lake

By Jeff Long and Richard Wronski
Tribune staff reporters

February 21, 2006

Alcohol was a factor in a weekend crash that killed two Prairie Ridge High School students, close friends for years, whose speeding car slammed into a tree near Crystal Lake, police said Monday.

"If I could, I would take pictures of this accident and any other one like it into the schools and show it to every kid," said Deputy Ron Page of the McHenry County sheriff's police. "They need to understand alcohol kills."

The teens' car crashed early Sunday in the 3000 block of Red Barn Road, north of Crystal Lake and not far from where the teens lived. There were indications that both had been drinking, and authorities were investigating reports that they had attended a party in the Crystal Lake area before the crash, Page said.

Dead are the driver, Jeffrey P. Mills, 17, of the 5200 block of Granite Court, in unincorporated McHenry County, near Crystal Lake, and his passenger, Scott W. Scheckel, 16, of the 3800 block of Acacia Drive, Crystal Lake. Both were airlifted to hospitals, where they died of their injuries.

Mills was a senior at Prairie Ridge in Crystal Lake and planned to study architecture in the fall at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, family members said. Scheckel was a junior and an honor roll student, said his father, Charles.

"I just think it was some young people who didn't know what their limits were," his father said. "Maybe they didn't react right. These were good kids. It's a tragedy."

Mills' brother, Joseph, 26, of Elgin, said he had never known his sibling to drink alcohol. But if what police say is true, he has advice for other teens:

"Just, hopefully, people will stop and think a little bit more about their actions."

The car was traveling north "well in excess of 55 m.p.h." on a two-lane residential street with a 30 m.p.h. speed limit when it left the road, Page said.

He would not reveal the location of the party they reportedly attended or say whether adults had furnished alcohol for the teens before the crash. He also would not say how police know that both teens had been drinking. He said that information is part of the investigation.

"The kids in the area all know about this party," Page said.

He said the temperature at the time of the crash was a degree below zero, and the weather was clear and dry.

"Two factors contributed," Page said. "Alcohol and excessive speed."

Rescuers extricated the teens from the wreckage, police said.

"It was a massive impact," Page said.
 

Troopers: Alcohol To Blame For Fatal Highway Crash

One person is dead after a fatal two-car crash that happened early Thursday morning on John Scott Highway.

The driver of one of the cars is behind bars, and the Ohio Highway Patrol said both drivers were drunk.

The accident happened just before 2 a.m. at the bottom of the John Scott connector in between the Route 22 East and West on-ramps.

Troopers said a Ford Sport Tracker, the at-fault vehicle, was heading northbound down the hill, while a pickup truck was heading southbound up the hill.

The driver was the only person in the Sport Tracker, and three people, including the driver, were inside the pickup.

The OHP said the driver of the Sport Tracker went left of center to crash into the pickup. Troopers said the vehicle actually traveled so far left of center that the passenger sides of both vehicles were the biggest points of impact.

The far-right passenger in the pickup was killed.

To add to the fatality, troopers said, both drivers were drunk.

All of the men involved were transported for treatment. The three in the pickup were taken to UPMC in Pittsburgh, where Justin Jenkins, 23, of Colliers, was pronounced dead.

The driver of the Sport Tracker, Timothy Morris, 38, of Wintersville, was cited for aggravated vehicular homicide and driving under the influence.

Jeffrey Rawson, 25, of Colliers, who was driving the pickup, was not cited for the crash, but is facing DUI charges.

He and his twin brother, Jason, of Weirton, are recovering at UPMC and are expected to make a full recovery.

Morris is being held in the Jefferson County Jail on $15,000 bond.

Drunken Inter fans cause a ruckus

THE HAGUE: Around 20 Inter Milan supporters disrupted a Transavia flight headed for Amsterdam's Schipol airport, ahead of their team's Champions League last 16 first leg clash against Ajax on Wednesday, according to the ANP agency. 

Drunken fans insulted the cabin crew and two Milanese refused to sit down and continued to walk around the cabin while the pilot was preparing to land. 

The cabin crew had to try to calm down the rest of the group before a landing could be made. 

In Amsterdam, Dutch mounted police stopped the group and arrested the two supporters who refused to be seated. They were finally allowed to enter the country after paying a fine of 250 euros. 

“People are only refused permission to embark when they arrive at the take-off lounge in a drunken state,” said a Transavia steward.  

“In Milan, there was no reason to refuse them entry.” 

The supporters became drunk during the flight on alcohol they had brought with them onto the plane. – AFP 

1 killed in car crash after police chase
--------------------


February 27, 2006

CHICAGO -- A Chicago man died Sunday morning when the car he was riding in crashed after a chase with police had ended, authorities said.

Chicago police had been chasing the vehicle about 2:25 a.m. after receiving reports that either the 20-year-old driver or one of his three passengers had been flashing a handgun at passing motorists, a police spokeswoman said.

The chase was called off in the interest of public safety after the driver caused a minor traffic accident on the 3400 block of South Pulaski Road, the spokeswoman said.

The vehicle soon crashed into a wall at 4500 South Pulaski, killing passenger Luis Vasquez, 19, of 4000 block of West 61st Street. The unidentified driver was taken to Mt. Sinai Hospital and was listed in good condition. The two other passengers refused medical treatment.

"Alcohol appears to have played a role in this incident," the spokeswoman said.

Man pleads guilty in 2 crash deaths
--------------------

Drunk driver plowed into woman, daughter

By George Houde
Special to the Tribune

February 24, 2006

Zeni Grina had been the "spark plug" of a large blended family before she and her 100-year-old mother were killed last summer when their car was demolished in a collision caused by an intoxicated driver.

"I had the most unusual 14 years after we got married," said Anthony Grina, recalling his wife's warmth and zest for life. "I would have liked another 14."

On Thursday, Grina, 74, was in a suburban courtroom as the driver of the sport-utility vehicle that killed his wife and mother-in-law pleaded guilty to charges of reckless homicide and aggravated driving under the influence.

J. Refugio Blancas, 31, a factory worker from Glendale Heights, went through a red light at the intersection of Busse and Elmhurst Roads July 5 in Elk Grove Village and collided broadside with a car driven by Zeni Grina, 63, prosecutors said.

Killed were Grina and Ofelia Lao.

"We lost quite a lot--a wife, a mother, a stepmother, and a grandmother and a step-grandmother," said Anthony Grina after Blancas entered his guilty plea at a hearing before Judge Thomas Fecarotta Jr. in the Rolling Meadows branch of Cook County Circuit Court.

Tests showed that Blancas had a blood-alcohol level of 0.345, more than four times the legal limit, at the time of the crash, which occurred about 5 p.m. Witnesses said he appeared to be speeding.

Blancas, who received minor injuries, told investigators he had been drinking beer and did not see the green compact sedan waiting to make a turn. The women died of multiple injuries, authorities said.

Fecarotta set sentencing for April 11.

Grina said his wife was a remarkable woman who had emigrated from Cuba in the 1960s. They met at Kraft Inc. in Glenview where they worked, and they got married in 1991, after each had lost a spouse to cancer.

He had four sons, she had three. Grina said his second wife was a mother to his sons as well as her own.

Zeni's parents--her mother was Cuban, her father was Chinese--also had immigrated to the U.S. and had been living in Miami.

When her husband died, Lao moved in with Grina and his wife.

"You would never have known she was 100," he said. "She would sweep the driveway in the mornings. I told her she didn't have to do it, but she wanted to."

The two women were running errands when they were struck.

Joaquin Guerra, Zeni Grina's youngest son, said the family was relieved by the guilty plea.

"We're glad we're spared a long trial," said Guerra, 40, of Des Plaines. "I hope the judge takes into account the time of day, the alcohol and the speeding."

Is beer or wine making you fat?
by Lynn Grieger, R.D., C.D.E.

Alcohol consumption inspires a variety of dietary questions: How many calories in a pint of lager? Does red wine have more calories than white? Let’s weigh in on how alcohol affects weight loss



Alcohol and body weight
The calories in alcohol add up to increased
body fat, so consider these points the next time you have that extra drink:

  • People who are overweight actually gain weight more easily when they drink alcohol.
  • Calories from alcohol tend to be stored in the gut.
 
Calorie content of common alcoholic beverages
Although alcohol itself doesn’t contain fat, it is packed with calories. And when you add in mixers – juice, sugar and other ingredients – the calories really can add up.

Beer: Non-alcoholic beer actually has the same calories as alcoholic beer: 148 calories in a pint. If you drink a light beer – like Bud Light – you’ll only take in around 99 calories per pint.

Wine: Dry wine contains fewer calories than sweeter wine. For example, a glass of dry wine has about 106 calories and a glass of sweet dessert wine has a whopping 226 calories. If you drink a glass of wine before dinner, another glass with dinner and a sweet wine for dessert, you've added more than 400 calories to your meal.

You'll be glad to hear that champagne contains the same amount of calories as other dry wines, 106 calories per glass.

The hard stuff: The calories in gin, rum, vodka or whiskey depends on the proof, which is twice the percentage of alcohol. For example, 90 proof vodka contains 45 per cent alcohol; 100 proof contains 50 per cent alcohol. And it’s easy to guess which has more calories: The higher the proof, the higher the calories. Here’s the damage:

  • Double shot 80 proof contains 97 calories
  • Double shot 90 proof contains 110 calories
  • Double shot 100 proof contains 124 calories

Calorie content of other types of liquor varies greatly. Watch the really sweet stuff, though. A serving of schnapps has 108 calories, and crème de menthe will set you back 186 calories.

Mixed drinks: Obviously, the larger the drink the higher the calorie content. If your favourite watering hole serves pond-sized margaritas, you can easily drink more than 400 calories (without the crisps and guacamole).

Adding it all up
One beer every night adds 1,036 additional calories per week, or 15 pounds to your stomach per year. No wonder they call it a beer belly. Three glasses of dry wine a week will cost you 318 calories, or an additional three miles on the
treadmill just to walk off the extra calories. If you’re watching your weight, try this advice:

  • Don’t drink alcohol 
  • Remember that the calories from alcohol add up quickly, and they go straight to the fat in your abdomen
  • Most people eat high-calorie snacks when they drink alcohol, a double whammy in terms of weight gain

Suddenly, water with a twist of lemon never looked so good.

 
DWI charge in fatal crash
Friend arrested after early morning accident kills Colonie man
 

COLONIE -- A 20-year-old man died early Sunday when an SUV driven by his longtime friend, who police say was drunk, struck a tree off Lincoln Avenue.

Anson M. Breen was declared dead at the scene near Petra Lane. Thomas LaFore, 20, of Loudonville, was charged with driving while intoxicated and issued an appearance ticket. More charges are pending. LaFore was taken to Albany Medical Center Hospital with internal injuries, police said. He was in critical condition Sunday morning, police said.

A hospital spokeswoman said no information about LaFore was available Sunday night.

Snowy roads and alcohol conspired to send the northbound 2001 Nissan SUV sliding off Lincoln Avenue, police said. The pair wore seat belts, but Breen's side hit the tree first, authorities said.

Police at the scene reported a "strong odor" of alcohol from LaFore and noted his "impaired motor skills," the arrest report said.

Buddies since middle school, the two had been "out for the night, like kids do," grandmother Kay Breen of Colonie said by phone.

Breen attended South Colonie schools, was a supervisor for UPS in Latham and lived on Lincoln Avenue, not far from his parents' house, she said.

Authorities reached the scene around 4:08 a.m. Colonie Village firefighters removed Breen from the car.

Seminarian pleads guilty in fatal crash
--------------------

By Barbara Bell
Special to the Tribune

March 1, 2006

A former student at University of St. Mary of the Lake seminary in Mundelein admitted Tuesday that he was driving a car at a high speed while drunk when it hit a tree on the campus last fall, killing two seminarians and injuring another.

Robert Spaulding, 27, pleaded guilty to two counts of reckless homicide and one count of aggravated driving under the influence in a plea deal that could send him to prison for up to 10 years. In a plea deal, six counts of aggravated DUI were dropped, said Lake County Assistant State's Atty. Suzanne Willett. If Spaulding had been convicted of the original charges, he could have faced 28 years in prison, Willett said.

"The defendant did admit he was driving," Willett told Lake County Circuit Judge Victoria Rossetti.

On Sept. 15 Spaulding was driving an Oldsmobile Aurora between 43 and 70 m.p.h. in a 25 m.p.h. zone on campus when the car hit a tree, Willett said. Killed in the crash were seminarians Jared Cheek, 23, of St. Marys, Kan., and Matthew Molnar, 28, of Overland, Kan. Both were riding in the back seat.

Another seminarian, Mark Rowlands, 36, who owned the car, was in the front passenger seat and broke his arm, Willett said. He was charged with aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, aggravated false impersonation of a person and false impersonation of a person.

Rowlands also is accused of telling police that he was a representative of a Sheriff's Department in Ohio. Before entering the seminary, Rowlands was a sheriff's captain in Fairfield, Ohio. Rowlands, who is living in Glen Ellyn, has pleaded not guilty. His trial is set for April 3.
The Plot Thickens in Ferrari Crash
--------------------

A gun's magazine found near the wreckage may be connected to the accident, and a Scottish bank says it might own the destroyed car.

By Richard Winton and David Pierson
Times Staff Writers

February 28, 2006

The mystery deepened Monday in the case of the puzzling crash last week of a $1-million Ferrari Enzo on Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu.

Sheriff's detectives said Monday that they believe a gun's magazine discovered near the wreckage is connected to the crash, and they plan to interview an unnamed person who they believe was in the car with Swedish game machine entrepreneur Stefan Eriksson.

The crash has also garnered the attention of a leading Scottish bank, which has informed sheriff's investigators that it may own the destroyed car. At the same time, detectives are trying to figure out why another exotic car in Eriksson's extensive collection, a Mercedes SLR, was listed as stolen by Scotland Yard in London, said Sheriff's Sgt. Phil Brooks.

The totaled Ferrari was one of two Enzos that Eriksson brought into the United States from England along with the Mercedes SLR, Brooks said. But detectives concluded that the totaled vehicle did not have appropriate papers and was not "street legal" for driving in California, he said.

Detectives have been trying for nearly a week to sort out what exactly happened last Tuesday morning when Eriksson's Enzo — one of only 400 ever made — smashed into a telephone pole, totaling the car. Eriksson told deputies that he was the passenger and that a man he knew only as "Dietrich" was behind the wheel. But detectives have been openly skeptical of the story, noting that Eriksson had a bloody lip and that the only blood they found in the car was on the driver's-side air bag.

Brooks said detectives have called in Eriksson for another interview. Eriksson has declined through the security guard at his gated Bel-Air estate to comment. An attorney who has previously represented Eriksson in civil matters, Ashley Posner, also declined to comment Monday.

But some city leaders in Malibu, where the crash has been the talk of the town, were less circumspect.

"The guy should have had an IQ test," said Malibu Mayor Pro Tem Ken Kearsley, who has been following the coverage of the crash with a half-grin. The driver's IQ "couldn't come up above 60 if he was doing 120 on PCH," Kearsley said.

But in fact, Brooks said Monday, the car was traveling 162 mph when it crashed, far faster than the 120 mph originally believed. The Ferrari, with just a few inches of undercarriage clearance, hit a bump at a crest in the road, sending the vehicle airborne and into the power pole, Brooks said.

Brooks said they are investigating whether someone else may have been present and are trying to determine whether the recovered gun component is connected to the case. He declined to say more about the find or elaborate on the status of the Scottish bank and Scotland Yard in the case.

The question of whether Eriksson was the driver is key to the case, Brooks said. Eriksson's blood-alcohol level was 0.09%, higher than the legal limit for operating a motor vehicle.

Sheriff's officials are still trying to confirm witness reports that the Ferrari might have been drag racing with another car, and officials aren't sure if that's what happened.

Crash kills Joliet teen; another critically hurt
--------------------

By Tonya Maxwell
Tribune staff reporter

February 28, 2006

An accident early Sunday was so violent that police still have not been able to determine which of two best friends was driving the 1996 Buick Skylark that flipped over after it struck a light post and came to rest against a house in Joliet.

Hermes Phillips, 19, who was ejected from the vehicle, was pronounced dead at a local hospital about 30 minutes after the single-car wreck at West McDonough and South Pleasant Streets, according to police and the Will County coroner's office.

His friend, Eric Woods Jr., also 19, had to be extricated from the car, Police Lt. Dennis Goron said. Woods was in critical condition late Monday in Provena St. Joseph Medical Center in Joliet, police said.

Phillips, who police said had a .22 blood alcohol level, nearly three times the legal limit of .08, was pronounced dead at 1:16 a.m. Police said they have not determined if Woods had been drinking.

Witnesses told police that the car was speeding, going faster than the posted 30 m.p.h. limit, Goron said. The driver-side door slammed into the light post, nearly splitting the car in two, he said.

"The biggest task is identifying the driver," Goron said. "We will speak with Mr. Woods when he is able and see if his statement can help us in that area."

Woods was heavily sedated Monday, said his father, Eric Sr. His jaw is broken and his face is swollen, particularly along the forehead. Doctors are working to make sure his brain doesn't swell, he said.

"A father never wants to see his child look like that," he said.

The teens, neighbors on the 800 block of 2nd Avenue, Joliet, have been jokesters, akin to a Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin team, since they were 4 years old, Woods said.

The younger Woods is a father of three, while Phillips has a fraternal twin brother, among other siblings, Woods said. Most of Phillips' closest relatives have moved from Joliet, he said.Phillips was practically another son in the Woods household, said Eric Woods Jr.'s mother, Betty. Phillips called her `mom,', and she remembered him in the house Friday, asking, "Mom, what are you going to cook?'

Geneva man’s death ruled an accident
By Tona Kunz
Daily Herald Staff Writer

A shortcut along the railroad tracks took the life of a Geneva man
and highlighted the fact that the tracks are dangerous — even if you’re
not walking in the center of them.

Keith Hajek, 41, was killed at 11 p.m. Jan. 11 when a metal pin
holding a push guard, used to remove snow and debris, from the front
of a freight train struck him in the back of the head, according to
a coroner’s report released at an inquest Wednesday.

Hajek was walking just east of South Third Street in Geneva on the
railroad ties that extend outside the track rails, witnesses told
police. The metal pin extended slightly past the train cars and parallel
to the area Hajek was walking.

In the foggy night, the train’s engineer told police he didn’t see
Hajek until he was about 300 feet away. He sounded the horn, but in
the five seconds it took for the train traveling 38 mph to reach Hajek,
he never looked back or moved, Geneva Police Det. Kurt Metallo said.

A Kane County coroner’s jury ruled the death an accident.

Officials concluded that Hajek wasn’t trying to kill himself because
he didn’t walk on the center of the tracks where he was sure to get
hit. The electrician and father of one had been in a good mood that
day and paid up his car insurance less than eight hours before the
accident.

A bartender at the Caboose restaurant and bar near the Geneva train
depot said Hajek was taking a common shortcut along the tracks to
his home on Ridge Lane, Metallo said.

At the time of the accident, Hajek’s blood alcohol content was .25
and he had marijuana in his system, according to the autopsy report.

Friends and bartenders have said Hajek was drinking elsewhere before
he stopped into the Caboose to talk with friends for about 90 minutes.
 
Alcohol beverage industry targeting women to drink more
BY DEBORAH BALL AND VANESSA O'CONNELL The Wall Street Journal


On a recent Friday night in London, Alison Wildig hit several bars
with a few girlfriends. She says she drank a bottle of red wine, two
cocktails, a shot of vodka and a glass of Baileys Irish cream.

British women like Wildig and her friends are leading a rise in
drinking among young women across the industrial world - a trend that
is troubling public-health leaders and spurring sales for the alcoholic
beverage industry. Although British women drink more than their counterparts
elsewhere, the rest of the world, including the U.S., also has seen
a big rise, according to consumer-goods research firm Datamonitor.
Both British and American women between the legal drinking age and
24 drank 33 percent more alcoholic drinks by volume in 2004 than they
did five years earlier, Datamonitor said in a report last April.

Behind the increase: Young women today are starting families later
and have more disposable income than ever before. They also look up
to cocktail-toting pop-culture icons like Carrie Bradshaw of "Sex
and the City."

Meanwhile, the world's largest drinks companies, hungry for new
sources of revenue in a business that is growing just 1 percent or
so a year overall, have encouraged the trend. They are heavily promoting
a new range of concoctions - especially vodka- and liqueur-based mixed
drinks - aimed largely at women.

The rise in 'alcopop'

Anheuser-Busch Cos., the U.S.' biggest beer maker, next month plans
to roll out Peels, a line of fizzy, alcoholic fruit drinks in such
flavors as strawberry with passion fruit and cranberry with peach.
The St. Louis company recently invited editors at some of the nation's
top women's magazines for free manicures and facials at a Manhattan
spa, where they sampled the drinks.

The products are backed by a barrage of ads aimed at women. In the
past two years, Diageo PLC, Pernod-Ricard SA and Mark Anthony Group,
the maker of Mike's Hard Lemonade, all have run commercials on the
top U.S. cable programs among 18- to 24-year-old women, according
to Nielsen Monitor-Plus.

Promoting alcohol to women is even more intense in the United Kingdom.
In the past two years, 81 new versions of premixed bottled drinks
such as Smirnoff Ice and Bacardi Breezers have hit U.K. shelves, including
a diet version of Bacardi Breezers launched last summer. Sometimes
called "alcopops," because they resemble alcohol-spiked soda pop,
the drinks first took off in the U.K. in the early 1990s before becoming
a worldwide hit for the industry.

With the rise in drinking among young women, doctors have chronicled
an increase in health problems and police report an increase in crime,
both attacks on women and women getting into drunken fights. U.K.
police report an "exponential leap" in disorderly behavior by drunken
women in the past five years. "In the traditional pub fight in the
past, they would have been holding their partners back," says Chris
Allison, the head of licensing issues for Britain's Association of
Chief Police Officers. "Now they are mirroring the behavior of males."

A growing problem

In most rich countries, including the U.S., overall alcohol consumption
is stagnating, as aging baby boomers pay more attention to their health.
Consumers are drinking roughly the same amount of alcohol but have
switched to higher-quality products, like premium vodkas or fine wines.

The U.K., where a drinking culture is deeply ingrained, is
seeing a different trend. According to government figures, only about
8 percent of Britons abstain completely from alcohol, compared with
45 percent of Americans. Alcohol consumption in the U.K. increased
5 percent from 1999 to 2004, according to consumer research group
Mintel. Per capita consumption in the U.S. edged up just 1 percent
in the same period, according to Euromonitor.

Concern about the rise of drinking in the U.K. has mounted
in recent years as the government gradually relaxed rules that restricted
the number of pubs and forced them to close at 11 p.m. The government
hoped allowing pubs to remain open later would end the practice of
downing drinks quickly when faced with last call. Critics contend
that the move will only increase the loutish behavior of drunken pub
patrons that now is a common complaint in many city centers.

Indeed, some British comedy clubs started requiring a "behavior
bond" of about $175 for bachelor parties a few years ago, says Juliet
Ralph, a manager at London events planner Awesome Events. If the men
disrupted the show, they didn't get the money back. Recently, some
venues have also started demanding the bonds for bachelorette parties.

"People used to be more wary of the guys initially, but now they
know that girls can drink just as much as the men," Ralph says.

In Britain, 17 percent of women age 16 to 24 reported in a 1992
survey that they had exceeded the daily recommended limit of alcohol
consumption during the previous week - the equivalent of about two
small shots of hard liquor. By 2002, that figure had risen to 33 percent,
according to a government survey.

'It's what we do'

There aren't comparable government studies in the U.S. Datamonitor
found that British and American women in 2004 drank a third more alcoholic
beverage by volume than they did five years earlier.

While getting ready to go out on a recent Saturday night, Claire
Mooney, a 23-year-old insurance broker in London, says she and three
female friends each drank four or five beer-size bottles of Smirnoff
Ice, which contains vodka in the U.K. That was pretty typical, she
says, adding that she often would have an additional seven or eight
drinks at the pub. "Sometimes we overdo it, but it's what we do to
have fun," Mooney says.

In Manhattan, Dwyer Paulsen, 24, and her friends often "pregame,"
their term for drinking enough beer at home to get buzzed before they
go out to a bar. Paulsen, an editorial assistant, recently competed
in a beer-pong tournament at a local bar that offered a $5,000 prize.
The game involves men and women throwing ping-pong balls across a
table into each other's half-filled cups of beer. When an opponent
sinks a ball, the loser has to drink the beer.

"That's how we can relate to guys," Paulsen says. "We can play football
or baseball with guys, but we aren't going to be at the same level
competitively. Playing a drinking game, it's more skill and not brawn."

The trend is worrying to the American Medical Association, which
sees health risks from increased drinking such as sexually transmitted
disease, brain damage, cancer and heart problems.

Club boot preceded fatal crash
By Adam Kovac
Daily Herald Staff Writer

A Wayne man charged in a deadly drunken driving crash near Elgin was
kicked out of a DuPage County strip club after he vomited in the bathroom
about a half hour before the wreck, court documents say.

Before he drove up Route 25 en route to the Grand Victoria Casino
in Elgin on Jan. 4, John Homatas shared a fifth of vodka — about 26
ounces — with at least two friends at the West Chicago-area club,
according to a search warrant filed by Kane County Sheriff’s deputies.

Homatas, 24, was seriously injured in the crash and is expected
to be released today from Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park
Ridge, his attorney, Gary Johnson, said Tuesday.

An emergency hearing on the case is set for this afternoon, when
an Ogle County judge will determine if bail should be set, First Assistant
State’s Attorney Clint Hull said.

April M. Simmons, 27, of Yorkville, and her 8¨-month-old fetus,
a girl later named Addison, and John A. Chiariello, 25, of St. Charles,
were killed in the 11:28 p.m. crash on Route 25 near Kenyon Road.

Because Simmons is related to a Kane County judge, Kathleen Kauffmann,
an associate judge in Ogle County, will preside over the charges to
avoid a conflict of interest, Chief Judge Don Hudson said.

Homatas faces up to 28 years in prison if convicted of the most
serious offenses, which include aggravated driving under the influence
of alcohol, reckless homicide and reckless homicide of an unborn child.

Homatas, with Chiariello in the passenger seat, was driving a Jeep
Grand Cherokee north on Route 25 when he hit Simmons’ Chevrolet Tahoe
head on, causing both SUV’s to catch fire, police say.

Detectives were led to the strip club, off Route 64, after an orange
wristband used to admit patrons was found on Chiariello, according
to a request to search the club.

A friend told police Homatas and Chiariello went to the club about
9 p.m. and left two hours later, after Homatas was ejected for vomiting
in the bathroom, the documents show.

In the documents, Homatas told his friend he and Chiariello were
headed to the Grand Victoria, where Simmons worked as a supervisor.
She was driving home when she was killed.

Homatas has several speeding tickets on his driving record but had
a valid license at the time of the crash.

Officer: Teen irate prior to fatal crash

Published: March 3, 2006


By ABBE SMITH


An Arnold man charged in the 2004 deaths of two teens in a White Pines
auto accident was driving drunk and in a fit of rage, a California
Highway Patrol officer testified yesterday.

Testimony in Anthony Mann's preliminary hearing began yesterday in
Calaveras County Superior Court and was expected to resume this morning.

At the hearing's conclusion, Judge Douglas Mewhinney will decide if
there is enough evidence for Mann to stand trial.

Mann is charged with two felony counts of vehicular manslaughter.
Though Mann was 17 at the time of the accident, he is being prosecuted
as an adult.

Killed in the May 11, 2004, Blagen Road accident were Mann's brother,
Ernest Mann, 16, and friend, Steven Ferrari, 17.

Two other passengers, Nicholas Tuana, then 16, and Anthony Linebaugh,
then 17, were injured. All the teens were from Arnold.

During questioning by Deputy District Attorney Daniel McConnell, CHP
Officer Charles Parsons described the CHP investigation that concluded
Mann, now 19, was driving the car when it crashed.

The investigation was difficult because the car's driver and front-seat
passenger, alleged to be Anthony Mann and Linebaugh, refused to say who
was driving, Parsons said.

Parsons said Tuana told him in an August 2005 interview the boys were
celebrating Anthony Mann's birthday and decided to drink beer and smoke
marijuana the afternoon of the accident.

The car went off the road, crashed into some trees and landed sideways
in a ravine.

Prior to the crash, Anthony Mann became irate when a bottle of liquor,
allegedly stolen from an Arnold liquor store, was broken, Parsons
testified.

Tuana told Parsons that Mann began driving fast and erratically. The
passengers yelled at him to slow down just before the car crashed,
Parsons testified.

An inventory of the car turned up several items, including a broken
liquor bottle, a marijuana pipe, a backpack and one tennis shoe.

Several friends of Anthony Mann gathered for yesterday's hearing and
whispered and gripped hands when Mann was brought into the courtroom
wearing a jail-issued orange jumpsuit and with his hands shackled.

Some wept as they listened to testimony.

Mann sat quietly through the hearing.

Mann faces 12 years in prison if convicted. He remains in county jail
in lieu of $335,000 bail.
 
Midway runway no place for walk
--------------------

Officials not sure how man managed to get past security

By Gary Washburn and Dave Wischnowsky
Tribune staff reporters

March 8, 2006

A neighborhood man who later told police he had been drinking breached security at Midway Airport, apparently walking off the street, through a checkpoint and onto the airfield, officials acknowledged Tuesday.

A portion of the airfield was shut down during the incident Sunday, and a plane approaching for landing was ordered to go around after the intruder was spotted by a pilot on the ground, said Wendy Abrams, a spokeswoman for the city's Aviation Department.

The man was on the field for about six minutes before being apprehended, Abrams said. Officials said he was tearing off his clothes.

The federal government and the city spend millions of dollars a year on security at the Southwest Side field, and exactly how the man was able to escape detection is under investigation.

"This is a serious matter," said Lara Uselding, a spokeswoman for the Transportation Security Administration. "The TSA is working closely with the Department of Aviation to look into the security vulnerability and rectify the situation."

The man, identified by police as Mark Mechniek, 22, of the 5400 block of South Laramie Avenue, allegedly walked through an airfield gate staffed by a Department of Aviation security officer at 4:17 p.m.

"My understanding is that a vehicle was passing through" the gate at the time the intruder walked through, Abrams said. Whether the vehicle obscured the view of the security officer on duty, allowing the man to enter unnoticed, is one under investigation, she said.

Mechniek allegedly was spotted between Runway 4 Left and Runway 4 Right by a Southwest Airlines pilot who was holding to cross 4 Right. He apparently was seen at about the same time by control tower personnel, said Tony Molinaro, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration.

Officials ordered the partial closure of the field.

Controllers instructed an incoming ATA jet to break off its landing approach, and the plane came in after the incident, Abrams said. She was unable to say how close the pilot was to touchdown when he got the message to go around.

Meanwhile, Chicago police and Aviation Department security personnel took Mechniek into custody by 4:23 p.m. near the intersection of Runway 22 Left and a taxiway.

"The offender appeared to have been drinking," said Monique Bond, a police spokeswoman. "The offender stated he had been drinking." He did not indicate why he went on the field, she said.

The runway was reopened at 4:25 p.m., and the FAA was notified, according to Abrams.

"We are looking into it to see what the security issues could have been," said Molinaro. "It is way too early to judge if it is a big issue or not. What we look at is what were the security measures, how did the person get through" and what action should be taken to prevent a similar incident.

The security officer posted at the gate, hired by the city in 2001, was put on paid administrative leave pending the conclusion of the investigation, Abrams said.

"We view all incidents regarding unauthorized individuals gaining access to secured areas of the airport very seriously," Abrams said. But "we believe this was an isolated event, and we think this gentleman was not malicious" in his intent.

The entrance where Mechniek allegedly walked through, one of three airfield checkpoints, is set back from 55th Street near 55th's intersection with Laramie. It has a sliding chain link gate fence about 20 feet high and a guard shack.

The checkpoint typically is staffed by one officer, Abrams said.

Signs on the approach to the entrance warn that it is "restricted area" and a big red sign at the checkpoint reads that those seeking entry, "must display personal ID, vehicle ID and are subject to search."

Food trucks, airline vehicles and other service vehicles use the entrance, Abrams said.

A security officer stood outside the guard shack Tuesday evening, and a police squad car was parked nearby.

Mechniek was charged with reckless conduct and criminal trespass to airport property, Bond said. He is in FBI custody and has an April 10 court date.

A cousin, Teresa Cison, 22, said that Mechniek, a Polish immigrant, lives with an aunt just down the street from the airport.

Asked if he was drinking on Sunday, Cison said, "I think so."

Translating for her aunt, who does not speak English, Cison said she last saw Mechniek Sunday morning before she went to work.

In June of 2004, airfield security at O'Hare International Airport was breached when a mentally disturbed woman climbed over a razor-topped fence, got behind the wheel of an unattended baggage cart and briefly drove around the airfield.

Airport workers intercepted the woman after she drove across a runway in a ride that officials said lasted several minutes.
 
Arizona Forward Adams Suspended
--------------------

By Associated Press

March 6, 2006, 5:29 PM CST

TUCSON, Ariz. -- Arizona forward Hassan Adams was suspended Monday by coach Lute Olson for the Pac-10 tournament after the senior was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving during the weekend.

Adams, the team's leading scorer, issued a statement through the university apologizing to the coaches, university and the Wildcats' fans.

"I accept the coach's decision to be suspended from the Pac-10 tournament," the 21-year-old said. "I wish the team well and hope for its success. I'm looking forward to participating in the NCAA tournament if Arizona is invited."

The Wildcats (18-11, 11-7) play Stanford (15-12, 11-7) in the Pac-10 tournament quarterfinals Thursday at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

Tucson police pulled over a car driven by Adams for speeding early Sunday and said they noticed signs he was intoxicated.

Police said two breathalyzer tests showed a blood-alcohol level of 0.12 percent. The legal limit in Arizona is 0.08.

Adams had missed a 3-point attempt in the final shot of the Wildcats' 70-67 home loss to Washington on Saturday.

Adams is averaging 17.3 points per game this season, third in the Pac-10 behind Cal's Leon Powe (20.0) and Washington's Brandon Roy (19.6). Adams also leads the conference in steals with 2.69 per game.

24-year-old Joliet man dies after I-80 accident
--------------------


March 6, 2006

MINOOKA -- A Joliet man riding in the back seat of a car was killed following a traffic accident Sunday.

Juan Munoz-Corona, 24, of the 300 block of Youngs Avenue was thrown from the car and pronounced dead at the scene about an hour after the accident at 2:30 a.m. Sunday. The crash occurred on Interstate Highway 80 about 2 miles east of Minooka.

Driver David De La Rosa-Mosqueda, 26, was eastbound on I-80 when he lost control and overturned in the center median, police said.

De La Rosa-Mosqueda, who was wearing a seat belt, was taken to Provena St. Joseph Medical Center in Joliet with minor injuries.

De La Rosa-Mosqueda, of the 400 block of Landau Avenue in Joliet, was charged with driving under the influence.

Man found dead after telling couple not to quarrel

PENANG: It was 4am and the noise of the couple quarrelling woke him up. 

Lim Ka Liang, 57, an odd-job worker, got out of his room and advised the couple to stop quarrelling. 

The 28-year-old husband did not take the advice too kindly. He rushed downstairs to confront Lim. 

Lim was found dead with head injuries in the air well of the house in Lebuh Muntri here. The couple fled the scene. 

George Town OCPD Asst Comm Hamzah Md Jamil said investigations showed that the suspect had moved into the house six months ago with his Thai wife. 

“Lim, who rented a room on the ground floor, had advised the suspect, who was apparently drunk, not to make noise. 

“Enraged, the suspect rushed down from his room upstairs and hit Lim’s head with a blunt object,” he said adding that a screwdriver, believed to be the murder weapon, was recovered at the scene.  

Chino Teens Charged As Adults In Alleged 'Ditch Party' Rapes
 
KNBC-TV
9:05 a.m. PST March 8, 2006

CHINO, Calif. - Four local high school boys, two of them 17 and two of them 18 years old, will be charged as adults in the alleged rape of two 15-year-old girls who attended a "ditch party" last Thursday. A ditch party is when kids "ditch" school and meet somewhere, NBC4's Beverly White reported.

Chino police were contacted by someone at the party, and investigators went to the scene while the party was still going on. Investigators said the teens at the party were drinking alcohol. "We were contacted by a sister of somebody that was at the party," Michelle Van der Linden said. "The sister had asked that she come and pick her up, and when she got to the party her sister broke down in tears and said that there was something very bad going on back in the house."

The suspects were identified as Antoni James, 18; Jorge Gonzalez, 18; David Sanchez, 17; and Luis Munoz, 17. The suspects and victims all attended Chino High School.

Administrators said students at the high school were being counseled about the incident. "There were 3,000 students in school that day at Chino High School," school district spokesman Julie Gobin said. "This is a small group of students. When something happens to our students, it affects all of us."

A 17-year-old boy told White he was at the party and was worried about his friends who are accused of rape.

"I just regret not getting out of there and not calling the police when the girls were all drunk," the teen said.

White said other party-goers provided key evidence.

"There were video clips taken via cell phone," Van der Linden said. "They are being investigated."

If the four teens charged with rape are convicted, they could face nine years in prison. A conviction for penetration with a foreign object could add another eight years, White said.

Dead teen's mom sues man tied to beer party
--------------------

By Brendan McCarthy
Tribune staff reporter

March 9, 2006

The mother of a Hebron teenager who died last fall of injuries from an earlier car crash has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against a man accused of purchasing the beer served to her daughter and other teens.

The suit was filed Tuesday in McHenry County Circuit Court on behalf of Sherri Smith, the mother of Jamie Lynn Smith, who was 18.

The McHenry West High School senior and honor roll student was seriously injured when her car hit a telephone pole March 17 on Illinois Highway 47 in unincorporated McHenry County near Hebron.

She was intoxicated when she left a party at which beer was served, according to the suit filed by Jay Orlowski, a lawyer for her mother.

Jamie Lynn Smith died in November.

The suit alleges that Edward Jungmann, 22, of the 300 block of South Crystal Lake Road, McHenry, supplied alcohol to Jenna Christopherson, 18, who served it to Smith and others at a St. Patrick's Day party.

Christopherson is being dropped from the civil suit because she was 17 and considered a minor at the time of the incident, Orlowski said.

After Smith's death, Jungmann and Christopherson, of the 600 block of Kensington Drive, McHenry, were indicted on felony charges of supplying alcohol.

Jungmann and Christopherson are scheduled to appear Thursday for a status hearing in McHenry Circuit Court. A spokeswoman for the state's attorney's office said the felony charges would be reduced to misdemeanors.

A state law that took effect Jan. 1, 2004, allows the family of a minor who is injured or killed in an alcohol-related incident to seek civil damages from people who provide alcohol or allow underage drinkers to consume it.

Smith's suit alleges that Jungmann purchased a 30-pack and two cases of beer for the party. Jungmann knew that Smith and her friends were underage and that Smith would become impaired, Orlowski said.

Alcohol charges for party host
--------------------

Crystal Lake woman served 2 teens killed in crash, cops say

By Brendan McCarthy
Tribune staff reporter

March 10, 2006

A Crystal Lake woman was charged Thursday with providing alcohol to minors, including two teens who died in a crash last month after leaving her house.

Jeffrey Mills, 17, had been drinking at a party hosted by Jessica Ochal, 21, at her home in the 4300 block of Derby Lane, said Capt. Glenn Olson of the McHenry County sheriff's office.

Ochal was charged Thursday with seven counts of unlawful delivery of alcohol to a minor, a misdemeanor, Olson said. She is free on $3,000 bail and is to appear in court April 7.

Mills, of McHenry County, and his passenger, Scott Scheckel, 16, of Crystal Lake, died Feb. 19 of crash injuries.

Olson said others involved in providing alcohol at the party may be charged.

Ochal bought a keg of beer for the party, a birthday celebration for someone under 21, Olson said. He said Ochal's parents were not home at the time of party.

Police said it is unclear if or how Mills and Scheckel knew Ochal. Scheckel's mother, Sue, said Thursday that she had never met or heard of Ochal.

"As far as I know my son did not know her at all," she said. "I honestly don't know what their relationship was."

Mills' family declined to comment.

Police said speed and alcohol were factors when the car went off the road and into a tree in the 3000 block of Red Barn Road, north of Crystal Lake, not far from where the teens lived.

The car was traveling between 70 and 80 m.p.h. when it crashed on the two-lane residential street, which has a 30 m.p.h. speed limit, Olson said.

Scheckel was a junior honor roll student at Prairie Ridge High School in Crystal Lake. Mills was a senior and planned to study architecture at Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, family members said after the crash.

Mills had a clean driving record and a valid license, according to the Illinois secretary of state's office.

More than 30 people, most between ages 16 and 21, attended the party at Ochal's house, said Olson, who added that Prairie Ridge students and their parents have helped police "fill in a lot of the blanks in the investigation."

Surgeon Arrested After Alleged Drunken Fit
--------------------

By Associated Press

March 9, 2006, 3:49 PM CST

OAKLAND, Calif. -- The chief of neurosurgery at Highland Hospital was wrestled to an operating room floor by deputies and arrested after allegedly throwing a drunken fit when a nurse refused to let him operate, authorities said.

Federico Castro-Moure, 45, was arrested Monday night on suspicion of being under the influence of alcohol and interfering with the duty of officers, said Alameda County sheriff's Lt. Jim Knudson.

Castro-Moure became belligerent after insisting on operating on a man who broke his ankles and fractured his spine in a two-story fall, according to the sheriff's department.

Two other surgeons had determined the injuries were not life-threatening, but Castro-Moure insisted the man would die if he did not receive immediate attention, the report said.

He "threw a fit" and began yelling and cursing at staff when they told him equipment for the procedure needed to be transferred from another hospital, according to the report. When the surgical instruments arrived, a nurse refused to allow Castro-Moure to operate until they could be sterilized.

Castro-Moure threatened the nurse by punching his fist in his hand. He took a swing at deputies after they were called to intervene.

"Do you know that I am a (expletive) doctor, and I'm going to do what I want," he said, according to a witness.

He was booked into Glenn Dyer Detention Facility in Oakland and was released several hours later in lieu of $4,000 bail, a jail official said Thursday morning.

Castro-Moure was placed on leave while the hospital investigates the matter, hospital spokesman David Cone said.

Drinking Fueled Ala. Church Fires
--------------------

By JAY REEVES
Associated Press Writer

March 10, 2006, 8:25 PM CST

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Three college students suspected of a string of Alabama church fires had been out drinking when they began their spree, authorities said.

Benjamin Nathan Moseley and Russell Lee DeBusk Jr., both 19-year-old theater students at Birmingham-Southern College, were arrested this week along with 20-year-old Matthew Lee Cloyd, who was studying pre-med at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Throughout the monthlong investigation, authorities said alcohol could have led to a warped bravado that sparked the arsons, and initial interviews with the suspects bore out the theory, according to one officer.

However, deputy state fire marshal Ed Paulk, who was involved in the investigation, said he believes alcohol was a direct factor.

"We were told by official sources ... that seemingly some drinking, some night hunting, was ultimately what led to all of this," said Randy Youngblood, the campus police chief at Birmingham-Southern College.

A federal judge postponed a hearing set for Friday to determine whether to grant bond for three college students accused of setting fires that damaged or destroyed nine rural churches in Alabama on Feb. 3 and Feb. 7.

In a brief docket note, U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert R. Armstrong said he was delaying the hearing until Wednesday at the request of defense lawyers.

The move meant the three will remain jailed at least until next week on federal charges of conspiracy and setting fire to one of the churches, Ashby Baptist. If convicted, each count carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison. Additional charges are possible, authorities have said.

Federal and state authorities have not commented on a possible motive, beyond evidence that an apparent prank spun out of control. Defense attorneys have not commented either, but say the fires were not crimes of hate.

Cloyd is the son of a doctor, and DeBusk attended college on a theater scholarship after being voted "most dramatic" by his high school classmates in 2004. Moseley was president of his high school's student council, and his father is an elected constable.

Court documents show Cloyd told a witness this week that he and Moseley "had done something stupid" and that they set a church ablaze "as a joke." Accompanied by DeBusk, they eventually torched five churches that night in Bibb County after seeing the first fire trucks, according to the document, a sworn statement by a federal agent.

"After they lit the first two fires, it became spontaneous," said ATF regional head Jim Cavanaugh. "Excitement, thrill was the motive."

Moseley told police he and Cloyd set four more fires in west Alabama four days later "as a diversion to throw investigators off," but the plan didn't work, the agent said in the document.

Friends of the three suspects have described behavior that turned from goofy pranks to vandalism after at least one of the young men, Cloyd, began drinking more heavily last fall. Cloyd mentioned alcohol in a Web message on Facebook.com to Moseley earlier this year when he said it was "time to reconvene the season of evil."

DeBusk reportedly invited a friend to go "demon hunting" last year and claimed to be a Satanist, but the trip did not amount to much other than a night of drinking, friends said.

"All it ended up being was us playing guitar in the woods while a few of them got drunk," Jeremy Burgess, DeBusk's roommate, told The Birmingham News. "I didn't think anything of it."

Vietnam bans alcohol in karaoke bars as part of campaign against
so-called 'social evils'

The Associated Press
HANOI, Vietnam ? Karaoke bars in Vietnam will no longer be allowed to
sell or have alcohol on their premises as part of the country's
continued campaign against so-called 'social evils,' a government
official said Friday.

Under a decree that took effect Thursday, karaoke bars, along with
discotheques, will also be required to close down at midnight, said Le
Anh Tuyen, director of the Legal Department at the Ministry of Culture
and Information.

"The decree will definitely help reduce negative activities in karaoke
bars and discotheques," he said.

Karaoke establishments and discos frequently facilitate prostitution
and drug usage.

Friday's Thanh Nien (Young People) newspaper quoted Phan An Sa, chief
inspector at the Ministry of Culture and Information as saying
authorities have discovered 600 people using the drug ecstasy and 60
women offering striptease dances to customers at karaoke bars and
discos over the past nine months.

Karaoke was introduced into Vietnam in the late 1980s and mushroomed in
the late 1990s, with more than 10,000 establishments licensed to
operate in the country, Tuyen said.

Deadly celebration
Car crash claims three

Anil Ramjass went celebrating his 17th birthday with friends on Saturday night and was the only one to survive when the group's car crashed near the Mosquito Creek, La Romaine.

The car spun off the road, struck and uprooted a towering tree and split in two.

Dead on the scene were the driver Imran Hasmatally, 19, of St Johns Trace, South Oropouche, and Joseph Ivan, 16, of Market Street, Fyzabad.

A third youth, Ravi Sieunarine, 18, of Market Street, Fyzabad, died before he could get to the hospital.

Ramjass was listed in critical condition at the San Fernando General Hospital.

The deadly crash, which occurred at around 11.10 p.m. happened only an hour after the friends were stopped in a roadblock set up by police trying to limit the road carnage.

Police said the crash was caused by a combination of speed and alcohol.

The same lethal mixture was responsible for a crash three months ago on the Mosquito Creek that killed five men.

All four friends told different stories on where they were headed Saturday night.

The Hyundai Accent that Hasmatally was driving belonged to his brother, Ariff, 21.

Ariff said his brother "asked to borrow the car. He said he going to check a friend to play some pool. I don't know where he end up, and pick up Ravi and two other fellas".

Ariff said his dead brother "call on the phone about 10 p.m., and said he in a roadblock and wanted to know where the insurance (certificate). He didn't call back".

At the same timer, Hasmatally's girlfriend of three years, Amanda Lutchman, said she kept trying to call him on his cell phone.

She said: "I always called every hour. After midnight, I start to get worried. I know he normally home by then."

Lutchman said when she finally got through to her boyfriend's cell, a police officer answered and told her to get to the hospital.

She found him at the mortuary.

Ivan's mother, Dhanrajie Ivan, 51, said she was told by her son that the gang were headed to the Chutney Brass fete at Guaracara Park, Pointe-a-Pierre.

His brother, Jason Ivan, 28, said "my brother was a victim of innocence. He would not really venture out. He was out of school and doing a welding course. That is want he wanted to be. Our father, Ezekiel, taking this hard. Ravi was the last child, spoilt child, best child".

Ivan was three days away from his birthday when he died.

A few houses away at the home of Sieunarine's parents, relatives sat weeping.

Father Piarilal Sieunarine, 50, said his son left home at 8.30 p.m., "saying he going somewhere Gulf City"

Knicks' Davis Ejected After Going Into Stands During OT
Gordon's Buzzer-Beater Gives Chicago Wild Win Over New York
By ANDREW SELIGMAN, AP Sports

CHICAGO (Jan. 18) - Knicks forward Antonio Davis climbed into the stands out of concern forhis wife and was ejected without further trouble Wednesday night during the Chicago Bulls' 106-104 overtime victory against New York.

