WDBJ 7 news at 6 for 12/23/99

[1-News-Head]

[TALENT=Keith]

A temporary solution to the safety problems on Interstate-81, we'll have the details just ahead on News 7 at 6.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
And Spanky's slaps a lawsuit on a local newspaper.
(------------)

[Sports-Head]

[ANCHOR=Roy]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=rst]
[TAPE#=Sports-Head]
[GRAPHIC=None]

In sports, Illinois gets ready for Virginia, T-C-U wins the Alabama bowl.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

And Mike Stevens will take you on a trip down Bourbon Street.
(------------)

[WX-Head]
[TALENT=Patrick]
[SS=None]

Some light snow may grace the mountains tonight, along with flurries for the rest of us. Cold weather details for your holiday weekend coming up.

[Safety-Patrol]

[ANCHOR=Tonya]
[NEWSCAST=6 PM]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE#=99-41 1:38:10]
[GRAPHIC=Interstate 81 Safety]
Only days after a Roanoke lawyer accused the state of keeping Interstate 81 unsafe -- V-DOT announces it will spend 600-thousand-dollars a year on a safety patrol.
[Double Boxes=Tonya/ TinaMicrowave]

Tina Tenret is standing by I-81 in Roanoke County to tell us more about today's announcement.
[Live=Tina Full/Microwave]
[SUPER=@Tina1]
[SUPER=05-Roanoke Co.]
Tonya, VDOT admits the best way to prevent accidents would be to widen this road -- But with that many years away -- they're now focused on clearing wrecks as fast as possible. That's why they're making the safety patrol full-time and permanent.
(rollcue... full time and permanent )
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Now there's a crew]
[SUPER=01-Chip Nottingham/VA Transportation Commissioner; :16]
[SUPER=01-Curtis Goad/Safety Patrol; :42]
[RUNS=:52]
[OUT Q=want to keep going]
((Now there's a crew of eight new hires, driving trucks stocked with all kinds of rescue gear. Funny this should come only days after attorney Richard Lawrence decided to take the state to court, saying I-81 is dangerous.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 10:20:05]
[IN Q=I WOULD SAY]
((I WOULD SAY WE ARE AND HAVE BEEN 100 PERCENT COMMITTED TO IMPROVING SAFETY ON THE I-81 CORRIDOR. I WOULD SUBMIMT THE BETTER PLACE TO DO THAT IS RIGHT OUT HERE ALONG THE ROADSIDE WITH PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERS AND CONSTRUCTION CREWS AND NOT IN THE COURTROOM.)) [RUNS:15]
[OUT Q=NOT IN THE COURTROOM]
The crew already rescued one woman who was stranded -- They called a tow truck and re-routed traffic around her car. They say that way the safety patrol prevents pileups and future accidents.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 10:24:15]
[IN Q=We want people]
((WE WANT PEOPLE TO GET IN THE PASSING LANE AND GO ON. BUT WITH THE TRUCKERS THEY TEND NOT TO LOOK AT THE SIGNS. THEY WANT TO KEEP GOING.)) [RUNS:11]
[OUT Q=TO KEEP GOING]))
(-------------)
[Live=Tina Full/Microwave]
[SUPER=05-Roanoke Co.;]
VDOT is also planning to build a traffic management center in the Roanoke Valley -- a command center where they can run their cameras and other intelligence equipment.
[Double Boxes=Tonya/ Tina Microwave]

They say that should be here in about three years. [M'ville-Murder]

[ANCHOR=Tonya]
[NEWSCAST=5pm]
[WRITER=sgo]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=Murder]

Martinsville police have arrested a man they accuse of killing his roommate.
50-year-old Leon White is in custody tonight.
He's been charged with first-degree murder after a stabbing yesterday.
White's roommate ... Rodney Oneal Martin ... was stabbed in the stomach after an argument.
Martin died last night at Martinsville Memorial Hospital.

