World/Nation June 29, 2015
2nd escaped murderer is shot, captured after other killed
MALONE, N.Y. - The second of two convicted murderers who staged a brazen escape three weeks ago from a maximum-security prison in northern New York was shot and captured near the Canadian border on Sunday, two days after his fellow inmate was killed in a confrontation with law enforcement, authorities said.
"The nightmare is finally over," Gov. Andrew Cuomo declared at a news conference.
A state police sergeant shot David Sweat in the town of Constable, about 1 1/2 miles south of the Canadian border and 30 miles northwest of the prison, after spotting him walking along a road and recognizing him, Cuomo said.
Sgt. Jay Cook was alone and on routine patrol when he stumbled upon Sweat. He gave chase when Sweat fled and decided to fire as the fugitive approached a tree line where Cook feared he would lose him, state police said.
"I can only assume he was going for the border," Superintendent Joseph D'Amico said.
The arrest ended a three-week ordeal that sent 1,300 local, state and federal law enforcement officers into the thickly forested northern reaches of New York and forced residents to tolerate nerve-wracking armed checkpoints and property searches.
SpaceX rocket breaks apart on way to space station
An unmanned SpaceX rocket carrying supplies to the International Space Station broke apart Sunday shortly after liftoff. It was a severe blow to NASA, the third cargo mission to fail in eight months.
The accident happened about 2 1/2 minutes into the flight from Cape Canaveral, Fla. A billowing white cloud emerged in the sky, growing bigger and bigger, then fiery plumes shot out. Pieces of the rocket could be seen falling into the Atlantic like a fireworks display gone wrong.
More than 5,200 pounds of space station cargo were on board, including the first docking port designed for future commercial crew capsules, a new spacesuit and a water filtration system.
NASA officials said they have enough supplies for the three-person crew on board the station to last till October and still plan to send three more crewmembers up in a late July launch. NASA likes to have a six-month cushion of food and water, but is now down to four months.
Greece imposes capital controls, banks to remain shut
ATHENS, Greece - Greece's five-year financial crisis took its most dramatic turn to date Sunday, with the prime minister announcing Greek banks would remain shut indefinitely and restrictions would be imposed on cash withdrawals.
The decision came on the recommendation of the Bank of Greece, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said during a televised address to the nation. He didn't immediately say what types of capital controls would be imposed.
The developments have thrown into question Greece's financial future and continued membership in the 19-nation shared euro currency - and even the European Union.
Rebel flag taken from capitols along with license tags
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Across the South, Confederate symbols are toppling, teetering or at least getting critical new looks. But is it a sign of real change in a region known for fiercely defending its complex traditions, or simply the work of frightened politicians and nervous corporate bean counters scrambling for cover in the wake of another white-on-black atrocity?
Probably a bit of both, says author Tracy Thompson. "But, so what?"
"I'm sure there's a lot of expedient backtracking going on," said Thompson, who wrote "The New Mind of the South." ''If it's going in the right direction, who cares?"
One who does care is the Rev. Joseph Darby - a longtime friend of Clementa Pinckney, one of nine slain during a Bible study at a black church in Charleston, South Carolina. And he thinks it's a bit premature to declare this a new "New South," as some commentators have suggested.
"Taking down those flags is not that big a deal," he said of Gov. Nikki Haley's call to remove the Confederate battle flag from the statehouse lawn and Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley's order Wednesday to take down four rebel banners from a memorial at his capitol.
- The Associated Press