Ben Gordon hit a game-winning jumper at the buzzer and scored 32 points for the Bulls, but Davis' dash over the scorer's table and into the stands during a timeout in overtime - evoking memories of last season's brawl in Detroit - became the flash point of an already wild game.

"I witnessed my wife being threatened by a man that I learned later to be intoxicated," Davis said in a statement issued after the game. "I saw him touch her, and I know I should not have acted the way I did, but I would have felt terrible if I didn't react. There was no time to call security. It happened too quickly."

Davis ascended about 10 rows of seats to reach his wife in the stands. There was no physical confrontation after he got there, but several people were pointing and shouting for a few moments before security arrived

Davis, president of the NBA players' association, appeared calm throughout and walked away willingly as soon as security arrived. He returned to the bench and took his seat before being ejected. The game resumed after about a five-minute delay.

United Center security remained in the stands for a few minutes more, where other fans appeared to be explaining what they had seen. Guards in suits and yellow jackets then escorted a group of people from the area.

Knicks coach Larry Brown said Davis went into the stands because he saw his wife "falling back."

Brown was coaching the Pistons in November 2004 when an ugly fight broke out in the stands between fans and Indiana Pacers players during a Detroit home game. A black eye for the NBA, the brawl led to criminal charges and lengthy suspensions for Ron Artest, Jermaine O'Neal and Stephen Jackson.

But Brown was adamant that this situation should be viewed differently.

"Come on, that's his wife," Brown said. "That's entirely different. I was worried about Kendra. That's why he went in the stands, he saw her falling back.

"That thing that happened in the stands had nothing to do with the two teams. That's a man concerned about his family."

2 killed when SUV hits semi on South Side
--------------------

Driver and passenger in serious condition

By Andrew L. Wang
Tribune staff reporter

January 19, 2006

Chicago police are investigating whether the driver of a sport-utility vehicle was drunk early Wednesday when he slammed into the rear of a parked semitrailer and truck on the South Side, killing two passengers.

The accident occurred about 1:45 a.m. in the 4000 block of South Western Avenue, Police Officer Laura Kubiak said.

Juan Villareal, 28, of the 3500 block of South 54th Avenue, Cicero, and Cesar Moreno, 26, of the 900 block of South Claremont Avenue, Chicago, were killed, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

The SUV was southbound on Western Avenue when the driver lost control and the vehicle struck the back of the truck, which was parked along the street, Kubiak said.

A third passenger, who had been in the back seat of the SUV, was taken in serious condition to Mt. Sinai Hospital, and the driver was in serious condition at Stroger Hospital, police said.

Kubiak said police were investigating the accident as a DUI. No charges had been filed.

In a crash Wednesday afternoon, a Chicago Fire Department battalion chief's SUV was struck en route to a West Side fire, officials said.

The SUV was heading south on Pulaski Road at 4:50 p.m. when a car heading west on West Congress Parkway struck the side of the chief's SUV, sending it into a pole, said Larry Langford, a Fire Department spokesman.

The chief's SUV had its siren and emergency lights on and had a green light as it passed through the intersection, Langford said. The car had swerved around stopped cars on Congress and ran a red light, he said.

"After the collision, the offender stopped the car, removed the license plates and ran," Langford said. He said the car was left in the intersection.

The chief was taken to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge in good condition. In an accident Tuesday night on the Southeast Side, a motorist was killed and another injured when two cars collided on a bridge over the Calumet River, police said.

The driver who was killed was identified as Delval Desavieu, 49, according to the medical examiner's office. Records show Desavieu's address in the 14300 block of South Manistee Avenue in Burnham.

Shortly before 8 p.m., Desavieu was driving west in the 1800 block of East 130th Street when his car hit the side of a bridge, veered into the eastbound lanes and hit another car, police said.

The driver of the other car was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn in stable condition, police said.

On the South Side, two Chicago police officers were injured when their squad car hit a tree and caromed into Alpha Temple Missionary Baptist Church, 6701 S. Emerald Ave., at about 10:45 p.m. Tuesday while the officers were pursuing a motorist for a traffic violation, police said. The officers were cut off by another vehicle. They were in stable condition at Christ Medical Center Wednesday.

----------
Off-duty cop put on leave after crash that killed 1
--------------------

By Andrew L. Wang
Tribune staff reporter

January 18, 2006

An off-duty Chicago police officer has been stripped of his police powers following a fatal two-car accident in Indiana late Monday that involved alcohol, officials said.

Christopher Berlanga, 25, a three-year veteran of the force, has been placed on paid administrative leave, said police spokeswoman Monique Bond.

William Alvarez, 28, of Griffith, Ind., was killed, according to a statement released Tuesday by the Highland, Ind., Police Department. Alvarez was in the back seat of a car driven by a 23-year-old Gary woman. A 23-year-old passenger in the front seat was injured.

Berlanga was driving south on Indianapolis Boulevard in Highland just before midnight when his car collided with the other car as it was turning left, according to the statement.

Both drivers could face drunken driving charges, Highland police said.

The Chicago Police Department is waiting for results of an investigation by Highland authorities and Chicago internal affairs before deciding whether to take further action against Berlanga, Bond said.

Highland police said both drivers and the injured passenger are being treated at local hospitals.

Bond said Berlanga was driving his personal vehicle. She said he most recently served in the Calumet Area gun unit.

Cops charge mom of 2-year-old ejected from SUV
--------------------

The Associated Press

January 13, 2006, 2:30 PM CST

CROWN POINT, Ind. -- A toddler's mother and another woman face felony charges in the death of a 2-year-old girl, who authorities say was ejected from a speeding SUV into a river en route home from a birthday party.

The driver, Donna Amos, 33, was arrested Thursday and charged week with one felony count of reckless homicide and misdemeanor counts of criminal recklessness, reckless driving, false informing and driving with a suspended license.

Police on Friday arrested the girl's mother, Jacqueline Charmain Green, 23, at her mother's Gary home Friday. Green was charged with three felony counts of neglect of a dependent and a misdemeanor of false informing for allegedly lying to police.

Both women were being held at the Gary Police Department to await transfer to the Lake County Jail, Indiana State Police Detective 1st Sgt. Brenda Kaczmarek said Friday.

Amos was driving home from a birthday party June 27 when the SUV went out of control and rolled over on an Indiana Toll Road ramp, according to a probable cause affidavit.

After the SUV struck a bridge wall, 2-year-old Jatima Green was ejected into the Grand Calumet River, which runs parallel to the toll road. A passing truck driver jumped into the river but was unable to rescue her, police said. Divers found her body two days later. An autopsy showed she died from drowning and head trauma.

Police arrested Amos Thursday. She was being held at the Gary Police Department to await transfer to the Lake County Jail, Indiana State Police Detective 1st Sgt. Brenda Kaczmarek said Friday.

Amos and Green initially told police Green was driving and that a truck struck the SUV, causing it to go out of control.

Investigators said they determined Amos was driving between 55 mph and 65 mph in a 30-mph zone, causing the vehicle to flip. There was no evidence of a collision with a truck, reports said.

Amos and Green also initially told police that the toddler was wearing a restraint, but later investigations revealed she was not. Amos later acknowledged the girl was not in a child-restraint seat, the affidavit said.

Investigators said they determined Amos was the driver from the settings of the driver's seat and steering wheel.

Police initially thought Green was the driver, so they did not test Amos' blood alcohol content. Amos later acknowledged drinking earlier in the day, Kaczmarek said. Officers also did not test Green before she was taken to the hospital to be treated for minor injuries, Kaczmarek said.

The toddler also had 0.047 percent ethanol, commonly called grain alcohol, in her system, investigators said. Ethanol is used as a fuel and gasoline additive, a solvent in the manufacture of varnishes and perfumes, as a preservative for biological specimens, in many medicines and as a disinfectant.

Arrested woman takes squad car, cops say
--------------------


January 21, 2006

CHICAGO -- A West Side woman was arrested Friday morning after allegedly driving off in the squad car of the officer who had just arrested her for driving under the influence, police said.

Veronique Armour, 22, of the 5000 block of West Grand Avenue was charged with one felony count of possession of a stolen vehicle and a misdemeanor count of escape from police, said Police Officer JoAnn Taylor. Armour also was cited for driving under the influence, obstructing traffic and driving left of center, Taylor said.

A Town Hall District officer stopped Armour about 11:30 a.m. for driving on the wrong side of the road in the 400 block of West Fullerton Parkway, police said. While the officer was moving Armour's car from the center of the road, Armour slipped out of her handcuffs, got into the front seat of the police car and drove off.

The squad car was left in an alley in the 2700 block of North Halsted Street, police said. Armour was arrested a short time later at a residence in the 2900 block of North Clark Street, Taylor said.

'Midnight Hour' Singer Wilson Pickett Dies

POSTED: 2:34 pm PST January 19, 2006
UPDATED: 5:27 am PST January 20, 2006

The man who sang the classic hits "Mustang Sally" and "In The Midnight Hour" has died.

Wilson Pickett died of a heart attack Thursday, according to his management company.

He was 64.

Chris Tuthill of the management company Talent Source said Pickett had been suffering from health problems for the past year.

A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 1991, Pickett became a star with his soulful hits in the 1960s.

Born March 18, 1941, in Prattville, Ala., Pickett got his start singing gospel music in church. After moving to Detroit as a teen, he joined the group the Falcons, which scored the hit "I Found a Love" with Pickett on lead vocals in 1962.

As a solo artist, Pickett's fiery tune "In the Midnight Hour" made the top 25 on the Billboard pop charts in 1965, and "Mustang Sally" did the same the following year. Pickett recorded the tunes on the legendary Stax Records label in in Memphis.

Pickett was often known by his nickname "Wicked Pickett" and as much for his intense singing as for his often volatile nature off the stage.

That was evident in the 1990's when he faced a couple of court cases because of alcohol-fueled incidents.

In 1991, Pickett was arrested in his hometown of Englewood, N.J., after repeatedly driving over the lawn of his neighbor, who was the town's mayor.

He was also accused of threatening the mayor, a charge that was dropped after Pickett agreed to do a free charity concert.

He later drew a one-year jail term for a drunken driving incident. In that one, he hit an 86-year-old pedestrian, seriously injuring him.

Pickett was one of the soul legends featured in the 2002 documentary "Only the Strong Survive." In an interview with NBC 4 @ The Movies' Tim Lammers about the film's release on DVD, Pickett, who performed throughout his later years, shared the secret to his longevity.

"When I was out there performing, I did the best that I could," Pickett said. "I ate right and tried to keep away from things that would be harmful to me. That's why I can say I'm among the number of artists in 'Only the Strong Survive,' because sometimes you have to be as strong to stay away from things that you know are going to take you under."

Pickett's other hits included "Land of 1,000 Dances," which turned up in such films as "The Full Monty" and "Forrest Gump."

As an actor, Pickett had cameos in "Blues Brothers 2000" and "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band."
 

Threat Spurs Removal of Paintings

  • Austrian is held after an e-mail describing intent to destroy Klimt works owed to an L.A. woman.

  • By Diane Haithman, Times Staff Writer

    Five multimillion-dollar paintings by Gustav Klimt have been removed from the Austrian National Gallery in Vienna following a threat to destroy them.

    The five paintings include "Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I," one of the artist's celebrated "gold" paintings and estimated to be worth as much as $120 million.

    The five paintings made headlines this week when it was announced that an Austrian arbitration panel had ordered the Austrian government to return the works to Los Angeles resident Maria Altmann, 89, niece and heir of the original Jewish owner who was driven from Vienna and stripped of his property by the Nazis in 1938. The paintings had been held by the Austrian museum for more than 50 years.

    Altmann's attorney, E. Randol Schoenberg, told the Los Angeles Times on Friday that he had received an e-mail Wednesday from someone who said he planned to destroy the paintings in order for "hungry people to get bread" — apparently objecting to the idea that the Austrian government might use public funds to buy the paintings back from Altmann.

    Schoenberg forwarded the e-mail to the country's Interior Ministry and museum officials.

    Later Friday, police said they had arrested a 50-year-old man from Lower Austria province who was tracked down through his Internet provider.

    Interior Ministry spokesman Rudolf Gollia said the man, who was not identified, had confessed to e-mailing the threats.

    "Now that the immediate threat for the paintings has been eliminated, it is up to the museum to decide whether the paintings will be exhibited again," Gollia said.

    Schoenberg said that Austrian officials informed him Friday that the man had been apprehended. "The other reports from Austria say that the guy claims he was drunk when he wrote it," the attorney added.

    Schoenberg also said that museum officials had indicated to him that the paintings may be rehung Monday while the museum was closed and back on public view Tuesday.

    Since the decision to return the artworks to Altmann was announced, Schoenberg said, "there have apparently been throngs of people going to visit the paintings. Maybe they are not used to that. They'll be rethinking their security before putting it back up, I hope."

    Culture Minister Elisabeth Gehrer said Austria was exploring ways to keep at least the two best-known pictures, "Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I" and "Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer II," in the country. But she has also said the government cannot afford to buy back the paintings.

    Two killed in morning collision


    By Jannise Johnson, Staff Writer
    Inland Valley Daily Bulletin

    MONTCLAIR -- Kara Rose Adella Maes was just beginning a new phase of early adulthood.

    The 22-year-old Chino resident had a new job, a new car and had just enrolled in college, said her sister Angela Maes.

    She's no longer alive to enjoy it.

    Kara Maes and her friend Sergio Lopez, 23, of Ontario, were killed Saturday in an early morning collision with a Hummer, according to Montclair police.

    "She was 22 years old, she was filled with life," Angela Maes said Saturday evening at the intersection where the collision occurred. "She was strong, she was responsible, she loved with all her soul. She had no enemies. She had a brand new future to look forward to."

    Montclair police responded to a call of a traffic collision from OnStar service at 1:51 a.m. at San Bernardino Street and Central Avenue, said Montclair police Sgt. Tim Grinstead.

    When officers arrived, they found Maes and Lopez dead inside the 2005 Nissan Altima belonging to Maes, Grinstead said.

    There was no immediate information on whether the driver of the Hummer, 23-year-old Yvonne Sinclair, of Montclair, was injured. Sinclair was arrested after officers determined she was under the influence of alcohol, said a police statement.

    Sinclair was later booked and released, Grinstead said. The District Attorney's Office will decide later if Sinclair will be charged, he said.

    The preliminary investigation found the Hummer struck the passenger side of the Altima as Maes attempted to turn left onto San Bernardino, a police statement said.

    The Nissan was traveling south on Central as the Hummer traveled north at the time of the collision, a police statement said. Montclair police are continuing their investigation to determine the speed each vehicle was traveling at the time of the collision.

    "The door of the Nissan was embedded into the Hummer," Grinstead said.

    A preliminary investigation puts Maes at fault for the collision, even though Sinclair was found to be under the influence.

    Contact information for Sinclair could not be located.

    Annette Escobedo of Ontario a friend of the Maes family was driving in front of Maes when the collision occurred. She fervently disputed that Maes was at fault as she stood in front of candles set up at the site of the crash.

    Escobedo said both she and Maes had plenty of time to turn left on the green light when the two vehicles attempted the turn.

    "As I turned and got onto the driveway of the 7-Eleven, I heard the impact," Escobedo said. "I glanced back behind me, and that's when I saw the Hummer dragging the car, and I knew it had hit her."

    The Hummer came to rest with its rear end crashed through the wall of a local beauty salon.

    The collision is still under investigation. Anyone with information on this incident is asked to call the Montclair Police Department at (909) 621-4771.

    Teens go on drunk frenzy

    23jan06

    Minister calls for more powers to control street parties as . . .

    AN eight-year-old child's toys were destroyed and a neighbourhood terrorised after teenage drunks took to the street in Cranbrook during a weekend rampage.

    The incident involved a gathering of about 60 teenagers in Cordelia Avenue about 10.30pm on Saturday.

    "My mum woke me up and the big kids were there and they jumped the fence," the child said.

    "They stole my toys ... they destroyed my brother's helmet."

    The group smashed beer bottles and scattered mail throughout the street.

    One resident watched a youth urinate on a fence while another was asked if they could use her toilet.

    "I have kids so I said 'no way'," She said.

    A police car and a paddywagon had to be called in to move the drunks on.

    It is believed the youths came from an out-of-control party in nearby Poinciana St and were content to just drink in the street.

    "They were wandering up and down the street . . . there didn't seem to be another party and there was no music," one concerned resident said.

    "They were taking photos of each other."

    The Townsville Bulletin received txt messages yesterday from residents of the area fed up with youth violence.

    One told of an elderly couple who were left cleaning up smashed glass and rubbish from teens who had congregated in their yard.

    This street party followed incidents in nearby Vincent in which underage drinking in Cambridge Park had residents living in fear.

    Police Minister Judy Spence yesterday launched a campaign to extend controversial police move-on powers to all public spaces.

    The law exists in Townsville in certain areas, such as the mall and The Strand, but Ms Spence said introducing the powers would enable police to quickly scatter massive crowds in a bid to stamp out alcohol-fuelled violence.

    She singled out teenage parties as one of the major problems facing police.

    The proposal has received the full support of Premier Peter Beattie.

    Ms Spence said police could only order people to move elsewhere in areas such as school centres, automatic teller machines and war memorials, as well as other areas that local governments had applied for.

    "Councils have had to spend considerable time in making submissions for move-on powers, including publicly advertising the proposed notified area and in some cases seeking legal advice," Ms Spence said.

    "Move-on powers for all public places in Queensland will eliminate unnecessary red tape for local councils, as it would mean they would no longer have to make formal applications in order to have problem areas notified."

    Ms Spence said the proposed legislation would be presented for cabinet's consideration within the first half of this year.

    The proposal has been criticised by civil libertarians.

    Townsville councillor Jenny Hill yesterday stressed the importance of registering parties with the police.

    "If these kids have come from a party or have been refused entry, registering your party with the police is the only way you can stop them meeting in places like this," Cr Hill said.

    "In these times the kids use SMS messaging to spread the word and young parents do the right thing keeping gatecrashers out."

    Police: Aunt Intoxicated; 11-Year Old Niece Behind The Wheel
    Jan 24, 2006, 04:29 PM CST

    She's still five years away from getting her driver's license, but she's already been pulled over by police. The young Kentucky girl is in trouble with her mom, her aunt is in trouble with the law.

    Casey Sorrell Says she drove her aunt, Marilyn Catlett all around the Nance Community in Pulaski County. Her aunt is facing charges, because police say the woman was drunk while her niece was behind the wheel.

    Sorrell says she had to sit on pillows to see over the wheel. Police say the received calls of an erratic driver, when an officer pulled the car over the found the 11-year old behind the wheel and the aunt in the passenger seat.

    Sorrell's mother says she noticed a shot glass in the car. Police say Catlett was intoxicated.

    Catlett declined to talk on camera but she says she's sorry and ashamed this happened. She says things can be blown way out of proportion and she says it's yet to be proven that alcohol was involved.

    Sullivan says her daughter is grounded and won't be driving again until she's much, much older.

    Catlett has been charged with unlawful transaction with a minor, first degree wanton endangerment and endangering the welfare of a minor.

    Motorcyclist Shot, Killed By Sheriff's Deputy Identified

    Traffic Stop Turns Deadly

    POSTED: 5:27 pm PST January 26, 2006
    UPDATED: 1:05 pm PST January 30, 2006

    Authorities have released the name of a man shot and killed by a deputy after allegedly grabbing the deputy's baton and attacking him with it.

    Kenneth Drinkard, 42, of Jamul, was pronounced dead shortly shortly after shooting, according to medical examiner's investigator James Buckley.

    The deadly encounter took place at 18500 Deer Valley Road in Dulzura at about 3:30 p.m. Thursday, San Diego County sheriff's Lt. Scott Rossall said.

    The incident began when the deputy pulled the driver over on a motorcycle on Deer Valley Road and smelled alcohol on him, Rossall said.

    When the deputy called for assistance from the California Highway Patrol, the man began to yell, then fled on foot, he said.

    After a short foot pursuit, Drinkard got a hold of the deputy's baton during a struggle and ignored commands to drop it, Rossall said. He then attacked the deputy with the baton, and the deputy opened fire, killing him, Rossall said.

    Drinkard's girlfriend showed up after the shooting and was outraged.

    Man's body found in Prospect Heights pond
    --------------------

    By Jason Meisner
    Tribune staff reporter

    February 1, 2006, 1:08 PM CST

    A body found this morning floating in the retention pond of a northwest suburban condominium complex has been identified as that of a 41-year-old resident of the property who disappeared nearly a month ago.

    Another resident of Lake Run Condominiums, at 16 E. Old Willow Rd., Prospect Heights, called police about 8:30 a.m. after spotting the body in a large pond that separates two buildings of the complex, Prospect Heights Fire Chief Donald Gould said.

    Firefighters responded with a dive team and pulled a fully clothed body out of the water, Gould said. He said the man was dead at the scene.

    "It looked like he had been in the water awhile," Gould said.

    Relatives identified the body as that of James Zis, police said.

    Zis had been reported missing Jan. 2, and Prospect Heights Police Chief Bruce Morris said his body had no obvious signs of foul play. Investigators were awaiting an autopsy report that would determine a cause of death.

    The man had a documented history of substance abuse problems, police told WGN-Ch. 9.

    "He had previously been picked up for a DUI. The family stated he had a continuing problem with alcohol. He was unemployed at this time," Morris said. "The initial report indicates he was drinking at the time he disappeared."

    Police theorize Zis may have passed out and fallen in the pond, WGN reported. The man's body did not emerge until today, possibly because the pond has been frozen over since late December.

    Driver gets 7 years for crash that killed ex-cop
    --------------------



    February 1, 2006

    A Schaumburg man accused of driving under the influence in a crash last year that killed a former Chicago police officer was sentenced Tuesday to 7 years in prison.

    John M. Thorpe, 26, of the first block of Margate Court had pleaded guilty Jan. 18 to reckless homicide in the Rolling Meadows branch of Cook County Circuit Court. The crash in January 2005 at Higgins and West Frontage Roads in Schaumburg killed James H. Faust, 68, of Hoffman Estates.

    Thorpe had been drinking in Chicago before the crash, had a blood alcohol level of 0.134 and tested positive for cocaine, said Mike Andre, an assistant state's attorney. Authorities said Thorpe's pickup truck ran a red light and hit the sport-utility vehicle driven by Faust.

    "We've lost a father and a great friend," said Faust's son, John, 39. "This man who has killed the head of our family has no respect for life."

    During sentencing, Judge John Scotillo noted Thorpe's numerous traffic offenses and violations of probation for petty crimes.

    "His past indicated he was an accident waiting to happen," Scotillo said.

    Mix of drugs, alcohol killed UGA student


    The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
    Published on: 02/02/06

    ATHENS — Lewis Rockwell Fish — the popular 19-year-old University of Georgia freshman found dead in his dorm room Jan. 22 — died from a toxic combination of cocaine, heroin and alcohol, UGA police said Wednesday.

    Police released the results of Fish's autopsy and issued arrest warrants for three of his Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity brothers and four other friends for alcohol- and drug-related offenses on the night Fish died. Police did not charge anyone directly with a role in Fish's death. They also did not spell out the full chain of events on the night he died.

    Thomas Stuart Carpenter, 19, a Georgia College & State University student who was with Fish in the hours before his death, will be charged with felony possession of heroin, UGA police Chief Jimmy Williamson said. Carpenter has hired an attorney and has refused to answer further questions, Williamson said.

    News that heroin was involved in the student's death shocked many in the UGA community.

    Meredith McKinney, a junior majoring in advertising, said she doesn't know anyone who has tried heroin at UGA.

    "That is very scary stuff," she said. "I can't even believe that."

    Heroin use among UGA students is "very, very rare," said Erin English, an alcohol and drug health educator at UGA's health center. Fewer than 1 percent of students polled said they had tried heroin, as opposed to 3 percent who had tried cocaine and 3.6 percent who had said they tried amphetamines, she said. "The biggest issue on this campus is by far alcohol," she said.

    The other charges stem from an alcohol-fueled party at a private residence on Riverhill Drive in Athens, where Carpenter and Fish headed after hanging out in Fish's dorm room in Russell Hall on campus, police said. Police searched the residence last week.

    Williamson said Wednesday that the event held at the house was a typical college keg party where "everybody knew everybody."

    UGA students Mark Eric Olsen, 19; Michael Ian Crocker, 20; Jordan Dugan Redella, 20; and Grayson Hall Gordon, 19, all of Atlanta, face misdemeanor marijuana charges, police said.

    Olsen, Crocker and Redella will be charged with furnishing alcohol to persons under age 21 and underage possession of alcohol, both misdemeanors, Williamson said.

    Redella and Gordon will be charged with possession of fraudulent identification, a misdemeanor. Redella also will be charged with using his fake ID to buy alcohol.

    Williamson said the businesses that sold the alcohol for the party followed procedures and will not face charges.

    The students charged are from some of Atlanta's toniest neighborhoods. Most attended private high schools.

    Olsen, Croker and Gordon are all members of Fish's fraternity, according to SAE national spokesman Brandon Weghorst.

    Two other non-UGA students are also facing charges.

    William Chapin Cowan, 19, a Gainesville State College student, will be charged with possession of marijuana, underage possession of alcohol and furnishing alcohol to persons under age 21, Williamson said.

    Gene Whitner Milner, a former UGA student who is not enrolled this semester, will be charged with possession of marijuana and possession of drug-related objects. According to Athens-Clarke County property records, Milner and his dad, Gene W. Milner of Atlanta, own the Riverhill Drive house where the party took place.

    The UGA students may also face disciplinary charges from the university, UGA spokesman Tom Jackson said.

    The national chapter of SAE is also looking into the matter, Weghorst said Wednesday, but he said the party was not a fraternity-sponsored event.

    All across the country, we talk about the dangers of alcohol and drugs," he said.

    Fish was dead in his room at Russell Hall when police and paramedics arrived just after

    8:30 a.m. on Jan. 22. Carpenter, who was visiting Fish for the weekend, told police he had noticed Fish in distress around 8 a.m. and had gone to the desk at Russell Hall for help.

    Illnesses ail student body
    By: Lisette Metz Grulke

    Issue date: 2/2/06 Section: TruLife
    Article Tools:    Page 1 of 1

    It's a number greater than five times the number of students at Truman.
    It's a number greater than twice the population of Kirksville.

    It's 33,046 - the number of adolescents that die each year, according
    to the National Center for Health Statstics.

    Ken Cheyne, adolescent medicine specialist at Blank Children's Hospital
    in Des Moines, Iowa, said the term 'adolescent,' when used in medicine,
    applies to people up to the age of 22 - which means most traditional
    college students qualify as adolescents.

    "The top three causes of death in the adolescent age group are
    accidents, suicide and homicide," Cheyne said. "Of the accidents that
    kill college students, a great majority are alcohol-related in some
    way. While it may not seem like a leading factor in some, the impaired
    judgment it causes can play a huge role. Because most college students
    are, for most intents and purposes, healthy, communicable illnesses are
    much farther down the list. The one majorly mentionable - and
    definitely preventable one - is meningitis."

    Missouri requires all college students either to have a meningitis
    vaccination or sign a statement invoking their right to risk their own
    health, according to the Missouri Department of Public Health Web site.
    Each fall, meningitis vaccines are available to students on campus.

    Cheyne also said that although many things threaten the lives of
    college students in an immediate way, the decisions a student makes
    during adolescence can have serious health consequences later in life.

    "When you're a young adult, you think you are going to live forever,"
    Cheyne said. "You don't think about what you're doing and their effects
    later in life."

    He said that college students are notorious for starting habits that
    will harm their health later in life, such as tobacco use and alcohol use. Another notable health hazard is obesity.

    "Obesity can start with that 'freshman 15' and become a downward spiral
    of not exercising or eating right," Cheyne said.

    Americans frequently are reminded of the risks of smoking from
    television and radio public service announcements, surgeon general's
    warning labels and awareness programs in schools. Now obesity also is
    becoming a hot-button media item. But college students expose
    themselves to other major health risks, Cheyne said.

    "After smoking and obesity, risky sexual behaviors are another thing
    that can cause major lifelong consequences," Cheyne said. "They are
    also often alcohol-influenced. Herpes can be contracted, and there is
    no known cure for that. In females, genital warts, what are actually
    known as human papilloma virus, can be contracted from risky sexual
    behaviors and is a major cause of cervical cancer later in life."

    With much educational and media focus on sexual health since the
    beginning of the AIDS epidemic, most college students are aware that
    they need to use protection against sexually transmitted infections.
    However, many students fail to consider the other dimensions of safe
    sex, Cheyne said.

    "Think about other kinds of sexual responsibility besides using
    protection against STIs and pregnancy," Cheyne said. "Sleeping with
    someone you wouldn't have lunch with the next day isn't usually the
    best idea."

    Furthermore, the psychological effects of many parts of college life,
    such as sexual decisions, are beingconsidered a health risk as well.

    The severity of mental health issues among college students since 1990
    has increased dramatically, according to a Feb. 2, 2003, press release
    from the American Psychological Association. Also, the number of
    students seeking treatment for depression, substance abuse and sexual
    assault has increased, according to the press release.

    This issue is further complicated and can become a health risk as more
    and more teens are medicated for psychological issues. The Food and
    Drug Administration issued a public health advisory Oct. 15, 2004,
    warning adolescent users of antidepressant medications about a recently
    discovered tendency of users to have an increase in suicidal thoughts
    and behaviors - exactly what these medications try to prevent.

    "Participating in a National College Health Survey last year, we found
    out that, while the news is not so good overall, Truman students are
    generally 'more happy' than the national norm," said Bryan Krylowicz,
    director of University Counseling Services.

    Krylowicz also said that, compared to their non-student peers, college
    students tended to be happier. He said he recommends that students have
    a balanced perspective on life and keep a supportive social network to
    help with life's day to day troubles.

    "It's like reverse peer pressure," said Krylowicz. "If you surround
    yourself with people who make you happy, you will be a happier person."

    While the increase in college students with mental health issues may
    seem to be a cause for concern, it is not the only aspect of health
    care that college-age people should consider. A small percentage of
    people in this age group suffer from heart disease.

    Although most people appropriately associate heart disease with obesity
    and age, one out of every 500 people suffers from hypertrophic
    cardiomyopathy, according to the American Heart Association Web site.

    HCM was the heart condition that suddenly took the life of Truman
    student Travis Turco in December, and it is the leading cause of
    heart-related death in people younger than 30, according to the Web
    site. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ranks heart
    disease as the fifth-leading cause of death in adolescents. Death from
    this condition can occur in adolescents with no history of heart
    trouble or symptoms at all but also can be controlled if detected
    early. according to the HCM Association Web site.

    Sophomore Emily Krogmann, a health science major and hopeful future
    doctor, said she never has actually considered all the risks that
    healthy college students face.

    "I know that suicide takes a lot of college students' lives, but [I]
    never really considered what a huge number of college students die from
    accidents, and heart disease seems really surprising too," Krogmann
    said.

    Both Cheyne and Krylowicz said that part of staying alive is staying
    aware: aware of personal health and personal choices that will
    influence it.

    Febuary 02, 2006
    Second crash death
    Driver had gone wrong way on I-84, caused collision

    By Oliver Mackson
    Times Herald-Record
    omackson@th-record.com
    Newburgh - A man who drove the wrong way into traffic on I-84 died on
    Monday, state police said, making him the second person to be killed in
    the Dec. 9 collision.

    John W. Vanwagenen Jr., 32, of Maybrook, was airlifted to Westchester
    Medical Center immediately after the collision that claimed the life of
    18-year-old Anthony G. Garrison of Bloomingburg. Vanwagenen could have
    faced a vehicular manslaughter charge, but succumbed to his injuries
    Monday afternoon, said Senior Investigator Neil Moscato.

    "We were not able to speak to him" about the collision, Moscato said
    yesterday. "We've been told, all along, that he was in a coma and he
    never regained consciousness."

    An investigation showed that Vanwagenen was driving east in the
    westbound lanes of the highway on a Friday night. The collision
    happened at 10:15 p.m., about five hours after the conclusion of a
    holiday party at Fishkill Correctional Facility in Dutchess County,
    where Vanwagenen had worked as a correction officer since 1999.

    There was food served at the party, and there was also a keg of beer
    and three one-gallon boxes of wine, all bought by the workers. State
    police said an investigation showed Vanwagenen might have stopped at a
    local bar after the party.

    His blood-alcohol level was over the 0.08 percent that's the threshold
    for driving while intoxicated in New York, but state police declined to
    give the exact reading.

    The state Department of Correctional Services is conducting its own
    investigation of the events leading to the fatal crash, a spokesman
    said yesterday.

    'Laughing' led to students being punched
    POLICE are investigating assaults against two Spanish students in High
    Street, Canterbury, at around 8.15pm on Monday, January 30.

    The pair, 14 and 15 year-old girls, were with friends when the offender
    cycled up to them, apparently drunk.

    Police spokesman Michael Ivatt said: "The offender accused the group of
    laughing at him before he punched the victims."

    The attacker is described as a white man, aged around 19, and wearing a
    black hooded top. The victims received slight injuries during the
    assault.

    Anyone who can assist police is asked to contact Canterbury Police on
    01227 762055.

    Keeping faith during Super Bowl

    Christie Campbell
    Staff writer

    Super Bowl party alternatives, without alcohol or the possibility of witnessing a halftime wardrobe malfunction, are being planned by several area churches.

    Churches are providing a place where families or youth groups can watch the game in an environment devoid of negative influences such as drinking or obscenities.

    Instead, they will emphasize the positive aspects of the game, pray that no one gets hurt on the playing field and provide their own halftime entertainment.

    The Pittsburgh Steelers meet the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XL scheduled at 6 p.m. Sunday.

    At Greene Valley Church of God near Rices Landing, a large-screen television, sound system and tailgate food, such as hot dogs and curly fries, will help provide a "you-are-there" atmosphere, said Jon Williams, son of Pastor Bill Williams.

    While the church is opening the event to the public, it will cut away from the broadcast at halftime. Instead of the Rolling Stones, the youth of the church will present a drama and the pastor will present a mini-sermon.

    Not only does that eliminate the possibility of seeing something in poor taste on live TV, but Williams said it also gives them the opportunity to promote the church as a place for family and fun.

    Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungee will make a DVD appearance at Bentleyville Presbyterian Church for its Super Bowl party.

    Dungee and other members of the team will provide a Christian message to be shown after the first half for students from sixth grade to senior high.

    The same testimony will be shown at South Hills Assembly of God Church in Bethel Park. With its three giant screens, pool table and game room, Pastor Spencer Duncan said Sunday's event serves as an outreach for junior and senior high youth and their friends.

    "It's a safe place to have fun and watch the game, and we have a message for halftime," he said.

    The fellowship hall of St. Hilary Church in Washington will be decorated in black and gold for the game.

    That morning, the Rev. Tom O'Neil, pastor, will don his "terrible stole," made when Terry Bradshaw was the Steelers quarterback. At the end of Mass, he will offer prayers that no one on either team gets hurt, that the players do their best and that God uses their talents.

    A buffet will be served, and parishioners are preparing such foods as haluski, kielbasa, hot sausage and chili.

    "It's just a real celebration," O'Neil said. "It brings people together in the parish."

    The Vineyard Church in Washington, which earlier purchased the Uptown Theatre, is opening the facility to the public. There, said Pastor Ed Charlton, people can watch the biggest game on the biggest screen.


     

    Man gets 60 days in jail for sex act with girl, 15

    The Ocean Breeze resident must also register with state officials as offender
    Friday, February 03, 2006
    By FRANK DONNELLY
    ADVANCE STAFF WRITER

    An Ocean Breeze man will spend 60 days in jail -- and must register as a sex offender -- after admitting yesterday he had oral sex with a developmentally disabled teen-age girl he met on a city bus.

    "I did big mistake," Zbigniew Stryla said in heavily accented English, as he accepted a plea agreement with prosecutors in state Supreme Court, St. George.

    Garbed in a white turtleneck sweater and dark pants, the defendant, who turns 49 on Sunday, pleaded guilty to a felony count of criminal sexual act (formerly classified as sodomy) -- the top charge against him. The victim is 15 years old.

    Under state law, it is illegal for a person 21 years or older to engage in oral sex with someone younger than 17 unless they are wed to each other.

    Assistant District Attorney L.B. Eisen told the court that prosecutors cut the deal after "extensive communication" with the victim and her mother.

    She said the agreement would spare the girl the ordeal of testifying at trial and added there was no penetration or force involved. She also said Stryla apparently was drunk.

    The defendant could have faced a maximum of one and a third to four years in prison if convicted at trial.

    The incident occurred on New Year's Day between 3 and 6 p.m. in the defendant's apartment.

    According to court records, Stryla told police he met the girl on the S51 bus. His Slater Boulevard home is off the Capodanno Boulevard leg of the bus route.

    Stryla asked the girl, whose name is being withheld, to go home with him. She said she wanted to eat pizza, but the defendant said he was too drunk to fetch it.

    Stryla told police he touched and kissed the girl, even though he knew she was 15. Until yesterday, he had denied having oral sex with her.

    In addition to jail, Stryla will be sentenced to 10 years' probation. He also must register with state authorities as a sexual offender.

    Sentencing is set for Feb. 23.

    Racing car crashed into LA clinic injuring 13 people
    Los Angeles, Feb 04: A car racing at speeds up to 90 mph through a
    South Los Angeles business district crashed into a health clinic filled
    with patients Friday, injuring 13 people - a half-dozen critically,
    authorities said.

    According to police, the black Nissan ZX was racing erratically with a
    white Lincoln Town Car when the two collided, sending the Nissan
    hurtling into the entrance of the first-floor clinic. The Lincoln drove
    off.

    The midmorning crash left behind a chaotic scene of shrieking people,
    shattered glass and confusion. Dozens of firefighters and police rushed
    to the scene, and victims were treated on the street outside. The
    Nissan came to rest within the clinic, its tail lights and trunk
    visible from the street.

    Amani Eldessouky, a doctor who works in a clinic across the street,
    said she saw a woman whose legs had been severed, another woman who
    lost one leg, and a man bleeding profusely from the head.

    "It was a terrible scene. I wanted to start shaking," Eldessouky said.

    Ten of the injured, including two children, were taken to five
    hospitals. Six victims were in critical condition, said Fire Department
    Assistant Chief Ralph Terrazas.

    Three others were treated and released.

    "You just saw bones and blood all over," said Ana Rodriguez, a medical
    assistant at the other clinic.

    Authorities said the driver of the Nissan, Ijumaa Owens, 33, of Los
    Angeles, was not believed to be under the influence of alcohol or
    narcotics, said police Lt. Paul Vernon. Owens was taken into custody.

    A deputy police chief initially had said there was involvement of
    alcohol or narcotics or both. Vernon said the Nissan driver could face
    felony reckless driving charges, at least, and vehicular manslaughter
    if any of the victims died. The occupants of the Town Car were being
    sought for felony hit and run, he said.

    Police said witnesses saw the two cars racing south on Vermont Avenue,
    the Town Car in the outermost of three lanes and the Nissan in the lane
    nearest the curb, when both tried to move into the middle lane.

    "At that point the Lincoln Town Car clipped into the Nissan; the Nissan
    veered into this medical clinic," Vernon said.

    About 50 firefighters responded to the crash, treating victims in a
    triage area set up on the street outside the three-story building,
    which has apartments on the floors above the clinic.

    Bureau Report

    Former SF postal worker arrested after allegedly making threats


    The Associated Press
    SAN FRANCISCO -- A former postal worker was arrested on federal charges after he allegedly threatened to kill his one-time colleagues, postal authorities said.

    Michael Anthony Kennelly, 52, is accused of calling a Postal Service processing and distribution center in San Francisco last week and vowing to duplicate a suicidal rampage involving another former postal worker two days earlier in Santa Barbara County that killed eight people, postal authorities said Monday.

    Kennelly faces charges of threatening a federal official.

    In the Santa Barbara case, former postal worker Jennifer San Marco, 44, opened fire at a mail processing center in Goleta, near the UC Santa Barbara campus, killing six postal workers.

    Police said San Marco also shot and killed a neighbor and later killed herself.

    "I am gonna make what happened in Santa Barbara happen here. I know what it is like to get fired," Kennelly allegedly said in the call, U.S. Postal Inspector Marius Greenspan wrote in an affidavit filed Friday in U.S. District Court in San Francisco.

    Kennelly was fired from the distribution center in 2002 for chronic absenteeism and had a history of calling the post office drunk and "ranting and raving," Greenspan wrote. He identified himself by name during the call, authorities said.

    Kennelly admitted to making the telephone call but denied making threats against postal employees, Greenspan wrote.

    The affidavit said Kennelly had arrests dating to 1975 for carrying a concealed weapon, obstructing police, sexual battery and drunken driving.

    He was arrested at his home and police confiscated a dozen .38-caliber bullets, authorities said. No weapons were found.
    February 7, 2006

    Britney Spears has been attacked by a drunk stag party in LA.

    The Toxic star had to be rescued by her husband, Kevin Federline, as the couple headed home after a night out.

    One onlooker told Britain's Daily Star newspaper: "It turned nasty when Kevin went to look for their car. That's when the stag party spotted Britney.

    "They started saying they were her homies and at first Britney was really sweet and said, 'Wow, they're saying they're from Kentwood'."

    The witness added: "They were obviously very drunk and jealous of her success and it got frightening real quick.

    "They were yelling, 'Give us some of your money' and lunging at her."
    http://red.as-eu.falkag.net/red?cmd=url&flg=0&&rdm=87586327&dlv=631,17570,112562,64418,281973&kid=64418&ucl=111111A&dmn=.proxy.aol.com&scx=1024&scy=768&scc=32&sta=,,,1,,,,,,,0,9,0,26771,26516,14659,13571,511&iid=112562&bid=281973&dat=http://www.iol.co.za


    When Kevin heard the noise he rushed back and yelled at the group telling them to leave, which they did.

    Meanwhile, Britney's cameo appearance in Will & Grace has been axed - after it sparked outrage among Christian campaigners.

    The pop princess was set to play an uptight Bible-basher who hosts a TV cooking slot named Cruci-fixin's on the OUT TV network.

    The American Family Association - which wanted viewers to boycott US TV network NBC - said on its website: "NBC does not treat Jews, Muslims or other religions with such disrespect. Yet the network demonstrates a deep hostility toward followers of Christ."

    Athletes held out over Web pictures
    --------------------

    By Tonya Maxwell
    Tribune staff reporter

    February 7, 2006

    Some members of the Andrew High School girls basketball team were barred from Monday evening's game after school officials suspended them from athletics based on Web site photos showing them drinking alcohol.

    A school spokesman declined to say how many athletes were disciplined or the nature of the suspensions.

    District 230 spokesman Jim Sibley said the students were barred from competition after officials with the Tinley Park school received an anonymous email pointing them to Web galleries showing the students with alcohol.

    He declined to disclose the Web site. But photo galleries at Webshots.com appear to show teenage gatherings or Thunderbolt basketball group photos. In one, two girls proudly hold a bottle of Jagermeister, while in another, two girls chug Corona.

    The students were disciplined because of a contract they sign with the school that, in part, can ban them from activities should they use alcohol.

    Most schools in Illinois have similar contracts, said Rich Piatchek, Andrew athletic director, who also is president of the Illinois Athletic Directors Association. He declined comment on the suspensions but said there have been four or five similar cases statewide in the past several months.

    "This is a sensitive issue right now. There's a lot of uproar about it. Kids believe that when something says `my space,' it's private," he said, referring to the popular blog spot myspace.com. "It's sort of an anomaly. It says it's `my space.' But it's not."

    In another district's case, Piatchek said the athletic director learned of pictures showing an athlete drinking, though the images were 18 months old. He didn't know if a statute of limitations applies. Piatchek said athletic directors would take up such issues when they meet in May.

    But, he said, school officials must take appropriate action when transgressions arise.

    "We understand kids make mistakes. We want to help them. Drinking is wrong, and it's not what we want our student athletes engaging in," Piatchek said.

    Pam Jones, the mother of a player who was not suspended, said at Monday's game that it was unfortunate the girls made the mistake.
     
    Man killed in drunk driver collision
    Feb 6, 2006, 12:06 PM CST

    A man is dead Monday morning after being hit by a suspected drunk driver. Police say it happened just before 3 AM on Grand Canyon near Peccole Ranch.

    They say a truck was heading southbound on Grand Canyon when it veered in front of an oncoming Toyota; the two vehicles collided.

    The driver of the Toyota was taken to UMC where he was pronounced dead on arrival. Alcohol is suspected on part of the pick-up driver.

    Student dies in crash

    The driver, 18, remains in critical condition and faces DUI charges after the single-car accident.

    By: Emily Catalano & Charmie R. Snetter

    Issue date: 2/7/06 Section: News


     
     

    Ciara Deprill, a 19-year-old Temple sophomore, was killed early Friday morning after the car she was riding in hit a concrete barrier on the Ben Franklin Bridge, police said.

    The driver, Dreamah Koll, 18, also a Temple student, will be charged with driving under the influence, homicide by vehicle and involuntary manslaughter, police said after an investigation.

    The two friends were traveling westbound on the Ben Franklin Bridge around 3 a.m. when Koll's Honda hit a concrete barrier head-on.

    Deprill was ejected from the car and pronounced dead at the scene, according to police.

    Koll was driving while intoxicated, police said. Koll was transported to Jefferson University Hospital where she remains in critical condition.


    'Drunks dump rubbish near our homes'

    Feb 7 2006

    By Joan Mulcaster

     

    HOUSEHOLDERS in an Epsom town centre cul-de-sac are furious that a railway embankment alongside the road is being used as a dumping ground by drunks.

    Beer cans, bottles, fast-food containers and even bin liners full of rubbish are being thrown over the fence by drinkers moving out of the town centre into Horsley Close.

    The close and neighbouring Hazon Way are off Waterloo Road where two fast-food shops are popular with youngsters who have drunk heavily in High Street pubs and then buy pizzas and curries.

    Janet Burgess of Horsley Close said: "They congregate at the corner of the close, carry on drinking and eating and then they throw all the rubbish over the fence onto the railway embankment.

    "It is unsightly and un-healthy because it will attract rats."


    Residents of both roads are upset after losing their claim to the local Government ombudsman that they were not sufficiently consulted by Epsom and Ewell Council before a planning application for a big flat development overlooking their homes was approved.

    The flats are part of the Epsom Station redevelopment and will overlook the close, cutting out light from all the houses - but, after a long investigation Chris Upjohn ombudsman investigator decided that the local authority had met all the consultation obligations.

    However, he has given them to the end of January to make further comments before making his final decision and a number of letters have now gone to his central London office.

    A letter to Mrs Burgess, protest organiser, said the council was only required to publish a site notice and newspaper advertisement and that it had done so.

    At the centre of the protesters' argument was failure to send notification to properties in Horsley Close.

    Mr Upjohn's letter read : "In addition to required publicity the council did notify addresses in Wellington Road and the High Street, but it did not send letters to Horsley Close.

    "Government guidance is that notification be sent to adjacent properties and clearly what was 'adjacent' in this case was not as clear cut as it would be where someone is seeking permission for a house extension," he added.

    Said Mrs Burgess this week: "We are very angry and we are also angry that our environment is being abused by all this rubbish.

    "One lady even had the drunks urinating on her dog."

    The railway embankment is the responsibility of Network Rail and a spokesman said a meeting was being held with the council to discuss issues in the Epsom area and litter would be included.


    Binge drinking at U takes big jump
    Mary Jane Smetanka, Star Tribune

    Binge drinking rates among undergraduates on the University of Minnesota's Twin Cities campus have taken the biggest yearly jump since the school started doing surveys 14 years ago.

    More than 45 percent of students ages 18 to 24, and more than half of men that age, reported in a 2005 survey that they had five or more drinks in a row within the past two weeks. Less than 40 percent of undergraduates reported high-risk drinking the year before.

    Those numbers mirror national figures that show more students are drinking more often, said Dr. Ed Ehlinger, director of Boynton Health Service on the Twin Cities campus. The trend flies in the face of concerted efforts both here and nationwide to stem the tide of student drinking through advertising campaigns, classes on alcohol use and campus crackdowns on alcohol violations.

    "When you're looking at 45 percent of students binge drinking on a campus of 50,000 people, that's a lot of people drinking," Ehlinger said. "Access is pretty easy, alcohol is cheap, and we have a new generation of students. All of those factors play a role."

