WDBJ 7 morning news for 06/03/99

[Headlines]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]

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

(----------------)
[ANCHOR=Melanie]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
(ad lib weather)
[ANCHOR=Steve]
(ad lib live tease)
[2-shot]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]

[Plane-Crash]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=mel]
[TAPE#None]
[GRAPHIC=MD-80 Crach]

Investigators are trying to figure out if the pilot of an American airlines jet received adequate warning of bad weather before crash landin Tuesday night in Little Rock, Arkansas.
Nine people, including the pilot were killed and more than 80 others injured.
Maureen Maher has the latest from Little Rock.
[Live=Maher Full/Newspath]
[SUPER=01-Maureen Maher/Reporting;]
[SUPER=05-Little Rock, AR;]
( ad lib)
[***ROLLED FROM NEWSPATH***]
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=03-Little Rock, AR;]
[SUPER=01-Kevin Mergel/Crash Survivor;]
[SUPER=01-George Black/NTSB Investigator;]
[SUPER=05-Little Rock, AR;]
[RUNS=:00]
[OUT Q=]

[Live=Mahre Full/Newspath]
( ad lib)
((AS OFFICIALS TRY TO PIECE TOGETHER THE EVENTS THAT LED UP TO THE CRASH OF AMERICAN AIRLINES FLIGHT 14-20, THEY HOPE THE PLANE'S SO-CALLED BLACK BOXES WILL PROVIDE SOME MUCH-NEEDED ANSWERS. INVESTIGATORS ARE NOW REVIEWING THE DATA AND COCKPIT VOICE RECORDERS... PULLED FROM THE WRECKAGE. ((NAT 911 CALL)) "It's Flight 1420 from Dallas to Little Rock. We've crashed landed." ((track 2)) A PASSENGER PHONED IN THE FRANTIC 9-1-1 CALL TUESDAY NIGHT. THE SUPERMD-80 HAD JUST LANDED AT LITTLE ROCK'S AIRPORT... WHEN IT SKIDDED DOWN THE RUNWAY... HIT A LIGHTING SYSTEM.. AND THEN BURST INTO FLAMES:
((SOT: Kevin Mergel/Crash Survivor))
"The smoke was so thick I couldn't .. I saw someone try to tear out a side panel to best open the windows.. and I really thought that was it." ((track 3)) AMONG THOSE KILLED, THE JET'S PILOT, CAPATAIN RICHARD BUSCHMANN. AVIATION OFFICIALS WANT TO KNOW WHY HE ATTEMPTED TO LAND DURING A SEVERE HAILSTORM -- PACKING WIND GUSTS OF MORE THAN 75-MILES PER HOUR:
((SOT: GEORGE BLACK/NTSB INVESTIGATOR))
"The only thing you can gleen from that is... there was active weather in the area. Whether that had anything to do with the incident, it's too soon to say." ((STANDUP)) SUPER: MAUREEN MAHER/CBS NEWS))

[Truck-Crackdown]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=dse]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=Truck Safety]

The truck safety crackdown in Southwest Virginia is in it's second day.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Botetourt Co.]

Scales on interstate 81 and Route 11 were open round the clock yesterday.
Inspectors say after several years in the business, they can often pinpoint an overweight truck just by looking at it, but to make sure, they use portable scales.
They look, and work, like bathroom scales... but they have a capacity of 20 thousand pounds each.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=those scales are]
((JEFF SMITH/VDOT TRUCK WEIGHT DIVISION; THOSE SCALES ARE PORTABLE WHICH MEANS WE CAN TAKE THEM AND GO ANYWHERE WITH THEM, THE ONLY THING WE TRY TO DO IS WEIGH THEM IN AS SAFE AND LEVEL A SPOT AS WE CAN. ))
[SUPER=01-Jeff Smith/VDOT Truck Weight Division; ]
[RUNS=:09]
[OUT Q=as we can]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

During the 48 hour check, they were set up at the weigh station pull-off on alternate 220... The driver pulls his rig up onto the scales as inspectors add up the numbers.
Since they're not an immediate safety hazard, overweight drivers are allowed to continue, but they are ticketed.
(------------)

[5-Juvenile-Crime]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=equ]
[TAPE#=599-10 16:52]
[GRAPHIC=None]

Virginia is the only state in the nation to use (OFF-ensive) offensive fighting techniques on young prison inmates.

