Nation briefs 6/16/03

Four dead in crash of plane near Pittsburgh

JEANNETTE, Pa. -- A skydiving plane crashed Sunday as it was taking off from a small western Pennsylvania airport, killing four of the five men aboard, authorities said.

The survivor was found 10 to 15 feet from the plane, but the extent of his injuries was not immediately known, said Ron Supancic, chief of the Claridge Volunteer Fire Department.

"He had to be ejected from the plane, that's all we can figure," Supancic said.

Authorities said the injured man was taken to Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh, but hospital officials would not confirm he was there.

The Cessna 205, built in 1963 and designed for up to five passengers, crashed about 1:15 p.m. at Greensburg-Jeannette Regional Airport, Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Arlene Salac said. She said the plane was being used for a skydiving operation and four people were dead.

Authorities said the Cessna had taken a skydiving flight earlier in the day and was on its second flight when it crashed.

Coroner Kenneth A. Bacha said witnesses heard the plane's engine sputter and cut out before the crash.

Study: Nearly 1,000 marine mammals die daily

Nearly 1,000 whales, dolphins and porpoises drown every day after becoming tangled in fishing nets and other equipment, scientists say in what appears to be the first global estimate of the problem.

Annually, the researchers said 308,000 of the marine mammals die unintentionally in fishermen's hauls.

There are more than 80 species collectively known as cetaceans, or fishlike sea mammals. They range from porpoises weighing 100 pounds to the blue whale, the world's largest creature at more than 120 tons. Many species are near extinction because of centuries of overhunting.

The new study, conducted by American and Scottish biologists, suggests that accidental captures, known as "bycatch" in the industry, may be the biggest immediate threat to these animals' survival -- more than ship collisions and pollution.

The report was released by World Wildlife Fund, a Washington-based advocacy group, as governments gather in Berlin for the 55th annual International Whaling Commission meeting that begins today.

Scott Peterson fetches loads of letters in jail

MODESTO, Calif. -- Scott Peterson, charged with murdering his pregnant wife and their unborn child, is receiving stacks of letters in jail, many of them from women, a newspaper reported Sunday.

A fellow inmate told the Modesto Bee that Peterson's correspondents include a woman serving time for murdering her husband. A guard read the letter aloud, inmate Chris Young said.

Peterson has pleaded innocent to double-murder charges that make him eligible for the death penalty if convicted.

Late last week, a judge issued a gag order barring lawyers, witnesses and police officers from publicly discussing details of the case. Judge Al Girolami said the gag order was the only way to stop leaks and rumors from derailing Scott Peterson's right to a fair trial.

Stanislaus County sheriff's Deputy Tom Letras confirmed that Peterson gets more mail than most inmates, but would not elaborate.

Bomb scare delays Mass in New York

NEW YORK -- A bomb threat delayed Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral on Sunday while police searched for an explosive device, a spokesman for the Archdiocese of New York said.

No explosives were found, said the spokesman, Joseph Zwilling.

An unidentified man called the rectory at about 9:30 a.m. and said he had attended the 8 a.m. Mass and had left a bomb inside, Zwilling said. Police emptied the cathedral and brought in search dogs, but found no explosives, Zwilling said. Worshippers were allowed back into the cathedral by 11 a.m., the spokesman said. Cardinal Edward Egan was headed to another New York church at the time.-- From wire reports