'Idol': Lots of burnin' love for Crystal on Elvis night

YOUR REALITY WRAPUP . . .

'AMERICAN IDOL'

Anointing Adam Lambert as mentor of Elvis night was inspired, despite the runner-up's lack of experience. He egged Chicago's Crystal Bowersox to switch to electric guitar for her update of "Saved," and she killed it. Ellen Degeneres has officially run out of nice things to say about her.

Mount Prospect's Lee DeWyze is still Bowersox's main competition. He sang "A Little Less Conversation" as if he'd marinated his voice in bourbon. Impeccable. Kara DioGuardi said she'd like to see a more playful side of the deadpan DeWyze, which would be a tall order.

"What do you want, kittens?" taunted Simon …

The Stigma of Conviction: Coram Nobis, Civil Disabilities, and the Right to Clear One's Name

I. ABSTRACT

In the 1954 case of United States v. Morgan, the Supreme Court revived the ancient writ of coram nobis by making it the sole mechanism for post-incarceration judicial review of federal convictions. It appeared that coram nobis was well on its way to taking its place as a vital part of the American system of collateral review. Where the writ of habeas corpus provided unlawfully convicted prisoners with a way to challenge their conviction, coram nobis offered a similar avenue of relief for those who were no longer in federal custody. But the promise of modern coram nobis has been held in check by a restrictive doctrine known as the civil disabilities test. In most federal …

British eatery bombing suspect has home searched

British police and intelligence officials searched a house in southwest England on Friday to try to determine what drove a young Muslim convert with a history of mental illness to walk into a busy restaurant with two bombs.

Armed officers raided the home of 22-year-old Nicky Reilly in Plymouth late Thursday. Police said Friday that the search was continuing.

Reilly was in a hospital under armed guard and being treated for facial injuries after a device he was carrying blew up Thursday in a bathroom at Giraffe, a popular family restaurant in Exeter, 180 miles (290 kilometers) southwest of London and about 40 miles (60 kilometers) from his home. Another explosive …

Hotel in four-star accolade

A North-east hotel has been awarded four-star status.

Staff at the Macdonald Pittodrie House Hotel are celebratingafter the hotel was given an extra star by the AA.

The historic 27-bedroom hotel, near Inverurie, is mid-way througha year-long …

VACATIONS AT HOME

Taking a vacation can be as simple as staying right where you are.

Announce your plans to everyone around you and find at least two days--a weekend maybe, or better yet three to five days--and take a vacation at home. Here's how:

Unplug your phone and e-mail. You really need a break, not a bit of a break. If you stay attached, you'll run the risk of getting pulled back in.

Clean your house before you "leave." Otherwise, the disarray will pull at you. Have the basics done--floors, kitchen, bathroom. Don't worry about all those messy drawers. Maybe you'll decide to rent a bunch of movies and sit on the floor one drawer at a time sorting through its contents. Organize …

Driver for rock group dies en route to Iowa gig

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Rock band Widespread Panic says its bus driver suffered a fatal heart attack en route to a gig in Iowa.

A statement on the Athens, Georgia-based group's website says Tom Torrisi fell ill Thursday morning as the charter bus was traveling on Interstate 35 south of Ames. The bus went off the highway, and the band's merchandise manager took the wheel.

The band says one …

Track Cycling World Championships Results

Results Thursday from the world track cycling championships at the Ballerup Velodrome:

Men

Keirin

1. Chris Hoy, Britain.

2. Azizulhasni Awang, Malaysia.

3. Maximilian Levy, Germany.

4. Teun Mulder, Netherlands.

5. Francois Pervis, France.

6. Sam Webster, New Zealand.

4k Individual Pursuit

1. Taylor Phinney, United States, 4:16.600.

2. Jesse Sergent, New Zealand, 4:18.459.

3. Jack Bobridge, Australia, 4:18.066.

4. Alexander Serov, Russia, 4:21.263.

5. Rohan Dennis, Australia.

6. Vitaliy Shchedov, Ukraine.

…

St. Louis truly the gateway to better living

I read the July 31 letter to the editor headlined "Ignoringreality" about the Chicago area's extremely high property taxproblems. High taxes are a fact of life in Illinois, period. When therent or house payments become too high, consider moving to St. Louis.

I am serious. I have co-workers who live in Illinois, and I cringewhen they say what their property and vehicle taxes are. My propertytaxes are just more than $600 per year. I know people who pay aslittle as $300, and more than $1,200. My husband and I own a lovely90-year-old Victorian house; solid brick, oak floors throughout,large lot, bay window, friendly neighbors. I live two blocks from abeautiful and large …

No. 6 Villanova beats Marist 84-47

VILLANOVA, Pa. (AP) — Maalik Wayns scored 17 points and Dominic Cheek had 15 to lead No. 6 Villanova to an 84-47 victory over Marist on Tuesday night in the NIT Season Tip-Off.

Jay Bowie had 14 points for Marist (0-1), which extended Division I's longest losing streak to 19 games.

Villanova (2-0) had an easy time against the overmatched Red Foxes, who were 1-29 last season. The Wildcats have become NCAA tournament regulars under coach Jay Wright, and reached the Final Four two years ago. They have won 39 straight games at The Pavilion.

Villanova used a 19-1 run to take a 24-9 lead in the first half, and never looked back. Marist went 16 straight possessions without a …

Chinese airline to pay families of crash victims

State media say the relatives of victims of a passenger jet crash that killed 42 people in northeastern China will receive compensation.

The official Xinhua News Agency reported Tuesday that Henan Airlines will give about $140,000 to each victim's family.

The plane crashed Aug. 24 near Yichun city in …

Using Children to Argue Policy

Q: Politicians on both sides of the aisle have been using children to argue policy lately. What are the ethical implications of finding children to put in the spotlight?

A: I think that it's unethical to use children in this way. Children under the age of 18 are determined by law to not be able to fully comprehend and understand the consequences of their actions. That's why we have statutory rape laws. Even if a girl says yes, if she's under a certain age and having intimate relations with an older man, she's considered by the law to not be able to adequately comprehend the consequences of her actions.

Thus, a child is not fully able to comprehend the issues and how those …

Police: At least 24 people killed, dozens injured in two Baghdad bombings

At least 24 people were reportedly killed and dozens were wounded Monday when two suicide car bombs exploded in different parts of Baghdad, police said. The U.S. military reported a far lower figure for the deadlier of the two attacks.

Neither of the attacks took place in the areas of the sprawling city where Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was visiting.

Also Monday, the U.S. military reported finding a grave with 14 bodies, believed to be members of the Iraqi security forces executed by al-Qaida in Iraq.

In Baghdad's deadliest attack, a suicide car bomber reportedly killed at least 22 people and wounded 43 in central Baghdad's Bab …

Nigeria comedian's drug arrest makes agency a joke

LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — Investigators detained the famous Nigerian comedian at the airport, accusing him of swallowing narcotics before trying to board a flight to Paris. But after more than two weeks of observation, Baba Suwe has given up no drugs.

Instead he's made drug enforcement agents the punch line in a country that's a gateway for heroin and cocaine entering Europe and the United States. On Tuesday, his court appearance amounted to one important question from a stern-faced judge: "You've been to the toilet how many times?"

Baba Suwe's life has been reduced almost to a potty-humor joke after drug enforcement agents arrested the 53-year-old actor on suspicion of hiding drugs inside his body.

Television news programs have brought on analysts to discuss the actor's bowel movements. And writers have compared the incident to when police arrested late Afrobeat legend Fela Anikulapo-Kuti on suspicion of ingesting marijuana, which the musician later memorialized in an unprintable song and album title.

However, Suwe's defense lawyer says the case also has more ominous implications for Nigeria's criminal system.

That "somebody of Baba Suwe's popularity, somebody of his standing in the Nigerian society, somebody's who's so famous can be hauled into detention without any attempt of filing a charge against him, that tells you we may have several thousand people languishing in (drug agency) detention centers with no access to justice," Bamidele Aturu said.

Baba Suwe, whose real name is Babatunde Omidina, is a popular figure in Nigeria's robust national film industry known as Nollywood. He provides comic relief in films as a butler or a security guard in some films, or as the lead actor in movies spoken in his native Yoruba language.

On Oct. 12, he arrived at Lagos' Murtala Muhammed International Airport to board an overnight Air France flight to Paris, where he was to host a naming ceremony for a newborn. Agents of Nigeria's National Drug Law Enforcement Agency pulled him out of line for a further screening, officials said.

Such searches remain common in Nigeria, as drug enforcement agents conduct selective searches, usually focusing on travelers who fit the profile of a possible drug courier. It remains unclear why agents specifically pulled Baba Suwe out of line, as his lawyer said Tuesday that their selection came after authorities received "information" about his client.

Agents put Baba Suwe through a full-body scanner at the airport that detected a suspicious object inside his body, the agency has said. They detained the actor and newspaper headlines the next morning blared that the actor had been caught with cocaine inside his body.

Except no drugs have come out.

On Tuesday, Baba Suwe appeared in a federal high court in Lagos to challenge his continued detention without charges. His case brought out fans who lined the court compound's fence, peering through the slates to catch a glimpse of the diminutive star.

"As a public person, it's an embarrassment to him and his fans," said Sunday Iyip, 43, who works as a security guard.

The case also has proven to be a high-profile embarrassment for the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, which parades a series of suspects before journalists to show its efforts to stop drug trafficking.

Despite its campaign, Nigeria remains a major transit point for illegal drugs. Between January and October 2010, Nigeria's drug agency seized more than 400 pounds (some 180 kilograms) of cocaine and more than 90 pounds (more than 40 kilograms) of heroin in Lagos, home to the nation's busiest airport, according to a recent U.S. State Department report.

