SILVERTON, Ore. – An elderly Silverton man was injured and flown by helicopter to the hospital Thursday morning after he was struck by a car as he tried to cross the highway in Silverton aided by a walker, Oregon State Police reported. Martin Nelson, 79, was injured about 6:30 a.m., April 3, as he tried to cross Highway 214 west to east using his walker. The accident occured about ¼ mile west of the Hobard ... [full story]

PRINEVILLE, Ore. – Deputies believe alcohol may have contributed to serious injuries sustained by a 51-year old man who fell 30 to 40-feet from a rim rock overlooking the Prineville Reservoir Wednesday afternoon. According to Crook County Sheriff’s Commander Brandon Smith, Leon Cushman, 53, a friend of the injured man, called 911 about 1:15 p.m., April 2, to report an ATV accident on BLM land between the Prineville Lake Acres subdivision and the Prineville Reservoir. ... [full story]

SALEM, Ore. — Oregon's prison population was 13,405 on Jan. 1, having grown by 0.7 percent (98 beds) during 2007, according to the state corrections population forecast. The prison population is expected to grow at a slightly faster rate during 2008. The state expects the corrections population o be 13,722 on Jan. 1, 2009, which is 2.4 percent (317 beds) higher than on Jan 1 of this year. The rate of growth in the prison ... [full story]

Alcohol abuse and underage drinking continue to plague Oregon, and the health and social consequences are serious, sometimes fatal, according to the Oregon Department of Human Services Addictions and Mental Health Division. Drinking starts young in this state. Thirty-one percent of Oregon's eighth graders and half the 11th graders reported regular alcohol use last year, approximately 38,000 youngsters have a serious alcohol problem, and it's the leading cause of death among youth here. That's why ... [full story]

WASHINGTON -- The presumptive Republican U.S. presidential nominee, Sen. John McCain, is keeping his sons' military service quiet to further his campaign, strategists say.McCain has likely chosen to keep his sons' military careers under wraps in light of pressure from Democratic voters to bring troops home from Iraq, the Hill reported Wednesday."We really never talk about our sons. We have two sons in the military but we never talk about it, if that's all right," ... [full story]

WASHINGTON -- Democratic presidential rivals Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton call for a crackdown on U.S. banks while their advisers have been linked to failed lenders.Sens. Obama of Illinois and Clinton of New York have both claimed greedy lenders contributed to worsening the U.S. foreclosure crisis and that the country needs to crack down on such institutions, USA Today reported.Campaign advisers of both candidates have had jobs at lenders that went under due to subprime ... [full story]

MONTREAL -- A varied hand-picked group of Canadian environmentalists are traveling to Montreal for a closed-door training session from former U.S. Vice President Al Gore.Shelley Kath, executive director of the Climate Project-Canada, told The Gazette newspaper in Montreal the 230 people invited to Saturday's session had to show evidence they are good communicators and are able to line up speaking engagements on their own about climate change."We do not want to have these people go ... [full story]

ELEFSINA, Greece -- Police in the Greek city of Elefsina said a massive bomb that damaged 30 buildings was suspected of being tied to organized protection rackets.Forensic officers said the blast that shook the city early Wednesday was created by more than 40 pounds of dynamite detonated with a slow-burning fuse, the Kathimerini newspaper reported Thursday.Police were aware of a turf war by rival protection rackets in the city west of Athens as a similar ... [full story]

RALEIGH, N.C. -- The May 6 North Carolina primary looms large for both U.S. senators trying to become the Democratic Party's nominee for president, a party analyst says.The state -- in which polls indicate Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., has a double-digit lead over Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y. -- "has the potential to be everything," strategist Joe Trippi told USA Today.Because the race is tight, states and territories at the end of the primary season -- ... [full story]

SACRAMENTO -- Sacramento investigators are using DNA covertly collected from a cigarette in an attempt to prove a man killed his aunt, officials said.Investigators took DNA evidence from a bloody towel found at the murder scene more than 15 years ago and are seeking to prove in court that it matches DNA from a cigarette Rolando Gallego, 49, smoked in 2006, The New York Times reported.Gallego's lawyer, David Lynch, argues that the methods used to ... [full story]