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(CNN) -- A statue worth more than $10,000 that was stolen from the Palm Beach, Florida, estate of Wall Street investment adviser Bernard Madoff has been recovered, police said Thursday. The statue was found with a message apparently aimed at the owner, who is charged with securities fraud. Palm Beach police Sgt. Chris Proscia said the 4-foot-high statue was found Wednesday morning with a message attached to it reading: "Bernie the Swindler, Lesson: Return stolen property to rightful owners." The statue was stolen December 19, eight days after Madoff was arrested in New York on suspicion of operating a $50 billion Ponzi scheme. He was charged with securities fraud and is under house arrest in New York while awaiting court proceedings. Police said the statue, which depicts two lifeguards sitting on a bench, was discovered undamaged in some bushes a few blocks from Madoff's million-dollar Palm Beach estate. Watch what neighbors think of the statue case » The note on it was signed, "The Educators." The theft, which was discovered by a property manager for Madoff, is under investigation, authorities said. The investor was charged in December with one count of securities fraud. Watch Jeanne Moos report on how people are mad at Madoff » His $10 million bail is secured by properties owned by him and his wife, including the Manhattan apartment and the Palm Beach estate. CNN's Christian Chinnici contributed to this report.

Statue was reported stolen in December from Florida estate of Bernard Madoff . Statue recovered with message: "Lesson: Return stolen property to rightful owners" Madoff was arrested in December, accused of operating $50 billion Ponzi scheme .

(CNN) -- A storm has barreled into the Southeast and sections of the Northeast, coating power lines and roads with ice and leaving thousands without power. More heavy snow was predicted for Mid-Atlantic cities, some of which already have record amounts, the National Weather Service said Saturday. Asheville, North Carolina, recorded 11 inches of snow on Friday. The weather service said less than a half-inch of snow should fall during the day, turning to freezing drizzle at night. There was an ice storm warning for the Carolinas until midnight. "Ice accumulations of one-quarter to one-half inch are expected," forecasters said. "Elevated surfaces such as trees, power lines and highway bridges and overpasses will accumulate ice most easily." North Carolina's Department of Transportation asked motorists to avoid all unnecessary travel. The town of Cary, North Carolina, canceled its Winter Wonderland festival because of the storm. A foot of snow was expected in parts of Virginia, where iReporter William Bernstein, Jr. said people are "just not used to this." A typical snowstorm in Virginia Beach, located about 20 minutes from Norfolk, usually yields about 4 to 5 inches of snow, Bernstein said. But by 8 a.m., snowfall had well surpassed the norm. "Nobody is really out on the roads," he said. "They've closed off ramps and on ramps in downtown Norfolk." See pictures from Virginia Beach on iReport.com Washington and Baltimore, Maryland, were expected to get 4 to 6 inches of snow. Motorists were being warned to stay off the roadways, D.C. officials said. Forecasters warned that gusty winds in several states may topple ice laden trees and power lines. A Home Depot store in Spartanburg, South Carolina, saw a run on generators, fire logs and ice-melting chemicals Friday, and Spartanburg County called in extra dispatchers to handle emergency calls, CNN affiliate WYFF reported. Watch the snow pile up in Tennessee Several inches of sleet covered the ground in the town of Travelers Rest, South Carolina, WYFF's Sean Muserallo reported. Brian Wood of Marietta, South Carolina, told WYFF his car was "fish-tailing all the way" as he drove to work at a restaurant Saturday morning. "It's definitely not driving weather." Tennessee's Transportation Department said highways statewide had patches of snow and ice, and trucks were spreading salt on roads across much of the eastern part of the state. How's the weather where you are? Send photos, video The storm moved north and east Friday from the Southern Plains of Oklahoma and Texas. Oklahoma City was coated with ice and shivering with a daytime high of 20 degrees, said CNN meteorologist Karen Maginnis. In Dallas, Texas, it was 26 degrees. Oklahoma's Corporation Commission said Saturday that more than 108,000 homes and businesses were without power. Gov. Brad Henry had declared a state of emergency on Wednesday, ahead of the storm. President Obama signed a disaster declaration for Oklahoma on Saturday, authorizing federal aid to the hard-hit state. In northern Georgia on Saturday, about 1,200 customers were without power, down from 5,000 earlier in the day, the Electric Membership Cooperatives said in a written statement. They said the outages were caused by trees falling on power lines, and that power should be restored by late afternoon. School systems and communities in northeastern Georgia also canceled numerous weekend activities, CNN affiliate WNEG reported. Some are determined not to let the weather keep them indoors. iReporter Katy Hawkins of Norman, Oklahoma, said she and her roommate went outside to play in the snow after spending most of the day inside. "Oklahoma does not usually get enough snow to make a snowball, but yesterday we had at least 7 inches in the Norman area," she said. In her apartment complex's parking lot, most cars had at least a half-inch of ice encasing the whole car and then snow on top of that, she said. "I spent 30 minutes trying to pry my door open

NEW: iReporters in areas unaccustomed to heavy snowfall enjoy the novelty . Asheville, North Carolina, gets 11 inches of snow . Cary, North Carolina, cancels winter festival because of winter storm . Ice and sleet cover roads in Tennessee, Carolinas .

(CNN) -- A street vendor in Ghana's capital sells small American flags with an image of President Obama on them, in front of a billboard that proclaims "Akwaaba" -- or "Welcome" -- next to a smiling image of the U.S. leader. President Obama says he chose Ghana partly because of the "democratic commitments" by President Mills. When Obama arrives in Accra on Friday night, he will be the third sitting American president to visit the West African nation of Ghana. But unlike Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, Obama is only visiting Ghana and no other country in the continent. Obama said he picked Ghana as the first African country he would visit as U.S. president partly because of the "democratic commitments" demonstrated by President John Atta Mills, who took office in January after a close election. "By traveling to Ghana, we hope to highlight the effective governance that they have in place," Obama said Tuesday in an interview with AllAfrica.com. During his 24-hour visit to Ghana, Obama will meet with the president and address parliament before he and first lady Michelle Obama tour the Cape Coast Castle, which was used in the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Security has been tight all week in Accra, and Ghana plans to deploy some 10,000 security forces during Obama's visit, according to Ghana News Agency (GNA). The White House has set up SMS codes to allow people across Africa to send "words of welcome" via text message to Obama during his visit. Obama has already received thousands of messages, and plans to answer several of the questions sent to him, the British Broadcasting Corporation reported on Thursday. Bill Clinton was the first U.S. president to visit Ghana, in 1998, as part of a six-nation Africa tour. Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush, stopped there during a four-nation Africa tour during his last year of office that largely focused on U.S. aid programs. Ghana's government named a road after Bush to recognize his government's contribution towards the country's development. As the United States' first African-American president, Obama's trip has broader significance as well. Obama's father is from Kenya and he expressed concern about the political situation in that East African nation. "The political parties [in Kenya] do not seem to be moving into a permanent reconciliation that would allow the country to move forward," Obama told AllAfrica.com. "And Kenya is not alone in some of the problems that we've seen of late, post-election or pre-election." Many in Kenya were critical of Obama's decision to pick Ghana the first African nation he visited instead of his father's birthplace. During his campaign for president, Obama was hailed by many as a "son of Kenya." Shortly after the White House announced the Ghana trip in May, newspaper headlines in Nairobi asked, "Why Obama Snubbed Kenya." A political cartoon in one Kenyan paper showed Air Force One dropping a note to Kenya's leaders saying, "Get your act together," as it flew over the country. Obama said he wanted his visit to Africa to mean more than just something to cross off his list as U.S. president. "I actually thought that it made sense for us to connect a trip to Ghana to a previous trip with the G8 ... to show that Africa is directly connected to our entire foreign policy approach," Obama told AllAfrica.com. "That it's not some isolated thing where once every term you go visit Africa for a while to check that box, but rather it's an ongoing part of a broader discussion about how we move many of these international challenges forward." As Ghana gears up for the visit, a group of local singers and rap artists wrote a welcome song for Obama and produced a music video on YouTube. "President Obama, Welcome to Ghana," they sing, with images of U.S. and Ghanaian flags interspersed between the musicians. "We welcome you to the Land of Gold."

President Obama arrives in the West African nation Friday night . Obama says he picked Ghana partly because of the "democratic commitments" Group of local singers, rap artists write a welcome song for U.S. president . Kenyan media wondered why Obama didn't choose to visit his ancestral nation first .

(CNN) -- A strong earthquake jolted the southern Philippines on Thursday, the U.S. Geological Survey said. The 6.2 magnitude quake struck at 11:20 a.m. local time (10:20 p.m. ET). There were no immediate reports of injuries and a tsunami warning was not issued, said Jane Punongbayan of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology. "That was enough to cause panic in some people," Punongbayan said. "Some people in the mall ran out of the mall, but according to initial reports it was not strong enough to cause damage." The quake struck 55 kilometers (35 miles) southeast of General Santos in the island of Mindanao or 1,095 kilometers (680 miles) south-southeast of Manila and at a depth of 207 kilometers (129 miles), USGS said. The Philippines is located on the "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin that is prone to frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center did not issue a tsunami warning for the quake.

NEW: No immediate reports of injuries from the 6.2-magnitude quake . Quake struck some 1,100 km (680 miles) south of Manila, the USGS says . Philippines is located on the quake-prone "Ring of Fire" Pacific Tsunami Warning Center did not issue a tsunami warning .

(CNN) -- A strong earthquake measuring 6.1 in magnitude struck southern Iran on Wednesday, according to a report from the U.S. Geological Survey. The citadel at the city of Bam, Iran in 2005, hit by a quake in 2003 when 30,000 people died. The quake demolished nearly 200 villages in Iran's Hormozgan Province, according to Iran's Press TV, citing the head of the provincial disaster management headquarters, Yasser Hazbavi. At least six people were killed and 46 others were injured, Hazbavi told Press TV. People panicked and fled buildings when the temblor struck in the quake-prone region around 3:30 p.m. Iranian time (1100 GMT), Iran's state-run IRNA news agency reported. It also knocked out power to the region. See map of quake's epicenter » The epicenter was located 35 miles (55 km) west-southwest of Bandar e-Abbas, Iran -- just across the narrow Strait of Hormuz from the United Arab Emirates -- according to USGS. Mehdi Rezapoor, head of the Iranian Seismological Center, said it was "a medium-sized quake." Speaking on Press TV, Rezapoor had no details on damage, but said that based on the quake's strength, "I don't think it was very extensive." The quake shook nearby Dubai, where CNN staff members said they felt the building they were in shake for about 15 to 20 seconds. "From my office window at the Dubai Media City where all foreign media are located, I can see that a lot of offices have evacuated buildings," CNN Dubai Bureau Chief Samson Desta said. "I can see up to perhaps 200 people who have taken refuge out in the streets, causing somewhat of a traffic jam." There was no evidence of any damage in Dubai, where there are a lot of high-rise buildings. Iran lies on a series of seismic fault lines and has experienced devastating earthquakes -- most notably in December 2003 when a 6.6 magnitude quake devastated the ancient city of Bam in southeast Iran, killing at least 30,000 people.

Strong quake measuring 6.1 in magnitude strikes southern Iran . Epicenter located about 55 km west-southwest of Bandar e-Abbas, Iran . NEW: Quake destroys nearly 200 villages, according to Iran's Press TV . NEW: Head of provincial disaster management: At least 6 dead, 46 others injured .

(CNN) -- A strong earthquake struck off the south coast of Japan on Sunday night local time, "jolting Tokyo and wide areas of eastern Japan," the country's Kyodo news agency reported. The 7.1 earthquake hit 200 miles (320 kilometers) south-southwest of Tokyo at 7:55 p.m. (6:55 a.m. ET), the United States Geological Survey reported. Its epicenter was 188 miles (303 kilometers) deep, the USGS said. The Japan Meteorological Agency reported its magnitude as 6.9, Kyodo said. There were no immediate reports of damage, and the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center did not issue a tsunami warning.

Tremor hits south of island, "jolting Tokyo," Kyodo news agency reported . United States Geological Survey measures quake as 7.1 magnitude . Pacific Tsunami Warning Center did not issue a tsunami alert .

(CNN) -- A struggling German soccer team is offering a refund to its fans who traveled to another city to watch it suffer a 4-0 loss. Cottbus are second from the bottom of the German Bundesliga. More than 600 Energie Cottbus supporters saw their team suffer its sixth loss in seven games when it received a 4-0 drubbing Friday at the hands of another team, Schalke. Cottbus are second from the bottom in the German Bundesliga's ranking and is in danger of being relegated to a lower league at the end of the season. The team posted a Web statement Saturday headlined, "Sorry, Energie Fans!" In it, the team said its players "did not manage at any time to stand up to a high-class opponent with our particular qualities of passion, dedication and one-on-one duels." "Certainly one can lose at Schalke," the team manager Steffen Heidrich said in the statement. "Nevertheless we did not put up enough defense against the class of the individuals of this opponent." The team said it will announce details in the coming weeks of how fans can receive a refund on their admission ticket. "I welcome the apologetic gesture of the team to its fans," Heidrich said. "Real compensation must actually be given in the coming matches." CNN's Ben Brumfield contributed to this report.

More than 600 supporters watch their team suffer its sixth loss in seven games . Energie Cottbus are second from the bottom in its league's ranking . The team will announce details of how fans can receive a refund on their ticket .

(CNN) -- A student who videoed a re-enactment of the "Jena 6" incident apologized and said the video was not intended to make fun of the six black students arrested in the beating of a white classmate, according to The News-Star newspaper of Monroe, Louisiana. The incident involving six black students has sparked protests across the country, like this one in Washington. The video, taped by University of Louisiana-Monroe student Kristy Smith, shows students in blackface apparently acting out the beating of Jena High School student Justin Barker. One of the males in the tape runs onto the beach acting as if he is holding a noose, and three others -- covered in river mud -- pretend to knock him to the ground, punch and kick him. At least one racial epithet can be heard. It was unclear when the video was made. Smith said she taped it on the banks of the Red River in Alexandria, Louisiana, and posted it on her Facebook page, according to The News-Star. The page has since been made private, but the video was posted on YouTube and The Smoking Gun. Watch Jena 6 re-enactment » More than 500 people attended a forum held Tuesday night at the university in response to the video, a university statement said. "The majority ... decided not to let the actions of a few define the entire student body." Vice President of Student Affairs Wayne Brumfield told students "there are no words to express the dismay at what happened in that video ... We're here tonight because the action of one or two set our university in motion." In a Tuesday interview with the News-Star, a tearful Smith denied being racist. "This is so not me," she said in the Wednesday article. "It wasn't that we were making fun of the Jena 6 incident. We were just fed up with it ... I have just as many black [friends] as I do white friends." School administrators are reviewing the incident for possible disciplinary action from ULM's Office of Judicial Affairs, university spokesperson Laura Harris said. Smith and another participant in the video are ULM students, Harris said. The beating of Barker followed an increase in racial tensions in Jena, Louisiana, including at least two fights, sparked originally when three white teens hung nooses from an oak tree on the grounds of the town's high school. The six black teens arrested in the beating were initially charged with attempted murder. Those charges, later reduced and moved to juvenile court, focused nationwide attention on Jena and led about 15,000 protesters to the town to participate in a march on the youths' behalf. Smith did not respond Thursday to an e-mail from CNN. Harris said she has left the ULM campus and returned home. Smith told the News-Star she has taken the video off her Facebook page and has apologized to Facebook groups and bloggers. She said she is getting threats that have prompted her to delete her e-mail address and has had to keep her cell phone off. "My dad's back home dying of cancer, and I can't call him," she said. Brumfield told students at Tuesday's forum that Smith "is suffering terrible shame right now." ULM asked Facebook and YouTube to remove the videos, Brumfield said, but it was still available on YouTube as of Thursday afternoon. Brumfield also created his own Facebook account to respond to the video. University President James Cofer has directed that educational materials be developed for students, especially freshmen, on cultural sensitivity and racial diversity, according to a university statement. "We are naturally appalled, and we intend to face this matter directly by gathering our community together and exploring these difficult issues," Cofer said in a statement. Students at the forum offered ideas for strengthening racial unity on the campus of about 8,500 students. "What we're doing here right now is a very important thing," said Ma'ya Blount, a ULM junior from New Orleans, according to a university statement on

Student tells News-Star of Monroe, Louisiana, she wasn't making fun of "Jena 6" Kristy Smith posted tape on her Facebook page; it has since been removed . Hundreds meet on University of Louisiana-Monroe campus in response to video . Six black students, dubbed "Jena 6," accused of beating white student .

(CNN) -- A surrogate mother gave birth to twin girls for Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick, a publicist for the couple said. Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick are the new parents of twin daughters. "The babies are doing beautifully, and the entire family is over the moon," the publicist said, adding that the girls were born Monday afternoon. The couple, married for 12 years, revealed in April that they were expecting twins "with the generous help of a surrogate." It was not said whether the surrogate was the genetic mother of the twins or whether embryos from Parker, 44, had been transferred to her. "Marion Loretta Elwell Broderick weighed five pounds, 11 ounces and Tabitha Hodge Broderick weighed six pounds," the publicist said. "Both Hodge and Elwell are family names on Parker's side." Parker is best known for the popular television series and movie "Sex and the City," while Broderick gained fame as the main character in the movie "Ferris Bueller's Day Off." They have a son, James Wilkie, 6. He was named after Broderick's father, actor James Broderick.

Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick have twin daughters . The babies were born via a surrogate . Married for 12 years, the couple are also the parents of a 6-year-old boy .

(CNN) -- A surveillance video of 8-year-old Sandra Cantu, missing since March 27, shows the child in the mobile home park where she lives, skipping and happily swinging her arms on the day she disappeared in Tracy, California. A surveillance video shows Sandra Cantu skipping in the mobile home park where she lives. The grainy scene appears for about eight seconds before she disappears from view. Police Lt. Jeremy Watney showed the clip Saturday at a news conference, but offered no details. "I can't get into specifics of where it came from. That's all part of the investigation," he said. "The CD will show you exactly how she looked on that particular day when she went missing." In the video, the girl emerges from a pathway at the Orchard Estates Mobile Home Park into what appears to be an alley. To her right is the corner of what looks like a wooden deck; there seem to be deep shadows on the left. Watney said authorities initially thought Sandra was carrying a purse or backpack, but the images turned out to be shadows. He said authorities have "hundreds of hours of videotapes" in the case. The day the child disappeared, she came home from school, kissed her mother and left to play with a friend who lives a couple of homes away. A short time later, she left that home to go to another friend's home, according to a spokeswoman for her family. She was reported missing about 8 p.m. Sandra was wearing a pink Hello Kitty T-shirt and black leggings. Watney said the reward for information leading to her whereabouts has increased to $26,000, and authorities are following more than 800 leads. More than 300 trained searchers from 17 agencies were out on Saturday. A door-to-door canvass moved outside of the park Saturday afternoon as police continued to collect details from residents in the area. Watney said police executed search warrants on a home, a vehicle and a person Friday, but nobody has been detained in the case. "It's just looking for clues and evidence" he said of the warrants. Watney said the reward for information leading to her whereabouts has increased to $26,000, and authorities are following more than 900 leads. Over 300 trained searchers from 17 agencies were out on Saturday. On Monday night, Tracy police and FBI agents searched six locations, some in the Orchard Estates Mobile Home Park and some in Tracy. All of the places were connected to two men who live in the mobile home park, officials said. Authorities have not called the men suspects and have not named them publicly. They did not say how or if they might be related to the case. Police have said they do not believe Sandra ran away. The girl's aunt, Angie Chavez, told CNN Headline News' Nancy Grace that Sandra's father lives in Mexico and was not around the day she disappeared. Tracy is about 60 miles east of San Francisco.

NEW: Video shows Sandra Cantu skipping near her home the day she went missing . NEW: Grainy, 8-second image of the 8-year-old was shown at a news conference . Girl had on a pink Hello Kitty T-shirt and black leggings the day she disappeared . Reward has increased to $26,000, and authorities are following more than 800 leads .

(CNN) -- A suspect charged in the failed Times Square car bombing is a Pakistani who became a naturalized U.S. citizen in April 2009 and used to work as a financial analyst in Connecticut. Faisal Shahzad, 30, most recently of Bridgeport, Connecticut, was arrested Monday night at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York as his flight to Dubai was about to take off, law enforcement officials said. Federal authorities had put him on a no-fly list earlier in the day, with investigators having determined that he had purchased the vehicle used in Saturday's failed bombing attempt, FBI Deputy Director John Pistole said Tuesday. Customs and Border Protection agents reacted quickly to the name match and made the arrest, Pistole said. Shahzad has been charged with five counts in connection with the case, according to documents filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in New York. According to the documents, he admitted to law enforcement officials that he attempted to detonate the bomb and that he recently received bomb-making training in the Waziristan region of Pakistan. Also according to the complaint, Shahzad returned to the United States via a one-way ticket from Pakistan on February 3. He had told immigration officials upon his return that he had been visiting his parents in Pakistan for the previous five months, the complaint said. Shahzad has a Karachi identification card, a sign of Pakistani residency, and his family is from northwestern Pakistan, according to Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik. His father is a retired senior officer in the Pakistani Air Force, Shahzad's cousin, Kafayat Ali, said on Tuesday. The father, Bahar Ul Haq, a former air vice marshal, lives in the Peshawar suburb of Hayatabad in Pakistan. Shahzad came to the United States and attended college, earning a bachelor's degree in computer applications and information systems from Connecticut's University of Bridgeport in 2000. He earned an MBA at the school in 2005. He started working as a junior financial analyst for Affinion Media Group in Norwalk, Connecticut, in 2006, leaving voluntarily in June 2009, according to Affinion spokesman Michael Bush. Before what the court document says was Shahzad's trip to Pakistan, he lived in Shelton, Connecticut. A woman who said she had lived next door to him in Shelton told CNN on Tuesday that the man she knew didn't say much and claimed to work on Wall Street in New York. "He was quiet. He would wear all black and jog at night. He said he didn't like the sunlight," Brenda Thurman said. She said Shahzad, his wife and two children and his wife's two sisters lived next to her for about three years, moving out in July 2009. People whom she believes were plainclothes law enforcement officers appeared to be staking out the house Monday, Thurman told CNN affiliate WTNH-TV. The neighbor said she often saw Shahzad leaving the home in the morning and returning in the evening. She also saw him in his yard with his children, a boy and a girl, and the family usually wore traditional Muslim attire, she told WTNH-TV. She said she never suspected he might be involved in a possible terror attack. "I didn't think he was capable of doing something like that. ... I'm very shocked," she said. Thurman said her daughter often played with Shahzad's daughter, but she herself didn't have much contact with the family. Shahzad's wife spoke English, but was apparently so insecure about her language ability that she told people she did not, Thurman said. "I never knew she spoke English until it was time for her to move," Thurman said. Shahzad's wife told Thurman in July 2009 that the family was moving to Missouri. A few weeks after they left their home, the lender foreclosed on the property and changed the locks, the neighbor said. At the Bridgeport residence where authorities say he lived most recently, agents with the FBI and local police, including members of a bomb squad, conducted a search, and investigators removed filled plastic bags. Cell

Suspect in bombing attempt made Pakistan trip in 2009, court documents say . Court documents: Suspect admits receiving bomb-making training in Pakistan . Faisal Shahzad often wore black and jogged at night, ex-neighbor in Connecticut says . Phone calls related to purchase of vehicle led investigators to suspect .

(CNN) -- A suspect has been arrested in the slaying of a 19-year-old Puerto Rican man found Friday decapitated, dismembered and partially burned, police said Tuesday. Members of the U.S. gay community are asking authorities to investigate whether the slaying was a hate crime because the victim, Jorge Steven Lopez Mercado, was gay, said Pedro Julio Serrano of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. "The brutality of the slaying and the fact that he was openly gay leads us to believe it was very possibly a hate crime," Serrano said. Authorities are investigating whether the killing involved sex, Guayama police Commander Hector Agosto Rodriguez told CNN affiliate WLII TV. Guayama prosecutor Jose Bermudez identified the suspect as Juan A. Martinez, 26. Police had earlier described him as a 27-year-old man from the interior Puerto Rican town of Cayey. Martinez was scheduled to attend a court hearing Tuesday night at which charges would be lodged, said Luis Bernier, a spokesman for the Guayama police district, which has jurisdiction in the case. The hearing was postponed several times throughout the day. Officials were waiting for a prosecutor from a nearby district, causing the delay, Bernier said. The FBI was not directly involved in the investigation Monday, said FBI Agent Harry Rodriguez of the San Juan office. "The FBI is monitoring this investigation by police in Puerto Rico," Rodriguez said. "Any assistance that the police requests or requires, we would be more than happy to provide." Puerto Rican authorities may ask for help with forensics or other advanced investigative tools the FBI could provide, Rodriguez said. The U.S. attorney's office, in consultation with local officials and other agencies, would determine if the slaying was a hate crime, which is a federal offense. "It's at a very preliminary stage," said Lymarie Llovet, a spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney's office in San Juan, Puerto Rico's capital. Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory, which means federal agencies have jurisdiction. "There's the potential for a federal investigation," Rodriguez said. The suspect was arrested Monday around 11:30 p.m. AST (10:30 p.m. ET) at his home in the Mogote de Cayey neighborhood, said Wilson Porrata Mariani, another spokesman for the Guayama police district. Police impounded two cars and also are investigating a home in another neighborhood, Huertas del Barrio Beatriz de Cidra. Lopez Mercado's body was found on Puerto Rico Road 184 in another part of town, Barrio Guavate de Cayey, police said. The slaying has reverberated throughout the gay and lesbian community in the United States, where supporters started a Facebook page called "Justice for Jorge Steven Lopez -- End Hate Crimes." The group demands an investigation by Puerto Rico Gov. Luis Fortuno and prosecution of the slaying under the Federal Hate Crimes Law. The law was enacted in 1969 to guard the rights of U.S. citizens engaged in any of six protected activities, such as voting, going to school, applying for a job or attending a public venue. Last month, President Obama signed into law the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which extends federal protection against illegal acts motivated by a person's actual or perceived gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability. Gay activist Serrano said he does not believe anti-gay sentiment is any stronger in Puerto Rico's Latin culture than anywhere else. "That's a long-debunked myth, that our culture is more homophobic," Serrano said. Instead, he attributed any ill will toward gays to "hate rhetoric" by some religious and political leaders. One politician, he said, recently referred to gays as "twisted and mentally ill." "That's the kind of rhetoric that incites violence against gays," Serrano said. Equality Forum, an international gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender rights organization, asked for a federal investigation. "Equality Forum calls on U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to have the FBI investigate," said former federal prosecutor Malcolm Lazin, the group's executive director. "The Matthew Shepard Amendment

NEW: Activist attributes ill will toward gays to some religious, political leaders' "hate rhetoric" Puerto Rican gay community wants police to see if slaying was a hate crime . FBI is monitoring investigation and is prepared to offer help, agent says . Suspect, 27, was to attend Tuesday court hearing, which was postponed several times .

(CNN) -- A suspect was arrested Wednesday night in connection with the death of Little Rock, Arkansas, television news anchor Anne Pressly, police said. Anne Pressly, 26, was a popular morning news anchor at KATV-TV in Little Rock, Arkansas. Curtis Lavell Vance, 28, was arrested at a Little Rock home soon after investigators named him as a suspect. CNN affiliate KATV-TV in Little Rock reported that police were tipped off to Vance's location after investigators publicly identified him as a suspect at a news conference. "We went there and he's in custody," said Lt. Terry Hastings, a police spokesman. Little Rock Police Chief Stuart Thomas did not say what led investigators to name Vance as a suspect, but he said it was "a very, very solid case due to solid detective work." Pressly, 26, was found beaten at her home in October. The KATV anchor had been beaten around her face and upper body. She died days later in a hospital. She had been sedated and unable to speak to police or family members, and suffered massive brain swelling, her family said. Her condition had seemed to be improving shortly before her death. Police earlier said Pressly might have been the victim of a burglary because her purse was missing. Her credit card was used at a gas station sometime this week, police said. Pressly's left hand was broken, possibly as she tried to fight off her attacker. During the investigation, detectives combed the area around Pressly's home in the Heights neighborhood, a mix of bungalows and mansions near the Little Rock Country Club. A $30,000 reward, established by KATV, was offered to anyone providing information leading to the arrest of Pressly's attacker.

NEW: Little Rock, Arkansas, police chief says he has "solid case" against suspect . Curtis Lavell Vance, 28, arrested late Wednesday in death of TV news anchor . KATV-TV anchor Anne Pressly was 26 . She was severely beaten in her home, died days later at hospital .

(CNN) -- A suspected arms dealer accused of conspiring to sell weapons to Colombian guerrillas was extradited Friday from Spain to the United States, the U.S. Justice Department said. Kassar is accused of conspiring to sell weapons to FARC rebels. Monzer al Kassar had been wanted for decades before he was arrested in an undercover operation in Spain last year. Justice Department officials say he has been a source of weapons and military equipment for armed combatants since the 1970s. He left Spain aboard a private plane accompanied by U.S. Drug Enforcement Agents and arrived in New York at 11:30 a.m. local time Friday (1530 GMT), a DEA spokesman said. He is expected to appear before a federal magistrate in Manhattan before the end of the day. Kasser was arrested in Madrid a year ago by Spanish police working with undercover DEA officers posing as members of the FARC. The U.S. accuses Kassar and two other men of conspiring to sell millions of dollars' worth of weapons to FARC, which the United States has designated a terrorist organization. The weapons included surface-to-air missile systems, rocket-propelled grenade launchers, thousands of machine guns, and millions of rounds of ammunition, according to a federal indictment. A Spanish court last week approved his extradition on four counts, including conspiracy to kill U.S. nationals. The two co-defendants, Tareq Mousa Al Ghazi and Luis Felipe Moreno Godoy, were both previously extradited to New York from Romania to face the same terrorism charges. All three could face life in prison. Kassar had told journalists before he was arrested that he had retired from arms dealing, but the U.S. says he had been involved since the 1970s, providing weapons and military equipment to armed factions in Nicaragua, Cyprus, Bosnia, Croatia, Iran, Iraq, Somalia, and elsewhere. CNN Justice Producer Terry Frieden contributed to this report

U.S. Justice Department says accused arms dealer extradited to the U.S. Monzer al Kassar was arrested in Spain last year . U.S. accuses him of trying to sell millions of dollars of weapons to guerrillas . He is also accused of conspiracy to kill U.S. nationals .

(CNN) -- A terrorism suspect -- whose 2008 escape from Singapore launched a global manhunt -- has been arrested in Malaysia, according to authorities there. An public alert posted at a supermarket for Mas Selamat Kastari on March 1, 2008, in Singapore. Mas Selamat Kastari, suspected leader of the Islamist militant group Jemaah Islamiyah's Singapore arm, was arrested April 1 in Johor state in Malaysia, near the border of Singapore, Malaysian police said. Authorities have interrogated him and are sharing the information with police in the region, Malaysian law-enforcement officials said. "It's very good he's been caught, but it's important to remember there are many other fugitives still at large, not (the) least, Noordin Moh Top," said Sidney Jones, South East Asia director for the International Crisis Group. Noordin is a Malaysian thought to be behind the region's most recent major attacks. He belongs to a small splinter group of Jemaah Islamiyah that espouses the use of large-scale terror attacks to push for the establishment of Islamic states in the region. Noordin is a one-time officer, recruiter and bomb-maker for Jemaah Islamiyah, who police say has narrowly escaped their dragnets for years. In the case of Mas Selamat, thousands of security forces fanned out across Singapore after he escaped in February 2008. Interpol, the organization that helps facilitate cooperation among police agencies around the world, later issued a worldwide security alert for him. Mas Selamat had been arrested in Indonesia and turned over to Singapore, on suspicion of plotting to crash a plane into the country's airport. Jemaah Islamiyah is thought to have links to al-Qaeda and is suspected of being behind the 2002 nightclub bombings on the Indonesian island of Bali that killed more than 200 mostly Western tourists. Singapore is a strong U.S. ally and one of the world's most prosperous countries with strong international trading links. Mas Selamet fled the southeast Asian country in 2001 after authorities cracked down on Jemaah Islamiyah and arrested dozens of its members. To retaliate, Mas Selamet plotted to hijack a plane and crash it into Singapore's main airport, Changi, the Home Affairs Ministry said. The plot was not carried out. He also is suspected of being behind plans to attack the U.S. Embassy and a government building. Indonesian authorities arrested Mas Selamet on immigration violation charges in 2003. Three years later, he was deported to Singapore, the Home Affairs ministry said. He was being held under Singapore's Internal Security Act, which allows authorities to indefinitely detain someone without trial. Mas Selamet slipped away from a detention center in Singapore after asking to use the toilet before a visit with his family, Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng told lawmakers in parliament 2008. Journalist Baradan Kuppusamy contributed to this report.

Mas Selamat Kastari was arrested April 1 in Johor state in Malaysia . He is suspected head of Islamist militant group Jemaah Islamiyah's Singapore arm . His 2008 escape from Singapore launched a global manhunt . He had been arrested on suspicion of plot to crash plane into Singapore's airport .

(CNN) -- A terrorist group might be planning attacks on oil tankers in the Strait of Malacca, one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, Singapore's navy warned Thursday. "The terrorists' intent is probably to achieve widespread publicity and showcase that it remains a viable group," said an advisory issued by the Singapore Navy Information Fusion Centre (IFC). "However, this information does not preclude possible attacks on other large vessels with dangerous cargo," the advisory said. The IFC recommended that ships strengthen security measures. It did not name any groups or indicate how the tip was obtained. Located between Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore, the Strait of Malacca links the Indian Ocean to the South China Sea and Pacific Ocean and is the shortest sea route between Persian Gulf oil suppliers and Asian markets, according to the U.S. government's Energy Information Administration. The agency estimates that more than 15 million barrels of oil are transported through the strait every day. At its narrowest point, the strait is only 1.7 miles wide, which creates a natural bottleneck and makes it vulnerable to terrorist attack. The IFC warned tanker crews to be on the lookout for smaller vehicles -- including dinghies, sampans and speedboats -- which have been used to launch successful attacks on tankers in the past.

Strait of Malacca links the Indian Ocean to the South China Sea and Pacific Ocean . Estimated 15 million barrels of oil are transported through the strait every day . At its narrowest point the strait is only 1.7 miles wide, making it vulnerable to attack .

(CNN) -- A thin girl with caramel skin and a yellow silk blouse walks alone through a barren landscape of rubble. Nway prepares for her new job, selling vegetables from her aunt's garden. Her legs are marked by cuts. Her face is smeared with white streaks of powder. And her eyes are blank as she sifts through the debris of what used to be her home before Cyclone Nargis slammed into Myanmar one night and swept her parents away. Her name is Nway, and that's how she looked when aid workers found her after Nargis destroyed her isolated village. She refused to talk about the cyclone, pretending it never took place. She became, according to a CNN story, the "girl who refuses to remember." A year later, an aid worker returned to the village to see how Nway was doing. She found Nway living in a tidy, bamboo house flanked by palm trees. The 8-year-old greeted her visitor with a big smile. Then she asked whether she could play with her visitor's hair. Pam Sitko, the aid worker, said Nway -- like thousands of people in Myanmar -- is slowly recovering one year after Nargis demolished their country. "After all of her pain and loss, she really is a spunky girl," said Sitko, who works with World Vision International, a humanitarian group. "She wasn't shy about reaching out to touch my blonde hair." The night everything changed Nway's resilience is shared by many in Myanmar, aid workers say. Last year's cyclone was catastrophic. It killed at least 140,000 people and left at least 2 million people without homes, according to the United Nations World Food Programme. The brunt of the storm hit Myanmar's delta region, the country's bread basket. It wiped out crops, shrimp farms and fish ponds. A year later, many fields remain unplanted; supplies are short, and the lack of drinking water complicates recovery efforts, World Food Programme officials say. Yet some sense of normal life is returning, said Mia Marina, a program support manager for World Vision's Nargis response efforts. World Vision is building cyclone-resistant schools and providing supplies to cyclone survivors. "Most of the people are going back to their livelihoods," Marina said. "Kids are going to school. The markets are open." The people of Myanmar are also buying planting tools and seed in preparation for the monsoon rains that typically come in May, Sitko said. "Everyone is hoping that this is the moment that it turns around," Sitko said. "It's an exciting time, a time of hope." That hope appears to have spread to Nway. She is fortunate to be alive. The cyclone killed her mother and father. The winds were so powerful that they blew away the village buffalo. In Nway's village, 120 people out of a population of 430 people lost their lives. Nway survived because she was staying with her aunt. The pair joined a group squeezed in to the village headman's house to survive, Sitko said. Nway wouldn't talk about the cyclone after aid workers found her a month later. She would walk away whenever she was asked about that night. Now, according to Sitko, who wrote about her meeting for World Vision, Nway can talk a little about her loss. Sitko said Nway shared one memory from the morning after the cyclone while sitting in her aunt's house: "When I walked to my aunt's house that day, my legs were scratched, and I passed lots of dead bodies," Nway said. "I wanted to help, because everyone was working, but I was too scared, so I only helped clean up my auntie's yard." Nway dreams of her future Nway prefers to talk about other subjects. One is her new job. She helps her aunt sell vegetables from their garden. On most mornings, she smears white powder made from tree bark on her cheeks (it's used as a skin beautifier by women and children

Girl who survives Myanmar cyclone pretends it never happened . Cyclone survivor becomes known as 'the girl who refuses to remember' Aid worker returns to Myanmar a year later to see the girl . "I was expecting a very different girl," worker says .

(CNN) -- A third minute goal from Gonzalo Higuain gave Real Madrid a 1-0 victory over Valencia, coach Juande Ramos' first Primera Liga win since taking charge of the Spanish champions. Gonzalo Higuain is congratulated after scoring Real Madrid's only goal against Valencia. The win ended Madrid's run of three straight league defeats and moved them up to 29 points, nine behind leaders Barcelona -- who visit Villarreal on Sunday. With captain Raul Gonzalez only on the bench befcause of the flu, Higuain played alone in attack, and he soon made his mark with the early goal -- the Argentine collecting Arjen Robben's pass to fire home his 11th goal of the season. Valencia almost fell two goals behind in the 16th minute when Rafael van der Vaart struck the post with a curling drive. Higuain had a chance to double Madrid's tally in the second-half, but his close-range shot struck the bar. The visitors' hopes were effectively ended when captain Carlos Marchena was sent off after picking up his second yellow card, for a foul on Robben. The defeat, only Valencia's second of the season after also going down to Barcelona, leaves them on 30 points, just one above Madrid.

Gonzalo Higuain scoresd the only goal as Real Madrid defeat Valencia 1-0 . The victory marks first success in the Primera Liga for coach Juande Ramos . Valencia, who had Carlos Marchena sent off, were losing only second match .

(CNN) -- A three-judge federal appeals court panel Tuesday overturned a lower court's order blocking key parts of a Texas law requiring doctors to provide a sonogram to pregnant women before they get an abortion, potentially clearing the way for enforcement of the law. In August, just before the law was set to take effect September 1, U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks in Austin, Texas, found several portions of the law "unconstitutionally vague," and ruled it violated the First Amendment by compelling doctors and patients to engage in government-mandated speech. But a panel on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals vacated Sparks' injunction against enforcing the law, saying opponents did not prove it violated the Constitution. The panel remanded the suit back to the lower court for further proceedings. As written, the law would require women seeking an abortion in Texas to view a picture of the embryo or fetus and hear a description of its development before having the procedure. Sparks' injunction blocked Texas from enforcing any penalties against a doctor who failed to place sonogram pictures where a pregnant woman may see them, or does not make the fetus' heartbeat audible. It also blocked penalties against the woman. A previous U.S. Supreme Court ruling in a Pennsylvania case "held that the fact that such truthful, accurate information may cause a woman to choose not to abort her pregnancy only reinforces its relevance to an informed decision," U.S. Circuit Judge Patrick Higginbotham wrote in a concurring opinion. "Insisting that a doctor give this information in his traditional role of securing informed consent is permissible." "Today's ruling is a victory for all who stand in defense of life," Texas Gov. Rick Perry said in a statement. "Every life lost to abortion is a tragedy, and this important sonogram legislation ensures that every Texas woman seeking an abortion has all the facts about the life she is carrying, and understands the devastating impact of such a life-ending decision. "We will continue to fight any attempt to limit our state's laws that value and protect the unborn," Perry said. The suit was filed by the New York-based Center for Reproductive Rights. Nancy Northrup, the center's president and CEO, said the court decision was "extreme." "This clears the way for the enforcement of an insulting and intrusive law whose sole purpose is to harass women and dissuade them from exercising their constitutionally protected reproductive rights," Northrup said in a statement. "Until today, every court that has reviewed similarly intrusive laws have ruled the laws unconstitutional." The law, she said, "serves only to place multiple hurdles between women and the free and full exercise of their reproductive rights." The center, she said, is evaluating "all available means" to challenge the Texas law "and all laws that seek to undermine women's fundamental rights." The bill generated some controversy in Texas, but easily passed through the state's House and Senate, both of which are controlled by Republicans. The law says that at least 24 hours before an abortion is performed, women must undergo a sonogram, a procedure that uses ultrasound to create an image. The doctor is required to give, "in a manner understandable to a layperson, a verbal explanation of the results of the sonogram images, including a medical description of the dimensions of the embryo or fetus, the presence of cardiac activity and the presence of external members and internal organs," the law says. CNN's Jamie Crawford contributed to this report.

NEW: Abortion-rights group: Law is "insulting and intrusive" The ruling clears the way for potential enforcement of the law . Gov. Rick Perry hails the decision as a victory .

(CNN) -- A timeline of events leading to the April 20 explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico, according to documents from congressional investigators and testimony from witnesses to the disaster: ^12:35 a.m. Oilfield services contractor Halliburton completes cementing on BP's Mississippi Canyon 252 well. In the hours leading up to midafternoon, crews conduct three positive pressure tests, in which fluid weight is placed on the seal. ^11 a.m. BP and Transocean executives argue over changes in the drill plan for the well at a meeting aboard the rig. ^5:05 p.m. An unexpected loss of fluid is observed in the riser pipe, suggesting there are leaks in the blowout preventer, a critical piece of equipment designed to shut down the well in the event of an emergency. ^5-7 p.m. Negative pressure tests, in which crews reduce fluid pressure to test for leaks through the cement or well casing, show unexpected results. One draws 15 barrels of liquid out of the well instead of the expected five, raising more concerns about leaks. In a second, pressure on the rig's "kill line" -- a high-pressure pipe used to cut off the flow of oil -- falls to zero, while rising to 1,400 pounds per square inch in the drill line, indicating a buildup of natural gas. ^8 p.m. BP ends testing and proceeds to replace remaining drill fluids with seawater. A BP investigator later suggests this is a "fundamental mistake." ^9:00 p.m. More fluid is reported flowing out of the well than is being pumped in. ^9:10 p.m. Well pump is shut down for a "sheen" test, but the well continues to flow. Drill pipe pressure unexpectedly increases. ^9:30 p.m. Abnormal pressures and more fluid returns are observed. The well pump is abruptly shut down. ^9:50 p.m. Gas surges from the well and up the riser. The supply ship Damon B. Bankston, which is tied up alongside Deepwater Horizon, reports drilling fluid spilling onto its deck and is told to move back 500 meters from the rig. Seconds later, the first explosion occurs. ^9:52 p.m. Deepwater Horizon issues distress call. The order is given to abandon the rig. Eleven of the 126 on board are lost at sea when the platform sinks two days later.

Documents from Congress, witness testimony detail events before leak . At one point, BP and Transocean executives argue over changes in the drill plan . Unexpected loss of fluid suggests leaks in the blowout preventer .

(CNN) -- A tip from a television viewer led to the arrest of a Florida man accused of killing four of his family members on Thanksgiving Day, authorities said early Sunday. Paul M. Merhige is accused of fatally shooting his twin sisters, a 6-year-old cousin and a 79-year-old aunt at a family home in Jupiter, Florida, on November 26. One of his sisters was pregnant. Authorities say Merhige also wounded two other family members. A viewer of "America's Most Wanted" recognized descriptions of Merhige and his car, authorities said at a news conference early Sunday. Officers immediately responded to the tip late Saturday, surrounding a small motel in the Middle Keys, part of the Florida Keys. Merhige, who had apparently been at the Monroe County motel since December 2, did not resist apprehension by U.S. marshals, authorities said. It was not immediately clear whether he was armed when marshals burst into his motel room, more than 200 miles from Jupiter. Merhige made a first appearance in a West Palm Beach, Florida, court later Sunday morning in a hearing that lasted only minutes, according to CNN affiliate WPTV. He is charged with four counts of premeditated murder and attempted first-degree murder. Asked by the judge if he had anything to say, Merhige declined comment, WPTV said. His next court appearance is scheduled for February 1. He will be held without bond at the Palm Beach County jail. Jim Sitton, father of 6-year-old Makayla, who was killed, told CNN affiliate WPTV late Saturday that he would "sleep a little better tonight." "I won't be patrolling my house with a shotgun, looking for the monster. ... I've been in protective mode," he said. "This doesn't bring Makayla back. I'm not jumping for joy. Her room is still empty. But the monster is in a cage now." The "America's Most Wanted" tipster told authorities that Merhige had checked into the Edgewater Lodge motel under the name John Baca and provided an address in Homestead, Florida, according to a news release from police in Jupiter, Florida. No one at the motel was immediately available for comment, but its Web site included photos of waterfront rooms, efficiencies and townhouses starting at $89 a night. Merhige had paid cash at least two weeks in advance, the U.S. Marshals Service said in a news release. He was on a computer when marshals burst into his second-story room. Merhige had tried to disguise his 2007 Blue Toyota Camry with a car cover and had switched its vehicle tag with one from another car he'd owned, the statement said. He also had shaved his head in an attempt to disguise his identity, the Monroe County Sheriff's Office said. Last month, the marshals added Merhige to their list of the Top 15 most-wanted fugitives. A total of $100,000 was offered as a reward for information leading to Merhige's arrest, the sheriff's office said, and the tipster may be entitled to it. The agency also released some distinguishing characteristics about Merhige, saying he was known to either fake or display symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorder, such as frequent bathing and shaving, and difficulty making decisions. He also had faked or displayed symptoms of chronic fatigue syndrome, and taken several prescription drugs for the ailments, the agency said.

Viewer tip led to arrest of man suspected of fatally shooting four relatives on Thanksgiving . Paul Michael Merhige arrested late Saturday at Florida motel . Tipster told authorities Merhige had checked into motel under assumed name .

(CNN) -- A top Zetas drug cartel leader -- who allegedly ordered the attack and arson at a casino that killed 52 -- has been captured, Mexican defense officials said Thursday. Carlos Oliva Castillo, alias "La rana," or frog, was arrested Wednesday at a safehouse without a single shot being fired, the country's Ministry of Defense said. Possibly the No. 3 man in the criminal organization, Oliva Castillo allegedly oversaw criminal operations for the cartel in three Mexican states. He was captured in Saltillo, Mexico. Though he was arrested without incident, the cartel tried to distract troops by attacking security forces in different parts of the city, the defense ministry said. The Zetas' rescue ploy failed. According to officials, Oliva Castillo was "the principal manager" of the ruthless Zetas in the states of Coahuila, Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas. He was also described as a confidant of Zetas boss Heriberto Lazcano Lazcano. Oliva Castilo began working for the Zetas in 2005 in Tamaulipas, the defense ministry said, and rose through the ranks quickly. By 2009 he was in charge of the cartel's finances in Nuevo Leon, before taking charge of all operations in that state, the ministry said. This year he assumed a wider role, the ministry said. The three northeastern states that Oliva Castillo allegedly oversaw are some of the Zetas' strongest-held territory. Authorities say that much of the violence registered in these states is the result of the Zetas fighting rival groups such as the Gulf cartel and Sinaloa cartel, for access to lucrative smuggling routes. But the Zetas -- especially in their strongholds -- have branched out from drug trafficking and into extortion of businesses, kidnappings, and human smuggling. The deadly attack that Oliva Castillo is accused of ordering is the casino arson in the city of Monterrey where 52 people died. Officials allege that the attack happened because the casino owners did not comply with payments to the cartel. Last year, the bodies of 72 migrants from Central and South America were discovered at a ranch in San Fernando, located in Tamaulipas state. The Zetas have been blamed for the mass graves and for the deaths of the migrants.

Mexico says it arrested Zetas regional boss Carlos Oliva Castillo . He was as high as third in the organization . Cartel members tried to rescue him from authorities .

(CNN) -- A tornado almost a mile wide tore through Mississippi on Saturday, killing at least 10 people and causing significant injuries and damage as it raked cities from the central western border with Louisiana northeastward to Alabama. Two of the dead were children and one was a 3-month-old baby, according to Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) spokesman Jeff Rent. The death toll is expected to rise as rescue crews reach hard-hit areas where structures have been badly damaged, said another MEMA spokesman, Greg Flynn. Five of the dead were from Choctaw County, in the north central part of of the state, four were from Yazoo County, north of Jackson, and one was from Holmes County, also in the north central Mississippi, he said. Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, who was in Yazoo City where his home is located, called the twister "gigantic" and said that "in places [it] seemed to be to be several miles wide." Some residents were trapped in badly damaged homes, he said. "They're working to get to the people and rescue as many as they can," said Dan Turner, a spokesman for the governor, reporting "significant injuries" in at least three counties. Residents from the region shared tales of tragedy and survival on Saturday evening. Dale Thrasher was inside Yazoo City's Hillcrest Baptist Church when it was flattened by the tornado. "I went in the sanctuary and got under the pulpit table and the whole building fell around me," he said. His injuries: "three little scratches." Rob and Ashley Saxton were driving to a Yazoo City restaurant owned by Rob's father -- planning to take shelter in the restaurant's walk-in freezer ahead of the tornado -- when the twister blew out the car's windows at a red light. The car was tossed across the intersection, then picked up again and flung into the restaurant. "When the windows exploded it wasn't like anything I've ever experienced," Rob Saxton said. "It was amazing. It scared us plumb to death." Watch Gov. Barbour's update on storm damage in Yazoo City In all, 12 counties were reporting injuries, with some of the injured airlifted to a Level 1 trauma center at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, said Jeff Rent, a MEMA spokesman. The hospital has 27 patients with injuries sustained in the tornado, including eight adults in critical condition and six children in serious condition, according to spokesman Jim Albritton. Many tornado victims were seeking attention at King's Daughters hospital in Yazoo City, where only one doctor was on duty Saturday night, said Jess Silvino, a nurse there. The hospital is expecting "another one or two waves of victims" as crews are able to fully access the tornado's path, said Richard Summers, chairman of emergency medicine at the medical center. The hospital has crews in Yazoo City and Lexington that have been "amazed and astounded" by the amount of damage they're seeing, Summers said. The state's emergency management officials have set up a command post near U.S. 49 in Yazoo City and the state has activated a 25-person rapid response team from Hattiesburg that is capable of search and rescue operations. my601.com: Local reports of damage, fatalities The governor said he is activating local members of the National Guard in Yazoo City to maintain order. President Obama has "been briefed on the tragedy in Mississippi and the situation is being followed by the White House," Obama spokesman Bill Burton said. Barbour said that he has not yet requested emergency federal aid but that he plans to do so on Monday. "FEMA is in contact and coordination with our state and local partners and stand ready to help if a request is made," said Brad Carroll, a spokesman for the Federal Emergency Management Agancy. Mississippi residents reported that the path of the twister was a half-mile to a mile wide, said Mark McAllister, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Jackson. CNN meteorologist Jacqui Jeras

NEW: At least 10 have been killed, including a 3-month-old, state emergency official says . Survivors share harrowing accounts of encounter with twister . Five of the dead were in Choctaw County, in north central Mississippi . President Obama has "been briefed on the tragedy in Mississippi," spokesman says .

(CNN) -- A tornado pummeled Pensacola, Florida, Thursday, severely damaging a church with an attached day care center, destroying homes and leaving thousands of homes and businesses without power, the mayor said. Christy Fayard took this photo of an overturned car in the parking lot of a store Thursday in Pensacola, Florida. "We had about 15 or 20 minutes notice from the weather service that Doppler radar indicated that there was, in fact, a rotation in this one severe thunderstorm," Mayor John Fogg said. "We aren't used to tornadoes in this area." The day care center next to the Greater Little Rock Baptist Church "took a direct hit," but the children already had been moved to a safer location, said Glenn Austin, spokesman for the Escambia County Sheriff's Office. Video showed frantic, tearful parents rushing into the building to get their children. Christie Fayard said she and her co-workers saw the tornado from their building about two miles away. "We took cover. We just went to a break room and let it pass," said Fayard, who is the sister of CNN correspondent Ed Lavandera. After the storm passed, Fayard left work and saw a vehicle overturned in a Target store parking lot. "We had ample warning," Fayard said. "I think the local media did a great job [warning people]." Another Pensacola resident who saw the twister pass said it made a frightening noise. "It sounded creepy, like a bunch of cars were driving over my house," Leeann Franzonne told The Associated Press. The tornado was spotted about 9 a.m. and dissipated about 40 minutes later, Austin said. It moved roughly from southwest to northeast, with the biggest apparent damage in the southwest, where older suburbs are located. The twister followed a skipping pattern, sporadically receding into the clouds and then touching down again. Watch where the storm ripped through Pensacola » It battered many buildings downtown, blew the roofs off sections of Cordova Mall northeast of downtown, and damaged Pensacola Junior College, where classes were canceled for the rest of the day. See more photos of the violent storm » Four houses were destroyed and more than 80 were damaged, according to Escambia County officials. Several people were taken to hospitals in the Pensacola area, with what seemed to be minor injuries, Austin said. Four people were treated for minor injuries at Baptist Hospital, and released, said spokeswoman Candy McGuyre. "Here at the sheriff's office, we were evacuated down to the basement at one point," Austin said. Officials have a system in place to deal with hurricanes, but not tornadoes, Fogg said. Still, shelters were quickly set up Thursday for the homeless, he said. At least 6,800 homes and businesses were without power, according to Gulf Power spokesman John Hutchinson, who advised that it may take some time to restore electricity because of the continuing storms. More stormy weather may be on its way. Florida's emergency management officials issued a statement warning residents and visitors in north Florida that storms and isolated tornadoes were expected during the evening and overnight through Friday. Earlier Thursday, two people died in their mobile home when high winds from a possible tornado hit northeastern Missouri, CNN affiliate KMBC reported. Other tornadoes struck the southwestern part of the state but did not cause much damage, KMBC added. Wednesday night, two tents were blown down at Tulsa, Oklahoma's, Oktoberfest, sending 21 people to hospitals, Tina Wells, a spokeswoman for the Oklahoma Emergency Medical Services Authority, told The Associated Press. Oktoberfest organizer Michael Sanders said he and about 2,000 other people went into a beer garden tent as a light rain started to fall on the festival. "Soon as I got in there, within seconds, without warning, there was this huge gust of wind ... and the tent started collapsing," Sanders said. The thunderstorms damaged about 25 mobile homes and travel trailers in a mobile home park near Oologah, northeast of Tulsa, the

At least four people hurt in Pensacola, Florida . Tornado hits day care, but children OK, sheriff's spokesman says . Storm skips over high school, hits mall, official says . Tornado kills couple in Missouri, CNN affiliate says .

(CNN) -- A tornado swept through parts of Tupelo, Mississippi, on Thursday, damaging trees, power lines and overturning a 18-wheel truck, a law enforcement official said. iReporter Graham Hancock saw damage Thursday at the Tupelo Furniture Market in Tupelo, Mississippi. "Just a little earlier this morning, we began to get reports of damage starting from the west side of Tupelo," said Chief Deputy John Hall of the Lee County Sheriff's Department. Hall said the storm moved north across the city to the Mall at Barnes Crossing. Nearby on U.S. 45, an 18-wheel truck was overturned, he said. There were no reports of injuries, and Hall said authorities were assessing damages. Watch as a Tupelo resident describes the storm » Jeff Snyder, general manager for the Mall at Barnes Crossing, said the shopping center sustained "minor property damage." Terry Anderson, executive director of Tupelo Regional Airport, said the facility had minor damage, including some broken windows. He said the airport was closed for about 10 minutes while the taxiway and runway were cleared. No flights were delayed, he said, and the airport is "up and running." Mark Waddle, who works at the airport, said he saw the storm form. "It was real small at first," said Waddle, an employee at the airport's Budget Car Rental counter. "All the clouds were twirling around." Waddle said he watched as the tornado touched down near the airport. "It looked like it hit some kind of transformer because the whole sky lit up blue," he said. "Then it kind of blew through the Tupelo airport. ... It was blowing so hard the trees were touching the ground." Waddle said he was not aware of any significant damage to the airport apart from overturned trash cans and debris in tree branches. "All of the people and all the vehicles and everything are fine up here at the airport," he said. Bobbye Jones, who works at the Mississippi Department of Transportation in Tupelo, said the roof blew off the lab at the agency. She said fallen tree branches also had damaged vehicles outside her office. "Everything just got real dark," Jones said. . A tornado watch, which denotes favorable conditions for tornadoes, is in effect until late Thursday afternoon for parts of northwestern Alabama.

NEW: Tornado watch in effect for parts of northwestern Alabama . Law enforcement official reports tornado damage in Tupelo, Mississippi . Storm damages trees, power lines, overturns 18-wheeler on U.S. 45 . No injuries reported in Mississippi town .

(CNN) -- A total of 46 inmates were injured during a prison riot at the North Fork Correctional Facility in western Oklahoma, but there were no fatalities, prison officials said Wednesday. Multiple fights had broken out in the 2,500-bed facility on Tuesday, but order was restored and the facility was completely locked down, according to a statement by Corrections Corporation of America, which runs the prison. As of Wednesday there were no reports of staff injuries, CCA said. Regarding the injuries, 16 inmates were transported to facilities outside the prison for treatment, including one who has already returned to the facility. Another 30 inmates were treated on-site by medical staff, CCA said. While the riot was taking place, a morgue was set up in a tent outside the prison, though there were no fatalities. Aerial video of the scene from CNN affiliate KOCO showed armed officials holding prisoners at gunpoint. The prison is located in Sayre, about halfway between Oklahoma City and Amarillo, Texas. CNN's Chandler Friedman contributed to this report.

There were multiple fights reported inside North Fork Correctional Facility . Forty-six were injured, but there were no fatalities . The facility is back in order, prison officials say .

(CNN) -- A total of seven cases of a previously undetected strain of swine flu have been confirmed in humans in the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. None of the patients has had direct contact with pigs. Swine flu is usually diagnosed only in pigs or people in regular contact with them. Five of the cases have been found in California, and two have been found in Texas, near San Antonio, said Dr. Anne Schuchat, the CDC's Interim Deputy Director for Science and Public Health Program. The CDC reported Tuesday that two children in the San Diego, California, area, infected with a virus called swine influenza A H1N1, whose combination of genes has not been seen in flu viruses in either human or pigs before. The patients range from age 9 to 54, Schuchat said. They include two 16-year-old boys who attend the same Texas school, and a father and daughter in California. "The good news is that all seven of these patients have recovered," Schuchat said. The first two cases were picked up through a special influenza monitoring program, with stations in San Diego and El Paso, Texas. The program aims to get a better sense of what strains exist and to detect new strains before they become widespread, the CDC said. Other cases emerged through routine and expanded surveillance. At this point, the ability for the human influenza vaccine to protect against this new swine flu strain is unknown, and studies are ongoing, she said. There is no danger from contracting the virus from eating pork products, Schuchat said. The new virus has genes from North American swine and avian influenza, human influenza and swine influenza normally found in Asia and Europe, said Nancy Cox, chief of the CDC's Influenza Division. Swine flu is a respiratory disease of pigs caused by type A influenza, according to the CDC. It does not normally inflect humans, but cases have occurred among people, especially those who have had direct exposure to pigs. There have also been cases in the past of one person spreading swine flu to other people, the CDC said. In 1988, in an apparent swine flu infection in pigs in Wisconsin, there was antibody evidence of virus transmission from the patient to health care workers who had contact with the patient, the CDC said. Person-to-person transmission is believed to occur in a manner similar to the spread of the influenza virus: through infected people coughing and sneezing, the CDC said. People may contract swine flu by touching something with viruses on it and then touching their mouth or nose. From December 2005 to February 2009, 12 cases of human infection with swine flu were documented. Symptoms of swine flu in humans are expected to resemble regular human seasonal influenza symptoms, including fever, lethargy, lack of appetite, and coughing, the CDC said. Other reported symptoms include runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. The new strain of swine flu has been resistant to the antiviral drugs amantadine and rimantadine, but has responded to the other licensed options: oseltamivir and zanamivir. The CDC is working closely with health officials in California and Texas to learn more about the virus. The agency expects to find more cases, Schuchat said. If swine flu can mutate to spread between humans, what does this mean for avian flu? Because of the virus subtype, it is less likely that avian flu would become transmissible from person to person, but still possible, said Dr. William Short at the division of infectious diseases at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The news is not cause for widespread panic, but people at risk -- those who live in or have traveled to the areas where patients live, or have been in contact with pigs -- should watch out for symptoms and get tested if they occur, Short said. The three criteria for a pandemic are a new virus to which everybody is susceptible, the ability to spread from person to person readily, and wide geographic spread, said Dr. Jay Steinberg, infectious disease specialist at Emory University

CDC: Five cases found in California, two found in Texas . All seven patients have recovered . Symptoms of swine flu in humans are expected to resemble human influenza . Vaccine against human flu is not expected to work against swine flu .

(CNN) -- A tour bus carrying about 40 people rolled over Tuesday near Campbellton, Texas, killing two people and injuring more than a dozen, an official said. Tommy Cavazos, a spokesman for the Texas Department of Public Safety, said that 18 people were injured in the Americanos tour bus crash on Interstate 37, about 50 miles south of San Antonio in southern Texas. Most of the injured are being transported to San Antonio's Brooke Army Medical Center and University Hospital, Cavazos said. The bus, which was headed to Matamoros, Mexico, flipped and landed on its right side, he said. A spokesman for Brooke Army Medical Center, Dewey Mitchell, said four patients were taken to the hospital's trauma unit. He did not provide further information. University Health System spokeswoman Julie Wiley said five adults -- four men and one woman -- were transported to the medical facility. She could not describe their conditions but characterized the people as all between the age of 40 and 60. Although it was not immediately clear whether others were taken elsewhere, Wiley said that University Health System and Brooke Army Medical Center are the two trauma centers in San Antonio and would receive patients in situations such as Tuesday's crash. The names of those killed were not released. Americanos is a subsidiary of Greyhound. Maureen Richmond, a spokeswoman for Greyhound, said that 40 people were on board the bus, which left San Antonio shortly before 9 a.m. for Matamoros, Mexico. It was a regularly scheduled trip, she said. She said the cause of the crash was not immediately known. KSAT: 2 dead, dozens injured in charter bus crash Video from the scene showed the bus lying on its side in the highway's grassy median, with clothing and other items scattered on the ground nearby. Emergency personnel, including fire trucks and ambulances, were on the scene. Mark Baldon, who came upon the crash shortly after it happened Tuesday morning, said he saw the bus "smoldering," CNN affiliate KSAT reported. CNN's Divina Mims and Jamie Morrison contributed to this report.

Bus flipped and landed on its side on I-37 median, official says . Bus was headed to Matamoros, Mexico, carrying 40 people . Names of victims not released; injured taken to hospital in San Antonio .

(CNN) -- A tsunami advisory announced shortly after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Japan's Ryukyu Islands early Saturday has been canceled, Japan's Meteorological Agency reported. There was no tsunami damage "though there may be slight sea level changes from now on," it said, referring to the areas affected by the advisory -- the Okinawa Islands, the Amami Islands and the Tokara Islands. The quake was centered 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) deep and struck at 5:31 a.m. (3:31 p.m. ET Friday) about 85 kilometers (53 miles) from Okinawa. The quake was felt on Okinawa, with shaking that lasted about 15 seconds, said Lt. Col. Daniel King of the U.S. Pacific Command. He told CNN that commanders in Japan and Hawaii were trying to get damage and casualty reports from U.S. military stations on Okinawa, but had heard nothing in the immediate aftermath. About 20,000 U.S. troops -- mostly Marines, along with Navy and Air Force personnel -- are stationed on eight bases on Okinawa, he said. Are you there? Send photos, video iReporter Kristina Donaldson, who lives in central Okinawa, said the quake "seemed to last longer than other ones we have experienced here." "We felt the quake pretty good this morning," she said, but life there was largely unaffected. "I just walked down to the coastline and the kids are walking to school as they always do. No sirens, or any destruction from where we are." Okinawa resident Eric Shepherd said his grandmother-in-law described it as the strongest quake she had felt in her 90 years on the island. "It felt like some really bad airplane turbulence," Shepherd said, adding that one of his two children slept through what seemed like a minute-long "rumble." "I had no problem walking to the kids' room to check on them" during the quake, he said. CNN's Mike Mount contributed to this report.

NEW: Japan's Meteorological Agency cancels tsunami advisory . NEW: "There may be slight sea level changes from now on," agency says . Quake centered about 6 miles deep, 53 miles east of Okinawa .

(CNN) -- A tsunami watch issued for five nations after a 7.6-magnitude earthquake in the Indian Ocean was canceled about two hours later. A tsunami watch in effect after an earthquake in the Indian Ocean has been called off. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center had issued the watch for India, Myanmar, Thailand, Indonesia and Bangladesh after the quake, which struck at 1:55 a.m. Tuesday (3:55 p.m. Monday ET). Its epicenter was about 163 miles (262 km) north of Port Blair in India's Andaman Islands, and 225 miles south-southwest of Pathein, Myanmar, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The earthquake's focus was about 20 miles below the Earth's surface. In general, earthquakes centered closer to the Earth's surface produce stronger shaking and can cause more damage than those further underground. Watch where the earthquakes hit » "Sea level readings indicate that a significant tsunami was not generated," the warning center said in a bulletin. "Therefore, the tsunami watch issued by this center is now canceled." According to the geological survey, a 6.4-magnitude quake struck near the south coast of Honshu, Japan, 12 minutes after the Indian Ocean quake. The Japan Meteorological Agency issued a tsunami advisory following that quake, but said that the expected wave would be under 2 feet. CNN's Augie Martin contributed to this report.

Watch covered India, Myanmar, Thailand, Indonesia and Bangladesh . It was issued after a 7.6-magnitude earthquake in the Indian Ocean . Quake with 6.4-magnitude occurred near Japan 12 minutes later .

(CNN) -- A ubiquitous Olive Garden TV commercial shows a picturesque cooking school in Italy as a voice croons words like "artisanal" and "fonduta" and smiling chefs in starched whites coats taste tomato sauce straight from a simmering pot and kiss their fingertips with glee. TV-watching skeptics turned to social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook to question the popular Italian chain's claim of "culinary inspiration" from Tuscany. Is this Culinary Institute of Tuscany, a bona fide bastion of learning? Or is it just an advertising fib? Yes, Virginia, there is an Olive Garden Culinary Institute of Tuscany -- though the ownership is somewhat shared. The Institute opens its doors to approximately 100 of the best-performing chefs and managers of U.S. Olive Garden Restaurants each winter for 11 weeks. It began these authentic Italian cooking lessons in 1999. "During the rest of the year, the property, named Riserva di Fizzano, is a bed and breakfast, complete with the Rocca delle Macie winery, a guest house, a pool and a restaurant," Mark Jaronski, director of media and communications for Darden Restaurants, told CNN. Olive Garden is a member of the Orlando-based Darden family of restaurants alongside Red Lobster, LongHorn Steakhouse, The Capital Grille, Bahama Breeze and Seasons 52. Olive Garden Head Chef Romana Neri runs the school in Italy. "Chef Neri is an executive chef who lives in Tuscany," Jaronski said, adding Neri supports the chain's Executive Chef Paolo Lafata when he's at the Tuscany property. Culinary pilgrimages to learn the cuisine of foreign countries are nothing new for many chefs and restaurateurs: Julia Child went to France, Rick Bayless to Mexico. The skepticism from viewers comes when a chain restaurant asserts authenticity. Specialties inspired by the Culinary Institute of Tuscany are marked on Olive Garden's menu with a special Culinary Institute of Tuscany seal: including the likes of Chianti Braised Short Ribs, Grilled Shrimp Caprese and Smoked Mozzarella Fonduta. Members of the public can also take part in a similar one-week learning experience under the Tuscan sun at the 11th-century, 450-acre property -- if they win the restaurant's sweepstakes. Judith Wilson of Spanish Fork, Utah, 40 minutes away from the closest Olive Garden, was one of the 2009 contest winners. After hearing about the contest, she made daily entries and won. "The cooking school took us in, and every day gave us lessons on all the different olive oils, cheeses, wines and how to complement your dinner with these choices," Wilson said. In the institute's off-season, the Riserva di Fizzano's restaurant, the Relais-Agriturism, serves up traditional Tuscan fare to the public. The Riserva also organizes cooking courses to educate visitors on Tuscan cuisine. Culinary institute skeptics or not, people are still embracing the "hospitaliano" -- Darden Restaurants reported in March that their fiscal third quarter U.S. same-restaurant sales increased 1.5 percent at Olive Garden.

The Olive Garden TV commercials are true; restaurant has cooking school in Italy . Olive Garden Culinary Institute of Tuscany holds 11-week classes in Winter . The rest of the year, Riserva di Fizzano is a B&B with a winery and restaurant . Public can attend shorter classes if they win Olive Garden sweepstakes .

(CNN) -- A union representing thousands of transit workers went on strike early Tuesday in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, shutting down buses, subways and trolleys that carry almost a million people daily. Transport Workers Union leaders walked out of contract talks just before midnight, saying they couldn't accept an offer from the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority because of a shortfall in their pension fund and disagreements on some work rule issues. Joe Casey, general manager of the transit authority, said the offer presented to workers was competitive. Are you stranded by the strike? Share your story "For the life of me I can't believe the TWU walked away from that offer," he said. The strike means all buses, subways and trolleys in Philadelphia and on the Frontier line in Bucks and Montgomery counties stopped running at 3 a.m. Read local coverage from CNN affiliate WPVI One train operator was as surprised as customers to discover the strike had begun. Sly Wagner showed up at the Fern Rock station ready to work, CNN affiliate Philly.com reported. "I'm like everybody else," he said. "The only way I found out was when I went to the station and the gates were locked." Commuters weren't taking it well. Comments on the Web site of CNN affiliate WPVI-TV were anti-strike by a ratio of 9 to 1 on Tuesday. "These guys need to take a look around and see that we're facing 10 percent unemployment and an economy on the brink of collapse," Lee Henderson commented to the Web site. "They should be grateful for good jobs and go back to work without further delay." Henderson commutes from Elkins Park, on the northern edge of Philadelphia. But a city resident who only gave his first name, Gary, backed the union. "Local 234 is standing up for the union members; Philadelphia is a union city," he commented. "Local 234 is just expressing its rights. Septa always pulls the economy into negotiations, but when it comes to their managers getting paid, they get what they want." Read local coverage from CNN affiliate Philly.com Concern about crowds converging in downtown Philadelphia for the World Series surfaced in talks over the weekend and workers agreed to stave off the strike. But not long after the last out in Game 5 and the series heading back to New York, Local 234 went on the picket line. The transit authority urged riders to check its Web site for contingency plans.

NEW: Commuters express outrage, but a few support the union . Transport Workers Union leaders walk out of contract talks . Strike affects buses, subways and trolleys that transport nearly a million people daily . Transit authority and union can't agree on pension funding and work rules .

(CNN) -- A video purporting to be from a vigilante group whose goal is the eradication of the Zetas cartel from the state of Veracruz, Mexico, has surfaced on the Internet, but its credibility remains unproven. Five masked men dressed in black appear on the video, sitting behind a long table. The spokesman explains that they are a group called the "Mata Zetas," or Zeta Killers. They describe themselves as an "extermination" force that works as the armed front "of the people and for the people." The speaker says that the group's only goal is to kill members of the Zetas, a ruthless cartel whose area of influence includes the eastern state of Veracruz. Members of the Mata Zetas are prohibited from committing crimes such as extortion or kidnappings, according to the video. The video was released via YouTube days after 35 bodies were found in two trucks during rush hour in the city of Boca del Rio. But is the video really evidence of the birth of a vigilante group in Veracruz? In the video, the speaker does not claim responsibility for the 35 deaths. It is also not the first time that a seemingly grassroots group emerged in Veracruz as a counterbalance to the cartels. In 2007, a group named the "Gente Nueva," or New People, made itself known through menacing notes, web-posted videos, torture and executions and quasi-patriotic rhetoric. The group left notes next to bodies, claiming that the victims were Zetas or supporters of the Zetas. But U.S. officials with knowledge of the group said Gente Nueva was not a vigilante group but a facade for the Sinaloa cartel, which at the time was battling the Zetas and Gulf Cartel in Veracruz. The Zetas and Gulf cartel have since split into warring factions. Mexico's attorney general's office responded with a statement saying that it would investigate the video and any group that tries to take justice into its own hands. "The only path to reach long-lasting security and peace is through the rule of law and strengthening of our institutions," the statement said. In October of last year, another possible paramilitary group surfaced in Michoacan state. A group calling itself the "Pelotones Omega" distributed fliers indicating its members would fight against kidnappers, murderers and other criminals.

A group called "Zeta Killers" releases a video on the Internet . The group says its goal is to exterminate the Zetas cartel from Veracruz state . Authorities say that they will investigate any group that takes justice into their own hands .

(CNN) -- A video showing the last moments of a Polish immigrant, who died after Canadian police shot him with a stun gun at Vancouver International Airport, has been made public. This image from video shows an agitated Robert Dziekanski, left, before police used a stun gun on him. Robert Dziekanski, 40, was traveling to join his mother, who lives in British Columbia, when he ended up spending about 10 hours in the airport's arrivals area, The Canadian Press said. The video shows Dziekanski, who had never flown before, becoming agitated. It then shows Mounties purportedly shocking Robert Dziekanski with a Taser device after confronting him. Dziekanski did not speak English. The recording was captured by bystander Paul Pritchard on October 14 and was in police hands until he threatened legal action and it was returned to him last week, The Canadian Press reported. Watch as police stun man with Taser » "Probably the most disturbing part is one of the officers uses his leg and his knee to pin his neck and his head to the ground," Pritchard told CBC News. The dead man's mother, Zofia Cisowski, told CBC News that Tasers should not be used by police. "They should do something because that is a killer, a people killer." The incident is being investigated by police, Canada's national police complaints commission and by the coroner, CBC News reported. E-mail to a friend

Man died after Canadian police shot him at Vancouver Airport on October 14 . Polish immigrant became agitated after being left waiting at airport for 10 hours . Flight was first time he had been on a plane; he spoke no English . Incident, captured on video by a bystander, is being investigated by authorities .

(CNN) -- A videotape on a Russian Web site allegedly showing a State Department employee having sex with a prostitute is a "smear campaign" meant to discredit the man, a State Department spokesman said Thursday. The State Department has said the tape allegedly showing an employee having sex with a prostitute is a fake. The employee, Brendan Kyle Hatcher, denied any encounter with a prostitute to his superiors at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, another State Department official said. State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said the U.S. ambassador to Russia, John Beyrle, "supports" Hatcher, who remains at his job at the embassy. Hatcher had previously worked in the sensitive area of religious and human rights in Russia, the spokesman said. "Mr. Hatcher ... enjoys the full confidence of Ambassador Beyrle and fully intends to serve out the rest of his tour in Moscow," Kelly said at an afternoon briefing at the State Department. The United States "deplores this type of campaign and use of the Internet to smear a foreign service officer of good standing," he added. Watch why the U.S. says the tape is doctored » Beyrle was unequivocal in expressing his support in an interview with ABC News. "Kyle Hatcher has done nothing wrong," he said. "Clearly, the video we saw was a montage of lot of different clips, some of them which are clearly fabricated." A senior State Department official said, "It's a doctored tape and a set-up designed to implicate someone working as a liaison with religious and human rights groups in Russia." The official said Hatcher, who is married, "was approached by Russians; they tried to blackmail him, but he did everything correctly," reporting the incident to his supervisors at the Embassy. The tape then appeared on the tabloid newspaper Web site Compromat.ru and was picked up by other outlets. Diplomatic sources who declined to be named said Compromat.ru has a history of ties to Russia's security services. Russia's Foreign Ministry had no comment when asked about the video. Another senior State Department official, who has seen the video, said "it's clear to me that it's him," referring to portions showing Hatcher alone in the hotel room. "But then the lights go down," and the footage from there on is faked, that official said. The video of Hatcher in the hotel room was taken last year, "somewhere in Siberia," said the senior State Department official who watched the video. It was shot in a hotel that Hatcher visited, the official said. When questioned about the possible motivation for creating the video, the official said it's presumed "it was done because of his human rights work," in Russia. The official doubted the incident will have any effect on U.S.-Russian relations and noted that the Kremlin and the Russian Foreign Ministry have both been "very cooperative" in the months since the footage came to light. "The vast majority of people there are working toward better relations," the official said. Another official said Hatcher is a "great officer" who, until last summer, was a political reporting officer focusing on religious freedom issues in Russia. The assignment lasts two years: one year in that specialty and a year on the visa-issuing line at the embassy. Last year, this official said, Hatcher was the lead officer compiling the State Department's Religious Freedom report and was given an award for his work by the ambassador. Another official confirmed that Hatcher received a meritorious honor award in 2009 and a group award in 2008. Hatcher, one official said, worked with religious groups that are considered "outside the mainstream" in Russia, such as Protestants and non-Christians. Such faiths often face official and unofficial discrimination in the largely Russian-Orthodox society. Another senior State Department official said, "there is a lot of inertia" among some special security services in Russia. "They are pretty much unreconstructed," he said. The security services may have wanted to compromise Hatcher

NEW: Russian officials are being "very cooperative," U.S. official says . Russian site allegedly shows State Department employee having sex with prostitute . U.S. ambassador says video clips "clearly fabricated" Official: Tape meant to discredit employee working in religious and human rights .

(CNN) -- A virus found in healthy Australian honey bees may be playing a role in the collapse of honey bee colonies across the United States, researchers reported Thursday. Honey bees walk on a moveable comb hive at the Bee Research Laboratory, in Beltsville, Maryland. Colony collapse disorder has killed millions of bees -- up to 90 percent of colonies in some U.S. beekeeping operations -- imperiling the crops largely dependent upon bees for pollination, such as oranges, blueberries, apples and almonds. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says honey bees are responsible for pollinating $15 billion worth of crops each year in the United States. More than 90 fruits and vegetables worldwide depend on them for pollination. Signs of colony collapse disorder were first reported in the United States in 2004, the same year American beekeepers started importing bees from Australia. The disorder is marked by hives left with a queen, a few newly hatched adults and plenty of food, but the worker bees responsible for pollination gone. The virus identified in the healthy Australian bees is Israeli Acute Paralysis Virus (IAPV) -- named that because it was discovered by Hebrew University researchers. Although worker bees in colony collapse disorder vanish, bees infected with IAPV die close to the hive, after developing shivering wings and paralysis. For some reason, the Australian bees seem to be resistant to IAPV and do not come down with symptoms. Scientists used genetic analyses of bees collected over the past three years and found that IAPV was present in bees that had come from colony collapse disorder hives 96 percent of the time. But the study released Thursday on the Science Express Web site, operated by the journal Science, cautioned that collapse disorder is likely caused by several factors. "This research give us a very good lead to follow, but we do not believe IAPV is acting alone," said Jeffery S. Pettis of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Bee Research Laboratory and a co-author of the study. "Other stressors on the colony are likely involved." This could explain why bees in Australia may be resistant to colony collapse. "There are no cases ... in Australia at all," entomologist Dave Britton of the Australian Museum told the Sydney Morning Herald last month. "It is a Northern Hemisphere phenomenon." Bee ecology expert and University of Florida professor Jamie Ellis said earlier this year that genetic weakness bred into bees over time, pathogens spread by parasites and the effects of pesticides and pollutants might be other factors. Researchers also say varroa mites affect all hives on the U.S. mainland but are not found in Australia. University of Georgia bee researcher Keith S. Delaplane said Thursday the study offers a warning -- and hope. "One nagging problem has been a general inability to treat or vaccinate bees against viruses of any kind," said Delaplane, who has been trying to breed bees resistant to the varroa mite. "But in the case of IAPV, there is evidence that some bees carry genetic resistance to the disorder. This is yet one more argument for beekeepers to use honey bee stocks that are genetically disease- and pest-resistant." Bee researchers will now look for stresses that may combine to kill bees. "The next step is to ascertain whether IAPV, alone or in concert with other factors, can induce CCD [colony collapse disorder] in healthy bees," said Ian Lipkin, director of the Center for Infection and Immunity at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. Besides the Columbia and USDA researchers, others involved in the study released Thursday include researchers from Pennsylvania State University, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, the University of Arizona and 454 Life Sciences. E-mail to a friend

Colony collapse disorder has killed millions of bees . Scientists suspect a virus may combine with other factors to collapse colonies . Disorder first cropped up in 2004, as bees were imported from Australia . $15 billion in U.S. crops each year dependent on bees for pollination .

(CNN) -- A voluntary recall has been issued for more than 40 over-the-counter drugs for children, including Tylenol and Motrin, because they don't meet quality standards. "This recall is not being undertaken on the basis of adverse medical events," McNeil Consumer Healthcare said in a statement Friday. "However, as a precautionary measure, parents and caregivers should not administer these products to their children." FDA commissioner Margaret Hamburg gave a similar recommendation in a statement Saturday, saying, "we want to be certain that consumers discontinue using these products," though she called the chance for serious health problems "remote." "Some products in the recall may have a higher concentration of active ingredient than specified while others may have inactive ingredients that don't meet testing requirements, the company said. The company said it issued the recall after consulting with the Food and Drug Administration. The affected brands include: Tylenol Infants' Drops, Children's Tylenol Suspensions, Children's Tylenol Plus Suspensions, Motrin Infant Drops, Children's Motrin Suspensions, Children's Zyrtec Liquids in Bottles and Children's Benadryl Allergy Liquids in Bottles. The drugs were made in the United States and distributed to Canada, the Dominican Republic, Dubai, Fiji, Guam, Guatemala, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Panama, Trinidad & Tobago and Kuwait. "There are a number of other products on the market, including generic versions of the recalled products, which are intended for use in infants and children and are not affected by the recall," the FDA said Saturday in issuing guidance to parents. More details are available by calling 1-888-222-6036 or visiting McNeil's website.

Children's Motrin, Tylenol among drugs being recalled for failing to meet quality standards . Recall not based on adverse health effects, company says . Drugs were made in United States, distributed to other countries .

(CNN) -- A week before 9-year-old Michaela Garecht was kidnapped in Hayward, California, in 1988, she wrote a poem about people who had been abducted, her mother said Tuesday. Cases of missing girls Ilene Misheloff, left, and Michaela Garecht now linked to Garrido investigation. "She sat down at the coffee table and wrote a poem about people behind the doors of steel, an amazing poem for a 9-year-old, ... and a week later she was kidnapped," Michaela's mother, Sharon Murch, said. "It seems to me ... like it must be some sort of a prophesy or premonition, and I keep hearing the words that she said -- 'It's about people who were kidnapped and are being held captive, not people who were kidnapped and were killed.'" Her comments came as authorities looked into whether Michaela's abduction and other unsolved kidnappings in the region are in any way related to Phillip Garrido, who was arrested last week for the kidnapping and rape of an 11-year-old girl just three years after Michaela was taken. That girl, Jaycee Lee Dugard -- now 29 -- was found alive last week, living in a tent and shelter compound in Garrido's back yard in Antioch, California -- 30 miles from where Michaela was kidnapped. The discovery raised Murch's hopes that her daughter might also be safe. "My husband told me (about Dugard's discovery) at 5 in the morning. He woke me up and told me he had heard it on the news," Murch said. Watch how case raises mother's hopes » "And I leaped up yelling, 'Oh, my God. I was, of course, joyful for Jaycee herself, but my first thought was 'please God, let Michaela be with her.'" Murch said she feels there is a "strong possibility" that the two cases are linked. A bone fragment found near Garrido's home was being analyzed to determine whether it is was human and whether it connects Garrido to any other crimes, authorities said. The bone fragment was found on a neighbor's property in an area that Garrido had access to, they said. Watch how bone fragment may offer clues » Murch said police have approached her in the past five days to ask what Michaela was wearing on the day of her abduction. "They apparently found a lot of stuff there," she said, referring to the Garrido property search. Police in several other San Francisco Bay Area agencies are also investigating possible ties between Garrido and other missing persons' cases. In Dublin, about 25 miles east of Oakland, police were looking into whether Garrido was connected to the 1989 disappearance of Ilene Misheloff. She was 13 when abducted, investigators said. Antioch -- where Garrido is accused of holding Dugard -- is about 40 miles east of Oakland and about 165 miles southwest of Dugard's hometown, South Lake Tahoe. Contra Costa County sheriff's Lt. Steve Simpkins said police in Antioch and neighboring Pittsburg were searching Garrido's property "for evidence relating to open cases." Murch says the kidnappings of her daughter and that of Dugard have several similarities. "The method of kidnapping was the same. They were both dragged into cars. The description of the cars was very similar. The girls looked very much like each other. There have been points in the past where the investigations have crossed with the same suspects, and Jaycee was found very close to home here." Hayward Police Lt. Chris Orrey said both girls were abducted in daylight, and a sketch of a suspect resembled Garrido, she said. Orrey said there were differences as well, though she would not elaborate. But she confirmed that Hayward police had been in contact with Michaela's family and witnesses since Dugard was found alive. Murch said a neighbor who witnessed her daughter's kidnapping called her on the phone when she saw Garrido on television and commented on a car removed from the Garrido property. "That car looked like the car that Michaela was kidnapped in," Murch quoted her

Michaela Garecht, 9, kidnapped three years before Jaycee Dugard . A week before her abduction, Michaela wrote poem about kidnapping, mother says . Girls' kidnappings seem similar, Sharon Murch says . Police also looking for links into 1989 kidnapping of Ilene Misheloff .

(CNN) -- A week into the Haitian disaster, the desperate and dusty faces of both survivors and rescuers tell a plaintive story: We need more, more, more. And fast. The capital's airport, the country's roads and its ports were devastated by last week's 7.0-magnitude earthquake, leaving Haiti's crumpled infrastructure the chief obstacle to fresh supplies as well as food and water. "The significant limiting factor in terms of our ability to move forward is a reality of the infrastructure in Haiti," U.S. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley told reporters Tuesday. "But to the credit of the United States military, we started the operation (at Port-au-Prince's airport) with maybe 20 or so flights a day. They're now up well over 100." The goal, he said, is to double that number. Opening a second runway would help, he said. So, too, would lighting at the airport. Search list of missing and found "Last night, we couldn't see to land the plane that was supposed to land," said Renzo Fricke, the chief of Haiti operations for the aid organization Doctors Without Borders. "The night before we were supposed to receive two planes that couldn't land. The night before it was the same. That's our fourth plane that's not able to land." Fricke told CNN's Christiane Amanpour Tuesday that although the organization was "facing huge problems" in receiving supplies, the work went on. "This morning we had to buy a saw in the market, in the city ... for our surgeons to do amputations," he said. "We had to buy a saw because our materials -- the medical equipment is not coming as it should arrive." Fricke said that some equipment and other materials are coming into Haiti by road from the Dominican Republic, a route that Crowley cited as one of several that are slowly being opened to channel aid. The airport, the ports, U.S. Navy ships with helicopters and a U.S. Marine unit are all important to getting vital supplies into the country, Crowley said. High-resolution images of damage Maj. Gen. Dan Allyn, the U.S. commander of the Haiti task force, told reporters that Haiti should see some "initial operating capacity" at its ports by the end of the week -- including the capability of bringing in fuel needed to take trucks into more remote areas. Additionally, he said that officials were looking into the possibility of opening an airstrip at the city of Jacmel "to relieve some of the immediate pressure on Port-au-Prince airfield." Cassandra Nelson, spokeswoman for Mercy Corps, which has a long-standing program in Haiti, said that aid is clearly increasing daily, but much more needs to be done. "Operations here have been an incredible challenge, and Mercy Corps has done emergency response for years and years and is very seasoned," she said. "[But] we have to say this is probably one of the hardest ones we've had. "We are working out of an office. Right now our office is overflowing. It's a place where we all sleep, we all eat granola bars, and we all do our work there." Full coverage | Twitter updates A more-than-welcome sight arrives off Haiti Wednesday morning: the U.S. Naval Ship Comfort, a state-of-the-art hospital ship that saw duty during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 in New Orleans and the 2001 terror attacks in New York, among others. The ship, which can house up to 1,000 patients, brings with it more than 1,000 medical and support personnel. But on the ground, caregivers struggle to provide the kind of care their patients need. Dr. Robert Fuller of the International Medical Corps, a group of volunteer medical personnel, said that his group is hoping to have intensive-care units in "a handful of days." "Things are coming together, but it is certainly not the way it is back home,"

Capital's airport, country's roads and ports were devastated by last week's earthquake . Haiti's crumpled infrastructure chief obstacle to fresh supplies as well as food and water . Some equipment and other materials coming into Haiti by road from Dominican Republic . Officials looking into the possibility of opening an airstrip at Haitian city of Jacmel .

(CNN) -- A whistle-blower who helped shed light on misconduct among the ranks of contractors working as guards for the U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan is back home in England sooner than he expected after he resigned in the fallout of the scandal. "It was just downright stupid," Terry Pearson says of guard misconduct in Afghanistan. Terry Pearson, who worked as an operations manager for contractor R.A. International at Camp Sullivan in Afghanistan, said he witnessed mistreatment among the guards employed by ArmorGroup North America, who were housed at the camp. "It was just downright stupid, some of the things they were doing," Pearson told CNN. "And insensitive." Allegations surfaced last week that contractor ArmorGroup allowed mistreatment, sexual activity and intimidation within the ranks of private guards hired to protect the embassy in Kabul. The company and U.S. officials are investigating. Wackenhut Services Inc., the corporate parent of ArmorGroup, said in an e-mail it is "fully cooperating" in the investigation. Fourteen guards were fired and the entire management team for ArmorGroup in Kabul was to be replaced, the U.S. Embassy in Kabul said. The actions of the embassy guards went beyond pranks or laughs, he said. "When you start encouraging people to drink alcohol running off someone's body parts," Pearson said, pausing for a moment, "a bit over the top." Watch Pearson describe guards' "insensitive" conduct » He took his grievance to his superiors as well as those of ArmorGroup. The answer he received was, "'they're just letting off steam,' and I think that's the way they looked at some of the incidents that happened," Pearson said. Pearson said he was looking for a change of behavior, not for mass firings. But at Camp Sullivan, he was made to feel that he had done something wrong and he resigned. Pearson said he reconsidered the resignation almost immediately after he submitted it, but it was too late. "Although we are now aware of the alleged events at Camp Sullivan ... the employee's resignation was not associated with this matter," R.A. International said in a statement. The scandal came to light last week when the watchdog group Project on Government Oversight sent a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and briefed reporters on its findings, which it said were based on e-mails and interviews with more than a dozen guards who have worked at the U.S. compound in Kabul. Speaking with CNN at his hometown of Liverpool, England, Pearson said that given a chance to go back, he would have taken the same stance. "Dignity at work and respect at work is more important than having a job yourself," he said. CNN's Paula Newton contributed to this report.

Terry Pearson is back in England after allegedly witnessing guard misconduct . Pearson resigned from R.A. International at Camp Sullivan in Afghanistan . 14 guards were fired after allegations of abuse, sexual activity and intimidation . ArmorGroup and U.S. officials are investigating .

(CNN) -- A white tiger mauled a zookeeper to death at a New Zealand wildlife park Wednesday as a group of tourists watched in horror, police say. The zookeeper at Zion Wildlife Gardens in New Zealand could not be saved by other staff. The attack took place at the Zion Wildlife Gardens near Whangarei, about three hours north of Auckland. Two zookeepers had gone in to clean an enclosure at the park, when one of two white tigers inside lunged at a keeper, said Sarah Kennett, spokeswoman for Northland Police. The second keeper and other zoo staff tried to pull the tiger off the man but failed. He died shortly after, Kennett said. The tiger was put down, the park said. Watch park officials, visitors react » A group of eight tourists who were on a guided tour of the park witnessed the Wednesday morning attack, Kennett said. "This is an incredibly sad day," the park said in a statement, adding that it would provide counseling to its employees. The Zion Wildlife Gardens is home to several endangered tigers and lions. It is best known in New Zealand as the setting for the popular television series "Lion Man." In February, an employee needed surgery after he was attacked by a white tiger, according to local media reports. Last year, the country's Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry released documents to CNN affiliate TVNZ that said animals at the park were kept in crowded, unsanitary conditions. Inspectors were so concerned about the conditions that they considered having 40 cats put down, the documents said.

White tiger mauls a zookeeper to death at a New Zealand wildlife park . Attack happened in front of group of tourists . Another keeper and zoo staff tried to pull the tiger off the man but failed .

(CNN) -- A wildfire in Yellowstone National Park has grown to 9,300 acres and closed a section of the main road through the park, but Yellowstone is still open and National Park Service officials said Monday there was no danger to travelers. Lightning started the fire on September 13. Snow could fall this week at Yellowstone, which sprawls across parts of three states, and end the park's fire season, officials said. National Park Service officials said the lightning-sparked wildfire started on September 13, but wasn't noticed until 10 days later in the Arnica Creek area east of Old Faithful, the geyser that is the park's main attraction. Last week the fire increased in size and by this weekend had charred 6,500 acres. National Park Service spokeswoman Linda Miller said there was no danger for guests. "We don't anticipate it affecting any buildings," she said. Miller said Monday that 90 percent of the fire was in Wyoming, with the remainder in park areas in Idaho and Montana. Facilities at Yellowstone were open Monday, and Miller said visitors were still welcome. "But there's going to be smoke," she said. "Where there's smoke, there's fire. The vistas won't be as clear as even just a week ago." Still, she said, "We don't want to scare people into not coming." Rick Hoeninghausen, director of sales and marketing for Yellowstone National Park Lodges, said the fire was causing cancellations at the parks. But he said "some tourists already in the park are are just changing their plans and working around it." He said the fire is more of an inconvenience than a danger. "It's a natural part of this environment. It's part of the ecology and it's a natural attraction for some people," Hoeninghausen said. The Arnica fire has closed Grand Loop Road, the main road through Yellowstone. Visitors wanting to get from one end of the wilderness area to the other will have to take a 280-mile detour. Yellowstone National Park has nine lodges and about 2,200 hotel rooms. At least two of those facilities close each year after Labor Day. Hoeninghausen said the fire "may be a little disconcerting for East Coasters not used to wildfires, but travelers and tourists can call the park and check the Web sites for updates on the fires." A Park Service press release cautioned that "the smokey conditions are affecting air quality in the park." "People with weakened immune systems and those with heart and lung conditions may have trouble breathing," the press release said. The Arnica fire was becoming more active Monday as gustier winds and low humidity fueled the flames, said Tom Kempton, fire information officer for the park service. The National Weather Service in Wyoming predicted snow would fall by Wednesday morning. Kempton said 230 firefighters, 15 fire engines and five helicopters were helping keep flames away from any historic structures at Yellowstone. Lightning starts an average of 22 fires every year in Yellowstone, according to the park service. Most of the naturally started fires in the 2.2 million-acre park extinguish on their own. Yellowstone is a fire-adapted ecosystem, and fire plays a major role in maintaining the health of the area's wildlife and vegetation by clearing old underbrush and allowing for new growth.

NEW: Fire no danger to visitors, but they'll notice smoke, park service says . The Arnica fire started September 13, wasn't noticed until 10 days later . Fire has prompted closure of main road through park . Lightning sparked fire, officials say .

(CNN) -- A woman accused of killing her 2-year-old daughter and dumping her body in Galveston Bay in Texas has pleaded guilty to tampering with evidence in the case. Kimberly Dawn Trenor is scheduled to go on trial for murder next week in the death of her daughter. But Kimberly Dawn Trenor, 20, pleaded not guilty to the capital murder charge, her lawyer said Wednesday. Trenor and her husband, Royce Clyde Zeigler II, 25, both were charged with tampering with evidence and capital murder in the case of Riley Ann Sawyer, whose body was found in a large blue plastic container on an uninhabited island in Galveston Bay, Texas, in October 2007. The charge of tampering with evidence accused the couple of concealing the child's remains. Trenor was arraigned Tuesday in Galveston, Texas, said her lawyer, Tom Stickler. Jury selection for her trial on the capital murder charge begins Wednesday. The trial will begin in earnest on January 27, he said. The jury also will sentence Trenor on the evidence tampering charge, which carries a penalty of two to 20 years in prison, The Houston Chronicle reported. Zeigler, who is being tried separately, has not been formally arraigned, Stickler said. Both remain in jail. The Houston Chronicle reported bail had been set at $850,000 each. Riley Ann's case garnered national headlines after a fisherman found her body on the island in the bay. Authorities were unsure of her identity, and police dubbed her "Baby Grace." Police distributed composite sketches of the girl nationwide, and Sheryl Sawyers, the girl's paternal grandmother, contacted police from her Ohio home to say the drawing resembled her granddaughter. DNA testing confirmed the child's identity. According to an affidavit, Trenor told police Riley had been beaten and thrown across a room and that her head was held underwater before she died on July 24, 2007. She said the couple hid the girl's body in a storage shed for one to two months before they put it in the plastic container and dumped it into the bay. A medical examiner said Riley's skull was fractured in three places, injuries that would have been fatal. A cross has since been erected on the island where the child was found, which was named Riley's Island in her honor, the Houston Chronicle reported. Trenor moved to Texas from Ohio with the girl in May 2007 to be with Zeigler, whom Trenor had met on the Internet. While in custody, Trenor gave birth this summer to another child, who is now in the care of relatives, Stickler said.

Kimberly Dawn Trenor pleads guilty to tampering with evidence . She faces capital murder trial in death of child known as 'Baby Grace' Child's body was found in plastic container on island in Galveston Bay .

(CNN) -- A woman accused of killing her 2-year-old daughter and dumping her body in Texas' Galveston Bay went on trial Tuesday on capital murder charges in the child's death, court officials said. Kimberly Dawn Trenor has pleaded guilty to an evidence-tampering charge, her attorney says. Kimberly Dawn Trenor, 20, pleaded guilty last week to tampering with evidence in the case, but she pleaded not guilty to the capital murder charge, said her attorney, Tom Stickler. Trenor's husband, Royce Clyde Zeigler II, 25, also faces capital murder and evidence-tampering charges, but is being tried separately and has not been arraigned. The body of Trenor's daughter, Riley Ann Sawyers, was found in October 2007 in a large plastic blue container on an uninhabited island in Galveston Bay. Jurors in Trenor's trial also will determine her sentence on the evidence-tampering charge, which carries a penalty of two to 20 years in prison, according to The Houston Chronicle. Riley Ann's case drew national attention after a fisherman found her body. Authorities were unsure of her identity, and police dubbed her "Baby Grace." After authorities distributed composite sketches of the girl nationwide, Sheryl Sawyers, the girl's paternal grandmother, contacted police from her Ohio home to say the drawing resembled her granddaughter. DNA testing confirmed the child's identity. According to an affidavit, Trenor told police Riley had been beaten and thrown across a room and that her head was held under water before she died on July 24, 2007. She said the couple hid the girl's body in a storage shed for one to two months before they put it in the plastic container and dumped it into the bay. The disposal of the girl's body led to the evidence-tampering charge. A medical examiner said Riley's skull was fractured in three places, injuries that would have been fatal. A capital murder charge carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison, the Chronicle reported. A cross has since been erected on the island where the toddler was found, which was named Riley's Island in her honor, according to the Houston newspaper. Trenor and the girl moved to Texas from Ohio in May 2007 to be with Zeigler, whom Trenor had met on the Internet. While in custody, Trenor gave birth this summer to another child, who is now in the care of relatives, her attorney, Tom Stickler, said.

Kimberly Dawn Trenor accused of killing her 2-year-old known as "Baby Grace" Child's body was found in plastic container on island in Texas' Galveston Bay . Trenor could receive sentence of life in prison if convicted .

(CNN) -- A woman and three children were killed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, when a suspected robber fleeing in a car jumped a curb and struck them, police said Thursday. Four people were killed after a car fleeing police struck a home in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Wednesday. "He literally cut a tree in half," Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey said, "then hit the 1-year-old, [who] was in a stroller. The other individuals were on the front porch of their own home. He struck with such force that it knocked the concrete steps loose." Latoya Smith, 22, died Thursday from injuries in the crash, which occurred shortly after 7:30 p.m. Wednesday in the Fentonville area of north Philadelphia, police Capt. James Clark said. Smith's daughter, Remedy Smith -- who would have turned 1 on Friday -- died at the scene, as did Alicia Griffin, 6, and Gina Rosario, 7, Clark said. Video of the scene showed a crumpled silver Pontiac on the sidewalk, pushed up against the front steps of a house and wedged against a tree. Watch police commissioner describe carnage » Donta Cradock, 18, the alleged driver of the gray Pontiac, faces charges for theft of a motorcycle, the crime that allegedly triggered his flight, police said. Other charges are pending approval from the district attorney's office, police said. "We're hopeful that it will be four counts of murder," Clark said. Cradock and an alleged accomplice, Ivan Rodriguez, 20, stole a motorcycle at gunpoint around 7:30 p.m., he said. Rodriguez fled the scene on the motorcycle, while Cradock drove away in the Pontiac, Clark said. An unidentified person told a traffic police officer in the area about the alleged robbery and pointed out the Pontiac, he said. The police officer followed the car and tried to stop it at a traffic light, Clark said. "At that point the Pontiac fled at a high rate of speed," he said. The officer followed the vehicle, but lost sight of it, Clark said. The officer was not close enough to chase the car, police said, but eventually came across what Clark called a "horrific accident." Cradock was thrown from the Pontiac and is in the hospital, Clark said. He said a gun was recovered on the suspect. Rodriguez was arrested at his home, Clark said, and faces a theft charge. Both men have "very extensive criminal histories," Ramsey said. Bench warrants were out on them at the time of their arrest, Clark said. It was not immediately clear if the two had retained attorneys. CNN's Mark Norman contributed to this report.

Donta Cradock, 18, allegedly fled scene of motorcycle robbery in silver Pontiac . Police chase ends when car hits home, killing Latoya Smith, 3 kids . "He struck with such force that it knocked the concrete steps loose," police say . Cradock and accomplice face motorcycle theft charges; others pending .

(CNN) -- A woman convicted in the 2002 kidnapping of Utah teenager Elizabeth Smart pleaded guilty in the attempted kidnapping of Smart's cousin a month later, court officials said Monday. In exchange for Wanda Barzee's plea of guilty but mentally ill to one count of conspiracy to commit aggravated kidnapping, prosecutors dropped state charges against her in Smart's abduction, said Nancy Volmer, spokeswoman for Utah state courts. Barzee, 64, pleaded guilty in November to federal charges of kidnapping and unlawful transportation of a minor in connection with Smart's abduction. As part of that plea agreement, she agreed to cooperate with the state and federal cases against her husband, Brian David Mitchell, federal prosecutors have said. Barzee and Mitchell were accused of abducting Smart, then 14, at knifepoint from her bedroom in her family's Salt Lake City home in June 2002. Smart was found nine months later, walking down a street in the Salt Lake City suburb of Sandy, Utah, in the company of Barzee and Mitchell, a drifter and self-described prophet who calls himself Emmanuel and had done some handyman work at the Smarts' home. The month after Smart was kidnapped, prosecutors alleged, Barzee and Mitchell attempted to break into the home of her cousin, but were unsuccessful. The girl was 15 years old at the time, according to CNN affiliate KSL. She is not named in court documents. "Mr. Mitchell's attempt was thwarted when the minor child awakened, which caused Mr. Mitchell to flee," the court documents said. Following her arrest in 2003, Barzee told authorities that she and Mitchell went to the home in order to abduct the girl, and planned to hold her, along with Smart, in the couple's camp in the mountains, according to court documents. Sentencing is set for May 21 on the state charge, Volmer said. Barzee faces between one and 15 years in prison, but prosecutors have agreed to allow that sentence to run concurrently with her federal sentence, according to court documents. Federal prosecutors have recommended a sentence of 15 years in prison for her in exchange for her cooperation against Mitchell. Federal sentencing was set for May 19, but a spokeswoman for federal prosecutors has said a sentence would not be imposed until Barzee's cooperation against Mitchell is complete. At the hearing in federal court, Barzee apologized to Smart, according to a transcript. "I'm greatly humbled as I realize how much Elizabeth Smart has been victimized and the role I played in it," she said. "I'm so sorry, Elizabeth, for all the pain and suffering I have caused you and your family. It is my hope that you will be able to find it in your heart to forgive me one day." Barzee had been housed at the Utah State Hospital while courts determined her competency as well as Mitchell's. After years of being declared incompetent, she recently was declared competent to stand trial, according to the Salt Lake Tribune newspaper. A state court had ruled she could be forcibly medicated, and that ruling led federal prosecutors to proceed with bringing a case against the couple, the Tribune said. At a competency hearing for Mitchell in October, Smart, now 21, testified that she had been held captive in Utah and California. Just after her abduction, Mitchell took her to a wooded area behind her home and performed a mock marriage ceremony with her, she said. During the nine months of her captivity, Smart testified, no 24-hour period passed without her being raped by Mitchell. U.S. District Judge Dale Kimball has not yet ruled on Mitchell's competency. State court proceedings are on hold pending the outcome of the federal case. CNN's Ashley Hayes and Eliott McLaughlin contributed to this report.

In exchange for plea, Barzee's state charges in Smart's abduction have been dropped . Prosecutors: Barzee, husband tried to kidnap Smart's cousin month after taking Smart . Barzee, husband kidnapped Smart -- then 14 -- in Utah in 2002, prosecutors say . Barzee already has pleaded guilty to federal charges in Smart's abduction .

(CNN) -- A woman hospitalized after spending time in a sauna-like "sweatbox" has died, bringing the total fatalities to three, authorities said late Saturday. Retreat participants spent up to two hours inside the sweatbox, the sheriff's office said. In addition to the deaths, 18 others were injured at the October 8 event at Angel Valley Retreat Center near Sedona, Arizona. The latest victim, Lizabeth Neuman, 49, was a Minnesota mother of three. She died at the Flagstaff Medical Center, the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office said. There were up to 65 visitors, ages 30 to 60, at the resort attending the "Spiritual Warrior" program by self-help expert James Arthur Ray, according to authorities. Participants spent up to two hours inside the sweatbox, a dome-like structure covered with tarps and blankets, the sheriff's office said. Hot rocks and water are used to create steam in the enclosed environment. Neuman's attorney, Lou Diesel, told CNN her family is cooperating with the investigation and once it's complete, he will "take all the appropriate actions in response to those responsible for Liz's death." Fire and rescue officials received an emergency call from the resort and transported the injured by air and land ambulances to nearby medical facilities, the sheriff's office said. Two people were pronounced dead shortly after arrival at a local medical center. A homicide investigation into the incident is under way, authorities said. The other retreat participants who were hospitalized have since been released. Ray is widely known for programs that claim to teach individuals how to create wealth from all aspects of their lives -- financially, mentally, physically and spiritually. He has appeared on various national programs, including CNN's "Larry King Live." CNN's Janet DiGiacomo contributed to this report.

"Sweatbox" retreat claims third victim, a Minnesota woman . Retreat participants fell ill after spending hours in hot, dome-like structure . "Spiritual Warrior" program was led by self-help guru James Arthur Ray . Police are conducting a homicide investigation into "sweatbox" deaths .

(CNN) -- A woman in rural Papua New Guinea was bound and gagged, tied to a log and set ablaze on a pile of tires this week, possibly because villagers suspected her of being a witch, police said Thursday. Her death adds to a growing list of men and women who have been accused of sorcery and then tortured or killed in the South Pacific island nation, where traditional beliefs hold sway in many regions. The victims are often scapegoats for someone else's unexplained death, and bands of tribesmen collude to mete out justice to them for their supposed magical powers, police said. "We have had difficulties in a number of previous incidents convincing people to come forward with information," said Simon Kauba, assistant commissioner of police and commander of the Highlands region, where the killing occurred. "We are trying to persuade them to help. Somebody lost their mother or daughter or sister Tuesday morning." Early Tuesday, a group of people dragged the woman, believed to be in her late teens to early 20s, to a dumping ground outside the city of Mount Hagen. They stripped her naked, bound her hands and legs, stuffed a cloth in her mouth, tied her to a log and set her on fire, Kauba said. "When the people living nearby went to the dump site to investigate what caused the fire, they found a human being burning in the flames," he said. "It was ugly." The country's Post-Courier newspaper reported Thursday that more than 50 people were killed in two Highlands provinces last year for allegedly practicing sorcery. In a well-publicized case last year, a pregnant woman gave birth to a baby girl while struggling to free herself from a tree. Villagers had dragged the woman from her house and hung her from the tree, accusing her of sorcery after her neighbor suddenly died. She and the baby survived, according to media reports. The killing of witches, or sangumas, is not a new phenomenon in rural areas of the country. Emory University anthropology professor Bruce Knauft, who lived in a village in the western province of Papua New Guinea in the early 1980s, traced family histories for 42 years and found that one in three adult deaths were homicides -- "the bulk of these being collective killings of suspected sorcerers," he wrote in his book, "From Primitive to Postcolonial in Melanesia and Anthropology." In recent years, as AIDS has taken a toll in the nation of 6.7 million people, villagers have blamed suspected witches -- and not the virus -- for the deaths. According to the United Nations, Papua New Guinea accounts for 90 percent of the Pacific region's HIV cases and is one of four Asia-Pacific countries with an epidemic. "We've had a number of cases where people were killed because they were accused of spreading HIV or AIDS," Kauba said. While there is plenty of speculation why Tuesday's victim was killed, police said they are focused more on who committed the crime. "If it is phobias about alleged HIV/AIDS or claims of a sexual affair, we must urge the police and judiciary to throw the book at the offenders," the Post-Courier wrote in an editorial. "There are remedies far, far better than to torture and immolate a young woman before she can be judged by a lawful system."

Woman suspected to be witch in Papua New Guinea burned alive . Death adds to growing list of people accused of sorcery tortured or killed . Victims are often scapegoats for someone else's unexplained death .

(CNN) -- A woman put on trial for wearing clothing deemed indecent by Sudanese authorities was jailed Monday for refusing to pay a court-ordered fine, her lawyer said. Sudanese journalist Lubna Ahmed al-Hussein was facing 40 lashes for wearing trousers. Lubna al-Hussein had faced 40 lashes for wearing pants deemed too tight and a blouse considered too sheer. The threat of lashes was dropped when a court found her guilty but ordered instead that she pay a fine. "She is now in jail," her attorney Nabil Adib told CNN. "She refused to pay the fine as a matter of principal." Al-Hussein will appeal her verdict in an effort to have the conservative Muslim government's decency law declared unconstitutional, Adib said by phone from Khartoum. Watch what outfit brought the charges » "We intend to file an appeal within the next three days, but we do not know how long it will take the court of appeals to decide on the case," Adib said. "We expect it will happen in the next two to three weeks." He said al-Hussein could be in jail for a month unless her verdict is overturned. Al-Hussein, who was arrested in July, pleaded not guilty during her one-day trial Monday, he said. She was not allowed to call defense witnesses or present a defense case, he added. She was sentenced to pay 500 Sudanese pounds ($209) or face a month in prison, starting immediately, the lawyer said. "She thinks that she did not have fair trial and a conviction was wrong so she did not want to pay the fine nor let anyone else pay on her behalf," Nadib said. Al-Hussein, a journalist who worked in the media department of the United Nations mission in Sudan, resigned from her U.N. position in order to waive her immunity as an international worker and face trial. Police lobbed tear gas at people outside the courthouse Monday, and closed roads leading to the courthouse before the trial began, al-Hussein told CNN before the hearing. Sudanese security forces roughly handled scores of al-Hussein supporters, injuring some and detaining 47 women, according to an eyewitness who spoke to CNN by phone. A Sudanese official accused "the West" of interfering in the case. Mohammed Khair, the information attaché at the Sudan Consulate in Dubai, said the international campaign surrounding the case "proves the West contributes only toward deepening (the) crisis." The human rights organization Amnesty International had previously called for the charges to be dropped. "The manner in which this law has been used against women is unacceptable, and the penalty called for by the law -- up to 40 lashes -- abhorrent," Tawanda Hondora, deputy director of Amnesty International's Africa program, said in a statement. Al-Hussein was arrested along with 18 other women on July 3 at a Khartoum restaurant when police burst in and checked women for their clothing. "I don't think she was targeted specifically," Adib said. "They attack public and private parties and groups. They are called 'morality police' and she was just a victim of a round-up." Put your questions to Dutch activist Ayaan Hirsi Ali here At the time of her arrest, she said, she was wearing pants, a blouse and a hijab, or a headscarf worn by Muslim women. Scores of protesters gathered outside the courtroom in Khartoum to support al-Hussein in early August, when she was last scheduled to be tried. The demonstrators carried banners and wore headbands with the messages, "No return to the dark ages" and "No to suppressing women." Others demanded an amendment to the country's public order law that human rights activists say is vague on what constitutes indecent dress. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said he is concerned about al-Hussein's case. "The United Nations will make every effort to ensure that the rights of its staff members are protected," Ban said

Woman tried for wearing clothing deemed indecent jailed for refusing to pay fine . Sudanese court spared female journalist lashing for wearing tight trousers . She faced up to 40 lashes for wearing pants considered too tight . Resigned U.N. position to avoid immunity afforded international workers .

(CNN) -- A woman to woman talk between Oprah Winfrey and the former head of her South African girls school ended with the settlement of a defamation lawsuit against the talk show host, their lawyers said. Lerato Nomvuyo Mzamane sued Winfrey, contending she defamed Mzamane when talking about an abuse scandal at the school she ran in 2007. The case was set for trial in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, starting March 29. "The two parties met woman to woman without their lawyers and are happy that they could resolve this dispute peacefully to their mutual satisfaction," the attorneys said in a joint statement Tuesday. Mzamane was immediately suspended and later fired after several students at Winfrey's South African leadership academy complained about abuse. A dorm mother was later charged with abusing and assaulting students. The lawsuit contended that Winfrey's statements at a private meeting with parents, which later became public, and at a news conference defamed the headmistress by implying she knew of the abuse and covered it up. Mzamane said the abuse complaints were never brought to her and that Winfrey never let her explain. "Ms. Winfrey testified in her deposition that she did not intend the implications placed on her words by the plaintiff," the joint statement said. "Ms. Mzamane testified in her deposition that she has no evidence that Ms. Winfrey knowingly made a false statement about her or entertained serious doubt about the truth of what she said." U.S. District Judge Eduardo Robreno ruled a week ago that Winfrey's comments could potentially be interpreted by a jury to be defamatory. The decision cleared the path for a trial. The suit quoted Winfrey telling parents that "any person that has caused harm" to students would be let go. In the next sentence, Winfrey said she fired Mzamane because she had lost confidence in her ability to run the school. Winfrey also told the parents that when students brought their complaints to the headmistress, she "had not taken them seriously," the suit said. The suit said one Winfrey quote cited suggested Mzamane, a native of the African kingdom of Lesotho, did not have a high-enough level of care for the students: "It was my intention by putting somebody in charge who was African, and was female, I believed that she would care as much for these girls as I do myself. I'm sorry I was let down." Mzamane's suit said the damage to her reputation resulted in her not being able to get another education job for a year. When Winfrey opened the school at the beginning of 2007, she said she hoped it would provide opportunities to girls from poor backgrounds. She personally approved each of the students, many of whom were at the top of their classes.

The talk show host founded a girls leadership school in South Africa in 2007 . Lerato Nomvuyo Mzamane was suspended, later fired after student complaints of abuse . Mzamane claimed in lawsuit that Oprah Winfrey has defamed her . The two women meet without their lawyers and agree to settle lawsuit .

(CNN) -- A woman who gave birth to a stillborn boy was left distraught after she discovered his body was kept in a jar for four years by the hospital. Jo-Ann Burrows believed for years that her son had been cremated before making the grim discovery about his fate. The mother-of-five is now taking legal action against the hospital authorities in Hampshire, southern England, the UK's Press Association reported Thursday. PA reported that Ms Burrows had daughter Ellie in April 2004 at the Hythe Birthing Centre, in Hampshire, but gave birth to the stillborn twin two days later at home. She said that an ultrasound scan taken the previous December had not revealed that she was carrying a twin, according to PA. After the stillbirth, Ms Burrows, 44, was taken to the Princess Anne maternity hospital in Southampton, also in southern England, where she gave her consent for the body to be cremated. PA reported that she has spent the past four years asking for the funeral papers and ashes. The 44-year-old is now organizing a naming ceremony and funeral for the stillborn, whose twin sister survived. Ms Burrows was quoted in her local newspaper, the Southern Daily Echo, as saying: "This experience has made me suicidal, if it wasn't for my friends and family I wouldn't be here. "I kept asking for my baby's funeral papers because I was always worried that he might be in a jar somewhere. I still couldn't believe it when I found out." She was informed through her solicitor in February that the hospital still had the baby and has now filed a medical negligence claim against Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust. It claims the Trust failed to "exercise reasonable care and skill when performing the ultrasound and also focuses on Ms Burrows' repeated requests for confirmation of the cremation," PA reported. A Trust spokeswoman told the news agency: "Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust confirms that legal proceedings have been brought against it by Ms Jo-Ann Burrows. "The chief executive has already written to Ms Burrows apologizing for shortcomings in the treatment provided to her and, in particular, for the circumstances which led to Ms Burrows' second twin not being cremated in 2004 as they had previously advised and for the distress this discovery may have caused."

Woman's stillborn baby kept in jar for four years by hospital . Jo-Ann Burrows believed for years that her son had been cremated . The mother-of-five is now taking legal action against the hospital authorities .

(CNN) -- A woman who has been in a vegetative state for nearly 17 years was transferred to a private clinic Tuesday where she is expected to die -- ending what has been a lengthy and controversial legal fight. A portrait of Eluana Englaro taken in July 2008 in Italy. Englaro has been in a vegetative state for nearly 17 years. Eluana Englaro suffered irreversible brain damage in a car crash in 1992, when she was 20 years old. For years, her father has fought to have her feeding tube removed, saying it would be a dignified end to his daughter's life. Beppino Englaro says that before the crash, his daughter visited a friend who was in a coma and told him she didn't want the same thing to happen to her should she ever be in the same state. Euthanasia is illegal in Italy, but patients have the right to refuse treatment. It is on that basis that Englaro argued his daughter should be allowed to die, because she had expressed the wish not to be kept alive while in a coma -- indirectly refusing treatment, he said. "We knew Eluana well, and we always thought of her as a champion of freedom," her father said in October. "She had clear ideas about her life and for her, life was about freedom -- not an obligation to live." A series of legal battles finally ended in November, when Italy's highest court, the Court of Cassation, upheld a lower court ruling allowing Englaro to suspend his daughter's treatment. But although Englaro had cleared the last legal hurdle, the court's decision sparked a new fight to find a hospital or clinic that would take out Eluana's feeding tube. Several clinics initially came forward to say they could do it, but the Italian health minister then issued a decree to remind them of their duty of care. Under pressure to adhere to his decree, the clinics backed off. Finally, a private clinic in the northeastern Italian city of Udine agreed to assist in Eluana's case. Monday night, Eluana was transferred from the church-run hospital in Lecco, north of Milan, where she had been kept alive to the Udine clinic. A handful of protesters tried to block the ambulance carrying Eluana from leaving the clinic, one of them holding a banner reading, "Only thieves and assassins act at night." The case has been a controversial one in Italy, a heavily Catholic country where the Vatican has great influence. Last Sunday, Pope Benedict XVI told pilgrims that "euthanasia is a false solution to suffering." Tuesday morning, a top Vatican official was quoted in the Italian media saying, "Stop the killer hands." The Udine clinic says the removal of Eluana's tube will begin in about three days, and the process of allowing her to die will take about 20 days. Clinic officials gave police an outline of the specific steps they are going to take with Eluana during that time. The outline adheres to the Cassation Court's ruling, which required certain steps and conditions once Eluana's feeding tube is removed. Among the steps and conditions was a rule that no video or photography may be taken and that only certain people may enter the patient's room.

Eluana Englaro has been in a coma for 17 years after a car crash . Englaro was transferred to a private clinic Tuesday where she is expected to die . Her father has fought for years to have her feeding tube removed .

(CNN) -- A woman who pleaded guilty to kidnapping Utah teenager Elizabeth Smart in 2002 -- and attempting to kidnap Smart's cousin a month later -- will be sentenced for both offenses in state and federal court Friday. Wanda Eileen Barzee, 64, pleaded guilty in November to federal charges of kidnapping and unlawful transportation of a minor in Smart's kidnapping. As part of that plea agreement, she agreed to cooperate with the state and federal cases against her husband, Brian David Mitchell, federal prosecutors have said. Barzee and Mitchell were accused of abducting Smart, then 14, at knifepoint from her bedroom in her family's Salt Lake City, Utah, home in June 2002. Smart was found nine months later, walking down a street in the Salt Lake City suburb of Sandy in the company of Barzee and Mitchell, a drifter and self-described prophet who calls himself Emmanuel and had done some handyman work at the Smarts' home. Federal prosecutors have recommended Barzee be sentenced to 15 years in prison in exchange for cooperation against Mitchell. In state court in February, Barzee pleaded guilty but mentally ill to one count of conspiracy to commit aggravated kidnapping in the attempted kidnapping of Smart's cousin. In exchange for her plea, prosecutors dropped state charges against her in Smart's abduction, said Nancy Volmer, spokeswoman for Utah state courts. The month after Smart was kidnapped, prosecutors alleged, Barzee and Mitchell attempted to break into the home of her cousin, but were unsuccessful. The girl was 15 years old at the time, according to CNN affiliate KSL-TV. She is not named in court documents. "Mr. Mitchell's attempt was thwarted when the minor child awakened, which caused Mr. Mitchell to flee," the court documents say. After her arrest in 2003, Barzee told authorities that she and Mitchell went to the home to abduct the girl, and planned to hold her, along with Smart, in the couple's camp in the mountains, according to court documents. Barzee faces between one and 15 years in state prison. But prosecutors have agreed to allow that sentence to run concurrently with her federal sentence if she cooperates with the case against Mitchell, said Mark Biljanic, spokesman for the Salt Lake County district attorney's office. The federal sentencing will be held first Friday, at 10:30 a.m., followed by the state court sentencing at 1 p.m. When she entered pleaded guilty to Smart's kidnapping in federal court, Barzee apologized to Smart, according to a transcript. "I'm greatly humbled as I realize how much Elizabeth Smart has been victimized and the role I played in it," she said. "I'm so sorry, Elizabeth, for all the pain and suffering I have caused you and your family. It is my hope that you will be able to find it in your heart to forgive me one day." Barzee had been housed at the Utah State Hospital while courts determined her competency as well as Mitchell's. After years of being declared incompetent, she recently was declared competent to stand trial, according to the Salt Lake Tribune newspaper. A state court had ruled she could be forcibly medicated, and that ruling led federal prosecutors to proceed with bringing a case against the couple, the Tribune said. At a competency hearing for Mitchell in October, Smart, now 21, testified that she had been held captive in Utah and California. Just after her abduction, Mitchell took her to a wooded area behind her home and performed a mock marriage ceremony with her, she said. During the nine months of her captivity, Smart testified, no 24-hour period passed without her being raped by Mitchell. In March, U.S. District Judge Dale Kimball ruled Mitchell competent to stand trial. His federal trial is set to begin November 1. State court proceedings against him are on hold pending the outcome of the federal case.

Wanda Barzee to be sentenced Friday on federal kidnapping, state attempted kidnapping charges . Faces 1 to 15 years in prison for incident involving Elizabeth Smart's cousin . Barzee pleaded guilty in 2002 Elizabeth Smart kidnapping . Prosecutors recommend state sentence to run concurrent with federal .

(CNN) -- A woman who was beheaded near Buffalo, New York -- allegedly by her husband -- may have been on the phone with her sister when she was killed. Muzzammil Hassan has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of his wife, Aasiya Zubair Hassan. Asma Firfirey of suburban Cape Town, South Africa, told the Afrikaans newspaper Die Burger that she was on the phone with her sister, Aasiya Zubair Hassan, last week when she heard Hassan tell her husband to calm down. She said she heard Hassan say the two could talk about their impending divorce the following day. Then she heard something that sounded like her sister struggling to breathe, she said. "I can only imagine how scared and emotional she must have been before she died," Firfirey said in the interview, reported in English by South Africa's News 24. Police have charged Hassan's husband, Muzzammil Hassan, with second-degree, or intentional, murder in the death of his wife, according to the Erie County District Attorney's Office. Her decapitated body was found at the offices of Bridges TV, the television network where Muzzammil Hassan was chief executive officer and Aasiya Hassan was general manager. Hassan told Orchard Park police his wife was dead, led officers to her body and was arrested Thursday, said Erie County District Attorney Frank Sedita III. He is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday. Orchard Park Police Chief Andrew Benz on Tuesday contradicted a CNN report that quoted him as saying Hassan confessed to the crime. A Buffalo attorney told CNN on Tuesday that he expects to represent Hassan but declined further comment, saying details had not yet been worked out. Hassan came to America from Pakistan 25 years ago and became a successful banker, but he and his wife were troubled by the negative perception of Muslims, Voice of America reported in 2004. Speaking in December 2004, Hassan said his wife, then pregnant, was worried about that perception and "felt there should be an American Muslim media where her kids could grow up feeling really strong about their identity as an American Muslim." "So she came up with the idea and turned to me and said, 'Why don't you do it?' " he said. "And I was like, I have no clue about television. I'm a banker. ... And her comment was, 'You have an MBA. Why don't you write a business plan?' " Bridges TV began as a television network for Muslim-Americans, aimed at overcoming the negative stereotypes associated with the religion. "There should be a Muslim media," Muzzammil Hassan told VOA, "so that Muslim children growing up in America grow up with the self-confidence and high self-esteem about their identity both as Americans and as Muslims." In the past few years, according to a former employee who asked not to be named for fear of retribution, Bridges TV transformed itself into more of a cross-cultural network seeking to bridge the gap between all cultures. Most of their employees were not Muslim, the former employee said, and Muzzammil Hassan himself was not devout. Aasiya Hassan filed for divorce February 6, police said, and Muzzammil Hassan was served with divorce papers at the station. That night, he showed up at the couple's home, she notified authorities and he was served with a restraining order. Police are not commenting on details of the crime, except to say the woman's body did not appear to have been moved. They also would not divulge what Muzzammil Hassan told police or the suspected motive. The law firm representing Aasiya Hassan refused to comment, only confirming that she had filed for divorce. Benz told CNN on Tuesday that police had responded to several domestic violence calls at the couple's address, but no one was arrested. Firfirey, as well as a Pakistani woman identifying herself as another of Aasiya Hassan's sisters, characterized her as living in fear. Firfirey said the last time she saw her sister was in May 2008, when she visited South Africa.

New York man charged with second-degree murder after wife found beheaded . Police: Woman's decapitated body found at TV station where she, husband worked . Report: Sister says she may have been on phone with victim when she was killed . Aasiya Zubair Hassan had filed for divorce from Muzzammil Hassan days earlier .

(CNN) -- A woman who was beheaded near Buffalo, New York -- allegedly by her husband -- may have been on the phone with her sister when she was killed. Muzzammil Hassan has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of his wife, Aasiya Zubair Hassan. Asma Firfirey of suburban Cape Town, South Africa, told the Afrikaans newspaper Die Burger that she was on the phone with her sister, Aasiya Zubair Hassan, last week when she heard Hassan tell her husband to calm down. She said she heard Hassan say the two could talk about their impending divorce the following day. Then she heard something that sounded like her sister struggling to breathe, she said. "I can only imagine how scared and emotional she must have been before she died," Firfirey said in the interview, reported in English by South Africa's News 24. Police have charged Hassan's husband, Muzzammil Hassan, with second-degree, or intentional, murder in the death of his wife, according to the Erie County District Attorney's Office. Her decapitated body was found at the offices of Bridges TV, the television network where Muzzammil Hassan was chief executive officer and Aasiya Hassan was general manager. Hassan told Orchard Park police his wife was dead, led officers to her body and was arrested Thursday, said Erie County District Attorney Frank Sedita III. He is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday. Orchard Park Police Chief Andrew Benz on Tuesday contradicted a CNN report that quoted him as saying Hassan confessed to the crime. A Buffalo attorney told CNN on Tuesday that he expects to represent Hassan but declined further comment, saying details had not yet been worked out. Hassan came to America from Pakistan 25 years ago and became a successful banker, but he and his wife were troubled by the negative perception of Muslims, Voice of America reported in 2004. Speaking in December 2004, Hassan said his wife, then pregnant, was worried about that perception and "felt there should be an American Muslim media where her kids could grow up feeling really strong about their identity as an American Muslim." "So she came up with the idea and turned to me and said, 'Why don't you do it?' " he said. "And I was like, I have no clue about television. I'm a banker. ... And her comment was, 'You have an MBA. Why don't you write a business plan?' " Bridges TV began as a television network for Muslim-Americans, aimed at overcoming the negative stereotypes associated with the religion. "There should be a Muslim media," Muzzammil Hassan told VOA, "so that Muslim children growing up in America grow up with the self-confidence and high self-esteem about their identity both as Americans and as Muslims." In the past few years, according to a former employee who asked not to be named for fear of retribution, Bridges TV transformed itself into more of a cross-cultural network seeking to bridge the gap between all cultures. Most of their employees were not Muslim, the former employee said, and Muzzammil Hassan himself was not devout. Aasiya Hassan filed for divorce February 6, police said, and Muzzammil Hassan was served with divorce papers at the station. That night, he showed up at the couple's home, she notified authorities and he was served with a restraining order. Police are not commenting on details of the crime, except to say the woman's body did not appear to have been moved. They also would not divulge what Muzzammil Hassan told police or the suspected motive. The law firm representing Aasiya Hassan refused to comment, only confirming that she had filed for divorce. Benz told CNN on Tuesday that police had responded to several domestic violence calls at the couple's address, but no one was arrested. Firfirey, as well as a Pakistani woman identifying herself as another of Aasiya Hassan's sisters, characterized her as living in fear. Firfirey said the last time she saw her sister was in May 2008, when she visited South Africa.

New York man charged with second-degree murder after wife found beheaded . Police: Woman's decapitated body found at TV station where she, husband worked . Report: Sister says she may have been on phone with victim when she was killed . Aasiya Zubair Hassan had filed for divorce from Muzzammil Hassan days earlier .

(CNN) -- A year ago Thursday, I-Report was born. CNN.com launched its I-Report initiative August 2, 2006, in an effort to involve citizens in the newsgathering process. Numerous milestones later, I-Report has grown and developed its ability to be an integral component of the network's coverage. Mark Lacroix photographed the collapsed bridge from his apartment window. On the eve of its anniversary, I-Reporters responded to yet another major news event: the deadly collapse of a bridge over the Mississippi river in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Mark Lacroix sent photos of the scene immediately after the disaster. As the story developed, he provided information about the situation to viewers live on television. Lacroix's photos were among the more than 450 I-Report submissions sent to CNN within the first 24 hours of the bridge's collapse -- the biggest response in one day to a single news event in I-Report history. CNN.com readers have long been submitting photos and video, as well as speaking with CNN reporters, during major breaking news events. (Check out our timeline of I-Report milestones) » On April 16, Jamal Albarghouti sent cell phone video of the Virginia Tech shooting in Blacksburg, Virginia, as the dramatic events were unfolding. More recently, when fireballs began exploding from an industrial gas facility in Dallas, Texas, in July, I-Reporters wasted no time in recording video as smoke and debris rose into the air. Justin Randall was in a convertible during the incident and tried to drive around blast debris on a highway. He sent video of the explosions, showing flames rising high into the air. During a steam pipe explosion in New York, Jonathan Thompson sent video of a powerful surge of steam rising from the ground and rescuers scrambling to secure the area. He followed up later that month by sending footage of repairs being made to the crater left behind. E-mail to a friend

I-Report initiative launched August 2, 2006, on CNN.com . Citizen journalists have participated in CNN's newsgathering . More than 6,000 I-Report submissions last month .

(CNN) -- A year ago, employees at Boiron, a medical manufacturing company, wined and dined at the Ritz-Carlton Golf & Spa Resort overlooking the picturesque bay in Rose Hall, Jamaica, for their annual retreat. The InterContinental Montelucia Resort & Spa is subtly scaling back amid a sagging economy. This year, employees are saying goodbye to luxury as company President Ludovic Rassat moved the event to a more sensible location: the Sheraton Suites Philadelphia Airport. Many of his employees who live near the hotel are expected to sleep at home. "It's important to see we are making decisions for the good of the company," Rassat said. "At the end of the day, it's going to be good for them. Their jobs are still going to be there." With a mentality like Rassat's pervading the business and leisure traveler psyche, luxury hotels are bleeding occupancy and revenue at a rate far worse than the travel slump experienced after September 11, travel experts say. To overcome their financial woes, luxury hotels are dropping rates, giving customers incentives and finding ways to cut operating costs without compromising the integrity of their posh images. Starwood Hotel & Resorts, which owns the chic W and St Regis hotels, is offering existing and new members of its preferred guest program the opportunity to earn a free weekend night with two stays at any of Starwood's hotels from May through July. Guests can use their free night through the end of September across Starwood's brands, including many of the company's luxury properties. This summer, Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, which operates five-star properties around the world, will offer customers who book particular packages free breakfast and a $100 resort credit. Washington's Willard Intercontinental Hotel is offering a "buy two nights, get a third night free" promotion for weekend stays through December. From December to February, occupancy in luxury hotels, a category that includes names such as the Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts and Ritz-Carlton Hotel Co. sunk more than 15 percent -- a steeper drop than at mid-level hotels, according to leading hotel industry watcher Smith Travel Research Inc. The revenue generated from the available luxury rooms fell 23 percent in that same three-month period, according to the Smith Travel Research report. Meanwhile, there are 551,610 rooms opening this year amid sluggish consumer demand, according to a STR construction pipeline report in March. And when the economy rebounds, the luxury lodging segment will take longer to recover. "Luxury hotels will lag behind the rest of the hotel industry," said Bobby Bowers, senior vice president of operations at STR. "They have ups and downs that are steeper than the industry as a whole." PKF Consulting forecasts that the luxury hotel segment will stay in red ink until 2011. Things have gotten so bad that some upscale-hotel owners across the country are delaying hotel construction to save money. Other developers are facing foreclosure or have scrapped future hotel plans altogether, industry experts say. Much of the luxury hotel business' slowdown has been driven by guilt, some executives say. Business leaders fear that they might look too excessive by staying at an upscale hotel as pink slips and pay freezes become ubiquitous. One high-end resort in Amelia Island, Florida, had one of its business customers suggest that the hotel drop the word "island" from its address to downplay the resort's exclusive image. Many companies such as Starwood and Rosewood are trying to lure customers by giving free nights and dining and spa credits without significantly lowering room rates, which could tarnish their exclusive appeal. Hotel operators hope that offering guests free nights will encourage them to spend more money overall. Other hotels prefer bundling their rates in packages so it is difficult to tell how much the prices have dropped. "They need to protect the image of their property," explained Erik Herskind, a principle at Greenlight, a Dallas, Texas-based company that works with luxury hotels. "They need to feel like even in this tough time, they are a prestigious place, so they

Occupancy in luxury hotels dropped 15 percent from December to February . Executives are avoiding meetings at fancy resorts to cut costs and appear frugal . Luxury hotels are offering free nights and spa credits to attract new customers . Rates at luxury hotels in Las Vegas, Nevada, have dropped 30 percent .

(CNN) -- A young Iranian woman named Neda is gunned down in one of the most iconic images of the last week. Another walks down the street, defiantly showing off her hair and body in a revealing dress. And still another woman says she's not scared of paramilitary forces -- no matter how many times she gets beaten. Women have taken to the streets of Tehran. "This shows the new face of Iran," one expert says. "When they want to hit me, I say hit. I have been hit so many times and this time it doesn't matter. I just want to help my brothers and sisters," says the 19-year-old woman whose identity is being withheld by CNN for her safety. Amid the clashes and chaos, there has been a recurring scene on the streets of Tehran: Women, in their scarves and traditional clothing, at the heart of the struggle. Some are seen collecting rocks for ammunition against security forces, while video showed one woman trying to protect a fallen pro-government militiaman wounded in the government crackdown. At Shiraz University, riot police clubbed women dressed in black robes. "Don't beat them, you bastards," one man yells. When security forces come to attack, the 19-year-old woman protester says she looks them in the eye and asks: "Why do you kill your brother? Why do you hit your mother, your sisters?" "We all tell them, if you're Iranian, you shouldn't do that to your people, to your own country's people," she told CNN by phone. Watch woman stand up in defiance to power » But it's the woman known as Neda who has become the symbol of women on the front line that has galvanized opponents of the Iranian regime. In a widely circulated video, Neda is seen in the middle of protests over the weekend. She is shot and drops to the ground. Blood runs from the side of her mouth as a few people, including her music professor traveling with her, press on her chest and shout her name. One pleads, "Do not be afraid." The camera closes in on her face as her eyes roll back and are still. Karim Sadjadpour, an associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said the image of Neda and other women at the protests showed the difference from the 1979 revolution. "The iconic pictures from the revolution 30 years ago were bearded men. This shows the new face of Iran -- the young women who are the vanguards of Iran." See images of protests » Abbas Milani, the director of Iranian Studies at Stanford University, agreed that Neda was becoming a symbol for all the women who have become involved in the turmoil that has followed the disputed election. "She will become the image of this brutality and the role -- the truly significant role -- that women have played in fighting this regime. I think that women are the unsung heroes of the last few years. They are the ones who began chipping away the absolute authority of the mullahs." The protests haven't just been confined to Iran's everyday women. The daughter of former President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani was arrested over the weekend while taking part in a protest. She was later released. In addition, Zahra Rahnavard, the wife of Mir Hossein Moussavi, whose apparent defeat in Iran's presidential election has sparked the unprecedented demonstrations, campaigned for her husband, an unusual step in politics in Iran. Her public support of his candidacy underscored his professed support for women's rights. Learn more about the timeline of events » And in another act of defiance, apparently from after the election, a woman who appears to be in her 20s or 30s walks down a street in Tehran, showing off her body in a revealing dress and displaying her long, curly hair. In Iran, women are forbidden to show their hair, and they must keep their bodies covered. "Lady, is it a revolution already?" one female driver says as she passes by. The 19-year-

Recurring theme of Iranian protests: Women defiantly standing up against authority . 19-year-old woman says, "When they want to hit me, I say hit." A young woman named Neda has become the rallying cry of protesters . "This shows the new face of Iran -- the young women who are the vanguards of Iran"

(CNN) -- AC Milan and Roma played out a goalless draw in Italy's Serie A in a result which does little to enhance the title ambitions of neither side. The result left Inter Milan three points clear at the top of the table and they will be able to increase that lead to six if they claim victory over Genoa at the San Siro on Sunday night. Roma began the brighter of the two sides and Cristian Abiatti saved well from a Julio Baptista shot while Daniele De Rossi screwed a shot wide when well placed. The visitors were much improved after the half-time break and controlled possession but were unable to create many chances although Marco Borriello squandered a good chance when he opted to shoot instead of passing to Klaas-Jan Huntelaar. John-Arne Riise's dangerous cross was met by the head of Mirko Vucinic in the 74th minute but the Montenegro striker was unable to direct his attempt on goal. Brazilian Ronaldinho also went close with a header from David Beckham's cross in the dying stages as the match ended in a stalemate. In Saturday's other game Juventus moved back into the top four in Serie A thanks to a narrow 2-1 victory over Fiorentina at the Stadio Artemio Franchi. The Turin giants were under pressure following a defeat to Palermo last weekend and coach Alberto Zaccheroni got the response he requested from his players. Juventus took the lead through Brazilian playmaker Diego in only the second minute of the game when he took the ball round Fiorentina goalkeeper Sebastian Frey and fired home after collecting an intelligent through-ball from Antonio Candreva. Fiorentina responded positively and gained a deserved equalizer when former Juventus midfielder Marco Marchionni headed past stand-in goalkeeper Alex Manninger in the 32nd minute. Marchionni then missed a chance to put his side ahead moments before the break when he fired a shot when well placed inside the penalty area. Juventus improved after the interval and David Trezeguet tested Frey with a volley before the visitors took the lead for the second time in the 68th minute when Fabio Grosso crashed a shot into the top corner. Zaccheroni's side could have extended their advantage in injury time but a superb double save from Frey denied Claudio Marchisio.

AC Milan and Roma played out a goalless draw in Italy's Serie A . Juventus moved back into the top four in Serie A thanks to a narrow win over Fiorentina . Diego and midfielder Marco Marchionni grabbed the goals for Alberto Zaccheroni's side.

(CNN) -- AC Milan have swooped to sign Standard Liege defender Oguchi Onyewu on a three-year contract -- making him the first American to appear in Serie A since Alexi Lalas in 1996. Onyewu will become the first American since Alexi Lalas to appear in Italian Serie A after joining AC Milan. Onyewu, who has also played in the English Premier League with Newcastle United, has moved to the San Siro on a free transfer after impressing with some superb displays during the United States' run to the Confederations Cup final. The 27-year-old has played 38 times for his country, scoring five goals.Latest transfer gossip and rumors "This transaction shows once again the excellent friendly relationship between our club and Belgian club Standard Liege, particularly their executive vice-president Luciano D'Onofrio," said a statement on Milan's official Web site. The six-foot four-inch player was born in Washington DC to Nigerian parents but began his club career at Metz in France in 2002. He was loaned out to La Louviere in Belgium in 2003 and his form there earnt him a move to Liege, where he won two Belgian titles. He then joined Newcastle on loan, playing 11 league matches. However, the transfer is unlikely to appease the Milan supporters who are unhappy with the summer sale of Brazilian superstar Kaka to Real Madrid -- and the departure of coach Carlo Ancelotti to Chelsea. About 300 fans protested outside the club's Milanello base on the first day of pre-season training on Monday, complaining at the lack of big name signings.

AC Milan swoop to sign up American international defender Oguchi Onyewu . The 27-year-old joins from Belgians Standard Liege on a three-year contract . Onyewu is the first American to appear in Serie A since Alexi Lalas in the 90s .

(CNN) -- AC Milan wasted a golden opportunity to close the gap on leaders and city rivals Inter at the top of the Italian Serie A table after being held to a 1-1 draw at home to lowly Livorno. With Inter's match at Parma postponed because of heavy snow, a Milan win would have closed the gap at the top of the table to eight points -- with both teams having played 21 matches. Veteran midfielder Massimo Ambrosini put Milan ahead on the stroke of half-time when he hooked the ball home after goalkeeper Francesco Benussi failed to deal with a David Beckham cross. But Cristiano Lucarelli poked home a mis-hit Claudio Bellucci shot just before the hour mark to earn Livorno a point. It completes a difficult week for Leonardo's side following their surprise Italian Cup defeat to Udinese and last weekend's 'derby' reverse at the San Siro. Milan's failure to win means in-form Roma have joined them on 41 points after a narrow 2-1 home win over bottom side Siena. Second-half substitute Stefano Okaka struck the winner three minutes from time in his final match before joining English Premier League side Fulham in a six-month loan deal. Jon Arne Riise had put the hosts in front in the 29th minute before Siena's Simone Vergassola equalized just before half-time. However, striker Okaka flicked home the late winner to earn Cluadio Ranieri's side a fourth successive Serie A victory. Elsewhere in Italy, striker Antonio Cassano has confirmed he has turned down the chance to join Fiorentina, choosing to remain with Sampdoria despite reports of a fall-out with coach Luigi Del Neri. On the pitch, Sampdoria maintained their Champions League challenge with a comfortable 2-0 win over strugglers Atalanta. Meanwhile, Juventus moved up a place to fifth, going above Palermo, after a 1-1 draw at home to Lazio. Alessandro del Piero's penalty after 70 minutes looked like giving new coach Alberto Zaccheroni a winning start to his reign. However, Stefano Mauri converted a cross from Mauro Zarate to level matters with just 12 minutes remaining.

Milan waste a golden opportunity to close the gap on leaders Inter at the top of Serie A . Cristiano Lucarelli pokes home an equalizer as Livorno draw 1-1 at the San Siro . Milan are eight points behind leaders Inter, whose match against Parma was postponed .

(CNN) -- Abe Pollin, the longtime owner of the Washington Wizards professional basketball franchise, has died, the Wizards said Tuesday. He was 85. No further details were immediately available. The Wizards said information would be released as it became available. The Pollin family asked that their privacy be respected, the basketball team said. Pollin and his wife, Irene, have owned the NBA franchise, previously known as the Washington Bullets and before that the Baltimore Bullets, for 45 years. As the majority owners of Washington Sports & Entertainment Limited Partnership, the Pollins oversaw the Washington Wizards, Washington/Baltimore Ticketmaster and in-house promoter Musicentre Productions, as well as the management of the Verizon Center and George Mason University's Patriot Center, according to the Verizon Center's Web site. Pollin at one time also owned the Washington Capitals hockey team and the Washington Mystics WNBA team. Pollin moved from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to the Washington area when he was 8, according to the Verizon Center's biography of him. He attended George Washington University and worked for his family's construction company for more than a decade, it says. He and Irene, a St. Louis, Missouri, native, launched their own construction company in 1957 and built several large apartment houses and office buildings. They have two sons and two granddaughters, according to the Web site.

Abe Pollin was 85 years old . Pollin and his wife have owned the Wizards, formerly known as the Bullets, for 45 years . Pollin also once owned Washington Capitals hockey team . Survived by wife, two sons and two granddaughters, according to Web site .

(CNN) -- About 10 men armed with pistols and small machine guns raided a casino in Switzerland and made off into France with several hundred thousand Swiss francs in the early hours of Sunday morning, police said. The men, dressed in black clothes and black ski masks, split into two groups during the raid on the Grand Casino Basel, Chief Inspector Peter Gill told CNN. One group tried to break into the casino's vault on the lower level but could not get in, but they did rob the cashier of the money that was not secured, he said. The second group of armed robbers entered the upper level where the roulette and blackjack tables are located and robbed the cashier there, he said. As the thieves were leaving the casino, a woman driving by and unaware of what was occurring unknowingly blocked the armed robbers' vehicles. A gunman pulled the woman from her vehicle, beat her, and took off for the French border. The other gunmen followed into France, which is only about 100 meters (yards) from the casino, Gill said. There were about 600 people in the casino at the time of the robbery. There were no serious injuries, although one guest on the Casino floor was kicked in the head by one of the robbers when he moved, the police officer said. Swiss authorities are working closely with French authorities, Gill said. The robbers spoke French and drove vehicles with French license plates. CNN's Andreena Narayan contributed to this report.

Dressed in black clothes and black ski masks, ten men raided Grand Casino Basel . Part of group failed to break into casino vault on the lower level . Gunmen made off into France which is only about 100 meters from the casino . One woman was beaten by robbers after unknowingly blocking their vehicles with car .

(CNN) -- About 11.6 million Africans have been forced from their homes by wars and other conflicts, according to the United Nations. Next week in Uganda, leaders from across the continent will converge to tackle the issue. Somali women at a camp for displaced persons. Nearly half of the displaced people in the world are found in Africa, according to the United Nations. "Africa is the continent most affected by the scourge and tragedy of forced displacement," the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees said in a statement. "While refugee populations have declined in recent years, internal displacement continues to rise and the number of people uprooted from their homes is mounting." During the weeklong African Union summit that will start Monday in the capital, Kampala, the leaders are expected to sign a pledge to help the displaced across the continent, according to the U.N. agency for refugee issues. The agreement "would be the first legally binding international instrument on internal displacement having such broad regional scope," the agency said. Aid agencies have blasted some African countries for failing refugees and internally displaced people. Last month, Oxfam International released an explosive report accusing Kenya and Ethiopia of housing Somali refugees in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions. It said the Somali government also is abandoning its internally displaced. "Somalis flee one of the world's most brutal conflicts and a desperate drought, only to end up in unimaginable conditions in camps that are barely fit for humans," said Robbert Van den Berg, a spokesman for Oxfam International in the Horn of Africa. "Hundreds of thousands of children are affected, and the world is abandoning the next generation of Somalis when they most need our help." On a visit to a refugee camp in northern Kenya that houses Somalis, actress and U.N. goodwill ambassador Angelina Jolie called it "one of the most dire" she had ever seen. The camp -- which has facilities for about 90,000 -- houses 280,000 refugees. "The toilets are already overflowing," Jolie said last month. "There is not even enough space for trash dumps, so people are living amongst the garbage." Kenyan officials have said they are working on a solution. In neighboring Uganda, a government spokesman said it had taken steps to ensure displaced people and refugees have access to resources to become self-sufficient. "The numbers of displaced have drastically gone down," Fred Opolot said. "The government offers them relocation packages, including planting seeds, cooking items and building materials." The east African nation has followed international protocol, Opolot said, noting that it was chosen to host the African Union summit on refugees. "Uganda does not just set up camps; it builds facilities for them," Opolot said. "There may well be some African countries that have not followed protocols. ... The summit will reassess the challenges they have and set up steps to ensure they follow international protocol."

African leaders converge to tackle problem of conflict-displaced people . Nearly half of the displaced people in the world are found in Africa . Aid agencies have criticized some African countries for failing refugees .

(CNN) -- About 80 people were arrested on the eighth day of protests in New York on Saturday, the greatest number since demonstrations started near Wall Street. Earlier arrests in the week totaled about 20 on previous days for similar charges, according to New York City Deputy Commissioner Paul J. Browne. The latest arrests include disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, obstructing governmental administration and assaulting a police officer, according to Browne. The protests started September 17 in lower Manhattan and are aimed at drawing attention to the role powerful financial interests played in America's spiraling economy. "We've got a whole bunch of people sitting in Washington that can't figure it out," said organizer Bill Csapo. The mission is for " 20,000 people to flood into lower Manhattan, set up beds, kitchens, peaceful barricades and occupy Wall Street for a few months," the official "Occupy Wall Street" website read. By Saturday, the site had a series of updates on arrests, including the exact location of a police van holding arrestees. One was described as having a "very bad concussion, possibly life threatening" and urged participants to demand medicare care for those affected. "It's just letting people know that it's going on," Csapo said on the website. "We need to call the police and tell them to let these people go." CNN called police officials, but they declined to comment further on the extent of injuries or specific use of force. But descriptions by the website and some protesters present affirm the use of mace and Tasers. One midtown resident, Ryan Alley, claims he wasn't aware of the protests until he found himself among them. He said he was penned in by police while standing near a group of protesters, pushed against a wall and nearly arrested. "They turned our backs, put us against the wall," Alley said. "They're being very aggressive ... half the people here have no idea what's going on ... I'm actually very ashamed to be a New Yorker." One woman with bloody lips stood with her hands zip-tied behind her back. "I wasn't doing anything and I was punched!" she called out to spectators. Csapo says the organization is worried about NYPD activity after nightfall. Despite the concerns, the "resistance continues," the group says. "We're occupying that square. We're not going anywhere," Csapo said about their new Liberty Plaza location near the former World Trade Center.

The latest arrests include disorderly conduct and resisting arrest . The protests started September 17 in lower Manhattan . They are aimed at drawing attention to the role of financial interests in the spiraling economy .

(CNN) -- Academy Award-winning composer Maurice Jarre, who scored movies including "Doctor Zhivago" and "Lawrence of Arabia" among others, died Sunday from cancer in Los Angeles. He was 84. Movie composer Maurice Jarre pictured at the Berlin International Film Festival last month. Jarre enjoyed an illustrious career, working with Hollywood directing legends including John Huston, Alfred Hitchcock and, most notably, David Lean. Fellow French composer Alexandre Desplat, who interviewed Jarre for The Screening Room at the Berlin International Film Festival last month, told CNN Monday: "Maurice was an immense artist, an incredible symphonist, a magician of the melody and a benevolent human being." Watch tribute to Maurice Jarre » Jarre won Oscars in 1963 and 1966 for his collaborations on the Lean movies "Lawrence of Arabia" and "Doctor Zhivago" respectively. He then mustered a further six Oscar nominations but his third award came once again through a further collaboration with Lean on " A Passage to India" in 1984. He then swapped orchestral composition to become a pioneer of electronic scoring, working on the music for, among others, "Ghost," "Witness," "Dead Poet's Society" and "Fatal Attraction." At the same time his son Jean-Michel Jarre became one of the world's best known electronic musicians with global hits such as "Oxygene" and huge outdoor concerts. His final movie composition was for the 2000 film "I Dreamed of Africa." Jarre's career included symphonies, ballet and theatre but it was for his 150 film scores that he was presented with an honorary Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival last month - almost half a century after producer Sam Spiegel hired him to work on "Lawrence of Arabia." Festival director Dieter Kosslick said in a statement late last year: "Film composers often are in the shadows of great directors and acting stars. It's different with Maurice Jarre; the music of 'Doctor Zhivago,' like much of his work, is world-famous and remains unforgotten in the history of cinema." Speaking in Berlin to double-Oscar nominee Desplat -- who himself scored "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" and "The Queen" -- Jarre said: "I never really had a 'bust-up' with a good director. A good director will always find an intellectual understanding. And that's what was great - I had an opportunity with all these people. I don't think I can say that I ever worked with a bad director." But Jarre also said that directing legends of the rank of Huston and Hitchock had disappeared and no longer existed, adding: "The only problem is now, there is more and more bad music that goes 'dang dang dang dang dang...' So...it's better to turn off the music, and listen to a concert of Mozart." Senior producer Neil Curry and associate producer Lidz-Ama Appiah contributed to this report.

Maurice Jarre won three Oscars during his career, all for scoring films by David Lean . During the 1980s, 1990s he scored music for "Ghost," "Witness," "Fatal Attraction" Career recognized most recently at the Berlin International Film Festival .

(CNN) -- Accusing local media in the Orlando, Florida, area of a "barrage" of coverage, Casey Anthony's lead defense attorney asked Monday to have her death-penalty case moved from Orlando to Miami, Florida. Casey Anthony is accused of killing her 2-year-old daughter Caylee. "The overwhelming majority of the media's coverage of this case has been negative for the defendant," says a defense motion filed in Orange County Circuit Court. Anthony, 23, is scheduled to go on trial on a first-degree murder charge in the death of her 2-year-old daughter Caylee. "The effects of the inflammatory and negative aspect of the media coverage in this case is best witnessed in the violent and harassing protests which have dogged the defendant and her family for many months now," the motion says. Signed by Anthony's lead lawyer, Jose Baez, the motion says moving the trial far enough away from local media will "not end the coverage," which Baez said has produced thousands of articles and TV news reports, but will "have a chilling effect" on coverage. Peter Odom, a defense attorney appearing Monday on HLN's Nancy Grace to provide analysis of the case, said, "All the defense has to show is that there's been extensive media coverage. That's a cinch." "Secondly, that it will be impossible for them to find a fair jury pool," he added, referring to the Orlando area. Baez cited a number of reasons in his request to the judge to move the case to south Florida, where he says it has been covered far less and there is a "large and diverse jury pool." Local media in the Orlando area, he argued, have affected Anthony's chances of getting a fair trial not only in Orange County but in much of Central Florida. If the judge rejects his request to move the trial to Miami, Baez said Broward County, about a 45-minute drive north of Miami, is a second choice.

Attorney cites negative TV, media coverage in request for venue change . Lawyer asked for trial to be moved from Orlando, Florida, to Miami, Florida . Lawyer says media coverage means Casey Anthony won't get a fair trial . Casey Anthony facing death penalty trial for daughter's murder .

(CNN) -- Achtung, baby! Sacha Baron Cohen stars as a flamboyant Austrian fashionista in "Bruno." There's a British theory that everything sounds funnier delivered with a Teutonic accent. That's tested to the limit in Sacha Baron Cohen's newest provocation, "Bruno," but it's not what comes out of his mouth that makes the Austrian fashionista such a handful. The man in the tight yellow lederhosen knows that in our visually overstimulated culture, a picture is vorth a thousand vords. More if there's significant skin involved -- and he's happy to show us his wurst. Cohen seems to believe that prudery is the enemy. Certainly, bad taste is his Trojan horse. An early montage of romantic coupling, Bruno-style, is enough to get tongues wagging -- or clucking in disapproval. It's the closest thing to gay porn most heterosexuals will see this side of "300." Either way, Cohen's laughing: Properly managed, outrage is a useful marketing tool, as "Borat" showed. Apparently permanently airbrushed right down to his backside, Bruno looks nothing like his hirsute Kazakh cousin, but the men share an ego; they're equally insensitive to other people and oblivious to notions of social decorum and the politically correct. And they both invest heavily in the American Dream. Bruno hungers after fame as hungrily as Borat lusted for Pamela Anderson. After a brief prologue in Europe -- and the distressing revelation of the vacuity of the fashion scene -- he sets out for Los Angeles, determined to become Austria's "biggest superstar since Hitler." Perhaps inspired by another Cohen creation, Ali G, he sets out to make a celebrity interview show -- but sadly, the only dupes ignorant enough to participate are "American Idol" judges (Paula Abdul chats about her philanthropic pursuits while perched on the back of an immigrant laborer) and presidential candidates (take a bow, Ron Paul). It's not just about the scarcity of the guests, though. Bruno doesn't draw them out the way Borat did. Quite the opposite: Mostly they're wary and guarded, or downright hostile -- and understandably so, often enough, given Bruno's shock tactics. Yes, it's funny seeing him fire up a predominantly African-American TV studio audience by announcing that his "adopted" black baby is named O.J., but still, the scene tells us more about Cohen's need to provoke than about the crowd's supposed homophobia. The same goes for his brief stint in a U.S. Army training facility. The actor's quick wit and virtuoso physical comedy skills carry the day, but just as Bruno is forced to abandon one dead-end celebrity scheme after another, the movie too seems to be casting about haphazardly for some real comic traction. Evidently it's not easy testing taboos in 2009. Wherever Bruno turns, he seems to be following in someone else's footsteps. Peace talks in Israel (what Bruno calls "Middle Earth")? Morgan Spurlock has been there, done that. Camping out with the gun lobby? Michael Moore, "Bowling for Columbine." Gay conversion? Didn't director Larry Charles go there with Bill Maher just last year in "Religulous"? Meanwhile, Bruno's love-hate relationship with his assistant, Lutz (Gustaf Hammarsten), only highlights how similar the new film's few narrative pegs are to "Borat." Some sketches do hit much closer to home. A series of interviews with stage moms and dads who eagerly sign up their infants to work with hornets, wasps, dead or dying animals, antiquated heavy machinery and sundry toxic substances is a real jaw-dropper, though the kicker is tempered by Bruno's behavior. And, to its credit, the film saves the best for last. In a show-stopping climax (which I don't propose to spoil here) Cohen puts it all on the line and definitively nails gay-bashers where it hurts: right between the eyes. iReport.com: "Bruno" vs. Borat": Preview audience weighs in It's an

"Bruno" is Sacha Baron Cohen's new film; he plays gay fashionista . Film attempts to show homophobia but in some cases pushes too hard . Still, last scene makes it worth it, says reviewer Tom Charity .

(CNN) -- Acoustic rocker John Mayer has bowed out of a series of concerts after suffering from "something next to my vocal cords called a granuloma," he said in a statement released Friday. The singer and songwriter said he had undergone months of monitoring, but the condition -- a small area of tissue inflammation that most often occurs in the lungs -- had prevented him from going ahead with the performances. "I'm bummed to have to bow out of both the iheartradio Music Festival in Las Vegas and an appearance with Tony Bennett in Los Angeles," he said in the statement. "I know there were people depending on me to be there and I'm sorry that I can't be on those stages." Mayer's soon-to-be-released album "Born and Raised" also will be delayed. It's "complete as far as music recording, song selection, and in some cases mixing," he said. "But because of this condition I couldn't finish singing on several of the tracks." The album, as a result, will be released next year "instead of this fall or winter." "This is a temporary setback, though I'm not sure how long or short a period of time it will be," he said. "I've got the best doctors in the country looking after me and I will be singing and touring again as soon as I get the all clear." Mayer said he plans to spend the down time writing and composing, and "kicking an empty soup can around the West Village."

John Mayer says he has a granuloma next to his vocal cords . Granuloma is a small area of tissue inflammation . Mayer's soon-to-be-released album "Born and Raised" will be delayed .

(CNN) -- Actor Edward Norton already wanted to be in better shape for his 40th birthday than he was on his 30th when the idea hit -- why not join members of an African tribe famous for its runners and run the New York marathon? "Incredible Hulk" star Edward Norton, second from left, has trained for a marathon with Maasai tribesmen in Kenya Before he knew it, the star of "The Incredible Hulk" and "Fight Club" had signed on to the effort, despite never having run a marathon before. "The idea picked up traction pretty quickly," said Norton, who turned 39 in August. "Then, I was like, 'Wait a minute. What have I just done?'" The run is a benefit for the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust, an organization working to promote sustainable development while protecting the east African grasslands that the Maasai tribe calls home. Both the traditional tribe's way of life and its environment have been threatened by rapid industrial development. Norton discovered, and became a supporter of, the trust about 10 years ago during his first visit to Kenya, where he met founder Luca Belpietro. "I was impressed at the way he was really genuinely working with the community to create value out of being good stewards of the land," Norton said. Belpietro will be one of nearly 30 runners joining Norton on the Nov. 1 marathon. Also running will be magician David Blaine and three Maasai tribesmen. The Maasai are at the heart of Kenya's long tradition of distance running. Norton said one of the runners, safari guide Parashi Ntanin, is so fast he could probably leave the rest of the group behind and run the race in less than 2½ hours. Norton said he's run as much as 15 miles twice during his training for the 26.2-mile marathon and that despite some leg and knee pains, he's confident he'll finish the endurance race. "I'm really enjoying it," he said after a workout Wednesday in New York. "I'm enjoying having a goal." A competitive rower at Yale, Norton said he's experienced the so-called "runner's high" during his training, which fans can follow on his Twitter account, @EdwardNorton. "Running in the park, I got a taste of what people say about the New York marathon. There were people of every shape and size out there," he said. "I really got a lift out of it." Norton's latest film, the independently produced "Leaves of Grass," is set to premiere this week at the Toronto International Film Festival and his company's "By The People: The Election Of Barack Obama," a documentary about President Obama's historic campaign for the White House, debuts on HBO on November 3.

Actor on marathon decision: 'What have I just done?' Norton's New York run will benefit Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust . Training runs have hit 15 miles for Nov. 1 race . Maasai tribesmen, magician David Blaine also part of running group .

(CNN) -- Actor Gary Coleman, who had suffered from a brain hemorrhage from an accident in his home Wednesday, died Friday in a Utah hospital, a hospital spokeswoman said. Family members and close friends were at his side when life support was terminated at 12:05 p.m. (2:05 p.m. ET), Janet Frank said. Coleman's wife, Shannon Price, issued a short statement Friday afternoon saying details of how the former child actor died will be made public later. "Now that Gary has passed, we know he will be missed because of all the love and support shown in the past couple of days," Coleman's spokesman, John Alcantar, said in a written statement. "Gary is now at peace and his memory will be kept in the hearts of those who were entertained by him throughout the years." Coleman, 42, was rushed by ambulance to a hospital after the accident in his Santaquin, Utah, home Wednesday, Frank had said in a statement released earlier Friday. Later Wednesday night he was taken to another hospital -- Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo -- where he had been listed in critical condition, she said. While Coleman appeared "lucid and conscious" Thursday morning, his condition worsened by the afternoon, leaving him unconscious and on life support, she said. Coleman is best known as the wisecracking youngster Arnold on TV's "Diff'rent Strokes" from the late 1970s to the mid-1980s. "There was a touch of magic and a different stroke in Gary Coleman," said TV legend Norman Lear, who produced the show. "He was the inspiration behind his show's title."

NEW: Coleman's brain hemorrhage was caused by an accident at home . Actor Gary Coleman taken off life support, dies at 42 . He is best known for his role as Arnold on "Diff'rent Strokes"

(CNN) -- Actor Gary Coleman, who had suffered from intracranial brain bleeding and was on life support in the intensive care unit of a Utah hospital, has died, a hospital spokeswoman said Friday. Family members and close friends were at his side when life support was terminated, Janet Frank said. Coleman, 42, fell ill at his Santaquin, Utah, home Wednesday evening and was rushed by ambulance to a hospital, the spokesman said in a statement released Friday. He was then taken to another hospital -- Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo -- later Wednesday night, the spokesman said. Coleman one of TV's brightest stars in '70s and '80s The former child actor was "conscious and lucid" Thursday morning, but he "was slipping in and out of consciousness and his condition worsened," the spokesman said. Coleman became unconscious and was placed on life support Thursday afternoon, the statement, which was released by the hospital, said. Coleman is best known as the wisecracking youngster Arnold Drummond on TV's "Diff'rent Strokes" from the late 1970s to the mid-1980s. "In recent years Gary Coleman has had difficulties, not only with health issues, but also with his personal and public life," his spokesman's statement said. "At times, it may not have been apparent, but he always has had fond memories of being an entertainer and appreciates his fans for all their support over the years. At this critical moment, we can only ask for your thoughts and prayers for Gary to make a speedy and full recovery." CNN's Brittany Kaplan and Jack Hannah contributed to this report.

Coleman suffered a brain hemorrhage Wednesday . Actor was awake and talking Thursday morning . Coleman became unconscious Thursday afternoon . He was placed on life support in the ICU .

(CNN) -- Actor Michael Jai White thinks the negative connotation surrounding the term "blaxploitation film" is a bunch of jive. Michael Jai White stars in the new spoof "Black Dynamite." "The problem I have with the word is that it seems to encompass movies that don't fall under that category," White said. "As soon as you hear the title 'Shaft' people think 'blaxploitation' and that is absolutely unfair because that film was made before the term even existed." White, the star and co-writer of the new movie "Black Dynamite," would rather people focus on what he views as the positives of the genre of 1970s urban action films starring African-American actors. His new movie, which opened in limited release last weekend and will start going wider, follows the exploits of Black Dynamite, a former CIA agent who takes to the streets after his brother is killed by the mafia, orphanages are flooded with drugs and some bad malt liquor finds its way into the 'hood. It is both a spoof of, and homage to, the genre whose films like "Black Caesar," "The Mac," "Foxy Brown," and "Superfly" have developed a cult following over the years. "Black Dynamite" caught the eye of Sony Pictures at the Sundance Film Festival and the studio acquired the rights to distribute the film. A viral marketing campaign helped whip up anticipation for the movie, which also features former late-night talk show host Arsenio Hall and "In Living Color" cast member Tommy Davidson as pimps. Director Scott Sanders said he has always been fascinated by the fact that while blaxploitation really only grabbed hold of the industry for about five years during the early 1970s, it was so influential. "It was such an extreme genre with the look and the music and there were really no boundaries or rules," he said. "It's always been a fascination for me given how much it influenced hip-hop, black culture and culture as a whole, given the brevity." White, best known for his roles in the films "Spawn" and Tyler Perry's "Why Did I Get Married," said he is a huge fan of blaxploitation films and views his movie as a loving send-up. While he is aware that some of the films were unintentionally funny with their low-budget gaffes -- such as the appearance of mic booms in some scenes -- and their stereotypes, White said the genre is a valued part of the movie industry's history. "These movies really saved Hollywood because the studio system was in trouble and they learned that they had a cash cow with these films," he said. "Later they exploited it by making any movie and throwing the term 'black' in front of it and that's what made it exploitive." They also gave African-American actors a chance to work and reflected a people's pride following the gains of the civil rights era. Laurence Washington, managing editor and co-publisher of Blackflix.com, said the movies helped young, black fans like him realize that "when we grow up we don't have to be train porters, busboys and waiters." The films instead portrayed handsome, brave and suave black heroes who always got the girl, Washington said. "When the blaxploitation films came out in the '70s, black audiences had never had action film heroes they could identify with," he said. "[The movies] also opened the door for today's black actors and directors to enter the mainstream." Darius James, author of "That's Blaxploitation!: Roots of the Baadasssss 'Tude (Rated X by an All-Whyte Jury)," said blaxploitation films were like any other film that appeal to a specific audience, such as the indie movies of Roger Corman and Russ Meyer. James said he grew up seeing civil rights workers beaten and hosed on television and the movies came out time when there was a sense of defiance and resistance against the marginalization of

"Black Dynamite" spoofs the blaxploitation genre . Film stars Michael Jai White, who says he is a fan of the movies . Director Scott Sanders says genre greatly influenced the culture . Author says films reflected a post civil rights era spirit .

(CNN) -- Actor Robert Pattinson dropped the f-bomb and singer Justin Timberlake grabbed the breasts of co-star Mila Kunis, who returned the favor by grabbing the pop singer's crotch. And so went the 2011 edition of the MTV Movie Awards, where the outrageous and often sophomoric antics of the ceremony's featured performers tend to grab, so to speak, more attention than the awards themselves. Between the gropes, the profanities and the off-color humor at Sunday night's 2011 version of the annual awards show, actors dispensed trophies to other actors. "Eclipse," the third installment in the teen vampire saga "Twilight," carried the night with five awards. That included honors for Best Picture as well as the Best Male and Female Performance awards, which went to co-stars Pattinson and Kristen Stewart. The movie also carried MTV's Best Fight and Best Kiss awards. Meanwhile the award for best villain went to Tom Felton for his seventh outing as the churlish, bad boy wizard Draco Malfoy in "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows." Ellen Page claimed the dubious Best Scared-As-(expletive) Performance prize for a supporting role in "Inception," and Emma Stone took top honors in the comedy category for her role in "Easy A." MTV gave actress Reese Witherspoon, who at 35 was likely the most senior award recipient of the bunch, a "Generation Award," in recognition of her career in movies. However, the moment was marred or immortalized -- depending on your point of view -- by an apparent failure of impulse-control by presenter Pattinson. Pattinson, who played Witherspoon's lover in "Water for Elephants," told the audience "I did (expletive) you," uttering a profanity broadcast over the air without a bleep. Pattinson didn't stop there. Moments later he quipped that that Witherspoon might be "33 percent lesbian." Witherspoon wasn't the only celebrity to get ribbed for her fictional or real-life romantic pursuits. Awards host Jason Sudeikis told the audience that actress and singer Selena Gomez had already swallowed three of boyfriend Justin Bieber's baby teeth while kissing the teen singing star. Bieber, by the way, won Best Jaw Dropping Moment Winner for his biopic movie, "Never Say Never." Other awards recipients included: Chloe Grace Moretz, who took the award for Best Breakout Star Winner for her performance as a vulgar child superhero in "Kick-Ass."

The teen vampire flick "Eclipse" claims five awards . Pattinson utters an uncensored expletive . Other stars rib each other for their fictional or real-life romance .

(CNN) -- Actor Sean Penn helped play a role in securing this week's release of two U.S. hikers imprisoned in Iran for more than two years, his representative confirmed Friday. The report was first published by the Reuters news agency, which cited a source close to the release process as saying that Penn flew to Venezuela months ago to speak about the hikers' plight with President Hugo Chavez, an ally of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Mara Buxbaum, a rep for Penn, confirmed the Reuters report but declined to provide additional details. Venezuelan state media reported Friday that Chavez was part of the mediation process that resulted in the release of Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer on Wednesday. Upon their release, the men were flown to Muscat, Oman, where their families greeted them with elation. "We're so happy we are free and so relieved we are free," Fattal said. "Our deepest gratitude goes toward His Majesty Sultan Qaboos of Oman for obtaining our release. We're sincerely grateful for the government of Oman for hosting us and our families." Bauer said, "Two years in prison is too long, and we sincerely hope for the freedom of other political prisoners and other unjustly imprisoned people in America and Iran."

Reuters: Penn flew to Venezuela to speak to Chavez about the American hikers . Penn's rep confirms the report but declines to give additional details . Chavez was part of the mediation process, state media says .

(CNN) -- Actor and filmmaker Joe Pantoliano, known for his role as Ralph Cifaretto on the HBO series "The Sopranos," attended the Democratic National Convention on Monday to raise awareness about people living with mental illness. Joe Pantoliano has met with the Obama and McCain camps to promote mental health and recovery. Pantoliano, founder and president of the eight-month-old advocacy organization No Kidding, Me Too, released a teaser of his new film about various forms of mental illness. At the CNN Grill, he answered five questions for CNN.com. CNN.com: What are you doing out here in Denver? Pantoliano: I've always been fascinated by the political process ever since I was a kid. ... I always love the festive partying, the camaraderie, the working for the candidate, whether it was somebody in the 3rd Ward where I lived in New Jersey in Hoboken or a senator or a congressman or even when a president would come. I remember when President Kennedy came down to Hoboken in '61 and I was only 10 years old. I was with the Kennedys tonight. CNN.com: Are you a Barack Obama supporter? Pantoliano: I'm advocating my organization. I'm going to the [Republican National Convention} next week. I'm speaking on mental illness and the miracles of recovery; that's what the movie is about. I've met with the Obama chief of staff and the Obama people; I've met with McCain people. Mental illness is on the tip of their minds. CNN.com: Who are you voting for? Pantoliano: I don't know yet. Watch how celebrity endorsements can backfire » CNN.com: Where are the hot spots in Denver? Where are people hanging out? Pantoliano: Here, the CNN Grill. It's all they're talking about. I really like Denver. The security is less kinetic [than] it was four years ago. That whole fear thing that this administration has played on our nerves; I think I have post-traumatic stress over that. What happened was I became addicted to the news. iReport.com: Are you in Denver? Share sights, sounds CNN.com: Do you think that coming out to a convention helps you make up your mind better than sitting in your living room? Pantoliano: I'm an independent. I can be inspired tonight by Michelle Obama's speech, and then something happens next week, so I'm going back and forth. I'm a flip-flopper. The difference that I see between the Republicans and the Democrats are that the Democrats really are a force of what the melting pot of our society is. Obama really represents that. Obama represents what America is today. CNN's Michael Senzon contributed to this report.

Pantoliano is co-founder of the advocacy group No Kidding, Me Too . "Sopranos" actor has new film about mental illness . He says he has met with Obama and McCain camps to discuss issue . Pantoliano hasn't decided whom to vote for in November .

(CNN) -- Actor and producer Anil Kapoor has long been a Bollywood luminary, but after his award-winning performance in global hit "Slumdog Millionaire," he is set to become an international star. Bollywood superstar Anil Kapoor. Kapoor says that "Slumdog," a love story about a boy from a Mumbai slum who wins a fortune on quiz show "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?," resembles his own life story. "I also started from scratch, went from rags to riches," he told CNN. Anil is part of the Kapoor family that is a veritable Bollywood dynasty. His father Surinder and elder brother Boney are film producers, his daughter Sonam, sister-in-law Sridevi and his younger brother Sanjay are actors, while son-in-law Sandeep Marwah is a movie magnate and Anil's son Harshvardhan is currently learning to direct movies in Los Angeles. But things weren't always so glamorous. Anil Kapoor was born on Christmas Eve 1959 and grew up in a tenement in the Mumbai suburb of Chembur, with eight people living together in a single room. His father Surinder had yet to make his name in the film industry, but young Anil clearly had movies in his blood. "In my childhood I was surrounded by films, actors, film makers, directors and film talk. I would bunk school to watch movies," he said. He was cast in his first movie aged just seven. Although the film was never released, the experience was enough to convince Kapoor that his future lay in the movies. After finishing school he went to St Xavier's College, where he acted in plays and won the Best Actor trophy at an inter-collegiate competition, before being expelled for non-attendance. Kapoor responded by enrolling in acting classes and taking singing and dance lessons. He made his Bollywood debut in 1979's "Hamare Tumhare," before moving on to Telugu-language movie "Vamsa Vriksham" in 1980, and landing his first Bollywood starring role in 1983's "Woh 7 Din." Watch Anil Kapoor take CNN on a tour of Mumbai. » Kapoor first met future wife Sunita Bhambhani in 1979, when she was a successful model and he was still a struggling actor. He decided that he would propose marriage as soon as he got his big break and 1984's "Mashaal" was the opportunity he'd been waiting for. Kapoor's performance won him Best Supporting Actor at India's prestigious FilmFare awards and he married Sunita in May of that year. Kapoor cemented his status a Bollywood idol after starring in the hugely successful "Mr India," which promptly became his nickname among a growing legion of fans. He has gone on to become one of the biggest names in Indian cinema, picking up a total of five FilmFare awards and a National Film Institute Best Actor award for his role in 2000's "Pukar." Following in his father's footsteps, Kapoor made his debut as a producer in 2002, with the comedy "Badhaai Ho Badhaai," and he went on to produce "Gandhi, My Father," which portrayed the fractious relationship between Mohandas Gandhi and his eldest son Harilal. For years now, in his home town of Mumbai Kapoor has been mobbed by fans wherever he goes, instantly recognizable by his trademark mustache, which he has proudly sported in all but three of his hundred-plus movies. But like most Bollywood stars, he received little acclaim outside India. That changed abruptly and unexpectedly with the release of low-budget British movie "Slumdog Millionaire." The film has become an international sensation, winning four Golden Globe awards and receiving an astonishing 10 Oscar nominations. See Anil Kapoor's "Slumdog Millionaire" success in photos. » Kapoor's role as the creepy quiz show host earned him a share in the Screen Actors Guild award for Best Cast. In typically modest fashion, Kapoor dedicated the award to the film's child actors. "They deserve this award" he said during his acceptance speech. "It's the children who've done it, not us."

Bollywood star Anil Kapoor played the quiz show host in "Slumdog Millionaire" He grew up in a tenement in a Mumbai suburb, sharing a room with 7 others . As an actor he is a Bollywood legend, and he is also a successful producer . "I feel so humble and grateful" says Kapoor of Slumdog's global success .

(CNN) -- Actor-director Mel Gibson and his girlfriend, Oksana Grigorieva, are the new parents of a daughter named Lucia, his spokesman confirmed to CNN. No other details were released about the baby, who was born Friday at an undisclosed hospital in Los Angeles, California. Baby Lucia is the eighth child for Gibson, 53, and the second for Grigorieva, 39. Gibson has six sons and a daughter from his marriage to his wife of 30 years, Robyn. The couple filed for divorce in April. Grigorieva has a son with her former boyfriend, actor Timothy Dalton. In August, the singer said she and Gibson have no immediate plans for marriage. "We don't know yet," Grigorieva said of any impending nuptials. "We haven't really talked about it."

Grigorieva gave birth Friday in Los Angeles, California . The baby, named Lucia, is his eighth and her second . In August, Grigorieva said the pair had no immediate plans to wed .

(CNN) -- Actress Angelina Jolie says she feels passionate about Haiti, whose "extraordinary" people are inspiring her with their resilience after the devastating earthquake one month ago. During a visit to Haiti this week, she said that despite the terrible tragedy, Haitians are dignified and calm. Jolie, a good will ambassador for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, said of the Haitians, "They're very inventive people, they're very strong people, and they're finding ways to help themselves." "I think we have a moral duty to do what we can for any country that's suffering," she told CNN's Christiane Amanpour in an exclusive interview from Port-au-Prince. "I think we have a very big obligation to the place. ... I'll continue to come back and I'll continue to express what I am learning." Jolie expressed particular concern about the fate of Haiti's children -- the amputees, the homeless and the orphans -- and worried about the risk of child trafficking. Haiti earthquake: Numbers tell the story "Trafficking has been a huge problem for a very long time ... so I think everybody that means well needs to really take that very seriously, and not get frustrated, but really work with the country," she said. "And for myself, as somebody who is an adoptive parent, I understand the urge to assist in that way, but now is not the time. An emergency is not the time for new adoptions anyway." Pressed on whether she might consider adopting a Haitian child, Jolie told Amanpour, "I'm always open to children around the world. We're that kind of family. Brad [Pitt] and I talk about that. "But that's not what we're focusing on at this time, by any means. We're not here for that. We're here to see how we can help protect the children in the country and scale up the needs here." Jolie said it is vital to reunite families that have been torn apart by the disaster and set up a system to register survivors. "We don't know who is an orphan. I've met [Haitian] women in the Dominican Republic in hospitals who were saying they haven't spoken to their children," she said. "They have no cell phones, they have no way to tell their children they're alive. They can't find them yet." She also was worried about children who lost limbs in the earthquake. "You see little kids that have lost their legs and you ask them if they are all right and they say they're OK, and somehow they are able to smile. ... I think [that] says a lot about them." Jolie said it's vital for the world to provide sufficient housing for survivors -- housing that is strong enough to stand up to hurricanes. "We saw a large amount of tents, new tents, but that's not necessarily going to be the answer because they've got this much bigger problem in how to find proper shelter to survive hurricanes," she said. Last fall, hundreds of people died in flooding and landslides as two large hurricanes and a tropical storm hit the nation. Jolie said the scale of the disaster is nothing like she's seen before. "The complexity of this before and now, and the history of this country, is something that I am still trying to wrap my head around. And it's going to be a very, very difficult road."

Actress Angelina Jolie visits Haiti as good will ambassador for U.N. Jolie says earthquake devastation is like nothing she's ever seen . Jolie says, "We have a moral duty to do what we can for any country that's suffering" She says now is not the time to think of adopting Haitian children .

(CNN) -- Actress Ashley Judd says a wolf management program backed by Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is "incredibly savage ... it's not right, it's not appropriate, it makes no sense on any level." Ashley Judd is criticizing the aerial hunting of wolves, a program supported by Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. Appearing on CNN's "Larry King Live," Judd repeated her criticism of a program that allows hunters firing from aircraft to shoot wolves to thin the numbers of the animals. Judd recently appeared in a video for the Washington-based Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund, which also opposes the Palin-backed aerial hunting program. Referring to the former Republican vice presidential candidate by name in the video, Judd says that Palin is "championing the slaughter of wildlife." "When Sarah Palin came on the national scene last summer, few knew that she promotes the brutal aerial killing of wolves," Judd says in the video, adding, "It is time to stop Sarah Palin and stop this senseless savagery." Palin responded on Tuesday, releasing a statement calling Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund an "extreme fringe group," and saying, "It is reprehensible and hypocritical that the Defenders of Wildlife would use Alaska and my administration as a fundraising tool to deceive Americans into parting with their hard-earned money." Watch why Judd, Palin are trading barbs » Judd said Alaska's program is a "distortion" of wildlife hunting under normal circumstances, and that the program attracts "urban hunters, trophy hunters from out of state." Palin did not appear on "Larry King Live," but Rod Arno, executive director of the Alaska Outdoor Council, told King by telephone that only Alaska residents can participate in the aerial wolf-hunting program, and then they must obtain a state permit. The purpose of the program is to facilitate control of Alaska's wolf population, which preys on moose and caribou, Arno said. "The only criticism is from people who aren't up here participating in a predator-prey scheme," he said. Judd was accompanied by Rodger Schlickeisen, CEO of the Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund, and he said "hundreds" of scientists have criticized the aerial hunting program. Schlickeisen suggested that Palin's government allow television crews to videotape the hunting process "and you could put this out for all the people in American to see and she (Palin) could proudly stand up for it."

Ashley Judd criticizes Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin for supporting aerial wolf hunting . In video, Judd says Palin is "championing the slaughter of wildlife" Supporters say hunting program is used to control Alaska's wolf population .

(CNN) -- Actress Dixie Carter, best known for her role as Julia Sugarbaker on the TV show "Designing Women," has died, her agent said Saturday. She was 70. She was 70. Carter died from complications arising from cancer, her publicist, Steve Rohr, said Sunday. Carter was drawn to roles portraying steely Southern women. One of her more recent roles included a guest appearance on the show "Desperate Housewives," for which she was nominated for an Emmy in 2007. "This has been a terrible blow to our family," her husband, the actor Hal Holbrook, told "Entertainment Tonight." "We would appreciate everyone understanding that this is a private family tragedy." Carter and Holbrook met while filming the CBS-TV movie, "The Killing of Randy Webster." Carter was born in 1939 in McLemoresville, Tennessee. In addition to her role as feisty Julia Sugarbaker, she's been on other television series including "Family Law" and "Diff'rent Strokes." She also had a long career on Broadway and appeared on stage in "Southern Comforts" with her husband in 2006. In addition to Holbrook, to whom she has been married since 1984, Carter is survived by two daughters, Mary Dixie and Ginna. According to Rohr, Carter suffered from endometrial cancer, which forms in the the tissue lining the uterus.

Actress Dixie Carter dead at 70, agent tells CNN . Carter was best known for role as Julia Sugarbaker on "Designing Women" Carter was married to fellow actor Hal Holbrook .

(CNN) -- Actress Gina Gershon is demanding a retraction from Vanity Fair after the magazine reported "high-end Hollywood dinner-party gossip" that former President Clinton "has been seen visiting" her in California. Actress Gina Gershon "is extremely offended" by the Vanity Fair article, her lawyers say. The lengthy article by the magazine's national editor, Todd Purdum, mentioned the actress along with several other women rumored to be associated with Clinton, all anonymously sourced. "Todd Purdum's insinuation is a lie, and it is irresponsible journalism," said Gershon's publicist, Mara Buxbaum. "We are demanding a retraction." A letter sent by Gershon's attorneys to Vanity Fair editor-in-chief Graydon Carter, obtained by CNN, demanded a published correction and retraction and threatened possible litigation for defamation. The actress appeared in 1995's "Showgirls" and the more recent "P.S. I Love You." Gershon "is extremely offended by the false and defamatory inference that she engaged in an adulterous relationship with the President," the letter says, adding that the actress has been in the same room with Clinton three times, always in the presence of at least a dozen people. "It is apparent that Vanity Fair was intent upon publishing unsubstantiated rumors, and that it avoided learning the true facts so that the truth would not get in the way," the letter says. "Such conduct is reckless and malicious, giving rise to substantial liability for defamation." In a statement, Vanity Fair denied that the article indicates any "improper relationship" between Clinton and Gershon. "The story merely examines the concerns of some of Clinton's aides about reports of his behavior," the magazine said. "We don't believe that any correction is warranted." Purdum's article, "The Comeback Id," quoted multiple anonymous sources questioning the former president's behavior since leaving the White House. The article suggested that Clinton's personality had changed since his 2004 heart bypass surgery and said there were reports of Clinton "seeing a lot of women on the road." Clinton issued a tirade against Purdum on Monday when asked by Huffington Post writer Mayhill Fowler what he thought of "the hatchet job somebody did on you in Vanity Fair," according to a recording of the exchange posted on the Huffington Post's Web site. "[He's] sleazy," Clinton responded. "He's a really dishonest reporter." Clinton said that he had not read the article but that he was told that "there's five or six just blatant lies in there. But he's a real slimy guy." Calling Purdum a "scumbag," Clinton said "he's one of the guys that propagated all those lies about Whitewater for Kenneth Starr. He's just a dishonest guy -- can't help it." Purdum "didn't use a single name, he didn't cite a single source in all those things he said," the former president said, adding that the article was "part of the national media's attempt to nail Hillary for Obama. "Anytime you read a story that slimes a public figure with anonymous quotes, it ought to make the bells go off in your head," he said. Jay Carson, a spokesman for Hillary Clinton's campaign, said late Monday that "President Clinton was understandably upset about an outrageously unfair article, but the language today was inappropriate, and he wishes he had not used it." Purdum, a former New York Times reporter who covered the Clinton White House and is married to former Clinton press secretary Dee Dee Myers, defended his article on CNN's "The Situation Room" on Monday afternoon, saying he was "very careful to say there is no clear-cut evidence that President Clinton has done anything improper." "I reject the notion that I'm making an insinuation," Purdum said. "But I'm very comfortable quoting the people I quote because I know who they are, and I know that they are very senior people

Gina Gershon accuses Vanity Fair reporter of "irresponsible journalism," lying . Magazine stands by article and refuses to run a correction . Former president called reporter "a scumbag" but later apologized .

(CNN) -- Actress Jessica Lange took a tumble in her Minnesota vacation cabin Tuesday, but a publicist said her injuries were not serious. Lange, who turns 60 next month, suffered bruised ribs, a broken collarbone and a small cut on her forehead, spokeswoman Leslee Dart said Wednesday. "She will be completely fine and expects to be released from the hospital imminently," Dart said. Lange began her movie career in 1976 playing King Kong's love interest in the 1976 version of "King Kong" but later was nominated for six Oscars -- two of which she won. She won best supporting actress for her role in "Tootsie" in 1982 and best leading actress for "Blue Sky" in 1994. Lange owns a lakeside cabin not far from Cloquet, Minnesota, where she was born in 1949.

Jessica Lange hurt in fall at Minnesota vacation home . Lange suffered bruised ribs, a broken collarbone and a small cut . Actress, 60, expected to be "completely fine," says publicist .

(CNN) -- Actress Kristin Davis is an ambassador for Oxfam, an international alliance of 15 organizations striving to find lasting solutions to poverty and injustice. The group works directly with communities in 98 countries. As part of her efforts, Davis advocates for vulnerable women around the world. She recently spoke with CNN's Sonya Hamasaki about the need to help people improve their lives. Below are excerpts from that interview. CNN: What inspired you to get involved with Oxfam? Kristin Davis: Oxfam is unique in helping people become independent. That's their goal. One of the reasons I got involved was that after the tsunami, I remember all of the fishermen whose entire lives had gotten washed away in Indonesia. I thought, "How are they ever going to get their livelihoods back?" Oxfam was committed to staying there until those fishermen got their own livelihoods back together so that they could be self-sufficient.. CNN: You are specifically interested in helping women receive job training and education. Why is that important to you? Davis: A lot of times, these women have been left alone or their husbands have died of AIDS or different things. I was interested in helping women who may live in a world where they weren't trained to do anything and they weren't afforded an education. Oxfam will go into these communities and try to help out. It might be raising chickens, it might be sewing beaded necklaces; they're helping the women empower themselves. And, especially for women, that's a huge, huge life-changing thing to be able to be self-sufficient. The women can then support their children, and usually the women send their children to school and it changes the next generation. CNN: What is your role as an ambassador? Davis: The way I perceive my role as an ambassador -- which I think is personal for everyone -- is that I travel to places that I'm interested in, where there's a story or a particular situation with women usually, and I just talk to people and I'm a witness to their story. I come back and try to tell their stories. Just going is such an inspiration for me that I would do it (if) no one asked me at all. But it's wonderful for me to be able to talk about it to other people, because I think sometimes we're not aware of how other people are living. CNN: What is a hero to you? Davis: I think right now our world is somewhat chaotic. There's a lot to be upset about and a lot to complain about, and the heroes are the people who are getting up and doing something about it. That's what I love about the CNN Heroes program: that it's people all over the world who may just be on their own trying to fix something. And I think that's great. It's great to be able to support people who are involved in maybe a small-scale way, trying to make the world better. I think there are so many people trying so hard to change things, and the news just doesn't get to cover them all. So it's nice that CNN Heroes does cover it.

"Sex and the City" star Kristin Davis is an ambassador for Oxfam . The organization helps people in nearly 100 countries get back on their feet . Davis is especially committed toward women and trying to empower them .

(CNN) -- Actress Lindsay Lohan's father jumped from a third-floor balcony Thursday to try to escape re-arrest, police said, but officers soon caught up with him and took him into custody -- again. Officers detained Michael Lohan after his girlfriend, Kate Major, said he violated terms of his release from jail earlier this week by calling her, the Tampa Police Department said in a statement. Investigators arrested Lohan on suspicion of domestic violence after an incident on Monday night, but they let him out of jail after he posted bail. Just after 1 a.m. Thursday, Lohan's girlfriend called police to say Lohan had violated the terms of his release by calling her, the police statement said. Lohan called his girlfriend again while she was talking with police, and she put him on speakerphone, it said. After prosecutors authorized Lohan's re-arrest, officers went to a hotel, the Tahitian Inn, where he was staying. "Upon seeing officers, he jumped out of a third-story balcony in an attempt to escape arrest," the police statement said. Officers took him into custody after a short chase and discovered after taking him to jail that he may have broken his foot, police said. Doctors were evaluating him. Lohan is not expected to be released from Tampa General Hospital Thursday and has been admitted for overnight observation, said Tampa police spokeswoman Andrea Davis. Police responded to a domestic violence call at Michael Lohan's home Monday and arrested him for the battery of his live-in girlfriend, police said. Lohan told reporters Wednesday he "didn't lay a hand" on his girlfriend. "I did not hurt her," he said. Lohan also said he never was served with a restraining order to stay away from the woman. According to CNN Tampa affiliate WFTS, a Sarasota County judge issued a temporary restraining order Tuesday. Lohan, 51, was arrested in Los Angeles in March in connection with alleged domestic violence and was charged with one misdemeanor count of corporal injury to a cohabitant. The relationship between Lohan and his daughter has been publicly strained for years, although the two did undergo family counseling together during her treatment at the Betty Ford Center. CNN's Rich Phillips contributed to this report.

NEW: Lohan has been admitted for overnight hospital observation, police said . Officers say they caught him after a short chase . Lohan may have broken his foot and is being evaluated by doctors . Michael Lohan jumped off a third-floor balcony to escape arrest, police said .

(CNN) -- Actress Mackenzie Phillips has said that she believes she had a "genetic predisposition" to the life of sex, drugs and rock and roll that have come to define her. Mackenzie Phillips tells CNN's "Larry King Live" that her father raped her in 1979. In a 1999 interview on CNN's "Larry King Live" on "Why Some Childhood Stars Crash and Burn," the former "One Day at a Time" star said she didn't blame Hollywood for the years of drug and addiction she had endured. "I think that for a lot of us, alcoholism and addiction is the root of the problem, not the fact that we were child stars," she said at the time. "Certainly, it lent to the problem, but it wasn't the root of the problem." By the time she did the interview, her well-publicized addiction to cocaine, drug arrests and stints in rehab had overshadowed an acting career once full of promise. Then, on Wednesday, the 49-year-old actress revealed on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" that she engaged in an incestuous relationship with her father, legendary musician John Phillips, for nearly 10 years. In her tell-all memoir, "High on Arrival" -- named after a song her father dedicated to her -- she claims the relationship began in 1979. She claims her father forced himself on her while they were under the influence of drugs on the night before she was to marry Jeff Sessler, a member of the Rolling Stones' entourage. She ended the relationship a decade later, when she became pregnant and realized she did not know who had fathered her child -- her husband or her own father -- and terminated the pregnancy, the actress told CNN's "Larry King Live." Watch Phillips discuss her alleged incestuous relationship with her father » But before the incest claims -- and subsequent denials from relatives -- Mackenzie Phillips was better known as a child actor full of promise who fell from grace under the toxic guidance of her drug-addicted father. Born Laura Mackenzie Phillips in 1959 to John Phillips and Baltimore socialite Susan Adams, Phillips told People magazine in 1980 that she alternated between two wildly different worlds after her parents divorced when she was three years old. "My mother concentrated on bringing me up a proper lady," Mackenzie Phillips told the magazine. "And then on weekends at my dad's place, I would find Mick Jagger and Donovan and the Beatles hanging out. I remember crawling all over Paul McCartney." Her father taught her to roll a joint when she was 10, she tried cocaine for the first time when she was 11 and lost her virginity at age 12, she told Meredith Vieira of NBC's"Today" show. When she was 12, a talent scout for Francis Ford Coppola spotted her playing in a band with classmates on amateur night at the Troubadour, according to People.com. She eventually landed a memorable role in the 1973 hit coming-of-age flick, "American Graffiti." After filming, her mother sent her to a Swiss boarding school, but the rebellious teen didn't last long in exile. She returned to her father's home in Los Angeles under the supervision of her father's sister, Rosemary Throckmorton. When her father and stepmother left for New York in 1974 and never returned, Mackenzie, her brother Jeffrey, moved in with their aunt in "a little house behind the Hollywood Bowl which we shared with 12 cats," according to People.com. Despite her relocations, Phillips' career continued to advance. At 15, she appeared in her second movie, "Rafferty and the Gold Dust Twins," with Alan Arkin. In 1975, she was offered the role of Julie Cooper on CBS' hit sitcom, "One Day at a Time," according to IMDB.com. "By the time I turned 18, I moved into a little chalet of my own and felt very grown-up," Mackenzie told People in an interview in 1980. As her star grew, so did her appetite for drugs

Mackenzie Phillips believes she had "genetic predisposition" to substance abuse . Dad showed her how to roll joint when she was 10, she tells "Today" show . Drug abuse forced her out of role on successful CBS sitcom "One Day at a Time" Watch Mackenzie Phillips on Larry King Live, Wednesday 9 p.m. ET .

(CNN) -- Actress Mariska Hargitay went to a hospital for tests Wednesday after she "experienced some discomfort" related to the collapsed lung she suffered in January, her publicist said. Mariska Hargitay plays Olivia Benson on "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit." "She is undergoing routine tests and expects to be feeling better soon," Leslie Sloane said in an e-mailed statement. Hargitay stars as Detective Olivia Benson in "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit." "Production will not be affected," Sloane said.

