Regional Summary, Monday 12/3

Indiana Summary: Reward Offered By Owners Of Eastside Gun Shop After Robbery (Indianapolis) -- The owners of an eastside gun shop have offered a two-thousand-dollar reward for information that would lead to the arrest of the persons who robbed their store on Saturday. Mike Hilton with Pop Guns says the robbery happened around midnight as the thieves wore masks and hooded sweatshirts looking for weapons and wielding a tire iron. The camera caught the suspects as they tried to take as many guns as they could. Hilton says one of the suspects hit the glass case twice with what appears to be the tire iron and couldnt break it. The camera also shows the thief hopping over the counter and clearing out the case while the other suspects rummaged through the store. Five-shot special revolvers, 22-caliber pistols, a 380-semi automatic were taken while other more expensive weapons were left. Anyone with information on the case that can lead to an arrest is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 262-TIPS. --- One Man Sent To Hospital After Shooting At Party (Indianapolis) -- One person is sought today after another was shot and wounded over the weekend at a party. The shooting happened about 3:15 a.m. Sunday in the 38-hunderd block of East Michigan Street. Investigators are saying an argument led to the crime. --- Lawyer Of Teen Charged With Freeway Shooting Says Client Wants Plea Deal (Indianapolis) -- The lawyer of a teen charged with a freeway shooting in Indiana around a year ago that left one person dead says his client now wants a plea deal. Eighteen-year-old Zachariah Blanton of Gaston is expected to appear in Jackson Circuit Court today where Judge William Vance could approve the agreement. Investigators say Blanton was upset after an argument during a hunting trip with family that triggered the random shootings resulting in a road-side alert to drivers to watch out for suspicious activity. --- Here Are Sundays Winning Numbers From The Hoosier Lottery Daily Three-Evening: 8-3-9; Daily Four-Evening: 2-2-8-9; Lucky Five-Evening: 7-31-33-34-35. Kentucky Summary: (Louisville, KY) -- University of Louisville head coach Steve Kragthorpe announced yesterday some staff changes after the Cardinals disappointing season. Defensive coordinator Mike Cassity and Offensive Coordinator Charlie Stubbs were released from their positions with the university. Cassity had spent four seasons with the Cardinals, three of them as defensive coordinator. Louisville finished 84th in the country in total defense and 93rd in scoring defense, allowing 416-point-50-yards and 31-point-four-points per game. (Louisville, KY) -- A woman whose charged with DUI and murder after a fatal accident on the Watterson Expressway Wednesday morning entered a not-guilty plea on Saturday. Police say Emily Hall was drunk when she veered into the path of a semi-truck, causing the truck to swerve, and jump the concert median, strike a sign pole and spilt in half. The passenger of the semi-truck, Abram Reimer of Canada, was ejected from the truck and died at the scene. The driver of the truck, Reimers wife, suffered non-life-threatening injuries. Halls bond has been set at 200-thousand-dollars, which shes expected to post later today. (Brownstown, IN) -- A teenager accused of killing a New Albany man and wounding another in a series of highway sniper shootings last year is expected to plead guilty to two felonies as part of a plea agreement. Zachariah Blanton was 17-years-old at the time of the shootings, and is expected to appear in Jackson Circuit Court later today. Hes accused of firing a hunting rifle into I-65 traffic near Seymour killing Jerry Ross. A man from Iowa traveling in another truck was also injured. (Clarksville, IN) -- In just three-weeks the Colgate-Palmolive plant in Clarksville will be closing its doors. It is estimated that 200-employees are left at the plant. Colgate announced two-years-ago that the Clarksville plant would be closing, and a series of layoffs have taken place. Its unclear what will happen to the highly recognizable Colgate clock, which dates back to 1924, and can be seen from both the Kentucky and Indiana side of the Ohio River. Colgate has been a staple in the Clarksville economy for more than 80-years. (Louisville, KY) -- A Louisville man was arrested over the weekend after he shot the manager of the Kroger store on 7th Street. Police say Wardell Coleman