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NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- Tibetan exile leaders, meeting in northern India to debate a potential new approach to Tibet's decades-long struggle for autonomy, have voted to stay with the Dalai Lama's current "middle way approach," according to a spokesman for the spiritual leader.
Some have sought Tibet's independence from China, but the Dalai Lama has sought autonomy.
"The majority of the people have spoken and have requested his holiness the Dalai Lama to continue with his middle way approach," said spokesman Tenzin Taklha.
The meeting was called after the Dalai Lama acknowledged he had failed in his efforts to convince China to restore the territory's autonomy. He did not attend the week-long conference in Dharamsala, a town in the hills of north India where he lives in exile. He called the meeting, he said, to offer the exiles an opportunity to discuss "the best possible future course of action" for Tibet.
Takhla said the Tibetans demonstrated that the Dalai Lama was their undisputed leader, and they hoped China would recognize him as such and negotiations toward a realistic solution could be held.
There was a small minority who said they wanted to demand Tibet's independence, Takhla said.
The "middle way" approach with Beijing is one in which Tibetans want a level of autonomy that will allow them to protect and preserve their culture, religion and national identity. In exchange, China could continue to claim Tibet as part of its territory.
Some in Tibet have advocated independence from China, but the Dalai Lama has long called for genuine autonomy.
Tibet is technically autonomous from the central Chinese government, but the Dalai Lama and others have said they favor real autonomy and resent the slow erosion of their culture amid an influx of Han Chinese, the largest ethnic group in China. Learn about Tibet's history of conflict »
The resentment spilled over in March, when Buddhist monks initiated peaceful anti-Chinese protests in the Tibetan capital of Lhasa. The demonstrations began March 14, the anniversary of a failed 1959 uprising against Beijing's rule that sent the Dalai Lama into exile.
The protests soon turned violent, with demonstrators burning vehicles and shops. Some protesters advocated independence from China, while others demonstrated against the growing influence of the Han Chinese in Tibet and other regions of China with ethnic Tibetan populations. The subsequent crackdown left 18 civilians and one police officer dead, according to the Chinese government. Tibet's self-proclaimed government-in-exile put the death toll from the protests at 140.
China blamed the Dalai Lama and his followers for the March riots -- a charge he has consistently denied.
|
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"Who backs Dalai Lama's current \"middle way approach\"?",
"What are a small minority demanding?",
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] |
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"autonomy.",
"Dalai Lama's",
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question: What does the Dalai Lama seek?, answer: autonomy. | question: Who is the spiritual leader of Tibet?, answer: Dalai Lama's | question: What do the Tibetan exile leaders back?, answer: the Dalai Lama's current "middle way approach," | question: Who wants to demand Tibet's independence?, answer: a small minority | question: Who is the Tibet's spiritual leader?, answer: Dalai Lama | question: What to Tibetan exile leaders support?, answer: "middle way approach," | question: Who backs Dalai Lama's current "middle way approach"?, answer: Tibetan exile leaders, | question: What are a small minority demanding?, answer: Tibet's independence, | question: Who want to demand Tibet's independence?, answer: China,
|
NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama will undergo a routine medical examination at a hospital in the Indian capital on Tuesday, his spokesman Tenzin Taklha told CNN Sunday.
The Dalai Lama with French first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy on a recent visit to France.
The check-up in New Delhi is likely to take several hours, but the Dalai Lama will not be admitted to the hospital, the spokesman said.
The Dalai Lama, who lives in exile in the north Indian hill town of Dharamsala, will travel to the Indian capital on Monday.
The 73-year-old Tibetan leader was hospitalized in Mumbai in August for abdominal discomfort.
Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama will undergo a routine medical examination at a hospital in the Indian capital on Tuesday.
|
[
"Where the medical check be carried out?",
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"What kind of treatment is the Tibetan Spirtual leader undergoing?",
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"What tests did Dalai Lama receive?"
] |
[
"at a hospital",
"check-up in New Delhi",
"abdominal discomfort.",
"a routine medical examination",
"undergo a routine medical examination",
"a routine medical examination"
] |
question: Where the medical check be carried out?, answer: at a hospital | question: What is likely to take several hours?, answer: check-up in New Delhi | question: What was suffering the Dalai Lama?, answer: abdominal discomfort. | question: What kind of treatment is the Tibetan Spirtual leader undergoing?, answer: a routine medical examination | question: What happens to the Dalai Lama?, answer: undergo a routine medical examination | question: What tests did Dalai Lama receive?, answer: a routine medical examination
|
NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama will undergo a routine medical examination at a hospital in the Indian capital on Tuesday, his spokesman Tenzin Taklha told CNN Sunday.
The Dalai Lama with French first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy on a recent visit to France.
The check-up in New Delhi is likely to take several hours, but the Dalai Lama will not be admitted to the hospital, the spokesman said.
The Dalai Lama, who lives in exile in the north Indian hill town of Dharamsala, will travel to the Indian capital on Monday.
The 73-year-old Tibetan leader was hospitalized in Mumbai in August for abdominal discomfort.
Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama will undergo a routine medical examination at a hospital in the Indian capital on Tuesday.
|
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"What type of comfort did the leader suffer?",
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"Where was the check-up?",
"Where did the Dalai Lama receive medical treatment?"
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question: Who will undergo a medical exam his week?, answer: Dalai Lama | question: How long will the check up take?, answer: several hours, | question: He was admitted for tests because of what?, answer: abdominal discomfort. | question: What country is the Dalai Lama associated with?, answer: Tibetan | question: Who is the Tibetan spiritual leader?, answer: Dalai Lama | question: What medical problems was the Dalai Lama having?, answer: abdominal discomfort. | question: What type of comfort did the leader suffer?, answer: abdominal discomfort. | question: In what city will the check-up take place?, answer: New Delhi | question: Who will undergo a medical exam?, answer: the Dalai Lama | question: Where was the check-up?, answer: in New Delhi | question: Where did the Dalai Lama receive medical treatment?, answer: hospital in the Indian capital
|
NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- Vimlendu Jha is the founder and head of Swechha -- We For Change Foundation which is based in India's capital, New Delhi.
"For the rest of the world India is powerful, but for many residing in the countryside, India is still disempowered, hungry and naked."
Swechha started out as an organization to combat the pollution of the city's main waterway, the river Yamuna. Today it deals with the environmental issues that affect several aspects of Delhi.
Vimlendu leads volunteers and local children to key sites around the city to tackle the ecological problems, as well as to raise awareness of the issues. Follow his efforts in his blogs and video diaries.
October 18, 2007 We traveled, along with 100-odd kids from one of New Delhi's most progressive schools, The Shri Ram School, to the rural part of our country, to Kempty Village in Uttaranchal.
The purpose of the visit was to expose these young minds (ages 15-17) to the existence of another India.
Most of us have an illusion of India becoming a powerful nation and it is on a phenomenal growth trajectory. We are not so much seen as a developing nation but a developed nation. One wonders what actually makes a country developed, when most of the parameters of development are skewed, as is the case of our country. For the rest of the world India is powerful, but for many residing in the countryside, India is still disempowered, hungry and naked.
Up to 70 percent of Indians still live in villages. Most of the time these villages are neglected and are centers of poverty. Development around India's cities has brought a flood of people from the rural areas who come in search of jobs. This population comprises the "urban poor" which is more vulnerable than the rural poor.
Imagine, India still has more than 260 million people (26 percent of the population) living below the poverty line. In the last 10 years, we have had at least 40,000 farmer suicides in the country -- indicative of the growing gap between the poor and the rich.
The purpose of this trip was to learn, and unlearn, about village stereotypes or notions we live with. The village in Uttaranchal wasn't as extreme an experience as other remote villages of India, but it was indicative of the hardships that people live with.
Another reason for the trip was to celebrate the simplicity and generosity of the villagers vis-à-vis we, the insecure urbanites, and also to understand their hardships, due to our over-consumption and false assumption that our wrongdoing does not necessarily influence the rural population -- when we know it does.
For many students, it was a first-time, first-hand experience of a village. Some were overwhelmed with the beauty and many were saddened by the villagers' plight. The outing also gave them an opportunity to contribute in some way. Students worked in the fields, helped the villagers in agricultural work and breathed the clean air.
It was a wonderful experience, aimed at understanding the gap between the two exisiting worlds; to bridge the gap between these two worlds. E-mail to a friend
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"the villagers' plight.",
"Kempty Village in Uttaranchal."
] |
question: Who took a group of children to see a village?, answer: Vimlendu Jha | question: How did the children react to the plight of villagers?, answer: Some were overwhelmed with the beauty and many were saddened | question: What did he say was their reaction to the plight of the villagers?, answer: Some were overwhelmed with the beauty and many were saddened | question: What village were kids taken to see?, answer: Kempty | question: Where was the village located?, answer: Uttaranchal | question: What did Vimlendu take a group of children to see?, answer: key sites around the city | question: What was his aim?, answer: understanding the gap between the two exisiting worlds; | question: What was his intention?, answer: combat the pollution of the city's main waterway, the river Yamuna. | question: What were the children saddened by?, answer: the villagers' plight. | question: Where had many of the children never been?, answer: Kempty Village in Uttaranchal.
|
NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- Vimlendu Jha is the founder and head of Swechha -- We For Change Foundation which is based in India's capital, New Delhi.
"The Dreamtime Circus is a troupe of fire dancers, jugglers, aerialists, clowns and musicians who travel the world to share the uplifting experience of the circus."
Swechha started out as an organization to combat the pollution of the city's main waterway, the river Yamuna. Today it deals with the environmental issues that affect several aspects of Delhi.
Vimlendu leads volunteers and local children to key sites around the city to tackle the ecological problems, as well as to raise awareness of the issues. Follow his efforts in his blogs and video diaries.
December 4, 2007 We live in a conflict-ridden world. There is upheaval and turmoil between countries, between people, between man and nature and within one's own self.
Fortunately, there are people who are striving hard to fight this feeling of gloom and despondency.
Dreamtime Circus and Swechha -- We for Change Foundation have joined hands to salute this indefatigable spirit of such change makers through "Circus for Change."
Both organizations are comprised of people who have devoted themselves to reduce the misery of the earth and her people by way of grassroots level advocacy, raising awareness about social, cultural and political issues or by bringing smiles to the faces of many by entertaining them through their creative performances.
The Dreamtime Circus is a troupe of fire dancers, jugglers, aerialists, clowns and musicians who travel the world to share the uplifting experience of the circus with the peoples of the world. During their travels, the troupe aims to support local organizations working on vital environmental, health, and humanitarian issues that impact the communities they visit.
The Dreamtime Circus was founded by fire dancers and non-profit organizers Chris Dunn and Kara "Kfire" Voss in 2005, when they first started performing in villages throughout Indonesia. Since then, Dreamtime Circus has grown from two to 30 performers and their debut performance, "Between Worlds," played to five sold out audiences in San Francisco, California, as well as a packed circus tent at the world famous "Burning Man Festival" in the U.S.
The coming together of Dreamtime Circus and Swechha symbolizes the fusion of advocacy and creativity, and a common goal for effecting social change.
One of the key objectives of Swechha's various endeavors is to help people -- primarily youth -- to rediscover their relationship with the environment and to empower them to reflect on the consumption-based lifestyle of modern times and its ill-effects.
Dreamtime Circus epitomizes daring, innovation and a will to make the world a more humane place, through creative arts and in whatever little way one can. While Swechha promotes volunteerism in a big way, the performers at Dreamtime hope to further the cause of volunteerism by performing for free, wherever they travel in India and in doing so, they wish to aid local civil society groups in their work.
Objectives of Circus for Change:
• To promote "out-of-the-box" methods for raising awareness.
• To spread the message of "One Earth, Your Earth," which essentially means -- political, cultural and economic boundaries notwithstanding -- this earth is undivided and there is a need for each one of us to be responsible towards it without thinking about our personal gains.
• To help local NGOs in their efforts to uplift society through performances and workshops by Dreamtime Circus. It would also help the NGOs, especially the ones in rural areas, to attract media attention and get publicity for their present and future projects.
• To collaborate with artists, activists and performers from different countries to promote inter-cultural learning, and to share experiences and good practices.
From October 2007 through March 2008, Dreamtime Circus will tour India and perform for free in cities, villages, schools, and refugee communities throughout the country. Wherever a circus need be, a circus shall be.
Performances will include an array of circus arts, music and storytelling, and will communicate positive messages of hope,
|
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question: What does Dreamtiem Circus support?, answer: local organizations working on vital environmental, health, and humanitarian issues | question: The troupe is touring where?, answer: India | question: What team has Swechha joined?, answer: We For Change Foundation | question: What kinds of elements are in the Dreamtime Circus' shows?, answer: fire dancers, jugglers, aerialists, clowns and musicians | question: Where does the Dreamtime Circus operate?, answer: Indonesia. | question: Who has Swechha teamed up with?, answer: Dreamtime Circus | question: Who did Swechha team up with?, answer: Dreamtime Circus | question: Dreamtime Circus supports local organizations on what?, answer: vital environmental, health, and humanitarian issues
|
NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- While many now recognize the scientific explanation for a solar eclipse, the phenomenon is still marked with tradition and sometimes suspicion in Hindu-majority India.
People test the "sky watching telescope" at the Gujarat Council of Science City in India.
The "exceptionally long" eclipse that will cross half the planet Wednesday will be able to be seen by virtually all of the population of China and India.
For beggars in India, the occasion means an extra day of receiving alms and food.
The panhandler in Sandeep Jaggi's neighborhood normally visits the block every week on Tuesdays and Saturdays, as well as the days of a new and full moon.
And because his patrons mark an eclipse with alms-giving, prayers and bathing, he rarely misses the chance to meet them on this day as well.
"It's a family tradition and I follow it," says 34-year-old Jaggi. He will fill the beggar's small steel pail with mustard oil and coins and his disheveled sash with lentils.
For others in the country, the eclipse is not a reason to celebrate, but a more ominous phenomenon. Send us your photos of the eclipse
Most pregnant women hope to avoid giving birth during an eclipse.
"None of the expectant mothers under my treatment are willing to have deliveries on Wednesday," Shivani Sachdev Gour, a gynecologist at New Delhi's Fortis La Femme hospital, told CNN.
In fact, there are critically ill patients who do not want to be in the hospital on the day of the eclipse, she said.
Indian astrologers even advise expectant mothers to stay indoors when this celestial event occurs.
"It may not cause any physical harm to the baby, but it may affect the child's overall personality," said R.K. Sharma, who describes himself as a "remedial astrologer."
A solar eclipse, he says, weakens the sun god temporarily because of an encounter with dragon Rahu and leaves some cascading results everywhere.
"Bathing in holy rivers and ponds during this time thus helps protect health and develop positivism and greater will power," he explained.
About 1.5 million people are expected at one such pond -- the Brahmsarovar, or the pool of Hindu god Brahma -- in northern India on Wednesday.
"They offer prayers to the sun god and take holy dips during an eclipse," said Ashok Kumar Bansal, the sub-divisional magistrate of Kurukshetra, an ancient Hindu city.
But the century's longest total solar eclipse is not just about the dragon-sun combat, it also means business for some.
Travel firms in India have plans in place to cash in on the phenomenon.
Cox and Kings India has a planeload of eclipse watchers heading for the eastern state of Bihar, one of the most preferred locations for sighting the event.
The plane will hover over Gaya in Bihar and return to New Delhi the same day, company spokesman Thomas C. Thottathil told CNN.
Passengers were given two options: to book a "sunside" seat facing the eclipse for about $1,640, or reserve an "earthside" seat for about $610, Thottathil added.
"And it's a sold out flight now!" he said.
|
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question: Where do some critically ill patients not want to be during eclipse?, answer: in the hospital | question: Pregnant women in India hope to avoid what during an eclipse?, answer: giving birth | question: What is marked with suspicion?, answer: solar eclipse, | question: Eclipse weakens sun god because of an encounter with what?, answer: dragon Rahu | question: Who hope to avoid giving birth during eclipse?, answer: Most pregnant women | question: Eclipse weakens sun god because of encounter with what mythical beast?, answer: dragon Rahu | question: What is marked with tradition and often suspicion in Hindu-majority India?, answer: solar eclipse, | question: What is the reason these women are concerned?, answer: it may affect the child's overall personality," | question: What did the Astrologer says?, answer: "Bathing in holy rivers and ponds during this time thus helps protect health and develop positivism and greater will power," | question: What people group has strong impressions of lunar activity?, answer: pregnant women | question: What is the religious majority in India?, answer: Hindu-majority | question: What group in India is concerned?, answer: critically ill patients
|
NEW DELHI, India (Reuters) -- India has elected its first female president, official results show, in what supporters are calling a boost for the rights of millions of downtrodden women, despite a bitter campaign marked by scandal.
Pratibha Patil, 72, is India's first elected female president.
Pratibha Patil, the ruling coalition's 72-year-old nominee for the mainly ceremonial post, easily beat opposition-backed challenger and vice president, Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, in a vote by the national parliament and state politicians.
"This a victory of the people," Patil told reporters after official results were announced Saturday. "I am grateful to the people of India and the men and women of India and this is a victory for the principles which our Indian people uphold."
Patil won about two thirds of the electoral college votes. There had never been any doubt she would win, given support from the ruling coalition.
The governor of the northwestern desert state of Rajasthan, she emerged on the national stage when the Congress-led coalition and its communist allies failed to agree on a joint candidate.
"This is a very special moment for us women, and men of course, in our country because for the first time we have a woman being elected president of India," Congress party leader Sonia Gandhi, India's most powerful politician, said.
Supporters hoped Patil's candidacy would help bring issues that plague women in India, like dowry-related violence, into the public spotlight. A woman is murdered, raped or abused every three minutes on average in India.
Her presidency also reflects the growing power of some women in India, where an increasing number are taking part in the workforce and in schools and hold senior positions in corporations.
After the results, Patil supporters took to the streets, singing and dancing as others lit fire crackers and beat large brass drums.
India has had a number of female icons in the past -- most famously Sonia Gandhi's mother-in-law, Indira, who was one of the world's first female prime ministers in 1966.
But hope Patil's presidency would spark only positive talk about women's influence in India evaporated when it emerged the bank for women she helped established was closed in 2003 because of bad debts and amid accusations of financial irregularities.
The employees' union has taken Patil and others to court, claiming loans meant for poor women were instead given to her brother and other relatives and not returned. She was also accused of trying to shield her brother in a murder inquiry.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who has dismissed accusations against her as "mud-slinging", said on Saturday her victory was "a vote against the politics of divisiveness".
"All the allegations against me are motivated and have already been answered," Patil said in a statement last week.
Her campaign was marked by other mishaps as well.
She managed to offend many minority Muslims, and anger some historians, by saying Indian women first veiled their heads as protection against 16th century Muslim invaders.
Then she dismayed modern India by claiming she had experienced a "divine premonition" that she was destined for higher office from a long dead spiritual guru.
Critics also dug up a comment she was said to have made as Maharashtra's health minister in 1975, saying people with hereditary diseases should be sterilized. E-mail to a friend
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question: Whom did India elect president?, answer: Pratibha Patil, | question: What was marked by scandal?, answer: a bitter campaign | question: What nation elected their first female president?, answer: India | question: What is the victory being called?, answer: of the people," | question: Who was was the ruling coalition's nominee?, answer: Pratibha Patil, | question: Who's supporters are calling the victory a boost for women's rights?, answer: Pratibha Patil, | question: who is india's first female president?, answer: Pratibha Patil, | question: who cares about womens rights?, answer: India | question: Who is the president of India?, answer: Pratibha Patil, | question: What is the name of the president elect?, answer: Pratibha Patil, | question: What is Patil's first name?, answer: Pratibha | question: What is her name?, answer: Pratibha Patil, | question: What age is the new president?, answer: 72, | question: Who did India elect as the first female president on Saturday?, answer: Pratibha Patil, | question: What age was Patil at the time of the election?, answer: 72, | question: Which country elected it's first female president?, answer: India | question: What is Patil's age?, answer: 72, | question: What is the age of President Elect Patil?, answer: 72, | question: What kind of election campaign was it?, answer: bitter | question: Who was the first female president of India?, answer: Pratibha Patil, | question: what was the scandal?, answer: loans meant for poor women were instead given to her brother | question: Was the election campaign marked by scandal?, answer: a bitter campaign marked by scandal. | question: Who was the coalition's nominee?, answer: Pratibha Patil, | question: what was the election campaign marked by?, answer: scandal.
|
NEW DELHI, India -- Police covered up the murder of a British teenage girl in Goa last month to protect the tourist industry, a state minister and local media said Monday.
Scarlett Keeling stands on Anjuna beach in Goa a few days before her death.
Officers had initially said Scarlett Keeling had drowned on Anjuna beach after taking drugs, but changed their story when the 15-year-old's mother protested and a second autopsy suggested she had been raped and murdered.
A suspect in the case was arrested Sunday but Fiona MacKeown said she did not believe he was the man who killed her daughter.
"This is a clear case of murder and it has gone out of proportion because the police tried to cover it up," Francisco X. Pacheco, Goa's Tourism Minister told Reuters.com.
Indian media suggested the cover-up was an attempt to protect Goa's tourism industry.
"They should have arrested this man a long time ago and this issue would have got diluted, but now because of the tainted image of some police officers in the case, things have gone out of hand," Pacheco said.
Police said they were investigating allegations of a cover-up and the actions of junior officers.
"There are certain things under my scrutiny and I have taken cognizance of all these issues, specially these officers," Kishan Kumar, a senior police officer overseeing the probe told Reuters.
Keeling's mother said she also believed police were trying to cover up the truth behind her daughter's murder, and that they had arrested Samson D'Souza, 29, to make it look like they were making progress in the case.
"We've had an awful lot of contact with people that have been in this situation before, and they've warned us to be careful (that) the police will try and find someone immediately to try and put a front on it that they're actually doing something," Fiona MacKeown told BBC radio on Monday.
Kumar described D'Souza as a "local Anjuna boy" who was a bartender at Liu's, a beachfront bar. He said police had confirmed D'Souza's role in Keeling's rape and were now trying to find evidence that he killed the teenager.
"We have sufficient evidence to show that he was involved in rape," Kumar told CNN. "So far as murder is concerned, we are investigating further."
Scarlett and her family arrived in November for an extended vacation in Goa, known for its white sandy beaches and dance music scene. Beachfront shacks house the bars that fuel the nightlife.
MacKeown said Scarlett was left in the care of a trusted male friend and his aunts while the rest of the family traveled to an adjoining Indian state, but she told the BBC that she has had no contact with the family since her daughter's death.
The mother said Monday she sent a letter to Goa's chief minister asking for India's Central Bureau of Investigation to look into the case.
Goa is popular with Western tourists but several tourists have died from drug overdoses in recent years while women have been attacked and sexually assaulted.
The Times Of India said 126 foreigners have died in Goa over the last two years and in January this year a 30-year-old British woman was raped. E-mail to a friend
CNN's Tess Eastment contributed to this report.
|
[
"what did the police do",
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"Where was the murder covered up?",
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"what did the mother say",
"What age was the girl?",
"What are the mother's reasons?",
"Who thinks police arrested wrong man?",
"what did the police cover up",
"What was the man's name?"
] |
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"Fiona MacKeown",
"the murder of a British teenage girl in Goa",
"Samson D'Souza,"
] |
question: what did the police do, answer: covered up the murder of a British teenage girl in Goa | question: What was the girl's name?, answer: Scarlett Keeling | question: Who covered up the murder of a UK girl?, answer: Police | question: Where was the murder covered up?, answer: Goa | question: Where did the killer find the UK girl?, answer: Goa | question: What age was the murdered girl?, answer: 15-year-old's | question: what did the mother say, answer: said she also believed police were trying to cover up the truth behind her daughter's murder, | question: What age was the girl?, answer: 15-year-old's | question: What are the mother's reasons?, answer: police were trying to cover up the truth | question: Who thinks police arrested wrong man?, answer: Fiona MacKeown | question: what did the police cover up, answer: the murder of a British teenage girl in Goa | question: What was the man's name?, answer: Samson D'Souza,
|
NEW HAVEN, Connecticut (CNN) -- A Yale University lab technician was arrested Thursday and charged with murder in the slaying of a graduate student whose body was found in the basement wall of an off-campus medical research building, police said.
Raymond Clark, 24, was arrested and charged with murder, police said. His bond was set at $3 million.
Raymond Clark was apprehended about 8:10 a.m. ET at a Super 8 motel in Cromwell, Connecticut, where he had spent the night after being released Wednesday following his submission to DNA testing.
Bond for Clark has been set at $3 million, New Haven Police Chief James Lewis said.
Hours after his arrest, Clark appeared in court and did not enter a plea. Standing with chains on his ankles and his palms on a table, he looked only at the judge and spoke only to acknowledge that his rights were read to him.
A court date of October 6 was set.
Lewis described the killing as an instance of "workplace violence" but did not elaborate. Watch chief, acquaintances talk about Clark »
Annie Le's body was found in the basement wall of an off-campus medical research building Sunday. She had been strangled.
Le, 24, a pharmacology student, was last seen alive September 8, the day she appeared in a surveillance video entering a four-story lab at 10 Amistad St., about 10 blocks from the main campus.
Her body was found on what was to have been her wedding day.
Lewis said the arrest "went smoothly." Watch the police chief announce the arrest »
He could not release details about the charges or whether DNA results led police to arrest Clark, who initially was described as a person of interest in the case.
"This arrest warrant has been sealed, so no further information can be released in order to comply with this court order," Lewis said.
Clark could have been arrested Wednesday if he had declined to provide DNA samples and allow police to search his home, but he was released after complying, New Haven city spokeswoman Jessica Mayorga said. Police had been monitoring the motel where Clark was staying.
When asked about the arrest, Clark's attorney David Dworski referred CNN to the statement he released earlier: "We are committed to proceeding appropriately with the authorities with whom we are in regular contact."
Two other search warrants also were executed Wednesday -- one on property belonging to Clark that was not named in the first warrant and a second for Clark's vehicle, which was being processed Wednesday evening, Lewis said earlier.
He said Clark is a technician who does "custodial-type" work at the building. Clark answered police questions for a while but later retained an attorney and stopped, Lewis said.
Yale President Richard Levin said while the school's administration is "relieved" by the news of Clark's arrest, "we must resist the temptation to rush to judgment."
Clark, a lab technician at Yale since December 2004, had nothing in his employment history that "gave an indication that his involvement in such a crime might be possible," Levin said in a statement Thursday.
Lewis said Clark and Le worked in the same building and passed in the hallway, but he refused to comment further on whether they knew each other.
Investigators have collected about 250 pieces of evidence, Lewis said. Watch police discuss the investigation »
Lewis earlier said police had reviewed about 700 hours of video and interviewed more than 150 people, some more than once. Watch a timeline leading up to Le's death »
Authorities have not released information on what DNA evidence may have been found, although investigators said earlier that bloody clothing was found hidden above tiles in a drop ceiling in another part of the building.
Police have not described the clothes that were found, nor said to whom they might have belonged. Teams of investigators at a Connecticut State Police lab worked through the weekend processing and examining the bloodstained garments.
But Thomas Kaplan, editor in chief of the Yale Daily
|
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"Who's body was found?",
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"What does the police chief describe the crime as?",
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] |
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] |
question: Who's body was found?, answer: Annie Le's | question: What is the court date?, answer: October 6 | question: What does the police chief describe the crime as?, answer: an instance of "workplace violence" | question: What date is set for the court?, answer: October 6 | question: What is the bond set at?, answer: $3 million. | question: What is the crime described as?, answer: "workplace violence" | question: How much is the bond?, answer: $3 million. | question: How much is the bond for Clark?, answer: $3 million. | question: What is the court date set?, answer: October 6
|
NEW HAVEN, Connecticut (CNN) -- A quiet rendition of "Amazing Grace" capped an emotional candlelight vigil Monday night for slain Yale University student Annie Le, whose body was found on what was to have been her wedding day.
Students at Yale attend a candlelight vigil for Annie Le Monday night.
Several hundred people turned out on the Yale campus for the vigil, crying and hugging each other. Le's roommate, Natalie Powers, said the 24-year-old graduate student in pharmacology "was as good a human being as you'd ever hope to meet."
"She was also really tenacious and had a sense of humor that was never far away, and she was tougher than you'd think by just looking at her," Powers said.
"That this horrible tragedy happened at all is incomprehensible. But that it happened to her I think is infinitely more so. It seems completely senseless."
Connecticut state medical examiners announced Monday that the body found in a Yale medical research building over the weekend was that of Le, who had been missing for nearly a week. Her body was found Sunday hidden in a basement wall. Bloody clothes were found hidden above tiles in a drop ceiling elsewhere in the same building, investigators said.
Le was last seen entering the building Tuesday morning.
Thomas Kaplan, editor-in-chief of the Yale Daily News, said Le "really had everything going for her."
"She was a top scholar. She was very outgoing, a warm person," Kaplan said. "You know, she was diminutive in stature, but certainly not in personality. And that's what I think just makes this so sad for everyone, regardless of whether you knew her. It's just a tragedy."
Le's death is being investigated as a homicide, but Connecticut medical examiners released no further information beyond the identification.
A candlelight vigil in her honor was scheduled for Monday evening on the campus.
A Yale professor said on Monday that the building has good security and only certain people can enter, let alone access certain areas. Professor Gary Rudnick, who interviewed Le when she applied for admission to the graduate program in pharmacology, said it gives him the sense that there could be a "murderer among us."
No suspects are in custody, but investigators are questioning several people in the case, New Haven Police spokesman Joe Avery said. Watch a report about the case »
Kaplan said Le's killing has left Yale students shocked and wary. "Only Yalies had access to that basement, and that seems to point to someone in our community being involved in this," Kaplan said. "That's what is so frightening."
Authorities have not described the clothes that were found, nor said to whom they may have belonged. Teams of investigators at a Connecticut State Police lab worked through the weekend processing and examining the blood-stained clothes.
Kaplan said a Yale police official told the newspaper the clothes were not what Le was wearing when she entered the building.
At a meeting Monday for members of the campus community, Yale officials discussed security and provided an update on the investigation. A faculty member and a student who attended the meeting told CNN that Yale officials said police have narrowed down suspects.
Security cameras captured video of Le as she entered the four-story lab building at 10 Amistad Street, about 10 blocks from the main campus, six days ago. After poring over hours of surveillance tapes, authorities said they had not found images of her leaving the building.
Rudnick described security in the building as "very good." It had restricted access, and simply having a Yale ID card was not enough to get in, he said. Within the building, one had to have special access to enter certain areas, he said.
Le was to be married Sunday on New York's Long Island to Jonathan Widawsky, a graduate student at Columbia University.
"Annie has been planning this wedding for over a year with John, and she was very excited. She's been doing
|
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] |
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] |
question: Whose remains were found?, answer: Yale University student Annie Le, | question: What was her age?, answer: 24-year-old | question: Who says the tragedy is "incomprehensible"?, answer: Powers | question: Where do they last seen?, answer: entering the building | question: When were the remains found?, answer: in a Yale medical research building | question: Who are they questioning?, answer: several people in the case, | question: What was Le's age?, answer: 24-year-old | question: Where they found the remains of the student Annie?, answer: Yale medical research building
|
NEW HAVEN, Connecticut (CNN) -- Slain Yale University graduate student Annie Le was intelligent, driven and destined for greatness, said those who knew her.
The body of Annie Le, 24, was found in the wall of a Yale University laboratory building Sunday.
"She was also really tenacious and had a sense of humor that was never far away, and she was tougher than you'd think by just looking at her," Le's roommate, Natalie Powers, told a crowd of hundreds gathered on campus for the slain 24-year-old's vigil Monday.
Le's body was found inside a wall at a Yale medical school building Sunday, the day she was to be married to her college sweetheart, Jonathan Widawsky, a graduate student at New York's Columbia University. She disappeared five days before her wedding. Watch timeline leading up to Le's death »
Le and Widawsky attended the University of Rochester together, where Le majored in cell and developmental biology with a minor in medical anthropology.
In a self-profile she wrote for the National Institutes of Health's undergraduate scholarship program, Le called her biology studies "interesting" but said she would like to pursue a research career in medical anthropology, "which has highlighted the severity of health issues in societies worldwide."
She further wrote that she would one day like to work for the NIH or become a professor.
Once at Yale, she majored in pharmacology and worked long hours in the lab where she was found dead this week. Watch how Le's body was found »
Le was scheduled to finish her postgraduate program in 2013 and had recently decided the topic of her dissertation: the effects of certain proteins on metabolic diseases like diabetes, reported the Yale Daily News, the campus newspaper.
"She was probably the most brilliant person I've ever met in my life," her high school friend, Laurel Griffeath, told NBC's "Today" show, "but what made her more amazing was that there was an intersection of intelligence and personality and ability."
Le impressed her peers and teachers long before delving into complicated medical research.
Originally from Placerville, California, Le graduated in 2003 from Union Mine High School, where she was named "best of the best" and "most likely to be the next Einstein," according to CNN affiliate WFSB-TV in New Haven.
Principal Tony DeVille told Le's hometown newspaper, the Mountain Democrat, that she was "one of the bright spots in the school's history."
But she didn't excel solely in academic situations. Friends and professors gush when speaking of Le's vibrant personality and her sense of humor.
Le "was as good a human being as you'd ever hope to meet," Powers said at the vigil. Watch why police say killing not random »
Griffeath said Le knew how to balance her social life and academic responsibilities as well.
"She cared about people and she was funny, and she didn't sacrifice one part of her life for another like a lot of people kind of seem to," Griffeath said on "Today."
Thomas Kaplan, editor-in-chief of the Yale Daily News, described Le as "very outgoing, a warm person."
"She was diminutive in stature, but certainly not in personality, and that's what I think just makes this so sad for everyone, regardless of whether you knew her," Kaplan said of the 4-foot-11 scholar.
Friends describe Widawsky as the perfect match for Le. The portrayed a young couple deeply in love, constantly on the phone with each other and eager to exchange vows.
Le tackled wedding planning with the same zeal she brought to her research, friends said.
"She was just so excited about this wedding and everything from, you know, her flowers to her wedding dress and just certain details about it," Vanessa Flores, a friend and former roommate, told CNN. "We talked about this back in 2008. She was already thinking about the weather -- whether June,
|
[
"In what studies did Le excel?",
"Who was named most likely to be next Einstein?",
"who planned wedding with the same zeal?",
"In which building was the body found?",
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] |
[
"cell and developmental biology with a minor in medical anthropology.",
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] |
question: In what studies did Le excel?, answer: cell and developmental biology with a minor in medical anthropology. | question: Who was named most likely to be next Einstein?, answer: Annie Le | question: who planned wedding with the same zeal?, answer: Annie Le, | question: In which building was the body found?, answer: Yale University laboratory | question: Where was the student's body found?, answer: in the wall of a Yale University laboratory building | question: What subjects did Le excel in?, answer: academic situations.
|
NEW HAVEN, Connecticut (CNN) -- Raymond J. Clark III, charged with murder in the death of Yale graduate student Annie Le, was smart, amiable and loved his dog, say those who knew him.
Raymond Clark III was arrested Thursday and charged with murder in the death of Annie Le.
One researcher said he often went by the lab in the Yale School of Medicine building where Le was found strangled and stuffed in a wall. Lufeng Zhang worked with Clark, he said, and thinks the police may have the wrong man.
"He's a nice man, always," he said.
Clark, 24, the same age as Le, was a technician in the school of medicine's Animal Resources Center. While Le, who was pursuing a doctorate in pharmacology, conducted experiments on mice, Clark took care of the rodents and cleaned their cages.
Police will not say whether Clark and Le were acquainted or why they homed in on Clark after Le went missing September 8, less than a week before she was scheduled to marry a Columbia University graduate student who was her college sweetheart. Watch police announce arrest »
"They work in the same building, passed in the hallways," New Haven Police Chief James Lewis said of Le and Clark. "Anything beyond that, I won't talk about."
Though details of the investigation are scant, police said they arrested Clark on Thursday and charged him with Le's murder after collecting more than 250 pieces of evidence.
Clark was an honor student at Branford High School in suburban New Haven. He graduated in 2004, and according to the school's yearbook, he was a member of the Asian Awareness Club his senior year.
High school friend Lisa Heselin remembers Clark "as a jokester, kind of a class clown," she said. "Everybody knew him. Everybody liked him."
She and others who knew Clark in high school are shocked that he was arrested in connection with Le's murder, she said. Watch what acquaintances say about Clark »
"They can't believe it, and then, of course, you're reminiscing, like, 'Oh my God, remember when we went over to his house and we all hung out?' You don't expect somebody you grew up with to be involved in something like this," Heselin said.
Maurice Perry, who said he has been friends with Clark since first grade, told CNN on Thursday night that he doesn't believe his longtime pal is guilty.
"This is not the Raymond Clark that I know," he said. "I've known him so long, I just can't picture him doing something like this."
Asked if he ever knew Clark to be violent, Perry replied, "Not at all. I've known him to be outgoing, happy, athletic, fun. Violent, not at all."
Most of his current neighbors in Middletown, about 30 miles northeast of New Haven, said they moved in after Clark or knew him only in passing. Many said he shared the second-floor apartment with his girlfriend and a dog.
Police said he drove a Ford Mustang, which was seized as evidence.
Neighbor Ashley Rowe described Clark as "decent" and said he asked a lot of questions when he spoke to people and wanted to know their full names and where they were from.
Rowe also remembered the first time she met his dog.
"His dog was very excited and he was just like, 'Oh, don't worry. He's friendly.' You could pet him," she said. "Pretty much, he just loved his dog and he walked around with his dog all the time."
Police arrived at his apartment Tuesday night to collect DNA samples and released him into the custody of his lawyer early Wednesday. Neighbors say they didn't see him return to the apartment. See investigation's timeline »
Clark was arrested early Thursday at a Super 8 motel in nearby Cromwell.
There were reports that Clark was scheduled
|
[
"Who is charged with the murder of Annie Le?",
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] |
[
"Raymond J. Clark III,",
"\"He's a nice man, always,\"",
"murder in the death of Yale graduate"
] |
question: Who is charged with the murder of Annie Le?, answer: Raymond J. Clark III, | question: What did the longtime friend of Raymond Clark III say?, answer: "He's a nice man, always," | question: What was Clark charged with?, answer: murder in the death of Yale graduate
|
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- The five remaining defendants in the racially charged "Jena Six" case will appear in court Friday and are expected to enter a plea, a spokesman for the district attorney's office said.
Protesters converged on the small Louisiana town in September 2007 after the "Jena 6" were charged.
Bill Furlow, spokesman for LaSalle Parish District Attorney Reed Walters, declined to say whether the defendants will plead guilty.
"It's not a done deal until it's a done deal," he said.
In December 2006, six African-American teenagers were charged with second-degree attempted murder and conspiracy in the beating of a white classmate.
The incident followed months of racial tension in the community of about 3,000 people.
Jena, Louisiana, is about 140 miles southeast of Shreveport in the north-central part of the state.
The case drew national attention from civil rights groups, who argued that the charges were excessive.
An estimated 15,000-plus demonstrators turned out for a rally on behalf of the teens: Carwin Jones, Jesse Ray Beard, Robert Bailey Jr., Bryant Purvis, Theo Shaw and Mychal Bell.
The charges were eventually reduced.
Bell pleaded guilty to battery in a juvenile court and moved to Monroe, Louisiana. In January, Bell said he had attempted suicide the month before by shooting himself in the chest but was recovering.
Friday's hearing is set for 1:30 p.m.
|
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"how many teens were charged in 2006",
"what were the 6 studetns races?"
] |
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question: Which town was it?, answer: Jena, Louisiana, | question: What did the spokesman say?, answer: "It's not a done deal until it's a done deal," he said. | question: Who was charged with beating a white classmate?, answer: six African-American teenagers | question: What was their crime?, answer: second-degree attempted murder and conspiracy in the beating of a white classmate. | question: How many teens were charged in december 2006?, answer: six | question: How many people live in the town?, answer: about 3,000 | question: Who pleaded guilty to battery in juvenile court this year?, answer: Mychal Bell. | question: what happened before the incident took place, answer: months of racial tension in the community | question: what is the population of the town, answer: 3,000 people. | question: how many teens were charged in 2006, answer: six | question: what were the 6 studetns races?, answer: African-American
|
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- Two years after Hurricane Katrina devastated coastal areas of Louisiana and Mississippi, residents say much of America has forgotten their plight.
