Thursday, December 6, 2012

Deportation looms for tech guru McAfee after heart drama

Deportation looms for tech guru McAfee after heart drama


Deportation looms for tech guru McAfee after heart drama

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 04:31 PM PST

U.S. anti-virus software guru John McAfee uses a computer in a migrant shelter, where he is detained in Guatemala CityGUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) - Software guru John McAfee, fighting deportation to Belize, was rushed to a hospital in Guatemala on Thursday shortly after his asylum request was rejected, but a suspected heart attack turned out to be stress in a fresh twist to the saga. The 67-year-old U.S. computer software pioneer was taken swiftly from a hospital in a police car out of the sight of media, after earlier arriving in an ambulance lying on a stretcher. ...


New Jersey and New York press case for $80 billion Sandy aid bill

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 04:02 PM PST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New Jersey and New York officials are stepping up their campaign for $80 billion in federal aid to finance cleanup and rebuilding efforts following superstorm Sandy, despite a media report the White House will request only $50 billion. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie pressed his case for the flood-damaged region in closed-door meetings with President Barack Obama and House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner on Thursday. ...

Trayvon Martin's killer sues NBC over racist "myth"

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 07:00 PM PST

Undated handout photo of George ZimmermanMIAMI (Reuters) - A Florida man sued NBC on Thursday, saying the network intentionally edited and repeatedly aired a non-emergency phone call he made to police before shooting and killing unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin "to create the myth" that he was a racist. Attorneys for George Zimmerman, who maintains he shot Martin in self-defense in February during a struggle, said the lawsuit seeking an undisclosed amount in damages was filed in the same central Florida court where he will stand trial in June for murder. ...


Michigan Legislature OKs separate "right-to-work' bills to curb unions

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 05:50 PM PST

Michigan Republican Governor Snyder introduces Romney, U.S. Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts governor, during a rally in LansingLANSING, Michigan (Reuters) - Michigan's Republican-controlled Legislature passed separate bills on Thursday aimed at making the home of the U.S. auto industry the 24th "right-to-work" state banning mandatory union dues, setting off raucous demonstrations and the arrests of some protesters. The Michigan House of Representatives voted 58-52 to approve a measure that would make payment of union dues voluntary in the private sector, after Democrats walked out in protest at the public being kept out of the Capitol. ...


Obama family presides over lighting of national Christmas tree

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 05:18 PM PST

U.S. President Obama counts down as daughter Sasha prepares to light the National Christmas Tree at official lighting ceremony on Ellipse in WashingtonWASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama and his family presided over the lighting of the National Christmas Tree on Thursday and used the holiday setting to celebrate the "heroism" of people who persevered through Superstorm Sandy earlier this year. Obama, who won re-election last month in part because of his response to the deadly storm, began his remarks with a joke about the latest tree to take on national status in Washington. "Our tree has been having a hard time recently - this is our third one in as many years. ...


Man pleads guilty in plot to attack Seattle military site

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 07:02 PM PST

SEATTLE (Reuters) - A man accused of plotting to storm a Seattle military recruitment center with machine guns and grenades in retaliation for U.S. military conduct in Afghanistan pleaded guilty on Thursday to conspiracy charges, federal prosecutors said. Under the terms of his plea deal, Abu Khalid Abdul-Latif, 35, faces a prison term of 17 to 19 years when he is sentenced by a federal judge in March, the U.S. Attorney's Office said in statement. Abdul-Latif, also known as Joseph Anthony Davis, pleaded guilty in U.S. ...

Illinois lawmaker running for Congress out on bond after gun charge

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 06:46 PM PST

CHICAGO (Reuters) - An Illinois state senator running for former Democratic U.S. Representative Jesse Jackson Jr.'s seat in Congress was released on bond on Thursday, following his arrest for trying to bring a gun onto an airplane. A Cook County judge set bail at $25,000 for Donne Trotter, 62, on the felony charge. Trotter, who has called the incident an honest mistake, posted bond and was released shortly afterward. If convicted, Trotter could face a sentence ranging from probation to up to four years in prison, according to prosecutors. ...

