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Executives of the U.S. Fox network said Friday that singer Paula Abdul was cleared of any wrongdoing in regard to charges that she had an improper relationship with former American Idol contestant Corey Clark. The network cleared her to return to the show for its fifth season.

American Idol has topped network television ratings as the most-watched program in the U.S. for the past three years. Abdul is one of the three judges of the talent/variety program, where she is popularly referred to as the “nice one” by contestants.

Fox reportedly hired a former federal prosecutor to lead an investigation into whether Abdul compromised the integrity of its flagship series. After an investigation of more than three months, interviewing 43 people and looking over documents supplied by both Abdul and Clark, the investigation showed no proof that Abdul had a sexual relationship with Clark.

Clark was booted from the second season of Idol after it was discovered he hid a previous domestic violence arrest record from producers. Two years later, he told reporters that he had been involved in a secret romantic relationship with Abdul, which would have been a violation of the show’s rules and Abdul’s employment contract.

“I’m grateful this ordeal is over, and I’m so looking forward to getting back to the job I love,” Abdul said in an Associated Press interview after the decision was announced to keep her on the show.

For: Wikinews

Doctors at the regional burn center at St. Joseph Hospital in Fort Wayne, Indiana are treating a patient flown in from war-torn Afghanistan.

U.S. Army’s 113th Battalion, which is made up of Indiana National Guardsman, discovered five-year-old Zia after a propane explosion in suburban Kabul earlier this year destroyed homes and killed six of the boy’s family members.

The blast left Zia with third degree burns on his arms, torso and legs. Guardsmen, familiar with the Fort Wayne burn center, worked with non-profit group, Northeast Indiana Burn Council to raised $18,500 to fly Zia, accompanied by his father Abdul Qahir, to Fort Wayne for treatment.

Upon arrival, he was rushed to the St. Joseph burn unit, where after a few days of recovery from travel, underwent his first surgery June 23. The second and final surgery was postponed nine days from an original date of July 2 because the boy developed an infection in one of his wounds, which is common for burn patients.

The second surgery grafted skin onto burn wounds on Zia’s arm, chest and the second toe on his right foot. Tuesday, doctors said Zia was recovering and appeared to be in good spirits. In preparation for their planned return trip to Afghanistan in September, doctors are teaching Zia’s father physical therapy techniques needed for further recovery. “Without good therapy, he could be right back where we started,” Dr. John Mancoll, the lead surgeon on the case said in an interview with the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette newspaper.

For: Wikinews

After scouring the Caribbean islands, Hurricane Dennis moved on toward the U.S. Gulf coast but not before its deadly fury was unleashed upon the region’s many island nations.

The fury of Dennis overnight wracked the area with torrential flood, causing rains, dangerous rip tides, tidal swells, and winds up to 175 miles per hour. According to reports from humanitarian aid organizations, at least 10 died in Cuba and 22 in Haiti. As of 9 July 2005 18:06 (UTC), reports of dead and injured from other Caribbean countries had not been reported.

Cuba, which has a national emergency response program in the event of Hurricanes, evacuated 660,000 people from the eastern part of the island, which was considered to be the most vulnerable part of the country. But Saturday morning, president Fidel Castro confirms in a national broadcast that at least 10 Cubans died as a result of the storm. Dennis slammed into Cuba’s southern coastal province of Cienfuegos Friday afternoon with Category 4 force winds. It emerged on the north side of Cuba considerably weakened to Category 1.

By clicking the image, a larger picture shows the key code that recorded the storms changes in intensity. CMISS Jul 8/2100ZIn nearby Jamaica, although the island was spared the full force of Dennis, rains and tidal swells caused widespread flooding in 28 communities. Hundreds of families faced a weekend camped out in emergency shelters as health officials inspected flood areas for safety.

For: Wikinews

In what has been called the busiest start in recorded history for the U.S. hurricane season, newly-formed Tropical Storm Cindy was making its way toward the U.S. Gulf Coast.