President Bush and first lady Laura Bush pause for a moment of silence Wednesday at a New Orleans school.
But President Bush said Wednesday the federal government has been persistent in pushing recovery efforts.
"I would like them to know that we still need all the help and caring and volunteers. We need it bad. People don't realize. They just don't realize," Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, resident Linda Fallon said.
The beachfront communities of Bay St. Louis and Waveland, Mississippi, were nearly destroyed in Katrina's fury.
Two years later, one-third of Bay St. Louis residents haven't returned. Business has moved inland. Watch the struggle to rebuild in Mississippi »
"Without the people, we don't have a town. We don't have a city, we don't have a place apart," Bay St. Louis Mayor Eddie Favre said Tuesday. He predicted it would be at least seven years before the town is back to near-normal.
A longtime resident, Diane Bourgeois, has moved 15 miles inland to an apartment and said she doubts she will rebuild. Her home was razed.
When she asked why, she said, "I don't know, the memories. It will just never be the same. Can't risk it all again."
David MacDonald, pastor of Calvary Independent Baptist Church in Bay St. Louis, said, "We get crews coming down, but they are thinning out as the months go on.
"So it's trying to let the people know there is still a need down here, especially in the area of housing. And just the mental and spiritual needs that are down here -- just still overwhelming."
In New Orleans, Bush participated in a moment of silence at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Charter School for Science and Technology to remember Katrina victims. He said that the U.S. government hasn't forgotten the Gulf Coast and that federal efforts to make post-Katrina improvements to levees and infrastructure were unyielding.
"I hope people understand we're still paying attention. We understand," Bush said.
Eighty percent of the the $114 billion allocated to the region for Hurricane Katrina repairs has been disbursed, he said.
"We're still engaged," Bush said of federal agencies.
The president, in his 15th visit to the region since Katrina hit, called the school "a place of hope."
Bush said Katrina broke hearts but not "the spirit" of New Orleans citizens.
But he alluded to the challenges faced across the region, citing teachers who commuted 30 miles to teach at the school.
"This town is better today than it was yesterday," Bush said in praising the Gulf Coast rebuilding effort. But he said it would be even better tomorrow.
He urged people across the country to pitch in to help the recovery, whether through donations or volunteer efforts or even moving to the area and joining its work force.
New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin said his city's population increase -- citing 4,000 to 7,000 people a month -- is a good indication of the progress made since Katrina hit.
On Wednesday, Nagin participated in the groundbreaking for a memorial to storm victims.
"We ring the bells for a city that is in recovery; we ring the bells for hope that the promise that was made at Jackson Square will become a reality and will restore confidence in government at all levels," Nagin said, referring to the scene of Bush's vow in 2005 that the government would help the city and region recover.
Katrina first made landfall on August 25 in South Florida as a Category 1 storm with maximum sustained winds of near 81 mph. At one point, after moving west into the Gulf of Mexico, it reached Category 5 status, with maximum sustained winds of nearly 173 mph before making landfall on the Gulf Coast.
Four days after its initial landfall
|
[
"When did Hurricane Katrina hit?",
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"What percent of the money has been distributed?",
"Who says that federal recovery is ongoing?",
"What portion of the federal rebuilding aid did Bush say was distributed?"
] |
[
"first made landfall on August 25",
"Eighty",
"Eighty",
"President Bush",
"Eighty percent of the the $114 billion"
] |
question: When did Hurricane Katrina hit?, answer: first made landfall on August 25 | question: What percent of the $114 billion in federal rebuilding aid has been distributed?, answer: Eighty | question: What percent of the money has been distributed?, answer: Eighty | question: Who says that federal recovery is ongoing?, answer: President Bush | question: What portion of the federal rebuilding aid did Bush say was distributed?, answer: Eighty percent of the the $114 billion
|
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- A grand jury has indicted four people in the shooting death of a woman during what police say was a Ku Klux Klan initiation rite in the Louisiana woods, St. Tammany Parish prosecutors said.
Raymond "Chuck" Foster is reputed to be the leader of the Klan Group. He was among the four indicted.
Raymond "Chuck" Foster, 44, was indicted on second-degree murder charges Wednesday in the November death of Cynthia Lynch, 43, of Tulsa, Oklahoma. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, said Rick Wood, spokesman for the St. Tammany Parish district attorney's office.
"That's what he was charged with," Wood told reporters on Wednesday. "The grand jury agreed with that charge."
Two other men, including Foster's son, Shane Foster, were indicted on a count of obstruction of justice, and a woman, Danielle Jones, was indicted on one count of being an accessory after the fact.
Wood said Thursday Foster's case was assigned to one judge and the others' cases were assigned to another. Foster is scheduled to be arraigned March 3, he said, and the others are set for arraignment next week.
Eight people initially were arrested in the case. The remaining four were not indicted.
"Haven't seen one like this," Wood said Wednesday. "We've had a lot of high-profile cases, but not one like this. ... As (district attorney) Walter Reed said, it will be to the max. They will be prosecuted to the max."
Authorities said Lynch was recruited over the Internet and took a bus to Slidell, Louisiana, where she was met by two Klan members. They then went to a campsite in the woods near Sun, Louisiana, about 60 miles north of New Orleans, where they met other members of the group, police said.
During the initiation rite, members of the Klan group, which calls itself the Sons of Dixie, shaved Lynch's head, according to Capt. George Bonnett of the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff's Department and Sheriff Jack Strain, who spoke to CNN in November.
After 24 hours of drills, including chanting and running with torches, she asked to be taken to town. An argument began, authorities said, and the group's leader, Raymond Foster, pushed Lynch to the ground and shot her without warning.
Lynch apparently wanted to leave because she was homesick, investigators found after talking to her family members.
After the shooting, "Foster, we believe, removed a knife from his pocket and rolled over the victim and began a process of trying to remove the bullet from her body ... because he was trying to destroy evidence where law enforcement would not be able to piece these things together," Strain said.
Police believe other members of the Sons of Dixie helped cover up the slaying on Foster's behalf, Strain said at the time, including burning some of Lynch's personal items.
"We're up to the challenge," Wood told reporters after the indictments were handed up Wednesday. "This office is ready to proceed and take care of business."
Authorities received the initial tip about the slaying from a convenience store clerk, after two group members went into the store and asked him if he knew how to get bloodstains out of their clothes. The clerk told them he did not, then called police after they left.
Officials tracked down those two members and arrested them, then arrested others at the campsite and Foster. All the members surrendered without incident, police said.
Investigators found Confederate battle flags, Ku Klux Klan banners, five Klan robes and an Imperial Wizard robe at the campsite, authorities said. Lynch's body was found under loose brush along a road several miles from the campsite.
Raymond Foster has a history of Ku Klux Klan activity dating back seven years, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, a Montgomery, Alabama-based organization that tracks hate groups.
|
[
"who is reputed leader of klan?",
"Where is Cynthia Lynch from?",
"What is the KKK?"
] |
[
"Raymond \"Chuck\" Foster",
"Tulsa, Oklahoma.",
"Ku Klux Klan"
] |
question: who is reputed leader of klan?, answer: Raymond "Chuck" Foster | question: Where is Cynthia Lynch from?, answer: Tulsa, Oklahoma. | question: What is the KKK?, answer: Ku Klux Klan
|
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- As Hurricane Gustav neared Louisiana's coast Monday morning, forecasters warned that the storm could stall over Louisiana and northeast Texas for several days, which would "exacerbate the threat of heavy rains and inland flooding."
Water from a canal in New Orleans, Louisiana, floods a road as Hurricane Gustav makes landfall Monday.
Southern Louisiana's barrier islands and coast reported hurricane force winds and heavy rains from Gustav, which was centered about 80 miles south of New Orleans and about 20 miles south-southeast of Port Fourchon, Louisiana, at 8 a.m. CT.
Power went out about 6 a.m. in the western part of downtown New Orleans and in the French Quarter 10 minutes later, CNN correspondents Chris Lawrence and Anderson Cooper reported.
The eye of Hurricane Gustav made landfall near Cocodrie, Louisiana, about 9:30 a.m. CT, the National Hurricane Center said.
Gustav's top winds weakened to 110 mph, downgrading it to a Category 2 storm, the hurricane center said. Watch water overflow banks of Industrial Canal »
Earlier predictions of a Category 4 storm, which would mean winds of at least 131 mph, and fresh memories of Katrina, which came ashore in 2005 with 127-mph winds, fueled the evacuation of 2 million residents from New Orleans and other parishes.
But Gustav never regained the strength lost over Cuba, and by Monday morning hurricane center forecasters said its cloud pattern looked "a bit more ragged." Watch New Orleans man explain his sad reason for staying »
The latest discussion published by the hurricane center forecasters said computer models show "Gustav or its remnants slowing to a crawl" over northeast Texas over the next three to five days.
"Such slow motion would exacerbate the threat of heavy rains and inland flooding," the forecasters said. Watch water spill over canal levee »
With hurricane-force winds extending 70 miles from the center, the islands and shoreline are already in reach of Gustav's fury.
Sustained winds of 91 mph and gusts of 117 mph were measured in Southwest Pass, Louisiana, during the 4 a.m. hour, the hurricane center said.
CNN's Ali Velshi was hunkered down in a house on Grand Isle, Louisiana, where only a handful of people remained.
When high winds first kicked up about 3:15 a.m. Monday, the barrier island's electric power went out, Velshi said.
A storm surge of at least 14 feet is expected there, he said.
|
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question: What made landfall near Cocodrie, Louisiana?, answer: Hurricane Gustav | question: What will it do to Texas?, answer: "exacerbate the threat of heavy rains and inland flooding." | question: What category storm was it?, answer: 2 | question: what time did this occur?, answer: 8 a.m. CT. | question: What is stalling over northeast Texas?, answer: Hurricane Gustav | question: What made landfall?, answer: Hurricane Gustav | question: What downgrades it to a Category 2 storm?, answer: 110 mph,
|
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- As floodwaters washed away homes in the Lower 9th Ward, Robert Green watched with horror as his mother got swept away in the storm.
Robert Green stands on the porch of his family's FEMA trailer in front of his new home earlier this year.
Four months later, Green and other family members found Joyce Green's remains in the splintered wreckage of the house where they left her. Robert Green's granddaughter Shanay also drowned the night Hurricane Katrina hit.
Green spent almost the entire last four years living in a small FEMA trailer on his land, sharing his story with anyone who came through the Lower 9th.
One of the people he met was Tom Darden, executive director of the Make It Right Foundation, Brad Pitt's nonprofit vision for building green, sustainable houses in the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans.
Only a handful of homes have returned to the Lower 9th, one of the areas hardest hit by the killer storm.
"We have 14 neighbors and feel crowded," Green said "But we have 3,000 houses that are gone, and we would love to see those houses come back."
Darden and Pitt felt compelled to help provide Green and his family a second chance, and on July 9 Green officially became a proud homeowner once again.
Getting a fresh start has helped Green and his family deal with the tragedy that turned their lives upside down and took away their loved ones.
"That's what gave me the strength to endure all that we've been through," Green said. "People constantly coming by, volunteers constantly coming by. People that really care about us and let us know that we weren't in this alone. It gave us the hope that one day we would come back and be a community again." Watch as Green talks about his family's tragedies and life in New Orleans after Katrina »
The Make It Right Foundation has built 15 homes in the Lower 9th so far; the group's goal is to have 150 built by the end of next year.
Darden said the program is designed as a hand up, not a handout.
"We ask the families to contribute as much as they can afford," he said. "On average that's been about $75,000, but we work with the families very closely to make sure that a family is not spending more than 30 percent of their income towards housing costs, and that's how we ensure they are affordable."
Safety and energy efficiency are among the group's primary concerns.
"[The houses] are all elevated at least above Katrina-level flooding. A family has the option to build even higher than that if they want. We've got hurricane-resistant features like impact-resistant glass, or a certain type of fabric that protects the windows," Darden said. See photos detailing the features of the Make It Right homes »
Another of the driving forces instrumental in rebuilding the Lower 9th Ward in a sustainable fashion is Global Green, the American arm of former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev's Green Cross International.
"Immediately after the storm, we saw a failure in government in every level: local, state and federal," said Matt Petersen, president of Global Green. "There's still so much work to be done that we can't wait, we can't rely on the federal government.
"This is an era where I think the citizens of this great country need to take responsibility for our nation, and it starts right here. How we respond affects the future of our country."
Shaun Donovan, secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, knows mistakes were made in the efforts to get people back into their homes, both in the Lower 9th Ward and other devastated parts of New Orleans.
"We have to be more flexible, we have to be more responsive, and make sure the programs don't just work in theory, but they will work for families," Donovan said.
"We've been very focused in
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question: How many families did Brad Pitt's Make It Right nonprofit assist with housing?, answer: 15 | question: What did the HUD secretary say?, answer: "We have to be more flexible, we have to be more responsive, and make sure the programs don't just work in theory, but they will work for families," | question: Where does Robert Green live?, answer: Lower 9th Ward, | question: Who did Robert Green lose in the hurricane?, answer: his mother
|
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- As the storm raged outside her hospital room four years ago, an equally consuming force hijacked Alesia Crockett's mind: deep depression.
Alesia Crockett, who suffers from bipolar disorder, ended up in a hospital hours outside New Orleans.
For days, Crockett lay in darkness and a tangle of sweaty hospital bed sheets, one among hundreds of desperate patients trapped inside Charity Hospital in 2005, while outside, Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath battered the city.
Crockett had been admitted to Charity's inpatient mental health unit after having a psychotic episode. She had struggled for years with bipolar disorder, an illness that causes her to volley between euphoria and profound depression.
She said she barely remembers Katrina.
"Most of the time, I was in a fog, but I do remember some things," Crockett said. "Where my room was, I could see thousands of people wandering, and I could see the waters rise."
Crockett, and many other New Orleanians suffering from chronic mental illness -- and those with what is called "soft depression," or nonchronic mental illness -- say Katrina may have relented days after it hit New Orleans proper, but their mental health issues have not.
"Four years later, everything is not all right in New Orleans," said Dr. Jan Johnson, a psychiatrist who treats Crockett. Watch more on New Orleans' mental health crisis »
While mental health problems grow, the resources to treat those problems continue to wane.
A report about mental health issues in New Orleans after Katrina, published in early 2008 in the journal Psychiatric Annals, lists the number of inpatient psychiatric beds in greater New Orleans at 487 before the storm. Since Katrina, that number has declined to 190.
Most of the remaining beds are dedicated to patients unable to live independently. That leaves what the report's authors describe as a "paltry" 17 beds for acute mental health care in New Orleans.
"The situation is unconscionable, atrocious. I can't use enough bad words to describe it," said Johnson, who is an associate professor of clinical psychiatry at the Tulane University School of Medicine. "Patients are not getting care, they are sitting in emergency rooms for days, and that's just an inappropriate place for psychiatric patients."
For two years following Katrina, after being rescued from Charity, Crockett's illness was controlled with medications. Then in 2007, she stopped taking them, and she had another episode.
"She came to my clinic and was psychotic and really a danger to herself not able to care for herself," Johnson said. "And I had nowhere to hospitalize her."
After leaving the clinic, Crockett bounced among three local hospitals before being transported to the closest medical center with an available psychiatric bed, several hours outside of New Orleans.
"I can remember being in the back of an ambulance, and I kept thinking, 'This is taking so long,' " Crockett said. "I didn't know where I was going. I just remember seeing the sky turn from daytime to nighttime, and we still hadn't gotten there."
Crockett is far from alone, Johnson says.
"The system has been in horrible shape for a while," she said. "We had our problems even before the storm, but comparatively, we had it much better then. It's very frustrating."
And the consequences of not finding a bed for acutely ill patients can be deadly.
In January 2008, a New Orleans police officer was killed by a man suffering from psychosis due to schizophrenia, New Orleans police said. The officer, Nicola Cotton, approached 44-year-old Bernel Johnson for questioning about a rape. A struggle ensued, and Johnson overpowered and killed Cotton with her own gun, police said.
As it turns out, Johnson was no longer under psychiatric care and was not taking his prescribed medication.
Cotton's death trained a spotlight on the deplorable condition of the New Orleans mental health system -- for a moment -- said Rep. Neil
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question: How many psychiatric beds for inpatients did they have before the storm?, answer: 487 | question: Who was slain by a mentally ill man?, answer: a New Orleans police officer | question: how many beds before?, answer: 487 | question: what spotlights the city's need?, answer: Cotton's death | question: what city faces a crisis?, answer: New Orleans | question: What is New Orleans facing a crisis of?, answer: mental health | question: what does new orleans continue to face?, answer: mental health issues
|
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- At the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, some of the best music happens miles from the Fairgrounds, hours after the crowds have gone and the last of the crawfish bread has been consumed.
Shamarr Allen, Mark Mullins and Ben Ellman sport the Midnite Disturbers T-shirts as they perform.
It happens with the arrival of Midnite.
At 1:18 a.m., Bonerama -- a brass-funk rock band lead by three trombones -- has just finished a 90-minute set that started with a soulful, passionate original tune written by bandleader Mark Mullins, and concluded with a cover of Jimi Hendrix' "Crosstown Traffic," complete with the trombones running through wah-wah pedals.
Suddenly the crowd of about 75 clears out of the way as a dozen musicians parade in the room. Dressed in black shirts, they are the Midnite Disturbers, a Jazz Fest supergroup whose appearance is as infrequent as a lunar eclipse. Each member of the Midnite Disturbers fronts his own band, and the artists are rarely in the city at the same time.
The band was started by New Orleans drummers and longtime friends Stanton Moore and Kevin O'Day. In the weeks following Katrina, O'Day had moved into Moore's house, where the two hit on an idea.
"We realized we had never had our own band together, and we decided to invite all of the best horn players we know to play with us," O'Day said.
Each artist has a name, printed in red, on his shirt, following the command "Listen to": Smokey Johnson ... Brian O'Neill ... Henry "Red" Allen. They're the band's predecessors and mentors. Although probably little known outside the Crescent City, they're the musicians who shaped New Orleans music: masters of their craft.
Modern-day masters in their own right, the Midnite Disturbers live up to their name, splitting the night with their loud, hard, funky jams. There are up-and-comers Troy Andrews and Shamarr Allen, and veterans such as Mullins from Bonerama, Stanton Moore and Ben Ellman from Galactic. Their black shirts are drenched with sweat by the time they finish playing.
"Its an honor to play with such veterans because it's confirmation that I'm doing my thing on a level to where people are noticing the hard work that I have been putting in," said trumpet player Shamarr Allen. "Playing with this kind of band keeps you on your toes. It's more interesting and challenging to try to understand everyone's musical approach and find a spot for yours to fit.
"That's the beauty of it," he said. "How to sound good, have fun, listen to each other, entertain a crowd, and stay on the same page at the same time. It lets me know, if I'm not there yet, I'm on my way to being one of the big boys."
The Midnite Disturbers will be at Jazz Fest -- of course -- holding down a 5:55 p.m. slot Saturday afternoon. And then, when it's over, they'll be gone -- ready to get together when the moon beckons.
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question: Are the disturbers scheduled to play Jazz Fest Saturday afternoon?, answer: The Midnite | question: What kind of music does Midnite Disturbers play?, answer: Jazz | question: Where are the Midnite Disturbers from?, answer: New Orleans | question: what style do they do, answer: brass-funk rock | question: What group does brassy funk, New Orleans style, calling attention to influences?, answer: Midnite Disturbers | question: who is an all star band, answer: The Midnite Disturbers | question: When is the Jazz Fest?, answer: Saturday afternoon.
|
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- Before a cheering crowd at a town hall meeting in New Orleans, President Obama fired back at critics who accuse him of accomplishing little in his nine months in office, saying "I'm just getting started."
President Obama speaks at a town hall meeting at the University of New Orleans on Thursday.
"I never thought any of this was going to be easy," said Obama, speaking at the University of New Orleans in his first visit to the Gulf Coast city since taking office. He poked fun at his critics, asking, "Why haven't you solved world hunger yet? It's been nine months. Why?"
"What'd I say during the campaign? I said change is hard," Obama said. "Big change is harder. ... I wasn't kidding about it being hard."
"Those folks who are trying to stand in the way of progress ... let me tell you, I'm just getting started," he said. "I don't quit. I'm not tired. I'm just getting started."
Before taking questions, Obama discussed the recovery effort in New Orleans, a city struggling to get back on its feet after Hurricane Katrina.
"It has now been just over four years since that terrible storm struck your shores," the president said. "And [in] the days after it did, this nation and all the world bore witness to the fact that the damage from Katrina was not caused just by a disaster of nature, but also by a breakdown of government, that government wasn't adequately prepared and we didn't appropriately respond."
Obama said that when he took office, he pledged to make Gulf Coast rebuilding efforts and disaster response top priorities of his administration.
"So far, I'm pleased to report that we've made good progress," he said. "We've got a long way to go, but we've made progress."
He said he has sent more Cabinet members to the Gulf Coast than any other region -- "not just to appearances, but to listen and to learn and help you move forward." Also, he said, his administration has helped eliminate red tape and turf disputes in order to get stalled programs moving, and freed up $1.5 billion in recovery funds.
He said his administration is tackling "corruption and inefficiency" that has plagued the New Orleans Housing Authority for years -- remarks that drew applause from the crowd -- and has helped move families out of emergency housing, helping homeowners rebuild and helping renters find affordable options.
The government has also invested in supporting health centers and recruiting primary care providers, nurses and other professionals to fill shortages left by the 2005 hurricane, he said. Watch bloggers debate Obama's handling of New Orleans »
Before the meeting, Obama toured the Martin Luther King charter school -- the first charter school to reopen in New Orleans' Ninth Ward, the hardest-hit portion of the city. The president called the school "an inspiration for this city."
However, "it's clear how far we have to go before we can call this recovery a real success," he said, adding that much remains to be done to repair roads, hospitals and schools and rebuild neighborhoods.
"We will not forget about New Orleans," he said. "We're going to keep on working."
He also touched on the economy and on health care reform. "Too many Americans have waited too long for this to happen," he said, drawing wild cheers from the crowd. "We are going to pass health care reform by the end of the year."
Meeting the challenges faced by the nation, he said, "requires diligence and perseverance and patience ... it requires a renewed spirit of cooperation among our citizens."
He took questions from the crowd on topics ranging from the school dropout rate to immigration.
One man asked Obama, "Why is it four years after Katrina we're still fighting with the federal government for
|
[
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] |
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question: What was said at the university?, answer: "I'm just getting started." | question: What did he say at the univerisity?, answer: "I never thought any of this was going to be easy,"
|
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- Drumsticks in hand, Derrick Tabb has found a way to transform New Orleans children from troublemakers to tuba players.
Derrick Tabb's program provides free tutoring, instruments and music instruction to more than 100 students.
Tabb, wearing a gold chain and a baseball cap, doesn't look the part of a typical band teacher. But every weekday evening in the French Quarter, he beats out the rhythm on his music stand as students play their chosen instruments. In doing so, he gives them an alternative to New Orleans' rough streets.
"I tell everyone I'm competing with the drug dealers," said Tabb, 34. His program, The Roots of Music, offers free tutoring, instruments and music education to more than 100 students. Vote now for the CNN Hero of the Year
Reformed class clown Terrence Knockum credits Tabb with changing his life. The 15-year-old tuba player joined the band eight months ago, when he was failing in school and "heading up the wrong road," said Tabb. Today, Knockum is the band captain. He hopes to make music his career and teach it himself one day.
"Before, I was getting in trouble," Knockum said. "Now ... when I come here, I'm learning how to play the horn, be disciplined and, you know, just work hard."
Tabb can relate. During a rebellious phase in junior high, his band teacher became his mentor and helped him get back on track.
"He saved my life," recalled Tabb, a professional drummer with the Rebirth Brass Band, one of the city's most popular acts.
Now Tabb, a New Orleans native, strives to keep young people on the straight and narrow in the city with the nation's highest murder rate, according to FBI statistics.
"When all you've seen is the drug dealers and the killing, you know, they think that's cool," said Tabb, adding that many young people wind up in trouble because they have nothing else to do.
The type of music support systems that helped Tabb years ago have been struggling since Hurricane Katrina; musicians scattered after the storm and budget cuts ended many school music programs. As a result, Tabb chose to target 9- to 14-year-olds with his program.
"That's just the most vulnerable time of your life," he said. "If I catch them now, I can hold onto them for at least four or five years and guide them the way that we want to guide them."
Students meet from 4-7 p.m. every weekday, year-round. They work with tutors on schoolwork, practice their music and eat a hot meal before heading home.
Through funding from donations and sponsors, Tabb's group is able to provide bus transportation, instruments and food for free. He calls it his "no excuse" policy -- "you don't have no excuse why you're not here," Tabb said. With a 90 percent attendance rate, his formula seems to be working. Watch Tabb and The Roots of Music program in action »
Tabb attributes the success in part to the nature of music.
"You're constantly learning something new," he said. "That's what keeps the kids coming back every day."
Since getting underway last year, The Roots of Music has already exceeded Tabb's expectations. The band marched in five Mardi Gras parades this season. The program also helped students improve their academic performances, with 85 percent having raised their grades in at least one class; some D and F students have become A students. And there are more than 400 children on the waiting list.
Tabb said he's assembled a "dream team" of musicians to help teach the students, and he personally works with all the beginners. No previous musical experience is necessary -- many students don't even know the names of the instruments when they start -- but youngsters like 9-year-old Lauren Washington, who plays the flute, learn fast.
"It
|
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question: what is provided by the program?, answer: provides free tutoring, instruments and music instruction to more than 100 students. | question: What are the benefits of the organization?, answer: work with tutors on schoolwork, practice their music and eat a hot meal before heading home. | question: What did Derrick Tabb start?, answer: His program, The Roots of Music, | question: What does the program do?, answer: provides free tutoring, instruments and music instruction to more than 100 students. | question: who started The Roots of Music?, answer: Derrick Tabb | question: who have marched in Mardi Gras parades?, answer: The Roots of Music
|
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- Hurricane Gustav didn't pack the wallop of Katrina three years earlier, officials said Monday, but they urged almost 2 million evacuees to stay away from the Gulf Coast for another day.
A man walks past a storefront that collapsed as Hurricane Gustav passed through Lafayette, Louisiana, on Monday.
"Tomorrow is not a day to start coming back to the city of New Orleans," Mayor Ray Nagin said Monday night.
"Power lines are down all over the city; there's a significant number of homes and businesses that are without power," Nagin said.
Still, he said, Gustav didn't do the damage feared a few days ago, a possible repeat of 2005's Hurricane Katrina.
"I'd probably call Gustav, instead of the mother of all storms, maybe the mother-in-law or the ugly sister of all storms," Nagin said.
Across Louisiana, more than 800,000 people were without electricity, and some may not see it restored for two weeks or more, Gov. Bobby Jindal said.
At a news conference with Jindal, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff urged Gulf Coast residents who evacuated to stay away until damage could be assessed.
But even those who fled faced hardships. About 2,700 people who took up short-term residence Monday in the Louisiana State University Agriculture Center in Alexandria were told that the buildings generator power was not reaching the plumbing system, meaning no showers and no flushing toilets, said John Barnett, head of the facilities.
"It's really crowded, and everybody's just trying to do their best," said Kesha Harlow, who was there with her daughter, 8, and her son, 2 months. "We're just waiting for the storm to blow over."
Gustav roared from the Gulf of Mexico into southern Louisiana on Monday as a Category 2 hurricane with sustained winds of 110 mph, bringing fierce winds and heavy rains from the Alabama-Florida border west into Texas.
In Baton Rouge, Louisiana, two people were killed when a tree fell on the house where they were staying after they had come from farther south to escape the storm, officials said. A man was killed in a similar incident in north Lafayette, Louisiana, officials said.
Four hospice patients died while waiting for air ambulances to evacuate them from southern Louisiana, according to Richard Zuschlag, chairman and CEO of Acadian Ambulance.
Gustav was blamed for more than 60 deaths in the Caribbean, including 51 in southwestern Haiti.
At 10 p.m. CT, Gustav was a tropical storm with sustained winds of 60 mph, the National Hurricane Center said.
In New Orleans, Gustav drove sheets of water over the protective levees around the Industrial Canal early Monday afternoon, but the walls appeared to hold up under the onslaught as the winds faded.
Up to 6 feet of water spilled into an industrial park in the Upper 9th Ward late Monday morning, pouring through small gaps in the concrete flood walls before receding in the afternoon. Watch water spill over the levee »
But as the storm eased, inspectors from the Army Corps of Engineers and parish levee boards went out to check on the earthen walls and have found nothing to raise alarm, said Col. Craig Gunter, a Corps of Engineers spokesman. iReport.com: See one reader's footage of the levee
"The levees all held up," Nagin said. "I was hoping that this would happen, that we would be able to stand before America and before everyone and say we had some success with the levee system."
With the water level in Lake Pontchartrain north of the city rising, the Army Corps of Engineers closed flood gates on the 17th Street Canal and the London Avenue Canal, two areas that caused some of the more severe flooding during Katrina.
Official feared late Monday afternoon that a private levee south of New Orleans was in danger of failing, but water levels receded, and sandbagging efforts appeared to have paid off.
"We have stopped the bleeding, and I am very encouraged by what we are seeing," Plaquemines
|
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question: Where you can watch breaking hurricane news live?, answer: (CNN) | question: What is suggestion for 2 millions people there?, answer: to stay away from the Gulf Coast | question: How many evacuees were urged to stay away while damage is assessed?, answer: 2 million | question: What was downgraded to tropical storm?, answer: Hurricane Gustav | question: How many homes lose electricity?, answer: 800,000 people | question: What were evacuees encouraged to do?, answer: stay away from the Gulf Coast for another day.
|
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- The Orleans Parish district attorney said he plans to look into deaths at a New Orleans hospital in the days following Hurricane Katrina, but stopped short of calling it an investigation.
Staff at Memorial were accused of hastening four patients' deaths in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
"My office has not reopened an investigation into the deaths at Memorial hospital" after Katrina struck the Gulf Coast in 2005, Leon Cannizzaro said in a statement released Friday.
"As district attorney, I have a legal obligation to evaluate statements regarding possible criminal activity in this jurisdiction," the statement said. "I am making that kind of evaluation, but that does not constitute an investigation by this office."
The New Orleans Times-Picayune reported in a story Saturday that Cannizzaro will interview New Orleans coroner Frank Minyard and possibly other pathologists on the coroner's staff regarding the deaths of Memorial Medical Center patients.
But the newspaper quoted Cannizzaro as saying an investigation would involve convening a grand jury and bringing in witnesses to testify, and he does not at this time have plans to do that. After speaking with the coroner, the district attorney said he would decide whether a more in-depth investigation is necessary.
Cannizzaro's spokesman, Christopher Bowman, said Monday the DA's office had no further comment beyond the Friday statement.
According to the Times-Picayune, Cannizzaro's conversation with Minyard was prompted by an article in The New York Times last month that quoted two doctors as saying that they gave Memorial patients morphine and other drugs in the days after the hurricane struck, knowing they would die.
Cannizzaro told the newspaper he would be "remiss in his responsibilities" if he did not talk to Minyard about information in the article. "That doesn't mean I am opening an investigation," he said.
Katrina roared ashore near the Mississippi-Louisiana state line on August 29, 2005, rupturing three of New Orleans' protective levees and putting about three-quarters of the city under water.
Then-Louisiana Attorney General Charles Foti Jr. launched an investigation after officials from Lifecare, an acute-care facility operating on the seventh floor of Memorial, reported allegations that several seriously ill, mostly elderly patients had been euthanized by medical staff at Memorial as the floodwater rose around the hospital and conditions inside deteriorated.
In 2006, Foti ordered the arrest of Dr. Anna Pou and two nurses, Lori Budo and Cheri Landry, on preliminary charges of second-degree murder in the deaths of four patients. Former Orleans Parish District Attorney Eddie Jordan, who under Louisiana law was responsible for prosecuting crimes, gave Budo and Landry immunity in exchange for their testimony. In July 2007, the grand jury refused to indict Pou.
Foti said his investigation revealed that the four patients -- ages 63, 68, 91 and 93 -- were given a "lethal cocktail" of morphine and midazolam hydrochloride, both central nervous system depressants. Pou, Landry and Budo all denied the charges, and their attorneys said they acted heroically, staying to treat patients rather than evacuate.
In an interview with Newsweek magazine in 2007, Pou admitted giving the patients drugs. "If in doing so it hastened their deaths, then that's what happened," she said. "But this was not, 'I'm going to go to the seventh floor and murder some people.' We're here to help patients."
The grand jury never heard testimony from five specialists who advised Foti that the patients were deliberately killed with overdoses of drugs after Katrina struck. All five were brought in by Foti's office to analyze the deaths, and concluded the patients were homicide victims.
After the grand jury refused to indict Pou, Jordan called the case closed and said he would no longer pursue it.
If Cannizzaro does decide an in-depth investigation is warranted, it could affect the outcome of a lawsuit in which CNN and The Times-Picayune are seeking the release of Foti's investigative file into the deaths. CNN was the first to report the allegations of euthanasia, six weeks after the hurricane.
The case
|
[
"Who closed the case?",
"What was alleged at Memorial Hospital?",
"When were the first reports of allegations made?",
"What is being alleged occured at Memorial Hospital after hurricane Katrina?",
"Who reported the allegations six weeks after Katrina?",
"Who declined to file charges?"
] |
[
"Jordan",
"hastening four patients' deaths in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.",
"six weeks after the hurricane.",
"were accused of hastening four patients' deaths",
"CNN",
"Eddie Jordan,"
] |
question: Who closed the case?, answer: Jordan | question: What was alleged at Memorial Hospital?, answer: hastening four patients' deaths in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. | question: When were the first reports of allegations made?, answer: six weeks after the hurricane. | question: What is being alleged occured at Memorial Hospital after hurricane Katrina?, answer: were accused of hastening four patients' deaths | question: Who reported the allegations six weeks after Katrina?, answer: CNN | question: Who declined to file charges?, answer: Eddie Jordan,
|
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- Two newlyweds are fighting for the dismissal of the justice of the peace who refused them a marriage license because they are of different races.
A Louisiana justice of the peace refused to perform a marriage for Beth and Terence McKay.
"We've retained an attorney, and we're in the process of taking the next steps in order to make sure that (the justice of the peace) loses his job," Beth McKay told CNN's "American Morning" on Monday.
She and her husband, Terence McKay, stepped into the national spotlight when Keith Bardwell, a justice of the peace for Tangipahoa Parish's 8th Ward, refused them a license.
They ultimately got a marriage license from another justice of the peace in the same parish.
Despite a national uproar and a call by Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal for him to lose his license, Bardwell, 56, said he has no regrets. "It's kind of hard to apologize for something that you really and truly feel down in your heart you haven't done wrong," he told CNN affiliate WAFB on Saturday.
He insisted he is not racist and does not treat black people differently. He said he does not perform mixed-race marriages because he is concerned about the children of such marriages.
Bardwell did not return calls from CNN.
Beth McKay, 30, said she was speaking with Bardwell's wife by phone about getting a marriage license and was "shocked" to be asked whether they are an interracial couple. Watch how justice's decision shocked couple »
"She said, 'Well, what's the deal? Is he black, or are you black?' And so I answered her question, and then she just said, 'Well, we don't do interracial marriages.'"
Terence McKay, 32, told CNN, "Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but he's absolutely wrong on all aspects of his stance." McKay added, "If it wasn't for interracial couples today, we wouldn't have our president. So for him to take that outlook, that's still like 1800s or something."
"A lot of people have come up to us and said, 'You know, we're in interracial relationships as well,' not just black and white, and just encouraged us to stand up for our rights and to speak out against things like this," Beth McKay said.
The incident "caught us completely off guard," said Terence McKay, "and we're just trying to live our lives."
The National Urban League called for an investigation by the U.S. Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, saying in a statement that Bardwell's actions were "a huge step backward in social justice."
The U.S. Supreme Court tossed out race-based limitations on marriage in the landmark 1967 Loving v. Virginia case. In the unanimous decision, the court said that "Under our Constitution, the freedom to marry, or not marry, a person of another race resides with the individual and cannot be infringed by the State."
|
[
"What was problem with getting marriage license?",
"Where were the couple from?",
"What was judge concerned about?"
] |
[
"because they are of different races.",
"Louisiana",
"children of such marriages."
] |
question: What was problem with getting marriage license?, answer: because they are of different races. | question: Where were the couple from?, answer: Louisiana | question: What was judge concerned about?, answer: children of such marriages.
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A New York hospital worker was suspended for failing to report the gunshot wound of NFL star Plaxico Burress, a hospital spokeswoman told CNN Monday.
New York Giants receiver Plaxico Burress arrives at the 17th police precinct in Manhattan on Monday.
The spokeswoman, Kathy Robinson, gave no further detail on the New York Presbyterian Hospital employee.
"We can confirm that the individual at New York Presbyterian Hospital, who was responsible for failing to report the incident, has been suspended," hospital spokeswoman Robinson said.
Burress has garnered media attention recently for accidentally shooting himself with a gun he is accused of bringing into a crowded New York night club.
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg slammed Burress on Monday, saying it would be an "outrage" if the Giants receiver isn't prosecuted "to the fullest extent of the law" after the shooting with a gun that authorities say he owned illegally.
Burress, 31, was arraigned Monday on two counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree. He could face up to 15 years in prison, the Manhattan district attorney's office said.
Alicia Maxey Greene, spokeswoman for the district attorney, said Burress is not expected to enter a plea until a court appearance in March.
Burress' attorney, Benjamin Brafman, said he expects Burress to plead not guilty.
Bloomberg, speaking at a news conference, made clear he wants Burress to face jail time.
Noting a law that automatically sentences an offender to at least 3 1/2 years for illegally carrying a loaded handgun, Bloomberg said, "It's pretty hard to argue the guy didn't have a gun and it wasn't loaded. You've got bullet holes in and out to show that it was there."
The mayor also lashed out at New York Presbyterian Hospital for failing to inform police about the incident. He called on the state attorney general to "go after" the hospital for a "chargeable offense."
The district attorney's office said the hospital is under investigation. The hospital said it also is investigating the incident and promised to cooperate with authorities.
In the incident Friday night, Burress suffered a wound to his right thigh and was treated and released from the hospital, the Giants said in a statement released over the weekend.
Sports Illustrated reported that Burress had accidentally shot himself with a gun he was carrying while at Latin Quarter, a sprawling nightclub in Manhattan.
Brafman said his client "understands the seriousness of the situation, and he's addressing it in a responsible fashion." Brafman also said Burress is "physically OK and mentally OK." He added that he does not know when Burress may be back on the field.
Bloomberg, who has long fought against illegal gun ownership, said public figures "make their living because of their visibility. They are the role models for our kids, and if we don't prosecute them, to the fullest extent of the law, I don't know who on Earth we would. It makes a sham, a mockery of the law."
Turning his ire to New York Presbyterian Hospital, which treated Burress, Bloomberg said officials "didn't do what they're legally required to do" -- inform the authorities of the incident.
"It's a misdemeanor. It's a chargeable offense, and I think that the district attorney should certainly go after the management of this hospital."
He also called on the hospital to fire those whose responsibility it was to alert the authorities. And Bloomberg added, "I would question why the management didn't have training in place and didn't discipline them immediately. It's just an outrage."
The hospital later Monday afternoon issued a statement acknowledging that "not reporting a gunshot wound is a clear violation of our policies and procedures."
"We take this very seriously, and are conducting a thorough investigation into why this gunshot wound was not reported to the police department in a timely fashion. Appropriate disciplinary action will be taken. We are in full cooperation with the mayor's office and the police department,"
|
[
"Who is the New York Mayor?",
"What is the Mayor accusing the hospital of?",
"What did Michael Bloomberg call for?",
"What is a clear violation of our policies?",
"Who is accused of having the gun?",
"Who is the mayor of New York City?",
"What did the mayor criticize?",
"What team did Plaxico Burress play for?"
