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A member of the 2014 Pittsburgh Steelers retired early Wednesday, but it definitely wasn't the one anyone expected. Free agent OLB Jason Worilds is retiring from the NFL, according to a statement released via his agent and NFL.com. "I appreciate all of the interest from the organizations that have reached out to us the past few days," the statement reads. "With that being said, after much thought & consideration I have chosen to step away from football as I have opted to pursue other interests." The decision comes as an absolute bombshell, as the 27-year old veteran was set to cash in on a contract which would've likely paid him close to $8 million annually and close to $15-20 million guaranteed based on contracts awarded to his colleagues. Worilds led the Steelers with 7.5 sacks last season and despite the team expressing confidence in his abilities and even stating they hoped to retain him, the organization allowed the former second round pick to test the open market in free agency. Surprisingly, Worilds didn't receive too much attention on day one of free agency Tuesday, as no formal offers were said to have crossed his path, despite Worilds' consideration as one of the league's most coveted free agents available on the open market. In fact, it seemed like it was only a matter of time before Worilds secured a multi-year contract considering players such as Pernell McPhee and Brandon Graham had signed contracts while Brian Orakpo and Jabaal Sheard were rumored to have several suitors. Worilds is the third unlikely player in the last 48 hours to announce a shocking retirement. Five-time All-Pro linebacker Patrick Willis announced his retirement Monday and former first round draft pick Jake Locker followed Willis' announcement with one of his own on Tuesday, declaring he no longer had "the same desire for the game." At 27, Worilds still had plenty of football left in him, making the announcement all the more curious. If he changes his mind in the next few weeks, or even years, someone will still likely take a chance on him. But, the decision will likely come as a surprise to Steelers fans who figured their Wildcard loss to Baltimore was the last time they would see Worilds' in black and gold. Instead, they apparently won't be seeing him in any colors at all. This move also complicates the Steelers' immediate future, especially if they were hoping to bring Worlds back if he slipped through the cracks in free agency, however unlikely an outcome that would've been. Now, the team will have to look elsewhere to fill their still glaring hole at outside linebacker. Whatever Worilds' "other interests" are, he must be secure in these endeavors as he will leave millions of dollars on the table.
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It is nothing like the annual Kingfisher calendar that features supermodels in swimsuits in exotic locations around the world. Instead, the women featured in the Bello calendar are survivors of one of the most atrocious forms of crime against women acid attacks. The calendar is part of the Stop Acid Attacks campaign by the Chhanv Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to rehabilitation of acid attack survivors in India. The victims, mostly women, also run Sheroes' Hangout, a small cafe in Agra. "The aim was to show that they have dreams," Rahul Saharan, one of the three photographers on the project, told Quartz. There are an estimated 1,000 cases of acid attacks every year in India, though the country does not maintain a formal tally. Quartz brings you the complete calendar: Dolly was 12 when she was attacked by a 25-year-old man. He wanted to have sex with Dolly even though she was a minor. The acid ruined her nostrils, causing a permanent breathing problem. For more than a year after the attack, she refused to step out of her house. But working among other survivors at the Sheroes' Hangout gave her courage. "You burnt my face, but not my will to live. You can't throw acid on that," she wrote in a letter to her attacker. "I will fight this case in court, not only for myself but for other girls, so they do not lose their courage before people like you." Dolly wants to become a doctor, but is struggling to raise the money required to fund her education. Gita's husband threw acid on her and their two daughters while the family was asleep. His reason: He wanted a son, not daughters. Their younger daughter died, while the older sibling, Neetu, now 24, was left completely blind. Gita's husband was jailed for only two months. On his release, she decided to continue living with him because she didn't know what else to do. Gita, who currently works at the cafe, wants to become a chef. "Why should I hide myself away when I'm not the one who did any wrong?" asked 30-year-old Sonia Choudhury in an interview last month. Before she was attacked in 2004, Choudhury worked at a beauty parlour in Ghaziabad, on the outskirts of Delhi. Her neighbour paid two men to throw acid on her face after a petty conflict. Today, she runs a beauty parlour from home. Neetu, Gita's daughter, wants to become a singer. Chanchal Paswan was 19 and her sister Sonam was 15 when four men flung acid on them in 2012. Chanchal was attacked because she had dared to speak out against sexual harassment by these men in her small village in Bihar. Ritu's aunt had a property dispute with the her parents and she "settled scores" by throwing acid on her niece in 2012. The corrosive chemical entered both her eyes she can now see only partially from her left eye. She turned blind from her right eye. Ritu is now 19. "My mother used to inspire me to make a name for myself. I am sure she did not want me to make news this way another victim of the crimes against women in India," Ritu said in a 2013 interview. "Today, she keeps lamenting that I cannot get married because I have a kharaab chehra (ugly face)." In 2005, an acquaintance of Laxmi's flung acid at her in central Delhi's Khan Market. In 2006, her public interest litigation resulted in a directive "to treat acid as poison and regulate its sale (by keeping detailed logs of the buyers) under the stringent Poisons Act, 1919." Laxmi now works as an activist campaigning for the rights of acid attack victims. In 2014, she was awarded the International Woman of Courage award, which she received from the US first lady Michelle Obama. Geeta's attacker is still on the run seven years after she was attacked in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh. Rupa's stepmother attacked her because she did not want to spend money on her marriage. She was only 15. From Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh, Rupa is now a fashion designer and her work is on display at the cafe in Agra. A survivor from Ludhiana, Rajwant Kaur wanted to become a photojournalist. "I used to call myself as a victim… Now it has changed me to a survivor. Seeing my face on a calendar was like a dream," she said. Sonam is Chanchal's sister. She was accidentally burnt in an attack targeted at her sister. She has had minimal vision in both eyes since birth, and the attack has made it worse. The models in the last portrait are Rupa, Sonia and Ritu.
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In separate guest appearances on "Jimmy Kimmel Live," Bette Midler and Josh Groban belt out Kim Kardashian and Kanye West's tweets.
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A flight attendant who says she was living her dream by working for Korean Air is now suing the airline and its infamous nut rage executive, claiming the bizarre onboard tantrum ruined her career. Kim Do Hee, the flight attendant, is seeking compensation through a trial in New York city after she was verbally and physically attacked by Korean Air heiress Cho Hyun-ah, according to a statement on Wednesday by two American law firms, the Weinstein Law Firm and Kobre & Kim. Cho, a vice president overseeing cabin service at the time of the Dec. 5 incident, was enraged that Kim, 27, served her macadamia nuts in a bag, not on a dish. After a heated confrontation with crew in the first class cabin, Cho ordered head flight attendant Park Chang-jin off the plane, forcing it to return to a gate at John F. Kennedy International Airport. It is the first civil lawsuit connected with the nut rage case, which infuriated South Koreans and hogged global headlines. Last month a South Korean court sentenced Cho, 40, to one year in prison for violating aviation security laws, using violence against a flight attendant and other charges. Cho, who is the daughter of Korean Air's chairman, has appealed the ruling from prison. The summons filed Monday with the Supreme Court of the State of New York County of Queens said Cho screamed obscenities at Kim and hit and threatened her. She was also pressured to lie to government investigators to cover up the incident and to appear in public with Cho "as part of an orchestrated effort to try and rehabilitate Cho's public image," the summons said. Kim is seeking compensatory damages and punitive damages in an amount to be determined at the trial. Kim was unable to resolve the dispute privately and both Korean Air and Cho did not engage in "any substantive" settlement discussions with Kim's lawyers, the statement said. Cho will be held responsible for the damage that she has caused to Kim's career, reputation, and emotional well-being, it said. During Cho's trial in Seoul last month, Kim testified that Cho's power at the airline was "unimaginably big" and she could not refuse her orders. She also said Korean Air was her dream job since she was a high school student but after false rumors spread on the Internet about her accepting a professorship in exchange for lying to investigators, she could not return to work as a flight attendant. Both Cho's lawyer and Korean Air Lines Co. did not respond to a request for comment.
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Due to the popularity of smartphones, camera manufacturers have had to scramble trying to find ways to keep their products relevant. And Olympus is no stranger to this. Now, the company has announced its Stylus SH-2, a point-and-shoot camera that's using retro looks to, hopefully, appeal to the masses. Like they say, however, looks aren't everything. As such, Olympus is making this compact cam beautiful on the inside too, featuring a RAW capture mode, 5-axis image stabilization, WiFi and the ability to shoot 1080p video at 60 fps. Just as important, the Stylus SH-2 comes with a 16-megapixel sensor and 24x optical zoom lens (24-600mm wide-angle equivalent) -- similar to what we saw on the Stylus SH-1 , which was introduced last March. It'll be available in black and silver next month for $400, while the companion carrying cases will be sold separately.
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Mo'ne Davis has pretty much done it all. Played in the Little League World Series. Been SportsKid of the Year . Had her jersey sent to Cooperstown . Crossed up Kevin Hart . It's impressive for someone who doesn't even have her learner's permit. But now, Davis has added one more item to her long list of accomplishments: she's a Harlem Globetrotter. MORE: Mo'ne Davis honors Derek Jeter | Davis throws out first pitch at World Series Davis started out during the game on the Washington Generals, but wound up swapping jerseys during the game. She added a 3-pointer and a sweet crossover to the rim to finish with five points. To be fair to Davis, the Generals could have guarded her a little closer. During the NBA's Celebrity Game she was blowing people up. I kind of doubt the dudes on the worst team in the history of basketball could guard her.
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FALLBROOK, Calif. A handcuffed man stole a California Highway Patrol cruiser in Southern California and led a 10-mile freeway chase before he was arrested trying to run from the vehicle, authorities said. CHP Officer Jim Bettencourt told U-T San Diego that 25-year-old Aaron Teruya of San Diego was taken back into custody still wearing the cuffs Tuesday in the Fallbrook area. Teruya had hit another vehicle on Interstate 15 south of Temecula, said the CHP. Teruya was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence. He was handcuffed and put in the front seat of a CHP SUV. While the officer was talking to the other driver, Teruya pulled the handcuffs up around his legs and drove away, Bettencourt said. The officer got in a tow truck and told the driver to follow his car. Teruya was taken back into custody after running into thick brush off a dirt road. ___ Information from: U-T San Diego, http://www.utsandiego.com
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Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg will look to extend their title rivalry and Mercedes' dominance into a second Formula One season as their rivals grapple with new driving line-ups at Sunday's Australian Grand Prix. The reigning world champion and his German teammate are expected to make a flying start to the year after Mercedes improved both their chassis and engine in pre-season testing. Britain's Hamilton fought off Rosberg to claim his second world title at the 2014 finale in Abu Dhabi, after a season in which a rejuvenated Silver Arrows team reigned supreme. Hamilton failed to finish last year's Melbourne race and retired after just four laps, but the Briton went on to win 11 races among 16 wins for the all-conquering Mercedes team. "We had a great season last year as a team and, of course, we'd all love to repeat that," Hamilton said. "But the others won't stop chasing us. I'm sure the competition will be close and we should get exciting racing with plenty of battling for position. "There are many good drivers out there and all of them want to win. You just have to want it more than they do." Pre-season intrigue has not been hard to come by and McLaren will start without new driver Fernando Alonso, who is out after suffering concussion in a crash in testing. Motorsports world body FIA (Federation Internationale de l'Automobile) launched an investigation into the accident, whose cause has been the subject of rampant speculation. Spain's Alonso, a two-time world champion, will be replaced by Kevin Magnussen but has vowed to return for the second race in Malaysia. - Team to beat - Meanwhile Sauber were locked in a court case on Wednesday after former reserve Giedo van der Garde claimed the team reneged on a deal for him to drive for them this season. The Dutchman won his case at a Swiss tribunal and a court in Melbourne backed the ruling, but the Swiss team immediately appealed. "What we cannot do is jeopardise the safety of our team, or any other driver on the track, by having an unprepared driver in a car that has now been tailored to two other assigned drivers," chief executive Monisha Kaltenborn said in a statement. Australian fans will be hoping Daniel Ricciardo, lucklessly stripped of a podium finish last year over a fuel-flow infringement, can become the first home winner in 35 years. Ricciardo, now the lead Red Bull driver after four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel left for Ferrari, will hope to outdo Mark Webber's fourth place in 2012. No Australian has won his national grand prix since Alan Jones in 1980, five years before Australia became a round of the Formula One world championship in Adelaide. "For sure, (my car) is an improvement, but the thing is everyone improves," said the Australian with the dazzling neon smile, who won three races in a breakthrough 2014. "It's really a question of how much have we improved and if we've improved enough to close the gap on Mercedes. "Testing has shown us that Mercedes are still really strong, I don't want to be pessimistic at all, but they seem to be the team to beat at the moment." Vettel, who finished 71 points behind Ricciardo at Red Bull last year, makes his debut at Ferrari with both parties hoping for a fresh start. The German's hopes for a fifth straight title were dashed when he wound up fifth in the championship, while Ferrari are hoping to end years of disappointment dating back to their last world title in 2008.
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Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg will look to extend their title rivalry and Mercedes' dominance into a second Formula One season as their rivals grapple with new driving line-ups at Sunday's Australian Grand Prix. The reigning world champion and his German teammate are expected to make a flying start to the year after Mercedes improved both their chassis and engine in pre-season testing. Britain's Hamilton fought off Rosberg to claim his second world title at the 2014 finale in Abu Dhabi, after a season in which a rejuvenated Silver Arrows team reigned supreme. Hamilton failed to finish last year's Melbourne race and retired after just four laps, but the Briton went on to win 11 races among 16 wins for the all-conquering Mercedes team. "We had a great season last year as a team and, of course, we'd all love to repeat that," Hamilton said. "But the others won't stop chasing us. I'm sure the competition will be close and we should get exciting racing with plenty of battling for position. "There are many good drivers out there and all of them want to win. You just have to want it more than they do." Pre-season intrigue has not been hard to come by and McLaren will start without new driver Fernando Alonso, who is out after suffering concussion in a crash in testing. Motorsports world body FIA (Federation Internationale de l'Automobile) launched an investigation into the accident, whose cause has been the subject of rampant speculation. Spain's Alonso, a two-time world champion, will be replaced by Kevin Magnussen but has vowed to return for the second race in Malaysia. Team to beat Meanwhile Sauber were locked in a court case on Wednesday after former reserve Giedo van der Garde claimed the team reneged on a deal for him to drive for them this season. The Dutchman won his case at a Swiss tribunal and a court in Melbourne backed the ruling, but the Swiss team immediately appealed. "What we cannot do is jeopardise the safety of our team, or any other driver on the track, by having an unprepared driver in a car that has now been tailored to two other assigned drivers," chief executive Monisha Kaltenborn said in a statement. Australian fans will be hoping Daniel Ricciardo, lucklessly stripped of a podium finish last year over a fuel-flow infringement, can become the first home winner in 35 years. Ricciardo, now the lead Red Bull driver after four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel left for Ferrari, will hope to outdo Mark Webber's fourth place in 2012. No Australian has won his national grand prix since Alan Jones in 1980, five years before Australia became a round of the Formula One world championship in Adelaide. "For sure, (my car) is an improvement, but the thing is everyone improves," said the Australian with the dazzling neon smile, who won three races in a breakthrough 2014. "It's really a question of how much have we improved and if we've improved enough to close the gap on Mercedes. "Testing has shown us that Mercedes are still really strong, I don't want to be pessimistic at all, but they seem to be the team to beat at the moment." Vettel, who finished 71 points behind Ricciardo at Red Bull last year, makes his debut at Ferrari with both parties hoping for a fresh start. The German's hopes for a fifth straight title were dashed when he wound up fifth in the championship, while Ferrari are hoping to end years of disappointment dating back to their last world title in 2008.
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KANSAS CITY, Mo. On a cold night on Tobacco Road, North Carolina and Duke went back and forth in an overtime thriller. It was gripping, edge-of-your seat stuff. Tense down to the final second. In short, it looked nothing like the Blue Devils' game against Florida State nine days earlier, when the teams missed five 3-pointers, two free throws and committed five turnovers all before the first media timeout. The Seminoles led at that point, 2-0. "Never seen a media timeout with a score quite like this," tweeted ESPN analyst Jay Bilas, an outspoken critic of the current state of college hoops. "Maybe in baseball." Bilas is not alone in his concern for the current state of college hoops. Scoring is at a near-record low this season. Fouls are soaring. Attendance has dropped precipitously in many places, and television ratings are struggling to reach last year's levels. "When you think about it, it's a spectator sport," said Utah State athletic director Scott Barnes, the chairman of the NCAA tournament selection committee. "So how folks view it I guess, watchability would be a big piece of it. Are they entertained?" The fact that the upcoming NCAA Tournament, long-considered recession proof, has struggled to build buzz is perhaps the most damning evidence of the dire state of the game. "I do have some healthy concerns," said Dan Gavitt, the NCAA's vice president for men's college basketball. "If the game continues to go in the direction it has been the last several years, with scoring being down and physical play being up, it could really hurt it." That's a sobering assessment from one of the game's most important stakeholders. Attendance in men's Division I basketball has fallen seven straight seasons, from an average of 5,327 in 2006-07 to 4,817 last year. The Southeastern Conference even asked its TV partners for flexibility in scheduling to help drive fans to the arena. Not that life has been easy on broadcasters, either. ESPN and CBS, two networks with a long college basketball tradition, have both weathered a decline in ratings this season. As of last week, ESPN was averaging just under 1.5 million viewers on its main network for men's basketball games, down about 6 percent from the same period last year. The NCAA tried to intervene last year, instituting a series of rules reforms designed to boost scoring and free up offenses to do what they do best. They have failed to stick. Now, some schools have resorted to outlandish gimmicks to sell seats, and TV executives have been force to expand pregame shows to help drive interest. "There are a lot of things competing for eyeballs," said Nick Dawson, the senior director of programming and acquisitions for ESPN, whose job is to help televise more than 1,300 games. "We do so many games, you see all kinds," Dawson said. "There are some played at a high level, fantastic entertainment value, great flow. We've seen a bunch. But you also get a bunch that don't have that flow and that don't live up to those expectations." Just consider some of those games: Georgia Tech was held to 28 points by Virginia in late January, one of three times that the Cavaliers have kept an opponent below 30 points. In one of those games, Virginia didn't do a whole lot better, grinding its way to a 45-26 victory over Rutgers. Arizona and Utah, two teams with national title aspirations, combined for 46 fouls just a couple of weeks ago. Wildcats star Stanley Johnson went 3 for 19 from the field. Think that was a lot of fouls? St. Francis and LIU-Brooklyn conspired to commit 66 fouls and shoot 97 free throws last month, accounting for nearly half of the points scored. In a game against West Virginia, Kansas went 0 for 15 from beyond the arc and won. "I think scoring is way down, I do. And I think a lot of that is bad offense," Jayhawks coach Bill Self said. "It is easier to coach defense than offense, and a lot of times easier to stop people than it is to exploit people. I think a lot of coaches feel that way." Self is among the faction that believes college basketball is still a robust product, albeit one that could benefit from a few tweaks. In interviews conducted by The Associated Press with more than a dozen coaches, players and administrators, a few ideas continually came up, dealing either with the layout of the court of the mechanics of the game. On the court, several officials suggested widening the lane, which would curtail some of the physical play in the post while allowing more freedom of movement. They also suggested extending the 3-point line to the NBA arc, which would revive the once-crucial mid-range jumper. In terms of game play, the NCAA is already experimenting with shortening the shot clock to speed up offense (see: this season's NIT). Some officials, including Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby, also want to reduce the number of available timeouts, forcing teams to play through adversity. "It's a difficult task to get rule changes through coaching groups because people who are influential in those coaching groups like rules the way they are," said Bowlsby, a longtime athletic director and former chairman of the NCAA tournament selection committee. "Somehow," Bowlsby said, "we need to think about the good of the game." Perhaps there is no better time to ponder its future, either, as conference tournaments heat up and Selection Sunday draws near. By next week, millions of fans will be filling out brackets and tuning into the madness of March, many for the first time all season. Will they like what they see? Will they even recognize it? "With social media, Facebook, Twitter, you can dissect it backward and forward, and you can find something wrong with it if you want," TCU coach Trent Johnson said. "But I think the Final Four and the NCAA tournament is still a great event, as exciting as there is."
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The elderly parents of a former Thai princess were both jailed for two and a half years Wednesday after pleading guilty to defaming the monarchy, an institution protected by one of the world's toughest lese majeste laws. Apiruj Suwadee, 72, and his 66-year-old wife Wanthanee are the latest close relatives of fallen former princess Srirasmi to face legal proceedings after a corruption scandal involving her family erupted late last year. Both had pleaded guilty to insulting the royal family, lodging a malicious claim and asking officials to file false charges against a woman in 2003. "The judge convicted two defendants on insulting the monarchy and sentenced them to five years in prison," a verdict published by the court stated Wednesday. "Due to their confession the judge halved the sentence to two years and six months without probation," it added. At least eight of Srirasmi's family have now been convicted and jailed for lese majeste -- her elder sister and brother-in-law, two brothers, a nephew and her parents. Another relative, Pongpat Chayapun, the former head of Thailand's elite Central Investigation Bureau, was handed a 31-year jail term for a series of convictions linked to an alleged criminal empire that spanned illegal gambling, extortion and kidnapping. He was initially sentenced to six years for lese majeste. Srirasmi's siblings were arrested in the wake of that scandal alongside a slew of senior police officers. But the case against her parents came later and centred on a former neighbour's complaint that she had been jailed for 18 months on a fraud charge brought maliciously by the Suwadee couple more than a decade ago. According to the court verdict, the Suwadees made false claims about Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn -- who was married to their daughter at the time -- in a bid to threaten their neighbour. Vajiralongkorn divorced Srirasmi and she renounced her royal title following the scandal, which has gripped a public unused to seeing palace intrigue play out in the open. She and a younger sister have not been arrested but have retreated from public view. The spectacular demise of the former princess's family comes at a time of heightened anxiety over the health of the country's revered but ailing monarch. Experts say the last decade of political turmoil in Thailand is intertwined with concerns among competing elites over the direction of the kingdom once the reign of 87-year-old King Bhumibol Adulaydej comes to an end. Bhumibol has largely been confined to a Bangkok hospital in recent months, but he made a rare public appearance on Monday. Under the royal defamation law -- one of the world's strictest -- anyone convicted of insulting the king, queen, heir or regent faces up to 15 years in prison on each count. But reporting lese majeste cases is fraught with difficulty. Both Thai and international media must heavily self-censor when covering the country's lese majeste rules. Even repeating details of the charges could mean breaking the law under section 112.
