NATION IN BRIEF : MISSISSIPPI : Rep. Smith Autopsy Turns Up No Clues

Toxicology tests turned up no physical evidence that could have pointed to the cause of an Aug. 13 plane crash that killed Rep. Larkin Smith (R-Miss.) and his pilot, Chuck Vierhling, officials at Hattiesburg, Miss., said. The tests detected no drugs or alcohol in either man’s blood, Perry County Coroner Randall Carnahan said. He also said carbon monoxide levels were within normal limits. The final report on the crash could be ready by the first of the year, a spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board said. The NTSB had earlier ruled out weather and possible aircraft malfunctions as the cause of the crash. Smith, elected in 1988, died while he was returning to the Gulf Coast from Hattiesburg.