News For Wednesday Nov 19, 2008 News For Wednesday Nov 19, 2008

U.S. U.S.

NYC to offer rewards for making yellow cabs green - Added 4 days ago

After a judge threw a roadblock in front of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's quest to replace every taxicab with a hybrid model, the city is creating financial incentives to get more fuel-efficient cabs on the streets. ...

NYCLU: Why was Stalin banner removed from school? - Added 4 days ago

!!-- pobj:NYR106-1031081947 -->!!-- pobj:NYR107-1031081947 -->The New York Civil Liberties Union has demanded that city officials explain why they ordered a private art school to remove a banner displaying an image of...

Judge: Evidence of suicide OK at Web hoax trial - Added 4 days ago

Evidence from the suicide of a Missouri girl can be used by prosecutors against a woman charged with helping to create a false Internet identity that was used to harass the teenager, a federal judge ruled Friday. The...

Northeast lawmakers want Lieberman ousted as chair - Added 4 days ago

Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman's chances of holding onto his committee chairmanship suffered a blow Friday when two key New England Democratic senators came out against him. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick...

Boy allegedly hits mom with saw, offers her $5 - Added 4 days ago

Authorities say an 11-year-old boy hit his mother in the head with a saw and then offered her $5 not to call police. The St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office reported that the boy and his 41-year-old mother got into an...

Cops use greasy fingerprints to nab hungry burglar - Added 4 days ago

A prosecutor says greasy fingerprints led police in Virginia to a suspect with sticky fingers. Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Bethany Harrison said Lynchburg police matched prints on an orange juice bottle left at...

Who's coming to dinner? Two dozen world leaders - Added 4 days ago

!!-- AUDIO:0814B320,0814B319,0814B318,0814B317,0814B316 -->President George W. Bush greeted Mexico President Felipe Calderon at the White House for a working dinner on the financial crisis with a cheery "Hey, amigo,...

Bush remarks at summit on financial meltdown - Added 4 days ago

President George W. Bush's remarks Friday evening at a White House dinner opening a summit of world leaders on the global financial meltdown, as transcribed by the White House: Your Excellencies: Welcome to the United...

Lawmakers blast shifts in financial bailout plan - Added 4 days ago

Lawmakers complained Friday that the Bush administration is ignoring the will of Congress and slighting homeowners on the verge of foreclosure in its latest approach to spending $700 billion in economic rescue money. ...

Spokane man guilty of 4-year-old daughter's death - Added 4 days ago

A man was convicted of homicide by abuse on Friday for the horrific death of his 4-year-old daughter, who had been repeatedly beaten, bitten, burned and denied food for long periods. A Spokane County Superior Court...

Army manipulated general's photo - Added 4 days ago

The Associated Press on Friday suspended the use of photos provided by the Defense Department after the Army distributed a digitally altered photo of the U.S. military's first female four-star general. The image of...

Trial opens for Empire State Building parachutist - Added 4 days ago

A former host of a TV stunt show put himself and others in danger because he was reckless and selfish enough to try to parachute from the Empire State Building 2 1/2 years ago, a prosecutor told jurors Friday. Jeb...

DNA on bloodstained dollar leads to guilty verdict - Added 4 days ago

A jury has reached a guilty verdict in the case of a Utah man who was linked to the 1984 murder of a service station attendant through DNA found in blood on a dollar bill. Fifty-one-year-old Glenn Howard Griffin was...

Bridge design flaws may not be as rare as thought - Added 4 days ago

The design flaw that brought down a highway bridge in Minneapolis went undetected for 40 years. Federal safety officials say that, even today, government design reviews might not detect similar problems. The National...

Kansas teen given probation in stolen-baby plot - Added 4 days ago

A Kansas teenager who ended a plot to take a woman's unborn child has been sentenced to probation for her role. Eighteen-year-old Alisa Betts was told Friday to serve six years' probation for kidnapping and assault. ...

3 Chicago teens drown during leadership retreat - Added 4 days ago

!!-- pobj:ILDB104-1114081051 -->!!-- pobj:ILCHT101-1114081335 -->!!-- pobj:ILCHT102-1114081334 -->Three high school students on a leadership camping retreat sneaked away from their camp beds in the middle of the night...

Reporter wasn't White House dog's 1st bite victim - Added 4 days ago

Turns out that when it comes to biting White House visitors, President Bush's dog Barney is a repeat offender. Boston Celtics public relations director Heather Walker said Friday that Barney bit her wrist and drew...

