b34nz.com BEE THREE FO IN ZEE

31Jul/10Off

Columbus woman found dead in street

30Jul/10Off

Arizona sheriff not relenting after court ruling

PHOENIX -Lost in the hoopla over Arizona's immigration law is the fact that state and local authorities for years have been doing their own aggressive crackdowns in the busiest illegal gateway into the country.
Nowhere in the U.S. is local enforcement more present than in metropolitan Phoenix, where Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio routinely carries out sweeps, some in Hispanic neighborhoods, to arrest illegal immigrants. The tactics have made him the undisputed poster boy for local immigration enforcement and the anger that so many authorities feel about the issue.
"It's my job," said Arpaio, standing beside a sheriff's truck that has a number for an immigration hot line written on its side. "I have two state (immigration) laws that I am enforcing. It's not federal, it's state."
A ruling Wednesday by a federal judge put on hold parts of the new law that would have required officers to dig deeper into the fight against illegal immigration. Arizona says it was forced to act because the federal government isn't doing its job to fight immigration.
The issue led to demonstrations across the country Thursday, including one directed at Arpaio in Phoenix in which protesters beat on the metal door of a jail and chanted, "Sheriff Joe, we are here. We will not live in fear." And in another sign of the divisive atmosphere surrounding the issue, authorities said the judge had received menacing threats and police were investigating whether a bullet hole found in the office of an Arizona congressman was related to the immigration debate.
Meanwhile, Gov. Jan Brewer's lawyers went to court to overturn the judge's ruling so they can fight back against what the Republican calls an "invasion" of illegal immigrants.
Ever since the main flow of illegal immigrants into the country shifted to Arizona a decade ago, state politicians and local police have been feeling pressure to confront the state's border woes.
In addition to Arpaio's crackdowns, other efforts include a steady stream of busts by the state and local police of stash houses where smugglers hide illegal immigrants. The state attorney general has taken a money-wiring company to civil court on allegations that smugglers used their service to move money to Mexico. And a county south of Phoenix has its sheriff's deputies patrol dangerous smuggling corridors.
The Arizona Legislature have enacted a series of tough-on-immigration measures in recent years that culminated with the law signed by Brewer in April, catapulting the Republican to the national political stage.
But the king of local immigration enforcement is still Arpaio.
Arpaio, a 78-year-old ex-federal drug agent who fashions himself as a modern-day John Wayne, launched his latest sweep Thursday afternoon, sending about 200 sheriff's deputies and trained volunteers out across metro Phoenix to look for traffic violators who may be here illegally.
Deputy Bob Dalton and volunteer Heath Kowacz spotted a driver with a cracked windshield in a poor Phoenix neighborhood near a busy freeway. Dalton triggered the red and blue police lights and pulled over 28-year-old Alfredo Salas, who was born in Mexico but has lived in Phoenix with a resident alien card since 1993.
Dalton gave him a warning after Salas produced his license and registration and told him to get the windshield fixed.
Salas, a married father of two who installs granite, told The Associated Press that he was treated well but he wondered whether he was pulled over because his truck is a Ford Lobo.
"It's a Mexican truck so I don't know if they saw that and said, 'I wonder if he has papers or not,'" Salas said. "If that's the case, it kind of gets me upset."
Sixty percent of the nearly 1,000 people arrested in the sweeps since early 2008 have been illegal immigrants. Thursday's dragnet led to four arrests, but it wasn't clear if any of them were illegal immigrants.
Critics say deputies racially profile Hispanics. Arpaio says deputies approach people only when they have probable cause.
"Sheriff Joe Arpaio and some other folks there decided they can make a name for themselves in terms of the intensity of the efforts they're using," said Benjamin Johnson, executive director of the pro-immigrant American Immigration Council. "There's no way to deny that. There are a lot of people getting caught up in these efforts."
The Justice Department launched an investigation of his office nearly 17 months ago over allegations of discrimination and unconstitutional searches and seizures. Although the department has declined to detail its investigation, Arpaio believes it centers on his sweeps.
Arpaio feels no reservations about continuing to push the sweeps, even after the federal government stripped his power to let 100 deputies make federal immigration arrests.
Unable to make arrests under a federal statute, the sheriff instead relied on a nearly 5-year-old state law that prohibits immigrant smuggling. He has also raided 37 businesses in enforcing a state law that prohibits employers from knowingly hiring illegal immigrants.
"I'm not going to brag," Arpaio said. "Just look at the record. I'm doing what I feel is right for the people of Maricopa County."

Arizona sheriff not relenting after court ruling

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30Jul/10Off

LA building explosion hurls people into street

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Fire officials say an explosion in a large South Los Angeles commercial building has hurled people into the street, wedging some beneath parked cars.

Fire Capt. Steve Ruda says a violent natural gas explosion shook the two-story building housing a welding operation at 6:15 a.m.

Friday and the front of the structure collapsed. There were victims in the street when 100 firefighters arrived.

The explosion blew three people into the street.

Ruda told KNX news radio that people were hurled out of the building and were wedged under parked cars when firefighters arrived.

They are hospitalized in unknown condition.

The fire was extinguished in 25 minutes and the department's urban search and rescue team was called in to search the collapsed structure for possible victims.

Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

LA building explosion hurls people into street

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29Jul/10Off

Burglary Arrests in Madison

Madison Police have announced five arrests in connection with two separate burglaries.

