[cutopen]

[SUPER=19-Melanie/Moon;]



[7D'Ville-Fire]


[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=dse]
[TAPE#=99-3]
[GRAPHIC=Fire]


One person was injured in an early morning fire in Danville.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Danville]


The blaze at 236 Gray Street began around two o'clock.
The flames were contained to one room of the house, but one person inside had to be taken to Danville Regional Medical Center.
There's no word yet on the victim's condition.
The fire is under investigation.
(------------)


[7E-Judge-Shooting]


[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=chu]
[TAPE#98-79 1:10:01]
[GRAPHIC=None]

[ANCHOR TAG!!!]
The Judge and the police officer both claim it was an accident, but a formal investigation is trying to determine exactly what happened, and why it's been kept a secret.
Two weeks have passed since Danville Police Lieutenant Barry Creasy was shot and injured by Circuit Court Judge James Ingram.
Christy Hubley reports.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Pittsylvania County Sheriff]
[SUPER=03-Pittsylvania Co.; :00]
[SUPER=01-G. Harold Plaster/Pittsylvania Co. Sheriff; :25]
[RUNS=:54]
[OUT Q=News 7, Pittsylvania County.]

(( Pittsylvania County Sheriff Harold Plaster says he was never notified about the shooting before now.
The incident that everyone's talking about happened at a target range on Judge James Ingram's farm in the Cascade area of the county.
Lt. Barry Creasy was injured when a shot discharged while Ingram was reloading his gun.
Only now, after plenty of media attention, have the judge and the cop asked for a formal investigation.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 1:40:00-:13]
[IN Q=This should have been]

((THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN A REPORT MADE TWO WEEKS AGO. AN OFFICIAL COMPLAINT. I DON'T THINK THERE WAS ANY INTENT BY THE JUDGE OR LT. CREASY TO HIDE ANYTHING.)) [RUNS:13]
[OUT Q=hide anything.]


The shooting is considered to be an accident-- so many are wondering why neither Judge Ingram nor Lt. Creasy will talk about it.
A special prosecutor will ultimately decide if any charges will be filed.
Christy Hubley, News 7, Pittsylvania County.
(----------------)))
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[SS=none]


That special prosecutor is Ed Meeks, the Commonwealth's Attorney for Amherst County.
He was named yesterday after Pittsylvania County's Commonwealth's Attorney decided he was too closely connected to those involved in the case.

[7E-Towers-Arrest]


[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=jda]
[TAPE#=99-3 31:26]
[GRAPHIC=Internet Pornography]


A man who allegedly posted sexually explicit photographs of children on the internet was arrested yesterday in the parking lot of Towers Shopping Center.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]


49-year old Thomas Lee Reid is being held in the city jail without bond.
[SUPER=03-Roanoke]


The investigation began in December after police received a complaint about the explicit photographs and discussions that were transmitted over the internet.
A meeting was arranged, and Reid was arrested when he approached a female officer waiting in the parking lot.
(------------)



[7E-Psych-death]


[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=khu]
[TAPE#=98-81 54:38]
[GRAPHIC=None]


A man who was supposed to be under suicide watch died Saturday at the Lewis Gale Center for Behavioral Health.
The body of thirty-eight- year- old Dennis Wayne Pagans wasn't found at the former Roanoke Valley Psychiatric Center until it was in full rigor mortis.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Salem]


Family visited Pagans Friday night but left at 10 o'clock.
At 5:28 the next morning, a staffer found Pagans' body... seven -and-a half hours after anyone last checked on him.
The Medical Examiner says a toxicology test will determine the cause of death.
Doctor David Oxley says, If the body's cold, in a complete state of rigor mortis, he would estimate eight hours had passed from the time of death.
(------------)
[TALENT=Melanie]
[ss=none]


Lewis Gale's Vice President in charge of Behavioral Health would NOT discuss their policy or the specifics of the incident.


