Clinton 'Heartsick' Over Officer's Death

DALLAS -- A Dallas motorcycle police officer died Friday morning after crashing his motorcycle while escorting Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's motorcade to a campaign rally.

Officials said Sr. Cpl. Victor Lozada-Tirado died shortly after arriving at Methodist Medical Center in Dallas, KXAS-TV in Dallas reported.

Lozada worked out of central patrol and had been with the motorcycle unit for just over a month, said Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle.

Lozada and his wife lived in Plano with their four children, Kunkle said.

Clinton told reporters after the rally, "We are just heartsick at this loss of life in the line of duty."

The New York senator and Democratic presidential candidate canceled her next appearance in Fort Worth, Texas, telling about 2,000 people who had gathered outside the Tarrant County courthouse that it would be inappropriate to campaign in the wake of the officer's death.

Instead, she went to Methodist Medical Center, where she planned to visit with the officer's family.

"It is important that we respect and appreciate their service," she said. "I certainly am grateful for all they do for me."

The 20-year Dallas police veteran died after apparently crashing into a concrete barrier along a viaduct near downtown Dallas, said Lt. Vernon Hale, a police spokesman.

Aerial video showed wreckage scattered for several yards.

The officer was in the rear of the motorcade, following it as it took a turn not far from Dealey Plaza, where John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963.

Asked if police had enough lead time to plan a safe route, Hale said, "It doesn't matter with our guys. They've been doing this so long. Of course, we already had one tragedy in Dallas."

In August 2006, an Albuquerque, N.M., police officer in President George W. Bush's motorcade died in a motorcycle crash.

Germaine Casey, 40, died on Aug. 27 when he crashed as Bush returned to the airport after a fundraiser for Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M.

In November 2006, Honolulu Police Officer Steve Favela died when he and two other motorcycle officers crashed while part of a presidential motorcade.

The Motivator

"Anybody can do just about anything with himself that he really wants to and makes up his mind to do. We are capable of greater things than we realize."

-- Norman Vincent Peale

Pettitte apologizes

Has not spoken with Clemens since Mitchell Report

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -- Andy Pettitte had finished 55½ minutes of apologies, explaining why he used human growth hormone and why he said what he did about Roger Clemens.

Derek Jeter walked over, and the captain wrapped his arms around the visibly relieved Pettitte.

Following an offseason of turmoil, Pettitte was welcomed back to the New York Yankees with open arms.

"My boys are hanging out over there," Pettitte said Monday after arriving at his news conference Monday and unexpectedly seeing Jeter, Jorge Posada and Mariano Rivera off to his right, sitting in a row.

Whether Pettitte can repair his relationship with Clemens remains to be seen. They haven't spoken in more than a month, since Pettitte corroborated allegations of drug use against the seven-time Cy Young Award winner.

"Obviously it's put a strain, I think, on our friendship," Pettitte said. "I love him like a brother."

On the day he reported to spring training, Pettitte faced reporters for the first time since the Mitchell Report was released in December and revealed accusations he had used HGH.

"I felt like I need to come out, be forward with this," Pettitte said. "Whatever circumstances or repercussions come with it, I'll take and I'll take like a man and I'll try to do my job."

Other athletes have ducked tough questions about allegations of drug use, using evasions and nonspecific replies. Pettitte admitted his mistakes and several times patiently asked reporters, "Did I answer your question?"

Flanked by manager Joe Girardi and general manager Brian Cashman, Pettitte had a hint of the shadow on his face that he's shown on the mound during so many postseason games. He seemed skittish at the start as he read from notes.

"I want to apologize to the New York Yankees' and to the Houston Astros' organizations and to their fans and to all my teammates and to all of baseball fans for the embarrassment I have caused them," he said. "I also want to tell anyone that is an Andy Pettitte fan I am sorry, especially any kids that might look up to me."

He said he was a "nervous wreck" and "scared to death" before the news conference, held under a tent behind the third-base side of Legends Field. He relaxed after a few minutes and went into far greater detail than most accused athletes have about their transgressions.

"We've been through a lot of tough times in baseball. Why not support him?" Rivera said. "I consider Andy my friend. I'm glad I was there."

Brian McNamee, the former personal trainer to Pettitte and Clemens, said in the Mitchell Report that Pettitte used HGH in 2002 while with the Yankees. Two days after the report was released Dec. 13, Pettitte issued a statement through his agent confirming McNamee's account and saying that was the only time he used HGH.

In a deposition and an affidavit to a congressional committee two weeks ago, Pettitte said he injected himself with HGH for one day in 2004 while with the Astros after obtaining two syringes from his father.

"I am sorry for not telling the whole truth in my original statement," Pettitte said. "I never wanted to bring my dad into a situation like this. This was between me and him, and no one else. I testified about my dad in part because I felt in my heart I had to, but mainly because he urged me to tell the truth, even if it hurt him."

Pettitte said there were no other times he used performance-enhancing drugs.

"That's it. There are no other surprises out there," he said. "That's all there is and anything that would come up would be definitely false allegations."

McNamee said he injected Clemens with steroids and HGH at least 16 times from 1998-01, and all three were among those called before a congressional committee. Pettitte told Congress that Clemens had discussed nearly a decade ago using HGH.

In addition, Pettitte testified McNamee, the former personal trainer for Clemens and Pettitte, had spoken in 2003 or 2004 about steroids use by Clemens.

Clemens claims Pettitte "misremembers."

"I'm just not going to go there," Pettitte said. "I've had to testify under oath. So has Roger. And, you know, I don't think that's anything I need to sit here and try to elaborate on with anyone else."

He "prayed awfully hard" to be dropped from testifying at last Wednesday's hearing. Pettitte was excused from testifying in public alongside Clemens and McNamee, and said he didn't watch the hearing.