Now one has died and the program is coming under fire. It is the only death in the ten year history of the state department of Juvenile Justice.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Chesterfield Co.;]

Now department employees are fighting back-- with a demonstration for the media of just how they physically subdue the juvenile inmates.
The so-called "Handle With Care Plus" program has drawn criticism from some Juvenile Justice board members, who say they never approved it.
In April a 16 year old inmate died in custody.
Department trainers say they chose offensive fighting techniques after officers asked what to do when restraints alone did NOT work.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Quite frankly]
((ANDY DICKERSON/DEPT. OF JUVENILE JUSTICE: QUITE FRANKLY, WE HAD TO STAND THERE AND SAY YOU'LL HAVE TO USE WHATEVER MEANS YOU CAN TO BRING THAT UNDER CONTROL. THAT'S NOT APPROPRIATE... WE DON'T WANT UTILIZED.))
[SUPER=01-Andy Dickerson/Department of Juvenile Justice; ]
[RUNS=:23]
[OUT Q=don't want utilized.]
(------------)
[TALENT=MElanie]
[SS=None ]

The Juvenile Justice Board will meet next week to discuss the program.
Seven department employees were suspended last month, while the 16-year old's death is being investigated.

[S-Unemployment]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=ejo]
[TAPE#=99-18 27:59]
[GRAPHIC=Va Unemployment]

Virginia's unemployment rate is at an all-time low.
And most of our part of the state falls below state-wide figures.
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]

Virginia unemployment fell to 2-point-3 per cent in April, matching the lowest figure since Virginia started keeping numbers in 19-50.
It's also an all-time low for the Lynchburg area, at 1-point-8 per cent.
The number is lower in the Roanoke area... 1-point-6 per cent .. but not a record.
Unemployment is still considerably higher in the Danville region .. the April rate: 5-point-9 per cent.
(-------------)

[1-Sports]

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

In sports, a former Friday football Extra star gets his first taste of trading.... and he hasn't even started playing in the big leagues yet..
Mike Stevens has more.
Good Morning Mike.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Howdy everybody]
[RUNS=2:00]
[OUT Q=this morning]

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

[One-Steve]

[ANCHOR=Steve]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=spa]
[TAPE#M99-3]
[GRAPHIC=NONE]

[On Desk]
[SUPER=15-Steve/Pardon;]
(I'll intro package)

(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Well I was]
[SUPER=04-1998; :00]
[SUPER=01-Ken Holloway/Hypnotist; :20]
[RUNS=1:52]
[OUT Q=kind of volunteer we want]

[Steve Live]

[SUPER=16-(540) 981-1201/Roanoke Civic Center;]

(Steve tosses to stocks)
[STOCKS] [COMM] ((Archive: fair))

[Shuttle]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=mornin]
[WRITER=mel]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=None]

The astronauts aboard space shuttle Discovery have closed the hatches on the international space station.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[4:12:52-YESTERDAY'S 4 AM]
Discovery pulls away from the station tonight.
Yesterday, the Discovery crew held a news conference and gave a tour of the new space hub.
The astronauts spent several days making repairs and delievering supplies to the space hub.
The first permanent occupants move in next March.
Discovery returns to Earth on Sunday.
(------------)

[E-JackTale-Players]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=tte]
[TAPE#=99-12 1:38:29]
[GRAPHIC=None]

New York City audiences are now checking out a theater group from our area --
The Jack Tale Players from Ferrum College have been invited to perform off-Broadway this weekend.
Tina Tenret takes us behind the curtain.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=nat sot]
[SUPER=03-Ferrum; :00]
[SUPER=01-Nikki Payne/Jack Tale Player; :21]
[SUPER=01-Rex Stephenson/Director; :45]
[SUPER=@Tina2; :58]
[RUNS=1:08]
[OUT Q=Tina Tenret News7 Franklin County]
(///// SOT /////)
(([SOT 10:16:11]
[IN Q=going up]
((GOING UP CRIPPLE CREEK, GOING IN A WHIRL, GOING UP CRIPPLE CREEK TO SEE MY GIRL.))
[RUNS= :08]
[OUT Q=to see my girl]