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Ali Marpet is one of the most unlikely prospects in this year's NFL draft. The Division III offensive lineman from Hobart College wowed scouts at the Senior Bowl against some of college football's best, then measured up to other top prospects at the combine. Marpet, 6-foot-4, 307 pounds, will share his path to the April 30-May 2 draft in Chicago with The Associated Press, starting with his reflections on an improbable rise, and his preparation for his pro day. ____ Q: How did an NFL prospect end up at Hobart? A: "In high school, I think my senior year I was 235 pounds. My junior year, I was 205, so I even put weight on from my junior year to my senior year. I wasn't rated an ESPN prospect or anything like that. "I was playing offensive line and defense at Hastings High School (Hastings-on-Hudson, New York). So every other year we'll send a guy to a D-III school at best. "So I didn't go to school thinking I was going to have an opportunity to go to the NFL. What I did was make an academic decision and went to the best academic school I could get into. I wanted to do finance, but we didn't have a finance major, so I did economics. The one thing Hobart has is an excellent alumni base." Q: Were there any Division I schools interested in you? A: "(FCS) Fordham, by the time I talked to them, they were willing to offer a scholarship and wanted me to play defensive line. Marist, Holy Cross. No scholarship or anything like this. Just walk-on opportunities." Q: Did you have a player you watched growing up, thinking: 'I want to play like him.' A: "There wasn't anyone who I thought, I want to play like him, because it just wasn't real. It's funny because growing up I think this is pretty weird I would create a player in Madden, I would make an Ali Marpet, and make him an offensive lineman, usually for the Giants. I would usually make myself a 6-8 tackle; I never got to 6-8. "I remember having a conversation with my mom. If I ever want to play offensive line, I'd have to get to 300 pounds, which just did not seem like ... I'm not a 300-pound guy." Q: When did you realize professional football could be a possibility? A: "After my junior season I was thinking I could actually play on, and I was talking with some alumni and some guys I played with and I was still deciding what I wanted to do, get an internship or work out in New Jersey. I worked at the DeFranco's Gym in New Jersey. "The summer after my junior year I did a workout for some scouts, Wunderlich test, measurables. Height and weight. My senior year, that's when it started to get really real because there were scouts at our practice and stuff like that. "After I got the Senior Bowl invite, I thought it would be a possibility." Q: Was there a moment at the Senior Bowl, where you were facing top players from the highest level of college football, where you thought you belonged? A: "The first practice of Senior Bowl I was going against (Utah defensive end) Nate Orchard, who is a pretty good player." (Note: Orchard was second in the nation with 18 1-2 sacks last season). "So that was the first rep I got in one-on-ones, with Nate Orchard. And I beat him on the first rep. And I was like 'Ooooooh.' I was kind of shocked myself a little bit. I was like, OK this is pretty cool. He was like the fastest D-lineman or something like that. "It was also pretty cool because I was practicing guard up until the Senior Bowl. They kind of just threw me out there (at tackle). You don't know how many times I went over my pass steps the night before in my head." Q: Your pro day at Hobart (in Geneva, New York, about halfway between Syracuse and Rochester) is Friday. What is your plan? A: "I'm going to sit on the numbers that I did at the combine." (Note: Marpet ran a 4.98 40-yard dash at the combine, the fastest of any offensive lineman. He also bench-pressed 225 pounds 30 times) "At this point I don't think it's worth risking any sort of injury or anything like that to do extra reps on the bench or something like that. What I'm going to do is offensive line positional work, just so I can show that I'm fluid and I'm athletic and all that good stuff. (Note: Marpet has been training with former NFL offensive lineman Bob Whitfield) Q: The next step in the draft process after pro day is meeting with teams. Do you have any visits or private workouts already lined up? A: "I think I'm around 12 either interviews or workouts, but I think that will go up." Q: You started preparing for the combine in December at CES Performance in Atlanta, and even after the combine went back to continue training. Have you allowed yourself any down time? A: "For me it's not hard to stay motivated. I understand how rare this opportunity is. So when I work out in Atlanta and I've done well at the Senior Bowl and I've done well at the combine, I'm ready to go back to work." ___ AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL
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Linked to the Buffalo Bills through the Rex Ryan connection, Darrelle Revis has signed a five-year, $70 million deal (with $39 million guaranteed) with the New York Jets. Any cursory interest that Rex Ryan and the Buffalo Bills may or may not have had in free agent cornerback Darrelle Revis was quickly made irrelevant on Tuesday evening, as Revis agreed to terms with the New York Jets on a five-year, $70 million deal with $39 million guaranteed. Darrelle Revis' agents announce he has agreed to terms with the Jets. Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 11, 2015 @Revis24 signs for 5-year, $70M deal. Includes $39M FULLY guaranteed, $33M in the first two years. #Jets Jason Cole (@JasonPhilCole) March 11, 2015 So Jets add CBs Darrelle Revis and Buster Skrine. Rex would have loved this D. Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 11, 2015 Clearly, however interested the Bills were, they weren't going to be able to afford a contract like that. Revis was always a pipe dream because of those salary demands - he'd been looking for $40 million guaranteed, reportedly - and it seems more likely than not that the Bills were mentioned in connection with him simply because of the presence of Ryan. Rather than reunite with Revis in his age-30 season, then, Ryan will turn his attention in full to helping Stephon Gilmore , 24, realize his immense potential as a corner.
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Reigning Australian Grand Prix champion Nico Rosberg says Mercedes is the best Formula One team in the world
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RALEIGH, N.C. The truck driver whose failure to maneuver an oversized rig through a railroad crossing derailed an Amtrak train and injured 55 people this week is a convicted felon with a long history of traffic citations, court records show. John Devin Black, 43, has been cited for at least a dozen traffic violations, including speeding and driving with a revoked license multiple times, according to records reviewed and confirmed by The Associated Press. In Illinois, Black was arrested in December 2012 and charged with exceeding the permitted weight limit on his load. He was quickly released on a $177 secured bond, but then failed to appear in court the following month. Black also served prison time in 1997 after being convicted of felony child abuse in North Carolina, and his other criminal convictions include assaulting a woman, violating a domestic violence protective order, and repeatedly writing worthless checks. Black does have a valid commercial driver's license, but did not need to pass a criminal background check to get it, the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles confirmed Wednesday. No charges have been filed against Black in relation Monday's crash, though law enforcement officials say that is still under consideration. An Associated Press reporter walked past the no-trespassing sign on the front porch of Black's home in the rural community of Claremont, North Carolina, and knocked on the door seeking comment about his record. Black didn't answer, but shortly after the reporter left a note and a phone number, a spokeswoman for his employer, Guy M. Turner Inc. of Greensboro, called. Asked about Black's driving record and other details of the accident, company spokeswoman Jeanette Landreth declined to comment, and said Black won't talk either. Turner specializes in moving huge, heavy equipment. Before Monday's crash, its 161 trucks were involved in 13 significant highway crashes over the last two years, resulting in nine injuries. Turner has a "satisfactory" safety rating, according to U.S. Department of Transportation records. As workers finished clearing debris from the derailment site in Halifax, North Carolina, investigators were piecing together why emergency railroad dispatchers apparently weren't told that Black was struggling to negotiate a tight turn across the tracks with a load nearly 16 feet wide and tall, weighing 127 tons and stretching for 164 feet. The locomotive's "black box" was recovered, and investigators will review the state permit that enabled Turner to exceed length and weight limits while hauling the electrical distribution facility to New Jersey. The route, including the fateful turn at the railroad crossing, was designed to avoid several highway overpasses along Interstate 95 that would have been too low to get under with such a tall load, officials said. Long-established protocols require truck drivers and trooper escorts to "clear their routes and inform the railroad dispatchers what they're doing," said Steve Ditmeyer, a former Federal Railroad Administration official. Failing that, a toll-free emergency number prominently displayed at each crossing reaches dispatchers who can radio trains to stop. Federal regulations require transport companies to conduct background investigations before hiring truckers, and to review their driving records each year, said V. Paul Herbert, a commercial vehicle safety expert who has testified in 175 trials. There's nothing in the rules that disqualifies a driver with a criminal record from getting a commercial license, as long as the crime wasn't committed while driving a truck, he said. "If that crime was committed during the operation of a commercial motor vehicle, then yes, they could be disqualified," Hebert said. ___ Biesecker reported from Raleigh and Weiss from Claremont in North Carolina. Associated Press reporters Tammy Webber in Chicago and Meg Kinnard in Columbia, South Carolina, contributed.
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If it makes good sense to invest in value stocks (it does), and if it makes good sense to invest in small-cap stocks (it does), why not combine the two and invest in small-cap value stocks? Based on 87 years of performance data, it's a sound strategy. In fact, small-cap value stocks have (in the long run) far outperformed large-cap blend stocks, large-cap value stocks and small-cap blend stocks. In the long run, small-cap value is the undisputed champion of these four major asset classes. But the operative phrase there is "in the long run." Over shorter time periods, small-cap value stocks can be disappointing. Some numbers: From 1928 through 2014, U.S. small-cap value stocks turned in a compound annual return of 13.6% (compared with 9.8% for the Standard & Poor's 500 Index ). At 13.6%, an investment of $100 would have grown to more than $6.5 million over those 87 years (compared with slightly less than $350,000 for the S&P 500). However, investors don't actually achieve average returns. They get real returns, one year at a time. In its best year, 1933, the small-cap value index was up 125.2%. (Pretty amazing for the middle of the Great Depression.) But only two years earlier, this asset class suffered a loss of 54.7%. I imagine that was bad enough to discourage all but the hardiest of investors. So it's a safe bet that a lot of people who understood the theoretical merits of small-cap value investing had their money (what was left of it) somewhere else in 1933. Too bad. Those were the extreme years. In 59 out of the 87 years for which this data is available, small-cap value stocks had positive returns, with an average calendar-year gain of 34.6%. That is very sweet music by any standards. There was a downside, of course: 28 losing years, with the losses averaging 16.6%. Still, in roughly two of every three of the past 87 calendar years, small-cap value stocks were profitable. And the positive years were, on average, twice as good as the bad ones were bad. Looking at historic investment returns that way, one year at a time, is interesting but not very useful. For serious long-term investors, 40 years is much more important than any one year. From 1928 through 2014 there were 48 periods of 40-years, and in every case the small-cap value index had a compound return above 11%. The worst 40-year performance started in 1928 and had a compound return of 11.8%. The best period started in 1975 and returned 18.9% a stunningly profitable run for investors who were both lucky enough to invest in 1975 and determined enough to stick with it for 40 years. More relevant for many people would be a 15-year history. This data set contains 73 15-year periods. The best one began in 1975, returning a compound gain of 26.4%. The worst 15-year period, starting in 1928, resulted in a compound loss of 1.6%. On average, small-cap value stocks returned 16.1% during the 15-year periods for which we have data. Only five of those periods had returns of less than 10%. In 93% of the cases, a 15-year investor in small-cap value stocks would have obtained a compound return of 10% or more, with the average being 17%. I would never advise anybody to invest in small-cap value stocks individually. But fortunately, there are low-cost index funds that bundle them by the hundreds. Among the Vanguard funds I recommend is the Small Cap Value Index Fund . This fund has been profitable in seven of the 10 most recent calendar years; in two of those years, 2009 and 2013, the returns were more than 30%. It wasn't all roses, however, during the very rough period we experienced in 2007 through early 2009. In its three most recent down years, the fund lost 7.1% (2007), 32.1% (2008), and 4.2% (2011). Despite setbacks like that, this asset class has such a terrific long-term record that I have sometimes recommended that investors in their 20s consider investing in it exclusively but only until they are 40. Then they should diversify into other asset classes to give themselves a smoother ride. There's no guarantee this will turn out to be a good recommendation, but the historical evidence certainly supports it. For most people, small-cap value stocks should be just one part of a diversified portfolio. In its good years, this asset class will surely provide "a piece of the action." And when these stocks are struggling, the probability is high that other asset classes will mitigate the damage. In the next article in this series, I'll show you the historical results from a portfolio with equal amounts of large-cap blend, large-cap value, small-cap blend and small-cap value. We will see that over the last 87 calendar years, by virtually all measures of 15-year and 40-year periods, this combination of four asset classes outperformed the S&P 500 index alone. You'll see that this combination could triple the lifetime return of the equity part of your portfolio. Richard Buck contributed to this article.
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Madonna felt "incarcerated" while with Guy Ritchie. The 'Living For Love' hitmaker has confessed to feeling trapped by the 'Sherlock Holmes' director during their seven-and-a-half-year marriage and believes the 46-year-old filmmaker held her back artistically. Speaking about their time together, she said: "I did find myself sometimes in a state of conflict. There were many times when I wanted to express myself as an artist in ways that I don't think my ex-husband felt comfortable with. "There were times when I felt incarcerated. I wasn't really allowed to be myself." The 56-year-old star - whose 13th studio album 'Rebel Heart' is out this week - divorced Guy in 2008, but now acknowledges compromise is a key part of any relationship, so she just needs to find the right man who can fully accept what she does. She told The Sun newspaper: "I think when you get married you have to be willing to make a lot of compromises and that's fair enough. I think that's the way it goes in relationships." The iconic singer - who has sons Rocco, 14, and adopted David, nine, with Guy, as well as Lourdes, 18, from a previous relationship and Mercy, nine, who she adopted alone - added: "It doesn't mean that marriage is a bad thing. But if you're an artist you've got to find someone who accepts who you are and are comfortable with that."
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Face-Off 's McKenzie Westmore says you have to crack a few eggs to get a glowing face!
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PARIS About 15 gunmen ambushed two vans carrying jewels worth millions on a French highway in the dead of night, ejecting their drivers and speeding off into the Burgundy countryside, police said. It was the latest of several big jewelry heists in France. Unusually this time, the attackers chose a moving target instead of one of France's many high-end jewelry boutiques. To pull it off, experts said, the gang must have been tightly organized and well-informed, possibly thanks to an inside source with knowledge of the vans' movements. The assailants and the jewels remained missing Wednesday evening, even after gendarmes and other authorities spent hours combing the forests and towns southeast of Paris around the scene of the overnight attack. The vans were slowing down to approach a tollbooth on the A6 highway connecting Paris and Lyon when four cars apparently surrounded them and forced them to stop, a security official said. No one was injured, and the drivers of the two vans were left at the scene unharmed, a police official said. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to be publicly named. The perpetrators then escaped in four cars and the two vans, which police later found burned and abandoned about 50 kilometers (30 miles) away, the police official said. Forensic investigators in white suits examined the area around the charred vans Wednesday amid vineyards in the town of Quenne. It's unclear where the attackers were heading. After hours of searches failed to locate them, authorities concentrated on their investigation into the attack, which was handed to the French police agency overseeing organized crime. No suspects have been named. Alain Bauer, a professor of criminology, said Wednesday's heist did not appear to fit the pattern of attacks by the Pink Panthers gang of jewel thieves because they "don't usually attack trucks." That network has been credited with a series of thefts that Interpol says have netted more than 330 million euros since 1999. France itself sees about five or six jewelry heists a year, Bauer said. "That's actually low, historically. Ten or 20 years ago, we had two or three times more," he said. The number has diminished because French authorities have dismantled several jewelry theft networks. Today, Bauer said, most of the teams staging heists in France are coming from the Balkans or elsewhere in eastern Europe. In November, two gunmen robbed a Cartier jewelry boutique in a tony, tourist-filled Paris neighborhood. Police chased them across the Seine River and they took a hostage before surrendering. Last month, eight people were convicted in connection with a spectacular 2008 jewel theft at a Harry Winston boutique in Paris, when three cross-dressing gunmen stole about $92 million in goods, aided by a security guard. In 2013, southeast France was hit with a spate of jewelry thefts, including two in Cannes during the city's famed film festival. In one, a gunman walked into a jewel show at the Carlton International Hotel, stole $136 million in loot, and disappeared down a side street in one of the most lucrative jewelry heists ever. No one has been convicted in the case. Major diamond heists in recent years have also targeted Antwerp in Belgium, Amsterdam, Milan and London.
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After announcing plans last week to install a new tire pack barrier along the interior Turn 4 wall in advance of this weekend's Sprint Cup Series race, Phoenix International Raceway is reportedly considering replacing the tire pack with a permanent SAFER barrier. A decision on the proposed change won't come until after Sunday's CampingWorld.com 500, the Arizona Republic reports . Track president Bryan Sperber announced last week that PIR was adding the tire packs, which will reside near the entrance to pit road, in the wake of two crashes involving two of the sport's biggest stars -- Kyle Busch and Jeff Gordon -- in the first two race weekends of the 2015 season. Both Busch (Daytona) and Gordon (Atlanta) had hard collisions with concrete walls unprotected by a SAFER barrier. A third driver, Erik Jones, later collided with an unprotected wall in last Saturday's XFINITY Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. While Gordon and Jones were uninjured in their respective incidents, Busch suffered a compound fracture of his lower-right leg and a mid-foot fracture when his No. 54 Toyota barrelled head-first into an unprotected wall in the XFINITY season opener at Daytona on Feb. 21. He has not raced since.
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Pro Bowl linebacker Patrick Willis retired from the NFL, which will give him plenty of time to learn how to tie a tie.
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Free agent cornerback Darrelle Revis is headed back to the New York Jets , according to his agent . Revis spent the first six seasons of his career in the Big Apple and will now return after stints with Tampa Bay and New England. Revis, 29, has bounced around from team to team after he was traded by the Jets following the 2012 season to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers . He played just one season with the Buccaneers before joining the Patriots for the 2014 season. While Revis suffered a torn ACL in his final season with the Jets, he started all 32 games in the last two seasons with the Buccaneers and Patriots, including postseason games with New England en route to a Super Bowl victory. The Patriots chose not to pick up his $20 million option , allowing him to hit the open market instead. Interest on the market was immediate , with the Patriots, Jets, Cleveland Browns , Oakland Raiders and Kansas City Chiefs all showing interest in the cornerback. Over 111 career starts, Revis has 23 interceptions and 124 passes defended. He has earned first-team All-Pro honors four times and six trips to the Pro Bowl.
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The Justice Department's newest electronic dragnet--plane-mounted " dirtboxes " that can slurp thousands of cellular phone ID's from the air -- was originally developed by the CIA to hunt terrorists in the Middle East, The Wall Street Journal reports. Now however, it's being used domestically to track American citizens. That's not good. According to a new report from the WSJ , the US Marshals Service, with assistance from both the CIA and Boeing, developed these Cessna-mounted devices. They are electronic sniffers that mimic cellular tower signals to incite any cellular telephone within range to broadcast its identifying registration information. It's essentially an aerial man-in-the-middle attack and one that has cost US taxpayers more than $100 million to create. With this information, US Marshals can effectively locate, identify, and lock on to specific cell phones -- out of a sample population of thousands or even tens of thousands of devices -- to within an accuracy of just three yards. What's more, once the suspect phone is found, Marshals can then listen in on any calls originating from it. According to the WSJ , these devices have been in operation since 2007, mounted on Cessna aircraft flying out of five metropolitan airfields throughout the US and can access a majority of the US population. This isn't the first time that this technology has been put to use by US officials, mind you. Dirtbox technology first debuted in the Middle East where it was utilized in the hunt for terrorists in both Afghanistan and Iraq. However, this new program marks a troubling collaboration between domestic law enforcement and the nation spy agency that blurs a very important operational distinction between the two agencies. That is, the CIA is an outward-looking agency; its purpose is to gather information from abroad regarding external threats to national security. The US Marshals (and the DOJ in general), instead is tasked with enforcing federal law here in the States. To provide the DOJ with more than a million dollars worth of equipment designed specifically to hunt people that aren't protected by the Constitution and then allow federal officials to listen in on calls may conform to the letter of the law -- as both the CIA and DOJ have asserted to the WSJ -- but it certainly doesn't conform to the spirit. And it could very well lead to further and more aggressive domestic surveillance efforts in the future. Both the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the American Civil Liberties Union have already filed FOIA requests regarding the program and have requested "additional information about the Department of Justice's and Department of Homeland Security's acquisition, possession, and use of cell site simulators deployed on aircraft" ahead of any further legal action. We've already seen that the Feds have very few qualms about utilizing digital dragnets like PRISM . This Dirtbox technology appears to signal a newfound readiness to apply these overreaching information gathering practices to not just our online lives but to our mobile devices as well. WSJ
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The oil price plunge has been touted as a global growth elixir, but so far the impact on the economy has been subtle and it's unclear when that will change. "Local fuel prices have almost fully adjusted to lower crude oil prices," Goldman Sachs (GS) said in a note last week after tracking data from 24 countries. But it expects the stimulus impact on the economy won't be straightforward, depending on whether low prices are perceived as likely to persist and government policy responses. "Income gains of households might not necessarily translate into significant spending rises," it said, adding that corporate gains would likely be reflected more slowly. For companies, "the price pass-through mechanism is quite complex, with oil windfalls spread out to dividends, wages, and retained earnings, not necessarily spilled over directly to consumers via lower retail prices," Goldman said. "The use of oil is also quite diverse, entailing transportation, feedstock, and energy and a significant part of final goods are exported, with any spillover of windfalls going overseas." What spending boost? These factors appear to be playing out in the U.S. economy. Households there don't appear to be spending the oil largesse just yet, Paul Dales, an economist at Capital Economics, said in a note Monday. Real disposable income in the U.S. rose by 0.5 percent on month in both November and December, but "these extra funds, however, have not made it into the cash registers in the shopping malls or the bars and restaurants on Main Street," Dale said, adding households are saving, not spending their windfall. Indeed, U.S. households in January bought 6 percent more gasoline than a year-earlier, but they spent $120 billion less doing it. The windfall appears to have gone to savings as the savings rate in January rose to a two-year high of 5.5 percent, Dale noted. Brent oil prices (@0BDC15J) for April delivery are trading around $56.88 a barrel, off the lows under $49 touched in January, but they remain sharply down from their level over $115 a barrel in mid-June of last year. "Households just want to make sure that lower gasoline prices are here to stay," Dale said. "Assuming that gasoline prices stay close to current levels, as we expect, then it is only a matter of time before real consumption rises more rapidly." Elsewhere, spending is on the rise In other regions globally, however, Capital Economics noted that households are starting to loosen the purse strings. "Household spending has picked up sharply in response to the collapse in oil prices," it said in a separate note last week. "In January, the growth rate of underlying retail sales in advanced economies reached its highest level since 2006," Capital Economics said. "Even consumers in the euro zone are participating in the upturn, though Japanese households are not. Business surveys suggest that broader economic activity has also rebounded." With the cost of motor fuel in major developed economies down by an average of 30 percent compared with last summer, consumers in the four largest advanced economies should see around $250 billion annually get freed up for other spending, Capital Economics said. Uneven growth recovery But while Capital Economics sees signs the oil savings will spur economic growth ahead, the economic recovery is "highly uneven" globally. "The threat of deflation continues to hang over the euro-zone while Japan is yet to get back to its pre-tax-hike levels of consumption or gross domestic product (GDP)," Capital Economics said, citing data showing economic growth slipped to 2.4 percent in the last quarter of 2014. By CNBC.Com's Leslie Shaffer; Follow her on Twitter @LeslieShaffer1
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INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Rodney Stuckey is following instructions from Frank Vogel, and Indiana's coach can see it paying off. "I don't know if it's the best he's played in his career, but it's got to be close," Vogel said. BOX SCORE: PACERS 118, MAGIC 86 Stuckey scored a season-high 34 points with six rebounds and seven assists, and the Pacers beat the Orlando Magic 118-86 on Tuesday night for their sixth straight victory. "I was just shooting the ball," the reserve guard said. "Coach always tells me, `Shoot when you're open.' They were going in tonight." Damjan Rudez scored 17 points, and Luis Scola added 15 points and 10 rebounds for the surging Pacers (29-34), who moved into sole possession of seventh place in the Eastern Conference. Tobias Harris had 22 points and six rebounds, and Elfrid Payton finished with 14 points for the Magic, who have lost five of seven games. "The shots they were making were tough ones," Harris said. "There were too many times where guys were going right past us. That definitely hurt us tonight." Stuckey made two of his season-best six 3-pointers in an 18-0 run in the first half. Indiana, which beat Orlando for the third time this season, used a 9-3 run in the fourth quarter to pull away, with Solomon Hill's two-handed dunk giving the Pacers a 93-73 lead with 9:52 remaining. The Pacers made 17 3-pointers to match the franchise record. Stuckey was 6 for 9 and Rudez went 5 for 7. "I just wanted to win," Stuckey said. "I knew I was cooking, but at the end of the day it doesn't matter if we didn't get that `W,' so that was more important." The Magic, who have lost eight straight road games, led 28-20 when Aaron Gordon dunked on an alley-oop pass from Payton. Then Indiana went on its big first-half run, taking the lead for good on a 3-pointer by Rudez and building a 38-28 advantage. He made two more in the third quarter, including one to put the Pacers ahead 71-54 midway through the period. The Magic got back within 11 when Harris made a 3-pointer, but George Hill answered with a 3. Stuckey made a 3-pointer and made three other baskets, including one to give the Pacers an 89-70 lead early in the fourth quarter. ------ TIP-INS Orlando: Starting center Nikola Vucevic returned after missing two straight games with a sore left ankle. The Magic's leading scorer this season finished with 13 points and five rebounds. Pacers: Stuckey was six points shy of his career high. With the Detroit Pistons, Stuckey scored 40 points against the Chicago Bulls on Dec. 23, 2008. His previous career high for 3-pointers was four, a total he reached three times and most recently against Sacramento in the 2011-12 season. HOMECOMING Orlando guard Victor Oladipo was welcomed with cheers from fans when he was introduced in the starting lineup. Oladipo, who finished with 13 points, played three seasons at Indiana University before he was selected No. 2 overall by the Magic in the 2013 draft. PUBLIC STATEMENT Indianapolis Colts linebacker Robert Mathis attended the game and on the first day of NFL free agency, Mathis had a message of his own for fans. When he was shown on the jumbo screen during a timeout in the first half, Mathis mouthed, "I'll be back." The message was well received. Mathis missed all of last season. He first served a four-game suspension for violating the league's drug policy, but before he could return, suffered a season-ending torn Achilles tendon. UP NEXT Magic: Visit Milwaukee on Wednesday. Pacers: Host Milwaukee on Thursday.
