[HEADLINES]
[TALENT=Kimberly]
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
The man accused of murdering a Roanoke Hooters waitress appears in court this morning.
Coming up, we'll have more information about suspect Christopher Haynes and what prosecutors believe led up to the murder of Tina Foster.
(----------------)
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
And the results are in from a state police investigation into Governor Gilmore's "No Car Tax" political action committee.
(/////////////)
[TALENT=Jacey]
[SS=None]
This is our last day of record high temperatures... as colder air moves in. The weekend forecast is ahead.
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[SS=None]
News 7 at noon, coming up right after the break.
[Video-Open]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=noon]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=none]
[ROLL COLD OUT OF OPEN]
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Our preliminary investigation]
((OUR PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION IS MR. HAYNES MET TINA FOSTER FOR THE FIRST TIME....))
[RUNS=09]
[OUT Q=for the first time....]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
The prosecutor provides the first details of what led to the arrest of Army Specialist Christopher Haynes in the death of a waitress from a local Hooster's Restaurant.
(------------)
[Foster]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=12]
[WRITER=khu]
[TAPE#=00-51]
[GRAPHIC=Haynes]
Haynes was arraigned today on a single count of first degree murder.
He is being held without bond in the city jail.
[2-shot]
Keith Humphry was in court this morning for the arraignment.
[ANCHOR=Keith]
[SUPER=@Keith1;]
That's right, Kim.
Haynes' court appearance lasted barely 60 seconds. What's interesting is what we've learned since.
(------------)
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=26 year old]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke]
[SUPER=01-Donald Caldwell/Prosecutor; :25]
[RUNS=:31]
[OUT Q=contact was made.]
(( Twenty six year old Christopher Charles Haynes was still wearing Army fatigues and combat boots in court- -less than 24 hours after his arrest at Fort Picket.
The prosecutor says Haynes was part of a three- man Army detail dispatched to Roanoke for a funeral on January 29th.
The three stopped at Hooters for lunch and met Tina Foster.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=At least based]
((AT LEAST BASED ON HIS STATEMENTS, THEY EXCHANGED PHONE NUMBERS AT THAT TIME, AND THAT WAS WHERE THE CONTACT WAS MADE. ))
[RUNS=10]
[OUT Q=contact was made.]))
(-------------)
[ANCHOR=Keith]
[SS=HOLD]
Haynes apparently returned to Fort Lee with the other two soldiers.
According to Caldwell, Haynes turned right around and returned to Roanoke, where he'd arranged to meet Foster that night in the parking lot at Hooters.
What Caldwell says he does not know- -at this point- -is what brought Haynes to the point where he allegedly beat her to death.
He did tell us what led to Haynes' arrest. Haynes had been to Hooters in Chesterfield County- -near Richmond- -trying to set up photo shoots with Hooters' waitresses there. One of the waitresses remembered an article she'd read Tuesday in the Richmond paper about a Hooters waitress who'd been killed after agreeing to meet a photographer.
[2-shot]
Kim, there's a lot of evidence- -uniforms seized from Haynes' Army quarters at Fort Lee- -statements from witnesses- -that has to be examined.
So there's more to come, perhaps additional charges.
[Thomas]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=noon]
[WRITER=mjo]
[TAPE#=00-49 TC1:17:35]
[GRAPHIC=Jeff Thomas]
The trial for the man accused of murdering Radford teen Tara Munsey begins in one week.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Pulaski;]
Jeffrey Allen Thomas will stand trial on capital murder charges... starting with jury selection next Friday.
His attorneys want the trial moved, saying there's been too much publicity.
But the judge says he'll try to seat a jury first.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 3:43 - :47]
[IN Q=Do you think]
((MARYA JONES/NEWS7: DO YOU THINK YOU CAN GET AN UNBIASED JURY HERE IN PULASKI COUNTY? JEFF THOMAS: WHAT DO YOU THINK?))
[RUNS=:04]
[OUT Q=what do you think?]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
16-year-old Tara Munsey's body was found just miles from the Taco Bell where she worked. She had been shot in the head and chest.
140 potential jurors have been called to show up next Friday.