Experts believe much more slipped out of the country via drug mules to airports in Europe and the U.S.

"Nigerian-organized criminal networks remain a major factor in moving cocaine and heroin worldwide," the State Department report reads. "While many of these organizations are not based in Nigeria, large quantities of both cocaine and heroin transit Nigeria on their way to markets in the West."

Femi Oloruntoba, the drug agency's lead prosecutor, said Tuesday that he didn't think the Baba Suwe case had hurt his agency's image.

"With all the scans and the expert opinion, it's reasonable for us to hold onto" him, the prosecutor said.

Yet inside the court Tuesday, Justice Yetunde Idowu offered harsh criticism for holding the comedian without charges. She ordered Baba Suwe to be released Friday on $3,300 bail so long as he doesn't excrete any drugs.

"Mr. Omidina is due for release," Idowu said.

And so Baba Suwe left the court, surrounded by Uzi-carrying anti-drug agents. Outside, his fans mobbed around him, applauding him as he passed.

However, even in the moment of judicial glory, the comedian couldn't escape the joke: Those gathered offered an excrement-themed cheer in his local language.

___

Jon Gambrell can be reached at www.twitter.com/jongambrellAP.

Major League Soccer Results

Results from the first round of the Major League Soccer football league (home teams listed first).

Thursday's Game

Seattle FC 3, New York 0

Saturday's Games

Houston 1, Columbus 1

FC Dallas 1, Chicago 3

Kansas City 2, Toronto FC 3

San Jose 0, New England 1

Chivas USA 2, Colorado 1

Thousands evacuate as flames near Paradise, Calif.

Thousands of people were ordered to get out of Paradise on Wednesday as an out-of-control wildfire threatened the Northern California city that also was devastated by flames just weeks ago.

Authorities ordered residents of 3,200 Paradise homes to evacuate after the wind-stoked fire destroyed 40 homes and 10 structures Tuesday in the nearby rural community of Concow. Evacuation orders remained in effect for 1,000 residents of Concow and Yankee Hill, about 85 miles north of Sacramento.

Officials said more than 3,800 homes were threatened by the flames Wednesday. Another wildfire destroyed 74 homes in Paradise last month.

Two shelters were full Wednesday morning with 500 evacuees, said Melissa Smith, spokeswoman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire.

The blaze had flared up early Tuesday after erratic winds blew embers across fire containment lines.

"Right now we're battling the weather and the erratic winds," said Todd Simmons, another Cal Fire spokesman. "Whatever the winds are doing, that's pretty much what the fire's going to do."

Firefighters were facing a sudden drop in humidity and a 10-degree spike in temperatures as a heat wave, forecast to linger until the weekend, grips much of the state.

About 30 lightning-sparked wildfires in Butte County, where Paradise and Concow are located, have charred 47,000 acres in recent weeks and were about 40 percent contained, officials said.

Among those evacuated Tuesday were 95 children at a camp for kids with cancer, 70 miles north of Sacramento.

"They've been remarkably good," Michael Amylon, the camp's medical director, said of the children. "We always talk about fire being a danger."

Fire crews across the state have been trying to cover hundreds of active California wildfires, many of which were ignited by a lightning storm more than two weeks ago. Some 1,450 fires had been contained late Tuesday, but more than 320 were still active, authorities said.

Two hundred National Guard troops were to complete their training in wildfire fighting Wednesday and join the more than 18,000 personnel battling blazes around the state.

At a fire east of Bakersfield on Tuesday, wind gusts caused flames to jump fire lines and destroy or damage five residences and four more outbuildings in the Sequoia National Forest.

A blaze threatening the popular coastal community of Big Sur let up just enough to allow hundreds of people to check on their homes Tuesday. Authorities announced that more residents would be allowed to return Wednesday morning.

At least 23 homes and 25 other structures have been destroyed in Big Sur as flames marched over more than 125 square miles of land since June 21.

Although that fire is far from controlled _ the rugged terrain has kept containment at 23 percent into the fire's third week _ authorities lifted the mandatory evacuation order issued for 25 miles of the 31-mile stretch along the Pacific Coast Highway that had been closed.

Many of the 1,500 evacuated residents of Big Sur headed home Tuesday morning through smoke and ash, anxious to gauge the damage. Officials, however, cautioned that the lifted evacuation orders did not mean conditions had drastically improved.

A wildfire in the Los Padres National Forest near Santa Barbara grew slightly to 9,785 acres, or about 15 square miles, but the number of homes threatened dropped sharply Tuesday as crews secured fire lines near populated areas.

The blaze continues to threaten about 250 homes, down from a peak of more than 3,000. The fire is 55 percent contained, said U.S. Forest Service spokeswoman Debbie Becker.

"It's going according to plan," Becker said "They've really got a good hold on this fire but there's still a lot of potential to get worse."

In addition to heightening the fire danger, the heat wave raises concerns about heat illness among firefighters worn down by the long fight against blazes that have consumed more than 985 square miles in California since late June.

"We do have a lot of fatigue because of the low numbers of resources in the state," said Thom Walsh, a Forest Service resource unit leader.

Crews took rest breaks in refrigerated trailers with bunk beds, Walsh said.

Highs are likely to be in the triple digits across much of the northern half of the state until at least Friday, National Weather Service forecaster Christine Riley said.

Temperature records for the date were broken in five cities Tuesday, including Sacramento, where the temperature reached 108, breaking the previous high of 104 degrees set in 1997. Modesto hit 107.

___

Associated Press writer Don Thompson in Sacramento contributed to this report.

To Cubs, 4 Score Means Victory

CUBS 4 ASTROS 2

The Cubs' magic number is four.

For now, at least.

Their 4-2 victory Friday over the Houston Astros broke afour-game losing streak at Wrigley Field and ran their record to 43-5when they score at least four runs.

But the victory for Mike Harkey (3-0) must start a string ifthe Cubs hope to avoid hearing about the other kind of magic numbersoon.

"It was a nice win for us," said Ryne Sandberg, who was involvedin three of the four runs with his second home run in as many daysinto the teeth of a gusting wind, an RBI double in the fifth thatscored Doug Dascenzo and a run scored when Darryl Kile (2-7)wild-pitched him home.

"It's nice to get some runs up there, Mike Harkey pitched welland good relief pitching," Sandberg said.

The combination improved the Cubs' homestand mark to 5-4 withtwo games remaining.

"Today was hopefully the start of good things for us," managerJim Lefebvre said, repeating the refrain the Cubs continue to chant -that much baseball is yet to be played.

The Cubs are nine games behind the East-leading PittsburghPirates.

All the Cubs can hope to do is continue to win, which is whatHarkey has done since returning after the All-Star break from 15months of rehabilitation after shoulder surgery.

"My last three starts, my arm has felt really strong," he saidafter going seven innings and allowing just six hits and two runs ona day he admitted he did not have his best stuff.

"Today was a big plus for me because it stopped the four-gamelosing streak," he said. "But I think this was my best start becauseI didn't have my best stuff, and to win without it is a lot moregratifying.

"My first couple of starts I had trouble warming up, but nowit's been bouncing back really well. Before, I'd be worried I'd hitthe setback they (doctors) told me I might have. But hopefully Iwon't feel that until winter."

Doctors have told Harkey not to be surprised if he experiencesa setback because of the type of arthroscopic surgery he underwent inApril, 1991.

"But I think if I keep doing the things I've been doing, I cancut my chances," he said.

Harkey and relievers Jeff Robinson and Paul Assenmacher (seventhsave) gave the Astros few chances on a day cool temperatures and anortheast wind helped pitchers and chilled 31,838 fans.

The wind direction (from left to right field) influencedLefebvre's decision to lift Robinson in the eighth with a man on,despite his having retired two consecutive batters on comebackers tothe mound.

He brought in lefty Assenmacher to face Eric Anthony, butAstros manager Art Howe countered with pinch hitter Pete Incaviglia.

Assenmacher struck out Incaviglia and got out of potentialninth-inning trouble by retiring Scott Servais on a fly and JuanGuerrero on a grounder near second that shortstop Jose Vizcainoslickly fielded.

"I was happy it ended the game," said Vizcaino, whose heroicsincluded a second-inning RBI single that drove in Steve Buechele, whohad tripled.

The Astros' runs came in the first, when Craig Biggio reached ona Buechele error and scored on Steve Finley's double, and in thefourth, when Ken Caminiti tripled leading off the inning and scoredon Luis Gonzalez's single.

NOTES: Back problems have been the bane of the Cubs this season,so trainer John Fierro was quick to take precautionary X-rays Fridaywhen shortstop Rey Sanchez complained of tightness in his lower back.

The X-rays were negative, but Sanchez was held out of the lineupstill suffering stiffness. Fierro, however, said the problemprobably isn't serious. Fines are not part of Jim Lefebvre's managing style.

"I've never been big on fines because if you fine a guy formissing something like a sign, you should give him a bonus when he executes," he said.

"You have professionals at this level. I think when (Rick)Wilkins missed the (bunt) sign (Thursday), he realized it. You don'tneed to do anything more. He was only being aggressive." Shawn Boskie threw again Friday with no pain. He will throw againtomorrow. Kal Daniels, who was bothered by flu symptoms Thursday, was better,but Lefebvre rested him another day. Dwight Smith has become the National League's best pinch hitter. Hehas 13 hits in 45 pinch at-bats. In his career, he's 40 for-130 (.308) with two home runs and 26 RBI as a pinch hitter.Smith is sixth on the Cubs' all-time pinch-hit list. Four players -Thad Bosley, Larry Biittner, Phil Cavarretta and Bob Will - are tiedfor the Cubs' lead with 46. When Wilkins threw out Luis Gonzalez attempting to steal in thefourth inning, it was just the seventh time an Astros player had beencaught in the team's last 44 attempts. But the Astros got their100th theft of the season in the ninth when Casey Candaele stolesecond.