Pettitte realizes he may have to testify again, either in Clemens' defamation suit against McNamee or if the Justice Department launches a criminal case against Clemens or McNamee.

"He can't put this behind him because of Roger's selfishness and inability to admit the facts," Richard Emery, one of McNamee's lawyers, said in a telephone interview. "Clemens is putting Andy in the middle of a meatgrinder again. He's going to have to testify again in a deposition, probably this summer, and it's going to be far more extensive than anything Congress did. He is the key witness."

Joe Householder, Clemens' spokesman, declined comment.

Given permission to report four days after other Yankees pitchers, Pettitte threw 35 pitches during a bullpen session at the minor league complex before the news conference. He acknowledged he had considered not playing because of the ongoing situation.

Pettitte plans to apologize to his teammates. He met with George Steinbrenner and the owner's sons, Hank and Hal, before facing reporters.

"I just wanted to tell them face to face that I'm sorry and apologize to him, you know, for the embarrassment that this has brought," Pettitte said. "He was a little stubborn in accepting my apology and said that he's behind me 100 percent, tried to tell me that I haven't brought any embarrassment to the organization. But I disagree with him a little on that."

The 35-year-old lefty with 201 regular-season wins and four World Series championship rings said he did not feel as if his accomplishments were tainted. He said he used HGH only because he felt pressure to pitch while injured because of his multimillion salary and doesn't consider himself a cheater because HGH wasn't banned until 2005.

"I didn't do it to try to get an edge on anyone. I didn't do it to try to get stronger or faster or throw harder," he said. "I did it because I was told that it might be able to help me."

Castro resigns as president, state-run paper reports

HAVANA, Cuba (CNN) -- Fidel Castro announced his resignation as president of Cuba and commander in chief of Cuba's military Tuesday, according to a letter published in the state-run newspaper, Granma.

The resignation ends nearly a half-century of iron-fisted rule that inspired revolutionaries but frustrated 10 U.S. presidents.

Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte said the U.S. embargo on Cuba will not be lifted in the near term.

Castro revealed his plans without notice by publishing a letter in the middle of the night in state-run newspaper Granma.

"I will not aspire to, nor will I accept the position of president of the council of state and commander in chief," Castro wrote. "I wish only to fight as a soldier of ideas. ... Perhaps my voice will be heard."

President Bush said Castro's decision ought to spark "a democratic transition" for Cuba.

"The international community should work with the Cuban people to begin to build institutions that are necessary for democracy and eventually this transition ought to lead to free and fair elections," Bush said Tuesday in Rwanda. "The United States will help the people of Cuba realize the blessings of liberty."

Castro received treatment for intestinal problems two years ago and cited his "critical health condition" in the letter published Tuesday. He said "it would be a betrayal to my conscience to accept a responsibility requiring more mobility and dedication than I am physically able to offer."

He also said he realized that he had a duty to prepare Cubans for his absence.

"My wishes have always been to discharge my duties to my last breath," he said. "That's all I can offer."

Cuba's leaders plan to elect a president within days. Castro's brother, Raúl, the country's defense minister, has been named publicly as his successor.

Castro, 81, captured the world's attention at the age of 32, when he led a band of guerrillas who overthrew a corrupt dictatorship in 1959. He went on to become a thorn in Washington's side by embracing communism and cozying up to the Soviet Union.

Castro reigned in Havana with an iron hand, defying a punishing U.S. economic embargo intended to dislodge him.

Castro received treatment for intestinal problems in 2006 and transferred many powers to Raúl, who is generally seen as more pragmatic.

Ordinary Cubans have wondered whether a change in power in Cuba will lead to lower food prices, higher salaries and more freedom to travel.

In Miami, Florida, the news came as no surprise to Janisset Rivero, the executive director of Cuban Democratic Directorate, a group that works with dissidents in Cuba.

"I think there have been preparations taking place for quite a while to assure the crowning of Raúl Castro," she said Tuesday morning. "It doesn't mean any change to the system. It doesn't mean there will be freedom for the Cubans. One big dictator is replacing the other.

"It will be a big deal when political prisoners are released, when political parties are allowed to organize, when the country stops being ruled by a single party."

Polarizing figure

To leftist revolutionaries around the world, Castro, with his ubiquitous military fatigues and fiery oratory, became a hero and patron. But for hundreds of thousands of his countrymen who fled into exile rather than live under his thumb, he became an object of intense hatred.

Castro clung to a socialist economic model and one-party Communist rule, even after the Soviet Union disintegrated and most of the rest of the world concluded that state socialism was a bankrupt idea whose time had come and gone.

"The most vulnerable part of his persona as a politician is precisely his continued defense of a totalitarian model that is the main cause of the hardships, the misery and the unhappiness of the Cuban people," said Elizardo Sanchez, a human rights advocate and critic of the Castro regime.

And yet, his defenders in Cuba point to what they see as social progress made under Castro's revolution, including racial integration and universal education and health care. Instead of communism, they blame the U.S. embargo for the country's economic woes.

"What Fidel achieved in the social order of this country has not been achieved by any poor nation, and even by many rich countries, despite being submitted to enormous pressures," said Jose Ramon Fernandez, a Cuban vice president.

Castro's staying power was a source of irritation to Cuban exiles, who never imagined he would last so long.

"We came here with a round-trip ticket ... because we thought the revolution was going to last days," said Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, the first Cuban-American elected to Congress, who came to Florida as a child. "And the days turned into weeks, and the weeks to months, and the months to years."

The center of the exile community is Miami, where the Cuban American National Foundation became a powerful lobbying group courted by U.S. politicians. For more than four decades, efforts to lift the embargo against Cuba went nowhere, thanks to political pressure from the exile community.

Although Raúl Castro has been named as his brother's successor, the departure of the charismatic leader whose identity became inseparable from his revolution raises questions of how long his system can survive without him.

