School-shooting profiteers; OJ is free; 'Band of Brothers' figure dies

UNLV medical residents hone craft on cutting-edge simulator

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The UNLV medical school is using a state-of-the art orthopedic surgery simulator to give its residents realistic operating room experiences.

University Department of Orthopedic Surgery Chair Dr. Michael Daubs likens the experience 20 orthopedic residents are getting to that of commercial airline pilots in training. "This is a tremendous advance in education for orthopedic surgery," he said.

Flight simulation helps fledgling pilots practice and prepare for challenging scenarios before they take off, Daubs said. Using a truly realistic simulator known as the ArthroS, developed by the Swiss company VirtaMed, to train up-and-coming surgeons only makes sense, Daubs said.

"Why wouldn't we want those training for surgery to have the most realistic training possible?" Daubs asked, standing inside the Clinical Simulation Center of Las Vegas near University Medical Center and Valley Hospital Medical Center. "When I was in training, they weren't around."

The VirtaMed ArthoS comes close to replicating the structures of the human body. The pressures residents feel when they encounter tendons, cartilage or bone are nearly identical to those they would discern if operating on a live patient.

Scenarios include shaving the meniscus, suctioning and controlling bleeding. A red liquid substance resembling blood covers the screen if a resident make a serious mistake,

Daubs, known for his expertise in spine surgery, said he expects to continue to get top graduate students in orthopedics with the help of the simulator, which allows him to record and grade the students on their precise movements.

"Very few medical schools have anything close to this," he said, noting that graduate medical students in their early residencies previously did much more watching than doing. "(Now) they can become better much faster."

Arizona K9 rescue, retirement nonprofit kennel seeks permit

YUMA, Ariz. (AP) — An organization that rescues aging and hospice dogs wants a permit from county authorities in Yuma so it can stay in operation amid local opposition and support among pet lovers outside the city.

Old Souls K9 Rescue and Retirement Home's request for permit comes after Yuma County received a complaint about Old Souls from the daughter of one of the nonprofit's next-door neighbors. She said a shade structure was placed too close to their home, and Old Souls' owners operating a nonprofit kennel out of their home without a permit.

Paula Rivadeneira, who owns and operates the rescue with her husband, Isaac, said she didn't know they needed a permit, the Yuma Sun reported (http://bit.ly/2xUqyLG ). "We actually contacted the county when we moved here to find out if we need a business license or a kennel license or whatever, and they said, no," Rivadeneira said.

"So the deal is, it's a complaint-driven organization, so unless there's a complaint they don't ask for those things," she said. "Now that there's been a complaint, we have to file in order to get this special-use permit."

The couple have lived in the home for three years.

The couple finds foster or adoptive homes for as many dogs as they can. The rest live out their days at the rescue with food, veterinary care and plenty of couches and pillows to lie on, until their health declines to the point that euthanasia is the most humane option.

Rivadeneira said the "Old Souls Hacienda" has a maximum capacity of 18 dogs, which will remain the same under the special use permit as proposed by county planning staff. Their five cats would also be allowed to stay, but the rescue as a rule doesn't take in elderly or sick cats.

The permit doesn't mention any other species. But the Rivadeneiras' application says Old Souls also is the home to two horses, four tortoises, three pigs, two rabbits, a small flock of chickens and one rooster.

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Information from: The Sun, http://www.yumasun.com

'It' edges out Tom Cruise's 'American Made' to take No. 1

LOS ANGELES (AP) — After dipping to No. 2 last weekend, "It" has regained control of the North American box office in its fourth weekend in theaters.

The movie beat out the new Tom Cruise film "American Made" and "Kingsman: The Golden Circle." But it was a close race that could shift when studios report actual weekend totals on Monday.

According to studio estimates on Sunday, the Stephen King adaptation and box office juggernaut added $17.3 million to take the top spot. The film now boasts $291.2 million in domestic grosses.

"It" edged out last weekend's box office champ, "Kingsman: The Golden Circle" and newcomer "American Made," which essentially tied for second with $17 million apiece. Estimates have "American Made" taking a slight advantage, with around $16,000 more than the "Kingsman" sequel.

Directed by Doug Liman, "American Made" is earning Cruise strong praise for his portrayal of the real life TWA pilot turned drug smuggler and CIA operative, but it's also a somewhat lukewarm North American debut for the star. Liman also directed Cruise in "Edge of Tomorrow," which opened to $28.8 million in June 2014.

"Tom Cruise has set the bar so high for himself that anything less than No. 1 feels like a comedown. That's the conundrum he's in," said Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst for comScore. "Cruise will always be measured against his unprecedented bar-raising string of hits from 1992 to 2006 that generated twelve $100 million-plus earners at the North American box office."