(------------)
[Gilmore]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Noon]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=Gilmore]
Governor Gilmore's "No Car Tax" political action committee is off the hook--
A state police investigation into allegations of illegal eavesdropping by the PAC has NOT turned up any evidence of criminal wrongdoing.
A Republican Senator from Virginia Beach, Kenneth Stolle, requested the probe after his office was swamped by calls from constituents regarding the car tax issue.
Stolle said aides became suspicious when they heard sounds on the phone line NOT made by the consituent.
Based on their investigation, state police say there's no reason to refer the case to a commonwealth's attorney.[Gi
les-Murder]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=noon]
[WRITER=ssm]
[TAPE#=00-55 TC1:08:35]
[GRAPHIC=Murder Invest.]
Authorities are still looking for information in the murder of a Campbell County convenience store owner last fall.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Campbell Co./October 26]
76- year- old Melvin Giles was shot to death October 26th during an apparent robbery at his store on Route 460.
Sheriff Robert Maxey had called the regional homicide squad back together this week to track down leads in the case.
But the squad disbanded yesterday, and Maxey says his department is no closer to making an arrest.
Giles' family and store owners in the area are offering 11- thousand dollars in reward money for help in solving the case.
(XXXXXXXXX)
[WIPE TO CRIMESTOPPERS FULL SCREEN]
Anyone with information can call Crimestoppers at 1-888-798-5900.
(------------)
[SWVA-Recession]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=12]
[WRITER=jmi]
[TAPE#=01-06]
[GRAPHIC=none]
Hundreds of cutbacks at the area's largest employers are prompting many to ask if Southwest
Virginia is headed for a recession.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
In the last year, Norfolk Southern Cut 718 Roanoke employees.
150 went at Lynchburg's Crown Simplimatic.
Bassett Furniture Cut 228 people.
V-F Imagewear severed 186.
And e-Toys will layoff 195 workers by April.
One economist says this isn't a recession. It's simply a hard landing after months of a booming economy.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Six months ago]
((DR. LARRY LYNCH/ROANOKE COLLEGE: SIX MONTHS AGO, PEOPLE WERE GOING IN ASKING WHAT KIND OF STOCK OPTION CAN I GET, WHAT LEXUS ARE YOU GOING TO PROVIDE ME WITH FOR A COMPANY CAR? NOW PEOPLE ARE GOING IN SAYING, WHAT WILL MY SALARY BE, WILL I HAVE A JOB SIX MONTHS FROM NOW?))
[SUPER=01-Dr. Larry Lynch/Roanoke College]
[RUNS=17]
[OUT Q=months from now.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
Lynch says the proof is in the numbers.
Roanoke's rate fell to 1 point four percent.
Danville's dropped to two point nine.
And the entire state's rate fell to just under two percent.
(------------)
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[ss=none]
Tonight on News 7 at Six -- the same economist explains why a psychologist may be a better expert on the future of the economy.
[India]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=noon]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=none]
In India, the situation keeps getting worse--
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Bhuj, India;]
Two weeks after an earthquake devastated the country, more than a million people are homeless.
Thousands are living in makeshift homes, without adequate shelter from chilly night-time weather.
There are not enough tents to go around and distribution is slow.
Sanitation is also poor--
People are having to go to an underground tank to draw untreated water.
Officials say the death toll from the earthquake and its after math could go as high as 30- thousand.
(------------)
[Israel]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Noon]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=none]
After losing his re- election bid by a landslide, former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak has reportedly turned down a job offer from his successor.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Jerusalem, Israel;]
Barak met with Prime Minister-Elect Ariel Sharon today.
Sharon offered Barak the position of Defense Minister.
But Israeli radio reports that Barak responded by saying he would stay out of politics for a while.
(---------------)
[ANCHOR=KIMBERLY]
[GRAPHIC=none]
Meanwhile, Sharon has also spoken over the phone with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.
Arafat says he is interested in resuming peace
talks with Israel.
Sharon says he wants to first see an end to the fighting.[Mill-Mountain]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=noon]
[WRITER=jja]
[TAPE#=01-04 TC14:51]
[GRAPHIC=Fire]
A downtown Roanoke coffee shop is closed today because of fire damage.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke]
Fire broke out at Mill Mountain Coffee and Tea- on Campbell Avenue at about ten last night.
