Stories from Saturday, July 27, 2002

SECRETARY OF STATE'S DISAPPROVAL By Mark Bliss ~ Southeast Missourian JACKSON, Mo. -- Missouri's state-approved seal doesn't belong on campaigns, the secretary of state's office says, and candidates like Cape Girardeau County assistant prosecuting attorney Scott Lipke shouldn't be using it on his campaign literature...

PHOENIX -- Arizona Sen. John McCain said he's thankful there will be a week of rehearsals before he guest hosts "Saturday Night Live" this fall. Jennifer Skorlich, NBC's director of non-prime-time programming, confirmed Thursday that McCain will be an SNL host...

WASHINGTON -- Two senior U.S. intelligence officials said Friday that there are growing signs that suggest Osama bin Laden is dead. The two officials -- one from the FBI, the other from the CIA, both speaking on the condition of anonymity -- stressed that neither knew of any concrete evidence. But they said several indications, some of which they would not discuss, seem to point to the likelihood of bin Laden's death...

BOISE, Idaho -- Chuck Frady spends more time on the phone than an operator at the Home Shopping Network. But instead of asking about jewelry or clothes, his latest caller is in the market for a shower and a caterer -- the sooner the better. "I'll see what I can do," Frady assures her, "but I'm not going to promise you anything."...

BOSTON -- Two white supremacists were found guilty Friday of plotting to blow up Jewish and black landmarks around Boston in what prosecutors said was a scheme to spark a "racial holy war." A federal jury deliberated seven hours over two days before convicting Leo Felton, the 31-year-old the mixed-race son of civil rights activists, and his 22-year-old girlfriend, Erica Chase...

TUCSON, Ariz. -- Frustrated at the mounting deaths of illegal immigrants in the searing Arizona desert, a group of activists has begun patrolling to offer water, food and medical assistance. At least 91 people have died since October in the U.S. Border Patrol's Tucson sector covering most of southern Arizona. More than half of those deaths have been heat-related...

SOMERSET, Pa. -- Rescuers desperately trying to reach nine coal miners trapped 240 feet underground struggled to cut an escape hole Friday after a drill bit broke in a heartbreaking setback that cost them nine precious hours. It took until late afternoon to get the 1,500-pound bit out of the way, clearing the way for drilling to resume with a new bit rushed in by helicopter...

Trial begins in gang-rape of woman in Pakistan DERA GHAZI KHAN, Pakistan -- Fourteen men went on trial Friday over the gang rape of a woman in a remote Pakistani village, an attack ordered by a tribal council to punish the victim's family. Four of the men are charged with committing the rape, while 10 others are accused with ordering the attack, said Asghar Ali Gill, a prosecutor in the court in the central town of Dera Ghazi Khan...

Man sues fast food for his health problems NEW YORK -- A man sued four leading fast-food chains, claiming he became obese and suffered from other serious health problems from eating their fatty cuisine. Caesar Barber, 56, filed suit Wednesday in Bronx Supreme Court, naming McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger King and Kentucky Fried Chicken...

ATHENS, Greece -- Greek police struck again Friday at the crippled November 17 terrorist group and plucked another prized suspect: an unassuming shopkeeper accused of helping found Europe's most elusive urban guerrilla band. The arrest of 50-year-old Nikos Papanastasiou apparently topples another pillar in a group that completely outwitted authorities during a 27-year reign of bombings, robberies and murder...

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina -- Fifty years after the radio bulletin that rocked a nation with the news that their beloved "Evita" had died of cancer at 33, Argentines mourned her death anew Friday. Thousands filed past the black marble crypt of Maria Eva Duarte de Peron, Argentina's most famous first lady, to mark the anniversary of her death on July 26, 1952...

JERUSALEM -- Palestinian gunmen opened fire Friday on two Israeli cars near a Jewish settlement in the southern West Bank, killing four people and injuring three others, the army and rescue officials said. Three of the slain settlers were members of the same family who were on their way to spend the Sabbath with friends in a nearby settlement, Israel Radio said...

