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April 2009 Archives
The Obama administration said it had long hoped to stave off bankruptcy for the nation's third largest automaker, but it became clear that a holdout group wouldn't budge on proposals to reduce Chrysler's $6.9 billion in secured debt. Clearing those debts was a needed step for Chrysler to restructure by the Thursday deadline.
Chrysler will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in New York, giving Chrysler time to galvanize a partnership with the Italian car maker Fiat Group SpA. The government, which has already poured $4 billion in loans into Chrysler, would provide up to $8 billion more to carry the company through bankruptcy, said senior administration officials speaking on condition of anonymity. The government will also help appoint a new board of directors.
The deals give Chrysler ``a new lease on life,'' President Barack Obama said.
``This is not a sign of weakness,'' he said. ``I have eery confidence that Chrysler will emerge from this process stronger and more competitive.''
Under bankruptcy, Chrysler would still sell cars and the government would back its auto warranties.
The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because the terms of the bankruptcy had not yet been released, said there would be no job losses or plant closing due to the Chapter 11. But it will be up to Fiat and Chrysler to decide whether to restructure the steadily shrinking company.
Obama said Chrysler Financial, the arm of the company that makes loans to buyers and to dealers to finance their inventories, will be merged into GMAC Financial Services, once General Motors Corp.'s finance arm. The new GMAC will get government support.
The Treasury Department's auto task force has been racing in the past week to clear the major hurdles that prevented Chrysler from coming up with a viable plan to survive the economic crisis ravaging nation's automakers.
Along with the Fiat deal, the United Auto Workers ratified a cost-cutting pact Wednesday night.
Treasury reached a deal earlier this week with four banks that hold the majority of Chrysler's debt in return for $2 billion in cash.
But the administration said about 40 hedge funds that hold roughly 30 percent of that debt also needed to sign on for the deal to go through. Those creditors said the proposal was unfair and they were holding out for a better deal.
A person briefed on Wednesday night's events said the Treasury Department and the four banks tried to persuade the hedge funds to take a sweetened deal of $2.25 billion in cash. But in the end, this person said most thought they could recover more if Chrysler went into bankruptcy and some of its assets were sold to satisfy creditors. This person asked not to be identified because details of the negotiations have not been made public.
Fiat will obtain a 20 percent stake in Chrysler in return for giving the company access to its fuel-efficient technology, a move toward cleaner cars that the Obama administration thinks is critical to Chrysler's future survival. The company has committed to building Fiat cars in Chrysler factories, to be sold as Chryslers.
The bankruptcy will be filed under a section of the law that allows a company to shed bad assets and some liabilities. The administration expects it to last only up to 60 days.
Obama's auto task force in March rejected Chrysler's restructuring plan and gave it 30 days to make another effort, including a tie-up with Fiat. The company has borrowed $4 billion from the federal government and needs billions more to keep operating.
The UAW agreement, which would take effect May 4, meets Treasury requirements for continued loans to Chrysler Corp., and includes commitments from Fiat to manufacture a new small car in one of Chrysler's U.S. facilities and to share key technology with Chrysler.
Meanwhile, the Fiat partnership means Chrysler CEO Robert Nardelli could be out of a job. In an April e-mail to employees, he said that if the deal is completed, Chrysler would be run by a new board appointed by the government and Fiat. The new board, Nardelli wrote, would pick a CEO ``with Fiat's concurrence.''
Sergio Marchionne, CEO of the Italian automaker, told reporters earlier this month that he could run Chrysler. Obama said Wednesday that Fiat's management ``has actually done a good job transforming their industry.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) -- Georgia health officials have confirmed the first case of swine flu in the state
According to the Georgia Division of Public Health, the case involves a 30-year-old woman from Kentucky who had traveled to LaGrange and had fallen ill. She had been in Cancun, Mexico earlier this month.
The World Health Organization has raised its alert level to Phase 5, the second-highest, indicating a pandemic may be imminent.
Swine flu has symptoms nearly identical to regular flu fever, cough and sore throat and spreads like regular flu, through tiny particles in the air, when people cough or sneeze.
People with flu symptoms are advised to stay at home, wash their hands and cover their sneezes.
CLEVELAND (AP) John Smoltz, recovering from shoulder surgery last June, will not throw batting practice Thursday, Boston Red Sox manager Terry Francona said.
``I just think it's in his best interest to slow down for a week,'' Francona said after the Red Sox beat Cleveland 6-5 in 10 innings Wednesday night. ``That's the best way I can put it.''
Smoltz, who signed with Boston in January after 20 years with Atlanta, will not travel to the team's spring training facility in Fort Myers, Fla. He is scheduled to rejoin the Red Sox on May 6, when they return home from their current nine-game road trip.
``He's been grinding pretty hard,'' Francona said. ``Let's let him take a week of strengthening, a little rest from the throwing and I think he'll be better for it.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) -- An off duty Gwinnett sheriff's deputy was shot and killed at his home in Dacula early Thursday.
Gwinnett police spokesman Cpl. David Schiralli told WSB that investigators are questioning those in the home at the time of the shooting and that the incident appears to have been the result of a domestic dispute.
The victim is identified as Lt. Don Bassett, a 17-year veteran of the squad.
The shooting happened on Austin Ridge Drive in a two-story, partial brick home in the neighborhood of nicely-kept houses with well-manicured lawns off Fence Road, not far from Ga. 316.
Biden and Dr. Richard Besser, acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, reinforced the government's stance on a border amid confirmation that the virus now has penetrated 11 states and there have been roughly a hundred school system closings.
President Barack Obama ruled out a border closing during his prime time televised news conference Wednesday night, likening such a move to ``closing the barn door after the horses are out.''
Biden told interviewers on the morning network news shows he sympathizes with parents worried about the spread of the disease in this country, but said that shutting down America's borders would be far more complicated and would carry potentially great consequences than simpler steps like closing schools and canceling or postponing public meetings.
The vice president said that in addition to stressing personal hygiene, people should focus prevention efforts on confined places, settings for opportunistic infection such as airplane cabins, malls and classrooms.
Biden also reiterated on Thursday the advice the administration has been eagerly dispensing: ``A parent whose child's school is closed out of a precaution or because there's been a confirmed case of flu should not take child then to a day care center. They're going to have to take them home.''
``And the hope is that the employers will be generous in terms of how they treat that employee's necessary action of taking that child home and not being at work,'' he said.
Besser earlier reported confirmed swine flu cases in 10 states, including 51 in New York, 16 in Texas and 14 in California. The CDC counted scattered cases in Kansas, Massachusetts, Michigan, Arizona, Indiana, Nevada and Ohio. State officials in Maine said laboratory tests had confirmed three cases in that state, not yet included in the CDC count.
``It is time for people to pay attention, for people to do planning and to understand what they can do to prevent the infection,'' he said.
``This is a period of great uncertainty,'' he acknowledged. ``It's a situation that is evolving rapidly and we are trying to study the impact of school closures on control of this as they're taking place.'' Besser said officials want to ensure that ``school closure is in fact decreasing risk of spread in a community and not taking children who would have been at school and sending them out to malls and other places.''
Asked why the administration has not turned to thermal sensors to detect people with the fever, Besser said officials don't consider them effective, ``especially for an inspection where you are able to transmit if you're infected the day before you have symptoms.''
Biden was asked whether he would advise his own family against flying to Mexico and back on a commercial airliner.
``I would tell members of my family and I have that I wouldn't go anywhere in confined places now,'' he said. ``It's not just going into Mexico. If you're any place in a confined aircraft and one person sneezes, it goes all the way through the aircraft.''
Asked if the government was including this in its official health guidelines, Dr. Anthony Fauci, an infectious disease specialist with the National Institutes of Health, said no. He said the CDC ``is not really at that point.''
Fauci also said that U.S. public health experts would not be surprised if the World Health Organization soon declares a swine flu pandemic, saying ``it's moving in that direction.''
Schools aren't the only focus. In California, dozens of Marines were under quarantine to see if they'll develop illness after contact with a comrade confirmed to have the new flu.
U.S. scientists are racing to develop the key vaccine ingredient a strain of the virus engineered to trigger the immune system. But they cautioned Wednesday that it would take several months before enough doses could roll off assembly lines for the necessary testing in human volunteers.
The U.S. has reported the only death outside Mexico a Mexican toddler who visited Texas with his family.
Biden was interviewed on ABC's ``Good Morning America,'' CBS's ``The Early Show'' and NBC's ``Today'' show and Besser appeared on ABC and CBS. Fauci was on the ``Today'' show.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Dr. Patrick O'Neal, director of preparedness in the Georgia Division of Public Health, told reporters on Wednesday that the chances of the swine flu bypassing the state are ``virtually nil.'' That's because influenza is highly contagious.
So far, there have been no confirmed cases of swine flu in the state. It has spread to 11 states and has led to one death in the U.S. expect deaths.
O'Neal noted there are 36,000 influenza-related deaths in the nation every year.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
The justices who were skeptical of that part of the voting rights law included Justice Anthony Kennedy, whose views are likely to prevail on the closely divided court. He tends to side with his more conservative colleagues on matters of race.
On the other side, the liberal justices defended Congress' decision to keep the law in place to prevent ongoing discrimination.
The tenor of the quick-paced argument suggested that there could be a court majority to strike down the provision of the voting rights law that has been the Justice Department's main enforcement tool against discriminatory changes in voting since the law was enacted in 1965. It opened elections to millions of blacks and other minorities.
The law requires all or parts of 16 states, mainly in the South, with a history of discrimination in voting to get approval in advance of making changes in the way elections are conducted. The idea behind it is to prevent discriminatory measures from being put in place.
The court is being asked by a small Texas utility district to strike down the extension as an unconstitutional intrusion into the domain of state and local governments that have made substantial progress since the era of Jim Crow and government-sponsored discrimination.
Kennedy acknowledged that the provision has been successful in rooting out discrimination in voting over the past 44 years. But times have changed, he said, questioning Congress' judgment in 2006 that it was needed for another 25 years.
``Democracy was a shambles,'' Kennedy said of the era when the law first was enacted. ``That's not true anymore.''
When Justice Department lawyer Neal Katyal pointed out that the high court has upheld previous extensions of the law, Justice Antonin Scalia dismissively replied, ``A long time ago.''
At another point, Chief Justice John Roberts asked, ``At what point does that history ... stop justifying action with respect to some jurisdictions?''
Katyal did not specifically answer that question. But he said, ``After 16,000 pages of testimony, 21 different hearings over months, Congress looked at the evidence and determined that their work was not done.''
Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito also noted that by some measures of racial disparity, states not required to submit election changes fare worse than those with a history of discrimination.
The court's liberal justices said Congress pointed out that instances of voting discrimination occur more often in the states covered by the portion of the voting rights law that is under challenge.
``I don't understand with a record like that how you can maintain ... that things have radically changed,'' Justice David Souter said, acknowledging that there has been progress.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg referred to the ``second-generation discrimination'' that Congress was aiming to stop. ``You start with the blatant overt discrimination, and then in time people recognize...that won't go any more, so the discrimination becomes more subtle, less easy to smoke out,'' Ginsburg said. ``But it doesn't go from blatant overt discrimination to everything is equal.''
The Obama administration and civil rights groups also argued that Congress was well within its power to renew the law.
President Barack Obama's election did not come up in court Wednesday, although both sides used it in their briefs.
Outside the court, more than 100 NAACP members wearing yellow rain slickers, jackets and hats sang and chanted while the justices were hearing the case inside.
Betty Johnson, 62, of Elkton, Md., said, ``Just because we have an African-American president doesn't mean that people's voting rights can't be taken away.''
Republicans controlled Congress and the White House in 2006. If the court strikes down a portion of the voting rights law, Democrats now in the majority are likely to write a new measure, although they could be restricted by what the court says, according to election law expert Richard Hasen, a professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles.
The justices also could find a way out of the case without ruling one way or the other on the constitutional issue. They could determine that the Northwest Austin Municipal Utility District No. 1 in Austin, Texas, can opt out of the advance approval requirement, although a lower federal court found it could not.
For the only time this term, the justices made available audio recordings immediately after the arguments.
A decision should come by the end of June.
The case is Northwest Austin Municipal Utility District No. 1 v. Holder, 08-322.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Measures before the House and Senate are designed to enhance protections for credit card customers. The House bill, which was being put to a vote Thursday, would prohibit so-called double-cycle billing and retroactive rate hikes and ban the issuance of credit cards to people under 18, but wouldn't take effect until a year after enactment. Another requirement in the bill, that customers receive 45 days notice before their interest rates are increased, would go into effect in 90 days.
Double-cycle billing eliminates the interest-free period for consumers who move from paying the full balance monthly to carrying a balance.
Similar regulations by the Federal Reserve don't take effect until July 2010.
The House measure, dubbed the ``Credit Card Holders' Bill of Rights,'' was expected to garner bipartisan support and swift passage. Yet some opposition was evident.
In debate Wednesday evening on the House floor previewing the vote, Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, acknowledged that the fine print of credit card agreements can be impossible to decipher and some companies' practices are abusive. But he said he feared the legislation could turn into a ``bill of wrongs,'' prompting lenders to restrict credit in an already tight market to compensate for the new requirements.
That's the leading argument made by industry executives against the legislation.
Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., chief sponsor of the House bill, responded: ``We need it now. We're in bad times; consumers need protections.''
Democratic boosters of the bill are tapping into rising public anger over corporate excesses and the conduct of banks and other companies receiving billions of dollars in taxpayer money.
Prospects for a similar measure in the Senate also appear promising. ``I will continue to fight to ensure that the bill we send to the president includes robust protections for students and other young consumers, a ban on retroactive rate increases, a fair allocation of payments and tougher penalties for companies that violate the law,'' Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, said in a statement.
The Obama administration has been pressing for passage of the legislation, which would bring unprecedented new rules for the industry that consumer advocates and some Democrats have unsuccessfully sought for years. President Barack Obama met at the White House last week with executives of the credit card industry and made clear he wants to sign a bill into law. He reaffirmed it as a priority at his prime-time news conference Wednesday evening, saying legislation was a must to protect consumers from ``abusive fees and penalties.''
Earlier Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Maloney met with representatives of consumer and civil rights groups to discuss the credit card overhaul.
The administration's efforts to revive lending and the economy will be complemented by an overhaul of the nation's financial rule book to avoid a recurrence of the economic crisis while protecting consumers and investors, Geithner said. ``We need to change the rules of the game'' to make the credit card business more transparent, fairer and simpler for consumers, he told reporters after the meeting at the Treasury Department. ``This administration and this Congress are committed to changing the system.''
The administration is advocating stricter practices that could crimp banks' revenue at the same time the government is shoring up the financial institutions with hundreds of billions of dollars in bailout aid.
The credit card changes could cost the banking industry more than $10 billion a year in interest payments, according to a study by the law firm Morrison Foerster.
Amid the recession and rising job losses, consumers even those with strong credit records have been defaulting at high levels on their credit cards. Banks already battered by the mortgage and credit crises have been bleeding tens of billions in red ink from the losses.
U.S. credit card debt has jumped 25 percent in the past 10 years, reaching $963 billion in January, according to figures from the White House. The average outstanding credit card debt for households that have a card was $10,679 at the end of 2008, according to CreditCard.com, an online market.
Roughly 16,000 companies in the U.S. issue credit cards. The biggest lenders include Discover Financial Services, Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., JPMorgan Chase Co., Capital One Financial Corp. & Credit vC, American Express Co. and HSBC Holdings PLC.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
They looked like another win to Adam Wainwright.
The right-hander (3-0) overcame five walks and drove in a run during the four-run fifth, and St. Louis beat the weak-hitting Braves 5-3 on Wednesday night.
The Cardinals trailed 3-1 before rallying with six singles in the fifth, including five to center field. Three of the five barely dropped over the reach of shortstop Yunel Escobar.
``I've seen a game like that, but not an inning,'' said Atlanta's Javier Vazquez, who struck out eight in eight innings but took the loss.
``I threw the ball good, but the box score is not pretty,'' Vazquez (2-2) said. ``It's a disappointing game. I think when you have good stuff like I did today, you should win the game.''
Wainwright, Albert Pujols, Chris Duncan and Rick Ankiel had RBI singles in the inning, the last three with two outs. Joe Thurston and Brian Barden opened the inning with singles.
``They had their seventh, eighth and ninth hitters up, and they all got bloopers,'' said Braves manager Bobby Cox, who said Vazquez ``got blooped to death.''
Cardinals manager Tony La Russa agreed that ``a couple of those hits were bloopers.''
``We were lucky to have a four-run rally,'' La Russa said.
Lucky or not, the Cardinals won two of three in the series against the Braves, who have scored three runs or fewer in 11 of 15 games after scoring at least four runs in each of their first six games.
The Cardinals are off to their best start since 2006, when they also were 15-7.
Wainwright has a 2.76 ERA but has issued 18 walks in 29 1-3 innings.
``His delivery was all over the place,'' La Russa said. ``Then he got it together.''
Wainwright, the Brunswick, Ga., native who began his career with the Braves, allowed seven hits and three runs two earned with five walks and two strikeouts in six innings.
``It's the same old story, I'm not getting the quick outs,'' said Wainwright, who said home plate umpire Jerry Layne's strike zone ``got to me after a while.''
But Wainwright didn't blame the walks on Layne.
``I was off-target all night,'' he said.
``I'm not pitching well. I'll pitch better.''
Wainwright gave up three runs in the first three innings.
St. Louis, which blew a 1-0 lead in the eighth inning in Tuesday night's 2-1 loss to the Braves, protected the late lead in the final game of the series. With two outs and runners on first and second in the eighth, second baseman Skip Schumaker jumped to catch a soft liner by Omar Infante off closer Ryan Franklin.
Franklin recorded four outs for his seventh save.
Vazquez gave up nine hits and five runs with one walk in eight innings. He struck out eight his fourth straight start with at least eight strikeouts.
``He pitched great; I don't know if he can pitch any better,'' Cox said.
Infante had three hits, including a run-scoring single in the second.
Notes: Brendan Ryan left the game with tightness in his left hamstring. Ryan grabbed the back of his leg while running to first base on a grounder that rolled foul. La Russa said the team may have to make a roster move. ``You have to have a shortstop,'' he said. ... Umpire Ed Montague was sick and missed the game. Chris Tiller, the fill-in umpire on the crew, was the third base umpire. ... Braves 2B Kelly Johnson, in a 4-for-39 slump that has dropped his batting average to .203, didn't start for the second straight day. ... The Braves said RHP Kenshin Kawakami has right shoulder fatigue, and his next start was pushed back three days to Tuesday.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
The Hawks kept up the theme of this matchup between division rivals no game has been close but there were several subplots after a night of hard fouls and staredowns left the Heat feeling as though Atlanta rubbed it in a little too much in a 106-91 victory Wednesday.
Joe Johnson scored 25 points in his first big game of the series, which the Hawks now lead 3-2, and Flip Murray added 23 from a bench that has taken on an increasingly important role. They already were without one injured starter (Marvin Williams) and lost another when Al Horford hobbled off the court with a sprained right ankle.
``It's not a good sign,'' said Zaza Pachulia, one of Atlanta's top backups. ``In the playoffs, you need everybody. But what can you do? Whoever we have, they really have to step up.''
Wade scored 29 points but didn't get going until the game had been decided. The NBA's leading scorer already was bothered by back spasms, and he was feeling even worse after colliding with Josh Smith late in the first quarter and banging the back of his head on the court.
But he's eager for another shot at the Hawks after Smith tried a between-the-legs windmill dunk late in the game with Atlanta up 20. Not only did he fail to pull it off the ball bounced high off the rim he fired up the Heat with his unnecessary showmanship.
``We were very insulted by it,'' Wade said.
So was rookie coach Erik Spoelstra, who figures to show the play over and over heading into Game 6, which is Friday night in Miami. The Heat must win to force Game 7 in Atlanta on Sunday.
``There at the end it turned into a highlight show. A pickup game highlight reel, really trying to embarrass us,'' Spoelstra said. ``Now we've played five games against each other. I don't think anybody on either side likes each other anymore.''
While the outcome was never really in question, there was plenty of extracurricular activity to spice up the fifth straight game decided by at least 10 points.
Early on, Wade was sprawled out on the court for several minutes after injuring his head injury. He finally staggered to the locker room for treatment, holding a towel to his head. Not long after Wade returned, Horford was fouled hard by James Jones and fell into Wade on the way down, landing awkwardly on his right foot.
Horford managed to shoot two free throws, but it quickly became apparent he couldn't go on. He was helped to the locker room, his arms draped around two trainers, and didn't return.
``I'm a little sore, but we did a lot of treatment in the second half,'' Horford said. ``That's what the playoffs are all about. We're playing hard out there.''
Williams sat out his third straight game with a sprained right wrist. When Mike Bibby picked up his fourth foul, Atlanta played much of the third quarter with only two regular starters on the court. Solomon Jones and Mario West got extensive minutes after playing sparingly during the regular season.
Despite the lack of healthy bodies, the Hawks pulled away in the first half with Wade still groggy from his head blow making only 1-of-6 shots.
The Hawks made 13-of-16 from the field in the second quarter, including their last 12 attempts, to push a 24-20 lead to a commanding 63-40 lead by halftime.
With NBA commissioner David Stern looking on, both teams turned up the intensity level and things nearly got out of hand early.
When Solomon Jones doled out a hard foul on a driving Wade, the two players tumbled into the basket support and stared each other down. Jamaal Magloire jumped in and shoved Jones. Smith took offense and shoved Magloire. The referees stepped in before any blows were thrown, though all four players were given technicals.
Then, with Maurice Evans going in for a layup, Wade slammed into the Atlanta player from behind and sent him tumbling to the court. Again, the teams bowed up, but Evans merely flashed a disgusted stare at Wade who was called for a flagrant foul before getting up to shoot his free throws.
Pachulia caught Jermaine O'Neal in the face with an elbow while driving to the hoop. O'Neal crumbled to the court, then got up to deliver a shot across Pachulia's head the next time the Hawks' reserve ventured into the lane.
Pachulia was already sporting a black eye from a shot he took in an earlier game.
That was certainly fitting for this one.
Notes: Johnson averaged just 13.8 points over the first four games. ... The Hawks led by as many as 23 points. ... The closest game in the series was Atlanta's 10-point win in Game 4. ... Smith scored 20 points for the Hawks. ... Michael Beasley had 18 points for the Heat, and O'Neal added 14.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) The search for fugitive UGA professor George Zinkhan has reached "America's Most Wanted," this as investigators release the most recent photograph of the suspected killer.
The picture to the left was taken in February. Police say Zinkhan's appearance in it is how he appeared on Saturday when, cops say, he gunned down his wife and two men at the Community Theater in Athens.
Zinkhan has not been seen since he dropped his children off with a neighbor after the shooting. He was last seen driving his red 1995 Jeep Liberty.
The television show, "America's Most Wanted" has posted Zinkhan on their website, and the show is considering airing a segment on the crime and the hunt on May 16.
The FBI has taken the lead in the investigation. Officials say a dozen agents are working in seven states trying to locate Zinkhan.
The 57 year old marketing professor's passport is missing and police say Zinkhan had purchased a ticket to the Netherlands prior to the shooting. The ticket is for May 2. Zinkhan owns a home in Amsterdam.
DETROIT (AP) Talks between Chrysler LLC's lenders and the Treasury Department to reduce the automaker's $6.9 billion in secured debt and keep it out of bankruptcy protection have disintegrated, a person familiar with the talks said early Thursday.
The company's fate was in the hands of about 40 hedge funds that hold about 30 percent of its debt. Although four banks holding 70 percent of the debt had agreed to erase it for $2 billion, the hedge funds were holding out for a better deal.
After allowing talks to continue late into the night Wednesday, Treasury finally ended negotiations after the hedge funds were unable to come to an agreement, the person said, asking not to be identified because the talks were private.
The deal's failure means Chrysler will likely seek bankruptcy protection in a New York City court later this morning.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) Atlanta residents should brace for a property tax increase.
Mayor Shirley Franklin is believed to be planning a tax hike for all city homeowners. It could take effect as early as July 1.
"It's going to be some difficult, some tough decisions," says Atlanta City Councilman C.T. Martin. "We're wracking our brains to try to find a way not to make it hard on anybody, because we realize that our citizens will have to respond."
The money from the increase, which would be about $180 a year for the average city homeowner, could end furloughs for Atlanta police and firefighters.
The mayor's budget briefing with the city council is set for later this morning.
(WSB Radio) DeKalb County police are warning women to be extra careful at MARTA bus stops. This after two women were nearly kidnapped.
Police say the first attempt was on April 13 at the stop on Glenwood Road. The second attempted kidnapping was Tuesday at the bus stop at the intersection of Wesley Chapel and Riverwood Circle.
"We fear this individual may escalate his violence," police spokeswoman Mekka Parish tells WSB. "Our detectives also believe the motive for these kidnappings, possibly, might be an attempted sexual assault."
In the first attempt, the suspect had a weapon.
"In that particular incident, the victim was forced, at knifepoint, into a minivan," Parish says. "She later was able to escape, physically unharmed."
During the second attack, "the victim was accosted by an individual with a painter's tool," Parish says. "He was attempting to force her into a van when a neighbor and a nearby resident saw that this lady was being forced against her will into that van and they intervened."
In both cases the suspect was seen driving either a tan or silver minivan.
Fulton County police say Atlanta school teacher Sheila Michael was issued citations on the charges. The 52-year-old Michael's lawyer, Renee Rockwell, said she was ordered to appear in Magistrate Court May 6, the day a grand jury is scheduled to consider the case.
Police believe Michael knew about the wreck several days later and helped arrange repairs for the BMW driven by 22-year Aimee Michael, who is charged with five counts of vehicular homicide.
Atlanta Public Schools spokesman Joe Manguno said the mother is on unpaid leave from her job as a second grade teacher.
Information from: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, http://www.ajc.com
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) The FBI has taken the lead in the hunt for fugitive UGA Professor George Zinkhan.
Dozens of agents from seven states have been assigned to the search for Zinkhan, who's accused in Saturday's triple murder at an Athens community theater.
Zinkhan's wife was gunned down, along with two men. The marketing professor then dropped his two children off with a neighbor and drove off in his 1995 red Jeep Liberty. He has not been seen since.
FBI Special Agent Greg Jones admits he's concerned that the SUV has not been spotted. He believes it's probably hidden.
Because Zinkhan is an avid hiker and wrote a piece about the Appalachian Trail a few years back, a want poster of Zinkhan is now on the trail's website and law enforcement is searching trails in the area.
Zinkhan is also the subject of an international dragnet. He owns a home in Amsterdam and police say he has an airline ticket to fly to the Netherlands this Saturday.
Gwinnett County police said 17 people have been arrested in an operation that extended into Georgia from Texas and Mexico.
Police said they seized $3.6 million in cash, 1,500 pounds of cocaine with a street value of $22 million, 184 pounds of methamphetamine and 2,000 pounds of marijuana after an 18-month investigation called ``Operation Grand Finale.''
At a news conference, they also displayed more than 20 assault rifles.
Federal prosecutors said the investigation coordinated through the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force targeted a drug trafficking organization operating in Mexico, the McAllen, Texas, area of the Rio Grande Valley, and metro Atlanta.
The organization smuggled large quantities of cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana into the United States for distribution in Texas, Georgia, Tennessee, and Illinois and elsewhere, federal officials said.
Gregory Jones, the special agent in charge of the FBI in Atlanta, said the investigation disrupted ``a major cell of a Mexican cartel, a notoriously violent drug trafficking organization, and took a major step towards eradicating a significant threat to our economic and national security.''
The investigation resulted in indictments of 16 defendants by a federal grand jury April 8.
Over the last five to seven years, the Atlanta area has become the main distribution hub to move drugs and cash throughout the East, Drug Enforcement Administration officials say. The cartels are drawn to Atlanta by the same conveniences that have attracted corporations here over the last decade or so access to major transportation systems and proximity to large population centers.
The area's exploding Latino population makes it easy for Mexican traffickers to blend in. There has been a series of drug-related killings in recent years.
Authorities have also won a string of high-profile drug cases, including Project Reckoning, which targeted the Gulf cartel, and Operation Xcellerator, which hit the Sinaloa cartel.
In fiscal year 2008, federal authorities seized about $70 million in drug-related cash in Atlanta, more than any other region in the country, according to DEA records. Already this fiscal year in Atlanta they've seized about $34 million.
Project Reckoning alone seized $60 million and more than 40 tons of illegal drugs over nearly two years. That operation also resulted in the arrest of 175 people over two days, including 43 in the Atlanta area.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Andrew Speaker said Wednesday that federal officials knew he was infected with the sometimes deadly lung disease before he left in 2007 and advised him to begin treatment when he returned. Once he was overseas, however, doctors urged him to return because they thought he had a more severe form of the disease. Later tests revealed he had contracted a less dangerous strain.
In the lawsuit, Speaker said Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officials gave him the go-ahead to leave and then pinned the blame on him.
``The whole point of the lawsuit describes how the CDC knew I had TB before I left,'' he said in a telephone interview. ``All the sudden, I get over there and they hold this big press conference.''
The lawsuit filed in federal court in Atlanta on Tuesday claims the CDC damaged Speaker's reputation and made him the target of death threats. It also says he and his new bride split up because of the stress and seeks unspecified damages and court fees.
It accuses the CDC of ``unlawfully and unnecessarily'' revealing Speaker's private medical history and other sensitive information during an extensive media blitz in May 2007.
CDC spokesman Tom Skinner declined to comment.
``We are not in a position to have anything to say about pending litigation,'' he said.
Speaker, a plaintiff's attorney, was in Europe for his wedding and honeymoon when he learned tests showed he had an extremely drug-resistant strain of tuberculosis known as XDR-TB. He'd been advised not to fly to Europe in the first place, but at that point he'd been diagnosed with a less severe strain.
Despite warnings from health officials not to board another international flight, Speaker flew to Montreal and drove over the American border.
He subsequently became the first American quarantined by the federal government since 1963, and was treated in a Denver hospital. Health officials there learned that Speaker was infected with a less severe strain of the disease.
The lawsuit also seeks records of his test results that he said the CDC has failed to turn over despite repeated requests using the Freedom of Information Act. The complaint, he said, aims to set the record straight.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
After months of rancor following Bank of America Corp.'s acquisition of troubled investment bank Merrill Lynch Co., shareholders voted at the company's annual meeting to separate the jobs of chairman and CEO. Lewis will remain the CEO of the bank, while board member Walter E. Massey, president emeritus of Morehouse College in Atlanta, will become Bank of America chairman.
Some analysts believe Lewis might eventually be forced out altogether.
Gary Townsend, chief executive officer of Hill-Townsend Capital LLC, noted that Wachovia Corp.'s chairman and CEO roles were split last year after shareholders were upset about the performance of that bank, which has since been sold to Wells Fargo Co.
Then, just weeks after Wachovia CEO Ken Thompson lost his title as chairman, he was ousted as chief executive as well. Stripping Lewis of his role as chairman ``can result in significant, rapid changes, depending on what happens the rest of the year,'' Townsend said.
Jason O'Donnell, a bank analyst with Boenning Scattergood Inc., noting that Wachovia had an ill-fated purchase mortgage lender Golden West Financial Corp. also likened Thompson's situation to Lewis'.
``I think the Golden West debacle is one that's a pretty good analogy for this scenario,'' O'Donnell said. ``Clearly, Thompson was put under a lot of pressure to step down as a result of that acquisition and pretty much that is what we are seeing here with Lewis and his Merrill Lynch deal.''
The rebuke from the company's shareholders was a stunning turn of events for Lewis, who a year ago was at the top of the banking industry. His star began to fall soon after the deal to buy Merrill Lynch was completed Jan. 1, as Merrill reported $15 billion in fourth-quarter losses and it was learned that Bank of America had approved the early payout of billions of dollars in bonuses to Merrill employees.
Lewis, 62, who served as chairman and CEO since 2001, has spent much of this year defending his actions and did so again during the angry four-hour shareholders' meeting.
Results of the voting were delayed for several hours, and Bank of America Wednesday evening issued a statement that the board of directors had met, elected Massey as chairman and unanimously voted to keep Lewis as CEO.
Big investors including California's employee pension fund had called for shareholders to oust Lewis and his fellow directors at the meeting, which was attended by more than 2,000 people. But shareholders did vote to retain the entire board.
One of the angry investors, Michael Garland, director of Value Strategies for CtW Investment Group, praised the ouster of Lewis as chairman. Garland's group handles 33 million BofA shares and works with union-affiliated pension funds.
``It's huge,'' he said. ``It's an enormous victory for shareholders.''
``We'll have an independent board chairman, and now the CEO will be accountable to a board chaired by an independent director. It's a critical, critical first step,'' Garland said.
At the meeting, Garland openly criticized Lewis, saying bad managment decisions led to a dramatic drop in Bank of America stock.
O'Donnell, the bank analyst, said the vote outcome was not entirely surprising.
``It's been building up for a while,'' he said. ``There's been a lot of investor discontent regarding his decision, particularly, to buy Merrill Lynch.''
Shareholders lined up early in the gathering to speak, with many hurling criticism at Lewis and the Bank of America board for the government-brokered purchase of Merrill Lynch.
``I find it incredible you didn't have the guts to stand up to the U.S. government,'' said Judith Koenick of Chevy Chase, Md., who said she lost thousands of dollars when BofA shares plunged after the Merrill Lynch purchase.
The government pressured Bank of America into buying Merrill Lynch during the same weekend in September that another investment bank, Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., collapsed, setting off one of the most intense periods of the financial crisis.
In his remarks to shareholders, Lewis defended the acquisitions of Merrill Lynch and another troubled company, mortgage lender Countrywide Financial Corp.
``Countrywide and Merrill Lynch are two of the most important reasons Bank of America is the most profitable financial services company in the United States so far this year,'' Lewis said. ``Today, I can state without reservation that these acquisitions are not mistakes to be regretted. Both are looking more and more like successes to be celebrated.''
The bank and Lewis have been under intense scrutiny because Bank of America is one of the biggest recipients of government bailout money and because the losses at Merrill Lynch turned out to be much higher than expected.
Shareholders who have called for Lewis to resign or be dismissed as chairman and CEO are also irate over the precipitous drop in the company's stock price. Bank of America has fallen 42 percent since the beginning of the year, closing at $8.68, up 53 cents, before the shareholder vote was announced.
Lewis said, ``I know the Merrill deal has played a role in the decline of our stock price. But I do not believe it is solely responsible for its decline.'' He said every major commercial bank in the country is under pressure.
On Tuesday, the California Public Employees' Retirement System said it would vote against re-electing the board, including Lewis. CalPERS, the largest U.S. public pension fund, holds about one-third of 1 percent the bank's outstanding shares.
Massey has been on the Bank of America board since 1998. He served as president of Morehouse from 1995 to 2007 and has also served on boards of big corporations including McDonald's Corp. and Delta Air Lines Inc.
The bank posted a $2.39 billion loss for the three months ended in December, but earned $2.56 billion after preferred dividends for all of 2008, down from $14.80 billion in fiscal 2007.
Bank of America has received $45 billion in government aid as part of the Troubled Asset Relief Program, and additional guarantees backing hundreds of billions more in risky investments after it took over Merrill Lynch in January.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Prosecutors say Lawrence Johnson entered pleas Wednesday in Superior Court to falsely reporting he had a bomb and damaging an aircraft, both felonies. He was ordered to serve 120 days in a county jail, 240 days in a locked-down facility and three years of supervised probation.
Authorities say Delta Air Lines Flight 110 from Atlanta was making its approach into Los Angeles International Airport on Jan. 7 when Johnson announced that he had a bomb. He was tackled and held by passengers until the plane landed. No bomb was found.
Johnson is prohibited from flying on an airline during his probation.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
William Mark Mize was put to death Wednesday by lethal injection at the state prison at Jackson. The 52-year-old inmate was pronounced dead at 7:28 p.m. by authorities. Mize became the second person executed in Georgia this year.
Mize was convicted of the October 1994 murder of Eddie Tucker, who was shot after he failed to follow orders to burn down what Mize considered to be a crack house in Athens. Prosecutors say Mize shot Tucker in the head with a shotgun after leading him into some woods.
Mize's attorneys sought this week to block the execution. But an appeals court dismissed their appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court also rejected a request to stay the execution.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Some 100 schools were closed, and more might need to be shut down temporarily, Obama said, declaring, ``This is obviously a very serious situation.'' The total confirmed cases in the U.S. rose to nearly 100, with many more suspected.
He spoke just hours after the Geneva-based World Health Organization, a United Nations agency, sounded its own ominous alarm, raising its alert level to one notch below a full-fledged global pandemic. Said WHO Director General Margaret Chan: ``It really is all of humanity that is under threat during a pandemic.''
Dr. Richard Besser, acting chief of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said in Atlanta there were confirmed cases in ten states, including 51 in New York, 16 in Texas and 14 in California. The CDC counted scattered cases in Kansas, Massachusetts , Michigan, Arizona, Indiana, Nevada and Ohio.
State officials in Maine said laboratory tests had confirmed three cases in that state, not yet included in the CDC count.
Also, Illinois officials cited nine ``likely cases,'' most of them in the Chicago area, and three schools were shut down.
And the Pentagon said a Marine at the Twentynine Palms base in California had been confirmed to be ill with swine flu and was isolated, along with his roommate. A Marine spokesman at the Pentagon, Maj. David Nevers, said the sick Marine was doing well and his condition continued to improve. Nevers said about 30 others who had been in contact with the sick Marine would be held apart for five days as well as to see if they show symptoms.
In Mexico, where the flu is believed to have originated, officials said Wednesday that the disease was now suspected in 168 deaths, and nearly 2,500 illnesses.
Despite calls from many U.S. lawmakers for tightening controls over the Mexico-US border, Obama ruled out that option, even though the swine flu outbreak has been at its most virulent and may have begun there.
At a prime-time news conference on his 100th day in office, Obama said he would heed the advice of health officials, to whom blocking the border ``would be akin to closing the barn door after the horses are out, because we already have cases here in the United States.''
Instead, he said his administration had ramped up screening efforts and made sure needed medical supplies were on hand. ``The key now is to just make sure we are maintaining great vigilance, that everybody responds appropriately when cases do come up. And individual families start taking very sensible precautions that can make a huge difference.''
He praised the Bush administration for making preparations for such a crisis, including stockpiling 50 million doses of antiviral medications.
``Because this is a new strain, we have to be cautious,'' Obama said. ``If this was a strain we were familiar with, then I think we wouldn't see the kind of alert levels that we're seeing, for instance, with the World Health Organization.''
Earlier, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said, ``Closing our nation's borders is not merited here.''
``This virus is already in the United States. Any containment theory ... is really moot at this time,'' Napolitano said.
In fact, customs agents have delayed 49 people at the border because of flulike symptoms and 41 of those have been cleared so far. Test results on the other eight were not complete.
Earlier Wednesday, Obama offered ``my thoughts and prayers'' to the family of a nearly two-year-old Mexican boy who died in Houston, the first confirmed U.S. fatality among more than five dozen infections. Health officials in Texas said the child had traveled with his family from Mexico to Brownsville on April 4 and had been sick for five days before being hospitalized there. He then was brought to Houston where he died Monday night.
Texas called off all public high school athletic and academic competitions at least until May 11 due to the outbreak.
The Senate's top Republican said the spread was a ``very worrisome situation and we're all following it very closely.'' Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said Republicans ``stand ready to closely work with the administration to protect the American people as this situation unfolds.''
Laboratory testing showed the new virus was treatable by the anti-flu drugs Tamiflu and Relenza, and the first shipments from a federal stockpile arrived Wednesday in New York City and several other locations. The government was shipping to states enough medication to treat 11 million people as a precaution. All states should get their share by May 3.
No shortages had been reported there was plenty in regular pharmacies, federal health officials said.
A pandemic is an epidemic that has expanded globally. The swine flu has now been reported on four continents.
Germany and Austria became the latest countries to report infections. Germany reported four cases on Wednesday, Austria one case.
New Zealand's total rose to 14. Britain had earlier reported five cases, Spain 10. There were 19 cases in Canada and two in Israel.
The disease is not spread by eating pork and U.S. officials appeared to go out of their way on Wednesday to not call the strain ``swine flu.'' Obama called the bug the ``H1N1 virus,'' both in a morning statement and at his news conference, and other administration officials followed his lead.
Of particular concern were the cases in New York City.
Health officials said the number of confirmed swine flu cases in New York had risen to 51, and tests were under way on the first three probable cases outside New York City.
City Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden said Wednesday all those with confirmed cases were recovering, including a 19-month-old baby and a young woman who were hospitalized.
Several schools were closed in New York, many more in Texas. Some 53,000 students were affected in Texas.
Of the school closings, former Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, on her first full day on the job as health and human services secretary, said while prudent, they also cause ``a large ripple effect.''
``What happens to the parents? Where do those children go? Do you close the day care center if a younger sibling is there?'' Sebelius asked at a briefing for reporters.
Obama noted he had asked Congress for $1.5 billion in emergency funds to help build more drug stockpiles and monitor future cases, as well as help international efforts to avoid a full-fledged pandemic, an epidemic that spreads widely across the globe.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Geneva-based World Trade Organization on Wednesday raised its alert level for the fast-spreading swine flu to its next-to-highest notch, signaling a global pandemic could be imminent. The move came after the virus spread to at least 10 U.S. states from coast to coast and swept deeper into Europe.
"It really is all of humanity that is under threat during a pandemic," said WHO Director General Margaret Chan. "We do not have all the answers right now but we will get them."
In the United States, President Barack Obama mourned the first U.S. death, a Mexican toddler who had traveled with his family to Texas. Total American cases surged to nearly 100, and Obama said wider school closings might be necessary.
In Mexico, where the flu is believed to have originated, officials said Wednesday the disease is now confirmed or suspected in 159 deaths, and nearly 2,500 illnesses.
There were no other deaths confirmed from the flu. But health officials in the United States and around the world braced for them.
Dr. Richard Besser, the acting chief of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said in Atlanta there were 91 confirmed cases in ten states, with 51 in New York, 16 in Texas and 14 in California. Two cases have been confirmed in Kansas, Massachusetts and Michigan, while single cases have been reported in Arizona, Indiana, Nevada and Ohio.
State officials in Maine said laboratory tests had confirmed three cases in that state, although those had not yet been included in the CDC count. And the Pentagon said that a Marine in southern California had tested positive for the disease.
WHO has confirmed human cases of swine flu in Mexico, the United States, Canada, Britain, Israel, New Zealand and Spain.
Germany and Austria became the latest countries to report infections. Germany reported four cases on Wednesday, Austria one.
In Washington, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano was questioned closely by senators about whether the U.S. should close its border with Mexico, where the outbreak apparently began and the casualties have been the greatest. She repeated the administration's position that questioning of people at borders and ports of entry was sufficient for now and said closing borders "has not been merited by the facts."
The WHO said the phase 5 alert means there is sustained human to human spread in at least two countries. It also signals that efforts to produce a vaccine will be ramped up.
(WSB Radio) Gov. Perdue has signed a couple of bills into law aimed at protecting victims' rights.
Senate Bill 151 allows loved ones of murder victims to pre-record their victim impact statements rather than having to read a prepared statement in court. Victims complain that if they show any emotion during a rehearsal, they're not allowed to present their testimony.
"This is really a big milestone for victims, they have that pressure taken off of them, " says Claudia Barnes, wife of murdered Fulton County Judge Rowland Barnes.
Perdue also signed SB 172 into law that gives crime victims who have suffered a mental injury access to therapy and services. Georgia law now extends that help only to victims who suffered a physical injury.
WASHINGTON (AP) The acting head of the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention has been predicting swine flu deaths in the U.S. -- and says the news from Texas is ``very, very sad.''
Dr. Richard Besser made the rounds of the morning talk shows and confirmed that a 23-month-old child in Texas has died from the virus. It's the first known death in the U.S.
Besser says he doesn't think the death indicates any change in the flu strain. He also added that ``it's very important that people take their concern and channel it into action.''
Sixty-six infections had been reported in the United States before the report of the toddler's death in Texas.
The world has no vaccine to prevent infection but U.S. health officials aim to have a key ingredient for one ready in early May, the big step that vaccine manufacturers are awaiting.
An actual vaccine could be months away.
Obama: Schools with infections may have to close
WASHINGTON (AP) President Barack Obama says school authorities with confirmed cases of swine flu should consider closing.
The president said Wednesday morning that Americans ``should know'' the government is doing all that it can to contain the emerging health menace.
Giving a flu update at an event welcoming Sen. Arlen Specter to the Democratic Party, Obama also said he wanted to convey ``my thoughts and prayers'' to the family of a 23-month-old child in Texas who has died from the flu.
As for the schools, he said that closures in some instances may be necessary, especially in cases of confirmed infections.
Obama said it is the recommendation of public health officials ``that schools with confirmed cases ... should consider closing if the situation becomes more serious.''
Illinois reporting probable swine flu cases, one school closed
CHICAGO (AP) Illinois is reporting probable cases of swine flu.
State public health officials say more than one case is being sent to federal authorities for confirmation.
The Illinois Department of Public Health has conducted tests on patient specimens showing swine flu is probable.
State public health spokeswoman Melaney Arnold says the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will make the final determination on whether Illinois' cases matches the swine flu outbreak in Mexico.
She says one case is located at a school on Chicago's north side. The school is closed today.
WHO calls emergency meeting; eyes pandemic level
GENEVA (AP) The World Health Organization is calling a third emergency meeting of its flu experts in response to a spike in swine flu cases.
The panel meeting Wednesday will discuss the current alert level at phase 4, two levels below the threshold for a full pandemic outbreak.
In response to the panel's earlier advice, WHO declared the outbreak an international public health emergency and raised its pandemic alert level, meaning the risk of a global outbreak has jumped.
WHO spokesman Dick Thompson said the agency's director-general Margaret Chan ``has seen a jump in cases and she wants to have that evaluated by the outside experts.''
He says that does not automatically mean there will be a change in the pandemic alert level. This comes in addition to a WHO scientific review meeting, also on Wednesday.
Germany confirms 3 swine flu cases, Egypt slaughtering all pigs
BERLIN (AP) Germany's national disease control center says it has confirmed three swine flu cases making it the third country in Europe where the disease has surfaced.
Britain and Spain already have already confirmed cases of the disease, which was first detected in Mexico and has now been found in several other countries worldwide.
Meanwhile, the Egyptian government says it has begun slaughtering all pigs in the country as a precautionary measure against the possible spread of swine flu.
The Health Ministry says the slaughter of the country's 300,000 pigs will begin immediately.
The ministry has stated several times that there are no cases swine flu in the country, however neighboring Israel has reported two.
WASHINGTON (AP) The White House wants you to know that Wednesday is just like any other day.
But for those who insist on highlighting President Barack Obama's 100th day in office, the White House is playing along.
The president was marking Wednesday's milestone with two high-profile events, both designed to highlight the accomplishments of his fledgling administration.
Obama began his day with a White House appearance with Sen. Arlen Specter, the veteran Pennsylvania Republican who is switching parties, a development the president said he was ``grateful'' for. Vice President Joe Biden, who had long encouraged his former Senate colleague to become a Democrat, also attended.
The president then left for a town hall-style meeting in Arnold, Mo., a suburb of St. Louis, where aides say he'll note discuss his first 100 days but also focus on moving his agenda forward. Obama returns to Washington in the afternoon to prepare for a prime-time news conference, his third since taking office.
Darrell West, director of governance studies at the Brookings Institution, said the White House is smart to try to take control of the message on the 100th day.
``It's always good to play offense,'' West said. ``If you create a vacuum, someone else is going to fill it.''
Spending at least part of his 100th day on the road is keeping in step with Obama's penchant for getting out of Washington. While debate raged on Capitol Hill over his massive economic stimulus bill, Obama took his case directly to the American people, holding town hall meetings in Indiana, Florida and Illinois. When Congress passed the bill, Obama opted out of a White House signing ceremony, choosing instead to sign the bill at a Colorado science museum.
Like most of the 12 states Obama has visited in his first 100 days, Missouri is politically important. A traditional bellwether in presidential elections, Missouri went to Obama's opponent, Republican John McCain, by just a few thousand votes in 2008. Not only will Obama be eyeing Missouri in 2012, but Democrats see an opportunity to pick up another Senate seat there in 2010 when long-serving Republican Sen. Christopher Bond retires.
Obama's efforts to fix the nation's economy have drawn comparisons to President Franklin Roosevelt, who is largely responsible for the 100 days phenomenon. Roosevelt launched many of his New Deal programs during that period and, with backing from Congress, signed 15 major bills into law.
``There was a strong bipartisan effort in Congress to follow the president's lead,'' said David Woolner, senior vice president of the Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute.
Obama hasn't had that support. His biggest legislative accomplishment the $787 billion economic stimulus bill passed Congress with scant Republican backing.
Woolner said the political parties have changed since Roosevelt's day, making it difficult for presidents to achieve the same level of bipartisan support Roosevelt enjoyed. Still, he said, the first 100 days remains a relevant benchmark.
``Presidents who have been successful in this period have done a good job in setting an agenda for the coming years,'' Woolner said.
While Obama may lack bipartisan support, he reaches his 100th day with strong public backing. An Associated Press-Gfk poll found that 64 percent of Americans approve of Obama's job performance and 48 percent believe the country is headed in the right direction. The ``right direction'' number is up 8 points since February and 31 points since October, the month before Obama's election.
But problems may lurk behind that public optimism. Ninety percent of Americans consider the economy an important issue the most ever in an AP poll and 65 percent said it's difficult for them and their families to get ahead.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Atlanta ranked No. 23 among 25 cities ranked for ozone pollution. Ozone is a reactive gas molecule that's the primary ingredient of smog air pollution and is very harmful to breathe.
Fulton, Gwinnett, Cobb and DeKalb were among several Georgia counties that earned an 'F' grade for ozone pollution.
The group ranked pollution levels of U.S. cities and counties based on data collected by the Environmental Protection Agency between 2005 and 2007.
But the report does suggest Atlanta has seen improvements in air quality over the last decade.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) The search for UGA professor Georgia Zinkhan is widening, and authorities think the Appalachian Trail might be a good place to look.
People who know Zinkhan say he would often write about hiking the trail, leading to speculation he may be heading deep into the woods.
To that end, wanted posters of Zinkhan are being posted along the trail.
Zinkhan, a marketing professor at UGA, is suspected in Saturday's shootings at an Athens Community Theater that killed three people.
Witnesses said he fatally shot his wife, Marie Bruce, 47, and two men, Tom Tanner, 40, and Ben Teague, 63.
Police said Zinkhan left his children, who are 8 and 10, in the Jeep during the shootings and then dropped them off with a neighbor before disappearing. The children are in the custody of Bruce's brother.
Zinkhan's relatives have been working to help Athens-Clarke County police and the FBI find him, his brother says.
Zinkhan was last seen driving his 1995 red Jeep Liberty, with Georgia license AIX 1376.
In addition to the wanted posters, electronic billboards in Georgia and surrounding states have begun displaying a Violent Felon Alert for Zinkhan.
The 56 year old's passport has not been found and police say he purchased an airline ticket for the Netherlands.
Zinkhan owns a home in Amsterdam and has relatives in Austin, Texas and North Carolina.
Funeral arrangements have been set for the three victims.
A service for Bruce is planned for 11 a.m. Thursday at Warren Baptist Church in Augusta, followed by burial in Westover Memorial Park. Visitation will be held Wednesday evening at Platt's Funeral Home in Augusta.
A memorial service for Teague is scheduled for 11 a.m. Friday in the chapel on North Campus at the University of Georgia, followed by a public reception on Herty Field.
Bernstein Funeral Home of Athens is handling arrangements for Tanner and said the family has asked that details be kept private.
(WSB Radio) They were the staple of 19th Century transportation and now, thanks to federal money, they may be the key to travel in the 21st Century.
Trains are coming back.
The Obama Administration, as part of the federal stimulus package, has devoted $8 billion for the development of high speed rail. And the southeast United States, including Georgia, should see a large sum of money going towards the development of rail.
The government has identified 10 corridors, each from 100 to 600 miles long, with greatest promise for high-speed development.
They are: a northern New England line; an Empire line running east to west in New York State; a Keystone corridor running laterally through Pennsylvania; a major Chicago hub network; a southeast network connecting the District of Columbia to Florida and the Gulf Coast; a Gulf Coast line extending from eastern Texas to western Alabama; a corridor in central and southern Florida; a Texas-to-Oklahoma line; a California corridor where voters have already approved a line that will allow travel from San Francisco to Los Angeles in two and a half hours; and a corridor in the Pacific Northwest.
"We've seen, basically, a monumental shift in transportation policy from this administration," says Eric Stevens, who oversees rail projects for the Georgia Department of Transportation. "You can almost kind of equate it to when Eisenhower came in and said, 'I'm going to build the interstate system.'"
The Georgia DOT is looking at three distinct rail lines, lines that would link Atlanta to major cities in and out of the state, while also making the morning drive to work a lot easier.
The main line for the southeast would link Washington, D.C. to the region. That means a high speed rail line running from the nation's capital, to Richmond, then Charlotte and beyond.
"What we propose to do, based on the pending funding, is look at Charlotte, Atlanta, Macon, Savannah, Jacksonville," Stevens says, "and complete out all the corridor through the state."
The idea is to offer residents in Atlanta another option besides flying.
"It's about choices and options," says Stevens. "Right now, you don't have an option that can get you from Atlanta to Washington in a day's time, other than a plane."
High speed rail, Stevens says, would be ideal for travel within about 450 miles of Atlanta.
"You extend into Washington. You extend to New Orleans. You extend almost into Indiana," he says. "So you can quite a few places in a 450 mile arc, which is about the optimal distance for a high speed train."
Another route under consideration would link Atlanta to Chattanooga, running over an existing line that the state already owns.
These would not be the bullet trains that run in Europe and Asia. But, Steven says, "it wouldn't exclude that. You have to have a glide path to get to that. You don't go from zero to 300 miles per hour overnight."
These trains would be the Acela trains that operated in the northeast, running at speeds approaching 150 miles per hour. That would mean a trip from Atlanta to Charlotte would take about two hours. Stevens says, if you were to fly to Charlotte, with having to get to the airport early, the security check and the flying time, the train is faster. Plus, trains are not as likely to be delayed due to weather.
In his announcement of the stimulus money, President Obama cited how rail would make driving a lot easier while also helping the environment.
"What we need, then, is a smart transportation system equal to the needs of the 21st century," he said, "a system that reduces travel times and increases mobility, a system that reduces congestion and boosts productivity, a system that reduces destructive emissions and creates jobs."
Stevens says high speed rail linking Atlanta to Washington, or Chattanooga, or New Orleans, would mean fewer cars on the road and less congestion at the airport.
Another proposal from the DOT is a freight rail line, directly linking the Port of Savannah to Atlanta.
The port is the fourth busiest in the nation, and the second busiest on the east coast. Thousands of containers enter the port each day, most bound for Atlanta by tractor trailer. A freight line would take many of those trucks off the state's highways.
"A couple of hundred thousand," Stevens says.
A possible peek into the future is available now in the city of Cordele, in south Georgia.
Cordele already has a rail line that cuts across the state to Savannah. The city is working to develop that route, which was built to bring agricultural products, like cotton, to the port.
Cordele is building a distribution facility to containerize all the cotton for shipment to the port. In addition, city officials in Cordele envision the rail working the other way, bringing goods from Savannah to their city for shipment to the southern U.S. and points west.
The new facility is expected to employ about 3500 people, with support businesses bringing in another 5000 jobs.
If a line was built directly linking Savannah to Atlanta, it would mean jobs and a lot more.
"They can put four times the amount of material on one rail car than they can on a truck," Stevens says. "They're going to save all that truck traffic coming into and through Atlanta," meaning fewer trucks during the morning commute.
There have been reports that Georgia is trailing its neighboring states in rail development and, therefore, the idea of high speed rail is doomed. Stevens says that's not the case.
He says, yes, North Carolina and Virginia are ahead of the curve, thanks to railroad consolidation two decades ago. When rail companies were bought up by larger ones, the duplicate rail lines were sold to the states. North Carolina and Virginia now own more rail lines that most other states. But, Stevens says, all that means is that Georgia is one of 46 states trailing North Carolina and Virginia. And while those two might have their systems up and running in 5 years, Georgia could be running in 9.
And while we've heard about high speed rail in Georgia in the past (Lovejoy anyone?), the stimulus money makes the difference now.
"We don't have the funding mechanisms in place to allow us to do a lot with rail and with transit," Steven says. "Our state constitution says that motor fuel money is only used for roads and bridges."
The DOT must complete environmental impact studies on the proposed rail lines, then they can begin work. Within the next decade Atlantans might find themselves traveling from home to Washington in three hours, or going to New Orleans in four, all the time watching the countryside drift by outside the window of their train.
Stevens and his counterparts in other states, say they've been waiting for this opportunity, waiting for an administration that looked to the past to see the future.
"Obama could, in essence , be the Eisenhower of the rail," Stevens says, "and bring about a national, coordinated high speed rail program, much like the interstate under Eisenhower."
Technical College of Georgia spokesman Mike Light said enrollment at Georgia's 33 technical colleges jumped to 90,000 this spring, up more than 12,000 students from last year. Ten of the campuses reported growth of 20 percent or more in that time period.
It's the second highest enrollment in the system's history. The highest was in 2003 when technical colleges enrolled more than 91,000 students.
Technical colleges offer certificates and associate degrees in trades from nursing to welding.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Officer Yolanda Shumaker was wearing a protective vest when she was shot in the chest Feb. 27 after responding to a domestic dispute at a Hampton residence.
The suspected gunman remains in the county jail.
At a ceremony Tuesday, Shumaker was given a new vest and was named a member of the ``Legion of Life'' program.
The program, established 30 years ago, honors law enforcement personnel who have been saved by bulletproof vests.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) A stepmother, accused of beating her stepdaughter and leaving her in the family garage for days, will not face the death penalty.
Charlotte Reaves is charged in the 2003 death of 11 year old Joella Reaves.
A jury convicted Joella's father, Rodney, of murder in February and recommended a sentenced of life in prison without parole.
The trial of Charlotte Reaves is expected to take about a week.
Police found the body of the Eagle's Landing Middle School student in her home.
"She had a cut to her head," Henry County Police Detective Renee Swanson testified in court. "She had horrific injuries to her face and her hands."
An autopsy discovered more than 100 wounds to the girl's body.
Charlotte Reaves claims her husband was the one who beat the girl to death.
(WSB Radio) The family of a five year old Henry County boy, who drowned in a sludge pit last month, is suing.
The wrongful death lawsuit was filed against the Poole's Manor Mobile Home Park.
Alexis Rivera was found in the pit after a massive search. The attorney for Rivera's family says the owners and management of the park had an obligation to protect kids from the hazard.
"It was a pit that is black on top, that looks like tar, looks like concrete," says attorney Rod Edmund. "It's at ground level. And it's right across the street from a playground, a playground in a community that's full of kids."
The suit claims there was no cover on the pit and the fence around it needed to be repaired.
"Routinely, workers there, at the facility, would leave the gates to the fences wide open while they were on the premises," Edmund says.
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) The manhunt for a University of Georgia professor suspected of killing his wife and two men widened Tuesday as the campus held a solemn vigil to remember the victims.
Authorities across the nation and in Europe have been enlisted to search for marketing professor George M. Zinkhan, who has not been seen since the shootings near campus Saturday.
As the search broadens, life on campus has largely returned to normal aside from the police officers carrying assault rifles as they patrol school grounds. Campus police believe Zinkhan left the area but say the weapons are a precaution.
The vigil Tuesday night was part of a long-planned annual effort to honor the 22 students, faculty and staff who have died during the past academic year. But UGA President Michael Adams said it held special significance, and he urged students and residents to look to each other for strength as details of the shootings emerge.
``We struggle with what we know. And we struggle with what we yet don't know,'' he said to a crowd of about 100 who gathered outside a chapel on the school's campus.
Authorities, meanwhile, said they were struggling to find the motive behind the shooting. And Athens-Clarke County Police Capt. Clarence Holeman said the marketing professor is likely long gone.
``Would you be sticking around if you had three murder warrants?'' Holeman asked.
Police searched the woods a few miles from Zinkhan's neighborhood Tuesday after receiving a tip that a red Jeep matching the description of Zinkhan's had been seen nearby the day of the shootings. Authorities didn't find the Jeep or any sign of Zinkhan.
Becky Stonecipher said she had spotted a Jeep in her neighbor's driveway and called police Sunday morning after seeing news reports.
``I wish someone had responded earlier,'' she said at her home in nearby Bogart. ``You just never know.''
The shootings took place midday Saturday at a gathering of a local theater group at the Athens Community Theater. Killed were Zinkhan's wife Marie Bruce, a 47-year-old attorney, and two members of her theater group, Ben Teague, 63, and Tom Tanner, 40.
Zinkhan, 57, disappeared after the shootings in his 2005 red Jeep Liberty with the Georgia license plate AIX1376.
The search broadened Monday when the FBI revealed that Zinkhan had a May 2 plane ticket to the Netherlands and left behind an empty passport wallet.
Warren French, a business ethics professor and longtime friend, said Zinkhan has traveled to Amsterdam twice a year at Christmas and during summer break for the last two years. He has taught part-time at the Vrije Universiteit (Free University) since April 2007.
Police said Zinkhan left his children, who are 8 and 10, in the Jeep during the shootings and then dropped them off with a neighbor before disappearing. Holeman said they were in the custody of Bruce's brother.
Zinkhan's relatives have been working to help Athens-Clarke County police and the FBI find him, his brother told The Associated Press. Other friends and family members were struggling to explain how cerebral marketing professor could have been involved in the shootings.
``It's awfully hard to talk about it because we just don't understand,'' said Bruce's aunt Daisy Phelps. ``We don't know why. We don't know. All we know is my niece is dead.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) -- The swine flu scare is taking a toll on romance. WSB's Pete Combs reports across America... couples who plan to marry or honeymoon in Mexico are now forced to rethink their plans.
Andy Konigsmark and his fiancee, Dodi, are getting married Saturday. For months, he tells WSB's Pete Combs, he's kept secret his plans for the honeymoon of a lifetime.
"We were going to fly out to the Mayan Riviera and be there for a week," he says.
But worried about the growing swine flu threat in Mexico, Konigsmark says he canceled his plans with less than a week's notice. Now, with just days to go before the wedding, he can't afford to book an entirely new trip.
"It's just a nightmare for us," he tells WSB.
Konigsmark's Atlanta-based travel agent, Rob Kalpak of Fly Smart Travel, says this could be just the beginning.
"We're going to get a whole lot worse in terms of people changing their plans," he says, should swine flu become more widespread.
Konigsmark says he and his fiancee will eventually go on their honeymoon. But, "it does not look like Sunday after the wedding, though." Konigsmark says he's a pretty easy-going about things. His stress level, on a scale of one to ten, is about a five, he says. "But Dodi's is about at a ten now," he tells WSB.
ATLANTA (AP) No matter how hard he tried, Matt Diaz couldn't get hit by ball three in his helmet, so he made certain the next pitch from Kyle McClellan hit his bat.
Diaz drove in two runs with a bases-loaded single off McClellan in the eighth inning, rallying the Atlanta Braves to a 2-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday night.
With St. Louis leading 1-0, McClellan (1-1) walked Omar Infante, Chipper Jones and Jeff Francoeur to set the stage for Diaz's go-ahead hit with two outs.
McClellan threw his 2-2 pitch behind Diaz's head. Diaz didn't exactly jump out of the way.
``I was hoping it would hit my head,'' Diaz said. ``I could not believe it didn't hit my head. I guess I lost too much weight.''
Diaz, who lost more than 20 pounds in the offseason, reached out to slap McClellan's 3-2 pitch up the middle, driving in Infante and Jones.
Diaz was 0-for-3 with two strikeouts before the hit.
``I've been struggling with strikeouts,'' he said. ``I was just trying to put the ball in play.''
McClellan said the walk to Infante was an ominous start.
``In a one-run game, you have to get the leadoff man,'' McClellan said. ``If you don't, eventually it's going to beat you. It didn't go my way. ... I didn't make pitches. I put myself in trouble.''
