Today's News-Wednesday, March 5th

Heavy rains have caused some flooding problems across the region. More than an inch of rain has fallen since yesterday. Couple that with melting snow, and you have standing water on area highways. Motorists are urged to watch for deep and wide puddles that could cause hydroplaning. Schuylkill County Communications tell WPPA/T102 News that the road between Gordon and Ashland is flooded in spots. Flooding has also been reported in the boroughs of Pine Grove and Tremont. The rain is expected to subside as the day wears on, but a Flood Watch remains in effect through this afternoon from the National Weather Service.

A Tremont man faces prison in a car crash that caused the death of a passenger. A jury convicted 24-year-old Neil Hatfield, of Tremont, of homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence and multiple other counts Tuesday. The homicide charge carries a mandatory minimum three-year prison term. Prosecutors say Hatfield was driving too fast shortly before 2a.m. on Aug. 19, 2006, and went through a stop sign. Authorities say his car struck a rock embankment and overturned. His 22-year-old passenger, former Pine Grove Area High School volleyball star Shannon Sullivan, was killed. Hatfield's attorney, Ronald Pellish, says prosecutors failed to prove the death was caused by Hatfield's drinking. He argues it could have been due to some other factor, such as an air bag malfunction. He didn't know if there will be an appeal. President Judge William Baldwin says sentencing will follow a presentence investigation.

A Pottsville man is charged with numerous counts of defrauding people in business deals. Frackville state police say that 35-year-old Joseph Nebroskie entered into deals to sell property, coal and mining equipment that were pledged in collateral to seven different parties in Schuylkill and surrounding counties. The deals were made between July, 2005 and April, 2007. Nebroskie failed to deliver the property deeds, the coal or return monies that were paid. Total value of the deals is around $200-thousand-dollars. Nebroskie was arraigned before District Judge Charles Moran, on charges of theft by unlawful taking or disposition, theft by deception, fraudulent business practices and other offenses. He was released on $60-thousand-dollars non-secured bail, pending a preliminary hearing.

The Cressona railroad underpass claimed another truck yesterday. Before 10am Tuesday, Waymom Artis of Denver was traveling north on Route 183 and failed to avoid the 11 foot, 8 inch underpass. The trailer portion of his rig was partially peeled back in the incident. Artis was able to back out of the predicament. He will be cited by state police. State and local officials have developed several scenarios to fix the problem spot, which has caught three trucks already in 2008. Over the past several years, more than 2 dozen trucks hit the railroad overpass at Legion Plaza in Cressona.

A jury has found a Morea man not guilty of setting a fire that destroyed a Shenandoah business in January, 2006. Kyle Crouch, age 28, who is currently in prison for several burglaries in Shenandoah, was found not guilty of arson and related offenses pertaining to the C&R Emporium fire on Main Street. However, Crouch was found guilty of receiving stolen property. Sentencing for the remaining charge will be pronounced in April. Prosecutors are planning to seek a concurrent sentence to the time that Crouch is already serving in state prison, according to the Republican and Herald.

State police at Schuylkill Haven are looking for thieves who broke into several vehicles at a dealership in North Manheim Township. During the past weekend, several vehicles at H&H Auto on Long Run Road were vandalized and CD players removed from the dashboards of the vehicles. The investigation is continuing. If you have any information that can help state police, call them at 593-2000.

LOVE TRIANGLE SLAYING
Prosecutor: Doctor in love triangle killed friend to marry wife

MONTROSE, Pa. (AP) - Both sides in the trial of Dr. Stephen Scher agree that he was having an affair with his best friend's wife -- and making no effort to hide it. Martin Dillon died from a shotgun blast in Susquehanna County in 1976. The prosecution says Scher killed Dillon so he could marry Dillon's widow -- which he did, although they're now divorced. Scher maintains that Dillon confronted him about the affair and was shot accidentally as the pair struggled over a shotgun. Scher's lawyer told jurors that the brazenness of the affair gave Dillon a reason to want to harm Scher. Scher was convicted in 1997 of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison. An appeals court ordered a new trial in 2004 and that's what's in progress now.

