LINCOLN, Neb. – The state of Nebraska made – and then abruptly took back – a job offer to a man convicted of murdering Dian Fossey, the American wildlife researcher whose work in Africa was the subject of the movie “Gorillas in the Mist.”
The Health and Human Services System announced Monday that Wayne Richard McGuire had been hired as program director of a mental health office.
The offer was withdrawn, however, after The Associated Press reported McGuire was found guilty in absentia in Rwanda in the 1985 slaying of Fossey, who was hacked to death at a jungle camp in Rwanda.
McGuire has denied any involvement in Fossey’s killing.
HHS spokeswoman Kathie Osterman said HHS higher-ups rescinded the offer because McGuire did not disclose his conviction on his application form or during his job interview. Earlier, Osterman had said the state agency knew of the conviction and did not believe McGuire’s conviction was legitimate.
Florida: Law proposed for Schiavo
Lawmakers proposed a measure Monday aimed at preventing Friday’s scheduled removal of a feeding tube that is keeping brained-damaged Terri Schiavo alive. Schiavo, 41, has been at the center of a bitter court battle between her parents and her husband, who wants to remove her feeding tube so she can die. A judge has cleared the way for the tube to be removed Friday.
Virginia: Bush plot suspect seeks exam
A Virginia man accused of joining al-Qaida and plotting to assassinate President Bush wants a doctor to examine scars on his back to corroborate claims that Saudi officials extracted a confession through torture. The motion was filed at the arraignment of Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, 23, in federal court, where he pleaded innocent to providing material support to terrorists and other charges. If convicted, he could be sentenced to up to 80 years in prison.
Maryland: Mfume makes Senate bid
Kweisi Mfume, a former five-term congressman who recently stepped down as president of the NAACP, announced Monday that he will run for the U.S. Senate next year in Maryland. If elected, Mfume would become the sixth black senator in U.S. history.
D.C.: Halliburton costs questioned
Pentagon auditors questioned more than $108 million in costs claimed by Halliburton on its $875 million contract to provide fuel in Iraq in 2003 and 2004, according to records released Monday. The Defense Contract Audit Agency also faulted Halliburton subsidiary KBR for failing to provide the records necessary to evaluate spending on the contract. The data KBR gave the auditors didn’t match the company’s internal accounting records, the agency said in a report dated Oct. 8. Vice President Dick Cheney headed Halliburton from 1995 to 2000.
Adviser Hughes picked as diplomat
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice introduced former presidential adviser Karen Hughes Monday as the Bush administration’s choice for a State Department post designed to change Islamic perceptions about America. Hughes, pending confirmation by the Senate, would become undersecretary of state for public diplomacy with the rank of ambassador.
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