] |
[
"Michael Bloomberg",
"failing to inform police about the incident.",
"Burress to face jail time.",
"\"not reporting a gunshot wound",
"Plaxico Burress",
"Michael Bloomberg",
"New York Presbyterian Hospital for failing to inform police",
"New York Giants"
] |
question: Who is the New York Mayor?, answer: Michael Bloomberg | question: What is the Mayor accusing the hospital of?, answer: failing to inform police about the incident. | question: What did Michael Bloomberg call for?, answer: Burress to face jail time. | question: What is a clear violation of our policies?, answer: "not reporting a gunshot wound | question: Who is accused of having the gun?, answer: Plaxico Burress | question: Who is the mayor of New York City?, answer: Michael Bloomberg | question: What did the mayor criticize?, answer: New York Presbyterian Hospital for failing to inform police | question: What team did Plaxico Burress play for?, answer: New York Giants
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A four-story residential building collapsed Sunday in the Fort Greene neighborhood of Brooklyn, and at least four people suffered minor injuries, according to the New York City Fire Department.
Firefighters and other personnel arrive in the Fort Greene neighborhood on Sunday.
The cause of the midday collapse of the building on Myrtle Avenue between Ryerson and Hall streets was not immediately known. All residents of the building were accounted for, authorities said.
Three people were given medical attention at the scene and a fourth person was taken to a Brooklyn hospital, said a fire department spokesman.
It was not clear whether any of the injured lived in the building.
The New York Department of Buildings said residents in six adjacent buildings were told to leave those structures as investigators worked to determine the cause of the collapse. Watch video of the rubble »
A spokeswoman for that department confirmed that the owner of the collapsed building was cited in May after inspectors noticed several vertical cracks on an exterior wall. Watch video of the rubble
That case was scheduled to be heard Monday by the city's Environmental Control Board, which handles citations issued by the buildings department.
|
[
"When was owner of building cited?",
"Residents of how many buildings told to leave?",
"What happened to the wounded",
"what collapses",
"Where did the building collapse occur?",
"Who is told to leave buildings",
"What did inspectors see"
] |
[
"May",
"six",
"a Brooklyn hospital,",
"A four-story residential building",
"of Brooklyn,",
"were",
"several vertical cracks on an exterior wall."
] |
question: When was owner of building cited?, answer: May | question: Residents of how many buildings told to leave?, answer: six | question: What happened to the wounded, answer: a Brooklyn hospital, | question: what collapses, answer: A four-story residential building | question: Where did the building collapse occur?, answer: of Brooklyn, | question: Who is told to leave buildings, answer: were | question: What did inspectors see, answer: several vertical cracks on an exterior wall.
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A longtime employee and vault manager for a jewelry company in Long Island City, New York, stole millions of dollars worth of gold and gold jewelry from her employer over a six-year span, the Queens district attorney has alleged.
Teresa Tambunting, 50, of Scarsdale, New York, is accused of stealing as much as $12 million from Jacmel Jewelry, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said in a statement Wednesday.
At an arraignment Wednesday, she did not enter a plea to charges of first-degree grand larceny and first-degree criminal possession of stolen property, the district attorney's office said. She was released on $100,000 bail and will return to court May 19, the office said.
Her attorney, David Kirby, did not return phone calls seeking comment.
Tambunting, who worked for Jacmel for 28 years, has returned about $7 million worth of gold, but $4 million remains missing, according to Brown.
"The defendant is accused of establishing a virtual mining operation in Long Island City which siphoned off millions of dollars' worth of the precious metal from her employer," Brown said.
Police say Tambunting -- whose job responsibilities involved monitoring the vault in which fine gold, finished products and raw materials were stored -- confessed that for several months last year, she hid gold in makeshift slits in her purse.
An inventory in January revealed that as much as $12 million in merchandise was missing, Brown said in the written statement. After an investigation, Tambunting arrived at the jewelry company's offices wheeling a suitcase containing about 66 pounds of gold, an estimated $868,000, the district attorney's office said. In February, about 450 pounds of gold was taken from her residence, the office said.
Tambunting became vault manager in 1991, the office said. The dates of the alleged thefts were not immediately clear.
The value of the gold returned fluctuates because of the rise and fall of gold prices. However, the charges are based on what Jacmel claims it lost: $3 to $12 million, according to the Queens district attorney.
Jewelry manufacturer owners often find themselves in precarious circumstances when protecting their companies from thievery, said Benjamin Mark, who owned a jewelry manufacturing company in New York for 20 years.
"Unless you have metal detectors where every single employee removes their shoes and belts, you can't be certain," said Mark, who now operates a one-man business. "Stealing jewelry is relatively simple."
Jacmel Jewelry is one of the country's largest manufacturers and distributors of popular price jewelry, according to its Web site.
It employs more than 1,000 people worldwide, according to its president, Jack Rahmey. Rahmey said he is cooperating with authorities.
Tambunting faces up to 25 years in prison if convicted.
|
[
"For how many years has the vault manager been woring for Jacmel Jewelry ?",
"How many years in prison is she facing ?",
"how much money says the district attorney says he has returned",
"What did she confessed to the authorities ?",
"What did the district attorney say?",
"how many years in prison you can get if convicted",
"Where did the vault manager work?",
"Who hid gold in her purse?",
"How long did she work at Jacmel Jewelry for?",
"How many years in prison could she get?",
"How much gold did she return?",
"Who confessed to hiding gold in her purse?",
"Who worked for Jacmel Jewelry for 28 years?"
] |
[
"28",
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"Teresa Tambunting,",
"28 years,",
"up to 25",
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"Teresa Tambunting,",
"Teresa Tambunting,"
] |
question: For how many years has the vault manager been woring for Jacmel Jewelry ?, answer: 28 | question: How many years in prison is she facing ?, answer: 25 | question: how much money says the district attorney says he has returned, answer: about $7 million worth of gold, | question: What did she confessed to the authorities ?, answer: hid gold in makeshift slits in her purse. | question: What did the district attorney say?, answer: not enter a plea to charges of first-degree grand larceny and first-degree criminal possession of stolen property, | question: how many years in prison you can get if convicted, answer: 25 | question: Where did the vault manager work?, answer: a jewelry company in Long Island City, | question: Who hid gold in her purse?, answer: Teresa Tambunting, | question: How long did she work at Jacmel Jewelry for?, answer: 28 years, | question: How many years in prison could she get?, answer: up to 25 | question: How much gold did she return?, answer: about $7 million worth of | question: Who confessed to hiding gold in her purse?, answer: Teresa Tambunting, | question: Who worked for Jacmel Jewelry for 28 years?, answer: Teresa Tambunting,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A man accused of entering New York's LaGuardia Airport with a bag containing wires and batteries, sparking suspicion and leading to a large-scale evacuation, was ordered Saturday to undergo a psychiatric evaluation, a prosecutor said.
LaGuardia Airport's Central Terminal is being treated as a crime scene.
Scott McGann, 32, appeared in court after authorities said he walked into LaGuardia's Central Terminal Saturday morning with what was determined to be a fake bomb. The terminal was reopened after several hours.
Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown said McGann was charged with placing a false bomb or hazardous substance in the first degree; placing a false bomb or hazardous substance in a transportation facility; and making terrorist threats.
McGann appeared in court Saturday, but his arraignment was postponed, Brown said. McGann is being held without bail.
"The defendant is clearly a very troubled young man," Brown said. "As a result, the Court has directed that he be examined to determine whether he has the capacity to understand the proceedings against him and assist in his defense."
Earlier, officials said McGann wouldn't speak to his lawyer or anyone else. His next court appearance is scheduled for Thursday.
McGann allegedly arrived at a checkpoint in the terminal at about 4:50 a.m., carrying a backpack and refusing to answer security questions. Authorities said the officer at the checkpoint was informed that a suspicious package was attached to the bottom of McGann's backpack, and that McGann allegedly grabbed what appeared to be a trigger device with a red button connected to the backpack.
McGann allegedly pressed the button several times before a Port Authority officer grabbed the trigger and the package away from him.
The package turned out to be a device consisting of batteries, cylinders and electronic components that could have been used to make a bomb, Brown said, but the bomb squad found that it didn't not contain any explosives.
McGann had a ticket on a United Airlines flight to Chicago and a seat on two other connecting flights with his final destination Oakland, California, according to a law enforcement official close to the investigation. Watch passengers talk about the confusion »
McGann has three prior arrests in the New York area, the source told CNN. The most recent involved June charges of tampering with evidence and resisting arrest. He was also arrested twice in 2008, the source said.
Port Authority spokesman John Kelly said McGann "was just acting crazy."
The arresting officers described McGann to Kelly as "extremely disheveled and dirty," in a "near catatonic state" and "staring off into space," Kelly said. McGann had been homeless for at least a year.
Authorities evacuated the terminal after 5:20 a.m., and allowed passengers back in to all areas except Concourse C by midmorning, Kelly said. The concourse was reopened shortly before 11 a.m., according to Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Holly Baker. Watch the chaotic evacuation scene »
Authorities had stopped flights from taking off or landing at the airport, but by a little after 9 a.m., flights resumed, Baker said.
Central Terminal is one of four terminals in the airport, which is in the borough of Queens. It is about eight miles from Manhattan.
The incident disrupted travel plans for many passengers, and caused American Airlines to cancel 16 flights, said an airline spokesperson. American Eagle, Continental Airlines and Southwest also reported delays. iReport: Watch crowds start moving back into the terminal
CNN i-Reporter Jose Ojeda, 24, had been sitting on the tarmac on a plane headed to Chicago, Illinois, when the evacuation was ordered.
"We were all ready to go," Ojeda, of Bronx, New York, said of his flight, which he said had been scheduled to leave at 6:10 a.m.
"They didn't make any announcement other than, 'You need to evacuate,'" he said. "I thought it was standard procedure, but then once we got out of the plane, they kept pushing us back and back, out of the terminal out of the actual airport.
|
[
"Whcich airport was evacuated?",
"What charges does the suspect face?",
"what must the suspect undergo",
"What is the age of Scott McGann?",
"What resumed after the evacuation",
"What age is the suspect?"
] |
[
"York's LaGuardia",
"placing a false bomb or hazardous substance in the first degree; placing a false bomb or hazardous substance in a transportation facility; and making terrorist threats.",
"a psychiatric evaluation,",
"32,",
"flights",
"32,"
] |
question: Whcich airport was evacuated?, answer: York's LaGuardia | question: What charges does the suspect face?, answer: placing a false bomb or hazardous substance in the first degree; placing a false bomb or hazardous substance in a transportation facility; and making terrorist threats. | question: what must the suspect undergo, answer: a psychiatric evaluation, | question: What is the age of Scott McGann?, answer: 32, | question: What resumed after the evacuation, answer: flights | question: What age is the suspect?, answer: 32,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A new lawsuit alleges that convicted swindler Bernie Madoff financed a cocaine-fueled work environment and a "culture of sexual deviance," and he diverted money to his London, England, office when he believed federal authorities were closing in at home.
A new lawsuit alleges Bernie Madoff financed a sex-and-drugs workplace with investors' money.
The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in New York's State Supreme Court, was brought on behalf of former investors and seeks unspecified punitive damages and compensation.
Beyond that, it offers a look at what the plaintiffs' attorneys say was once Madoff's multimillion-dollar empire and what is now his world in a federal prison in North Carolina.
Among the allegations in the 264-page lawsuit are that during the mid-1970s, Madoff began sending employees to buy drugs for company use.
The complaint alleges that some employees and investors were aware of the drug purchases, and that BMIS [Bernard Madoff Investment Services] was known by insiders as the "North Pole" in reference to the excessive amount of cocaine use in the work place.
Attorneys Joseph Cochett and Nancy Fineman filed the complaint based on an investigation, including a four-hour interview with Madoff in prison in July, that they conducted for former investors. They also allege that major financial institutions, including KPMG, the Bank of New York and JP Morgan Chase, were aware that Madoff was transferring stolen funds to his London office for personal purchases.
According to the complaint, Madoff transferred funds to London to buy extravagant personal items.
"In 2006 Madoff thought the end was near because the [U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission] investigated. He realized he had to change things up so his focus shifted to London," Fineman said. "We know that KPMG were the auditors for the London branch and that money was used to buy yachts and Bentleys, they are supposed to look at related-party transactions. KPMG should have noticed these as a red flag."
Officials of KPMG and the Bank of New York did not immediately respond to calls from CNN Wednesday evening for comment on the lawsuit.
JP Morgan Chase spokesman Tom Kelly said, "We do not comment on pending litigation."
The alleged illicit behavior outlined in the complaint did not stop at drug use and extravagant spending. Company parties consisted of topless entertainers, and some employees had affairs in places such as Madoff's own office, the lawsuit says.
Madoff was fond of escorts and masseuses, and used money stolen from investors to pay them, according to the complaint.
Madoff was convicted of operating a Ponzi scheme and defrauding thousands of investors. He pleaded guilty in March to 11 counts, including fraud, money laundering and perjury, and was sentenced to 150 years in prison. Prosecutors have said it was the largest investor fraud ever committed by a single person, totaling billions in losses to investors.
Before Madoff, 71, was transferred to Federal Butner Correctional Complex outside of Raleigh, North Carolina, he lived a life of luxury. The lawsuit states that he had multimillion dollar residences in Manhattan, Montauk on New York's Long Island; Palm Beach, Florida; and Cap d'Antibe, France.
The complaint includes details of Madoff's drastically different life now in prison. He lives in a cell where he sleeps on the bottom bunk while up top sleeps his 21-year-old cellmate, who is serving time for drug crimes, according to the lawsuit. Madoff's recreational activities consist of walking around the prison track at night, and eating pizza cooked by a convicted child molester, the lawsuit says.
Madoff now spends his time with infamous inmates, the lawsuit says, including Carmine Persico, a former organized-crime former boss, and Jonathan Pollard, a convicted spy for Israel. Many of his fellow inmates are in prison for drug and sex crimes, according to the lawsuit.
Going after large financial institutions that allegedly allowed Madoff's scheme to flourish is the goal of Fineman and her associates.
"Our goal of meeting with Madoff during the investigation is to get as much money back from responsible parties
|
[
"stolen money was used to pay for what?",
"Who sent employees to buy drugs for company use?",
"What are lawsuits seeking?",
"what did madoff do",
"When did the employees start buying drugs?",
"what is the lawsuit about",
"Who cooks Madoff's pizza now?",
"what does madoff do now"
] |
[
"personal purchases.",
"Bernie Madoff",
"unspecified punitive damages and compensation.",
"financed a sex-and-drugs workplace with investors' money.",
"mid-1970s,",
"alleges Bernie Madoff financed a sex-and-drugs workplace with investors' money.",
"a convicted child molester,",
"federal prison"
] |
question: stolen money was used to pay for what?, answer: personal purchases. | question: Who sent employees to buy drugs for company use?, answer: Bernie Madoff | question: What are lawsuits seeking?, answer: unspecified punitive damages and compensation. | question: what did madoff do, answer: financed a sex-and-drugs workplace with investors' money. | question: When did the employees start buying drugs?, answer: mid-1970s, | question: what is the lawsuit about, answer: alleges Bernie Madoff financed a sex-and-drugs workplace with investors' money. | question: Who cooks Madoff's pizza now?, answer: a convicted child molester, | question: what does madoff do now, answer: federal prison
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A police officer chasing a theft suspect was fatally shot Thursday night by another officer after he failed to drop his weapon when ordered to, authorities said.
Officer Omar Edwards, 25, was not wearing a bulletproof vest and did not fire a shot, authorities say.
Authorities said Officer Omar Edwards, 25, was shot three times. The incident is under investigation.
Edwards was in plainclothes and carrying a handgun as he chased the suspect past a police car.
Authorities said the officer who shot him said he didn't realize Edwards was a police officer.
Edwards had just left the Housing Bureau Station House on East 124th Street, said Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly at a news conference Friday. As Edwards approached his vehicle, he saw a man rummaging through it.
Edwards took out his gun -- a Smith and Wesson 9 mm -- and chased the alleged thief, 43-year-old Miguel Santiago, said NYPD Deputy Commissioner Paul Browne.
Meanwhile, a police cruiser with a sergeant and two officers, including Officer Andrew Dunton, had just turned onto 125th Street from 1st Avenue.
Santiago ran in front of the unmarked vehicle as it approached halfway up the block and the vehicle stopped.
The officer in the front passenger seat got out of the vehicle and shouted for Edwards to stop running and drop his weapon.
According to Kelly, the officers reported that, after the command was given, Edwards turned toward Dunton with his gun in his hand. Watch Commissioner Kelly describe the shooting »
Dunton fired his Glock 9 mm six times, hitting Edwards three of those times -- once in the left arm, once in the left side and once in the back, according to police. Emergency crews responding to the scene found Edwards wearing a police academy T-shirt under his clothes and found his police shield and ID in his front left pants pocket, according to Browne.
Edwards, who lived in Brooklyn, was recently married and had two small children, according to CNN affiliate WABC-TV in New York.
On Friday, his relatives remembered him as a good person who achieved what he set out to do.
"He was a wonderful, wonderful child from when he was small," his father, Ricardo Edwards, told WABC.
"His desire was always to be a policeman and to play football," his uncle, Jerome Harding told the New York TV station. "And he did accomplish both, because he plays for the Police Department."
Edwards was pronounced dead at Harlem Hospital at 11:21 p.m. Thursday, according to Kelly.
"Tragic accidents like this are another reminder of the dangers our police officers often face as they keep our city the safest big city in the nation," Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Friday.
"Rest assured we will find out exactly what happened here, see what we can learn from it so it may never happen again. All the city's prayers are with Omar Edwards and his family."
Five eyewitnesses, along with 20 people who reported hearing gunshots, were interviewed by police.
The officer who fired the shots has 4½ years' experience, authorities said.
The officers involved have been placed on administrative duties while the shooting is investigated. Police later arrested the alleged thief on suspicion of breaking into Edwards' car.
|
[
"Who shot Omar Edward?",
"What was Omar Edward occupation?",
"Who was shot by another officer?",
"How many shots did the officer fire?",
"What did the subject try to steel?",
"Where was suspect trying to break into?",
"What was Edwards chasing?",
"When was Omar Edwards shot?",
"Name of the person that was fatally shot?",
"Who fired six shots?",
"What did he fire?",
"How many shots were fired?",
"Who is Omar Edwards?"
] |
[
"Officer Andrew Dunton,",
"police officer",
"Omar Edwards,",
"three times.",
"vehicle,",
"vehicle,",
"a theft suspect",
"Thursday night",
"Omar Edwards,",
"Dunton",
"Smith and Wesson 9 mm",
"six",
"Officer"
] |
question: Who shot Omar Edward?, answer: Officer Andrew Dunton, | question: What was Omar Edward occupation?, answer: police officer | question: Who was shot by another officer?, answer: Omar Edwards, | question: How many shots did the officer fire?, answer: three times. | question: What did the subject try to steel?, answer: vehicle, | question: Where was suspect trying to break into?, answer: vehicle, | question: What was Edwards chasing?, answer: a theft suspect | question: When was Omar Edwards shot?, answer: Thursday night | question: Name of the person that was fatally shot?, answer: Omar Edwards, | question: Who fired six shots?, answer: Dunton | question: What did he fire?, answer: Smith and Wesson 9 mm | question: How many shots were fired?, answer: six | question: Who is Omar Edwards?, answer: Officer
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A potential victim became a compassionate counselor during a recent robbery attempt, changing the would-be criminal's mind -- and apparently his religion.
Surveillance video shows storekeeper Mohammad Sohail holding a robber at bay with a shotgun.
Storekeeper Mohammad Sohail was closing up his Long Island convenience store just after midnight on May 21 when -- as shown on the store's surveillance video -- a man came in wielding a baseball bat and demanding money.
"He said, 'Hurry up and give me the money, give me the money!' and I said, 'Hold on'," Sohail recalled in a phone interview with CNN on Tuesday, after the store video and his story was carried on local TV.
Sohail said he reached under the counter, grabbed his gun and told the robber to drop the bat and get down on his knees.
"He's crying like a baby," Sohail said. "He says, 'Don't call police, don't shoot me, I have no money, I have no food in my house.' "
Amidst the man's apologies and pleas, Sohail said he felt a surge of compassion.
He made the man promise never to rob anyone again and when he agreed, Sohail gave him $40 and a loaf of bread.
"When he gets $40, he's very impressed, he says, 'I want to be a Muslim just like you,' " Sohail said, adding he had the would-be criminal recite an Islamic oath.
"I said 'Congratulations. You are now a Muslim and your name is Nawaz Sharif Zardari.'"
When asked why he chose the hybrid of two Pakistani presidents' names, the Pakistani immigrant laughed and said he had been watching a South Asian news channel moments before the confrontation.
Sohail said the man fled the store when he turned away to get the man some free milk.
He said police might still be looking for the suspect but he doesn't intend to press charges.
"The guy, you know, everybody has a hard time right now, it's too bad for everybody right now in this economy," said the storekeeper.
|
[
"Who grabbed the shotgun?",
"Who faces man wielding baseball bat?",
"How much is being offered?",
"Where was the store?",
"After what did he want to become a Muslim?",
"What did the man with the bat do?",
"Where is Mr. Sohail from?",
"what was wielded?",
"what was offered?",
"who has the gun?",
"What did Sohail give to the theif?",
"What is the religion of the man?",
"What did Sohail do when the man started crying?"
] |
[
"Mohammad Sohail",
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"baseball bat",
"$40 and a loaf of bread.",
"Mohammad Sohail",
"$40 and a loaf of bread.",
"Muslim",
"gave him $40 and a loaf of bread."
] |
question: Who grabbed the shotgun?, answer: Mohammad Sohail | question: Who faces man wielding baseball bat?, answer: Storekeeper Mohammad Sohail | question: How much is being offered?, answer: $40 | question: Where was the store?, answer: Long Island | question: After what did he want to become a Muslim?, answer: a recent robbery attempt, | question: What did the man with the bat do?, answer: demanding money. | question: Where is Mr. Sohail from?, answer: Long Island | question: what was wielded?, answer: baseball bat | question: what was offered?, answer: $40 and a loaf of bread. | question: who has the gun?, answer: Mohammad Sohail | question: What did Sohail give to the theif?, answer: $40 and a loaf of bread. | question: What is the religion of the man?, answer: Muslim | question: What did Sohail do when the man started crying?, answer: gave him $40 and a loaf of bread.
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A rarely seen portrait of Michael Jackson is on display inside a Harlem luxury car dealership. Macky Dancy, a partner at Dancy-Power Automotive, said the oil painting titled "The Book" is believed to be the only portrait for which Jackson sat.
The oil painting titled "The Book" is on display at Dancy-Power Automotive in Harlem, New York.
A different portrait of the entertainer was among items auctioned from his Neverland Ranch in April. It is not clear whether Jackson sat for that painting.
The painting on display in Harlem belongs to Marty Abrams, a friend and customer of the owners of the high-profile dealership.
The 40-inch by 50-inch portrait, by Australian painter Brett Livingstone-Strong, sold for $2.1 million in 1990. Abrams acquired it as part of an unrelated business deal in 1992 and had it stored.
The painting shows Jackson sitting in Renaissance-era clothes and holding a book. Jackson sat for the portrait because he was a friend of Livingstone-Strong's.
The painting was unveiled at the Dancy-Power Automotive Group showroom on Thursday but was removed Friday because of crowd concerns. It returned to the showroom floor Monday morning.
Dancy said the painting's owner chose the showroom because it's near the Apollo Theater in Harlem, where the Jackson 5 won their first taste of fame by winning Amateur Night in 1967.
He said Abrams hopes the painting in some way can raise money for charities in the Harlem neighborhood. Dancy said Abrams is not necessarily interested in selling the portrait.
When news broke about the resurfacing of the painting, Dancy said, he received a phone call from representatives of Livingstone-Strong, the artist. Now, Dancy said, "We are in the middle of possibly putting together the artist with the painting again. Maybe for some auctions or charitable shows or something of the sort."
The showroom features Rolls-Royces, Ferraris and other pricey cars and is famous for its celebrity clientele.
|
[
"Where is the painting displayed?",
"The painting shows jackson holding what?",
"which is close to Apollo Theater?",
"What does the painting show show?",
"What type of painting did michael jackson sit for?",
"What is the only painting Jackson sat for?"
] |
[
"Dancy-Power Automotive in Harlem, New York.",
"a book.",
"the showroom",
"Jackson sitting in Renaissance-era clothes and holding a book.",
"oil",
"\"The Book\""
] |
question: Where is the painting displayed?, answer: Dancy-Power Automotive in Harlem, New York. | question: The painting shows jackson holding what?, answer: a book. | question: which is close to Apollo Theater?, answer: the showroom | question: What does the painting show show?, answer: Jackson sitting in Renaissance-era clothes and holding a book. | question: What type of painting did michael jackson sit for?, answer: oil | question: What is the only painting Jackson sat for?, answer: "The Book"
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A technical snafu left some Visa prepaid cardholders stunned and horrified Monday to see a $23,148,855,308,184,500 charge on their statements.
Josh Muszynski noticed the 17-digit charge while making a routine balance inquiry.
That's about 2,007 times the size of the national debt.
Josh Muszynski, 22, of Manchester, New Hampshire, was one Visa customer aghast to find the 17-digit charge on his bill. Adding insult to injury, he had also been hit with a $15 overdraft fee.
He noticed that his debt exceeded the world GDP while making a routine balance inquiry on his online Bank of America account. According to his statement, he had spent the profound sum in one pop at a nearby Mobil gas station -- his regular stop for Camel cigarettes.
"Very, very panicked," he jumped in his car and sped to the station.
Had they perhaps noticed any "outrageous" charges come across their books recently, he inquired of the cashier there. She checked the records. They had not. Watch the story of an astounded customer in Memphis, Tennessee »
Muszynski wondered aloud what he might possibly have asked to purchase for such an astronomical price. "Can I buy Europe on pump 4?"
He next called Bank of America, the issuer of his Visa prepaid debit card. The bank kept him on hold for two hours, during which time he contemplated the impossibly bleak financial future that might await him. He also felt a stab of fear that he had saddled all his unborn grandchildren -- and their grandchildren -- with a lifetime of debt. "Down the generational line, nobody would have any money."
Finally, a bank representative told him that the $23 quadrillion charge -- and the $15 overdraft fee -- would be stricken from his account.
Muszynski compared the giant debt reprieve to receiving "an amazing Monopoly card that says, 'Bank error in your favor.' "
In a statement, Visa said the rogue charges affected "fewer than 13,000 prepaid transactions" and resulted from a "temporary programming error at Visa Debit Processing Services ... [which] caused some transactions to be inaccurately posted to a small number of Visa prepaid accounts."
The company assured customers that the problem has been fixed and that all falsely issued fees have been voided. "Erroneous postings have been removed ... this incident had no financial impact on Visa prepaid cardholders."
|
[
"What is 2,007 times the size of the national debt?",
"What did the card issuer say?",
"Who had a $15 overdraft fee?",
"What is the reason behind the charge and fee?",
"How much is the overdraft fee?",
"What did the card issuer blame?",
"What is the charge about 2,007 times the size of?"
] |
[
"a $23,148,855,308,184,500 charge on their statements.",
"Visa said the rogue charges affected \"fewer than 13,000 prepaid transactions\" and resulted from a \"temporary programming error at Visa Debit Processing Services",
"Josh Muszynski,",
"\"temporary programming error at Visa Debit Processing Services",
"$15",
"\"temporary programming error at Visa",
"the national debt."
] |
question: What is 2,007 times the size of the national debt?, answer: a $23,148,855,308,184,500 charge on their statements. | question: What did the card issuer say?, answer: Visa said the rogue charges affected "fewer than 13,000 prepaid transactions" and resulted from a "temporary programming error at Visa Debit Processing Services | question: Who had a $15 overdraft fee?, answer: Josh Muszynski, | question: What is the reason behind the charge and fee?, answer: "temporary programming error at Visa Debit Processing Services | question: How much is the overdraft fee?, answer: $15 | question: What did the card issuer blame?, answer: "temporary programming error at Visa | question: What is the charge about 2,007 times the size of?, answer: the national debt.
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A top Baha'i official has criticized Iran's claim that the six imprisoned leaders of the religious minority were held for security reasons and not because of their faith.
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government has been accused of trying to eliminate the Baha'i community.
Bani Dugal, the principal representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations, called Iran's assertion "utterly baseless."
"The allegations are not new, and the Iranian government knows well that they are untrue," Dugal said on Wednesday, quoted in a news release issued by the Baha'i movement.
"The documented plan of the Iranian government has always been to destroy the Baha'i community, and these latest arrests represent an intensification of this plan."
Iranian government spokesman Gholam-Hossein Elham said the people were detained for "security issues" and not their faith, Iran's Islamic Republic News Agency said.
Elham said on Tuesday that the Baha'is were members of a group working together "against national interest."
"The group is an organized establishment linked to foreigners, the Zionists in particular," he said.
The arrests of the six last week and another Baha'i leader in March sparked sharp condemnation by the Baha'is, the United States, Canada, the European Union and humanitarian groups.
The Baha'is say the latest arrests are part of a pattern of religious persecution since 1979, when the monarchy of the Shah of Iran was toppled and an Islamic republic was created in the predominantly Shiite nation.
The Baha'is say they have been killed, jailed and "otherwise oppressed" only because of their religion.
"The best proof of this is the fact that, time and again, Baha'is have been offered their freedom if they recant their Baha'i beliefs and convert to Islam, an option few have taken," Dugal said.
Dugal said Iran's practice of connecting the group to Zionism, the underlying political philosophy of the Jewish state, was a "distortion" and an attempt to "stir animosity" among the Iranian public.
The Baha'i World Center, which the movement refers to as its "spiritual and administrative heart," is in the Acre/Haifa area in northern Israel -- a location that predates the founding of the state of Israel since it was formed during the Ottoman Empire's rule of Palestine.
The Baha'is explain that their founder, Baha'u'llah, "after a series of successive banishments from his native Persia, was exiled, with members of his family and a small band of his followers, to the Turkish penal colony of Acre in 1868."
Dugal said the Iranian actions were the "most recent iteration in a long history of attempts to foment hatred by casting the Baha'is as agents of foreign powers, whether of Russia, the United Kingdom, or the United States and now Israel all of which are completely baseless."
Dugal said the government's philosophies are based largely on the idea that there can be "no prophet following Mohammed" and that the faith "poses a theological challenge to this belief."
They say Baha'u'llah is regarded by Baha'is as "the most recent in the line of Messengers of God that stretches back beyond recorded time and that includes Abraham, Moses, Buddha, Krishna, Zoroaster, Christ and Mohammed."
The Baha'is-- regarded as the largest non-Muslim religious minority in Iran -- say they have 5 million members across the globe, and about 300,000 in Iran.
|
[
"who was arrested?",
"What did Bani Dugal say?",
"The representative said the claim was what?",
"Bani Dugal said the government is trying to destroy who?",
"Where were the minority leaders arrested?",
"What did Baha'i officials deny?",
"How many leaders were held for security reasons?",
"who is trying to destroy the community?"
] |
[
"of the religious minority",
"\"The allegations are not new, and the Iranian government knows well that they are untrue,\"",
"\"utterly baseless.\"",
"the Baha'i community,",
"Iran's",
"held for security reasons and not because of their faith.",
"six",
"President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government"
] |
question: who was arrested?, answer: of the religious minority | question: What did Bani Dugal say?, answer: "The allegations are not new, and the Iranian government knows well that they are untrue," | question: The representative said the claim was what?, answer: "utterly baseless." | question: Bani Dugal said the government is trying to destroy who?, answer: the Baha'i community, | question: Where were the minority leaders arrested?, answer: Iran's | question: What did Baha'i officials deny?, answer: held for security reasons and not because of their faith. | question: How many leaders were held for security reasons?, answer: six | question: who is trying to destroy the community?, answer: President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- After huffing and puffing up 354 steps to the newly reopened Lady Liberty crown, Aaron Weisinger figured it was time to pop the question to his girlfriend, Erica Breder.
Aaron Weisinger proposes to Erica Breder on July Fourth inside the crown of the Statue of Liberty.
"The Fourth of July has always been a favorite holiday, so that was part of it, " Weisinger said.
The couple flew to New York from San Francisco, California, after managing to be among the first 240 people to snag the tickets to the Statue of Liberty crown for its reopening after September 11, 2001.
Weisinger got down on one knee inside the narrow, 8-foot-long deck inside the Statue of Liberty's crown, asked Breder to be his wife and offered her a sizeable diamond ring.
"I believe I was silent for several minutes. I was so excited," Breder said.
Then she said "yes."
Both said their families came to the United States via Ellis Island.
"My great-grandparents immigrated [from Russia and Hungary]," Weisinger said. His fiance's relatives arrived from Hungary.
"The thoughts behind the statue and freedom and liberty allowed our parents and great-grandparents before us to have the wonderful lives that we do," Weisinger added.
Breder said she was thrilled to make the long climb up a steep spiral staircase to stand inside Lady Liberty's crown.
"It was fantastic, much smaller than we had anticipated. The view's fantastic," the newly engaged Breder said.
New safety measures include double handrails, glass stairwell partitions and careful crowd control, according to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar.
Now, only three groups of 10 visitors per hour are guided up to the crown by a National Park Service ranger. That means only about 87,000 will be able to visit each year.
In the past, it took visitors at least an hour and a half to climb from the base to the crown. Now, it takes only about 15 to 20 minutes.
A new engineering study showed that there had to be changes to make it easier to exit the crowded staircase.
Crown tickets can now be reserved online up to a year in advance, but the statue will close again in two years for additional renovations.
|
[
"what are the safety measures",
"whom did he propose to",
"What did Weisinger do?",
"what did breder sAY"
] |
[
"include double handrails, glass stairwell partitions and careful crowd control,",
"Erica Breder",
"pop the question to his girlfriend, Erica Breder.",
"\"yes.\""
] |
question: what are the safety measures, answer: include double handrails, glass stairwell partitions and careful crowd control, | question: whom did he propose to, answer: Erica Breder | question: What did Weisinger do?, answer: pop the question to his girlfriend, Erica Breder. | question: what did breder sAY, answer: "yes."
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- After spending nearly 28 years in an irreversible coma, heiress and socialite Martha "Sunny" von Bulow died Saturday in a New York nursing home, according to a family statement. She was 76.
Sunny von Bulow is pictured during her 1957 wedding to Prince Alfred von Auersperg.
Von Bulow was subject of one of the nation's most sensational criminal cases during the 1980s.
Her husband, Claus, was accused of trying to kill her with an overdose of insulin, which prosecutors alleged sent her into the coma.
He was convicted of making two attempts on her life, but the conviction was overturned on appeal. He was acquitted in a second trial.
His retrial in 1985 received national attention.
"We were blessed to have an extraordinarily loving and caring mother," said the statement from Von Bulow's three children -- Annie Laurie "Ala" Isham, Alexander von Auersperg and Cosima Pavoncelli -- released by a spokeswoman. "She was especially devoted to her many friends and family members."
Martha von Bulow was born Martha Sharp Crawford into a wealthy family. She inherited a fortune conservatively estimated at $75 million, according to an article on the von Bulow case posted on truTV.com's Crime Library Web site.
In her early years, she drew comparisons to actress Grace Kelly.
She became known as Princess von Auersperg with her first marriage, to Prince Alfred von Auersperg of Austria. That marriage produced two children: Alexander and Annie Laurie.
The von Bulows married in 1966 and had a daughter, Cosima.
On the morning of December 22, 1980, family members found Martha von Bulow unconscious in the bathroom of the family's posh Newport, Rhode Island, home. She never regained consciousness.
She had been hospitalized a year earlier after lapsing into a coma but recovered, according to the Crime Library site. Doctors had diagnosed her with hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar.
Prosecutors accused Claus von Bulow of twice attempting to kill his wife by injecting her with insulin.
The case also led to a major motion picture, "Reversal of Fortune." Actor Jeremy Irons won an Oscar for his portrayal of Claus von Bulow.
Famed defense attorney Alan Dershowitz, who won Claus von Bulow a new trial on appeal after his conviction, said in a statement Saturday that Martha von Bulow's death is "a sad ending to a sad tragedy that some members of her family tried to turn into a crime. We proved overwhelming[ly] that there was no crime and that the coma was self-induced. We saved his life, but could not save hers."
Claus von Bulow's defense team maintained that Martha von Bulow's alcohol use, among other factors, caused her coma.
Dershowitz said he had spoken with Claus von Bulow, who now lives in London, England. Claus von Bulow was saddened by his former wife's passing, Dershowitz said.
The family statement said Martha von Bulow is survived by her children, their spouses and nine grandchildren.
Alexander von Auersperg and Ala von Auersperg Isham, who had sided with prosecutors against Claus von Bulow, filed a civil suit against their stepfather after his acquittal. The case was settled out of court in 1987, according to a 2007 article in the Providence Journal newspaper in Rhode Island.
Claus von Bulow had agreed to waive his claim to his wife's money and to a divorce in exchange for the suit being dropped.
The von Bulows' daughter, Cosima, sided with her father.
Vanity Fair writer Dominick Dunne, who covered the von Bulow case, told the New York Daily News in 2007 that Sunny von Bulow was moved from Columbia Presbyterian hospital to a private nursing home in 1998. Watch Dunne recall case »
Ala von Auersperg Isham served for a time as president of the Sunny von Bulow Coma and Head Trauma Research Foundation, according to the Providence Journal. An offshoot of that organization, the Brain Trauma Foundation, still operates in New York, the newspaper said.
The family statement notes that Martha von Bulow actively supported the Metropolitan Museum of Art,
|
[
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"What was Claus von Bulow accused of doing?",
"How did von Bulow try to kill his wife?",
"Who had a conviction overturned?",
"With what method did Claus von Bulow attempt his crime?",
"Where is Claus Von Bulow living now?",
"How many grandchildren did Claus von Bulow's late wife have?",
"How did von Bulow try to kill his wife?",
"When was he acquitted?",
"What made Claus von Bulow sad?",
"Who was accused of trying to kill her?",
"Who is she survived by?",
"Who was acquitted in the second trial?",
"What happened in his second trial?",
"Where does von Bulow live now?",
"What is Claus von Bolow accused of?"
] |
[
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"attempting to kill his wife by injecting her with insulin."
] |
question: What was the verdict in the second trial?, answer: acquitted | question: Where did Claus von Bulow live?, answer: London, England. | question: How many children did the Bulow's have?, answer: three | question: Where is Claus von Bulow living?, answer: London, England. | question: What lawyer spoke for Claus von Bulow?, answer: Famed defense attorney Alan Dershowitz, | question: Who is Claus von Bulow accused of killing?, answer: "Sunny" von Bulow | question: What was Claus von Bulow accused of doing?, answer: trying to kill her | question: How did von Bulow try to kill his wife?, answer: with an overdose of insulin, | question: Who had a conviction overturned?, answer: Her husband, Claus, | question: With what method did Claus von Bulow attempt his crime?, answer: overdose of insulin, | question: Where is Claus Von Bulow living now?, answer: London, England. | question: How many grandchildren did Claus von Bulow's late wife have?, answer: nine | question: How did von Bulow try to kill his wife?, answer: overdose of insulin, | question: When was he acquitted?, answer: in a second trial. | question: What made Claus von Bulow sad?, answer: his former wife's passing, | question: Who was accused of trying to kill her?, answer: Claus von Bulow, | question: Who is she survived by?, answer: her children, their spouses and nine grandchildren. | question: Who was acquitted in the second trial?, answer: Claus von Bulow | question: What happened in his second trial?, answer: He was acquitted | question: Where does von Bulow live now?, answer: London, England. | question: What is Claus von Bolow accused of?, answer: attempting to kill his wife by injecting her with insulin.
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- American radio talk-show host Michael Savage said he wants an apology from Britain's home secretary and his name removed from a list of people banned from entering the United Kingdom.
American radio talk-show host Michael Savage calls the British government's description of him "demented."
"I've heard from British attorneys who are salivating to set the record straight and win quite a large settlement should she not remove my name from the list," Savage said in an interview broadcast Thursday on CNN's "American Morning."
Savage was referring to Home Secretary Jacqui Smith, whose office recently excluded 22 people from entering the country because the government feels they have been "stirring up hatred."
The British government has cited Savage -- who is on the list under his real name, Michael Alan Weiner -- for "seeking to provoke others to serious criminal acts and fostering hatred which might lead to inter-community violence."
