New Hampshire: Priest found dead after abuse accusation

Authorities are investigating the death of a Roman Catholic priest whose body was found just days after he was accused of molesting a boy nearly 30 years ago.

Officials of the Diocese of Manchester called the death of the Rev. Richard Lower, whose body was found Sunday along a hiking trail, an apparent suicide.

However, police said the cause of death had not been determined. Capt. Richard Crate said it could have been due to natural causes.

Crate said it could be weeks or months before tests provide any answers about Lower, who had several medical problems.

Illinois: Few death-row inmates on clemency proposal

A state panel recommended clemency for fewer than 10 of the more than 140 death-row inmates who sought commutation of their sentences to life in prison, two sources close to the board said Tuesday.

Gov. George Ryan, who is considering clemency for all the state’s 160 condemned inmates, has to make a decision by Jan. 13, his last day in office.

Ryan is not bound by the Prisoner Review Board’s recommendation. He could grant clemency to all death inmates, or to specific inmates he chooses.

Ryan halted executions three years ago after the courts found that 13 men on death row had been wrongly convicted since the state resumed capital punishment in 1977.

In October, the review board held a series of emotional hearings on clemency petitions filed by more than 140 death row inmates. Ever since, Ryan has been lobbied intensely by both death penalty advocates and opponents.

Louisiana: Thunderstorms cause flooding, damage, death

Thunderstorms rolled across the South with tornadoes, heavy rain and pounding hail during the night, killing one person, knocking out power and causing street flooding.

“We had trees down all across the area,” said Chris Johnson, a spokesman for Louisiana State Police at Shreveport.

One man was killed in northwest Louisiana by a tree that fell on his pickup truck, Johnson said.

At least 6,400 homes and business were without power Tuesday near Mobile, Ala., said Alabama Power spokesman Bernie Fogarty. Heavy rain flooded some streets in the area.

Louisiana also had scattered street flooding as nearly 2 inches of rain fell at Shreveport and New Orleans got about 1 1/2 inches.

Storms late Monday blew through Texas, dumping nearly 3 inches of rain near Dallas and hail up to 1 1/2 inches in diameter near Austin. Tornadoes touched down north of Dallas, the National Weather Service said, but no severe damage was reported.

Pennsylvania: Aid proposal may keep doctors on the job

Hospitals in eastern Pennsylvania braced for a potential New Year’s Day walkout by scores of surgeons who say they can no longer afford to buy malpractice insurance policies.

But with Tuesday’s midnight deadline looming, there were signs that Gov.-elect Ed Rendell might have averted a large-scale work stoppage with a proposed aid package that would reduce doctors’ insurance payments by $220 million in 2003.

Several large surgical practices in northeast Pennsylvania backed off Tuesday from a threat to stop performing operations today if something wasn’t done about their insurance costs.

It was unclear whether doctor shutdowns would be avoided altogether.