Today's News-Monday, November 12th

Thieves who took a sizeable amount of copper wire from an Orwigsburg business are being sought by state police. Sometime during the middle of the week, troopers say that three padlocks were cut on storage trailers owned by BJ Baldwin Electric, at a site along Route 61.
Various sizes of cooper wire were taken, with a value of $7-thousand-dollars. If you have information, contact state police at 593-2000.

Thanks to anonymous tips from concerned citizens, a Pottsville man who committed a hit and run at Fairlane Village Mall has been found. Someone backed into the vehicle owned by James Kimmel of Minersville on Thursday, November 1st. Through eyewitness reports and other information, state police picked up the driver of the Plymouth minivan that committed the crime. 48-year-old Warren Bretz Jr. was picked up on Saturday, and confessed to the hit and run. Charges in the case will be filed in District Court.

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Those heartfelt words by retired General George Joulwan opened Saturday's dedication ceremony for Schuylkill County's Medal of Honor monument in Pottsville. Under the canopy of a grey sky, the service, attended by more than 60 people at Joulwan Park, honored 15 men, whose uncommon valor and supreme sacrifice, earned them our nation's highest honor. Joulwan, the keynote speaker, said that the price was high for those sons of Schuylkill County:

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Through the efforts of Pottsville’s Lasting Legacy Foundation, a grant secured by Representative Neal Goodman and the work of Pottsville's Joint Veterans Council, the granite monument notes the names of the Medal of Honor winners, and the wars in which they served.
If you haven't had the opportunity to thank a veteran for their service to our country, take a moment to do so today.

A 51-year-old Shenandoah woman was flown to Geisinger Medical Center after she was attacked by several pit bull dogs Sunday night. Shenandoah Police say that Cindy Davidson was bit in the leg, arm and neck after the dogs attacked her around seven last night in the 400 block of Cherry Street in Shenandoah. Davidson remains in good condition at Geisinger.
The dogs owner, Leo James says the dogs were fenced in the yard of his property but that someone had opened a gate and let the dogs roam. Police said the dogs involved were quarantined and that James will work with the Schuylkill County SPCA to determine what the next step of the investigation will be.

A Sheppton woman escaped injury in a one vehicle accident Sunday morning, and alcohol may have played a part in it. 37-year-old Christine Cieniawa was traveling north on Route 924 near the entrance to Eagle Rock, when she failed to make a right hand curve. The car left the road and struck a tree. State police at Frackville report they detected an odor of alcohol on her breath, along with bloodshot eyes. A field sobriety test was not performed due to minor injuries she had.

A Mahanoy City woman had to be flown from the scene of a crash early Sunday in Kline Township. 22-year-old Stephanie Richards was driving south on Route 81 in the passing lane, and lost control of the car on the icy bridge. The car struck a rock embankment and rolled onto its roof. Richards was taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital for treatment of her injuries. The crash happened at 8:15am. Cieniawa also rejected a blood alcohol test at Pottsville Hospital. She will be charged with DUI and related traffic offenses.

Thanks to anonymous tips from concerned citizens, a Pottsville man who committed a hit and run at Fairlane Village Mall has been found. Someone backed into the vehicle owned by James Kimmel of Minersville on Thursday, November 1st. Through eyewitness reports and other information, state police picked up the driver of the Plymouth minivan that committed the crime. 48-year-old Warren Bretz Jr. was picked up on Saturday, and confessed to the hit and run. Charges in the case will be filed in District Court.

BALTIMORE (AP) - The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops will issue ethical guidelines this week for Catholic voters to consider in next year's elections. The draft document being discussed at the bishops' meeting inBaltimore says faithful Catholics must oppose abortion andeuthanasia, but also should be concerned about "hunger, poverty,racism, unjust immigration policies and unjust war." The draft document also urges more Catholics to run for officeand become politically active. The voter guidelines are to be distributed in Catholic parishesnext year as bulletin inserts.