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Recently, we track-tested a Porsche 918 Spyder and a McLaren P1 to see which was the better million-dollar hypercar. The Porsche may have packed 17 less horsepower from its 4.6-liter V-8 engine and two electric motors, but it ultimately bested the McLaren's P1 twin-turbo 3.8-liter V-8 and electric motor producing a combined 904 hp. But which other hypercars would you like to see throw down with these giants, and would they stand a chance of winning? An obvious choice would be the Ferrari LaFerrari, which produces a maximum output of 949 hp. As Carlos Lago explained in the article, we had a LaFerrari owner ready and willing to lend us his car, but Ferrari wouldn't allow us to test it. The LaFerrari derives its power from a small 161-hp electric motor and a much more powerful V-12 internal combustion engine. Just like the Porsche and P1, the LaFerrari also claims a sub-3-second 0-62 mph time, though that can't be verified without instrumented testing. Related link: Read the 918 vs. P1 shootout Another interesting match-up could involve the upcoming Veyron successor, rumored to be called the Bugatti Chiron. This mass of insanity is said to use an 8.0-liter W-16 quad-turbocharged engine to produce 1500 hp. In addition, two of its turbochargers are rumored to be electrically driven. While the Chiron would no doubt beat the hybrid hypercar competition when it comes to outright speed, it would be interesting to see how other driving aspects compare. Related link: 1500-hp Koenigsegg Regera is a Gearbox-Less Hybrid Hyperca r But what would happen if we throw non-hybrids into the mix? The lightweight Pagani Huayra pumps out 720 hp from its 6.0-liter twin turbo V-12, and we've always admired its agility on twisty roads. The Koenigsegg Agera R is also no slouch, hitting 62 mph in an estimated 2.9 seconds and breaching a top speed of 260 mph. That's not to mention its 1150 hp under the hood. If that's too tame, there's the recently revealed Agera RS and 1500-hp hybrid Regera. Which hypercar would you like to see challenge the 918 Spyder and McLaren P1? Let us know in the comments below.
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Ryan Seacrest Ryan Seacrest is dating Renée Hall. The 'American Idol' host, who split from 23-year-old personal trainer Shayna Taylor in December after 18 months of dating, appears to be smitten with the blonde beauty after being introduced to her by mutual friends at his lavish 40th birthday party in Napa Valley, California late last month, where they quickly hit it off. The 'Keeping Up with the Kardashians' producer was spotted strolling around New York City with the Nashville-based model, who has an eight-year-old son, Levi, from a previous marriage, over the weekend. An eyewitness told gossip website TMZ.com that the couple visited the Museum of Modern Art in Manhattan. News of Ryan's new romance comes less than a year after friends predicted the media mogul was preparing to propose to Shayna. Last summer, a source claimed: "Everyone before Shayna bored him. He's moving fast." Another insider said: "They are so affectionate and sweet together. He's ready to settle down. Shayna came into his life at just the right time." Ryan, who split from 'Safe Haven' actress Julianne Hough in March 2013 after three years of dating, previously admitted he is eager to find long-lasting love like his parents, Connie and Gary Seacrest. Speaking last year, he said: "I look at what my mom and dad have had for 40-plus years - a fantastic relationship and great marriage. Someday I'd like that. They're my role models."
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ALBANY, N.Y. An online company is losing Montel Williams as its celebrity pitchman in New York while agreeing to stop generating leads in the state for payday loans with interest rates sometimes topping 1,000 percent, regulators said Tuesday. An investigation found Las Vegas-based Selling Source LLC, doing business as MoneyMutual, marketed illegal loans online to New York residents, and the company will pay $2.1 million in penalties, the Department of Financial Services said. Williams, a former Marine who hosted "The Montel Williams Show" for more than a decade, signed a consent order saying he'll stop endorsing MoneyMutual loans in New York, it said. "Using Mr. Williams's reputation as a trusted celebrity endorser, MoneyMutual marketed loans to struggling consumers with sky-high interest rates sometimes in excess of 1,300 percent that trapped New Yorkers in destructive cycles of debt," department Superintendent Ben Lawsky said in a statement. "The company made special efforts to target the more than 55 percent of their customers who were 'repeat clients' including so-called 'Gold' customers who took out a new loan to pay off a previous loan." A payday loan is a short-term advance against a borrower's paycheck and usually carries a high interest rate. New York's interest rate limit is 16 percent. The consent order, also signed Monday by Selling Source CEO Glenn McKay, said the company acknowledged on its website that the typical annual percentage rate on a 14-day loan is "somewhere between 261 percent and 1,304 percent." The order noted Selling Source had since September 2009 sold to its network of at least 60 payday lenders more than 800,000 New York consumer leads. It said each lender paid Selling Source a fee for every lead it bought and Selling Source in turn paid Williams a fee for every lead it sold through the MoneyMutual brand. There were "numerous complaints from aggrieved New York consumers struggling under the rates, fees, and repayment schedules demanded by MoneyMutual's network of lenders," it said. The investigation found no violation of law by Williams, who had no role in the business operations of Selling Source, his spokesman Jonathan Franks said. They "stand by his overall endorsement of MoneyMutual," with the exception of New York, and note he has received fewer than 10 complaints directly from consumers, Franks said. He said many consumers have no access to traditional credit products, something industry detractors don't understand. "As he has said publicly many times, Mr. Williams himself utilized short-term lending while attending the Naval Academy on more than one occasion and paid those loans back on time," Franks said. The settlement, which precludes what could have been costly litigation, includes no admission of wrongdoing by Selling Source, the company said. "Hundreds of thousands of consumers have been paired with a responsible lender, have secured the short-term financing they needed and repaid the money loaned to them," it said. The consent order requires the company, which said it cooperated with regulators, to pay three installments of $700,000 over three years and disable its website from accepting applications from people who enter New York ZIP codes. The company agreed to state in ads that services aren't available in New York.
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Kim Kardashian and Kanye West have been attending all the hottest events during Paris Fashion Week, but it seems as though they decided to leave 1-year old North at home. After the little one had a hard time keeping it together during her dad's Adidas presentation and Alexander Wang's runway showin NYC, it was probably in Kim and Kanye's best interest to let her hang out with some fashionable people her own age. After we saw North out and about with her parents during Paris Fashion Week last year, it became pretty clear that the 1-year-old is, in fact, a celebrity in her own right. North sat front row for Givenchy and Balenciaga in clothes that would rival even the biggest of street style stars - seriously, this little girl was wearing sheer dresses, leather leggings, and baby Doc Martens that probably cost more than your rent - and even while checking out collections from some of the world's best designers, North just looked . . . unimpressed. Much like Prince George, North West doesn't seem like the type of toddler to be easily excited by things like high fashion and lavish birthday parties; it's almost as if she's a normal baby that would rather be at home watching Sesame Street and eating animal crackers. In any case, we can't help but notice how totally adorable North looks when she's clearly had enough of hanging out with her family - and how she obviously inherited her pissy resting face from this guy - so we've rounded up her cutest unimpressed moments here. Scroll through to see all the times that North West was totally over it. When She Sat Front Row at Her Dad's Runway Show Even though she was sitting between the legendary Anna Wintour and the legendary Beyoncé Knowles, North was probably just thinking about getting a juice box and a nap. Love this? Follow us on Twitter. And at Alexander Wang's Runway Show "I'm not quite feeling the color palette." Love this? Follow us on Twitter. While Her Mom Got Ready for the Super Bowl "The only bowl I care about is the one holding my Cheerios. Please go get my Cheerios." Love this? Follow us on Twitter. At Her Coachella-Themed Birthday Party Kim and Kanye celebrated North's first birthday in June 2014 with a "Kid-chella" party. All the guests seemed to be having an absolute blast, while North was more like, "I just came for the cake, thanks." Love this? Follow us on Twitter. At Her Parents' Wedding Not a custom couture gown, loads of celebrity onlookers, or a centuries-old Italian villa could impress North West at the May 2014 wedding of her parents, Kim and Kanye (to be fair, Spongebob Squarepants was on). Love this? Follow us on Twitter. When Riccardo Tisci Tried to Cuddle With Her North didn't have much of a reaction to being held by the Givenchy designer - other than "I'm a celebrity, get me out of here" - in November 2013. Love this? Follow us on Twitter. That Time Her Grandma Took Her to the Zoo North bonded with her grandma, Kris Jenner, at the San Diego Zoo in August 2014. While Kris was jazzed about meeting the animals, North was basically like, "Can this giraffe chill?" Love this? Follow us on Twitter. When She Met Santa Kim shared this photo of North "warming up to Santa" in December 2014. Something tells us that friendship was never quite cemented. Love this? Follow us on Twitter. When She Had to Take Her Shoes Off to Go Through Airport Security North couldn't believe the audacity of Burbank security while traveling with her mom in August 2014 - "Don't they know those shoes are Céline?" Love this? Follow us on Twitter. That Time She Was Featured in Vogue Freaking Magazine North made her modeling debut alongside Kim and Kanye in the April 2014 issue of Vogue, which was a huge deal for them, but for her? "Anna Wint-who?!" Love this? Follow us on Twitter. Backstage at the Balenciaga Show North got to hang backstage with Alexander Wang before heading to her front-row seat, but it seemed like she had other things on her mind at the time - things like watching Bubble Guppies and eating apple slices. Love this? Follow us on Twitter. Before the Givenchy Show "I just . . . I just can't do this with you right now, Kim." Love this? Follow us on Twitter. During the Givenchy Show "I haven't been this bored since that wedding." Love this? Follow us on Twitter. And After the Givenchy Show "Can. We. Please. Go?!" Love this? Follow us on Twitter. When She Had to Walk Home "You are so lucky these baby Doc Martens have rubber soles." Love this? Follow us on Twitter. And When Riccardo Tisci Tried to Cuddle With Her (Again) That guy just cannot win with North West. Love this? Follow us on Twitter. When Her Mom Tried to Kiss Her "Kim! Can't you let me take one selfie alone?" Love this? Follow us on Twitter. When Her Mom Dressed Her as André Leon Talley For Halloween "You know I have no idea who he is, right? Can't I just put that skunk costume back on?" Love this? Follow us on Twitter. And When She Went to Lunch With Her Aunt Khloé "I swear I said 'no photographs.' I'm just trying to eat here." Love this? Follow us on Twitter.
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Klaas-Jan Huntelaar was left with a feeling of regret by Schalke's failure to reach the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals, despite a thrilling 4-3 victory at defending champion Real Madrid. Former Real striker Huntelaar's return to The Santiago Bernabeu was a fruitful one as he scored twice in Tuesday's last-16 second leg, including a stunning 85th-minute effort that set up a frantic finale. But Schalke which was defeated 2-0 in the first leg in Gelsenkirchen ultimately fell short, and Huntelaar believes the team's inability to twice hold onto the lead before halftime was the decisive factor. "Of course we are happy about our game, but we could have achieved more," he said. "We conceded too easily and we should have taken our lead into the break. They didn't feel comfortable at all." Real's latest blip was met with a chorus of whistles by the home supporters as the club failed to hold onto to the lead despite Karim Benzema putting Los Blancos ahead in the 53rd minute. And Schalke captain Benedikt Howedes felt Roberto Di Matteo's side deserved more for its efforts. "We played a great game. We were very brave and haven't been outshone by a world-class team like Real Madrid," he said. "Congratulations to my team. We deserved more."
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DENVER In a warning to law enforcement agencies rushing to equip officers with body cameras after killings by police nationwide, a new report says the devices used by Denver officers during a trial period didn't record most of the use-of-force incidents that occurred. Denver's independent police monitor, Nicholas Mitchell, also said police used force more often and citizens' complaints against officers rose during the cameras' six-month trial period in the city's busy downtown district. Police officials repeatedly said they expected the cameras would drive down those numbers. Experts say the early findings released Tuesday are a reminder that the effectiveness of the increasingly popular technology, billed as a tool to improve police accountability, still depends on the officers using it. Denver officers' body cameras recorded just 21 of 80 documented uses of force in the downtown district during the trial, which ran from June to December, Mitchell found. Thirty-five of the encounters weren't recorded because they involved off-duty officers, who were not required to wear the cameras while moonlighting as security guards. Police officers wearing the cameras on their lapels or eyeglasses were involved in 45 of the cases. Yet less than half of those were recorded, either because cameras weren't activated or they weren't used in a way that provided worthwhile recordings. Officers were expected to activate their cameras during a broad range of encounters, including traffic stops and responses to 911 calls. In many cases, officers said situations deteriorated too quickly for them to safely activate their cameras. But Mitchell found that officers often failed to follow policies requiring them to turn on the cameras before initiating an encounter. Other times, the cameras shifted and were obstructed by officers' clothes, the batteries died or they shut off in the middle of a scuffle. Mitchell's report highlights the shortcomings of body cameras at a time when hundreds of departments grapple with policies for their use. Officers in one out of every six police departments around the country patrol with the tiny cameras, and President Barack Obama recommended spending $74 million to outfit another 50,000 officers with them. "It's an issue that departments have to deal with, and they have to deal with it through policy and the culture of the department," said Jim Bueermann, president of the nonprofit Police Foundation. "If the culture of the department is such that the line people do not see the value of this technology to help build trust and confidence in the police, it will be a struggle." Cmdr. Magen Dodge, who oversees Denver's body camera program, said Mitchell's numbers were skewed because he looked beyond the scope of the pilot program. She said officers involved in the pilot used force 53 times, and there was at least some footage associated with 46 of those cases. Dodge said the city is waiting for the results of an outside researcher's study on the pilot program. Officials stand by their plan to expand the program to 800 of the department's roughly 1,400 officers at a cost of more than $1.5 million. Police leaders don't believe there's a widespread effort by officers to hide their actions, Cmdr. Matt Murray said. "Part of it is a learning curve," he said. Mitchell found Denver's early results were different than those in Rialto, California, where cameras were credited for an 89 percent drop in complaints against officers. That city's success could be due in part to policies requiring officers to tell citizens they are being recorded, Mitchell said. Mitchell said cameras could be effective with tighter policies and clear notice to officers about the discipline they could face for not using them. "If you don't have good policies and good training and give clear notice to officers of the repercussions of not using the cameras, you're going to have officers that cherry pick, and you're not going to increase transparency, much less accountability," said Denise Maes, public policy director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado. "You're going to really erode the public trust, which is really the intent of all of this."
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Kevin Egan breaks down Manchester United's exit from the FA Cup. What's going on with the Red Devils? #120Talk
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Soccer analyst Kevin Egan takes a closer look at Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal's recent signings.
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Mike Garafolo tells us why the Saints traded their prized tight end to the Seahawks.
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(Bloomberg Politics) -- President Barack Obama may have done Scott Walker a political favor. At least that's the early read by Republicans in Iowa, a state viewed as crucial for the Wisconsin governor's potential presidential bid. "If the president keeps up his attacks on Governor Walker and his policies, the governor may have to count it as an in-kind contribution to his Iowa caucus campaign," said Matt Strawn, a former chairman of the Republican Party of Iowa. "Among Iowa Republicans, who measure a candidate's fidelity to the conservative cause by the critics they collect on the left, being attacked by the president and his liberal allies is the gold standard." In a rare move of directly criticizing a single governor and also inserting himself into Republican presidential politics, Obama issued a statement Monday night sharply critical of Walker, who earlier in the day had signed so-called right-to-work legislation into law. The president said he's "deeply disappointed" in what he described as an "anti-worker law" that allows employees in union workplaces to opt out of dues and membership. Walker should be searching for ways to boost pay, Obama said. Following the White House statement, Walker's political operation tried to go on the offense on the issue today with a statement. "Democrats and special interests will make every attempt to derail the common sense reforms Governor Walker and the Republican legislature implemented in Wisconsin," said Kirsten Kukowski, a spokeswoman for Walker's Our American Revival political committee. "Americans want bold leaders, which is much more than we can say for Democrats in Washington, D.C." Walker had appeared poised to play down his role in passing the legislation before Obama made his move. At his signing ceremony Monday, Walker said the push for the right-to-work bill, passed last week by the legislature, came from lawmakers themselves. "Our leaders here led," he said during a ceremony in Brown Deer, Wisconsin. "It was the leadership you see here who drove the train on this." In Iowa, where the nomination race starts and right-to-work has been the law since 1947, Republicans say Walker should talk about Obama's confrontation of him as much as possible. "Republicans in Iowa are applauding Scott Walker for signing this strong right to work legislation and they see President Obama's unusual tactic of hitting the governor from the White House as a message that could actually unite Republicans around Walker on this issue," said Jamie Johnson, a member of the Republican Party of Iowa's state central committee who isn't aligned with any 2016 candidate. Even Iowa political operatives aligned with other candidates agree Obama did Walker a favor. "It is going to further endear him to Iowa conservatives, no question about it," said one Iowa Republican aligned with former Florida Governor Jeb Bush. To contact the author on this story: John McCormick at [email protected] To contact the editor on this story: David Knowles at [email protected]
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Kevin Egan breaks down Schalke's 4-3 win over Real Madrid and breaks down Real Madrid's chances as they head into the next round of the Champions League.
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Kevin Egan takes a closer look at Porto's dominating 4-0 win over Basel in the round of 16 of the Champions League.
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Drew Dougherty caught up with QB Ryan Mallett after he signed his new contract with the Texans. To see more Texans videos download the Texans DeskSite.
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The European parliament on Tuesday adopted a law allowing for longer heavier trucks as long as manufacturers build more aerodynamic, less polluting and less dangerous vehicles. The legislation will see lorries with more rounded cabs plying European Union roads from 2017, offering their drivers a better field of vision to spot bicycles and motorcycles in particular, lawmakers said. The cabs will also have a deflective shape to reduce the impact of collisions. "We have made sure that the lorries are safer, both for drivers and other users of the road," according to Jorg Leichtfried, a socialist member of parliament from Austria who guided the law through the chamber. The trucks can be up to a tonne heavier than before as long as they have greener fueling systems. Until now, manufacturers were dissuaded from developing hybrid or electric motors because they would make the truck heavier and require operators to carry lighter loads to meet EU norms. "It will encourage greener transport," said Violeta Bulc, the European commissioner for transport. "With the use of low‑carbon technologies it will make trucks more aerodynamic and therefore more fuel‑efficient," she said. And she added: "It will promote innovation ..., and this will boost the competitiveness of the EU industry at a global level." The socialists and the Greens welcomed a compromise that allowed for greater safety and a cleaner environment but did not open the way to mega trucks of more than 60 tonnes. The last laws setting the specifications of lorries dates back to 1996. The text must now be approved by the Council of the European Union, which group's the 28 EU member states. Lawmakers said approval was a formality.
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unnamed These reusable stickers that can be safely stuck on walls, tables, or wherever else are great for creative kiddos. Get the tot in your life started on the right foot. A hat trick that nobunny can knock. This miniature swimsuit may actually be too adorable for words. You know childhood would have been a lot duller without a certain doctor in the mix. Pass it on to the next generation. Dr. Suess's Beginner Book Collection, $29.96, available at Barnes & Noble. Because, as your brother keeps reminding you, your niece is a Mozart-level child prodigy. All-natural dough we can seriously get behind. Kid's first track suit. Start 'em young. An at-home neon-yellow or baby-blue manicure is pretty much a rite of passage for tweens. Every experiment is more fun when you get to eat it at the end. No sleepover is complete without a rad sleeping bag. An glow-in-the-dark Frisbee need we say more? Hand down the important lesson that it's never too early to begin caring for one's skin. It's also fun and smells good. For the stylish-beyond-her-years high school student. Crosley's portable AM/FM radio is also playlist-friendly. Add a selection of top songs from "back in your day," and enjoy a bit of gentle mocking from the teen in your life. We suggest purchasing a helmet to go with this one. Decor cred for the dorm-bound. They have Mark Twain quotes on them; they're educational. Sort of. An under-$50 gift for the bud in your life. Perfect for walking to class, hitting the gym, and tuning out roommates. Be a good influence on your friend trying to get into yoga. But, make it cool with this Daniel Arsham mat. Give the gift of sun protection and lewk. For your ridiculously reliable and consistent friend. See if they can handle writing in this every single day; the memories will be fun for both of you if they do. Another fun way to document birthday memories (or lack thereof…). Get your S.O. a sweet-looking bike, without entirely breaking the bank. A tough, weatherproof speaker for those upcoming outdoor soirees. There's no harm in giving a gift you'll get to use, too. Perfect when paired with plane tickets or a B & B reservation for a weekend away. A birthday is a good reason to splurge on a candle. Gift one that matches your perfume, so your sweetie thinks of you on every light. To remind Mom that she deserves some quality R & R. If you're going to save anyone the hassle of knotted earbuds, it should be your parents. One stone for you, one stone for mom. Sometimes, the best gifts are written ones. Our grandparents deserve something sweet on their birthday, but instead of your go-to "grandpa candy" try a chocolate bar with a bit more cool factor. Chances are your grandpa still prefers cash, so this birthday, buy him a new money clip. Put your favorite picture of you and your grandparents in a frame that feels just as special and one-of-a-kind as they are to you. Upgrade her jewelry box with this irregularly shaped pearl necklace.
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NASCAR placed Brad Keselowski crew chief Paul Wolfe on season-long probation and fined Justin Allgaier crew chief Steve Addington $25,000 on Tuesday as a result of infractions discovered last weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Keselowski's No. 2 Team Penske Ford was found to have modified quarter panel wheel openings during pre-qualifying inspection on Friday. That's classified as a "P2" penalty on NASCAR's penalty scale and earned Wolfe probation through Dec. 31, but no fine or points penalty. Allgaier's No. 51 HScott Motorsports Chevrolet committed a P3 penalty after NASCAR observed ballast falling off the car during Sunday's race. It then did not meet the post-race minimum weight requirement following the race. Team owner Harry Scott Jr. said it was a "malfunction" that caused the ballast to fall off. "The issue was unintentional and we regret its occurrence," Scott said in a statement. "Going forward, we have implemented additional procedures to ensure that we do not have a repeat incident. We accept NASCAR's penalty and fully support its efforts to keep the sport as safe as possible for competitors, officials and fans." Follow Gluck on Twitter @jeff_gluck
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NORMAN, Okla. The University of Oklahoma, which expelled two Sigma Alpha Epsilon members Tuesday for leading a racist chant, may have infringed on the students' right to free speech, some legal experts said. But at least one of them said the university president did the right thing morally, if not legally. Two unidentified students were expelled for playing a "leadership role" in a racist chant by SAE brothers at the University of Oklahoma, the university's president announced, after his orders Monday to ban the fraternity from campus and evict the members from the house. "We will continue our investigation of all the students engaged in the singing of this chant," university President David Boren said in a statement, justifying the expulsions on the grounds that the chant had created a hostile environment for other students. "Once their identities have been confirmed, they will be subject to appropriate disciplinary action." At least two legal experts say the fraternity's racist song, although offensive, may be protected by the First Amendment. "The irony here is that (Boren is) arguing he's protecting the rights of some students while infringing on the First Amendment rights of other students," said Joey Senat, an associate professor who teaches media law at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater. "The speech is offensive, the speech is abhorrent, but the First Amendment protects unpopular speech." Eugene Volokh of the Volokh Conspiracy legal blog, agreed. "Racist speech is constitutionally protected, just as is expression of other contemptible ideas; and universities may not discipline students based on their speech," Volokh wrote in The Washington Post."That has been the unanimous view of courts that have considered campus speech codes and other campus speech restrictions." Joe Cohn, legislative and policy director of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, a student legal advocacy group based in Philadelphia, called the comments "a plain, vanilla case of protected speech." "I think the university president is betting on the fact that the public won't care because of its distaste for racism," Cohn told the Los Angeles Times. But an Oklahoma defense attorney who has litigated against the University of Oklahoma in student misconduct and due process cases, said he agreed with Boren's decision. "I'm the person that gets these calls, and I'd tell you, I wouldn't touch this case with a 10-foot pole," said the attorney, who requested anonymity to speak about the issue with The Times. "Here's what I think is going on: I think President Boren knew what he needed to do, and they're definitely in a gray area when it comes to due process," he said. The attorney said that public opinion in Norman was so overwhelmingly against the fraternity that he didn't think the fraternity students would risk a lawsuit to try to return to campus. "If I was President Boren, I would have done exactly the same thing," the attorney said. "He found what he needed to do legally and ran it through. ... He knew exactly what he could do to push the envelope and pushed it and it needed to be pushed." The expulsions were the latest fallout from a viral video that emerged Sunday night showing members of the SAE fraternity singing an anti-black chant. Boren almost immediately banned the SAE fraternity from campus after the video showed members singing on a bus, "You can hang 'em from a tree" and "There will never be a (n-word) SAE." In his statement Tuesday morning, Boren said: "I have emphasized that there is zero tolerance for this kind of threatening racist behavior at the University of Oklahoma. I hope that the entire nation will join us in having zero tolerance of such racism when it raises its ugly head in other situations across our country." Boren praised the university's response and added, "I hope that students involved in this incident will learn from this experience and realize that it is wrong to use words to hurt, threaten, and exclude other people." A black former member of SAE at the University of Oklahoma disowned the fraternity Tuesday. "They are not my brothers," William Bruce James II of Edmond, Okla., told CNN. "They all got to go." Anonymous sources had sent the video to a black activist group on campus and the local student newspaper on Sunday, and punishment was swift. SAE's national president, Brad Cohen, quickly said he was "shocked and disgusted" by the chant and also moved to cut ties with the local chapter. Less than 24 hours after the video hit social media, on Boren's orders, officials stripped SAE's letters from their house and fraternity brothers were moving out their belongings to meet a midnight deadline. Possibly caught in the collateral damage was a black chef who worked for SAE, Howard Dixon. By Monday morning, an online fundraiser set up for Dixon had raised more than $40,000. A similar online fundraiser for the fraternity's white house mother, Beauton Gilbow, was taken down after a short video clip emerged Monday night showing Gilbow repeatedly using the N-word to sing along with a popular rap song, "All Gold Everything," by Trinidad James, which repeatedly uses the N-word. "I am heartbroken by the portrayal that I am in some way racist," Gilbow said in a statement to News9-TV. "I have friends of all races and do not tolerate any form of discrimination in my life. I was singing along to a Trinidad song but completely understand how the video must appear in the context of the events that occurred this week." The university's beloved football team, despite showing outrage Monday and participating in anti-racist demonstrations, was also hit. After a black four-star football recruit, Jean Delance, saw the video, he withdrew his commitment from the program. Many minority students and faculty on campus, while shocked by the video, said it confirmed their worst fears about the continued existence of racism at the university. Mirelsie Velazquez, a professor in the university's College of Education, came to Norman in August. She said she's often the only person of color in classes or walking around town. With the release of the video, Velazquez said she's able to put faces and voices to the feeling she gets as a person of color standing in front of a room of white faces. "As we stand there teaching, not just at Oklahoma, and you think about how these students behave in their private time, you wonder, how do they view me and my community?" said Velazquez, who's had trouble sleeping since the video emerged. "It's hard to enter spaces and not be constantly thinking about how you're thought of." Many black students on campus, while shocked by the video, said it confirmed their worst fears about the continued existence of racism at the university. James, a member of SAE from 2001 to 2004, said he didn't recall hearing the racist chant, versions of which have reportedly been heard at some other campuses in Texas and elsewhere. "They are wearing the same letters I wore ... they have the same pin, the same symbol that I hold dear to my heart ... and I don't know what they have done with it," James told CNN. James added, "Nobody stood up and stopped them." (Pearce reported from Los Angeles, Duara from Norman, Okla. Staff writer Hailey Branson-Potts contributed to this story from Los Angeles.)
