MONDAY August 5, 2013
VA Hospital Page A2 Stutzman, Donnelly blast care suspension
Auto Racing Page B1 Kahne wins NASCAR Sprint Cup race
Weather Partly sunny with a 30 percent chance of rain. High of 77. Low of 60. Page A6
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GOOD MORNING Megan Thwaites crowned Miss Northeast BUTLER — Megan Thwaites of Garrett was crowned Miss Northeast 2014 Sunday night during the 41st Miss Northeast Scholarship Pageant at the Millie Hansen Auditorium in Butler. Thwaites, 21, is a senior at Ball State Thwaites University. For her talent, Thwaites performed a jazz dance to a selection from the musical, “9 to 5.” She is a graduate of DeKalb High School. Her parents are John and Sandra Thwaites of Garrett. Paige Grate of Auburn was first runner-up for Miss Northeast, and Julianna Zehr of Spencerville was second runner-up. Megan Smaltz, a junior at DeKalb High School, was named Miss Northeast’s Outstanding Teen 2014. She performed a tap dance for her talent. Smaltz is the daughter of Ben and Smaltz Shelley Smaltz of Auburn. Victoria Ruble of Garrett was named first runner-up for Oustanding Teen, and Sarah Ehmke of Waterloo was second runner-up. Thwaites and Smaltz will compete for the titles of Miss Indiana and Miss Indiana’s Outstanding Teen 2014 next June in Zionsville. Miss Northeast contestants must live, work, or go to school in DeKalb or Steuben counties.
President Obama celebrates birthday WASHINGTON (AP) — Instead of “Hail to the Chief,” President Barack Obama most likely heard strains of “Happy Birthday” this weekend. Obama, who turned 52 on Sunday, spent part of the day at the Camp David presidential retreat in Maryland. The White House said little about how he celebrated. The president played golf Saturday with friends from his days in Hawaii and Chicago. Some of them joined him at Camp David.
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Index
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Classifieds.................................B7-B8 Life..................................................... A5 Obituaries......................................... A4 Opinion .............................................B4 Sports.........................................B1-B3 Weather............................................ A6 TV/Comics .......................................B6 Vol. 101 No. 214
in the hangar, and I flew my first flight when I was 14.” Farrand soon will be 81 and says he still flies at least once a week. All those flying hours have not been solely for recreation. Farrand is one of the nation’s foremost experts in making sure experimental aircraft are safe. He is an innovator in that field — that’s one of the reasons he was honored by the EAA. Farrand was a part of the original EAA designee program in the 1960s. In addition to helping others ensure safety in building and flying, he has achieved major accomplishments in the aviation community, including co-designing and piloting the first powered parachute in the United States and building and demonstrating some
SANAA, Yemen (AP) — Security forces closed roads, put up extra blast walls and increased patrols Sunday near some of the more than 20 U.S. diplomatic missions in the Muslim world that Washington had ordered closed for the weekend following warnings of a possible al-Qaida attack. The closures came with a call for Americans abroad to take extra precautions throughout August, particularly when using planes, trains and boats, though some veteran expatriates shrugged off the warnings. “I have been here long enough to know where and where not to go,” said Brian Edwards, a professional basketball player from Detroit, Michigan, who has lived in Egypt for nearly six years. “I feel generally safe.” Some warned, meanwhile, that such security measures are not sustainable. “It sets a precedent,” said Shadi Hamid, an analyst with the Brookings Doha Center. “What happens if you keep on getting credible threats?” The countries with closure orders covered much of the Muslim and Arab world, from Mauritania in the west to Bangladesh in the east. The State Department said 19 diplomatic posts will remain closed through Saturday “out of an abundance of caution.” State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the decision to keep the embassies and consulates closed is “not an indication of a new threat.” Diplomatic facilities will remain closed through Saturday in Egypt, Jordan, Libya, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, among other countries. In recent days, U.S. officials have said they have received significant and detailed intelligence suggesting a possible attack, with some clues pointing to the al-Qaida terror network. The State Depart-
SEE FARRAND, PAGE A6
SEE CHANCES, PAGE A6
PHOTO CONTRIBUTED
Lowell Farrand of rural Ligonier stands in front of airplanes at the Goshen Municipal Airport. Farrand, 80, is one of the nation’s top experts in aviation safety, specializing in small, experi-
mental aircraft. He was honored Thursday by the Experimental Aircraft Association at the group’s annual convention at Oshkosh, Wis.
