Roseanne Barr in Talks to Replace Rosie

from the New York Post

Roseanne Barr has emerged as the top contender to replace Rosie O'Donnell next year on The View.

Since last week's announcement when Rosie said she planned to leave the show in June, several names have surfaced as possible replacements. Among them are Joan Rivers, Whoopi Goldberg, Kathie Lee Gifford and Connie Chung. Out of all of them, Roseanne seems to be the best fit.

The open chair is the No. 1 seat on the show, requiring a star who can, in effect, be the show's quarterback - moving the discussion along, introducing guests and other duties that a TV neophyte might not be able to pull off believably.

O'Donnell said Wednesday that she's leaving "The View" after one year because she and ABC could not agree on a new deal. Insiders have said she wanted more control over the show and decided to quit when that was denied. O'Donnell had replaced former co-host Meredith Vieira. Starr Jones, who also left the show last year, has yet to be replaced.

Philadelphia Stops Psychics

from The Philadelphia Inquirer

Philadelphia's fortune-tellers didn't see it coming. Suddenly they're facing a very unhappy future. Alerted to an obscure state law banning fortune-telling "for gain or lucre," the city's Department of Licenses and Inspections is closing storefront psychics, astrologers, phrenologists and tarot-card readers who charge money for their services. Inspectors had closed 16 shops since Tuesday.

Fortune-telling for profit is a third-degree misdemeanor. The law has been on the books for more than 30 years. Inspectors are not imposing fines, and police are not making arrests, but they will if these people try to return to work.

LOCAL CRIMESTOPPERS

from WDIV Detroit TV 4

A $6,000 reward is being offered for information leading to an arrest in a school threat case in the Rochester Community School District. For the second time in two weeks, four Rochester schools were closed because of anonymous threats.

Classes were canceled Friday at Rochester High School, Adams High School, West Middle School and Van Hoosen Middle School.

The Oakland County Sheriff's Department is not releasing any details about the threat, but they said a search of the schools found nothing. For more information, go to the Rochester Community School district Web site at www.rochester.k12.mi.us.

LOCAL Toyota Exceeds GM in Sales

from WDIV Detroit TV 4


General Motors, after more than 75 years as the No. 1 automaker in the U.S. and the world, has been surpassed by Toyota. In the first quarter, Toyota sold 2.35 million vehicles, while GM sold 2.26 million.

This is something analysts had predicted but weren't expecting these changes until later on in the year -- not in the first quarter. Toyota has had the No. 1 selling car for the last several years in the Toyota Camry. And Toyota has built a reputation for quality and for building better fuel efficient vehicles.

GM announced a restructuring plan in November of 2005 that called for closing 12 plants by 2008, slashing its workforce, reducing capacity and cutting costs.

LOCAL CRIMESTOPPERS

from WDIV Detroit TV 4

Detroit Police said they need help to catch a group of burglars who have robbed the same store more than a dozen times. In fact, according to police, the Dollar Discount store was broken into twice in the the past two days. Surveillance video of the latest robbery showed a man loading up a sack of electronics behind the counter. He looked directly into the surveillance camera and police released video of the break-in, hoping someone will recognize the burglar.

The Dollar Discount store was broken into seven times in 2005, several times last year, and has been robbed three times so far in 2007. Those who have any information about the robberies are being asked to call CRIMESTOPPERS at 800-SPEAK-UP.

Also, a man seen flashing small children and others at suburban shops was spotted again. Two years ago, he hit the Borders in Rochester Hills, and on April 12 he hit Borders, on April 21 he appeared at Marshalls and on April 22 he was reported in the Sears store. The Oakland County Sheriff's Department said it's time to put this man in jail.

The man targets specific stores like Marshalls and Borders, all in Rochester Hills and all within two miles of each other. Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said the man looks for young boys or girls once he enters a store.

Investigators believe he could be the same man who approached children who stepped away from their parents and flashed them in 2005. In the most recent incident, a child alerted their mother who, along with store personnel, chased the man outside and obtained partial license plate information.

Police are looking for a red burgundy pickup truck with a partial Michigan license plate of 054.