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It's official. No leaving for Indy. The Eagles have put their quarterback confusion aside to announce a move in the defensive secondary. The Eagles have officially announced that former Seahawks cornerback Byron Maxwell will sign a six-year deal with the club. The deal is worth a total of $63 million with $25 million in guaranteed money, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport . Maxwell was considered one of the best cornerbacks on the market after starting for the Seahawks last season. He will now start for the Eagles and will be in a secondary with at least two new starters. The Eagles still have quite a bit of money to spend, so the team could sign his fellow starting cornerback in the next few days (or hours). The team is rumored to be interested in Chiefs defensive back Ron Parker and Packers cornerback Tramon Williams . Maxwell has started 17 games in his career and produced 24 pass breakups and six interceptions over the last two seasons.
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DALLAS (AP) A former University of Oklahoma fraternity member who was shown in a video chanting a racial slur issued an apology Tuesday, as did the parents of a second student. In a statement emailed by his father, Parker Rice said the incident that was caught on video was "likely was fueled by alcohol," but "that's not an excuse." "I am deeply sorry for what I did Saturday night," Rice said in a statement emailed to The Associated Press by his father. "It was wrong and reckless." Meanwhile, the parents of another student seen on the video, Levi Pettit, released a statement that said, "he made a horrible mistake, and will live with the consequences forever." Both Pettit and Rice are from Texas. The chant referenced lynching and indicated black students would never be admitted to OU's chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon. OU President David Boren has severed ties with the fraternity. On Tuesday, he expelled the two students who appeared to be leading the chant but did not release their names. Boren said others involved would face discipline. Rice said in his statement that he withdrew from the university Monday. The statement from Pettit's parents did not address his status with the university. Rice said threatening calls to his family have prompted them to leave their North Dallas home. He called the incident "a horrible mistake" and "a devastating lesson" for which he is "seeking guidance on how I can learn from this and make sure it never happens again." "Yes, the song was taught to us, but that too doesn't work as an explanation. It's more important to acknowledge what I did and what I didn't do. I didn't say 'no.'" Pettit's parents, Brody and Susan Pettit, said in a statement posted online that their son "is a good boy, but what we saw in those videos is disgusting." The Pettits apologized "to the entire African-American community (and) University of Oklahoma student body and administration." Also Tuesday, Beauton Gilbow, the fraternity's "house mom," issued a statement that addressed a video from 2013 showing her repeating a racial slur as music plays in the background. Gilbow said she was singing along to a song. She said she was "heartbroken" by the portrayal that she was racist but understood how the video must appear in the context of the week's events. A "house mom" is a housing director who might oversee staff and finances at a sorority or fraternity house.
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It started with a subtle poke at Jeb Bush almost two months ago, when Scott Walker suggested that Republicans need "a new, fresh approach." Since then, Walker has continued jabbing, casting himself as the "son of a preacher" instead of, say, a president and warning Republicans against "looking to the past." With each provocation amid Walker's fast rise, the Bush camp has grown increasingly agitated not just by the attacks but also by what they see as a lack of scrutiny of the Wisconsin governor's record. Bush supporters fired back on Tuesday, starting when Al Cardenas, a Miami-based lawyer and longtime Bush supporter, took to Twitter to attack Walker's shifting positions : "Did u know S Walker was for path to citizenship. Now not? Did u know he was against ethanol subsidy, now he is for? Do u really know him?" In an e-mail to The Washington Post, Bush ally Ana Navarro repeated the theme, suggesting Walker was starting to sound a bit like that most renowned of Republican flip-floppers, Mitt Romney. "Running for president requires having the mettle to keep your boots on, not change into flip-flops when it starts getting hot," Navarro said in an e-mail. "I think the flip-flop label hasn't yet stuck to Walker because unlike Romney, until now he's had a low profile nationally." The back-and-forth between the Republican camps is evidence of how the growing Bush-Walker rivalry has come to define the early stage of the 2016 GOP primary race, as well as how each candidate is planning to position himself against the other. Walker wants to be the upstart outsider in the field, hoping to win over the grass roots as a fresh-faced conservative who stands apart from the old Washington ways. No one in the Republican field represents those ways more than Bush. The former Florida governor, meanwhile, has fully embraced the establishment wing of his party and is raking in tens of millions from big-money donors . His emerging charge against Walker voiced by aides and surrogates is that the Wisconsin governor is not quite as conservative or consistent as he might seem. Their upcoming travel schedules reflect the differences. When Bush shows up in New Hampshire on Friday, he will meet with the Greater Nashua Chamber of Commerce and attend a house party in Dover. He will also headline closed-door fundraisers for two GOP lawmakers on Friday and Saturday and meet privately with potential supporters. Walker flies to New Hampshire for the first time as a potential candidate on Saturday and will appear at a state party training session for grass-roots Republican activists at a high school in Concord that is expected to draw more than 300 people, according to organizers. He will also meet privately with some supporters Saturday morning. Jim Luther, a Walker backer and former New Hampshire state senator, said he and other Republicans have been grumbling about Bush's plan to attend a fundraiser for Rep. Frank Guinta (R-N.H.) in which donors are being asked to pay $5,000 for access to what Luther called "the elite circle." "That's Washington, D.C., prices, and it really shows that this is the way Bush is carrying himself," Luther said. "He has huge price tags. He's not connecting. He's a vacuum cleaner for dollar bills. But if you look at his policy points, he's got a lot of work to do." "I wish he'd listen to his mommy, who said we've had enough Bushes in the White House," Luther added. Bush and Walker's political relationship began warmly five years ago this month when Bush gave Walker a crucial boost. He endorsed Walker, who was then the Milwaukee County executive, months ahead of the state GOP's gubernatorial primary and headlined a $250-a-person fundraising event at the Pfister hotel in Milwaukee. A local brass band played at the cocktail reception, and Bush and Walker posed for a picture with the quintet. In June 2012, shortly after Walker won a recall election, Bush told PBS's Charlie Rose that Walker was "the real deal." Days later, however, the first sign of tensions between the men appeared. At a Bloomberg View gathering, Bush expressed that he had growing concerns about the modern GOP and its "orthodoxy that doesn't allow for disagreement." Appearing soon after at a breakfast hosted by the Christian Science Monitor, Walker told reporters he disagreed with the assessment by Bush, whom he called a friend who e-mails him "quite a bit on things out there." Since then, the two have been more cordial than chummy. Last month at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) , Walker touted his blue-collar roots, calling himself the "son of a small-town preacher" who did not have a chance to visit Independence Hall in Philadelphia until he was an adult. That was a double-knock on Bush, the son and brother of former presidents, who once chaired the National Constitution Center down the street from Independence Hall. Walker is also building a persona as a blue-collar newcomer online. In the lead video on the Web site for Our American Revival , Walker's organizing group, the hush-voiced narrator warns Republicans to stop "looking to the past" over photos of working-class people with their heads in their hands. The Bush camp is trying to stick the dreaded flip-flopper label on Walker over two issues: immigration and ethanol subsidies, the latter a closely watched issue in Iowa, where the nomination battle kicks off. Walker once backed comprehensive immigration reform efforts but recently told Fox News : "My view has changed. I'm flat-out saying it." And this past weekend at an agriculture conference in Iowa, Walker announced his full support for ethanol subsidies a shift from his previous position, according to conservative news outlets . In an e-mail, Cardenas said that his tweet was not sent on Bush's behalf. But it nevertheless channeled the private frustrations of Bush aides who have bristled in recent days over their belief that Walker's shifting positions have not been highlighted. Cardenas is the co-chairman of a bipartisan task force on immigration reform that includes former secretary of state Condoleezza Rice and former Pennsylvania governor Ed Rendell (D). "Walker was an ally when we started this journey," Cardenas said. "I intend to call out anyone, not just him, who have changed their stripes on this issue to suit a presidential campaign run." Navarro added: "I'm a political junkie, and until very recently, I've been unfamiliar with his positions and record. I didn't know he'd dramatically changed his rhetoric on issues like immigration and ethanol subsidies until I read about it. I think most Republicans are in the same boat as me." Bush is an advocate for comprehensive immigration reform and wrote a 304-page book on the subject. He also signaled tepid support for ethanol subsidies last weekend at the agriculture conference. Bush has avoided directly criticizing his potential rivals. "I'm not going to tear down my fellow Republicans that doesn't help," he said in Iowa this past weekend, echoing something he first told supporters at CPAC. "In order to get 50 [percent], you've got to be uniting the party rather than dividing the party."
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JUPITER, Fla. - They hear the buzz circulating outside the clubhouse, but this time, they're ignoring it. They feel the haughty expectations and hype in Miami, but this time, they're not buying into it. You tell the Miami Marlins they're your pick to win the National League pennant and play against the Seattle Mariners in the World Series, and they don't want to hear it. The Marlins, you see, still have those horrifying memories of 2012. They were supposed to be the team to beat after their free-agent feeding frenzy, signing Jose Reyes, Mark Buehrle, Heath Bell and hiring manager Ozzie Guillen. They finished dead last. When the season ended, the trio were all dumped, and Guillen was fired. "We learned our lesson,'' All-Star right fielder Giancarlo Stanton tells USA TODAY Sports. "We realize that no matter how much talent you have, that if you don't mesh in the clubhouse, it won't trickle onto the field. "We need to master both if we're going to do this.'' The Marlins, the team that made fire sale a part of the lexicon in Miami, a team that lost 100 games just two years ago, are now carrying the torch for their region. The Miami Heat hasn't been heard of since LeBron James ditched them over the summer. The Miami Dolphins haven't been to the Super Bowl since 1984, reaching the playoffs just once since 2001. The Florida Panthers haven't finished higher than fifth place in five of the last six years, with just one playoff appearance since 1999-2000. It's now up to the Marlins and Stanton, a national treasure of a power hitter who signed a contract almost worth the U.S. treasury. Stanton signed a 13-year, $325 million deal during the winter, the most lucrative contract in North American sports history. You can buy a whole lot of pina coladas at the Clevelander for that kind of dough, but Stanton never would have given the Marlins his autograph if he didn't believe life would now be different in South Beach. He saw signs last year when the Marlins finished 15 games better than a year ago. Then, the front office went out and brought in starter Mat Latos, infielders Martin Prado, Dee Gordon and Michael Morse, future Hall of Famer Ichiro Suzuki and starter Dan Haren. Now, he's a believer. "Let's call it quiet confidence,'' Stanton says. The Marlins front office can't hide their enthusiasm either, with general manager Dan Jennings asking aloud, "Is that clubhouse as good as I think it is?' "I just love the energy and the passion in there,''' Jennings said. "And they respect the game and play it right. You see all of that, and you can't help but get excited. "Knock on wood, this team has got a chance to be special.'' Even the great Ichiro, who arrived 14 years ago from Japan, says this team is unlike any team he's ever been on with the combination of youth, experience, and influx of young Latin players. "I was shocked about being with so many young kids,'' he says. "If I had a kid when I was 18 years old, they could be in this clubhouse. But it's fun to be with these guys, and be in the middle of it. "And I've never been on a team with so many Latin players.'' So picking up Spanish these days? "English first,'' Suzuki says, in perfect English. Suzuki may be only a fourth outfielder at this stage of his career, but the Marlins have already gravitated toward him, laughing hysterically as he cuts jokes in the clubhouse, teaching a new Japanese word each day to 24-year-old outfielder Marcell Ozuna. "Ichiro asked me one day, is (Ozuna) crazy?'' Jennings says. "I said, 'Yeah, maybe partly.' Ichiro just laughed. It's pretty funny stuff seeing a 23-year-old Latin kid and a 41-year-old Japanese veteran bond the way they do.'' It's a whole new era in Miami. And none of this would be possible without Stanton agreeing to perhaps spend the rest of his career in South Florida, albeit with an opt-out clause after six years. "That changed everything,'' Jennings said. "That was the sail of the ship.'' The contract was daunting, and like all hefty contracts, controversial in baseball circles. Yet, this was the rare mega-contract not privately ridiculed by the Commissioners' office. "I see the contract as a sign of the current ownership's commitment to Miami,'' commissioner Rob Manfred told reporters Tuesday at the Marlins' camp. "I see Miami as a really, really, important market for us, in terms of expanding the game into Latin America. "I see it as a positive on both fronts.'' Certainly, it attracted the attention of the rest of the Marlins. There were four other players who were also offered contract extensions - ace Jose Fernandez, outfielders Christian Yelich and Ozuna and shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria. Yet, they all decided to pass, believing that if they can play up to their abilities, maybe they can strike it rich, too. "We want them to think that way,'' Jennings said. "They have a bond because they basically came through the minor leagues together. When you look at that nucleus of young kids. Wow. Look at the blueprint the Yankees laid when they had their core. It was a pretty good core back in the day.'' Yes, Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, Bernie Williams and Mariano Rivera did all right together, winning four World Series titles in five years. "The talent in here is crazy,'' Gordon says. "Look around, man, this is sick.'' No one is predicting a dynasty, let alone the NL East division title this year, but they will be in the playoffs for the first time since 2001. And playing deep into October. They have the best young outfield in the game, a tremendous array of talent in the infield, a strong bullpen, and will have the best midseason pickup of any team in the game. Jose Fernandez, who missed last year with Tommy John surgery, is scheduled back sometime around the All-Star break. "I've never had a player attack rehab like Jose,'' Jennings said. "He's counting on being back.'' And once Fernandez is back in the rotation, considering he yielded a 2.25 ERA and struck out 10.3 batters per nine innings in 36 career starts, you can't blame a team for dreaming big. "It's pretty impressive being here,'' Haren says. "You watched KC last year. That outfield defense, that superb bullpen, well, I see the same thing here. This team is pretty special.'' Shhh, just don't tell anybody. The Marlins hope to catch the world by surprise. "I know we have a lot of talent, and everything seems great,'' says Prado, "but it's too early to make a lot of noise. Let's don't talk what we're going to do. Let's just do it. "Then we'll talk all you want.''
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Find out how much Nick Cannon & Mariah Carey's Bel-Air mansion sold for.
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DeMarco Murray erased his affiliation with the Dallas Cowboys Tuesday on Twitter. According to Adam Scheffer, it has something to do with the fact the Cowboys haven't called him since last week. But one team that is calling? Their NFC East foe Philadelphia Eagles. According Adam Caplan of ESPN and confirmed by Pro Football Talk, the two parties have "mutual interest." The Eagles need a running back after (alledgedly) failing to acquire Frank Gore and trading LeSean McCoy , and Murray needs money. They appear to be in the market for an elite quarterback after trading Nick Folse for Sam Bradford . (Though maybe Chip Kelly is going to make it work with injury-prone Bradford) Eagles defensive back Malcolm Jenkins is already recruiting Murray. A move to an NFC East rival will certainly make things a little bitter between the Joneses and McCoy. But nothing is official yet. Murray is also reportedly in the conversation for the Jaguars, Bucs and Raiders. But then again, Jerry Jones doesn't seem like the type of man that likes to lose. FOX Sports' Peter Schrager is reporting the Cowboys are still the favorite to land Murray. Follow me on Twitter: @sam_hyde [ Pro Football Talk ] MORE FROM FOX SPORTS SOUTHWEST: - Ranking NFL quarterback salaries - College football's highest paid coaches in 2014 - Oldest player on every NBA team - Highest paid player of each NBA team - Ten reasons why we're glad baseball is back
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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) Lawmakers have passed a bill that would make Utah the only state to allow firing squads for carrying out a death penalty if there is a shortage of execution drugs. The passage of the bill by the state Senate on Tuesday comes as states struggle to obtain lethal injection drugs amid a nationwide shortage. The bill's sponsor, Republican Rep. Paul Ray of Clearfield, touted the measure as being a more humane form of execution. Ray argued that a team of trained marksmen is faster and more humane than the drawn-out deaths that have occurred in botched lethal injections. The bill gives Utah options, he said. "We would love to get the lethal injection worked out so we can continue with that but if not, now we have a backup plan," Ray told The Associated Press. Opponents, however, said firing squads are a cruel holdover from the state's wild West days and will earn the state international condemnation. "I think Utah took a giant step backward," said Ralph Dellapiana, director of Utahns for Alternatives to the Death Penalty. He called firing squads "a relic of a more barbaric past." Dellapiana said the legislature should be discussing whether, not how, to execute citizens. Whether Ray's proposal will become law in the conservative Western state is unclear: Utah Gov. Gary Herbert, a Republican, won't say if he'll sign the measure. His spokesman, Marty Carpenter, did issue a statement this week acknowledging that the method would give Utah a legitimate backup method if execution drugs are unavailable. Utah American Civil Liberties Union representative Anna Brower said the organization is still holding out hope that Herbert will not sign the bill. The legislation would make Utah "look backwards and backwoods," she said. The measure narrowly passed the House in February, where additional lawmakers had to be called in to break a tie vote. But it made it through the Senate on an 18-10 vote with no debate on Tuesday. Four Republicans joined Democrats in opposing the bill. Salt Lake City Democrat Gene Davis was the only one to speak. He said he was voting against the bill because it "only puts another alternative on the table" instead of doing away with executions altogether. Ray said he didn't expect much debate on the proposal because it seemed many lawmakers had made up their mind about the idea from the start. A few were persuaded to support it once they learned Utah law already calls for the state to revert to the firing squad if a court ever declares lethal injection unconstitutional, he said. The legislation would reinstate the use of firing squads more than a decade after the state abandoned the practice. Utah is one of several states to seek out new forms of capital punishment after a botched Oklahoma lethal injection last year and one in Arizona that took nearly two hours for the condemned man to die. Legislation to allow firing squads has been introduced in Arkansas this year. In Wyoming, a measure to allow firing squads if the lethal drugs aren't available died. In Oklahoma, lawmakers are considering legislation that would allow the state to use nitrogen gas to execute inmates. Utah's proposal keeps lethal injection as the primary method of execution, but it allows for the state to use firing squads if the state cannot obtain lethal injection drugs. States across the country have struggled to keep up their drug inventories as European manufacturers have refused to sell the lethal concoctions to prisons and corrections departments because of their opposition to the death penalty. Texas' supply will be used up if the state goes forward with two lethal injections in the next two weeks. The Texas deadline is the most imminent, but other states are struggling, as well. The head of Utah's prison system has said the state does not have any lethal injection drugs on hand and would have to obtain some in the years ahead if an execution were to be scheduled. States turning to alternative drugs have been faced with legal challenges from inmates, something Ray has said Utah could sidestep if it has a backup execution plan in place. Utah lawmakers, concerned about intense media attention, stopped offering inmates the choice of a death by firing squad in 2004. A handful of inmates on Utah's death row were sentenced before the law changed and still have the option of going before a firing squad after their court appeals are exhausted. Utah's last execution was by a firing squad in 2010, when Ronnie Lee Gardner was executed by five police officers with .30-caliber Winchester rifles. The state has carried out three executions by firing squad since the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976. The first U.S. inmate executed after that ruling was Gary Gilmore, who was killed by firing squad in early 1977. The Washington, D.C.-based Death Penalty Information Center, which opposes capital punishment, says a firing squad is not a foolproof execution method because the inmate could move or shooters could miss the heart, causing a slower, more painful death. One such case appears to have happened in Utah's territorial days back in 1879, when a firing squad missed Wallace Wilkerson's heart and it took him 27 minutes to die, according to newspaper accounts.
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CNN's Ryan Young reports on new details about the life Tony Robinson, the unarmed teenage who was shot and killed by a police officer in Madison, Wisconsin.
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NFL free agency's biggest winners and losers so far Free for all! Arguably the craziest day in NFL history for personnel moves unfolded Tuesday as the free-agent signing period officially began. FOX Sports Senior NFL Writer Alex Marvez weighs in on the teams and players he believes are early winners and losers from a flurry of transactions that occurred when the market opened. Winner: Seattle After being outbid by Jacksonville for Denver's Julius Thomas in free agency, the Seahawks acquired another superstar tight end. Seattle landed Jimmy Graham and a fourth-round draft pick from New Orleans for center Max Unger and a first-rounder. Graham provides a sorely needed receiving threat for Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson. Winner: Green Bay Aaron Rodgers should be thrilled. A franchise that appeared poised to lose two key offensive pieces kept wide receiver Randall Cobb and right tackle Bryan Bulaga from ever hitting the market. General manager Ted Thompson deserves credit for increasing his team's offers to match interest both were receiving elsewhere over the weekend. Winner: Detroit The Lions made the best of a bad situation after reportedly losing all-world defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh to Miami in free agency by trading two mid-round picks for Haloti Ngata, a capable replacement who had refused to restructure his contract in Baltimore. Winner: Indianapolis The Colts have officially added two former Philadelphia starters (edge rusher Trent Cole and guard Todd Herremans) and swiped 49ers running back Frank Gore from the Eagles. Plus, wide receiver Andre Johnson reportedly will replace the departed Reggie Wayne. They also added defensive line depth with Kendall Langford. Winner: Darrelle Revis With a 2015 salary so large that New England declined to pick it up, Revis put himself in position for another huge payday; and sure enough, that is exactly what happened as Revis reached agreement to return to the New York Jets, the team that drafted him 14th overall in 2007, with a five-year, $39 million deal, $33 million of which is guaranteed. Loser: Philadelphia Head coach Chip Kelly hasn't wasted any time using his newfound power over roster decisions. But the moves he's made so far especially trading quarterback Nick Foles to St. Louis for one-legged passer Sam Bradford on Tuesday already have folks questioning Kelly's personnel acumen. The Eagles reportedly did manage to land Ryan Mathews to replace LeSean McCoy. Loser: DeMarco Murray Maybe the free-agent market will ultimately prove fruitful for the NFL's reigning rushing leader. But the fact he didn't immediately re-sign a blockbuster deal with Dallas or score a massive free-agent contract coming out of the gate indicates a softer opening market than what Murray had hoped. (Just don't go to the Eagles, DeMarco.) Loser: San Francisco The signing of former Baltimore wide receiver Torrey Smith is the only good news the 49ers have received lately. San Francisco is losing some quality veterans in free agency (Mike Iupati, Frank Gore, maybe more coming) while also having star linebacker Patrick Willis announce his retirement Tuesday at the age of 30. Veteran DE Justin Smith reportedly is also considering retirement. Loser: Greg Hardy Based on talent alone, the Carolina defensive end would have been one of the NFL's hottest names at the start of free agency. But because the league hasn't determined what type of 2015 punishment he will face for a domestic-violence incident, Hardy remains in limbo as cap dollars begin to dry up around the league. Loser: Houston Texans head coach Bill O'Brien will be reunited with two of New England's former backup quarterbacks after signing Brian Hoyer in free agency and re-signing Ryan Mallett. Unfortunately for Texans fans, neither has shown any earmarks of being the second coming of Tom Brady. Quarterback remains a weakness for a club that also must replace cut wide receiver Andre Johnson.
