Jan. 27 CONNECTICUT----impending execution//volunteer Death penalty opponents see Supreme Court decision as a major blow Everyone from Michael Ross' former attorneys to anti-death penalty activists said they believe their best chance of stopping the serial killer's execution ended in the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday. "We went as far as we can go," said Gerard Smyth, the chief state public defender who led efforts to challenge New England's 1st execution since 1960 despite Ross' decision to forgo further appeals. "Everything we did was as a 'next friend' and it was all contingent on a determination that he was mentally incompetent," Smyth said. "We're disappointed that the system would allow someone to be executed without allowing all the evidence to be heard first." The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday lifted a stay of execution that was issued by Hartford U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny, who wanted to hold a hearing on Ross' competency. The high court's decision cleared one of two obstacles that had blocked the state from putting Ross to death by lethal injection. A federal appeals court on Friday is scheduled to hear the state's challenge to a separate 10-day restraining order that Chatigny issued on Wednesday, after Ross' father filed a civil rights lawsuit - against his son's wishes - seeking to block the execution. Meanwhile, Ross' execution was rescheduled for Saturday at 2:01 a.m., "barring any legal impediments," said Correction Department spokesman Brian Garnett. Ross, on death row for killing four young women and girls in eastern Connecticut in the early 1980s, fired his public defenders last year and decided to forgo any remaining appeals. A state judge accepted Ross' decision after hearing testimony from a psychiatrist that Ross was competent. Public defenders were not allowed to take part in that proceeding and have argued that they should be able to cross-examine the psychiatrist. They wanted to present evidence that Ross is not competent because the effects of being confined to death row, they say, have made him depressed and willing to take his own life. Dan Ross' lawyer, Antonio Ponvert, said he believed the judges on the 2nd. U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York on Friday "will have the courage to do what is right." "If the law is followed as it should be, we will succeed," Ponvert said. The Circuit Court's decision, no matter what it is, is expected to be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. Ponvert was much less sure of his chances at the nation's highest court, because it gave no reasons for lifting Chatigny's stay on Thursday. Gordon Bates, associated conference minister for Justice Witness Ministries for the United Church of Christ, a group that also challenged the execution, said he believes there is no way of stopping it now. "If the final stay is lifted, there really is no other recourse," Bates said. Bates said he and other death penalty opponents are dismayed that Connecticut is joining those states that continue to use capital punishment. "At least the general public is being forced to look at the efficacy of the death penalty and the morality of the death penalty and perhaps some good will come of that," Bates said. The state legislature will hold its 1st debate on the death penalty this year on Monday. A public forum is scheduled at 12:30 p.m. at the Capitol to discuss the possibility of replacing the death sentence with life in prison without parole. Sen. Andrew McDonald, D-Stamford, co-chairman of the legislature's Judiciary Committee, said he expects that if Ross' execution goes forward, the debate will be about emotion rather than a principled discussion about public policy. "It seems to me that the notion that this has to happen in the next 24 to 72 hours is just the result of an emotionally charged environment and I think that's very unfortunate," McDonald said. "I think it's important to realize this issue is profound and much larger than Michael Ross." Rep. Michael Lawlor, D-East Haven, the other co-chairman of the committee, said it now appears that Ross will likely be executed. Although he opposes the death penalty, Lawlor said he's not losing any sleep over Ross' death in particular. "Although I don't agree with what we're doing to him, he's certainly getting what he deserves," Lawlor said. But Lawlor said he still believes it would be a worse punishment to keep Ross behind bars for the rest of his life. "Oh great. He gets what he wants. All of us are left to kind of wipe the slime off ourselves on Saturday morning for having done this," Lawlor said. "The only winner seems to be Michael Ross." (source: Associated Press) ******************* One Obstacle To Execution Left----Ross Moving Closer To Death Chamber After High Court Rejects Public Defenders' Motion Serial killer Michael Ross has his belongings packed in boxes and is expected to move into the holding cell adjacent to the death chamber today, even as the last bar to his execution is being argued before a federal appeals court this morning. The state's 1st execution in nearly 45 years is scheduled for 2:01 