LOOK, UP IN THE SKY!

Caption text only.

Israeli army raid kills 2 militants from Hamas

BEIT AWA, West Bank Israel's deputy defense minister said todaythat two top Islamic militants who were killed in an army raid oftheir hideout had been targeted for death by Israel.

The two fugitives, members of the militant group Hamas, were shotdead Monday night by Israeli commandos. Three other Hamas activistswere captured in the raid in the remote West Bank village of BeitAwa.

The raid raised concerns that Hamas would seek revenge by carryingout suicide bombings or shooting attacks in Israel. Israeli-Palestinian peace talks are at a sensitive stage, with only twomonths left for negotiators to formulate a framework for a peaceagreement. Renewed terror attacks could halt the talks.

Deputy Defense Minister Efraim Sneh said Israel would retaliateharshly against anyone involved in attacks on Israelis.

One of those killed Monday, identified as Iyyad Batat, was heldresponsible for a shooting attack in which an Israeli borderpoliceman was killed last year.

"There is an automatic contract on anyone from Hamas who commitsmurderous attacks," Sneh told Israel radio. "I had said that within ayear those attackers (of the border policeman) would die and see, ittook less than a year."

The raid of the Hamas hideout began Monday evening, shortly afterthe evening meal that observant Muslims eat to break their daylongfast during the holy month of Ramadan.

Israeli commandos surrounded the house where the five werestaying. Neighbors heard shots and hand-held rocket fire. Troops useda headlight from a hovering helicopter and flares to light the house.

Maj. Gen. Yitzhak Eitan, in charge of troops in the West Bank,said the fugitives fired at the soldiers and were killed in theensuing shootout.

Eitan said the troops acted on a tip that the militants wereplanning attacks to mark the 12th anniversary of Hamas' founding.

State lottery revenues exceeding expectations: ; Officials anticipate drop after Ohio finishes building delayed casinos

West Virginia Lottery revenues are running nearly $50 millionabove expectations halfway through the fiscal year as constructiondelays at Ohio casinos have kept new competition from affecting thestate.

Overall revenues were running 7.5 percent above expectationsthrough the end of December, Finance Director Jim Toney said.

The state's two northern casinos - Mountaineer and WheelingIsland - had expected to face some tough competition from newlyconstructed casinos in neighboring Ohio by now.

"We had expected Ohio to begin competition in December, and itlooks like they're kind of delayed until late February or March,"Toney said. "They've got four of the seven casino racetracks in theprocess of building construction."

Budget officials have been advising lawmakers to anticipate adrop in lottery revenues over the coming years as those casinos comeonline. That is still the forecast, but it just isn't clear when thetables will start to turn.

"They're coming down the road, but exactly when they'll get onboard we're not sure yet," he said.

The Lottery brought in more than $706.4 million in instantticket, online, racetrack, table game and video lottery revenue fromJuly 1 to Dec. 31, $49.3 million above the agency's forecast of$657.1 million.

The Lottery has transferred $303.9 million to the various stateagencies it supports so far this fiscal year.

"We're in good shape," Toney said. "The most important thing isthat all of the revenue lines of the lottery are in positive trendsas they relate to the forecasts."

Instant ticket and online sales - including Powerball,MegaMillions and Keno - are running 3.6 percent above forecasts at$96 million through December, and table game revenue has come in46.5 percent above forecasts at $38.2 million.

The online sales figures do not include the new $2 Powerballprice. That new price level went into effect Jan. 15.

Limited video lottery is running 4.7 percent above expectationsof $185.4 million, bringing in $194.2 million in revenue so far thisfiscal year.

The biggest driver of the surplus revenue is the $24.5 milliongenerated by racetrack revenue beating estimates by 7 percent.Officials had forecast mid-year revenue of $350.1 million, butracetracks have brought in $374.6 million so far.

Toney said warm winter weather has helped encourage more peopleto get out.

Lottery Power Play odds When lottery players buy a Powerballticket for $2, they have the option of purchasing the Power Play foran additional $1. Instead of another drawing to determine the amountof the prize, the Power Play is now set at certain factors for thevarious prize levels. The chart shows the odds and payout forwinning Powerball lottery tickets: Match Win Odds Power Playwins 5 plus Powerball Jackpot 1:175,233,510 Jackpot only* 5without Powerball $1 Million 1:5,153,633 $2 million 4 plusPowerball $10,000 1:648,976 $40,000 4 without Powerball $1001:19,088 $200 3 plus Powerball $100 1:12,245 $200 3without Powerball $7 1:360 $14 2 plus Powerball $7 1:706 $14 1 plus Powerball $4 1:111 $12 Powerball $41:55 $12 Overall odds of winning a prize are 1 in 31.85. TheJackpot may have multiple winners, and prizes may be reduced ifclaims exceed available funds. *Not eligible for Power Play option.Source: West Virginia Lottery office

Contact writer Jared Hunt at jared.hunt@dailymail.com or 304-348-5148.

New Military Deputy LTG Joseph L. Yakovac Jr. Plans to Put People First

The Acquisition, Logistics and Technology (AL&T) Workforce welcomes new Military Deputy (MILDEP) to the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology (ASAALT) LTG Joseph L. Yakovac Jr., who assumed duties Nov. 18, 2003.

LTG Yakovac brings extensive program and leadership experience to his new assignment. he has held every traditional developmental position from platoon leader through battalion commander as well as critical acquisition positions thereafter. His extensive mechanized infantry troop experience provides a depth of knowledge that few Army Acquisition Corps (AAC) officers have, which will undoubtedly benefit the AL&T Workforce and the Army as it continues to transform.

Yakovac's most recent assignments previous to his posting as the Program Executive Officer (PEO) for Ground Combat Systems in 2000 were as Deputy for Systems Acquisition, U.S. Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM) and as Assistant Deputy for Systems Management and Horizontal Technology Integration, Office of the ASAALT. As a colonel, he fulfilled critical duties as the Project Manager (PM) for the Bradley Fighting Vehicle System and Deputy Commander for Acquisition, both at TACOM.

He holds a B.S. degree from the U.S. Military Academy and an M.S. degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Colorado. Additionally, Yakovac is a graduate of the Army Command and General Staff College, the Defense Systems Management College and the Industrial College of the Armed Forces. he earned the Expert Infantry Badge, Ranger Tab, Parachutist Badge, the Legion of Merit and seven awards of the Army Meritorious Service Medal.

The following interview, conducted Dec. 22, 2003, touches on Yakovac's (Y3's) personal leadership philosophy and his strategic direction for the immediate future. Key excerpts of that interview are below. This interview is the first in a series of planned MILDEP articles and updates.

AL&T: We heard your motto is people, programs and processes. With the Army at war you will most likely emphasize Soldiers and the people who support them. How can the Army Acquisition Corps and more specifically, the Acquisition Support Center, best support the Army's ongoing war effort?

Y3: What I really want to look at in my first year - if I emphasize nothing else m terms of priorities - is the "people" aspect of acquisition. I have been frustrated in the last 5 or 6 years that we let the personnel management system manage our people. I want to get "people" back in "personnel management." We should encourage officers to become their own career managers. I think they'll provide a clear voice to our younger civilians. That being said, I know there are a lot of rules and regulations and I think within the confines of these regulations there is also room to maneuver.

AL&T: How can the Acquisition Support Center help you?

Y3: The Acquisition Support Center (ASC) is already helping me. For me to execute my priorities, I have to ask the ASC staff- if I have a short timeline, which one of these priorities is possible to tackle? Some of my priorities may not be doable, but I can put things in place that over time could become reality. Like anything else, you have to have some actionable short-term goals that you can meet to show people that, in fact, you're serious about it. So in the short term, I've already put changes in place that have gotten people's attention. For example, I announced I would no longer senior rate 06-level project managers. The reason I did that was very specific. Again, it was to put "people" back into personnel management. I think we evolved to a rating scheme that was more focused on careers than people. People can debate this with me, but that's the reason I did it.

That's the short-term type of items I'm going to continue to work with ASC to see what I can do based on what makes sense for our people. Then there are some longer-term issues that I'll grapple with to make people part of the decision process. To effect change in a bureaucracy - rather than get a consensus - you've got to use your gut instinct to make decisions. And you won't please everybody. You have to almost be a benevolent dictator. Because if you wait for consensus, you'll never get the consensus you seek, and before long you'll be gone [on to another assignment]. I've been an acquisition professional since 1991. I feel that I have gained a significant amount of knowledge and insight into the acquisition business. Therefore, if I make a change, there is some underlying basis for it and I don't have to ask for consensus. There are some issues where I will ask my people. By and large, you've got to do some things right away that say you're serious about change, or change will never happen in this business.

My focus will be on "people" for the first year. Obviously my day-to-day duties will require me to get into programs and budgets and all the normal acquisition issues and AL&T Workforce initiatives. Every day I've got to do something useful as it pertains to people.

Programs are not as important to me -individually - as the idea of what our future requirements will be as an acquisition community to effectively manage those programs. I came into this business where most, if not all, programs were islands unto themselves. During my tenure at TACOM, if you walked into a PM shop, everything you wanted to know about that PM shop was there. That PM shop was primarily focused on a commodity in a certain functional area. Rarely did we go outside that boundary. My best example of how this thinking has changed is to look at information technology and what it's done for us. Back then, when a piece of equipment was added to your system - for example a radio -all you had to do was maintain a space for it, provide power to it and add an antenna mount. That was your interface. Simple. Give me the specifications and I'll build it for you.

