[National-Wx]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Mornin]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=News 7 Mornin']
[ENG#=1]
While we've been enjoying picture perfect weather here, it's a different story in Texas and Oklahoma.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
Flash flood warnings remain for that area after yesterday's storms brought downpours.
Strong winds up to 80- miles- an hour, along with heavy rain made for nearly impossible driving conditions, and brought major damage to the area.
Several people were injured.
[SUPER=03-Lawton, OK;]
A possible tornado hit in Southwest Oklahoma.
Several vehicles on this college campus had their windows blown out from flying debris.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=I really didn't ]
((DENA ROGOFF/STUDENT: I REALLY DIDN'T HAVE TIME TO BE SCARED, ACTUALLY, SO IT ALL WENT BY SO QUICK AND WHEN I SAW MY CAR WAS WHEN EVERYTHING SETTLED IN AND I REALIZED JUST WHAT HAPPENED. BUT IT WENT BY SO FAST I DIDN'T HAVE TIME TO BE SCARED. ))
[SUPER=01-Dena Rogoff/Student;]
[RUNS=:13]
[OUT Q=time to be scared.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
The line of storms is now expected to head toward Louisiana and Arkansas.
(------------)
[Iraq]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Mornin]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=Iraq]
[ENG#=2]
Two roadside bombs went off today in Baghdad, just hours before the scheduled signing of the country's interim constitution.
Witnesses say no one was hurt in the first blast, but it's not
clear if anyone was wounded in the second explosion.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Baghdad, Iraq;]
The blasts follow deadly bombings earlier this week, which happened on the most sacred day on the Shiite Muslim calendar.
But it's hoped that the interim constitution will guide Iraq into Democracy.
It's a historical step for the country.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Which includes]
((ADNAN AL-PACHACHI/GOVERNING COUNCIL MEMBER: WHICH INCLUDES AMONG OTHER THINGS THE COMPREHENSIVE BILL OF RIGHTS, SOMETHING THAT IS REALLY UNHEARD OF, UNPRECEDENTED IN THIS PART OF THE WORLD.))
[SUPER=01-Adnan Al-Pachachi/Governing Council Member;]
[RUNS=:16]
[OUT Q=part of the world.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
The document represents a key milestone on the path toward a U-S handover to the
Iraqi people.
(------------)
[Van-Accident]
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=none]
[ENG#=none]
A Martinsville man was killed after the van he working on apparently rolled off the supports and trapped him underneath.
Police say the accident happened yesterday afternoon while 40 year old Roy Edward Moorman was doing mechanic work behind a residence at 1137 Pine Hall Road.
Authorities have determined that the van's drive shaft had been disconnected from the transmission.
They have also said that the van's parking brake had not been set.
[11Nudist-camp]
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=mmu]
[TAPE#=04-07 TC26:55]
[GRAPHIC=None]
[ENG#=3]
A bill targeting nudist camps for children is on its way to becoming law.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Richmond]
Yesterday, a Senate Committee approved legislation requiring that children attending nude camps be accompanied by a parent.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 14:39:18]
[IN Q=WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY]
((DEL. JACK REID/R-HENRICO CO.: WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY HERE TO PASS LEGISLATION TO PROTECT CHILDREN.))
[SUPER=01-Del. Jack Reid/(R) Henrico Co.; :]
[RUNS=:05]
[OUT Q=TO PROTECT CHILDREN.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
But the owner of the state's only youth nude camp says lawmakers are unfairly singling out nudists.
He says the children in his camp are safe.
Other enthusiasts of nude recreation testified that legislators are relying on false assumptions.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 14:36:27]
[IN Q=LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING]
((JONATHAN SHAPIRO/NATURIST ACTION COMMITTEE FOR VIRGINIA; LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING THAT MIGHT COME AS A SURPRISE, NUDIST CHILDREN ARE USED TO NUDITY, THEY ARE USED TO SEEING THEIR FAMILY NUDE, EVEN STRANGERS, AND IT DOESN'T BOTHER THEM.))
[SUPER=01-Jonathan Shapiro/Naturist Action Committee for Virginia; :]
[RUNS=:13]
[OUT Q=IT DOESN'T BOTHER THEM.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
The House of Delegates has already passed the legislation.
The measure now heads to the full Senate for a vote.
(------------)
[PKG-Gas-Drive-Off]
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=jus]
[TAPE#=04-13 TC 2:14]
[GRAPHIC=None]
[ENG#=4]
The next time you go to fill up your gas tank, you may have to pay before you pump.
