Utah family tries to make sense of man’s cave death

Utah family tries to make sense of man’s cave death

SALT LAKE CITY — The brother of a man who died early Thursday trapped 700-feet inside a Utah cave said his family is remarkably strong but struggles to make sense of what happened.

John Jones, 26, of Stansbury Park, died nearly 28 hours after he became stuck upside-down in Nutty Putty Cave, a popular spelunking site about 80 miles south of Salt Lake City.

His death is the first known fatality at the cave, according to the Utah County sheriff’s office.

“We all were very optimistic and hopeful. But it became increasingly clear last night after he got re-stuck that there weren’t very many options left,” Jones’ brother, Spencer Jones, 30, of San Francisco, told The Associated Press.

Workers at one point had freed John Jones, but a rope and pulley system failed and he became stuck a second time.

Misconduct alleged in Blackwater case

WASHINGTON — Defense lawyers are alleging misconduct by Justice Department prosecutors in the case against one of five Blackwater security guards accused in the killings of 17 Iraqis in Baghdad.

Recent pretrial proceedings that took place behind closed doors led the Justice Department to seek dismissal of charges against Nicholas Slatten of Sparta, Tenn., one of the five guards accused in the shootings in busy Nisoor Square in September 2007.

In a one-paragraph filing a week ago, the department disclosed that it wants to preserve the possibility of filing a new set of charges against Slatten.

On Wednesday, Slatten’s lawyers said in court papers they want to stop the Justice Department from doing so and that the issue should be aired in a public court hearing.

The recent secret hearings focused on whether statements some of the guards gave to the State Department after the killings in Baghdad under a grant of immunity tainted the government’s subsequent criminal case. U.S. District Judge Ricardo Urbina has yet to rule.

Honduran court: Zelaya shouldn’t be restored

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — The Honduran Supreme Court recommended Thursday that lawmakers vote against restoring ousted President Manuel Zelaya, another blow for his quickly fading chances of returning to power.

The Supreme Court submitted its opinion six days before Congress is scheduled to vote on Zelaya’s fate as part of a U.S.-brokered agreement to end the political crisis over a June coup.

The justices concluded that Zelaya should not be restored to the presidency because he has criminal charges pending against him, Supreme Court spokesman Danilo Izaguirre said.

Zelaya, who has been holed up in the Brazilian Embassy since sneaking back into the country from his forced exile Sept. 21, has declared the U.S.-backed pact a failure.

Concerned about pirates

JOHANNESBURG — A bloody pirate attack off Benin’s coast is raising concerns that Nigerian pirates — operating on the opposite side of Africa from Somali pirates — are extending their reach and shows that the waters off West Africa are almost equally dangerous, a maritime expert said.

Pirates attacked an oil tanker Tuesday, killing a Ukrainian sailor and wounding at least two crew members on the Liberian-flagged Cancale Star, said Benin’s naval chief, Maxime Ahoyo. He said the tanker had 24 crew members, mostly Ukrainian and that some pirates were from neighboring Nigeria. They did not gain control of the ship, Ahoyo said.

The ship’s Hamburg, Germany-based owner, Chemikalien Seetransport, said the crew captured one of the alleged pirates and turned him over to authorities in the port of Cotonou in Benin.

A mix of poverty, politics and easy cash have made Nigeria and Somalia almost equally dangerous for shipping.

Invading camels to be shot

ALICE SPRINGS, Australia — Australian authorities plan to corral about 6,000 wild camels with helicopters and gun them down after they overran a small Outback town in search of water, trampling fences, smashing tanks and contaminating supplies.

The Northern Territory government announced its plan Wednesday for Docker River, a town of 350 residents where thirsty camels have been arriving daily for weeks because of drought conditions in the region.

The camels have smashed water tanks, approached houses to try to take water from air conditioning units, and knocked down fencing at the small airport runway, said local government minister Rob Knight.

Associated Press