Around the World: March 26, 2015

PARIS (AP) — An official with knowledge of the audio recordings from the Germanwings flight that crashed in the Alps says one of the pilots apparently was locked out of the cockpit when the plane went down.

 

The official, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the investigation, told The Associated Press Thursday the details emerged from recordings recovered from the black box found among the debris of the pulverized aircraft.

 

Lufthansa this morning says it has no new information on the investigation and can neither confirm nor deny reports about the pilot.

 

The crash victims included a Virginia woman and her grown daughter. Emily Selke had recently graduated from Drexel. Her mother, Yvonne Selke, worked with the Pentagon's satellite mapping office.

UNIONTOWN, Pa. (AP) — A judge says a man convicted of the 2002 slayings of a Pennsylvania couple and their pregnant 17-year-old daughter has an intellectual disability that makes him ineligible for the death penalty.

 

The judge Wednesday threw out the sentence for Mark Duane Edwards and resentenced him to four consecutive life terms.

 

Expert witnesses testified that Edwards has an IQ of 75 or lower and has adaptive functioning deficits. A doctor testified that Edwards' mother said she drank alcohol for months before realizing she was pregnant. He diagnosed Edwards with fetal alcohol syndrome.

 

Edwards has been on death row since he was convicted of killing Larry Bobish, Joanna Bobish, and their daughter Krystal in North Union Township. Prosecutors say he killed the family members because he feared prosecution for a robbery earlier.

(Information in the following story is from: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, http://pghtrib.com )

 

GREENSBURG, Pa. (AP) — A western Pennsylvania judge has declined to reduce the bail of a teenager charged in a shooting death that authorities said occurred during a marijuana robbery.

 

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports that prosecutors argued in Armstrong County on Wednesday that the 17-year-old defendant posed a flight risk and a threat to the victim's family and others.

 

The youth is being held in the Westmoreland County juvenile detention center on criminal homicide and robbery charges in last month's slaying of 18-year-old Derrike Roppolo in a Leechburg apartment.

 

Defense attorney Eric Levin said his client's family couldn't pay the $50,000 needed to post 10 percent of the $500,000 bail imposed. He said if the bond was lowered to $100,000, the family could come up with the $10,000 needed.

 

BRIDGEPORT, W.Va. (AP) — West Virginia State Police have captured a Pennsylvania man who escaped from a state psychiatric hospital.

 

State police say 30-year-old Rocco Zuccaro of Burgettstown, Pennsylvania, was found late Wednesday night hiding in tall grass near a natural gas facility in the McWhorter area of Harrison County.

 

Multiple sightings of Zuccaro by the public prompted troopers to search the area. State police say Zuccaro was captured by Sgt. J.M. Menendez.

 

Zuccaro was awaiting trial for a 2013 fatal shooting in Brooke County when he escaped from William R. Sharpe Jr. Hospital in Weston on Monday. He was at Sharpe for a psychological evaluation.

 

State police say he will be held at the North Central Regional Jail pending arraignment on an escape charge.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Veterans Affairs official overseeing benefits is pledging aggressive action to address charges of mismanagement of disability claims.

 

Allison Hickey, the VA's undersecretary for benefits, spoke to The Associated Press on Wednesday in advance of an inspector general report examining complaints about the mishandling of claims at the Philadelphia Veterans Affairs Regional Office.

 

She says the VA has worked quickly to install a new regional office director, provide training and implement additional protections for whistleblowers.

 

She also pointed to a new streamlined VA application process that will allow veterans to use standardized forms for claims and appeals.

 

Hickey declined to comment specifically on the inspector general report. Excerpts show it makes 35 recommendations to address whistleblower complaints of mishandled mail and manipulation of dates to make old claims look new.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is meeting with mayors and business owners at the White House to highlight the benefits of trade on a broad swath of the economy.

 

Participants include Mayors Michael Nutter of Philadelphia and Bob Buckhorn of Tampa, Florida, as well as nine business owners from across the country.

 

Wednesday's meeting is part of Obama's push for trade policies that face Democratic opposition. Obama wants "fast track" authority from Congress to negotiate trade deals that Congress can only approve or reject, but not amend. One of those agreements would ease trade barriers among 12 Pacific Rim nations.

 

Obama says trade is not just about the Boeings and the General Electrics but small and medium-size businesses. He says he wants to make sure that story gets told.

(Information in the following story is from: Knoxville News Sentinel, http://www.knoxnews.com )

 

GATLINBURG, Tenn. (AP) — Two former Marines are hiking the Appalachian Trail to raise money for charity.

 

The Knoxville News Sentinel reports Jeff Fowler got the idea for the hike after he was discharged in 2009 and began hearing of others from his battalion who had committed suicide.

 

Fowler is making the 2,185-mile hike with Don Nguyen (wihn), who served with Fowler in 2007 in Iraq.

 

They are hiking to honor fellow Marine Jason Karella, who was killed by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan in 2008.

 

The pair is using the hike to raise money for Higher Ground Sun Valley, which holds camps for wounded service members.

 

They started hiking on Feb. 28 and reached the Great Smoky Mountains National Park on March 17. They hope to reach Mount Katahdin, Maine, by Sept. 1.