SOME BATTERED WOMAN CASES RAISE TROUBLING QUESTIONS.(MAIN)

Byline: George Will

WASHINGTON -- After having sex with her husband, who then fell asleep, the Denver woman, who was having an extramarital affair at the time and had recently taken out a large life insurance policy on her husband, shot him. She then disordered the house to suggest that the killer had been a burglar, and went to a disco with her sister.

Her conviction was a setback for Lenore Walker, who testified as an expert witness that the woman's behavior was consistent with the ``battered woman syndrome.''

Walker says a battered woman is one ``repeatedly subjected to any forceful physical or psychological behavior by a man in order to coerce her to do something he wants her to do …

Capoccia guilty on all counts.

Byline: Alan Wechsler

Apr. 6--Andrew F. Capoccia -- former lawyer, businessman and founder of a notorious debt-reduction firm -- was found guilty Tuesday morning of stealing millions of dollars from clients.

After a monthlong trial in U.S. District Court in Brattleboro, Vt., a jury returned guilty verdicts on all 13 felony charges against him, including conspiracy, interstate transmittal and transportation of stolen money, mail and wire fraud, receiving stolen money and money laundering.

Capoccia, 62, of Guilderland, is scheduled to be sentenced July 25. He faces up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 per count. Judge J. Garvan Murtha released Capoccia without bail pending sentencing.

It didn't take the jury very long to decide Capoccia's fate. Deliberations started at 2 p.m. Monday, broke for the day at 4:30 and resumed at 9 a.m. Tuesday. By 10:30 a.m., a verdict was reached.

Many were surprised the …

Human rights group calls for Zimbabweans in South Africa to be given special immigrant status

A human rights group called on South Africa to stop mass deportations of Zimbabweans, accusing South Africa of failing to help end the political crisis that has led so many to flee its neighbor to the north.

New York-based Human Rights Watch said in a report Thursday that Zimbabweans in South Africa are not "voluntary economic migrants," and that the political actions Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and his government have led to the country's economic decline.

"Without fail, Zimbabweans in South Africa spoke of the utter desperation they felt back home. Most said they had no option but to turn to their South African neighbors for help to …

Sounds like a winner // Snappy dialogue in `Chasing Amy' flips script on Smith flop

Kevin Smith is one of those great talk-smokers.

Get halfway into a good question and the director of "Clerks,""Mallrats" and the new "Chasing Amy" is already there,double-dragging and rapid-tapping a constant butt to the rhythm ofthe rest of your thought.

"I know people think `Mallrats' sucked; I even apologized for itonce," Smith said. "People in the crowd were like, `Hey, this guyisn't kidding himself; he knows the film - - - - -, so he must beOK.' "If critics hated "Mallrats," Smith gave them good reason. Hisdebut film, "Clerks," captivated audiences with a pulsing freshnessof dialogue and a consistently uncanny keenness of observation.Young viewers turned …

Fine fireclay: great expectations: technical and market forces are driving the growth of fine fireclay in sanitary-ware production.

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World sanitaryware production is dominated by vitreous china, but fine fireclay (FFC) is an increasingly important segment of the market. Despite the recent economic crisis, FFC has continued to grow as a rising number of producers view it as a profitable option.

Even with the success of FFC in Europe, it has met difficulties in penetrating the North and South American markets. However, the historical context--as well as the technical and market forces that have driven its growth--illustrates that fine fireclay has great potential in the Americas.

A Little History

Sanitaryware bodies typically fall into three categories: traditional fireclay, which was the original type of body used for industrial sanitaryware production in the West; vitreous china, which currently dominates the global market; and fine fireclay, which arrived on the market more recently. When modern sanitaryware production began a little over a century ago, the traditional fireclay body was the only option available.

Fireclay bodies consisted of a blend of crushed fireclay with …

Taxpayers foot bill for political PR.(Capital Region)

Byline: MARV CERMAK

Did you notice the benevolent Schenectady County Legislature Democrats just created the job of public relations/communications director? No doubt this $75,000 invention - plus health/death/

retirement perks - will go to a friend of somebody in power.

The political rulers insist the new position is essential for survival. This begs the question of how in heck did Schenectady County ever make it from 1809 to date without the dumb job?

About two decades ago, Bob McEvoy, then the county manager, and the late Paul Fabian, a County Legislature leader, came up with a proposal to hire a PR person.

Fabian told me the job was being created for me for some unspecified reason. Perhaps because I was either a nice guy or a boat …

UNEMPLOYMENT RATE RISES TO 5.3% IN APRIL.(Main)

Byline: Combined wire services

The nation's civilian unemployment rate jumped to 5.3 percent last month and the number of jobs created fell sharply, the Labor Department said Friday in a report that confirmed a slowdown in U.S. economic growth.

The unemployment rate rose from a seasonally adjusted 5 percent in March as the department's survey of American households showed a substantial increase in the labor force of 395,000, and a drop of 23,000 in the number of jobs. That combination increased the number of people without jobs but looking for them to 6,546,000.

A separate survey of industry payrolls, which is closely watched by many analysts as an indicator of how fast the economy is growing, showed a gain of 117,000 jobs in April, down from a 171,000 gain in March, and an average monthly gain of 300,000 in the 12 months ended in …