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RANCHO PALOS VERDES, Calif. (AP) The Grand Slam of Golf is moving to Trump National in suburban Los Angeles this fall. The multi-year agreement between the PGA of America and the Trump Organization was announced Tuesday. The event will be played Oct. 19-21 in its return to the U.S. mainland for the first time since 1993. It features the winners of golf's four majors: the Masters, U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship. Trump National, whose owner Donald Trump attended the announcement, features a 7,242-yard, par-71 layout with lakes, massive bunkers, waterfalls and scenic views. Golf Channel will air the event. The course also will host the PGA Junior League championship on Oct. 17-19.
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It's a major bummer to think that 50% of marriages end in divorce. It's depressing. It's intimidating. It's discouraging. It's hard to ignore. But get this: It's just not true. The divorce rate peaked in the 1970s and early 1980s, and it's been declining ever since. And for you guys, the divorce rate stands around 33%. "If current trends continue, nearly two-thirds of marriages will never involve a divorce," according to Justin Wolfers, a University of Michigan economist. Hello, we like that statistic much better thank you very much! Sure, some of the decline in divorce rate is because fewer people are getting married these days. There are fewer "shotgun weddings" due to unexpected buns in the ovens, too. But it's also because people are marrying later and for love. Your age at which you're getting married and level of education also play big parts. Only 11% of college-educated people who married in the early 2000s divorced by their seventh anniversary. Without a college degree, 17% divorced by seven years , according to economist Wolfers. In short, if you're younger and less educated, the divorce rate remains higher. What can you do with this info? Stop perpetuating the scary stat that 50% of marriages end in divorce, and start feeling more confident about your marriage-to-be. Let's all spread this good, data-driven news about the future of marriages.
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Matt Finn shows us the latest in travel technology that can help make your trips less turbulent
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President Obama waded into 2016 waters Monday when he slammed Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) for a new state law that curbs the power of labor unions. Democrats say Obama's unusual shot at the likely GOP candidate, who sits atop early polls, could energize liberal opposition to Walker as he moves closer to a presidential run. But Republican allies of Walker believe the president's broadside could actually help the governor's impending candidacy by elevating his stature in the GOP field. It's rare for Obama to single out state laws for criticism in White House statements. But that is what the president did Monday night after Wisconsin's so-called "right to work" bill became law . Obama said he was " deeply disappointed " in Walker's decision to sign the measure, which would block labor unions from collecting dues from individual workers without their consent. "It's inexcusable that, over the past several years, just when middle-class families and workers need that kind of security the most, there's been a sustained, coordinated assault on unions, led by powerful interests and their allies in government," the president added. The GOP governor said in a statement that the measure would give workers the "freedom to choose" whether to join a union and would bolster the state's economy. Walker's high-profile battles with labor unions are what catapulted him onto the national stage. His successful 2011 effort to limit the collective bargaining power of public-employee unions gained widespread attention, and the so-called "right to work" law represented another victory for Walker and Republicans. The governor survived a 2012 recall attempt after his initial clash with labor and won reelection in 2014 in the blue state, but now he has his eye on the White House. Walker has a unique cross-party appeal to both hardcore conservatives and more establishment-minded Republicans because of his record in the state, which hasn't voted for a Republican president since 1984. Thanks to a strong performance at early 2016 cattle calls, Walker is performing well in polls. Fifty-three percent of Republican primary voters say they could vote for Walker, while 17 percent said they could not, according to an NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll released Monday . The same survey showed most voters want a fresh face , like Walker, rather than a known quantity, like former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. As a result, Democrats are trying to stop Walker's momentum. Obama's decision to go after the governor could help motivate key liberal constituencies in 2016, according to Democratic strategists. That includes labor unions, which have sometimes clashed with Obama over economic issues such as trade. "He is a very viable candidate, and I assume they wanted to take a whack at him," said Jim Manley, a veteran Democratic strategist and former aide to Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.). "He symbolizes, and allows you to draw a contrast with, some of these anti-worker positions. "It's drawing a line in the sand," added Manley. Income inequality and workers rights are poised to be major issues in the 2016 presidential campaign. Labor unions have lost clout in historic Midwestern strongholds, such as Michigan and Indiana, which have recently adopted "right to work" measures. White House officials say Walker's possible presidential candidacy had nothing to do with their decision to criticize the law. "I saw a lot of the political commentary speculating that that's what we were doing, but our bottom line is this is an issue that we have spoken out whenever it rears its ugly head," White House principal deputy press secretary Eric Schultz told reporters Tuesday during a gaggle aboard Air Force One. "Instead of rolling back workers' rights, states, including Wisconsin, should be expanding workers' rights, like raising the minimum wage and paid sick leave," Schultz added. The White House noted the president has commented on state issues before, pointing to three statements last year on state minimum wages increases in Massachusetts, Minnesota and Connecticut. Obama personally criticized Michigan's "right to work" legislation one day before it came law in December 2012. But Obama's decision to go after Walker this time around could have the effect, intended or not, of strengthening the governor's hand among Republican voters who dislike the president. "If you're on the Republican side and the president is beating up on you, that's not a bad thing," said Brandon Scholz, a Wisconsin-based GOP strategist and ally of Walker. Scholz said if the past is any indication, the left's criticism of Walker's union policies only bolster his political stature. "Gov. Walker has always sustained those body blows," he said. "He's always taken them and moved on. And that has made him stronger." Wisconsin became the 25th state to adopt a "right to work" law, and legislatures in others, such as New Mexico and Missouri, are considering similar measures. Walker's supporters say the president should view his state's new policies as a positive example for economic improvement. "President Obama did what he does best and made the issue political to attempt to derail common-sense reforms," Kirsten Kukowski, a spokeswoman for Walker's leadership PAC, said in a statement.
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Former Eagles pass rusher Trent Cole will sign with the Colts, the team announced Tuesday. Cole, who played in Philadelphia for 10 seasons, was released March 4. He played defensive end for the Eagles but will likely switch to outside linebacker in the Colts' 3-4 scheme. MORE: SN's free agency tracker | Reggie Wayne wanted one more year in Indy The Colts appear to be targeting veteran leadership this offseason. The team will also bring in running back Frank Gore and likely wide receiver Andre Johnson. Cole has made the Pro Bowl twice in his career (2007, 2009) and made second-team All-Pro in 2009. He finished with 6.5 sacks last season. The Colts also signed former Eagles guard Todd Herremans this offseason.
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It's too early for seasonal allergies, so why are so many Japanese women walking around with red-rimmed eyes? They're wearing the Tokyo trend known as "me no shitachiiku," which means "undereye blush:" candy-colored blooms painted exaggeratedly high on the cheekbones and, as the name suggests, directly underneath the eyes. But, while coloring outside of the lines may be considered a beauty blunder stateside, the style is huge in Harajuku. Rosy undereyes started popping up in Tokyo street snaps during the last few years and peaked in Japanese beauty forecasts last fall. Super-highly placed blush became the signature makeup look of It Girl Momoko Ogihara , creative director of the edgy-feminine line Murua, so much so that the style is also known as "Momoko blush." The statement has since exploded into the mainstream and been embraced by Japan's infamous myriad of fashion subcultures, whose aficionados have created spin-off interpretations of the whimsical style. It's fitting that the Japanese word for "fad" is the same as the word for "epidemic," because you wouldn't be wrong for thinking that undereye blush can verge on making the wearer seem a touch under the weather. For some of its fans, this is part of the appeal: a niche trend known as "byojaku"("sickly") has spread through Japanese magazines and beauty blogs in the last year. Byojakuis characterized by pale skin, puffy undereye bags (yes, there are even tutorials for emulating that no-sleep sag), and reddish skin around the eyes. The result is a fragile, doll-like appearance that suggests you're in need of looking after . While the idea of making yourself look unwell on purpose might sound like an only-in-Japan phenomenon, consider the western makeup trends we've embraced, like the '90s " heroin-chic " aesthetic popularized by Kate Moss and the more recent " no-makeup makeup " look seen on runways and the red carpet . Not all me no shita chiiku users want to appear like they're fighting off a cold, though. In fact, Harajuku model RinRin Doll uses undereye blush to achieve the exact opposite effect. "Rather than a sick look, the blush brings a more youthful and innocent look to the face," she says. It "makes you very much healthy and alive," she says, because it simulates the full-of-life color you get from exercising or being embarrassed. In Japanese pop culture, RinRin notes, flushed cheeks are usually associated with young people because they're more likely to play outside or make endearing mistakes. "The usual angled blush from under your cheekbone to the temples can contour your face to a more chiseled one, and make you look more mature," she says. In contrast, she explains,the higher blush placement favored by Harajuku girls makes cheeks appear round and youthful. In her YouTube tutorials , RinRin uses a wash of baby pink for a sweet image, or coral for a freckled, sun-kissed face. She warns that bold hues, like the ones on display in Harajuku (where cheek tints include directional lavender and tangerine), require strong fashion statements to match. MAC makeup artist Mariko Tagayashi told WGSN that the look gives off a kind impression, with the added benefit of covering dark circles. She also said that me no shita chiiku makes your peepers pop, and RinRin agrees that concentrating color near the eyes brings attention there. Japanese beauty blogs have termed the effect "uru-uru," an expression used to describe huge, round eyes that are almost brimming over with tears (what we might call puppy-dog eyes). Indeed, undereye blush has roots in Japanese history: For centuries, traditional geisha and kabuki makeup has employed a striking touch of vermilion to accent the eyes. RinRin says that undereye blush is also inspired by a more modern facet of Japanese culture: anime. The cheeks of "kawaii" anime girls are often drawn using two shaded ovals right underneath the eyes imagine an angelic, pink version of a football player's face paint. To create an IRL version of this artistic technique, one Japanese beauty blog instructs readers to begin the oval of blush one finger-width below the eyes,with the inner edge starting at the center of the iris. Done right, the author says, the style suggests a smile even when you have a neutral expression. The look isn't always super-innocent, though. RinRin notes that the method's greater separation of color between the blush and the mouth also emphasizes the lips. In this way, even while eschewing the standard smoky eyes or dramatic pout we usually associate with sex appeal, the appearance of burning cheeks created by undereye blush can evoke an alluring,post-bedroom glow. Whether you're going for demure or smoldering, RinRin insists this is a look anyone could pull off, with one caveat: Subtletyis key. Get too heavy-handed, and you'll end up looking more like a cartoonishly sunburned, drunk tourist than a true Harajuku girl.
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Silvio Berlusconi was acquitted on Tuesday evening of charges stemming back to the infamous "bunga bunga" case. Italy's top court handed down its decision after nine hours of deliberation. It was the second and final acquittal in the case, in which the former prime minister had been accused of paying for sex with underage dancer Karima El Mahroug, who was known as Ruby Heart Stealer. Prosecutors also accused him of using his political power to cover up the incident. Berlusconi had been found guilty of the charges in 2013, for which he had been sentenced to seven years in prison and a lifetime ban from public office. However, appeals court judges acquitted him in July after ruling that the evidence provided by the prosecution did not sufficiently prove that the former prime minister had known the exotic dancer was only 17 when the incident occurred. While Tuesday's acquittal clears the 78-year old billionaire of the most infamous charges against him, he remains embroiled in other scandals. He is currently under investigation for allegedly bribing women who had attended the "bunga bunga" parties to give false testimony in the Ruby trial. kms/gsw (AFP, dpa)
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NEW YORK (AP) -- Three times in his previous four seasons coach Andy Toole took Robert Morris to the Northeastern Conference tournament finals, and three times the Colonials had to watch their opponents cut down the nets and celebrate an NCAA bid. BOX SCORE: ROBERT MORRIS 66, ST. FRANCIS 63 In front of a raucous crowd, packed tightly into the one of the smallest gyms in Division I, Toole and his team never wilted. No more waiting until next year for the Colonials. Rodney Pryor sparked a second-half surge and Robert Morris denied St. Francis, Brooklyn, its first NCAA Tournament bid, beating the Terriers 66-63 for Northeast Conference championship on Tuesday night. "A lot of my friends have been calling me Marv Levy because we haven't won the big one," the 34-year-old Toole said, referring to the former Buffalo Bills coach who lost four straight Super Bowls. "It's nice that I can call them back and tell them we finally won one." The top-seeded Terriers (23-11) had a chance to tie with 2.4 seconds left when Tyreek Jewell, who scored 19 points and was their best player on this night, went to the line after being fouled shooting a desperation 3-pointer. Jewell missed the first, back-ending the shot and then the second. He intentionally missed the last one, but Robert Morris got the ball back and was quickly fouled. Lucky Jones missed a free throw that would have sealed it and Lowell Ulmer's heave from beyond half-court hit the back of the rim, took a high bounce and then missed again. It was Robert Morris and their fans celebrating as the SFC crowd lamented the Terriers' third NEC title game loss, but first since 2003. St. Francis is one of just five original Division I teams, dating back to 1948, that has never made the NCAA Tournament. As NEC regular season champions the Terriers get an NIT bid, their first postseason appearance since they went to the NIT in 1963. "They can look back at a regular-season title. A lot of personal accolades. And postseason in the NIT for the first time in 52 years," St. Francis coach Glenn Braica said. "I think that's pretty good. I think a lot of guys in this country would like to have that." Second-seeded Robert Morris (19-15) is going back to the tournament for the first time since 2010. "It breaks your heart sometimes as a coach that we've had teams that have been so close and not been able to get over the hump," Toole said. "And that's why we push, and we push and we push, all the time. To be able to perform and play in this kind of atmosphere and this kind of stage." The Colonials and Terriers split two close games during the regular season, with each winning on the road. "When we got the win in the regular season we knew that we can win coming into this building," Pryor, who capped a 16-3 second-half with a baseline jumper and a 3 to put Robert Morris up 57-47 with 6:53 left. Pryor finished with 17 points and earned tournament MVP honors. The Colonials, their enthusiastic fans and their band made themselves comfortable in the cramped quarters of Division I's fourth-smallest gym. The Pope PE Center, capacity is listed at 1,200 but who really knows, was crowded and loud. Robert Morris was unfazed. Using a confounding zone, Robert Morris limited the touches for NEC player of the year Jalen Cannon and held him to 10 points. Point guard Brent Jones (seven points and four turnovers) also struggled before fouling out. "I wasn't myself," Jones said. "Just thinking about not turning the ball over." Glenn Sanabria of St. Francis made a long 3 from straight on with 16.2 seconds left to cut Robert Morris' lead to 64-63 and put the Pope Center on the brink of bursting with chants of" S-F-C!!" Jones went to the line and swished both free throws with 13.8 remaining to make it a three-point game for Robert Morris. Yunus Hopkinson missed a corner 3 for St. Francis with time winding down, but Jewell tracked down the rebound and spun and fired from the wing. Elijah Minnie slammed into Jewell to put the junior at the line, but the 65-percent foul shooter couldn't make the shots. Toole said he's not worried about seeding, but it's a good possibility the Colonials will end up in Daytona, Ohio, playing another potential 16 seed in the First Four. He's just looking forward to watching the selections on Sunday with his team. "It's one of the best feelings in sports," Toole said. "I'm glad they get to experience it."
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Apple Inc. could be planning a curved screen for the iPhone 6S or iPhone 7 that looks a lot like the Edge screen found on Samsung's forthcoming Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge, according to a patent granted Tuesday to Apple from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The possible iPhone 6S design includes a flexible display that reaches all the way to the sides of Apple's next smartphone, and includes the ability to change the way it functions based on what the user is doing. If Apple decides to incorporate the patent into the design of an iPhone 6S or 7, it could replace the volume and mute buttons found on previous models. The curved display's touchscreen interface could also be used for all kinds of customizable "buttons," which Apple says it may use to create a virtual game controller, according to Patently Apple. Apple's patent includes a front-mounted display with a bend covering the sides of the smartphone. A future iPhone 6S could incorporate virtual buttons that would change based on what the user is doing, like shifting from a standard volume button to a camera shutter button when the user is taking a photo. If Apple does incorporate a curved edge display on its iPhone 6S or 7, the screen could come with a new set of touch gestures for control. The Cupertino, California-based manufacturer is known for its secrecy surrounding new devices like the iPhone 6S, but also encourages its engineers to apply for patents on even the most incremental advance in technology or design. Former Apple CEO and co-founder Steve Jobs has won more than 141 patents since his death in 2011. While Apple's patent is real, it does not mean the company will implement the technology in the iPhone 6S -- but it does open the smartphone up to a number of interesting possibilities.
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FERGUSON, Mo. The city manager of Ferguson, Mo., who a Department of Justice report said was responsible for overseeing the city's operations as it engaged in racially biased and unconstitutional policing practices, has resigned. The announcement came during a City Council meeting here on Tuesday, about a week after the scathing Justice Department report. The manager, John Shaw, 39, had held the post since 2007. As Ferguson's chief executive, he is the city's most powerful official. Until the Justice Department report was released, Mr. Shaw had remained largely in the background, while the city's police chief and mayor became the public faces of turmoil in Ferguson. But the report highlighted Mr. Shaw as one of the officials responsible for much of the questionable conduct by the police and the courts, which he oversees. The Justice Department report accused city officials of running the Municipal Court system as a moneymaking venture and having a racially biased police force that regularly violated people's constitutional rights. The detailed report confirmed many of the grievances aired last year by blacks in protests after the deadly police shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed 18-year-old black. Though the Justice Department separately concluded that the officer, Darren Wilson, who is white, violated no federal laws in that shooting, Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. said investigations revealed the root of the anger that brought people into the streets. Many residents and political leaders said they hoped that the Justice Department's affirmation of their grievances would lead to change. And some of that appears to be happening. On Monday, the Missouri Supreme Court took what it called the "extraordinary action" of assigning all of Ferguson's Municipal Court cases to a state appellate judge. Meanwhile, the current municipal judge, Ronald J. Brockmeyer, whom the report accused of ticket-fixing and instituting unconstitutional fees, resigned. While Mayor James Knowles III has stood as the public face of the city through much of the turmoil, other city officials, including Mr. Shaw, the finance director and the police chief, bore much of the blame for the city's wrongdoings, the Justice Department said. Ferguson police officers routinely harassed and abused people, jailing or using tasers on them without just cause, the report said. "City and police leadership pressure officers to write citations, independent of any public safety need, and rely on citation productivity to fund the city budget," the report said. In an email from March 2010, the year Chief Thomas Jackson took his post, the city's finance director wrote to the chief that "unless ticket writing ramps up significantly before the end of the year, it will be hard to significantly raise collections next year." " What are your thoughts," he added, according to the report. The chief responded that fines would increase once more officers were hired and that he was considering a different shift schedule that would put more officers on the street and increase traffic enforcement. The next year, when Chief Jackson reported to Mr. Shaw that court revenue for February 2011 was more than $179,000, the highest monthly total in four years, Mr. Shaw responded in an email, "Wonderful!" the Justice Department report said. As part of his job, Mr. Shaw recommended department heads including Chief Jackson and Mr. Brockmeyer to their jobs, and the City Council voted to approve them. Over the past several months, Mr. Shaw has been the city's lead official in discussions with the federal authorities over ways to improve the city. The Justice Department's report, however, shows that Mr. Shaw aggressively pushed the police to bring in more money through tickets and fines that disproportionately fell on blacks. And he ignored warnings that the criminal justice system was unfair and needed fixing.
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The NCAA came down hard on Syracuse and head coach Jim Boeheim this month. Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski thinks the penalties were excessive. Krzyzewski appeared on SiriusXM/Mad Dog Sports Radio on Tuesday to discuss Syracuse's situation. Via CollegeBasketballTalk , the Duke coach provided his thoughts to host Chris Russo: MORE: Calipari named Coach of the Year | SN's 2014-15 All-Americans | Final Field of 68 update Russo: "Have you had a chance to talk to Jim Boeheim about what happened at Syracuse?" Krzyzewski: "Yeah, I talk to Jim all the time. We spend our summers together with USA Basketball and he's my closest friend in coaching, and really one of the great guys in coaching and one of the great coaches of all time. I've talked to him since the sanctions, since everything's been put out. I think they were hit excessively. I would hope that they will be given a chance to appeal and that some of these things will be lessened, especially the vacating of victories. He's positive about the fact that he can keep his program at the high level that he's had it and I'm sure he can do that. They certainly have the right to appeal, they will and I would hope that they get some favorable decisions made as a result of that appeal." As part of the punishment, Boeheim was suspended for nine ACC games and his team lost 12 scholarships over the course of four years. In addition, 108 of Boeheim's wins were vacated. Boeheim hasn't said much about the punishments. He skipped out on a postgame press conference after a game against N.C. State. Since Boeheim won't talk, Russo asked Krzyzewski if Boeheim was remorseful. Russo: "Is he somewhat remorseful, Mike? Does he understand that maybe he did make a couple of mistakes?" Krzyzewski: "Well, I think they would take responsibility for what's happened. I mean everybody, when stuff happens you take responsibility for it. It doesn't mean that you agree with the level of punishment and in this case it seems severe. And so I think that's what they're going to do but you'd have to ask them about exactly what they're going to do."