[Spanky's]

[ANCHOR=Jean]
[NEWSCAST=6p]
[WRITER=jmc]
[TAPE#=99-44 1:37:44]
[GRAPHIC=Spanky's]

The owners of Spanky's restaurant in Salem are pretty fed up with some bad press.
They're suing the newspaper that broke the story for five million dollars.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Salem]

A lawsuit filed in Roanoke Circuit Court today claims the Roanoke Times libeled the restaurant by reporting on some 70 indictments handed up by the Salem grand jury.
Several people were charged with dealing drugs outside Spanky's earlier this year.
A spokesman for the Roanoke Times says he hadn't seen the lawsuit, and couldn't comment.
(------------)

[Art-Museum]

[ANCHOR=Tonya]
[NEWSCAST=6pm ]
[WRITER=equ]
[TAPE#=99-46 49:52]
[GRAPHIC=none]

1999 was the year fortune smiled on the Art Museum of Western Virginia.
At least the Fralin family's fortune did.
But some high hopes were dashed last week, when Governor Jim Gilmore slashed the museum's operating funds from his two-year budget.
It's a case study of a southwest Virginia attraction with everything going for it -- but a giant handicap in Richmond.
Ellen Qualls reports.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=The Art Museum]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke; :00]
[SUPER=@Trumbo; 1:04]
[SUPER=@Ellen2; : ]
[SUPER=@Edwards; 1:26]
[RUNS=1:44]
[OUT Q=Qualls, News 7.]

(( The Art Museum of Western Virginia looked like the lucky one in southwest Virginia in the Governor's budget.
But the fine print showed zero state money for operating costs.
Yes, there's a million dollars for capital expenses.
But as director Judy Larson diplomatically puts it: "that's the first step in a long journey toward" the 18 million dollars needed to open a new museum.
Governor George Allen had promised 200- thousand dollars a year in operating expenses in his last budget.
Governor Gilmore and the Assembly ended up with 150 thousand dollars a year after amending the lame duck Allen budget.
So what's the Art Museum doing wrong?
It's best friend is Heywood Fralin, who went shopping for art treasures for the museum this year with about three million dollars.
Fralin, in turn, is a very good friend of the Governor, giving 10 thousand dollars to the Republican Party of Virginia and 10 thousand dollars to the Joint Republican Caucus, just nine days before the election that gave Gilmore historic control of the state house.
Is there a connection to the million dollar capital expense in Gilmore's budget?
[SOT 10:32:04]
((SEN. BO TRUMBO/R-FINCASTLE: YOU KNOW, POLITICS IS A SCARY GAME AT TIMES, AND YOU TRY TO FIGURE OUT WHO'S DOING WHAT AND WHY THEY'RE DOING IT.)) [RUNS:06]
The museum admits it "worked every angle."
But it got nothing when it was counting on at least a fourth of its operating budget from Richmond.
The Gilmore administration says sorry-- it's a "non-state agency," something the Governor ideologically believes should be supported by the private sector.
[SOT 14:27:56]
((SEN. JOHN EDWARDS/D-ROANOKE: WELL THAT IS A NARROW IDEOLOGICAL VIEW OF THE WORLD, THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE STATE AGENCIES AND THE NON-STATE AGENCIES. BECAUSE AS I SAY, THEY REALLY DO THE SAME THING.)) [RUNS:09]

[sot 10:32:24 ]
((TRUMBO: WHAT WE'RE GONNA TRY TO DO AS FAR AS DEMOCRATS AND REPUBLICANS FROM THE WESTERN PART OF THE STATE IS ONCE AGAIN BAND TOGETHER.)) [runs:07]
-- and have a culture clash with a Governor.
Ellen Qualls, News 7.))

[Tease#1]
[HARD MUSIC UNDER]
[ANCHOR=Tonya]
[SS=NONE]

There are less than 2 days left until Christmas and some people are still trying to wrap up their Christmas shopping. We'll find out who's in the last minute rush.
(---------------)
[VO-NAT]

And a Charlotte County man has high hopes for his board game 'Millennium Vacation". But first let's check in with Patrick in the weather center.
(----------------)
[ANCHOR=Patrick]
[wx ad lib] [Roll] [Lake Level] [MUSIC UP FULL]
[COMM#1]

[Men-Shopping]

[ANCHOR=Tonya]
[NEWSCAST=6]
[WRITER=jbi]
[TAPE#=99-39 1:45:23]
[GRAPHIC=Christmas shopping bulbs]

