The District
City's Hall of Fame Names 19 Inductees
The Washington D.C. Hall of Fame Society had its sixth induction ceremony yesterday to recognize 19 "unsung heroes and heroines" of the District:
• Jesse L. Bemley, director of the Joint Educational Facilities Community Computer Center, a nonprofit group that teaches computing to youths, received the science and technology award.
• Charlotte Chapman, the original founding member of the Museum of the District of Columbia, received a posthumous award.
• Charles H. Epps Jr., a former dean of the College of Medicine at Howard University, and his wife, Roselyn Payne Epps, the District's first acting commissioner of health, were given the health award.
• Katharine Graham, former publisher of The Washington Post, was honored posthumously for leading a newspaper that helped set the standard for excellence in American journalism.
• Joseph H. Hairston, a longtime civic activist who was one of the first African American helicopter pilots in the U.S. Army, won the award for community development.
• Chester A. Higgins Sr., former editor of the Detroit edition of the Pittsburgh Courier, once the country's largest black newspaper, received a posthumous award.
• Catherine Elizabeth Hughes, founder and chairwoman of Radio One Inc., the largest black-owned-and-operated broadcast company in the nation, received the National Legacy Award.
• Barbara Elaine Talbert Jackson, who has spent more than 30 years in District public schools as a teacher, elementary school principal and interim vice superintendent, was recognized for her contribution to education.
• William and Velma Johnson, owners of 3610 Boutique in Brookland, were inducted in the business category.
• Albert Jose Jones, co-founder and former president of the National Association of Black Scuba Divers, was inducted in the sports category.
• Elaine R. Jones, director-counsel emeritus of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, was recognized for her work defending civil rights.
• Dolores Kendrick, Washington's poet laureate, was inducted in the cultural arts category.
• Sharon Pratt, former District mayor, was inducted in the politics and government category.
• William Raspberry, a Washington Post columnist and Pulitzer Prize winner, was recognized for his journalism.
• Carl T. Rowan Sr., syndicated columnist and former director of the U.S. Information Agency, was recognized posthumously as one of America's finest journalists and a distinguished diplomat.
• The Rev. A. Knighton Stanley, senior minister of Peoples Congregational United Church of Christ, was recognized for his work with the church and community.
• Charles Harris Wesley, a former president of Wilberforce University and the founding president of Ohio's Central State University, received a posthumous award.
New Rules, Fees for Drivers Taking Effect
People caught driving on District streets with coverings over their license plates will be subject to $500 fines under a law that took effect last week, officials said. The law also set a $100 fine if an open alcoholic beverage is found in a vehicle.
The provisions are among changes being implemented under the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles Reform Amendment Act. The law also provides incentives to owners of hybrid and alternative-fuel vehicles. They will not be required to pay an excise tax and will have reduced registration rates.
Vigil Held to Mark Cambodian Massacres
About two dozen people held a vigil last night at the Lincoln Memorial on the anniversary of the start of the massacres of hundreds of thousands of people in Cambodia.
About 1.7 million people died in Cambodia between 1975 and 1979 under the Khmer Rouge, which marched into the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh 30 years ago yesterday.
Maryland
Body in Potomac Identified as Physician
Remains recovered from the banks of the Potomac River on Saturday have been identified as those of a Montgomery County physician who had been missing since last month.
Scott Nathan LaBaer, 39, of the 8700 block of Seven Locks Road in Potomac, was reported missing March 28.
Police said there was no evidence of foul play.
D.C. Police Investigator Arrested
A D.C. police investigator was arrested Saturday night on charges that he exposed himself to at least one woman in Oxon Hill, Prince George's County police said.
Robert Deery, 40, was charged with a fourth-degree sex offense. According to Cpl. Diane Richardson, a spokeswoman for Prince George's police, Deery exposed himself about 7:30 p.m. in the parking lot of Rivertown Shopping Center in the 6200 block of Oxon Hill Road.
Junis Fletcher, a spokesman for D.C. police, said Deery, an investigator with the department since 1992, had been placed on paid leave. Deery declined to comment on the charges.
Man Fatally Shot Near Chillum
A man was fatally shot last night in the Chillum area, Prince George's County police said.
A man shot the victim in the upper body in the 6700 block of New Hampshire Avenue about 7:20 p.m. and fled, said Cpl. Diane Richardson, a police spokeswoman. The victim died en route to the hospital, she said. His name was not immediately released.
Flower Vendor Abducted in Wheaton
A woman was abducted yesterday from a Wheaton intersection as she sold flowers with her husband, Montgomery County police said.
Police said Pasquala Hernandez-Hernandez, 25, was selling flowers at Connecticut Avenue and Veirs Mill Road about 1:30 p.m. when she approached a red, two-door compact car, police said.
The passenger door opened and she was pulled inside, police said. The vehicle sped south on Connecticut, police said.
Police described the woman as 5-foot-3, 120 pounds, with long black hair and brown eyes. She was wearing a black-and-white striped T-shirt, black jeans, blue tennis shoes and a gray baseball hat with "Starter equipment" printed in black.
Quote of the Day
"If you see people replacing an in-home activity like brewing your own coffee with an activity that requires a new [car] trip, that's not exactly the trend we're looking for."
-- Nancy McGuckin, a travel behavior analyst who says commuters increasingly are factoring in an extra trip for a cup of gourmet coffee for the drive to work, possibly complicating the morning rush hour. -- A1
Compiled from reports by staff writers Martin Weil, Amit R. Paley and Allan Lengel.