SHOOTING SPREE
Pa. Supreme Court to hear appeal in ethnic shooting rampage

PITTSBURGH (AP) - A man on death row for a racially motivated shooting spree in suburban Pittsburgh that eventually left six people dead is appealing his sentence. He is Richard Baumhammers, who is now 42. In 2000, Baumhammers was an unemployed lawyer living in his parents' home in the Pittsburgh suburb of Mount Lebanon. He shot his Jewish neighbor, two Indian men, two men of Asian descent and a black man. Prosecutors maintained Baumhammers, who is white, selected his victims because of their religious or ethnic background. Five victims died outright and a sixth victim left paralyzed died in February 2007 from complications from pneumonia. The state Supreme Court will hear the appeal Wednesday.

JUDGE-REMOVAL PROCEEDINGS
State AG, Philly DA seek judge's removal because of conviction

PITTSBURGH (AP) - The state attorney general and the Philadelphia district attorney want a Philadelphia judge who's also a convicted felon removed from the bench. Municipal Judge Deborah Griffin pleaded guilty in 1984 to providing a bogus Social Security number to get credit cards. She was sentenced to six years' probation. She hid the conviction from the state bar. After the concealment was discovered, Attorney General Tom Corbett and District Attorney Lynne Abraham sought her removal. They say her conviction for a crime of falsehood disqualifies her from holding office. One of her attorneys says she's an excellent judge and the crime happened long ago. The state Supreme Court will hear arguments Wednesday. Griffin was retained for six years in November.

CASINO OWNER-PERJURY CHARGES
Police: Gaming board officials knew about DeNaples probe

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - The Pennsylvania State Police commissioner says troopers told top agents of the Gaming Control Board about a perjury investigation. Current and former gaming board officials have accused the state police of withholding information about the probe from them before they voted to give a casino license to Louis DeNaples. The northeastern Pennsylvania businessman is now charged with perjury.
He maintains he's innocent. Tuesday's testimony from State Police Commissioner Jeffrey Miller would contradict what the gaming board has said. As Sen. Jake Corman put it: "At the minimum, someone isn't being honest." A gaming board spokesman says the agency has no comment.

COMPUTING BY TOUCH
Device enables computer users to 'feel' virtual objects

PITTSBURGH (AP) - A computer device developed at Carnegie Mellon University allows users to explore virtual environments by using their sense of touch in addition to sight and sound. The controller is expected to be used mainly for research, training and industrial purposes. Carnegie Mellon professor Ralph Hollis, who developed it, says it has nearly the same sensitivity as the human hand. Hollis says the device uses magnetic fields to replicate the response a hand might have to textures and gravitational forces. Hollis says previous devices have used mechanical linkages and cables instead of magnetic fields.

PHILLY BEER WEEK
Philadelphia makes its case as nation's best beer-drinking city

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Beer aficionados in Philadelphia say the city's neighborhood pubs and award-winning brews have been sorely overlooked. Don Russell, also known as beer columnist Joe Sixpack, argues that Philadelphia is the best beer-drinking city in America. And he's out to prove it as one of the organizers of Philly Beer Week, a 10-day, 150-event extravaganza. Beginning Friday, when Mayor Michael Nutter taps the festival's first keg, there will be beer tastings and dinners, among other events. Russell says the quality and tradition of Philadelphia brewing is unequaled elsewhere in the United States. Although Philadelphia doesn't have major breweries, Russell says the city's "small, artisan brewing" outdoes the behemoths.