New Jersey governor vetoes bill to set up health insurance exchange

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 04:16 PM PST

Handout photo of Governor Chris Christie holds a press conference at a Relief Center at the Joseph R. Bolger Middle School in the wake of Hurricane Sandy in Keansburg(Reuters) - New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said on Thursday he vetoed a bill that would have created a health insurance exchange for his state under President Barack Obama's signature healthcare program. Christie, whose announcement came on a day when he was visiting the White House to discuss tens of billions in federal recovery aid after Superstorm Sandy, joined 18 other states in rejecting a measure to create state-based health insurance markets where consumers could purchase private, federally subsidized coverage. ...


Delta sued in first action under California online privacy law

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 06:39 PM PST

NEW YORK (Reuters) - California's attorney general office said on Thursday it was suing Delta Air Lines Inc for distributing a mobile application without a privacy policy, the first-ever legal action under the state's online privacy law. The lawsuit targets Delta's 'Fly Delta' app for smartphones and other electronic devices. The app allows customers to check in online, view reservations and book flights, collecting significant personal data from users, including the user's name, phone number, email and geographic location. ...

Prosecutors say daughter of jailed Mexican Mafia kingpin ran U.S. gang

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 04:47 PM PST

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The daughter of an imprisoned Mexican Mafia kingpin who prosecutors say carried out her father's orders in running a brutal Los Angeles street gang, the Harpys, was arrested on Thursday along with her husband and 16 other accused gang members. Vianna Roman, 37, was taken into custody on a federal grand jury racketeering indictment that accuses her of being the day-to-day leader of the Harpys, acting on instructions from her father, Danny Roman, despite his incarceration in northern California's super-maximum-security Pelican Bay State Prison. ...

Washington state readies for same-sex marriage

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 05:15 PM PST

Ribeiro and Oh celebrate as they leave the King County Administration Building shortly after getting their marriage license in SeattleOLYMPIA, Washington (Reuters) - A landmark law legalizing same-sex matrimony took effect in Washington state on Thursday as gay and lesbian couples lined up at government offices to obtain marriage licenses, paving the way for them to exchange vows as soon as this weekend. Washington, Maine and Maryland became the first three U.S. states to extend marriage rights to same-sex couples by popular vote, with passage of ballot initiatives on November 6. Washington was the first to hand out marriage license applications to gay and lesbian couples, starting at 12:01 a.m. on Thursday. ...


Pearl Harbor attack frozen in time for 91-year-old Navy veteran

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 02:41 PM PST

A wreath to be laid by U.S. President Barack Obama is pictured on the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl HarborHONOLULU (Reuters) - At age 19, Delton Walling agreed to have an injured finger surgically removed so he could enlist in the U.S. Navy, and went on to see action in most major World War Two battles in the Pacific. But after years in combat, and a lifetime of joy and loss, the memories of one event stand out above all others for Navy veteran Walling - the chaotic Sunday morning he spent in a Pearl Harbor signal tower as Japanese bombers pounded the U.S. Pacific Fleet. ...


Air Force general takes over Pentagon's F-35 program

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 04:39 PM PST

Handout photo of F-35 Deputy Program Executive Officer U.S. Air Force Lieutenant General Bogdan in Fort WorthWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Air Force Lieutenant General Christopher Bogdan assumed control of the Pentagon's F-35 jet fighter program on Thursday, saying he believes the program is well-positioned for the future after hard work by his predecessor to put it on a "firmer, more realistic" footing. Bogdan replaces U.S. Navy Vice Admiral David Venlet, who is retiring after 36 years in the Navy and more than two years running the $396 billion F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the Pentagon's biggest weapons program, which is built by Lockheed Martin Corp. ...


Cablevision to raise Internet prices by $5 a month

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 03:21 PM PST

(Reuters) - Cablevision Systems Corp, the New York-based cable operator, said on Thursday it would raise its Internet prices by $5 in January, representing an average hike of 3.2 percent for customers' total monthly bills. The company said in a statement that prices for its video and phone services will not be affected and that prices for promotional packages, which generally last one year, will not rise. But all customers who have Internet service as part of their video or phone package will see prices rise. Cablevision said it had not raised Internet prices in a decade. ...

