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4 in Georgia charged with planning ricin attack
Four men from Georgia have been arrested and charged in an alleged plot to purchase explosives and to manufacture ricin, a biological toxin, with the intent to attack U.S. citizens, according to the Justice Department.
"These defendants, who are alleged to be part of a fringe militia group, are charged with planning attacks against their own fellow citizens and government," U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said in a news release.
FULL STORY
Overheard on CNN.com: Road rage is alive and well
Comment of the day:
"'Anyone going slower than me is a moron...anyone going faster than me is a MANIAC!' George Carlin.’” - skipbt
Slow drivers should get out of the way
This week CNN.com’s LZ Granderson, who is also a senior writer and columnist for ESPN the Magazine and ESPN.com, made the case for faster drivers frustrated by slowpokes. He says that by refusing to move over to the proper lane, people driving at or below the speed limit are infringing on the rights of others who are in a hurry.
Most CNN.com commenters agreed with Granderson, but a few said obeying the speed limit was important, too.
jazzy1224 said, “Can I just say LZ Granderson you are my hero! Well stated!”
tpartypooper responded, “You must have a rough life if your hero is someone who drives impatiently.”
Update: Charity reaches a milestone
Modest Needs Foundation, a charitable organization that lets donors decide where their money goes, recently made its 10,000th grant, founder and president Dr. Keith Taylor said.
The organization opened its doors in 2002. A CNN.com story about it in December 2009 sparked a historic outpouring of generosity from readers.
The 10,000th grant, made in late October, sent $750 to pay an Indiana woman's overdue medical bill and maintain her good credit rating, Taylor said.
The organization's first grant, in 2002, went to an uninsured woman who needed $200 to get a mammogram. The mammogram found a malignant tumor, for which she received successful treatment. The woman told Taylor that $200 saved her life.
"I honestly never realized until that moment that these grants had the power to really change lives," Taylor said. "That letter changed my life – that's for certain."
Dementia not slowing me down, Summitt says as season begins
Pat Summitt says she has a game plan for how she’ll deal with dementia while continuing as University of Tennessee women’s basketball coach.
For the first time since she revealed her diagnosis more than two months ago, that strategy has taken her to an actual Tennessee game day.
Summitt, 59, will kick off her 38th season at the team’s helm on Tuesday night when Tennessee - ranked No. 3 in an Associated Press preseason poll - faces Carson-Newman in an exhibition match in Knoxville.
“What I want everybody to know is that I’m doing great,” Summitt, whose 1,071 wins are the most in major-college basketball history, said Thursday at a Southeastern Conference preseason media event. "Overall, I don’t really feel like I have dementia, but I have dementia.
Tugboat operator sentenced to prison in fatal 'duck boat' crash
A man at the helm of a tug boat and barge that crashed into a sightseeing "duck boat" in the Delaware River in Pennsylvania last year - an incident that killed two tourists - has been sentenced to a year and a day in prison, federal prosecutors said Tuesday.
Matthew R. Devlin, of Catskill, New York, was sentenced for misconduct of a ship operator causing death, according to a U.S. attorney's office.
Two tourists from Hungary - one 16 years old, the other 20 - died when a 250-foot sludge barge towed by the tugboat overran a disabled 33-foot "Ride the Ducks" tour boat on the Delaware River in July 2010, plunging the amphibious vessel and its 35 passengers and two crew members underwater.
Trial of accused Russian arms dealer nears end
Juror deliberations got under way Tuesday in the case against alleged Russian arms trafficker Viktor Bout, marking a near end to the high-profile trial.
Bout is charged with a wide range of counts, including conspiracy to kill Americans, attempting to sell arms to undercover federal agents, wire fraud and violating U.N. Security Council sanctions.
If convicted, he faces life in prison.
Closing arguments in the case took place on Monday.
Bout, widely dubbed "the Merchant of Death," has pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
FULL STORYOne person hurt after bag explosion at Chicago's O’Hare Airport
The FBI is investigating an incident Tuesday at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport after a checked bag exploded or combusted.
The suspicious item was a checked bag in the C Concourse, according to Transportation Security Administration spokesman Greg Soule.
Soule said Chicago police, fire and ordnance teams are on the scene. The FBI is interviewing the owner of the bag, Soule said. He added that a perimeter has been established to ensure the safety of people in the area. There were no evacuation orders in place, officials said.