a.m. Saturday. The U.S. Supreme Court, by a 5-4 margin Thursday, vacated the stay of execution issued Tuesday by Chief U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny. The stay was designed to give public defenders the opportunity to present evidence that Ross is mentally incompetent and should not be permitted to "volunteer" to be executed. The high court's order leaves a temporary restraining order, also issued by Chatigny, in a civil rights lawsuit filed by Ross' father, as the only legal impediment to the execution being carried out. "We're done," Chief Public Defender Gerard Smyth said, minutes after learning of the high court's order. "The highest court in the nation has denied us the opportunity to present our evidence. There's nothing further we can do." A small army of public defenders has worked doggedly, often through sleepless nights, to stave off their former client's execution. Because Ross dismissed them 4 months ago and retained attorney T.R. Paulding to represent him, they tried in vain to assert that Ross is mentally incompetent. Only then would they be permitted to intervene on Ross' behalf. Since Dec. 28, two Superior Court judges, the state Supreme Court and U.S. District Judge Christopher F. Droney have affirmed Ross' competence. Only Chatigny saw the need for further evidence on whether Ross' confinement for 20 years in a highly restrictive setting led him to despair and his decision to die. Ross, who has seen 3 execution dates come and go this week, is said to be relieved. "He's indicated he's prepared, if this does go forward tomorrow evening," Paulding said. "He's ready. "He's obviously aware of the fact we still have another hurdle," Paulding said. "He's not convinced it's going forward, but he's much more confident than he was a few hours ago." Kathy Jaeger, who is both a friend of and spiritual adviser to Ross, said she visited with him Thursday before the Supreme Court issued its order. At that point he was anxious that the high court would leave the stay in place and his fate uncertain. "I told Michael it's not about us being in control of it," Jaeger said. "The U.S. Supreme Court was the big one. "He's going to be glad in some respects," she predicted. "But then the reality is going to hit: They're going to kill me tonight." The last-minute legal wrangling has taken a toll on family members of the victims, some of whom said they struggle daily over whether to read or listen to news reports about the case. Some want to stay apprised of the developments but feel that hearing about Ross each day causes them further anguish. "You try to follow it in the news and you hear, 'It's on,' then you hear, `It's not.' It's so hard to see it get dragged out like this," said Steve St. John, uncle of Tammy Williams, one of Ross' victims. "I find it very difficult from my end to concentrate or even sleep. It seems like there's no end to this." The Supreme Court's order is a single sentence granting the application by state prosecutors to vacate the stay of execution. But Attorney General Richard Blumenthal - who will argue today in New York that the U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals should dissolve the temporary restraining order - thinks that one sentence speaks volumes. "The U.S. Supreme Court decision today sends a profoundly important message that our state's highest court is entitled to respect and the state is upholding the rule of law, which is a vital public interest," Blumenthal said. "There is an interest in finality and certitude in the criminal justice system - not only in the interests of the anguish and pain that may be caused to victims' families, but also in the emotional and financial burden to the state as a whole from revisiting and reconsidering lawful convictions and sentences. "Our argument to the court of appeals will be that four courts have addressed and answered the issue of Michael Ross' competence," Blumenthal said. Antonio Ponvert III represents Dan Ross, father of Michael Ross. Ponvert and attorney Jim Nugent filed a complex civil rights claim that the state cannot deprive Dan Ross of his familial relationship with his son if there are questions remaining about Michael Ross' competence and the fairness of Connecticut's death penalty scheme. Although related somewhat to the public defenders' contentions that Ross is incompetent, Dan Ross is suing on his own behalf and doesn't run into the issues of standing as the public defenders did. Ponvert, who was working into the night Thursday preparing for this morning's hearing, called the state's arguments "frivolous." He said he expected the federal appeals court to understand that Dan Ross has a right to a hearing. "The state is grasping for any straw they have so they can rush ahead and kill a man who is quite possibly incompetent" and unable to make a decision about whether he should live or die, Ponvert said. "[State officials] should allow due process before they take an irrevocable step in killing another human being." Ponvert said he recognized that this morning's hearing could be the last effort to save Ross' life. "Of course I'm feeling the pressure," he said. "I have a client who loves his son and wants