WDBJ 7 morning news for 05/20/04

[11School-Overdose]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]

[NEWSCAST=Mornin]
[WRITER=sba]
[TAPE#=04-16 TC 43:08]
[GRAPHIC=News 7 Mornin']
[ENG#=1]
An eighth grade boy could face charges for allegedly giving his classmates a prescription drug.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Botetourt Co.]
Emergency personnel were called to Read Mountain Middle School just after lunch yesterday after five eighth grade students overdosed on the pills. Authorities say an eighth grade boy brought in a prescription medication and gave it to some of his classmates. Not long after, some other students told administrators.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT@6:05:14:25]
[INQ=The good thing..]
((JERRY PRICE, PRINCIPAL READ MOUNTAIN M.S.: THE GOOD THING WAS WE HAD STUDENTS WHO INFORMED US WHAT WAS GOING ON AND I WANT TO COMMEND OUR STUDENTS FOR BEING AWARE AND LETTING US KNOW..))
[SUPER=01-Jerry Price/Read Mountain Middle School Principal]
[RUNS=:10]
[OUTQ=.. AND LETTING US KNOW.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
The five students were taken to Carilion Roanoke Community Hospital after they said they felt dizzy. They were listed in good condition.
(------------)

[11Drug-Symptoms]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=jsu]
[TAPE#=04-14 TC1:11:48]
[GRAPHIC=None]
[ENG#=2]

The students apparently took (Klon-Oh-Pin) Klonopin which is a drug used to treat seizures and panic disorders.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke]

Klonopin can create a feeling similar to Valium (VAL-ium) --where the person feels relaxed and forgets their worries.
The symptoms can also include drowsiness, confusion, dizziness and glassy eyes.
The biggest concern with abuse of the drug is respiratory depression or breathing problems.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT5:49:02]
[IN Q=If you had a patient]
((JAMES BLACK/CARILION MEDICAL CENTER PHARMACY; IF YOU HAD A PATIENT THAT HAD A BREATHING PROBLEM ANYWAY --THAT COULD CAUSE THEIR BREATHING TO SLOW DOWN AND THEY CAN STOP BREATHING, ESPECIALLY IF YOU YOU MIX IT WITH ANYTHING ELSE THAT CAN RESPIRATORY DEPRESSION))
[SUPER=01-James Black/Carilion Medical Center Pharmacy]
[RUNS=18]
[OUT Q=respitory depression]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

Symptoms will go away once the drug runs its course. That could take up to 24 hours or more.
(------------)

[Clower]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=ecu]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=Clower]
[ENG#=3]
818-thousand dollars could buy Henry County's former administrator more time in jail.
(------------)
[VO-NAT :16 (edit from tape 04-01 TC 58:55)]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke/March 8]
Sid Clower admitted to stealing that much money from Henry County over the past ten years. Having already served his state sentance, he will be sentenced today on federal charges of fraud and tax evasion. The maximum penalty for his case is 20 years in jail and a one-and-a-half (m) million dollar fine.
(------------)

[VOBBennet-Murder]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=Morning]
[WRITER=jus]
[TAPE#=04-24 TC 00:17]
[GRAPHIC=Murder Investigation]
[ENG#=4]

Investigators hope a videotape of the crime scene will help solve the murder of a Franklin County native.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

Two years ago this week, Stephanie Bennett was murdered in her Raleigh North Carolina apartment.
Police say they have a lot of evidence but still have yet to make an arrest.
Her family has offered a one hundred thousand dollar reward and they remain hopeful her killer will be brought to justice.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 6:02:31]
[IN Q=We are just being]
((CARMON BENNETT/STEPHANIE'S FATHER: WE ARE JUST BEING VERY PATIENT AND HOPING SOMEDAY SOON SOMEONE WILL TALK. SOMEONE OUT THERE HAS ALL THE ANSWERS TO ALL OF OUR QUESTIONS.))
[SUPER=01-Carmon Bennett/Stephanie's Father; :]
[RUNS=09]
[OUT Q=all of our questions]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

The Raleigh Police Department hopes to release a videotape this week in hopes of jogging someone's memory.
Investigators believe someone out there has information that could lead to an arrest.
(------------)
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[SS=none]

Meantime, Stephanie's family plans to hold a golf tournament June 13th to raise money for a scholarship in her name.

