Nation briefs

ILLINOIS30 horses killed in stable fire

More than 30 horses died in a weekend stable fire, with distraught owners of the animals arriving yesterday to lay flowers at the site, a fire department official said. The fire Saturday occurred 50 miles northwest of Chicago at Valley View Acres, a boarding facility that also breeds and trains thoroughbreds and show-jumping horses, and offers riding lessons to children. As firefighters arrived before midnight Saturday, the stable's owners were running around the burning complex looking for ways to lead horses to safety as the two-story structure collapsed, Crystal Lake Fire Rescue Chief Paul Deraedt said. "They were frantic" he said about the stable's owners, Tyson and Amber Bauman. "But nothing could have survived the conditions inside. . . . They are devastated."

FLORIDA

Cop-killing suspect had radical views

A man who set his house on fire and ambushed responding police officers held "anti-government, anti-establishment" views and had previously threatened law enforcement, authorities said yesterday. Authorities said Curtis Wade Holley, 53, fatally shot Leon County Sheriff's Deputy Christopher Smith, 47, on Saturday and wounded another deputy before he was killed in a gun battle outside his home. Holley had lived at the end of a cul-de-sac in a middle class neighborhood for about a year, sheriff's Lt. James McQuaig said yesterday.

OHIO

Gunman sought in killing of five

Police in Cleveland asked for help in finding who shot and killed a pregnant woman and her unborn child, along with three others. Authorities hadn't determined a motive nor identified a suspect in the killings Friday night. Among the victims were Lemon Bryant, 60, a 19-year-old man and a 17-year-old girl. Pregnant homeowner Sherita Johnson and her unborn child also were killed. Investigators say the Johnsons' 9-year-old daughter was grazed by a bullet, while the woman's toddler son was unharmed. Police believe Johnson arrived home with her children and her daughter found some of the people who had been shot. A man in the house fired at the girl, then shot her mother in her vehicle, police said.