Thursday, August 11, 2010
Crash closes portion of Snydertown Road
SHAMOKIN TWP -- A portion of Snydertown Road in Shamokin Township, Northumberland County is closed after a one vehicle crash. The crash happened just before 3:00p.m. Emergency crews are on the scene detouring traffic. Caution is advised in the area. More information as it is released today.
Investigation complete into a police shooting in Snyder County, no charges will be filed
MIDDLEBURG – No criminal charges will be filed after a Snyder County standoff ended with a deadly shooting. Snyder County District Attorney Michael Piecuch says he has completed his investigation into the Kayre Snyder shooting on June 18th, when Snyder was shot by police after holding three people hostage inside a home in Middlecreek Township.
Piecuch says he has notified state police that the use of deadly force against Snyder was justified and no criminal charges will be filed. After assaulting his stepfather with a handgun on June 17th, Snyder took his mother and two others hostage at gunpoint and barricaded himself inside his parents' home.
The state police Special Emergency Response Team was called in to negotiate and the next morning, after no progress, Snyder was shot and killed by a team member. The District Attorney’s Office must investigate every homicide to determine whether the killing was justified and if criminal charges are warranted. (Ali Stevens)
Sunbury cops: The firebug is busted
SUNBURY -- People can breathe a little easier in Sunbury today--city police tell us they've arrested the man who set a series of recent fires. The investigation took about a month and is still ongoing, but 19-year-old Bernard Pennycoff of Sunbury was arrested Wednesday night around 9 p.m. after he was witnessed at the scene of a dumpster fire on Walnut Street.
Police say Pennycoff was a suspect prior to the fire, but police were still in need of more information before they could arrest him. Pennycoff was questioned and apparently began admitting to some of the arson fires. He was arrested and faces several charges for a series of fires in the city in the last few weeks.
Pennycoff was arraigned before on-call District Judge William Kear and sent to prison on $50,000 straight bail. He has a preliminary hearing set for August 19th before District Judge Carl Rice in Sunbury.
A month later...locals involved in Uganda bombings continue to recover
UNDATED -- The last person in a local group that was in Uganda when two bombs went off a month ago has returned home. 16-year-old Emily Kerstetter of Maryland is now back in the United States. She had been kept in a South African hospital with severe leg injuries. She returned back this week, and will continue to have more surgeries on his leg.
Kerstetter's grandmother, Joanne Kerstetter of Selinsgrove, continues to recover from arm injuries and hearing loss. Kris Sledge, also of Selinsgrove, was released from the hospital this week and continues to recover from leg injuries at home. Pam and Thomas Kramer of Winfield both continue to recover at home.
The group's church, Christ Community United Methodist in Selinsgrove, will be holding a prayer service this weekend for three Ugandans who worked with the missionary group and were killed during the bombings. The service will be Sunday at 4:00p.m. and all are invited to attend. (Sara Bartlett)
Woman gets probation for cashing benefit checks for her deceased grandmother
WILLIAMSPORT – A woman who was cashing benefit checks sent to her deceased grandmother has been sentenced to two years of probation. Patricia Corcoran of Shamokin was charged in federal court with stealing about $10,000 in coal mine disability benefits administered by the U.S. Department of Labor.
The department was not notified of Corcoran’s grandmother’s death. Corcoran was charged by the U.S. Attorney’s Office with theft of public money, but came to a plea agreement in May, which ordered her to pay full restitution. (Ali Stevens)
A trio of fire calls for volunteers
UNDATED -- Volunteer fire fighters were called out in the high heat yesterday to battle three fires yesterday:
n The first blaze broke out around 9am near the Village of Penns Creek in Snyder County. The county communications center tells us a garage owned by Gary Galbraith caught fire and was destroyed. The blaze along Shambach Road, did not damage the nearby home, according to volunteers.
n A fire broke out at Jeff's Auto Body and Recycling in the Snydertown area. That fire was reported around 3:30 in the afternoon. Stonington, Upper Augusta and Elysburg volunteers responded to the fire, which was brought under control in about an hour. The fire was contained to a small area and a lane on Snydertown Road was closed for a time while the blaze was brought under control. This is the second fire at Jeff’s Auto Body and Recycling. Another fire in March of 2008 was much larger and destroyed dozens of vehicles.
n A fire last evening at Staiman Brothers Recycle on Cameron Avenue in Milton was sparked by crews doing demolition work using torches. The fire started just before 7 p.m. at the base of a silo. Crews were on the scene until just after 8 p.m. No injuries were reported. Crews from Milton, White Deer Township, Warrior Run, Mifflinburg and Lewisburg responded.