    Ehlinger will present the numbers to a Board of Regents committee later this week. The bump in drinking rates among Twin Cities students follows several years in which monthly alcohol use had dropped or evened out and high-risk drinking rates had been fairly stable.

    "I'm concerned because ... people die," Ehlinger said. "Students with alcohol levels suffer death and injury in car accidents, accidents, sexual assault. Lots of students are at risk."

    At least five college students in Minnesota and western Wisconsin have died in alcohol-related incidents since 2001.

    Another student, St. Cloud State University junior Scot Baek Radel, 21, has been missing since Thursday after missing a meeting with friends at a downtown bar.

    Millions of dollars have been spent fighting alcohol on college campuses, with little result, Ehlinger said. A list of dozens of programs, organizations and publications on the U's four campuses fills seven pages with small type. But the social pressures are overwhelming, Ehlinger said.

    "Look at the Super Bowl -- the first advertisement was a Budweiser ad," he said. "We link alcohol with sports, with youth, with good times and sexual attractiveness, with humor. ... It's so powerful that the stuff we can do with our limited budgets and narrow focuses can't do that much."

    Brent Tuominen, a 21-year-old senior at the University of Minnesota, said students haven't had an opportunity to enjoy the outdoors this winter because of a lack of snow, giving them more reason to drink. Tuominen is taking 22 credits this semester and says he likes to relax with friends on the weekend, when they usually binge drink.

    "We drink the same all the time," he said. "Basically, it's a time to crash after school."

    David Steinbrink, a 28-year-old senior at the University of Minnesota, said he stopped drinking three years ago because of the negative impact it had on his life.

    A new sense of freedom leads to student's drinking, he said. "Drinking is something that adults do," he said. "Now you can get away with it."

    While the Twin Cities data show binge drinking rates spiking, overall drinking rates went up only slightly from 2004. Slightly more than 75 percent of undergraduates reported drinking alcohol in the previous month, considerably less than the 91 percent of students who reported drinking in 1979.

    Ehlinger would like to see alcohol prices increase, which he said could discourage drinking. And attitudes that drinking is an expected part of college life need to change, he said. It doesn't help that the Upper Midwest has the highest overall binge-drinking rates in the nation.

    A free Web-based course for parents of Twin Cities students on alcohol issues has proved popular, as have voluntary courses on alcohol for students. Ehlinger hopes that a statewide effort to combat alcohol abuse on campuses may emerge from a first-ever Minnesota survey of 17 colleges and universities. That 2005 survey, released last fall, revealed a wide range of drinking behavior at those schools, which were not identified.

     
    Inquest blames collision suspect
    --------------------

    Wayne man is cited in crash that killed man, pregnant woman

    By William Presecky
    Tribune staff reporter

    February 9, 2006

    A Kane County coroner's jury Wednesday blamed a Wayne man for the deaths last month of a pregnant Yorkville woman and a St. Charles man, killed in a fiery collision.

    The jury said John D. Homatas, 24, of Wayne caused the Jan. 4 crash that killed his passenger, John Chiariello, 25, and April Simmons, 27, who was eight months' pregnant. Homatas, who was seriously injured and remains hospitalized, faces 10 felony charges related to the late-night collision of Illinois Highway 25 near Kenyon Road near South Elgin.

    Homatas is charged with four counts of reckless homicide, two counts of reckless homicide of an unborn child and four counts of aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol.

    An emergency obstetrics team at Sherman Hospital in Elgin, where Simmons was taken after the accident, was prepared to deliver the 5-pound, 15-ounce baby girl by Caesarean section "but the decision was made that it was not a possibility," Coroner Charles West told the jury.

    The results of an autopsy revealed that a torn, placenta, "as a direct result of the accident," caused the fetus' death, he said.

    "There was no trauma to the fetus itself," said West. "The baby died shortly after the mother died at the scene. Every effort was made to save the unborn baby."

    About 20 family members and friends of Simmons and Chiariello families attended the inquests but declined to comment afterward.

    The results of toxicology tests on Chiariello showed he had a blood-alcohol content exceeding .08 percent, according to West.

    Although he declined to specify Homatas' blood-alcohol content following the crash, a Kane County sheriff's investigator testified it also exceeded the limit for driving.

    Detective Brian McCarty said a driver passed by Homatas just before the fiery accident told police the man's northbound sport-utility vehicle was speeding and crossed into the southbound lanes.

    Based on a data recorder recovered from Simmons' SUV, McCarty told the jury she was not speeding.

    Toxicology tests on Simmons were negative for drugs or alcohol, said West.

    Bus driver 'four times drink limit'

    A BUS driver who crashed his double decker into a shelter is alleged to have been four times the legal alcohol limit at the time, police said today.
    The 38-year-old First Bus driver is alleged to have failed a breath test following the incident in Dalkeith, Midlothian, on Saturday.
    Police said the bus he was driving ploughed into a shelter in Easthouses Road, Easthouses, at around 10pm, showering waiting passengers with glass.
    At least one passenger on the bus suffered a bump to the head, Lothian and Borders Police said.
    The driver has been cautioned, charged with drink-driving and is due to appear in court in January.
    Chief Inspector Kenny Buchanan said: "It is inconceivable that this man put the lives of his passengers and other road users at risk.
    "It was extremely lucky that no-one was seriously hurt in either the bus shelter or on the bus.
    "There is no way that man could not have known he was over the limit. It was a very reckless act."
    During the second week of the force's campaign to combat drink-driving, a total
    of 25 motorists failed breath tests - compared to 27 for the same period last year.
     

    Air rage man delays 200 passengers

    16/01/06

    More than 200 British holidaymakers were on their way home after a drunk and abusive man caused their plane to be diverted.

    Some of the passengers on board the flight from Cancun, Mexico, had to help cabin crew restrain the man as he began throwing punches.

    He became abusive after drinking his own alcohol and getting into an argument with the person sitting next to him.

    A spokesman for Thomsonfly said 232 passengers were forced off the flight when the captain decided to divert it to Sanford airport in Orlando, Florida.

    The Boeing 767 had been due to land at Manchester Airport on Sunday but will now land at Birmingham on Monday.

    He said: "A passenger apparently had had too much to drink and was drinking his own alcohol. He got into an argument with the passenger sitting next to him and got quite aggressive.

    "He went to the toilet and started a bit of fuss and started to smash the toilet up. Three crew, with the help of some passengers, managed to control the gent and keep him down.

    "The captain took the decision for the safety of all passengers to take the aircraft into Sanford."

    Local police then met the plane and escorted the man off.

    The spokesman added: "I don't know what has happened to him since but several customers who witnessed the incident have given reports to the police."

     
    Kirkland man charged in fatal car crash
    SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER STAFF AND NEWS SERVICES
    A Kirkland man was charged with vehicular homicide Thursday over a car crash that killed a Bothell woman who had become a competitive horseback rider after becoming paralyzed.
    Prosecutors say William M. Jergesen, 43, was legally drunk when he crossed the center line on Northeast Woodinville-Duvall Road and struck a Subaru station wagon head-on, killing Margaret "Margo" O'Callaghan and her dog, Eddie.
    O'Callaghan, 60, took up horseback riding at the Little Bit Therapeutic Riding Center in Woodinville when she became paralyzed on her right side after suffering a series of strokes at age 29.
    She competed nationally and internationally in dressage, an event that requires the rider and horse to complete certain moves in perfect harmony.
     
    No cure for hangovers
    23/12/2005

    Pills, potions and kebabs officially do not cure hangovers, scientists have said.

    Researchers from the universities of Exeter and Plymouth found in a study of eight popular hangover cures that the only way to avoid the nausea and headaches associated with drinking too much is to abstain from alcohol.

    The authors of the study, which appears in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), concluded: "No compelling evidence exists to suggest that any conventional or complementary intervention is effective for preventing or treating alcohol hangover.

    "The most effective way to avoid the symptoms of alcohol induced hangover is to practice abstinence."

    The team led by Dr Max Pittler looked at a wide variety of popular hangover cures including eggs, green tea, exercise, bloody Marys and pizza.

    Dr Pittler said hangovers in the UK cost business around £2 billion in lost wages every year.

    The researchers warned that while common hangover symptoms included light-headedness, nausea and impaired memory, people who drank were not just at risk from feeling bad.

    They said that people who consumed any amount of alcohol still increased their risk of dying through drinking.

    Dr Pittler and his team also suggested that increased alcohol consumption over the holiday period could lead to a 0.4 per cent rise in fatal alcohol poisoning for every one per cent increase in the sale of spirits.
     
     Scientists link violence with alcohol
    Stockholm, Sweden | December 25, 2005 12:01:13 AM IST
     
    A study at Sweden's Karolinska Institute of 133 violent offenders shows 58 percent had consumed alcohol within 24 hours before the violent act.
    A large majority of the offenders were men with psychiatric diagnoses and most of the victims were known to the attackers.
    Researchers at the Stockholm medical school said a 13.2-fold increase in the risk of violence was found within 24 hours of alcohol consumption. The relative risk of violence was based on comparison with each individual's usual frequency of alcohol use during the previous year, in a case-crossover analysis.
    Use of other drugs, such as benzodiazepines and antidepressants in regular doses, was associated with a decreased risk of violence. Contrary to other studies the risk for criminal violence was not increased if the consumption of alcohol was combined with benzodiazepines.
    Alcohol seems to have the largest triggering effect on violence compared to other substances we investigated, said Ulrika Haggard-Grann of the Karolinska Institute This suggests treatment for individuals at risk for violence should be focused on decreasing their alcohol consumption.
     
    Woman charged in fatal crash
    --------------------

    By Jamie Francisco
    Tribune staff reporter

    December 26, 2005

    Bail was set at $80,000 Sunday for a Homewood woman charged with aggravated
    drunken driving in a crash that killed her younger sister and her sister's
    friend two days before Christmas.

    Yolanda Rivera, 29, of the 18200 block of Kedzie Avenue appeared Sunday in a
    bond hearing before Judge Reginald Baker at the Markham courthouse, said Deputy
    Chief Jim Gannon of the Homewood Police Department.

    Rivera's sister Jasmine and passenger Nicole Barr, both 23, were killed about 9
    p.m. Friday when Rivera lost control of the pickup truck she was driving and
    slammed it into a tree, authorities said.

    The crash occurred in the 18000 block of Riegel Road. Rivera's blood alcohol
    content was 0.21, Gannon said. The legal limit is 0.08.

    In a separate incident in Chicago, a female driver in her 30s was killed and two
    women were injured in a crash early Sunday in the West Town neighborhood,
    authorities said.

    The crash occurred 1:40 a.m. on the 2000 block of West Chicago Avenue when the
    female driver of a 1991 Chevrolet Prizm traveling south on Damen Avenue ran a
    stoplight and hit a 1998 Jeep Cherokee heading west on Chicago Avenue, a police
    spokesman said.

    The two female passengers, one from each vehicle, were taken in stable condition
    to Cook County's Stroger Hospital, the spokesman said.

    The driver of the Jeep Cherokee, Michael Cabrera, 25, of the 2200 block of West
    Ohio Street in Chicago, who was not taken to a hospital, was cited with driving
    under the influence, not carrying a license, no insurance and failure to reduce
    speed, the spokesman said.

    Baby-sitter charged over drunken toddler
    --------------------

    Items compiled from Tribune news services

    December 29, 2005

    PATCHOGUE, NEW YORK -- A 37-year-old man was arraigned Wednesday on
    child-endangerment charges after one of two toddlers he was baby-sitting was
    found drunk, authorities said.

    Suffolk County sheriff's deputies investigating a family court case peered
    through the window of a Patchogue home Tuesday and said they saw Juan Reyes
    passed out with the children wandering around.

    They roused Reyes, who was the only adult at home with the two toddlers, ages 2
    and 3, according to the sheriff's office. The deputies said Reyes appeared
    intoxicated.

    The deputies also said the 2-year-old was having difficulty standing, had
    bloodshot eyes and smelled of alcohol. Tests at a hospital found he was legally
    drunk.

    At the time of incident, the children's parents were at a hospital, where the
    mother was giving birth.

    Reyes pleaded not guilty.
     
    'Santa' Arrested After Beating Street Sign
    --------------------

    By Associated Press

    December 28, 2005, 7:01 AM CST

    SAPULPA, Okla. -- Police here know whether this particular Santa Claus has been
    naughty or nice. An officer responding to a call Christmas morning of a
    disturbance on the city's east side found James Lahl dressed as Santa Claus and
    hitting a street sign, according to a report.

    Lahl, 53, had pulled a no parking sign from the ground and was beating another
    street sign with it, police allege.

    As Officer Derrick Clayton approached the not-so-jolly St. Nick, he detected a
    strong odor of alcohol, and took Lahl into custody on a complaint of destruction
    of city property and public intoxication, according to the report.

    Lahl, wearing a suit, hat, beard and gloves, remained in the Creek County jail
    on Monday.

    Attempts to reach Lahl for comment were unsuccessful.
     
    Man dies after car rams tree in Markham
    --------------------


    December 28, 2005

    A Country Club Hills man was killed Tuesday when the car he was riding in
    slammed into a tree on a residential street in Markham.

    Danzel Brandon, 21, of the 3800 block of 178th Place, was pronounced dead by the
    Cook County medical examiner's office about 5:35 a.m.

    Markham Deputy Police Chief Jim Knapp said Brandon was a front-seat passenger in
    a 1998 Ford Taurus when the driver lost control and hit a tree in the 16100
    block of Sussex Avenue about 3:50 a.m.

    Knapp said alcohol was likely a factor in the accident. The driver, a
    21-year-old Hazel Crest man, was taken to St. James Hospital and Health Centers
    in Olympia Fields to be treated for head injuries that were not considered
    life-threatening, Knapp said.

    Back-seat passenger Kenneth Jackson, 21, of Hazel Crest was taken to St. James
    for injuries to his lower body, Knapp said.

    He said the accident was still under investigation.
     
    Driver trying to pass dies in crash near McHenry
    --------------------


    December 28, 2005

    McHENRY COUNTY -- A man from unincorporated McHenry died Saturday after he lost
    control of his vehicle and it slid into oncoming traffic, authorities said.

    James Hanes, 24, of 34726 Mudjekeewis Terrace was eastbound on Big Hollow Road
    near Hiawatha Trail near McHenry at about 1:30 p.m. when he apparently lost
    control of his car while trying to pass another eastbound vehicle, said Sgt.
    Christopher Thompson of the Lake County sheriff's police.

    Hanes' car slid into the westbound lane, hit another car and caused it to
    collide with another vehicle, Thompson said. The other drivers were not
    seriously injured, he said.

    Hanes was taken to Northern Illinois Medical Center in McHenry, where he was
    pronounced dead, McHenry County coroner's officials said.

    Hanes was not wearing a seatbelt and evidence suggests that alcohol may have
    been involved, Thompson said.
    Norman Vaughan - Another person living to be 100 that never drank!


    1905-2005

    Part of famed trek to S. Pole

    He joined Adm. Richard Byrd in his 1928 expedition

    Associated Press

    December 26, 2005

    ANCHORAGE -- Norman Vaughan, a dog handler and driver in Adm. Richard Byrd's
    1928 expedition to the South Pole, died Friday just a few days after turning
    100.

    Mr. Vaughan died at Providence Alaska Medical Center surrounded by family and
    friends, said nursing supervisor Martha George.

    He was well enough Dec. 17 to enjoy a birthday celebration at the hospital
    attended by more than 100 friends and hospital workers. His actual birthday was
    Dec. 19.

    Mr. Vaughan's motto was "Dream big and dare to fail." Days before his 89th
    birthday he and his wife, Carolyn Muegge-Vaughan, returned to Antarctica and
    climbed to the summit of 10,320-foot Mt. Vaughan, the mountain Byrd named in his
    honor.

    "It was the climax of our dream," he said in a 2005 interview at his Anchorage
    home. "We had to risk failure to get there."

    Mr. Vaughan sought adventure his entire life.

    His exploits included finishing the 1,100 mile-Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race six
    times after age 70. At age 96, he carried the Olympic torch in Juneau, passing
    the flame from a wheelchair, 70 years after he competed in the Olympics as a
    sled dog racer.

    Mr. Vaughan wanted to climb Mt. Vaughan again to celebrate his 100th birthday,
    but the expedition fell short of money. He planned to sip champagne at the
    summit--the first taste of alcohol for the lifetime abstainer.

    Mr. Vaughan left Harvard University to join Byrd on his expedition, which
    included creation of the first settlement in Antarctica and the first air flight
    over the South Pole.

    He was part of a crew that drove dog teams 1,500 miles across the frozen
    continent to collect geological samples and other scientific data.
     

    Alcohol poisoning caused University freshman's death

    Family believes it has ID for bones
    --------------------

    Remains discovered near tracks may be lost man, wife says

    By M. Daniel Gibbard and Andrew L. Wang
    Tribune staff reporters

    January 3, 2006

    As Chicago police recovered a set of bones found near railroad tracks on the
    Southwest Side Monday, friends and family of a missing man gathered nearby,
    certain their mystery had been solved.

    "It's him," said Carol Mattson, whose husband, Arthur, disappeared five months
    ago from their home in the 3500 block of West 77th Place. "I know it's him. I
    knew he was still in the neighborhood."

    Police were called to the tracks near 7700 S. Central Park Ave. about 9:30 a.m.
    by someone who spotted what appeared to be human remains, police spokesman John
    Mirabelli said. The Cook County medical examiner's office will determine if the
    bones are human and handle the identification, he said.

    A worker at the medical examiner's office reported receiving the remains but
    said no autopsy had been conducted yet.

    But family and friends were certain the remains were those of Mattson, who lives
    less than 100 yards from where the bones were found.

    Mattson, 63, disappeared Aug. 9 while highly intoxicated, his wife said. He was
    an alcoholic who also battled depression, she said, and had been hospitalized
    just the night before.

    "He was in bad shape," she said.

    Bill Judd, a family friend, said he had helped search the train tracks from 77th
    Place to 79th Street, where Mattson's regular tavern was located.

    "We must have missed him by 20 feet," said Judd, who recalled that the brush
    around the tracks was thick at that time of year.

    Patrick Houlihan, a family friend, helped pass out fliers with Mattson's picture
    after he disappeared. He believes police did not try hard enough in their
    search.

    "He didn't have a car, and he didn't go anywhere but from his house to the
    tavern," Houlihan said.

    Woman, unborn baby die in crash
    Police say alcohol played role in fatal late-night collision
    By Scott Wong, STAFF WRITER
    Inside Bay Area
    FREMONT - Police on Monday said alcohol was a factor in a Jan. 1 crash that killed a pregnant Union City woman and her unborn child, and injured two others.
    Kimberly Ann Dickson, 36, who was eight months pregnant, died at Eden Medical Center in Castro Valley within an hour of the Sunday night accident, Officer John Flynn said.
    The accident happened along Mission Boulevard at the Mowry Avenue intersection shortly after 11 p.m. A 1987 Toyota Camry driven by Fremont resident Diana Mora, 36, collided with a 1984 Chevy Blazer II driven by Union City resident Ricardo Padilla, 26, as he tried to turn left on Mission.
    Dickson was sitting in the front passenger seat of Padilla's vehicle at the time of the crash. The collision was so severe that the Blazer "flipped over and came to rest on its side," police said.
    Dickson was one of more than two dozen traffic fatalities reported statewide during the New Year's weekend. The California Highway Patrol said at least 27 people were killed onlocal and CHP-patrolled roadways between 6 p.m. Friday and 6 a.m. Monday.
    That is up from 21 traffic deaths during the same period a year ago.
    CHP officers arrested 1,070 people for driving under the influence this holi-
    day weekend. DUI arrests were up nearly 15 percent from last year's total of 933.
    Alcohol was a factor in the Fremont crash, but toxicology reports will not be available for about 30 days, police said. The reporting officer could not be reached Monday, and a watch commander said it was unclear which driver had been under the influence of alcohol.
    Padilla had been traveling southbound on Mission and pulled into the left turn pocket at the Mowry intersection so he could turn into the driveway of Frontier Hotel. When his vehicle crossed the northbound lanes of Mission, the passenger side of the Blazer was struck by Mora's car.
    Mora also was transported to Eden Medical Center, and Padilla was taken to San Jose Medical Center. Both were treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
     
    Wednesday January 4, 2006


    New Year boozing turns sour for family

    Boozing and partying in a rural longhouse during the New Year
    celebrations have resulted in embarrassing consequences for a family here.

    The boozing sparked off a major misunderstanding among the longhouse folks in
    Bakong, which resulted in a 100km journey to lodge a police report that a
    grandmother, in her late seventies, had been gang-raped.

    The claim, however, turned out to be untrue but it was found that the
    grandmother could have been sexually harassed instead.

    The woman's daughter had lodged a report at the Miri Central Police
    Station that her sick mother had been raped on Sunday night.

    The housewife, in her 40s, alleged that her mother was raped by two longhouse
    youths who had gotten drunk after a drinking spree.

    Police sent a team to investigate the report but found that the aged woman had
    not been raped as claimed.

    Miri Acting CID Chief Asst Supt Kaderi Said said yesterday the misunderstanding
    arose at the longhouse after the youths got tipsy and disorientated. 

    There was no rape. No one has been arrested; he explained.

    He, however, declined to reveal what had actually transpired that led to the
    woman claiming that her mother had been raped.

    The police here have referred the case to the Marudi police station & the
    district police station nearest to Bakong.

    A police source said there was a possibility that the two youths might have
    "disturbed"; the old woman while they were drunk.

    While there was no rape, the youths might have done "something
    naughty"; to her that might have outraged her modesty, he added.
     
    Rescuers search lake for missing man
    1/3/2006 8:17 AM
    By: Associated Press

     WATCH THE VIDEO
    Missing Man

    Jeff Kish told authorities he believes his brother hit his head and fell overboard.



    CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- About 50 rescue workers searched unsuccessfully Monday for a man who apparently fell off a houseboat on New Year's Day.

    Authorities planned to continue looking Tuesday for Steven Kish, 30, a landscaper and volunteer firefighter from Lancaster County, Pa., who was moving to Mooresville. Jeff Kish said he, his older brother and several friends were aboard a houseboat about 330 yards from shore Sunday when Steven went to the deck to smoke a cigarette about 8 p.m.


    Eight boats filled with about 50 rescue workers scoured Lake Norman on Monday.
    After about 10 to 15 minutes, the rest of the party noticed he was missing and called 911. Jeff Kish, who said his brother had drunk a few beers, believes he fell overboard.

    He said his brother was an athletic swimmer who had received training in water rescue techniques in Pennsylvania but was wearing boots and bulky winter clothes Sunday.

    Rescue workers began searching for Kish late Sunday and kept looking until around midnight, said Kyle Voris of the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission. They searched again Monday, with about eight boats and roughly 50 searchers from various Lake Norman area fire, rescue, police and emergency agencies helping.

    Jeff Kish said his brother bought a house in Mooresville on Dec. 24, and the two had been renovating it during the holidays.

     
    Young yobs are making our lives a misery
    Jan 3 2006
    By Alan Harris
     
    A GROUP of Coventry neighbours today revealed how drunken teenagers - some as young as 13 - are making life hell in their street.
    Next door neighbours Colin Goode and Adam McQuillan told of a shocking catalogue of antisocial behaviour plaguing people living in Three Spires Avenue, Coundon.
    Families have to put up with rowdy gangs smashing bottles, fighting, clambering over cars and urinating in public.
    The youths have also been accused of graffiti, swearing, and indecent exposure.
    Mr Goode and Mr Mcquillan say they are fed up with the nuisance and want to "claim back young troublemakers.
    Mr Goode, aged 32, who is married and has a four-year-old son, has lived in the street trouble-free for eight years.
    But he said bad behaviour over the past six months had made residents' lives a misery.
    He said: "You spend every night curtain-twitching and watching your car.
    "I approached them once and told them to stop smashing bottles but as soon as my back was turned they put two fingers up at me.
    "The litter they leave behind, empty beer cans and smashed bottles, does your head in more than anything else."
    Residents say youths as young as 13 drink alcohol before committing antisocial behaviour.
    One neighbour is understood to have put his house up for sale because of the problems.
    Mr McQuillan, aged 40, who is self-employed, said: "The cops move them on, but it's the nuisance of them hanging around. Sometimes there's up to 30 of them."
    Police say they have been cracking down on the sale of alcohol to youngsters in the area.
    They said officers were prepared to serve antisocial behaviour orders on ringleaders of youths causing problems in the area.
     
    Alcohol Ads Fuel Young Adults' Drinking

    TUESDAY, Jan. 3 (HealthDay News) -- The more ads young people see about alcohol, the more they drink.
    That's the conclusion of a study by researchers at the University of Connecticut, published in the January issue of Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.
    Of approximately 1,900 study participants between the ages of 15 and 26 who were interviewed at least one time and up to four times between 1999 and 2001, those who reported viewing more alcohol advertisements on average also reported drinking more alcohol.
    Each additional ad viewed per month increased the number of drinks consumed by 1 percent. The same percentage increase applied to underage drinkers (those younger than age 21) as well, the researchers said.
    The study authors also analyzed youth drinking in relation to advertising dollars spent. They purchased information about total alcohol sales in each state and found that young people drank 3 percent more per month for each additional dollar spent per capita in their advertising market.
    Young adults in markets where alcohol companies spent $10 or more per person per month in advertising increased their drinking more over time, reaching a peak of 50 drinks per month by age 25, the study found.
    The alcohol industry is not bound by federal restrictions on advertising but is subject to voluntary codes dictating that 70 percent of the audience for their advertisements be adults older than age 21. The study authors reported that these ads still appear frequently in media aimed at young people.
    The survey contradicts claims by the alcohol industry "that advertising is unrelated to youth drinking amounts: that advertising at best causes brand switching, only affects those older than the legal drinking age or is effectively countered by current educational efforts," the researchers said in the report. "Alcohol advertising was a contributing factor to youth drinking quantities over time."
    More information
     
    Woman hit by car dies of injuries
    No decision on charges yet for remorseful driver
    , FROM STAFF REPORTS
    Inside Bay Area
    OAKLAND - A woman has died from injuries suffered when she was hit by a car early New Year's Day.
    A decision whether to charge the driver has not yet been made pending further investigation, authorities said Tuesday.
    Police said the remorseful driver, Illugi Thordarson, 29, who police said had been drinking, admitted to officers at the scene he hit the woman. But both he and his passenger said she ran out into the street in front of his car, police said.
    The woman killed was identified as Patricia Sue Sperl, 46, a saleswoman who police said had addresses in both Oakland and Berkeley.
    Sperl was hit by Thordarson's 1994 Nissan Sentra about 3:30 a.m. Sunday at the intersection of Shattuck Avenue and Poirier Street, not far from Bushrod Park. She died at noon Monday at Highland Hospital Oakland.Thordarson, who was driving south on Shattuck, told police he was a disc jockey, had worked some New Year's Eve parties and was on his way to another.
    Traffic Officer Wing Wong said Tuesday that Sperl apparently was crossing Shattuck - police are unsure in what direction - when she was hit. Just half of the street has a marked crosswalk.
    Wong said Thordarson "reeked of alcohol." A field test showed his blood-alcohol level at 0.15, and a later test put it at 0.13.
    But Wong said a champagne bottle was found near Sperl, leading police to believe she may have been drinking.
    Thordarson was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and causing injuries. He later made $23,000 bail.
    Wong said police are seeking more witnesses, especially residents in the area who may have seen Sperl before she was hit.
    The death was Oakland's first traffic fatality of 2006.
    In 2005 there were 25 traffic-related deaths, including 10 pedestrians. In 2004 there were 29 traffic-related deaths, including nine pedestrians.
     
    Woman cited in crash that killed mom-to-be
    Fremont resident faces DUI charge, though whether she caused accident New Year's Day is undetermined
    By Ben Aguirre Jr., STAFF WRITER
    Inside Bay Area
    FREMONT - A 36-year-old woman has been cited for suspicion of drunken driving in connection with a crash that killed a woman and her unborn son Sunday, but it remains undetermined if she caused the collision.
    Police officers Wednesday cited Diana Mora of Fremont on a misdemeanor count of driving under the influence while operating a vehicle, Officer John Flynn said.
    "We highly suspect she was under the influence," Flynn said. "But we're still awaiting the toxicology reports" to determine her blood-alcohol level.
    As officers wait for results, they are continuing to investigate what caused the crash. If Mora is found to be at fault, she could face two counts of vehicular manslaughter, Flynn said.
    Union City resident Kimberly Ann Dickson, 36, was killed shortly after 11 p.m. New Year's Day when the 1994 Chevy Blazer II she was riding in flipped over after a collision with Mora's 1987 Toyota Camry, Flynn said. Dickson was eight months pregnant.
    Initial reports indicate that Union City resident Ricardo Padilla, 26, was driving his Blazer south on Mission Boulevard and making a left turn at Mowry Avenue when his SUV collided with Mora's car.
    Mora was headed northbound on Mission when her Camry hit the passenger side of the Blazer, where Dickson was seated, Flynn said.
    The SUV flipped onto its side, where it remained until emergency crews arrived. Mora, Padilla and Dickson were taken to local trauma centers, but Dickson died shortly thereafter.
    The collision was the Fremont area's second fatal crash during a 17-day DUI enforcement effort.
    Union City resident Asuncion Somera, 82, was killed Christmas Day when a 2003 Mercury Mountaineer plowed into the bus stop he was sitting at near Dyer Street and Alvarado Boulevard.
    The driver, Charles Lynell Love, 25, of Union City, has been charged with a felony count of gross vehicular manslaughter while driving under the influence.
    Aside from the two fatal crashes, area authorities made 119 DUI arrests - 64 in Fremont, 36 in Newark and 19 in Union City.
     
    Witnesses Say Newlyweds Argued on Cruise
    Man Disappeared From a Royal Caribbean Ship in the Mediterranean
    By JOHN CHRISTOFFERSEN, AP
     
    STAMFORD, Conn. (Jan. 6) - A man who disappeared from his honeymoon cruise last summer argued in the ship's bar with his wife, who kicked him in the groin hours before he vanished, two witnesses said Friday.
    The witnesses told The Associated Press the FBI has interviewed them about the July 5 disappearance of George Allen Smith IV of Greenwich.
    "I was very surprised by their behavior, that a honeymoon couple would act that way," said Margarita Chaves, a 29-year-old teacher from Phoenix.
    Smith disappeared from a Royal Caribbean ship in the Mediterranean Sea between Turkey and Greece. Blood stains were found running from the balcony of Smith's cabin to life boats. No one has been charged and no body has been recovered.
    Smith's wife, Jennifer Hagel-Smith of Cromwell, was found sleeping on a floor in a corridor far from the couple's cabin the night he vanished, the cruise line said Wednesday.
    Hagel-Smith and her attorney say she was unconscious and has no recollection of what happened. Hagel-Smith said she passed an FBI polygraph test. Federal authorities have said she has cooperated with their investigation.
    Hagel-Smith called the accounts that she kicked her husband "ridiculous" and "outlandish."
    "That's the epitome of what I've had to deal with," Hagel-Smith said. "That's not something I would do to my husband."
    Chaves said she was in the bar with her friends when another group introduced them to Smith and his wife. She said the couple was heavily intoxicated and Hagel-Smith was leaning on a male passenger.
    "We were afraid a fight was going to start," Chaves said. "She was flirting with him."
    Dominick Mazza, a 24-year-old auditor from New Jersey, said Hagel-Smith was leaning on him because she was drunk, but he did not believe she was flirting.
    Smith then began calling his wife names, the witnesses agreed.
    "She kind of pushed him away lightly and suddenly stood up and kicked him in the private and stumbled out of the bar," Mazza said.
    Smith "bent over for quite a while," Mazza said. "You could tell he was in pain. I thought the kick was hard. That was not fooling around."
    Chaves said Smith eventually returned to drinking with a group of men. She said the group was drinking absinthe, a highly potent drink.
    "His pupils were dilated," Chaves said. "I'll never forget that look in his eyes."
    James Walker, Hagel-Smith's attorney, said the accounts are not relevant to Smith's disappearance.
    Brett Rivkind, attorney for Smith's family, said the argument might explain why Hagel-Smith left the bar and was later found in the corridor.
     
    Chicago man dies in fistfight 
    -------------------- 
     
    By Nancy Ryan 
    Tribune staff reporter 
     
    December 11, 2005, 6:15 AM CST 
     
    Investigators are expected to perform an autopsy today on a Chicago man who died 
    Saturday shortly after falling and hitting his head on the pavement during a 
    fistfight with another man, officials said. 
     
    Charges are expected to be filed against the other man, 22, who was still being 
    questioned by police early today about the altercation, said police spokesman 
    David Banks. 
     
    After the fight outside a South Side liquor store, Bruce Wordlaw, 41, of the 
    7500 block of South Coles Avenue, was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in 
    Oak Lawn and pronounced dead at 5:56 p.m., said police and the Cook County 
    medical examiner's office. 
     
    Wordlaw and the other man were fighting outside the store around 5 p.m. when the 
    22-year-old punched Wordlaw in the face, said police spokesman David Banks. 
    Wordlaw then fell to the ground and struck his head on the pavement. 
     
    It was not immediately known what the two men were arguing about, Banks said. 
    Copyright (c) 2005, Chicago Tribune 
     
    PHXnews - Study: Teenagers Influenced by Liquor Ads 
     
    by Jim Kouri, CPP 
     
    A new study of more than 3,000 teens reports that underage persons who saw 
    frequent ads for alcoholic beverages in stores and magazines were more likely to 
    start drinking than those who did not. 
     
    The study was conducted by Rand Health in South Dakota and was sponsored by the 
    National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. The report also indicated 
    that teens who had already tried alcohol were more likely to increase their 
    consumption when viewing ads in magazines or concessions at music and sporting 
    events. 
     
    "The more we can combat the pro-alcohol and drug information in our society the 
    less likely we're going to have to treat individuals down the road for substance 
    abuse," comments Gary Smith, Executive Director of Narconon Arrowhead, 
    "Prevention is the key." 
     
    The media attention of college binge drinking deaths on campuses last year also 
    sparked the University of Florida to take action. Officials at the University 
    instructed a country band that was scheduled to perform on campus to drop all 
    promotions for their alcoholic beverage sponsor out of concern for student binge 
    drinking, despite costing them more than $12,000 per night in revenue according 
    to the Independent Florida Alligator newspaper. 
     
    The American Medical Association also released an article admonishing NASCAR for 
    allowing hard liquor sponsorships, which place ads prominently on cars viewed by 
    millions of teens. They also conducted a survey and found that 63% of Americans 
    feel that marketing liquor on race cars sends the wrong message to young people 
    regarding drinking and driving. 
     
    The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that there were over 
    2,300 alcohol-related fatalities in the year 2000 involving young people between 
    the ages of 15 and 20. This accounted for more than one third of the total 
    number for that year. 
     
    While the Rand study of teenagers in South Dakota didn't find conclusive 
    evidence of the effect of alcohol advertising on television, a report issued 
    last year by the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth stated there was an 
    increase of 90,000 alcohol ads on television compared to just two years prior. 
    The study also indicated that 23 percent of the ads were more likely to be seen 
    by youth than adults. 
     
    While more than 10 million youth between the ages of 12 and 20 have reported 
    drinking alcohol in the past month, there are some youths joining the fight 
    against substance abuse. The Kansas City InfoZine online reported last month 
    that area young people part of Youth with Vision filmed three public service 
    announcements for the Missouri Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse. The 
    prevention ads are part of the "Alcohol.Is It Worth It?" program. 
     
    More arrests as violence escalates
    Seven people have been injured, cars and shops trashed, and rock and flares hurled at police in a second consecutive night of mob violence in Sydney.
    Eleven men were arrested as a new wave of unrest hit the city overnight in apparent reprisal attacks for Sunday's race riot at Cronulla, where alcohol-fuelled mobs chased and bashed people of Middle Eastern appearance.
    The trouble began last night when a group of 200 mostly Muslim men gathered at Lakemba Mosque, in Sydney's south-west, apparently after rumours that an attack on the building was imminent.
    Rocks and flares were thrown at police trying to disperse the group, and a female constable was injured when a projectile struck her leg.
    Police were also hit with projectiles as a crowd of about 100 people gathered for a second night in Brighton-le-Sands, in Sydney's south.
    Two police cars were damaged and rubbish bins were thrown at shopfronts as officers attempted to control the crowd.
    A family was forced to move out of their apartment after their five-month-old son narrowly escaped being injured when a bottle was thrown through their apartment window, shattering the glass.
    At Cronulla, about 50 men arrived in cars last night before rampaging through the beach community, smashing car windows and shopfronts with baseball bats.
    Gunshots were heard near the Northies Hotel, opposite north Cronulla beach, where some of the worst violence was seen on Sunday.
    Meanwhile, more than 30 molotov cocktails and crates of rocks were found during a rooftop search at south Maroubra, not far from where a mob smashed car windows on Sunday.
    Cricket bats, rocks and iron bars were also confiscated by police monitoring about 100 people who gathered near Maroubra beach.
    Six people were arrested at Cronulla and on the Kingsway, in nearby Caringbah, after shops and vehicles were attacked.
    Two men and three youths were arrested at Maroubra beach after police discovered a replica pistol in the bushes.
    Police said the injured included a Bexley couple attacked as they left a restaurant in Caringbah about 10pm (AEDT).
    A 35-year-old Lansvale man suffered head injuries and severe facial bruising after being attacked at a youth hostel at Caringbah. He was taken to Sutherland hospital in a stable condition.
    A 45-year-old Cronulla man suffered broken ribs and head injuries when he was attacked as he put his rubbish bin out on the street.
    A 51-year-old Woolwooware man suffered a broken arm after he was attacked with a baseball bat at Cronulla.
    Details of the seventh person's injuries could not be confirmed.
    Police are braced for further violence after new text messages, including one declaring war between Sydney's Middle Eastern youths and Australians, began circulating.
    The new messages follow a round of similar ones sent last week, calling for retaliation after an attack on surf lifesavers at Cronulla on December 3.
    One of the new messages congratulates Australians for the fight they put up against the Lebanese at Cronulla during Sunday's riots, and called for more attacks.
    "We'll show them! It's on again Sunday," a newspaper reported the message said.
    Another warned of retaliation from the Middle Eastern groups.
    "The Aussies will feel the full force of the Arabs as one - 'brothers in arms' unite now..." it read.
    Another called for "straight up WAR. The leb's/wogs won't stand for this."
    Police have formed a task force to try to prevent a repeat of Sunday's riots, which have been condemned by NSW Premier Morris Iemma.
     

    Families mourn loss of 2 girls

    08:37 AM CST on Monday, December 12, 2005
    By Reggie Aqui / KHOU-TV
    The man suspected of driving drunk and killing two young girls is expected in court Monday.
     
    KHOU-TV
    The accident happened on the Gulf Freeway at Monroe.
    The accident happened early Saturday morning on the Gulf Freeway at Monroe.
    Thomas Roy Kennedy, 21, faces two charges of manslaughter.
    Police said his actions either ended or forever changed the lives of a group of young people, including that of a 12-year-old who was sitting in the backseat of the car.
    Janet Ruvacalba was killed instantly when Kennedy's truck slammed into the back of the car.
    The car Ruvacalba was in had pulled over into the right emergency lane because it was out of gas.
    "We called everywhere, and no one told us anything," said brother Hector Ruvacalba. "And finally we found out that my sister had ."
    Another girl in the backseat, 14-year-old Megan Lawery, died.
    "You don't know what you robbed me of or other people," said Megan's dad, Jon. "You know, she never got a chance to drive a car, go on a real date, go to college."
    The other three people in the car were injured,! two of them critically.
    Most of the passengers went to the same Clear Creek ISD school, who said they will have extra counselors on hand to help students who are going through a lot of grief.

     
    Man, 25, Stabs Kinsman to Death 
    From Chinedu Eze in Abakiliki, 01.07.2006 
    Tragedy struck at Amaizu community in Afikpo North local Government Area of Ebonyi State, when a young man stabbed his kinsman to death as the police shot and killed two youths among the demonstrators, who demanded that the murder suspect should be released to them, as he ran to the police for protection after the murder. 
    According to an eyewitness account, the murder suspect, Enyinnaya Ezeali, a 25-year old student of Ebonyi State University stabbed and killed Mr. Eze Egwu, a commercial motorcycle operator after a disagreement. 
    Trouble started when the suspect was said to have inadvertently urinated on the deceased where he was lying down along the road, as a member of the vigilante group that kept watch during the Yuletide and he was angered and subsequently challenged Ezeani, which resulted to a scuffle. 
    Ezeani, who was said to be drunk went back to the house after they were separated, and only to return few minutes later with a dagger and stabbed the unsuspecting Egwu at different parts of his body, where he was still lying down. 
    Other members of the vigilante who realized what happened after the deceased had collapsed rushed him to a hospital, where he finally gave up the ghost. 
    Realising that he had killed somebody, the suspect sneaked through the crowd that had started gathering and ran to the Afikpo police station, where he gave himself up to the police. 
    The following morning, youths and elders of the community gathered together and went to the police station, demanding from the divisional police officer (DPO), CSP Gozie Malizu, the release of the suspect, so that punishment be meted to him according to the custom of the people for killing his kinsman, but the DPO refused and the youths went on rampage, destroying vehicles and buildings at the police station. 
    In their effort to quell the crisis, police shot and killed two other persons, including the driver of the ambulance conveying the corps of the deceased. 
    In addition to the destruction at the police station, the enraged demonstrators also destroyed vehicles owned by the relations and neighbours of the suspect, destroyed their house and household property and that of their neighbours as well. 
     
    The Ebonyi State Police Command confirmed the incident, but said that the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) was still investigating the matter. 
    The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Mr. Godwin Wekwa, told THISDAY that there was a preliminary report, but he was yet to be copied and however, confirmed that the murder suspect had been moved from Afikpo police station to the police Command in Abakaliki, stating that the number of casualties during the crisis have not been officially confirmed. 
    He also explained that the routine arrest of the people of Amaizu community, which had continued since the time of the incident on January 3, 2006 till the time of filing this report, was an action backed by law, saying that those arrested would be screened to ascertain the actual culprits, while those who were not part of the incident would be released. 
    THISDAY also gathered at the weekend that police have indiscriminately arrested more than five tipper loads of people and Amaizi community has been deserted, as policemen go there in the morning and evening to arrest people who are taken to the police station for detention and interrogation. 
    The Amaizu community has remained a ghost town since the incident, as those who wanted to avoid arrest have fled the town in droves to other parts of the state and beyond. 
     
    Indiana truck driver charged with homicide in bus crash
    --------------------

    By ROBERT IMRIE
    The Associated Press

    January 12, 2006, 11:33 AM CST

    EAU CLAIRE, Wis. -- An Indiana semi-truck driver was charged Thursday with five
    homicide counts in a crash three months ago that killed five and injured others
    on a bus carrying high school band students home from a weekend competition.

    Michael John Kozlowski, 23, of Schererville, Ind., faces five felony counts of
    homicide by negligent operation of a vehicle as well as 11 felony counts of
    reckless driving causing great bodily injury and nine misdemeanor counts of
    reckless driving causing injury.

    Kozlowski stayed out late partying before he took off from Indiana on the day of
    the crash, and drove erratically after getting into Wisconsin, eventually
    falling asleep, leading to the crash, prosecutors contended.

    The crash occurred Oct. 16 after Kozlowski drove his semi off onto the shoulder
    of Interstate 94 and lost control when he pulled back onto the highway.

    ``Two witnesses to the defendant's driving behavior prior to this collision
    provide information consistent with a conclusion that the defendant's semi left
    the interstate when he fell asleep that morning,'' the complaint filed by Eau
    Claire County District Attorney Richard White said.

    The district attorney said the complaint alleges criminal negligence over two
    days.

    ``The charges reflect the injuries to every one of the people we know about on
    the bus who sustained injuries,'' White said.

    ``His conduct and negligence was a significant factor in the deaths. His driving
    was erratic. He weaved at times. His speed was erratic.''

    The complaint said information from Kozlowski's global positioning system
    indicated he traveled to an Indiana tavern Oct. 14 to attend a going away party
    for a co-worker. Witnesses said Kozlowski was at the tavern until closing time
    early Oct. 15, according to the complaint.

    The complaint said witnesses told investigators Kozlowski was drinking ``hard
    stuff'' at the Indiana tavern, but there is no mention in the complaint on
    whether he was legally drunk at the time of the accident. White declined to
    discuss results of any blood-alcohol test that may have been done on him.

    Friends who were with Kozlowski at the tavern indicated he stayed up until at
    least 5 a.m. Oct. 15, the complaint said.

    Kozlowski's cell phone records show outgoing calls were made that day at 10:57
    a.m., 11:20 a.m., 12:07 p.m., 3:22 p.m. and 5:04 p.m., according to the
    complaint.

    White said no other criminal charges would be filed against anyone or the bus
    company in the case.

    Kozlowski's attorney, Earl Gray of St. Paul, Minn., did not immediately return a
    call from The Associated Press.

    The maximum penalty for Kozlowski on each of the homicide charges is 10 years in
    prison and a $25,000 fine, while be faces up to 3 1/2 years in prison and fines
    of up to $10,000 on each of the felony reckless driving counts and up to a year
    in jail and $2,000 fine on each misdemeanor count.

    The driver has not been arrested and his attorney told prosecutors Kozlowski
    would voluntarily make an initial court appearance Jan. 31.

    Gene Burke, whose 15-year-old son Ryan was injured in the crash, said the band
    students' physical wounds were healing but they struggle every day with the
    emotional aftermath.

    ``I would have been really disappointed had there been no charges,'' he said.
    ``I am satisfied. Yes, absolutely.''

    The charter bus, filled with 44 students, teachers and chaperones from Chippewa
    Falls High School, plowed into the semi trailer that had overturned and
    jackknifed on the highway, blocking both lanes, the Wisconsin State Patrol said.

    The crash happened about 2 a.m. just north of Osseo as the bus returned from a
    band competition in Whitewater.

    An investigation found possible problems with the brakes on the bus, according
    to the National Transportation Safety Board. A lack of skid marks on the
    interstate, though, may indicate the bus driver did not have time to stop, the
    agency said.

    Killed were band director Douglas Greenhalgh, 48; his wife, Therese, 51; and
    their granddaughter, Morgan Greenhalgh, 11. Also killed were driver Paul Rasmus,
    78, and student teacher Brandon Atherton, 24, authorities said.
     
    Freight train hits, kills pedestrian


    January 12, 2006

    GENEVA -- A Union Pacific freight train fatally struck a 41-year-old Geneva man
    early Wednesday, police said.

    Keith Hajek had been walking eastbound on the north side of the railroad tracks
    near Second Street when he was struck from behind by an eastbound train about
    12:45 a.m., said Geneva Police Lt. Joe Frega.

    The train's engineer saw Hajek about 500 feet ahead of him and tried blowing his
    horn and applying the train's emergency brakes. But he was unable to avoid the
    man, Frega said. The train was traveling about 35 m.p.h., Frega said.

    "We don't know if he thought the train was on the other side of the track or
    what," Frega said. Police believe alcohol may have been a factor in the
    incident.

    Friends of Hajek told police they had been drinking with him at a local bar
    before he left to walk home. Hajek was a lifelong resident of Geneva and had a
    teenage daughter, he said. The incident is under investigation, Frega said.
     
    Driver charged in deaths of 2 adults, unborn child
    --------------------

    By William Presecky
    Tribune staff reporter

    January 11, 2006, 2:11 PM CST

    A 24-year-old west suburban man was charged today with driving drunk last week
    when his Jeep collided head-on with another vehicle, killing a passenger in his
    SUV as well as a woman who was nine months pregnant in the other vehicle.

    John D. Homatas, of Wayne, was charged with 10 felony criminal counts in
    connection with the Jan. 4 crash on Illinois Highway 25 near South Elgin, Kane
    County State's Atty. John Barsanti announced at a news conference at the county
    Judicial Center in St. Charles.

    If convicted of the most serious charge -- aggravated driving under the
    influence in the deaths of two or more people -- the severely injured Homatas,
    who is in a drug-induced coma at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital, Park Ridge,
    could be sentenced up to 28 years in prison.

    Though his first court appearance is set for Feb. 2 in Kane County Circuit
    Court, Homatas is not expected to appear in person because of the extent of his
    injuries, Barsanti said.

    April M. Simmons, 27, of Yorkville, and her 36-week fetus died in the crash.
    John Chiariello, 25, of St. Charles, a passenger in Homatas' Jeep, also was
    killed.

