EPA yields on arsenic limits
The Environmental Protection Agency is proposing to allow higher levels of contaminants such as arsenic in the drinking water used by small rural communities, in response to complaints that they cannot afford to comply with recently imposed limits.
The proposal would roll back a rule that went into effect earlier this year and make it permissible for water systems serving 10,000 or fewer residents to have three times the level of contaminants allowed under that regulation. About 50 million people live in communities that would be affected by the proposed change.
The question of how to regulate drinking water quality has roiled Washington for years. Just before leaving office, President Clinton imposed a more stringent standard for arsenic, dictating that drinking water should contain no more than 10 parts per billion of the poison, which in small amounts is a known carcinogen.
EPA’s new proposal would permit drinking water to have arsenic levels of as much as 30 parts per billion in some communities.
Alexandria, Va.
No decision yet in Moussaoui case
Jurors in the death-penalty trial of Zacarias Moussaoui ended a third day of deliberations Friday without deciding whether the confessed al-Qaida conspirator is eligible for the death penalty.
The jury will return Monday morning.
Moussaoui is the only person in this country charged in connection with the Sept. 11 attacks. He pleaded guilty in April to conspiring with al-Qaida to hijack aircraft and other crimes. The sentencing trial will determine his punishment: death or life in prison.
Miami
Ex-Liberian leader’s son arrested
Charles McArthur Emmanuel, son of former Liberian President Charles Taylor, has been arrested by U.S. authorities in Miami, days after his father was handed over to a war crimes tribunal.
Emmanuel, a U.S. citizen, led Liberian forces who were responsible for Taylor’s security until he went into exile in 2003, according to an affidavit filed in federal court in Miami.
Emmanuel, 29, also known as Charles “Chuckie” Taylor Jr., was on a United Nations list of Liberians whose travel was restricted.
He was taken into custody Thursday night at Miami International Airport, when his flight from Trinidad had just landed, authorities said.
Emmanuel appeared in federal court Friday on a charge of passport fraud.
Modesto, Calif.
Exoneration sought for Scott Peterson
Scott Peterson’s family on Friday offered a $250,000 reward for information leading to an arrest in the murder of his pregnant wife.
Peterson was convicted of killing Laci Peterson and the couple’s unborn child on Christmas Eve 2002 and is on death row at San Quentin State Prison. But he has always maintained his innocence, and has appealed his conviction and death sentence.
Albany, N.Y.
NYC coyote dies during tagging
Hal, the coyote who paid a visit to New York City and was captured as he loped around Central Park, died as he was being tagged for release in the wild, a state official said Friday.
The coyote stopped breathing Thursday night during the routine tagging procedure and biologists could not revive him.
Pathologists were trying to determine whether the stress of his capture or captivity or something else contributed to the death of the year-old, 35-pound coyote.