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SEVEN DEAD BABIES
Many questions about mom accused in infant deaths
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Investigators are reconstructing a mysterious decade from Megan Huntsman's life as they try to figure out how she concealed seven pregnancies before allegedly strangling or suffocating her newborns.
Utah investigators are examining DNA from the babies to determine who the parents are, studying the bones to find out how long ago the babies died and interrogating family members and talking to neighbors in pursuit of clues about how she did it.
The 39-year-old Huntsman acknowledged to police that she killed the babies and put them in plastic bags and then packed them inside boxes in the garage of her home south of Salt Lake City. What's not clear is why.
Huntsman was arrested Sunday on six counts of murder. She is in jail on $6 million bail.
CHILD CARE INFANT DEATH-CHARGES
Child care operator charged in infant death
(Information in the following story is from: The Salt Lake Tribune, http://www.sltrib.com)
OGDEN, Utah (AP) — The operator of a Roy child care facility has been ordered to appear in court in connection with the death of a child left under her supervision.
The 33-year-old Tisha Lynn Morley faces charges of felony child abuse homicide.
Her attorney could not be reached by phone Tuesday evening.
The Salt Lake Tribune reports Morley made an initial appearance out of custody in court Tuesday after posting $10,000 bond on her $100,000 bail.
Police say the infant's father on Feb. 19 arrived at Tots & Tykes Day Care to find the baby unresponsive. Doctors reportedly discovered the infant had sustained a head injury. The child was flown to Primary Children's Hospital in Salt Lake City, where he was pronounced dead.
Morley's next court appearance is scheduled for May 20.
CONGRESS-FUNDRAISING
Love leads fundraising for 4th District race
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — When it comes to raising campaign cash, Republican Mia Love continues outpace her opponents in her bid to win the seat held by outgoing Democratic congressman Jim Matheson.
The latest campaign finance reports released Monday show Love raised $450,000 from Jan. 1 through April 6 this year.
Love spent even more money during that time on campaign, using about $551,000 to pay for campaign staff, mailers and other expenses.
Love still has $631,000 on hand to spend heading into the state GOP nominating convention later this month, where Republican delegates will choose their candidate.
Bob Fuehr, the other Republican in the race, raised only $500 during that same period and loaned his campaign $91,000.
Democrat Doug Owens raised about $133,000 in the first quarter of the year, and spent only $15,000.
HATE CRIME-THREATS
Southern Utah man facing hate crime charges
(Information in the following story is from: KUTV-TV, http://www.kutv.com/)
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Federal officials have filed hate crime charges against a southern Utah man accused of threatening to kill members of an interracial family.
The U.S. Attorney's Office in Utah and Department of Justice filed charges Monday against 70-year-old Robert Keller of Hurricane in southwest Utah.
Authorities say Keller wrote a note threatening to kill several of the white family members unless they made their black relative leave the community.
Keller told KUTV-TV that he regrets writing the letter but wanted to share his opinion and is angry that the white family is living with a black person.
Keller is facing two federal misdemeanor charges of interfering with a right to fair housing.
If convicted, he could face up to two years in prison.
OFFICER CHARGED
Ex-officer in Salt Lake admits faking DUI reports
(Information in the following story is from: Deseret News, http://www.deseretnews.com)
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A former police officer in Salt Lake City has pleaded guilty to a felony and a misdemeanor in a plea deal on charges he faked DUI reports and collected thousands of dollars of overtime illegally.
The Deseret News reports 44-year-old Stephen Hall pleaded guilty Monday to felony theft by deception and falsifying a government record, a class B misdemeanor.
Two other misdemeanor counts were dropped in exchange for his pleas.
Hall reported to his supervisors in 2012 that he made 27 DUI arrests, issued 398 citations and impounded 27 vehicles while working shifts funded by the state as part of a DUI grant.
Unified Police Department supervisors later discovered he only made one DUI arrest and issued only four citations. Investigators say he fabricated as many as 50 cases.
FATAL AUTOMOBILE HOMICIDE
Year in prison for Magna man in fatal DUI crash
(Information in the following story is from: Deseret News, http://www.deseretnews.com)
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A 28-year-old Magna man has been sentenced to a year in jail for a DUI crash that killed a Price woman who was riding in his pickup truck last summer.
Alvin Clint Carter admitted he was under the influence of alcohol on July 7 when his truck slid off Pondtown Road about 1:45 a.m. and rolled several times down a 150-foot embankment.
Carter and 22-year-old Brooke Tomadakis were ejected and she was pronounced dead at the scene.
Another passenger, 30-year-old Chad Wink of West Jordan, suffered extensive injuries.
Carter pleaded guilty in January to automobile homicide.
The Deseret News reports Judge Douglas Thomas ordered him on Monday to serve a year of a five-year sentence along with three years' probation, pay a $1,500 fine and cover Tomadakis' funeral expenses.
UNIVERSITY OF UTAH-TRIBE LOGO
U. to keep logo, gear scholarships at Ute Tribe
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — The University of Utah will continue to use its Ute name and logo under a new agreement with the Ute Tribal Business Committee.
In exchange, the U. will make efforts to recruit more students from the Ute Indian Tribe under a memorandum signed Tuesday by U. and tribe leaders.
The university won't pay to use the name, but it will create scholarships for tribe students and bring on a tribe member as an adviser to top administrators on American Indian affairs.
The Salt Lake Tribune reports the tribe's business committee last year said it supported the "Ute" name and the school's drum and feather logo. In return, it sought tuition waivers for tribe members and the creation of the advising post.
The memorandum updates an agreement from 2005.
TEACHER SUSPENDED
Weber High School teacher placed on leave
PLEASANT VIEW, Utah (AP) — A northern Utah high school teacher has been placed on leave after officials say she had students list slang terms for genitalia as part of a class exercise.
Weber High School teacher Ashley Williams used the lesson Friday in her class titled "Adult Rolls and Financial Literacy."
Ogden-Weber UniServ director Matt Ogle says Williams learned of the exercise at a conference paid for by the district.
District spokesman Nate Taggart tells the Standard-Examiner a student Friday complained to administrators, who then found the pertinent words on a whiteboard.
Williams has taught in Weber schools for about eight years.
Officials say it's the first time she used the exercise in the class offering college credit from Weber State University.
Taggart says officials have received calls on both sides of the issue.
JAIL SUICIDE-ST GEORGE
Washington County jail inmate's suicide probed
(Information in the following story is from: Deseret News, http://www.deseretnews.com)
ST. GEORGE, Utah (AP) — An inmate in the Washington County Jail has died a week after attempting suicide in his cell.
The Deseret News reports authorities are investigating the apparent suicide after 35-year-old David Finch died Sunday at Dixie Regional Medical Center.
Finch was taken there the previous Sunday after officials found him unconscious.
He'd been in jail for about three months after being convicted of forcible sexual abuse, burglary, and attempted burglary of a dwelling. He also had been convicted of a misdemeanor for simple assault.
Utah Department of Corrections spokesman Steve Gehrke says Finch's parole hearing had not yet been held, but he likely would have served about five years. He says an initial review indicates proper jail procedures were followed prior to Finch's death.
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