his son to live. Keeping his son alive is my goal, and I intend to use every fiber in my brain to accomplish that." But some of the dozens of lawyers who have been involved in the case said they hold out little hope the temporary restraining order will stand. They believe, in light of Thursday's Supreme Court order, that the panel of three judges will dissolve the stay. Chief State's Attorney Christopher Morano would not speculate on whether the execution would be carried out Saturday. "The only thing I can say for sure is earlier today, there were two legal impediments blocking the execution of Mr. Ross. Now there is only one," Morano said. "Where we go from here depends very much on the matter being argued before the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals." Some family members have sought comfort from each other. Linda Brodeur, sister of Debra Smith Taylor, said Edwin Shelley, father of Leslie Shelley, visited her at work this week to lend support. Brodeur, 52, of Jewett City, is not eligible to witness the execution because Ross did not receive the death penalty for Taylor's killing. "I would love to be there. I would give anything for that," Brodeur said. "But Ed told me he's going there for all eight victims so my sister will have someone there." Attorney Michael Malchik, the retired state police detective who persuaded Ross to confess to 6 murders, said he was relieved by the Supreme Court order, but expressed frustration at continuing legal delays to the execution. "The people of the state of Connecticut are not stupid," Malchik said Thursday afternoon. "Even though this seems to be a complicated legal issue, what it really boils down to is that the people who are against the death penalty and their attorneys are trying to delay this in any way they can. "The people of Connecticut understand that. U.S. District Court Judge Robert Chatigny's decisions leading to some of those delays are completely out of step with all the other legal reasoning that has gone on in this case over the last 21 years. At this point, the most important thing is for the families of the victims to get the justice that they deserve." Public defender John Holdridge, who churned out many of the briefs in the various motions and appeals, was disappointed and cynical Thursday. "Bush v. Gore strikes again," Holdridge said. "Apparently 5 members of the United States Supreme Court share John Ashcroft's radical right-wing agenda to spread the death penalty to the Northeast." The majority deciding to lift the stay consisted of Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist and Justices Sandra Day O'Connor, Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy and Clarence Thomas. The ruling was opposed by Justices John Paul Stevens, David H. Souter, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen G. Breyer. Earlier in the day, the high court denied the application for an emergency stay of execution filed by the Missionary Society of Connecticut, which is a branch of the United Church of Christ. The society, citing its longstanding opposition to the death penalty, earlier this month requested a commutation hearing in the Ross case from the state Board of Pardons and Paroles. In Connecticut, the power to commute a death sentence to life in prison is vested in the board. Board Chairman Gregory Everett denied the request, saying that only the death row inmate or his lawyer could seek a hearing. Even then, Everett has said, the board has the authority to deny the request for a hearing. The society then launched a lawsuit asking the judge to order the board to grant it a hearing, and claiming the board's lack of written rules and policies is a due process violation. Superior Court Judge Robert E. Beach Jr. dismissed the suit in Hartford, saying the society had no standing to bring it. The state Supreme Court earlier this week dismissed the appeal. "It looks like the execution will go through," said the Rev. Gordon Bates, who coordinates the society's anti-death penalty activities. "We're disappointed in the order in our case, obviously, but not surprised," Bates said. "It's a sad time from our standpoint, regardless of what Mr. Ross says he wants or doesn't want. ... It simply puts the people of Connecticut on the same level of Mr. Ross - taking the life of a man who can't harm anyone at this point in a premeditated fashion. That's precisely what Mr. Ross did." (source: Hartford Courant) ******************* Citizens Can Work To Reject Death Penalty Letters To The Editor: I've followed with interest The Day's coverage of the Michael Ross case. I'm a law student at Fordham Law School in New York City, and I've turned to The Day on this story because I grew up in Southeastern Connecticut. Motivated by a strong moral opposition to the death penalty, I plan to do capital defense as a lawyer. Last year, the New York State Court of Appeals declared the New York death penalty law unconstitutional because of a provision that favored the imposition of the death penalty in many cases. The lawyers working to stop the execution of Michael Ross deserve praise and support for pursuing every avenue to find a constitutional basis to overturn