[Iraq]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Mornin]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=Iraq]
[ENG#=1]

The top commander in the Middle East predicts the situation in Iraq could get worse before it gets better, as the deadline for the transfer of power gets closer.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Syrian Border;]

Meanwhile, an air strike in western Iraq is triggering outrage.
U-S and Iraqi officials agree that a helicopter fired on a house near the Syrian border, killing more than 40 civilians.
The U-S military says the target was a safehouse for foreign fighters, but is investigating the incident.
Meanwhile on Capitol Hill, lawmakers grilled top generals about the abuse that went on inside Abu Ghraib prison.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=I am fully]
((RICARDO SANCHEZ/U.S. COMMANDER IN IRAQ: I AM FULLY COMMITTED TO THOROUGH AND IMPARTIAL INVESTIGATIONS THAT EXAMINE THE ROLE OF COMMISSIONS AND OMISSIONS OF THE ENTIRE CHAIN OF COMMAND- THAT INCLUDES ME. ))

[SUPER=01-Ricardo Sanchez/U. S. Commander in Iraq;]
[RUNS=:08]
[OUT Q=chain of command.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

The U-S military handed down the maximum penalty-- a year in prison-- to specialist Jeremy Sivits, the first soldier to face court martial in the case.
(------------)

[Budget]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Mornin]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=none]
[ENG#=none]

Voting nearly along party lines, the House has approved a compromise two-point-four TRILLION- dollar budget.
But in the evenly- divided Senate, the fate of the proposed budget is uncertain.
The measure calls for tax cuts far more modest than what President Bush proposed.
It calls for a big boost on defense and anti-terrorism programs, with only slightly more for domestic programs.

[11State-revenue]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=mmu]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=VA Budget]

Just weeks after the passing a major tax increase, Virginia may end the fiscal year with a surplus.
State revenue collections have grown nine and a half percent for the year.
That's well ahead of what was expected.
Salem Delegate Morgan Griffith says if the upswing continues, legislators may consider rolling back some of the recently-passed tax hikes.
Griffith says removing the cap on car tax relief could be the first thing to go if the state ends up with a surplus.

[11Microwave-Circuits]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=ssm]
[TAPE#=04-22 TC03:45]
[GRAPHIC=Microwave Circuits]
[ENG#=1]

In business news, 200 high-paying jobs are headed to Lynchburg now that a Washington D-C company is moving its headquarters to the Hill City.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Lynchburg]

Microwave Circuits will spend more than two million dollars to move into the old C&P Telephone building on Kemper Street.
The company makes components for communications equipment, including technology used in homeland security operations.
Officials say the company chose Lynchburg in part because of the strong pool of engineers left behind by the closing of the Ericsson plant.
(------------)

[Marketwatch]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=chr]
[TAPE#=NET]
[GRAPHIC=Business News]
[ENG#=2]

