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STATE BRIEFS Students charged in death of fellow student DUE WEST, S.C. (AP) — Police have charged two high school students with murder in connection with the death of a fellow student whose body was found beaten and shot to death in rural Abbeville County. Sergio Dante Marshall and Terrence 0. Edwards, both 17 and students at Dixie High School, were arrested Friday. They also were charged with armed robbery and grand larceny, Abbeville County Sheriff Charles Goodwin said. Jonathan Preston Blackston, of Honea Path, was found dead in a field about 12 hours after his father reported him missing. He had been severely beaten and shot twice — once in the right arm and once in the back of the head, Abbeville County Coroner Ronnie Ashley said. Truck overturns, kills 40 head of cattle SPARTANBURG, S.C. (AP) - More than half the 78 head of cattle hauled in a tractor-trailer have died after the truck driver swerved to miss several deer in the road and flipped the 18-wheeler along Interstate 26, police say. Driver Rick Hawley’s reaction early Saturday caused the weight of the cattle to shift, and the truck overturned on its side in the westbound lane of 1-26 near the bridge at Old Anderson Mill Road, said Capt. Ashley Campbell with the Westview Fairforest Fire Department. Hawley, who drives for Gene Daves of Hickory Grove, was not seriously injured. Firefighters estimated 40 animals perished. IT HAPPENED NEWS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED SANTA GETS BIGGEST GIFT: Charleston city officials advertising for actors to play Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus as well as a contingent of elves are offering $10 an hour for the big guy. But the Missus will get only $7.50 an hour. Lowly elves get even less — $7 an hour. NATION BRIEFS Woman dies at Knott’s Berry Farm BUENA PARK, CALIF. (AP) — A woman died after falling out of a ride at Knott’s Berry Farm theme park, officials said Saturday. Lori Mason-Larez, 40, died of extensive injuries sustained on the attraction, said Bruce Lyle, supervising deputy of the Orange County coroner’s office. Park spokeswoman Susan Tierney said Mason-Larez fell from the ride Friday even though her seat belt and lap bar “were in their correct and locked position.” The ride, a combination roller coaster and water slide called the “Perilous Plunge,” remained closed Saturday, and officials were investigating. Officer shot inside Detroit FBI building DETROIT (AP) - Despite heightened security after terrorist attacks, a man was able to carry a loaded handgun into a federal building housing FBI offices and fatally shoot an officer at a security checkpoint, authorities said. Ronald C. Sheffield, 36, was killed Friday about 15 feet from the door of the office building. The gunman, David Serra, 28, of Chesterfield Township, was shot three times by two other Federal Protective ■ Services officers, Detroit police Officer Glen Woods said Saturday. Serra was in serious condition at Detroit Receiving Hospital. Sheffield was at the security checkpoint when Serra walked into the lobby, put a paper bag containing a handgun on a counter by the metal detector and asked if he could bring it inside, FBI spokeswoman Dawn Clenney said. When he was told no, he reached into the bag and fired, she said. WORLD BRIEFS Hope fades at chemical plant site TOULOUSE, FRANCE (AP) - As hope faded that more survivors would be found from a devastating explosion at a chemical fertilizer plant, environmental leaders on Sunday called for a halt to the production of dangerous chemicals near residential areas. Rescue workers sawed through metal girders and cleared away concrete slabs, searching for 10 to 20 people still missing. The confirmed death toll from Friday’s blast stood at 29. About 650 people remained hospitalized, with 30 in critical condition. The AZF plant is about 3 miles from the center of Toulouse, France’s fourth-largest city, with a population of about 1 million people. Pope calls for religious tolerance ASTANA, KAZAKSTAN (AP) — Pope John Paul II issued a powerful call Sunday for Christians and Muslims to work together against bloodshed and strife following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the United States. “I beg God to keep the world in peace,” he declared. The pope’s special prayer at the end of an outdoor Mass in the Central Asian nation of Kazakstan, a country of mixed faiths in a region that is bracing for a threatened American strike against nearby Afghanistan. “I wish to make an earnest call to everyone, Christians and the followers of other religions, that we work together to build a world without violence, a world that loves life and grows in justice and solidarity,” the pope said. “We must not let what has happened lead to a deepening of divisions,” he said. “Religion must never be used as a reason for conflict.” Alabama sororities reject black student THE ASSOCIATED PRESS TUSCALOOSA, ALA. (AP) - For the second straight year, a black woman’s attempts to join a white sorority at the Universi ty of Alabama have been reject ed. Melody Twilley, a 3.87 grade point-average student who sings first soprano in the campus choir, was notified Sunday, the day before the end of rush, that she was not being invited to join any of the 15 all-white sororities. Twilley, 18, was also rejected for membership last fall, when she hoped to become the first black ever to be accepted into one of the school’s 37 white fra ternities and sororities. Christina Houston, who de scribed herself as being half black, went public last week say ing she broke the color barrier at Alabama last year by joining a previously all-white sorority, “It’s elitist and it’s somewhat racist, but I still believe that that racism is more from the women that are not even in the sorority. I honestly think that most of that close-mindedness comes from alums.” MELODY TW I LLEY UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA STUDENT Gamma Phi Beta. Twilley was the only black to seek membership in a white group this fall. Though she al leged race might have been be hind her rejection last year, she told the campus newspaper, The Crimson White, in a story Mon day that the Greek system at Al abama is not completely bad. “It’s elitist and it’s somewhat racist, but I still believe that that racism is more from the women that are not even in the sorori ty,” she said. “I honestly think that most of that close-minded ness comes from .alums." Administrators and faculty leaders have pushed for integra tion of the school’s Greek system, which for decades has been a seedbed for state leaders, in cluding the current governor, Don Siegelman. Only a few whites have joined the eight historically black Greek groups on campus through the years. Arab Americans face adversity BY RALPH SIEGEL ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER NEWARK, N.J. — It was silent in the hotel meeting room as some 250 Arab-Americans lis tened to the quivering soprano of a 17-year-old Palestinian-Ameri can girl singing “God Bless America.” Some dabbed at tears. Almost all wore red, white and blue rib bons sold for $2 outside the room to raise money for victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. “Our community was also at tacked,” said the singer, Nadia Taha. The gathering, sponsored by the Washington-based Arab American Institute, was orga nized three months ago to help New Jersey Arab-Americans learn about the state’s guberna torial candidates. But after the attacks, the event also became a place for Arab Americans to mourn and talk about fears they would suffer a racist backlash. “We felt there was 20 times more need to have it now,” said Abdallah Al-Zuabi, the confer ence coordinator. New Jersey’s Attorney Gener al John Farmer told guests they should report all bias crimes “and also incidents where, quite frankly, law enforcement may have gone too far.” Farmer said state authorities are investigating 30 alleged bias crimes against Americans of Arab and Asian descent. Most in volved harassment or graffiti, but there have also been assaults and q bomb threat against a business. Institute president James Zog by said there had been some thought to canceling the event, but that was quickly dismissed. “What we are doing here is so right, so American,” said Zogby, who has lobbied Washington of ficials to reach out to the Arabic and Islamic populations. iiiii—iiiWLij i— "xr ' — mm Women ’ s Styl© HANDBAGS. 8K. CONI _Designer ^Handbag^ wholesale Prices imawmiM \\\mm\\ _,\k —mm Carolina Cares The organization uniting students through service Kick Off Meeting Monday, September 24,2001 7:04 Russell House Theater Free Pizza ! 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