LITTLE ROCK — QUOTE OF THE DAY

“People are worried about primary elections. We know how the Tea Party goes after Republicans when they aren’t conservative enough.”

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, as Republicans blocked the nomination of former GOP Sen. Chuck Hagel as the nation’s next defense secretary Article, 1A

Connecticut crowd urges gun controls

HARTFORD, Conn. - Thousands of people rallied at Connecticut’s state Capitol on Thursday demanding lawmakers toughen gun laws.

Holding signs that read: “We are Sandy Hook. We deserve change” and “Let’s get this done,” many in crowd - estimated by the state Capitol Police at 5,500 - said they wanted to make sure their opinions were heard.

The rally came exactly two months after a man went on a shooting rampage at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown before taking his own life.

Jillian Soto, 24, pleaded with policymakers to not forget the six educators and 20 first-graders who were killed and to immediately pass legislation tightening gun laws.

Her sister, Victoria Soto, was one of the teachers killed.

“It’s not about political party or hidden agendas. It’s about life,” she said. “And my life and the lives of so many are now changed forever because of what guns can do in the wrong hands.”

New Enemy No. 1 named by Chicago

CHICAGO - A drug kingpin in Mexico who has never set foot in Chicago has been named the city’s new Public Enemy No. 1 - the same label assigned to Al Capone in 1930, at the height of the Prohibition-era gang wars.

The Chicago Crime Commission, a nongovernment body that tracks city crime trends, announced the move Thursday, saying it considers Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman even more menacing than Capone because he’s the leader of the Sinaloa cartel.

“What Al Capone was to beer and whiskey during Prohibition, Guzman is to narcotics,” said Art Bilek, the commission’s executive vice president. “Of the two, Guzman is by far the greater threat. ... And he has more power and financial capability than Capone ever dreamed of.”

Victim’s mom: Old boyfriend gunman

COLUMBIA, S.C. - The mother of a woman shot outside a South Carolina courthouse said her daughter was ambushed by a former boyfriend.

Curtis Gorny, who is charged with attempted murder, wasn’t at Wednesday’s hearing where he was ordered to start paying child support for his new daughter.

Instead, he waited outside and fired on 21-year-old Olivia Weaver and her stepfather in a parking area of the Chesterfield County courthouse, said Weaver’s mother, Jennifer Smith.

Weaver was shot in the face and stomach. She is in intensive care at a Florence hospital, but is expected to survive. Her stepfather was shot in the arm and was released from the hospital Wednesday, Smith said.

Gorny, 57, will remain in jail after deciding Thursday to wait until all charges against him are filed before he has a bail hearing. He faces two counts of attempted murder, with more charges expected after investigators determine how many police officers he fired at during a 12-mile chase after the shooting, Chesterfield County Sheriff’s Lt. Briana Davis said.

Front Section, Pages 4 on 02/15/2013