Today's News-Tuesday, March 25th

Authorities have released the cause of death of a Pottsville man. The ongoing homicide investigation involving Norman Nickle, of 13th Street, Pottsville, continues to evolve after the bodies of 17 year old Cayla Turner, Port Carbon, and Joshua Yevak, age 19, were found late last week. An autopsy was conducted on Yevak's remains yesterday. According to the Republican and Herald, Yevak died of a shotgun wound to the chest. Cayla Turner died of a gunshot wound to the head, according to autopsy findings. Norman Nickle reportedly shot the two on March 4th, and had their bodies stored in the building where Nickle had an apartment. He was charged with criminal homicide and related offenses. Nickle remains in Schuylkill County Prison.

The sister of the man charged in the shotgun slayings of two teenagers in Pottsville says her brother was hit in the head with a brick in 1990. Bonnie Nickle of West Chester says 53-year-old Norman Nickle of Pottsville has been troubled ever since. She told The Republican & Herald
that her brother has experienced seizures, rage attacks and blackouts over the years. Police told the newspaper they were unaware of the health problems his sister said he had. The bodies of 19-year-old Joshua Yevak and 17-year-old Cayla Turner were found Thursday in the basement of Nickle's home. They had been killed more than two weeks earlier.

A Schuylkill Haven man escaped injury in a crash in Berks County yesterday. Hamburg state police say that 45-year-old Kim Wolfe was northbound on Route 183 in Upper Tulpehocken Township when he struck a vehicle driven by 43-year-old Frederick Kellenberger of Bernville, in the rear end. Kellenberger lost control of his car upon impact. He suffered minor injuries and was taken to Reading Hospital. The crash happened before 5pm Monday.

Residents of Orwigsburg borough gathered last night to hearing a presentation about their water and sewer system and a possible takeover by the Schuylkill County Municipal Authority.
The Republican and Herald reports that the meeting, held at the Orwigsburg Historical Society, drew a crowd of more than 70 people. The Municipal Authority outlined several options for taking over the borough's water and sewer systems. The proposal could save water customers money. Among the options put on the table were the elimination of the borough's debt that's owed on the system, plus payments for constructing a new garage and a $1-million-dollar payment for land in West Brunswick and Blythe Townships. That land was used for Orwigsburg's watershed. There is no timetable for a final decision on which way Orwigsburg plans to proceed.

A Pine Grove man was involved in a one-vehicle crash Sunday afternoon in Tremont Township. According to Schuylkill Haven state police, 36-year-old Corey Leininger was driving his pickup truck southbound on Route 125 when he failed to stop in time for other traffic that was turning left onto Birch Street. Leininger's vehicle skidded off the roadway and struck a tree. He escaped injury, but will be cited by state police.

Monday was the deadline to register to vote, or change party affiliations. And many county voters took advantage. County Election Bureau Director Betty Dries tells WPPA News that 217 people were at their Pottsville office yesterday, with 206 voters changing their party affiliation to Democrat, 6 changed to Republican, and the remainder changing to other parties. In the month of March alone, 543 voters registered. 341 new Democrats, 133 Republicans and a number to other affiliations. In the weeks leading up to the election 1-thousand registered Republicans changed their affiliation to Democratic. The hotly-contested race between Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama is a contributing factor. There are now 92,142 registered voters in Schuylkill County. Of that total, just over 38-thousand-four-hundred are Democrats, and 45-thousand, ninety-seven Republicans. The registration totals are not yet complete, as mail requests continue to come in. Dries said they will be accepted, as long as they are post-marked by yesterday. Touch screen demonstrations begin again across the county today, with a stop at the Tremont Township Municipal Building from 5 to 7pm.

Going organic…The idea is growing on one state legislator, who introduced a bill that would help farmers who make the switch. Lauren Rooney reports from Harrisburg:



HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - There are now more than 4 million registered Democrats in Pennsylvania - the highest membership of any party in state history. That benchmark was reached on the last day for Pennsylvanians to register to vote in the state's April 22 primary. The figures show modest declines in the ranks of Republicans and independents.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton campaigns this afternoon in Greensburg. Speaking in Philadelphia yesterday, Clinton proposed several remedies to the nation's home mortgage problems. She also called on President Bush to appoint "an emergency working group on foreclosures" to recommend new ways to confront housing finance troubles.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Sen. Barack Obama plans to return to Pennsylvania on Friday with a bus tour. His presidential campaign says the tour will begin in western Pennsylvania and conclude in southeastern Pennsylvania with numerous stops in between. The specific locations haven't been announced. Obama is taking a break from the campaign with his family in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

MECHANICSBURG, Pa. (AP) - Cumberland Valley school teachers say they will go on strike Thursday and the district says all classes will be canceled. The teachers and school district haven't been able to close a $1 million gap between pay raises the teachers are seeking and the amount the board is offering. State officials will determine how long the strike can last.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - Wegmans Food Markets has won permission from the state Liquor Control Board to sell beer at six Pennsylvania supermarkets. That prompted a court challenge by the state's beer distributors' association. Wegmans was issued liquor licenses for the restaurants in its stores in Bethlehem, Dickson City, Lower Nazareth, State College, Wilkes-Barre and Williamsport.

WASHINGTON (AP) - The annual report card on the financial health of Social Security and Medicare is due out today. The assessment is expected to offer only small changes to last year's estimates on when the two government programs will be out of money.

SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) - John McCain will tackle the mortgage mess in a California speech today. In remarks to local business leaders in Orange County, the presumed Republican nominee will promise to look at all options when deciding on the best plan to deal with the housing crisis. But he says it's not the duty of government to bail out banks or borrowers "who act irresponsibly."

SUPREME COURT (AP) - The Supreme Court will hear arguments today on the case of two Americans who want U.S. courts to keep them out of Iraqi custody. The Bush administration is fighting the effort. One man is an accused insurgent, the other has had an Iraqi kidnapping conviction overturned.

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Families of the victims in the Virginia Tech massacre would receive $100,000 under a settlement being proposed by the state. At least 20 families have filed notice that they may file lawsuits. If families accept the settlements, they give up the right to sue.

WASHINGTON (AP) - More than a dozen people, most of them firefighters, were taken to hospitals in the nation's capital, after authorities found a vial of a hazardous substance next to a
man who apparently committed suicide. No confirmation yet on what the hazardous material is.