Savage has made controversial statements against homosexuality, illegal immigrants from Mexico and Islam. He said that "borders, language and culture is the real message of 'The Savage Nation,' " his radio talk show.
"I'm a patriotic American, and if that's a crime in England, God help us all," he said. Watch as Savage says he wants to clear his name »
Savage's daily radio show does not air in Britain but is broadcast nationwide in the United States.
Savage rejected the British government's description of him, calling it "a demented attitude."
"She lumped me in with known murderers and terrorists, people who have been in prison for killing people," Savage said of Smith. "I've been on the air for 15 years, three hours a day, five days a week. I have never, ever promoted violence. There has never been one violent incident attached to my show."
Smith has said she is determined to keep those who "spread extremism, hatred and violent messages" out of the country.
"Coming to the UK is a privilege, and I refuse to extend that privilege to individuals who abuse our standards and values to undermine our way of life," Smith said. "Therefore, I do not hesitate to name and shame those who foster extremist views, as I want them to know that they are not welcome here."
The Home Office has named 16 people on the list, saying it was not in the public interest to disclose the names of the other six.
Included on the list are:
|
[
"What is Savage known for?",
"Where was Savage banned from entering?",
"What does Savage want?",
"what is he known for",
"what did he say",
"What is Savage's occupation?",
"Who was banned?"
] |
[
"radio talk-show host",
"the United Kingdom.",
"an apology from Britain's",
"\"seeking to provoke others to serious criminal acts and fostering hatred which might lead to inter-community violence.\"",
"wants an apology from Britain's",
"radio talk-show host",
"Michael Savage"
] |
question: What is Savage known for?, answer: radio talk-show host | question: Where was Savage banned from entering?, answer: the United Kingdom. | question: What does Savage want?, answer: an apology from Britain's | question: what is he known for, answer: "seeking to provoke others to serious criminal acts and fostering hatred which might lead to inter-community violence." | question: what did he say, answer: wants an apology from Britain's | question: What is Savage's occupation?, answer: radio talk-show host | question: Who was banned?, answer: Michael Savage
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- An air traffic controller was joking with a woman about a dead cat just moments before a helicopter and small plane collided over the Hudson River in August, according to a recording released Thursday by the Federal Aviation Administration.
The wreckage of a plane that collided with a helicopter is lifted on August 11 from the Hudson River.
There were no survivors from the August 8 crash, in which three people died aboard the Piper Saratoga PA-32 fixed-wing plane that collided with a helicopter carrying six people, five of them Italian tourists.
The FAA in August confirmed the air traffic controller at New Jersey's Teterboro airport, who initially handled the flight of the Piper before handing off to Newark controllers, had "involved in apparently inappropriate conversations on the telephone at the time of the accident."
The controller and his supervisor, who was not in the building as required, were suspended.
"While we have no reason to believe at this time that these actions contributed to the accident, this kind of conduct is unacceptable, and we have placed the employees on administrative leave and have begun disciplinary proceedings," FAA spokeswoman Laura Brown said at the time.
The recording, released for the first time Thursday, caught the air traffic controller at Teterboro airport having a giggly chat with the woman, suggesting she grill the dead cat she apparently found. A source with knowledge of the investigation told CNN the woman was the controller's girlfriend.
"That thing was disgusting," she says, to which the controller responds, "Chinese people do it, so why can't we?"
The exchange, which lasts about six minutes, is interrupted by a controller at the Newark airport, who asks the Teterboro controller for help with air traffic.
"Hey, Teterboro ... would you switch that guy, maybe put him on a two-twenty heading to get away from that other traffic please?" the Newark controller is heard saying.
The Teterboro controller seems to be juggling both conversations, telling to woman to "hold on real quick" while asking the Newark controller to repeat the request.
"Can you switch that (Piper) PA-32?" the Newark controller said.
Neither is able to communicate with the pilot of the Piper, with the Teterboro controller saying, "He's lost in the hertz."
The conversation between the Teterboro controller and the woman continues as she mentions that it seems her friend is doing "a lot of babysitting."
Seconds later, the crash occurs with no survivors.
The National Transportation Safety Board has said that before the accident, Teterboro controller had switched control of the Piper plane to Newark tower, which the pilot never contacted.
Raymond Adams, head of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, is representing the Teterboro controller. He declined to comment Thursday, except to say that "the FAA has previously stated that the conversation had no connection to the crash."
The controller is still on paid administration leave pending further investing by the FAA, he added.
The helicopter was taking the tourists on a 12-minute Liberty Helicopter Sightseeing Tour around New York, while the plane carrying three individuals was headed for Ocean City, New Jersey. Controllers lost contact with the plane at 11:53 a.m. as it flew at an altitude of about 1,100 feet.
The FAA released the recording after a request from The Associated Press citing the Freedom of Information Act.
|
[
"How many survivors were there in the August 8 crash?",
"Who did the controller joke with on the recording?",
"who revelead the recording",
"when did helicopter crash",
"who was joking",
"What was controller joking about on phone?",
"Who revealed recording of air traffic controller just before fatal crash?"
] |
[
"no",
"a woman",
"Federal Aviation Administration.",
"August 8",
"An air traffic controller",
"a dead cat",
"Federal Aviation Administration."
] |
question: How many survivors were there in the August 8 crash?, answer: no | question: Who did the controller joke with on the recording?, answer: a woman | question: who revelead the recording, answer: Federal Aviation Administration. | question: when did helicopter crash, answer: August 8 | question: who was joking, answer: An air traffic controller | question: What was controller joking about on phone?, answer: a dead cat | question: Who revealed recording of air traffic controller just before fatal crash?, answer: Federal Aviation Administration.
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- An employee of a luxurious New York hotel has been arrested in connection with the slaying of a woman in one of the hotel's residential condominiums, police say.
The Jumeirah Essex House is a landmark on Central Park South in New York.
Derrick Praileau, 29, faces second-degree murder charges in connection with the death of Andree Bejjani, 44.
Police said Bejjani, who was originally from Lebanon, had moved to New York from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and had been staying in a residential condominium at the Jumeirah Essex House since August.
Bejjani's nude body was found Saturday afternoon on the 10th floor of the hotel on Central Park South. Her throat was slashed, authorities said. Police have not revealed a suspected motive for the slaying.
"This incident occurred in one of the private condominiums at The Essex House complex," the hotel said in a statement provided to CNN. "Our sincere condolences go out to the victim's family and we have offered our full support during this difficult time."
The statement continued: "We understand that a hotel employee has been arrested pending charges in conjunction with this incident. We continue to fully cooperate with the police throughout their investigation."
A message left with Praileau's defense attorney was not returned.
The hotel referred to Praileau only as an employee, but the New York Daily News said he was its housekeeping manager, citing Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly.
The 44-story Essex House opened in 1931, a landmark Art Deco building. It recently underwent a $90 million renovation.
The hotel has more than 500 luxury rooms and suites, along with several privately-owned residences. One six-room unit is currently on the market for $8.25 million.
|
[
"Where was Andree Bejjani found?",
"Who was Praileau?",
"What does Derrick Praileau face?",
"who caused this crime",
"Who was found dead on Saturday?",
"how much old its Andree Bejjani?"
] |
[
"10th floor of the hotel on Central Park South.",
"housekeeping manager,",
"second-degree murder charges",
"Derrick Praileau,",
"Andree Bejjani,",
"44."
] |
question: Where was Andree Bejjani found?, answer: 10th floor of the hotel on Central Park South. | question: Who was Praileau?, answer: housekeeping manager, | question: What does Derrick Praileau face?, answer: second-degree murder charges | question: who caused this crime, answer: Derrick Praileau, | question: Who was found dead on Saturday?, answer: Andree Bejjani, | question: how much old its Andree Bejjani?, answer: 44.
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- An explosion outside a Starbucks on the Upper East Side of Manhattan sent frightened people running into the street early Monday.
Police investigate an explosion in a Manhattan Upper East Side neighborhood.
The explosion blew out the windows of a Starbucks coffeehouse at East 92nd Street and Third Avenue at 3:25 a.m., according to New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly.
A "low-order improvised explosive device" exploded after being left on a wooden bench in front of the coffeehouse, Kelly said. The blast could be heard many blocks away, according to CNN affiliate WABC-TV of New York.
Seven people were briefly evacuated from the building above the Starbucks, Kelly said, but no one was injured. The interior of the Starbucks sustained no damage.
It's too early to tell whether Monday's incident is connected to other minor explosions in New York City in recent years, including ones at the British and Mexican consulates and another in Times Square, Kelly said.
He did note one immediate similarity between the detonations: All occurred at roughly the same time of night. He said the police would continue to analyze other similarities.
However, Kelly also noted that Starbucks has been the target of low-grade explosions in other cities.
Police plan to examine surveillance cameras for information that could lead investigators to the perpetrator, he said.
|
[
"What happened at a Manhattan Starbucks that sent people fleeing?",
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] |
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"An explosion",
"an explosion in a Manhattan Upper East Side neighborhood.",
"Upper East Side of Manhattan",
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"other minor explosions in New York City in recent years,"
] |
question: What happened at a Manhattan Starbucks that sent people fleeing?, answer: An explosion | question: What were police investigating?, answer: an explosion in a Manhattan Upper East Side neighborhood. | question: Where was the starbucks located, answer: Upper East Side of Manhattan | question: What damage was done to the starbucks, answer: explosion blew out the windows | question: What connections are the police investigating, answer: other minor explosions in New York City in recent years,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- An oil painting was returned Tuesday to the estate of a Jewish art dealer who was forced to consign the painting and other artwork under Nazi Germany before fleeing the country.
"Portrait of a Musician Playing a Bagpipe" was done in 1632 by an unknown artist.
The painting, "Portrait of a Musician Playing a Bagpipe," was done in 1632 by an unknown painter from the Northern Netherlandish school, according to a statement from the U.S. attorney's office in southern New York.
It was owned by Max Stern, an art dealer who had a gallery in Dusseldorf, Germany, until 1937, when the Nazis' Reich Chamber for Fine Arts ordered him to liquidate the gallery and its inventory, the statement said.
Stern, who died in 1987, left no heirs. He and his wife had founded the Max Stern Art Restitution Project, which directly benefits Concordia University and McGill University in Montreal, Canada, and Hebrew University in Jerusalem, according to a statement from U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The painting was returned Tuesday -- Holocaust Remembrance Day -- to Clarence Epstein of Concordia University on behalf of the executors of the estate, said Lou Martinez of the immigration agency.
It was returned in a ceremony at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York, he said.
The painting had been owned by Philip Mould Ltd., a London, England, gallery, when Lawrence Steigrad, a New York art dealer, bought it in 2008, the New York attorney's office said.
Neither had any idea of the painting's past. Philip Mould Ltd. had purchased the painting the year before from Lempertz Auction House. The same auction house sold the painting in 1937 after Stern was forced to liquidate, without receiving any proceeds from the sale, the New York attorney's office said.
Immigration agents used information from a Holocaust claims office in the New York state Banking Department to look into Steigrad's gallery.
The art dealer "confirmed the painting was in his possession." and he eventually allowed agents to seize the painting, the attorney's office said.
|
[
"When did Stern die?",
"Who benefits from his art restoration project?",
"When did he die?",
"What did Max Stern have to do in 1937?",
"What was Mas Stern forced to do in 1937?",
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] |
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"1987,",
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"liquidate the gallery and its inventory,",
"liquidate the gallery and its inventory,",
"oil painting",
"Concordia University and McGill University in Montreal, Canada, and Hebrew University in Jerusalem,"
] |
question: When did Stern die?, answer: 1987, | question: Who benefits from his art restoration project?, answer: Concordia University and McGill University in Montreal, Canada, and Hebrew University in Jerusalem, | question: When did he die?, answer: died in 1987, | question: What did Max Stern have to do in 1937?, answer: liquidate the gallery and its inventory, | question: What was Mas Stern forced to do in 1937?, answer: liquidate the gallery and its inventory, | question: What returns on Tuesday?, answer: oil painting | question: Who will benefit from his project?, answer: Concordia University and McGill University in Montreal, Canada, and Hebrew University in Jerusalem,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Authorities are seeking the public's assistance in identifying a teenage girl who mysteriously turned up in Manhattan two weeks ago, claiming to have no memory of her family, her home -- or even her own name.
The teen has recalled an excerpt from the fantasy novel "Fool's Fate" by Robin Hobb.
"I just want to know who I am," the girl says in a statement released by the New York City Administration for Children's Services. The teen, who is being referred to as Jane Doe, continues, "I want to know who I am and what happened to me."
The Caucasian young woman, described by New York ACS as "very soft-spoken," is 5 feet, 6 inches tall, light-skinned, with short, straight, cropped blond hair and blue eyes. Doctors are estimating her age to be between 14 and 17.
ACS Commissioner John B. Mattingly appealed to the public in a statement, "asking anyone who may know this young woman to help us locate her family as quickly as possible, so we can safely reunite her with those who love her."
The girl was found in midtown Manhattan around 12:30 a.m. October 9 outside the Covenant House youth shelter, although the organization tells CNN that she was not a resident at the time and did not appear as if she intended to seek refuge at the facility.
According to its Web site, with nearly 7,000 youths seeking shelter per year, "Covenant House New York is the nation's largest adolescent care agency serving homeless, runaway and at-risk youth."
A security guard for the shelter noticed the girl walking around on the sidewalk near Covenant House and approached her. Finding her unresponsive, he called the New York City Police Department.
Police officers interviewed the young woman, but it became clear that she couldn't provide authorities with any information about herself. The NYPD said she was wearing military green camouflage pants, a black shirt and a pair of black sneakers when she was discovered.
Children's Services said the girl recently wrote down the name "Amber" and has responded to it on one occasion, but she has no idea whether it is her true name.
On another occasion she is said to have recalled certain words, which turned out to be an excerpt from the fantasy novel "Fool's Fate" by Robin Hobb. The girl is also apparently writing a fantasy story of her own that features a heroine named Rian, "who's been raised by the commander of the guard post on the edge of a fantasy kingdom," says the young woman.
The girl has a 2- to 4-inch scar on her lower left back and had a black, handwritten birthday message on her arm, addressed to a name of Japanese origin, when she was found, police said Friday.
Judging from poor dental hygiene, said Lt. Christopher Zimmerman, she appears to have been living on the streets for some time.
"This case has been going on since October 9," Zimmerman said. "Today is the 23rd, and we're vey concerned. It's been a very long time now. That's a long time frame to not identify somebody. Especially someone who we believe is a juvenile. Usually juveniles we get a lot of inquiries about."
While the girl is confused and her story remains vague, Mattingly said, "she is safe with us, and we are doing all we can to help her, but she needs to find her family."
She is apparently reviewing materials for a high school GED exam, saying that she is able to do the math but has no recollection of studying the history and science portions. However, according to the Children's Services statement, the young woman "can easily retain the information."
New York City Administration for Children's Services and police are asking anyone with information about the young woman or her family to contact the NYPD Missing Persons Squad at 212-694-7781 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.
|
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"What name does the girl respond to?",
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"12:30 a.m. October 9",
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"between 14 and 17.",
"\"Amber\"",
"midtown Manhattan"
] |
question: What name does the girl respond to?, answer: "Amber" | question: What was the girl's height?, answer: 5 feet, 6 inches | question: when was the girl found, answer: 12:30 a.m. October 9 | question: On what day was the girl found?, answer: 12:30 a.m. October 9 | question: What age range do doctors believe the girl is?, answer: between 14 and 17. | question: what age is the girl, answer: between 14 and 17. | question: what is the girl called, answer: "Amber" | question: Where was the girl found?, answer: midtown Manhattan
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Before Adam Walsh, Etan Patz and Madeleine McCann, before the first Amber Alert, before a young face stared back from the side of a milk carton, there was Danny.
Danny Barter was 4 when he vanished in 1959 while on a family camping trip.
Danny Barter vanished in 1959. He was on a family camping trip to Alabama's Perdido Bay. He was playing with his dad one minute, gone the next. "Just like that," recalled his brother Mike Barter.
Danny was 4 years old.
Last weekend, his loved ones returned to the campsite and to the scene of the presumed stranger abduction. They came to remember Danny and to rededicate a half-century mission to find him.
Even with the passage of time, their faith has not wavered.
"We've never doubted that he's ... out there," Mike Barter said. "Until they prove otherwise, we hope one day we will be reunited."
Their hope has been bolstered by investigators with the FBI and the Baldwin County Sheriff's Office, which reopened the case last year after hearing of a recent conversation.
"A lead was sparked when someone was sitting in a public area talking about what happened," FBI spokeswoman Joyce Riggs wrote in an e-mail to the media.
As cold case cops know, a wisp of a lead can turn into a big break, a fact FBI Special Agent Angela Tobon believes can solve the Daniel Barter mystery.
"Even if [people] think it's insignificant, it's probably not," Tobon said. "Each little piece of the puzzle may not mean something, but when you put it all together, you get the big picture."
Danny was the third youngest of Paul and Maxine Barter's seven children. He had brown hair and big brown eyes.
"He's such a very pretty and sweet child," his mom told the Mobile Register in an article published June 21, 1959. "I can understand why someone would want to take him, because he's such a pretty child."
Three days earlier, Danny, his parents and his siblings were enjoying a family outing near the Gulf shore. Danny and his dad had just returned from getting some drinks at a store. Tents were pitched. Fishing poles were prepared. And then someone noticed that Danny was gone.
"I had first believed that despite Danny's fear of water, he had wandered into the water and drowned," Maxine Barter told the Mobile Register. "But not now. I believe he probably walked up the road, and someone picked him up."
The search was extensive and immediate. Hundreds combed the land and the waters, looking for Danny. Bloodhounds were given his scent and dispatched to follow it. Alligators were killed and cut open.
But there was no trace of Danny, then or now.
For his parents and the police, the sickening conclusion was quickly reached: He was stolen by a human predator.
Danny's mom could not fathom that the kidnapper would bring harm to her boy.
"I hope now that someone did take Danny, because I know if anyone wanted him bad enough to kidnap him, they would take good care of him," she said.
Fifty years later, the family longs for closure. Paul and Maxine Barter are both deceased, but their children carry on the decades-long pursuit to know the truth.
On dannybarter.com, a Web site dedicated to finding answers, the family posted this plea to the public:
"We strongly believe that someone out there knows what happened to Danny and possibly knows him as another identity. We hope to find him safe and sound."
The FBI is also seeking information on Danny Barter. It has published two photographs of him on its Web site. One shows the smiling child, taken in the months before Danny was abducted. The other picture is age-progressed, depicting what Danny would look like today at 54.
If you have any information
|
[
"When did Danny Barter go missing?",
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"The case is how old?",
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"who took Danny Barter?",
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] |
[
"1959",
"Alabama's Perdido Bay.",
"1959",
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"4"
] |
question: When did Danny Barter go missing?, answer: 1959 | question: Where was the camping trip?, answer: Alabama's Perdido Bay. | question: The case is how old?, answer: 1959 | question: Who was taken by a stranger?, answer: Danny Barter | question: who took Danny Barter?, answer: stranger | question: What was Danny Barter's age when he went missing?, answer: 4
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Broadening the number of health care professionals who can administer vaccine, New York Gov. David Paterson issued a sweeping executive order Thursday officially declaring a state of emergency due to the increase in H1N1 cases, including 75 H1N1-related deaths in New York state.
The announcement, which comes on the heels of President Obama's declaration of H1N1 flu as a national emergency, expands the categories of health care professionals who can give the vaccine to include dentists, pharmacists, podiatrists, midwives and emergency medical technicians, the executive order said.
At a news conference Thursday afternoon, Paterson stressed that his order is not intended to incite panic but rather allocates the necessary resources to effectively combat H1N1 flu, also known as swine flu.
"If an enormous number of flu vaccines came into the state because of an epidemic and an emergency and we need to administer them as widely as possible, we have expanded the health care personnel who would be deemed to have the authority to administer the flu vaccine," Paterson told reporters.
Under current state law, some health care professionals are prohibited from delivering the vaccine because of limits on their professional duties. The governor's order waives any law that would prevent these people from giving vaccinations, according to Claire Pospisil from the New York state department of health.
"It's called an emergency declaration, but what it does is that it provides New York the capability that once vaccine supplies become more available, it allows (health departments) to quickly vaccinate as many people as possible," Pospisil said.
Dr. Mark Feldman, a retired dentist who serves as executive director of the New York State Dental Association, which represents 75 percent of the dentists in the state, said he would be more than willing to help administer the vaccine.
"If there is a shortage and they need more hands, I can do my part," Feldman said.
Health care professionals named in the executive order may not administer the vaccine at their individual practices. Rather, they must do so at a New York state health department distribution center.
Feldman thinks it would be wiser to allow these health care professionals to distribute the vaccine at their private practices. "If there is a severe outbreak, to go to a mass distribution center, you risk being exposed," Feldman said.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg issued a statement Thursday supporting Paterson's order. It will "let a larger number of health care workers administer vaccines, and strengthen our health department's ability to track the use of vaccine supplies," the statement read.
About 800,000 people in New York City became infected with the disease during the first wave of the virus last spring, according to the New York City Department of Health
The New York health department will provide training for administering the vaccinations, though the exact amount of training required is yet to be determined, according to Tom Dunn of the New York state education department, which issues vaccine licenses.
|
[
"Who is allowed to give vaccines?",
"What is the cause of the state of emergency which has been declared by Gov. David Paterson?",
"What was the reason for Paterson calling a state of emergency?",
"What occupations are being called in to assist?"
] |
[
"health care professionals",
"increase in H1N1 cases,",
"increase in H1N1 cases,",
"dentists, pharmacists, podiatrists, midwives and emergency medical technicians,"
] |
question: Who is allowed to give vaccines?, answer: health care professionals | question: What is the cause of the state of emergency which has been declared by Gov. David Paterson?, answer: increase in H1N1 cases, | question: What was the reason for Paterson calling a state of emergency?, answer: increase in H1N1 cases, | question: What occupations are being called in to assist?, answer: dentists, pharmacists, podiatrists, midwives and emergency medical technicians,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz could lose the right to her entire portfolio of world-famous photographs if she doesn't meet a Tuesday deadline to pay back a $24 million loan she is alleged to owe.
Annie Leibovitz appears before her photo of Demi Moore during an exhibition of her work in June in Madrid, Spain.
Leibovitz, who has photographed everyone from the Rolling Stones to Queen Elizabeth II, put her art, intellectual property and even real estate assets up for collateral last year when she consolidated her massive debts.
Art Capital Group, which restructured the debts, says Leibovitz agreed "to make Art Capital her 'irrevocable exclusive agent'" of the assets "in exchange for a reduced interest rate on the loan."
Now the company is suing Leibovitz for breach of contract, saying she has "refused to cooperate in the sale of those assets," according to a question-and-answer sheet on the lawsuit issued by Art Capital. It also says she has "refused to pay to Art Capital hundreds of thousands of dollars she owed as part of the same agreement."
Asked by CNN for comment, Leibovitz's attorney, Steven Brawer, said, "I don't have anything I can tell you." They have until October 1 to respond to the lawsuit.
In the question-and-answer sheet, Art Capital says Leibovitz "acknowledged that in order to repay the loan she would sell her fine art, intellectual property and real estate assets. She authorized Art Capital to act as agent in the sale of those assets through which Art Capital could recoup its decrease in interest rate. She would have realized a significant gain from that sale."
It says the loan agreement gave Art Capital "the right to sell the collateral before the loan came due on September 8 and for a two-year period thereafter."
One of Leibovitz's best known photos is of John Lennon with his wife, Yoko Ono, shortly before the Beatles star was assassinated in 1980.
She is no stranger to controversy.
In 1991, Leibovitz photographed a nude and extremely pregnant Demi Moore for the cover of Vanity Fair. The issue, considered scandalous at the time, was sold in many places nationwide with a sheath of white paper.
Last year, Leibovitz photographed Disney star Miley Cyrus wrapped in a bedsheet, eliciting claims that the photographer pressured the teen queen into poses that were too provocative for her young age.
In July, Art Capital filed a complaint with the New York Supreme Court, asking it to uphold the sales agreement it signed with Leibovitz, including its right to sell her art and real estate.
If the court agrees with Art Capital, it means Leibovitz could end up owing far more than she did originally. Art Capital has asked for an unspecified amount of damages in addition to the money it says the photographer originally borrowed.
Art Capital -- through its affiliate, American Photography -- provides financial and consulting services to artists, galleries and art owners, and offers loans based on their intellectual property and fine art assets.
|
[
"Who faces a Tuesday deadline to pay back $24 million?",
"How much will annie leibovitz have to pay?",
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"What photos are among Leibovitz's most controversial works?",
"What did Leibovitz put up as collateral?",
"Who sued Leibovitz?"
] |
[
"Celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz",
"$24 million",
"provides financial and consulting services to artists, galleries and",
"photographed a nude and extremely pregnant Demi Moore for the cover of Vanity Fair.",
"real estate assets",
"Art Capital Group,"
] |
question: Who faces a Tuesday deadline to pay back $24 million?, answer: Celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz | question: How much will annie leibovitz have to pay?, answer: $24 million | question: what is Art Capital Group porpuse?, answer: provides financial and consulting services to artists, galleries and | question: What photos are among Leibovitz's most controversial works?, answer: photographed a nude and extremely pregnant Demi Moore for the cover of Vanity Fair. | question: What did Leibovitz put up as collateral?, answer: real estate assets | question: Who sued Leibovitz?, answer: Art Capital Group,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Divers found an eighth body Monday from the weekend collision of two aircraft over the Hudson River, leaving only one victim unaccounted for.
Silvia Rigamonti, wife of one of the victims, walks with her son Davide Norelli in Bologna, Italy, on Monday.
The man's body was found inside the submerged Piper Saratoga PA-32 fixed-wing plane that was carrying three people when it collided Saturday with a tourist helicopter carrying six people, police said.
It was not immediately possible to remove the body, police said.
The plane wreckage and the body were found on a day in which police divers worked in water made treacherous by poor visibility and strong currents.
All six bodies of the people who were aboard the helicopter were pulled from water up to 50 feet deep over the weekend. Another body from among the three people who were aboard the private plane was found Saturday floating near Pier 40.
Recovery operations were suspended late Monday afternoon and were to resume Tuesday morning, when the Army Corps of Engineers plans to lift the plane, police spokesman Paul Browne said.
The victims aboard the helicopter included five tourists from Bologna, Italy, part of a group of 10 Bologna-area residents who were in New York to help a couple celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary, said Giovanni Castellaneta, Italy's ambassador to the United States. See where the collision occurred »
The celebrating husband and one of the couple's sons were killed in the crash, but the wife skipped the sightseeing flight to go shopping, another son told Italian news media.
The victims from Bologna were Michele Norelli, 51; Norelli's son Filippo Norelli, 16; Fabio Gallazzi, 49; Gallazzi's wife, Tiziana Pedroni, 44; and Gallazzi's son, Giacomo Gallazzi, 15.
Michele Norelli's wife, Silvia Rigamonti, decided to visit New York stores instead of seeing its sights from above, the couple's eldest son, Davide Norelli, told Italian media.
The Norellis were ecstatic to be spending their anniversary in New York, Davide Norelli told Stampa newspaper in Turin, Italy.
"They used to talk about their trip at dinner with enthusiasm, of their silver anniversary and how they were going to celebrate it together. My aunt gave them the trip as a gift," the paper quotes Davide Norelli saying.
Davide Norelli, 23, also told Italian media that when he saw news of the crash on Saturday, he called his mother and was relieved at first because she answered. Then came the news that his father and brother died, which he had to relay to his 92-year-old paternal grandmother.
The pilot of the helicopter -- a Eurocopter AS350 -- was Jeremy Clarke, 32. He had worked for Liberty Helicopter Sightseeing Tours for about 1½ years and had logged 2,700 helicopter flight hours, Hersman said.
Killed aboard the plane were the owner and pilot, Steven Altman, 60, of Ambler, Pennsylvania; his brother, Daniel Altman, 49, of Dresher, Pennsylvania; and Daniel Altman's 16-year-old son, Douglas.
The National Transportation Safety Board has begun to reconstruct what happened.
The Piper took off from a Philadelphia-area airfield Saturday morning and landed at New Jersey's Teterboro Airport before taking off again, this time bound for Ocean City, New Jersey. Watch why investigators are looking at the airspace »
The Piper pilot spoke after takeoff with the Teterboro tower, which handed him off electronically to the Newark tower, NTSB Chairman Debbie Hersman told reporters. But the pilot never contacted the Newark tower, she said.
Controllers lost contact with the plane at 11:53 a.m., when it was at an altitude of about 1,100 feet, Hersman said. Watch why investigators are looking at the airspace »
The helicopter was taking the five Italians on a 12-minute sightseeing tour around New York and had taken off from a heliport in midtown Manhattan shortly before the crash, Hersman said. Hersman called the area "very complex airspace" near three major airports and a variety of other general aviation facilities.
In an effort to determine just how
|
[
"When was the plane wreckage recovered?",
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"What was found in the submerged wreckage of the plane?",
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] |
[
"day in which police divers worked in water",
"The man's",
"eighth body",
"Silvia Rigamonti,",
"man's body",
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] |
question: When was the plane wreckage recovered?, answer: day in which police divers worked in water | question: What body was found?, answer: The man's | question: How many bodies have now been recovered, answer: eighth body | question: What wife of an italian victim?, answer: Silvia Rigamonti, | question: What was found in the submerged wreckage of the plane?, answer: man's body | question: When was the body found, answer: Monday
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Fight police misconduct with a cell phone, the NAACP says.
The century-old civil rights organization has launched an online reporting system that lets users upload cell phone images of alleged police abuses.
The Rapid Report System also lets users send text messages and e-mails about alleged misconduct.
"We know that most of police officers around the nation are excellent public servants. But the few who violate people's rights are often not held accountable," said Benjamin Jealous, president and CEO of the NAACP. "Research has shown that there are many barriers to reporting incidents of police misconduct, including intimidation at police departments and a lack of trust in the integrity of the system, among other reasons. This breakdown leads to an absence of public safety and a deterioration of the quality of life in many communities of color."
The NAACP unveiled the online system Monday at its national convention in New York City. Users can post images from their cell phones or online.
Cell phone footage has repeatedly helped spotlight alleged police misconduct in recent years. The fatal shooting of an unarmed man in Oakland, California, on New Year's Day made headlines and spread across the Internet partly because of cell phone video.
The killing sparked large protests in Oakland and led to a murder charge against the transit officer.
|
[
"What was captured on phone?",
"What happens with texts and emails?",
"What did NAACP unveil?",
"when will this take effect?"
] |
[
"images of alleged police abuses.",
"The Rapid Report System also lets users send",
"the online system",
"Monday"
] |
question: What was captured on phone?, answer: images of alleged police abuses. | question: What happens with texts and emails?, answer: The Rapid Report System also lets users send | question: What did NAACP unveil?, answer: the online system | question: when will this take effect?, answer: Monday
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Five Italian tourists visiting New York from Bologna are among the nine victims believed killed Saturday in a midair collision of a sightseeing helicopter and a single-engine plane over the Hudson River, a law enforcement source said.
First responders gather on a pier after a plane and helicopter collided Saturday over the Hudson River.
The tourists, who apparently died with the chopper's pilot, were part of a group of 12 visiting the United States, the source said. The helicopter was operated by Liberty Helicopter Sightseeing Tours.
The bodies of two adults and one child were recovered after the collision, which occurred around noon over the Hudson between New York and Hoboken, New Jersey, authorities said.
The child is believed to be one of the three people on the plane, a single-engine Piper PA-32 Saratoga that took off from New Jersey's Teterboro Airport, authorities said.
A source involved in the investigation identified the pilot and owner of the plane as Steven Altman, whose brother Daniel and nephew Douglas also were among the victims.
The two adult bodies, discovered underwater, are believed to be two of the Italian tourists aboard the helicopter, the law enforcement source said.
The Italian Foreign Ministry said consulate officials were working with New York authorities to identify the victims.
Helicopter wreckage was found in about 30 feet of water, while the plane is believed to be near the midchannel point of the Hudson in deeper water, the source said. A side-scanning sonar is being used to pinpoint the plane and has identified a possible third debris field, the source said.
The search is scheduled to resume Sunday morning, Debbie Hersman, chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board said at a riverside news conference late Saturday. Underwater visibility of about two feet hampered Saturday's search effort, she said.
All nine people in both aircrafts are thought to have been killed in the collision, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said. See where the collision occurred »
"There was an accident which we do not believe was survivable," said Bloomberg, noting that the search for survivors had become a recovery mission.
A temporary flight restriction over the rescue area -- about three nautical miles around and 2,000 feet up -- was put in place, a Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman said.
A witness told investigators he saw the airplane approach the helicopter from behind, Hersman said.
The witness said the plane's right wing made contact with the helicopter, an American Eurocopter AS350 operated by Liberty Helicopter Sightseeing Tours, Hersman said. View images from the scene »
Another Liberty pilot who was refueling at a nearby heliport told NTSB investigators that he saw the plane approach the helicopter and tried to warn the helicopter pilot, but got no response, Hersman said.
"This is a VFR corridor -- that means Visual Flight Rules prevail," Hersman told reporters late Saturday. "You are supposed to be alert and see and avoid other aircraft in the vicinity." iReport.com: Police search for debris
Witnesses reported seeing debris flying from the helicopter as it crashed.
The helicopter wreckage has been found, but the search for the plane, single-engine Piper Saratoga PA-32, will continue Sunday morning, Hersman said at a riverside news conference.
Witness Arnold Stevens said after the plane had a wing sheared off, it began "corkscrewing" into the water. The helicopter "dropped like a rock" after the collision, which happened about noon. See a series of photos from the scene »
Radar contact was lost with a small plane this morning believed to be the aircraft in the crash, FAA spokeswoman Arlene Salac said.
Ben Berman, a former investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board, said if the helicopter fell straight down, it's likely there was a rotor failure.
Scott Schuman was with his grandparents on the Hoboken side of the river when they heard a loud bang.
"The plane was kind of whirlybirding its way down, brown smoke coming out the back of it, and it crashed into the water. Then a few seconds later the helicopter with
|
[
"What sized plane was involved?",
"What nationality are the five tourists?",
"Bodies of two adults were found where?",
"Where were bodies found?",
"Where were the tourists from?",
"Who tried to warn the helicopter?",
"Where were the bodies from the helicopter found?"
] |
[
"single-engine",
"Italian",
"discovered underwater,",
"discovered underwater,",
"Bologna",
"Another Liberty pilot",
"Hudson River,"
] |
question: What sized plane was involved?, answer: single-engine | question: What nationality are the five tourists?, answer: Italian | question: Bodies of two adults were found where?, answer: discovered underwater, | question: Where were bodies found?, answer: discovered underwater, | question: Where were the tourists from?, answer: Bologna | question: Who tried to warn the helicopter?, answer: Another Liberty pilot | question: Where were the bodies from the helicopter found?, answer: Hudson River,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Four men were indicted Tuesday in what prosecutors said was a plot to bomb two New York City synagogues and fire surface-to-air missiles at U.S. military planes.
Three of the four suspects in the alleged synagogue bombing plot are shown after their arrests.
The defendants -- James Cromitie, 44; David Williams, 28; Onta Williams, 32; and Laguerre Payen, 27 -- were charged with conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction within the United States, conspiracy to acquire and use anti-aircraft missiles and six other counts. They face a maximum penalty of life in prison. Arraignment is scheduled for Wednesday.
The plot was uncovered in a yearlong investigation involving an FBI informant. It ended with federal agents and New York police used an 18-wheel truck to block a vehicle carrying the suspects after they planted what they believed were explosive devices in cars near the synagogues, said New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly. The planted devices were actually duds.
The four are accused of plotting to detonate explosives near two synagogues in the Riverdale section of the Bronx and seeking to fire missiles at planes at an Air National Guard base. Kelly described the plot as homegrown, with no known links to any foreign or domestic groups.
At a court hearing on May 21, U.S. Magistrate Lisa Smith ordered three of the suspects -- Cromitie, David Williams and Onta Williams -- to remain in custody without bail. Prosecutor Eric Snyder described the suspects as violent men "eager to bring death to Jews."
At a later hearing, the fourth suspect -- Laguerre Payen -- also was remanded without bail. Payen received medical treatment for injuries during the arrest and had a bandage over one eye at his hearing.
Payen's lawyer told the hearing that her client had a history of mental instability, but Snyder, the prosecutor, said videotapes of the plotters showed Payen to be a coherent and willing participant. Payen told the judge he has prescriptions for drugs used to treat depression and conditions including bipolar disorder.
Cromitie, David Williams and Onta Williams are U.S. citizens, while Payen is Haitian, according to the New York governor's office.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg praised the work of his city's Police Department and federal authorities in uncovering the alleged plot.
"The good news here is that the New York Police Department and FBI did exactly what they're trained to do and prevented what could have been a terrible event," Bloomberg said. "We have to constantly be vigilant."
"Unfortunately, this is the world we live in," said Nurit Bacharach of the Gan Miriam Early Childhood Center at the Hebrew Institute in Riverdale. "We just have to forge ahead and keep a positive mind and live life and just be cautious and aware."
According to state and federal authorities, an FBI informant met with Cromitie in June 2008 in Newburgh, New York. During that meeting Cromitie said his parents live in Afghanistan, he was angry about the U.S. war there and that he had an interest in "doing something to America."
The four suspects began meeting with the informant at a home equipped with concealed video and audio equipment, plotting to bomb the synagogues, authorities said. The suspects also conducted surveillance, including photographs, of an Air National Guard base where they wanted to blow up planes, authorities said.
The informant provided the men with a surface-to-air guided missile and C-4 plastic explosives, none of which could actually be used.
"No one was at risk," said Kelly, the police commissioner, describing the explosive devices as duds created to dupe the suspects.
CNN's Laurie Segall contributed to this report
|
[
"what are four men accused of",
"what do police say",
"What were the four men accused of?",
"What did police say the informant did?",
"who does the mayor praise",
"What says Police?"
] |
[
"York City synagogues and fire surface-to-air missiles at U.S. military planes.",
"\"No one was at risk,\"",
"bomb two New",
"met with Cromitie in June 2008 in Newburgh, New York.",
"Michael Bloomberg praised the work of his city's Police Department and federal authorities in uncovering the alleged plot.",
"\"No one was at risk,\""
] |
question: what are four men accused of, answer: York City synagogues and fire surface-to-air missiles at U.S. military planes. | question: what do police say, answer: "No one was at risk," | question: What were the four men accused of?, answer: bomb two New | question: What did police say the informant did?, answer: met with Cromitie in June 2008 in Newburgh, New York. | question: who does the mayor praise, answer: Michael Bloomberg praised the work of his city's Police Department and federal authorities in uncovering the alleged plot. | question: What says Police?, answer: "No one was at risk,"
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Good, but not enough, the Rev. Al Sharpton said in response to New York Post Chairman Rupert Murdoch's apology for a controversial editorial cartoon published in the newspaper. Online Wednesday, some Post readers reacted similarly.
Rev. Al Sharpton, center, leads protests against the New York Post cartoon on February 19 in New York City.
Sharpton has lead a chorus of criticism and allegations that the cartoon published Feb. 18 was racist.
He said Murdoch's apology was a "good gesture," but he still had questions.
Public debate on the issue continued to rage on the New York Post Web site early Wednesday, with some saying they were offended enough to cancel their subscriptions. Others defended the cartoon, calling it harmless and calling critics of it oversensitive.
Murdoch's "apology leaves a lot more questions than it gives answers," Sharpton said Tuesday. "The question is what will guarantee that these kinds of things will not happen again. Let us make no mistake about it: We have seen two apologies in one week -- really one and a half apologies -- which is unprecedented, but clearly not far enough."
The cartoon by Sean Delonas referenced the mauling of a Connecticut woman by a chimpanzee who was later shot and killed by police. In its caption, one of the officers says, "They'll have to find someone else to write the next stimulus bill."
The cartoon was published the day after President Obama signed the stimulus bill. Watch CNN's Lou Dobbs talk with Sharpton »
The Post issued a statement the following day, apologizing but noting that the cartoon was meant to mock what it called an "ineptly written" stimulus bill.
