WDBJ 7 morning news for 08/03/98

[Headlines]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]

(----------------)
[VO-NAT]

A deadly Independence Day crash may have killed the parents of one of the children involved in a baby-switch at the UVa Medical Center.
(----------------)
[ANCHOR=Melanie]

And a Martinsville woman becomes the second to suffer a fatal fall from North Carolina's Grandfather Mountain in just over a year.
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]

We're following up a gorgeous weekend with and equally gorgeous Monday--
Lots of sun again today...with the promise of much- needed rain later this week.
Details, straight ahead.
[ANCHOR=Steve]
(ad lib live tease)
[2-shot]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]

[Grandfather-Mountain]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=sta]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=none]

A Martinsville woman is dead after falling off of Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina.
47-year-old Patsy Ashby is the second woman to fall to her death from the spot in just over a year.
A park official says an investigation following last year's death found that weather could weaken a guard rail at the spot so that it might fail to support someone leaning against it.
Last year's death was the first since 1952.

[Babies-Switched]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=MORN]
[WRITER=chr]
[TAPE#=net-A;from 98-57 7/05 amd 98-57 7/06 TC 36:12]
[GRAPHIC=NONE]

A possible connection this morning between a case of switched babies at the University of Virginia Medical Center, and a car wreck that claimed 7 lives on the Fourth of July.
(------------------)
[vo-nat]
[super=03-Botetourt Co./July 4;]

Tamara Whitney Rogers and Kevin Chittum were killed in this holiday accident on I-81 in Botetourt County.
A national newspaper is reporting that the two were raising a child that was not theirs.
A family member reportedly confirmed that information.
The deadly crash occurred just one day after D-N-A testing on a Stanardsville woman showed that the little girl SHE was raising was NOT her biological daughter.
(----------)
[anchor=Melanie]
[ss=none]

Meantime authorities continue to investigate just HOW the children were mixed up.
UVA Medical Center's Chief of Staff says an investigation shows that the switch could not have been accidental.

[water-main]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=mel]
[TAPE#net-J]
[GRAPHIC=Summer Heat]

The brutal heat sizzles on in the Southwest.
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Watauga, TX;]
[4:10:03 ]
It's so hot in Texas its affecting the rail lines.
Triple-digit temperatures warped a railroad track derailing two freight trains.
Authorities call it "sun kinks," that's when heat expands the tracks causing them to bend.
[SUPER=03-Tarrant Co., TX;]
[4:06:56]
But it's not clear yet whether high temperatures are to blame for a water main break in Tarrant County.
It carries about a third of the water for one million residents near Fort Worth.
(----------------)

[heat-stroke]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=mel]
[TAPE#net-H]
[GRAPHIC=Summer Heat]

A Houston, Texas woman is scared...and angry.
The air conditioning went out in her apartment over the weekend and her mother is now in critical condition and in coma after suffering a heat stroke.
The high has been at least 100 degrees for the past 8 days straight.
Annette Gonzales reports.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=03-Houston, TX; :00]
[SUPER=01-Gloria Mills/Victim's Daughter; :16]
[SUPER=01-Annette Gonzales/Reporting; :42]
[RUNS=1:31]
[OUT Q=CBS NEws]

(((
Gloria Mills is overcome with grief. She recalls how she returned from a weekend visit to her grandchildren...only to find her mother on the floor of the apartment they share at the Rose Plaza Apartment Complex.
Gloria Mills, Victim's Daughter "The air was on when I left and when I come back there wasn't nothing. And she had been in here like two days. I don't know how long she'd been on that floor.")
When 73-year old Leola Brown was brought into the hospital, doctors say she had a temperature of 108 degrees. Her daughter says the family is being told to prepare for the worst.
(SOT: "I hope and pray that my mother that she comes out of this.
And then I'm gonna see if somebody can do something about this.")
Mills' neighbors at the Rose Plaza complex, say this latest air outage is the third of the summer. They say they're surprised more residents have not suffered heat strokes.
(SOT: "You know we have other elderly people around here. We have
the kids around here. The way the temperature is here in Houston now... no... uh, uh.")
(NATSND)
Residents say they've tried to get answers from the apartment manager.... but like us got no response.
(NATSND)
Meanwhile, Gloria Mills says she is both angry and sad. She pays 325-dollars for the one bedroom apartment she and her mother share... an apartment that doesn't even have a thermostat...only an on/off switch.
Annette Gonzales for CBS News.))