NEW DELHI, India -- While nuclear-armed India and Pakistan are no longer on the brink of war, Secretary of State Colin Powell still faces a tough task this weekend in trying to further reduce tensions between the South Asian rivals. The nuclear war rhetoric and cross-border shelling, which prompted thousands of foreigners to flee India last month, have nearly ceased. ...

KLEINSCHWEINBARTH, Austria -- Hildegard Nuss wasn't even 10 years old when she was forced to leave her home, but she says time hasn't diminished the empty feeling inside of her. She was among 3 million ethnic Germans who were expelled from what was then Czechoslovakia. Now, 57 years later, some of those still alive want their property back and their honor restored, posing an awkward problem for a continent striving to heal the wounds of World War II and unite into a borderless Europe...

PRIM, Ark. -- A fighter jet practicing aerial maneuvers crashed in north-central Arkansas Friday and its pilot was hurt after parachuting into a tree, authorities said. The pilot, the only person on board, was found dangling from a tree by his parachute shrouds and flown to a hospital, said a State Emergency Management Department spokeswoman...

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- A FedEx Boeing 727 cargo jet crashed and burned short of the runway Friday at the Tallahassee airport, but the three-member crew escaped serious injury. The plane was carrying the paperwork of several candidates who were rushing to meet a noon filing deadline to run for office in Florida. After the crash, Gov. Jeb Bush signed an executive order setting a new deadline for those candidates of 5 p.m. Saturday...

Mom's flower garden is the left-field wall. The base paths point to a street or the back door of the house, take your pick. And the wooden deck overlooking the back-yard field is the next best thing to a stadium skybox. It has the comforts of home -- OK, so it is home -- but don't let it fool you. Cameron Yards -- neighbors know it as the Steve and Debbie Unterreiner residence, 3915 State Highway W -- is all business this weekend for the fifth annual Wack-Fest wiffleball tournament...

JACKSON, Mo. -- The Jackson police K-9 unit searched unsuccessfully Wednesday for a man who children say exposed himself to them while they were at the Licketysplit Water Slide on Highway 61. Lt. James Humphreys said police responded when the grandmother of a 9-year-old girl called to report the incident after picking the child up at the water park...

FATAL CRASH By Bob Miller ~ Southeast Missourian A pilot killed in a Bollinger County plane crash had sent a distress signal and indicated that his 1967 Piper Twin Commanche lost engine power, says a Federal Aviation Administration report released Friday...

If Proposition B's proposal to raise both sales taxes and fuel taxes fails, lawmakers say they would likely try again By Marc Powers ~ Southeast Missourian JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- As election day looms, the debate over Proposition B has focused on what would happen if the $483 million transportation tax package wins voter approval...

From The Wall Street Journal You can argue that handcuffing a 78-year-old man at his home at 6 a.m. after he had agreed to turn himself in voluntarily is prosecutorial overkill. And yet the arrests of former Adelphia CEO John Rigas, his two sons and two other executives Wednesday were useful public theater...

Women shouldn't count on men to combat the rash of domestic-abuse cases haunting high-profile, influential professional athletes. They shouldn't expect David Stern or Paul Tagliabue or Bud Selig to come up with a strong deterrent for domestic violence...

LONG POND, Pa. -- Bill Elliott was the fastest qualifier for the second week in a row, and tied the record Friday for the most career poles at Pocono Raceway. On Sunday, in the Pennsylvania 500, Elliott will try to become the first driver to win five times on the mountaintop. Despite that, he hasn't done well on the track in recent years, last winning in 1989...

NEW YORK -- Mo Vaughn singled in the winning run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the New York Mets a 3-2 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Friday night. After Vaughn sent John Riedling's first pitch back up the middle, Rey Ordonez ran home with his hands in the air as the screaming Merengue Night crowd made Shea Stadium shake...

SILVIS, Ill. -- J.P. Hayes shot a course-record 10-under-par 61 on Friday for a share of the second-round lead with Fred Funk in the John Deere Classic. Hayes broke the TPC of Deere Run record of 62 shared by Kirk Triplett, David Frost and Pat Bates. Triplett and Frost shot their 62s in 2000, the first year the event was played on the course, and Bates matched the mark Friday...