Many critics said the cartoon played on historically racist images by appearing to compare Obama, the nation's first black president, to the chimpanzee.
Murdoch apologized Tuesday.
"Today I want to personally apologize to any reader who felt offended, and even insulted," according to the statement from Murdoch, who is also chairman and CEO of News Corporation, which owns the paper.
"I can assure you -- without a doubt -- that the only intent of that cartoon was to mock a badly written piece of legislation.
"It was not meant to be racist, but unfortunately, it was interpreted by many as such. We all hold the readers of the New York Post in high regard, and I promise you that we will seek to be more attuned to the sensitivities of our community."
Leaders of the NAACP on Saturday called for the firing of Delonas.
Delonas called the controversy "absolutely friggin' ridiculous."
"Do you really think I'm saying Obama should be shot? I didn't see that in the cartoon," Delonas told CNN. iReport.com: Should Murdoch, N.Y. Post do more?
"It's about the economic stimulus bill," he added. "If you're going to make that about anybody, it would be (House Speaker Nancy) Pelosi, which it's not."
|
[
"what did he apologize for",
"What did the critics say?",
"who still has questions",
"who is chairman",
"What is Rupert Murdoch's apology for?",
"where was the cartoon printed"
] |
[
"a controversial editorial cartoon published in the newspaper.",
"the cartoon played on historically racist images by appearing to compare Obama, the nation's first black president, to the chimpanzee.",
"Rev. Al Sharpton,",
"Rupert Murdoch's",
"controversial editorial cartoon",
"New York Post"
] |
question: what did he apologize for, answer: a controversial editorial cartoon published in the newspaper. | question: What did the critics say?, answer: the cartoon played on historically racist images by appearing to compare Obama, the nation's first black president, to the chimpanzee. | question: who still has questions, answer: Rev. Al Sharpton, | question: who is chairman, answer: Rupert Murdoch's | question: What is Rupert Murdoch's apology for?, answer: controversial editorial cartoon | question: where was the cartoon printed, answer: New York Post
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- He says it's true. She says it's not.
Former New Jersey Gov. Jim McGreevey and his wife, Dina Matos McGreevey, in 2004.
Former New Jersey Gov. Jim McGreevey says he and his wife, Dina Matos McGreevey, used to engage in sexual relations with his ex-aide and driver, Teddy Pedersen.
Dina Matos McGreevey has denied the allegation.
The New York Post and New Jersey's Star Ledger reported online Sunday that Pedersen said he had sexual relations with the McGreeveys in the late 1990s during the couple's courtship, and after the McGreeveys' marriage in 2000.
In the article, Pedersen describes trysts during which he and Jim McGreevey would both have sex with Dina Matos McGreevey, but says that, in his opinion, "me being part of their sexual relationship enhanced it for both of them."
Pedersen described regularly sharing a hotel room with the McGreeveys during out-of-town business trips.
In a statement issued Monday, Dina Matos McGreevey acknowledged that Pedersen had long had a "close relationship" with her former husband, but called his sexual claims "completely false."
"This all has to do with the publicity I have received since [New York] Gov. [Eliot] Spitzer resigned," her statement said, alluding to her recent New York Times op-ed piece on Silda Wall Spitzer and her recent discussion of betrayed political wives on CNN's "Larry King Live."
"Jim has enlisted one of his cronies in trying to distinguish that situation from his own, and to discredit me in the media," she said.
In August 2004, she stood silently beside her husband while he publicly declared himself "a gay American," admitted to having an office-compromising affair with another man -- later identified as a staff member -- and announced his intention to resign.
They are in the process of divorcing.
Jim McGreevey Monday confirmed Pedersen's claims.
"This happened, this happened in the past, and now, we need to move on with our lives," the former governor said in a written statement. "For all our sakes, particularly our daughter, we need to close this chapter and look toward the future."
The statement went on to say he had removed references to the incidents Pedersen describes from an early draft of his book.
"I still hope Dina and I can resolve our issues privately," it concluded.
After Dina Matos McGreevey issued her refutation, Pedersen stood by his story, telling the New York Post, "Dina is still in denial. It's time for her to face the truth." E-mail to a friend
|
[
"Which former aid to Jim McGreevey accused him of sexual inpropriety",
"What Confirm Jim?",
"What says Jim?",
"What is the name of Jim McGreevey's wife who was involved in a sexual scandal",
"What does Dina Matos McGrreevey deny?",
"What does Jim McGreevey confirm?",
"In which year died Jim McGreevey announce his resignation"
] |
[
"Teddy Pedersen.",
"Pedersen's claims.",
"he and his wife, Dina Matos McGreevey, used to engage in sexual relations with his ex-aide and driver, Teddy Pedersen.",
"Dina Matos",
"McGreevey, used to engage in sexual relations with his ex-aide and driver, Teddy Pedersen.",
"Pedersen's claims.",
"2004,"
] |
question: Which former aid to Jim McGreevey accused him of sexual inpropriety, answer: Teddy Pedersen. | question: What Confirm Jim?, answer: Pedersen's claims. | question: What says Jim?, answer: he and his wife, Dina Matos McGreevey, used to engage in sexual relations with his ex-aide and driver, Teddy Pedersen. | question: What is the name of Jim McGreevey's wife who was involved in a sexual scandal, answer: Dina Matos | question: What does Dina Matos McGrreevey deny?, answer: McGreevey, used to engage in sexual relations with his ex-aide and driver, Teddy Pedersen. | question: What does Jim McGreevey confirm?, answer: Pedersen's claims. | question: In which year died Jim McGreevey announce his resignation, answer: 2004,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Investigators have raised the wreckage of the helicopter involved in Saturday's deadly mid-air collision over the Hudson River, but they were still looking for the small plane involved in the crash, authorities said Sunday.
Divers unload a body from their raft onto a police boat Sunday. Nine people are believed dead in the crash.
New York police said they believed side-scan sonar pointed them to the wreckage of the Piper Saratoga PA-32 just north of where the helicopter went down, but Deborah Hersman, chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board, said swift current and low visibility were hindering divers. The search stopped as a storm approached Sunday evening and will resume Monday morning, police said.
Nine people, including five Italian tourists, were aboard the two aircraft when they collided over the river shortly before noon Saturday. Seven bodies had been pulled out of the river by Sunday afternoon, Hersman said.
Authorities believe none of the nine people aboard the two aircraft survived the crash.
Neither aircraft was required to carry electronic "black boxes" that record cockpit voices and flight data on larger planes, but electronic navigational devices on board might retain some information that could help the probe, Hersman said.
Investigators are trying to establish the facts of the crash but won't determine the probable cause for some time, Hersman said. See where the collision occurred »
"We are looking at everything. Nothing has been ruled out at this point in time," she said.
Most of the Eurocopter AS350 had been lifted out of the Hudson on Sunday and taken to a pier in Hoboken, New Jersey, across the river from Manhattan, for examination, Hersman said. The helicopter was taking the five Italians on a 12-minute sightseeing tour around New York and had taken off from a heliport in midtown Manhattan shortly before the crash, she said. Watch crews search for victims »
New York police identified the pilot of the helicopter as Jeremy Clark, 32. He had worked for the operator, Liberty Helicopter Sightseeing Tours, for about a year and a half and had 2,700 helicopter flight hours, Hersman said. iReport.com: Were you there? Send images
His passengers were Michele Norelli, 51; Fabio Gallazzi, 49; Filippo Norelli, 16; Giacomo Gallazzi, 15; and Tiziana Pedroni, 44, all of Bologna, Italy.
The plane took off from a Philadelphia-area airfield Saturday morning, landed at New Jersey's Teterboro Airport and was bound for Ocean City, New Jersey, with three people aboard -- the owner and pilot, Steven Altman, 60, of Ambler, Pennsylvania; his brother, Daniel Altman, 49, of Dresher, Pennsylvania; and Daniel Altman's son Douglas, 16.
Controllers lost contact with the plane at 11:53 a.m., when it was at an altitude of about 1,100 feet, Hersman said. View images from the scene »
Hersman said the NTSB has recorded eight accidents and one "incident" involving Liberty, but Saturday's crash was the first to involve fatalities.
Previous accidents included a 2007 case in which a helicopter crash-landed in the Hudson from a height of 500 feet, but without injuring passengers; a 2008 incident in which one helicopter taking off clipped another on the ground; a 2008 incident in which a pilot caused "substantial damage" to a helicopter while landing during an instructional session.
In 2001, a Liberty pilot made an "improper decision" to continue flying in poor weather at night, causing the helicopter to hit trees, according to the NTSB.
Marcia Horowitz, a spokeswoman for the tour operator, said Liberty executives "are cooperating fully" with investigators.
"Right now, the company is focusing its efforts on cooperating with the NTSB and giving as much information as it can," Horowitz said. "At this time, their priority is to help with the family of their pilot, and of course the families that were involved in the accident."
Investigators will focus on radio communications along the congested air corridor at the time of the crash and examine any pictures or video contributed
|
[
"for what reason did the search stop",
"What stopped the search on Sunday??",
"How many bodies were pulled from the water?",
"When will the search resume?",
"How many are believed to be dead?",
"How many bodies where pulled from the Hudson River?"
] |
[
"stopped as a storm approached",
"a storm approached",
"Seven",
"Monday morning,",
"Nine people",
"Seven"
] |
question: for what reason did the search stop, answer: stopped as a storm approached | question: What stopped the search on Sunday??, answer: a storm approached | question: How many bodies were pulled from the water?, answer: Seven | question: When will the search resume?, answer: Monday morning, | question: How many are believed to be dead?, answer: Nine people | question: How many bodies where pulled from the Hudson River?, answer: Seven
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Just days before his death, the Brooklyn, New York, middle-school student who died from an antibiotic-resistant staph infection had visited a hospital with skin lesions and was treated with allergy medicine, according to the family's lawyer, Paul Weitz.
Omar Rivera, 12, a New York seventh-grader, died of drug-resistant staph on October 14.
Omar Rivera's mother, Aileen, took the 12-year-old boy to Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn because she had been dissatisfied with the treatment he received at a clinic, Weitz told CNN. He said the hospital treated him with Benadryl, a common anti-allergy medicine.
According to hospital spokeswoman Hope Mason, Omar did not show signs of a staph infection when he was treated at the hospital.
"I can confirm the child was brought to the emergency room after midnight on Friday, October 12. He was treated for non-MRSA-related conditions and was released," said Mason. "We will be closely examining whether more could have been done to detect the infection at that time."
MRSA is short for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, and is responsible for more deaths in the United States each year than AIDS, according to new data. The germ resists all but the most powerful antibiotics.
Omar, a seventh-grader at Intermediate School 211, was pronounced dead on October 14 at Brookdale Hospital.
Twenty-five to 30 percent of the population carry the staph bacteria -- one of the most common causes of infection -- in their bodies, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While such infections are typically minor, invasive MRSA infections can become fatal, because they are caused by drug-resistant staph. E-mail to a friend
CNN's Emily Kerschner and Jennifer Rizzo contributed to this report.
|
[
"Who died October 14 from infection with MRSA?",
"According to the lawyer, when did the student visit the hospital?",
"When did Rivera die?",
"Who treated skin lesions with Benadryl?",
"What was the age of Omar Rivera?",
"Who had visited hospital days before his death from staph infection?",
"who died on October 14 from a MRSA infection"
] |
[
"Omar Rivera,",
"Just days before his death,",
"October 14.",
"the hospital",
"12,",
"Omar Rivera,",
"Omar Rivera,"
] |
question: Who died October 14 from infection with MRSA?, answer: Omar Rivera, | question: According to the lawyer, when did the student visit the hospital?, answer: Just days before his death, | question: When did Rivera die?, answer: October 14. | question: Who treated skin lesions with Benadryl?, answer: the hospital | question: What was the age of Omar Rivera?, answer: 12, | question: Who had visited hospital days before his death from staph infection?, answer: Omar Rivera, | question: who died on October 14 from a MRSA infection, answer: Omar Rivera,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Lillo Brancato Jr., an actor who appeared in "The Sopranos," was acquitted of the 2005 killing an off-duty New York City police officer but found guilty of attempted burglary.
Lillo Brancato Jr. appeared on "The Sopranos" and played alongside Robert De Niro in "A Bronx Tale."
Brancato, 32, was also acquitted of two counts of burglary, but could face three to 15 years in prison on the attempted burglary charge. He has already served three years, according to his attorney, Joseph Tacopina.
Police officer Daniel Enchautegui, 28, was killed trying to break up a burglary attempt at his neighbor's house in the Bronx in December 2005.
During the trial, Brancato said there was not a break-in. Brancato said he knew the owner of the home, and that he and friend Steven Armento, 51, were drinking at a strip club when they decided to go hunt for valium.
Brancato told the jury that the owner, a Vietnam veteran, gave him permission to come to his house and take painkillers or other pills whenever he wanted.
Brancato admitted to breaking a window at the home, but said it was strictly because he was going through intense heroin withdrawal that night and he said he was trying to wake up his friend to get the drugs.
When Brancato and Armento entered the home, the next door neighbor -- Enchautegui -- came outside to investigate.
That's when prosecutors said Armento shot the officer through the heart with his .357 Magnum.
Armento was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in November. The jury in that trial took less than six hours to convict Armento.
Enchautegui was shot in the chest by Armento when he interrupted the alleged robbery, but managed to shoot both suspects multiple times before dying.
"This jury spoke loud and clear, that Lillo had nothing to do with the murder of this police officer," Tacopina said.
Brancato appeared on six episodes of the hit HBO series "The Sopranos" as a wannabe mobster in 2000. As a teen, Brancato starred alongside actor Robert De Niro in "A Bronx Tale."
|
[
"What prison term does he now face?",
"What said actor about drugs?",
"what Lillo Brancato Jr. played?",
"What did Lillo Brancato Jr play on The Sopranos?",
"where Brancato faces up to 15 years?",
"What did he do as teen with Robert De Niro?",
"In which film starred Brancato?"
] |
[
"three to 15 years in",
"he was going through intense heroin withdrawal that night and he",
"alongside Robert De Niro in",
"a wannabe mobster",
"New York City",
"appeared on \"The Sopranos\" and played alongside",
"\"A Bronx Tale.\""
] |
question: What prison term does he now face?, answer: three to 15 years in | question: What said actor about drugs?, answer: he was going through intense heroin withdrawal that night and he | question: what Lillo Brancato Jr. played?, answer: alongside Robert De Niro in | question: What did Lillo Brancato Jr play on The Sopranos?, answer: a wannabe mobster | question: where Brancato faces up to 15 years?, answer: New York City | question: What did he do as teen with Robert De Niro?, answer: appeared on "The Sopranos" and played alongside | question: In which film starred Brancato?, answer: "A Bronx Tale."
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Mary J. Blige has sung her way to nine Grammy Awards and sold 40 million albums worldwide.
"I know I'm definitely gonna pursue this as a profession, acting," Mary J. Blige said.
With music credentials like that, the "Queen of Hip-Hop Soul" needed a new challenge. So Blige decided to stretch her range to the big screen.
The singer stars in the new Tyler Perry film "I Can Do Bad All By Myself" alongside Oscar nominee Taraji P. Henson, Perry and Gladys Knight.
Being in the film allows Blige to test her acting chops and sing as well. Her character, Tanya, is a club owner who takes the mic at least twice in the film. And whether she's in character or not, Blige's ability to communicate a song can take your breath away.
CNN spoke with Blige about Tyler Perry, her acting angst and music. The following is an edited version of that interview:
CNN: What does the title of the film "I Can Do Bad All By Myself" mean?
Mary J. Blige: Well, the title "I Can Do Bad All By Myself" is basically saying "I don't need anyone to help me do worse or feel worse than what I already feel." So if you're coming with negative energy, please keep it moving, you know? If you're coming with negative deposits, you've gotta go. That's basically what it's saying.
CNN: Were you nervous about acting in this film?
Blige: I was definitely nervous, because acting is not my first profession, so I had to go and get an acting coach and really figure this thing out. It helped a lot. It relaxed me to have a little more information about it.
And I find that actors are highly underrated; they don't get all the credit they deserve, because this is a hard job. That's a hard job.
CNN: Were you bitten by the acting bug?
Blige: Well, I'm gonna be open to scripts, and I'm ready to receive more scripts from anywhere. I know I'm definitely gonna pursue this as a profession, acting. I was definitely bitten by the acting bug.
CNN: Did you feel any pressure to write songs for this film, as opposed to writing for one of your albums?
Blige: There's not any pressure in writing songs. Writing a song for the movie versus writing songs for my album because ... you get it all from inspiration from somewhere, you know? I got all the lyrics from the actual movie, and I got all the lyrics for my songs from my life so, and other people's lives.
CNN: Do you want to hear poetry in your lyrics?
Blige: I would love to hear poetry in my lyrics.
CNN: Tell me about Tyler Perry.
Blige: Wow, working with Tyler Perry was -- it's always a treat. He's the most kind, generous, you know, supportive professional man. He's a really good person to have in such a tough business. It's like a pillow for your head. ... You just get to lay on it after laying on rocks for so long.
CNN: What is the link between spirituality and music in the film and in life?
Blige: Well, I think the link with the spirituality and the music is that we all have a place where we need to go to heal, and most of the time people go to music to heal. Whether it be gospel or secular, but it all comes from some song that pulled you through your life or helped you through college or something like that.
CNN: Do you think this film is about redemption? Do you think people can really change?
Blige: I definitely feel this film is a lot about redemption. You saving yourself first of all, and believing you can be saved and wanting the help.
I think it takes time
|
[
"Is acting Mary J. Blige's first profession?",
"Which singer is starring in \"I Can Do Bad All By Myself\"?",
"What is the name of the new Tyler Perry film?",
"What did the star say the movie is about?",
"Who was definitely nervous?",
"Who stars in it?",
"Who stars in the new Tyler Perry film?",
"What is the movie called?"
] |
[
"is not",
"Mary J. Blige",
"\"I Can Do Bad All By Myself\"",
"redemption.",
"Mary J. Blige",
"Mary J. Blige",
"Mary J. Blige",
"\"I Can Do Bad All By Myself\""
] |
question: Is acting Mary J. Blige's first profession?, answer: is not | question: Which singer is starring in "I Can Do Bad All By Myself"?, answer: Mary J. Blige | question: What is the name of the new Tyler Perry film?, answer: "I Can Do Bad All By Myself" | question: What did the star say the movie is about?, answer: redemption. | question: Who was definitely nervous?, answer: Mary J. Blige | question: Who stars in it?, answer: Mary J. Blige | question: Who stars in the new Tyler Perry film?, answer: Mary J. Blige | question: What is the movie called?, answer: "I Can Do Bad All By Myself"
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Misdemeanor assault charges have been dropped against "24" star Kiefer Sutherland in a head-butting incident at a New York City nightclub, according to Alicia Maxey Greene, spokeswoman for the Manhattan District Attorney's office.
Kiefer Sutherland turns himself in to the NYPD on May 7. Charges against him have been dropped.
"We decided to drop the charge after a full investigation, including after speaking to a complaining witness, who was uncooperative," Greene told CNN Tuesday.
The charges stem from an incident in which Sutherland allegedly head-butted designer Jack McCollough at a New York City nightclub in May.
McCollough had claimed he was "the victim of a vicious, violent, unprovoked assault," according to a statement released after the incident from McCollough's publicist..
Several weeks after the incident, Sutherland and McCollough issued a joint statement, through Sutherland's attorney, in which Sutherland apologized.
|
[
"What television drama does Kiefer Sutherland star in?",
"When did this happen?",
"what did manhattan da's office say was dropped",
"What hit drama does he star in?",
"What kind of charges was dropped against the actor?",
"what did the charges stem from",
"what show does kiefer sutherland star in"
] |
[
"\"24\"",
"May 7.",
"Misdemeanor assault charges",
"\"24\"",
"Misdemeanor assault",
"an incident in which Sutherland allegedly head-butted designer Jack McCollough at a New York City nightclub in May.",
"\"24\""
] |
question: What television drama does Kiefer Sutherland star in?, answer: "24" | question: When did this happen?, answer: May 7. | question: what did manhattan da's office say was dropped, answer: Misdemeanor assault charges | question: What hit drama does he star in?, answer: "24" | question: What kind of charges was dropped against the actor?, answer: Misdemeanor assault | question: what did the charges stem from, answer: an incident in which Sutherland allegedly head-butted designer Jack McCollough at a New York City nightclub in May. | question: what show does kiefer sutherland star in, answer: "24"
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- More than $20 million from dozens of clients is unaccounted for in the aftermath of what police say was a murder-suicide by the attorney who invested the money, according to a source with direct knowledge of deceased lawyer William Parente's financial dealings.
Police say Stephanie Parente's father killed his family and himself in a Baltimore hotel Monday.
Some investors fear their entire life savings have been wiped out, said the source, who based the $20 million amount on knowledge of Parente's finances.
Some other investors are missing what could amount to another $7 million, CNN has learned, so the total of missing money tied to Parente could be upwards of $27 million.
Baltimore County, Maryland, police say Parente, 59, killed his family before committing suicide. The bodies of Parente, his wife and their two daughters were found in a hotel room in Towson, Maryland, on Monday.
The source, who asked not to be identified because of the sensitive financial information involved, said one investor had been involved with Parente for more than 15 years, receiving regular monthly payments from Parente until April 16, four days before the bodies were found.
The source said Parente solicited personal loans from clients at high interest, promising to use the money for bridge financing of real estate projects such as shopping centers.
The source did not know whether Parente, of Garden City, New York, had actually used the money for any legitimate investments.
The source, who knew Parente for more than 15 years, described him as "serious, somber and conservative."
Parente told investors he was generating returns of more than 13 percent even in down markets, according to the source.
Investors were not given investment statements and were not charged a management fee, but Parente did provide notices informing investors that he owed them money, according to the source.
In other developments Friday, police said Parente bought a set of knives from a Crate and Barrel store in Towson, and one of the knives is believed to be the one Parente later used to take his own life.
Baltimore County police said that knife is being tested as evidence in the murder/suicide case. Investigators say they found a receipt for the knife in the hotel room where the deaths took place, and the time stamped on the receipt was 5:25 p.m. Sunday.
Police have said Parente's wife, Betty, 58, and daughters Catherine, 11, and Stephanie, 19, were killed by asphyxiation and blunt force trauma Sunday afternoon.
Authorities said Parente took a call about midnight Sunday from his elder daughter's college roommate asking whether she was returning to her dormitory. Police believe Parente's daughter was already dead. He told the roommate his daughter was spending the night at the hotel with the family.
Also Friday, other details emerged about some of Parente's other clients.
One of Parente's investors was Queens lawyer Bruce Montague, and Montague's office has heard from 10 Parente clients whose investments are unaccounted for. Together, those clients had invested about $7 million. Through a law partner, Craig Gardy, Montague said he is missing $450,000.
The clients are from New York, New Jersey, California and Florida, according to Montague's office. The office has referred those clients to the FBI.
Gardy said Montague, who considered Parente to be a personal friend, remains too devastated about the deaths to provide details himself, but he authorized his partners to speak on his behalf.
The scenario as given by his partners was that after the Bernard Madoff scandal broke last fall, Montague got "cold feet" and repeatedly asked Parente for his investment money back.
On April 16, Montague tried to deposit a check from Parente for $245,000. On Tuesday, April 21, when Montague's bank notified him the check did not clear, he called Chase bank, where Parente's funds were held.
Montague was told Parente's account was empty, according to Gardy, and it would be useless to deposit other checks received from Parente.
Then Montague called
|
[
"Who did William Parente kill?",
"How much money did Parente take from patients?",
"How much money was in his account?",
"who did parente kill",
"what amount did he take",
"Who killed his wife and kids?",
"what were they not charged"
] |
[
"his family and himself",
"$20 million",
"More than $20 million",
"his family and himself",
"More than $20 million",
"Stephanie Parente's father",
"a management fee,"
] |
question: Who did William Parente kill?, answer: his family and himself | question: How much money did Parente take from patients?, answer: $20 million | question: How much money was in his account?, answer: More than $20 million | question: who did parente kill, answer: his family and himself | question: what amount did he take, answer: More than $20 million | question: Who killed his wife and kids?, answer: Stephanie Parente's father | question: what were they not charged, answer: a management fee,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- NYPD officers on counter-terrorism patrol helped deliver a baby during morning rush hour in the middle of New York's bustling Penn Station Wednesday.
Caesar Penn Boothe was delivered under the Penn Station departures sign at 7:20 a.m. Wednesday.
"Forget the ambulance, forget everything else -- I'm going to have the baby right here," new mother Marie Boothe recalled at a news conference later in the day.
Three members of the police department's counter-terrorism patrol team who were in the station and an Amtrak police officer stepped in to help deliver the seven-pound baby boy under the departures sign at 7:20 a.m.
The newborn was greeted by fellow commuters in typical New York City fashion.
"They started yelling, 'Name him Penn, after Penn Station!'" said Marie Medina, one of the NYPD officers who aided in the special delivery.
Caesar Penn Boothe, whose middle name reflects his birthplace, was taken to Bellevue Hospital along with his mother, and the two were reported to be doing well.
|
[
"What were the words of mother?",
"What was the baby's name?",
"What was the baby named?",
"What did the mother say?",
"Who helped deliver the baby?"
] |
[
"I'm going to have the baby right here,\"",
"Caesar Penn Boothe",
"Caesar Penn Boothe",
"\"Forget the ambulance, forget everything else -- I'm going to have the baby right here,\"",
"NYPD officers on counter-terrorism patrol"
] |
question: What were the words of mother?, answer: I'm going to have the baby right here," | question: What was the baby's name?, answer: Caesar Penn Boothe | question: What was the baby named?, answer: Caesar Penn Boothe | question: What did the mother say?, answer: "Forget the ambulance, forget everything else -- I'm going to have the baby right here," | question: Who helped deliver the baby?, answer: NYPD officers on counter-terrorism patrol
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Natasha Richardson, a film star, Tony-winning stage actress and member of the famed Redgrave acting family, died Wednesday after suffering injuries in a ski accident, according to a family statement. She was 45.
Natasha Richardson fell on a beginners' slope in Canada.
Richardson, wife of actor Liam Neeson, was injured Monday in a fall on a ski slope at a Quebec resort about 80 miles northwest of Montreal.
Richardson's family released a statement saying, "Liam Neeson, his sons, and the entire family are shocked and devastated by the tragic death of their beloved Natasha. They are profoundly grateful for the support, love and prayers of everyone, and ask for privacy during this very difficult time."
According to a statement from Mont Tremblant Ski Resort, Richardson fell during a lesson on a beginners' trail. Watch a report on Richardson's life »
"She did not show any visible sign of injury, but the ski patrol followed strict procedures and brought her back to the bottom of the slope and insisted she should see a doctor," the statement said.
Richardson, accompanied by her instructor, returned to her hotel, but about an hour after the fall was "not feeling good," the statement said. An ambulance was called, and Richardson was taken to a local hospital before being transferred to Hopital du Sacre-Coeur in Montreal. From there she was transferred to Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City.
Friends and colleagues were saddened by her death.
"Natasha was brilliant, beautiful, funny, talented beyond measure, as emotionally raw as she was razor sharp," said Jodie Foster, who worked with Richardson in "Nell," in a statement. "Tasha loved fiercely and that love continues in all of us who knew her. May Liam, her beautiful boys and her loving family hold her close as they move through this tragic moment."
"Natasha combined the best of [her parents, Vanessa] Redgrave and [Tony] Richardson: the enormous depth and emotional force of a great actor on the one hand, and the intelligence and objectivity of a great director on the other. She was a one-of-a-kind, a magnificent actress," said director Sam Mendes in a statement.
Mendes directed Richardson in her Tony-winning "Cabaret" performance.
Richardson was practically born to perform. Her grandfather, Sir Michael Redgrave, was a famed British actor. Her mother, Vanessa Redgrave, is an Oscar-winning actress, and her father, the late director Tony Richardson, helmed such films as "Look Back in Anger," "The Entertainer" and the Oscar-winning "Tom Jones."
Natasha Richardson's uncle Corin Redgrave, aunt Lynn Redgrave, and sister Joely Richardson are also noted performers.
But being part of a family of actors wasn't always easy for Richardson. Her parents divorced when she was 4 and her mother, involved in controversial political causes, gave away a lot of money, putting the family in financial straits, according to the BBC.
Then there was the family heritage, of which Richardson once said, "Though my name opened doors it didn't get me work, and a lot of pressure comes from having a mother who is considered one of the greatest actresses of her generation," the BBC reported.
In 2007, Richardson worked with her mother in the film "Evening." Richardson said she made one point to director Lajos Koltai about the relatives working together.
"This is a unique opportunity," she said she told him. "This is the one time my mother and I are going to play mother and daughter on screen, so you've got to take advantage of it." Watch Richardson talk about working with her mom »
Richardson's first film role was a bit part in her father's "The Charge of the Light Brigade" (1968), made when she was 4. After a handful of roles through her teens and early 20s, she broke through as Mary Shelley
|
[
"Who fell Monday?",
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"Who fell on Monday while skiing?",
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] |
[
"Natasha Richardson",
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"Natasha Richardson",
"injuries in a ski accident,",
"on a ski slope at a Quebec resort about 80 miles northwest of Montreal.",
"Liam Neeson,"
] |
question: Who fell Monday?, answer: Natasha Richardson | question: Who appeared fine but then became ill?, answer: Natasha Richardson, | question: Who fell on Monday while skiing?, answer: Natasha Richardson | question: What caused her death?, answer: injuries in a ski accident, | question: Where did she fall?, answer: on a ski slope at a Quebec resort about 80 miles northwest of Montreal. | question: who is she married to?, answer: Liam Neeson,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Nearly 27 years ago, amid a crowd of people in Central Park, Ruth Bendik's wallet was stolen. The culprit is still at large, but the wallet has been found -- in the hollow trunk of a cherry tree.
Nearly 27 years ago, amid a crowd of people in Central Park, Ruth Bendik's wallet was stolen.
The wallet was snatched on October 24, 1982, while Bendik, now 69, was in Central Park watching the New York marathon. She went to greet runners at the end of the race and, "when I got out of the crush of people, I realized my purse was much lighter," Bendik told CNN. "I was just so grateful not to have been harmed."
Last week, Josh Galiley, tree-care supervisor for the Central Park Conservancy, was chopping down a hazardous black cherry tree near Rumsey Playfield when he discovered her blue leather wallet in the trunk of the tree, which he estimates is around 65 years old and 50 feet high.
"I started poking in the soft stuff and this wallet turned up. Having been that low in the tree ... the location indicated it had been there for quite some time," Galiley told CNN.
The old wallet was a unique find, he said. "When you're cutting a tree and it's hollow, you expect stuff inside, shreds of material, old marbles, really just knickknacks compared to this," he said, "Nothing with a story. ... We peeked in and there were dates from the early '80s. We figured this was different."
After the wallet was recovered, Galiley said, officials were careful to inform Bendik properly. "We thought she may not want to relive it," he said.
Bendik sang praises for the individuals who returned her wallet, including detective Frank Irizarry, who helped track her down. "The lengths they went to find me, the extent that they went through and the fact that they were concerned about my feelings really impressed me," she said.
The wallet still contained her old driver's license and credit cards, she said, although $20 was missing. "Twenty dollars was a lot of money then," she said.
After two decades, much more has changed. Referring to two of her old bank cards from Manufacturers Hanover Trust Bank and Banker's Trust, Bendik said, "I was shocked that both banks had closed."
But some things haven't changed. Bendik continues to have fond memories of Central Park. The Ohio native, who has lived in New York for 40 years, still describes the park as one of her favorite areas in the city. "It's a public place in an impersonal city," she said, "It brings everyone together in a pleasant way of reconnecting with nature and beauty."
Today, Bendik smiles at the idea of her wallet buried in a cherry tree in Central Park for nearly 30 years, and she's happy to have it in her hands again.
"After all these years it's still available as a time capsule of my life."
|
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"Josh Galiley,",
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"$20"
] |
question: Who found the wallet?, answer: Josh Galiley, | question: What did it have in it?, answer: old driver's license and credit cards, | question: Where was Ruth Bendik's wallet snatched?, answer: Central Park, | question: Where was the wallet found?, answer: in the hollow trunk of a cherry tree. | question: What was snatched in 1982?, answer: Ruth Bendik's wallet | question: When was his wallet stolen?, answer: Nearly 27 years ago, | question: Where was it found?, answer: in the hollow trunk of a cherry tree. | question: What was missing from the wallet?, answer: $20
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Nearly a year after surviving a plane crash in South Carolina, disc jockey Adam "DJ AM" Goldstein was found dead in his New York apartment Friday afternoon, his publicist said. He was 36.
Adam "DJ AM" Goldstein was one of two people who survived a 2008 plane crash in South Carolina.
"The circumstances surrounding his death are unclear," his publicist, Jenni Weinman, said in a statement confirming the performer's death. "Out of respect for his family and loved ones, please respect their privacy at this time."
Goldstein was found unconscious and unresponsive in his lower Manhattan apartment Friday afternoon, New York police said. The cause of death would be determined by medical examiners, but "there is no criminality suspected at this time," a police statement reported.
Goldstein and Travis Barker, the drummer for rock band Blink-182, were the only survivors of a September plane crash in South Carolina that left both critically injured. Four others aboard the plane were killed when the Learjet skidded off a runway during takeoff from Columbia. Watch more about his career »
"Daily I live with the guilt and grief of what happened that night, what I saw, who was lost and why I was spared," he wrote in a December post on his Web site. "I have no words to express the pain that comes with knowing four people died, while I lived."
In addition to spinning beats at clubs and festivals, Goldstein was known for dating reality-TV star Nicole Richie and singer-actress Mandy Moore.
"I am absolutely heartbroken," Moore said in a statement. "For those of us lucky enough to have known him, Adam radiated a contagious exuberance for life and also personified the very definition of a true friend. To say that he will be missed beyond words is an understatement. My heart goes out to his loved ones." iReport.com: DJ AM "bridged communities"
At the time of his death, he had been working on an MTV show about drug addiction that had been scheduled to debut in October. Goldstein himself had been a crack cocaine addict who said he wanted the show to help others recover.
CNN's Denise Quan contributed to this report.
|
[
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"no criminality",
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] |
question: What did police say in a statement?, answer: "there is no criminality suspected at this time," | question: Where was Adam "DJ AM" Goldstein found unconscious?, answer: his lower Manhattan apartment | question: When did the plane crash in South Carolina?, answer: 2008 | question: Was there any criminal activities suspected?, answer: no criminality | question: What did the police say?, answer: Goldstein was found unconscious and unresponsive in his lower Manhattan apartment Friday afternoon, | question: What did Goldstein's publicist say?, answer: "The circumstances surrounding his death are unclear," | question: Where was Adam Goldstein found?, answer: in his New York apartment | question: When did the plan crash in South Carolina?, answer: 2008
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Obesity is the No. 1 health crisis in the United States, and the nation could be at risk without immediate action, former President Clinton said at CNN's first Fit Nation Summit.
CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta and former President Clinton lead the discussion at the first Fit Nation Summit.
"We need to do something about it for our children, and for our country, because something like this could easily collapse our nation if we don't act now," Clinton said.
Clinton and CNN's chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, gathered with experts from across the country Wednesday to explore solutions to America's obesity crisis.
Two-thirds of adult Americans are overweight or obese; the same is true for one-third of U.S. children, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Obesity carries increased risk of myriad health problems, including hypertension, diabetes, heart disease and arthritis.
Gupta, Clinton and a panel of experts addressed such proposed solutions as healthy school lunches, elimination of trans fats, the need for healthier food in urban communities and the importance of supporting community-based efforts to fight obesity. Watch Gupta explain the solutions proposed at the Fit Nation Summit »
Clinton, who's been tackling the obesity issue over the past few years with his Alliance for a Healthier Generation, stressed the need to help educate people about the importance of a healthy diet and exercising together.
Motivating Americans, especially kids, won't be easy, Clinton said. "They need to be handled with care. Kids need to know it's important, but [fitness] can't be boring," he said. "There's no shame, there's no embarrassment. We have to let them know it's all good, but you have to do it."
Michael Jacobson, director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest and a strong advocate against trans fats in foods, stressed that the Food and Drug Administration should ban trans fats altogether and stop leaving it up to local and state governments.
Trans fats, at one time, thought to be good fat substitutes, over the years have been shown to raise LDL or bad cholesterol in people and lower their HDL, or good cholesterol. "They're just not good for our health, Jacobson said.
However, Dr. Robert Eckel, former president of the American Heart Association, warned, "Although we support the removal of trans fats, our biggest concern is what they'll be replaced with. We need to think about that, because there will be a substitute."
The panel took questions from an audience of 150 people -- mostly obesity experts or those who work in industries that deal with obesity.
Gupta was inspired to launch Fit Nation, an ongoing, multiplatform, grass-roots initiative against obesity. Over the past three years, Gupta and the CNN Medical Unit have crisscrossed the country, asking Americans to take charge of their weight by exercising more and eating healthier.
This year, Gupta traveled from Michigan to California asking the public to pledge to add 1 million hours to their collective lives by getting off the couch and exercising. Since he began the tour in April, the campaign has surpassed its goal, with exercise pledges close to four times that amount.
Gupta said he hopes that legislators and administrators who can make a difference in policy and perhaps change attitudes about obesity will hear the solutions discussed at the summit.
"I''ve covered a lot of stories on obesity," Gupta said. "There's a battle going on, and we need to win the battle. I've talked to people out there and many are just blasé.
"This is our opportunity to make them care." E-mail to a friend
|
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question: What channel held the Fit Nation Summit?, answer: CNN's | question: What do experts say about trans fats?, answer: "They're just not good for our health, | question: Which former president appeared at the summit?, answer: Clinton | question: Experts called for which types of fat to be replaced?, answer: trans | question: What has been suggested to fight obesity?, answer: healthy school lunches, elimination of trans fats, the need for healthier food in urban communities and the importance of supporting community-based efforts | question: What problem is being discussed at the Fit Nation Summit?, answer: solutions to America's obesity crisis. | question: Who organised the Fit Nation Summit?, answer: Dr. Sanjay Gupta and former President Clinton | question: Where are experts gathering?, answer: Fit Nation Summit. | question: Which former president spoke at the summit?, answer: Clinton | question: What did Former President Clinton say?, answer: Obesity is the No. 1 health crisis in the United States, and the nation could be | question: What does President Clinton a solution to, answer: America's obesity crisis.
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- One summer night in 2004, 3-year-old Riley Fox lay asleep on a couch not far from her 6-year-old brother on a chair in the living room. Their father was sleeping in a nearby bedroom.
The FBI joined the search for the killer of 3-year-old Riley Fox last month.
Just before 8 a.m., Kevin Fox was awakened by his son. The boy told his father that Riley was missing from the sofa.
Fox searched for his daughter for 40 minutes inside and outside their Wilmington, Illinois, home and then called police, according to authorities. His wife, Melissa, was in Chicago participating in a charity walk, and when she found out, she rushed home.
Nearly 500 volunteers, along with police and family, searched for the little girl.
Her body was found later that day in a river in Forked Creek, Illinois, just 4 miles from the family's home. She'd been bound and gagged with duct tape, raped and drowned, according to the Will County Sheriff's Office and the coroner's report.
It was June 6, 2004, the start of a horrific ordeal for the family.
Fox was arrested and charged with the killing, only to be exonerated by DNA evidence.
More than five years later, authorities have yet to capture Riley's killer.
Kathleen Zellner, Fox's attorney, said that the crime scene was brutal and that the theory is that Riley was snatched from her home, sexually assaulted and then thrown from the bridge overlooking the river where she drowned. Because her hands were bound and her mouth covered with duct tape, she was unable to swim or save herself, Zellner said.
According to Zellner, Fox says that the night his daughter disappeared, he had gone to a street fair while the children's grandparents looked after them. On his way home, about midnight, Fox picked up his two sleepy children from their grandparents and put them to bed in the living room of the 500-square-foot cement box family home. Riley often fell asleep on the sofa and her 6-year-old brother on the chair near her while watching TV, Zellner said.
Fox has said the front door was wide open when he awoke, Zellner said, as was the back door. He has said he locked the front door before he'd gone to bed.