Added St. Louis manager Tony La Russa of McClellan: ``The only thing he did wrong was walk the leadoff man.''
McClellan said he didn't regret the free pass to Jones, who walked in each of his four plate appearances. The Braves have cleanup hitter Brian McCann and No. 5 hitter Garret Anderson on the disabled list, so the Cardinals issued five walks to Jones in the first two games of the series.
``I had to put him on,'' McClellan said. ``Chipper is one you obviously pitch around.''
Kyle Lohse pitched six scoreless innings and left with a 1-0 lead despite fighting an upset stomach.
``I almost threw up in the bullpen,'' Lohse said. ``It's been going around. ... A couple of times I barely got off the field.''
Peter Moylan (1-1) pitched a perfect eighth after Jo-Jo Reyes allowed only three hits, one walk and one run in seven innings.
Mike Gonzalez struck out the side in the ninth for his third save in four chances. Gonzalez struck out Albert Pujols on three straight called strikes for the second out. Gonzalez threw Pujols three straight balls to begin the at-bat.
``After I saw Matty get up there and do what he did and get those runs, I said there's no chance we can let this game go,'' Gonzalez said. ``There's no chance they're going to touch the plate.''
Reyes retired 13 consecutive batters after giving up a single to Lohse with two outs in the second. Reyes, who lost his last seven decisions in 2008 and his first decision this season, avoided becoming the first Braves pitcher to have nine straight losses since Marty Clary in 1990.
``That's the best ball game I've seen Jo-Jo throw,'' said Braves manager Bobby Cox, who said the left-hander is following pitching coach Roger McDowell's advice by not trying to overpower every batter.
``He just started getting the idea that he's a pitcher, not a flame-thrower,'' Cox said. ``It's just a work in progress.''
Lohse gave up four hits with four walks in six innings to lower his ERA to 1.97.
Yadier Molina had two hits, including a run-scoring single in the first, to extend his hitting streak to 12 games.
The Braves wasted a scoring chance in the third inning when Yunel Escobar hit a one-out single and moved to second on Jones' walk. Escobar ran past third base on Kotchman's groundout and was thrown out trying to return to the base for an inning-ending double play.
Rick Ankiel made a diving catch of pinch-hitter Greg Norton's drive in left-center field to end the seventh inning.
Notes: The three hits allowed by the Braves set a season low. ... Clary finished 1-10 in 1990 and didn't make another major league appearance.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
FORSYTH, Ga. (AP) A trucker clung to the back of his trailerless semi Tuesday while a man who commandeered the vehicle led police on a 50-mile chase down an interstate in Georgia, authorities said. The semi eventually slowed enough for the trucker to leap off near the end of the chase.
When Milo Banks, 27, stopped the semi, armed officers surrounded the truck's cab, breaking through the windows before wrestling Banks to the ground, authorities said. Events began after trucker Torrey Lang, 32, of Lithonia, had walked away from the truck in a parking lot, then hurried back after spotting Banks climbing in, said Union City police spokesman George Louth.
``He had to run around it to avoid being hit,'' he said.
Capt. Jason Bolton with the Henry County police department said authorities believe the suspect stole the truck in Union City just south of Atlanta. Bolton said county authorities helped chase the truck as it barreled south on Interstate 75 with the trucker riding on the back.
TV helicopter footage showed Lang jumping off the back of the truck and falling in the middle of the interstate as the vehicle slowed down in Monroe County.
Louth said Lang received minor scrapes from his tumble to the ground and remained in Monroe County, where he was being interviewed by GBI agents
``I just want to see him myself to make sure he is OK,'' said Tanya Lang, Torrey's grandmother, speaking with The Associated Press by telephone. ``I've been trying call to reach him all day. I just want to make sure he's OK.''
Banks, of Albany, was taken to the Monroe County jail and later transferred to a county jail in south Fulton County, Louth said. Louth said Banks faces a charge of felony theft of a motor vehicle and an initial court appearance is scheduled for Wednesday morning. He did not know if Banks had a lawyer.
A state trooper was treated at a hospital for a superficial gunshot wound to the shoulder that occurred when officers sought to pull Banks from the truck, said Georgia State Patrol spokesman Gordy Wright. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is looking into the shooting, he added.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) The state's technical colleges have seen a 15 percent spike in enrollment over this time last year as laid-off workers return to school to learn other trades.
Technical College of Georgia spokesman Mike Light said enrollment at Georgia's 33 technical colleges jumped to 90,000 this spring, up more than 12,000 students from last year. Ten of the campuses reported growth of 20 percent or more in that time period.
It's the second highest enrollment in the system's history. The highest was in 2003 when technical colleges enrolled more than 91,000 students.
Technical colleges offer certificates and associate degrees in trades from nursing to welding.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) A white supremacist convicted of murdering one of his followers is scheduled to be put to death a day after a Georgia judge corrected a legal glitch that delayed his execution hours before it was to happen.
William Mark Mize is scheduled to be put to death by lethal injection at 7 p.m. Wednesday for the 1994 murder of Eddie Tucker, who was shot to death after he failed to burn down a crack house in Athens.
Mize was initially supposed to be executed Tuesday, but the Georgia Supreme Court issued a temporary stay ruling that a trial judge denied Mize's request for a hearing but never decided upon the motion itself.
The judge denied the motion late Tuesday afternoon, clearing the way for Wednesday's execution.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Georgia has yet to have a confirmed case of swine flu. Four suspected cases have been sent to Georgia's public health lab for testing in recent days, but all have come back negative.
Still, 64 cases have been confirmed in five other states, and Georgia officials say they aren't taking any chances.
Besides stockpiling antivirals, Gov. Sonny Perdue signed a bill Tuesday that gives him power to declare a ``pandemic influenza'' state of emergency. Among other things, such a designation would give him the power to evacuate a pandemic-stricken region of the state.
The bill also allows pharmacists and nurses to order and dispense flu vaccines if they've entered into an agreement with a physician. That removes the requirement that each person seeking a flu vaccine from a pharmacist or nurse would need an individual doctor's prescription.
J. Patrick O'Neal, director of preparedness in the Georgia Division of Public Health, said that will make it easier for residents to obtain a flu shots if they need them.
State health officials said Tuesday that the state already has 460,000 courses of flu antivirals on hand. The additional free courses it's set to receive this week from the federal government means the state will have enough antivirals on hand to treat 785,000 people.
Additionally, the state can access about another 975,000 free antiviral courses from the federal government if it needs them, officials said.
That's still well below the state's total population of about 9 million people.
But officials said it's highly unlikely they would have to treat the whole state at once.
Perdue urged Georgians to remain calm and said state officials are building on their experience crafting a response to a possible avian flu outbreak. The state has paid particular attention to avian flu because of its large poultry industry, he said.
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) The Georgia Supreme Court on Tuesday stayed the execution of a white supremacist just hours before he was to be put to death.
The court's temporary stay is designed to give the trial court judge time to correct a technical issue.
William Mark Mize, 52, was convicted of killing one of his own followers. He was scheduled to die by lethal injection at 7 p.m. Tuesday for the 1994 murder of Eddie Tucker, who was shot to death after he failed to burn down what Mize considered to be a crack house in Athens.
The Georgia Supreme Court held Wednesday that Chief Judge Lawton Stephens of the Western Judicial Circuit denied Mize's request for a hearing, but did not rule on the motion itself. The supreme court can't hear the appeal until Stephens rules on the motion.
The top court's stay will expire 24 hours after Stephens rules on Mize's motion. If the judge rules Tuesday, Mize's execution could take place as soon as Wednesday.
Stephens did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment.
Mize's attorneys have argued that the execution should be delayed because of lingering doubt over Mize's role in the murder. They also said the state introduced ``inflammatory, irrelevant evidence'' about Mize's racist beliefs to prejudice the jury.
Prosecutors said Mize is an unrepentant killer who led Tucker into the woods in Oconee County and shot him in the head with a shotgun after he didn't destroy a house that Mize wanted burned to the ground.
Mize was the leader of a nascent white supremacist group called the National Vastilian Aryan Party which prosecutors say was similar to the Ku Klux Klan when Tucker applied to join the group.
Mize ordered Tucker and another supporter, Chris Hattrup, to set the house on fire the night of Oct. 15, 1994, and the group stopped at a local convenience store to buy lighter fluid, prosecutors said.
When the two failed to burn down the house, prosecutors said Mize turned to Hattrup and said ``you know what we have to do.'' The two led Tucker into the woods in rural Oconee County, where Hattrup shot him in the back and the chest.
Mize, prosecutors said, fired the fatal shot to the head.
At his 1995 trial, Mize's girlfriend, who witnessed the killing, agreed to testify against him and charges against her were dropped. During the sentencing phase, Mize took the stand and told jurors he wanted no other sentence but death and it took the jury less than a day to grant him his wish.
Mize's lawyers have filed a flurry of appeals contending the state tried to prejudice the jury by showing the panel photographs of a KKK belt buckle, a racist poster and other items seized from Mize's home.
The Georgia Supreme Court ruled in 1998 that while evidence concerning a defendant's political or racial beliefs is normally irrelevant, it was accepted because it explained Mize's motive for the murder ``and his bent of mind.''
The appeals also hinge on sworn statements from Hattrup, who is serving life in prison after pleading guilty to murder. Hattrup later claimed that he fired the third and final shot amid a drunken rage.
Appellate courts, though, have dismissed Hattrup's testimony as contradictory and inconsistent. The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals found in a 2008 ruling that Hattrup either has an incomplete memory or, at worst, he ``is lying in order to help his friend Mize.''
(WSB Radio) -- As apprehension spreads over the possibility of a swine flu pandemic, state officials are delving into their stockpiles of vaccines and medical supplies -- and urging Georgians not to panic.
"I'm asking that we maintain some level of calm, says Dr. Sandra Elizabeth Ford at the Georgia Health Department. She spoke during a conference call with reporters Tuesday afternoon.
All this comes before the first case of swine flu has even been diagnosed here in Georgia.
But trying to stay ahead of a possible outbreak, this state and others are already dipping into their federal stockpiles of anti-viral medicines and tamiflu, hoping to be ready if worse comes to worst.
28 April 2009
WASHINGTON (AP) Hundreds more fell ill with swine flu in the U.S. and deaths seem likely as governments around the world on Tuesday intensified steps to battle the outbreak that has killed scores in Mexico.
President Barack Obama asked Congress for $1.5 billion in emergency funds to fight the fast-spreading disease. Cuba banned flights to Mexico, where public life is being altered dramatically by illness.
The Los Angeles County coroner's office was investigating the recent deaths of two men for links to swine flu. So far, no deaths linked to the disease have been reported outside Mexico. And the number of students who have fallen ill at a New York City school hit by the outbreak climbed to several hundred, officials said.
``I fully expect we will see deaths from this infection,'' Richard Besser, acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said in Atlanta.
Besser said the U.S. has 64 confirmed cases across five states, with 45 in New York, one in Ohio, two in Kansas, six in Texas and 10 in California.
But states are reporting more illnesses that could be linked to the flu.
New York has the largest number of swine flu cases, with a heavy concentration at a Catholic school in Queens section of New York City, where students recently went on a spring break trip to Mexico.
Several hundred students have fallen ill at that school, city officials said Tuesday.
There also were indications that the outbreak may have spread beyond the school, with two people hospitalized and officials closing a school for autistic kids down the street. Those two hospitalizations are in addition to the five hospitalizations announced by the CDC, including three in California and two in Texas.
``It is here and it is spreading,'' New York City Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden said. ``We do not know whether it will continue to spread.''
Cuba banned flights to Mexico, where swine flu is believed to have killed more than 150 people. Mexico City, one of the world's largest cities, cracked down even further on public life, closing gyms, swimming pools and pool halls and ordering restaurants to limit service to takeout. Earlier, the city shut down schools, state-run theaters and other public places.
But for all the government intervention, health officials around the world suggested the flu virus strain was spreading so fast that efforts to contain it might prove ineffective.
``Border controls do not work. Travel restrictions do not work,'' World Health Organization spokesman Gregory Hartl said in Geneva, recalling the SARS epidemic earlier in the decade that killed 774 people, mostly in Asia, and slowed the global economy.
Obama's request for $1.5 billion in emergency funds would help build drug stockpiles and monitor future cases as well as help international efforts. White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said the flu outbreak requires ``prudent planning'' and not panic.
Cuba was the first country to impose an outright travel ban. But the United States and a number of other countries, including Canada, Israel, France and the European Union's disease control agency have warned against nonessential travel to Mexico.
The swine flu already has spread to at least six countries besides Mexico, prompting WHO to raise its alert level on Monday but not call for travel bans or border closings.
Around the world, officials hoped the outbreak would not turn into a full-fledged pandemic, an epidemic that spreads across a wide geographical area.
``It's a very serious possibility, but it is still too early to say that this is inevitable,'' the WHO's flu chief, Dr. Keiji Fukuda, told a telephone news conference.
Flu deaths are nothing new in the United States or elsewhere. The CDC estimates that about 36,000 people died of flu-related causes each year, on average, during the 1990s in the United States.
But the new flu strain is a combination of pig, bird and human viruses for which humans may have no natural immunity.
New Zealand reported that 11 people who recently returned from Mexico had contracted the virus. Tests conducted at a WHO laboratory in Australia confirmed three cases of swine flu among 11 members of the group who were showing symptoms, New Zealand Health Minister Tony Ryall said.
Israel's Health Ministry confirmed two swine flu cases in men who recently returned from Mexico. One has recovered and the other was not believed to be in serious danger, health officials said.
Meanwhile, a second case was confirmed Tuesday in Spain, Health Minister Trinidad Jimenez said, a day after the country reported its first case. The 23-year-old student, one of 26 patients under observation, was not in serious condition, Jimenez said.
With the virus spreading, the U.S. stepped up checks of people entering the country and warned Americans to avoid nonessential travel to Mexico.
``We anticipate that there will be confirmed cases in more states as we go through the coming days,'' Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said on NBC's ``Today'' show on Tuesday.
On Capitol Hill, a Senate panel held an emergency meeting on the disease.
``Based on the pattern of illness we're seeing, we don't think this virus can be contained. ... But we do think we can reduce the impact of its spread, and reduce its impact on health,'' Rear. Adm. Anne Schuchat, the CDC interim science and public health deputy director, told a Senate Appropriations health subcommittee.
``There's a lot of anxiety right now across the country,'' subcommittee Chairman Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said.
``It's important for people to know there's a lot that we can do,'' Schuchat told Harkin. ``The investments that have been made in preparedness are making a difference.''
Still, she warned, not only might the disease get worse, ``it might get much worse.''
``We don't have all the answers today,'' she added.
Associated Press writers Peter Orsi, Julie Watson and E. Eduardo Castillo, in Mexico City; Mike Stobbe in Atlanta; Mary Clare Jalonick, David Espo, Philip Elliott and Matthew Lee in Washington; Ray Lilley in Wellington, New Zealand, Aron Heller in Jerusalem, Frank Jordans and Alexander G. Higgins in Geneva, Aron Heller in Jerusalem, Maria Cheng in London and Pan Pylas in London contributed to this report.
(WSB Radio State Capitol Bureau) Gov. Perdue signs a bill into law that would require schools to test the physical fitness of students annually. The results would be made available to parents.
"It's mostly an informational tool for the parents, really, because parents sometimes get busy and don't know these instruments are out there to be able to keep track," Perdue said at the bill signing at Glenhave Elementary School in DeKalb County.
Body mass index would not be measured as a part of the test. Those schools who show the most progress will be rewarded.
Perdue was joined by Falcons players Matt Ryan, Brian Finneran, and Erik Coleman as well as Atlanta Dreams center Chantelle Anderson.
(WSB Radio) Gov. Perdue says the state is prepared should the swine flu become a pandemic in Georgia.
While some tests have been conducted, no cases of swine flu have been found here.
He says the state began its preparations when the avian flu began to spread a few years ago.
"The preparedness that we did for the avian flu is essentially the same protocol we would use for the swine flu and it's very well practiced... they've had drills for years on this," says Perdue.
He says the state has already begun stockpiling anti-virals just in case.
"I authorized a draw down of the level of supplies that we are allowed... I think we have 25 percent of those to stock pile now. I just told them to get all that we are eligible for," he says.
Perdue also signed legislation into law that allows him to declare a "pandemic influenza" state of emergency in the event the World Health Organization declares a Phase 5 Pandemic Alert for influenza in the United States and/or Georgia or the CDC declares at least a Category 2 Pandemic Severity index for influenza in the United States or Georgia.
Gordy Wright with the Georgia State Patrol tells News/Talk 750 WSB the trooper's injuries are not life threatening.
Union City Police tell WSB the red rig was stolen from the Kroger at 4550 Jonesboro Road in Union City. The truck's owner, 33 year old Torrey Lang of Lithonia tried to stop the theft before jumping onto the back of his rig and calling 911 from his cell phone.
Authorities say Lang hung on for the ride of his life. A chase ensued some 50 miles through five counties before the rig blew most of his tires and came to a stop in Forsyth, Georgia, in Monroe County.
The chase involved law enforcement from the GBI, the GSP, and Monroe County. Shots were fired at the end of the chase as the suspect was arrested.
Police identify the suspect as 27-year-old Milo Demetrius Banks of Albany. He's presently being held by Monroe County authorities. He faces a myriad of charges.
In a specially called Tuesday meeting, the board voted unanimously to begin distributing the money immediately to the 1,300 Title I schools in the state and to districts already receiving money as part of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The funding is part of the multibillion dollar stimulus set aside by the federal government to jolt the country out of the worst economic slump in decades.
For the state's 180 school districts, the money will help ease budget shortfalls caused by deep cuts in state funding and falling property tax collections.
``Were it not for these dollars, we would have to make substantial reductions in programs,'' Chuck Burbridge, chief financial officer for Atlanta Public Schools, said after the meeting. ``We have not done across-the-board layoffs or employee furloughs in part because we knew this money was coming.''
The funding approved Tuesday will be handed out in two phases: half right now and the other half in the fall. The money also includes $10 million in special education grants for preschool students and $22 million for improving education technology.
The state will track how schools spend the stimulus dollars through a central software system developed a few years ago to improve accountability for how schools use federal funding, state schools Superintendent Kathy Cox said. The federal stimulus legislation requires states to keep careful tabs on spending and perform audits to ensure the money isn't misused.
But Cox acknowledged there could be problems in tracking the additional $900 million in general education funding to be doled out from the stimulus package under the state's K-12 funding formula over the next two years. The state has no mechanism to track such funds, Cox said.
``I am concerned about the other funds in the stabilization grant,'' she told the board.
She said she has encouraged districts to use the money wisely and recognize that it will only last two years.
``Hopefully they can avoid laying people off and they may be able to expand programs,'' Cox said.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Zanada Moses was arrested Jan. 15 at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport after arriving on a flight from Panama City, Panama. The 25-year-old Moses admitted being paid $20,000 for smuggling the drugs.
She was indicted in February on charges of importation of and possession with intent to distribute heroin with an estimated street value of $1 million. She pleaded guilty Tuesday in U.S. District Court.
Moses could be sentenced to up 40 years in prison and fined $2 million at sentencing June 11 before U.S. District Judge Richard W. Story.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
The sources said an announcement could come later in the day or Wednesday. The officials who provided the information did so on condition of anonymity, saying they were not authorized to discuss his plans.
Specter is a 79-year-old veteran of five Senate terms, and one of only a handful of moderate Republicans left in Congress in a party made up largely of conservatives.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) A man convicted in an infamous Buckhead murder in 1996 will not be getting a new trial.
The Georgia Supreme Court has ruled unanimously against Scott Davis, the son of a well-known Atlanta psychiatrist.
He was convicted in late 2006, almost 10 years after the death of David Coffin. The victim had been seeing Davis's estranged wife, so Davis hired a private eye. Davis later broke into Coffin's house, ransacked it and stole his car.
Several days later the house was torched and Coffin's body was found inside. He'd been shot. Davis's lawyers claimed trial errors warranted a new trial, but the state's highest court disagreed.
Davis gained national attention in 2003 when, despite being an accused killer, he ran for governor of California.
(WSB Radio) Another name has surfaced as a possible gubernatorial candidate.
"Nathan Deal, who is the Republican 9th District congressman is considering an entry into the race," says WSB political analyst Bill Crane. "He's meeting today with the G7, that's the Republican house members, there are seven of them, in Washington, to kind of bounce this idea off of them."
Deal is expected to make his decision by the end of this week.
If he does enter the race, Deal will join a growing GOP field that includes John Oxendine, Karen Handel , Eric Johnson and Austin Scott.
Deal's consideration of a run could be due, in part, to one potential candidate who will not run.
"This is a reaction, apparently, to Lynn Westmoreland not entering the race," Crane says.
Deal was expected to retire at the end of his current term and not seek re-election in 2010.
"So this is also, for those close to Representative Deal, a bit of a shift in that he was getting out of public life," Crane says.
Deal was first elected to Congress in 1992 as a Democrat, but switched to the Republican party a few months into his second term.
(WSB Radio) Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle could be released from Emory Hospital today, after undergoing spinal surgery Monday.
His surgeon describes the two hour procedure as "matter of fact," and says Cagle is responding well.
The Lieutenant Governor cited his health when he dropped out of the governor's race earlier this month.
Savannah State Senator Eric Johnson has announced he'll join the race for the Republican nomination. Johnson initially planned on running for Lieutenant Governor but changed his plans after Cagle withdrew.
(WSB Radio) The state of Georgia is set to carry out an execution this evening.
Convicted murderer William Mize faces lethal injection at 7 o'clock at the state prison in Jackson.
Mize was condemned for a 1994 fatal shooting in Oconee County.
The 52 year old Mize, a admitted white supremacist, shot and killed one of his followers, Eddie Tucker, after Tucker refused to burn down a crack house in Athens.
If it goes through, it would be Georgia's second execution this year.
(WSB Radio) A hearing will determine whether accused Silver Comet Trail killer Michael Ledford is sane.
A week ago, Ledford blurted out in court that he wanted to forego a jury trial. He told a judge yesterday that he wasn't feeling well and that led to his outburst.
Now there's word Ledford told his lawyers he wants to plead guilty to the 2006 murder of Jennifer Ewing.
The Sandy Springs mother was pulled off her bicycle, dragged into some woods, sexually assaulted and beaten to death.
Ledford's attorney says his client is clearly not competent to help with his own defense.
"While he is in a state of anxiety or panic attack," Tom West told the court, "he wouldn't be able to do those things."
Judge James Osborne has ordered a hearing to determine Ledford's sanity. A doctor will determine whether Ledford needs to be medicated.
Ledford faces multiple charges of murder, aggravated battery, aggravated sodomy, assault and kidnapping for Ewing's death.
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) The manhunt for a University of Georgia professor suspected in the shooting deaths of his wife and two men shifted away from this campus town Monday as the FBI revealed he has a plane ticket for the Netherlands later this week and left behind an empty passport wallet.
George M. Zinkhan has not been seen since the shootings near campus Saturday, and law enforcement agencies nationwide have been enlisted in the search for the marketing professor, authorities said. His relatives also have been working to help Athens-Clarke County police and the FBI to find him, his brother told The Associated Press.
``We are doing all we can to prevent any additional violence,'' Chris Zinkhan said in an e-mail.
Gunfire erupted at a midday gathering of a local theater group at the Athens Community Theater. Killed were George Zinkhan's wife, 47-year-old attorney Marie Bruce, and two members of her theater group, Ben Teague, 63, and Tom Tanner, 40. Zinkhan, 57, disappeared after the shootings in a red Jeep Liberty. Authorities say they don't know what motivated the shootings.
As classes resumed Monday on the campus where Zinkhan had taught since the 1990s, the university announced that the marketing professor had been fired. As a precaution, university police carried assault rifles as they patrolled on foot, but University Police Chief Jimmy Williamson said investigators believe Zinkhan had left Athens, 70 miles east of Atlanta.
``We feel that he is no longer local,'' Williamson told reporters, though he declined to say why. ``We just don't think he is close by.''
Still, the university's president urged everyone to use caution until Zinkhan is found.
A breathless man called 911 to report the shootings to Athens police, according to a recording of the call posted on The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Web site.
``He shot three people, two gunshots to one man,'' the caller told the dispatcher who asked for a description, which was provided by another witness.
``Tall white male, 50s, goatee beard, I think, wearing blue shorts, like a T-shirt.'' The witness told police the man was heading away from town.
Calls by AP to police to obtain the recordings had not been returned.
Delta Air Lines confirmed Zinkhan has a ticket to Amsterdam for May 2, FBI Special Agent Gregory McClendon said in a federal court affidavit as part of a criminal complaint accusing Zinkhan of flight to avoid prosecution. McClendon said Zinkhan might change the date and try to leave early. The documents also include a request for a warrant to arrest Zinkhan and it was signed by a federal magistrate judge.
The affidavit did not say when the ticket was bought, although a family friend told investigators that Zinkhan's wife had said Zinkhan had scheduled a trip to Amsterdam. A colleague of Zinkhan's told authorities the professor had recently purchased a phone that could be used internationally.
Warren French, a UGA professor of business ethics and Zinkhan's longtime friend, said Zinkhan has traveled to Amsterdam twice a year at Christmas and during summer break for the last two years. He has taught part-time at the Vrije Universiteit (Free University) since April 2007.
French said Zinkhan had a voracious intellect, often getting little sleep because he would read through the night. French said Zinkhan succeeded him as head of the school's marketing department in 1994, and held the job for six years. While passionate about his work, Zinkhan never seemed controlled by his emotions, he said.
``As department head, he caught the flak you normally get from faculty members and students. He never lost his temper. He just seemed to take it,'' French said. ``This is so out of character for him first of all to get mad and second to ever resort to violence of any type.''
It was after he became department head that Zinkhan met Bruce, who worked there as a student adviser and communications director before she went to law school, French said.
He said Zinkhan rarely talked about his wife, though he spoke adoringly of their two children. Zinkhan threw a party at their house for Bruce's 40th birthday several years ago, and French said he had dinner at the couple's home last year.
``They are both free spirits, and as free spirits, they seemed to be happy,'' French said.
Police said, after the shooting, Zinkhan dropped his two children, ages 8 and 10, with a neighbor. Athens-Clarke County Police Capt. Clarence Holeman said are the custody of Bruce's brother.
``I have these children in my house and that's all I can think about now,'' a woman who answered the phone at that brother's house Monday who identified herself as his wife. She said the family had no further comment.
Bruce's mother, Betty, declined comment when reached by telephone at her home in Augusta. Daisy Phelps, who identified herself as Bruce's aunt and Betty Bruce's sister, said Zinkhan, Bruce and their children had just celebrated Easter with the family.
``If they were having any type of problems, the family knew nothing about it,'' Phelps said.
Phelps said Bruce's friends in Athens also told the family they were not aware of any problems between the couple.
``We're all torn up about this. It's awfully hard to talk about it because we just don't understand. We don't know why. We don't know,'' Phelps said, crying. ``All we know is my niece is dead.''
The shooting victims were members of the Town Gown Players, which was staging a performance of ``Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure'' at the theater. A few dozen members of the group were gathered for a reunion Saturday at the time of the shooting. Two others were hurt by bullet fragments.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) -- A 6-year-old brought a loaded handgun to Heritage Elementary School on Monday and showed it to a classmate before it was taken away, Fulton County school officials said.
Fulton County School Spokeswoman Susan Hale tells WSB she doesn't think the boy meant any harm when he showed his friend a gun he had brought from home.
"It was loaded, but again, we don't think that the student planned to hurt anyone or to threaten anyone, or even hurt himself. We think he found this in his home and brought it to the school to show a friend," said Hale.
The kindergartener at Heritage Elementary School has been dismissed until he must appear before a tribunal hearing.
Hale says they found out about the gun after the person he showed it to in the cafeteria told a teacher.
(WSB Radio) -- A Dekalb County police officer is on administrative leave following a deadly domestic dispute at a Covington Highway apartment complex.
Dekalb police spokeswoman Mekka Parish tells WSB's Mark Alewine the officer shot and killed a man who attacked him after threatening a woman and her children. None of the victims were hurt.
Parish says the shooting happened around 9:15 Monday night at the Park at Covington Apartments. In addition to Internal Affairs, the GBI and the Dekalb District Attorney's office are investigating the case.
MIAMI (AP) Zaza Pachulia's right eye was black, and his face was dotted with nicks and scrapes.
``I look like Rocky Balboa,'' the Atlanta forward said.
Fought like him, too.
So did the rest of the Hawks, who finally showed they can take a punch on the road at playoff time.
Mike Bibby scored 15 points, Pachulia had 12 points and 18 rebounds, and Atlanta frustrated an ailing Dwyane Wade endlessly to beat the Miami Heat 81-71 Monday night, tying the first-round Eastern Conference series at two games apiece.
It was Atlanta's first road postseason win in nearly 12 years, a stretch spanning 13 games, and ended a slide where the Hawks got pounded by 132 points in their most recent five playoff games played away from home.
``It's not over,'' Hawks coach Mike Woodson said. ``We've got to go home now. We survived this trip and we've got to go home and handle our business at home in Game 5.''
That comes Wednesday, and all the Hawks need is to defend their home court twice to get a second-round shot against LeBron James and Cleveland.
Joe Johnson added 14 and Josh Smith 13 for the Hawks.
Wade scored 22 points, shooting 9-for-26 and wincing from back spasms that started at the morning shootaround, flared in the first quarter and continued from there. Jermaine O'Neal scored 20 points and James Jones added 19 10 of them coming in a spectacular first-half spurt for the Heat, who shot 38 percent and never led.
``I hope that everyone understands that this is the playoffs,'' Wade said. ``This is how it's going to be. We've got to go up to Atlanta, in a hostile environment, and play the same way we've been playing.''
First, though, the Heat will see if Wade can get his back right.
He was hurting so badly, Jones said, that ``any other player probably would have sat out.''
``We didn't do a good job lifting him up tonight,'' Jones said.
Knowing the Hawks would want no part of a 3-1 deficit, the Heat expected Atlanta's best shot.
They got it.
The Heat shot 5-for-23 in the first 21 minutes, digging a 21-point hole. At one point, Miami nearly had as many fouls (15) as points (19), Wade had four airballs (arguing he was fouled on two), and the Heat were unraveling.
``He's still going to score points but we made him work on every play,'' said Hawks guard Flip Murray, who scored 11 points. ``A total team effort. Every time he got past one guy, there was another guy there to contest.''
When Pachulia tipped in Murray's missed 3-pointer for a 44-23 lead, he looked at his teammates on the Atlanta bench and started punching the air.
``Zaza was huge throughout the whole game,'' Woodson said. ``I mean, 18 rebounds, 12 points for us, and we needed all that tonight to survive.''
Coincidentally, when Pachulia started punching, Miami started to fight.
A 19-2 run closed the half, with Jones needing only 41 seconds to get 10 points the last eight coming in (probably) never-before-seen fashion, with a pair of four-point plays 11 seconds apart.
The Heat sharpshooter made a 3-pointer with 2:26 remaining, got fouled by Solomon Jones and swished the free throw. Miami immediately got the ball back when Bibby ran over Mario Chalmers, and with 2:15 left, James Jones struck again.
He connected from the left side, got fouled by Bibby, made that free throw as well and Miami clawed within 46-42 at halftime.
Even the Elias Sports Bureau, which tracks nearly every stat imaginable, didn't know if anyone else had pulled off that feat as quickly as Jones. Others have made a pair of four-point plays in a game, including Gilbert Arenas and Tracy McGrady.
Longtime Heat assistant Keith Askins did it in an NCAA game for Alabama against Florida on March 12, 1989, his 4s coming 51 seconds apart.
``It was crazy,'' Jones said. ``The second time, I was kind of shocked.''
Either way, it was for naught. Atlanta's lead was never smaller than three after halftime.
``This is the playoffs,'' Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. ``We just have to focus the next 48 hours on getting healthy, getting our minds right, getting prepared and going up there and getting a game.''
Notes: The Heat granted reserve C Mark Blount a leave of absence to tend to personal matters related to the death of a close relative in Haiti. ... Seven players had two fouls before the game was 13 minutes old.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
The government is shipping millions of doses of flu-fighting medicine from a federal stockpile to states along the Mexican border or where the virus has been detected.
The confirmed U.S. cases included 28 at a private high school in New York City, 13 in California, six in Texas, two in Kansas and one in Ohio. Only one American case has led to a hospitalization.
President Barack Obama characterized the U.S. cases as a cause for concern but not ``a cause for alarm.'' The federal government said travel warnings for trips to Mexico would remain in place as long as swine flu is detected.
Public health experts cautioned that screenings are not foolproof. People with the flu can spread the virus to others before any symptoms show up.
WHO raises pandemic flu alert level to phase 4
MEXICO CITY (AP) Mexico says the World Health Organization has raised its pandemic alert for swine flu by one level, two steps short of declaring a full-blown pandemic
Mexico health department spokesman Carlos Olmos confirms the move.
WHO says the phase 4 alert means sustained human to human transmission causing outbreaks in at least one country. It signals a significant increase in the risk of a global epidemic, but doesn't mean a pandemic is inevitable.
Many experts think it may be impossible to contain a flu virus already spreading in several countries.
WHO has confirmed human cases of swine flu in Mexico, the United States, Canada and Spain. Only Mexico has reported deaths from the new strain.
Facing down swine flu
WASHINGTON (AP) World governments racing to find and contain pockets of swine flu face both the threat of a pandemic and public panic.
The virus is suspected in up to 152 deaths in Mexico.
Worldwide there are 79 cases, including six in Canada, one in Spain and two in Scotland. Most countries are reporting only mild cases so far and travelers are being screened.
Spain reported the first confirmed case outside North America. It says another 17 people are suspected of having the virus. Scotland's health secretary is also confirming Britain's first two cases; seven others are suspected there.
New Zealand reports a second group of teenagers just back from Mexico showed signs of the disease.
The European Union health commissioner is advising Europeans to avoid nonessential travel to Mexico and the U.S.
Germany's largest holiday tour operator is suspending all flights to Mexico City.
And the head of the European Commission has called for a meeting of EU health ministers.
The World Bank says it will send Mexico $25 million in loans for immediate aid.
NYC school says teacher is among swine flu cases
NEW YORK (AP) The head of a New York City high school says one of the 28 people who have confirmed cases of swine flu at the school is a teacher.
Brother Leonard Conway of St. Francis Preparatory in Queens said Monday that 10 teachers are experiencing flulike symptoms.
He says that 160 students have called out sick since last week and that parents have called about other new cases.
City officials said earlier that tests had confirmed 28 definite cases and 17 probable cases of swine flu at the school.
An outbreak of swine flu has killed dozens in Mexico, where some St. Francis students recently went on spring break.
St. Francis has closed at least for the day. Conway says officials will meet Tuesday to decide when to reopen.
Mexico: Suspected swine flu deaths climb to 152
MEXICO CITY (AP) Mexican Health Secretary Jose Angel Cordova says the government lacks the staff needed to visit the homes of everyone suspected of dying from swine flu.
Cordova says the suspected death toll has climbed to 152, with 20 of those cases confirmed to be from swine flu. He says the government expects the death toll to keep rising.
He says 1,995 people have been hospitalized with serious cases of pneumonia since the first case of swine flu was reported on April 13. The government does not yet know how many were swine flu.
Of those hospitalized, 1,070 have been released.
Cordova says school at all levels nationwide are suspended until May 6. Schools had already been suspended in Mexico City and five of Mexico's 32 states.
Homeland chief says US preparing for full pandemic
WASHINGTON (AP) The head of the Homeland Security Department says the United States is preparing as if the swine flu outbreak is a full pandemic.
Secretary Janet Napolitano told reporters Monday that the World Health Organization is operating at level three, with level six a full pandemic. She said officials at the WHO were meeting Monday to consider whether to raise the level.
Napolitano said the U.S. is proceeding as if it were preparing for a full pandemic.
The disease started in Mexico and has spread to the United States and beyond, with 50 reported cases in the U.S.
CDC: No vaccine prevents the new swine flu
ATLANTA (AP) There is no vaccine available to prevent the new swine flu. However, there are antiflu drugs that do work once someone is sick.
The acting head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the government is still deciding whether to order that a swine flu vaccine be produced.
Dr. Richard Besser says it's not an easy decision, because vaccine manufacture takes a long time and would interrupt ongoing work to create next winter's regular flu shot.
But if a vaccine eventually is ordered, the CDC already has taken a key preliminary step -- creating what's called seed stock of the virus that manufacturers would use.
Gov't won't urge people to wear masks in workplace
ATLANTA (AP) A leading U.S. health official says authorities are not currently recommending that people across the country put on masks in the workplace to protect against swine flu infection.
Dr. Richard Besser was asked at a news conference Monday afternoon if that is a precaution that people should be taking in the wake of indications the disease has spread substantially in Mexico and is showing up in five U.S. states.
Besser, acting director of the Centers for Disease Control, said the evidence ``is not that strong'' that the wearing of protective masks effectively limits the outbreak of such diseases.
Besser said that for now he'd prefer to focus on regular hand-washing, and people ``not giving that little kiss of greeting that they're used to right now.''
Gov't advising no unnecessary travel to Mexico
ATLANTA (AP) The acting head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the federal government is readying a travel advisory instructing Americans to avoid nonessential travel to Mexico.
Dr. Richard Besser made that disclosure during a news conference in Atlanta, saying the advisory was being released ``out of an abundance of caution.''
Besser also reported there have been 50 confirmed cases of swine flu in the United States, including 20 in New York City. He said individuals can help to keep the disease from spreading by taking everyday precautions such as frequent handwashing, covering up coughs and sneezes and staying away from work or school if not feeling well.
Homeland: Travel limited until flu abates
WASHINGTON (AP) The head of the Homeland Security Department says travel warnings to Mexico will remain in place as long as swine flu is detected.
Secretary Janet Napolitano made the announcement at a news conference Monday. She said the Centers for Disease Control had issued an alert and the State Department's version would be forthcoming.
The virus began in Mexico and had spread to the United States and beyond, with 50 cases reported in the U.S.
Napolitano said she had been in touch with Mexican officials and border state leaders to coordinate responses to the outbreak.
Napolitano urged Americans to use common sense in dealing with the outbreak, such as frequent hand washing and remaining home from work if ill.
Feds see no current cause to avoid travel to US
ATLANTA (AP) A top federal health official says he believe it is ``premature'' to urge people not to travel to the United States in the wake of the swine flu breakout.
Dr. Richard Besser, acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was asked Monday about an advisory in which the European Union counseled people in member countries against travel to both the United States and Mexico.
Speaking only for the United States, Besser said that as of now, ``I think it is quite premature'' to tell people they shouldn't travel to this country. Besser said there has been only a single hospitalization for swine flu in the United States that officials know about, although some 50 cases have been identified.
Obama: Swine flu not a reason for 'alarm'
WASHINGTON (AP) President Barack Obama says the spread of swine flu is a cause for concern but ``not a cause of alarm'' and he's staying on top of the problem.
Obama told a gathering of scientists Monday that the administration is ``closely monitoring'' cases of swine flu, how many people have it and what the threat is. Obama also said the American people can expect to get regular and frequent updates about what Washington is doing.
He said the swine flu threat dramatizes how the United States cannot allow itself to fall behind in scientific and medical research.
White House: Obama never endangered by swine flu
WASHINGTON (AP) The White House says President Barack Obama has shown no symptoms of swine flu and that his health was never in danger when he visited Mexico earlier this month.
Several times at Monday's daily briefing, press secretary Robert Gibbs said Obama's health was ``never in any danger.'' Gibbs says doctors are satisfied that there's no medical concern for the president.
Obama visited Mexico on April 16 and 17. The first case of swine flu was reported on April 13.
The Mexican government has confirmed 20 deaths from swine flu, and believes the illness may have killed up to 149 people.
UPDATE: Swine flu fears are a boon to drugmakers' shares
NEW YORK (AP) Shares of makers of flu treatments, tests and vaccines are rising Monday as a swine flu outbreak makes its way across the globe, sparking fears of a pandemic.
The bug is a suspect in more than 150 deaths and 1,400 cases in Mexico, with confirmed cases in the U.S., Canada, and Spain. Though Wall Street remains concerned that swine flu could put a damper on any global economic recovery, several companies could benefit.
Gainers include Gilead Sciences, which gets royalties for drugmaker Roche's Tamiflu treatment. The stock rose almost 4 percent.
Shares of GlaxoSmithKline, which makes the anti-flu drug Relenza, are up almost 8 percent.
Quidel, which makes rapid flu tests, rose almost 5 percent.
CONCACAF cancels U-17 tourney over swine flu
NEW YORK (AP) CONCACAF says it is canceling the rest of its Under-17 championship because of concerns about swine flu. The tournament was being played in Mexico, the epicenter of the outbreak.
CONCACAF also will delay the second leg of its Champions League final between CD SC Cruz Azul and Atlante FC, both Mexican clubs, for two weeks, until May 12.
Costa Rica, Honduras, Mexico and the United States had clinched spots in Wednesday's semifinals of the U-17 tournament, which was being played in Tijuana. But after the Mexican government announced it was closing schools nationwide, CONCACAF decided to abandon the tournament ``to safeguard the health of players, officials and fans.''
CONCACAF stands for Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football.
UPDATE: Congress to probe swine flu outbreak
WASHINGTON (AP) The spread of the new swine flu strain has caught Congress' attention and hearings are planned this week.
One Senate subcommittee will explore the public health response at a hearing Tuesday while Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano is to testify before a Senate panel on Wednesday. It'll be the House's turn Thursday as other health experts are scheduled to tell a subcommittee about the risk of the flu spreading.
The swiftly organized hearings were inspired by the outbreak of 50 cases of swine flu in the U.S. So far, no one in the U.S. is known to have died from the illness unlike Mexico, where the virus is suspected in up to 152 deaths.
Napolitano said Monday that travel warnings to Mexico will remain in place as long as necessary.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
The Atlanta Congressman, no stranger to non-violent protests, was among five lawmakers led away in handcuffs from the embassy after crossing a police line.
"Leaders of the Sudanese Government have committed crimes against humanity," Lewis said.
They urged world leaders to take a stand against Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir's decision to expel 16 aid agencies from Darfur, where the United Nations says up to 300,000 people have died in fighting that began more than six years ago.
The arrested lawmakers are Reps. Keith Ellison, D-Minn.; Jim McGovern, D-Mass.; John Lewis, D-Ga.; Donna Edwards, D-Md., and Lynn Woolsey, D-Calif.
(WSB Radio) You'll never believe what a six-year-old brought to school to show the kids.
Fulton County School Spokeswoman Susan Hale tells WSB she doesn't think the boy meant any harm when he showed his friend a gun he had brought from home.
"It was loaded, but again, we don't think that the student planned to hurt anyone or to threaten anyone, or even hurt himself. We think he found this in his home and brought it to the school to show a friend," said Hale.
The kindergartener at Heritage Elementary School has been dismissed until he must appear before a tribunal hearing.
Hale says they found out about the gun after the person he showed it to in the cafeteria told a teacher.
April 27, 2009
Cagle underwent surgery at Emory University Orthopaedics and Spine Center. The procedure took about two hours. Doctors say Cagle is doing well.
"The surgery went according to plan with no complications noted to date," said Dr. John Heller, Cagle's Orthopaedic Surgeon. "The Lt. Governor is recovering rather well and is in perfectly good spirits at this moment."
The condition forced Cagle from next year's race for Governor. He says he will run for re-election as Lt. Governor .
Another of Cagle's colleagues today entered the Governor's race. Savannah State Sentor Eric Johnson announced he'd seek the GOP nomination for Governor.
27 April 2009
(WSB Radio) Snellville police hope a video will help them catch the killer of a young Conyers mother.
25 year old Heather Strube was shot in the head in the parking lot of a Target in Snellville Sunday.
Police say her estranged husband dropped off the couple's 18 month old son, then drove off. A moment later the suspect walked up to Strube. Investigators say they got into an argument and that's when the man pulled a gun and shot Strube. He then fled the area on foot.
A security camera capture an image of the man, describerd as a 5'7 while male, approximately 160-170 pounds. A police spokesman says the man was wearing a fake wig and moustache.
"The husband says he doesn't know who [the suspect] is and we have nothing at this point that connects the two," Police Captain Harold Thomas said. "When we notified him last night that she had been shot and killed, he was showing emotion during the interview."
Thomas says this was not a robbery and that there is "no indication he was there for anything other than to commit murder."
WASHINGTON (AP) Confirming 40 cases of swine flu in the U.S., the Obama administration said Monday it was responding aggressively as if the outbreak would spread into a full pandemic. Officials urged Americans against most travel to Mexico as the virus that began there spread to the United States and beyond.President Barack Obama urged calm, saying there was reason for concern but not yet ``a cause for alarm.''
Yet just in case, administration officials said that they were already waging a vigorous campaign of prevention, unsure of the outbreak's severity or where it would show up next.
U.S. customs officials began checking people entering U.S. territory. Millions of doses of flu-fighting medications from a federal stockpile were on their way to states, with priority given to the five already affected and to border states. Federal agencies were conferring with state and international governments.
``We want to make sure that we have equipment where it needs to be, people where they need to be and, most important, information shared at all levels,'' Janet Napolitano, head of the Homeland Security Department, told reporters.
Her briefing came shortly before the World Health Organization raised the severity of its pandemic alert level to four from three on a six-point scale. Level four means there is sustained human-to-human spread in at least one country. Level six is a full-fledged pandemic, an epidemic that has spread to a wide geographic area.
``We are proceeding as if we are preparatory to a full pandemic,'' Napolitano said.
She said travel warnings for trips to Mexico would remain in place as long as swine flu is detected.
Dr. Richard Besser, acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said that so far the disease in the United States seemed less severe than the outbreak in Mexico, where more than 1,600 cases had been reported and where the suspected death toll had climbed to 149. No deaths had been reported in the U.S, and only one hospitalization.
``I wouldn't be overly reassured by that,'' Besser told reporters at CDC's headquarters in Atlanta. He raised the possibility of more severe cases and deaths in the United States.
A European Union official warned against travel to parts of the U.S. as well as Mexico, but Besser said that seemed unwarranted.
State Department spokesman Robert A. Wood said the EU commissioner's remarks were his ``personal opinion,'' not an official position, and thus the department had no comment. ``We don't want people to panic at this point,'' Wood said.
Still Besser said of the situation, ``We are taking it seriously and acting aggressively. ... Until the outbreak has progressed, you really don't know what it's going to do.''
The U.S. stepped up checks of people entering the country by air, land and sea and issued a new U.S. travel advisory suggesting ``nonessential travel to Mexico be avoided.''
The confirmed cases announced on Monday were double the 20 earlier reported by the CDC. Besser said this was due to further testing not further spreading of the virus in New York at a school in Queens, bringing the New York total to 28.
Besser said other cases have been reported in Ohio, Kansas, Texas and California. He said that, of the 40 cases, only one person has been hospitalized and all have recovered.
Countries across the globe increased their vigilance amid increasing worries about a worldwide pandemic. Obama told a gathering of scientists that his administration's Department of Health and Human Services had declared a public health emergency ``as a precautionary tool to ensure that we have the resources we need at our disposal to respond quickly and effectively.''
``This is obviously a cause for concern and requires a heightened state of alert, but it's not a cause for alarm,'' Obama said. He said he was getting regular updates.
The Senate has yet to confirm a secretary of human services, a surgeon general or a director of CDC. The absence of those officials left Besser and Napolitano to brief reporters on the swine flu outbreak.
The quickening pace of developments in the United States in response to the spreading new flu strain was accompanied by a host of varying responses around the world.
Mexico, at the center of the outbreak, suspended schools nationwide. China, Taiwan and Russia considered quarantines, and several Asian countries scrutinized visitors arriving at their airports.
U.S. customs officials began checking people entering U.S. territory. Officers at airports, seaports and border crossings were watching for signs of illness, said Customs and Border Protection spokesman Lloyd Easterling.
While ``the borders are open,'' Easterling said officials were ``taking a second look at folks who may be displaying a symptom of illness.''
If a traveler reports not feeling well, the person will be questioned about symptoms and, if necessary, referred to a CDC official for additional screening, Easterling said. The customs officials were wearing personal protective gear, such as gloves and masks, he said.
The CDC can send someone to the hospital if they suspect a case, but no one is being refused entry. Also, the CDC is readying ``yellow cards'' with disease information for travelers, in case they later experience symptoms.The border monitoring resembles that done during the SARS epidemic earlier in the decade.
Multiple airlines, including American, United, Continental, US Airways, Mexicana and Air Canada, said they were waiving usual penalties for changing reservations for anyone traveling to, from, or through Mexico, but had not canceled flights.
Napolitano urged Americans to take ``common sense'' precautions.
``Common sense means washing hands, staying home from work or school if you feel sick, covering your mouth if you cough or sneeze. These are straightforward and simple measures, but they can materially improve our chances of avoiding a full-fledged pandemic,'' she said.
Administration officials said about 11 million doses of flu-fighting medications from a federal stockpile have been sent to states in case they are needed roughly one quarter of the doses in the stockpile.
While there presently is no vaccine available to prevent the specific strain now being seen, there are antiflu drugs that do work once someone is sick. If a new vaccine eventually is ordered, the CDC already has taken a key preliminary step creating what's called seed stock of the virus that manufacturers would use.
A private school in South Carolina was closed Monday because of fears that young people who recently returned from Mexico might have been infected. Officials of Newberry Academy in Newberry, S.C., said some seniors on the trip had flu-like symptoms when they returned.
State Department of Health and Environmental Control spokesman Jim Beasley said test results on the students could come back as early as Monday afternoon. To date, there have been no confirmed swine flu cases in the state.
Stock markets fell overseas and in the United States out of concern that the outbreak could derail economic recovery. Airline and other travel-related stocks suffered the sharpest losses.
The New York City school where 28 cases have now been confirmed was closed Monday and Tuesday.
Also, 14 schools in Texas, including a high school where two cases were confirmed, will be closed for at least the next week. Some schools in California and Ohio also were closing after students were found or suspected to have the flu.
In Mexico, the outbreak's center, soldiers handed out 6 million face masks to help stop the spread of the virus that is suspected in up to 103 deaths. Most other countries are reporting only mild cases so far, with most of the sick already recovering.
Spain reported its first confirmed swine flu case on Monday and said another 17 people were suspected of having the disease. Also, three New Zealanders recently returned from Mexico are suspected of having it.
Associated Press writers Mark Stevenson and Olga R. Rodriguez in Mexico City; Frank Jordans in Geneva; Mike Stobbe in Atlanta; Maria Cheng in London and Eileen Sullivan and Robert Burns in Washington contributed to this report.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
The Department of Defense said Command Sgt. Major Benjamin Moore Jr. of Waycross died Friday of injuries that were not combat-related.
He was 43.
Moore was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Combat Brigade Team, 25th Infantry Division based at Scofield Barracks, Hawaii.
Moore earned 55 medals and had served in the Army since June 1983.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Eric Johnson, of Savannah, had been running for lieutenant governor. But he swapped races after Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle a presumed front runner for the GOP nomination for governor withdrew from that contest earlier this month citing health problems. Cagle said he'd instead seek re-election to his current seat. That pitted him against Johnson.
Johnson made the announcement on Monday as Cagle was undergoing surgery for a degenerative spinal condition. In a statement, he offered his prayers to Cagle and his family.
Johnson said his campaign would focus on jobs, education and ethics.
``As I traveled the state campaigning and visiting with Georgians from all walks of life, I was thrilled to see the support and encouragement we received in every corner of this state,'' Johnson said Monday. ``Georgians recognize that we need a steady, tested and experienced leader to address the challenges we face as a state and to build on the progress we've made under Republican leadership.''
He joins an already crowded field to replace Gov. Sonny Perdue when his second term expires. Among Republicans, Secretary of State Karen Handel, Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine and state Rep. Austin Scott have said they are running.
On the Democratic side, Attorney General Thurbert Baker, House Minority Leader DuBose Porter and former Georgia National Guard Commander David Poythress are in. Still unknown is whether former Gov. Roy Barnes will run. Barnes has said he'll decide by June 1.
Johnson is the former president pro tem of the Senate. He gave up the post this year to run for lieutenant governor. Johnson pushed unsuccessfully to make Georgia the first state in the nation to offer universal school vouchers. That would have expanded upon a program he ushered through in 2007 that grants vouchers to special needs students.
He is currently chairman of the Senate Ethics Committee and led the effort this year to crack down on legislators who haven't paid their taxes.
An architect, Johnson was first elected to the state Legislature in 1992.
Johnson's decision could reverberate in the lieutenant governor's race as well. State Sen. David Shafer, a Duluth Republican, had been planning to run against Johnson for the GOP nomination. Now with Johnson out and Cagle running as an incumbent, Shafer said he is weighing his options.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
The wreck left 21 passengers injured.
The accident occurred at about 7 a.m. Monday at exit 165 near Lincoln.
Troopers said a preliminary investigation indicated a front tire blew out causing the bus driver to lose control and crash into a guardrail and bridge column.
Authorities said none of the injuries were life threatening.
Eric Wesley, a Greyhound spokesman, said the bus was traveling from Atlanta to Birmingham. If you believe that a friend or relative was on the bus call Greyhound at 1-800-972-4583.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
That policy says that teachers must report istances of bullying and that three instances is enough to get a student expelled.
Superintendent Crawford Lewis says officials are reviewing how the policy may have failed. They are putting together a chronology of events, including how many times the boy's mother may have complained to officials.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) A University of Georgia professor suspected of killing his wife and two other men outside a community theater has a plane ticket to fly to the Netherlands later this week and left behind an empty passport wallet, federal authorities said Monday.Law enforcement agencies nationwide have been searching for 57-year-old marketing professor George Zinkhan since Saturday's shootings in Athens, about 70 miles east of Atlanta. Classes resumed at the university Monday as police patrolled the campus with assault rifles.
In a federal court affidavit Monday, FBI Special Agent Gregory McClendon said Delta Airlines has confirmed Zinkhan has a ticket to Amsterdam for May 2.
``He may change the date and attempt to leave early,'' McClendon said in the affidavit.
The affidavit did not say when the ticket was purchased.
Zinkhan has a house in Amsterdam, where he also teaches. The Vrije Universiteit (Free University) confirmed Zinkhan has taught part-time since April 2007, visiting for about six weeks each year.
In a statement, the institution said Zinkhan had been ``a peaceful and talented researcher.''
McClendon also said authorities have searched Zinkhan's house and office. He has not contacted family, friends or students and his passport is missing.
``No one can account for Zinkhan's whereabouts,'' McClendon said.
The shooting happened midday Saturday during a reunion picnic for a local theater group outside the Athens Community Theater.
The victims Zinkhan's wife Marie Bruce, 47; Tom Tanner, 40; and Ben Teague, 63 were members of Town Gown Players, which was staging a performance of ``Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure'' at the theater. Two others were hurt by bullet fragments.
Bruce, Zinkhan's wife, had been serving as Town Gown's president after years of volunteering with the group. Tanner was a Clemson University economist who taught at the Strom Thurmond Institute of Government and Public Affairs in Clemson, S.C. Teague was one of Town Gown's longest-serving volunteers and was married to a University of Georgia English professor.
Authorities still don't know the motive for the shootings. On Monday, the university announced that he'd been fired.
University officials said they don't believe he is still in the area and the armed patrols were a precaution.
``Based on what we know now, we feel that he is no longer local,'' University Police Chief Jimmy Williamson said at a morning news conference. ``We just don't think he is close by.''
Williamson declined to elaborate, and University President Michael Adams said students should continue to stay alert.
``We continue to urge everyone to exercise caution until the suspect is apprehended,'' Adams said.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) DeKalb County fire officials are trying to determine the cause of a Sunday afternoon apartment fire that killed one person.
"All we know is it is a male who was the unfortunate victim of this fire," says DeKalb Fire Captain Eric Jackson. "It was initially thought we had a couple of victims, but we don't. We only have that one."
The fire call came in at about 3 o'clock Sunday afternoon to the Kensington Station Apartments, on White Pine Drive.
Ten families were left homeless. One unit was gutted. Four others suffered smoke and water damage.
(WSB Radio) Snellville police are hunting for the gunman who shot and killed a young mother in a parking lot.
Police say the woman had just picked up her toddler son on Sunday evening when she got into an argument with the suspect in the parking lot of a Target store.
Chief Roy Whitehead says the woman, who was believed to be in her 20's and from Conyers, was shot once in the head and pronounced dead at the scene.
Police do not have a motive in the shooting. The victim's name has not been released.
TALLADEGA, Ala. (AP) Seven fans were injured by debris when Carl Edwards' car went airborne into the safety fence on the final lap at Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday.
Track medical director Bobby Lewis said none of the injuries was life-threatening but two women were airlifted to Birmingham hospitals. He said one likely had a broken jaw and the other was not injured but was taken because of a medical condition.
Lewis said they were airlifted because of traffic, not the severity of the injuries. The other six were treated and released.
Edwards was trying to block a move from winner Brad Keselowski, and contact sent his spinning car over Ryan Newman's hood and into the fence on the frontstretch.
The fence held and Edwards' car landed on the track.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) Position by position, draft pick by draft pick, the Atlanta Falcons kept addressing needs on defense.
The draft which started with two defensive picks on Saturday continued with five more selections on defense on Sunday.
The Falcons selected defensive players with seven of their eight picks. The imbalance was unusual, but so was Atlanta's need especially after the trade for 10-time Pro Bowl tight end Tony Gonzalez two days before the draft filled the biggest hole on offense.
The Falcons ranked sixth in total offense and 24th in total defense in 2008.
The bookends for Atlanta's draft were two defensive tackles the team's first pick, Peria Jerry of Mississippi and its last, Vance Walker of Georgia Tech. General manager Thomas Dimitroff also drafted two cornerbacks, a safety, a linebacker and a defensive end.
Oh, and one offensive tackle.
Jerry is expected to win a starting job for coach Mike Smith.
``Going in this whole process, Mike Smith and I sat down many, many times and talked about how we wanted to build this defense and how we wanted to stop the run,'' Dimitroff said Sunday. ``We wanted a versatile defensive lineman, a guy that could penetrate ... but also have the stoutness to hold the point and play sort of in a nose tackle position.''
Jerry and Jonathan Babineaux are the probable starting defensive tackles.
``We want to be able to stop the run and I really believe it starts with the two defensive tackles,'' Smith said. ``With Peria and Jonathan Babineaux, I believe we've got two fine defensive tackles now.''
One year ago, in his first draft, Dimitroff scored big by landing two starters in the first round quarterback Matt Ryan and offensive tackle Sam Baker. Ryan joined free-agent running back Michael Turner and an emerging star at receiver, Roddy White, to help the Falcons finish a surprising 11-5 and earn a playoff spot.
The offense, already strong, gained another important piece with Thursday's trade for Gonzalez for a second-round pick in 2010. Gonzalez predicted ``we have a chance to be in the top five in the league in offense.''
But no one was ready to make gaudy predictions about an Atlanta defense which had problems even before losing linebackers Keith Brooking and Michael Boley, safety Lawyer Milloy cornerback Domonique Foxworth and defensive tackle Grady Jackson.
Hence the strong draft emphasis.
The Falcons opened Sunday by taking cornerback Christopher Owens (5-9, 181) in the third round, serving early notice the team would continue on the path it started Saturday when it picked Jerry in the first round and Missouri safety William Moore in the second round.
Owens had 13 career interceptions as a three-year starter for San Jose State. He said he uses speed and quickness to overcome his lack of size.
Owens said he felt good before the draft about his chances to be picked by the Falcons.
``That's the place that I wanted to go and I was hoping and praying they would draft me,'' Owens said.
``When I went on a visit to Atlanta, I really felt comfortable being out there. ... I felt good when I met with all the coaches and the GM. When I found out what their scheme is and I like it, I really felt like I was home.''
The defensive roll continued in the fourth round with defensive end Lawrence Sidbury (6-2, 266), who had 20.5 career sacks at Richmond.
Furman cornerback William Middleton was the first of two fifth-round picks. Middleton was a three-year starter at Furman and a former high school star at Marist in Atlanta.
Dimitroff traded another fifth-round pick to Dallas for fifth- and seventh-round picks. After taking North Carolina offensive tackle Garrett Reynolds in the fifth round, the focus returned to defense with Miami linebacker Spencer Adkins and Walker.
Reynolds (6-7, 310) made 26 consecutive starts at right tackle for North Carolina. Adkins (5-11, 246) had 20 tackles and four sacks as a senior. Walker had 33 tackles and three sacks for Georgia Tech as a senior.
The draft picks will join free-agent linebacker Mike Peterson, who was signed to replace Brooking.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
CINCINNATI (AP) All Micah Owings needed was some run support. Jay Bruce provided more than enough.
Bruce homered twice and drove in four runs, helping Owings earn his first win in nearly a year by leading the Cincinnati Reds over the Atlanta Braves 8-2 on Sunday.
``I've been working on changing my approach,'' said Bruce, who's hitting .455 (10-for-22) with four home runs and eight RBIs during a six-game hitting streak. ``I got myself out a whole lot last year, and I got myself out earlier this year. I just want to settle down and not get ahead of myself. The biggest thing is to swing at strikes and not swing at their (best) pitches.''
Joey Votto had two doubles, one with the bases loaded in Cincinnati's six-run fifth inning, to help the Reds salvage the finale of the three-game series after losing the first two.
``Hitting's contagious,'' Reds manager Dusty Baker said. ``One guy gets hot or two guys get hot and, suddenly, the pitcher's pitching out of the stretch a lot. We got some timely hitting. When that happens, you're going to score some runs.''
Owings (1-2), acquired in the trade that sent Adam Dunn to Arizona, also had two hits while earning his first win in 15 appearances, including 11 starts, since a 9-3 win at Atlanta for Arizona May 25. The right-hander, who was 0-9 with an 8.53 ERA in that span, limited the Braves to six hits and one run with three walks and six strikeouts Sunday.
``I wish I could have gone even deeper in the game, but I don't want to get greedy,'' Owings said. ``I am going to enjoy this one. I am going to work on going even deeper in games. In the first two games I might have been a little too quick. I had to concentrate on driving my pitches more.''
Atlanta third baseman Chipper Jones, who had two of the five hits allowed by Owings, was surprised by the effectiveness of the Reds pitcher's fastball.
``I watched his last two games,'' Jones said. ``He looked more inconsistent with his fastball than he was today. Today, he pitched most of the left-handers in. We couldn't do anything with him.''
``I didn't notice any difference in my fastball, but for Chipper Jones to say that, you have to respect it,'' Owings said.
Former Reds catcher David Ross broke up Owings' shutout bid with a solo home run with one out in the seventh.
The Reds, who scored one more run in the fifth inning Sunday than they totaled for Owings in his first two starts, avoided their first three-game skid of the season and cost the Braves their first four-game winning streak.
Atlanta starter Kenshin Kawakami held the Reds hitless and limited them to just two baserunners until Votto lined a double down the right-field line with one out in the fourth inning. An out later, Bruce hit an opposite-field home run to left.
Bruce has gotten at least one hit in all six starts since missing three consecutive starts with a bruised right hand.
The Reds broke the game open with their six-run fifth. Votto hit a three-run double just out of the reach of lunging first baseman Casey Kotchman. Brandon Phillips followed with a run-scoring single and Bruce capped the inning with his second homer of the game and fifth of the season. It was his third multihomer game and first this season.
Bruce's homer knocked Kawakami (1-3) out, having given up eight hits and eight runs with a walk and a strikeout. The 33-year-old rookie right-hander from Japan has lost his last three starts after starting his big league career with a win over Washington on April 11.
``He pitched good for the first three innings,'' Atlanta manager Bobby Cox said. ``All Bruce's (first) homer was was a little flyball. He started getting his offspeed pitches up, then he started getting hit.''
Owings held Atlanta to two hits and five baserunners through the first five innings.
``He did it with the bat, too,'' Bruce said. ``He was fun to watch.''
