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| Kerry in South Sudan to press for halt to conflict Friday, May 02, 2014 12:54 AM PDT  JUBA (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry flew into South Sudan on Friday to push for a halt to more than four months of fighting in Africa's newest nation, a message he was expected to deliver in talks with President Salva Kiir. Kerry's trip to South Sudan, his first as Secretary of State, came a day after he renewed U.S. threats of sanctions and held out hope for the rapid deployment of more peacekeepers. He said the conflict could descend into genocide. (Reporting by Phil Stewart; Editing by Edmund Blair) Full Story | Top |
| Ukraine attacks rebel city, helicopter shot down Friday, May 02, 2014 12:47 AM PDT  By Maria Tsvetkova SLAVIANSK, Ukraine (Reuters) - Ukrainian forces attacked the rebel-held city of Slaviansk before dawn on Friday and pro-Russia separatists shot down at least one attack helicopter, killing a pilot, in a sharp escalation of the conflict. Describing the use of anti-aircraft missiles as proof of the presence of Russian special forces in the town that has become the military stronghold of the pro-Moscow movement, Ukrainian officials said Slaviansk was "tightly surrounded" and called on separatist leaders to release hostages and surrender. Reuters journalists in the city of 130,000 heard shooting from shortly after 4 a.m. (9 p.m. EDT Thursday) and saw a military helicopter open fire. The SBU security service said one military Mi-24 helicopter gunship had been shot down, killing one airman while a second had been taken prisoner by the rebels. Full Story | Top |
| S.Africa's Implats says most miners want to return to work Friday, May 02, 2014 12:33 AM PDT  South African platinum producer Impala Platinum said on Friday that two-thirds of its striking workforce had indicated by text messages and phone calls that they wanted to accept the company's latest wage offer and end a 14-week strike. Implats spokesman Johan Theron told Reuters that workers who were unable to send texts because they have no money for air time were making use of telephones at mine recruitment offices. The strike by the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) has also hit Anglo American Platinum and Lonmin, taking out 40 percent of global production of the precious metal. Full Story | Top |
| Pfizer engages AstraZeneca with raised $106 billion offer Friday, May 02, 2014 12:32 AM PDT  By Ben Hirschler LONDON (Reuters) - U.S. drugmaker Pfizer Inc has raised its offer for AstraZeneca Plc to 63 billion pounds ($106 billion), it said on Friday, adding that the British drugmaker was reviewing the proposal. Pfizer's pursuit of AstraZeneca to create the world's biggest pharmaceuticals company - and cut its tax bill - comes amid a wave of deal-making in the healthcare sector. The 50 pounds ($84.47) a share indicative offer follows AstraZeneca's decision to rebuff an earlier proposal valuing it at 58.8 billion pounds, or 46.61 pounds per share. "Given where the shares have come from, this doesn't look unreasonable," said one fund manager whose institution is among the top 10 investors in AstraZeneca. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. warns of South Sudan genocide risk, raises hope of new forces Friday, May 02, 2014 12:28 AM PDT By Phil Stewart and Aaron Maasho ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry warned on Thursday that South Sudan's conflict could descend into genocide, as he renewed threats of sanctions and raised hope that more peacekeeping forces could be deployed swiftly to halt the bloodshed. Kerry, emerging from talks about the increasingly ethnic slaughter in South Sudan with foreign ministers from neighbouring Ethiopia, Uganda and Kenya, said all sides agreed the "killing must stop." "A legitimate force that has an ability to help make peace needs to get on the ground as rapidly as possible," Kerry said in Addis Ababa at the start of an African trip. Addressing reporters later, Kerry said the goal was "in these next days, literally, we can move more rapidly to put people on the ground who could begin to make a difference." His Ethiopian counterpart, Foreign Minister Tedros Adhanom, said all sides stressed the need for deployment of a force "as soon as possible." A spokeswoman said Kerry was referring to regional forces under the authority of the United Nations, which already has a mission in South Sudan. Full Story | Top |
