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New York man charged with killing and dismembering his mother appears in court wearing trash bag

Bahsid McLean, Tanya Byrd
New York - A man charged with killing and dismembering his mother and dumping her body parts in the trash appeared in court Thursday dressed in a garbage bag and said he'd done nothing wrong - even though detectives say they found a cellphone photo of him holding her severed head.

Bahsid McLean, 23, was charged with murder, hindering prosecution and criminal possession of a weapon. According to a criminal complaint, he stabbed Tanya Byrd and then cut up her body with help from an accomplice, William Harris, 26.

Byrd, a 45-year-old home health aide, was last seen alive Monday. Her remains were found a day later stuffed in four plastic garbage bags and scattered along four blocks, police said.

Detectives said they recovered an image on McLean's phone of him holding his mother's severed head.

"I didn't do anything wrong," McLean said during court.

McLean's attorney for the arraignment, Jerry Iannece, said his client wore the bizarre covering because he had been urinating on himself. The shorts he had been wearing were soaked through, so court personnel gave him the trash bag to wear, Iannece said.

Iannece said his client was off his medication but didn't say what type. McLean was held without bail, was placed on suicide watch in protective custody and was undergoing a psychiatric evaluation.

"Everybody's innocent until proven guilty," Iannece said. "Obviously this is a troubling case, but we will investigate and defend it thoroughly."

Padlock

Gunman in New York officer's death gets 45 years to life

Lamont Pride
© The Associated PressLamont Pride
New York - A man convicted of firing the shot that killed a policeman during a botched robbery was sentenced Thursday to 45 years to life in prison after the slain officer's loved ones described how he would never walk his four daughters down the aisle or meet his grandchildren.

Lamont Pride, 28, was convicted this month of second-degree murder and manslaughter in the death of Officer Peter Figoski; he was acquitted of a more serious murder charge. But state Supreme Court Judge Alan Marrus sentenced him to the maximum time allowed under the law.

"I want to make it crystal clear," he said, "that it is my intention that the defendant serve this sentence and never get out of prison."

The courtroom was packed with Figoski's family and fellow officers, many of whom wept as the family spoke. The assembled also included relatives of other officers lost in the line of duty: the father and sister of Alain Schaberger, who was shoved to his death while answering a domestic violence call in 2011, and the mother of Russel Timoshenko, who was shot during a 2007 traffic stop.

"When our father died, a part of us died, too," said 15-year-old Corinne Figoski, who spoke through tears along with her three sisters.

"Our dad was our world, our everything," she said. "Nothing will ever be the same again. We lay in bed, in the dark, at night, thinking about all the ways things have changed."

Her sister, Caitlyn, 19, said they'll miss being walked down the aisle by him, "something every father and every daughter dream of."

"Our father will never see us grow into the strong, independent women he wanted us to be," she said.

Heart - Black

Jody Arias weeps as testimony turns to killing of lover

Jodi Arias
© The Associated PressJodi Arias walks off the witness stand during the Jodi Arias trial at Maricopa County Superior Court in Phoenix on Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2013.
Phoenix - Jodi Arias sobbed uncontrollably Thursday, burying her face in her hands as a prosecutor relentlessly questioned her about the day she stabbed and shot her lover to death then methodically went about covering her tracks.

"Ma'am, were you crying when you were shooting him?" prosecutor Juan Martinez snapped.

"I don't remember," Arias replied, weeping.

"Were you crying when you were stabbing him?" Martinez asked.

"I don't remember," Arias said softly.

"How about when you cut his throat, were you crying then?" the prosecutor asked loudly.

It was the most dramatic day of testimony in the widely watched death penalty trial that has captured headlines nationwide for weeks with salacious tales of raunchy sex, betrayal and a bloody killing.

Arias, 32, is charged in the June 2008 death of her lover in his suburban Phoenix home. She says she was forced to fight for her life after Travis Alexander attacked her, but police say she planned the killing in a jealous rage. Arias initially told authorities she had nothing to do with Alexander's death, then later blamed it on masked intruders before settling on self-defense.

Testimony resumes next week after Martinez concluded his cross-examination Thursday.

Cloud Grey

States of mind: 10 most depressing states in the U.S.

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On its own, where you live isn't enough to make you depressed. Personal circumstances and genes also play an important role in mental health, so an area that feels like a downer to one person may be home sweet home to another.

That said, mental distress is unusually and persistently common in some states, whether due to economic troubles, lack of access to health care, or other factors.

Syringe

'Disabled children cost too much and should be put down': Calls for UK councillor to stand down after outrageous rant

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Councillor Collin Brewer's remarks were described as 'depraved' but he is refusing to quit
  • Cllr Collin Brewer refuses to quit and has apologised to Disability Cornwall
  • Told BBC radio that the timing wasn't good because of upcoming elections
  • Charity says his apology was an insult and he should quit his post
  • Defended himself by saying he was 'hot under the collar' after a meeting
  • Mr Brewer forced to write apology a year and a half after offensive remark
  • 97 per cent of people in local paper poll say Mr Brewer should resign
  • Katie Price tweeted 'How would you like to dispose of my son Harvey???'
  • Cornwall Council distanced itself from Mr Brewer's 'ignorant' comment
A councillor told a charity worker who helps youngsters with special needs that 'disabled children cost the council too much money and should be put down'.

Collin Brewer, 68, an independent councillor at Cornwall Council, has refused to stand down after making the 'depraved' remark to the member of a charity during an information event.

What he said has received wide-spread condemnation including that of Katie Price whose son, Harvey, is severely disabled.

