by admin on September 2, 2010
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. — A doctor involved in an “on-again, off-again” relationship apparently tried to force her way into her boyfriend’s home by sliding down the chimney, police said Tuesday. Her decomposing body was found there three days later.
Dr. Jacquelyn Kotarac, 49, first tried to get into the house with a shovel, then climbed a ladder to the roof last Wednesday night, removed the chimney cap and slid feet first down the flue, Bakersfield police Sgt. Mary DeGeare said.
While she was trying to break in, the man she was pursuing escaped unnoticed from another exit “to avoid a confrontation,” authorities said.
DeGeare said the two were in an “on-again, off-again” relationship.
The man’s identity was not revealed by police, but the man who resides in the home is William Moodie, 58.
“She made an unbelievable error in judgment and nobody understands why, and unfortunately she’s passed away,” Moodie told The Associated Press. “She had her issues – she had her demons – but I never lost my respect for her.”
Reached by telephone, Moodie did not dispute the police’s characterization of his relationship with Kotarac. He would not comment on the circumstances that led to her death, saying it was more important to focus on the good she did in life.
Moodie, who runs an engineering consulting firm, said Kotarac was a superb internist who often provided service and medication free of charge to her patients.
Kotarac apparently died in the chimney, but her body was not discovered until a house-sitter noticed a stench and fluids coming from the fireplace Saturday, according to a police statement. The house-sitter and her son investigated with a flashlight and found Kotarac dead, wedged about two feet above the top of the interior fireplace opening.
Firefighters spent five hours late Saturday dismantling the chimney and flue from outside the home to extract Kotarac’s body, DeGeare said.
Officials said Kotarac’s office staff reported her missing two days prior when she failed to show for work. Her car and belongings remained near the man’s house.
A cause of death has not been determined, and an autopsy was scheduled for Tuesday. Foul play is not suspected, though investigators have been looking into the incident as suspicious.
View full post on Most Popular Entries on HuffingtonPost
Tagged as:
Boyfriend's,
break,
Chimney,
dies,
Home,
Into,
Jacquelyn,
Kotarac,
Trying,
video
by admin on August 23, 2010
By OSKAR GARCIA, Associated Press
LAS VEGAS — A 22-year-old Mexico woman has won the Miss Universe pageant after donning a flowing red gown and telling an audience it’s important to teach kids family values.
Jimena Navarrete of Guadalajara was first to answer an interview question Monday night and the last of 83 contestants standing in the headline-grabbing pageant on the Las Vegas Strip.
Her one-strap gown flowed behind her like a sheet as she walked. Earlier, she smiled in a violet bikini as she confidently strutted across the stage.
Asked by Olympic gold-medal figure skater Evan Lysacek how she felt about unsupervised Internet use, Navarrete said the Internet is important but parents need to be careful and watch over their kids.
“I do believe that Internet is an indispensable, necessary tool for the present time,” she said through an interpreter. “We must be sure to teach them the values that we learned as a family.”
First runner-up was Miss Jamaica Yendi Phillipps, while second runner-up was Miss Australia Jesinta Campbell.
Navarrete is Mexico’s second Miss Universe; Lupita Jones of Mexico won the title in 1991. Navarrete replaces Miss Universe 2009 Stefania Fernandez of Venezuela.
Navarrete’s win thwarted Miss Venezuela Marelisa Gibson from giving the South American country a third consecutive win. Neither Gibson nor Miss USA Rima Fakih made the top 15 finalists.
Navarrete won a package of prizes including an undisclosed salary, a luxury New York apartment with living expenses, a one-year scholarship to the New York Film Academy with housing after her reign, plus jewelry, clothes and shoes fit for a beauty champion.
Campbell won the Miss Congeniality Universe award. Miss Thailand Fonthip Watcharatrakul won Miss Photogenic Universe and a second award for having the best national costume.
View full post on Latest News
Tagged as:
2010,
Home,
Jimena,
mexico,
Miss,
Navarrete,
takes,
universe,
winner
by admin on July 27, 2010
NEW YORK — Home prices rose in May for the second straight month as federal tax incentives pulled more buyers into the market.
The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index released Tuesday posted a 1.3 percent increase in May from April.
Nineteen of 20 cities showed price gains month over month. Minneapolis and Atlanta led the way with 2.8 percent and 2 percent increases, respectively. And San Diego posted its 13th straight monthly gain.
Only Las Vegas recorded a price decline. The metro hit a new record low in May. Home prices there have lost 56.4 percent of their value since peaking in August 2006.
And while Detroit recorded a 0.7 percent increase from April, the average home price there is about same as it was in 1994.
Overall, the gains underscore the impact of the government’s homebuying tax credits. Buyers rushed to purchase before the credits expired at the end of April. The index is an average of home sales in March, April and May.
May is typically a strong month for selling homes. Most economists don’t expect the price gains to last through the year and many predict home prices will fall through the rest of the year.