"What I think will happen is that we'll see, hopefully in the future, a new set of leaders come with new ideas. And that will be a hopeful day for the Cuban people," Sen. Mel Martinez, a Florida Republican and Cuban émigré, said on CNN's "American Morning."

Road to revolution

Castro was born August 13, 1926, in Oriente Province in eastern Cuba. His father, Angel, was a wealthy landowner originally from Spain; his mother, Lina, had been a maid to Angel's first wife.

Though he grew up in wealthy circumstances, Oriente was a poor area wracked by a peasant rebellion in Fidel Castro's formative years, which is thought to have influenced his political leanings.

Educated in Jesuit schools, Castro earned a law degree from the University of Havana and offered free legal services to the poor. In 1952, at the age of 25, he ran for the Cuban parliament. But just before the election, the government was overthrown by Fulgencio Batista, who established a dictatorship that put Castro on the road to revolution.

In 1953, Castro was one of about 150 fighters who attacked a military barracks in an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow Batista. The attack made him famous throughout Cuba, but it also earned him a prison sentence.

He was released in 1955 and lived in exile in the United States and Mexico, where he organized a guerrilla group with Raúl Castro and Ernesto "Che" Guevara, an Argentine doctor-turned-revolutionary.

The next year, 81 fighters landed in Cuba. Most were killed; the Castros, Guevara and other survivors fled into the Sierra Maestra Mountains along the southeastern coast, where they waged a guerrilla campaign against the Batista government that finally brought it down in 1959.

Although the United States quickly recognized the new Cuban government, tensions arose after Castro began nationalizing factories and plantations owned by American companies. In January 1961, Washington broke off diplomatic ties.

Less than four months later, a group of CIA-trained Cuban exiles, armed with U.S. weapons, landed at the Bay of Pigs in Cuba in a disastrous attempt to overthrow Castro.

Two weeks after the Bay of Pigs, Castro formally declared Cuba a socialist state.

In October 1962, Cuba became the focus of a tense world crisis after the Soviet Union installed nuclear weapons in the country. President Kennedy demanded that the Soviets remove them and quarantined the island, bringing the world to the brink of nuclear war.

The Soviet Union backed down and removed the weapons.

Through the years, Castro was the target of scores of CIA assassination attempts. He took delight in the fact none of them ever succeeded.
advertisement

"I have never been afraid of death. I have never been concerned about death," he once said.

As for Castro's private life, he is believed to have fathered eight children with four women. His longtime companion, Dalia Soto del Valle, is the mother of five of his sons.

The Motivator

"The tragedy of man is not that man dies, buy what dies within man while he is alive."

-- Albert Schweitzer

Phillies clubhouse,media pull prank on Kendrick

Did Kyle Kendrick get sent packing to Japan? Nah, he just got punked.

CLEARWATER, Fla. - The Phillies traded Kyle Kendrick yesterday.

To the Yomiuri Giants. In Japan. For Kobayashi Iwamura.

"Do they have good food in Japan?" a stunned Kendrick asked reporters, who circled his locker inside the clubhouse at Bright House Networks Field. "I don't know what to think right now."

Unbelievable, huh?

Indeed. The Phillies executed an elaborate prank on Kendrick, one so believable that it had their 23-year-old starting pitcher convinced that he needed to be on a 7:05 a.m. Delta Airlines flight today, connecting in Atlanta for the 14-hour, 30-minute trip to Tokyo. The accomplices in the ruse included assistant general manager Ruben Amaro Jr.; manager Charlie Manuel; Frank Coppenbarger, director of team travel and clubhouse service; Kendrick's agent, Joe Urbon; pitcher Brett Myers; and pretty much everybody else in the clubhouse.


"They got me," Kendrick said later. "I thought it was a done deal. I thought it really happened. Gosh, good thing it didn't."

Think these Phillies are a loose bunch?

The idea developed early last week, but those involved were borrowing an old idea. Phillies broadcaster Larry Andersen once pulled the same prank on former pitcher Wayne Gomes.

Amaro created an official-looking document on Phillies letterhead, spelling out the trade details, which Kendrick had to sign in triplicate. Coppenbarger also created a detailed itinerary for Kendrick's trip overseas.

After yesterday's workout, Kendrick went into the weight room, as usual, when Amaro pulled him out. He and Kendrick walked through the clubhouse together.

(Keep in mind, any time the assistant GM or GM pulls a player out of the weight room or clubhouse and walks him into the manager's office, something almost always is up.)

"Contract signed," J.D. Durbin said from across the room.

"What'd you do, Kendrick?" Myers asked.

Comcast, which had been in on the scheme from the start, had Manuel and Myers miked for the prank.

Kendrick took a seat in Manuel's office. The manager and Amaro explained that he had just been traded to Japan. (Major leaguers can't be traded to Japan, by the way.) Kendrick didn't seem to notice or care that a TV camera was filming the event because he had been told earlier that Comcast was following Manuel around for the day.

Then Coppenbarger handed Kendrick his flight schedule.

He explained to Kendrick that he tried to get him a layover for a night in Seattle (Kendrick is from Washington), but couldn't because his Japanese team needed him to arrive immediately.

Stunned, Kendrick left Manuel's office and staggered to his locker. He grabbed his cell phone and walked outside to call his agent.

"It happens," Urbon told Kendrick. "It's a chance for you to make some more money. This is going to be a big deal. This really never happens. The media over there is going to be big."

"All right," Kendrick said.

He hung up.

Kendrick returned to his locker, where Amaro brought over reporters, who didn't expect to be part of the gag. Amaro announced the trade.

"It was a deal we felt was important for us to make," he told reporters. "The fact of the matter is we're trying to get to the next level."

Then the questions started.

Did Manuel, who played in Japan, give you some tips?

"No, not at all," Kendrick said. "Um, I don't know what to think right now."

Have you had all your shots? Seriously, you need shots to go over there.

