Delaware law enforcement officers and others involved with local law enforcement agencies were honored recently at two separate events. Sgt. Mark Leatherman and Sgt. Rob Penrod of the Delaware City Police Department were recognized at the Dec. 8 city council meeting for the work they did to bring an eight-year murder investigation to a successful conclusion with the conviction of two men earlier this year.

"This was never a cold case," said Police Chief Russ Martin. "For eight years these sergeants, who were detectives at the time (of the murder of Norman Herrell on June 12, 2000) were dogged in their determination" to solve this crime."

In July, two Toledo men -- James A. Brenson Jr., 55, and William T. Allen, 64 -- were convicted of aggravated murder in a jury trial.

Reading from proclamations presented to each officer, Delaware Mayor Windell Wheeler said the two "fulfilled their duties with courage and commitment in working tirelessly in assisting the prosecution in a much-publicized and successful trial."

On Dec. 4 Delaware County Sheriff Walter L. Davis III presented awards for outstanding dedication and service to several members of the Delaware County Sheriff's Office.

Office citations were issued to Corrections Officer Jeremiah R. Sarver, Deputy Shawn L. Wade and Deputy Ronald E. Vogel.

The group commendation went to the members of the IT Division, Leonard "Cleve" Brown III, James R. Sturgeon Jr. and Mitchell L. Aleshire.

The evening's top awards went to:

? Lieutenant Colleen E. Wilson, "Eugene Jackson" Humanitarian Award.

? Victim Advocate Valerie K. Hooper, Civilian of the Year.

? Dispatcher Brittany L. Craig, Dispatcher of the Year.

? Corrections Officer Brent Penix, Corrections Officer of the Year.

? Deputy James B. Mox, Deputy of the Year.

? Deputy Ronald E. Vogel, community liaison and school resource officer, received the highest award, 2008 Sheriff's Office Employee of the Year.

When play begins Tuesday in the City League-South Division, no matchup likely will garner more interest than when the Eastmoor Academy boys basketball team travels to Independence. The Warriors are the two-time defending champions but have a decidedly different look after graduation took away star players each of the last two seasons.

For the 76ers, in addition to playing host to who they consider their biggest rival, it will be an opportunity to learn if they can be a City-South title contender.

The other opening league matchups pit South at West, Marion-Franklin at Walnut and Africentric at Briggs.

"They lost (2008 graduates Antonio Bumpus and Ray Woods), but I'd say they're still the favorite," Independence coach Tom Cripe said. "Walnut Ridge is much-improved. Marion-Franklin has some young talent."

Eastmoor will field a shorter lineup that features senior guards Alex Coleman (5-foot-7) and Doug Thorpe (5-9), junior forwards Denzel McDougald (6-2) and Michael Sliker-Alton (6-3) and sophomore forward Ron Tanner (6-1). Senior Anthony Keels, who is the team's tallest player at 6-6, missed the Warriors' opening 62-48 loss to Toledo St. John's last Saturday but should be back soon.

Other key players include senior Michael Lester (6-3) and junior Matt Ryan (5-10).

Eastmoor, which went 20-3 overall and 14-0 in the City-South a year ago but lost to Northland 57-31 in the City title game, beat DeSales 50-33 in a Division II district final to capture its first championship since 2000. The Warriors then fell to Toledo Libbey 59-50 in a regional semifinal.

Bumpus averaged 21.7 points, 8.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists and made the ThisWeek Super 12 team a year after 2007 graduate Ron Steward was named the Super 12 Captain.

"We'd like to get it up and down and play a little pressure defense, force the tempo," coach Sean Taylor said. "This year we're just hoping to compete and be ready for the playoffs."

Independence were 11-10 overall and finished third at 9-5 in the City-South behind Eastmoor and Africentric (11-3) and ahead of Walnut Ridge (8-6), Marion-Franklin (6-8), Briggs (5-9), West (3-11) and South (1-13).

The 76ers lost to eventual Division I state champion Newark 65-45 in the second round of the district tournament.

Senior Greg Dawkins (5-9) is the 76ers' top returnee after averaging 15.8 points and eight rebounds and making honorable mention all-district. Seniors Stephon Brown (5-9), Kiani Henry (6-2), Kevin Malone (5-9) and Chandler Wells (6-2), juniors Brandon Tyler (6-0), DeAngelo Simms (6-1) and sophomores James Young (6-2) and Anthony Sykes (5-10) are other key players.

Independence lost to Toledo Start 56-53 last Friday on a 3-pointer at the buzzer by Marcus Gaines in its opener and downed Cincinnati Wyoming 64-41 last Saturday. Dawkins scored 20 points last Friday and 15 last Saturday.

The 76ers also play Beechcroft at home today.

"We played well (last Saturday), so that got the kids' confidence up," Cripe said. "We've got Beechcroft (today), Eastmoor on Tuesday and (defending district champion Dublin Scioto on Dec. 19), so we've got to be ready. The last couple years we've gotten off to slow starts.

"This is the most experience I've had back, especially with my guards. It's going to be about hustle, focus and effort for us."

?DEVILS WRESTLING PREVIEW -- Marion-Franklin made it back to the top of the City League last season after finishing second in 2006 and third in 2007.