| Nigeria's "African Davos" will focus minds on problems, as well as potential Friday, May 02, 2014 12:27 AM PDT By Pascal Fletcher ABUJA (Reuters) - Delegates to the World Economic Forum on Africa next week in the Nigerian capital Abuja will be in the right place to reflect on the rising continent's problems, as well as its undoubted potential. Participants, including Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and African leaders, meet as the continent's largest economy grapples with a surging Islamist revolt and inter-communal clashes that highlight poverty, ethnic and religious schisms, and battles over power and resources in many parts of Africa. "If people want to take a look at a dynamic, high-potential place in Africa, Nigeria is that place, but it also has a whole host of issues that are not going away anytime soon," said Mark Shroeder, head of Sub-Saharan Africa analysis at business and security consultancy STATFOR. Policymakers, entrepreneurs and philanthropists attending the 24th World Economic Forum on Africa (WEFA), a replica of the flagship annual WEF held in Davos, Switzerland, will be ensconced in the concrete fortress of the Abuja Hilton, protected by 6,000 police and soldiers - the largest security operation Nigeria has ever mounted for a summit. Full Story | Top |
| Segregation in C.African Republic shows world's failure: official Friday, May 02, 2014 12:25 AM PDT By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Segregating Muslims in Central African Republic to protect them from Christian militia shows the world's failure to tackle a deepening sectarian crisis, a U.N. official said on Thursday as the United Nations scrambles to find thousands of peacekeepers. "It is a collective failure of the international community that we were not able to provide the security for people in their homes," said John Ging, director of operations for the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. "The separation and segregation of communities in this country is not a solution for this country going forward." The United Nations has warned the crisis could spiral into a genocide in the resource-rich former French colony of 4.6 million people. Human rights officials say parts of the country have seen "religious cleansing." The violence has continued despite the presence of 2,000 French troops and some 5,600 African Union forces. Full Story | Top |
| One policeman killed in Cairo bomb attack: security sources Friday, May 02, 2014 12:23 AM PDT CAIRO (Reuters) - One Egyptian policeman was killed and at least one other injured in a bomb attack in Cairo's Heliopolis district, security sources said on Friday. The attack came hours after a suicide bomber killed himself and a soldier at a security checkpoint in Egypt's South Sinai, and a second bomb attack in the same area wounded at least three. (Reporting by Shadia Nasralla; Editing by Alison Williams) Full Story | Top |
| Segregation in C.African Republic shows world's failure: UN official Friday, May 02, 2014 12:23 AM PDT By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Segregating Muslims in Central African Republic to protect them from Christian militia shows the world's failure to tackle a deepening sectarian crisis, a U.N. official said on Thursday as the United Nations scrambles to find thousands of peacekeepers. "It is a collective failure of the international community that we were not able to provide the security for people in their homes," said John Ging, director of operations for the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. "The separation and segregation of communities in this country is not a solution for this country going forward." The United Nations has warned the crisis could spiral into a genocide in the resource-rich former French colony of 4.6 million people. Human rights officials say parts of the country have seen "religious cleansing." The violence has continued despite the presence of 2,000 French troops and some 5,600 African Union forces. Full Story | Top |
| Suicide bomber kills soldier in Egypt's Sinai, second blast wounds three Friday, May 02, 2014 12:23 AM PDT A suicide bomber killed himself and a soldier at a security checkpoint in Egypt's South Sinai on Friday, and a second bomb attack in the same area wounded at least three, official sources said. The fatal attack occurred in El-Tur, a town on the main road between Cairo and the tourist resort of Sharm El-Sheikh. Three other members of the police and one soldier were injured, according to an Interior Ministry statement posted on Facebook. At least three Egyptians were wounded in the second attack, further south on the road between El-Tur and Sharm El-Sheikh, which targeted a bus transporting workers for the tourist industry, security sources said. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. seeks another extension for Okada payments probe Friday, May 02, 2014 12:22 AM PDT  U.S. prosecutors are seeking to put a civil lawsuit between Wynn Resorts Ltd and Japanese billionaire Kazuo Okada on hold for another six months to continue a criminal investigation into Okada and his companies regarding payments in the Philippines, according to a motion filed to a Nevada court. Okada, the founder of Japanese gaming machine maker Universal Entertainment Corp , was a director of Wynn Resorts when the suit was launched in 2012. A hearing on the motion is scheduled for Friday, according to the court's website. The U.S. government said in the motion that its criminal investigation had progressed in the past six months, but that it was still ongoing and that allowing the suit to proceed could lead to the disclosure of government witnesses. Full Story | Top |