Those who have any information about the man are being asked to call 888-TURN-1-IN. Police said there is a significant reward for information leading to the arrest of the man.

LOCAL Farmer Jack Sells

from WDIV Detroit TV 4

It's selling time for Farmer Jack, a chain of grocery stores that have been in metro Detroit for decades. A & P Company, Inc., the company that owns Farmer Jack, announced that it is in negotiations for the potential sale of its operations in the Midwest. The company cited unsatisfactory operating trends in that market, and the need to devote resources to its expanding Northeast core business, as the reason for the action.

A&P has informed its employees in the Midwest and their union representatives that it anticipates the sale of groups of stores to selected bidders. The company said that it cannot release additional details concerning the ongoing process until definitive acquisition agreements are reached over the next few months.

A&P acquired the Farmer Jack chain in 1989 and at present operates 66 stores in southeast Michigan.

Mexico City Passes Abortion Bill

from MyWay News

Mexico City lawmakers voted to legalize abortion, a decision likely to influence policies and health practices across Mexico and other parts of heavily Roman Catholic Latin America. The proposal, approved 46-19, with one abstention, will take effect with the expected signing by the city's leftist mayor. Abortion opponents have already vowed to appeal the law to the Supreme Court, a move likely to extend the bitter and emotional debate in this predominantly Catholic nation.

Nationally, Mexico allows abortion only in cases of rape, severe birth defects or if the woman's life is at risk. Doctors sometimes refuse to perform the procedure even under those circumstances. The new law will require city hospitals to provide the procedure in the first trimester and opens the way for private abortion clinics. Girls under 18 would have to get their parents' consent.

The procedure will be almost free for poor or insured city residents, but is unlikely to attract patients from the United States, where later-term abortion is legal in many states. Under the Mexico City law, abortion after 12 weeks would be punished by three to six months in jail.

The proposal has created an emotional confrontation in a country where the majority of people are Roman Catholic.

An estimated 200,000 women have illegal abortions each year in Mexico, based on the number who show up at hospitals later seeking treatment for complications. Botched abortions using herbal remedies, black-market medications and quasi-medical procedures kill about 1,500 women each year and are the third-leading cause of death for pregnant women in the capital.

$4 Gasoline

from Bloomberg

Whether it's $50 to fill up your Prius or $130 for the Ford Expedition, $4-a-gallon gasoline is coming to a pump near you. Fuel prices are rising at a pace not seen since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita knocked out a third of the U.S. oil refining industry in 2005. Gasoline consumption is climbing twice as fast as last year and will accelerate when summer travel begins late next month.

Population gains and U.S. economic growth are causing an increase in fuel purchases. The U.S. economy will expand at a 2.4 percent annual pace in the second quarter, up from 1.8 percent in the first three months. Gasoline use is rising almost 5 percent above the five-year average.

Gasoline inventories, measured by the days of demand they will cover, are at the lowest level in two decades for this time of year because of refinery fires, power failures and maintenance work oil companies failed to complete in 2006. No new U.S. refinery has been built in three decades, increasing the strain on existing plants. Pump prices in the U.S. may increase to $4 a gallon from a nationwide average of $2.87 today, especially if hurricanes threaten Gulf of Mexico refineries.

Prices rose 33 percent in the past 11 weeks, the fastest rate of gain since a six-week, 34 percent rally to the record $3.069 in September 2005, Energy Department data show.

LOCAL HEADLINE STORY

Northwest Pilot on Cocaine
from CNN

An off-duty Northwest Airlines pilot was suspected of driving under the influence of cocaine when he headed the wrong way on an interstate to avoid the U.S.-Canada border and led deputies on a chase. Walter L. Dinalko, a veteran pilot of 20 years, had flown to Detroit Metropolitan Airport Saturday afternoon and then rented a Hummer that he drove about 70 miles to Port Huron.

Dinalko turned around three times on the Blue Water Bridge, apparently changing his mind about heading into Sarnia, Ontario. He then drove on the wrong side of the bridge and Interstate 94. U.S. Customs agents alerted sheriff's deputies, who closed down the expressway and gave chase.

