In a two-column advertisement that will run in the Great Falls Tribune Friday, Lethbridge Mayor Robert Tarleck expresses "sincere regret for the worry and inconvenience" caused when Alderwoman Darlene Heatherington disappeared after taking a bike ride on the River's Edge Trail in Great Falls.

She turned up four days later outside a Las Vegas hotel, initially claiming she was drugged, raped and abducted during her Great Falls visit. She later admitted that she went willingly with a man she met from Alberta.

To Great Falls Mayor Randy Gray, commissioners, law enforcement and citizens, Tarleck said: "We especially wish to send thanks and appreciation ... for the incredible service and support you have shown to your northern neighbours over the past week. Your concern and friendship will not be forgotten."

Tarleck had planned a visit to Great Falls sometime next week to extend apologies, but was convinced by Gray that the trip would be unnecessary, according to the Lethbridge Herald.

"A simple thank you is enough," Gray said.

Commissioner John Rosenbaum concurred: "I'd like to think we would have done the same for anybody."

Heatherington, 39, is charged with misdemeanor filing a false police report.

Great Falls Assistant City Attorney Kory Larsen has offered to defer prosecution for one year, providing she isn't charged with another crime, pays $100 to $500 in court costs and seeks psychological help in Lethbridge.

Her attorney, Dan Donovan of Great Falls, said she is likely to accept the plea agreement.

If convicted, Heatherington could face up to a $500 fine and six months in jail.

KATIE N. JOHANNES, www.greatfallstribune.com

Whittaker was not home at the time, and Chief Deputy John Dailey said the death of Jesse Joe Tribble, 18, was not related to the burglary and was not a homicide. It may have been drug-related, Dailey said.

Judge Deborah Neal, 54, has been on paid leave since Aug. 16; she remains hospitalized for treatment of depression. She was among the patrons in a Kansas City, Kan., casino that was raided by authorities in April.

Dar Heatherington cried in court as she was handed the sentence for public mischief.

That evidence included letters, sexy lingerie and a computer disk with Ms. Heatherington's face pasted on photos of a woman performing various sex acts.

Armed men burst into the north Moscow arcade at about 6 a.m. and opened fire, the Interfax news agency reported. They killed a security guard and a customer, and seriously wounded the cashier.

Iorworth Hoare, the rapist, who has already been in jail for 36 years, has been moved from a low-security open prison to a high-security cell in another jail amid fears that he could be attacked by jealous prisoners.

But City of Lethbridge administrators found a section of the Municipal Government Act that said Heatherington's resignation took effect the day it was tendered – meaning her role on council ended Monday.

The 60-page filing, presented in San Francisco Superior Court, alleges that the companies sell rights to web advertisements based on searches for terms such as "illegal gambling," "internet gambling" and "California gambling."

Mayor Bob Tarleck said the city isn't waiting to see if Dar Heatherington voluntarily resigns before it applies to court for her removal. A lawyer is "presently engaged in this case," Tarleck said.

The 40-year-old had signed a plea agreement that the misdemeanor charge would be dropped if she stayed out of trouble for a year and saw a psychiatrist.

Under the deal, the charge was to be dismissed if she provided proof she had seen a psychiatrist, paid court costs and stayed out of trouble for the full year.

VLTs generate 30 per cent of Loto-Quebec's profits but the corporation wants to reduce the number of machines in poorer areas.

…"Former street cop Rick McIntosh, who stepped down temporarily as president of the Toronto Police Association on Sunday, is among those being investigated...

So far, only one federal employee, civilian director Paul Champagne, has been fired after auditors discovered National Defence had paid $160 million for military computer hardware and support services it never received.