Sunderland Echo (Pennywell, England) back issues from March 2006:
Grieving mum now faces court ordeal.
Mar 01, 2006 ... DEBRA Riley's life was torn apart less than five months ago when her son died after being dragged under the wheels of a bus. Now she is facing court after the same firm complained to police that she kicked a bus when a driver refused to let her on because she did not have the ...
Now Cameron is just like any other little boy.
Mar 01, 2006 ... COURAGEOUS Cameron Roper is on the road to recovery just months after open heart surgery saved his life. Born with four defects in his tiny heart, doctors were in a race against time to save him when he was just hours old after cardiac specialists diagnosed the youngster with a ...
One loose nut caused this ...
Mar 01, 2006 ... HUMAN error has been blamed for a blaze which destroyed a giant wind turbine at the Nissan car plant. Major roads had to be closed when the 200ft windmill burst into flames, sending its 75ft blades crashing to the ground. An investigation into the fire has revealed a ...
Stolen cars left by road-rage drivers.
Mar 01, 2006 ... TWO suspected car thieves ended up with road rage after their stolen vehicles smashed into each other. The dozy drivers, who were travelling in opposite directions and did not know each other, collided on Rhodesia Road, in Red House. The men, who were possibly covered ...
Chitty Chitty goes bang bang on stage.
Mar 01, 2006 ... CHITTY Chitty Bang Bang has been turning into Chitty Chitty Splutter Splutter. The world's most expensive prop was the world's most expensive flop at two of its Sunderland Empire performances at the weekend. The [pounds sterling]750,000 car seemed to be tiring as it ...
Pub makes our lives hell, say neighbours.
Mar 01, 2006 ... NEIGHBOURS are complaining that a pub's rowdy revellers are making their lives "hell". The householders have all lodged objections to longer drinking hours at Taylors in Dovedale Road, Seaburn. A panel of Sunderland City councillors is examining the pub's request at ...
Top grades for primary school.
Mar 01, 2006 ... A PRIMARY school is celebrating top grades after being transformed into one of the best in the country. An Ofsted report ranked Woodlea Primary School in Fence Houses as "outstanding", a grade achieved by only the top five per cent of British schools. They put ...
Elliott wins Irish start.
Mar 01, 2006 ... STEPHEN Elliott will start the Republic of Ireland's game against Sweden tonight, the Echo understands. And Mick McCarthy will be at Lansdowne Road to watch his young striker make an immediate return to the international stage. Elliott, out of action with a back ...
We can come good - Miller.
Mar 01, 2006 ... TOMMY Miller says his struggles to keep his first club Hartlepool afloat have helped him keep a sense of perspective about Sunderland's current plight. And he insists that the club is in a position to come good again once it shakes off its bad run. The midfield ...
Welsh off to Foxes.
Mar 01, 2006 ... SUNDERLAND winger Andy Welsh has joined Leicester City on loan for the rest of the season. The left-winger has already travelled to the the East Midlands to link up with the Foxes' squad and will immediately come into contention for the relegation-threatened Championship club's ...
Tommy targets City lift.
Mar 03, 2006 ... TOMMY MILLER has turned to old mate Titus Bramble for solace amid Sunderland's Premiership struggles. The pair find themselves on opposite sides of the Tyne-Wear football divide having been team-mates at Ipswich Town. But Bramble's Newcastle United have been upwardly ...
You Khan do it, Tony.
Mar 03, 2006 ... BIRTHDAY boy Tony Jeffries hopes former room-mate Amir Khan can inspire him to glory at this month's Commonwealth Games. Jeffries celebrated his 21st birthday yesterday before he and his fellow Team England boxers jet to Australia tonight for a two-week lead-in to the Games in ...
Welsh welcomes move.
Mar 03, 2006 ... WINGER Andy Welsh sought advice from old pal Matt Piper before sealing his loan move to Leicester City. Piper made his name with the Foxes before making an ultimately ill-fated move to Sunderland where injury problems constantly dogged him. Welsh had a chat with ...
Dillon signs for Sunderland.
