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TATTOO VINCE COMING TO TRIAL - "Tattoo Vince" Gosolow will come to trial in Roane County Circuit Court next
Tuesday for the murder of Judson Reid, whose decomposed body was discovered near the Town of Clay.
INVESTIGATORS BUSY WITH SUSPICIOUS FIRES AND DEATHS - Investigators with the State Fire Marshal's
office say they're having a hard time keeping up with the unusual number of fatal fires in the last three weeks. There have
been eight fatal fires with 14 deaths.
Assistant State Fire Marshal Reed Cook says he's never seen this many fires at this time of year. Usually the busy time of year
for his office is during the winter. Three of the fires are being investigated as homicides. Cook says he can't remember a
month with this many separate fatal fires.
WEIGHTED GRADES ON HOLD - Balancing the grading system in West Virginia schools has become an issue. The
State School Board decided not to change a controversial grading policy, although they will continue to look at the issue.
Weighted grades apply to students who take advanced placement classes. Right now teachers have the option of giving a
student a higher score in an "advanced" class because of the difficulty and the amount of work that's expected. On the other
hand, students in regular classes are graded on a typical scale -- whatever scale is chosen for their particular school.
The board does want every school in the state to have a uniform grading scale. Some schools consider a 100-90 an "A"
while other systems use 100-93 as their top grade.
The biggest reason for wanting a uniform grading scale is the Promise Scholarship. Every student deserves an equal playing
field when it comes to getting a scholarship. And if some schools make it easier for their students to get top grades because
of an easier grading scale -- that's not fair to those who are graded on a higher standard.
MASSEY'S CHIEF TAKES PAY CUT - Massey Energy's Chief Executive Officer will receive only half of his target bonus
pay for 2002 because of disappointing financial results.
Don Blankenship, Massey Coal's CEO, was to have received $700,000 in bonus pay if Massey met certain financial
goals in the last budget year. He will only receive $350,000. The bonus is on top of Blankenship's $1 million base salary and
$2.4 million in stock options under a compensation program.
Blankenship is in line for a reduced $3,750,000 this year as chief of the company.
Blankenship threatened to pull the company out of West Virginia if the weight limits on coal hauling were not raised.
Environmental groups say Massey has broken more environmental laws than any other company in history, including one of
the largest spills ever along the Kentucky-West Virginia border.
SCREAMING WOMAN SENTENCED - A Morgantown woman has been sentenced to 40 hours of community service
for being verbally abusive of a Division of Motor Vehicles employee. 49-year-old Suzanne Sculley pleaded guilty yesterday
in Monongalia County Magistrate Court to criminal charges of being abusive, after yelling abusive statements and pounding
on a door marked employees only. She was also fined $100.
COUNCILMAN VICTIM OF DRIVE-BY SHOOTING - Huntington councilman Charlie Thompson was working at his
desk at Thompson's Auto Repairs about 11:30 Monday night when someone drove by and fired a 12-gauge shotgun
toward the office. Thompson says the shooter just missed him.
CHARLESTON POLICEMEN CONCEALED DRUG MONEY - A Charleston police officer faces a federal fraud
charge for allegedly letting the ex-wife of a Charleston drug kingpin keep hidden drug money. A special US attorney says
Police Corporal William Hart plans to plead guilty to the charge.
Federal authorities allege that in 1999, Hart and another officer let Rachel Ursala Rader keep some drug money hidden by
her ex-husband, Calvin "Calcutta" Dyess. Dyess was arrested in 1998 and is serving a life sentence in a federal prison in
Texas. Court documents say that around the same time Hart allegedly let Rader keep the money, Rader and Hart began
having a sexual relationship that led to a brief marriage.
ARTS AND CRAFTS SURVEY - Tourists who visit West Virginia shop for artwork or crafts, but state officials have little
information about how that affects the larger economy. Seven organizations have teamed up to share their mailing lists and
survey 2,500 artisans. The Mountain-Made Foundation in Thomas and Tamarack in Beckley are paying for the mailing.
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