More and more gas stations are requiring that to prevent gas drive-offs.
Justin McLeod has more on the problem and one solution that may or may not be working.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke; :00]
[SUPER=01-Sandeep Reddy/Gas Station Manager; :11]
[SUPER=01-Mike O'Connor/Virginia Petroleum Association; :47]
[SUPER=@justin1; 1:29]
[RUNS=1:44]
[OUT Q=JM, News 7]
((((NAT SOUND OF PUMPING GAS))
When you go to gas up, you probably see this sign on the pump.
It clearly says if you don't pay, you could lose your license.
[SOT 2:35:22]
[IN Q=You still have your]
((SANDEEP REDDY/GAS STATION MANAGER: YOU STILL HAVE YOUR SAME OLD CRIMINALS THAT CARRY ON DOING THAT AND IT REALLY DOESN'T MATTER TO THEM BUT IT DOES DISCOURAGE PEOPLE FROM DOING IT.))
[Runs07]
[OUT Q=FROM DOING IT]
It wasn't always this way for Virginia's 6 thousand gas retailers.
Several years ago, drive offs cost them more than 14 million dollars a year.
[SOT 2:34:55]
[IN Q=We have to end up paying]
((SANDEEP REDDY/GAS STATION MANAGER: WE HAVE TO END UP PAYING IT FROM OUR POCKETS.))
[Runs03]
[OUT Q=from out pockets]
It was such a problem the fuel industry worked to toughen Virginia's laws.
Since 2001, violators can face fines up to 100 dollars and may have their driver's license suspended for up to 30 days.
The goal is to reduce gas drive offs.
[SOT 1:51]
[IN Q=The number of gas]
((MIKE O'CONNOR/FUEL INDUSTRY REPRESENTATIVE: THE NUMBER OF DRIVE-OFFS HAVE DECREASED IN VIRGINIA SINCE THIS BILL BECAME LAW.))
[Runs05]
[OUT Q=THIS BILL BECAME LAW]
But O'Conner admits that is anecdotal and there is no way to prove it with certainty.
That's because the Department of Motor Vehicles does not track how many people lose their license for pumping without paying.
Those offenses are grouped together in a general category and add up to several hundred thousand suspensions every year.
Even so, the fuel industry defends the law saying the fear factor alone works since 70-thousand of these stickers have been distributed to gas stations across the state.
[SOT 2:31]
[IN Q=Obviously, anybody that's]
((MIKE O'CONNOR/FUEL INDUSTRY REPRESENTATIVE: OBVIOUSLY, ANYBODY THAT'S DRIVING NEEDS TO HAVE THAT LICENSE AND WE THINK THE PUBLIC EDUCATION ASPECT IS REALLY IMPORTANT.))
[Runs08]
[OUT Q=ASPECT IS REALLY IMPORANT]
[SOT ]
[IN Q=The next question]
((JUSTIN McLEOD/REPORTING: THE NEXT QUESTION IS HOW MUCH OF A PROBLEM IS GAS DRIVE OFFS THESE DAYS. THAT'S ALSO HARD TO TELL. LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES ON THE STATE AND LOCAL LEVEL LIST THESE IN A GENERAL CATEGORY WITH OTHER OFFENSES MAKING IT NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE TO TELL WHETHER THE GAS N GO LAW IS ACTUALLY WORKING. JUSTIN McLEOD, NEWS 7.))))
[11Pillowtex]
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=dse]
[TAPE#=04-10 TC10:59]
[GRAPHIC=Pillowex]
[ENG#=1]
Nearly 200 years of Virginia and North Carolina textile history will be sold to the highest bidder this weekend.
The liquidation company that bought Pillowtex will hold a huge auction tomorrow.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Kannapolis, NC]
7 months ago, this building in Kannapolis, North Carolina was the headquarters of one of the world's biggest textile companies.
Today it's a warehouse of memories... everything from the company board room to handpainted French wallpaper from the 1800's to NASCAR items.
The new owners say they understand many will feel some pain that these items are being auctioned off, but they also say they've been warmly welcomed.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=They've not]
((GARY GOLDSMITH/LIQUIDATOR; THEY'VE NOT TREATED US WITH ANY ANIMOSITY. THEY SAY YOU'RE HERE AND YOU'RE PART OF OUR COMMUNITY FOR RIGHT NOW.))
[SUPER=01-Gary Goldsmith/Liquidator]
[RUNS=:09]
[OUT Q=community for right now.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
The money raised from the auction will help pay off the company's massive debt.