The film, which cost a reported $50 million to make, got a few weeks head start internationally, however, and has already raked in $81.7 million worldwide to date.

Nick Carpou, who heads up distribution for Universal Pictures, which is handling worldwide distribution for "American Made," said this debut is "the beginning of what will be a long playout and a successful one."

"Kingsman: The Golden Circle" fell about $56 percent in its second weekend in theaters, bringing its domestic total to $66.7 million.

"The Lego Ninjago Movie" took fourth place with $12 million, while the "Flatliners" remake opened to a cold $6.7 million for a fifth place start.

The weekend closes out what is looking to be a record-breaking September at the box office, although the year is still down about 4.7 percent from 2016.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to comScore. Where available, the latest international numbers for Friday through Sunday are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.

1. "It," $17.3 million ($35.6 million international).

2."American Made," $17 million ($3.8 million international).

3."Kingsman: The Golden Circle," $17 million ($50.5 million international).

4."The Lego Ninjago Movie," $12 million ($10.6 million international).

5."Flatliners," $6.7 million ($3.1 million international).

6."Battle of the Sexes," $3.4 million.

7."American Assassin," $3.3 million ($2.2 million international)

8."Home Again," $1.8 million ($870,000 international).

9."Til Death Do Us Part," $1.5 million.

10."mother!" $1.5 million ($4 million international).

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Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at international theaters (excluding the U.S. and Canada), according to comScore:

1. "Kingsman: The Golden Circle," $50.5 million.

2. "Never Say Die," $45.6 million.

3. "It," $35.6 million.

4. "The Foreigner," $23.1 million.

5. "Chasing the Dragon," $14.9 million.

6. "Sky Hunter," $13 million.

7. "Judwaa 2," $11.8 million.

8. "City of Rock," $11.2 million.

9. "The Lego Ninjago Movie," $10.6 million.

10. "Cars 3" and "The Emoji Movie," $4.8 million.

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Universal and Focus are owned by NBC Universal, a unit of Comcast Corp.; Sony, Columbia, Sony Screen Gems and Sony Pictures Classics are units of Sony Corp.; Paramount is owned by Viacom Inc.; Disney, Pixar and Marvel are owned by The Walt Disney Co.; Miramax is owned by Filmyard Holdings LLC; 20th Century Fox and Fox Searchlight are owned by 21st Century Fox; Warner Bros. and New Line are units of Time Warner Inc.; MGM is owned by a group of former creditors including Highland Capital, Anchorage Advisors and Carl Icahn; Lionsgate is owned by Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.; IFC is owned by AMC Networks Inc.; Rogue is owned by Relativity Media LLC.

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Follow AP Film Writer Lindsey Bahr on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/ldbahr

Officials: school shootings attract profiteers

SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — The superintendent of a Washington school district says she started receiving emails from people trying to sell "door locks, metal detectors and emergency supplies" within 10 minutes after a school shooting.

The Spokesman-Review reports (http://bit.ly/2x8341C ) Marysville School District Superintendent Becky Berg says the emails she received following a deadly 2014 shooting at Marysville-Pilchuck High School "couldn't have been more offensive."

She says "people prey upon your vulnerability in order to profit for themselves."

Freeman School District Superintendent Randy Russell says the district was inundated with calls and emails "to support Freeman" following a shooting at Freeman High School two and a half weeks ago.

School shooting experts say profiteering from school shootings is not an isolated event. In fact, an industry of sorts has developed around mass shootings.

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Information from: The Spokesman-Review, http://www.spokesman.com

Donald Malarkey, portrayed in 'Band of Brothers,' has died

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Donald Malarkey, a World War II paratrooper who was awarded the Bronze Star after parachuting behind enemy lines at Normandy to destroy German artillery on D-Day, has died. He was 96.

Malarkey was one of several members of "Easy Company" to be widely portrayed in the HBO miniseries, "Band of Brothers." He died Sept. 30 in Salem, Oregon of age-related causes, his son-in-law John Hill said Sunday.

Malarkey fought fight across France, the Netherlands and Belgium and with Easy Company fought off Nazi advances while surrounded at Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944.

He was often praised for his actions during the war, and was presented with the Legion of Honor Medal — the highest honor awarded by the French government — in 2009.

Malarkey was haunted by memories of combat and the devastation of losing fellow soldiers and friends, his family members said. Still, the release of the "Band of Brothers" miniseries was cathartic for him and helped him come to terms with the emotional scars of the battle, Hill said.

Malarkey was born on July 30, 1921 in Astoria, Oregon. He was a freshman at the University of Oregon when he was drafted into the Army in 1942 and volunteered to become a paratrooper.