The Jack Tale Players are not going to Cripple Creek exactly.
This bunch of Ferrum College students and community actors have been invited to the Provincetown Playhouse in New York.
The old stomping grounds of playwright Eugene O'Neill.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 10:35:27]
[IN Q=How do you think]
((TINA TENRET/NEWS7: HOW DO YOU THINK IT WILL FEEL TO BE ON STAGE OFF BROADWAY? NIKKI PAYNE: EXCITING. IT'S BEEN A DREAM AND NOW THAT I'M GETTING TO FULFILL IT I THINK I'M REALLY GOING TO ENJOY IT.))
[RUNS= :08]
[OUT Q=TO ENJOY IT]
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
((NAT SOT NIKKI SINGING))
[RUNS= :08]

The group has carried folklore from Southwest Virginia to 34 states -- but never off-Broadway.
They often play family shows in local schools.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 10:28:37]
[IN Q=They feel]
((REX STEPHENSON/DIRECTOR: THEY FEEL IT'S A BIG DEAL. I HAVEN'T EVER PLAYED OFF BROADWAY BUT IN A SENSE HOPEFULLY IT'S NO DIFFERENT FROM PLAYING FLOYD OR ROCKY MOUNT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.))
[RUNS= :10]
[OUT Q=Rocky Mount]

Well, New York City may look a little different -- but this group will be back in the Blue Ridge by Monday.
Tina Tenret News7 Franklin County))

[Health-Check]

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

In medical news, there may be a link between health and crime.
Mika Brzezinski has that story and more in this morning's Health check.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=01-Mika Brzezinski/Reporting; :00 ]
[RUNS=1:24]
[OUT Q=CBS News, New York.]
(( BREAST CANCER PATIENTS OFTEN SEEK ALETERNATIVE THERAPIES WHEN THEY FEEL STANDARD TREATMENTS ARE NOT ENOUGH..
BUT THIS DECISION MAY ALSO BE SIGN OF DEPRESSION.
VT=VO
((vo))
A STUDY PUBLISHED IN TODAY'S NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE SURVEYED ABOUT 5-HUNDRED WOMEN DIAGNOSED WITH EARLY-STAGE BREAST CANCER.
IT FOUND THAT 28-PERCENT OF THEM BEGAN USING ALTERNATIVE TREATMENTS LIKE ACUPUNCTURE AND HERBAL REMEDIES .. AFTER UNDERGOING CONVENTIONAL SURGERY.
THE WOMEN SAY THEY WERE DEPRESSED AND FEARED THE DISEASE WOULD COME BACK.
RESEARCHERS SAY DOCTORS SHOULD VIEW THESE CHOICES AS A SIGN PATIENTS MAY NEED COUNSELING.//
VT=VO
((vo))
DISCOURAGING NEWS FOR THOSE BANKING ON AN AIDS VACCINE.
PEOPLE IN AUSTRALIA WHO WERE INFECTED WITH A WEAKENED FORM OF H-I-V IN THE EARLY 1980'S.. ARE NOW STARTING TO SHOW SIGNS OF A WEAKENED IMMUNE SYSTEM.
THIS, AFTER YEARS OF REMAINING RELATIVELY HEALTHY.
RESEARCHERS HAD HOPED A VACCINE MODELED AFTER THIS STRAIN OF THE VIRUS.. WOULD PROTECT PEOPLE FOR LIFE WITHOUT MAKING THEM SICK.// ONCAM ((on cam))
AND A STUDY OUT TODAY FINDS THAT UNHEALTHY CHILDREN ARE MUCH MORE LIKELY TO COMMIT CRIMES.
ACCORDING TO A REPORT BY THE GROUP, NACRO...
ONE IN FOUR PEOPLE INVOLVED IN CRIMINAL ACTS ARE CHILDREN AND TEEN-AGERS.
AND MOST OF THEM SUFFER FROM DRUG AND ALCOHOL ABUSE--AS WELL AS MENTAL HEALTH PROBLEMS.
ADVOCATES SAY THERE NEEDS TO BE AN EFFORT TO SPOT THESE PROBLEMS AN EARLY AGE.
AND THAT IS A LOOK ATODAY'S MEDICAL NEWS. I'M MIKA BRZEZINSKI, CBS NEWS, NEW YORK.))