Mar 03, 2006 ... SUNDERLAND Cricket Club have signed West Indies bowler Mervyn Dillon as their overseas professional for 2006. Paceman Dillon, 31, replaces fellow Trinidadian Marlon Black who, after two seasons at Ashbrooke, has returned to league cricket in the North West, where he has family ...
[pounds sterling]65,000 for man who worked at other job while on sick.
Mar 03, 2006 ... A NISSAN worker sacked for working elsewhere while on sick leave has won a [pounds sterling]65,000 compensation payout from the car giant. An industrial tribunal decided Brian Murphy's dismissal was "disastrously done" and accused Nissan of "moving the goalposts" when bosses ...
Bid for elected mayor defeated.
Mar 03, 2006 ... A "GO and get the signatures" gauntlet was thrown down to council opposition during a fierce debate on whether Wearsiders should vote for an elected mayor. Conservatives want voters to go back to the polls for a referendum vote on whether Sunderland should get an all-powerful ...
Battling Brandon loses fight for life.(Obituary)
Mar 03, 2006 ... BRAVE Brandon Kennedy has died after doctors ran out of time to find a donor for a life-saving liver and kidney transplant. The death of the eight-year-old has devastated his family, who have been keeping a bedside vigil at hospital. Brandon had already had one liver ...
CAR BOSS ADMITS MURRAY ASSAULT.
Mar 03, 2006 ... A BUSINESSMAN has admitted attacking Sunderland chairman Bob Murray in a posh Indian restaurant. Black Cats boss Mr Murray claimed he was glassed while dining with club manager Mick McCarthy at upmarket curry house Vujon, on Newcastle's quayside in November. Nicholas ...
Double battle for kidney patient Ray.
Mar 03, 2006 ... DEVASTATED Ray Downey has been told he needs a fifth kidney transplant after his fourth donated organ failed. And the charity boss faces another battle - to save the holiday centre he set up for kidney patients across the country. The Ray Downey Dialysis Unit was ...
Stop messing about and fine litter louts.
Mar 03, 2006 ... COUNCIL bosses have been warned to clean up their act after failing to fine one single litter lout, vandal or noise pest in the past two years. People who drop rubbish, daub subways with graffiti or blast loud music can now be slapped with on-the-spot fines, under laws bought in ...
Footage from speed cameras to go online.
Mar 03, 2006 ... SPEEDING motorists caught on camera will soon be able to watch themselves breaking the law on the Internet. The Northumbria Safety Camera Partnership says evidence in speeding cases will go online from the summer. Safety campaigners have also hit out at claims in a ...
Brave Brandon was 'everybody's friend'.
Mar 03, 2006 ... BRAVE Brandon Kennedy, the schoolboy who died after time ran out for a life-saving liver and kidney transplant, will never be forgotten by his classmates and teachers at his school. Margaret Armstrong, headteacher at Oxclose Primary School where the eight-year-old was a pupil, ...
Bullies leave boy with broken nose.
Mar 03, 2006 ... A SCHOOLBOY suffered a broken nose after being repeatedly kicked and punched in a playground attack, it was claimed today. It was the second time in three weeks Michael Cole, eight, had been the victim of a bully attack - in a previous assault a boy stabbed him in the back of ...
Paralysis threat to young Kyra.
Mar 03, 2006 ... BRAVE Kyra Miller faces agonising spinal surgery to save her from being paralysed for life. The schoolgirl battles the daily pain of rare disorders which have left her needing a kidney transplant. Her mum, Kelly, has to wash her bowel and empty her bladder using ...
CONTEMPT FOR COURT.
Mar 03, 2006 ... URGENT changes are needed to overhaul the justice system, after it was revealed 100 suspected crooks failed to show up at court in just one day. Victims are facing agonising delays, and vital police resources are being wasted on chasing offenders intent on flouting the law. ...
Mum of transplant boy reveals heartbreaking decision.
Mar 04, 2006 ... HEARTBROKEN mum Katrina Kennedy today spoke of the hardest decision she has ever had to make - to turn off her son's life support machine. Brandon died in urgent need of a liver and kidney transplant on Tuesday night in the Princess Diana Children's Hospital in Birmingham. ...