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - By the carload and busload, Canadians arebringing their supercharged dollars currently worth $1.06 in the United States across the border in what is nothing short of a shopping frenzy. Ontario residents always have had an appetite for U.S. malls and the broader retailer mix, but the strong Canadian dollar has made them ravenous. The Canadians are evem traveling as far south as the Harrisburg, Lancaster and Reading areas in Pennsylvania. In the Buffalo area, Fashion Outlets spokeswoman Julie Clark predicts Canadians will compose 65 percent of that mall's customerbase over this dual al Veterans/Remembrance Day weekend. At the Galleria, the Buffalo area's largest mall, Canadian accents are filling the corridors as well. Statistics Canada, which offers hard numbers on cross-border shopping trips, counted a 4.2 percent climb in such U.S. visits in August, the most recent month for which a tally is available. The Canadian dollar didn't hit parity until September. The value of the already-strong Canadian dollar soared by more than 15 cents against the greenback since the end of August,setting the stage for a string of new cross-border shopping volume records.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - Police are trying to find the mother of a newborn boy found abandoned outside a home in Harrisburg. The full-term infant was alive and breathing on his own Saturday evening. He was taken to an area hospital, where it is said to be doing fine.
The resident of the home where the baby was found reported hearing the doorbell ring sometime after 7:20 p.m. The woman opened the door and found the baby on the porch and
wrapped in a towel. Police say the child appears to be African-American and may have
been born shortly before he was found. Police say they have no information about who the mother is or where she could be, but say they say they are worried about her health. Chief David Hiester says he doesn't expect to file any charges.

UNDATED (AP) - Asian markets have slipped following last week's drop on Wall Street. But European markets are mixed in early trading. Analysts blame the Asian decline on renewed concerns about mortgage problems in the U.S. Wall Street will be open today but bond markets are closed because for Veterans Day.

WASHINGTON (AP) - A day of observance as the nation recognizes Veterans Day. Yesterday, President Bush paid tribute to troops during a ceremony in Texas, while Vice President Cheney led the annual wreath-laying at Arlington National Cemetery.

JOHNSON SPACE CENTER, Houston (AP) - Another crucial task in space. The crew of the international space station has moved a school bus-sized module into its permanent spot at the orbiting lab. Harmony will be the docking port for new laboratories coming from Europe and Japan.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Federal authorities have begun a criminal investigation into Wednesday's oil spill in the San Francisco Bay. The crew of the tanker that caused the oil spill is being questioned. More than 10,000 of the spilled 58,000 gallons of oil have been recovered.

LONDON (AP) - About 75 firefighters are battling a warehouse fire in east London. The blaze has sent up a column of black smoke over the British capital. The warehouse is in an area being
developed for the 2012 Olympics. No injuries have been reported.

BALTIMORE (AP) - The nation's Catholic bishops are gathered for
their four-day fall meeting, which formally opens today in
Baltimore.
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops will meet at the
Marriott Waterfront Hotel.
One topic will be the bishops' marriage education campaign. The
bishops will view public service announcements about marriage and a
new Web site created for the campaign. Officials say the initiative
is designed to counter cultural pressures that threaten traditional
marriages.
The bishops will also be electing officers, and announce a
research update about clergy sexual abuse of minors.
Monday's agenda includes an afternoon mass at the Baltimore
Basilica and commemorating its reopening.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Actor Richard Gere is being honored with the
Marion Anderson Award.
Gere will accept the honor this evening at the Kimmel Center in
Philadelphia. Executive director Pat Moran says Gere is being cited
for his humanitarian efforts as well as his movies.
Moran says Gere is the first native-born Philadelphian to
receive the award.
He spent only a very brief time in the Philadelphia area, but
his parents are from the city. He also has extensive family ties to
the region and a number of connections to the University of
Pennsylvania.
Moran says artists are in a unique position to make positive
changes in the world and bring attention to issues in a way
lawmakers and philanthopists cannot.

DOYLESTOWN, Pa. (AP) - Twenty Philadelphia-area hospitals have
joined an effort to try to reduce the impact of such institutions
on the environment.
The two-year project by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
and other groups asks hospitals to cut the amount of waste they
send to landfills by 50 percent.
Hospitals are also asked to reduce their toxic waste output and
increase the amount they recycle. Participating medical centers
also take environmental impact into account in purchasing and
building design.
Most of the local hospitals are focusing on reducing medical
waste and implementing green purchasing practices.
Meg McGoldrick, Abington Memorial's executive vice president and
chief operating officer, says her hospital plans to reduce its
toxic waste, use healthier products, and in general try to
"reduce, reuse and recycle."

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) - The cost of clearing acid rock
drainage along Interstate 99 is on the rise.
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation has hauled away
about half of the 1 million cubic yards of acid-bearing rock on
Skytop in central Pennsylvania.
The new cost estimate of 79 million dollars is almost 30 million
dollars more than PennDOT estimated less than two years ago.
Most of the roadway is expected to open by early next month.
The cleanup is now in its fifth year.
The effort is necessary because PennDOT unearthed a massive
amount of sandstone laced with pyrite. When exposed to air and
water, pyrite creates sulfuric acid that contaminates streams and
groundwater.