Deputies laid down stop sticks, which flattened the Hummer's tires. Dinalko stopped but refused to surrender to deputies.

Dinalko, 50, of St. Paul, Minnesota, was taken to a hospital for a drug test before he was taken to jail. A user's quantity of a substance suspected to be cocaine was found in the vehicle, including one opened package and one sealed package. Toxicology tests on a sample of the pilot's blood were pending.

Dinalko was arraigned Sunday on charges of cocaine possession, eluding police, resisting officers and operating a vehicle under the influence of drugs. He was released Sunday after posting $10,000 bond.

HEADLINE STORY

Cell Phones May Be Wiping Out Bees

from The Independent (UK)

It seems like the plot of a particularly far-fetched horror film. But some scientists suggest that our love of the mobile phone could cause massive food shortages, as the world's harvests fail. They are putting forward the theory that radiation given off by mobile phones and other electronics is a possible answer to one of the more bizarre mysteries ever to happen in the natural world - the abrupt disappearance of the bees that pollinate crops. Late last week, some bee-keepers claimed that the phenomenon - which started in the US, then spread to continental Europe - was beginning to hit Britain as well.

The theory is that radiation from mobile phones interferes with bees' navigation systems, preventing the famously homeloving species from finding their way back to their hives. Improbable as it may seem, there is now evidence to back this up. Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) occurs when a hive's inhabitants suddenly disappear, leaving only queens, eggs and a few immature workers. The vanished bees are never found, but thought to die singly far from home. The parasites, wildlife and other bees that normally raid the honey and pollen left behind when a colony dies, refuse to go anywhere near the abandoned hives.

The alarm was first sounded last autumn, but has now hit half of all American states. The West Coast is thought to have lost 60 per cent of its commercial bee population, with 70 per cent missing on the East Coast. CCD has since spread throughout Europe.

The implications of the spread are alarming. Most of the world's crops depend on pollination by bees. Albert Einstein once said that if the bees disappeared, "man would have only four years of life left". No one knows why it is happening. Theories involving mites, pesticides, global warming and genetically engineered crops have been proposed, but all have drawbacks.

German research has long shown that bees' behaviour changes near power lines. Now a limited study has found that bees refuse to return to their hives when mobile phones are placed nearby.

LOCAL Inmates Released Early

from WDIV Detroit TV 4

The Washtenaw County Jail released inmates on Thursday because of overcrowding. In order to comply with the state jail overcrowding statue, which requires the reduction of inmates sentenced by up to 30 percent to help relieve overcrowding at the jail, the county has released 12 inmates.

The jail has been in a state of overcrowding since March 5 and remains overcrowded.

The jail has 332 beds available, and at last check on Friday morning, there were 357 inmates. The jail is currently closed to new arrests of minor crimes but will accept suspects of certain crimes, like assault, drugs and weapons crimes.

Sheriff's officials believe the overcrowding issue will be resolved by mid-May.

LOCAL Boy Robbed of Puppy at Gunpoint

from WDIV Detroit TV 4

Detroit police are investigating after a 14-year-old boy was robbed of his 3 week old pitbull labrador puppy at gunpoint. The boy was in the backyard of his westside Detroit home when an unknown man approached him and presented a handgun.

The man demanded the boy give up the dog.

The boy and his mother are evacuees of Hurricane Katrina and were unable to provide police with pictures of the dog.

LOCAL UPDATE: Troy Shooting Suspect in Custody

from WDIV Detroit TV 4

Police have announced they have Anthony Lacalamita, 38, in custody in connection with the workplace shooting inside Gordon Advisors Accounting Firm in Troy. A resident driving a pickup truck spotted the silver 2007 Ford Fusion that police were searching for and called 911. The Genessee County Sheriff's Department followed the car through Saginaw and pulled him over in Bay City. They said the rifle was found in the car, and the driver matched the shooter's description.

Lacalamita is being transported to the Genessee County jail.

One woman has died and two men are injured. Witnesses inside the building said there are armed police officers and guards outside. Officials have secured the basement and first floor and are working to secure the other floors. Employees were removed from the building in sections and taken to a neighboring building.