19 year old Matthew Anderson was taken in to custody on Tuesday and charged with Theft of Property and Receiving Stolen Property. Investigators say Anderson sold stolen jewelry to a Gold Shop on Hughes Road.The jewelry had been taken from a home the week before.

On Tuesday, Madison Police officers responded to a burglary call at the Carrington Cove Apartments. The suspects were still there, some fleeing on foot, others in a car. Eventually, all four were caught and arrested. Two were juveniles, the other two were identified as 18 year old Brittany Garner, and 19 year old Shannon Neal. The juveniles were charged with Burglary and Theft of Property. Neal and Garner were charged with Receiving Stolen Property.

Madison Police say they've seen an up tick in the number of burglary arrests recently, and they've been making more arrests thanks to a new program designed to get officers out of squad cars and on the streets.

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28Jul/10Off

Phenix City Marine injured by IED, celebrated at home

28Jul/10Off

Judge blocks parts of Arizona immigration law

PHOENIX -A federal judge stepped into the fight over Arizona's immigration law at the last minute Wednesday, blocking the heart of the measure and defusing a confrontation between police and thousands of activists that had been building for months.
Coming just hours before the law was to take effect, the ruling isn't the end.
It sets up a lengthy legal battle that could end up before the Supreme Court — ensuring that a law that reignited the immigration debate, inspired similar measures nationwide, created fodder for political campaigns and raised tensions with Mexico will stay in the spotlight.
Protesters who gathered at the state Capitol and outside the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City cheered when they heard the news. The governor, the law's authors and anti-illegal immigration groups vowed to fight on.
"It's a temporary bump in the road," Gov. Jan Brewer said.
The key issue before U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton in the case is as old as the nation itself: Does federal law trump state law? She indicated in her ruling that the federal government's case has a good chance at succeeding.
The Clinton appointee said the controversial sections should be put on hold until the courts resolve the issues, including parts that required officers to check a person's immigration status while enforcing other laws.
In her preliminary injunction, Bolton delayed provisions that required immigrants to carry their papers and banned illegal immigrants from soliciting employment in public places — a move aimed at day laborers.
The judge also blocked officers from making warrantless arrests of suspected illegal immigrants for crimes that can lead to deportation.
"Requiring Arizona law enforcement officials and agencies to determine the immigration status of every person who is arrested burdens lawfully present aliens because their liberty will be restricted while their status is checked," Bolton wrote.
The ruling came just as police were making last-minute preparations to begin enforcement of the law and protesters, many of whom said they would not bring identification, were planning large demonstrations against the measure.
At least one group had planned to block access to federal offices, daring officers to ask them about their immigration status.
"I knew the judge would say that part of the law was just not right," said Gisela Diaz, 50, from Mexico City, who came to Arizona on a since-expired tourist visa in 1989 and who waited with her family early Wednesday at the Mexican Consulate to get advice about the law.
"It's the part we were worried about. This is a big relief for us," she said.
At a Home Depot in west Phoenix, where day-laborers gather to look for work, Carlos Gutierrez said he was elated when a stranger drove by and yelled the news: "They threw out the law! You guys can work!"
"I felt good inside" said the 32-year-old illegal immigrant, who came here six years ago from Sonora, Mexico, and supports his wife and three children. "Now there's a way to stay here with less problems."
Opponents argued the law will lead to racial profiling, conflict with federal immigration law and distract local police from fighting more serious crimes. The U.S. Justice Department, civil rights groups and a Phoenix police officer asked for Wednesday's injunction.
Lawyers for the state contend the law was a constitutionally sound attempt by Arizona to assist federal immigration agents and lessen border woes, such as the heavy costs for educating, jailing and providing health care for illegal immigrants.
They said Arizona shouldn't have to suffer from a broken immigration system when it has 15,000 officers who can arrest illegal immigrants.
In her ruling, Bolton said the interests of Arizona, the busiest U.S. gateway for illegal immigrants, match those of the federal government. But, she wrote, that the federal government must take the lead on deciding how to enforce immigration laws.
The core of the government's case is that federal immigration law trumps state law — an issue known as "pre-emption" in legal circles. In her ruling, Bolton pointed out five portions of the law where she believed the federal government would likely succeed on its claims.
Justice Department spokeswoman Hannah August said the agency understands the frustration of Arizona residents with the immigration system, but added that a patchwork of state and local policies would seriously disrupt federal immigration enforcement.
Federal authorities have argued that letting the Arizona law stand would create a patchwork of immigration laws nationwide that would needlessly complicate foreign relations. They said the law is disrupting U.S. relations with Mexico and other countries.
About 100 protesters in Mexico City who had gathered in front of the U.S. Embassy broke into cheers when they learned of Bolton's ruling. They had been monitoring the news on a laptop computer.
"Migrants, hang on, the people are rising up!" they chanted.
Mexico's Foreign Secretary Patricia Espinoza called the ruling "a first step in the right direction" and said staff at the five Mexican consulates in Arizona will work extra hours in coming weeks to educate migrants about the law.
"None of this is very surprising," said Kevin R. Johnson, an immigration expert and the law school dean at University of California at Davis. "This is all very much within the constitutional mainstream."
The federal government has exclusive powers over immigration to ensure a uniform national policy that aids in commerce and relations with other countries, Johnson said.
A century ago, differing policies among states led to problems that prompted the federal government to adopt a comprehensive immigration policy for the country, Johnson said.
Supporters took solace that the judge kept portions of the law intact, including a section that bars local governments from limiting enforcement of federal immigration laws. Those jurisdictions are commonly known as "sanctuary cities."
"Striking down these sanctuary city policies has always been the No. 1 priority," said Republican Sen. Russell Pearce, the law's chief author.
The remaining provisions, many of them revisions to an Arizona immigration statute, will take effect at 12:01 a.m. Thursday.
Brewer spokesman Paul Senseman said the state will appeal Bolton's ruling to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco on Thursday, asking the appellate court to lift the injunction and allow the blocked provisions to take effect. The appeal will ask the 9th Circuit to act quickly, Senseman said.
Whatever way that court rules, Bolton will eventually hold a trial and issue a final ruling.
Wednesday's decision was seen as a defeat for Brewer, who is running for another term in November and has seen her political fortunes rise because of the law's popularity among conservatives.
Her opponent, state Attorney General Terry Goddard, pounced.
"Jan Brewer played politics with immigration, and she lost," the Democrat said. "It is time to look beyond election-year grandstanding and begin to repair the damage to Arizona's image and economy."
Some residents in Phoenix agreed.
"A lot of people don't understand the connection between, 'Yes, we have a problem with illegal immigration' and 'We need immigration reform,' which is not just asking people for their papers," said Kimber Lanning, a 43-year-old Phoenix music store owner.
"It was never a solution to begin with."
—
Associated Press writers Bob Christie, Paul Davenport and Michelle Price in Phoenix, Felicia Fonseca in Flagstaff, Ariz., and Olga R. Rodriguez in Mexico City contributed to this report.

