hJail escapees leave note of thanks to guard
hJail escapees leave note of thanks to guard
ELIZABETH, N.J. — Two jail inmates used photos of bikini-clad women to hide holes they used to escape and left behind a thank-you note, signed with a smiley face, for a guard they claimed helped them, officials said Monday. Jose Espinosa, 20, and Otis Blunt, 32, squeezed through the openings before dawn Saturday in a high-security unit of the Union County jail, jumped onto a rooftop below, and made it over a 25-foot-high fence topped with razor wire, authorities said. Authorities withheld the name of the officer the inmates said was involved. The note, found in Espinosa’s cell, read, “Thank you Officer ... for the tools needed. You’re a real pal. Happy holidays.” Authorities are investigating the claims. Police were still searching Tuesday for the two men. Espinosa was awaiting sentencing for manslaughter in a drive-by shooting, and Blunt is facing robbery and other charges in the shooting of a convenience store manager.
CIA tape probe begins
WASHINGTON — A federal judge in Washington ordered Tuesday a court hearing Friday to examine whether the CIA violated a judicial order by destroying videotapes showing harsh interrogation methods, rebuffing pleas from the Bush administration that he stay out of the matter while the executive branch’s own probe is under way. The Justice Department had told U.S. District Judge Henry H. Kennedy Jr. earlier that he had no jurisdiction to inquire into the destruction of the tapes. It separately told lawmakers on Capitol Hill last week to delay public hearings on the tapes’ destruction while the department’s National Security Division and the CIA inspector general’s office conducted their probe. Congress agreed not to hold hearings now, but Kennedy decided, without comment, to schedule the court hearing. The dispute centers on hundreds of hours of CIA videotape showing coercive interrogation tactics used on two senior al-Qaida suspects in 2002.
Senate OKs war funding
WASHINGTON — The Senate voted Tuesday to provide $70 billion for U.S. military efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan, handing a victory to President Bush and his GOP allies on Capitol Hill. The 70-25 roll call paved the way for the Senate to pass a $555 billion omnibus appropriations bill combining the war funding with the budgets for 14 Cabinet agencies. Bush was ready to sign the bill, assuming the war funding clears the House today. Democrats again failed to win votes to force removal of U.S. troops or set a nonbinding target to remove most troops by the end of next year. “Even those of us who have disagreed on this war have always agreed on one thing: Troops in the field will not be left without the resources they need,” said Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.
NASA pinpoints problem
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA on Tuesday traced fuel gauge failures in shuttle Atlantis’ tank to a bad connector, and a top manager said he did not know how long it would take to replace the part or when the spaceship might fly. The erratic shuttle fuel gauges — part of a critical safety system — forced back-to-back launch delays this month. Until Tuesday’s tanking test, NASA had been aiming for a Jan. 10 liftoff of Atlantis with a European space station lab.
Derailment in Pakistan
MIRPURKHAS, Pakistan — An express train crowded with holiday travelers derailed in southern Pakistan early Wednesday, killing at least 50 people and injuring many more, officials said. The overnight train was going from Karachi to Lahore when about 12 of its 16 cars came off the rails near Mehrabpur, about 250 miles north of Karachi, the officials said. Rescue workers recovered 50 bodies from the wreckage and were bringing in metal cutting equipment to gain access to more of the cars, said Sikander Ali, a senior police officer at the scene.
Grand piano gets $23,000
LONDON — A white grand piano used by Frank Sinatra sold for more than four times its estimated value Tuesday as London’s famous Savoy Hotel began selling its furniture before a massive restoration, auctioneers said. The piano sold for $23,000 on the first day of a three-day auction to sell the hotel’s contents before a $202 million restoration, auctioneers Bonhams said.
Combined dispatches