ST. LOUIS -- A routine eye exam has made all the difference for Eduardo Perez. Perez, Jim Edmonds and Tino Martinez all homered, powering the St. Louis Cardinals to an 8-4 victory Friday night over the Chicago Cubs. Chuck Finley, acquired last Friday in a trade with Cleveland, won in his Busch Stadium debut before the largest crowd of the season at 48,730. Edgar Renteria got two hits to reach 1,000 in his career...

MACOMB, Ill. -- The St. Louis Rams' Super Bowl hangover is barely hanging on. Players reported to training camp Friday motivated for a third trip to the big game in four years, but the pain from the 20-17 upset loss to the New England Patriots in February seems to have subsided. Kurt Warner said he was over the disappointment "for the most part," and so did most of his teammates...

Briefly Basketball Eric Musselman, the Warriors' eighth coach since 1994, agreed to a three-year contract worth about $4.5 million Friday, making him the league's youngest coach at 37. Assistant coaches Phil Hubbard and Mark Osowski will be retained, and another veteran NBA assistant will be added...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- It almost seemed like a football game broke out Friday night during the loser's bracket final of the American Legion District 14 Tournament at VFW Stadium. Featuring a score that more resembled something from the football field than the diamond, second-seeded Sikeston outlasted fourth-seeded Jackson 23-17...

Southeast has two finalists for women's tennis job Two assistant coaches at Atlantic Coast Conference schools are finalists for the position of women's tennis coach at Southeast Missouri State University. Constantine Ananiadis, assistant men's and women's coach at Virginia, will visit the Southeast campus Tuesday while Michael Stevens, assistant men's and women's coach at North Carolina State, will visit Wednesday...

JAKARTA, Indonesia -- The playboy son of former dictator Suharto was convicted Friday of ordering the murder of a Supreme Court justice and sentenced to 15 years in prison in a case that symbolizes Indonesia's struggle to rein in judicial corruption and the abuses that defined the Suharto era...

CIEGO DE AVILA, Cuba -- Proclaiming that friends can be found even among his country's worst enemies, Fidel Castro thanked U.S. Congress members who voted this week to ease sanctions against the communist-ruled island. Speaking at a rally Friday to mark the start of the Cuban revolution, the Cuban leader said the House vote passing the measure was a gesture of such significance that it doesn't matter if President Bush uses his veto as threatened...

GORDONVILLE, Mo. -- Jeremy Lee Pender, 20, of Gordonville died Thursday, July 25, 2002, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. He was born April 29, 1982, in Cape Girardeau, son of Gary B. and Tanyea L. Bradshaw Pender. Jeremy worked at Welker Fencing Co. in Cape Gir-ardeau. He was an avid outdoorsman. When he was 14 years old he was one of the youngest members asked to join the Missouri Wood Carvers Association. He was of the Catholic faith...

Cora Nell Simpson, 94, of Alton, Ill., died Wednesday, July 24, 2002, at Eunice C. Smith Home in Alton. She was born July 25, 1907, at Malden, Mo., daughter of Robert L. and Clara Nell Hill Wade. She and Thomas W. Simpson were married July 27, 1936, at Caruthers-ville, Mo. He died Oct. 3, 1977...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Alexander R. "Turtle" Nuyt, 75, of Perryville died Friday, July 26, 2002, at his home. He was born July 20, 1927, at Belgique, Mo., son of Peter B. and Philomena DePauw Stelzriede Nuyt. He first married Evelyn Lanita "Neets" Renner. He later married Bonnie Ohounihan Feb. 2, 1981...

Betty Henry, 66, of Cape Girardeau died Friday, July 26, 2002, at the Lutheran Home. Ford and Sons Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Donald L. Lamer, 43, of Carbondale died Thursday, July 25, 2002, at Memorial Hospital. He was born Aug. 14, 1958, in Anna, Ill., son of Marvin D. and Loretta A. Clutts Lamer. Lamer was a former assembler with Transcraft Corp. in Anna. He played minor league baseball three years with the St. Louis Cardinals organization...

