Americans suspected of terror-related activities

Americans suspected of terror-related activities

Americans who have been charged or suspected of terror-related activities over the past year include:
-Young Somali men from Minneapolis who left the U.S. in waves from December 2007 through November 2008 to join a Somalia-based terror group with links to al-Qaida. Family members say the men were good kids and only … Original source on Gaea Times at : Americans suspected of terror-related activities.

American terror suspects living in average US communities show challenge of homegrown problem

Recent cases show challenge of US terrorists

WASHINGTON – One was a drywall contractor and father, another a petite woman who cared for the elderly, another a U.S. military officer. The most alarming thing about a string of recently arrested terror suspects is that they are all Americans.
Over the past week, a Pennsylvania woman, accused in … Read more »».

Trade in endangered animals flourishing in Middle East, fueled by corruption, weak legislation

UN animal conference tackles Mideast animal trade

BEIRUT – A 2-year-old lion, emaciated and barely breathing, is found in a tiny cage off a Beirut highway. Monkeys are hauled through the dark tunnels of Gaza, bound for private zoos. Rare prize falcons are kept in desert encampments by wealthy Arab sheiks.
The trade in endangered animals is … Original article on : Trade in endangered animals flourishing in Middle East, fueled by corruption, weak legislation.

Woman says man charged with San Diego teen’s murder previously attacked her in same park

Woman tells of attack similar to San Diego teen’s

LOS ANGELES – A 23-year-old woman allegedly attacked by a registered sex offender at the same park where he is accused of killing a San Diego teenager two months later said Tuesday that she believed he was going to rape her.
Appearing on CNN’s “Larry King Live,” Candice … Original source on Gaea Times at : Woman says man charged with San Diego teen’s murder previously attacked her in same park.

Peru’s justice minister removed amid scandal over pardoning of convicted media executive

Peru president fires justice minister amid scandal

LIMA, Peru – President Alan Garcia fired Peru’s justice minister Tuesday amid questions over the pardoning of a former media executive convicted of taking payoffs to provide favorable coverage for a previous government.
Officials gave reporters a decree signed by Garcia that removed Aurelio Pastor from the post.
Some media outlets … Read the original article on Gaea Times at : Peru’s justice minister removed amid scandal over pardoning of convicted media executive.

2 off-duty police officers shot to death by gunmen on motorcycle in slum of Haiti’s capital

2 police killed by motorcycle gunmen in Haiti

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – Haitian police say two off-duty officers have been shot to death near an open-air market in the capital.
Officials say the policemen were out of uniform and sitting in a car near the La Saline slum when gunmen pulled up on a motorcycle and opened fire …. Original source  : 2 off-duty police officers shot to death by gunmen on motorcycle in slum of Haiti’s capital.

Suspected Mexican drug lord accused of smuggling drugs into US held in Colo. without bail

No bail for man accused of smuggling drugs into US

DENVER – A federal judge in Denver ruled that a suspected Mexican drug lord accused of helping smuggle millions of dollars worth of cocaine into the United States should be held without bail until his case is resolved.
Oscar Arriola Marquez has pleaded not guilty to charges …. Read the original article  : Suspected Mexican drug lord accused of smuggling drugs into US held in Colo. without bail.

Calif. judge allows genetically engineered beet harvest; amounts to half nation’s sugar supply

Judge allows genetically engineered beet harvest

SAN FRANCISCO – A federal judge on Tuesday said farmers can harvest their genetically engineered sugar beets this year, ruling the economic impact too great and that environmental groups waited too long to request that the crop be yanked from the ground and otherwise barred from the market.
Nearly all sugar …. Source article  : Calif. judge allows genetically engineered beet harvest; amounts to half nation’s sugar supply.

Amnesty calls for freedom of expression, release of political prisoners in Cuba

Amnesty calls for more freedom in Cuba
HAVANA – The human rights group Amnesty international appealed to Cuban President Raul Castro to release political prisoners and scrap laws that restrict fundamental freedoms, using the seventh anniversary of a major crackdown on dissent to call for change.

Amnesty was especially critical of Cuban laws that make vague offenses …. Source article on Gaea Times at  : Amnesty calls for freedom of expression, release of political prisoners in Cuba.

Judge orders rapper DMX to spend 6 months in Phoenix jail, undergo mental health evaluation

Rapper DMX ordered to 6 months in Phoenix jail

PHOENIX – A judge has ordered rapper DMX to spend six months in a Phoenix jail for violating probation and to undergo a mental health evaluation.
DMX, whose real name is Earl Simmons, admitted in court Tuesday to a single violation of probation for failing a drug test … Original source on Gaea Times at : Judge orders rapper DMX to spend 6 months in Phoenix jail, undergo mental health evaluation.

