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Police: Stepdad confined teen for years, sent him away on bus
A gaunt 18-year-old Georgia man told California police his stepfather had banished him and sent him on a cross-country bus ride after the stepfather had confined him to a room for four years, authorities said.
The confinement allegedly was so thorough, Mitch Comer's two younger sisters - living in the same home - hadn't seen the teen for the last two years, and he says he hadn't been outdoors in at least that amount of time, Paulding County (Georgia) Sheriff's Cpl. Ashley Henson said.
The teen's stepfather and mother were arrested in Dallas, Georgia, last week after a retired Los Angeles police officer found the teen wandering an L.A. bus station, weighing under 100 pounds at just over 5 feet tall, and looking like he was 12 or 13, the L.A. Police Department said.
Paul M. Comer, 48, and the teen's mother, Sheila M. Comer, 39, both of Dallas, Georgia, were charged last week with cruelty to children relating to alleged abuse during Mitch Comer's minor years, Henson said. Both are being held without opportunity for bail, pending an October 4 hearing.
"The information we have is … the neighbors didn't even know there was a boy living in the home," Paulding County District Attorney Dick Donovan told "CNN Newsroom" on Friday.
Police: Hostage standoff ends peacefully in Pittsburgh
[Updated at 1:59 p.m.] The man suspected of taking a hostage in Pittsburgh's Gateway Center high-rise Friday morning has surrendered peacefully, and his hostage was not harmed, Pittsburgh Police Chief Nathan Harper said.
[Updated at 1:20 p.m.]Police are negotiating with a "relatively calm" gunman believed to be holding at least one person hostage in a downtown Pittsburgh high-rise, the city's police chief said Friday.
Police have identified the man, a former military member with a criminal record, and they brought his mother to the scene, Chief Nathan Harper said.
The suspect walked into CW Breitsman Associates' office Friday morning and asked for a particular man, so police believe a male hostage was targeted, Harper said. CW Breitsman handles money for pension funds. The chief said the gunman never worked there, and it's unclear how he was related to the company.
The situation is contained to one room of a suite on the 16th floor of Gateway Center Building No. 3, Harper said. As of 10:55 a.m., no one had been hurt and no shots had been fired, he added.
Police received calls shortly after 8:15 a.m., reporting a man with a gun. Some witnesses reported he was carrying two duffel bags. Harper said the suspect also claimed to have a bomb.
Several people who work in the building told local television stations that police had evacuated them from the building. Harper said since the incident was contained to one room, evacuations were minimal, and people were still occupying other parts of the skyscraper.
Jim Garra, who works at AXA on the 16th floor, told WTAE that when he arrived at work around 8:10 a.m., security officers were milling about. When he took the elevator to his office, he found a commotion, including a woman he described as "hysterical, on the phone," describing an intruder in the building. Garra said he locked the door to his office until police came to evacuate it.
Public transportation has been shut down at Gateway Center, and police have blocked off nearby roads as well.
Former inmate exonerated in rape case joins pro football team
Brian Banks' professional football dream is one step closer to coming true.
A decade ago, Banks was a football standout at Long Beach Polytechnic High School in California and had been offered a scholarship to play at the University of Southern California.
Then he was accused of rape. Fearing a potentially long sentence, he followed the advice of his attorney and pleaded no contest to assaulting a classmate.
But he maintained his innocence throughout nearly six years of imprisonment, subsequent probation and registration as a sex offender.
And, according to the California Innocence Project, the woman later admitted that Banks had not kidnapped or raped her during a consensual encounter.
A judge in California tossed out his conviction in May.
On Thursday, Banks, 26, had his first practice with the Las Vegas Locomotives of the United Football League, a four-team minor league circuit. He hopes to be on the field Wednesday in the Locos home opener against the Virginia Destroyers.
“There was a point in my life where I literally had to put football aside to survive in prison. I came home in 2007, went to junior college, and then had to wear a GPS tracking device and I could not play football. But I never lost faith, and I never lost that passion for it,” Banks said at a press conference on Thursday.
Locomotives coach and general manager Jim Fassel says Banks, a 6-foot-4, 245-pound linebacker, has the character to excel at professional football.
Embassies close in fear of more protests
Several diplomatic facilities were shuttered Friday as many brace for intensified protests over the anti-Islam movie "Innocence of Muslims," as well as recently published cartoons in a French publication of a figure resembling the Prophet Mohammed.
Demonstrations have raged for days as many in the Muslim world are angry about the U.S.-made film mocking the Prophet Mohammed and the French cartoons. And some believe Friday prayers, a time of protest recently in the Middle East and North Africa, could add fuel to the fire.
Demonstrations occurred in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran Thursday.
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Comments: 'Holding the phone wrong' or 'iMiss Steve Jobs'? Seeds of Apple discontent
Editor's note: We're listening to you. Every day, we spot thought-provoking comments from readers. We're featuring a few of our favorites here. Be sure to participate in the mobile photo challenge on Saturday, September 22, part of Our Mobile Society.
If you're Apple, there's good news, and there's bad news.
iPhone 5: The wait is over
First, the good news: You sold a bunch of iPhone 5s, and people lined up or ordered online. We received more than 20 iReports from excited customers showing us overnight campouts and people who queued for several days. Veenu Aishwarya of Philadelphia went to an Apple store just to experience the scene.
Some CNN.com readers said they are happy with their Apple products.
And now, the bad news. We saw quite a bit of backlash among our commenters.
What would animals, or aliens, say about us as a species?
A debate took place about other companies' products. FULL POST
Filed under: Apple • Comments • Our Mobile Society • Technology • U.S.