No menu meltdown at financial meltdown summit - Added 4 days ago

Brother, can you spare a $300 bottle of wine? The White House dinner Friday night for foreign leaders working to resolve the global economic crisis featured traditionally gourmet selections for such an august...

Debris hinders investigation of Colorado explosion - Added 4 days ago

Unstable rubble hampered efforts Friday to determine what caused a thunderous explosion that killed one person, injured several and leveled a downtown restaurant and a store in the southern Colorado city of Pueblo. The...

Many Texans calling tents home 2 months after Ike - Added 4 days ago

!!-- pobj:TXBEA503-1030081810 -->!!-- pobj:TXBEA502-1030081542 -->!!-- pobj:TXBEA501-1030081547 -->Truong Van Cao and two other fishermen share a cramped, muddy tent amid the wreckage of homes, including his own,...

Court: NY killer ex-fugitive can't withdraw pleas - Added 4 days ago

A former escaped inmate who killed a New York state trooper and wounded two others while on the run in 2006 cannot withdraw his guilty pleas and stand trial, an appeals court ruled Friday. Ralph "Bucky" Phillips, who...

Guests for the Sunday TV news shows - Added 4 days ago

Guest lineup for the Sunday TV news shows: ___ ABC's "This Week" _ Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, R-Calif. ___ CBS' "Face the Nation" _ Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass.; Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala.; Gov. Bobby Jindal, R-La.;...

GM may run out of gas before Obama arrives - Added 4 days ago

In recent months, General Motors has been burning through about $3.1 million an hour, or $52,000 _ the price of a well-equipped Chevy Tahoe SUV _ every minute. How much longer can this go on? And perhaps more...

Former DOD employee given probation - Added 4 days ago

A former Defense Department employee was sentenced to probation for failing to report income she earned when her business did work with the department. Constance Walton, 55, of Mitchellville, Md., was also ordered to...

Obama and McCain to discuss ways to work together - Added 4 days ago

President-elect Barack Obama will meet Monday with John McCain in talks that Obama's transition office said would focus on ways they can cooperate on an array of troublesome issues facing the country. The meeting will...

Dunwoody becomes first female four-star general - Added 4 days ago

!!-- AUDIO:220,219,217,216,215 -->Call it breaking the brass ceiling. Ann E. Dunwoody, after 33 years in the Army, ascended Friday to a peak never before reached by a woman in the U.S. military: four-star general. At...

Ex-radical Ayers distances himself from Obama - Added 4 days ago

Vietnam-era radical Bill Ayers said Friday that he doesn't know President-elect Barack Obama any better than "thousands of other Chicagoans" and that the two never talked about Ayers' anti-war activities. In a...

High court to rule when judges must bow out - Added 4 days ago

The Supreme Court stepped into a sensitive dispute Friday over a state judge's decision to participate in a case that involved a key campaign supporter. The justices typically avoid cases about judicial ethics, but...

Mass. lawmaker accused of harassing women resigns - Added 4 days ago

A Massachusetts state senator charged over the summer with sexually harassing four women has resigned. State Sen. James Marzilli had been under pressure to step down since he was arrested in June, but criticism...

Michelle Obama gets sneak peak of WH closets - Added 4 days ago

Touring the White House, Michelle Obama did what any prospective homebuyer might do: Check out the closet space. "I showed her the closets. I showed her all the things that women are interested in," Mrs. Bush told CNN...

Jonesboro shooter gets more prison time in Ark. - Added 4 days ago

Jonesboro school shooter Mitchell Johnson was sentenced Friday to 12 years in prison and could remain behind bars well into his 30s. Johnson, 24, had faced a maximum 30 years for stealing a debit card and possessing...

NY pet cemetery ranked among Taj Mahal, pyramids - Added 4 days ago

A travel guide's list of the best places in the world to be entombed includes a cemetery for animals in a New York City suburb. "Lonely Planet's Best in Travel 2009" includes the Hartsdale Pet Cemetery with the Taj...

Man arrives at bar with pet alligator; cops called - Added 4 days ago

Heard the one about the guy who walked into a bar with an alligator? At Johnny's Saloon in Orange County, it was more than a joke early Saturday when a man arrived with his 3-foot pet gator on a leash. By the time...

