Charleston Daily Mail

Video to Highlight Problem of Abuse: ; Police Hope Shocking Film Will Help Lawmakers Realize What a Big Issue Child Exploitation Is

State Police are hoping a "shocking" video produced about the growing incidence of child exploitation will persuade legislators to provide them with assistance and funding needed to combat the problem. Legislators are scheduled to watch the video this afternoon in a combined session of the House of Delegates and state Senate.

Officials Weigh Raises: ; Charleston Among Area Municipalities Hoping for Pay Hikes Despite Financial Squeeze

Despite mounting economic and financial concerns - including a significant increase in employer contributions to retiree plans - some local government officials say they are still eyeing raises for employees next fiscal year. Local leaders are just beginning to work out budget details for fiscal year 2010-11, which begins July 1. But several local city officials say they are trying to find a way to balance budgets while also providing across-the-board raises to workers.

Minister and His Daughters Traveling to Haiti: ; Family Once Lived There and Know the Language, so They Hope to Work As Interpreters

Inside Church sponsoring fundraiser, vigil for Haiti / 8B A family of missionaries is making their way from their home in Nitro to Haiti, where they hope to help those affected by the devastating earthquake.

Let Freedom Ring: ; Five Delegates Mark a Milestone; African-American Contingent Biggest Ever in W.Va. House

Inside Speakers at commemoration recall Kings uncommon spirit / 7A As America takes time this week to honor the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., West Virginia is marking a civil rights milestone of its own.

Timber Industry Hits Hard Times: ; Housing Downturn Causes Production to Fall, Third of Mills to Close

The state's top forestry official says that by nearly every measure, West Virginia's timber industry is hurting. Production is down, a third of the state's mills have halted production or closed forever and hundreds of loggers have lost their jobs.

Boil Water Advisories Issued

West Virginia American Water has issued boil-water advisories for some customers in Nitro and Charleston's South Hills area. The first advisory includes customers west of 135 Main Ave. in Nitro. The affected streets are Layne Avenue, Lock Street, Minor Avenue and Broadway Street.

Bill Would Turn Promise Into Loan: ; Recipients Who Leave the State After Graduation Would Be Required to Pay the Money Back

In his State of the State address, Gov. Joe Manchin asked Promise Scholarship recipients to stay in West Virginia after graduating college. Now, two lawmakers want to put the governor's request in writing. Delegate Mitch Carmichael, R-Jackson, and Delegate Ron Walters, R- Kanawha, are sponsoring a bill that would turn the state's scholarship program, now nine years old, into a "forgivable loan" program.

Police and Courts

Police say suspect tried to ditch drugs Police arrested a South Charleston man after he allegedly tried to ditch an ounce of cocaine near a house police were searching for drugs.

Storms in Mideast Kill British Tourist

CAIRO - Heavy rains and flash floods left seven people dead in Egypt and Israel on Monday, including a British tourist who was killed when a sailboat capsized on the Nile River. Egyptian police said the British tourist was with three companions on a Nile sailboat cruise when their boat overturned in heavy winds and sudden rain.

Obama, First Lady Honor King's Legacy

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama served plates of steaming hot lunches to the needy on Monday, one of several ways the nation's first black president paid tribute to Martin Luther King Jr. on the federal holiday that honors the slain civil rights leader. Obama also scheduled a White House talk with black elders and their grandchildren about the movement for racial equality that King led until he was assassinated in 1968. The president also was to speak later Monday during a musical celebra...

Chinese Battle Cold, Harsh Winter

BEIJING - Rescue workers evacuated thousands of rural residents from parts of northwestern China after extreme cold and blizzard conditions killed four people and left half a million snowed under, meteorologists said Monday. In neighboring Mongolia, an official appealed for help from the international community as his country battles the most severe winter it has seen in three decades.

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Nation & World

Man killed by daughter's dogs

Hot Finish Set for Kennedy Seat: ; Obama Tv Ad Airs in Last-Ditch Effort of; Close Senate Campaign

BOSTON - Nearly one year to the day after President Barack Obama was sworn into office as an agent of change, Massachusetts Senate candidates battled to the wire Monday in an election that threatened his agenda and reflected voters' frustration with the status quo. Democrat Martha Coakley and Republican Scott Brown scoured the state for votes on the eve of the special election to succeed the late Edward M. Kennedy, with the Democrats' 60-vote Senate supermajority at stake.

Marriage Now Offers Financial Help to Men: ; Increasingly, Women Are More Educated; and Earn More at Work

NEW YORK - Historically, marriage was the surest route to financial security for women. Nowadays it's men who are increasingly getting the biggest economic boost from tying the knot, according to a new analysis of census data. The changes, summarized in a Pew Research Center report released Tuesday, reflect the proliferation of working wives over the past 40 years - a period in which American women outpaced men in both education and earnings growth. A larger share of today's men, compared wit...

Chemicals Coat Apples Decades After Alar Scare

YAKIMA, Wash. - More than two decades after parents dumped apples from children's lunch boxes because of concerns about a chemical applied to the fruit, most researchers agree the crop is safer although most of it still carries pesticide residue. Growers saw prices plunge after a 1989 television report led to widespread fears apples were coated in a cancer-causing chemical called Alar, used to enhance crunch and color. The public outcry led the government to ban some chemicals and increase ov...

Fda to Study Cigarette Ingredients: ; Agency Will Use Data to Create New Tobacco Standards and Possibly Ban Some Additives

RICHMOND, Va. - The Food and Drug Administration is working to lift the smokescreen clouding the ingredients used in cigarettes and other tobacco products. In June, tobacco companies must tell the FDA their formulas for the first time, just as drugmakers have for decades. Manufacturers also will have to turn over any studies they've done on the effects of the ingredients.

Taco Bell Founder Dies at 86

RANCHO SANTA FE, Calif. - Glen W. Bell Jr., an entrepreneur best known as the founder of the Taco Bell chain, has died. He was 86. Bell died Sunday at his home in Rancho Santa Fe, according to a statement posted Monday on the Taco Bell Web site.

Speakers Recall King's 'Uncommon' Spirit

Community leaders and residents gathered at Asbury United Methodist Church to commemorate the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and then make the traditional march together to the state Capitol as a finale to the event. Speakers hailed King as a prophet of peace, but said he should also be remembered as a revolutionary who sparked social change through his uncommon beliefs.