The back door's lock had been broken weeks ago; they typically propped a stack of laundry baskets against it to keep it shut. According to the family, those baskets had been removed and placed on top of the laundry machine by someone other than family members.
"From the beginning, we believed that someone was already inside the house waiting when Kevin got home with the kids that night, " Melissa Fox said. "But it was clear that police were looking at Kevin suspiciously."
Indeed, five months later, Will County sheriff's officers arrested and charged Kevin Fox with the sexual assault and murder of his daughter. Zellner says the arrest came after authorities coerced a confession from him after 14 hours of relentless questioning.
Fox spent eight months in jail, but DNA evidence from the rape kit conducted on Riley's body finally exonerated him. There was no semen found during the autopsy, Zellner says, but saliva of an unidentified male was found on the duct tape covering Riley's mouth and elsewhere on her body.
In late 2007, the family won a $15.5 million wrongful-arrest suit against the sheriff's detectives.
The Foxes believe that the perpetrator was someone in the community who had been watching and targeting their daughter for some time.
"For weeks before her disappearance, I couldn't shake a feeling of uneasiness, strange noises at night outside our house, as if someone were lurking and watching us," Melissa Fox said.
Zellner believes that another big clue was a red car similar to a Chevrolet Cavalier parked outside the Fox home that night, before Kevin Fox and his children returned home.
"It's only been in the last few weeks that investigators have actively begun
|
[
"What sort of evidence exonerated Riley's father?",
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"When was her body found?",
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] |
[
"DNA",
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"June 6, 2004,",
"3-year-old",
"Riley Fox",
"Kevin Fox"
] |
question: What sort of evidence exonerated Riley's father?, answer: DNA | question: When was Fox slain?, answer: One summer night in 2004, | question: When was her body found?, answer: June 6, 2004, | question: What was the age of Riley Fox when she died?, answer: 3-year-old | question: What is the name of the child who was slain?, answer: Riley Fox | question: Who was initially charged with her killing?, answer: Kevin Fox
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Oooooooshie the clown knows the instant effect he has on patients.
The Lev Leytzan clowns perform for children and patients in hospitals to spread laughter and joy.
"When you walk out of a room hearing people laugh and smile, you hear them talking about it," said the clown, whose real name is Asher Mechanic.
He entertains children and patients as part of a clown troupe in New York called Compassionate Clown Alley, bringing laughter to those in hospitals.
"It's the spreading of giving from one person to another, like a chain reaction," Mechanic said.
The clown organization is also known as Lev Leytzan, a name derived from the program's roots working with Jewish youth. In Hebrew, lev means heart, and leytzan is a clown, so the translation is "The Heart of the Clown." Watch the clowns talk about their work. »
"Lev Leytzan allows me to take [something] scary and mundane for the patient and into something exciting beautiful and playful," said the group's founder, Dr. Neal Goldberg, a Woodmere, New York-based clinical psychologist.
For the last two and half years, the clowns have been bringing cheer to the patients at the South Nassau Communities Hospital.
"The patients get satisfaction from having some sunshine coming to them in the hospital," said Phyllis Citera, director of volunteer services at the hospital. "Sundays at the hospital are typically quiet, especially for those patients who don't have visitors stopping by. The clowns especially cheer them up."
A positive approach empowers people who are ill, said Goldberg, who works with children, teenagers and young adults.
Six years ago, while working on a bereavement project, he realized he was making a clown of himself and others in an effort to help people cope with pain. He wondered what would distract the patients from their pain and bring joy.
Inspired by the work of Dr. Patch Adams, who was portrayed by Robin Williams in the 1998 film "Patch Adams," Goldberg thought of running a similar program in which he and others could bring joy to people in orphanages, hospitals and retirement homes using the same whimsical approach.
Goldberg researched the subject before putting on a red nose and trying out therapeutic clowning for himself.
"I found it powerful in terms of my own growth and freedom of expression and creativity, and thought it would be something wonderful and powerful to bring back to the community, to teens in particular," he said.
Goldberg's clowns range from 13 to 22 years old and say they find it both empowering and humbling.
"As a clown, you get more than you give," said Dassy Newman, a former clown. "You can't hold back, you have to give it all. You have to give your heart, your soul, your energy, everything. It's the most exhausting thing you've ever done, but at the same time it's the most exhilarating."
Dr. Carolyn Fein-Levy, a pediatric oncologist at Schneider Children's Hospital in New Hyde Park, New York, said Goldberg's clowns provide relief to the patients.
"Whenever the clowns are around, the children are happier," Fein-Levy said. "When they are happier, their parents enjoy watching them. They recapture their childhoods lost as a result of being sick. Clowns are a good distraction and it helps them feel normal. Nothing is more important for them than feeling normal, because their lives are not normal while going through therapy."
She also teaches an oncology class to the Lev Leytzan clowns.
"It adds another dimension to their training and gives them an overview and an understanding to know what it's like to be a kid with cancer," she said. Fein-Levy also draws from her own experience, having survived ovarian cancer as a child after a year of chemotherapy.
"I teach in the clown school but I'm not worried about patients being harmed," she said. "
|
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question: What did the clowns say?, answer: "When you walk out of a room hearing people laugh and smile, you hear them talking about it," | question: Where does Lev Leytzan perform?, answer: for children and patients in hospitals | question: What is the Clown group Lev Leytzan?, answer: perform for children and patients in hospitals | question: What did the founder say?, answer: "Lev Leytzan allows me to take [something] scary and mundane for the patient and into something exciting beautiful and playful," | question: How long has Lev Leytzan been together?, answer: two and half years, | question: What is the name of the clown group?, answer: Lev Leytzan | question: Who is in the clown group?, answer: Lev Leytzan
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- President Obama mixed policy discussion with personal reflections on his daughters and, yes, a few jokes in an appearance on CBS' "Late Show With David Letterman."
President Obama jokes with David Letterman in New York in an interview taped Monday afternoon.
It was the first time a sitting president has been a guest on the popular late-night entertainment show, according to the CBS Web site. It was taped Monday afternoon.
After taking the stage to a huge ovation, Obama teased Letterman about being surprised to see the event on his daily schedule, saying: "That's one of those where you ask your advisers, 'Who's responsible for this?' "
Later, when talking about summer activities of daughters Malia, 11, and Sasha, 8, Obama said that they "goofed off," which he added was something he couldn't do. Letterman quickly quipped: "Well, others have," prompting a big laugh from both the audience and the president.
On topical issues, Obama promised to ask "tough questions" before deciding whether to send additional U.S. troops to Afghanistan, saying it was necessary to have a clear strategy in place before deploying resources. Watch Obama talk with Letterman »
He said his "No. 1 job" is to make sure the terrorists responsible for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks can never harm the United States again.
Asked about the economy, Obama called the $787 billion economic stimulus package passed in his first month in office a "tourniquet" that prevented the recession from getting worse. Complete economic recovery will take time, he warned, but added that the situation appeared to be getting better.
On the hostile debate over his push to overhaul the nation's health care system, Obama disagreed with the analysis by some that the public anger against him is fueled by racism.
He drew a big laugh by pointing out he was black before he became president, then noted that his election by the American public "tells you ... a lot about where the country is at."
"I think that what's happened is that whenever a president tries to bring about significant changes, particularly during times of economic unease, then there is a certain segment of the population that gets very riled up," Obama said.
Previous presidents including Franklin Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan also generated emotional opposition, Obama said.
"This is not untypical," he said. "One of the things you sign up for in politics is, folks yell at you."
|
[
"What did Obama's daughter do this summer?",
"What will Obama ask before sending more troops to Afghanistan?",
"What was Obama's first time sitting president as?",
"What will Obama ask before sending in more troops?",
"Obama will be asking what?",
"What did daughters Malia and Sasha do this summer?",
"Who was the first sitting-president to be a Letterman guest?"
] |
[
"they \"goofed off,\"",
"\"tough questions\"",
"a guest on the popular late-night entertainment show,",
"\"tough questions\"",
"\"tough questions\"",
"\"goofed off,\"",
"President Obama"
] |
question: What did Obama's daughter do this summer?, answer: they "goofed off," | question: What will Obama ask before sending more troops to Afghanistan?, answer: "tough questions" | question: What was Obama's first time sitting president as?, answer: a guest on the popular late-night entertainment show, | question: What will Obama ask before sending in more troops?, answer: "tough questions" | question: Obama will be asking what?, answer: "tough questions" | question: What did daughters Malia and Sasha do this summer?, answer: "goofed off," | question: Who was the first sitting-president to be a Letterman guest?, answer: President Obama
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Prodding Israel and the Palestinian Authority to restart talks aimed at a permanent resolution of their decades-old conflict, President Obama dropped a demand for an Israeli settlement freeze, U.S., Israeli and Palestinian officials said.
Benjamin Netanyahu, left, President Obama and Mahmoud Abbas.
"Simply put, it is past time to talk about starting negotiations. It is time to move forward," Obama told reporters before a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
"It is time to show the flexibility and common sense and sense of compromise that is necessary to achieve our goals," Obama said.
Obama first met separately with Netanyahu and Abbas on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in what he called "frank and productive" talks. The session was the first among the three leaders since Obama took office in January.
George Mitchell, Obama's envoy for the Middle East, attended Tuesday's talks. He said the talks were "at all times cordial," but "direct" and sometimes "blunt."
Obama told Abbas and Netanyahu that, "The only reason to hold public office is to get things done," and that everyone "must take risks for peace," Mitchell said.
Mitchell told reporters the U.S. is "not identifying any issue as being a precondition or an impediment to negotiation."
But the United States and Israel have publicly disagreed on Israeli plans to build more housing on land the Palestinians regard as theirs. Previous Obama administration demands for a freeze have been ignored by the Netanyahu government. Watch Netanyahu address peace, settlements »
Abbas has so far rejected resuming talks with Israel until the Jewish state halts all settlement building in the occupied West Bank and in predominantly Palestinian East Jerusalem. Arab states also have balked at the U.S. request to take confidence-building measures toward Israel until Israel freezes settlement construction.
Sitting with Netanyahu and Abbas, Obama softened his regular language on a settlement "freeze," saying that Israel has had meaningful discussions about "restraining" settlement activity.
"But they need to translate these discussions into real action on this and other issues," he said.
"Obama told Abbas that he couldn't get the settlement freeze and promised to keep trying, but that it shouldn't be a condition for talks and it was time to move on," one Palestinian aide to Abbas said.
Several U.S. officials said that Obama told Abbas that although the U.S. believe a settlement freeze would create a better atmosphere for talks to begin, the lack of one should not be used an as excuse not to talk.
"Let's not have the perfect be the enemy of the good," Obama told Abbas, according to the officials. Watch Obama: 'We have to find a way forward' »
"It's been apparent for some time that the Israelis were going to fall short of what is necessary on the settlement freeze," one senior U.S. official said. "But our view is let's get to negotiations and settlements will be addressed within those final status issues"
A senior Israeli diplomat said Israel agreed to not building any new settlements, no outward expansion of existing growth and to only build for "natural" growth within existing settlements. He said Israel also agreed not to encourage Israelis to move to settlements, which would increase the population.
"A complete settlement freeze wasn't physically or politically possible, especially in the absence of any Arab or Palestinian concessions," the Israeli diplomat said. "There was a time the gaps had significantly narrowed, but now they were starting to widen. The administration recognized, rather than have them widen further, we should start negotiating."
The Palestinian aide to Abbas said Obama's failure to secure a settlement freeze has weakened him in the eyes of the Palestinian delegation, because it casts doubt on his ability to move Israel during final status negotiations.
The Palestinians did win an important point, however, with Obama making clear that the peace talks would not start from scratch, which Netanyahu had favored
|
[
"who does obama meet",
"Who did Obama meet with?",
"What did President Obama say?",
"What Obama says about it?",
"What did Israel agree to on West Bank settlement growth?",
"what does obama say",
"what does israel agree to",
"With who Obama met that day?"
] |
[
"Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas",
"Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.",
"\"It is time to show the flexibility and common sense and sense of compromise that is necessary to achieve our goals,\"",
"\"It is time to show the flexibility and common sense and sense of compromise that is necessary to achieve our goals,\"",
"resolution of their decades-old conflict,",
"\"Simply put, it is past time to talk about starting negotiations. It is time to move forward,\"",
"not building any new settlements,",
"Benjamin Netanyahu,"
] |
question: who does obama meet, answer: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas | question: Who did Obama meet with?, answer: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. | question: What did President Obama say?, answer: "It is time to show the flexibility and common sense and sense of compromise that is necessary to achieve our goals," | question: What Obama says about it?, answer: "It is time to show the flexibility and common sense and sense of compromise that is necessary to achieve our goals," | question: What did Israel agree to on West Bank settlement growth?, answer: resolution of their decades-old conflict, | question: what does obama say, answer: "Simply put, it is past time to talk about starting negotiations. It is time to move forward," | question: what does israel agree to, answer: not building any new settlements, | question: With who Obama met that day?, answer: Benjamin Netanyahu,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Spiritual leaders of New York's African-American Muslim communities lashed out Friday at a purported al Qaeda message attacking President-elect Barack Obama and, using racist language, comparing him unfavorably to the late Malcolm X.
Ayman al-Zawahiri said Obama was the "direct opposite of honorable black Americans" like Malcolm X.
The imams called the recorded comments from al Qaeda second-in-command Ayman al-Zawahiri "an insult" from people who have "historically been disconnected from the African-American community generally and Muslim African-Americans in particular."
"We find it insulting when anyone speaks for our community instead of giving us the dignity and the honor of speaking for ourselves," they said in a statement read during a news conference at the Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial, Educational and Cultural Center.
The al Qaeda statement, an 11-minute, 23-second audio message in Arabic with subtitles in English, appeared on the Internet on Wednesday. Its authenticity has not been confirmed.
The message said Obama represents the "direct opposite of honorable black Americans" like Malcolm X. Watch al Qaeda official criticize Obama »
The speaker also said Obama, former and current Secretaries of State Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice and "your likes" fit Malcolm X's description of "house slaves."
An English translation of the message used the term "house Negroes," Malcolm X's term for blacks who were subservient to whites. The term refers to slaves who worked in white masters' houses. Malcolm X said those slaves were docile compared with those who labored in the fields. iReport.com: Should Obama react to comments?
Malcolm X, the fiery African-American Muslim activist from the 1950s and 1960s, was an early member and leader of the Nation of Islam. He left that group in 1963 over disillusionment with its then-leader, Elijah Muhammed, but remained a Muslim.
After months of death threats, he was assassinated in 1965 by members of the Nation of Islam, who shot him 16 times at close range. The three men who were convicted of the crime have been paroled.
On Friday, Imam Al-Hajj Talib 'Abdur-Rashid, recalling Malcolm X's legacy, said that he "stood for human rights and the principle of self defense ... international law. He would have rejected, and we who are Muslim African-Americans leaders reject, acts of political extremism."
The Council on American-Islamic Relations also condemned Zawahiri's comments in a statement issued Thursday.
"As Muslims and as Americans, we will never let terrorist groups or terror leaders falsely claim to represent us or our faith," the statement said. "We once again repudiate al Qaeda's actions, rhetoric and world view and re-state our condemnation of all forms of terrorism and religious extremism."
|
[
"Who fit Malcolm X's definition of house negro?",
"Who responded to comments made by an al Qaeda official?",
"What did the official say about Obama?",
"Who compared Obama to a house Negro?",
"President-elect Barack Obama fit whose definition of a \"house Negro\"?",
"What group was the official from?",
"What did U.S. Muslim leaders respond to?",
"Who else did the official attack?",
"Which secretaries of state were denigrated?",
"What was the response of US Muslim leaders?"
] |
[
"Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice",
"Spiritual leaders of New York's African-American Muslim communities",
"\"direct opposite of honorable black Americans\" like Malcolm X.",
"Ayman al-Zawahiri",
"Ayman al-Zawahiri",
"al Qaeda",
"at a purported al Qaeda message attacking President-elect Barack Obama and, using racist language,",
"Obama",
"Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice",
"lashed out"
] |
question: Who fit Malcolm X's definition of house negro?, answer: Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice | question: Who responded to comments made by an al Qaeda official?, answer: Spiritual leaders of New York's African-American Muslim communities | question: What did the official say about Obama?, answer: "direct opposite of honorable black Americans" like Malcolm X. | question: Who compared Obama to a house Negro?, answer: Ayman al-Zawahiri | question: President-elect Barack Obama fit whose definition of a "house Negro"?, answer: Ayman al-Zawahiri | question: What group was the official from?, answer: al Qaeda | question: What did U.S. Muslim leaders respond to?, answer: at a purported al Qaeda message attacking President-elect Barack Obama and, using racist language, | question: Who else did the official attack?, answer: Obama | question: Which secretaries of state were denigrated?, answer: Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice | question: What was the response of US Muslim leaders?, answer: lashed out
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- The British are coming, the British are coming -- to Brooklyn? By subway?
Barclays has paid $300 million for the naming rights to the New Jersey Nets arena.
New York's struggling Metropolitan Transportation Authority has sold the naming rights to the second-busiest subway stop in Brooklyn. The Atlantic Avenue-Pacific Street Station will now have the name of a British bank, Barclays, added to it.
Several subway riders are outraged that Barclays has purchased the naming rights to this subway stop, which sees about 10 million people go through it each day.
One straphanger said, "A London Bank shouldn't be the name of this train station; it's something that belongs to the public domain."
Another said, "It's just everywhere we go, everything we do, it's just branding, branding, branding. It's America now."
Renaming the Atlantic-Pacific Station is tied to the construction of Barclays Center, the new sports arena for the National Basketball Association's New Jersey Nets.
Barclays is paying developer Forest City Ratner $300 million for naming rights to this arena. Ratner, in a separate deal, will be paying the Metropolitan Transportation Authority $200,000 a year for the next 20 years to rename this commuter hub.
Authority Press Secretary Jeremy Soffin said, "Like transit systems all over the U.S. and around the world, we are facing budget deficits."
In an effort to bridge the authority's $1 billion deficit, the transit giant that oversees the operation of the city's subways, buses and rail lines wants to follow the Barclays example with stations throughout the system.
Though the Atlantic-Pacific subway station is the first in New York for which naming rights have been sold, across the country, there have been several cases of public transportation systems using naming rights to increase revenue.
In 2003, the Las Vegas monorail system signed a 12-year, $50 million deal with Nextel to put its name on the station in the Las Vegas Convention Center. The Cleveland Bus System sold station names to two hospitals for $1.1 million a year.
Internationally, Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority has been selling the naming rights of 23 metro stations.
However, not all naming rights deals are successful. In 2001, the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority tried to raise $22 million by auctioning the naming rights to four historic "T" stations. It received no bids.
Reassuring the public that there are certain lines they won't cross when it comes to renaming stations of historical value, Soffin said, "It's a very clear line there, and we want to be as open as possible, but we're not sort of selling the shop here."
|
[
"Where is Atlantic Avenue located?",
"Where did the money come from?",
"Which is the second busiest station in Brooklyn?",
"What is the second busiest station in Brooklyn?",
"How much did the basketball arena developer pay?",
"How much did the developer pay for rights?"
] |
[
"in Brooklyn.",
"Barclays",
"Atlantic Avenue-Pacific",
"The Atlantic Avenue-Pacific Street",
"$300 million",
"$300 million"
] |
question: Where is Atlantic Avenue located?, answer: in Brooklyn. | question: Where did the money come from?, answer: Barclays | question: Which is the second busiest station in Brooklyn?, answer: Atlantic Avenue-Pacific | question: What is the second busiest station in Brooklyn?, answer: The Atlantic Avenue-Pacific Street | question: How much did the basketball arena developer pay?, answer: $300 million | question: How much did the developer pay for rights?, answer: $300 million
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- The FBI has begun interviewing clients of deceased Garden City, New York, lawyer William Parente as part of an investigation into his financial dealings, according to FBI spokesman James Margolin.
Stephanie Parente, 19, was found dead along with her sister and parents in a Baltimore hotel Monday.
Margolin said the investigation was launched at the request of police in Baltimore County, Maryland, where Parente, his wife and their two daughters were found dead in a hotel room earlier this week.
"We're looking into Parente's business interests and whether there's any impropriety there and any crime was committed," Margolin said.
Baltimore County police say Parente, 59, killed his family before committing suicide. There have been allegations of financial impropriety in the course of the investigation, said police spokesman Cpl. Mike Hill at a news conference Wednesday.
A law enforcement source told CNN a cell phone belonging to Parente was recovered in the hotel room where the bodies were found. In an attempt to locate surviving family members, investigators contacted people in the phone's directory, and some of those people said they were Parente's investment clients.
The New York attorney general's office confirmed it received a complaint alleging financial wrongdoing from attorney Bruce Montague of Queens, New York.
CNN spoke with Montague's law partner, Steve Drelich, who said he was speaking on Montague's behalf because Montague is distraught over the death of Parente, whom he considered a personal friend as well as a financial adviser. Drelich confirmed Montague was a client of Parente's, and said the two had known each other about six years and that Montague had been investing with Parente for about that long.
Drelich said Montague's estimated losses in investments with Parente total about $450,000.
Drelich said recently Montague "got nervous and asked [Parente] for his money back," in light of highly publicized scandals involving other investors and financial advisers.
Drelich said when Montague kept asking Parente about the money, he was told "it was in a Canadian bank and [Parente] was having trouble getting the money back."
Montague finally received six checks late last week, Drelich said.
"Four of the six checks bounced. We were told there was no money in the account. ... We were told by the bank that the checks were bouncing," Drelich told CNN. Drelich said he doesn't know the amounts of the two checks that did clear for Montague.
It was not until news broke about the Parente family deaths and apparent murder-suicide investigation that Montague contacted authorities, Drelich said.
But Drelich emphasized that Montague was more upset with the deaths than any financial loss.
"You can always make more money," Drelich said. "But Bruce is devastated about the family. He considered [Parente] a friend, but he's especially concerned about the family."
Drelich said his office received calls from at least five other people who said they invested money with Parente, with callers claiming more than $4 million in total investments with Parente. Drelich said his office referred those callers to the state attorney general's office.
Baltimore County police said Parente killed his wife, Betty, 58, on Sunday, April 19, using "blunt force trauma" and asphyxiation.
Police said he killed his daughter Catherine, 11, around the same time, using the same method.
Later that day, his daughter Stephanie, 19, a Loyola College sophomore, was killed also by blunt force trauma and asphyxiation, according to police. Citing hotel records, police said the room was accessed by its electronic key at around 4 p.m. on Sunday, making it plausible that Stephanie entered the room.
Later that evening, police said, Stephanie's college roommate, worried that she had an exam the next morning and hadn't come home, called the room and spoke to William Parente. Parente told the roommate Stephanie would be spending the night. Police believe she was dead at the time.
Parente died some time later by cutting himself, police said, but would not elaborate further
|
[
"What was Parante's profession",
"What was the FBI looking for",
"Who did Parente kill?",
"who is looking for financial impropriety?",
"Who are the clients?",
"What did William Parente do?"
] |
[
"lawyer",
"Parente's business interests",
"his family",
"Margolin",
"Montague",
"killed his family before committing suicide."
] |
question: What was Parante's profession, answer: lawyer | question: What was the FBI looking for, answer: Parente's business interests | question: Who did Parente kill?, answer: his family | question: who is looking for financial impropriety?, answer: Margolin | question: Who are the clients?, answer: Montague | question: What did William Parente do?, answer: killed his family before committing suicide.
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- The New York State Assembly passed a same-sex marriage bill Tuesday evening, bringing New York one step closer to legalizing such marriages.
Gov. David Paterson has said he'd sign a same-sex if it's passed by the New York Senate.
The bill, which passed 89-52, will now go on to the state Senate for a vote. If it is passed there, it will go to Gov. David Paterson, who has made it clear he will sign the bill.
"I applaud ... members of both parties for moving this historic legislation forward," New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said in a statement released by the mayor's office.
"I hope New York will soon become the latest state to adopt a law whose time has come."
State Sen. Thomas K. Duane, a Democrat, said in a statement, "I am confident that this year my Senate will uphold this fundamental legal principle and vote for my right, our right, to be married this year."
This is the second time New York's Marriage Equality Legislation has been approved by the State Assembly -- it passed in 2007, but subsequently stalled in the then Republican-controlled Senate.
|
[
"Which bill will go to the state Senate?",
"Who is the mayor of New York City ?",
"did many oppose it?",
"Which State Assembly passes bill?",
"will the bill go to the senate"
] |
[
"a same-sex marriage",
"Michael Bloomberg",
"89-52,",
"New York",
"on"
] |
question: Which bill will go to the state Senate?, answer: a same-sex marriage | question: Who is the mayor of New York City ?, answer: Michael Bloomberg | question: did many oppose it?, answer: 89-52, | question: Which State Assembly passes bill?, answer: New York | question: will the bill go to the senate, answer: on
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- The U.S. government paid more than $1.7 million in defense contracts over the last decade to companies owned by leaders of Warren Jeffs' polygamous sect, with tens of thousands allegedly winding its way back to Jeffs and his church.
The Pentagon had contracts with three companies with ties to Warren Jeffs' polygamous sect.
In fact, some of the deals were made after Jeffs was named to the FBI's "Most-Wanted List" and remained in place while he was on the run.
CNN has learned that between 1998 and 2007, the United States Air Force and Defense Logistics Agency purchased more than $1.7 million worth of airplane parts from three companies owned by members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which practices polygamy.
Those companies are Utah Tool and Die, Western Precision and NewEra Manufacturing. Today, the companies all operate under the name NewEra Manufacturing, a company based in Las Vegas, Nevada, that says it supplies precision components "for the aerospace, military, medical, recreational and other commercial entities."
"It was my understanding that Western Precision was paying roughly $50,000 a week into the coffers of the church," former sect member Richard Holm said. "It would have been close to $200,000 a month."
Holm said he helped build Western Precision.
A court affidavit signed by a man whose father was the president of Western Precision makes similar allegations.
"During 2003, the amount being sent to the storehouse and the FLDS was around $100,000 per month," John Nielsen said in the October 26, 2005, affidavit. "I have personal knowledge that checks sent to the FLDS Church/Warren Jeffs by [Western Precision] are payable to the FLDS Church and/or Warren Jeffs."
Private investigator Sam Brower, who monitors the sect, said money earned through business dealings with the U.S. government was used to build Jeffs' compounds across the country, including the one recently raided in Eldorado, Texas.
More than 400 children, including teenage girls, were removed from that ranch amid claims of child abuse and forced marriage and motherhood. Watch a mom plead: 'We need our children' »
Brower says dozens of companies tied to FLDS are working on contracts with federal or local governments. The Pentagon would confirm only it had contracts with three.
A man who answered the phone at NewEra Manufacturing said it had no comment.
The companies have not been charged with wrongdoing.
Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell emphasized that point.
"The Department of Defense awards contracts on the basis of who can most effectively meet our requirements for supplies or services at the most reasonable cost to the taxpayer," he said.
"We do not consider religious affiliation or marital status when selecting vendors, but illegal activity is certainly cause for termination of a contract and perhaps even debarment, which could prevent a contractor from doing business with department ever again."
He added, "However, DoD is not aware of any criminal allegations against anyone managing the companies in question."
Bob Maginnis, a retired Army lieutenant colonel who now works with a contractor for the Pentagon, said the department does background checks before signing contracts.
"The DoD is obviously abiding by the law, and if we want them to look deeper and discriminate on religious or other activities we need to tell them."
But he added, "If there was a direct line between Jeffs and this company, and his name was associated with a contract, then that should have come to attention of those that were bidding contract."
It's unclear whether Jeffs' name was on any contract, but other senior members of his church were managing the companies.
What might taxpayers think of it all?
"They're just going to shake their head and say here's another example of our tax money going down the drain to support this polygamist in Texas who abuses children and women," Maginnis said. "They'll be appalled and rightly so."
Jeffs is serving time in Utah after his 2007
|
[
"Who bought airplane parts from companies tied to Warren Jeffs?",
"Jeffs was placed on what list?",
"What list was Jeffs on?",
"what did the pentagon do",
"The Pentagon bought airplane parts from whom?",
"where Pentagon bought airplane?",
"what about the colonel",
"What armed force was the retired colonel?",
"Nothing illegal happened according to whom?"
] |
[
"the United States Air Force and Defense Logistics Agency",
"the FBI's \"Most-Wanted List\"",
"FBI's \"Most-Wanted List\"",
"had contracts with three companies with ties to Warren Jeffs' polygamous",
"three companies owned by members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,",
"Utah Tool and Die, Western Precision and NewEra Manufacturing.",
"who now works with a contractor for the Pentagon, said the department does background checks before signing contracts.",
"Army",
"Geoff Morrell"
] |
question: Who bought airplane parts from companies tied to Warren Jeffs?, answer: the United States Air Force and Defense Logistics Agency | question: Jeffs was placed on what list?, answer: the FBI's "Most-Wanted List" | question: What list was Jeffs on?, answer: FBI's "Most-Wanted List" | question: what did the pentagon do, answer: had contracts with three companies with ties to Warren Jeffs' polygamous | question: The Pentagon bought airplane parts from whom?, answer: three companies owned by members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, | question: where Pentagon bought airplane?, answer: Utah Tool and Die, Western Precision and NewEra Manufacturing. | question: what about the colonel, answer: who now works with a contractor for the Pentagon, said the department does background checks before signing contracts. | question: What armed force was the retired colonel?, answer: Army | question: Nothing illegal happened according to whom?, answer: Geoff Morrell
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- The YouTube and Carnegie Hall generations collided Wednesday night in New York City as a nearly sold-out audience looked on in amazement.
Images from musicians' videos are projected during the YouTube Symphony Orchestra concert in New York.
Almost 100 musicians from around the world -- the world's first symphony orchestra comprised of members who auditioned solely online -- played their debut gig. They may have forever changed the audition process in their journey.
The YouTube Symphony Orchestra bore a new era of classical performance at Carnegie Hall, and according to a YouTube employee, that's exactly what they wanted to do.
"We hope this is game changing in the sense it redefines audition space, it brings people closer together and lets them collaborate, transcending geographical and linguistic boundaries," said marketing manager Ed Sanders.
Participants were chosen from more than 3,000 YouTube video submissions from more than 70 countries and territories spanning six continents, according to a press release. Watch orchestra play »
Their YouTube channel has received more than 15 million page views thus far with members hailing from more than 30 countries. The symphony orchestra's members participated in the three-day Classical Music Summit at Julliard and their Carnegie Hall debut served as the finale.
Michael Tilson Thomas directed the performance and also served as the artistic adviser and conductor to the orchestra. He refined and nurtured each member through their musical selections online until the entire orchestra met in the real world a few days ago.
"For us it's somewhere between a classical music summit conference and a scout jamboree with an element of speed dating thrown in," Thomas said.
While some participants traveled from as far as South Korea, Malaysia and Lithuania, bass player Kurt Hinterbichler lives in New York City. A theoretical physicist working on his doctorate at Columbia University, Hinterbichler was enamored at being chosen to participate.
"Carnegie Hall is still sort of the unofficial pinnacle of achievement of the classical music world," he said. "You know once you've made it to Carnegie Hall you've really made it."
So, how do you get to Carnegie Hall? "Upload, upload, upload [YouTube videos]," joked Thomas, updating the old "practice, practice, practice" punchline.
Violin player Jennifer Lindsay, who is a systems engineer by day, said she was floored when she learned she was selected. "YouTube gave me this opportunity to perform at Carnegie Hall. There's no other way that someone like me who is not even a professional musician would have ever made it."
World-renowned composer Tan Dun created a piece especially for the orchestra titled "Internet Symphony No. 1, Eroica." Dun told YouTube his inspiration for this piece came from the streets of many international cities.
"On the streets of New York, London, Paris, Beijing, Shanghai, I heard the street noise...then I thought this is the spirit beyond, this is the spirit of today."
Dun has also created music for the movie "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon" and the Beijing Summer Olympics.
The symphony orchestra played to a Carnegie Hall audience that was almost 90 percent of capacity.
Audience members seemed to love not only the performance, but the idea as a whole. Peter Newton and his wife were on vacation in New York from London and decided to attend the concert.
"The mixture between the music and democracy... it's interesting that at the end of the day, you bring them together for this performance," he said.
Aaron Polsky attended the performance in support of his sister, who helped organize it. He was amazed at how limitless the performance seemed. "I think it's great... there are really no boundaries other than owning a computer and an Internet connection."
Musicians Lindsay and Hinterbichler both said they had no doubts the event would be a success.
"Absolutely do not underestimate the motivational power of playing at Carnegie Hall," Lindsay said. Hinterbichler agreed, "We've got world class conductors, it will come together."
|
[
"which orchestra played?",
"What music was played?",
"Who had the concert?",
"what did YouTube Symphony Orchestra play",
"Who assembled the musicians from around the world?",
"what was assembled from musicians around the world",
"What is the name of hall where the event occurred?",
"Where did generations collide on Wednesday?",
"what is the answer to how do you get to Carnegie Hall?"
] |
[
"YouTube Symphony",
"Classical",
"YouTube Symphony Orchestra",
"Carnegie Hall,",
"YouTube",
"first symphony orchestra comprised of members who auditioned solely online",
"Carnegie",
"New York City",
"\"Upload, upload, upload [YouTube videos],\""
] |
question: which orchestra played?, answer: YouTube Symphony | question: What music was played?, answer: Classical | question: Who had the concert?, answer: YouTube Symphony Orchestra | question: what did YouTube Symphony Orchestra play, answer: Carnegie Hall, | question: Who assembled the musicians from around the world?, answer: YouTube | question: what was assembled from musicians around the world, answer: first symphony orchestra comprised of members who auditioned solely online | question: What is the name of hall where the event occurred?, answer: Carnegie | question: Where did generations collide on Wednesday?, answer: New York City | question: what is the answer to how do you get to Carnegie Hall?, answer: "Upload, upload, upload [YouTube videos],"
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- The husband of a woman who authorities say was impaired by marijuana and alcohol when she caused a head-on collision that killed eight people, including herself, has rejected claims of substance abuse by his wife.
Daniel Schuler, left, and his attorney, Dominic Barbara, speak at Thursday's news conference.
"I've never seen her drunk since the day I met her," Daniel Schuler, referring to his wife, Diane, said Thursday. "I'm not angry at her. I'd marry her again tomorrow."
Accompanied by his attorney, Schuler held a news conference to counter claims by authorities, who said Tuesday that Diane Schuler, 36, had a blood alcohol level of 0.19 percent -- more than twice the legal limit for drivers -- and had marijuana in her system when she drove a minivan the wrong way on the Taconic State Parkway and ran head-on into an SUV.
Three adults in the SUV were killed in the July 26 collision, as were Schuler and four children -- her daughter and three nieces -- who were in the minivan. A fifth child in the minivan, Schuler's son, survived.
On Thursday, Dominic Barbara, Daniel Schuler's lawyer, cited a list of medical aliments inflicting Diane Schuler before the crash. She apparently had a tooth abscess for two months, diabetes at "various levels" and a mysterious lump on her leg that seemed to move, he said. Watch Daniel Schuler defend his wife »
"I think she had a stroke," said Barbara, who admitted he had no evidence to support his claim. "And I think from the stroke came all the other issues of what happened."
The crash happened about 30 miles north of New York after Schuler and the children left a campground where her family had stayed.
Barbara said nobody at the camp saw Diane Schuler with alcohol. He said investigators interviewed nine people who spoke with Diane Schuler before she embarked, and those people did not smell marijuana or alcohol on her breath.
"Actually, it was the opposite," Barbara said. "She was happy. She was talking to people."
Authorities said Tuesday that a broken vodka bottle was found in the minivan after the crash. Barbara said he couldn't explain the bottle, but he said, "Something had to have happened."
Daniel Schuler and his lawyer said they have yet to decide on whether they want another autopsy.
Jay Schuler, Daniel Schuler's sister, said Thursday that Diane Schuler was reliable and loved children.
"There's no way she'd do this," Jay Schuler said. "She was responsible."
The statements by Schuler and his attorney differed from the toxicology report released Tuesday by the Westchester County District Attorney's Office. Besides the 0.19 percent blood alcohol level and marijuana, tests showed Diane Schuler had 6 grams of alcohol in her stomach that had yet to be metabolized, according to Maj. William Carey of the New York State Police.
Meanwhile, an attorney representing families of two SUV occupants who died in the wreck said a lawsuit is likely.
"If I could prognosticate, it appears that there will be a civil suit," said Marshall Nemark, an attorney representing the families of Michael Bastardi and his son, Guy Bastardi, who were killed in the crash along with a friend.
|
[
"Where did the crash occur?",
"What did Authorities say her condition was when she caused the fatal crash?",
"How many people killed Wreck?",
"What did Diane Schuler's husband say?",
"What was the cause of the crash?",
"What Diane Schuler's husband says?",
"How many people were killed in the wreck?",
"How many people did the wreck kill?"
] |
[
"about 30 miles north of New York",
"impaired by marijuana and alcohol",
"eight",
"\"I've never seen her drunk since the day I met her,\"",
"marijuana and alcohol",
"\"I've never seen her drunk since the day I met her,\"",
"eight",
"eight"
] |
question: Where did the crash occur?, answer: about 30 miles north of New York | question: What did Authorities say her condition was when she caused the fatal crash?, answer: impaired by marijuana and alcohol | question: How many people killed Wreck?, answer: eight | question: What did Diane Schuler's husband say?, answer: "I've never seen her drunk since the day I met her," | question: What was the cause of the crash?, answer: marijuana and alcohol | question: What Diane Schuler's husband says?, answer: "I've never seen her drunk since the day I met her," | question: How many people were killed in the wreck?, answer: eight | question: How many people did the wreck kill?, answer: eight
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- The largest mass transit project in the country got under way Monday with the help of federal stimulus dollars, as public officials broke ground on a second passenger rail tunnel beneath the Hudson River.
Work on the country's largest mass transit project began Monday.
The new tunnel will link New Jersey with New York and eventually will double capacity on the nation's busiest rail corridor, running from Washington to Boston, Massachusetts, officials said.
Officials participated in the groundbreaking for the $8.7 billion project as commuter trains passed behind them in North Bergen, New Jersey, before entering the existing train tunnel, which went into operation in 1908.
"As we start digging this tunnel, I think that what really it means, we are digging our way out of an economic crisis," said Sen. Bob Menendez, D-New Jersey. "As we're getting under way, we're seeing the dividends of the Recovery Act being paid right now."
The Department of Transportation announced Monday that it will commit $3 billion to the project over its lifespan. Of that, $130 million is coming from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the department said..
It is the largest commitment to any transportation project anywhere in the United States in the history of the Department of Transportation, according to administrator Peter Rogoff of the Federal Transportation Administration.
"This is what President Obama means by recovery. It means putting people back to work now to improve the lives of so many others for years to come," Rogoff said.
The project -- known as ARC, for Access to the Region's Core -- is expected to create 6,000 design and construction jobs.
"This is going to promote mobility, reduce commuter congestion, staunch carbon emissions, enhance regional competitiveness and lay a foundation for an extraordinary expansion of mass transit in the most densely populate state in the nation, New Jersey," New Jersey Gov. John Corzine said.
New Jersey Transit says 170,000 passengers now travel through the existing train tunnel beneath the Hudson River to New York each day. When completed, the second tunnel will enable that figure to increase to 255,000 passenger trips. The additional passengers will disembark at a new concourse to be built at Penn Station in New York, 150 feet below street level.
|
[
"What will link New Jersey and New York?",
"what will the tunnel link",
"What is Part of project financed by?",
"Where will tunnel link?",
"who is financing",
"What is Access to the Region's Core, expected to create?",
"How many jobs will be created?",
"Who financed the project?"
] |
[
"passenger rail tunnel",
"New Jersey with New York",
"The Department of Transportation",
"New Jersey with New York",
"The Department of Transportation",
"6,000 design and construction jobs.",
"6,000",
"Department of Transportation,"
] |
question: What will link New Jersey and New York?, answer: passenger rail tunnel | question: what will the tunnel link, answer: New Jersey with New York | question: What is Part of project financed by?, answer: The Department of Transportation | question: Where will tunnel link?, answer: New Jersey with New York | question: who is financing, answer: The Department of Transportation | question: What is Access to the Region's Core, expected to create?, answer: 6,000 design and construction jobs. | question: How many jobs will be created?, answer: 6,000 | question: Who financed the project?, answer: Department of Transportation,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- The wife of accused swindler Bernard Madoff pulled $15.5 million out of a Madoff-related brokerage firm in Massachusetts in the weeks before his arrest, authorities there disclosed Wednesday.
