Investigation of Kennedy sex case ends

Authorities have halted an investigation into allegations that Michael Kennedy, a son of the late Sen. Robert Kennedy, had sex with his children's babysitter when she was underage.

Norfolk County District Attorney Jeffrey Locke said at a news conference Tuesday that he had ended the statutory rape investigation largely because the babysitter, now a 19-year-old college student in Boston, refused to aid the inquiry.

Locke said he would restart the investigation if the victim decided to cooperate. The statute of limitations does not expire for 12 more years, he said.

The investigation began in April after the Boston Globe reported that Kennedy, 39, had an affair with the babysitter, possibly beginning when she was 14.

In his first public comment since the allegations arose, Kennedy said: "I intend to do all I can to make up for the serious mistakes I have made and to continue the help I need.

"I know that will be difficult, but I hope that in time the (babysitter's) family will forgive me. I also hope that my wife and children will forgive me, and that I can someday earn and deserve their confidence again," the statement said.

Susan McDougal must stand trial

SANTA MONICA, Calif. _ A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge has refused to dismiss charges against Whitewater figure Susan McDougal, ordering the 42-year-old to stand trial for allegedly embezzling $150,000 from the wife of former Los Angeles Philharmonic conductor Zubin Mehta.

Judge Paul Flynn rejected arguments that McDougal didn't get a fair preliminary hearing and that some of the charges were filed after the statute of limitations had expired.

McDougal, who has pleaded not guilty in that case, is the former investment partner of President Clinton and Hillary Rodham Clinton in the Whitewater land deal. She has been held since September on federal contempt-of-court charges for her refusal to testify before the federal grand jury studying Whitewater.

Air Force searches for bombs

EAGLE, Colo. _ A second day of searching on a snowy mountain peak Tuesday turned up no sign of the 500-pound bombs lost in the mysterious crash of an A-10 warplane this spring.

As on the day before, searchers found only wreckage of the A-10 Thunderbolt, bits of ammunition and remains of Capt. Craig Button, who disappeared with the plane during a training mission over Arizona on April 2. The wreckage was found 18 days later on Gold Dust Peak, more than 800 miles off course.

The bombs, designed to blow up tanks and runways, are not believed to be armed, and military officials said any sensitive material inside is "insensitive" to extreme temperatures and shaking. However, officials said they could be dangerous if found by people familiar with how to use them.

The search was to resume today.

Eight dead in helicopter crash

FORT BRAGG, N.C. _ An Army Black Hawk helicopter on a routine training mission crashed and burned Tuesday, killing all eight soldiers aboard.

All the dead were members of the 82nd Airborne Division, said a spokesman, Sgt. Ron Gardner.

It was not immediately clear what caused the crash. The weather was clear and calm when the helicopter went down.

The victims' names were not released, pending notification of relatives.

Exterminators sentenced

BILOXI, Miss. _ Two men were sentenced to prison for spraying scores of private homes with a deadly pesticide normally used by cotton farmers, court officials said Tuesday.

Paul Walls, 62, and Dock Eatman, 64, were acting as unlicensed exterminators when they treated homes near Mississippi's Gulf Coast with methyl parathion. A teaspoonful of the chemical can be fatal, but the Environmental Protection Agency allows its use outdoors where sunlight renders it harmless.

They were convicted this year in separate jury trials. Walls was sentenced to 78 months for spraying 48 buildings; Eatman received a 63-month sentence for spraying 21 buildings.