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Accused cop killer surrenders after hostage standoff
A suspect accused of killing a Georgia police officer and wounding another one surrendered to authorities Friday night after a hostage standoff.
The incident was captured by television cameras as officers arrested suspect Jamie Donnell Hood in Athens, Georgia.
Earlier Friday, Hood released four of eight hostages. It is not yet known how long the hostages had been held or if they had been harmed.
Hood is wanted in connection with Tuesday's slaying of Senior Police Officer Elmer "Buddy" Christian, 34, and the wounding of Senior Police Officer Tony Howard, 43.
FULL POST
Japan live blog: Radiation burns may be like 'sunburn,' expert says
A magnitude 9.0 earthquake hit northern Japan on March 11, triggering tsunamis that caused widespread devastation and crippled a nuclear power plant. Are you in an affected area? Send an iReport. Read the full report on the quake's aftermath and check out our interactive explainer on Japan's damaged nuclear reactors.
[11:41 p.m. ET Friday, 12:41 p.m. Saturday in Tokyo] Tests showed that levels of radioactive iodine in seawater just offshore of the embattled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant are more than 1,250 times higher than normal, Japan's nuclear and industrial safety agency said Saturday.
Similarly high levels of radiation had been detected in the same locales in recent days, though the latest readings indicate a notable increase. These high levels suggest there may have been some sort of leakage directly into the ocean - unlikely to be because of atmosphere emissions or rain alone, said an official with the Tokyo Electric Power Co., which operates the nuclear plant.
But an official with Japan's nuclear safety agency told reporters Saturday that - while drinking such water would be dangerous, given the radiation's potential to cause cancer - the effect on aquatic life in the Pacific Ocean may be relatively minimal. That's because the radiation tends to dilute the further one moves away from the nuclear plant. Data posted on Japan's education and science ministry's website showed relatively small amounts of radioactive particles several kilometers offshore.
[10:07 p.m. ET Friday, 11:07 a.m. Saturday in Tokyo] Tokyo Electric Power Co. is preparing to inject fresh water into the No. 2 reactor core at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant to enhance cooling efficiency after highly radioactive water was found leaking near all four troubled reactor units at the plant, Kyodo News reports. The utility will try to remove pools of water containing highly concentrated radioactive substances that may have seeped from either the reactor cores or spent fuel pools, while also trying to restore power at the No. 2 reactor.
[7:38 p.m. ET Friday, 8:38 a.m. Saturday in Tokyo] The Japan National Police Agency reports 10,102 people are confirmed dead as of Friday. The agency said it has received reports of 17,053 people missing.
[5:54 p.m. ET Friday, 6:54 a.m. Saturday in Tokyo] You can see the survivors making the choice as they walk through the debris-strewn main street of Otsuchi in Japan - stay or go?
Some amble along as if in a daze, trying to comprehend the present and match it with an uncertain future. Others look like tourists, coolly trying to place a cousin's house or a grandmother's garden.
But the dilemma is the same for them all: do you stay and rebuild in a devastated small town, struggling economically even before the tsunami, or pull up stakes and start anew in a big city?
[12:37 p.m. ET Friday, 1:37 a.m. Saturday in Tokyo] The Japanese government is considering instituting daylight-saving time or electricity price increases as options to conserve power during summer months when demand may outstrip supply, the Japan Times reported early Saturday. The measures are being considered to make up for the loss of two nuclear power plants damaged in the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.
The day's most popular stories
The five most popular stories on CNN.com in the past 24 hours, according to NewsPulse.
Water radiation spurs leakage fears: Authorities in Japan raised the prospect Friday of a likely breach in the all-important containment vessel of the No. 3 reactor at the stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, a potentially ominous development in the race to prevent a large-scale release of radiation.
Kirstie Alley slams George Lopez for pig joke: "Dancing With the Stars" contestant Kirstie Alley is putting her foot down and blasting comedian George Lopez for comparing her to a pig on his talk show, reports Entertainment Weekly.
Docs operate without anesthesia at hospital: For days, the wounded just kept coming to the 60-bed central hospital in Misrata, a city under siege from forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. But there were no empty beds, no electricity - only generator power. No anesthesia or painkillers.
Christian to Muslim - A change of faith: The actual conversion was brief. It only involved one sentence: “I bear witness that there is no God worthy of worship but God, I bear witness that Mohammed is the messenger of God.” For 30-year-old Mathew Miller, those words represented the culmination of a long religious transformation from Christianity to Islam.
