LANCASTER - City Hall officials investigating allegations about the conduct of a key Public Works official are keeping the man on the job and declining to discuss their methods of inquiry.

But they have sought the services of a Los Angeles lawyer, whose role in the inquiry they are unwilling to discuss.

Public Works Superintendent David Mulkey is under investigation for allegedly using city employees for personal benefit, falsification of city purchase orders to refurbish his office and improper disposal of waste materials.

PALMDALE - An air traffic controller's union representative on Thursday claimed that three mid-air close calls by airliners occurred during the last two weeks over airspace managed by the Los Angeles Federal Aviation Administration Control Center in Palmdale.

The union representative blamed the incidents on understaffing at the facility.

When contacted, FAA officials were able to confirm only one of the close calls, which occurred at 3:40 p.m. on Aug. 31, when a Delta Airlines L-1011 came within eight seconds of colliding head-on with an Alaska Airlines MD-80.

PALMDALE - A health teacher at Highland High School will be singled out from hundreds of outstanding teachers in Southern California next week when she receives the Crystal Apple award from KNBC news.

Every week a teacher who "makes a profound difference in the lives of their students" is selected from hundreds of nominees to receive the Crystal Apple. On Thursday afternoon, KNBC will visit Highland High School healthful living teacher Terri Weyer to present her with the award.

WASHINGTON - Democrats braced Thursday for damaging disclosures about President Bill Clinton as the House moved inexorably toward releasing portions of independent counsel Kenneth Starr's evidence of possibly impeachable offenses.

"Every American in the country will have access" to Starr's 445-page report, Speaker Newt Gingrich promised as GOP leaders made plans to post the material on the Internet once the House grants its expected approval on Friday. LANCASTER - A Lucky Food Center at 10th Street East and Avenue J lived up to its name for whoever bought the winning Super Lotto ticket in Wednesday night's drawing. When the owner comes forward, his, hers or their six matching numbers will be worth $20 million.

If the only winning ticket drawn Sept. 9 belongs to just one person, it will be the 35th largest award in the history of the California Lottery, said Cathy Doyle Johnston, a lottery spokeswoman.
Sept. 12

WASHINGTON - Independent counsel Kenneth Starr laid before Congress and the nation Friday a lurid description of President Bill Clinton's sexual misconduct with Monica Lewinsky and declared he had gathered substantial evidence that "may constitute grounds for an impeachment."

Clinton "engaged in a pattern of conduct that was inconsistent with his constitutional duty to faithfully execute the laws," Starr declared.

The 445-page report - unsealed by a House vote and made accessible to millions of Americans via the Internet - accused Clinton of 11 possible impeachable offenses ranging from lying under oath to obstructing justice.

WASHINGTON - Nowhere in his 445-page report does independent counsel Kenneth W. Starr lay out charges against President Clinton regarding Whitewater, the complex land and banking deal that sparked Starr's four-year, $35 million investigation.

Nor does the report focus on two other alleged scandals that Starr was authorized to examine: "travelgate," as the 1993 firing of the White House travel office staff became known, and "filegate," the improper appearance at the White House of hundreds of personal FBI files on Republican political appointees.

PALMDALE - Antelope Valley lawmakers are mixed on the idea of whether President Bill Clinton ought to be impeached, but Congressman Howard P. "Buck" McKeon says it's too early to take that drastic step until after a full bipartisan hearing.

McKeon's district director, David Foy, state Sen. William J. "Pete" Knight and Assemblyman George Runner offered a variety of responses about whether the most dire governmental action since Watergate is required as a result of Clinton's affair with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky.

LANCASTER - Antelope Valley College leaders looking for a direction to take the college in the next decade opened up the question to community and business leaders Friday.

In its first strategic planning conference, the college invited public officials, business leaders and school officials to provide input on how the college can best accommodate the needs of the community in the year 2000 and beyond.

LITTLEROCK - Mounting concern over dangers posed to motorists traveling on state Route 138 has generated a wave of calls for immediate safety measures.

Some proposals include increasing the number of California Highway Patrol officers, adding radar equipment, installing more stop lights, doubling traffic fines and installing a photographic radar system.

The photo radar would clock vehicle speeds, take a picture of the license plate of cars exceeding the speed limit and a citation would be automatically mailed to the vehicle owner's residence.
Sept. 13

WASHINGTON - Given a day to absorb Kenneth Starr's graphic report, the White House struck back Saturday with a rebuttal assailing the prosecutor's conclusions as a "hit-and-run smear campaign." Lawmakers spoke cautiously of impeachment as they gauged public reaction back home.

"It is plain that `sex' is precisely what this 4 1/2 year investigation has boiled down to," the White House argued in its second counter report in two days.

LANCASTER - Worms wriggled on razor-sharp hooks Saturday morning before being plunked into the cool water of Apollo Park's clover-leaf shaped lake.

