National Roundup

New York
Lawsuit against Yankees GM Cashman dropped
NEW YORK (AP) — The mother of a woman accused of stalking New York Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman has abruptly dropped her lawsuit against him.
The New York Post reports that Caroline Meanwell filed documents in court Tuesday to drop the lawsuit.
The suit had alleged that Cashman conspired with her daughter’s former therapist and his legal team to trick Meanwell into calling 911 to discredit her daughter, who had claimed to have a nine-month affair with Cashman.
The suit claimed Meanwell was coerced into telling authorities her daughter, Louise Neathway, was going to kill herself so Neathway would be institutionalized.
Prosecutors say Neathway stalked Cashman and got him to pay her $6,000 by threatening to damage his reputation.
Neathway has pleaded not guilty.

Connecticut
4th teen charged in statutory sex assault cases
TORRINGTON, Conn. (AP) — A fourth high school football player has been charged in a statutory rape case involving two 13-year-old girls who’ve been taunted online by supporters of the accused.
The 17-year-old boy from Torrington was charged Wednesday with second-degree assault and risk of injury to a minor in connection with an alleged January incident. Three other Torrington High School football team members were charged with similar crimes within the past two months.
The boy’s name is being withheld because of his age, and his case is being handled in juvenile court. Details of his arrest are sealed from public view.
School officials say the boy arrested Wednesday has been suspended from school.
Officials are continuing to warn students that online bullying will not be tolerated and could lead to suspension or expulsion.

West Virginia
Brothers settle lawsuit against Morgantown
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — A former chairman of the state Republican Party and his three brothers have settled their lawsuit against the city of Morgantown.
Kris Warner and brothers Ben, Monty and Mac sued a former city manager and fire chief, along with code-enforcement officers and fire marshals, in 2010.
They claimed a years-long pattern of intimidation led to the collapse of their business and bankruptcy.
The Warners’ lawyer, Ed Kohout, tells The Dominion Post that the Warners and the city agreed to settle the lawsuit for $7,500 during a telephone conference with a mediator from the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va. The court dismissed the case from its docket on Tuesday.
Mayor Jim Manilla declined to comment. He said he hasn’t yet been briefed on the settlement.

California
Bail raised for teen accused of hate-crime attack
DAVIS, Calif. (AP) — Bail has been raised nearly sevenfold to $520,000 for a teenager facing hate crime allegations in the brutal beating of a Northern California man.
Prosecutors on Wednesday detailed the injuries, including a fractured skull, suffered by Lawrence “Mikey” Partida in the early hours of March 10 in Davis.
The Sacramento Bee reports 19-year-old Clayton Daniel Garzon is accused of using anti-gay slurs during the alleged attack.
Garzon appeared in Yolo Superior Court on felony battery and threat charges with hate crime enhancements.
Prosecutors argued Garzon is a danger to the community and a risk to flee.
Partida’s friends, family and supporters gathered outside the courthouse, some wearing T-shirts that read, “Stop Hate. Justice for Mikey.”
A preliminary hearing in the case is set for April 26.

Maine
Mass. rapist caught in Maine after 35 years
FRAMINGHAM, Mass. (AP) — A man convicted of rape in Massachusetts who’s been on the run for 35 years has been captured in Maine.
Massachusetts State Police say Gary Allen Irving was arrested shortly after 9 p.m. Wednesday at a home in Gorham, Maine, where he had been living under the name Gregg Irving.
Irving was convicted of three Norfolk County rapes in 1978 but the start of his sentence was stayed by a judge, and Irving fled.
Irving, who is in his 50s, has been on the Massachusetts Top 10 Most Wanted list for decades.
A search of his Maine home also turned up a number of guns, which police allege are not legally owned.
Police say Irving is scheduled to appear in a Maine court Friday on a fugitive from justice charge.

Ohio
Condemned killer faces new July execution date 
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The Ohio Supreme Court has set an execution date for a condemned killer who faked paralysis, then overpowered a deputy, hijacked a pickup truck and shot the driver to death in 1997.
Alva Campbell shot 18-year-old Charles Dials in the face and neck after forcing the teen to lie on the floor of his truck.
The teen had been at the Franklin County Courthouse in Columbus to pay a traffic ticket.
The Supreme Court on Thursday set a July 15, 2015, execution date for the 64-year-old Campbell.
The court overturned Campbell’s first death sentence in 2000, ruling he was not allowed to properly present mitigating factors at sentencing.
The Supreme Court sent the case back for resentencing, and the trial court again sentenced Campbell to death.

Indiana
Feds: Teacher had his female students sext him
HAMMOND, Ind. (AP) — A former teacher at a northwest Indiana high school has been charged with persuading several underage girls to send their naked photos to him by cellphone.
Jon Erik Lilly of Cedar Lake was arrested Wednesday on federal charges of possessing visual depictions of a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct. He couldn’t be reached for comment because his phone number was unlisted.
Lilly allegedly talked four girls into sexting with him when he taught at Morton High School in Hammond.
Court records unsealed Wednesday say a school official caught him sitting with a female student between his leg in November. A mother also reported she believed her daughter was sexually active with the 27-year-old Lilly.
Investigators allegedly found nude photos of at least four underage students on Lilly’s computer.h