Ligonier man is top flight Farrand one of nation’s leading aviation experts BY BOB BUTTGEN leader@kpcmedia.com
LIGONIER — Lowell Farrand of Ligonier has lived a life of quiet satisfaction, concentrating on the activity that makes him the happiest: flying. Now at age 80, Farrand has been honored by the aviation industry for his many decades of dedication to aviation safety and research. He flew last week to Oshkosh, Wis., where Thursday night he received the 2013 Tony Bingelis Award, recognizing his involvement in the homebuilt aviation community. It was presented by the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) at the group’s annual convention. “I’ve been flying since 1946. Back in those days, we would just fly for fun,” he said. “I was
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14 when I first started, and took lessons at 17, just to make it legal. Since then, I’ve logged 5,280 hours in the air.” The rural Ligonier home of Farrand and Gaylia, his wife and navigator of 61 years, opens up onto a flying strip in their backyard, making it convenient to fly whenever the feeling hits. As a youngster, Farrand built model airplanes. “And as soon as I got old enough, I would ride my bike to the Goshen airport and wash the bugs off the planes for the pilots,” he said. “Finally, they let me start taxiing and putting them away
Hit-and-run driver accelerated Clock LOS ANGELES (AP) — The driver parked outside a hotel and surveyed the leisurely summer scene at the Venice Beach boardwalk: Hundreds of people were sitting at cafes, walking along the seashore or shopping at vendors selling jewelry or art. Then, according to surveillance video, the man got into a large black car, steered around a vehicle barrier and accelerated mercilessly through the crowd, hitting one person after another as bystanders tried desperately to get out of the way. Saturday’s hit-and-run killed an Italian woman on her honeymoon and hurt 11 others who only a moment earlier had been enjoying an afternoon near the beach at the height of vacation season. A couple of hours later, authorities arrested a man on suspicion of murder after he walked into a police station in neighboring Santa Monica and said he was involved. Nathan Louis Campbell, 38, of Los Angeles, remained jailed Sunday on $1 million bail. Police declined to discuss a motive but Deputy Chief Kirk Albanese said there was no indication that the attack was a terrorist act or that anyone else was involved. By the time it was over, the driver had covered about a quarter of a mile along the boardwalk before fleeing. The entire incident was over in minutes. Witnesses reported a horrifying aftermath. People were ” stumbling around, blood dripping down their legs, looking confused not knowing what had happened, people screaming,” said Louisa Hodge, who described “blocks and blocks of people just strewn across
ticking in Egypt AP
Pedestrians gather as police and fire officials respond after a car drove through a packed afternoon crowd along the Venice Beach boardwalk Saturday in Los Angeles. At least a dozen people were injured, two of them critically, according to police.
the sidewalk.” The Italian woman was identified as Alice Gruppioni, 32. Her family in Bologna told the Italian news agency LaPresse that she had been on her honeymoon after a July 20 wedding. Gruppioni worked as a manager for the family business Sira group, which makes radiators. Her father, Valerio Gruppioni, runs the company and was formerly president of the Bologna soccer team, according to LaPresse. The family declined to speak to The Associated Press on Sunday. Another person was critically injured. Two others were taken to hospitals in serious condition. Eight suffered less serious injuries, police said. According to security video and witness accounts, the driver parked next to the Cadillac Hotel and
twice walked out to the boardwalk before getting into the Dodge Avenger. He carefully maneuvered between a storefront and metal poles that had been erected to prevent anyone from driving onto the boardwalk. Then he stepped on the accelerator and plunged into the crowd. “I heard a big ‘boom, boom,’ like the sound of someone going up and down the curb, it was super loud,” said Alex Hagan, who was working the desk at the hotel. The driver knocked over two mannequins and an ATM and started hitting people, swerving from side to side and often running straight into victims. Video showed the car struck at least three vendors — a fortune teller, a couple selling jewelry and SEE BOARDWALK, PAGE A6
Associated Press Eds: Updates with Burns meeting with Qatari foreign minister and extending stay another day; links new photos. With AP Photos. CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s highest security body warned Sunday that the clock is ticking for a peaceful end to the standoff over sit-ins by supporters of ousted President Mohammed Morsi, suggesting that authorities will break up the protests unless mediation efforts produce results soon. More than a month after the military overthrew Morsi, thousands of the Islamist leader’s supporters remain camped out in two main crossroads in Cairo demanding his reinstatement. Egypt’s militarybacked interim leadership has issued a string of warnings for them to disperse or security forces will move in, setting the stage for a potential showdown. Also Sunday, authorities announced that a court case accusing the spiritual leader of the Muslim Brotherhood and his powerful deputy of inciting violence will start Aug. 25. Morsi hails from the Brotherhood. A top U.S. official visiting Cairo urged all sides to find a peaceful resolution to the standoff to avoid a repeat of violence that has killed SEE EGYPT, PAGE A6