got into a argument with the store manager, and stormed out of the grocery store. He later returned with a gun, and shot the manager once. Coleman is at Metro Corrections and is charged with attempted murder and wanton endangerment. (Louisville, KY) -- The Light Up Louisville celebrations will continue with "Lou-minations" every night until New Years Eve. City officials say "Lou-minations" is an extension of the celebration and includes a 14-minute animated light display synchronized to holiday music. The event takes place each night at Jefferson Square Park at the corner of 6th and Jefferson Streets. Officials say many of the trees inside the park will be incorporated into the presentation, creating an entire block of entertainment. (Radcliff, KY) -- Radcliff Police arrested a man last week for assault. Officials say Julian Williams of Radcliff was lodged in the Hardin County Detention Center after police say he and another man were involved in an alleged disagreement. The fight escalated and another man, Michael Bell, received a head injury. Bell alleged that Williams hit him in the head with a chair and a broomstick, resulting in the injury. Police say Williams fled the scene before they arrived. He was later arrested and charged with assault in the first-degree. (Hodgenville, KY) -- The Abraham Lincoln Birthday National Historic Site continues to seek students and volunteers to help some archaeologists next year. The archaeologists will give on-site training, and ask that volunteers are available for at least five-days. Anyone interested can call 270-358-3137. Illinois Summary: --- Brother Blamed In Shooting Death Of Four-Year-Old Girl (Chicago Heights) -- A 15-year-old boy is suspected of shooting and killing his four-year-old sister. Authorities have not filed any charges in the death of Jaylnn 1/81/8J AY-lynn 3/83/8 Hall, and are continuing to investigate. Halls body was found early Sunday morning at the familys Chicago Heights apartment. Police say the two children were handling a gun kept in the apartment when it went off. Their mother is a Cook County Sheriffs Deputy, but it is not known if her service revolver is the gun in question. A lawyer hired by the family says the shooting was an accident. --- Amtrak Train Was Speeding Before South Side Crash (Chicago) -- The Amtrak train that slammed into a freight train on Chicagos South Side last week was speeding shortly before the crash. National Transportation Safety Board Vice Chairman Robert Sumwalt says a restricted signal was lit, which should have warned the engineer to reduce his speed to 15-miles-an-hour. Instead, the Amtrak train was going 40-miles-an-hour. Sumwalt says the trains engineer saw the signal. But Sumwalt says its too early in the investigation to blame Fridays crash on human error. The engineer did apply the trains brakes about nine-seconds before impact. Sumwalt says it could be months before his agency determines the official cause. About sixty people were injured in the crash, including five serious injuries. Amtrak says all of the victims have been released from area hospitals. --- Four Will County Murders Probed (Joliet) -- Will County authorities have formed a task force to try and determine if there is any link between four murders that took place in the last week. The victims were all black women or teens, and their bodies were left in public places in Rockdale, Joliet and Lockport. The "Joliet Herald-News" reports officials have a potential suspect in one of the killings, and that police say there doesnt appear to be a common thread at this point. Authorities are probing the December 2006 death of 49-year-old Brenda Shaw, whose body was found in a Rockdale parking lot. Police believe that death may be related to a 2004 killing because both victims were prostitutes. Authorities are also looking into the May 2007 death of 14-year-old Haqikah Suggs, found shot-to-death and set on fire in Joliets Pilcher Park; the August killing of 16-year-old Kaylor Spells of Lockport, found in that citys Dellwood Park by a jogger; and last weeks murder of 46-year-old Sandra Poston, who was found in the Des Plaines River. --- Obama Comments Pit One Jackson Against Another (Chicago) -- Both the Reverend Jesse Jackson and his son, U.S. Representative Jesse Jackson Junior, support Barack Obamas presidential campaign. But the younger Jackson is publicly criticizing his father over a recent newspaper column. Reverend