[7WEATHER]


[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=CUTIN]
[WRITER=KMC]
[TAPE #=]
[GRAPHIC=]



Taking a look now at your Thursday forecast..
A few passing showers could fall this morning, but expect generally cloudy and breezy conditions throughout the day. Look for highs to rise to about 60 degrees.
Skies clear out overnight, with 25 miles per hour winds out of the northwest. Lows will be in the lower-30s.
The extended forecast...
[CK/WX PRO=]

MAPS

[SUPER=X5000; set dissolve]
[SUPER=314-Stray A.M. Shower,/Partly Cloudy & Windy/58-62/Clear Skies/Winds NW 15-25/30-35;]
[SUPER=#555; reset]

[7BIRTHDAYS!] 2/5/99
Friday:

[SUPER=130-5/Jessica Davidson/Bassett]



[SUPER=130-21/David Epperly/Christiansburg]



[SUPER=130-8/Amos Moses/Ironto]



[SUPER=130-28/Candace Johnston/Christiansburg]



[SUPER=130-22/Randa DeHart/Radford]



[SUPER=130-80/Orland Phillips/Copper Valley]



[SUPER=130-13/Erica Casey/Madison Heights]



[SUPER=130-17/Ron Allen, Jr./Roanoke]



[SUPER=130-1/Hannah Thompson/Gretna]



[SUPER=130-3/Abbey Brubaker/Rocky Mount]


Anniversary:
[SUPER=130-33rd/Melvin & Margaret Thomas/Martinsville]



[SUPER=130-90/Stella Pruitt/Richlands]



[SUPER=130-/Matthew Cannoy/Snow Creek]


No Pictures:

[SUPER=131-45/Ernie Garrett/Roanoke]



[SUPER=131-/Charlie Keatts/Snow Creek]



[SUPER=131-34/Gloria Jolly/Buena Vista]



[SUPER=131-66/Katherine Jones/Roanoke]



[SUPER=131-36/Josephine Buren/Roanoke]



[cutopen]
[SUPER=19-Melanie/Moon;]



[45D'Ville-Fire]


[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=dse]
[TAPE#=99-3]
[GRAPHIC=Fire]


An early morning fire in Danville sent one person to the hospital.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Danville]


It happened at 2-36 Gray street at about two o'clock.
The flames were contained to one room of the house.
There's no word yet on the victim's condition, and fire investigators are still trying to determine the cause.

(------------)


[45E-Hugh-Finn]


[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=equ]
[TAPE#98-82 42:29]
[GRAPHIC=Right to Die]


Another setback for Governor Gilmore in the Hugh Finn case.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 10:47:41]
[IN Q=It is beyond]

((KAREN FINN/HUGH FINN'S SISTER: IT IS BEYOND MY COMPREHENSION WHY A STATE GOVERNMENT WOULD INTERFERE IN A PERSONAL, PRIVATE, EMOTIONALLY WRENCHING DECISION.))
[sot 10:44:48]

((MICHELE FINN/HUGH FINN'S WIDOW: THE TRUTH IS THAT PUBLIC OFFICIALS ENTRUSTED TO UPHOLD THE LAWS OF VIRGINIA, DISREGARDED THE PLAIN MEANING OF THE LAW FOR THEIR OWN PERSONAL RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND POLITICAL AGENDAS.))
[SUPER=01-Karen Finn/Hugh Finn's Sister; :00]
[SUPER=01-Michele Finn/Hugh Finn's Widow; :13]
[RUNS=:23]
[OUT Q=wrenching decision.]
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Richmond;]


Hugh Finn's sister and widow testified to the Senate Finance Committee yesterday-- pushing for a bill that would reimburse the family for legal expenses incurred while fighting the Governor.
But half the family WANTED the Governor's intervention.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 10:57:31]
[IN Q=He did]

((TOM FINN/HUGH FINN'S FATHER: HE DID NOTHING. HE WAS IN ACCIDENT. GOT HIT IN THE ROAD. AND THEY TRIED EVERYTHING TO REVIVE HIM. BUT HE WAS STILL ALIVE. THERE WAS NO REASON TO PUT HIM TO DEATH.))
[sot 10:57:59]

((ED FINN/HUGH FINN'S BROTHER: IT WAS DESCRIBED EARLIER THAT THE WHOLE SOVEREIGNTY OF THE STATE OF VIRGINIA WAS BROUGHT TO BEAR ON ONE PERSON. WHO WAS THAT ONE PERSON? IS IS IT MICHELE? OR IS IT HUGH? WHO'S DEAD NOW? WHO CAN'T COME BEFORE US AND SPEAK?))
[SUPER=01-Tom Finn/Hugh Finn's Father; :00]
[SUPER=01-Ed Finn/Hugh Finn's Brother; ; :13]
[RUNS=:33]
[OUT Q=and speak?]
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]


Finn was in a persistent vegetative state for three and a half years before his wife had his feeding tubes removed.


