WEST

PARISHES COMPETE WITH ALLEGED VICTIMS FOR ASSETS OF ARCHDIOCESE

PORTLAND, Ore. – Roman Catholic parishes and schools are competing with alleged victims of clerical sex abuse to claim assets held by the Archdiocese of Portland, the first in the country to file for bankruptcy because of abuse settlements. Court records show that about 340 claims, totaling $198 million, were made on the archdiocese by the April 29 deadline set by U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Elizabeth Perris.

The attorneys listed in the documents and the large sums sought suggest about 150 of those claims may be related to sex abuse. Because many of the claims are sealed and don’t have a specific amount listed, church officials believe they could surpass $530 million. The rest of the claims, however, have no clear ties to sex abuse allegations, with at least 37 churches and parochial schools among the claimants seeking about $115,000.

The archdiocese is responsible for 124 Catholic parishes and more than 50 schools in western Oregon, the most populous part of the state. Investment funds and other money the archdiocese has held for them were frozen by the bankruptcy filing. Additionally, in the coastal town of Florence, nearly 100 claimants are seeking the return of $775,000 in church-building fund money that is being held by the archdiocese and is also now frozen. The church’s building permits are soon to expire.

– Associated Press

SOUTH

PASTOR: OUSTING OF MEMBERS WHO DON’T BACK BUSH ‘MISUNDERSTANDING’

WAYNESVILLE, N.C. – Calling it a “great misunderstanding,” the pastor of a small church who led the charge to remove nine members for their political beliefs tried to welcome them back yesterday, but some insisted he must leave for the wounds to heal. The Reverend Chan Chandler didn’t directly address the controversy during the service at East Waynesville Baptist Church but issued a statement afterward through his attorney saying the church does not care about its members’ political affiliations.

“No one has ever been voted from the membership of this church due to an individual’s support or lack of support for a political party or candidate,” he said.

Nine members said they were ousted during a church gathering last week by about 40 others because they refused to support President Bush. They attended yesterday’s service with their lawyer and many supporters. Rev. Chandler noted their presence in his welcome to the congregation, saying, “I’m glad to see you all here. … We are here today to worship the Lord. I hope this is what you are here for.” But Rev. Chandler’s statement and his welcome didn’t convince those members who were voted out that things would soon change, and some called for him to resign.

– Associated Press

NORTHEAST

CONN. DEATH PENALTY OPPONENTS PROTEST UPCOMING ROSS EXECUTION

HARTFORD, Conn. – Death penalty opponents set off yesterday on a five-day walk to protest the state’s plans to execute a serial killer who admitted killing and raping eight young women in Connecticut and New York in the early 1980s.

About two dozen protesters began the 30-mile journey that will eventually lead to the prison where Michael Ross is scheduled to be put to death Friday in what would be the first execution in New England in 45 years.

“So many people have asked me, ‘Why are you doing this for Michael Ross?'” the executive director of the Connecticut Network to Abolish the Death Penalty, who is leading the effort, Robert Nave, said. “We’re not doing this for Michael Ross. We’re doing this because it is state-sponsored homicide.”

Protesters plan to walk for periods each day through Thursday night, stopping at the state Capitol, at churches, and for vigils along the way.

– Associated Press

MIDWEST

JUDGE DECLARES MISTRIAL IN HIGHWAY SHOOTINGS TRIAL

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The judge overseeing the case of a man charged with a string of Ohio highway shootings declared a mistrial yesterday after jurors said they could not reach a verdict. Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Charles Schneider sent jurors home after they failed to reach a consensus on their fourth full day of deliberations about Charles McCoy Jr., who pleaded innocent by reason of insanity to 24 charges. The defense admitted Mr. McCoy was behind the 12 shootings over five months in 2003 and 2004 but insisted he did not understand they were wrong because he suffered from untreated paranoid schizophrenia.

Earlier in the day, jurors told the judge they voted twice on the issue of insanity and could not reach a unanimous decision. Two jurors sighed and had tears in their eyes when they were sent back to continue deliberations. The panel deliberated about an hour longer before declaring another impasse. “We have no indication at this time that this will change,” jurors told the court in a note read by the judge. County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien said he would retry Mr. McCoy, 29, who could have faced the death penalty if convicted of the most serious charge, aggravated murder, for the one death in the case. Gail Knisley, 62, was killed November 25, 2003, as she was being driven to a doctor’s appointment.

– Associated Press

HUNGRY FOR REVENUE, DETROIT PONDERS FAST-FOOD TAX

DETROIT – Would you like fries with that? Either way, the Detroit city treasury would like a bite. Faced with a $300-million budget hole, Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick is hoping people in this already heavily taxed city won’t mind forking over a few extra cents for their Big Macs and Whoppers. Mr. Kilpatrick wants to ask Detroit voters to approve a 2% fast-food tax – on top of the 6% state sales tax on restaurant meals. The mayor says consumers will barely notice the extra cents at the cash register, but critics say the tax would unfairly burden the poor and hamper economic development.

“Just tell him we’re going to go to Bloomfield Hills to McDonald’s if he puts a tax on it,” said 18-year-old Ebony Ellis, referring to an affluent Detroit suburb, as she and four friends ate at a Golden Arches in Detroit. The high school classmates eat at McDonald’s every day after school because their schedule doesn’t leave them time for lunch. Other cities and states have special taxes on prepared food, and some have tried “snack taxes.” In New York, Assemblyman Felix Ortiz has proposed a 1% tax on junk food, video games, and TV commercials to fund anti-obesity programs.

– Associated Press