Connecticut's death-penalty law. No one doubts the depravity of Michael Ross' crimes. The time has come, however, to overturn Connecticut's death penalty law. Perhaps a court, even the Supreme Court, will strike down Connecticut's death-penalty law on Constitutional grounds. If this execution continues, however, the citizens of Connecticut should press their legislators to strike the death penalty from the state's lawbooks. Democracy works best when citizens themselves work for change. In this fight, the people working to overturn this cruel and unusual form of punishment have right on their side. Charles Shaw----New York, N.Y. (source: Letter to the Editor, The Day) ****************** While Texas executed 339, appeals foiled Connecticut Troy Albert Kunkle, 38, was executed by lethal injection in Texas at 8:12 p.m. Tuesday, 6 hours before Michael Ross, 45, had been scheduled for a lethal injection. Tuesday afternoon, the U.S. Supreme Court voted 5-4 to reject a last-minute appeal on Kunkle's behalf. At about the same time, Ross' execution was delayed indefinitely pending a challenge to the same high court. Kunkle, who killed a man during a robbery, was the 339th inmate executed in Texas since the reinstatement of the death penalty in 1974. It was the state's 2nd execution this year. [my note---Kunkle was the 338th inmate executed in Texas since the state resumed executions on December 7, 1982] Connecticut reinstated its death penalty law Oct. 1, 1973 -- 3 months before Texas. But the state's last execution was 45 years ago. So why does it appear easier to execute a robber in Texas than a serial killer in Connecticut? "We're not Texas," said Todd Fernow, UConn professor of law and director of its Criminal Law Clinic. "It sounds facetious, but there's a grain of truth to that." The mere size of Texas -- population 20.8 million, the second largest in the nation, compared to Connecticut's 3.4 million, ranked 29th -- contributes heavily to the belief that executions are "easier" there than here, said Fernow. The larger population base, more defendants and more courts hearing cases, create a larger "opportunity" for death sentences to be handed down. Texas has sentenced 568 defendants to death from 1987 through 2003, compared to 9 in Connecticut over the same period. Texas re-instated the death penalty Jan. 1, 1974. Its first execution under the law was in 1982. Fernow said Texas streamlined its execution process over years to the point where appeals move more quickly. In Ross' case, it has taken 17 years of legal wrangling to get to the Supreme Court, where appeals are often exhausted. The U.S. 5th District Circuit Court of Appeals, which handles Texas cases, has handled significantly more death penalty cases, allowing for decisions to be rendered more quickly, based on past decisions, Fernow said. The 2nd District Circuit Court of Appeals, which handles New York and New England cases, hasn't. "Basically, we haven't gone through the trial and error like Texas has," Fernow said. According to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, the average time an inmate spends on death row is 10.4 years. But according to its list of death-row inmates, 134 of the 446 on death row today have been there longer than that. Kunkle, the inmate executed Tuesday, had been on death row for 20 years, and twice avoided execution last year with last-minute stays. "Each state has its own death penalty law, and the way it's drafted will have an impact on how many avenues of appeal are available," said UConn law professor Paul Schiff Berman, who worked as a law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg from 1997-98. In 1987, the year Michael Ross was 2st sentenced to die, Texas sentenced 36 to death. Nine of them are still on death row. 33 others have been there longer. Walter Bell Jr., 52, is the senior member of the death row fraternity. He was sentenced to death May 20, 1975. Connecticut provides juries with an alternative to death -- life imprisonment with no chance of parole -- that Texas does not offer. On Monday, the Connecticut General Assembly's Judiciary Committee will host a public hearing on a proposed bill to abolish the death penalty. Committee Chairman state Rep. Michael Lawlor, D-East Haven, who opposes the death penalty, wants to commute death sentences to life in prison with no possibility of parole. "It's a fraud," Lawlor said of the death penalty law. "It misleads victims into believing something is going to be done, and nothing does." Fernow and Berman, the law professors, agree the legal process in the Ross case has moved along precisely as the law intended it. Fernow added that Ross' decision to forego further appeals may have interfered with the orderly progression. "The question is, 'What if we had a death penalty law that was easy to impose?'" Fernow said. "Even people who support the death penalty cringe at that idea. If you're going to have a death penalty, you can't make it easy and efficient without it becoming an abomination. The checks and balances we have are about right." TEXAS VS. CONNECTICUT Texas leads the nationin the number of executions since the death penalty was reinstated. Texas revised its