Air Force drone crashes in Nevada, no injuries

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 03:28 PM PST

LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - A $53.5 million, unmanned Air Force drone crashed at a remote location in Nevada during a nighttime training exercise, but there were no injuries, authorities said. Air Force officials said the MQ-9 Reaper aircraft came down on the Nevada Test and Training Range west of Hiko, in south-central Nevada, on Wednesday night. The cause of the crash has not been determined. "We're really grateful that nobody was injured," said Benjamin Newell, a spokesman at Nellis Air Force Base, in Las Vegas. A board of officers will investigate the accident, he added. ...

Michigan Republicans confront unions over "right-to-work"

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 01:22 PM PST

Michigan Republican Governor Snyder introduces Romney, U.S. Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts governor, during a rally in LansingLANSING, Michigan (Reuters) - Michigan Republicans on Thursday began a drive to make the home of the U.S. auto industry the 24th "right to work" state banning mandatory union dues, setting off a confrontation with organized labor that immediately led to the arrest of protesters. Hundreds of union workers converged on the state capital of Lansing. Majority Republicans in the state legislature introduced a draft law in the House on Thursday afternoon with a target for passage by the end of the year. ...


Trayvon Martin's killer sues NBC over racist "myth"

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 03:32 PM PST

MIAMI (Reuters) - A Florida man sued NBC on Thursday, saying the network intentionally edited and repeatedly aired a 911 call he made to police after he shot Trayvon Martin "to create the myth" that he was a racist. Attorneys for George Zimmerman, who maintains he shot the unarmed black teenager in self-defense in February during a struggle, said the lawsuit seeking an undisclosed amount in damages was filed in the same central Florida court where he will stand trial in June for murder. ...

Iowa police "confident" that bodies are those of missing girls

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 03:25 PM PST

(Reuters) - Iowa police said on Thursday they are confident that two bodies found by hunters in a wooded area are cousins who vanished last summer while riding their bikes. "At this time, law enforcement is confident, based upon evidence at the scene and our preliminary investigation, that the bodies found yesterday are those of Lyric Cook and Elizabeth Collins," Captain Rick Abben, chief deputy of the Black Hawk County Sheriff's Office, said in a statement. ...

Two decades later, Central Park Jogger rape case lives on

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 02:46 PM PST

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Trisha Meili was out jogging in Central Park on April 19, 1989, when she was bound, gagged, raped and beaten nearly to death, a chilling crime to which five teenage boys confessed after hours of interrogation by New York City police. ...

Detained software guru McAfee hospitalized in Guatemala

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 03:23 PM PST

U.S. anti-virus software guru John McAfee lies on a stretcher as he is evacuated to the Policia Nacional Civil hospital in Guatemala CityGUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) - Software guru John McAfee, fighting deportation to Belize, was rushed to a hospital in Guatemala on Thursday after his lawyer said he had two mild heart attacks earlier in the day, and doctors said he was suffering from anxiety and hypertension. Reporters saw McAfee carried out on a stretcher from an immigration service cottage where he was detained after crossing illegally into Guatemala from neighboring Belize, where police want to question him in connection with his neighbor's murder. The 67-year-old U.S. ...


Seeing red, ticketed drivers sue NYC over brief yellow lights

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 02:32 PM PST

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Three drivers nabbed by New York City cameras monitoring traffic violations have filed suit challenging their tickets, claiming the city's yellow traffic signals are rigged to turn red too quickly. The putative class action, filed Wednesday in Manhattan Supreme Court, asserts the yellow lights lasted less than three seconds, the minimum time permitted under federal guidelines. The lawsuit seeks class action status for the "thousands, if not hundreds of thousands" of drivers who have received citations after being caught running red lights on camera. ...

Congress told billions needed for Sandy transportation repairs

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 09:19 AM PST

Construction workers repair roads destroyed by Hurricane Sandy in MantolokingWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Billions of dollars are needed to strengthen and repair rail and other transportation networks in the U.S. Northeast in the aftermath of savage Superstorm Sandy, lawmakers and transportation officials said on Thursday. "Estimates of the damage have reached more than $7 billion. Across the region, train tunnels, stations, and rail yards were flooded, rail tracks were damaged and critical equipment was ruined," Senator Frank Lautenberg, a New Jersey Democrat, said at a Senate subcommittee hearing on storm damage. ...