(ad lib to weather)

[Two-Steve]

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

[On Desk]
[SUPER=15-Steve/Pardon;]

[Double Boxes=KMC & SPA]
(toss to Kimberly)
[2-HEADLINES]
[2-shot=Mel/Kmc]
[SUPER=#4049; Morning Headlines]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]

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

Survivors of the American Airlines crash in Little Rock, Arkansas, are wondering why their pilot tried to land during a severe hail storm.
It's a question that is certain to be asked when investigators interview the plane's first officer.
The pilot was killed.
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]

The European and Russian diplomats sent to Belgrade with a peace plan for Kosovo have resumed talks with Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic.
Serbia's parliament is also expected to consider the plan today.
NATO describes the plan as a take-it-or-leave-it deal.
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]

And The ``Discovery'' astronauts have closed all the hatches in the international space station.
The space shuttle will pull away from the station tonight in preparation for Sunday's return to Earth.
Yesterday the astronauts finished carrying gear into the two room, it included laptop computers, water, clothes and spare parts.
(----------------)
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]

And that's what's making news on this Thursday June Third.
[ANCHOR=Melanie]

News 7 Mornin' will be right back.

[2-plane-crash]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=mel]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=MD-80 Crash]

In Little Rock, Arkansas investigators today hope to question the co-pilot of the American Airlines jetliner that crashed Tuesday night killing nine peope, including the pilot.
They are trying to figure out why the pilot attempted to land during a severe hail storm.
Maureen Maher reports.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[5:00:00]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=01-Little Rock, AR;]
[SUPER=01-Kevin Mergel/Crash Survivor;]
[SUPER=01-George Black/NTSB Investigator;]
[SUPER=01-Maureen Maher/Reporting;]
[RUNS=:00]
[OUT Q=CBS News, Little Rock.]

[kosovo]

[ANCHOR=melanie]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=mel]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=None]

Crucial talks between Yugoslav president, Slobodan Milosevic, and two foreign diplomats are underway this morning in Belgrade.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Belgrade, Yugoslavia;]
[4;09:10]
They're discussing a Kosovo peace plan put together by Russia and members of the European union.
The West says it's a take-it-or-leave-it deal in which Yugoslavia must pull all Serb forces out of Kosovo and allow a NATO-led peacekeeping force into the embattled Serbian province.
The Serb parliament is also meeting right now-- a possible sign the government may accept the plan.
(------------)

[Alternate-Scales]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=mornin]
[WRITER=eea]
[TAPE#=99-19 TC27:52]
[GRAPHIC=Truck Safety]

The truck safety crackdown in Southwest Virginia continues this morning. Scales on interstate 81 and Route 11 were open round the clock yesterday.
And as Eric Earnhart reports, Transportation officials brought out the portable scales to make sure all their bases were covered.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Inspectors say after]
[SUPER=03-Botetourt Co.; :01]
[SUPER=01-Jeff Smith/VDOT Truck Weight Division; :19]
[SUPER=01-Wayne Foster/Driver; :50]
[SUPER=@Eric1; 1:10]
[SUPER=01-Jeff Neice/Driver; 1:38]
[RUNS=1:46]
[OUT Q=EE, News-7]

(( Inspectors say after several years in the business, they can often pinpoint an overweight truck just by looking at it, but to make sure, they have these...
They look, and work, like bathroom scales... but they have a capacity of 20 thousand pounds each.

[SOT]
[IN Q=those scales]
((JEFF SMITH/VDOT TRUCK WEIGHT DIVISION; THOSE SCALES ARE PORTABLE WHICH MEANS WE CAN TAKE THEM AND GO ANYWHERE WITH THEM, THE ONLY THING WE TRY TO DO IS WEIGH THEM IN AS SAFE AND LEVEL A SPOT AS WE CAN. ))
[RUNS= 09]
[OUT Q=as we can]

During the 48 hour check, they were set up at the weigh station pull-off on alternate 220... The driver pulls his rig up onto the scales as inspectors add up the numbers... and in this case... they're too high on two axels.

