Man who died in triathlon identified as Madison psychiatrist

MADISON, Wis. (AP) _ The man who died while competing in the swimming portion of a triathlon has been identified as Madison psychiatrist Daniel Eimermann.

The 55-year-old was found unconscious in the water at Devil's Lake State Park on Saturday.,”STATE

Man who died in triathlon identified as Madison psychiatrist

MADISON, Wis. (AP) _ The man who died while competing in the swimming portion of a triathlon has been identified as Madison psychiatrist Daniel Eimermann.

The 55-year-old was found unconscious in the water at Devil's Lake State Park on Saturday. He was pronounced dead at a hospital in Baraboo a short time later.

Other participants in the Devil's Challenge Triathlon noticed he was moving slowly on his back during the race, said Devil's Lake State Park Assistant Superintendent Steve Schmelzer. But Eimermann told them he was OK, Schmelzer said.

Lifeguards found him unconscious and tried to start CPR, he said.

Schmelzer said race organizers told him the man was an avid triathlon participant in good shape.

An autopsy was planned.

Eimermann had a private practice at Psychiatric Services and also served on the volunteer clinical faculty as a clinical assistant professor in the department of psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health.

This marked the second death at Devil's Lake this year. A 36-year-old man from West Allis died April 1 after falling 40 feet while rock climbing.

Mistrial declared in Zapata murder trial

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – A judge declared a mistrial Monday in the case of a man accused of killing his wife three decades ago after jurors said they couldn't reach a verdict.

Jeanette Zapata, a 37-year-old flight instructor, vanished from her Madison home on Oct. 11, 1976. No body or evidence of foul play has ever been found.

Still, prosecutors charged her husband, Eugene Zapata, in August 2006 with first-degree murder in a case built entirely on circumstantial evidence.

The jury deliberated for about 30 hours beginning Friday afternoon before telling a judge they reached an impasse on Monday.

On Saturday jurors reviewed recordings police made of Zapata's conversations with his daughter, Linda, in August 2005 in which she failed to elicit a confession. On Sunday the jury sent two notes to Judge Patrick Fiedler saying deliberations were difficult.

On Monday afternoon they sent another note, telling Fiedler they could not reach a unanimous decision. The judge brought the jury back into the courtroom and ordered them to continue discussions. One juror was fighting back tears.

A few minutes later the jury sent another note to the judge saying they were confused and didn't know if the judge wanted them to continue to deliberate.

NATIONAL

O.J. Simpson arrested, ordered held without bail in Las Vegas sports memorabilia robbery

LAS VEGAS (AP) – O.J. Simpson's arrest may be the start of a new legal odyssey for the fallen football star, one that could reopen the possibility of prison time more than a decade after his acquittal on murder charges.

Police arrested Simpson on Sunday, saying he was part of an armed group that burst into a Las Vegas hotel room and snatched memorabilia that documented his storied career.

Simpson said it was merely a confrontation with no guns. He said autographed sports collectibles, his Hall of Fame certificate, a photograph with former FBI director J. Edgar Hoover and video from his first wedding were all his, and that they were stolen from him and were about to be fenced by unethical collectors.

Police said they were not sure who owned the memorabilia. But they say the manner in which the goods were taken was under investigation.

"Whether or not the property belonged to Mr. Simpson or not is still in debate," Lt. Clint Nichols said Sunday. "Having said that, the manner in which this property was taken, we have a responsibility to look into that, irregardless of who the property belonged to."

Bush to nominate retired judge Michael Mukasey to replace Alberto Gonzales as attorney general

WASHINGTON (AP) – Michael Mukasey, President Bush's pick to replace Alberto Gonzales as attorney general, is not expected to prompt the confirmation battle that Senate Democrats threatened to wage if a more partisan nominee was chosen.

The retired federal judge from New York has received endorsements in the past from liberals, including one of the Senate's most liberal Democrats. And while some legal conservatives have expressed reservations about his record on the federal bench, other conservatives are happy about the decision Bush was expected to announce Monday.

The White House refused to comment on the Mukasey nomination, which was confirmed Sunday night by a person familiar with Bush's decision. The source refused to be identified by name because the nomination had not yet been formally announced.

"While he is certainly conservative, Judge Mukasey seems to be the kind of nominee who would put rule of law first and show independence from the White House – our most important criteria," said Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Mukasey, 66, is a New York native and a judicial adviser to GOP presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani.

Democrats express confidence they can pass troop-rest legislation; Gates says he'll urge veto

WASHINGTON (AP) – Senate Democrats are confident they can pass legislation to give troops more rest between Iraq deployments, a measure aimed at pressing the Bush administration to change its war policy.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates called the proposal by Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., a dangerous "backdoor way" to draw down additional forces. Gates said he would recommend a veto.

"If we get this next phase wrong – no matter how you feel about how we got to where we are, the consequences of getting this wrong for Iraq, for the region, for us are enormous," he said Sunday.

Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., responded that shorter breaks were creating an undue strain on U.S. troops and their families.

"They deserve the same amount of time back home as they stay in the field," Reed said.

INTERNATIONAL

Expected international talks on N. Korea's nuclear program have been postponed, officials say

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – Expected international talks on North Korea's nuclear program to firm up a deadline for the country to disable its facilities so it can no longer produce weapons have been postponed, regional officials said.

The talks had been expected to start around the middle of the week, but Japanese and South Korean officials said Monday they would instead meet at a later date that has not yet been set. No reason for the delay was given.

The six-nation talks – including China, Japan, Russia, the United States and the two Koreas – have dragged on for years and been beset by delays but have this year made some progress. The North shut down its sole operating nuclear reactor in July, and had been displaying a willingness to take further steps in exchange for political and economic concessions.

Last week, nuclear experts from the U.S., China and Russia visited the North's nuclear facilities to discuss technical details of disabling them and they reportedly reached an agreement with Pyongyang on how to proceed.

That had led the sides to expect talks involving all six nations to begin this week, in order to finalize the timeline for disablement that the six countries were unable to set at the last session in July. Disabling the facilities would mean they cannot be easily restarted to produce more plutonium that can be used in bombs.

Investigators find 2 flight data recorders from plane that crashed in Thailand, killing 90

PHUKET, Thailand (AP) – Authorities found the two flight data recorders from a plane that crashed and killed 90 people – mostly foreigners – on Thailand's resort island of Phuket, while an airline official said wind shear may have doomed the flight.

The budget One-Two-Go Airlines flight was carrying 123 passengers and seven crew from Bangkok to Phuket when it skidded off a runway Sunday while landing in driving wind and rain, catching fire and engulfing some passengers in flames as others kicked out windows to escape.

Kajit Habnanonda, president of Orient-Thai Airlines, which owns One-Two-Go, said wind shear – the rapid change in wind speed which can impact takeoffs and landings – was a possible cause of the accident. Heavy rains could have contributed to the plane skidding off the runway, Kajit added on Monday.

At least four Americans were among the 54 foreign tourists killed and one survived the crash, according to a U.S. Embassy spokesman in Bangkok who spoke on condition of anonymity citing protocol.

An Israel Embassy official who spoke on condition of anonymity for the same reason said there were 10 Israelis on the passenger list. Two were injured, the official said.

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