North Carolina

Soldier to be tried for Kuwait grenade attack

An Army sergeant charged in a grenade attack that killed two officers at a Kuwaiti base will be tried at a court-martial this summer, a military official said Thursday.

Sgt. Hasan Akbar, 32, faces two counts of premeditated murder and three counts of attempted premeditated murder from the attack on 101st Airborne Division soldiers on March 23, 2003, during the early days of the Iraq war.

Akbar is being held at a military prison at Fort Knox, Ky., where an arraignment is to be held next week, said Lt. Col. Jon Guden, a lawyer with the 18th Airborne Corps.

Massachusetts

Prosecutor to pursue case against ex-bishop

A Springfield prosecutor said Thursday he would pursue sex-abuse charges against retired Springfield Bishop Thomas Dupre, who is accused of plying two altar boys with alcohol and molesting them while he was a parish priest in the 1970s.

If a grand jury indicts him, Dupre would be the first bishop charged in the sex scandal.

There have been at least a dozen grand jury investigations involving how bishops dealt with abuse claims, and four bishops have resigned after being accused of misconduct.

Dupre, 70, stepped down Feb. 11, citing health reasons.

WASHINGTON, D.C.

Space heaters recalled because of fire risk

A Pennsylvania company is recalling some 186,000 space heaters because of a faulty power cord connection that can detach and overheat, posing a fire hazard.

No injuries have been reported, the Consumer Product Safety Commission said.

Lasko Products of West Chester, Pa., is recalling the model 5500 oscillating ceramic heater with dark gray vents and bronze trim, and the model 5700 oil-filled radiator-type heater. The name “Lasko” is printed near the top.

People who bought the heaters should contact Lasko at (800) 233-6373 to receive a replacement heater.

Texas

Dallas inmate wins reprieve from execution

A condemned inmate was spared Thursday evening less than an hour before he could have been taken to the Texas death chamber for killing a man who was shot 10 times in the head.

Lawyers for Yokamon Hearn, 25, contend he may be mentally retarded and want time to pursue the claim. The U.S. Supreme Court has barred the execution of the mentally retarded.

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed to the delay.

PHOENIX

Report on hostage situation finds problems

A prison warden was demoted and eight other supervisors reassigned after an investigation into a 15-day hostage standoff in a watchtower found gaps in security compounded by “years worth of bad decisions” at all levels of Arizona’s prison system.

The panel, appointed by Gov. Janet Napolitano, found that the hostage situation was the result of “a series of small but critical gaps in security” that were made worse by inattention and complacency.

The panel was one facet of ongoing investigations into how two inmates were able to overpower two guards on Jan. 18 and hold them hostage in the tower at the Arizona State Prison Complex-Lewis.