WVAS Local

MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Listen,now,to some of the stories making headlines this hour in the WVAS newsroom.

Montgomery,Alabama – Listen,now,to some of the stories making headlines this hour in the WVAS newsroom.

Worchester, Massachusettes – (AP) - A 7-year-old boy who authorities say was
severely beaten by his dad on Father's Day in Massachusetts has
died.
A nursing supervisor at UMass Memorial Medical Center says
Nathaniel Turner was removed from a ventilator early Saturday
morning at the hospital.
He was declared brain dead Tuesday after his father, Leslie
Schuler, allegedly slammed his head against a wall so hard on
Father's Day that it left a dent in a wall at Schuler's home in
Worcester.

Montgomery, Alabama –

The City of Montgomery is planning a three-day celebration leading up to the 4th of July.

Festivities are set to begin Thursday evening at 6:30 at the Harriott II Riverboat.

Portions of downtown Montgomery will be blocked off for activities including train rides, concerts and free skating at the Montgomery Skate Park.

The event will wrap up with the annual 4th of July riverfront celebration - fireworks show.

Decatur, Alabama – (AP) - Officials in one Alabama county believe they've solved a mystery dating back to the Civil War.
Morgan County archivist John Allison recently discovered $493 in
mostly uncirculated Confederate currency in a county vault. Some of
the serial numbers were in sequence, making it appear the money
came straight from the Confederate Congress.
Allison said he now believes the money was placed in a court
file to settle the estate of a slave owner. The man died a year

Montgomery, Alabama – (AP) - Alabama's unemployment rate jumped to
9.8 percent for May.
The April rate had been 9.0 percent. The state Department of
Industrial Relations says May's figure represents nearly 209,000
unemployed people.
Industrial Relations Director Tom Surtees said Friday the nation
is still gripped in a serious recession and Alabama is not immune
from its effects.
Counties with the lowest unemployment were Shelby at 6.6
percent, Madison at 6.9 percent, and Coffee at 7.4 percent. The

Montgomery, Alabama – Montgomery Police are asking for the public's help finding a woman who has been missing since Tuesday.

61 year old Mary McKenzie was last seen leaving her home on the 900 block of Garland Drive around 1 o'clock Tuesday afternoon.

McKenzie is a Black female, 5 feet 5 inches tall weighing about 160 pounds. When last seen, Ms. McKenzie was wearing an orange shirt, brown pants and gray shoes.

Officials say she suffers with dementia. Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to contact police.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. –
(AP) - A federal appeals court has ruled
against former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy's challenge to a
$445 million settlement in 2006 between the health rehabilitation
company and some of its investors.
A three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on
Wednesday denied Scrushy's claim that the settlement should have
left open the possibility of HealthSouth paying his legal bills or
reimbusing him for anything he is ordered to pay investors.

Montgomery, Alabama – Montgomery Police say more arrests are probable in the weekend death of a Montgomery teenager.

25 year old Peter Mungro and 17 year old Marvin Gaston are charged with capital murder in the death of 19 year old Terrance Ponder.

Ponder was fatally wounded Saturday night when he and the driver of the vehicle in which he rode were engaged in a shootout with occupants of another vehicle traveling on the Boulevard near Narrow Lane road late Saturday night.

There is no word on a motive in the shooting.

Birmingham, Alabama – Jefferson County Commissioner Shelia Smoot is officially running to serve Alabama 7th Congressional District.

The seat is currently held by Representative Artur Davis of Birmingham who is campaigning for Governor.

Smoot has served the Jefferson County Commission since 2002. She is a former reporter for television station WBRC in Birmingham.