GLENSHAW, Pa. (AP) - Teachers at the Shaler Area School District
are preparing to strike if they fail to reach a contract deal.
The teachers will go on strike immediately after Thanksgiving .
Superintendent Donald Lee announced the plans to launch a strike
beginning November 27th in a notice posted on the district's Web
site. The notice says there are two negotiating sessions scheduled
before the strike date and the sides hope to reach a deal that will
prevent a walkout.
Teachers have been working without a contract since June 30th.
The strike will keep nearly 5,300 students out of school. The
district serves areas about 10 miles north of Pittsburgh.
Pennsylvania teachers are allowed to strike, but must provide
180 days of instruction by June 15th.

BETHLEHEM, Pa. (AP) - It's only mid-November, but it already
looks and sounds like Christmas in Bethlehem.
The Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce arranged an open
house for businesses in the historic district and the South Side
this weekend in a bid to kick-start the holiday season for the
benefit of local businesses and local shoppers.
Christmas carols were piped over loudspeakers hidden in trees
and businesses around the city decorated their windows.
Also, about 30 students from the Ballet Guild of the Lehigh
Valley wore their costumes for their holiday performance of "The
Nutcracker" and posed in store windows.

PITTSBURGH (AP) - Despite spending 55 million dollars over the
past decade to help the Pittsburgh area recover from
deindustrialization, a major regional nonprofit is failing to
retain residents and attract new businesses.
Critics say the Allegheny Conference on Community Development
spends excessively while failing to bring new jobs to the area or
even prevent the bleeding of old workplaces.
The conference's supporters say the nonprofit has been
successful at convincing companies already in the region, such as
Westinghouse, to expand.
Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato credits the group with
helping keep firms in the area despite their plans to flee.
Conference CEO Michael Langley says his nonprofit has strong
leadership and has refocused its priorities to lobby for lowering
business taxes and decreasing regulations.

ERIE, Pa. (AP) - An anonymous donor has left a windfall to the
Eric Community Foundation and 46 charities will share in the
wealth.
A donor has given a staggering 100 million dollars to the
foundation, and all foundation officials are sworn to secrecy about
the person's identity.
All that is known is that the donor had worked with the
organization for years to identify deserving recipients before the
announcement late this summer.
Talk about the gift has taken an interesting turn in recent
weeks. As much as everyone would like to know their benefactor's
identity, many are also reluctant to pry, content to leave well
enough alone.

ALTOONA, Pa. (AP) - A 9-year-old boy accidentally shot and
killed an 11-year-old boy in Altoona while the two were playing in
an attic.
Blair County Coroner Patty Ross says Michael Lee died instantly
on Friday from a .22-caliber rifle bullet to the head. Ross says
the 9-year-old, whose name has not been released, did not intend to
hurt the other child.
Ross says the children were playing alone in the attic, but
there were adults in the house when the incident occurred. It is
unclear who the rifle belonged to.
Ross pronounced the shooting accidental, but a police
investigation is ongoing.

PITTSBURGH (AP) - A Pittsburgh police officer is on
administrative leave after shooting and killing a man suspected of
stabbing another man.
Fifty-nine-year-old Aucy Andrews was shot and killed after he
refused several orders to halt his armed advance on a police
officer who arrived at the scene in response to the original
stabbing.
Police say Andrews was armed with a knife. They say he tried to
stab a police dog during the incident and advanced on the officer.
The policeman has been with the Pittsburgh Police for eight years.
His name has not been released.
Pittsburgh Police Chief Nathan Harper says the policeman is on
administrative leave because it's "hard to take a life."

WEST CHESTER, Pa. (AP) - Some people who live near a Chester
County shooting range are complaining about what they say is
growing noise, but township officials say police need the range to
practice.
West Goshen Township resident Hank Whalen says he works from
home and often cannot concentrate because he hears gunshots
throughout the day. Neighbor Kelly Keyer says the noise is so
frequent that she often cannot take her nine-month-old son outside
to play.
Whalen says he is not opposed to police using the range, but he
would like a limit on the caliber of weapons used.
But township officials say the range is used not only by local
police but by officers from surrounding areas. Police Chief Michael
Carroll says another range planned in East Fallowfield could
eventually ease some of the concerns.

VILLANOVA, Pa. (AP) - No suspects have been found as police
continue their search for whoever fired gunshots when fights broke
out after a dance at Villanova University early Sunday.
No one was hurt. School officials believe the shooter has left
campus and there is no threat to students.
The commotion began with several fights after the on-campus
dance. That's according to police and officials at the private
Roman Catholic school in a wealthy Philadelphia suburb.
About 200 people attended the dance, which ended around 2 a.m.
Officials say the skirmishes spilled outside.
After university police broke up one fight, authorities say the
group was dispersing when one man involved fired three to six shots
in the air with a handgun in a main parking lot. Police say two men
fled on foot and two vehicles were also seen leaving the parking
lot.

