Free Republic

WOODLAND HILLS A motorist died in a speeding Porsche that came off the Ventura (101) Freeway, overturned and burst into flames on Burbank Boulevard Saturday, a California Highway Patrol officer said. A lime-green 2008 Porsche veered off the westbound side of the freeway near Shoup Avenue and came to rest against a parking structure in the 22100 block of Burbank just after 2:30 a.m., according to CHP Officer Francisco Villalobos and a CHP sergeant who spoke to a Newsreel camera crew at the scene. The Porsche took at least a 30-foot drop, and cleared a six-foot chain link fence before...

Settlement is in sight on a 9-year-old court battle over land on which Wasilla's Multi-Use Sports Complex is built. Anchorage Superior Court Judge Peter Michalski on Monday signed an order giving developer Gary Lundgren $314,739 in attorney fees and court costs in an eminent domain case the city filed against Lundgren's land in December 2002. In eminent domain cases, the plaintiff typically pays the defendants' court fees.

A 6-year-old girl playing hide-and-seek with her grandmother Thursday evening found a newborn baby on Syracuse's South Side. The baby girl, her umbilical cord still attached, was lying under some bushes where Lilliana Williams-Rodriguez went to hide, said the little girl's grandmother, Thelma Williams. The infant was partially wrapped in a black shirt, with most of her torso exposed, Williams said.

BOCA GRANDE - Three men doing construction work on a beach-front deck helped rescue a pilot whose small plane crashed into the ocean just offshore today. Law enforcement officials did not identify the survivor, the plane's lone occupant. He was taken to a Charlotte County hospital in stable condition. At about 11 a.m., the single-engine plane approached the water, barely audible, as though the pilot intended to land on water, said one of the workers, Eric Stone, 31, of North Port. But seconds later, when Stone and his co-workers ended their break, the plane crashed about 100 feet off the...

The family of Caylee Anthony is taking new steps on Friday to find the missing toddler. They've called in a nationally-known search crew that is expected to start looking for the 3-year-old girl. The founder of Texas Equu Search is scheduledto meet with investigators to get some direction on where to begin their search. The team will use dogs, horses, sonar and an airplane. The founder, Tim Miller, has led hundreds of searches and helped find Elizabeth Smart alive. He's hoping to bring Caylee home too. "We're holding onto that miracle, but we also know after this much time goes...

Two lanes of southbound U.S. Highway 101 in Sunnyvale reopened at about 9:15 a.m., following a crash in which a big rig transporting vodka overturned and spilled the product onto the roadway, city spokesman John Pilger said. The big rig overturned shortly before 8 a.m. at North Mathilda Avenue, spilling vodka and fuel and temporarily closing all southbound lanes. Emergency personnel have extricated the driver of the big rig, but Pilger did not know the driver's condition. The left two lanes on the southbound side have reopened, but authorities are advising commuters to take alternate routes if possible, as traffic...

Lawsuit: Producer Did Not Follow Through With Prior Arrangements, RepaymentSan Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom's wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, filed a lawsuit against an independent film producer and his company on Monday on accusations he used her $75,000 investment and did not follow through with prior arrangements or repayment, according to court documents. Siebel Newsom made the investment in January 2004 based on the belief that she would be repaid and that she would act in and help produce a film made by China Venture Films, LLC, also known as China Ventures, according to court documents. A film called "Milk and...

Just days after Bounty hunter Leonard Padilla bailed Casey Anthony out of jail, preliminary forensic reports have revealed there was a decomposing body in the car Casey was using. Authorities have revealed that forensic tests prove there was a decomposing body in the car Casey was using - and Casey might be headed back to jail on murder charges. Meanwhile, Padilla has revealed that Casey is 'in her own world' and 'believes' everything she says - but she is not cooperating at all. He is considering revoking her bail after Casey demonstrated that she is 'not all there'.

On Debbie Argel’s first motorcycle trip from California to Wisconsin in 2003, she was nervous about the risks, but encouraged by her son, Air Force Capt. Derek Argel. He told her: "Fear of death is really just a fear of life. Go for it, Mom." Two years later, on Memorial Day, 2005, Derek was killed in Iraq. In his memory, and to raise money for children of special military forces killed in the line of duty, Debbie and her husband, Todd Bastian, are riding their cycles from Lompoc, Calif., to Milwaukee for Harley-Davidson Inc.'s 105th Anniversary Celebration. The big party...

I listened to just a little of Milt Rosenberg's show (WGN Chicago) and he had Stanley Kurtz of the National Review as guest to discuss the Chicago Annenberg Challenge founded by Bill Ayers and whose board was chaired by Barack Obama. Milt was shocked at the large (and virtrol) amount of email on calls from the Obama camp. Milt said they contacted the Obama team and they declined to show.