Man found dead at foot of 200ft cliff.
Mar 04, 2006 ... A MAN has been found dead by a horrified dog-walker at the bottom of 200ft cliffs at a popular coastal beauty spot. The body of Steven Scott McEwen, 35, of Grindon, Sunderland, was found on Blackhall Beach. A Durham Police spokesman said: "The body was found by a man ...
Rapist snared 17 years after attack.
Mar 04, 2006 ... A SERIAL sex fiend admitted the knife-point rape of a schoolgirl as she slept in a tent with two friends. Alan Blackwell, 50 - already caged for life after two sickening sex assaults, including one on a Washington schoolgirl - was identified by his DNA in a cold case review 17 ...
Knife robber jailed for two years.
Mar 04, 2006 ... A KNIFE wielding robber who became the first person in County Durham to be subdued using a stun gun has been locked up for two years. Durham Police deployed the Taser electric gun for the first time on December 4, last year, to arrest Martin Muncaster in Peterlee town centre. ...
McCARTHY SACKED.
Mar 06, 2006 ... Mick McCarthy was today sacked by Sunderland AFC. McCarthy has paid the price for a dreadful Premiership campaign - with Sunderland looking certain to be relegated after winning just twice in 28 games. McCarthy, who took charge in March 2003, has lost 31 of his 37 ...
At last we can lay Kyle to rest.
Mar 06, 2006 ... A FAMILY has welcomed a decision to return the brain of a murdered boy. Hartlepool two-year-old Kyle Fisher died in Newcastle General Hospital on July 23, 2004, after having his head repeatedly slammed against a wooden bannister by babysitter Suzanne Holdsworth. The ...
60 kids nabbed in truancy sweep.
Mar 06, 2006 ... SIXTY children were caught skipping classes in just one day during a truancy crackdown on the Metro system. Transport staff, police and education welfare officers stopped the youngsters in Sunderland as part of a regional campaign against kids playing truant. Many of ...
Call for city to celebrate Veterans' Day.
Mar 06, 2006 ... REMEMBER those who saved this country from dictatorship and played their part in other conflicts by taking an active role in the first Veterans' Day. That was today's message to Wearsiders from Fraser Kemp, MP for Houghton and Washington. He said: "John Reid, the ...
MICK OUT.
Mar 06, 2006 ... SUNDERLAND today sacked manager Mick McCarthy. Assistant academy manager and club legend Kevin Ball has been appointed caretaker boss until the end of the season. The fate of McCarthy's assistant, Ian Evans, has yet to be resolved. McCarthy has paid the ...
'Something had to give'.
Mar 06, 2006 ... FANS today spoke of their sadness after Mick McCarthy was given his marching orders from the Stadium of Light. The former Ireland manager led the team to a magnificent promotion last year - but his Sunderland team have floundered at the top level. And the ...
Bosses debate rail line future.
Mar 06, 2006 ... TWO train companies are going head-to-head over the future of the East coast main line. Grand Central wants to run three trains a day from Sunderland into London and today puts its case to the Office of Rail Regulation. Transport chiefs said back in January they would ...
Mum defies docs' abort baby order.
Mar 06, 2006 ... THIS is the healthy baby boy a couple were told they should abort. Stacy Jackson said ten-week-old son Jaxon would not be here, if she had followed hospital advice to terminate her pregnancy. Stacy and partner Scott claimed they were warned at Sunderland Royal ...
Pier-terror pair thank rescuers.
Mar 06, 2006 ... FISHERMAN Alby Ellenden has vowed to give up the hobby he has loved for 40 years after fearing he was about to die on Roker Pier. Father-of-two Alby, 48, and his friend, Dale Crute, 32, both of Red House, had to be pulled to safety through an emergency tunnel after they got ...
Wilko pins blame on Murray.
Mar 06, 2006 ... FORMER Sunderland manager Howard Wilkinson blamed the Black Cats' board for the club's failings and accused them of short-sighted policies. Wilkinson, sacked by Sunderland after only 20 league games in March 2003 before Mick McCarthy was appointed his successor, said the problem ...