"Uh, no," Kendrick said. "I haven't. Um, I don't know. This is going to be a new little chapter I guess, huh?"

Are you upset?

Is your passport in order?

Have you talked to your agent?

Are you shocked?

"You know what I say?" Myers said, stepping in next to Kendrick. "You just got punked!"

The clubhouse erupted in laughter. Everybody could see the relief wash over Kendrick.

"I've never been so happy. Seriously," he said. "I was not getting on that flight in the morning. They got me."

And Kobayashi Iwamura? He's relieved, too.

If he only existed.

LSU suspends Perrilloux indefinitely for team rules violation

Ryan Perrilloux, the heir apparent at quarterback for defending national champion LSU, has been suspended indefinitely.

LSU coach Les Miles made the announcement Monday, saying Perrilloux violated team rules. Miles said Perrilloux's status for spring practice was unclear. The Tigers open spring workouts on Feb. 29.

This was supposed to be Perrilloux's shot to take over the quarterback duties full time at LSU. A rising junior, he stepped in for an injured Matt Flynn to lead the Tigers to a 21-14 victory over Tennessee in the SEC championship game last season. Perrilloux also played in the Tigers' 38-24 win over Ohio State in the BCS national championship game.

Perrilloux, a highly touted high school prospect from LaPlace, La., has already been suspended two other times during his LSU career. He didn't make the trip to the Alabama game last season after allegations surfaced that he was involved in a fight at a Baton Rouge nightclub. Perrilloux was not charged following the police's investigation.

Last May, he was suspended by Miles after being cited for allegedly trying to use his brother's drivers license to get onto a casino gambling boat. Perrilloux was reinstated to the team in time for the start of preseason practice.

With Perrilloux's status in limbo, that means junior Andrew Hatch, who began his career at Harvard, and redshirt freshman Jarrett Lee will move to the top of the Tigers' quarterback chart.

5 shot dead, including gunman, at Northern Illinois University

DEKALB, Illinois (CNN) -- A gunman dressed in black walked from behind a curtain at the front of a large lecture hall Thursday at Northern Illinois University and shot 22 people, four fatally, then killed himself, authorities said.


Seventeen victims were taken to Kishwaukee Community Hospital, its Web site said.

Of those, six were in critical condition and were flown to other hospitals. One fatality, a male, was confirmed -- but was not the gunman, the hospital said. Two were admitted, and three others were discharged. The other five were not addressed on the Web site.

Most of the injuries are head and chest gunshot wounds, a spokeswoman tells CNN.

The shooting occurred shortly after 3 p.m. (4 p.m. ET) in Cole Hall. The class runs from 2 p.m. until 3:15 p.m., university President John Peters said.

"It started and it stopped very quickly," said Police Chief Donald Grady. The gunman, whose identity has not been revealed publicly, was not a student at the NIU campus in DeKalb, west of Chicago, but "may have been a student somewhere else."

Police do not have an apparent motive now, Grady said.

Kevin McEnery said he was in the classroom when a man dressed in a black shirt, dark pants and black hat burst in carrying a shotgun.

"He just kicked the door open, just started shooting," said McEnery, who was in the class at the time. "All I really heard was just people screaming, yelling 'get out.' ... Close to 30 shots were fired."

There are about 162 registered students in the class that met in the large lecture hall.

"Witnesses say someone dressed in black came out from behind a screen in the front of the classroom and opened fire with a shotgun," Peters said.

The gunman fired from a stage at the front of the classroom, Grady said.

At 3:03 p.m., NIU police responded, and four minutes later, the campus was ordered into "a lockdown situation," he said.

At 3:20, an all-campus alert went out via the campus Web site, e-mail, voice mail, the campus crisis hotline, the news media and various alarm systems, he said.

"The message basically was: There's a gunman on campus, stay where you are, make yourself as safe as possible," he said.

Rosie Moroni, a student at the school, told CNN she was outside Cole Hall near the King Commons at 2:30 p.m. (3:30 p.m. ET) when she heard shots coming from the classroom she had intended to enter.

The shot was followed by "a lot of people screaming," then people ran out the doors yelling, "He's got a gun, call 9-1-1," she said.

"It was complete chaos ... it's very scary here right now."

By 4 p.m., police had swept the area "and determined there was only one gunman" and that he was dead.

Grady said the man used three guns during his rampage -- a shotgun, a Glock pistol and a small-caliber handgun -- and was still on the stage when he turned one of the guns on himself. The small-caliber handgun has not been recovered, he said. He said the shooter started with a shotgun, then switched to a pistol.

It appears that he acted alone, Grady said.

"As much as we do, it's unlikely that anyone would ever have the ability to stop an incident like this from beginning," he said.

Classes were canceled for the rest of the day and Friday.

Seven counseling areas were set up throughout the campus, and hotlines were established.

Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich declared a state of emergency, which will open the governor's disaster fund to reimburse local government entities for "extraordinary expenses related to the response in NIU DeKalb" and will allow the state Emergency Management Agency to provide assistance, the governor's office said in a statement.

The 113-year-old school is 65 miles west of downtown Chicago and has an enrollment of more than 25,000. The campus covers 755 acres.

A spokesman for the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives told CNN that some of its agents were already on the scene to assist.
advertisement

He said ATF agents could help trace the weapon or weapons used.

An FBI spokesman said several of that agency's agents were en route to the scene to assist.

The Motivator

"Only one man in a thousand is a leader of men -- the other 999 follow women."


-Groucho Marx

So, who do we believe???

Clemens more nervous than trainer; Facial expressions expert analyzes both witnesses

Roger Clemens' lips were pressed together tight, the corners turned slightly upward, his mouth pulled wide.

"There's only one interpretation," said Dan Hill, an expert in analyzing facial expressions, "and that's fear."

