Tenn. official wants teen to be tried as adult

Tenn. official wants teento be tried as adult
JACKSBORO, Tenn. -- A 15-year-old accused of shooting an assistant principal to death and wounding two other administrators should be tried as an adult, the district attorney said Wednesday, adding that the victims performed heroically to keep the shootings from becoming even worse. Ken Bartley Jr. was being held without bond in a juvenile detention facility in Knoxville and could have an initial court appearance in the next few days. A judge ultimately will decide whether he should be tried as a juvenile or an adult. Authorities said the shooting Tuesday at the 1,400-student Campbell County Comprehensive High School began after Bartley, a freshman, was called to the office because other students had seen him with a gun on campus. When Principal Gary Seale and Assistant Principals Jim Pierce and Ken Bruce began questioning the boy, he allegedly opened fire. The administrators and an unidentified teacher wrestled the .22-caliber pistol from him. Bruce, 48, was shot in the chest and died at a hospital. Seale, 55, was shot in the lower abdomen and Pierce, 56, was hit in the chest.
Changes in Patriot Act?
WASHINGTON -- Congress is moving to curb some of the police powers it gave the Bush administration after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, including imposing new restrictions on the FBI's access to private phone and financial records. A budding House-Senate deal on the expiring USA Patriot Act includes new limits on federal law enforcement powers and rejects the Bush administration's request to grant the FBI greater authority to subpoena records without a judge's approval. Even with the changes, however, every part of the law set to expire Dec. 31 would be reauthorized and most of those provisions would become permanent. Under the agreement, for the first time since the act became law, judges would get the authority to reject national security letters giving the government secret access to people's phone and e-mail records, financial data and favorite Internet sites.
Mich. attorney generalacknowledges an affair
LANSING, Mich. -- Attorney General Mike Cox tearfully acknowledged Wednesday having an extramarital affair years ago and accused a political rival of threatening to expose the indiscretion. Cox alleged the threat began with an associate of Geoffrey Fieger, an attorney who became famous for representing assisted suicide advocate Jack Kevorkian. Fieger plans to challenge Cox in the 2006 election. "What I did was inexcusable," Cox said in prepared remarks. Cox, 43, fought back tears as he spoke at a news conference in Detroit. His wife, Laura, stood by his side and also wept. Cox said he came clean publicly because a Fieger associate threatened to expose the affair if Cox did not stop investigating Fieger for alleged campaign-finance violations.
Brown off FEMA's payroll
WASHINGTON -- Former FEMA chief Michael Brown is no longer on the agency's payroll, the Homeland Security Department said Wednesday, ending nearly two months of compensation after he resigned under fire. Brown stepped down as director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency on Sept. 12 in the wake of the government's sluggish reaction to Hurricane Katrina and questions about his own disaster response experience. He remained on the FEMA payroll until Nov. 2, said Homeland Security spokesman Russ Knocke.
Saddam's defense request
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- The defense team in Saddam Hussein's trial said Wednesday it will not show up for the next session Nov. 28 unless the court accepts its demands for "neutral international intervention" to guarantee security. The declaration came a day after the assassination of a second defense lawyer in the trial, already threatened by the insurgency and questions about legal standards. Adel al-Zubeidi, lawyer for former Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan, was killed by gunmen in Baghdad and another attorney was wounded. Khalil al-Dulaimi, head of the defense team, told reporters the U.S.-led coalition and the Iraqi government bear some responsibility for the assassinations because they have been unable to maintain order in a country wracked by insurgency -- much of it fomented by Saddam's supporters.
Worry over Aruba boycott
ORANJESTAD, Aruba -- Aruban officials have appealed to the State Department and the Netherlands for help against a call for a tourist boycott of the Dutch Caribbean island over complaints the investigation into the disappearance of an Alabama teenager was mishandled. Tourism Minister Edison Briesen said Wednesday that it's too early to determine whether a call by Alabama Gov. Bob Riley to boycott the island due to the handling of the Natalee Holloway case has led to any cancellations.
Associated Press
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