The Christmas shopping days are numbered and last minute gift buyers are scouring the malls for gifts. Most of the shoppers have one thing in common -- they're men. Juliet Bickford has the story on what's been keeping them away from the stores.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=The sound]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke; :02]
[SUPER=01-Joe Sweeney/ Shopper; :12]
[SUPER=01- Christopher Gorman/ Shopper; :24]
[SUPER=01-Ben Janney/ Shopper; :36]
[SUPER=01-Raymond Lewis/ Mall Employee; :46]
[SUPER=01-Russell Hubbard/ Shopper; :58]
[SUPER=01-Juliet Bickford/ Reporting; 1:03]
[SUPER=01-Bradley Dalton/ Shopper; 1:15]
[RUNS=1:37]
[OUT Q=News 7, Roanoke.]
(((///// SOT /////)
[SOT 00:10:47]
[IN Q=]
((nats of register)) [RUNS3]
[OUT Q=]
The sound of spending -- it's the Christmas music that started in November for most people. But for many men, the shopping only began today. Some say they just haven't had time.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 23:25:54]
[IN Q=I teach]
((JOE SWEENEY/ SHOPPER: I TEACH SCHOOL AND COACH BASKETBALL, SO I'VE BEEN BUSY UP UNTIL THIS PAST WEDNESDAY.)) [RUNS5]
[OUT Q=wednesday.]
Victoria's Secret was a popular choice among procrastinating men, but apparently the early shoppers had the same idea.

(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 23:32:50]
[IN Q=I was]
((CHRISTOPHER GORMAN/ SHOPPER: I WAS HERE A WEEK AGO AND THE SELECTION HAS DIMINISHED QUICKLY.)) [RUNS6]
[OUT Q=quickly.]
Jewelry is another favorite and these brothers think the team approach might help them get the job done.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 23:42:27]
[IN Q=We really]
((BEN JANNEY/ SHOPPER: WE REALLY DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO GET MY DAD FOR CHRISTMAS -- SO WE'RE TRYING TO FIND THE PERFECT GIFT RIGHT HERE AT THE END.)) [RUNS7]
[OUT Q=the end.]
And even if a guy works at the mall, it doesn't mean he's finished his shopping.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 00:29:24]
[IN Q=I'm gonna]
((RAYMOND LEWIS/ MALL EMPLOYEE: I'M GONNA HAVE TO SNEAK OUT DURING MY BREAK AND DO SOME SHOPPING.)) [RUNS6]
[OUT Q=shopping.]
Some marines we ran into were just looking for -- a few good gifts -- and they think they have a pretty good excuse for starting their shopping so late.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 00:12:14]
[IN Q=Me and]
((RUSSELL HUBBARD/ SHOPPER: ME AND MY FELLOW MARINES HERE -- WE JUST GRADUATED BOOT CAMP.)) [RUNS5]
[OUT Q=boot camp.]
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 00:34:35]
[IN Q=To get]
((JULIET BICKFORD/ REPORTING: TO GET A BREATHER FROM THE LAST MINUTE CROWD SOME PEOPLE TAKE A BREAK HERE AT THE WATERING HOLE WHILE OTHERS BEGIN HERE.)) [RUNS7]
[OUT Q=here.]
The bar was filled with mostly men, putting off shopping for another few minutes.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 00:25:07]
[IN Q=yeah, yeah]
((BRADLEY DALTON/ SHOPPER: YEAH, YEAH, YOU'VE GOTTA HAVE A COUPLE OF DRINKS BEFORE YOU SHOP. IT'S A FACT.)) [RUNS7]
[OUT Q=fact.]
Not all men see shopping as such a chore -- and most seem pretty flexible if they can't find exactly what they're looking for. They know it's late in the shopping season and are just hoping to come home with something -- in some cases anything -- to put under the tree. Juliet Bickford, News 7, Roanoke.))

[Board-Game]

[ANCHOR=Jean]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=ssm]
[TAPE#=99-42 1:55:07]
[GRAPHIC=none]

If you find yourself stuck inside on New Year's Day because of Y2K problems, one local inventor has just the thing to keep the family occupied.
Steve Smallshaw tells us about a board game that hopes to become a big sensation in the new millenium.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Lou Garland's]
[SUPER=03-Charlotte Co.]
[SUPER=01-Lou Garland/Millenium Board Game Inventor; :29]
[SUPER=01-Kathie Garland/Wife; :53]
[SUPER=@ssm1; 1:22]
[RUNS=1:30]
[OUT Q=News7, Charlotte County.]

(( Lou Garland's Charlotte County home may be dedicated to Christmas, but he's been fixated on another holiday for the past ten months.
Wondering what they'd do if Y2- chaos kept their family inside come New Year's Day, Garland and his wife invented a board game.
In Millenium Vacation, players try to survive a winter trip to Grandparents House and back.. all while maneuvering around unexpected Y2K difficulties.
[SOT 10:59:57]
((LOU GARLAND/MILLENIUM BOARD GAME INVENTOR: IT'S Y2K PROBLEMS AND FAMILY VACATION PROBLEMS. IT'S MORE FAMILY VACATION PROBLEMS THAN Y2K.. THERE'S Y2K IN THERE BUT IT'S MORE SO.. THERE'S A LITTLE COMPUTER GLITCHES IN THERE HERE AND THERE. THE ATM GIVES YOU MONEY IN THIS GAME.))
[RUNS= 13]
[OUT Q=in this game.]
[natsot 10:58:30]
(( [dice rolls].. "1,2,3,4,5,6))
[RUNS= 03]