Look at what's required today in terms of a weapons platform with the requirement of a shared common operating picture of passing information. Today, the person who manages the tank has to interface outside of his community and really work hard to make sure that his program supports other programs and they support him. That takes integrated training. There are a lot of things today that force our community to be much more interdependent. A Joint Force must be interdependent. The Army Acquisition community must be interdependent. How you structure, and how you encourage people to think of interdependency, is really the key to our future as acquisition professionals. The programs, per se, as they exist in the budget are not as important to me in the near term as communicating to people who come to me for decisions or send me documents for decision or approval, that I look at them from an interdependcncy standpoint. I must instill a culture that will encourage people to work together across the various domains.

We have created a program that is beginning to do just that - Stryker, where we have become interdependent. Take Future Combat Systems (FCS) for example. That whole program is based on the idea of interdependency and sharing domain expertise - not growing your own independent domain expertise. It's a completely different construct that we're working toward. And that's the focus I will continue to foster. I don't want to have to worry that PM "X" is talking to PM "Y." It needs to become instilled in the entire AL&T Workforce that we have to work together. That whole idea of interdependency goes beyond programs to partners.

This is not all-inclusive. Everything we do from the beginning of a program until we put it away somehow requires that the following three contracting entities be part of our team: The Army Materiel Command (AMC), Army Test and Evaluation Command (ATEC) and Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA). Whether your program is in development when you're talking about working with the new R&D [Research and Development] Command or if it's putting together a program with the involvement of ATEC - it comes back to the fact that you can't survive by yourself. You need the expertise and the support of those three interdependent agencies as a minimum, outside of your PM shop or outside of your program. What I plan to do every day is enforce program interdependency - that's what's important to me.

Along with that, there's one thing that I don't want to hear. If somebody comes to me and complains because they have a log [logistics] problem and they're not the life-cycle manager, I won't accept that. Logistics must be their partner in life-cycle management. And ultimately, their success is dependent upon how they interface and work with AMC.

Rather than complaining about something, go do something about it. From the beginning of the time that you're a sustaining PM and you work in a program and part of your program doesn't include your supporting AMC MSC [major subordinate commands] or whatever piece it takes -you're remiss. If you look at ATEC as only a tester who's going to grade your paper, you're wrong. They, too, are part of the partnership.

From the beginning of your program through the end, ATEC is an important enabler and integrator for you. They don't just sit on the side of the road as you drive by waiting to give you a thumbs-up or down. You partner with them from the beginning of the process and you understand that they have a role to play, a legal role, and they have a job to do as well.

Do not talk about the "testers." The testers are all of us. If you come to me and blame something on the "testers," I contend that you haven't worked with them. If you have a deficiency in test - whether it be developmental testing or operational testing - and you blame it on somebody other than yourself, you're wrong. You need to work the testing portion of the program just like cost and schedule, because testing ensures our programs provide Soldiers the best equipment in the world.

AL&T: The Army Chief of Staff has 16 Focus Areas. Have you received any direction from him or the Vice Chief of Staff on how the AL&T Workforce can best support Army Transformation?

Y3: I think we were a bit proactive. I don't know if anybody knows this but back in the October-November timeframe, Mr. [Claude M.] Bolton called a special ASARC [Army Systems Acquisition Review Council/Committee] . It was announced as an FCS ASARC. What it really turned into was our opportunity to explain to the Army Staff what we thought these Focus Areas mean to the acquisition community. The point we tried to make is that Focus Areas are DOTLMSPF [doctrine, organization, training, leader development, materiel, soldiers, personnel and facilities]. People get too focused on the role of "M," materiel, because "M" is where the money is. You can't get to the "M" unless you look across the entire spectrum. Because "M" means you have to go after dollars. There may be a cheaper way to meet a Focus Area to look after how we manage people. We made a case that before people start looking at these Focus Areas demanding materiel solutions, we should look at it more broadly in terms of what capabilities these Focus Areas require. Some of the Focus Areas don't touch us at all. But we are participants in those Focus Areas where there is discussion that would impact materiel. We're players and we have different people playing, like representitives from PEOs, from the tech base, from Washington, DC, and elsewhere. Throughout the process, the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command [TRADOC] is taking the lead in most of the Focus Areas that would affect materiel and we are interfacing with them to make it happen. But specific guidance, no, but understanding where the Army's going and at least our concern that in some areas people were too quick to look at the "M" solution even though we're "M." Yes, we would have welcomed the opportunity to excel. Remember, "M" carries a bill. And maybe that's not what you want to do. There are other ways to get after it.

You will see some impacts in the spring when most of the Focus Areas are due out. Right now, we want to be a participant. We want to influence, and we want to put our thoughts on the table so we're not just given something to execute. That's where we are right now.

AL&T: You have got a unique background. You were a battalion commander who came in as an acquisition assistant program manager. You became a PM and then a PEG. How do you think that these skills are going to benefit you as the MILDEP?

Y3: I'm unique only because I existed before 1991 when the old program would allow us to dual track. And I was fortunate that I had some jobs that enabled me to do both. I think officers gain critical field experience between the 7th and 8th year of service. It's the troop-leading experience, the leadership aspect of it - not the technical aspect of it - that's necessary. You can be the most technically qualified person in the world and have the most technically challenging program, but my experience tells me that programs are successful because of quality DOD civilian and military personnel who are properly trained and led. People want decisiveness, they want things that you get from the diversity of experiences many of us have had - from leading Soldiers. That experience is one aspect of what I bring to the MILDEP position.

Another important point is, at the end of the day, no matter what we think our purpose is, the only thing that matters is that we deliver capabilities to Soldiers. So if you're in a position where you have to make a hard decision, and you're at a point where somebody asks you whether your program should be terminated, your answer should never be based on what's good for us - "us" being the workforce, "us" being the command where we're located, "us" being the acquisition community. The answer should always be "It's good for Soldiers."

Sometimes we get too hung up on "our" program. It's not "our" program, it's the Army's program, and it exists only because the Army said at some point in time it wanted the provided capability. Things change all the time and, ultimately, we have to remember that if we didn't have Soldiers, we wouldn't have a need for acquisition. Nothing else matters in terms of why we exist. I think you can see the pride of ownership, the esprit, that a lot of our organizations have, when you turn on the FV at night and see equipment they provided that gives Soldiers the capability to fight and win on a very complex battlefield. Sometimes programs take a long time to mature, but when you see something happening with Soldiers, when you see a program you are working become successful, I think that makes all the hard work and personal sacrifice worth it and you can proudly say "I made a difference in the life of a Soldier." It's not so much about what rank you are or how much money you make. It's more about being able to go back at the end of the day and say "I had a hand in giving Soldiers a capability and they're much better off than they would be without it."

[Sidebar]

The Army Acquisition community must be interdependent. How you structure, and how you encourage people to think of interdependency, is really the key to our future as acquisition professionals.

[Sidebar]

So if you're in a position where you have to make a hard decision, and you're at a point where somebody asks you whether your program should be terminated, your answer should never be based on what's good for us -"us" being the workforce, "us" being the command where we're located, "us" being the acquisition community. The answer should always be "It's good for Soldiers."

[Sidebar]

When you see a program you are working with become successful, I think that makes all the hard work and personal sacrifice worth it and you can proudly say "I made a difference in the life of a Soldier."

[Author Affiliation]

MEG WILLIAMS is a Senior Editor/Writer and provides contract support to the Acquisition Support Center through BRTRC s Technology Marketing Group. She has a B.A. from the University of Michigan and an M.S. in marketing communications from Johns Hopkins University.

Divine motherhood

In 1979, Iris Krasnow stalked Michigan Avenue in an ankle-lengthpossum coat, purple cowboy boots and a diamond ring given to her byher boss, public relations maven Margie Korshak.

A Sun-Times Sunday magazine article in February of that yeardescribed her as one of "Margie's poodles."

