Roundup: Fort Hood Suspect's Arraignment Set

By KERA News & Wire Services

Dallas, TX – The Army psychiatrist charged in the worst mass shooting on a U.S. military installation will be arraigned in a military court next week.

It will be Maj. Nidal Hasan's first court appearance since Fort Hood's commander decided he would face the death penalty.

Defense attorney John Galligan declined to say whether Hasan will enter a plea when he's arraigned Wednesday in a Fort Hood courtroom. Military law says suspects charged in death-penalty cases are not allowed to plead guilty.

Hasan is charged with 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder in the November 2009 rampage.

Galligan told The Associated Press Friday that the military judge also will set Hasan's trial date, possibly as early as March.

Jurors will be brought in from Fort Sill, Okla.

Deaths of man, grandson ruled accidental

The Dallas County medical examiner's office says the deaths of a man and his grandson found in a backyard Dallas swimming pool were accidental drownings.

The medical examiner's office made the ruling Thursday in the deaths of 68-year-old Rolando Pacheco and 2-year-old Ethan Pacheco.

They were discovered in the pool Wednesday night by the child's father, who is also the son of the older man.

Dallas police homicide Sgt. Joe Garza tells The Dallas Morning News, "The sad thing is we'll never really know what happened, who fell in first, what transpired where they ended up both in the pool. . My guess is that they were trying to help one another."

Investigators haven't ruled out the possibility that a medical problem caused Rolando Pacheco to fall into the pool.

46-year-old elephant dies at Tyler zoo

Chico, a 46-year-old elephant at Tyler's Caldwell Zoo, has died.

Hayes Caldwell, executive director of the zoo, said Thursday that Chico, who died Saturday at the zoo, will be missed. Caldwell says the elephant had the respect of those who worked with him.

Dr. Steve Wilson of the Glenwood Animal Hospital in Tyler tells the Tyler Morning Telegraph that Chico weighed more than 14,000 pounds. Wilson cared for Chico while he was at the Tyler zoo -- from 2003 until his death.

Chico came to Tyler from the San Diego Zoo.

Caldwell says Chico died suddenly and there were no signs of illness.

A necropsy has been performed but Caldwell says the cause of death is still undetermined, pending further test results.

2 'Texas 7' fugitives lose federal appeals

Two of the notorious "Texas 7" prison escapees have lost federal court appeals, moving them a step closer to execution for killing a Dallas-area police officer more than a decade ago.

George Rivas, considered the ringleader of the group's prison break, and companion Donald Newbury, were both turned down Thursday in separate appeals to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

They and five others became the subject of a nationwide manhunt after overpowering some workers at the Connally Unit prison and driving away. Two weeks later, on Christmas Eve, Irving police officer Aubrey Hawkins was gunned down when he interrupted their robbery of a sporting goods store. They were caught a month later in Colorado.