December 9, 1997

Some 75 relatives of victims of Trans World Airlines Flight 800 crash in July 1996 bring variety of agendas to National Transportation Safety Board hearings, Baltimore; some seek clarity after months of perplexity and grief; others say they want to thank probers; many seek to draw attention to range of issues; critics focus particularly on Suffolk County, NY, Medical Examiner Dr Charles V Wetli, charging missteps, delays and lapses; photo (M)

An unstable wall continues to disrupt Madison Avenue. PAGE B3 A Justice refuses to extend a ban on part of 'Megan's Law.' PAGE B2

Dr Judah Folkman, director of surgical research at Children's Hospital in Boston, proposed 35 years ago that tumors induce the body to build the blood vessels that feed them; for most of the time since, he has been a lonely voice but recent research indicates that his ideas have a firm foundation in molecular biology; now some 140 laboratories and biotechonology companies are engaged in identifying the chemical signals the body uses to construct and dismantle temporary blood supplies; Folkman comments; photos (M

Clinton Administration officials say Pres Clinton will appoint Bill Lann Lee to head Justice Department's civil rights division while Senate is in recess if Republicans continue to block nomination; say Administration will exhaust all options before engaging in rarely used Constitutional maneuver, which allows President to temporarily circumvent need for Senate approval of nomination when Senate is in recess (M)

Atty Gen Janet Reno and FBI Dir Louis J Freeh, in unusual joint letter, defy House Government Reform and Oversight Committee subpoena to turn over memorandum written by Freeh urging Reno to appoint independent prosecutor to investigate Democratic campaign fund-raising; say memorandum includes confidential grand jury testimony about pending inquiry that could undermine prosecutions and chill future deliberations among law enforcement officials who fear their private advice would be made public (M)