Krasnow's quote from that article: "I've never been the kind ofperson who liked to be in anyone's shadow. But with Margie I haven'tminded at all. She has an incredible, incredible shadow. I couldstay here forever."The Oak Park-born Krasnow had come home from California, wherecollege, Transcendental Meditation and Ram Dass had failed to unlockher true spirituality. Alas, neither did her "Hot, Happening,Alive!" phase squiring around Korshak's star clients.So she went to Dallas and became a fashion writer with aburnished tan, muscled arms and no belly. Not finding God there, shemoved on to Washington, D.C., where she interviewed and wrote aboutfamous people for United Press International.Some were Billy Graham, the evangelist, and Chuck Colson, theformer Nixon special counsel who became a born-again Christian. As"the gluttony of the '80s" dragged to a close, still she hungered. Aboyfriend entered the priesthood and Krasnow attended Friday nightservices at a Conservative Jewish congregation.The Big Revelation did not occur until some years later, afterKrasnow married Chuck Anthony at Chicago's Standard Club, and theybecame the parents of four boys in less than four years (the youngestare twins), and Krasnow, still pursing her writing career, lostanother nanny. She describes her epiphany:"Amid the noise of boys and my swinging emotions, I suddenly gotvery still inside. Wrapped in the gray bathrobe four babies hadnestled against while they nursed, my brain started clanging thisjubilant message: There are no shackles in this house, this is nojail. These kids are your ticket to freedom like nothing you've evertasted, the kind that is not hinged on TV appearances or writing forLife magazine or being a size 6 again. It's the liberation thatcomes from the sheer act of living itself. When you stop to be whereyou are, then your life can really begin. . . . On that gray carpetwith egg under my nails and egg in my hair, I realized that for thefirst time in my life I was exactly where I was supposed to be. Onmy knees, scraping my babies' lunch off the carpet, bowing to theGreat Buddha, humbled, mercifully beaten down by children butexalted, glory God This Was It."Her story is now a book, Surrendering to Motherhood (Hyperion,$22.95) and Krasnow, 42, last week peeled the boys off of her andflew to Chicago to see her mother and talk about the book.The short version: "If you choose to become a parent, be there.Childhood is over in an eye blink; you don't want to miss the chanceto love fully and to feel whole and to be fully loved, sensations nojob can ever give you."It is a valid message, true and important, yet Krasnow is toldit is controversial."I've had really hard-core professional women who are my friendsand my relatives telling me that I'm undoing the last 20 years of thewomen's movement - that I'm not growing up, I'm growing down,"Krasnow said.Ouch.Heaven knows, there have been plenty of those "motherhood is thehighest power" first-person accounts flooding the market in recentyears, including more than a few written by former high-poweredcareer women who experience the very thing Krasnow discovered:"What I've realized just from being the mother of a lot ofchildren and having done a lot of things in my life was that oftenthe higher I climbed the emptier I felt. And that after being invery many exotic destinations, often with very exotic people,searching far and wide for something - anything - that the bestsensation I ever had was having a kid slumped against my chest andsitting still in a rocking chair and being their mother in the hereand now."Interspersed with certain undeniable truths are Krasnow'sinterviews with famous people - Perry Ellis, Queen Noor of Jordan,Barbara Bush, Yoko Ono, Billy Graham - and their thoughts on theimportance of family ties. Name-Drop City!She is honest about how being the first and the best becomesaddictive. She understands that some successful women withhold totalsurrender to their children to sustain themselves.And she hasn't totally surrendered, she points out, she'ssurrendering. She still managed to write the book. But no matterwhat, she says, "I am so grounded now from being a mother, and in away that will be with me forever. This sounds so corny, but there isnot a day or hour that goes by that I'm not hit with the realizationthat God has come through for me. It's not the airy fairy stuff thatI was meditating on cliffs at Big Sur for."Is it another phase? Margie Korshak wonders."I love her to death and I appreciate the message she's gettingout," said Korshak of her former poodle. "She's a fabulous girl.She's creative, she's bright. Do I think this is permanent? No. Ithink this is a stage of Iris' life."Korshak upset convention by starting a career in 1967 when herchildren were 5 and 2. People told her, "This isn't good for yourimage."She couldn't help it. "I hated sitting on the park bench," shesaid.Now that her children are grown and Korshak sits at the top ofthe career ladder, she concedes her decision was a "double-edgedsword.""I feel my kids suffered because I wasn't around. I have guiltfeelings about it. They say it was fine, but I don't feel 100percent about it."So maybe Krasnow's phase will save her that guilt."Women play a lot of roles," observes Korshak.

Grandchildren left in car while Fla. woman gambled

A Florida woman has been sentenced to 14 months of house arrest for leaving two grandchildren alone in a parked car while she went to play the slots.

A Broward County judge also gave the 54-year-old woman three years' probation Monday.

Authorities say the woman left the children in a car parked outside a Hallandale Beach casino in August 2008. The windows were down, but the air-conditioning was off.

A witness saw the 2-year-old girl and 14-year-old boy in the car and told the casino's security.

The prosecutor tells the South Florida Sun Sentinel that the woman had pleaded guilty to charges including felony child abuse and misdemeanor contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

___

Information from: South Florida Sun Sentinel, http://www.sunsentinel.com

MYTH VS. TRUTH

meat myth

MYTH: Although fat may be a problem, lean red meat itself does not cause cancer.

TRUTH: Actually, it does-at least, colon cancer. Studies show no link between fat intake and colorectal cancer. But the heme molecule is what makes red meat red, and it is converted in the colon to a highly cytotoxic -cell-killing-and cell-growth-stimulatmg molecule, which predisposes colon cells to become cancerous.

The Select Six Best Practices

As always, we are dedicating our summer issue to a showcase of the winners of our annual Best Practices Awards competition. The six winning entries- from CliniWorks, Collaborative Drug Discovery, GlaxoSmithKline, Merck, Novartis, and Oxford Nanopore Technologies- were introduced at the Bio-IT World Expo in April. Their stories are presented in the following pages.

This year's competition attracted 34 entries and prompted much frank deliberation among our judging panel, as they sought to identify the most important, novel, and potentially impactful collaborations and ideas from basic research and IT infrastructure to translational medicine. We believe that the winners of the 2011 Best Practices Awards offer some exciting stories that highlight the value of ingenuity and collaboration, impacting areas including drug discovery, diagnostics, and clinical research. We hope that some of these advances will have resonance across portions of the industry.

As always, thanks to our panel of 13 guest judges for volunteering their time and insights. We congratulate not only our winners (and their nominating organizations) but everyone else who took time to enter this year's competition.

We will have news about the make-up and timing of the 2012 awards in our next issue.

- The Editors

Early release for Hilton

Us Hotel heiress Paris Hilton will leave jail on Tuesday after more than three weeks behind bars.

Her sentence was for 45 days but authorities said all along thatwith time off for good behaviour and due to crowded jail conditions,Hilton was likely to serve only 23.

The 26-year-old was jailed for violating her probation in analcohol-related reckless driving case.

Nation watches doctor walkout: Major networks view tactic used to get legal action

DAILY MAIL STAFF

WHEELING - The operating rooms in the Northern Panhandle may bequiet, but the halls of the hospitals here still are buzzing as thenation turns its attention to the region and the walkout its surgeonsare staging.

From Connie Chung to "NBC Nightly News," all the major networksand cable news channels are here to report on the 24 or so surgeonswho are hanging their careers and potentially much more on a boldgambit they hope will make Gov. Bob Wise and the state Legislaturelisten to their concerns about malpractice liability and what onecalled "a tort cesspool."

Producers dressed in black and talking intently into cell phonesprowled the corridors at Wheeling Hospital as the parking spacesusually taken by doctors bound for surgery have been filled bysatellite trucks ready to beam the latest news of the crisis fromcoast to coast.

"You never know who's going to walk through the door today," onenurse said. "But you get the feeling that anything could happen."

While the nation may be looking to West Virginia for insights on agrowing debate on tort reform and medical malpractice, the surgeonshere have a nearer objective.

As the Legislative session is set to begin next week, theprotesting doctors want attention for what they say is a legal systemout of control and a business climate that makes even the mostessential endeavors nearly impossible.

"As I understand it, Bob Wise has come to Wheeling on twooccasions in the last several weeks to have dinner with two prominentplaintiffs' lawyers ... and talk about how to deal with the medicalinsurance crisis," said Dr. Bob Zaleski, an orthopedic surgeon herefor the last 22 years and one of the doctors who have vowed to laydown their tools until the current situation is resolved.

"But until now he hasn't talked to a single surgeon here about it.He wasn't asking the people who know the business and who aredirectly affected. He was asking the lawyers who stand to benefitevery time a doctor is hit. So if any good has come of this, at leastit got Wise to actually get involved."

There is no definite timeframe for the surgical shutdown, thoughmany in the health care community are confident that the walkout willend if Wise makes the subject a top priority in his State of theState address on Wednesday and the Legislature "comes out swinging."

Wise spoke with the leaders of the walkout Thursday and has beeninvolved with ongoing negotiations aimed at getting the surgeons backto work.

Dr. Donald Hofreuter, the CEO of Wheeling Hospital, said that hethinks the situation can be resolved if the state will agree to offerdoctors who do risky trauma work insurance coverage through the Boardof Risk and Insurance Management.

He said that in ongoing discussions with the Wise administrationover the past two weeks the possibility of including Wheeling'ssurgeons in the same kind of program now in place in Charleston,Huntington and Morgantown has been gaining momentum.

In those cities, the umbrella of state protection has beenextended to private physicians, using the West Virginia Universitymedical program as a vehicle.

"I think it at least begs the question of why these other areaswould have access to something like that and we would not," Hofreutersaid. "I think that could be a very fruitful line of inquiry."

The walkout surgeons say they want long-term relief via tortreform and a dose of immediate assistance in the form of reducedmandatory minimum insurance coverage required by the state.

Though none would say how long they would stay away from theoperating table, many suggested that their decision was more one ofwhether to stay or go for good.

Hofreuter, like many in the local medical community, finds himselfon the horns of a dilemma with the walkout. While he sees seriousproblems with the current system and has supported the politicalefforts of his fellow doctors in the last several years to affect achange, he still has a hospital to run.

"I understand their concerns and I understand their frustration,"Hofreuter said. "But I'm also concerned about patient care. We're anon-profit community hospital and my first commitment is to ourpatients."

But Hofreuter and his colleagues at the Ohio Valley MedicalCenter, Weirton Medical Center and Glen Dale's Reynolds MemorialHospital say they are satisfied they have done what they can toprevent the crisis from turning into a calamity.

Severely injured patients can be taken directly by air orambulance to Pittsburgh or Morgantown. Urgent but not trauma-relatedsurgeries still can be scheduled in the small hospitals across theriver in eastern Ohio.

At Wheeling Hospital, one of the state's leading employers, manystaffers have been informed that they may be cut back to partialhours for the duration of the walkout, but that no layoffs areplanned.

Some non-physician doctors quietly have expressed concern aboutwhat could happen if someone dies or is more seriously injuredbecause they have to wait longer for surgery.

"We've been talking this through and trying the political thingfor a long time with very limited results, so I hope this works" saidone doctor on the job Thursday, who asked not to be identified. "Butif something happens, it's all over.

"If there is a loss of life as a result, we won't have a leg tostand on. This is the big gamble."

Zaleski said he and his fellow surgeons had thought those issuesthrough and decided they couldn't wait to act.