The Pillowtex liquidation auction will be held at the Baxter Hood Center in Rock Hill, South Carolina.
Bidding starts at 11 o-clock tomorrow morning.
(------------)
[Marketwatch]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=chr]
[TAPE#=NET]
[GRAPHIC=Business News]
[ENG#=2]
In business news, The Labor Department will release the February unemployment report later this morning.
And, Intel cut its sales forecast.
Alexis Christoforous has those stories and more in this morning's Marketwatch.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=01-Alexis Christoforous/Reporting; :00]
[RUNS=1:15]
[OUT Q=in New York, I'm Alexis Christoforous.]
((> INVESTORS WILL GET A LONG AWAITED LOOK AT THE JOBS PICTURE. BEFORE THE
> STOCK MARKET OPENS, THE LABOR DEPARTMENT WILL RELEASE THE FEBRUARY
> UNEMPLOYMENT REPORT.
>
> ECONOMISTS ARE LOOKING FOR THE ECONOMY TO HAVE ADDED 130-THOUSAND JOBS
> LAST MONTH UP FROM 112-THOUSAND IN JANUARY. THE
> UNEMPLOYMENT RATE IS EXPECTED TO RISE THOUGH TO 5.7 PERCENT.
>
> AHEAD OF THE JOBS REPORT, STOCKS PUT IN A MIXED PERFORMANCE.
>
> THE DOW FELL BACK 5 POINTS
>
> BUT THE NASDAQ CLIMBED MORE THAN 21.
>
> INTEL COULD PUT A DAMPER ON TECH STOCKS TODAY. THE COMPUTER CHIP GIANT CUT
> ITS SALES FORECAST FOR THE FIRST QUARTER.
> INTEL SAYS LAPTOP MANUFACTURERS IN ASIA ARE PARING ORDERS FOR COMPUTER
> CHIPS.
>
> The Securities and Exchange Commission reportedly subpoenaed as many as 65
> former New York Stock Exchange directors for records about former NYSE
> Chairman Dick pay package.
> Investigators are looking for information on how directors approved three
> contracts that resulted in a payment last year of $140 million to Grasso,
> who was ousted in September.
>
> TRACK ALL THE MARKET ACTION AT CBS.MW.COM IN NY I'M ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS.))
(tape tosses to stocks)
[STOCKS]
[WOOD ROGERS SPONSOR BOARD 5185 ESSC]
[COMM]
[11Bedford-Accident]
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=sba]
[TAPE#=04-11 TC04:15]
[GRAPHIC=Fatal Accident]
[ENG#=1]
New information has been released about a Bedford accident that killed three teenagers on Monday.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Bedford Co.]
A state police accident reconstruction team was on Route 619 earlier yesterday trying to piece together the moments leading up to the crash.
According to police reports, 17-year-old Ginni Creasey went off the shoulder of the road, overcorrected and sent her car into the path of an oncoming Jeep.
Using markings police made Monday night, the team used computerized equipment to plot and mark the paths of the vehicles.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT@12:18:00]
[IN Q=It looks like..]
((SGT. PHIL CHEEK, VIRGINIA STATE POLICE: IT LOOKS LIKE THE JEEP THAT WAS HERE DID A COMPLETE 360 AND LANDED HERE ON THE EDGE OF THE ROAD. MOST LIKELY DIDN'T REALLY GO AIRBORNE, BUT NOT A LOT OF CONTACT WITH THE ROAD.))
[SUPER=01-Sgt. Phil Cheek/Virginia State Police]
[RUNS=:18]
[OUT Q= .. WITH THE ROAD.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
The troopers will be able to input this data into a computer program which will provide a scale diagram of the scene.
(------------)
[11Chemical-Leak]
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=rde]
[TAPE#=04-14 TC 3:19]
[GRAPHIC=none]
[ENG=#2]
Officials will meet next week to discuss Wednesday night's chemical spill in Blacksburg.
A defect in a new tank is being blamed for the ammonia leak at Federal Mogul.
(--------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg;]
No one was injured, but the incident took nearly seven hours to clean-up.
Blacksburg police and fire crews and even a Giles County Hazmat team worked to clear the area and patch the leak.
Emergency officials say the incident was handled well, and could have been much worse.
This was also the first time Blacksburg's new emergency alert system was used.
(------------)
[Stewart]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Mornin]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=Stewart]
[ENG#=3]
It's another day of deliberations in the Martha Stewart trial.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-New York, NY;]
Today marks the third day the jury will have the stock fraud case in its hands.