A concerned evangelical's open letter to Charlie Sheen: As one of your 3 million Twitter followers, I’ve given you the ability to speak into my life in 140 characters or less, so I figure the least I can do is return the favor. I’m asking you to put away the Tiger Blood T-shirts and pull back from the Hollywood media blitz long enough to consider the following.
Dozens of Syrians reported killed in Daraa
[8:23 p.m. ET Friday, 2:22 a.m. Saturday in Syria] Violent protests erupted Friday in Syria, with dozens of people people killed in and around the restive city of Daraa and a boy slain in the coastal town of Latakia, reports said.
"The situation in Syria has worsened considerably over the past week, with the use of live ammunition and tear gas by the authorities having resulted in a total of at least 37 people being killed in Daraa, including two children," said Rupert Colville, a spokesman for the U.N.'s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Among the dead were 15 people who tried to march to Daraa, sources said, and nine others who died when security forces fired on demonstrators in Daraa's main square, said Wissam Tarif, a human rights activist.
[Posted 12:35 p.m. ET, 6:35 p.m. in Syria] At least 15 people have been killed trying to march towards the southern Syrian city of Daraa, where deadly anti-government protests have taken place, local residents told CNN Friday.
FULL STORY
Suspected Georgia cop killer takes hostages
The suspect in the slaying of a Georgia police officer barricaded himself in a house Friday and has taken between six and nine people hostage, said Vernon Keenan, director of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. He said the GBI is in contact with the suspect, who authorities have previously identified as Jamie Donnell Hood.
More from CNN affiliates WSB and CBS Atlanta
FULL STORY
Libya developments: NATO agrees in principle to protect civilians
The latest developments on the situation in Libya, where coalition forces launched a series of coordinated airstrikes on Saturday after they were convinced Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi was not adhering to a cease-fire mandated by the United Nations. Read our complete story and check out our full coverage on unrest in the Arab world. Also, don't miss a gripping, high-resolution gallery of images from Libya.
[6:33 p.m. ET Friday, 12:33 a.m. Saturday in Libya] President Obama will speak to the nation about Libya on Monday evening from the National Defense University at Fort McNair in Washington, D.C., the White House announced.
[4:18 p.m. ET Friday, 10:18 p.m. Friday in Libya] NATO has agreed in principle to protect Libyan civilians and will work out details this weekend, said Gen. Carter Ham, commander of U.S. Africa Command.
Ham, who is overseeing U.S. military involvement in the Libyan mission, said the biggest challenge in going after Moammar Gadhafi's troops and snipers is when they are in close proximity to civilians.
He also said that removing Gadhafi by military means is not the aim of the mission.
[1:10 p.m. ET Friday, 7:10 p.m. Friday in Libya] Canadian Lt. Gen. Charlie Bouchard will command the NATO military campaign over Libya, CNN has confirmed.
[11:45 a.m. ET Friday, 5:45 p.m. Friday in Libya] British Tornado fighter jets identified Libyan tanks with their weapons pointed north toward the eastern Libyan city of Ajdabiya and destroyed them, Air Vice Marshall Phil Osborne said Friday.
[10:00 a.m. ET Friday, 4:00 p.m. Friday in Libya] The Libyan delegation attending an African Union meeting in Ethiopia said Friday that Libya is committed to a cease-fire and is ready to let the African Union monitor the cease-fire.
Colorado dispensary selling 'Joints for Japan'
Lakewood, Colorado (CNN) - When the earthquake hit Japan, Shaun Gindi knew he wanted to help.
"I couldn't believe the devastation. I watched everything get wiped away. Their whole lives were gone," he said. "There was a moment where I started looking at ways to fly over there, ways to somehow get there to help out."
Gindi knows nothing about search and rescue, so he soon abandoned that plan. But he is an expert in one area: medical marijuana.
He runs two dispensaries in the Denver area called Compassionate Pain Management. They legally sell marijuana to patients who have received a recommendation from a doctor.
He floated the idea of raising money for Japan on his dispensary’s Facebook page and got a dozen "likes" right away. He knew immediately that he could use his dispensary to raise money. Thus was born "Joints for Japan."
"What we're going to do is take all the revenue from the hand-rolled medicine, 100% of it, from this weekend and potentially for the next few weeks … and we're going to donate it to the Red Cross," Gindi said.
"Hand-rolled medicine" is medical marijuana-speak for a joint, or a marijuana cigarette. They contain half of a gram of marijuana and are the most popular item in the store. At $5 each, Gindi says, they sell thousands a month.
"We get a lot of people who just come in for these," Gindi said.
The most difficult part of the endeavor has been coming up with the fundraiser's name. Gindi’s business is legal under Colorado law. He pays taxes and has 18 full-time employees. But the industry still struggles for respectability.