| Suicide bomber kills soldier in Egypt's Sinai, second blast wounds 3 Friday, May 02, 2014 12:19 AM PDT  A suicide bomber killed himself and a soldier at a security checkpoint in Egypt's South Sinai on Friday, and a second bomb attack in the same area wounded three, security sources and state media reported. The fatal attack occurred in El-Tur, a town on the main road between Cairo and the tourist resort of Sharm El-Sheikh. Three Egyptians were wounded in the second attack, further south on the road between El-Tur and Sharm El-Sheikh, which targeted a bus transporting workers for the tourist industry, the same sources said. Militant attacks in Egypt have spiralled since the army deposed Mohamed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood last July. Full Story | Top |
| China's hunger for sea cucumbers reaches islands of Sierra Leone Friday, May 02, 2014 12:19 AM PDT  By Tommy Trenchard DUBLIN Sierra Leone (Reuters) - As evening falls over Sierra Leone's Banana Island archipelago, bats stream from their beachside roosts to circle in their thousands over the jungle village of Dublin. Below them a struggle is playing out over an unexpected commodity - the lowly sea cucumber, a fleshy, sausage-shaped creature that scavenges for food on the seabed. It is a struggle that is familiar to many in the West African country. While the Banana Islanders have no use for sea cucumbers, in China they are prized for their medicinal properties and as a natural aphrodisiac. Full Story | Top |
| Suspected bomb on edge of Nigerian capital kills at least 15 Friday, May 02, 2014 12:15 AM PDT  By Isaac Abrak and Afolabi Sotunde ABUJA (Reuters) - A suspected car bomb exploded on the outskirts of Nigeria's capital Abuja on Thursday, killing at least 15 people a week before the city was to host a conference of leaders and business executives focused on Africa's growth prospects, witnesses said. The explosion hit the suburb of Nyanya, close to the site of a morning rush hour bomb attack at a bus station last month that killed at least 75 people. The April 14 attack was claimed by the radical Islamist movement Boko Haram which is waging an insurgency against President Goodluck Jonathan's government. Flames lit up the area around the blast, which was strewn with drying blood and contorted bodies, and sirens wailed. "There was a loud blast then a ball of fire," witness Lateef Adebayo told Reuters by telephone from Nyanya. Full Story | Top |
| Republic of Congo expels 50,000 citizens of neighbouring Congo Friday, May 02, 2014 12:13 AM PDT Republic of Congo has expelled more than 50,000 citizens of the Democratic Republic of Congo over the past month, authorities in Kinshasa said on Thursday, a move rare on this scale in the relations between the two neighbours. Officials in Brazzaville, capital of the Republic of Congo, said the operation is aimed at ending a crime wave linked to foreigners, and that all those living in the country illegally, not just those from the DRC, were being targeted. The Kinshasa government has expressed concern about the way in which the operation was being carried out but said it is seeking to resolve the issue through diplomatic channels. "As of yesterday, we had counted 52,226 people expelled from Brazzaville," Andre Kimbuta Yango, the governor of Kinshasa, told Reuters. Full Story | Top |
| Eleven Muslim settlers killed in militant attacks in India's Assam Thursday, May 01, 2014 11:59 PM PDT  Suspected tribal rebels in India shot dead 11 Muslim settlers, including two women, in attacks in the northeastern tea-growing state of Assam where tension is running high during an election, officials said on Friday. Bodo people have frequently clashed with Muslims they say have illegally entered from neighboring Bangladesh and encroached on their ancestral lands in the hills. Candidates in India's general election, including opposition front runner Narendra Modi, have contributed to anti-Bangladeshi feeling in Assam. Modi last week said immigrants from Bangladesh in a nearby state should have their "bags packed" in case he came to power. Full Story | Top |
| Missing Hollywood executive declared dead: Los Angeles county official Thursday, May 01, 2014 11:57 PM PDT (Reuters) - A Hollywood studio executive who investigators said may have been murdered was declared dead on Thursday, the second anniversary of his mysterious disappearance, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said. Gavin Smith, a 57-year-old film distribution executive for 20th Century Fox, was last seen on the night of May 1, 2012, driving in his black Mercedes Benz away from a friend's house in Oak Park, northwest of Los Angeles. "A death certificate was issued," Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Deputy Quiana Birkbeck said on Thursday. The facility was linked to John Creech, a man who was imprisoned in a Los Angeles County jail on an unrelated narcotics conviction. Full Story | Top |