[clinton]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=mel]
[TAPE#net-G]
[GRAPHIC=Bill Clinton]

Fresh from a weekend on Long Island, President Clinton turns his attention today back to politics -- and back to Monica Lewinsky.
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
[4:03;11]
[SUPER=03-Washington DC;]

With just over two weeks to prepare for his upcoming grand jury testimony to Kenneth Starr, President Clinton faces new front page pictures of him with his former intern, her testimony and possibly, the D-N-A results of the now infamous stained cocktail dress.
The scandal remains the talk on capitol Hill and whether it will ultimately undermine Bill Clinton's presidency.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=If he]
(( ORRIN HATCH-R-UT:IF HE COMES FORTH AND TELLS IT AND DOES IT IN THE RIGHT WAY, THERE AREN'T A LOT OF OTHER FACTORS TO CAUSE THE CONGRESS TO SAY THIS MAN IS UNFIT FOR THE PRESIDENCY AND SHOULD BE IMPEACHED, THEN I THINK THE PRESIDENT WOULD HAVE A REASONABLE CHANCE OF GETTING THROUGH THIS. ))
[SUPER=01-Orrin Hatch/(R) Utah;]
[RUNS=:15]
[OUT Q=OF GETTING THROUGH THIS.]
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]

Despite all the talk...polls continue to show the majority of people both in the U-S and other countries...continue to support the president - and his right to privacy.
(----------------)

[1-Sports]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=Mornin]
[WRITER=chr]
[TAPE#=sports cut in]
[GRAPHIC=None]

In sports, the Salem Avalache suffer their sixth loss in as many games.
Roy Stanley has details.
Good Morning Roy.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Good Morning]
[RUNS=1:56]
[OUT Q=later on mornin.]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
(Melanie ad lib toss to Kimberly/Wx)

[One-Steve]

[ANCHOR=Steve]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=spa]
[TAPE#none]
[GRAPHIC=NONE]

[Small Studio]
[SUPER=15-Steve/Pardon;]
[SUPER=13-Jean Vandergrift/Virginia Cooperative Extension;]

(toss to stocks)
[STOCKS] [COMM]

[E-MADD-Star]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=Mornin']
[WRITER=djo]
[TAPE#=98-42]
[GRAPHIC=none]
After two years of burning the color red each time an alcohol-related death occurred in the region, Roanoke City Council changed the Mill Mountain Star permantly to white.
(--------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg]

Now, some people are protesting the council's decision--including a Virginia Tech student, who voiced his opinion with a song.
[NAT-SOUND=13:00:45]
[RUNS=08]
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT=13:01:47]
[IN Q=WHAT I FOUND]
((BOB WHISONANT/SONG WRITER; WHAT I FOUND ODD WAS THE PEOPLE WHO WOULD SAY THE STAR'S TOO DEPRESSING. THIS IS TOO MORBID. I DON'T WANT TO BE REMINDED OF THIS. AND PEOPLE WOULD GET ANGRY ABOUT THAT. IT JUST STRUCK ME AS ODD THAT PEOPLE WEREN'T GETTING ANGRY THAT DRUNK DRIVING DEATHS HAD OCCURRED. THEY WERE ANGRY THAT THEY WERE BEING REMINDED.))
[SUPER=01-Bob Whisonant/Song Writer;]
[RUNS=19]
[OUT Q=BEING REMINDED.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
Whisonant thinks people should have a chance to vote on the issue.
[SUPER=03-Roanoke;]
And, the group Mothers Against Drunk Driving agrees.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT=15:36:01]
[IN Q=THE DECISION TO]
((TOM ALTMAN/REGIONAL MADD PRESIDENT; THE DECISION TO DISCONTINUE THIS PROGRAM WAS MADE BY VERY FEW PEOPLE. WE BELIEVE THERE'S A WHOLE LOT OF SUPPORT IN THE AREA FOR THIS PROGRAM.))
[SUPER=01-Tom Altman/Regional MADD President]
[RUNS=12]
[OUT Q=FOR THIS PROGRAM]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
Altman says turning the star red isn't meant to memorialize the victim, but to promote public awareness about drunk driving. Whisonant performed his song "The Last Red Star" on Mill Mountain last night.
(------------)

