In the news

Saturday, December 29, 2012

Daw Nan Mauk Lao Sai, chairman of Burma’s Shwe FM radio station, said she paid $49,000 for a handknit woolen sweater made by Nobel laureate and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi “because I value the warmth and security it will give,” adding that the money is going to a good cause - the education of poor children in the country.

Amelia Cortez, 26, of Hermiston, Ore., has been arrested over allegations that she led police on a chase with speeds exceeding 100 mph, with two children, a 3-yearold boy and an 8-month-old girl, in child seats in the back seat of the vehicle.

Jill Tripoli, a volunteer with the Sierra Wildlife Rescue in Placerville, Calif., said she and others at the facility are trying to toughen up an orphaned bobcat kitten, which was rescued from a forest fire in August and has grown fond of humans, so that the animal can be released back into the wild next spring.

Art Acevedo, police chief in Austin, Texas, said 2012 was “a bloody year on our highways,” with 77 traffic deaths, up from 54 last year, adding that he’s working with prosecutors and officials from neighboring counties to see how they can boost safety.

Dennis Petillo, 24, has been arrested in Los Angeles over allegations that he doused a 67-year-old homeless woman with a flammable liquid as she slept on a bus bench in the San Fernando Valley, then lit a match and set her on fire, authorities said, adding that the woman, whose identity has not been released, is in critical condition.

Hillary Rodham Clinton, secretary of state, who has been sidelined with a concussion since Dec. 13, is expected to return to work next week, said spokesman Philippe Reines.

B enjamin Daniel Klinger, 19, who police contend intentionally drove into a guardrail at about 100 mph in the middle of the night, then sat on his 17-year-old girlfriend’s head until she suffocated, has been charged in Manheim, Pa., in the death of Sammi Heller.

Front Section, Pages 1 on 12/29/2012