State & Nation briefs

New commission to address global higher-learning needs

U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings announced this week the creation of a commission to focus on the needs of the higher education community.

The Commission on the Future of Higher Education will address the need to maintain the nation's presence globally.

"It is time to examine how we can get the most out of our national investment in higher education," Spellings said Monday during a speech at UNC-Charlotte. "We have a responsibility to make sure our higher education system continues to meet our nation's needs for an educated and competitive workforce in the 21st century."

The 19-member commission includes former N.C. Gov. Jim Hunt.

 

Johnson pleads guilty to assault, accessory charges

RALEIGH - One of two brothers charged in the deaths of two men during a tailgating party last year outside of a North Carolina State University football game pleaded guilty Wednesday to assault and accessory charges.

Tony Harrell Johnson, 21, faces up to 29 years in prison after pleading guilty to assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury and accessory after the fact of felony murder, The News & Observer reported on its Web site.

The plea comes about a month after Johnson's brother, Timothy Johnson, was sentenced to life in prison for the deaths of 2nd Lt. Brett Harman, a Marine Corps officer stationed at Camp Lejeune, and Chicago businessman Kevin McCann, both 23.

A jury found Timothy Johnson guilty of first-degree murder in McCann's death and second-degree murder for shooting Harman near Carter-Finley Stadium during the Wolfpack's 2004 football opener.

Tony Johnson fought with the men twice that day, with the second encounter leading to the fatal shootings by Timothy Johnson.

Tony Johnson was scheduled Wednesday for sentencing Oct. 20.

 

Potential jurors screened today for Iraqi prison case

FORT HOOD, Texas - Officers were screened as potential jurors Wednesday as the court-martial got under way for Army Pfc. Lynndie England, one of the most visible figures in the scandal over the treatment of inmates at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison.

England broke with the pattern of her co-defendants Tuesday by opting for an all-officer jury. Selection began Wednesday, and opening remarks by prosecutors and defense attorneys were scheduled for the afternoon. The first witnesses in the case are expected to testify Thursday.

A military judge ruled Tuesday that prosecutors may use a statement England gave to investigators implicating herself.

England is being court-martialed on seven counts of conspiracy and prisoner abuse and faces up to 11 years in a military prison if convicted. The 22-year-old reservist from rural West Virginia is shown in a number of graphic photos taken by Abu Ghraib guards in 2003 that shocked the nation when they were disclosed last year.

Capt. Jonathan Crisp, her lead defense lawyer, has said he plans to base much of his defense on England's history of mental health problems that date to her early childhood. He said he also will focus on the influence exerted over her by Pvt. Charles Graner, the reputed ringleader of the abuse.