| Philippines dismantles 'sextortion' groups, arrests 58 people Thursday, May 01, 2014 11:41 PM PDT The Philippine National Police and International Police had dismantled international "sextortion" operations during simultaneous raids in seven areas, arresting 58 people and seizing 250 laptops and computers, officials said on Friday. The Filipino criminal groups prey on foreigners overseas who engage in cybersex activities and extort money from them on threats they will upload their sex videos, said Alan Purisima, the national police chief. Police said the "sextortion" syndicates have collected millions of pesos (thousands of dollars) from hundreds of victims based in Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, United States and United Kingdom in the last three to four years. The extortion led to a suicide by a 17 year-old British boy, according to Gary Cunningham of the Scotland Yard at a news conference in Manila, adding there was strong evidence the boy had a chat with somebody from the Philippines. Full Story | Top |
| Google faces antitrust lawsuit on US mobile internet search Thursday, May 01, 2014 11:32 PM PDT  (Reuters) - Consumer rights law firm Hagens Berman said it filed a nationwide antitrust class-action lawsuit against Google Inc alleging the company "illegally monopolized" the Internet and mobile search market in the United States. The lawsuit alleges that Google has expanded its monopoly of the internet search market by pre-loading its applications onto Android mobile devices through its Mobile Application Distribution Agreements. ... Full Story | Top |
| Asian shares up before U.S. jobs report, Ukraine eyed Thursday, May 01, 2014 10:41 PM PDT  By Shinichi Saoshiro TOKYO (Reuters) - Asian shares edged up amid expectations for an upbeat U.S. payrolls report later in the session, while the markets kept an eye on the Ukraine after reports of fresh violence there that could potentially dampen risk appetite. Pro-Russian separatists in Slaviansk in eastern Ukraine said on Friday Ukrainian forces had launched a "large-scale operation" to retake the town. Asian markets showed little immediate reaction to the reports, but they could have greater implications for European markets opening later in the session. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.4 percent. Full Story | Top |
| After bombing in west, China angered by U.S. criticism in terror report Thursday, May 01, 2014 10:40 PM PDT  By Michael Martina URUMQI, China (Reuters) - China's foreign ministry has reacted angrily to U.S. criticism of the level of cooperation from Beijing on fighting terrorism, after an apparent suicide bombing in the country's far west pointed to a possible escalation of unrest there. The Chinese government has blamed religious extremists for carrying out a bomb and knife attack at a train station in Urumqi, regional capital of Xinjiang, on Wednesday evening that killed one bystander and wounded 79. Security was heavy on Friday in Urumqi, scene of deadly riots five years ago between Muslim Uighurs and ethnic Han Chinese in which almost 200 were killed. Full Story | Top |
| Red herring in hunt for MH370 highlights air traffic flaws Thursday, May 01, 2014 10:21 PM PDT  By Tim Hepher PARIS (Reuters) - Fresh questions have been raised over air traffic co-ordination after a preliminary report on the Malaysia Airlines plane that disappeared almost two months ago revealed 90 minutes of wasted effort while controllers looked in the wrong country. While Flight MH370's disappearance has led to calls for real-time tracking, it has also re-focused attention on the gap between what controllers sometimes think and see, which complicated early efforts to find Air France 447 in 2009. Some 25 minutes after the Malaysian jet was first reported missing over the Gulf of Thailand on March 8, the airline told controllers that it had flown onto Cambodian airspace. In fact, by then it had flown back west across Malaysia and was already on a new southerly course thought to have taken it across the tip of Indonesia and towards the Indian Ocean, where investigators believe it crashed with 239 people on board. Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive: U.S. anti-money laundering authority faces hiring probe - sources Thursday, May 01, 2014 10:05 PM PDT  By Emily Flitter and Brett Wolf NEW YORK/ST LOUIS (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury Department has frozen all recruitment by its anti-money laundering arm and forced the agency to rescind 11 job offers, after an investigation found it violated the federal employment code during an aggressive hiring push, according to several government officials. The Office of Personnel Management, a federal agency that governs labor practices in the government, determined that the Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, known as FinCEN, illegally screened candidates in a quest to hire only lawyers for certain jobs, the officials said. It has recommended further investigations by two other federal agencies into FinCEN's practices, they added. Full Story | Top |