The storm was expected to make landfall in Louisiana with 70 mile-per-hour winds also affecting neighboring states of Alabama, Mississippi and the Florida panhandle area late Tuesday night. Weather forecasters were calling for up to 10 inches of rain, lightning and the possibility of tornadoes to be spawned by the storm.

Cindy is expected to weaken after making landfall and is not expected to develop into a full-fledged hurricane since it is too close to the shore and will be robbed of warm ocean waters essential for a tropical storm’s growth. A true hurricane is defined as a tropical storm with sustained wind speeds of 74 miles per hour or greater.

Cindy wasn’t alone in U.S. hurricane weather news Tuesday. Another tropical storm, named Dennis, formed in the warm shallow waters of the Caribbean off the coast of Jamaica. Dennis is expected to pass into the Gulf of Mexico and develop into a hurricane as it strengthens over the gulf waters.

Oil companies which have crude oil pumping rigs which resemble man-made islands in the Gulf of Mexico are busy evacuating to take workers to safety as Dennis approaches.

The U.S. hurricane season lasts from June 1 to Nov. 30. Officials say that never before in recorded history have there been four named storms by July 5.

For: Wikinews

Russian astrologist Marina Bai has filed suit in Moscow asking for 8.7 billion rubles (311 million U.S. dollars) because, she claims, the NASA Deep Impact mission damaged her business by altering her ability to provide accurate horoscopes, harmed her “system of spiritual values,” and will “interfere with the natural life of the universe.”

“It is obvious that elements of the comet’s orbit, and correspondingly the ephemeris, will change after the explosion, which interferes with my astrology work and distorts my horoscope,” Bai was quoted in the daily newspaper, Izvestia.

NASA has refuted similar accusations by pointing out that this impact is only a new addition to many previous collisions already on the comet.

On July 4, NASA successfully crashed a probe into the Tempel 1 comet in hopes the debris kicked up in the resulting explosion could shed light in the building blocks of the early solar system.

The lawsuit, originally filed in June, has not yet been scheduled for an initial hearing, according to Russian authorities.

For: Wikinews

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is investigating allegations of wrongdoing in the building of a new $1.5 billion “skyway” portion of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, according to a report published in the Oakland Tribune. The bridge spans the San Francisco Bay between Oakland and Yerba Buena Island. There are so far no criminal charges filed.

The paper reported that welders for KFM, the company under contract to build the bridge, told authorities they were pressured – and even paid monthly bonuses of between $200 and $600 – for performing substandard welds on the support piers for the bridge if it meant the project proceeded faster. But Caltrans, the state agency in charge of building the bridge said their inspectors checked the welds and determined the work, although rushed, met safety standards.

“We’ve got good welds, good procedures and everything is in place to have a quality product. If a defect got in, we can’t find it,” Pete Siegenthaler, Caltrans project manager told the Tribune in an interview. A KFM spokesman told the Tribune that the welds are in “compliance with stringent Caltrans specifications.”

According to a report by Oakland television station, KTVU, the Office of the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Labor and the U.S. Department of Transportation are joining the FBI in the investigation of the matter. The federal government is getting involved in the investigation because more than $1 million in U.S. taxpayer money was spent during its construction.

If questionable welds are found in the support piers, according to reports, much of the new construction may have to be torn down to be rebuilt.

The current 68-year-old span was damaged in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. At $6.2 billion total, the new bridge qualifies as the largest public works project in California’s history.

For: Wikinews

The local chapter of the Phi Kappa Tau fraternity at California State University, Chico was suspended after members were linked to a pornographic DVD apparently filmed in the club’s fraternity house. According to reports, the DVD shows students engaged in various sexual activities with female porn actresses.