Judge blocks parts of Arizona immigration law

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28Jul/10Off

When Will Baby Baker Be Born? Enter to Win a $25 Ricatoni’s Gift Certificate

Everyone is getting excited about the soon arrival of Haley Baker's baby girl, but when? Here is your chance to predict her arrival and at the same time win a $25 Ricatoni's gift certificate. Simply email your entry to us and include the following required information:

  • Your Name
  • Your Address
  • Your Phone Number
  • Predicted Date of Birth
  • Predicted Time of Birth

The entry with the closest date and time to the actual birth is the winner.

Some information to consider when picking your date and time :

This is Haley's first baby

Her due date is August 18th.

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28Jul/10Off

Police Bust Cross Dressing Thieves at Boaz Wal Mart

Some very odd suspects went through the Boaz City Police Department earlier this week.

Investigators received a call on Sunday afternoon from Wal-Mart security guards that they'd spotted some unusual people stealing cell phones from the store. What was so unusual? According to Boaz Police spokesman Terry Davis - "There was a black female, two black males dressed as females, and two black males shoplifting merchandise".

When police got there, they say they found 19 cell phones, still in the packaging on the cross dressing crooks and their alleged accomplices.

As detectives did further investigation into the case, they came to believe that the group had been pulling similar heists around the south. Davis says the suspects are now linked to cell phone thefts in Guntersville and Snellville, Georgia as well. Investigators are working with Wal-Mart and local police departments in several other cities to see if the group could be responsible for other crimes as well.

The suspects have been identified as :

18 year old Trevor Baker of Huntsville

21 year old Terrell Jolly of Huntsville, one of the cross dressing males.

23 year old Jarquez Dancy of Huntsville, one of the cross dressing males.

19 year old Precious Humphrey of Huntsville, the lone female.

The 5th suspect is an unidentified juvenile.

