WDBJ 7 morning news AM cutins for 04/21/99

[7E-Earley-Reax]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]

[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=THa]
[TAPE#=99-13 38:42]
[GRAPHIC=School Shooting]

As many as 20 could be dead, after two students entered a Colorado high school yesterday-- shooting and setting off bombs-- before taking their own lives.
With the rash of recent school shootings in mind, Attorney General Mark Earley says Virginia is taking steps to prepare schools to handle such a tragedy ... hoping, of course, that it never materializes.
Earley was in Dublin yesterday touring the New River Valley Regional Jail.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Dublin;]

He says his office just wrapped up a year- long task force examining gangs and youth violence in the Commonwealth. He added the General Assembly has already acted on a number of recommendations.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 16:19:38]
[IN Q=We think]
((MARK EARLEY:WE THINK IT'S VERY IMPORTANT FOR SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICERS TO BE IN EVERY SCHOOL IN THE COMMONWEALTH AND VIRGINIA IS MOVING TOWARD THAT. THE GOVERNOR'S NEW PARTNERSHIP COMMITTEE HAS ACTED PRETTY SWIFTLY TO PUT SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICERS IN A NUMBER OF SCHOOLS THAT DIDN'T HAVE THEM.))
[SUPER=@Earley; :00]
[RUNS=13]
[OUT Q=didn't have them.]
(-------------)
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[ss=hold!!!]

Earley says his office also held a summit earlier this year, where he encouraged Virginia's schools superintendents and law enforcement officials to get a safe school plan in place, in the event of a tragedy.

[7Gilmore-Reax]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=ejo]
[TAPE#=None]
[GRAPHIC=None]

The shootings in Littleton comes as Governor Gilmore must decide whether to approve, or veto a bill that would ban all guns in vehicles on school parking lots in Virginia.
(XXXXXXXXXX)
[Take Pinnacle Page 1007] Right now, state law permits it .. if the guns and ammunition are locked and stored separately in vehicles. [Next page 1006]
This year, legislators passed a bill that would not permit any firearms on school grounds. [Next page 1005] Governor Gilmore has until early May to decide whether to sign or veto the bill.
(------------)

[7E-Jenkins]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=ejo]
[TAPE#=99-4 1:52:46]
[GRAPHIC=Jenkins Executed]

It's only April, and Virginia has already executed its sixth convicted killer.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

Arthur Ray Jenkins shot his elderly uncle and a companion in the face nine years ago.
Just after nine o'clock last nigh, he died by lethal injection at the Greensville Correctional Center.
(------------)
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[SS=HOLD]

In denying a clemency petition, Governor Gilmore said even while on death row, Jenkins was a threat to correctional officers and other inmates.

[7E-Evans]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=ssm]
[TAPE#=99-2 2:01:40]
[GRAPHIC=Andre Evans]

Was it pre-meditated murder or self- defense?
That's the issue in the capital murder trial of Andre Evans in Bedford County.
The second day of testimony shed light on what happened prior to the night Evans shot and killed two men.
Steve Smallshaw reports.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=There's no question]
[SUPER=03-Bedford; :00 (quick)]
[SUPER=04-September 1997; :08]
[SUPER=01-Tonya Jackson/Eyewitness]
[SUPER=01-Randy Krantz/Prosecutor]
[SUPER=01-Webster Hogeland/Defense Attorney]
[SUPER=@ssm2;]
[RUNS=1:02]
[OUT Q=News7, Bedford.]
(( There's no question bad blood existed between Andre Evans and Timothy Robinson.. a weeks-long argument came to a head on September 23, 1997, when Robinson confronted Evans in front of several witnesses on Franklin Street in Bedford. ((TONYA JACKSON: WHAT WAS HE DOING.. .. TWO OR THREE.))
But Evans turned his back on Robinson and walked to a nearby relative's house.. he emerged a few minutes later with a .45 caliber handgun, walked up to Robinson and shot him four times. ((RANDY KRANTZ: OUR POSITION IS.. CALL IT SELF DEFENSE.)) ((WEBSTER HOGELAND: WHAT WE'VE DONE IS.. COULD PUT ON THAT DOES.))
Testimony will resume in the case Wednesday morning.
Steve Smallshaw, News7, Bedford.))

