They soar over our heads at outrageous speeds and cost millions of dollars. You think they were safe, but are they?
Tonight, what was uncovered inside fighter jets that has the safety of local F-16s under fire.
Plus, what you do in your spare time or just for fun could be getting Tucson some national recognition, we'll explain.
And new details on Britney Spears' weekend wedding in Vegas. You won't believe who walked her down the aisle.
Those stories and your first look at weather are all next on WB News First at 9.
Live from Tucson, this is your first late news.
This is WB News First at 9 with Heather Rowe.
Good evening and thank you for joining us. Here's what's happening at 9 o'clock tonight.
Aircraft that fly over Tucson every day are under investigation for engine problems.
Find out why our city earns high marks for fitness.
And to the buzz this evening, Britney's time as a blushing bride is short-lived.
We begin with 9 at 9, your World in 9 Minutes. Our top story tonight,
Aircrafts that fly over the city on a daily basis are under scrutiny this evening.
The Arizona Air National Guard has found a new flaw in its fleet of F-16 fighter jets.
Tonight, J.D. Wallace is joining us live from Tucson International Airport.
J.D., how is this problem affecting the Guard's flight schedule?
The Guard will tell you that they're back on schedule with about 60 flights a day, Heather.
But there's more work to do when the F-16s are on the ground here at Tucson International Airport.
Mechanics must inspect every jet engine to make sure there's no threat to the pilot or to the public below.
You know, you have nothing to worry about. I, as a pilot also, not only a maintainer,
but as a pilot, have no problem getting in the airplane and flying the airplane.
Words of reassurance from Colonel U.L.A. Littleton, the man in charge of maintaining
the Arizona Air National Guard's F-16s here in Tucson.
After an Air Force pilot ejected from a defective F-16 west of Phoenix in June,
the Air Force discovered faulty blades in the engine.
Now, everyone flying with Pratt & Whitney F-100-220 engines
must inspect the turbine blades every 15 to 20 flight hours.
It's going to be more maintenance intensive as far as an inspection is concerned.
So where you have one person to do these jobs because you only had to do them once every couple of months,
for example, now I've got to do once every couple of weeks, you know,
you can see how much that adds to the workload.
An additional workload already paying off.
Ten suspected faulty blades were found among the Guard's 100 engines.
But the Colonel stands by the F-16's engine, saying some parts receive more stress
and simply require more attention.
Those areas are the ones that you're going to continue to concentrate on,
and so you keep moving and you keep trying to add better engineered parts throughout the engine
so that you can go ahead and ensure you have that airplane up there
or that engine up there that's going to work for you all the time like it's designed to.
Now, the F-15 also uses these engines, so they will also have to be inspected on that 15 to 20 hour time period.
Now, mechanics, what they'll do is they go along the engine blades with this device that looks like a tuning fork,
and what they do is they try to find defects in the blade that you cannot see with the naked eye.
There's also a Pratt & Whitney team here in Tucson that helps with engine inspection and maintenance. Heather?
All right, thank you. JD Wallace reporting live for us this evening.
New Homeland Security measures are on their way to Tucson International Airport
and are already in place at Sky Harbor. It's called U.S. Visit.
Foreign visitors from all but 28 countries will now be electronically fingerprinted
and photographed when they arrive in the U.S. Mark Stein has more.
Welcome to Tucson International.
After getting off a long international flight, the last thing you want to see is another line.
Those lines started popping up all over the country Monday morning.
The United States wants to keep tabs on all international travelers in the country.
Foreign travelers from all but 28 countries will be required to place two fingers on a digital pad
for a fingerprint sample and stand in front of a digital camera for a photo ID.
Another step by Homeland Security to keep people safe.
A step in the right direction, according to Stephanie Gelsonin, who would rather be safe, not sorry.
If that's what's necessary to do a good job and to get on the offense
rather than the defense in this Homeland Security business, then that's fine.
There is no question the U.S. jumped on the offense with these new measures,
but is the new digital treatment in airports and seaports a little too much for some international travelers?
