WDBJ 7 morning news AM cutins for 02/08/96

08:25-01

7Truck

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A major travel delay for Interstate 81 commuters.
A southbound lane of the interstate is closed in Wythe County this morning following a tractor trailor accident.
The accident happened at the 68 mile marker.
Cars are being re-routed on exit 70.
But there's a problem for big rig drivers, they are not being allowed to use the detour because of a weight limit on a bridge.

7Greene

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=Cutin
WRITER=Khu
TAPE#95-109
GRAPHIC=green calvin

A Ronoke bank robber has been sentenced to 17 years behind bars for a string of robberies that he claims were comitted out of desparation.
Calvin Green says he robbed the banks to buy a "breathing machine" for his son.
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VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Roanoke/Yesterday;

He got away with 97- hundred dollars in four hold-ups last February and March.
Bank cameras show Greene became increasingly more agressive as his crime spree continued.
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SOT 15:15:33
IN Q=I would like
((I WOULD LIKE TO ASK THE COURT TO GIVE ME A SECOND CHANCE AT MY LIFE. AND I'M SORRY FOR WHAT HAPPENED. I AM A NICE PERSON, AND I TAKE FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR WHAT HAPPENED.))
SUPER=01-Calvin Greene/Bank Robber
RUNS=:12
OUT Q=what happened.
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VO-NAT

Judge Diane Strickland read from several of the victims' "impact statements," citing one who said she suffered "no ill effects" and another who said she was "scared to death."
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7PCP

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=cro
TAPE# none
GRAPHIC=Legal Scales

A former government research chemist accused of concocting enough chemicals to make 40 million doses of P-C-P will have his day in court later this month.
Reginald Booker and two other men are charged with conspiracy to manufacture and distribute P-C-P.
The investigation began in May when motorists reported seeing three men in a U-Haul heaving trash bags from the side of a bridge in Charlotte County.
Environmental Quality workers retrieved the chemicals from the banks of Ward's Creek.
Tests showed the sludge was the byproduct of P-C-P.

7Va-Tech

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=Cutin
WRITER=khu
TAPE#96-11
GRAPHIC=state police investigation

State police are investigating claims that two Virginia Tech students raped a student in a dorm room.
Christy Brzonkala (Bron-calla's) says the men raped her and then, got preferential treatment.
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VO-NAT

The state police investigation was actually the State Attorney General's idea.
A letter to Brzonkala's attorney last month notes that Brzonkala chose NOT to seek police involvement.
State officials say if she reconsiders "the Attorney General is prepared to ask the State police to conduct an immediate and thorough criminal investigation...."
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ANCHOR=Melanie
SS=hold

Brzonkala's lawyer and Tech officials say they WELCOME the criminal investigation.

7Scam

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=kmc
TAPE#96-13
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Scam artists have hit Henry County.
Authorities there call it a "pigeon drop" scam.
They say in late January, a 57 year- old woman was approached inside a K-Mart store in Henry County.
A man and woman reportedly told her they'd found a large sum of money, promised her a share if she would put up 300 dollars in "good faith money".
And once she did-- they disappeared.
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VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Henry Co.;

Henry county authorities say since scam artists are usually transient--they could be anywhere in the region.
They are warning people to be on alert if they are approached.
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SOT 6:01:35
IN Q=We preach that
((LT. KIMMY NESTER/HENRY CO. SHERIFF'S DEPT.: WE PREACH THAT IF IT'S TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE, THEN IT IS. NO ONE'S GOING TO GIVE YOU ANYTHING IN THIS WORLD, ESPECIALLY MONEY. SO, IF IT'S TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE, THEN IT IS. YOU SHOULD BE LEERY OF IT, SAY NO THANK YOU, AND GET AWAY FROM THESE PEOPLE. ))
SUPER=01-Lt. Kimmy Nester/Henry Co. Sheriff's Dept.;
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OUT Q=from these people
TALENT=Melanie
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Nester says to call the police if you are approached.
He says the scam occurs most often in public places, like shopping centers and grocery stores.

7weather

ANCHOR=Melanie
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Turning now to the weather -
Today is going to be mostly cloudy with a chance of showers.
Highs will be in the mid 40s.
For tonight, expect temperatures to be in the low to mid 30s with rain ending during the night.
Tomorrow will be mostly sunny with highs in the mid 40s.
Stay tuned to CBS This Morning for all the latest school closings and delays

55Truck

ANCHOR=Melanie
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WRITER=cro
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Only one lane of Interstate 81 South in Wythe County is open this morning.
State police are working to clear a tractor trailer wreck near milemarker 68.
Cars are being re-routed off exit 70, but tractor trailers will NOT be able to use that detour because there is a bridge with a weight limit along the route.