In other business news, Crude oil has reached another record high. And, O-PEC members are expected to gather for emergency talks on Saturday.
Alexis Christoforous has those stories and more in this morning's Marketwatch.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=01-Alexis Christoforous/Reporting; :00]
[RUNS=1:42]
[OUT Q=in New York, I'm AC.]
((American Express may face action from the National Assoc of Securities Dealers for allegedly violating securities laws. The NASD is accusing American Express's broker dealer unit of not disclosing certain revenue-sharing arrangements with mutual fund clients.
THE SKYROCKETING PRICE OF OIL CONTINUES TO MAKE HEADLINES ON WALL STREET AND MAIN STREET... CRUDE OIL CLOSED YESTERDAY AT ANOTHER RECORD HIGH OF 41-50 A BARREL.
ON WALL STREET, STOCKS REVERSED AN EARLY RALLY THE DOW FORFEITED A 100 POINT GAIN TO CLOSE 30 POINTS LOWER THE NASDAQ BARELY BUDGED, ENDING WITH A FRACTIONAL GAIN.
OPEC's president says the cartel could boost oil output by up to 15 percent if necessary. OPEC is already producing 25 and a-half (m) million barrels a day -- or two (m) million barrels above its target.
Several, if not all, of OPEC's members are expected to gather for emergency talks Saturday during an energy forum in Amsterdam to discuss a Saudi proposal for OPEC to raise its output target by one and a-half (m) million barrels to try to ease prices lower.
Saudi Arabia is the only group member with significant additional capacity.
Regardless of what happens this weekend, a formal decision to raise the production target would have to wait until all of OPEC's eleven members meet formally on June third in Beirut.
MORE AIRLINES ARE RAISING TICKET PRICES BY AS MUCH AS 40 DOLLARS TO OFFSET THE SOARING PRICE OF JET FUEL. AMERICAN AIRLINES AND UNITED WILL MATCH AN INCREASE LAUNCHED BY CONTINENTAL AIRLINES WHICH HAS BOOSTED ROUND TRIP FLIGHTS BY BETWEEN 20 AND 40 DOLLARS.
TRACK YOUR STOCKS AT CBS.MW.COM IN NY I'M ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS.))

(tape tosses to stocks)
[STOCKS] [WOOD ROGERS SPONSOR BOARD 5185 ESSC] [COMM]

[OH-Flooding]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Mornin]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=Flooding]
[ENG#=1]

The forecast is calling for more rain in Ohio-- adding insult to injury.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Corning, OH;]

Parts of Southeastern Ohio are already under water.
The governor has declared a state of emergency in two counties, where a creek spilled over its banks and forced hundreds of residents to evacuate.
More counties may be added to the list as the rain continues.
The National Weather Service says some areas have already had over two inches during the past 24 hours.
Meanwhile, wet weather is also causing flooding problems in parts of Kansas and Pennsylvania.
(------------)

[Middle-East]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Mornin]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=none]
[ENG#=2]

Israeli forces struck again in Gaza today--killing five Palestians.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Rafah, Gaza Strip;]

They toppled a building that belonged to an Islamic Jihad leader.
Israel has vowed to hunt down militants, but it now drawing worldwide criticism after a deadly strike against Palestinian protestors.
The U-N security council passed a resolution condemning the attack that killed at least 10 people, including children.
The Bush administration said Israel's actions do NOT serve the purposes of peace and security.
(------------)

[6Scott]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=ssm]
[TAPE#=04-12 TC58:34]
[GRAPHIC=Legal Scales]
[ENG#=3]

An alleged bank robber will face a grand jury.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

37-year-old Maurice Preston Scott was arrested last month
[SUPER=03-Bedford Co./March 17]
for the March 17th robbery of the SunTrust Bank on Graves Mill Road.
Authorities say Scott brandished a sawed-off rifle and made off with an undisclosed amount of cash.
He was arrested April 6th after trying to rob another bank that was already closed.
A judge certified the charges against Scott after a preliminary hearing yesterday.
He could be indicted next month.

(------------)[2-11Jefferson-Forest]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=ssm]
[TAPE#=04-19 TC28:49]
[GRAPHIC=None]
[ENG#=4]

The debate over what to do with Jefferson Forest High School has taken an interesting turn when a private developer offered to build a new high school.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Bedford Co./File Tape]

The Bedford County school board last week refused to authorize a 38-million dollar renovation plan for the school.

Now, Washington D-C based Eastridge Companies says it can put the whole deal together: including finding a site, hiring an architect and selecting a builder.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 10:11:16]
[IN Q=Given what's happened]
((MIKE HALLER/THE EASTRIDGE COMPANIES: GIVEN WHAT'S HAPPENED WITH THE ONGOING PROBLEMS WITH THE BUDGET FOR THE RENOVATION THAT THEY'VE BEEN LOOKING AT FOR THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS, IT APPEARS THAT THIS MAY BE A VERY CREATIVE ALTERNATIVE SOLUTION TO THE REALIZATION OF THEIR DREAM TO GET A NEW FACILITY ONE WAY OR THE OTHER.))
[SUPER=01-Mike Haller/The Eastridge Companies]
[RUNS=12]
[OUT Q=one way or the other.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