ANNA, Ill. -- Opal Virginia Smith, 83, of Anna died Monday, July 22, 2002, at Union County Hospital. She was born Jan. 25, 1919, in Jonesboro, Ill., daughter of Homer and Ollie Winn Brown. She first married Ellis Felker, who died Dec. 26, 1954. She later married William E. "Bill" Smith Aug. 27, 1965, in Alton, Ill. He died Dec. 19, 2001...

MILL CREEK, Ill. -- Albert Lloyd Smithey, 59, of Mill Creek died Friday, July 26, 2002, at Union County Hospital. He was born Aug. 25, 1942, in Granite City, Ill., son of Albert L. and Ada E. Wilson Smithey. He and Nora M. Smiddy were married Dec. 23, 1962, in Corinth, Miss...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Opal C. Blackman, 81, of Sikeston died Friday, July 26, 2002, at her home. She was born Jan. 13, 1921, in Sikeston, daughter of Andrew Johnson and Matilda Taylor Crutchfield. She first married Bill Puckett in December 1945. He died April 12, 1963. She and M.L. "Windy" Blackman were married Jan. 20, 1968, at Sikeston...

JACKSON, Mo. -- Kenneth C. Miller, 63, of Jackson died Thursday, July 25, 2002, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. McCombs Funeral Home in Jackson is in charge of arrangements.

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Correan Dockery Hufstedler, 85, of Sikeston died Friday, July 26, 2002, at the Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston. She was born Dec. 23, 1916, in Conran, Mo., daughter of George Ebbin and Myrtle C. Thompson Dockery. She formerly was married to Arthur Lee Johnson. On March 22, 1940, in Hernando, Miss., she married S.D. "Dude" Hufstedler, who died Jan. 17, 1987...

Armstrong Daughter to Randall Richard and LeAndra Michelle Armstrong of Scott City, Mo., Southeast Missouri Hospital, 2:21 p.m. Wednesday, July 10, 2002. Name, Olivia Michelle. Weight, 6 pounds 8 ounces. Second child, first daughter. Mrs. Armstrong is the former LeAndra Walker, daughter of Kenneth and Connie Cassout of Scott City. ...

10 years ago: July 27, 1992 Jefferson City - Railroad grade-crossing accidents and fatalities continue to decline in Missouri, according to state railroad safety report; but number of fatalities due to trespassing on railroad property increased sharply last year and during first six months of 1992; in Missouri, 115 accidents were reported last year at public railroad grade crossings, resulting in 17 fatalities and 40 injuries...

Sunday Christmas in July service during morning worship at Maple United Methodist Church. The theme for the service is "Love Came Down at Christmas." The congregation will place offerings in the manger at the front of the sanctuary. All the offerings of school supplies will be donated to foster children in Cape Girardeau County...

Movie critique THE HYPE says "Road to Perdition" is the best movie so far this year. Certainly "K-19" is as good or better. Harrison Ford does an A-plus job in this flick. What makes this movie good is that it teaches your children courage. I heard one set of parents complaining that the movie theater wouldn't allow them to leave their kids to watch "Road to Perdition." This movie is a very violent flick. ...

To the editor: Lately I've noticed area sports teams pray for specific success. A few weeks ago, I overheard on victorious team say, "God blessed us with the win." Did that mean God was not blessing the other team? We pray "God bless America" in our war on terrorism. ...

To the editor: Remember the song, "Don't Worry, Be Happy"? A lot of folks are having a hard time singing this song in recent days. With the bad news from Wall Street and the rising cost of health care, many are at their wit's end. I hear the fears being expressed almost daily...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- About one in four registered Missouri voters are expected to cast a ballot in the Aug. 6 elections, Secretary of State Matt Blunt's office said Friday. Blunt's office said that statewide, 24 percent of voters are expected to go to the polls, which would be up from the 22.4 percent who cast ballots two years ago...

VALLEY PARK, Mo. -- A body believed to be that of a 6-year-old girl who vanished Friday morning was found in an abandoned glass factory in the afternoon, and police arrested a man who spent the night at her father's home where she was staying. St. Louis County Police Chief Ron Battelle said Johnny Johnson, 24, was arrested in connection with the killing. The chief described Johnson as "a local transient." He would not say if Johnson confessed, but said he was cooperating with police...

