Friday morning summary

University of Arkansas Chancellor John White has expressed his support for Houston Nutt, but White stopped short of giving the embattled football coach a vote of confidence. White said he’ll evaluate the Razorbacks’ football program at the end of the season, but he didn’t say anything to dismiss the notion that Nutt’s job was in question.

The embattled Arkansas Republican Party is “expecting an excellent turnout” for today’s appearance by Vice President Dick Cheney at a elite and private party fundraiser in Little Rock, the state party chairman said Thursday.

Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani has paid a $15,000 filing fee and filed paperwork with the secretary of state to appear on the Feb. 5 primary ballot.

Dr. I. Dodd Wilson, the top official at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, plans to retire as chancellor in mid-2009 after the scheduled completion of the institution’s $197 million hospital expansion.

Legislation approved by the House this week clears the way for a variety of transportation and economic development projects in Arkansas. The $106 billion spending bill would provide money for 22 local projects across the state, including a new landing strip at the Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport and a new bridge in the southeast corner of the state.

Nearly a year after Jack Crumbly was sworn into the state Senate, the state Supreme Court on ordered a new hearing in a lawsuit challenging his victory in a June 2006 Democratic primary runoff. The high court’s unanimous decision reversed a St. Francis County Circuit Court ruling that dismissed a lawsuit former state Rep. Arnell Willis filed after a recount showed him losing the District 16 Senate seat in eastern Arkansas to Crumbly by just 74 votes. Circuit Judge L.T. Simes ruled Willis had failed to question enough votes to change the results of the runoff election.

Lt. Gov. Bill Halter’s campaign for a constitutional amendment to create a state lottery has raised $40,400, according to a financial report filed with the state Ethics Commission.

Black construction paper blocked the narrow windows of the Bentonville High gymnasium and notices were posted placing the ara of-limits for the top-secret appearance of American Idol judge Paula Abdul. The former Lakers girl was in town for clandestine business meetings with an unidentified local corporate headquarters, but spent most of the morning coaching local cheerleaders.

Alltel Corp. is set to become a private company today in a transaction that will load it with billions of dollars of debt that some analysts think will cripple its ability to make capital investments needed to compete in the wireless industry.

Rheem Manufacturing’s Air Conditioning Division will layoff 125 workers at its Fort Smith production facility effective Monday, November 26. The company cited “a continued downturn in the nation’s housing industry coupled with unseasonably warm weather” for an oversupply in its inventory of gas furnace supplies. The affected workers are second shift employees who assemble gas furnaces for Rheem.

The Poultry Community Council, an organization of poultry companies with operations in Arkansas, accused Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson of trying to destroy the poultry industry. Jackie Cunningham, the council’s community relations director, said Edmondson wrongly targeted eight poultry companies with a lawsuit filed in 2005. “I feel like he’s targeting out of-state companies,” Cunningham said. “Look at the cattlemen’s association. They have a substantial voice in the state of Oklahoma, and he’s not targeting them.”

The Fort Smith Parks and Recreation Commission unanimously approved a draft ordinance that would require commercial and residential developers donate property for recreation as part of the price for building in the city.

Leaders of the 188th Fighter Wing/Fort Chaffee Community Council told prospective members in Fort Smith Wednesday that their $250 annual membership fee will go toward making the local military installations “BRAC-proof” and to build on and enlarge current missions.

The state Alcoholic Beverage Control Board will allow a proposed Logan County restaurant to serve beer. The board voted to overturn ABC Director Michael Langley’s denial of a beer permit to Johnny Mac’s Barbeque and More, to be located outside the Paris city limits.

A civil suit against Andrew Tsang challenging his alcohol license for Kelley’s Restaurant in Bald Knob has been dismissed. Little Rock attorney Brett Watson, a Searcy resident, claimed there were illegalities in the permitting process for the restaurant. Circuit judge Chris Piazza ruled Tuesday that Watson did not have legal standing to file the suit.

A Little Rock couple who bought a now-recalled Aqua Dots toy for their three young children are suing the American distributor of the toy who is refusing to refund their money and offering a “replacement” instead.

Rogers, Arkansas just opened the state’s first Ruth’s Chris Steak House, one of the best upscale restaurants often found in major cities. It is the first franchise for owners David Cohn, Barry Pelts, Andy Woodman and Billy Orgel. The Rogers Ruth’s Chris offers seating for 205 guests in the main dining room and features private dining space, a private wine room and outside patio seating.

The state Parole Board has recommended clemency for a second time for a man convicted of capital murder in the 1993 death of a North Little Rock man. The board recommended that Kenneth L. Slocum’s sentence of life without parole be commuted to 15 years, although one board member voted against the request, noting that Slocum was convicted of another felony while in the Pulaski County jail three years after his murder conviction. In other decisions, the board recommended clemency for Roger Hobgood, serving a life sentence out of Columbia County for the death of his former mother-in-law. Also, the board recommended pardons for two men convicted of sexual abuse who have completed their sentences.

Ray Madison of Parrish, La. and Sarina Page of Long Beach, Calif., admitted their involvement in carrying about 270 pounds of marijuana on Interstate 40. Madison received 15 years in the Arkansas Department of Correction and a consecutive 15-year suspended sentence on a charge of possession of marijuana with intent to distribute. He also ordered him to serve 10 years in the ADC on a charge of possession of drug paraphernalia. Page received a six-year suspended sentence on each charge, with the terms to run concurrently.

Filed under: Arkansas