[SOT 00:16:23]
[IN Q=either way]
(( EITHER WAY, YOU'RE OVER ON BOTH TANDEMS. ))
[RUNS= 03]
[OUT Q=]

With no way to shift his load, the driver has no choice but to take a ticket.

[SOT 00:22:03]
[IN Q=I was within]
((WAYNE FOSTER/DRIVER; I WAS WITHIN MY LEGAL LIMIT BUT I HAD A LITTLE MORE ON ONE AXEL THEN I WAS SUPPOSED TO... HOW TOUGH IS THAT TO GET EXACTLY RIGHT? IT'S ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE, IT'S 700 POUNDS WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT AN 80 THOUSAND POUND TRUCK IS NOT MUCH BUT THEY HAVE A JOB TO DO I GUESS. ))
[RUNS= 15]
[OUT Q=to do I guess]

But officials say a few hundred pounds CAN make a difference in the long run. standup 00:26:17 Asphault roadways are designed to withstand a certain amount of pressure or pounds per square inch pushing down on the road from each tire, go over that limit, again and again and again and you begin to see damage.

Since they're not an immediate safety hazard, overweight drivers are allowed to continue.
Not so for this driver... pulled off the road because his double trailer of scrap metal had broken lights, and, even worse, a broken air-brake hose.

[SOT 00:17:35]
[IN Q=I gotta take it back]
(( JEFF NEICE/DRIVER; I GOTTA TAKE IT BACK AND GET THEM TO FIX IT, THAT'S NOT SAFE FOR YOU IS IT? NO, IT AINT SAFE FOR NOBODY ELSE EITHER. ))
[RUNS= 08]
[OUT Q=nobody else either]

Eric Earnhart, News 7))

[S-Moonshine-forfeiture]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=khu]
[TAPE#=99-14 1:09:13]
[GRAPHIC=Moonshine Bust]

The federal government has started seizing the assets of suspected moonshiners in Franklin County.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Rocky Mount/Last Month]

The Farmers Exchange is the first item on the list in a fat forfeiture file submitted to the court today.
Ramsey Helms committed suicide about ten days after the operation was busted.
The feds still intend to take his money and his land.
The list includes real estate, vehicles, 20-thousand dollars in cash, a lot more in various bank accounts... plus the tools of the trade: 100-pound bags of sugar, flour, yeast, mason jars and nearly 10-thousand 1-gallon plastic jugs.
(------------)

[Three-Steve]

[ANCHOR=Steve]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=spa]
[TAPE#M99-3]
[GRAPHIC=NONE]

[On Desk]
[SUPER=15-Steve/Pardon;]
(I'll intro package)

(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=A lot of]
[SUPER=04-1998; :00]
[SUPER=01-Ken Holloway/Hypnotist; :48]
[RUNS=2:36]
[OUT Q=or why they're doing it.]

[Steve Live]

[SUPER=16-(540) 981-1201/Roanoke Civic Center;]

(ad lib toss to bump)
[BUMP-Chyron]
[COMM #6]
((Archive: fair))

[S-Juvenile-Correction]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=equ]
[TAPE#=99-16 40:27]
[GRAPHIC=None]

