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Friday, March 23, 2012 – Daily News WORLD BRIEFING Coroner says Whitney Houston died from drowning LOS ANGELES (AP) — Coroner's officials have ruled Whitney Hous- ton died by drowning, but heart disease and cocaine use were contributing fac- tors. The announcement Thursday ends weeks of speculation about what killed the Grammy-win- ning singer on Feb. 11. Houston was found submerged in the bathtub of her room at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on the eve of the Grammy Awards. Several bottles of pre- scription medications were found in her hotel room, but coroner's offi- cials said they weren't in excessive quantities. Coroner's spokesman Craig Harvey says cocaine metabolites were found in Houston's sys- tem, and it was listed as a contributing factor in her death. He says the results indicated Houston was a chronic cocaine user. Standoff in France ends with Islamic suspect shot TOULOUSE, France (AP) — In a dramatic end to a 32-hour standoff, a masked French SWAT team slipped into the apartment of an Islamist extremist Thursday, sparking a firefight that ended with the suspect jumping out the window and being fatally shot in the head. Mohamed Merah, 23, was wanted in the deaths of three French paratroop- ers, three Jewish school- children and a rabbi — all killed since March 11 in what Merah reportedly told police was an attempt to ''bring France to its knees.'' Police had been trying to capture him alive since a predawn raid Wednes- day to arrest him at his apartment in the south- western city of Toulouse. The killings he was accused of — and boasted about to police — have shocked France, ignited fear in moderate Muslims about stoking discrimina- tion and may even affect the country's upcoming presidential election. The seven slayings, carried out in three motor- cycle shooting attacks, are believed to be the first killings inspired by Islam- ic radical motives in France since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. French President Nico- las Sarkozy, speaking in Paris, said an investiga- tion was under way to see if Merah, a French citizen of Algerian descent who claimed links to al-Qaida, had any accomplices. Police chief criticized for not arresting volunteer SANFORD, Fla. (AP) — The police chief who has been bitterly criticized for not arresting a neigh- borhood watch volunteer in the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager temporarily stepped down Thursday, saying he want- ed to passions to cool. Sanford Police Chief Bill Lee's announcement came less than a day after city commissioners gave him a ''no confidence'' vote, and after a couple of weeks of protests and uproar on social media websites. Lee has said the evidence in the case sup- ported George Zimmer- man's claim that the Feb. 26 shooting of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was self- defense. ''I do this in the hopes of restoring some semblance of calm to a city which has been in turmoil for several weeks,'' Lee said. Martin was returning from a trip to a conve- nience store when Zimmer- man started following him, telling police dispatchers he looked suspicious. At some point, the two got into a fight and Zimmer- man pulled out his gun. Zimmerman told police Martin attacked him after he had given up on chasing the teenager and was returning to his sport utility vehicle. Santorum tries to overcome deficit WASHINGTON (AP) — Rick Santorum is falling so far behind Mitt Romney in the race for Republican delegates that his best chance might be in states that voted weeks ago. The chief rival to the front-running Romney, Santorum is trying to improve his lot in places like Iowa and Washington, where local caucuses were just the first step in deter- mining delegates to the Republican National Con- vention. In those states and a few others, supporters are now preparing for county, congressional district and state conventions, where the campaigns hope to keep their delegates — and possi- bly poach some from other candidates. Santorum's delegate count could use a boost. He trails Romney by 300 and would need to win 74 per- cent of the delegates in the remaining primaries to clinch the nomination before the national conven- tion in August. So far, San- torum is winning just 27 percent, according to the tally by The Associated Press. But the former Pennsyl- vania senator's campaign predicts that he will signifi- cantly increase his delegate haul in caucus states, pri- marily at the expense of Romney. ''The Romney cam- paign likes to talk about how they