Eddie Baeza feels this is an invasion of privacy.
They're getting into your privacy and they already know enough about you.
They don't need to know anymore.
For some, it is not even about right or wrong.
It is the simple fact this is a tough task.
It is the needle in the haystack challenge.
It's trying to find within this tremendous volume of people the few potential harm-doers.
It may be a challenge, but Homeland Security leaders say they have already found 21 people
who they do not want to let back in the U.S.
For now, the Transportation Security Administration does not have a timetable
for when the Tucson International Airport will be affected by these new rules,
but they did tell me this morning that it will definitely be within the year.
Mark Stein, WB News, First at Nine.
More agents are about to join the ranks to strengthen our border with Mexico.
Aye. Your name?
Do solemnly swear.
87 new trainees took the oath this morning.
The Border Patrol is now part of the Department of Homeland Security.
That means their job has become much more than rounding up illegal immigrants.
They must now also protect our country against terrorist attacks.
Absolutely, that's always a concern.
That's why we have to fortify. That's why we have to continue expanding.
That's why these incoming resources are so important, to give us that added eye on the border.
That added resource that will continue our expansion on the border.
The new agents will spend the next four to five months training at the Border Patrol Academy.
These 87 trainees join roughly 1,800 agents working in the Tucson sector.
As the prize announcement from the White House on immigration,
this week President Bush will propose changes to allow workers from Mexico
to enter the U.S. if they have jobs waiting for them.
The announcement will come just a few days before President Bush meets in Mexico with President Vicente Fox.
Well, there is word tonight that Cochise County's only Planned Parenthood Health Center is closing.
After 20 years in the same location, the Sierra Vista Center has been given 30 days to leave its building.
Planned Parenthood says the landlord's decision comes three months
after they started offering the abortion pill at the center.
The rental management company had no comment today.
Planned Parenthood says they are now working on a plan to offer services in the area again.
Well, you're pretty much out of time if you want to vote in next month's Democratic presidential primary.
But if you haven't voted just yet, the deadline is midnight tonight.
We're told the last day of registration usually brings about 20 to 30 people
to Democratic Party headquarters to register.
This year, hundreds have shown up.
Democratic leaders believe it's partly because Arizona has become a big player in the presidential primary race
and because this year will be the first independent test among the candidates.
They're concentrating on Arizona to a great extent because there's no favorite son in Arizona.
Iowa has favorite sons, New Hampshire has favorite sons, people from New England, people from the Middle West.
We don't have favorite sons, so this is very significant.
You have to be a Democrat to vote in Arizona's Democratic presidential primary.
You can register at Ward 5 City headquarters at 4300 South Park until 10 tonight.
Tucson city leaders tonight have voted to tear down a 30-year-old building and put up a new one.
Council members approved an application for an $11 million federal grant to help with the demolition
and reconstruction of the downtown Martin Luther King apartment building.
The entire project will cost $46 million.
During the project, the city will relocate residents into other low-income housing
or in some cases regular apartment complexes.
Some midtown residents are homeless after a fire gutted their trailer home today.
Firefighters say it started when a candle tipped over in a bedroom of a home near Stone and Prince.
Flames and smoke caused almost $30,000 in damage.
Fortunately, no one was injured in the fire and the Red Cross is helping the people who live there find a shelter.
The weather, the food and the air quality, all ingredients for fit folks.
One fitness magazine says that Tucson is the ninth-fittest city in the country.
Marianne Martinez is live at a Northwest Side Gym to explain why.
Marianne?
Heather, one of the reasons Tucsonans are so fit is because there are so many health clubs.
Now, it's 9 o'clock here at Desert Fitness West, but there's still lots of people working out.
Now, Men's Fitness does a survey of the 25 fittest cities and the top 25 fattest cities.
The top five fittest cities include Honolulu, San Francisco, Virginia Beach, Denver, Colorado Springs and Tucson ranks ninth.
Men's Fitness used 14 different criteria to rank the cities including air quality, climate, eating habits and number of health clubs per capita.