"You have to ask yourself if it's better to have no doctors forthe time being or on a permanent basis," Zaleski said. "Should wekeep shrinking and shrinking until we're gone and then just vanish?

"This is my hometown and I made a decision in 1980 to come backand practice here and I want to stay here, so we're not just going todrift away."

Zaleski said he has watched his insurance rates increase 200 foldover the span of his career from $800 a year to his current annualbill of almost $160,000.

"For three years we've been using the political system - givingmoney to candidates, taking time to go to Charleston and there hasbeen no real reform," Zaleski said. "There's been nothing done toshrink the bull's-eye that every doctor wears on the back of theirwhite coat."

Writer Chris Stirewalt can be reached at 348-4824 or by email atcstire@dailymail.com.

LONG DAYS, PRETTY NIGHTS

LONG DAYS, PRETTY NIGHTS

Comic zine, Bee Lavery, beelavery@riseup.net

Us humans always seem to revolve around the same pains and pleasures, and it's the obof art to make them fresh so we can learn about them anew, and maybe help each other through them. Long Days, Pretty Nights is a work of art in this vein. It's a short-short double comic from Bee Lavery, whose artistic style could be described as "pretty-punkcomic-diarist." Her work is tantalizing, in that it's both new and familiar, but also over far too quickly. This zine is about images, and there are never more than a handful of words per page. It may be frustrating for some, but that's really no excuse to miss what Lavery is doing with her zines. (J. Blackmore)

Reno, local crime fighters call for emphasis on prevention

Reno, local crime fighters call for emphasis on prevention

Yawu Miller

Edmar Gomes was 15 years old, unemployed and marginally interested in school. His attendance at the Jeremiah E. Burke High School was slipping, he began smoking and he was beginning to get into trouble with the police.

Playing basketball with his Sumner Street friends one afternoon, Gomes met Nuno Barros, a street worker employed by the Bird Street Youth Center in Upham's Corner.

"He asked me if I wanted to play ball for his team and get off the streets and I said `sure,'" Gomes recalls.

In the six months since he left the streets, Gomes has been getting better grades and keeping out of trouble.

"I've been trying to get an after-school job," he said. "The people here are helping me a lot."

Monday, Gomes and scores of other Dorchester youth served by the Bird Street Youth Center met with U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno to relate stories of their efforts at fighting youth crime.

Speaking before an audience of teenagers, elected officials, police brass and reporters, Reno said that Boston is a national model for successful crime prevention strategies.

"I have seen too many examples of young people who are in trouble and are not bad kids, who needed a program like Bird Street to give them something constructive to do in the afternoon," she said.

The meeting came on the heels of the fatal shooting of a Dorchester teen, Juan Perello Corporan, 16, on Hamilton St. Corporan was the second teen slain in Boston since December.

Reno's visit to the youth center also comes as lawmakers on Capitol Hill are pushing for the passage of new anti-crime legislation. While conservatives favor get-tough measures including calls for mandatory adult sentences for juvenile offenders, Reno and others at the meeting Monday said prevention should be the focus of any new congressional initiatives.

"Bird Street is turning kids away every day because we've reached our capacity," said Mary Gunn, the youth center's executive director. "We need more resources."

The youth center currently serves 125 youth during the day and an additional 50 during evenings, according to Gunn.

State Sen. Stephen Lynch and Rep. Charlotte Golar Richie are heading efforts to secure funds for a new youth center in the area that they say would help meet the growing demand.

Joining Reno in the roundtable discussion were Mayor Thomas M. Menino, state Attorney General Scott Har shbarger and U.S. Attorney Donald Stern.

U.S. Rep. Martin Meehan, who also attended the meeting, said he felt confident that the push for anticrime bills that favor prevention will prevail in Congress.

"There are many members of Congress who are wedded to the rhetoric of the past rather than what's effective," he said. "But I'm confident that we're going to get the legislation passed."

Photo (Shona Hendrix, Thomas Menino, Janet Reno, Donald Stern, Jeff Barros)

Nationalscoreboard

BASKETBALL

National Basketball Association

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Atlantic Division

W L Pct GB

Boston 39 34 .534 -

Philadelphia 36 37 .493 3

New Jersey 35 39 .473 41/2

Toronto 30 43 .411 9

New York 29 43 .403 91/2

Southeast Division

W L Pct GB

y-Miami 55 19 .743 -

Washington 41 31 .569 13

Orlando 35 38 .479 191/2

Charlotte 15 57 .208 39

Atlanta 11 62 .151 431/2

Central Division

W L Pct GB

x-Detroit 46 27 .630 -

Chicago 41 31 .569 41/2

Cleveland 38 34 .528 71/2

Indiana 38 34 .528 71/2

Milwaukee 28 45 .384 18

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Southwest Division

W L Pct GB

x-San Antonio 54 19 .740 -

x-Dallas 49 24 .671 5

Houston 44 30 .595 101/2

Memphis 41 31 .569 121/2

New Orleans 17 55 .236 361/2

Northwest Division

W L Pct GB

x-Seattle 50 23 .685 -

Denver 41 31 .569 81/2

Minnesota 39 35 .527 111/2

Portland 24 48 .333 251/2

Utah 22 50 .306 271/2

Pacific Division

W L Pct GB

y-Phoenix 56 17 .767 -

Sacramento 45 30 .600 12

L.A. Lakers 33 40 .452 23

L.A. Clippers 33 41 .446 231/2

Golden State 28 45 .384 28

x-clinched playoff spot

y-clinched division

Monday

No games scheduled

Tuesday

Boston at Washington, 7 p.m.

New Jersey at Cleveland, 7 p.m.

L.A. Clippers at Charlotte, 7 p.m.

Chicago at Miami, 7:30 p.m.

Indiana at New York, 7:30 p.m.

New Orleans at Atlanta, 7:30 p.m.

Denver at Memphis, 8 p.m.

Orlando at Dallas, 8:30 p.m.

Portland at Utah, 9 p.m.

Seattle at Sacramento, 10 p.m.

L.A. Lakers at Phoenix, 10 p.m.

Houston at Golden State, 10:30 p.m.

Wednesday

Chicago at Orlando, 7 p.m.

Milwaukee at Boston, 7 p.m.

Memphis at Toronto, 7 p.m.

Cleveland at Indiana, 7 p.m.

Charlotte at Philadelphia, 7 p.m.

Washington at Detroit, 7:30 p.m.

Denver at New Orleans, 8 p.m.

L.A. Clippers at San Antonio, 8:30 p.m.

Utah at Minnesota, 9:30 p.m.

Golden State at Portland, 10 p.m.

College men

At St. Louis

NORTH CAROLINA 75, ILLINOIS 70

NORTH CAROLINA (33-4)

J.Williams 3-6 0-0 9, McCants 6-15 0-0 14, May 10-11 6-8 26,Felton 4-9 5-6 17, Manuel 0-1 0-2 0, Scott 0-2 0-0 0, Terry 0-0 0-00, Thomas 0-0 0-0 0, M.Williams 4-8 0-1 8, Noel 0-0 1-2 1. Totals 27-52 12-19 75.

ILLINOIS (37-2)

Augustine 0-3 0-0 0, Powell Jr. 4-10 0-0 9, Head 8-21 0-0 21,D.Williams 7-16 0-2 17, Brown 4-10 2-2 12, McBride 0-0 0-0 0, Carter0-1 0-0 0, Smith 0-0 0-0 0, Ingram 4-9 2-2 11. Totals 27-70 4-6 70.

Halftime-North Carolina 40-27. 3-Point Goals-North Carolina 9-16(Felton 4-5, J.Williams 3-4, McCants 2-5, Scott 0-1, M.Williams 0-1), Illinois 12-40 (Head 5-16, D.Williams 3-10, Brown 2-8, Powell Jr.1-2, Ingram 1-3, Carter 0-1). Fouled Out-Augustine. Rebounds-NorthCarolina 34 (May 10), Illinois 39 (Powell Jr. 14). Assists-NorthCarolina 12 (Felton 7), Illinois 18 (Brown, D.Williams 7). TotalFouls-North Carolina 13, Illinois 18. A-47,262.

NCAA All-Tournament Teams

The NCAA Final Four All-Tournament Teams (the first player listedeach year was the Final Four most outstanding player; x-vacated):

2005

Sean May, North Carolina; Raymond Felton, North Carolina; LutherHead, Illinois; Rashad McCants, North Carolina; Deron Williams,Illinois.