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NEW YORK Until the New York Jets landed Darrelle Revis, the first hours of NFL free agency Tuesday looked more like fantasy football. Trades, anyone? Monster deals sending Jimmy Graham to Seattle and Sam Bradford to Philadelphia stole the spotlight from free agent signings. That is until mid-evening, when Revis Island returned to the Meadowlands. The Jets dug into their past to bring back the All-Pro cornerback, according to his agents. Revis goes from the Jets' archrival Patriots, who he helped win the Super Bowl last month, to his NFL roots. The deal is for five years and $70 million, with $39 million guaranteed. New Orleans agreed to send its star tight end to the Seahawks for center Max Unger, with draft picks changing hands. The Saints are to get a first-round pick, while Seattle receives a fourth-rounder. That stunner was followed by Bradford, the injury-prone quarterback who barely has played the past two years (knee), going to Philadelphia for Nick Foles, who also comes off an injury-shortened season (collarbone) and is headed to St. Louis. Bradford was the top overall draft pick in 2010. Foles is the latest starter to depart Philadelphia. He joins two-time All-Pro running back LeSean McCoy, now in Buffalo, and Pro Bowl wide receiver Jeremy Maclin, headed for Kansas City, in going elsewhere. Philadelphia also added Seahawks starting cornerback Byron Maxwell as a free agent with a six-year deal. And Seattle brought in cornerback Cary Williams, formerly of the Eagles and a 2012 Super Bowl winner with the Ravens. Baltimore dealt nose tackle Haloti Ngata to Detroit, which is about to lose All-Pro defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh in free agency. Ngata, 31 and a five-time Pro Bowler, is due $8.5 million next season and has a $16 million salary cap figure. The Bills confirmed acquiring McCoy for linebacker Kiko Alonso; McCoy also signed a contract extension for $40 million over five years. The Jets also confirmed a previously agreed upon trade, getting receiver Brandon Marshall from Chicago for a fifth-round draft pick. The Jets released WR-KR Percy Harvin, whom they acquired last season from Seattle. Carolina released DeAngelo Williams, its career rushing leader. Two retirements also drew attention away from the chase for free agents. Five-time All-Pro linebacker Patrick Willis, the heart of San Francisco's defense for eight seasons, called it quits. The 2007 Defensive Rookie of the Year is leaving because of recurrent toe and feet injuries. "In my head, I'm already a Hall of Famer," Willis said. "I am leaving this with closure, saying that I am happy today, more happy today than I was the day I was drafted. That says something to me." Tennessee quarterback Jake Locker, his four-year pro career ravaged by injuries, also retired, saying he has no "burning desire" to keep playing. The 49ers lost another mainstay when running back Frank Gore, their career rushing leader, joined the Colts. Linebacker A.J. Hawk, who grew up in Ohio and attended Ohio State, agreed to terms with Cincinnati on a two-year deal. Hawk spent his first nine seasons in Green Bay. Jacksonville, with lots of salary cap room, grabbed tight end Julius Thomas away from Denver among a slew of moves. The Jaguars agreed to deals with defensive end Jared Odrick, right tackle Jermey Parnell, cornerback Davon House, linebacker Dan Skuta and safety Sergio Brown. Thomas agreed on a five-year deal worth $46 million, with $24 million guaranteed. Arizona got probably the best run blocker in this year's group, guard Mike Iupati, who agreed on a five-year, $40 million contract with $22.5 million guaranteed. The 6-foot-5, 331-pound lineman played five seasons with San Francisco, is a three-time Pro Bowl player and made the All-Pro team in 2012. Arizona also re-signed linebacker LaMarr Woodley. The Falcons fortified the middle of new coach Dan Quinn's defense by signing free-agent linebackers Brooks Reed and Justin Durant. Among other official free agency moves early in the process were LB Malcolm Smith, the 2014 Super Bowl MVP with Seattle, who agreed to terms with Oakland; DE Kendall Langford to Indianapolis; WR Brian Hartline to Cleveland; S Tyvon Branch to Kansas City; TE Owen Daniels to Denver; G Orlando Franklin to San Diego; CB Buster Skrine to the Jets; FB Jerome Felton to Buffalo; and QB Shaun Hill to Minnesota, which also re-signed RB Matt Asiata. ------ AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP--NFL
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Video posted online by Islamic State Tuesday shows a boy killing Muhammad Musallam, an Israeli Arab accused by IS as working for Mossad. Deborah Lutterbeck reports.
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Non-vegetarians, listen up. A new study says a vegetarian diet can cut your risk of colon cancer by 20 percent.
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Utah's state Senate voted Tuesday to allow execution by firing squad in instances where lethal injection drugs are not available. The bill, which passed by a vote of 18-10 , would call for the use of a firing squad if lethal drugs could not be obtained at least 30 days in advance of a scheduled execution. The state's House of Representatives passed the legislation last month . The measure now heads to Utah Gov. Gary Herbert (R), who has not said whether or not he will sign the bill into law. The legislation would make Utah the first state to bring back the controversial execution method. Since the death penalty was reinstated by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1976, just three individuals have been executed by firing squad: two in Utah and one in Oklahoma. Utah last executed an inmate by firing squad in 2010 . (Utah made lethal injection its primary death penalty method in 2004, but inmates convicted before the new regulations still had the option of death by firing squad.) States have faced a shortage of lethal injection drugs in recent years due to a 2011 export ban by the European Union. As drug supplies dwindle, prisons have scrambled to find alternatives. Lawmakers got behind the idea of bringing back firing squads after Oklahoma botched the execution of Clayton Lockett, who writhed and clenched his teeth after receiving a combination of lethal injection drugs. Lockett died 43 minutes after he was first administered the drugs. The bill's proponents have said a firing squad would be a more humane option, while opponents say the practice is gruesome and outdated. The controversial drugs have prompted similar legislation in other states. Lawmakers in Oklahoma have proposed using nitrogen gas as a backup method, while legislators in Wyoming and Arkansas are also weighing firing squads.
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A letter from Senate Republicans to Iran's leadership has divided the GOP and forced it to play defense, endangering the party's chances of passing a new round of sanctions that would kill President Obama's nuclear talks with Tehran. The talks have long divided Democrats, and just last month it appeared nearly certain that Republicans would have enough votes in the Senate to override a presidential veto of new sanctions. That has quickly changed, and the outrage over the letter from 47 Republicans to Tehran is threatening to scuttle Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's (R-Ky.) hopes of winning Senate approval of two bills that would hem in Obama's talks with Iran. The White House on Tuesday seized on the letter for a second day, lashing out at the Republicans who sent it and calling it a "reckless" and "misguided" stunt. The New York Daily News used the headline "Traitors" with pictures of McConnell, possible GOP presidential candidates Sens. Ted Cruz (Texas) and Rand Paul (Ky.), and freshman Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), who spearheaded the letter. The conservative Wall Street Journal's editorial board also ripped the letter, calling it a "distraction" that let Obama change the subject. GOP infighting over the letter seven Republican senators did not sign it burst into the open, with several Republicans criticizing their colleagues. "It did not seem to me to be appropriate for us to be writing the ayatollah at this critical time during the negotiations, and frankly, I doubt very much that the ayatollah would be moved by an explanation of our constitutional system," Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) told a group of reporters on Tuesday. Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) said the letter isn't "helpful" or "productive." "These are tough enough negotiations as it stands," he said. "And introducing this kind of letter, I didn't think would be helpful." Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) said he did not think the letter "was something that would help get us to an outcome that we're seeking." He also said it would not have been constructive for him to sign it and expressed surprise that so many Republican senators did back it. "I just didn't even realize until this weekend that it had the kind of momentum that it had," he said. Sens. Dan Coats (Ind.), Lamar Alexander (Tenn.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Thad Cochran (Miss.) are the other four Republican senators who didn't sign the letter. Coats and Murkowski are up for reelection in 2016. The Obama administration is seeking to reach a deal on a framework with Iran by the end of the month that would remove sanctions on that country in exchange for concessions meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon. The U.S. is seeking commitments from Iran that would ensure vigorous inspections and limit the country's ability to enrich uranium to the point where it would take one year for Iran to acquire enough nuclear fuel to develop a weapon if it broke an agreement. Skeptics of Obama's diplomacy with Iran exist in both parties, and a number of Democrats hailed a speech last week to Congress by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyah, who argued it would be impossible for Obama to negotiate a good deal with Iran that would keep Israel safe. Netanyahu's controversial address appeared to give Republicans some momentum, but Democrats in the Senate quickly balked at a plan by McConnell to hold a procedural vote this week on legislation sponsored by Corker and Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) that would require Congress to review a proposed deal with Iran before it could be approved. The Corker-Menendez bill itself is seen as a softer approach to a bill from Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) and Menendez that would restore and impose new sanctions if no deal is reached, or if Iran violates the deal. The sanctions bill appeared to have a veto-proof majority earlier this year. Now, it's not clear it would get 60 votes. Democrats went to the Senate floor on Monday to denounce the Cotton letter, which suggested that any deal with Iran could be undone after Obama leaves the White House in 2017. Vice President Biden, a former chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations panel, said the letter "threatens to undermine" the president's ability to negotiate with other countries. "The senators' letter, in the guise of a constitutional lesson, ignores two centuries of precedent and threatens to undermine the ability of any future American President, whether Democrat or Republican, to negotiate with other nations on behalf of the United States," he said in a statement Monday night. Even former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, speaking at a New York press conference about the controversy over her private email account, sought to hammer the GOP. She said the letter was "out of step with the best traditions of American leadership." In a statement, Coats pointed to the need to end the partisanship in order for Republicans to win the policy battle. "Though we may disagree on tactics, we all recognize that bipartisan support is necessary to override President Obama's promised veto," he said in a statement.
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Will new Minnesota manager Paul Molitor have immediate success with the Twins? Steve Phillips joins the show to discuss.
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Apple is planning to release new iPhones later this year with Force Touch-equipped displays, according to The Wall Street Journal . Force Touch was one of the key themes at Apple's event on Monday ; the Apple Watch uses the pressure-sensing technology to detect how hard a user is pushing on the screen, and it's also been integrated into the new MacBook and refreshed MacBook Pro's trackpads. On the Apple Watch, Force Touch allows for more input options considering the small size of the screen, while the new MacBook uses it to simulate a traditional mouse click, among other things. The new phones are unlikely to differ too dramatically in design from the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus; Apple almost always keeps its phone bodies around for two years, and the WSJ says that the company's plan is to keep the 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch screen sizes and "similar" resolutions. But there could be one very visible change Apple is reportedly testing a pink option to go alongside the silver, gold, and space gray models. As ever, these reports are couched in caveats that Apple's plans may change, but mass production for some components is said to start in May.
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Drew Brees said he was shocked by the Saints trading Jimmy Graham to the Seahawks. Fletcher Mackel joins the show to discuss the reaction from Brees and the city of New Orleans.
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Installing a new wood floor is usually about aesthetics: brown or black? Glossy or matte? Now, some Americans and businesses are grappling with another feature: formaldehyde. Uneasy consumers have flooded state and federal safety agencies with inquiries about Lumber Liquidators, the discount flooring retailer accused in a "60 Minutes" episode of selling laminate wood with high levels of formaldehyde, a known carcinogen. Should they rip it out? Leave it in? And what are the dangers to adults, children or even pets? Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman of New York has now opened an inquiry into whether the company violated safety standards. Safety officials in California are also likely to investigate. But federal regulators, armed with murky rules or none at all, have scrambled to respond, leaving consumers largely responsible for assessing the risk. Formaldehyde exposure can cause immediate health problems like respiratory and sinus effects, but the effects of long-term exposure remain unclear. That has left many Lumber Liquidators customers concerned about what they should do. Sol Hesney, 66, and his wife, Lynne, said they were mystified when their two dogs became sick shortly after they moved into their apartment in Fort Lee, N.J., five years ago. "The vet was stumped. We were stumped," said Mr. Hesney, who ultimately had both dogs euthanized. After the news of Lumber Liquidators' high-formaldehyde flooring broke on March 1, Mr. Hesney said he and his wife decided that they would replace their floors they had installed the company's Chinese-made laminate floors before moving in. "We looked at each other and said, 'Maybe that's what explains this. It's just too coincidental,' " he said. Since they moved in, he said, he had three serious sinus colds requiring antibiotics within a year's time, something that had never happened to him before, and his wife had bronchitis. But regulators, at least for now, are advocating a more tempered approach. "We are not encouraging people to rip out their flooring right now," said Lynn Baker, an air pollution specialist with the California Air Resources Board, which enforces the state formaldehyde rules that Lumber Liquidators is accused of breaking. Commercial customers could also be affected, although Lumber Liquidators estimates that commercial sales make up less than 10 percent of the market for laminate flooring, a cheaper alternative to hardwood. Homeowners account for the bulk of its sales. Laminate flooring itself is commonly used in some types of commercial spaces, experts say. Lumber Liquidators disputes the "60 Minutes" report and says its flooring is safe. The company also said it was considering offering air testing services to reassure concerned consumers. Installers, too, find themselves on the front lines after the report. "The installers literally don't want to install it," said David Hill, president of Texas Best Flooring in Dallas. Mr. Hill, who does not work with Lumber Liquidators products, said he had received hundreds of emails and at least 15 calls a day from worried consumers. "It's confusion. Everybody's confused, and everybody wants it out of their house," Mr. Hill said. A spokesman for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration said the agency was paying close attention to the Lumber Liquidators issue, though as of Tuesday it had received no formal complaints. But while federal rules exist for workers, no federal rules protect consumers from formaldehyde or most other airborne chemicals in their homes. And while research exists on formaldehyde's health effects, experts have difficulty correlating levels of exposure with cancer risk since so many factors can affect the development of the disease. "Any exposure to a carcinogen can increase your risk of cancer," said Marilyn Howarth, a toxicologist at the University of Pennsylvania's Perelman School of Medicine. Mr. Baker, with the California agency, said consumers should ask two questions: How long has the flooring been installed, and have they been feeling sick? "If the flooring has been installed more than a couple of years ago, most of it has probably already off-gassed," he said, meaning that the chemical would probably have been released. "If it was just installed last week, that's a different story you definitely want to ventilate the home." The floorboard controversy bears a resemblance to the cases of Chinese-made drywall that released sulfur gases into thousands of homes built after the 2005 hurricane season, which resulted in metal corrosion and health complaints. But while the drywall gases were expected to be released for decades, formaldehyde emissions in flooring may not last as long. "You'll get a fairly large amount that off-gasses early on, and then it starts to become less over a period ranging from months to a couple of years depending on the amounts contained in the product," Mr. Baker said. Most new floors emit small levels of formaldehyde. But it also seeps out of adhesives used to bind furniture and flooring, affecting the quality of the air residents breathe. To combat its harmful effects, governments around the world have limited the use of formaldehyde in household products, particularly those made of wood. In Europe, chemical emissions from composite wood products are tightly regulated, and Japanese regulators put the onus on home builders to limit formaldehyde levels over all within houses they construct. The United States, however, trails when it comes to such regulations. California enacted rules to cap emissions from composite wood products sold in the state. As far back as 2009, the Environmental Protection Agency said it was considering adopting California's limits nationwide, and it issued a proposed rule in 2013. But after many delays at the request of the wood products industry, the E.P.A. has yet to complete its rule. On Tuesday, the E.P.A. said it had no plan to investigate Lumber Liquidators, citing the lack of a finished rule. The agency says it is trying to give consumers "actionable guidance" when it comes to formaldehyde from composite woods, according to Bob Axelrad, a policy adviser in the office of air and radiation. That includes proper ventilation, when possible, and using reliable air testing methods. David Krause, an environmental consultant at the consulting firm Geosyntec and the former state toxicologist of Florida, said ventilation helped but was not always a solution: Humidity, for example, can intensify the problem. Testing indoor air quality is also not a simple proposition mainly because federal standards are geared toward workplaces, not homes. There are no definitive testing levels, and people react in different ways to the chemical. "We really don't have anything that is enforceable," Dr. Krause said. Still, based on current knowledge of the Lumber Liquidators' product, he added: "This is not a 'Your hair's on fire' emergency." The Consumer Product Safety Commission may take a lead role in investigating Lumber Liquidators. The commission can push for a recall if it can prove direct harm to human health. But that would involve a long regulatory inquiry. Several consumers have begun pursuing a different path: suing the company.
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Tip of the Day 3/10
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WASHINGTON As American intelligence agencies have detected new Russian tanks and artillery crossing the border into Ukraine in recent days, President Obama is coming under increasing pressure from both parties and more officials inside his own government to send arms to the country. But he remains unconvinced that they would help. Democrats joined Republicans on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday in unanimously pressing the administration to send weapons to Kiev. Top national security officials are also publicly urging Mr. Obama to consider such a move, among them Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter; Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; and James R. Clapper Jr., the director of national intelligence. But the president has signaled privately that despite all the pressure, he remains reluctant to send arms. In part, he has told aides and visitors that arming the Ukrainians would encourage the notion that they could actually defeat the far more powerful Russians, and so it would potentially draw a more forceful response from Moscow. He also wants to give a shaky cease-fire a chance to take hold, despite a reported 1,000 violations so far, and seems determined to stay aligned with European allies that oppose arms for Ukraine. "If you're playing on the military terrain in Ukraine, you're playing to Russia's strength, because Russia is right next door," Antony J. Blinken, the deputy secretary of state, told an audience in Berlin last week. "It has a huge amount of military equipment and military force right on the border. Anything we did as countries in terms of military support for Ukraine is likely to be matched and then doubled and tripled and quadrupled by Russia." That argument seems to most closely channel the president's, according to people familiar with the internal debate. Mr. Obama continues to pose questions indicating his doubts. "O.K., what happens if we send in equipment do we have to send in trainers?" said one person paraphrasing the discussion on the condition of anonymity. "What if it ends up in the hands of thugs? What if Putin escalates?" But while Mr. Obama's national security adviser, Susan E. Rice, shares his skepticism, the president finds himself increasingly flanked inside and outside his government by others urging him to do more to help the Ukrainians defend themselves. Last week General Dempsey told lawmakers that "I think we should absolutely consider providing lethal aid." Madeleine K. Albright, a secretary of state under President Bill Clinton; Zbigniew Brzezinski, who was national security adviser to President Jimmy Carter; and Michael A. McFaul, who was Mr. Obama's ambassador to Moscow, have all said the same. Representative Eliot L. Engel of New York, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said last week that he was so "disappointed" in the administration for not using tools in past legislation authorizing more sanctions against Russia and arms for Ukraine that he was introducing a new bill to "dial up the pressure on Vladimir Putin." A hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday made clear that the disappointment was becoming widespread and bipartisan. "There's no question there's strong consensus on this committee, and in the United States Senate, that the United States needs to do more to help the Ukrainians defend themselves," said Senator Benjamin L. Cardin, a Maryland Democrat. The Obama administration has committed to sending Ukraine $118 million in nonlethal aid, like night-vision goggles and counter-mortar radar, but so far only about half has been delivered, officials told the panel. Brian P. McKeon, the principal deputy under secretary of defense, agreed that in some cases the aid has been "unacceptably slow" and said the administration was working to speed it up. The administration also expects to send another $120 million worth of aid in the next year, but not lethal aid Ukraine has sought like antitank weapons. In resisting the pressure from advisers and fellow Democrats, Mr. Obama is adhering closely to European allies like Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany, who has strongly opposed sending arms to Ukraine. A senior administration official confirmed on Tuesday an Associated Press report that Mr. Obama told Ms. Merkel when she visited Washington last month that he would hold off sending weaponry during negotiations for a cease-fire. After that meeting, European, Russian and Ukrainian leaders meeting in Minsk, the capital of Belarus, crafted a cease-fire. "We are all committed to making sure that we uphold the basic principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity that have been threatened by Russian aggression," Mr. Obama said before a meeting on Monday with Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council. "We've been able to maintain strong unity with respect to sanctions." The senior administration official, who did not want to be identified describing Mr. Obama's discussions with a foreign leader, said the president's commitment to Ms. Merkel was temporary. "Going forward, we'll have to make judgments based in part of our assessment of compliance with Minsk," the official said. Even as the Minsk accord went into effect, pro-Russian separatists captured the city of Debaltseve. But in recent days, violence has fallen sharply, some heavy weapons have been withdrawn and a cautious optimism has emerged in Kiev and European capitals. Still, American officials said the results of the cease-fire remain mixed. While Russia has denied arming and directing the separatists in eastern Ukraine, a top State Department official told the Senate panel on Tuesday that more military equipment has been sent across the border. "Just in the last few days, we can confirm new transfers of Russian tanks, armored vehicles, heavy artillery and rocket equipment over the border to the separatists in eastern Ukraine," Victoria Nuland, an assistant secretary of state, told the panel. "So in the coming days, not weeks," she added, "here's what we need to see: a complete cease-fire in all parts of eastern Ukraine; full, unfettered access to the whole conflict zone; a pullback of all heavy weapons; and an end to unexpected convoys of cargo over the Ukrainian borders." Ms. Nuland said there was a "spirited debate" going on inside the administration over whether to send arms to Ukraine and that no decision has been made yet. But senators said delaying a decision was the same thing as deciding against sending arms. Senator Jeanne Shaheen, Democrat of New Hampshire, said that it was "taking a very long time" to decide. Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey, the ranking Democrat on the committee, said that by the time Mr. Obama decides "then it will be too late." Senator Christopher S. Murphy, Democrat of Connecticut, was more sympathetic to the administration, admitting that it might not work but said "that's a chance worth taking." Mr. McKeon said the administration was wrestling with the consequences of sending weapons to Ukraine. "Does this raise the ante?" he asked. "And then what would Ukraine feel that the United States owes them in terms of additional assistance? So it's trying to see down the field to the second, third and fourth move on this chessboard. That's part of the conversation."
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It isn't every day that a child can steal the show from three of the Senate's most visible members. But that's what happened when Democratic Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York joined with Republican Rand Paul of Kentucky in unveiling legislation to reschedule marijuana to make it more available for medicinal and research purposes. Four-year-old Morgan Hintz had at least two minor seizures just during the course of the news conference around lunchtime Tuesday. Her mother Kate said that the seizures were an almost daily regular occurence, and that's what got her into advocating for expanded access to marijuana and its components for medical use. "As you can see, we don't travel very far or go for very long without Morgan having a seizure," Kate Hintz said. "We've been advocating for access to medical marijuana for almost two years now." While her mother spoke to the mix of press and cheering supporters, Booker was to the side of the podium, visiting with Morgan. According to a summary provided by Gillibrand's office, the bill would remove federal barriers to prescribing medical marijuana in states where it is allowed under state regulations. "The bipartisan bill would finally allow patients and families, including veterans, in those 23 states to access medical care without fear of prosecution. It also reschedules medical marijuana to a schedule two drug, as opposed to a schedule one drug," Gillibrand said. "It would also lift bureaucratic restraints so that this research can be conducted across the country and by CDC." "We as a society are changing our opinions on restricting people's choices as far as medical treatments, and there are thousands of people in our country, probably tens of thousands of people in our country who have diseases that are incurable and that would like to see palliative treatment," Paul told reporters, pointing to federal legal restrictions on marijuana for both personal and medical use. "I just came back from Colorado, and the biggest thing they're asking me is we want banking to be legal. We are legitimate enterprises now, we want to be able to put our money in a bank," Paul said. "My guess is that even more tax money would be paid if they're allowed to keep their tax money in banks and not brown bags." Tuesday's release of the medical marijuana legislation is the beginning of what could be a long legislative process, since the evolution of lawmakers on the issue has been slow. Paul's Kentucky colleague, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell , did not have an immediate response to the new effort. But, a survey conducted by Third Way indicated overwhelming support for rolling back laws that limit access to medical marijuana. "It's time for Congress to catch up to the American people on marijuana. Our recent national poll found an overwhelming 78% of Americans favor legalization of marijuana for medical use, with support above 60% among every single demographic group, regardless of political ideology, race, education, marital status, or religiosity," Social Policy and Politics Director Lanae Erickson Hatalsky said in a statement. "That means even among Republicans, women, Southerners, parents, and those who have never tried marijuana, the belief that we should let people for whom marijuana provides relief from pain and symptoms of illness to use it legally is a commonly-held value." The 114th: CQ Roll Call's Guide to the New Congress Get breaking news alerts and more from Roll Call in your inbox or on your iPhone .
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PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen finally solved the Flyers. Lehtonen made 24 saves for his first career victory against Philadelphia, and Vernon Fiddler scored the winning goal late in the third period to lift Dallas Stars to a 2-1 victory over the Flyers. Lehtonen improved to 1-10-3 against the Flyers. ''Some nights you get (the bounces) and some nights you don't, and it seemed to be always the Philly night when pucks were bouncing in and not hitting me,'' Lehtonen said. ''But tonight was different.'' Lehtonen's best save may have come in the second period when he denied Jakub Voracek from point-blank range. ''It was really a nifty move,'' Lehtonen said. ''My blocker was in the right spot. I didn't have time to move or react. There were a couple of other chances Voracek had and I got a little lucky in a couple of them, so I have to be happy about that.'' Brett Ritchie also scored for the Stars, who won for just the fourth time in their last 38 trips to Philadelphia. ''There's been a lot of different ways we've lost games and it was nice to find a way to win one,'' Dallas coach Lindy Ruff said. Luke Schenn scored for the free-falling Flyers, who lost their third straight to tumble further out of playoff contention. The loss snapped a six-game home point streak for Philadelphia, which lost at home in regulation for just the second time in 13 games. It was another blow to the Flyers, whose slim playoff chances took a major hit over the weekend. It began with Saturday's overtime loss to Boston when Philadelphia gave up the tying goal with 14.1 seconds left in regulation. That was followed by Sunday's 5-2 defeat at New Jersey. ''There's no desperation,'' said Philadelphia goalie Steve Mason, who made 37 saves. ''It's tough to come into a room after games like that where we needed a much better effort and it just wasn't there. I'm embarrassed. I hope everybody else is embarrassed, too, to have any effort like that, at home.'' The Flyers began Tuesday in 11th place, seven points behind the Bruins for the Eastern Conference's final playoff spot. Fiddler scored the game-winner with about 6 minutes left in the third period. Colton Sceviour centered a pass from the right boards and Fiddler redirected it past Mason from the goalie's doorstep to give Dallas a 2-1 lead. ''It was just a good chip by (Sceviour),'' Fiddler said. ''I just tried to get to the net, create some traffic, get my stick on the ice and lucky enough it went in the net.'' Schenn opened the scoring with a slap shot from the point that went over Lehtonen's glove to put Philadelphia in front 1-0 just 1:13 into the contest. Dallas evened it at 1 with 8:37 remaining in the period when Ritchie fired a wrist shot between Mason's legs from the slot. Tyler Seguin, among the league leaders with 31 goals, was playing in his second game after missing 10 due to a sprained knee. He scored two in Saturday's 5-4 loss to Tampa Bay but didn't have a point against the Flyers. Philadelphia's recent struggles on the power play continued, as the Flyers went 0-for-3 on the man-advantage. The Flyers, who entered third in the NHL in power-play scoring (23.1 percent), have scored just once on their last 15 power-play opportunities. Dallas began Tuesday trailing Winnipeg by 10 points for the last playoff spot in the Western Conference. NOTES: Flyers C Vincent Lecavalier, a healthy scratch for seven of the last nine games, returned to the lineup while LW R.J. Umberger was a healthy scratch. Umberger has gone 18 games without a goal. ... Stars D Jason Demers (sick) wasn't in the lineup. ... Flyers D Nicklas Grossmann (upper body) returned after missing four games. Grossmann took a puck to the face on a second-period shot by Antoine Roussel but remained in the game. . Ruff held C Cody Eakin out of the lineup due to a ''team discipline issue.''