Hill doesn't profess to be able to declare with certainty whether the star pitcher or his former trainer, Brian McNamee, was telling the truth during their testimony before Congress on Wednesday. But after viewing video clips of portions of the hearings, Hill concluded Clemens seemed more nervous than McNamee.

"To be fair, it could be fear of being unfairly stripped of the Hall of Fame," Hill said in a phone interview. "He also could be lying."

Hill is the president of Sensory Logic, a Minnesota-based marketing research company that analyzes consumers' facial expressions. He said Clemens showed signs of anger and disgust, pushing his lower lip and chin upward and pressing his lips together.

"It's the same body language as when he prepares to overwhelm a batter," Hill said. "He's a bulldog trying to will himself through the testimony."

But Clemens also repeatedly licked his lips and looked down.

"That's all signs of avoidance, possibly shame, absolutely nervousness," Hill said.

He thought Clemens seemed particularly anxious, gulping and licking his lips, when questioned about the testimony of former teammate Andy Pettitte's wife. In her affidavit, she said her husband told her about a conversation he had with Clemens in 1999 or 2000 during which the seven-time Cy Young winner admitted using human growth hormone.

McNamee may have looked "beaten down" as he was drilled by members of Congress, Hill said, but he appeared more confident than Clemens.

"He does not look like he's broken or wavering or nervous," Hill said.

Update on New York's therapist slaying

NEW YORK (AP) -- Police combed through surveillance video, tested blood for DNA, took fingerprints and went door-to-door Thursday as they tried to find the man who hacked a psychologist to death in her office with a meat cleaver.

Among the unanswered questions: Did the balding, middle-age suspect know his way around the building? Was he a patient? And where did he go after the killing?

CNN affiliate WABC in New York is reporting that a suspect is being questioned in Pennsylvania.

Police released a detailed sketch and grainy surveillance footage of him entering and leaving the Upper East Side building where Kathryn Faughey was killed Tuesday evening.

Faughey's office was in shambles, with furniture overturned, shades torn and blood sprayed on the walls and pooled on the floor.

The suspect left behind a roller suitcase filled with adult diapers and women's clothing -- including blouses and slippers -- and a smaller second bag containing knives, rope and duct tape that were not apparently used in the attack, police said.

The killing shocked the mental health care community and raised questions about safety protections at therapists' offices. It also rattled residents of the affluent Manhattan neighborhood around Faughey's office.

"Everyone in the building is very nervous, because we know that this person is loose. It's very frightening," said Linda Elliott, who lives in the East 79th Street building where the attack occurred. It is in a bustling neighborhood just blocks from a major hospital complex.

Carrying the two bags and dressed in a three-quarter-length green coat, knit cap and gloves, the attacker breezed past the building's doorman, saying he had an appointment with Dr. Kent Shinbach, a 70-year-old geriatric psychiatrist who worked in the same office suite as Faughey, according to police.

Shinbach had office hours into the evening, police said, but it wasn't clear whether Shinbach or Faughey was the intended target.

The man walked into the suite's waiting room, where a female patient was waiting to see Shinbach, and at some point went into Faughey's office and attacked her, police said. Shinbach heard Faughey's screams and ran to help.

The attacker apparently didn't recognize Shinbach when he opened the door and said "she's dead," referring to Faughey, police said. He then attacked the psychiatrist, stabbing at Shinbach and pinning him to the wall with a chair before stealing $90 and escaping through a basement door, according to police.

Shinbach screamed out to the street from Faughey's office for help, and the building doorman called 911 around 9 p.m. By then, the attacker had escaped.

Shinbach had slash wounds on his head, face and hands. Police, believing the killer may have been injured in the attack, issued alerts to area hospitals.

Police have said the suspect may have been familiar with the building because his exit route through the basement wasn't very obvious. Surveillance tapes show him deliberately leaving the luggage by the basement door before walking out.

The check's in the mail...

This was released 2 hours ago EST.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Bush has signed a multibillion-dollar economic rescue package that means $300 to $1,200 rebates for many American households.

Bush called the measure "a booster shot for our economy" to stave off a recession.

Several dozen members of Congress, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, stood on the stage behind Bush as he signed the bill.

The Motivator

"Only the curious will learn and only the resolute overcome the obstacles to learning."

-- Eugene S. Wilson

Officer Suspended After Skateboarder Rant in Baltimore

Weigh In With Your Thoughts. Was Officer Rivieri Out of Line?

A veteran Baltimore police officer was suspended after a video appeared on YouTube showing him manhandling a 14-year-old skateboarder.

The video, which was reportedly shot during the summer and just recently appeared on YouTube, begins with Officer Salvatore Rivieri approaching a group of teens on skateboards.

"You're not allowed to ride your skateboards here," Rivieri tells two teenage skateboarders.

"We were just rolling by. … I didn't hear him because I had my iPod on," said Eric Bush, the teen who bore the brunt of Rivieri's wrath.

Don't Say 'Dude'

On the video, Bush is seen referring to Rivieri as "dude," and the officer responds with force, shoving Bush to the ground.

"I was scared. I didn't know if he was going to punch me," said Bush.

He wasn't scared speechless though, as Bush continued to refer to Rivieri as "dude."

"I didn't do anything dude," Bush says again on the video, this time inciting a rant from Rivieri.

"Obviously your parents don't put your foot in your butt quite enough, because you don't understand the meaning of the word respect. You better learn how to speak. I'm not 'man,' I'm not 'dude.' I am Officer Rivieri!" he shouts.

Reactions

"I was very upset," Bush's mother, Peggy Miller, said of watching the video.

Although skateboarding in the area wasn't allowed, she says the officer was out of line. "If I were to go to my job and I were to get upset with someone who called me dude three times and tackled [them], I'd be terminated immediately."

The Baltimore Police Department partially agreed. Rivieri, who has no complaints on his record, was suspended with pay.