With that in mind, Gindi rejected contenders such as "Bake for the Quake" and "Joint Relief."
Gindi hopes his fundraising efforts help bring a bit more respectability to the medical marijuana industry. But ultimately, it is the people of Japan he truly hopes to help.
"In Japan every day, the number of lives lost jumps up. Whatever we can do to help out, we’d like to do."
Canadian lawmakers vote to dissolve government, call elections
Canada's House of Commons has approved a no-confidence resolution in the Conservative government by a 156-145 vote. The move will trigger the dissolution of Parliament and national elections to select a new government.
FULL STORY
Horford, other NBA stars to donate $1,000 per point to Japan relief efforts
They say defense wins championships, but beginning Friday night, a handful of NBA stars can champion Japan by breaking down defenses.
For every point they score in select games this weekend, the players will donate a cool grand to Japan's relief efforts. Putting up points shouldn't be a tall order for the Chicago Bulls' Derrick Rose, the Los Angeles Lakers' Pau Gasol, the Portland Trailblazers' LaMarcus Aldridge, the Oklahoma City Thunder's Russell Westbrook or the Atlanta Hawks' Al Horford. Each has been averaging between 16 and 25 points all season.
JaVale McGee of the Washington Wizards and Pau's little brother, Marc Gasol of the Memphis Grizzlies, will also lend their marksmanship to the cause, and 13 other players will donate set amounts.
I caught up with Horford, from my hometown Hawks, after Friday's practice. Let this be a warning, New Jersey Nets: Horford says he's going "to try to be a little more aggressive" in Saturday night's game - and I'm sure you remember he dropped 24 on you when you visited the A-Town in December.
Canadian to lead NATO mission over Libya
Canadian Lt. Gen. Charlie Bouchard will command the NATO military campaign over Libya, CNN has confirmed.
British jets destroy Libyan tanks
British Tornado fighter jets identified Libyan tanks with their weapons pointed north toward the eastern Libyan city of Ajdabiya and destroyed them, Air Vice Marshall Phil Osborne said Friday.
Gotta Watch: '65 Freedom March, Cherry Blossoms, modern Rome
Today's Gotta Watch video is a potpourri of celebration, history, and architecture.
Nonviolence changes a nation – It was 46 years ago that the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. led the Selma-to-Montgomery Freedom March. The event went down in history as not only a turning point in the civil rights movement but also one of the most successful acts of nonviolent protests. The event remains relevant today because of its historical significance and because of the many parallels between the movement and today's events in the Middle East, as Nicolaus Mills points out here.
Crimes against humanity charges certain in Libya, court spokesman says
The prosecutor for the International Criminal Court is "100 percent" certain that an investigation into Moammar Gadhafi's attacks on Libyan protesters will lead to charges of crimes against humanity, a court spokeswoman said Friday.
Friday's intriguing people
Susan Lucci
The star of ABC’s "All My Children" has played Erica Kane since the show kicked off in 1970. Now, according to industry blog Deadline.com, the 41-year-old soap opera may be facing cancellation. Ratings are reportedly at an all-time low in the 18- to 49-year-old women demographic, and they're down 34% from last year. The fate of Lucci and the rest of the show's cast could come as early as this fall, Deadline reports.
On the Radar: Libya airstrikes, Japan radiation, Mideast unrest, school shooting
Libya violence - Coalition warplanes dropped bombs on the outskirts of Tripoli early Friday as Libyan forces retaliated with anti-aircraft fire. Hundreds of miles away in Ajdabiya, coalition airstrikes targeted armored vehicles that the British Defense Ministry said were threatening the civilian population there. The military action marked the sixth straight day of bombardments from coalition jets and came a day after NATO agreed to take over enforcement of the "no-fly" zone.
Rebels on the ground continue to fight leader Moammar Gadhafi’s forces, and in Misrata - where more than 100 people have died in the last week and hundreds more have been wounded - reports have emerged that a hospital has been operating on generator power with no anesthesia or painkillers.
Person shot at Indiana middle school
One person was shot Friday at a middle school in Martinsville, Indiana, police said. One person is in custody after the shooting at West Middle School, the Morgan County Sheriff's Department said. Additional details were not immediately available.
Friday's live video events
Watch CNN.com Live for continuing coverage of the conflict in Libya and the nuclear crisis in Japan.
Today's programming highlights...
9:00 am ET - Casey Anthony hearing - A third day of hearings into whether certain scientific evidence can be used during the trial of Casey Anthony, the Florida woman accused of killing her young daughter.
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