Man's untimely nap damages church's organ pipes - Added 4 days ago

This isn't music to anyone's ears: The restoration of a church's 130-year-old organ has been delayed because four delicate pipes were damaged when a visitor napped on them. The 18-foot pipes were among about 50 stored...

Old threads: Wis. man creates mammoth twine ball - Added 4 days ago

Jim Kotera said the challenge hit almost three decades ago and got the ball rolling, so to speak. He heard of people claiming to have amassed the largest ball of twine in the world and decided to beat them. Kotera told...

Cambodian Buddhists abuzz about Buddha hive - Added 4 days ago

The Cambodian Buddhist community in Rochester is abuzz over what they believe is a miracle: a wasp nest in the shape of a seated Buddha built in the eaves of their temple. The nest was spotted last week. Elder members...

Ohio gym hit by thieves who take boxing ring - Added 4 days ago

Boxers have long complained about being robbed in the ring. Well, now the ring itself has been stolen. The ring at Glass City Boxing was swiped sometime Sunday, WNWO-TV reported. Trainer Tom Urbina said if the ring is...

W.Va. man beats health insurer in court over $40 - Added 4 days ago

A $40 medical bill might seem small but a West Virginia man says his five-year battle over paying it was a matter of principle. Sam Juniper says his health benefits weren't supposed to change after he retired in 2000...

Cat missing for over 13 years back with owners - Added 4 days ago

A couple recently had an unexpected reunion with an old housemate: their pet cat who went missing more than 13 years ago. George, who was last seen by Melinda Merman and Frank Walburg in 1995, was turned into an animal...

Police say man sped away after handing over ID - Added 4 days ago

Police said it wasn't the most well-thoughtout escape. They say a man handed over his license and registration at a sobriety checkpoint during the weekend, then peeled out and sped away, almost hitting an officer. ...

Man allegedly steals communion wafers from priest - Added 4 days ago

Police in said they arrested a Connecticut man after he tried to steal communion wafers during a church service. The Martin County Sheriff's Office said 33-year-old John Samuel Ricci, of Canton, was cornered by fellow...

Woman finds frozen pig head on pole in her yard - Added 4 days ago

Police are investigating after a woman leaving for work with her 9-year-old daughter on Sunday morning found a frozen pig head stuck on top of a pole next to a tree her yard. Jennifer Keller said the sight terrified...

8-ton tree arrives for NY Rockefeller Center debut - Added 4 days ago

An 8-ton, 72-foot-tall Norway spruce was hoisted into place Friday in Rockefeller Center, where it will be dressed up for its starring role as the city's most famous Christmas tree. Hundreds of onlookers gawked as a...

Woman gets jail for using kids in volleyball scam - Added 4 days ago

A woman will have to spend up to 90 days in jail and make restitution for sending her children door to door seeking donations for a trip to a volleyball camp. Carley Torres will have to pay back more than $3,000 after...

Russian Orthodox church stolen _ brick by brick - Added 4 days ago

Wanted: One missing Russian church. Last seen in July. Reward for its return. Orthodox officials in a central Russian region say an abandoned church building that was to be put back into use has been stolen by local...

Trooper cites pair for DUI in single traffic stop - Added 4 days ago

A Montana Highway Patrol trooper cited two men with drunken driving in one traffic stop. Trooper Darvin Mees stopped a suspected drunk driver Wednesday afternoon. While he had the driver out performing a field sobriety...

Beer truck driver accused of driving drunk - Added 4 days ago

A contract beer truck driver has been arrested on suspicion of drunken driving after his rig flipped over. Police said the man, 56, was eastbound on Colorado 58 about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday when he took an exit ramp for...

Robber threatens to complain after finding no cash - Added 4 days ago

Police say a central Pennsylvania man tried to rob a bank _ but tellers' empty cash drawers thwarted his attempt. Springettsbury Township Police Lt. Scott Laird said the tellers were waiting for their cash drawers to be...

Man accused of urinating on arresting officer - Added 4 days ago

A 35-year-old man faces charges after allegedly driving drunk and then urinating in the back of a squad car and on the arresting officer. A criminal complaint said the man was pulled over early Wednesday after an...

Stylish Philly swindler gets 4 years in prison - Added 4 days ago

The male half of a jet-setting Philadelphia couple has been ordered to serve four years in prison in a $100,000 identity-theft scheme. The sentence given Friday to 25-year-old Edward Anderton is one year less than that...