National Roundup

Louisiana
Thrice-widowed, on trial in death of husband No. 2
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — It was more than seven years from the time Ernest Smith, 38, died outside his New Orleans home in the spring of 2006 until his widow was arrested and charged in his death, but she had been on police radar early on.

“Please be advised that the beneficiary, Emma Smith, wife of the deceased, cannot be ruled out as a suspect in the death of Ernest Smith,” a New Orleans detective wrote to an insurance investigation company in a July 12, 2006, letter.

By the time Emma Smith was arrested in that case in 2013, she had a new name, Emma Raine, and was, again, a widow. Her third husband, James Raine, 37, was shot to death at the couple’s Pearl River County, Mississippi, home in 2011.

Emma Raine was out of town at the time, but authorities still had suspicions.

“She is a suspect in that James Raine case,” Pearl River County Sheriff David Allison said in a 2015 interview.

“And through investigating that case we were able to get some information that New Orleans needed and passed it on to them,” Allison added.

No arrests have been reported in James Raine’s death. Emma Raines has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder in the death of Ernest Smith. Jury selection began Tuesday and opening statements could begin Wednesday in New Orleans. Conviction would mean a mandatory life sentence for the 52-year-old woman.

Court documents and testimony in an earlier trial make clear that James Raine was also under suspicion in Ernest Smith’s death. His adoptive brother, Alfred T. Everette, was charged with being the trigger man in Smith’s death. He was convicted of second-degree murder late last year after prosecutors said he had been promised — by James and Emma Raine — $10,000 from an $800,000 life insurance benefit. His appeal is pending at the state Supreme Court.

Jurors may also hear testimony about the death of Emma Raine’s first husband, Leroy Evans, who died while hospitalized in 1994 after having been hit by a car. No arrests were ever reported in that case but, during Everette’s trial, prosecutors said the death was suspicious.


New York
Lawsuit: Sheeran copied classic ‘Let’s Get It On’
NEW YORK (AP) — The family of a co-writer of Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On” is suing Ed Sheeran, claiming the British singer-songwriter’s hit, “Thinking Out Loud,” sounds too much like the soul classic.

The lawsuit filed by the family of Ed Townsend claims Sheeran copied the “heart” of “Let’s Get It On” and repeated it continuously throughout “Thinking Out Loud.” It says Sheeran continued to perform the song even after he was notified of the copyright infringement claim last year.

The family is demanding a jury trial and compensation for damages.

The suit also names “Thinking Out Loud” co-writer Amy Wadge, producer Jake Gosling, Sony/ATV Music Publishing, Atlantic Records, Warner Bros. and others.


North Carolina
Woman admits to sex crimes against teen she looked to adopt
WILMINGTON, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina woman has pleaded guilty to sex charges involving a 14-year-old boy who her family was in the process of adopting from the Philippines.

The StarNews of Wilmington reports 43-year-old Christy Lynn Jaski pleaded guilty Tuesday to three counts of misdemeanor sexual battery. She was sentenced to three years of probation and must register as a sex offender for 30 years.

Prosecutor Lance Oehrlein says Jaski kissed and groped the boy sometime between December 2014 and January 2015.

Oehrlein says Jaski also sent messages to a friend in the Philippines admitting she had kissed the child. She was arrested in February 2015.

Jaski’s attorneys say Jaski hasn’t had any contact with the boy since he was removed from the Jaski family’s home and placed in another state.

Illinois
Federal judge dismisses Bob Vila public ­relations lawsuit
ROCKFORD, Ill. (AP) — A Chicago federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit that television home renovation expert Bob Vila filed against a northern Illinois public relations specialist.

Vila sued Robert Smith of Loves Park earlier this year, saying Smith falsely claimed to represent him to sell celebrity endorsement rights to Midwest home improvement shows. Vila sought $2 million in damages.

The Rockford Register Star reports that U.S. District Judge John W. Darrah agreed with Vila’s attorneys and dismissed the lawsuit Wednesday without prejudice, meaning Vila can refile later.

The 69-year-old Vila of Palm Beach, Florida, is best known as the host of “This Old House,” ‘’Bob Vila’s Home Again” and “Restore America with Bob Vila.”

Tennessee
Man charged with murder in fatal shooting of special agent
JACKSON, Tenn. (AP) — The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation says the man accused of fatally shooting a special agent has been charged with murder in perpetration of an attempted aggravated robbery.

TBI special agent De’Greaun Frazier was shot to death Tuesday during an undercover drug investigation in West Tennessee.

The TBI said in a statement that the charge was placed Wednesday morning against 23-year-old Brenden Tyler Burns.

TBI spokesman Josh DeVine said in a news release that Frazier was working with other agents and narcotics officers on a drug investigation when he met a person for a controlled buy in a car in Jackson.

TBI Director Mark Gwyn said the person whom Frazier met pulled out a firearm in an apparent robbery attempt and fired at least once, hitting the agent, who died later at a hospital.

Kentucky
Couple found dead in home; police suspect foul play
MORGANTOWN, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky State Police believe foul play was involved in the deaths of a pastor and his wife who were found inside their Butler County home.

Sgt. Jeremy Smith tells news outlets that a family member discovered 71-year-old Kenneth Neafus and 70-year-old Dorothy Neafus inside the home in Morgantown on Tuesday afternoon.

Smith says foul play is suspected and investigators believe that the suspect involved is injured. It’s unclear how long the couple had been dead inside the residence.

Neighbors tell the Bowling Green Daily News that Kenneth Neafus was the pastor at Little Muddy Cumberland Presbyterian Church in Morgantown.

State police have not released a possible motive for the killings.