BREAKING: TRAYVON MARTIN HAD DRUGS IN SYSTEM, AUTOPSY FOUND
Trayvon Martin, the 17-year-old who was shot and killed by a neighborhood watch volunteer, had the drug THC in his system the night of this death, according to new information obtained by ABC News. The revelation came as prosecutors in the case prepared to release to the public hundreds of pages of new evidence along with videos and crime scene photos. Martin’s death sparked public outrage after police released Martin’s shooter, George Zimmerman, without any criminal charges for the killing. Zimmerman, 28, is a multi-racial Hispanic man who shot the black high school junior at close range on Feb. 26, and claimed self-defense, though Martin was unarmed. Zimmerman was later charged with second-degree murder, and the killing provoked widespread debate about racial profiling.
The autopsy report shows traces of the drug THC, which is found in marijuana, in Martin’s blood and urine. The autopsy also shows that Zimmerman shot Martin from a distance of between 1 inch and 18 inches away, bolstering Zimmerman’s claim that he shot Martin during a struggle that landed Zimmerman on his back, Martin straddling him and banging Zimmerman’s head on the ground. Martin’s autopsy report also revealed that there was a quarter-inch by half-inch abrasion on the left fourth finger of Martin, another indication of a possible struggle. The teen, who lived in Miami, was in Sanford while serving a suspension for a bag of marijuana being discovered in his possession.
Source: AP
Facebook Prices IPO At $38 Per Share
Facebook has priced its initial public offering of stock at $38 per share, at the high end of its expected range. It means investor demand is strong for the world’s largest online social network. Facebook Inc. and its early investors now stand to reap as much as $18.4 billion from the IPO, if the extra shares reserved to cover additional demand are sold as part of the transaction. Without the extra shares, the offering raises $16 billion. The IPO values the company at around $104 billion, above Amazon.com, Disney and Kraft. The offering is shaping up to be one of the largest in history – a huge payoff for a company that started out eight years ago with no way to make money.
The $38 price tag is what the investment banks orchestrating the offering will sell the stock to their clients. Facebook’s stock is expected to begin trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market sometime Friday morning under the ticker symbol “FB.” That’s when so-called retail investors can try to buy the stock.
Source: CNBC
BREAKING: 5 SHOT, 3 DEAD, IN WEST LOUISVILLE NEIGHBORHOOD
Two shootings in a western Louisville neighborhood have left three people dead and police say two more have been hospitalized. An AP reporter on the scene saw three bodies Thursday afternoon. Louisville Metro Police spokesman Dwight Mitchell said two bodies were found at a house where four people had been shot. As police investigated, onlookers and reporters dove for cover when several shots rang out. Shortly after, a sheet was placed over a third body on the sidewalk and two people were placed in handcuffs. Mitchell said two others who were wounded have been taken to University of Louisville Hospital, where one was in critical condition. The victims’ identities haven’t been released, and police didn’t release any information about what may have happened.
Source: Louisvile Courier-Journal
RFK Jr.’s Estranged Wife Hanged Herself
The Kennedy family, so practiced at public mourning, is grieving again after the estranged wife of Robert Kennedy Jr. hanged herself at her home in suburban New York. Mary Richardson Kennedy, 52, an architect known for her philanthropic and environmental work who also was hit with drug and alcohol charges in recent years, was found dead Wednesday afternoon on the family’s property in Bedford. The Westchester County medical examiner’s office said after an autopsy Thursday that she died of asphyxiation due to hanging. A person familiar with the investigation into her death says that authorities have concluded that her death was a suicide. The person was not authorized to release the information and spoke on condition of anonymity. Bedford police have declined to answer questions about the circumstances of her death.
Her death came after several hard years for the family. Her husband, Robert Kennedy Jr., a prominent environmental lawyer and the son of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, had filed for a divorce in 2010. The two had married in 1994 and had four children together. The divorce case was still pending.
Source: AP
Postal Service To Begin Closing Plants This Summer
The nearly bankrupt U.S. Postal Service is moving ahead with plans to close dozens of mail processing centers, saying on Thursday it can no longer wait as Congress remains deadlocked over how to help. At a news briefing, Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe said the agency’s mail processing network had simply become too big, given declining mail volume and its mounting debt. It will now consolidate nearly 250 plants as originally planned, including 48 this summer, but will stretch out the remainder over a longer time frame in 2013 and 2014.
