Aftermath of storms

Aftermath of storms
RIEGELWOOD, N.C. -- Survivors picked through the rubble of their flattened homes Friday after a tornado killed eight people in this riverside town, the area hardest hit by a devastating storm system that later swept through the Northeast. Gov. Mike Easley toured the devastated area as disaster assessment teams surveyed what was left of a mobile home park and several brick homes that were flattened by the storm. More than half of the 20 people injured when the tornado struck Riegelwood remained hospitalized Friday, including four children Easley said were in "very, very critical condition." The governor declared a state disaster in Columbus County, allowing those affected by the storm to apply for state aid. The deadly storms left a three-day path of destruction from Louisiana to Maine, killing 12 people, knocking out power and flooding streets.
Woman found guilty
SANTA ANA, Calif. -- A woman accused of helping her husband and several accomplices kill a wealthy couple for their yacht was found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder Friday. Jennifer Deleon, 25, was convicted in the Nov. 15, 2004, deaths of Tom Hawks, a retired probation officer, and his 47-year-old wife, Jackie, who according to testimony were tied to an anchor and thrown overboard. She was also convicted of murder for financial gain. The prosecution said Deleon, a mother of two, helped her husband Skylar Deleon gain the trust of the Hawkses before the killings by bringing her baby on a visit, helped cover up the murders and lied to investigators. Her defense attorney, Michael Molfetta, had argued that Deleon was a manipulated wife who was terrified of her husband and didn't know of his plans to kill the Hawkses until after they were dead. "I guarantee you this was Skylar's idea, and I think the jury reasoned, probably, he just talked her into it," Molfetta said Friday. Because prosecutors decided not to seek the death penalty, Jennifer Deleon will face the possibility of life in prison without parole.
Texas teen sentenced
HOUSTON -- A teenager described as a white supremacist was sentenced Friday to life in prison for savagely beating and sodomizing a Hispanic boy at a drug-fueled party. David Henry Tuck, 18, was convicted Thursday of aggravated sexual assault in the near-fatal attack. Witnesses testified that he hurled racial insults and shouted "white power" while sodomizing the 17-year-old victim with the plastic pole of a patio umbrella. Prosecutor Mike Trent told the jury that Tuck's history of violence showed he is beyond rehabilitation and would commit more attacks if released. "He is an evil person, and he is not going to change or get better," Trent said. "We need protection from him. You are the only ones that provide that. Even if you give him life in prison, it will be more mercy than he showed to [the victim] that night," Trent said.
Closer to unity deal
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip -- Palestinian negotiators said Friday a hoped-for deal this week on a unity government could be delayed by difficulties in working out a parallel prisoner swap with Israel. The Palestinian president and premier, heading the rival Fatah and Hamas factions, have been trying to wrap up the deal in an effort to end the economic sanctions and pave the way for a resumption of long-frozen talks with Israel. The negotiations have been dragging on for months. Israel and Western donor nations imposed the sanctions on the Palestinian government after Hamas won legislative elections earlier this year. Despite widespread hardship caused by the sanctions, Hamas has rejected international calls to renounce violence, recognize Israel or accept past peace agreements.
Associated Press
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.