Boston

Northeast digs out from new snowstorm

A nor’easter storm blanketed parts of the Northeast with heavy snow and slush Monday, just a week after another snowstorm pounded the region.

At least seven deaths were blamed on the storm. Scattered school closings were reported from North Carolina to Maine, where speed limits on major highways were lowered to 45 mph because of slippery pavement.

Some flights were canceled or delayed at Boston’s Logan International Airport, spokesman Phil Orlandella said. Portland International Jetport in Maine also had delays and cancellations.

The heaviest snowfall was in northern Vermont, where the Jay Peak ski area recorded 38 inches by Monday morning.

Texas

Sex toy consultant vows to fight charges

Joanne Webb intended to spice up marriages and earn extra cash by selling erotic toys.

Instead, the former fifth-grade teacher and executive board member of the Burleson Chamber of Commerce faces criminal charges and embarrassment after a police sting.

“It’s ludicrous to think that the government can step into our bedrooms,” said Webb, who has been married 20 years and has three children.

Webb was one of 3,000 consultants for Passion Parties, a San Francisco-based company whose representatives set up Tupperware-type parties for women who feel more comfortable buying marital aids in a private home than at an adult bookstore or on the Internet.

Adult stores sell sex toys around the law by posting signs that say “sold only as novelties.” Webb didn’t do that and faces up to a year in jail and a $4,000 fine if convicted.

Her attorney, BeAnn Sisemore, planned to file a motion today to dismiss the case on grounds the law violates someone’s right to own a sexual device, which is not illegal.

California

Scott Peterson seeks change of venue

Scott Peterson’s lawyer filed a motion Monday to move his double-murder trial out of Stanislaus County, saying that news coverage of the case has vilified the former fertilizer salesman.

Peterson, 31, has pleaded innocent to charges of murdering his wife, Laci Peterson, and unborn son nearly a year ago. If convicted, he could face the death penalty.

The defense said Peterson could get a fair trial because widespread and negative reports have made it impossible to seat an unbiased jury in the region.