Notes: Votto was hit by a pitch with two outs and nobody on in the first inning. He went straight to first base despite being hit for the second time in two days. Both benches briefly cleared Friday after Braves SS Yunel was hit by a pitch, but there were no problems when he was hit again Saturday ... The Reds haven't made a roster move in the first 21 days of the season, their longest stretch since 1985, when they didn't make their first move until the 37th day of the season ... Owings was credited with a hit on a sharp one-hopper in the fifth inning that grazed baserunner Ramon Hernandez's foot between second and third, causing Hernandez to be called out.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- Regulators on Friday shut down American Southern Bank in Georgia, boosting the number of failures this year to 26 -- more bank closures than in all of last year.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. was appointed receiver of the bank, based in Kennesaw, Ga. It had about $112.3 million in assets and $104.3 million in deposits as of March 30.
The FDIC said a majority of the bank's deposits will be assumed by Bank of North Georgia, based in Alpharetta, Ga. Bank of North Georgia will not assume $48.7 million in brokered deposits held by American Southern Bank. The FDIC said it will pay the brokers directly for the amount of their funds.
In addition to acquiring $55.6 million of the failed bank's deposits, Bank of North Georgia agreed to purchase approximately $31.3 million in assets. The FDIC will retain the rest for eventual sale.
American Southern Bank branches will reopen Monday as offices of Bank of North Georgia.
American Southern Bank customers can still write checks and use ATM or debit cards, and loan customers should continue to make their payments as usual. The FDIC will continue to insure deposits. Regular deposit accounts are insured up to $250,000.
The latest bank to fail in Georgia was Omni National Bank in Atlanta on March 29.
The list of bank failures is growing as falling home prices and rising unemployment cause more individuals and businesses to default on their debt.
The failures have sapped billions from the deposit insurance fund. It now stands at its lowest level in nearly a quarter-century, $18.9 billion as of Dec. 31, compared with $52.4 billion at the end of 2007.
The FDIC expects that bank failures will cost the insurance fund around $65 billion through 2013.
The 26 bank collapses this year follow 25 failures in 2008, which included two of the biggest savings and loans, Washington Mutual Inc. and IndyMac Bank. Last year's total was more than in the previous five years combined and up from only three failures in 2007.
The FDIC had 252 banks and thrifts on its list of troubled institutions at the end of 2008, up from 171 in the third quarter.
American Southern Bank customers with questions can call the FDIC toll-free at 800-323-6111.
Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
LaGRANGE, Ga. (AP) Police continued searching Sunday for a LaGrange man accused of using a space heater to try to electrocute and strangle his neighbor during a weekend assault.
LaGrange police said Alexis Dewayne Owens kicked in the door of his neighbors' apartment early Saturday morning and began hitting his male neighbor with the heater.
Authorities say Owens then tried to electrocute the male victim with the heater's cord and when that failed, he allegedly tied the cord in a knot and attempted to strangle the man.
Police said Owens' female neighbor was in the room during the fight and the suspect told her he would kill her if she moved.
The suspect fled before police arrived.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Jury selection is set to begin Tuesday. The panel will determine what role Charlott Reaves had in the torture and murder of Joella Reaves.
She faces the death penalty if convicted.
Her husband, Rodney Reaves, was convicted of felony murder, aggravated battery and two counts of cruelty to children in February. He was sentenced to life in prison.
The medical examiner who performed the autopsy on Joella's body testified that she had more than 100 wounds over her head, face, back and buttocks.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
MEXICO CITY (AP) Mexico's federal health secretary says the number of suspected swine flu deaths has now topped 100 with more than 1,600 cases.
Health Secretary Jose Angel Cordova says authorities are still trying to confirm how many were caused by the deadly new virus strain, which has shown up in as many as seven other countries and has caused the U.S. to declare a health emergency.
The U.S. and Canada also have confirmed cases, but no reported deaths.
Countries across Asia are promising to quarantine feverish travelers returning from flu-affected areas.
With 20 confirmed cases, the U.S. has declared a health emergency so it can ship some 12 million doses of flu-fighting medications. A White House spokesman tells NBC's ``Meet the Press'' ``It's not a time to panic.''
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says officials believe it will continue to spread, but will take ``aggressive actions'' against the virus.
Swine flu fears close schools in NY, Texas, Calif.
NEW YORK (AP) The New York City school where eight students tested positive for swine flu will be closed for at least the next couple of days.
Cleaning crews have scrubbed down every desk, chair and classroom at the school where officials fear more than 100 could be infected.
Students apparently brought the flu back after a spring break trip to Mexico.
New York's mayor says some who came down with swine flu are already getting getter.
Near San Antonio, 14 schools will be closed for at least the next week after two students at a high school caught the virus. And a school near Sacramento, will be closed until at least Thursday while health officials determine if a seventh-grader has the flu.
The virus has killed as many as 86 people in Mexico. It hasn't been fatal in the U.S., but there are at least 20 cases confirmed in five states and the government has declared a public health emergency.
Police were searching Sunday for the 57-year-old marketing professor in the shooting deaths of his wife and two men outside a community theater in Athens, about 70 miles east of Atlanta. Zinkhan was last seen dropping his two young children off at his neighbor's house after the Saturday afternoon shootings, saying there was an emergency and he needed someone to watch them.
``If you gave me a list of 100 people who might crack in this way, I would have put him at the bottom of that list,'' said Michael R. Hyman, a marketing professor at New Mexico State University. Hyman knew Zinkhan in the mid-1980s when both were associate professors at the University of Houston.
Zinkhan was highly regarded for his abilities and his intellect, enjoyed writing poetry and was a bit of a history buff, Hyman said. He was collegial and never showed violent tendencies or even raised his voice.
Hyman and a former doctoral student of Zinkhan's at the University of Houston, Richard Tansey, both said they were shocked to hear Zinkhan was accused of shooting anyone, and said they never knew him to use or talk about guns.
Killed Saturday afternoon were Zinkhan's wife, Marie Bruce, 47, Tom Tanner, 40, and Ben Teague, 63. All were members of a local theater group, and the shooting occurred during a reunion for past and present group members. Two others were injured by shrapnel.
Josh Gurley, 21, is a junior at the school and was taking a marketing class from Zinkhan this semester.
Little more than a week ago, Zinkhan surprised students by saying he would give them their grades for the semester and they wouldn't have to take the previously announced final exam if they were satisfied with that grade.
Gurley said he was shocked when he heard about the shooting. Zinkhan was clearly intelligent and interested in the subject, but was disorganized and seemed ``a little off'' and unapproachable, he said.
``He never seemed like he went above and beyond to try to reach out to students,'' Gurley said.
David Felfoldi, who took an honors class on e-commerce taught by Zinkhan in 2001, said that when he heard that a UGA professor had shot three people, he wondered if it might be Zinkhan.
``I thought that if any professor I knew at UGA was going to do something like that, it would be him,'' Felfoldi said. ``He seemed the most unstable and peculiar, not violent unstable but just not all there.''
That description marks a sharp contrast with Tansey's memories from 20 years ago.
``He was not only very handsome, but he was a very gentle soul,'' Tansey said. ``He was not a hard-charging academic. He was very laid back and created a nurturing environment that appealed to his students.''
But Tansey also cited a driving ambition and said Zinkhan would sometimes put his name on an article mostly written by a student, both to get his name out there but also to use his own prestige to get a student's work published.
``He used people, but he used them in a nice way,'' Tansey said.
Zinkhan joined the faculty of UGA's Terry College of Business in 1994. He graduated from Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania in 1974 with a degree in English literature and went to the University of Michigan, where he got a business degree in 1979 and a doctorate in marketing in 1981.
His curriculum vitae, posted on the business school's Web site, is 40 pages long and details a prolific academic career spread over more than 30 years. It lists several books he edited or co-authored, more than 100 journal articles he wrote or co-wrote and many other publications, and research and consulting activities.
There are 22 works listed under a section headlined ``Research Activities: Poetry.'' The Web site of the American Marketing Association features a collection of 16 poems called ``Marketing as Life'' by Zinkhan.
In one, titled ``B-school Politics'' written in April 2004, Zinkhan writes that professors have to teach ``many, many (extra) classes'' with ``vague promises'' that things will get better. The last stanza reads, ``the dark department head is always lurking,/making the rounds with a crooked, yankee-trader smile,/full of false promise about a better time to come.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Georgia failed to meet expectations last season. That didn't hurt the Bulldogs on draft day.
Quarterback Matthew Stafford went to the Detroit Lions with the top overall choice Saturday, and running back Knowshon Moreno was picked at No. 12 by the Denver Broncos as Georgia became the first school to have two players selected in the opening round.
Coach Mark Richt said the early selections of Stafford and Moreno should be a boost to Georgia's recruiting efforts.
``If a young man has talent and is plugged into our system, he'll be able to answer a lot of questions the NFL needs to have answered,'' Richt said. ``We have a system that allows guys to take their talents and use some of the very same skills the NFL will expect them to do.''
From the day Stafford stepped on campus, Richt figured the strong-armed quarterback had a chance to be a high NFL pick. He didn't even have to stay the full four years, deciding to enter the draft after his junior season.
``Maybe not the very first pick, but it wasn't out of the question if he played well and matured,'' Richt said. ``You knew he would have a chance to be the first pick just because of what you knew about his physical skills.''
As for Moreno, ``I wouldn't say the day we signed him we could have predicted it,'' Richt said. ``But after watching him perform that second spring (before his redshirt freshman year), I thought the kid had a chance to be pretty special.''
The selection of Stafford at No. 1 was a mere formality after he agreed Friday to a six-year contract with the Lions, the first team ever to go 0-16 in a season. The deal includes $41.7 million in guarantees and a chance to earn as much as $78 million.
``It's a huge relief,'' Stafford said Saturday on a conference call. ``I'm just extremely excited to be a Lion.''
Detroit hasn't had a quarterback play in the Pro Bowl since Greg Landry in 1971. Long-term stability at the position has been elusive since Bobby Layne starred for them in the 1950s. In an interesting twist, Stafford and Layne both played at Highland Park High School in Dallas.
``I feel like you can't write it any better than that,'' Stafford said, even though he's going to the NFL's worst team.
Moreno was surprisingly picked by the Broncos, who bypassed their many needs on defense to grab a player who rushed for 2,734 yards and 30 touchdowns in only two seasons at Georgia. He was redshirted his first season and chose to enter the draft after his sophomore season.
Denver signed three running backs in free agency J.J. Arrington, LaMont Jordan and Correll Buckhalter to compete with holdovers Peyton Hillis, Selvin Young and Ryan Torain. Now, the Broncos have Moreno, too.
``The draft is like a lottery and you never know what's going to happen,'' Moreno said. ``You saw a little bit of that today. But I didn't really know what was going to happen, but I'm really excited about it and I'm happy it did.''
He follows two other Georgia running backs who went to Denver: Terrell Davis, who starred for the Bulldogs from 1995-2001 and won a Super Bowl MVP, and Olandis Gary, who played in the Mile High City from 1999-2002.
``I'm a high-motor guy,'' Moreno said. ``Tough, hard-nosed, a hard runner, can make you miss at times. And just competitive. I love to play the game and I bring that energy to my team. So, we'll see how that goes.''
Georgia started last season ranked No. 1, but blowout losses to Alabama and Florida ruined their championship hopes. The Bulldogs closed the regular season with their first loss to state rival Georgia Tech since 2000.
Even though he never led Georgia to a title, Stafford became the school's fourth player to be selection No. 1 overall. The others were Frank Sinkwich (by Detroit in 1943), Charley Trippi (by the Chicago Cardinals in 1947) and Harry Babcock (by San Francisco in 1953).
Another member of the Georgia offense, receiver Mohamed Massaquoi, was taken by Cleveland in the second round with the 50th overall pick.
Georgia Tech defensive end Michael Johnson had hoped to go on the first day of the draft. But his name wasn't called through the first two rounds, so he'll have to wait.
The draft concludes Sunday with rounds three through seven.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) Authorities from Georgia to Texas had little to go on Sunday as they searched for a University of Georgia professor suspected of shooting his ex-wife and two other men to death outside a theater near campus.
Neighbors watched Saturday as SWAT team members, guns drawn, swarmed their tidy middle-class suburb about seven miles from the campus looking for 57-year-old George Zinkhan. But he wasn't in his home or office and hadn't used his credit or ATM cards.
After the shootings, the man described as an introverted, respected marketing professor dropped his children off with a next-door neighbor and vanished in his red Jeep, police said.
``We're doing everything we can to shut him down,'' said Athens-Clarke County Police Capt. Clarence Holeman. ``I believe he will turn up somewhere, somehow.''
Authorities were monitoring airports in case Zinkhan tried to head to Amsterdam, where he owns a home, or Austin, Texas, where he has relatives.
``Anyone who shoots three people is dangerous, that's the best way I can put it,'' Holeman said.
Zinkhan had his son and daughter with him when he went to the Athens Community Theater on Saturday afternoon but left them in the Jeep as he fired at members of a local theater group, Holeman said.
Those killed were identified as Zinkhan's ex-wife, Marie Bruce, 47; Tom Tanner, 40; and Ben Teague, 63. Flying shrapnel injured two others.
Zinkhan argued with at least one of the victims prior to the shooting, then walked away before returning with at least two different guns and opening fire, Holeman said.
Each victim was shot multiple times.
When Zinkhan dropped his children off, he told his neighbor, Robert Covington, only that he needed someone to watch them for about an hour because of an emergency.
Covington said when he asked Zinkhan's daughter about the emergency, ``all she would relate to me was there was something about a firecracker.''
Zinkhan and Bruce were still living together in the house with their children, Covington said.
Zinkhan, who has a doctorate from the University of Michigan, is a professor at UGA's Terry College of Business and had no disciplinary problems, university spokesman Pete Konenkamp said. Before joining the school in the 1990s, he held academic positions at the universities of Houston and Pittsburgh.
``His track record is impeccable as far as his teaching credentials,'' Konenkamp said. ``He's a respected professor on campus.''
The victims were all involved with the Town Gown Players Inc., which had planned a Saturday evening performance of ``Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure.'' The show was canceled after the shootings.
Tanner was set to be Dr. John Watson, and Teague described himself on a Web site as ``a confirmed theater bum'' for the group. Bruce, a family law attorney, had for years volunteered as a set designer and director.
Shane Clayton, a Town Gown member, said the group was in shock, describing Bruce as ``very outgoing, very high-spirited'' and Tanner as a wonderful guy.
Athens attorney Ed Tolley said he and Bruce, who graduated from the University of Georgia's law school, worked on cases together.
``She was a wonderful person,'' Tolley said, ``Redheaded, very attractive, very professional, and a wonderful mother.''
Dana Adams, who lives across the street from Zinkhan, said she didn't know the family well, but described the professor as ``kind of a strange character,'' who would sometimes walk off in the middle of a conversation.
``But I would never suspect this,'' she said.
Associated Press writers Shannon McCaffrey, Walter Putnam, Bernard McGhee and Daniel Yee in Atlanta contributed to this report.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Georgia Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle is set to undergo surgery aimed at correcting a degenerative spine and neck condition.
The surgery will take place Monday at Emory University Hospital.
Cagle withdrew from the governor's race on April 15 saying he needed time to recover from the painful back and neck problem. He'd been considered a front runner to win the GOP nomination for governor next year. Instead, the 43-year-old from Gainesville said he'll seek re-election as lieutenant governor.
In a statement, Cagle said he and his family appreciate the thoughts and prayers they've received from residents around the state.
MEXICO CITY (AP) A new strain of swine flu has this metropolis of 20 million people increasingly fearful as suspected flu deaths grow, and world health officials warn that Mexico City could be at the epicenter of a global epidemic.
Everything from concerts to sports matches and church services were canceled Sunday to keep people from congregating and spreading the virus in large crowds.
President Felipe Calderon assumed new powers to isolate people infected with a deadly swine flu strain that Mexico's health minister says has killed up to 81 people and likely sickened 1,324 since April 13.
Mexican soldiers and health workers patrolled airports and bus stations, looking for people showing symptoms, which include a fever of more than 100 degrees, body aches, coughing, a sore throat, respiratory congestion and, in some cases, vomiting and diarrhea.
Markets and restaurants were nearly empty. And throngs of Mexicans some with just a fever rushed to hospitals.
Mexico appears to have lost valuable days or weeks in detecting the new flu strain, a combination of pig, bird and human viruses that humans may have no natural immunity to. Health officials have found cases in 16 Mexican states. Two dozen new suspected cases were reported in the capital on Saturday alone.
Eleven cases of swine flu were confirmed in California, Texas and Kansas, with more suspected in New York City.
The World Health Organization on Saturday asked all countries to step up reporting and surveillance of the disease, as airports around the world were screening travelers from Mexico for flu symptoms.
WHO Director-General Margaret Chan said the outbreak of the never-before-seen virus has ``pandemic potential.'' But she said it is still too early to tell if it would become a pandemic.
WHO guidance calls for isolating the sick and blanketing everyone around them with anti-viral drugs such as Tamiflu. Too many patients have been identified in Mexico's teeming capital for such a solution now. But some pandemic flu experts say it's also too late to contain the disease to Mexico and the United States.
``Anything that would be about containing it right now would purely be a political move,'' said Michael Osterholm at the University of Minnesota.
Mexican authorities ordered schools closed in the capital and the states of Mexico and San Luis Potosi until May 6, and the Roman Catholic Church announced the cancellation of Sunday masses in the capital.
A team from the Centers for Disease Control had arrived in Mexico to help set up detection testing for the swine flu strain, something Mexico previously lacked.
Health authorities started noticing a threefold spike in flu cases in late March and early April, but they thought it was a late rebound in the December-February flu season.
Testing at domestic labs did not alert doctors to the new strain. Health Secretary Jose Cordova acknowledged Mexican labs lacked the necessary profiling data to detect the previously unknown strain.
The first death occurred in southern Oaxaca state on April 13, but Mexico didn't send the first of 14 mucous samples to the CDC until April 18, around the same time it dispatched health teams to hospitals looking for patients with severe flu or pnuemonia-like symptoms.
Those teams noticed something strange: The flu was killing people aged 20 to 40. Flu victims are usually either infants or the elderly. The Spanish flu pandemic, which killed at least 40 million people worldwide in 1918-19, also first struck otherwise healthy young adults.
Even though U.S. labs detected the swine flu in California and Texas before last weekend, Mexican authorities as recently as Wednesday were referring to it as a late-season flu.
But mid-afternoon Thursday, Mexico City Health Secretary Dr. Armando Ahued said, officials got a call ``from the United States and Canada, the most important laboratories in the field, telling us this was a new virus.''
Asked why there were so many deaths in Mexico, and none so far among the U.S. cases, Cordova noted that the U.S. cases involved children who haven't been among the fatal cases in Mexico, either.
``There are immune factors that are giving children some sort of defense, that is the only explanation we have,'' he said.
Another factor may be that some Mexican patients may have delayed seeking medical help too long, Cordova said.
Scientists have warned for years about the potential for a pandemic from viruses that mix genetic material from humans and animals.
A ``seed stock'' genetically matched to the new swine flu virus has been created by the CDC, said Dr. Richard Besser, the agency's acting director. If the government decides vaccine production is necessary, manufacturers would need that stock to get started.
Associated Press Writers David Koop in Mexico City; Frank Jordans in Geneva; Mike Stobbe in Atlanta; Malcolm Ritter in New York; and Maria Cheng in London contributed to this report.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
The Falcons used the 24th pick in the NFL draft to take Mississippi's Peria Jerry, who led the Southeastern Conference and ranked second in the nation among defensive tackles with 18 tackles behind the line of scrimmage. In the second round, Atlanta stuck with the defensive theme, taking Missouri safety William Moore with the 55th choice overall.
The draft concludes Sunday with the remaining five rounds.
``I feel fairly pleased after day one,'' general manager Thomas Dimitroff said. ``There will be more stress on the defense going forward.''
Over the last two seasons, the 6-foot-2, 290-pound Jerry had 32 tackles for losses and 10.5 sacks. The Falcons desperately needed someone to bolster their defensive line, which is especially thin on the inside.
``We've said from the very beginning that we wanted to be a team that can run the football and stop the run,'' second-year coach Mike Smith said. ``Last year, we addressed running the football. This year, we've taken the first step toward stopping the run. Peria is a very aggressive, hard-nosed, tough football player.''
Jerry will likely replace Grady Jackson, one of five defensive starters who left in free agency. Jonathan Babineaux is the only other established tackle on the roster.
``Mike was wondering when we were going to make a move on the defensive side,'' Dimitroff said of his coach, a former defensive coordinator. ``I know he's pretty fired up right now.''
Smith smiled. The Falcons made the playoffs last year despite a defense that ranked 24th in total yards allowed (348 per game) and 25th against the run.
Jerry should help improve those numbers.
``He's a guy who's very disruptive. He creates plays in the backfield,'' Smith said. ``It's very important to have negative-yardage plays because you put teams in an unmanageable down and distance. That's the thing we're most impressed about with him.''
Moore, who set a school record with eight interceptions in 2007, struggled through an injury plagued senior season. But he still managed to make 86 tackles and return an interception for a touchdown.
The Falcons will give the 6-0, 221-pound Moore a chance to replace strong safety Lawyer Milloy, another of the departed starters.
``He definitely brings speed and urgency to our defense,'' Dimitroff said. ``We're fired up to have William jump on board for us.''
Moore likely would have been a first-round pick if he had entered the draft after his junior season. But he dropped off after a sprained foot plagued him the entire season, causing him to miss two full games and parts of two others.
``I know what I can do and what type of player I am,'' Moore said. ``It just makes me more hungry.''
Last year, offense was the primary focus of Dimitroff's rebuilding effort. The Falcons drafted quarterback Matt Ryan at No. 3 overall, traded up to get another first-round pick that was used for offensive tackle Sam Baker, and doled out big money to land running back Michael Turner.
Those moved paid off handsomely. Ryan was the NFL's offensive rookie of the year. Baker quickly earned a starting job as Ryan's blind-side protector. Turner was the league's second-leading rusher.
Two days before this year's draft, the Falcons landed another impact player on offense, acquiring 10-time Pro Bowl tight end Tony Gonzalez from the Kansas City Chiefs for a second-round pick in 2010.
Gonzalez filled the only glaring hole on offense, freeing up the Falcons to pursue defensive help in the draft.
There were plenty of holes to fill after the team lost nearly half the starting unit in free agency. In addition to Jackson and Milloy, Atlanta gave up five-time Pro Bowl linebacker Keith Brooking, cornerback Domonique Foxworth and another linebacker who started much of the season, Michael Boley.
Jerry was the target all along. The Falcons even went to Oxford, Miss., a couple of weeks ago to give him a private workout, projecting he could still be available at No. 24.
``We want to make sure we have a strong rotation along the defensive line to take some of the pressure off our linebackers and relatively young secondary,'' Dimitroff said.
The team actually delivered word of its No. 1 pick on Twitter moments before it was officially announced. Dimitroff and Smith said they weren't involved in that high-tech conduit.
``I just learned what (Twitter) meant about three days ago,'' Dimitroff said.
``I still don't,'' Smith added. ``What does it mean?''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
MIAMI (AP) Dwyane Wade swished a 3-pointer, then turned and shook his hand like it was burning.
Yep, Wade and the Miami Heat are that hot right now.
Wade finished with 29 points and eight assists, Jermaine O'Neal added 22 points and 10 rebounds, and the Heat extended Atlanta's decade-plus road playoff drought, beating the Hawks 107-78 Saturday night in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round matchup.
It was over early: Atlanta missed 17 of its first 19 shots, and a 25-6 Heat run to end the first half pushed the lead to 50-29.
``We knew there would be a lot of energy in the building, so we played off that early,'' Wade said. ``And defensively we came out very tough.''
Josh Smith, Al Horford and Mike Bibby scored 13 apiece for Atlanta, which is 0-12 in road playoff games since May 8, 1997, losing all but one by at least 10 points.
The Heat lead the series 2-1 and host Game 4 Monday night.
``No more excuses,'' Horford said. ``We're going to have to bring it fuego on Monday.''
When teams split the first two games of an NBA series, the Game 3 winner advances 76 percent of the time. And in recent years, the edge has been even more pronounced of the last 27 series that were tied at 1-1, the Game 3 winner ultimately prevailed on 22 occasions.
That's a bad sign for the Hawks.
``By any means, we're not out of it,'' Hawks coach Mike Woodson said. ``But we can't come out and give effort like we did tonight. I just thought the Heat did everything that they were supposed to do and we just didn't answer the bell tonight.''
Before the game, the Hawks learned starting small forward Marvin Williams would sit out with a wrist injury. Their first shot of the night was from Horford, a 15-foot jumper that fell 2 feet shy of the rim.
It only got worse from there, especially with Wade at his highlight-reel best.
Defensively, he set the tone with a two-hand erasure of a shot by Mo Evans in the opening minutes, then a high-rising effort to swat an offering from Zaza Pachulia into the most expensive seats late in the third. Plus, he had dunks over two of the Hawks' biggest challengers Smith got out of Wade's way on one, and Horford offered little resistance on another.
``D-Wade is kind of at another level right now,'' O'Neal said.
But just like in Game 2, when Miami took home-court advantage, Wade hardly had to go it alone. Mario Chalmers scored 15 points, Udonis Haslem came through with 12 points and 13 rebounds, and James Jones finished with 11 points for the Heat.
``It's not so much Wade, but that supporting cast that is making such a difference,'' Smith said. ``If we can't stop them, it's going to make them a very tough team to beat.''
Miami hit 12 shots from 3-point range giving the Heat 27 in the last two games and outrebounded Atlanta 48-35. For good measure, the Heat were a perfect 19-for-19 from the foul line.
The sellout, noisemaker-clanging, black-clad crowd had cause for mild concern late in the third, when Bibby hit a 3-pointer and Horford followed with a dunk to get Atlanta within 72-61.
The Heat regained control quickly.
Wade set up Jones for a 3-pointer with 1.5 seconds left in the third, found Chalmers for another 3-pointer to open the fourth, and it soon became a full-fledged rout.
The Hawks started the fourth 0-for-7, and when Smith got one to finally drop with 4:50 left, it only cut the deficit to 95-70.
``All of this doesn't really mean anything unless you get this next game,'' Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said.
Atlanta left thinking the same thing, that a win Monday changes everything.
``This series is far from over,'' Bibby said, ``but we need to get the next one.''
Notes: Atlanta's 29-point showing was the third-lowest scoring first half in Hawks playoff history, and the best defensive first half in Heat playoff history. ... Tennis star Venus Williams was in the sellout crowd. ... Haslem had nine rebounds before the game was 9 minutes old. ... The Heat lost F Jamario Moon (abdominal strain) in the second quarter. ... Smith missed his first seven shots.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
HONOLULU (AP) The Pentagon says a Hawaii-based soldier from Georgia has died in Iraq from injuries sustained in a noncombat related incident.
Command Sgt. Maj. Benjamin Moore Jr. of Waycross, Ga. died Friday at Contingency Operating Base Speicher, Iraq.
The Pentagon said Saturday the circumstances surrounding the incident are being investigated.
The 43-year-old was assigned to the 2d Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3d Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division at Schofield Barracks.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. (AP) More than three decades after his final big-league game, Hank Aaron is still thrilling baseball fans.
An overflow crowd at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum watched Saturday as the 75-year-old Aaron helped dedicate the museum's newest exhibit, ``Hank Aaron: Chasing the Dream.''
Aaron, who attended the ceremony with his wife Billye and Atlanta Braves chairman emeritus Bill Bartholomay, officially opened an exhibit that features many items Aaron has donated to the Hall of Fame.
``No matter what you accomplish, what you achieve, you don't go down the path by yourself,'' Aaron said. ``I want to thank everyone who helped me along that path.''
``Chasing the Dream'' features four topical explorations of Aaron's life, from his early days as a youngster in Mobile, Ala., through his present endeavors with the Chasing the Dream Foundation. The exhibit details his climb to excellence in his major league career, along with an entire section dedicated to chasing Babe Ruth's historic home run record in 1974.
The exhibit features the bat and ball Aaron used to hit home run No. 714 to tie Babe Ruth, the bats and balls from his 3,000th hit, 500th and 600th home runs, and the ball hit to record his 755th and final homer.
The uniform shirt, pants, cap and helmet Aaron wore while hitting the record-breaking 715th homer are displayed in the new exhibit alongside his locker, 1957 World Series Ring, MVP award and many other artifacts from his historic career.
``The artifacts need to be here so all people around the world can come see them,'' Aaron said.
In his 23-year major league career with the Milwaukee and Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers, Aaron produced 3,771 hits, 755 homers and 2,297 RBIs, all records when he retired in 1976. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1982 on his first appearance on the ballot.
``He was a complete, complete ballplayer,'' Bartholomay said. ``This man has done it all and continues to do it all.''
``Chasing the Dream'' marks the first of two exhibits slated to open in honor of Aaron ``Hank Aaron: Gallery of Records,'' an exhibit recognizing the statistical leaders of baseball, is slated to open in 2011.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
COLUMBUS, Ga. (AP) A 6 million water tank collapsed early Saturday, sending a torrent down a hill into a roadway and damaging power transmission structures that hold high voltage lines.
The open-top steel tank, the largest in Muscogee County, was on a hill at the Columbus Water Works treatment facility between River Road and J.R. Allen. It failed shortly before 4 a.m.
Water Works President Bob Tant said the collapse did not disrupt the city's water supply. Tant says an investigation has begun to determine the cause of the failure.
Robert Watkins, external affairs manager for Georgia Power Co. in Columbus, says power to the 115,000 volt lines and a nearby substation was cut off.
Power to homes was not disrupted, but it could take up to four days to repair the damage.
Water rushed off the hill in multiple directions. The bulk of the water went toward J.R. Allen, onto the eastbound lane, then into a storm drain and toward the city marina. Some went onto other streets, where some homes appeared to suffer minor water damage. It also damaged landscaping and fencing on the Water Works property.
A vacant vehicle with North Carolina license plates was found near the city marina off River Road. Police were still trying to figure out the vehicle belonged to, Columbus Police Lt. Jennifer Dunford said.
One motorist drove into the debris on J.R. Allen and was slightly injured, Dunford said.
Two large metal power poles just north of the tank site were leaning at a 60-degree angle. The poles hold transmission lines that transmit high voltages.
The metal tank, which was a long line of crumpled steel, was at the bottom of the hill.
The tank was constructed in 1965 and regularly inspected, Tant said.
``This is a very unusual and strange situation,'' Tant said.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
MARIETTA, Ga. (AP) David Cano, a 17-year-old Eagle Scout, has become only the third Boy Scout ever to earn all 121 Boy Scout merit badges and 20 Eagle Palms, Scout leaders say.
It's a goal Cano set for himself when he joined the Scouts at age 10.
``I did it for the experience,'' said Cano, a member of Boy Scout Troop 1776 in east Cobb. ``With every merit badge, there's a purpose. You'll learn something new with every single badge. Some are life skills and others are hobbies that will be with you for the rest of your life.''
Young men must earn 21 of 121 merit badges to achieve the rank of Eagle Scout. Very few Scouts go on to earn all 121 merit badges, Boy Scout leaders say.
However, what makes Cano's achievement even more remarkable is that he fulfilled 1,674 additional requirements to earn the 20 Eagle Palms, the last one of which will be awarded to him on May 16. An Eagle Palm is awarded for every five merit badges beyond the 21 needed to become an Eagle Scout.
Cano, who will receive his final Eagle Palm on May 16 at a ceremony in Atlanta, is believed to be the first Scout from Georgia to earn all 20.
Rich Cuervo, of the Boy Scouts Atlanta Area Council, said his organization could find only two other Scouts who had accomplished as much in the nearly 100-year history of the Boy Scouts of America: Cameron Barber of Texas, in 2007, and Travis Cochran of California, in 2008.
``David is just a very focused young man. He set this as his goal when he was 10 years old,'' said Troop 1776 Scoutmaster Tom Morin, who has known Cano since he was 6.
Cano is a junior at Blessed Trinity Catholic High School in Roswell. He has been a member of the school's football and soccer teams, school band, Model United Nations and is a National Honor Society member. Someday, he hopes to become a surgeon.
``I've really enjoyed the Scouting program,'' Cano said. ``I've picked up a lot of friends and really had the time of my life being in this organization.''
He said he enjoys outdoor activities with friends, and water skiing which developed as a result of earning a merit badge. Each merit badge requires a Scout to master a complete set of skills from a counselor who has expertise in the field.
Among the fields Cano earned badges in are dentistry, geology, law, hiking, railroading, graphic arts, surveying, music, public speaking and space exploration.
Cano said some badges took him only a few days to earn, while others took him a couple of years. The bugling badge was his most difficult, he said.
``One of the requirements is to play 15 bugle calls,'' Cano said. ``I had to learn every single call and play the notes correctly to my counselor's satisfaction.''
Cano's parents, Rodrigo and Rosa Cano, said they were extremely proud of their son and can barely keep up with all the media requests for interviews he has received. David's older brother, Steve, is also an Eagle Scout.
Rodrigo and Rosa Cano are natives of Colombia who moved to the United States in 1980. Rodrigo Cano said the values his sons had learned from the Boy Scouts helped ease his family's immersion.
``It did help us to bridge between being Hispanics into the American society in a way that Scouts offers minority boys whether black, Chinese or Hispanic the American culture,'' Rodrigo Cano said. ``This is something that is very near and dear to many American families.''
Last week, David Cano was recognized by the Georgia General Assembly. On April 19, he will be honored at a Court of Honor ceremony at the Boy Scouts Area Council in Atlanta.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
CINCINNATI (AP) Atlanta Braves third baseman Chipper Jones already had an impressive track record against Reds right-hander Bronson Arroyo.
Yunel Escobar got angry enough to start building his own.
Escobar, who was hit by a pitch Friday, drove in two runs with a double and a single in the first two innings against Arroyo and finished a triple short of the cycle with a career-high four RBIs as Atlanta beat Cincinnati 10-2 on Saturday.
``Getting hit by a pitch motivated me somewhat, but not necessarily,'' Escobar said through an interpreter. ``I thought (Edinson Volquez) threw at me yesterday, but that was yesterday. I just happened to have a good day today.''
Just in time, said manager Bobby Cox, who saw outfielder Garrett Anderson and catcher Brian McCann go on the disabled list Friday and Saturday.
``Escobar broke out,'' Cox said. ``It was good to see. With McCann and Anderson out, we need some guys to pick us up. They can do it.''
Jones hit a three-run homer and also drove in four runs while improving to 11-for-23 (.478) with three homers and 10 RBIs in his career against Arroyo. The Braves jumped on the right-hander for six runs in the first two innings and handed him his first loss in four starts.
``They're definitely a team that's given me trouble with over the last few years,'' said Arroyo, who is 4-3 with a 6.50 ERA in 11 career appearances against the Braves.
Escobar and Jones the Braves' No. 2 and 3 hitters went a combined 5-for-8 with two home runs, a double and eight RBIs in support of Derek Lowe, who struck out a season-high eight in seven innings to help the Braves to their second three-game winning streak of the season.
Lowe (2-1) allowed two runs on four hits and two walks. He struck out the top three hitters in the Cincinnati batting order with runners on first and second in the fifth.
``I threw a lot of curve balls,'' Lowe said. ``I threw them a lot for strikes. My strikeouts are more by luck. With the score, I'm trying to minimize the damage. If one scores, then maybe I can keep the second run from scoring. The strikeout were huge but they were a bonus.''
Plate umpire Mike Estabrook warned Lowe and both benches after Joey Votto was hit by a pitch in the first inning. The benches and bullpens emptied with no punches thrown on Friday when Escobar took a couple of steps toward the mound after being hit by Volquez's pitch.
Escobar went straight to first base after getting hit by Arroyo in the fourth inning.
Estabrook ejected Cincinnati center fielder Jerry Hairston Jr. and manager Dusty Baker after Hairston objected to a called third strike in the third inning.
Escobar snapped a 0-for-10 slump as Atlanta's first four batters reached base while the Braves took a 2-0 lead in the first inning. He followed Kelly Johnson's leadoff walk with a double to left and scored on Jones' single to right.
Jones followed Escobar's run-scoring single with a three-run homer to give Atlanta a 6-0 lead in the second. The homer was Jones' second of the season and first since April 7 off Jamie Moyer at Philadelphia.
Alex Gonzalez drove in the Reds' only two runs in the second with his first homer since Aug. 9, 2007, against Los Angeles. Gonzalez missed all of last season with a knee injury.
Jordan Schafer and former Red David Ross hit back-to-back doubles to lead off the sixth, and Escobar added a two-run homer to left-center later in the inning to knock Arroyo out of the game. Arroyo (3-1), who won his first three starts of a season for the first time in his career, allowed nine runs and nine hits with three walks and five strikeouts in 5 2-3 innings.
The Braves added a run in the eighth against Mike Lincoln on Schafer's leadoff walk, a wild pitch and pinch-hitter Greg Norton's double to left-center field.
Notes: The Braves placed C Brian McCann on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to Thursday, with a left eye infection. C Chris Sammons was recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett. ... Reds OF Willy Taveras got Saturday off after making 14 consecutive starts. C Ramon Hernandez also didn't start Saturday, and manager Dusty Baker said SS Alex Gonzalez would get Sunday off ... Atlanta 1B Casey Kotchman went 2-for-5 to extend his hitting streak to seven games, one short of matching the career high he set last April.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio/AP) Cops are still looking for the gunman responsbile for the murder of a Clayton County teen.
Authorities said 18-year-old was killed and another person critically injured in a shooting in Riverdale.
Clayton County Police spokesman Tim Owens says the Fayetteville teen was shot about 4 a.m. Saturday outside a home near Riverdale. His name has not been released so authorities can notify next of kin.
Owens says 24-year-old Bernard Pitts of College Park was wounded and hospitalized in critical condition.
Investigators are still processing the crime scene, which Owens said covered about a three-block area. He said multiple shots were fired.
Police said there were several people at the home at the time of the shooting.
No arrests have been made.
(WSB Radio) Professor George Zinkhan was one of the nicest men he ever met. He certainly was nice for a professor.
That coming from one of Zinkhan's current students. Matt Vinson told WSB Radio he's in Zinkhan's marketing 4100 class this semester, a course on consumer behavior.
"He was willing to take time out of his day to talk to you," Vinson said. "If you couldn't meet during his office and he was willing to make time any other part of the day to talk to you."
It is certainly not the profile one would expect a college student to paint about a professor accused in the murders of three people, including his wife.
"He really cared about his students," said Vinson, a shaken marketing pupil. "When I heard it was him I couldn't believe it. He's one of the nicest professors I've ever met. I was absolutely flabbergasted when I heard he did something like this."
Vinson says he heard the news the way most UGA students did Saturday afternoon.
"I was driving when I got a text message from the UGA Alert," Vinson said. "I almost broke down into tears because I was like 'no way."
The next scheduled class is Tuesday. The final exam is approaching. Vinson says its optional. Some of his classmates think he had it all planned in advance. Making sure the last test didn't count since he wouldn't be there to give it. But other say he has always done it that way.
Vinson's glowing reviews of his renowned instructor or echoed around campus. Ratemyprofessor.com is a website that allows student to do exactly that. Some post call Zinkhan "brilliant ," "helpful," and "funny."
But that is not the consensus.
Other posts dub the 57-year old "a creep," "cold hearted," and "just plain nasty."
"I can't help but think of his as a good person," said Matt Vinson. " But clearly something's not right with him and it's not ok. He is a bad person."
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) Authorities were on a nationwide manhunt for a University of Georgia professor in the shooting deaths of three people, including his ex-wife, Saturday at a community theater near campus.
Athens-Clarke County Police Capt. Clarence Holeman said authorities were searching for a suspect, 57-year-old George Zinkhan, who has been a marketing professor at the university in Athens since the 1990s, and lived about seven miles from campus.
Killed were Zinkhan's ex-wife, Marie Bruce, 47, Tom Tanner, 40, and Ben Teague, 63, Holeman said. Both men were involved with Town Gown Players Inc., a local theater group in Athens, about 70 miles east of Atlanta.
The shooting happened outside the Athens Community Theater during a midday gathering of the theater group. Holeman said the shooter left his two young children in the car when he opened fire on the group. A neighbor of Zinkhan's in nearby Bogart said the professor later dropped off the children with him next door and left after saying there was an emergency. The children were with police.
Shortly after the incident, the university issued a campus-wide alert as a precaution. Authorities searched Zinkhan's office, but there were no immediate signs of him on campus.
The group's performance Saturday night of ``Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure'' was canceled. Tanner, who was among the dead, was set to play Dr. Watson in the play.
Athens-Clarke County Coroner Sonny Wilson said the three victims were shot multiple times. Two other people were injured by shrapnel and their conditions were not immediately known.
Two different guns were involved in the shooting, and neither was recovered at the scene, Holeman said. Investigators searched Zinkhan's two-story colonial in a tidy middle-class suburb of Athens, but did not find the two weapons, Holeman said.
Authorities issued a nationwide alert for Zinkhan and his 2005 red Jeep Liberty. Authorities learned that Zinkhan has a house in Amsterdam, Netherlands, and were keeping a lookout at airports, Holeman said.
``Anyone who shoots three people is dangerous, that's the best way I can put it,'' Holeman said.
Holeman said there were no confirmed sightings of Zinkhan and that the professor had not used his credit card or ATM to the best of their knowledge. Also, police in Austin, Texas, have been alerted since Zinkhan has family there, Holeman said.
``We're doing everything we can to shut him down,'' Holeman said. ``I believe he will turn up somewhere, somehow.''
Holeman said there was some sort of discussion, possibly a disagreement, between the shooter and one of the victims when the shooting took place. Police said they received a call of a shooting at the theater about 12:25 p.m. Holeman said a motive wasn't immediately known.
Neighbor Robert Covington said Zinkhan dropped his son and daughter off at his house after noon. Zinkhan asked the Covingtons to watch the children for about an hour and then left. Covington described Zinkhan and Bruce as still living together in the house.
Covington said when he asked Zinkhan's daughter, who is about 10 years old, about the emergency ``all she would relate to me was there was something about a firecracker.''
Police later took the children, along with Covington's wife, to the police station, Covington said.
Zinkhan was quiet and introverted, but Covington said would never suspect something like the shootings.
``It's a pretty huge shock,'' Covington said.
Dana Adams lives across the street, but said she didn't know Zinkhan well. She described him as ``kind of a strange character,'' who would sometimes walk off in the middle of a conversation. ``But I would never suspect this,'' Adams said.
She said SWAT teams had swarmed the neighborhood and police had hidden in her backyard. Covington called his neighborhood ``police central.''
Zinkhan has been a professor in the Terry College of Business, university spokesman Pete Konenkamp said. He didn't have any disciplinary problems.
``His track record is impeccable as far as his teaching credentials,'' Konenkamp said. ``He's a respected professor on campus.''
Bruce was a well-respected attorney in Athens who loved the theater and recently directed a production of ``Trip to Bountiful,'' said Wesley Cook who knew Bruce through the theater company, where Cook's girlfriend performed.
``She was very lively and charming and was an integral part of that theater community,'' Clark said.
According to the Georgia Bar, Bruce graduated from the University of Georgia's law school and specialized in family law. She moved to Athens in 1980 from Augusta, where she performed in school and church shows, according to a 2002 profile of her in the Athens Banner-Herald in 2002.
Bruce taught high school and college before deciding to attend law school. With the theater group, she worked as a set designer and also a director.
Athens attorney Ed Tolley said he knew Bruce well and had been involved with cases with her. He said she primarily handled divorce cases.
``She was a wonderful person,'' Tolley said, ``Red-headed, very attractive, very professional, and a wonderful mother.''
He said he lives close to Bruce's home and saw a police helicopter over the neighborhood earlier in the day.
``When I heard that one (of the victims) was a lawyer whose husband was a professor at UGA I was afraid it was her,'' Tolley said. ``My heart breaks for the children.''
Shooting victim Teague described himself as ``a confirmed theater bum'' on a Web site that bears his name.
``For over 17 years I've spent most of my weekends (and a lot of evenings) working with a community theater company here in Athens,'' he wrote.
On the site, Teague said he had worked providing German to English translation services to business, industry, government and the law since 1972.
Teague said he grew up in East Tennessee and lived in Texas for several years. He moved to Athens in 1977.
Before joining the faculty at the University of Georgia, Zinkhan held academic positions at the universities of Houston and Pittsburgh. He has a doctorate from the University of Michigan and graduated from Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania in 1974.
Tom Reichert, a professor at the University of Georgia Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, knew Zinkhan from around the campus.
``This is a total shock,'' Reichert said. ``I wouldn't say he was particularly vivacious or particularly quiet. He was right down the middle.''
Associated Press writers Shannon McCaffrey, Walter Putnam, Bernard McGhee and Daniel Yee in Atlanta contributed to this report.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) Authorities were on a nationwide manhunt for a marketing professor in the shooting deaths of three people Saturday at a community theater near the University of Georgia.
Athens-Clarke County Police Capt. Clarence Holeman said the shooter was the ex-husband of one of the people killed, Marie Bruce, who was in her 40s. Police were looking for George Zinkhan, 57, who has been a professor at the university in Athens since the 1990s.
The other victims were a male in his 40s and another male in his 60s. The three were shot multiple times, Athens-Clarke County Coroner Sonny Wilson said.
Police were called to the Athens Community Theater less than a mile from campus about 12:25 p.m. and found three people shot to death outside, Holeman said. Two others were hit by shrapnel, and their conditions were not immediately known, Holeman said.
The shooting happened as local actors were gathered at the theater before an evening performance. Holeman said there was some sort of discussion, possibly a disagreement, between the shooter and one of the victims when the shooting took place. Holeman said a motive wasn't immediately known.
Two different guns were involved in the shooting, and neither was recovered at the scene, Holeman said. Investigators searched Zinkhan's house Saturday afternoon.
Authorities issued a nationwide alert for Zinkhan and his 2005 red Jeep Liberty with Georgia license plate AIX1376.
``Anyone who shoots three people is dangerous, that's the best way I can put it,'' Holeman said.
Dana Adams lives across the street from Zinkhan and said his two children played with hers.
Adams said she didn't know Zinkhan well and described him as ``kind of a strange character,'' who would sometimes walk off in the middle of a conversation. ``But I would never suspect this,'' Adams said.
Zinkhan has been a professor in the Terry College of Business, university spokesman Pete Konenkamp said. He didn't have any disciplinary problems.
``His track record is impeccable as far as his teaching credentials,'' Konenkamp said. ``He's a respected professor on campus.''
The university issued a campus-wide alert as a precaution.
In a statement, university President Michael F. Adams said the university community was shocked and saddened.
``Our first thoughts are for safety of the university community and for prompt apprehension of the person responsible,'' Adams said. ``Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of all those who have been affected.''
Before joining the faculty at the University of Georgia, Zinkhan held academic positions at the universities of Houston and Pittsburgh. He has a doctorate from the University of Michigan and graduated from Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania in 1974.
Tom Reichert, a professor at the University of Georgia Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, knew Zinkhan from around the campus.
``This is a total shock,'' Reichert said. ``I wouldn't say he was particularly vivacious or particularly quiet. He was right down the middle.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) One person was killed and another injured after an early morning shooting in Clayton County, police said.
Officers are looking for the gunman responsible for the shooting at a home at 1219 East Fayetteville Road. A police spokesman said there was a large crowd of people at the home when someone started shooting before 5 a.m Saturday. Officer Tim Owens told WSB Radio they are investigating to see why several people were there. He did not know if they were family members or friends.
The person that survived is in critical condition at a local hospital.
Police didn't immediately reveal motive or any possible suspects. The victim's names were not released.
MEXICO CITY (AP) The schools and museums are closed. Sold-out games between Mexico's most popular soccer teams are being played in empty stadiums. Health workers are ordering sickly passengers off subways and buses. And while bars and nightclubs filled up as usual, even some teenagers were dancing with surgical masks on.
Across this overcrowded capital of 20 million people, Mexicans are reacting with fatalism and confusion, anger and mounting fear at the idea that their city may be ground zero for a global epidemic of a new kind of flu a strange mix of human, pig and bird viruses that has epidemiologists deeply concerned.
Tests show 20 people in Mexico have died of the new swine flu strain, and that 48 other deaths were probably due to the same strain. The caseload of those sickened has grown to 1,004 nationwide, Mexico's Health Secretary Jose Angel Cordova said.
The same virus also sickened at least eight people in Texas and California, though there have been no deaths north of the border, puzzling experts at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Scientists have warned for years about the potential for a pandemic from viruses that mix genetic material from humans and animals. This outbreak is particularly worrisome because deaths have happened in at least four different regions of Mexico, and because the victims have not been vulnerable infants and elderly.
The most notorious flu pandemic, thought to have killed at least 40 million people worldwide in 1918-19, also first struck otherwise healthy young adults.
Authorities in the capital responded Friday with a sweeping shutdown of public places and events, urging people to stay home if they feel sick and to avoid shaking hands or kissing people on the cheeks.
Mexicans quickly got the message and wanted to make sure their family members did, too.
Cristina Ceron, a 55-year-old waitress, called her daughter as soon as she got off work. ``Please keep your mouth covered. And don't you eat street food,'' she pleaded through a white surgical mask.
President Felipe Calderon said his government only discovered the nature of the virus late Thursday, with the help of international laboratories. ``We are doing everything necessary,'' he said in a brief statement.
But the government had said for days that its growing flu caseload was nothing unusual, so the sudden turnaround, along with a flurry of warnings from disease experts, left many angry and confused.
``Why did it break out, where did it break out? What's the magnitude of the problem?'' said pizzeria owner David Vasquez, who was taking his family out to see ``Monsters vs. Aliens'' at a movie theater despite the urging of health officials that city residents stay home Friday night.
It was his son's 10th birthday, and he couldn't bear to cancel their outing. Vasquez said he would keep the family home the rest of the weekend.
The outbreak even hit Mexico's beloved national pastime two sold-out football matches Sunday Pumas vs. Chivas and America vs. Tecos will be played in empty stadiums to prevent the spread of the disease.
Health workers also staffed the international airport and bus and subway stations, handing out masks and trying to steer away anyone who appeared sick. Many commuters wore masks, but there weren't enough to go around. One woman leaving a station nervously pulled her sweater over her face as her companion laughed and rolled his eyes.
A nearby pharmacy put up signs reading ``We don't have masks'' in black magic marker after selling out all 150 in stock.
Scientists have long been concerned that a new killer flu could evolve when different viruses infect a pig, a person or a bird, mingling their genetic material. The resulting hybrid could spread quickly because people would have no natural defenses against it.
The WHO was convening an expert panel this weekend to consider whether to raise the pandemic alert level or issue travel advisories. The CDC and Canadian health officials were studying samples sent from Mexico, and some governments around Latin America said they would monitor passengers arriving on flights from Mexico.
But it may be too late to contain the outbreak, given how widespread the known cases are. If the confirmed deaths are the first signs of a pandemic, then cases are probably incubating around the world by now, said Dr. Michael Osterholm, a pandemic flu expert at the University of Minnesota.
No vaccine specifically protects against swine flu, and it is unclear how much protection current human flu vaccines might offer.
A ``seed stock'' genetically matched to the new swine flu virus has been created by the CDC, said Dr. Richard Besser, the agency's acting director. If the government decides vaccine production is necessary, manufacturers would need that stock to get started. Actually producing the vaccines could take months.
The CDC says two flu drugs, Tamiflu and Relenza, seem effective against the new strain. Roche, the maker of Tamiflu, said the company is prepared to immediately deploy a stockpile of the drug if requested. Both drugs must be taken early, within a few days of the onset of symptoms, to be most effective.
Cordova said Mexico has enough Tamiflu to treat 1 million people only one in 20 people in greater Mexico City alone and that the medicine will be strictly controlled and handed out only by doctors.
This swine flu and regular flu can have similar symptoms mostly fever, cough and sore throat, though some of the U.S. victims who recovered also experienced vomiting and diarrhea.
At Mexico's National Institute of Respiratory Illnesses, Adrian Anda waited to hear whether his 15-year-old daughter had the frightening new disease. She had been suffering a cough and fever for a week.
``If they say that it is, then we'll suffer. Until then, we don't want to think about it,'' he said.
Miguel Cruz, a 20-year-old office supply store employee, said his mother sent him to ask about vaccines at a public hospital. He was given masks instead, which he and his girlfriend wore as they relaxed in a plaza.
A little girl in dirty clothes came over to sell them candy. They gave her mask, too.
``You know, they stay here and end up sleeping on the streets,'' said Cruz, watching the giggling girl scamper off.
In Mexico City's Zona Rosa neighborhood, teenagers with spiky hair and tight jeans laughed at the danger.
``People are giving too much importance to something that isn't that big of a deal,'' said Oscar Zarate, 19, shouting over the loud music and the jostling crowd outside a packed night club.
But his friend Leroy Villaluna was slipping a blue surgical mask on and off.
``Well, I guess I am a little afraid,'' Villaluna said with an embarrassed laugh. ``And also, my mom was worried and told me that if I had to go out I should at least cover my mouth.''
Associated Press Writers Traci Carl, Mark Stevenson, Carlos Rodriguez and Istra Pacheco in Mexico City; Mike Stobbe in Atlanta; Malcolm Ritter in New York; and Maria Cheng in London contributed to this report.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Phil Orlandella, a spokesman for the Massachusetts Port Authority, says the 22-year-old Israeli man ran toward the cockpit and pounded on the door. He says passengers and crew helped to subdue the man.
The passengers are being held in Boston as investigators interview them and check their luggage. No other flights have been affected.
Anthony Black, a spokesman for Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines Inc., says Flight 86 had 206 passengers and 11 crew members aboard when it landed Friday night at Logan Airport. The plane had left New York about two hours earlier.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
DETROIT (AP) Matthew Stafford and the Detroit Lions agreed on a six-year deal Friday night, his agents told The Associated Press.
Tom Condon and Ben Dogra, who both represent Stafford, said the Lions will pay Stafford $41.7 million in guarantees and as much as $78 million.
Quarterback Matt Ryan, the No. 3 pick in last year's draft, was signed to a $72 million, six-year contract with $34.75 million guaranteed by the Atlanta Falcons.
Detroit desperately needs a quarterback to help turn around the NFL's first 0-16 team, which has had the worst eight-year stretch in the league since World War II, and is turning to Stafford after he was a starter in each of his three seasons at Georgia.
The Lions will formally take Stafford with the No. 1 pick in the draft Saturday.
They will have more chances to rebuild their team with the 20th overall selection, a second-round pick and a pair of slots in the third round.
Detroit general manager Martin Mayhew said earlier in the week the chances were ``very good'' an agreement would be reached with the No. 1 pick before the draft begins.
On the eve of the draft, the lucrative deal was done.
Stafford always seemed to be Plan A, but Wake Forest linebacker Aaron Curry and Baylor offensive tackle Jason Smith apparently were backup options.
Stafford will not be able to fix all the problems associated with a franchise that has been bad enough to go 31-97 since 2001 in what has been the worst eight-year stretch by an NFL team since the Chicago Cardinals won 23 percent of their games from 1936-43.
But the Lions can't afford to draft another bust.
``Obviously, the draft is the biggest crap shoot there is,'' Stafford recently acknowledged.
Recent No. 1 picks have proven that.
Eight of the past 11 players taken first overall in the NFL have been QBs, and half of them either haven't or didn't pan out for the teams that took them.
For every Peyton Manning and Carson Palmer, guys like Tim Couch and David Carr have shown there are no guarantees.
Stafford might get a chance to initially learn from the sidelines, backing up Daunte Culpepper.
First-year coach Jim Schwartz has said Detroit's staff studied Stafford extensively on film.
``We've seen every pass he's thrown in the last two years, and that's where you learn about his decision-making ability,'' Schwartz said last month.
The Lions also interviewed Stafford, attended his pro day at Georgia and had a private workout with him to learn more about him as a person.
Apparently, they're convinced he is the man to be the face, voice and arm of perhaps the biggest rebuilding project in NFL history.
He was 27-7 as a starter for the Bulldogs, throwing for nearly 51 touchdowns and nearly 8,000 yards with a powerful arm.
``I was relaxing and my hands were relaxing and the ball just shot through and hit me right in the face,'' Georgia teammate A.J. Green said last year.
Just before Schwartz was hired last winter, he joked that it was about time to replace Bobby Layne, who starred at quarterback for the Lions when they were an NFL power in the 1950s.
In a coincidence, Stafford and Layne both played at Highland Park High School in Dallas.
AP Football Writer Dave Goldberg in New York contributed to this report.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
CINCINNATI (AP) The best thing the Atlanta Braves did was stand and watch.
Jeff Francoeur hit a solo homer one of only four Atlanta hits and the Braves took advantage of the wildest performance in Edinson Volquez's career Friday night, walking their way to a 4-3 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.
Javier Vazquez (2-1) went six innings for the slumping Braves, who had lost seven of nine heading into the weekend series. They emerged from their rut with a lot of help from Volquez (2-2), who gave up only one hit in five innings Francoeur's homer but couldn't throw a strike when he needed one.
``We did a good job of not swinging at bad pitches tonight,'' manager Bobby Cox said. ``Volquez has no-hit stuff. It's tough to lay off his pitches, and we laid off some pitches.''
The right-hander has struggled with his control since spring training, and reached a new low against Atlanta. He walked a career-high seven batters and hit another in only five innings, helping the Braves pull ahead 3-2.
``I lost my release point,'' Volquez said. ``Honestly, I didn't know where the ball was going that inning. I couldn't throw strikes.''
The crowd booed last year's All-Star as he walked the bases loaded with two outs in the fourth, then walked Vazquez who hasn't had a hit since 2006 and Kelly Johnson to force in a pair of runs. The 40-pitch inning was the wildest by a Red since Ryan Dempster walked six in the second inning at Colorado on April 30, 2003.
``He helped me because he didn't throw a strike,'' Vazquez said of his first RBI since 2005. ``It's always good when you don't have to swing the bat.''
Volquez's wildness got under the Braves' skin in the third, when he hit Yunel Escobar in the side. The shortstop dropped his bat, took a few steps toward the mound and pointed at Volquez, who raised his arms in a puzzled gesture.
Plate umpire Tim Tschida stepped in front of Escobar and blocked his way, preventing it from escalating. Both benches and bullpens emptied, but it was mostly for show. Several players laughed as they milled around the infield.
``I don't know,'' Volquez said. ``I've never talked to him that much. He said, 'What are you trying to do?' I said, 'I'm trying to get inside.' I'm not going to hit him, especially with Chipper Jones coming up. I just missed my spot.''
The Reds were coming off one of their best road trips in the last five years they won all three series but couldn't keep the momentum going because they couldn't throw strikes. Cincinnati pitchers walked a season-high 10 batters. Three of them scored.
Vazquez has been solid since the Braves got him from the White Sox in a six-player deal last December. The right-hander has gone six innings in each of his four starts and allowed no more than three runs. Joey Votto and Alex Gonzalez had RBI singles off Vazquez, who struck out nine.
Gonzalez hit a sacrifice fly in the eighth, the first run allowed by Rafael Soriano this season. Left-hander Mike Gonzalez pitched a perfect ninth for his second save in three chances.
Jones went 0-for-5 on his 37th birthday. The third baseman had been a .500 career hitter with four homers on his birthdays.
Notes: The Braves placed OF Garret Anderson on the 15-day DL retroactive to Monday with a strained left thigh. Anderson had missed the last three games. ... C Brian McCann was a late scratch with blurriness in his left eye caused by a problem with his contact lenses, a problem that has bothered him the last few days. He expects to go on the DL and see a specialist. ... The Reds apologized because of a malfunction that left fans unable to buy tickets at some kiosks. Some of the 8,799 fans who bought tickets at the gates were late getting into the ballpark.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Tony Gonzalez announced his Super goal on his first full day as a member of the Atlanta Falcons.
``I'm here for one reason, and that's to win the Super Bowl,'' the All-Pro tight end said Friday. ``I haven't won a playoff game in my whole career. I want to come here, go to the playoffs and win playoff games. I want to go to the Super Bowl and win the Super Bowl. ``
Acquired in a trade Thursday from Kansas City, Gonzalez reiterated that he will always keep the Chiefs first in his heart, but the five-time All-Pro quickly acknowledged that Atlanta offered him a better chance to compete for a championship.
``The feeling is mutual,'' Gonzalez said. ``Kansas City is where I grew up. I'd just turned 21 when I got there. The last 12 years, it's just been great. I'm going to miss it, but I'm looking forward to being a part of what's happening here.''
Atlanta, which last year had a rookie quarterback in Matt Ryan, a first-time head coach in Mike Smith and a first-time general manager in Thomas Dimitroff, is coming off an 11-6 season that ended with a wild-card loss at Arizona.
Meanwhile, Kansas City finished 2-14, lost founding owner Lamar Hunt to cancer, accepted the abrupt resignation of longtime GM Carl Peterson and fired coach Herman Edwards.
Todd Haley, the new Chiefs coach whom Gonzalez never played for, called last weekend while the tight end was vacationing with his wife in New York City. Haley was relaying the message from new general manager Scott Pioli, once Dimitroff's boss, that the Falcons had agreed to trade Kansas City a 2010 second-round pick.
For Gonzalez, the time was right to move.
Nearly everything went Atlanta's way last year after a 2007 disaster that included the federal imprisonment of quarterback Michael Vick and the sudden resignation of first-year coach Bobby Petrino with three games remaining.
Dimitroff signed Michael Turner to a lavish contract, and the former San Diego backup finished second in the NFL in rushing. Receiver Roddy White earned his first Pro Bowl selection, and defensive end John Abraham his fourth.
Smith's staff helped nurture Ryan, the No. 3 overall draft, to become the NFL's offensive rookie of the year. After the trade for Gonzalez was completed Thursday, Smith called Ryan and asked him to call his new teammate.
``We've traded messages, but we haven't spoken yet,'' Gonzalez said. ``We will really soon, I'm sure. I can't wait to meet my new teammates.''
On the field, Gonzalez's production and durability are impressive. Yes, his 96 receptions covered 1,058 yards and 10 touchdowns last year. And he's the league's career leader among tight ends with 916 catches, 10,940 yards receiving, 76 TDs receiving and 26 games of at least 100 yards receiving.
``He's only missed two games in his entire career,'' Smith said. ``The only other stat I think that's amazing is that he's had just one lost fumble in his career. That happened in his second season.''
For Dimitroff, who only smiled when asked to compare this trade to the Patriots' acquisition two years ago of receiver Randy Moss for a fourth-round pick, the addition of Gonzalez could cause opposing coordinators and coaches to lose sleep.
``Tony still looks like he's 25 years old, and we believe he'll be an integral part of this offense,'' Dimitroff said. ``It'll open things up in the red zone. It'll open things up on the outside for our receivers. I think it's going to be a good situation for Michael Turner, as well, in play-action.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) Regulators on Friday shut down four more banks, boosting the number of failures this year to 29 more bank closures than in all of last year.
The latest banks seized were American Southern Bank in Georgia, Michigan Heritage Bank, First Bank of Idaho, and First Bank of Beverly Hills in California.
The FDIC will payout the insured deposits of First Bank of Beverly Hills. Regular deposit accounts are insured up to $250,000.
The Georgia Department of Banking and Finance took over American Southern Bank, based in Kennesaw. The FDIC said a majority of the bank's deposits will be assumed by Bank of North Georgia, based in Alpharetta. Bank of North Georgia will not assume $48.7 million in brokered deposits held by American Southern Bank. The FDIC said it will pay the brokers directly for the amount of their funds.
In addition to acquiring $55.6 million of the failed bank's deposits, Bank of North Georgia agreed to purchase about $31.3 million in assets. The FDIC will retain the rest for eventual sale.
Friday's bank closings mark the fifth in Georgia this year, with the last being Omni National Bank in Atlanta on March 29.
The list of bank failures is growing as falling home prices and rising unemployment cause more individuals and businesses to default on their debt.
The failures have sapped billions from the deposit insurance fund. It now stands at its lowest level in nearly a quarter-century, $18.9 billion as of Dec. 31, compared with $52.4 billion at the end of 2007.
The FDIC expects that bank failures will cost the insurance fund around $65 billion through 2013.
The 29 bank collapses this year follow 25 failures in 2008, which included two of the biggest savings and loans, Washington Mutual Inc. and IndyMac Bank. Last year's total was more than in the previous five years combined and up from only three failures in 2007.