Stewart faces four criminal counts in all from the 2001 sale of her falling Imclone shares.
Meanwhile, Stewart's company is showing some signs of trouble because of the case.
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia showed that although they have a fourth quarter profit, the past year's revenue overall showed a loss, marking the first annual decline in the company's history.
(------------)
[6-Tech-Challenge]
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=rde]
[TAPE#=03-51 TC1:27:01]
[GRAPHIC=None]
[ENG#=4]
A team of Virginia Tech students is hoping to engineer a first place win in a 250 mile race from Los Angeles to Las Vegas.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg/Virginia Tech Video;]
It's called the Grand Challenge and Tech has one of only 24 teams in the nation competing.
The students designed an autonomous vehicle, meaning it's guided by a Global Positioning System and no human intervention is allowed.
The first team to cross the finish line in under 10 hours, wins a million dollars.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT:21:21:00 ]
[IN Q=This is]
((BRET LEEDY/SENIOR MECHANICAL ENGINEERING MAJOR: THIS IS ACTUALLY GETTING YOUR HANDS IN, FIGURING OUT A TECHNICAL PROBLEM. DEVELOPING A PLAN, WORKING WITH A HUGE TEAM ON HIGHLY SOPHISTICATED EQUIPMENT AND ACTUALLY GETTING INTO SEE IT THROUGH RIGHT NOW.))
[SUPER=01-Bret Leedy/Senior Mechanical Engineering Major;]
[RUNS=:13]
[OUT Q=through right now.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
The students showed off their vehicle during a test run this week at Tech.
The race begins next Saturday.
(------------)
(Kim tosses to bump)
[BUMP]
[COMM]
[11Walton]
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=khu]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=Percy Walton]
Death row inmate Percy Levar Walton is psychotic, most likely schizophrenic.
That was the conclusion of a federal judge last night.
Nonetheless, Judge Samuel Wilson says Walton understands: what it means to be executed and that he was sentenced to die for murdering three people.
(XXXXXXX)
[TAKE PINNACLE FULL]
In a seven-page opinion entered this evening, Judge Wilson writes: "Although Walton is clearly suffering from mental disorder... that does not prevent a state from executing a convicted defendant merely BECAUSE he suffers from mental illness."
(--------------)
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[SS=HOLD]
The judge expressed annoyance with the state Attorney General's office.
He said the state needed to consider Walton's claim of incompetence "no matter how inconvenient it might be."
Wilson is threatening to bill the Commonwealth for the work of the psychiatrist who testified in the case on Wednesday.
[Biz-Brief]
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=Business News]
[ENG#=2]
In business news, the February unemployment numbers are due out today.
The report is considered one of the most important indicators of the economy's health.
Stan Case has more on that plus a look at yesterday's closing numbers in today's business brief.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=01-Stan Case/Reporting; :]
[RUNS=1:10]
[OUT Q=I'm Stan Case.]
[TAPE TOSS TO STOCKS]
[STOCKS]
[WOOD ROGERS SPONSOR BOARD 5185 ESSC]
[TRIGGER]
[11Giles-Fatal]
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=rde]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=Fatal Accident]
State Police are waiting on DNA tests, but say a Christiansburg man was most likely driving a motor home involved in a fatal accident this week.
(XXXXXX)
[TAKE MAP FULL]
Three people died Sunday night in a head-on collision on route 219 in Giles County.
According to the two surviving passengers in the motor home, 54 year old Kelly Lee Martin was driving when the vehicle struck a Nissan, killing 26 year old Melissa Rae Mann and 6 year old Lexi Thompson.
(-------------)
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[SS=HOLD]
Police are asking anyone who may have seen the 1973 white and maroon striped motor home on the night of the accident to contact them.
[11Tech-Challenge]
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=rde]
[TAPE#=03-51 TC 1:27:01]
[GRAPHIC=none]
[ENG#=2]
A group of Tech engineering students are only 250 miles away from one million dollars.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg/Virginia Tech Video;]
The students are one of 24 teams about to race in a national competition called the Grand Challenge.
They designed an autonomous vehicle, meaning it's guided by a Global Positioning System and no human intervention is allowed.
The first team go from Los Angeles to Las Vegas in under 10 hours, wins a million dollars.
The students took their vehicle for a test run this week.
They race next Saturday.
(------------)
(Kim toss to Steve for weekend Preview)
[DOUBLE BOXES=Kim/Steve Microwave]
by SS