    Homatas is charged with four counts of reckless homicide, two counts of reckless
    homicide of an unborn child and four counts of aggravated driving under the
    influence of alcohol, authorities said.

    Barsanti said Homatas' blood-alcohol content exceeded the legal limit needed to
    trigger a drunk driving charge. He declined to offer details.

    The late-night accident occurred on a dark, rural stretch of two-lane Illinois
    25 just north of Kenyon Road in unincorporated Elgin Township.

    As part of the ongoing investigation of the accident, Kane County Undersheriff
    Mike Anderson said police have interviewed the driver of one of the vehicles
    that Homatas' SUV is alleged to have passed just before the crash.

    Police are asking that the driver of a second vehicle Homatas is believed to
    have passed just before the collision to come forward with any information that
    could assist their investigation, Anderson said.

    The charges were based in part on evidence gathered by police through a search
    warrant and interviews at a gentleman's club in West Chicago, authorities said.
    They declined go into details about the warrant or what investigators were told.

    Homatas is believed to have been at the club before the accident.

    Other interviews are pending, Anderson said.

    Homatas has a history of speeding violations. According to DuPage County court
    records, he pleaded guilty to speeding eight times since 1998: once in 1998;
    twice in 1999; twice in 2000; once in 2002 and twice in 2003. He also pleaded
    guilty to running a red light in Rolling Meadows in 2002.

    In six of the speeding cases -- three of which court records show he was driving
    almost 20 miles over the speed limit -- Homatas received court supervision,
    which kept the tickets from affecting his permanent record.

    But two tickets -- one in 1998 and one in 1999 -- resulted in convictions,
    according to Ruth Riley, a spokeswoman with the secretary of state's office.
    Because he was under 21 at the time and had two convictions within two years,
    his license was automatically suspended for three months, she said.

    Homatas had a valid driver's license at the time of the crash.

    Simmons had no violations on her driving record, Riley said.
     
    Reds UT Ryan Freel Arrested in Tampa
    --------------------

    By Associated Press

    January 8, 2006, 9:47 PM CST

    TAMPA, Fla. -- Cincinnati Reds utility player Ryan Freel was arrested on an
    alcohol-related charge at a pool hall early Sunday, police said.

    Police were called to a pool hall in Tampa at 3:35 a.m. and arrested the
    29-year-old Freel, of Jacksonville, on a misdemeanor disorderly intoxication
    charge. He was released from Hillsborough County Jail on Sunday morning after
    posting $250 bail.

    It was Freel's second arrest in nine months. In April, he was arrested in
    Bellevue, Ky., on the night the baseball season started. He was charged with
    operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol, careless driving and
    having an open container in a motor vehicle.

    On May 10, he pleaded guilty to a charge of driving under the influence of
    alcohol, and in exchange for his plea, the other charges were dropped. A judge
    also suspended Freel's driver's license for 90 days and assessed fines and court
    costs totaling $600. He was required to undergo alcohol evaluation and
    treatment.

    Freel signed a $3 million, two-year contract with the Reds on Dec. 20. He batted
    .271 with four homers and 21 RBIs in 103 games last season. He also stole 36
    bases and scored 69 runs.

    Reds spokesman Rob Butcher said the team does not have all the information about
    Freel's arrest and therefore could not comment.
    Copyright (c) 2006, The Associated Press

    Here is an example how drinking kills you and take decades off your life...
    >  
    >
    > LONDON -- George Best, one of the most dazzling players in soccer
    > history who also reveled in a drinking, playboy lifestyle, died
    > Friday hospital officials said. He was 59.
    >
    > Best, who starred in the 1960s and 1970s for Manchester United and
    > Northern Ireland, had a liver transplant three years ago because
    > alcohol destroyed his liver.
    >
    > He appeared close to death last month when doctors discovered internal
    > bleeding. He had been readmitted to intensive care a week ago with a
    > lung infection and was put on life support. His condition deteriorated
    > sharply Thursday.
    >
    > "After a long fight, Mr. George Best died this afternoon in the
    > intensive care unit at Cromwell Hospital," the hospital said in a
    > statement.
    >
    > Best was told never to drink again after his liver transplant, but he
    > went back to his old ways and was regularly seen at pubs.
    >
    > "Unfortunately there is no solution to alcohol, you can't make it go
    > away," Best wrote in a recent update to his second autobiography
    > "Blessed." "Drink is the only opponent I've been unable to beat."
    >
    > Denis Law, a former Manchester United teammate, was at Best's bedside
    > all night.
    >
    > "From 1964 to 1969, he was the best player in the country," Law said.
    > "It's sad as hell, but I don't think we saw the best of him. I think
    > he went on the blink at a time when he could have got even better."
    >
    > Slightly built but with amazing balance and devastating speed, Best
    > would run at defenders and leave them tackling thin air. Sometimes he
    > would embarrass them further by going back to beat them again.
    >
    > Later in his career he moved to the Scottish club Hibernian but was
    > fired when he failed to show for two games because of drinking binges.
    >
    > In 1984, he served two months in jail for drunken driving. In 2004, he
    > was banned from driving for 20 months after another conviction. In
    > 2000, Best collapsed from serious liver damage. He was hospitalized
    > with pneumonia in 2001.
    >
    > Best had a reputation as someone who could not be relied on to keep
    > appointments either as a player, TV soccer analyst or after-dinner
    > speaker. His private life was splashed across the British tabloids,
    > and he seemed to enjoy the attention.
    >
    > "I spent a lot of money on booze, birds and fast cars," he once said.
    > "The rest I just squandered."
    >
    > In 1983, his playing career over, Best was hit over the head with a
    > beer glass in a London pub hours after he appeared in bankruptcy court
    > for failing to pay back taxes. Just before Christmas the following
    > year, Best was jailed for three months for drunken driving, assaulting
    > a policeman and jumping bail.
    >
    > In 1990, Best appeared wildly drunk on a live TV show, uttering
    > expletives and embarrassing the host. But, with his second wife, Alex
    > Pursey, standing by, he contained his drinking enough to regularly
    > appear on an afternoon soccer program, giving his analysis.
    >
    > The drinking caught up with him again when he was rushed to a London
    > hospital. Doctors told him even one more glass of wine could kill him.
    > In the hospital for a month, Best promised his wife he wouldn't drink
    > again. It was one more promise he couldn't keep.
    >
    > In 2004, Alex Best was granted a divorce after nine years of marriage,
    > citing her husband's adultery. Best had a son, Calum, from a four-year
    > marriage to his first wife, Angie.
    >
    > Best will be buried next to his mother, Ann, in Belfast, Northern
    > Ireland on Dec. 2, said his agent, Phil Hughes.=
     
    Halfway man held after fatal accident 
    >
    > Published Saturday November 12, 2005
    >
    > By DYLAN DARLING
    >
    > A man involved in a crash that killed a Klamath Falls man and son has
    > been accused of criminally negligent homicide and drunken driving.
    >
    > Gerald “Joe” G. Arant, 67, of Klamath Falls, and his son, Mark J.
    > Arant, 42, of Ontario died Thursday at St. Elizabeth Hospital in Baker
    > City.
    >
    > Anthony J. Del Curto, 50, of Halfway, was held at the Baker County
    > jail in Baker City. Del Curto was not using his seat belt, but
    > received only minor injuries in the crash, Oregon State Police said.
    >
    > Lt. Gregg Hastings of the OSP said police would not release Del
    > Curto's blood-alcohol content because it is evidence. He said the DUII
    > charge fit what investigators found at the scene.
    >
    > “There is sufficient evidence that would substantiate that charge,” he
    > said.
    >
    > Criminally negligent homicide is a felony in Oregon and carries a
    > maximum sentence of five years in prison. A typical sentence is three
    > years. (what a fucking joke)
    >
    > The crash happened at about 2:40 p.m. Thursday. Hastings gave these
    > details:
    >
    > Del Curto's pickup was headed west on Highway 86 near Halfway, a town
    > of about 300 that sits 55 miles east of Baker City, close to Hells
    > Canyon. Del Curto was going slowly.
    >
    > Following the Del Curto pickup was Joe Arant in his Chevrolet pickup.
    > Arant was towing a horse trailer with three horses. The Arants were
    > returning from an elk hunting trip.
    >
    > Arant tried to pass Del Curto's pickup on a straight stretch. Del
    > Curto's pickup drifted across the center line and sideswiped Arant's
    > pickup.
    >
    > The impact caused both drivers to lose control and go off the highway
    > toward East Pine Creek. The Dodge pickup came to rest on its side. The
    > Chevrolet pickup came to rest upside down in the creek.
    >
    > Officers were able to get Joe Arant from his pickup quickly, but a
    > rancher in a truck had to pull the pickup out of the chilly water of
    > the creek before they could get to Mark Arant.
    >
    > Both Arants had their seat belts on. The three horses in the trailer
    > received minor injuries.
    >
    > A passenger in the Del Curto's Dodge pickup, James E. Nixon, 55, of
    > Monroe, was not using his seat belt and was not injured in the crash.
    >
    > OSHKOSH, Wis. - A 4-month-old girl died when her inebriated mother
    > fell asleep on top of her while breast-feeding, prosecutors said.
    >
    > Lorinda Hawkins told police she fell asleep about 15 minutes after she
    > started breast-feeding the baby Feb. 23 because of her intoxication, a
    > criminal complaint said. When she woke up about an hour later, the
    > baby was pale and wasn't breathing, the complaint said.
    >
    > Hawkins was charged Friday with one count of child neglect causing a
    > death. If convicted as a repeat felony offender, she could be
    > sentenced to 29 years in prison and fined $100,000.
    >
    > Defense lawyer Steven Smits asked for Hawkins' release on signature
    > bond so she could enter substance abuse treatment, but she remained
    > jailed late Friday on $7,000 bond. A preliminary hearing was scheduled
    > Nov. 17.
    >
    > The 27-year-old — who was on probation for child neglect — had
    > consumed six double-shot alcoholic beverages at a bowling alley, the
    > complaint said. A toxicologist estimated her blood alcohol level
    > ranged from .15 to .27 percent.
    >
    > Her husband drove Hawkins and their 4-year-old daughter to the bowling
    > alley and later brought them home, then went out drinking himself,
    > according to the complaint. The baby was unresponsive when he returned
    > an hour later, the complaint said.
    >
    > Hawkins was on probation for neglect of the same child, and was
    > prohibited from drinking alcohol and from having unsupervised contact
    > with all four of her children at once, court documents show.
    >
    > Man accused of killing wife, stepson in Bremerton caught in N.M.
    >
    > 11/11/2005
    >
    > Associated Press
    >
    > A man accused of fatally shooting his wife and stepson in Washington
    > state
    > has been arrested at the University of New Mexico, apparently after
    > seeking aid for minor stab wounds, police said.
    >
    > A routine National Crime Information Computer check Thursday showed
    > Bryan
    > Christopher Matsen, 35, was wanted on a Washington state warrant
    > accusing
    > him of two counts of first-degree murder, and he was taken into custody
    > without incident shortly after 1 a.m., university police Lt. Pat Davis
    > said.
    >
    > "We believe Mr. Matsen himself actually made the 911 call requesting
    > assistance," Davis said.
    >
    > Matsen was taken to a hospital, where he was being guarded by UNM
    > police
    > as investigators tried to determine how and why he was stabbed.
    >
    > After being released from the hospital, Matsen will be taken to the
    > Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center and the case will be
    > presented to the district attorney's office for extradition
    > proceedings,
    > Davis said.
    >
    > The bodies of Evelyn Matsen, 34, and her son, Wahren Agonoy, 13, were
    > found in their home Sunday near Bremerton, Wash.
    >
    > They had been killed Friday, the same day Matsen was arrested for being
    > drunk in his car aboard a ferry to Edmonds, Wash., a suburb north of
    > Seattle.
    >
    > Edmonds police cited him for being in control of a car while under the
    > influence of alcohol and found a loaded 12-gauge shotgun in the trunk
    > but
    > had no way of knowing it might have been used in two slayings 25 miles
    > away.
    >
    > Matsen was taken to a hospital for a mental evaluation because of
    > suicidal
    > statements he made while being booked, then was released by the
    > hospital
    > after refusing to be evaluated, officials said.
    >
    > Kitsap County sheriff's deputy Scott Wilson said Tuesday that
    > detectives
    > believe the killings occurred between the time a neighbor saw the boy
    > returning home from school Friday and when Matsen was arrested at
    > about 5
    > p.m. in Edmonds.
    >
    > Wilson said he could not fault Edmonds police for the way they handled
    > the
    > case.
    >
    > The bodies were found after one of Evelyn Matsen's co-workers at
    > aBremerton assisted-living home called 911 to say she had not shown up
    > forwork Sunday and had been having problems with her husband.
    >
    >
    > By LAURIE FOX / The Dallas Morning News
    >
    > Parents of several Carroll High School varsity cheerleaders have
    > accused
    > school district officials of not fully investigating complaints that
    > five
    > squad members were drinking alcohol during last Friday's football game.
    >
    > Several parents and squad members said five Carroll High School
    > cheerleaders appeared visibly drunk on the field while in uniform and
    > performed stunts while intoxicated, jeopardizing the safety of the
    > 24-member squad.
    >
    > "There's not one of us who doesn't feel angry about this," one
    > cheerleader
    > said of her teammates' alleged drinking. "We're disgusted, and we feel
    > disrespected."
    >
    > Three students and four parents of cheerleaders who spoke about the
    > incident asked that their names not be used for fear of retribution.
    >
    >
    > "Everyone in school is talking about it only because they're mad that
    > no
    > one got caught," one student said Wednesday
    >
    > The complaints have prompted cheerleading sponsor Suzanna Hughes to
    > require that the girls carry their belongings in a clear or mesh bag
    > and
    > not bring their own water bottles at this week's playoff football game
    > at
    > Texas Stadium, according to some cheerleaders and their parents.
    >
    > Ms. Hughes could not be reached for comment.
    >
    > Some cheerleaders said they met with Ms. Hughes on Monday and Tuesday
    > to
    > talk about the issue, seeking changes within their own ranks. They said
    > almost all of the cheerleaders voiced concerns about drinking on the
    > squad.
    >
    > Several parents said all of the cheerleaders were aware of the drinking
    > and thought some girls did everything they could to point it out.
    >
    > "They need to be commended for just walking those few feet and telling
    > the
    > officer about this in front of all those people," one parent said of
    > those
    > who reported the incident. Three witnesses said they separately
    > reported
    > the incident to a Southlake police officer at the game but thought
    > their
    > concerns were not taken seriously. They also said they're upset that
    > the
    > incident was not pursued further by school administrators on Monday.
    >
    > The girls and their parents said they gave officials what they thought
    > was
    > enough information that drinking occurred before the game – and was
    > going
    > to occur again at halftime – to warrant a more thorough investigation.
    >
    > Several cheerleaders and their parents said five senior cheerleaders
    > brought vodka to the stadium – concealed under jackets and in duffle
    > bags
    > – and consumed some before the game.
    >
    > The girls also said their teammates clustered into a bathroom stall at
    > halftime to down shots of alcohol but dropped the shot glass on the
    > floor,
    > shattering it, alerting others in the bathroom.
    >
    > Several cheerleaders said they could smell the alcohol on their
    > teammates'
    > breath and observed them swaying on the field, stumbling, reaching for
    > balance and slurring their words.
    >
    > During the first half of the game, some cheerleaders sought out their
    > parents in the stands to relay their concerns. One wanted to go home
    > rather than perform with the group. Another refused to take part in the
    > impressive aerial acrobatics the group performs for fear of getting
    > hurt.
    >
    > "Performing like that in front of the entire city of Southlake is
    > unacceptable," a parent said. "They can make whatever choices they're
    > going to make on their own time, but don't do it in a Carroll High
    > School
    > uniform."
    >
    > A parent said she spoke with a Carroll Senior High School assistant
    > principal on Monday but was told that the issue was hearsay and that
    > nothing could be done about it.
    >
    > "We did not get satisfaction from their investigation of this," the
    > parent
    > said.
    >
    > Principal Danny Presley said Wednesday that the school is consistent
    > with
    > handling all complaints. "We investigate and deal with all
    > situations," he
    > said.
    >
    > Some parents said they wanted the girls to know that they did the right
    > thing reporting the issue.
    >
    > "We raised these girls to stand up for what they believe in," one
    > parent
    > said.
    >
    > Several said they were galvanized by the mandatory drug and alcohol
    > awareness classes that they had to take because their children were
    > enrolled in extracurricular activities.
    >
    > North Carolina man executed for murders of mother, stepfather (This is what should happen to everyone who drinks and kills another person)
    >  
    > RALEIGH, N.C. A man who killed his mother and stepfather has been put
    > to death in North Carolina.
    >
    > Steven McHone was executed by lethal injection early this morning.
    >
    > The 35-year-old man didn't give a last statement but appeared to say
    > "I'm so sorry" to his half brother Wesley Adams Junior.
    >
    > Adams supported the execution, saying in a statement that "justice was
    > upheld."
    >
    > During a 1990 argument with his mother over money, McHone chased her
    > around the yard and shot her in the back of the head. His stepfather
    > then took the gun away, but McHone found another gun and killed him.
    >
    > >
    >
    > Football Player Suspended Indefinately 
    > Monday November 07, 2005 10:06pm    Posted By: Theresa Acker 
    >
    >
    > Columbia, SC - A South Carolina football player charged with driving
    > drunk is suspended indefinitely from the team.
    >
    > Police say 21-year-old Scott Morgan was asleep behind the wheel of his
    > car at a downtown Columbia intersection about four Sunday morning.
    >
    > Officers said his foot was on the brake and the car was in drive.
    >
    > Six Chattanooga football players charged with raping student after an October party
    >
    > BILL POOVEY
    > Associated Press Writer
    > CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Six football players at the University of
    > Tennessee at Chattanooga have been charged with taking turns raping a
    > drunken student after a party, a university spokesman said Tuesday.
    >
    > The charges stem from what the woman said was a gang rape on Oct. 21
    > at the apartment of one of the players.
    >
    > District Attorney Bill Cox declined to comment. An attorney for the
    > players, Jerry Summers, did not return telephone messages seeking
    > comment about the charges. Summers previously said the sexual activity
    > was consensual.
    >
    > Last week, the 18-year-old female student told The Associated Press,
    > which does not identify alleged victims of sexual assault, that there
    > was no consensual sex.
    >
    > Police said the woman told investigators she got drunk at a party and
    > became separated from her friends. When the party began to break up
    > about 2:30 a.m., she said, she was taken to the apartment, where seven
    > to 10 men took turns having sex with her. She said she objected and
    > hit them, but they forced themselves on her.
    >
    > Campus police chief Mac McNeely said the female student's drunkenness
    > was a factor in bringing charges.
    >
    > The allegations did not come to light until a week later, when coach
    > Rodney Allison suspended those charged.
    >
    > Chancellor Roger Brown said he initially was told the players were
    > being punished for a curfew violation and he did not find out about
    > the rape report until days later.
    >
    > Brown described that delay as "administrative error," but said he was
    > satisfied the investigation was handled properly by campus police.
    >
    > The six charged are Muhammad Ahmad Abdus-Salaam, Lironne Davis, DeJuan
    > Payne, Cori Stukes, Terrence Thomas and Larry White, university
    > spokesman Chuck Cantrell said
    >
    > Sisters' Lesbian Sex Fantasies & Drugs Lead To Mom's Murder
    > by Gregg Bonnell, Canadian Press
    >
    > Posted: November 9, 2005  9:00 pm ET 
    >
    > (Brampton, Ontario)  Two teenage sisters accused of drowning their
    > mother in the bathtub three years ago exploited her weakness for
    > alcohol in planning and carrying out the alleged murder, court heard
    > Tuesday through chilling videotaped evidence.
    >
    > Nearly a year after her mother's death in January 2003, the younger
    > sister recounted the events of that night to a family friend, unaware
    > the conversation was being surreptitiously videotaped by police.
    >
    > ``I was the one who mixed our mom's drinks that day,'' says the
    > younger of the two girls, neither of whom can be identified because
    > they were teenagers when the crime occurred.
    >
    > Their 44-year-old mother had taken pain relievers containing codeine
    > the night she died, but it wasn't added to her drinks, the girl says
    > on the recording, one of three taped conversations played Tuesday in
    > court.
    >
    > ``We didn't put anything in (her drink). She took (the codeine)
    > herself . . .once we told her to. She was already too drunk to know.''
    >
    > It's alleged the sisters, who were 15 and 16 at the time, planned
    > their mother's death by making sure she was drunk and drugged before
    > she took a bath at the family home in Mississauga, Ont., a suburb west
    > of Toronto.
    >
    > Both sisters have pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree murder.
    >
    > ``We used her weak points against her,'' the girl says on the tape as
    > she tells her friend that were better off without her.
    >
    > ``It was kind of like a building rage . . .that was just mounting our
    > whole life,'' she says. ``If you look at it one way, I don't regret it
    > because now (our little brother) has . . .a better chance. If you look
    > at it another way, I'm completely devastated.''
    >
    > On the night of the drowning, the younger brother was staying with his
    > father, who had been separated from the mother for some time.
    >
    > The tapes chronicling the girl's admissions came on the heels of
    > similar evidence presented Monday in which the older sister described
    > in detail how she held her mother's head under the water for a full
    > four minutes.
    >
    > She also recounted a number of incidents involving her mother,
    > including driving while drunk with the kids in the car, threatening to
    > plunge the car off a bridge and her habit of masturbating naked in
    > plain view of the children while intoxicated.
    >
    > Taking the stand as the Crown's first witness, the family friend who
    > worked with police to capture the conversations said he was
    > ``shocked'' when the younger sister outlined her role in the death.
    >
    > On the tape, the 21-year-old friend asks the younger sister if she
    > helped push her mother's head under the water.
    >
    > ``No,'' comes the reply. ``There just isn't enough room (in the
    > bathroom) for another person to be helping . . .I was, like, two feet
    > behind.''
    >
    > At one point, the friend asks if the two sisters planned the crime.
    >
    > ``Yeah, we're not stupid,'' the girl replies. ``If we were stupid we
    > would have gotten caught.'' The girl then goes on to say the codeine
    > was supplied by her boyfriend.
    >
    > The defense went to lengths to portray the sisters as teenagers prone
    > to telling lies and tall tales, citing remarks the girls make on the
    > videotapes about lesbian fantasies, their desire to skydive and their
    > own drug and alcohol abuse.
    >
    > Neither the 44-year-old mother nor her daughters can be identified
    > under the Youth Criminal Justice Act. The sisters, now 18 and 19, are
    > free on bail, living under house arrest and doing volunteer work in
    > the community.
    >
    > During the trial, the girls have sat side by side, frequently
    > whispering to each other while paying rapt attention to the
    > videotapes. On Monday, they both wore dress shirts and men's ties. On
    > Tuesday, it was sweaters and casual pants.
    >
    > Under cross examination, the family friend recalled how the older
    > sister talked about suicide only weeks before her mother's death.
    >
    > The friend testified he understood the girl to be saying not that she
    > was thinking of killing herself, but that she would rather take her
    > own life than grow old. He didn't consider her to be at imminent risk
    > of suicide.
    >
    > The mother's drowning death was initially ruled accidental. It was
    > only after the family friend came forward with allegations the older
    > sister confessed the crime to him that police reopened the case.
    >
    > Police outfitted a Ford Focus to videotape the interior, and on
    > several occasions the friend took the sisters out for a drive in the
    > hopes of eliciting a confession.
    >
    > The Crown is expected to call some 30 witnesses during the trial. A
    > court order prohibits publishing the witnesses' names.
    >
    > The trial is scheduled to resume Monday.
    >
    > PEDESTRIAN INJURED IN ACCIDENT TUESDAY
    > STAFF
    > 11/08/2005

    >
    > A driver who told police he had been drinking alcohol struck and
    > severely injured a 74-year-old man who was crossing a street in Tyler
    > on Tuesday night, police said.
    >
    >
    > Leon Fields, who was walking across the 2300 block of West Erwin
    > Street, had head injuries and was in a coma at East Texas Medical
    > Center, said Sgt. Tom Deal of the Tyler Police Department.
    >
    > Deal said the driver was turning his pickup out of a nearby shopping
    > center parking lot when he struck Fields.
    >
    > Police were administering a blood alcohol test to determine if the
    > driver was legally intoxicated, Deal said. No charges had been filed.
    >
    >
    > Franklin Park man guilty of setting a body on fire
    > --------------------
    >
    >
    > November 9, 2005
    >
    > LOMBARD -- A Franklin Park man pleaded guilty Tuesday to the
    > mutilation of a
    > body after he started a fire in a Lombard trash bin to hide his
    > involvement in
    > the January 2004 drug overdose death of a River Grove woman.
    >
    > Richard Atkinson, 50, pleaded guilty to the mutilation of human
    > remains for
    > burning the body of a friend, Shauna Rosales, 29, after she overdosed
    > on alcohol
    > and drugs. Atkinson, who was previously found unfit to stand trial,
    > entered a
    > plea of guilty but mentally ill. His attorney said he was unstable at
    > the time
    > of the woman's death, but not so ill as to not understand the
    > difference between
    > right and wrong.
    >
    > DuPage County Assistant State's Atty. Liam Brennan said that Atkinson
    > confessed
    > to the crime, saying he did drugs and drank with the woman in his home.
    >
    >
    > Woman's bail $250,000 in alleged DUI death
    > --------------------
    >
    >
    > November 8, 2005
    >
    > CHICAGO -- A 24-year-old Chicago woman was ordered held in lieu of
    > $250,000 bail
    > Monday in the weekend death of a man she allegedly ran down on Western
    > Avenue
    > while driving drunk.
    >
    > Ebonie Johnson, of the 2700 block of West 83rd Street, is charged with
    > aggravated DUI in the death of 51-year-old Francisco Pantoja, who was
    > struck and
    > killed early Sunday as he crossed the street in the 5600 block of
    > South Western.
    >
    > Assistant State's Atty. Maria McCarthy said Johnson's blood-alcohol
    > level was
    > more than twice the legal limit. Johnson struck a light pole after
    > hitting
    > Pantoja, who lived in the 3500 block of South Rockwell Street. She was
    > still
    > behind the wheel when police arrived, McCarthy said.
    >
    > Johnson remained hospitalized, but Criminal Court Judge Kevin Sheehan
    > set bail
    > in her absence.
    >
    > Panthers Cheerleaders Charged After Bar Arrest
    >
    > TAMPA, Fla. (Nov. 7) - A Carolina Panthers cheerleader was charged
    > Monday with giving police a false name when she and another
    > cheerleader were arrested at a bar where witnesses told police the
    > woman had sex in a restroom.
    >
    > Renee Thomas, 20, of Pittsboro, N.C., and Angela Keathley, 26, of
    > Belmont, N.C., were taken to Hillsborough County Jail early Sunday
    > after an incident at a club in Tampa's Channelside district.
    >
    > Thomas was charged with battery after allegedly striking a bar patron
    > when she was leaving the restroom, then landed in even more trouble
    > after police said she gave officers a driver's license belonging to
    > another Panthers cheerleader who was not in Tampa.
    >
    > Thomas, who made the trip to Florida for Sunday's game between the
    > Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was released from jail on $500 bail
    > before police learned she was not the person she claimed to be.
    >
    > Providing police with a false name is a misdemeanor. However, Thomas
    > was charged with giving a false name and causing harm to another - a
    > third-degree felony punishable by probation or a jail term of 1 to 5
    > years, said police spokeswoman Laura McElroy.
    >
    > Meanwhile, detectives are trying to determine how Thomas gained
    > possession of the driver's license of the third cheerleader.
    >
    > Keathley, charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, was
    > released on $750 bail about an hour before the Panthers played the
    > Bucs at Raymond James Stadium. The cheerleaders were not in town to
    > perform at the game.
    >
    > Witnesses told police the women were having sex in a stall, angering
    > other patrons waiting in line to get into the restroom.
    >
    >
    > 11/07/05 16:12 EST
     
    1 killed, 3 injured after car, SUV collide
    > --------------------
    >
    > Girl killed, boyfriend injured in collision
    >
    > By Hal Dardick
    > Tribune staff reporter
    >
    > October 25, 2005
    >
    > Samantha Prescott was a good girl who made "one wrong choice," and it
    > cost the
    > Lockport Township High School sophomore her life, her mother said
    > Monday.
    >
    > Prescott, 15, of Crest Hill was supposed to be staying with a
    > girlfriend Friday
    > night, her mother said. Instead, "she sneaked out with her boyfriend,"
    > and they
    > got into a car driven by a 24-year-old acquaintance who police said
    > was drunk.
    >
    > The car went through a red light and crashed into a sport-utility
    > vehicle at
    > Weber and Caton Farm roads, said Crest Hill Police Lt. Dwayne
    > Wilkerson.
    >
    > Prescott was killed, and her boyfriend, Gregory Raymond, 17, also of
    > Crest Hill,
    > was left in critical condition with a head injury and collapsed lungs,
    > said
    > Samantha's mother, Allison.
    >
    > Matthew Richardson, the car's driver, was charged with four counts of
    > aggravated
    > driving under the influence of alcohol, said Lee Michaels, spokesman
    > for Will
    > County State's Atty. James Glasgow.
    >
    > Richardson of the 1600 block of North Prairie Avenue in unincorporated
    > Plainfield Township, also was charged with disobeying a
    > traffic-control device
    > and failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident, Wilkerson said.
    > Richardson was
    > in critical condition Monday at Provena St. Joseph Medical Center in
    > Joliet,
    > Michaels said.
    >
    > He is expected to be taken into custody upon release from the
    > hospital, and his
    > bail was set Monday at $500,000, Michaels said. If convicted of the
    > most serious
    > charges, Richardson would face up to 14 years in prison.
    >
    > He has been charged in the past with unlawful use of weapons, domestic
    > battery
    > and traffic offenses, according to Will County Circuit Court records.
    >
    > Prescott, a back-seat passenger in Richardson's car, died of multiple
    > injuries
    > at the scene of the crash, which happen about 10:15 p.m. Friday.
    >
    > The group was on their way from Raymond's house to Richardson's house,
    > the
    > girl's mother said.
    >
    > Raymond was airlifted to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood.
    > The SUV
    > driver, 48, was taken to Provena St. Joseph. His condition was not
    > available.
    >  
    > Woman faces DUI charge in fatal head-on collision
    > --------------------
    >
    >
    > October 27, 2005
    >
    > McHENRY COUNTY -- Bail was set at $500,000 Wednesday for a
    > Marengo-area woman
    > charged with aggravated DUI in connection with a head-on crash that
    > killed a
    > Gilberts man.
    >
    > McHenry County sheriff's police said Linda M. Mead, 49, of
    > unincorporated
    > Marengo was drunk Tuesday when her sport-utility vehicle crossed the
    > center line
    > of U.S. Highway 20 near Harmony Road and collided with a car. The
    > driver of the
    > car, Richard L. Seyller, 60, was killed.
    > BIRTHDAY ENDED IN ASSAULT ON PARTNER
    > Date : 25.10.05
    >  
    > A 24-year-old man who assaulted his girlfriend was told by a district
    > judge that his behaviour was 'selfish, self-centred, thoughtless and
    > criminal'. Michael Broughton, of Uxbridge Drive, Ernesettle, twice
    > grabbed his partner around the throat in a row after they had been out
    > celebrating her birthday on July 31.
    >
    > He also threw an object at her which hit her on the face, district
    > judge Paul Farmer heard at the city's magistrates court.
    >
    > Broughton, a warehouseman who was said to have under the influence
    > of alcohol, pleaded guilty in court to assault.
    >
    > Mr Farmer read probation office reports which had been prepared on
    > Broughton.
    >
    > He said nowhere in the report had Broughton accepted his
    > responsibility for the assault, although his solicitor, Steve Cox,
    > said Broughton now expressed remorse.
    >
    > Broughton was ordered to carry out 120 hours' unpaid work in the
    > community, given a 90-day curfew to stay indoors from 8pm to 6am on
    > Fridays and Saturdays and told to pay £150 compensation to his former
    > girlfriend plus £43 costs to the court.
    >  
    > Blood-alcohol in crash far over limit, cops say
    > --------------------
    >
    >
    > October 28, 2005
    >
    > McHENRY COUNTY -- A Marengo-area woman blamed for a crash that killed
    > a Gilberts
    > man had a blood-alcohol level nearly three times the legal limit,
    > prosecutors
    > said Thursday.
    >
    > Linda M. Mead, 49, remained jailed in lieu of $500,000 bail Thursday.
    > She was
    > charged with aggravated driving under the influence after the wreck
    > Tuesday
    > morning in a rural area west of Huntley.
    >
    > Mead was convicted three times in 1984 and 1985 on DUI charges in Cook
    > County,
    > said McHenry County Assistant State's Atty. Robert Beaderstadt. Her
    > license had
    > been suspended until 1999, Beaderstadt said.
    >
    > The crash Tuesday happened about 11:10 a.m. on U.S. Highway 20 near
    > Harmony
    > Road.
    >
    > Police said Mead crossed the center line, striking a car driven by
    > Richard
    > Seyller, 60. Seyller was pronounced dead at an Elgin hospital later in
    > the day.
    >  
    >  
    > El Sobrante man charged in woman's death got domestic violence
    > counseling
    >>
    >    (10-26) 10:14 PDT Richmond, Calif. (AP) --
    >
    >    An El Sobrante man whose ex-girlfriend's body was found in the
    > trunk of
    > his car already had eight felony convictions for stalking and attacking
    > her, and had received domestic violence counseling two days before the
    > woman disappeared, authorities said.
    >
    >    Scott McAlpin, 24, was arrested Oct. 23 in the Marin Headlands,
    > across the
    > Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. National Park Service officers
    > found him drunk near his parked car. They found Anastasia Melnitchenko,
    > 22, in the trunk.
    >
    >    McAlpin already was on probation after eight felony convictions in
    > two
    > separate cases for stalking, threatening and attacking Melnitchenko on
    > several occasions from 2001 to 2004. Part of his sentence in the most
    > recent case was that he attend a yearlong domestic violence prevention
    > program.
    >
    >    On Oct. 19, he attended a weekly session of a program in Richmond
    > run by
    > Priority Male Center for Positive Peaceful Living.
    >
    >    The center's director, Deborah Burkes, told the San Francisco
    > Chronicle
    > Tuesday that McAlpin had been participating in the weekly sessions for
    > six
    > months and "was doing satisfactorily."
    >
    >    She would not reveal his state of mind at last week's session,
    > citing
    > confidentiality rules. But authorities said McAlpin had been in a foul
    > mood after being jailed the night before for failing to show up for a
    > court-ordered evaluation before a judge.
    >
    >    A probation officer told a judge Oct. 19 that McAlpin had been
    > verbally
    > abusive toward her. She wanted him to serve 10 days of work cleaning
    > roadways. Prosecutors wanted him held for additional evaluation.
    >
    >    But the judge released McAlpin, citing a positive report he had
    > received
    > previously.
    >
    >    Melnitchenko, a Ukrainian native and recent immigrant, met McAlpin
    > in 2001
    > over the Internet and dated him briefly.
    >
    >    Prosecutor Leslie Cogan said in court documents the "pursuit of Ms.
    > Melnitchenko left her emotionally scarred."
    >
    >    A friend and former co-worker agreed.
    >
    >    "She was afraid to go out, she was afraid to go out on walks. She
    > was
    > afraid to sleep, she was afraid he would break her windows and come in
    > for
    > her," Larisa Timchenko told the Chronicle.
    >  
    > Gilberts driver killed in collision on U.S. 20
    > --------------------
    >
    >
    > October 26, 2005
    >
    > McHENRY COUNTY -- A Gilberts man was killed Tuesday morning when his
    > car
    > collided head-on with a sport-utility vehicle on U.S. Highway 20 near
    > Harmony
    > Road in unincorporated McHenry County.
    >
    > McHenry County sheriff's police said the driver of the SUV was drunk
    > and crossed
    > the center line. Charged with aggravated driving under the influence
    > was Linda
    > M. Mead, 49, of the 18000 block of Pinon Trail, in unincorporated
    > McHenry County
    > near Marengo, police said.
    >
    > The victim, Richard L. Seyller, 60, was pronounced dead at Provena St.
    > Joseph
    > Hospital in Elgin. Police said Seyller was driving his 1993 Mercury
    > Grand
    > Marquis northbound on U.S. 20 when his car collided with Mead's
    > southbound 1995
    > Ford Explorer.
    >
    > A passenger in Seyller's vehicle, Ibarra Gricelda, 41, of South Elgin,
    > was
    > reported in stable condition at Provena St. Joseph, police said.
    >
    >  
    > Man Arrested After Tussle With Ex-Olympian Harding

    > Figure Skater-Turned-Boxer Had Cut Over Right Eye, Abrasion on Cheek
    > VANCOUVER, Wash. (Oct. 25) - Tonya Harding tussled in her home with a
    > man she described as her boyfriend, prompting an emergency call by the
    > figure skater-turned-boxer and an arrest of the man.
    > Christopher Nolan was charged with assault and pleaded not guilty
    > Monday. He told deputies Harding threw him down and bit his finger
    > when he said she had too much to drink on Sunday. The 27-year-old
    > Nolan was ordered to stay away from Harding and to avoid alcohol.
    > Harding had a small cut over her right eye and an abrasion on her left
    > cheek.
    > Initially, Harding called 911 and said she was attacked by two masked
    > men who came to her home and assaulted her before she could escape.
    > Nolan said he and Harding were roommates.
    > The 34-year-old Harding was banned for life from competitive figure
    > skating after her former husband hired a hitman to club rival Nancy
    > Kerrigan with a baton as Kerrigan left the ice during practice at the
    > 1994 U.S. championships in Detroit.
    > The attack prevented Kerrigan from competing, but she recovered to win
    > a silver medal at the 1994 Olympics weeks later. Harding finished out
    > of the running.
    > More recently, Harding has tried her hand at pro boxing to mixed
    > reviews.
    >
    > Woman drank from wine bottle as she drove
    >  
    > 21.10.05 9.00am
    >  
    > A woman drinking from a wine bottle as she drove with her two-year-old
    > daughter had to be forced off the road by a truck driver.
    >
    > The 44-year-old learner driver left her Waiuku home near Pukekohe
    > south of Auckland to drive to Hamilton.
    >
    > She missed the Hamilton turn off and one and a half hours south of
    > Hamilton at Mahoenui a truck driver forced her to stop when he saw her
    > drinking from a wine bottle.
    >
    > The truck driver told police he feared she would kill herself and her
    > daughter as well as other people on the road if she carried on
    > driving.
    >
    > Fifteen-year police veteran Sergeant Lex Soepnel from Otorohanga
    > police, said she was very, very drunk and incoherent but she could
    > speak enough to accuse police of picking on her.
    >
    > Two empty wine bottles were in the car, she was drinking from a third
    > as she drove, and she had a fourth which Mr Soepnel said he had no
    > doubt would have been opened.
    >
    > Her car was nearly out of petrol and Mr Soepnel said had she not
    > crashed, her car would have run out of petrol in the remote Awakino
    > Gorge with little prospect of help.
    >
    > The woman had a breath alcohol level almost three times the legal
    > limit. She faced drink driving charges but had also been given several
    > instant fines relating to her licence.
    >
    > Child Youth and Family would also be told because her daughter was in
    > the car, he said.
    >
    > Mr Soepnel said it was unbelievable that people still decided to get
    > that drunk and drive, particularly with a child in the car.
    >
    > "It is truly amazing they would put them at such risk. There was no
    > remorse, no explanation, just 'why are you picking on me'," he said.
    >
    > "It is mind boggling with all the press releases and everything that
    > is going on with drunk driving that you get someone at that level,
    > especially driving on the open road and state highway with an innocent
    > child."
    >
    > He said drivers worried about the behaviour of other drivers should
    > call *555 and tell police.
    >
    > Guilty plea by ex-cop in 2 DUI deaths
    > --------------------
    >
    > 6- to 28-year sentence possible in Tinley crash
    >
    > By Carmen Greco Jr
    > Special to the Tribune
    >
    > October 22, 2005
    >
    > A former Chicago police officer pleaded guilty Friday to charges of
    > driving
    > drunk and causing a crash that killed two teenagers in Tinley Park
    > earlier this
    > year.
    >
    > Jason Casper, 24, was off duty Feb. 12 when he ran a red light at
    > 159th Street
    > and Harlem Avenue and hit the car in which Mohammed Shuaibi, 17, and
    > Ahmad
    > Shaban, 16, were passengers. Both youths died of their injuries.
    >
    > Casper's guilty plea to charges of reckless homicide and aggravated
    > drunken
    > driving was "blind," meaning there was no agreement on sentencing, set
    > for Dec.
    > 9, by Cook County Circuit Judge David Sterba.
    >
    > "He should have pleaded guilty a long time ago," Shuaibi's uncle,
    > Massoui
    > Shuaibi, tearfully said after the hearing. "He's guilty. Why did it
    > take this
    > long?"
    >
    > Casper faces 6 to 28 years in prison and will be required to serve 85
    > percent of
    > the term he's given.
    >
    > Casper, who was fired from his police job, had a blood-alcohol content
    > more than
    > twice the state's legal limit at the time of the accident, which also
    > seriously
    > injured the driver and front-seat passenger of the automobile in which
    > Shuaibi
    > and Shaban were rear-seat passengers.
    >
    > "There's a lesson for anyone who's been watching this case," said Terry
    > Gillespie, Casper's attorney. "Drunken driving destroys lives. He was
    > a young
    > man in his 20s who, like a lot of people his age, went out and drank
    > too much."
    >
    > Tears flowed on both sides as Assistant State's Atty. Peter Troy
    > recounted the
    > night of the accident.
    >
    > Casper was driving more than 90 m.p.h. eastbound on 159th when he ran
    > the red
    > light and hit the car, which was traveling north on Harlem and was in
    > the middle
    > of the intersection on a green light, Troy said.
    >
    > Gillespie said Casper never wanted to take the case to trial and is
    > ready to
    > take responsibility for the accident. "He will be in jail a long time,
    > and
    > that's hard for anyone, especially someone who was a police officer,"
    > the
    > attorney said.
     
