Lawyers for last of Angola 3 push for immediate release

Lawyers for last of Angola 3 push for immediate release

NEW ORLEANS

Lawyers for the last of the Angola Three still behind bars are arguing for his immediate release, saying he poses no flight risk and needs urgent medical care.

The attorneys for Albert Woodfox filed papers Wednesday opposing the state of Louisiana’s efforts to keep him behind bars.

A judge Monday ordered Woodfox’s immediate release, but the state won an emergency stay to keep him behind bars while the two sides argue the matter before an appeals court.

The Angola Three is a group of inmates made famous by their extensive stays in isolation at the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola.

Woodfox was accused in 1972 of killing a guard, but courts have overturned his two convictions in the case. The state maintains he’s guilty and wants to retry him.

Engineer wasn’t talking or texting before crash

WASHINGTON

The engineer in last month’s fatal Amtrak crash wasn’t using his cellphone to talk, text or download anything just before the train sped off the tracks, investigators said Wednesday, addressing one big question about what might have caused the accident but only deepening the mystery of what did.

Eight people were killed and about 200 were injured in the crash in Philadelphia. For reasons still unknown, the train accelerated to 106 miles per hour in the minute before it entered a curve where the speed limit is 50, investigators have said previously.

In its updated report Wednesday, the National Transportation Safety Board said an examination of the cellphone of the engineer, Brandon Bostian, also indicated he didn’t access the train’s Wi-Fi system while he was operating the locomotive.

Police thwart attack in Luxor, Egypt

LUXOR, Egypt

Militants tried to attack the ancient temple of Karnak in southern Egypt on Wednesday, with a suicide bomber blowing himself up and two gunmen battling police. No sightseers were hurt in the thwarted assault, but it suggested that Islamic extremists are shifting targets from security forces to the country’s vital tourism industry. The violence left the bomber and one gunman dead, the other wounded and arrested, and four other people wounded. The temple was not damaged.

NYC Health Dept. proposes sodium warning on menus

NEW YORK

New York City’s Health Department wants all chain restaurants to warn customers about products that are high in salt.

The department voted on Wednesday to consider the proposal at a meeting of the Board of Health that all chain restaurants add a salt-shaker-like symbol on menus next to products that contain more than the recommended daily limit. That’s 2,300 milligrams of sodium, about 1 teaspoon of salt.

Now a public comment period begins, and a final vote could come as soon as September and the warnings by December.

Australian leader: Terrorism is biggest security challenge

SYDNEY

Australia’s prime minister has told an Asia-Pacific regional conference that terrorism is a modern form of treason and the region’s greatest security challenge.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott gave an opening address on Thursday to delegates from about 30 countries attending a conference in Sydney on countering terrorism propaganda and enhancing regional cooperation.

Associated Press