Navy SEAL commander dies of apparent suicide in Afghanistan
Navy SEAL commander dies of apparent suicide in Afghanistan
WASHINGTON — U.S. military officials are investigating the apparent suicide of a Navy SEAL commander in Afghanistan.
Navy SEAL Cdr. Job W. Price, 42, of Pottstown, Pa., died Saturday of a non-combat-related injury while supporting stability operations in Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan.
A U.S. military official said the death “appears to be the result of suicide.” The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the death is still being investigated.
“The Naval Special Warfare family is deeply saddened by the loss of our teammate,” said Capt. Robert Smith, Commander of Naval Special Warfare Group Two, which manages all Virginia-based Navy SEAL teams. “We extend our condolences, thoughts and prayers to the family, friends, and NSW community during this time of grieving.”
“As we mourn the loss and honor the memory of our fallen teammate, those he served with will continue to carry out the mission,” Smith added Sunday.
Gay rights pioneer dies
LOS ANGELES — Richard Adams, who used both the altar and the courtroom to help begin the push for gay marriage four decades before it reached the center of the national consciousness, has died, his attorney said Sunday.
After a brief illness, Adams died Dec. 17 at age 65 in the Hollywood home he shared with Tony Sullivan, his partner of 43 years, attorney Lavi Soloway told The Associated Press.
Adams and Sullivan met at a Los Angeles gay bar called “The Closet” in 1971, but their life and relationship would soon be on display for a worldwide audience.
They were granted a marriage license in 1975, but for years fought in vain to see it recognized by governments and a population for whom the idea of two married men was still strange and foreign. They were subjected to anti-gay slurs even from government agencies.
“They felt that in the end, the most important thing was their love for each other, and in that respect they won,” Soloway said. “No government or no law was ever able to keep them apart.”
U.S. senator arrested, charged with DUI
ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Idaho U.S. Sen. Michael Crapo was arrested early Sunday morning and charged with driving under the influence in a Washington, D.C., suburb, authorities said.
Police in Alexandria, Va., said Sunday that the Idaho Republican was pulled over after his vehicle ran a red light. Police spokesman Jody Donaldson said Crapo failed field sobriety tests and was arrested at about 12:45 a.m. without incident. He was transported to the Alexandria jail and released on an unsecured $1,000 bond at about 5 a.m..
“There was no refusal (to take sobriety tests), no accident, no injuries,” Donaldson said. “Just a traffic stop that resulted in a DUI.”
Donaldson said he didn’t immediately know what Crapo’s blood alcohol level was, where he was coming from or the type of vehicle he was driving.
Crapo has a Jan. 4 court date.
Messages left for a Crapo spokesman weren’t immediately returned Sunday night.
Currently in his third term, Crapo has been in the Senate since 1998, and served for six years in the U.S. House of Representatives before that. He was easily re-elected in 2010, and won’t have to run again until 2016.
In Congress, Crapo has built a reputation as a staunch social and fiscal conservative. It has been expected he would take over the top Republican spot next year on the Senate Banking Committee. He also serves on the Senate’s budget and finance panels. Crapo was a member of the so-called “Gang of Six” senators that worked in 2011 toward a deficit-reduction deal that was never adopted by Congress.
A Mormon from Idaho Falls, Idaho, Crapo has five children with his wife, Susan, and three grandchildren.
By wire sources