National Roundup

New York AG to Internet providers: Prove speed claims ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York's attorney general suspects there's little difference between broadband's fast lanes and the slower freight of ordinary Internet access. In letters to the state's three major Internet providers, the attorney general has asked them to validate claims their customers are getting the access speeds promised, especially for premium services. The agency said it's concerned that Time Warner, Verizon and Cablevision subscribers might not be getting the speeds advertised. In letters Friday, senior enforcement counsel Tim Wu wrote that the office has authority to subpoena documents and take legal action to stop deceptive business practices, requesting detailed information by Nov. 8. Wu wrote that the office had two concerns. The first is that the speeds in the so-called last mile - the wiring closest to subscribers - "may deviate far enough from the speeds advertised to render the advertising deceptive," he wrote. The second is the quality of connections between the three providers and sites such as Yahoo or Netflix. There have been many consumer complaints, officials said. Cablevision Systems Corp. told The Associated Press on Monday that it will be happy to provide information to the attorney general. "Optimum Online consistently surpasses advertised broadband speeds, including in FCC and internal tests," spokeswoman Sarah Chaikin said. Time Warner Cable Inc. said it's looking forward to resolving the matter. Verizon Communications Inc. said it is "confident in the robust and reliable Internet speeds it delivers to subscribers." The attorney general's office is seeking each provider's total broadband customers since 2011, grouped by service levels. It also wants all disclosures to actual or potential customers about Internet speeds since 2013, substantiation for specific speed claims, related customer complaints and copies of Internet interconnection agreements. After the attorney general's review of responses and documents, company officials will be invited in to discuss their broadband marketing practices and services, Wu wrote. Pennsylvania Police: Nurse assistant helped inmate escape MCKEESPORT, Pa. (AP) - Police say a prisoner who managed to take off his handcuffs and flee a Pennsylvania hospital despite being shackled to his bed was aided by a nursing assistant who hid a handcuff key in a tissue box. Forty-seven-year-old Michele Sims was arraigned Monday on charges including hindering the apprehension of inmate Alexander Erb. He escaped Oct. 12 from UPMC McKeesport hospital and eluded authorities for more than 16 hours. Police say the 26-year-old Erb was a cousin of Sims' stepchildren. The Port Vue woman is jailed on $5,000 bail pending a Nov. 9 hearing. Online court records don't list an attorney for her. Police say Erb had been arrested in a domestic dispute. He was under guard by a deputy but used a nurse as an obstacle as he escaped. Arkansas Man pleads not guilty to charges linked to deaths CONWAY, Ark. (AP) - A man accused of trying to cover up his grandson's involvement in the slaying of his legal guardians has pleaded not guilty to hindering apprehension or prosecution. Authorities say 58-year-old Randy Staton and his daughter, 36-year-old Michelle Staton, tried to dispose of 14-year-old Justin Staton's clothes after learning he was involved in the shooting deaths of his guardians. Michelle also faces hindering apprehension or prosecution charges. Randy is currently free on a $35,000 bond, but no bond has been set for his daughter. The Log Cabin Democrat reports they will both appear in court Dec. 7. Justin and 18-year-old Hunter Drexler face two counts each of capital murder, aggravated robbery, theft of property by threat and abuse of a corpse in the July 21 shooting deaths of Robert and Patricia Cogdell. California @ROUND UP Briefs Headline:San Fran to OK patient-dumping suit settlement SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - San Francisco supervisors are on track to accept $400,000 from Nevada to settle allegations that psychiatric patients were wrongly shipped to California upon discharge. The settlement is on Tuesday's Board of Supervisors agenda. San Francisco sued Nevada in September 2013 after the Sacramento Bee published accounts of patients who were discharged from a psychiatric hospital in Las Vegas, and given bus tickets to California cities for further care. San Francisco's city attorney said 24 people with no prior connection to the city had been bused there over a five-year period, and 20 needed medical care shortly after they arrived. New York NFL appeals judge's ruling in Brady case NEW YORK (AP) - NFL lawyers told a federal appeals court in Manhattan on Monday that it was "unfathomable" that a judge could decide to lift New England quarterback Tom Brady's four-game suspension in the "Deflategate" controversy. The lawyers said in papers filed with the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that Judge Richard Berman reached an "inexplicable" conclusion when he determined that the league failed to adequately warn Brady of the potential suspension and made errors in its investigation that required him to nullify the penalty. The league asked the appeals court to reverse the lower-court judge and reinstate the penalty that would have kept Brady out of the first four games of this season. Berman's ruling came a week before the start of a season in which the Patriots are undefeated through six games. He found that the league's actions were "premised upon several significant legal deficiencies." The appeals court isn't scheduled to hear oral arguments in the case before February, meaning this season will not be affected by any outcome. Attorneys for the NFL Players Association didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Berman ruled after the NFL asked the court to find that it had acted appropriately in its investigation and handling of a controversy that arose after balls were believed to be improperly deflated prior to January's AFC championship game against the Indianapolis Colts. New England beat the Colts 45-7. A league investigation found it was "more probable than not" that two Patriots ball handling employees deliberately released air from Patriots game balls. In upholding the findings in July, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell concluded Brady conspired with his team's ball handlers and tried to obstruct the league's probe, including by destroying his cellphone. Published: Wed, Oct 28, 2015