United Airlines spokeswoman Mary Ryan said one employee had been taken to an area hospital.
“A United Airlines baggage handler received minor burns while handling 'pelican cases' which contained batteries,” according to Larry Langford with the Chicago Fire Department. “While the investigation is still under way, it is believed that a metal strip may have triggered the batteries inside the case. There is no criminal activity suspected and (it) is being treated as an accident. The Chicago Fire Department is checking other containers."
- CNN’s Kara Devlin contributed to this report.
Murray says he won't testify in Jackson death trial
Editor's note: Tune in to HLN for full coverage and analysis of the Conrad Murray trial and watch live, as it happens, on CNN.com/Live and CNN's mobile apps.
Dr. Conrad Murray, who is facing involuntary manslaughter charges in the death of Michael Jackson, will not testify in the case, he told the court in Los Angeles on Tuesday.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor gave Murray until the start of court Tuesday to decide whether he would testify since it is likely to be the last day for testimony in the trial.
The prosecution contends that Murray's use of the surgical anesthetic propofol to treat Jackson's insomnia in his home deviated from the standards of care expected of a doctor so egregiously that it was criminal.
The Los Angeles County coroner ruled Jackson's June 25, 2009, death was the result of "acute propofol intoxication" in combination with several sedatives.
The prosecution contends greed led Murray to leave his medical practice and put his ethics aside to serve as Jackson's private doctor for $150,000 a month.
Prosecutors contend Murray is responsible for his death even if he did not give him the final and fatal dose because he was criminally reckless in using the surgical anesthetic to help Jackson sleep without proper precautions.
The defense theory is that a desperate Jackson, fearing his comeback concerts could be canceled unless he found elusive sleep, self-administered propofol that Murray was trying to wean him off of.
The defense contends Jackson became addicted to the painkiller Demerol through frequent visits to the Beverly Hills dermatology clinic of Dr. Arnold Klein in the months before his death. Murray was unaware of the addiction, and therefore unable to understand why he could not help Jackson sleep, the defense contends.
Gotta Watch: Celeb fairy-tale weddings with unhappy endings
Reality TV star Kim Kardashian filed for divorce Monday from her husband, NBA player Kris Humphries, after just 72 days of marriage. The E! special “Kim’s Fairytale Wedding” that aired on October 9 and 10 (and several days since then) detailed their lavish wedding and drew 10.5 million viewers. The newlyweds are hardly the first celebrities to file for a quick divorce after a huge Hollywood wedding, though. You’ve Gotta Watch these celebrity marriages that ended in divorce.
Kardashian Bash – Kim and Kris threw the Hollywood wedding of the summer this year. It was reportedly a $10 million affair. If you’re wondering who Kim Kardashian is and why she’s famous, you can also check out “Explain it to me: The Kardashians.”
Overheard on CNN.com: Stop keeping up with the Kardashians
Comments of the morning:
“’The Couple made a reported $18m from their August wedding (that's $250,000 earned every 24 hours).’ Sounds like she knew what she was doing.” - Kumbaya
“This is what happens when your life is sponsored by E!” –KD
On Tuesday, Kim Kardashian filed for divorce from her husband of 72 days, professional basketball player Kris Humphries. Their wedding, which E! aired in a two-part special, cost a reported $10 million and netted the newlyweds $18 million. As news broke of the divorce filing, CNN.com readers heavily mocked the reality TV nuptials and had harsh words for what they see as a money-obsessed Kardashian clan.
Missy said, “Didn't see that coming, did ya! I wonder why it lasted so long! Lol”
Leslie said, “It lasted so long because they had to stay married until after it aired – duh!”
Bank of America dropping planned $5 debit card fee
Bank of America is dropping its planned $5 debit card usage fee after widespread customer complaints.
"In response to customer concerns and the changing competitive marketplace, Bank of America no longer intends to implement a debit usage fee," the company said in a statement. "We have listened to our customers very closely over the last few weeks and recognize their concern with our proposed debit usage fee,” said David Darnell, co-chief operating officer. “Our customers’ voices are most important to us. As a result, we are not currently charging the fee and will not be moving forward with any additional plans to do so."