[Common-Sense]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=sgo]
[TAPE#=Common Sense]
[GRAPHIC=Common Sense]

If your mutual fund company adds a load fund to a no-load fund family, does that mean you have to pay extra fees?
In this week's Common Sense, Scott Goldberg says: not necessarily.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=@Scott1; 00]
[SUPER=01-Ben Hartman/Edward Jones Stockbroker; :23]
[RUNS=:46]
[OUT Q=i'm SG]
(( There have been some stories lately about no-load fund companies adding load funds to their portfolios.
A load fund has a fee investors pay when they first buy into the fund.
But if you're used to investing in no-loads... and all of a sudden your mutual fund company starts adding load funds to its family of funds ... does that mean you have to pay new fees?
Stockbroker Ben Hartman says no.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 13 51 11]
["Hartman" tape]
[IN Q=if you're]
((BEN HARTMAN/EDWARD JONES STOCKBROKER: IF YOU'RE INVESTED INTO A MUTUAL FUND ALREADY AND THE MUTUAL FUND COMPANY ADDS A LOAD FUND TO ITS FAMILY OF FUNDS, THAT ACT IN AND OF ITSELF WOULD NOT CREATE A CHARGE FOR THE INVESTOR. THE INVESTOR WOULD HAVE TO ACTUALLY INVEST MONEY INTO THE LOAD FUND.)) [RUNS17]
[OUT Q=load fund]

In other words, don't change your investing behavior, and you won't have to pay new fees.
That's this week's Common Sense.
I'm Scott Goldberg.))

[Health-Check]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=chr]
[TAPE#=NET]
[GRAPHIC=Mornin Health Check]

In medical news, a life-saving message concerning organ donation is coming from the pulpit.
Rick Jackson has details in this morning's Health check.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=01-Rick Jackson/Reporting; :00 ]
[SUPER=@file; ]
[RUNS=1:22]
[OUT Q=CBS News, New York.]
((ONCAM=RICK
((on camera))
GOOD MORNING.
CHURCH LEADERS ARE USING THE PULPIT TO DELIVER A MESSAGE THAT WILL HOPEFULLY SAVE LIVES.
VT=VO
((vo))
MINISTERS AT PREDOMINANTLY BLACK CHURCHES--LIKE THIS ONE IN CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA--ARE URGING CONGREGATION MEMBERS TO BECOME ORGAN DONORS.
NATIONWIDE...ABOUT 35-PERCENT OF ALL PEOPLE IN NEED OF A TRANSPLANT ARE AFRICAN-AMERICAN:

VT=SOT
((sot))
Rev. Cliffford Jones/Friendship Baptist Church Kevin Patterson/Church Member "If we can enhance life through organ donation then we should do it." "I think more needs to be done to make folks aware of organ donations."
VT=VO
((vo))
THE CONGRESS OF NATIONAL BLACK CHURCHES SAYS IT'S TRYING TO DEBUNK THE MYTH THAT A PERSON NEEDS ALL OF HIS OR HER BODY PARTS TO GET TO HEAVEN.
VT=VO
((vo))
BOXING LEGEND, MUHAMMAD ALI, IS REPORTEDLY UNDERGOING AN EXPERIMENTAL MAGNETIC THERAPY TO TREAT HIS PARKINSON'S DISEASE.
ACCORDING TO A FLORIDA NEWSPAPER, THE TREATMENT INVOLVES SITTING BETWEEN TWO BLACK CIRCLES THAT GIVE OFF A WEAK MAGNETIC FIELD.
THE DOCTOR WHO DEVELOPED THIS TECHNIQUE BELIEVES IT CAN REGENERATE BRAIN CELLS DAMAGED BY THE NEUROLOGICAL DISORDER.//
VT=VO
((vo))
A FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION ADVISORY PANEL WANTS CERTAIN ASTHMA AND ALLERGY MEDICATIONS TO CARRY STRONGER WARNING LABELS.
FEDERAL OFFICIALS SAY INHALANTS AND MISTS CONTAINING STEROIDS CAN STUNT A CHILD'S GROWTH.
MANY OF THESE DRUGS ALREADY WARN ABOUT THIS POSSIBLE SIDE EFFECT.. BUT F-D-A ADVISERS SAY THE LABELS SHOULD CARRY MORE DETAILED INFORMATION.//
AND THAT IS A LOOK AT TODAY'S MEDICAL NEWS. I'M RICK JACKSON, CBS NEWS, NEW YORK.))

(ad lib to weather)

[Two-Steve]

[ANCHOR=Steve]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=spa]
[TAPE#NONE]
[GRAPHIC=NONE]

[Small Studio]
[SUPER=15-Steve/Pardon;]
[SUPER=13-Jean Vandergrift/Virginia Cooperative Extension;]

[Double Boxes=KMC & SPA]
(toss to Kimberly)
[2-HEADLINES]
[2-shot=Mel/Kmc]
[SUPER=#4050; Headline Banner]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]

Here's a look at today's top stories.
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]

U-S-A Today reports the parents who took home one of the newborns switched at birth at a Virginia hospital died in a car accident July fourth on Interstate 81 in Botetourt County.
One day before the crash, D-N-A tests showed that a woman 70 miles away was raising a child that wasn't hers.
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
[ANCHOR=Kim]

For people in one Texas county suffering through a heat wave, there's a new problem.
A water main that carries about a third of the water supply for more than a million residents in Tarrant County has broken.
(----------------)
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[ss=none]

And it'ss back to work for President Clinton today following a weekend of golf and fund-raising on Long Island.
Mr. Clinton has two weeks until he testifies in the Monica Lewinsky investigation.
He's facing mounting pressure to reveal what type of relationship he had with the former White House intern.
(----------------)
[anchor=Kimberly]

And that's what's making news on this Monday August 3rd.
[anchor=Melanie]

News 7 Mornin' will be right back.

[2-Babies-Switched]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=chr]
[TAPE#=net-A;from 98-57 7/05 amd 98-57 7/06 TC 36:12]
[GRAPHIC=NONE]

A possible tragic twist this morning in a baby switch at the University of Virginia Medical Center.
(------------------)
[vo-nat]
[super=03-Botetourt Co./July 4;]

Tamara Whitney Rogers and Kevin Chittum (chit-umm) were among 7 people killed in this 4th of July accident on Interstate 81 in Botetourt County.
A national newspaper is reporting that the two were raising a child that was not theirs.
A family member reportedly confirmed that information.
The deadly crash occurred just one day after D-N-A testing on a Stanardsville woman showed that the little girl SHE was raising was NOT her biological daughter.
(----------)
[anchor=Melanie]
[ss=none]

Meantime authorities continue to investigate just HOW the children were switched.
UVA Medical Center's Chief of Staff says an investigation shows that the mix-up could NOT have been accidental.

