Dallas

Stowaway charges filed

Federal prosecutors filed criminal charges Wednesday against a man who climbed into a crate and had himself shipped by air from New York to Dallas to visit his parents.

Charles D. McKinley was charged with stowing away on a cargo jet.

McKinley, a 25-year-old shipping clerk at a New York warehouse, journeyed overnight about 1,500 miles by truck, plane and delivery van before startling his parents by popping out of the box at their home Saturday.

McKinley’s escapade occurred as Americans prepared to mark the second anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, and it renewed debate over the air cargo system’s vulnerability to terrorists.

“It certainly shows that we have more work to do on cargo security,” Asa Hutchinson, the Homeland Security Department’s undersecretary for transportation security, told ABC.

ATLANTA

MLK papers ready for auction

A 7,000-piece collection of the writings of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., which spent four decades in his widow’s basement, is ready for sale after being on exhibit for two weeks at a New York auction house.

The items — appraised at $30 million — went on display Aug. 26, and hundreds of people have strolled through Sotheby’s in Manhattan to get a glimpse into King’s literary mind.

The collection includes speeches, letters, sermon notes and even King’s college transcripts.

The King estate, headed by his widow, Coretta Scott King, and Sotheby’s officials hope to get at least $20 million for the collection. They hope to sell it intact to a museum, library or university that will continue to display it and make it available for scholarly research.

Indonesia

Second militant sentenced to death for Bali bombings

An Islamic militant pumped his fist in defiance as he was led from court Wednesday after being convicted and sentenced to death in last year’s Bali nightclub bombings that killed 202 people.

“Go to hell, you infidels!” shouted Imam Samudra, his face twisted in fury, after a panel of five judges ordered him to face a firing squad for his role in the Oct. 12 attacks.

Samudra is the second person sentenced to death for the bombings. Last month, co-conspirator Amrozi bin Nurhasyim was also sentenced to death. Three accomplices not directly implicated in the bombing received between 15 and 16 years in jail.

Miami

Hurricane Isabel strengthens

Hurricane Isabel strengthened Wednesday as it churned westward in the Atlantic.

At 10 p.m. CDT, Isabel’s maximum sustained wind speed had increased to 145 mph with higher gusts, making it a strong Category 4 storm. It would become a Category 5, the top of the scale, if its winds reach 156 mph.

Isabel was 1,180 miles east of the Turks and Caicos Islands and was moving west at 10 mph. Forecasters predicted the storm would continue to head west and said the storm could strengthen slightly today.

Large ocean swells creating hazardous surf conditions were expected to begin affecting the Leeward Islands by today.