Lawrence gutted by Mick sacking.
Mar 06, 2006 ... LIAM LAWRENCE is "gutted" by the sacking of boss Mick McCarthy. He said the squad remained fully behind their manager right to the end. Lawrence pledged to give caretaker boss Kevin Ball his full support. The winger said: "It was a shock to everyone ....
Evans staying.
Mar 06, 2006 ... IAN EVANS remains at Sunderland, despite the sacking of his friend Mick McCarthy. The club would not comment about first-team coach Evans's long-term future at the club but confirmed he had not been removed. Evans and McCarthy have been friends since their playing ...
Ball takes over Cats' hot seat.
Mar 06, 2006 ... SUNDERLAND legend Kevin Ball today took over as caretaker manager of the club until the end of the season. After Mick McCarthy was called into the Stadium of Light to be sacked this morning, the board wasted no time in appointing a replacement. And the choice of Ball ...
OUT WITH A SMILE.
Mar 07, 2006 ... MICK McCarthy left Sunderland's training ground for the last time and declared: "I leave you with a smile". As he waved goodbye, speculation was rife as to who will be his replacement. Kevin Ball is caretaker boss - and he was today tipped as the bookies' favourite ...
WHO'S NEXT IN THE HOT SEAT?
Mar 07, 2006 ... CARETAKER boss and playing hero Kevin Ball has been named favourite to take over permanently as Sunderland manager. The red and white legend, whose battling spirit twice drove the team to the brink of Europe, has 10 games to stake his claim for the top job at the Stadium of ...
From chip shop to concert stage.
Mar 07, 2006 ... BUDDING opera star Katrina Campbell has swapped fish scales for musical scales, after switching from a chip shop to the concert platform. Katrina, 23, from Windsor Terrace, Murton, was battering cod when she spotted conductor and teacher Rupert Hanson queuing for a bag of ...
Promotion glory for hurricane survivor.
Mar 07, 2006 ... GRADUATE Jamie Trout, who survived the hell of Hurricane Katrina, is celebrating after helping his rugby team to promotion glory. Jamie was in New Orleans when it was hit by the Force 5 hurricane last summer and he had to endure days of anarchy in the Superdome shelter - dubbed ...
Call to tear down homes.
Mar 07, 2006 ... FIRESTARTERS torched three empty homes in one street in one night - costing taxpayers about [pounds sterling]3,000 to clean up. The arsonists, said to be high on drink and drugs, targeted the empty homes in Pennywell's Pickhurst Road, the last of which was too dangerous for fire ...
Faulty flats lift is 'like a death trap'.
Mar 07, 2006 ... GRANDAD Gordon Howe has blasted housing bosses for not maintaining a lift that constantly breaks down, trapping residents inside. The 76-year-old says he is the latest resident of Solar House, in Sunderland city centre, to get stuck between floors when using the lift. ...
All smiles - baby who beat cancer.
Mar 08, 2006 ... BEAMING baby Thomas Russell shows off the smile that defeated deadly cancer. He was struck down at the age of just four weeks with neuroblastoma - just the second child in the North East in a decade who doctors had seen with the condition. Thomas was taken to ...
Stubbed out - the last refuge of hospital smokers.
Mar 08, 2006 ... A SMOKING shelter is ripped from its foundations in a clear message that lighting up in the grounds of hospitals is now stubbed out. A crane was brought in to dismantle shelters at Sunderland Royal Hospital as it became a smoke-free zone on No Smoking Day today. City ...
Victims greet knives rethink.
Mar 08, 2006 ... KNIFE victims who have had their lives ruined by criminals today welcomed plans for stiffer prison sentences. Knife-wielding robbers could be jailed for at least four years under the proposals by MPs. Laura Campbell, 29, had her life turned upside down when two men ...
SEALED OFF.