    Halloween: a wasted night
    > By Travis Sherer
    > October 28, 2005
    > I've got a good costume idea for 80 percent of Western students.
    > How about going sober? If you really want to try being someone
    > different, that is.
    > Because there is a huge difference between people who do and do not
    > drink, and I'm not talking about personality.
    > Nowadays, any holiday is an excuse to drink. This is the problem.
    > Don't get me wrong; I like the slutty costumes as much as the next
    > guy. You don't have to be drunk to appreciate a naughty nurse outfit,
    > but the holiday is not even about the traditional scandalous costume
    > anymore.
    > So leave it to an opinionated man such as myself to put a damper on
    > your so-called holiday, but I must give you the typical nondrinker's
    > account of Halloween.
    > All day I'll have to convince myself to show up at a party because
    > this time will be different, this time the party will be so
    > interesting I will stay the whole night.
    > Before I continue, can I throw out the euphemisms such as "go out" and
    > "have a good time" and just call them what they are at this age?
    > Getting butt-housed.  
    > Although it's not intentional, you just don't get invited to anything
    > because nobody wants a sober guy around to remind them how stupid
    > everyone is acting.
    > But that's OK because my friend will invite me to a party and then I
    > am happy once again, thinking it will be different.
    > Once class is finished, I will again be reminded of how different I am
    > whilst walking home because an old friend will start talking to me
    > about how wasted he got last Halloween and how shitty he felt the
    > following morning.
    > What can I say to that? I don't have any similar stories, and even if
    > I did it would be the exact same story. You drank, puked and passed
    > out in no discernible order. It's always the same, but it never fails.
    > I mean, how many times can all of you hear and say the same fucking
    > story?
    > But walking into a party where everyone else drinks is like walking
    > into a three-hour inside joke between nearly 100 people and you're the
    > only one that's not in on it. Maybe that's why they keep laughing at
    > shit that isn't funny.
    > Let's face it, college students don't go to parties or bars to meet
    > new people. Anyone who tells you otherwise is lying.
    > If you go to a bar, the music is so loud you can't hear anything
    > anyone has to say. And if you go to a party in Bellingham, everybody
    > else is too drunk to talk to you.
    > Which reminds me how much of a joy talking to drunken people is.
    > Aside from all of those stupid questions such as, "Are you sure you're
    > having a good time?" and "Do you hate me?," you constantly deal with
    > that drunken stare they do.
    > So I'll decide to leave after an hour because nobody is left with any
    > substance anymore because everybody is yelling and nobody knows why.
    > At first you will all be sorry to see me go, but I know if I don't
    > leave now, your camaraderie will not linger.
    > You can threaten to drive all you want; you're not getting into my
    > car. This is one guy who does not care enough about you because you
    > don't even care enough about yourself, or anyone else.
    > Just because I'm responsible enough to get myself home in one piece
    > should I be responsible for you as well?
    > I'm not even going to take your keys from you - they're your keys.
    > Being drunk is an acceptable excuse for unruly behavior ranging from
    > hung-over rudeness the next morning to cheating on your mate.
    > For some reason being stupid the night before is an excuse for doing
    > something stupid the next day when really it's just a cover.  
    > I haven't even mentioned the little-kid syndrome either.
    > Normally, when I meet someone new I don't tell them about my drinking
    > preference because I get that "they'd still make you" look and then
    > tell me that my lifestyle is OK, as if I'm searching for approval.
    > In other words, I'm treated like a child because I don't willingly
    > ingest a lethal toxin. Also, while you drinkers may not say it
    > directly, every other activity is secondary to getting trashed. Why do
    > the things you could do before you could easily obtain alcohol?
    > Activities such as going to movies and going bowling are for kids -
    > unless you prefunk.
    > How different is Halloween going to be from your typical Monday night?
    > The only difference is your clothes.
    > So I'll drive home because everybody saw through my real costume of
    > "the normal college student" and found that sober guy everyone forgot
    > to invite.
    >
    > George Clooney drunk and loses cool
    > Posted Nov 4, 2005, 6:31 PM ET
    >
    >
    > Hollywood star George Clooney was drunk and in a fight with a security
    > guard outside a West End club.
    >
    > George Clooney lost his cool after using a back exit door to bypass
    > the paparazzi, but that went dangerously wrong, leaving him stranded
    > in an alley at 2am. At the same time, the club security staff walked
    > off, and uninterested in his plight. Clooney then blew his top.
    >
    > A witness stated that the security guard was walking down the alley
    > and Clooney screamed at him to come back, and then said, "I am going
    > to [censored] have you!"
    >
    > Clooney then took a run at the guard and a pushing match started, with
    > his ex-girlfriend Lisa Snowdon getting involved. Witnesses said that
    > Clooney went up to the security guard while Lisa was screaming at him,
    > "George, George, come here!" She then grabbed his hand and tried to
    > pull him away. A Jeep pulled up and that's when Clooney was sholved in
    > the vehicle as it sped away.
    >
    > Witnesses said they were shocked, and didn't expect George Clooney to
    > start a fight with a security guard.
    >
    > The 44-year-old star had been in London to promote his latest film,
    > Good Night, And Good Luck. Clooney had spoken to reporters as he
    > arrived for the premiere of the film which he directed, cowrote and
    > starred in.
    >
    > Snowdon, 31, a model and TV presenter, had made a surprise visit to
    > the West End premiere. Earlier in the evening, Clooney had said he was
    > "really happy" she came to see him, but said he was flying back to Los
    > Angeles within hours.
    >
    >  
    > Terrapins suspended for bar fight
    > --------------------
    >
    >
    > November 5, 2005
    >
    > Three Maryland players were suspended one game by the school for their
    > involvement in a fight at an off-campus bar this week.
    >
    > A fourth player will be suspended at least one game for underage
    > drinking at
    > another off-campus bar.
    >
    > The suspended players were not identified. Athletic department
    > officials cited
    > the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act as their reason for not
    > disclosing
    > the names.
    >
    > In all more than a dozen players were found to have violated team
    > rules on
    > Monday night and Tuesday morning. The violations included breaking the
    > team's
    > 11:30 p.m. weekday curfew and consuming alcohol.
    >
    > "This wasn't very easy for me," said coach Ralph Friedgen, who
    > conducted his own
    > investigation into the bar fight and uncovered the additional
    > violations. "It's
    > one of the more difficult things I've done since I've been here. I did
    > what I
    > felt had to be done. The message had to be sent that this kind of
    > behavior will
    > not be tolerated."
    >  
    > More charges could be coming in hay ride crash
    >
    > Published: Tuesday, November  1st, 2005
    >           
    > By MEG KINNARD,
    >           
    > COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - More charges could be filed in the hay ride
    > crash that
    > killed a toddler and three adults, police said Tuesday.
    >
    > Franklin Jones Jr., the driver of the tractor pulling a flatbed
    > trailer that was
    > hit from behind by an 18-wheeler, could be charged for operating a
    > trailer
    > without appropriate lighting, state Highway Patrol Trooper Sonny
    > Collins said.
    >
    > The trailer involved in Sunday's crash near a crossroads between
    > Marion and
    > Dillon off U.S. Highway 501 didn't have rear lights, police said.
    >
    > 'If you're pulling a vehicle, you must have at least one illuminated
    > light or
    > some type or reflector visible for 500 feet,' Collins said. 'This is
    > just the
    > beginning of this investigation. ... Certainly charges could be
    > coming.'
    >
    > The driver of the 18-wheeler that slammed into the trailer was charged
    > Monday
    > with felony driving under the influence. If convicted, 51-year-old
    > Jake Davis
    > Jr. of Florence, could receive up to 25 years in prison for each of
    > the four
    > people who died, Collins said. He also could face up to 15 years for
    > each 'great
    > bodily injury' suffered.
    >
    > 'Once the investigation is over, we will determine how many counts
    > will be
    > issued here,' said Collins, who wouldn't release Davis' blood-alcohol
    > level. 'If
    > they release it all, it may not be released until trial.'
    >
    > Authorities identified those killed as Jerry Wayne Jones, 31; Shiwanna
    > Lowery,
    > 15; Freddie Lynn Jones, 24; and 2-year-old Javon Jones.
    >
    > Collins said a reconstruction team was at the crash site Tuesday.
    > 'We're
    > probably talking 3 weeks to 4 weeks before a report is given,' Collins
    > said.
    > 'This is a complex crash. This is nothing they can just go out and put
    > together
    > in a couple of hours.'
    >
    > The John Deere tractor involved typically has a top speed of about 25
    > mph. The
    > speed limit on Dudley Road where the crash occurred is 55 mph. There
    > are 'no
    > street lights or anything like that' in that area, Collins said.
    >
    > One private hay ride operator said she takes many safety precautions
    > when she
    > offers hay rides to the public.
    >
    > Diann Harmon, who has been offering hay rides for 20 years at Harmon
    > Farms in
    > Lexington, said she has liability insurance in case of an accident,
    > although
    > there have been none on her 75-acre property.
    >
    > 'We don't take our hay rides out on the roads,' Harmon said. 'And we
    > don't allow
    > vehicles on the trails where the hay rides are.'
    >
    > Harmon said her hay ride trailers have lights and safety chains across
    > the back.
    >
    > 'We take a lot of precautions on our hay rides,' Harmon said. 'You've
    > got to
    > take precautions when you mess with the public. You just never know
    > what people
    > are going to do.'
    >
    > Another deadly automobile crash occurred near the site of Sunday's
    > crash less
    > than two weeks ago. On Oct. 23, according to Collins, five people were
    > killed in
    > nearby Horry County when the driver of a Chevrolet Blazer ran a stop
    > sign and
    > pulled in front of another vehicle.
    >
    > Collins said no charges have been filed in that case because
    > authorities are not
    > certain who was driving the Blazer. Authorities suspect someone in
    > that vehicle
    > was using alcohol.
    >    
    > 1 dead, 1 hurt after Madison bash
    > --------------------
    >
    > The Associated Press
    >
    > November 1, 2005, 10:11 AM CST
    >
    > MADISON -- A 19-year-old Illinois man remained hospitalized in critical
    > condition Monday after falling down stairs at an apartment building
    > during
    > Madison's annual Halloween Party over the weekend, authorities said.
    > Police said the man was found Saturday and was in town for the
    > celebration that
    > attracted tens of thousands of partygoers Friday and Saturday nights.
    > The crowd
    > grew to nearly 100,000 Saturday night before it was finally broken up
    > by police
    > in the early morning hours Sunday.
    > In a separate incident, a 22-year-old man, also from Illinois, died at
    > a
    > hospital early Sunday after friends found him in an apartment
    > downtown, police
    > said. Neither man's name had been released Monday.
    > Police Chief Noble Wray told reporters the injury to the 19-year-old
    > was related
    > to the party, but he was not willing to draw that line yet with the
    > fatality,
    > according to George Twigg, spokesman for Mayor Dave Cieslewicz who
    > also appeared
    > at the news conference.
    > An autopsy performed Monday on the 22-year-old indicated no
    > significant trauma
    > or injury, Dane County Chief Deputy Coroner Kurt Karbusicky said in a
    > release.
    > He said a ruling on the cause and manner of death wouldn't be issued
    > until
    > toxicology test results are available.
    > Wray and Cieslewicz have both been critical of the annual State Street
    > bash and
    > have questioned whether it should continue.
    > This year's event drew more people than last year and police had to
    > use pepper spray to disperse the crowd, as they had a year ago.
    > Police made 447 arrests, mostly for alcohol-related incidents.
    >  
    > Man held in crash that killed 2 in Harvey
    > --------------------
    >
    > By Jo Napolitano
    > Tribune staff reporter
    >
    > November 2, 2005
    >
    > A 30-year-old Chicago man accused of killing two people in a two-car
    > crash in
    > Harvey had a blood alcohol level more than twice the legal limit at
    > the time of
    > the Saturday morning wreck, authorities said.
    >
    > Brennam Beard of the 7300 block of South Aberdeen Street was charged
    > with one
    > count of aggravated driving under the influence and two counts of
    > reckless
    > homicide, said Cook County state's attorney spokesman Tom Stanton.
    > Beard's bail
    > was set at $150,000 Tuesday in a hearing in the Markham courthouse.
    >
    > Stanton said Beard's blood alcohol level was .19 and investigators
    > found an
    > empty bottle of vodka in his car. The legal limit in Illinois is .08.
    >
    > Beard was driving an Infiniti westbound on 147th Street at about 3
    > a.m. when his
    > car crossed into the eastbound lanes and struck a minivan at a high
    > speed near
    > Robey Avenue, Stanton said. Beard's car spun several times.
    >
    > A passenger in his vehicle, Henry Mims, 27, of Chicago was pronounced
    > dead at
    > the scene, and a passenger in the other car, Stephanie Davis, 32, of
    > Harvey died
    > later in a local hospital, Stanton said. Davis had three children, he
    > added.
    >
    > A Cook County medical examiner's office spokeswoman said both victims
    > died of
    > multiple injuries and that both deaths were ruled accidental.
    >
    > The driver of the minivan suffered a broken hip, leg, nose, shoulder
    > and arm and
    > several cuts and abrasions on her head and face, Stanton said. Her
    > name has not
    > been released.
    >
    > Fan who took ball from Favre pleads innocent
    > By JOE KAY, AP Sports Writer
    > October 31, 2005
    > CINCINNATI (AP) -- The fan who ran out of the stands and snatched a
    > football from Brett Favre's hand pleaded innocent to a variety of
    > charges at his arraignment Monday, while the Bengals promised not to
    > let it happen again.
    > Gregory Gall, 31, of Cincinnati, is accused of resisting arrest,
    > trespass and disorderly conduct while intoxicated. He was released on
    > his own recognizance following his appearance in Municipal Court.
    > The Bengals are reviewing their security measures to prevent a repeat
    > of Gall's run on the field, which interrupted the final minute of
    > Cincinnati's 21-14 victory over the Green Bay Packers.
    > NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said Monday that the league doesn't get
    > involved in team security issues.
    > ``It's a local matter,'' he said. ``If there's any questions, we can
    > assist them. But it appears to be an isolated incident, and the
    > Bengals are reviewing it.''
    > Favre drove the Packers to the Cincinnati 28 in the final minute and
    > took a snap from center when Gall ran onto the field, prompting
    > officials to blow the play dead.
    > Gall approached Favre from behind, snatched the ball from his throwing
    > hand and ran to the other end of the field with security guards in
    > pursuit. He was finally tackled and taken from the field.
    > The five-minute delay gave the Bengals time to regroup. They sacked
    > Favre on the next play, and the clock ran out after Favre faked a
    > spike and wound up running downfield. He flipped the ball forward
    > illegally as the game ended.
    > Several Packers complained about security, noting that the fan could
    > have hurt Favre. Bengals coach Marvin Lewis acknowledged after the
    > game that the delay broke the Packers' momentum, and joked that the
    > team would pay the fan $20.
    > A day later, Lewis said fans must be kept off the field.
    > ``That's the first fear you have -- there's a guy running clean at
    > Brett Favre,'' Lewis said Monday. ``That's why you can't allow that to
    > occur. Our people that handle security feel very badly about it and
    > will take steps (so) that kind of thing never happens here again at
    > Paul Brown Stadium.''
    > Sports leagues have struggled with the question of how to prevent fans
    > from going on the field. In September 2002, a father and his son ran
    > onto the field during a Chicago White Sox game and attacked Kansas
    > City first base coach Tom Gamboa.
    > A fan went onto the field at halftime of the Patriots' Super Bowl win
    > over Carolina two years ago, briefly delaying the second-half kickoff.
    > The NFL required all 32 teams to conduct pat-downs of fans entering
    > their stadiums before games this season. Local government officials
    > initially balked, but the pat-downs were conducted before each of the
    > last two Bengals home games.
    >  
    >
    > Upstate Highways Take 5 Lives Over Weekend
    >
    > 2 Cyclists Hit, Killed On 28 Bypass
    > POSTED: 11:43 pm EDT October 28, 2005
    > UPDATED: 8:08 pm EST October 30, 2005
    > Email This Story | Print This Story
    > ANDERSON COUNTY, S.C. -- An Anderson cyclist died after a wreck on the
    > 28 Bypass just off of Clemson Boulevard early Sunday morning, police
    > said.
    > Cameron Chapman, 28, was riding his bicycle home from work when the
    > driver of an Isuzu hit him, police said.
    > The driver of the Isuzu, Charles Spearman, is being held by the South
    > Carolina Highway Patrol in connection with the case.
    > Another cyclist died after a wreck on Saturday night on Highway 81
    > south at the 28 Bypass.Nathaniel Wayne Whitfield, 50, of Anderson,
    > drove his bicycle in front of a car and was hit, police said.
    > Whitfield had a blood alcohol level that was four times the legal
    > limit, police said.
    > He was taken to the hospital where he later died.
    >  
    > Arrests mar Mexican derby
    >
    >  
    > Almost 300 people were arrested after violent clashes at the end of
    > the Mexican Apertura tournament derby which America won 2-1 at Pumas.
    >
    > The game, recognised as "high risk" by authorities, saw fans of both
    > sides - many of them drunk - fight, destroy cars and damage buses
    > after the game.
    >
    > A Secretary of Public Security spokesman confirmed that policemen were
    > hurt in the disturbances.
    >
    > Pumas condemned the violent acts of their fans and America's and
    > called on supporters who love football to reject provocation.
    >  
    > Woman Accused of DUI, Dragging Police Officer
    > October 31st, 2005 @ 7:32am
    > SOUTH JORDAN, Utah (AP) -- A Murray woman was arrested over the
    > weekend after she allegedly dragged a police officer with her car.
    > South Jordan Police Sergeant Dan Starks says officer Sam Winkler was
    > NOT seriously injured in the incident.
    > Starks says Winkler and another officer were responding to a minor
    > traffic accident early Sunday morning on the southbound I-15 onramp at
    > 7200 South. That's when police noticed a nearby parked car up the
    > ramp.
    > Starks says Winkler approached her to see if she had been involved in
    > the accident, but instead found she had been drinking. Police say the
    > woman and her boyfriend, who had been driving, apparently gotten into
    > a fight. Starks says the boyfriend had pulled over and walked away,
    > leaving the woman and her 18-month-old child in the car.
    > Winkler told the woman NOT to drive. But when he went to pull the keys
    > out of the ignition, the woman started driving. Police say the officer
    > was dragged about 30 yards at no more than ten miles-per-hour.
    > Police say the woman did eventually stop the car. She now faces
    > several charges
    >
    > Arrests made in two fatal weekend crashes
    > October 31, 2005
    > BOSTON --Two drivers were arrested in apparent drunken driving crashes
    > that killed a pedestrian in Methuen and passenger in Boston.
    > Article Tools
    >  
    > Police said John F. Comeau III, 21, of Methuen, was drunk when he hit
    > two pedestrians with his pickup truck on a Methuen Street before dawn
    > Sunday, then drove off.
    > Joshua C. Colon, 23, of Lawrence, was pronounced dead at a Lowell
    > hospital, and the other man was hospitalized in Boston.
    > Comeau was later arrested at his home and charged with operating a
    > motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, police said.
    > In Boston, a car smashed into a wall early Sunday after the driver
    > tried to make a left turn at an Interstate 93 off-ramp near the
    > Massachusetts Avenue exit, police said.
    > A passenger, Erin Holmes, 24, of Penacook, N.H., was pronounced dead
    > at a hospital. The driver and another passenger were treated for
    > injuries.
    > Police said the driver, Jessica Oliver, 23, of Warner, N.H., was
    > expected to face charges including causing serious injury while
    > drunken driving, speeding and running a red light.=

    > Hundreds arrested during Madison Halloween bash

    > MADISON, Wis. Police in Madison, Wisconsin, have used pepper spray to
    > break up crowds of revelers at the end of an annual weekend Halloween
    > bash.
    > Hundreds of people were arrested over the two day event, most for
    > alcohol-related offenses. One officer said the local detoxification
    > center was filled to capacity.
    > At times, the crowd was estimated at nearly 100-thousand
    >
    Berkeley DUI victim lives to tell her tale
    > Woman is awarded $53 million, has yet to see a penny of money
    >
    > By Kristin Bender, STAFF WRITER
    >
    >
    > BERKELEY — The last thing Theresa Johnson remembers about that fateful
    > day five years ago was putting on her blue Federal Express uniform and
    > heading out the door.
    >
    > It was mid-July, and Johnson had just returned to South Berkeley from
    > a weekend trip with friends to Las Vegas. It was a rare weekend off
    > from her two jobs — an overnight shift as a package handler at FedEx
    > in Oakland and a sales job at a Lane Bryant clothing store in
    > Emeryville, where she had just been promoted to manager.
    >
    > But vacation was over, and the time came to return to the grind.
    > Shortly before 2 a.m., Johnson got up from a nap, dressed in her work
    > jumpsuit and climbed into her Mazda 626, parked outside her mother's
    > Harmon Street home.
    >
    > She doesn't remember what the weather was like, whether she sang with
    > the radio or whom she passed in thedarkened streets of Berkeley before
    > she was hit and nearly killed by a drunken driver named Tyrone Hazel.
    >
    > In some ways, Johnson was lucky. She didn't die.
    >
    > Last year, more than 16,650 people were killed in alcohol-related
    > collisions, according to the National Commission Against Drunk
    > Driving. Many more were injured.
    >
    > Though Johnson survived, neither her life nor Hazel's will ever be the
    > same. For her pain and suffering, which included a crushed pelvis and
    > punctured lungs, an Alameda County Superior Court earlier this year
    > awarded her a
    >
    > $53 million verdict.
    >
    > It is one of the largest amounts won by the victim of a drunken driver
    > in history, according to legal experts. It was also called one of the
    > 25 largest cases of 2004 by VerdictSearch, a resource for cases of
    > note in the legal profession.
    >
    > Johnson has not yet seen any money from the case, which is being
    > appealed by Hazel. Still, the victory was an important step in putting
    > the incident behind her, she said.
    >
    > "Going to trial allowed her to have her story told," said Albany
    > attorney Robert Cheasty, who represented her and worked pro bono. "It
    > spoke volumes about validating her life. Somebody said, 'Yes your life
    > is important.'"
    >
    > Johnson said she doesn't expect to see payments from Hazel.
    >
    > "He'll be going to work, but I'll probably never get nothing," she
    > said during a recent interview at her mother's home. "But I'm not
    > worried about it."
    >
    > "She got the most precious thing — her life," explained her mother,
    > Beverly McConico.
    >
    > A victim of circumstances
    >
    > It was 2 a.m. July 15, 2000, when the lives of Johnson, then 30, and
    > Hazel, then 22, intersected. Johnson was headed to work at the Federal
    > Express terminal at Oakland International Airport. Hazel said he was
    > speeding to a family emergency after a night of playing cards and
    > drinking. Authorities said Hazel was driving an estimated 60 to 80 mph
    > in his 1984 black Camaro southbound on Market Street in Oakland when
    > he approached Johnson's car from behind.
    >
    > She was preparing to turn left onto 52nd Street, but Hazel attempted
    > to pass her car, crossing the double yellow line and driving on the
    > wrong side of Market, authorities said. He broadsided Johnson's car,
    > sending it hurtling
    >
    > 185 feet south down Market Street, according to authorities.
    >
    > Hazel's Camaro hit Johnson's car so hard that her side door was pushed
    > in three feet, crushing her pelvis and puncturing her lungs in the
    > process, Cheasty said.
    >
    > "I don't remember any of it," Johnson said. "The last thing I remember
    > is getting up and putting on my uniform for work."
    >
    > When Johnson finally woke a few days later at Highland Hospital in
    > Oakland, she had undergone a 14-hour emergency pelvic surgery — the
    > first of what would be four major surgeries. The first surgery on July
    > 17, 2000, was to save her life.
    >
    > On the brink of death
    >
    > Doctors had placed a metal plate in her pelvis and reconstructed both
    > of the sacroiliac joints. All the soft tissue had been destroyed,
    > making it one of the most difficult reconstructions the surgical team
    > had ever seen, Cheasty said. Even after surgery, Johnson was on the
    > brink of death, and her family gathered in the intensive care unit to
    > say good-bye.
    >
    > "I never thought I would see the woman walk again," Cheasty said.
    >
    > Five years later, Johnson is walking, albeit with a cane and a lot of
    > difficulty and pain. Her four surgeries have included a left hip
    > replacement. The nerves and muscles in her left leg are severed. She
    > said it feels like there are pounds of bricks sitting on her leg every
    > minute of the day. To fight it, she swallows fistfuls of pain
    > medications and gets weekly pain blocker injections.
    >
    > Her second operation was to further repair the sacroiliac joint. Later
    > she was hospitalized at Alta Bates Medical Center for a severe
    > infection following a blood clot in her leg from the collision. She
    > also spent two more stints at Alta Bates following two surgeries on
    > her hip.
    >
    > "I don't have a lot of control of my left leg," she said. "The worst
    > pain is the nerve pain in the leg, but the (doctor) said this is
    > basically as good as it's going to get."
    >
    > Hazel, who was convicted of drunken driving with great bodily injury,
    > served roughly 10 months in a work furlough program and had his
    > license suspended following the crime.
    >
    > Johnson said he got off too easy.
    >
    > "I think it should have been a harder sentence ... to make him realize
    > he affected someone else's life. ... He will never really understand
    > it."
    >
    > These days, she's working part time in a medical office and slowly
    > working toward an associate's degree at Contra Costa Community College
    > in San Pablo. "That is what is keeping me going," she said.
    >
    > Johnson also works with Cheasty to spread her message: Please don't
    > drink and drive.
    >
    > "We are really eager to get the word out. We think that people who
    > drive and drink need to be held accountable," Cheasty said.
    >
    > She has also become involved with Mothers Against Drunk Drivers,
    > which, according to California Executive Director Paula Birdsong,
    > applauded the court's action as a "wake-up call to those who drink and
    > drive."
    >
    > Man Killed as Drunken Driver Causes 2 Crashes, Police Say
    > By MICHAEL WILSON
    > Published: October 17, 2005
    >
    >
    > A drunken driver caused two hit-and-run accidents, one of them fatal,
    > in Queens early yesterday, the police said, then fled in another car
    > and later told the authorities that he had been the victim of a
    > carjacking.
    > When the officers took his statement almost three hours later, the
    > driver, identified as Anand Hazare, 29, of Stockton, N.J., appeared to
    > be drunk, according to the police. He was later charged with driving
    > while intoxicated, the police said, and other charges were pending.
    >
    > Shortly before 3 a.m. yesterday, Mr. Hazare was driving his gray
    > Mitsubishi Eclipse west on Linden Boulevard in Ozone Park when he
    > struck a pedestrian at Lefferts Boulevard, the police said. The
    > pedestrian, whom the police did not identify, was in stable condition
    > yesterday at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, the police said.
    >
    > Mr. Hazare left the scene of the accident, the police said, and a
    > short time later, his car struck another vehicle, a Chevrolet
    > Suburban, at Linden and 124th Street, five blocks west of the first
    > accident. The force of the impact caused a passenger to be ejected
    > from the back seat of the Suburban. That passenger was identified by
    > the police as Shivanand Patraju, 21, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Mr.
    > Patraju died later at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, the police
    > said. The driver of the Suburban, Shastri Soogrim, 19, of Richmond
    > Hill, Queens, and two of his other passengers suffered minor injuries.
    >
    > Mr. Soogrim said yesterday that Mr. Patraju, his friend since
    > childhood, grew up in Queens and moved to Florida with his family two
    > years ago. He had been staying at Mr. Soogrim's home during a return
    > visit that began a couple of weeks ago.
    >
    > Mr. Soogrim said that Mr. Patraju was planning to study audio
    > engineering at a college in North Carolina.
    >
    > "I saw the other car when it was too late," Mr. Soogrim said. "He was
    > coming so fast. I tried to speed up to avoid having him hit me, but to
    > no avail.
    >
    > "We spun around. Shiva wasn't there. I thought he was on the floor. He
    > was laid out face down in front of the truck."
    >
    > Mr. Soogrim said that he and the front-seat passenger were wearing
    > seat belts, but said that the passengers in the back seat were not.
    >
    > "The guy who hit us was walking around like nothing happened," Mr.
    > Soogrim said. "He was walking around talking on his cellphone, and
    > then a few minutes later he was gone. He didn't say anything to us."
    >
    > Mr. Hazare was picked up by a friend who was driving a silver sedan,
    > the police said, but left behind his identification in the Eclipse.
    >
    > Mr. Hazare was arrested after he called the police at 5:30 a.m., from
    > an apartment in the South Richmond Hill section of Queens, to report a
    > carjacking.
    >  
    > Police: Man caused $6,000 damage to jail
    > East Allen resident also tried to punch official, authorities say.
    >
    > By Nicole Radzievich
    > Of The Morning Call
    >
    > An East Allen Township man caused $6,000 in damage by setting off the
    > sprinklers in his jail cell Friday night after a routine traffic stop
    > turned into a crime spree, Bethlehem police said.
    >
    > The incident began after
    >
    > 9 p.m. when a city police officer pulled over Brian Troxell, 29, of
    > 5281 Hillside Road for allegedly not using a turn signal at E. Third
    > and Webster streets.
    >
    > According to police, the following events took place:
    >
    > Troxell asked the officer whether he was pulled over because his
    > license is suspended and then told the officer that he had been
    > arrested twice for driving under the influence.
    >
    > After smelling alcohol and learning that Troxell was coming back from
    > an Allentown bar, the officer gave Troxell a preliminary breath test
    > that registered a blood-alcohol ratio of 0.14 percent. Police took
    > Troxell to headquarters for processing. Police described Troxell as
    > agitated and belligerent.
    >
    > A Northampton County deputy sheriff took custody of Troxell for
    > processing, but Troxell refused to submit a sample for the alcohol
    > test. The deputy sheriff ordered Troxell to stand up so he could be
    > escorted to the waiting room, and Troxell didn't comply.
    >
    > When the deputy sheriff went to tug Troxell's collar, Troxell bolted
    > to his feet, clenched his right fist and tried to hit the deputy
    > sheriff. Other officers subdued Troxell and took him to a holding
    > cell.
    >
    > On closed-circuit television, city police watched Troxell climb the
    > cell door and disappear out of view of the monitor. Officers went to
    > check on him and saw that the sprinkler head was torn from the ceiling
    > and water was flowing into the cellblock.
    >
    > According to city officials, $6,000 worth of damage was done to the
    > floors, sprinkler system and television system.
    >
    > District Justice Gay Elwell of Easton arraigned Troxell on charges of
    > incapable of safe driving, aggravated assault, institutional
    > vandalism, criminal mischief and traffic summary offenses. He was
    > committed to Northampton County Prison on $75,000 bail.
    >  
    > The latest in booze-themed kids apparel
    > --------------------
    >
    > By Patrick Moore
    >
    > October 16, 2005
    >
    > If you've seen recent advertisements for J.C. Penney, you may think
    > that the hot trend for back-to-school fashions is the alcoholic look.
    >
    > With "novelty tees" sporting the logos of major liquor brands, the
    > clothes raise questions about corporate responsibility. More
    > importantly, though, the appearance of such clothing in a country so
    > protective of its children indicates that Americans have become numb
    > to the constant barrage of advertising and media images. The United
    > States has become Logoland.
    >
    > Back to school with whiskey
    >
    > J.C. Penney catalogs for back-to-school clothes were sent out
    > nationally as an insert in Sunday newspapers. Alongside the photo of a
    > model, who appears to be junior high or high school age, is a spread
    > of T-shirts emblazoned with logos for Jack Daniel's, Budweiser, Miller
    > Lite and Guinness. Although they are described as "men's novelty
    > tees," the shirts appear in a section devoted to "young men's, boys'
    > and girls'" fashions. Similar T-shirts are also being sold at Target
    > and several other stores that do a brisk business in back-to-school
    > fashions.
    >
    > Jack Daniel's, an 80-proof whiskey, seems to be particularly focused
    > on the family market with an online "music studio," games and a large
    > selection of apparel. For several years, the company sponsored a
    > promotion at the family restaurant T.G.I. Friday's, with an entire
    > section of the menu devoted to recipes featuring Jack Daniel's. While
    > the 10-year-olds ordering a Jack Burger were unlikely to catch a buzz,
    > there was still something unsettling about watching children peruse
    > the whiskey-infused selections.
    >
    > Other American corporations have also been using alcohol as a
    > marketing tool. Abercrombie & Fitch, whose customers are primarily
    > teenagers and young adults, recently promoted shirts printed with
    > slogans such as "Bad girls chug. Good girls drink quickly" and "Candy
    > is dandy. But liquor is quicker."
    >
    > A study presented at this year's annual meeting of the Pediatric
    > Academic Societies found that "promotional items are related to early
    > onset drinking." The authors of the study urged the alcohol industry
    > to stop marketing to children through the use of promotional items in
    > the same way that the tobacco industry did a decade ago. That this
    > type of marketing reaches children is beyond dispute. Studies have
    > shown that children age 6 to 17 are more familiar with ads from
    > Budweiser than those promoting Pepsi, Barbie, Snickers or Nike.
    >
    > Protecting children?
    >
    > The great irony of the "protect the children" campaigns put forward by
    > conservatives is that they are more concerned with the sexuality of
    > SpongeBob and Tinkie Winkie than the relentless promotion of violence
    > and alcohol to kids. It seems that, for cultural conservatives, the
    > physical survival of children is less important than their sexual
    > chastity. After all, the ultraviolent video game "Grand Theft Auto"
    > was tolerated for years until it was discovered that advanced players
    > were able to unlock hidden sexual scenes.
    >
    > Interestingly, conservative pundits never protest advertising that
    > positions masculinity as the ultimate aspiration. And what could be
    > more masculine than a shot of Jack Daniel's before heading out with
    > your semiautomatic?
    >
    > This is not simply a theoretical discussion. Alcohol does have a
    > devastating impact on adolescents. The Marin Institute in Northern
    > California reports that children who drink by 7th grade are "more
    > likely to report academic problems, substance abuse and delinquent
    > behavior." Even more shocking, young people who drink by 15 are four
    > times more likely to develop alcoholism later in life. Perhaps the
    > most "sobering" statistic is that more than 1,700 college students in
    > the United States are killed each year in alcohol-related accidents.
    >
    Driver crashes car into Water Tower Place
    > --------------------
    >
    > Tribune staff reports
    >
    > October 16, 2005, 7:19 AM CDT
    >
    > A drunk driver early today crashed into a traffic light and a tree on
    > Michigan Avenue before sailing into the revolving doors of Lord &
    > Taylor at Water Tower Place, police said.
    >
    > The 23-year-old man, who suffered abrasions on his face, was in good
    > condition at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, but likely faces drunk
    > driving charges, said police spokesman David Banks.
    >
    > The one-car accident occurred at 3:20 a.m. in the 800 block of North
    > Michigan Avenue. The vehicle struck a traffic signal, a tree and a
    > small planter before it flipped onto its side and slid into the
    > revolving doors, Banks said.
    >
    Some Vikings Investigated After Reports of Lewd Party
    > No Criminal Charges Have Been Filed From Alleged Incidents on Charter
    > Cruises
    > By DAVE CAMPBELL, AP Sports
    >
    >  
    >
    > EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (Oct. 12) - Investigators are looking into a party
    > attended by several Minnesota Vikings players that allegedly involved
    > drunkenness, nudity and visible sexual activity on a pair of charter
    > cruises last week.
    >
    > No criminal charges had been filed as of Wednesday, and it could take
    > a couple of weeks before investigators finish interviewing people who
    > were on the boats, said Sgt. Haans Vitek of the Hennepin County
    > Sheriff's Office. A police report was filed Sunday.
    >
    > "It doesn't make things any simpler," coach Mike Tice said Wednesday,
    > "and quite frankly I'm not happy about it."
    >
    > DUI victim dies, charges brought against students
    > By Steve Britt
    > Published: Thursday, October 13, 2005
     An SIUE student faces prison time if convicted of three felony charges
    > leveled against him by Madison County prosecutors.
    >
    > The Madison County State's Attorney charged Jeffrey Graham, 25,
    > Tuesday with reckless homicide and two counts of aggravated driving
    > under the influence.
    >
    > If convicted, Graham may face three to 14 years for each count of
    > aggravated DUI. Reckless homicide is a Class Three felony with a
    > potential penalty of two to five years.
    >
    > Charges stem from Sept. 16 when Graham allegedly struck Gregory J.
    > Hamil with his Dodge Intrepid in the parking lot of Rusty's Restaurant
    > in Edwardsville.
    >
    > Hamil, of Edwardsville, died Saturday at St. Louis University
    > Hospital. He was 49.
    >
    > Graham was initially charged with aggravated driving under the
    > influence of alcohol. Prosecutors dropped the charge nearly two weeks
    > ago.
    >
    > "We didn't want him (Graham) to plead to a lesser charge when a more
    > serious charge would be available," Madison County State's Attorney
    > spokeswoman Stephanie Smith said Oct. 4.
    >
    > Hamil remained in the Intensive Care Unit of St. Louis University
    > Hospital until his death.
    >
    > According to Smith, Graham is not in custody. His bail is set at
    > $75,000.
    >  
    >
    >
    > Alcohol: U of O students taken to hospital
    > KMTR-TV
    >
    > Eugene (KMTR) - Some students at the University of Oregon needed to be
    > medically transported from their residence halls over the weekend
    > because of the amount of alcohol they consumed.
    >
    > Student affairs officials say they can't tell us exactly how many
    > students were involved, only that it was more than one.
    >
    > As U. of O. students stood on line Monday for tickets to Saturday's
    > game against the University of Washington, we asked them how prevalent
    > binge drinking is.
    >
    > The majority of students we spoke with said they see drinking possibly
    > every night and at least every weekend.
    >
    > "That's where you consume a bunch of alcohol and that's about it,
    > right? There's a lot of that going on here, definitely," said Matt
    > Hammond, a UO senior.
    >
    > According to Marc Palotai, a freshman, some students don't know when
    > to stop. "Binge drinking, of course, there's a lot going on," said
    > Palotai, "I saw two ambulances come in [this weekend] and I heard
    > about a person who had actually alcohol O.D. and ended up going to the
    > hospital."
    >
    > While directors of Student Life couldn't tell us how many students
    > needed to be taken by ambulance to the hospital because of the amount
    > of alcohol they consumed, they could tell us the number was not
    > unusual for this time of year.
    >
    > Laura Blake Jones, the Associate Dean of Students and Director of
    > Student Life, said, "Drinking among students is the number one killer
    > of college students on college campuses across the country and it's a
    > very serious problem that we work very proactively at."
    >
    > But just how much are students drinking on any given night? "I would
    > say around five or six beers a night, maybe even more," said freshman
    > Casey Brooks.
    >
    > "I see people carry around fifths of this, and fifths of that,
    > probably like, within a night--if you're talking beer--somebody will
    > consume a 12-pack, an 18-pack of beer," said Hammond. In Monday's
    > edition of the Daily Emerald, U of O's student newspaper.
    >
    > Students can be evaluated and treated for alcohol abuse at the
    > University's Counseling Center on campus.The center also provides
    > students with a self-help page on the web.=


    2 seriously injured in head-on crash; 2nd youth dies from Friday crash
    >
    > By DAWN SHACKELFORD — police/court reporter
    >
    > WESTVILLE — Two Westville residents were seriously injured in an
    > accident early Monday morning on CR-1100W, south of CR-600S, in
    > Westville.
    >
    > According to the LaPorte County Sheriff’s Department, at around 12:16
    > a.m. Conrad Neely, 22, of 11199 W. Ind. 2, Lot 72, Westville, was
    > northbound on CR-1100W when his 1990 Buick crossed the center line.
    > His car struck a vehicle head-on driven by Kerri Ann O’Kelly, 23, of
    > 7387S CR-1150W, Westville.
    >
    > Both drivers were trapped in their vehicles — as was a passenger in
    > O’Kelly’s car, Aaron Pavlin, 26, of 2181 Jackson St., Portage — and
    > had to be extricated.
    >
    > According to the report, Pavlin told deputies Neely was driving north
    > at a high rate of speed. Pavlin told O’Kelly to slow down and get over
    > to the side of the road to give Neely room, but the next thing he
    > remembered Neely’s headlights were coming at them as his vehicle
    > crossed into the path of O’Kelly’s 2003 Pontiac.
    >
    > Pavlin called 911 from his cell phone. The Westville Volunteer Fire
    > Department and LaPorte EMS responded.
    >
    > All three were taken to Porter Memorial Hospital. As of 8:15 this
    > morning, O’Kelly was listed in critical condition, suffering from
    > multiple fractures, and Neely was listed in critical but stable
    > condition, also suffering from multiple fractures. Pavlin appeared to
    > be shaken by the incident but not badly hurt, according to the report,
    > and was no longer in Porter Hospital this morning.
    >
    > According to the police report, Neely’s blood alcohol content was .20
    > percent, more than twice the legal limit to drive in Indiana of .08
    > percent.
    >
    > Neely’s record showed a prior operating-while-intoxicated conviction
    > in February of this year, meaning he faces the possibility of being
    > charged with OWI as a Class C felony for causing serious injury with a
    > prior conviction, as well as other charges.
    >
    >
    > Quit Smoking To Be Smarter
    >
    > Smokers often say that smoking a cigarette helps them concentrate and
    > feel more alert. But years of tobacco use may have the opposite
    > effect, dimming the speed and accuracy of a person's thinking ability
    > and bringing down their IQ, according to a new study led by University
    > of Michigan researchers.
    >
    > The association between long-term smoking and diminished mental
    > proficiency in 172 alcoholic and non-alcoholic men was a surprising
    > finding from a study that set out to examine alcohols effect on the
    > brain and thinking skills.
    >
    > While the researchers confirmed previous findings that alcohol is
    > associated with thinking problems and lower IQ, their analysis also
    > revealed that long-term smoking is too. The effect on memory,
    > problem-solving and IQ was most pronounced among those who had smoked
    > for years. Among the alcoholic men, smoking was associated with
    > diminished thinking ability even after alcohol and drug use were
    > accounted for.
    >
    > The findings are the first to suggest a direct relationship between
    > smoking and neurocognitive function among men with alcoholism. And,
    > the results suggest that smoking is associated with diminished
    > thinking ability even among men without alcohol.
    >
    > The new findings, released online before publication by the journal
    > Drug and Alcohol Dependence, were made by a team from the U-M Medical
    > School's Addiction Research Center, or UMARC, and their colleagues at
    > the VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System and Michigan State University.
    >
    > Lead author Jennifer Glass, Ph.D., a research assistant professor in
    > the U-M Department of Psychiatry, cautions that the findings need to
    > be duplicated by other studies before any conclusions are made about
    > smoking's effect on the brain, or before the findings can be
    > considered relevant to women.
    >
    > But, she says, the findings should prompt alcohol researchers to
    > re-examine their data for any impact from smoking - a factor that is
    > not usually taken into account in studies of alcohol's effects on the
    > brain, despite the fact that 50 percent to 80 percent of alcoholics
    > smoke. Meanwhile, the U-M-led team is launching a study that will
    > examine the issue in adolescents, and plans to test the 172 men again
    > soon.
    >
    > "We can't say that we've found a cause-and-effect relationship between
    > smoking and decreased thinking ability, or neurocognitive
    > proficiency," says Glass. "But we hope our findings of an association
    > will lead to further examination of this important issue. Perhaps it
    > will help give smokers one more reason to quit, and encourage quitting
    > smoking among those who are also try to quit drinking."
    >
    > Many alcohol-recovery programs don't emphasize quitting smoking, even
    > though smoking can be a social and possibly chemical "cue" associated
    > with alcohol consumption.
    >
    > Glass notes that her team's paper is being published, coincidentally,
    > at the same time as a paper from a team at the University of
    > California, San Francisco, in which brain scans showed that alcoholics
    > who smoke have lower brain volume than alcoholics who don't smoke.
    >
    > Taken together with previous epidemiological studies, the two new
    > papers feed a growing body of evidence for a link between long-term
    > smoking and thinking ability, says Robert Zucker, Ph.D., professor of
    > Psychology in the U-M Departments of Psychiatry and Psychology, and
    > director of the UMARC. Zucker is senior author on the new paper led by
    > Glass.
    >
    > "The exact mechanism for smoking's impact on the brain's higher
    > functions is still unclear, but may involve both neurochemical effects
    > and damage to the blood vessels that supply the brain," Zucker says.
    > "This is consistent with other findings that people with
    > cardiovascular disease and lung disease tend to have reduced
    > neurocognitive function."
    >
    > The data for the new paper by Glass, Zucker and their colleagues at
    > U-M and Michigan State University, come from an ongoing longitudinal,
    > or long-term, project that uses interviews and standardized research
    > questionnaires to look at mental and physical health issues in
    > families, measured every three years.
    >
    > The study, which has run for more than fifteen years and recently was
    > funded for another five, is supported by the National Institute of
    > Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse, part of the National Institutes of
    > Health. The new work that will explore these relationships further in
    > youth is being funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, also a
    > part of the NIH.
    >
    > In their ninth year in the study, participants completed the MicroCog
    > Assessment of Cognitive Function, a well-established standard battery
    > of tests that assess short-term memory, immediate and delayed story
    > recall, verbal analogies, mathematical reasoning and visual-spatial
    > processing.
    >
    > Scores for each test, and a global proficiency score, are based on the
    > speed and accuracy of a person's responses, adjusted for age and
    > education level. The participants also took a short form of the
    > standard IQ test, and their scores were adjusted for age.
    >
    > Forty of the men who drank at the time of the test, though none had
    > been drinking within an hour of the tests. Twenty-four of these men
    > also were smokers. The study also included 63 men who had had
    > alcoholism earlier in life, 29 of whom smoked; and 69 men who had
    > never drank, 13 of whom smoked. All smokers were allowed to smoke at
    > will during the testing session, so none were in a nicotine-deprived
    > state when they took the neurocognitive tests.
    >
    > Glass and her colleagues analyzed the participants' scores using two
    > standard measures of drinking and smoking behavior.
    >
    > Across the board, both smoking and drinking showed an effect: Higher
    > pack-years and LAPS scores were both significantly associated with
    > lower global cognitive proficiency scores and IQ.
    >
    > This finding, Glass says, means that alcoholism researchers who have
    > consistently found evidence of cognitive deficits among alcoholics -
    > but who have not taken smoking into account in their analysis - may
    > actually be seeing a combined effect of smoking and alcohol
    > consumption among alcoholic study participants who smoke. Further
    > analyses of these data, with smoking separated out as a variable just
    > as hard drug use is often separated, is needed, she says. - ANN ARBOR,
    > Mich.
    >
    >
    > Grandmother avoids homicide charges after running over boy with car
    > Oct 12, 2005, 07:54 AM CDT
    >  
    >
    >
    > CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) -- A grandmother who failed a breathalyzer
    > test after running over her grandson will not face vehicular homicide
    > charges.
    >
    > Shirley Kness of Cedar Rapids will instead face traffic charges after
    > she backed over and killed six-year-old Zachary Ryan in April.
    >
    > Since the alcohol breath test is not admissible in court, police say
    > there is not enough evidence to charge Kness with homicide.
    >
    > Kness' daughter Cassie Riha was hoping her mother would be charged for
    > her son's death. Riha says Kness has a history of drunken driving and
    > she wants her off the road.
    >
    > The grandmother has at least three previous drunken driving
    > convictions and has been charged twice more since April with
    > alcohol-related crimes.
    >
    > Those charges are pending.
    >
    > Soberness now a way of life
    > By Brian O'Malley/Associate Verge Editor
    > Published:  Thursday, October 6, 2005
    >
    > There are many moments in life that stand out. Many moments you plan
    > and prepare for, and other moments you know will happen, so you simply
    > let them.
    >
    > The first time one attempts to drink and get drunk could be an
    > important day for that person.
    >
    > For me, that day never came. I expected it to and I put it on a to-do
    > list in the back of my head, but, for some reason, I never got around
    > to it.
    >
    > I'm now in my fifth year in college and I still haven't drank.
    >
    > Early in high school, I went to parties and said "no" when people
    > offered me a beer, or I simply held a half-filled can of beer to stop
    > the offers.
    >
    > Then before I knew it, the soberness became part of who I am.
    >
    > When I tell people I don't drink, they expect me to explain some
    > detailed reason or tell them a sad story. But when it comes down to
    > it, my reason really isn't that special.
    >
    > At the beginning of my realization that I wasn't going to drink, I
    > thought it would become a challenge in college.
    >
    > If anything, college made it easier. When one of my friends has a
    > rough night of drinking and gets sick or can't walk, my other friends,
    > for the most part, don't think twice about it. But I remember it as
    > clear as day, having been sober the whole time. That's when I think to
    > myself that it's not such a bad thing that I never started drinking.
    >
    >
    > DeLand driver convicted in 2003 crash that killed women
    >
    > Ludmilla Lelis
    > Sentinel Staff Writer
    >
    > October 8, 2005
    >
    > DeLAND -- A 23-year-old DeLand man was found guilty Friday of driving
    > drunk when he caused a crash that killed two women in 2003.
    >
    > Johnny Lee Grubbs Jr. could face 15 years in prison for each of the
    > two counts of DUI manslaughter. He was also convicted of vehicular
    > homicide, a felony carrying a potential five-year prison term. He will
    > be sentenced at a later date.
    >
    > Grubbs stood stoically while the verdict was read and then called out
    > to his family, "I love y'all," as he was handcuffed. His father,
    > Johnny Grubbs Sr., replied, "Love you too, man."
    >
    > Iona Smith, 43, of DeLand, and her 23-year-old niece, Kamaine Gillian
    > Smith, were killed when Grubbs' car struck their car at 8:23 p.m. Dec.
    > 27, 2003. Another family member, 47-year-old Norman Smith, also was
    > injured.
    >
    > According to the trial evidence, Iona Smith had stopped at a stop sign
    > on West Euclid Avenue, then drove through the intersection at South
    > Adelle Avenue when Grubbs' car smashed into the passenger side of her
    > car.
    >
    > The impact propelled her car to move 106 feet and eventually break
    > through a metal fence at the Euclid Learning Center.
    >
    > Grubbs had been driving 75 mph down Adelle, where the speed limit is
    > 30 mph, and his blood-alcohol level at the time of the crash was more
    > than twice the legal driving limit, according to court testimony.
    >
    > During his own testimony, Grubbs admitted he had a couple of gin and
    > orange juice drinks at a block party on the night of the crash, with
    > as much as 6 ounces of 80-proof liquor. However, he denied he was
    > speeding and said that he didn't see headlights from Smith's car at
    > the Euclid intersection.
    >
    > "We were just bopping to the music," he said during his testimony
    > Friday. "It was close because I had no time to react.
    >
    > "Then boom, just everything happened," he said.
    >
    > He also admitted that his trial testimony differed from what he
    > originally told police investigators, explaining, "I was in a state of
    > shock. At the time [of the police interview], I was just giving him
    > any answer."
    >
    > His attorney, John A. Stanton, tried to convince jurors that what
    > happened that night was simply an accident.
    >
    > "He did not cause this accident. He was simply involved in this
    > accident," Stanton said Friday.
    >
    > However, the violent death the Smiths suffered resembled injuries that
    > a medical examiner compared to that of a plane-crash victim, Assistant
    > State Attorney Colleen Taylor told jurors during closing arguments
    > Friday.
    >
    > "There is no possibility the defendant was traveling 30 mph down that
    > road," Taylor said. She reminded the jury of how far Smith's car was
    > pushed sideways and added, "That takes a tremendous amount of force."
    >
    > Mark Montgomery, a former toxicology professor at the University of
    > South Florida in Tampa, testified Thursday that Grubbs would have had
    > a 0.18 blood-alcohol level when the crash happened. He calculated that
    > based on a blood sample taken after the accident, which showed that
    > Grubbs' blood-alcohol level was 0.12 at 11:30 p.m., nearly three hours
    > after the crash. The legal driving limit is a blood-alcohol content of
    > 0.08.
    >
    > Another witness, Florida Highway Patrol Cpl. Alan Conklin, did a
    > reconstruction of the crash and testified Thursday that Grubbs had
    > been driving 75 mph on Adelle.
    >
    > From his review, Conklin estimated that Grubbs hit the brakes less
    > than a second before the crash happened, so at impact, his car speed
    > was 55 mph.
    >
    > "If the defendant was going the legal speed, we would not be here
    > today," Conk- lin testified during the trial. "It would not have
    > occurred."
    >
    >
    > Hit-And-Run Driver Hits Blind Woman Kills Guide Dog
    >
    > POSTED: 8:49 am EDT October 7, 2005
    >
    > CARRBORO, N.C. --  A blind woman was injured and her guide dog killed
    > as they waited for a bus after a drunken driver drove over a curb and
    > hit them, then left the scene, police said.
    >
    > Danielle Iredale, 22, a student at the University of North Carolina at
    > Chapel Hill, was in fair condition Thursday at UNC Hospitals after
    > being hit just before 9 a.m. Wednesday.
    >
    > Her dog was found dead at the scene.
    >
    > Stephen Coffee, 27, of Carrboro was being held under $25,000 bond,
    > charged with felony harming an animal, felony hit and run, reckless
    > driving, driving while a license is revoked, driving while
    > intoxicated, resisting arrest and injury to property.
    >
    > A breath test, police said, showed Coffee's blood alcohol level at
    > 0.16 percent, twice the legal limit for drinking and driving.
    >
    > UNC student Marija Kurtovic, who said she and Iredale frequently ride
    > the bus together, was standing beside Iredale when the car came over
    > the curb. She was able to jump out of the way, but Iredale, who was
    > wearing head phones, had no way to know a car was headed toward her,
    > she said.
    >
    > "He did not even turn the wheel until he hit her,'' Kurtovic said of
    > the driver. "You have no idea how light the hit looked. (But) she was
    > like a doll, thrown up into the air. When he hit her, then he drove
    > back onto the road.''
    >
    > Police said they found a car that matched descriptions given by
    > witnesses parked in front of an apartment nearby. The car was warm to
    > the touch, as if it had been recently driven, and dog fur was found on
    > the front left side, they said.
    >
    > A search of court records showed that in 1996, Coffee was charged in
    > Brunswick County with DWI, possession of alcohol by a minor and
    > reckless driving. In 1998, he was charged with DWI again in the same
    > county and his license was revoked.
    >
    > Hodges Privette, who drives a Chapel Hill Transit bus, said many of
    > the bus drivers knew Iredale because she and her dog used the bus
    > system to get around town.
    >
    > "She always had the dog with her, and he laid up under her seat and
    > didn't move,'' Privette said. "That dog could pull her up out of the
    > seat, take her right out of that bus and take her right where she
    > needed to go.''
    >  
    > Angoon considers lifting alcohol ban (Yea what a great idea so more
    > people can be killed and more problems can occur)
    > CLOSE VOTE: Absentee ballots will decide whether village goes "damp
    ."
    >
    > By SEAN COCKERHAM
    > Anchorage Daily News
    >
    > Published: October 8, 2005
    > Last Modified: October 8, 2005 at 02:58 AM
    >
    > JUNEAU -- The Southeast Alaska village of Angoon voted two to one in
    > 1988 to ban alcohol after booze was blamed for death and despair among
    > its residents.
    >
    > But times change and the town's former police chief is leading a
    > charge to legalize it. Angoon was almost evenly split on legalization
    > in a vote this week, with 87 for it and 86 against. The question will
    > be decided on Monday. That's when the city clerk is scheduled to count
    > the 25 absentee ballots that came in to her office.
    >
    > It's an emotional issue in the predominately Tlingit Indian town of
    > about 480 people.
    >
    > "I get a lot of glares from people," said Jess Daniels, who sponsored
    > the petition that got the alcohol question on the ballot. "But glares
    > don't hurt me."
    >
    > Daniels' proposal is for the town to become "damp." That means people
    > would be allowed to drink alcohol in Angoon but it would still be
    > against the law to sell it there.
    >
    > Angoon is one of two towns in Southeast Alaska where booze is banned.
    > The other is Metlakatla, which is Alaska's only federally designated
    > Indian reservation. It's much more common to prohibit alcohol in the
    > villages of Interior and Western Alaska. There are 32 villages in the
    > state that ban possession and 99 more that outlaw sales, according to
    > the Alcohol Beverage Control Board.
    >
    > Angoon alcohol petition sponsor Daniels said he hasn't had a drink in
    > more than 17 years.
    >
    > Daniels said he is pushing the measure because the alcohol ban is a
    > fiction. There has always been lots of bootleg booze in Angoon, he
    > said. People usually get busted only when someone turns them in over
    > an unrelated grudge.
    >
    > "I was just tired of people's rights being violated," Daniels said.
    > "You've got people who don't sell booze but they may want to have a
    > drink. When they get caught, they have a record. That's senseless."
    >
    > Angoon, the only community on Admiralty Island, is located 55 miles
    > southwest of Juneau. Admiralty Island is best known for having more
    > than 1,000 bears, or about one per square mile.
    >
    > Locals go to Juneau or Sitka and bring alcohol back with them on the
    > state ferry. It's easier to avoid detection than bringing it by small
    > plane into a Western Alaska village. Still, the illegal bootleg booze
    > in Angoon isn't cheap; the going rate for a bottle of whiskey is $50
    > and beer costs $60 a case, several locals reported.
    >
    > Ed Kookesh of Angoon is a supporter of legalizing booze. He said
    > everyone in town shouldn't be restricted because of some bad past
    > experiences with alcohol in the village.
    >
    > But Angoon's fire chief and emergency services captain, Randall
    > Gamble, said alcohol has killed a lot of people in town over the
    > years. The focus should be on stopping the bootleggers, he said, not
    > on legalizing the booze.
    >
    > "When someone dies from alcohol the bootleggers lay off," Gamble said.
    > "But they go back to normal after a while."
    >
    > Alberta Saleem of Angoon said her worry is that legalization would
    > make alcohol cheaper in town. That means people ---- including the
    > youths in town ---- will just buy more and abuse it, she said.
    >
    > "I think it is going to hurt our community," she said. "I haven't seen
    > any good come out of alcohol."

