March 2 / 6:15 pm
Mall Plans Unveiled
 (New Haven-WTNH) _ They haven't signed on the dotted line but they're close to it. A development deal for a mall at Long Wharf has been reached for the city of New Haven. According to the developer Nordstrom's, Macy's, Lord and Taylor, and Filene's have committed to space in the Long Wharf mall. There will be 800 thousand square feet of leaseable space for other stores. But a mall brawl has been brewing for months. A sign on I-95 reads "Want more traffic? Build a mall at Long Wharf".
 News Channel 8's Judy Chong reports.
"Tale of Two Malls"
(WTNH) _ Will the long wharf mall be the boost New Haven is looking for or will it destroy downtown business as we know it? Here's a tale of two malls - in Waterbury the Brass Mill has really increased retail activity for the city, but in Meriden downtown stores have been hurt by the Meriden Square Mall.
News Channel 8's Christina Hager reports.
Developer Given More Time to Raise Cash for Bridgeport Project
(Bridgeport-AP) _ Bridgeport's City Council has given a Greenwich developer more time to raise the money for the $1 billion Harbor Place project. Alex Conroy how has three more months to come up with the financing for the massive project.
In January, an international firm responsible for assembling nearly $800 million in private financing, dropped out of the project. Plans for Harbour Place include a 1 million square-foot factory outlet mall, a hotel, nightclubs, restaurants, an IMAX theater and an illuminated, permanently docked ocean liner that would rise above Interstate 95. The state Legislature has authorized $200 million of state and city incentives to prepare Steel Point in the city for redevelopment. The money can't be used until the developer signs a commitment and the details are approved by state and city.
Fatal Accident Closes Interstate
(East Hartford-WTNH) _ A fatal accident shut down a section of Interstate 84 in East Hartford for a couple of hours Tuesday. Police say a car with Maine plates was rear-ended by another vehicle in the westbound lanes in the afternoon. The driver of the lead car was killed. A mother and small child were taken from the rear car and transported to Hartford hospital. No word on their conditions at this time.
Committee OK's Police Pursuit Bill
(Hartford-WTNH) _ When police are in "hot pursuit" should they call off a chase if a supervisor isn't around? That's at the heart of some proposed guidelines in the General Assembly. The bill, which passed committee Tuesday, says police should notify towns when they cross borders during chases. They should also get ahold of a supervisor when a pursuit begins, and call off the chase if there is no supervisor available.
Chief capitol correspondent Mark Davis has the story.
Privacy of Medical Records Discussed at Capitol
(Hartford-WTNH) _ How private are you're medical records? Not as off limits as you may think.
If a patient is being treated for allergies, why is he getting information on allergy medication in the mail? Where is the leak of his private medical information?
Doctors say they have a hard time balancing "doctor-patient confidentiality", and telling the insurance companies what they need to know to cover the claim.
Health Team 8's Kristen Cusato reports.
Town Considering Requirement for Gun Safety Feature
(Seymour-AP) _ The town of Seymour is considering a local law that would require all gun owners to have a high tech safety feature on the weapons. The Board of Selectman will be voting on an ordinance tonight that would require a microchip in the handgun that scans fingerprints and allows only the registered owner of the gun to fire it. First Selectman John O'Toole is proposing the law that would require fingerprint scanners in newly purchased firearms. If passed, the ordinance would apply to guns sold to or possessed by registered owners in Seymour after January first of 2001. Service weapons used by police departments and law enforcement would be exempt.
Fire Strikes Metals Plant
(Hartford-WTNH) _ A fire at metals plant in Hartford forced the evacuation of some workers Tuesday morning.
The fire broke out that the Swift and Sons plant on Love Lane at about 8:15 am.
Workers say the fire was caused by a machine malfunction. No one was hurt.
Hartford Considers End to Social Promotion in Schools
(Hartford-WTNH) _ The Hartford school system is getting an overhaul when it comes to passing students to the next grade that shouldn't pass. The state Board of Education says Hartford students will need to get a passing grade to get promoted.
The policy, up for a vote tonight, would try to save the 80% of Hartford students at risk of failing. The project costs $20 million. It would require students to attend extended classes and Saturday classes, also classes over the summer and during school vacations.
News Channel 8's Jayne Saffer went to schools to find out what students think.