The FDIC had 252 banks and thrifts on its list of troubled institutions at the end of 2008, up from 171 in the third quarter.
American Southern Bank customers with questions can call the FDIC toll-free at 800-323-6111.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Homeless men and women are easy to spot in Atlanta, lining downtown corners and crowding into city parks day and night.
But those weren't the folks outreach worker Joshua Gray sought Friday.
Instead he and other volunteers from StandUp For Kids scoured downtown Atlanta for homeless teens. They are fiercely independent, easier to overlook and far less likely to admit they don't have a home.
``The adult population, they come right out with who they are,'' said Gray, the head of kid support for the Atlanta chapter of the national nonprofit. ``A kid doesn't want that stigma, that label.''
StandUp volunteers are spending 48 hours this weekend combing the streets for homeless children they'll later steer toward supportive services. The push bookends a recent groundbreaking on a 39-apartment supportive housing complex that will serve homeless youths.
Both efforts target a population experts say could become the chronically homeless adults of tomorrow. StandUp estimates at least 2,500 homeless children live in Atlanta.
Atlanta has struggled to locate and house homeless teens, whose age often makes them too old to enter facilities for women and children, yet they are too vulnerable for adult shelters.
One of every 50 American children experiences homelessness, according to a March report issued by the National Center on Family Homelessness. A March report analyzing data from 2005-2006 estimated 1.5 million children were homeless at least once that year.
The same report ranked states' child homelessness per capita, child well-being, risk for child homelessness, and state policy and planning.
Georgia was in the bottom five.
Several factors confound outreach to the underserved population, says Protip Biswas, head of United Way Atlanta's Regional Commission on Homelessness. The commission recently organized a youth council that will examine the issue.
``We believe that we undercount the issue of homelessness for youth because they don't show up in large numbers we know they're there, but they don't reach out for help,'' Biswas said.
For one, many homeless youth don't ask for help because they don't consider themselves homeless, even if ``home'' is a rotating spot on someone's couch, Biswas said.
A homeless teen boy somewhat disheveled and prone to loitering can be hard to distinguish from the average teen boy.
``If you go to places like Little Five Points and Five Points on a weekend, you'll find groups like that, hanging out,'' Biswas said, referring to popular downtown Atlanta shopping districts. ``Many of them are homeless.''
Gray's team searches alleys, abandoned buildings, parks, and other public places looking for homeless youth.
``Shoes are a big teller most of our kids don't have the freshest sneakers,'' Gray said. ``The soles are really worn because they pound the pavement.''
Often he said volunteers recognize youth they see all the time. At Woodruff Park Friday, Gray spotted a tall, thin young woman. Nineteen-year-old Notrell Rose has been coming back and forth to the group's drop in center for months.
``They help me with finding a job, washing my clothes, stuff like that,'' she said.
The volunteers try to avoid directly asking if a kid is homeless; many of the youth would be offended, Gray said. Instead, they chat about basketball and upcoming events at the center, then subtly offer one of the backpacks full of snacks and toiletries they tote with them during outreach.
Those who come to the downtown center can get hot meals, showers, computers and if they want it advice on how to get help.
Help in Atlanta, however, is limited.
Biswas estimated there are approximately 50 shelter beds and 32 permanent supportive housing beds for homeless youth in the city.
The network of adult shelters, meanwhile, isn't ideal. Family shelters typically restrict youth once they reach teen years for fear of liability issues, explained Nan Roman, president of the Washington-based National Alliance to End Homelessness.
Left alone in adult shelters, Roman said teens can quickly become victims of abuse.
``It's a hole that exists across the country there's just not adequate shelter for youth,'' Roman said. ``Young people have a different set of needs.''
Those needs can reach beyond physical shelter, explained Kathy Colbenson, head of CHRIS Kids.
The Atlanta nonprofit recently broke ground on a $12.1 million supportive housing development for homeless youth and kids aging out of foster care and at risk for homelessness. The site, which is projected to open in the winter of 2010, will feature apartments for youths from 17-24.
On site counselors will offer the type of surrogate parenting adult shelters don't: Everything from help finding a first job to advice on managing money, Colbenson said.
On Friday, Gray geared up to work a 12-hour shift coaxing people not much younger than himself off streets where he says many of them get caught up in drugs, go to jail or worse.
``I like to think in some small way, this will affect changing that,'' he said.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) A Georgia man admitted in federal court Friday that he schemed to acquire millions of dollars in fraudulent mortgages and other loans while he was between prison sentences for other crimes.
Mark Anthony McBride, 43, of East Point pleaded guilty to conspiracy and to a bankruptcy fraud designed to delay foreclosures on dozens of fraudulently obtained properties.
U.S. Attorney David E. Nahmias said the case is disturbing because dozens of banks were damaged, including Omni National Bank, which was closed March 29 by federal regulators.
``Moreover, the U.S. bankruptcy courts in three states were abused by the defendant's eight fraudulent bankruptcy filings designed to delay property foreclosures and collection of scheme proceeds by his debtors,'' Nahmias said.
McBride could receive up to 35 years in prison and a fine of $1.25 million when he is sentenced July 9 by U.S. District Judge Jack Camp.
According to Nahmias and information presented in court:
McBride began a mortgage fraud scheme in 2001, immediately after being released from prison, and continued through 2002, when he had to report for another federal prison sentence.
Upon being released in November 2006, McBride continued the scheme by completing fraudulent mortgage loans, vehicle loans, lines of credit, credit cards and other extensions of credit. He used his own name, aliases and a number of stolen identities, including those of his children and other unqualified borrowers.
The fraudulent loans continued until he was arrested in September 2008 for violating probation.
He retained the proceeds by filing eight bankruptcy cases in Georgia, Alabama and South Carolina. The last one was in May 2008 in Atlanta, using a false name and stolen Social Security Number. The petition falsely stated he had never filed bankruptcy before.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
DECATUR (AP) DeKalb County District Attorney Gwen Keyes Fleming is reviewing a fifth-grader's suicide to determine whether an official investigation should be opened.
The 11-year-old boy was found dead at his home by a family member after he hanged himself on April 16, Fleming said. The DeKalb County medical examiner's office ruled the death a suicide.
Fleming said Friday she was prompted by calls from the media and citizens to look into the matter.
The boy's mother has said in television and newspaper interviews that he was bullied by other students at an elementary school in Stone Mountain. Fleming said she contacted the family briefly and arranged to speak to them next week about the death.
She plans to ask the family about any incident that might have occurred the day of the boy's death and any previous incidents where he might have been bullied, she said.
Once she speaks to the family and to school officials she will determine whether to proceed further. ``I do not want to speculate about what the evidence is and whether I would be able to bring any charges,'' she said.
Attempts by The Associated Press to contact the boy's family were not successful.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) A car involved in an Easter wreck that killed five people was repaired before authorities could locate it, and investigators are now examining whether any of the driver's family members should be charged with concealing a crime.
Aimee Michael, 22, told investigators she was driving a BMW when she set off a chain-reaction crash near the Atlanta airport that killed a family of four in one car and a 6-year-old girl in another. She has been charged with five counts of homicide by vehicle, one count of failure to maintain lane and one count of serious injury by vehicle, hit and run, Fulton County detective Melissa Parker said.
The BMW involved in the crash was repaired during the two weeks between the wreck and the time the car was located in a suburban Atlanta neighborhood, Fulton County police said.
``We are investigating all of the facts and circumstances surrounding this incident, including, but not limited to, any alleged concealment of the crime,'' District Attorney Paul Howard said in a statement Friday.
Michael told investigators she had gone to pick up ice cream and cake for her family when the crash occurred.
``She turned around, she went back home and she put the vehicle in the garage,'' Parker said. ``She told her mother that she did not feel well, had a headache, and went to her room.''
Parker said Michael ``didn't tell her family for a couple of days what had happened, and finally, she broke down and told her mother.''
An anonymous tip led police Wednesday to the Michael home, where they found the BMW in the driveway. They would not reveal information on repairs, saying that information was part of the ongoing investigation.
Michael's attorney, W. Scott Smith, did not return a telephone call from The Associated Press on Friday. He told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that Michael was a 2008 graduate from the University of Pittsburgh. She grew up in Philadelphia with her sister, Ashlei, 23, and parents, Sheila B. and Robert S. Michael.
Sheila Michael teaches second grade in Atlanta, and Robert Michael, who is retired from the military, is working in Saudi Arabia as a military contractor for Northrop Grumman, Smith said.
Killed in the crash were Robert and Delisia Carter, their newborn son, and Delisia Carter's 9-year-old daughter, Kayla. Also killed was 6-year-old Morgan Johnson, whose mother, Tracy Johnson, 43, of Atlanta was injured.
Delisia Carter, 38, was a motivational speaker who got married last summer. She wrote and lectured about rising above negativity. After her first marriage ended, she was homeless for a brief period.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
AUBURN, Ala. (AP) Kyle Maynard has won dozens of high school wrestling matches, competed in seven jiujitsu tournaments and bench pressed nearly 400 pounds, all despite being born with no elbows or knees, hands or feet.
On Saturday, the congenital amputee is venturing into a new athletic arena mixed martial arts. He is hoping to silence critics who wonder if can defend himself against the kicks, knees and punches of a full-bodied opponent.
``There are a lot of people that doubt I'll be able to last 30 seconds,'' the 23-year-old Maynard said. ``One of my goals is to go in there and prove I'm capable of it, thereby proving them wrong.''
It wouldn't be the first time.
Maynard, from suburban Atlanta, went 35-16 in wrestling matches as a senior at Collins High School, advancing to the national meet in the 103-pound weight class. He spent a year on a club team at the University of Georgia.
Now Maynard is making his MMA debut in Alabama after the Georgia Athletic Entertainment Commission denied him a license to fight in 2007, fearing he wouldn't be able to adequately defend himself or tap out to end the bout if he was in danger.
Alabama has no regulatory commission for boxing or MMA, freeing Maynard and promoter David Oblas to set up the match at Auburn Covered Arena.
The problem has been convincing opponents to fight him. Oblas, in an interview Wednesday, declined to identify Maynard's opponent, saying only that he is from Wisconsin and has had two MMA fights.
``We've had five or six guys back out of the fight, not because they wanted to back out, but more because of pressure from family and friends: 'What are you doing fighting a guy with no arms or legs?''' Oblas said. ``It's kind of a no-win situation for the other guy.''
And for Maynard? He admits the media attention and the criticism on MMA fan message boards puts a little more pressure on his muscular, 135-pound frame.
He acknowledges that some people think he craves attention, but said publicity isn't his goal.
``If I were doing this in a back alley somewhere with my trainer, a referee and my opponent, then I'd be satisfied,'' Maynard said. ``It's just a personal quest to figure out what I'm made of.''
He hardly needs more publicity. He has already delivered a couple of hundred speeches for the Washington Speakers Bureau, shared a stage with President Barack Obama and met such luminaries of business and sports as Bill Gates and Bo Jackson.
Then again, Saturday night's fight is supposed to provide the climactic scene of a documentary on Maynard entitled ``A Fighting Chance.''
MMA fans on chat boards have worried that Maynard might get hurt and wondered what he's doing in the event.
Oblas says he understands the skepticism, but points out few fighters around the same weight pack the power in their frames that Maynard has. With broad shoulders and a wrestler's thick neck, Maynard pounds out push-ups by easily propelling the lower part of his body into the air and uses cross-training methods in the suburban Atlanta gym he opened in December, aptly named No Excuses Athletics.
``I think if I read in a newspaper that someone with no arms and no legs is fighting in a different state that I'd never met, I'd say it was ridiculous,'' Oblas said. ``But once you meet Kyle and you see how thick he is, how strong he is, how much he works out, how good of an athlete he is, you'd know that he's not your average individual. He knows what he's doing out there, and he can defend himself.
``And he can inflict pain as well.''
Punching, kneeing, kicking, choke holds? Maynard is determined to enjoy the experience.
``There's some pressure,'' he said. ``I'm not going to make any excuses about it. I'm going to go out there and have a good time. Instead of being consumed about what could happen, I'm just going to go out and have fun. I can't imagine approaching the cage with anything but a huge smile on my face.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Anderson had to leave an 11-1 win over Pittsburgh last Sunday with tightness in his thigh. He missed the next three games.
The move was retroactive to April 20. Anderson was batting .200 without an RBI in 10 games.
The Braves called up outfielder Brandon Jones from Triple-A Gwinnett, where he was batting .308 in 14 games. He played in 41 games for the Braves last season, batting .267 with one home run and 17 RBIs.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
MIAMI (AP) Dwyane Wade needed only a millisecond to explain how much the home-court edge means in the NBA playoffs.
``Easy. It's huge,'' Wade said.
Especially when Atlanta Hawks are visiting, it seems.
Few teams are more woebegone on the postseason road than the Hawks, who haven't won a playoff game outside of Atlanta since May 8, 1997 so long ago that Wade hadn't played a varsity high school game.
Atlanta is 0-11 in road playoff games since, blown out in 10 of those. Miami will aim to extend that drought Saturday, when it hosts the Hawks in Game 3 of an Eastern Conference first-round series tied at one win apiece.
``Anything is possible,'' Hawks guard Joe Johnson said. ``Even though we haven't done great on the road, I think we can go down there and do it.''
Atlanta is one of only five teams that came into Miami this season and pulled off a double-digit victory, beating the Heat 87-73 on Dec. 12. But for whatever reason, postseason games and road uniforms haven't mixed well for the Hawks, who made a splash by taking eventual champion Boston to seven games in the first round a year ago.
Maybe it wasn't such a close series. The Hawks lost road games in Boston by 23, 19, 25 and 34 points forgettable outcomes, but experiences Atlanta wants to remember nonetheless.
``We know how bad it got on the road and how intense it was in Boston,'' Hawks forward Al Horford said. ``We kind of know what to expect and that way we can play through it.''
Still, if the Hawks don't get a win before this series shifts back to Atlanta on Wednesday for Game 5, they'll be in deep trouble.
``We should be better,'' Hawks coach Mike Woodson said. ``We're a better team overall this season. I feel totally different than I did last year playing the Celtics on the road. But I don't feel too bad after taking the Celtics to seven because nobody in the playoffs beat the Celtics on their floor.''
Miami grabbed control of the series with an 108-93 win in Game 2 at Atlanta on Wednesday night, swiftly erasing the memory of the Hawks' 26-point cakewalk that opened the best-of-seven.
Firing up the Heat after a loss, coach Erik Spoelstra said, was easy.
Keeping that fire stoked for nearly three full days after a win, that's what Spoelstra views as the vital challenge.
``We have to. We have to continue to stay on edge,'' Spoelstra said. ``We were a different team and the mind-set was different last game. We can't relax.''
That part has been an ongoing struggle for Miami all season. After losses, the Heat are 29-11. After wins, just 15-28.
``There shouldn't be any excuses,'' Heat center Jermaine O'Neal said. ``Even the young players can understand, these two games coming up at home would solidify what we did by winning up there in Game 2.''
In that Game 2 win, Miami did all the things Atlanta will try on Saturday get off to a quick start to neutralize the crowd, keep the lead throughout and quickly snuff out any rallies that might give the home fans any reason to get rowdy.
It's what the Hawks have talked about ever since Game 2 ended.
``We've got to have a great start,'' Woodson said, before his team headed to Miami. ``Again, we're playing in a hostile environment, just like they came in here in front of our fans. ... We'll tweak a few things and see what happens.''
The Heat expect a sold-out crowd, with most fans dressed head-to-toe in black a playoff promotion Miami tried in Wade's rookie season, with great success.
The 2006 NBA finals MVP said he's eager to experience that environment again, but knows a wild crowd won't guarantee anything.
``At the end of the day, that's not enough to win a game,'' Wade said. ``We have to play the game. We have to control the game.''
Notes: Heat F Jamario Moon (sore groin) was held out of Friday's practice, but may play Saturday. ... Miami is 23-6 in home playoff games with Wade. ... Hawks point guard Mike Bibby was on the winning side in his first five career playoff road games, but his teams have gone 4-20 away from home in the postseason since.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) This is the last weekend for visitors wanting to see the Carter presidential library and museum before the facility undergoes a $10 million renovation.
Starting Monday, The Jimmy Carter Library and Museum will be closed. It will reopen on Oct. 1 to coincide with Carter's 85th birthday.
The facility was built in 1986 and it is the only presidential library in the Southeast and one of only 13 around the country.
Except for the Oval Office replica, the museum will be entirely new. The 24,000-square-foot facility will be more interactive and will feature more personal insights from Carter's presidency. It will also focus on his work through The Carter Center to fight poverty and disease and champion peace and democracy worldwide.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) Six teenagers are under arrest, charged with recent vandalisms that caused major damage to a Cherokee County church.
New Hightower Baptist Church is on Shoal Creek Road, in Canton. Authorities say the teens burned church hymnals inside the building, while also causing extensive damage to the church's air system.
The church was hit by the vandals twice this year, according to Hunton. The first time was on March 27, then it was struck again on April 3.
"There was quite a bit of damage done to the church," Cherokee County Sheriff's Major Ron Hunton tells WSB. "Over $100,000 and that may be conservative.
"First of all, they turned over some 40 tombstones in the church cemetary," Hunton says. "When I say turned over, they also broke some."
The teens range in age from 14 to 16. Hunton says they have not revealed their motive for the vandalism.
"They didn't offer anything other than saying they went over there to tear the church up," he says.
The teens are in custody at the Youth Detention Center in Paulding County.
The 122 year old church has been the target of vandalism before.
An 18 year old, saying he was avenging his father's murder, burned the church down in 1990.
Heels.com will hand out dozens of pairs of new shoes and gift certificates to job seekers at the Atlanta Workforce Development Agency's center, at 818 Pollard Blvd. in Atlanta Tuesday.
The giveaway is in conjunction with a job fair the agency is presenting.
To be eligible, visitors must be at the center for help finding employment.
The Georgia Department of Labor reported this week that the city's unemployment rate was at 9.1 percent in March.
Heels.com spokeswoman Linda McCoy says the company is trying to help the unemployed through a difficult period with something everybody can use.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio/AP) -- Airplane collisions with birds have more than doubled at 13 major U.S. airports since 2000, according to Federal Aviation Administration data released for the first time Friday.
Topping the list of airports where planes were either substantially damaged or destroyed by birds since 2000 were John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York with at least 30 such accidents and Sacramento International Airport in California with at least 28 such accidents. Kennedy, the nation's 6th busiest airport, is located amid wetlands that attract birds, and Sacramento International, the nation's 40th busiest, abuts farms whose crops draw birds.
Over that same period, 7 accidents at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport involved damage that was considered substantial.
The first disclosure of the entire FAA bird strike database, including the first-ever release of the locations of strikes, came thanks largely to pressure after the dramatic ditching of a US Airways jet in the Hudson River after bird strikes knocked out both of its engines in January.
The FAA list, published on the Internet, details more than 89,000 incidents since 1990, including 28 cases since 2000 when a collision with a bird or other animal such as a deer on a runway was so severe that the aircraft was considered destroyed.
Lovell Field, in Chattanooga, registered the greatest increase in wildlife strikes, going from four reported incidents in 2000 to 55 in 2008 a 1,275 percent increase.
Reports also doubled at some of the nation's busiest airports, including New Orleans, Houston's Hobby, Kansas City, Orlando and Salt Lake City.
Wildlife experts have said the population of some birds, particularly large ones like Canada geese, has been growing as more and more birds find the food to live near cities and airports year round rather than migrating.
All told, pilots reported striking 59,776 birds since 2000. The most common strike involved mourning doves; pilots reported hitting 2,291 between 2000 and 2008. Other airborne victims included gulls (2,186), European starlings (1,427) and American kestrels (1,422).
A single United Airlines 737 passenger jet suffered at least 29 minor collisions with birds and one accident involving a small deer more than any other plane since 2000. In only one case was damage significant, when the jet climbed out of Philadelphia International Airport into a flock of gulls flying at 1,000 feet the night of Jan. 30, 2006. The pilot declared an emergency after at least one engine sucked in a large gull and began vibrating badly. No one was hurt, but the airline spent about $37,000 in repairs.
The same plane has experienced incidents in San Francisco; Salt Lake City, Utah; San Jose, Calif.; Houston; Denver; Toronto; New Orleans; Chicago and Spokane, Wash. Its most recent incident was weeks before Thanksgiving when it struck a single small bird during takeoff in Denver.
(WSB Radio) -- Lightning produced by Thursday night's strong thunderstorms is believed to be responsible for dozens of fires around metro Atlanta.
The most significant damage was to the Century Crest Apartments on Barrett Lakes Boulevard in Kennesaw.
Cobb Fire spokeswoman Denelle Boyd tells Channel 2 Action News no one was hurt, but several residents of the complex were treated at the scene for minor smoke inhalation. The fire damaged or destroyed a dozen units at the complex.
House fires were also reported in east Cobb's Indian Hills subdivision, as well as in Dekalb and Gwinnett counties.
ATLANTA (AP) A spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration says the tower that serves Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport was briefly evacuated after a lightning strike, but employees were returning to their jobs.
FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen says the workers were evacuated at 8:49 p.m. Thursday after a smoky odor was detected in the tower during a thunderstorm. She says arrivals and departures had already been suspended because of the storm and accompanying wind shear.
She says all equipment has been restarted except the airport's ground radar system, and that the airport can operate without it. She says arrivals are resuming and departures are expected to resume about 9:30 p.m.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) It's another way that federal stimulus money is helping Georgia's economy.
A couple of big highway projects in Gwinnett County that had been on indefinite hold because of tight budgets can now move ahead, thanks to $38 million from Washington.
The DOT says they should be able to start work this summer on extending McGinnis Ferry Road and building a new four-lane bridge on Gravel Springs Road, over I-85 near the Mall of Georgia.
"Honestly, with the state funding shortfalls that they've had over the last few years, both these projects were in the risk of being moved out into the long range," says the DOT's Brian Allen.
The projects are expected to be completed in 2-3 years.
(WSB Radio) Two Fulton County jail deputies face federal charges of violating the civil rights of inmates.
46 year old Lieutenant Robert Hill and Lieutenant Earl Glenn, 47, both of McDonough, were arrested Thursday.
"Most prison guards carry out their very dangerous jobs with a lot of honor and integrity," U.S. Attorney David Nahmias tells WSB. "These officers, supposedly, beat somebody and then, equally disturbing, covered it up."
The guards are also charged with obstructing justice, filing a false report and making false statements to federal investigators.
A third guard was indicted on similar charges last month.
(WSB Radio) DeKalb County's tax appraiser will reassess property values after all.
At first Hank Ruffin suggested he would not budge on appraisals, although property values in the county have dropped.
But, deKalb County CEO Burrell Ellis instructed Ruffin to abide by a new state law that requires assessors to take foreclosures and bank failures into account when setting taxable value.
The review should take about a month.
(WSB Radio) The University of Georgia doesn't foresee any layoffs or furloughs this year.
President Michael Adams there will be no such moves over the next fiscal year.
"We should be able to teach our classes, to adequately serve our students and to hope for better days in the legislature in the general economy," says Adams. He says moves the school has already made should be enough. "With the changes in tuition and those cuts, we'll frankly be at a steady state."
But, Adams says, if state revenues decline and further funding cuts are made, then "all bets are off."
(WSB Radio) The Westin in downtown Atlanta is finally getting some new windows.
The hotel lost 81 windows when a tornado swept through the area in March of 2008. The broken glass has not been replaced and drivers in Atlanta can see the gaping holes in the high rise's facade.
The problem for the hotel is that the glass was custom made and they don't meet the city code anymore. So, the Westin is replacing all their windows. New glass has been ordered and should arrived this summer.
Once work crews begin replacing and installing the new glass, which will begin in June or July, it will take about a year before the hotel has it's new look.
Police Sgt. Tim Peek says 25-year-old Demario White and 26-year-old Timothy Thomas are charged with murder in the death of 16-year-old Nick Martin.
Martin was killed by a single bullet to the head.
A family member says Martin's half-brother, 15-year-old Andre Johnson, who lost an eye in the shooting, remains in stable condition at Grady Memorial Hospital.
Police are searching for as many as eight suspects in the attack.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) -- DeKalb County's district attorney is exploring possible charges, after a bullied 11 year old hanged himself.
DA Gwendolyn Keyes Fleming has not opened a formal investigation, but WSB News has learned she plans to question parents and educators about Jaheem Herrera's suicide before making any decision as to how the case proceeds.
Jaheem, who attended Dunaire Elementary School, hanged himself on April 16. His mother, Masika Bermudez, said she had complained to school officials about the bullying and taunts Jaheem endured. On one occasion, Jaheem was choked in the bathroom, she said.
In the wake of Jaheem's suicide, other students' parents have come forward to describe other alleged acts of violence at Dunaire. Some parents said their children were the victims of beatings with buckles and chokings.
(WSB Radio) -- If you are still waiting for your state tax refund, be prepared to wait a bit longer.
Reduced staffing due to state budget cuts means fewer workers are processing the returns, according to Georgia Revenue Commissioner Bart Graham.
Graham tells WSB's Sandra Parrish that cuts of $8 million to his department means no second or third shift to process paper returns.
Taxpayers "are going to have to expect that it is going to take longer and we are encouraging those who have not filed yet to do so electronically," said Graham.
He says those who filed closer to April 15th will have the longest delays. Those filing by paper before April 1st should expect to wait 10-12 weeks.
ATLANTA (AP) The Atlanta Falcons boosted their hopes for another trip to the playoffs by acquiring tight end Tony Gonzalez from the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday for a draft pick next year.
The Chiefs insisted they also improved their chances for success in 2009 by making the trade.
The Falcons will send a second-round pick in 2010 to Kansas City in exchange for Gonzalez, the only tight end in NFL history selected to 10 Pro Bowls.
Gonzalez caught 96 passes for 1,058 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2008. He owns NFL career records for tight ends with 916 receptions, 10,940 yards receiving, 76 TDs receiving and 26 100-yard receiving games.
One of the most popular athletes Kansas City has ever had in any sport, Gonzalez said leaving the town and its fans is not easy.
``I love Kansas City,'' he said in an interview with The Associated Press. ``The fans have been unbelievable to me. I'm going to miss them. This is a happy day for me, but in many ways it's a sad day, too. I'm going to miss running out that tunnel and seeing that sea of red in those stands.''
When he was drafted in the first round out of California, passing up his senior season, he had just turned 21.
``And now I'm leaving at 33. It's been a huge part of my life,'' he said. ``When I retire, I'm going to retire a Chief. It's been a beautiful, beautiful ride in Kansas City. I'm not selling my home there.''
He also plans to keep his window-cleaning business, Xtreme Clean 88, in Kansas City and be active in Shadow Buddies, a Kansas City-based charity which distributes kits and educational materials to kids and the elderly.
``Kansas City will always be a big part of my life,'' he said. ``At the same time, I don't know how many years I have left to play. Now I'm looking forward to making a Super Bowl run in Atlanta. I hope the fans in Kansas City will understand.''
Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli said it wasn't easy to trade the star, who played in 188 regular-season games for Kansas City.
``From an organizational as well as personal standpoint there are mixed emotions,'' Pioli said. ``I have the highest personal and professional respect for Tony and consider him to be a future Pro Football Hall of Famer.''
Pioli said the Chiefs, 2-14 in 2008, did not pursue a trade for Gonzalez, but agreed when the Falcons offered a second-round pick.
``This is something we really feel was a decision in the best short-term and long-term interest of the Chiefs,'' Pioli said, adding the 2010 draft pick could be used in another deal to acquire more picks in this weekend's draft.
``It may be that pick next year or it may be a pick this year or several picks,'' Pioli said.
Chiefs chairman Clark Hunt called Gonzalez ``one of the finest players in Chiefs history.''
Gonzalez will provide a dramatic new look for the Falcons, who were 11-5 last year with rookie quarterback Matt Ryan starting every game.
``Tony's arrival will make an instant impact not only on the offensive side of the ball, but on the overall team in general,'' said Ryan, the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. ``I feel privileged to be throwing the ball to a future Hall of Famer and I'm anxious to get on the field to start working with him.''
Ryan has a new target and the Falcons have a new leader, but what about newly acquired Chiefs quarterback Matt Cassel? Pioli said there's still plenty of time to bolster the Chiefs' offense before the season.
``There's a lot of time between now and then for us to continue to shape our roster,'' Pioli said.
When asked how he would replace Gonzalez, new Chiefs coach Todd Haley said, ``I don't know I have a direct answer for that right now.
``This is what we felt was best for us right now all things considered,'' Haley added. ``We're doing everything we can to give ourselves the best chance to win games in 2009 and that's what we as a group felt was the best way to go.''
The 33-year-old Gonzalez, who has three years remaining on his contract, asked to be traded last October. But then-general manager Carl Peterson said no team Gonzalez was willing to go to made a good enough offer.
The trade addresses one of the Falcons' top needs, freeing the organization to make defense the top priority in this weekend's draft.
The Falcons expect to receive compensatory picks next year for losing several free agents, including cornerback Domonique Foxworth and linebackers Michael Boley and Keith Brooking, making it easier for the team to trade the second-round pick to the Chiefs.
Gonzalez will join Pro Bowl receiver Roddy White to give the Falcons more passing balance.
``Anybody would be excited to be a part of that offense,'' Gonzalez told the AP. ``With Michael Turner, Matt Ryan and the other guys, we have a chance to be in the top five in the league in offense.''
Before making the trade, Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff said, ``Every team in this league dreams of having Tony Gonzalez run out of the tunnel for them.''
After realizing that dream, Dimitroff said Gonzalez will add ``a new dynamic to the Falcons' offense.''
``His career numbers and records are top-notch and he will no doubt be an integral part of our offense,'' Dimitroff said.
The Falcons said Gonzalez will be in Atlanta for a news conference on Friday.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
WASHINGTON (AP) President Barack Obama said Thursday he is determined to get a credit-card law that eliminates the tricky fine print, sudden rate increases and late fees that give millions of consumers headaches.
``I trust that those in the industry who want to act responsibly will engage with us in a constructive fashion, and that we're going to get this done in short order,'' Obama said, delivering a pointed message to leading executives of credit-card issuing companies after a closed-door White House meeting.
Both the House and the Senate are pursuing bills to give consumers greater protections as an expansion of new rules slated to take effect next year. Obama said his economic advisers will examine the various proposals and work with Congress and the industry, but he made clear he wants to sign a bill into law.
``The days of any time, any reason rate hikes and late fee traps have to end,'' Obama said.
At issue is how to protect consumers, particularly in a deep recession, while not imposing the kind of rules that could make it harder for banks to offer credit or put credit out of reach for many borrowers.
Industry executives left the White House without talking to reporters.
Later, one of the participants, American Bankers Association president Edward Yingling, said the executives listened to Obama's concerns and ``agreed to work with the administration to address them.'' In a statement on behalf of the executives, he said consumer protection must be balanced with ``ensuring that credit remains available to consumers and small businesses at a reasonable cost.''
The credit-card executives made the case in the meeting that the sweeping rules already ordered by the Federal Reserve, due to take effect next year, address many of the concerns held by the president and Congress.
``He disagreed with that case and believed that more needed to happen,'' White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said of Obama.
So Obama outlined the principles for any legislation: Protections so that consumers won't face sudden, surprising jumps in fees; requirements that companies publish their forms in plainspoken language, with no more fine print; the availability of customer-friendly comparison shopping on credit-card offers; and greater enforcement so that violators feel the full weight of the law.
The president made no mention of the responsibility of consumers to keep themselves from getting overextended.
As one possibility, Obama said it may help if all credit-card issuers offer a basic, ``plain-vanilla'' card as a default option for consumers.
The president also acknowledged the importance of credit cards; almost 80 percent of U.S. households have one.
Credit cards often serve as a vital source of liquidity, both for individuals and small businesses.
Credit-card debt has increased by 25 percent in the past 10 years, reaching $963 billion by January, according to figures released by the White House. The average outstanding credit card debt for households that have a credit card was $10,679 at the end of 2008, according to CreditCard.com, an online marketplace designed to link consumers and card issuers.
The Federal Reserve has already ordered new rules, to take effect July 2010, that are designed to enforce a host of new consumer protections.
On Thursday, Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., chairman of the Banking Committee, and another panel member, Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., wrote a letter asking the Federal Reserve, the Office of Thrift Supervision and the National Credit Union Administration to enforce those rules immediately.
The effect would be put emergency freeze on interest rates tied to existing balances on credit cards. A Federal Reserve spokeswoman said the Fed received the letter and was considering the issues raised in it.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) A first-grader at Oglethorpe Avenue Elementary School has been arrested on charges he attacked his teacher.
Athens-Clarke County police say the 8-year-old repeatedly hit his teacher in front of his classmates Tuesday. Police say he then went outside the classroom and ``wildly'' waved a large stick.
The boy was restrained by a principal and two teachers until police arrived.
He has been charged with battery, disruption of school functions and disorderly conduct. The boy is in his mother's custody.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) One of the oldest known Sumatran tigers in the U.S. has died at Zoo Atlanta.
Zoo President and CEO Dennis Kelly said Thursday the 21-year-old cat, called Sekayu (Seh-KYE-yoo), was euthanized after her health declined. Zoo spokeswoman Keisha Hines-Davis says veterinarians had been treating her for age-related health issues.
Sekayu came to Zoo Atlanta in 1993 after spending time at the Phoenix Zoo. She was born at the San Diego Zoo in 1987.
Zoo Atlanta has two other Sumatran tigers, which are considered to be the world's most critically endangered tigers. Researchers believe there are less than 400 left in the wild.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Winter rains have raised Lake Lanier to its highest level since August 2007 and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has decided to release additional water down the Chattahoochee River.
The lake, which supplies much of the Atlanta area's drinking water, was within eight feet of its full pool on Thursday at 1,063 feet.
Florida and Alabama opposed the corps' decision last year to reduce releases from November through April 30.
Georgia Environmental Protection Division Director Carol Couch, who previously requested the reduced releases, did not make such a request this time. She said sending less water down the river in May as the weather gets warmer could harm the trout population.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) The woman charged in the Easter Sunday wreck that killed five people, including three children, will remain in jail.
Aimee Michael was handcuffed and wearing a blue Fulton County jail outfit as she stood before Judge James Altman in the jail's courtroom.
Michael's attorney, Scott Smith, citing the fact that his client is a permanent Georgia resident and has no prior record, asked the judge to place Michael under house arrest. A pretrial report supported that request.
The judge would have none of it.
"If she had come forward after this happened and turned herself in, I'd probably go along with the pretrial, but I'm not going to," Judge Altman told Smith. "She, in fact, he watched this be on the news for two weeks and has done absolutely nothing to fulfill her responsibilities."
Michael, 22, was arrested after a tip led police to her BMW. The car is the one that collided with a Mercedes on Camp Creek Parkway April 12.
Both vehicles crossed the median, with the Mercedes crashing, head-on, into a Volkswagon. The BMW, driven by Michael, sped off.
The family in the Mercedes, including a 9 year old girl and two month old boy, were killed, as was a 6 year old girl riding with her mother in the Volkswagon.
Police say Michael has confessed to being the driver of the BMW. She faces multiple charges, including five counts of vehicular homicide.
She'll remain locked up in the Fulton County jail for at least two weeks when she will have another court appearance.
(WSB Radio) The FDA is now part of the investigation into the death of those 21 polo ponies in Florida, and there's a Georgia connection.
WSB's Bob Coxe reports new attention is focusing on a supplement called Biodyl, a vitamins-and-minerals compound that was given to the Venezuelan horses shortly before they died last Sunday. A member of the Venezuela polo team told an Argentian newspaper that they regularly use it to help the ponies fight exhaustion, and that five horses who did not get the supplement were fine. Twenty-one others of the Lechuza Caracas team staggered and died at the U. S. Open match.
Steve Dickinson is head of corporate communications for Duluth-based Merial Ltd., which makes the supplement in France. It's not approved for use in the United States, but is widely used in other countries.
"It's exceedingly rare that any adverse reactions have ever happened with this product, so we're puzzled by it, too," Dickinson tells WSB.
Dickinson said Thursday morning that they had not been contacted by any officials involved with the investigation, but that they would cooperate fully if asked. He says Biodyl is mostly used to recondition racehorses and jumpers after exercise, but is also indicated for muscle fatigue and muscle conditions. It's for veterinary use only, has a procedure for proper administration, and should not be combined with anything else containing similar ingredients, he explains.
While Merial is waiting to hear the results of necropsy results like everyone else, Dickinson says he is doubtful Biodyl played any role.
"A great deal of quality assurance goes into every batch of every chemical and vaccine that Merial makes before it's ever released, so that's highly unlikely," says Dicinkson.
(WSB Radio) Atlanta. You're off to the airport, jumping on the train, dashing to the T-gates, sitting and waiting on your flight...when the PA system starts blasting a familiar tune. You tap your foot, bob your head, dance a little in your seat.
Hey! It's Lakeside! Singing "Fantastic Voyage!"
Come in soon, anticipate our new concessions!
Take a look, you will see
Giving you more choice!
Come in soon, anticipate our new concessions
Wait. What?
Shop, dine, explore
Making passengers happy
Listen here to Lakeside's "Our New Concessions"
You heard right. Your fantastic voyage through the world's busiest airport now comes with its own soundtrack. And it has a purpose.
"We're the world's busiest airport, and we want to be one of the world's cleanest airports," says Doug Strachan, Creative Innovations Manager at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport. He tells WSB's Veronica Waters that the songs encourage fliers to shop, dine, and explore the airport's restaurants and stores, or to simply help keep the place clean.
Go-Go king Chuck Brown sings to the tune of "Bustin' Loose,"
Please throw your trash away
Throw it away, now
Throw away after eating
Littering you'll be beating
Throw away all your plastic
Cleaning up is fantastic
Listen here to Chuck Brown's "We're Steady Cleaning Up"
"Music has the power to motivate and to affect emotions," says Strachan. Inspired by a parody the airport staffers put together to applaud morale and customer service, Strachan began to wonder how tunes could be used to inspire passengers, too.
The cleaning service estimates it costs $1.5 million a year just to clean up behind passengers at the gates, he says, so if they could get fliers to throw their own trash away, they could divert the cleaners to more important areas--like the restrooms--without passing the cost along to the 250,000 customers who travel through the airport daily. But, he says, they didn't want to distract fliers who are focusing on the logistics of making their flights on time.
"People will hear a song that they like that was a hit, begin to enjoy it, they'll notice something different, think about what that difference is, and it'll become memorable," Strachan tells WSB. "R&B has the right vibe for what we're trying to accomplish. We needed upbeat songs, songs that were hits, songs that had a move-to-the-beat quality, songs that people would respond to."
Strachan says he spent 40 hours penning each tune, and approached the original artists with the idea.
"At first, it was a little bit of--I wouldn't say disbelief, but there was a little pause. The very first one we started with was Peaches and Herb. I've got to say, all of them were gracious," Strachan says about the singers considering the changes to the classic hits. "They love them, they know other people love them, and their concern is that they don't want to denigrate them."
But then the songs started to "suggest themselves," says Strachan, and the artists were happy to be a part of the airport grooving. Imagine the tune "Shake Your Groove Thing" with these lyrics:
Opening Day fresh,
Opening Day fresh, yeah yeah
Hartsfield-Jackson do it now!
"When you hear "Keep It Opening Day Fresh," it's Peaches and Herb; when you hear "We're Steady Cleaning Up" it's Chuck Brown, and when you hear "Our New Concessions," it's Lakeside featuring Mark Adam Wood, Tom Shelby and Will Shelby," says Strachan.
Oh, can't you see
Hartsfield-Jackson wants to serve you
That's right, we mean it
We want to serve
Your happiness we pursue
One of the tunes plays every hour, mixed in with about a dozen or so others on a playlist. Song snippets can also be heard more frequently with a PSA voiceover.
Strachan says it seems to be working. He reports that the cleaning service at Hartsfield-Jackson says more passengers are now actually throwing their own trash away at the gates. They want more songs added to the playlist.
"We do think that they're getting the message across," he says. "We've occasionally seen a passenger shaking their groove thing to keep it opening day fresh up the escalator."
(WSB Radio) -- Fulton County police have a woman in custody in the Easter Sunday wreck on Camp Creek Parkway that killed 5 people.
Investigators tell WSB's Richard Sangster that Aimee Michael, 22, confessed and that she faces 5 counts of vehicular homicide.
The development comes a day after investigators said they had found a BMW that was involved.
Acting on a tip, SWAT officers converged on a home in south Fulton Wednesday afternoon and impounded the vehicle in the driveway. Police spokeswoman Sgt. Melissa Parker told WSB that officers went into the home but found no one there.
At 6:45 p.m., a plum-colored Ford Expedition pulled into the Walden Park subdivision. When the car went into the garage, three to four Fulton County police officers rushed in as a woman got out of the SUV. A Fulton County SWAT officer then shut the garage door.
Shortly after 7, police left the residence with three women, who police said had agreed to be questioned.
None of the women were handcuffed, but were led to police cars that carried them away.
Two of the women were released around 3:30 a.m. Thursday.
Robert and Delisia Carter, their newborn son, and Delisia Carter's 9-year-old daughter, Kayla, died in the chain-reaction crash near Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Also killed was 6-year-old Morgan Johnson, whose mother, 43-year-old Tracy Johnson of Atlanta was injured.
The driver of the BMW, which first collided with the Carters' vehicle, left the scene.
(WSB Radio) -- It may not be a big drop, but it is encouraging.
The Georgia Department of Labor reports that the unemployment rate in the metro Atlanta area declined slightly to 9.1 percent in March, down from a revised 9.2 percent in February.
The March jobless rate was up 3.9 percentage points from 5.2 percent at this same time last year.
Meanwhile, the state's seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate was 9.2 percent in March, unchanged from a revised 9.2 percent in February. The "unchanged" March unemployment rate is significant because this is the first time in 20 months that the rate did not increase over the previous month, according to the department.
(WSB Radio) DeKalb County residents are griping over property taxes that are not going down, even though property values are.
The county says it will not cut taxes in the face of the deep downturn in the real estate market and the huge jump in the number of foreclosures.
"They don't want to re-evaluate it, because they know those properties aren't going to be worth what they assessed them for," says mortgage banker Mark Baker. "That would lower the amount of taxes that they can collect and put into their budget."
The county's chief tax assessor says he is not going to take into account "real world" values when figuring what property owners owe.
Hank Ruffin says every county is different and that's the way things will be done in DeKalb.
Baker doesn't like it.
"No, I don't think that's fair," he tells WSB. "We have customer day after day that comes to us to refinance and they're told, based on accurate market appraisals that they don't have the value they had when they bought the house," Baker says, "so how can the county claim the value is there just so they can collect more taxes?"
(WSB Radio) Grady Hospital's new CEO says the $785,000 they paid an outside consultant to run their patient revenue department was money well spent.
Michael Young also says the hospital plans on going more local. But he says Cheri Kane was worth it.
"This woman is making a lot of money, there's no doubt about it," Young says, "but, without her, I wouldn't be sitting here talking to you, because the doors would have been closed five months ago."
"The last three months have been the largest cash collections," Young tells WSB.
He says the cash flow was vitally important to the Level 1 trauma center that was close to closing its doors.
"Our cash was declining, so bringing in cash was very, very, very important to us," Young says, "because we give away this $300 million a year in free care."
Young, who has been Grady's CEO since September, says his job is to turn around the hospital. He says Kane's work as a consultant for the hospital will end next month.
(WSB Radio) If the ban on travel to Cuba is lifted, AirTran wants in.
The airline's CEO says they'd like to be among the first carriers offering scheduled flights to the island.
"It's a very pretty country and the curiosity level as well as the ethnic flying back and forth is going to be substantial," Bob Fornaro says. "I think it's going to be a very, very strong leisure destination."
AirTran already operates chartered flights from Miami to Havana thru tour operators.
Fornaro says before any commercial flights can travel to Cuba, a lot of assessment is needed.
"There's a couple of things to consider with Cuba -- What's the quality of facilities and the hotels?" Fornaro says. "How much tourism can it take?"
President Obama has relaxed travel restrictions for Cuban-Americans with family still there, but other travel is still prohibited.
(WSB Radio) Sandy Springs Police have arrested someone in connection with a hit-and-run accident that critically injured a teenager.
Lieutenant Steve Rose tells WSB the suspect, 45-year-old Nestor Tirado-Villar of Norcross, has turned himself in after police issued a lookout for the car, a Mercedes, involved in the crash.
"When the television stations and radio stations picked this up and did the broadcast on it, the man that we arrested actually heard the broadcast and he contacted a lawyer. The lawyer contacted us and then he surrendered to the investigators here at the police department," said Rose.
Witnesses say that the driver originally stopped after hitting 18-year-old Tyler Lusk on Dunwoody Place last Wednesday, but then left the scene.
"I'm speculating, but I've seen dozens of these over the years and I think he probably knew quite well what had happened. I think he realized that we also had evidence left at the scene. I think he just realized that it wasn't going to go anywhere for him, so he went ahead - and you know, with us, he's doing what he should do and go ahead and turn yourself in - which is what he did," said Rose.
Lusk, who was going to visit his friends, remains in critical condition at Grady Hospital.
"He was conscious in the past day or so, but, from the investigator, my understanding is that he has taken a turn for the worse," said Rose.
Tirado-Villar has been charged with duty to stop at and accident, a felony.
His case will be presented to a Grand Jury on May 1st.
ATLANTA (AP) Gov. Sonny Perdue threw his support behind a deal to funnel federal stimulus dollars to Atlanta's cash-strapped transit system.
The Atlanta Regional Commission has agreed to provide MARTA with about $25 million in stimulus money. MARTA would pay for projects sought by the counties served by the commission.
MARTA has about $65 million in reserves but is facing a shortfall in operating money from local sales taxes. MARTA officials have warned they could have to cut service by one day a week after the state Legislature failed to pass a bill that would have allowed them to dip into their reserves.
Perdue on Wednesday called the compromise a ``great example by both entities of working together.''
The deal could need Perdue's approval.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
WASHINGTON (AP) President Barack Obama, appealing to mainstream consumers, is pushing for more legal protection for the millions of Americans who use credit cards.
Obama was meeting with leaders of the credit-card industry Thursday, and he's already backing tougher legislation.
``The president believes new rules of the road for the credit card industry are needed,'' Obama senior adviser Valerie Jarrett said ahead of the president's planned session at the White House with executives from the nation's top credit-card companies.
Obama and some congressional leaders are particularly focused on what they consider to be abusive and deceptive practices that squeeze people into paying much higher fees or interest rates than anticipated. Both the House and Senate are considering a credit card ``bill of rights'' to limit the ability of credit-card companies to raise interest rates on existing balances and to require greater disclosure.
White House aides said Obama's meeting with the credit executives is part of a broader outreach to different segments of the business community.
At issue is how to protect consumers, particularly in a severe economic downturn, while not imposing the kind of rules that could make it harder for banks to offer credit or that put credit out of reach for many borrowers. Industry advocates are wary of those consequences and hopeful Obama will listen.
The Federal Reserve has already ordered new rules, to take effect next year, that are designed to enforce a host of new consumer protections.
Almost 80 percent of American households have credit cards. The average outstanding credit card debt for households that have a credit card was $10,679 at the end of 2008, according to CreditCard.com, an online marketplace designed to link consumers and card issuers.
The White House says Obama is aware of the importance that credit cards hold in many families, particularly as a last option during hard times.
Kenneth Clayton, senior vice president for card policy at the Americans Bankers Association, said the concern is that new legislation may make economic matters even worse by shrinking lenders' ability, resulting in ``less credit available to vast numbers of Americans'' at just the wrong time.
White House economic adviser Larry Summers said over the weekend that the administration wants to curb pitches that addict people to plastic.
``Individuals are going to have to save more. That's why savings incentives are so important,'' he said. ``That's why we need to do things to stop the marketing of credit in ways that addicts people to it and so that our households are again saving and families are again preparing to send their kids to college.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Reversing a contentious policy of the Bush administration, the FDA said in a brief statement it will not appeal a judge's order that overturns restrictions limiting over-the-counter sales of ``Plan B'' to women 18 and older.
Conservatives called the decision a blow to parental supervision of teens. But women's groups said the FDA's action was long overdue, since the agency's own medical reviewers had initially recommended that the contraceptive be made available without any age restrictions.
U.S. District Judge Edward Korman ruled last month in a lawsuit filed in New York that Bush administration appointees let politics, not science, drive their decision to restrict over-the-counter access.
Korman ordered the FDA to let 17-year-olds get the birth control pills. He also directed the agency to evaluate whether all age restrictions should be lifted.
The FDA's latest action does not mean that Plan B will be immediately available to 17-year-olds.The manufacturer must first submit a request.
``It's a good indication that the agency will move expeditiously to ensure its policy on Plan B is based solely on science,'' said Nancy Northup, president of the Center for Reproductive Rights, which filed the lawsuit.
Conservatives said politics drove the decision.
``Parents should be furious at the FDA's complete disregard of parental rights and the safety of minors,'' said Wendy Wright, president of Concerned Women for America.
Plan B is emergency contraception that contains a high dose of birth control drugs and will not interfere with an established pregnancy. It works by preventing ovulation or fertilization. In medical terms, pregnancy begins when a fertilized egg attaches itself to the wall of the uterus.
If taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex, it can reduce a woman's chances of pregnancy by as much as 89 percent.
Critics of the contraceptive say Plan B is the equivalent of an abortion pill because it can prevent a fertilized egg from attaching to the uterus. Recent research suggests that's possible but not likely.
The battle over access to Plan B has dragged on for the better part of a decade, through the terms of three FDA commissioners. Among many in the medical community, it came to symbolize the decline of science at the agency because top FDA managers refused to go along with the recommendations of scientific staff and outside advisers that the drug be made available with no age restrictions.
``The FDA got caught up in a saga, it got caught up in a drama,'' said Susan Wood, who served as the agency's top women's health official and resigned in 2005 over delays in issuing a decision. ``This issue served as a clear example of the agency being taken off track, and it highlighted the problems FDA was facing in many other areas.''
The treatment consists of two pills and sells for $35 to $60. Women must ask for Plan B at the pharmacy counter and show identification with their date of birth. The drug is made by a subsidiary of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, an Israeli company. It does not prevent sexually transmitted infections, such as HIV/AIDS.
Supporters of broader access argued that Plan B is safe and effective in preventing unwanted pregnancy and could help reduce the number of abortions.
Opponents, including prominent conservatives, counter that it would encourage promiscuity and might even become a tool for criminals running prostitution rings, as well as for sexual predators.
Early in the Bush administration, more than 60 organizations petitioned the FDA to allow sales without a prescription. But according to court documents, the issue quickly became politicized.
In 2003, a panel of outside advisers voted 23-4 to recommend over-the-counter sales without age restrictions. But top FDA officials told their subordinates that no approval could be issued at the time, and the decision would be made at a higher level. That's considered highly unusual, since the FDA usually has the last word on drug decisions.
In his ruling, Korman said that FDA staffers were told the White House had been involved in the decision on Plan B. The government said in court papers that politics played no role.
In 2005, the Center for Reproductive Rights and other organizations sued in federal court to force an FDA decision.
The following year, the FDA allowed Plan B to be sold without a prescription to adults. But the controversy raged on over access for teens.
WSB News Poll
WASHINGTON (AP) The Washington Nationals had almost as much trouble at home as they did while dropping their first six road games this season.
After Washington won the first two of a three-game series against Atlanta, Mike Hinckley, part of the Nationals' new-look bullpen, walked Kelly Johnson with the bases loaded in the ninth inning Wednesday night, giving the Braves a 1-0 victory.
Atlanta won for the second time in seven games. The Nationals dropped to 3-11 the worst record in the majors.
``It was tough because we had an opportunity to erase the first week of the season by having a great homestand,'' Washington manager Manny Acta said.
The Nationals lost five of eight at home during a strange week. It included a rainout, two games with long rain delays, and three late-inning losses to Florida last weekend. Those defeats convinced the team to make major changes in the bullpen.
This game was scoreless through eight, with Jair Jurrjens pitching 7 2-3 innings for Atlanta and John Lannan seven for Washington.
Matt Diaz singled with one out in the ninth against Garrett Mock (0-1) and was forced at second on Casey Kotchman's grounder. Diaz slid hard into shortstop Alex Cintron's right shin to break up a potential double play.
Mock then walked Jordan Schafer before Hinckley issued free passes to pinch-hitter Martin Prado and Johnson.
``We needed a win, somehow, like that, because we'd lost too many tough ones almost identical,'' Braves manager Bobby Cox said. ``It'll be a boost for them. It'll be a nice plane ride tonight.''
Mike Gonzalez (1-0) struck out the only batter he faced in relief of Jurrjens. Rafael Soriano earned his second save, pitching a perfect ninth.
Jurrjens allowed six hits, walked two and struck out four. He is 2-1 and he reduced his ERA to a sparkling 1.42.
``It'll be difficult to top that,'' Jurrjens said.
Johnson was just 2-for-12 in the series, and was relieved to get the decisive RBI. He would have preferred Jurrjens get the credit.
``I didn't have to do anything for that,'' Johnson said. ``I'd say JJ got this team the win, even though he's not going to get it in the stat category.''
Washington had two excellent opportunities to score. Ryan Zimmerman extended his hitting streak to 12 games with a leadoff double in the third. He moved to third base on an infield out by Adam Dunn, but Elijah Dukes popped up and Josh Willingham grounded out.
In the seventh, Willingham doubled leading off. He moved to third on Ronnie Belliard's bunt, but Jesus Flores grounded out and Austin Kearns popped up to end the inning.
``Our situational hitting continues to bury us, to hurt us,'' Acta said.
Lannan has yet to win this season. In his first two starts, both losses, he allowed 10 runs in nine innings. In his last two, he's given up one run and eight hits in 13 1-3 innings.
The left-hander yielded five hits against Atlanta, striking out four and walking two. He pitched out of two jams, too. The Braves had runners on first and third in the second and loaded the bases in the fourth.
Notes: Braves OF Garret Anderson missed his third straight game with a left quadriceps injury. Cox said if Anderson hasn't improved by Friday's game in Cincinnati, the team might put him on the disabled list. ``We hope he's better,'' Cox said. ``We miss him.'' ... Cintron started at SS for Washington. Alberto Gonzalez had played the previous six games, but made five errors. ... The Nationals will make up an April 15 game with Philadelphia that was postponed by rain on May 16 as part of a day-night doubleheader.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Dwyane Wade didn't call ``bank.''
No need. This was the playoffs, not H-O-R-S-E.
With 13 straight points to close the first half and an unlikely 3-pointer off the backboard in the waning minutes, Wade showed it's hard to keep him down two games in a row. He scored 33 points in all, leading the Miami Heat to a 108-93 victory over the Atlanta Hawks that evened their playoff series at one game apiece Wednesday night.
``This is where amazing happens,'' Wade said.
Amazing, indeed. Remember how bad Wade and his Miami teammates looked in a 90-64 loss to open the playoffs? They were that good in Game 2.
Wade already had more points by halftime than he had in Game 1, when he was held to 19 points and turned it over eight times. Only once during the regular season was he held to less that 20 points in consecutive games, and he wasn't about to do it again in the playoffs.
This was vintage D-Wade 6-of-10 from 3-point range, 11-of-20 overall, five rebounds, seven assists, two blocked shots and a steal.
Wade was locked in for this one, and the Hawks didn't stand a chance.
``He set the tone,'' Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said. ``Before I came out to talk to the team, right before the game, there was some joking and laughing in the locker room and I heard him tell everybody to shut up and get their minds on the game.''
After trailing by as many as 18, the Hawks twice closed within five points in the fourth quarter but never got over the hump. Wade delivered the decisive blow when, with the shot clock running down, he threw up a long 3. The shot was errant, but it banked in off the backboard and was just as good as a swish.
``I didn't call 'bank,''' Wade quipped. ``Just like everybody in the building, I'm not going to tell a story, I was shocked, too.''
The improbable shot pushed the Heat to a 101-91 lead, and the Hawks were done.
The crowd started heading for the exits, except for a handful of Miami fans who hung around to serenade Wade with chants of ``M-V-3!'' When the horn sounded, Wade went over and shook hands with Atlanta rap star T.I., sitting at courtside as he waits to begin his yearlong sentence for weapons charges.
``I've been feeling it coming, feeling it coming,'' Wade said. ``I didn't see nothing but the basket, and it was getting bigger and bigger.''
The Hawks should have known this wouldn't be their night when ``Spirit,'' an actual hawk that flies down from the rafters during the pre-game introductions, decided to hang around for the start of the game. The game had to be halted for a couple of minutes when the fierce-looking bird landed on the top of the backboard; he finally flew to his handler and was led out of the building.
The players weren't to eager to play the game with a bird of prey staring down at them. Atlanta's Josh Smith and Al Horford looked more shaken than anyone.
``You see Al Horford duck and run, I was like, 'Let me run for cover as well,''' Wade said. ``It was kind of weird having the hawk fly around. It's hard to play with your back to that hawk on the backboard.''
Turns out, the real hawk showed more aggressiveness than any of the players wearing Hawks across the front of their jerseys until the fourth quarter, when Atlanta finally came to life.
``We didn't start the game with a sense of urgency, like the start of the first game,'' Smith said. ``We didn't play together. Put those two negatives together, and that's what caused us to lose. We were playing selfish on offense.''
Unlike the loss in Game 1, when only one other Miami player scored in double figures, Wade had plenty of help this time. Daequan Cook scored 20 points, going 6-of-9 from 3-point range to make up for an 0-for-5 showing beyond the arc on Sunday night. Jermaine O'Neal scored 19 points, giving the Heat a presence on the inside. Michael Beasley added 12 and Udonis Haslem 10.
Miami's reserves outscored the Hawks' bench 37-20. Atlanta coach Mike Woodson pointed to that more than Wade, who, after all, led the NBA in scoring at 30.2 points a game.
``He made some shots tonight, but I don't think that was the killer factor,'' Woodson said. ``We let their bench play a major role.''
Mike Bibby led the Hawks with 18 points, but the home team shot only 44 percent from the field and struggled at the foul line, making 19-of-30.
The Hawks, who made home-court advantage their No. 1 goal coming into the season, will now have to do something they couldn't do a year ago: win a playoff game on the road. Atlanta surprised eventual champion Boston by extending the Celtics to seven games but lost four blowouts in Beantown.
If that trends continues, the Heat will be moving on to the second round. Game 3 is Saturday in Miami.
Led by Wade, Miami began to pull away in the second quarter. He capped his 13-point spurt with three straight 3-pointers, giving him 21 points more than he had in all of Game 1 heading to the locker room.
The Hawks tried to guard the Miami star with several players. None had much success.
Joe Johnson picked up his fourth foul early in the third quarter and had to sit the rest of the period. Flip Murray might as well have thrown up a white towel. Maurice Evans wasn't much better, shaking his head in disbelief at one point when Wade swished another jumper.
Led by the high-flying Smith, Atlanta ran the Heat out of the building in Game 1. The Heat was held to a season low for points as the Hawks equaled a franchise record for fewest points allowed in a playoff game.
But, after two exhaustive days of practices, meetings and film sessions, Miami looked like a much different team. The Heat played with much more effort, started hitting some shots and established a half-court game that worked much better than trying to run with the Hawks. Miami also crashed the boards, outrebounding the Hawks 40-33 after getting hammered in the opener, 50-35.
The visitors frustrated Smith, who had a couple of dunks but was held to 17 points. They held Johnson, Atlanta's leading scorer, to 16 points on 5-of-13 shooting.
Miami was on the verge of a blowout, but the Hawks closed the third quarter on a 7-0 run. Murray had a steal and layup, then hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer after a nifty bit of passing left him open outside the arc.
The arena was in a frenzy when Hawks closed to 94-89 on Murray's three-point play, and Smith scored on a drive to make it 96-91. After Haslem hit a jumper to push the lead back to seven, the Hawks came up empty on three straight possessions.
Finally, Wade had seen enough. His ricochet 3 ended any thoughts of a comeback.
Notes: Both teams stuck with the same lineups and 12-man rosters they used in Game 1. Randolph Morris, Thomas Gardner and the injured Acie Law sat out for the Hawks, while Miami deactivated Mark Blount, Luther Head and Dorell Wright. ... The crowd of 19,146 was Atlanta's fifth straight playoff sellout at Philips Arena and 14th full house of the season. ... Wade's career playoff high is 43 points.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) Fulton County Police have found the car they believe was involved in a deadly hit-and-run accident on Easter Sunday.
Detective Melissa Parker tells WSB an anonymous call led them to a house at 3895 Ailey Avenue.
"We arrived on scene. We did locate the vehicle. Our SWAT team did enter the residence. No one was in the house. At this time, we don't have any suspects, but the vehicle is being impounded for further investigation," said Parker.
Police have been looking for a tan BMW, 740 Series, since the accident on Camp Creek Parkway that killed five people, including three children.
4/22/09
(WSB Radio) Search warrants are being executed at the offices of the Cobb Electrical Membership Corporation and at the homes of two EMC board members, along with the EMC board chairman and the company's CEO.
The Cobb County district attorney's office, along with local and state law enforcement, began executing the warrants just before noon on Wednesday.
A spokesman for the EMC would not comment on the searches.
Authorities will not say what they are searching for. District Attorney Pat Head would only confirm that the searches were underway at five Cobb EMC locations. Police cars were parked outside the home of EMC CEO Dwight Brown.
The co-op has been fighting trouble for at least two years, settling a lawsuit with customers in December. It's still involved in other legal action.
Cobb EMC is the electrical provider for 190,000 customers in four counties in metro Atlanta.
The Atlanta-based charity provides 5,000 meals a day, along with counseling and therapy, to homebound seniors and people living with a chronic or terminal illness. Many meal recipients live with diabetes, heart or kidney disease, HIV/AIDS, or cancer.
(WSB Radio) -- DeKalb school officials insist they have taken the necessary steps to rid their schools of bullying.
The statement follows the apparent suicide of a Dunaire elementary school student who had been the targets of bullying at school.
DeKalb school officials said Dunaire administrators would not be commenting on specific allegations. DeKalb schools spokesman Dale Davis said DeKalb schools do not tolerate bullying and other forms of harassment and reserve the right to punish students after an initial incident is reported and verified.
Jaheen Herrera, 11, had just moved with his family to Decatur from St. Croix in the Virgin Islands.
He hanged himself in the bedroom of his apartment last week.
Jaheem's mother, Masika Bermudez, spoke briefly at a vigil Tuesday night held in her son's honor.
"That was my firstborn, and now he's gone," she said, clutching two of her daughters -- Ny'irah, 7, and Yerralis, who discovered her brother's body last Thursday after school. "No one's going to replace him."
Bermudez has hired an attorney, Gerald Griggs, to address what she said was an inadequate response from school officials. She said she complained several times about the bullying Jaheem endured, including one incident when she alleged Jaheem was choked in the boy's bathroom.
Members of the UGA chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws sold T-shirts with a picture of a bulldog the university's mascot sitting underneath the UGA Arch, which is a protected image. The dog was smoking marijuana and reading a book on human rights.
The image was also posted on the group's Web site. UGA officials say the students didn't respond quickly enough when the university ordered them to stop using the image.
NORML plans to appeal the decision.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
The results topped Wall Street expectations, a bright spot for the industry after several major carriers this week and last week posted hefty losses for the first three months of the year amid a steep decline in demand for air travel.
In premarket trading, AirTran shares rose 51 cents, or 9.1 percent, to $6.09.
The Orlando, Fla.-based company, which has its hub in Atlanta, said the profit for the January-March period was equivalent to 21 cents a share. The loss in the same period last year was 38 cents a share. A year ago, AirTran had reported a loss of $34.8 million in the first quarter, but restated that Wednesday to reflect the impact of an accounting change.
Revenue in the quarter fell to $542 million, versus $596.4 million a year ago.
On an adjusted basis, AirTran's first-quarter earnings per share were 20 cents. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters, who generally exclude one-time items from their estimates, were expecting a profit of 4 cents a share on sales of $535.5 million.
``Our ability to report a profit today is rooted in the difficult decisions we made last year. AirTran Airways was among the first airlines to react to the changing economic environment and we are among the first to show signs of recovery,'' Chief Executive Robert Fornaro said in a statement.