He returned to the University of Oregon after the war, receiving a bachelor's degree in business in 1948. While a student at the school, he met and fell in love with Irene Moore. The two married in 1948 and had four children — Michael Malarkey, Marianne McNally, Sharon Hill and Martha Serean.

Malarkey met with historian Stephen Ambrose in 1987, and in 1989 traveled with other members of Easy Company to Europe to provide oral histories of their war experiences. Those recollections became the basis for 'Band of Brothers" and an earlier book with the same name written by Ambrose.

Malarkey also detailed his experiences in a 2008 autobiography written with Bob Welch, "Easy Company Soldier." Malarkey was frequently asked to speak about his experiences in WWII, and he lectured at West Point and made trips to Kuwait and Germany to meet with wounded soldiers from the Iraq War.

He remained close to the other surviving members of Easy Company and attended his final Easy Company reunion in Portland, Oregon in August.

"You could look back and with great pride realize that you had done a very significant thing and acted responsibly in what amounted to saving the world," Malarkey told Oregon Public Broadcasting in 2012.

Malarkey is survived by his daughters and his sister, Molly Rumpunkis.

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This version corrects the spelling of Bastogne.

3 boys killed, 1 injured when car jumps Las Vegas sidewalk

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Authorities say a teenager and two younger boys have been killed after being struck by a car while walking on a sidewalk in east Las Vegas.

Metro Police say two of the victims were 12 years old and the other was 15.

They say a 13-year-old boy also was injured in the accident Saturday night, but is expected to survive.

Police say alleged driver of the car was arrested early Sunday and is facing numerous felony charges.

The names of the suspect and the victims haven't been released.

Police say the crash occurred about 9 p.m. and the driver may have been speeding and trying to pass another car when he ran onto the sidewalk.

Witnesses say the driver was changing his clothes as he was running from the scene.

Police: ASU student dies after fall from apartment balcony

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — Tempe police say an Arizona State University student has died after falling from the balcony of an apartment complex.

Officers responded to the scene around 3 a.m. Saturday.

Police say the man was in his 20s, but his name hadn't been released.

They say impairment may have been a factor and an investigation remains ongoing.

Police say the man may have fallen from the 15th floor of the apartment building or higher.

They say the man was dead at the scene and his body was found near the seventh-level pool area.

Police say there's no evidence of foul play and it appears to be a tragic accident.

Support growing for petition to end beard ban at BYU

PROVO, Utah (AP) — Now that Brigham Young University will offer caffeinated soft drinks on campus, some people are wondering if the school's ban on beards will end.

Skyler Thiot started an online petition called "Unban the Beards at BYU" last week.

He graduated from BYU in 2013.

As a student, Thiot started the Facebook page "BYU for Caffeine" after The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints clarified its caffeine stance in 2012.

The Daily Herald reports (http://bit.ly/2xSFn1o ) the online petition had more than 1,000 signatures as of Friday. Thiot is hoping for 30,000.

Students have to abide by an honor code to attend BYU. It restricts actions such as premarital sex and alcohol consumption and also provides dress and grooming standards for students.

The honor code was last updated two years ago.

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Information from: The Daily Herald, http://www.heraldextra.com

Pastor says God put him in right place when he saved man

ALBANY, Ore. (AP) — Terence Jay Shaw, 51, would likely be dead, if not for Albany resident Chuck Zeitler.

Shaw, from California, was driving his semi-trailer truck north on I-5 in the early hours of Sept. 1 when for unknown reasons he collided with the overpass bridge at Highway 20. With the impact, his rig burst into flames.

Just a few seconds later, Zeitler, traveling south on I-5 on his way home from his shift as a boiler operator at the Oregon State Prison, happened upon the scene. The 24-year Navy veteran reacted, laying his motorcycle down and running toward the wreckage and the sounds of Shaw screaming for help.

Having spent his Navy career as a boiler technician, he was conditioned to run toward danger, especially fire, in order to try and save lives. Such behavior, Zeitler said, was in stark contrast to the onlookers at the scene, who were standing with their cell phones recording the chaos.

He reached Shaw just as the flames burned through his seatbelt, letting him fall to the ground. Zeitler then carried a badly burned Shaw from the burning cab, minutes before it exploded.

Shaw was treated at the scene by Tangent Fire Department personnel.

Zeitler, a Christian and an elder member of Fusion Faith Center in Albany, said he believes God placed him at the wreckage specifically so he could save Shaw.

"I'd left work about 10 minutes late," said Zeitler, "only because my relief was stuck in traffic, so I had to wait for him to arrive. If I'd have left at the regular time, I never would have happened upon the wreck."

Zeitler said he does not consider himself a hero, while Shaw's family does.

"We're best friends now," he said, explaining how he's visited Shaw a couple times at the burn unit at legacy Emanuel Hospital in Portland, where Shaw had skin grafts applied to his right arm and shoulder and right side, along with 23 stitches.