[7-81-Accident]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=tha]
[TAPE#=99:11- 29:21]
[GRAPHIC=None ]

Traffic was tied up for miles yesterday on Interstate 81 in Montgomery County.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Christiansburg;]

A tractor trailer crashed at mile marker 114 in Christiansburg.
State police say the driver was traveling North when he apparently fell asleep at the wheel and struck a guardrail.

The truck overturned on the bridge and caught fire.
No one was seriously injured.
(------------)

[7WEATHER]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=KMC]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=none]

Taking a look now at your midweek forecast..
Look for mostly cloudy skies, with the possibility of some rain throughout the day. Your daytime highs will range from the mid-60s to around 70 degrees.
Clouds stick around overnight, and some light winds move in. Expect nightime lows in the low- to mid-50s.
The extended forecast calls for...
[CK/WX PRO=]
MAPS

[SUPER=X5000; SET DISSOLVE]
[SUPER=314-Mostly Cloudy/Possible Showers/65-70/Mostly Cloudy/Light Breeze/50-55;]
[SUPER=#555;RESET]
[7BIRTHDAYS!] 4/22/99
Thursday:

[SUPER=130-71/Dudley Sink/Martinsville]

Wow!
[SUPER=130-92/Ruby Roberts/Christiansburg]

[SUPER=130-79/Raleigh Overstreet/Moneta]

[SUPER=130-6/Joshua LaRue/Collinsville]

[SUPER=130-11/Kaylen Amiss/Rustburg]

[SUPER=130-1/Cole Underwood/Max Meadows]

[SUPER=130-13/Jessica Groggan/Ridgeway]

[SUPER=130-40/Ricky Wright/Dublin]

No Pictures:

[SUPER=131-/Roslyn Matherly/Truevine]

[SUPER=131-/Whitney Mitchell/Snow Creek]

[SUPER=131-/Brenda Eggleston/Snow Creek]

[SUPER=131-57/Jessie Nichols/Henry]

[cutopen]
[SUPER=@Melanie1;]

[45E-Kroger]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=sgo]
[TAPE#=99-10 1:14:48]
[GRAPHIC=Store Swap]

With the Harris Teeter -Kroger swap just weeks away, Virginia's attorney general says he's keeping an eye on the situation.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke]

Mark Earley said he's heard from concerned Harris Teeter customers and employees.
They've told Earley that Kroger's plan to buy eleven Harris Teeters in Western Virginia will take too much competition out of markets like Roanoke.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT :56]
[EARLEY TAPE]
[IN Q=NORMALLY]
((MARK EARLEY: NORMALLY WITH GROCERY STORE CHAINS SELLING SOME STORES OR SWAPPING SOME STORES WITH NORTH CAROLINA AND VIRGINIA, THE THING WE WOULD LOOK AT IS WHETHER THERE ARE SOME OTHER STORES AVAILABLE IN THE REGION FOR PEOPLE TO SHOP AT AND WHETHER THERE WAS GOING TO BE SOME MODICUM OF COMPETITIVENESS.))
[SUPER=@Earley]
[RUNS=18]
[OUT Q=COMPETITIVENESS]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

Earley said it's too soon to tell whether his office will take any action.
(------------)
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[SS=hold!!!]

A Kroger spokesman said after the store swap takes place in mid-May, there will still be "all kinds of competition" in Roanoke.

[45S-Chitwood]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=tha]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=Legal scales]

There's a new Juvenile and Domestic Relations judge in the 27th judicial circuit.
Lee Chitwood was appointed to the position Friday by the region's circuit judges.
The 27th judicial circuit includes Pulaski, Bland and Wythe counties as well as other surrounding jurisdictions.
Chitwood will serve in the position until the General Assembly reconvenes.