have this superi- or organization in these caucus states and therefore they are going to perform well,'' said John Yob, San- torum's national delegate director. ''If you believe the Romney campaign's spin that they have this superior organization, but yet they're losing these contests, it must mean they have a deficient candidate who is unable to appeal to the base of the party.'' Top Russian says Assad needs to pull out his forces MOSCOW (AP) — Syrian President Bashar Assad must take the first step toward settling his country's yearlong con- flict by pulling his forces out of cities and allowing humanitarian aid, a senior Russian lawmaker said Thurs- day, in a statement that signaled a marked shift in Moscow's stance. The comments by Mikhail Margelov, the Kremlin-connected chairman of the foreign affairs committee in the upper house of Russian parliament, indicated Moscow's increasing impatience with Assad and its eagerness to raise pressure on an old ally. ''Syrian President Bashar Assad must urgently fix numerous mistakes that he has made, according to Rus- sia's official position,'' Margelov said, accord- ing to the ITAR-Tass and RIA Novosti news agencies. Commenting on Wednesday's statement by the United Nations Security Council that spelled out U.N. media- tor Kofi Annan's pro- posals, including guar- anteed humanitarian access and the pullout of government forces from Syrian cities and towns, Margelov said that Assad should now act first. ''Assad must take the Margelov first step,'' was quoted as saying. ''He must pull out the Syrian army from big cities. It's also neces- sary to deliver humani- tarian assistance to the areas affected by fight- ing.'' Tehama Country This WeekReal Estate FOR SALE BY OWNER USDA RURAL DEVELOPMENT SEALED BID SALE 755 Crosby Lane, Red Bluff, CA 96080 3 bdrm / 2 bath home • Minimum bid: $16,700 RED BLUFF - 4.9 ACRE PARCELS Rolling Hills With Oaks Power/Phone Available, Perk Done, Paved Roads Starting at $34,000 with $3K Down Owner Will Carry (530) 925-4075 OPEN HOUSE Tehama Country Real Estate THIS WEEK online received 451 unique visitors last month! Our online version has Exclusive features like Recommended Realtors and much more. SAT., MARCH 24th Or by appointment • 11:30 am - 1:30 pm Rio Vista Mobile Estates #92 ON THE RIVER, 2/2 Doublewide 1300 sq ft $47,000 $39,500-obo. Financing available. Call 527-7297 Did you know that www.redbluffdailynews.com was visited by over 50,000 visitors with ISPs in cities outside the Shasta-Tehama -Butte market? If your listing is on this page, it's online too, as part of the online Real Estate magazine on Tehama County's most visited Website! Meadow Brook Estates Bankruptcy, Foreclosure, Short Sale Low Credit Scores 100% Financing Still Available $205,000 Firm For Sale by Owner Country living in Town! Beautiful new home with 1750 sq/ft, 3 bedrooms + office, 2 baths. Spacious, open floor plan, hardwood floors, cherry cabinets, jacuzzi tub and much more! For more information, please call: 527-8992 or 510-6640 YOU CAN STILL BUY A HOME Call Access Mortgage & Real Estate Buyers Agent: Tim Arrowsmith 530-200-2929 Tim Arrowsmith NMLS# 502254 MLS# 01220716 An open house on the above property will be on March 27, 2012 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. Sealed bids will be accepted until April 4, 2012 at 3:00 pm at which time all bids will be opened. The property will be sold to the highest bidder for cash only. All bids must be accompanied by a 10% deposit in the form of a certified check. The government reserves the right to reject any or all offers. For a bid package or further information contact USDA Rural Development at 530-226-2588. WESTERN REAL ESTATE MINCH PROPERTY MANAGEMENT 760 Main St. • 530-527-5514 Commercial Properties For Sale: • 455 S. Main St. SALE PENDING • 840 Main St. Major Price Reduction! • 1870 Montgomery • Flores Ave/I-5 ( • 13545 Saint Marys Ave. Major Price Reduction! 2.67 Acres 11,400 sq/ft 2 Acres (SOLD) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24, 53 or 62 Acres 40,000 sq/ft Commercial Properties For Lease: • 22680 Antelope Blvd. • 22660 Antelope Blvd. • 460 Antelope Blvd. • 731-741 Main St. • 225 Walnut St. • 955 Main St. 5,600 sq/ft 18,000 sq/ft 1 to 3,000 sq/ft various size suites 2,000 sq/ft 2,995 sq/ft • Medical Suite available in St. E campus area ................................. 2,000 sq/ft • 218 Washington St. • 1156 Monroe St. • 623 Main St. ..... 1,350 sq/ft 6,580 sq/ft 4,000 sq/ft 3B . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 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