Man stuck

under trash bin

DILLON — A man trying to steal $10 worth of copper got himself into a stinky situation when he spent 12 hours trapped under a trash bin at a Dillon County landfill, authorities said.

Gibson Cook broke into the landfill Tuesday evening, then got stuck as he tried to crawl underneath the large container, deputies said.

Landfill workers found Cook about 12 hours later with his legs sticking out from under the bin. Emergency workers had to inflate air bags under the container to lift it and free Cook.

Cook, who has been charged with trespassing and petit larceny, is well known to officers, deputy Wayne Kirby said.

''He's one of our local petty thieves,'' Kirby said. ''But he has never been in a jam like this.''

Jail officials say Cook, 56, was waiting for a bond hearing. It was unclear if he had an attorney.

The landfill has seen an increase in thefts in recent months as thieves try to find discarded scrap metal. But in 27 years at the dump, employee Charlie Brown said this was the first time anyone got stuck.

''It was right disgusting. I wouldn't be under there,'' Brown told WBTW-TV in Florence.

Brown said there couldn't have been more than $10 worth of copper under the trash bin.

Jury acquits

magistrate

GREENWOOD — A former Greenwood County part-time magistrate has been found not guilty of misconduct in office.

The Index-Journal of Greenwood reports a jury deliberated about an hour Wednesday before acquitting Lisa Cain. She also served as a magistrate's office administrator.

Prosecutors said Cain knew another employee in the office was stealing money and did not report it.

The employee, Toni Cole, testified against Cain. Cole is awaiting trial on embezzlement charges after authorities say she admitted she stole $23,000 from the magistrate's office.

In his closing argument, defense attorney Billy Garrett told the jury they had to decide if they believed Cole or Cain, who testified in her own defense.

SC graduates

break record

COLUMBIA — The state Education Department says the class of 2008 earned a record $767 million in college scholarships.

The roughly 40,000 public school seniors who graduated in the spring received $83 million more in scholarship offers than last year's class. The department says the latest amount pushes the total value of scholarships earned to more than $3 billion over the past five years.

The total includes more than the scholarships students accepted. It represents all scholarships offered to students as they considered which college to attend.

The education department estimates 90 percent of the scholarships are academic, while 10 percent are athletic. The state's lottery-backed LIFE, HOPE and Palmetto Fellows scholarships account for about 20 percent of the total.

Father, son get

prison time

COLUMBIA — A father and son have each been sentenced to more than 40 years in prison for their role in a scheme to set off pipe bombs near a Charlotte, N.C., school as a diversion for a bank robbery.

Federal prosecutors say 36- year-old Timothy Eddington received a 50-year sentence while his 18-year-old son Steven Eddington received a 43-year, 5-month sentence Thursday.

The men were convicted in January of conspiracy and explosive charges.

York County deputies got a tip and broke up the plot the day of the planned robbery in August 2007, finding the men and two pipe bombs in an abandoned Fort Mill house.

Two other teens involved in the plot testified against the Eddingtons and are each serving more than six years in prison.

Jury fails

to reach verdict

CONWAY — A six-member jury has failed to reach a verdict against an Atlantic Beach town councilwoman charged with resisting arrest after she tried to leave a traffic stop by telling the officer she had to use the bathroom.

Horry County prosecutor Scott Graustein told WBTW-TV in Florence on Thursday that he plans to retry the case against Councilwoman Retha Pierce.

In January, Pierce was convicted in absentia on a charge of reckless driving that was the reason for the traffic stop. She has appealed that conviction, telling WBTW that she had requested a jury trial in that case.

In court Thursday, Pierce testified that a bladder condition made her unable to follow the arresting officer's commands.

A new trial date has not been set.

(Associated Press)