Smoke could be seen coming from the top of the building-
The fire people inside were forced out.
The call first came in that a coffee roaster had overheated- People at the scene said it smelled like burned coffee.
Firefighters brought the fire under control- No word on when the coffee shop will reopen.
(------------)
[Roanoke-Fire]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=noon]
[WRITER=dse]
[TAPE#=00-48 TC1:36:42]
[GRAPHIC=wipe wipe wipe]
[WIPE WIPE WIPE WIPE]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke]
Fire broke out at a home on Dakota Avenue around 8:30 last night.
No one was home at the time and no firefighters were hurt.
Investigators think the fire started in the basement.
Firefighters rescued a dog from the home.
(------------)
[11Campbell-FIre]
[ANCHOR=]
[NEWSCAST=noon]
[WRITER=jmi]
[TAPE#=01-08 TC 9:20]
[GRAPHIC=Fire]
Smoke began pouring out of a Roanoke apartment house yesterday afternoon.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke]
Firefighters responded to a call on Campbell Avenue.
The cause of the fire has not been determined.
Neighbors who saw the smoke called 9-1-1.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Well, I was out]
((GLORIA STINNETT/NEIGHBOR: WELL I WAS OUT RAKING MY YARD AND I SAW SMOKE COMING OUT FROM THE BOTTOM TO THE TOP SO RAN IN AND CALLED 9-11.))
[SUPER=01-Gloria Stinnett/Neighbor]
[RUNS=08]
[OUT Q=called 911.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
No one was inside the building when it caught fire.
Damages are estimated to be around 10 thousand dollars.
(------------)
[11Kidney-Center]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=jda]
[TAPE#=00-47]
[GRAPHIC=None]
Four patients at a Lexington dialysis center ended up in the hospital Wednesday night.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Lexington]
The four were receiving dialysis at Gambro Healthcare where, relatives say, the patients were given "a bad batch of heparin (HEP-uh-rin)." - a blood thinner.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 03:19]
[IN Q=I hope they can figure out]
((JENNIFER SCHOMMER: I HOPE THEY CAN FIGURE OUT WHAT'S GOING ON AND GET DOWN TO THE BOTTOM OF IT, BECAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF QUESTIONS THAT NEED TO BE ANSWERED AND A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE CONCERNED. AND MAINLY FOR THE PATIENTS THAT THIS OCURRED WITH AND ALSO LIKE I SAID IF IT WILL HAPPEN AGAIN IN THE FUTURE.))
[SUPER=01-Jennifer Schommer/Patient's Granddaughter]
[RUNS=:12]
[OUT Q=happen again in the future.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
Jennifer Schommer's (SHOW-muhrz) grandmother was released from Stonewall Jackson Hospital yesterday morning, but at least one of three patients transferred to Carilion Roanoke Memorial remains in the hospital in stable condition.
(------------)
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[GRAPHIC=None]
An employee of Gambro Healthcare said the company is investigating.
[Gas-Prices]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Noon]
[WRITER=equ]
[TAPE#=500-16 1:44:16]
[GRAPHIC=Heating Prices]
The debate over natural gas prices took center stage during a General Assembly hearing yesterday.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Richmond;]
The House Corporation, Insurance, and Banking Committees heard explanations from the gas industry and horror stories from the public.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=The average]
[SOT 11:11:39]
((DON FICKENSCHER/VIRGINIA NATURAL GAS: THE AVERAGE CONSUMER'S GAS BILL MORE THAN DOUBLED. EXCUSE ME ....105 IN DECEMBER.))
[sot tape two 11;45:11]
((EVA LITTLEJOHN/PETERSBURG RESIDENT: IF I PAY A 900 DOLLAR GAS BILL, I HAVE TO BORROW MONEY TO PUT WITH THAT. TO PAY THE GAS BILL. BECAUSE WE DON'T GET BUT 700 AND SOME DOLLARS A MONTH. THE TWO CHECKS TOGETHER. MY CHECK AND HIS.))
[SUPER=01-Don Fickenscher/Virginia Natural Gas; :00]
[SUPER=01-Eva Littlejohn/Petersburg Resident; :18]
[RUNS=:36]
[OUT Q=and his.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
Governor Jim Gilmore's administration opposed a bill that would have taken contributions from the gas industry, and put them into state emergency assistance coffers.