Mr Brewer admitted that he made the comment to 'provoke a reaction' and has now been forced to apologise in writing for the offensive remark.

Wolf

Animal obesity a growing problem in the U.S.


  • Los Angeles - Much like their human owners, animals have to deal with unwanted weight, too.

    KCAL9's Sibila Vargas reported that animal obesity is an epidemic across the country with more than 50 percent of pets now overweight.

    Natasha, who owns an adorable dog named Colonel, said she knows her furry friend has overindulged in food.

    "Every time he goes up the stairs, he expects a treat. You spoil them and then you don't realize what you're doing," she said.

    For the past few months, Natasha has been working with Dr. Jeff Werber, a Los Angeles veterinarian, to help her dog lose those stubborn extra pounds.

    Werber said cutting calories is the key.

    Comment: Animal obesity is a serious issue, but one that is easily solvable by switching your furry friend's diet to an all-meat diet. Contrary to popular belief fruits, veggies, grains, and other additives that are put in brand name pet food are very harmful to animals. Those harmful ingredients go against the animal's carnivorous nature. They need meat, much like us humans! For more information on all-meat diets for your furry friend, please read:
    Feeding Your Cat: Know the Basics of Feline Nutrition
    Doctor J.com for information on Canine nutrition
    and
    Raw Meaty Bones.com


    Extinguisher

    New York City firefighter accused of beating wife with iPad

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    © Bryan Bedder/Getty Images
    Report: Eric Bischoff Went Ballistic Over Image She Posted On The Internet

    A New York City firefighter was arrested this week, on charges that he bashed his wife in the head with an iPad following a heated argument.

    The FDNY's Eric Bischoff, 39, was arrested at 9 a.m. Tuesday in the 123rd Precinct on the south shore of Staten Island. He was charged with second-degree assault.

    Police told 1010 WINS that Bischoff attacked his wife in their home and beat her with the Apple device.

    When she tried to escape, he grabbed her by the hair, threw her onto a patio floor and locked the door, according to published reports.

    The couple had been arguing over a photo his wife had posted on the Internet, but authorities have not said what was in the photo, according to published reports.

    Padlock

    Mexican teachers union chief appears behind bars after arrest

    Elba Esther Gordillo
    © Juzgado Sexto de Distrito en Pro / Associated Press In this photo released by Mexico's federal court system, Elba Esther Gordillo appears for a hearing in Mexico City.
    Elba Esther Gordillo, Mexico's powerful teachers union leader, appeared behind bars Wednesday in an unusual public display as authorities read the charges against her.

    Gordillo, 68, was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of using more than $200 million in union funds for personal gain.

    Gordillo stood in a plain white turtleneck with her hair pulled back, behind a grid of black metal bars, a standard court setup in Mexico. But its live airing on cable TV was unusual because such proceedings in Mexico are rarely accessible to the public. When they have been aired, judicial reform activists have criticized them as unfairly incriminating a suspect.

    Gordillo lifted her eyes toward the ceiling and sighed briefly as the charges were read. She is accused of misusing funds belonging to the National Syndicate of Education Workers, or SNTE, for real estate, designer goods, artwork and plastic surgery.

    Gordillo, who is considered "president for life" of the teachers union, was arrested Tuesday as she arrived at the airport in Toluca, west of Mexico City, along with three aides.

    Info

    Central Michigan University set to host 'STD Bingo' as part of 'condom casino' night

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    The Condom Casino promises to be a "highly interactive" program "arousing college campuses around the country."
    Central Michigan University (CMU) will host a "Condom Casino" on Wednesday night, in which students can gamble to win condoms in games such as "5 Card Foreplay Poker" and "STD Bingo."

    "Experience what happens when a casino night, speed dating and the topic of sex combine for a provocative night of prizes and awareness," the official website for the event reads.

    CMU has outsourced the event to a private company, which apparently puts on the "Condom Casino Tour" across the country. It is not clear if the individuals employed by the organization possess any special medical credentials to discuss matters of sexual health with students.

    The organization describes the Condom Casino as a "brand new program arousing college campuses across the country."

    The program also promises to be "highly interactive" and advertises to attendees "it is fun, it is fast paced, it is full of surprises and it is certainly a safe bet to sex awareness on any campus!"

    In a video, a spokesman for the Condom Casino Tour says organizers aim to avoid the sensitive subject of morality in their programming.

    Pills

    Panic in Greek pharmacies as hundreds of medicines run short

    Pharmaceutical companies accused of cutting supplies because of low profits and unpaid bills.
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    © John Kolesidis/ReutersA woman gestures at the state health fund office in Athens. Chemists say patients have been going from pharmacy to pharmacy in search of prescription drugs.
    Athens - Greece is facing a serious shortage of medicines amid claims that pharmaceutical multinationals have halted shipments to the country because of the economic crisis and concerns that the drugs will be exported by middlemen because prices are higher in other European countries.

    Hundreds of drugs are in short supply and the situation is getting worse, according to the Greek drug regulator. The government has drawn up a list of more than 50 pharmaceutical companies it accuses of halting or planning to halt supplies because of low prices in the country.

    More than 200 medicinal products are affected, including treatments for arthritis, hepatitis C and hypertension, cholesterol-lowering agents, antipsychotics, antibiotics, anaesthetics and immunomodulators used to treat bowel disease.

    Separately, it was announced on Tuesday that the Swiss Red Cross was slashing its supply of donor blood to Greece because it had not paid its bills on time.

    Chemists in Athens describe chaotic scenes with desperate customers going from pharmacy to pharmacy to look for prescription drugs that hospitals could no longer dispense.