WASHINGTON — Two contract employees for the State Department have been fired and a third disciplined for inappropriately looking at Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama’s passport file, a spokesman said Thursday. A spokesman said the department detected the instances of “imprudent curiosity,” which occurred separately on Jan. 9, Feb. 21 and March 14. “We believe this was out of imprudent curiosity, so we are taking steps to reassure ourselves that that is, in fact, the case,” he said. A spokesman for Obama’s presidential campaign called for a complete investigation.
@3. Headline Briefs 14 no:Libby banned from D.C. law practice
Former top White House aide Lewis Libby was banned Thursday from practicing law in the nation’s capital following his perjury conviction in the case of a CIA operative’s leaked identity. The disbarment order of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals had been expected. “When a member of the bar is convicted of an offense involving moral turpitude, disbarment is mandatory,” the appeals court ruled. Libby was the only person to face criminal charges in the case of the 2003 leak of the agent’s identity.
@3. Headline Briefs 14 no:A warning about the Beijing Olympics
The State Department is advising Americans planning to attend the Olympic Games in Beijing to take care and be mindful that they could be under surveillance. “All hotel rooms and offices are considered to be subject to on-site or remote technical monitoring at all times,” the department’s Bureau of Consular Affairs advised on Thursday. “Hotel rooms, residences and offices may be accessed at any time without the occupant’s consent or knowledge.”
New York: Crane-death charges
A city inspector has been charged with lying about checking on a construction crane that later collapsed, killing seven people in a dense Manhattan neighborhood. Edward Marquette, 46, was arraigned and released without bail Thursday on charges of falsifying business records and offering a false instrument for filing. If convicted, Marquette faces up to four years in prison. The 20-story crane broke away Saturday from an apartment tower under construction and toppled over, killing six construction workers and a visitor in town for St. Patrick’s Day.
Nevada: Rodents blamed for flood
Burrowing rodents caused a century-old irrigation canal to fail and flood a rural Nevada town in January, a team of experts concluded in a report for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation made public Thursday night. Muskrats, beavers, gophers and other rodents dug holes as deep as 25 feet into the earthen canal embankment over the years, according to the report. Water burst through a 50-foot breach in the weakened structure at 4 a.m. on Jan. 5 and flooded hundreds of homes in Fernley, a community of about 20,000 residents about 30 miles east of Reno.
Tennessee: Drag racer charges
A professional drag racer whose car plowed into a parade crowd last summer has surrendered to authorities in Selmer. The Tennessee Highway Patrol says Troy Critchley faces multiple felony charges. Six people died and 22 were injured in the crash. The trial is scheduled for Nov. 3. Critchley had been spinning the tires of his car to send up clouds of smoke when his car crashed at a charity event.
New Jersey: Gambling ban sticks
A man who has been trying to get off New Jersey’s no-gambling list almost ever since he put himself on it is out of luck, an appeals court has ruled. A lawyer for the man said his client acted on impulse after a big loss and didn’t know casinos outside the state would see that he voluntarily gave himself a lifetime ban from gambling in Atlantic City. He asked the state Casino Control Commission to remove his name from the list, but it refused, and a three-judge state appeals court panel rejected his appeal in a decision released Thursday.
Israel: Egypt may power Gaza
Israeli defense officials say they’ve worked out a tentative deal for Egypt to become the main electricity supplier to the Gaza Strip. The officials say the agreement, announced Thursday, stems from Israel’s desire to cut ties with Gaza. Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005 but remains the area’s main power supplier. If the deal goes through, Egypt is expected to build a power line and supply 150 megawatts to Gaza.
Nicaragua: Traffickers dump cocaine
Drug traffickers fleeing Nicaraguan authorities and the U.S. Coast Guard dumped 3,300 pounds of cocaine into the ocean off Central America before escaping, police said Thursday. Lawmen chased the traffickers along the coast from Tuesday afternoon into Wednesday, when the four ditched their boat at a beach just south of Puerto Cabezas, local police said. The fugitives threw 50 packages of cocaine into the sea and abandoned their 24-foot boat, a navy commander said.
From Herald news services
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