"We don't know what happened before the video clip. We don't know what happened after. But there are obviously some things to be concerned about there," said Sterling Clifford, a spokesman for the Baltimore police.

<span style="font-weight:bold;">Was Rivieri's Complaint Fair?

ABC News showed the video to Harris Stratyner, a psychologist who deals with confrontation.

"You watch the video and you say, 'Gee that kid was disrespectful.' And then you see the police officer and you forget all about the kid calling him dude, because his actions were so outrageous," Stratyner said.

s for his actions, Bush says this could have all been avoided. "I would have left if he had been nice to me, but he just kept on going and yelling at me."

It is not clear why the video has surfaced now, but it raises some important questions. Was Rivieri's response out of line? Was Bush wrong to speak that way to a police officer?

What do you think? Weigh in with your comments on our message board.

Man Sought in Psychologist’s Stabbing

Armed with a suitcase full of knives, an unidentified middle-aged man unleashed a rampage of violence inside the offices of an Upper East Side psychiatry practice on Tuesday night, fatally stabbing and slashing a well-known psychologist before wounding her colleague when he tried to come to her aid, officials said on Wednesday.

The assailant had not been identified as of Wednesday afternoon, the police said, though investigators were pursuing a theory that he was either a patient at the suite of offices, at 440 East 79th Street, or that he had some kind of ties to the establishment or the services it provided.

Originally, the assailant had arrived at the offices, about five seconds after 8 p.m. on Tuesday, asking to visit Dr. Kent T. Shinbach, 70, a psychiatrist there, the police said.

But at some point he disappeared inside the office of another counselor there, Kathryn Faughey, 56, the police said.

There, he unleashed a barrage of violence, fatally stabbing Dr. Faughey. At some point, when Dr. Shinbach heard the attack and went to the office of his colleague, the assailant turned on him and Dr. Shinbach was seriously injured, officials said.

The scene was marked by blood and upended furniture, the police and neighbors said.

“We could see in the office where the blinds had been ripped off and were hanging at a strange angle and the entire office was in disarray,” said Alexandra Pike, 20, a student who could see into the office where the attack occurred from the window of her apartment across the street. “Papers were strewn around and there was overturned furniture. And it was clear there was some kind of scuffle.”

It is unclear what the man’s motive was, and Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly released a sketch of the suspect after a news conference at 1 Police Plaza on Wednesday, saying detectives were seeking him. The sketch was based on descriptions provided to detectives of those who saw the man in the moments before the attack — including the surviving victim — but who could not identify him by name.

“Obviously there is a forensic evidence aspect to this case,” Mr. Kelly said. “We’re getting information from the doctor and other medical professionals in the suite to determine if they have any information to add as the investigation goes forward.”

He added: “We’re fully engaged on several fronts.”

Mr. Kelly described the assailant as a man in his 40’s, about 5 feet 9 inches, with brownish or blond hair. He was wearing a three-quarter length green coat, with sneakers and a baseball cap, said Mr. Kelly, as he held up the sketch before a bank of television cameras.

The first sign of the man’s entrance at the building was captured on videotape —as he walked in the front door about five seconds after 8 p.m., passed by a doorman and went into the counselors’ suite of offices, the police said. He was inside for about an hour: A videotape showed him leaving through a basement door about 8:54 p.m., the police said, and it showed a view of him from his back.

Blood was found on the door — a panic door that locks on its own when it shuts — indicating the assailant might have been wounded.

Before he fled, the assailant left two suitcases in the basement. Inside one was assorted women’s clothing — some shoes, a top, as well as diapers for adults. He other had about eight knives, the police said. Upstairs in the room of Ms. Faughey, investigators found three other weapons, including two knives and a cleaver with a broken handle, the police said.

A female patient was in the lobby of the counselors’ suite when the assailant showed up, the police said. She apparently left before the attack on Dr. Faughey became known, but detectives tracked her down and interviewed her, the police said. Dr. Shinbach was also interviewed after undergoing surgery at New York Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center.

Clemens says Pettitte 'misremembered' him; McNamee grilled

WASHINGTON -- Under oath and sometimes blistering questioning, Roger Clemens stuck to his story Wednesday. So did his chief accuser and former personal trainer, Brian McNamee.

And after a 4½-hour hearing, Congress settled for a draw in the he-said, he-said between the two men over whether the seven-time Cy Young Award winner used performance-enhancing drugs. Ultimately, the matter may be referred to the Justice Department for a resolution -- and, possibly, criminal charges.

"I haven't reached any conclusions at this point," said California Democrat Henry Waxman, chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

But, as ranking Republican Tom Davis of Virginia, put it: "Both can't be telling the truth."

Clemens' reputation and legacy were on the line, and there was the possibility that criminal charges could follow after the seven-time Cy Young Award winner testified.

"I have never taken steroids or HGH," Clemens said under oath, his voice rising. "No matter what we discuss here today, I am never going to have my name restored."

For many, his denials rang hollow.

"It's hard to believe you, sir. I hate to say that," said Rep. Elijah Cummings, a Maryland Democrat. "You're one of my heroes, but it's hard to believe."

McNamee's answers were generally quick and concise. His credibility also came under scrutiny.

"You're here under oath, and yet we have lie after lie after lie after lie," said Rep. Dan Burton, an Indiana Republican.

When it was over, Clemens left the hearing room through a back door. Just before exiting, he paused to shake hands with Davis. Clemens later spoke briefly to reporters, saying: "I'm very thankful and very grateful for this day to come. I'm glad for the opportunity finally. And, you know, I hope I get -- and I know I will have -- the opportunity to come here to Washington again under different terms."

Early in the session, Clemens struggled to find the right words as he denied new accounts new accounts of drug use made against him by former teammate and close friend Andy Pettitte.

Using words like "misremembered" and mispronouncing McNamee's last name, Clemens rambled and stumbled at times.