Three time zones away, President Bill Clinton likely did some wriggling of his own, faced with the awkward morning after Congress opted for a worldwide Internet release of the lengthy, lurid report on the president's behavior.

PALMDALE - Antelope Valley leaders urged residents Saturday not only to remember prisoners of war and soldiers still listed as missing in action, but to remember their families, who may never get a "joyous reunion."

Nearly a dozen American flags raised for the Saturday remembrance at McAdam Park hung limp on their poles in the windless sky during the 15-minute ceremony.

LANCASTER - George and Denise Leano of Lancaster are the reported sole owners of the winning Super Lotto ticket drawn Wednesday, valued at $20 million.

Denise, 40, is a nurse at Antelope Valley Hospital, while George, 39, is a clerk in the business office of High Desert Hospital.

PALMDALE - The city's Army National Guard company will become an enhanced unit under a new design plan announced by the Department of the Army.

That means Company B, First Battalion, 185th Armor Division will increase the number of full-time personnel to 70% from 40%, said Lt. Col. Doug Hart of the National Guard.

Hart, chief of public affairs for the guard's Office of the Adjutant General in Sacramento, said Palmdale's Company B also will benefit from receiving a new M-1 tank.
Sept. 15

ACTON - The Acton-Agua Dulce Unified School District took the first steps in class-size reduction Monday when it opened the doors on the Meadowlark Elementary School.

Students, parents and district officials held two ribbon-cuttings for the first day of classes ever at Meadowlark. The first ribbon-cutting was in the morning before classes and the second was in the afternoon before the start of second session kindergarten.

LANCASTER - Antelope Valley residents will be seeing new faces on the street and new badges on the beat as the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department plans to net more than 1,000 new recruits by the year 2000.

Budget cuts and a subsequent hiring freeze in the mid-1990s resulted in a departmentwide shortage of deputy sheriffs and custody officers, said Lt. Michael Kenyon of the LASD recruitment office.

RENO - The Reno National Championship Air Races - the place where the cutting edge of wings and technology slice the sky wide open.

The way Dan Gilbert sees it, the chances of his Formula 1 race plane, Shadow, beating Nemesis - the champion entry from the Antelope Valley - are slim.

LANCASTER - A prominent obstetrician took his own life in an Antelope Valley Hospital parking lot early Monday morning after reportedly suffering from heart problems.

Dr. Mark Berengian, 57, of Lancaster, served the Antelope Valley for more than nine years, delivering thousands of babies at Antelope Valley Hospital.
Sept. 16

LOS ANGELES - Juan Carlos Cordova stopped his murder trial cold Monday, admitting to a judge he killed his former boss, Leona Valley rancher Wellington "Paul` Chen, and buried him on his 55acre spread.

Cordova, a former cowhand on Chen's ranch, made his plea of second-degree murder moments before the second day of testimony in his trial was scheduled to begin.

PALMDALE - In contradiction of earlier statements, Palmdale School District administrators didn't initiate an investigation into their Head Start program's financial record keeping, a spokesman for Los Angeles County Office of Education said.

The county Office of Education ordered the audit.

Carol Rush, principal of early education for Palmdale School District's Head Start program, told the Valley Press in August that the school district had asked Los Angeles County to do the audit "to clear everything up."

LANCASTER - Antelope Valley College President Linda Spink must improve her relations with faculty, enhance communication with staff and students and burnish the college image in order to fulfill revised objectives set by the board of trustees.

The new set of 20 goals made public Monday night replaces the original 19 released last year.

PALMDALE - For the second time in five years, residents have convinced a government regulatory board to require Bio Gro Systems Inc. to enclose a 67-acre composting operation planned on the west side of the Antelope Valley.

That requirement could draw the Antelope Valley Air Pollution Control District into a court battle.

LANCASTER - The $32 million-dollar Antelope Valley College 1998-99 budget came under fire Monday night from teaching union representative Hiede Preschler because it lacks funding for new fulltime teachers.

"Fifty percent of our students do not have access to an instructor who holds office hours, or has an office or even a telephone or filing cabinet," Preschler said. "Fifty percent of our students are taught by adjunct (part time) faculty."

RENO - At the Reno National Championship Air Races, the heart and soul of the Baby Dragon racing team lies in a 24-foot piece of wood, foam, fiberglass, sweat and, yes, maybe even a few tears.

The wing was Bill Nusz' project.

A pilot-owner in airplane Formula 1 racing, he designed it to reduce laminar flow and increase handling in the corners. However, Lt. Col. William Nusz never saw the completion of his creation.
Sept. 17

PALMDALE - The Valley's sex offender roll call is set to increase Thursday with the arrival of one Francis Wenzell.

Wenzell joins the approximately 430 registered sex offenders in the Antelope Valley, cataloging crimes ranging in seriousness from violent rape and assault to indecent exposure.

RENO - Bruce Lockwood spent 13 years preparing for the role of Dago Red pilot at the Reno National Championship Air Races.