Bernard Madoff is under 24-hour house arrest in his Upper East Side luxury apartment.
The withdrawals by Ruth Madoff took place in November and December, according to a complaint filed by state regulators against Cohmad Securities, a firm they said was "intertwined" with Madoff's New York-based company.
The regulators say Cohmad has refused to provide information about its ties to Madoff, who is accused of running a Ponzi scheme that may have cost investors up to $50 billion.
Daily wire transaction reports show Cohmad was aware of transfers to and from Madoff-related accounts, the filing states.
"For example, the few reports produced by Cohmad show that Ruth Madoff withdrew $5.5 million on November 25, 2008 and withdrew $10 million on December 10, 2008," investigators said.
Bernard Madoff, 70, was arrested December 11 and is currently under house arrest in his Manhattan luxury apartment. He faces one charge of securities fraud in connection with an international scheme that has cost some investors their life savings and could face up to 20 years in prison and a $5 million fine if convicted.
In January, prosecutors tried to revoke his $10 million bail after he mailed more than $1 million worth of diamond-studded jewelry to friends and family, a move they said showed he was trying to move assets out of government hands. But a judge ruled Madoff was neither a danger to the community nor a flight risk.
Prosecutors and Madoff's lawyers have agreed for a second time to push back the deadline for an indictment or probable cause hearing for the former investor, sources close to the case said Wednesday. The previous deadline of Wednesday -- which was itself a delay -- has now been moved back another 30 days.
Madoff and the Securities and Exchange Commission already have agreed to a partial civil judgment against the disgraced investment manager, one that could eventually force him to pay fines and return investors' money.
Under the terms of the deal, Madoff will keep a previously reached agreement to freeze his assets and not to violate any other securities laws, but it does not require him to admit or deny any allegations.
CNN's Allan Chernoff and Amy Sahba contributed to this report.
|
[
"What is Madoff charged with?",
"What is the possible punishment Madoff faces?",
"what money was taken",
"Where was the money taken from?",
"What does Madoff face?"
] |
[
"He faces one charge of securities fraud in connection",
"up to 20 years in prison and a $5 million fine if convicted.",
"$15.5 million",
"brokerage firm",
"up to 20 years in prison and a $5 million fine if convicted."
] |
question: What is Madoff charged with?, answer: He faces one charge of securities fraud in connection | question: What is the possible punishment Madoff faces?, answer: up to 20 years in prison and a $5 million fine if convicted. | question: what money was taken, answer: $15.5 million | question: Where was the money taken from?, answer: brokerage firm | question: What does Madoff face?, answer: up to 20 years in prison and a $5 million fine if convicted.
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Three Staten Island men are charged with violating voting rights, accused of assaulting African-Americans after Barack Obama's win in the November presidential election, authorities said Wednesday.
A grand jury indicted Ralph Nicoletti, 18, Michael Contreras, 18, and Brian Carranza, 21, on charges of conspiracy to interfere with voting rights. All three pleaded not guilty in federal court Wednesday afternoon.
According to the indictment, the three "knowingly and intentionally" conspired to intimidate African-Americans "in the free exercise and enjoyment of a right ... and because of having so exercised that right, to wit, the right to vote."
Nicoletti and Carranza are white, and Contreras is Latino. They face up to 10 years in prison if convicted.
At the arraignment, Nicoletti and Contreras were ordered held without bail, while Carranza was released on a $200,000 bond but ordered to wear an electronic monitoring device.
Contreras' attorney, public defender Len Kamdang, could not be reached for comment. Nicoletti's attorney, Bob LaRusso, had no comment.
Prosecutors said in court filings that on the night of November 4, the defendants were at a "makeshift outdoor clubhouse" in the Rosebank section of Staten Island when they learned of Obama's victory. At that point, prosecutors said, Nicoletti drove Contreras, Carranza and another friend to the predominantly African-American Park Hill neighborhood in Staten Island.
Their purpose, prosecutors said, was to assault African-Americans because of Obama's win.
Their first victim, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office, was 17-year-old Ali Kamara, whom they beat with a metal pipe and a collapsible police baton. Kamara escaped after suffering a concussion and injuries to his legs.
"The first swing that swung -- it hit my head. It cut my head," Kamara told CNN affiliate WABC. "I got staples on my head now."
Kamara said he hid in a neighbor's backyard until the boys moved on.
Continuing to the Port Richmond section of Staten Island, the group assaulted a second African-American man, pushing him down, the federal prosecutors alleged. They then allegedly accosted a Latino man, demanding to know how he voted, and shouted profanities about Obama at a group of African-Americans at a hair salon.
Next, prosecutors said, the group targeted Ronald Forte, a man they mistakenly believed to be African-American who was walking along Blackford Avenue in predominantly African-American Port Richmond. Forte is white, but because he was wearing a hoodie, the men were unable to identify his race and assumed that he was African-American.
According to the indictment, the men decided to assault Forte with the police baton as they drove by, but at the last moment, Nicoletti swerved the vehicle directly into the 38-year-old man instead. Forte was thrown onto the hood of the car, shattering the front windshield.
According to Staten Island Real Time News (silive.com), Forte was in a coma for 45 days, returning to his family's home in New Jersey in mid-December, said his mother, Eileen. She added that her son now has serious brain damage and motor control problems.
"He's not good. He's never going to be good," she said. "Every day, I just see something different, and it's so scary."
U.S. Attorney Benton J. Campbell decried the attacks.
"Violence and intimidation aimed at interfering with the constitutional rights of every citizen, including the right to vote, will not be tolerated," he said in a written statement.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Nicoletti has an extensive history of violent criminal activity including burglary, car break-ins, firebombing, assault, and marijuana and cocaine distribution. He is also a member of the "Rosebank Crew" (RBK) founded by his now-incarcerated younger brother, Anthony Nicoletti.
Investigators found a cache of weapons and police batons stolen from vehicles owned by police, as well as letters from Nicoletti's brother
|
[
"What three men conspired to intimidate African-Americans?",
"who is held without bail",
"How many men were involved in the conspiracy to intimidate?",
"What two were held without bail while the other was out with a monitoring device?",
"who conspired to indimidate",
"Who was being intimidated?",
"who did the intimidate"
] |
[
"Ralph Nicoletti, 18, Michael Contreras, 18, and Brian Carranza, 21,",
"Nicoletti and Contreras",
"Three",
"Nicoletti and Contreras",
"Three Staten Island men",
"intimidate African-Americans",
"African-Americans"
] |
question: What three men conspired to intimidate African-Americans?, answer: Ralph Nicoletti, 18, Michael Contreras, 18, and Brian Carranza, 21, | question: who is held without bail, answer: Nicoletti and Contreras | question: How many men were involved in the conspiracy to intimidate?, answer: Three | question: What two were held without bail while the other was out with a monitoring device?, answer: Nicoletti and Contreras | question: who conspired to indimidate, answer: Three Staten Island men | question: Who was being intimidated?, answer: intimidate African-Americans | question: who did the intimidate, answer: African-Americans
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Three professors and a former professor at Columbia University's Teachers College received hate mail this week, the New York Police Department said. It's the campus that was shaken by several bias crimes directed at black and Jewish professors in 2007.
Columbia University's Teachers College is once again the target of a hate campaign.
Three professors received manila envelopes Tuesday with images of swastikas in them.
The fourth, a former professor who is an African-American, was sent a manila envelope containing an image of a noose, according to NYPD deputy commissioner Paul Browne.
Among those receiving a swastika image was Elizabeth Midlarsky, a Jewish psychologist who has studied psychological principles in the context of the Holocaust, police said.
In 2007, her office door was spray-painted with a swastika. (A swastika is the right-angles cross symbol used on Nazi Germany flags).
The NYPD Hate Crimes Unit is leading the investigation into the incident. No arrests have been made.
"The TC community deplores these hateful acts, which violate every Teachers College and societal norm," said an e-mail Wednesday to faculty and students from the college's president, Susan Fuhrman; and dean, Tom James.
No arrests were been made in the 2007 incidents. Police declined to say if they believe there is a connection between those cases and the mailings this week.
|
[
"Who received hate mail?",
"Whose door was spray painted",
"Who is leading the investigation into these hate crimes?",
"what crime unit is leading the investigation",
"Who received a swastika?"
] |
[
"Three professors and a former professor at Columbia University's Teachers College",
"Elizabeth Midlarsky,",
"The NYPD",
"NYPD Hate",
"Three professors"
] |
question: Who received hate mail?, answer: Three professors and a former professor at Columbia University's Teachers College | question: Whose door was spray painted, answer: Elizabeth Midlarsky, | question: Who is leading the investigation into these hate crimes?, answer: The NYPD | question: what crime unit is leading the investigation, answer: NYPD Hate | question: Who received a swastika?, answer: Three professors
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Three professors and a former professor at Columbia University's Teachers College received hate mail this week, the New York Police Department said. It's the campus that was shaken by several bias crimes directed at black and Jewish professors in 2007.
Columbia University's Teachers College is once again the target of a hate campaign.
Three professors received manila envelopes Tuesday with images of swastikas in them.
The fourth, a former professor who is an African-American, was sent a manila envelope containing an image of a noose, according to NYPD deputy commissioner Paul Browne.
Among those receiving a swastika image was Elizabeth Midlarsky, a Jewish psychologist who has studied psychological principles in the context of the Holocaust, police said.
In 2007, her office door was spray-painted with a swastika. (A swastika is the right-angles cross symbol used on Nazi Germany flags).
The NYPD Hate Crimes Unit is leading the investigation into the incident. No arrests have been made.
"The TC community deplores these hateful acts, which violate every Teachers College and societal norm," said an e-mail Wednesday to faculty and students from the college's president, Susan Fuhrman; and dean, Tom James.
No arrests were been made in the 2007 incidents. Police declined to say if they believe there is a connection between those cases and the mailings this week.
|
[
"what are the professors names?",
"What agency is in charge of the investigation?",
"what is the Jewish psychologist name?",
"Who received hate mail this week?",
"What happened to three professors?",
"who is the head of NYPD?",
"What happened to the psychologist's office door in 2007?"
] |
[
"Elizabeth Midlarsky,",
"The NYPD Hate Crimes Unit",
"Elizabeth Midlarsky,",
"Three professors and a former professor at Columbia University's Teachers College",
"received hate mail",
"Paul Browne.",
"spray-painted with a swastika."
] |
question: what are the professors names?, answer: Elizabeth Midlarsky, | question: What agency is in charge of the investigation?, answer: The NYPD Hate Crimes Unit | question: what is the Jewish psychologist name?, answer: Elizabeth Midlarsky, | question: Who received hate mail this week?, answer: Three professors and a former professor at Columbia University's Teachers College | question: What happened to three professors?, answer: received hate mail | question: who is the head of NYPD?, answer: Paul Browne. | question: What happened to the psychologist's office door in 2007?, answer: spray-painted with a swastika.
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Toward the end of her marriage, Rabia Iqbal said she feared for her life.
Robina Niaz said the Quran "condemns" abuse of women. "If we witness injustice, we're required to speak up."
Iqbal was born in New York to parents who had immigrated to the United States from the tribal areas of Pakistan. She had a strict Muslim upbringing and when she was 16, her parents arranged her marriage to a 38-year-old man. She claims her husband turned violent during their 10 years of marriage.
When she finally left him, she did not know where to turn. Going home wasn't an option, she said.
"My parents ... made clear that they would disown me," Iqbal said. "My father even said ... 'You're lucky you live in America because if you lived back home, you would have been dead by now.' "
She was hiding out in her office at work when a friend put her in touch with Robina Niaz, whose organization, Turning Point for Women and Families, helps female Muslim abuse victims.
"It was such a relief ... to speak about things that ... I thought no one would understand," said Iqbal, who has received counseling from Niaz for more than two years and calls Niaz her "savior."
"Robina understood the cultural nuances ... the religious issues," Iqbal said. Watch Iqbal tell her story »
A devout Muslim, Niaz stresses that there is no evidence that domestic violence is more common among Muslim families.
"Abuse happens everywhere," said Niaz. "It cuts across barriers of race, religion, culture."
But, she said, Muslims are often reluctant to confront the issue.
"There's a lot of denial," she said. "It makes it much harder for the victims of abuse to speak out."
When Niaz launched her organization in 2004, it was the first resource of its kind in New York City. Today, her one-woman campaign has expanded into a multifaceted endeavor that is raising awareness about family violence and providing direct services to women in need.
Niaz said she firmly believes that domestic violence goes against Islamic teachings, and considers it her religious duty to try to stop abuse from happening.
"Quran condemns abusive behavior of women," she said, noting that the prophet Mohammed was never known to have abused women. "Allah says, 'Stand up against injustice and bear witness, even if it's against your own kin. So if I see injustice being done to women and children, I have to speak up. It's my duty."
Niaz's mission began after a difficult period in her own life. Born and raised in Pakistan, she had earned a master's degree in psychology and had a successful career in international affairs and marketing when she moved to the United States to marry in 1990.
"It was a disastrous marriage," she said.
As Niaz struggled to navigate the American legal system during her divorce, she said she appreciated how lucky she was to speak English and have an education. She realized that many immigrant women without those advantages might be more likely to stay in marriages because they didn't know how to make the system work for them.
"If this is how difficult it is for me, then what must other immigrant women go through?" she remembered thinking.
After volunteering with South Asian victims of domestic violence, Niaz, who speaks five languages, got a job using those skills to advocate for immigrant women affected by family violence.
But Niaz's focus changed on September 11, 2001. "I was no longer a Pakistani-American ... I looked at myself as a Muslim."
Niaz said the backlash many Muslims experienced after the terror attacks made abuse victims more afraid to seek help; they feared being shunned for bringing negative attention to their community. Watch Niaz explain the effects of 9/11 on abused Muslim women »
"Women who were caught in abusive marriages were trapped even
|
[
"who helps domestic violance victims",
"Whose organization helps female Muslim domestic violence victims?",
"What goes against Islamic teachings?"
] |
[
"Turning Point for Women and Families,",
"Robina Niaz,",
"domestic violence"
] |
question: who helps domestic violance victims, answer: Turning Point for Women and Families, | question: Whose organization helps female Muslim domestic violence victims?, answer: Robina Niaz, | question: What goes against Islamic teachings?, answer: domestic violence
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Two undocumented workers from Mexico and one from Ecuador have reached court settlements in recent weeks for a total of $3.85 million in damages for New York construction-site accidents, an attorney for the men announced Wednesday.
"All three cases involve construction and terribly unsafe working conditions," the attorney, Brian O'Dwyer, said in a news conference. "We're here today to re-emphasize -- as we have in the past -- to the Latino community and all undocumented workers that they have the same rights once they're on the job as any New York citizen."
A 33-year-old undocumented plumber from Mexico who was scalded by an exploding pipe at a Wall Street construction site in 2004 settled his damage claim for $2.5 million, according to a statement given to reporters at the news conference. The married father of two, who says he still has nightmares from the accident, hopes to open a restaurant or bar with the settlement money, his cousin told reporters.
In a separate statement, owners of the Wall Street site said only that the injured plumber was "employed directly by [the] contractor and not by the owner of the property nor the managing agent." Reached through a public relations firm, a spokesperson for the contractor, Swig Equities, had no comment.
Another undocumented Mexican worker suffered severe injuries to his left foot and other parts of his body when a steel beam fell on his lower body at a building site in downtown Manhattan, the news conference statement said. The 52-year-old settled his damage claim against Beway Realty Corp. and F.J. Sciame Construction Co. Inc. for $750,000, according to the statement.
David Koeppel, a managing member of Beway Realty, said he was not familiar with the case. F.J. Sciame Construction, the site's contractor, did not respond to inquiries.
A 36-year-old Ecuadorian laborer who worked at the Arverne by the Sea community in Queens -- a neighborhood The New York Times has called a "bright spot" in the housing market for its strong sales and low foreclosure rates -- settled a damage claim for $600,000, the news conference statement said.
He was injured when three large 44x10-foot trusses, each weighing 200 pounds, collapsed onto him in August 2007, fracturing his hip and causing other injuries, according to the statement.
The father of three, who had worked in construction for more than a decade and owned his own company at the time of the accident, said he was very sad after the accident because he did not know how he would support his family. His two sons, now 7 and 8, and his 16-year-old daughter were all born in the United States.
"The contractor tried to blame me," he said at the news conference, speaking in Spanish. What message would he give other workers? "Don't be afraid to talk to a lawyer."
Although he had not yet recovered enough to resume construction work, he hopes to use the settlement money to build a home for his family in New Jersey.
Messages left for The Beechwood Organization, developers of Arverne by the Sea, were not returned.
Joel Magallan, executive director of Asociacion Tepeyac, an immigrant advocacy group, said that while construction work is often dangerous, undocumented workers are likely to work at sites that lack safety equipment and OSHA regulation compliance.
"This is a great day for the undocumented immigrants," Magallan said. "They have to know today that they have rights -- the same rights as other workers who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents."
"Many workers are threatened by their employers with deportation or discharge if they bring their cases to court," O'Dwyer said. "What we find normally on work sites in New York is that deaths occur to the undocumented far out of proportion to their work in the workplace, and that is because of the fact that they just do not receive the safety protections," he said.
In 2005, O'Dwyer won a historic $4 million settlement for a 33-year-old Mexican worker who had fallen 30 feet in a
|
[
"How many workers from Mexico reached settlements?",
"In what city did the workers receive there injuries?",
"Where are the undocumented workers from?",
"According to the attorney, what is it undocumented workers have?",
"what Advocate says undocumented construction workers?"
] |
[
"Two",
"New York",
"Ecuador",
"the same rights",
"Brian O'Dwyer,"
] |
question: How many workers from Mexico reached settlements?, answer: Two | question: In what city did the workers receive there injuries?, answer: New York | question: Where are the undocumented workers from?, answer: Ecuador | question: According to the attorney, what is it undocumented workers have?, answer: the same rights | question: what Advocate says undocumented construction workers?, answer: Brian O'Dwyer,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- When filmmaker Roman Polanski was arrested Saturday in Switzerland, he was on his way to accept an award for Lifetime Achievement at the Zurich Film Festival.
Peers of Roman Polanski have praised him for his talent and lamented his arrest.
Polanski's friend, Swiss filmmaker Otto Weisser, was among the first to publicly run to his defense.
"This is for me a shock. I am ashamed to be Swiss, that the Swiss is doing such a thing to brilliant fantastic genius, that millions and millions of people love his work," Weisser said upon learning the director had been detained by Swiss authorities. "He's a brilliant guy, and he made a little mistake 32 years ago. What a shame for Switzerland."
By Tuesday, more than 130 heavyweights in the movie industry had taken up Polanski's cause.
An online petition has been signed by directors such as Marin Scorsese, Woody Allen and Pedro Almodovar, as well as actors.
Studio chief Harvey Weinstein told CNN in a statement: "We are calling every filmmaker we can to help fix this terrible situation." Watch a report on celebrities' feelings about Polanski's arrest »
Roman Polanski first stormed Hollywood with his psychological thriller, "Rosemary's Baby," in 1968. He remains one of the most celebrated directors in Hollywood and the world, despite not having set foot in the United States in more than three decades.
"We stand by and await his release and his next masterwork," said Zurich Film Festival Jury President Debra Winger on Monday on behalf of Polanski.
Adrien Brody, who Polanski directed in 2002's "The Pianist," had glowing words when it came to his experience working with Polanski.
"If you have the guidance from someone you admire, like Roman Polanski, who not only is a gifted director and actor, but who knows the subject matter and in my opinion the character that I portray, implicitly, then, it's a huge gift," Brody said.
"I learned a great deal about film and the process," the Academy Award winning actor added. "I spent six weeks without another actor on the set, just Roman and I and a crew -- and that's, that's a dream come true for an actor. I cherished those memories."
"He is sweet and very strong and is very, very demanding, in the tradition of an auteur," said Sigourney Weaver about being directed by Polanski in 1994's "Death and the Maiden."
It's a reputation Polanski's earned and maintained, despite his 1977 guilty plea on a statutory rape charge of unlawful sex with a 13-year-old girl. Watch the mixed reaction in Switzerland to Polanski's arrest »
The celebrated director fled the United States and settled in France to escape jail, but by the standards of those in Hollywood, the case is ancient history.
"We hope today that this latest order will be dropped," Winger said. "It is based on a three decade old case that is all but dead, except for a minor technicality."
Matthew Belloni, who has has been following the Polanski case for The Hollywood Reporter's legal blog, said the outpouring of support from the film industry is not surprising.
"It is a criminal conviction of a terrible crime, but it is something that the industry is willing to look the other way on," Belloni said. "If Hollywood really gets to look at itself and judge the personal character of a lot of the artists in the community, there would be a lot of empty seats at the Oscars because a lot of people have personal problems. This sort of is at the extreme level of that."
As Polanski's star rose after his Oscar-winning hit, "Rosemary's Baby," the world got to know the director's back story.
He was the son of Polish Jews whose mother died in a concentration camp even as a young Polanski escaped the Nazis.
Polanski grew up to become a famous director and married
|
[
"whaty did the presdient say",
"who continues to hail him as a hero",
"What did the film festival president say?",
"where had polanski remained an insider",
"Who supported Roman Polanski after his arrest?"
] |
[
"\"We stand by and await his release and his next masterwork,\"",
"Peers of Roman Polanski have praised",
"\"We stand by and await his release and his next masterwork,\"",
"Switzerland,",
"Swiss filmmaker Otto Weisser,"
] |
question: whaty did the presdient say, answer: "We stand by and await his release and his next masterwork," | question: who continues to hail him as a hero, answer: Peers of Roman Polanski have praised | question: What did the film festival president say?, answer: "We stand by and await his release and his next masterwork," | question: where had polanski remained an insider, answer: Switzerland, | question: Who supported Roman Polanski after his arrest?, answer: Swiss filmmaker Otto Weisser,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- "Guiding Light" will go dark in September after 72 years and 16,000 episodes, CBS announced Wednesday.
Gina Tognoni is one of many performers who have appeared on "Guiding Light" over the years.
The daytime soap opera's declining viewership led to the decision, according to a CBS spokeswoman.
The show, which the Guinness Book of World Records lists as the longest-running television drama, first aired on NBC radio in 1937 as a 15-minute serial, the spokeswoman said. It moved to television on the CBS network in 1952.
The last episode is set to air on September 18, she said.
The show is produced in New York.
|
[
"where was the show moved to",
"Where the TV show moved?",
"when did the serial debute",
"when is the last episode",
"In which radio station?",
"When did \"Guiding Light\" first appear on TV?",
"When will the last episode air?",
"When did \"Guiding Light debut?"
] |
[
"television on the CBS network in 1952.",
"to television on the CBS network in 1952.",
"first aired on NBC radio in 1937 as a 15-minute",
"September 18,",
"NBC",
"1937",
"September 18,",
"1937"
] |
question: where was the show moved to, answer: television on the CBS network in 1952. | question: Where the TV show moved?, answer: to television on the CBS network in 1952. | question: when did the serial debute, answer: first aired on NBC radio in 1937 as a 15-minute | question: when is the last episode, answer: September 18, | question: In which radio station?, answer: NBC | question: When did "Guiding Light" first appear on TV?, answer: 1937 | question: When will the last episode air?, answer: September 18, | question: When did "Guiding Light debut?, answer: 1937
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- "Late Show With David Letterman" bandleader Paul Shaffer is a walking Wikipedia of rock 'n' roll history -- and now he's added his own story to the mix.
Paul Shaffer has been David Letterman's bandleader for 27 years.
Shaffer's new memoir, "We'll Be Here for the Rest of Our Lives: A Swingin' Showbiz Saga" (Flying Dolphin Press) offers his take on a colorful career, from piano lessons in his native Canada to a "Saturday Night Live" stint to the gig he's had, and relished, for 27 years -- Letterman's sidekick.
Oh yeah, and he co-wrote the hit disco song "It's Raining Men."
Shaffer appeared this week at a Manhattan Barnes & Noble to sign books and give a performance. Among those who dropped by were the Beach Boys' Al Jardine -- who joined in for "Help Me, Rhonda" -- Martin Short and girl group belter Darlene Love.
Shaffer also took questions from the audience. Though the topic of Letterman's recent troubles was off-limits, one audience member did ask Shaffer what the host was really like -- emphasis on "really."
Shaffer responded that the boss he's respected and admired for nearly three decades is "very transparent on the air and you can see exactly what he's like."
Shaffer talked to CNN about how he picks songs to introduce guests, his renowned Passover celebrations and his chance to be on "Seinfeld." The following is an edited version of the interview:
CNN: When guests are introduced on the "Late Show," you usually add a musical accompaniment that's an obscure reference to their name. My favorite was when Dustin Hoffman was a guest, and you played "Dust in the Wind." Can you tell me how you come up with those, and what some of your favorites have been?
Paul Shaffer: We think of them in rehearsal before the show. I have about 15 minutes, and I often throw it open to the floor. And by the floor, I mean the musicians, the band [the "Late Show's" CBS Orchestra members]. And I say "Who has an idea for this?" And I pick the one that I like the best.
[Once we] had a new actor named Aziz Ansari, and one of the guys in the band says, "I'm Sorry" [referring to the Brenda Lee song]. So we did it, and it cracked Dave [Letterman] up so I know that I got my one laugh -- and the most important laugh.
CNN: What's the story behind using Ray Charles' "Busted" for Tom Brokaw?
Shaffer: He was particularly difficult to come up with something for because he's on all the time, and we didn't want to play a news theme or a song about the news. So Will Lee, my bass player, suggested "Busted" ... "I'm broke, aw -- I'm busted." And Brokaw asked about it once: "Why do you play Ray Charles' 'Busted' when I come on?" He asked on camera, and I said, "I'm broke -- aw -- I'm busted."
CNN: What is your favorite song of all time?
Shaffer: As far as favorite "overall package" record of all time, I'd have to say "My Girl" by The Temptations. I like everything about it, not only the composition -- but the arrangement, the production, the lead vocals, the background vocals, the horns, the strings. That one I listen to over and over again.
And, of course, "Be My Baby" by the Ronettes. Maybe that's my favorite song, and "My Girl" is my favorite record.
CNN: For some reason I thought it was "He's a Rebel" by the Crystals.
Shaffer: Well that's way up there. I consider that my national anthem. When I hear "He's
|
[
"Does Shaffer have a new memoir?",
"What does Shaffer's new memoirs have?"
] |
[
"\"We'll Be Here for the Rest of Our Lives: A Swingin' Showbiz Saga\"",
"his take on a colorful career,"
] |
question: Does Shaffer have a new memoir?, answer: "We'll Be Here for the Rest of Our Lives: A Swingin' Showbiz Saga" | question: What does Shaffer's new memoirs have?, answer: his take on a colorful career,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A $15.5 million payout made by oil giant Shell to settle a lawsuit brought against it by relations of executed Nigerian writer Ken Saro-Wiwa and other activists will allow the families of the victims to move on with their lives, Saro-Wiwa's son has told CNN.
Saro-Wiwa said the settlement would allow the families of the victims to draw a line under the past.
The New York lawsuit -- brought to court by the Center for Constitutional Rights on behalf of Saro-Wiwa's family and others in 1996 -- accused Shell's Nigerian subsidiary of complicity in the writer's 1995 hanging and the killings or persecution of other environmental activists in the Niger Delta.
Nigeria's Ogoni people have complained for years that Shell was allowed to pollute its land without consequences.
Saro-Wiwa's death sparked a worldwide outcry, and his movement ultimately forced Shell out of the oil- and gas-rich Ogoniland region.
"It enables us to draw a line under the past and actually face the future with something tangible, some hope that this is the beginning of a better engagement between all the stakeholders in this issue," Ken Saro-Wiwa Jr. told CNN.
Shell said it "had no part in the violence that took place" but called the settlement "a humanitarian gesture to set up a trust fund to benefit the Ogoni people."
Shell fought the lawsuit until last week, when a federal appellate court ruled that the plaintiffs could sue the company's Nigerian subsidiary in American courts, overturning a March decision in the company's favor.
Saro-Wiwa said the case set a precedent for oil companies operating in regions such as West Africa by demonstrating that they could "be brought to trial in America for human rights violations in Africa." Watch Saro-Wiwa discuss how he hopes the case will set a precedent »
"Justice is always hard won... It took 13 years to go through the legal process but clearly before we started this corporations throught they could almost operate with impunity but now the legal landscape has changed," he said.
Roughly half of the settlement will go into a trust fund to help the people of Nigeria's Ogoni region, according to court papers.
|
[
"Residents have long complained that which company was polluting the land?",
"What have residents long complained?",
"Half of the settlement will go to help who?",
"Executed environmental activist's family sued what type of company?",
"Who's son says Shell payout will let families move on with lives?",
"What region's people will be helped?",
"What will let families move on with their lives?",
"What does Ken Saro-Wiwa's son say?"
] |
[
"Shell",
"that Shell was allowed to pollute its land without consequences.",
"the people of Nigeria's Ogoni region,",
"oil giant",
"executed Nigerian writer Ken Saro-Wiwa",
"Nigeria's Ogoni",
"$15.5 million payout",
"\"It enables us to draw a line under the past and actually face"
] |
question: Residents have long complained that which company was polluting the land?, answer: Shell | question: What have residents long complained?, answer: that Shell was allowed to pollute its land without consequences. | question: Half of the settlement will go to help who?, answer: the people of Nigeria's Ogoni region, | question: Executed environmental activist's family sued what type of company?, answer: oil giant | question: Who's son says Shell payout will let families move on with lives?, answer: executed Nigerian writer Ken Saro-Wiwa | question: What region's people will be helped?, answer: Nigeria's Ogoni | question: What will let families move on with their lives?, answer: $15.5 million payout | question: What does Ken Saro-Wiwa's son say?, answer: "It enables us to draw a line under the past and actually face
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A 15-year-old boy remained in a psychiatric facility Tuesday after Monroe, New York, police arrested him in connection with a plot to attack his former high school on the anniversary of the 1999 Columbine High School shooting, police said.
Police say the boy targeted Monroe-Woodbury High School, although he was no longer a student there.
He was charged as a juvenile and faces two felony counts of criminal possession of a weapon, Monroe Police Chief Dominic Giudice said.
Police withheld the name of the teen, who was arrested Monday after police executed a search warrant at his residence.
There they found four bottles filled with gasoline, a torch, machete, black trench coat, three propane tanks, two computers, items that could be used as fuses and several other electronic devices, according to a Monroe Police Department press release issued Tuesday.
The supplies were found in the garage, Giudice said, but the teen's parents had been unaware of their son's intentions until he told police what he had planned to do.
Police also discovered the teen had actively been seeking a military assault-type weapon that could "hold as many rounds as possible."
The boy told police investigators he had been bullied by fellow students and had been told that he resembled Columbine shooter Eric Harris, the press release said.
A detective on the case told Giudice that the teen appeared to be composed during the interview, as if he were just having another conversation.
Police said the plot was planned for April 20 at Monroe-Woodbury High School, which is the anniversary of the Columbine shooting in Colorado, in which 12 students and a teacher were killed. The date also is Adolf Hitler's birthday.
"He said that he had a lot of hatred toward a lot of the kids who attend that school," the press release said.
The boy had attended the Monroe-Woodbury Central School District but recently began attending another school, police said.
In a statement released by the Monroe-Woodbury Central School District today, superintendent Joseph DiLorenzo indicated that students had come forward with information that may have averted the alleged plot.
"We are working closely with law enforcement to do everything possible to keep our children safe," he said.
|
[
"Which statement about the teen did police release?",
"Who did the teen resemble?",
"Which boy had bomb materials?",
"Where were items located?"
] |
[
"the boy targeted Monroe-Woodbury High School, although he was no longer a student there.",
"Columbine shooter Eric Harris,",
"15-year-old",
"at his residence."
] |
question: Which statement about the teen did police release?, answer: the boy targeted Monroe-Woodbury High School, although he was no longer a student there. | question: Who did the teen resemble?, answer: Columbine shooter Eric Harris, | question: Which boy had bomb materials?, answer: 15-year-old | question: Where were items located?, answer: at his residence.
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A 15-year-old girl with a 500-texts-a-day texting habit thumbed her way to the $50,000 grand prize at the L.G. National Texting Championship in New York on Tuesday.
Kate Moore, 15, of Des Moines, Iowa, out-texted more than 250,000 participants for the texting title in New York.
Over 250,000 participants of all ages entered the competition, whose championship rounds were held in New York on Monday and Tuesday and won by Kate Moore of Des Moines, Iowa. Some challenges were straightforward tests of speed and accuracy, but others required a little extra texting savvy. In one round, texters had to send texts while blindfolded. Another round quizzed contestants' knowledge of texting acronyms.
The only acronym to stump every texter was PAW -- parents are watching.
The fourth-place finisher, 21-year-old Jordan Rowe, saw her dreams of texting glory vanish in the "pressure cooker" round, where actors dressed as emoticons attempted to distract contestants tasked with texting tongue-twisters. Rowe failed to accurately text "Which wicked witch wished which more wicked witch in the well?" while a human emoticon talked trash about her sister.
Riffing off texters' sometimes dangerous tendency to text while performing other tasks, another round required contestants to complete an obstacle course while firing off difficult-to-type texts.
"I felt like I was gonna die," the eventual champion said of the texting gauntlet, getting a big LOL from the audience.
The finals on Tuesday afternoon pitted Dynda Morgan, 14, of Savannah, Georgia, against Moore. The two went head to head in a best-of-three showdown to see who could most quickly pound out lengthy texts predetermined by the judges -- with no errors.
Morgan, whose stepsister also made it to the championships, took the first round.
Faced with a do-or-die situation in the second round, Moore seemed to bet on accuracy over speed, finishing well behind her opponent but winning the round.
In the tiebreaker, the two girls furiously raced to thumb the final text: "Zippity Dooo Dahh Zippity Ayy...MY oh MY, what a wonderful day! Plenty of sunshine Comin' my way....Zippitty Do Dah Zippity Aay! WondeRful Feeling Wonderful day!"
The pregnant pause before the winner was announced stretched into a seeming eternity because Moore apparently forgot to hit send after finishing her text.
But then Moore's phone began to vibrate, signaling that she was the grand champion.
Kate's beaming mother, Claire, acknowledged that she has confiscated her daughter's phone on occasion, but said she appreciates that her daughter's texting habit means she's in constant touch. "I can get ahold of [her] at all times," she said.
Nor does Moore's mother have to foot an appallingly large phone bill each month, because her daughter is on an unlimited texting plan. She did concede that the texting portion of one of Moore's recent phone bills stretched to 294 pages.
Moore's victory was all the more awe-inspiring because she got a phone with text capability less than a year ago.
Moments after her victory, Moore agreed to an exclusive text message interview with CNN.
CNN: OMG U r ltrlly the wrld's bst txter. How does it feel?
Moore: It feels the best! Im so prd of myself & it feels aswm that ive gottn so far! :)
CNN: How mny txts do u snd a day? A month?
Moore: Uhhh about lyk 400-500 in a day, an avrg of 12014 thousand a month?
CNN: Wht r u going to do w the 50 k?
Moore: Idk yet! Prlly spend a good amount of the $$$......but ya gotta save some 2 b smart of course!
CNN: Do u ever get in trubl in skwl 4 txting 2 much?
Moore: haah just once or 2ce, teachers hv seen it and taken it away...lol that sux when that
|
[
"Who said \"I felt like I was gonna die\"?",
"what Text messaging competition includes texting?",
"What kind of competition included blindfolding?",
"what Kate Moore of Des Moines, Iowa, says?",
"What was the prize money amount?",
"Where is KAte Moore from?",
"how much Of the $50,000 prize, Moore texts she'll \"prlly spend?",
"What competition did Kate Moore win?"
] |
[
"the eventual champion",
"Championship",
"L.G. National Texting Championship",
"\"I felt like I was gonna die,\"",
"$50,000",
"Des Moines, Iowa,",
"a good amount",
"L.G. National Texting Championship"
] |
question: Who said "I felt like I was gonna die"?, answer: the eventual champion | question: what Text messaging competition includes texting?, answer: Championship | question: What kind of competition included blindfolding?, answer: L.G. National Texting Championship | question: what Kate Moore of Des Moines, Iowa, says?, answer: "I felt like I was gonna die," | question: What was the prize money amount?, answer: $50,000 | question: Where is KAte Moore from?, answer: Des Moines, Iowa, | question: how much Of the $50,000 prize, Moore texts she'll "prlly spend?, answer: a good amount | question: What competition did Kate Moore win?, answer: L.G. National Texting Championship
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A 31-year-old Ecuadorean man who was beaten last Sunday in what New York City authorities say may have been a hate crime has died at a Queens hospital, his brother said Saturday.
Jose Sucuzhanay was beaten after leaving a party at a Catholic church.
Jose Sucuzhanay and his brother, Romel, had left a party on December 7 at St. Brigid's Roman Catholic Church when several men approached them in a car in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn, police said. The men allegedly began shouting anti-gay and anti-Latino vulgarities at the two men.
Jose Sucuzhanay suffered severe head trauma and was taken to Elmhurst Hospital. He died Friday night from his injuries.
Romel Sucuzhanay, 38, escaped with minor scrapes and has talked with detectives on the case.
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn said she was "horrified to learn that anti-LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transsexual) and anti-Latino slurs were used by one or more of the assailants, raising this event to the level of a hate crime." Watch how attack has outraged the Latino community »
Quinn said she was in touch with the NYPD's Hate Crimes Task Force. According to police, however, the attack has not been categorized as a hate crime.
"This is a wake-up call and shows how far we still must come to address the devastating problem of hate crimes in our communities," said Diego Sucuzhanay, Jose's brother, in a written statement. "Only by exposing these crimes and working together will we be able to make a difference."
No arrests have been made in the case. Police are offering a $22,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of anyone involved in the attack.
Sucuzhanay's mother arrived Saturday in New York from the family's home outside Quito, Ecuador, only to learn that he son had died, said family spokesman Francisco Moya.
He said the victim had lived in the United States for more than a decade and was a legal resident, working as a real estate broker.
A news conference is expected to be held Sunday afternoon.
|
[
"Where did the mother arrive from?",
"What do police believe the motive is?",
"Was the immigrant injured?",
"Where is the mother from?",
"What is the name of the person assaulted?",
"Name one of the victims?",
"From which county did the mother of the victim arrive",
"What did the group allegedly yell"
] |
[
"Quito, Ecuador,",
"hate crime",
"has died",
"Quito, Ecuador,",
"Jose Sucuzhanay",
"Jose Sucuzhanay",
"Quito, Ecuador,",
"anti-gay and anti-Latino vulgarities"
] |
question: Where did the mother arrive from?, answer: Quito, Ecuador, | question: What do police believe the motive is?, answer: hate crime | question: Was the immigrant injured?, answer: has died | question: Where is the mother from?, answer: Quito, Ecuador, | question: What is the name of the person assaulted?, answer: Jose Sucuzhanay | question: Name one of the victims?, answer: Jose Sucuzhanay | question: From which county did the mother of the victim arrive, answer: Quito, Ecuador, | question: What did the group allegedly yell, answer: anti-gay and anti-Latino vulgarities
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A 90-year-old Holocaust survivor was found strangled Thursday in his Upper East Side apartment, a spokeswoman for the New York City medical examiner said Friday.
Felix Brinkmann dances at a 2008 party marking his 90th birthday.
Felix Brinkmann, a native of Latvia, escaped death for a year while he was in the Nazis' Mauthausen, Ebensee and Auschwitz concentration camps. Five times he had been slated for the gas chambers, but each time he used his fluency in German to talk his way out.
After the war ended, he was stunned to discover that his wife, who had also been shipped to Auschwitz, was alive and well in Poland.
The Brinkmanns immigrated to America, where Felix spent years in the bar and nightclub business, co-founding in 1971 Adam's Apple disco in Manhattan.
In recent years, he had served as the real estate manager of a mixed-use building in the Bronx, working "seven days a week, without fail," said his son Rick Brinkman, who spells his last name differently than his father.
