In brief: Teens charged in neighbor’s death
NEW YORK – Two New Jersey brothers, ages 15 and 17, were arrested and charged with first-degree murder Tuesday in the death of a 12-year-old neighbor, Autumn Pasquale, who vanished while riding her bicycle and whose body was found in a recycling bin outside the suspects’ home.
Gloucester County prosecutor Sean F. Dalton told a news conference that the boys were taken into custody in Clayton after their mother contacted law enforcement regarding postings on one of their Facebook pages. Dalton said both brothers were charged with first-degree murder; conspiracy; tampering with evidence; disposal of the body; and theft. The 15-year-old was also charged with luring.
Autumn was reported missing Saturday evening after she failed to return home by her 8 p.m. curfew. Hundreds of law enforcement personnel and volunteers in southwestern New Jersey joined the search, which ended late Monday night when her body was found in a plastic recycling container just a few blocks from her home.
Shark attack kills surfer in California
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – A surfer was killed Tuesday by a shark off a beach at coastal Vandenberg Air Force Base following a summer of shark sightings along California’s Central Coast, authorities said.
Francisco Javier Solorio Jr., 39, of Orcutt, was killed in the attack off the coast of Surf Beach in Lompoc, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department said in a statement.
He was bitten by the shark in his upper torso.
Solorio “had a friend who he was surfing with who saw the shark bite or hit the man,” said sheriff’s Sgt. Mark A. Williams. “His friend ended up swimming over and pulling him from the water where he received first aid.”
The friend started first aid while another surfer called for help, but Solorio was pronounced dead by paramedics at the scene.
The Air Force said he was not affiliated with the base.
The type of shark involved and other details were under investigation.
Charges dropped against woman, 80
VERNON, Conn. – Prosecutors are dropping charges against an 80-year-old Connecticut woman who tore down political signs including one that showed President Barack Obama with an Adolf Hitler-style mustache.
Prosecutor Cynthia Baer told a judge in Rockville Superior Court on Tuesday that the signs were recovered and Nancy Lack won’t be prosecuted. Lack was arrested Oct. 11 in Hebron after she took down three posters being hung on Main Street by workers for frequent presidential candidate Lyndon LaRouche. The workers called police, and Lack was charged with breach of peace and larceny.
Lack told WVIT-TV she lived through World War II and was angry that someone would portray the president as a Nazi.
Jesse Jackson Jr. back at Mayo Clinic
CHICAGO – U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. was back at the Mayo Clinic for an evaluation Tuesday and possibly a longer stay, nearly two months after being released for treatment of bipolar disorder at the Minnesota hospital, his father said Tuesday.
“I don’t know how long he’s going to be there,” said his father, civil rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson.
The hospital confirmed Tuesday that Jackson was back at the facility in Rochester, Minn., for a follow-up evaluation.
His father said his son was at the clinic for a doctor’s visit, and a family spokesman said he would issue a statement after the evaluation.
Bag handler charged in theft of new bills
P HILADELPHIA – Federal authorities in Philadelphia say an airport baggage handler has been charged with stealing $20,000 in a new type of $100 bill never released to the public.
Prosecutors say Alex Price was working Oct. 11 when a US Airways flight arrived from Dallas carrying millions of dollars in the new $100 bill. The theft of $20,000 was reported after the shipment arrived at the Federal Reserve facility in East Rutherford, N.J.
An FBI agent alleges in court documents the 25-year-old Price said he was the only handler with direct access to the cash. The FBI says after a polygraph examination Tuesday he confessed and led authorities to the missing money in his car.