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Prosecutors to recommend new trial in Colorado slaying

FORT COLLINS, Colorado (CNN) — Special prosecutors in Colorado on Friday said they will recommend a new trial for a man convicted in the murder of a woman whose sexually mutilated body was found near his home more than 20 years ago.

New tests show DNA found on the victim does not match that of Tim Masters, who is serving a life sentence, said special prosecutor Don Quick.

This fall we requested new DNA testing of the victim’s clothing, Quick said.

We were able to compare and exclude Tim Masters as the source of those DNA samples.

Masters was convicted and sentenced in 1999 for the murder of Peggy Hettrick.

Ongoing hearings resume next week, as a judge re-examines decisions made years ago. Masters’ new lawyers say key evidence was withheld during the original trial, and a special prosecutor is backing them in at least four instances.

The defense team’s claims of police and prosecutorial misconduct are supported not only by the attorneys who represented Masters in 1999, but also by former police officers, investigators and forensic experts, some of whom say police ignored other viable suspects.

Lt. Jim Broderick, the Fort Collins investigator credited with cracking the case after 12 years hunting Hettrick’s killer, said in a November interview that he stands staunchly by his investigation.

He declined to discuss the specific allegations at issue in the current hearings, but said he has seen no new evidence that leads him to believe Masters deserves another trial.

If a judge rules otherwise he’ll accept it, he said, because the last thing in the world I want is someone convicted of a crime they didn’t do. Watch police try to bait teen Masters into murder confession

The Fort Collins police chief said he stands by Broderick’s work.

However, several authorities have told CNN they have their doubts about the fairness of the original trial and investigation. See the key players in the case

Included are a key forensic expert for the 1999 prosecution, a former lead investigator, a former Colorado Bureau of Investigation forensic expert and two former Fort Collins police officers who say they never believed Masters did it. Also, two other former officers have testified they believe their colleagues withheld evidence favorable to Masters.

In 1999, prosecutors told a jury only Masters could have killed and maimed the 37-year-old redhead whose body was found in a field off Landings Drive on February 12, 1987.

Some think differently. They believe Masters, now 36, was convicted via faulty logic, pop psychology, underhanded investigative tactics and a collection of spooky doodles.

I’m not sure who killed Peggy Hettrick, but I am positive, without a doubt, that Tim Masters did not, said former Fort Collins police Det. Troy Krenning.

A single, deep stab wound killed Hettrick. After she was dead, someone — presumably her killer — sliced away one nipple and much of her genitals. E-mail to a friend

CNN’s Eliott C. McLaughlin contributed to this report.

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U.S. in Canadian manual as possible torture site

TORONTO, Ontario (AP) — A training manual for Canadian diplomats lists the United States as a country where prisoners risk torture and abuse, citing interrogation techniques such as stripping prisoners, blindfolding and sleep deprivation.

The Foreign Affairs Department document, released Friday, singled out the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. It also names Israel, Afghanistan, China, Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Syria as places where inmates could face torture.

A Canadian citizen, Omar Khadr, is in custody at Guantanamo, but Canada has long publicly said it accepts U.S. assurances that Khadr is being treated humanely.

The government inadvertently released the manual to attorneys for Amnesty International who are working on a lawsuit involving alleged abuse of Afghan detainees by local Afghan authorities after Canadian troops handed over the detainees.

The document in question is a training manual. It is not a policy document or any kind of a statement of policy. As such it does not convey the government’s views or positions, said Neil Hrab, a spokesman for Canada’s Foreign Affairs Department.

The training manual purposely raised public issues to stimulate discussion and debate in the classroom.

Calls to the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa seeking comment were not immediately returned Friday.

Human rights groups have long called on Canada to pressure the United States to return Khadr from Guantanamo. They say not enough has been done for Khadr, who has been in custody since he was 15. Khadr is accused of tossing a grenade that killed one U.S. soldier and injured another in Afghanistan in 2002.

He is the son of an alleged al Qaeda financier, and his family has received little sympathy in Canada, where they’ve been called the First Family of Terrorism.

Dennis Edney, one of Khadr’s attorneys, said the foreign affairs document shows that Canada says one thing publicly but believes something else privately.

