Woman Burned In City Fire
The state police fire marshall is investigating a fire Thursday in the city in which a young woman was rescued but also badly burned. City police officers went inside the burning group home at 910 East Maiden Street and rescued 18 year-old Melanie Marody, who was trapped on the second floor. Marody was taken to UPMC Mercy Hospital, where she is listed in critical condition. The three officers -- Mike Sulerud, Robert Lemons, and Todd Foreman -- were all treated for smoke inhalation and later released from Washington Hospital. Fire Chief Linn Brookman says the fire began in the woman's bedroom, but a cause hasn't been determined. The home is owned by Arc Human Services. Chief Operating Officer Karry Riddell says five residents and two staffers were in the home today, but no-one else was hurt.

Meadowcroft Showcases New Facility
A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held Thursday at the Meadowcroft Rockshelter in Avella. Officials are celebrating the opening of a new enclosure over the rockshelter, which is the oldest documented site of human life in North America. Meadowcroft Director Dave Scofield says the enclosure gives visitors a better look at the rockshelter, while preserving the site for continued archaelogical work. The lead archaelogist at the site, Dr. James Adovasio, calls it a "state of the art" examination of the past, and an impressive structure. The new facility opens to the public Saturday.

Obama Wins Two More Superdelegates
WASHINGTON (AP) - A spokesman for Democrat Barack Obama's
presidential campaign says he's won the endorsements of two more
superdelegates. Obama spokesman Dan Pfeiffer says Oregon Congressman Peter DeFazio plans to endorse the Illinois senator at an event in Oregon, which holds it's primary May 20th. Pfeiffer also says New Jersey Congressman Don Payne is switching his support to Obama. He had been backing Hillary Clinton. The movement of uncommitted superdelegates into Obama's campaign has picked up sharply since Tuesday, when he soundly defeated Clinton in North Carolina's primary and held her to a narrow victory in Indiana.

Storms Batter South
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - Parts of the Southeast are dealing with a battering from severe storms. Damage and at least one fatality are reported in a number of states from Mississippi to Virginia. Tornado warnings were issued
late Thursday for parts of Virginia, including communities outside Washington. In North Carolina, one person was killed and three others injured in a tornado that swept at least three tractor-trailers off an interstate near Greensboro. An apparent tornado wrecked a furniture store in Tupelo, Mississippi, during the day Thursday. Strong winds flipped a mobile home in Alabama. And at least four houses and a few barns were damaged in south-central Tennessee. Students in more than a dozen school districts in Alabama were sent home early and others were kept late while storm squalls passed. A car dealership employee in Hamilton, Alabama, describes it as "pretty good wind, with lightning and thunder and rain blowing sideways."

Martin Found Guilty of Murder
A Greene County jury is being asked to decide if Jeffrey Martin should be put to death for killing 12-year-old Gabrielle Bechen. On Thursday, the jury found Martin guilty of first-degree murder after six hours of deliberation.

U.N. Suspends Relief For Myanmar
BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) - A U.N. official says Myanmar's junta has seized all the food and equipment that the World Food Program had flown into the country for cyclone victims. The official says the agency had "no choice" but to suspend further aid shipments to the devastated Southeast Asian nation until the matter is resolved. WFP spokesman Paul Risley says all the food aid and equipment that the relief agency managed to get in has been confiscated. That includes 38 tons of high-energy biscuits. Risley says it's not clear why the material was seized.

Appeals Court Steps Into Wecht Case
PITTSBURGH (AP) - A federal appeals court has stayed the retrial of celebrity pathologist Cyril Wecht while his attorneys push for a double jeopardy dismissal. The trial had been set for May 27 with jury selection to begin next week. But the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals says the trial can't begin until the appeals court decides whether the retrial constitutes double jeopardy. U.S. District Judge Arthur Schwab and prosecutors say retrying Wecht on 41 theft and fraud counts does not constitute double jeopardy because Wecht's attorneys moved for a mistrial when a jury deadlocked last month. Wecht is accused of using his county staff and resources to benefit his multimillion dollar private practice. It's not clear how quickly the 3rd Circuit will rule or how long the retrial may be delayed.

Girl Falls From Window
CHALKHILL, Pa. (AP) - An eight-year-old Fayette County girl is in critical condition after she fell 20-feet from a window into a basement stairwell.
Police say Kristin Kessler leaned against a window screen on Thursday. The screen gave way and Kessler landed in an exterior stairwell. Kessler is being treated in Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown, W.Va. for head and leg injuries. Police say she is in critical condition. They say there is no evidence the fall resulted from any negligent or criminal activities.

Katrina Lottery Winner
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Finally, some good luck for a victim of
Hurricane Katrina. Carl Hunter, who lost two homes in the storm, has won a
97-million-dollar Powerball jackpot. Hunter is 73 and owns a small construction company in Metairie outside New Orleans. He picked up what turned out to be the winning ticket for a drawing last January when he stopped at a gas station to buy some milk. Claiming the prize yesterday, Hunter says he had some change and used a dollar to buy the ticket. His wife Dianne says, "It's all about milk." Hunter is opting for the $34-million, lump-sum payment, and says, "naturally," he's going to retire, now.