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27Jul/10Off

US braces for blowback over Afghan war disclosures

WASHINGTON -Operatives inside Afghanistan and Pakistan who have worked for the U.S. against the Taliban or al-Qaida may be at risk following the disclosure of thousands of once-secret U.S. military documents, former and current officials said.
As the Obama administration scrambles to repair any political damage to the war effort in Congress and among the American public by the WikiLeaks revelations, there are also growing concerns that some U.S. allies abroad may ask whether they can trust America to keep secrets, officials said.
Speaking in the Rose Garden Tuesday, President Barack Obama said he was concerned about the massive leak of sensitive documents about the Afghanistan war, but that the papers did not reveal any concerns that were not already part of the debate.
In his first public comments on the matter, Obama said the disclosure of classified information from the battlefield "could potentially jeopardize individuals or operations."
The president spoke in the Rose Garden following a meeting with House and Senate leaders of both parties.
In Baghdad, Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters he was "appalled" by the leak. He said "there is a real potential threat there to put American lives at risk."
The Army is leading the Pentagon's inquiry into the source of the leak. A federal law enforcement official said the Justice Department is assisting in the probe. The law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity about the ongoing probe says the Justice Department does not have its own separate investigation into the leak, but rather is acting in a support role to the Pentagon.
Col. Dave Lapan said the Army criminal probe launched Tuesday is aimed at finding the source of secret documents published Sunday by WikiLeaks, an online site. The Army's criminal investigative division led the investigation into Bradley Manning, an Army intelligence specialist charged with leaking other material to WikiLeaks. Lapan said it's not clear whether the latest material came from Manning or someone else.
The WikiLeaks material, which ranges from files documenting Afghan civilian deaths to evidence of U.S.-Pakistani distrust, could reinforce war opponents in Congress who aim to rein in the war effort. But the leaks are not expected to dim the passage of a looming $60 billion war funding bill.
Congress has backed the war so far, and an early test of that continued support came when the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, led by Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., opened a hearing on the Afghan war.
At the hearing, few members mentioned the leak of documents but several expressed frustration at the lack of progress in improving Afghan governance and in drawing more ordinary Afghans away from the Taliban. In a tone of exasperation, Kerry questioned why the Taliban, with fewer resources, is able to field fighters who are more committed than Afghan soldiers.
"What's going on here?" Kerry asked.
In his only reference to the leak, Kerry called the new material "overhyped," said that it was released in violation of the law and that it largely involves raw intelligence reports from the field. He said he thought the document release could jeopardize the U.S. mission there.
Despite strong opposition among liberals who see Afghanistan as an unwinnable quagmire, House Democrats must either approve the funding bill before leaving at the end of this week for a six-week vacation, or commit political suicide by leaving troops in the lurch in war zones overseas.
Sen. Kit Bond, R-Mo., the ranking Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said Tuesday he worries that the leaks won't stop "until we see someone in an orange jump suit."
Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said the military doesn't know who was behind the leaks, although it has launched "a very robust investigation."
Morrell complained that too much was being made of the documents. Referring to files that detailed American suspicions that some Pakistani intelligence officials were aiding insurgents, Morrell insisted those concerns have abated in recent years and the relationship has improved.
The disclosures, he said, are "clearly out of step with where this relationship is now, and has been heading for some time."
Morrell was interviewed on CBS's "The Early Show" and Bond appeared on NBC's "Today" show.
Even as the administration dismissed the WikiLeaks material as outdated, U.S. military and intelligence analysts were caught up in a speed-reading battle to limit the damage contained in the once-secret files now scattered across the Internet.
The officials are concerned about the impact on the military's human intelligence network built up over the past eight years inside Afghanistan and Pakistan. Such figures range from Afghan village elders who have worked behind the scenes with U.S. troops to militants working as double agents.
Col. Dave Lapan, a Defense Department spokesman, said the military may need weeks to review all the records to determine "the potential damage to the lives of our service members and coalition partners."
WikiLeaks said it has behaved responsibly, even withholding some 15,000 records that are believed to include names of specific Afghans or Pakistanis who helped U.S. troops on the ground.
But former CIA director Michael Hayden denounced the leak Monday as a gift to America's enemies.
"If I had gotten this trove on the Taliban or al-Qaida, I would have called it priceless," he said. "I would love to know what al-Qaida or the Taliban was thinking about a specific subject in 2007, for instance, because I could say they got that right and they got that wrong."
Hayden predicted the Taliban would take anything that described a U.S. strike and the intelligence behind it "and figure out who was in the room when that particular operation, say in 2008, was planned, and in whose home." Then the militants would probably punish the traitor who'd worked with the Americans, he said.
Another casualty of the disclosures may be American efforts to forge cooperation with Pakistan's secretive intelligence agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence.
Multiple U.S. military cables posted by WikiLeaks complain about ISI complicity with the Taliban. And they also tell the Pakistanis "how much we know about them," said Robert Riegle, a former senior intelligence officer who now runs Mission Concepts Inc., a private intelligence firm.
"You're not going to see any cooperation," he said. "People are going to freeze."
The raw data released Sunday may also prove useful in a wider way to America's "frenemies" — the intelligence services of countries like China and Russia, who have the resources to process and make sense of such vast vaults of data, said Ellen McCarthy, former intelligence officer and president of the Intelligence and National Security Alliance.
Former CIA chief Hayden added: "If I'm head of the Russian intelligence, I'm getting my best English speakers and saying: 'Read every document, and I want you to tell me, how good are these guys? What are their approaches, their strengths, their weaknesses and their blind spots?'"
—
Associated Press writer Pete Yost contributed to this report.

US braces for blowback over Afghan war disclosures

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27Jul/10Off

Chicken Dispute Leads to Deadly Shooting

DeKalb County investigators say a dispute over stolen chickens led to a weekend murder.

Sheriff Jimmy Harris says Rickey McCallie was shot and killed Saturday in the back yard of a home on County Road 188 in Dogtown. However, McCallie's body wasn't discovered until Monday night.

Deputies were called to the scene around 8:00 p.m., and immediately began their homicide investigation. They soon developed 62 year old Wayne Thomas McMinn as a suspect, and took him in for questioning early Tuesday morning.

After talking to deputies, McMinn was placed under arrest and charged with McCallie's murder.

Sheriff Harris had nothing but praise for his investigators, saying "When we received the call about this victim and began the initial investigation, it looked like we had a really tough case on our hands. But I can't say enough about our deputies and investigations and the work they put into this case throughout [Monday] night and into [Tuesday]". Harris also cited cooperation from Sheriff Jeff Shaver and the Cherokee County Sheriff's Department.

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27Jul/10Off

Woman’s SUV crashes into side of vet hospital

26Jul/10Off

Could American take over Britain’s BP?

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Could American take over Britain's BP?

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25Jul/10Off

Deadly Lightning Strike in Marshall County

A lightning strike on Lake Guntersville killed a teenage girl and sent four others to the hospital.