[2-Grandfather-Mountain]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=sta]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=none]

A fatal fall off of Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina claims the life of a Martinsville woman.
47-year-old Patsy Ashby is the second woman to fall to her death from the spot in just over a year.
A park official says an investigation following last year's death found that weather could weaken a guard rail at the spot so that it might fail to support someone leaning against it.
Last year's death was the first since 1952.

[E-Clifton-Forge]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=Mornin']
[WRITER=djo]
[TAPE#=98-45]
[GRAPHIC=none]
Since 1993, the option of reverting from city to town status has been discussed by Clifton Forge city officials, but has never gotten past consideration. Now the city is in dire straits and the mayor says it's not a question of IF, but WHEN the city will take on town status. As David Johnson reports, the city council has appointed a committee to research the matter.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Campbell says Clifton]
[SUPER=03-Clifton Forge; :01]
[SUPER=01-Mac Campbell/Clifton Forge Mayor; :23]
[SUPER=01-Frank Pullen/Resident; QUICKLY!! :33]
[SUPER=01-Bob Williams/Resident; :36]
[RUNS=:59]
[OUT Q=for Clifton Forge.]
((Mac Campbell, the mayor of Clifton Forge says the city cannot expand its boundary because state law prohibits it. And he says the area already has some of the highest real estate taxes in Virginia--a dollar 13 per 100 dollars assessed value-- so he says raising taxes would be counterproductive. A reversion, on the other hand, would take some of the financial stress away from the city.
[SOT=10:38:55]
[IN Q=THE BENEFITS]
((MAC CAMPBELL/CLIFTON FORGE MAYOR; THE BENEFITS OF TOWN STATUS WE BELIEVE WOULD ALLOW CLIFTON FORGE TO SHARE IN THE GROWTH OF THE COUNTY.)) [RUNS07]
[OUT Q=THE COUNTY.]
He says one of the main results would be reduced taxes.
[SOT=11:04:08 - 11:04:14]
[IN Q=IF THEY CAN]
((FRANK PULLEN/RESIDENT; IF THEY CAN GO TO TOWN AND SAVE US SOME MONEY, I'M ALL FOR IT.)) ((BOB WILLIAMS/RESIDENT; I'M FOR IT IF IT CAN BE PROVEN THAT OUR TAXES WILL GO DOWN.)) [RUNS08]
[OUT Q=WOULD HAPPEN.]
Campbell says another concern is the loss of control over the town.
[SOT=10:41:11]
[IN Q=HOWEVER, THAT'S]
((CAMPBELL; HOWEVER, THAT'S, I BELIEVE, A PERCEPTUAL ISSUE. I THINK THAT THERE ARE NOT A LOT OF DOWN SIDES TO IT. BUT THAT'S WHAT OUR COMMITTEE IS LOOKING AT. TO SEE EXACTLY WHAT TOWN STATUS WOULD MEAN FOR CLIFTON FORGE.)) [RUNS15]
[OUT Q=CLIFTON FORGE.]
The group conducting the research consists of city council members and anyone else who can provide the necessary input. Campbell says this study won't be complete until the committee feels the information offers complete answers for the local residents. David Johnson, News 7, Clifton Forge. ))

[TEXAS-HEAT]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=MEL]
[TAPE#net-D]
[GRAPHIC=Summer Heat]

The searing Southern heat wave is being blamed for warped train tracks and two derailments.
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Tarrant Co., TX;]
[4:06:56]
But it's not clear whether high temperatures are to blame for a water main break in Tarrant County, Texas.
It carries about a third of the water for one million residents near Fort Worth.
[SUPER=03-Houston, TX;]
[4:08:18]
The triple digit temperatures are to blame for a number of deaths and illnesses in the south and southwest over the past few weeks.
One elderly woman in Houston remains in a coma this morning after suffering a heat stroke at her home when the air conditioning went out.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
((
GLORIA MILLS, VICTIM'S DAUGHTER "THE AIR WAS ON WHEN I LEFT AND WHEN I COME BACK THERE WASN'T NOTHING. AND SHE HAD BEEN IN HERE LIKE TWO DAYS. I DON'T KNOW HOW LONG SHE'D BEEN ON THAT FLOOR." ))
[SUPER=01-Gloria Mills/Victim's Daughter;]
[RUNS=:10]
[OUT Q= SHE'D BEEN ON THAT FLOOR.]
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
More than 150 deaths nationwide are blamed on the heat.
(----------------)