SUNBURY, Pa. (AP) - A man was arrested on charges of starting a
fire that did about $100,000 damage to the historic Edison Hotel in
Sunbury.
Police say 24-year-old Jared Linkus started the blaze in his
second-floor unit at about 10:30 Saturday morning. Fire officials
say they are not sure what material was ignited, but the flames
spread to other second- and third-floor units.
Linkus had been living in the hotel for almost two months. He
left the property but was arrested at a Lewisburg home and charged
with arson, endangering other people and property and other counts.
The defendant was sent to Northumberland County Prison in lieu
of $100,000 bail.
Sunbury officials say the hotel was the first building wired for
electricity by inventor Thomas Edison using his three-wire system
in July 1883.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - A high-rise building was imploded in
downtown Philadelphia Sunday morning to make way for an expansion
of the Pennsylvania Convention Center.
The old structure at Twelfth and Arch streets, known as the
"National Building," was brought down around 7:30 a.m. It took
less than five seconds.
It is a few blocks from the convention center, which is set to
expand in the next few years.

PITTSBURGH (AP) - The Republican Committee of Allegheny County
must pick a new chair within 45 days.
Robert Glancy says he is stepping down because the job took too
much time on top of the full-time job he has running his
construction firm, R.A. Glancy & Sons. Glancy had been the party's
chairman since June 2004.
Glancy says he is not leaving the party because it failed to run
candidates for several high-profile county jobs, including county
executive, district attorney, controller, treasurer or County
Council.
About 800 Republican committee members are eligible to vote for
a new head.

NEW YORK (AP) - Stock prices are posting a rebound at midday.
Stocks have rebounded as investors bought some battered banking
stocks after last week's sell-off. Concern remains about the risk
of more fallout from the credit crisis and housing slump.
The dollar has strengthened, while crude oil prices have edged
lower.
Trading is restrained by Veterans Day, with the government bond
markets closed.
Light, sweet crude fell $2.28 to $94.04 on the New York
Mercantile Exchange. The drop came on reports that OPEC would
discuss increasing its output at an upcoming meeting in a bid to
cool record crude prices.
Citigroup is leading a recovery in bank stocks, the biggest
gainer among the 30 stocks that make up the Dow industrials. Citi
was up nearly five percent.

BAGHDAD (AP) - The U.S. military says rocket and mortar attacks
in Iraq have decreased to their lowest levels in more than 21
months. Last month saw 369 "indirect fire" attacks, or roughly
half of what there were in the same month a year ago. The military
says it marked the third straight month of reduced insurgent
activity.

BAGHDAD (AP) - Iraqi police say a taxi driver was shot dead over
the weekend by a private security guard hired to protect U.S.
convoys driving through Baghdad.
Police say the incident took place Saturday, when a taxi driver
got close to the convoy in western Baghdad.
The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad corroborated that account, but said
it could not confirm whether anyone was killed or wounded. An
Embassy spokesman says the company involved was DynCorp
International, one of three firms contracted to protect American
officials in Iraq.
A police officer says the taxi driver was shot in the head and
chest, and died at the scene. The officer says police searched the
man's taxi and found no weapons nor any other evidence of
suspicious activity.

BOSTON (AP) - Several anti-war veterans are out on bail after
police in Boston arrested them at a Veterans Day event for refusing
to move away from a podium.
The Boston chapter of a group called Veterans for Peace says
about 15 of its members and supporters were arrested yesterday at
the American Legion's event.
Group member and Vietnam War veteran Winston Warfield says the
American Legion rejected his group's request to have a speaker at
the event outside City Hall. He says since Veterans for Peace is
opposed to the U.S. invasion of Iraq and what he calls the
"planned invasion of Iran," a lot of veterans view them as
traitors.
Warfield says his group believes the Veterans Day event was a
public affair. But the Supreme Court has ruled that private groups
with proper permits can choose who can participate in their events.

