MIDWEST

JUDGE THROWS OUT SUIT AGAINST KENNEDY SMITH

CHICAGO – A judge yesterday threw out a civil lawsuit filed against William Kennedy Smith by a former personal assistant who alleged he sexually assaulted her.

Mr. Smith, the nephew of Edward Kennedy, the Democratic senator of Massachusetts, has repeatedly denied he assaulted Audra Soulias.

“The lawsuit had no merit from the beginning, it was frivolous,” said Dan Webb, Mr. Smith’s attorney. “Of course she was trying to cash in … this case has been about money from the beginning.”

Mr. Smith, who was cleared of rape charges in Florida in 1991, has said Ms. Soulias demanded a $3 million payoff in exchange for not going to court. He said after the lawsuit was filed in August that “family and personal history have made me unusually vulnerable to these kinds of charges.”

Ms. Soulias’s attorney Kevin O’Reilly said he would refile the lawsuit. He said Ms. Soulias was “hurt” the case was dismissed but “happy it all came out.”

According to the lawsuit, Mr. Smith bought Ms. Soulias drinks while she was celebrating her birthday in January 1999, and after taking her to his Chicago home, he dragged her upstairs and allegedly assaulted her.

– Associated Press

WASHINGTON

ICKES, KIRK PULL OUT OF DEMOCRATIC CHAIRMAN RACE

Former Clinton aide Harold Ickes and the former mayor of Dallas, Ron Kirk, let top Democrats know yesterday that they won’t be running for chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

Mr. Kirk, who made an unsuccessful run for the U.S. Senate in 2002, wrote a letter to DNC members yesterday saying he would not run but was endorsing fellow Texan Martin Frost, a former congressman. Mr. Ickes, a longtime Democratic activist, also let party members know he would not be running.

“I just decided I probably did not have enough of the attributes [a chairman needs] to do the party justice,” Mr. Ickes said in an interview.

Among the others who have indicated interest: former presidential candidate Howard Dean; Roy Romer, former governor of Colorado; Jim Blanchard, former governor of Michigan; Molly Beth Malcolm, former Texas Democratic chair, and Democratic activist Donnie Fowler. Democrats will elect a party chairman at the the party’s winter meeting in February.

– Associated Press

EAST

PATRIOT ACT CHARGE AGAINST MAN WHO SHINED LASER AT PLANE

NEWARK, N.J. – Federal authorities yesterday used the Patriot Act to charge a man with pointing a laser beam at an airplane overhead and temporarily blinding the pilot and co-pilot. The FBI acknowledged the incident had no connection to terrorism but called David Banach’s actions “foolhardy and negligent.”

Mr. Banach, 38, of Parsippany admitted to federal agents that he pointed the light beam at a jet and a helicopter over his home near Teterboro Airport last week, authorities said. Initially, he claimed his daughter aimed the device at the helicopter, they said. He is the first person arrested after a recent rash of reports around the nation of laser beams hitting airplanes.

Mr. Banach was charged only in connection with the jet. He was accused of interfering with the operator of a mass transportation vehicle and making false statements to the FBI, and was released on $100,000 bail. He could get up to 25 years in prison and fines of up to $500,000. Mr. Banach’s lawyer, Gina Mendola-Longarzo, said her client was simply using the hand-held device to look at stars with his daughter on the family’s deck. She said Mr. Banach bought the device on the Internet for $100 for his job testing fiber-optic cable.

– Associated Press

SOUTHWEST

ARIZONA GROUPS FIGHT NEW IMMIGRATION LAW

PHOENIX – A civil rights group asked a federal appeals court yesterday to block provisions of a new voter approved state law that denies some public benefits to illegal immigrants.

Approved by voters in November, the law requires proof that a person is not an illegal immigrant when applying for some government services and proof of citizenship when registering to vote. It also says government workers who do not report illegal immigrants seeking the benefits can face jail time.

In an emergency motion, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund asked the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco to block portions of the law while it appeals a judge’s earlier decision allowing the law to go into effect. Supporters see the law as a way to begin cracking down on illegal immigration in Arizona, the busiest illegal entry point on the U.S.-Mexico border.

The civil rights group contends the measure will harm families who depend on public benefits for basic necessities, and could potentially cut them off from all state services.

– Associated Press