WDBJ 7 morning news for 06/29/02

[Open-Heads]

[ANCHOR=Joy]

[NEWSCAST=Sat Am]
[WRITER=jen]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=none]

[roll cold out of the open]

(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=#4070;weekend headline banner]
[SUPER=@Joy1;]
[SUPER=@Brent1;]
Coming up on News 7 Saturday Morning....... Martinsville police have a suspect in custody this mornng - for the murder of his estranged girlfriend.
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And the massive wildfires sweeping through Arizona are leaving hundreds of families homeless this holiday weekend . . . We will have more on those stories in just a few minutes.
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[2-shot toss to Hello]

[M'ville-Arrest]

[ANCHOR=Joy]
[NEWSCAST=sat am]
[WRITER=jsu]
[TAPE#=02-28 1:28:12]
[GRAPHIC=Murder Investigation]
A murder suspect is in custody this morning in Martinsville...
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[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Martinsville/Sunday]

48 year-old Janice Payne was found lying in the grass at the Rivermont Apartment Complex early Sunday morning..
Her estranged boyfriend 49-year old Donatus Voil Hilton turned himself into authorities last night.
He faces first degree murder charges.
Police believe Payne was assaulted inside her apartment before she either jumped or was thrown from a third story window.
Hilton is being held at the Martinsville City jail without bond.
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[Registrar]

[ANCHOR=Joy]
[NEWSCAST=Sat AM]
[WRITER=ssm]
[TAPE#=02-17 TC1:22:20]
[GRAPHIC=Legal Scales]
The former secretary of Lynchburg's electoral board has been indicted on THIRTEEN counts of embezzling public funds. Prosecutors say Al Grant mis-used his city-issued credit card to pay for trips and meals that had no legitimate connection to his electoral board duties.
Steve Smallshaw reports.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=In the end]
[SUPER=03-Lynchburg; :00]
[SUPER=01-Bill Petty/Lynchburg Commonwealth's Attorney; :22]
[SUPER=@ssm1; 1:09]
[RUNS=1:20]
[OUT Q=News7, Lynchburg.]
(( In the end, they finally got the paperwork they needed.
After months of tracking down credit card receipts and other crucial financial documents, Lynchburg investigators felt they had enough to prove Al Grant abused his position as secretary of the local electoral board by racking up improper charges on his city-issued credit card.
[SOT 17:50:32]
((BILL PETTY/LYNCHBURG COMMONWEALTH'S ATTORNEY: THESE CRIMES DO INVOLVE EVIDENCE, OFTENTIMES EVIDENCE THAT'S OUT OF STATE, ARE LENGTHY AND THEY ARE VERY TIME-INTENSIVE.. THIS HAS BEEN A MAJOR FOCUS OF OUR OFFICE FOR SOME PERIOD OF TIME. AND SO WE'RE THANKFUL WE WERE ABLE TO WRAP IT UP, BUT IT WAS NOT SOMETHING THAT WAS GOING TO BE DONE OVERNIGHT.))
[RUNS= 21]
[OUT Q=done overnight.]

The charges reportedly include an Inaugural-night dinner party in Washington D.C. that cost taxpayers more than a thousand dollars.. as well as trips to places like Hilton Head and Atlanta where Grant allegedly had no legitimate electoral board business to conduct.
Petty's office came under fire in April for not having charged Grant earlier.. presumably because both men are Republicans.
[SOT 17:55:20]
((PETTY: I'VE BEEN ACCUSED OF A LOT OF THINGS IN THE LAST 25 YEARS. WE DO OUR JOB AND ALL I CAN DO IS DO MY JOB AND LET THE PUBLIC DECIDE HOW WELL I DO IT.))
[RUNS= 09]
[OUT Q=how well I do it.]
[Standup ] ((Al Grant could not be reached for comment about the case. He turned himself in to police Friday afternoon and was released on bond. He's due back in court on July 8th for an advisement hearing. Steve Smallshaw, News7, Lynchburg.))
[RUNS= 12]
[OUT Q=News7, Lynchburg.] ))

[GOP-director]

[ANCHOR=Joy]
[NEWSCAST=Sat AM]
[WRITER=mmu]
[TAPE#=502-03 TC29:06]
[GRAPHIC=None]
A new executive director is taking the reigns of Virginia's Republican Party...
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[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Richmond]