BALTIMORE (AP) - Pope Benedict will make his first visit to the
United States as pontiff next April. He plans to visit the White
House and ground zero, and to speak at the United Nations.
Details of the visit were announced by the Vatican's U.S.
ambassador on the first day of this week's meeting of the U.S.
Conference of Catholic Bishops in Baltimore.
Benedict will travel to Washington and New York from April
15th-20th, speak at the U.N. on April 18th and visit ground zero on
the final day of his trip.
Outdoor Masses are planned in Yankee Stadium and in the
Washington Nationals' new stadium.
The visit will coincide with Benedict's 81st birthday and the
third anniversary of his election as pope.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) - Pakistan's opposition leader Benazir
Bhutto (BEN'-uh-zeer BOO'-toh) won't be allowed to hold a
cross-country protest against the country's military rule.
A government official says all processions, rallies and
political gatherings are banned under the current state of
emergency. He says if Bhutto "breaks the law then obviously she
will not be allowed to do it."
She was planning to leave from the eastern city of Lahore
tomorrow morning for the capital Islamabad. The journey was
expected to take about three days, and her party says thousands of
supporters were expected to join her en route.

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) - At least six people have died after
Hamas (hah-MAHS') security forces opened fire at a rally by the
rival Fatah (FAH'-tah) movement commemorating Palestinian leader
Yasser Arafat.
Some 250,000 Fatah supporters joined today's rally in a major
square of Gaza City, carrying pictures of Arafat, yellow Fatah
flags and wearing trademark black-and-white Arab headdresses.
Yesterday marked the third anniversary of Arafat's death.
But much of the crowd scattered as masked Hamas security men ran
through the city streets, firing weapons. Two hours later, hundreds
of Hamas gunmen controlled the protest site and were arresting
protesters as they tried to flee.
An eyewitness says Hamas security men appeared to fire
unprovoked, and the office of moderate Palestinian President
Mahmoud Abbas (mahk-MOOD' ah-BAHS') has denounced Hamas' actions as
a "heinous crime."
Hamas officials have accused Fatah of provoking the violence.

LONDON (AP) - Police in London say there's no reason to believe
that a fire near the future press center site for the 2012 Summer
Olympics was deliberately set.
The London Fire Brigade says about 15 fire engines and 75
firefighters have been fighting the blaze today in an empty
building. There are no reports of any injuries.
A print worker says he came rushing out when he heard a "small
bang," and all he could see was smoke. He says he believes the
fire was in an old clothes factory that crews were planning to
knock down.
Transportation officials say one railway line was closed because
of smoke. They say there are three bus garages in the area, but
none was involved in the fire.

CHICAGO (AP) - A friend of an Illinois police officer who's
suspected in the disappearance of his fourth wife says it's getting
harder to believe that the officer is innocent.
Appearing on the CBS' "The Early Show," Rick Mims says that
Drew Peterson isn't the "monster" that's being portrayed. But
Mims says the evidence that's coming out makes it harder to believe
Peterson.
Stacy Peterson, Drew Peterson's most recent wife, was last seen
October 28th. State police have said that Drew Peterson is
"clearly" a suspect in her disappearance, and that the case is
now a potential homicide investigation.
Prosecutors have said they also want to exhume the body of Drew
Peterson's third wife in the hopes it will give them clues to how
she died in 2004.
A coroner's jury had ruled that death an accident.

HELSINKI, Finland (AP) - Police in Finland believe a school
shooter who killed eight people and himself may have had contact
with a U.S. teen who's accused of plotting a possible attack.
Officials say material seized from the Finnish teen's computer
suggests he communicated online with a 14-year-old who was arrested
last month in Pennsylvania for allegedly preparing for an attack.
A detective tells The Associated Press that he considers it
"quite possible" the two were in contact.
In Pennsylvania, the Montgomery County District Attorney says he
has told investigators to run the name of the Finnish shooter
through the computer seized from the 14-year-old. He says he
doesn't think they'll find "a lot," but he's going to check it
out.
An attorney for the Pennsylvania boy tells CNN he doubts that
the boy had been involved in planning the attack in Finland. He
says he'd be "surprised" if his client had offered any planning
or encouragement to the teen in Finland.

WASHINGTON (AP) - The number of passengers aboard airlines
around the Thanksgiving holiday is forecast to be up about four
percent from last year.
That's the word from a trade group for U.S. carriers.
The Air Transport Association said it expects roughly 27 million
passengers to fly over 12 days beginning this Friday, with planes
about 90 percent full.
The president of the group says some big airlines will add as
many as 500 seasonal workers - some of whom had been furloughed -
to usher fliers through airports, in an attempt to minimize travel
hassles.
The expected rise in holiday air travel comes in spite of
historic delays reported by airlines all year. Last year, the trade
group forecast a three percent increase in Thanksgiving passenger
demand, compared with a year earlier.
More than 24 percent of flights arrived late through September
and the industry's on-time performance through September was the
worst since comparable data began being collected in 1995.