THE NATION TODAY
Ashcroft goes home to heal after surgery
Attorney General John Ashcroft was released from the hospital yesterday, less than a week after undergoing surgery to remove his gallbladder. Ashcroft, 61, left George Washington University Hospital shortly after noon, Justice Department officials said. Deputy Attorney General James B. Comey, who has acted in Ashcroft's place since the attorney general entered the hospital March 4, will continue to run the agency while Ashcroft recuperates at his home in the District of Columbia. It is unclear when he will return to work. (
MARYLAND
3 children are killed in blaze at rowhouse
BALTIMORE -- A rowhouse fire killed three children in East Baltimore yesterday, and a woman who jumped from a second-floor window was injured, fire officials said. The three children -- ages 1 month, 2 years, and 4 years -- were overcome by smoke and fire when firefighters rescued them from the home. The children died on the way to a hospital. A 45-year-old woman who may be the children's grandmother jumped from the second floor and suffered a broken leg and back injuries, a Fire Department spokesman said. (AP)Crews recover 2 bodies of taxi capsize victims
BALTIMORE -- The bodies of two of the three passengers missing since a water taxi capsized eight days ago were pulled yesterday from the city's Inner Harbor, officials said. Crews searched for the remaining missing passenger until dark, and were to resume today. The bodies of Andrew Roccella, 26, of Virginia, and 6-year-old Daniel Bentrem, of Harrisonburg, Va., were recovered yesterday afternoon, said Fire Chief William Goodwin. Corinne Schillings, 26, of Alexandria, Va., who planned to marry Roccella, remained missing. (AP)TEXAS
Police department eyes restoring reputation
DALLAS -- The Dallas Police Department, regarded as one of the nation's most progressive law-enforcement agencies a generation ago, is struggling to restore its once-proud reputation amid questions about the performance of officers and a fired police chief. In recent internal reviews, officers complained of staffing shortages, poor training, and unreliable vehicles. They reported having to pay for pens, notebooks, and car repairs out of their own pockets. A report by the 3,000-officer department's homeland security and investigations bureau cited a "pervasive lack of confidence in the command leadership." The job of police chief remains open since former chief Terrell Bolton was fired last year for poor performance. Bolton filed a wrongful-termination lawsuit last week against the city. Officials expect to hire a new chief in May. (AP)NEW YORK
Largest disaster drill held at Shea Stadium
NEW YORK -- More than 1,000 police, firefighters, and other emergency workers took part in a simulated weapon of mass destruction attack at New York's Shea Stadium yesterday that was the largest drill in city history. The test was staged to evaluate the city's emergency response system, and the results will be intensely analyzed, said Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who was on hand for the drill dubbed "Operation United Response." The four-hour test simulated an explosion and attack at the stadium, home to the New York Mets, and involved police, fire, and medical personnel, many clad in protective clothing. More than 1,000 volunteers played the role of victims or evacuees who could be seen being escorted from the stadium, where waiting ambulances filled the parking lots. (Reuters)
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