Ariz. man accused of shooting officer is killed by police

Ariz. man accused of shooting officer is killed by police

A man accused of killing a police officer and holing up in an Arizona cabin with a teenage girl believed to have been a hostage was shot dead Wednesday by officers after the gunman opened fire, authorities said.

The shooting of Daniel Erickson, 36, came after he pulled a gun Tuesday and shot Officer Darrin Reed of the Show Low Police Department when Reed was responding to a disturbance at a restaurant, the department said in a statement.

It was unclear whether Reed was shot inside or outside the restaurant in the town of about 10,000 people in Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest.

Official: Hot bulb sparked massive New York fire

LACKAWANNA, N.Y.

More than 100 firefighters struggled to contain a massive blaze at a former Bethlehem Steel site that is believed to have broken out early Wednesday when a hot light bulb fell onto cardboard inside a business, authorities said.

Fred Heinle, the director of development for the city of Lackawanna, told reporters the fire started early Wednesday when the bulb fell on some combustibles inside a sprawling building that houses several businesses at the industrial site just south of Buffalo.

Authorities said later that the official cause was still under investigation.

No injuries were reported.

Police: Ohio officer shoots, kills suspect in armed robbery

ASHTABULA

Authorities say an Ohio police officer shot and killed a robbery suspect as he drove off after running over the officer’s foot and dragging another officer with his vehicle.

The shooting occurred Tuesday in Ashtabula. Authorities haven’t identified the suspect. The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation is investigating.

An Ohio Attorney General’s Office spokeswoman said Wednesday a plastic Airsoft-type pellet gun and a bag with cash from the video store robbery were found in the suspect’s vehicle.

Stell says the three officers have been placed on administrative leave.

Marine jets collide off San Diego coast

SAN DIEGO

One pilot ejected safely after a Wednesday morning midair collision between two jets over water near Miramar Marine Corps Air Station, while the second aviator was able to land safely, Marine officials said.

Search and rescue teams received a mayday call, and sailors from the aircraft carrier Carl Vinson recovered the unnamed Marine pilot 30 minutes later, according to a Marine Corps news release.

The second unnamed pilot landed safely at the North Island Naval Air Station in Coronado.

Both pilots are in stable condition and are in an undisclosed medical facility.

Comedian accused of abusing power as mayor is acquitted

HILLSBORO

A veteran standup comedian accused of abusing his power as mayor of a small Ohio city has been acquitted of all counts.

A Highland County jury on Wednesday found Hillsboro Mayor Drew Hastings not guilty of a charge of election falsification concerning his residency and of a charge stemming from alleged misuse of city trash bins.

Judge Patricia Ann Cosgrove earlier threw out the two other felony counts that Hastings faced.

Associated Press