The committee voted 16-to-1 to reimburse her for having to fight the Governor in court.
(----------------)
[anchor=Melanie]
[graphic=none]


Now the measure goes up before the Senate and House.


[45E-Tobacco-Alliance]


[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=equ]
[TAPE#98-83 36:59]
[GRAPHIC=Tobacco]


A strange twist in the ongoing tobacco controversy.
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Richmond;]


Yesterday at the state capitol, tobacco farmers and health advocates joined forces to support a bill sponsored by Danville Democrat Whitt Clement.
The bill would dedicate half of Virginia's share of the national tobacco settlement to tobacco growing communities.


Ten percent would go to help fight teen smoking.
The bill is being opposed by the Governor.
(----------------)



[45E-Salem-Y2K]


[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=djo]
[TAPE#=98-76 1:22:40]
[GRAPHIC=Y2K Bug]


The Salem City school system is squashing the computer bug before the turn of the century.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Salem;]

The school system will shut down its computers while the students are on spring break--to download new software geared toward erasing Y-2-K problems. Administrators say even if there are problems, they won't disrupt classes.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT=00:04:49]
[IN Q=IF WE HAVE]

((MICHAEL BRYANT/SCHOOL ASST. SUPERINTENDENT; IF WE HAVE LIGHTS AND WATER, WE PLAN TO TEACH.......A QUALITY EDUCATION.))
[SUPER=01-Michael Bryant/School Asst. Superintendent;]
[RUNS=16]
[OUT Q=QUALITY EDUCATION.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

About three-quarters of the school system's 850-computers are already Y-2-K compliant.
(------------)




[45WEATHER]


[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=CUTIN]
[WRITER=KMC]
[TAPE #=]
[GRAPHIC=]


Time again to check the Thursday forecast...
We'll see a few scattered showers this morning, otherwise partly cloudy and windy today with gusts up to 25 miles an hour.
Highs will warm up to near 60.
Clear and chilly overnight, with lows in the lower 30s.
The five day outlook stays unseasonably warm, with rain likely again by Saturday....
[SUPER=X5000; set dissolve]
[SUPER=314-Stray A.M. Shower,/Partly Cloudy & Windy/58-62/Clear Skies/Winds NW 15-25/30-35;]
[SUPER=#555; reset]

[cutopen]
[SUPER=19-Melanie/Moon;]



[8E-Judge-Shooting]


[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=chu]
[TAPE#98-79 1:10:01]
[GRAPHIC=None]

[ANCHOR TAG!!!]
A formal investigation AND a special prosecutor will attempt to find out how a judge shot a police officer two weeks ago.
The incident involved Danville Police Lieutenant Barry Creasy and Circuit Court Judge James Ingram.
Christy Hubley has more.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Pittsylvania County Sheriff]
[SUPER=03-Pittsylvania Co.; :00]
[SUPER=01-G. Harold Plaster/Pittsylvania Co. Sheriff; :25]
[RUNS=:54]
[OUT Q=News 7, Pittsylvania County.]

(( Pittsylvania County Sheriff Harold Plaster says he was never notified about the shooting before now.
The incident that everyone's talking about happened at a target range on Judge James Ingram's farm in the Cascade area of the county.
Lt. Barry Creasy was injured when a shot discharged while Ingram was reloading his gun.
Only now, after plenty of media attention, have the judge and the cop asked for a formal investigation.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 1:40:00-:13]
[IN Q=This should have been]

((THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN A REPORT MADE TWO WEEKS AGO. AN OFFICIAL COMPLAINT. I DON'T THINK THERE WAS ANY INTENT BY THE JUDGE OR LT. CREASY TO HIDE ANYTHING.)) [RUNS:13]
[OUT Q=hide anything.]


The shooting is considered to be an accident-- so many are wondering why neither Judge Ingram nor Lt. Creasy will talk about it.
A special prosecutor will ultimately decide if any charges will be filed.
Christy Hubley, News 7, Pittsylvania County.
(----------------)))
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[SS=none]


That special prosecutor is Ed Meeks, the Commonwealth's Attorney for Amherst County.
He was named yesterday after Pittsylvania County's Commonwealth's Attorney decided he was too closely connected to those involved in the case.

