National Roundup

Indiana
After fight, state receives ‘ATHE1ST’ license plate
ELKHART, Ind. (AP) — A man who was initially denied an Indiana license plate reading “ATHE1ST” now has the personalized plate.

The Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles denied Chris Bontrager’s first request in February without citing a specific reason. The bureau’s denial letter to Bontrager noted the agency could refuse a personalized plate if it had a connotation offensive to good taste or decency, was misleading or deemed improper.

Bontrager believed the decision was religiously motivated, and he filed an appeal with the state. He said the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana helped the appeal process move quickly, without him having to testify before an appeals panel, The Elkhart Truth reported.

“My intention was never to litigate this matter,” said Bontrager, who lives in Goshen. “I just felt that the process should be more transparent.”

The effort culminated in him receiving the new license plate on Monday.

The BMV issued a short statement on Bontrager’s case, affirming the state’s ability to deny any plate at will. The American Civil Liberties Union didn’t respond to the newspaper’s request for comment.

Both the Indiana Supreme Court and the U.S. Supreme Court have sided with the state’s ability to decide whether a message on a personalized plate would be approved or denied, saying the messages amount to “government speech.”

Tennessee
Plea resolves cold-case homicide mystery
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) — A guilty plea has resolved the cold-case mystery of a man who was killed and had his ring finger amputated in a Chattanooga motel room nearly 30 years ago.

Hamilton County District Attorney Neal Pinkston’s office says 49-year-old Samuel E. Reeves of Bryant, Alabama, pleaded guilty Wednesday to voluntary manslaughter in the robbery and stabbing of James “Richard” Layne of Ringgold, Georgia.

Layne was found dead inside the La Plaza Motel on Feb. 21, 1989. Pinkston says Layne had been stabbed 32 times and his ring finger on his left hand had been crudely amputated.

Authorities believe the killer stole Layne’s wedding ring.

Pinkston says Reeves was recently arrested on a DUI charge, and investigators matched his fingerprints with one found on a beer can inside Layne’s motel room.

Alabama
Man arrested after abducted woman escapes from trunk
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — A man recently freed from prison in Alabama is accused of abducting a woman whose dramatic escape from her car trunk was captured on video.

Birmingham police announced Wednesday night that 28-year-old Manuel Ali Towns has been charged with kidnapping and robbery in the abduction of 25-year-old Brittany Diggs earlier this month. Towns was detained Tuesday.

Authorities say Towns abducted Diggs and made her drive around before putting her in the car trunk. She escaped by opening an interior trunk latch. Surveillance cameras at a gas station convenience store captured images of her tumbling from the trunk.

Al.com reports that records show Towns was freed from prison in January after serving more than five years for marijuana possession. His record includes robbery arrests dating back more than a decade.

Ohio
Family hopes new posters lead to tips about 8 slain 
CHILLICOTHE, Ohio (AP) — Relatives of eight people slain in southern Ohio last year are distributing posters with photos of the victims in hopes of turning up local tips about the unsolved case.

Seven adults and a teenage boy from the Rhoden family were found shot at four homes near Piketon on April 22.

The Columbus Dispatch reports the state helped the victims’ relatives print 1,000 posters that they began distributing Wednesday. They advertise a $10,000 reward for information that leads to whoever is responsible for the slayings.

The motive also remains a mystery.

An Ohio appeals court recently rejected a newspaper request for access to coroner’s office evidence in the case. The Ohio Supreme Court is considering a separate request from the Dispatch and the Cincinnati Enquirer for the complete autopsy reports.

New York
Ex-postal worker admits scamming $1.2M in benefits
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — A former U.S. Postal Service worker in western New York has pleaded guilty to scamming the federal government out of more than $1.2 million in benefits.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office says 59-year-old Richard Klaffka, of Holland, pleaded guilty Wednesday to wire fraud. Prosecutors say his 62-year-old wife, Cathleen, admitted to playing a role in the scheme.

Authorities say Richard Klaffka told Veterans Affairs in 2006 that he was disabled and needed to use a wheelchair because of an injury connected to his military service. He claimed he couldn’t walk or dress himself, but officials say he hiked, biked and played horseshoes.

He also claimed to have limited mobility because of an injury suffered while working for the post office.

He and his wife were ordered to pay back the more than $1.2 million they received in VA and workers compensation benefits.

Alabama
Former Social Security judge sent to prison in sex case
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — A former Alabama judge is going to federal prison after pleading guilty to crimes that include having sex with a woman whose case was in his court.

A judge sentenced 74-year-old Paul Conger Jr. of Akron to a year and a day in prison for obstructing justice, accepting a gratuity for an official act and stealing government property.

Conger is a former Tuscaloosa County judge who was hearing cases as an administrative law judge for the Social Security Administration.

He pleaded guilty in October to having sex at the Tuscaloosa courthouse with a woman who sought Social Security benefits. He also admitted trying to cover it up.

Prosecutors say Conger approved $10,000 in retroactive benefits for the woman.

He must report to prison in July and pay a $4,000 fine.