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25Jul/10Off

Phenix City fully engulfed in flames

25Jul/10Off

US aircraft carrier leads drills with South Korea

ABOARD USS GEORGE WASHINGTON -A nuclear-powered U.S. supercarrier led an armada of warships in exercises off the Korean peninsula on Sunday that North Korea has vowed to physically block and says could escalate into nuclear war.
U.S. military officials said the maneuvers, conducted with South Korean ships and Japanese observers, were intended to send a strong signal to the North that aggression in the region will not be tolerated.
Tensions on the Korean peninsula have been particularly high since the sinking in March of a South Korean naval vessel. Forty-six Korean sailors were killed in the sinking, which Seoul has called Pyongyang's worst military attack on it since the 1950-53 Korean War.
The military drills, code-named "Invincible Spirit," are to run through Wednesday with about 8,000 U.S. and South Korean troops, 20 ships and submarines and 200 aircraft. The Nimitz-class USS George Washington was deployed from Japan.
"We are showing our resolve," said Capt. David Lausman, the carrier's commanding officer.
North Korea has protested the drills, threatening to retaliate with "nuclear deterrence" and "sacred war."
The North routinely threatens attacks whenever South Korea and the U.S. hold joint military drills, which Pyongyang sees as a rehearsal for an invasion. The U.S. keeps 28,500 troops in South Korea and another 50,000 in Japan, but says it has no intention of invading the North.
Still, the North's latest rhetoric carries extra weight following the sinking of the Cheonan.
Capt. Ross Myers, the commander of the carrier's air wing, said the exercises were not intended to raise tensions, but acknowledged they are meant to get North Korea's attention.
The George Washington, one of the biggest ships in the U.S. Navy, is a potent symbol of American military power, with about 5,000 sailors and aviators and the capacity to carry up to 70 planes.
"North Korea may contend that it is a provocation, but I would say the opposite," he said. "It is a provocation to those who don't want peace and stability. North Korea doesn't want this. They know that one of South Korea's strengths is its alliance with the United States."
He said that North Korea's threats to retaliate were being taken seriously.
"There is a lot they can do," he said. "They have ships, they have subs, they have airplanes. They are a credible threat."
The exercises are the first in a series of U.S.-South Korean maneuvers to be conducted in the East Sea off South Korea's east coast and in the Yellow Sea closer to China's shores in international waters. The exercises also are the first to employ the F-22 stealth fighter — which can evade North Korean air defenses — in South Korea.
South Korea was closely monitoring North Korea's military but spotted no unusual activity Sunday, the Defense Ministry said.
North Korea, which denies any involvement in the sinking of the Cheonan, warned the United States against holding the drills.
"Our military and people will squarely respond to the nuclear war preparation by the American imperialists and the South Korean puppet regime with our powerful nuclear deterrent," the North's government-run Minju Joson newspaper said in a commentary Sunday headlined, "We also have nuclear weapons."
The commentary was carried by the official Korean Central News Agency.
The North's powerful National Defense Commission issued a similar threat Saturday, saying the country "will start a retaliatory sacred war ... based on nuclear deterrent any time necessary in order to counter the U.S."
The country's Foreign Ministry separately said Saturday that Pyongyang is considering "powerful physical measures" in response to the U.S. military drills and sanctions.
Though the impoverished North has a large conventional military and the capability to build nuclear weapons, it is not believed to have the technology needed to use nuclear devices as warheads.
North Korea has been in increasingly difficult diplomatic straits since the Cheonan incident.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton announced Wednesday, after visiting the Demilitarized Zone dividing the two Koreas, that the U.S. would slap new sanctions on the North to stifle its nuclear ambitions and punish it for the Cheonan sinking.
On Friday, the European Union said it, too, would consider new sanctions on North Korea.
The George Washington had been expected to join in exercises off Korea sooner, but the Navy delayed those plans as the United Nations Security Council met to deliberate what action it should take over the Cheonan sinking.
The council eventually condemned the incident, but stopped short of naming North Korea as the perpetrator.
—
Associated Press writer Hyung-jin Kim in Seoul contributed to this report.

