Week In Review A Look Back At The Top Stories From The Last Week

CRIME AND THE COURTS

Ruby Ridge revisited

The Ruby Ridge saga continues with the arrest Thursday of Kevin Harris, charged in Boundary County, Idaho, with first-degree murder for firing the shot that killed Deputy U.S. Marshal William Degan in 1992. Harris turned himself in to authorities in Republic, Wash., where the town turned out to show support for a man many believe should be left alone. Prosecutor Denise Woodbury also leveled an involuntary manslaughter charge at FBI sharpshooter Lon Horiuchi for shooting Weaver’s wife, Vicki, in the head and killing her. Woodbury concluded Horiuchi was careless when he fired into the doorway of the Weaver family’s cabin while trying to shoot Harris.

“Based on the evidence that I’ve looked at, I have a reasonable belief we can prove these charges,” said Woodbury, five years after the FBI siege of separatist Randy Weaver’s cabin in North Idaho.

Weaver and Harris were acquitted of murder and conspiracy charges in a federal trial in Boise.

BUSINESS AND LABOR

Package deal

Striking United Parcel Service workers went back to work last week after Teamsters and management agreed to a five-year contract that included pretty much everything the union had asked for.

The 15-day strike disrupted package deliveries nationwide.

President Ron Carey said the union won 10,000 new full-time jobs that would be created from existing part-time positions.

Labor of love

Four days after winning the biggest labor victory in a generation, Ron Carey found out he’d have to run for Teamster president again.

A federal order Friday called for another election against rival James P. Hoffa. Carey personally was accused of no wrongdoing, but the federal official monitoring the first election charged that his staff had violated federal law by engaging in “a complex network of schemes” to divert hundreds of thousands of dollars to his campaign.

Hoffa, who was none to happy about the timing of the ruling, finds himself in the unenviable position of having to run against the man who many believe saved American labor.

“They waited until after the Teamster strike when he’s in the national limelight,” said Rich Leebove, Hoffa’s spokesman.

Beef chucked

Vastly expanding what was already the largest food recall in U.S. history, a Nebraska plant that packaged possibly tainted hamburger patties is ordering back an estimated 25 million pounds of the product and will close indefinitely, Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman said Thursday.

Hudson Foods Inc., owner of the Columbus facility, agreed to broaden dramatically the scope of the recall after federal agriculture officials issued a “nonnegotiable” recommendation, Glickman said. Federal inspectors had uncovered production practices suggesting that more frozen beef might have been contaminated with E. coli bacteria than originally suspected.

The week before, the Hudson plant was linked to 16 Colorado cases of E. coli food poisoning.

The Hudson products - all bearing establishment No. 13569 - were distributed to grocery stores, fast-food chains and warehouse outlets, including Safeway, Sam’s Clubs (owned by Wal-Mart), Burger King and Boston Market.

Media fumble

The Washington State University Cougars finally produced some offense last week.

Advertisements carrying the theme “Boycott TV Violence, Come See the Cougs in Person” offended just about everybody.

Athletic Director Rick Dickson said the agency that designed the ads, Hanna & Associates of Coeur d’Alene, was simply trying to portray the Cougars as a “flat-out, hard-nosed” team like the Oakland Raiders.

“That’s the theme they were trying to hit on without obviously being aware of or recognizing the other connotations,” Dickson said Tuesday.

Angry letter writers pointed out that those other connotations include glorifying violence and insulting Mothers Against Drunk Driving, particularly in the campaign’s widely broadcast radio spot.

WSU officials, now on defense, canceled the campaign, which was described by one letter writer as “just Beavis-and-butthead stupid.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo

The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = Compiled by News Editor Kevin Graman from wire reports