55ITT

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=lbe
TAPE#95-113
GRAPHIC=NONE

The I-T-T plant in Roanoke County has come a long way toward establishing commercial uses for its night vision devices.
But so far, that has not brought more job security for its 650 workers.
Len Besthoff reports.
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SOT
IN Q=Last week
SUPER=03-Roanoke Co./Last Week; :00
SUPER=01-Elaine Tuttle/ITT Night Vision; :55
SUPER=@File;
SUPER=@Len1; 1:24
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OUT Q=LB, News-7.

(( Last week we visited I-T-T Night Vision to do a story about its positive efforts in selling night vision goggles to consumers.
Up until 1993, the focus was on military applications.
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SOT TAPE TWO 03:16:45
IN Q=The response
((SANDRA COAN/ITT NIGHT VISION: THE RESPONSE TO NIGHT VISION HAS BEEN INCREDIBLE.))
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OUT Q=has been incredible.

But hours after our visit workers called saying the company planned to cut jobs.
Our attempts to reach I-T-T failed, but we confirmed the story from an outside source.
We reported I-T-T would cut 90 positions-it turned out 12 people got pink slips.
We regret the error.
When we tried to get the correct figure from I-T-T, we did not get a response after four separate calls.
A release arrived TWO DAYS later, and 24 HOURS after the rest of the media got a copy.
It says the layoffs partly resulted from slower than anticipated growth in its commercial/consumer products segment.
But two days before, growth prospects in that division sounded pretty rosy.
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SOT TAPE TWO 02:55:01
IN Q=The second
((ELAINE TUTTLE/ITT NIGHT VISION: THE SECOND YEAR WE WERE ABOUT 400-PERCENT GROWTH RATE AND WE HAVEN'T MAINTAINED THAT KIND OF GROWTH RATE, BUT WE DOUBLED LAST YEAR AND IT LOOKS LIKE WE'RE GONNA ALMOST DOUBLE THIS YEAR IN OUR COMMERCIAL SALES.))
RUNS=:10
OUT Q=commercial sales.

Workers who called us also expressed doubt about I-T-T's other statement in the release, that "...no further workforce reductions are anticipated".
They pointed out, and News-7 confirmed, that I-T-T is awaiting the award of a large night vision contract from the U-S military probably worth tens of millions of dollars.
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SOT STANDUP
IN Q=The last
(( The last contract awarded was split by I-T-T and its main competitor, Litton Industries of Arizona.
But workers say Litton took the matter to court because it had the lower bid.
This time around, employees speculate only one company will get the contract. ))
RUNS=:14
OUT Q=will get the contract.

But even if I-T-T doesn't win it, it MAY have an ace in the hole.
Workers also say it's bidding on two big foreign night vision contracts.
I-T-T told its employees it will hear about the U-S military contract in a few weeks, and the foreign work will not be awarded until later this year.
Len Besthoff, News-7.))

55Helems

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
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TAPE#NONE
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The superintendent of Craig County's schools is being asked to resign.
School board members this week voted three to two to oust Dallas (Helms) Helems.
The decision comes on the heels of a recent fuel leak at Craig County High School.
Helems says he was disappointed with the board's decision, and that he had no idea it was coming.
Helems still has about a year and a half left on his contract and says he wants to honor it.

55Wythe-Administrator

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And in Wythe County, County Administrator Billy Branson is resigning effective September first.
Former county board of supervisors member James Crosswell says Branson was forced to resign because of his support for the proposed prison in Wythe County.
Branson could not be reached for comment.

55weather

8Accident-81

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=cro
TAPE#95-110
GRAPHIC=none

Two people were injured and traffic tied up for hours this morning on Insterstate 81 in Wythe County.
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VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Wythe Co.;

A driver of a tractor trailor lost control of her vehicle and crashed, blocking both southbound lanes near mile marker 68.
Margie Younglood and her husband were injured and taken to the hospital.
Youngblood has been charged with reckless driving.
One southbound lane remains closed and traffic is being detoured on route 11.
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8Drug-Bust

ANCHOR=Melanie
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GRAPHIC=Cocaine Dust

A drug bust last night in Montgomery County yielded 75- hundred dollars worth of powder and crack cocaine.
Authorities arrested 24- year- old Michael Bishop of Sunneyside, New York.
Bishop is in the Montgomery County jail on 65- thousand dollars bond.

