Today's News-Saturday, April 5th

A Mahanoy City man was picked up as an illegal alien Thursday. State police at Frackville stopped 24-year-old Jose Zamudio for a traffic violation. He did not have a valid PA license and was found to be in the US illegally. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement issued a detainer for Zamudio's apprehension. He was taken to the Schuylkill County Prison. The stop happened at 8pm in Shenandoah Thursday.

A Schuylkill Haven police officer and his girlfriend are accused of assaulting a man in Tamaqua. 35-year-old David George and 33-year-old Browyn Malocu of Orwigsburg were charged with simple assault and reckless endangerment by Tamaqua police, according to the Republican and Herald. The charges stem from an incident that took place in February at the Rite Aid parking lot in Tamaqua. Matthew Hill told police that Malocu came to his car and told him about running a red light, and that Hill cut in front of her. Hill reportedly hit Malocu and knocked her to the ground. George got out of the vehicle to restrain Hill. Other witness reports say that Malocu chased Hill and ran into his car. Their statements say that Malocu and George punched Hill. Malocu and Hill both suffered injuries, according to the report. George is on leave with pay from the Schuylkill Haven Police Department.

Funding for new equipment at St. Luke’s Miners Memorial Hospital was announced yesterday by state Representative Dave Argall yesterday. Argall said that $250-thousand-dollars was secured from the Department of Public Welfare to help pay for new equipment for the hospital's ICU. The hospital houses 45 beds and is a full service, acute care hospital in Coaldale. The DPW grant funding is being provided through a state appropriation for acute care hospitals.

In order to help more women and children who are in crisis, a county agency is planning to add on to their facilities. Schuylkill Women in Crisis, based in Pottsville, announced they have kicked off their Quarter Century Capital Campaign, with a fundraising goal of $2 million dollars. The addition would be able to accommodate up to 15 more women and children who are homeless as the result of domestic violence. Executive Director Sally Casey says that SWIC has had to turn away 34 women and 42 children in the past two years when the shelter was filled to capacity. SWIC is celebrating 25 years of operation. In addition, Schuylkill Women in Crisis are producing videos about domestic violence, aiming to bring more awareness to the problem. The first installment "One Community’s Response to Domestic Violence" is available for viewing on their website: http://www.swic.org/.

A month long celebration of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart culminates this weekend with performances of his works. The Schuylkill Choral Society, the Schuylkill Symphony and the county Council for the Arts have hosted several events, including a visit from the master himself, portrayed by Choral Society member Ted Spontak. Tonight and tomorrow, the Symphony and Choral Society will perform several of Mozart's works in Schuylkill Haven and Pottsville. Tonight's performance will be held at Schuylkill Haven High School at 7pm, and tomorrow's concert is at 3pm at St. John The Baptist Church in Pottsville. Tickets are just $10 for either performance. Log on to http://www.schuylkillcommunitychorus.org/ for all the details.

LINESVILLE, Pa. (AP) - A Crawford County man has been charged with setting fire to a historic building at Conneaut Lake Park and a church this year. State police say 19-year-old Nickolas Dean Pope of Hartstown set the Feb. 1 fire that destroyed the park's 99-year-old Dreamland Ballroom and the Jan. 13 fire at the 160-year-old Harmonsburg Presbyterian Church.

PITTSBURGH (AP) - A Monroeville man has been convicted in the fatal stabbing of a woman. A judge found 24-year-old Jared Moore guilty of first- and second-degree murder, robbery and other charges in the November 2003 death of 40-year-old Karen Hanyo of Tarentum. Authorities say Hanyo was killed over a $50 drug debt.

PITTSBURGH (AP) - A suburban Pittsburgh couple is suing Google for taking pictures of their house that appear on the Web site's "Street View" feature. Aaron and Christine Boring of Franklin Park say the photos violate their privacy, devalued their property and caused them mental suffering. Google says property owners may request that photos be removed.

GIBSONIA, Pa. (AP) - Prosecutors will refile animal cruelty charges Tuesday against a woman accused of keeping hundreds of cats, some dead and dying, at a western Pennsylvania animal sanctuary. District Judge Suzanne Blaschak dismissed 593 counts against Linda Bruno on saying Allegheny County prosecutors failed to provide detailed evidence.

MERCER, Pa. (AP) - The son of a former Montgomery County police chief pleaded guilty for the second time to vehicular homicide charges stemming from a 2003 accident that killed a couple. Forty-five-year-old Joseph Stemple, formerly of Bethlehem, pleaded guilty to two counts of vehicular homicide and one count of drunken driving. Stemple first pleaded guilty in 2004 to one count of vehicular homicide and drunken driving in the November 2003 crash that killed 69-year-old Donald Romanio Senior and his wife in Shenango Township.

ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE (AP) - A U.S. plan to deploy a missile shield in Europe is expected to be a hot topic during this weekend's talks between President Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Russia vehemently opposes the idea, and the White House says it does not expect the talks to produce a missile defense deal.

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) - Zimbabwe's opposition leader says he is concerned that President Robert Mugabe is preparing a "war against the people" in his bid to hold on to power. He adds that there is no need for such a runoff because he won presidential elections last Saturday. Election results have not been released.

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Bush administration is planning to announce next week that U.S. soldiers' combat tours will be reduced from 15 months to 12 months in Iraq and Afghanistan beginning later this summer. The decision comes as General David Petraeus prepares to deliver a progress report to Congress next week.

BAGHDAD (AP) - Police in Baghdad say at least five people have been killed in separate attacks in the Iraqi capital. At least four died when a bomb exploded on a minibus. Elsewhere, a Christian priest was shot by gunmen who drove up in a car and opened fire as he was opening the gate of his house.

NEWARK, Ohio (AP) - A central Ohio teenager is facing charges for allegedly giving a toddler marijuana. Prosecutors say they were tipped after a video tape was found in a recorder traded in at a Columbus pawn shop. It isn't clear what the teen's relationship is to the toddler.