Aaron Leibowitz, a former insurance consultant, started this week as head of Virginia's GOP.
Leibowitz replaces Ed Matricardi, who was indicted in April on state felony charges of illegal eavesdropping.
Leibowitz says the controversies of the past few months have tested the Party.
He says the eavesdropping case and the resignation of Speaker Vance Wilkins have strengthened the Party.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 14:38:31-48]
[IN Q=During the course of these two tests]
[SUPER=01-Aaron Leibowitz/Republican Party of Virginia]
[RUNS=:17]
[OUT Q=without intervention, without cover-up and without lying.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

Leibowitz says the main focus of his job will be getting Republicans elected.
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[Mid-East]

[ANCHOR=Joy]
[NEWSCAST=sat am]
[WRITER=jsu]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=none]

Israeli forces have blown up a Palestinian government building in the West Bank town Hebron.
This comes after a four-day siege on the building as Israeli forces searched for Palestinians responsible for recent attacks.
Military officials say about 15 wanted men were believed to be inside the building.

[AZ-Wildfires]

[ANCHOR=Joy]
[NEWSCAST=sat am]
[WRITER=jsu]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=none]

Hundreds of homes have been evacuated as fire fighters contine efforts to contain a massive wildfire in Arizona.

(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Show Low, AZ]

The blaze has already scorched nearly 500-THOUSAND acres and destroyed 400-homes ...and it's still on the move.
Tankers have been dropping retardent to slow its progress. At this point the fire is only 25-percent contained.
This is the largest wildfire in Arizona's history.
(------------)

[weather next]

[Truckers]

[ANCHOR=Joy]
[NEWSCAST=Sat AM]
[WRITER=rle]
[TAPE#=02-21 TC38:34]
[GRAPHIC=None]

More than 50 truck drivers are in our area trying to earn a shot at the title of best all-around truck driver in the nation.
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[VO-NAT - :20.5]
[SUPER=03-Rockbridge Co.]
The Virginia Truck Driving Championship is underway at the Lee-Hi Truck Stop in Rockbridge County. Drivers must take a written test, pass an inspection with a Virginia State Police Trooper, and negotiate an obstacle course that tests skill and accurracy. It's all an effort to keep safety in the minds of truck drivers, and keep accidents from happening.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT - 15:46:02]
[IN Q=We do have the proper...]
((SKIP GOODRICH/OVERNITE TRUCK DRIVER; WE DO HAVE THE PROPER LAWS THAT COVER THE SAFETY PART, BUT THERE ARE TIMES AND YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT A PERFECT WORLD. WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE IT BETTER, AND WE ALL ARE NOT THESE CRAZED PEOPLE YOU THINK WE ARE.))
[SUPER=01-Skip Goodrich/Overnite Truck Driver;]
[RUNS=13]
[OUT Q=you think we are.]
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[VO-NAT - :06+]
The truck championships continue this morning and go all day.
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[toss to brent @ pulpit]

[2Open-Heads]

[ANCHOR=]
[NEWSCAST=Sat Am]
[WRITER=jen]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=none]

[roll cold out of the open]

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[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=#4070;weekend headline banner]
Coming up on News 7 Saturday Morning...... A teen accused of arson could spend the rest of his teenage years in juvenile detension.
(------------)
Peter Jennings steps on country singer Toby Keith's toes - and gets the boot. We will have more on those stories in just a few minutes.
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[2-shot toss to hello]

[Tire-fire]

[ANCHOR=Joy]
[NEWSCAST=Sat AM]
[WRITER=khu]
[TAPE#=02-20 TC1:52:46]
[GRAPHIC=Legal Scales]
The image of a tearful confession helped convince a juvenile court judge that there's enough evidence to convict a Roanoke County teenager of setting the huge tire fire.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke Co./File Tape]
Despite a substantial cash reward being offered for information leading to an arrest in the case, no one ever came forward. Then some boys were seen setting a brush fire along Route 220 three weeks later. County detectives say a 15 year old broke down and confessed.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 2:10:25]
[IN Q=Tears running down his]
((DAVID FLYNN/ROANOKE CO. POLICE DETECTIVE; TEARS RUNNING DOWN HIS CHEEK. WE WERE TALKING, AND HE SAID, "I'LL JUST SAY I DIDI IT, AND GO HOME AND HANG MYSELF." WE TALKED ABOUT HOW THAT WASN'T ACCEPTABLE.))
[SUPER=01-David Flynn/Roanoke Co. Police Detective;]
[RUNS=11]
[OUT Q=that wasn't acceptible.]
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[VO-NAT]
Though Detective Flynn says the boy went on to provide details that only the "tire fire arsonist" could have known,
[SUPER=03-Salem]
the lawyer who represents the teenager maintains his client's confession was forced.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT Mac - 2:15:05]
[IN Q=I think the]
((MAC DOUBLES/ARSON SUSPECT'S ATTORNEY; I THINK THE PROFESSIONALS KNOW HOW TO WORK PEOPLE WHO ARE SUSCEPTIBLE UNTIL THEY GET WHAT THEY WANT. HE'S DENIED CONSISTENTLY WITH ME THAT HE'S SET THESE FIRES.))
[SUPER=01-Mac Doubles/Arson Suspect's Attorney;]
[RUNS=09]
[OUT Q=set these fires.]
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[ANCHOR=Joy]
[SS=HOLD]
Judge Philip Trompeter will hold a hearing next month to fix punishment for the boy.

