Jury to return Monday in cliff death trial
DENVER – Jurors considering the fate of a man accused of pushing his wife to her death off a cliff in Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park deliberated for about five hours Friday before going home without reaching a verdict.
The jury of eight women and four men, who will resume deliberations Monday, must decide whether to convict Harold Henthorn, 59, of first-degree murder in the death of his second wife. She died after falling about 130 feet in a remote area where the couple was hiking Sept. 29, 2012, their 12th wedding anniversary.
Harold Henthorn told investigators he surprised his wife with a hike to celebrate their anniversary, and the two wandered off the trail for privacy. Toni Henthorn paused to take a photo of the view and fell face-first over the ledge, he said.
Over 1,000 homes lost in Calif. wildfires
MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – The tally of homes destroyed by two massive Northern California wildfires topped 1,000 Saturday after authorities doing damage assessments in the Sierra Nevada foothills counted another 250 houses destroyed by flames still threatening thousands of more structures.
California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection spokesman Mike Mohler said the increased count comes as firefighters make progress and damage inspection teams have access to affected areas.
Two deaths have been reported in the first fire. It is 65 percent contained.
A separate blaze in Lake County, about 170 miles northwest, has killed three people, destroyed nearly 600 homes and burned hundreds of other structures.
Experts question classroom barricades
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A nationwide push allowing schools to buy portable barricade devices they can set up if an active shooter enters their building has school security and fire experts questioning whether they’re really safe.
Those opposed to the devices say they’re complicated to install under stress and could lead to dangerous unintended consequences – including blocking authorities from an attacker inside a classroom.
The devices have gained popularity in the wake of the Virginia Tech and Sandy Hook massacres and a 2012 shooting in the Cleveland suburb of Chardon that killed three students. Some manufacturers post real-life 911 school emergency calls to their websites along with scary actor re-enactments of intrusions.
Regardless of such sales tactics, many parents have legitimate concern about keeping their children safe in an era of mass shootings.
The Associated Press