They come out with this list every year and Tucson did not budge from last year's ranking.
Tucsonans say it's the sunshine that keeps them motivated to stay trim.
It's sunny like 300 days of the year so you can get out and exercise.
I walk my three miles a day. I spent an hour at the YMCA. I feel great.
So we know who's fit but who's fat? Well, the top three fattest cities include Detroit, Houston and Dallas and our neighbors up to the north in Phoenix.
They rank as the 18th fattest city. Reporting live from the Northwest Side, Marianne Martinez, WB News, First at 9.
Alright, thanks Marianne. Glad we're not on that list.
Right now we're going to check in with Joan Lee with your first look at weather tonight, Joan.
The warmer weather is on the way despite the cool air of today. Our overnight low 29, 9 degrees below normal and our high of 60 was 4 degrees below normal.
We had a lot of clouds but there is still no rain inside and tomorrow is going to be a much warmer day.
Expect a high of 69, much warmer this weekend too. I'll tell you about it in just a few minutes.
Sounds like good news. Thanks, Joan.
A Phoenix man faces charges after admitting he kicked and shook his girlfriend's daughter.
She later died but he is not facing murder charges. We'll have the latest on that story coming up.
Plus, this Florida woman passes out in court and it's all caught on tape. Find out why she was facing a judge.
A good day for the markets today. To start the week, the Dow closed up 134 points. The NASDAQ gained 41.
Lose plumbing. You're watching WB News First at 9 on Tucson's WB.
Fund is set at more than a quarter million dollars for a Phoenix man and the child abuse death of a five-year-old girl.
The 21-year-old man admitted that he hit, kicked and shook his girlfriend's daughter Saturday night.
Authorities say it happened at the couple's Phoenix apartment.
It will now be up to prosecutors to decide whether to upgrade those charges to murder.
Authorities say the mother took the child to a hospital yesterday morning, but by that time the little girl was already dead.
A New Jersey woman is facing charges after investigators say she tried to drown her newborn daughter in a toilet.
Let's stop and look at America tonight.
Police say that Denise Winner kept her pregnancy a secret from everyone, including her live-in boyfriend.
Winner allegedly gave birth this weekend, put her baby in a toilet and then closed the lid.
The live-in boyfriend found the infant about an hour later and called police.
The baby was born a month and a half premature and is in critical condition.
A South Florida woman has been charged with murdering her 10-month-old baby daughter by violently shaking her.
Her reaction to the charges is caught on tape in front of a judge.
Shamari Stone has more.
She has admitted that she did bite the child and that she did shake the child to the detective.
Shashine Howell stands before a judge accused of the unthinkable killing her 10-month-old daughter.
When the judge denies bond, the 23-year-old passes out right in the middle of court.
You're being held no bond, ma'am.
Diana McBride.
Can we get some assistance for the defendant?
It's here in this North Lauderdale apartment where police say she bit and shook her daughter Faith.
So severely, the infant ended up on life support and later died.
Howell's relatives don't have much to say about her alleged behavior.
Are you concerned that this baby possibly could go through the same type of alleged child abuse?
Would you leave this baby alone with Ms. Howell?
Investigators say she attacked her daughter because she was jealous the child was taking a liking to her father.
This upset her and she bit the child, a very vicious bite mark.
The baby still has the hematoma as a result of that bite mark.
According to the arrest report, the girl's brain was so swollen, part of her skull had to be removed to relieve the pressure.
Police say at first Howell lied about what happened, saying a boyfriend did it.
Then detectives tell us she confessed. Her neighbors are shocked.
It's horrific. I've been emotional at times. I would never intentionally hurt another human being.
A 13-year-old girl in Texas is dead after police say she was stabbed in a fight between her parents.
Police say a jealous husband hid in the backseat of a pickup truck.
With his wife behind the wheel, the husband mistakenly thought the person getting in the passenger seat was his wife's boyfriend.
Police say the 46-year-old started stabbing the passenger who turned out to be the couple's 13-year-old daughter.