Northumberland Snyder Special Olympics will practice bocce at a local park
SELINSGROVE – Special Olympics athletes will be able to practice the fall sport of “bocce” at a local park near Selinsgrove. East Snyder Park near Susquehanna University has a new feature for athletes with the Northumberland Snyder Special Olympics. Arden Miller is public relations coordinator for the group and says the park now features two regulation bocce courts.
They can practice for bocce at the park and are currently looking for a bocce coach for the Special Olympic team. Miller says the person volunteering would put in a couple of hours a week for about eight weeks and the person would be trained for the job. Miller says this is a special time to be a part of the Northumberland Snyder Special Olympics since they are celebrating 40 years in Pennsylvania and 30 years locally. She says they are easy to contact if you would like to volunteer or get involved.
Their website is www.ns-sopa.org and Northumberland Snyder Special Olympics is also on Facebook. You can also support the cause by attending a fundraising breakfast Saturday August 21st from 8 to 10 a.m. at the Applebees in Selinsgrove. Tickets are $5.00 for the all you can eat breakfast. (Ali Stevens)
DUI checkpoints expected this weekend in the Central Susquehanna Valley
SELINSGROVE – State police are warning the public that there will be a DUI sobriety checkpoint sometime this weekend. The checkpoint will be located in Snyder County, involving state police from Selinsgrove, Milton and Stonington Barracks.
Also, a DUI roving patrol will be ongoing this weekend in Snyder County. Motorists are reminded to not drink and drive and get a designated driver if they have been drinking. The exact location of the DUI checkpoint will not be disclosed. (Ali Stevens)
Shenandoah men will go to court for hate crime
UNDATED - Two Shenandoah-area men charged with a hate crime in connection with the fatal beating of an illegal Mexican immigrant will go to trial. A federal judge Wednesday denied their motion to dismiss the charges against them. The Pottsville Republican newspaper reports that the same judge also Wednesday postponed the start of the trial for three former Shenandoah policemen charged with obstructing the investigation into the beating.
Senior U.S. District Judge Richard Caputo ruled the Dec. 10 grand jury indictment of Derrick Donchak and Brandon Piekarsky contained sufficient evidence both to support the charges against the men and inform them of what prosecutors intend to prove.
Additionally, Caputo ruled that the constitutional protection against double jeopardy does not bar this prosecution, that evidence of the defendants' racial feelings can be admitted during the trial and that the government does not have to turn over additional evidence. As a result, the trial of 20-year-old Donchak of Shenandoah, and 18-year-old Piekarsky of Shenandoah Heights, will begin at 9:30 a.m. Oct. 4 in the Max Rosenn U.S. Courthouse, Wilkes-Barre.
In the other case, Matthew R. Nestor, William Moyer and Jason Hayes are charged with obstructing the investigation of Luis Eduardo Ramirez's beating by filing false reports on it. Caputo agreed to postpone the intended Sept. 13 beginning of that trial; he ruled the new starting date will be set at the Aug. 31 pretrial conference he will hold in his chambers. (Terry Diener)
Pine Grove man drowned near Sunbury last evening
SUNBURY -- A man from Schuylkill County, who was fishing in the Susquehanna River south of Sunbury, apparently drowned last evening. 68-year-old David Zimmerman of Pine Grove died around 5:30pm according to the Northumberland County Coroner James Kelley and Stonington state troopers.
Troopers tell us, Zimmerman and a friend were wading along the eastern shore of the river, about 200 yards south of the PPL dam. He was attempting to reach shore when he went underwater and drowned. After he was found, the friend and others attempted CPR but failed.
