Osage, Iowa
DWI with a difference: A Minnesota man is behind bars this week after allegedly stealing a farm combine and taking it on a late-night drunken joy ride through the town of Osage. Police arrested Dominic Bjerke, of Leroy, Minn., after residents were awakened by the sound of a combine crashing through their yards. Police discovered a glassy-eyed Bjerke, 21, and the wrecked combine several blocks from the scene of the rampage. No one was injured, but several residents reported extensive property damage. The combine, a massive piece of farm equipment that harvests grain, was declared a total loss. Bjerke is being held on several felony and misdemeanor charges.
Los Angeles
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Fires move toward coast: Pushed by winds reaching up to 80 mph, two fires burned more than 15 square miles of Ventura and Los Angeles counties this week, shutting down parts of two highways and forcing thousands from their homes in a region where fire has consumed thousands of homes in recent years. More than 2,000 firefighters from California and out of state battled the blazes, as flames rose as high as 80 feet and destroyed dozens of homes. Los Angeles County Fire Chief Michael Freeman said one fire had the potential to reach the Pacific Coast Highway, a prospect he called “a design for disaster.”
Flint, Mich.
Moratorium on evictions: A Michigan sheriff this week began a two-week moratorium on evicting renters from their homes, saying he was seeking a “more humane” response to the wave of foreclosures. Genesee County Sheriff Robert Pickell said he was responding to worries that renters living in foreclosed homes were being tossed out without notice. A local landlord group threatened legal action, arguing that court-ordered evictions cannot be defied. Pickell said his deputies have been evicting 50 to 60 families a week. “I’m concerned about the people,” he said. Last week, the sheriff in Cook County, Ill., announced a similar policy.
Cincinnati
Voter-fraud ruling: A federal court this week ordered the Ohio secretary of state to check thousands of new voters in the state for registration fraud and share her findings with the state’s 88 county election boards. The ruling is a victory for Ohio Republicans, who sued Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, a Democrat, alleging that she had not adequately verified the 660,000 new voters added to Ohio’s rolls since January. The court ordered Brunner to cross-check the new registrations against other state records, giving her only days to comply. The ruling could remove thousands of new voters from the rolls; most are believed to be Democrats. Barack Obama and John McCain are locked in a tight race for Ohio’s 20 electoral votes.
Hartford
Gay marriage approved: Connecticut last week became the third state to recognize gay marriage, after its Supreme Court ruled that a state law permitting civil unions did not satisfy the Connecticut constitution’s equal protection clause. In a 4–3 ruling, the court found that civil unions amount to something less than marriage, which it called “an institution of transcendent historical, cultural, and social significance.” The ruling prompted sharp protests from conservative groups. “Even the legislature, as liberal as ours, decided that marriage is between a man and a woman,” said Peter Wolfgang of the Family Institute of Connecticut. “This is about our right to govern ourselves.” California and Massachusetts also recognize gay marriage.
Palm Beach, Fla.
Sex scandal disrupts race: A congressional district accustomed to sex scandals encountered another one this week, after reports that Democratic Rep. Tim Mahoney paid $121,000 in campaign funds to a former staff member with whom he’d had an extramarital affair. At a press conference, Mahoney admitted causing his family “embarrassment and heartache,” but denied breaking the law. Shortly after Mahoney’s announcement, a former staffer alleged that Mahoney had also carried on an affair with a high-ranking county official. Before the allegations surfaced, Mahoney appeared headed toward victory over Republican challenger Tom Rooney. Mahoney succeeded Republican Rep. Mark Foley, who resigned in 2006 after he was discovered sending lewd text messages and e-mails to teenage boys serving as House pages.
