Mass. driver rescued from river

NORTON, Mass. (AP) – A man jumped into a river and pried open the door of a submerged car to rescue a woman who drove off a bridge and into the water, authorities said.

Chris Baker, 52, watched as Ann Marie Valliere’s car veered off Norton’s East Main Street on Monday morning and landed of its roof in the Rumford River 15 feet below. Except for the tires, the car was underwater and the driver’s door was wedged against the bank.

Before firefighters arrived on the scene, Baker, who lives in Norton, was able to pry open the door and pull Valliere to safety.

“I grabbed onto the foot and pulled the woman to shore,” he told The Boston Globe. “I happened to be in the right place at the right time. I’m glad I was able to help.”

The 53-year-old Valliere, who also lives in Norton, was in stable condition at Sturdy Memorial Hospital in Attleboro.

Baker, who owns a landscaping business, went back to work.

“It probably would have been a fatality,” Norton police officer David Ruskey said. “She was unconscious and under water.”

The cause of the accident was under investigation.

Romney recalls F-16 fighter ride

BOSTON (AP) – Gov. Mitt Romney was busy back when he was preparing for the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City, but not too busy to achieve what he labeled a lifetime ambition.

The state’s chief executive, addressing a group of educators Tuesday, recalled trying to beg off an environmental speech at Hill Air Force Base in Utah before organizers said they would give him a ride in an F-16 fighter jet if he could find time to speak.

“Suddenly, my schedule cleared,” Romney proclaimed.

Bill would stop convicts’ profiting

BOSTON (AP) – As a convicted serial killer’s artwork went up for auction on the Internet, a state lawmaker pushed for a new law that would prohibit criminals from profiting from their crimes.

Alfred Gaynor, 38, was convicted in 2000 of raping, strangling and killing four women in Springfield in the late 1990s. He is serving four consecutive life sentences and his crayon drawing depicting Jesus praying against a rock went up for auction Monday on a prisoner advocacy Web site.

Bidding opened at $10. By Tuesday afternoon, nobody had bid on Gaynor’s drawing.

The bill filed Tuesday by Rep. Peter Koutoujian wouldn’t stop convicts from producing art or selling it, but it would prevent them from keeping the money.

Koutoujian, D-Waltham, said victims and their families are traumatized when a convict makes money off his notoriety. About three dozen other states have similar laws.

Fired radio host lands in Boston

BOSTON (AP) – A conservative radio host who was fired by a Washington station after he called Islam “a terrorist organization” has been hired to host a talk show in Boston.

Michael Graham was fired in August by WMAL-AM because he refused to apologize for saying on-air “We are at war with a terrorist organization named Islam,” following the London subway bombings.

“I stand by it,” Graham, 42, told the Boston Herald on Monday.

Following a two-week tryout, the former standup comedian and GOP political consult officially took over Monday as WTKK-FM’s afternoon drive host, replacing Jay Severin.

“I think he’s a very bright guy,” said Peter Smyth, chief executive of Greater Media, which owns WTKK. He said audience response to Graham had so far been “incredibly positive.”

Islamic groups said they’re disappointed with the decision to hire Graham.

“When you describe one-fifth of the world’s population to be a member of a terrorist organization, that amounts to bigotry,” said Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

The group was the first to call for Graham’s firing from WMAL and Hooper said it will be closely monitoring his new show in Boston for similar comments.