■ United States
Eateries may pay litter fee
A city across the bay from San Francisco plans to start charging fast-food restaurants a fee to pay for cleaning up litter. Elected leaders in the city of Oakland have backed a proposal to make take-out food businesses ranging from convenience stores to major hamburger chains such as McDonald's pay for public works crews to clean streets. "We're just asking them to be good neighbors," said Jane Brunner, the city council member who crafted the ordinance. The ordinance, which is expected to be finalized by summer, would create a three-tier fee structure based on the revenues of the businesses.
■ United States
Experts warn on Ritalin
Ritalin, extensively prescribed to calm hyperactive children, should carry the highest-level warning that it may increase the risk of death from heart attacks, US experts recommended on Friday. There have been 51 deaths among children and adults taking drugs for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in the US since 1999. Yesterday the UK licensing authority, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency, said nine children had died among a smaller population on medication in the UK. They declined to reveal the children's ages because of the possibility of identification.
■ United States
Dead baby's mom charged
An 18-year-old high school senior who handed hospital workers a knapsack containing her dead newborn was charged on Thursday with second-degree manslaughter, the police said. The teenager, Zehra Catalbas of Mount Sinai, New York, delivered the baby girl last Saturday morning alone in a shower at her home, according to Detective Lieutenant Jack Fitzpatrick of the Suffolk County Police Department's homicide squad.After giving birth, Catalbas stayed in the shower for two hours, during which the baby died of asphyxiation, according to the authorities. Fitzpatrick said that it was not clear if the baby had drowned in the shower or had died by other means, but that the death was being considered a homicide.
■ United States
Fossett forges ahead
Adventurer Steve Fossett yesterday decided to try to complete his nearly 43,450km journey to break aviation's distance record, despite losing fuel during takeoff. Mission control director Kevin Stass said he's "cautiously optimistic" and added Fossett himself is in good shape despite the marathon flight. Fossett lost 340kg of fuel during takeoff from the Kennedy Space Center on Wednesday because of a leak. Fossett, who is flying a lightweight experimental airplane, had to decide whether to try to finish the trip or abort after reaching a certain point over the Atlantic. He now has little opportunity to land the plane if he runs out of fuel. If the trip is successful, he was scheduled to land in the UK between 6pm and 8pm GMT last night.
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