    > Trains held up by drunk walking on track
    >
    >
    > 07 October 2005
    > GRIZELDA GRAHAM
    >
    > Trains were held up when a drunken man, who had downed 40 pints of beer
    > during a 24-hour drinking binge, walked along the railway track between
    > Norwich and Great Yarmouth.
    >
    > Nicholas Lassman, a convicted sex offender who said he had moved to
    > Yarmouth to make a new start, had earlier assaulted a conductor who
    > found
    > him asleep in a train's toilet. He was jailed for 24 weeks when he
    > appeared before Norwich Magistrates' Court. Lassman, 35, of North Quay,
    > Yarmouth, admitted assault, threatening behaviour, trespassing on the
    > railway and being a sex offender failing to notify police of a change
    > of
    > address.
    >
    > Mr Ivory said that early on Monday evening, Lassman got on a train at
    > Yarmouth. While he was collecting fares and checking tickets, conductor
    > Paul Freeman found Lassman asleep in a toilet. He woke him, asking to
    > see
    > his ticket, but he did not seem to have one.
    >
    > When Lassman tried to pull the emergency handle three times, Mr Freeman
    > pushed his hands away, asking him not to. Lassman pushed Mr Freeman in
    > the
    > chest, causing him to fall against a bulkhead.
    >
    > Police were called, but Lassman got off the train at Cantley, where he
    > was
    > seen climbing across the lines to the opposite platform. When signalman
    > Nicholas Lewis approached Lassman, who appeared to be drunk, he asked
    > him
    > 'do you want some?' and started swearing.
    >
    > Fearing for his safety, Mr Lewis locked himself in his signal box and
    > dialled 999.
    >
    > Police then arrived on the scene and took the defendant away. Later
    > they
    > discovered he was on the sex offenders' register. He had previously
    > been
    > jailed twice for failing to tell police where he was living.
    >
    > Rebecca Wastall, for Lassman, said he was nearing the end of his seven
    > years on the sex offenders' register and had moved to Yarmouth to make
    > a
    > new start.
    >
    > "He did not want his past coming back to haunt him and chose to ignore
    > the
    > register on that occasion," said Mrs Wastall.
    >  
    > Man shot by police 'threatened to kill sister'.
    >
    > Oct 7 2005
    >
    > icWales
    >  
    >
    > The sister of a widower shot dead by police told a 999 operator her
    > brother was “raging drunk” and had threatened to kill her, an inquest
    > heard today.
    >
    > Frances Williams’s emergency call was played to the jury hearing
    > evidence about the death of Philip Prout, 53, who was killed outside
    > his house in Lewannick, near Launceston, Cornwall, on May 4 last year.
    >
    > Out-of-breath and audibly panicked, she told the operator: “He’s now
    > threatening violence, he’s saying he’s going to top me if he sees me.
    > My mother’s in a terrible state.”
    >
    > She went on to say she was “worried sick” about her Mrs Williams also
    > said in her 999 call that she thought the widower was “off his head”
    > and feared he had been “trying to do away with” her mother by giving
    > her a heart attack.
    >
    > She added: “He’s not used a weapon in a threatening manner but he
    > usually has a shotgun in the corner of the sitting room when he knows
    > I’m coming.”
    >
    > Mrs Williams, who had been staying in Cornwall for the Bank Holiday
    > weekend, returned to her brother’s house at about 8.30pm on May 3
    > after taking her elderly mother, May Prout, out for the day.
    >
    > They arrived back to discover the television was on “unbearably loud”
    > and that Mr Prout was “raging drunk”, the inquest heard.
    >
    > As Mrs Williams and Mrs Prout ate a salad in a downstairs bedroom, the
    > widower burst in and demanded to know who had been in his room.
    >
    > Mrs Williams left the house and went across the road to fetch his
    > daughter Nicola Prout, 24, who had been able to calm her father down
    > in the past.
    >
    > The pair returned to Mr Prout’s house, where they found his mother
    > standing in the open front door crying and “terribly shaken”, Mrs
    > Williams said in a statement.
    >
    > Mrs Prout stopped her daughter going inside and told her: “You go
    > away, you’re not safe. He’s been running around saying, ’If I see that
    > bitch, I’m going to top her’.”
    >
    > Mrs Williams went to the village hall car park and called the police
    > on her mobile phone.
    >
    > Mr Prout, a martial arts enthusiast who moved from Crawley, Sussex, to
    > Cornwall in 2003, was shot dead by a police marksman after his
    > colleague’s baton gun twice failed to fire.
    >
    > The widower was just yards from the officers with a samurai sword
    > raised above his head when the fatal shot was fired, the jury was told
    > earlier.
    >
    > The inquest in Plymouth is expected to last up to five weeks, and
    > witnesses due to give evidence include North Wales Police Chief
    > Constable Richard Brunstrom.
    >
    >
    > Rowing club's death 'conspiracy'
    >
    >  
    > An Oxford University rowing club engaged in a conspiracy after the
    > death of a student, a coroner has said.
    >
    > Lightweight Rowing Club members did not tell investigators that head
    > coach Leila Hudson had been drunk when Leo Blockley drowned, an
    > inquest heard.
    >
    > South Manchester coroner John Pollard recorded a narrative verdict on
    > Mr Blockley, 21, of Ashton-under-Lyne.
    >
    > He had been swept away by strong currents on the River Ebro in
    > Barcelona in December 2000.
    >
    > The first inquest into the post graduate maths student's death had
    > recorded a verdict of accidental death after blaming freak weather
    > conditions which had caused a wave to swamp his boat.
    >
    >>  There was what might be called a conspiracy... that they would not
    > make known that the head coach had been suffering the effects of
    > alcohol.
    >
    > But it was overturned by the High Court after Mr Blockley's parents
    > uncovered new information relating to safety.
    >
    > Mr Pollard said club members had "regarded the reputation of the
    > rowing club as of greater importance than the death of a young man who
    > had drowned in a club activity".
    >
    > "There was what might be called a conspiracy or also more accurately
    > an agreement by a number of senior officers in the [club] that they
    > would not make known that the head coach had been suffering the
    > effects of alcohol at the time of the death," he added.
    >
    > He said the team members had not co-operated fully with university
    > investigator Richard Hartley.
    >
    > "Mr Hartley did not carry out a full and searching investigation into
    > the background to this death. He was kept in the dark," added Mr
    > Pollard.
    >
    > CALL TO HALT VIOLENCE AT FAIR
    > More News | Back to home page
    >
    > 18:00 - 06 October 2005
    > A group of Axbridge Square residents is calling for action to prevent
    > violent incidents in the town during the annual Blackberry Fair.
    >
    > Two teenagers received knife wounds in a fight which took place on the
    > Friday night of the event, and locals say that the atmosphere before
    > the fight in the square was "ugly and threatening".
    >
    > It followed more disturbances at the 2004 fair when teenagers got
    > drunk and created chaos, smashing windows and fighting.
    >
    > On both occasions teenagers aged under 18 years who were gathering in
    > the square were reported to have obtained alcohol.
    >
    > Residents say that they called police before the fair started, and
    > again an hour before the knife incident, to request a police presence
    > to deter trouble - but they were simply told that police would attend
    > as and when they could.
    >
    > The Friday night of the fair saw police stretched to the limit with
    > incidents across the Burnham-on-Sea sector.
    >
    > Sgt Paul Knowles at Cheddar Police station said that there had been an
    > intention to maintain a police presence at the fair all evening.
    >
    > However, officers had to be called away to deal with other incidents
    > elsewhere.
    >
    > Police in the sector had to deal with an assault at Brean, where a
    > Wild West weekend brought in thousands of visitors, an assault and a
    > firearms incident at Burnham-on-Sea, another assault at Highbridge and
    > more arrests at Burnham-on-Sea.
    >
    > All these incidents took place before the trouble in Axbridge.
    >
    > "Every incident required a police presence, and each one required the
    > officer to deal with an arrest and the resulting paperwork, " said Sgt
    > Knowles.
    >
    > "Each time someone was arrested it reduced the number of police on
    > patrol."
    >
    > Axbridge residents have also called on fair organisers to employ
    > full-time stewards in the square for the duration of the fair, to
    > reduce the possibility of trouble at next year's event.
    >
    > Young people in Axbridge who witnessed the events unfolding in the
    > square have rejected suggestions that the incident was sparked by a
    > drug deal.
    >
    > They say that those involved were well known to have a negative
    > attitude to drugs, and would not have been involved in an incident of
    > that kind.
    >  
    > Homecoming, Halloween expected to stretch police resources
    >
    > By Erin Rickert The Daily Reflector
    >
    >
    > Friday, October 07, 2005
    >
    >
    > Area officials and downtown nightclub owners voiced concerns Thursday
    > over Halloween and East Carolina University's Homecoming football game
    > falling on the same weekend this year.
    >
    > More than 25 people from about 12 safety agencies and community
    > organizations met at the annual Halloween planning meeting to hash out
    > ways to handle the increased number of partygoers expected to flood
    > the bars and streets in downtown Greenville beginning Oct. 29.
    >
    > A larger-than-usual crowd is expected downtown after the Saturday
    > night football game, said Joe Bartlett, patrol division commander with
    > the Greenville Police Department and the officer coordinating
    > Halloween protection.
    >
    > It will put a strain on police resources, leaving the department to
    > decide if a similar number of officers should work both nights.
    >
    > Because crowds are thought to be concentrated more inside the
    > nightclubs Saturday, rather than in the streets like on Halloween,
    > Bartlett said he was undecided Thursday how many officers he will have
    > downtown Oct. 29.
    >
    > Bartlett said he expects about 150 officers will be downtown Halloween
    > night, about the same number used last year.
    >
    > Nine officers on party patrol will be sent into neighborhoods to deal
    > with noise violations and other complaints.
    >
    > As in the past, Bartlett said officers equipped with video cameras
    > will be placed on rooftops to watch the throng and direct crowd
    > control, he said.
    >
    > While an exact time has not been set, barricades will be put up
    > Halloween night when downtown streets begin to become impassible.
    >
    > Those entering downtown on Halloween will be checked for weapons and
    > bags will be searched for alcohol.
    >
    > Bartlett said the search is a precaution because of an increase in the
    > number of weapons being brought downtown.
    >
    > "Basically, if we control what goes down there early on, it reduces
    > what happens later," Bartlett said.
    >
    > DWI checkpoints will be used again this year in two to three locations
    > across the city, Bartlett said.
    >
    > Last year, 20 driving-while-impaired citations were given to those
    > drivers under 21 and 22 drivers of age were charged with DWI on
    > Halloween night, he said.
    >
    > Authorities also want another magistrate on duty Halloween night to
    > assist with the increased number of arrests expected.
    >
    > Officers also asked club owners to put drinks in cups rather than
    > bottles on Halloween and the rest of the weekend if possible.
    >
    > Preliminary plans for a nonalcoholic party in Mendenhall Student
    > Center on the East Carolina University campus Halloween night were
    > discussed by Margaret Olszewska, assistant director of the office of
    > Student Conflict Resolutions.
    >
    >  Spirit of 1985 Bears may live on with Orton
    > --------------------
    >
    > K.C. Johnson
    >
    > October 7, 2005
    >
    > Thanks to photos that have been widely circulated via e-mail and
    > placed seemingly everywhere on NFL message boards, the Bears' open
    > week issue won't go away, even though it probably should.
    >
    > "It's a non-issue," Kyle Orton said.
    >
    > The rookie quarterback said this about photos showing him at a bar in
    > Iowa City last Thursday night. The Bears practiced that day and then
    > were given Friday, Saturday and Sunday off.
    >
    > At the bar, Orton, who is from Iowa, is seen holding a bottle of
    > whiskey in one photo and smiling and raising his middle finger at the
    > camera in another.
    >
    > "It's a tough situation," Orton said in a conference call with
    > Cleveland reporters. "Obviously, I regret that the pictures came out.
    > It's [an off] week and I was trying to get away. I was back with some
    > friends I haven't seen for quite a while back home. I'm a 22-year-old
    > kid having some fun."
    >
    > Suspect says his brakes failed
    >
    > By Hal Dardick
    > Tribune staff reporter
    > Published October 6, 2005
    >
    > In a retrial of a case that changed how some reckless homicide cases
    > are argued in Illinois, a former Joliet man testified Wednesday that
    > his brakes failed before his station wagon hit a car in a 1999 crash
    > that killed a 4-year-old girl.
    >
    > "I tried my best" to avoid the crash, Thomas Pomykala, 57, told the
    > third Will County jury to hear testimony in the death of Taylor Pirc,
    > on Feb. 21, 1999.
    >
    > Three months after the wreck, a jury found Pomykala guilty of reckless
    > homicide. He was sentenced to a maximum 14 years in prison.
    >
    > But the 3rd District Appellate Court, in a ruling upheld by the
    > Illinois Supreme Court, overturned his conviction, saying instructions
    > given the jury defied the presumption of innocence. Jurors were told a
    > drunken driver in a fatal crash was reckless unless the defense proved
    > otherwise.
    >
    > After the Supreme Court's ruling in early 2003, prosecutors had to
    > prove that drunken drivers involved in fatal crashes were acting
    > recklessly to gain a reckless homicide conviction.
    >
    > At a second trial in August 2003, a mistrial was declared after a
    > witness mentioned Pomykala's drunken driving convictions in 1976 and
    > 1983.
    >
    > Taylor was in the back seat of her grandmother's car, which was going
    > south on Larkin Avenue near McDonough Street in Joliet. Pomykala,
    > headed north on Larkin, crossed the median, went airborne and hit the
    > grandmother's vehicle, witnesses said.
    >
    > Taylor, who suffered massive head injuries, died instantly, Dr. Bryan
    > Mitchell, a forensic pathologist, testified.
    >
    > Pomykala, who took the stand for the first time, said he ran his car
    > into the median to cripple it to avoid northbound vehicles. He said he
    > did not see any cars headed south.
    >
    > He said he drank four or five beers between about 9 a.m. and 12:30
    > p.m., about 2 1/2 hours before the crash.
    >
    > Police Sgt. John Perona testified that a breath test given to Pomykala
    > nearly four hours after the crash showed his blood-alcohol level was
    > .21 percent. The legal limit is .08 percent.
    >
    > Eighteen beer cans were found in his car after the crash.
    > Nine Mundelein students arrested
    >
    > Teens charged, accused of drinking before school dance
    >
    > By Russell Lissau
    > Daily Herald Staff Writer
    > Posted Tuesday, October 04, 2005
    >
    > Nine Mundelein High School students were arrested at a weekend
    > homecoming dance after authorities found they had been drinking,
    > officials said Monday.
    >
    > A limousine driver who police say took the teens to the on-campus
    > dance and allowed the underage drinking in his vehicle also was
    > arrested.
    >
    > “He knew they were drinking but thought they were being responsible,”
    > Mundelein Police Chief Raymond J. Rose said.
    >
    > The students likely will face disciplinary action. Suspensions are
    > possible, Deputy Superintendent John Ahlgrim said.
    >
    > “While we’re trying to provide fun social activities for the kids at
    > the school, the problem of students coming to any school-sponsored
    > activity under the influence is absolutely something we will not
    > tolerate,” Ahlgrim said.
    >
    > All nine teens live in Mundelein. Charged under village ordinance with
    > consumption of alcohol by a minor were:
    >
    > • Brian D. Betti, 17, of 1021 Barnhill Lane.
    >
    > • Steve Bozich, 17, of 102 S. Walnut Court.
    >
    > • Robert W. Burns, 17, of 551 Waverly Drive.
    >
    > •Charles R. Campbell, 17, of 27581 S. Turf Hill Drive
    >
    > • Tracey B. Cleveland, 17, of 104 S Crescent Drive.
    >
    > • Jessica L. Frainey, 17, of 19449 Harvard Ave.
    >
    > • Molly M. Hughes, 17, of 267 N. Ridgemoor Ave.
    >
    > • Benjamin F. Ireland, 18, of 26253 Green St.
    >
    > • Thomas D. Shaver, 17, of 415 E. Courtland St.
    >
    > The driver, Mohammed U. Iqbal, 21, of 3923 W. Sherwin, Lincolnwood,
    > was charged under village ordinance with permitting underage people to
    > consume alcohol and possession of drug paraphernalia.
    >
    > Police found a pipe with marijuana residue in the front of the
    > limousine, and Iqbal admitted it was his, Rose said.
    >
    > The teens and Iqbal were released after being charged. They are
    > scheduled to appear Nov. 17 in the Mundelein branch of Lake County
    > circuit court.
    >
    > The first two teens were arrested about 9 p.m. Saturday after police
    > patrolling the school parking lot investigated a report of a student
    > vomiting near a limousine.
    >
    > An officer found Cleveland, Shaver and Iqbal at the limousine and also
    > spotted many empty beer bottles and water bottles containing alcoholic
    > beverages inside, Rose said.
    >
    > Police gave Cleveland and Shaver sobriety tests, confirmed they had
    > been drinking and arrested them, Rose said.
    >
    > Upon learning the teens had gone to the dance with a group of
    > students, officers found seven other teens at the dance and gave them
    > sobriety tests, too.
    >
    > The seven others were arrested after police determined they had been
    > drinking as well, Rose said.
    >
    > The arrests occurred less than two weeks after 10 Mundelein High
    > students were arrested following an on-campus melee with
    > administrators and police.
    >
    > Although the incidents were not related, board President Edwin Specht
    > said he may talk with administrators about whether students should be
    > spoken to about proper behavior and protocol at school events.
    >
    > Driver charged after car hits house, burns
    > --------------------
    >
    > Tribune staff reports
    >
    > October 4, 2005, 1:51 PM CDT
    >
    > A 23-year-old Glenview man was charged today with felony driving under
    > the influence after he allegedly crashed his car into a home in the
    > northern suburb, setting both the vehicle and the house ablaze.
    >
    > Nicholas Stocks, of the 1500 block of Meadow Lane, also was charged
    > with possession of amphetamines, drug paraphernalia and hypodermic
    > syringes, police said.
    >
    > Stocks was in custody pending a bond hearing in the Skokie branch of
    > Cook County Circuit Court. He was slightly injured in the crash along
    > with two police officers and two firefighters who rescued him from his
    > burning vehicle.
    >
    > The accident happened about 9:30 p.m. Monday when a car Stocks
    > allegedly was driving veered off a road and struck the attached garage
    > of a single-family home on the 1500 block of Sunset Ridge Road,
    > officials said.
    >
    > The vehicle burst into flames, and the fire spread to the house. The
    > home's occupants, a pregnant woman and her husband, got out unharmed.
    >
    > Police who were the first responders at the accident scene saw the
    > driver trapped in the burning car and used fire extinguishers to
    > contain the flames until firefighters arrived to extricate the driver.
    > Stocks was taken to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital, Park Ridge,
    > where he was treated for minor injuries and was released to police.
    >
    > Two police officers and two firefighters sustained smoke inhalation
    > injuries, and one of the responders also sustained cuts, authorities
    > said. They were taken to Glenbrook Hospital, Glenview, where they were
    > treated and released.
    >
    > Motorcycle wreck injures driver, boy
    > --------------------
    >
    > Gary Gibula
    >
    > October 4, 2005
    >
    > ST. CHARLES -- A St. Charles woman was listed in fair condition Monday
    > and an 11-year-old boy passenger also was hospitalized after a
    > motorcycle crash Sunday afternoon.
    >
    > Judith Keller, 44, of the 300 block of South 11th Avenue apparently
    > lost control of the motorcycle she was operating and struck a truck
    > parked in the 700 block of 11th Avenue, police said.
    >
    > According to a statement from St. Charles police, a preliminary
    > investigation determined that Keller allegedly was under the influence
    > of alcohol at the time.
    >
    > A spokesman for Delnor-Community Hospital in Geneva said Monday that
    > Keller was in fair condition in the intensive care ward.
    >
    > Police said although Keller was not wearing a helmet, the boy had his
    > on when the accident occurred.
    >
    > Although police said the boy was taken to the hospital for treatment
    > and that his injuries appeared to be not life threatening, the Delnor
    > spokesman declined to comment.
    >
    > St. Charles Police Department spokesman Paul McCurtain said Monday
    > that an investigation continues. McCurtain would not say whether
    > criminal charges were pending.
    >
    >
    > Drinking at concerts, revisited
    > by Natalie J. Ostgaard
    >
    > I know I wrote about something similar last year, but the subject
    > really irks me, so I just feel compelled to write about it again. I'm
    > talking about alcohol use at large venue concerts.
    >
    > Since my focus last time was on all events held at venues such as the
    > Alerus Center or Fargodome, including games and other happenings open
    > to all ages, where the alcohol flows freely, I'll limit it this time
    > to concerts.
    >
    > There should be designated drinking sections at such events. From my
    > eyewitness experience at several large concerts, this isn't
    > commonplace when famous talented people belt out a repertoire of tunes
    > for at least $40 a crack. No, the majority of drinkers at these things
    > appear to be there solely to get rip-roaring drunk and make fools of
    > themselves.
    >
    > Which is just fine if they're in a bar with only adults to witness
    > their sometimes childish, often obnoxious, always idiotic behavior.
    > But the majority of these concerts - at least the ones I've attended -
    > are open to all ages, including children. And people do bring
    > children, some of them quite young. I've never seen these children's
    > parents or chaperones slobbering drunk. In fact, I've rarely seen
    > those taking children to these events drink alcohol themselves. Maybe
    > they're like me and want to remember the show.
    >
    > My 13-year-old daughter's new cowboy hat was nearly ruined at the
    > Keith Urban concert last week because it fell on the floor where there
    > was a large puddle of spilled beer. Her jacket and new Keith Urban
    > shirt also got drenched, but they're washable and the hat was not. By
    > the time the concert was over, you could not step anywhere on the path
    > out without giving your feet a beer bath. And I was wearing
    > flip-flops.
    >
    > My daughter also got an eyeful with all the drunks stumbling around
    > us. Some seemed a little too young to be drinking, but it wasn't my
    > job to check I.D.s. The ones that really bothered me were the girls -
    > I call them girls because they're probably young enough to be my
    > daughters - who actually talked to Ary, rambling on and on about how
    > cute, little and lucky she was, as they hadn't attended a concert
    > until they were at least 20 years old. We could barely understand the
    > words coming out of their mouths.
    >
    > Ary just rolled her eyes and said, "oh - kay" very slowly, not knowing
    > what to think of these crazy people. She's also old enough to realize
    > that their actions were due to being drunk.
    >
    > This wasn't so a few years ago when I took her to her first concert.
    > At nine years old, she was able to really get into Alan Jackson and
    > his music, though no thanks to the highly inebriated folks around us.
    > Actually, that's putting it kindly. I had a few other words in mind
    > for them at the concert. The group of a dozen or so seemed oblivious
    > to the fact that there was a child in its midst, with such colorful
    > language choices and obscene gestures that made me blush. They also
    > sang so loudly off-key, we could barely hear Alan's voice.
    >
    > At that time, Ary was very puzzled as to why these people were acting
    > so weird. She thought there was something seriously wrong with them
    > and I was at a loss to explain their behavior. On the one hand, I
    > didn't want her to yet be familiar with the effects alcohol can have
    > on people. On the other hand, I didn't want her to think their
    > behavior was even close to normal.
    >
    > Similar incidents have occurred at all four concerts we've attended
    > together.
    >
    > Some might say I shouldn't take my daughter to such an event, that
    > she's too young anyway. But why should I hold her back from enjoying
    > something she worked hard to earn and that she'll treasure the rest of
    > her life just because other people can't control themselves?
    >
    >  By all means let them. I just think there's some way to split
    > sections into drinking and non-drinking and still provide enough good
    > seats for everyone. This would also alleviate underage drinking at
    > these events, something we all know takes place when alcohol use isn't
    > restricted. Plus, we wouldn't have to explain to our young sons and
    > daughters why that person just fell flat on his face or this girl is
    > slurring her words.
    >
    Alcohol getting in the way of making friends
    > --------------------
    >
    > Amy Dickinson
    > Ask Amy:
    >
    > September 26, 2005
    >
    > Dear Amy: I am a college junior, very motivated and involved in school
    > and other
    > activities. I'm outgoing, well respected, considered funny and fun to
    > be around
    > by my friends back home. But I'm struggling to make any real
    > friendships at
    > school.
    >
    > A large part of my problem is that many students at this particular
    > university
    > rely on alcohol as the primary means of socializing. Any relationships
    > with
    > people in college that seemed to have any potential fizzled out once
    > they
    > realized that I wasn't interested in going out three nights a week.
    >
    > I realize that there are students who aren't like that, but I don't
    > seem to
    > click with them.
    >
    > I've also found that it is difficult to make real friends in school
    > clubs and
    > activities, as many people seem to be using them to build their
    > resumes.
    >
    > I am taking a large course load and have many activities going on. I
    > just wish
    > that I had a good girlfriend whom I could chat with over coffee
    > sometimes.
    >
    > How can I make friends?
    >
    > -- Loner
    >
    > Dear Loner: Socializing over alcohol doesn't end with college; you
    > will face
    > similar issues once you graduate. The first trick is to find people
    > who share
    > your values. Most colleges have dorms that are composed of people who
    > don't
    > drink or smoke. You should contact your housing dean for ideas about
    > what living
    > situation would be best for you -- for next semester or next year.
    >
    > Though it sounds elementary, making new and true friends is as
    > challenging as
    > quantum physics. You may! have to abandon your stance of standing back
    > and
    > judging people's behavior and motivations, and be more willing to step
    > in and
    > lay more of yourself on the line.
    >
    > You might start by forming a study group in a favorite subject. Offer
    > to host
    > meetings at your dorm's lounge or at the local coffee shop. If there
    > is somebody
    > you think you would like to befriend, invite him or her to meet you at
    > the
    > dining hall or to listen to music at your local coffeehouse.
    >
    Court told drinking led to fight, slaying of pal
    > --------------------
    >
    > By Art Barnum
    > Tribune staff reporter
    >
    > September 28, 2005
    >
    > Joyel Joseph worked with his close friend Xavier Malayil at a Downers
    > Grove
    > manufacturing company for more than a year and, several times a week
    > during
    > 2001, the two would drink at Malayil's Downers Grove apartment.
    >
    > But on Feb. 7, 2001, Malayil was stabbed numerous times because "he
    > talked bad
    > about Joseph's family," Assistant DuPage County State's Atty. Tim
    > Diamond said
    > Tuesday in opening arguments in Joseph's murder trial.
    >
    > Joseph, 37, lived in Woodridge and would come to Malayil's apartment
    > in the 2000
    > block of Prentiss Drive several times a week.
    >
    > Diamond told Circuit Judge George Bakalis, who is presiding over a
    > weeklong
    > bench trial, that on Feb. 7 Joseph became upset at Malayil and
    > attacked him with
    > a large kitchen knife he used to cut up chicken h! e was cooking.
    >
    > An autopsy indicated that Malayil was stabbed several times in the
    > chest,
    > abdomen and right leg. It also showed that his blood-alcohol level was
    > three
    > times the legal limit.
    >
    > In 2004, acting on a tip from an informant, the FBI arrested Joseph at
    > a
    > flophouse in Philadelphia, where he is believed to have fled and lived
    > for three
    > years.
    >
    > Diamond said that after Joseph was returned to DuPage County, he
    > confessed to
    > the crime.
    >
    > "The pair was drinking their day away, and they did and argued over
    > many
    > topics," said DuPage County Public Defender Robert Miller.
    >
    > "This day, this event, turned into mutual conflict," Miller said.
    > "Murder isn't
    > the correct verdict."
    >
    > Miller indicated in his opening arguments that Joseph intends to
    > testify in the
    > trial and offer his version of events.
    >
    > If Joseph is convicted of murder, he would face 20 to 60 years in
    > prison. If
    > convicted of a lesser c! rime, such as second-degree murder,
    > indicating that he
    > believed he was defending himself, he would face up to 15 years in
    > prison.
    >  
    > Hypocrisy of beer and sports won't change
    > --------------------

    >
    > Mike Bianchi
    > SPORTS COMMENTARY
    >
    > September 28, 2005
    >
    > The worst tragedy in Orlando sports history started with beer.
    >
    > The ugliest melee in professional sports history started with beer.
    >
    > Just about every case of stadium violence in American sports history
    > started
    > with beer.
    >
    > And you know what? Nothing is going to change it. Not a police
    > officer's tragic
    > death. Not NBA players going after fans in the stands. Not anything.
    > Beer is too
    > culturally and financially entrenched in American sports to ever be
    > outlawed.
    > Beer and sports go together like Butch and Sundance. And, sometimes,
    > the ending
    > is just as deadly.
    >
    > Alcohol's marriage to sports is once again a major issue after the
    > shooting
    > death of undercover police officer Mario Jenkins by another officer
    > during a
    > beer-soaked tailgating party at a UCF football! game Saturday.
    > Witnesses said the
    > nightmarish chain of events started when Jenkins confronted a rowdy
    > group of
    > tailgaters, some of whom threw beer on him.
    >
    > After the investigation is complete, we will learn of the many other
    > factors and
    > failures that contributed to this horrific accident, but we do know
    > this for
    > sure: Beer was involved. It always is.
    >
    > There will be task forces formed to examine the issue. As always. In
    > times like
    > these, sports wrings its hands about the beer predicament. The rest of
    > the time,
    > sports puts out its hands to accept the beer payola.
    >
    > Remember last year's massive brawl in the NBA? It ignited when a fan
    > in Detroit
    > threw a beer cup on Indiana Pacers star Ron Artest. The NBA responded
    > with
    > unprecedented disciplinary measures and suspended nine players for 140
    > games.
    > You know what the NBA didn't do? It didn't ban beer from its arenas.
    >
    > And guess what? Even though there's been a s! hooting death at a UCF
    > football
    > game, the Golden Knigh ts will not ban beer from future tailgating
    > parties. If
    > they did, they wouldn't need a new on-campus stadium. There'd be so
    > few fans,
    > they could play their games at a rec-league softball park.
    >
    > Banning beer from football games? A laudable goal -- and a laughable
    > one. You'd
    > be better off trying to ban sunscreen from a surfing contest. Sports
    > fans are
    > going to drink -- period. It's part of the lifestyle. Thus, the name
    > "sports
    > bar." Notice they're not called "sports malt shops."
    >
    > I've said it a million times: If sports really wanted to get rid of
    > the boors,
    > it would get rid of the beers. Of course, it will never happen. Beer
    > is the
    > gasoline of sports. Even though its consumption has caused countless
    > disputes, it is the liquid that lubricates the economic engine.
    >
    > Without beer commercials, networks couldn't pay those exorbitant
    > rights fees to
    > televise sporting events. There are entire stadiums named after beers,
    > a! nd beer
    > companies sponsor just about every pro team, including the Magic.
    >
    > The NCAA certainly receives its fair share of beer money, too. One
    > watchdog
    > group counted a total of 395 beer ads during the 2003 Final Four. Last
    > year,
    > beer companies spent $52 million selling suds on televised collegiate
    > sporting
    > events.
    >  
    >
    > 58 arrested in 'frat night' crackdown
    > ABC probe targets drinking by students with action at restaurant in
    > Union Twp.
    > Wednesday, September 28, 2005
    > BY JASON JETT
    > Star-Ledger Staff
    > Nearly 60 college students were arrested in a state ABC undercover
    > investigation of underage drinking during "fraternity night" at a
    > restaurant in Union Township.
    > "We are very concerned about underage drinking since it produces
    > fights and motor-vehicle accidents, and contributes to sexual
    > assaults," state Attorney General Peter Harvey said yesterday in
    > response to the crackdown Thursday at Jumbalaya Restaurant on
    > Stuyvesant Avenue.
    > "Our goal is to help young people develop into thoughtful and
    > productive adults," he added.

    > Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control Director Jerry Fischer called
    > the undercover operation "the first salvo" this school year in a
    > continuing initiative to curb alcohol use by college students.
    > He said the program netted 146 arrests between October 2004 and May
    > 2005, explaining underage drinking operations are conducted in college
    > towns similar to those held each summer at the Shore.
    > "We will continue with this in an effort to stop a whole lot of the
    > bad things that happen from young people violating the law and abusing
    > alcohol," he said. "It not only leads to DWI, but to fights, rapes and
    > things that do not involve hurting anyone physically, like dropping
    > out of college."
    > The ABC director said a consortium of colleges is cooperating in the
    > effort "in the area of education, to get across to students the need
    > to recognize that the law is for their benefit." He added local police
    > departments also participate.
    > Fischer said the 58 arrests of male and female students last week in
    > Union was the largest number made in any single operation by the
    > agency.
    > He would not identify the college the students attended, or name the
    > fraternity that sponsored the event.
    >  
    > Girl's death rocks town
    >
    > Teen may have been drinking on way to school football game
    >   MORE LOCAL LINKS ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS
    > By Gwen Florio
    > Rocky Mountain News
    > STEAMBOAT SPRINGS - In a community shaken by the deaths of two
    > middle-school students last year, a third death - that of a popular
    > high school athlete over the weekend - seemed like too much to
    > bear.Then came the news that drinking may have been a factor in the
    > death of Adele Dombrowski, 17, a senior at Steamboat Springs High
    > School found dead in her bed Saturday morning.
    > "We are looking at making sure our underage ones don't have the
    > ability to obtain alcohol so readily," said City Clerk Julie Jordan,
    > who wept as she spoke on Tuesday.
    > Just days before Dombrowski's death, nine liquor stores in town were
    > cited in a sting operation involving an underage buyer.
    > Kevin Neuwirth, 20, of Steamboat Springs, has been charged with
    > providing alcohol to Dombrowski. Neuwirth bought a 1.75-liter bottle -
    > that's the large jug, with the handle - of rum Friday afternoon at The
    > Bottleneck liquor store in downtown Steamboat Springs, according to
    > Capt. Joel Rae, of the town's police department.
    > Dombrowski reportedly drank rum-and-Pepsis with others who were under
    > the legal drinking age on the way to Friday night's football game
    > against Moffat County High School 40 miles away in Craig, Rae said. He
    > declined to say how many people went to the game with Dombrowski, or
    > who was driving. All have been interviewed, he said.
    > Dombrowski arrived home about 12:45 a.m. Saturday and went to bed
    > shortly afterward. When a friend arrived nearly 10 hours later to pick
    > her up for tennis practice, Dombrowski was dead.
    > Results of an autopsy are to be released this week, although
    > toxicology tests are expected to take longer.
    > That's why it was weird when teachers initiated discussions Monday on
    > the importance of sobriety, said Rachel Ivancie, 15, a sophomore who
    > was with Dombrowski.
    > "It didn't seem like alcohol was that much a problem" Friday night,
    > she said. "We were all having so much fun at the game."
    > Neuwirth was charged Sunday with contributing to the delinquency of a
    > minor and procuring alcohol for someone underage. He was released on
    > $5,000 bond, Rae said.
    > The Bottleneck was charged with permitting the sale of alcohol to an
    > underage person, and with selling to an underage person. Both are
    > misdemeanor offenses.
    > The Bottleneck was not, however, one of the nine stores cited last
    > week after the police department sent a 20-year-old into 11 Steamboat
    > Springs liquor stores to try and buy booze.
    > "That was the biggest failure rate we've ever had" for one of the
    > department's routine sting operations, Rae said.
    > The information outraged Jack Richardson, who got to know Dombrowski
    > when she taught his 10-year- old daughter in Sunday School at the
    > Anchor Way Baptist Church.
    > "We've got an epidemic up here of underage kids getting booze," said
    > Richardson, who said that in his job as a 7-Eleven clerk, he's
    > constantly confronting kids who try to buy the 3.2 beer sold in the
    > convenience store.
    > Rae said the police department issues about 120 tickets a year for
    > underage drinking.
    > However, the citation issued to the Bottleneck - the store that sold
    > the rum that Dombrowski apparently drank Friday night - was the first
    > in its 30-year history. Two signs on the Bottleneck's polished wooden
    > counter demand identification of anyone under age 30.
    > "We are extremely hard on checking IDs," said owner John Marshall.
    > Richardson said that while he was devastated to hear of Dombrowski's
    > death, he wasn't surprised.
    > "You see (drinking) all the time in a small town," he said. "But you
    > hope (a death) doesn't happen."
    > Most of the hard proof of the consequence of underage drinking came
    > last year in three highly publicized cases on the Front Range. At both
    > Colorado State University and the University of Colorado, students
    > drank themselves to death last fall; a third student, at Colorado
    > College, died in a fall from a fourth-floor window after drinking and
    > smoking marijuana.
    > In Steamboat Springs, a student of legal drinking age drank himself to
    > death last year at Colorado Mountain College, Rae said.
    > The deaths have taken their toll on the community's schools, said high
    > school principal Mike Knezevich.
    > "It's been tough," he said.
    >
    Fatal UCF melee caught on camera
    > --------------------
    >
    >
    Photos of tailgate tragedy show sequence of events UCF grad's pictures
    > corroborate other witness accounts

    >
    > September 29, 2005
    >
    > Dramatic new photos released Wednesday show UCF police Officer Mario
    > Jenkins
    > holding a gun behind someone's head and then tumbling to the ground
    > with
    > tailgaters moments before his death.
    >
    > The pictures provide the most vivid images yet of the chaotic moments
    > leading up
    > to last weekend's shooting death of Jenkins during pregame partying
    > outside the
    > Florida Citrus Bowl. Orlando reserve Officer Dennis R. Smith, called
    > to the
    > fracas to check on reports of an armed person, shot Jenkins, unaware
    > he was
    > working in plainclothes to bust underage drinkers.
    >
    > The University of Central Florida's independent student newspaper
    > released the
    > photos late Wednesday. A UCF graduate who witnessed the melee shot
    > the! pictures
    > but did not want her name revealed, said Ashley Burns, managing editor
    > of the
    > Central Florida Future.
    >
    > None of the photos clearly indicates who had been shot. But one
    > appears to show
    > people running from the scene as one young man points at the others on
    > the
    > ground. Another shows Jenkins holding a gun near the back of another
    > man's head
    > as what appears to be blood trickles down the other man's back.
    >
    > The photographer did not offer specific details about the images,
    > Burns said.
    >
    > "Her only reaction was to pull out her camera," Burns said. "She said
    > it was
    > just reaction and took the photo. She didn't know what was going on."
    >
    > The photographer e-mailed Burns the images earlier this week and then
    > gave the
    > pictures and a statement to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement,
    > which is
    > investigating the incident.
    >
    > The photos corroborate other witnesses' accounts of the frantic
    > situation, in
    > which Michael Young, 2! 4, also suffered a gunshot wound. One
    > tailgater said she < BR>saw Young lunge into the fray, approaching
    > Jenkins from behind in an apparent
    > "bear hug," moments before the fatal shots.
    >
    > One photo shows Young on the ground with Jenkins.
    >
    > Young, who gave a statement to FDLE investigators Sunday, was released
    > Wednesday
    > from Orlando Regional Medical Center. He has not responded to the
    > Sentinel's
    > requests for comment.
    >
    > It is unclear from witness accounts and photos whether Young knew
    > Jenkins was a
    > police officer.
    >
    > FDLE agents are still trying to piece together what happened during
    > Saturday's
    > brawl, which ended with the death of Jenkins, 29, a four-year
    > UCF-force veteran.
    > They say they have a better grasp of the incident based on interviews
    > with more
    > than 80 people, some of whom have provided phone-camera shots and
    > video footage.
    >
    > It could be two months before the FDLE submits its report to the
    > Orange-Osceola
    > State Attorney's Office, which will decide whether the shooting is
    > justified!  .
    >
    > Several witnesses said Young participated in the fight, and one UCF
    > student has
    > said Young was trying to help Jenkins. No one says he started it.
    >
    > Authorities will only say Young had some "contact" with Jenkins on
    > Saturday.
    >
    > In an incident nearly three years ago, Young was arrested after
    > getting into a
    > dispute with Orange County deputy sheriffs. In that incident, deputies
    > charged
    > Young with obstructing an officer for interfering with his younger
    > brother's
    > arrest on underage-drinking charges in October 2002.
    >
    > A deputy's report says Young "started in my direction in an aggressive
    > manner"
    > and did not back away when ordered. Young later pleaded no contest to a
    > misdemeanor charge of obstructing or opposing a police officer and
    > completed 30
    > hours of community service.
    >
    > Jay Etheridge, the assistant special agent in charge of FDLE's Orlando
    > office,
    > on Wednesday said Young's criminal history "will not have any bearing
    > on our!
    > case." Though they consider it "interesting," Etherid ge said, "we
    > can't look at
    > whether they have a propensity for violence. . . . Every incident is
    > different."
    >
    > On campus Wednesday, 24 members of a newly formed UCF task force vowed
    > to make
    > recommendations by next week in time for the school's Oct. 8 home
    > football game.
    > UCF President John Hitt created the task force Monday to consider
    > possible curbs
    > on tailgating.
    >
    > The task force agreed to hold two additional meetings Friday and
    > Tuesday before
    > it turns in "short-term solutions" to Hitt.
    >
    > Retired U.S. Navy Vice Adm. Al Harms, who chairs the task force,
    > emphasized that
    > the panel is not conducting a "finger-pointing" exercise and is simply
    > seeking
    > solutions to the woes of student alcohol abuse.
    >
    > "We need to focus on the issues," Harms said. "We're not gunning
    > people here. .
    > . . We do not know all the facts surrounding this incident. What we do
    > know is
    > that use of alcohol was a contributing factor."
    >
    > Jenkins was familiar ! with underage-drinking investigations at the
    > Citrus Bowl
    > and the area immediately around the stadium, according to court
    > records.
    >
    > During late 2003, for example, Jenkins handed out no fewer than six
    > citations or
    > notices to appear in court for possession of alcohol by a person
    > younger than
    > 21, according to Orange County Clerk of Courts records. The incidents
    > occurred
    > in the area of the Citrus Bowl.
    >
    > In most cases, Jenkins reported spotting a person "youthful in
    > appearance" who
    > was drinking beer or a mixed drink. After approaching the underage
    > drinkers, he
    > would confirm their ages and note the ages in his reports.
    >
    > During the same time period, from mid-October to mid-December 2003,
    > Jenkins also
    > spotted underage drinkers in Orlando bars, citing them for drinking in
    > nightspots such as Bar Orlando.

    TOP NEWS STORY OF DAY:
    Missing teen’s body found in pond

    By Ted Gregory
    Tribune staff reporter
    Published June 21, 2005, 9:40 PM CDT

    Fire department search crews recovered the body of missing Carol Stream teenager Jonathan Petit from a pond Tuesday morning, prompting police to turn more intense scrutiny toward a party he attended shortly before drowning.

    Petit's body surfaced about 6:25 a.m. in the pond in the north central section of the village, Carol Stream Police Chief Rick Willing said. Petit, 16,
    was last seen about 1:30 a.m. Saturday outside the party at a townhouse just north of the pond.

    "The primary thrust of our investigation now will be to focus in on the reports of underage drinking at the house prior to his disappearance," Willing said. "I'm fairly confident, based on what we've been told by people who attended the party, that there was underage drinking going on at the home."

    Investigators were continuing to talk with people who attended the party in the 700 block of Daybreak Lane.

    "We're going to do everything we can to determine whether criminal actions were involved and who is culpable," Willing said
    , adding that investigators are trying to determine who provided the alcohol, who consumed it and what alcohol was provided.

    Residents of the home could not be reached for comment.

    Authorities said Petit, a well-liked member of the Glenbard North High School football and wrestling teams, attended a village carnival Friday night with friends
    and then went to the party about 11 p.m. He drank vodka and cola, said some of those who attended.

    Petit's mother, Yvonne Petit, said she last spoke with her son by cell phone about 11:20 p.m. Friday when he told her he was leaving a party and heading home. The family had planned to visit Great America on Saturday, she said.

    Willing suggested Jonathan Petit may have become somewhat unruly at the party and was escorted out of the house after 1 a.m.

    Once outside, Petit was seen walking on an asphalt path around the pond, police said. Petit reportedly told an acquaintance he was going swimming. A few minutes later, the teen heard Petit splashing in the water, calling for him to jump in.

    Police said the acquaintance, an 18-year-old who did not attend the party, walked from the area where he had seen Petit, returned about 1:45 a.m., and heard nothing from the pond. The teen told police he assumed Petit had gone home.

    After searching apartment buildings and subdivisions in the neighborhood around the pond, authorities began plying the murky water about 8 a.m. Sunday.

    Preliminary results of an autopsy indicated Petit drowned, said a spokeswoman for the DuPage County coroner's office. Test results on whether Petit had alcohol in his bloodstream are expected in three to four weeks, the spokeswoman said.

    DuPage County prosecutors are reviewing the circumstances of the drowning, DuPage County State's Atty. Joseph Birkett said. An adult can be charged with a misdemeanor for providing liquor to a minor, he said.

    Illinois law also allows prosecutors to file felony charges against adults who provide alcohol to a minor "if a death occurs as the result of the violation." Courts typically interpret that provision to mean the minor dies as a direct consequence of ingesting the alcohol, Birkett said.

    In addition, Illinois' Drug or Alcohol Impaired Minor Responsibility Act that took effect Jan. 1, 2004, allows the family of a minor injured or killed in an alcohol-related incident to file a lawsuit seeking damages from someone providing alcohol or allowing the minor to consume it.

    Petit's family gathered with close friends at their home and released a three-paragraph statement thanking several people and organizations.

    Funeral arrangements are pending.
     
    Motorcyclist dies after car collision

    Published June 21, 2005

    WHEELING -- A Wheeling man died early Monday after he was thrown from his motorcycle. Speed, alcohol and failure to wear a helmet contributed to his death, police said.

