April 28, 2001

William C Rhoden's Sports of The Times column on New York Knickerbockers' defeat against Toronto Raptors in Game 2 of NBA playoffs focuses on problems team and player Marcus Camby are experiencing in light of Camby's mother and two sisters being held hostage at knifepoint for hours in their home in South Windsor, Conn, by Troy D Crooms, who knows family; photo (M)

Manx Telecom, British Telecommunications subsidiary on Isle of Man, races to introduce world's first phone network using much-promoted new technology uniting wireless mobility with breadth of Internet; will distribute speedier handsets than currently available on wireless devices in hopes that host of services will eventually be offered through them; technology is known as third generation wireless, or 3G; photos; map (M)

SEC gathers information from Wall Street firms in new inquiry into whether prices of offerings of new stocks were manipulated during 1990's; wants to know about possible agreements between big investment banks and buyers of initial public offerings regarding prearranged purchases intended to inflate stocks' prices (M)

Navy resumes military maneuvers on Vieques, Puerto Rico, and hundreds of angry demonstrators demand end to bombing exercises they say are harming island's ecology and its residents' health; officials say 65 people are arrested after slipping through fence and onto Naval camp; presence of protesters on beach forces warships to briefly call off maneuvers; Naval officials claim they have removed all those who entered restricted area, but organizers say as many as dozen people, including mayor of Vieques and state senators, are still hiding in dense, scrubby jungle in effort to dissuade Navy from resuming bombing exercises; photos (M)

Judge J Thomas Marten dismisses major antitrust case in which Justice Department accused American Airlines of predatory pricing to drive competitors out of airports it serves; adopts airline's every defense against charges that it incurred significant short-term losses to drive low-cost competitors--Vanguard Airlines, Sun Jet International and Western Pacific--from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport; only Vanguard remains in business; decision clears one of last regulatory clouds overhanging American's business plan (M)

New York Yankees defeat Oakland Athletics, 3-2; photo (M)2

New York Knicks' player Marcus Camby misses practice and may not play in Game 3 of playoff series against Toronto Raptors because of problems related to his mother and two sisters being held hostage by Troy D Crooms in their home in Windsor, Conn; photo (M)

Clyde Haberman comments on move among some of New York City's elite private schools, such as Brearley, to ask parents not to take their daughters out of school for Take Our Daughters to Work Day, arguing that it is more imporant for children to spend the day in school (M)

Economic Growth Continues At an Annual Pace of 2% The economy showed surprising resilience in the first three months of this year, growing at a 2 percent annual rate and extending the longest American expansion on record to a full 10 years, the government reported. Despite widespread concerns that a recession could be looming, overall economy activity accelerated in the first quarter. [Page A1.]

Airline Case Is Dismissed A federal judge dismissed an antitrust case in which American Airlines was accused of driving three rivals away from an airport by undercutting their fares. PAGE C1

Four New York City police officers involved in shooting death of Amadou Diallo will not be allowed to carry guns and will remain assigned to desk duties that will prevent them from interacting with public; announcement is made by police commissioner, Bernard H Kerik, who says he will decide when officers are fit for regular duty and could once again carry their weapons; suggests four would remain on force but unarmed well into foreseeable future; Kerik's decision to strip them of their weapons, even though he has cleared them of any wrongdoing, is seen as highly unusual (M)

Law enforcement agencies and local governments around country are frustrated by rising popularity of Ecstasy and other illegal drugs among young nightclub revelers, and they are increasingly going after clubs themselves; they claim electronic music played in clubs has close connection to abuse of drugs; fans of music, nightclub owners and some civil rights lawyers say singling out clubs based on music they play raises First Amendment concerns; New York has long used local nuisance laws to shutter nightclubs with history of drug problems; now other large cities, like Chicago, and small ones, like Lewiston, Me, are adopting ordinances to regulate raves--giant all-night parties featuring electronic music and light shows; for first time, they are imposing criminal penalties on owners of clubs or other dance spaces where drug use is discovered; photo (M)