FLOWER SHOW-TRENDS
Philly flower show spotlights pared-down, eco-friendly gardening

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - The Philadelphia Flower Show is not known for its subtlety. Bromeliads, magnolias, orchids and lilacs in eye-popping colors spill from balconies for the show's New Orleans-themed settings. But look beyond the show-offs, and you'll see something subtler: an emphasis on minimalism and all things green. Design director Sam Lemheney says trends include using more native or noninvasive plant material with minimal maintenance. Also, there are roofs covered with hardy plants to provide insulation and decrease runoff water. Forward-thinking landscape architects are also embracing the idea of sustainability. That includes using reclaimed, nonchemically treated wood and stones excavated during other construction projects. The Philadelphia Flower Show runs through March 9.

Men charged in KU student death seek jury outside Berks County

KUTZTOWN, Pa. (AP) - Two of the three men charged in the fatal beating of a Kutztown University student are asking for a jury from outside of Berks County. Attorneys for 23-year-old Timothy Gearhart and 21-year-old Kenneth Kline filed petitions Tuesday. Gearhart's attorney, Public Defender Glenn Welsh, says the case has drawn a barrage of media coverage. Assistant District Attorney Jonathan Kurland says prosecutors are confident they have enough evidence to proceed. He says he will comment further at an April hearing. Gearhart, Kline and his brother, 22-year-old Terry Kline, are being held without bail on first-degree murder and related charges. They are accused of beating 19-year-old sophomore Kyle Quinn, of Warminster, about 2 a.m. on Sept. 7 just a few blocks from the KU campus. He died at Lehigh Valley Hospital of head injuries.

Old Pa. state hospital may become halfway house

DANVILLE, Pa. (AP) - A former state hospital at Danville may become a halfway house to ease the tough trip back from prison to life on the outside. State officials plan to outline the plans Wednesday at the hospital. Press secretary Sue McNaughton of the Corrections Department says the new community corrections center would provide dormitory style living. Inmates just released from a state penitentiary would get
supervision and job assistance. They would begin paying fines and restitution and would have to meet curfews. She says this approach is more likely to succeed than direct release. The state has 14 such centers, most of them in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Scranton, Harrisburg and Allentown already have centers. McNaughton says the DOC wants to set up enough to handle 1,000 inmates at a time.

Council won't exempt funerals from double parking ban, or tickets

READING, Pa. (AP) - When it comes to Reading's double-parking ban, a death in the family is no excuse. Reading City Council members say they're not willing to exempt funerals from the ban, or from tickets for violating it. A funeral director and a pastor complained to the Reading Parking Authority when cars and a hearse got tickets during a recent funeral. Authority member and former council member Donna Reed suggests an exemption. Authority executive director Lawrence Lee says brief double-parking wouldn't be a problem. But cars and sometimes hearses are double-parking in a long line during the entire service, blocking in legally parked cars at the curb. Some council members say the law should be nothing new to funeral directors. But funeral director Michael Feeney says no other Pennsylvania city tickets cars parked for funerals, and Reading didn't do so until October.

WASHINGTON (AP) - Hillary Rodham Clinton says the nation is coming back and so is her campaign for president. Clinton won three of four Democratic primaries yesterday, denying Barack Obama a chance to drive her from the race.

WASHINGTON (AP) - Barack Obama keeps the edge in Democratic delegates, despite losing three of four contests to Hillary Rodham Clinton yesterday, including the big prizes of Texas and Ohio. Obama tells his supporters he's still well on his way to winning the nomination.

WHITE HOUSE (AP) - Republican John McCain gets a White House endorsement today. He's having lunch with President Bush, his rival in the primaries eight years ago. Mike Huckabee dropped out of the GOP race last night after McCain's four wins gave him enough delegates to seal the nomination.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) - Police will interview more witnesses today to try to learn what set off a man who fatally shot a paramedic and wounded four others in a Florida fast-food restaurant Monday. Court records and interviews show the gunman,who killed himself, was once accused of kicking a girlfriend who had called him "demented."

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) - Brett Favre says he can still play physically, but he's "tired mentally." The longtime Green BayPackers quarterback who narrowly missed out on the Super Bowl this past season says he's retiring after 17 years, 160 victories and 442 touchdown passes.