[45S-Chrisley]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=tha]
[TAPE#=99-8; 1:29:39]
[GRAPHIC=Campaign 99]

A Republican from Dublin hopes to take over the seat vacated by delegate Tommy Baker.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Dublin;]

Barbara Chrisley is a registered medical technologist and dietitian and is currently head of the Foods and Nutrition Program at Radford University.
But Chrisley says it's her work as a Public Policy Coordinator for the Virginia Dietetic Association that's best prepared her for politics.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 12:38:00]
[IN Q=In that position]
(( BARBARA CHRISLEY/R-HOUSE CANDIDATE: IN THAT POSITION I REPRESENT OVER 13-HUNDRED REGISTERED DIETITIANS AND ROUTINELY GO UP TO RICHMOND AND DO SOME LEGISLATIVE TYPE OF WORK-- WE'RE SEEKING TO LOBBY TO GET THE INTEREST OF LEGISLATORS ON OUR SIDE, OF COURSE. ))
[SUPER=01-Barbara Chrisley/(R) House Candidate; ]
[RUNS=16]
[OUT Q=of course.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

Chrisley says she actually postponed an earlier announcement after learning Baker, who's also a Republican, was considering another term.
Baker was NOT at yesterday's announcement and could NOT be reached for comment.
(---------------)

[45E-Celebrex]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=tfl]
[TAPE#=99-5 1:17:16]
[GRAPHIC=none]

The popular new pain medication for arthritis, Celebrex, has reportedly been linked to ten deaths.
But doctors at the Lewis-Gale Clinic say there is no cause for alarm.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
Two-and-a-half million prescriptions have been filled, since it went on the market three months ago.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT ub 11 08 43]
[IN Q=Whenever you]
((DR. TIMOTHY HENSHAW/RHEUMATOLOGIST: WHENEVER YOU HAVE A MEDICATION WITH THIS MANY PERSCRIPTIONS WRITTEN THERE ARE GOING TO BE SIDE EFFECTS AND COMPLICATIONS, WITH SOME OF THEM CAN BE REALLY SERIOUS, SO THIS IS NOT OUTSIDE THE REALM OF WHAT'S EXPECTED. ))
[SUPER=01-Dr. Timothy Henshaw/Rheumatologist; ]
[RUNS=:12]
[OUT Q=of what's expected]
(------------)
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[SS=Hold]

Doctor Henshaw says he doesn't believe the drug will be taken off the market.
The company that makes Celebrex maintains it's performing as expected.

[45S-Civil-War]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=mjo]
[TAPE#=99-6; 1:26:49]
[GRAPHIC=None]

Some Blacksburg fifth-graders are taking a special interest in Civil War history.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg;]

After a classroom visit from Civil War historian James Robertson in January, Gilbert Linkous fifth-graders decided to help raise money for a Civil War Studies Center at Virginia Tech.
Yesterday, they presented Robertson with 268 dollars in a milk can. Students raised the money walking dogs, babysitting and performing other odd jobs.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 2:49:59]
[IN Q=I picked...]
((MIRIAM PIILONEN/STUDENT: I PICKED DANDELIONS OFF MY YARD.))
[SOT 2:53:40]
((DR. JAMES ROBERTSON/CIVIL WAR HISTORIAN: I'VE LEARNED NOT TO BE SURPRISED AT THE POWER OF CHILDREN. BUT THEN I'VE NEVER BEEN SURPRISED AT WHAT YOUNG PEOPLE CAN DO.))
[SUPER=01-Dr. James Robertson/Civil War Historian; :03]
[RUNS=:11]
[OUT Q=...people can do.]
(-------------)
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[GRAPHIC=None]

Virginia Tech is still looking for donations toward the three-million-dollar goal of opening the center on campus.

Tech officials say they hope the children will inspire others to raise funds.

[45WEATHER]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=KMC]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=none]

Taking a look now at your midweek forecast..
Mostly cloudy today, with the chance for some rain and even an isolated thunderstorm. Look for highs in the upper 60s.
Cloudy and breezy overnight, with lows in the low- to mid-50s.
The extended forecast calls for...
[CK/WX PRO=]
MAPS

[SUPER=X5000; SET DISSOLVE]
[SUPER=314-Mostly Cloudy/Possible Showers/65-70/Mostly Cloudy/Light Breeze/50-55;]
[SUPER=#555;RESET]
[cutopen]
[SUPER=@Melanie1;]

[8E-Earley-Reax]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=THa]
[TAPE#=99-13 38:42]
[GRAPHIC=School Shooting]

