Charleston Gazette

Associated Press - Aol News Poll: ; Support High for Minimum Wage Hike

WASHINGTON - People overwhelmingly support two of the Democrats' top goals - increasing the minimum wage and making it easier to buy prescription drugs from other countries - as the party takes control of Congress for the first time in a dozen years. By a smaller margin, the public also favors relaxing restrictions on federal funding of embryonic stem cell research, a third issue Democrats have promised to tackle during their first 100 hours in charge.

U.S. 35 Project Leaves Mark: ; New Highway On Schedule to Open in 2008

cshumaker@wvgazette.com WINFIELD - The scenery for Putnam County motorists is changing quickly along the new route chosen for U.S. 35.

Gerald R. Ford: ; a Nation Bids Farewell; Final Respects Paid to a President

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The nation remembered Gerald R. Ford on Tuesday for what he didn't have - pretensions, a scheming agenda, a great golf game - as much as for the small-town authenticity he brought to the presidency. In an elaborate national funeral service in Washington and then more simply at his final homecoming in Grand Rapids, the 38th president was celebrated for treating politics as a calling rather than blood sport.

Mass. Moves Closer to Vote On Gay Marriage Ban in '08

BOSTON - In a suspense-filled final day of the legislative session, Massachusetts lawmakers kept alive a proposed constitutional amendment Tuesday that would put a stop to gay marriage in the only state that allows same-sex couples to wed. The vote came after weeks of mounting legal and political pressure on legislators from both sides in the debate.

Ex-Top General No Longer Against Gays Serving Openly

WASHINGTON - The Army general who was Joint Chiefs chairman when the Pentagon adopted its "don't ask, don't tell" policy on gays says he no longer opposes allowing them to serve openly. John Shalikashvili, who retired in 1997 after four years as the nation's top military officer, had argued that allowing homosexuals to serve openly would hurt troop morale and recruitment and undermine the cohesion of combat units. He said he has changed his mind after meeting with gay servicemen.

Robertson Predicts Attack On U.S. This Year

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - In what has become an annual tradition of prognostications, religious broadcaster Pat Robertson predicted Tuesday that a terrorist attack on the United States would result in "mass killing" late in 2007. "I'm not necessarily saying it's going to be nuclear," he said during his news-and-talk television show "The 700 Club" on the Christian Broadcasting Network. "The Lord didn't say nuclear. But I do believe it will be something like that."

U.S. Troop Deaths in Iraq at 3,004

As of Tuesday, at least 3,004 members of the U.S. military have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. The figure includes seven military civilians. At least 2,397 died as a result of hostile action, according to the military's numbers. The AP count is 21 higher than the Defense Department's tally, last updated Friday.

Commuter's Dive Saves Man On Tracks

NEW YORK - A quick-thinking commuter saved a man who fell on the subway tracks by pushing him down into a trough between the rails, allowing an approaching train to pass right over them, police said. An 18-year-old man had some kind of medical problem Tuesday and fell onto the tracks, which are a few feet below platform level, police said. Wesley Autrey, of Manhattan, saw him fall, jumped down onto the tracks after him and rolled with him into the rut between the rails as a southbound train w...

Few Cities Get High Scores for Crisis Communications

WASHINGTON - Only six of 75 U.S. cities and surrounding areas rate top grades for their emergency agencies' ability to communicate during a disaster, according to a federal report obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press. A draft portion of the report, to be released today, gives the highest ratings to Washington, San Diego, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Columbus, Ohio; Sioux Falls, S.D.; and Laramie County, Wyoming.

Katrina Officers Turn Themselves In

NEW ORLEANS - Seven policemen charged in a deadly shooting in the chaotic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina turned themselves in Tuesday at the city jail, where more than 200 supporters greeted them in a show of solidarity. Each of the indicted men faces at least one charge of murder or attempted murder in the Sept. 4, 2005, shootings on the Danziger Bridge less than a week after the hurricane hit New Orleans. Two people died and four people were wounded.

Mich. Man Rescued From Garbage Truck

OAK PARK, Mich. - A man who awoke inside a garbage truck that was about to compact its load was rescued after making a frantic cell phone call to police, authorities say. The man, who is unemployed but not homeless, was scavenging for bottles Thursday when he fell asleep in a Dumpster, said police Lt. Mike Pousak. He awoke when the container was unloaded into a truck.

Obituaries: ; Obit

Ellis Hugh Alley Ellis Hugh Alley, 69, of Victor died Jan. 1, 2007. Service will be 11 a.m. Friday, Jan. 5, at Dodd-Payne-Hess Funeral Home, Fayetteville. Burial will follow in Restlawn Memory Gardens, Ansted. Friends may call from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home.

Sc Police Seek Robbery Suspects

South Charleston police were looking for a group of men who robbed a couple Tuesday evening. About 9:10 p.m., a man and his girlfriend were walking in a parking lot behind some bars on Seventh Avenue when a black man in a checkered or camouflage coat approached them, brandished a black pistol and took the man's wallet before getting in a car with two white men, Ptl. J.L. Myers said.

Nitro Approves Annexation Plans

Nitro City Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to annex about 25 acres of industrial land, including the site of a massive warehouse fire on May 4, Mayor Rusty Casto said. The Kanawha County Planning Commission and the County Commission must approve the annexation, he said.

City to Try Trestle Grant Second Time

balow@wvgazette.com With the blessing of City Council members, Charleston Mayor Danny Jones will apply again for federal funds to convert the old CSX railroad trestle on the West Side to a bike/pedestrian bridge.

World Weather

Amsterdam 53 42 Rain Athens 57 26 Clr

National Weather

Anchorage 14 5 Clr Atlanta 59 36 Rain

Opry Star Reeves Dies

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Del Reeves, a Grand Ole Opry star who sprinkled his performances with humor and hit No. 1 on the country charts in 1965 with the song "Girl on the Billboard," has died. He was 74. Reeves died Monday after an extended illness, Grand Ole Opry spokeswoman Jessie Schmidt said Tuesday.

Mystery Surrounds Cancer Agent

WASHINGTON - Maureen Cohen read a newspaper article about cancer- causing acrylamide in her kids' favorite snacks and wanted to know more. "I just got curious," said Cohen, a mother of three in Vienna, Va. "If it's known that it's a cancer-causing substance, I sure would like somebody to look into it and find out."

Clendenin Seeks Fire Cleanup Aid

sarahkwinn@wvgazette.com Clendenin town officials on Monday asked Kanawha County for money to help clean up the mess left behind by a huge fire last week.