WILL APPEAL DEATH SENTENCE--Greg Meyers, chief of the death penalty section of the Ohio Public Defender's Office, gestures during a news conference concerning Wilford Berry Jr.'s death wish, in Columbus, Ohio, on Wednesday, Dec. 3, 1997. Meyers said that today's Ohio Supreme Court ruling, that Berry is competent to waive further appeals, would be appealed in federal court. Berry is due to be executed on March 3, 1998 for the 1989 murder of Cleveland baker Charles Mitroff Jr. Ohio's last execution was in March of 1963.

SCHOOL FUNDING ALTERNATIVE--State Rep. Jim Jordan, right, (R-Urbana) gestures during a news conference, concerning child-centered funding, at the Ohio Statehouse, in Columbus, Ohio, on Wednesday, Dec. 3, 1997. To the left is State Treasurer J. Kenneth Blackwell who supports Jordan's legislative effort. Jordan's proposal would enable parents to enroll their children in the public or private school of their choice.

KEEPING AN EYE ON PROGRESS--A holiday penguin waits while workers set up a gazebo for the Capital Holiday Lights display, on the grounds of the Ohio Statehouse, in Columbus, Ohio, on Wednesday, Dec. 3, 1997. The event will run in the evenings from Dec. 12-23.