QUOTE OF THE DAY
“He swore at us a few times, told us he wasn’t going to get down on his knees, there was grease on the floor, things like that.”
Special Agent Scott Garriola, testifying about reputed gangster James “Whitey” Bulger’s reaction to being arrested by the FBI in Santa Monica, Calif., on June 22, 2011 Article, this page
Paint spill closes Lincoln Memorial
WASHINGTON - The Lincoln Memorial was temporarily closed Friday after someone splattered green paint on the statue of the 16th president, though the National Park Service said it would reopen by evening.
The apparent vandalism was discovered about 1:30 a.m. Friday.
The marble Lincoln statue had green paint on its shin, coattail, chair and base, and there was paint on the floor of the memorial building.
Capt. Steven Booker said the paint spill “appears intentional based off of the splatter.” Police were reviewing security camera footage to try to identify suspects, he said.
4 House members face ethics probes
WASHINGTON - Four House lawmakers, including Rep. Michele Bachmann and a member of the Republican leadership, are facing ethics investigations, according to the House Ethics Committee.
Bachmann has been accused of financial impropriety in her 2012 presidential campaign, according to a Minneapolis Star Tribune report. The Minnesota Republican announced earlier this year that she won’t seek re-election.
The Ethics Committee announced Friday that it needed another 45 days to evaluate her case, along with others targeting Illinois Rep. Peter Roskam, the chief deputy Republican whip, and two Democrats: John Tierney of Massachusetts and Tim Bishop of New York.
The committee’s inquiry into Roskam, the chamber’s fourth-ranking Republican, was focused on claims that an October 2011 trip he took with his wife to Taiwan was improperly funded by the Taiwanese government, Politico reported on its website.
Bishop was the focus of complaints from his Republican opponent in last year’s election, who questioned whether the incumbent improperly helped get fireworks permits for a campaign contributor.
Tierney faced questions during his 2012 race about money his wife received from her brother, Robert Eremian, who ran an illegal gambling business.
Death sought in attorney slayings
HOUSTON - Prosecutors in Kaufman County announced Friday that they would seek the death penalty against Eric Williams, the former justice of the peace accused of murdering two prosecutors as revenge for handling a case against him that led to his removal from office and the suspension of his law license.
The killings of the county’s district attorney, his wife and one of his top prosecutors shocked law enforcement officials across Texas.
At a court hearing in the city of Kaufman on Friday morning, a special prosecutor told the judge that the state was still determining whether to seek the death penalty against Williams’ wife, Kim Williams. Kim Williams confessed to investigators that her husband shot and killed two men and women. She also told authorities that she was the getaway driver for each shooting.
Front Section, Pages 3 on 07/27/2013