L.A. governor won't seek re-election
By TIMES WIRES
Published March 21, 2007
NEW ORLEANS
Gov. Kathleen Blanco of Louisiana, politically battered by a shaky post-Hurricane Katrina performance, announced Tuesday that she would not seek re-election to a second term. The Democratic governor's announcement ends months of speculation in Louisiana political circles, fueled by dismal poll rankings that showed her barely capturing a third of the vote against her challenger, Republican Rep. Bobby Jindal. The attention of Democrats is now likely to be focused on former Sen. John Breaux, who remains popular in the state and who has hinted for weeks that he would run if the incumbent does not.
ORLANDO
Astronaut's trial may begin in July
A former astronaut could go to trial in late July on charges that she tried to kidnap a woman in what police call a love triangle involving a fellow astronaut, according to state prosecutors. Lisa Nowak's trial could begin July 30, said Danielle Tavernier, a spokeswoman for State Attorney Lawson Lamar. Nowak was arrested in February on suspicion of confronting Colleen Shipman, the girlfriend of astronaut Bill Oefelein, in an Orlando airport parking lot.
WASHINGTON
$300M was paid in Holocaust cases
More than $300-million in previously unpaid insurance claims were awarded to 48,000 Holocaust survivors for harm they suffered during World War II, an international commission said Tuesday. The International Commission on Holocaust Era Insurance Claims concluded its claims and appeals process after a worldwide campaign began in 1998 to ensure that insurance companies fulfilled their obligations.
LUCASVILLE, OHIO
High court blocks man's execution
The U.S. Supreme Court blocked the execution of an Ohio man who had been scheduled to die Tuesday for killing a woman in 1991 and scattering her remains across two states. The justices' one-sentence decision agreed with two lower courts that delayed the execution of Kenneth Biros so he could continue arguing that Ohio's method of lethal injection is cruel and unusual punishment.
Elsewhere
Mount Laurel, N.J.: At least 219 gay couples applied to join in civil unions during the first month the legal institution was available in New Jersey, a state agency said in a report issued Tuesday.
West Lafayette, Ind.: A body found in a dormitory's high-voltage utility room was identified Tuesday as Purdue University student Wade Steffey, 19, who vanished in January, officials said.
Washington: In response to concerns that some babies may be missing out on essential health care, the Bush administration will issue a rule making it easier for the infants of noncitizens to gain access to services covered through Medicaid.