US aircraft carrier leads drills with South Korea

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24Jul/10Off

NKorea vows nuclear response to US-SKorea drills

SEOUL, South Korea -North Korea warned Saturday that joint U.S. and South Korean military exercises poised to begin this weekend amount to a military provocation that will draw a "powerful" nuclear response from Pyongyang.
North Korea routinely threatens war when South Korea and the U.S. hold joint military drills, which Pyongyang sees as a rehearsal for an attack on the North. The latest threat comes amid increased tensions on the peninsula over the deadly sinking of a South Korean warship that Seoul and Washington blame on Pyongyang.
The allies' defense chiefs announced earlier in the week they would stage the drills to send a clear message to North Korea to stop its "aggressive" behavior. Forty-six South Korean sailors were killed in the March sinking of the Cheonan, considered the worst military attack on the South since the 1950-53 Korean War.
North Korea vehemently denies any involvement, and says any punishment would trigger war.
In Hanoi, a North Korean spokesman for the delegation attending a regional security conference warned Friday the drills would draw a "physical response" from Pyongyang.
On Saturday, North Korea's powerful National Defense Commission — headed by leader Kim Jong Il — backed that threat up by promising a "retaliatory sacred war" against South Korea and the U.S. for what it called a second "unpardonable" provocation after wrongly accusing the North in the Cheonan incident.
"The army and people of the (North) will legitimately counter with their powerful nuclear deterrence the largest-ever nuclear war exercises," the commission said in a statement carried by the country's official Korean Central News Agency.
South Korea's Defense Ministry said no unusual North Korean military movements were detected.
The nuclear-powered USS George Washington supercarrier is already docked in the southern port of Busan for the military games set to begin Sunday. In addition, the U.S. keeps 28,500 troops in the South to deter against aggression, a presence that Pyongyang cites as a key reason behind its drive to build nuclear weapons.
"The more desperately the U.S. imperialists brandish their nukes and the more zealously their lackeys follow them, the more rapidly the (North's) nuclear deterrence will be bolstered up along the orbit of self-defense and the more remote the prospect for the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula will be become," the commission statement said.
The U.S.-South Korean military drills are to set to run through Wednesday, with about 8,000 U.S. and South Korean troops on some 20 ships and submarines carrying out exercises in the East Sea.
The drills also involve some 200 aircraft, headlined by four U.S. Air Force's F-22 "Raptor" stealth fighters.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton announced Wednesday, after visiting the Demilitarized Zone dividing the two Koreas, the U.S. would slap new sanctions on the North to stifle its nuclear ambitions and punish it for the Cheonan sinking.
On Friday, the European Union said it, too, would consider new sanctions on the North.
In Hanoi, Clinton and a North Korean official traded barbs Friday over the sinking, the military drills and the imposition of the new U.S. sanctions. North Korean spokesman Ri Tong Il said the tensions showed the need to negotiate a peace treaty to replace the armistice signed at the end of the Korean War.
Clinton said the U.S. is willing to meet and negotiate with the North, but this type of threat only heightens tensions. She added progress in the short term seems unlikely.
"It is distressing when North Korea continues its threats and causes so much anxiety among its neighbors and the larger region," she told reporters. "But we will demonstrate once again with our military exercises ... that the United States stands in firm support of the defense of South Korea and we will continue to do so."
The 27-member bloc meeting in Hanoi — 10 members of ASEAN and countries with major interests in the area like the U.S., China, Japan, North and South Korea and Russia — expressed "deep concern" over the Cheonan's sinking in a joint statement, a weakened version of an earlier ASEAN statement.
—
Associated Press writers Matthew Lee and Jim Gomez in Hanoi, Vietnam, and Jean H. Lee in Seoul, South Korea, contributed to this report.

NKorea vows nuclear response to US-SKorea drills

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23Jul/10Off

Thousands Of Dollars Worth Of Drugs Off The Street, Huntsville Club Closes

Hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of drugs are off the street and one Huntsville club has been shut down.

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23Jul/10Off

Exclusive: Group steals $1 million from Aflac with faulty claims

23Jul/10Off

Additional GA state budget cuts reported

ATLANTA (AP) - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution says Gov. Sonny Perdue is ordering more budget cuts by state agencies because some federal stimulus money appropriations are stalled in Congress.

The governor's office told the newspaper the 4% cuts would reduce state spending by about $25 million a month.

Schools are exempted from the cuts, but the university system is affected. Parks, prisons and health care programs are among the areas where the newspaper says cuts will be required.

Todd Holbrook, deputy commissioner for operations at the Department of Natural Resources, said Thursday he's not sure where his department's cuts will be made.

The cuts could mean furloughs for more state employees.

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23Jul/10Off

Decatur Police Seek Burglary Suspect

A home security system may pay off for one home owner, thanks to the incredibly clear photos of a suspected burglar it took. All Police need is for someone to recognize the man and call them.

The pictures with this article were taken on Monday, July 12th at a home on Red Bank Road. Police say the man was breaking into the home when the surveillance camera caught him on what appears to be the front porch.

If this man looks familiar, call Decatur Police Detective Jeff Clem at (256) 341-4639. You will remain anonymous.

(256) 341-4639

Decatur Police Seek Burglary Suspect

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22Jul/10Off

Checks are coming: Obama signs unemployment bill

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Checks are coming: Obama signs unemployment bill

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22Jul/10Off

You Tell Us : Is Cheerleading a Sport?

22Jul/10Off

High speed chase lands man in jail, one still on the run

VALLEY, AL (WTVM) - A high speed chase lands one Chambers County man in jail.

Major Mike Reynolds with the Valley Police Department tells News Leader 9 it all started with a routine traffic stop, but the driver wouldn't pull over.