The coroner said Zimmerman died from accidental drowning. Assisting Kelley at scene was Chief Deputy Coroner James R. Gotlob. Assisting troopers were volunteers from the Shamokin Dam Fire Company's river rescue team, Americus Ambulance, Lower Augusta Fire Department and the Sunbury Fire Department.
A trio of fire calls for volunteers
UNDATED -- Volunteer fire fighters were called out in the high heat yesterday to battle three fires yesterday:
+ The first blaze broke out around 9am near the Village of Penns Creek in Snyder County. The county communications center tells us a garage owned by Gary Galbraith caught fire and was destroyed. The blaze along Shambach Road, did not damage the nearby home, according to volunteers.
+ At Jeff's Auto Body and Recycling in the Snydertown area. That fire was reported around 3:30 in the afternoon. Stonington, Upper Augusta and Elysburg volunteers responded to that fire which was out quickly.
+ Last evening at Milton Steel damaged part of that building. The fire started just before 7 p.m. at the plant on Cameron Avenue. Crews were on the scene until just after 8 p.m. No injuries were reported. Crews from Milton, White Deer Township, Warrior Run, Mifflinburg and Lewisburg responded. There were no injuries reported in any of the fires in The Valley.
ATV rider died in a rural area of Union County
MIFFLINBURG -- A man who was riding an ATV in a rural part of Union County, died when he rode into trees late Tuesday or early Wednesday. State police at Milton tell us, 24-year-old James Gower of Lewisburg was riding a 4-wheeler along Glover Hill Road in Buffalo Township.
Gower apparently crashed into some trees and went down over an embankment. His body was found around 4pm yesterday. The Union County coroner, Mifflinburg fire and ambulance crews and others responded to that scene in the Mifflinburg area.
Sunbury cops: The firebug is busted
SUNBURY -- People can breathe a little easier in Sunbury today--city police tell us they've arrested the man who set a series of recent fires. Details aren't out yet on the arraignment and hearings for 19-year-old Bernard Pennycoff.
Fire officials say he was a suspect in several fires last month and this month, then he was seen a small fire this week. Police haven't released arrest details yet, but we know he confessed to at least some of the fires and is a suspect in others.
Moderate injuries reported in a motorcycle crash in Union County
LEWISBURG - State police say a 41-year-old Lewisburg man received moderate injuries in a motorcycle accident Wednesday in Union County. Police say David C. Howell was headed north on old Millers Bottom Road in White Deer Township when a deer entered the highway.
The cycle struck the hindquarters of the deer, with the cycle coming to rest on the road and Howell landing in a small ditch. Police say he was taken to Evangelical Community Hospital. A nursing spokesman says Howell was not admitted to the hospital following Thursday morning's accident in Union County. (Terry Diener)
Riverstock Tri fireworks set
SUNBURY - Riverstock Triathlon 2010 at the Shikellamy Marina State Park is gearing up for an event later this month in Sunbury. Mark Cox is coordinator for this year's three-day slate of activities, which is going to include an added bonus. He says a giant fireworks display will be held at dusk from the overlook at Shikellamy State Park overlook.
Cox said they just procured the necessary permits and he said this will be a major fireworks display. Bands will take center stage at the Marina Friday night. Saturday’s events including a 5k Walk Run to benefit breast cancer awareness, a Zumba demonstration and other activities. Sunday, the Olympic Length Triathlon will start, end, and have its transitions in the Shikellamy Park Marina.
The triathlon begins at 8:00 am Sunday August 29th. Cox says the Riverstock Triathlon is an event sanctioned by the national governing body that oversees those types of events. More information later about this at www.wkok.com. (Terry Diener)
A ‘date certain’ is set for Sunbury’s double murder defendant
SUNBURY – A ‘date certain’ has been sent for the double homicide trial for Michael Harrell of Sunbury. Harrell will stand trial starting November 8th; the jury selection will begin ten days earlier on October 27th. He’s charged with the January 2008 killing of two people at a home on Fourth Street in Sunbury.
Harrell faced a pre-trial hearing Thursday in Northumberland County Court. He faces a possible death penalty and is charged with first-degree homicide. Police say he shot and killed 24-year-old Crystal Scholl-Gordon of Selinsgrove and 25-year-old David Moore of Sunbury. Harrell originally confessed to the shootings, but then recanted his statements.