8Henry-Administrator

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=kmc
TAPE#96-15
GRAPHIC=NONE

Henry County is minus an Administrator this morning.
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VO-NAT
SUPER=@File;

The county board of supervisors voted unanimously yesterday to release Robert Lawler from his contract.
The board cited "philosophical differences" as the reason.
SUPER=03-Henry Co.; :14

County officials added that Lawler's termination had nothing to do with his job performance-- nor was there any misconduct.
Some say the three newly- elected board members may have played a role.
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SOT 4:19:08
IN Q=this is the
((VERONICA VENABLE/ACTING HENRY CO. ADMINISTRATOR: THIS IS THE BEGINNING OF A NEW BOARD OF SUPERVISORS. AND BEYOND THAT, I COULDN'T TELL YOU WHAT SPECIFIC DIFFERENCES OF PHILOSOPHY THEY MAY HAVE HAD, BUT THIS IS A NEWLY- CONSTITUTED BOARD.))
SUPER=01-Veronica Venable/Acting Henry Co. Administrator;
RUNS=:15
OUT Q=constituted board
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VO-NA
Lawler could not be reached for comment--
But in a written statement to the board, he praised the county's staff.
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TALENT=Melanie

Lawler will receive monthly severance pay through May 27th.
He's worked as county administrator for the last two and a half years.

8Hampton-Sydney

ANCHOR=Melanie
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Students at all-male Hampden-Sydney College don't want the school to admit women, and they've offered to help solve student retention problems that first sparked discussion of the idea.
More than 100 students attended a forum yesterday on the issue.

8Old-Farmers

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=tal
TAPE#96-3
GRAPHIC=Winter Wx

Well get set for another snow storm, that is if you follow the Farmer's Almanac.
It's not what meteorologists predict, but more folks ARE turning to the Almanac since it's been on the mark for the last two snowstorms.
So how reliable is it?
Tracy Altizer takes a look.
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SOT
IN Q=The Almanac has hit
SUPER=01-Clyde Morris/Farmer; :00
SUPER=03-Blacksburg/File; :44
SUPER=01-Mike Emlaw/N.W.S. Meteorologist; :54
SUPER=@Tracy2; 1:09
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OUT Q=Altizer, NEws 7.
((
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SOT 14:21:50
IN Q=
((CLYDE MORRIS/FARMER: THE ALMANAC HAS HIT IT ALMOST WITHIN ONE DAY A YEAR OR A YEAR AND A HALF IN ADVANCE, THAT OUR LOCAL FORECASTERS CAN'T HIT A WEEK AHEAD. ))
RUNS=:11

Morris really is a fan of Robin Reed, and watches the News-7 weatherman nightly for the next day's forecast.
But when it comes to long- range planning, this potato farmer has relied on Blum's Farmer's and Planter's Almanac for 40 years.
It has him worried about more snowstorms this month.
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SOT 14:29:57
((THE 16TH THROUGH THE 19TH AND THE 24TH THROUGH THE 29TH. I HOPE WE MISS THOSE. ))
RUNS=:06

But it also depends on which almanac you depend on.
The Old Farmers Almanac was on the money last week, but it's not calling for anymore snow until the 19th thru the 21st of this month.
At the National Weather Service office in Blacksburg, meteorologists say it's all a matter of interpretation.
And even with all the latest computer models, they don't stick their necks out past a week.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT 11:02:29
((MIKE EMLAW/N.W.S. METEOROLOGIST: WE CAN PREDICT FAIRLY WELL MOST OF THE TIME OUT TO ABOUT TWO DAYS. WE CAN DO REASONABLY WELL, KIND OF GET A GENERAL IDEA WHAT THE WEATHER'S GOING TO BE OUT TO PERHAPS SEVEN DAYS DEPENDING ON THE TIME OF THE YEAR, AND THEN ANYTHING REALLY BEYOND THAT IS GUESSWORK. ))
RUNS=:15

But whether you subscribe to high- tech or down- home, only one person really knows what's in store, and we all know better than to mess with Mother Nature. Tracy Altizer, News 7.))