Once he figured out that he had hurt his own daughter, the man tried to kill himself. He is recovering tonight.
Back here in Arizona this evening, police are on the lookout for four men who tried to rob an armored car in Chandler.
Police say men wearing ski masks pulled up from a car behind a Home Depot this afternoon.
They fired several shots from a rifle but fled before any money changed hands.
Well, don't let today's crisp weather fool you. Warmer weather is on the way.
Joan Lee will have your full forecast coming up next.
Plus, we are getting closer to the Martha Stewart Securities fraud trial.
We'll have a preview of the domestic divas' day in court.
You're watching WB News First at 9 on Tucson's WB.
And now, first weather with Joan Lee.
With high pressure in control of the southwest, we're falling back into that pattern of cool nights and warm days, cooling off to about 36.
We're well on our way, 46 right now, with a light southeast breeze. Current temperatures across the nation clearly illustrate how far south Arctic air has dipped.
Those negative numbers also clearly illustrate why our population grows during the winter every year.
In the east tonight, clouds and rain spreading toward the northeast as the storm system works its way off into the Atlantic and in the northwest.
A major storm system is setting up to cause some travel trouble in that area tomorrow especially.
It starts off as rain as it comes farther inland, rain mixed with ice, snow farther inland.
They're throwing up winter storm warnings. Even blizzard conditions are possible in that area tomorrow.
A ridge of high pressure between us and them keeps the southwest warm and dry for at least one more day tomorrow.
Very cool temperatures across the south. Some leftover showers along the tip of Texas.
Those cool temperatures just about everywhere except Miami is expecting a high of 81, always balmy there.
Lake effect snow is possible over the Great Lakes tomorrow thanks to the very cold air and the winds off the lake.
They're expecting single digit highs across Minnesota and the Dakotas tomorrow.
Tomorrow in southern Arizona expect highs in the 60s just about everywhere.
Sierra Vista up to 66, Bisbee 62, 69 is Tucson's high and with mostly sunny skies we get to gain at least one more minute of daylight.
534 is the sunset tomorrow night.
Checking our rain gauge so far in 2004. Well, we haven't gotten any rain yet.
We're already two-tenths of an inch behind and the expectation for rain this week, nil.
Because even though clouds are forecast to creep into our skies on Wednesday and Thursday, it's not going to be enough.
Another high pressure ridge builds up right behind it and temperatures this weekend will be well into the 70s.
Possibly closer to 80 than that seven-day forecast indicates, Heather.
Wow, almost. It's going to be very, very nice.
Okay, good news. Thanks, Joan.
In other news this evening, federal prosecutors have filed a new indictment against Martha Stewart.
The charges of obstruction of justice, making false statements and securities fraud remain.
The government merely cleaned up some of the language in the words of a spokesperson as the case heads to trial.
Alan Chernoff reports.
The questionnaire about Martha Stewart in the words of one lawyer in the case is relatively lengthy and attempts to ferret out people who would be biased.
Disqualifying factors for potential jurors include those with a strong opinion about Martha Stewart,
people who have been following the case closely in the media, and investors in Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia.
I think that she has a strong defense. The case is really going to come down to credibility and who the jury believes.
To convict, the jury will have to believe star witness Doug Faneuil, former assistant to Stewart's stockbroker.
Faneuil is to testify that he told Stewart her friend Sam Waxell was trying to unload stock in imploned systems,
which led her to sell her shares just before the Food and Drug Administration gave a thumbs down to implones experimental cancer drug.
Stewart and her broker Peter Bukanovic claim they had a preset agreement to sell the stock once it fell below $60 a share.
Having done nothing wrong allows you to sleep, allows you to continue your work,
gives you the opportunity to think about other things.
Stewart is also charged with securities fraud for publicly claiming her innocence.
Lawyers say it will be tough for the government to prove securities fraud, but on the obstruction charge,
prosecutors say they have evidence that Stewart was trying to cover her tracks by changing the computer log of a phone message from her stockbroker.