The Chico fraternity also has been suspended by the national Phi Kappa Tau organization and Chico State’s Interfraternity Council, the student governing body for all fraternities. In addition, the national Interfraternity Council issued a press statement saying it was embarrassed by the Chico group’s actions…

For: Wikinews

(Albion (Indiana) New Era – Page 1 – March 1, 1995) 

By David Speakman

Gilbert Franklin Black, Kendallville, almost succeeded in a courtroom gun suicide attempt Tuesday afternoon in Noble County Circuit Court. He was at a sentencing hearing.

Black, 53, had been convicted at an earlier hearing for sexual battery on an 11-year-old girl. He appeared in court for sentencing before Judge Robert C. Probst.

The child and her family were present at the hearing.

According to an aunt of the girl, Probst announced Black would serve three years in prison - the maximum sentence for his conviction.

According to witnesses, Black stood up after the sentence was announced and was asked to await transport by police to the jail.

The aunt said she saw Black’s attorney, Richard Thonert lung as Black pushing him.

Then onlookers could see that Black had removed a small caliber handgun from beneath his jacket and placed it under his chin.

He pulled the trigger while his attorney tried to stop the action, witnesses said.

A single shot was heard throughout the building.

“After the gunshot, the girl’s mother ran from the courtroom,” said the aunt.

A witness at the scene saw the mother and various family members run from the courthouse and exit the east side of the building.

Employees at the county clerk’s office heard a female voice shout, “Call an ambulance, he’s shot himself,” then heard another voice say, “No, don’t. He deserves to die.”

Black was released fro McCray Hospital after treatment of superficial injuries around 3:30 p.m. Tuesday into county police custody to be transported to the Indiana State Penitentiary.

“I’m glad he didn’t die,” the aunt said, expressing further that he deserved to be behind bars.

“He can rape a little girls,” she said, “but can’t face three years in jail.”

 Black was transported by EMS to McCray Memorial after an original Trip to Parkview Hospital in Fort Wayne via Samaritan helicopter was aborted as unnecessary.

Town, county and state law enforcement officers responded tot he call of gunfire in the courthouse.

Ii is not against the law in Indiana to carry a firearm into a courtroom, providing the carrier has a permit, according to Bruce Bryant, administrative assistant for the Indiana State Police Firearms Section in Indianapolis.

lack could be charged, however, with contempt of court, violations of discharging a weapon within town or county property, criminal recklessness and other crimes related to the firearm discharge.

As recently as their Monday regular meeting, Noble County Commissioners have been discussing courthouse security measures.

Noble County Prosecutor David Lauer said the three county judges expressed continuing concern for the prevention of firearms in the courthouse.

“It doesn’t matter how many deputies are in the building or how quickly officers respond,” Lauer said. “By the time shots are fired, it’s too late.”

(Ball State Daily News – Thursday, June 25, 1992)

By DAVID SPEAKMAN
Staff Reporter

WIPB-TV the campus-based Muncie PBS Affiliate, has decided not to air the controversial dramatization, The Lost Language of Cranes.

Based upon David Levitt’s 1986 best-selling novel of the same name, the tale unfolds as a father and son reveal their homosexuality to each other.

The British movie, directed by Nigel Finch, features gay characters in lead roles. Actors such as Angus MacFayden, Eileen Atkins, Corey Parker (thirtysomething) and Brian Cox (the original Hannibal Lector in the film Manhunter) round out the cast.

Some scenes that may have led to this decision to stop the telefilm include the portrayal of shirtless men talking in bed and same-gender kissing.

At press time, station officials were unavailable for comment on the last-minute cancellation of an airing scheduled in local listings.

“I’m surprised that it is not showing,” said Kerry Poynter, Lesbian and Gay Student Association internal vice president.

“At first I was surprised that it was listed as showing in Muncie because it had to do with gay issues,” he said.

LGSA members said WIPB has chosen not to air other programs that deal with homosexuality, including the documentary, Tongues Untied. 

“Gay and lesbian people also donate money to the station and ought to see what they want to see,” Poynter said.

The only Indiana-based station airing the program is the Indiana University-owned PBS affiliate.

