Court won't hear Ill. foot doctor's death sentence

The Supreme Court won't get involved in a death penalty case in which a convicted killer in Illinois complained that prosecutors focused the jury's attention on the fact that he never testified on his own behalf.

The court did not comment on its action Monday to leave in place the conviction and sentence of Ronald Mikos, a foot doctor who was facing allegations of Medicare fraud. He was sentenced to death in 2005 on charges that he shot a disabled nurse and former patient, Joyce Brannon, to keep her from testifying against him.

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NATION BRIEFS

Gulf Vet Ailments Still a Mystery A study of more than 10,000veterans and family members suffering post-Gulf War medical problemsfound no evidence of any unique disorder, the Pentagon's top medicalofficial said. The study turned up instances of back pain, headache,alcoholism, depression and other ailments, but no mystery illness. Governors Can't Resolve Policy Fights The nation's governors closed their summer meeting far fromconsensus …

Inter Milan hopes to improve in Champions League

MOSCOW (AP) — Two weeks after a shock loss to Trabzonspor, Inter Milan will be looking for its first win in the Champions League when it visits CSKA Moscow on Tuesday.

Inter earned its first Serie A win of the season on Saturday, beating 10-man Bologna 3-1 in Claudio Ranieri's first match as coach. Ranieri was hired last week to replace Gian Piero Gasperini, who was fired after a 3-1 loss to newly promoted Novara.

"Ranieri has given us a lot of order in very little time," Inter captain Javier Zanetti said. "Now we're heading to Moscow with confidence."

Newly signed forward Diego Forlan is cup-tied after joining from Atletico Madrid, likely leaving Inter's attack to …

Giants' Zito finally beats former team in 5th try

Barry Zito finally got the best of his former team and only club he'd never beaten, ending a four-start winless stretch in the San Francisco Giants' 5-4 victory over the Oakland Athletics on Saturday night.

Pablo Sandoval homered, Juan Uribe hit a pair of run-scoring singles and Aubrey Huff added an RBI triple for the Giants. They made it two in a row in the Bay Bridge Series after being swept across the bay in Oakland last month.

Zito (7-2) was the 2002 AL Cy Young Award winner with the A's and left for a $126 million, seven-year deal with the Giants before the 2007 season. It took him five tries to beat Oakland after going 0-4 with an 8.85 ERA over his first …

Tenor Schreier casts a spell at Ravinia

The Ravinia Festival began this season's cluster of vocalperformances in rousing style Tuesday night at the Martin Theatre.

A large audience greeted distinguished German tenor PeterSchreier with attentive stillness while he and his accompanist forthe evening, Ravinia's music director Christoph Eschenbach, performedSchubert and Schumann songs. The quiet listeners erupted intoboisterous applause and foot-stomping at the concert's close,bringing singer and pianist back for three encores.

Tuesday's concert was Schreier's Ravinia debut, but localaudiences remember him from his performance of Schubert's masterwork,"Winterreisse (Winter's Journey)," with Daniel …

People, Places and Pain

People, Places and Pain Titles by J. California Cooper Short Stories A Piece of Mine (Wild Tress Press, 1984) Anchor Books/Doubleday, January 1992 $10.50, ISBN 0-385-42087-0

Homemade Love (St. Martin's Press, 1986) St. Martin's Griffin (reissue edition), December 1998 $12.95, ISBN 0-312-19465-X :

Some Soul to Keep (St. Martin's Press,1987) St. Martin's Griffin (reissue edition), December 1998 $12.95, ISBN 0-312-19337-8

The Matter Is Life (Doubleday Books,1991) Anchor (reprint edition), October 1992 $12., ISBN …

Biathlon World Cup Results

Results Thursday from the opening World Cup biathlon meet of the season:

Women

15 kilometers

Missed targets in parentheses

1. Helena Jonsson, Sweden, 45 minutes, 5.1 seconds (0).

2. Kati Wilhelm, Germany, 39.7 seconds behind (1).

3. Ekkaterina Iourieva, Russia, 1:10.3 (1).

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