Today, the unusual case saw several defense and prosecution requests. The defense wants a California doctor to testify about false confessions, while the commonwealth wants defense attorney’s handwritten notes on interviews with witnesses. Northumberland County president Judge Robert Sacavage will rule on those motions prior to the November trial date for Michael Harrell. (Ali Stevens)
Snyder County mosquito sample tests positive for West Nile
HARRISBURG - Word from Pennsylvania's West Nile Virus program that one of the test samples of mosquitoes across Pennsylvania has turned up positive in Snyder County. McClure Borough in Snyder County has registered a positive result. West Nile first appeared in Pennsylvania in 2000 in birds, mosquitoes and a horse.
Since then, the Department of Environmental Protection has undertaken an extensive program to survey all 67 counties for the disease. State DEP and county mosquito control professionals have been using Bti, naturally occurring bacteria, to kill mosquito larvae for years. (Terry Diener)
Police clarify the location of a mugging in Selinsgrove
SELINSGROVE – The Selinsgrove Police Department is clarifying the location of a mugging that took place Monday night in the borough. Police say the mugging took place about a half a block from a convenience store on Market Street.
A man pulled into a parking stall at the store and walked across the street to Union Alley near Sassafras Street. That’s when two men who beat him and tried to steal money from him attacked him. The investigation continues and no arrests have been made. (Ali Stevens)
Teaching positions to be cut in the Danville School District
DANVILLE – Approximately 50 jobs will be cut in the Danville School District over the next few years as a cost savings measure. The Press Enterprise reports Superintendent David Price says nearly half of the cuts will be teaching positions. Price says the number of teachers has grown from 185 to 218 since 1995, which is a 20 percent increase.
However, the student population has fallen by more than 17 percent. Eleven teachers who retired or resigned this year will not be replaced and teaching aide positions have been eliminated. Price says some positions will eventually have to be cut rather than eliminated through attrition. (Ali Stevens)
Sunbury 'community college' group undeterred by 'no'
SUNBURY – Despite receiving many 'no's' in the process of trying to get a community college located in Sunbury, promoters say they are undeterred. A couple of board members for the Susquehanna Valley Community Education project are guests this week on Newsradio 1070 WKOK’s Leaders & Lawmakers program.
The group is working to establish a community college in the Central Susquehanna Valley. Board member John Shipman says the process has been challenging, but they continue to push forward to find political and financial support. He says there are many other projects in need of funding in our area, but this will bring permanent jobs to the region.
You can hear more from John Shipman and board member Lenaire Ahlum on our Leaders & Lawmakers program Thursday at 3:30 p.m. You can also listen to the interview online at www.wkok.com. (Ali Stevens)
Pennsylvania officials say the deadly ash borer has spread to Union County
HARRISBURG – Pennsylvania Agriculture officials say forty-three counties are now under a quarantine that is intended to prevent the spread of the invasive, tree-killing Emerald Ash Borer. Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding said the pest was recently found in Union County.
Joel Imgrund is program horticulture assistant with the Penn State Cooperative Extension says an Ash Borer is an insect that bores holes into ash trees, quickly killing the trees. Any ash trees are susceptible to this borer and the forest and landscape trees will be difficult to keep alive.
State Agriculture officials say the Emerald Ash Borer poses a serious threat to Pennsylvania’s nation-leading hardwoods industry, which contributes nearly $25 billion to the economy. The pest likely arrived in North America in wooden shipping crates.
Imgrund says the insect came to the United States in the mid 1990’s and was not detected until 2002 in the Detroit area. From that, the borer has been spreading rapidly and was first detected in Pennsylvania in 2006.
Imgrund says the ash borer is a very fast flyer and they are expanding very rapidly. Imgrund says Union County is not currently under quarantine, but that could change in the near future. If an area is quarantined, it restricts the movement of ash nursery, logs, stumps roots and branches. That would mean campers couldn’t move firewood from site to site. (Ali Stevens)
Man caught wearing drug paraphernalia around his neck
MILTON – A Colorado man was arrested after he was caught wearing a marijuana pipe around his neck. State police say 39-year-old Christopher Dickson of Fort Collins was stopped for speeding on Route 15 near Interstate 80 in White Deer Township, Union County on Tuesday night.