Delta Air Lines Inc., Continental Airlines Inc. and the parents of United Airlines and American Airlines all posted first-quarter losses. Even discount carrier Southwest Airlines Co. posted a first-quarter loss.
Airlines are having a tough time filling their available seats despite large capacity cuts and aggressive discounting. AirTran has a low-cost structure and its route system is focused in North America and it isn't exposed, like its bigger rivals, to overseas markets that have been seeing especially weak demand of late.
At the same time, the U.S. recession has posed challenges for AirTran, just like it has for other carriers.
Analysts currently expect AirTran to post adjusted profits for the rest of the year. But a spike in fuel prices or a significant further drop in demand could change those projections.
Fornaro said in February that AirTran doesn't expect any overall growth until 2011, though it will add service in Milwaukee in a renewed effort to gain market share there. Flights in Milwaukee have increased more than 50 percent year over year and more than 30 scheduled daily departures are planned for the summer schedule, the airline said Wednesday.
Fornaro said previously AirTran will cut capacity in 2009 and likely will be flat in terms of capacity in 2010, but in 2011 it could grow at least 5 percent.
AirTran said Wednesday that its full-year available seat miles will be down 3 percent to 4 percent. For the second quarter, total unit revenue per available seat mile is expected to be down 2 percent to 4 percent, AirTran said.
AirTran offers over 700 daily flights to 61 destinations.
AirTran's annual meeting of shareholders is scheduled for May 20 in Orlando. At the meeting, shareholders will vote on the election of three directors for a term of three years each, the company's amended and restated long-term incentive plan and the appointment of Ernst Young LLP as AirTran's independent registered public accounting firm for 2009.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) It was apparently a simmering feud between a couple of church maintenance workers at a Cobb County church that led to one attacking the other.
But, investigators say they've decided not to file charges.
"They got into a verbal altercation which escalated," says Cobb County Police Officer Joe Hernandez. "The individual who was stabbed made an offensive action by grabbing the other and that's when the other male pulled out a pocket knife and stabbed the individual."
The stabbing was Tuesday night at the Episcopal Church of St. Peter and St. Paul, on Johnson Ferry Road.
The wounded handyman was treated at the hospital and is expected to be fine.
Neither man has been identified.
(WSB Radio) Two men face federal charges for allegedly using an english language school in Duluth as a front for sneaking Koreans into the U.S. illegally.
36 year old Young Park, of Duluth, and 47 year old Songwoo Shim, of Lawrenceville, are charged with falsifying documents to obtain immigration approval for dozens of people who never actually attended the Humana Language Learning Center.
Federal prosecutors say hundreds of Korean immigrants paid thousands of dollars for documents to attend the school, but wound up simply living and working here illegally.
(WSB Radio) A McDonald's customer in Cobb County allegedly broke out more than his wallet at the drive thru.
An employee at the restaurant on Roswell Road, in Marietta, says the man exposed himself when his food was delivered.
Police were called to the scene, but the man had already driven off by the time they arrived.
If found, the driver will face misdemeanor charges of public indecency.
(WSB Radio) New details are coming to light about the investigation of the firing of former DeKalb County Police Chief Terrell Bolton.
The Atlanta Journal Constitution cites a report by the DeKalb Sheriff's office claims Bolton ordered documents doctored to try and cover up a couple of confiscated luxury cars he was keeping for his personal use.
The report also says Bolton took almost two months of unapproved comp time.
When reached by phone, while boarding a flight from Atlanta to Dallas, Bolton accused the sheriff's office of violating his rights. He also called their report, "Mickey Mouse."
(WSB Radio) The former IT director for the city of Norcross wants his old job back.
45 year old Brad Williams was fired last December after 9 months on the job when thousands of images of nude women were found on a city computer.
Williams' attorney say there is no evidence that his client is the one who downloaded those images. He notes other city employees had access to that computer terminal.
At a hearing this week, the city manager described Williams' job performance as lazy and haphazard.
The city council will decide the matter next month.
The new law provides another 13 weeks of unemployment benefits in Georgia for those who've exhausted their 26 weeks of regular benefits. The additional benefits will be paid for with federal dollars.
The bill signed by Perdue on Tuesday also allows people seeking part-time work to qualify for unemployment. And some Georgians can also receive unemployment while in a training program, under the new law. Perdue said the changes will cost the state less than $1.2 million a year.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) Lockheed Martin says they've seen the handwriting on the wall and will accept the Pentagon's plans to end the F-22 fighter jet program.
Senator Saxby Chambliss has fought for the F-22 and the jobs it brings to Marietta and Georgia. But he acknowledges that, without Lockheed on board, it's an uphill battle .
Lockheed's CFO says the impact on Marietta might not be a bad as first feared.
The Defense Department intends to ramp up production of the F-35, along with the C-130 and C-5 cargo planes, which will mean work for Georgians.
(WSB Radio) The damage estimates are in for the tornadoes that swept through north Georgia earlier this week.
State Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine says the storm caused about $11 million in damage, but that number could go higher.
Most of the damage is concentrated in Cherokee and Muscogee Counties.
The National Weather Service confirms F-1 tornadoes touched down in both counties.
More than 100 buildings in both Cherokee and Muscogee were damaged. At least one injury was reported.
(WSB Radio) A 14 year old says she'll never to the park without her friends.
The girl, Adrienne, says a man peeked under a stall at Duncan State Park, in Dacula, while she was in it.
"I was using the bathroom and this guy was crawling under the stall," she says. "He didn't get all the way under. I looked down and saw him and got scared.
"I got shocked," Adrienne says. "I couldn't scream or anything."
The suspect is described as a white man, 5'9, clean shaven with a slim build and slicked back dark hair.
He was seen leaving the park in a two door Ford pickup.
Police say they've had no reports of similar incidents in the area.
(WSB Radio) Gwinnett police are hunting for a pair of home invaders who struck near Norcross on Tuesday morning.
An Hispanic man was heading to a home, accompanied by two black men at about 11:30. Police say the Hispanic man knew the couple that lived at that house on Lambert Drive.
"The couple recognized the Hispanic male, so they opened the door," says Police Corporal Illena Spellman. "Simultaneously, the two black males that were there forced everyone inside the house at gunpoint, demanded money and ransacked the house."
The Hispanic man then got into an argument with the suspects and was shot. The couple was beaten up.
The suspects, both of whom were wearing hoodies, fled on foot.
"We don't know for sure that it was random," Spellman tells WSB. "There's really not a whole lot pointing to that. Right now we're still looking into what the exact relationship is, or how the suspects and victims knew each other."
(WSB Radio) Johns Creek police are looking for at least two suspects in connection with a home invasion.
"The homeowners own a liquor store in the Vinings area," says Officer J.T. Ware. He tells WSB that's why the couple was targeted by the robbers.
Police say three family members were held at gunpoint and bound with zip ties in their home at the Lake Manor Trace subdivision. But, Ware says, the homeowners did not bring their business cash home with them, so the robbers got away with just a little bit of money and a couple of credit cards.
There have been similar crimes in the area, so might this be connected to those?
"I know there was one in Milton that our detectives believe was not related," Ware says. "It just happened to occur in the same time frame."
(WSB Radio) -- A new report by America's Promise Alliance shows a little more than half of the students in the nation's 50 largest cities are graduating from high school.
The study, "Cities in Crisis 2009: Closing the Graduation Gap," looked at graduation rates compiled by the U.S. Department of Education between 1995 and 2005 to determine its rankings. Philadelphia was #1 on the list with a 23 percent increase. But, even those dramatic results only pushed the city school system's graduation rate to 62 percent, nine points lower than the national average.
During the same ten year period, Atlanta Public Schools' graduation rate rose 10.8 percent to 43.5 percent.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, Las Vegas produced the greatest decrease in graduation rates, dropping 23 points. At 34.4 percent, the Cleveland (Ohio) Municipal School District had the nation's lowest high school graduation rate.
ATLANTA (AP) Prisons now have more power to charge inmates for their medical costs while behind bars.
Gov. Sonny Perdue signed a measure into law Tuesday that allows state and county corrections officials to draw up regulations to deduct the money for some medical costs from inmates accounts.
It excludes costs related to pregnancies and chronic illnesses, which include diabetes, cancer and renal disease.
Prisons are constitutionally required to provide medical care to inmates. But the measure's sponsors say it is designed to help offset soaring prison medical costs for those inmates able to pay.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) -- Robbery appears to be the motive for an overnight murder in southwest Atlanta.
WSB's Richard Sangsrter reports 57-year-old Stephen Anim, a cab driver for Star Taxi Services, was found shot in the head around 1:30 Wednesday morning at the entrance to the Big Bethel Village Retirement Community on Richard Allen Boulevard, just off Fairburn Road.
When Atlanta police arrived at the scene, Detective Sgt. Bob Creasy says they found the victim "with money on his person." The front and back doors of the cab were also open.
Homicide investigators hope surveillance video from the retirement center will provide them with information that leads to an arrest.
ATLANTA (AP) Facing a shortage of math and science teachers in Georgia, Gov. Sonny Perdue is set to sweeten the pot.
Perdue is scheduled to sign legislation on Wednesday that boosts salaries for the in-demand educators.
The new law would allow new secondary school teachers with proper math or science certification to start at the salary of a fifth year teacher. The teacher's salary would then continue to rise a step every year for five years. After that, the increase would be tied to student performance.
State officials say that in 2008, 14.3 percent of all Georgia math teachers were not fully certified. Another 18.6 percent of physical science teachers and 16.2 percent of life sciences teachers lacked full certification.
The salary hike will take effect next school year.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) A spokesman for Georgia's Environmental Protection Division says outdoor watering restrictions are likely to stay in place even though the region's drought has eased.
EPD spokesman Kevin Chambers says despite recent rains, Lake Lanier remains well below its full level. The lake provides much of the water for metro Atlanta.
Dunwoody councilman Denis Shortal says he'd like to be able to resume washing his car, at least on the same days he's allowed to water his lawn.
Chambers says that while homeowners have little choice as to where they water their plants, car owners can take their vehicles to a car wash.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
WASHINGTON (AP) Everyone agreed what the pitch should be.
Closer Joel Hanrahan, catcher Jose Flores and pitching coach Randy St. Claire were of one mind: The Washington Nationals would finally secure their first winning streak of 2009 by getting the final out with a first-pitch slider to Atlanta's Yunel Escobar.
So what did Hanrahan do? He threw a fastball. And yet, because right now well, for the past two nights, anyway things are going Washington's way, and more specifically its bullpen's way, Escobar swung and smacked the ball right to the second baseman for a simple groundout. Game over, and the Nationals beat the Braves 4-3 Tuesday night for their second consecutive victory.
``Flores said he didn't know what he was going to do if the guy didn't hit the ball, because it probably was going to hit him in the throat. But (Escobar) put the ball in play, and he got the out,'' Washington manager Manny Acta said. ``Those are the kind of things that, when you're meant to win, it happens.''
After opening the season 0-7, then dropping to 1-10, Washington is 3-10. Atlanta is headed in the opposite direction, having lost five of its past six games.
``Anytime you lose like that, it's frustrating,'' Atlanta manager Bobby Cox said. ``We didn't play a real clean game tonight.''
Played following a 61-minute rain delay, this game was filled with all sorts of miscues: three errors, other fielding misadventures, a few running mistakes, failed sacrifice bunt attempts and more.
Shairon Martis (2-0) went six innings and gave up three runs two earned. Then came the procession of Nationals relievers, providing three scoreless innings for the second day in a row.
Mike Hinckley went 1 2-3 innings, Julian Tavarez got one out, and Hanrahan had an adventurous ninth. But after a walk and double put two runners on with none out, Hanrahan got pinch-hitter Greg Norton on a comebacker, Kelly Johnson on a flyball to center, and after St. Claire visited the mound to lay out a plan that would soon be abandoned Escobar.
``I kind of made the fire for myself and was fortunate to get out of it,'' said Hanrahan, who entered this season with nine career saves.
He has converted his last two save chances after blowing his first two of the season.
``We need him,'' Flores said. ``I think he was putting a little bit of pressure on himself. But we can see that he's trusting himself again.''
The Nationals gave away ninth-inning leads Friday, Saturday and Sunday in losses to the Florida Marlins, precipitating a revamping of Washington's relief corps.
``Especially with happened over the weekend,'' Hanrahan said, ``another one of those, and who knows what would have happened?''
Hinckley, Tavarez and Hanrahan were not part of the series of roster moves. Clearly, though, they heard the team's message.
``Oh, yeah. It's either you get the job done or they're going to go another route,'' Hinckley said. ``And I'm thankful to be here.''
Martis worked his way in and out of trouble, but he only allowed runs in the first three of them, thanks in part to two walks. After that, though, the Braves wouldn't score again.
The Nationals eventually got to Atlanta starter Kenshin Kawakami (1-2). Flores' RBI double made it 3-1 in the second, and Kawakami didn't record an out in the sixth.
Adam Dunn led off with his fourth homer. Elijah Dukes reached on third baseman Chipper Jones' fielding error, and Austin Kearns followed with a sinking liner that skipped past left fielder Matt Diaz for an RBI triple that tied things 3-all.
``In my career, I think I lost four balls in the lights and this year I've already lost three,'' Diaz said.
Jeff Bennett entered and got two outs, before giving up the go-ahead run on pinch-hitter Josh Willingham's single to left.
``It was big,'' Willingham said. ``Pinch hitting's hard. It's something I'm getting used to the more that I do it.''
The same could be said about the Nationals and winning.
After this victory, music was blaring over the speakers in the clubhouse ceiling Green Day, Jay-Z, Kanye West.
And Acta was thinking about how close his team could be to .500.
``I'm not a big 'What if?' guy, but you can't help it to think that we blew three games over the weekend,'' Acta said. ``This could be a six-game winning streak right now.''
Notes: LHP Joe Beimel is the seventh Nationals player to go on the DL. ``I don't believe in negative stuff,'' Acta said, ``but I was wondering if somebody buried a Red Cross jersey here before they built this stadium because it's kind of, I don't know, weird.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) Expect another name to be added to the list of candidates for governor.
Cobb County Commission Chairman Sam Olens will announce this afternoon whether he'll enter the race for the Republican nomination.
Olens would join a growing field of candidates looking to succeed Governor Sonny Perdue.
Other announced Republicans are Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine, Secretary of State Karen Handel and State Representative Austin Scott. Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle withdrew from the race last week for health reasons.
The announced Democratic candidates include Attorney General Thurbert Baker, former Secretary of State David Poythress and House Minority Leader Dubose Porter.
(WSB Radio) A Marietta attorney has pleaded guilty to running a Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors out of $28 million.
"We were in the nursing home business and took wonderful care of people all of our lives and this was supposed to be our time," one victim said outside the courthouse. "And now it's gone."
Robert Copeland faces 20 years in prison when he's sentenced in July. His property, bank accounts, cars and other assets have all been seized.
The Reverend Lisa Dempsey's mother was one of those taken in by Copeland. Dempsey says that, even as a woman of God, she's having a hard time coming to terms with what happened.
"I believe in forgiveness for everything, but sometimes we have to work through it," she says. "We're in the working through phase right now."
(WSB Radio) A DeKalb County jail inmate is recovering at Grady Hospital after being injured in an escape attempt.
29 year old Kenneth Trusty fell about 80 feet after scaling a concrete wall on the seventh floor of the jail, then climbing a fence in the recreation yard.
Authorities say Trusty broke his leg, both ankles and a wrist in the fall.
Trusty has been locked up since December on charges of rape, armed robbery and aggravated sodomy.
(WSB Radio) Clayton County police say they know who they're looking for in last week's fatal shooting outside of a Little Caesar's pizza place.
20 year old Darnell Matthews and 22 year old Anthony Bostic are wanted for murder and aggravated assault in the April 13 shooting.
The victim, 25 year old Brian Patterson, of Rex, was gunned down as we walked through the mall parking lot in Morrow.
Police say the suspects fired from their car into a group of men. Another man was hit in the foot.
Matthews and Bostic remain at large.
(WSB Radio) Anyone with some undeveloped land in Cobb County might want to show up at tonight's meeting of the county commission.
The commission has sent out inquiries to almost 350 property owners already and more than 250 have indicated they might by interested in selling.
Last November, Cobb County voters approved floating $40 million worth of bonds to buy more land for parks and green space.
Tonight's hearing will run from 6:30 to 9:30 at the commission offices off of town square.
(WSB Radio) Former State Senator Terrell Starr has died.
Starr spent 38 years in the senate, representing his Clayton County district.
The 82 year old passed away Sunday of complications from heart surgery at Emory Hospital.
A lifelong Democrat, Starr was named in 2006 by Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle as a senior advisor.
During his long career, Starr served two terms on the Clayton County Commission; eight years on the Clayton County Library Board; 18 years on the Clayton County Board of Health; and six years on the Atlanta Regional Metropolitan Planning Commission (currently, the Atlanta Regional Commission).
Starr's funeral is set for Wednesday afternoon, at 2 o'clock, at the First Baptist Church of Forest Park.
The weather service said Monday the tornado was about a half-mile wide and left a path of destruction about over a mile long. Most of the damage was in the Knots Landing subdivision on Highway 92.
The weather service says the twister's intensity is consistent with EF-0 and EF-1 damage. An EF-0 tornado has wind speeds 40-72 mph. An EF-1 is a moderate tornado with winds 73-112 mph.
Tornadoes also were reported, but not yet confirmed, in Cobb and Muscogee counties, and there was a tornado warning issued for Fulton on Sunday night.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) A four year old Rockdale County boy is recovering after undergoing surgery following an attack by a pit bull.
Nathaniel Stafford's stepfather says the 4 year old is an animal lover.
A friend left the dog, named Chaos, chained in the backyard. When the boy wandered by, the dog went after him.
"I've never seen anything like it in my entire life," says the stepfather, Brian Caron. The dog ripped off the boy's scalp and parts of his face.
"Right now they don't if they're going to be able to save his ear or not," Caron says. "They said if they can't save it they'll put an ear on for him. Whether it's fake or not, he'll still have an ear."
No charges will be filed against the dog's owner. The pit bull will be euthanized.
(WSB Radio) Hundreds of violent criminal cases could be in big trouble here in Georgia, after the state's chief gun expert admits faking evidence.
Bernadette Davy was overworked, there's no doubt about it. But GBI Director Vernon Keenan tells Channel 2 Action News, that's no excuse.
"If they falsify data," he says, "they have crossed over an integrity ridge, and there's no returning from across that bridge."
Davy's been forced to quit her job at the GBI crime lab. Now, prosecutors statewide are asking for retests on vital criminal evidence -- tests.
"We have committed to prosecutors that we will rework those cases that they determine have to be done," says GBI Director Vernon Keenan. "It won't be done rapidly, because we are down a key scientist."
(WSB Radio) A Johns Creek doctor is under arrest on sex charges.
Police say Narenda Gupta is accused of fondling several of his patients during examinations.
"We have three victims who have come forward," says Johns Creek Police Captain Brian Weaver. "There are several other victims who have come forward and either the statute of limitations has run out, meaning it happened some time ago, or they did not file a police report and did not want to come forward."
Captain Weaver says the victims range in age from 18 to 30 years old.
Gupta, 58, has been charged with aggravated sexual battery.
The Georgia Medical Board closed Gupta's Diabetes and Hypertension Center after the felony arrest.
Police began investigating Gupta about a month ago when one of his alleged victims went to police and told them what he had done during a routine visit.
(WSB Radio) - A new survey on aggressive driving shows half of American motorists admit to bad behavior behind the wheel.
Research conducted by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety indicates 50 percent of the people questioned said they speed on major highways, speed on residential streets, speed up to beat a yellow light, honk at other drivers and tailgate.
But, 78 percent of those same respondents call aggressive driving a serious concern.
The study also found that aggressive driving was a contributing factor in 56 percent of all fatal crashes. In fact, the AAA has determined that there is a fatal crash in the United States every 13 minutes.
ATLANTA (AP) Atlanta officials have approved a resolution that could lead to a lawsuit against subprime lenders blamed for foreclosures across the region.
The city will hire a private firm to investigate whether there are grounds to file suit against dozens of subprime lenders whose practices city officials say led to Georgia having the seventh highest foreclosure rate in the nation for the first quarter of 2009.
The resolution, which received unanimous approval, does not name any specific defendants.
A report by foreclosure listing firm RealtyTrac this month named Georgia among the top 10 states in the nation for foreclosures during the first quarter of 2009.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
WASHINGTON (AP) Between the rain and the chill, the weather was awful. The stands were as empty as they've ever been for a Washington Nationals game, with perhaps a few dozen brave souls left by the end.
And yet, to Nationals fans, April 20, 2009, could not have been more glorious had the sun been out, the sky a crystal blue and the seats all full. To recap Monday night's happenings:
Highly touted pitching prospect Jordan Zimmermann won his major league debut;
a revamped bullpen delivered three hitless innings after having blown ninth-inning leads each of the preceding three games;
closer Joel Hanrahan earned his first save;
``face of the franchise'' Ryan Zimmerman's $45 million, five-year contract was announced;
and, yes, the Nationals earned victory No. 2 in their 12th game of the season, using six strong innings from Zimmermann that's with two Ns, by the way to beat the Atlanta Braves 3-2.
``I couldn't ask for a better first start, I guess,'' Zimmermann said. ``I mean, getting the win, pitching against the Braves just a great day.''
Zimmermann (1-0) allowed two runs and six hits, with three strikeouts and a walk.
``Everyone was pretty impressed,'' said Chipper Jones, who tripled off Zimmermann ahead of Matt Diaz's two-run homer in the fourth. ``He has a bright future.''
Zimmerman, the third baseman who knows a thing or two about high expectations, jokingly made reference during his pregame news conference to ``the kid starting today THE Zimmermann. I guess I'm 'the other guy' now.''
The announced paid attendance of 12,473 set a new low for the team since it moved from Montreal to Washington. But perhaps 1,000 or so spectators actually were present to witness Zimmermann's first pitch in the majors after rain all afternoon and into the evening resulted in a delay at the start of 2 hours, 10 minutes.
``That is officially the smallest crowd I've ever played in front of tonight, with good reason. Cruddy night, terrible conditions to really play in,'' Jones said. ``Thankful that nobody got hurt tonight. But I can understand why the fans didn't come out tonight. It was gross out there.''
There was also a 33-minute rain delay with Atlanta batting in the eighth, and only dozens of fans remained after midnight, when Hanrahan finished things.
``It was different. It was kind of like pitching in high school again,'' Hanrahan said. ``They've got 10 fans there. You can hear everything they say.''
Washington's Jesus Flores drove in two runs and Elijah Dukes the other off loser Derek Lowe (1-1).
The 22-year-old Zimmermann was a second-round draft pick in 2007 who played at Division III school Wisconsin-Stevens Point and hadn't played above Double-A ball until this season.
``Pretty impressive,'' Nationals manager Manny Acta said. ``Especially that this wasn't the nicest day to play baseball. And the kid hung in there, was very patient in the clubhouse, kept himself well composed and just went out there and gave us a tremendous effort.''
Indeed, Zimmermann started quite well, needing only seven pitches all strikes in a 1-2-3 first inning, reaching 95 mph.
The second inning wasn't as neat: The right-hander allowed his first two hits, both doubles. But neither runner scored. The rookie allowed two more hits in the third, but got out of the inning when Yunel Escobar grounded into a double play.
``I feel I can get anyone out with the stuff I have,'' Zimmermann said, ``as long as I make the right pitch.''
After Diaz's second homer of the season, the Braves did not manage another hit all game.
``That was a tough position a lot of people probably expected him to go out there and throw a no-hitter and just be the greatest thing walking,'' Adam Dunn said. ``And he came out and pitched great. Threw strikes. He pitched as advertised. That's kind of what we needed.''
Washington tied it in the fourth, then went up 3-2 in the sixth, with Flores' hit driving in the go-ahead run. With two on and two out, Acta pinch-hit for Zimmermann, and there were some boos from the few fans still around when Alex Cintron was announced as the batter. Cintron flied out.
As he explained before the game, Acta likes to take out young pitchers when they're tied or leading.
Zimmerman did not complain. Later, the victory secured, he was looking forward to going to his apartment for a celebration with his parents, grandparents and 20 or so other supporters who made the trek from Wisconsin for his first major league game.
``It was just the big stage, the big ballpark, the lights, and all that stuff,'' he said. ``I got used to it as soon as I walked out there.''
Notes: Zimmerman had a hit and scored a run. ... Braves C Brian McCann was out of the starting lineup for a second consecutive game because of blurred vision. He is to meet with an eye doctor Tuesday. ... Atlanta has lost four of its past five games.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Storm Center) - The National Weather Service will send a team to a Cherokee County subdivision to determine if a tornado is responsible for damage caused by a line of severe weather that moved through the area late Sunday night.
WSB's Richard Sangster reports damage to houses and trees in the Coleman's Bluff subdivision in Woodstock is significant.
A tornado warning was issued Sunday night for Cobb, Cherokee and Fulton counties, and heavy rain, high winds and quarter-inch hail were reported over a broad section of North Georgia, including Paulding, Forsyth, Hall, Lumpkin, Banks, Dade and Chatooga counties.
WSB meteorologist Kirk Mellish believes it was a tornado that was responsible for the damage, but added the weather service team will look for evidence of straight line winds or rotary winds that would suggest a tornado.
Homeowner Ted Gilbert told WSB he has had to deal with storm damage in each of the last 2 years, but that this latest storm was the worst. Damage to Gilbert's home includes the roof, which he had just replaced last week.
(WSB Radio) Gibson, Georgia is exactly how you'd picture a small town. Farmhouses, a century old brickfaced downtown and a town square complete with American flags and monuments to the war dead. What Gibson doesn't have, thanks to the recession, is a bank.
"When it happened, we were just stunned," says Frankie Porter, treasurer of the United Methodist Church in Gibson. "It's there one day and the next day it's gone."
Gibson is a town of about 700 people, located about 120 miles east of Atlanta, far from urban problems. To the people in Gibson, sprawl is something you do on your couch.
Walk along Main Street in Gibson, all three blocks of it, and you'll see the established businesses, the ones that have been around for generations. There's Usry's Diner, next door to Peaster's Hardware and the Gibson City Hall. Across Main Street is FirstCity Bank. But, unlike the other businesses, the bank is dark, shut down last month by the FDIC.
Gibson, despite it's small size, had a bank for more than a century. The Bank of Gibson was founded in 1905, a family business that did banking the old fashioned way.
"You could call and say 'I found this vehicle,' and the owner of the bank would say to go ahead and get it and we'll work out the details later," says Dan Peaster, owner of the hardware store.
"It was kind of like a long time ago when your word was your bond," says Porter. "It was kind of that way."
The Bank of Gibson operated smoothly until 2000, when it's board decided to sell to FirstCity, a company out of Stockbridge.
"That was the beginning of the end," says Glascock County Sheriff Dead Couch.
FirstCity was a mortgage lender and began focusing on real estate. By the time FirstCity folded, real estate made up 90 percent of its loans.
Most of the bank's money came from "brokered deposits," investments obtained from third parties that shop around for the highest rates, rather than more reliable "core deposits," which come from local customers. Of the bank's three branches, where core deposits are typically made, the one in Glascock County had the most money.
Residents in Gibson found that, with new ownership, things were very different than it had been with the Bank of Gibson.
"They were just our neighbors, our friends," Porter says. "When FirstCity took over, just everything changed. Those people didn't know us."
There have been 48 bank failures in the United States since the start of 2007, nine of those in Georgia. But, in all but two cases, the banks have found a buyer and stayed open. That was not the case in Gibson. When FirstCity began to fail, no other bank was willing to take on their debt.
Dan Peaster had heard rumors about FirstCity's possible demise and took some action.
"We had already set up emergency accounts," he tells WSB, "but we didn't want pull our loan out of this bank and help in the failure in anyway."
But, despite the public's support, the end came on March 20.
It was a normal banking day, with customers making their routine deposits. But when the bank closed for business that Friday, the FDIC moved in and took over.
Word spread quickly throughout Gibson. The bank, the only bank in town, the only bank in all of Glascock County, was gone.
"The mood was, at first frustration," Peaster says. "Some people were mad."
So much so that the sheriff posted armed guards outside the bank building on Saturday.
But town residents weren't thinking about storming the vault. They were more worried about surviving without a bank.
"Am I going to have enough money to operate?" was the question Don Kitchens was asking. Kitchens owns the only grocery store in Gibson. "I had most of my money tied up here."
Other residents were left with little. One couple had deposited a check on Friday and found themselves on Saturday with $3 between them and cars with gas tanks near empty. Fortunately, neighbors came to their aid.
Others found their debit cards didn't work. Checks were worthless. Suddenly, the little things they took for granted were gone.
"When the bank closed, we had checks out," says E.T. Chalker, "and we couldn't pay any bills or anything."
"Suddenly, we had to stop and think that we've got to stop in another town to use the bank," says Porter.
Peaster had to hunt for another small business loan. Kitchens could no longer accept food stamps. In addition, he had to stop performing simple operations.
"I do give some people change and do cash some checks, but I had to cut back a lot because I don't have access to a bank in town," Kitchens says. His store stands about 500 feet from the bank building, an easy stroll if he needed something.
"If I was low on one dollar bills or needed change, you could just run up there and get it in two or three minutes," he says. "Now it takes a half hour to go somewhere."
The FDIC moved quickly and most FirstCity customers had their money back by Tuesday. But they were still left without a bank.
"It was just something we knew was there," Porter says. "It was like a landmark for here. I've never known not to have a bank."
The nearest banks are in the towns of Wrens and Warrenton, about 14 miles away. For business owners like Peaster, that means making the 30 minute round trip every afternoon to make their daily deposits.
Some residents have resorted to carpooling to the banks. But some of Gibson's elderly, who get around town in golf carts, don't have the option to drive.
"They've got to rely on some relatives or friends, or something to do it for them," Chalker says.
There has been talk of another bank moving in and taking over the FirstCity building. That is up to the FDIC. According to town residents, the problem is that their bank was part of the three bank FirstCity chain and the FDIC, for now, doesn't want to sell piecemeal. Any potential buyer of the Gibson branch would need to buy the other two FirstCity locations, something the banks in Wrens and Warrenton won't do.
The FirstCity banner still hangs on the old bank building on Main Street, a stark reminder to residents of what was once here and what happened.
Mark Twain once wrote that you can put all your eggs in one basket but you'd better keep a sharp eye on that basket. Residents in Gibson have learned that painful lesson well.
If and when a new bank comes to Glascock County and the town of Gibson, residents say they'll be more careful.
"We've divided up our checking account," E.T. Chalker says about his wife and himself. "We've got one in Wrens and one in Thomason. We won't get caught in this situation again."
(WSB Radio) When it comes to partying, the University of Georgia can do it with the best of schools.
Playboy magazine is out with its rankings of the top 10 party schools in the country and UGA places #7.
Topping the list is the University of Miami, followed by UT-Austin, San Diego State and the University of Florida.
The magazine rates the schools in five categories, including campus life, sports, sex and brains. Then there's the bikini category, which looks at the guy to girl ratio, cheerleaders and temperature.
The magazine skips the local bar scene.
The list appears in Playboy's May issue.
(WSB Radio) A non-profit group is announcing a special incentive program this summer to encourage upcoming freshmen entering metro Atlanta high schools to sign up for Driver's Education.
Safe America President and CEO Len Pagano tells WSB the group is teaming up with several groups in metro Atlanta.
"We're excited that the state PTA is behind us as well as our Kiwanis clubs. We think that the real support is going to come from teens themselves, who recognize it's time for them to do more than just sit passive. We think getting teens into the equation is going to be a really important ingredient to making this successful," said Pagano.
Because the economy is affecting everyone, the program also tries to save money for the parents.
"What we're trying to is bring the cost of Driver's Ed. down and at the same time help teens understand that they can do something themselves to get their peers to learn how to drive better, and not just leave it up to parents. "Driver's Ed. is not required and that's part of the problem. We think that it should be done though, in a way that can be affordable and voluntary. That's why we think our program is unique. As a non-profit we're trying to cut the cost of Driver's Ed. so that kids can afford to take it. A lot of parents in today's economy find $300 or $400 hard to come up with," said Pagano.
Pagano says teenagers should be receptive to the idea.
"Many kids are tired of going to funerals and seeing their friends buried. I'd like to see us get to the point where we can have the teens put pressure on their colleagues in school so that they understand that when it comes to prom season, it's not such a good idea to go out and get drunk," said Pagano.
Under the trial program, "Safe Teen Georgia" project, freshmen entering high school will be offered a $300 rebate if they complete a course during their freshman year, avoid getting any speeding, DUI, or other infractions, and sign up ten other freshmen to take the program by the start of their sophomore year.
4/16/09
(WSB Radio) We now know which projects will be funded by federal stimulus dollars.
The Georgia Department of Transportation has issued its list of the first 49 projects.
"It's going to be work all over the state," says the DOT's David Spear. "In the Atlanta area, there's a big safety project over on Buford Highway. There's some resurfacings in several areas. Cherokee County on State Route 140. Roswell Road, some resurfacing on that."
Spear tells WSB DOT plans on using about $111 million of the stimulus money.
"We'll start the process in May," Spear says, "and, hopefully, by July we'll start finding people new jobs.'
The 49 projects are the first of 135 selected by the DOT board last month for stimulus funding. They were certified by Governor Perdue earlier this month. Pending similar certification, the remaining 86 projects, valued at $401 million will be contracted in June and the following months.
Spear says the funds will help fix roadways and shore up some sagging companies.
"There are a lot of folks whose companies, particularly in the contracting industry, haven't had much work and they're having to lay folks off," Spear says. "As much as we want to hire new folks, we want to preclude them from having to lay off any more, as well."
(WSB Radio) Severe weather ripped through areas of metro Atlanta, causing damage and at least one injury.
In Woodstock, in Cherokee County, there are at least a dozen homes damaged, with at least three completely destroyed. Authorities are still trying to determine whether it was a tornado or high winds.
At the Coleman's Bluff subdivision, the entrance is blocked by felled trees and first responders are going door-to-door to check on residents.
One storm chaser, talking to WSB, says he followed the storms from Kennesaw to Holly Springs and he believes the storm was a tornado.
A child was taken to the hospital with minor injuries. Police say the child was in a home that was damaged when a falling tree took down the roof of the house. The child suffered cuts and bruises and got insulation in the eyes.
The National Weather Service received several reports of possible tornadoes and funnel clouds late Sunday and early Monday, but no touchdowns had yet been reported.
Emergency officials in Columbus say two people were trapped, but uninjured, after a tree fell onto the building late Sunday. Trees and power lines across the area were knocked down.
Tornado watches and warnings were issued for much of Mississippi, Alabama and northern Georgia as the line of severe storms brought high winds, hail and heavy rains.
Martin Prado and David Ross hit three-run homers to support Javier Vazquez's six shutout innings and the Braves finally found their missing offense, beating Pittsburgh 11-1 on Sunday to end a five-game losing streak.
The Braves hadn't scored in 22 innings and the Pirates hadn't allowed a run in 21 innings, a pair of streaks that ended when Jeff Francoeur's two-run single keyed a three-run first inning against Zach Duke (2-1). Atlanta kept piling on the hits and runs, finishing with seven extra-base hits among its 15 hits.
``I always felt like that was one of the things I was better at, getting a timely hit, getting a big hit for the team and hopefully I can get back to that,'' said Francoeur, who drove in three runs. ``We needed something like that to give us some momentum.''
Third baseman Chipper Jones returned after missing four games with a bruised thumb and second baseman Yunel Escobar, who strained an abdominal muscle on Thursday, is due back Monday in Washington. With catcher Brian McCann also out with blurry vision in his left eye, the Braves' lineup was becoming depleted.
``You can do without one person in the lineup, but when you get two or three people out, it starts getting tough and you start pressing to score runs,'' Francoeur said. ``You can't do that, not in this game.''
Left fielder Garret Anderson was pulled in the fourth with quadriceps tightness, but the Braves are encouraged that they're finally getting close to putting the lineup on the field they envisioned.
Prado, filling in for Escobar, connected in the fourth to make it 6-0 and Ross, starting for McCann, went deep during a four-run seventh against Craig Hansen. Prado and Ross each homered for the first time this season.
``We got our offense rolling a little bit,'' manager Bobby Cox said.
Atlanta had only 10 hits combined while losing the first two games of the three-game series, 3-0 Friday and 10-0 Saturday, and hadn't scored since the fifth inning of a 6-2 loss to Florida on Thursday. Before breaking out against Duke and three relievers, the Braves had been outscored 34-7 during their losing streak and were in danger of being swept in successive three-game series by Florida and Pittsburgh.
``Obviously, it's important you never want to get swept and we weren't playing as well the last few games,'' Vazquez said.
Vazquez (1-1) permitted 10 earned runs in 12 innings over two starts against the Pirates the previous two seasons, but he didn't need all the offense he received Sunday. He struck out eight, gave up five hits and walked one, throwing 71 of 98 pitches for strikes in his first win for Atlanta.
He has 20 strikeouts in 12 innings over his last two starts, 12 during a 5-1 loss to Florida on Tuesday.
``I've been impressed with him every single game,'' Cox said. ``He gets a lot of strikeouts, he's around the plate, he throws a lot of strikes.''
Maybe Duke, who turned 26, should ask not to pitch again on his birthday. Duke, coming off a four-hit shutout against Houston on Monday, gave up 12 hits and six runs in six innings to raise his ERA from 0.59 to 2.59. Duke lost 7-5 to Milwaukee two years ago on his birthday.
``The command wasn't there. My fastball wasn't sharp, and my breaking ball wasn't breaking,'' Duke said.
Manager John Russell said he liked what Duke was throwing, but, he said, ``He couldn't get it where he wanted it to go.''
All the Braves' runs scored with two outs, including the three they got in the first after Prado doubled with one out but was trapped off second on Jones' hard-hit ball to shortstop. Anderson doubled, Francoeur singled and Casey Kotchman added an RBI single.
Francoeur hit a run-scoring double in the seventh ahead of Ross' homer, which gave the catcher his first three RBIs this season.
Notes: Duke had allowed one earned run in his previous 15 1-3 innings. ... Jones went 1-for-3 and scored twice. He is 7-for-9 against Duke the last two seasons and 9-for-19 against him in his career. ... Anderson is listed as day to day. ... Pittsburgh was denied its first three-game sweep of Atlanta since April 29-May 1, 1994. ... The Pirates had won six of their previous seven against the Braves. ... Atlanta avoided its first six-game losing streak since Aug. 17-22.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
With Josh Smith delivering one rim-shaking dunk after another and plenty of teammates chipping in, the Hawks made Miami look like a one-man team, running Dwyane Wade and the Heat ragged for a 90-64 blowout in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference series Sunday night.
Four other home teams Boston, Portland, San Antonio and Orlando had already lost about the time the Hawks took the court. Perhaps that spurred them on, because this one was over by halftime.
``We can't worry about what anyone else is doing,'' Joe Johnson said. ``We've got to control our own destiny.''
For one night at least, they did just that by holding Wade to 19 points 11 below his NBA-leading average and allowing only one other Miami player to reach double figures.
The Hawks tied a franchise record for fewest points allowed in a playoff game. Wade spent much of the night on his backside or complaining to the referees, his frustration growing as the Hawks raced to a 20-point lead by halftime in the opener to the best-of-seven series.
Game 2 is Wednesday night in Atlanta.
``Josh Smith got a lot of lobs and fast-break dunks that helped with the energy in the building,'' Wade said. ``When that happens, the game can get away from you pretty fast. When you miss as many shots as we did tonight, the game can get away from you pretty quickly.''
Miami was held to its fewest points of the season its previous low was 68 and the Hawks equaled the mark they set against the Charlotte Hornets in a 1998 playoff victory.
Smith scored 23 points and every other Atlanta starter also was in double figures. Wade made just 8 of 21 shots, and Michael Beasley added 10 points on a night in which the Heat showed its youth, shooting just 37 percent and managing seven points in the final period.
Wade, who took just two shots in the third quarter, compounded Miami's problems by turning it over eight times.
``I'm criticized if I take all the shots. I'm criticized if I don't,'' he said. ``We had some careless turnovers. I had a lot of them.''
The Hawks learned a year ago just how valuable that extra home game can be, facing Boston in their first playoff appearance in nine years. Atlanta made a series of it by winning three thrilling games at Philips Arena, but the Celtics won four blowouts in Boston to get started on their way to an NBA title.
From the day the Hawks walked off the court in Boston, they set a goal of gaining home-court advantage to start the playoffs. Atlanta came through, claiming the fourth spot in the East with its first winning record (47-35) in a decade.
Instead of opening in a hostile environment, the Hawks got to play in front of a raucous crowd that cheered their every move. They even brought out Atlanta-native T.I. to make the player introductions, the rap star still a month away from reporting to federal prison to serve his one-year-and-a-day sentence for pleading guilty to weapons charges.
``I didn't know it would turn out THIS way,'' coach Mike Woodson said with a grin. ``I just thought our guys were so focused coming into tonight.''
Wade may have been the best player on the court, but the Hawks were much better overall. Smith led the way, firing everyone up with three thunderous dunks during a decisive second quarter in which the Hawks outscored the Heat 35-18 to build a 59-39 lead at halftime.
``I feel like we have the better team,'' Smith said. ``We're not scared to play anybody.''
The Hawks made 11 of 16 (61 percent) in the second quarter, outrebounded the Heat 12-7, doled out eight assists and turned seven turnovers into 10 points. Miami shot just 39 percent (7 of 18), the final attempt a desperation heave by Wade, who ran into an Atlanta player on the follow-through and was sprawled out on the court as the horn sounded.
He got up slowly, clapped his hands in disgust and walked to the locker room.
Atlanta actually took control late in the first quarter. After Wade dunked coming off the baseline, the Hawks scored the final two baskets for a 24-21 lead.
The second period was no contest. With Wade getting a quick breather at the start, the Hawks quickly stretched their lead to 30-22. Then Smith took over, scoring 13 high-flying points before the quarter was done.
Al Horford blocked Wade at one end and the Hawks were off to the races, with Johnson lobbing to Smith for a thunderous jam. The former NBA dunk champion was just getting started.
His most spectacular play came off a lob by Mike Bibby, with Smith caught with his back to the hoop and slammed through while facing the other way.
``That,'' Smith conceded, ``was one of my good dunks.''
On the very next possession, the Hawks ran off a Wade miss and Smith rocked the house with another flying left-handed dunk.
``Josh really feeds off all the energy and pushes his game up to another level,'' Horford said. And Smith's teammates went along for the ride. ``Oh, man, it really pumps us up when we get him going,'' Horford added. ``It gets us motivated to get stops and keep doing the right things.''
Miami rookie coach Erik Spoelstra got a rough initiation to the playoff game. He called three timeouts during the second quarter in a futile attempt to slow the Hawks, but all that seemed to do was give them a little extra rest so they could keep on running.
The Heat, who made a 28-win improvement over last season's NBA-worst 15-67 team, looked more like the Miami, Version 2.008.
``Defensively, we were slow,'' Spoelstra said. ``We were slow in the mind, and whenever there seemed to be a loose ball or rebound, they seemed to have much more desperation than we did, and more physicality than we did.''
Bibby, whose acquisition at last season's trade deadline gave Atlanta its first true point guard in years, ran the offense masterfully beyond just throwing up passes for the highlight shows. He dished out nine assists to go along with 10 points.
Smith had a double-double, also grabbing 10 rebounds. So did Hawks backup center Zaza Pachulia with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Notes: James Jones, who started only one game during the regular season, began the game at forward for the Heat. He had 9 points. ... Former Hawks owner Ted Turner watched from a front-row seat. ... With Acie Law sidelined by a back injury, the Hawks dressed Speedy Claxton. The $25 million bust went more than two years without playing until the final week of the season, and he actually got on the court in the waning minutes with the outcome long since decided. ... The teams went 6 minutes, 42 seconds without either scoring in the sloppy fourth quarter. Atlanta outscored the Heat 14-7.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) Formal charges have been filed against a man accused of killing his ex-girlfriend at her Roswell home on Saturday.
37 year old Calvin Meyers is charged in the death of Minka Grogan at Grogan's house on Streamside Drive. He now faces multiple counts.
"They are malice murder, felony murder, two counts of aggravated assault, possession of a knife during the commission of a felony and criminal damage of property in the first degree," Roswell Police Lieutenant James McGee tells WSB. "All of these counts are under the Family Violence Act and carry no bond."
Police say Meyers crashed his car into the house, then grabbed Grogan and beat her with rocks. He then stabbed her to death.
Meyers surrendered to police after a roughly 3 hour standoff.
He'll make his first appearance in court either today or tomorrow.
(WSB Radio) The manager of a popular restaurant exchanged gun fire with a man trying to rob his store, Atlanta police said.
Authorities said a masked gunman grabbed an employee taking out the trash at the Taco Mac at 1006 North Highland Ave. around 3 a.m Sunday. The gunman was planning on robbing the place when the store's manager grabbed a gun and starting shooting at the robber. He fired back and managed to escape.
Police don't know if the suspect was shot. They are looking at surveillance tape to determine his identity.
No injuries were reported inside the restaurant.
A spokesman with the Hapeville police department said three men, armed with guns, broke into a home on Sims Street around 1 a.m. Sunday.
Cpl James Caroll told WSB the suspects stole cash, wallets, IDs, and cell phones . Two people were hit in the head with handguns. Two rounds were fired by one of the suspects but no one was hit. 15-20 Hispanic co-workers were inside the home at the time, Cpl. Carroll said.
Police think the suspects fled in a black Ford Expedition with large chrome rims. The driver has real short hair, almost shaved. Two others suspects were wearing white shits and blue pants, while the fourth suspects had on a cowboy hat and cowboy boots, police said. All four of the suspects were all wearing bandannas over their eyes.
Witness think the suspects are in a gang because of the bandannas and the color of the clothes.
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) Georgia's Courtney Kupets ended her distinguished college career with a record-setting performance on the final night of the NCAA Women's Gymnastics Championships.
Kupets added individual titles in the uneven bars, floor exercise and balance beam on Saturday to the all-around championship she won two days earlier. Her four titles tied the record for a single national meet.
She ended her career with a record nine individual titles, beating the mark of eight by Kentucky's Jenny Hansen in 1993-95.
Kupets accomplished the feat in three national meets. She missed last year's because of an Achilles' tendon injury.
Kupets won the balance beam (9.9875) and uneven bars (9.95) and tied for first with LSU's Ashleigh Clare-Kearney in the floor exercise (9.95).
Clare-Kearney led LSU's 1-2 finish on the vault. Clare-Kearney, who fell on the balance beam at the start of Thursday's team preliminaries, defeated defending champion Susan Jackson for the first of her two titles.
Clare-Kearney's two-vault score average was 9.9, edging out Jackson's 9.8938. Kupets, the 2007 champion, and Kristina Baskett of Utah tied for third (9.8563).
Clare-Kearney was awarded a 10 by four of the six judges on her opening vault, but she had points deducted on her second when she caught herself falling backward on her dismount.
Kupets was the second competitor on the bars, and of the 13 gymnasts who followed, only three cracked 9.9. Carly Janiga of Stanford was second (9.9125) and Alicia Goodwin of Florida and 2006 champion Kristina Baskett of Utah tied for third (9.9).
Kupets and Clare-Kearney turned in nearly flawless performances on the floor exercise, outscoring third-place finisher Corey Hartung of Florida (9.9).
Kupets, who earned three 10s the first two days of the meet, came close to another one on the balance beam. Two judges put up 10s for her routine, and she ended up with a 9.9875. Teammate Courtney McCool was second (9.95).
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Every team relishes a trip to the NBA playoffs. Is there any team that appreciates it more than the Atlanta Hawks?
Well, maybe. How about the Miami Heat?
Both teams experienced life at the bottom of the league in the not-so distant past, which makes them especially grateful to still be playing at this time of year.
``I savor every moment of it,'' Hawks forward Josh Smith said. ``You're more appreciative going from the bottom to the top than you are going from the top to the bottom.''
Try telling that to Miami.
The Heat reached the pinnacle in 2006, winning its first NBA title with a team led by Shaquille O'Neal and Dwyane Wade. Just two seasons later, with Wade battling injuries and O'Neal having been dealt to Phoenix, Miami plummeted all the way to the bottom of the standings with a 15-67 record.
It was an awful experience, but one that taught a valuable lesson about the fleeting nature of championships. No one wants to forget what happened, even those who were fortunate enough to be playing somewhere else last season.
``All season long, those guys, we've felt their pain,'' rookie forward Michael Beasley said. ``We weren't here, but we know what they went through.''
No one was more motivated than Wade. He returned from two injury plagued seasons with a vengeance, leading the league in scoring (30.2 a game) and pushing himself into MVP contention all for the shot at another ring.
``The regular season, it's a warm up to this,'' Wade said. ``The lights are brighter. I feel it already. I enjoy these moments. Our crowd's going to be rocking when we get back to Miami. Their crowd's going to be rocking in Atlanta. This is what we play for.''
In contrast to Miami's rapid up-and-down-and-back-up-again journey, the Hawks took a much more tortuous trip to this best-of-seven series, which begins Sunday night in Atlanta.
The franchise actually went off course a full decade ago when a perennial postseason team decided to transform itself with youth and speed. Ohhhh, what a mess of things they made. The trade for Isaiah Rider is a good starting point for how NOT to rebuild a team. By 2004-05, the Hawks were just a step above the D-League, winning only 13 games in coach Mike Woodson's first season.
``I knew we would eventually turn the corner, but it takes time,'' Woodson said. ``I've been in this 27 years. If you thought we should have been in the playoffs two or three years ago, you're crazy, you're out of your mind. No young team in the history of this game has ever done that.''
Indeed, there were times when the Hawks seemed to be standing still, but they were really making progress all along. They drafted Smith, Marvin Williams and Al Horford. They signed Joe Johnson. They rounded out the starting five by trading for Mike Bibby. On the court, the wins improved from 13 to 26 to 30 to 37 to this year's 47-35 mark, Atlanta's first winning season since 1999.
``It means a lot to me,'' said Smith, one of the holdovers from the worst season in franchise history. ``To go from 13 wins to 47 wins is unbelievable.''
The Hawks actually got a valuable sampling of playoff basketball a year ago, when they broke the NBA's longest active postseason drought, albeit with a record eight games below .500. No one gave them much of a chance in the opening round against eventual NBA champion Boston, but they took the Celtics to the limit.
Three wins at home showed the Hawks they were capable of hanging with the NBA's elite. Four blowout losses in Boston showed them just how far they had to go.
The season ended with a dismal 99-65 loss in Game 7.
``That definitely left a sour taste in all our mouths,'' Smith said. ``No one played well that game. We want to write a different story this year. We want to end on a positive note. We're not going to be satisfied just getting out of the first round. We want to try to reach our goal, to one day bring an NBA title to Atlanta.''
Coming into this season, Woodson talked over and over about the importance of having home-court advantage to start the playoffs. Atlanta reached that goal as the best team in the Eastern Conference beyond the Cleveland-Boston-Orlando power triumvirate, which ran away from everyone else.
``I hope like hell there's a carry-over from last year's run,'' Woodson said. ``That taught us how to play playoff basketball. When we to Boston, we had no clue. That's why the games were so lopsided. Then we came home and won Game 3. We grew up awfully fast and were able to make a series out of it.''
While much of the focus in this series will be on the Wade-vs.-Johnson matchup, there's always room for others to step up.
Beasley could play a huge role for Miami off the bench, giving the Heat scoring punch when Wade is not on the court. The rookie was the team's second-leader scorer at 13.9 points a game.
For the Hawks, keep an eye on much-traveled Flip Murray, who finally seems to have found a home in Atlanta. The combo guard averaged 12.2 points filling in for both Johnson and Bibby, providing the sort of instant offense the Hawks lacked a year ago from their reserves.
``We would not be in this position without Flip,'' Williams said.
Williams also played a key role before a back injury sidelined him for 16 games. He returned for the final week of the regular season and will be in the starting lineup Sunday night.
``That's 14 points and six or seven rebounds a game,'' Woodson said. ``It's good to have him back.''
AP Sports Writer Tim Reynolds in Miami contributed to this report.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Paul Johnson wasn't happy to see his quarterbacks and running backs combine for eight fumbles in Georgia Tech's spring game.
The Georgia Tech coach finally had enough when punter Scott Blair dropped a snap and then took his time before picking up the ball on a play when the defense wasn't allowed to apply pressure.
A disgusted Johnson, who watched the game from the field, stripped the ball from Blair's hands after the punter picked up his drop in the third quarter of the Gold's 31-28 win over the White at Bobby Dodd Stadium.
Blair had a rough day, missing field-goal attempts from 39, 49 and 35 yards.
Johnson stood on the field behind the offense during the game, so he was only a few feet away when Blair, a sophomore, dropped the snap.
Johnson said the fumbles were a disappointment after the offense did a better job of protecting the ball in the first 14 spring practices.
The kicking game is a bigger concern.
The Gold team featured Georgia Tech's No. 1 defense. The White team included the No. 1 offense, though quarterback Josh Nesbitt was held out with a sore shoulder and top running back Jonathan Dwyer was limited to only four carries for 47 yards, including a 30-yard gain on his first carry.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
For the nine-year veteran, it was his official welcome to Pittsburgh.
``That was awesome,'' he said. ``To be with a new team and to get that appreciation from the crowd. It was spectacular.''
Monroe hit a pair of three-run homers and Ian Snell allowed four hits in seven-plus innings, lifting the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 10-0 victory over the Atlanta Braves on Saturday.
Monroe, making his second start of the season, homered off Atlanta starter Jo-Jo Reyes (0-1) with two outs in the sixth inning. He again went deep off reliever Buddy Carlyle with two outs in the seventh.
It was the fourth multihomer game of the right-fielder's career and the third time he had six RBIs.
``Obviously, it was a great day for him,'' Pittsburgh manager John Russell said. ``He's capable of that. He can drive the ball for us.''
The 32-year-old sign with the Pirates in January after hitting .202 with eight home runs and 29 RBIs in 163 at-bats for Minnesota last season. He earned a spot on the Pirates' bench after leading the team with eight home runs and 16 RBIs in spring training.
Monroe had been 1-for-8 this season before Saturday's performance.
``That was fun,'' he said. ``To be able to come off the spring training I had and continue to be able to help the team. It feels good. I look forward to staying productive.''
Snell (1-2) walked three, struck out three and benefited from three double plays. The right-hander was replaced by Sean Burnett after walking Martin Prado to lead off the eighth.
Jesse Chavez worked a perfect ninth to complete the four-hitter.
Pittsburgh, which blanked Atlanta for the second consecutive game, has three shutouts in its past five games.
The Pirates, under first-year pitching coach Joe Kerrigan, entered Saturday's game with a major league-best 2.90 ERA. Though its still early, it's a dramatic improvement from 2008, when the Pittsburgh pitching staff was the worst in the National League with over five earned runs allowed per game.
``I knew we would be better,'' Russell said. ``Last year, we were not good at all. With Joe, there's now a sense of urgency to go out there and compete.''
Snell said the team's starting staff has been feeding off each other's early success.
``It's fun right now,'' he said. ``All of us are in a competition with each other. I'm sure the hitter's are doing the same thing.''
Pittsburgh's offense had 13 hits against Reyes and two relief pitchers. Ryan Doumit and Andy LaRoche had three hits, and Nate McLouth and Freddy Sanchez added two hits each.
Reyes, called up before the game to start in place of Tom Glavine, allowed five runs and seven hits in 5 2-3 innings.
The left-hander has lost eight straight decisions dating back to last season. That's the longest losing streak by an Atlanta pitcher since Marty Clary dropped nine in a row in 1990.
Leading 1-0, the Pirates broke the game open by scoring four runs in the sixth against Reyes.
Sanchez tripled with one out and scored on McLouth's single to make it 2-0.
After McLouth stole second base, Doumit was intentionally walked and Adam LaRoche struck out. Monroe followed with his first homer of the season to make it 5-0.
Andy LaRoche doubled and Ramon Vazquez was intentionally walked before Reyes was lifted for Carlyle.
``I felt good out there today,'' Reyes said. ``It's just that the screws came off in the sixth inning. I made one bad pitch all game, and it hurt. But I'm not dwelling on it because the first five innings are what I wanted to do.''
The Pirates added four more runs in the seventh against Carlyle. Doumit had an RBI double and Adam LaRoche was intentionally walked before Monroe again homered.
Omar Infante had two hits for Atlanta, which has lost five straight.
The Braves put two runners on base in the fourth. Brian McCann walked and Casey Kotchman doubled with two outs. But Snell got Jeff Francoeur to line out to McLouth to end the inning.
Atlanta's offense struggles and have come without third baseman Chipper Jones and shortstop Yunel Escobar in the lineup. Jones was out for the fourth consecutive game with a bruised left thumb, and Escobar missed his second straight game with a strained abdominal muscle.
Braves manager Bobby Cox said both players could return for Sunday's game against Pittsburgh.
``We haven't had our whole team in the lineup yet,'' Cox said. ``It would be great to get everybody back.''
Notes: Pittsburgh's back-to-back shutouts were its first since blanking Arizona and Philadelphia on Aug. 6 and 8 last season. ... Pirates SS Jack Wilson was out of the starting lineup for the third time in four games because of a bruised left middle finger. ... The Pirates played their first Saturday afternoon game at PNC Park since September 3, 2005. ... Monroe's six RBIs are the most by a Pirates player since Jose Castillo had six against Milwaukee on May 30, 2006. ... Atlanta is 5-6 after starting the season 5-1. The Braves are 0-2 on a nine-game, 10-day road trip.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
CARROLLTON, Ga. (AP) A fired Carroll County animal control officer has been fired for a second time less than 24 hours after the county's Civil Service Board found his original dismissal to be in violation of due process.
Following the ruling in his favor on Thursday, David LaCoste reported to work Friday only to be handed a notification of his dismissal.
His employment was originally terminated on Feb. 27, 11 days after he accused Tim Tant, the director of the Carroll County Department of Animal Control, of assaulting him.
LaCoste appealed the first termination based on grounds that the county violated its own regulations regarding employee discipline, making his termination illegal and invalid.
Written notification is required of any adverse action to be taken against an employee.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
MCDONOUGH, Ga. (AP) Police say a stolen motorcycle has led authorities to a man who has been operating a ``chop shop'' from his home in McDonough.
Henry County Police happened upon the operation on Thursday when an officer picked up a signal on a Lo Jack monitoring device that had been installed on a motorcycle stolen Thursday morning.
Authorities arrested 24-year-old Trenton Dean Millard, who has been charged with 19 counts of theft by taking and one count of operating a chop shop.
Capt. Jason Bolton said Saturday investigators are trying to figure out who else might be involved in the scheme.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Firefighters fought four hours to bring under control a fire in a salvage yard that burned 15-20 cars, sending smoke billowing for miles.
The fire in south Fulton County started about 4:30 p.m. Friday at Best Auto and Used Parts, whose owner said it began when an employee was taking apart a car with a hammer when some sparks flew, starting the fire. No one was injured.
Fulton Fire Chief Keith Padgett said the cars were stacked four high. There are about 200 cars in the yard.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) A man crashed a car into his ex-girlfriend's town home, beat her to death with rocks, and started a 3-hour standoff with police, Roswell authorities said.
Calvin Myers, 37, was arrested Saturday afternoon and charged with two counts of aggravated assault . Several other charges are pending, including murder, a police spokesman said.
"This has been a violate relationship all along. They've been arguing off and on. They had an argument earlier today," Lt. James McGee with the Roswell police department told WSB. "(Myers) crashed his car into the front of the house and grabbed her and beat her with rocks and stones in the head."
Lt. McGee said Myers wanted the woman to come back to him. She didn't want to. The victim has four children. Two of them, ages 14 and 15, are fathered by the suspect.
Investigators said Myers also threatened a second man with a knife. He had to come back to cut the grass and was taking a shower when Myers stormed into the bathroom. The victim eventually got away after locking himself in the bathroom.
Police said the standoff ended around 4 p.m. Saturday when Myers' sister talked him down.
(WSB Radio) Family members gathered Saturday afternoon to remember four family members killed in a fiery hit-and-run crash on Easter Sunday, then met again for a candlelight vigil Saturday night in South Fulton County.
Robert and Delisia Carter, the couple's newborn son, Ethan Blake, and Delisia Carter's 9-year-old daughter, Kayla, were all killed when a BMW crashed into their Mercedes-Benz on Camp Creek Parkway, police said. That crashed caused the Carter's car to slam into a Volkswagen, killing Morgan Johnson, 6. Her mother is still in critical condition, police said.
"I thank god, "said Delisia Carter's mom Kathy Smith to WSB-TV. "For everyone that's come out to support. I hope that we find this person, that they turn them self in because they've caused this tragedy to so many people."
"We both had the same goals," said Cherrish Little, Kayla's cousin. "We were supposed to go to Harvard together. I'm keeping that goal inside of me.
The group chanted 'we want justice' during Saturday night's vigil in South Fulton County. Many were at the funeral at the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Lithonia.
ATLANTA (AP) Police fired at least three bullets into a car Friday, killing a man suspected of kidnapping his two young children, who were in their car seats when police fired, authorities said.
Police said the two officers had to shoot and kill Jairo Antonio Bustos, 26, after he rammed another officer's vehicle and tried to run him over in the northern Atlanta suburb of Roswell.
Officers found Bustos in a parking lot after a nearby driver saw an Amber Alert describing the vehicle and called police, said Lt. James McGee, the city's police spokesman.
McGee said the two children a 9-month-old and a 22-month-old were strapped in their car seats in the back of the car when the officer shot Bustos. He was unsure whether the car was moving.
The episode unfolded after the children's mother, 22-year-old Adrian Stearns, called police Thursday to say Bustos had taken off with them in her Honda Accord. Bustos had recently been evicted from Stearns' apartment, said Gwinnett County Police spokeswoman Cpl. Illana Spellman.
A child abduction alert was issued and a motorist spotted a car matching the description on a busy north Atlanta highway on Friday morning, said McGee.
Police found the car in a parking space at an apartment complex, near where the children's maternal grandparents live.
``It went downhill from there,'' he said.
When the officer confronted Bustos, asking him to get out of the car, Bustos backed up the vehicle, knocking the officer to the ground. Bustos also rammed the patrol car that was blocking him in several times, authorities said.
At that point, two other officers took aim at Bustos and fired at least three times, McGee said.
The injured officer slightly hurt his knee and arm but will be OK, McGee said. The children are unharmed and with their mother and grandmother, he said.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the Roswell Police Department are investigating the shooting and the three officers have been placed on routine administrative leave.
McGee said the department would review the incident and declined to detail whether firing into a vehicle with children is against protocol.
``You have to make split-second decisions,'' he said. ``The main thing we look for is whether the officer's life or someone else's life was in imminent jeopardy. And, at least preliminarily, it seems that's the case.''
Associated Press Writer Dorie Turner contributed to this report.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
CANTON, Ga. (AP) Cherokee County has joined the list of Georgia counties that require applicants for business licenses to be legal U.S. residents.
The county says it issues about 7,500 business licenses each year. A few people applied for licenses last week under the new rule, which requires them to sign an affidavit. The affidavit says the appplicant is a U.S. citizen, a legal permanent resident 18 or older, a qualified alien or a non-immigrant under the Federal Immigration and Nationality Act.
Ana Silbernagel, who supervises the issuance of licenses for the county, said no applicants complained.
Last year, Cherokee County commissioners took up a draft ordinance that would make renters prove they are in the country legally. Commissioners say the ordinance remains under review.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
PITTSBURGH (AP) Paul Maholm wasn't thrilled with his start Friday night against the Atlanta Braves. He was pleased with the outcome.
Maholm combined with two relievers on a six-hitter and the Pittsburgh Pirates handed Atlanta its fourth straight loss with a 3-0 victory.
Maholm (2-0) allowed four hits in seven innings and lowered his ERA to 0.87 in winning his first home start of the season. But he struggled with his command throughout, working around three walks, two hit batters and a balk.
``For a little bit, I lost my rhythm,'' said Maholm, who threw 57 of his 102 pitches for strikes and beat Atlanta for the first time in three career starts. ``But it didn't hurt me. If you go seven innings, it's a good game.''
