Charleston Daily Mail

Family Focus of Visit ,Kerry's Wife Speaks On Effects, Options in the Coal Industry

Teresa Heinz Kerry says West Virginia and the rest of the nation should work a little harder to balance the economic and environmental effects of coal mining, and look for better ways to fuel the state's economic engines. With her husband on a national tour talking about homeland security and national defense, the woman who wants to bounce Laura Bush from her spot as First Lady was focused more on matters of the heart Wednesday during her stop in Charleston.

Work Crews Get Save, All-Star Effort Fixes Storm Damage In: ; Time for Tournament

IT wasn't your usual hump day at Watt Powell Park. This Wednesday was about scaling some real heights. Well, that's unless you were talking about what until Tuesday night was the center field wall. You could step over that.

W.Va. Taxes Outgrow Population, Census Says Higher Per-Resident Taxes Due to Low Growth

West Virginia has moved from 24th to 18th in the nation in the amount of state taxes it collects per resident, newly released figures show. The main culprit driving the upsurge is a population in the state that shrunk slightly over the past decade while the population in all 50 states grew by 12 percent.

Tenet Resigns As Head of Cia, Citing Personal Reasons, Bush Says Official Did a Superb Job, Will Be Missed

WASHINGTON - CIA Director George Tenet, who weathered storms over intelligence lapses about suspected weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, has resigned, President Bush said today. "I will miss him," Bush said.

Beckley Speller Among Top 26, Yiping Wang Spells Turbinado to Advance to Next Televised Round

WASHINGTON - Yiping Wang may be a boy of few words, but he certainly can spell them. Yiping, 12, is one of only 26 spellers to advance in this morning's fifth round at the 77th Annual Scripps National Spelling Bee. Two hundred and sixty-five students began the competition.

Truck Accident Snarls Traffic On I-64, Vehicles Rerouted After Rig Overturned,: ; Spilling Its Load

Motorists headed westbound on Interstate 64 today faced a traffic jam and were forced to detour through South Charleston after a tractor-trailer overturned and blocked two lanes. The driver of the Tennessee-bound rig lost control about 6 a.m. when he was attempting to cross the Interstate 64 bridge at South Charleston, said Dunbar Police Cpl. Bill Moss.

Man Enters Guilty Plea to Drug Making Charge

A man who cooked methamphetamine in a rented Charleston home has pleaded guilty to one count of drug manufacturing in federal court. Dewayne Means, who now lives in St. Albans, pleaded guilty Wednesday in U.S. District Court.

W.Va. Muslim Woman's Revolt to Expand

Nearly seven months ago in the middle of Ramadan, Asra Nomani took a deep breath and entered the front door of the Islamic Center in Morgantown, shunning tradition and the women's balcony to pray on the main floor. The 38-year-old single mother had no intention of praying right next to the men. She just wanted to be able to see and hear the prayer leader.

Five Relief Workers Killed in Ambush in Afghanistan, Agency Halting: ; Operations After; Deadly Ambush

KABUL, Afghanistan - A Nobel Peace Prize-winning relief agency suspended operations in Afghanistan today, a day after five of its aid workers were killed in an ambush claimed by the former Taliban regime. The assault on the Medecins Sans Frontieres operation in northern Afghanistan's Badghis province was the deadliest on foreign aid workers since the radical Islamic militia was ousted in late 2001 and cast new doubt on the country's readiness for national elections slated for September.

Wash. Pyrotechnics May Have Been Meteor, Space Junk

SEATTLE - Bright flashes and sharp booms were reported in the skies over the Puget Sound area early today, and experts said a meteor or falling "space junk" may have been the source. Nothing unusual was detected on National Weather Service radar, and authorities also ruled out aircraft problems or military flight tests.

Fighting in Iraqi City Grinds On Despite Truce, Influential Cleric Gives Government a Tacit Endorsement

NAJAF, Iraq - Fighting broke out today in nearby Kufa between U.S. soldiers and Shiite militiamen - the eighth straight day of clashes since a deal last week to end the violence. The country's most influential Shiite cleric, meanwhile, tacitly endorsed Iraq's new interim government. At least six Iraqis were killed and 11 injured in the skirmishes in Kufa, Najaf's twin city and stronghold of radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, militiamen hospital officials said.

Opec Boosts Production Ceiling, Cartel to Boost Daily Output Target by 2 Million Barrels

BEIRUT, Lebanon - OPEC has agreed to raise its production ceiling by 2 million barrels a day next month in a bid to bring down uncomfortably high prices of crude, several key oil ministers said today. The group also agreed to raise the target by an additional 500,000 barrels a day in August if necessary, they said.

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News Briefs

U.N. troops kill 2 in Congo protests KINSHASA, Congo - U.N. troops shot and killed two protesters as angry, looting mobs stormed a U.N. base in Congo's capital today in massive protests over the fall of an eastern border city, a U.N. spokesman said.

Carper Wants Trash Pickup to Be Mandatory, Officials Expect: ; Big Response to; Voluntary Cleanup

Kanawha County's annual cleanup program already has brought in more trash than usual, but officials expect to receive an especially big haul during the final two days of collection on Friday and Saturday because of the past week's flooding. Commissioner Kent Carper wants to do even more to clean up the county by having the commissioners take up the issue of mandatory trash pickup at their meeting next week.

'Scavengers' Warned Not to Eat Contaminated Food, Open, Canned Goods Not Safe, Relief Official Says

Workers at Valley Market in Logan hesitated as they dumped piles of food exposed to this week's floodwaters into their parking lot. They knew it meant a swarm like bees bent for honey was on the horizon.

Police Officer's Son: ; Allegedly Steals Dad's Car

AUBURNDALE, Fla. - A police officer's son stole his dad's cruiser in the middle of the night and used it to pull over his ex- girlfriend, authorities said. Richard Melius, 20, first made more than a dozen harassing phone calls to the former girlfriend, then stole the cruiser's keys while his father, Lakeland Sgt. Mark Melius, was sleeping early Tuesday, officials said.

Nitro to Fix Drainage Problem

Nitro city officials and some residents say they are determined to solve a drainage problem that may cost $30,000 to fix along 10th Street. At Wednesday's council meeting, Mayor Rusty Casto said he has "had enough" and will do whatever it takes to fix the problem. Casto also said the city would seek legal action against a local developer he says is responsible for the damage.

Warner Will Sign Pledge If Manchin Will Debate, Clean Campaign,: ; Focus On Issues Goals of Agreement

Republican Monty Warner said today that he'd sign a proposal prohibiting the gubernatorial campaigns from airing most types of negative commercials if his opponent, Democrat Joe Manchin, would agree to a dozen debates. "Any agreement between the two campaigns has to include about a dozen debates," said Warner campaign manger Dick Leggitt. "If we're going to talk about the issues and we're not going to do negative campaigning, let's talk about the issues."