    David Campos, 23, of the 0-100 block of Picardy Lane was riding at a high speed at about 10:30 p.m. Sunday, heading north on Elmhurst Road just south of Dundee Road, when he slammed into the back of a car, police said. Campos was thrown over the car and landed on the pavement, police said.

    Campos was taken to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital, Park Ridge, where he was pronounced dead at 12:50 a.m., police said.
    He had been driving while under the influence of alcohol, police said.

    The other driver was taken to Glenbrook Hospital, Glenview, where he was treated for minor injuries and released, police said.
     
    Man charged in crash:

    A St. Charles man was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol after he smashed his car into a tree early Sunday morning, police said. The crash sent the driver, 21-year-old Michael Galloway, and two passengers to the hospital. Galloway, of 34W772 S. James Drive, was driving west on Riverside Drive near Jackson Street in St. Charles Township shortly after midnight when he lost control of his car, according to the Kane County Sheriff’s Office. He hit a tree and landed in a ditch. Galloway was extricated from the car by the St. Charles Fire Department, and treated and released from Delnor-Community Hospital, according to reports. Names and conditions of his two passengers were not available Sunday.

    Two men arrested following June 6 fight


    Two men injured in a fight two weeks ago in East Flat Rock were arrested Friday in connection with the incident.

    Keith Vann Carpenter and Dustin Earl Jones both were charged with assault inflicting serious injury in connection with a June 6 fight outside the home of Jones' sister on Westall Street. Carpenter also was charged with second-degree trespassing. Carpenter, 41, of 216 Westall Street, sustained six stab wounds in the fight. Jones, 25, of 1366 Dana Road, sustained multiple bruises and a concussion after being beaten with a lead pipe, according to arrest warrants.

    Both men admitted to drinking alcohol prior to the late night fight, investigators said. The men began fighting after Jones drove through part of Carpenter's yard while on his way to his sister's home farther down the road, witnesses said.

    Carpenter was placed in the Henderson County jail under a $5,500 bond. Jones was placed in jail under a $5,000 bond.

    Man Falls Asleep During 18th DWI Arrest

    The Associated Press
    June 21. 2005 8:19PM


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    A man arrested after a traffic stop fell asleep before an officer arrived to administer a field sobriety test. But authorities say James Lovato, 50, had been through it before - it was his 18th arrest on a charge of drunken driving.

    The DWI Resource Center, which tracks drunken driving convictions back to 1984, said Lovato has been convicted at least eight times. State records show his first arrest was in 1977. In addition, a criminal complaint against him in the latest arrest said his license has been revoked seven times.

    He was charged in Saturday's incident with aggravated driving while intoxicated on a fourth or subsequent offense.

    A breath test found his breath-alcohol level was 0.16 percent, twice the state's presumed level of intoxication.

    Lovato was driving on a revoked license when police said they clocked him at 77 mph in a 65 mph zone on Interstate 25 north of Albuquerque.

    A complaint filed in metropolitan court said police had to force Lovato's car to the side of the road to get him to stop. Police then noticed an open beer bottle near the driver's seat, and said Lovato's eyes were bloodshot and his breath smelled of alcohol.

    The complaint said three open containers of beer were found in the car.

    Police also said Lovato fell asleep by the time a DWI officer arrived to administer the sobriety test.

    Lovato pleaded guilty last year to a charge of fourth or subsequent offense DWI and was sentenced last October to 12 months in a community custody program followed by probation.

  • DiCaprio Hit With Beer Bottle at Party, People Reports

    LOS ANGELES (June 18) - Leonardo DiCaprio was hit with a bottle while attending a Hollywood party given by Paris Hilton's ex-boyfriend and needed about a dozen stitches to close a wound near his ear, People Magazine reported on its Web site.

    The magazine said DiCaprio was at a party at about 4 a.m. Friday at the home of Rick Salomon when a woman struck him with what appeared to be a beer bottle. No ambulance was called but friends took the actor to a hospital where he received about a dozen stitches, People said.

    Los Angeles Police Officer Jason Lee, a department spokesman, could not immediately confirm the report.

    "I have received no notification of that sort. That doesn't mean that nothing happened, but normally we would get those kind of notifications here," Lee said.

    A call to DiCaprio's spokesman, Ken Sunshine, was not immediately returned, but People said the spokesman had confirmed the assault.

    "While leaving a small private gathering, Leo was attacked by a woman who was trespassing and had been repeatedly asked to leave the property," Sunshine told the magazine. "The attacker struck him with a glass object before being restrained by witnesses."

    The attack was not expected to affect DiCaprio's work on a Martin Scorsese movie, "The Departed," which is shooting in Boston and New York, People said.

    TEEN'S DAD: "NO SENTENCE ENOUGH"

    16 years in prison for DWI fatal crash

    Published in the Home News Tribune 06/18/05

    By LONNIE MACK
    STAFF WRITER

    MIDDLESEX COUNTY — An Edison man who pleaded guilty in April to aggravated manslaughter and driving while intoxicated in connection with a 2004 crash in Piscataway that killed a 17-year-old high school honor student was sentenced to 16 years in prison yesterday.

    The sentence of 43-year-old Phillip Gonzalez was imposed in a New Brunswick courtroom packed with family and friends of the victim, Michael Partipilo, a student at St. Joseph's High School in Metuchen.

    Several of the victim's classmates sat on the floor after the benches were cleared and others stood in the back of the room in support of their fallen friend.

    Superior Court Judge Phillip Paley ordered Gonzalez to serve 13 years and seven months of the sentence before he will be eligible for parole.

    Paley suspended Gonzalez's driver's license for 20 years. Gonzalez, who has now been convicted of driving while intoxicated five times and whose driver's license was already suspended for 10 years in connection with a 1999 DWI conviction, apologized for his actions and said, "I am deeply remorseful. I also have to live with what I did and that is not easy."

    Assistant County Prosecutor Nicholas Sewitch said Gonzalez had a blood-alcohol reading of 0.23, almost three times the legal limit of .08, during the evening hours of March 12, 2004, when he ran a red light at a speed in excess of 50 mph on Centennial Avenue at Washington Avenue and crashed his van into Partipilo's Toyota 4Runner broadside, flipping it over.

    "When we lost our son, we lost our own lives as well," Michael Partipilo Sr. said in describing to the judge how his son's death has impacted him and his wife, Corazon Partipilo.

    "Our daily life," he said, "turned to grief and sadness. We lost our pleasure of living. We are now just going through the motions of daily existence with nowhere to go. We lost a great and special son, a very loyal and loving friend, a fun-filled companion, a sensible adviser and a very humble human being all in one. We lost a lot."

    "We lost our son because of Mr. Gonzalez's negligence," Partipilo said. "In the past," he said, "Mr. Gonzalez has had a pattern of violating the law and did not seem to learn from his mistakes and his most recent transgression killed our son. Judge Paley, the incarceration of Mr. Gonzalez, even for what many consider a short time will protect the innocent lives of our citizens and will not allow him to hurt anyone else."

    After the sentencing, Partipilo said there is no sentence that would be enough. "I have been sentenced to life without my son. I received a worse sentence than he (Gonzalez) did."

    Sewitch, who negotiated the plea agreement with defense attorney Joseph Benedict, argued for the maximum sentence of 16 years, citing Gonzalez's driving record, which in addition to the four prior drunken-driving convictions includes 15 moving violations, eight accidents and six license suspensions.

    The maximum penalty for aggravated manslaughter is 30 years and the presumptive is 20 years. In fashioning the plea agreement, Sewitch said, the absence of a criminal record was taken into account when the maximum recommendation was reduced to 16 years.

    Sewitch said witnesses reported that when Gonzalez ran the red light he was on the shoulder of the road and had passed other cars that were stopped at the light before speeding into the intersection and striking Partipilo's vehicle.

    Partipilo had just received his driver's license about a week before the fatal crash.

    Benedict noted that several letters were submitted to the judge from people who gave his client good references as a good father and active member in youth and community groups.

    Benedict argued Gonzalez has been participating in alcohol rehabilitation and counseling since the fatal accident and was very remorseful about the tragedy. The attorney urged the judge to sentence his client to 12 years with a parole stipulation of a little more than 10 years.

    After Gonzalez's arrest for the March 12, 2004, fatal accident, it was learned he had been mistakenly sentenced by Metuchen Municipal Court Judge Lydia Kuhn on a 1999 conviction to a six-month license suspension and no jail time when his prior drunken-driving convictions mandated he be sentenced to 180 days in jail and that his driver's license be suspended for 10 years.

    The sentence was corrected earlier this year when Gonzalez was resentenced by Woodbridge Municipal Court Judge Jay Jorgenson. At the urging of the parents of Michael Partipilo, the state Legislature in December approved legislation requiring judges to review a defendant's driving record before sentencing.

    As a result of the accident, Partipilo has also worked with area legislators to introduce three other bills that call for stiffer penalties and regulations for people convicted of drunken driving.

    Ten Ways to Maintain Your Brain

    June 17, 2005

    Comment Comments (0) Print Friendly Print Email Email

    Good health starts with the brain and, as one of the most vital body organs, it needs care and maintenance. While we often think about conditioning our body, we may not give equivalent attention to conditioning our brain. This seems like an amazing oversight, given our dependency on a well-functioning mind for accomplishing even the smallest task.

    Here's eight ways to protect your brain today so it will work for you tomorrow:

    • Take brain health to heart. That is, what's good for the heart is good for the brain. To prevent brain deterioration, work on preventing heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and stroke.

    • Keep counting. Keep body weight, blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar levels within recommended ranges.

    • Feed the brain. Eat less fat and more antioxidant foods.

    • Work your body. Physical exercise keeps the blood flowing and may encourage the building of new brain cells. Do what you can - even simply walking 30 minutes a day - to keep both body and mind active.

    • Jog your mind: Read, write, play games, learn new subjects, do crossword puzzles - but challenge your brain.

    • Connect with others. Leisure activities that combine physical, mental and social elements are best. Socialize, converse, volunteer, join a club or take a class.

    • Heads up! Protect your head from injury. Use seat belts, wear a helmet when cycling, and unclutter your house so you don't fall.

    • Clear your head. Avoid unhealthy habits like smoking, drinking alcohol and the use of street drugs.

    Student at UNC killed in accident in Boulder

    Doyle Murphy, (Bio) murphy@greeleytrib.com
    June 16, 2005

    Comment Comments (20) Print Friendly Print Email Email

    STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

    A University of Northern Colorado student died in car accident early Monday.

    Boulder police said 19-year-old Tori Lynn Reiss was a passenger in a Lexus that crashed into a tree shortly after 2 a.m. in the 5200 block of Cypress Drive in Boulder. Police said the 17-year-old driver fled on foot when he spotted police officers, but was later caught and taken to Boulder Community Hospital with injuries to his lower body.

    Reiss died at the scene.

    Boulder police spokeswoman Julie Brooks said the department was investigating alcohol and speed as possible factors in the accident. Police are also investigating two Boulder addresses where Reiss and the driver may have been to parties that night. Investigators were still working on the case Wednesday. No charges have been filed, but the driver and anyone who provided alcohol to him and Reiss could still be charged. The 17-year-old's identity has not been released.

    Reiss had just completed her freshman year at UNC and was home for the summer. Phillip Dybedal met Reiss at UNC where they lived in Harrison Hall on West Campus. He said his friend lived for the moment.

    "She was always looking for a good time, and always wanted other people to, too," Dybedal said.

    Ice cream truck driver charged with DUI

    By Associated Press
    Published June 16, 2005

    WAUKESHA, Wis. -- The driver of an ice cream truck was charged with drunken driving after a woman called police saying she saw a man throw a can of malt liquor onto her lawn.

    Police stopped David A. Blundell, 43, in his ice cream truck a short time after the homeowner complained last Thursday, according to the criminal complaint. Blundell first denied drinking but then admitted that he had a beer for breakfast, the complaint said.

    Blundell, who authorities said is also a registered sex offender, was charged Tuesday with repeat drunken driving. Tests showed his blood-alcohol level was more than twice the level considered evidence of intoxication, which in Wisconsin is .08 percent.

    Blundell was previously convicted of drunken driving in 2001.

    Rodney Jensen, whose Jensen Vending company in Milwaukee owns the ice cream truck, said he did not know Blundell was a registered sex offender. Blundell has been fired.

    Turns out booze is the last thing you need if you're trying to unwind after a hard day
    It's bad enough being treated roughshod by your boss, and much worse going home and taking it out on those around you. Called "displacement of aggression," this untoward behaviour with an innocent party is a common coping mechanism when we feel powerless to stand up to the person who really deserves it. According to an study in the Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, alcohol actually focuses one's attention on the slightest provocation and unleashes the subconscious tendency to displace aggression on easier targets. "After alcohol consumption," say the researchers, "a minor, situational disturbance can have a great impact on aggression -- [even] toward a third party who does little to trigger hostility."
     
    Teen girl in binge drinking warning

    Jun 16 2005

    By Brenda Hickman, The Evening Chronicle

     

    A father today claimed his 14-year-old daughter was lured into a binge drinking session by a man hanging around a shopping centre.

    The schoolgirl was said to have suffered a fit after knocking back a quantity of spirits when she was befriended by a man at the green at Newcastle's Old Eldon Square.

    She has told her parents she has no immediate recollection of what happened. Now police are carrying out inquiries into the incident.

    The father-of-two, from Gateshead, who does not want to be identified, said: "I want to warn parents about the danger to youngsters who gather on the green.

    "I believe this man was hanging around the kids and trying to befriend them. My daughter, who isn't street-wise, was introduced to him as he had met other youngsters.

    "She must have taken something more than drink because I saw her convulsing in Newcastle General Hospital."

    Newcastle city centre detectives have arrested and bailed a man in his 20s until mid-July while inquiries go on.

    Det Insp Lee Buzzeo said: "We have searched a man's house and we are waiting for the results of forensic tests.

    "At this stage we are trying to establish what happened. The teenager will have to be interviewed. We are also talking to other youngsters about what happened.

    "We would warn children who meet in and around the green to be on the lookout for strangers offering to buy or to give them any alcohol."

    The girl's father added: "Since this happened on May 21, my daughter has been scared to even go to the local shops on her own.

    "She has made a recovery but it is frightening she doesn't know what happened to her that day. I am also disgusted to see the man posted pictures of himself on a website with his arm around other girls in shots taken in Old Eldon Square after the incident involving my daughter."

    Detectives are analysing computer material as part of the inquiry.

     
    Niles boy, 12, accused of drinking, taking joy ride

    June 15, 2005 - 5:31PM
    NILES TOWNSHIP (AP) - State police say a 12-year-old boy took his friend's mother's car for an alcohol-induced joyride before crashing it into some trees.

    The boy is in a Kalamazoo hospital with some broken bones.

    The case will be turned over to a juvenile court judge after the child is released from the hospital.

    The child drove for several miles early Tuesday in rural Niles Township in Berrien County. He smashed into several trash cans and mailboxes along the way.

    Michigan State Police are awaiting lab results to see if the boy was intoxicated but Lieutenant Michael Brown says the driver had been drinking.

    Troopers don't know where he got the alcohol from.

    June 14. 2005 9:59PM

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    man pleaded guilty Tuesday to bludgeoning his father and stepmother to death with a baseball bat and fleeing to Florida last year.

    Adam Russell Baumann, 22, pleaded guilty to capital murder, first-degree murder and two counts of stealing credit cards. He faces the death penalty or life in prison without parole at his sentencing Oct. 5.

    Russell said he was high on crack cocaine and alcohol on June 4, 2004, when he beat his father, Russell Baumann, 61, and stepmother, Diana, 58, stole his father's credit cards and fled in his father's Lincoln Continental.

    Diana Baumann's daughter, Kim Heggie, said her mother had tried to help Baumann with his drug problem.
    Baumann told police he beat and stabbed his stepmother because she had withheld his driver's license to keep him from buying alcohol.

    "My mother didn't deserve to die over two ATM cards and a license," Heggie told WTVR-TV in Richmond.

    Baumann was arrested June 11, 2004, after he jumped from the top of his speeding car during a high-speed police chase in Jacksonville, Fla.
     
    FSU's Sexton Taken to Hospital After Calling Himself God
    Suspended Seminoles QB Picked Up by Police After Laying in Street, Jumping on Cars
    By DAVID ROYSE, AP Sports

    TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (June 14) - Suspended Florida State quarterback Wyatt Sexton was doused by pepper spray and taken to a hospital by police after he was found laying in the street and identifying himself as God.

    Sexton was hospitalized Monday night. A school official said Tuesday he was still under medical care at an undisclosed location. Sexton had not been charged with any crime.

    Florida State assistant athletic director Rob Wilson said Sexton was suspended from the team two weeks ago because of a previously undisclosed violation of team rules. He declined to elaborate, and said this incident appeared to be unrelated.

    Sexton, 20, is the son of Florida State's assistant head coach and running backs coach, Billy Sexton. Wilson said neither head coach Bobby Bowden nor Sexton's father would comment.

    Sexton, who will be a junior in the fall, took over the starting job for the Seminoles at midseason last year. He was expected to compete for the spot this year with Drew Weatherford and Xavier Lee, who were redshirted as freshmen last year.

    An incident report by Tallahassee police officer Zachary Lyne said he was called to a residential neighborhood about reports of a man doing push-ups in the street and jumping on a car.

    Lyne said he found Sexton in the middle of the road wearing only a wet pair of shorts. The officer asked Sexton several times to identify himself, and eventually he said he was God.

    Sexton later got on his hands and knees, yelled obscenities at the officer and stared at him. He was doused with pepper spray and handcuffed, and identified himself as Sexton.

    Police said Sexton "appeared to be under the influence of alcohol." Hospital officials said they didn't have any information on him.

    Once at the hospital, Sexton continued to say he was God and that he didn't know why he was in the hospital, Lyne wrote.

    Police said Sexton's roommates told them he had been at a Dave Matthews Band concert in Tennessee with them earlier Monday. They said he had been stressed out over trying to win the starting quarterback job.

    Alcohol blamed in attack

    Man accused of stabbing girlfriend and her friend

    By JOHN BUGBEE The York Dispatch

    Jealously fueled by beer and a day of arguing with his girlfriend may have led Randy Longway to stab her and her friend, according to testimony at his preliminary hearing yesterday.

    "He thought me and Kenny were having an affair," Sherry Wiley, 33, testified.

    After testimony from Wiley and victim Ken Boyer, District Judge Linda Williams ordered Longway's case to trial.

    He remains in the York County Prison on $10,000 bail.

    Longway is accused of stabbing Boyer and Wiley March 30 in Wiley's 234 Walnut St. home.

    He was later injured when he stepped in front of a charter bus on the North George Street bridge near the Pennsylvania National Guard Armory.

    He's charged with aggravated assault, simple assault and recklessly endangering.

    Found beer cans: Wiley testified she and Longway, with whom she had a child, were arguing before Boyer came to the house. Although she said she didn't know he'd been drinking that day, she found a number of empty beer cans afterward.

    "We were fighting all day," she said. "About all different things. If he didn't touch no beer, he would have been fine."

    In his testimony, Boyer testified he was in Wiley's second-floor bedroom about to change out of his work clothes when Longway attacked him with a knife.

    "He grabbed ahold of me and pulled me down," Boyer, 34, testified. "I started screaming."

    He was stabbed four times in the arm
    and shoulder area, Boyer said.

    He was treated at York Hospital.

    Testifies to threat: Wiley testified that, as Longway left the bedroom, he inflicted a minor stab wound in her back when she told him she was calling the police.

    But downstairs in the kitchen, he grabbed two knives, tried to attack her and was stopped by her brother, Eddie Wiley, 35, according to her testimony.

    "He told my brother to get out of the way so 'I can kill her,'" Sherry Wiley said.

    Shackled and dressed in an orange prison jumpsuit, Longway, 43, who did not testify, whispered repeatedly to his attorney, Jim Rader, during Boyer's and Wiley's testimony.

    Williams ordered Longway to be arraigned in York County Common Pleas Court July 22.

    Two plead guilty in grisly 2003 slaying
    javascript: var headline = escape("Two plead guilty in grisly 2003 slaying"); OpenWin( '/Global/Create_Email_Story.asp?s=3471518&Headline=' + headline +  '||width=635,height=400,toolbar=no,scrollbars=no') Email to a Friend http://www.wsfa.com/global/story.asp?s=3471518&ClientType=Print Printer Friendly Version  

    ALICEVILLE, Ala. (AP)_Two Pickens County men have each pleaded guilty to murder for their roles in a a grisly 2003 crime.

    Pickens County District Attorney Chris McCool said 50-year-old Phillip Alan Bonner of Coal Fire and 49-year-old David Lee Mayo of Reform entered plea deals last week in the June 2003 murder of 39-year-old Randy Harrell.

    Authorities said Harrell was shot and his attackers tried to sever his head with an ax in an apparent effort to dismember the body.

    Investigators believe the men were under the influence of alcohol and decided to kill Harrell without a clear motive.

    McCool said he expects Bonner and Mayo to each serve life prison sentences. A sentencing hearing will be held at a later date.

    Copyright 2005 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

    Widower, 83, 'beaten with rock'
    A murder trial jury has been told an elderly widower was beaten to death with a rock from his own garden by burglars who then set fire to his home.

    George Jenkin, 83, had his skull crushed in the attack, Truro Crown Court was told.

    John Maddern, 24, of Penpons Close, Penzance, Cornwall, has admitted burglary but denies murder.

    Stuart Bird, 26, of Trevean Road, Penzance, has admitted murder and is in custody, awaiting sentence.

    'Crushing injury'

    Geoffrey Mercer QC, prosecuting, said the pair had broken into the Mount's Bay Inn in Penzance before going on to Mr Jenkin's house in Laregan Hill, Penzance.

    They had consumed a "considerable amount" of alcohol and stolen a CD player and an amplifier before breaking into Mr Jenkin's home early on 3 June last year.

    The victim's body was discovered by firefighters, while a can of wood preserver was located nearby, splashes from which were found on Mr Maddern's jeans, Mr Mercer said.

    A post-mortem examination found the pensioner had died from a "severe crushing head injury" with a heavy object, the court heard.

    The prosecutor alleged that Mr Maddern had previously broken into Mr Jenkin's house and stolen an electric saw and a credit card in May 2003.

    The case continues.

    Woman charged in alcohol-related death


    A West Toledo woman was indicted yesterday by a Lucas County grand jury for an alcohol-related accident April 21 that killed a passenger in her car.



    Sarah Karamol, 21, of 2829 Kendale Drive was indicted on one count of aggravated vehicular homicide.

    Brian Eppink II, 22, of the Kendale address was killed when Ms. Karamol's car collided with a tractor-trailer at Berdan and Kelley avenues. The truck was turning left from Kelley onto eastbound Berdan when Ms. Karamol's westbound car hit the left side of the trailer.

    Authorities said Ms. Karamol had a blood-alcohol content of 0.19 percent, more than twice the legal limit in Ohio of 0.08 percent.

    Police say driver in double-fatal had cocaine


    June 7, 2005, 4:04 PM EDT


    HOPKINTON, N.H. (AP) _ The driver who police say caused a double-fatal crash on Saturday had cocaine and alcohol with him and was a habitual offender with a drunken driving conviction, according to court records and the police.

    Police say Richard D. Demers, 45, swerved into oncoming traffic on Route 202-9 about 4 p.m. Saturday, causing a head-one collision that killed him and a Connecticut woman who was a passenger in a recreational vehicle.

    "We found cocaine on his person and the presence of alcohol on the scene, as well as signs of intoxication," Police Chief David Wheeler said Tuesday. Toxicology tests will be conducted, but often take weeks.

    Wilma Hein, 69, of Stamford, Conn., died in the recreational vehicle. Her husband, Roger Hein, 71, was airlifted to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Hospital in Lebanon where he was listed in satisfactory condition Tuesday.

    Demers was convicted three times of driving after being certified as a habitual offender in 1989. He was deemed a habitual offender after leaving the scene of an accident and being caught twice driving after his license was suspended for insurance cancellations, said his lawyer, Ray Raimo.

    Under state law, habitual offenders who are caught driving face 1 to 5 years behind bars, and no portion of the minimum may be suspended.

    Demers was caught driving in 1991, 1994 and 2001, according to court documents examined by the Concord Monitor.

    Wheeler believes Demers should have faced tougher penalties for being a repeat offender.

    "You can't drive if you're in prison," he said. "The statute allows for one to five in state prison and after the third time, he's not getting it. Maybe he should have been given the max."

    Demers was last arrested on Dec. 12, 2001, in Goffstown for drunken driving and driving as a habitual offender, Goffstown District Court Clerk Barbara Grant said Tuesday. In April 2002, he was convicted of drunken driving, fined $420 and had his driving privileges revoked for three months, Grant said.

    He pleaded guilty in Superior Court to the habitual offender charge was sentenced to one year of weekends at the Hillsborough County jail, which he began serving in June 2002, court documents show. He was put on strict probation and attended the Manchester Academy program, an alternative to incarceration that teaches offenders life skills, according to a Web site for Southern New Hampshire Services Inc.

    Demers completed a substance abuse program and was attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings four times each week in December 2002, according to a letter from the Manchester Academy to Raimo. Demers was allowed to serve some of the remainder of his sentence in home confinement because of his progress, Raimo said.

    "He went to an alcohol program and appeared to be committed to his rehabilitation," Raimo said. "He did a remarkably good job of straightening up."

    In May 2003, however, Demers' probation officer found him drunk. He was sentenced to 30 days in jail, ordered to return to the academy for six months and again participate in a substance abuse program, court documents show.

    Police said speed was not a factor in the crash, which started when Demers's minivan crossed into oncoming traffic and sideswiped a Jeep.

    Wilma and Roger Hein were driving to Maine to visit their son, Douglas Hein, The Stamford (Conn.) Advocate reported Monday. They left Connecticut on Saturday morning and planned to be away for six weeks while Wilma Hein received medical treatment for arthritis, a neighbor who was watching the Hein's home said.

    Demers had been living for more than a year with a girlfriend in Weare, Wheeler said. He worked in furniture restoration, was widowed, and has an adult son, according to his application to the academy program.

    The minivan was registered to Demers' girlfriend, Suzanne Turgeon, Hopkinton police said. Turgeon told police she did not know Demers was driving her car.
     
    Round Lake woman dies in crash

    Posted Monday, June 06, 2005

    A 23-year old woman died in a one-car accident after losing control of her vehicle early Saturday.

    Diana Cordova of Round Lake was driving on Route 134 near Hart Road in Round Lake when she lost control of her vehicle and rolled into a ditch, said Lake County Coroner Richard Keller.

    The accident occurred about 4 a.m. Saturday. No others were injured in the accident, Keller said.

    Alcohol likely played a role in the accident, although official test results won’t be available until later, Keller said.

    Man arrested after car collision

    Posted Monday, June 06, 2005

    A Carpentersville man was arrested Saturday morning after crashing his car into oncoming traffic along Huntley Road, Huntley police officials said.

    No one was critically injured in the crash. Ismael Silva, 34, 1612 Marlboro, is charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, driving with a revoked driver’s license and improper lane use after police said his Chevrolet Cavalier veered across the road into oncoming traffic at around midnight as he was driving west on Huntley Road near Heritage Lane.

    Silva’s car struck an Acura sedan driven by Denise Rognstad, 36, of Lake in the Hills, Huntley police Sgt. Todd Fulton said. Both Silva and Rognstad were taken to Provena St. Joseph Hospital in Elgin, where they were treated and released, Fulton said.

    “Traffic was closed down for a couple of hours while police were investigating,” Fulton said. Silva is being held in the McHenry County jail.

    Train runs over woman, woman survives
    javascript: var headline = escape("Train runs over woman, woman survives"); OpenWin( '/Global/Create_Email_Story.asp?s=3436479&Headline=' + headline +  '||width=635,height=400,toolbar=no,scrollbars=no') Email to a Friend http://www.wstm.com/global/story.asp?s=3436479&ClientType=Print Printer Friendly Version  

    BATAVIA, N.Y. A western New York woman has survived being run over by a train.

    Police say the woman apparently was suicidal when she lay down between the tracks in Batavia. The train engineer was unable to stop in time, and the woman was found unconscious with minor injuries. Police say they think alcohol was involved.

    The woman, who is thought to be in her early 20s, was in intensive care at a local hospital after the Friday accident.

    Schoolyard crash driver bailed

    06jun05

    A MAN who allegedly injured five children when he drove into a brick wall at a Melbourne school has been granted bail at the Melbourne Magistrates Court.

    Sudanese refugee Taban Gany, 31, of Dandenong, is accused of being drunk and driving while disqualified when he allegedly drove into a brick wall at Dandenong West Primary School where children were playing about 2pm on May 19.

    Mr Gany, who faces seven charges including driving while intoxicated, negligently causing serious injury and driving while disqualified, was granted bail by Magistrate John Hardy.

    Mr Hardy said the allegations against Mr Gany were "serious in the extreme" and the charges he faced affected the most vulnerable people in the community.

    Five children who were near the wall when Mr Gany's car allegedly hit it were taken to hospital after the crash, three with serious injuries.

     


    A six-year-old boy had to have his right foot amputated, and a girl, aged 11, suffered multiple fractures to her right leg.

    Mr Hardy said that under conditional bail Mr Gany was not an unacceptable risk.

    His bail conditions include that he report to police daily, not drink alcohol or drive a car, and to receive counselling as ordered by the court.

    Mr Gany was released on bail to reappear in court next Thursday.

    'Everybody has their own version' of fracas

    Police: It's too early to say cause of Moon Bar fight

    By Eric Weslander, Staff writer
    Brooke Wehner, 6News reporter

    Saturday, May 28, 2005

    Despite published accounts that Kansas University basketball player J.R. Giddens instigated a fight last week outside a Lawrence bar, exactly what happened that night remains far from clear.

    Two of those injured in the melee gave the Journal-World and 6News wildly differing accounts Friday about how the brawl began outside the Moon Bar, 821 Iowa. And police, who continue to piece together accounts from more than 20 witnesses, said it was too soon to draw conclusions or seek charges.

    Capt. Dan Affalter, who supervises Lawrence Police Department detectives, said alcohol could confuse matters whenever something happened at closing time at a bar.

    "Everybody has their own version of it," Affalter said. "Some people may be biased. Some people may be outright untruthful. ... The story the media gets may not even be the same story the witness gave to us."

    Affalter declined to discuss any of the versions police were hearing.

    "I don't want to spread rumors," he said. "I'm not in the rumor business."

    The Kansas City Star reported Friday that witnesses described Giddens as the instigator of an attack on 24-year-old Jeremiah Creswell, who is 5-foot-9, 150 pounds.

    The paper also quoted Creswell saying he was jumped by a group of men including Giddens and wielded a knife to defend himself.

    KU's history with trouble   
    Some encounters with the law by Kansas University athletes' recently:
    2005 -- Sophomore running back John Randle charged with misdemeanor battery for allegedly hitting a man outside It's Brothers Bar & Grill, 1105 Mass. He was kicked off the team.
    2004 -- Randle was arrested on charges of disorderly conduct and unlawful use of a driver's license.
    Kick returner Greg Heaggans arrested on suspicion of drunken driving.
    2003 -- Randle was arrested on suspicion of domestic battery. Two weeks later, he was accused of stealing beer from a convenience store.
    2002 -- Reserve quarterback Jonas Weatherbie arrested on charges of drunken driving and driving with a suspended license.
    Defensive lineman Brock Teddleton arrested on misdemeanor battery charges after a fight at Jack Flanigan's Bar and Grill, 806 W. 24th.
    2001 -- Football players Mario Kinsey and Reggie Duncan charged with stealing a KU student's purse and using her credit card to buy a pizza.
    2000 -- Defensive end Dion Rayford pleaded guilty to criminal damage to property after attempting to crawl through the drive-in window at the Taco Bell at 1408 W. 23rd. Reports indicated Rayford was upset that a chalupa had been left out of his order.
    Two football players accused of sexually assaulting a female soccer player outside The Yacht Club, 530 Wis.
    Citing a lack of evidence, then-Douglas Co. Dist. Atty. Christine Kenney decided against filing formal charges.
    1999 -- Basketball player Lester Earl charged with speeding and driving on a suspended license. Later he's arrested for missing a court appearance.
      

    KU athletic department officials said they would do nothing until police finished their investigation.

    "We've heard 20,000 to 25,000 different versions," of what happened, said athletic director Lew Perkins. "We have confidence in the police department. We agreed to stay out of it. It's their business, not ours. Until we get the report, we have no reaction at all. We agreed to let the police do the job. It should not be done through the newspapers. Once we get the information, we will react. This is a very serious matter, and we will address it."

    KU men's basketball coach Bill Self said he had taken no action against Giddens.

    "I have not dismissed J.R. from the team, and he was not arrested (Friday), just like I told you (Thursday) night," Self said. "I hope people are patient enough to hear what the police findings are.

    "We need to know what happened to create such a melee. Certainly our guys, our athletes, should face the same consequences as any individual if found guilty of a criminal act. Nobody will get special treatment, but I'm not the jury."

    Reached by the Journal-World on Friday night, Giddens said he had no comment.

    Among those cited in the Star article were Lawrence residents Marcus Knight, 29, and his cousin, Preston Patterson, 27, who said they were injured by Creswell's knife after they jumped in to try to break up the fight.

    Knight said he was angry at Giddens and that it was Giddens' fight, the Star reported. But when interviewed Friday by 6News, Knight said Giddens was not an instigator and he never saw Giddens throw a punch.

    "His role in it is not the role everybody's saying," said Knight, who said he didn't know Giddens personally.

    Knight and Patterson are consistent on at least one thing, however: Giddens directly was involved in the confrontation in the moments before the fight. Patterson said Giddens was shouting obscenities; Knight said Giddens was "running his mouth and carrying on."

    Knight's version is that he and Patterson jumped into the fight only after 10 or 12 people attacked Creswell outside the bar. He said it was an unknown person in the crowd -- not Giddens -- who threw the first punch.

    Patterson's version is that he saw Giddens and Creswell squaring off about 15 feet from each other. When Giddens and Creswell started a one-on-one fight, Patterson said, that's when he and Knight jumped in to try to break them up.

    Patterson said he had no knowledge of other people being involved in the fight.

    "When I saw it, it was just four people: me, my relative, Giddens and Creswell," he said.

    Apparently, both Patterson and Knight were injured by a folding knife wielded by Creswell. Knight said Creswell had his head down and was swinging the knife, not knowing where he was cutting, when he slashed both Patterson and Knight in their midsections.

    "I feel it was self-defense," Knight said. "Any normal person would probably pull something out if more than five people came after them."

    Patterson, 27, interviewed at his home Friday, spent nearly a week at Lawrence Memorial Hospital before being released Wednesday.

      

    He said he got involved in the altercation because he's a "KU addict" and didn't want to see Giddens get into any trouble.

    "I knew where it could lead," Patterson said. "When you get a scholarship of that caliber, you've got rules and regulations you have to follow."

    Giddens suffered a severed artery in his calf.

    Affalter said he didn't know how long it would take for detectives to finish their report. It would depend in part on how long it took them to reach witnesses, some of whom have left town.

    "It's going to be a while, and we're nowhere near calling it a complete investigation or saying, ‘This is the guy that did everything,'" Affalter said.

    Chester Giles, father of Kansas University basketball player C.J. Giles, said it's true his son was at the scene of the fight, but he said the younger Giles' role was minimal.

    "He's not really involved. If it is, he's after the fact," the elder Giles said. "It's just him going to the aid of his teammate, but after the fact, not initially. ... He gave a statement on the whole thing afterward with police."

    Palatine man arrested after hit-and-run collision



    Posted Sunday, May 29, 2005

    A Palatine man is free on bond after being charged in connection with a hit-and-run collision at Algonquin and Palatine roads.

    Cook County Circuit Judge Sandra Tristano Saturday released Carl Domingo, 40, on his own recognizance, though she set $5,000 as the amount he’d forfeit if he fails to appear at the Rolling Meadows Court house on June 6.

    Domingo, of 322 Forest Knoll Drive, is charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, unlawful possession of a controlled substance, leaving the scene of an accident and possession of drug paraphernalia.

    Authorities said he was driving Friday night when he struck another vehicle and kept going. He was stopped by Hoffman Estates police, who noticed his eyes were glassy and his speech slurred, officials said. Officers who searched him after he failed sobriety tests also found a short straw and small amount of cocaine, officials added

    Driver charged in wreck that killed friend, relatives
    Man had been drinking heavily, officials say

    By Angela Rozas
    Tribune staff reporter
    Published May 27, 2005

    While sifting through the remaining wreckage Thursday on the side of Indian Knoll Road near West Chicago where two of his relatives and a family friend were killed in a violent car crash early Wednesday, Vinod Williams shook his head in disbelief.

    Not only has he lost his nephew Marell Charan, 27, and niece Esther Rao, 22, both of Wheaton, and their longtime friend Dr. Nirav Mehta, 28, of Chicago, but prosecutors charged a third relative, crash survivor Shelley Dogra, with reckless homicide Thursday in their deaths.

    While family members planned funerals and laid flowers by the roadside, prosecutors visited Dogra, 25, of Wheaton, at Central DuPage Hospital in Winfield to charge him with three counts of reckless homicide. Prosecutors said he drove drunk and crashed a 2002 Nissan Maxima into a bank of trees, killing his three passengers.

    Dogra had been drinking for much of the day, said DuPage County State's Atty. Joseph Birkett, first at a family barbecue and later at a public establishment. Dogra was heading home to Wheaton about 2:30 a.m. with the others when he took a curve too quickly and crashed into the trees, splitting the car in two, Birkett said.

    Dogra survived and was found disoriented next to the vehicle by a jogger about three hours later.

    Charan, Rao and Mehta were all pronounced dead at the scene. Autopsies Thursday showed they died of multiple traumatic injuries, a DuPage coroner's spokeswoman said.

    Although they were not discovered for hours, the passengers' injuries were so severe that even quick action might not have saved them, Birkett said.

    Dogra was driving too fast and his blood-alcohol level was "substantially over the legal limit," Birkett said. He would not offer details, saying they would come out in court.

    Dogra remained under guard at the hospital in stable condition with non-life-threatening injuries, Birkett said. He is expected to be released within the next day or so, said Lt. Mark Edwalds, detective division commander for the sheriff's office.

    When Dogra is released, he will be taken to the County Jail and appear for a bail hearing, Birkett said. He likely will be charged with aggravated driving under the influence and could face up to 28 years in prison if convicted, he said.

    According to Birkett, Dogra's family told him that the young man was "very emotional" over the crash. An electrical engineer working on his master's degree, Dogra had a reputation as a "good young man," Birkett said.

    "But he made a tragic and horrible decision," Birkett said.

    At the crash site Thursday afternoon, Charan's aunt, Catherine, pointed to pieces of the Nissan in the grass, bark ripped from nearby trees, pieces of plastic in her hand.

    "Look at everything," she said. "Can you imagine this? The car turning up right here. It's just so sad."

    Family members placed purple carnations, Rao's favorite flower, at the site. Nirmala Benjamin, Rao's aunt, howled in anguish at the sight of the wreckage. Rao's mother, Daisy, stood quietly, her arms wrapped around her abdomen as she stared at wooden crosses friends erected for the victims.

    Williams stood nearby, gathering pieces of wreckage and filming the site so that the many family members coming for the funerals would be able to see it.

    4 teachers' resignations in drinking case accepted
    (AH TO RUIN UR LIFE AND CAREER)

    By Mary Ann Fergus
    Tribune staff reporter
    Published May 27, 2005

    An Arlington Heights school board, accepted the resignations Thursday night of four teachers accused of drinking during an overnight field trip last month.

    An internal investigation found that the four teachers, and a fifth one whose resignation was accepted last week, violated District 25 policies that require field trips to be drug- and alcohol-free for students, staff and chaperons, said board President Dan Petro.

    Speaking at Windsor Elementary School to an angry standing-room-only crowd of more than 200 people, Petro said he recently learned the drinking was a longstanding tradition, but that no current administrator had known about it.

    The board also disciplined an unspecified number of teachers connected to the incident with strong written warnings.

    The teachers had helped chaperon the 7th grade's annual trip to the Lorado Taft Outdoor Education Center in Oregon, Ill., about 90 miles west of Chicago.

    In late April, South Middle School pupils traveled to Northern Illinois University's outdoor center and spent two days learning teamwork skills while studying natural ecosystems.

    During these trips, teachers union officials said, teachers would take turns being "on duty" at night to supervise the sleeping children. Some went "off duty" to socialize at a bar in Oregon, a tradition for at least 15 years, they said.

    But Petro said the teachers returned to the campus after midnight, then some went to a nearby park and continued to drink until 2:30 a.m. Between 3:30 and 5:30 a.m., "a teacher fell asleep in an area occupied by students," Petro said.

    One teacher resigned almost immediately, parents said. Four others submitted their resignations Wednesday, parents said.

    District officials would not confirm what the five taught. According to parents, the five were two physical education teachers, two special-education teachers and a social studies teacher.

    District Supt. Alan Simon choked up as he talked about the need for staff members to be reliable and to refrain from shifting blame to others. He apologized to pupils, parents and the community.

    Man charged in fatal 2002 car accident

    Published May 22, 2005

    McHenry County sheriff's police announced the arrest last week of a Rockford man in a 2002 car accident that killed a teenager and left a man seriously injured.

    Ryan S. Erickson, 22, of the 3400 block of Wesleyan Avenue in Rockford was charged with two counts of aggravated driving under the influence in the May 2002 accident.

    Erickson had been traveling north on Ritz Road near Marengo, police said, when his car veered off the road.

    Christopher N. Wolf, 19, of Harvard was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Kirt Saunders, 28, of Belvidere was seriously injured and is still recovering, police said.

    Erickson had denied driving, sheriff's police spokesman Glenn Olson said.

    But Saunders, whose injuries had prevented him from recalling details about the accident, recently told investigators that Erickson was the driver, Olson said.

    Erickson faces up to three years in prison if convicted. (That's so stupid, you kill someone without drinking you get life or the death penalty, you kill someone when drinking you get 3 years, how stupid this world is!)
     
    Car slams into couple, leaves husband dead

    By Tonya Maxwell
    Tribune staff reporter
    Published May 22, 2005

    A man was killed and his wife injured early Saturday when the couple were struck by a man who was allegedly driving drunk, police said.

    Jaime Legarda, 54, and his 53-year-old wife were waiting for a bus outside a currency exchange near Pulaski Road and Fullerton Avenue when the driver ran a red light, Chicago police spokeswoman Patrice Harper said.

    The driver, heading west on Fullerton, then lost control of the car, which hit the couple before slamming into the currency exchange, Harper said.

    The couple were taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center. Legarda was pronounced dead at 3:55 a.m. Saturday.

    His wife, whose name has not been released, remained in critical condition Saturday morning, Harper said.

    The driver, Gerardo Reyes of the 5000 block of North Kostner Avenue, was cited with failing to produce a driver's license, having no insurance, driving under the influence, leaving the scene of an accident, speeding and disobeying a red light, police said.
     
    Man to serve five days in jail for deadly crash (What a joke!)

    CEDAR RAPIDS --- A man who was found guilty of drunken driving in a crash that killed four people will serve five days in jail and pay a $1,000 fine.

    Corey Evans, 23, of Marion, was convicted of drunken driving last month for the Dec. 30 crash that killed Jose Antonio Uribe-Ugalde, 20, his girlfriend Gabrielle Botello-Lara, 21, their 6-week-old son Antonio DeJesus Uribe, and Uribe-Ugalde's 10-year-old brother, Jose Luis Uribe. All were from Fredericksburg.

    Evans was entering Interstate 380 about 11 p.m. when his car collided with Uribe-Ugalde's car.

    Witnesses told police Uribe-Ugalde's car crossed a median and began driving the wrong way into the oncoming lanes when it was struck by Evans' car.

    Evans has said he didn't see the car until it was too late.

    After the accident, Evans blood-alcohol level was 0.122 percent, police said. The legal limit is 0.08 percent.

    Associate District Court Judge Nancy Baumgartner sentenced Evans to 65 days in jail, but suspended all but five days. She also fined Evans $1,000, ordered him to serve two years probation and to do at least 10 presentations about his experience as a drunken driver.

    During Friday's hearing in Linn County District Court, Evans said he thinks about the crash every day.

    Jose Luis Uribe Sr. said the most difficult thing he has ever done was bury his two sons, his grandson and the baby's mother.

    "This good fortune for you, there is no good fortune for the four dead and the grieving survivors," Uribe told Evans during the hearing.

    Judge sentences mother to six months


    By Shane Benjamin
    Herald Staff Writer

    A Bayfield mother who bought alcohol for her underage daughter has been sentenced to six months in jail.

    Tamara Roukema, 37, was facing 30 days to 90 days in jail after pleading guilty to attempting to contribute to the delinquency of a minor, but because of prior felonies, she has to spend a minimum of six months behind bars.

    She was sentenced Friday by District Judge David Dickinson.

    Roukema bought vodka and Smirnoff Ice for her daughter on Aug. 3, who in turn shared the alcohol with other girls between the ages of 14 and 18. The girls then drove from Bayfield to Durango, where they were pulled over for driving without license plates, authorities said.

    Three empty bottles of Smirnoff Ice were in the car and one full bottle, according to the Durango Police Department.

    She was arrested Aug. 11 by the Bayfield Marshal's Office. She must report to the La Plata County Jail on Monday to begin serving her sentence.

    Driver's bail at $175,000 in hit-run that killed girl

    By Tom Rybarczyk
    Tribune staff reporter
    Published May 13, 2005

    A driver who allegedly struck and killed a 6-year-old girl after using alcohol and drugs was ordered held Thursday on $175,000 bail.

    Travis Johnson, 25, was charged with reckless homicide and aggravated DUI for allegedly striking and killing Breeanna Lord with his Mercury Topaz about 6 p.m. Tuesday near Ashland and Pryor Avenues, officials said. Her sister Leeanna Lord, 5, also was struck and suffered a broken leg, Cook County Assistant State's Atty. Michelle Patsy said.

    Johnson, of the 8000 block of South Langley Avenue, was stopped by police and taken into custody a couple hours after he allegedly struck the girls, officials said.

    Johnson told police that he had been smoking pot and had taken an ecstasy pill while with his girlfriend Tuesday, according to Patsy and court records. He also said he drank malt liquor, Patsy said.

    Patsy said that before the accident, witnesses saw Johnson avoid hitting another man within blocks of the scene before driving off at a high rate of speed.

    Johnson told police he did not know immediately that he had struck the two girls with his car. Johnson's girlfriend was in the car at the time of the incident.

    "I went to avoid what I thought was a car, and then I hit something," he told authorities, according to court records. "When I looked in the rear-view mirror, I saw it was a kid."

    Immediately after, witnesses heard Johnson yell out, "damn," Patsy said. Johnson continued driving, even though one of the witnesses caught up to him and informed him that he had struck a girl, Patsy said.

    Family members said the two girls were crossing the street, heading to a home with a cardboard sign that said "Lee's Icee Cups," when they were struck.

    Johnson has prior convictions, including possession of a stolen motor vehicle, Patsy said. He also did not have a driver's license at the time of the accident.
     
    Freeway Shootings Rattle Southern California Motorists
    State Highway Patrol Forms Team to Investigate Cases

    SANTA CLARITA, Calif (May 3) - Following the eighth Southern California freeway shooting in two months, the state Highway Patrol announced it has created an investigative team to more quickly track down leads in the cases.

    The new unit will work with local law enforcement agencies as troopers also increase their patrols on the region's freeways, officials said. Four people have been killed in 11 freeway shootings this year.

    Even as they announced the stepped-up enforcement efforts, officials released figures showing that despite media coverage in recent weeks, there have actually been two fewer freeway shootings this year than in the same period last year.

    ''We don't want the public to think there's an onslaught'' of shootings, Assistant Chief Art Acevedo said Monday. ''We are actually on pace to have fewer shootings this year, and remember, these shootings are taking place in three counties that are heavily traveled with high populations.''

    According to data released by authorities, there were 36 freeway shootings, with one person killed, in 2004. In 2003, there were 46 incidents and four fatalities.

    The latest shooting came during the afternoon commute Monday on Highway 14 in the Newhall Pass area, when a bullet pierced a windshield of a sport utility vehicle. The male driver, the only one in the vehicle, was not injured.

    The CHP also released details of a shooting early Saturday in which a 16-year-old driver and his 17-year-old passenger were targeted on Interstate 5 in the Sun Valley area when a sedan pulled alongside the teens' Toyota. The driver, hit three times, drove himself to a hospital and was expected to survive. The passenger was not injured. Authorities said the shooting may have been motivated by road rage.