On Thursday, the building's superintendent grew concerned when Brinkmann did not show up to work. He notified Brinkmann's son and received permission to enter the father's apartment, where he had lived alone since his wife died last year.
Brinkmann's body was found lying face down in his bedroom, his hands bound, his body showing blunt-force trauma wounds, police said. Brinkmann's blue 2009 Honda Civic may have been stolen and a safe in his apartment tampered with, police said.
A police spokesman said authorities were looking for "a man and a woman" in connection with the homicide.
Rick Brinkman speculated that the killing was random in nature. "Anybody who knew him really liked him," the son said. "He was not the kind of guy who had enemies."
|
[
"Brinkmann is a native of which country?",
"When did Felix Brinkmann's wife die?",
"Brinkmann was a survivor of how many concentration camps?",
"What is Brinkmann's first name?",
"Who are being sought in connection with the homicide?",
"Where did Felix Brinkmann live before his death?",
"Where did Mr and Mrs Brinkmann emigrate from?",
"Who is Felix Brinkmann?"
] |
[
"Latvia,",
"last year.",
"in the Nazis' Mauthausen, Ebensee and Auschwitz",
"Felix",
"\"a man and a woman\"",
"Upper East Side",
"Latvia,",
"A 90-year-old Holocaust survivor"
] |
question: Brinkmann is a native of which country?, answer: Latvia, | question: When did Felix Brinkmann's wife die?, answer: last year. | question: Brinkmann was a survivor of how many concentration camps?, answer: in the Nazis' Mauthausen, Ebensee and Auschwitz | question: What is Brinkmann's first name?, answer: Felix | question: Who are being sought in connection with the homicide?, answer: "a man and a woman" | question: Where did Felix Brinkmann live before his death?, answer: Upper East Side | question: Where did Mr and Mrs Brinkmann emigrate from?, answer: Latvia, | question: Who is Felix Brinkmann?, answer: A 90-year-old Holocaust survivor
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A Bronx woman has been charged with murder and robbery in the death of an 89-year-old Nazi concentration camp survivor, and police said a man is still being sought in connection with the death.
Felix Brinkmann dances at a 2008 birthday party. "He was not the kind of guy who had enemies," his son says.
Angela Murray, 30, was arrested Saturday, according to the Manhattan district attorney's office, and is accused of strangling Guido Felix Brinkmann on Thursday in his Upper East Side apartment.
Murray was arraigned Sunday and charged with one count of murder in the second degree and three counts of robbery.
Brinkmann, a native of Latvia, was a Holocaust survivor who escaped death for a year while he was in the Mauthausen, Ebensee and Auschwitz camps. He had been slated for the gas chambers five times, but each time, he used his fluency in German to talk his way out, said his son, Rick Brinkman, who spells his last name differently.
After the war, he was stunned to discover his wife, who had also been shipped to Auschwitz, alive and well in Poland.
The Brinkmanns immigrated to America, where Brinkmann spent years in the bar and nightclub business, co-founding the Adam's Apple disco in Manhattan in 1971.
In recent years, he had been the real estate manager of a mixed-use building in the Bronx, working "seven days a week, without fail," Rick Brinkman said.
On Thursday, the building's superintendent grew concerned when Brinkmann did not show up for work. He notified Brinkmann's son and received permission to enter the father's apartment, where he had lived alone since his wife died last year.
Brinkmann was found face-down in his bedroom, his hands bound behind his back and his body showing blunt-force trauma wounds, police said. Brinkmann's blue 2009 Honda Civic had been stolen, along with one of two safes in his apartment, police said. The vehicle was later recovered in the Bronx.
Rick Brinkman speculated that the killing was random. "Anybody who knew him really liked him," the son said. "He was not the kind of guy who had enemies."
CNN's Jason Kessler contributed to this report.
|
[
"Who was charged with murder?",
"Who was killed",
"Where was Guido Brinkmann from?",
"Where was the woman from",
"Where was he a native of?",
"The victim was how old",
"Who was strangled to death?",
"What is the name of the woman charged with murdering Guido Brinkmann?",
"What is the sex of the person being sought by the police",
"Was the killing premeditated"
] |
[
"Angela Murray,",
"Felix Brinkmann",
"Latvia,",
"Bronx",
"Latvia,",
"89-year-old",
"Felix Brinkmann",
"Angela Murray,",
"a man is still",
"random."
] |
question: Who was charged with murder?, answer: Angela Murray, | question: Who was killed, answer: Felix Brinkmann | question: Where was Guido Brinkmann from?, answer: Latvia, | question: Where was the woman from, answer: Bronx | question: Where was he a native of?, answer: Latvia, | question: The victim was how old, answer: 89-year-old | question: Who was strangled to death?, answer: Felix Brinkmann | question: What is the name of the woman charged with murdering Guido Brinkmann?, answer: Angela Murray, | question: What is the sex of the person being sought by the police, answer: a man is still | question: Was the killing premeditated, answer: random.
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A Fort Drum soldier has been arrested in the deaths of two fellow soldiers found stabbed in an apartment near the upstate New York military base, the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office said.
The suspect, Joshua Hunter, 20, is being held at an undisclosed location in Ohio after being charged with two counts of second degree murder, Undersheriff Tim Dowe told CNN.
The sheriff's office identified the victims as Spc. Waide T. James, 20, of Cocoa, Florida, and Spc. Diego A. Valbuena, 23, of Port St. Lucie, Florida.
The two men were found dead with multiple stab wounds Tuesday in an apartment at Meadowbrook Apartments in LeRay, New York, Dowe said. The complex houses mostly military families near the main entrance of Fort Drum, he said.
The motive is unknown at this time, Dowe said.
Sheriff's deputies were called to the apartment complex after the soldiers were reported missing for duty, but the sheriff's office could not say when that report was filed.
James and Valbuena, who joined the Army in 2007, worked as motor transport operators with the Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, 10th Mountain Division, according to a Fort Drum press release. Both had served in Iraq, it said.
Police and Fort Drum officials would not release information about the suspect, including his rank or relationship to the victims.
CNN's Evan Buxbaum contributed to this report.
|
[
"Who are the victims?",
"The soldiers were found where?",
"What is the age of the man charged?",
"What is the number of soldiers found stabbed?",
"Who was charged with 2 counts of second degree murder?",
"What was Hunter charged with?"
] |
[
"Spc. Waide T. James, 20, of Cocoa, Florida, and Spc. Diego A. Valbuena, 23, of Port St. Lucie, Florida.",
"in an apartment at Meadowbrook Apartments in LeRay, New York,",
"20,",
"two",
"Joshua Hunter,",
"two counts of second degree murder,"
] |
question: Who are the victims?, answer: Spc. Waide T. James, 20, of Cocoa, Florida, and Spc. Diego A. Valbuena, 23, of Port St. Lucie, Florida. | question: The soldiers were found where?, answer: in an apartment at Meadowbrook Apartments in LeRay, New York, | question: What is the age of the man charged?, answer: 20, | question: What is the number of soldiers found stabbed?, answer: two | question: Who was charged with 2 counts of second degree murder?, answer: Joshua Hunter, | question: What was Hunter charged with?, answer: two counts of second degree murder,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A Latino group Tuesday expressed outrage over the slaying of an Ecuadoran man, allegedly at the hands of seven teenagers in what police are calling a hate crime.
Marcello Lucero, 37, was stabbed to death in an attack that police say was a hate crime.
The teens' parents bear some of the blame, along with community leaders who have created an inhospitable environment for immigrants, Fernando Fernando Mateo, founder of Hispanics Across America, said at a news conference.
"We understand that some may not welcome us in their neighborhoods, but killing us will not drive us away," Mateo said. "Those that hate us allow us to cut their lawns, build their homes, paint their homes, cook for them, serve their children -- and yet they teach them hate."
Marcello Lucero, 37, was walking to a friend's apartment in Patchogue, New York, when he was attacked late Saturday, police said. He was stabbed in the chest and died of his injuries. A friend walking with Lucero was not injured.
The seven teens were trying "to find Latinos and to assault them," said Suffolk County Police Detective Lt. Jack Fitzpatrick. "That was what they went out to do that night, and that's exactly what they did do. ... They were actively seeking victims."
At a court hearing for the seven Monday, a prosecutor quoted the youths as saying, "Let's go find some Mexicans to f--- up."
Jeffrey Conroy, 17, faces charges of first-degree manslaughter as a hate crime in the attack, police said. He and the other six -- Jordan Dasch, Anthony Hartford, Nicholas Hausch, Christopher Overton, Jose Pacheco and Kevin Shea -- also face charges of first-degree gang assault.
The additional charge against Conroy stems from authorities' belief that he was the one who stabbed Lucero. All of the suspects are 17 except for Overton, who is 16, according to police.
The "hate crime" designation would enhance any sentence imposed upon conviction.
Upon their arrest, all seven of the youths "admitted their involvement and their role in this crime," said Suffolk County Police Commissioner Richard Dormer.
However, all seven pleaded not guilty when they were arraigned Monday in Suffolk County Criminal Court.
Mateo said that Hispanics Across America and Lucero's relatives have retained a law firm and may file suit against the youths' families "to make sure the parents of these seven kids pay the consequences."
But he and other community leaders also laid blame at the feet of Steve Levy, Suffolk County executive.
"He has brought this hate that exists here amongst the Hispanic community," Mateo said. "He has legislated over and over again against Hispanic immigrants. ... He should be the person not welcome in this community."
The Rev. Alan Ramirez of Brookville Reform Church said, "We all know that Mr. Levy, along with these seven young men, has blood on his hands. And we consider that unacceptable. We ask a responsible Democratic Party to seek Mr. Levy's resignation or removal from office. We do not need our communities to be separated by hatred, intolerance and racial discord."
Attempts by CNN to contact Levy on Tuesday were unsuccessful, as his office was closed for the Veterans Day holiday. On Sunday, however, Levy issued a statement saying Lucero's death "wasn't a question of any county policy or legislation; it was a question of bad people doing horrific things," according to Newsday, which reported that Levy answered no further questions.
In a statement issued by police Sunday, Levy was quoted as saying, "This heinous crime that led to the death of an individual because of his race will not be tolerated in Suffolk County. The suspects will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."
New York Gov. David Paterson, in a statement Monday, also condemned Lucero's death.
"Suffolk Police tell us that Mr. Lucero and a friend were attacked late Saturday by seven teenagers who were driving around
|
[
"Who was attacked on Saturday night?",
"Who was charged with the crime?",
"how many teens were involved?",
"How many years old is Lucero?",
"Did all seven teenagers plead not guilty?",
"who was stabbed?",
"what is jeffery conroy charged with?"
] |
[
"Marcello Lucero,",
"seven teenagers",
"seven",
"37,",
"pleaded",
"Marcello Lucero,",
"first-degree manslaughter"
] |
question: Who was attacked on Saturday night?, answer: Marcello Lucero, | question: Who was charged with the crime?, answer: seven teenagers | question: how many teens were involved?, answer: seven | question: How many years old is Lucero?, answer: 37, | question: Did all seven teenagers plead not guilty?, answer: pleaded | question: who was stabbed?, answer: Marcello Lucero, | question: what is jeffery conroy charged with?, answer: first-degree manslaughter
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A New York Post cartoon Wednesday drew fire from civil rights activist Al Sharpton and others who say the drawing invokes historically racist images in suggesting an ape wrote President Barack Obama's economic stimulus package.
Al Sharpton says he wonders whether the cartoon "is making a less-than-casual inference" to a form of racism.
The artist, Sean Delonas, called Sharpton's reaction "ridiculous," and the newspaper defended its decision to run his cartoon. But other African-American leaders joined Sharpton, who has been the butt of previous Delonas panels, in attacking what they called the cartoon's racial overtones.
"Sean Delonas' cartoon in today's New York Post is insensitive and offensive," National Urban League President Marc Morial said in a statement issued Wednesday afternoon. "Comparing President Obama and his effort to revive the economy in a manner that depicts violence and racist inferences is unacceptable."
The cartoon showed two police officers standing over the body of a chimpanzee they just shot, a reference to this week's mauling of a Connecticut woman by a pet chimp, which police killed after the attack. In the cartoon, one of the officers tells the other, "They'll have to find someone else to write the next stimulus bill." New York Post: See cartoon
The nearly $800 billion stimulus package was the priority for Obama, the first African-American U.S. president, who signed it Tuesday. Watch Sharpton raise racism concerns, and see the cartoon »
"The cartoon in today's New York Post is troubling at best, given the racist attacks throughout history that have made African-Americans synonymous with monkeys," Sharpton said.
Sharpton questioned whether Delonas "is making a less-than-casual inference to this form of racism."
"The Post should at least clarify what point they were trying to make in this cartoon, and reprimand their cartoonist for making inferences that are offensive and divisive at a time the nation struggles to come together to stabilize the economy if, in fact, this was yet another racially charged cartoon," he said.
In a brief phone interview with CNN, Delonas called the controversy "absolutely friggin' ridiculous."
"Do you really think I'm saying Obama should be shot? I didn't see that in the cartoon," Delonas said.
"It's about the economic stimulus bill," he added. "If you're going to make that about anybody, it would be [House Speaker Nancy] Pelosi, which it's not."
Col Allan, the Post's editor-in-chief, said the cartoon "is a clear parody of a current news event." Watch CNN panel discuss the cartoon »
"It broadly mocks Washington's efforts to revive the economy. Again, Al Sharpton reveals himself as nothing more than a publicity opportunist," Allan said in a written statement. But Sharpton and Morial were not alone in their criticism. Barbara Ciara, president of the National Association of Black Journalists, said the Post showed a "serious lapse in judgment" by running the cartoon.
"To think that the cartoonist and the responsible editors at the paper did not see the racist overtones of the finished product should insult their intelligence," Ciara said in a written statement. "Instead, they celebrate their own lack of perspective and criticize those who call it what it is: tone deaf at best, overtly racist at worst."
Jeff Johnson, a former activist turned Black Entertainment Television host, said provocative cartoons are good, but that "none of this is appropriate on any level."
"The Post ultimately has to answer ... [for] a specific reference to the president of the United States to violence and to his connection to an animal likeness," Johnson said.
In California, civil rights leader Earl Ofari Hutchinson called on the Post to apologize.
"In times past, that depiction of African-Americans has been vigorously condemned as racially offensive," Hutchinson said in a statement issued from his Los Angeles Urban
|
[
"Who said objections were ridiculous?",
"What did the cartoonist say about Sharpton's objections?",
"What does the cartoon make references to?",
"What invokes historically racist images?",
"Who called Sharpton to be a publicity opportunist?",
"What did the cartoon reference?",
"Who are other?",
"Who is the newpaper's editor?",
"What cartoonist drew the criticized image?",
"Who is the cartoonist?"
] |
[
"The artist, Sean Delonas,",
"reaction \"ridiculous,\"",
"a form of racism.",
"A New York Post cartoon",
"Col Allan,",
"this week's mauling of a Connecticut woman by a pet chimp,",
"African-American leaders",
"Col Allan,",
"Sean Delonas,",
"Sean Delonas,"
] |
question: Who said objections were ridiculous?, answer: The artist, Sean Delonas, | question: What did the cartoonist say about Sharpton's objections?, answer: reaction "ridiculous," | question: What does the cartoon make references to?, answer: a form of racism. | question: What invokes historically racist images?, answer: A New York Post cartoon | question: Who called Sharpton to be a publicity opportunist?, answer: Col Allan, | question: What did the cartoon reference?, answer: this week's mauling of a Connecticut woman by a pet chimp, | question: Who are other?, answer: African-American leaders | question: Who is the newpaper's editor?, answer: Col Allan, | question: What cartoonist drew the criticized image?, answer: Sean Delonas, | question: Who is the cartoonist?, answer: Sean Delonas,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A New York appeals court Thursday overturned terrorism convictions for a Yemeni cleric and his personal assistant, saying they did not receive a fair trial.
Sheik Mohammed Ali al-Moayad and Mohammed Mohsen Zayed, were sentenced in 2005 to 75 and 45 years in prison, respectively, after being convicted of conspiring to provide material support and resources to foreign terrorist organizations. They now can have new trials under a different judge.
The lawyer for al-Moayad, Robert Boyle, said, "I'm extremely gratified at the court's decision. I believe it is legally and factually correct. I hope my client, who is elderly and not in good health, will be given the opportunity to return to his family in Yemen."
The three-judge panel was unanimous in its decision, citing evidentiary errors that likely influenced the outcome of the trial. The judges found that certain pieces of evidence presented by prosecutors were prejudicial and had the effect of denying al-Moayad and Zayed a fair trial.
Zayed and al-Moayad were arrested in 2003 in a sting operation that culminated in Germany. The government's case relied largely on secretly videotaped conversations between the defendants and a pair of undercover FBI informants at a Frankfurt hotel in 2003. One of the informants, Mohamed Alanssi, testified that al-Moayad boasted about giving money, weapons and recruits to al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.
The charges were brought in the Eastern District of New York because al-Moayad allegedly collected terrorist funds at the al-Farooq mosque in Brooklyn.
Now that the appeals court has vacated the convictions, prosecutors have the option of appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court if they feel there is a constitutional issue. They can retry the case or move to dismiss.
Al-Moayad, who is in his 60s, is incarcerated at the Supermax prison in Florence, Colorado, as is Zayed. Boyle said he had called the prison and as of 4 p.m. Thursday was still waiting to speak to his client.
CNN's Deborah Feyerick contributed to this report.
|
[
"who is al-moayad",
"What did the court say?",
"Who did al-Moayad boast about giving money to?",
"who supported terrorism?",
"Who gave money to Osama bin Laden?",
"What denied the pair a fair trial?",
"what does court say",
"Who was convicted of supporting terrorism?"
] |
[
"a Yemeni cleric",
"not receive a fair trial.",
"al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.",
"Sheik Mohammed Ali al-Moayad and Mohammed Mohsen Zayed,",
"al-Moayad",
"prosecutors",
"they did not receive a fair trial.",
"Sheik Mohammed Ali al-Moayad and Mohammed Mohsen Zayed,"
] |
question: who is al-moayad, answer: a Yemeni cleric | question: What did the court say?, answer: not receive a fair trial. | question: Who did al-Moayad boast about giving money to?, answer: al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. | question: who supported terrorism?, answer: Sheik Mohammed Ali al-Moayad and Mohammed Mohsen Zayed, | question: Who gave money to Osama bin Laden?, answer: al-Moayad | question: What denied the pair a fair trial?, answer: prosecutors | question: what does court say, answer: they did not receive a fair trial. | question: Who was convicted of supporting terrorism?, answer: Sheik Mohammed Ali al-Moayad and Mohammed Mohsen Zayed,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A New York nightclub hostess identified by a supermarket tabloid as Tiger Woods' mistress has called allegations that she is romantically involved with the golf superstar false and "ridiculous."
In an interview published Tuesday, Rachel Uchitel told The New York Post that a disgruntled acquaintance sold the story to the National Enquirer and that "not a word of it is true."
"I work in clubs, and I am a businesswoman," Uchitel said. "I do not have sex with celebrities, and I have not had an affair with Tiger Woods."
Speculation has swirled around Woods since a wreck outside his Florida home early Friday left him with minor injuries and a citation for careless driving. The Florida Highway Patrol said Tuesday that its citation closes its investigation of the crash.
Woods was not required to talk to state police about the wreck and did not sit for an interview with investigators. He issued a statement Sunday saying he alone was responsible for the crash and denouncing "the many false, unfounded and malicious rumors that are currently circulating about my family and me." Opinion: Woods is only human
The 33-year-old golf phenomenon has won the Masters tournament and the PGA tournament each four times, as well as three U.S. Open titles.
Investigators have said they don't have details on why Woods was driving away from his home at such an early hour. A police report says the wreck was not alcohol-related.
Uchitel said she has met Woods twice, once in her capacity as the VIP director at a club in Manhattan's trendy Meatpacking District and another time through a mutual friend.
"That's my job: to know these people, to have a relationship with them, to hang out with them," she told the Post. "It doesn't mean I am having sex with them or an affair with them."
She said the allegations "must feel horrible" to Woods' wife, Elin Nordegren.
"The worst part of it, it's not true," Uchitel said.
|
[
"What was the tabloid?",
"Who said the allegations came from a disgruntled acquaintance?",
"The false rumor must feel horrible to who?",
"What was the rumor?",
"What did the nightclub hostess say?",
"How many times did Uchitel meets Woods?",
"What did Rachel Uchitel tell New York Post?"
] |
[
"National Enquirer",
"Rachel Uchitel",
"Woods' wife, Elin Nordegren.",
"she is romantically involved with the golf superstar",
"\"not a word of it is true.\"",
"twice,",
"that a disgruntled acquaintance sold the story to the National Enquirer and that \"not a word of it is true.\""
] |
question: What was the tabloid?, answer: National Enquirer | question: Who said the allegations came from a disgruntled acquaintance?, answer: Rachel Uchitel | question: The false rumor must feel horrible to who?, answer: Woods' wife, Elin Nordegren. | question: What was the rumor?, answer: she is romantically involved with the golf superstar | question: What did the nightclub hostess say?, answer: "not a word of it is true." | question: How many times did Uchitel meets Woods?, answer: twice, | question: What did Rachel Uchitel tell New York Post?, answer: that a disgruntled acquaintance sold the story to the National Enquirer and that "not a word of it is true."
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A Somali suspect in the hijacking of the U.S.-flagged Maersk Alabama has been charged with piracy, a count that carries a minimum life sentence.
Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse arrives in the United States on Monday. He was charged with piracy Tuesday.
Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse also has been charged with conspiracy to seize a ship by force, conspiracy to commit hostage-taking and two firearm charges, according to a criminal complaint released by the U.S. attorney's office in the southern district of New York.
Muse "conducted himself as the leader" of the pirates who allegedly took over the Maersk Alabama, according to the criminal complaint.
A federal judge ruled Tuesday that Muse could be tried as an adult.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrew Peck had ordered the media and public out of the courtroom earlier while he evaluated Muse's age.
Muse's father in Somalia told defense attorneys the young man was born on November 20, 1993 -- making him 15, the defense attorneys said.
However, the prosecution argued otherwise, saying Muse made statements that suggest he is older.
Before Peck closed the courtroom, Muse wiped his hand over his face at one point, and it appeared he was crying. He had worn a broad smile late Monday when he arrived in New York escorted by a phalanx of law enforcement officers. See timeline of events that led to piracy case »
Muse was arrested in the hijacking of the Maersk Alabama, a cargo ship that pirates attacked on April 8 about 350 miles off the Somali coast. See an interactive map of 2009 pirate attacks off the Horn of Africa »
Peck read the young man his rights and said attorneys had been appointed to represent him because the suspect did not have the resources to hire representation himself.
Muse said through an interpreter that he understood and said, "I don't have any money."
Pirates attacked the Maersk Alabama, a cargo ship, on April 8 about 350 miles off the Somali coast.
According to the criminal complaint, two of the 20 crew members -- all Americans -- saw lights heading toward the Maersk Alabama around 4:30 a.m. on April 8, while the ship was in the Indian Ocean.
After a "brief time," the lights disappeared, the complaint said, but about two hours later, the same crew members saw a small boat approaching and later heard "what sounded like" gunshots, the complaint said.
Crew Member 1 then heard the ship's captain -- later identified as Capt. Richard Phillips -- on the radio saying that two pirates were on the ship's bridge. A third crew member, Crew Member 3, also heard the radio message and began shutting down the ship's power, the complaint said.
The complaint said Muse, who was carrying a gun, was the first alleged pirate on the ship, and said the attackers used a portable ladder to climb on board.
According to the complaint, Muse had fired his gun at Phillips, the captain said, and then took $30,000 from the ship's safe after he forced Phillips to open it. Watch Muse being hauled into court »
Muse demanded that the Maersk Alabama be stopped and that the crew give him the number of the ship's owner, the complaint said.
The captain then ordered the crew to the bridge after Muse ordered him to do so, the complaint said, citing Crew Member 2.
Muse then began canvassing the dark ship with Crew Member 2 as a guide, the complaint said. While they were going through the ship, Crew Member 3, who had not come to the bridge, tackled Muse to the ground, the complaint said. Crew Member 2 helped subdue Muse, and the two tied the young man's hands with wire and took him to the ship's safe room, where several crew members were hiding.
After several hours, the remaining pirates said they would leave the ship if Muse was returned to them, and if a lifeboat was given to them.
Phillips boarded the lifeboat with them and the ship's crew freed Muse, who then boarded the lifeboat,
|
[
"The judge made what ruling with regards to the piracy suspect?",
"What is the name of the person who also faced conspiracy charges?",
"Who faces conspiracy charges?",
"who was charged?",
"Who is conducting himself as the leader?",
"Who will be tried as an adult?",
"What did the father say regarding the suspect's age?",
"What does the criminal complaint say?",
"What did the judge rule about piracy suspect?"
] |
[
"U.S.-flagged Maersk Alabama has been charged",
"Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse",
"Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse",
"Maersk Alabama",
"Muse",
"Muse",
"making him 15,",
"Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse also has been charged with conspiracy to seize a ship by force, conspiracy to commit hostage-taking",
"Muse could be tried as an adult."
] |
question: The judge made what ruling with regards to the piracy suspect?, answer: U.S.-flagged Maersk Alabama has been charged | question: What is the name of the person who also faced conspiracy charges?, answer: Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse | question: Who faces conspiracy charges?, answer: Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse | question: who was charged?, answer: Maersk Alabama | question: Who is conducting himself as the leader?, answer: Muse | question: Who will be tried as an adult?, answer: Muse | question: What did the father say regarding the suspect's age?, answer: making him 15, | question: What does the criminal complaint say?, answer: Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse also has been charged with conspiracy to seize a ship by force, conspiracy to commit hostage-taking | question: What did the judge rule about piracy suspect?, answer: Muse could be tried as an adult.
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A Staten Island Ferry lost power and hit a pier Wednesday at full speed, resulting in one serious injury and nine minor injuries, a Coast Guard spokesman said.
The New York Fire Department estimates that 750 to 800 passengers were aboard the Staten Island Ferry.
Coast Guard boats were on the scene, the St. George Terminal on the north shore of Staten Island.
The Coast Guard spokesman compared the ferry's loss of power as it neared the pier to a car losing its brakes.
The hard landing occurred at 7:10 p.m., according to the Coast Guard. The New York Fire Department estimated that 750 to 800 passengers were aboard. The impact did not send any passengers overboard, the spokesman said.
Emergency responders were transferring the injured to Staten Island's Richmond University Medical Center.
Representatives for the Staten Island Ferry did not respond to calls for comment.
|
[
"Where did it happen?",
"What did the ferry do?",
"What loses power and hits a pier at full speed?",
"What happened at St. George Terminal?",
"Where did accident happen exactly?",
"What Coast Guard said about the incident?",
"What happened to people?"
] |
[
"the St. George Terminal on the north shore of Staten Island.",
"lost power",
"A Staten Island Ferry",
"Staten Island Ferry lost power and hit a pier",
"St. George Terminal",
"compared the ferry's loss of power as it neared the pier to a car losing its brakes.",
"A Staten Island Ferry lost power and hit a pier"
] |
question: Where did it happen?, answer: the St. George Terminal on the north shore of Staten Island. | question: What did the ferry do?, answer: lost power | question: What loses power and hits a pier at full speed?, answer: A Staten Island Ferry | question: What happened at St. George Terminal?, answer: Staten Island Ferry lost power and hit a pier | question: Where did accident happen exactly?, answer: St. George Terminal | question: What Coast Guard said about the incident?, answer: compared the ferry's loss of power as it neared the pier to a car losing its brakes. | question: What happened to people?, answer: A Staten Island Ferry lost power and hit a pier
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A Syrian arms dealer was sentenced to 30 years in a U.S. federal prison for conspiring to sell weapons as part of a plot to kill Americans in Colombia, according to prosecutors.
Syrian-born arms dealer Monzer al-Kassar, seen in a file photo, tried to sell weapons to undercover U.S. agents.
Monzer al-Kassar was also ordered Tuesday to forfeit all of his assets, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York.
Al-Kassar's co-defendant Luis Felipe Moreno Godoy received a 25-year prison sentence for his role in the conspiracy.
Both men were convicted in November of five charges, including conspiracy to murder U.S. nationals, conspiracy to acquire and export anti-aircraft missiles, conspiracy to provide support for FARC guerrillas in Colombia, and money laundering.
The federal indictment paints al-Kassar as an international arms dealer with a hand in conflicts in nearly every part of the world, with a web of bank accounts and front companies across Europe and the Middle East.
Al-Kassar was arrested in Spain in 2007 on a U.S. warrant and his associate Moreno Godoy was arrested in Romania. Both were extradited to the United States.
The arrests stemmed from an undercover sting operation involving U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents posing as members of FARC. During the 16-month operation, the agents arranged to buy more than 12,000 weapons from the two men, according to the indictment.
Al-Kassar agreed to provide surface-to-air missiles for the FARC to shoot down American helicopters, and also offered to send 1,000 men to fight with the FARC, plus explosives and men who could train the FARC in how to use them, the indictment charged.
Al-Kassar demanded 3,500,000 euros ($4.4 million) as "partial payment" for the weapons, it said.
Justice Department officials say al-Kassar has been a source of weapons and military equipment for armed combatants since the 1970s.
Kassar had told journalists before he was arrested that he had retired from arms dealing, but the United States says he had been involved since the 1970s, providing weapons and military equipment to armed factions in Nicaragua, Cyprus, Bosnia, Croatia, Iran, Iraq, Somalia, and elsewhere.
CNN Justice Producer Terry Frieden contributed to this report.
|
[
"what is the conspiracy",
"what was his plan",
"Who did the US Drug Enforcement Agency arrest?",
"What sentence did the co-defendant get?",
"who was arrested",
"What did the US call Monzer al-Kassar?",
"How long was the co-defendant's sentence?",
"What was the plan?"
] |
[
"to sell weapons as part of a plot to kill Americans in Colombia,",
"sell weapons as part of a plot to kill Americans in Colombia,",
"Monzer al-Kassar",
"25-year prison",
"Monzer al-Kassar,",
"Syrian-born arms dealer",
"25-year prison",
"to sell weapons as part of a plot to kill Americans in Colombia,"
] |
question: what is the conspiracy, answer: to sell weapons as part of a plot to kill Americans in Colombia, | question: what was his plan, answer: sell weapons as part of a plot to kill Americans in Colombia, | question: Who did the US Drug Enforcement Agency arrest?, answer: Monzer al-Kassar | question: What sentence did the co-defendant get?, answer: 25-year prison | question: who was arrested, answer: Monzer al-Kassar, | question: What did the US call Monzer al-Kassar?, answer: Syrian-born arms dealer | question: How long was the co-defendant's sentence?, answer: 25-year prison | question: What was the plan?, answer: to sell weapons as part of a plot to kill Americans in Colombia,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A construction company and three supervisors were indicted Monday on manslaughter and related charges in the deaths of two firefighters battling a 2007 blaze at the Deutsche Bank building in lower Manhattan.
Firefighters Joseph Graffagnino, left, and Robert Beddia died in the Deutsche Bank building blaze.
Prosecutors also reached an agreement with the city of New York requiring the implementation of new fire safety measures.
"Our goal is to put in place procedures which will prevent a disaster of the magnitude of the Deutsche Bank fire and to make sure that firefighters are never again exposed to the risks they faced in that fire," Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau said.
The indictments against the John Galt Corp., Jeffrey Melofchik, Mitchel Alvo and Salvatore DePaola also allege negligent homicide and reckless endangerment.
The indictment is the result of an investigation into an August 18, 2007, blaze that consumed nine floors of the Deutsche Bank building.
The building had been scheduled for demolition after being contaminated by debris, asbestos and other hazardous substances after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center buildings.
The two firefighters killed in the blaze -- Robert Beddia, 53, and Joseph Graffagnino, 33 -- were caught in a smoke-filled stairwell that prosecutors say was improperly blocked off by barriers erected to seal off floors being stripped of contaminants.
In addition to the deaths of Beddia and Graffagnino, 105 other firefighters were injured combating the blaze.
The agreement with the city of New York mandates the creation of a new civilian inspection unit at the city's fire department, the sole purpose of which will be to perform inspections at construction sites throughout the city.
"The regulatory measures we have put in place and the additional reforms set out today are designed to prevent any firefighter again confronting the conditions that firefighters faced at the Deutsche Bank building that tragic day," New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said in a written statement.
The father of one of the firefighters killed in the blaze, Joseph Graffagnino Sr., said the indictments did not go far enough.
"I don't understand if the [city] agency can't be indicted, why can't individuals be indicted who we already know should have been responsible for doing their jobs and did not do their jobs," he said to reporters.
Graffagnino was referencing the lack of criminal charges brought against employees of the city fire department, the city's department of buildings and the building's landlord, the Lower Manhattan Development Corp.
|
[
"who died when caught in smoke-filled stairwell?",
"Who had been killed?",
"How many firefighters were injured?",
"who alleged that doorway was improperly sealed?",
"What made Prosecutors determined that the alleged doorway was improperly sealed?",
"How many supervisors?",
"how many firefighters were injured?"
] |
[
"Robert Beddia",
"Firefighters Joseph Graffagnino,",
"105",
"prosecutors",
"blocked off by barriers erected to seal off floors being stripped of contaminants.",
"three",
"105"
] |
question: who died when caught in smoke-filled stairwell?, answer: Robert Beddia | question: Who had been killed?, answer: Firefighters Joseph Graffagnino, | question: How many firefighters were injured?, answer: 105 | question: who alleged that doorway was improperly sealed?, answer: prosecutors | question: What made Prosecutors determined that the alleged doorway was improperly sealed?, answer: blocked off by barriers erected to seal off floors being stripped of contaminants. | question: How many supervisors?, answer: three | question: how many firefighters were injured?, answer: 105
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A crude bomb made from a water bottle was used in an explosion that damaged a Starbucks coffee shop on New York's posh Upper East Side, New York police said.
Monday's explosion shattered glass at the Manhattan Starbucks coffee shop. No one was injured.
The Memorial Day explosion damaged the shop, but no one was injured and no motive has been identified for the bombing.
"We believe it to be ... a six- to 10-ounce water bottle that was wrapped in black tape," New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly told CNN on Wednesday.
He said the bomb's powder may have come from fireworks components, including a fuse. The powder was placed inside the bottle in a way that made it "more powerful," Kelly said.
He said a forensics unit is working on finding fingerprints.
The homemade bomb, which went off around 3:30 a.m., shattered glass, but no one was injured. The store was not open. Police have said the device was planted under a wooden bench outside the coffee shop.
"We have a witness who believes he saw two young people he describes as teenagers, both white males," the commissioner said. One is described as blond, wearing a red shirt, and the other had brown hair and wore a gray shirt.
Kelly said the witness saw the two approach the Starbucks, then looked away. After the witness heard the blast, he said he saw the two young people run away from the building.
Kelly said that for now, it's impossible to say whether the bombing was politically motivated.
"We don't know if they were a corporate target or somebody had a problem [with] what was going on on that corner, in general ... we're not ruling anything out."
In 1999, a Starbucks in Seattle, Washington, was vandalized during a world trade conference. In February 2008, a Vancouver Starbucks and another restaurant were damaged by an overnight explosion.
New York police say they're aware of both incidents, but Kelly says it is too early to draw any conclusions. "In the past, they [Starbucks] sort have been identified with the globalization movement. ... We're not saying that this is the case in this matter."
|
[
"where did the blast take place",
"what time did the blast take place",
"Who tried to blow up a starbucks?",
"Where was the bomb?",
"What was it mnade from?",
"What time did the blast occur?"
] |
[
"coffee shop on New York's posh Upper East Side,",
"3:30 a.m.,",
"teenagers, both white males,\"",
"coffee shop on New York's posh Upper East Side,",
"fireworks components, including a fuse. The powder",
"3:30 a.m.,"
] |
question: where did the blast take place, answer: coffee shop on New York's posh Upper East Side, | question: what time did the blast take place, answer: 3:30 a.m., | question: Who tried to blow up a starbucks?, answer: teenagers, both white males," | question: Where was the bomb?, answer: coffee shop on New York's posh Upper East Side, | question: What was it mnade from?, answer: fireworks components, including a fuse. The powder | question: What time did the blast occur?, answer: 3:30 a.m.,
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A day after publishing a cartoon that drew fire from critics who said it evoked historically racist images, the New York Post apologized in a statement on its Web site -- even as it defended its action and blasted some detractors.
A New York Post cartoon has sparked a debate over race and cartooning this week.
Many of those critical of the cartoon said it appeared to compare President Obama to a chimpanzee in a commentary on his recently approved economic stimulus package.
"Wednesday's Page Six cartoon -- caricaturing Monday's police shooting of a chimpanzee in Connecticut -- has created considerable controversy," the paper said about the drawing, which shows two police officers standing over the body of a chimpanzee they just shot.
The drawing is a reference to the mauling of a woman by a pet chimpanzee, which was then killed by police. In the cartoon, one of the officers tells the other, "They'll have to find someone else to write the next stimulus bill."
The Post said the cartoon was meant to mock what it called an "ineptly written" stimulus bill.
"But it has been taken as something else -- as a depiction of President Obama, as a thinly veiled expression of racism," reads the statement. "This most certainly was not its intent; to those who were offended by the image, we apologize." Watch reaction to Post's apology »
But the statement immediately swerves to fire back at some of the image's critics.
"However, there are some in the media and in public life who have had differences with The Post in the past -- and they see the incident as an opportunity for payback," the statement says. "To them, no apology is due. Sometimes a cartoon is just a cartoon -- even as the opportunists seek to make it something else."
Several African-American leaders, including the Rev. Al Sharpton, attacked the image, which was drawn by artist Sean Delonas.
Sharpton said Thursday he and the leaders of "various groups" would respond at 5 p.m. Friday outside The Post's offices in midtown Manhattan.
"Though we think it is the right thing for them to apologize to those they offended," the statement appeared to blame those who raised the issue "rather than take responsibility for what they did," Sharpton said.
He accused the newspaper of having "belatedly come with a conditional statement after people began mobilizing and preparing to challenge the waiver of News Corp in the city where they own several television stations and newspapers."
Delonas has made Sharpton the butt of previous cartoons in The Post.
In a brief phone interview with CNN, Delonas called the controversy "absolutely friggin' ridiculous."
"Do you really think I'm saying Obama should be shot? I didn't see that in the cartoon," Delonas told CNN.
"It's about the economic stimulus bill," he added.
Col Allan, the Post's editor-in-chief, said Wednesday that the cartoon "is a clear parody of a current news event."
"It broadly mocks Washington's efforts to revive the economy. Again, Al Sharpton reveals himself as nothing more than a publicity opportunist," Allan said in a written statement.
But Sharpton was not alone in his criticism. Barbara Ciara, president of the National Association of Black Journalists, said The Post showed a "serious lapse in judgment" by running the cartoon.
"To think that the cartoonist and the responsible editors at the paper did not see the racist overtones of the finished product should insult their intelligence," Ciara said in a written statement. "Instead, they celebrate their own lack of perspective and criticize those who call it what it is: tone deaf at best, overtly racist at worst." iReport.com: Share your reaction to the N.Y. Post cartoon
"Comparing President Obama and his effort to revive the economy in a manner that depicts violence and racist inferences is unacceptable," said National Urban League President Marc Morial in a statement issued Wednesday.
The nearly $
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[
"who drew the cartoon",
"Who would respond at 5pm?",
"What was cartoon meant to do?",
"what was on the website",
"who is responsible for the website",
"Who has apologized?",
"Who apologises on Web site?",
"What was the cartoon meant to mock?"
] |
[
"Sean Delonas.",
"leaders",
"it called an \"ineptly written\" stimulus bill.",
"racist images,",
"the New York Post",
"New York Post",
"the New York Post",
"it called an \"ineptly written\" stimulus bill."
] |
question: who drew the cartoon, answer: Sean Delonas. | question: Who would respond at 5pm?, answer: leaders | question: What was cartoon meant to do?, answer: it called an "ineptly written" stimulus bill. | question: what was on the website, answer: racist images, | question: who is responsible for the website, answer: the New York Post | question: Who has apologized?, answer: New York Post | question: Who apologises on Web site?, answer: the New York Post | question: What was the cartoon meant to mock?, answer: it called an "ineptly written" stimulus bill.
|
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