NYC policeman shoots fellow officer
New York In a tragic case of mistaken identity, police shot and critically wounded an off-duty officer as he pointed a gun at a suspect outside a fast food restaurant early Saturday, authorities said.
Eric Hernandez, 25, was hit three times and was hospitalized in extremely critical condition, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said.
The officer who pulled the trigger, identified only as a 20-year veteran of the force, was being treated for trauma at another hospital.
Hernandez had been in line at a White Castle restaurant in the Bronx shortly before 5 a.m. when he was assaulted by a half-dozen men, Bloomberg said. It wasn’t immediately clear what sparked the fight, but it was captured on the restaurant’s security camera.
A White Castle employee called 911, and Hernandez – with his gun drawn – ran into the parking lot after his assailants, Bloomberg said.
He apparently subdued one of the suspects, and when a patrol car arrived, was pointing his gun at a man on the ground.
One of the two officers, apparently believing Hernandez was about to shoot, opened fire, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said.
Bush says Senate has duty to vote on Alito
Washington President Bush gave Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito a broadcast boost Saturday, calling for a simple up-or-down Senate confirmation vote despite a blocking effort by some Democrats.
A final vote on whether to make the conservative federal appellate judge the nation’s 110th Supreme Court justice is scheduled for Tuesday unless opponents win an uphill battle to impose a filibuster.
“The Senate has a constitutional responsibility to hold an up-or-down vote on Judge Alito’s nomination,” Bush said in his weekly radio address. “Throughout its 216-year history, the Senate has held an up-or-down vote on every Supreme Court nominee with majority Senate support.”
The president spoke as liberals led by Sens. Edward Kennedy and John Kerry, D-Mass., worked to deprive supporters of the 60 votes needed to limit debate. They faced resistance from some fellow Democrats as well as solid Republican opposition to the stalling tactic.
Alito, a former federal prosecutor and Reagan administration lawyer, would replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O’Connor.
Pickett remembered by fellow musicians
Louisville, Ky.
Wilson Pickett was remembered by friends and family Saturday as a singer who fell somewhere between a poet and a preacher, laying the groundwork for artists after him.
“One way or another, Wilson was going to move you with his music,” the Rev. Steve Owens told about 800 people gathered to mourn the singer of such hits as “In the Midnight Hour” and “Mustang Sally.”
Pickett, known for his raspy voice and passionate delivery, changed the course of music and paved the way for such artists as Diddy, Will Smith and Eminem, singer Little Richard told the crowd at Canaan Christian Church.
“He didn’t just belong to us – he belonged to the world,” said Pickett’s brother, Maxwell.
The Alabama-born Pickett got his start singing gospel music in church. After moving to Detroit as a teen, he joined the Falcons, which scored the hit “I Found a Love” with Pickett as lead singer in 1962.
Pickett, 64, died Jan. 19 after a heart attack in a Virginia hospital.