LOCAL BREAKING NEWS - CRIMESTOPPERS

Troy Workplace Shooting: 1 Dead, 2 Injured
from WDIV Detroit TV 4

Troy police are at the scene of a workplace shooting inside Gordon Advisors Accounting Firm.

Police received a tip call on Monday morning stating there was a shooting on the second floor of the 1301 Long Lake Crossings building on Long Lake Road.

The shooter has been identified as Anthony Lacalamita, 38. He is about 5 feet 8 inches tall and weighs 180 pounds. He has short dark hair and was wearing a dark-colored sweater. He is still armed with either a rifle or shotgun.

One woman has died and two men are injured. Some employees have barricaded themselves inside their offices, while others have been evacuated and taken to a nearby building. Witnesses inside the building said there are armed police officers and guards outside. Officials have secured the basement and first floor and are working to secure the other floors.

Ten members of the SWAT team entered the building in full gear but have not come out yet. Employees are being removed from the building in sections and taken to a neighboring building. There were injuries reported, but how many people were involved and the extent are not known at this time.

Police are searching for a silver 2007 Ford Fusion and said it may be related to the shooting. The license plate is BEY 0843.

If you have any information regarding this incident, or believe you know the whereabouts of Lacalamita please call Troy police at (248) 689-4455.

HEADLINE STORY

Girl Had Suspected 'Boyfriend' That Was a Woman
from ABC News

A 14-year-old girl authorities allege was sexually abused by a 30-year-old woman who posed as a teenage boy said she didn't know about the ruse but eventually suspected it. Lorelei Corpuz posed as a 17-year-old orphan to gain the trust of the girl's family, then beat and molested her. She was charged this week with child rape and child molestation and was being held in lieu of $150,000 bail.

Corpuz, who called herself Mark, met the girl at a mall and moved in with her. It started out as a regular teenage girlfriend-boyfriend thing, like holding hands, hugging, kissing, but over time it developed into something sexual. The suspect, however, never let victim see her private parts and victim always thought that suspect was male until a police officer informed her otherwise.

Corpuz was found out after an officer checked the suspect's vehicle, parked at an Everett gas station, to see whether it was stolen. The officer arrested Corpuz after the check pulled up an outstanding traffic warrant under an alias, Mark Villanueva.

Authorities allege Corpuz had sex with the girl, beat her and bit her twice on the back, leaving a scar. Snohomish County prosecutors have filed charges in District Court against Corpuz, but expected to refile them in Superior Court.

Disney to Allow Same Sex Ceremonies

from CNN

Same-sex couples who want to exchange vows in front of Cinderella's Castle now have the chance. The Walt Disney Co. had limited its Fairy Tale Wedding program to couples with valid marriage licenses, but it is now making ceremonies at its parks available to gay couples as well.

The company said it made the change after being contacted by a gay couple who wanted to use the wedding service, which offers ceremonies at Disneyland in California, Walt Disney World Resort in Florida and Disney's cruise ships. The service offers flowers, dining, music and many optional Disney touches, from ceremonies in front of the parks' iconic attractions to having Mickey and Minnie Mouse in formal wear as guests. The packages start at $8,000 and can cost more than $45,000.

Groups not affiliated with Disney have held annual "gay days" celebrations at Disney parks for years. Company officials have taken a tolerant attitude to the weekend, allowing party promoters to rent out parks after hours and rebuffing religious groups that condemned Disney. In 2005, Southern Baptists ended an eight-year boycott of the Walt Disney Co. for violating "moral righteousness and traditional family values."

R-Rated Movie Mix-up Shocks Families

from WDIV Detroit TV 4

A family-film audience was stunned to get an unintended glimpse of a horror movie, which left some parents shaken and the theater chain apologizing for the movie mix-up. The moviegoers were expecting to see The Last Mimzy, the PG-rated tale of a brother and sister who discover a mysterious box of toys and become endowed with superhuman powers to help preserve humanity's future.

Instead, the crowd saw the opening scene of The Hills Have Eyes 2, the R-rated sequel to a recent remake of a 1977 horror classic by the genre's renowned Wes Craven. The Hills Have Eyes 2, which centers on National Guard troops who stumble on a clan of mutant cannibals, starts with a chained woman giving birth to a mutant.