The Braves' best scoring chance against Maholm came in the second. Brian McCann was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning, and Jeff Francoeur and Martin Prado singled to load the bases. Casey Kotchman then hit a line drive that was inches from being fair.
``That was just luck,'' Maholm said.
Kotchman eventually was called out on the infield fly rule after his popup was dropped by catcher Ryan Doumit, and Jordan Schafer bounced into a 1-2-3 double play.
``Kotchman almost cleared the bases,'' Atlanta manager Bobby Cox said. ``It was just one of those nights.''
Maholm also go Omar Infante to fly out to right with two outs and runners on first and second in the fifth. He improved to 12-3 in his last 23 starts at PNC Park dating to 2007.
``Paul did a good job tonight,'' Pirates manager John Russell said. ``He wasn't as sharp, but he found a way to get outs. He's got enough confidence in himself that's he capable of being OK even when things aren't going right.''
John Grabow allowed two hits in the eighth inning, and Matt Capps pitched a perfect ninth for his third save.
Jair Jurrjens (2-1) struck out seven in 6 2-3 innings for Atlanta. He allowed one run and four hits in a career-high 120-pitch outing.
``He pitched great,'' Cox said. ``His location was good all night. His pitch count was fine for this time of the year.''
Andy LaRoche drove in Pittsburgh's first run with a groundout in the second and Nate McLouth hit his third homer off Mike Gonzalez in the eighth to make it 3-0.
``That was a big boost,'' Russell said. ``You never know with a one-run game going into the ninth inning. That gave us some breathing room. It was a huge hit for Nate against a left-hander.''
McLouth said Gonzalez left a fastball out over the plate.
``I think it was a mistake on his part,'' he said. ``It was nice to get those two runs.'' Notes: Jeff Francoeur had three hits for Atlanta and is batting .526 (10-for-19) over his past five games. ... Atlanta will call up LHP Jo-Jo Reyes from Triple-A Gwinnett to start Saturday's game against Pittsburgh. A corresponding roster move will be made before the game. ... Braves 3B Chipper Jones missed his third consecutive game with a bruised left thumb. ... Braves SS Yunel Escobar, who left Thursday's game against Florida with a strained abdominal muscle, did not play. ... Pirates SS Jack Wilson was a late scratch for the second time in three games because of a bruised left middle finger. He was replaced by Ramon Vazquez. ... Pittsburgh has won five of six games against Atlanta at PNC Park. ... Delwyn Young, acquired by the Pirates in a trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday, popped out as a pinch hitter to end the seventh in his first at-bat with the team.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) It was a perfect start and finish for Courtney Kupets, and a perfect ending to Suzanne Yoculan's 26-year career at Georgia.
The Gym Dogs sent out their retiring coach with a fifth straight national title and record 10th overall at the NCAA Women's Gymnastics Championships on Friday night.
``It really is a magical team that has so much fortitude and just love for the sport and passion, and they never quit,'' Yoculan said. ``I feel blessed, and I actually lived it every day being around them, and that's the thing I'm going to miss the most.''
The Gym Dogs also are going to miss Kupets. The senior from Athens, Ga., who won her third all-around title in four years on Thursday, opened the evening with a 10 on the uneven bars and wrapped up her collegiate career with a 10 on the vault.
As Kupets stuck her final landing, Yoculan pumped her fist, let out a ``Yes,'' and raced to embrace the woman Alabama coach Sarah Patterson calls the ``queen of college gymnastics.''
Tiffany Tolnay, a star in her own right who was overshadowed by Kupets here, followed with a 9.95 to give Georgia a season-high 49.625 in the event.
Georgia finished with a four-event score of 197.825, its second highest of the year and better than the 197.450 it posted at last year's national meet. Alabama, which upset Georgia at the Southeastern Conference meet, was runner-up with a season-high 197.575.
``I told the ladies to go out there and have their best performance and if there is a better team out there, make them beat you,'' Patterson said. ``That's exactly what we did. It's just that Georgia was on.''
Utah, second the last three years, was third with 197.425. Florida (196.725), Arkansas (196.475) and LSU (196.375) followed as the SEC sent five of its seven gymnastics programs to the Super Six, an unprecedented feat for a conference.
Kupets, a 2004 Olympic medalist and the SEC Gymnast of the Year, recorded 10s seven times this season, with three of them coming in her last five events. She finished Thursday's preliminary with a perfect score on the balance beam.
``Even if you didn't know the score, you could feel the pressure and you had to go all-out,'' she said. ``That's what I did, and it paid off.''
The Gym Dogs got off to a rough start Friday when leadoff gymnast Marcia Newby fell off the uneven bars and posted a 9.45. Newby ran back to her teammates saying, ``Sorry, sorry, sorry.'' Her mistake was all but forgotten a few minutes later.
After Kupets' stuck her landing, her teammates and the Gym Dogs' pom-pon-waving fans raised their hands, fingers pointed skyward, and chanted ``10-10-10,'' imploring the judges to reward her flawless routine. When the 10s went up, the fans started ``woofing'' in celebration.
If there was a lull in the Gym Dogs' performance, it came on the beam. But they finished the event strong, with Kupets posting a 9.95 and Courtney McCool a 9.9.
``Just incredible fight, from the mistake on the first event and the kind of pressure we felt,'' Yoculan said. ``We battled back on the uneven bars. The balance beam shaky, shaky, shaky and more shaky. A lot of people might have lost confidence in us after that, but this team never doubted themselves.''
The Gym Dogs exploded in the floor exercise, with no Gym Dog scoring lower than 9.9. Kupets who else? led the way with a 9.95.
After Georgia's big finish on the vault, Alabama went into its final event, the floor, needing to score 49.75 to tie the Gym Dogs. The Tide scored 49.5.
``There was something special in the air when we went to floor and vault,'' Yoculan said. ``When Abby (Stack) started us with a 9.9 on floor, I knew that was it. It felt like it was going to be our meet at that point.''
So did Tolnay.
``Abby started us off on floor, and that builds momentum the next two rotations,'' she said. ``It was hit after hit after hit.''
Yoculan announced last year that this would be her last season in coaching. Though the gymnasts didn't dwell on her pending retirement, Grace Taylor said she and her teammates were driven to give her the ultimate going-away present.
``We all wanted to send Suzanne back with something to remember,'' Taylor said. ``It was an amazing championship. It couldn't get better than this. It was beautiful, and we're so honored that we got to be part of this last year for her.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. (AP) The Daleski family was among the first in line when the gates opened Friday at Gwinnett Stadium, offering fans in the Atlanta area an option of minor league baseball.
Kenneth Daleski, 7, was wearing an Atlanta Braves cap, but that was just because he hadn't visited the souvenir shop yet with his parents, Richard and Denise. ``I'm not an Atlanta Braves fan. I'm a Gwinnett Braves fan,'' he said.
Gwinnett County built a $64 million ballpark just 36 miles from Atlanta's Turner Field and the International League came, with the Braves moving their Class AAA team from Richmond after more than four decades in Virginia.
The Gwinnett Braves hosted the Norfolk Tides in their first home game Friday night and a sellout crowd of 10,427 crammed into the stadium, which features 23 suites as well as special club seating.
Gwinnett lost 7-4, with Norfolk's Nolan Reimold breaking a tie with a grand slam in the seventh inning. But many of the fans still stood and cheered for their new hometown team when the final out was recorded.
``This isn't a thing like Richmond,'' Gwinnett catcher Clint Sammons said of the ballpark and the crowd before the game. ``This place is beautiful and the fans were great.''
``I really like it,'' said Norfolk catcher Matt Wieters, a former Georgia Tech star and Baltimore's top prospect. ``It has all the updated features, but it still looks like an old-time ballpark. It's just right, I think.''
The Gwinnett players loved their spacious new clubhouse. ``It makes you feel like you're in the major leagues,'' infielder Brooks Conrad said.
The Daleski family, though, was happy to be in a minor league ballpark. They live in Duluth, only about 10 miles away from Gwinnett Stadium and the trip was much easier than traveling to Turner Field.
``We'll still go to a lot of games in Atlanta, because we love the Braves and baseball,'' Denise Daleski said. ``I'd live in a ballpark if I could. But it is so nice having a minor league team this close. This is great for a family.''
Ground wasn't broken in Gwinnett until last June and the construction timetable was short. But everything was ready on time for players and fans, with just a few touches remaining.
The berm behind the outfield fence filled up fast, with families spreading out blankets over the newly laid sod. Tickets cost $6-$15, a far cry from major league prices.
International League president Randy Mobley took part in pregame ceremonies and will take in the opener of a new stadium in Columbus, Ohio, on Saturday.
``It's great to have new facilities like these,'' Mobley said. ``Minor league baseball has come a long way, but it remains family-friendly and relatively inexpensive. Our ticket prices are affordable and that helps in economic times like these.''
The Braves like having their top farm team so close because it makes player movement much easier. ``We can have a player in Atlanta in no time,'' general manager Frank Wren said. ``That's a big plus.''
When outfielder Gregor Blanco was sent down by the Braves to Gwinnett just before the start of the season, he didn't have to worry about finding a place to live. ``I'm not far either way,'' he said.
Being so close to the major league team also helps keep up the spirits of a minor leaguer. ``You know you're almost there,'' Conrad said. ``It is just a few more miles.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
WASHINGTON (AP) The family of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. has charged the foundation building a monument to the civil rights leader on the National Mall about $800,000 for the use of his words and image an arrangement one leading scholar says King would have found offensive.
The memorial including a 28-foot sculpture depicting King emerging from a chunk of granite is being paid for almost entirely with private money in a fundraising campaign led by the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation. The monument will be turned over to the National Park Service once it is complete.
The foundation has been paying the King family for the use of his words and image in its fundraising materials. The family has not charged for the use of King's likeness in the monument itself.
``I don't think the Jefferson family, the Lincoln family ... I don't think any other group of family ancestors has been paid a licensing fee for a memorial in Washington,'' said Cambridge University historian David Garrow, who won a Pulitzer Prize for his biography of King. ``One would think any family would be so thrilled to have their forefather celebrated and memorialized in D.C. that it would never dawn on them to ask for a penny.''
King would have been ``absolutely scandalized by the profiteering behavior of his children,'' Garrow said.
According to financial documents reviewed by The Associated Press, the foundation paid $761,160 in 2007 to Intellectual Properties Management Inc., an entity run by King's family. Documents also show a ``management'' fee of $71,700 was paid to the family estate in 2003.
In a statement to the AP, Intellectual Properties Management said the proceeds it receives go to the King Center in Atlanta, where King and his wife, Coretta Scott King, are entombed. The statement said the arrangement was made out of concern that fundraising for the monument would undercut donations to the King Center.
``Many individuals believe all `King' fundraising initiatives are interrelated and don't donate to the King Center, thinking they have already supported it by donating to the memorial,'' the statement said.
King's son Dexter serves as the center's chairman, and his cousin Isaac Farris Jr. is president and chief executive officer. King's two other surviving children, Martin Luther King III and Bernice King, are lifetime members of the board of directors.
A review of the King's Center financial documents shows that public support for the nonprofit organization did decline each year from 2004 to 2006, while fundraising for the Washington memorial was under way. More recent tax returns were not available.
The monument will be on the banks of the Tidal Basin, between the Lincoln and Jefferson memorials, and would be the first major tribute to the 1964 Nobel Peace Prize winner outside Atlanta.
For years, King's family has fiercely protected his legacy, suing for a share of the proceeds from the use of his words and images in merchandise and publications. In the 1990s, the family reached settlements with USA Today and CBS over their use of King's ``I Have a Dream'' speech without permission. A federal appeals court ruled in 1999 during the CBS case that the speech was not in the public domain.
But historians and the National Park Service said they are not aware of any other case in which builders of a national monument had to license the image of their subject.
National Park Service spokesman Bill Line said licensing fees are ``unfamiliar territory'' for a memorial that will eventually be turned over to the government. The Park Service was unaware of the fees but plans to discuss their potential implications, he said.
Harry Johnson, president of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation, said that the fees were not a burden and that the foundation has a good relationship with the King family.
``We just want to build the memorial,'' said Johnson, a Houston lawyer. ``The memorial we are building will be the people's memorial and will belong to the people of the United States.''
The foundation hopes to begin building the $120 million memorial this year. It has raised $104 million of that so far, including $10 million from Congress. It has tapped charitable foundations, Fortune 500 companies and individuals, sending letters to more than 1 million potential donors.
The intellectual property issue first surfaced in 2001, when the King family's efforts to seek a licensing agreement briefly stalled fundraising.
Johnson said the memorial's central sculpture does not fall within the family's intellectual property rights, and nearly all the King quotations being incorporated into the design are in the public domain, which means no licensing fees need to be paid.
The foundation did not pay any fees to the King family in 2008, but it could face more licensing fees in the future if it uses certain words or images in its activities, Johnson said.
Rebecca Rimel, president and CEO of the Pew Charitable Trusts, which gave $1 million to the project in 2007, said the group was not aware of the licensing arrangement but is now asking that its gift be used only to support the memorial's construction.
``We think the memorial is an important and overdue recognition, but we really don't want to get involved with relationships with the family and their estate,'' Rimel said.
Charon Darris, a New York banker and alumnus of Morehouse College, King's alma mater, said he raised about $1,000 for the memorial project with friends and did not have a problem with the fees.
``I don't think that's an unreasonable amount,'' he said. ``Ultimately, the kids lost their father, the wife lost her husband.''
Associated Press writer Errin Haines in Atlanta and the AP News Research Center contributed to this report.
On the Net:
Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial: http://www.mlkmemorial.org
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) Three patients exposed to contaminated medical equipment at Veterans Affairs hospitals have tested positive for HIV, the agency said Friday.
Initial tests show one patient each from VA medical facilities in Murfreesboro, Tenn.; Augusta, Ga.; and Miami has the virus that causes AIDS, according to a VA statement.
The three cases included one positive HIV test reported earlier this month, but the VA didn't identify the facility involved at the time.
The patients are among more than 10,000 getting tested because they were treated with endoscopic equipment that wasn't properly sterilized and exposed them to other people's body fluids.
Vietnam veteran Samuel Mendes, 60, said he was surprised to learn of an HIV case linked to the Miami facility, where he had a colonoscopy. He was told he wasn't among those at risk.
``I was hoping and expecting to not get anyone contaminated like that,'' he said. ``It's probably a little worse than we thought.''
The VA also said there have been six positive tests for the hepatitis B virus and 19 positive tests for hepatitis C at the three locations.
There's no way to prove patients were exposed to the viruses at its facilities, the agency said.
``These are not necessarily linked to any endoscopy issues and the evaluation continues,'' the statement said.
The VA has said it does not yet know if veterans treated with the same kind of equipment at its other 150 hospitals may have been exposed to the same mistake before the department had a nationwide safety training campaign.
An agency spokeswoman has said the mistake with the equipment was corrected nationwide by the time the campaign ended March 14. The problems discovered in December date back more than five years at the Murfreesboro and Miami hospitals.
The VA's disclosure Friday was the department's first comment since April 3, when the VA reported the one positive HIV test.
VA spokeswoman Katie Roberts has declined to provide any details on how widespread the problems might have been other than saying a review of the situation continues.
She said in an e-mail Friday that ``there is a very small risk of harm to patients from the procedures at each site.'' She said the HIV results ``still need to be verified'' in additional tests.
The VA statement shows the number of ``potentially affected'' patients totals 10,797, including 6,387 who had colonoscopies at Murfreesboro, 3,341 who had colonoscopies at Miami and 1,069 who were treated at the ear, nose and throat clinic at Augusta.
More than 5,400 patients, about half of those at risk, have been notified of their follow-up test results, the VA said.
The Friday statement said the VA is ``continuing to notify individuals whose letters have been returned as undeliverable, and working with homeless coordinators to reach veterans with no known home address.''
The statement also said the VA has assigned more than 100 employees at the three locations to ``ensure that affected veterans receive prompt testing and appropriate counseling.''
All three sites used endoscopic equipment made by Olympus American Inc., which has said in a statement it is helping the VA address problems with ``inadvertently neglecting to appropriately reprocess a specific auxiliary water tube.''
Charles Rollins, 62, who served three tours in Vietnam with the Navy from 1966 to 1969, said the news concerns him because he's used the Augusta ear, nose and throat clinic several times.
``That's terrible,'' he said by phone as he socialized at an American Legion post in Augusta.
Associated Press writers Lisa Orkin in Miami and Dorie Turner in Atlanta contributed to this report.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
NEW YORK (AP) A Georgia man accused of stalking Tyra Banks was simply responding to the model-turned-TV host's invitation for fans to reach out to her when he followed her from coast to coast, a defense lawyer said Friday.
Lawyer Sydney O'Hagen said in her opening statement at Brady Green's trial that he was just an overzealous fan who had hoped to be in Banks' studio audience, meet her and perhaps be a guest on her show.
O'Hagen noted that people interviewed on ``The Tyra Banks Show'' are not just celebrities, but often ordinary people who have had unusual experiences. She said Green, with his harsh, disadvantaged background, had hoped to be on her show.
The lawyer said Green never asked for Banks' personal information and never claimed they were meant to marry and have children. The things he did, O'Hagen said, ``simply do not constitute a crime'' and he gave Banks no reason to fear she was in danger.
Assistant District Attorney Shawn McMahon disagreed. He said Green accused an employee of lying when he said he didn't know where Banks' show was taping. The defendant told him, ``I'm going to find you and slit your throat,'' McMahon said.
McMahon also cited the note Green enclosed with flowers he sent to Banks: ``When I see you, I love you,'' it read. He said Green was a stranger to her.
The prosecutor said a copy of that note was in Green's duffel bag when he was arrested March 18, 2008, in a McDonald's near Banks' Manhattan studios.
Banks, a former Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue cover model, told police Green's actions made her fear she was in danger, a court complaint said. She is expected to testify at his trial.
McMahon said Green, 38, falsely told police he and Banks, 35, were friends.
Court papers filed by McMahon quoted Green, of Dublin, Ga., telling police, ``I know her. She knows me. We're good friends.''
After explaining that he had taken a bus from Los Angeles to New York to see her, he told police, ``We had a thing together. I sent her flowers. I sent her cards. Should I plead no contest? I've got satellites watching me and recording us,'' according to the court documents.
Green has pleaded not guilty to stalking, criminal trespass and harassment. He faces 90 days in jail on the stalking charge, the top count, if he is convicted.
Manhattan Criminal Court Judge James Burke is hearing the misdemeanor trial without a jury. He adjourned the trial until April 27.
Banks also hosts the reality show ``America's Next Top Model.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) Brendon Todd has made Nationwide Tour history by making a hole-in-one at the same hole two days in a row at the Athens Regional Foundation Classic.
The former Georgia All-American aced the 147-yard 17th hole for the second straight day on Friday, using an 8-iron during the second round at the Jennings Mill Country Club course.
During Thursday's opening round, Todd used a 7-iron when the hole played 157 yards and he finished with a 4-under 68. He is 5-under for the $550,000 event.
Todd is the first player in the 20-year history of the tour to ace the same hole twice in the same tournament.
The last player to ace the same hole twice in the same tournament was Graham Marsh in the first and third rounds of the 2004 Senior British Open.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) UPS Inc. said Friday that talks with DHL about carrying some of its air packages have ended, scuttling a venture that originally was expected to generate up to $1 billion in annual revenue for the world's largest shipping carrier.
Spokesman Norman Black told The Associated Press that the two companies agreed to terminate their negotiations. He did not elaborate.
But the move was expected by many analysts after DHL decided that it would no longer offer U.S. domestic-only air and ground services.
Although it had said its international shipping to and from the U.S. would continue, the cutbacks in its U.S. operations meant that any deal with UPS would have been greatly scaled back.
``We have not been able to come to a conclusive agreement that is acceptable to both parties,'' DHL said in a statement.
DHL spokesman Jonathan Baker said that for now his company will continue to use its existing providers, principally ABX Air and ASTAR Air Cargo, to provide the airlift services UPS had wanted to take over. Baker declined to discuss any potential agreements with other providers.
UPS shares fell $1.27, or 2.3 percent, to close at $54.65 in Friday trading.
The venture as originally envisioned was expected to last up to 10 years. Atlanta-based UPS, also known as United Parcel Service, had said the contract with DHL would mostly involve the transport of DHL packages between airports in North America not the pickup or delivery of DHL packages to customers.
When the talks were announced last May, DHL said it expected to finalize a contract by the end of 2008. However, in November DHL, hit by heavy losses and fierce competition, said that as of Jan. 30 it would significantly reduce its air and ground operations in the U.S. It also said it would cut 9,500 American jobs.
Prior to the move, DHL's total air volume for shipments from points between U.S. and international destinations and between points within the U.S. was about 1.2 million shipments a day. That figure was expected to drop to about 100,000 shipments a day after the changes went through, DHL's parent, Germany's Deutsche Post AG, has said. The air volume figures do not include packages that do not start or end in the U.S.
DHL has tried to be a major player in the U.S. since it bought Airborne Inc.'s ground delivery network for $1.05 billion in 2003, but it has lagged in the air and ground markets combined, analysts have said.
Earlier Friday, DHL said it has decided to move U.S. hub operations for its international business from Wilmington, Ohio, to the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport to save money.
DHL will reactivate its automated sorting facility at the northern Kentucky airport and finish moving there by mid- to late summer.
At last count, there were about 5,000 people still working at the Wilmington airport, down from about 8,000 a year ago.
DHL owns the cargo airport in Wilmington and hasn't announced what it plans to do with it.
UPS, which recorded 2008 revenue of $51.5 billion, is scheduled to report its first-quarter 2009 earnings next Thursday.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Earnings reports from Citigroup Inc. and General Electric Co. came in ahead of estimates Friday, giving investors a reason to hold onto the gains of the week.
The Dow Jones industrial average is up 6 points, or less than 0.1 percent, at 8,131. The Standard Poor's 500 index is up 4, or 0.5 percent, at 870. The Nasdaq composite index is up 3, or 0.2 percent, at 1,673.
Two stocks rose for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 1.9 billion shares.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
By BRETT ZONGKER
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) The family of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. has charged the foundation building a monument to the civil rights leader on the National Mall about $800,000 for the use of his words and image an arrangement one leading scholar says King would have found offensive.
The memorial including a 28-foot sculpture depicting King emerging from a chunk of granite is being paid for almost entirely with private money in a fundraising campaign led by the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation. The monument will be turned over to the National Park Service once it is complete.
The foundation has been paying the King family for the use of his words and image in its fundraising materials. The family has not charged for the use of King's likeness in the monument itself.
``I don't think the Jefferson family, the Lincoln family ... I don't think any other group of family ancestors has been paid a licensing fee for a memorial in Washington,'' said Cambridge University historian David Garrow, who won a Pulitzer Prize for his biography of King. ``One would think any family would be so thrilled to have their forefather celebrated and memorialized in D.C. that it would never dawn on them to ask for a penny.''
King would have been ``absolutely scandalized by the profiteering behavior of his children,'' Garrow said.
According to financial documents reviewed by The Associated Press, the foundation paid $761,160 in 2007 to Intellectual Properties Management Inc., an entity run by King's family. Documents also show a ``management'' fee of $71,700 was paid to the family estate in 2003.
In a statement to the AP, Intellectual Properties Management said the proceeds it receives go to the King Center in Atlanta, where King and his wife, Coretta Scott King, are entombed. The statement said the arrangement was made out of concern that fundraising for the monument would undercut donations to the King Center.
``Many individuals believe all `King' fundraising initiatives are interrelated and don't donate to the King Center, thinking they have already supported it by donating to the memorial,'' the statement said.
King's son Dexter serves as the center's chairman, and his cousin Isaac Farris Jr. is president and chief operating officer. King's two other surviving children, Martin Luther King III and Bernice King, are lifetime members of the board of directors.
A review of the King's Center financial documents shows that public support for the nonprofit organization did decline each year from 2004 to 2006, while fundraising for the Washington memorial was under way. The center has filed an extension for its 2007 tax return.
The monument will be on the banks of the Tidal Basin, between the Lincoln and Jefferson memorials, and would be the first major tribute to the 1964 Nobel Peace Prize winner outside Atlanta.
For years, King's family has fiercely protected his legacy, suing for a share of the proceeds from the use of his words and images in merchandise and publications. In the 1990s, the family reached settlements with USA Today and CBS over their use of King's ``I Have a Dream'' speech without permission. A federal appeals court ruled in 1999 during the CBS case that the speech was not in the public domain.
But historians and the National Park Service said they are not aware of any other case in which builders of a national monument had to license the image of their subject.
National Park Service spokesman Bill Line said licensing fees are ``unfamiliar territory'' for a memorial that will eventually be turned over to the government. The Park Service was unaware of the fees but plans to discuss their potential implications, he said.
Harry Johnson, president of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation, said that the fees were not a burden and that the foundation has a good relationship with the King family.
``We just want to build the memorial,'' said Johnson, a Houston lawyer. ``The memorial we are building will be the people's memorial and will belong to the people of the United States.''
The foundation hopes to begin building the $120 million memorial this year. It has raised $104 million of that so far, including $10 million from Congress. It has tapped charitable foundations, Fortune 500 companies and individuals, sending letters to more than 1 million potential donors.
The intellectual property issue first surfaced in 2001, when the King family's efforts to seek a licensing agreement briefly stalled fundraising.
Johnson said the memorial's central sculpture does not fall within the family's intellectual property rights, and nearly all the King quotations being incorporated into the design are in the public domain, which means no licensing fees need to be paid.
The foundation did not pay any fees to the King family in 2008, but it could face more licensing fees in the future if it uses certain words or images in its activities, Johnson said.
Rebecca Rimel, president and CEO of the Pew Charitable Trusts, which gave $1 million to the project in 2007, said the group was not aware of the licensing arrangement but is now asking that its gift be used only to support the memorial's construction.
``We think the memorial is an important and overdue recognition, but we really don't want to get involved with relationships with the family and their estate,'' Rimel said.
Charon Darris, a New York banker and alumnus of Morehouse College, King's alma mater, said he raised about $1,000 for the memorial project with friends and did not have a problem with the fees.
``I don't think that's an unreasonable amount,'' he said. ``Ultimately, the kids lost their father, the wife lost her husband.''
Associated Press writer Errin Haines in Atlanta and the AP News Research Center contributed to this report.
On the Net:
Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial: http://www.mlkmemorial.org
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) Grady Hospital is gets a shot in the arm, so to speak, from the Bernie Marcus Foundation.
The co-founder of Home Depot is giving $20 million to the hospital to expand its trauma center as well as it's intensive care unit for stroke victims and those with traumatic brain injuries.
"The facilities will be upgraded, equipment will be upgraded, and we'll really be a regional resource for patients with these types of disorders," says Dr. Michael Frankel, Chief of Neurology at Grady and head of the new Marcus Stroke and Neuroscience Center.
He says the center should be completed by next year.
The money will allow Grady to expanded its trauma center from four bays to six and will be renamed to the Marcus Trauma Center at Grady.
The donation marks the first to the 100-year-old hospital by Marcus who's good friends with Grady Board Chairman Pete Correll.
Frankel tells WSB's Sandra Parrish he hopes it's the start of new things to come now that the hospital is under new management .
17 April 2009
(WSB Radio) It's like spam for your windshield. But police say it's a new kind of scam and they're warning drivers to be on the lookout.
Police say the crooks are putting fake tickets on cars in parking lots. They direct the owner to an "official" website that claims to have photos of the alleged violation.
Gregory Evans is one motorist who was targeted by the scammers.
"I got one in Atlantic Station," he says. He went to the website on the "ticket" and was instructed to fill out a form and hit enter. Fortunately, Evans works for a security company and wasn't taken in by the con.
Other drivers have not been so lucky. They've submitted the form and have, inadvertently , downloaded a computer virus. That's where the real trouble begins.
Victims can be hacked in many ways.
Sometimes they're tricked into buying fake antivirus software. Other times the virus captures the user's keystrokes, revealing the victim's passwords and account numbers. There is also a virus that turns a computer into a bot that can be controlled remotely by the hacker.
The scam has been around for awhile, in New York and Los Angeles. But, more recently, it's sprung up in other cities, like Atlanta. It's even made the rounds in such out of the way places like Grand Forks, North Dakota.
The key to discovering that you're the target of the scam is the web address on the ticket.
Most of the fake tickets use a website that ends in dot.com. Others use dot.net or dot.org. There's the tipoff. Evans says if the ticket was legitimate and you were being sent to a government agency to pay a fine, the website would end in dot.gov.
(WSB Radio) We've had the World Baseball Championship and there's always the World Boxing Championship. This weekend, Atlanta plays host to the World Barista Championship.
The world's best baristas, representing 52 countries, will compete at the World Congress Center before a live crowd and an online audience from around the globe.
In the three days of preliminary round competition, the baristas will prepare 4 espressos, 4 cappuccinos and 4 original signature drinks. They'll be held to exacting standards in a 15 minute performance set to music.
Seven judges, chosen from an international pool, will rate the performances based on taste, cleanliness, creativity, skill and overall presentation.
The top six competitors will advance to the finals on Sunday.
The public is invited to taste at complimentary espresso stations inspired by the 2008 world barista champion.
Admission to the competition is free.
(WSB Radio) The federal government has proposed a fine of more than $73,000 against a Hall County poultry plant after inspections turned up 22 health and safety violations.
OSHA cited the Fieldale Farms plant in Gainesville for two repeat violations, along with 18 that were considered serious. They include the company's alleged failure to regularly train employees on blood born pathogens and to make the Hepatits B vaccine available to exposed workers.
A Fieldale vice president says the company is already working to correct any deficiencies.
(WSB Radio) A parapro at a Hall County elementary school is out of a job after it was learned she was arrested on drug and theft charges.
School system spokesman Gordon Higgins tells Channel 2 Action News a parent alerted them to the arrest of Kelly Funderburk, who has been working with five-year-olds at Sugar Hill Elementary School since March of 2006.
Turns out that Funderburk has been charged with drug and theft charges in Gainesville, Cornelia, and Pendergrass. Pendergrass Police say they believe her roommate is a central figure in a theft ring.
Some $12,000 dollars worth of Wal-Mart merchandise was found in their home. Police believe the stolen merchandise was sold on Ebay.
(WSB Radio) The Gwinnett Braves open their home schedule tonight before a full house.
A crowd of 10,000 is expected as the Braves take on the Norfolk Tides at the Gwinnett Stadium.
If you're heading to the game keep in mind that parking is at a premium.
There are 2500 parking spots for the crowd. There's also only one way in and out of the parking lot, by way of Buford Drive, so team officials are urging patience, and carpooling.
"Most of the cars have an average of about three or four people in it, because this is a family environment," says Courtney Lawson with the Gwinnett Braves. "So, it's not one person for one car, for the most part."
Once the lot is full, police will direct cars to the adjacent industrial and office parks.
The three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Davis' calls for a new trial on grounds he did not kill Mark MacPhail in 1989. The 2-1 decision also postponed his oft-delayed execution 30 days so he can appeal.
The ruling dashed the hopes of supporters who contended that the court should grant the 40-year-old, who was convicted in 1991, a new trial to explore the testimony. It bars him from filing a new appeal that contends he is innocent.
``Davis has not presented us with a showing of innocence so compelling that we would be obliged to act today,'' read the panel's ruling. ``Rather, the record, including all of the post-trial affidavits, is, at best, tortured and difficult.''
Davis' attorney Jason Ewart said he planned to appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court. He noted that Thursday's ruling now means four judges three from the Georgia Supreme Court and one federal appeals judge have cast doubt on the execution.
``I can only say that if the 10 judges who have reviewed the case in the last two years were on Troy's jury, Troy would have never been convicted as four of those judges have stated his execution is unconscionable,'' he said.
The bitter legal arguments unfolded after MacPhail, who was working off-duty as a security guard at a bus station, rushed to help a homeless man who had been pistol-whipped at a nearby parking lot. The 27-year-old was shot twice when he approached Davis and two other men.
Witnesses identified Davis as the shooter in the 1991 trial, and prosecutors said he wore a ``smirk'' as he fired the gun. He was convicted of murder and sentenced to death.
But Davis' supporters including former President Jimmy Carter and a range of other prominent advocates have pressed for a new trial because seven of the nine key witnesses against him have recanted their testimony.
And they say three others who did not take the stand have said another man who testified against Davis at his trial confessed to the killing.
Prosecutors, meanwhile, consider the case closed and cast doubt on the new evidence. Former Savannah District Attorney Spencer Lawton said the new testimony is ``very difficult to believe'' because it could have been manipulated.
Concerns over the case have led to three postponements of Davis' execution, the first in July 2007 when Georgia's pardons board delayed it less than 24 hours before it was to be carried out.
A divided Georgia Supreme Court twice rejected Davis' request for a new trial both by 4-3 votes and the pardons board turned down another bid for clemency after considering the case again.
As corrections officers prepared for Davis' scheduled Sept. 23 execution, the Supreme Court issued a stay to consider whether to grant him another hearing. A few weeks later, the court cleared the way for the execution when it decided against hearing the case.
As the clock ticked toward another execution, Davis' attorneys convinced the federal appeals court to stay the execution again this time to hear arguments over whether federal law allows Davis' attorneys to call for a new trial at all.
At a hearing in December, they urged the court to grant him a new trial because it was ``constitutionally intolerable'' to execute Davis without hearing the fresh innocence claims.
State prosecutors countered by arguing that Davis' attorneys had much of the evidence during the 1991 trial, and that if they could prove he was innocent, they should have done it then.
The federal panel seemed to agree in its ruling, criticizing Davis for not making the innocence claim earlier. It also concluded Davis has ``not even come close'' to proving the claim meets strict constitutional guidelines.
In an 11-page dissent, Circuit Judge Rosemary Barkett said the court was losing sight of the underlying issue: Whether Davis could be executed when ``no court has ever conducted a hearing to assess the reliability of the scores of affidavits'' that could lead to his freedom.
For MacPhail's family, the panel's decision was another step toward closure.
``I'm glad we went over that hurdle right now and that they turned it down,'' said Anneliese MacPhail, the slain officer's 75-year-old mother. ``Now I'm just waiting for the next bomb to fall. The last two years have been an absolute nightmare I just want to get it over with.''
Critics, meanwhile, said the decision brings Georgia one step closer to executing an innocent man. Stephen Bright of the Southern Center for Human Rights said the ruling meant the court believes it's ``more important to get it over than to get it right.''
``The judges have completely lost sight of justice,'' he said. ``They are lost in a maze of procedural rules that obscure the truth instead of revealing it.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Prosecutors say 26-year-old Lawrence Edward Pruitt of Central Islip, N.Y., and 26-year-old Marvis Nichole Harris of Columbia, S.C. were indicted on charges involving sex trafficking of a minor. They made their initial appearance on Thursday before a federal magistrate.
U.S. Attorney David E. Nahmias says FBI agents and local police were investigating possible illegal activity involving underage girls recruited to work as prostitutes when they encountered the 17-year-old at an Atlanta-area hotel.
Nahmias says the agents had seen pictures of the 17-year-old at a Website advertising erotic services and claiming she was 19, although the defendants knew her real age.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) The search for two missing Gwinnett County children has ended with the kids safe and their abductor dead.
Roswell police were called to the Concept 21 apartments on Old Holcomb Bridge Road, in Roswell, on Friday morning after someone called to say they spotted a car matching the description of the vehicle in a Levi's Call.
Upon arrival, officers found 25 year old Jairo Bell behind the wheel of his ex-girlfriend's 1994 Honda Accord. Witnesses report hearing officers call for Bell to "put the gun down," then they say they heard at least three shots.
Bell was pronounced dead at the scene. The two boys, 22 month old Adrian Bustos and 9 month old Alfredo Bustos, were safe in the back seat.
Police issued the Levi's Call and had been looking for Bell and the boys since receiving a 911 call from the children's mother on Thursday afternoon. 22 year old Adrian Sterns told dispatchers that her ex-boyfriend had taken her car, with her sons still in the back seat.
According to investigators, Bell took the car with the woman and kids inside. Police say
Bell drove them around for hours before the mother was able to get away and call police.
"They came back to her residence in Norcross," Corporal Illena Spellman tells WSB, "and, at that time, when he stopped the vehicle, she jumped out and he drove away with the children still in the back seat."
(WSB Radio) A paraprofessional at a Hall County elementary school is out of a job after it was learned she was arrested on drug and theft charges.
School system spokesman Gordon Higgins tells Channel 2 Action News a parent alerted them to the arrest of Kelly Funderburk, who has been working with five-year-olds at Sugar Hill Elementary School since March of 2006.
"Initially it was perceived to be an arrest that involved a small amount of marijuana," said Higgins. "Now it appears to be something involving felony drug charges as well as theft charges."
Turns out that Funderburk has been charged with drug and theft charges in Gainesville, Cornelia, and Pendergrass. Pendergrass Police say they believe her roommate is a central figure in a theft ring. Some $12,000 dollars worth of Wal-Mart merchandise was found in their home. Police believe the stolen merchandise was sold on Ebay.
(WSB Radio) Marietta Police are looking for three men in connection with a violent home invasion.
Marietta Police Officer Jenny Murphy tells WSB the men forced their way into the Los Colinas Apartments on Franklin Road, shortly after lunchtime on Thursday.
During the home invasion, one victim was assaulted, another shot. Neither of the injuries is believed to be life-threatening.
"There are three black male suspects. They were armed with firearms. They left the scene in an older model full-sized domestic passenger vehicle, possibly a GM," said Murphy.
Police says this appears to be an isolated incident.
4/16/09
(WSB Radio) Smyrna Police are questioning two men in connection with a murder of a woman at her apartment Saturday night.
Officer Michael Smith tells WSB not long after surveillance video was released, police got a break."
"I can't stress enough how grateful we are. I'm sure Ms. Young's family is grateful for the public's help. We are confident, based on the public's help, that these are our suspects in Ms. Young's homicide," said Smith.
Less than an hour after 30-year-old Adrianne Young was found shot to death at her home at the MIssion at Galleria Apartments, the two suspects were spotted at a store on Concord Road.
"Both suspects were trying to use their victim's credit card. Putting that out there, the public called us jwith several tips that led us to an apartment complex off of Hurt Road," said Smith.
The two suspects, who lived at the Concord Chase Apartments were arrested after a chase.
"When officers first arrived on the scene, they were watching the apartments. The subject looked out the window, apparently saw police, they took off and entered into a foot pursuit with police," said Smith.
The names of the suspects have not been released.
Police believe the men knew the 30-year-old victim.
A relative of Brandon Patton's sent an email to Channel 2 Action News to say Patton had returned to his Buckhead home. No explanation of where he'd been or what happened was offered.
Patton reportedly had left Atlanta for Tampa, FL to visit his 4 year old daughter and never arrived. His 1997 gold Chevy S-10 was spotted a week ago in Lakeland, Florida with two men inside the vehicle. Patton was not seen.
St. Petersburg and Atlanta police made a positive video identification of Patton at a Crabby Bills. According to APD Officer James Polite, "The Atlanta Police Department Missing Persons Unit with the assistance of family members have made a positive visual identification (VIDEO) on Mr. Brandon Hamilton Patton. At the time of the sighting he appeared to be under no duress or in any immediate danger."
News/Talk 750 WSB spoke to a member of Patton's family who would only say, "We are very happy that Brandon is safe, but we don't wish to comment any further."
16 April 2009
(WSB Radio) The recession is still here, but things might be easing a bit in Georgia.
The state Department of Labor reports the jobless rate for March stood at 9.2%, unchanged from February. It marks the first time in 20 months that the rate did not increase over the previous month.
"With apologies to Sir Winston Churchill, the better-than-expected March jobless rate does not represent the end of this recession," said State Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond. "It is not even the beginning of the end. However, it may be the end of the beginning of the most severe economic downtown since the Great Depression."
There was even some job growth in Georgia in March, as the state added 3000 new jobs, the first such increase in the state since October.
The news was not all rosy, however.
The March jobless rate of 9.2 was up 3.6 percentage points from 5.6 percent at this same time last year, and Georgia's unemployment rate also remained above the national rate of 8.5 percent for the 17th consecutive month. And the number of payroll jobs in March decreased 185,900, or 4.5 percent from March of 2008.
At present, 442,758 unemployed Georgians are looking for work, an increase of 64.1 percent over the year. Of that number, 172,947, or 39.1 percent, are receiving state unemployment insurance benefits, while another 84,700 are receiving federal Emergency Unemployment Compensation.
(WSB Radio) Fulton County police have released a more detailed description of the car being sought in a deadly hit and run.
Police are searching DMV records to locate a 1995 to 1999 BMW 740 or 750 series sedan. The color is said to be cashmere beige. The photo below, police say, closely matches the vehicle in question.
It's being sought in connection with a wreck on Camp Creek Parkway this past Sunday that killed five people, including three children.
Police say the BMW struck a Mercedes that was going eastbound. Both cars crossed the median, with the Mercedes striking a Volkswagon head on. The driver of the BMW sped off.
A family of four inside the Mercedes was killed, along with a six year old girl riding in the Volkswagon. The driver of the VW was hospitalized.
Police say the BMW should have damage to the front corner of the bumper on the driver's side, along with undercarriage damage.
Anyone with any information on this vehicle is urged to contact Investigator Lamar at 404-612-5314 or Investigator Stark at 404-613-5316. The picture shown above should be a good representation of the suspect vehicle.
Or for Anonymous tips and possible reward
Contact CRIME STOPPERS at 404-577-8477
(WSB Radio) Authorities have identified the woman killed in a fire in Austell.
Fire investigators say 57-year-old Marjorie Ellis was alone in the home. Firefighters from Austell and Cobb County found her soon after arriving at the house on Jackie Lane.
She had been trapped by smoke and flames. A neighbor called 911 to alert authorities to the fire.
Fire investigators say the fire was an accident.
(WSB Radio) The death of a little girl at a local children's hospital has now brought upgraded charges against the babysitter.
2 year old Andrea Marginean has died at Scottish Rite of head injuries she suffered last Saturday at her home on Cedar Farms Drive in Gwinnett County.
Police say her mother had left her in the care of a friend, 29 year old John Wyatt of Lawrenceville. Corporal Illana Spellman tells WSB's Bob Coxe, Wyatt had been charged with cruelty to children; that's now`been upgraded to felony murder:
"It is believed by investigators that he struck the child in the bathtub because he was angry that the child was crying," says Spellman.
Wyatt is being held without bond at the Gwinnett County jail.
ATLANTA (AP) Whipped up by conservative commentators and bloggers, tens of thousands of protesters staged ``tea parties'' around the country Wednesday to tap into the collective angst stirred up by a bad economy, government spending and bailouts.
The rallies were directed at President Barack Obama's new administration on a symbolic day: the deadline to file income taxes. Protesters even threw what appeared to be a box of tea bags toward the White House, causing a brief lockdown at the compound.
Shouts rang out from Kentucky, which just passed tax increases on cigarettes and alcohol, to Salt Lake City, where many in the crowd booed Republican Gov. Jon Huntsman for accepting about $1.5 billion in stimulus money. Even in Alaska, where there is no statewide income tax or sales tax, hundreds of people held signs and chanted ``No more spending.''
``Frankly, I'm mad as hell,'' said businessman Doug Burnett at a rally at the Iowa Capitol, where many of the about 1,000 people wore red shirts declaring ``revolution is brewing.'' Burnett added: ``This country has been on a spending spree for decades, a spending spree we can't afford.''
In Boston, a few hundred protesters gathered on the Boston Common a short distance from the original Tea Party some dressed in Revolutionary garb and carrying signs that said ``Barney Frank, Bernie Madoff: And the Difference Is?'' and ``D.C.: District of Communism.''
Texas Gov. Rick Perry fired up a tea party at Austin City Hall with his stance against the federal government, as some in his U.S. flag-waving audience shouted, ``Secede!''
But unlike many events around the country, politicians were not allowed to speak at a separate rally in San Antonio.
``They are welcome to come and listen to us, for a change,'' organizers said in a statement.
In Atlanta, thousands of people gathered outside the Capitol, where Fox News Channel conservative pundit Sean Hannity broadcast his show Wednesday night. One protester's sign read: ``Hey Obama you can keep the change.''
One of his guests was Samuel ``Joe the Plumber'' Wurzelbacher, who made news during the presidential campaign when he asked Barack Obama about taxes. The crowd cheered many of Hannity's stances against higher taxes and moves by the Obama administration so far.
Julie Reeves, of Covington, brought her Chihuahua, Arnie, who wore a tiny anti-IRS T-shirt. ``I want the government to get its hand the hell out of my wallet,'' Reeves said.
The tea parties were promoted by FreedomWorks, a conservative nonprofit advocacy group based in Washington and led by former Republican House Majority Leader Dick Armey of Texas, who is now a lobbyist.
Organizers said the movement developed organically through online social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter and through exposure on Fox News.
While FreedomWorks insisted the rallies were nonpartisan, they have been seized on by many prominent Republicans who view them as a promising way for the party to reclaim its momentum.
``All you have to be is a mildly awake Republican candidate for office to get in front of that parade,'' said Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform.
The movement attracted some Republicans considering 2012 presidential bids.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich took the podium in front of New York's City Hall while the crowd of about 2,000 chanted, ``We are America!''
He urged people to tell their lawmakers to vote against big spending or else ``we're going to fire you.''
As the former House speaker left after his 11-minute speech, passers-by yelled, ``2012, Newt!'' and ``Run for president!'' But when asked about a run, Gingrich shook his head emphatically and said, ``I'm just part of a citizen movement.''
Another possible candidate, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, sent an e-mail to his supporters, letting them know about tea parties throughout the state. South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford attended two tea parties.
In Missouri, Karla Waite, 28, brought her four young children to a rally in Kansas City because she said ``it was time to stand up.''
``The way we've been going, with the bailouts and the entitlements, we're heading toward socialism,'' Waite said. ``That's not the kind of world I want my children to live in.''
There were several small counter-protests, including one that drew about a dozen people at Fountain Square in Cincinnati. A counter-protester held a sign that read, ``Where were you when Bush was spending billions a month 'liberating' Iraq?'' The anti-tax demonstration there, meanwhile, drew about 4,000 people.
In Lansing, Mich., outside the state Capitol, another 4,000 people waved signs exclaiming ``Stop the Fiscal Madness,'' ``Read My Lipstick! No More Bailouts'' and ``The Pirates Are in D.C.'' Children held makeshift signs complaining about the rising debt.
In Hawaii, several of the state's eight GOP legislators attended a Capitol rally. But the state's top two Republican officeholders Gov. Linda Lingle and Lt. Gov. James ``Duke'' Aiona stayed away even though they oppose tax hikes to help close the state's significant budget deficit.
More than 1,000 protesters gathered outside a downtown federal building in Salt Lake City despite the rain and snow. Kate Maloney held a cardboard sign that read ``Pin the tail on the jacka$$'' with a picture of Obama on a Democratic donkey.
Other protesters also took direct aim at Obama. One sign in the crowd in Madison, Wis., compared him to the Antichrist. At a rally in Montgomery, Ala., where Twisted Sister's ``We're Not Gonna Take It'' blared from loudspeakers, Jim Adams of Selma carried a sign that showed the president with Hitler-style hair and mustache and said, ``Sieg Heil Herr Obama.''
Still others talked of their children's futures. In Washington, D.C., Joe Hollinger said he took the day off to attend the protest with his 11-year-old daughter.
``I'm concerned about the incredible amount of debt Congress is going to put on our children,'' Hollinger said, pointing to his daughter's sign, which read, ``Congress get your hand off my piggy bank.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
A recurring theme in the complaints from other passengers was that they were uncomfortable because an overweight person was "infringing" on their seat.
Obese passengers do have options. They can buy two coach seats, upgrade to business class, where the seats are bigger; or flight attendants will attempt to find two open seats for them free of charge.
Eight other airlines, including Continental, Delta, JetBlue and Southwest, have similar requirements in place for overweight passengers.
(WSB Radio) The operator of four metro Atlanta shopping malls has filed for bankruptcy.
General Growth Properties filed for Chapter 11 early this morning after failing to convince its debt holders to give the company more time to pay off.
The Chicago-based company is the country's second largest mall operator. It has a stake in more than 200 malls in 44 states, including Southlake, Cumberland, Perimeter and North Point Malls in metro Atlanta.
General Growth insists its shopping centers will operate as usual while in reorganizes.
The company says it has about $29 billion in assets, but is loaded down with $27 billion in debt.
Stock prices for General Growth have plummeted. Last spring, the stock sold for over $44 a share. It closed Wednesday at $1.05.
(WSB Radio) Clayton County schools have been given two more days to make their case for re-accreditation.
A committee from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools will spend the full week reviewing the school system's progress towards meeting nine mandated goals to win back accreditation.
The committee wants to talk to more people and will report back to the association before a final decision is made by the National Accreditation Commission.
Clayton County hopes to learn its fate before the school year ends next month.
(WSB Radio) New signs are going up on the HOV lane at Northside Drive on Interstate 75.
Two years after the deadly Bluffton University bus crash, the Georgia Department of Transportation is making changes.
There will be more striping, additional road markings and bigger signs to make sure another vehicle doesn't go up the exit ramp with the driver thinking they're still on the interstate.
Seven people died in the 2007 Bluffton crash when the bus, carrying the school's baseball team, went up the exit ramp and plowed through the overpass fence, flipping back on to I-75.
Two weeks ago, another tour bus went up the same exit ramp, but this time the driver realized his mistake and hit the brakes before reaching the fence.
The work on the new road markings will begin at 9 o'clock tonight. The DOT expects to finish by 5 o'clock Friday morning. The oversized signs will be installed next month.
(WSB Radio) A non-profit group is announcing a special incentive program this summer to encourage upcoming freshmen entering metro Atlanta high schools to sign up for Driver's Education.
Safe America President and CEO Len Pagano tells WSB they will announce their plan at the Georgia Captiol Monday morning at 9:30. The group is teaming up with several groups in metro Atlanta.
"We're excited that the state PTA is behind us as well as our Kiwanis clubs. We think that the real support is going to come from teens themselves, who recognize it's time for them to do more than just sit passive. We think getting teens into the equation is going to be a really important ingredient to making this successful," said Pagano.
Because the economy is affecting everyone, the program also tries to save money for the parents.
"What we're trying to is bring the cost of Driver's Ed. down and at the same time help teens understand that they can do something themselves to get their peers to learn how to drive better, and not just leave it up to parents. "Driver's Ed. is not required and that's part of the problem. We think that it should be done though, in a way that can be affordable and voluntary. That's why we think our program is unique. As a non-profit we're trying to cut the cost of Driver's Ed. so that kids can afford to take it. A lot of parents in today's economy find $300 or $400 hard to come up with," said Pagano.
Pagano says teenagers should be receptive to the idea.
"Many kids are tired of going to funerals and seeing their friends buried. I'd like to see us get to the point where we can have the teens put pressure on their colleagues in school so that they understand that when it comes to prom season, it's not such a good idea to go out and get drunk," said Pagano.
Under the trial program, "Safe Teen Georgia" project, freshmen entering high school will be offered a $300 rebate if they complete a course during their freshman year, avoid getting any speeding, DUI, or other infractions, and sign up ten other freshmen to take the program by the start of their sophomore year.
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) The 18-year-old son of U.S. Rep. Paul Broun has been charged with misdemeanor marijuana possession.
Police say Paul Collins Broun III was at a party at in Athens early Saturday when Athens-Clarke police responded to a complaint about noise. The police report says Broun smelled of alcohol, and a pill bottle containing a small amount of marijuana fell from his pocket.
The Athens Academy senior was also charged with underage possession of alcohol and violating the noise ordinance.
The Republican congressman, who was elected in 2007, issued a statement.
``This is a personal matter that our family will deal with privately. Our son has the love and support of his family as he takes responsibility for his actions. We appreciate everyones prayers during this personal family matter,'' the statement said.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
CHICAGO (AP) General Growth Properties Inc., the nation's second-largest mall operator, says it has filed for bankruptcy protection after failing to convince its debt holders to give it more time to refinance its crushing debt.
The Chicago-based real estate investment trust said early Thursday it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in a New York court. Some 158 regional shopping centers under its control also filed for bankruptcy protection.
Among the malls operated by General Growth is Northpointe in Alpharetta, Cumberland in Cobb, Perimeter in DeKalb and Southlake in Morrow.
General Growth says it received a financing commitment from Pershing Square Capital Management LP of about $375 million and expects it will be able to continue operating its malls as it reorganizes.
The company says it has about $29.6 billion in assets and more than $27 billion in liabilities.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle fought back tears Wednesday as he reluctantly dropped out of the race for governor, saying he has a degenerative spine condition that will require surgery.
The surprise announcement immediately scrambled the crowded contest to replace Gov. Sonny Perdue when his second term expires in 2010. Cagle was considered a front-runner for the Republican nomination with the primary still more than one year away. The 43-year-old Republican from Gainesville said he will seek re-election as lieutenant governor.
He explained that he's had pain in his left shoulder for several years but that it worsened during this year's legislative session and spread to his spine and breastbone. Eventually he began to experience paralysis in his left arm and went to see a doctor.
``I have a very serious issue to my neck, along with my spinal area, that has caused nerve damage that will need to be repaired,'' Cagle said at a state Capitol news conference where he was flanked by his wife and three sons.
A neurologist recommended surgery, he added.
Cagle called the decision to drop his gubernatorial bid ``difficult personally for me.''
``This is a challenge that I have to face and I will come through it,'' Cagle said of his health problems.
Cagle declined to answer questions following his brief remarks.
A spokeswoman refused to provide more details about his condition or the surgical procedure he would undergo, except to say that it would require ``a significant recovery period.''
``We're not going to share, at this time, a specific diagnosis but it is serious enough that he wants to take the time to care for his health first,'' Jaillene Hunter said.
Hunter would also not elaborate on why Cagle felt he could handle the lieutenant governor's race but not the one for governor. Both are statewide contests.
``He does feel up to running for lieutenant governor,'' Hunter said.
Cagle's withdrawal from the race leaves three Republicans still in the field: Secretary of State Karen Handel, Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine and state Rep. Austin Scott, of Tifton.
Handel said she was ``saddened'' to hear about Cagle's health and his withdrawal from the race.
``I hope his health issue is resolved quickly,'' she said in a statement.
Oxendine said he considered Cagle ``a friend'' and an ``honorable opponent.''
He also issued a call for support from Cagle's backers
``I would consider it an honor to earn the support of my fellow Republicans who had initially chosen to support Casey Cagle,'' Oxendine said.
Scott could not immediately be reached for comment.
Cagle had raised the most money so far and his withdrawal could attract other GOP candidates to the contest, including Cobb County Commission Chairman Sam Olens.
On the Democratic side, Attorney General Thurbert Baker, House Minority Leader DuBose Porter and former Georgia National Guard Commander David Poythress have thrown their hats in the ring for governor. Former Gov. Roy Barnes is also considering the contest.
Cagle was elected lieutenant governor in 2006, the first Republican it win the seat in Georgia. A relative unknown, he won the seat after upsetting former Christian Coalition head Ralph Reed in a GOP primary.
Before taking over as the state's No. 2, Cagle served 12 years in the state Senate.
Cagle's decision to seek re-election as lieutenant governor complicates that race as well. Republican State Sens. David Shafer, of Duluth, and Eric Johnson, of Savannah, were set to face off to replace Cagle.
Both men on Wednesday wished Cagle a speedy recovery.
Shafer said that ``we are reevaluating our options in light of his decision.''
Johnson noted that ``the election is still a long way off and circumstances could continue to change.''
``In the meantime, we will keep our options open,'' he said.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
WASHINGTON (AP) The number of American households threatened with losing their homes grew 24 percent in the first three months of this year and is poised to rise further as major lenders restart foreclosures after a temporary break, according to data released Thursday.
The big unknown for the coming months, however, is President Barack Obama's plan to help up to 9 million borrowers avoid foreclosure through refinanced mortgages or modified loans. The Obama administration expects its plans to make a big dent in the foreclosure crisis. But it remains to be seen whether the lending industry will fully embrace it, despite $75 billion in incentive payments.
The faltering economy is causing the housing crisis to spread. Nationwide, nearly 804,000 homes received at least one foreclosure-related notice from January through March, up from about 650,000 in the same time period a year earlier, according to RealtyTrac Inc., a foreclosure listing firm.
In March, more than 340,000 properties were affected, up 17 percent from February and 46 percent from a year earlier.
Foreclosures ``came back with a vengeance'' last month and are likely to keep rising, said Rick Sharga, RealtyTrac's senior vice president for marketing.
Nearly 191,000 properties completed the foreclosure process and were repossessed by banks in the quarter. While the number was down 13 percent from the fourth quarter of last year, it is expected to rise through the summer and then possibly taper off.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the big mortgage finance companies, together with many banks had temporarily halted foreclosures in advance of Obama's plan. Now armed with the details about which borrowers can qualify, the mortgage industry has begun foreclosing on ineligible borrowers.
The Treasury Department has signed contracts with six big loan servicing companies including Citgroup, Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase. Many have already started processing loans as part of the government's ``Making Home Affordable'' plan.
``We need to get the long-term solutions for these folks,'' Shaun Donovan, Obama's housing secretary, said in an interview.
In the coming months, Donovan said, there are still likely to be increased foreclosures, especially from vacant houses, second homes and those owned by speculators. None of those properties will qualify for a loan modification. However, he remained optimistic that overall foreclosures could start to decrease this summer.
But even industry executives who emphatically support the plan emphasize that it's success isn't guaranteed.
``The effectiveness of the plan overall obviously is going to depend on the level of industry participation,'' said Paul Koches, general counsel of Ocwen Financial, which collects loan payments on subprime loans.
Many borrowers and consumer groups claim the modifications offered by the lending industry don't do enough to help cash-strapped homeowners, despite more than a year of public prodding from regulators. Fewer than half of loan modifications made at the end of last year actually reduced borrowers' payments by more than 10 percent, data released last month show.
Plus, the lending industry has been swamped by the unprecedented wave of calls from distressed borrowers. ``You can't wave a magic wand and make the loans suddenly modified,'' Sharga said. ``They're all individual transactions.''
In RealtyTrac's report, Nevada, Arizona, California and Florida had the nation's top foreclosure rates. In Nevada, one in every 27 homes received a foreclosure filing, while the number was one in every 54 in Arizona. Rounding out the top 10 were Illinois, Michigan, Georgia, Idaho, Utah and Oregon.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Florida's starting pitchers carried most of the load for the first seven games of the season, so it was time for its relievers to return the favor.
Four Florida relievers allowed only two hits and no runs in 4 1-3 innings, Dan Uggla drove in three runs for the second straight game and the Marlins continued their fast start, beating the Atlanta Braves 10-4 on Wednesday night.
At 7-1, Florida has its best start since opening 1997 with eight wins in the first nine games.
Neither starting pitcher lasted past the fifth inning.
``We got into their bullpen and they got into ours and we were lucky, we had a better one today,'' said Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez. ``When you go into bullpens early, you just never know what you're going to get, and our guys pitched well today.''
Florida's starters had a 2.47 ERA before Andrew Miller lasted only 4 2-3 innings, giving up four runs. Braves starter Derek Lowe pitched five innings and also allowed four runs.
Hayden Penn (1-0), the first of Florida's four relievers, retired all four batters he faced for his first win since Sept. 1, 2005, for Baltimore.
Dan Meyer, Kiko Calero and Renyel Pinto followed Penn.
Penn took over for Miller with Atlanta runners on first and third in the fifth and ended the inning on Yunel Escobar's fly ball to center.
``It feels good to know that they won't hesitate to put me in a spot like that,'' Penn said.
The Marlins snapped a 4-4 tie in the seventh on Peter Moylan's bases-loaded walk to pinch-hitter Russ Gload. Moylan (0-1) gave up a leadoff single to Jorge Cantu, who scored the go-ahead run on Gload's walk.
Six Atlanta relievers gave up five hits, three walks and six runs in four innings.
Uggla had two hits, including a two-run double in Florida's three-run fifth.
The Marlins padded the lead with five runs in the ninth off Blaine Boyer and Jorge Campillo. Cody Ross, pinch-hitter Wes Helms and Hanley Ramirez had run-scoring singles and John Baker added a two-run hit.
Boyer gave up four runs on two hits, a walk and a hit batter in the ninth and has a 40.50 ERA.
Atlanta's Omar Infante drove in two runs while starting at third base for Chipper Jones, who was held out after aggravating his bruised left thumb in his last at-bat on Tuesday night. He said he doesn't expect to play on Thursday.
Cardinals 12, Diamondbacks 7
At Phoenix, Ryan Ludwick homered and drove in three runs for the Cardinals.
Ludwick is batting .407 and has hit in all seven games he's played this season. He singled home a run in the third inning and added a two-run homer in the sixth.
Chris Duncan added a single, double and triple and two RBIs for St. Louis, which has won six of seven.
St. Louis benefited from eight walks and three Arizona errors. The Cardinals batted around twice, scoring five runs in the third and four more in the sixth.
St. Louis starter Joel Pineiro (2-0) got the win despite giving up five runs in five innings and allowing nine hits, including six doubles.
Jon Garland (1-1) allowed seven runs on seven hits and five walks in 3 2-3 innings.
Rockies 5, Cubs 2
At Chicago, Jason Marquis hit a two-run single against his former team and allowed one run and five hits in seven innings for Colorado.
Marquis (2-0), who spent the previous two years with the Cubs, was booed during introductions before Monday's home opener and again several times Wednesday.
Manuel Corpas pitched a hitless eighth and Huston Street got in trouble in the ninth, allowing a leadoff home run to Derrek Lee followed by a walk to pinch-hitter Mike Fontenot and a single to Reed Johnson.
Harden (0-1) allowed four runs on five hits and four walks in three innings.
Mets 7, Padres 2
At New York, Oliver Perez rebounded from a rough season debut and the Mets earned their first victory at Citi Field.
Carlos Delgado homered and Perez pitched six smooth innings to help New York end San Diego's five-game winning streak. The Padres spoiled Monday night's opener at the $800 million ballpark with a 6-5 victory.
After giving up eight runs and five walks in 4 1-3 innings against Cincinnati last week, Perez (1-1) held the Padres to one run and three hits. He walked only two and struck out four.
Starter Kevin Correia (0-1) gave up two runs in five innings.
Astros 4, Pirates 1
At Pittsburgh, Mike Hampton pitched six shutout innings and the Astros snapped a five-game losing streak.
Hampton (1-1) allowed four singles, walked one and struck out eight. He improved to 11-3 in his career against Pittsburgh and has won seven consecutive starts against the Pirates dating to 2000.
Carlos Lee drove in three runs, Miguel Tejada had three hits and scored two runs, and Lance Berkman added two hits to help revive the Astros' struggling offense.
Adam LaRoche had a homer and Nate McLouth had two hits and reached base three times for the Pirates.
The Astros snapped an 18-inning scoreless streak with two runs in the first against Pittsburgh starter Ross Ohlendorf (0-2).
Brewers 9, Reds 3
At Milwaukee, Mike Cameron hit a pair of home runs to spoil the pitching debut of Micah Owings (0-1) and the Brewers avoided a series sweep.
Milwaukee broke a 3-all tie with five runs in the sixth inning, getting an RBI double by Bill Hall, a two-run double by Jason Kendall and two-run homer by Rickie Weeks to take an 8-3 lead.
The Brewers came in having lost four straight and six of their first eight.
Braden Looper (1-0) gave up three runs and six hits in six innings to earn his first win with the Brewers.
Dodgers 5, Giants 4
At Los Angeles, James Loney drew his second bases-loaded walk with one out in the ninth inning to lift the Dodgers.
Singles by Orlando Hudson and Manny Ramirez gave the Dodgers runners at the corners with none out against reliever Bob Howry (0-1). Andre Ethier was intentionally walked, and Brian Wilson got Russell Martin to ground into a force at the plate with the infield in. But he lost Loney on a 3-2 pitch.
Jonathan Broxton (1-0) pitched a perfect ninth.