[CHILDREN-TRUNK]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=MEL]
[TAPE#net-C]
[GRAPHIC=None]

An autopsy is scheduled today on the bodies of two young Pennsylvania brothers found dead in the trunk of their parents' car.
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Greensboro, PA;]

The boys, ages two and five, were found yesterday afternoon after their parents reported them missing.
Two dead puppies were also in the trunk, along with the car keys.
Authorities say heat and a lack of oxygen probably killed the boys.
Prosecutors say they don't suspect foul play and don't expect to file charges in the case.
(----------------)

[2-clinton]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=mel]
[TAPE#net-L]
[GRAPHIC=Bill Clinton]

President Clinton returns to work today amid increasing pressure to speak out about his relationship with Monica Lewinsky.
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
[4:03;11]
[SUPER=03-Washington DC;]

The president testifies before a grand jury in two weeks.
He also faces new front page pictures of him with his former intern, her testimony and possibly, the D-N-A results of the now infamous stained cocktail dress.
Whether Democrat or Republican the scandal is the talk among lawmakers and whether it will ultimately undermine his presidency.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=The President]
(( JOHN CONYERS D-MI
SOT:...THE PRESIDENT PROMISED TO BE TRUTHFUL...HE'S AGREED TO GO BEFORE
CAMERSA WITH THE GRAND JURY. WHAT ARE WE DOWN TO? WE DON'T HAVE MUCH LEFT.))
[SUPER=01-John Conyers/(D) Michigan;]
[RUNS=:14]
[OUT Q=don't have much left.]
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]

Today, Mr. Clinton plans a speech in which aides say he'll blast Republicans for cutting summer jobs money.
(----------------)

[CAPITOL-GUNFIRE]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=mel]
[TAPE#net-K]
[GRAPHIC=None]

The two officers killed in the Capitol shooting received heros funerals last week.
Hundreds of people paused to pay their respects, as the funeral processions rolled through town.
In that crowd, there was one man, overlooked by many, who shared a special relationship with Officer J-J Chestnut.
Bruce Leshan has his story.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=03-Washington DC; :00]
[SUPER=01-Stacey Abney/Victim's Friend; :26]
[SUPER=01-Karyn Chestnut/Victim's Daughter; 1:28]
[super=01-Bruce Leshan/Reporting;]
[RUNS=1:52]
[OUT Q=for CBS News.][Birthdays]
[SS=none]
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT ]
[Out-Q=Mon.]
[RUNS=:36]
[out= back to you.]

[Three-Steve]

[Campaign-Contributions]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=chr]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=Va. State Seal]

Campaign reports show that about a dozen Virginia lawmakers violated a law prohibiting the acceptance of campaign contributions during winter sessions.
The reports, filed in July, show that several representatives took contributions to their campaigns during the 1998 General Assembly Session.
The law was passed in 1997; some legislators say the donations were made before but recorded AFTER the session began.