death penalty law effective Jan. 1, 1974, and has put to death 338 prisoners since. Connecticut revised its death penalty law effective Oct. 1, 1973. No one in Connecticut has been executed since. -- Here is a look at the differences in the states: Population: Texas -- 20.8 million, 2nd largest. Connecticut -- 3.4 million, 29th. Sentenced to death (1987-2003): Texas -- 568. Connecticut -- 9. Current death row population: Texas -- 446. Connecticut -- 8. Average time on death row: Texas -- 10.4 years. Connecticut -- undetermined. Last execution: Texas -- Tuesday. Connecticut -- 1960. Alternative of life in prison with no parole:Texas -- no. Connecticut -- yes. (source: Norwich Bulletin) ILLINOIS----female may face death sentence Depression expert allowed to testify A psychologist specializing in the treatment of depression will be allowed to provide limited testimony for the defense of Amanda Fredrickson at her March trial, Cook County Judge Thomas Fecarotta Jr. said Wednesday. Prosecutors tried to block defense attorneys from calling Diane Sanford to the witness stand, saying her testimony was immaterial because Fredrickson is not seeking an insanity defense. Sanford interviewed Fredrickson at length after her December 2001 arrest and testified previously that the former Streamwood woman was clinically depressed and suffered from postpartum depression after her two children were born. Fredrickson, 27, could face the death penalty if she is convicted of letting her 18-month-old son starve to death in the Streamwood home she shared with her husband and their young daughter, who now lives out of state with Fredrickson's parents. Steve Rosenblum, Cook County assistant state's attorney, said Sanford's testimony was irrelevant because in Illinois, legal insanity is essentially an all-or-nothing proposition. Mental illness can't be used as a defense unless a defendant claims insanity, meaning the defendant cannot distinguish between right or wrong when engaging in criminal activity. Juries can find defendants "guilty but mentally ill," but only if the defendant specifically put forth an insanity defense. Fredrickson is not claiming insanity. "The fact that someone is clinically depressed is not a legal defense here in Illinois," Rosenblum said. Fredrickson's attorney Susan Smith said that Sanford's testimony is necessary to show that Fredrickson was not "calmly allowing her son to starve to death." Sanford will not be able to specifically tell jurors that depression caused Fredrickson's negligence in caring for her son. Jurors, however, may infer that on their own as the doctor describes depression and how it manifested in Fredrickson. Fredrickson's husband, Kristian, pleaded guilty to murder charges he faced over 18-month-old James' death in exchange for prosecutors dropping the death penalty. In November, Fecarotta sentenced him to 45 years in prison. (source: Daily Herald) FLORIDA: Justice blasts lawyers over Death Row appeals Justice Raoul Cantero decried the poor quality of death row briefs by private attorneys untrained to handle the complex cases and voiced concerns about Gov. Bush's privatization plan. The governor's most recent appointee to the Florida Supreme Court condemned the quality of the private lawyers handling death row appeals, saying some have botched inmate cases, muddled and omitted key arguments and generally performed "the worst lawyering I've seen." Justice Raoul Cantero not only indicted the private lawyers when he spoke this week to a panel of lawmakers and judges. He voiced grave concerns about Gov. Jeb Bush's long-standing effort to close the state-run offices handling the appeals so that private attorneys can argue the cases on the cheap. In 2003, Bush wanted to shutter all three of the Capital Collateral Regional Counsel offices. But he persuaded lawmakers to close only the office representing North Florida. Lawmakers plan to examine this spring whether to privatize the remaining offices in Fort Lauderdale and Tampa. The state lists about 150 lawyers in a registry and pays them $100 an hour, per client, to handle all cases in the north district or overflow in the south and central areas. To get on the registry, a lawyer needs only limited experience in criminal courts. Cantero says this is a problem because an attorney familiar with a few burglary trials doesn't have the skills to replace someone devoted to the highly specialized Death Row appeals process, which takes years to learn and master. Cantero said Tuesday it would be ''precipitous'' if the Legislature decided to use only private practice attorneys, some of whom file "the worst briefs that I have read. . . . I wouldn't say [they're] incomprehensible. But it's difficult to understand what issue the attorney is raising in the case. "I'm not sure we have enough quality lawyers out there that would be able to pick up the slack," Cantero said, while speaking highly of attorneys who were trained or still work in the state-run offices. Those attorneys are versed in the complex legal filings needed to ensure a fair trial for a convict facing death at the state's hands who had a bad lawyer or an unfair trial. "Some of the registry counsel have little