Jena Six judge removed from case

August 2, 2008

NEW ORLEANS - The judge overseeing the criminal cases for the five remaining Jena Six defendants was removed against his will yesterday for making questionable remarks about the teenagers. Judge J.P. Mauffray Jr. had acknowledged calling the teens "troublemakers" and "a violent bunch" but insisted he could be impartial. Six black teenagers were initially charged with attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder in connection with a Dec. 4, 2006, attack on fellow Jena High School student Justin Barker, who is white. The charges were later reduced. The case aggravated racial tensions in the tiny central Louisiana town and led to a massive civil rights demonstration last fall. (AP)

OWATONNA - National Transportation Safety Board investigators were surveying the scene and looking for clues yesterday in the wreckage of a small jet that crashed while trying to land at a regional airport Thursday. Some investigators were seen examining the runway, where witnesses said the plane landed and went airborne again before disappearing into a row of trees about 500 feet from the runway's edge. Authorities said the cockpit voice recorder was in good condition and could yield information on why the plane crashed. (AP)

PHILADELPHIA - Four social workers were among nine people charged in the death of a disabled 14-year-old girl who authorities say wasted away from neglect before dying at 42 pounds. Danieal Kelly's mother was charged with murder; counts against other defendants range from involuntary manslaughter to perjury. District Attorney Lynne Abraham said any of the nine could have foreseen the horrific fate of Danieal, whose emaciated body was found in her mother's squalid house covered with bone-deep, maggot-infested bedsores in August 2006. (AP)

NEW YORK -A 12-year-old girl is relatively unscathed after falling 180 feet down a New York City chimney. Authorities say a 2-foot pile of soot and dust cushioned her fall, though both her legs were broken. The girl apparently climbed into the chimney Thursday night while playing on the roof of a building in Manhattan. Rescuers found her at the chimney's base in a boiler room. Fire Lieutenant Simon Ressner says rescuers hadn't expected to find her alive and were stunned when she reached her hand out for help. (AP)