Another patron said the episode had left his 3-year-old son with lingering questions. Theater staffers soon stopped the movie, gave the patrons free ticket vouchers, and started "The Last Mimzy" about a half-hour late, according to parents.

The cinema company has expressed "deepest apologies" for the incident.

LOCAL Really Old Bones Found in Oakland Co

from WDIV Detroit TV 4

Two sets of human bones that are believed to be at least hundreds of years old were found in White Lake Township by an excavating crew clearing a site for a baseball field. State archaeologists say the bones are of an adult and child and are likely 700 to 2,000 years old. The bones were found March 26 on Township property owned by a local church.

However, no skulls were recovered. The bones were turned over to the Oakland County Medical Examiner's Office and are undergoing extensive study.

Dead Rat Found in Senior's Mouth

from Yahoo! News

Staffing was so inadequate at a California senior center that a rat crawled into an Alzheimer's patient's mouth and died there before staff noticed. A lawsuit, filed on behalf of 90-year-old Sigmund Bock, alleges that administrators at the Paragon Gardens Assisted Living and Memory Care Community in Mission Viejo overbooked their facility to receive corporate bonuses, but cut back on staff to increase profits.

Keith Richards Snorted his Dad's Ashes

from WDIV Detroit TV 4

Keith Richards has acknowledged consuming a raft of illegal substances in his time, but this may top them all. In comments published Tuesday, the 63-year-old Rolling Stones guitarist said he had snorted his father's ashes mixed with cocaine.

LOCAL CRIME STOPPERS ALERT

Pontiac Rapist Sketch Released by Police

from WDIV Detroit TV 4

Pontiac police said they are on the hunt for a suspected rapist and they released a sketch of a person of interest. Over the weekend, a man raped a woman and then tried to attack a second woman 30 minutes later. The first incident was reported to have taken place in Murphy Park around 10 p.m.

A boyfriend and girlfriend were sitting in a parked car when they told police a black man approached them and pointed a silver handgun at them. The boyfriend told police he was ordered out of the vehicle by the man and asked to empty his pockets.

When officers arrived at the scene with the boyfriend the woman was gone. After searching the park, the woman was located and told police she had been raped. The area had been secured with tracking dogs, and the Oakland County Sheriff's Department allocated helicopter and good patrols but the man was not located. Police are now waiting for DNA samples to come back from a lab.

At 10:31 p.m. on Saturday another woman reported being approached and robbed while sitting in a parked car in Beaudette Park. A black man showed her a gun and ordered her out of the car. She said the man had her open her trunk and then he took her purse and fled in a dented green Dodge Neon. Police said the man's description matches in both incidents.

The man is being described as black and in his 20s, 5 feet 10 inches to 6 feet 1 inch tall, with a thin build, mustache and short-length black Afro. The man was last seen wearing a dark winter jacket with a hood. Those who have any information on the man are being asked to contact Pontiac police at (248) 857-7890.

Jackson-Hewitt Accussed of Tax-Fraud Schemes

from WDIV Detroit TV 4

The government said Tuesday it is trying to shut down more than 125 Jackson Hewitt tax preparation stores in four states, including Michigan, for systematic "tax-fraud schemes." The Justice Department accuses the franchises of bilking the government out of more than $70 million through fraudulent practices such as using phony W-2 forms, bogus deductions and fuel tax credits and false claims regarding the earned income tax credit.

Jackson Hewitt Tax Services Inc. is the nation's second largest tax preparer. The franchises were either totally or partially owned by Farrukh Sohail of Atlanta, and involved a pervasive and massive series of tax-fraud schemes.

According to court documents, Sohail and other defendants "created, directed, fostered, and maintained a business environment" at the Jackson Hewitt franchises "in which fraudulent tax return preparation is encouraged and flourishes."

Employees were encouraged to ignore telltale signs of fraudulent information and to file claims even when it was obvious customers were using fake W-2 forms or false deductions. A sample of returns prepared by franchises connected to Sohail found 31 percent contained false information such as phony earned income tax credit claims, bogus deductions and fraudulent W-2 forms.