The interviewing of prospective jurors is to begin on January 20th. Alan Chernoff, CNN, New York.
Scott Kilbree has first sports coming up next, plus oops, she tied the knot. The Buzz on Britney's on-then-off marriage.
You're watching WV News, first at nine, on Tucson's WV. And now, The Buzz with John Lee.
Brought to you by Circuit City.
Welcome back. For the third straight week, the Lord of the Rings Return of the King rules the box office.
Studio estimates show the film took in almost $31 million over the weekend.
Its total earnings, $292 million in North America alone.
In second place, two per father dozen with just under $22 million this past weekend.
The romantic comedy Something's Gotta Give rounded out the top three.
Ozzy Osbourne is reportedly out of a London hospital following his all-terrain vehicle accident last month.
The rocker left the hospital on Christmas Eve, but tells a London newspaper he's not returning to Los Angeles until his doctors give the okay.
Osbourne broke eight ribs, his collarbone and a vertebra in his neck during that tragic mishap.
Good news, men. Britney Spears is reportedly a single woman again today.
This after tying the knot with her childhood friend, Jason Allen Alexander, Saturday in a Las Vegas chapel.
The couple quickly arranged an annulment, which was to become official this morning.
A source close to Spears says the wedding was a joke that went too far.
A top police official says singer Ray Davies made a mistake when he tried to chase down two muggers in New Orleans last night.
The founder of the British band The Kinks was shot after he chased and then confronted two thugs who grabbed the purse of his female companion.
Davies chased the suspects, but was shot in the leg. He was treated and released from a local hospital.
Now here's a quick preview of what's coming up tomorrow on The Daily Buzz.
Thanks a lot, Joan. Coming up tomorrow on The Daily Buzz, we've got your first look at the most anticipated albums of the new year.
We are taking you behind the scenes for your first look at InStyle Magazine's wedding edition.
And we are talking to Mandy Moore about her upcoming flick, Chasing Liberty.
It all starts at 6 a.m. Heather, back to you.
Scott Kilbury is here to tell us about a big trade that happened today.
We're talking about the Phoenix Suns, right Scott?
The Phoenix Suns, you know, they just made the playoffs just last year.
They made it the first round, but they haven't really done a whole lot since then.
In fact, they've been losing a lot.
So last month, what did they do? They went out and fired the coach.
Well, that didn't help either.
So today they got rid of a hundred million dollars in salary with a blockbuster trade that sent Stephon Marbury, two other Suns, to the New York Bricks.
I mean, Knicks. It was just a matter of time New York landed an all-star guard with Isaiah Thomas stepping in as the new team's president.
And the native New Yorker Marbury fits the bill.
Marbury, who spent two seasons in Phoenix, will be playing for his fifth different team since joining the league just eight years ago, other than Oscar Robertson.
Marbury is the only other player to average more than 20 points in his career.
Penny Hardaway joins Marbury in the trade along with Cesariah Trubanski, while the Suns reunite with Antonio McDyce, who's been out for a year and a half with injury.
Phoenix also gets Howard Easley, Charlie Ward, Poland's Mike Cieklanpe, and two future first round draft picks.
And a little cash as well. A little more basketball for you.
The Arizona Wildcats have climbed one spot in the latest AP poll to number three.
This coming on the heels of a big win over the weekend as they showed no signs of inexperience.
Their nerves playing in their conference over on the road at Arizona State in front of a sold-out Wells Fargo arena in Tempe.
Salim Stoudemire just on fire with 26 points.
Cats led by as much as 34 in the second half on the way to their 17th win in their 18 meetings against their rival.
The Lute Olsen's 700th career victory was a result of it as well.
But the cool hand lute is about to dwell on the milestone.
I think those wins will mean more once I'm no longer coaching and then I can look back at them.
But right now they, you know, we just, we want 700 and one.
I think, you know, we have confidence from the last game, but at the same time we looked at the films and noticed we did a lot of things wrong.
And I think that kind of keeps our head at a nice level.
