'AMERICAN IDOL' SAYS SAYONARA TO SANJAYA

'American Idol' sayssayonara to Sanjaya
NEW YORK -- Sanjaya Malakar, the under-talented but unflappable singer who horrified and captivated millions in his improbable "American Idol" run, was finally voted off the show Wednesday night. When the result was announced, Malakar wiped away tears and got a big hug from LaKisha Jones, the next lowest vote-getter. "I'm fine," he told Ryan Seacrest. "It was an amazing experience." "I can promise you: We won't soon forget you," Seacrest replied. Malakar then performed for the TV audience one last time, singing "Something To Talk About." Known for his toothy grin, pretty face and ever-changing hairstyles, Malakar was routinely savaged by judge Simon Cowell as he developed into one of the weakest, most awkward "Idol" finalists ever. Still, the gangly teen managed to outlast better singers by cultivating an unlikely fan base that helped him survive round after round of viewer elimination.
Officers subdue student
GAHANNA, Ohio -- Students at two schools were locked in their classrooms for about 30 minutes Wednesday while officers subdued a student who held a knife in a school office, police said. A police officer used a stun gun to incapacitate the 18-year-old student, who was then disarmed, said police Lt. Dan Williams. No injuries were reported. School officials in this Columbus suburb placed Lincoln High School under lockdown around 9:45 a.m. after the student entered the front office with a fixed-blade knife and made verbal threats toward himself and general, vague threats against other students, Williams said. Neighboring Lincoln Elementary was locked down as a precaution. As a staff member in the high school office was calling 911, two police officers assigned to the school happened to arrive in the office on another matter and subdued the student, Williams said.
Crews search for miners
BARTON, Md. -- Crews moved thousands of tons of rock Wednesday in a bid to find two men trapped for more than a day under at least 40 feet of rubble at a surface coal mine. Part of one high wall of the open pit collapsed Tuesday morning, burying the men as they operated machinery, said Bob Cornett, acting district manager for the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration. The search for the men was still considered a rescue operation, but as time passes the chances of survival dim, Cornett said. The wall at the Tri-Star Job No. 3 mine near Barton was 100 to 125 feet high. Its collapse created a layer of rocks that ranged from 40-feet to 100-feet deep, but rescuers believe the collapse pushed the men and their equipment toward the shallower end. "There are some very large rocks on that side that you can see gaps, spaces, vacuums or holes that potentially, if the machinery was pushed that way, there could be air pockets," Cornett said.
Focus in Corzine crashshifts to state trooper
TRENTON, N.J. -- It was an ominous tale -- an erratic driver in a red pickup racing wildly along the nation's busiest toll road sends the governor's sport utility vehicle careening into a guard rail. But that story, relayed hours after Gov. Jon S. Corzine was critically injured, has been debunked by a new state police report detailing how his driver was dashing with emergency lights flashing at 91 mph in a 65 mph zone. The alleged erratic driver wasn't a villain but a young man trying to get out of the way of the governor's onrushing SUV. Corzine's driver, State Trooper Robert Rasinski, 34, has also come under scrutiny for allowing the governor to ride without a seat belt, a violation of state law. Corzine remained in critical condition on a ventilator Wednesday with 11 broken ribs and a severely broken leg. State Police Superintendent Col. Rick Fuentes defended his initial praise of the trooper, whom he said "should be commended for his valiant attempt to avoid this catastrophe" immediately after last week's accident. "In some respects you have the fog of war there in the beginning," Fuentes said.
U.N. nuclear watchdog:Iran enriching uranium gas
VIENNA, Austria -- Iran is delivering small amounts of uranium gas to centrifuges that can enrich it to weapons-grade level and is running more than 1,300 centrifuge machines, according to an International Atomic Energy Agency document obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press. The confidential document -- a letter to Iranian officials from a senior staff member at the International Atomic Energy Agency -- also protests an Iranian decision to prevent agency inspectors from visiting the country's heavy water facility that, when built, will produce plutonium.
Associated Press