Mar 08, 2006 ... POLICE today sealed off part of Sunderland city centre after the discovery of suspect packages. Sniffer dogs and forensic experts were this morning combing a patch of land for clues where two bags containing "a number of articles" was discovered yesterday afternoon. ...
Drivers urged to slow down.
Mar 08, 2006 ... FORTY drivers a day are being caught speeding or jumping red lights - proof, say safety campaigners, that Sunderland needs to slow down. Figures just obtained by the Echo under the Freedom of Information Act reveal that 29,812 motorists have been fined for motoring offences on ...
Ball: Get on with it!
Mar 08, 2006 ... KEVIN BALL has asked Sunderland's players to set aside their sadness at the sacking of Mick McCarthy and do what is best for them and the club. Ball is caretaker manager until the end of the season and has 10 games left to restore some pride. He acknowledges that ...
Jobseekers can wait!
Mar 08, 2006 ... APPLICANTS are lining up for the manager's job at Sunderland - as bookies' favourite Alex McLeish appeared to distance himself from the vacancy. The Wearsiders will take their time over a decision about who should be Mick McCarthy's permanent successor. McCarthy was ...
Big swtich boosts NE title bid.
Mar 08, 2006 ... THE North East will be represented in all age groups for the first time in two years at the Inter-Counties Cross-Country Championships at Nottingham on Saturday. The move has come about because the English Schools' Championships will now take place two weeks after the ...
BOMB SCARE ARREST.
Mar 09, 2006 ... POLICE today swooped to arrest a man over the bomb scare that was sparked after council workmen discovered suspect packages in the city centre. Officers have detained the man on suspicion of carrying explosives, after the bags were handed into Gill Bridge Police Station. ...
New law on way to protect our heroes.
Mar 09, 2006 ... A TOUGH new law to protect our life-saving crews from thugs will be introduced in a matter of months, it was revealed today. The Government has backed proposals for the law which will make attacking an emergency service worker an arrestable offence - carrying a six- month prison ...
Drug-crazed monster on patio.
Mar 09, 2006 ... A YOUNG woman alone at home stood transfixed in horror as a drug-crazed monster smashed his way into her house through her patio door. Amy Mather went downstairs after hearing a tapping in the kitchen, but was confronted by heroin addict Terry Wood, who was outside on the patio ...
Sobs and laughter as stab victim Andrea laid to rest.
Mar 09, 2006 ... HUNDREDS of mourners yesterday paid their final respects to a schoolteacher stabbed to death. Family and friends of Andrea Howarth yesterday packed St Saviour's Church in Shotton Colliery, the village where she grew up and lived until just a few days before she was killed. ...
Fans to stage Murray protest.
Mar 09, 2006 ... ANGRY football fans are planning to protest outside the Stadium of Light this weekend to voice their discontent at chairman Bob Murray's reign at the club. The supporters had originally planned to leave their seats with 10 minutes to go and gather en masse at the Murray Gates. ...
Ball ponders first selection.
Mar 10, 2006 ... KEVIN BALL says places are still up for grabs in his first Sunderland team. Ball was made caretaker boss on Monday after Mick McCarthy's sacking and has spent three days preparing the players for tomorrow's home game with Wigan. He confirmed yesterday that Steve ...
Follow the leaders.
Mar 10, 2006 ... GEORGE McCARTNEY says Sunderland's players will unite behind caretaker boss Kevin Ball. McCartney opened his heart about the sacking of Mick McCarthy, saying he is indebted to his ex-boss for the chance he was given in Sunderland's first team. But he accepts that the ...
Eliminator for Kerr after draw.
Mar 10, 2006 ... RYAN Kerr has missed out on a world championship shot - but has moved a step closer to fighting for the British middleweight title. The Sunderland fight star (right), who last night extended his unbeaten run to 15 bouts, had been offered a late substitute slot against Gary ...
Magic career on the cards for Mick.
Mar 10, 2006 ... FIREMAN Mick Redfearn is giving up saving lives to conjure up a new career - as a magician. Station officer Mick was sad to leave North Moor fire station's white watch after more than 31 years in Tyne and Wear Fire Brigade. But he has swapped his hose for a wand and ...