[2-E-MADD-Star]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Mornin']
[WRITER=djo]
[TAPE#=98-42]
[GRAPHIC=none]

Roanoke City COuncil's decision NOT to have the Mill Mountain Star burn red after alcohol-related deaths is still drawing fire.
(--------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg]

Several people are protesting the council's decision--including a Virginia Tech student, who voiced his opinion with a song.
[NAT-SOUND=13:00:45]
[RUNS=08]
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT=13:01:47]
[IN Q=WHAT I FOUND]
((BOB WHISONANT/SONG WRITER; WHAT I FOUND ODD WAS THE PEOPLE WHO WOULD SAY THE STAR'S TOO DEPRESSING. THIS IS TOO MORBID. I DON'T WANT TO BE REMINDED OF THIS. AND PEOPLE WOULD GET ANGRY ABOUT THAT. IT JUST STRUCK ME AS ODD THAT PEOPLE WEREN'T GETTING ANGRY THAT DRUNK DRIVING DEATHS HAD OCCURRED. THEY WERE ANGRY THAT THEY WERE BEING REMINDED.))
[SUPER=01-Bob Whisonant/Song Writer;]
[RUNS=19]
[OUT Q=BEING REMINDED.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
Whisonant thinks people should have a chance to vote on the issue.
[SUPER=03-Roanoke;]
And, the group Mothers Against Drunk Driving agrees.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT=15:36:01]
[IN Q=THE DECISION TO]
((TOM ALTMAN/REGIONAL MADD PRESIDENT; THE DECISION TO DISCONTINUE THIS PROGRAM WAS MADE BY VERY FEW PEOPLE. WE BELIEVE THERE'S A WHOLE LOT OF SUPPORT IN THE AREA FOR THIS PROGRAM.))
[SUPER=01-Tom Altman/Regional MADD President]
[RUNS=12]
[OUT Q=FOR THIS PROGRAM]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
Altman says turning the star red isn't meant to memorialize the victim, but to promote public awareness about drunk driving. Whisonant performed his song "The Last Red Star" on Mill Mountain last night.
(------------)

[E-Museum-Exhibit]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=eea]
[TAPE#=98-44; 1:17:16]
[GRAPHIC=none]

Race fans' enthusiasm is paying off in South Boston.
The town's Museum History of Racing exhibit will be up a little longer than originally planned.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=@File]

The exhibit is extending its pit stop at the museum through the month of August, because of all the interest from race fans.
Special features include rare footage of races at Daytona, Darlington, and the South Boston Speedway dirt track.
They also have Richard Petty's shoes, hat, a championship ring, and a gold medallion he won.
(------------)

[3-Sports]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=Mornin]
[WRITER=chr]
[TAPE#=sports cut in]
[GRAPHIC=None]

In sports, Randy Johnson makes a big first impression on the mound for the Houston Astros.
Roy Stanley has more.
Good Morning Roy.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Good Morning]
[RUNS=1:56]
[OUT Q=day everybody.]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
(Melanie ad lib toss to Kimberly/Wx)
[Local-Recap]
[SUPER=#4059;Local Recap]
[2-Shot=Mel/Kmc]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]

Now here's another look at today's top local stories:
A Martinsville woman died yesterday afternoon after falling from Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina.
47-year-old Patsy Ashby is the second woman to fall to her death from the spot in just over a year.
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[ANCHOR=Kimberly]

There's a possible connection this morning between a car wreck that killed 7 people in Botetourt County last month, and a baby mix-up at the UVA Medical Center.
USA Today is reporting that Tamara Whitney Rogers and Kevin Chittum, who were killed in the Independence day crash, were raising a child that was not theirs.
UVA officials discovered one day BEFORE the crash that two newborns went home with the wrong mothers 3 years ago.
The other mother involved is a Stanardsville woman.
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[ANCHOR=Melanie]

The city of Clifton Forge may soon become the town of Clifton Forge.
City officials are taking a closer look than ever at the possibility of reversion because of financial dire straits.

They say that reverting to town status might relieve some of the tax burdens currently placed on Clifton Forge's residents.
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[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
(Kimberly mic hot)
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[2 shot=Mel/Kmc]
(Kimberly ad lib weather)
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[Double Boxes=Melanie/Kimberly and Steve]
(toss)
[ANCHOR=Steve]
(live ad lib, tease tomorrow)
(ad lib bye) [Double Boxes=Melanie/Kimberly and Steve]