“I bet in six months 15 to 20 cities will have falling prices,” said IHS Global Insight economist Patrick Newport. He predicts prices will fall another 6 percent to 8 percent before turning around next year.
Nationally, prices have risen 5.1 percent from their April 2009 bottom. But they remain 29 percent below their July 2006 peak.
More recent housing figures show a gloomier outlook, even though mortgage rates are at the lowest level in decades.
Sales of previously occupied homes fell 5.1 percent in June. New home sales jumped last month, but it was the second-weakest month on record and it came after sales tumbled in May.
A high number of foreclosures has forced home prices down in many areas, while 9.5 percent unemployment and tight credit have kept many from buying.
American sentiment eroded further in July, the Conference Board said Tuesday. Its Consumer Confidence Index slipped to 50.4 in July, down from the revised 54.3 in June. It was the second straight monthly decline.
A reading above 90 indicates an economy on solid footing.
“Until we see significant gains in employment, I just don’t think you’re going to see strong demand,” said Glenn Kelman, chief executive of Redfin, an online real estate brokerage based in Seattle.
___
AP Real Estate Writer Alan Zibel in Washington contributed to this report.
View full post on Latest News
Tagged as:
CaseShiller,
credit,
Home,
Index.,
prices,
rose,
strength
by admin on July 26, 2010
WASHINGTON — Sales of new homes jumped last month, but it was the second-weakest month on record. The lackluster economy has made potential buyers skittish about shopping for homes.
New home sales rose nearly 24 percent in June from a month earlier to a seasonally adjusted annual sales pace of 330,000, the Commerce Department said Monday. May’s number was revised downward to a rate of 267,000, the slowest pace on records dating back to 1963. Sales for April and March were also revised downward.
High unemployment, low job growth, and tight credit have kept people from buying homes. The industry received a boost this spring when the government offered tax credits to homebuyers. But since they expired in April, the number of people looking to buy has dropped, even with the lowest mortgage rates in decades available.
“There’s no question that this is a weak number, but it seems to be more stable,” said Stuart Hoffman, chief economist at PNC Financial Services Group. “The bottom line to all of this is that we need more jobs.”
Sales are down 72 percent from their peak annual rate of 1.39 million in July 2005. More than 600,000 new homes were sold annually from 1983 through 2007. After the housing bubble popped, sales plunged to 375,000 last year. That was the weakest yearly total on records dating back to 1963.
New home sales made up about 7 percent of the housing market last year. That’s down from about 15 percent before the bust.
Weak sales mean fewer jobs in the construction industry, which normally power economic recoveries. Each new home built creates, on average, the equivalent of three jobs for a year and generates about $90,000 in taxes paid to local and federal authorities, according to the National Association of Home Builders. The impact is felt across multiple industries.
Builders have sharply scaled back construction in the face of a severe housing market bust. The number of new homes up for sale in March fell 1.4 percent to 210,000, the lowest level in nearly 42 years.
Due to the sluggish sales pace, it would take eight months to exhaust that supply. That’s above a healthy level of about six months.
The median sales price in June was $213,400. That was down 0.6 percent from a year earlier and down 1.4 percent from May.
New home sales rose by 46 percent in the Northeast, 33 percent in the South and 21 percent in the Midwest. The West posted a decline of nearly 7 percent.
“One month doesn’t make a trend and the roadblocks to a healthy housing market are high, the most important one being the still-high jobless rate,” wrote BMO Capital Markets economist Jennifer Lee in a note to clients. “But with borrowing costs at record lows, prices also remaining low, those with jobs who can afford a home may be enticed.”
View full post on Latest News
Tagged as:
Home,
June,
month,
record,
sales,
SecondWeakest
by admin on July 17, 2010
- This Combo Pack Includes: One Rubberized Case, One Car Charger, One Home Charger, One Cable, On screen Protector.
- Charger: Input: 100V – 240V (U.S. & World Standard) (50~60Hz/180mA).Output: 7.6V / 800m
- Case: Custom made to fit your PDA perfectly. Easy access to all buttons and features.
- Protector: Clear, ultra thin and durable. Custom designed to fit your PDA/Smartphone. Shield and protect your screen from unwanted scratches.
- Cable: Connect BlackBerry phone with your PC/Laptop by USB port. USB is supported on Windows 98/2000/ME/XP, not supported on Windows 95/98 1st Edition or Windows NT.
Solid Red Rubberized Snap on Case + Rapid Car Charger + Home Travel Charger + Clear Reusable LCD Screen Protector + USB Data Cable for RIM Blackberry 8300 8310 8320 8330 Curve Smartphone
Tagged as:
8300,
8310,
8320,
8330,
blackberry,
cable,
case,
charger,
clear,
Curve,
data,
Home,
protector,
rapid,
reusable,
rubberized,
screen,
smartphone,
Snap,
Solid,
travel
