Virginia: Moussaoui trial postponed

For the second time, a judge postponed the trial of terrorist suspect Zacarias Moussaoui, agreeing with prosecutors and the accused that the alleged Sept. 11 accomplice needs more time to prepare for a case that could cost him his life.

U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema said Monday that the trial would begin June 30, instead of in January.

The trial originally was to have begun Monday, but the judge previously extended it because the defense wasn’t ready. Jury selection now begins next May.

Cayman Islands: Hurricane Lili hits

Hurricane Lili ripped roofs from apartment buildings Monday in the Cayman Islands and forced 100,000 people to flee their homes as it threatened Cuba. The storm had killed eight people so far.

Lili’s eye tore across Cayman Brac, punishing the easternmost of the Cayman Islands with torrential rain and violent winds. It grew from a tropical storm Monday as its winds topped 74 mph.

Lili, the fourth hurricane of the Atlantic season, was expected to make a direct hit early today on Cuba.

St. Louis: Miss Cleo’s bosses indicted

Some 6 million people called TV psychic Miss Cleo, and the companies that operated her hot line are swamped with civil fraud complaints. Now, for the first time, the companies are facing criminal charges.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch has learned that a grand jury in St. Charles County, Mo., returned a suppressed indictment Sept. 13 charging the companies and their two principal owners with criminal fraud.

If found guilty, the owners, Steven L. Feder, 52, and Peter Stolz, 54, both of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., could face a maximum of 10 years in prison and fines of $10,000, in addition to $20,000 in fines for their companies.

Miss Cleo herself real name Youree Dell Harris was a paid employee and was not charged.

Washington, D.C.: Ozone hole shrinks, splits

The ozone hole over Antarctica is markedly smaller this year than in the last few years and has split in two, government scientists reported Monday.

The so-called “hole,” actually an area of thinner than normal ozone, was measured at 6 million square miles in September. That compares with around 9 million square miles on September measurements over the last six years, according to researchers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and National Aeronautics and Space Agency.

While ozone at ground level is considered a pollutant, the layer of ozone high in the stratosphere is vital to life because it blocks dangerous radiation from the sun. Thinning of the ozone layer could lead to a rise in skin cancer, experts warn. Aerosols and other chemicals are blamed for the thinning, and treaties banning those ingredients are expected to help the layer recover over time.

California: At least 2 dead in bus attack

Two passengers stabbed a bus driver on a freeway Monday night, causing a crash that killed at least two people and injured several others.

The attack occurred as the driver was traveling 70 mph down Interstate 5 near Fresno with a bus full of passengers, according to Lt. Jeff Johnson of the Fresno County Sheriff’s Department.

Emergency crews were being flown to the crash scene late Monday.