Troopers say Dickson was wearing a marijuana pipe as a necklace and they searched his vehicle. Two bags of marijuana were recovered along with 11 bags of Ecstasy. Dickson was arraigned on charges of possession with the intent to distribute, DUI and numerous other drug related charges. He was sent to the Union County Prison on $50,000 bail. (Ali Stevens)
Man who sparked Danville fire facing a contempt hearing
DANVILLE -- A Danville man who accidentally sparked a major fire at a building in Danville will go to court next week on a charge of contempt. Gib Spradlin violated a court order not to proceed with any demolition of the old Cabinet Industries Plant in Danville. Spradlin was cutting a pipe in the building with a torch on Monday when the fire broke out.
Contempt papers were filed yesterday, citing previous orders banning Spradlin from doing demolition in the building after a wall partially collapsed in the spring. Spradlin is due in court on Monday at 2 p.m. The fire heavily damaged the building on Monday and multiple fire companies from two counties were called to the scene. (Ali Stevens)
Latest Pennsylvania news, business, lottery and entertainment
NICHOLSON, Pa. (AP) - Part of Interstate 80 was shut down in northeastern Pennsylvania after a truck carrying sweet potatoes went out of control and crashed. The accident happened in Lenox Township around 4 a.m. Thursday. State police say sweet potatoes are spilled all over the highway and traffic is being diverted in the northbound lanes. The driver was taken to the hospital, but it's not clear how serious the injuries are.
DILLSBURG, Pa. (AP) - A central Pennsylvania church has been destroyed by a blaze that started when lightning struck the steeple. The fire started at around 7:30 a.m. Thursday at the more than 100-year-old Christ Lutheran Church in Monaghan Township, just southwest of Harrisburg. Fire investigators say the lightning hit the cross at the top of the steeple, sending pieces up to 50 feet away. Pastor Debbie Mahady says it's too soon to estimate how much damage was caused.
LANCASTER, Pa. (AP) - An Arizona prisoner whose escape has triggered a national manhunt has a Pennsylvania criminal record for convenience store robberies in Lancaster County. John McCluskey served 14 years in Pennsylvania state prisons for a string of crimes in April 1992. He was paroled to a halfway house three years ago. Court records show he pleaded guilty in January 1993 to three counts of robbery, assault, conspiracy and other charges. McCluskey and two other inmates escaped from an Arizona prison on July 30. Authorities say forensic evidence has linked McCluskey, his fiancée Casslyn Welch and one of the other men to the deaths of a couple in New Mexico. The other two inmates have been recaptured.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Pennsylvania gubernatorial hopeful Dan Onorato is calling for state grants to help some low-income families pay for private education. The Democrat says grants would go to families served by the most academically troubled schools. He says the details and costs of the plan are still being worked out. Onorato made the announcement yesterday in Philadelphia. The candidate appeared with state Sen. Anthony Hardy Williams, who backed a "school choice" agenda in his own run for governor. Onorato beat Williams and two others in the primary, and will face GOP nominee Tom Corbett in November. Corbett also supports the voucher concept, which would make public money available to pay for tuition at parochial and other private schools.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - The company that manages the mid-Atlantic regional power grid says electricity use is hitting new highs. More electricity was used in the 13-state PJM Interconnection region in June and July than ever. PJM Interconnection also said Wednesday that 16 percent more electricity has been used so far this summer, compared with last summer. PJM says the higher electricity use is tied to hot weather. However, the high usage this summer did not break the one-hour peak demand record set in August 2006. The grid managed by PJM serves 51 million people in all or parts of Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and Washington, D.C.
