In brief: Man survives plunge over Niagara Falls
NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. – A man survived a plunge of at least 180 feet over Niagara Falls in an apparent suicide attempt Monday – only the third person known to have lived after going over the falls without a safety device.
Niagara Parks Police said witnesses reported seeing the man climb over a railing 20 to 30 feet out over the Horseshoe Falls at 10:20 a.m. and “deliberately jump” into the Niagara River. Seriously injured, he surfaced in the lower Niagara River basin near the Journey Behind the Falls observation platform and managed to make it to shore on his own.
The man was airlifted to a Hamilton General Hospital with what police initially said were life-threatening injuries. Hospital spokeswoman Agnes Bongers said later that the man was critically injured but was expected to survive.
The man, believed to be in his 30s or 40s, was rescued about two hours later after fire department rescuers rappelled down the steep and rocky gorge and pulled him in a basket back up the cliff.
Senate targets Iran with tough penalties
WASHINGTON – Intent on weakening Iran economically, the Senate on Monday approved tough new penalties on the Tehran regime to thwart its nuclear ambitions.
By voice vote, the Senate backed the measure ahead of talks between leading nations and Iran in Baghdad on Wednesday. The bill would target Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, require companies that trade on the U.S. stock exchange to disclose any Iran-related business to the Securities and Exchange Commission, and expand penalties for energy and uranium mining joint ventures with Tehran.
The bill also would deny visas and freeze assets on individuals and companies that supply Iran with technology that could be used to crack down on its citizens, such as tear gas, rubber bullets and surveillance equipment.
The House passed its version of sanctions legislation in December.
No clemency for Canadian inmate
HELENA – The Montana Parole Board on Monday recommended that a Canadian man on death row be denied clemency, saying “justice is best served” by continuing with the execution.
Ronald A. Smith’s case now goes to Gov. Brian Schweitzer, who could grant him clemency before leaving office at year’s end. Smith is seeking life in prison without the possibility of parole – instead of the death sentence he now faces.
Smith is believed to be one of two Canadians on death row in the United States.
He argues his original 1983 trial for shooting two Blackfeet cousins was botched. His attorneys also have argued it is fundamentally unfair that Smith, of Red Deer, Alberta, be killed while an accomplice was long ago released on parole and returned to Canada.
Smith was 24 years old when he marched the two young men into the woods just off U.S. 2 near Marias Pass and shot them both in the head. He says he was out of his mind on drugs and alcohol.
Chairman of NRC is stepping down
WASHINGTON – The chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission who was championed by watchdogs for his cautious approach to nuclear power but criticized by Republicans in Congress for an overly hard-charging style has announced he will step down.
Gregory Jaczko, who led the commission’s efforts to protect Americans in Japan during the nuclear crisis at Fukushima and played a key role in fighting the nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain as a former top aide to Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., the majority leader, came under scrutiny for what critics called an overbearing management approach at the agency.
His resignation is effective upon confirmation of his successor.
Top Middle East diplomat will retire
WASHINGTON – U.S. officials say the Obama administration’s top diplomat for the Middle East is stepping down to take a senior position at the United Nations.
The officials said Monday that Jeffrey Feltman, assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs who has guided U.S. policy through the tumult of the Arab Spring, plans to retire from the foreign service at the end of May and become a deputy to U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon.