August 22nd, 2013
05:14 PM ET
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Army sergeant says Afghan killing spree was 'act of cowardice'

The Army sergeant who admitted to gunning down 16 civilians in a 2012 rampage through two villages near his outpost in southern Afghanistan reportedly apologized Thursday, describing the massacre as an "act of cowardice."

Army Staff Sgt. Robert Bales pleaded guilty in June to more than 30 criminal charges, including 16 premeditated murder counts.

The plea spares the 39-year-old Bales the prospect of a death sentence in the killings. He now faces life in prison, but a jury of four officers and two enlisted personnel will decide whether he will have a chance at parole.

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Filed under: Afghanistan • U.S. Army
August 22nd, 2013
02:16 AM ET
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Hannah Anderson: 'My mom raised me to be strong'

In her first television interview since she was freed following an alleged kidnapping this month, Hannah Anderson described herself as a survivor, and thanked those who have supported her.
"In the beginning I was a victim, but now knowing everyone out there is helping me, I consider myself a survivor instead," she told NBC News. "My mom raised me to be strong."

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Filed under: U.S.
August 22nd, 2013
12:25 AM ET
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Bo Xilai appears in court in corruption trial

Bo Xilai, the former high-flying Chinese politician whose dramatic fall from grace shook the ruling Communist Party, appeared at his closely watched trial in eastern China on Thursday.

Once considered a contender for the top rungs of China's political hierarchy, Bo is now on trial on charges of bribery, corruption and abuse of power.

Chinese authorities had talked of an open trial for the former party boss of the sprawling southern metropolis of Chongqing. But journalists from the international news media weren't allowed into the courtroom in the eastern city of Jinan.

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Filed under: Crime • World
August 22nd, 2013
12:21 AM ET
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Hasan rejects lesser charges at Fort Hood

An Army psychiatrist defending himself against charges that he targeted soldiers in a massacre at Fort Hood argued against allowing a jury to consider lesser charges, telling the court the attack was not carried out in the heat of sudden passion.

There was "adequate provocation" for the attack because the soldiers were going to participate in "an illegal war" in Afghanistan, Maj. Nidal Hasan told a military judge considering Wednesday whether to include a lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter or unpremeditated murder in instructions to be given to the jury.

The instructions are scheduled to be delivered to the jury Thursday morning before closing arguments begin. The case will then be handed to the jury of 13 officers, who will determine whether Hasan is guilty of 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of premeditated attempted murder in connection with the November 5, 2009, attack.

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Filed under: Crime • U.S.