We need to forget what we did. You know, we had fun over the weekend. We got our win. Now we got another win at home.
Third ranked Wildcats turning their focus to the Golden Bears at Cal Berkeley this Thursday at McHale to about 630.
So who's college football's national champion? Is it LSU or USC? Well, Arizona lost to both those teams.
So they're not really sure. One player told me he thinks it's LSU.
Well, today it was the Associated Press presenting the hardware to USC. Pete Carroll there, the head coach.
Associated Press, of course, is the writers.
And on the other hand, it's the Bowl championship series made up of the coaches and they're pretty much forced their hand to vote LSU the winner.
So a split national championship is in order here. USC beating Michigan in the Rose Bowl yesterday. LSU winning over Oklahoma in the Sugar Bowl.
So, yeah, a little confusion there. I know for the BCS, not really sure what's going to happen next year, too, right?
Right. A lot of people are saying maybe just add that extra game when you have a tie like that.
Hopefully it won't happen again. A lot of people would be happy with that decision. I would.
All right. Thanks, Scott. We'll be right back.
You're watching WB News First at 9 for Tucson, Sierra Vista and all of southern Arizona.
Welcome back with a look at what's coming up completely new and different on News 13 at 10 o'clock.
Let's check in with KLD's Randy Garcia.
Thanks, Heather. Cochise County's only Planned Parenthood Health Center is closing.
Now clients of the Sierra Vista Center have to find a new place to go.
Tonight on News 13 at 10, find out what steps Planned Parenthood is taking to be able to offer services in the area again.
Plus, see how heart specialists are using a digital imagery to snap a better picture of heart problems.
Those stories and so much more on News 13 at 10. We'll see you then.
All right. We didn't have to wait long for warmer weather.
Jomley is going to tell us about a nice seven day forecast.
We have this little baby grapefruit tree in our backyard that we had to cover up last night.
Twenty-nine was the overnight load. Tonight about thirty-six.
It's not going to be that cold for the rest of the week.
We're warming up into the 70s by this weekend as high pressure rebuilds after a little storm system sort of brushes us with clouds on Wednesday and Thursday.
Heather, hard to believe that New Year's Eve was just a couple of days ago.
Well, New Year's Eve is the kind of night when people tend to do a lot of things they later regret.
And with Britney Spears having a quick change of heart in the marriage department,
we got to wondering about a Miami couple who rang in the New Year with a ring in front of a live television audience of millions.
Tonight, CNN's Jeanne Moe's reports.
That old Lang Zine sure can be an aphrodisiac.
Among the cameras sending out live pictures of Times Square was the kiss cam.
Couples are encouraged to kiss even if they get confetti stuck on their lips.
But no one had to cue this couple.
We turned around and Greg was on his knee with a sign that said, Ashley, will you marry me?
Nurse Ashley Robinson's thunderstruck look was striking.
I was afraid you were going to say no.
Apparently everyone did.
Because you paused so long it seemed like you were, you know, frozen.
I truly had a heart attack.
Through the miracle of sign language, we learned she said yes.
Did you have a sign in case you said no?
No.
28-year-old Greg Sears knew where to kneel to get on TV since he was a technical manager of the New Year's Eve production.
This was a backup in case that one got run over.
Wait a minute, you had a backup, will you marry me, son?
Yeah.
But Ashley was so unprepared she had to spit out her gum.
This was their first look at tape of the proposal.
Ashley froze while waving to the camera.
You look like a statue of liberty.
Somehow it seemed less phony than those reality show proposals.
Will you marry me?
I wanted the whole world to know how much I love this woman.
This engagement has already lasted longer than Britney Spears' marriage.
Jeannie Moe, CNN, New York.
Good for him.
He's got a lot of guts doing that.
That is a video they'll keep forever.
I know, that's really sweet.
And I'm glad she said yes, and I'm sure he's glad too.
I'm sure he is.
Have a great evening.
We'll see you tomorrow night.
Good night.
We know you had a choice.
Thanks for watching WB News First at 9 on Tucson's WB.