Marijuana goes legal in Washington state amid mixed messages

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 12:51 PM PST

Marijuana is seen in the hand of a person after the law legalizing the recreational use of marijuana went into effect in Seattle, WashingtonSEATTLE (Reuters) - Washington state made history on Thursday as the first in the nation to legalize marijuana for adult recreational use, an occasion celebrated by dozens of users near Seattle's famed Space Needle amid blaring reggae music and a haze of pot smoke. The pre-dawn public gathering defied a key provision of the state's landmark marijuana law, which allows possession of small amounts of marijuana but forbids users from lighting up outside the privacy of their homes. The gathering also underscored mixed law enforcement messages about the statute. ...


Juror appointment delays verdict reading in New York bus crash trial

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 03:01 PM PST

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A jury reached a verdict on Thursday in the manslaughter trial of bus driver Ophadell Williams, charged in the deadly Bronx crash that killed 15 people, but in a highly unusual move he will not learn his fate until Friday. In a decision that lawyers for both sides called unprecedented in their long careers, Judge Troy Webber in State Supreme Court in the Bronx borough of New York City ordered an overnight delay in revealing the verdict because of a juror scheduling conflict. ...

Michigan House approves "right-to-work" bill to weaken unions

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 02:33 PM PST

LANSING, Michigan (Reuters) - The Michigan House on Thursday voted to approve a "right-to-work" bill that would weaken labor union powers after Democratic representatives left the chambers in protest at the decision earlier to lock the state Capitol doors. The House voted 58 to 52 to approve a bill that would make Michigan, the home of the U.S. auto industry, the 24th right-to-work state. A previously introduced bill was used to press the measure to the floor for debate on Thursday afternoon. ...

Ex-Connecticut worker poisons supervisor's oatmeal over evaluation

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 02:32 PM PST

WATERBURY, Connecticut (Reuters) - A former Waterbury parks department employee was free on bail on Thursday after being charged with poisoning his supervisor's oatmeal after a disagreement about the worker's job performance. William Lampron, 43, of Naugatuck was accused of sprinkling his manager's breakfast with a chemical substance called SpeedyDry, which is used for soaking up spills on roadways, said Waterbury Police Captain Chris Corbett. "It's a granular substance that looks like sand or brown sugar," Corbett said. ...

New York man charged in bid to send defense-use goods to China, Taiwan

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 02:30 PM PST

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A New York man has been criminally charged with illegally exporting defense articles and goods with military applications to China and Taiwan, one day after prosecutors announced charges against four people over exports to China and Iran. Mark Henry was accused of trying to ship military-grade material used to coat rocket nozzles to Taiwan, and microwave amplifiers that have military applications to China, without first getting licenses from U.S. government agencies. ...

Negotiators see glimmers of progress on farm bill

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 02:28 PM PST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - With a week left to act, agricultural leaders in Congress are still deadlocked on two major issues for a new U.S. farm bill, cuts in crop subsidies and reductions in food stamps, said two of the four key negotiators on Thursday. But the leaders of the House and Senate agriculture committees suggested that recent talks had yielded at least some progress. Without reauthorization, U.S. farm policy would revert to the provisions of the Agricultural Act of 1949, the last "permanent" farm bill and one crafted for an entirely different U.S. economy. ...

Human error blamed in carbon monoxide leak at Atlanta school

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 12:10 PM PST

ATLANTA (Reuters) - A carbon monoxide leak that sent nearly 50 Atlanta elementary school students and teachers to hospitals was caused by human error when maintenance workers left a boiler valve open, officials said on Thursday. Authorities evacuated the Finch Elementary School on Monday after firefighters detected what they described as the highest levels of carbon monoxide they had ever seen. Students and teachers complained of headaches and nausea and 47 people were transported to nearby hospitals where they were all treated and released, Atlanta Public Schools spokesman Stephen Alford ...

Prosecutors say daughter of jailed Mexican Mafia kingpin ran U.S. gang

Posted: 06 Dec 2012 02:04 PM PST

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The daughter of an imprisoned Mexican Mafia kingpin who prosecutors say carried out her father's orders in running a brutal Los Angeles street gang, the Harpys, was arrested on Thursday along with her husband and 16 other accused gang members. Vianna Roman, 37, was taken into custody on a federal grand jury racketeering indictment that accuses her of being the day-to-day leader of the Harpys, acting on instructions from her father, Danny Roman, despite his incarceration in Northern California's super-maximum-security Pelican Bay State Prison. ...

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