Mariska Hargitay in hospital for tests related to collapsed lung . Actress suffered collapsed lung in January . Hargitay is star of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit"

(CNN) -- Actress Natasha Richardson died of injuries caused by blunt impact to the head, the New York City Medical Examiner's Office confirmed Thursday. Natasha Richardson fell on a beginners' ski slope in Canada. The death was ruled an accident, the office said. Paramedics dispatched to help Richardson minutes after she fell on a Canadian ski slope Monday were turned away and did not have a chance to check her injury, the ambulance service director told a Toronto, Canada, newspaper. Richardson -- a film star, Tony-winning stage actress and member of the famed Redgrave acting family -- died two days later in a New York hospital from a head injury suffered at a Quebec resort about 80 miles northwest of Montreal. Yves Coderre, operations director for Ambulances Radisson, told Toronto's The Globe and Mail newspaper on Wednesday that his company sent an ambulance to the slopes at Mont Tremblant Ski Resort after a call from the ski patrol. "They never saw the patient," Coderre said. "So they turned around." Watch how brain injuries can be hidden » Coderre did not say who sent the ambulance away. Efforts by CNN to reach Coderre have been unsuccessful. A resort spokeswoman said a statement was being prepared in response to the latest report. An earlier statement from the resort said a paramedic from its ski patrol "arrived on the scene within minutes" after Richardson, 45, fell during a lesson on a beginners' trail. The ski patrol paramedic "did not find any visible sign of injury," it said. "As standard protocol, the ski patrol insisted Ms. Richardson be transported to the base of the hill in a rescue toboggan," it said. "Once at the base of the hill, Ms. Richardson was advised by staff to consider seeking additional medical attention which was declined." The resort's statement said Richardson, accompanied by her instructor, returned to her hotel but about an hour after the fall was "not feeling good," the statement said. Another ambulance was later called to the hotel, where paramedics found her conscious, but she "wasn't in good shape," Coderre said. Richardson was taken to a local hospital before being transferred to Hopital du Sacre-Coeur in Montreal. From there she was transferred to Lenox Hill Hospital in New York. She and her husband, actor Liam Neeson, have two children, Michael and Daniel. Her family issued a short statement Wednesday night acknowledging her death. "Liam Neeson, his sons, and the entire family are shocked and devastated by the tragic death of their beloved Natasha. They are profoundly grateful for the support, love and prayers of everyone, and ask for privacy during this very difficult time." Richardson is a member of acting royalty. Her grandfather, Sir Michael Redgrave, was a famed British actor. Her mother, Vanessa Redgrave, is an Oscar-winning actress, and her father, late director Tony Richardson, helmed such films as "Look Back in Anger," "The Entertainer" and the Oscar-winning "Tom Jones." Watch a review of her career » Richardson's uncle Corin Redgrave, aunt Lynn Redgrave and sister Joely Richardson are also noted performers. Natasha Richardson won a Tony for her performance as Sally Bowles in the 1998 revival of "Cabaret" and earned raves for her Blanche DuBois in a 2005 production of "A Streetcar Named Desire." She was scheduled to perform in a revival of Stephen Sondheim's "A Little Night Music" this year, after a January benefit performance of the show. Broadway dimmed its lights Thursday evening in tribute to Richardson.

NEW: Medical examiner rules Natasha Richardson's death an accident . Ambulance crew was turned away, company official tells newspaper . Richardson died two days after falling on ski slope . Richardson initially showed no sign of injury, resort statement says .

(CNN) -- Actress Sharon Stone said in a statement Saturday that she "could not be more regretful" of her comments this month regarding the earthquake in China, in which she suggested that the quake was an act of "karma." Sharon Stone made the controversial remarks before she hosted a charity auction at the Cannes Film Festival. "Yes, I misspoke," said the statement released by Stone's publicist and entitled "In my own words by Sharon Stone." "I could not be more regretful of that mistake. It was unintentional. I apologize. Those words were never meant to be hurtful to anyone," Stone said. "They were an accident of my distraction and a product of news sensationalism." Stone said Saturday that she was issuing the statement to set the record straight about the comments she made to a reporter at the Cannes Film Festival. The statement drew fire from citizens and government officials. "There have been numerous reports about what I said in Cannes. I would like to set the record straight about what I feel in my heart and end all of the understandings," she said. "They're not being nice to the Dalai Lama, who is a friend of mine," Stone said on camera at the time, discussing the Chinese. "And then all of this earthquake and all this happened and I thought, is that karma? When you're not nice, that bad things happen to you?" Qin Gang, spokesman for China's Foreign Ministry, said Stone "should do more to promote understanding and friendship between nations." French fashion house Christian Dior said it would drop Stone from its advertisements in China after her May 22 remarks. "We absolutely disagree with her hasty comments, and we are also deeply sorry about them," Dior said in a statement from its Shanghai, China, headquarters. But Stone said she was "deeply saddened by the pain that this whole situation has caused the victims of the devastating earthquake in China." As of Friday, the death toll from the May 12 magnitude-7.9 quake stood at 68,858, with another 18,618 missing.

Sharon Stone had suggested that deadly earthquake might be karma . Actress issues statement "to set the record straight" regarding remark . Stone says comments were product of "news sensationalism"

(CNN) -- Addie Polk, who became the national face of the foreclosure crisis last fall when she shot herself during an eviction, was a quiet woman who never asked for help. Polk, 91, who was a deaconess at her church, was remembered by friends and churchgoers for her stateliness. Fannie Mae foreclosed on the Akron, Ohio, home of Addie Polk, 91, after acquiring the mortgage in 2007. "She had runner's legs," said Joyce Smith, a longtime family friend of Polk's and fellow member of Antioch Baptist Church. "They were well-shaped, well-shaped calves, and she still wore her heels and didn't stumble," Smith said. "I used to ask her, 'Did you used to run?' She'd say 'I would run from trouble, that's about it,'" Smith said. "We always laughed at that." But Polk didn't run from the troubling eviction notices that were placed time and time again on her door in Akron, Ohio. She kept her business to herself. "She wasn't a really vocal person," Smith said. "She'd communicate, but you never knew what was going on. If it was anything negative you didn't know; if it was positive you didn't know. She was just quiet about her personal life." Polk, made news last fall when she shot herself during an eviction, died Monday at the Arbors at Fairlawn nursing home near Akron. She was 91. The Summit County Medical Examiner's office, when contacted Tuesday by CNN, said the cause of death has not been released but it was not related to the shooting. After Polk's ordeal last October sparked national outrage, Fannie Mae moved to halt the foreclosure process and "give her the house," company spokesman Brian Faith said at the time. "We're going to forgive whatever outstanding balance she had on the loan," Faith said. "Given the circumstances, we think it's appropriate." In 2004, Polk took out a 30-year, 6.375 percent mortgage for $45,620 with a Countrywide Home Loan office in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. The same day, she also took out an $11,380 line of credit. Over the next couple of years, Polk missed payments on the 101-year-old home that she and her late husband purchased in 1970. In 2007, the mortgage was in the hands of Fannie Mae, which soon filed for foreclosure. Akron Sheriff's Deputy Donald Fatheree, in a telephone interview with CNN on Tuesday, said he'd personally been to Polk's door about six times to deliver eviction notices. "Never did reach her, but always left notes," Fatheree said. As part of the eviction process, authorities left writs of possession -- legal terms that informed the occupier of eviction -- on the front door of homes. Fatheree said each time he'd return the notes would be gone, and he'd leave another. Polk's two self-inflicted gunshots to the chest were heard around the United States as the lifelong homemaker became a symbol for struggling U.S. homeowners burdened down by debt and unrelenting mortgage companies. News of Polk's plight was so pervasive that U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, evoked her name on the House floor during debate over the Wall Street bailout just days after the shooting. "This bill does nothing for the Addie Polks of the world," Kucinich said. "This bill fails to address the fact that millions of homeowners are facing foreclosure, are facing the loss of their home. This bill will take care of Wall Street, and the market may go up for a few days, but democracy is going downhill." Sommerville Funeral Services in Akron will handle arrangements for Polk.

Addie Polk, 91, became symbol of American foreclosure crisis . Polk remembered as quiet, reserved woman who was fiercely independent . U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich mentioned her on Senate floor during bailout debate .

(CNN) -- Adidas, the brand loved for its sports gear, might be expanding into fashion but it won't desert its fitness loving fans, the chief executive says. Adidas is now working with top designers, such as Stella McCartney, to create a distinctive genre of sportswear and lifestyle fashion products. But while ceo Herbert Hainer is happy with the diversity the collaborations provide, its main priority will always be sportswear, he told CNN. "Football is our heart and our soul," he said. "This gives us a driving edge in Europe," he added. Adidas is an official partner of the European Champions League and the 2012 European Football Championship. This means its commitment to Europe will grow despite the continent's vulnerable economic conditions, Hainer said. "Europe is still a huge market," he noted. "Be it in the mature markets [France, Germany, England] or the emerging markets... especially Russia," he said. "I am not concerned about Europe. There is no doubt that we will further grow in Europe," he added. Adidas has navigated the worst of Europe's economic difficulties thanks to the strength of its brand name and the diversity of its product portfolio, he said. The German sportswear giant has grown steadily throughout the first half of 2011 across all of its brand name titles, including Reebok and Tailor Made. Consumers are looking for innovative products and despite difficult economic times across the world, Adidas is delivering, Hainer said. "We have an unbelievably healthy situation because we have global brands, bring permanently innovative products to the market and this is what the consumer really appreciate," he added. CNN's Eoghan Macguire contributed to this report

Adidas is now working with top designers, such as Stella McCartney . But its main priority will always be sportswear . Adidas has navigated the worst of Europe's economic difficulties due to its strong brand .

(CNN) -- Admitted killer John Albert Gardner III bowed his head and wept at his sentencing Friday as the parents of his teen victims called him a monster and coward for raping and murdering their daughters. At the end of the hourlong hearing, the convicted sex offender was sentenced by Judge David Danielsen to three consecutive terms of life without parole for murdering Chelsea King and Amber Dubois and attacking a jogger. The case has sparked calls for tougher penalties against sex offenders. Dressed in a green jailhouse jumpsuit, his gaze on the floor, Gardner became emotional as the parents took turns attempting to articulate the agony of their losses before a packed courtroom in San Diego Superior Court. The themes of their statements alternated between celebrations of the teens' lives and expressions of rage directed at Gardner. "Look at me," Kelly King, Chelsea's mother, tearfully demanded of her daughter's killer after taking the podium. She paused and waited as a red-faced Gardner slowly lifted his eyes, casting a quick glance at her before shutting them. "What I feel is so much deeper than I ever dare to express in a public forum. There are things I'd like to say, but to protect my son and to maintain the dignity of my family, my words will be far too mild to adequately speak the disgusting truth about you," she said tearfully, trembling as she spoke. "Chelsea was a sweet, loving and innocent soul who could not have fathomed the wretched piece of evil that ended her beautiful life on that day." Gardner, 31, pleaded guilty April 16 to raping and murdering the San Diego-area teens in a deal with prosecutors that spared him the death penalty. He also pleaded guilty to assault with intent to commit rape of a jogger who managed to fight him off. CNN does not name survivors of sexual assault. The young woman also addressed Gardner in open court Friday. "As a runner, I've always gloried in the peace that comes in the utter solitude of a long run," said the woman, who was attacked in December 2009. "In a single instance, this man took from me the safety and solitude of my own mind." She said it was important for her to appear in court to represent the slain teens, despite the "pain and guilt" she feels as a survivor. "I came here to stand today as a witness for Chelsea and Amber. I came to watch as justice is served for the horrifying acts he has committed," she said, fighting back tears. "I come here today for all the women who have ever been victims of violence, to ask with Chelsea and Amber's voices to remove this man from our world, to make us a little safer by locking him up permanently. King was also running on a trail near the Rancho Bernardo Community Park on February 28 when Gardner attacked her and dragged her to a remote area, according to court documents. He raped and stabbed the 17-year-old and buried her body in a shallow grave. He was arrested three days later, after his DNA was matched to semen found on her clothes. During the emotional hearing, Gardner was called an animal, monster and sociopath. King's father, Brent, said the most appropriate name for the registered sex offender was "coward." "As I thought about what I would say to you today, I realized that names like 'monster and 'animal' in a perverse way let you off the hook. You knew what you were doing when you chose to wait for and corner Chelsea," King said. "The most fitting name for you is 'coward.' You are not a man. You are just a weak, pathetic coward who preys on unsuspecting young girls half your size. You are evil not because of some sickness or disease, so don't blame anything or anyone for your crimes. You intentionally chose evil and now you have to live with that evil festering inside you and eating you up as you rot in a prison cell for

John Albert Gardner gets three consecutive terms of life without parole, waives appeals . Gardner, 31, took plea deal in April in murders of Chelsea King, Amber Dubois . He also pleaded guilty to assault with intent to commit rape of a third woman . Gardner's case sparked calls nationwide to toughen sex offender laws .

(CNN) -- Adventurer and TV show host Bear Grylls injured his shoulder in Antarctica during an expedition to raise money for an international charity, the Discovery Channel said Sunday. Bear Grylls, host of "Man vs. Wild," was injured in Antarctica during an expedition to raise money for charity. Grylls was injured Friday night after falling during the expedition, which was not for the Discovery Channel, according to the network's statement. The statement said that Grylls is returning to the UK to receive medical attention. "Once he sees a doctor, we will have a better sense of the level of seriousness of his shoulder injury and the recovery time needed to get him back to his full physical activity," according to the statement. Grylls, 34, is the host of Discovery's "Man vs. Wild" in which he demonstrates extreme measures -- including eating snakes and insects -- used to survive in harsh environmental conditions. In his blog, Grylls said the aim of his expedition in Antarctica -- sponsored by Ethanol Venture -- is "to promote alternative energies and their potential." "We will be using lots of different forms of alternative power, including wind-powered kite-skiing, part bio-ethanol powered jetskis and inflatable boats, electric-powered paragliders, solar- and wind-powered base camps -- and good old foot work," Grylls wrote in a November 14 entry. Grylls is a former member of the British Special Forces and has broken his back in several places during his service. In his blog, he said he and his wife Shara are expecting their third child in January.

Adventurer and TV show host Bear Grylls injured his shoulder . Grylls was in Antarctica on an expedition for charity . Host going to UK for treatment, Discovery Channel says .

(CNN) -- Afghan President Hamid Karzai said Sunday the United States and its allies must have patience if his country is not ready to assume control of its own security by July 2011, when U.S. troops would begin leaving under President Obama's plan. Karzai spoke to CNN's "Amanpour" program in his first television interview since Obama's announcement last week that he will deploy an additional 30,000 U.S. troops to Afghanistan. Obama also said the U.S. forces would begin withdrawing from Afghanistan in July 2011. The date was not "an exit announcement," but instead a goal for Afghan forces to be able to start assuming security control from U.S.-led allied forces, Karzai said in the interview. "We will try our best as the Afghan people to do it the soonest possible," Karzai said. "But the international community must have also the patience with us and the realization of the realities in Afghanistan. If it takes longer, then they must be with us." Karzai also offered his own timeline goal, saying Afghanistan wants to be able to assume security control in some parts of the country in two years, and to lead security for the entire country by the end of his five-year term, which just started after his recent re-election. "We as Afghans will try our very best to reach that goal, and we hope our allies will back us to reach that goal," Karzai said. Later Sunday, Obama's national security adviser, retired Marine Gen. Jim Jones, told CNN's "State of the Union" that the July 2011 date was "not a cliff" for U.S. withdrawal, but instead the start of a gradual slope for turning over security responsibility to Afghanistan. Obama "has also said that we're not leaving Afghanistan," Jones noted, adding: "We are here to make sure that Afghanistan succeeds." To prepare his country, Karzai said, he would do all he can to root out corruption and improve governance. He has fired corrupt officials already, he said, adding he is prepared to act against anyone proven to be breaking the law. However, he warned against other nations using the corruption as a political tool in making decisions about Afghanistan. And he said the United States and its allies also must halt practices that contribute to corruption from outside the country or create what he called "parallel" governance issues. The main objective for Afghanistan and its allies is to defeat terrorism and return peace to the nation, neighboring Pakistan and the region, Karzai said. That means training Afghan security forces, rebuilding the economy and other nation-building efforts, he said. "I have fired people and I will be firing people," Karzai said. He seemed to laugh when he was played a video clip of White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs saying the United States would bypass corrupt government officials if necessary. "Afghanistan is a sovereign country, it has a sovereign government, it's not an occupied country," Karzai said, adding that a foreign power can't undermine or go around the government to deal with whomever it chooses. Top priorities on a "long list" of reforms include improving the rule of law, improving the judiciary, reducing bureaucracy that forces people to visit dozens of offices to get licenses, and other steps to make the government more transparent and simpler, Karzai said. However, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in interviews broadcast Sunday that Karzai still must prove he means what he says. "The proof is in the pudding," Clinton said on the ABC program "This Week." "We're going to have to wait to see how it unfolds." U.S. assistance will be "based on a certification of accountability and transparency," Clinton said on the CBS program "Face the Nation," adding that "certain ministries ... American money will not be going to." In his CNN interview, Karzai said his government would welcome Taliban supporters who had no ties to al Qaeda or other terrorist networks, renounced violence and pledged to support the constitution. Clinton told

NEW: "Proof is in the pudding" on Afghan reform promises, Hillary Clinton says . "We will try our best" to be ready to take over security in 2011, Karzai says . President Obama has said U.S. troops will start leaving Afghanistan in 2011 . Afghan president says Obama timeline is a goal, not "an exit announcement"

(CNN) -- Afghan opium kills 100,000 people every year worldwide -- more than any other drug -- and the opiate heroin kills five times as many people in NATO countries each year than the eight-year total of NATO troops killed in Afghan combat, the United Nations said Wednesday. An Afghan police officer digs up a field of opium poppies in April. About 15 million people around the world use heroin, opium or morphine, fueling a $65 billion market for the drug and also fueling terrorism and insurgencies: The Taliban raised $450 million to $600 million over the past four years by "taxing" opium farmers and traffickers, Antonio Maria Costa, head of the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime, said in a report. Not all the money is going into the pockets of rebels or drug dealers; some Afghan officials are making money off the trade as well, he said. "The Afghan drug economy generates several hundred million dollars per year into evil hands: some with black turbans, some with white collars," Costa said. The latter reference is "to officials in the Afghan administration, federal government of Kabul or the provinces or the army or the police," Costa told CNN's Christiane Amanpour. Watch Costa talk about the problems » And the problem is spreading, he added. Drug money is funding insurgencies in Central Asia, which has huge energy reserves, Costa said. "The Silk Route, turned into a heroin route, is carving out a path of death and violence through one of the world's most strategic yet volatile regions," he said. Authorities are seizing too little heroin, intercepting only about 20 percent of opiate traffic around the world, according to the U.N. report, "Addiction, Crime and Insurgency: the Transnational Threat of Afghan Opium." It comes on the heels of a U.N. warning last month that two years' worth of opium is effectively "missing," probably stockpiled by the Taliban and criminal gangs. More than 12,000 tons of opium, which can be consumed as a narcotic itself or turned into heroin, is unaccounted for, the United Nations estimated in September. It is not clear who has it or why, but the United Nations speculates that criminals could be holding it as a hedge against falling prices or that insurgents or terrorists could be stockpiling it to fund attacks. The latest report claims to be the first systematic attempt to track where Afghan opium ends up. See how Afghan heroin reaches Europe and the West » Europe and Russia together consume just under half of the heroin coming out of Afghanistan, the United Nations concluded, and Iran is by far the single largest consumer of Afghan opium. Afghanistan is also probably supplying an increasing share of the heroin in China -- perhaps as much as a quarter, the report said. Afghanistan is by far the world's largest producer of opium, although Laos, Myanmar and Latin America produce small quantities, it said. The United Nations found that Afghanistan may be supplying more heroin to the United States and Canada than had been suspected. The two North American countries consume more than twice as much heroin as Latin America produces. That means either that more Afghan heroin is making its way to North America than had been known or that Mexico and Columbia are producing more than was realized, the United Nations said. The report confirmed an estimate that $400 million in drug profits goes to the Taliban, Costa said. The Taliban "are deeply involved" in processing, in protecting farmers and in exporting, he said. The solution "is very clear," he said. "We need a much greater effort and commitment by governments to prevent drug addiction, to take care of drug addicts ... to reduce demand." But the popular will for change needs to increase, he said, noting that the Security Council in 2006 and 2007 passed resolutions inviting member states to give the names of drug traffickers to authorities so that their ability to travel can be curtailed and their assets seized. "So far, much to my dismay, not

Afghan heroin trade funds terrorism, insurgencies, U.N. report says . 12,000 tons of opium missing, probably stockpiled by Taliban, gangs, U.N. says . Afghanistan is world's largest producer of opium, from which heroin is made . Iran is by far largest consumer of Afghan heroin, U.N. report says .

(CNN) -- Afraid that her husband will leave her for a younger woman, a 107-year-old Malaysian woman is looking to marry again -- for the 23rd time. Wok Kundor: "I am an aged woman. I don't have the body nor am I a young woman who can attract anyone." Wok Kundor has been happily married for four years to her husband, a man 70 years her junior. But since he left their village in northern Terengganu state for a drug rehabilitation program in the capital, Kuala Lumpur, Wok has had a gnawing feeling. "She said that she has been feeling insecure lately and she needs to find out whether he still loves her or not," said R.S.N. Murali, a reporter for The Star. The English-language Malaysian daily was among several local media outlets reporting on the lifelong romantic. "She is worried he might not come back after his program and find himself a younger wife," Murali said. If so, Wok has her eyes set on a 50-year-old man, but hopes it does not come to that. "I realize that I am an aged woman. I don't have the body nor am I a young woman who can attract anyone," she told the newspaper. "My intention to remarry is to fill my forlornness," particularly during the Muslim month of fasting, Ramadan, she said. Malaysian media, which has previously reported on the woman, said Wok has been married 22 times. That would make her marriages last an average of four years. Wok would not discuss past relationships, Murali said. "Some of her better halves have passed away or have divorced, but she doesn't want to talk about them or her children," he said. Wok and her current husband, Mohammed Boor Che Musa, hail from the same village and met there. Muhammad, 37, was quoted in an earlier report as saying the couple fell for each other because it was "God's will." On Monday, he told The Star that he is still very much in love with his wife and cannot dream of life with someone else. But Wok wants to hear him say it, Murali said. Soon, the centenarian plans to make the journey to Kuala Lumpur -- if she can find a neighbor to drive her there.

107-year-old Malaysian woman fears husband will leave her for younger woman . Wok Kundor married to her husband, a man 70 years her junior, for four years . Malaysian media says Wok has been married 22 times .

(CNN) -- Africa's most active volcano, Mount Nyamuragira in the Democratic Republic of Congo, erupted early Saturday, spewing lava off its southern flank, the Congolese Wildlife Authority reported. Rangers in Virunga National Park reported hearing a loud explosion at 3:45 a.m. and then seeing lava flowing from the crater of the 10,033-foot volcano. "I first thought (it) was the sound of war. I thought there was fighting again near our park station," said Innocent Mburanumwe, warden for the southern sector of Virunga National Park. "Then I saw the mountain was on fire with sparks flying. We could see that we were not in immediate danger here at Rumangabo, but there are many people who live to the south of the volcano, where the lava is heading as I speak." Nyamuragira is 15 miles (25 kilometers) north of the city of Goma and its 600,000 residents, but Mburanumwe said in a blog posting that lava flows from the mountain were unlikely to threaten human populations. Lava flows from another park volcano, Nyiragongo, destroyed parts of Goma in 2002. The wildlife authority said the Nyamuragira eruption was likely to destroy habitat for 40 chimpanzees on the volcano's lower slopes. Virunga National Park is also home to 200 endangered mountain gorillas, but they live on the slopes of the Mikena volcano to the east of Nyamuragira. The Smithsonian Museum of Natural History calls Nyamuragira the continent's most active volcano, with 42 eruptions since 1885. Its most recent eruption ended in December 2006.

Lava flowing down southern flank of Mount Nyamuragira, park rangers report . Nyamuragira is in Virunga National Park . Park's mountain gorillas not in danger, but lava threaten chimp habitat .

(CNN) -- African Voices catch up with Nigerian author Chinua Achebe, Africa's man of letters. A contender for the title of Africa's most widely read novelist, his first work "Things Fall Apart" has been translated into 40 languages. "I think story telling was my life. I was very curious about story telling. Even attempting to remember the first one is like trying to remember the day you were born, I'm not sure you can," he told CNN.

Celebrated Nigerian author has been resident in New York for over 20 years . Most famous work, "Things Fall Apart" translated into over 40 languages . "It's my ambition to distinguish between good and bad novels," he told CNN .

(CNN) -- African-American farmers hoping for government settlement money in a racial bias case met with lawmakers Wednesday and called on Congress to come up with a way to fund the $1 billion deal. Litigation known as the Pigford Case established a longstanding pattern of discrimination at the U.S. Agriculture Department against African-American farmers who had applied for farm loans and support from federal programs. Under the terms of an involved process overseen by a federal judge and dating to 1999, qualified farmers could receive $50,000 each to settle claims of racial bias. In addition, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has said those farmers may pursue a claim for actual damages from the bias and potentially receive up to $250,000. Ralph Paige, executive director of the Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund, said Wednesday that he believed that Congress was "very close" to coming up with a way to pay the settlement, which covers as many as 80,000 African-American farmers. "These farmers have suffered much, much too long, and it's time that this thing get behind us. We can settle Pigford once and for all and send a clear message to the country that we are on the right track as a nation," Paige said at news conference. "We're talking about much more than the money. We are talking about remedying past discrimination," Paige said. A March 31 deadline to appropriate the funds has passed, and farmers now may withdraw from the settlement and pursue independent litigation against the government. Congress now has a target date of the end of May to come up with a plan. "We spend a billion dollars on a jet to go bomb somebody. We're talking about a billion dollars to help feed our country, and I just don't see why Congress and the president can't go ahead and find [the funds]. It is an emergency," said Gary Grant, with the Black Farmers and Agriculturalists Association. Rep. G.K. Butterfield, D-North Carolina, said there is a "total commitment" from President Obama and the majority party in the House and Senate to make sure the settlement is taken care of. Butterfield represents his state's First Congressional District, which is home to Timothy Pigford, who filed the class-action lawsuit more than a decade ago. Butterfield said lawmakers need to work out how to pay for the settlement under the PAYGO rule, meaning Congress must balance any increased spending with equal savings elsewhere. The other option would be to designate the settlement as an emergency, which would be exempt from PAYGO. Lawmakers are looking for an appropriate piece of legislation in which to include the settlement to avoid adding to the deficit, Butterfield said. "If we cannot find the appropriate vehicle, then I would certainly support declaring this settlement as a national emergency and adding it to the next supplemental that may be on the House floor," he said. Farmers have until May 31 to withdraw from the pending class-action settlement and pursue an independent claim against the government if they feel their chances would be better for a payout. If they choose to stay in the class, they will wait as a group to apply for the promised monetary damages. Vilsack has said there's no question the damages are due for African-American farmers. In a statement last week, he said, "I have met with and talked to key stakeholders and members of Congress reiterating the administration's ongoing efforts to close this chapter in the history of the department." CNN's Paul Courson and Kristi Keck contributed to this report.

Advocates say lawmakers are on their side, but they want them to speed up the process . Rep. Butterfield says Congress needs to have a payment plan or declare an emergency . Lawsuit says U.S. Agriculture Department discriminated against African-American farmers .

(CNN) -- After 20 years of mega-success together, country duo Brooks & Dunn say they are done. Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn have decided to call it quits as a country singing duo. In a statement on their Web site, the pair said they will tour one last time next year as a goodbye to fans -- and then call it a day. The decision to part was mutual, the duo said. "If you hear rumors, don't believe them, it's just time," the Web statement said. Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn were successful singer-songwriters in their own right when they joined forces and scored their first hit as a duo with their 1991 debut CD, "Brand New Man." Since then, they have released more than a dozen albums, had 20 No. 1 hits and won the Country Music Association's Vocal Duo of the Year award every year from 1992 until 2006 -- with their streak broken just once in 2000. The duo will release a compilation, ".1's . . . And Then Some," on September 8. "The Last Rodeo" tour will begin in 2010, but dates have not been announced.

The pair said they will tour one last time next year as a goodbye to fans . Brooks & Dunn have released more than a dozen albums and had 20 No. 1 hits . The duo will release a compilation on September 8 .