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VALPARAISO, Ind. (AP) -- Valparaiso fought off key injuries all season, so the adversity the Crusaders faced Monday didn't faze them. Trailing 39-31 with 11:43 left in the Horizon League tournament championship, they picked up their defensive intensity to spark a 15-0 run and beat Green Bay 54-44 and earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. BOX SCORE: VALPARAISO 54, GREEN BAY 44 "It's been quite a ride this season," said Alec Peters, who scored nine points and was named tournament MVP. "Being conference champs, tournament champs and now going to the NCAA Tournament . we just had to bear down, play some defense and get some stops because we wanted this more than anything." Peters had an off game with 3-of-13 shooting, including 1 for 8 from the 3-point line. David Skara led the Crusaders (28-5) with 12 points and E. Victor Nickerson added 11 as Valparaiso, which earned the conference's regular season championship and won its second conference tournament title in the past three years. Keifer Sykes, the two-time Horizon League Player of the Year, led Green Bay (24-8) with 14 points on 5-of-15 shooting. He came in averaging 29 points in the Phoenix's past three games, all wins. The Crusaders made his night difficult by double teaming him through most of the second half and denying him good looks at the basket. Valparaiso scored 17 points off Green Bay turnovers, outscored the Phoenix 26-18 in the paint and held a commanding 25-3 advantage in bench scoring. "They were just doing a good job of taking some things away," Sykes said. "I knew especially when I gave the ball up, it was hard to get it back. And then by the time we'd get it back, we weren't in position to get a good shot or get a good score. They're a good defensive team." Green Bay led 25-19 at the half and led most of the game until the Crusader's big run in the last 12 minutes of the second half. The Phoenix pulled to 46-44 with 3:24 left on a 3-pointer by Alfonzo McKinnie and two free-throws by Sykes, but Valparaiso scored the final eight points of the game. McKinnie's 3 was the only field goal the Phoenix got in the final 12:23. A 3-pointer by Keith Carter with 8:40 remaining gave Valparaiso a 40-39 lead, which was its first time in front since early in the first half. Daeshon Francis had a chance to reclaim the lead for Green by at the free-throw line with 7:19 left, but missed both. The Phoenix weren't able to get closer the rest of the way. "We went cold and the story of the game was turnovers," Green Bay coach Brian Wardle said. "You look at turnovers and missed free throws. There was a segment (in the second half) where we got to the foul line with the lead. We had an opportunity to stretch it. When you're on the road, playing in that type of environment, you knock those down you build a little cushion." Valparaiso earned the league's automatic NCAA bid for the second time in coach Bryce Drew's first four seasons. The victory extended the Crusaders' own school record for wins in a season and improved their record to 15-1 at home this season. "I thought our players in that second half really embraced what our school's core values stand for," Drew said. "They're a special group and I feel blessed to be able to coach them." ------ TIP-INS Valparaiso: This was Valparaiso's third time playing for the Horizon League Championship in the past four years. Green Bay: This was the 21st appearance in the Horizon League championship game for the Phoenix, but first since 1998. Green Bay won its lone tournament title in 1995, its first season in the conference. UP NEXT Valparaiso: NCAA Tournament. Green Bay: To be determined.
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One of the two OU students expelled for racist chant has issued an apology. CNN's Miguel Marquez reports.
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PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- The Princeton Tigers capped off a perfect regular season with a hard-fought victory over their rival. When the final buzzer sounded, Courtney Banghart and her Tigers could finally celebrate their remarkable accomplishment -- going 30-0. After a subdued celebration Saturday when the Tigers beat Columbia to clinch the Ivy title, Princeton enjoyed Tuesday night's 55-42 win over Penn. The Tigers jumped with each other at center court celebrating their achievement. Princeton was then presented with the Ivy League championship trophy which they held aloft much to the delight of the many Tigers fans who made the 45-minute trip down from campus. One fan held up a sign saying "Go Tigers! 30-0 Perfect!" The 13th-ranked Tigers became the 15th team to enter the NCAA Tournament unbeaten. "People started mentioning to me at the end of non-conference season," Banghart said of the chance to be undefeated. "We have such great respect for this league and the back-to-back games are such a challenge. Halfway through the league after we had seen everybody, we knew it was a possibility." Senior guard Blake Dietrick started entertaining the idea of perfection much earlier than her coach. "I think we really started recognizing it after Michigan," said Dietrick, who had 11 points, seven assists and five rebounds in the win. "It was a monumental win for us against a nonconference team. Very, very early in the season I asked Annie Tarakchian, if we go undefeated will you bleach your hair? We were 2-0 at that point. Annie will now have bleached hair for the tournament." Princeton is hoping that this historic season doesn't end with another disappointing first round loss in the NCAAs. The Tigers want to become the second Ivy team to win a game, joining the 16th-seeded Harvard squad that upset No. 1 Stanford. "That is No. 1 on our list right now, second is finishing my thesis," Dietrick said of winning a tournament game. "It's the thing I want to do most in the world, most in my life." They'll have to wait until Monday night to see who they will face in the opening round. Princeton had won its first 13 games in the league by an average of 27 points, but this was a lot tougher against their longtime rival. Penn had ended the Tigers' four-year run as Ivy champs last season and now the Quakers were going to make it as difficult as possible for them to go undefeated. Michelle Nwokedi had 13 points and 14 rebounds for Penn (20-8, 11-3). Neither team could get much of a lead over the game's first 25 minutes and the Tigers led 31-29 with 14:43 left before using an 11-2 run to finally take command. Alex Wheatley, who led the Tigers with 17 points, started and ended the run with layups. Penn could only get within seven the rest of the way. "I've always said to anyone who asked me I think they're really good," Penn coach Mike McLaughlin said. "I think they are right where they need to be. They are talented top to bottom. They are very deep, well coached, play the right way. I think they are very good." Both teams got off to slow starts as Penn held a 14-12 lead midway through the first half after Sydney Stipanovich's three-point play. Princeton then scored nine straight points, including the first six by Vanessa Smith to take a seven-point lead with 5:11 left in the half. The Tigers led 26-21 at the break. Neither team shot well in the first half with the pair combining for 20-for-59 from the field (34 percent). ------ TIP-INS: Princeton: The Tigers became the second Ivy League team to enter the NCAA Tournament unbeaten. The 1970-71 Penn men's team went 28-0 before losing in the NCAAs. Penn: The Quakers had won nine straight games, the school's longest winning streak since they won 21 straight in 2000-01. ... Penn's seniors are the winningest class in school history with 73 victories. This group won an Ivy Championship last year and the Big 5 title. STILL PLAYING Penn will make its first-ever appearance in the WNIT. The Quakers finished second in the Ivies and earned the automatic berth. "We're going to play more," McLaughlin said. "It's a tough one tonight, they wanted this one. We're going to play more, regroup get back at it Thursday." UP NEXT Princeton: NCAA Tournament. Penn: WNIT.
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Illustrated by Anja Slibar. By Dr. Benjamin Le One of the sad truths about dating is that sometimes, you get dumped and if or when you do, you might just find yourself pretty pissed at your ex. If you want to get back at him or her for that terrible mistake, jumping into bed with someone else will surely teach your ex a lesson, right? You might also think hooking up with someone else will help you feel better at least for a little while. But, are revenge sex and rebound sex all that common? Does having sex with someone new after a breakup help at all? Surprisingly, researchers hadn't investigated the topic until recently, in a study published in the Archives of Sexual Behavior. These researchers collected data from 170 college students who were currently single but had been in relationships that ended within the previous year (on average, their relationships had ended about four months prior to their participation in the study). After completing an initial screening questionnaire about who initiated their most recent breakup (i.e. whether they were the "dumper" or "dumpee"), each week during the semester, participants answered questions about their self-esteem, mood, sexual behavior, and reasons for having sex ("rebound motives" as well as "revenge motives"). More than one third (35%) of the people in the study reported having rebound sex and almost one quarter (23%) had revenge sex in the month following their breakups. So, although the majority of people didn't engage in these behaviors, a sizable chunk still did. (It's important to note that as this study was self-reported, it's possible that the students weren't all 100% honest about their post-breakup sexual behaviors.) According to the students' self-assessments, revenge and rebound sex were (unsurprisingly) most likely to occur when a breakup's sting was fresh. The students were actually less likely to have new sexual partners for purely revenge or rebound reasons as more time passed following their breakups perhaps because they were instead seeking new long-term partners. Of course, this study was based on college students only, so more research on a wider range of ages is needed to make further conclusions. Are rebound and revenge sex actually coping mechanisms? Not really. In fact, people who had sex with new partners soon after a breakup did not show less distress, less anger, or higher self-esteem afterward. So, although some people do use sex as a way to cope with a breakup, it doesn't actually make you feel any better in the long run. Good thing it probably won't make you feel any worse, either. Read more about rebound relationships here.
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Anderson Cooper discusses first amendment protection for the racist fraternity chanting video with Charles Blow, Jeffrey Toobin and Michael Myers.
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EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. (AP) - Human remains and helicopter parts were recovered Wednesday after seven Marines and four soldiers crashed in heavy fog during military training in Florida. All 11 service members were presumed dead after the the Army National Guard's UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter went down offshore, a Pentagon official said. Kim Urr, 62, who works at the nearby Navarre Beach campground, said she heard a strange sound, followed by two explosions around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday. "It sounded like something metal either being hit or falling over, that's what it sounded like. And there were two booms afterward, similar to what you hear with ordnance booms, but more muffled," Urr said. President Barack Obama spoke with the military leaders involved and expressed his condolences to the families before saying he's confident of a detailed and thorough investigation, said his spokesman, Josh Earnest. "Our thoughts and prayers are with them and their families as the search and rescue continues," Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Capitol Hill. The Black Hawk crashed as Marines and National Guardsmen practiced "insertion and extraction missions," using small boats and helicopters to get troops into and out of a target site, said Capt. Barry Morris, spokesman for the Marine Corps Special Operations Command at Camp Lejeune. Fog had reduced visibility to less than two miles at the time, according to the National Weather Service. Another helicopter participating in the training returned undamaged, authorities said. Despite the human remains washing ashore, the military still called it a rescue mission Wednesday, said Sara Vidoni, a spokeswoman for Eglin Air Force Base, outside Pensacola. The fog remained so heavy Wednesday that search boats just offshore could be heard but not seen, blasting horns as their crews peered into the choppy water. It finally began to lift in the afternoon, enabling a helicopter to slowly survey the water. About a dozen airmen wearing fatigues walked shoulder-to-shoulder down the beach, scanning the sand, while civilian rescue crews and searchers with dogs joined the effort. The Coast Guard said debris was first spotted about 1:30 a.m. Wednesday, and that the search area expanded to a 17-mile stretch of the narrow sound separating Santa Rosa Island from the Florida Panhandle mainland. The Marines were part of a special operations group based in Camp Lejeune. The National Guard soldiers were from a unit based in Hammond, Louisiana. They had arrived Sunday for a week of training. None were immediately identified, so that families could be told first. The helicopter that crashed had joined the training from an airport in nearby Destin. The site includes 20 miles of pristine beachfront under military control since before World War II - an ideal place for special operations units from across the military to practice, test range manager Glenn Barndollar told The AP last year. ___ Associated Press contributors include Lolita C. Baldor in Washington; Jason Dearen in Gainesville, Florida; Freida Frisaro in Miami; Kevin McGill in Hammond, Louisiana; and Emery P. Dalesio at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.
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One of two suspects charged with the murder of Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov, Zaur Dadayev, confessed under duress, a member of Russia's Human Rights Council says. Andrei Babushkin, who visited Mr Dadayev on Tuesday, says he saw "numerous wounds" on his body, suggesting he had been tortured. The suspect himself said he was tied up for two days with a bag over his head. He says he only confessed so a friend arrested with him would be freed. "There are reasons to believe Zaur Dadayev confessed under torture," Mr Babushkin said after a delegation visited the suspect in prison. Mr Dadayev told the visitors he was mistreated in the two days after his capture in Chechnya on Saturday. He also said he confessed to make sure a friend who was arrested with him would be released. He said he planned to tell the truth in court, but was never given a chance to speak. The second man charged, Shagid Gubashev, says he was beaten by his interrogators and maintains his innocence. Mr Nemtsov, a former deputy prime minister and veteran liberal politician, was shot in the back as he was walking with his girlfriend within sight of the Kremlin on 27 February.
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Their first meeting was on the phone: She was in the Philippines, he was in Los Angeles. She told him she was 13. He asked her to call him "uncle," prosecutors said. And for about two years, Stanley Reczko and the girl, whose name has not been released, had phone sex before meeting in person in 2005, according to court documents. There followed years of sexual abuse, a sham marriage and the production of a series of sexually graphic images involving the underage girl, some of which Reczko brought back into the U.S., prosecutors said. Reczko, now 50, was convicted Tuesday on federal child pornography charges and faces at least 35 years in prison - and possibly life behind bars without parole, according to the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles. At a downtown courtroom, U.S. District Judge George H. King found Reczko guilty of producing child pornography during the time he was required to register as a sex offender, according to the U.S. attorney's office. The judge made the decision because Reczko waived a jury trial. The ruling marked the end of the Koreatown resident's two-part trial. On Feb. 20, a jury convicted Reczko of sexual exploitation of a minor by producing child pornography. In 1996, Reczko was convicted of first-degree rape of his then-14-year-old daughter, a crime that required him to register as a sex offender in California. According to court documents obtained by The Times, after about two years of phone sex, Reczko met the girl in November 2005 in the Philippines. He gave her clothes, then two weeks later, groped and massaged her in his hotel room, prosecutors said. He later gave her a ring and asked her if he could take her virginity. Despite her resistance, he threatened to "find another girl" and she then submitted to sex, prosecutors said. She tearfully tried to push him off her, "but she was unable to break free," prosecutors said. The pair entered into a sham marriage in early 2006, and he lived in her family's home for about two months. At that time he also started to take explicit photographs of her, prosecutors said. During the next year, Reczko took more sexually graphic photographs of her, including a series produced at a Manila hotel. Some photographs showed her alone, and others showed Reczko having sex with her. Prosecutors say he brought many of the images back to the U.S. He began to physically abuse the girl in the spring of 2007. She reported the abuse to her parents and to the police, to no avail, prosecutors said. She turned to a social worker in May 2007, and a day later, she was taken to a safe house run by a nonprofit, which turned over a copy of the pornographic CD to the Philippines government for investigation. Reczko is scheduled to be sentenced May 18.
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Floyd Mayweather Jr. is not messing around when it comes to his preparations for his upcoming fight against Manny Pacquiao. The undefeated boxer reportedly knocked out one of his sparring parters during a recent training session. "He dropped one of the guys with a body shot," photographer Chris Robinson told CBSSports.com.
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Reggie Evans can barely believe it, but Giannis Antetokounmpo is only 20. And I don't care how many times I watch it, 6'11" 20-year-olds shouldn't be able to do this. Yup, Antetokounmpo came out of nowhere and threw down the hammer. Antetokounmpo's stat line is as impressive as the move.
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SPRAGUE, Wash. (AP) The FBI has joined the search for an unidentified man who is shown on surveillance video apparently trying to kidnap a toddler in a tiny wheat farming town in Washington state. Lincoln County Sheriff Wade Magers says his department has sent evidence to an FBI lab in Virginia for analysis. But Magers said Wednesday there are no new leads in the case, and law officers don't know if the man is still in the Sprague area or has fled. A dramatic surveillance video shows the man running down a sidewalk with the toddler in his arms Sunday. The child's two siblings screamed and chased him. The scene ended after two teenage boys joined the chase, and the man put down the toddler and fled. Sprague is a town of about 500 people on Interstate 90, about 40 miles west of Spokane. This is breaking news. Stay tuned for updates. Earlier story below. A sheriff says he doesn't think a man caught on surveillance video running down a sidewalk with a toddler in his arms is a resident of the tiny town of Sprague. The boy's two young siblings screamed and chased him in what officials say was a failed kidnapping Sunday. The dramatic scene ended after two teenagers also chased the man and he set the boy down and ran off, authorities said. The 22-month-old wasn't hurt, Lincoln County Sheriff Wade Magers said Tuesday. "We don't believe him to be a local at this point," Magers said of the man. "We'd recognize him if he was local." Authorities have no leads, the sheriff said. Sprague is a wheat-farming town of about 500 people 40 miles southwest of Spokane. The boy's father, Michael Wright, said he was horrified by the incident. "I can't explain the feeling, the anxiety and everything" that comes with getting a phone call like the one that told him someone had tried to kidnap his son, Wright told KXLY-TV of Spokane. Wright left his three children with a baby sitter Sunday while he went to work. The children Brenden, 10, Delicia, 8, and the boy were playing unsupervised in a city park near the sitter's house, he told the television station. Sheriff's deputies said a man talked with the children for a few minutes, then scooped the toddler out of his stroller and ran down the street. Surveillance video from a grocery store showed the kidnapper running, child in arms, with Delicia chasing and Brenden not far behind. Delicia's screams alerted Dorothy Giddings, who was working at her antique store downtown. "I said there is something wrong," Giddings recalled Tuesday. "Then this man busts out and runs across the street and he's got a baby and a little girl right behind him screaming," Giddings said. "The girl said, 'That man got my baby brother! That man got my baby brother!'" Giddings said she realized what was happening and sent her grandson Andrew Crane, 15, and his friend Isaac Yow, 16, to chase the man. As the older boys approached, the kidnapper put the child down in a vacant lot and fled, the sheriff's office said. "He went around a corner and disappeared," Giddings said. "Somehow he disappeared from the face of the earth." No vehicle was seen with the kidnapper, who is described by the sheriff's office as about 30 years old, 6-foot to 6-foot-2, with a thin build, brown hair and a mustache. "We are leaning on somebody coming through town," which sits along Interstate 90, a major east-west artery, Magers said.
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A new report focusing on the economic and fiscal impact of child sexual abuse in Florida, compiled by the nonprofit organization Lauren's Kids, will be released to Florida legislators Wednesday. Among the key findings: - One in three girls and one and five boys will become a victim of child abuse in Florida before they turn 18. -On average, each victim of child sexual abuse loses $250,000 in earnings throughout his or her lifetime because of the abuse. -Fifty percent of victims have below-average grades. -Child sexual abuse ends up costing Florida about $1 billion a year. Lauren Book, who founded the organization in 2007, said the ''White Paper'' report, which took about four months to compile, is meant to show the true cost of child sexual abuse - both the financial and human impact. "When you look at the true cost to our state, it's huge," she said. "The numbers are staggering." Book said 95 percent of childhood abuse cases can be prevented through education and awareness. When Book, now 30, was 11, she was sexually abused over a period of about eight years by her nanny. She formed Lauren's Kids to help sexual abuse victims. Through the organization, she developed educational and national awareness campaigns, including the annual Walk in My Shoes event, which kicks off March 14. The 1,500-mile walk begins in Key West and ends April 22, 42 days later in Tallahassee. The 42-day journey is meant to raise awareness of the 42 million survivors of child sex abuse. "It's about using our collective voice," she said. "It's a huge accomplishment. We all want to take a stand to protect a child." For more information on the walk visit Laurenskids.org/Walk.
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NAVARRE, Fla. This tranquil beachside enclave normally provides a respite for soldiers, airmen and Marines who come here to relax or to train between dangerous deployments. But the hotels and bars where military families share laughs in good times became places of shared grief Wednesday as boats and helicopters searched the waters and beachfront for seven marines and four soldiers presumed to have died after a Black Hawk helicopter crashed in dense fog during a routine training exercise. "My heart is really hurt right now knowing these people were here just on training knowing they went and left their family members and did not give that goodbye, you know, because they weren't going off to war," a tearful Dolly Edwards said. The 35-year-old wife of a Marine was among hundreds who attended a vigil held at the end of a pier jutting into the Gulf of Mexico on Wednesday night. The same thick fog that plagued the Black Hawk on Tuesday night engulfed the pier. Combined with the crashing of the Gulf's waves, it created a somber backdrop to the songs, tears and prayers of the large gathering, which included many with strong ties to the military in a part of Florida that is home to the sprawling Eglin Air Force Base. "We just need to be here to pay respects," said Norman Caron, a retired airman, as he held a candle. The vigil came after a long and difficult day for searchers who struggled in thick banks of fog to find the remains of the 11 soldiers believed to have been killed in the crash of the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter. The military has provided few details about the crash, which happened about 8:30 p.m. Tuesday. The names of the soldiers have not been released. On Wednesday it was learned that a second helicopter turned back safely shortly before the crash. Military officials haven't said what caused the crash, but the weather was bad enough for the other crew to return to land, said Maj. Gen. Glenn H. Curtis, adjutant general of the Louisiana National Guard. Jack Cullen, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Mobile, Alabama, said Thursday would likely bring more dense sea fog and a good chance of rain. He said the foggy conditions could stick around through Friday, a common phenomenon this time of year as warmer southern air encounters cold water near land. The helicopter that crashed had a veteran crew from Hammond, Louisiana, that served multiple tours in Iraq and helped humanitarian missions after Gulf Coast hurricanes and the BP oil spill. They were carrying "unconventional warriors" from the Marines Special Operations Command. Like the Army's Green Berets and the Navy's SEALs, they were highly trained to endure grueling conditions and sensitive assignments on land and at sea, from seizing ships to special reconnaissance missions and direct action inside hostile territory. Tuesday night's training involved practicing "insertion and extraction missions," using small boats and helicopters to get troops into and out of a target site, said Capt. Barry Morris, spokesman for the Marine Corps Special Operations Command at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. The helicopter crashed in the Santa Rosa Sound, a strip of water between the mainland of the Florida Panhandle and a long barrier island facing the Gulf. Military officials said search crews were focused on a 6-mile stretch of the sound. Kim Urr, 62, who works at the Navarre Beach campground near the Eglin Air Force Base training area, said she heard a strange sound, followed by two explosions about 8:30 p.m. Tuesday. "It sounded like something metal either being hit or falling over, that's what it sounded like. And there were two booms afterward, similar to what you hear with ordnance booms, but more muffled," Urr said. Human remains were found Wednesday before the weather deteriorated again, and all 11 service members were presumed killed. But it was still considered a search and rescue mission. All through the day Wednesday, debris from the crash was seen floating in the sound. "We saw gloves, a uniform with a last name on it," said Alan Collinsworth, a hotel desk clerk. He said that when he got to work at 6:30 a.m. lots of debris was floating by the hotel's waterfront. "We were very shocked." "It's a big military community here and something like this hits home," said Paul Castillo, a former airman who, along with his 15-year-old son, brought 11 white roses that they laid at a memorial for the crash victims at the pier's entrance. Under his arm he carried a folded American flag. Earlier in the day, President Barack Obama expressed his condolences to the families and said he is confident a detailed and thorough investigation will take place, said his spokesman, Josh Earnest. "Our thoughts and prayers are with them and their families as the search and rescue continues," Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Capitol Hill. ___ Associated Press contributors include Lolita C. Baldor in Washington; Jason Dearen in Gainesville, Florida; Freida Frisaro in Miami; Kevin McGill and Stacey Plaisance in Hammond, Louisiana; and Emery P. Dalesio at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.