| Utah ranchers sue to force reduction in wild horse population Thursday, May 01, 2014 09:53 PM PDT  By Jennifer Dobner SALT LAKE CITY (Reuters) - A group of Utah ranchers has asked a judge to order the Bureau of Land Management to reduce the number of wild horses roaming public grazing lands, saying the agency has failed to manage the herds which area decimating grasses needed for grazing cattle. The ranchers, organized as the Western Rangeland Conservation Association, contend the bureau has violated the 1971 Wild Horses and Burro Act by failing to keep herd numbers at levels set by the agency itself. The herds, which grow by about 20 percent annually, have not been culled for several years due to budget constraints. Filed on Wednesday in Salt Lake City's U.S. District Court, the lawsuit says that damage by horses, such as the destruction of fencing and water resources, is costly and ranchers are powerless to act because the horses are federally protected. The Bureau of Land Management's Utah spokeswoman Megan Crandall declined to comment on the lawsuit on Thursday, citing the agency's litigation policy. The lawsuit seeks an injunction against the bureau and an order forcing the agency to round up the horses, which would be then offered for adoption by the bureau. Full Story | Top |
| Pro-Russian rebels in Slaviansk say Ukraine tries to retake town Thursday, May 01, 2014 09:35 PM PDT By Maria Tsvetkova SLAVIANSK, Ukraine (Reuters) - Pro-Russian separatists in the rebel stronghold of Slaviansk said on Friday Ukrainian forces had launched a "large-scale operation" to retake the eastern town, with fighting on its northeastern outskirts. The rebels in Slaviansk, the eastern Ukrainian town where the armed separatists are most firmly in control, said at least one military helicopter had been shot down. Vyacheslav Ponomaryov, the self-declared mayor or the town, was quoted by Russia's Interfax news agency as saying two helicopters had been shot down, and one pilot had been detained. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. jobs report to signal stronger economic growth momentum Thursday, May 01, 2014 09:03 PM PDT  By Lucia Mutikani WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. hiring likely increased at its quickest pace in five months in April, which would bolster hopes of a strong rebound in economic activity in the second quarter. Employers probably added 210,000 jobs last month after increasing headcount by 192,000 in March, according to a Reuters poll. That would also top the pace of payrolls gains in the first quarter of 177,667 jobs per month. The unemployment rate is forecast falling one-tenth of a percentage point to 6.6 percent in April, matching a five-year low previously touched in January. Full Story | Top |
| Heavy fighting, explosions in Libya's Benghazi city Thursday, May 01, 2014 09:00 PM PDT Heavy fighting broke out between Libya's army and a militia in the port city of Benghazi in the country's volatile east on Friday, residents said. The army's special forces moved vehicles to the scene of fighting near the city's security headquarters, residents said. The identity of the enemy was not immediately clear, residents said, though there have been frequent clashes in the city between security forces and Islamists militants. Full Story | Top |
| North Korea seen testing engine for intercontinental ballistic missile Thursday, May 01, 2014 08:59 PM PDT By Jack Kim SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea has recently conducted engine tests for an intercontinental ballistic missile that could potentially deliver a nuclear warhead to the United States, a U.S. think tank said on Friday. North Korea conducted at least one engine test for the KN-08 missile in late March or early April, the think tank 38 North said, marking the latest in a series of tests for a missile believed to have a range of more than 10,000 km (6,000 miles). Following the engine tests, the next stage for North Korea would be a test launch of the missile, according to 38 North, which is affiliated with Johns Hopkins University's U.S.-Korea Institute. Commercial satellite imagery indicates movement and removal of missile stages and fuel tanks as well as changes in the flame trench that point to North Korea having conducted one or more tests in the two-week period from March 22, the report said. Full Story | Top |
| Racist remarks by Clippers owner recorded with his consent: lawyer Thursday, May 01, 2014 08:16 PM PDT By Steve Gorman and Dana Feldman LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The audio recording of racist comments that got Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling banned from the NBA was made with his consent by the woman he criticizes on the tape for "associating with black people," her lawyer said on Thursday. Los Angeles-based attorney Mac Nehoray also insisted that his client, who goes by the name of V. Stiviano, did not wish Sterling any ill will and had nothing to do with furnishing the recording to websites that released the audio over the weekend, igniting the racially charged scandal. Full Story | Top |