He says the high speed chase ended with the driver of the

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21Jul/10Off

Financial information leaked from local credit card transactions

21Jul/10Off

Fired Ag worker mulls job offer after WH apology

WASHINGTON -The White House did a sudden about-face Wednesday and begged for forgiveness from the black Agriculture Department employee whose ouster ignited an embarrassing political firestorm over race. She was offered a "unique opportunity" for a new job and said she was thinking it over.
With lightning speed, the controversy moved from Monday's forced resignation of a minor U.S. Ag official in Georgia to Tuesday's urgent discussions at the White House amid a rising public outcry and then to Wednesday's repeated apologies and pleas for Shirley Sherrod to come back.
Sherrod said she resigned under White House pressure after the airing of a video of racial remarks she made at an NAACP gathering about events that transpired more than two decades ago. But Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said repeatedly on Wednesday that the decision had been his alone.
"I asked for Shirley's forgiveness and she was gracious enough to extend it to me," he said after reaching her by telephone.
Sherrod, in a phone interview with The Associated Press, said, "They did make an offer. I just told him I need to think about it."
The controversy threatened to grow into more than a three-day distraction for Obama's administration, with important midterm congressional elections nearing and partisan feelings already running high. President Barack Obama said nothing publicly about the developments while administration officials tried to simultaneously show his concern and to distance him from the original ousting.
It all began with the airing of a video on a conservative website of Sherrod's remarks about not doing all she could to help a white farmer. After she was told to resign — with the NAACP declaring its approval — the situation grew more complicated when the rest of the edited video was released by the NAACP and Sherrod insisted her remarks were about reconciliation, not the stoking of racism.
By Wednesday afternoon, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs was apologizing to Sherrod "for the entire administration" and saying that officials did not know all the facts when she was fired and should have investigated more. He said he didn't know if the president would talk to Sherrod himself.
The president had been briefed, Gibbs said, and "he talked about the fact that a disservice had been done, an injustice had happened and, because the facts had changed, a review of the decision based on those facts should be taken."
Said Vilsack, who also met with the Congressional Black Caucus, "This is a good woman. She's been put through hell. ... I could have done and should have done a better job."
"Shirley and I talked about a unique opportunity at USDA," he said. "With all that she has seen, endured and accomplished, it would be invaluable to have her experience, commitment and record of service at USDA. I hope she considers staying with the department."
"I accept the apology," Sherrod said on CNN after watching Gibbs talk to reporters on television. But she said the apology took too long.
Sherrod, appointed to her job last July, was asked to resign after conservative bloggers posted a video of her saying she didn't initially give a white farmer as much help as she could have 24 years ago, when she was working for a farmers' aid group. Sherrod said she used the story in her speech to the NAACP to promote racial reconciliation and that the edited video distorted her remarks.
Like the administration, the NAACP reversed its stance on Sherrod and called for her to be rehired.
The incident was the latest in a series of race-related brouhahas to garner national attention since Obama became the nation's first black chief executive.
A year ago, Obama convened a "beer summit" at the White House between a black Harvard scholar and the white police sergeant who arrested him after a confrontation at the black man's home. The president also faced criticism over nominating to the Supreme Court judge Sonia Sotomayor, who had once remarked on the virtues of having a "wise Latina" on the bench. And there are complaints about the Justice Department's handling of allegations that New Black Panther Party members threatened voters at a Philadelphia polling place on the day Obama was elected.
Black leaders piled on Wednesday in criticizing Sherrod's ouster. The Rev. Jesse Jackson called on the administration to apologize and give Sherrod her job back. The Congressional Black Caucus, with 42 members of Congress, called for Sherrod to be reinstated immediately.
However, the Rev. Al Sharpton said black leaders should refrain from calling for an apology from the Obama administration, saying that creates the impression that black leadership is fractured. "We are only greasing the rails for the right wing to run a train through our ambitions and goals for having civil and human rights in this country," Sharpton said.
The episode comes as the NAACP and the conservative tea party group have been trading charges of racism.
The two-minute, 38-second clip posted Monday by BigGovernment.com was presented as evidence that the NAACP was hypocritical in its recent resolution condemning what it calls racist elements of the tea party. The website's owner, Andrew Breitbart, said the video shows the civil rights group condoning the same kind of racism it says it wants to erase. BigGovernment.com is the same outfit that gained notice last year after airing video of workers at the community group ACORN counseling actors posing as a prostitute and her pimp.
In the clip posted on BigGovernment.com, Sherrod described the first time a white farmer came to her for help. It was 1986, and she worked for a nonprofit rural farm aid group. She said the farmer came in acting "superior" to her and she debated how much help to give him.
"I was struggling with the fact that so many black people had lost their farmland, and here I was faced with helping a white person save their land," Sherrod said.
Initially, she said, "I didn't give him the full force of what I could do" and only gave him enough help to keep his case progressing. Eventually, she said, his situation "opened my eyes" that whites were struggling just like blacks, and helping farmers wasn't so much about race but was "about the poor versus those who have."
The story moved from the Internet to Fox News Channel on Monday night. Host Bill O'Reilly showed a brief portion of Sherrod's speech where she talked about withhholding "the full force" of her efforts.
"Wow," O'Reilly said after the clip aired. "That is simply unacceptable and Ms. Sherrod must resign. The federal government cannot have skin color deciding any assistance." Fox's Sean Hannity aired the same short snippet of Sherrod's speech and said that "this was racist."
"This was at an NAACP dinner and this was racist," Hannity said.
By Wednesday, Fox's focus shifted to accusing the Obama administration of rushing to judgment.
People who knew Sherrod were quick to defend her, including the wife of the white farmer whom she discussed in the speech.
"We probably wouldn't have (our farm) today if it hadn't been for her leading us in the right direction," said Eloise Spooner of Iron City, Ga. "I wish she could get her job back because she was good to us, I tell you."
In the full 43-minute video, Sherrod tells the story of her father's death in 1965, saying he was killed by white men who were never charged. She says she made a commitment to stay in the South the night of her father's death, despite the dreams she had always had of leaving her rural town.
"When I made that commitment I was making that commitment to black people and to black people only," she said. "But you know God will show you things and he'll put things in your path so that you realize that the struggle is really about poor people."
Sherrod said officials showed no interest in listening to her explanation when she was asked to resign. She said she was on the road Monday when USDA deputy undersecretary Cheryl Cook called her and told her to pull over and submit her resignation on her Blackberry because the White House wanted her out.
"It hurts me that they didn't even try to attempt to see what is happening here, they didn't care," Sherrod said.
—
Online:
Full video posted by NAACP:
http://tinyurl.com/23jqz95

Fired Ag worker mulls job offer after WH apology

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21Jul/10Off

Arrest Made in Marshall Co. Murder

Marshall County investigators have arrested 57 year old Sherwin Wigley and charged him with murder.