Roger Clemens was grilled over inconstistencies between his testimony and statements made under oath by his teammate and friend Andy Pettitte.

It seemed clear nearly from the start of the session that the committee would not treat Clemens with kid gloves, despite all the face-to-face sit-downs he did with representatives in recent days -- sometimes posing for photos or signing autographs for staff members.

In fact, after Clemens interrupted Waxman at the end, the chairman pounded the gavel and said: "Excuse me, but this is not your time to argue with me."

When it was over, Clemens avoided reporters by leaving the hearing room through a back door. Just before exiting, he paused to shake hands with Davis.

Exactly two months after the Mitchell report was released, Clemens and McNamee were separated by one seat in the same wood-paneled room where Mark McGwire and Rafael Palmeiro saw their careers tarnished during a hearing in March 2005. In a reference to McGwire's evasions that day, Rep. Mark Souder, R-Ind., admonished Wednesday's witnesses by saying: "It's better not to talk about the past than to lie about the past."

Clemens briefly stared at McNamee, his former employee, during his accuser's opening statement and later pointed several times at his former personal trainer. For the most part, they did not look at each other.

Members of Congress questioned the credibility of both.

Waxman pointed out inconsistencies in Clemens' comments and accused him of possibly attempting to influence statements to the committee by the pitcher's former nanny.

Burton repeatedly read remarks McNamee had made, and each time the former trainer was forced to admit they were untrue.

"This is really disgusting. You're here as a sworn witness. You're here to tell the truth," he said. "I don't know what to believe. I know one thing I don't believe and that's you."

The hearing seemed to split the committee along party lines, with the Democrats reserving their most pointed queries for Clemens, and the Republicans giving McNamee a rougher time. Chris Shays, a Connecticut Republican, likened the hearing to a "Roman Circus" featuring gladiators.

Cummings set the tone within minutes, repeatedly reminding Clemens he was under oath and admonishing the pitcher to "keep your voice up." McNamee also was asked to pull his microphone closer.

Brian McNamee came under intense scrutiny for not being fully forthright with federal agents about the number of injections he gave and the physical evidence in his possession.

The hearing started about an hour after several teams opened spring training. This was far from the sunny settings of Florida and Arizona.

Debbie Clemens, the pitcher's wife, sat behind her husband and listened as Waxman implicated her in HGH use, citing statements by Pettitte. Later, Clemens read a statement from his wife and said she "has been broken up over this."

IRS Special Agent Jeff Novitzky, a key member of the federal prosecution team against Barry Bonds, watched from a second-row seat. Asked why by a reporter, he declined comment.

In addition, ABC News reported that at least six FBI agents were in attendance at the hearing. While the Department of Justice will wait to see if the committee refers the matter for investigation, the agency can also open a probe on its own without a referral.

Bonds, baseball's home run king, was indicted in November on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice stemming from his 2003 testimony to a grand jury in which he denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs. Because of his denials under oath, Clemens could be subjected to a similar criminal probe.

Pettitte, who was excused from testifying, said in a statement to the committee that Clemens admitted to him as long as 10 years ago that he used HGH. Waxman read from affidavits by Pettitte and Pettitte's wife, Laura, supporting the accusations.

"Andy Pettitte is my friend. He was my friend before this. He will be my friend after this and again. I think Andy has misheard," Clemens said. "I think he misremembers."

McNamee told former Senate majority leader George Mitchell that he injected Clemens 16 to 21 times with steroids and human growth hormone from 1998-01, and that Pettitte and Chuck Knoblauch used HGH. In his opening statement, McNamee said he might have injected Clemens and Knoblauch more than that.

"I have helped taint our national pastime," McNamee said. "Make no mistake: When I told Sen. Mitchell that I injected Roger Clemens with performance-enhancing drugs, I told the truth."

McNamee was also asked about why he saved what he claims to be physical evidence connecting Clements to steroid use, including bloodied gauze and used medical needles.

In 2005, a source associated with McNamee told ESPN The Magazine's Shaun Assael that McNamee saved a blood sample from Clemens that would show steroid use. The sample was never shown to Assael.

Waxman said McNamee, a former New York City police officer, lied to police seven years ago during an investigation of a possible rape. He also was tough on Clemens.

"We have found conflicts and inconsistencies in Mr. Clemens' account. During his deposition, he made statements that we know are untrue," Waxman said.

In the affidavit, Pettitte said Clemens backtracked when the subject of HGH came up again in conversation in 2005, before the same House committee held the first hearing on steroids in baseball.

Pettitte said in the affidavit that he asked Clemens in 2005 what he would do if asked about performance-enhancing substances. Pettitte said Clemens responded by saying Pettitte misunderstood the previous exchange in 1999 or 2000 and that, in fact, Clemens had been talking about HGH use by his wife in the original conversation.

Clemens read a statement from his wife in which she acknowledged using HGH once, without his knowledge.

"She has been broken up over this for a long time," Clemens said. "She feels like a pawn."

The Motivator

"They may forget what you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel"

-Carl W. Buechner

Ex cop: 'I didn't mean to hurt her'

CANTON, Ohio (AP) -- A former police officer accused of killing his pregnant lover sobbed on the witness stand Monday that he accidentally struck her when she wouldn't let him out of her house.

"I didn't mean to hurt her," Bobby Cutts Jr. testified, clutching a handful of white tissues.

Cutts, 30, said he was at Jessie Davis' home to pick up his 2½-year-old son, Blake and was telling her to hurry.

He said that when she didn't move quicker to get her son ready, he started to go but Davis grabbed him and told him he couldn't leave.

He said he pulled his arm away and threw his elbow back, striking her in the throat and causing her to fall.

Cutts could receive the death penalty if convicted of killing Davis, who was nearly full term with a female fetus when she died last June.

