2 Get Life in Prison After Fatal Florida Mall Shooting

Published November 02, 2010

| Associated Press

MIAMI-- Two men convicted of charges arising from the shooting death of an armored truck guard at a suburban Miami mall have been sentenced to life in prison.

A federal judge in Miami sentenced 25-year-old Emmanuel Maxime and 26-year-old Dwight Carter on Tuesday.

Maxime was convicted in August of conspiracy, robbery and using a firearm in connection with the robbery. Carter was convicted a month earlier on counts of using a firearm in connection with the robbery, drug trafficking and causing the death.

Authorities said 51-year-old Carlos Alvarado, who worked two security jobs to support his family, was killed in the Dec. 1, 2008 shooting at the Dadeland Mall.

In February, two women who served as lookouts were each sentenced to about 20 years in prison.

View the original article here

Methane Forces Investigators Out of West Virginia Mine

Published November 03, 2010

| Associated Press

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Government investigators evacuated Massey Energy Co.'s Upper Big Branch mine after encountering methane gas while searching for clues to the deadliest U.S. coal mine explosion in four decades.

Federal Mine Safety and Health Administration spokeswoman Amy Louviere says the evacuation occurred Monday.

She says methane started to accumulate while crews were pumping water from a flooded section of the southern West Virginia mine.

Methane occurs naturally in coal seams and poses one of mining's greatest hazards. The gas can explode at concentrations between 5 percent and 15 percent of the atmosphere.

MSHA suspects the Upper Big Branch explosion started with a methane ignition. The April 5 blast killed 29 coal miners.

View the original article here