[Mayhew]

[ANCHOR=Joy]
[NEWSCAST=Sat AM]
[WRITER=jus]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=hold]

A Forest woman plans to plead guilty to embezzling thousands of dollars from a Bedford County bank.
23-year old Kristy Lynne Mayhew is charged with embezzling more than 33-thousand dollars from the B-B-and-T bank in the spring of 2001.
A hearing is scheduled for August 7th where she has signed an agreement to plead guilty.
She faces 30 years in prison and a fine up to a million dollars.

[Accounting]

[ANCHOR=Jean]
[NEWSCAST=11pm]
[WRITER=csc]
[TAPE#=02-16 TC1:13:43]
[GRAPHIC=None]

In the wake of the Enron and WorldCom scandals, a local expert is echoing the call for more federal over-sight of corporate accounting..
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[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke Co.]

Thomas Edwards, who chairs Hollins University's Business and Economics department, says that because many C-E-O's are paid based on how their company performs, a few of them bend the "rules of accounting" in their favor.
He says scandals such as Enron and Worldcom can cause people to lose some faith in the overall economic system...
And it's the government's job to fix that..
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=15:09:30]
((THOMAS EDWARDS/HOLLINS UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR; AT BOTTOM THIS WHOLE THING IS ABOUT INFORMATION HOW IMPORTANT BOTH THE QUANTITY AND QUALITY OF GOOD FINANCIAL INFORMATION IS TO THE RUNNING OF THE BUSINESS SECTOR AND ALL OF OUR LIVES, REALLY.))
[SUPER=01-Thomas Edwards/Hollins University Professor]
[RUNS=:12]
[OUT Q="all of our lives, really"]
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[ANCHOR=Joy]
[GRAPHIC=None]

On the bright side Edwards says he's looking forward to using these corporate scandals, to teach his students how economic theory can play out in real life.

[Boots]

[ANCHOR=Joy]
[NEWSCAST=Sat AM]
[WRITER=jus]
[TAPE#=02-22 TC1:09:16]
[GRAPHIC=None]
Peter Jennings is getting the boot... from fans of country singer Toby Keith.
The singer planned to sing his new song about September 11th on ABC's July Fourth TV special.
But Jennings reportedly objected to some lyrics and Keith's appearance was canceled.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke]

So now radio stations across the country including Star Country are collecting boots to send to the ABC News anchorman.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 2:17:34]
[IN Q=We're sending them to]
((CHUCK MARSH/STAR COUNTRY PERSONALITY: WE'RE SENDING THEM TO PETER JENNINGS BECAUSE HE KICKED ONE OF OUR FRIENDS OFF THE AIR. TOBY KEITH. HE'S GOT A SONG OUT CALLED COURTESY OF THE RED, WHITE, AND BLUE. IT'S THE ANGRY AMERICAN SONG AND SUPPOSEDLY HAS SOME BAD LYRICS, SOMETHING WRONG WITH THE LYRICS.))
[SUPER=01-Brent Sharp & Chuck Marsh/Star Country Morning Team]
[RUNS=:15]
[OUT Q=WRONG WITH THE LYRICS]
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[VO-NAT]

Star Country plans similar collections in Lynchburg and the New River Valley next week.
A spokesperson for Jennings labeled the boot campaign a publicity stunt and says the boots will be given to the homeless.
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[Pledge-Vets]

[ANCHOR=Joy]
[NEWSCAST=sat am]
[WRITER=jsu]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=NONE]

A ruling by a San Francisco federal court to ban the Pledge of Allegiance from public schools sparks veterans to take action.
(------------)
[VO-NAT 5:14:38]
[SUPER=03-Littleton, CO]
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=nats pledge]
[RUNS=03]
[OUT Q=nats - under god]
(--------------)
[VO-NAT]