Aaron Rowand hit a three-run homer in the eighth against rookie Ronald Belisario, giving the Giants a 4-2 lead after they were held to one hit over the first seven by 21-year-old left-hander Clayton Kershaw, who struck out 13.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB State Capitol Bureau) -- Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle today withdrew from the 2010 race for Governor citing health reasons. In an emotional news conference at the State Capitol, and with his family surrounding him, Cagle revealed that he is suffering from a degenerative spinal condition requiring surgery.
Cagle will run for re-election, but will not seek the state's highest office. He did not say when he is schedule for surgery.
"It is a difficult decision to come to," said Cagle, "but I am at peace with the decision that we have made and very confident in the resolve to continue to serve this state in a very passionate way as I have demonstrated in the years I have currently held this office."
He had been the front runner among Republicans who have declared for the race. The remaining candidates include Secretary of State Karen Handel, Insurance and Fire Commissioner John Oxendine.
MACON, Ga. (AP) The Georgia Department of Natural Resources says its annual nesting survey shows an increase in the state's bald eagle population that exceeded expectations.
The nongame program manager in the wildlife resources division, Jim Czier, counted 124 occupied bald eagle nesting territories and 98 successful nests in helicopter surveys this year.
Last year there were 112 occupied territories and 85 successful nests. A successful nest is one in which chicks are raised to the point where they can fly.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) -- The Georgia state Capitol is expected to be the scene tonight of one of the largest 'tea party' protests in the nation.
The event to mark tax deadline day today is billed by supporters as a fight similar to a 1776-style taxation without representation.
Crowd estimates for the event are running as high as 8,000 to 10,000, according to Randy Lewis, one of the many organizers.
The event begins at 7 p.m. and with the Braves playing at nearby Turner Field, traffic is expected to be a mightmare.
"The worst delays will probably be between 5 and 7 p.m. and immediately after the events conclude at approximately 11 p.m., but we're urging folks to expect heavy traffic near the venues for the duration," according to Paul Marshall, a spokesman for the state Department of Transportation.
MOMBASA, Kenya (AP) A cargo ship loaded with humanitarian aid was headed to Kenya under Navy escort Wednesday after evading pirates firing grenades and automatic weapons, the second unsuccessful hijacking attempt of a U.S. freighter in a week, officials said.
In defiance of President Barack Obama's vow to halt their banditry, pirates have seized four vessels and some 60 hostages off the Horn of Africa since Sunday's rescue of an American freighter captain from the drifting lifeboat where he was held hostage. If they had been successful Tuesday, the MV Liberty Sun would have been the fifth.
The Liberty Sun's American crew was not injured in the attack but the vessel sustained unspecified damage, owner Liberty Maritime Corp. said in a statement Tuesday night.
``We are under attack by pirates, we are being hit by rockets. Also bullets,'' crewman Thomas Urbik, 26, wrote his mother in an e-mail Tuesday. ``We are barricaded in the engine room and so far no one is hurt. (A) rocket penetrated the bulkhead but the hole is small. Small fire, too, but put out.''
The Liberty Sun ``conducted evasive maneuvers'' to ward off the pirates before help arrived, said U.S. Navy Lt. Nathan Christensen, spokesman for the Bahrain-based 5th Fleet.
``That could be anything from zigzagging to speeding up to all kinds of things,'' he said. ``We've seen in the past that that can be very effective in deterring a pirate attack.''
A U.S. Navy destroyer, the USS Bainbridge, responded to the attack but the pirates had departed by the time it arrived some five hours later, Navy Capt. Jack Hanzlik said.
After arriving on the scene, the Bainbridge sent ``a small security detachment'' onboard the Liberty Sun to ensure that its crew of about 20 mariners was safe, Christensen said. Urbik sent a follow-up e-mail to his mother ``that said he was safe and they had a naval escort taking them in,'' Katy Urbik said.
The Bainbridge is the same destroyer from which Navy SEAL snipers killed three pirates holding freighter captain Richard Phillips captive aboard the powerless lifeboat. A fourth pirate surrendered. Phillips had been held captive for five days after exchanging himself to safeguard his crew during a thwarted hijacking of the Alabama by the pirates last week.
The Bainbridge was carrying Phillips to Kenya when it was called to respond to the attack on the Liberty Sun. He was still on board when the Bainbridge arrived to help the Liberty Sun, Christensen said.
Phillips was to return home to the United States on Wednesday, after reuniting with his 19-man crew in the port city of Mombasa, according to the shipping company Maersk Line Ltd. It was not immediately clear how his detour would affect that plan.
The Liberty Sun, with its crew of about 20 Americans, was carrying humanitarian aid to Mombasa. Liberty Maritime said the ship set off from Houston and had already delivered thousands of tons of food aid to a port in Sudan.
``We commend the entire crew for its professionalism and poise under fire,'' the Lake Success, N.Y.-based company said in the statement. President Philip J. Shapiro and chief financial officer Dale B. Moses declined to comment further.
Katy Urbik, said she was ``very relieved and grateful to God for protecting him and to our Navy, and that we come from a country that can respond like that and protect our citizens.''
The brigands are grabbing more ships and hostages to show they would not be intimidated by Obama's pledge to confront the high-seas bandits, according to a pirate based in the Somali coastal town of Harardhere.
``Our latest hijackings are meant to show that no one can deter us from protecting our waters from the enemy because we believe in dying for our land,'' Omar Dahir Idle told The Associated Press by telephone.
After a lull at the beginning of the year because of rough seas, the pirates since the end of February have attacked at least 78 ships, hijacked 19 of them and hold 16 vessels with more than 300 hostages from a dozen or so countries.
The pirates say they are fighting illegal fishing and dumping of toxic waste in Somali waters but have come to operate hundreds of miles from there in a sprawling 1.1 million square-mile danger zone.
Pirates can extort $1 million and more for each ship and crew. Kenya estimates they raked in $150 million last year.
A flotilla of warships from nearly a dozen countries has patrolled the Gulf of Aden and nearby Indian Ocean waters for months. They have halted many attacks but say the area is so vast they can't stop all hijackings.
The Gulf of Aden, which links the Suez Canal and the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean, is the shortest route from Asia to Europe and one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, crossed by more than 20,000 ships each year. The alternative route around the continent's southern Cape of Good Hope takes up to two weeks longer at huge expense.
In an unusual nighttime raid, pirates seized the Greek-managed bulk carrier MV Irene E.M. before dawn Tuesday. Hours later, they commandeered the Lebanese-owned cargo ship MV Sea Horse.
On Sunday or Monday, they took two Egyptian fishing trawlers. Maritime officials said the Irene carried 21 to 23 Filipino crew and the fishing boats 36 fishermen, all believed to be Egyptian. A carrier the size of the Sea Horse would need at least a dozen crew, although the exact number was not immediately available.
Most ships are hijacked without a shot fired. Freed hostages report being treated well.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) More than a decade after he stepped down as speaker of the House into what seemed like almost certain political oblivion, Newt Gingrich is back and seemingly more relevant than ever.
Gingrich seems to be everywhere these days, headlining an endless circuit of GOP dinners, popping up on TV news shows, authoring yet another best-selling book and acting as a policy guru to out-of-power congressional Republicans on how to do battle with the Democratic White House.
As beleaguered Republicans look for a standard bearer after last year's disastrous election, they've been tossing around the names of flashy new stars like Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the 2008 vice presidential candidate, and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, young and Indian American in a party that's increasingly identified with older white men.
But could the GOP's savior instead be a wonkish, twice-divorced throwback to the fiercely partisan Republican revolution?
Gingrich has managed to keep himself in the public eye since leaving the House, but the blitz of public appearances in recent months is reminiscent of the run-up to 2007, when he toyed with a presidential run only to abandon it before the primaries began. Now, some are speculating that the former congressman from Georgia is laying the groundwork for a White House bid in 2012.
Grover Norquist, a prominent conservative and president of Americans for Tax Reform, said Gingrich is on nearly every Republican short list of possible White House prospects.
``One of the ways you judge these guys is how hard they're working, and Newt is out there hustling,'' Norquist said.
Gingrich does not exactly discourage such presidential speculation. Instead he argues he is busy with work for a pair of think tanks American Solutions and the Center for Health Transformation that give him a platform to speak on a dizzying array of issues: from childhood obesity and nuclear weapons in North Korea to offshore oil exploration.
``I really love trying to solve problems. I get very excited about it,'' Gingrich, 65, said after teaching a law school class recently at the University of Georgia.
With Gingrich, a former college history professor, the ideas sometimes come so fast and furious that even supporters say they can feel overwhelmed by a conversation with him.
Rich Galen, a Washington-based Republican strategist and former Gingrich aide, called him the GOP's ``intellect-in-chief.''
``He's always been the idea man,'' Galen said.
If Gingrich has his way, those ideas will spawn a movement, something akin to what Barack Obama found himself leading in 2008 as he ran to replace President Bush. There are no signs that Gingrich has such a movement building yet. But some point to his history of rallying the Republican revolt in the mid 1990s.
``Gingrich alone, of all the guys who may be running, brings a history of being a movement and party builder,'' Norquist said.
That movement ultimately imploded and Gingrich resigned following heavy GOP losses in the 1998 midterm elections. But Norquist and others said he is smart enough to have learned from that stinging defeat.
Gingrich showed he still had his finger on the pulse of his party when amid soaring gas prices he helped popularize the phrase ``drill here, drill now'' that was adopted as a mantra on the 2008 GOP campaign trail.
He's taken on an unofficial role counseling congressional Republicans and is credited with helping rally opposition in the party to President Bush's bailout plan for financial institutions last fall. For conservative Republicans fed up with what they saw as out-of-control federal spending and meddling in the private sector, it was a sign the GOP was rediscovering its values.
Gingrich is in frequent contact with Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia, the second-ranking Republican in the House. He's been all over the web promoting anti-tax ``tea parties'' set to take place around the country on April 15.
And in a telling signal of his influence, Gingrich has been tapped to headline the GOP's House-Senate marquee fundraising dinner in June, replacing Palin. She had been scheduled to appear but then said she couldn't commit until the Alaska legislature wrapped up its business.
Still, Gingrich has a reputation as an angry partisan crusader who delighted in firebombing Democrats with vicious verbal assaults. He was labeled a hypocrite when it was revealed he was carrying on an extramarital affair with a Capitol Hill aide at the same time he was working to impeach President Bill Clinton for lying about his own infidelity.
In those days, his temper was notorious. After complaining about the seating arrangement on Air Force One returning from a state funeral in Israel, Gingrich was famously depicted on the cover of the New York Daily News as a wailing baby in a diaper. He was blamed for shutting down the federal government in a budget dispute.
Some question whether he can reinvent himself and move past those images still seared in the minds of many who lived through the GOP's efforts to enact the Contract with America. To some, Gingrich is viewed as a polarizing figure for a party looking to expand its base.
``I'm skeptical,'' said Alan Abramowitz, a political science professor at Emory University. ``I see him more as someone who's been sticking to an orthodox conservative philosophy than as someone who would broaden the party's appeal.''
Whether Gingrich will be effective opposing Obama is an open question. He said it's important for Republicans not just to be seen as the party of ``no'' but to put forward workable alternatives. He blasted Obama's $787 billion stimulus plan which the House GOP went on to oppose unanimously. But he also outlined his own conservative stimulus package, which would slash payroll and business taxes.
And he wastes no opportunity to criticize Obama on virtually any topic. Gingrich has labeled the administration ``anti-religious'' and criticized via the social networking Web site Twitter the president's early handling of the Somali pirate crisis.
For Republicans struggling to regain their footing, Gingrich is a battle-tested veteran with experience going head-to-head with a Democratic White House. Republicans flailing to find a message have turned to Gingrich for help.
``When you are the party in the wilderness you turn to an intellectual leader of the party, like Newt, to get you out,'' GOP pollster Whit Ayers said. ``He's clearly playing a key role in revitalizing the Republican Party.''
Gingrich describes his role this way: ``I'm a citizen leader who's also a Republican.''
Asked whether he will make the transition from citizen to candidate, Gingrich gives an impish grin.
``We'll see,'' he said.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Tuition rates won't be guaranteed for freshmen entering Georgia's public colleges and universities this fall after a move Tuesday by the Georgia Board of Regents to save money during the sour economy.
The regents voted to indefinitely suspend the popular three-year-old program that locked in the price for each year of college for students at the universities. The board expects the move and other changes to tuition policies to save the state $60 million in revenue over the next fiscal year, which begins July 1.
Under the board's plan, students already enrolled in Georgia's colleges and universities under the ``fixed for four'' program will not see any changes. Incoming freshmen will pay the same rate that this year's freshmen are paying an amount that depends on where the student attends college but their tuition will increase every year.
The state is cutting $238 million in funding for the university system this year and $275 million next year, or about 10 percent of the state dollars allotted for Georgia's 35 colleges and universities.
``Regardless of the way you look at this, the cuts are substantial,'' Usha Ramachandran, vice chancellor for fiscal affair for the University System of Georgia, told the board at Tuesday's meeting. ``'Fixed for four' was contingent on no reductions in funding. That clearly has not been the case.''
The Regents also voted to carry over a student fee put in place in December to help address budget cuts. Students will pay between $50 and $100 per semester in fees, depending on where they attend college. The fees are not covered by the HOPE scholarship.
And for the first time ever, most colleges and universities will consider 15 credit hours a full load, rather than 12 hours, which means students will have to pay more each semester to take the minimum number of classes needed to graduate on time.
At Georgia Tech and the University of Georgia, students will pay a flat rate of $1,800 if they take six credit hours or less and the full-time rate of $3,035 for more than six hours. The policy is meant to encourage students to take as many classes as necessary to graduate in four years, Ramachandran said.
Georgia is among just a handful of states with a universal fixed tuition program. Others include Arizona and Illinois. Some states, like Texas and Kansas, have just one or two universities that offer such programs.
At Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant, administrators stopped offering a fixed tuition rate in 2008 after just three years of the program because state budget cuts were too steep to continue discounting what students pay.
``Until we can get financial support we would need from the state, it's just fiscally irresponsible to offer a plan like that,'' Central Michigan spokesman Steve Smith said.
Georgia's program, which was created in 2006, was a pet project of Gov. Sonny Perdue in an effort to help families struggling to pay tuition increases every year.
``From policy perspective, it's still a very viable and good idea, but the budget is full of good ideas that either aren't funded or aren't fully funded,'' Perdue's spokesman Bert Brantley said. ``That's just the reality of the budget situation we're in.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) --The deadline to file your taxes is midnight tonight.
Many of the last minute filers are those who owe according to Mark Green with the IRS. He says you have to file something today or you'll be hit with penalties .
You can get a six-month extension if you need breathing room to prepare your return. And if you can't afford your tax bill, Uncle Sam can work out a payment plan.
Fran Mitchell with Clark Howard's Consumer Action Center says people have fewer options of where to get money to pay taxes in this economy.
If you are cash strapped and can't pay get form 9465, or file an online installment agreement on the IRS website. Call 800-829-1040, or visit an IRS office to work out a payment plan. New this year: if you can't keep up payments on a previous installment agreement, the IRS can help. Previously, if you missed a payment, the total bill would become due immediately.
If you are unemployed the new stimulus bill exempts up to $2,400 of unemployment compensation received this year from federal taxes.
ATLANTA (AP) Tom Glavine may retire if his sore left shoulder doesn't improve in two weeks.
Glavine was told Tuesday he must rest for at least two weeks after inflammation was found in his left rotator cuff. The 43-year-old had an MRI and was examined by Dr. James Andrews, who advised treatment and rest.
Glavine said he's tired of rehabbing after elbow and shoulder surgery last August. He's willing to give the shoulder two weeks, but not much longer.
``I'm willing to put in a little more time but I'm not willing to put in another six weeks or eight weeks because by then, you know what, I'm going to have to start all over again and I'm not interested in doing that,'' he said.
Glavine joined the Braves at Turner Field on Tuesday night following the examination in Birmingham, Ala.
He ended Sunday's minor league start with Double-A Mississippi after two innings due to soreness in the shoulder after swinging a bat.
Glavine felt similar discomfort when hitting in spring training, but he said that pain didn't last as it did this time.
The visit with Andrews left Glavine with a two-week timetable that may determine if he continues his career.
``From my own standpoint, it works better for me to kind of have a timetable to say, OK, let's give it this amount of time, and if we see some progress, then good. We'll know we're going in the right direction,'' Glavine said. ``If we don't, then I think maybe at that point in time maybe we need to sit down and honestly think about how much more I want to go through this and whether or not anything is going to change.''
Because the MRI did not reveal a tear, the initial reaction from the Braves was positive.
General manager Frank Wren said the Braves ``were happy that it wasn't more serious.''
``I think it's good it happened swinging the bat instead of throwing the ball,'' manager Bobby Cox said. ``It's kind of a disappointment for me, but I think the good news is he's coming back.''
Glavine, who agreed to a $1 million, one-year contract in February, sounded less sure that he'll pitch again. He doesn't expect to have another MRI in two weeks.
``I think all of it is going to be based on how I progress pain-wise,'' he said. ``If I'm seeing a definitive change in the amount of pain that I have and the amount of strength I'm being able to gain, then I think I continue on. If two weeks from now my pain has not changed and my strength isn't any better, then I think I'm more clearly in a position where I need to honestly sit down and figure out how much more I want to go through with this.''
Glavine was 2-4 with a 5.54 ERA in 13 starts last season. He had a partially torn left elbow tendon repaired by Andrews on Aug. 21. At that time, Andrews also cleaned up Glavine's left shoulder.
``I think he's surprised my elbow has held up as well as it has and I'm having so many issues with my shoulder,'' Glavine said.
The rehabilitation from last summer's surgery has left Glavine less willing to start another long process. He said if his shoulder doesn't feel better in two weeks, he'd have difficulty being ready to pitch before the All-Star break.
``I don't think it's fair to this team and I'm not sure I have the desire to do all that for maybe half a season,'' he said.
Atlanta adjusted plans for the No. 5 spot in their rotation. Left-hander Jo-Jo Reyes will be recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett for Saturday's game at Pittsburgh, which had been Glavine's first scheduled start of the season.
Glavine, a 305-game winner and 10-time All-Star, spent his first 16 major league seasons with the Braves, winning the NL Cy Young Award in 1991 and 1998. He pitched for the New York Mets from 2003-07 and returned to Atlanta last season to be with his family.
Glavine's contract contains $3.5 million in bonuses based on roster time, including a $1 million bonus when he is placed on the active roster.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
STATESBORO, Ga. (AP) Authorities launched a sweeping gun and drug bust in this sleepy rural town Tuesday after a gutsy undercover operation yielded state and federal indictments against almost 100 people.
Some 67 people have been arrested, mostly on firearm and drug offenses, and another 27 are being sought. Statesboro Police Chief Stan York said some of the community's most dangerous criminals were among those indicted, and that several were members of local street gangs that have long plagued this south Georgia town of 26,000.
``Today our community is a lot safer,'' he said.
The indictments were the result of a 10-month undercover operation in which authorities say they were able to infiltrate the gun and drug rings that operated in the town. Authorities said initially the work was slow to yield evidence, but agents uncovered enough evidence to yield charges against dozens of suspects as they delved deeper into the network.
``They put the word out on the street, and Statesboro's worst emerged,'' said Gregory Gant, a special agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Many of the suspects were nabbed during a pre-dawn raid Tuesday morning that involved more than 200 law enforcement officials. Authorities said many of those arrested had prior criminal records for crimes such as assault, robbery, drug trafficking and gun violations. Several were also charged with making false statements to Georgia's Medicaid program.
Authorities said ATF purchased 96 guns including handguns, assault rifles and sawed-off shotguns during the investigation.
A wide range of drugs were involved, including powdered and crack cocaine, ecstasy, marijuana, methamphetamine and prescription drugs. Investigators said they did not have enough information to pinpoint where most of the drugs originated.
``You can't run these types of operations forever, as there are security concerns,'' he said. ``But we identified the most prolific criminals and we decided to take action.''
Some 40 percent of residents in Statesboro, which is home to Georgia Southern University, live below the poverty line. The unemployment rate in surrounding Bulloch County tops 8 percent.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. (AP) A $2 billion budget is proposed for Gwinnett County schools next year, Georgia's largest school district.
The budget, equivalent to about 10 percent of the entire state budget, is superintendent J. Alvin Wilbanks' recommendation for fiscal year 2010. It represents a 5.4 percent increase to help the district accommodate more students and keep pace with campus construction.
The increase comes despite continued state funding cutbacks estimated at $25.2 million and a reduction in local funding. Finance chief Rick Cost said the spending plan requires no layoffs but will mean moving some teachers around.
Other metro school systems have had to lay off staff and consider shutting or merging schools. Marietta Schools recently cut 19 full-time teachers, 21 part-time teachers and 23 paraprofessionals.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Tuesday there's been ``tentative signs'' that the recession may be easing. But he also warned that any hope for a lasting recovery hinges on the government's success in stabilizing shaky financial markets and getting credit to flow more freely again.
Specifically, the Fed chief mentioned improvements in recent data on home and auto sales, home building and consumer spending as flickering signs of encouragement.
``Recently we have seen tentative signs that the sharp decline in economic activity may be slowing,'' Bernanke said during a speech at Morehouse College in Atlanta.
``A leveling out of economic activity is the first step toward recovery. To be sure, we will not have a sustainable recovery without a stabilization of our financial system and credit markets,'' he said.
But the Fed is ``making progress on that front as well,'' Bernanke said, and will keep working to ease financial and credit stresses so those markets operate normally.
In a question-and-answer session after the speech, Bernanke acknowledged that the job market for graduates is the most difficult in decades. But he said the country still needs smart and hardworking people, especially in the business community, and urged students not to make financial compensation the main factor in what profession they choose.
``People ought to go into a profession based on what they enjoy, what is valuable to them, what they think is valuable to their society,'' Bernanke said.
Referring to the current economic crisis, Bernanke said ``it is clear that some of the compensation and some of the risk-taking was excessive'' in the financial community. There will be a more vigilant regulatory environment going forward, he added.
Bernanke also addressed the inequities in wealth between whites and minorities.
``Part of it has to do I think with financial education,'' Bernanke told students at the historically black college. ``There needs to be broader understanding in minority communities ... about the importance of saving and building a credit record.''
Bernanke said many factors contribute to the issue including access to home ownership, income levels and differences in professions but promoting financial literacy in minority communities is important.
To revive the economy, the Fed has cut a key bank lending rate to a record low of near zero and has rolled out a number of radical programs to spur lending to Americans, a key ingredient to turning around the economy.
On that front, the Fed recently plowed $1.2 trillion into the economy in an attempt to reduce interest rates for mortgages and other loans. The Fed, meanwhile, also is considering expanding a program to jump-start consumer lending, Bernanke said.
Many analysts believe the economy will continue to shrink in the April-June quarter but not nearly as much as it had been perhaps at a rate of 2 to 2.5 percent.
The economy shrank at a 6.3 percent rate in the final three months of 2008, the worst showing in a quarter-century. Some economists say it fared about as poorly in the first three months of this year, while others expect a 4 to 5 percent rate of decline. The government releases its initial estimate for first-quarter economic activity at the end of April.
President Barack Obama is counting on the $787 billion stimulus of tax cuts and increased government spending to help bolster economic activity. The administration also has put forward plans to prop up troubled banks and to reduce home foreclosures.
The government is battling a three-headed monster: housing, credit and financial crises, which are the worst since the 1930s.
``The current crisis has been one of the most difficult financial and economic episodes in modern history,'' Bernanke said.
Even as the Fed chief mentioned improvements in some recent economic data, a government report released Tuesday showed the economy remains in a fragile state. Retail sales dipped 1.1 percent in March, a much weaker showing than analysts expected.
All the Fed's aggressive actions to fight the crisis also will help fend off any risk of a widespread and prolonged decline in prices, known as deflation. Bernanke didn't use the ``d'' word, but said that because of the weakness in economic conditions in the U.S. and worldwide, inflation has been low and will ``remain quite low for some time.''
Wholesale prices fell 1.2 percent in March as the cost of gasoline, other energy products and food plunged, the government reported Tuesday. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, the Producer Price Index was unchanged, below analysts' forecasts of a 0.1 percent rise.
Because the Fed's policies can help thwart a destabilizing drop in prices, they are ``not at all inconsistent'' with the central bank's goal of achieving stable prices over time, Bernanke said.
Some critics worry that the Fed's policies could spur inflation over the long run if key interest rates aren't quickly boosted and special lending programs aren't rapidly dismantled once the economy shows strong signs of turning around.
Bernanke acknowledged this will be a challenge and require a delicate balancing act. But he was optimistic the Fed is ``well equipped to make those judgments appropriately.''
Meanwhile, the government's bailout of giant insurer American International Group Inc., to the tune of more than $180 billion, underscores the urgent need for stronger regulations and new powers to minimize the damage from the collapse of a huge nonbank financial company, the Fed chief said.
``In my view, preventing the failure of AIG was the best of the very bad options available, but it nevertheless involved major costs, including financial risks to the taxpayer,'' Bernanke said.
WASHINGTON (AP) Aiming to assert control over the nation's economic debate, President Barack Obama on Tuesday warned Americans eager for good news that ``by no means are we out of the woods'' and argued his broad domestic agenda is the path to recovery.In a speech at Georgetown University, Obama aimed to juggle his recent glass-half-full takes on the economy with a determination to not be stamped as naive or overly rosy in the face of stubborn problems that linger. He wrapped a summary of actions his administration has taken to steady the limping economy around a fresh overview of his domestic goals.
Key Obama aides said in advance of his talk that it would not bring major new announcements. The speech came as Obama nears his symbolic 100-day mark in office, important because that has become a traditional marker by which to judge new administrations.
``There is no doubt that times are still tough,'' Obama said. ``But from where we stand, for the very first time, we are beginning to see glimmers of hope. And beyond that, way off in the distance, we can see a vision of an America's future that is far different than our troubled economic past.''
Obama's message was enveloped in contradictory signals about economic health but buttressed by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's suggestion that the recession may at last be bottoming out.
It was hard to tell from the economic indicators released by the government Tuesday; retail sales fell unexpectedly in March, decreasing by 1.1 percent. At the same time, wholesale prices dropped sharply as the cost of gasoline and other energy plummeted, fresh evidence that inflation appears to pose little threat to the economy.
In a speech prepared for students and faculty at Morehouse College in Atlanta, Bernanke, like Obama, talked of flickering signs of improvement, citing recent data on home and auto sales, home building and consumer spending.
But the broader message that a full turnaround might be a long time coming may not be welcome to a weary U.S. public.
Obama said a complete recovery depends on two things: building a new foundation for the U.S. economy and making changes in the political landscape.
He said the rules governing the financial system must be brought into the Digital Age and told Congress ``I expect a bill to arrive on my desk for signature before the year is out.''
He also said the economy must be transformed from one less dependent on a risk-obsessed financial sector and more on clean energy, good education and health care costs brought under control.
``We cannot rebuild this economy on the same pile of sand,'' he said, invoking a Biblical reference to Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. ``We must build our house upon a rock. We must lay a new foundation for growth and prosperity a foundation that will move us from an era of borrow and spend to one where we save and invest, where we consume less at home and send more exports abroad.''
Obama also said the problem is exacerbated by politicians with an outsized interest in scoring points and an impatient media.
``When a crisis hits,'' he said, ``there's all too often a lurch from shock to trance, with everyone responding to the tempest of the moment until the furor has died away and the media coverage has moved on, instead of confronting the major challenges that will shape our future in a sustained and focused way.''
``This can't be one of those times,'' Obama said.
With the university students and faculty as well as labor, grass roots and political leaders, Obama was trying to show he is focused on the economy after two weeks that, both by design and circumstance, have been dominated primarily by foreign affairs.
Obama put his fledgling presidency on the line when he advocated sweeping new government intervention and spending to right the troubled economic conditions. Shortly after taking office he signed a $787 billion package intended to boost the economy and his administration also has unveiled a slew of other programs aimed to right the troubled home, banking and auto sectors.
``Taken together, these actions are starting to generate signs of economic progress,'' he said, citing canceled government-sector layoffs, new clean-energy industry hires, a spate of refinancings, and signs of increased credit flows.
But, the president said, ``2009 will continue to be a difficult year.'' He predicted more job losses, foreclosures, and gyrating stock markets.
The president devoted a significant portion of his speech to defending actions he has taken in the face of criticism he has heard mainly from Republicans but also from some of the more conservative members of own Democratic Party that he has ``been spending with reckless abandon, pushing a liberal social agenda while mortgaging our children's future.''
Not so, Obama said.
``The last thing a government should do in the middle of a recession is to cut back on spending,'' the president said.
As for the long-term, increasingly dire federal budget deficit picture, he said that investments in new industries and economic foundations is crucial to future success and even to reducing the deficit. ``Chronically slow growth will not help our long-term budget situation,'' he said.
The president also defended the massive and unpopular government programs enacted under the Bush administration and expanded under Obama to bail out banks and other financial institutions. He acknowledged that sending money directly to taxpayers might be more palatable but said it wouldn't be as effective.
``The truth is that a dollar of capital in a bank can actually result in eight or ten dollars of loans to families and businesses, a multiplier effect that can ultimately lead to a faster pace of economic growth,'' Obama said.
(WSB Radio) A Paulding County judge has delayed a motion for a continuance in the trial of the man accused of killing biker Jennifer Ewing on the Silver Comet Trail in 2006.
With $60,000 in outstanding bills the state has yet to pay, Michael Ledford's defense attorney Tom West--who is co-counsel on the case with Jimmy Berry--asked to withdraw.
"Voluntary counsel is okay as long as you're wealthy," said West. "These cases are expensive and take a lot of time."
Judge James Osborne said he could not consider West's request until it is in writing, but asked lawyers to confer with their client. Ledford told the court he doesn't want West to leave the case, but he does want his attorneys to get paid.
Jury questioning is now underway in the case. Picking a jury is likely to be a long process, as prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for Ledford. Police allege the 54-year-old mother was biking when she was ambushed by Ledford, sexually assaulted, then fatally beaten.
(WSB Storm Center) -- Power crews are making progress restoring power to those who lost it as a severe swath of severe weather moved through metro Atlanta on Monday.
Less than 100,000 customers were still waiting to get their power restored, but Georgia Power says it could be Wednesday before it gets all affected custmers back on line.
The severe weather has also been blamed for at least two deaths.
The storm system that hit Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, Kentucky and northern Florida brought torrential rain, flooding, hail and gusty winds to states still reeling from strong storms and tornadoes last week.
In eastern Tennessee, McMinn County Sheriff Steve Frisbie said 18-year-old Michael Aaron Byers Jr. was killed in Etowah early Monday morning when a tree fell on his family's home as he slept. A tree fell on a car in Atlanta, killing a second person whose name was not immediately released.
In south Alabama, authorities said a possible tornado touched down in the Geneva County town of Slocomb, damaging a high school baseball field and blowing the roof off a barn.
Many areas that were spared from Monday's rain and hail were hit with high winds that blew over trees weakened by several days of soaking rain.
``The ground is so wet that the root system is loose, so it doesn't take a lot to blow the trees over,'' said Nate Mayes, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Peachtree City, Ga.
High winds on the Tennessee River in northern Alabama blew the roof off covered boat slips at the Guntersville Yacht Club, causing floating docks to pull apart and blow onto U.S. 431, said Anita McBurnett, emergency management director for Marshall County.
No one was injured, but four people who live on big sailboats and yachts stored at the marina had to be rescued after their vessels blew into the river during the storm, McBurnett said.
``It's right on the heels of the tornado on Friday, so we've really got our hands full,'' she said.
Some schools were closed in Alabama after crews were unable to get power back on for the buildings.
In Florida, strong weather downed trees, temporarily closed some streets and put flood recovery and damage assessment efforts from prior storms on hold in north Florida and the Panhandle.
Officials were worried thunderstorms that produced high winds, hail and downpours would endanger emergency management crews and cause rivers to rise again.
``Most of the rivers remain at or near flood stage,'' state emergency management spokesman Mike Stone said.
Radar indicated a twister west of Tallahassee, but National Weather Service officials were not immediately able to confirm it was a tornado and had received no damage reports.
Despite the additional rainfall, U.S. Highway 90 was reopened after being closed for five days at the Suwannee River about 65 miles east of Tallahassee, but officials were keeping an eye on U.S. 27 farther downstream near Branford, Stone said.
Flooding in Florida claimed two lives in late March in the Panhandle's Okaloosa County, and a third person an elderly man was still missing after he was swept away by flood waters.
(WSB Radio) The proposed motorsports park in Dawsonville has won approval by the city council.
The vote was unanimous.
Opponents have argued that such a complex would result in too much noise and added pollution.
The developer plans on building a track for owners of high performance cars to see how they'll do.
The council agreed to rezone 152 acres off of Duck Thurmond Road for the park, which will also include tennis courts. a swimming pool and walking trails.
(WSB Radio) DeKalb's CEO wants to end job protection for the county's police chief.
CEO Burrell Ellis fired Chief Terrell Bolton in February, citing insubordination and misuse of county property.
Chief Bolton has appealed through the county merit system to get his job back.
The CEO wants to change the terms of the job so the chief no longer gets merit protection.
Commissioners will review Ellis' proposal today.
(WSB Radio) One of two Atlanta police officers accused of sexually assaulting a woman while they were on duty has quit the force.
The department won't release the officer's name.
The cops were driving the victim home after her friend was arrested for DUI on February 6 in east Atlanta.
She later called police from a Cobb County hospital, claiming she had been attacked.
The second officer remains on the police force.
(WSB Radio) The remaking of the Brookhaven Golf course continues to cost the Capital City Club money.
The company has now been fined over $150,000 by the federal government for violating the clean water act.
Last month the Georgia EPD slapped the club with a fine for letting mud wash into nearby streams and a pond.
The city of Atlanta also fined the club $3000 and issued a series of stop work orders.
The board will meet Tuesday to vote on whether to do away with the ``fixed for four'' tuition plan temporarily, raising tuition and fees for all students to make up for $238 million in state budget cuts this year and $275 million next year. That's about 10 percent of the state funding allotted for Georgia's 35 colleges and universities.
Under the tuition plan launched by Gov. Sonny Perdue in 2006, students are guaranteed the same fee rate for four years. The fixed rate is contingent on colleges getting the funding they need to cover costs.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
High director Michael E. Shapiro said Tuesday the exhibition will open June 6 with four of Monet's paintings, including ``Reflections of Clouds on the Water-Lily Pond,'' ``Water Lilies,'' ``The Japanese Footbridge'' and ``Agapanthus.''
In the fall of 2011, the High will exhibit MoMA pieces by Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, Jackson Pollock, Andy Warhol and others. Shapiro said the museums are working on developing exhibits for 2012 and 2013.
It's the second time the two museums have worked together after a series of exhibits in Atlanta from 1997 to 2000.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) A Cherokee County detective who was about to be deployed to Afghanistan with the National Guard has been jailed on a charge of evidence tampering.
The sheriff's Office says 29-year-old Nathan Watson of Woodstock was arrested Monday after investigators went to his home and found evidence from investigations that Watson had failed to submit. He was in Mississippi awaiting military deployment.
Watson also held in lieu of $40,000 bond on charges including violation of oath of office and possession of marijuana. He has worked for the sheriff's office for 10 years.
Authorities say the investigation began three weeks ago involving missing court documents related to a search warrant.
(WSB Radio) A company that provides call centers for other companies is hiring and that could mean jobs for hundreds of people.
Ryla Inc., plans on hiring in the metro area. The company CEO Mark Wilson says they are offering positions during employment appreciation day today at the company headquarters in Kennesaw.
"Our goal is to net out about 500 new, additional people to our team," Wilson tells WSB. "The majority of the jobs we'll be sourcing for are customer service based."
Ryla hired more than 800 call agents in 2008 and plans to open another center in Mobile, Alabama later this month.
(WSB Radio) A company that provides call centers for other companies is hiring and that could mean jobs for hundreds of people.
Ryla Inc., plans on hiring in the metro area. The company CEO Mark Wilson says they are offering positions during employment appreciation day today at the company headquarters in Kennesaw.
"Our goal is to net out about 500 new, additional people to our team," Wilson tells WSB. "The majority of the jobs we'll be sourcing for are customer service based."
Ryla hired more than 800 call agents in 2008 and plans to open another center in Mobile, Alabama later this month.
(WSB Radio) Dunwoody police are investigating their second home invasion since their department began operations.
The latest was early Sunday morning at the Gables Apartments.
"There were two victims that were approached as they were entering their apartment, by three armed Hispanic males" Sergeant Mike Carlson tells WSB. "They forced them into an apartment where another resident was occupying it, as well. At that time, all three were bound. They were ranging in ages from 18 to 22.
"They were demanding money," he says. "They were there for several hours before the suspects left the apartment. They (the victims) were able to get free and they left and drove to a nearby gas station and called 911."
The suspect stole a victim's 2003 GMC Yukon.
The first home invasion in Dunwoody was drug related, Carlson says. It's not known if this latest crime was also drug related.
(WSB Radio) There could be a major snag in the murder trial of accused Silver Comet Trail killer Michael Ledford.
Attorneys for Ledford will let a Paulding County judge know today whether they plan on withdrawing from the case.
At issue is a claim by the lawyers that they have not been paid for their services.
Jimmy Berry and Tom West will meet with Judge James Osborne and Paulding County District Attorney Drew Lane to discuss their options.
West says the defense team has already spent upwards of $60,000 and want compensation.
Ledford is accused in the July 2006 murder of Jennifer Ewing along the Silver Comet Trail.
Police say the 54 year old was biking when she was ambushed by Ledford, sexually assaulted, then beaten to death.
Ledford's trial was scheduled to begin Monday, but jury selection was delayed due to the financial concerns. Judge Osborne has scheduled a hearing for next Monday to determine how to pay for Ledford's defense.
Georgia Power Spokesman Jeff Wilson tells News/Talk 750 WSB that while the utility has crews from all over the southeast here to help restore power, the company has also called one thousand outside workers for assistance.
"We should make some progress tomorrow," Wilson said, "but it may be Wednesday before we get everybody's power turned back on."
There are also some 24,000 EMC customers who are also without power. Crews are working to restore electricity to those homes as well.
(WSB Radio) One person died Monday morning, hundreds of trees as well as power lines are reported down, and homes across metro Atlanta have been damaged by a heavy storm system in north Georgia.
WSB's Veronica Waters reports in Atlanta's Buckhead area, a motorist was killed when Atlanta Fire Captain Bill May tells WSB a falling tree smashed directly onto a pickup truck on Nacoochee Drive off Peachtree Battle Avenue. The truck promptly caught fire.
"It's my understanding that the vehicle was moving," says May.
May did not immediately have the victim's identity, the truck's make and model or its home county. The Peachtree Battle area was strewn with fallen tree limbs, debris and had numerous traffic lights out. May said they were also keeping people away from the immediate area because of downed power lines.
In DeKalb County, the 911 call center reported getting so many calls about trees and power lines down, they are asking people to call the non-emergency main number for these reports.
"We're getting inundated," says DeKalb County spokeswoman Kristie Swink. The non-emergency number is (404) 294-2911.
WSB's Chris Camp reports that in Cherokee County, emergency management officials reported more than 100 trees down, some of them blocking roadways and causing officials to close 40 roads. Cherokee County also reported moderate damage to about a dozen homes.
There are similar stories in Hall and Forsyth Counties. In Hall County, officials said trees had fallen onto houses, and that several boats had been damaged at the Lan-Mar Marina. In Forsyth County, blown transformers were sparking fires, and still more trees had caused major damage by dropping onto homes.
Up to 230,000 homes and businesses lost electricity. MARTA was still operating, but service had been slowed due to debris across some of its tracks.
WSB's Bob Coxe reports a fire broke out on the A/C unit on the roof of the new Gwinnett Braves stadium. No injuries were reported.
Coxe also confirmed flight delays at Hartsfield-Jackson as a result of the weather. The FAA's Kathleen Bergen tells WSB they will try to reduce the backlog as the day goes on.
"Under the best circumstances, we can land 126 flights an hour," she says. "That will be fluctuating throughout the day between 72 and 96 arrivals, depending on weather conditions."
WSB meteorologist Kirk Mellish forecasts rain diminishing to a 40% chance later in the day, with a 30% chance of early-morning showers or thunderstorms Tuesday. Monday's highs would range up to 67, he says, with lows in the low to mid-50s.
(WSB Radio) Fulton County police have identified the five people killed in the Easter Sunday wreck along Camp Creek Parkway and they've released a description of the car being sought in that crash.
A BMW collided with a Mercedes at about 1:45 Sunday afternoon in the eastbound lanes of the road. Police say both cars then crossed the median, with the Mercedes hitting a Volkswagen head on. The BMW driver sped off.
The Volkswagen was being driven by Tracy Johnson. She's hospitalized and is recovering. However, her six year old daughter was killed. Also killed was the family in the Mercedes.
"Mr. Robert Carter, 39 years of age," says Fulton County Police Detective Melissa Parker. "Delissia Carter, 38 years of age, and two children, a nine year old female and a two month old male."
Police say the nine year old was Mrs. Carter's daughter, while the two month old was the son of both Robert and Delissia Carter.
The BMW is question is now the focus of an intensive search.
"We are looking for a 1995 to 2001 BMW," Parker says. "It will be a 740 series, light in color. It should have significant undercarriage damage, as well as driver's side damage."
Police believe the car is also leaking fluid.
As for the BMW driver, Parker says, "we do believe that, possibly, it was a female driver and that person resides somewhere in the area of Camp Creek Parkway."
Parker says police have talked to witnesses to the crash and obtained information about the BMW.
Investigators say they just want to talk to the BMW driver to ascertain what led to the crash.
The court will hear arguments April 29 about whether federal oversight of election procedures should continue in 16 states, mainly in the South, with a history of preventing blacks, Hispanics and other minorities from voting.
In 2006, as Republicans sought to improve their standing with minorities in advance of congressional elections, the GOP-controlled Congress extended for 25 years the Voting Rights Act provision that says the Justice Department must approve any changes in how elections are conducted. Republican President George W. Bush signed the extension into law.
But some Republicans said the extension was not merited and that some states were being punished for their racist past. A legal challenge has made its way to the high court.
GOP Govs. Sonny Perdue of Georgia and Bob Riley of Alabama have asserted in court filings that the continued obligation of their states to get advance approval for all changes involving elections is unnecessary and expensive in view of significant progress they have made to overcome blatant and often brutal discrimination against blacks.
Perdue pointed out that President Barack Obama did better in Georgia than did Democratic nominees John Kerry in 2004 and Al Gore in 2000.
``Congress' insistence that Georgia has 'a continuing legacy of racism'... is nonsensical when an African-American candidate for president receives a greater percentage of the vote than his white predecessor candidates,'' Perdue said.
Riley said blacks in Alabama register to vote and cast ballots in proportions similar to whites and that black lawmakers make up about one-quarter of the Legislature, reflecting the state's black population. In November's election, however, Obama attracted the votes of only about 10 percent of white Alabamans; that was his worst showing among white voters anywhere.
Both Perdue and Riley face term limits that prevent them from running for re-election in 2010.
Other Republican governors in states covered by the advance approval provision of the Voting Rights Act including Haley Barbour of Mississippi and Bobby Jindal of Louisiana are taking a different approach. They essentially are saying nothing about the case even as Democratic attorneys general in those states have said elimination of the provision ``would undermine the progress that has been made under the Voting Rights Act.''
About one-third of Mississippi's residents are black. Barbour said he is not seeking to change his state's status under the Voting Rights Act. Obama captured about 11 percent of the white vote there last year, according to exit polls.
``I've said for 25 years, I've testified in front of Congress, that the Voting Rights Act ought to apply to every state. Every jurisdiction ought to be covered,'' Barbour said. Barbour also is term-limited, but has not foreclosed running for another office.
Jindal, widely considered a potential 2012 GOP presidential candidate, issued a brief statement through a spokesman. ``The governor has not reviewed this case or the briefs, but he has confidence in the attorney general to do the right thing for the people of Louisiana,'' spokesman Kyle Plotkin said.
Emory University political science professor Merle Black said southern Republican politicians have every incentive to say nothing.
``If they come out against it, then their hope of getting any African-American votes in the future is even worse than it is now,'' Black said. ``If you don't mention it, it's the status quo, and they've been able to win with the status quo.''
All or part of three other Southern states with Republican governors must submit election changes. State officials in Florida, South Carolina and Texas have taken no position in the Supreme Court case, which comes from the Austin, Texas-area.
Outside the South, the attorneys general in Arizona and California are on record endorsing the voting rights law. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has not taken a position about the case, a spokeswoman said.
In Arizona, Gov. Jan Brewer supports the provision, known as Section 5. ``She has not voiced a problem with Section 5,'' said Brewer spokesman Paul Senseman. ``She's very familiar with it.''
Brewer was the state's top elections official as the elected Arizona secretary of state before she became governor Jan. 20 when Democrat Janet Napolitano resigned after the Senate confirmed her to be Obama's homeland security secretary.
Eight states are covered in their entirety under the provision: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina and Texas. In Virginia, all but 15 cities and counties must comply with the measure.
Parts of California, Florida, Michigan, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina and South Dakota also need permission to make voting changes.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
The auto club said Monday's average statewide price for regular was $1.91 a gallon. A year ago regular fuel was, on average, $1.43 higher in the state.
The national average for regular Monday was $2.05.
AAA Georgia said the price for midgrade was $2.05 while premium cost $2.14 a gallon.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) Gwinnett police are hunting for the driver of a car that wrecked along Paper Mill Road early Saturday morning.
Three passengers in that car were ejected and one died.
The victim has been identified as 24 year old Mario Tucker, of Loganville. The other passengers suffered non-life threatening injuries.
Police say the driver veered off the roadway on a curve just after 3:30 Saturday morning, then over corrected, spun out and hit the guard rail and a utility pole.
The driver of the car took off on foot and has not been seen since.
(WSB Radio) The vote is set for tonight in Dawsonville on a hotly debated motor sports park.
The original vote on the project was supposed to have taken place last month, but was postponed.
A developer wants to build a custom drag racing track off of Rural Duck Thurmond Road, so the owners of high performance cars can have a place to drive fast without getting a ticket.
The city council must decide whether to rezone the site from agricultural to industrial.
Some local residents strongly oppose the plan, over concerns about noise and pollution.
(WSB Radio) DeKalb County police are cracking down on crime along Briarcliff Road, in the wake of another attack on a woman.
Police say they're focusing their resources on the stretch of Briarcliff between North Druid Hills and LaVista Roads.
Their efforts paid off this weekend with the arrest of two men who, cops say, tried to rob a pizza delivery man and a taxi driver.
Three woman have been attacked in that area in the past month.
A female jogger was stabbed, a new tenant raped as she moved into her apartment and, this past weekend, a woman was attacked and robbed at a different apartment complex.
(WSB Radio) Trial is set to begin today in Fulton County for six members of a street gang called "The International Robbing Crew."
They and six others are charged in a total of eight murders, as well as other gang related crimes.
The other six accused members will be tried individually.
Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard's office calls this the biggest case involving gang activity they've ever taken to trial.
Prosecutors suspect this gang was involved in at least three more murders in other jurisdictions.
The three-day visit begins today. The team will interview board members, school staff and residents. The school board meets at 6 p.m. Monday.
The SACS team will review the system's progress on nine improvement mandates that would determine whether the system will regain accreditation.
The team wants to know whether Clayton has a functional board, is following its own policies and if it is actively searching for a permanent superintendent.
The National Accreditation Commission votes next month.
If the district fails, it will have to start the entire accreditation process over, which takes about three years.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) Sandy Springs police are searching for the gunman behind a deadly double shooting at an apartment complex on Roswell Road.
Investigators say witnesses heard shots around 9 o'clock Saturday night.
"Two men were shot," Lieutenant Steve Rose tells WSB. "The man in the apartment was shot in the stomach . He was an hispanic male. He was taken to Northside Hospital, where he was pronounced dead."
Another man was shot in the leg.
Police say several witness saw a hispanic man running form the scene. The victims names have not been released.
(WSB Radio) Jury selection begins today in the trial of Michael Ledford, the accused Silver Comet Trail killer.
Ledford is charged in the murder of 54 year old Jennifer Ewing, a bicyclist who was attacked in July 2006, sexually assaulted, then beaten to death.
Defense attorneys have stated publicly that they are concerned over whether they'll be able to find a jury in Paulding County who are impartial towards the case.
Ledford spent 10 years in prison on a 1991 rape conviction.
Police say Ewing disappeared the afternoon of July 25, 2006, while completing her 32nd mile of biking.
Her body was found the next day, about 70 feet from the trail.
Police had already been looking at Ledford, after his mother telephoned to tell them his clothes were covered in blood.
Ledford faces three counts of murder. The trial begins this morning in the Paulding County superior court.
(WSB Radio) A Florida woman has come forward to say she had a conversation with a missing Atlanta chef at a bar in St. Petersburg.
Atlanta police investigating the week-long disappearance of executive chef Brandon Patton have requested security video from Crabby Bill's, a beachside restaurant where the woman says she and Patton talked on Monday, April 6th.
Patton's family is inclined to believe the woman's story because she said they exchanged cell phone numbers and police in Florida confirm the woman did have Patton's cell number. Patton's mother, Debra Patton, tells Channel 2 Action News "I am hoping that was true because it's a lead, y'know. It's something we can be on the lookout for."
Patton hasn't been seen since he told family members on April 2nd that he was going to Tampa for a week to spend time with his 3-year-old daughter. He never arrived at the home of the little girl's mother and his truck was spotted on April 4th in Lakeland, Florida.
By LINDA A. JOHNSON
AP Business Writer
Diabetics are increasingly risking life and limb by cutting back on or even going without doctor visits, insulin, medicines and blood-sugar testing as they lose income and health insurance in the recession, an Associated Press analysis has found.
Doctors have seen a drop in regular appointments with diabetic patients, if they come back at all. Patients more often seek tax-subsidized or charity care. And they end up in emergency rooms more often, patients and physicians said in interviews.
Sales of top-selling drugs and other products used to treat and monitor the disease have dropped since the economic crisis accelerated last fall, the AP analysis found. There are even signs that some patients are choosing less-expensive insulin injections over pricier pills to save money.
Meanwhile, the number of people with the disease keeps growing another 1.6 million Americans were diagnosed in 2007 alone.
People with other health problems also are cutting back on care amid the recession, but diabetics who don't closely monitor and control the chronic disease risk particularly dire complications: amputations, vision loss, stroke even death.
Patients' frugality comes at a tremendous cost to the already-strained health care system. The typical monthly bill to treat diabetes runs $350 to $900 for those without insurance, a price tag that's risen as newer, more expensive medicines have hit the market. Emergency care and a short hospitalization can easily top $10,000, and long-term complications can cost far more.
M. Eileen Collins, 48, of Indianapolis, tried to scrimp on her medication last fall after her husband lost his job and with it their insurance. Without money for insulin, test supplies and other medicines, she asked for free samples and also got a few drugs through $4-a-month generic programs. But she stopped taking most of her drugs and cut her insulin doses in half to stretch her budget.
``I truly did not think I was putting my life in danger,'' Collins said. ``I thought if I was just real careful with what I ate ... I'd be all right.''
By Thanksgiving eve, Collins was vomiting blood and rushed to a hospital. Doctors diagnosed her as malnourished, anemic and in diabetic ketoacidosis, a life-threatening condition caused by lack of insulin and sky-high blood sugar. She spent a week in the hospital.
Her story is hardly unique.
Dr. Steven Edelman, a University of California, San Diego endocrinologist who runs a free clinic staffed by medical students, has seen a 30 percent surge the past six months in patients seeking free diabetes medicines and supplies, which the clinic has to ration. Many had been solidly middle class, but the recession took their jobs, insurance and even some homes.
``A third to a half of these people haven't been taking their meds at all,'' said Edelman, who also founded the advocacy group Taking Control of Your Diabetes.
Diabetes occurs when the body doesn't make enough insulin or doesn't efficiently use the hormone, which helps turn sugar from food into energy. The disease can be kept under control by monitoring blood sugar as well as exercising, improved diet, medications, testing and regular checkups.
Uncontrolled diabetes can cause fatigue, blurry vision, excessive urination, gum problems, infections and wounds that don't heal. Damage to the kidneys, liver, heart and eyes follow. Often, much of that damage isn't apparent until a stroke or heart attack strikes.
Sales of diabetes testing supplies and drugs indicate how many Americans have moved beyond scrimping and are cutting vital expenses. Several doctors said they began noticing a shift in August or September, when the financial markets melted down and layoffs accelerated.
Sales have dipped for pricey brand-name diabetes pills, blood glucose monitors and even test strips, based on industry sales figures and interviews with the top two makers of testing supplies. The strips generally cost $1 or more each; patients using insulin are supposed to test at least two to four times a day to be sure their blood sugar is in a safe range.
Most diabetics typically can control the disease for a few years with diet, exercise and pills available as cheap generics. But eventually, those pills stop working well, and patients switch to more advanced and more expensive medicines.
Sales of the most widely used pill, $4-a-month metformin, are up 7 percent since June, according to the AP analysis of figures from health data firm IMS Health Inc. Brand-name versions of the same drug, costing 10 times as much, are down 9 percent, on average, since then.
By February, sales for nearly every other category of diabetes pills and insulins were down from a year earlier, most by double digits, IMS figures show. The only exceptions were a heavily promoted new type of diabetes pill, Januvia, and advanced insulins that tightly control blood sugar levels.
The sales declines come even as the number of diabetes cases grows, fueled by the rise in obesity. According to the American Diabetes Association, more than 24 million Americans have diabetes.
Even as sales of expensive pills have fallen, sales of advanced insulin injections are up 9 percent since summer. That could mean some patients would rather face a needle to save money, according to Brian Lasky, a research analyst at IMS Health.
``By December, people were making decisions in terms of, 'Do I fill this prescription or ... buy Christmas presents for my kids?''' Lasky added.
Johnson Johnson, a maker of top-selling OneTouch blood sugar meters, testing strips and insulin pumps, reported a 2 percent fourth-quarter drop in U.S. sales for the category compared with the same period a year earlier, a large drop considering quarterly sales up to then had been rising at around 10 percent.
``We're seeing some signs that consumers and patients are becoming more frugal,'' J Chief Executive Bill Weldon told analysts in January.
Getting patients to stick to their treatment has long been tough. But rising unemployment has made things worse.
At a family clinic in impoverished Newark, N.J., so many patients simply stopped showing up after losing health insurance that doctors posted notices asking clients with financial troubles to speak up so staff can try to help.
``Sometimes you don't see (diabetes) patients for several months,'' said Dr. Cynthia Paige, medical director of the New Jersey Family Practice Center. They ``don't understand what a nightmare uncontrolled diabetes is and how it's ravaging your body,'' she said.
April Bumpus, 31, of Woodstock, Ga., was laid off from her job in medical sales last spring while recovering from surgery, and her health insurance was canceled. By September, she had to switch from two advanced insulins that tightly controlled her blood sugar to cheaper, older ones that cause surges and drops. The advanced insulin would have cost $360 a month, the older insulin only $100.
``It makes you really feel like you have the flu'' at least once a week, said Bumpus, who's more worried about the long-term consequences. ``That does scare me. I can have a heart attack, I can have a stroke, I can go blind.''
Emergency rooms increasingly are treating diabetics who haven't been taking medicines, according to doctors at several hospitals nationwide and the professional group for ER doctors. Many of the patients have blood sugar so high they are hospitalized for days. Free clinics also are getting a surge of diabetes patients desperate for help.
``There's an increase in just overall consequences of diabetes: losing a foot, losing a kidney, bad eyesight. At least six people come to mind over the last six months ... most because of the recession,'' said Dr. Nicholas Vasquez, who works in one of the country's biggest ERs, at St. Joseph's Hospital in Phoenix.
Vasquez and his colleagues view the desperate patients in their ER as harbingers of what's to come if the recession deepens.
``What we're seeing mostly is the first steps of people not taking care of their diabetes and starting to have consequences,'' he said.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Morse launched the website a few months ago in honor of his late neighbor.
"My neighborhood had a network that helped each other out for a long time--cut down trees, hung flatscreen televisions, moved pieces of furniture. One of our neighbors actually passed away; his name was Dave. Since that happened, the neighborhood network pretty much fell apart, so one of the goals of this website was to keep that neighborhood spirit going, but also spread it on to other communities," said Morse.
He says the timing of the launch couldn't be more appropriate.
"It's a time where money is tight and people need to find a way to save and spend money on things they can't do themselves; so, why not have a friend, a family member, or a neighbor help you out," said Morse.
DaveZillion's headquarters are in New York and the site has really caught on in the Northeast, but now there are some communities in Atlanta who are taking advantage of the opportunity, too.
"Basically, it's an online community where you can network with friends and family members and other people in your town to post something that needs to get done. So, you log on, and say, 'Hey, I need someone to help me cut down a tree, open my pool, do something simple.' Someone can reply back to you and say, 'I can help you out,'" explains Morse.
People are quite creative. "One woman posted that she needs help installing an above-ground pool. It sounds like a complicated job, but there are actually people out there who know how to do it. Another person needs to take down a tree. Another person is willing to trade services to find a stationary bike because she had surgery on her knee and is a seamstress and can mend curtains," said Morse.
One community came together because they couldn't afford landscaping.
"It's the time of year up north where you have to prepare your lawn in the spring so they look nice in the summer. They came together, they couldn't afford a lawn service to fertilize and to dethatch and to aerate. They came together, four houses, and they ended up doing this together. Something that would've that have taken them all weekend by themselves took them four hours together. They saved a lot of money, thousands of dollars, by doing this themselves," said Morse.
Morse says the concept is a win-win for everyone.
"You can get to know your neighbors. The community spirit is back. There's a sense of accomplishment, you save money, but you also get to know the people around you. I think that can go far nowadays," said Morse.
ATLANTA (AP) The Washington Nationals would like a restart. The Atlanta Braves just want to keep the winning pace they've set during the first week of the season.
Chipper Jones drove in two runs, including a tiebreaking single, and the Braves beat Washington 8-5 on Sunday to hand the Nationals their sixth straight loss to start the season.
Washington is the only winless team in the majors and has the franchise's most consecutive losses to open a season since the 1998 Montreal Expos were 0-7.
``We have to forget this ever happened,'' left-hander Scott Olsen said.
The pressure is already building for the Nationals, who lost three straight at Florida to open the season and will play their home opener against Philadelphia on Monday.
``Right now we're in a situation where we have to play almost perfect baseball,'' manager Manny Acta said.
Jair Jurrjens (2-0) gave up five hits and five walks in 5 1-3 innings but allowed only four runs, three earned, to help the Braves sweep the three-game series and improve to 5-1.
The Braves, who are hitting .300, have their best start since opening the 2007 season 7-1.
``It's good to get off to a good start,'' manager Bobby Cox said. ``If you start 1-5 instead of 5-1, it's tough to come back.''
Atlanta, which blew a 10-3 lead in the seventh inning of a 12-11 loss at Philadelphia on Wednesday, has enjoyed a strong and balanced attack in the first week. Seven players drove in runs on Sunday.
``We're swinging it really good,'' Jones said. ``And it's coming from all parts.
``When you're producing some runs down at the bottom of the order, it really takes the pressure off the top, because you know eventually the top is going to come through.''
The Braves scored their first five runs on two-out rallies in the fourth and fifth to beat Olsen (0-2), who gave up six hits and five runs in five innings.
Rafael Soriano pitched a perfect ninth for his first save.
Washington had 10 hits but left the bases loaded in the fifth, when Josh Willingham struck out to end the inning. The Nationals left runners on first and second in the eighth, when Adam Dunn struck out to end the inning.
The Nationals left 11 runners on base overall.
``I don't have a quick fix,'' said Dunn, who was 2-for-3 with two walks. ``Guys know what they need to do, and I think it's being addressed.
``We're playing hard. We're just not doing the little things that we need to do. We're leaving so many runners on. You can't do that and be successful.''
Elijah Dukes had two hits and drove in three runs for Washington.
Omar Infante had two hits and scored twice for Atlanta.
The teams traded four straight two-out rallies in the fourth, fifth and sixth.
Atlanta took a 3-0 lead in the fourth. Brian McCann started the rally with a walk and a steal, allowing him to score on a double to center by Matt Diaz. Jeff Francoeur's triple into the right-field corner drove in Diaz, and Martin Prado added a run-scoring single to right.
The Nationals scored three runs with two outs in the fifth. Dukes drove in Josh Bard and Cristian Guzman with a double to the wall in center field. Dukes scored when Prado, making his first start of the season at first base, mishandled Ryan Zimmerman's grounder for an error.
Jurrjens walked Dunn and Austin Kearns to load the bases before striking out Willingham.
Atlanta regained the lead by scoring two runs in the fifth on two-out singles by Jones and McCann.
Dukes' run-scoring single in the sixth cut the lead to 5-4, but the Braves scored two runs in the seventh off reliever Steven Shell. Infante doubled and scored on Yunel Escobar's double to right. Jones drove in Escobar with a single to left.
Zimmerman and Atlanta's Casey Kotchman traded run-scoring singles in the eighth.
Notes: Braves LHP Tom Glavine ended his minor league start with Double-A Mississippi after only two innings after experiencing shoulder discomfort. He will be evaluated after he returns to Atlanta. ... Washington 2B Willie Harris came out with a left oblique strain he sustained running to first on a third-inning single. Harris is day to day and will be evaluated on Monday. ... The Nationals already were without 2B Ronnie Belliard, who has not played since leaving Wednesday night's game with lower back tightness. Acta said the team might add an infielder, possibly Anderson Hernandez, on Monday. ... Zimmerman's run-scoring single in the eighth was his 500th career hit.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
What if Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson had carried their duel into a playoff? Now that would have turned Augusta National upside down.
Or how about Kenny Perry, the ultimate grinder, winning his first major at an age when most players are prepping for the senior tour? Boy, that would have been something.
Instead, it was a burly man from Argentina who crafted an ending no one could have envisioned. Down at the 10th green, long after Woods and Mickelson had headed for exits and dragged many of the patrons with them, Angel Cabrera barely beat the setting sun with a gimme of a putt as Perry looked on helplessly.
OK, it wasn't Hollywood.
But Cabrera sure earned it.
When his swing got loose and produced two straight bogeys on the front side, he hung in there. When he faced a two-stroke deficit with two holes to play, he didn't give up. And, most impressively, when his first tee shot of the sudden-death playoff rolled to a stop behind a big tree on the first playoff hole, he never lost hope.
``I only had a spot like this big'' meaning tiny ``and only trees, so I've got to put it through there, that's it,'' Cabrera said, a translator relaying his words. ``Easy as that.''
Cabrera somehow hooked his ball around one tree and past several more, getting it back to the fairway. Then he knocked it up on the green, 8 feet behind the hole, and made the putt to save a remarkable par. Perry messed up his approach and had to settle for par, too. The third member of the playoff, Chad Campbell, missed his 6-footer and the race was down to two.
Only one more hole was needed. Perry found mud on his ball in the middle of the 10th fairway, and his shot veered left of the green. Cabrera knocked his below the hole and for perhaps the first time all day he was finally the one in command. Perry's chip raced past the flag, and he missed the putt coming back.
Perry didn't even get a chance to finish. Cabrera's putt stopped next to the hole. He marked it, took a quick look to make sure there was nothing on it, and calmly delivered the winning stroke on his second career major.
At Oakmont two years ago, Cabrera stared down Woods and Jim Furyk to win the U.S. Open. Now he has joined the green jacket club and wiped out any perception that his first major title was a fluke.
``I was happy with my game and I had confidence,'' Cabrera said after a closing 71 left him at 12-under 276. ``I was just trying to enjoy the moment.''
He wasn't the only one. From the time Woods and Mickelson stepped to the tee, sharing a firm handshake and icy stare, there was a sense this would finally be the day the Masters delivered an Augusta-like finish. Another day broke warm and sunny. The flags drooped limply atop the scoreboard. The greens were still soft and inviting after a fierce storm a couple of nights earlier.
This was finally a Sunday for some fireworks, and they were soon going off all over the course.
The main event was Woods vs. Mickelson, or so it seemed most of the day. Mickelson scored the early blows, delivering six birdies before the turn for a record-tying 30. Woods bounced off the ropes with a 30-footer for eagle at No. 8. They both had a shot as they headed to Amen Corner, trailed by a gallery that grew to 10-deep in spots.