| Phoenix veterans hospital chief put on leave, care delay probed Thursday, May 01, 2014 07:54 PM PDT By David Schwartz PHOENIX (Reuters) - The top official at a Phoenix veterans hospital was placed on indefinite leave on Thursday while regulators probe whistleblowers' claims that delayed care may have led to the deaths of as many as 40 veterans, the head of U.S. veterans affairs said. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki said in a statement that Director Sharon Helman was put on administrative leave "until further notice" pending a "thorough" review by the agency's inspector general's office. Also put on leave were associate director Lance Robinson and a third individual whose name and position were not disclosed, the Department of Veterans Affairs said. "These allegations, if true, are absolutely unacceptable and if the inspector general's investigation substantiates these claims, swift and appropriate action will be taken." Helman and Robinson could not be reached for comment. Full Story | Top |
| Commerce Department study finds no evidence 2012 jobs data faked Thursday, May 01, 2014 07:18 PM PDT  The U.S. Commerce Department found no evidence to support allegations that the monthly unemployment rate was manipulated before the 2012 presidential election, according to a report issued by the agency's office of inspector general on Thursday. The department launched the probe last November after the New York Post reported that data used in the closely watched survey was faked in the final stretch of President Barack Obama's re-election campaign, when the monthly unemployment rate fell to 7.8 percent from 8.1 percent. Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives called the allegations "shocking" and sought documents and communications related to the collection of data for the Current Population Survey, which is used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics to calculate the unemployment rate. The Census Bureau rejected the allegations at the time and said it reported the claims to the Office of the Inspector General as soon as it learned of them. Full Story | Top |
| Indonesia's Jokowi pledges to eliminate fuel subsidies slowly: media Thursday, May 01, 2014 07:06 PM PDT  Indonesian presidential frontrunner Joko "Jokowi" Widodo said he would gradually eliminate costly fuel subsidies over a four year period if he wins a July election, The Jakarta Post newspaper quoted him as saying on Friday. Fuel subsidies, which the government argues largely benefit the rich, cost the government around $20 billion a year and put pressure on the current account deficit. "In four years, the fuel subsidy should be eliminated gradually, step by step, until it's gone," Jokowi said on the sidelines of a national development planning conference on Wednesday, according to The Jakarta Post. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono raised fuel prices last year, but the issue is politically sensitive and attempts to go too quickly have been met with strong resistance and demonstrations. Full Story | Top |
| Trial to begin Friday in murder of missing Virginia girl Thursday, May 01, 2014 06:57 PM PDT  By Gary Robertson LOVINGSTON, Virginia (Reuters) - Opening arguments are set to begin Friday in the murder trial of a 48-year-old handyman accused of abducting and killing a Virginia girl whose body has never been found. Randy Taylor has pleaded not guilty to three counts of murder and kidnapping in the case, which has riveted this rural area of western Virginia since the girl disappeared last summer. The body of Alexis Murphy, 17, has never been found despite widespread searches by law enforcement agencies, community volunteers and her classmates, at Nelson County High School, where she was a star volleyball player and a popular senior. Authorities say he was one of the last people to see Alexis Murphy alive. Full Story | Top |
| Montana lawmaker vows to repeal self-defense law after German teen's death Thursday, May 01, 2014 06:23 PM PDT A Montana legislator said on Thursday she would seek to repeal the state's so-called "castle doctrine" after attorneys for a man accused of killing an unarmed German teenager said they would use the stand-your-ground style law in his defense. The father of the slain exchange student suggested in an interview with a German news agency that the gun culture of the United States was at least partly to blame for his son's death. Markus Kaarma opened fire with a shotgun into his darkened garage in Missoula, Montana, early on Sunday, killing 17-year-old Diren Dede of Hamburg, Germany, police said. Defense lawyers say they will invoke the state's castle doctrine, which allows use of force to defend against unlawful entry of a home provided the person reasonably believes it necessary to stop an assault or prevent a forcible felony. Full Story | Top |