The suits, filed in federal courts in Chicago, Atlanta, Detroit and Raleigh, N.C., also allege that managers and employees at the Jackson Hewitt franchises took kickbacks for filing fraudulent returns. Managers at the franchises repeatedly told tax preparers that "we are not the IRS" and that it is not their responsibility to prevent customers from filing bogus returns. Many of the stores catered to customers seeking refund anticipation loans based on phony returns.
In one instance, a Jackson Hewitt franchise customer claimed a fuel tax credit for which the tax filer would have had to drive almost 1,400 miles a day. The suits seek court orders shutting down the franchises.

Ala. Woman on Horseback Charged with DUI

from Breitbart

A woman who went for a horseback ride through town at midnight and allegedly used the horse to ram a police car was charged with driving under the influence and drug offenses. Apparently cars were passing by having to avoid it, and almost hitting the horse. According to the police, DUI charges can apply even when the vehicle has four legs instead of wheels.

Police in the northeast Alabama town received a call around midnight Saturday about someone riding a horse on a city street. The responding officer found Melissa Byrum York, 40, of Henagar on horseback on a nearby road and attempted to stop her. Seals asked the woman repeatedly to get off the horse, but she kept trying to kick the animal to make it run.

After ramming the police car with the horse and riding away, the woman tried to jump off but caught her foot in a stirrup, Gregg said. The officer took the woman into custody and discovered that she had crystal meth, a small amount of marijuana, pills and a small pipe. York was charged with DUI for allegedly riding the horse under the influence of a controlled substance. She was also charged with drug possession, possession of drug paraphernalia, resisting arrest, assault, attempting to elude police and cruelty to animals.

FL Community Sues to Evict Toddler

from WDIV Detroit TV 4

A Florida homeowners group wants 3-year-old Kimberly Broffman to take her Big Wheel and hit the road. They've banded together to oust the toddler from their Tampa-area community, which bans residents under 18.

The child's grandparents, Judie and Jimmy Stottler, admit Kimberly's been living there in violation of homeowners' association rules for three years. They said her mother has a drug problem, and isn't capable of caring for the child. The grandparents said they live on a fixed income and can't afford to move until they sell their house. So far, there have been no takers to buy their house, even after they lowered the $189,000 asking price by $10,000 six months ago.

They also said they can't afford to hire an attorney. Judie Stottler supports the family with her $18,000-per year dishwashing job because Jimmy Stottler is disabled and is unable to work. Judie Stottler's friends told the St. Petersburg Times that they are worried.

The Lakes homeowners association filed suit to oust Kimberly last month.

LOCAL HS Senior Runs for School Board

from WDIV Detroit TV 4

A high school senior -- four days too young to get his name on the local school board ballot -- will take his chances as a write-in candidate. Phil Nichols' 18th birthday was Feb. 17. Under state law, candidates on the ballot must be 18 or older by the filing deadline, which was Feb. 13 in the race for the Howell Public Schools Board of Education. But the requirement doesn't apply to those running a write-in campaign, as long as they're 18 when taking the oath of office.

Nichols said he was inspired to run by his opposition to the Livingston Organization for Values in Education. The group has complained about profanity and sexual content of some books assigned to advanced English students at Howell High School.

Nichols plans to attend Eastern Michigan University in the fall, but said he could handle his schoolwork and service on the board.

British Team Grows Heart Valve from Stem Cells

from the Guardian (UK)

British research team led by the world's leading heart surgeon has grown part of a human heart from stem cells for the first time. If animal trials scheduled for later this year prove successful, replacement tissue could be used in transplants for the hundreds of thousands of people suffering from heart disease within three years.

The team at the heart science centre at Harefield hospital has grown tissue that works in the same way as the valves in human hearts, a significant step towards the goal of growing whole replacement hearts from stem cells. Currently, many people suffering from heart valve disease have artificial replacement valves. Though they save lives, the artificial valves are far from perfect. They perform none of the more sophisticated functions of living tissue, children need their valves replaced as they grow, and patients need a lifetime of drugs to prevent complications after surgery.