Unlike other games, there's no violence, greed or cutthroat competition here.. for the Garlands, whose son was murdered four years ago, promoting family values was a priority.
[SOT 11:06:02]
((KATHIE GARLAND/WIFE: WE'VE SEEN TOO MANY TEENAGERS OUT IN THE STREETS, GETTING IN TROUBLE AND WE JUST WANTED FAMILIES TO BE TOGETHER.))
[RUNS= 10]
[OUT Q=to be together.]
[natsot 10:55:42]
((MOVE FIVE SPACES BACKWARDS..))
[RUNS= 02]
[SOT 11:01:33]
((GARLAND: THERE'S A LOT OF GAMES THAT ARE OUT THERE, THEY GO AROUND IN CIRCLES AND YOU COMPETE AGAINST EACH OTHER AND STUFF.. THIS GAME, IT'S TOTALLY DIFFERENT EVERY TIME YOU PLAY IT, SO EVERY TIME YOU GET TOGETHER WITH THE FAMILY IT'S A TOTALLY NEW GAME.))
[RUNS= 15]
[OUT Q=totally new game.]

Local stores have sold 500 copies of Millenium Vacation since November.
Garland hopes to have the game in your local Wal-Mart in the next few months.

Steve Smallshaw, News7, Charlotte County.))[NRV-Gifts]

[ANCHOR=Tonya]
[NEWSCAST=6]
[WRITER=mjo]
[TAPE#=99-43 1:49:02]
[GRAPHIC=none]

Some disadvantaged children in the New River Valley got their Christmas wish lists filled by some Christmas shoppers.
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[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Christiansburg;]

Today, representatives of local children's homes rolled out of the New River Valley Mall with hundreds of presents donated by shoppers.
The presents will go to 63 kids in Floyd and Wythe county children's homes and to foster children in Montgomery County.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 3:16:01 - :16]
[IN Q=I think it teaches them]
((BILLY RICE/PRESBYTERIAN CHILDREN'S HOME WYTHEVILLE: I THINK IT TEACHES THEM THAT THERE ARE PEOPLE OUT THERE THAT CARE ABOUT THEM AND, HOPEFULLY, THROUGH THE THINGS WE TRY TO DO AND GIVE BACK, TOO, IT TEACHES THEM THAT NOT ONLY DO PEOPLE CARE ABOUT THEM, BUT THAT IT'S FUN TO GIVE AND THAT THE TRUE MEANING OF CHRISTMAS IS BEING ABLE TO GIVE THINGS TO OTHER PEOPLE.))
[SUPER=01-Billy Rice/Presbyterian Children's Home;]
[RUNS=:15]
[OUT Q=give things to other people.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

The gift drive was organized by a local radio station.
The presents include new clothes, shoes and special "wish list" items selected by the kids.
(------------)

[Pitts-Santa]

[ANCHOR=Tonya]
[NEWSCAST=6p]
[WRITER=jmc]
[TAPE#=99-47 1:00:53]
[GRAPHIC=Christmas santa hat]

The Christmas spirit was also alive in Southside.
The people who hand out traffic tickets and summons in Pittsylvania County had some other things to deliver today.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Pittsylvania Co.]

Members of the sheriff's department took food and toys to some deserving families this morning.
About 22 families in all, with about four dozen kids.
It's the second year in a row the department has collected and given out gifts.
(------------)

[Sports Tease]

[ANCHOR=Roy]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=rst]
[TAPE#=Sports Tease]
[GRAPHIC=None]

And coming up in sports, Illinois talks about its bowl game against Virginia T-C-U wins the Alabama Bowl.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

And a major baseball trade between the New York Mets and the Houston Astros.
(------------)

[S-Bourbon]