[8E-Vistar]


[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=tfl]
[TAPE#=98-80 1:25:47]
[GRAPHIC=None]


If the General Assembly passes a certain bill, Carilion Health System would face some competition in treating eye disorders.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Salem]


The legislation would allow a group of local eye doctors to start their own surgical center.
Vistar Eye Center would mean competition for the hospital giant.
Doctor Frank Cotter says the Roanoke Valley is one of the few remaining parts of the country that doesn't allow outpatient eye surgery centers.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT ub 122 41 20]
[IN Q=In every other]

((DR. FRANK COTTER/VISTAR EYE CENTER: IN EVERY OTHER PART OF THE STATE, BE IT LYNCHBURG, TIDEWATER, RICHMOND OT NORTHERN VIRGINIA, THE PATIENTS HAVE A CHOICE AS TO WHETHER THEY WANT IN PATIENT OR OUT PATIENT SURGERY.))
[SUPER=01-Dr. Frank Cotter/Vistar Eye Center; ]
[RUNS=:10]
[OUT Q=patient surgery]
(-------------)

[vo-nat] Carilion officials say it's dangerous to perform surgery in a non-hospital setting.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT tc 00:03:29]
[IN Q=If you go]

((ROBERT MANETTA/CARILION HEALTH SYSTEM: IF YOU GO IN FOR EYE SURGERY AND SOMETHING GOES WRONG, IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT IT IS, WE HAVE THE FACILITY TO MEET THE NEEDS, IF YOU GO TO ANOTHER FACILITY THAT MAY NOT BE THERE FOR YOU.))
[super=01-Robert Manetta/Carilion Health System]
[RUNS=:10]
[OUT Q=there for you]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]


Doctor Cotter says it is unlikely that patients undergoing eye surgery would need any type of trauma care.
He compares it to going to the hospital for a root canal.
(------------)


[8E-Jail-Lawsuit]


[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=sta]
[TAPE#=98-74]
[GRAPHIC=Lawsuit]


Much to the dismay of two Covington business women, the city is clearing the way for a new federal prison.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Covington;]


City officials decided to close Court Street to make room for the new facility.
But, Susan Brown and her mother claim closing the street hurt business at their corner jewelry store.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 13.34.20 - 13.34.31]
[IN Q=We are very]

((SUSAN BROWN: WE ARE VERY DISSAPPOINTED. THE WHOLE PROCESS HAS DESTROYED MOM'S BUSINESS HERE. YOU CAN TAKE A LOOK OUTSIDE. THE ENTIRE ROADWAY HAS BEEN TAKEN AWAY FROM HER. SHE'S BEEN FORCED OUT OF HER HOME. ))
[SUPER=07-Susan Brown;]
[RUNS=11]
[OUT Q=out of her home.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]


A judge, however, ruled in the city's favor-- claiming the women have no jurisdiction over the street.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 13.20.39 - 13.30.48]
[IN Q=We feel like it's]

((JIM CARWFORD/COVINGTON'S MAYOR: WE FEEL LIKE IT'S ANOTHER HURDLE IN OUR FAVOR TO GET THE PROJECT MOVING FORWARD. WE'RE FACING SOME CONSIDERABLE DEADLINES HERE SO ANYTHING THAT'S A OBSTRUCTION FOR US IS A REAL PROBLEM.))
[SUPER=01-Jim Crawford/Covington Mayor;]
[RUNS=09]
[OUT Q=a real problem.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]


The women say they are not giving up their efforts just yet.
(------------)



[8WEATHER]


[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=CUTIN]
[WRITER=KMC]
[TAPE #=]
[GRAPHIC=]


Turning your attention to weather--
WAking up to clouds and scattered showers today, otherwise turning partly cloudy and windy later on with highs reaching 60.
Clear skies overnight and still rather breezy, with lows falling into the lower 30s.
The extended outlook calls for lots of sunshine, but maybe some showers on Saturday.
Highs in the 50s, lows in the 30s.....
[SUPER=X5000; set dissolve]

[SUPER=#555; reset] [SUPER=314-Stray A.M. Shower,/Partly Cloudy & Windy/58-62/Clear Skies/Winds NW 15-25/30-35;]
by SS