A judge on Friday ordered the release of up to 42 criminal defendants, saying they aren't being adequately represented by the city's financially struggling indigent defender office, but he immediately delayed the order to mid April. It wasn't clear how many suspects would be released after April 18 if Orleans Criminal Court Judge Arthur Hunter's order stands. A prosecutor said about half of the 42 are already out of jail. Among them are people accused of violent crimes. The order would suspend their prosecution but not dismiss the charges against them. Assistant District Attorney David Pipes said his office may appeal the order. Hunter faulted the Louisiana Legislature for failing to adequately fund the Indigent Defenders Office in New Orleans. ... http://abcnews.go.com censor News |
Editor - 09:50:00 03-30-07 |
Time, money running out to feed Chadians living in camps |
Tens of thousands of displaced people are running out of food in strife-torn eastern Chad as rising violence spilling across the border from Darfur forces more people from their homes, the U.N. food agency said on Friday.The World Food Program said it had planned to feed 50,000 Chadians in the parched scrubland region but ethnic conflict has displaced an additional 80,000 people who need urgent assistance.They require an additional 7,500 metric tons of food at a cost of $7.5 million. The agency faces a race against time as food must be delivered before the rainy season starts in June, making roads impassable."This is not a sustainable situation," said WFP Chad Country Director Felix Bamezon. "Life in eastern Chad has always been precarious, but now tens of thousands of Chadians are being pushed to the breaking point."... http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/africa/03/30/chad.refugees.reut/index.html?eref=rss_world
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Editor - 09:49:00 03-30-07 |
"Transplant tourism" on rise due to donor shortages |
"Transplant tourism" is on the rise because organ donations are not keeping up with growing demand, especially for kidneys, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday. The United Nations agency said it was concerned about a rise in cases where people in countries such as Pakistan, Egypt and the Philippines were persuaded to sell their body parts to outsiders, mostly through a broker. The practice has increased over the past decade, said Luc Noel of the WHO's health technology and pharmaceuticals unit. "We believe 5 to 10 percent of all kidneys transplanted were in 2005 transplanted in this setting," he told a news conference in Geneva, home to the WHO's headquarters. Transplantation is increasingly regarded as the best solution to end-stage organ failure, according to the WHO.... http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070330/ts_nm/transplants_dc
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Editor - 09:47:00 03-30-07 |
Display of Controversial 'Chocolate Jesus' Sculpture Cancelled, FOX News Learns |
A controversial planned exhibit of a milk chocolate sculpture of Jesus Christ, dubbed "My Sweet Lord" by its creator, has been cancelled, FOX News has learned.The exhibit, set for Easter week, elicited outrage Thursday from a Catholic group infuriated by the anatomically correct confection."This is one of the worst assaults on Christian sensibilities ever," said Bill Donohue, head of the watchdog Catholic League. "It's not just the ugliness of the portrayal, but the timing — to choose Holy Week is astounding."The 6-foot sculpture by artist Cosimo Cavallaro was to debut Monday evening, the day after Palm Sunday and just four days before Roman Catholics mark the crucifixion of Jesus Christ on Good Friday. The final day of the exhibit at the Lab Gallery inside midtown Manhattan's Roger Smith Hotel was planned for Easter Sunday.... http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,262602,00.html
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Editor - 09:41:00 03-30-07 |
EU adds to pressure on Iran |
The EU today called for the unconditional and immediate release of the 15 British sailors by Iran as tensions grew following as tensions escalated following the emergence of a third propaganda video from the detainees. Javier Solana, the EU's foreign policy chief, warned Tehran of "appropriate measures" if it did not release the marines and Royal Navy personnel. Mr Solana said British citizens were the concern of the 27-nation bloc. Earlier today, Iranian TV screened footage of sailor Nathan Thomas Summers apologising for "trespassing" in Iranian waters. A letter was also released - the third purportedly written by Leading Seaman Faye Turney - which criticised US and UK foreign policy.The letter said she had been "sacrificed due to the intervening policies of the Bush and Blair governments", adding that she and her 14 colleagues were receiving better treatment than Iraqis held in Abu Ghraib, the scene of an abuse scandal in 2004... http://www.guardian.co.uk/iran/story/0,,2046490,00.html
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Editor - 09:40:00 03-30-07 |
The Most Hated Family in America |
They call themselves the most hated family in the US and they picket funerals of soldiers killed in Iraq. So what did Louis Theroux make of the Phelpses after three weeks? In any country, let alone one as patriotic as the US, few actions are as provocative as protesting at a soldier's funeral. The Phelps family pickets mourners across the country, to mark what it describes as God's revenge on the US for tolerating homosexuality. Their actions are in the name of the Westboro Baptist Church, which numbers 71 and is headed by "Gramps", preacher Fred Phelps. The church, which is based in Topeka, Kansas, mostly comprises his extended family. Louis Theroux, himself no stranger to people with unconventional views, says the Phelpses are the most extreme people he has ever met. But in the following interview, he reveals how three weeks with them left him perplexed by their motivation. ... http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/6507971.stm
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Editor - 09:37:00 03-30-07 |
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