Air sample tests from Casey Anthony's car show a decomposing human body was inside the trunk, a Sheriff's Office official confirmed Wednesday. Officials have offered Anthony a partial immunity deal if she admits 3-year-old Caylee Marie died as a result of an accident. If she takes the deal, any information Anthony provides to law-enforcement could not be used against her in prosecution. Danielle Tavernier, spokeswoman for the Orange-Osceola State Attorney's Office, said they are not disclosing any details of their prosecution, but that Anthony had been "invited to our office to shed light on the disappearance of the victim in...

Results taken from air samples reveal that a body was decomposing in the trunk of a car driven by the mother of missing Florida toddler Caylee Anthony, a local TV station reported. Detectives with cadaver dogs said they detected the smell of human decomposition coming from the trunk of the Pontiac Casey Anthony was driving when her little girl disappeared more than two months ago. The University of Tennessee "Body Farm" conducted the tests on the car's air samples Aug. 10, and on Wednesday their conclusion was released: a human corpse had been decomposing there, according to WESH-2 TV.

Cops rushed to the Florida home of O.J. Simpson after his eldest daughter knocked him to the ground in a brawl over his girlfriend Christie Prody, sources said. "Arnelle had a fight with Christie over Christie's behavior. That's what started the whole thing," a source told the Daily News. "Christie has some problems with drinking, and Arnelle got mad. O.J. said 'Don't talk to her like that,' and Arnelle pushed him." The source said Arnelle, 39, called 911 in a fit of guilt after she toppled the 61-year-old on Sunday, giving him a minor head injury. The police report does...

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. -- A crime lab has now confirmed the stench in the trunk of Casey Anthony's car did come from a human body. Casey was offered limited immunity if she'd help detectives find her missing daughter, but they said the deal expires Thursday. The State Attorney's Office confirmed on Wednesday that Casey Anthony was invited to their office to shed light on the disappearance of Caylee. The State Attorney's Office is not revealing details about the offer of limited immunity. Investigators met with Casey Anthony on Wednesday afternoon at her attorney's office. Cindy Anthony was also there. Casey...

Roxanne Taylor (D-Bowie), a Barack Obama Democratic National Committee delegate from the 5th District, suffered a stroke early this morning, WTOP reports. Fellow delegates noticed Taylor not looking well shortly after midnight while at Comptroller Peter Franchot's reception at a downtown Denver bar. They alerted emergency medical personnel who said she was having a stroke. She is currently at the Denver Medical Center, where she is listed in fair condition.

Five men found slain last week in a north Shelby County apartment were beaten and shocked. Investigators believe that on Aug. 17 - three days before the discovery - the men were beaten and tortured with electric shocks, and their throats were cut, the sheriff said. in a brutal murder-for-hire related to drugs and money, authorities said Tuesday. Four men have been charged with capital murder in the slayings, which Shelby County Sheriff Chris Curry described during a news conference as being connected to a drug organization that transports cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana. All the suspects either received or paid...

Domestic Violence Officer Accused Of Assaulting Husband Posted: Aug 25, 2008 06:15 PM Putnam County Sheriff's Office COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - A Putnam County woman faces is accused of assaulting her husband. Kim Keith is a domestic violence officer with the Putnam County Sheriff's Office. Since 2003, if there's been a domestic violence case in the county, more than likely Keith has investigated it. But now she's on the other side of the law and suspended from her job. "Absolutely not," Keith said when asked if she has ever shoved or physically assaulted her husband. A police report indicates that her...

HARLAN, Ky. — Politicians are known for lame jokes. But when Otis "Bullman" Hensley tried a generations-old Appalachian jest on a woman and two girls at the grocery store, the family thought it was downright criminal. [. . .] He could have faced as many as 10 years in prison, but a charge of attempted unlawful transaction with a minor was dismissed on Monday. The ordeal began last week when Hensley's wife sent him to a local grocery store to buy ground beef. While there, Hensley encountered a woman with her two nieces, ages 11 and 13. "I offered to...

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NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) -- Nine-year-old Jericho Scott is a good baseball player -- too good, it turns out. The right-hander has a fastball that tops out at about 40 mph. He throws so hard that the Youth Baseball League of New Haven told his coach that the boy could not pitch any more. When Jericho took the mound anyway last week, the opposing team forfeited the game, packed its gear and left, his coach said. Officials for the three-year-old league, which has eight teams and about 100 players, said they will disband Jericho's team, redistributing its players among other...