Eastridge would create a non-profit company that would lease the new school to the county until the note was paid off.
It's all possible under Virginia's Public-Private Educational Facilities Act that encourages these kinds of partnerships.
The school board may consider the idea at next week's meeting.
(------------)
(Kim tosses to bump)
[BUMP] [COMM]

[6-Warner-Radford;]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=rde]
[TAPE#=04-20 TC06:58]
[GRAPHIC=VA Budget]
[ENG#=2]
Money is starting to MOVE again in the Commonwealth. State revenue collections are higher than expected.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Radford;]
Governor Mark Warner says that's good news. He was in Radford yesterday afternoon explaining the state's new budget. He says even though Virginia's economy appears to be rebounding, the tax increases in the NEW budget are still VERY necessary.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT: 8:44:00 ]
[IN Q=I'm reluctant]
((GOV. MARK WARNER: I'M RELUCTANT TO BET THE WHOLE FUTURE OF VIRGINIA ON HOW THE STOCK MARKETS GOING TO DO FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR. WE WERE GOING TO HAVE A PROBLEM UNLESS WE DEALT WITH OUR OVERALL TAX STRUCTURE. UNTIL THE END OF THE DECADE EVEN WITH A HEALTHY ECONOMY AND THAT'S WHAT WE MANAGED TO FIX THIS YEAR.))
[SUPER=@MarkWarner;]
[RUNS=:14]
[OUT Q=fix this year.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
Revenue collections in the state have grown 9.5-percent in the current fiscal year with two months to go.
(------------)

[11Monty-Budget]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=rde]
[TAPE#=04-21 TC03:33]
[GRAPHIC=None]
[ENG#=3]
A budget surprise may allow Montgomery County residents to enjoy a tax break.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
Tuesday night the Board of Supervisors passed a 118-million dollar budget. The board also set aside 458-thousand dollars for tax relief.
[SUPER=03-Christiansburg;]
The money was set aside because the board found out the state was giving the county several million dollars MORE than expected. The board had already voted, last month, to increase the real estate tax by 3-cents and now it's TOO late to change the rate.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 19:17:00 ]
[IN Q=Because we ]
((BOBBY PARKER:BECAUSE WE CHANGE THE TAX RATE AND GRANT THE RELIEF THAT THE TAX TICKETS THIS YEAR. THE BOARD WILL HAVE THIS AMOUNT OF MONEY IN THE FUND FOR THEM TO DEAL WITH, TO ALLOCATE, TO APPROPRIATE AS THEY SEE FIT IN THE FUTURE.))
[SUPER=01-Robert Parker/Montgomery Co. Spokesperson;]
[RUNS=:12]
[OUT Q=in the future.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
The relief is equal to about one-cent of the real estate tax. How the money will be used or when it will be distributed is NOT known.
(------------)

[11Warner-Radford]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=rde]
[TAPE#=04-30 TC08:04]
[GRAPHIC=none]
[ENG#=2]
Local Universities and Colleges say the new state budget is a step in the right direction, but does NOT go far enough.

(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg/File Tape;]
The plan includes more than 275-million dollars for higher education. Virginia Tech is getting a 7-percent increase in funding, while Radford will a 14-percent increase.
[SUPER=03-Radford;]
But, in a speech given yesterday afternoon at Radford, Governor Mark Warner admitted the increases were still NOT enough.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT: 7:44:00 ]
[IN Q=If Tech is ]
((MARK WARNER: IF TECH IS GOING TO GET THAT TOP 30 RESEARCH DESIGNATION, IF RADFORD IS GOING TO CONTINUE TO TURN OUT THE GREAT TEACHERS AND QUALITY STUDENTS THAT IT HAS IN THE PAST, THE STATE'S GOTTA BE WILLING TO SUPPORT THESE INVESTMENTS IN OUR COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES. ))
[SUPER=@MarkWarner;]
[RUNS=:13]
[OUT Q=colleges and universities.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
A recent study shows Virginia's Colleges and Universities are under funded by more than 400-million dollars. Warner says this NEW investment helps to close the gap. (------------)