WEXFORD, Pa. (AP) - Watch out Susan Boyle. Here comes Jackie. A 10-year-old Pennsylvania girl who was chosen by YouTube viewers to compete on NBC's America's Got Talent stunned the judges and audience Tuesday night with her big voice. Jackie Evancho, of Pine Township, sang Giacomo Puccini's aria "O Mio Babbino Caro" and received praise from the judges as well as overwhelming applause from the audience. The tiny blonde wore a pink ruffled dress and a big smile. After the performance, Jackie said she was so happy she wanted to cry. Jackie was one of 12 acts who performed on the show Tuesday night. Four of those performers will join 20 other semifinalists who are competing for $1 million and a contract to perform in Las Vegas.
BELLEFONTE, Pa. (AP) - A task force formed to take another look into the disappearance of a former central Pennsylvania district attorney has reached out to people close to the missing prosecutor. Centre County DA Ray Gricar was reported missing by his girlfriend in April 2005 after going for a drive on his day off. His car was found at an antiques market in Lewisburg. Current district attorney Stacy Parks Miller established a panel of investigators this spring to study the case again. She says the panel is sifting through files and conducting fresh interviews. Investigators recently spoke with assistant prosecutor Steve Sloane, one of Gricar's close friends. Sloane says detectives called it a fact-finding mission, and that he provided them with a lot of new information.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - Gov. Ed Rendell is insisting on certain environmental protections and landowner compensation requirements before he'll sign any bill that forces landowners to sell their below-ground natural gas rights. Rendell's top aides said this week that discussions on a measure being sought by the booming natural gas industry is in the early stages. No bill has been introduced in the Legislature yet. The so-called pooling law is a top priority for the gas industry in Pennsylvania. Advocates say it will limit the drilling necessary to extract gas from below the land of everyone who voluntarily sells their below-ground gas rights. Opponents of such a law say it could be a tool to abuse landowner rights or to limit a landowner's ability to negotiate a better deal from the industry.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Updates on the latest in business:
Caution abounds...Whitacre announces exit...IPO soars....
NEW YORK (AP) - Stock prices continue to weaken amid gathering economic clouds. The Dow has been down today, but not as dramatically as was seen yesterday.
DETROIT (AP) - Ed Whitacre says he's stepping down as CEO of General Motors on Sept. 1. The announcement came as the automaker reported its second straight quarterly profit. He's to be replaced by GM board member Daniel Akerson.
WASHINGTON (AP) - There's no sign of improvement in the job market. The Labor Department says first-time claims for unemployment benefits rose by 2,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 484,000. Analysts had been looking for a drop.
WASHINGTON (AP) - If you can qualify, this is a good time to look into a mortgage. Freddie Mac says mortgage interest rates have sunk to the lowest level in decades. The average for 30-year fixed loans this week was 4.44 percent, down from 4.49 percent last week.
NEW YORK (AP) - Shares of Indian travel agency MakeMyTrip have risen as much as 80 percent in their market debut on the Nasdaq exchange, even as the broader markets declined. It could be the best first-day performance for an IPO this year.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Pennsylvania Lottery Numbers
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - These Pennsylvania lotteries were drawn Thursday:
Mega Millions
Estimated jackpot: $64 million
Midday Big 4
4-4-7-2
Midday Number
9-4-4
Midday Quinto
7-7-4-1-0
Powerball
Estimated jackpot: $38 million
Treasure Hunt
08-12-18-20-24
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - These Pennsylvania lotteries were drawn Wednesday:
Big 4
4-7-1-7
Cash 5
06-18-25-31-39
Daily Number
8-6-8
Evening Quinto
6-1-7-7-5
Midday Big 4
1-0-9-8
Midday Number
5-5-3
Midday Quinto
8-3-8-4-6
Powerball
07-10-22-23-52, Powerball: 29, Power Play: 2
Treasure Hunt
12-19-20-24-29
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Eat, Pray, Love fortuneteller in hospital
BALI, Indonesia (AP) - One day before the release of the movie "Eat Pray Love," one of the main characters is in the hospital. The fortuneteller known as Ketut has a heart problem. His granddaughter says Ketut is also "exhausted" by all the attention he's gotten from the movie that opens tomorrow. He's 96. He's been a celebrity in his village in Bali ever since the book "Eat, Pray, Love" came out in 2006. Tourists and locals want him to read their palms.
