Published June 24, 2004, in issue 0325 of The Hook

Most shocking-- shocking!-- revelation from the 9/11 Commission: No evidence ties al-Qaida to Saddam Hussein in the September 11 attacks.

Most shocking other revelation: Although still a war opponent, the Russian president Vladimir Putin says Hussein was planning to attack America.

Most deserved overtime pay: To soldiers who are prevented from leaving Iraq or from retiring under the Army's "stop-loss" program. Fifth District Democratic candidate Al Weed calls for time and a half for those on extended tours.

Worst trend in terrorism: Decapitation. American engineer Paul M. Johnson Jr. is beheaded June 18 in Saudi Arabia; South Korean Kim Sun-il on June 22 in Iraq. Last month, Nick Berg suffered the same fate.

Worst week for violent deaths locally: The body of Shawn Gavin Hatcher, 23, is found June 18 in the parking lot of Oakwood Homes on U.S. 29. Daniel Bradley Limbacher, 21, is wanted in connection with that death. And three are arrested for the June 20 stabbing death of Candido B. Rivera on North Berkshire Drive.

Best Vanity Fairesque-trial: "Black Widow" Donna Somerville's for the poisoning murder of her wealthy husband, Hamilton "Ham" Somerville, in Orange.

Juiciest trial testimony: Jeff Carpenter, who lived in a cottage on the Somerville's Mt. Athos estate, awakens to Donna Somerville kissing him and performing oral sex, Olympia Meola reports in the Daily Progress. "She told me she wasn't getting very much sexual activity," Carpenter testifies.

Worst revisionism: Officials at Waynesboro High force valedictorian Moreko Griggs-- the first African American to win that honor-- to share the top spot with two white students days before graduation after parents complain, reports the News Virginian. The high school is changing its method of choosing valedictorian.

Worst trailer wreck: A tractor trailer pulling a mobile home trailer overturns on eastbound Interstate 64 June 17, stopping traffic for miles.

Worst loss of a community activist: Herman Key, assistant director of the Independent Resource Center and former city planning commission chair, dies June 20.

Worst TB case: A nurse dies June 12 in Virginia Beach of tuberculosis, possibly having exposed hundreds of people to the disease, Chesapeake General Hospital announces June 14.

Worst carp: Lake Anna's, which the Virginia Department of Health says consumers should not eat more than twice a month because of high PCB levels.

Best news for UVA neighbors: The university announces plans to update its occasionally soot-spewing heating plant starting next spring, according to Kate Andrews in the Progress.

Best besting of Harvard: UVA's Digestive Health Center of Excellence snags a major diabetes grant in competition with Harvard's Digestive Diseases Center, the Progress reports.

Best architects: Eco architect William McDonough and outgoing Mayor Maurice Cox are among 20 profiled in FastCompany's June "Masters of Design" cover story.

Best karma: Kidney donor Mitzi Nichols wins $500,000 in the Virginia Lottery.

Best resurrection: Eightyone, the Shenandoah Valley alternative that bit the dust in 2002, is back, and plans to publish monthly starting in August.

Bestseller: Former President Bill Clinton launches a tour for his memoir, My Life.

Worst journalism scandal: An editor at the News & Advance in Lynchburg changed stories after publication before submitting them to this year's Virginia Press Association contest.

Worst question to have asked about your date: "Isn't she a little young?" The Virginia Department of Health starts a public awareness campaign after a study indicates Virginia men over 21 are three times more likely to father children with junior high girls than junior high boys are.

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