Calif. teacher arrested for investigation of allowing fights at juvenile probation camp

Calif teacher arrested for allowing student fights

LOS ANGELES – A former substitute teacher at a juvenile probation camp was arrested Tuesday for investigation of supervising a series of fights between students in rival gangs, authorities said.
The five fights were overseen by Stephen Wesley, 43, who set rules and told students not to punch each other …. Source article  : Calif. teacher arrested for investigation of allowing fights at juvenile probation camp.

French policeman slain in shootout; Spanish media report ETA link

French policeman slain in shootout
PARIS – A French police officer was killed Tuesday in an exchange of fire with assailants east of Paris, and one suspect was taken into custody, a police official said.

The official said she had no information suggesting the assailants were members of the Basque separatist group ETA, as was reported by … Original article on : French policeman slain in shootout; Spanish media report ETA link.

Police: Images of 4 missing women may be among pictures found in Calif. serial killer’s locker

Police: Man may have had images of missing women

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. – Relatives and friends of four women who have been missing since the 1970s told investigators they recognized their loved ones in photos found in the locker of a convicted serial killer, police said Tuesday.
Huntington Beach police received the calls after releasing more than [..] Read the original article: here.

Autopsy reports point to heat stroke, organ failure in Arizona sweat lodge deaths

Autopsy reports released in AZ sweat lodge deaths

CAMP VERDE, Ariz. – Autopsy reports released Tuesday point to heat stroke as the cause of death for two people following an Arizona sweat lodge ceremony last year, and to multi-system organ failure for a third person.
A Yavapai county judge ordered the first and last pages of the … Read the original article on Gaea Times at : Autopsy reports point to heat stroke, organ failure in Arizona sweat lodge deaths.

Judge in Arizona issues bench warrant after jailed rapper Lil Wayne fails to appear in court

Warrant issued for Lil Wayne in Arizona case

YUMA, Ariz. – An Arizona judge issued a bench warrant Tuesday for Grammy Award-winning rapper Lil Wayne after he failed to appear for a hearing on drug and weapons charges because he is serving jail time in New York.
A Yuma County Superior Court judge issued the warrant after … Read more : Judge in Arizona issues bench warrant after jailed rapper Lil Wayne fails to appear in court.

Better management of gang members urged in report on 2009 prison riot in California

State issues report on 2009 Calif prison riot

LOS ANGELES – A state report issued Tuesday on a gang and racially motivated riot at a California prison last year recommends changes in managing inmate gang members as well as improvements in communication and use of technology to identify inmates during disturbances.
The report by the Department of … Read more >>.

Sex scandal hits Brazilian Catholic church after TV broadcasts priest, altar boy having sex

Sex scandal embroils Catholic Church in Brazil

RIO DE JANEIRO – Brazilian authorities are investigating three priests accused of sexually abusing altar boys after a video allegedly showing one case of abuse was broadcast on television, police and church officials said Tuesday.
The case came to light after the SBT network aired a video purportedly showing an … Read more : Sex scandal hits Brazilian Catholic church after TV broadcasts priest, altar boy having sex.

Madoff’s brother, sons seek dismissal of complaints in NY court alleging they were in on fraud

Madoff family challenges NY trustee claims

NEW YORK – Members of Bernard Madoff’s family want civil complaints alleging they were in on the disgraced financier’s massive securities fraud thrown out.
The accusation by a trustee liquidating Madoff’s assets “is a sensationalistic attempt to lump together members of the Madoff family and create liability by association,” attorneys for … Read the original article on Gaea Times at : Madoff’s brother, sons seek dismissal of complaints in NY court alleging they were in on fraud.

Effort to keep campaign memos from backers of Calif. gay marriage ban could delay verdict

Evidence skirmish could delay end of Prop 8 trial

SAN FRANCISCO – An attempt by civil rights groups to keep sponsors of California’s same-sex marriage ban from obtaining internal campaign documents could delay a verdict in the federal trial on the constitutionality of Proposition 8, lawyers on both sides said Tuesday.
Attorneys warned of the possible bottleneck …. Source article on Gaea Times at  : Effort to keep campaign memos from backers of Calif. gay marriage ban could delay verdict.

Dublin archbishop says Catholic leaders must admit ‘entire truth’ of Ireland’s abuse cover-ups

Dublin archbishop: Catholic Church must tell truth

DUBLIN – Dublin Archbishop Diarmuid Martin declared Tuesday that his Catholic colleagues in Ireland must tell “the entire truth” about their decades of covering up child abuse in the priesthood – or else the Irish government may have to broaden its own investigations.
Martin, the second-highest-ranking Catholic in Ireland, has …. Read the original article  : here.