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Citgo wins $387m in suit over 2001 fire

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published November 8, 2006

A jury has awarded $387.4-million to Citgo Petroleum Corp. in a lawsuit stemming from a 2001 fire at a suburban Chicago refinery. The fire occurred when a pipe fitting burst in a crude oil processing unit at a Citgo refinery in Romeoville. Citgo, a subsidiary of Venezuela's state-run oil company Petroleos de Venezuela SA, filed the suit against a Barberton, Ohio, parts manufacturer in 2003 to recover repair costs and lost profits. John Donley, attorney for Babcock & Wilcox Co., said the company will appeal Monday's decision.

LOS ANGELES

Swede who crashed Ferrari takes plea deal

A Swedish video game entrepreneur who wrecked a rare Ferrari by smashing it into a Malibu power pole at 162 mph was sentenced to three years in prison Tuesday after he pleaded no contest to embezzling two other fancy cars and illegally possessing a gun. Bo Stefan M. Eriksson, 44, entered the pleas four days after a jury deadlocked in the case. Two other counts of grand theft auto were dismissed. Eriksson previously pleaded no contest to a drunken driving charge in connection with the Feb. 21 crash that split in two a rare Ferrari Enzo valued at $1.5-million.

HOUSTON

Court upholds tossing conviction for Lay

A federal appeals court has upheld a judge's ruling to vacate the conviction of Enron Corp.'s late founder, Kenneth Lay, who had been found guilty earlier this year of committing fraud and conspiracy in one of the biggest corporate scandals in U.S. history. The challenge to the ruling by U.S. District Judge Sim Lake came from Russell Butler, an Enron shareholder who lost $8,000 in the company's collapse. Lake had ruled he was bound by previous court rulings, which stated that a defendant's death pending appeal extinguished his entire case because he hadn't had a full opportunity to challenge the conviction. The three-judge panel of the appeals court agreed with Lake.

CHICAGO

Plane's wing clips jet on ground; no injuries

A United Airlines plane's wing clipped the tail of another jetliner Tuesday morning as they taxied toward takeoff at O'Hare International Airport, aviation officials said. No injuries were reported. One of the planes was turning left and the wing of the second plane, another United flight, hit the first plane's tail, said Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Tony Molinaro. Both flights were canceled, United said on its Web site.

CLEVELAND

Fire kills four children, injures three people

Fire swept through a house early Tuesday, killing four children and injuring three other people, including two boys who were pulled to safety by a passer-by, a fire official said. The fire was reported about 3 a.m., Assistant Fire Chief Brent Collins said. Authorities were trying to determine the cause, and arson was not suspected. The children died from smoke inhalation.

[Last modified November 8, 2006, 02:08:22]