NCAA Aggregate Leaders

Final

Scoring

G Pts

Sean May, North Carolina 6 134

Rashad McCants, North Carolina 6 102

Maurice Ager, Michigan State 5 91

Luther Head, Illinois 6 90

Francisco Garcia, Louisville 5 88

Larry O'Bannon, Louisville 5 83

Deron Williams, Illinois 6 83

Raymond Felton, North Carolina 6 82

Taquan Dean, Louisville 5 80

Dee Brown, Illinois 6 77

Rebounds

G Reb

Sean May, North Carolina 6 64

Paul Davis, Michigan State 5 58

James Augustine, Illinois 6 54

Ellis Myles, Louisville 5 44

Marvin Willians, North Carolina 6 44

Channing Frye, Arizona 4 39

Roger Powell Jr., Illinois 6 39

Raymond Felton, North Carolina 6 35

Anrew Bogut, Utah 3 34

Shelden Williams, Duke 3 34

Assists

G Ast

Deron Williams, Illinois 6 50

Raymond Felton, North Carolina 6 41

Dee Brown, Illinois 6 27

Luther Head, Illinois 6 24

J.D. Collins, West Virginia 4 21

Will Conroy, Washington 3 21

Julius Hodge, N.C. State 3 20

Francisco Garcia, Louisville 5 19

Larry O'Bannon, Louisville 5 17

Salim Stoudemire, Arizona 4 17

NCAA Championship Scores

2005 - North Carolina 75, Illinois 70

2004 - Connecticut 82, Georgia Tech 73

2003 - Syracuse 81, Kansas 78

2002 - Maryland 64, Indiana 52

2001 - Duke 82, Arizona 72

2000 - Michigan State 89, Florida 76

1999 - Connecticut 77, Duke 74

1998 - Kentucky 78, Utah 69

1997 - Arizona 84, Kentucky 79, OT

1996 - Kentucky 76, Syracuse 67

1995 - UCLA 89, Arkansas 78

1994 - Arkansas 76, Duke 72

1993 - North Carolina 77, Michigan 71

1992 - Duke 71, Michigan 51

1991 - Duke 72, Kansas 65

1990 - UNLV 103, Duke 73

1989 - Michigan 80, Seton Hall 79, OT

1988 - Kansas 83, Oklahoma 79

1987 - Indiana 74, Syracuse 73

1986 - Louisville 72, Duke 69

1985 - Villanova 66, Georgetown 64

1984 - Georgetown 84, Houston 75

1983 - North Carolina State 54, Houston 52

1982 - North Carolina 63, Georgetown 62

1981 - Indiana 63, North Carolina 50

1980 - Louisville 59, UCLA 54

1979 - Michigan State 75, Indiana State 64

1978 - Kentucky 94, Duke 88

1977 - Marquette 67, North Carolina 59

1976 - Indiana 86, Michigan 68

1975 - UCLA 92, Kentucky 85

1974 - North Carolina State 76, Marquette 64

1973 - UCLA 87, Memphis State 66

1972 - UCLA 81, Florida State 76

1971 - UCLA 68, Villanova 62

1970 - UCLA 80, Jacksonville 69

1969 - UCLA 92, Purdue 72

1968 - UCLA 78, North Carolina 55

1967 - UCLA 79, Dayton 64

1966 - Texas Western 72, Kentucky 65

1965 - UCLA 91, Michigan 80

1964 - UCLA 98, Duke 83

1963 - Loyola, Ill. 60, Cincinnati 58, OT

1962 - Cincinnati 71, Ohio State 59

1961 - Cincinnati 70, Ohio State 65, OT

1960 - Ohio State 75, California 55

1959 - California 71, West Virginia 70

1958 - Kentucky 84, Seattle 72

1957 - North Carolina 54, Kansas 53, 3OT

1956 - San Francisco 83, Iowa 71

1955 - San Francisco 77, La Salle 63

1954 - La Salle 92, Bradley 76

1953 - Indiana 69, Kansas 68

1952 - Kansas 80, St. John's 63

1951 - Kentucky 68, Kansas State 58

1950 - CCNY 71, Bradley 68

1949 - Kentucky 46, Oklahoma State 36

1948 - Kentucky 58, Baylor 42

1947 - Holy Cross 58, Oklahoma 47

1946 - Oklahoma A&M 43, North Carolina 40

1945 - Oklahoma A&M 49, NYU 45

1944 - Utah 42, Dartmouth 40, OT

1943 - Wyoming 46, Georgetown 34

1942 - Stanford 53, Dartmouth 38

1941 - Wisconsin 39, Washington State 34

1940 - Indiana 60, Kansas 42

1939 - Oregon 46, Ohio State 34

TRANSACTIONS

BASEBALL

American League

CHICAGO WHITE SOX-Placed 1B Frank Thomas on the 15-day DL.Purchased the contracts of RHP Pablo Ozuna and C Chris Widger fromBirmingham of the IL. Optioned LHP Kevin Walker to Birmingham.

DETROIT TIGERS-Placed RHP Colby Lewis on the 15-day DL.

OAKLAND ATHLETICS-Named Webster Garrison hitting coach for Midlandof the Texas League, Juan Navarrete manager for Vancouver of theNorthwest League, and Raymond Abreu director of Latin Americanoperations.

SEATTLE MARINERS-Released LHP Ryan Anderson and RHP Rett Johnson.

TAMPA BAY DEVIL RAYS-Agreed to terms with C Charles Johnson on aone-year contract. Recalled OF Joey Gathright from Durham of the IL.

TORONTO BLUE JAYS-Purchased the contract of RHP Pete Walker fromSyracuse of the IL.

National League

CHICAGO CUBS-Agreed to terms with 3B Aramis Ramirez on a four-year contract.

NEW YORK METS-Placed RHP Kris Benson on the 15-day DL, retroactiveto March 29 and RHP Bartolome Fortunato on the 15-day DL, retroactiveto April 2. Recalled OF Victor Diaz from Norfolk of the IL andpurchased the contract of INF Marlon Anderson from Norfolk.Designated 1B Craig Brazell for assignment.

PITTSBURGH PIRATES-Placed LHP Sean Burnett on the 60-day DL.

ST. LOUIS CARDINALS-Placed RHP Mike Lincoln on the 15-day DL.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS-Placed RHP Francis Beltran on the 15-day DL.

FOOTBALL

National Football League

GREEN BAY PACKERS-Re-signed TE Ben Steele.

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS-Signed RB David Allen. Released DE LionelBarnes.

MIAMI DOLPHINS-Signed CB Mario Edwards to a one-year contract.

GOLF

=

PGA BellSouth Classic

Monday

At TPC at Sugarloaf

Duluth Ga.

Purse: $5 million

Yardage: 7,293; Par: 72

Final Round

x-won in playoff after four holes

x-Phil Mickelson, $900,000 74-65-69-208

Arjun Atwal, $330,000 77-67-64-208

Jose Maria Olazabal, $330,000 70-69-69-208

Brandt Jobe, $330,000 72-69-67-208

Rich Beem, $330,000 70-70-68-208

Frank Lickliter II, $161,875 71-70-68-209

Scott Dunlap, $161,875 72-68-69-209

Arron Oberholser, $161,875 72-68-69-209

Tag Ridings, $161,875 72-68-69-209

Charles Warren, $115,000 75-69-66-210

Dennis Paulson, $115,000 75-68-67-210

Hunter Haas, $115,000 75-68-67-210

Jay Williamson, $115,000 72-71-67-210

Lucas Glover, $115,000 74-67-69-210

Justin Bolli, $75,000 74-70-67-211

Dean Wilson, $75,000 72-70-69-211

Bob Tway, $75,000 71-70-70-211

Ryuji Imada, $75,000 70-71-70-211

Brian Bateman, $75,000 72-68-71-211

Billy Mayfair, $75,000 68-71-72-211

Joey Snyder III, $75,000 71-69-71-211

Omar Uresti, $50,000 71-74-67-212

Dan Forsman, $50,000 73-72-67-212

Retief Goosen, $50,000 72-69-71-212

Franklin Langham, $50,000 72-74-66-212

Stephen Leaney, $36,250 72-72-69-213

Jason Allred, $36,250 68-75-70-213

Brett Quigley, $36,250 69-74-70-213

J.J. Henry, $36,250 73-72-68-213

Michael Long, $36,250 73-68-72-213

Zach Johnson, $36,250 75-66-72-213

Tom Pernice, Jr., $27,071.43 73-71-70-214

Alex Cejka, $27,071.43 72-71-71-214

Jonathan Byrd, $27,071.43 72-72-70-214

Andrew Magee, $27,071.43 69-74-71-214

Steve Elkington, $27,071.43 73-70-71-214

Paul Claxton, $27,071.43 73-72-69-214

Scott McCarron, $27,071.42 69-69-76-214

John Elliott, $18,500 75-69-71-215

Neal Lancaster, $18,500 74-69-72-215

Len Mattiace, $18,500 75-69-71-215

Sean O'Hair, $18,500 74-70-71-215

John Huston, $18,500 70-73-72-215

Ted Purdy, $18,500 69-73-73-215

Glen Hnatiuk, $18,500 73-72-70-215

J.L. Lewis, $18,500 69-72-74-215

Kevin Stadler, $18,500 69-77-69-215

D.J. Brigman, $12,211.12 70-74-72-216

Gavin Coles, $12,211.11 73-71-72-216

Darron Stiles, $12,211.11 72-71-73-216

Joey Sindelar, $12,211.11 72-72-72-216

Peter Lonard, $12,211.11 74-69-73-216

Jeff Brehaut, $12,211.11 75-70-71-216

D.A. Points, $12,211.11 74-71-71-216

Robert Allenby, $12,211.11 74-72-70-216

Jason Bohn, $12,211.11 71-75-70-216

Hunter Mahan, $11,100 72-71-74-217

David Hearn, $11,100 70-73-74-217

Eric Axley, $11,100 75-69-73-217

Brendan Jones, $11,100 73-72-72-217

Heath Slocum, $11,100 73-73-71-217

Steve Stricker, $10,750 70-73-75-218

Carl Pettersson, $10,750 75-70-73-218

Hideto Tanihara, $10,450 69-75-75-219

Stewart Cink, $10,450 71-74-74-219

Rocco Mediate, $10,450 74-72-73-219

Tom Gillis, $10,450 77-69-73-219

Mathias Gronberg, $10,100 74-72-74-220

Casey Wittenberg, $10,100 75-71-74-220

Paul Goydos, $10,100 74-72-74-220

Jimmy Walker, $9,900 72-72-77-221

Aaron Baddeley, $9,800 72-74-76-222

Nick Watney, $9,700 76-70-78-224

Camilo Benedetti, $9,600 73-73-79-225

Bo Van Pelt, $9,500 70-75-81-226

Associated Press PARIS -- Novak Djokovic will [Derived Headline]

Associated Press PARIS -- Novak Djokovic will leave the lookingahead to others. If he's to be believed, the No. 3-ranked Djokovichas more immediate concerns than a possible French Open semifinalagainst No. 2 Rafael Nadal or final against No. 1 Roger Federer.