Earlier this month, nearly half the Senate had written letters to Donahoe asking that he hold off on closing any mail facility until Congress could pass final postal overhaul legislation. The Senate last month passed a bill that would halt many of the closings; the House remains stalled over a measure allowing for more aggressive cuts. Under the modified approach, up to 140 mail processing centers will be consolidated by next February; roughly 48 in August and about 90 next January and February, with closings suspended during the Postal Service’s busy election and holiday mail season. Another 89 closings would occur in 2014.
Source: AP
BREAKING: DONNA SUMMER DEAD AT AGE 63
Donna Summer the Queen of Disco — died this morning after a battle with cancer … TMZ has learned. We’re told Summer was in Florida at the time of her death. She was 63 years old. Sources close to Summer tell us … the singer was trying to keep the extent of her illness under wraps. We spoke to someone who was with Summer a couple of weeks ago … who says she didn’t seem too bad. In fact, we’re told she was focused on trying to finish up an album she had been working on. Summer was a 5-time Grammy winner who shot to superstardom in the ’70s with iconic hits like “Last Dance,” “Hot Stuff” and “Bad Girls.”
Source: TMZ
UPDATE: GUNMAN IS SAVANNAH STANDOFF SURRENDERS
A gunman surrendered after barricading himself inside a landmark restaurant in a standoff that closed parts of the 18th-century city’s historic district for more than three hours Thursday. Savannah-Chatham County police spokeswoman Gena Sullivan said the man was taken into custody without incident after a SWAT team entered the upscale Olde Pink House restaurant. The standoff that began around 8 a.m. shut down streets, squares and tourist spots in the city.
There were no hostages and no reports of any injuries, Sullivan said. Police had closed Reynolds Square, where the restaurant is located, and nearby Johnson Square as well as surrounding streets. The Savannah College of Art and Design, which has buildings in the area, sent an alert to the entire campus, school spokeswoman Patricia Roche said. School administrators advised anyone in the area to stay inside and urged everyone else to avoid the area. The Olde Pink House restaurant, located in an 18th-century mansion and named for its pink stucco facade, is nestled on Reynolds Square, one of the many picturesque squares throughout Savannah’s historic district.
Syrian Opposition Faces More Fractures, Infighting
The head of Syria’s main opposition council offered to resign Thursday after some members threatened to pull out of the umbrella group amid rampant infighting, striking a blow to efforts to present a united front against President Bashar Assad. Burhan Ghalioun said he did not wish to be a divisive figure and was ready to step down, just days after he was re-elected to a third, three-month term as head of the Syrian National Council. “I announce my resignation as soon as a new candidate is picked, either by consensus or new elections,” he told The Associated Press. “I will continue to work to serve the revolution from my position as a member of the council.” Fifteen months into the uprising, Syria’s opposition is still struggling to overcome infighting and inexperience, preventing the movement from gaining the traction it needs to present a credible alternative to Assad. Its international backers have repeatedly appealed for the movement to pull together and work as one unit.
The U.N. estimated in March that the violence in Syria has killed more than 9,000 people. Hundreds more have been killed since then as a revolt that began with mostly peaceful calls for reform has transformed into an armed insurgency. A conference sponsored by the Arab League in Cairo to help unite the disparate opposition was canceled this week, largely because of infighting between various groups.
Source: AP
‘Terminator 3′ Actor Nick Stahl Missing In LA
Los Angeles police say “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines” actor Nick Stahl has been reported missing by his wife. Police Officer Cleon Joseph confirmed on Thursday that the missing persons report was filed this week and the 32-year-old actor hasn’t been found. The Los Angeles Times reports Stahl’s wife last saw the actor on May 9. Foul play isn’t suspected. People magazine reports the couple has been embroiled in a child custody fight. Stahl was a child star who first got attention of his performance in the 1993 film “The Man Without a Face.” As an adult, he appeared in the 2003-2005 HBO series “Carnivale’” and in 2003′s “Terminator 3″ as John Connor. He also starred in “Mirrors 2″ in 2010.
Source: TMZ
BREAKING: GUNMAN, POLICE IN STANDOFF IN DOWNTOWN SAVANNAH
Police say a gunman who’s barricaded himself inside a landmark restaurant in downtown Savannah does not have any hostages. The Thursday morning standoff has prompted authorities to close some areas of the city’s downtown historic district. Gena Sullivan, a Savannah-Chatham County police spokeswoman, says there are no hostages and no reports of any injuries. A SWAT team had surrounded the Olde Pink House restaurant with the armed suspect inside.
Source: WAGA
