Monday, April 10, 2006
Pilot in 'Friendly Fire' Incident Sues Air Force
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- A decorated pilot involved in a "friendly fire" bombing in Afghanistan that killed four Canadian soldiers is suing the Air Force, accusing it of ruining his reputation.
National Guard Maj. Harry Schmidt says military officials should not have released to the public the scathing letter of reprimand he was given for the bombing. His lawsuit, filed Friday in federal court, alleges the military violated privacy laws. It seeks unspecified damages.
The disclosure in July 2004 also violated a settlement agreement that spared Schmidt from being court-martialed in the 2002 bombing that killed four Canadian soldiers and injured eight others, said his lawyer, Charles Gittins.
"The government flat-out failed to comply with their agreement," Gittins said.
Lt. Col. Catherine Reardon, an Air Force spokeswoman, had not seen the lawsuit. "At this point, it would be inappropriate for me to comment on the case," she said Sunday.
On April 17, 2002, Schmidt and another pilot were flying F-16s when they spotted muzzle flashes near Kandahar airport. The Canadians were firing weapons on a training range, but Schmidt mistook them for Taliban forces and dropped a 500-pound, laser-guided bomb.
He has said his superiors never told him the Canadians would be conducting live-fire exercises that night.
The second pilot received a letter of reprimand and was allowed to retire from the Guard. He is not a party to the lawsuit.
New Orleans Candidates Solicit Displaced VotersHOUSTON -- Seven candidates vying to be the next mayor of New Orleans sought support from displaced voters Saturday, two weeks before the election to decide who will guide the city through its long recovery from Hurricane Katrina.
The candidates fielded questions about rebuilding in a forum from New Orleans that was broadcast to evacuees in Houston, Dallas, San Antonio and Austin, as well as Shreveport and Baton Rouge, La.
Mayor C. Ray Nagin, who is seeking a second term, reminded the audience that the April 22 primary comes just weeks before the start of the hurricane season.
"Do you want experienced leadership that is tried and tested? Or do you want to experiment at this important time in our city's history?" he asked, drawing applause and cheers in Houston, where about 100 evacuees watched from an auditorium at Texas Southern University.
Evacuees pushed the candidates for answers to questions about restoring basic services, such as electricity and trash pickup.
"I cannot lie to you and tell you every single service in every single neighborhood is going to come back immediately," said candidate Ron Forman, an executive credited with turning New Orleans's zoo into a national showcase.
Other candidates agreed.
"If I said yes, it would be an empty promise," said the Rev. Tom Watson, a politically influential minister who is also running for mayor.
The candidates urged displaced residents to find a way to vote. Louisiana officials plan to establish satellite voting centers for New Orleans voters in other parishes and loosen absentee voting rules for those sending ballots from out of state.
"This is the most important election in the city's history," said Louisiana Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu, another candidate.
If no candidate gets a majority of the votes in the nonpartisan primary, the top two finishers will compete in a May 20 runoff election.
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· HENDERSON, Ky. -- Police recovered the bodies of two of four men missing since a sport-utility vehicle they were in plunged into the Ohio River. The body of Quillon Hughes, 21, was found Sunday afternoon about 150 yards from the boat ramp where the SUV went under April 2, authorities said. On Saturday, police found the body of Travis Sanners, 23. His brothers -- Michael Sanners, 26, and Stephen Parker, 21 -- were still missing. Two women, including the driver, drowned. A third female passenger survived.
· SPOKANE, Wash. -- A car plunged from the fifth level of a mall parking garage Saturday, killing the driver, Jo E. Savage of Pullman, police said. Savage apparently knocked down a concrete wall in the River Park Square garage before her car landed upside down, witnesses said.
-- From News Services
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