BOURG-EN-BRESSE, France -- Lance Armstrong doesn't have a rider threatening to cut into his lead in the final two stages of the Tour de France. He likes it that way. Armstrong finished 24th in Friday's 18th stage, 11 minutes, 42 seconds behind winner Thor Hushovd. The Texan maintained his 5:06 lead over Joseba Beloki after Friday's 18th stage and is a virtual lock to win his fourth straight Tour de France...

Ephedrine and creatine use among football players may be a factor in a surge of heatstroke deaths in the sport since 1995, according to an editorial published in a medical journal Friday. The article appears in the journal "Neurosurgery" and contends dietary supplements designed to enhance performance may have a significant impact on the body's ability to remain properly hydrated during stressful exercise in hot weather...

WASHINGTON -- A group suing Vice President Dick Cheney says it was rebuffed by the White House when it tried to provide legal notification to the vice president about the lawsuit. Judicial Watch said its process server was threatened with arrest by the Secret Service on Monday after the server telephoned the White House from one of the outside gates and was unable to find anyone who would accept a copy of the lawsuit...

WASHINGTON -- The Republican-led House voted Friday to create an enormous Homeland Security Department, the biggest government reorganization in decades. It grants President Bush broad personnel powers he insists are key to confronting an agile, cunning terrorist threat...

Investigation of suicide ends in murder charge GREENVILLE, Mo. -- A 41-year-old man was charged with murder Friday in the 4-year-old death of his brother, who had originally been thought to have died by suicide. Wayne County Prosecuting Attorney Jon Kiser charged Henry James Wilfong, 41, of Marble Hill Friday with the Class A felony of first-degree murder and the unclassified felony of armed criminal action...

Cape Girardeau Saturday, July 27 Firefighters responded to the following calls Thursday:At 5:52 p.m., an emergency medical service at 1140 N. Kingshighway. At 11:30 p.m., an emergency medical service at Capaha Park. Firefighters responded to the following calls Friday:At 6:32 a.m., an alarm sounding at 3265 William St...

Cape Girardeau Saturday, July 27 ArrestsDavid Lynn Kelly, 34, of Cassopolis, Mich., was arrested Thursday on a Cape Girardeau warrant for contempt of court. Kelly Dawn Smith, 35, of 813 S. Sprigg St. was arrested Thursday on a Cape Girardeau warrant for failure to appear in court...

Jeanna Martin's apology this week was too little and too late. Martin was the woman who left her family in Mississippi to go with a male friend -- who was on parole and not supposed to leave the state -- to pick up a car he bought in Hannibal, Mo. He was driving home in one car and she in another when her car had a flat, forcing her off Interstate 55 five miles north of Cape Girardeau. ...

The Cape Girardeau Public Schools Foundation's current effort to raise $600,000 for the new Central High School may confuse some who remember voting for an $18 million bond issue for that school just two years ago. But, as has been the case with the district time and again for the past few years, the request is a sign of fiscal responsibility, not poor planning. One need only look back over the chain of events since April 2000 to see that is the case...

Christians sometimes forget that their faith doesn't make them immune from mistakes. But making mistakes also means taking an opportunity to learn from them. Shane Rosenthal, a Cape Girardeau resident, is presenting a seminar on the top 10 mistakes Christians make. The free seminar will be held on Friday nights in August, beginning at 7 p.m. Aug. 2 at the Osage Community Centre...

Ray Haring of Cape Girardeau recently attended the national directors' seminar of the American Guild of English Handbell Ringers. Haring is director of handbell choirs at Grace United Methodist Church. The seminar was held in Des Moines, Iowa, and featured courses by directors, composers and publishers as well as concerts from handbell choirs around the country...

Bill Faris believes in hell, that frightful netherworld where the thermostat is always set on high, where sinners toil for eternity in unspeakable torment. But you'd never know it listening to him preach at his south Orange County, Calif., evangelical church. He never mentions the topic; his flock shows little interest in it...