With almost 40 wrestlers out and three returning district qualifiers, the Red Devils hope to have the talent to stay there.

Marion-Franklin competed in a City tri-meet last Wednesday against Briggs and Brookhaven and will wrestle Dec. 20 at the Pickerington North duals.

"We have a really young squad this year, but we still have some talent," fourth-year coach Derek Oney said.

Marion-Franklin's top returnee is senior Paul Caldwell (heavyweight), who went 1-2 at the Division I state tournament last year to finish 38-8. Junior Willie Tatum (171), who also went 1-2 at state to finish 28-9, transferred to Pickerington Central along with his brother, senior Wuan Tatum (189).

The other returning district qualifier is senior Quinton Ryman (152), who placed sixth at 145 at district last season.

Seniors Filandus Boyd (112), Eric Grennell (135) and Elijah Small (160) are other top returnees and freshman Ray Kroah (125) should be an immediate contributor. Grennell is out with a broken wrist but should be back by the end of the month.

Also expected to fill slots in the lineup are senior Anthony Tutt (189/215), juniors Elijah Chapman (103), Nate Bibbler (130), Josh Bidlack (171), Roseander White (189) and Cameron Summers (215), sophomore Rhalen Reece (140) and freshmen Dylan Adams (119) and Michael Patrick (145).

The Red Devils won the City with 291 points a year ago, ahead of Centennial (216), Brookhaven (214.5), East (136.5), Linden-McKinley (103), West (101.5), Whetstone (96), Walnut Ridge (57), Mifflin (54), Briggs (48.5), Northland (48), Independence (46), Africentric (27), South (14) and Eastmoor (7).

Marion-Franklin then took fourth in the 12-team sectional at Pickerington Central behind champion Reynoldsburg (255) before finishing 15th (43) of 41 teams which scored at district behind champion Reynoldsburg (130). Chris Johnson (215) and Kenny Palmer (130), who were 2008 graduates, also competed at district.

A splinter group of prominent African National Congress politicians launched a new party Tuesday in the first major challenge to the movement since it took power nearly 15 years ago after toppling South Africa's apartheid government.

At dueling rallies Tuesday, the ANC drew its usual star power and crowds. But the opposition politicians gathering across town delivered enough energy and biting rhetoric to worry the nation's long-dominant political force.

Dominated by former ANC officials - though none with the drawing power of current ANC leader Jacob Zuma or party icon Nelson Mandela - the newly formed Congress of the People, or COPE, was not expected to defeat the ANC in general elections next year.

But the ANC was clearly worried there might be enough discontent among voters for the new party to seriously cut into its large parliamentary majority.

On Tuesday, the governing party showed how seriously it takes COPE, organizing a counter rally in this university town 250 miles south of Johannesburg which the ANC considers its birthplace.

Zuma, a 66-year-old former guerrilla leader, drew thunderous cheers from some 15,000 people packed into a soccer stadium in Mangaung, the black township on the edges of Bloemfontein. He called on supporters to "defend the ANC from attempts to sow disunity and confusion in its ranks."

"We must defend the peace, harmony and stability that was achieved in 1994," he said. "Only the ANC can deliver true unity and prosperity in this country."

COPE, led by former Defense Minister Mosiuoa Lekota, emerged after the ANC forced Thabo Mbeki to step down in September as the nation's president, culminating a power struggle with Zuma. Zuma had defeated Mbeki in a bitter race for the party leadership last year.

Lekota has called the manner in which Mbeki was ousted undemocratic and questioned whether Zuma, who has struggled to shake corruption allegations, is fit for the presidency.

Lekota said Tuesday his party was formed because South Africa "was suffering from a crisis of leadership" and because of "concerns for the moral decay in our body politic."

Most of those attending the new party's launch were Mbeki supporters, but the group does not have his public support.

The new party has been accused of offering little more than criticism of the ANC. Still, it was won a number of victories in recent local elections, while attracting whites and unveiling a more business-friendly economic policy to woo voters nervous about Zuma's close links to labor and the South African Communist Party.

COPE also proposes direct presidential elections as the only way to ensure the will of the people is carried out. In South Africa's current winner-take-all elections, the party with the majority of seats in parliament names one of its members as president.

The ANC won by a landslide in the last elections in 2004, securing a more than two-thirds majority in parliament, so it hardly faces the prospect of defeat any time soon. Still, in the long term, many South Africans believe the breakup of the ANC is the only way to ensure their democracy matures.

The ANC has been humbled into toning down militant and leftist rhetoric by the emergence of COPE.

The party can't dismiss the anti-apartheid credentials of COPE leaders like Lekota, who was imprisoned on Robben Island alongside Mandela. Nor can it pigeonhole COPE as beholden to a regional, religious or ethnic base, as are so many of South Africa's other opposition parties.

William Mthethwa, an ANC supporter who traveled to the rally from Johannesburg, said the next election "is going to be very interesting."

"This time the rivals are our own people from our own organizations," he said.

Mthethwa dismissed COPE as a group of disgruntled politicians who wanted to cling to power, but said its formation was "good for democracy."

While the ANC rallied on a dusty soccer field, COPE was launched Tuesday before about 5,000 enthusiastic supporters wearing yellow T-shirts emblazoned with the party logo on the green clipped lawn of the local cricket field in a more leafy part of town.