Lewinsky Apologizes to Hillary Rodham Clinton in ABC interview
 (Washington, DC-AP) _ Monica Lewinsky offers apologies for "my part in this past year's ordeal" to Hillary Rodham Clinton, Chelsea Clinton and the whole nation in her ABC interview. "I wouldn't dream of asking Chelsea and Mrs. Clinton to forgive me," Ms. Lewinsky says in excerpts of the interview released by the TV network. "But I would ask them to know that I am very sorry for what happened and for what they've been through."
Here's more on the story.
Watch the interview Wednesday at 9:00 on News Channel 8
Dodd Releases Y2K Report
(Washington-AP) _ The Senate has dedicated today to the Year 2000 computer problem. Lawmakers examined threats ranging from small-business bankruptcies to Russian missile malfunctions. The review comes as a 160-page report was released today outlining serious potential problems in health care, energy supply and government services if action isn't taken to change computers by the end of the year. But report authors Senator Christopher Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat, and Senator Bob Bennett, a Republican from Utah, stress the disruptions will be minimal and short-lived in the US.
Here's more on the story.
Parents Nabbed on Child Custody Charges
(Hartford-AP)_ Another bizarre twist in a court battle involving a New York couple arrested in Connecticut after going on the run and sparking a nationwide manhunt. Michael Klein and his wife Christine fled, New York a month ago rather than turning their 3-year old daughter Kaylee to child protection officials.
Mrs. Klein says her husband took her hostage. Authorities say the Kleins fled to Erie, Pennsylvania before being arrested Monday in Voluntown, Connecticut.
Authorities say they have no proof Kaylee had been abused by either parent, but apparently Mrs. Klein made allegations about abuse but kept recanting her stories.
Town, Club Owner Face Off Over Nudity
(Hartford-AP)_ A Torrington strip club and an adult video store have gone to federal court to challenge the city's local law that regulates adult-oriented businesses. Fuzzy Wuzzy's Inc., which operates the Mr. Wiggles strip club, and representatives of Total Entertainment, the adult video store, filed the lawsuit yesterday in U.S. District Court. The suit names the city and Police Chief Roger A. Janelle. The local ordinance, which went into effect February 23, consists of 20 pages of rules to govern such businesses, including the requirement that they be licensed by the police chief for operation. The lawsuit ask that the ordinance be declared unconstitutional and an injunction issued prohibiting the enforcement of the ordinance. The suit claims the ordinance violates First Amendment guarantees of free speech, press and expression by attempting to control and censor live performances.
Prisoner Back in Jail After Mistaken Early Release
(Hartford-WTNH)_ A man who was mistakenly freed from prison by a clerical error is back behind bars. 23 year old Ryan Testa was supposed to be serving a five year sentence for an unrelated robbery. He was released from a Hartford correctional center after a clerical error on his paperwork showed his sentence as five days, not five years.Testa was sentenced Monday to 22 years for a rape and shooting that took place while he was free.
Supermarket Bank Robbed
(Putnam-AP) _ State and Putnam police are looking for a robber who held up a bank that's located in a Supermarket. The robber held up the branch of People's Bank located inside the Stop and Shop Supermarket on Route 44 about six last night. The robber didn't show any sort of weapon, but passed a note to the teller demanding cash.
Long Island Residents Oppose Millstone Restart
(Riverhead, New York-AP) _ Long Island residents want to halt the restart of the Millstone Two Nuclear Power Plant in Connecticut. About 200 opponents attended a federal hearing yesterday in Riverhead, New York.
Congressman Michael Forbes testified before the Nuclear Regulatory Commission hearing in Riverhead Town Hall that the evacuation plan should be expanded to a 50-mile radius. The Waterford plant is across Long Island Sound about 12 miles from the North Fork of Long Island. Federal guidelines require an emergency evacuation plan for a 10-mile radius around the plant. Residents and politicians on Long Island have long opposed the plant's re-opening, saying the wide open sound would give any radioactive plume a clear shot at them if there's an accident. The NRC is scheduled to decide this spring whether to restart the reactor, which is run by Northeast Utilities.
State Sex Offender Website Online
(Hartford-WTNH) _ The State of Connecticut's Sex Offender Registry went online at the first of the year. Residents can look to see if a convicted sex offender is living in their neighborhood by accessing the information through the Department of Public Safety's website at www.state.ct.us/dps/
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