The arrest follows a June 29th incident at Wigley's home in the Douglas community. His wife, Lori, was shot and killed. Police believe Sherwin then turned the gun on himself in an unsuccessful suicide attempt. He was flown to Huntsville Hospital, where he was kept in intensive care for several weeks.

According to an attorney for the family, there was no history of domestic violence calls to the Wigley home. The attorney told the Sand Mountain Reporter, there was a history of mental problems that forced Sherwin to retire early from the Postal Service.

Sherwin Wigley is being held in the Marshall County Jail on $100,000 bond.

Arrest Made in Marshall Co. Murder

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21Jul/10Off

Georgia Primary 2010 — Statewide races

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Georgia Primary 2010 -- Statewide races

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20Jul/10Off

Filibuster broken, jobless benefits may flow soon

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Filibuster broken, jobless benefits may flow soon

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20Jul/10Off

WAAY 31 EXCLUSIVE : New Twist in Deputy Involved Shooting

19Jul/10Off

Man Shot, Killed in Lawrence Co.

A man has been shot and killed in Lawrence County.

It happened just after 3:00 Monday afternoon at a home between Moulton and Speake. Investigators from the Lawrence County Sheriff's Department tell us that the victim and the owner of the home have been in arguments before, but right now there's no clear word on a motive. The home owner is in custody, but has not been charged with anything at this point.

WAAY 31 has a crew on the scene and will bring you more information as it becomes available.

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19Jul/10Off

Counterfeit money at multiple businesses in Opelika

19Jul/10Off

Feds: Oil, gas leaking from cap on ruptured well

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Feds: Oil, gas leaking from cap on ruptured well

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18Jul/10Off

Well cap may keep blocking oil until permanent fix

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Well cap may keep blocking oil until permanent fix

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17Jul/10Off

East Alabama town rallies to bring jobs, residents to area

By Curtis McCloud - email

COLUMBUS, GA (WTVM) - The state of Alabama is going fishing, but its not a record catch they hope to reel in. The Alabama tourism department is trying to get people to come to Alabama to see the exciting things the state has to offer. The bait on the end of the hook--small-town celebrations. its all part of a campaign started by the Alabama tourism department in 2004. This weekend's small town celebration took place in Opelika, Alabama.

Mayor Gary Fuller said, "this is part of the Alabama tourism office they are doing it all across Alabama small towns and downtown's." and Marilyn Stamps with Alabama department of tourism said, "Governor Riley instituted this program because he recognized that small towns are a key component of the heritage of the state of Alabama as well as the country."

Celebrate Opelika began with the unveiling of a city marker downtown. The area was packed with fun activities for children, like moon-bounces, games, and pony rides for smaller kids. A number of vendors and local shops were also there in hopes of getting an economic booster shot. The opelika fire department even put a sprinkler demonstration to show the importance of having a home sprinkler system. Melissa Mcentire has lived in Opelika all of her life and is excited to see new things happen in her hometown. "i think its great to see new things happen in her hometown, " said Mcentire. "today is an opportunity to celebrate the present and most of all to me is t to celebrate the future," added Mayor Gary Fuller.

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17Jul/10Off

BP, scientists try to make sense of well puzzle

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BP, scientists try to make sense of well puzzle

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16Jul/10Off

Sex Offender Escapes, Is Arrested in Tuscumbia’s Spring Park

A convicted sex offender who escaped from the Franklin County Jail on Thursday night is back behind bars.

Officials aren't saying how it happened, but Sheriff Larry Plott says he believes it to be the first escape from the facility.

After a long manhunt, deputies got a tip that 34 year old Jerry Kelley was hiding out at Spring Park in Tuscumbia, waiting for someone to pick him up. Acting quickly, police were able to locate Kelley, surround him and make their move. Kelley made a run for it, but slipped in the wet grass and was caught.

Kelley was awaiting trial on rape and sodomy charges, and previously served time on a sex abuse conviction involving a 13 year old girl in Michigan.

Sex Offender Escapes, Is Arrested in Tuscumbia's Spring Park

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16Jul/10Off

Child struck by car in front of elementary school

16Jul/10Off

Russellville Man Arrested on Murder Charges

A man from Russellville is charged with murder following a violent attack Thursday night.

26 year old Andres Francisco was arrested just before 11:00 a.m. today in Decatur. Investigators say he stabbed another man nine times and cut his throat during an altercation in a car on South Carroll Street Thursday night. The victim was able to get out of the car and go to a family member's house for help. He was rushed to Russellville Hospital, then flown to Huntsville Hospital where he died Friday afternoon. The victim has only been identified as a 20 year old man.

Francisco is being held on capital murder charges in the Russellville City Jail.

Russellville Man Arrested on Murder Charges

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15Jul/10Off

Obama hails passage of Wall Street reform measure

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama says the passage of a giant crackdown on the financial sector will provide long-deserved economic security to families and businesses.

Obama says the new legislation ensures there that will be no more taxpayer bailouts and that Americans won't have to foot the bill for Wall Street's excesses.

Congress on Thursday passed the stiffest restrictions on banks and Wall Street since the Great Depression.

The legislation comes almost two years after a tanking financial sector helped trigger a massive downturn in the economy.

The law will give the government new powers to break up companies that threaten the economy and create a new agency to guard consumers in their financial transactions, among many other changes.

Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Obama hails passage of Wall Street reform measure

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15Jul/10Off

BP says it has choked off all oil from busted well

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BP says it has choked off all oil from busted well

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