Canada was well aware that Omar Khadr’s allegations of being tortured had a ring of truth to it. Canada has not once raised the protection of Omar Khadr when there are such serious allegations, Edney said. What does that say to you about Canada’s commitment to the rule of law and human rights? It talks on both sides of its face.
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McFadden completes Birmingham move

LONDON, England — Birmingham have completed the signing of Everton striker James McFadden in a deal thought to be worth $11 million.

The Scotland international is reunited with Birmingham manager Alex McLeish after agreeing personal terms and passing a medical.

The deal has gone through in time for McFadden to be available for Saturday’s visit of Chelsea.

McLeish is confident McFadden can make a big impact during the next five years with Birmingham. The former Scotland manager said: I am delighted to have signed James.

He is not just a guy who can score great goals. He can also create things and make things happen and he has got a big heart.

He is the type of player you know you are going to get everything from for the entire 90 minutes of a game. He has matured. He has had his initiation at Everton in the Premier League and for me he is a definite Premier League player.

McLeish has already signed Hibernian full-back David Murphy for $3 million and is pressing ahead with his attempts to sign Aston Villa central defender Gary Cahill and Manchester City’s Greek international striker Georgios Samaras. E-mail to a friend

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Buechel pips Maier in Kitzbuehel

KITZBUEHEL, Austria — Marco Buechel of Liechtenstein broke his own record as the oldest winner of a World Cup race as he took the Super-G at Kitzbuehel on Friday.

Buechel, 36, held off Austrian hero and fellow veteran Hermann Maier who finished 0.16 seconds behind after making a mistake on the final jump before the line.

Home hero Maier, himself 35, has finished on the podium in the last seven World Cup Super-G events at Kitzbuehel, winning five of them.

But Buechel had a near-flawless run on the famous Streifalm course to finish in one minute 15.44 seconds.

This victory was a dream, the biggest thing for me, said Buechel, who has four World Cup wins, setting the previous record for oldest winner at Lake Louise, Canada in 2006.

I was incredible nervous, especially when Hermann was racing, he added.

Maier, finished on the podium for the first time since coming third at the Super-G in Hinterstoder, Austria, in December 2006.

This is great, of course. I had a really good run and I just had fun out there, Maier said. I could rely on my technical skills.

World Cup discipline leader Didier Cuche of Switzerland and Mario Scheiber shared third, trailing Buechel by 0.33 seconds.

Overall World Cup leader Benjamin Raich finished 0.59 seconds back in seventh place and stayed top of the standings. E-mail to a friend

Copyright 2008 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Heathrow crash chaos continues

(CNN) — Air travelers are experiencing delays as London’s Heathrow Airport continues to reel from a crash landing.

BAA is doing everything possible to minimize disruption to our passengers and additional staff are on hand at the terminals to assist passengers, a statement from the company read.

Passengers expecting to fly out of Heathrow were warned to contact their airline before traveling to the airport, just west of London.

At this stage, we are working hard to restore near normal operations. However, it is extremely important that passengers due to fly from Heathrow today contact their airline regarding the status of their flight.

More than 200 flights were canceled immediately following the incident on Thursday– nearly a fifth of the day’s flights, airport operator BAA said.

On Thursday, air traffic controllers diverted some arriving flights to other airports on a flight by flight basis — and the ripple effect was felt at airports across the UK.

The chaos was caused by a Boeing 777 British Airways flight from Beijing making a crash landing at 12:42 p.m. (7:42 a.m. ET).

For a short while, the southern runway was closed leaving only the northern runway open. Other London-area airports handled extra flights while Heathrow capacity was reduced.

Gatwick, Stansted and Luton all told the UK Press Association they had accepted incoming flights, and used coaches to ferry the passengers to their ultimate destination.

In Scotland, travelers were also warned to check before home if they were flying south.

Donald Morrison, spokesman for BAA Scotland which operates a number of airports in the country, said: Obviously because Heathrow is such a busy airport there’s going to be a knock-on effect on flights and this will affect Scottish passengers.

There will obviously be a number of passengers who will delayed as the airport plays catch-up.

The National Air Traffic Services (NATS), which oversees the UK’s air space also cut the number of planes touching down at Heathrow.

NATS said aircraft on the in-bound flow was cut from 42 to 24 because of the closure of one lane on the southbound runway. Outgoing flights were less affected as they were able to queue for a take-off slot, but they were still delayed. E-mail to a friend

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