or no experience in death penalty cases. They have not raised the right issues," said Cantero, who didn't give names or cases. "Sometimes they raise too many issues and still they haven't raised the right ones. In arguments they're unable to respond to questions, or they don't know what the record shows. They don't have a real good understanding of death penalty cases." Rep. Joe Negron, a top-ranked Republican from Stuart who helped push Bush's privatization plan through, said Cantero's comments "carry a lot of weight." Negron said he wanted to see caseload, cost and outcome data this year to determine whether to scrap either the privatization plan or the state-run offices. "I don't like the current hybrid system," he said. "But this is the beginning of the debate, not the end." Bush spokeswoman Alia Faraj said the governor's office greatly respects the opinions of Cantero -- the state's first Hispanic justice -- but wouldn't comment on what he said. Faraj said the idea of turning over the appeals to private attorneys was an effort to provide efficient counsel while saving tax dollars. In the northern district, the privatization effort is supposed to save $1.7 million a year. Faraj said when the effort was first launched that it would save time as well. She said that death row cases take up to 2 decades. But Cantero said that the privatization effort is delaying the process instead of speeding it up because inexperienced lawyers ``allege 10 issues or more, sometimes 20 issues. They take a shotgun approach. Of those 20 issues, 19 are totally baseless. "For us to wade through the morass of baseless claims takes a lot of work for the justices and eventually leads to a lot of inefficiencies in the process," he said. "That takes a lot of time that we can be spending on civil cases, on other criminal cases on important issues." (source: Associated Press) CALIFORNIA: Death penalty in train wreck? California: The district attorney says the suicidal suspect's mental issues are not a valid defense California: Driver could face that; the DA says the suicidal father's mental issues are no defense A suicidal man who allegedly parked his SUV in the path of a commuter train and triggered a horrific wreck that killed 11 people was charged with murder and could face the death penalty, authorities said Thursday. The criminal case moved forward against Juan Manuel Alvarez as police and forensics experts worked to gather evidence from the scene and coroner's investigators searched the tangled wreckage for any remaining body parts. Prosecutors have not decided if they will seek the death penalty against Alvarez, 25, who had been ordered by a court to stay away from his family after his wife alleged he abused drugs and threatened them. Authorities say he also had slashed his wrists and stabbed himself during his aborted suicide attempt. He remained hospitalized Thursday. A court hearing was set for today. District Attorney Steve Cooley said Thursday prosecutors were evaluating Alvarez's mental state in deciding on a possible punishment, but he asserted that the man's mental issues were no defense. "His despondency doesn't move me," Cooley said. "The mere fact that he was a little upset or despondent doesn't mean he has a defense for anything." Wednesday's scene: Authorities say Alvarez drove his Jeep Cherokee into the path of a Metrolink commuter train early Wednesday. He then changed his mind and got out of the vehicle just before the Jeep was struck by a train heading to Los Angeles, police said. That train derailed, plowed into a parked freight train and struck another train heading in the opposite direction. The 2nd train also derailed. He stood by as the chain-reaction wreck scattered debris and bodies over a quarter-mile of track. It was the nation's worst train wreck in nearly six years. Alvarez was charged with 10 counts of murder, but another count was to be added after the discovery of an 11th body in the mangled trains. Everyone involved in the crash was accounted for Thursday. Alvarez planned no comment until after today's court appearance, said Dann Novak of Chase Law Group. Alvarez's past: Court documents show that Alvarez's estranged wife, Carmelita Alvarez, obtained a restraining order against him in December, requiring him to keep away from her, their 3-year-old son and other family members. "He is using drugs and has been in and out of rehab twice," she said in asking for the restraining order. "He threatened to take our kid away and to hurt my family members." Carmelita Alvarez went into seclusion shortly after the crash. Meanwhile, police began collecting forensic evidence from the scene. Police Sgt. Tom Lorenz said evidence as large as a rail car may be preserved for the investigation and trial. Thursday marked a return to business as usual at a nearby Costco store where workers on the early shift were among the first to help injured people out of the wreckage, bringing out fire extinguishers to attack flames that erupted in one car. "It's a lot better. It was a disaster here yesterday," said Raim Quiros, 29, a Costco tire-shop employee who spent the previous day supplying firefighters with food. (source: Associated Press)
