Federal investigators are in the midst of an active criminal investigation of disgraced former Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong, ABC News has learned.
The revelation comes in stark contrast to statements made by the U.S. Attorney for Southern California, Andre Birotte, who addressed his own criminal inquiry of Armstrong for the first time publicly on Tuesday. Birotte’s office spent nearly two years investigating Armstrong for crimes reportedly including drug distribution, fraud and conspiracy — only to suddenly drop the case on the Friday before the Super Bowl last year.
Armstrong has yet to comment on the reports but, given his recent admissions on Oprah, we’d imagine he would have a hard time defending himself in court should the government decide to prosecute. Do you think Lance Armstrong should face criminal penalties for covering-up his usage of performance enhancing substances?
Barring an unexpected turn of legislative affairs, a ban on military-style semi-automatic assault weapons will not make it into law, top Hill aides and gun policy advocates say.
The ban will get a vote. But the purpose of that vote will be in part to facilitate its demise. The expectation is that there won’t be 60 members of the upper chamber to support the bill’s inclusion in the final legislative language.
The likelihood that an assault weapons ban ends up in the legislative scrapheap is hardly unexpected — the Wall Street Journal also reported on the issue on Monday morning. The ban is the most controversial of four major components of the gun control platform that the Obama administration introduced and that congressional Democrats have touted.
Long story short, Sen. Harry Reid is hoping that a Senate sub-committee strips out the assault weapons ban so that three more-popular gun control proposals might be passed by both chambers of Congress. Hit the jump for a detailed breakdown of the plan, and what it could mean for the gun control debate going forward.
A law enforcement source says initial reports indicate that a five-year-old boy who was being held hostage in an underground bunker in Alabama for nearly a week has been released.
Authorities say 65-year-old Jimmy Lee Dykes shot and killed a bus driver last week in Midland City and then abducted the boy.
Dykes is now dead, the source says, but the boy is in stable condition. An ambulance was seen leaving the area of the bunker.
We’re glad to hear that unidentified young man is safe, and will be keeping an eye on the situation as new details continue to emerge. Officials have not yet released Dykes’ cause of death, though its possible that such an announcement could take place during a press conference scheduled this afternoon.
Tagg Romney, son of former GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney, is considering a Senate run in Massachusetts’s upcoming special election, according to the Boston Herald.
The Herald reported Monday that Romney was considering a bid to replace John Kerry in the seat that opened up after Kerry became Secretary of State. The Herald would not identify the source of its information.
Something tells us that the guy who admitted to wanting to slug the President over an election debate probably isn’t going to have the most positive effect on Senate already rendered rather ineffective by partisanship and bickering. We’d like to say his election would at least be a step up from Geraldo Rivera, but even that seems questionable at best…
Atlanta Police said a 14-year-old student has been shot at Price Middle School, near the Lakewood Heights neighborhood south of downtown Atlanta on Thursday afternoon.
According to the Atlanta Fire Department, there was a 14-year-old shot in the head. Grady Memorial Hospital says they have received one under-aged gunshot victim.
A second person was reported to have received cuts and bruises, but it is not known if that person was shot.
This is a developing story, and we’ll keep you updated as more information becomes available. For the time being, parents are being asked not to come to the school to avoid creating additional confusion.
Update: The alleged gunmen has been apprehended by Atlanta PD, and is believed to be a student; however, a name has not been released at this time.
Ten-year-old Nathaniel Pendleton Jr. recalled the way his big sister Hadiya would often greet him with a few gentle slaps on his cheeks whenever she came home from school.
“She said it was with love,” he said.Nathaniel etched “I miss you” and “I love you” on his arm Wednesday, a day after losing his only sibling when a gunman opened fire on a group of students just blocks from King College Prep on the South Side.
While it’s hard to say any single death is more important than another (particularly in a place where young people are dying so frequently), we suspect that Hadiya Pendleton’s time in Washington D.C. last week will make her death an intense topic of discussion as the gun control debate continues around the nation. Our hearts go out to the Pendletons, and all of Hadiya’s other family and friends, during what we can only imagine to be one of the most difficult times of their lives.
At least three people were shot and wounded when gunfire erupted at a business complex in Phoenix on Wednesday, and authorities were combing the area for the suspected gunman, police said on Wednesday.
Phoenix Police spokesman James Holmes said the people who were shot were taken from the scene to a local hospital, and there was no immediate word on their condition.
While police continue to look for the suspect, law enforcement officials have confirmed that there were no deaths as a result of today’s shooting. The timing of today’s attack will likely be dissected at great length in the days ahead, with the shooting occurring at roughly the same time that former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords testified before the Senate on gun violence.
Update: There are now 5 confirmed injuries from the attack, three of which were life-threatening for the victims, though none of the victims have died at this time.
According to new reports, the Boy Scouts of America are currently asking for public opinions on their potential plan to abandon a long-standing policy which barred gay members/leaders from joining the organization. If you’d like to share your thoughts, call the Boy Scouts of America national headquarters (972-580-2330) or send an email to nationalsupportcenter@scouting.org (h/t to OutsideTheArk) source
Tina Turner, a 73-year-old American-born singer whose career has spanned more than half a century, has lived in Switzerland since the mid-1990s and was officially granted citizenship by the Swiss government on Friday.
Translation: Tina Turner thinks Switzerland is simply the best, better than all the rest.
Yahoo wants to buy Hulu now too. They’re going on an “I...
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Tumblr this morning. [h/t anne]
#@#$%!.tumblr.com
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Thirty hostages and at least 11 Islamist militants were killed on Thursday when Algerian forces stormed a desert gas plant in a bid to free many dozens of Western and local captives, an Algerian security source said.
Details remained scant - including for Western governments, some of which did little to disguise irritation at being kept in the dark by Algeria before the raid and its bloody outcome.
Two Japanese, two Britons and a French national were among at least seven foreigners killed, the source told Reuters. Eight of the dead hostages were Algerian. The nationalities of the rest, as well as of perhaps dozens more who escaped, were unclear.
One of the worst international hostage situations in the modern era has now come to an end; unfortunately, Thursday evening brought about what many would consider to be the worst possible outcome. Our thoughts go out to the family and friends of the deceased.
UPDATE: Information from varying sources is wildly different, according to USA Today, with some suggesting just a few casualties and others, including the Reuters report, suggesting as many as 30 people have died.
It is doubtless that such a technological terror in the hands of so primitive a world would be used to upset the peace and sanctity of the citizens of the Galactic Empire. Such destructive power can only be wielded to protect and defend by so enlightened a leader as Emperor Palpatine.Governor Wilhuff Tarkin of the Outer Rim Territories • In response to the White House’s official statement on a We The People petition which urged President Obama to authorize the construction of a Death Star. A response from the “Galactic Empire” has been posted on StarWars.com, and you’ll definitely want to take a minute to check it out. Today’s been a pretty great day for parodies, don’t you think? source
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