Virginia authorities still either don't know -- or won't say -- if state juvenile justice officers hit or kicked 16- year old Wallace Dandridge in the hours before his death in a juvenile prison.
But the first death in the Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice's 10- year history has raised questions about the officers' new (OFF-ensive) offensive fighting techniques.
Ellen Qualls has the story about the program they call "Handle With Care Plus."
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=First, there's]
[SUPER=03-Chesterfield Co.; :00]
[SUPER=01-Andy Dickerson/Department of Juvenile Justice; :27 ]
[SUPER=@Ellen2; :56 ]
[RUNS=1:21]
[OUT Q=Qualls, News 7.]
(( First, there's Handle With Care.
That means restrain a violent juvenile inmate, NO matter how big he is.
It requires the officer to end the violence, without ever really fighting back.
But another scenario, where a restraint alone is NOT enough-- and this kick--
[nat sot 14:11:55]
[runs:02 ]
-- makes it the new Handle With Care Plus program.
The "plus" is in the offensive blow-- instead of only defensive or restraint techniques.
It's a fairly strict set of moves.
[sot 14:54:40 ]
((NEVER A BLOW TO THE HEAD. NEVER A CHOKEHOLD. NEVER THE USE OF ANY KIND OF WEAPON....WEAR INTO THE FACILITIES.)) [runs:11]
So when 16-year old Wallace Dandridge was found dead in Oak Ridge Juvenile Correctional Center in April-- Juvenile Justice Board members began to ask about the Handle With Care Plus program.
They never approved it.
Juvenile Justice Department Director Gerald Glenn says he has the authority to approve the program without the board's consent.
And he says, it's necessary -- since Virginia does NOT use chemical or electronic devices on juveniles, like some other states.
[sot 14:31:56]
((ASSAULTS CAN HAPPEN JUST LIKE THAT. YOU CAN SAY TO A JUVENILE "YOU NEED TO TAKE A SEAT" AND THE NEXT THING YOU KNOW, HE ATTACKS YOU.)) [runs07]
The Juvenile Justice Board meets next week to ponder the problem.
The only death in department history is still under investigation.... but seven employees have been suspended.
Ellen Qualls News 7.))

[E-Arcadia-Academy]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=jmc]
[TAPE#=99-13 1:32:09]
[GRAPHIC=None]

It was a big day for a tiny graduating class.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Botetourt Co.]

The Arcadia Leadership Academy gave its graduating class of 2 a proper sendoff yesterday, complete with caps and gowns, pomp and circumstance, pledges and prayers.
Yesterday's graduating class spokesman credits the school with turning his life around.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=You guys]
((ALLEN MARINA/ARCADIA LEADERSHIP GRADUATE: YOU GUYS ALL HELPED ME CHANGE BEYOND BELIEF. I KNOW I'M CRAZY, ZANY, A LITTLE BIT ZANY, BUT I ENJOY LIFE. I CAN'T SAY I HATE IT.))
[SUPER=01-Allen Marina/Arcadia Leadership Graduate;]
[RUNS=13]
[OUT Q=I hate it.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

It's been a rough year for the school.
The alternative education center, formerly known as the Wilderness Leadership Academy, was investigated by the state Department of Education.
(---------------)

[3-Sports]

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

In sports, Carillion doctors were earning some ectra money yesterday... for Ronald McDonald.
They hit the hardwood last night all in the name of charity.
Mike Stevens has more.
Good Morning Mike.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=A very pleasant]
[RUNS=2:29]
[OUT Q=pleasant morning]

[ANCHOR=Melanie]
(weather toss)
[Local-Recap]
[SUPER=#4059;Local Recap]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]

Now here's another look at today's top local stories:
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]

The truck crackdown on Interstate 81 continues this morning.
Scales on the interstate and Route 11 have been open 24 hours a day.
Some truckers say the effort borders on harrasment while other welcome the extra checks.
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]

Virginia's unemployment rate is at it's lowest point in nearly 50 years.
The statewide jobless rate was two- point- three percent-- tied for the lowest since record-keeping began in 1950.

Lynchburg's rate was just one- point- eight percent-- that's a new record.
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]

The federal government has started seizing the assets of suspected moonshiners in Franklin County.
The Farmers Exchange is the first item on the list in a fat forfeiture file submitted to the court today.
The list includes real estate, vehicles, 20-thousand dollars in cash, a lot more in various bank accounts... plus the tools of the trade: 100-pound bags of sugar, flour, yeast, mason jars and nearly 10-thousand 1-gallon plastic jugs.
(-------------)
[ANCHOR=Steve]
(Steve mic hot)
(///////////////)
[2 shot=Mel/SPA]
(Steve ad lib weather)
(-------------)
[Double Boxes=Melanie and Steve]
(ad lib bye) (live ad lib, tease tomorrow)