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Most people with chronic asthma experience asthma symptoms when they exercise . But many people who never experience asthma symptoms also can experience the same chest-tightening and shortness of breath when they work out especially in cold weather. Working out in frigid temps is a stimuli for exercise-induced asthma . The culprit is cold, dry air. The symptoms of exercise-induced asthma develop when your airways narrow as a result of physical exertion. The symptoms are brought on when you quickly breathe in air that is drier than what is already in your body, which causes a loss of heat, water, or both from your lungs. This dynamic becomes even more of a risk in cold weather because the air is dry. Common symptoms of exercise-induced asthma include: Coughing Tightness in the chest Wheezing Feeling short of breath while exercising Symptoms of exercise-induced asthma generally begin within five to 20 minutes after the start of physical activity, and typically end after exercise has stopped. Single digits The greatest threat is when the thermometer is at its lowest, says asthma expert Rachel Taliercio, MD . A good rule of thumb is avoid exercising when outdoor temps fall below 10 degrees. "If the weather is in the single digits, you should exercise indoors to avoid exercise-induced spasm in the lung," Dr. Taliercio says. Symptoms of exercise-induced asthma typically won't subside unless you stop exercising, Dr. Taliercio says. If the symptoms don't go away after taking a break, she recommends calling your doctor. Easy precautions You also can take precautions against exercise-induced asthma before heading outside to exercise. Taking the time to warm up before exercise and then to cool down afterward is a good strategy, Dr. Taliercio says. Such light activity can give you added protection against exercise-induced asthma. "In addition, use your rescue inhaler ten to 15 minutes before you exercise out in the cold air to open up the lungs and make it easier to breathe." Dr. Taliercio says. "You also can run with a knitted face mask or a scarf that covers your nose and mouth, that's always a really good idea." If you've never been diagnosed with exercise-induced asthma and notice asthma-like symptoms when you're exercising outside, see your doctor. More information Asthma treatment guide This article was written by lungs, Breathing & and Allergy Team from Cleveland Clinic and was legally licensed through the NewsCred publisher network.
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June Steenkamp, whose daughter Reeva was killed by her Paralympian boyfriend Oscar Pistorius, said Tuesday she was launching an anti-abuse organisation in her daughter's memory. Duration: 00:56
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Forces fighting the Islamic State group have cut critical communication and supply lines used by the extremists between Syria and Iraq after a two-week operation, the US-led coalition said. Backed by air strikes, the forces "overcame ISIL (IS) resistance" in northeastern Syria near the strategic town of Tal Hamis -- once an IS stronghold -- and "denied the terrorist group its freedom of maneuver in the area," the Combined Joint Task Force said in a statement. During the operation, which ended Saturday, the IS group lost access to primary travel routes it has previously used to move personnel and materials into Iraq. "Anti-ISIL forces were able to seize critical portions of route 47 in Syria, a key ISIL communications and supply line leading into Iraq," it added, noting that 94 villages were freed from the clutches of the extremists. The coalition said "multiple" IS weapons systems, vehicles and fighting positions were also destroyed. "This operation demonstrated the ability of anti-ISIL forces to further degrade Daesh influence in this region," Combined Joint Task Force commander Lieutenant General James Terry said in a statement, using an Arabic acronym for the IS group, which commands vast areas of Iraq and Syria. "The determination of these anti-ISIL forces and our precision air strikes enabled us to deny Daesh this key terrain in Syria." Kurdish forces seized Tal Hamis on February 27 with the help of Arab fighters, but fighting then continued in the area.
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WASHINGTON Iran is playing a helpful role against Islamic State militants in Iraq now, but once the extremists are vanquished, Tehran-backed militias could undermine efforts to unify the country, the top U.S. military officer said Wednesday. Army Gen. Martin Dempsey told lawmakers that any move to counter IS is a 'positive thing." But he said there are worries about whether those Shiite militias will later turn against Sunni or Kurdish Iraqis and hamper efforts to bridge ethnic and political divisions that have made peace elusive in Iraq. "We are all concerned about what happens after the drums stop beating and ISIL is defeated, and whether the government of Iraq will remain on a path to provide an inclusive government for all of the various groups within it," Dempsey said, using an acronym for the militant group. The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said officials are watching to see whether the militias, after recapturing lost ground, "engage in acts of retribution and ethnic cleansing." At this point, "there no indication that that is a widespread event." Dempsey joined Secretary of State John Kerry and Defense Secretary Ash Carter in testifying for more than three hours at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing called to examine President Barack Obama's proposal for new war powers to fight IS, which holds about one-third of Iraq and neighboring Syria. The committee chairman, Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., lamented that Obama's proposal does not give the U.S. military clear authority to defend moderate forces training for the Syrian fight from the bombing risk by troops loyal to Syrian President Bashar Assad. Dempsey cited "active discussion" about the kind of support "we would supply once the new Syrian forces are fielded." Carter later told reporters at the Pentagon that the U.S. will have "some obligation" to support the moderates as they take on IS and face possible attacks from Assad. "We all understand that," Carter said. "And we're working through what kinds of support and under what conditions we would do so, to include the possibility that, even though they're trained and equipped to combat ISIL, they could come into contact with forces of the Assad regime." Carter and Dempsey's comments opened the door to possible U.S. military action against Assad forces, if needed, to protect moderate rebels during a clash with regime troops. Obama has ruled out U.S. troops in ground combat in Syria. Earlier Wednesday, Iraqi soldiers and Shiite militiamen entered IS-held Tikrit, Saddam Hussein's hometown. They breached one of extremists' strongholds in an important test for Iraqi forces. Iranian military advisers were helping guide Iraqi forces in the advance. Among those directing operations was the commander of Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard's Quds Force. "The Tikrit operation will be a strategic inflection point one way or the other in terms of easing our concerns or increasing them," Dempsey said. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said he thinks much of the U.S. strategy is being driven by a desire not to upset the Iranians so they do not walk away from international negotiations aimed at preventing the Islamic Republic from being able to develop nuclear weapons. "I believe that our military strategy toward IS is influenced by our desire not to cross red lines that the Iranians have about U.S. military presence in the region," Rubio said. "Absolutely, not in the least," Kerry replied. On the issue of new powers to fight IS, the three witnesses defended the proposal that Obama submitted to Congress last month. The legislation, once finalized, would set up the first war vote in Congress in 13 years. Carter said Obama's draft would allow U.S. military force against IS for three years. That would give the next president and Congress the chance to reauthorize it, if needed. He said there are no geographical restrictions included in the proposal because IS has shown signs of activity beyond Syria and Iraq. Under Obama's proposal, the fight could extend to any "closely related successor entity" to IS. The administration has ruled out any "enduring" offensive combat operations. Carter said the plan "does not authorize long-term, large-scale offensive ground combat operations like those we conducted in Iraq and Afghanistan, because our strategy does not call for them," Carter said. "Instead, local forces must provide the enduring presence needed for an enduring victory." Republicans have expressed unhappiness that Obama chose to exclude the possibility of a long-term commitment of ground forces. Some Democrats voiced dismay that he had left the door open to any deployment at all. "What does 'no enduring offensive combat operations' mean to you?" asked Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey, the committee's top Democrat. "I don't think anybody contemplates years or a year," Kerry said. "That's not in the thinking of the president." ___ Associated Press writer Lolita C. Baldor contributed to this report.
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Concerns over foreign drivers in New Zealand have some motorists taking matters into their own hands. David Molko reports.
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Clutching a small bag of corn in one hand, six-year-old Haova Toboha scratches the ground with the other in the hope of turning up stray kernels left from a UN food handout. "I found these and I'll add them to the corn given to my parents" by the UN World Food Programme (WFP), said the little girl with the plastic bag in the village of Berano, southern Madagascar. In villages across the southern part of the world's fourth biggest island, a months-long drought ravaged last season's crops. People are famished, children are wasting away. WFP rations currently are keeping some 120,000 people alive in the wake of the October-through-February drought that destroyed the harvest in a country where one of every two toddlers under three suffer retarded growth due to inadequate diets. With food increasingly scarce due to the lack of rain, the UN food agency has launched an appeal to donors to help rebuild food stocks. "We need support now," said the deputy WFP representative to the Indian Ocean island, Fatima Sow Sidibe. People are not only being forced "to use their food reserves, they're also using up their own physical reserves," she said. Unlike 1991, when hundreds of people died of hunger in the region, experts say the situation cannot yet be described as "famine." "In those days people would leave the village in search of water and die on the way there," said Bertrand Randrianarivo, who was born in the south and has worked in the area with non-governmental organisations since 2001. "Drought comes every five or six years," he said, saying the largely isolated region needs to build water catchment systems and improve its links with the rest of the island. Donors were ready to invest in such projects but had been discouraged by the stance of the nation's successive leaders. At least 16 children dead While the WFP sees the latest drought as causing acute food insecurity rather than famine, the villagers themselves say they are wasting away. Raharisoa, a terrifyingly thin woman of 25, sits on the ground. Her two-year-old daughter died of hunger in December. "We couldn't look after our child," she sighs. "Because of the famine, the adults are weak and cannot take care of the little ones." "In December, four children died in our village because of the famine," said Masy, a healthcare worker in Berano. In the neighbouring village of Imongy, the head of the area's Health Centre, Marc Andriakotonindrina, says a dozen children died of hunger in December, according to information collected by local health-workers. "These children showed no sign of sickness, they simply lost weight bit by bit until their demise," he added. The drought destroyed all of the crops growing in southern Madagascar and efforts by farmers to replant were to no avail, simply reducing seed stocks and food supplies. When the rain finally came in February it was far too late. The government says 200,000 to 350,000 people are suffering from hunger in the low-income nation of 22 million people, which is ranked 155th of 187 countries on the UNDP's Human Development Index. More than 70 percent of the population lives below the poverty line. In the last weeks, WFP rations have enabled 120,000 people to get regular meals. And while Agriculture Minister Roland Ravatomanga has pledged to distribute food aid to drought-struck areas, this would have to come on top of the government's efforts to find help for flood victims. Torrential rain late last month that caused flooding and mudslides left 22 people dead and drove more than 63,000 from their homes in the capital, Antananarivo.
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12 Healthy Food Swaps to Make Starting Today We know there are so many challenges when you're trying to lose weight, which is why we partnered with Silk® Cashewmilk for these healthy swaps. I love a good slather of butter on my morning toast but know it's not the best option while sticking with my healthyeating goals, so I have adjusted to a light coating of coconut oil or even a dusting of nutritional yeast. Both offer the right touch of savoriness to my breakfast -- with bonus health benefits. You might be surprised by how simple swaps cut numbers and offer a different flavor profile to your favorite eats. We found 12 you can start making today. Cashew Milk Instead of Cow's Milk Reach for cashew milk instead of cow's milk for a delicious and creamy alternative to dairy. You can use it in all recipes that call for regular milk. Light Cottage Cheese Instead of Ricotta Cheese Ditch the high calories but keep the healthy calcium, and try light cottage cheese instead of ricotta, cutting the calorie count in half. You can opt for a small curd, which is similar in texture to a fine ricotta cheese, and use it in all your favorite recipes. I love using cottage cheese when making lasagna. Flaxseed Instead of Eggs Along with offering so many healthy benefits, such as large amounts of omega-3s, you can also use flaxseed in place of eggs when baking. For each egg, puree one tablespoon of seeds with three tablespoons water. Applesauce Instead of Butter Applesauce is a smart substitute for butter, but it also works the same for oil. Use the same amount of applesauce as butter in your next recipe, and enjoy the flavor. Sodium-Free Garlic Powder Instead of Salt You aren't shaving off calories with this suggestion, but you are sprinkling a healthier alternative than salt. Garlic powder is made from dehydrated garlic cloves -- and really adds a flavor punch to savory dishes while cutting your sodium intake. Oats Instead of Breadcrumbs Breadcrumbs add the right texture and crunch to many of our favorite foods, but quick-cooking oats actually give your eats the same taste and texture. Grind oats to break them down, and then use them in place of breadcrumbs whenever they're called for. Banana Instead of Sugar Instead of adding loads of sugar to your baked goods, go with banana instead. You can mash a banana into a smooth consistency and use the same amount as sugar the next time you're baking. You'll add flavor along with fiber, potassium, and vitamin C. Nonfat Yogurt Instead of Sour Cream Nonfat yogurt or even nonfat Greek yogurt can replace sour cream when cooking -- and works when you're wanting a dollop of creaminess on your burrito. You'll be surprised with how the tang is actually quite similar. Mashed Potatoes Instead of Cream The next time you're making soup, stew, or a creamy sauce, use mashed potatoes instead of cream. Mashed potatoes blend into the mixture creating a smooth consistency, just like cream does. And it's a great way to use leftover potatoes. Seeds Instead of Croutons I love a good crunch on the top of my salad, and seeds offer a delightful finish and healthy alternative to croutons -- especially tamari-roasted pumpkin seeds! Avocado Instead of Oil Just like bananas or applesauce, you can also substitute avocado for oil and butter in your next baking adventure. You might find the consistency is a bit different, but experiment with doing an equal swap the next time you put together your favorite recipe. Nutritional Yeast Instead of Cheese If you haven't discovered the deliciousness of nutritional yeast, it's time to pick some up at the grocery store. I love this stuff sprinkled on popcorn, as a topping for toast, and even as a finishing touch to baked chicken. With a similar flavor to parmesan cheese, the powder is high in vitamin B and comes in around 30 calories per tablespoon, making it a great alternative.
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LOS ANGELES A verdict saying Pharrell Williams and Robin Thicke copied Marvin Gaye's music to create their hit song "Blurred Lines" could ripple across the music industry, potentially changing how artists work and opening the door to new copyright claims. An eight-person jury determined Tuesday that Williams and Thicke copied elements of Gaye's 1977 hit "Got to Give It Up" and ordered the pair to pay nearly $7.4 million to the late R&B legend's three children. The music industry may feel new constraints in the coming years as artists and lawyers sort through the verdict and its implications. Howard King, lead attorney for Thicke and Williams, said in closing arguments that a verdict for the Gaye family would have a chilling effect on musicians trying to evoke an era or create an homage to the sound of earlier artists. Williams contended during the trial that he was only trying to mimic the "feel" of Gaye's late 1970s music but insisted he did not use elements of his idol's work. "Today's successful verdict, with the odds more than stacked against the Marvin Gaye estate, could redefine what copyright infringement means for recording artists," said Glen Rothstein, an intellectual property attorney. He said the decision sets a precedent because "paying homage to musical influences was an acceptable, and indeed commonplace way of conducting business and even showing respect for one's musical idols, (but) after today, doubt has been cast on where the line will be drawn for copyright infringement purposes." Music copyright trials are rare, but allegations that a song copies another artist's work are common. Singers Sam Smith and Tom Petty recently reached an agreement that conferred songwriting credit to Petty on Smith's song, "Stay With Me," which resembled Petty's hit "I Won't Back Down." In the "Blurred Lines" case, the Gaye family will seek an injunction against the song, giving them leverage to negotiate for royalties and other concessions such as songwriting credits. Nona Gaye, the late singer's daughter, wept as the verdict was read and later told reporters: "Right now, I feel free. Free from ... Pharrell Williams' and Robin Thicke's chains and what they tried to keep on us and the lies that were told." Larry Iser, an intellectual property lawyer who has represented numerous musicians such as Jackson Browne and David Byrne in music copyright cases, criticized the verdict. "Although Gaye was the Prince of Soul, he didn't own a copyright to the genre, and Thicke and Williams' homage to the feel of Marvin Gaye is not infringing," Iser said. King, the pair's lawyer, said record labels are going to become more reluctant to release music that's similar to other works an assertion disputed by Richard Busch, the lead attorney for the Gaye family. "While Mr. Williams' lawyer suggested in his closing argument that the world would come to an end, and music would cease to exist if they were found liable, I still see the sun shining," Busch said. "The music industry will go on." So, too, will Williams' career, said Joe Levy, editor-at-large at Billboard. "For Pharrell, the story moves on," he said. "It will move on quickly." Williams is a seven-time Grammy Award winner whose songs he's performed or produced have sold more than 100 million copies worldwide. His hit "Happy" has helped make him a household name, as has his work as a judge on NBC's music competition show, "The Voice." "It's much to Pharrell's advantage that he is at a high point in his career," Levy said. Thicke's career may have more issues as a result of Tuesday's verdict because "Blurred Lines" was a global hit and his follow-up effort failed to connect with audiences, Levy said. Despite the song's popularity, feminists have criticized it, saying it promotes rape culture. While the verdict will likely make musicians and record labels more cautious, it won't stop artists from using others' works as inspiration, Levy said. Despite the decision, he predicted that "Blurred Lines" will continue to make plenty of money for Williams, Thicke and, in all likelihood, the Gaye family. "People aren't going to stop playing it," Levy said. "It's not just going to disappear." ___ Anthony McCartney can be reached at http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP
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A registered high-risk sex offender suspected of killing his mother Monday night in Escondido was found dead in his pickup truck Tuesday morning in Del Mar, an apparent suicide. Authorities said that Joseph Andrew Stuber, 46, likely died of asphyxiation. He was suspected of killing his 83-year-old mother in the home they shared in Escondido. Her name was not released. The truck was discovered about 7:30 a.m. after an all-night search, including a warning to the public that Stuber should be considered armed and dangerous. Escondido police said they received information at 9:35 p.m. Monday about a "violent crime" at the home that Stuber shared with his mother. After forcing entry into the home, police found the body of an elderly woman, "the victim of a violent assault." Stuber had been seen leaving the house in his pickup "driving at a high rate of speed," police said. Police released a picture Monday night of Stuber and the license plate number of his 2007 Silver Toyota Tacoma pickup. Stuber had called his father, who lived separately from his mother, and confessed to harming her, police said. The San Diego County Sheriff's Department, Escondido police and the county medical examiner are investigating. Stuber served 16 years in prison and a state hospital for molesting two boys.
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You may be running the show, but the people on your team have just as much of an impact on your company's success as you do. Smart entrepreneurs surround themselves with positive people, especially when business is bad. Positive people come in many forms, but their can-do, feel-good attitudes are universally contagious. A 20-year study published in 2008 shows that having just one happy friend increases your chances of becoming happy by 15 percent. Wise entrepreneurs also find those who have strengths they lack and encourage them to spread their gifts. If your business is in trouble, look around. Who's missing? Chances are, you're missing one of these 10 people. 1. The lightning rod. Lightning rods attract attention. They're always at the center. These people are witty, charismatic and full of ideas. At first glance, you might mistakenly label a lightning rod as arrogant or rude. In reality, these people are just creative. Their minds move quickly and they're often bored. If you fail to channel their energy, mischief will ensue. In business, lightning rods add incredible value to any sales and marketing team. Don't worry about these people ruining your professional reputation. They are exactly what you need to keep your products and services fresh and exciting. 2. The golden goose. Whereas the lightning rod attracts attention, the golden goose attracts money. These people have deep knowledge of how to increase your business's revenues and profits. They are the masterful CFOs, salespeople, and money-makers of all kinds that keep companies in the black. If bean counting puts you to sleep, or if selling makes you feel sleazy, hire a golden goose. Your business cannot be successful without making and managing money properly. 3. The maestro. Maestros are those rare, strategic people who can see the end from the beginning. They are visionaries who live rich internal lives and who can look at everything from a bird's eye view. Modern-day maestros like Apple's Steve Jobs or Google's Larry Page and Sergey Brin have changed the course of humanity with their long-term mindsets. If you're unable to plot out where you want your business to go, start surrounding yourself with as many maestros as possible and consult with them frequently. 4. The virtuoso. If Steve Jobs was the maestro at Apple, then Steve Wozniak was the virtuoso. Virtuosos are innovators with specialized knowledge. They are the scientists, engineers, and architects behind the world's most amazing inventions. These people do the most difficult thing in the world: physically create something from nothing. No matter what you're trying to build, virtuosos will help you build it better and faster. They make up the brilliant R&D, programming, and design teams at the world's top companies. Without virtuosos, all business ideas would rot. 5. The wordsmith. Wordsmiths are people who excel at wordplay. They are able to organize their thoughts into oral and written forms of communication to motivate, entertain and teach other people. Wordsmiths include authors, editors, bloggers, public speakers, and communicators of all types. You might be tempted to take these people for granted, especially in today's world where content has become a commodity. But this is a mistake. Whoever creates the most contagious content controls the conversation. From memes to mission statements to memos, communication is what keeps ideas, product, services on the top of people's minds and on the tip of their tongues. 6. The superconnector. Superconnectors are those people who have dipped into a vast array of diverse groups. They have a large capacity for interconnected knowledge and use it to bring others together toward shared goals. When you get stuck in your business, it's the superconnector who will know the perfect person to help you get unstuck. They are constantly adding people to their giant mental rolodex because they know that your business's network is its net worth. 7. The gladiator. Gladiators are entrepreneurs in the purest sense. They are those who can get beat down again and again and again and keep coming back for more. They are also intensely loyal. Don't misunderstand the gladiators in your business. Their intensity and overconfidence are simply the reinforcements they need to stay strong while they battle outdated empires and bloated bureaucracies. If you find yourself lacking initiative in any way, start surrounding yourself with as many gladiators as possible. These people know how to execute and will get a job done no matter how many obstacles get in their way. 8. The bookworm. Bookworms are structured and detail oriented. They love reading and research and value knowledge and systems above all else. Bookworms are the oil that keeps all organizations running smoothly. Most entrepreneurs take bookworms for granted because bookworms thrive on tactical operations. Don't make this mistake. The difference between good and bad customer service, or good and bad employee conditions, often comes down to nothing more than the quality of the standard operating procedures that a bookworm created. If details drive you mad, then you need to get more bookworms into your business. They will keep you organized and help you hit the tactical benchmarks you are probably overlooking. 9. The hacker. The fastest way to save your business is to start hacking it. Hackers are destroyers and creators. They deconstruct systems, remove what's unnecessary and then rebuild better systems. Hackers create paradigm shifts by testing and tweaking different parts of a process over and over again until every piece is optimized. If you don't have the time to test the various parts of your business, start hiring some hackers. The amount of time and energy these people can save you is incredible. 10. The sage. Every business needs a sage to survive. Sages are people who have spent a lot of time in business. They are the teachers, managers, and mentors who excel at bringing out the best in other people. Sages use their experience to positively influence the fate or your business. They will help you avoid common mistakes and help you seize opportunities you wouldn't have seen on your own. If you're an entrepreneur with few or no employees, find a sage and hire them as a mentor. If you're an entrepreneur with many employees, find a sage and hire them as a manager. Standing on the shoulders of a worthy sage is the most important thing you can do to help your business thrive.
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A new study shows nearly 500,000 millionaires were added to U.S. households last year, bringing the total to 10.1 million, reports CNBC's Robert Frank.
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Chick-fil-A is hitting the Big Apple in a big way. The Atlanta-based chain plans to open a stand-alone three-level, 5,000-square-foot restaurant at the corner of Sixth Avenue and W. 37th Street in Manhattan in late summer, Crain's New York Business reported . Each floor of the massive space near Herald Square is expected to have 2,200 square feet of space that will house about 80 seats. "This location will allow us to serve fans who have been asking us to come to New York and to earn the opportunity to serve new customers," Carrie Kurlander, vice president of public relations told Crain's. The chain has a small outlet in a New York University campus food hall, but this will be the company's first freestanding restaurant in the city. But just because it's the city that never sleeps, don't expect it to be open on Sundays. Keeping with Southern tradition, all of the company's nearly 2,000 close on Sundays. The move to New York might have been unthinkable three years ago. In 2012, just as the chain was looking to move into Boston, then-Chief Operating Officer and current CEO Dan Cathy created a controversy when he told the Baptist Press that he backed the "the biblical definition of a family." That sparked national protests and boycotts of the chain. And despite some who feel that Chick-fil-A's anti-gay action could be a turn off for some New Yorkers, the chain is betting that customers wouldn't be able to resist its food which still gets voted as having the best chicken sandwiches around. Chick-fil-A is still planning to open more locations within the five boroughs this year and next year.
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