A 4-year-old girl died from her injuries Friday night after being hit by a car in front of a MARTA station.

The girl was crossing Lee Street near York Avenue in southwest Atlanta with her father and 3-year-old brother about 5:45 p.m. when a Lincoln Towncar heading south on Lee struck the children in the crosswalk, Atlanta police spokesman Ron Campbell said.

Nathaniel Comer, 53, of College Park was charged with second-degree vehicular homicide —- a felony —- and failure to yield to a pedestrian in a cross walk.

The youngsters were taken to Grady Memorial Hospital. The boy is believed to have suffered minor inuries. But the girl suffered serious ones and was transferred to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston, where she died.

FAYETTE COUNTY

WWII event has vintage airplanes

The fifth annual World War II Heritage Days this weekend at Falcon Field features a tribute to veterans of the war by the Peachtree City-based Commemorative Air Force (CAF) Dixie Wing.

The two-day event, which runs 9 a.m.- 4 p.m. today and Sunday, will bring together a number of WWII veterans, vintage vehicles and aircraft, and re-enactors from across the Southeast and feature demonstrations.

The opening ceremony is at 10 a.m. today.

One of the veterans expected to be on hand is Theodore "Dutch" Van Kirk, the former navigator for the Enola Gay, the B-29 Superfortress that dropped the world's first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, on Aug. 6, 1945. Several of the original Tuskegee Airmen also are expected to attend.

Tickets are $5 for adults. Children 12 and under will be admitted free. Information, www.dixiewing.org or 678-364-1110.

FULTON COUNTY

Deal preserves land along river

Sandy Springs announced a public-private land deal to acquire 24 acres of green space on the Chattahoochee River. The property, valued at several million dollars, will be bought with a combination of state and city funds and donations.

The biggest donor is the landowner, who is selling the homestead at a deep discount. The landowner wishes to remain anonymous and will retain a life estate and live on the property.

The land is just outside I-285 within 2,000 feet of the Chattahoochee River in southwest Sandy Springs.

The Trust for Public Land is buying the property and hopes to raise enough money to transfer it to the city by year's end. The state this week agreed to donate $250,000 through the Georgia Land Conservation Program, and the city will pay half the total cost of about $800,000. TPL and the Sandy Springs Conservancy have agreed to raise the rest.

DEKALB COUNTY: Schools draw second suit

Heery International on Friday filed a second lawsuit against DeKalb County school system officials —- this one alleging libel and defamation. Company officials apparently took issue with a statement the school system released last month about its former construction management company.

The statement, which was reported by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, alleged that Heery had problems with construction projects in other areas of the country. Heery's latest lawsuit asks for $200 million in damages —- along with a retraction by DeKalb officials.

A school system spokesman said late Friday that he had not seen the lawsuit and could not comment.

The school system's statement was issued in March after DeKalb filed an amended lawsuit against the Heery/Mitchell management company seeking at least $45 million on allegations of overbilling and mismanagement.

CEO's staff chief will run for his job

Ann Kimbrough, chief of staff for DeKalb County Chief Executive Officer Vernon Jones, announced Friday that she will be a candidate to replace Jones.

Kimbrough, 50, has coordinated Jones' policy team for five years. She touted her experience as an advantage in handling countywide problems such as inadequate funding for public safety and a need for more sidewalks and roads.

Kimbrough was formerly a reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and also worked for the Atlanta Business Chronicle. She later went into public relations and then held a teaching position in Florida before Jones hired her as his chief of staff in 2003.

—- Staff writers Craig Schneider, Eric Stirgus, Chandler Brown, John Hollis, Kristina Torres, Ty Tagami and Stacy Shelton contributed to this report.