Authorities have revised the number of dead from the school shooting in Littleton, Colorado. They now say as many as 15 people may have died when two students on an apparent suicide mission opened fire. The bodies of most of the victims are still inside the school.
Attorney General Mark Earley says Virginia is taking steps to prepare schools to handle such a tragedy ... hoping, of course, that it never materializes.
Earley was in Dublin yesterday touring the New River Valley Regional Jail.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Dublin;]

He says his office just wrapped up a year- long task force examining gangs and youth violence in the Commonwealth. He added the General Assembly has already acted on a number of recommendations.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 16:19:38]
[IN Q=We think]
((MARK EARLEY:WE THINK IT'S VERY IMPORTANT FOR SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICERS TO BE IN EVERY SCHOOL IN THE COMMONWEALTH AND VIRGINIA IS MOVING TOWARD THAT. THE GOVERNOR'S NEW PARTNERSHIP COMMITTEE HAS ACTED PRETTY SWIFTLY TO PUT SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICERS IN A NUMBER OF SCHOOLS THAT DIDN'T HAVE THEM.))
[SUPER=@Earley; :00]
[RUNS=13]
[OUT Q=didn't have them.]
(-------------)
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[ss=hold!!!]

Earley says his office also held a summit earlier this year, where he encouraged Virginia's schools superintendents and law enforcement officials to get a safe school plan in place, in the event of a tragedy.

[8Gilmore-Reax]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=ejo]
[TAPE#=None]
[GRAPHIC=None]

The shootings come as Governor Gilmore must decide whether to approve, or veto a bill that would ban all guns in vehicles on school parking lots in Virginia.
(XXXXXXXXXX)
[Take Pinnacle Page 1010] Right now, state law permits it .. if the guns and ammunition are locked and stored separately in vehicles. [Next page 1011]
This year, legislators passed a bill that would not permit any firearms on school grounds. [Next page 1012] Governor Gilmore has until early May to decide whether to sign or veto the bill.
(------------)

[8S-Craig-Protest]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=cutins]
[WRITER=tte]
[TAPE#=99-9-1:03:45]
[GRAPHIC=None]

The F-B-I is investigating a racist incident in Craig County that prompted a black resident to move out.
Students from Hollins University yesterday paraded through the man's former neighborhood to demonstrate their concern.
Tina Tenret was there.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT ]
[IN Q=While Oscar Ramsey]
[SUPER=03-Craig Co.;]
[SUPER=01-Marlene Starkey/Student Protester;]
[SUPER=07-Oscar Ramsey, Jr.;]
[SUPER=@Tina1;]
[RUNS=1:30]
[OUT Q=Tina Tenret News7 Craig County]

((While Oscar Ramsey walked calmly back to work after lunch --
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT ]
((nat sot loud chanting))

about 25 Hollins University students chanted for his rights.
They marched through the trailer park where Ramsey used to live --
He left ten days ago when a sign on his neighbor's lawn carried a racial slur and told Ramsey to go home.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 13:29:04]
[IN Q=I think]
((I THINK FOR THE MAN'S SAFETY... WITH JUST ONE PERSON.))

[OUT Q=JUST ONE PERSON]

Ramsey has moved in with another family in Craig County -- who says it's not afraid of racist retribution.
He's helping to build the new grocery store in town -- but plans to leave the area when the job wraps up this week.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 12:46:25]
[IN Q=What would you say]
((WHAT WOULD YOU SAY TO A BLACK FAMILY WHO WANTED TO COME INTO THE AREA? I WOULD SAY IT'S A NICE AREA. IF THEY WANT TO COME HERE THEY SHOULD. THEY SHOULDN'T HAVE MUCH TROUBLE.))

[OUT Q=MUCH TROUBLE]
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 15:01:39]
[IN Q=The sheriff]
((THE SHERIFF SAYS FOUR OR FIVE KU KLUX KLAN MEMBERS DO LIVE HERE IN CRAIG COUNTY. IN FACT, HE SAYS THEY EVEN HELD A RALLY HERE LAST SPRING. BUT HE SAYS HE'S NEVER ARRESTED ANYONE FOR A RACIST INCIDENT. RESIDENTS HERE ARE AFRAID THIS ONE WILL GIVE THEIR HOME A BAD NAME. TINA TENRET NEWS7 CRAIG COUNTY))

[OUT Q=craig county]))