Asked if he thinks about how things would have gone had the truck exploded a minute earlier, Zeitler only said, "Then I would get to meet my lord a little earlier."

Zeitler recently became a pastor and plans to open a Christian church for bikers in the valley.

"I believe that's my calling," he said.

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Information from: Albany Democrat-Herald, http://www.dhonline.com

Parents grapple with slow-to-adulthood trend

BREMERTON, Wash. (AP) — When Jonathan Rowe, 51, was coming of age in the Bay Area, he couldn't wait to get his driver's license. He was into fast cars and hanging out.

"We went to the movies. We snuck into clubs, and we drove our hot rods," said the Central Kitsap father of one. "I had a job. I wanted to get the hell out of the house."

For Rowe's 20-year-old son Ari, the priorities are different. Rowe is mystified that Ari and his friends don't seem that keen on driving.

"I'm gonna guess that half my son's friends don't have a license," he said.

Ari lives at home, for now. Partying just isn't a thing for him and his friends (online gaming is just now beginning to lose its allure), his father says. Rowe has offered his son work at the family's store.

A study published recently in the journal "Child Development" documents delayed rites of passage — like driving and holding a job — among teens, a trend that parallels a slower road to independence for young adults like Ari and his friends.

"We are all talking about it," Rowe said. "All the parents are talking about this subject because it's so odd.

What's odd to parents may be the new normal for teens, according to the study, which drew on surveys of 8 million teens conducted over the course of four decades, beginning in 1975. The study found the trend toward more gradual development occurred across all economic groups and in every part of the country.

"The whole developmental pathway has slowed down," San Diego State University professor study co-author Jean Twenge told USA Today.

Local survey results back up some findings highlighted in the national study.

The Healthy Youth Survey, conducted every two years, shows substance use — including drinking and smoking — generally declined among Kitsap teens over the past eight years. Teen marijuana use didn't increase over the past eight years, even after recreational cannabis possession was legalized for adults in 2012.

Authors of the national study suggested parents today are more involved in the lives of their children — called "parental investment" — a view reinforced by local surveys. Nearly 70 percent of Kitsap teens surveyed in 2016 said their parents were actively engaged in their everyday lives, checking in on homework assignments, monitoring whether they were home on time and who they were spending time with, and setting clear rules at home.

Eighty percent of teens reported having positive opportunities at home, meaning they could talk to their parents about problems, had a voice in household decision-making and took part in fun activities with their families.

Twenge said there are advantages and disadvantages to adopting a "slow life strategy." ''One of the advantages is that it's safer," she said.

A disadvantage is that teens and youth often arrive at colleges and jobs unprepared for independence, said Twenge, author of the new book "iGen: Why Today's Super-Connected Kids are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy — and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood — And What That Means for the Rest of Us."

Two Kitsap high school counselors see the yin and yang of the slow adulthood trend. Both point to the influence of the Internet.

Heather Maass of Olympic High School worries about a generation of youth stunted by social media.

"The concept of socialization is at home behind the screen," she said. "They spend so much time curating themselves that they're not even present in their own life, in their real life."

Maass speaks to health classes at the school about balancing online time with real-life interactions.

On the flip side, Niki Orando of Central Kitsap High School says the Internet has brought a heightened awareness to today's youth. She sees students she works with making careful, "informed" choices and caring deeply about global issues.

"I think students really have access to a ton of information like never before, and perhaps that access to information helps students pause a little bit more," Orando said.

The study says the trend "may or may not be linked to increased Internet use."

Seen in a broader view, the delay in adult activities is influenced by social and historical contexts including increased life-expectancy, later child-bearing among parents and greater parental involvement, the study authors state.

And here's another theory blown away: "The trends are unlikely to be due to homework and extracurricular time, which stayed steady or declined," the study states.

Orando thinks having the world at their fingertips has made today's youth more compassionate, whether they're out to find a cure for malaria or help a friend who is struggling with depression.

Rowe sees something similar. "He's a great kid, very compassionate," he said of Ari. "These are all really nice kids."

But he thinks they might be on information overload.

"They're worried about other stuff, the calamities, the environment. When we were kids that stuff happened but you weren't as aware of it. You didn't have that kind of information," Rowe said. "In my family, we watched the news. These guys are on a much different level in that the news is in their face the second it happens, so it's very distracting."

Rowe also worries about the independence piece. He's heard of kids without a driver's license using Uber or Lyft to get to work ... in Kitsap County.

"It's scary," he said. "You're burning off at least an hour of net pay in travel, but it's their method. It's what they feel they have at their disposal."

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Information from: Kitsap Sun, http://www.kitsapsun.com/