“In a college town people tend to be a little more open minded and a large portion of people would be interested in seeing a story like Lost Language of Cranes,” Poynter said. “I’m upset and I’m going to call them. Other people should call Channel 49, too.”

Poynter and other callers to the station last night reached an answering machine.

Other students were not surprised by the decision not to air the critically-acclaimed film.

“I think that this re-validates the point that Muncie is 40 years behind the times and is unwilling to support diversity,” said Robin Schreiber, Student Association director of Communication.

“I don’t understand why Channel 49 is trying to act like a mother for the Muncie community,” said Mike Branham, SA Judicial Court justice. 

(Ball State Daily News – Front Page (lead story) – May 27, 1992)

By DAVID SPEAKMAN
Staff Reporter

Pizza Hut Express will join four other food vendors in the new food court being built this summer to replace Wendy’s restaurant in the Student Center, university officials said.

Although Wendy’s is scheduled to close June 5 with demolition and construction to start soon after, there is no guarantee the food court will be open for business on the first day of classes, Student Center director Bruce Morgan said.

“We have to rely on independent contractors,” Morgan said. “To speed up the construction process, we’ve broken the demolition and construction into different contracts.”

Burger King will replace Wendy’s as the large food vendor in the court and will feature the full national menu, associate vice president of student affairs Barb Jones said.

Jones said Pizza Hut Express will serve personal pan pizzas and bread sticks, and Taco Bell will provide the students’ top food of choice according to surveys.

“This has been a student-driven effort,” Morgan said.

The idea of a food court in the Student Center dates back seven years to the Wendy’s arrival, Morgan said.

Construction of the food court will separate the outlets into two sections, Burger King and Taco Bell will be on the south side (currently occupied by Wendy’s) with removal of an east wall to accommodate the installation of a Pizza Hut Express. the second area, located on the north side entrance will house Baskin Robbins and Gretel’s Bakery Shop.

Morgan said Gretel’s Bakery will serve pastries, cookies, cinnamon rolls and possible fresh fruit.

“Gretel’s is an in-house bakery. Everything will be fresh,” Jones said. “The bakery will test our market and provide what Ball State wants,” Morgan said.

To give the food court a more open feeling, remodeling of the brown tiled area of the lower level of the first floor will coincide with construction. “We wanted to get rid of the “cave feeling” Jones said.

The remodeling will concentrate on removing non-structural walls and lightening the area, said Jones.

A portion of the first floor corridor will be closed during construction. Jones said there will be a problem getting to On The Ball and special arrangements will be made for disabled students.

Jones and Morgan said disabled individuals should go to the hotel desk and make arrangements to be escorted through the construction area to access On The Ball. Access to Career Services and Student Legal Services may also be affected by construction.

The food court will increase on-campus employment. “ARA(the company managing the restaurants) will be employing students and will be going though Career Services,” said Jones. The company may also work with out food management program to create a program for internships.

“This is jobs for students,” said Morgan. “A lot of ARA managers were former student employees.”

ARA Services is also interested in pursuing an environmentally sound establishment. ”They have a very active environmental program,” said Jones. ARA has expressed a desire to tailor its environmental program to suit the campus needs.

OUTLET DISHING OUT FOOD ITEMS

While the food court construction is underway, Dining Services will be providing a food outlet based in the southeast corner of the Tally.

“We move in Monday, June 8,” assistant director of dining services Betty Hays said. She said hours will be 7 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.

From 7-1 a.m. the outlet will be selling breakfast foods. These items include juices, donuts, croissants, muffins, fresh fruit, cereal, coffee, tea, milk, sodas and mineral waters, according to a memo from Liz VanMatre, dining service assistant director of operations.

Also available at this time will be carry-out entrees. “This is so people can buy their lunch in the morning to eat later,” Hays said.

Summer lunch hours start at 11 a.m. and will feature a hot entree that will vary from fried chicken, casseroles and vegetarian lasagna.