Jackson said in the "Chicago Sun-Times" last week that all of the Democrats running for president, except former Senator John Edwards, have "virtually ignored the plight of African-Americans." Jackson Junior is a national co-chairman of Obamas campaign. He writes in todays "Sun-Times" that Obama has addressed many issues facing African-Americans, and done so "out of personal conviction." Reverend Jacksons wife, Jacqueline, is supporting Hillary Clinton. --- Illinoisan Dies In Missouri After Escaping From Iowa Hospital (Hannibal, MO) -- Missouri authorities shot-and-killed an Illinois man who escaped custody in Iowa and let officials on a chase through two states. Iowa State Patrol officers say 27-year-old Peter Jamerson of Homewood was arrested Thursday after a police chase and charged with drug offenses. Friday, officers took Jamerson to a University of Iowa Hospital for treatment. Saturday afternoon, authorities say Jamerson stole a University pickup truck armed with a snow plow and sanding equipment. He allegedly rammed three police cars in Iowa and Missouri, injuring a state trooper. Police say Jamerson tried to carjack one vehicle and stole another. Jamerson eventually crashed that car near Hannibal, which is when police shot him. The incident is still under investigation. --- Paycheck Problems Plague Chicago Schools (Chicago) -- Computer problems continue to hamper the Chicago Public School payroll system. The "Chicago Sun-Times" reports that all 16-hundred CPS teachers who retired in June are getting an estimated pension, not a precise amount, because of the problems. Chicago Teachers Pension Fund CFO Patricia Hambrick says thats led to as many as 600 retirees getting much less than they are owed. Active teachers have also reported problems. The Chicago Teachers Union says it has filed more than 700 payroll-related grievances. District officials say most of the computer problems have been resolved, and many teachers owed money have largely been paid back. --- More Abortions Performed At Stroger Hospital Than Ever Before (Chicago) -- More women are getting abortions in Cook County than ever before. The "Chicago Sun-Times" reports about four-thousand abortions were performed at Stroger Hospital this year, up 78-percent from 2003. Abortion advocates say the need has always been there, but the county did not address it. Some opponents say the more than one-million-taxpayer-dollars spent on abortions each year should instead go toward sex education. --- Man Shoots Three In Rogers Park Apartment (Chicago) -- Three people shot in a Rogers Park neighborhood apartment last night remain in good condition at area hospitals. Chicago Police say a fourth man shot the three at the apartment in the 76-hundred block of North Rogers Avenue shortly after 9:30pm. Authorities did not release a motive or the names of the victims, who are 32, 29, and 27-years-old. Police have not made an arrest in the case. --- West Side Assault, Armed Robbery Arrests Made (Chicago) -- Chicago Police have arrested two of four men suspected in a pair of unrelated crimes near the University of Illinois at Chicago. Authorities have charged 26-year-old Lawrence Baggett with one count each of aggravated criminal sexual assault with a firearm and armed robbery with a firearm. He is suspected of robbing and sexually assaulting a woman near 15th and West Fillmore Thursday night. The victim is not affiliated with the University. That same evening, two UIC students were robbed at gunpoint by a pair of men who forced them into a green minivan driven by a third man. Police say officers spotted a similar van Saturday and arrested its driver, who did not have a license and was carrying a weapon. Twenty-five-year-old Damien Scott of Hillside is charged with two counts of armed robbery with a firearm, two counts of kidnapping while armed, illegal weapon possession, and two traffic violations. Authorities are still looking for the other two men. --- Toys For Tots Motorcycle Ride Parades Down Western Avenue (Chicago) -- Over one-thousand motorcycle riders paraded down Western Avenue yesterday collecting toys for needy kids. It took several hours for the bikers to ride nearly 20-miles as part of the annual Chicagoland Toys For Tots Motorcycle Parade. This year marked the 30th annual parade. Toys collected go to help the United States Marine Corps Toys For Tots program. (Copyright 2007 by Newsroom Solutions) RNS-12-03-07 0621CST