Some lawmakers took the social services department to task yesterday.
The bill's still alive in a weaker form.
(------------)
[6-Martinsville]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=noon]
[WRITER=equ]
[TAPE#=00-50 TC1:26:56]
[GRAPHIC=None]
Money for a new natural history museum in Martinsville is probably gone for this year.
That acknowledgement was from the state Senate yesterday.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Unfortunately, ]
[SOT SENATE 02:20:20]
((SEN. WALTER STOSCH/R-HENRICO CO.: UNFORTUNATELY, DURING THE PROCESS OF LOOKING AT ALL THE WORTHY PROJECTS...THE BILL FAILED AND THE FUNDING WAS NOT AVAILABLE.))
[SUPER=01-Sen. Walter Stosch/(R) Henrico Co.; ]
[RUNS=:20]
[OUT Q=not available.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Richmond;]
Henry County Senator Roscoe Reynolds made a plea for the 15 million dollars.
Reynolds says a new Virginia Museum of Natural History would do wonders to boost a community hard hit by layoffs.
(------------)
[County-Bar]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=noon]
[WRITER=khu]
[TAPE#=00-46 TC1:51:55]
[GRAPHIC=Roy Willett]
The Salem-Roanoke County Bar Association has someone in mind to replace Judge Roy Willett on the Circuit Bench.
The candidate is one of their own.
(------------)
[V/O-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Salem]
Salem lawyer Jim Swanson got the nod on the first ballot.
Swanson is 47. He spent two years in the late 70's as an Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney.
He's been in private practice for 20 years.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 5:39]
[IN Q=I'm pleased.]
((I'M PLEASED. I'M HONORED, OBVIOUSLY, WITH THE RESULTS....))
[SUPER=01-Jim Swanson/Attorney]
[RUNS=04]
[OUT Q=with the results....]
(------------)
Swanson didn't want to say any more, before the CITY Bar Association meets next Tuesday.
A Task Force of judges and lawyers has already begun to develop a plan to evaluate SITTING judges.
County Commonwealth's Attorney Skip Burkart is a member of the statewide task force.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 6:25]
[IN Q=The first thing]
((THE FIRST THING WE DID WE HAD JUDGES COME IN FROM CONNECTICUT AND ARIZONA TO PRESENT US THEIR PROGRAMS AND HOW THEY ESTABLISHED IT, HOW THEY DID IT, THE PROS AND CONS. IN THE MEANTIME WE'VE BEEN WORKING THE LAST 5 OR 6 MONTHS ON DEVISING A PLAN FOR VIRGINIA.))
[SUPER=01-Skip Burkart/Judicial Performance Evaluation]
[RUNS=15]
[OUT Q=for Virginia.]
(------------)
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[SS=None]
Burkart says the Task Force will hold public hearings next month.
[Atlantis]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Noon]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=Space Shuttle]
It's a rendezvous in space--
Astronauts aboard the space shuttle Atlantis have docked with the International Space Station, "Alpha".
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
Once linked, the five-member shuttle crew will offer greetings and deliver gifts to the three residents leaving at the space station.
The hatch is scheduled to open in about an hour-and-a-half.
Tomorrow, the astronauts will install the billion-dollar ``Destiny'' lab module.
"Destiny" is considered the space statin's most crucial segment.
(------------)
[Dallas-Wind]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Noon]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=none]
It not only feels like spring around here--
Springlike THUNDERSTORMS are
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Near Dallas, TX;]
wreaking havoc in northern Texas.
Overnight storms triggered high winds, gusting up to 60 miles per hour.
The winds downed trees, power lines, and sign posts.
There are also reports the winds blew over 28 cars of a freight train.
So far, there are no reports of any serious injuries.
(------------)
[Lechters]
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=Noon]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=Business News]
In business news this afternoon....
Lechters is overhauling its business operations in an effort to return to profitability.
The retailer says it will close under- performing operations, including
166 retail stores.
It will re-focus attention on new stores designed to offer more upscale kitchen merchandise.
There's no word yet on whether the Lecther's in Valley View Mall will be affected.
by SS