``It was fun,'' Mickelson said. ``We've had some good matches in the past. I'm usually on the wrong end of it, but it was fun playing with him.''
The script began to unravel at No. 12, the devilish little hole known as ``Golden Bell.'' Mickelson pulled out a 9-iron and took a tentative swing. The ball checked up short of the flag, spun backward and didn't stop rolling until it splashed in Rae's Creek. Mickelson wound up with a double bogey, which seemed to suck all hope out of his game.
``The ball went in the water,'' Lefty said, ``and I stopped making putts.''
A 4-footer for eagle at No. 13 missed the cup by a good inch or two basically an airball for someone of his caliber. His last opportunity faded away when a 5-foot birdie try slid by the cup at 17. A bogey at the final hole left him with a 5-under 67, three shots shy of the first three-man playoff since 1987.
Woods was one stroke out of the lead after he planted his tee shot next to the flag at No. 16, producing his third birdie in four holes. But golf's greatest closer couldn't finish the comeback. His last two tee shots were both wide and outside. He slammed another shot off a tree. A bogey-bogey finish left him one stroke behind Mickelson and tied for sixth, his worst finish at Augusta since 2004.
He's now gone four years without a green jacket, the longest drought of his Masters career.
``I was right there,'' Woods said. ``I hit a good tee shot down 17, the wind just held it just enough, wouldn't let it cut back, and I was dead from there.''
At least he has a Masters title four of them.
Perry headed to the penultimate hole with a two-stroke lead and seemed the most unlikely guy on the course to let it slip away. He had gone 22 holes since his last bogey, and merely needed a nice, safe finish to add some green to his wardrobe.
Then, he seemed to realize just what was happening. His hands got a little sweaty, his arms a little shaky. He was caught up in the moment, and it got to him.
``I can't stop my right hand when I get a little nervous,'' Perry conceded. ``It wants to shoot a little bit and I can't calm it down.''
He knocked his second shot at 17 over the green and took bogey. He tried to calm down, kept telling himself he still had a one-stroke lead. He just had to get through one more hole to become the oldest player to capture a major, some four months older than Julius Boros when he won the 1968 PGA Championship.
But Perry put his tee shot into a bunker. He scattered the gallery on the left with his second shot. A delicate chip left him with a 15-foot putt for the win. But it crept up short of the hole the tentative stroke of an average golfer who choked, Perry's own brutal assessment of the miss.
``I had that putt everybody makes,'' he said. ``Mark O'Meara has made it. Tiger made it. I knew exactly what it did, and I hit it easy. I mean, I just hit it bad.''
This was Perry's second heartbreak in a major. In 1996, he squandered another lead on the 72nd hole at the PGA Championship, then lost in a playoff to Mark Brooks.
Perry knows this might be his final chance.
``It just seems like when I get down to those deals, I can't seem to execute,'' he moaned in his Kentucky drawl. ``Great players make it happen, and your average players don't. That's the way it is.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) Kenny Perry took one last look at the leaderboard behind the 18th green at Augusta National. This was no time to relish his position at the top with Angel Cabrera, rather to consider what lies ahead.
``You will definitely see something on the back nine,'' Perry said Saturday. ``That's where it's all going to happen.''
Now this is the Masters everyone wanted to see.
Perry and Cabrera were tied at 11-under 205, the lowest 54-hole score at Augusta in seven years. Even the 16 players within seven shots of the lead still feel like they're in the game because of those familiar back-nine fireworks in the forecast.
And best of all, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson will go head-to-head in the final round. Even though seven players and seven shots separated them from the leaders, both know to expect anything.
``A lot of things happen on Sunday at Augusta,'' Mickelson said. ``And I would never put it past happening again.''
Cabrera and Perry are no strangers to pressure on a big stage, but this is different.
Sunday at Augusta National is a test unlike any other they have faced.
Cabrera, who won the U.S. Open two years ago at Oakmont, made three birdies on the back nine and scratched out an important par on the final hole for a 3-under 69.
Perry, who thrived under the spotlight of a Ryder Cup in his native Kentucky last September, overcame two mistakes with his putter around Amen Corner and finished with five straight pars for a 70 to join the Argentine in the lead.
It will be the first time they've played in the final group at a major.
``I'm lucky enough to be in a very good position,'' Cabrera said. ``I haven't been in this position before so I'll try to make the most of it.''
Perry is still stung by his playoff loss at the PGA Championship at Valhalla in 1996, when he was criticized for being in the broadcast booth instead of keeping loose on the practice range. He never would have imagined that all these years later, he would have a chance to become golf's oldest major champion at 48.
``The first two days felt like I was on vacation,'' Perry said. ``Today felt like a job.''
They had a two-shot lead over Chad Campbell, who led briefly on the back nine until a blunder on the 16th hole when he took two shots to get out of the bunker, made double bogey and wound up with a 72.
Jim Furyk, another former U.S. Open champion, shot 68 and was three shots behind at 8-under 208.
``If I woke up tomorrow and I wasn't anxious, and I wasn't nervous, and I wasn't excited, I would be one beat away from dead,'' Furyk said.
Woods began his Saturday charge by hooking his tee shot into the trees and making double bogey. His tee shot on the par-3 sixth hit the base of the pin and tumbled off the green. He rallied with three birdies over the last six holes for a 70.
Mickelson's rally was slowed by three poor chips, and he escaped with a 71 only after hitting a big slice from the trees on the 18th hole that started down the 10th fairway and wound up on the green.
They were at 4-under 212 in a tie for 10th.
Was that too far back?
Mickelson recalled Jack Nicklaus being in a tie for ninth in 1986 when he shot 30 on the back nine and won without a playoff, getting help from inexperienced players who couldn't cope with the roars and the nerves.
``I think that at this golf course, funny things can happen, and if you get momentum on your side and you're making some birdies, you can make a lot of them.''
And then he offered another scenario that he and Woods desperately need.
``When it starts coming apart, it's hard to get it back,'' Mickelson said. ``And it's easy to tumble.''
There was little sign of that happening with Perry and Cabrera on a breezy afternoon, on a course where the greens remained relatively soft from an overnight downpour.
Perry became the first player to reach 12-under par at any point in the tournament since 2002 when he rolled in an 8-foot birdie on the 10th hole, and it allowed him to wonder if this might really be his week.
But he three-putted from just off the front of the 11th green of his first bogey, then fell out of the lead on the par-3 12th. After hitting over the green, Perry tried putting up the slope and hit it too hard, the ball bouncing over the cup 15 feet away for another bogey.
He recovered with a 4-iron to about 25 feet for a two-putt birdie on the 13th.
Cabrera escaped with par from a tough spot in the bunker on the ninth hole, birdied the next hole to get into contention, then used his power to make birdies on the 15th and 17th holes.
Campbell made seven straight pars down the stretch until a wild finish the double bogey on the 16th hole with a 7-iron into the back bunker, a 12-foot birdie on the 17th, then a wild drive into the trees on the 18th that led to bogey.
``I've still got a good opportunity to win this golf tournament,'' he said.
Woods left the course knowing that even having a remote chance would depend on how the leaders played the back nine. They helped slightly but not running away, with Campbell shooting a 38 on the back and Perry getting around in 36.
The world's No. 1 player has never won a major when trailing after 54 holes, and only once has he won when trailing by more than seven shots going into the final round of any tournament.
``That was a hell of a fight,'' Woods said. ``I'm pretty proud of the fact I got myself back in the tournament, considering that I didn't hit it as well as I wanted to and had two three-putts.''
The forecast was for sunshine and theatrics, perhaps a back-nine charge not seen this decade at Augusta National.
Steve Stricker played bogey-free for a 68 that put him four shots behind at 7-under 209, with former British Open champion Todd Hamilton (72), Shingo Katayama (70) and Rory Sabbatini (70) another shot behind.
One player too far out of contention is Padraig Harrington, who saw his hopes of a third straight major end on the second hole when he twice hit a tree and took a quadruple-bogey 9. He shot a 73 and was 10 shots back.
Only once in the last 18 years at the Masters has the winner not come out of the final group, which bodes well for Perry and Cabrera.
Even so, Perry knows that Sunday will be the toughest day of all even if the course is set up for birdies and eagles.
``This might be the last time I have this kind of opportunity,'' he said. ``I'm looking forward to it.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Ilya Kovalchuk scored his 43rd goal, and the Atlanta Thrashers snapped a three-game skid with a 6-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday night in final game of the season for both teams.
Colby Armstrong scored twice, Eric Perrin, Ron Hainsey and Colin Stuart added goals, and Kari Lehtonen made 24 saves.
Tampa Bay rookie Steven Stamkos, the No. 1 overall draft pick, scored his 23rd goal early in the third period, and Matt Pettinger added a goal. The Lightning closed the season with a nine-game winless streak, dropping the last four in regulation.
The Thrashers won 12 of their final 18 game, including nine of 13 at home, under first-year coach John Anderson. Lightning interim coach Rick Tocchet, who took charge after Barry Melrose was fired after just 16 games, went 19-33-14.
Kovalchuk gave Atlanta a 3-1 lead midway through the second period, scoring his 32nd goal in his last 42 games.
Atlanta's Mike McKenna and Karri Ramo combined to make 29 saves.
Notes: Winning the season series 4-1-1, the Thrashers improved to 27-19-10 against Tampa Bay, including 17-6-5 at Philips Arena. ... The Lighting were 1-14-1 when allowing five or more goals. ... Todd White had his 51st assist, and Slava Kozlov his 50 for Atlanta.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Kenshin Kawakami pitched six effective innings to win his major league debut, leading the Atlanta Braves to a 5-3 victory over the Washington Nationals on Saturday night.
Kawakami allowed three runs and four hits, walked four and struck out eight. The 33-year-old right-hander is the first Japanese-born player in franchise history.
Kelly Johnson went 3-for-4 and drove in three runs one night after he had the game-winning hit in the 10th inning of a 6-5 win over the Nationals. Chipper Jones and Yunel Escobar had run-scoring singles for Atlanta.
Ryan Zimmerman had a two-run homer for the Nationals, who dropped to 0-5.
Kawakami joined the Braves in January, agreeing to a three-year deal as a free agent. The 2004 Central League MVP won 112 games in 11 seasons in Japan.
Kawakami kept the Nationals off balance with a fastball in the low 90s, a slider in the mid-80s and a changeup at 67-68 mph. He started a little shaky, walking two with two outs in the first and giving up Nick Johnson's RBI single. Zimmerman made it 3-0 with a drive into the right-field stands in the third.
Kawakami didn't allow a hit after Zimmerman's homer. He threw 89 pitches, 54 for strikes.
Mike Gonzalez worked the ninth for his first save in his second attempt.
Johnson led off the third with his second homer to cut the Nationals' lead to 3-1. He also had a two-run double in the Braves' three-run fourth.
Notes: More than two dozen Japanese media were on hand for Kawakami's debut. ... Atlanta LHP Tom Glavine will throw 50 to 60 pitches in a rehab assignment with Double-A Mississippi on Sunday. ... Washington RF Elijah Dukes missed the game with a mild right groin strain. He injured throwing home Friday night when Atlanta's Jordan Schafer scored the winning run. ... Atlanta RHP Peter Moylan, who had not retired a batter in two games, struck out the side in the seventh on 12 pitches. ... Atlanta LF Garret Anderson still had some soreness in his right calf and did not start for the third straight game. ... In pregame ceremonies, Atlanta 3B Jones received a Silver Bat from Louisville Slugger as the 2008 NL batting champion and another award as Braves 2008 Player of the Year. C Brian McCann received his second career NL Silver Slugger Award as league's top hitting catcher.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
PEACHTREE CITY, Ga. (AP) The National Weather Service says it has confirmed eight tornadoes from the severe storms that swept across Georgia on Good Friday.
The worst storm left one person hurt in Hancock County. The EF3 storm hit between Sparta and Culverton with winds at 160 MPH.
The confirmed tornadoes included an EF2 tornado in Chattooga County in Northwest Georgia. That storm was 200 yards wide with 120 MPH winds. It touched down in the Summerville area and caused considerable damage to at least 30 homes and business.
EF1 storms hit in Crisp, Pickens, Sumter, and Chattahoochee counties and also an ef0 in Chattahoochee and Hancock . The Weather Service said it still had teams checking on possible tornadoes in Dooley and Wilcox counties.
There were no reports of deaths in Georgia.
Ken Davis of the Georgia Emergency Management Agency said Saturday that a nursing home in Richmond County had its roof destroyed, with patients being moved to hospitals in the area. He said there were no reports of injuries.
He said GEMA also had reports of homes destroyed or damaged in Burke, Putnam, Terrell, Crisp, Columbia, Wilcox and Hancock counties. Davis said there were some injuries, but no deaths reported.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (AP) The worst sound Eric Funkhouser said he has ever heard was a 10-second ``voom'' followed by a man's screams.
A tornado hit Funkhouser's home in Murfreesboro, about 30 miles southeast of Nashville, on Friday, part of severe storms that spawned tornadoes across the Southeast blamed for three deaths and dozens of injuries.
``It sounded like seven freight trains and 22 vacuum cleaners all going at the same time,'' Funkhouser said Saturday as he returned to what is left of his home and neighborhood.
Funkhouser ran outside and found his neighbor John Bryant laying in Funkhouser's front yard, covered with blood and screaming.
``He kept saying that his wife and baby were out there with him and he had to find them,'' Funkhouser said.
Twenty minutes later, Funkhouser and other survivors found Bryant's wife, Kori, dead in the gravel driveway under debris and 9-week-old Olivia Bryant was found dead buckled into her car seat, beneath carpet and a tree.
Family friend Laura Lawrence said Bryant, a self-employed construction worker, had just gotten home on his lunch break. He, his wife and daughter were seeking shelter when the tornado rolled through.
National Weather Service officials say a preliminary report shows the EF3 tornado tore a 15-mile path through the university town of about 100,000 with winds as high as 165 mph.
Deputy City Manager Rob Lyons said 42 homes were destroyed, 140 were damaged and 71 were affected but habitable. Several thousand customers were still without power Saturday.
More than 40 people were injured. Seven people were in critical condition Saturday afternoon, said Rutherford County Emergency Medical Services director Randy White.
John Bryant is in critical condition with a broken back, Lawrence said Saturday, as she gathered the family's clothes and pictures from their neighbors' yards.
During a tour of the damaged areas on Saturday, Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen walked past a pile of pink baby clothes topped with the Bryants' wedding album, paused before yellow and gray tarps marking where the mother and daughter were found and bowed his head.
``My thoughts and prayers are with them. It's very sad,'' Bredesen said.
He then walked through the neighborhood that was hardest hit, listening to survivors share stories of how they hid in bathrooms and pantries.
Bredesen said he may request a presidential declaration of emergency after Tennessee Emergency Management Agency officials completely survey the area.
Church members and neighbors joined survivors in cleaning up debris, patching up roofs with blue tarps and sawing tree branches from cars and houses.
Community response has been overwhelming, Lyons said, with volunteers offering to remove debris and give donations.
``One of the things that makes Murfreesboro a great city is that we come together and help each other,'' he said.
But he said others should try and stay out of the area so they don't obstruct rescue and cleanup workers trying to do their jobs.
City officials have set up a hot line for people who want to volunteer and victims seeking help.
Murfreesboro Mayor Tommy Bragg said water is running on generator power but power and gas remain off in the areas worst hit. Code inspectors were going door to door to assess damage to homes.
They condemned the Funkhousers' home with a sticker that read ``Unsafe. Do not enter or occupy.''
The Bryants' home, the only wood house on the block, was destroyed and most of the siding was in Funkhouser's yard.
Churches and utility companies passed out hot dogs, hamburgers, ham sandwiches, chips and water to families and volunteers.
``This is something we have to do because you can't just look over this damage,'' church volunteer Lacie Young said. ``We were so blessed and have to share these blessings.''
Reports of destruction were widespread across the region Friday, with funnel clouds spotted in Kentucky and Alabama and devastating winds, huge hail and heavy rain reported in several states.
In South Carolina, a driver trying to avoid storm debris in the eastern part of the state was killed Friday, state Emergency Management Division spokesman Derrec Becker said.
On Thursday night, a black funnel cloud packing winds of at least 136 mph descended on the western Arkansas hamlet of Mena, killing at least three, injuring 30 and destroying or damaging 600 homes.
There, emergency officials are trying to collect ice chests and tarps to prepare for another round of storms projected to hit the area Sunday. Crews have already used 1,000 tarps to cover damaged roofs, and workers are struggling to keep perishables refrigerated because power is still out in Mena.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) The Sanford Stadium scoreboard said the Red team won Georgia's G-Day spring game on Saturday, beating the Black team 13-3.
Rennie Curran said he knew better.
The real winner of the annual spring game was Georgia's defense, which didn't allow a touchdown until Carlton Thomas scored on a 20-yard run with only 9 seconds remaining.
The game matched Georgia's first-string defense, which played for the Black team, against the starting offense, which played for the Red team.
When Thomas finally scored in the final seconds, the starters were not on the field for the Black's defense. When the first-string defensive players were on the field, they contained Joe Cox, Caleb King, A.J. Green and the other starters on offense.
Defensive end Justin Houston capped his strong spring with four tackles for 26 yards in losses, including three sacks. Bryan Evans had an interception and starting linebackers Curran, Akeem Dent and Darryl Gamble each had two stops.
``I feel we took care of business when we were all out there,'' Curran said.
Marcus Washington had three sacks for the Red defense.
Former quarterback Matthew Stafford, who could be the No. 1 overall pick in this month's NFL draft, and tailback Knowshon Moreno, also expected to be a first-round pick, watched from the sideline as Cox, King and others competed for the vacated starting spots.
Cox and the Black team's starting quarterback, Logan Gray, each were hurt by dropped passes.
Cox was 9-of-16 passing for 105 yards. Gray was 9-of-13 passing for 91 yards. Freshman Zach Mettenberger, playing behind Cox, was 0-for-3 passing with an interception. Another freshman, Aaron Murray, was 3-of-5 passing for 62 yards, including a 43-yard completion to Marquise Brown.
Cox, a senior, used the spring practice to affirm his status as the heavy favorite to replace Stafford. He opened the game by completing a 35-yard pass to Green on a flea-flicker.
The other highlight for Cox came in the fourth quarter when the game was tied 3-3. Cox completed a 22-yard pass to tight end Aron White on a third-and-20 play to set up Andrew Jensen's 48-yard field goal that gave the Red a 6-3 lead.
``It definitely wasn't our best offensive day, but we did some good stuff,'' Cox said.
Cox said he was ``completely comfortable'' while playing before the crowd of 42,458 and ESPN national TV audience.
``Joe just has a cool about him,'' White said. ``He's a real cool cat.''
Thomas, a 5-foot-7, 170-pound freshman from Frostproof, Fla., had eight carries for 59 yards. King had seven carries for 22 yards.
Coach Mark Richt said the tailback competition remains ``wide open.''
Richard Samuel, who joined King as backups behind Moreno in 2008, missed spring practice with a wrist injury. Redshirt freshman Dontavius Jackson was limited with a knee injury. Walk-on Kalvin Daniels missed time with a shoulder injury, leading coaches to give fullback Fred Munzenmaier some snaps at tailback.
Freshman Washaun Ealey will join the depth chart at tailback in preseason practice.
``As of right now, I'd say we would play more than one guy,'' Richt said. ``I don't think we'd feature one guy right now. That might change.''
There is more clarity at the quarterback position, where Cox is the clear starter and Gray was named by coaches as the biggest surprise of the spring on offense.
Richt said Mettenberger and Murray can compete better in preseason drills.
``Their big race right now is to learn enough between now and the fall to where they really can compete,'' Richt said.
Blair Walsh gave the Red team a 3-0 lead with a 51-yard field goal in the second quarter. Jamie Lindley answered with a 25-yarder for the Black team later in the quarter. Gray completed passes of 15 and 21 yards to Derek Rich to set up Lindley's kick.
The lack of offense left some wondering if Georgia would be able to recover from losing two probable first-round picks. With King failing to secure the starting job at tailback and Green making only one catch, there wasn't much offense. White had three catches for 50 yards and Israel Troupe led the Black offense with five catches for 38 yards, but each had drops.
Does Georgia have enough offense?
``We didn't see (big plays) today, but I think we do,'' Richt said. ``When we get everybody together and focused on the first team, I think we'll be fine.''
Added Richt, who liked the strong defense: ``I'd feel better with the score we had than with a 31-30 game.''
Notes: There was no admission charge but fans contributed a reported 12,500 pounds of food for the Northeast Georgia Food Bank, a record for any University of Georgia food drive, according to Richt. ``I want to thank the University of Georgia people for helping out the people who need the help right now,'' Richt said. ... Richt said there was no report of a significant injury. ... The Red also beat the Black in an alumni flag football game before the G-Day game.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) One person was killed and another person wounded during a shooting at an apartment complex in Sandy Springs, police said.
A Sandy Springs police spokesperson said someone opened fire in the area of 5555 Roswell Rd. at the Falls of Sandy Springs Apartments around 9 p.m. Saturday.
One was suspect was shot in the stomach. That person died shortly after arriving at Northside Hospital . Another suspect was shot in the leg. He was taken to Grady Hospital in Atlanta. A police spokesman was unaware of his condition.
Investigators don't have a description of the suspect, but are talking to several witnesses in the area.
"We had a possible description of a Hispanic male who ran from the location," Sandy Springs police Lt. Steve Rose told WSB. "We haven't confirmed if this is a person involved in the shooting or a possible victim."
Witness police told this man ran into an apartment, left the building, and was last seen running behind the apartments.
The Masters Leaderboard
Site: Augusta, Ga.
Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.
Course: Augusta National Golf Club (7435 yards, par 72).
Purse: $7,500,000.
Winner's share: $1,350,000.
All Times Eastern
Third Round:
SCORE THRU TODAY
1. Angel Cabrera -11 F -3
1. Kenny Perry -11 F -2
3. Chad Campbell -9 F E
4. Jim Furyk -8 F -4
5. Steve Stricker -7 F -4
6. Rory Sabbatini -6 F -2
6. Shingo Katayama -6 F -2
6. Todd Hamilton -6 F E
9. Tim Clark -5 F E
10. Ian Poulter -4 F -4
10. Sean O'Hair -4 F -4
10. Lee Westwood -4 F -2
10. Tiger Woods -4 F -2
10. Nick Watney -4 F -1
10. Hunter Mahan -4 F -1
10. Stephen Ames -4 F -1
10. Phil Mickelson -4 F -1
10. Anthony Kim -4 F E
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) One person was killed and two others eject from a vehicle after its driver crashed into power pole, Gwinnett County police said.
Gwinnett County police Cpl. Illana Spellman told WSB's Charley O'Brian five passengers were inside the Ford Expedition when the driver lost control of his car on Paper Mill Road in Lawrenceville around 3:45 a.m. Saturday.
Mario Tucker, 24, of Loganville was killed after being ejected from the SUV. The other passengers will be ok. Police said the driver ran from the scene on foot. He will face charges, including homicide by vehicle when he is caught.
Police are looking for the man who allegedly forced a woman into her apartment, beat her, and robbed her. It happened around 5:30 a.m. Saturday in the Park at Briarcliff apartments on Druid Valley Drive. The suspect did not have on mask, but did hide his face, police said.
Police said its too early to connect Saturday's attack with two others in the area.
Last Tuesday afternoon, one mile away, a woman was sexually assaulted while moving into her new apartment at the Marquis at Briarcliff on Gables Way. Police said the suspect, who was wearing a mask, hid in the apartment while she moved in.
Back in March, a 54-year old woman was stabbed several times from behind. She was jogging on Southland Vista Court near Briarcliff Rd.
Perdue also issued an executive order Friday declaring a state of emergency in 17 additional counties affected by heavy rains and storms that have passed through Georgia since March 27.
Previously, 16 counties were included in the governor's order because of damage to a large number of roads, bridges, drainage systems, waste treatment facilities and other infrastructure.
Initial damage assessments by local, state and federal teams also revealed that more than 600 homes were damaged over widespread areas of the state.
A presidential declaration would provide assistance to public programs in 30 counties, and individual assistance in 18.
ATLANTA (AP) Kelly Johnson singled in the 10th inning to score Jordan Schafer with the winning run, giving the Atlanta Braves a 6-5 victory over the Washington Nationals on Friday night after blowing two leads in a rain-delayed game.
Schafer led off the inning with a single to left off Joe Beimel (0-1). He then moved to second on Omar Infante's groundout and scored easily on Johnson's hit to right, sliding across the plate ahead of Elijah Dukes' throw from right field.
The game lasted almost 6 hours, including a 2 hours, 2 minutes rain delay in the top of the fourth inning. Heavy rain, lightning and hail caused the long rain delay.
Jorge Campillo (1-0), Atlanta's eighth pitcher, worked an inning for the win.
The Braves' bullpen couldn't hold 4-1 and 5-4 leads.
Washington tied it in the ninth inning on Lastings Milledge's two-out, bases-loaded infield hit after Jeff Francoeur gave Atlanta the 5-4 lead with a run-scoring single in the seventh.
Neither starting pitcher returned after the delay.
Derek Lowe gave up four hits and a run in three innings. He left with a 3-1 lead. He struck out six. Shairon Martis gave up five hits and three runs in three innings. He got his first major league hit in the third inning.
After the delay, Atlanta stretched the lead to 4-1, but the Nationals rallied to tie it with three runs in the sixth.
Atlanta recovered to score a run off Saul Rivera in the seventh. With two outs, Rivera gave up Brian McCann's third double of the game. After reaching a 3-1 count on Casey Kotchman, Rivera issued an intentional walk.
Francoeur hit his first pitch from Rivera up the middle for a single, driving in McCann.
Mike Gonzalez gave up a leadoff double to Nick Johnson in the ninth that Braves left fielder Matt Diaz appeared to lose in the lights. Johnson moved to third on Dukes' single to right.
After Jesus Flores hit a shallow fly ball to right, pinch-hitter Alberto Gonzalez walked to load the bases. Gonzalez struck out pinch-hitter Wil Nieves.
Milledge followed with a grounder up the middle that Mike Gonzalez couldn't stop when reaching behind his back. Instead of making the catch, Gonzalez deflected the ball into foul territory beyond the first-base line, allowing Johnson to score the tying run.
It was the second straight poor performance for Atlanta's bullpen, which couldn't hold a 10-3 lead in the bottom of the seventh at Philadelphia on Wednesday night. The Phillies rallied for a 12-11 win.
Notes: Washington manager Manny Acta said INF Ronnie Belliard is day to day with lower back tightness that forced him out of Wednesday's game. Willie Harris started at second base. ... Braves manager Bobby Cox said LF Garret Anderson still had some soreness after tweaking his right calf in Philadelphia. Matt Diaz started for Anderson, who hit a pinch-hit groundout in the eighth. ... 3B Chipper Jones was back in the lineup after missing Wednesday's start with a bruised left thumb. ... Former longtime Braves broadcaster Pete Van Wieren threw out the ceremonial first pitch. He retired after last season after 33 seasons calling Braves games.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Josh Smith scored 30 points and Joe Johnson had 24 to help the Atlanta Hawks clinch the fourth spot in the Eastern Conference with a 122-118 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Friday night.
Al Horford finished with 22 points and 15 rebounds as the Hawks earned home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs. Atlanta needed either a win or a loss by Miami, which fell by seven in Boston, to wrap up the No. 4 spot.
Indiana, which had won two straight and four of five, was eliminated from playoff contention.
The Hawks won their third straight, all against sub-.500 teams, and are assured of home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs for the first time since winning a best-of-five series against Detroit in 1999.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (AP) A tornado killed a woman and her 9-week-old infant and also injured dozens Friday in central Tennessee as a line of storms lifted homes, ripped off roofs and dumped hail in the Southeast.
Elsewhere, a tornado touched down in southwestern Kentucky, injuring two people and destroying homes. A possible tornado was reported in northeast Alabama. And large hail fell in North Carolina.
At least 41 people were hurt in Rutherford County, Tenn., four of them critically, in the aftermath of a storm system that killed three in western Arkansas a day earlier.
``I think we're right in the middle of tornado alley these days,'' said Dan Goodwin of the Rutherford County Sheriff's Department.
Dispatchers at the Rutherford County Emergency Management Agency said the area was ``heavily impacted'' after several eyewitness reports of a tornado on the ground around 12:30 p.m.
In Murfreesboro, 30 miles southeast of Nashville, at least three dozen homes were destroyed. Roofs were ripped away from at least a dozen homes, and some trees were blown down. A bulldozer was clearing tree limbs and other debris from streets.
Kori Bryant, in her mid-20s, and 9-week-old Olivia Bryant were identified as the dead. They apparently were trying to get in a car both were found outside, and the infant was in a car seat, rescue official Randy White said.
Andrew Piro, 23, who was on his way to work when the tornado struck, told the Knoxville News-Sentinel he came upon a man who said his brother's wife and child were missing.
``Outside under the rubble, we found the wife,'' Piro said. ``She was right beside the driveway, about 20 feet away from the house. She was under a bunch of wood, I guess part of the roof. We found the baby strapped into a car seat, about another 20 feet away under a tree. It broke my heart.''
Amy Jones, 32, was at work at State Farm Insurance when she heard that her house had been leveled. She was stunned when she got to the scene and saw that the 1,800-square-foot home with a garage was lifted completely off the foundation and dropped on her neighbor's home.
``My house is on top of someone else's house. It's surreal,'' Jones said.
Joe Spencer, 23, a student at Middle Tennessee State University, said he had only moments to react but survived a direct hit on his house.
``I was going to open the door to see what was going on and I looked straight at a tornado,'' Spencer said.
He yelled at his brother to take shelter in one of the home's bathrooms and then ran to the other, jumping into the bathtub while holding his dog, LLoyd.
``The bathtub started shaking, and I just tried to grab ahold to anything I could. I grabbed the nozzle and turned on the water,'' Spencer said. Hours later, he was still wet up to his knees.
Spencer, his brother and dog were shaken but uninjured. Outside, the storm's power was apparent. The roof over the living room of the house was gone and the rest of the roof was caved in.
Friday afternoon, search teams fanned out across Murfreesboro, a city of about 100,500, looking for anyone trapped in homes. Clyde Atkinson, spokesman for the Murfreesboro Police Department, said he believes there were three to five touchdowns mostly in the northern and western parts of the city.
Several homes were emblazoned with a spray-painted ``c,'' indicating emergency crews had checked them.
Gov. Phil Bredesen, Deputy Gov. John Morgan, U.S. Rep. Bart Gordon, D-Tenn., and other officials are scheduled to tour the affected areas Saturday in Rutherford County by helicopter and on the ground.
In Kentucky, State Trooper Stu Recke said one person suffered a broken hip and leg while the other suffered a broken ankle. Both were taken to a hospital for treatment, Recke said.
One of the homes destroyed belonged to Robert Huggins, 65, who said he, his son and two other men were working in his garage when the tornado hit. When the storm passed, his 2,500-square-foot home was gone.
``We heard it coming,'' Huggins said. ``We went to the garage door and it got louder and louder. It was like a freight train like everybody says.''
His daughter-in-law, who was inside the home, was thrown about 70 feet and was taken to the hospital. He said his 10-year-old grandson, who was also in the home, suffered only bruises.
Several possible tornadoes were reported in north Georgia as heavy rain, hail and winds downed trees and power lines. Flights were delayed for up to 90 minutes at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport as dark gray clouds swirled in from the west.
On Thursday night, a black funnel cloud packing winds of at least 136 mph descended on the western Arkansas hamlet of Mena, killing at least three, injuring 30 and destroying or damaging 600 homes.
Polk County, Ark., Sheriff Mike Oglesby said search-and-rescue teams had combed through the city's downtown Friday and a neighborhood just west that sustained the brunt of the storm without finding any other victims. The sheriff said he had no reports of anyone else missing in the city of 5,700 in the Ouachita Mountains.
Associated Press writers Kristin M. Hall in Murfreesboro and Lucas L. Johnson II in Mannington, Ky., contributed to this report.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
PEACHTREE CITY, Ga. (AP) Severe storms swept across much of north Georgia on Good Friday, generating heavy rain, hail and winds that downed trees and powerlines.
Flights were delayed for up to 90 minutes at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport as dark gray clouds swirled in from the west.
Georgia Power spokeswoman Lynn Wallace said that statewide, about 12,300 customers were without power as of 9:45 p.m., including 3,600 in metro Atlanta. She said the company hoped to restore power to most of the Atlanta-area customers by 10:30 p.m.
Several possible tornadoes were reported in northwest Georgia's Chattooga County, said Buzz Weiss of the Georgia Emergency Management Agency. At least two buildings were reportedly damaged and about 30 downed trees were spotted in downtown Summerville.
Ken Davis, another GEMA spokesman, said there was a report of three possible tornadoes striking in Franklin County in northeast Georgia. He said reports from the county indicated the storms had destroyed several poultry houses and that numerous county roads and three state routes were blocked by debris.
He said Pickens County reported substantial power outages, with power lines and trees down. Gwinnett County was reporting similar damage, Davis said. He said no injuries were reported.
Heavy storms also pelted several counties south of Atlanta.
In Floyd County, south of Chattooga, there were at least 12 large trees that fell across roadways, which were covered with debris, said Tim Herrington, deputy director of emergency management in the county.
``Four of them have been cleaned up, and we're waiting for the power crews to clear the others so the roads can be reopened,'' Herrington said.
Elsewhere, there were showers and thunderstorms, some with large hail and damaging winds, especially in north Georgia.
The forecast called for decreasing cloudiness on Saturday, with a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms in extreme south Georgia.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) Joe Cox and Logan Gray will be the starting quarterbacks when Georgia ends its spring football schedule with Saturday's G-Day game at Sanford Stadium.
Cox is expected to take over for Matthew Stafford at starting quarterback.
Gray has been named the team's biggest surprise of the spring on offense.
Freshmen Aaron Murray and Zach Mettenberger are listed behind Cox on the Red team depth chart.
Joining Cox on the Red team's starting offense will be tailback Caleb King, fullback Shaun Chapas and receivers Tony Wilson and A.J. Green.
The Black team features Georgia's first-team defense, including linebackers Rennie Curran, Akeem Dent and Darryl Gamble and defensive tackles Geno Atkins and Kade Weston.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
MARIETTA, Ga. (AP) Jason Rhoads landed a job last summer that seemed secure enough to support his young family through the recession building military planes for the nation's largest defense contractor.
He joined 7,000 workers at Lockheed Martin's massive plant in this Atlanta suburb, assembling aircraft for the Pentagon, such as the C-130J cargo plane and the futuristic F-22 Raptor.
Now Rhoads, who has a 21-month-old son and a pregnant wife, wonders if he might be headed for unemployment as the Defense Department seeks to scrap or reduce some of its costliest weapons programs, including the F-22 fighter.
``I just figured you kind of worked for the government, so it's more secure,'' said Rhoads, who earns $15-an-hour, plus overtime, as a crane operator moving wing panels for the C-130J and routing parts to workers assembling F-22s. ``I just wonder, what would I do? File unemployment and make cash under the table mowing lawns and stuff?''
Defense Secretary Robert Gates' proposed cuts, announced this week, mean uncertainty for workers in an industry many assumed was safe as long as the nation remained at war. While the proposed $534 billion defense budget adds $21 billion to spending in 2009 and some contractors could gain, thousands of defense workers may join growing jobless lines.
Of course, the potential pain depends whether members of Congress, with jobs in their districts at stake, will go for Gates' plan.
Some lawmakers are voicing opposition, and analysts doubt Congress will agree to cut big programs when unemployment is already high. And many defense workers are politically active through unions such as the International Association of Machinists Local 709 in Marietta, which has a ``Vote Obama'' poster behind the front desk.
``There are certain policy decisions Congress has a say so in, and we are going to have a say,'' Sen. Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee who has advocated buying more of the F-22 jets, said this week.
The Marietta union's president, Jeff Goen, said layoffs of F-22 workers will be inevitable if Congress doesn't intervene, though he's not sure how many or how soon. A Lockheed spokesman said the company was still evaluating Gates' budget cuts and could not comment on potential job losses.
Gates wants to move away from some big equipment for conventional wars, like armored vehicles for the Army, the radar-evading F-22 and a stealthy Navy destroyer. Those programs employ thousands at defense contractor shipyards and assembly lines.
The new focus on fighting insurgents in places like Afghanistan means spending on high-tech tools, work that demands computer programers as much as assembly line workers. For example, Gates wants to spend $2 billion on unmanned drones.
Lockheed has about 2,000 workers on the F-22 in Marietta, where the supersonic fighters soar and bank above the sprawling plant, leaving a thunderous rumble in their wake.
Bethesda, Md.-based Lockheed Martin Corp. has said 95,000 jobs at various sites could be lost by scuttling the F-22, touted as the world's most advanced jet fighter with a price tag of $140 million apiece.
The Obama administration wants to discontinue the F-22 after 187 planes already planned are completed in late 2011. Lockheed had hoped to build 20 additional jets. The F-22 program was launched in the 1980s to guarantee U.S. air superiority over the Soviets but has never seen combat.
Lockheed the lead F-22 contractor has said shutting down production in Marietta and Fort Worth, Texas, could cost 25,000 jobs at the company and its major suppliers. Chicago-based Boeing Co. manufactures the wings and other parts in Seattle. The fighter's supersonic engines are supplied by Pratt Whitney in Middletown, Conn.
Loren Thompson, a defense analyst with the Lexington Institute, said Lockheed's claim of how many F-22 jobs would be directly affected appear to be accurate.
Other cities with large defense manufacturers are nervously eyeing other proposed cuts by Gates, including the giant C-17 cargo plane used since 1991 to airlift heavy equipment and troops.
The C-17 is responsible for 30,000 jobs nearly 7,000 Boeing jobs and the rest among 700 supplier companies in 43 states, Boeing spokesman Jerry Drelling said. In St. Louis, about 1,000 Boeing workers and nearly an equal number of workers at supplier companies work on the C-17.
Civic leaders said that if those jobs were lost, it would be chilling for a region that has already lost several thousand high-paying autoworker jobs over the past three years as a Ford plant closed and Chrysler made drastic reductions.
``It would be a very serious challenge for the St. Louis economy and have a very significant impact,'' said Richard C.D. Fleming, president and CEO of the St. Louis Regional Chamber and Growth Association.
Marietta employees say they're hopeful many F-22 assembly line workers could shift over to the C-130J. Lockheed is in the process of speeding up production of the hulking cargo planes, which it has built in various incarnations since the 1950s, from one to three planes per months.
``If we weren't ramping up on the C-130, we'd need to close the doors,'' said Leonard Walton, 53, who works on the F-22 assembly line adding final touches to the planes.
While still deemed important, Lockheed is no longer quite the economic pillar of Marietta and surrounding Cobb County that it was decades ago.
The local Chamber of Commerce said Lockheed employed 35,000 workers here in the 1970s, about 60 percent of the county's work force. After several rounds of layoffs, coupled with Cobb County's threefold growth to more than 600,000 people, the defense contractor now employs only about 1.5 percent of workers in Georgia's third-largest county, Beaver said.
The Lockheed workers are well paid, with seasoned assembly line workers earning $60,000 to $75,000 a year, said Tim Parker, a Lockheed machinist who lobbies for the Marietta union. Nobody wants to see those jobs added to Cobb County's 8.2 percent unemployment rate, fueled in large part by faltering homebuilders and construction companies.
``It does not help the morale or the mood of the community at all saying there's a mainstay of the economy that may lose 2,000 jobs,'' Marietta Mayor Bill Dunaway said.
Rob Feller agrees. He's the marketing manager for a Harley-Davidson dealership about a mile from the Lockheed plant.
The lot's long rows of motorcycles with polished chrome draw a fair number of assembly line workers with an inherent appreciation for fast and flashy machines.
``There's a bunch of them that ride, and a lot of them bought from us,'' Feller said. ``This couldn't have come at a worse time.''
AP Business Writer Stephen Manning in Washington and Associated Press writers Cheryl Wittenauer, Betsy Taylor and Jim Salter in St. Louis contributed to this report.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Federal authorities say they have uncovered an elaborate scheme by a suburban Atlanta chiropractor and former martial arts instructor who duped teens into sending him lewd pictures of themselves and threatened to make them public if they didn't send him more.
Michael Macaluso, 37, pleaded not guilty Friday to charges involving teenage boys in Connecticut and New Jersey, but authorities who raided his home also discovered thousands of pictures from other unnamed boys.
He could face life in prison on charges of receiving and distributing child pornography and enticing a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct.
``He is a parent's worst nightmare,'' said Acting U.S. Attorney Gentry Shelnutt.
Macaluso's attorney, Howard Weintraub, would not comment on the charges.
Macaluso, who lives in Cobb County in Atlanta's northwestern suburbs, used his MySpace page to befriend the two teens, according to federal documents.
Prosecutors say the first case developed in 2005 when Macaluso posed as a 15-year-old male to start chatting with a boy from Suffield, Conn. After a few months, prosecutors said he convinced the boy to send him sexually explicit photos and videos online.
When the victim threatened to cut off communication, prosecutors say Macaluso threatened to ``out'' him to his classmates. The boy then notified his teachers, who called the police.
Macaluso was arrested in June 2006 by Cobb County authorities and charged with three counts of sexual exploitation of children, but prosecutors say he was able to dupe a second victim while he was free on bond.
This time, it was a 15-year-old boy in Hamilton, N.J., whose parents said he been chatting online for at least a year with someone he thought was a 16-year-old girl named ``Aimee.''
The boy in 2007 sent naked pictures of himself to ``Aimee'' online but balked when he was asked to meet another male in person at a local pizza parlor. When the boy tried to cut off contact, he said ``Aimee'' threatened to post naked pictures of him on the Internet.
The affidavit only lists the cases of those two boys. But when authorities raided Macaluso's home, they found more than 4,000 child pornography images and another 200 videos with lewd materials on computers, external hard drives and CDs. Cobb County officers also found individual folders labeled with boys' names containing images and videos of unknown boys engaged in sexual activity.
Prosecutors say the case should serve as a reminder that children and parents must know who is on the other end of the computer.
``Any time you send anything on the Internet, you should expect it to go public,'' said Shelnutt. ``To your mother, your minister, your pastor and your rabbi.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
SAN DIEGO (AP) A man who called himself a naturopathic doctor and told patients his supplements could cure cancer was charged Thursday with practicing medicine without a license and giving patients unapproved drugs, prosecutors said.
Kurt Donsbach, 73, who treated Coretta Scott King before she died of ovarian cancer in 2006, was charged with 11 felony counts. He was arrested during his weekly Internet radio broadcast and was held on $1.5 million bail.
Donsbach claimed to be a chiropractor and naturopathic doctor on his Web site, LetsTalkHealth.com, where he sells alternative remedies for many conditions, from cancer and autoimmune disorders to joint pain and stress.
Prosecutors said Donsbach is not licensed as a physician, chiropractor or naturopathic doctor in California.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
The report by Georgia Detention Watch complains about food and medicine being withheld as punishment, trips to solitary confinement without a disciplinary hearing and insufficient working toilets, among other things.
The report, based on interviews with 16 detainees during a humanitarian visit organized by Georgia Detention Watch in December, was released at a news conference in front of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Atlanta.
Georgia Detention Watch is an Atlanta-based coalition of immigrant rights groups and individuals.
Some treatment described by detainees ``may reflect violations of ICE's national detention standards and basic protections guaranteed by the federal Constitution and international human rights standards,'' the report says.
The report comes about a month after Roberto Martinez Medina, a 39-year-old Mexican citizen detainee at Stewart, died at a hospital in nearby Columbus on March 11. ICE spokesman Ivan Ortiz said the agency is still awaiting the results of an autopsy to determine cause of death.
Some attendees at the news conference wore black T-shirts that said ``Why did Roberto Martinez Medina die in detention?'' Azadeh Shahshahani, an American Civil Liberties Union lawyer who wore one of the shirts, said she didn't know if he received inadequate medical care but speculated his and other detainee deaths may have been preventable with better care.
The detention center in Lumpkin, in rural southwest Georgia, is operated by Nashville-based Corrections Corporation of America, the country's largest private prison firm. CCA spokeswoman Louise Grant referred questions to ICE.
``The care and treatment some detainees receive does not yet meet our shared expectation of excellence. We all agree this is reason for concern,'' the agency said in a statement.
``The (Homeland Security) department and ICE are committed to measurable, sustainable progress and we pledge to ensure it occurs. We are earnestly engaged in a comprehensive review of detention conditions,'' the statement says.
ICE detention centers are expected to follow 41 ``performance based national detention standards'' to ensure ``consistency of program operations and management expectations, accountability for noncompliance, and a culture of professionalism,'' according to the agency's Web site. Facilities must meet 90 percent of the non-mandatory components and all of the mandatory components, the site says.
``It is high time for Congress and the new administration to create enforceable standards binding ICE and corporations such as CCA to humane standards of care for the detainees and to ensure an effective and independent oversight mechanism,'' Shahshahani said.
Among the allegations in the report: Detainees are denied food and medicine as punishment; there are too few working toilets; detainees are placed in solitary confinement without a disciplinary hearing; the facility lacks necessary medical care; and it serves undercooked and expired food.
The names of the detainees interviewed were changed in the report because they expressed fear of retaliation, the report says.
``There are very disturbing reports from this facility,'' said state Sen. Nan Orrock, an Atlanta Democrat. ``We feel the laws of this country are being violated behind the walls of the Stewart facility.''
During the Friday news conference, members of the group repeatedly called on immigration authorities to meet with them to discuss the report's findings.
In addition to detailing alleged violations, the report offers a set of recommendations for ICE and CCA to improve the treatment of detainees, including proper sanitation to prevent the spread of infections, not denying food as punishment, increasing employee wages to attract a competent bilingual staff and compliance with basic human rights protections, among other things.
The news conference was a stop on a six-day, 50-mile pilgrimage organized by various activist groups to draw attention to immigrant rights. The interfaith pilgrimage, timed to coincide with Jewish and Christian holidays this week, started in Gainesville on Sunday and was set to end at Martin Luther King Jr.'s grave in Atlanta Friday.
Members of Georgia Detention Watch include groups like the Georgia Latino Alliance for Human Rights, the ACLU, Atlantans Building Leadership for Empowerment, as well as individual activists.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) They've taken care of all the nostalgic farewells at Augusta National.
Goodbye, Gary Player. Raise a toast to Fuzzy Zoeller. And, just in case Greg Norman doesn't make it back, thanks for the memories, Great White Shark, however painful some of them might be.
Now, it's time to get down to the real business of this Masters.
Does Kenny Perry have what it takes to become the oldest winner in major championship history? Can Chad Campbell hang on to an Augusta lead the second time around? Will Anthony Kim's putter keep on smokin'?
And perhaps the most pressing issue of all: What's up with Tiger Woods?
The world's No. 1 player has spent two days plodding around the course, doing just enough to stay on the fringe of contention. For the third year in a row, he's showing none of the Tiger bravado at a place that's given him four of his 14 majors, preferring to play it safe rather than throwing caution to a steadily increasing breeze.
While that approach is keeping Woods in the mix (sort of), everyone keeps waiting for him to have a Tiger moment.
Instead, it was the 48-year-old Perry who played like the Woods of 1997. He kept pulling out his driver and wound up with a bogey-free, 5-under-par 67 Friday that looked downright easy, even as a swirling breeze kicked up and the greens got firmer and firmer.
``I feel like I can win,'' said Perry, tied for the lead with Campbell at 9-under 135. ``If I can keep hitting all the fairways like I'm doing, it's going to make life a lot easier out there.''
Perry is trying to become the oldest major champion ever. He's about four months older than Julius Boros when he won the 1968 PGA Championship. And to think, the Kentucky native thought he had found the pinnacle of his career last fall when he played on the winning U.S. Ryder Cup team in his native state.
Campbell got off to the best start in Masters history five birdies in his first five holes Thursday and he shook off a shaky back nine Friday to finish with a 70, rolling in a 25-foot birdie putt at No. 18.
He also knows what it feels like to be in this spot; he held the 36-hole lead in 2006 before fading on a rain-plagued weekend.
``There's still a long way to go,'' Campbell said, ``but it's definitely nice to not be on foreign ground.''
No one has ever put together a round quite like Kim's on day two. Coming off a 75 that had him more worried about making the cut than contending, he set a Masters record with 11 birdies in conditions that should have been harder for scoring than a day earlier. He rolled in five birdie putts of at least 15 feet.
``I really don't know what happened,'' said Kim, who eclipsed Nick Price's 10-birdie performance in 1986. ``The putter got hot, and my confidence kept getting a little bit bigger.''
Of course, the green jacket isn't handed out after 36 holes, and it would be foolish to bet against Woods mounting a comeback from his seven-stroke deficit. Just two weeks ago, he rallied from five shots down on the final day to win at Bay Hill.
But there are 18 golfers standing between Woods and the top spot at Augusta, including two-time Masters champion Phil Mickelson, who was flirting with the cut line before he rallied for a 68 that pushed him into contention, though still six shots back.
Also in the mix, everyone from another Augusta winner, Vijay Singh, to ex-U.S. Open champions Jim Furyk, Geoff Ogilvy and Angel Cabrera to the Best Player Never to Win a Major, Sergio Garcia.
Even Todd Hamilton, ranked 373 in the world but suddenly finding the game that carried him to a British Open title in 2004, was just three shots back after a pair of turn-back-the-clock rounds.
Woods will have to pass them all if he wants to win his fifth green jacket a daunting task even for him.
``I've got to play a little bit better than I have,'' Woods conceded, ``make a few more putts and clean up my round.''
The weather could shake things up.
After two warm, sunny days, heavy storms wept over the course Friday night. The softer greens might lead to another assault on the scoreboard, even though the men in green are sure to toughen up the pin placements and perhaps move back some tee boxes to keep the scores from going too low.
None of that will be a concern to Player, Zoeller and Norman.
Player and Zoeller had prearranged their departures, announcing before they even teed off that this would be their final Masters. Neither had any hope of making the cut, so they spent 36 holes just soaking up the adulation of the patrons.
Competing for a record 52nd time, the 73-year-old Player knelt before reaching the 18th green and clasped his hands to thank the gallery.
``I got a standing ovation on every single hole,'' he said. ``They went on and on and on.''
Zoeller wiped away a tear that slipped out from under his sunglasses, blew a kiss to the crowd and hustled up the small hill behind the 18th green to sign his final Masters scorecard. Still uncertain is whether his racially insensitive comments after Woods won the 1997 Masters will be forgiven and forgotten.
Norman, certainly the most dominant golfer never to win the Masters, played his way back into the field for the first time since 2002 with a stirring performance at the British Open. The 54-year-old Aussie didn't want this to be a one-off, but a double-bogey 7 at No. 13 sent him tumbling to a 77 yet another Augusta disappointment in a career filled with them.
The Shark had no hard feelings.
``It's still the best tournament around,'' Norman said.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) After a day of clawing his way up the leaderboard, it took all of three holes to knock Rory McIlroy right off of it.
Welcome to the majors, kid.
McIlroy and the other two teen phenoms were knocked down to size Friday at the Masters. They may be hot stuff, winning tournaments when most kids their age are trying to figure out who to take to the prom. When it comes to the biggest tournaments, however, they still have a lot to learn.
``Just a couple of silly mistakes,'' McIlroy said after dropping five strokes over the last three holes Friday at the Masters.
Hey, at least the 19-year-old made it, finishing on the cut line with a 1-over 45 and getting a reprieve from the rules committee after kicking the sand in disgust when he couldn't get out of the bunker on the 18th hole. Ryo Ishikawa (150) and Danny Lee (155) are heading home.
``I'm not really happy about what happened,'' Ishikawa said. ``But at the same time, I'll use this experience to advance myself in the future.''
Members of this kiddie brigade have done more before their 20th birthdays than some golfers do before they're 40. McIlroy turned pro in 2007, earned his European card without going to Q-school, beat a strong field at Dubai and came to Augusta National ranked 17th in the world.
At 17, Ishikawa is already a two-time winner on the Japanese tour (he won his first event at 15, when he was still an amateur). He's the youngest player to crack the top 100 in the world rankings and has been nicknamed ``The Bashful Prince'' in Japan. Not too bashful, though, considering one of his head covers is a Cabbage Patch Kid-like doll of himself, complete with spiky hair, sunglasses and visor.
Then there's Lee. All he's done is knock Tiger Woods out as the youngest U.S. Amateur champion, and become the European Tour's youngest winner with his victory at the Johnnie Walker Classic in February. The 18-year-old will make his professional debut in two weeks in New Orleans.
``It's great for golf,'' McIlroy said earlier this week. ``Hopefully, it inspires people that are not much younger than us to take up golf and try and one day emulate what we have done.''
Well, not everything.
At 4-under through 15 holes, McIlroy was on the leaderboard Friday and his game didn't appear to have any glaring weaknesses. He boomed his shots off the tee, yet had impressive accuracy (he hit all but two fairways). His short game was just as good, time and again putting shots within 5 feet of the pin.
But he unraveled with three holes to go.
He four-putted for a double bogey on 16, particularly stunning considering he didn't have a single three-putt in the entire first round. He blew a chance to get a stroke back on 17, missing a 15-footer for birdie.
Then things really got ugly.
His second shot landed in the bunker on the right side, and McIlroy left it there with his third shot. He kicked at the sand in disgust a no-no according to the rules, which forbid players from testing the surface before hitting any shots in a hazard. That could have disqualified him. But after a review, the rules committee decided no violation had occurred.
He blasted out to 30 feet on his fourth shot, then three-putted for a triple bogey.
McIlroy acted his age when he blew past reporters without answering questions, telling a Masters official, ``No, I don't feel like it right now.'' But he'd calmed down enough to talk once he'd reached the locker room.
``You can't do that. You just can't do that,'' McIlroy said, referring to his sand shots on 18.
At least he gets a do-over this weekend.
Lee had actually gotten back to even-par for the tournament with an eagle on No. 8 and a birdie on the ninth. But the back nine proved disastrous.
Needing to make a 10-footer for par on the 10th, Lee putted.
And putted again.
And again.
And again.
And again.
And yet again.
Six putts in all, giving him a quintuple bogey. After a par on the 11th, he went double bogey, bogey, double bogey. Another bogey on 18 left him at 9-over for the day, and 11 over for the tournament.
``That six-putt, I just couldn't get it from my mind,'' Lee said. ``That really hurt my game today.''
Lee took some time to gather himself after his round, too, standing alongside his caddie, mother and soon-to-be agents at the clubhouse.
``That's golf. I have to deal with this stuff,'' he said. ``I'm still 18, so I've got a lot of things to learn. Hopefully I'll learn.''
Ishikawa was flirting with the cutline through 15 holes. But he made back-to-back double-bogeys on 16 and 17 to bring an early end to his first Masters appearance.
``I was nervous today,'' he said. ``If I can just build on the experiences, I think I will be OK.''
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
ATLANTA (AP) Michael Vick was back in Atlanta, the city where he rose to NFL stardom, but as a prisoner rather than a player, an official said Friday.
Federal Bureau of Prisons spokeswoman Felicia Ponce said the suspended Atlanta Falcons quarterback was moved to a medium-security unit in southeast Atlanta from Virginia, where he had been held while attending a bankruptcy hearing last Friday.
Ponce declined to say if authorities plan to move Vick back to a penitentiary in Leavenworth, Kan., where he has served most of a 23-month sentence for bankrolling a dogfighting ring.
Vick's lawyers did not immediately return messages seeking comment.
The 28-year-old is scheduled to transfer to home confinement May 21 in Hampton, Va., and is set to be released from federal custody in July.
The move comes as the fallen NFL star is wrestling in bankruptcy court over what he has called his ``exit strategy'' a plan to repay creditors with the millions he hopes to resume earning in professional football.
A federal bankruptcy judge rejected the plan last Friday, saying there was no guarantee that Vick would be able to resume his NFL career. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has said only that he will review Vick's status after he is released from prison.
Vick's plan would have allowed him to keep the first $750,000 of his projected annual salary. Creditors would get part of any amount over that.
Vick was once one of the NFL's highest-paid players, but lavish spending and poor investments, coupled with the backlash from his dogfighting case, led to his downfall. He filed for bankruptcy in July, claiming assets of $16 million and debts of more than $20 million.
Since then, he has lost nearly all the record-breaking $130 million from a 10-year deal he signed with Atlanta in December 2004.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
The Federal Bureau of Prisons Web site reported Friday that the former Atlanta Falcons star had been moved to the medium-security unit in southeast Atlanta.
A federal bankruptcy judge denied a motion on Tuesday to require Vick to attend an April 28 status hearing on his case in Newport News, Va.
Vick was also ordered to return to Leavenworth, Kan., where he has served most of a 23-month sentence for bankrolling a dogfighting ring.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
U.S. District Judge William C. O'Kelley of Gainesville also ordered 29-year-old Andrew John Smith of Cleveland, Ga., Thursday to pay an undecided restitution. Smith pleaded guilty Jan. 9 to conspiracy to commit bank, wire and mail fraud.
Prosecutors say as a part-time loan officer for United International Mortgage in Buford, Smith originated a fraudulent loan for his own residence and later participated in financing homes sold to unqualified straw borrowers at inflated prices.
They say in a sting operation, Smith agreed to inflate the price of a property in Pendergrass from $2 million to $4 million.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
A Barrow County sheriff's investigator said Thursday the pot was confiscated during a raid Monday at a residence on Ga. Highway 330.
Authorities said the marijuana was worth about $85,000 on the streets.
Investigator Matt Guthas said a tip led drug agents to arrest 55-year-old Lonnie Jones of Statham. He was charged with manufacturing marijuana.
Jones posted bond and was released from custody Thursday.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
(WSB Radio) The rate of food poisoning has held steady in the U.S. for at least five years, but the Centers for Disease Control say the highest rates of salmonella occur right here in Georgia.
The CDC estimates about 87 million cases of food borne illness occur each year around the country.
On average, 5700 people die annually from food poisoning.
Salmonella remains the most common cause of food poisoning. A nationwide salmonella outbreak, linked to peanut products, was traced to the Peanut Corporation of America plant in Blakely, Georgia.
(WSB Radio) The Peanut Corporation of America has been hit hard by Texas.
The state has slapped PCA with a fine of $14.6 million, in connection with the salmonella outbreak traced to two company plants, one in Plainview, Texas and the other in Blakely, Georgia.
The Plainview plant had been up and running for more than four years, but it had never been inspected or licensed.
Violations that were cited at the plant included unsanitary conditions to the point were dead birds were discovered near the ventilation system.
Both plants in Georgia and Texas have since been closed down and the company has filed for bankruptcy.
(WSB Radio) Miley Cyrus will be spending her summer in Georgia.
The Disney movie, "Last Song," starring Cyrus will be shot in Savannah, beginning in June.
Cyrus will not be playing Hannah Montana this time, however.
The Governor's office says the film will create about 250 jobs.
Georgia beat out North Carolina for the movie shoot by offering the film's producers better incentives.
(WSB Radio) A Lawrenceville woman faces felony murder and child cruelty charges after a baby dies in her care.
35 year old Latasha Malone was babysitting the 2 month old boy when she called 911 to report he'd stopped breathing.
The arrest warrant says the infant died of a skull fracture and brain hemorrhage.
Malone is accused of shaking and striking the baby, though she claims she was asleep and woke to find the infant wasn't breathing.
Malone is also facing separate charges of beating her 15 year old daughter in January.
(WSB Radio) MARTA may not have to shut down one day a week after all.
A plan being developed by the Atlanta Regional Commission would rescue the transit agency by providing it with $25 million in federal stimulus money.
ARC members still have to vote on the plan, and the governor may also need to sign off on it.
MARTA is still facing cutbacks, possibly including ending service at midnight.
The MARTA board, along with elected officials in Atlanta, DeKalb and Fulton Counties, are demanding the state legislature allow the agency to use money, earmarked for capital projects, to cover operating costs.
Without an infusion of cash, MARTA warns that drastic service cuts may be necessary.
(WSB Radio) The first of Georgia's transportation improvements are about to begin, thanks to millions in stimulus money.
Governor Sonny Perdue has cleared the way for the state to accept $207 million from the federal government for so-called "shovel ready" projects.
A spokesman for the governor's office says Mr. Perdue signed off on 67 road and bridge projects, 15 of them in the metro Atlanta area.
The Governor says the projects include "badly needed bridge repairs," resurfacing projects on highways and two widening projects that would improve congestion and spur economic development.
More announcements are likely to come as federal guidelines require the state to certify at least $326 million in projects by June.
(WSB Radio) DeKalb police say stepped up efforts in east DeKalb to reduce the number of burglaries appear to be paying off.
Cops say the newly organized burglary suppression unit is making a difference.
"Since we started this in January, we've seen the number of residential burglaries decline by 24%," says DeKalb Police Lieutenant D.C. Hamilton.
A team of ten officers are solely focused on break-ins, especially this week when so many homeowners are away on vacation.
"I'd say there were approximately 8-10 more burglaries this week, with spring break, than we had the previous week or the week before that," Hamilton says.
(WSB Radio) Atlanta police have issued a "be on the lookout" or BOLO alert for an Atlanta chef who has been missing for more than a week.
Police are looking into a report that 28 year old Brandon Patton's truck has been spotted three times in Florida.
"Possibly two to three white males were seen inside the truck," says the APD's Otis Redmond, "that were selling some type of frozen goods out of the truck."
A would-be customer thought the men were acting strangely and copied down the license plate of the truck. It matched Patton's.
Patton was heading to Tampa to visit his daughter when he vanished last week.
(WSB Radio) The Georgia Department of Transportation may have a break in the case of someone stealing storm grates off of metro Atlanta highways.
A HERO workers spotted a man driving a late 1990's orange Ford pickup. The man was wearing an orange vest. When the HERO worker went back to confront the man he was gone.
"We believe it is only one person," says the DOT's Mark McKinnon, "so it must be a pretty strong individual to be lifting these 200 pound grates."
More than 100 grates, valued at nearly $200 apiece, have been stolen.
(WSB Radio) A shooting in southeast Atlanta has left a 13 year old boy dead.
Police were called to the Grant Park Commons apartments, on Fisher Road, early this morning and found the victim shot in the head.
The teen was dead at the scene.
Two other teenagers, who were in the apartment with the dead boy, were taken into custody by Atlanta police for questioning.
(WSB Radio) Marietta Police are growing concerned about a man who has been stalking a woman for months.
Officer Jenny Murphy tells WSB the suspect, described as a white male, 6'2"-6-4", 230-250 pounds, with dark hair, and blue eyes has been stalking this woman since October of last year.
"The suspect has tried to make contact with the victim several times at her home and actually on March 31st, did and an assault ensued. The victim actually was out jogging and when she returned home, the suspect engaged her in her garage and pushed her into the house and a fight occurred in the house. She was actually able to get away from him and secure herself and call the police," said Murphy.
A Bolo was handed out last week, but Murphy says because the man is getting more violent, they're getting more concerned.
The suspect may be driving a newer model black BMW 700 series.
Police have also stepped up patrols in the Tappahannock Trail area where the attack occurred.
The victim does not know the man and has no idea how the man chose her as a victim.
The Transportation and Air Quality committee of the Atlanta Regional Commission has voted to allocate $25 million of $53 million in stimulus dollars to the cash strapped transit agency.
"We didn't see any projects anywhere in the Atlanta region for $25 million that would have a direct effect on the mobility of 500,000 people," said Tad Leithead, Chairman of the ARC's Transportation and Air Quality Committee. "We came to the conclusion that committing these funds to MARTA to keep them in business through 2010 was the right thing to do."
MARTA has $65 million in reserves, but cannot access the cash because of a law which states MARTA set aside half of its resources for new construction and half for operating expenses. The agency asked the legislature to change the law. SB120 passed the Senate but failed to come out of the House.
MARTA General Manager Dr. Beverly Scott said Monday that the authority would have to cut service one day a week and lay off 400 employees without a special session of the legislature to address transportation issues. Governor Perdue declined the special session request.
The decision by the ARC means MARTA will be able to operate through June 2010 and can attempt to change the law next session.