| GM's fate in hands of bankruptcy judge - again Thursday, May 01, 2014 06:08 PM PDT  By Nick Brown and Jessica Dye NEW YORK (Reuters) - Five years ago, New York bankruptcy Judge Robert Gerber oversaw the historic bankruptcy of General Motors, establishing a new company that is shielded from liability for the actions of its precursor. Now, with thousands of drivers suing "New GM" for the alleged loss of value in their cars after an ignition defect sparked a massive recall, the same judge must decide whether to lift the shield he put in place. While evidence has already emerged that at least some GM employees were aware of problems with the switch, GM is asking for a clear-cut ruling declaring that it did not intentionally hide anything from the bankruptcy court. But plaintiffs' lawyers have prepared a multi-pronged attack, raising questions of bankruptcy law and constitutional rights. Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive - New York attorney general eyes exchanges in high frequency probe: sources Thursday, May 01, 2014 06:03 PM PDT  By Karen Freifeld and Nadia Damouni NEW YORK (Reuters) - The New York Attorney General's office is seeking information from exchanges and alternative trading platforms about their relationships with high frequency trading firms, as part of its probe into allegedly unfair trading practices on Wall Street, according to sources familiar with the situation. Attorney General Eric Schneiderman's office is expected to send subpoenas within days to exchanges, one of the sources said on Thursday. The major U.S. exchange operators include IntercontinentalExchange Group , Nasdaq OMX Group Inc and BATS Global Markets. NYSE, a unit of ICE, has already been cooperating with the attorney general by sharing data, while BATS has also had conversations with the prosecutor, two of the sources said. Full Story | Top |
| Singer Chris Brown in jail for at least another week, judge says Thursday, May 01, 2014 06:02 PM PDT  A Los Angeles judge on Thursday said R&B singer Chris Brown will remain in jail for at least another week as the pop star deals with dual cases on both sides of the country. Brown, who will now spend his 25th birthday on May 5 behind bars, has been held since March 14 after his dismissal from a rehabilitation center violated the terms of his court-ordered treatment related to his 2009 assault of his then-girlfriend, the pop singer Rihanna. Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge James Brandlin said Brown would remain incarcerated unless a resolution on the terms of his probation in the Rihanna case could be agreed to between the prosecutor and Brown's attorney by a scheduled hearing on May 9. Brown's attorney, Mark Geragos, said if he cannot resolve the case with prosecutor, Mary Murray, by next week, he will ask the court to release Brown on certain terms and conditions. Full Story | Top |
| At U.S. college, Irish militant archive becomes diplomatic time bomb Thursday, May 01, 2014 05:59 PM PDT By Ross Kerber and David Ingram BOSTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - The arrest of Irish politician Gerry Adams may have its roots in a closed archive of taped interviews with former paramilitaries in Northern Ireland that researchers now fear could be used to charge others over sectarian violence from decades ago. U.S. and British authorities last year won a court battle against Boston College in Massachusetts to obtain interviews from the oral history archive. They said the records were needed to investigate the 1972 killing of a widowed mother by the IRA, a notorious incident from the period known as "The Troubles." The legal victory created a diplomatic time bomb. Material previously made public from the archive has linked Adams to the death of the woman, Jean McConville. Full Story | Top |
| NBA panel agrees to act swiftly on bid to oust Clippers owner Thursday, May 01, 2014 05:50 PM PDT  By Larry Fine NEW YORK (Reuters) - The National Basketball Association on Thursday launched its bid to oust Donald Sterling as owner of the Los Angeles Clippers for racist comments as a panel of 10 fellow team owners or their proxies unanimously agreed to proceed "as expeditiously as possible," the NBA said. The decision, reached during a telephone conference call of the NBA Board of Governors' advisory-finance committee, seemed to indicate a strong base of support among Sterling's fellow owners for his removal, as urged by league Commissioner Adam Silver. Silver on Tuesday declared Sterling banned from the NBA for life, fined him $2.5 million - the league maximum - and called on the 29 other club owners who make up the governing board to exercise their authority to force Sterling to sell the Clippers. Full Story | Top |
| California, most populous U.S. state, gains 356,000 residents Thursday, May 01, 2014 05:37 PM PDT By Alex Dobuzinskis LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - California gained 356,000 people in 2013, many attracted to the San Francisco Bay area and its prospering technology industry, a state demographer said on Thursday. California, the most populous U.S. state since 1963, ended the year with 38.3 million residents following its largest population increase since 2003. The state's recovering economy has drawn immigrants from abroad and Americans from other states, said Bill Schooling, chief of demographic research for the state Department of Finance. The biggest increases were in large urban centers, led by the San Francisco Bay area, while some rural counties home to older residents saw population decreases. Full Story | Top |
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