Yesterday, veterans from all across the country demonstrated they were proud to say the Pledge of Allegiance, including this group in Littleton, Colorado.
Demonstrators made certain to insert the now controversial words "Under God".
The court ruled references to God in the pledge violate the constitution's separation of church and state.
The ruling is now on hold while a federal appeals court decides whether to re-hear the case.
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[License-Plate]

[ANCHOR=Joy]
[NEWSCAST=Sat AM]
[WRITER=jen]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=none]

Virginia's settling on a new standard issue license plate... The plate - which will actually replaces Virginia's familiar blue and white design - will pay homage to the 400th anniversary of the settling of Jamestown.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
The plate still says "Virginia" across the tip ... but across the bottom the words "400th Anniversary" are centered around a picture of a ship. Also in the bottom left corner is the year 1607, while the year 2007 appears in the bottom right corner.
(------------)
[anchor=Joy]
[ss=none]
The state begins issuing the new plate Monday.

[Amtrak]

[ANCHOR=Joy]
[NEWSCAST=Sat AM]
[WRITER=jen]
[TAPE#=]
[GRAPHIC=None]

Amtrak trains are on track to run through September.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=@file]

Rail officials have closed a deal with the Bush administration that will help Amtrak get the 200 million dollars it needs to close a budget shortfall.
And that averts a shutdown forecast for next week.
The Transportation Department will give Amtrak an immediate 100 million dollar loan, then ask Congress for the rest.
(------------)

[Miss-Virginia]

[ANCHOR=Joy]
[NEWSCAST=Sat AM]
[WRITER=jus]
[TAPE#=02-23 TC34:01]
[GRAPHIC=None]
A new Miss Virginia will be crowned at the Roanoke Civic Center tonight... but last night it was all about the talent...
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=NAT SOUND OF CONTESTANT SINGING]
((NAT SINGING))
[SUPER=03-Roanoke/Last Night]
[RUNS=:05]
[OUT Q=NAT SOUND OF CONTESTANT SINGING]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

A packed house turned out for the second night of preliminary competition for the Miss Virginia Pageant.
26- women from all over the state are taking part in this year's pageant.
Last night, contestants competed in the swimsuit competition as well as the artistic and talent competition.
(------------)
[anchor=Joy]
[ss=none]
And you can meet the new Miss Virginia tomorrow right here on News 7 Sunday Morning.

[Tease#2]

[ANCHOR=Joy 2-shot]
[NEWSCAST=Sat Am]
[WRITER=jen]
[SS=None]
[BOTH MICS HOT]
Still to come on News 7 Saturday Morning....... We'll tell you about a workshop designed to make life a little more comfortable for chronic diesase sufferers
[ANCHOR=Brent]
AND
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
He's funny, sweet and sometimes strange.. but he's ALWAYS Sandler... see how the entertainer's latest project ranks on the big screen... But first if you are traveling today........ [Brent ad-lib the travel forecast -- WX PRO]
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[Brent MIC hot] [ No 2-shot toss go straight to Travel Bump] [soft music under]

[Profile-Promo]

[ANCHOR=Brent]
[NEWSCAST=Sat AM]
[WRITER=rca]
[TAPE#=Profile]
[GRAPHIC=none]

Dogs and horses have a safe place to go for care and training...
(------------)
[VO-NAT :18]
[SUPER=03-Galax;]
Noah's Station is a non-profit organization dedicated to finding new homes for unwanted dogs and horses. They recently spent the day at a Galax fair to tell the public about their rescue work. Owner Suzie Tompkins says she got her first horse at four and that its been a life long dream to help animals.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 22:28:19]
[IN Q=we have] (COVER END)
((SUZIE TOMPKINS/NOAH'S STATION OWNER; WE HAVE OBEDIENCE CLASSES WE HAVE AN INDOOR RIDING ARENA AT OUR FACILITY SO IF PEOPLE WANT TO KEEP THEIR HORSES EXERCISED IN THE WINTER TIME OR IF THEY WANT TO DO AN ACTIVITY WE RENT OUT THE FACILITY BASICALLY WE'RE PRETTY VERSATILE BUT OUR MAIN GOAL IT TO MAKE SURE THE HORSES AND DOGS ARE HEALTHY AND HAPPY.))
[SUPER=01-Suzie Tompkins/Noah's Station Owner;]
[RUNS=:17]
[OUT Q=HEALTH AND HAPPY.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
Noah's Station works out of a Woodlawn location. They have a small full-time staff and large group of volunteers. Tompkins says they've been successful in finding adoptive homes for the animals.
(+++++++++)
[TAKE PROFILE PROMO FS] Coming up tomorrow in our Virginia Profile...more on that part of the story when we introduce you to a young girl and her new dog.
(++++++++)