Monday, January 24, 2005
Yushchenko is sworn in
KIEV, Ukraine -- In a ceremony rich with the symbols of historic Ukrainian independence, Viktor Yushchenko was sworn in as president Sunday and shortly afterward told a massive crowd of joyous supporters that his inauguration marked "a victory for freedom over tyranny." "The Ukrainian nation has risen," said Yushchenko in a short address after being sworn in. The ceremony was witnessed by seven presidents and the representatives of more than 30 other countries and international organizations, including U.S. Secretary of State Colin L. Powell. Russia, which had openly backed Yushchenko's opponent, former Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, sent a low-level delegation, headed by Sergei Mironov, head of the upper house of parliament. Yushchenko will visit Moscow today where he will meet with President Vladimir Putin.
hIncomplete sex change
OSKKOSH, Wis. -- Scott Konitzer, who now uses the name Donna Dawn, is suing state prison officials for not finishing a sex-change process he began five years ago. Konitzer had received state-paid hormone therapy at the Wisconsin Resource Center. He began serving a 123-year sentence in 1994 with the Wisconsin Department of Corrections for multiple armed robberies and for stabbing another inmate.
Flu shot limits lifted
ATLANTA -- States have begun dropping their restrictions on flu shots now that falling demand has led to surpluses, and some health officials want the federal government to take similar action. The federal government last month eased its restrictions, imposed when production problems in October cut the flu vaccine supply in half, and allowed shots for adults age 50 and older. Since then, at least 17 states have lifted all previous restrictions.
Study: Weight affectsaccuracy of prostate test
ATLANTA -- A new study suggests a man's weight may affect the accuracy of a common test to detect prostate cancer, leading researchers to warn that doctors could be missing the dangerous cancer in obese men. Researchers at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio studied 2,779 men without prostate cancer between 2001-04. In the study released online today in the journal Cancer, they reported finding that the more obese the men were, the lower their levels of prostate-specific antigen or PSA.
Kidnapping suspect held
CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- A convicted sex offender wanted suspected of kidnapping an 11-year-old boy from his school in Florida was arrested Sunday, two days after the boy was found safe. Frederick Fretz, 42, was arrested after police received a tip that a man resembling him was hitchhiking near Interstate 75 in Cartersville, about 40 miles north of Atlanta. He was being held at the Bartow County Jail, police said. Authorities in Marion County, Fla., said they had issued two warrants against Fretz, one for violation of parole and another for failure to register as a sex offender.
Combined dispatches