Man kills two children, grandmother in Canton

Man kills two children, grandmother in Canton

CANTON — The father of two young children was arrested Monday and charged with their stabbing deaths and the shooting death of their grandmother.

Police Chief Dean McKimm in Canton said James Mammone III, 35, has been charged with three counts of aggravated murder and one count of aggravated burglary.

The chief said the suspect is divorced and had picked up the children Sunday afternoon for a visit. Shortly before 6 a.m. Monday, police responded to a call that shots were fired.

The suspect’s former mother-in-law, 57-year-old Margaret Eakin of Canton, was found shot to death in the upstairs bedroom of her home.

Neighbors who heard the shooting described seeing a car that matched one driven by James Mammone.

Ohio Turnpike to accept credit-card payments

CLEVELAND — That scramble for cash and loose change as you approach an exit on the Ohio Turnpike may be coming to an end.

The 241-mile turnpike plans to allow drivers to pay by credit and debit cards by year’s end.

The turnpike is also implementing E-Z Pass electronic tolling, which allows drivers to cruise through exits as a radio transponder automatically deducts tolls from a driver’s account.

While most states in the Northeast already offer electronic tolling, Ohio will be one of the first in the country to accept credit cards at attended toll booths as well as at machines.

Electronic tolling began in other states in 1993, but the Ohio Turnpike Commission waited to install the $50 million system until the current one needed to be replaced.

Global arms spending rises despite economic woes

STOCKHOLM — World governments spent a record $1.46 trillion on upgrading their armed forces last year despite the economic downturn, with China climbing to second place behind top military spender the United States, a Swedish research group said Monday.

Global military spending was 4 percent higher than in 2007 and up 45 percent from a decade ago, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, or SIPRI, said in its annual report.

“So far, the global arms industry, booming from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and from spending increases by many developing countries, has shown few signs of suffering from the crisis,” SIPRI said.

Investigators: Woman cut open, infant taken

HILLSBORO, Ore. — A pregnant 21-year-old newcomer to Oregon who was found dead in a crawl space of a home had been cut open and her baby taken from her womb, investigators said Monday.

It couldn’t be determined if the infant son of Heather Snively died before or after he was removed, the Washington County sheriff’s department said in a statement.

A 27-year-old Beaverton woman, Korena Roberts, was to be arraigned Monday on a murder charge in Snively’s death.

Investigators have said Roberts claimed Snively’s infant was her own. Police were called to the home Friday because a newborn wasn’t breathing. Doctors were unable to revive him and told officers that Roberts had not given birth. Police then found Snively’s body at Roberts’ home.

Man ordered to face charge of threatening Obama

LAS VEGAS — A federal judge in Las Vegas has ordered a man to be transferred to Utah to face a charge of threatening President Barack Obama, even as the man’s defense attorney and family pleaded that the suspect get mental health treatment.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert Johnston said Monday that while 36-year-old Daniel James Murray’s “mental health status seems to be severely compromised,” the former employee at an armored car company was a threat to the community and a flight risk.

Murray’s court-appointed lawyer had argued that Murray was mentally ill and did not pose as serious a threat as prosecutors had alleged.

Murray, who was arrested Friday outside a casino in Laughlin, was not asked to enter a plea to the charge of threats against the president. The charge carries a possible sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Associated Press