    In a separate incident, a 19-year-old man shot three times early Sunday while driving on Interstate 405 was taken to Providence Holy Cross Medical Center. He was in stable condition and was expected to survive.

    In the past five weeks, two men were killed in separate incidents on the Harbor Freeway in Los Angeles. Two others also recently were killed in freeway shootings in neighboring counties.

    Wisconsin's Stanley Suspended From Team

    By Associated Press
    Published May 2, 2005, 11:07 AM CDT

    MADISON, Wis. -- Wisconsin tailback Booker Stanley was suspended from the team Monday following his arrest at a weekend street party.

    He was charged with battery, disorderly conduct and resisting or obstructing an officer during the party Saturday near the campus, city police said. He was released on $950 bail, and a court appearance has not yet been scheduled.


    The party drew about 20,000 people at its peak, and police said there were more than 200 arrests, most for underage drinking or possession of open containers of alcohol.

    Stanley ran for 350 yards and two touchdowns and caught 18 passes for 146 yards and another score last season.
     
    Man accused of raping girl, providing her with alcohol

       A 19-year-old Kerhonkson man was arrested Saturday for providing an underage female with alcohol and raping her last year, Ulster County sheriff's deputies said.
       Alexander Schmidt was arrested after police were called to Benedictine Hospital, where an intoxicated 15-year-old girl had been admitted. Police said Schmidt provided the girl with alcohol and the stimulant ephedrine while at his home in Kerhonkson.
       After interviewing the girl at the hospital, police said that they also discovered Schmidt had sexual intercourse with the her in July 2004.
       Schmidt was charged with second-degree rape, a felony, and endangering the welfare of a child, a misdemeanor, police said.
     
    Man Critically Injured in RFK Fall

    By Associated Press
    Published April 20, 2005, 10:24 PM CDT

    WASHINGTON -- A man was critically injured when he fell from the top level of RFK Stadium after the Atlanta Braves-Washington Nationals game Wednesday night.

    The 35-year-old man, whose identity was not immediately revealed, fell from a ramp on the 500 level of the stadium, hit several ramps and railings on the way down and landed on the concourse of the 100 level, said Alan Etter, District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services spokesman.

    A witness said the man was looking over a railing before he fell.

    "He was just standing there," Maxine Lewis told WJLA TV. "All of a sudden, he just lost his balance, fell over. I saw him hit his head on a railing, then he hit his head on a second railing and just fell flat."

    The man was flown to a hospital in a U.S. Park Police helicopter, suffering from multi-system trauma.

    Police believe alochol was a factor.
     
    Robber left victim brain damaged
    Adam Lawrie
    Lawrie had taken cocaine and alcohol before attacking Miss Lord
    A teenage street robber who stamped and jumped on his victim's head leaving her brain damaged has been given a seven year prison sentence.

    Adam Lawrie, 17, kicked, stamped and jumped on Sharon Lord's head as she lay screaming on the floor, Manchester Crown Court heard.

    Lawrie had nine previous convictions and was under a curfew order when he attacked Miss Lord.

    After the attack Lawrie stole her mobile phone, the court heard.

    Miss Lord, 34, who now has to use a wheelchair and is unable to speak, is still in hospital after the attack which took place in the early hours of 10 December last year.

    Chance Meeting

    Lawrie, 16 at the time, had taken cocaine and drunk alcohol before attacking Miss Lord who he came across by chance in the street in Moston, Manchester.

    He at first denied the attack but he was caught after CCTV cameras that failed to film the assault made a "shocking and sickening" audio recording.

    Lawrie, of Sight Hill Walk, Harpurhey in Manchester, pleaded guilty to attempted murder and robbery.

    He made no reaction at Manchester Crown Court as Mr Justice Cooke ordered him to be detained in a young offenders' institute for seven years on each count to run concurrently.

     
    Sharon Lord now has to use a wheelchair and cannot speak

    Outside court, Sharon's mother Helen Elliott, said: "It's very upsetting for me to see Sharon the way she is now.

    "She's making progress slowly and she can say hello to me, but I find it hard to understand what she's trying to say.

    "Sharon can't walk by herself and has to be helped by two people. In many ways she's just like a child and that really upsets me. Before this happened to Sharon, she was lively and a real chatterbox. She never stopped talking."

    Det Insp Michael Fraser, of Greater Manchester Police, said: "Sharon suffered terrible injuries as a result of an appallingly vicious attack.

    "She and her family will always have to live with the consequences of this terrible incident. Her quality of life has been severely affected and she may never make a full recovery from her injuries."

    Monaco prince hospitalized


    Posted Saturday, April 09, 2005

    MONACO — The prince of Hanover, the sometimes rowdy husband of Monaco’s Princess Caroline, is hospitalized in serious condition with an acute pancreas problem, the royal palace said Friday.

    Prince Ernst August of Hanover, 51, was taken to intensive care at Monaco’s Princess Grace Hospital on Tuesday, his office said in a statement.

    The statement did not make clear whether the prince remained in intensive care Friday but said he was “under continuous surveillance.” Palace officials said he remains hospitalized.

    “His state of health is serious and requires permanent medical care,” the statement said.

    Tests, X-rays and scans have been carried out to determine the extent of his “acute pancreatic disorder,” it added.

    Ernst August, Caroline’s third husband, is descended from one of Germany’s oldest noble families. He is a distant relative of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II and great-grandson of the last German emperor, Wilhelm II.

    But he also is renowned as a royal black sheep whose sometimes rowdy, even drunken, behavior has repeatedly landed him in court and in the newspapers.

    In 2000, he apologized to the Turkish public for urinating on the side of Turkey’s pavilion at the Expo 2000 World’s Fair in Germany. Last year, he was convicted and fined for assaulting a hotel owner in Kenya in a drunken rage in June 2000.

    German media have dubbed him the “Pugilist Prince.”

    Doctors did not reveal the nature of the prince’s pancreas problem. The two most common are pancreatic cancer and acute pancreatitis, where the pancreas suddenly becomes inflamed.

    Pancreatic cancer does not usually come on suddenly, said pancreas expert Dr. Stephen Bloom of Imperial College in London.

    Most cases of acute pancreatitis are caused by alcohol or gall stones. Like cirrhosis of the liver, pancreatitis is a common affliction a drinker.

    However, in rare cases acute pancreatitis can be caused by injury, prescription drugs, parasites or a virus.

    The pancreas is part of the body’s hormone production system. It secretes digestive chemicals and insulin, the hormone that carries energy to the tissues.

    Bartlett teen charged with driving truck over lawns



    Posted Thursday, April 07, 2005

    A Bartlett teenager and five others were arrested early Wednesday morning after police received reports of a truck driving over lawns in the area of Chesapeake Court and Struckman Boulevard.

    Kurt A. Aiken, 19, of the 1000 block of Elmwood Lane, told officers he had driven his gold-colored Dodge pickup over two other lawns in other parts of the village, according to a police statement. Police were called at about 3:30 a.m., reports said.

    Aiken was charged with driving off the roadway, criminal damage to property and illegal consumption of alcohol by a minor.

    Christina Martinez, 21, of the 200 block of Lido Trail in Bartlett, and Robert Ackerley, 21, of the 1200 block of Hale Avenue in Bartlett, were arrested for contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

    Three other passengers charged with illegal consumption of alcohol by minors are: Christopher Hernandez, 20, of the 700 block of Bluff Street in Carol Stream; Andrew M. Blachowicz, 20, of the 1800 block of Orleans Court in Rolling Meadows; and Autumn T. Cuttone, 18, of the 500 block of Brighton Drive in Wheaton.

    All of the individuals are scheduled to appear at the Cook County Courthouse in Rolling Meadows on May 10. Aiken is also scheduled to appear in DuPage County Court in Wheaton.

    Driver denies guilt in brother's death

    Published April 8, 2005
    COOK COUNTY -- A Chicago woman charged in a crash in which her brother was killed pleaded not guilty Thursday to reckless homicide and aggravated drunken driving.

    Prosecutors said Gabriel Ochoa, 25, of the 2500 block of South St. Louis Avenue, was drunk, speeding and driving without insurance or a license Feb. 22 when she entered the northbound Edens Expressway from Touhy Avenue and cut in front of a semitrailer that pushed her car into the path of two other trucks.

    Ochoa's brother, Juan Barrera, 23, of Chicago, died of crash-related injuries. Ochoa, and her 19-year-old boyfriend were injured.

    Cook County Circuit Judge Garritt Howard scheduled a Thursday hearing for Ochoa in the Skokie courthouse. She is free on $50,000 bail.

    Investigators said Ochoa admitted drinking beer and rum, and police said she had a blood-alcohol content of 0.225 percent, nearly three times the legal limit of 0.08 percent.

    Fatal Crash At River Road Exit

    RELATED PICTURES
    Click for larger images.

    Cincinnati police say alcohol and high-speed played a role in a fatal crash early Saturday morning.

    Police say a car carrying four people was exiting onto the ramp to River Road from West Sixth Street when the driver lost control.

    The car struck two retaining walls, killing Charles Hundley, the 18-year-old driver.

    Police say the other passengers were not injured.

    Upgraded charges in fiery crash (These two kids never to have a change at life cuz of alcohol)

    Tribune staff reports
    Published August 2, 2005, 9:34 AM CDT

    A 47-year-old Schaumburg man faces upgraded charges of reckless homicide and aggravated driving under the influence in a fiery crash that killed two children near O'Hare International Airport, CLTV reported.

    The additional charges were approved overnight for Ralph Pollock, of the 1600 block of West Syracuse Lane, authorities said.
    Pollock previously had been charged with DUI and running a red light in the Sunday evening crash in Franklin Park.

    The accident happened at 5:30 p.m. Sunday as the children and their family were returning from a vacation. They were leaving a parking lot near O'Hare in a mini-van driven by the father, Gregory Hockerman of West Lafayette, Ind.

    As Hockerman turned left on a green light at Waveland Avenue and Mannheim Road, Pollock drove his pickup through a red light and slammed into the side of Hockerman's vehicle, police said. Pollock was driving south on Mannheim Road.

    The Cook County medical examiner's office has identified the two children as Claire Hockerman, 14, and Nathan Hockerman, 5. They were pronounced dead at 6:30 p.m. Sunday at Gottlieb Memorial Hospital in Melrose Park, authorities said.

    The children's parents, Gregory and Sherry Hockerman, and their 12-year-old son Paul were taken to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood. The parents were admitted to the hospital's burn unit. It was not immediately known if the son also was admitted to Loyola.
     
    Tejano singer charged with DWI

    By Associated Press
    Published August 1, 2005

    SAN ANTONIO -- Tejano singer-songwriter Pete Astudillo has been arrested on a charge of driving while intoxicated after police say he crashed his SUV into a row of traffic barriers. Astudillo was released Sunday afternoon after posting $1,000 bond.

    As he left the San Antonio magistrate's office, Astudillo signed autographs and posed for pictures in the parking lot.

    Police say Astudillo was driving his Chevrolet Suburban west on North East Loop 410 Saturday night when the SUV crashed into the traffic barriers near the McCullough exit.

    Witnesses told police they saw the SUV strike nine sand-filled barrels, then continue traveling along the shoulder until it struck a concrete barrier, a police report said.

    Astudillo suffered minor scratches.

    The report said Astudillo submitted to an alcohol breath test, which showed that his blood-alcohol content was 0.24 -- three times the legal limit.
     

    Three injured in two accidents

    By BRETT DUNLAP

    BARLOW - Three Ohio men were injured in two accidents Sunday in Washington County, officials said.

    Jason A. Shuck, 19, was injured in an ATV accident near Barlow and was taken to Cabell-Huntington Hospital. He was listed in serious condition, a nursing supervisor said Monday.

    The accident occurred between 1:30 p.m. and 1:45 p.m. in Fairfield Township near Earl Place Road, the Washington County Sheriff's Office reported.

    Shuck and two friends were riding four-wheelers, the sheriff's office said. Shuck was trailing the other two, the sheriff's department reported. At one point, the two friends could no longer hear Shuck's bike. They turned around and found Shuck had crashed, the ATV was on top of him and he was unconscious.

    Shuck was flown by medical helicopter to Cabell-Huntington with serious injuries.

    No citations have been issued and the incident remains under investigation, but officials said alcohol was a contributing factor to the accident.

    In the second accident at about 7:30 p.m. along Township 49 near Waterford, a 1999 Isuzu Rodeo driven by Celestino T. Hernandez, 22, of Beverly was traveling north and failed to negotiate a curve, went off the left side of the road, went over an embankment, struck a fence and overturned, said a dispatcher with the Washington-Noble detachment of the Ohio State Highway Patrol.  Police say alcohol also was a factor in this crash.

    The vehicle came to rest on its top in a creek.

    Hernandez and a passenger, Cesar Landaverde, 23, of Whitehall, Ohio, were ejected from the vehicle, the dispatcher said. Both individuals were transported to Marietta Memorial Hospital by the Beverly-Waterford rescue squad.

    Man charged in deadly shooting

    By BRAD BAUER

    MARIETTA - Felony indictments were returned Monday against a Marietta man accused of providing children with alcohol and firearms that resulted in one of the teens being fatally shot July 3 at a Maple Street residence.

    Assistant Washington County Prosecutor Kevin Rings said 21-year-old Jesse "Chubs" Barton may not have pulled the trigger, but that he is just as responsible for the death of 15-year-old Marietta resident Michael Cale.

    Barton, of 407 Maple St., is charged with first-degree felony involuntary manslaughter, third-degree felony involuntary manslaughter, third-degree reckless homicide, two counts of fifth-degree felony improperly furnishing firearms to a minor and three counts of contributing to the delinquency or unruliness of a child by providing alcohol.

    Barton faces 11 years and $22,500 in fines, if convicted. He will be arraigned at 9 a.m. Aug. 9 before Washington County Common Pleas Judge Susan Boyer.

    Cale was accidentally shot and killed by Barton's 15-year-old nephew, Cameron Barton, who recently pleaded innocent to charges of reckless homicide in Washington County Juvenile Court for his role in the shooting. A pretrial is set for 10 a.m. Sept. 7. The boy faces detention until the age of 21, if convicted.

    "The way I see it, they are both responsible," Rings said.

    Jesse Barton could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

    Marietta police Sgt. Detective Rick Meek said his investigation revealed Jesse Barton provided alcohol to his nephew, Cale and a third teen on the night of the shooting.

    "He was asked to buy a 12-pack of beer and he did that and delivered it (to the children at a Gilman Avenue residence)," Meek said.

    After the 12-pack was consumed, Meek said, Cameron Barton led his friends to his uncle's Maple Street residence where more beer was consumed. The boys then made their way to Jesse Barton's bedroom, where he was playing video games.

    While in Jesse Barton's bedroom, the children began examining two of the adults' handguns. Shortly after 1 a.m., Cameron Barton cocked one of the guns, thinking it was unloaded, and pulled the trigger. As a result, Cale, who was sitting nearby, was shot in the back of the head.

    Cale was resuscitated and transported by Marietta Fire Department rescue personnel to Marietta Memorial Hospital where he later died.

    "Jesse may have been unaware the children drank more beer (at the Maple Street residence), but he certainly knew they had been drinking earlier," Meek said.

    According to court documents, Cale's blood alcohol level at the time of his death was .112 percent. The impairment limit in Ohio is .08 percent for adults and .02 percent for juveniles.

    Cameron Barton's alcohol content shortly after the shooting was determined to be .004 percent. (this just shows there that any amount of alcohol in your system causes you to do stupid things) The third child, a 16-year-old Gilman Avenue resident, fled the home after the shooting and was not tested. Police said that child had nothing to do with the shooting.

    Boater charged; ejected passenger swims ashore

    By PAT ARNEY Staff Writer, (609) 272-7204, E-Mail

    EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP - State Police said a Buena Vista Township man was charged with operating a boat under the influence of alcohol Monday after it ran aground in Great Egg Harbor Bay, ejecting a passenger.

    Robert L. Stant, 47, of the Collings Lakes section of Buena Vista, notified the U.S. Coast Guard and the State Police Marine Station in Atlantic City of the incident by radio at about 2:30 a.m., said State Police Sgt. William Addis, the investigator.

    Stant told police that passenger Richard Brierly, 43, of Egg Harbor Township, went overboard when the 23-foot boat they were in ran aground.

    Personnel from the U.S. Coast Guard's Great Egg Station, a helicopter from its air station in Egg Harbor Township and state troopers from the State Police Marine Station in Atlantic City launched a search for the boat and the overboard passenger, Addis said.

    The boat was hard to find due to fog but eventually was located, Addis said. About a half-hour later Brierly swam ashore in Patcong Creek, off Ocean Heights Avenue.

    Brierly told police that he must have been unconscious for a while after being ejected because when he woke up, the boat had departed and he was floating in water with his life jacket on.

    He told police he realized the only way he would survive was to swim to shore, so he started swimming toward the lights.

    Addis estimated Brierly swam about three-quarters of a mile to the point where he went ashore.

    Once there, Brierly approached a trash truck for help, which called Somers Point police. Police took him to Shore Memorial Hospital in Somers Point, where he was treated and released, Addis said.

    Stant was arrested on the DWI charge and taken to the State Police Marine Station in Atlantic City for processing, Addis said.


     

    NCAA and Beer Don't Mix

    The National Collegiate Athletic Association must decide whether it's going to promote the positive value of sports to young Americans or become just another sports entertainment conglomerate.

     
    .

    The case at hand: Will the NCAA set an example, walk away from beer advertising on NCAA sports telecasts, and risk alienating advertisers?

    The NCAA's board of directors is expected to consider the issue of beer ads at its meeting this week. Ads for other alcoholic beverages already are prohibited from NCAA broadcasts.

    The argument for a beer ban seems overwhelming. Colleges are already battling drunkenness on campuses. Every year, drinking by college students results in about 1,400 deaths, 500,000 injuries, 600,000 assaults, and 70,000 sexual assaults or date rapes, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Riots by drunken students after sports events are almost routine.

    College students and impressionable children shouldn't be conditioned to associate beer drinking with college football or basketball. Yet the NCAA's "March Madness" basketball tournament this spring carried so many beer ads that one commentator suggested it should be renamed "Malt Madness" and the sport renamed "Brewball."

    Beer companies argue that a large majority of NCAA viewers are adults and that ads target them, not kids. But prominent former coaches like North Carolina's Dean Smith and U Rep. Tom Osborne (R) of Nebraska, who coached at Nebraska, recognize that large numbers of young people also are watching and are speaking out against beer ads. More than 200 NCAA schools have done so too.

    When will the NCAA realize the damaging impact on its public image of putting beer in front of kids?

    Search for Driver

    A man was run over and left to die on the street outside a bar in southern New Jersey. Police are now asking for your help to track down the driver who left the scene.

    Police in Monroe Township are looking for the car and driver that were involved in a hit-and-run accident outside a bar early Sunday morning.

    Police say it happened around 2:15am Sunday outside of Sharkey's Bar, in the 800 block of Black Horse Pike.

    Twenty-three-year-old Kenneth Gibson of Turnersville walked onto the road and was hit by a driver who continued to head north after the impact.

    Gibson was died at the scene. Witnesses at the bar say Gibson had been drinking.

    The car police are looking for is described as a large white 4-door. It likely has damage to its front passenger side. Investigators gathered debris from the car that was left at the scene. They're sending it in for analysis and hope to get more information about the car.

    Police are asking for help from anyone who might have seen the accident. You're asked ot call Monroe Township police at (856) 728-0800 ext. 553.

    Driver faces reckless homicide charges after crash


    [published on Sat, Jul 30, 2005]
    By OWEN R. BRUGH
    obrugh@nwherald.com


    MILWAUKEE – Prosecutors Friday charged a 44-year-old Carpentersville woman
    involved in a three-vehicle crash with reckless homicide.


    Crystal Lake Acting Police Chief Dave Linder said investigators believe
    that Beata Zarzecki was drunk when her 1990 Oldsmobile minivan rear-ended
    a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu on Tuesday.

    The crash killed Charlotte S. Rymark, 63, of Algonquin, and injured her
    husband Robert E. Rymark, 61.

    "It was a tragic crash, and we continue to investigate," Linder said.

    The crash occurred about 1 p.m. Tuesday when Zarzecki's minivan slammed
    into the back of Rymark's Malibu on Route 31 north of Three Oaks Road.

    The Malibu was pushed into a Chevrolet pickup truck, but the driver of
    that truck was not injured.

    After the crash, Zarzecki was taken to Northern Illinois Medical Center in
    McHenry, then flown to Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee.

    She was released from the hospital Friday afternoon and taken to Milwaukee
    County Jail, where she awaits an extradition hearing.

    If convicted, Zarzecki could be sentenced to 14 years in prison.

    1 Jailed In Boat Accident
    By BEN MONTGOMERY and ANTHONY McCARTNEY The Tampa Tribune
    Published: Jul 29, 2005

    TAMPA - A midnight boat ride on the Hillsborough River landed one man in
    the hospital and another in jail, police said.
    Two friends set out Wednesday night on a 20-foot, Pro- Line boat on a
    stretch of the river between Hillsborough Avenue and Dr. Martin Luther
    King Jr. Boulevard, Sgt. Alan Draffin said.

    He said the pair had been drinking before Christopher Miles, 31, of Tampa,
    fell into the river. While Miles was in the water, James N. Dreby Jr.
    accidentally backed over his friend, Draffin said
    .

    The propeller struck Miles, severely cutting his upper torso.

    Dreby pulled Miles back into the boat and made it to a nearby dock, where
    he called for help, Draffin said.

    Miles was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital, where he remained in critical
    condition Thursday night.

    Dreby, 30, of 12411 Noreast Lake Drive, was arrested early Thursday on
    suspicion of driving the boat while drunk. He was booked into Orient Road
    Jail, where a test showed he had a blood alcohol level of 0.135 percent
    about three hours after the accident. Florida law presumes a boater is
    under the influence if his blood or breath alcohol level is above 0.08
    percent.

    He was released after posting $2,000 bail.

    Alcoholic jailed for fatal crash after day's drinking (Once again, what a joke, kill some1 get three years) 
      From:ireland.com
    Saturday, 30th July, 2005

     
     
     

    An alcoholic who admitted killing a pensioner in a road accident just 24 hours after he had been convicted of drink driving has been jailed for three years.

    John Hogan (43), Bushy Park, Ennis, Co Clare, appeared yesterday at Limerick Circuit Court where he pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing the death of John Cahill (68) at Clarecastle, Co Clare, on November 5th, 2004. The victim was from Gort, Co Galway.

    Hogan also pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of an intoxicant and failing to provide a blood or urine sample on the same date.

    Limerick Circuit Court heard yesterday that Hogan's van crossed a continuous double white line on the main Ennis to Limerick Road at Clarecastle and ploughed into Mr Cahill's car at about 10.30pm. The victim, who was travelling alone, died from multiple head injuries.

    A car travelling behind him had to take evasive action to avoid the crash.

    Supt John Kerin of Ennis Garda station gave evidence that Hogan had engaged in a 12-hour drinking binge which started earlier that morning after he picked up a friend at Shannon airport.

    After having a drink at the airport, they went to a hotel in Ennis and drank beer and glasses of brandy until 3.30pm. Security camera footage from the hotel showed Hogan twice falling as he waited for a taxi in the lobby.

    Hogan conceded that he was drunk and had been drinking all day, the court heard.

    The binge continued throughout the afternoon and evening, and included the purchase of 12 cans of beer which were consumed in a flat.

    Later Hogan and his friend returned to the hotel. Along the way they bought 20 bottles of beer and a small bottle of vodka, which they drank in his friend's hotel bedroom.

    Shortly after 10pm, Hogan climbed into his van. Evidence was heard that when he drove into the Statoil service station opposite the hotel he knocked over part of a wall and drove over one of the petrol pump islands.

    Supt Kerin said Hogan was spotted weaving in and out of the slow lane on the main Ennis-Limerick road moments before the fatal accident.

    Further evidence was heard that the accused, a self-employed carpenter, had been disqualified from driving for two years for a drink-driving offence at Limerick District Court the day before the accident. However, that disqualification was not due to come into effect until February 1st, 2005.

    Judge Carroll Moran said the case was one of the worst cases of death by dangerous driving that he had ever heard. Offering his condolences to the family of the victim, he said he had to take into account Hogan's guilty plea and the fact that he had shown some remorse in court.

    He jailed him for three years and disqualified him from driving for 30 years. Leave to appeal was refused.



    Attempts to reach Dreby on Thursday were unsuccessful.

    USM, fraternity face lawsuit in '04 death

  • Frat-sponsored drinking games led to '02 grad's death, suit says

    The Associated Press

    HATTIESBURG — The University of Southern Mississippi and Sigma Nu Fraternity have been sued by the mother of a man the suit claims died during a drinking game at the fraternity house in 2004.

    The lawsuit, which gives only one side of the legal argument, said Sammy Broadhead, 25, a 2002 graduate of USM, died on campus on June 25, 2004, while attending an alumni reunion at the Sigma Nu house.

    The lawsuit seeks unspecified actual and punitive damages. It says Broadhead died of "acute alcohol consumption" by participating in a drinking game.

    Batesville attorney Richard T. Phillips filed the lawsuit in Forrest County Circuit Court recently on behalf of Broadhead's mother, Dana Covert of Meridian, and other family members. Covert would not comment on the suit.

    "The family's primary objective is to prevent another person's death on a college campus because of alcohol," Phillips said Thursday.

    USM attorney Lee Gore said the university does not comment on pending litigation.

    According to the lawsuit, the fraternity-sponsored event occurred on campus. The lawsuit said it included "beer pong" and other drinking games, even though alcohol is banned on campus.

    The lawsuit also named Mike Foster, identified as a graduate advisor and alumni coordinator of the local Sigma Nu fraternity chapter, as a defendant. The suit said Foster organized the alumni event, called the "Sigma NEW Reunion."

    Reached at his Mandeville, La., home Thursday, Foster referred comments to the fraternity's national chapter in Virginia, where officials could not be reached for comment.

    Early morning accident claims life

  • by Jean Hudson, KUAM News
    Saturday, July 30, 2005

    Guam recorded the fifteenth traffic-related fatality Saturday morning. Around 3am, Guam Police Highway Patrol officers responded to a vehicle crash along Route 4 in Ordot-Chalan Pago.
    GPD spokesman Sergeant Joe Carbullido says the driver of a white Toyota pickup traveling east, lost control of the steering wheel and encroached onto the oncoming lane, ran off the roadway, fishtailed and struck a concrete utility pole near the Shell gas station.

    The 35-year old driver of the vehicle did not survive the crash, and was pronounced dead at 4:02am. The 41-year-old front seat passenger was transported to the Guam Memorial Hospital in Tamuning. Carbullido says he was conscious and bleeding at the scene, and at news time was in critical condition in the GMH Intensive Care Unit. Carbullido says investigators are looking into speed and alcohol as factors in the crash.

    The driver and passenger are brothers, and police are not releasing either's name pending proper notification of next of kin. The crash happened just hours after Highway Patrol officers began conducting random sobriety check points and roving enforcement.

    Two-Boat Collision

    MANDAN, N.D. (AP) _ Authorities are investigating a two-boat collision in the Missouri River that injured seven people. Game warden Bob Timian says the extent of the injuries varied. And he says alcohol was involved. Timian says a 45-foot pontoon house boat collided with an 18-foot boat about 11:30 Saturday night, in Morton County. Timian says game wardens were on the scene within minutes. Timian says the case has been referred to Morton County prosecutors.

  • Alcohol role suspected in fatal weekend crash

    Published July 27, 2005

    FOX LAKE -- Fox Lake police are investigating whether alcohol contributed to an automobile accident last weekend that killed an Elk Grove Village man and injured two other people.

    Taner Anderson, 24, died Sunday in Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge shortly after the car he was riding in hit a tree on Grass Lake Road about 2:30 a.m., said Fox Lake Police Cmdr. Michael Behan.

    The driver, Matthew Wcislo, 23, of Elk Grove Village, was in critical condition Tuesday in St. Anthony's Hospital in Rockford, Behan said.

    A backseat passenger, Courtney Salamon, 22, of Elgin, was released Monday from Northern Illinois Medical Center in McHenry.

    "They left the roadway and struck a tree on the driver's side door," said Behan, who said the car was going west on Grass Lake Road, 50 feet east of Lake Shore Drive.
    "It's still under investigation, but we suspect alcohol involvement."

     
    Amish teen charged with stealing numbers

    By Associated Press
    Published July 26, 2005

    HUNTSBURG, Ohio -- Callers complaining about loud music coming from a buggy led deputies to charge a 19-year-old Amish man with stealing house numbers and flower pots. David Byler was charged with theft and underage consumption of alcohol, both misdemeanors.

    Callers to the Geauga County sheriff's office told dispatchers early Sunday about a buggy playing loud music and stealing items from outside houses in a rural area of northeast Ohio.

    "When our officer caught up with him in the middle of the road, there were flower pots and house numbers in the buggy," sheriff's spokesman John Hiscox said.
     
    SIR RICHARD DOLL, 92 (IM SURE IF HE HAD DISCOVERED THAT DRINKING AND SMOKING LEAD TO CANCER THEN HE DIDN'T DO THEM AND LOOK, HE LIVED TO BE 92)
    British scientist tied smoking, lung cancer

    Associated Press
    Published July 25, 2005

    LONDON -- Sir Richard Doll, the British scientist who first established a link between smoking and lung cancer, died Sunday. He was 92.

    The epidemiologist, whose research was credited with preventing millions of premature deaths, died at John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford after a short illness, according to Oxford University, where Mr. Doll worked at the Imperial Cancer Research Center.

    His seminal 1950 study, which he wrote with Austin Bradford Hill, showed that smoking was "a cause, and a major cause" of lung cancer.

    During groundbreaking research, he and his colleagues interviewed about 700 lung cancer patients to establish a common thread.

    "It was not long before it became clear that cigarette smoking may be to blame," Mr. Doll said of the research. "I gave up smoking two-thirds of the way through that study." The findings were published in 1950 and confirmed in a paper in 1954.

    Mr. Doll remained active up to his death, releasing a follow-up study in 2004 that showed at least half, and perhaps up to two-thirds, of people who begin smoking in their youth are eventually killed by the habit.

    "Richard Doll's work has prevented millions of premature deaths in the 20th Century and will prevent tens of millions of premature deaths in the present century. He was unique in medical history," said Professor Sir Richard Peto, his close colleague for more than 30 years.

    Professor Alex Markham, chief executive of Cancer Research UK, said Mr. Doll was "an outstanding and unique individual who thrived on the challenge of research."

    "There is already one extraordinary memorial to this truly exceptional individual--the millions of lives that he saved through revealing the truth about the deadly nature of smoking," he said. "By doing this he provided the bedrock of all tobacco-related public health policy around the world."

    Deborah Arnott, director of anti-smoking campaign group ASH, said Mr. Doll was the "godfather" of the health movement against tobacco and its effects.

    "His work has done more to save people's lives than anything else in medicine, certainly more than any drug," she said.

    In 1954, about 80 percent of British adults smoked. Half a century later that figure was down to 26 percent, largely due to the fear of cancer and other smoking-related diseases.

    Mr. Doll was regarded as one of the most eminent scientists of his generation. He published hundreds of papers on topics as varied as oral contraception, peptic ulcers and electrical power lines and demonstrated that aspirin could protect against heart disease.
    He also uncovered evidence to suggest that drinking alcohol increased the risk of cancer.

    The scientist received honorary degrees from 13 universities, won countless awards, including the UN Award for Cancer Research in 1962 and the gold medal of the European Cancer Society in 2000.

    He was named an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1956, was knighted in 1971 and in 1996 made a Companion of Honor--a select group limited to 65 people at any one time--for services of national importance.
     
    Alcohol, road rage suspected in 8-car crash

    Jul 28, 2005

    Martin Derbyshire, Staff Writer - More from this author
    A combination of road rage and alcohol may have led to a horrific weekend crash in King that left 11 people hurt.

    "It is a tragedy, but really a preventable one," York Regional Police traffic bureau Sgt. Dave Mitchell said, adding evidence and witness statements seem to point to the eight-car pile-up Saturday being a case of road rage fueled by booze.

    "This is totally senseless, totally preventable destruction," he said. "Everybody knows you do not drink and drive and if you get into an altercation with another driver you back off, because if you decide to take matters into your own hands, things can escalate and this is the end result -- people in hospital fighting for their lives."

    Saturday's incident began around 5:20 p.m. when a dark blue Ford F150 pick-up truck and a dark blue Oldsmobile minivan were headed south on Yonge Street from Bradford.

    Witnesses told police the drivers were gesturing and trying to cut each other off at high speed.

    It looked like they were trying to force one another off the road when both drivers lost control near the Bathurst Street intersection, skidding across the oncoming traffic lanes into a group of cars.

    In all, eight vehicles were in the wreck, leaving 11 people hurt, two in critical and two in serious condition in hospital.

    A 33-year-old Keswick man has been charged with impaired driving causing bodily harm, dangerous driving causing bodily harm, criminal negligence causing bodily harm and operating a vehicle with more than 80 mgs of alcohol in his blood.

    Police are waiting for the other driver to be released from hospital and investigating if the two knew each other.

    Rollover Accident Kills Ejected Passenger

     REGIONAL NEWS
    Click2Houston.com

    HOUSTON - Alcohol might be to blame for a fatal accident on the southbound Gulf Freeway feeder road Thursday morning, police told Local 2.

    Witnesses told police the driver of a red Ford Mustang, who they said was driving at a high rate of speed, lost control while exiting the freeway at Scarsdale Boulevard at about 4:30 a.m.

    The car flipped several times onto the feeder road, landing on one of the vehicle's front-seat passengers, who had been partially ejected from the vehicle.

    Emergency workers pronounced the passenger dead at the scene.

    The driver and another passenger were transported to Southeast Memorial Hospital. Their conditions have not been released.

    Police said they believe alcohol played a role in the accident.

    Woman arrested after giving birth drunk

    By Associated Press
    Published July 14, 2005

    BARTLESVILLE, Okla. -- A woman has been arrested on child neglect charges after giving birth while drunk, police said. Melissa Irene Tanner, 37, is accused of having a blood alcohol content close to three times the legal limit when she gave birth to a baby girl on June 30.

    She is being held in jail with bail set at $30,000 and the baby has been placed in foster care.

    The baby was not breathing upon birth and had to be administered a medication to counteract any narcotics that may have been present in the child's system. After an emergency procedure by hospital staff, the child started breathing.

    Tanner reportedly has six other children. According to a July 11 probable cause affidavit filed in the case, Tanner told police she and another person had consumed a case of beer.

    Son faces two battery charges


    Posted Thursday, July 14, 2005

    A St. Charles man accused of striking his elderly parents faces aggravated battery charges.

    Dale Krueger has been held in the Kane County jail since June 27 on $100,000 bond.

    A hearing to reduce his bond was scrapped Wednesday in favor of looking into placing the man in a residential alcohol treatment facility. The decision on whether to release him to a treatment facility as a condition of his bonding out of jail or as part of a plea deal will be made Aug. 3.

    He could face two to five years in prison if convicted of either of the two aggravated battery charges.

    The county has made it a goal to vehemently prosecute crimes against those older than 60. Because of the age of victims, prosecutors can push for stricter sentences, but they often weigh the wishes of the family first.

    Those close to the family say they just want to ensure that Krueger gets help for his long-time struggle with alcoholism.

    According to court documents, on June 26, Krueger struck his mother in the body and then choked and struck his father. He also dragged his father out of the man’s St. Charles home, reports say.

    Officials say it wasn't the first time that a temper flared by Krueger’s alcoholism ignited into violence against the couple.

    Shortly after his arrest, a Kane County judge ordered that he get a psychological evaluation and some type of alcohol treatment, but in-patient treatment was not mandated.

    Murder Charges Filed From LI Wedding Crash

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    Jul 14, 2005 3:33 pm US/Eastern
    (1010 WINS) (NEW YORK)
    A Long Island man, accused of killing two people while driving the wrong way on a highway with more than three times the legal limit of alcohol in his system, was arraigned Thursday on upgraded charges of second-degree murder and DWI, prosecutors said.

    Martin Heidgen, 24, of Valley Stream, had initially been charged with second-degree manslaughter following the July 2 crash on the Meadowbrook Parkway that claimed the lives of 7-year-old Kate Flynn of Long Beach and limousine driver Stanley Rabinowitz, 59, of Farmingdale, said Nassau County District Attorney Denis Dillon.

    The little girl was a passenger in the limousine and was traveling home from a family wedding when Heidgen's pickup truck crashed into their vehicle at around 2 a.m. He was allegedly driving north in the southbound lanes of the parkway and passed several exits and vehicles before crashing head-on into the limousine, prosecutors said.

    Heidgen allegedly had a blood alcohol level of 0.28 percent -- three and a half times the legal limit -- at the time of the crash. Heidgen, who suffered a fractured ankle, moved to Valley Stream from Little Rock, Ark., in 2004 after landing a job at a Wall Street financial company.

    He could face 25 years to life in prison if convicted of the upgraded charges. He pleaded not guilty at his arraignment Thursday at First District Court and was ordered held without bail. His attorney did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment.

    "This is in an ongoing investigation," Dillon said. "But we feel that the aggravating factors in this case, such as the driving on the wrong side of the Meadowbrook and the high blood alcohol level, support the upgraded charges of murder in the second degree."

    Kate and her sister Grace were flower girls at their aunt's wedding at a country club in Bayville. Four other family members, including Grace, were injured in the crash.

    "Drunk driving did this to us," Flynn's mother Jennifer said two days after the crash. "I don't want people to think this was a car accident. It was so much more ... Kate was stolen from us. ... But the life that she led -- and I want people to know this too -- was fabulous ... But she was taken, and it was taken with drunk driving."

    A time for no questions

    - - - - - - - - - - - -
    by Julia Sallo (letters@boulderweekly.com)

    Hug your kid, because in the blink of an eye you can lose them," said Bob Reiss.

    His daughter Tori, 19, a 2004 Fairview High School graduate, died on June 13 in a drunk driving accident. While Tori was back in Boulder from her freshman year at the University of Northern Colorado, she got in a car with Thomas Gedenberg, an incoming Fairview senior, whose blood-alcohol levels were allegedly three times the legal limit. When he was driving 40 miles per hour over the speed limit, he crashed into a tree, and Reiss was killed. He tried to run from the police, but was arrested on suspicion of disobeying a police officer, driving under the influence—and vehicular homicide.

    According to Reiss' father, Tori had called home around 12:30 a.m. to say that she would be spending the night at a friend's house. If she decided to get in a car with a drunk driver, she was probably drinking at the parties she attended, as well. As this case has been handed to the police, they are establishing charges for Gedenberg, as well as searching houses where parties may have taken place to get information about who gave the alcohol to minors.

    According to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), an estimated 16,654 people were killed in alcohol-related crashes in 2004. That's an average of one almost every half an hour. These alcohol-related deaths were 39 percent of the total accidents that year and were by far the most severe in general.

    The statistics on teenage accidents are horrific. Teens make up 7 percent of licensed drivers, but they cause approximately 14 percent of driving fatalities and 20 percent of reported accidents, according to the website drivehomesafe.com. And 36 percent of teen accidents involved drunk drivers. Traffic crashes are the No. 1 killer of teens, and more than one-third of teen driving fatalities are alcohol-related, according to NHTSA.

    Alcohol drastically impairs your judgment, as I learned when we were forced to try and walk in a straight line while wearing simulation goggles in the 8th grade (the trick is to look at your feet, not the ground). If it is impossible to walk straight for a few feet, driving under the influence is obviously incredibly dangerous. Starting June 30, providing alcohol to a minor can earn you six to 18 months of jail time, as well as a fine of up to $5,000. The fine was previously $1,000, and the jail time was no more than a year.

    Minor alcohol use is still almost completely unavoidable, and the responsibility for teens needs to be taken away from lawmakers and put on their parents. For high school students, alcohol is the drug of choice. Not only is it the most easily accessible, but most teenagers have acquired a taste for a variety of alcoholic beverages by high school by way of sips from their parents or other close friends. Very few teens will say that drinking a few bottles of Robitussin cough syrup is as pleasurable as downing a margarita or daiquiri.

    According to the organization Mothers Against Drunk Driving, MADD, underage alcohol use is more likely to kill young people than all illegal drugs combined. Emergency room visits due to alcohol outnumber those caused by any other drug. But still, in our society, the emphasis is put on illicit drugs.

    Man charged with killing neighbors' dogs
    Aurora residents wake up to grim discovery

    By Courtney Flynn
    Tribune staff reporter
    Published July 5, 2005

    An Aurora man has been charged with killing three of his neighbors' dogs, blasting them in the head with a shotgun and draping one of the animal's bodies over a fence, police said Monday.

    "He went to the yards and went on a shooting spree," said Sgt. Kevin Triplett. "I don't know why."

    Justin Wackerlin, 22, of the 400 block of Bangs Street, was arrested Sunday at his home and charged with felony criminal damage to property, misdemeanor reckless discharge of a firearm, obstructing a police officer and not having a valid state firearm owner's identification card, Aurora police said.

    James Jeffries of the 400 block of South Union Street said two of his dogs were killed, a Rottweiler named Roxie, and a husky called Wolf.

    It wasn't right "for those two beautiful dogs to get blasted like that," said Jeffries, 55. "We loved our dogs, they were just like part of this family."

    About 12:30 a.m. Sunday, Jeffries said he heard someone at Wackerlin's address shooting off fireworks and later heard an argument between a man and a woman at the same location.

    When Jeffries heard more loud noises about 5 a.m., he said he figured it was more fireworks or possibly a fight.

    When Jeffries' wife, Tanjer, went outside to give the dogs some water about 8:30 a.m., she discovered Wolf's body hanging over a wooden fence in their back yard, he said.

    "At first I thought he was just looking over the fence," she said. "Then I turned around and saw Roxie [in her doghouse] and there was blood all over."

    Jeffries' neighbor Francisco Heredia also lives in the 400 block of South Union. Heredia said he heard loud noises while sleeping, but found nothing wrong when he got up to check his car and house.

    When Jeffries' son, knocked on Heredia's door Sunday morning to let him know what happened to Roxie and Wolf, Heredia said he found his pit bull terrier Sharky shot dead inside his doghouse.

    "I never thought they'd shoot my dog," said Heredia, 19.

    After Jeffries' wife called police, neighbors pointed them to a garage where they believed Wackerlin lived, authorities said in a news release.

    Wackerlin was found sleeping on the floor with his girlfriend, according to the release.

    When police told Wackerlin to stand up, he threatened to shoot them and resisted their attempt to take him into custody, prompting officers to use pepper spray on him, authorities said.

    Police found spent shell casings near the garage and discovered the shotgun apparently used to kill the dogs, the news release said.

    More shell casings were found in Wackerlin's girlfriend's bedroom on the second floor of a house on the property, police said.

    Wackerlin allegedly shot the dogs while he was with a 74-year-old male acquaintance, police said. Neither that man nor Wackerlin's 24-year-old girlfriend was charged with any crime, police said.

    Alcohol apparently was a factor in the shootings, police said.

    A woman who answered the door at the home on the property declined comment Monday.

    A barking dog was chained in the back yard of the home. Birds were housed in a coop and a rabbit was inside a cage.

    Wackerlin appeared in the Kane County Judicial Center in St. Charles over the weekend, where his bail was set at $5,000.
     
    Death toll from toxic Kenya brew up to 36 (Once again a top news story, they got what they deserved!)
    Sun 26 Jun 2005 4:52 AM ET

    (adds details)

    By Andrew Cawthorne

    NAIROBI, June 26 (Reuters) - Fifteen more Kenyans have succumbed to agonising deaths after drinking poison-laced alcohol, taking the total to 36, authorities said on Sunday.

    Victims were still coming into hospital writhing in pain, babbling and suffering sight problems after taking the locally-brewed drink on Friday, said Wako Dulacha, medical officer for the Machakos district just south of Nairobi.

    The spirit -- known as "Power Alcohol" -- was believed to have been mixed with an excessive amount of methanol to increase its potency for local drinkers in several villages.

    "It was a lady, I am told. I think she over-dosed it by mistake," Dulacha told Reuters. "It is terrible, very traumatic. People have been coming in confused, dehydrated, with headaches. Some have experienced loss of vision."

    Illicit drinking dens selling strong, homemade brews known as chang'aa are common across the east Africa nation of 32 million people. There are sporadic outbreaks of poisoning, with more than 100 dying from one toxic batch in Nairobi in 2000.

    The latest death toll rose to 36 from 21 overnight, and 59 patients still remained in a bad condition, Dulacha said.

    "More will die," he added.

    Nine were critical, in comas, and had been sent to hospital in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, some 30 miles (50 km) north.

    Eight people were thought to have lost their sight.

    "Those who lack the wherewithal are condemned to illicit concoctions brewed and distilled in the most unhygienic conditions," the Sunday Nation newspaper said in an angry editorial on the deaths in Machakos.

    Government officials promised an investigation and said those responsible would be charged with murder or manslaughter.

    "We are already hunting. We have some of them," a Machakos police spokesman said, declining to give more details.

    The tragedy came days before Kenya's parliament was due to debate lifting a colonial-era ban on traditional local drinks.

    Stun Gun Used on Intoxicated 13-Year-Old

    By Associated Press
    Published June 24, 2005, 11:56 AM CDT

    BONITA SPRINGS, Fla. -- A deputy used a stun gun to control an intoxicated 13-year-old girl who kicked and scratched two nurses at a hospital, officials said.

    April Rene Burleson, who is 4-foot-9 and weighs 90 pounds, had a blood alcohol level of 0.175 percent and was under the influence of marijuana and the prescription drug Xanax, according to the Lee County Sheriff's Office.

    "You have to understand, she was lashing out, kicking and scratching," sheriff's spokeswoman Ileana LiMarzi said. "She was acting like an adult who needed to be restrained. Just because she's 13 doesn't mean she can't harm somebody."

    Burleson was picked up on a loitering charge while walking on the street before dawn Thursday. She was first brought to her mother, who agreed to have the girl medically cleared at Lee Memorial Hospital before being processed.

    According to sheriff's reports, Burleson was combative with Deputy Chad Edwards before they reached the hospital, then screamed at the hospital staff and injured the nurses and Edwards.

    Burleson was shocked with a Taser stun gun in the chest, then held in restraints during her exam, deputies said.

    The teen was charged with loitering, disorderly public intoxication, battery and resisting an officer.

    The safety of stun guns, used by more than 6,000 law enforcement agencies worldwide, have been the subject of national debate. Amnesty International found 13 Taser-related deaths in the United States and Canada in the first three months of 2005, compared with six during the same period last year.

    Arizona-based Taser International says studies show the weapons are safe.
     
    Dolphins safety arrested on DUI


    Posted Friday, June 24, 2005

    DAVIE, Fla. — Miami Dolphins safety Quintin Williams was arrested on DUI and drag racing charges Thursday after he was stopped while driving 111 mph on an interstate with teammate and passenger Travares Tillman.

    Williams was near the team’s practice facility in Davie, Florida Highway Patrol Lt. Bill Ferrell said. Troopers also pulled over a car that had been racing Williams. Troopers then approached Williams’ car and suspected he might have been drinking, Ferrell said.

    After a roadside DUI test, Williams was taken to a Broward Sheriff’s Office facility where his blood-alcohol level was .087 percent, above Florida’s legal limit of .08 percent, Ferrell said.

    Williams was charged with DUI, racing on a highway and unlawful speeding, Ferrell said. He did not know if Williams remained jailed.

    The driver of the other car, Brandy Lynn Richards, was charged with unlawful speeding and racing on a highway because she was going 109 mph on the interstate, Ferrell said. Tillman, who was riding with Williams, was not charged and allowed to ride home with Richards, who was cited but not arrested, Ferrell added.

    Ferrell said Richards identified herself as a Dolphins cheerleader to a supervisor on the scene of the traffic stop, but team spokesman Harvey Greene said a person by that name was not a Dolphins cheerleader.

    “This is not the kind of behavior we expect from our players relative to the choices and decisions they make,” Dolphins coach Nick Saban said. “They not only need to respect the law, but also to respect others in terms of their safety and how it reflects on the members of this team, the organization and our fans.”

    Agents for Williams and Tillman did not return calls.

    Tillman was signed as a free agent from the Carolina Panthers in the offseason and was expected to compete for a starting safety position. He had knee surgery this month, but the team hoped to have him back for the start of training camp July 24.

    Williams was signed as an undrafted free agent out of Wake Forest before last season and played in five games with the Dolphins.


     

     

     
     
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