Bummer for Boomer
PITTSBURGH (AP) - It's a bummer for the man who would be Boomer. A judge in Pittsburgh has refused to let Gary Guy Mathews change his name to Boomer the Dog after the star of the 80s TV series "Here's Boomer." The judge says being called Boomer the Dog could lead to "confusion in the marketplace," especially when Mathews tries to get a driver's license or other official documents. He says the name could also confuse 911 dispatchers in the event of an emergency.
Air bag evidence
ELIZABETHTON, Tenn. (AP) - It didn't take long for a Tennessee police officer to catch a hit-and run suspect. The man was stopped even before the accident was reported. Capt. Greg Workman of the Elizabethton Police Department says he stopped 24-year-old Adam Liebers because the air bags in his car had deployed. Workman tells the Johnson City Press that Liebers admitted he was drunk and had just hit another car. While the captain was questioning the suspect, the 911 center reported a nearby hit-and-run. Liebers now faces a number of charges, including driving under the influence.
Muslims in Mideast begin Ramadan in heat of summer
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) - Over a billion Muslims in the Middle East and around the world have begun observing the holy month of Ramadan - a period devoted to prayer and dawn-to-dusk fasting. This year's fasting in the Middle East is particularly tough as Muslims struggle through the long hot days of a sweltering summer. In some areas, including Gaza, the difficulties are compounded by frequent power outages. Ramadan's start is calculated based on the sighting of the new moon, which marks the beginning of the Muslim lunar month. But that calculation is frequently an exercise in demonstrating a particular sect's or community's power in the conflicted region. Most Sunni Muslims began fasting at dawn Wednesday, while Shiites in Iran, Iraq and Oman will start the fast Thursday.
America's got talent...in the form of a 10-year-old girl from Pittsburgh
LOS ANGELES (AP) - It's no surprise that the little opera singer with the big voice is moving on to the next round on "America's Got Talent." Jackie Evancho got that news on last night's results show. Jackie, who's 10, amazed the audience and the judges on Tuesday night when she sang a Puccini aria called "O Mio Babbino Caro." Piers Morgan says she "sang like an angel." Howie Mandel told her "this is the moment. You're the star." And, after that performance, Jackie said she was so happy she wanted to cry.
Largest Lutheran group reports decline in membership
CHICAGO (AP) - The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America reports that it lost almost 91,000 members and 48 congregations last year. In 2009, the denomination dropped to 4.5 million members and about 10,300 congregations, according to a report released Tuesday by David Swartling, the ELCA secretary. Total offerings in congregations dropped by nearly 3 percent, to about $2.6 billion, but average giving per baptized member increased by a similar percentage. Less than one-third of baptized members attended weekly worship last year, a drop from 2008. The ELCA, which is the largest Lutheran body in the United States, is dealing not only with the impact of the recession, but also with the fallout from the denomination's vote last year to lift the celibacy requirement for gay clergy.
Observing Ramadan? There's an app for that
PATERSON, N.J. (AP) - As Muslims across the globe mark the start of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan, some of Islam's most ancient traditions are getting some high-tech help. Mobile phone applications like "iPray" or "iQuran" are becoming increasingly popular. There are apps that provide beeping reminders of prayer times, or programs like "mosque finder" which helps people locate the closest place to pray. Muslim shoppers can even search for a Costco that sells foods prepared according to Islamic dietary rules, or keep track of how many pages of Muslim holy book, The Quran, they read each day. One of the most popular apps is called "Find Mecca." Using an electronic compass, it calculates the exact direction of Mecca, which Muslims are required to face while praying.
Cathy Calls It Quits
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - The comic strip "Cathy," which has chronicled the life and dressing room meltdowns of its namesake for more than 30 years, is coming to an end. Creator Cathy Guisewite said Wednesday the final strip will run in newspapers on Sunday, Oct. 3. Guisewite says it took her about a year to reach the decision to end the strip she's been creating since 1976. She said the decision process was "excruciating" but that her "creative biological clock" is ticking and she has other things she wants to pursue. Kansas City-based Universal Press Syndicate, now known as Universal Uclick, publishes “Cathy”. The strip reached about 1,400 newspapers at its high point.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)