Meowing Molly pulled to freedom
Molly the cat is finally free.
After two weeks stuck behind a brick wall in a 19th-century building, the bashful 11-month-old feline was rescued from her plight Friday night by a volunteer who found her wedged in a crawl space between bricks and a piece of sheet metal.
At the end of the ordeal, the black cat emerged from the building lying in a metal cage – calm and docile as cameras flashed and onlookers cooed.
“I think you’ll all agree that she is in great shape,” said Peter Myers, who owns the delicatessen housed in the building and kept Molly in his store to catch mice.
Molly’s ordeal became international news this week as reporters and onlookers gathered to hear her distressed meows. Rescuers drilled and hammered out bricks in the cellar of the 157-year-old building and tried everything from special cameras to traps to get her out.
Los Angeles
Skid Row arrests scuttled by court
A federal appeals court ruled Friday that the Los Angeles Police Department cannot arrest people for sitting, lying or sleeping on public sidewalks on Skid Row, saying such enforcement amounts to cruel and unusual punishment because there are not enough shelter beds for the city’s huge homeless population.
The long-awaited decision effectively kills Los Angeles Police Chief William J. Bratton’s original blueprint for cleaning up Skid Row by removing homeless encampments that rise each evening around the 50-block downtown district. That plan has been on hold for three years, and city leaders have recently backed a less aggressive policy.
Independence, Mo.
Couple charged in sextuplets hoax
A couple who lied about having sextuplets and were showered with money and other gifts were charged Friday with stealing from the people they fooled.
Kris and Sarah Everson admitted to police and reporters earlier this week that it was a hoax. They had been telling people that Sarah Everson gave birth in March to six critically ill babies.
The Grain Valley couple were charged with stealing by deceit and could get up to seven years in prison. A judge entered not guilty pleas for them.
Reno, Nev.
Harrah’s wins case over makeup rule
A casino company’s requirement for female bartenders to wear makeup does not amount to sexual discrimination, a federal appeals court ruled Friday.
Lawyers for Harrah’s Entertainment Inc. said the 7-4 ruling against Darlene Jespersen – who was fired in 2000 for refusing to wear makeup after 21 years as a bartender at Harrah’s in Reno – affirms the right of employers to adopt reasonable dress and grooming standards.