Tennessee: DNA tests free inmate after 22 years in prison

Twenty-two years after he was convicted of rape, Clark McMillan was freed from prison Tuesday because of DNA tests that cleared him of the crime.

“I feel rejuvenated,” McMillan, 45, said after his release in Memphis. “The Lord has given me happiness and joy a chance to live.”

Judge Chris Craft dismissed McMillan’s 1980 rape conviction May 2 after results from the DNA test showed that genetic markers in McMillan’s blood did not match those in semen left on the rape victim’s clothes.

However, he was held for another 12 days until his attorneys could settle with federal authorities an unserved two-year sentence for felony firearm possession that was handed down about the same time as the rape conviction.

Authorities decided to declare that McMillan began serving the federal sentence on Oct. 8, 2000. With time off for good behavior, his release date was Tuesday.

South Carolina: Amtrak train hits log truck, derails

An Amtrak train struck a log truck at a crossing Tuesday, derailing all 10 cars and causing minor injuries to 14 people onboard, emergency officials said.

The train, traveling from New York to Miami, was going 79 mph when it hit the rear quarter of the truck near Coosawhatchie, separating the bed from the cab and pushing the mangled wreckage and splintered logs down the tracks.

The driver, who told police he did not see the train, was not injured though he was still in the cab when the train hit.

The uninjured passengers were being taken by bus to Jacksonville, Fla., and from there Amtrak said it would get everyone to their destinations.

Baltimore: Twins doing well after separation

Doctors introduced a pair of formerly conjoined twins Tuesday, weeks after an operation in which the 6-month old girls were successfully separated.

Loice and Christine Onziga, from Leiko in northern Uganda, were joined from the breast bone to the navel. A team of 35 surgeons spent 12 hours separating them on April 19 at the University of Maryland Hospital for Children.

The girls are doing well, said Cindy Howard, clinical assistant professor of pediatrics at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

The girls were born Oct. 28 to Margaret Onziga, 29, and her husband, Gordon, 28. The family was referred to a hospital in Kampala, where a team of pediatric specialists, including Howard, evaluated the twins. Howard was in Uganda on an exchange program.

The University of Maryland Medical Center suggested bringing the girls to Baltimore. The hospital agreed to pay all medical costs, an amount officials declined to disclose.

Dallas: ‘Star Wars’ delivers more than ‘Spider’ bite

As Thursday’s opening of “Attack of the Clones” approaches, much of the summer-movie buzz hovers over speculation about which will be bigger: “Spider-Man” or “Star Wars.”

By the supermarket standard, it’s no contest. “Star Wars” is the clear winner, and here’s why: “Star Wars” got its own cereal and “Spider-Man” didn’t. True, some cereals, such as Kellogg’s Crispix have a “Spider-Man” theme in their packages and prizes. But the cereal remains the same. “Episode II” of “Star Wars,” on the other hand, has its own limited-edition, custom-made cereal called, fittingly, Star Wars Episode II cereal.

For Star Wars, General Mills’ cereal designers decided to go with the form of sugary corn puffs, and added rainbow-colored marshmallows in seven shapes representing “Star Wars” characters and objects. So you may find yourself munching on a spoonful of sugar that includes a Clone Trooper, a Yoda or two and maybe a red light saber.