Dago Red's owner, Terry Bland, wasn't thinking about making a red-paint splash at the Indianapolis 500 of air racing when he bought the famous racer a year ago for a price a little north of a half-million bucks.

LANCASTER - An investigation of alleged improper activities by Public Works Superintendent David Mulkey is in its third week, but many people who might expect to be questioned in the matter have not been contacted.

City officials decline to discuss how the probe is being conducted, how long it will last or to disclose the responsibilities of the lawyer retained by the city in the matter. The lawyer also declines to comment.

LITTLEROCK - President Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky move over.

The case of Zink vs. Mallory, two disgruntled former Littlerock Town Council members, has hit the daytime television airwaves, showing that you don't have to be a national leader to be wild and silly.

Jason Zink and Marlene Mallory took their beef to national television on "The Judge Joe Brown Show."

EDWARDS AFB - The unmanned spy plane known as DarkStar made a second test flight from Edwards Air Force Base. All controls for the flight were automated using a global positioning system.

During its 45 minutes aloft Monday, the plane achieved its target altitude of 5,000 feet.
Sept. 18

PALMDALE - Convicted child molester Francis Wenzell, described as a "cunning" sexual predator, is scheduled to live in housing provided by the state Department of Corrections when he arrives in the Antelope Valley.

Wenzell, 54, was convicted of lewd acts with a minor in Compton, where he worked as representative for the Department of Children and Family Services.

PALMDALE - Last month was the hottest on record - click - last month was the hottest on record - click - last month was the hottest on record.

August was the eighth month in a row to set a new average high temperature worldwide, an event that seems stuck like an old phonograph record with a scratch.

LITTLEROCK - A vision first seen decades ago is taking shape for the First Missionary Baptist Church on 100th Street East.

Rev. Henry Hearns, pastor of the congregation, said he has known since 1975 that his followers are expected to be a light to the Antelope Valley. Thursday, Hearns announced completion of construction projects that he said will help make it so.

RENO, Nev. - The mood of the first day of racing at the Reno National Championship Air Races transformed from festive to somber with the death of a Formula 1 pilot killed Thursday in a crash.

Richard Roberts was on approach after completing his heat race when his plane, Miss Maybee, lost control and plummeted into the back yard of a Lemmon Valley couple.
Sept. 19

LANCASTER - Pilots who pioneered the SR-71 Blackbird, the F-117 Nighthawk stealth fighter and the mighty F-15 Eagle are among the five honored today at ceremonies for the Aerospace Walk of Honor.

From the F-15 Eagle of the Cold War victory to the F-22 Raptor preparing for the 21st century, Col. Wendell H. "Wendy" Shawler and Lt. Col. David Ferguson - honorees for the Aerospace Walk of Honor - bridge the gap between advanced air fighters.

WASHINGTON - The visual impact could be powerful.

Americans already know the gist of President Bill Clinton's grand jury testimony. But it would be something else entirely for the nation to watch the president on television parrying prosecutors' questions, perhaps losing his temper, retreating into legalisms under close questioning about the Monica Lewinsky affair.

Members of the House and Senate conference committee meeting in Washington, D.C., agreed Friday on a number of defense-budget items with ramifications for the Antelope Valley, including pumping another $86 million into the B-2 stealth bomber program.

The items, part of the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 1999, were outlined in a summary released by the House National Security Committee, of which Howard P. "Buck" McKeon, R-Santa Clarita, is a member.

PALMDALE - Graffiti detectives are zeroing in on an eight-member "tagging crew" responsible for more than $307,233 in graffiti damage to city walls since January 1995.

The arrest of a 14-year old Palmdale boy on Sept. 8 connected the group to more than 391 acts of vandalism in the area near 45th Street East and Avenue S, said Deputy Dave Miklos of the Palmdale Sheriff's Station.
Sept. 20

PALMDALE - As the futuristic stealth bomber roared overhead Saturday morning, about 300 volunteers used old-fashioned elbow grease to make the Antelope Valley a better place to live.

The charitable work was part of the United Way Antelope Valley Region's fifth annual Day of Caring.

LANCASTER - An Air Force test pilot's widow paid special tribute Saturday to the men and women on the ground and in the background of aerospace research here.

Joy Stephens, whose late husband, Air Force Col. Robert L. "Silver Fox" Stephens, was among five test pilots enshrined in Lancaster's Aerospace Walk of Honor, told a monument ceremony crowd of about 250.

RENO - The green flag dropped and the Formula 1 airplanes started to roll. Midway down the runway, the racers took off, many three abreast while leaving the ground in the top heat race at the Reno National Championship Air Races.

Takeoff has never been a strong point for the Nemesis air racing team. Pilot and Nemesis team owner Jon Sharp fell to fifth at the start of the eight-lap race.

ONTARIO - Four months early and $26 million under budget, Ontario International Airport unveiled two state-of-the-art passenger terminals Saturday.

Los Angeles Mayor Richard J. Riordan described the feat of coming in under budget as "a miracle for government."