SunTrust, Regions latest banks to retreat on debit fees
Read CNNMoney.com's original piece on the planned fee here.
READ FULL CNNMONEY.COM STORY
Hillary Clinton's mother dies at 92
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's mother, Dorothy Rodham, died Tuesday at the age of 92, the Clinton Foundation announced.
Rodham's death came a day after the State Department said Clinton had canceled a scheduled trip to Britain and Turkey because her mother was ill.
Rodham died in Washington surrounded by family, the Clinton Foundation said in a news release. Her illness was not disclosed.
The foundation called Rodham "a warm, generous and strong woman; an intellectual; a woman who told a great joke and always got the joke; an extraordinary friend and, most of all, a loving wife, mother and grandmother."
Rodham made occasional campaign appearances with her daughter during Clinton's unsuccessful Democratic presidential bid in 2008, and she helped the former first lady raise money to retire her campaign debt. She also made trips with the Clintons during their years in the White House, including a 2000 visit to India and a 1998 trip to China.
Hillary Clinton had been scheduled to attend a conference on Afghanistan on Wednesday in Istanbul, with a stop in London for talks with her British counterpart, Foreign Secretary William Hague, on the way.
FULL STORYPlane makes emergency landing in Poland; all passengers safe
A Boeing 767 plane made a dramatic emergency landing at Warsaw, Poland's Frederic Chopin International airport after problems with its landing gear, an airport spokeswoman said Tuesday.
All the passengers on the flight, from New Jersey's Newark airport to Warsaw, are safe and uninjured, she told CNN.
The LOT Polish Airlines flight, which had been due to land at 1:35 local time, circled above the airport for an hour before coming down in a belly landing at 2:40, she said.
There were 230 people aboard the flight, Poland's TVN broadcaster said.
FULL STORYShallow quake hits off Mexican coast
An 6.5-magnitude earthquake 6.5 struck off Mexico's Pacific coast Tuesday, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.
There were no immediate reports of damages or injuries.
The quake was shallow, at only 3.1 miles deep, the USGS reported.
It struck at 5:32 a.m. (8:32 a.m. ET) in the ocean, about 206 miles south of the resort town of Cabo San Lucas, and 260 miles west of another popular beach destination, Puerto Vallarta.
There is no tsunami threat, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.
Pakistan cricketers guilty of corruption
Pakistan cricket player Salman Butt was found guilty Tuesday of taking money to fix a major international competition against England last summer, a British crown court said.
Another player, Mohammad Asif, was also found guilty of conspiracy to cheat, in a scandal that rocked the international sport.
The Pakistanis were accused of spot-fixing, which involves deliberately throwing parts of a game, rather than the whole match.
The News of the World, the British tabloid that first reported the allegations, said players deliberately bowled "no balls," or fouls, at specific points in the game and that the alleged ringleader made 150,000 pounds (about $230,000) in the scam.
The News of the World has since folded in an unrelated scandal.
FULL STORYBoat filled with asylum seekers capsizes
A crowded boat carrying asylum seekers capsized off the coast of the island of Java in Indonesia on Tuesday, leaving six people dead, officials said.
Another 37 were rescued, the Indonesian Search and Rescue Agency said. Some others were missing.
A total of 70 people are believed to have been on board, officials said.
Search and rescue teams from Jakarta and Bandung, West Java, are helping in the search.
The agency said the wooden ship left the town of Cilacap, West Java, and was bound for Australia. The asylum seekers were from Iraq, Iran and Pakistan, an agency official said.
FULL STORY2 dead, 10 hurt in New Orleans Halloween shootings
Two people died and at least 10 others were injured in separate shootings in New Orleans early Tuesday, including one on Bourbon Street where costumed revelers were celebrating Halloween.
The first shooting, just after midnight outside a Bourbon Street nightclub, sent people running for cover, CNN affiliate WWL reported.
\A 25-year-old man was shot several times and died at a hospital, police said. Seven other people, ranging in age from 19 to 50, were also injured.
FULL STORYTuesday's live video events
CNN.com Live is your home for gavel-to-gavel coverage of Dr. Conrad Murray's involuntary manslaughter trial.
Today's programming highlights...
11:15 am ET - GOP presidential forum - Five Republican presidential candidates are expected to address the National Association of Manufacturers Presidential Forum in Pella, Iowa.
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