First things first at Roland Garros for Djokovic: a quarterfinalagainst Ernests Gulbis, set up by three-set victories for both menSunday. Never heard of Gulbis? Djokovic has. Knows the 19-year-oldkid from Latvia quite well, in fact.

They go way back, having shared adventures on and off the court afew years ago at coach Niki Pilic's tennis academy in Munich,Germany.

"He was destroying me in practices. I couldn't win a match.Practice? No chance," Djokovic said, then added with a wink and asmile: "So all the pressure's on him, OK? He's the favorite."

Sure, Novak. Actually, because their careers have followedcompletely divergent paths, Djokovic knows full well he must beconsidered the overwhelming pick in what will be his firstprofessional meeting with Gulbis.

Djokovic -- who beat No. 18 Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-4, 6-3, 6-4Sunday -- reached the U.S. Open final in September, then knocked offFederer en route to winning the Australian Open in January. He'sreached the semifinals at four consecutive major championships,cementing his status as part of the trio of men head-and-shouldersabove the rest.

"I'm ... a Grand Slam champion. Get a lot of respect andappreciation from the players," said Djokovic, who is 3-7 againstNadal, including exits from the past two French Opens. "It's adifferent approach. I have more confidence and I believe much morein myself."

And Gulbis? He came to Roland Garros with a 7-10 record thisseason and never had been past the fourth round at a Slam untilbeating Michael Llodra 6-4, 7-6 (4), 6-3 on Sunday.

"I played better and better," said the 80th-ranked Gulbis, whoeliminated No. 7 James Blake of the United States in the secondround.

Gulbis used all of his 6-foot-3 frame to uncork 11 aces and 18passing shot winners against Llodra.

"Very powerful serve," Llodra said. "You can't see exactly wherehe's going to serve."

Like Djokovic, Nadal is rather familiar with his next opponent,No. 19 Nicolas Almagro, and had nothing but nice things to say abouthim.

"One of the toughest opponents on clay," Nadal said. "Probablygoing to be my toughest match this week."

The three-time defending champion reached the quarterfinals byhammering out the most lopsided of his 25 consecutive French Openvictories, 6-1, 6-0, 6-2 over No. 22 Fernando Verdasco. Oddlyenough, Nadal's opponents so far this year all were left-handed, thefirst time a man has faced four consecutive southpaws at a GrandSlam tournament in the 40-year Open Era.

That certainly hasn't given Nadal any problems. He did, however,get a bit of a scare while warming up after a 50-minute rain delayone game into the second set. Nadal felt dizzy, and a tournamentofficial, doctor and trainer all came out to check on him.

Almagro was a 7-6 (0), 7-6 (7), 7-5 winner over 145th-rankedJeremy Chardy, a wild-card entry who combined with Mathieu andLlodra to make France 0-3 for the day.

The second set ended with an unusual -- and potentially dangerous-- sight. Angry that he couldn't get to a ball in time afterAlmagro's shot clipped the net, Chardy violently spiked his racket.It bounced 10 feet in the air, cleared the net and landed not farfrom Almagro.

As with the men, all four women's matches Sunday were settled instraight sets. No. 2 Ana Ivanovic had the easiest time, puttingtogether a 6-0, 6-0 victory over Petra Cetkovska, and was joined inthe quarterfinals by No. 3 Jelena Jankovic, No. 10 Patty Schnyderand qualifier Carla Suarez Navarro.

The players responsible for the two biggest surprises of thetournament lost. Schnyder beat No. 27 Katarina Srebotnik, whoeliminated Serena Williams, and Suarez Navarro beat No. 26 FlaviaPennetta, who eliminated Venus Williams.

"I thought the match would probably be a bit more difficult,"said the 132nd-ranked Suarez Navarro, the first woman since 2001 toreach the French Open quarterfinals after needing to qualify for thetournament.

She now meets Jankovic, who got a massage from a trainer for painin her shoulder and neck during a 6-3, 7-6 (3) victory over No. 14Agnieszka Radwanska.

"I was struggling at the end," said Jankovic, who lost fiveconsecutive games in the second set. "I was just trying to guide theball with my arm, which was not enough. I needed to go for it, eventhough I had pain."

And as for her game plan against Suarez?

"Never seen her play before," Jankovic said.

Gulbis is becoming less and less of an unknown quantity, which ishis explanation for a rough second season on tour.

"First year, I was just a newcomer. Nobody knew me. Nobody knewthe way I play. Nobody knew how to play against me," he said. "Nowpeople, players, they already know me a little bit. They know theway I play, so it's a little tougher."

Djokovic will do his best to remember Gulbis' game when they meetTuesday, so he can take another step toward another match againstNadal.

Associated Press PARIS -- Novak Djokovic will [Derived Headline]

Associated Press PARIS -- Novak Djokovic will leave the lookingahead to others. If he's to be believed, the No. 3-ranked Djokovichas more immediate concerns than a possible French Open semifinalagainst No. 2 Rafael Nadal or final against No. 1 Roger Federer.

First things first at Roland Garros for Djokovic: a quarterfinalagainst Ernests Gulbis, set up by three-set victories for both menSunday. Never heard of Gulbis? Djokovic has. Knows the 19-year-oldkid from Latvia quite well, in fact.

They go way back, having shared adventures on and off the court afew years ago at coach Niki Pilic's tennis academy in Munich,Germany.

"He was destroying me in practices. I couldn't win a match.Practice? No chance," Djokovic said, then added with a wink and asmile: "So all the pressure's on him, OK? He's the favorite."

Sure, Novak. Actually, because their careers have followedcompletely divergent paths, Djokovic knows full well he must beconsidered the overwhelming pick in what will be his firstprofessional meeting with Gulbis.

Djokovic -- who beat No. 18 Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-4, 6-3, 6-4Sunday -- reached the U.S. Open final in September, then knocked offFederer en route to winning the Australian Open in January. He'sreached the semifinals at four consecutive major championships,cementing his status as part of the trio of men head-and-shouldersabove the rest.

"I'm ... a Grand Slam champion. Get a lot of respect andappreciation from the players," said Djokovic, who is 3-7 againstNadal, including exits from the past two French Opens. "It's adifferent approach. I have more confidence and I believe much morein myself."

And Gulbis? He came to Roland Garros with a 7-10 record thisseason and never had been past the fourth round at a Slam untilbeating Michael Llodra 6-4, 7-6 (4), 6-3 on Sunday.

"I played better and better," said the 80th-ranked Gulbis, whoeliminated No. 7 James Blake of the United States in the secondround.

Gulbis used all of his 6-foot-3 frame to uncork 11 aces and 18passing shot winners against Llodra.

"Very powerful serve," Llodra said. "You can't see exactly wherehe's going to serve."

Like Djokovic, Nadal is rather familiar with his next opponent,No. 19 Nicolas Almagro, and had nothing but nice things to say abouthim.

"One of the toughest opponents on clay," Nadal said. "Probablygoing to be my toughest match this week."

The three-time defending champion reached the quarterfinals byhammering out the most lopsided of his 25 consecutive French Openvictories, 6-1, 6-0, 6-2 over No. 22 Fernando Verdasco. Oddlyenough, Nadal's opponents so far this year all were left-handed, thefirst time a man has faced four consecutive southpaws at a GrandSlam tournament in the 40-year Open Era.

That certainly hasn't given Nadal any problems. He did, however,get a bit of a scare while warming up after a 50-minute rain delayone game into the second set. Nadal felt dizzy, and a tournamentofficial, doctor and trainer all came out to check on him.

Almagro was a 7-6 (0), 7-6 (7), 7-5 winner over 145th-rankedJeremy Chardy, a wild-card entry who combined with Mathieu andLlodra to make France 0-3 for the day.

The second set ended with an unusual -- and potentially dangerous-- sight. Angry that he couldn't get to a ball in time afterAlmagro's shot clipped the net, Chardy violently spiked his racket.It bounced 10 feet in the air, cleared the net and landed not farfrom Almagro.

As with the men, all four women's matches Sunday were settled instraight sets. No. 2 Ana Ivanovic had the easiest time, puttingtogether a 6-0, 6-0 victory over Petra Cetkovska, and was joined inthe quarterfinals by No. 3 Jelena Jankovic, No. 10 Patty Schnyderand qualifier Carla Suarez Navarro.

The players responsible for the two biggest surprises of thetournament lost. Schnyder beat No. 27 Katarina Srebotnik, whoeliminated Serena Williams, and Suarez Navarro beat No. 26 FlaviaPennetta, who eliminated Venus Williams.

"I thought the match would probably be a bit more difficult,"said the 132nd-ranked Suarez Navarro, the first woman since 2001 toreach the French Open quarterfinals after needing to qualify for thetournament.

She now meets Jankovic, who got a massage from a trainer for painin her shoulder and neck during a 6-3, 7-6 (3) victory over No. 14Agnieszka Radwanska.

"I was struggling at the end," said Jankovic, who lost fiveconsecutive games in the second set. "I was just trying to guide theball with my arm, which was not enough. I needed to go for it, eventhough I had pain."

And as for her game plan against Suarez?

"Never seen her play before," Jankovic said.

Gulbis is becoming less and less of an unknown quantity, which ishis explanation for a rough second season on tour.

"First year, I was just a newcomer. Nobody knew me. Nobody knewthe way I play. Nobody knew how to play against me," he said. "Nowpeople, players, they already know me a little bit. They know theway I play, so it's a little tougher."

Djokovic will do his best to remember Gulbis' game when they meetTuesday, so he can take another step toward another match againstNadal.