Cutts said he performed CPR, then tried to use bleach to revive her -- a large bleach stain was found in her room.

"She wasn't responding and I knew she was dead," Cutts testified.

He said he recalled thinking: "No way this is happening, this is not happening."

He said he went home, took a shower and "washed and washed and washed." Then, he said, he called Davis, hoping she'd pick up the phone. "This is not real," he said repeatedly.

Under questioning from his own attorney, Fernando Mack, Cutts said he didn't know why he failed to call police.

"How do you explain that?" he said raising his voice. "I just wanted to go get my son. I didn't want anybody to get hurt."

Cutts testified that he didn't want Blake to see his mother, so he put Davis' body in the bed of her truck and went to a friend's house while the boy slept.

Later, he said he drove around in a panic, not knowing what to do.

"I can't keep driving around with her body in the back of this truck," he said -- so when he saw a dirt road leading to a park, he pulled in.

"Did you leave Jessie at that location?" Mack said.

"Yeah," Cutts said between sobs.

After more than two hours of testimony, Cutts sat sniffling on the stand as assistant prosecutor Dennis Barr began his cross-examination.

"Mr. Cutts, do you have a cold? Because I don't see any tears," Barr said.

Defense attorneys objected.

"Did you cry this much when you dumped Jessie's body in the park?" Barr asked.

"After I dumped her body, yes I did cry," Cutts said.

Thousands searched for the 26-year-old Davis for more than a week, until Cutts led authorities to the body wrapped in a comforter in the park.

Prosecutors said Cutts was feeling the pressure of his crumbling marriage, financial debt and supporting several children. The state rested its case Friday, with closing arguments scheduled for Tuesday.

The former police officer in Canton is on trial on aggravated murder and other charges.

John Rocker points finger at Selig,Major League Baseball

BRISTOL, Conn. - With Roger Clemens and Brian McNamee set to plead their cases before Congress on Wednesday, Major League Baseball has a new problem to deal with - John Rocker.

Rocker appeared on two separate Atlanta radio shows Monday and suggested that the league and the players association not only knew that he was on steroids, but that doctors for both parties advised him and several teammates how to effectively use the performance-enhancing drugs, according to a report on ESPN.com.

Rocker said Monday that commissioner Bud Selig knew that he failed a drug test in 2000. No stranger to controversy, Rocker made those comments on Atlanta radio station Rock 100.5, according to the report.

Later Monday, Rocker appeared on Atlanta sports talk radio station 680 The Fan and said that "between 40 to 50 percent of baseball players are on steroids" and "in 2000, Bud Selig knew John Rocker was taking the juice."

The comments are a departure from Rocker's position last March, when he told ESPN radio that, by his own guess, "less than 10 percent" of players were using illegal performance enhancing substances while he was in the majors.

"Basically it's a lot of media propaganda," Rocker told ESPN radio in March 2007. "It's a great scandal to drive ratings and sell newspapers."

Rocker was a member of the Atlanta Braves in 2000. He appeared in 59 games, compiling a 1-2 record with a 2.89 ERA and 24 saves. A year earlier, he had a career-high 38 saves for the Braves.

Rocker played in 30 games for the Texas Rangers in 2002, throwing 24 1/3 innings.

Rangers executive vice president of communications Jim Sundberg said the Rangers will have no comment. The Rangers will leave it to MLB and the players' association to respond, according to ESPN.com.

Florida Panther's Zednick has throat slashed by skate

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - Florida Panthers forward Richard Zednik required lifesaving surgery after severing his carotid artery, his agent told The Associated Press on Monday.

Zednik had surgery Sunday night and was in stable condition at a Buffalo hospital after losing a significant amount of blood during the game at Buffalo earlier in the day, agent David Schatia said. Schatia didn't have further details because he had just arrived in Montreal following a trip oversees.

Zednik was sliced across the right side of the throat by teammate Olli Jokinen's skate in a frightening accident midway through the third period of Buffalo's 5-3 victory.

Canada's Sportsnet cable-TV network reported on its Web site that the skate blade just missed cutting the jugular vein.

The Panthers returned home to South Florida following the game. They did not have an immediate update on the player's condition or details of the severity of the injury.

Zednik was circling the net behind the play and skating into the corner just when Jokinen was upended by Sabres forward Clarke MacArthur. Jokinen fell headfirst to the ice, and his right leg and skate flew up and struck Zednik directly on the side of the neck.

Clutching his neck, Zednik left a trail of blood as he somehow had the capacity to race three-quarters the length of the ice to the Panthers bench. He nearly fell into the arms of trainer Dave Zenobi, who immediately placed a towel on the player's throat. With the help of defenseman Jassen Cullimore, Zednik was escorted up the tunnel behind the bench and loaded into an ambulance.

Zednik, a 12-year veteran, is in his first season with the Panthers. The team made arrangements to have his wife, Jessica, fly from South Florida to Buffalo by a charter flight Sunday night. Zenobi and assistant general manager Randy Sexton also stayed behind to be with Zednik, the Panthers said.

When Zednik was with Montreal he sustained a severe concussion, broken nose, bruised throat and cut eyelid following a vicious blow to the face by Boston's Kyle McLaren during the 2002 playoffs.

Zednik was knocked cold, had to be taken off the ice on a stretcher and spent the night in intensive care.

McLaren was suspended by the NHL for the rest of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals, missing the final two games of the series, which Montreal won in six games.

Zednik returned the following season to score a career-high 31 goals and match a career high with 50 points.

"I saw him when they carted him to the hospital and said, 'Oh, my god. I'd be surprised if this guy ever walks again,"' Schatia said. "He's a tough guy."

Zednik signed with the Panthers as a free agent last summer. After a two-month slump, he has been playing well. He entered the game on a four-game point streak, in which he had six goals and three assists, giving him 26 points (15 goals, 11 assists) in 54 games this season.