[ANCHOR=Roy]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=mst]
[TAPE#=SP-54 5440TC]
[GRAPHIC=SUGAR BOWL]
Within the next week or so, folks from all Southwest and Central Virginia will begin arriving in New Orleans. For many, it will be their first ever trip to the crescent city. And for all it will be an eye-popping experience. Mike Stevens tells us why.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=FIRST AUDIO]
[SUPER=03-New Orleans, LA; :00]
[SUPER=04-1995; :24]
[SUPER=@mike2; :31]
[SUPER=01-Jimmy Kibble/Virginia Tech Punter; :41]
[SUPER=01-Shane Beamer/Va. Tech Long Snapper; :50]
[RUNS=1:44]
[OUT Q=...NEWS 7 SPORTS."]
(( New Orleans offers its visitors unlimited beauty and plenty of the uninhibited unusual. It's a city where one can gain ten pounds a day, and later watch a stranger shed ten pounds of clothing in a minute. Bourbon Street is the beast that most tourists visit, and most coaches fear. When the Hokies and their fans arrive back in New Orleans only two Tech players on this current squad were with the team when it played Texas back in 1995. Both Shane Beamer and Jimmy Kibble know that making good decision outside the Superdome will as important as playing smart against the Seminoles. ((JIMMY KIBBLE/TECH PUNTER:)) ((SHANE BEAMER/TECH SNAPPER:)) Last year only 230 murders were committed in New Orleans and only 18 thousand six hundred and 45 thefts were reported - I say only because both of those numbers were down significantly from the year before. ((JIMMY KIBBLE:)) The Hokies are set to arrive in New Orleans on December 27th. Mike Stevens News 7 sports.))

[S-Cavs]

[ANCHOR=Roy]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=rst]
[TAPE#=SP-46 (1:34:34)]
[GRAPHIC=MICRON.COMBOWL]

The Virginia Cavaliers are all set for Miami and the Micronpc.com bowl against Illinois.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Champaign, IL; :]

The teams met in the Florida Citrus Bowl in Orlando in 1990 and the fighting Illini defeated the Cavaliers 31 to 21.
And a major concern for Illionis this season is the Cavalier defense.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q="They got...]
[SUPER=01-Kurt Turner/Illinois Quarterback; :]
[RUNS=:20]
[OUT Q=....do it."]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

The Illini know another key to beating the Cavaliers is to stop running back Thomas Jones and the U-V-A running game.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q="Offensively.....]
[SUPER=01-Ron Turner/Illinois Head Coach; :]
[RUNS=:16]
[OUT Q=.....lot better."]
[TALENT=ROY]
[GRAPHIC=HOLD LOGO]

The bowl game is scheduled for Thursday December 30-th. Kickoff at Pro Player Stadium in Miami is 7 Oclock.

[S-Bowl]

[ANCHOR=Roy]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=rst]
[TAPE#=SP-52 (1:02:43)]
[GRAPHIC=College Football]

East Carolina's football season ended last night in the Alabama Bowl.
T-C-U's LaDainian Tomlinson rushed for 124 yards and two touchdowns as the Horned Frogs beat the Pirates 28 to 14.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Mobile, AL/ESPN; :]

T-C-U put the game awayy in the fourth quarter when Russel Gary intercepts this David Garrard's pass and returns it 32 yards for the score making it T-C-U 28 to 14.
[SUPER=36-TCU/28/East Carolina/14/;]

T-C-U finishes the season 8 and 4 while East Carolina is 9 and 3.
(------------)

[S-MLB]

[ANCHOR=Roy]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=rst]
[TAPE#=SP-58 (35:04)]
[GRAPHIC=MLB LOGO]

The owners meetings are over but the trades continue in major league baseball.
And the Mets are involved in a major trade with the Houston Astros.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=04-MLB]

Houston sends ace lefty Mike Hampton and Outfielder Derek Bell to the Mets. Hampton finished 1999 as the Cy Young runner-up with a 22 and 4 record. Hampton has one year remaining on his current contract.
(------------)
[TALENT=ROY]
[GRAPHIC=HOLD LOGO]

Bell hit just 236 with 12 homers and 66 R-B-I's last season. The Astros get pitcher Octavio Dotel and outfielder Roger Cedeno.

[Promo]

[ANCHOR=Tonya]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=jsu]
[TAPE#=99-]
[GRAPHIC=News 7 At 11]

The malls are packed -- and for some people it's the perfect time to shop lift.
(------------)
[VO-NAT tape 99-43 1:39:19 use low shots of feet etc.]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke/December 19]

Roanoke City Police say during the Christmas season shop lifting increases by about 25 percent.
This holiday season at shopping areas, authorities say at least two cars have been broken into with items stolen. And there has been at least one purse snatching.
(------------)
[ANCHOR=Tonya]
[GRAPHIC=News 7 at 11]

Tonight on News 7 at 11 we'll tell you how Roanoke City Police and Valley View Mall are teaming up to make this holi And some things you can do to protect yourself.day shopping season safer.